EE-3-11 - Through A One Way Door

SUMMARY

After what has felt like years, though has really only been a few weeks, our adventurers have finally returned to the city of Riven. After saying their goodbyes to Thorstag and the crew of the Iron Cask, they make their way to The Guild Hall to meet with the Guild Masters to debrief them on the situation with Grimfang and The Spear, as well as see what they have learned about The Axe. The party, including Tempest, are given one last chance to turn away before entering a one way door into a saga that will change the course of their lives, and perhaps all of Erylia.

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This episode is brought to you by Gabe and Jeff, over at Inter-Party Conflict, Fred on Fyre, Evora Dawn, and MotoGhoul. If you'd like to join them in supporting the show, consider joining our Patreon.

CAST

Damian - The DM

Chris - Rem

Christa - Ariel

Chantalle - Kenina

Caitlin - Tempest

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MUSIC

A huge thank you to all of the musicians who allow us to use their work. If you are interested in learning about them, check out our Music Page.

Fimbulwinter – Vindsvept (Intro)

Tavern Loop – Serpent Sound Studios (1:19)

Pieces of a Memory – Vindsvept (1:44)

Docks District – Tabletop Audio (1:45)

Medieval City – Michael Ghelfi (2:44)

The Long Way Home – Scott Buckley (2:53)

Tunnel Rats – Joel Steudler (4:00)

The Long Way Home – Scott Buckley (4:51)

Temple of Knowledge – Michael Ghelfi (5:27)

Age of Wonder – Scott Buckley (5:27)

Chasm Ruins – Cyberleaf Studio (6:35)

Medieval City – Michael Ghelfi (7:58)

The Long Way Home – Scott Buckley (7:58)

Stables (Ambience Only) – Tabletop Audio (8:08)

Temple of Knowledge – Michael Ghelfi (9:11)

Chasm Ruins – Cyberleaf Studio (9:16)

The Long Way Home – Scott Buckley (10:30)

Chasm Ruins – Cyberleaf Studios (10:48)

Ambient Room – Monument Studios (11:48)

Background Strings C – Monument Studios (11:50)

The Void (No Bass) – Monument Studios (11:53)

Darker Atmos – Monument Studios (15:12)

The Void (No Bass) – Monument Studios (20:24)

Passive Synths B – Monument Studios (23:12)

Struggling Light B – Monument Studios (23:37)

Mage College – Epic Stock Media (27:20)

Knightfall B – Monument Studios (28:20)

Through The Fog – Vindsvept (32:52)

Chasing Dragons – Audio Panda (34:25)

Through The Fog – Vindsvept (35:54)

Hidden Grove – Monument Studios (43:37)

Silence of Hell (v2) – Alec Weesner (44:29)

Emotional Atmos – Monument Studios (45:42)

Last Stand – Vindsvept (Outro)

Transcript

SPEAKER_06 0:00

This episode of Adventures in Aurelia is brought to you by Gabe and Jeff from Interparty Conflict. Right on fire, Voradon, MotoGhool, and Polka Dancer on Patreon. You can join them in supporting the show at patreon.com/slash adventures in Aurelia. A podcast where five friends sit around a table and record themselves playing Dungeons and Dragons. I'm Chris, I play Rim.

SPEAKER_05 0:39

I'm Krista and I play Ariel, Asmar Divine Soul Sorcerer.

SPEAKER_04 0:44

I'm Caitlin, I play Tempest, a water genasi Ranger.

SPEAKER_03 0:47

I'm Chantel, and I play Kanina, a Tiefling Sorcerer. I'm Damien, and I'm the DM.

SPEAKER_00 0:53

I'm Jason from Smoking and Drinking in Space, a Sci-Fi podcast from a couple guys who think they know sci-fi.

SPEAKER_01 0:59

And I'm Rob from Smoking and Drinking in Capes, a superhero podcast from a couple guys who wish they had powers.

SPEAKER_00 1:05

And we're part of the Gunning Geek Network, just like the show you're checking out now.

SPEAKER_01 1:09

Shows on the network are individually owned, and opinions expressed may not reflect others.

SPEAKER_00 1:14

And you can find other cool, awesome, geeky shows at GunageNetwork.com.

SPEAKER_07 1:20

Previously, on Adventures in Aurelia. As the party tried to sleep, it became clear to them that Ariel's attempt to cleanse the spear had not worked. After Thorsteg and the crew were woken up by the commotion, he leveled with them that they needed to talk to the crew about what was going on. The party met with members of the crew to make it clear that the issues that have been happening since they boarded will leave with the party once they land in Riven later that day. And there's like a wharf master that's over talking to Thorsteg and another one of the dwarfs that you'd seen him, you know, talking with right before you guys got to port. They have uh a number of scrolls and notebooks that they're going through to get everything all handled. And uh he he looks kind of over the car. You guys are free to go!

SPEAKER_03 2:18

Kenina will start um jumping up into the driver's seat of the horses, and she'll start to uh get them ready to ride and just be like, oh, everyone on board. Who wants to sit up front with me?

SPEAKER_05 2:28

Ariel's hopping up there. She wants to be close to princess.

SPEAKER_07 2:32

And I guess Kenina's driving.

SPEAKER_03 2:34

I have vehicle proficiency.

SPEAKER_07 2:36

Kenina takes the reins, and you know where the guild hall is from here. You've you got from the guild hall to here before, only now you have a cart to do it. And you take the cart back to the guild hall. As you reach the guild hall, you realize that having left not only without a horse, but without a cart, you have absolutely no idea what to do with the cart and horse as you arrive. I'll pull up to the front.

SPEAKER_03 3:05

We established that there was essentially like a front counter, right, with someone.

SPEAKER_07 3:11

Yeah, there's like a walled-off courtyard that has some statues and a like mausoleum entrance or a crypt entrance. And um, after a distance, you get to the front door of the keep that the guild hall is built into. There's a lobby. There's sort of like a front desk area as you enter into the the guild proper.

SPEAKER_03 3:37

Yep. I'll be essentially pulling up into a position, maybe a little bit obnoxiously in front of the uh front like gate area, but uh in a position in which we can easily uh leave to go into uh wherever we're supposed to be.

SPEAKER_07 3:50

So you leave the cart then outside of the like entry courtyard.

SPEAKER_05 3:55

I'll stay with the horses so we can figure out where to put them.

SPEAKER_06 3:58

No, you're going in because you need to talk to people.

SPEAKER_05 4:01

Who's staying with the horses?

SPEAKER_06 4:02

Rim's gonna grab like a page that's probably running around. Be like, hey, boy or girl. What? What? Where's the stables?

SPEAKER_07 4:10

Who the fuck are you? Wow. I'm sorry, sir. Where's the stables? In my defense, just grabbing me and calling me boy was a little abrupt. I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_06 4:22

I could apologize and ask you for your name, but that takes too much time. Where's the stables?

SPEAKER_07 4:26

Uh a little bit more to the east. Alright. He he points off, and like the city itself is surrounded by a wall, and the the guild hall is near one of the entrances up against the wall. There there's some s some separation, and actually, like built out of the wall is a building that he points to that you see a paddock.

SPEAKER_06 4:53

Rim will hand him a silver piece. Thank you.

SPEAKER_07 4:57

Thank you.

SPEAKER_06 4:57

He'll turn to Nina and be like, take Ariel inside, get that spear looked at.

SPEAKER_03 5:02

Sure.

SPEAKER_06 5:03

And he'll hop into the driver's seat and drive the cart down to the stables.

SPEAKER_05 5:06

Let's go, Ariel. Rem don't sell the horses. Oh, Tempest, you should come too. Yes.

SPEAKER_04 5:12

This is where we said we were going.

SPEAKER_05 5:14

Yeah, yeah, you're gonna join the guild, right?

SPEAKER_04 5:16

That's what she keeps saying. I agree with her, you should. We'll see how this goes.

SPEAKER_07 5:23

So Ariel, Kanina, and Tempest make their way through the guild courtyard into the guild hall proper. Inside to the side, you guys see someone that is sitting at a desk, case of scrolls behind them, big leather bound uh notebook in front of them that they're flipping through the looking sick. Oh, um, may I be of assistance? Welcome to the guild, Zival's Guild of Adventurers.

SPEAKER_03 5:51

Oh yes, hi there. Yeah, no, we're part of the guild. I'm calling.

SPEAKER_07 5:54

Oh, I see the guild emblem, yes, yes.

SPEAKER_02 5:56

And Kenila's just be like, yeah, like uh kind of lifting her shirt a little bit, kind of pointing to badge.

SPEAKER_07 6:02

And uh I I suppose uh did you have business here? Are you just uh yes.

SPEAKER_03 6:08

Uh we need to speak to uh Mistress Beery and some of the other guild members. If we can let them know that uh Kanina, Rem, and Ariel are back, and we have uh another member with us as well.

SPEAKER_05 6:19

And urgent. Urgent?

SPEAKER_03 6:20

Yes, urgent.

SPEAKER_07 6:22

Urgent news. And as you're talking, he's flipping the journal. Uh is it you said Kanina. Yes. A last name? Cogent. Oh so also in K. Oh, I see you've been out on it says here leave. Um left two weeks ago. Welcome back. Uh you said uh urgent business with the the guild masters.

SPEAKER_05 6:45

Yes.

SPEAKER_07 6:46

See, and he turns. See him thumbing through some scrolls. We'll run out, unfurls it, and goes. Uh, I see that yes, before before you left on your previous mission, he rolls it back up, slots it in again that you guys uh had uncovered something quite important, and uh that that the guild was expecting your return? Um, one moment.

SPEAKER_04 7:08

Yes, of course. Harold's gonna look over and whisper. So slow. Tempest will look over and whisper, I thought they knew you here. They do. He doesn't seem to know you.

SPEAKER_03 7:20

Well, he's not the guildmaster. I'm sure he sees lots of faces every day.

SPEAKER_07 7:24

Go up to the the office, uh the front office in front of the guild the guild uh masters' chambers. Let them know about your business, and they will uh see if the guildmasters can see you now or how long it's going to be.

SPEAKER_03 7:38

Yes, perfect. And uh we'll have one more party member coming in, uh Rem Kilpatrick, I believe. Uh he's just uh in the stables currently.

SPEAKER_07 7:46

When I looked up your record, I did see that he was involved in the prior uh mission that you guys had been on.

SPEAKER_03 7:51

Yes, he's uh he's been traveling with us as well, so he should be in shortly. With that, uh Ceneal will go ahead and drag her two companions up to the area where he directed.

SPEAKER_07 8:01

Rem pulls the cart over to where the page that he had grabbed pointed to being the stables.

SPEAKER_06 8:08

He'll just pull up and find somebody that works at the stables. Ah, can I help you? Yes, I'd like to board the carton horses. For how long? Uh, not sure how long we'll be in town, but I can at least start with a week.

SPEAKER_07 8:21

A week? Uh okay, we can take a week. How much is that gonna be? That's gonna run uh six gold.

SPEAKER_06 8:26

Rim will pay six gold, and then he'll walk back to the guild.

SPEAKER_07 8:30

Uh, d is there anything you're gonna need out of the do you need anything out of the cart while it's boarded?

SPEAKER_06 8:36

Uh I don't imagine anything will be, but if if there is, I'll I'll let you know and I'll come back and Okay.

SPEAKER_07 8:42

The the difference is if you can tell me up front I can keep it somewhere that it's more accessible. Otherwise, if you come to need something, I might need some time to make it accessible.

SPEAKER_06 8:53

If we need to take the time, then it's our.

SPEAKER_07 8:55

Alright, alright. Uh so I won't keep it as a top priority. Uh you enjoy your stay in the city.

SPEAKER_06 9:01

If anything does come up, horses need something, we are at the guild.

SPEAKER_07 9:04

Ah, guild members, okay.

SPEAKER_06 9:05

Yeah, well, bike back to the guild now.

SPEAKER_07 9:08

And I'll say that, like, before you you head off, he reaches in and gives you three tokens. Two horses and one cart. Okay, he'll pocket them. Ariel, Kenita, and Tempest make their way up to the person that that kind of manages the schedule for the guild masters. Uh hello. Um, what can we do for you this afternoon?

SPEAKER_03 9:32

Uh yes, hi there. Uh, I'm Kenita Coden with uh the Mages Guild. Uh we're trying to meet with the headmasters. We have urgent business with them.

SPEAKER_07 9:42

And what would the nature of your urgent business be? Uh we want to be potential. It's urgent. Okay, obviously you don't understand how this works. Um, if you would like to have an urgent appointment, it's going to need a little bit more than just walking up to me and saying that it's urgent.

SPEAKER_03 9:58

Uh, we went out on a mission, uh, and we were successful in taking care of some of the problems that arose. We want to uh clarify the deeds that we went over and uh speak with them about an important uh detail that needs to be addressed immediately.

SPEAKER_07 10:14

And and you said your name was uh Kanina? Yes, Kanina Kojin. Uh one one moment. See her, you know, slot a key into the door, open it, and head in. Few moments go by. Did I hear anything? No, the door was closed behind her. And Rem walks in through the front door. Uh were you with uh the Kanina woman? Yes. Uh she did mention that one more was was going to be coming in shortly. Uh, she has already made her way upstairs and is trying to seek audience with the guildmasters.

SPEAKER_06 10:50

Remod, thank you, and then make his way that direction.

SPEAKER_07 10:53

And the woman walks out from inside the guildmaster's chamber. Ah, uh Kanina, I apologize for the inconvenience and the time. They have said that you are welcome to head in right now.

SPEAKER_03 11:07

Oh, perfect, thank you so much.

SPEAKER_07 11:10

And Rem makes his way up the stairs and kind of along the balcony, right as Kanina, Ariel, and Tempest start heading into the room. And what are you up here for?

SPEAKER_03 11:22

If we hear this, uh Kanina will turn and look, oh, she's like, oh, uh, that's Rim, Rim Kilpatrick, he's with us. He was just putting our card away.

SPEAKER_07 11:30

I see. You've brought your uh your driver with you, okay?

SPEAKER_06 11:34

Rim will just kind of like look over at her and then just look away and just keep walking.

SPEAKER_03 11:39

Uh no, not quite. Uh I mean, I can drive too. I was driving up until we got here, but uh yeah. I mean, I drove too for a little while. Once we've all kind of stayed pace with each other, we'll go ahead and enter.

SPEAKER_07 11:54

You guys enter the meeting chambers for the guildmasters, and you hear the solid, heavy door close behind you, and you hear it latch. And everyone except Tempest has been in this room before. I believe a couple times at this point. And as was the way it was previously, across from you is a long table that has five high-backed chairs at it, spaced relatively equally distanced apart, facing out at you. There are abrasures lit on the sides of the room to give it some light and a vague incense smell. Other than that, it smells an interesting mix of musty from infrequent use, but also fresh from the fact that they bother having people come through and keep it relatively clean. And sitting across from you are three individuals. You see one pretty old, even by dwarven standards, dwarf, who is sitting at the center table. As you guys face him, off to his left, you see a red dragonborn female. And on the opposite side, you see a red dragonborn male. You would know the dwarf to be Albrecht Ironfist, the leader of Sival's Guild of Adventures, and the head guildmaster for the clergy. You recognize Beerie Yardrit, the female Red Dragonborn, leader of the mages branch of the guild. And you recognize Mihan Yardrit, who you know to be her brother, and is the leader of the Blades branch of the guild. The dwarf stands short but stoically and looks at you. Welcome back, adventurers.

SPEAKER_03 13:49

Yes, it's good to be back.

SPEAKER_07 13:51

It's been some time. What news have you brought from the north?

SPEAKER_06 13:57

Rimmel take a step forward and say, Well, we met with the dwarven king, learned of the uh the loss of his daughter to a non-noble-born dwarf, a possible death somewhere in the tunnel systems below. We also fought and engaged with what appeared to be an undead knoll in possession of the spear. I'm just gonna motion to Ariel, that we believe to have uh some malevolent spirit linked with it.

SPEAKER_07 14:28

You see Beerie furiously writing down notes on a fresh scroll of parchment.

SPEAKER_06 14:34

During our return travels here with the spear, we were attacked on two separate occasions by a spirit or shadow of some kind. Ariel herself has said that she feels some form of evil coming from the spear. I would uh highly suggest that the clerics take a look at it, see if there is some way to cleanse or consecrate the spear itself in order to remove any malignant issues.

SPEAKER_07 15:01

What is it with this group?

SPEAKER_06 15:03

And uh exceedingly evil weapons. Lucky, I guess. We did get a weapon that's not evil. There's a sword and a staff.

SPEAKER_07 15:14

Well, let's have a look at the spear. Ariel, approach.

SPEAKER_05 15:20

Ariel will take it off and place it down and carefully unwrap it, purposely trying to not touch it any more than she already has.

SPEAKER_07 15:32

As you kind of like carefully start trying to peel back the first layer of the sheet that you've wrapped the spear in, Albrecht stands up and uh turns over to Beerie. Uh wh why don't you help me get this unrolled? So that Ariel doesn't have to give herself any further risk. And they kind of pull it using the sheet back and tip it and start kind of doing the thing where they roll the other side, like the unrolled side, they start rolling it up into the spear to sp like turn the wrap around and end up freeing it from the spear in front of you.

SPEAKER_05 16:16

As they're doing that, she is going to say, uh, like Rem said, we we did fight some gnolls, and the spear belonged to leader of them who is greatly evil. Um I don't know if he's actually dead because he I had a very, very real dream where Kosane and I had to fight him and his work again, and I almost didn't make it. And ever since then, that's when those spirit or those things came after us. I d I don't know if Grimfang's dead.

SPEAKER_07 16:57

So you're saying that you f fought this gnoll. Grimfang, you seem to have its name as.

SPEAKER_05 17:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 17:06

And you took this spear from it.

SPEAKER_05 17:08

Yeah, we we killed, we killed him. Or at least I thought we did. And we we took the spear to bring it back to you guys.

SPEAKER_07 17:16

You thought you did.

SPEAKER_03 17:17

You turned to Ash when we had uh defeated him. But you no longer think he's dead.

SPEAKER_05 17:24

I I don't know if my dream was actually something real or if it was just a dream.

SPEAKER_07 17:31

Very interesting. This is something we will have to investigate further. I think under different circumstances we will need to have some time with you once more to try and figure out what's going on inside of you. This spear that you have brought us is very interesting. It's not made like the axe that you brought us once before. The axe was an axe. Albeit very ornate and special, highly magical, and corrupted. But this spear, just look at it. This spear was made to be evil. I will see what we can do with it. I'm assuming, with the great lengths that you've gone through to bring it to us, that you are relinquishing it to the guild.

SPEAKER_05 18:27

Oh, I just didn't want the wrong hand to get it. I didn't want another creature of some sort to get it, or you know.

SPEAKER_07 18:36

I'm just making it clear that we will be taking possession of this item.

SPEAKER_05 18:42

I don't want the evil I I don't want to have that.

SPEAKER_07 18:46

I didn't think you did, given the great lengths that you seem to have taken to bring it to us, and that you somehow have managed to avoid being drawn to use it.

SPEAKER_05 19:00

I mean, what do you mean? It's evil. Why would I want to use it? Power. I I don't need that kind of I don't need power. I have Kosane and and my friend, so that is what you say standing here right now.

SPEAKER_07 19:15

But we know that even good people can become corrupted. And uh Mihen kind of stands, folds his arms. What my sister is getting at in her own way is that they have spent much of the time that you've been gone investigating the axe that you've brought us.

SPEAKER_03 19:42

Oh, did you find out more news?

SPEAKER_07 19:45

We have learned much, though for every answer that we have gotten, more questions have been brought. The axe has a name. And kind of as Mihan starts saying this, Beery Saps are NOT up here! And Albrecht looks over. She's right. Albrecht mutters an incantation, and you see the spear begin to levitate off of the desk in front of them. Before we continue, why don't you introduce us to your new friend?

SPEAKER_04 20:20

Yes, of course. This whole time, Tempest has been just sort of like standing slightly behind the rest of the group, just trying to stay small.

SPEAKER_07 20:29

You've been standing back here, trying to seem small and insignificant, and Alberic calls out to being introduced to this group's new friend. And as you kind of look up, you have these steely blue, deep-set eyes piercing into you. Alberic is looking at you as if he can see straight through to your soul.

SPEAKER_04 20:55

Uh uh, Tempest looks up, kind of taken aback by the intense stare. Not a very welcoming look.

SPEAKER_07 21:04

As a feeling of acknowledgement kind of comes through you, his overall gaze softens, but he still is keeping his eyes locked on you for the moment.

SPEAKER_03 21:17

Seeing that there's just like kind of this uh almost tension kind of going between Tempest and Albreck, uh, Canina will step forward and just be like, uh yes, this is this is our friend Tempest. She's been of great aid to us during our journey thus far. And uh we've talked about possibly having her join the guild if it's something she desires. I feel like she may be a good fit here.

SPEAKER_07 21:41

And what is it that she desires?

SPEAKER_04 21:44

Uh well, at this point, I I guess I kind of just wanna stick with this gang. We've been getting along pretty well, so if I can stay.

SPEAKER_05 21:57

We all seem to work really well together. She's been a lot of help, and she's from the same monastery as I.

SPEAKER_03 22:03

And she's uh fairly reputable with the uh ship she worked on, uh, with Captain Seeks but not found.

SPEAKER_07 22:09

And the three of you find her to be trustworthy.

SPEAKER_03 22:13

Yes, absolutely.

SPEAKER_07 22:15

Would you trust your lives with her?

SPEAKER_03 22:18

I already have. She's proven herself to be a great ally time and time again, and she's ventured with us into dangerous territory and at great risk to herself, so yes.

SPEAKER_06 22:30

Rim will sit there and he'll think for a second. Tempest has uh shown a lot of interest in joining the guild. Perhaps she should speak with Oberon if he could be found.

SPEAKER_07 22:41

We have ways of reaching him. Tempest.

SPEAKER_04 22:45

Yes.

SPEAKER_07 22:46

Can they trust you with their lives?

SPEAKER_04 22:49

That's a very big responsibility, but I've done everything I can to do my part in keeping this group safe for the month or so that we've been traveling together.

SPEAKER_07 23:00

That is a good start. This group that you seem to have found yourselves entwined with has stumbled upon something larger than even they understand. If you're going to venture forth, and this goes for all of you, there's no turning back. This door, and he gestures behind him, leads one way for the four of you.

SPEAKER_03 23:27

Well, I certainly think that we've gone too far to really turn back at this point. There are questions that need answers, and there are truths to be uncovered here. I, for one, am ready to take the next step forward.

SPEAKER_07 23:42

He goes from looking at Kanina to looking at Ariel.

SPEAKER_05 23:50

I have to follow this through. It's it's my job, it's why I'm even here. I'll be going through the door.

SPEAKER_07 23:57

He moves his gaze over to Rem. Rem doesn't say anything, he just walks towards the door. And he looks at Tempest.

SPEAKER_04 24:05

She takes a deep breath and follows Rem.

SPEAKER_07 24:09

Albric opens the door that leads deeper behind the guildmaster's meeting chambers. He floats the spear through ahead of everybody and walks inside, holding the door open for me, Hen and Beery. And he stands and holds the door open for each one of you.

SPEAKER_03 24:30

Nina will boldly stride in, confident and looking forward to the knowledge to be on view.

SPEAKER_05 24:36

Ariel steps through after Nina.

SPEAKER_06 24:39

Grim follows.

SPEAKER_07 24:40

Tempest walks through slowly. The door is closed and locked behind all of you. And you find yourselves in a room as much like a library. Both sides of it are lined with shelves that are filled with ancient tomes and scrolls. In the center of this room is a large table that has a number of books piled on it, rolls of fresh parchment and quills, ink. A number of scrolls are in sort of a stand sitting next to it. And towards the back of this room, you see a spiral staircase that leads up one level. And then you see a ladder that leads down. Alberic walks through to the ladder, changes the way that the spear is floating to float it down into the level below, and Mihen makes his way over to the spiral staircase, and you see him start to make his way up. This here is where my expertise starts to become less relevant. I'm sure that I will see all of you again later.

SPEAKER_03 25:54

Uh, yes, of course. Thank you for your time.

SPEAKER_07 25:57

Albert kind of stands and gestures at the ladder. Beerie starts climbing down it.

SPEAKER_03 26:03

Okay, no, wait for a second for them to descend, and then she will start going down the ladder as well.

SPEAKER_07 26:09

Inside here, you are in another room, smaller than the one that was above you, and is filled with crates that have a bunch of supplies. Um, there's another couple shelves that are filled with books as well. Those of you that have been here would recognize that you are behind the library. In the center of this room is a locked trapdoor that Albert undoes and opens and gestures for you guys to climb down. As you guys climb down this ladder, you'll recognize that you are now underneath the guild hall, and you are inside a very expertly worked room. Like the walls and floor are all stone that has been pristinely worked and fitted together. And as you face the direction of where the library would be, there is a passageway that is locked with an iron grate that Albrecht walks over to. You do not see any sort of lock on it, but he mutters an incantation, waves his hand, and the iron bars fade away. Welcome to the vault. And as you guys step into the threshold here, you find yourselves in a room that lined on both sides are a number of items that exude magical energy. At the back of this room is another doorway. This one appears to be a solid sheet of steel that he once again is able to vanish. Everyone go ahead and roll perception. Ariel.

SPEAKER_05 28:00

Nine.

SPEAKER_07 28:01

Canina. 15. Rem. 16. Tempest. 24. Tempest is the only one to notice. And it's because this is something that happens behind you, is that as you guys all stepped into this room that seems to be filled with magical items and started to walk towards the other end of the room, that the bars that were blocking this room reformed themselves. Inside this seemingly final room, still on the same layer that you guys had been on before, there is a central pedestal. This room is about 30 feet. In the center of it is the great axe that you guys had brought to the guild, spinning as if in some sort of magical field, just floating above the pedestal and turning around. Albrecht walks to a mostly empty table that is pressed up against one of the walls, and he floats the spear over to it and sets it down. He mumbles a few words, and you see him reach a hand out towards the spear, and it seems to hit some sort of force field. Inside this room, there is also a halfling woman sitting at a bench with books and scrolls in front of her. You see that she seems to be reading through one book and then has a scroll of parchment that at one point was new, but at this point has many other words written on it. And she seems to be either copying or taking notes from the one book and then transcribing them into the other book. You guys recognize this as Verna Toskobel, the leader of the Artisan's Guild. And Albrecht, as he kinda checked the field. Verna. We've got something else that we will need to begin looking into after this work is a hazard to say done, but wrapped up enough that we can move on to something else. She looks up from her work, seemingly very startled. Oh, when did you guys get here? Hi. You're new, looking at Tempest. She stands, except from the stool that she's on. Standing is kind of just pushing off and being at about the same level, but she proudly walks over to where Tempest is and holds out a hand. I'm Verna. Tempest will Verna Toscobble.

SPEAKER_04 30:26

Sort of.

SPEAKER_07 30:26

Not hesitantly, but slowly, you know, like once your hands meet, you get the most enthusiastic handshake that you think it could have come from Nina. I'm the leader of the artisans here. Nice to meet you. I am Tempest. And I guess, in a way, uh, one of the head researchers into Fiat. She gestures at the axe that is spinning in the middle of the room. It has a name now. So, what have you told them? And uh, Beerie speaks up. We kinda haven't told them anything. We had a bit of a meeting. They told us about uh the spear that's now over there. And uh, my idiot brother was gonna start talking about things in an unprotected zone. So we stopped them and we took them here after making them all swear an oath that they're willing to go forward with this. And Albrecht kinda's that's a pretty good summation of what happened. So, at this point, they know that it's called Feok. And Verna kinda claspsed her hands together in front of you guys. So, chairs. Chairs. You guys should all sit. There's a lot. Uh yes, of course. She gestures around the room. There, there are like this is a 30-diameter room with this one thing floating in the center of it, and pretty much other than the doorway that you guys came in, the rest of it is lined with benches that have like shelves built into the wall above them. This would appear, especially to the magically inclined. None of you guys are wizards, so it's not as obvious. This is like a place of arcane study.

SPEAKER_03 32:13

Are there any like wards or anything like that that we can actively tell, like on the walls or anything like that?

SPEAKER_07 32:20

The the doorways that you guys walked through.

SPEAKER_02 32:22

Mostly those.

SPEAKER_07 32:23

Yeah. And the reference that they made to, you know, speaking in an unprotected space would heavily imply that somewhere along the line you guys crossed a threshold into protected area.

SPEAKER_03 32:37

Yeah. I wasn't sure if there would be any uh more obvious signs of like a warding circle or some such in this like type of uh room. Go ahead and roll an arcana check.

SPEAKER_07 32:49

Twelve. You assume that there are. My magical senses are tingling. So yes. Feok, great axe. Once wielded by a man named Kavarak. Dragonbond to Doitan. It's not complete though.

SPEAKER_05 33:07

Ariel's gonna look over at Nina. Not say anything, just recognizing pieces being put together. How did you uh come to figure out the name of the axe?

SPEAKER_07 33:18

A lot of books and scrolls, and a lot of time. So, the axe is something called a dragon bond. The fact that it's real leads us to believe that dragons are real, or were real. At one point they they existed, or the myth of them is so permeated in ancient legend that they named weapons that are very magical after them, anyways. But we think that some of the things we found would suggest that, uh, nope, dragons are real. Um, so Fiaq here is about 1300 years old and comes from time before something called the Dragon Wars. From what we can tell, the Dragon Wars or why we don't know about dragons anymore. Don't really know what happened. Then Beerie kinda steps up and takes over a bit. Yes, from what we can tell, there was a legendary event about 1300 years ago, called the Dragon Wars. From our research, that was about the last time that you saw things written about dragons in a sense that they were real. The Dragon Wars were a time that the dragons and their riders started to quarrel with one another. They were so powerful individually before, but even more together, especially with the dragon bonds linking them, that legend goes when things started to look really bad for Aurelia, the entire world, the gods had to get involved.

SPEAKER_03 35:10

The gods? And what did they do exactly? We think they locked them up. Nina's connecting the dots in her mind and recalling what Dream Doitan had mentioned to her.

SPEAKER_07 35:22

And uh, Feok is is not the only one. Doitan isn't the only one either. They were all they were all linked. I don't know how many there were, but we have come across a handful of names that we can kind of link through various stories together that we're realizing are a little more than just stories, probably. Uh, we believe that the names Ryo, Fwar, Lothian, and Gerda are all related to the Dragon Wars.

SPEAKER_06 35:54

Thinking back to what I read at the Dwarven Kingdom, do I recognize all those names? Are there any missing from what I got?

SPEAKER_07 36:01

Rem knows two names.

SPEAKER_06 36:04

From what they said.

SPEAKER_07 36:05

Out of what uh Verna just said. Rem can link two names together.

SPEAKER_06 36:10

So Rem will then come forth and speak. When when we were in the Dwarven Kingdom, I spent some time in their royal library, came across a tablet that also had those names among others, and he'll say from translated from the Dwarven, he found black, blue, bronze, brass, copper, gold, green, red, silver, and white.

SPEAKER_05 36:37

I have a Geodok that is black, Gaoth is blue, Tintriak is bronze, Slainte is brass, Snomhop Snump is copper, Tias is gold, Nim green, Doiton red, and four white.

SPEAKER_06 36:57

There's also uh Ryo silver. And then I have a name and a hammer.

SPEAKER_07 37:04

You would know those more, so I will just tell you. Goibnu is one of the gods.

SPEAKER_06 37:09

Okay, so Goibnu and his hammer. So that makes me wonder then, as Rim, after having also shared that if we know that the axe is linked to the rider of Doitan, which was the red dragon, is the spear linked to another dragon? Uh having shared the name list that Rim has with Bernines' sayings, if this is an ancient Dwarven tablet and it seems to match some of the stuff you have, perhaps there's more out there.

SPEAKER_07 37:38

Huh, wait, wait, so you have Floir as being a dragon?

SPEAKER_06 37:44

Yes, specifically white dragon.

SPEAKER_07 37:47

And you also have Ryu as being one of the dragons.

SPEAKER_06 37:53

Yes, specifically silver in color.

SPEAKER_07 37:56

Okay, uh, and you see her like grabbing a fresh scroll of parchment. Like, I need to write these down so that I have them somewhere easier to find, because if I just put them here, I'm gonna lose them again later. But I need I need to take these and reference them with some of the things that I found with the other ones, because this is a pretty big key to this puzzle. Maybe. All of this really hinges on the fact that since we have this axe in front of us, I'm just assuming that this this whole thing with the Dragon Wars is real.

SPEAKER_06 38:32

Well, there was more on the tablet again, I was translating from Dwarvish, but apparently it did speak of Doitun engaging in a fight with Fuar.

SPEAKER_07 38:43

That would definitely sound like something Dragon War related, yep.

SPEAKER_06 38:47

So, if these are not just legend but actually do hold historical truth, what does that mean? Now that it appears relics of the time are appearing.

SPEAKER_07 38:59

Uh don't know. I mean, it could be really bad. We saw what happened with the axe.

SPEAKER_06 39:07

And possibly the spear.

SPEAKER_07 39:09

Um possibly the spear. I don't know anything about the spear yet. What's that?

SPEAKER_06 39:15

The spear?

SPEAKER_07 39:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 39:16

It was a spear we found in the possession of an undead knoll who was leading a large knoll band to raid merchants and travelers along the road between the Dwarven kingdom and the port of Narsal.

SPEAKER_07 39:31

Ah shit. That does sound very familiar. And then Beerie Spears. Yes, but there's also something very different in the way that they were made. I don't want to jump too quickly to conclusions because Viak was made as a weapon. Like, without dragons involved, still a weapon. Really really nicely made. Fine craftsman weapon. Evil spear was made evil. See the rib cage and the skull? Evil weapon. Weapon weapon. Verna just kind of put the hand on her chin. Good point there.

SPEAKER_05 40:12

While they were all having a conversation, Ariel is just gonna like behind herself point over to Nina and use message and just say to her, should we tell them about our dreams? It might be useful.

SPEAKER_03 40:29

Okay, reply back to message.

SPEAKER_05 40:31

Yes, you can reply in a whisper that only I can hear.

SPEAKER_03 40:34

Yeah, Canina will go ahead and reply. Yes, I think it's best that we offer all information that we're privy to. I just wanted to kind of get to know the story of what they've discovered so far before we offered up our side.

SPEAKER_05 40:49

Ariel just nod back.

SPEAKER_07 40:50

And you guys kind of hear Verna going, I'd like to say that we should know more, but I also don't think it can be understated how much work went into what we have found out. As you like look around and see probably at least 50 tomes that are out in various stages of being opened, parchment all over the place. As she's been like talking to you about this stuff, she's been pulling rolls of parchment out that she has been transcribing into, opening them up to make sure that she's referencing things correctly and putting them back. So you can tell that a lot of work has gone into what seemingly little information that they have. A lot of it so far has been kind of connecting dots and going, well, if this is real, then this might be real, but if these two together are real, then this might be real. As Verna kind of stops talking, she takes a breath, and Albric walks over to her, puts a hand on her shoulder. Verna. They just came back from a long journey. And this was a lot. Why don't we let them have the rest of the night to relax? Unwind from the trip. We can meet again tomorrow. Or in a few days if that's what you guys need. I understand that we kind of just drastically altered the course of all of your lives today. If it's not clear from being invited down here and telling you about all of this, we intend to dive into this matter further. See if we can't hunt down the other dragon bonds. Specifically before they get into other hands. Hands that would do evil with them. Like the Cullboard leader had done with Fioc. And like Grimfang had done with this spear. If the spear were in fact to be a dragonbond. Even without being a dragonbond. The spear is an example of what such a powerful item can do out in the world. Verna kinda hangs her head a little bit and is like, Yeah, I just don't get to talk about this with like anyone. So having people that I could like finally unload on this that haven't been here like the whole time was kinda nice. I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_03 43:24

Uh no, no, we uh we appreciate all the hard work you've been doing over the long weeks to get this information. It's just, it's a lot to take in. I think we'll have to let what we've learned today uh kind of marinate a bit so that we can fully understand things.

SPEAKER_07 43:41

Albrecht looks over at Tempest. I'm going to get a message sent out to Oberin. Not pushing you to join the naturalists, but I would like you to be able to meet him so that you can feel that all of your options were presented fairly in front of you before making it. Decision. And also, as one of your members would already know, it's not like it's a final say if you join one of the branches. If it's a poor fit, then it's not like we're gonna kick you out, you can move around.

SPEAKER_04 44:17

Well, that's good to know, and I um look forward to meeting with him.

SPEAKER_07 44:23

And with that, unless there's any pressing questions that you guys have for them before the end of the night.

SPEAKER_05 44:30

How safe are we to uh I'm just worried about that spirit coming back again. And I know we need a good night's sleep.

SPEAKER_07 44:38

How frequently were you being attacked by the spirit?

SPEAKER_05 44:42

Um, twice, and I think a day or two passed between.

SPEAKER_07 44:47

That would lead me to believe that you would be safe overnight. However, I don't believe that the spirit cares about you. Based on what I've seen and what you've shared, and what I know about some things, I believe the spirit was sent to retrieve the spear. Perhaps from Grimfang himself, if, as you say, he is still alive. Perhaps these spirits are what's left of Grimfang, trying to reclaim what was taken from him. But I believe that you are fine.

SPEAKER_05 45:24

And they can't penetrate through here or that force field that is around it now.

SPEAKER_07 45:31

If they were to get into here, then we would have much bigger problems.

SPEAKER_05 45:36

Okay.

SPEAKER_07 45:36

I do not believe it is possible.

SPEAKER_05 45:40

Well, guys, we might actually get some sleep tonight.

SPEAKER_03 45:43

Yeah, we've had to remain vigilant for quite some time now, so it'll be nice to be able to relax in a safe place.

SPEAKER_07 45:51

Is there like a guest area for people to stay who aren't part of the guild but need to stay, or the guild has a number of rooms and the guild itself often does not have a number of people here enough to fill in the rooms, and in order to, you know, make money in order to keep things running, they have been known to rent out rooms on short and longer term notice. Like your guild dues, part of the reason that you pay them is for your rooms.

SPEAKER_03 46:26

But uh, for now, I think we've gained all the information that we can, so we'll proceed to go rest for the night and face the new day with its new challenges next time.

SPEAKER_07 46:39

So Albrecht, Beerie, and Verna all kind of leave with you guys heading back out through the the guild masters meeting chambers, and Albrecht unlocks the door and lets you guys walk out. And that's where we're gonna wrap things up tonight at roughly 6 p.m. on the 11th of Monot.

SPEAKER_06 47:08

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Adventures in Aurelia. You can help the show out a ton by sharing episodes on social media and telling your friends. Leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Tell us what we're doing right or what we could improve on. Your review will get you featured in our next Nightwatch. Lastly, we'd like to thank the artists who allow us to use their music in our show Monument Studios, Dark Fantasy Studio, Michael Gelfi, Tabletop Audio, Scott Buckley, Joe Steedler, JDB Artist, Alexander Nacarata from Serpent Sound Studios, Windswept, Adrian von Ziegler, and Kev McLeod of Incompotech.com. You can find links to all of these wonderful artists at Adventures in Aurelia.com slash music.