Session 29: Crystal Hearts
General Summary
Having spotted movement behind the counter of the barren jewelry shop, Brottor quietly mentions it to the others. As they discuss their options, a small figure darts out of the shadows to stand between them and the door at the back of the room. She reveals herself to be Jelfi and insists that they won't take her as she's paid too high a price for the gifts she is to receive. Brottor and Melios try to negotiate with her, but she believes it all to be a trick and rushes in with a dagger. Unfortunately for her, Brottor is too well-trained for a gem-cutter to catch him off-guard and he cuts her down with a single slice. Melios rushed to heal her before tying her to a stool with some rope. They then quickly patted her down, taking her dagger and a strange mask-like gemstone she had in a pouch, before waking her up for questioning.
She is hesitant to provide information, even after what's happened, but finally, she reveals that a devil offered her a deal: work with him and provide the crystallized hearts of victims on a regular basis, and he would give her unmatched skill with cutting gems, that she might make a name for herself and give him the best possible results. This also involved one of her victims being her own mentor, Kendrin, which she was especially ashamed of. Finally, she told them that the devil was tucked away in the basement workshop of the business, just behind the door at the back of the room. Seeing her remorse, or perhaps simply not wanting to bother with dealing with her personally, they released her before heading downstairs to investigate further.
In the basement sat upon one of the work tables was a tall, abnormally thin man, clad in a mesmerizing display of gaudy rings, bracelets, and trinkets on every bit of his body. Nearby, on another table rested several huge, crystalline, heart-like gemstones that looked recently cut. He bid them welcome and after being questioned about Jelfi, mentioned his disappointment with how things had gone with her. He then offered a simple trade: the large bag of gemstones he'd been gathering recently in exchange for simply letting him walk away, never to return. Therei immediately questioned whether he had the sapphire the Queen had sent him to find, which stopped the devil in his tracks. He had it alright, but that wouldn't be given away without a much more substantial trade. Becoming fed up with all of the deals and negotiations, Therei simply attacked him instead, and a fight began.
The devil seemed to have some tricks up his sleeve, including the sudden transition of much of his jewelry into a giant, gem-studded flail that he wielded with precision and a strange ability to pass through armor. The group went all out, including the summoning of one particularly monstrous spectral bear, but before he could be defeated outright, the devil conceded and vanished, using magic that Therei identified quickly as some sort of teleportation spell, likely one that was short-range.
Scouring the room, they discovered the body of Kendrin, hidden in a crate in the corner, and steadily rotting away. His body had a hole in the chest which showed signs of crystallization as well, though small blue shards were apparent in the wound alongside the usual white-tinged ones. They left the body, for now, choosing to head back to the inn with the bag of gems and the crystal hearts, prepared to hunt down the devil before he could lure anyone else to their doom...
Character(s) interacted with
Jelfi, the jeweler's apprentice
The Gilded Devil
Report Date
08 Oct 2019
Primary Location
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