Chapter 8: The Many Sins of Sabina Sweetney

Session 51 (cont)
Once the party realizes Zo's been gone too long, finding her takes priority — not least because starting a brawl with a rich elf in a club in a city is a great way to get arrested. The bathrooms are searched, drunk girls are rallied, Samsok is sobered up thanks to a healing touch from Ebele, vampire socialites are distracted thanks to Seán, and finally Seth finds out from the bouncer that someone matching Zo's description was seen running off out of the club calling after someone.

The search moves to the streets of downtown Mohkinstsis, crowded with Stampede revellers. It's the smokers who save them — a group sharing a bottle, several cigarettes, and some good gossip say they saw someone matching Zo's description who seemed like she was half-passed out drunk being hauled between two others: a half-elf with similar colouring to Zo but white hair, and a very handsome person with brown skin, blond hair, and geometric tattoos. They apparently went down to the sewers and one of the smokers offers our heroes some friendly advice: be careful down there. That's the Five's territory.

Our heroes drop into the sewers and lay an ambush in the process, having clocked someone following them for some time. When the figure lightly lands in the sewers, they quickly realize she's of no danger to them — her name is Sibyl, and she's a representative of Хладнокрове, Vyre's home temple to Eustachy. She had been asked to find Vyre, and when the party makes it clear they have no more idea where Vyre is than she does, she leaves them.

As the group travels on, though Alja does an admirable job of finding what traces of passage can be found down here, the trail goes cold shortly after it returns aboveground, and it seems as though whoever took Zo took her into a vehicle and beyond Alja's ability to track. They drop by Shelf Life Books, based off an old rumour Rorrik remembered that if you wanted to get in touch with the Five, that was where you went, but like most bookstores, it isn't open past midnight.

Tired and with few other choices left, they make their way back to the Ornons', hoping the morning and a return to the bookstore will bring more clues as to how to find Zo again.

Session 51 (cont)
The following morning, Rorrik receives a message informing him that he's been chosen to participate in the magician's duels. He declines.

Seth receives a message informing her that she's been chosen to participate in the magician's duels. He declines.

Samsok receives a message informing him that he's been chosen to participate in the magician's duels. He says he'd love to if they could do it another day. The Stampede declines.

The party returns to Shelf Life Books, where they make various overtures and ultimately leave two messages: one, from Alja, saying they'd like to get in touch with the Famous Five regarding a missing friend, and the other, from Samsok, saying he'd like to get in touch with Buhle. Samsok searches for books on halfling gods, to no avail. They then go to half the shops in Inglewood, with Samsok peddling various wares he'd accumulated on the trip from his home to Mohkisntsis, and realizing in the process that he is, all of a sudden, a very rich bugbear. Seth sends a message to Zohal and deepens her connection with Gibbeth in the process, leaving her with a keen sense of paranoia.

When they return with Samsok's newfound riches and various other odds and ends to the Rising Sun, they find Buhle already there waiting for them. He can arrange a meeting regarding Zo, he says, but to do so will come with a certain measure of risk. The person who took Zohal is powerful, he warns. Powerful enough that he won't so much as hint at their identity. If he takes them to meet the Five, there will likely be no backing out.

Unwilling to lose another party member, and with no other leads, the party agrees, and Buhle tells them to return to Shelf Life Books that evening.

In the meantime, they decide to do some recon on Trennen and Bri, with Rorrik making clever use of his spells to pinpoint where they are and facilitate magical spying on their room. They settle in the lounge, discussing the best ways to get information from Trennen, and Samsok leaves a message for Fernando requesting a meeting, hoping he might be the key to connecting them.

Session 52
It doesn't take long for Fernando to turn up, though he does't prove quite the contact they'd hoped — when Samsok offers his cover story, Fernando says he'd be happy to look into potential buyers for his silvered giant skull punch bowl, but doesn't know Trennen well enough to make that pitch to him. After his departure, Rorrik and Seth decide to go up to Samsok's suite to spy on Trennen and Bri, while Alja and Samsok remain in the lounge as Team Distraction, ready to split their efforts to try and lure the elves in following their respective flirtations with Trennen and Bri the night before.

Rorrik ascertains that the pair are getting ready to go out somewhere for dinner, and some time later Team Distraction sees them walking briskly through the lobby on their way. Though Alja tries to distract them and follow up on the offer she'd left Trennen to meet up for drinks, Trennen shuts her down, proving that he may be enough of a jerk to flirt with another woman in front of his partner, and he may be enough of a jerk to have (allegedly) killed his wife, but he draws the line at cheating. Good for you, Trennen! It's always nice to have one (1) redeeming quality beyond good bone structure. That said, he's kind of a dick about it, so maybe we'll count this as like .25% of a redeeming quality.

With that avenue of investigation shut down and their prior engagement making following the pair impractical, our heroes decide to press on with their meeting with the Five instead, making their way back to Shelf Life. Once there, they're led into a back room where they meet five individuals: a rail-thin person in their mid-thirties with slicked-back black hair and cheek piercings; a freckly, long-haired young man with a nervous air; a young woman with a mass of messy dark hair and an air of supreme confidence; a short but stout young man who looked like he'd give great bear hugs when he isn't trying to be intimidating; and a beautiful young man with an aloof air. The party will, they're informed, have to be blindfolded and relieved of their weapons for the journey, to ensure the Five's security. Their weapons will be returned to them once they were settled in for the meeting and no longer blindfolded.

Once the terms were agreed to, the older person goes to secure their passage, while the younger people set to disarming and blindfolding everyone. After a few minutes, the leader returns, and begins to lead them to their destination. What follows is a maze of twists and turns even Alja can't keep track of, with the party eventually being led down into the sewers, through another complex series of twists and turns. Finally, they reach their destination, and are led to take seats around a table — when their blindfolds are removed, they find themselves in what seems to be a massive underground bar, packed full of what are presumably other members of the Famous Five, Buhle at the bar nearby.

Seated at their table are two people they've never seen before: a copper dragonborn and a handsome young man who mostly keeps quiet, leaving the dragonborn — Shamash — to do the talking.

The proposition Shamash makes is simple. The party has two options. First, they can leave right then and there, get out of Mohkinstsis within 24 hours, and never come back, or face the consequences. Second, they can stay, learn about who has their friend, and vow not to reveal anything seen or said while down there. Should they choose to break that oath, Shamash assures them, if they can't find one of them to pay the price, there are plenty of others they could find: Tshering, for instance. Seán. Ebele. Moyrkus. Ini.

The party agrees to the terms, and Shamash explains who has Zohal: Sabina Sweetney, a city councilwoman, vampire, and secret humanoid trafficker. While Sabina publicly made her fortune through the import and export of exotic goods, it was her underground import and export of exotic people that really secured her status. Previously, the Five had tolerated this, as Sabina had only ever poached outside of Mohkinstsis, ensuring those within the Five's territory were safe. But in recent years, Sabina has gotten bolder, picking off hapless tourists and the like — such as the changeling who went missing before she could participate in the magician's duels.

The problem with Sabina is that she has enough power that if the Five acted against her, she could potentially take the Five apart. She is a woman with many employees and considerable security. However, if our heroes could get actionable intelligence — adequate evidence of Sabina's illicit dealings — they could potentially get the authorities involved. They would need proof so undeniable that even Sabina's bribes couldn't hold the city guard on her side. In exchange, the Five could make sure Zohal didn't leave the city — or that she would be quickly liberated if she did — could provide their resources to help the party bring Sabina down, and would secure a private meeting with Trennen, Bri, and no witnesses. The Cosmic Crew, after all, have the perfect cover to get close to Sabina: they are adventurers fresh out of the Arena of Champions, in a perfect place to seek out a wealthy patron.

The party agrees, and the deal is struck. After several drinks and the discovery that the Famous Five brews the best beer in the city in its sewer brewery, they return to the Ornons, with Samsok, Rorrik, and Alja sharing Feywild mushrooms while Seth nurses her paranoia and a note left for her by Ini Topaztwister. Though none of the three manage to secure information from the cables of the world, they have a more or less enjoyable night, leaving a note for Seán and Ebele asking them to come by when they return to their rooms, and one by one passing out.

Session 52 (cont)
They had mentioned, in the note, to come by regardless of the time, so it's no great surprise when they're woken up earlier than they'd prefer by Seán and Ebele, who are... alarmed to hear of the party's interest in Sabina Sweetney. Though they dance around the subject at first, the party manages to learn that Seán and Ebele know Sabina from long ago, when she had only recently been turned into a vampire. Apparently, the pair had a habit of looking after unstable baby vampires, who are often overwhelmed by blood lust and notoriously unstable. They warn the party against seeking out any alliance with Sabina, saying she's... volatile, and suggesting that perhaps they'd be better off seeking mortal patrons, such as Deena Kisinger or the Karkuts.

With this advice in mind, the party go back to bed for a few more hours of sleep, and by the time they awake, another note has been left for one of them on their bedroom door: this one for Rorrik, bearing the mark of Eustachy.

With Rorrik seemingly unwilling to discuss the matter, the party sets off to begin making connections, agreeing that seeking patronage from Deena Kisinger and the Karkuts will help maintain their cover when they go to see Sabina.

First off, they meet the Karkuts, a charming and disarming pair of husbands who joined the ranks of the wealthy primarily due to Elias Karkut inheriting most of his family's property and money through a clerical error, long after he'd been estranged from them. Though they'd seem somewhat bewildered at the party's arrival, they chat about the party's strengths and interests — or Peter does, as Elias introduces Samsok to the joys of the electric guitar — and they suggest the party return the following day for whatever work the Karkuts can find for them. Samsok searches for books on halfling gods, to no avail.

Next, they seek out Deena Kisinger, whose home has all the subtlety of Samsok on amphetamines. Deena is far less surprised to see them, and this time it's the party's turn to be startled when she begins to ask them about their goals — short- and long-term — and they realize how very little they've discussed with one another about what they want out of their arrangement, particularly with over half their original number missing. Deena says she'll send word along to the Ornons once she's found some suitable jobs for them — they can start out small, and if they prove they can be trusted with the small stuff, perhaps Deena can help facilitate the journey to the West Coast Seth wants to make.

As they leave Deena's, they realize something after their interactions with Seán and Ebele: perhaps Sabina won't even be awake, if she keeps nocturnal hours like they do. They agree to wait until dusk to make their approach, and in the meantime they stop by the Hill of the Dead at Rorrik's suggestion, as he cites a desire to try to learn more about the rest of the Nine, having only ever known the temple to Barica back in Red Deer.

Session 53
At the Hill of the Dead, they notice a few peculiar things, including a woman surreptitiously scurrying off with a human arm (and possibly more) in a box, and a priest with an undead squirrel skeleton in the sleeve of his robes. However, they make their peace (for now) with the strangeness of the situation, and head off. Having been repeatedly stymied in his quest to find information on halfling gods and repeatedly told the Repository might have the information he needs, Samsok expresses a desire to follow up — Rorrik and Seth, for obvious reasons, would prefer to steer clear, and so while they secure a table at Lich, Laugh, Love, Alja accompanies Samsok to the temple of Feofila.

They have no run-ins with Aleida, and after an initial fruitless search, an acolyte comes by to help Samsok find out about the halfling pantheon. There is no record of any Theodard Longhole in any of the books, but the acolyte suggests that perhaps instead the person Samsok knows as Theodard Longhole is, in fact, Brandobaris, the halfling god of thievery, stealth, and curiosity, a notorious trickster.

Meanwhile, back at the bar, Seth's paranoia wears off, and she confesses the contents of her note: Ini has asked her on a date, she thinks. Rorrik quietly delights in her embarrassment, and the bartender gives her a pity shot. As Alja and Samsok return, the group discusses what they've learned and how to handle Sabina. They agree that Theodard probably isn't actually Brandobaris and, perhaps, just said he was a god to deter Samsok from trying to eat him. As dusk falls, they make their way to Sabina's home, where they find two guards — one of whom Samsok sells drugs to — and are met by Sabina's hypercompetent personal assistant, Wisława. They learn that Sabina, as a city councillor, keeps a diurnal schedule, relying on UV-protected glass in her home, her workplace, and her vehicles to keep her safe — not uncommon, for city vampires. Wisława pencils them in for 9 a.m. on Wednesday, July 11, and wishes them a good evening. The party agrees to reconvene the following morning, with Samsok returning to the Rising Sun and the others returning to the Ornons'. However, Samsok is called back halfway there when his companions find a surprise at the Ornons: Buhle, and the news that Trennen and Bri are ready for their meeting.

They're led deep into the wooded area between Lakeside and the Mountain, to a small, isolated cabin where two women stand guard, one of whom bears the marks of recent battle with a caster. Apparently, though the Five knew Bri had some magical talent and removed an arcane focus off her, there had been no sign Trennen had access to magic until he broke free and started slinging spells. They were since subdued, searched again, and once again tied up back-to-back to the chairs in the cabin. When Rorrik asks about Trennen's spare change, the thoroughly weirded-out guard hands over his coin purse, and they confirmed what they'd already suspected: he had the exact coin Vyre had had made in Red Deer. After a brief discussion of tactics, the Cosmic Crew open the door to the cabin, walking in to find out whatever they can from Trennen and Bri... and to deal with them accordingly.

Session 54
As it turns out, what they can find out from Trennen and Bri is limited, and how to accordingly deal with them remains to be seen. After a deeply frustrating interrogation in which Bri cried a lot and Trennen quickly defaulted to insulting everyone in the room, the party established the following:


 * Trennen is an excellent liar.
 * Trennen is very good at Charisma saves.
 * Trennen probably killed Vyre. Either that or he's needlessly obstinate about answering yes or no questions while under truth spells.
 * Bri has no idea that Trennen is a bad guy, or that Vyre didn't die/stay dead back in February.
 * Bri and Trennen got together because — at least from Bri's side of things — they grew closer while grieving Vyre's loss, and found comfort in one another.

Ultimately, however, the party were at a loss for how to proceed, unwilling to (further) harm an innocent (if snooty) woman, and not yet convinced they should kill Trennen for two simple reasons:


 * 1) They might still be able to use him as a lead to find out where the hell Vyre is.
 * 2) If anyone deserves to kill Trennen, it's Vyre.

Though not all party members were happy with this decision, they agreed to knock them both out when the time limit on memory modification spells was running out, and with Buhle borrowing Seth's scarf to do the deed, their business with the elves was concluded.

Their business with the elves' hotel room, on the other hand...

Session 54 (cont)
So, they (and Buhle) made their way back north to the Rising Sun, where Buhle picked Trennen and Bri's lock in 0.002 seconds, and Samsok kept watch while the others looked for clues. Their search didn't turn up much, but Samsok made a new friend in the form of Fred, a security guard who kindly escorted him back to his suite, and helped him order late-night wings. Back at the Ornons', Alja sucked up to Greg, and Rorrik spent 50 gp for the aesthetic.

The following morning, two notes were on the party's door at the Ornons': one, addressed to Seth, and the second, addressed to the entire party, warning of the full moon that night. They made their way to the Core to meet up with Samsok, and from there headed to Sunnyside, where Seth left a note for Ini, and the gang did some recon on GIBBETH, picking up some sick sunglasses (and ski goggles) in the process, thus solidifying The Aesthetic. Eventually coming to the conclusion that they wouldn't learn anything from across the street, they ventured over to the building, where they found a sickly-looking young woman painting various pictures, and a young man watching over her and reading a book. It only took one look at "the good paintings" on Alja's part to confirm that there was something eldritch at play, and after Seth guilt-bought a painting and tried not to think about her twin, the gang left.

Next, they made their way to the Karkuts', where they found Peter ready to hand out quests: one in his home for Seth (helping sort books); one in the residential neighbourhood of Westside (investigating mysterious moans and wails in an abandoned home); and one about a half day's journey east of the city (clearing out a mine of a gnoll infestation). For lack of anything better to do, the Cosmic Crew made their way to Westside to see what they could learn before heading indoors for the evening of the full moon. The woman Peter had heard the complaint from claimed it was squatters, though no one in the vicinity had seen anyone coming or going from the building, and Samsok noted no recent signs of habitation as they peered through the bare windows. Despite that, they caught a glimpse of movement inside — a woman, dressed in white. They entered carefully, Samsok painting a hole in the door to bypass the lock, and after some tentative exploration, Alja found an unwelcome sight and everyone heard an unwelcome sound: a banshee, whose wail knocked Samsok unconscious.

Session 55
The epic battle that followed lasted approximately six seconds. Seth got the kill, like she usually does. With the banshee dispatched and no one wounded too mortally thanks to a Cure Wounds from Alja and Samsok double-fisting healing potions, the Cosmic Crew tried to untangle the mystery of what a banshee was doing in an abandoned house. According to Rorrik, banshees are only produced by traumatic deaths, and they're almost never found in large cities, as their sensitivity to all humanoid deaths within a one-mile radius makes such settlements a constant torture for them.

After some poking around, Samsok uncovered a trapdoor beneath one of the beds, and finding it to be unlocked, the gang proceeded down the steps into a stone-walled basement that turned out to be significantly larger than the house above it. Its most distinguishing feature, beyond its twisting corridors, was the proliferation of statues it held, seemingly with next to nothing connecting them, each of them surrounded by candles kept lit by magical means. While exploring, they also found what seemed to be a teleportation circle, as well as a macabre fountain surrounded by humanoid bones, but it was the final statue that really unsettled half the party: looming over a stone altar was a massive statue dedicated to Mephistopheles.

With these final two discoveries, our heroes agreed they'd be best off making a hasty exit — particularly on a full moon night, knowing the connections the cult of Mephistopheles had to werewolves back in Red Deer. After covering their tracks as best they could, they left the building, explaining themselves to various concerned neighbours, including the eternally skeptical Eliza, who dissed Rorrik's branding efforts.

Agreeing to spend the night in Samsok's penthouse suite, they returned to the Core, with Seth receiving a message from Ini on the way and covering her reaction perfectly. Cool as a cucumber, that Seth. Speaking of cucumbers, the Rising Sun's water and extensive food menu were at the gang's disposal as they ordered room service and discussed the day's events, as well as their plans for the following day. Rorrik sent a message to Sam and Alja sent a message to Tshering, with neither of them receiving a reply that night.

Session 55 (cont)
The following morning, Samsok rose first, meeting with Fernando to discuss possible buyers for his silvered giant skull. After some back and forth about the options Fernando had come up with, Samsok decided he'd rather put the skull up for auction. Agreeing to leave the details at the front desk for Fernando later that day, Samsok said farewell to Fernando, only to find himself face-to-face with Buhle. The Cosmic Crew, Buhle said, had a reservation at the Unicorn that afternoon at 3 p.m., and should do their best to make it.

This unsettling appointment noted, Samsok went upstairs to collect the others, and they all made their way down to Lakeside for their meeting with Sabina Sweetney. Once there, they were led to a fine selection of swimwear and four changing booths, where Sabina's personal assistant informed them they could change before joining Sabina in the hot tub. Selecting their outfits — some more quickly than others — they met the vampire herself as she lounged under the cloudy sky, wearing an exceptionally sparse bikini. Declining her offer of refreshments, they made their pitch.

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