SESSION 20A: FUNERAL FOR A PYTHON VIPER
April 27th, 2008
The 8th Day of Kadal in the 790th Year of the Seyrunian Dynasty
It was only a few all-too-short hours later before they were rousing themselves out of bed once again.
Ranthir was one of the first to wake up. For several days he had been eagerly looking forward to reading the sealed letter that the Iron Mage had given to them at Castle Shard during the Harvesttime party. He had placed the letter on his bedside table the night before, and the first thing he saw upon opening his eyes was the letter lying open.
IRON MAGE’S LETTER
My dear friends—
I am sorry that I could not deliver these instructions to you in person so that I might answer all of your questions. But, sadly, necessities of another nature will make that impossible by the time all of the particulars are known.
By the time this letter opens – which shall be no later than the ninth day of Kadal, if all goes well – the particulars will be known, and thus I have ensorcelled this parchment to reveal them to you.
On the twenty-first day of Kadal, the Freeport’s Sword – a privateer vessel from the Teeth of Light – shall arrive in the Docks of Ptolus. It carries a crate bearing my seal – a plated visor beneath crossed wands.
I ask that you report to Captain Bartholomew upon the arrival of the vessel, collect the crate, and keep it safe. I shall return for it no later than Nocturdei.
I stress that all of this is of the utmost importance. Many lives could be placed in great danger if the crate is not kept safe from the others who seek it.
THE IRON MAGE
IT WAS TIME FOR A REST
After reading the letter over, Ranthir took it downstairs and showed it to Tee (who was already up). As the others made their dreary-eyed way down to breakfast, each of them read it in turn.
The previous night, the group had postponed the question of what their next immediate goal should be until they could see what the letter might say. Now that it was clear that, even if they decided to do the Iron Mage’s bidding in this matter, it would still be nearly two weeks before it required their attention, their decision had been simplified: They could either pursue the information that Shim had given them regarding Pythoness House; or they could finish exploring the last few nooks and crannies of the complex they had found in Ghul’s Labyrinth.
Tee, for her part, was angry that – caught up in the elation of catching Shilukar, saving Lord Abbercombe, and helping Lord Zavere – they had failed to question the dark elf before turning him over to the authorities. The others, realizing the mistake they had potentially made, quickly fell to discussing ways they might be able to get Shilukar back under their control… but none of them seemed particularly practical.
And they had another affair to attend to, as well: The funeral for Elestra’s python viper – a companion that had been by her side since she was a young girl – was scheduled for later that same morning. So the decision was made that, after paying their respects, they would use the day for rest and recuperation. The next day they would go to Pythoness House and search for the mysterious key that Shim had mentioned, in the hopes that it would answer the most important question of all: What had happened to their memories?
They spent the next hour or so finding buyers for the treasures they had recovered from Shilukar and the Shuul; shopping for various supplies; and then stopping by the Hammersong Vaults to bank the rest of their money. (“I just don’t want to be carrying around 5,000 gold sovereigns,” Elestra said.)
(Tee, however, actually made a withdrawal – slipping the coins into her bag of holding.)
FUNERAL FOR A PYTHON VIPER
From the vaults in Oldtown they headed back down city, taking the North Gate Road to Golden Elm Way and then following that east along the northern edge of the Temple District until they could see the Siege Tower rising above the cold stone wall of the Necropolis.
As they were walking, Tee spoke to the others of the Necropolis: “It’s safe enough during the day, but at night no one in their right mind would go there. The undead have never been fully brought under control – there are catacombs and crypts that delve so deep that it’s said no one but the dead has ever seen them.”
The Siege Tower itself spoke of the dangers of the Necropolis louder than words could: The passage of stone which passed beneath it into the Necropolis could be sealed shut with iron doors and double portcullises on both ends. And, when they passed through it, they could see more than two dozen murder holes running the length and breadth of the road. The entire place could be turned into a lethal death trap within moments.
The Siege Tower itself, as Tee explained, was watched over by the Keepers of the Veil – an order of knights dedicated to fighting the undead. Or, at the very least, keeping their threat contained.
Mand Scheben was waiting for them just outside of the Siege Tower. Two priests with him were carrying a small, circular coffin of stained mahogany. The lid of the coffin had been carved in the likeness of a snake.
After greeting them, Mand Scheben led them through the Siege Tower. Entering the Necropolis was like emerging into a city: An avenue of stone ran between massive houses of the dead – enormous crypts of gothic architecture that seemed as old as the hills.
The Necropolis had been built upon a low bulging hill that lay just along the Cliffs of Lost Wishes at the eastern edge of the city. As they moved a little further into the Necropolis, therefore, they were able to look over the top of the mausoleums and see seemingly endless rows of gravestones dotted with crypts of various sizes running up the hill. In the farthest distance, an the edge of the cliffs themselves, they could see an enormous, castle-like building.
“What’s that?”
Tee looked… and barely suppressed a shudder. “The Dark Reliquary. Some say it’s older than the city itself. Some even say it’s older than the Dalenguard. No one goes near it now. People who do don’t come back.”
After more than a quarter of a mile, they came to one of the houses of the dead. From the outside it seemed very large indeed – dwarfing even some of the larger buildings of Oldtown. But once they entered they realized that it was larger still – for much of the structure’s bulk lay beneath the surface.
Mand Scheben led them through countless passages that twisted back upon themselves, before finally coming to a place where a small tomb niche had been left open – the solid stone block levered out and put to one side.
The priests placed the mahogany coffin before the open tomb and withdrew, from various pouches in their robes, ceremonial candles and the like. Once these were lit, Mand Scheben said several prayers and then asked if any of those gathered had any words to say.
Elestra was choking on her sobs, so Agnarr – patting her comfortingly on the back – stepped forward and cleared his throat. “This snake saved my life.” He paused to think about this for a moment, before adding: “Many times.” Then he nodded and stepped back.
The coffin was placed into the tomb niche and the stone slab levered back into place. Additional prayers were said, and then the final words of grace. When it was done, Mand Scheben led them back towards the surface. (The other priests stayed behind to continue saying the holy words and blessings which would pay honor to the dead and, hopefully, keep the body from being raised by necromancy.)
LEARNING MORE ABOUT PYTHONESS HOUSE
Mand Scheben walked with them back to the Siege Tower. The Keepers of the Veil seemed more suspicious of those leaving the Necropolis than those entering it – they spotted at least one of the knights casting a spell which Ranthir recognized as a means of detecting the undead. (Fortunately, all of them apparently passed the test and the Keepers allowed them to pass unmolested.)
Mand Scheben then said his farewells and headed south into the Temple District. After some brief discussion, the rest of them split up as well – some of them heading back to the Ghostly Minstrel while others scattered through the city.
Elestra, for her part, opened her heart to the spirit of the city and listened to what it might whisper to her about Pythoness House. Tee had remembered that it had once been the stronghold of the cult of the Crimson Coil. Tee and Ranthir had also known a good deal about the cult, but almost nothing about Pythoness House itself.
Her questions were soon being answered, starting with the location of the house itself. It stood near the base of the Jeweled Cliffs along the western edge of Oldtown, looking out over the King’s River Gorge.
Pythoness House was, in fact, an ancient manor house. Five years ago it had been established as a popular but illegal brothel with an odd twist: The prostitutes working there claimed to see the future during sexual intercourse and would give their clients a “reading” of their future based on this sexual ecstasy. This brothel, however, was also apparently a front for the operations of the Crimson Coil cult and, two and a half years ago, the Knights of the Pale had raided it and rooted the cult out. The brothel was shut down and the house had been empty ever since.
Before the brothel had moved in, the house had been abandoned for many years. It had previously been owned by an elven historian named Navaen Blueflight, who had lived there for many years before disappearing mysteriously.
The house had originally been built nearly five hundred years ago by a wealthy woman named Darma Kolltis. She had been the head of a minor merchant house which was now defunct.
After learning that the house was reputedly abandoned, Elestra decided to walk past the house itself… just to make sure that it wasn’t being watched.
She was astonished to see that it looked more like a small keep than a house. The entire structure sat atop a hill overgrown with weeds, shrubs, and tall, unkempt grass. The property was surrounded by a low stone wall, but the iron gate facing Emmitt Street was in such poor repair that one could easily slip through the rusted, broken bars and walk up to the open stone arch on the wall of the building itself. As far as Elestra could tell, the structure was completely abandoned.
Satisfied, Elestra turned and headed back towards the Ghostly Minstrel – taking her time and listening to the Voice of the City as she went. The news she heard was grim: Another body had been found in the Warrens with its skin completely flayed from its body. Rumors were beginning to spread that a serial killer might be responsible.
But the news of Shilukar’s capture was also spreading like wildfire… and all of their names were being mentioned.
WITH BLUE IN THE GRASSLANDS
Tor headed back to the Ghostly Minstrel and spent a few minutes in the kitchen, packing a light lunch of sweet creams and fruit. Then he headed out to the stables. Blue ninnied at his approach – it had been too many days since they had ridden together. Tor rubbed his nose, whispered in his ear, and with soft, expert motions worked the saddle onto his back.
They headed towards the tourney fields north of town. Tor had been hoping to get back to them since viewing the tourney on Harvesttime and now he finally had the opportunity.
As expected, the tourney fields were abandoned. Tor took the time to ride several passes with Blue, feeling the familiar rhythms of the saddle. After more than an hour, both Tor and Blue had worked up a lather of sweat. Tor dismounted, took the saddle off of Blue, and rubbed him down.
After letting Blue rest for awhile, Tor saddled him again and galloped east across the open grasslands. When they reached the sea cliffs north of Ptolus, Tor stopped again and – letting Blue graze freely on the prairie grasses – settled down to his own lunch while gazing out over the Southern Sea.
They stayed there a long while, and then Tor mounted once more and rode slowly back towards the city.
AGNARR LOOKS FOR A DOG (AGAIN)
“It’s like there are no damn dogs in this entire city!”
