Left alone in Mordecai’s mansion, Roxy and Steve do what any pirate and thief would do. They decide to steal the orb back. Maybe some other things, too, but Roxy won’t shut up until she has the orb. Unfortunately for them, the room was trapped. (What? Really? Mordecai doesn’t leave important things unprotected?) A couple of (very) poison darts and a few moving statues quickly changed their minds. So, the heroes turned their attentions to more productive ventures. Namely, hiding in the mansion and drinking Mordecai’s booze.) Until they noticed Alexi and the old man from scene 24. I mean, the cloaked man from session 4 (who has no eyes). And they were walking unmolested through the streets. Our heroes braved the battle ground of the compound, dodging fights and stray arrows and got the pair’s attention. They discovered that the two were somehow unnoticed by the beings destroying the rest of the city (and presumable everywhere else.) They seemed to know something about what was going on and more than that, would prove excellent allies in the plan to start the Terronist religion. However, the heroes were beginning to be noticed by the angels and the conversation had to be cut short. Alexi and the man said they would be in Trilake for a while and that they may be willing to help. The night passed and the heroes rested as best they could. By morning, the battle still raged on, and it seemed that demons and devils had joined the fray. Even parts of the compound showed signs of damage. The heroes realized that they could only hide for so long, and decided to head out to gather some followers. After all, what better time to preach a new religion than a time of widespread panic and destruction? On their way to the nearest temple, they found their old (well, month longish) friend Otto Sir Otto, merrily slaying the foul creatures that would threaten a city full of such soft and beautiful women. Never one to forsake friends, Otto rejoins the group. After only a few blocks, they come across a half dozen angels of Valor bearing symbols of Kord, Pelor, and Bahamut. Meanwhile, William Tacket, braving the streets in hopes of finding some sign of either Steve Quint or Otto Sir Otto, came upon the same group of angels. The battle started rough, but Vlad caught up and helped even the odds. It was still a close fight, but the heroes prevailed and took shelter in a nearby temple of Erathis. Steve began preaching about the only god not participating in the slaughter, Terron! The head priest of the temple was not in the mood to put up with some the derogatory things Steve was insinuating about the other gods, but was not the type to throw someone into a death zone. Steve set up a small alter in the corner of the temple which was soon burned by a fallen lantern. The priest took this as a sign that Erathis was angered and told Steve to leave. In a last ditch effort to garner some support, Steve stepped outside and got the attention of the nearest angel he could in hopes that he could lead in to slaughter a few people and prove his point. Unfortunately, the nearest angel was a servant of the Raven Queen who was more intent upon Steve anyway. And it was a big friggin’ angel. The good news was that it didn’t seem able or willing to approach the temple. So Steve stood there taunting the thing. Until the priest of Erathis prayed for an angel of Erathis to protect the temple from Steve’s brash actions. Cornered and scared, Roxy began praying to Terron for some sort of help. And her prayers (and a llucky random die roll and a couple of dick magic) were answered by a very surprised and annoyed Mordecai appearing beside the angel of the Raven Queen. Steve took the opportunity to run back home to mom, while the other stayed behind to watch. Mordecai fought and defeated both that angel and the angel of Erathis, and stormed off back to his mansion. The Heroes followed, and he briefly berated Roxy for summoning him and leaving Terron unprotected. When Will mentioned that he was working for Baron Zandakar, Mordecai consented to show him some his recent acquisitions, including the orb. Will took some notes and made some sketches. Mordecai went on to tell them the only way Terron could get enough energy to recall him was with a living sacrifice. And our heroes knew just the sacrifice. Roxy agreed to perform the ritual in exchange for the orb. Mordecai agreed, saying that the orb might be safest on her ship, hidden by the charm that Terron had given her. Chloe had already said that she would willingly sacrifice herself for her master and so she made good on that promise. Mordecai lead a ritual attended by Roxy and Magus (Otto, Will, and Vlad would have no part of it.) and as soon as Roxy stuck the knife in the girl’s heart and Magus played witness, they both became evil aligned. Her blood was absorbed into the alter and a portal opened behind Mordecai into some sort of void that was impossible to look at for long. He turned and stepped into it, reminding them to guard the orb with their lives. With the orb in hand, Roxy took everyone to the ship so that they could get out of the city. Will, unwilling to let them out of his sight for fear of losing the object (if, in fact, it was what he was seeking) went with them. Steve gathered up some things with his mother and led her to Roxy’s ship.
The day is First-Fourth: Adinor, Y1015
I’m going to retcon just a little bit and start the next session as you are preparing to set sail. There’s a couple things I want to get to get done before you leave. One of them being to official tie William into the group.