Session 43: A Word for a Word and a New Deal

General Summary

The party gathers together after taking some time to get organized and take care of personal business. Using Malthus' connections, the group makes a trade of the magical mace, Retribution, for a backpack of holding and 200 gold. The trader seems a bit sketchy, but the backpack passes inspection.   The party gathers to head to Caer Cenwynn and the Silver Lodge to take care of the business of Tigs as well as Tertius' arrested father, Duke Greyhall. The group follows the path that the took last time to Caer Cenwynn, traveling through the forest with the fist-sized flies and make camp.   During their watch, Levi and Ilbryen see the smoke from the campfire spill out onto the ground, then realizing that it is no longer smoke, but rather a hazy mist that floats above the swamp floor. They see the hags hut ahead with the child, Cruinn Taitligh, standing on it's raised porch, tossing raw meat from a bucket to a giant crocodile below that snaps up the meat hungrily.   Cruinn tells the pair that the mothers are waiting for them and she steps over to open the door to the hut. Reluctantly, Levi and Ilbryen entered the shack, finding the Boora Coven members, Sweet Sophia, Auntie Toadstool, and Mother Mayeye, waiting for them. Levi is silent, refusing to speak a word as the coven speaks to them. They state that they have been generous to Levi, as when he offered them his history and background in the book, that they let him share it rather than taking it from him completely. They explain that Tigs was transformed into Not-Levi in order to fulfill another wish that someone had made. They explain that Duke Greyhall had trouble conceiving a child and approached the coven for assistance, asking for "a son who would one day take his place."   To the hags, they completed the bargain by being the instrument that found Duke Greyhall arrested, thus thrusting Tertius to take his place as Duke. However, they claim, they had further uses for Not-Levi which have been stymied because of their breaking the magics on Tigs. Without their Not-Levi, there are tasks that they are left uncompleted. They ask Levi if he would finish the tasks of Not-Levi. Levi shook his head no, but Auntie Toadstool told him that he must answer yes or no. Levi went to say no, but found himself saying yes, and Auntie Toadstool smiled and reminded him that his bargain of a word for a word was fulfilled and that they accept his offer to fulfill Not-Levi's duties.   With a wave of smoke, the pair found themselves back at the campfire. Their boots only slightly wet from traveling in the swamp. Levi immediately awakened the party and took the Drow Slave Collar and handed it to Bolvaic, asking him to attune to it and to put it on Levi. Levi explained what had happened with the hags and worried that he might turn against Tertius or his father at the hag's insistence. With Bolvaic being aware of where Levi is at all times means that he would be able to stop Levi if he made a move to harm either one.    Tertius was made aware of his father's bargain and realized why he had instructed him to always stay away from Boora Bog. The party reassessed the threat of the coven and what might need to be done. But finally, they pressed on to the Silver Lodge.   After three days travel, they arrived at the Lodge, empty of the guests and found only Vilithyss and Wistari there. Vilithys thanked the party for killing Maximillian, as he threatened to fire Vilithyss for being unaccommodating in his menu choices. The party insisted that they did not kill Maximillian, but rather, just did a poor job of protecting him. Vilithyss thanked them anyway.   Tigs was brought to Wistari who realized that he was likely a faerie changeling meant to replace the real Levi, but he was unaware of one whose mien was taken away once it was placed. He also said that he was unaware of the hag coven in Boora Bog, but warned that a single hag is dangerous, but a coven is even more powerful. He was uncertain if the coven were operating on their own, or had an agenda set by one of the Courts. He offered to try to research them for the party.   The party spent the night at the Silver Lodge as guests, though during the night Illevaere wandered out onto the back balcony that overlooked the Moonwell. There they saw Wistari standing before the Moonwell with a figure eight feet in height wearing blood red robes with a head of an antlered stag skull in the well. Wistari was asking if the hags were a part of the Court of Leaves and Whispers or agents of Stag King, to which the figure stated that they were not. Wistari then asked for permission to research the hags further, which was granted. With that, the figure retreated back into the Moonwell, disappearing back into The Feywild. As Wistari turned from the well, he looked up and acknowledged Illevaere's witnessing of the exchange and he returned inside.   The party left in the morning, heading to Caer Cenwynn where Tertius was able to gain audience with Queen Finnea. Bolvaic and Levi instead went to a tavern to stay away from the Queen and Levi possibly doing something at the hags' bidding. At the tavern, Levi drank and Bolvaic watched over him, but the pair also started to collect information about the Frost Giant, Fulskorri. They discovered that some of the Northlanders refer to him as Fulskorri the Tollkeeper, as he is responsible for the large mist of fog that is always on the waters to the west of Askel. Northlander raiders are familiar with the waters in the mists and often use it to lose privateers or pursuers after their raids. When heading into Port Raven, considered a free port, raiders pay their toll to Fulskorri for the protections of the fogs.   The others, meanwhile met with Queen Finnea and Tertius explained the circumstances of the imposter Levi and the different letters, hoping that this would offer clemency toward his father. However, the Queen reported that whether the contents of the letter were switched or not, that there was truth in them as she suggested that Duke Greyhall had plotted to kill Queen Emeldawn of the Kingdom of Louth--something that Tertius was aware was true. Finnea told Tertius that he should not focus his energies on releasing his father, but rather ruling his Duchy, referring to him as Duke as she did.   The party left the audience with the Queen and went to rejoin Bolvaic and Levi, though on the way back, Ilbryen heard someone shouting their name and they saw Daihl approaching, surprised that they were still in Caer Cenwynn. With him was his daughter, Dhowgok, who he wanted help escorting to her mother's village of Bar Rorkred. While speaking, Dhowgok grew frustrated and said that she knew they wouldn't help and started to punch a wall. The party quickly recognized this as similar to the rage they have seen Bolvaic and Levi go in. Daihl embarrassedly told the party that the best thing to do is to wait it out for her to calm. Then, as Dhowgok relaxes a bit, the group took the pair to reconnect with the others at the tavern.