The Missing Mace Case

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This adventure began on the 17th day of the 8th month of the year 836 LC, following the collapse of a previous mission. After the party discovered that Allegra had disappeared along with Duncan, Sevreen, and Arista, they began discussing their next move. At that point, they were approached by a rider from the east, a man named Spencer, who warned them that Duke Mirdael's men were looking for them, showing them a wanted poster with pictures of SpringRite and Thunderklak. Klak thought he recognized him as a fellow mercenary that he'd seen, and the party talked him into accompanying them to Hanmer while Adaron and Vanadin checked out the situation at The Crossroads.

The Elven brothers arrived at the Four Corners Inn and began asking around, but find no word on Allegra or her companions. After Vanadin was kicked out of the settlement for starting a bar fight, he and Adaron continued down the road to one of the signal towers, where they were to meet with the rest of the group. There, they met Srelhoeth, who informed them that their employers had lost contact with their friend, Mace Nighthammer, as well as those traveling with him -- Molbo, CloudStorm, Gabriella, NightShade, Antos, Delmar Zorchglimmer, and Ashton Warrendale.

Upon reaching Hanmer, the party was surprised to discover that Sildar was in town, and was looking for them. After a somewhat roundabout discussion, he was welcomed back into the party. Meanwhile, Spencer disappeared into the city.

Shortly thereafter, the group met with a representative of the guild named Thanos, who contracted them to find Mace and the others. He filled them in on some details, including that Antos had mentioned that they were meeting with a mage named Kalzac. After the disappearance, the guild spoke to one of their contacts in Jar-Kahn and discovered that there was nobody there using that name.

Later, Lyden had an encounter with an Elven thief named Tivia, who informed him that word was already spreading around Hanmer that he and his companions had run afoul of Duke Mirdael. He informs the party of this, and they begin to take precautions to prevent being seen on the streets by bounty hunters.

After a lengthy discussion, the party consulted with a diviner named Rodrick. They asked the guild to get something of Mace's so that Rodrick could use it to focus his crystal ball, but the first item they got belonged instead to Endymion. Keladryn then discovered that some priests of Losyera could draw an image directly from the mind of a person, and SpringRite allowed them to tap into his mind to draw a picture of Mace. This was then brought to Rodrick, who used it to determine that Mace -- as well as others who appeared to be Molbo and CloudStorm -- was alive, but in an unknown place, and unconscious.

The party decided that they would travel by gnomish airship to their last known location in Jar-Kahn, there to consult with Season Pallianor, who had transported them there several weeks earlier. Upon reaching this decision, Gillek decided to bail, not wanting to trust the gnomish contraption.

At this point, the party discovers that several of the wanted posters from The Crossroads had made their way into town. Tired of having to duck for cover with this group, Lyden decides it is time to depart.

With the departure of several party members, the group found itself short on magecraft, and convinced an old acquaintance, Sarlon, to join them on their mission. As he had previously, Sarlon brought along a personal healer, in this case a priestess of Helandra named Villea.

On their way to the airship, the party encountered a little trouble with a group of local thugs who tried to collect on the reward, but SpringRite was able to buy them off. After that, the party departed for a surprisingly quiet two-week trip to Jar-Kahn. Upon their arrival, they quickly made their way to the gates of the school, where they were greeted by the familiar figure of Fiona Barthos, who agreed to help them try and gather information.

Upon their meeting at the inn where they were staying, a discussion ensued that drew the attention of one of the other patrons, a woman named Beyla. She, too, was invited to join the group. Fiona returned to inform them that they would, hopefully, be able to meet with Season's father, Leviticus, the next morning. At that meeting, Leviticus told the group that, in fact, Mace and his friends had been there, and that he had told them to meet with Virtuus, the school's master at breaking magical protections.

Levi proceeded to bring the group to the Tower of Divination, where a diviner named Zincor discovered that Mace and the others were being held in the dungeons beneath the Tower of Necromancy. After confirming that the party had never, in fact, met with Virtuus, the party discovered that they were last known to be in the company of Ildrevan, a former student in the School of Invocation.

After gathering all the aid they would receive from Levi, eight of the party entered the Tower of Necromancy. Once into the dungeon area, they were confronted by an odd creature who claimed to be the guardian of that level. The creature, which called itself a spectator, warned them not to take anything that belonged in the dungeon, and also told them of the wardmist that lay in their path. The party passed the creature, and then found themselves confronted with the wardmist.

As they discussed what was to be done, they heard the voice of NightShade, who was invisible and had apparently evaded capture. Further discussion led to Sarlon unsuccessfully dispeling the mist. The party made their way into the mist, and just as Kelrick, the rear guard, stepped into the mist, the group was confronted by zombies which appeared from nowhere. After the zombies were quickly dispatched, the party continued down the corridor. SpringRite listened at a door, which apparently set off an alarm, bringing Professor Malsquando and several guards.

While Keladryn created a hole in the wall into the room where the others were being held, the two groups exchanged spells, and Sarlon disappeared in the aftermath of a fireball. Most of the party entered the room to discover their fallen comrades, but discovered that Antos wasn't present. Fiona was able to convince the necromancer to halt his attack, and the group gathered in the room with their missing comrades. Malsquando then placed a spell on all present to prevent them from leaving the school grounds for three days so that they could be questioned about this incident.

Fiona then attempted to teleport the group, including Malsquando, back to the Tower of Invocation, but it misfired, causing most of the group to appear in the tower's shaft. Keladryn and Ashton were killed in the fall. SpringRite and Hanalyn were left behind, and were attacked by another group of zombies, who killed Hanalyn during their escape. Eventually, the party met in the tower, and those who could be healed were.

The next morning, Keladryn, Hanalyn and Ashton were brought to the temple of Malarik to be raised. After this, the party spent the morning in discussion, as NightShade told the party that, in fact, it was Antos who betrayed them. He had apparently conspired with Ildrevan and Kalzac to steal the box and leave the party behind. Ildrevan was apparently killed for his trouble and his body tossed over a nearby cliff before the other two escaped on a ship. While NightShade, Adaron and Vanadin investigated the docks, the rest discussed their next move while awaiting the questioning session...

This adventure is currently in progress. It has, at various times, involved the following characters:

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