Session 24: Infilitrating Welzinwald

Activating the cloaking field on their ship, the Dark Stars flew directly over Welzinwald. They could clearly see places where the walls had been breached in the recent battle with Alexandros’s forces. Flying over the city, the party found an unused field to land on about a mile away from town.

Leaving the ship cloaked, the party headed into town. They were stopped by two guards wearing standard Tomani armor, red cloaks, and spears. The guards demanded to know their business in the city. While trying to bluff their way past the guards, arrows suddenly flew out of the bushes and took one of the guards in the throat. As he fell to the ground, the party jumped into action. Zhang quickly closed with the assailants in the bushes, finding humans in rough leather armor. He quickly knocked these attackers out and the remaining ones fled, but not before they had killed the remaining guard.

Realizing that these apparent bandits might actually be rebels opposed to Alexandros’s rule, the party quickly woke and questioned their captives. They claimed to be members of the resistance, fighting a guerrilla war against the soldiers that Alexandros had left in the city. They claimed that dresium wagons had been going into the fortress at one of the end the city but not leaving from the other end. Clearly, they were being detained within. Various townsfolk were also being held prisoner in the fortress. Alexandros’s forces were being led by a strange woman named Medea who seemed to have some arcane power to charm and enchant and by a military leader named Commander Helmus. After some initial suspicion, the bandits told the party that they could find other members of the resistance at the Inn of the Fat Pheasant in town.

Satisfied with this information, the party headed to the Inn of the Fat Pheasant before the two murdered guards were discovered. After settling in and meeting the proprietor, a woman named Greda, the party headed over to the fortress for reconnaissance. The party found an excellent fish and chips shop across the street from the fortress where they could keep an eye. Clancy had his familiar go invisible and scout out the fortress. Shalgare Dunwarifar was unable to find any signs of the missing dresium wagons, but he did see a large pile of dresium that was being loaded into two spacefaring ships. He also locate an empty office that seemed to belong to the leader of Alexandros’s troops, although it was locked. With this information, PPP used his Cape of the Mountebank to dimension door inside the office. Inside he found a letter from Alexandros to Medea that indicated the importance of working with their “allies” and providing them as much dresium as they required. PPP was then able to acrobatically make it to the darkening street below via a window before he was discovered.

Meanwhile, Zhang found an alleyway and begin a magic ritual. Having completed the ritual he addressed two nearby rats, now being able to speak with animals. Amazed to be speaking to a human, the rats actually listened. Zhang asked the rats to look out for Medea and let him know if they found her. Tempted by Zhang’s promise of food, the rats happily agreed.

Satisfied with their reconnaissance, the Dark Stars returned to the Inn of the Fat Pheasant. After a hearty meal, they got to conversing with Greda. After some discussion, Greda revealed that her husband, Andreas, was also being held as a captive in the fortress. Even more surprising, the party put together the fact that Andreas was the son of Knute and Lina. The party revealed to Greda that they would be interested in helping the resistance. After some initial suspicion, Greda indicated that she could arrange a meeting with the leader of the resistance.

While this was happening, PPP headed to another tavern in town that was known to be popular with Ventian soldiers. After almost getting into trouble with the barkeep and playing dice with a few soldiers, PPP found out that Medea kept her own soldiers (who wore purple rather than red cloaks) and that her soldiers put many of these Ventian soldiers on edge.

PPP returned just in time for Greda to lead the party into the back room of the Inn and down into a secret cellar where they were to meet the leader of the resistance.