Session 65: The Shadow Crystal

Rab and Keller are first up and after hearing that Arne, Archi & Timble are after a strange crystal hidden below a shop, decide to try to come up with a plan. They think that they could dig in below either between the two shop basements or from outside so they're not disturbed. They mention they can get permission of the council to dig from the outside.

They go and get Archi, Arne and Magnar. Arne is in watching Arne sleep and when awoke, Archi tells him that Timble explained the birds, bees and trees to Archi the day before and Arne should wipe his face regularly or get tree 'seed' all over his face.

Magnar & Anselma are woken up late, and Anselma is asked whether the council would mind them digging in below the two businesses and is told to go and talk to the business owners, Aimeric the merchant & Eostre the clothier.

Rab goes to get general items from the merchant before realising it is Aimeric and manages to see the basement. Basic old stone ripped from the previous buried Roman military / trading post covers the floors, roof, and floor. Nothing stands out and is told that Eostre has complained about an old bricked up doorway in her basement with a phrase carved into it.

Rab goes across taking, a look and sees the doorway, along with a carved Kenku head at the top with an inscription below it. He gets to say to Eostre that they will dig down at an angle in the opposite wall to allow for access and avoid disrupting the workings of the shop.

Going out he gets the rest and they all take a look. Magnar takes a look at the writing and Rab gives him a rubbing. He manages to roughly translate it as: The Shadow of the Fearful may Pass".

When they are working on how to dig the access, Arne brushes past the bricked up door. The stones in the doorway start moving towards the opposite side with Keller & Rab noticing. Rab goes to the local carpenters getting lumber for to hold up the walls.

Keller eventually uses magic to open the door and the stones open up into a cold room. A small pillar in the centre has a dark smoky crystal carved like a Kenku's head with a hood, and a carved message on it. Magnar manages to translate the Latin on it to say that it needs a kiss from the lover of many.

The rest of them say that Magnar should kiss it as he's loved by many. Kissing it nothing happens until it is picked up and a screech is heard deafening Arne, Archi and Rab, and the latter works something out. The crystal needs a kiss from someone popular in the local bawdyhouse.

Magnar leads them there and gets the manager of the bawdyhouse, called Ishild, to kiss it.

While doing so, it appears to warm up slightly and Arne gently touches Archi while casting a spell to heal him of the deafness. Magnar comes out and tells them what happened. Thinking it cured Archi, he goes back in and meets a male escort who asks where Archi has been and misses him. He kisses it and nothing further happens.

Eventually an hour is up and Rab & Arne is back to normal.

They go back and take a look at the cold room and finds everything appears normal, telling Eostre about it. She can now use it herself.

Deciding what to do now with the crystal, Arne decides to keep it for himself and Archi realises that he needs it for his work on the Baobhan Sith spy. Archi thinks he may have to go back to one place he visited to see about getting some crystal through there for his use.