02 - 12/26/22 : Riddles in the Dark

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  After their meal at the Balladeer's Eclipse, Connie used creation magic to conjure a porcelain mask that Vesper could wear to obfuscate her appearance; a strange tactic that would nonetheless not be out of the ordinary in the Crown of the North. The three adventurers then made their way to Saint Branwen's Orphanage in the Southern Ward of the city, an institution housing orphans from the civil war in Khemit that Makoto regularly donated money to. They were greeted by Matron Douse, a kindly water genasi woman and proprietor of the establishment, whom Makoto tried to hand off over 700 gold pieces to all at once. Matron Douse nervously refused the bounty, worried about the possibly dubious origins of such a large sum.   Despite Makoto's pleas, Douse refused to take it out of fear that someone would come seeking the gold. Connie proposed that Douse take it and distribute it into smaller amounts to other orphanages in the area. Douse finally agreed and reluctantly accepted the gold, thanking them for their time and money. As a thank-you for agreeing to the distribution, Connie offered his painting services to liven the rather plain building up a bit, to which Douse happily agreed. As Connie checked the area out to find a location, Makoto pulled a disgruntled Vesper into the orphanage, where she was quickly swarmed by orphans admiring the large greatsword strapped to her back.   After meeting some of the orphans within, Connie settled on the classroom as his canvas for a painting project, and promised to return at a later date to begin the job. The trio left the orphanage, much to Vesper's relief, and proceeded to return to the Castle Ward to conduct their studies at the Odessiron Athenaeum, a large secular library owned and operated by the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors.   However, as they passed through some of the rougher parts of the Dock Ward, the party was accosted by the villainous group called F.O.U.L., or the "Federation of Ominous, Unkind Lawbreakers". The gang was led by their leader, Spite Maleficarius, and was comprised of a myriad of goblin and kobold 'nameless mooks'; flanking spite was 'The Piper', a mysterious flute player surrounded by rats, and Spite's younger brother Richard, whom the would-be supervillain insisted on calling "Dick".   Spite taunted the group and demanded they hand over their valuables, which the adventurers refused. Spite cackled and commanded his mooks to attack the group, only to watch as Vesper viciously retaliated against the attackers, tearing them into pieces with single swings of her large blade. Makoto and Connie pushed forward, trying to get to Spite while the Piper played enchanting music on his flute that compelled Connie to dance. "Dick" tried to lob eldritch blasts at the adventurers, but his time was mostly spent arguing with Spite over their tactics.   As the battle shifted against F.O.U.L., several of Spite's minions lost their morale and began fleeing in various ways; some of them diving directly into the canals, others throwing themselves through windows, and others tumbling down wells to escape Vesper's wrath. Makoto managed to catch up to Spite as he fled, but a lucky shot from his particularly deadly rapier incapacitated her and allowed him to escape. The Piper and "Dick Maleficarius followed suit soon after.   With their opposition dismissed, the party continued on their walk after healing Makoto to a standing state. They arrived at the Athenaeum soon after, where they were assisted by some of the librarians and the resident lorekeeper of the establishment. The eager elven librarian Daemora gave the party a stack of books on topics related to the dark elves, which had been checked out previously by an individual she did not remember.   The party took their books to a reading room; while moving, Connie overheard another librarian mention to the Lorekeeper that the noble house Archades was extending their occupation of one of the study rooms; a mention that made him somewhat nervous. Once in their own room, the party discovered that some of the books included in the stack were seemingly unrelated to the dark elves, something they kept in mind when considering an individual had them on-hand for research before them.   During their arduous study session, the party learned the following pieces of information and came up with several, not necessarily conflicting theories:  

• The symbol on the clothing worn by Vesper's assailant belonged to House Arkhenneld, a noble of house of Uyen Asari; the closest drow city to the Undermountain
• The books brought to the party were recently checked out and investigated by another person, suggesting the drow and the goddess Desna are somehow related
• Vesper was being watched out for by Desna, the goddess of freedom, luck, and the stars, for her ideals of freedom from the unyielding gaze of Lolth; an idea Vesper dismisses outright
• A group of lowborn survivors of the Olath Luth'ol massacre, the event in which Veszaltyrr Oussndar destroyed his home city supposedly single-handedly, made their way to the surface. The dark elves may have a grudge against those who followed Veszaltyrr centuries later and may have wanted to kill the remaining members of the Scions of Black Hearts
• Desna's depicture as a dark elf in the Undermountain temple was no coincidence, and the imagery was linked somehow to ongoing events

  As they discussed these findings, Vesper grew irritated by the group's prodding about her being 'blessed' or 'chosen' by Desna, as well as them inquiring about her direction in life. She opened up more about her time in the Scions, referring to her commander Urstul, who was 'incinerated' by the Red Spirits while defending Maleficarius Towers. She also shared what she held as an ideal and a dream; to liberate the Underdark from Lolth's clutches and to free the drow people from their unceasing service to the Scorpion Queen, a dream that made her follow Veszaltyrr in the first place.   Satisfied with their research, the party departed and returned their borrowed books, though Connie briefly had the team wait so that the Archades family could leave without seeing him. He explained that he had his reasons to avoid them that solely affected them and not the party as a whole; they departed once enough time had been bought.   Their research done, the party made their way to the Temple of Desna in the Castle Ward, known as the Starcourt, hoping to speak to the High Priestess and learn more about Desna's supposed connection to the Dark Elves.