Session 96: The Famous Harry Houdini

Late afternoon on the 6th of Apollo finds the Order of the Phoenix standing upon the Outer Plane of Duati’net—the eternal homeland of the Egyptian pantheon and all mortals who worshipped them in life. Most who dwell here are long dead, living out eternity in the afterlife of their chosen gods. But unlike most outer planes, Duati’net can be reached by the living—if they know how.

Mortals do not travel here by the River Styx; that path belongs only to the dead. Instead, the living may reach this realm by boarding the Astral Odyssey, a planar train that travels each continent of YonZora and eventually arrives in Purgatory, the neutral plane connecting all others in a 24-hour cycle. From Purgatory, a second great train—known simply as the Outer Line—makes a thirteen-day journey through all thirteen outer planes.
This is the only way, besides death itself, for mortals or gods to cross the great divine expanse.

Two Paths Converge at the Tomb of the Shattered Sun

Both Lucien Farrowe—bard, traveler, and seeker—and the Order of the Phoenix arrived at the Tomb of the Shattered Sun, a ziggurat of the long-destroyed 5th Dynasty of Zavabue, albeit for entirely different reasons. Now, their paths intertwine.

Lucien’s Quest

Lucien had arrived ten days prior, searching for answers for his mother, Serenna Vael-Farrowe, a famed scholar of The Hall of Scholars in the Revered Garden Monastery near Rivendell.
Serenna’s specialty is the long-lost history of Atlantis, a subject she has taught for two centuries. Yet younger scholars now question the city’s very existence. She sent Lucien to find proof—anything to support her lifelong work.

Lucien’s search took years. Someone—or several someones—had erased nearly all traces of Atlantis and the 5th Dynasty. But through methods he refuses to speak of, he located this ziggurat once housed within Atlantis itself. There he found unmistakable proof—but also uncovered a terrible secret tied to the dynasty’s fall, one perhaps explaining why its history was buried.

The Order’s Mission

The Order of the Phoenix had come seeking Harry Houdini, the legendary halfling illusionist, last seen over 300 years ago in Purgatory boarding a train to Duati’net.
Harry believed that Abraham Harker—traitor to Avalon and destroyer of the Stewart bloodline—still lived somewhere among the outer planes.

Though Harker was slain 200 years earlier by Prince Arthur IX in the fishing village of Teguila, Harry remained convinced he survived and continued to threaten Azure… perhaps still in possession of the 100 stolen dragon eggs of the Stewarts.

Like Lucien, the Order also uncovered the secrets of the 5th Dynasty’s fall:
a divine betrayal by Sekhmet, whose creation of an abomination wiped out Atlantis, shattered the dynasty’s power, and paved the way for today’s realms—Avalon, the Black Legion Empire, the Black Moon Empire, and more.

They also discovered that Abraham Harker had been hiding for five centuries on the ziggurat’s third tier—now a Death Knight and servant of Thanika, the Dragon Queen.

Chamber 7: The Gypsosphinx Soryana

Joined now by Lucien, the group—bearing the crest of the golden phoenix on scarlet—descended into the third level. With them marched four Sentinels, constructs dormant for centuries since Abraham’s betrayal.

At Chamber 7, they encountered three minotaurs and a Gypsosphinx named Soryana.
She recognized Lucien instantly and demanded to know whether “Julies” was aware of his freedom. She sensed the presence of Dovahkiin among the party—a disturbing impossibility, for no Dovahkiin other than Abraham Harker had been seen for five centuries.

When she realized the group sought the halfling she guarded, Soryana began probing for answers:
How did mortals reach the outer planes? Why come to this sacred ruin of Atlantis? And where were their dragons?

Soon her hunger and suspicion grew, and she tested them with riddles.
To her surprise—and irritation—they answered them flawlessly.
Soryana allowed them passage into Chamber 8… or so she thought.

As Dagon and Jasmal attempted to enter, they were hurled back by the warding magic, to Soryana’s wicked amusement. Yet she failed to notice Arceven walk through unhindered—and that the protective magic had faded entirely.

Only when combat began did she realize her mistake.

The fight was brutal. A Dovahkiin’s strike nearly killed her. Marik tore into her savagely, leaving her bleeding out. Finally, Lucien ended her with a single thrown coin—a humiliation that filled her dying thoughts:

“I died to a coin…”

As she faded, Soryana glimpsed a flash of blinding white light from Chamber 8 and saw her greatest fear:
A Stewart had returned.

Chamber 8: The Bound Illusionist

Inside, Arceven and Conan found Harry Houdini suspended by four divine chains.
Disoriented and half-conscious, Harry first spotted Conan and spat fury:
“I’ll kill you the moment I’m free.”

But when he saw Arceven, his expression transformed to pure joy:
“You’ve come at last, Dovahkiin. Tell me—has my beloved Reba been found?”

Attempts to shatter the chains failed spectacularly—Arceven even flung his legendary hammer into Conan’s head by accident. Dispel Magic failed as well.

Then Arceven did the unthinkable:
he touched the chains.
Harry fell limp to the floor—free.
Arceven touched the halfling next, triggering an explosion of white light visible even in Chamber 7.

Soryana, dying, saw the light and understood the truth:
the Stewarts of YonZora had returned.

Arceven collapsed, a glowing mark now etched into his left hand.

Chamber 9: Harker’s Looted Vault

The next chamber—once Abraham Harker’s treasure hoard—was nearly empty. But the party searched carefully and recovered several items left behind in haste.
Most importantly, Lucien found his bag of holding, containing the artifacts he intended to return to Serenna—proof of Atlantis, including a map of the lost city.

The vast scrape marks across the floor suggested that Harker’s forces had recently moved large quantities of materials elsewhere.

Chamber 10: The Secret Exit

In Chamber 10, the party identified a hidden entrance—likely used to move the mass of equipment out of the ziggurat. Their Tabaxi guide, waiting for them there, prepared to lead them back to the neutral city of Duskarra.

They must now wait one ten-day for the return of the Astral Odyssey, then endure

• 8 days back to Purgatory
• 1 additional day to return to the mortal realm of YonZora

The long journey home begins.