Inciting Incident: The Cradle of Exaltation
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The Cradle of Exaltation
Inciting Incident / Élément déclencheur:
The Locus Operandi have been invited to a celebration in Moonreach Keep, namely a feast hosted by Lord Caleb, to rejoice the successful defense of Moonreach Keep against Adan Whisperwick's siege, the successful counter-raid and defeat of Adan Whisperwick and recovery of Jaxon.
Tentative Time - Subject to change:
Saturday, July 25th, 2026, at 12:00 Noon Eastern Time.
Current Status & Situation:
Much has changed since the Locus Operandi formed and began exploring Moonreach Keep. Plots have been uncovered, adversaries defeated, and new friends made. By the time we will return to them, below is a catalogue of where things stand.
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The Locus Operandi have recently defeated Adan Whisperwick, and now possess the coalesced aether.
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The ever-diplomatic Florian has heard whispers of the intentions of the Gloaming Witch & the restored Calderan Lord Kzagoth to vie for the coalesced ether now possessed by the Locus.
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Laura Cade has learned that her brother Barton worked for Cleimant and member of the Caldera Manor Ava Brokenblade, who has yet to reveal Barton's true and exact task. Laura has also more recently learned that Astrologer Farian is looking into potent divination magic.
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Patrick, tasked with teaching the children of Moonreach Keep, has uncovered books concerning an archaic enclave known as the "Aureates," and their rituals to elevate champions to their cause.
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Jhaelryna has learned that Spellweaver Keep suddenly and violently disappeared during the Zhentarim siege of Norwick, and, now, more recently, has learned that Astrologer Farian is looking into something apparently similar that happened in Moonreach long ago.
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A quicksilver clone of Octavia is at large, apparently quite armed, and quite dangerous.
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Aenhever has suffered visions of a fearsome moonlit rite, and solicitations from a wild pack of ne'er-do-wells.
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Jax's body has been restored, though its tether to this realm and stability remain in question.
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Lokelani discovered the annihilation of her sister, Hokanoe, resulted from attempts to transmute her own soul with runic magic.
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Nerrez has contracted lycanthropy, and now affiliates with a moonrat student of runes, seeking to learn more of their shared connection to moonlight.
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Nearly all Lunar Knights have abandoned May Celine, following Ashla Mihr Anahel's challenge against her secrecy regarding the mercurial quicksilver, and the inquiries which followed.
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The Lunar Knights have joined High Priest Tallseise, of the Order of the Blue Moon, who now makes his way towards Moonreach Keep to discuss the circumstances leading to the abdication of their former order.
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Battles against Adan Whisperwick and the blazing star entity have quaked the province of Moonreach, leading to the re-opening of long-forgotten passages below, including to the Aureate ruins and their tarnished fane.
Amidst the encroaching danger that will soon cast a shadow over these circumstances, the Locus Operandi must confront a new enemy and unknown dangers descending upon Moonreach Keep. Each choice will exact its toll, each action its consequence. Their opposition will not rest, nor will the ground beneath Moonreach Keep, as it quakes and crumbles to open new passages into lost and lethal realms.
But before any of that... a celebration is in order. Revelry is to be had, for the defeat of Adan Whisperwick, recovery of the coalesced aether, and Moonreach Keep's return to safety. Lord Caleb intends to throw a feast in the honor of the Locus Operandi.
Consideration:
This is the primary introductory event to the next major plot in the Moonreach Campaign. The party's decisions and actions will set the stage for the events to come. The usual considerations apply.
Scheduling, Planning & Actions:
Participants may discuss availability below, along with details of their character's actions in the two in-game weeks that have transpired since the defeat of Adan Whisperwick and recovery of Jax. This information will be treated intermediary character background information (comparable to background information when first starting a character). You may use this thread to RP or provide such information.
[DM Xanatos Gambit / Eternal]
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Before the rescue of Jaxon, indeed, before the raid on Whisperwick's lair, Jhaelryna had been increasingly dedicated to completing her thesis, which now sits awaiting the return of Spellweaver Keep for her chance to defend it. It seems the frequent brushes with death have driven her to finally secure her arcane legacy, to guarantee that her theories won't die with her and to complete what for many decades has laid unfinished.
The demonstration ((as described in the linked thread)) now glows within the library, and daily Jhaelryna adds the Astrologer's best data and sources to its logic and automated calculations. As the illusory astrolabe grows more accurate with each iteration, Jhaelryna attempts to help Farian reconstruct the heavens at the time of these ancient disappearances.
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"Asking the correct questions, at least ..." remarks Farian, in his usual, distant, clinical tone. "You're not stable. Best anchor you. Come." Without waiting for so much as a reply, Farian departs from the rampart, returning to the Keep, the many astrolabes, small telescopes, and rolled star-charts dangling from the various belts and satchels he has fastened to his robes and cloak.
(OOC: The above takes place the very night of the group's reunion this coming Saturday, June 25th, 2026.)
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@caoimh Thankfully, the Keep, its environs, and even the first caves below, are generally speaking clear, calm, and peaceful in the two weeks following the defeat of Adan Whisperwick. Ashla assists in sermons to newcomers seeking religious solace, in the infirmary, and with patrols (which it seems are conducted with the night watchman, Manes). A select few Lunar Knights remain -- Ashla counts a meager 3 proper "Knights" -- Evene, Laryla, and Shonda -- the three longest-serving of the Hidden Moon clergy, having been with May Celine longer than any other member. They remain, alongside the elf Lealiel and her elderly companion by the main hall's shrine, who, in addition to Ashla, are the only ones besides the foregoing three longest serving members who have remained.
Kyran Tallseise has sent a sealed letter addressed to May Celine, which has yet to be opened by the Selunites, for May Celine, herself, has not been seen -- not since her efforts in defense of the Keep, against Whisperwick's siege and, later, the blazing star and its firespawn -- along with the telltale sign of her interference, mist thicker than usual, to the extreme, punctuated by the sudden, vivid, unnervingly low and close presence of the moon in the misty sky, empowering the defenders and intimidating attackers. This telltale sign of her presence in combat was seen in the Keep's defense against Cormac Randolph, against the Zhentarim in battles in the giantspire mountains, against the Whisperwick siege, and more recently against the firespawn. But now, the mist now works against any attempts to divine or find her, it seems, as even the loyal remaining knights do not know where she has gone.
Little does Ashla know, however, that she will also soon receive a message of her own.
(OOC: The last note above takes place the very night of the group's reunion this coming Saturday, June 25th, 2026.)
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Jaxon, though restored, is found to be absent most of the time. When sought, they usually find him out on the ramparts, sitting in one or other contortionist pose that at once tests strength, balance and endurance, stretches tight muscles and teaches focus under duress.
When not going through one of these meditations, he can be found there with his two seats and two cups of tea for any who care to join him. He speaks readily enough with those that join him about subjects they bring up, though it takes a long time for him to open up, and only the most patient will hear him voice the question.
"... Of all things I remember... Where did 'real' begin?"
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Ashla, who declined an invitation to join the Knights departing for the Order of the Blue Moon, quietly attempts to make up for the shortfall in divine manpower as best she can, attentively making herself available for any requests from the Hidden Moon, May Celine or the other Cleimants. Obviously one person is a poor substitution, but she does her best to get to anything urgent.
Other than that, she spends her little remining free time in prayer, knelt before the shrine in her chambers.
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Now that divination magic is in once again functional, and on a night very nearly before the scheduled celebrations, in her room, at her window, beneath the silvery light of the nocturnal sky, after many a tried and tired attempt at divination, Laura makes one last attempt to divine the location of her brother, using those various cherished items she's put together of her brother's possessions -- including notably the modest Cade livery badge, a deep blue family crest with the emblazoned outline of a swallow bird, sewn for him by their mother.
She cast the spell. Her senses veered east -- briefly -- before being met with a blank wall. The directionality was, as usual, not actionable. It was the usual condition of failure.
Until, quite faintly, but suddenly, she found her attention pulled downward. Far downward. But for a moment. A vivid, clear moment, her spell detected what -- after so many failures and blanks -- could only be described as presence of her brother below. Somewhere far below, somewhere she would pit at around the seventh or eighth level beneath Moonreach Keep. The levels that paradoxically seemed the most difficult to divine, as she knows well from her work with Farian.
She can almost even see Barton's silhouette, along those ruins of a crumbled and buried stone temple's tilted rampart. That is, before it 'slips' away, the silhouette leaping out of the view of her spell, and she loses arcane sight of him.
(OOC: The above takes place the very night of the group's reunion this coming Saturday, June 25th, 2026.)
[DM Xanatos Gambit]
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Laura, while much relieved at Jaxon's retrieval from George Prime, still seems reluctant about celebrating the past events. Indeed, since things calmed down she's been somewhat of a recluse, mainly working on her divinations - focused around not Barton himself, but various items cherished and dear to her brother in an attempt to bypass the blank nothing she's faced at every previous direct attempt.
She seems very keen on Farian's new research and spends most of her time either assisting him directly, quizzing him at length or exploring the scatter-shot divination of objects on her own. It is with this in mind that she seeks out Ava Brokenblade, determined to find out every possible detail she may about Barton Cade's true mission.
