The Age of Worms / The Champion's Belt pt. 2 / Von the 10th through the 13th, 3593 CE / 1-8-22

Not by Choice has set sail aboard the Bright Lady, a schooner belonging to the halfling gladiator promoter Efraym Smallcask. Efraym plans to enter Not by Choice into the Champion's Games, an annual gladiatorial contest held in the free city of Kedesh. The team has agreed to this plan at the urging of Eligos the Sage, who explained that they will never be safe until they can discover why the Arenamaster, Loris Raknian, has put a bounty on their heads. From their previous adventures in Kedesh, the team knows that Loris has had dark dealings with underworld figures, including purchasing a copy of the Apostolic Scrolls, an ancient text written by the worm-sorcerer Caius, which includes instructions on how to create an undead creation engine called an ulgurstasta. Fearing that Loris plans on using blood shed in the Champion's Games as fuel for the ritual, Not by Choice will place themselves in the belly of the beast in order to uncover evidence against Loris before it is too late. At the the outset of their journey, they are rejoined by the owl girl Moth, who they first discovered months ago being held captive by goblin vampires in the basement of the Butter Bath. Moth decides to join the party in Kedesh's gladiatorial games. After two days travelling along the coast, Efraym directs the schooner to a lonely beachhead. After disembarking, he takes the party to a training campground further inland, where he introduces them to the other members of their gladiatorial team; Hush, master of the pelletbow, and River, a holy warrior of Ciril. Efraym does not wish to put Not by Choice at risk by having them spend anymore time in the city than necessary, so he has arranged for the team to train together. After a day of basic weapons and physical training, Efraym takes the party to a secluded spot in the wilderness where Eligos had promised him a special challenge awaited to test the team's ability to work together. The challenge turns out to be a bulette, which Not by Choice manages to put down handily, satisfying Efraym that his new team of gladiators might have a chance to survive the battles ahead.