Session 44: Various character meetings

The PCs ended last session at a safe house run by the Lanterns in Blue River City.   The Blood Dragons had four names of sorcerers in Blue River City they wouldn't mind if Kormatin slew.   After comparing notes with the local Lanterns, they determined two of them were members of the Arcane Registry that had an interest in shutting down the Blood Dragons, one of them was a Lantern-sympathizer that disliked the Blood Dragons, and the fourh was in the pocket of a rival crime family. The Lanterns believed the last guy was an ammoral jackass and said they wouldn't mind if they die, so Kormatin and company humored the Blood Dragons and took them out.   Shortly thereafter, the local Lanterns spy network picked up that a young bastard with heterchromia, Ifan, step son of scabbard maker recently manifested his sorcery and Count Rohdri ap Gruffyl flew into Blue River City seemingly to pick him up.   Brigid and Kormatin in illusory disguise arrived at Ifan's parent's shop minutes before Rohdri did in magical disguise with charisma boosting spells. Ifan's first spell is Detect Magic, but he didn't know what the aura's mean and only saw the colors of the active spells.   Rohdri was able to win over Ifan's parents pretty easily (not that it was particularly difficult for Ragani to win them over previously).   Rohdri (invsible shadow entourage in tow) invited Kormatin, Brigid, Aleesia, and Ifan to a nice meal at the the Whispering Salamander and tried and failed to uninvite Ragani and Bendek but he did not push very hard. After consenting to let them come along, he ignored them as much as possible (though he still paid for their dinner).   Here's a highlight of some of the major things Rohdri said.   (with regards to Kormatin) "I am proud of your strength and political acumen. It's nice to see that my blood doesn't need the dragon's power to be formidable."   (with regards to Aleesia) “I’ve never been with a doe, but you picked a lovely one. Half-satyrs very seldom hold the dragon’s power. I suppose that’s not your priority. Perhaps there was a useful political angle to your marriage too.”   (with regards to Brigid "“If you come back, you will beholden to any marriage arrangements. I believed you were ill suited to the Dragon’s Path, I am pleased to be proven wrong in this case.”   Rohdri deflected or minimizned any attempt to dissuade him from his sorcery research goals and didn't believe or care that Greymoria was supposedly against him.   Brigid suggested that if she can come back to Rohdri later, Ifan could go with her and then come back to Rohdri later and to everyone's surprise, Rohdri agreed whole heartedly. He gave Ifan ten gold pieces and a signet ring and wished him godspeed.   Shortly thereafter. Kormatin and company returned to Fumaya by way of the Borderlands and swung north to pick up the Stagdrift loas (keeping Ifan in tow). Then swung back through the Borderlands to get the loas back to Stagdrift around time for Count Llewellyn's coming of age party. Kormatin and company arrived a bit early, so they camped out in the adjacent province and caught a little informal show from the The Emberhold Players and yet another half-sibling of Kormatin. He was friendly but wanted to minimize contact until after the war. He liked being a sorcerer but he didn't want to get roped into whatever intrigue Rohdri was involved in or high level Swynfaredian politics in general. Among other things, the Emberhold Players research real contemporary and historical politics when making plays and they are aware of how byzantine Swynfaredian politics can be.   Count Llewellyn ap Selwyth warmly welcomed his wayward loas back and promised them full protection. The loas arranged a meeting between Llewellyn and his father with Kormatin in an empty mill.   As a formality (and for plausible deniability), he offered Kormatin generous terms of surrender at the start of the meeting. That way if anyone gave the Count grief about meeting with an enemy he had that to fall back on.   He thanked Kormatin for not harming any miners or guards when clearing the undead of the mines. He insisted he did not want the undead there in the first place and was glad to have them gone. Speaking of which, a half-dragon named Chovriss was supervising the endeavor and Countess Colwyn was planning to marry him into Selwyth eventually but was stringing him along.   "I do not like the way he looks at my sister....or for that matter all my maid servants or any girl under twenty. If I never see him again it will be too soon. He is a fifth circle necromancer and fourth circle Abjurer and a skilled swordsmen. He has only recently learned Disguise Self and he's not particularly good at casting it unless he is feigning weakness in illusion."   Kormatin explained that he learned from the inhabitant of a prison lantern explained that Llewellyn's mother died in an experiment involving ghouls and Llewellyn and his father seemed to believe it and took the news relatively well, all things considered.   Kormatin swung south to Swynfaredia's coast to give 50 gold pieces to Howell par Gruffyl and offer him extraction to Fumaya, which he accepted. They swung through Palbuc. Brigid and Duke Vern Palbuc had something of a date picking Zarthus Flowers then the party went to Ivanna City on Howell's request.