GoCorral

This session was held over Google hangouts. Will, Avery, Jamie, and Trajan were in attendance.

To Rely on a Spy?

The Alliance Council met to discuss Amalius’s return and what to do about his previous espionage actions for the enemy. Arendil called the meeting to order. Astyanax spoke first, “Well Amalius, the Alliance has recovered you from the clutches of the Xorian Empire. But are you on our side now or are you still with them? Since your departure we have examined all the other Alliance members for treachery. The same will be done to you. Titandra and Torin will question you in another room.”
Titandra and Torin stood up and led Amalius to a separate room. Titandra dropped a zone of truth down. While questioning Amalius they confirmed that he had helped the Xorians only because they were holding his family hostage. Titandra asked if he would continue to help the Xorians if his family was still alive and in their captivity. Amalius said, “Family before honor.”
Titandra also asked about Amalius’ past before he was captured by the Xorians to work for them. When he was just a baby, Amalius’ father, Amalganus, had left for Greece on an unknown mission. Amalius ran away from home to follow his father at a young age. Titandra learned that Amalius found his father dead in Athens, but Amalius refused to divulge more about the past events. Titandra and Torin said it might be necessary to place a magical enchantment on Amalius to ensure his loyalty, but left it at that.
The three returned to the Council Chambers. Titandra said, “Amalius helped the Xorians only because they held his family captive. I believe he will be loyal to us if his family is freed from Xorian captivity. We should divine whether they are free or passed at a later time.”
The Council was silent for a time. Amalius stood up to speak, “My lords! I have heard that you are forming an army out of slaves. I could be most useful for this task. We know that the body of a slave belongs to its master, but the mind reminds independent. I, as a powerful telepath, can bring the slaves’ minds under our control. I can remain useful to the Alliance even if you doubt my loyalty. Look at what my power allows!”
Amalius gestured at the handful of servants in the room as they stiffly marched behind him and saluted.
Astyanax stood and spoke, “It is your mind that is under suspicion, Amalius, not those of our men. These people have served the Council and its members faithfully for many years. Release them at once.”
Surprise touched Amalius’ face, “Of course.” He snapped his fingers and the servants shook their heads, glared at Amalius, and returned to their previous positions in the room. “I did not mean to offend.”
“You may not have, but I can see that the Xorian’s influence over you still holds in some ways.”
Astyanax and Amalius sat down and commenced to having a staring contest. The rest of the Council Members were unsure of what to say or do.

The Blind Seer Speaks

A minute or two passed by. The sun reached its zenith and shined down through the oculus of the dome in the Council Chambers. As it did so Titandra’s eyes lit up and light poured out of them. Her mouth opened and light shone from her tongue as well. She spoke with two voices, one her own, one with such strength and power that it could only be a god.
Land, Sea, and Sky turn against you.
The Earth trembles and Hell marches in the West.
The Savior has fallen, but a new one will arise.
The end is at the start and the son will meet the father of the renewal.
Victory lies in the unmaking of the Dragon.
Apollo is with the Rebels. They have freed Gazeara.

The light left Titandra and she fell back into her chair, visibly weakened by the experience.
Arendil stood up, “The Council is adjourned into this prophecy can be fully understood.” The Council left to the nearby sitting room (now with new furniture) to talk about the prophecy.
The party thought that Sea and Sky were certainly Poseidon and Ares. They were unsure of what Land could be, but felt it had to be another deity. Or “Land, Sea, and Sky” could just be euphemisms for the vastness of the Xorian army, fleet, and flying dragovinian units.
They bypassed “The Earth trembles,” and focused on “Hell marching in the West.” Xoria is in the west, so this seemed fairly obvious. The dragovinians are undead, so they’re “the Hell marching in the West.”
Various people were named as “the Fallen Savior.” Everyone from the First Alliance War as well as Amalius or Astyanax. Everyone privately though they were the New Savior.
“The end is at the start” was thought to reference the five people responsible for the first Alliance, Amalgami, Atreides, Salzar, Princess Tarigananata, and General Antapike. The party was unsure who the son and father of renewal would be.
“Victory lies in the unmaking of the Dragon” seemed pretty obvious. So did the message about Apollo and Gazeara.
Unsure of what to do about this news, the party decided to focus on Amalius. They had to ensure his loyalty and the best way to do that would be to rescue his family or his family’s corpses.

Snatched from the Fire

The next day Amalius used a psionic divination and asked, “Where are the wife and children of Amalius Halkias?”
The cryptic response was, “In the future, as yet unmade.”
Turning to Hektor, Amalius imparted a mental image of his wife Denara, and asked Hektor to scry her. Hektor agreed.
He said, “I see a wooden deck. Your wife is chained to a post on the deck. Your children are also chained to posts. There’s a man in an executioner’s cowl saying something.”
Sabriyya said, “I think we need to go now. Like, right now, to rescue them.”
Amalius said, “Right! Everyone cast your preparation spells quickly!”
The spells and powers were cast and Hektor teleported the part in.

The wooden deck was in the middle of a large town square. The damaged buildings around the square identified the town as Phoenix. People filled the square facing the wooden deck. Ten Xorian guards surrounded the deck, warning people off with their drawn weapons. A few dragovinians could be seen in the crowd and on the roofs surrounding the square. The executioner said, “-to be executed by fire!”

Sabriyya rolled past the guards to the executioner and cut his legs off with her scimatars. He fell to the ground, quickly bleeding out. Torin animated the chains on the Halkias family. Aldarian moved to defend Amalius’ twin son and daughter. Tagenadi defended Amalius’ wife and older daughter. Hektor cast invisibility on himself. Amalius raised two energy walls in a circle around the deck.

A great roar came from behind the buildings to the south. A ball of shadows rose up over the city. In the ball of shadows was the Dragon Reaper God, Blendegad. Fear clutched at the hearts of the party, but those under the affects of mind blank remained unaffected.
Torin grabbed the wife, the older daughter, and the son before teleporting out with his boots. The others moved around Hektor and he quickly teleported away with them as well.
Upon returning to Astyanax’s estate in Bradel Fields, Amalius asked for a few moments alone with his family. They went to a separate room. The rest of the party stayed in the room next to the family’s.

And into the Stew

After a couple minutes Amalius’ voice could be heard through the door, “HE was DEAD!”
Then Denara shouted, “But I’ve met him! He gave us the tablecloth for our house! Please! You’re scaring the children.”
At that, Aldarian reacted to a silent command and went into the room. He took the kids and led them out and to the nearby nursery in Astyanax’s house. Amalius closed the door. Tagenadi left the adjoining room, not wanting to hear more than he should of others’ domestic disputes.
Denara shouted, “Who is that? Where is he taking them?! Tell me what’s going on!”
A minute or so later Denara shouted again, “I’ve never met your grandfather! Please stop! You’re making me scared!”
A few more minutes passed and then the wall separating the two rooms blew apart with magical sonic energy. Amalius’s dagger, Korm, came flying out of the room and imbedded in the opposite wall. When the dust settled, Denara was in the room. Amalius was absent having dimension doored away.

Tagenadi came rushing back. Sabriyya went to Denara, but she clawed at the elf and backed into the corner of the room demanding that she be left alone. Tagenadi went up to her while Sabriyya retrieved Korm from the wall. Denara yelled at Tagenadi, demanding to be left alone. He told her everything would be alright and did his best to comfort her without touching her.

Korm said to everyone in the room, “I told him. That’s not his wife. Amalius has no wife. I was there when he was growing up in Greece. He never married.”

The party talked among themselves. They got Denara to contribute as well after returning her children to her and calming her down. At the end of it they had three versions of Amalius’ backstory. One told by Korm, one by Denara, and a third by Aldarian.

Thoroughly confused, the group puzzled over what the truth was.