[Alliance] Chapter Five: Session Thirty-Nine
Appearing Characters: Aelthalyste Everpost, Arthas Menethil, Belgrum, Billy Bright, Cristine Ashmore, Gilveradin Windrunner, Harold Kirtonos, Hedanis Poisonbloom, Heigan Capless (Homunculus), Jaina Proudmoore-Menethil, Jubeka Shadowbreaker, Kazakus (Simulacrum), Kanrethad Ebonlocke, Mag'beth, Maraad, Novos, Rafaam, Remnii, Samia Inkling, Sasha, Seria, Sigilith Avernicious, Tamsin Roame, Togwaggle, Uther Menethil, Val'zuun, Velameestra Windrunner, Victor Prestor, Wagtoggle, Zephrys
October 17th
That day, Remnii and Maraad went to meet with Billy Bright in private. They were able to show the proof of the risk of the warehouse provided by Vel.
Remnii explained the plan, and Billy assured her that his best men would do a patrol around the city to ensure the nefariousness wouldn’t threaten his flock. Remnii thanked him for his vigilance.
When Vel left the manor, loitering near the wall she saw Tamsin. Vel greeted her, and informed her that they had found further information about those involved in the plague, as well as a location that they were planning to hit after the auction: a place called Naxxramas.
Tamsin said that she still wanted in. She explained she did some snooping of her own and had found Heigan’s manor on the outskirts of the city, but the place had been largely abandoned. The guards were only a token force, and the entire reason he didn’t have any visitors seemed to be that the estate was just unoccupied and simply used as a storage facility. Vel mused he had likely just entirely moved to Naxxramas then.
Vel suggested that if Tamsin allowed Heigan to win the lot she had been bidding on, if it was a person they could likely use them as an access point to Naxxramas. Tamsin furrowed her brow at the idea, but Vel continued that Heigan was ultimately going to be removed, and at that point any lots she was fighting for could simply be connected without spending any of her own money.
Tamsin considered, but then countered that when Naxxramas was cleared, she wanted the structure and what was inside it. Vel said that whatever remained of the plague was going to be destroyed, and Tamsin assured her that she had no desire to keep any of that. Vel also said that, at minimum, she wanted Heigan’s spellbook.
Tamsin squinted at her and said they could share it, and Vel accepted. Tamsin seemed pleased at the arrangement. Vel asked about the information Tamsin had withheld from her the prior day, and Tamsin admitted she believed Naxxramas was somewhere in the Eastweald and this was all the missing piece of the puzzle she had been waiting for. She believed it to be a code name for some sort of base or stronghold, and the evidence of the plague she had found could likely be traced back to it, but they were likely using some sort of magic to obfuscate it.
She also admitted the subject she had been trying to win was a member of the Horde, specifically a two headed ogre. There was another creature with them that resembled some sort of humanoid cat person. Heigan was the top bidder on both, and she believed it was because he wanted to experiment on them. Vel commented it would make sense given they were from another planet, and Tamsin agreed. She also commented she had seen a handful of orcs around Venetia, as it seemed they had already made their way to the city.
They exchanged their further plans and agreed to meet at the auction that night.
Vel also coordinated with Kanrethad about his own people attacking the warehouse alongside the good reverend, and Kanrethad expressed there were some other things we wished to speak with her about once the mess was all cleaned up. He opted to let her copy his teleportation circle to allow for such a thing, and invited her to enjoy the hospitality of his estate anytime she wished, even if he wasn’t home.
No one noticed Vel was strange as she flitted around Snapjoint’s manor. Vel managed to spy the noblewoman in her room, wearing a fancy dress, face down on her desk and actively weeping. The room looked surprisingly undecorated. There were also a lot of people moving in and out of the house frequently carrying things from the house. It seemed they were packing things onto a cart.
Vel tried to get a better vantage on the daughter, and between listening in and occasionally reading lips, it seemed that she was actively weeping because her daddy won’t let her go to the ball and is taking all her things away.
Vel also heard that the movers were paid a premium to ensure the daughter was moved out right now, and they were coming back to move Toren in a week. It seemed the daughter had no idea about what her father was actively involved in
She also noted there were two guards talking about one of them having had a recent day off as he had randomly fainted on the job and hadn’t even remembered coming to work when he awoke again. They had brushed it off as over indulging in drink, but it seemed suspiciously similar to what had been witnessed with Snapjoint’s daughter at Kirtonos’s manor, thus it seemed whatever had likely possessed her had come from one of her father’s estate guards, and then had potentially jumped to one of Kirtonos’s guards after attaching to the daughter.
Vel decided she had found what information she needed, and that she would try to locate the guard later after relaying what she had found to her fellows and also Tamsin.
Gil reached out to Samia to try and get a read on the situation back in Lordaeron. They got as much grain as they could, but some of it had reached its destinations, and it had been distributed in very small groups. However, it was not half as bad as it was at Andorhal, and it had mostly been contained.
However, it seems that it was likely they could likely teleport to aid at Naxxramas.
While sorting out the invitations to the Silent Auction, they were sorting out the arrangements, and Remnii approached Maraad.
Maraad sighed heavily.
Remnii took Maraad’s face and kissed him on his cheeks and his forehead.
Later that evening, the group prepared to start heading towards the Kirtonos estate for the Silent Auction.
He clapped his hands and struck a chord. He issued forth shadow magic, and illusory magic washed over them. Their clothing and armor started to shift and transform as he cast [Enchanted Evening] on the group. He also then pranced around and helped everyone get ready with makeup and hair.
They then all made their way to the Kirtonos estate, and they were allowed in. Instead of the sparsely populated bustle of before, they were at the height of the excitement. They quickly found themselves in a grand hall. There were beautiful candelabras lighting the ballroom along quietly playing music. There were dozens of groups mingling, rubbing elbows, dancing, flirting, and otherwise making connections. Occasionally there were groups that would disappear into the halls. Guards were especially present in those halls.
Tamsin met them inside wearing a beautiful crimson dress with a high slit and a masquerade mask. She gestured toward the hallway.
As they looked around, they saw several people they recognized, including Kanrethad and Jubeka, as well as Billy Bright with a few of his guards. There was a glint in his eyes that indicated he was distracted. There were also other mage lords present. One of them Vel recognized as likely being Novos the Summoner. She had a fullen shaven head with a network of conjuration circles. It appeared her entire body was full of magic circle tattoos, including her entire scalp. Her plus one appeared to be a blue-skinned creature with long ears that was reminiscent of an elf, but he was not an elf. His eyes glowed with magic, but he didn’t have a lower body and he was hovering in the air. Vel recognized him as a djinn, an entity from the plane of air that was known for their abilities to grant wishes. Their guards were two elemental revenants, one water and one storm.
The second individual was a beautiful half-elven woman who was on one of the balconies leaning her hand on the banister and peering outward. She had no plus one, but there were two guards behind her that were wearing her colors and the emblem of an ash tree. They appeared to be Gilnean, and Vel recognized the sigil from things she had heard. It belonged to house Ashmore, which was a noble house of Gilneas, and they were allies of the crown, but they had gone missing and sometime ago she had left the city in search of help. The house was led by Countess Cristine Ashmore.
As Gil and Seria walked by her, they could tell she was not in her true form. Nestled in her black hair was a pair of curved horns, and flecks of deep blue scales under her slit pupils. The guards with her were large blue drakonids. Gil saw her eyes fall on him specifically, but she looked away as he looked back at her.
They also saw a finely dressed kobold wandering around with a posse of well-armed kobolds with serrated shovels. He had a lantern that he was wearing like a crown. Next to him was a well-dressed female kobold that was wearing a wig made of melted candle wax and lanterns she was wearing as earrings.
There were also a handful of goblins, and they noted an ethereal whose wrappings were gilded and adorned with extremely valuable trinkets and baubles. He was watching people with bright red eyes. There was also a very well-dressed zandalari troll who was tall with ashen-purple skin. He had gorgeous red tattoos, and his chest was bare. He was flanked by two bodyguards who were constructs of animated stone.
However, Gil and Seria were able to tell he was a simulacrum.
Gil and Seria, Remnii, and Uther headed to the Silent Auction along with some of their fellows. It got a lot quieter as they entered the corridors to the auction chambers. There were people quietly speaking and standing around the room. Against the walls were doors that were closed that appeared to be permanent magnificent mansion portals to divide the sections.
There was a bit of wait, as people were allowed to enter and given a timer, but only a few numbers were allowed at once.
Gil and Seria entered the Menagerie, which was a large, single chamber. It was cordoned off into dozens of large holding cells and cages. There were all sorts of wild creatures. Almost none of them looked to be natural creatures, and several cells had synthetic environments. One was an isolated chamber with open flames and molten rock. Inside was a handful of flaming spider creatures.
In another nearby area, stalking back and forth, was a burning feline with a mane of flaming hair. On the nearby molten rocks were burning, elemental firehawks.
Other areas were dedicated to other elemental planes. One was a tank of water with a feminine creature with a serpentine tail and large webbed wings. Someone got too close, and the creature shrieked, though it was muffled by her containment cell.
There was a grassland of wheat-like grass, and inside was a winged feline with golden fur napping idly. Chasing motes of light around it was an ethereal-looking fox that would disappear and reappear as it changed the magic.
In an icy chamber was a bear with bright white fur with icicles jutting from its fur.
There was also what looked to be a dragon with bright turquoise gemstones jutting from its body, its skin wrought of gems and stone.
On the furthest edge of the room were cells with humanoid creatures. One of them resembled a feline with dark black fur. She had dark leathers, and one of her eyes was damaged. It bared its teeth whenever someone got too close. The other creature was a female, two-headed ogre. She had baby blue skin. One of the heads had two eyes and a singular horn, while the other had two smaller horns and a singular eye. They were sitting sideways, and the two-eyed head was scowling at everyone.
Gil and Seria approached the ogre, and Gil greeted them. The two eyed ogre scowled at him and demanded to know how he knew their language. Gil said he was just good at talking to people. The two heads exchanged a look, and the other head bashfully whispered something to her.
The hidden head covered her face, but the vocal one retorted that his flattery would get him nowhere. She demanded to know what Gil wanted, and he asked how she was captured and brought there.
The ogre said she was surrounded as separated, but wanted to know why he wanted to know. Gil admitted he wanted to keep it from happening more often. The other head leaned out and expressed that seemed unlikely, as the other mages were gifted and powerful. They were enemies. She said she wasn’t strong enough, but then they beat her, and now they were there. The two-eyed head said not to talk to him, but the one-eyed one said she believed he didn’t mean any harm. He asked if they could tell him about anything they managed to overhear.
The two-eyed head, which had been called Mag, expressed they heard many things, but they didn’t know what would be useful to them. Gil said that if he knew how the operation worked behind the scenes, it would be useful, and he wanted to hear what the person that bid on them last looked like. Mag said he was a small tooth with a bone mask that smelled of death. She demanded to know if he wanted to try and win them as well, and the other head told her to lower her voice.
Gil said he can’t promise he’d win the bid, but knowing who does is very helpful. He started to explain what they were trying to do, but then got interrupted by an auctioneer, and he quickly deflected to asking for more information on the ogress. The auctioneer explained that she was captured along with the saberon, which was the feline creature. They believed they were members of the Horde, and they seemed to be capable of up to tier five magics.
Gil started to approach the saberon, but immediately she lunged at the cage, her claws straining at the steel. She snarled and dared him to bid on her, but then he understood Gil, and she expressed that he spoke with magic. He quickly asked if the bone man that reeked of death was interested in her, but she just snarled at him. From her label, it appeared her name was Sasha, and she was a huntress, assassin, and tracker.
Gil then moved on to the firehawks, which were listed as elemental avians native to the Firelands. They were listed as a mated pair, but they were presently at 3,000 gp.
They then went over to the blink fox, and there was a small essay about the place of origin for blink foxes being highly debated. Some believed they were native to the Shadowlands, while others believed they were elemental creatures of an arcane nature, while a small contrary group believed they were native to the Heavens.
The blink fox immediately disappeared and reappeared in front of Seria and Gil. It attempted to blink out of the cell, but it staggered back and got really dizzy. Seria decided to put a bid in on the fox, and it was explained that she would be notified by the glyph that was placed on her hand if she was outbid.
Meanwhile, Uther had entered the dwarven section, which resembled a large, dwarven hall. There were people there browsing the various wares, and a few things caught his eye. There was a massive belt made of thick leather with a big skull with curling tusks. There was another hammer that looked to take two hands to wield if the wielder was the size of whatever would have worn the belt. There also appeared to be a set of three discs that were large and stone, and they resembled the one that was in Truthguard.
Uther looked at the discs which were a single lot described as ancient progenitor discs that were unearthed by the dwarves of Ironforge. They were believed to contain ancient knowledge, and would give strength, wisdom, and leadership to those who could unearth their secrets. The discs were currently at 30,000 gold.
Uther reached out over the telepathic bond.
Vel’s silence was palpable for a long moment.
Vel glanced at Victor, who she was with, with an incredibly tired look, and she used [Sending] targeting Jaina in Lordaeron.
A moment later, Jaina sent Uther and mentioned Vel had told her he needed to ask her something. She asked what was going on, and Uther explained that they were in Venetia at a Silent Auction and he had come across a lot where he needed the current bid of 30,000 gp.
Jaina suggested if Uther could find out who won the discs, he could follow up in another way. Uther thanked her for taking the time to speak with him, and he loved her and missed her. Jaina sent back she loved him too.
Uther looked at the lot again.
Gil suggested Uther spread rumors around to try and make Heigan want it, and Uther considered the notion.
Uther continued to keep an eye on the lot while he browsed the rest of the wares. He noticed a dwarf approach, seemingly getting a bit worried at the price, but he put in another bid. Uther sauntered over.
The dwarf wrote down the name.
Uther asked who else had their eyes on the discs, and the dwarf admitted one of the mage lords of the town were interested. Rafaam was his name, and Uther asked if the bidding war was between the Explorer’s League and Rafaam. The dwarf confirmed, and explained he was only given so much by the League for his expedition. However, he knew the League would want to get their hands on the discs as they were genuine platinum discs and might have even been Discs of Norgannon.
The dwarf figured if he couldn’t win them, he could maybe extend an offer to Rafaam to do business with the League, but he wasn’t sure if he would. The dwarf asked Uther’s name, and Uther said it was Seamus. The dwarf said his name was Belgrum.
They continued to make some small talk about Venetia, and they went their separate ways. Uther decided to go and ask around for Rafaam. He managed to find him as he was skulking back into the dwarven room to keep an eye on the things he had been bidding on.
The ethereal jumped with a scream.
Uther explained he was there on behalf of his employer and he had been informed Rafaam had an interest in the discs. Uther explained there was a chance for mutual benefit. Rafaam wanted to know who Uther’s employer was, and Uther said it was a man who valued his privacy, but he could tell him that gold stores were insufficient, but he had been sent to find someone who did.
Rafaam crossed his arms.
Rafaam asked about the hardware his employer had, and assumed that it was not the only thing that could be used to read the discs. Uther admitted the hardware was probably not easy to access otherwise. Rafaam wanted to know what would happen with the discs, and Uther said it was only the information his employer wanted off them.
Rafaam narrowed his eyes.
Uther thanked him, and Rafaam skulked away.
Vel was silent, and then sighed heavily.
Remnii and Maraad exchanged a look in one room, and in another Gil looked at Seria and expressed that at least he wasn’t that reckless.
Uther continued to keep an eye on the lot, and Belgrum got more and more dismayed. It seemed Rafaam was going to win.
Meanwhile, Remnii and Maraad were in the orcs and demons room. There was a crystal ball used by the Shadow Council, ceremonial garbs and weapons used by various tribes, and what appeared to be a demon’s horn that had been hollowed out with a mouthpiece as well as a massive drum with the symbol of the Warsong clan, and a mannequin that appeared to have a cloak perpetually on fire with green flame.
Remnii was looking around trying to get a read on demonic presences, and an attendant approached and mused they had not expected to see eredar, but they were the third and fourth they had seen that day.
The attendant said that if they needed anything else to let them know, as they identified they weren’t summoned. Remnii asked if the other visitors were summoned, and the attendant confirmed they weren’t. Remnii said it was nice to see what Azeroth had to offer, and the attendant nodded. Remnii relayed the information across the telepathic bond, then she looked at Maraad.
Remnii nodded and she looked at one of the lots, which was labeled as an orb of darkness. She felt a sense of vertigo and a deep feeling of darkness, but there were specks of light in it. The description simply read it was an artifact of infinite possibility.
She then went over to the demon horn, and she was able to identify it was the horn of an ered’ruin, but it was far too large to be from a regular doomguard. It was from a doomlord, one of the most ancient and powerful of their kind. Maraad commented the item was foreboding, and Remnii realized the item was a powerful horn that could be used to incinerate people from the inside out.
Remnii noted Kanrethad walking away from the item, having apparently been the top bidder.
Remnii and Maraad opted to go and see if they could find the other eredar. Then Remnii heard a familiar voice in a quiet hallway.
She turned and saw Val’zuun, and she lifted her veil.
Remnii described Heigan.
Remnii gave him 12 gold.
Remnii asked if there was a way to reach him, and Val’zuun opted to attune their sending stones and said he was just a whisper away. They bid farewell, and Remnii and Maraad went to get some refreshments.
Vel walked around the Kirtonos manor and she eventually noted the guard Snapjoint’s daughter had run into. She caught them scoping around for a bit, and she caught some lip movements that expressed there should be someone else in the auction house. Vel saw the guard put her hand behind her back and used the honeyed tart she had in her hand as the material component for the [Suggestion] spell. The guard’s fellow encouraged her to go and check on things.
Vel informed the group the guard she had been watching used enchantment magic and she was going to go tail her. Vel got to a secluded area and then shifted into her rat form to hurry after the possessed guard. The guard had stopped at the refreshment table and grabbed two more honeyed tarts. The possessed guard approached one of the other guards and told them she had brought them a treat given they were a ways away from the refreshment table.
They made some small talk, and the possessed guard used it as an opportunity to use enchantment magic to convince the other guard to let her go into the auction chambers. Vel witnessed the possessed guard collapse as the possession transferred, and for a split second, she saw the flickering form of a banshee. As soon as the banshee moved to the other guard, she caught the guard that had collapsed and swiftly checked on her to make sure she was okay.
Vel watched the exchange for a moment, and then used [Message] to reach out to Harold Kirtonos, informing him that he had an invader in his estate that she was presently tailing. Kirtonos asked her to identify what the banshee was doing in his estate, and eliminate her if necessary, effectively giving Vel the clearance to act if needed.
Vel continued watching, and the possessed guard remained at her designated post. Sigilith happened to stroll in and threw her some inspirational words and an encouraging smile just in time for Vel to see Heigan walk in with two of his guards flanking him.
The first thing Vel noticed was Heigan was a perfect replica of what he had been described as. He had ragged clothing and a skull mask over his face, but she had a suspicion that he might be a homunculus. She wasn’t sure what kind, but she suspected he was. He didn’t seem to notice her, but he headed into the menagerie, and the guard followed. Vel scurried after them and witnessed the possessed guard once again use magic to convince her fellows to watch her pass.
Heigan approached the ogre, and the guard Vel was tailing looked around and started to head toward one of the auctioneers. Vel hurried forward and dug her teeth into the guard’s foot. The guard cursed in thalassian and then looked down.
She furrowed her brow and commented that she was a curious little thing, and asked why Vel bit her. As Vel got a better look at the guard, and she got the sense this entity was no friend of Heigan, and it appeared they were actively trying to do something. However, at that moment, the auctioneer the banshee had been heading toward got flagged down by Heigan to place another bet.
The guard mused that Vel didn’t seem to be one of Master Kirtonos’s, and Vel used [Message] to ask what she was doing there. The guard’s eyes widened in surprise, and Vel clarified that she had noticed the banshee tailing Master Capless.
Vel confirmed, and the banshee mused that she must have not been any friend of Master Capless, and Vel returned that the banshee didn’t seem to be either.
The banshee told her to follow her, and then scooped Vel up to take her to a private room.
She placed Vel down on a chair and she erupted out the guard, who staggered. The banshee hushed the guard and used a high level [Sleep] spell to knock the guard out before letting them fall gently onto a nearby bed.
The banshee bowed to Vel.
Vel immediately recognized her as a high priest of the church of Belore, one of Vandellor’s most gifted students, and also his younger sister. Vel took her humanoid form and introduced herself as Velameestra Windrunner.
The banshee chuckled.
Vel explained that Heigan was stationed in a fortress that wasn’t in Venetia, and they were currently working on gaining access. They currently knew he had the high bid on the ogre in the menagerie, and they were hoping to be able to use her as a focus for scrying so they could teleport into Naxxramas. Aelthalyste said that seemed like a wise idea, and she mused that she could theoretically possess the ogre, though it might have been complicated due to their two heads. Functionally she’d probably only be able to possess one of them.
Vel suggested that Aelthalyste may be able to ride along with one of her own companions, and the banshee said that would be incredibly helpful. Vel also added that negotiations had already been started with Lord Kirtonos about using the delivery of the artifacts to gain access to Heigan’s fortress, which Aelthalyste said would make things even easier.
Over the telepathic link, Vel asked the group who was receptive to a banshee riding along with them, as she was Liadrin’s aunt. Remnii said she was receptive, as friends or family to Liadrin were friends of her’s, and Vel gave Remnii directions to get to the room she and Aelthalyste were presently in.
Aelthalyste asked if Vel was in a telepathic link, which Vel confirmed, and then asked if she would be receptive to her joining it. Vel said she was welcome to, and the banshee wove some complex shadow magic to functionally slot herself into the link.
Remnii arrived in the room and saw Aelthalyste there, her hands folded politely in front of her. The banshee greeted her warmly and correctly assessed that she was Remnii. She explained she had heard of the descriptions of the people traveling with Velameestra when she had learned about what was going on, so she made some assumptions, though she could tell there was some impressive illusion magic at work.
Remnii said she could fill her in on everything, and she spent a few moments explaining about the Torchbearers and other such things before Aelthalyste took her place in Remnii’s body.
She looked at Maraad.
Maraad sighed as he looked at Remnii and Vel. Aelthalyste approached Remnii and cupped her face, then swept into Remnii’s body. Remnii felt a strange double vision as if she was not fully in control of her own body, even though she was.
Aelthalyste asked if she was doing alright, and Remnii confirmed she was. The banshee mused that Remnii’s own magic was not too different from her own, and after the entire event was taken care of, she would love to get to know Remnii more, especially as a friend of Liadrin’s.
Remnii said she would like that.
She cast a very powerful [Enhance Vision] over herself, which Remnii could share for the duration while the banshee was possessing her. It was very potent shadow magic.
