Session 17: Old Friends

Prologue

In the aftermath of the assault on the lab and the loss of Stitch, our heroes set about repairing Stitch’s airship and engaging enough of a crew to set out on their own. They were able to leave their contracts with the First Light amicably, the Moreau family more than happy to work with a crew of freelancers for certain kinds of business opportunities.

Elthing became the face of the operation, a dread pirate with a crew of nasty boarders called the Grunts. Meanwhile Luna truly took command of the ship. No one has been able to communicate meaningfully with the robots since Stitch, but they continue to maintain and operate the airship like dutiful sailors.

When the Big Shark shows up, very few ship crews are hardened enough to put up much of a defense. Riding the line between piracy and contract work proves to be rather successful, both for our heroes and their employers, over the next few months…

Part 1

About six months passed since Stitch’s death. Our heroes met with a slick salesman from Eternal Enterprises in Aynuk, who hired them to track down Samuel Carter and obtain the stone key for them. They had a report of his presence at a long-forgotten ruin where one of their agents was stationed, and asked our heroes to meet with the agent and track down Carter and his key.

Traveling to an uncharted island covered in dense jungle, our heroes met with this agent at the edge of the treeline: a massive, 8 foot tall ghostly elephantman knight. This poor chivalrous creature has been at attention for thousands of years in service to the Eternals, and the rest of his people have long since disappeared from the realms and history books of the living.

The ghostly knight Korumak led the rest of the crew through the dense jungle, helping them fend off a dinosaur attack, then down through a hidden ravine, and eventually into the long hidden ruins of a forgotten town. There they found Samuel Carter, and Elthing promptly stabbed him upon his refusal to part with the key.

Part 2

Carter teleported himself away from Elthing, and some of the cooler heads in the party defused the situation. Carter agreed to accompany the party back to meet with the Eternals rather than part with the key.

During the airship voyage, he enacted some revenge on Elthing, placing him under some cruel enchantment which made him so dumb he was unable to even understand or communicate about his predicament.

Back in Aynuk, they met again with Eternal Enterprises and agreed to shepherd Carter to a small island away from the city to meet with General Ghost Girl herself.

Part 3

The party found this small fragment of an island, with its corner of a ruined fortress, and Ghost Girl’s skeleton airship already docked.

They disembarked to meet with her, and though they couldn’t find any physical evidence of any kind they were quite sure that there was some kind of danger.

While the crew exchanged pleasantries with Ghost Girl and she introduced two dark knights who she expected to become Carter’s bodyguards, Carter began to behave suspiciously again.

“How is your father?” asked Carter, and Korumak felt his General freeze.

From his high vantage riding his Giant Eagle, Dog, Elthing recognized that Carter was positioning himself to make a play. Dog screamed and dove for Carter, dragging him up into the air while Elthing tried to grab the key, but it was too late.

Carter opened a new portal, and finally made introductions for his new friends. Three horrifying devil creatures appeared, but were then plunged into darkness by Mordecai and bathed in flame by Luna.

Part 4-?

The battle with Carter and his devil spawn raged on for dozens of seconds (Ed: A few weeks, real time), Carter teleporting around the battlefield and making himself invisible, confusing Steiner with magical whispers and wounding Elthing with a blow from his silver sword. Bit by bit our heroes kept him occupied until they were able to spring a trap on him, seizing the magic key in a show of teamwork highlighted by Luna’s magical glowing hand. Enraged to see the key in Iraret’s ghostly grasp, he made a desperate attack on her and the group took advantage of the opening to defeat the fiend. He disappeared into a pile of sulphurous ash, in which Luna found a jet black crystal. Iraret was troubled by the appearance of an enemy from ancient times and thanked everyone for their help before rushing off to confront her mom. Because her plan totally isn’t working, like, seriously she just does NOT understand what it’s like out here in the field.

XP

• Goals (200xp each)
  • Drop: “We enacted REVENGE just like Stitch wanted on his creators. Drop’s personal goal of trying not to kill Samuel Carter on the mission seeing as he was a previous ally.”
  • Luna: Helped a bit with defeating enemies when they had attacked the team. I don’t think I hit much though.
  • Elthing: I became a pirate lord capable of stating Elthing’s poorly conceived plan of overthrowing the world order.
  • Stitch/Korumak: Stitch destroyed the lab responsible for his transformation.
• Heritage (200xp each)
  • Drop: Used the new mobile feat lots by running at a crazy speed and running away from attacked enemies without getting opportunity attacks.
  • Luna: I’m curious about the world and new creatures and races. I want to make friends with them. It didn’t work when I turned in into the eye-creature, but I tried talking to it.
  • Elthing: Rope trick man. Rope trick.
  • Stitch/Korumak: Stitch pushed omega into the cage of his own design. preventing him from fleeing.
• Motivation (200xp each)
  • Luna: I was very curious about all the creatures trapped in the Lab. I let some out because it was fun. I didn’t take any damage so I don’t see what the big harm was. Everyone killed everything anyways.
  • Elthing: I didn’t get involved with stitch’s fight because stitch needed to prove he was strong.
  • Stitch/Korumak: Stitch actively tried prevent any search of the office for any information or loot that might prove usefull later.
• Themes (200xp each)
  • Drop: Narrowly escaped being blown up in the lab, that would have been terrible. Also was only a few hit points from death but gave Steiner the first potion to save her.
  • Elthing: We overcame stitch trying to kill us all. Elthing also liked stitch because he thought he was a strong warrior, which stitch proved in the end despite trying to kill everyone…
  • Stitch/Korumak: Stitch discovered that omega was behind the lab, and manage to kill him at the price of his own life.
• BONUS (400xp each)
  • Drop: Drop worked on a new drum rhythm to energise the crew, inspired by Drumstick’s drumming talent and in memory of Stitch. Drop would have spent some time with Damentor and the Defiant learning any more info they might have about Johnny, helping them on any low key missions that wouldn’t have her out in the open in Aynuk. She’d have also spent time training the cat and rat kids so they’re more prepared for pirate life and bought them cool pirate hats and eye patches.
  • Luna: I created a memorial corner in the captains room on the ship. I would also had commissioned a Huge special flag for Stitch. A logo with a Goblin eye and a Robot eye, and crystals in some pointy teeth. Hanging it on another mast next to the giant Pirate skull flag.
  • Elthing: Elthing didn’t morn stitch. Stitch in his eyes met a fitting end as he met his match and still took him down. He also is still pissed that stitch tried to kill him by blowing the place up with him inside. Occasionally Elthing feels something like sadness when he thinks about stitch. But he suppresses it by murdering something. Elthing has been busy recruiting a crew of like minded grunts with whom he causes chaos and disorder to merchants. Inflicting ruthless bloody murders in the name of bringing back natural order and attempting to convince workers to rise up with a -2 charisma bonus. He murders those that don’t.
  • Stitch/Korumak: Korumak searched the island he was trapped on for any sign of a battle where knights of the Ivory tower might have been involved.
• Total: 4400xp

Rumors

• The ruins of Rohesia are home to a portal to the Fade, currently reburied at the request of the Eternals.
• The city of Quelimane in the periphery is recovering from their strange famine.
• The party has rescued or identified all of the Unseen researchers that had been lost beneath Luxor, and recovered a large stone key that had been entombed there.
• Babis in the Periphery has become a hotspot in a war between two Lithics.
• There are reports of the failure of magic in the town of High Nest in the Periphery.
• Friends of Johnny have been captured by a Lithic cult in Aynuk. They seem to be safe, and their “captors” seem very interested in finding Samuel Carter and his key.
• Drop has been pursued by agents of the Ministry of Light since her childhood.
• The Defiant have been drumming up support in Aynuk, emboldened by a charismatic new voice warning of a new threat: Johnny.