Session 8: Gravetown

 The PCs start where they left off. They have retrieved the ritual book of the Sethi cult. However, it's the middle of the night. Knowing that Rivas may have people looking for them, they go to the house of Mick's mentor, Blix Yodarian. 

Blix lets them stay the night and talks with them. He advises Mick to associate with solid people and be trustworthy with them. He also tells him that he'll begin training him in magic use.

The next day they return to the Temple of Ahki and join the real Abbot Lightman in locking the ritual book in the temple's vault. The Abbot tell's Simon that he will teach him new prayers and mediations to deepen his relationship with Ahki and allow him to draw on more of her power.

Debi is summoned to the shop of Raxalliah the Merchant, who gives her the Book of the Loremaster. He tells her to spend a month studying it, and it will give her insight into psychology, storytelling, and other bard skills. 

The PCs each spend a month in study (after which they gain their 3rd level abilities). During that month, Debi encounters Rivas while she is performing at the Eye of the Beholder. Rivas simply applauds her, and gives her a respectful nod. No apparent animosity for their recent conflicts. 

After that month goes by, Mick encounters the thief Slovas at the Eye. Slovas tells him of a rumor that the residents of the neighborhood known as Gravetown are having trouble with some entity who's come up from the Under-City. Gravetown is an area where once the rich of Langwon resided. It borders a massive graveyard (thus the name) where those rich and noble were buried. Now it is a downtrodden area. Debi and Simon show up and Mick tells them of the rumor. They decide to investigate. Debi confirms the rumor with Vern, the bartender. 

The PCs go to Gravetown and find the streets unusually empty. They are directed by a few drunks still on the street to the Bard's Flute pub. There they find a public meeting taking place. A man in fine clothing is on the band stage, flanked by two fighters. The place is crowded with residents who are yelling "What are you going to do about this?" and likewise. The place is about to erupt into violence. Mick cries out that he and his friends can help! The crowd turns, looks at the three, and one man says "What can you do?" Deb jumps up on stage and begins to speak to the crowd, rolling a very high Persuasion roll, and calming the people. She learns that the man on stage is named Wartis. Mick amazes the crowd with some minor magic, and Debi lets them speak. The PCs learn that a number of young men in the neighborhood have disappeared, and the Wartis (the mayor) is unwilling to call the City Guard in to put things right. Wartis explains that it would cause fear and destroy the economy of the neighborhood, and that they can handle it themselves. Debi and the other two agree to help them, the crowd disperses, and they PCs join Wartis in a meeting in his office.

Wartis expresses skepticism that anything is actually wrong, blaming the superstitious nature of the peasants, of whom he speaks with some derision. He agrees to hire the PCs to investigate the matter. He'll pay them each 20 gp if they will report back tomorrow with their findings. They agree and leave.

They are summoned to a home by a woman they call Three-Teeth, who they met in the meeting. She tells them that Wartis is a coward, and that one night she saw two "living dead" knock out a young man and carry him toward the graveyard.

It is the middle of the night. Mick uses Disguise Self to make him appear like a young muscular man to make himself a target. They go to the foundry area, across from the graveyard. No one attacks Mick, but Debi sees a humanoid figure through the fog beyond the gate to the graveyard. 

Mick picks the lock to the gate. They enter the graveyard, discovering a region about 200 feet in where the vegetation is dead, in the center their is a large mausoleum.  They move toward it and see a humanoid figure lurking around. 

They find the front door of the building locked. Mick picks the lock. The building is stone, 15' tall, with an overhang on front. There is a dome on top, with multicolored glass panes, some of which are broken. They hear something inside crash. Opening the door, they see in the filtered moonlight many sarcophagi. Mick enters the building and casts dancing lights to light it all up. When he casts the spell, a giant spider that was hidden in the dome hits him with web, restraining him.

Mick makes a STR check and breaks free. The spider is hanging from the side of the dome. Debit cases Cloud of Daggers, dealing damage to the monster. Simon casts Sacred Flame, hitting the monster. It drops down and attacks, biting Simon, who saves vs poison. The PCs use weapons to kill the monster before it can gain attack.

End of session. 
Time elapsed this session. 32 days.
Time elapsed in campaign: 6 weeks, 3 days