Troupe climbs the stairs to the citadel, led by Arlaina, past two ogre guards into a plain room containing a featureless cylinder about 5 feet high. It is apparently constructed of pure void-energy. Ravenna uses her knowledge of the void and her incredible magical affinity to attune to it, pulling Ravenna, and Mar’Khabazza into a strange mazelike cell of complete nothingness.
Mar’Khabazza manages to pick the “lock” of the cell, releasing bone dust and relics of what they presume is Faylin. A bright pinpoint is also released into the room. It rebounds chaotically off the walls before slamming into Ravenna, stunning her as the memories and total body of knowledge of the entire human race washes over her.
As this happens, Magnus steps up and kills the two ogre guards with his claymore.
As the group leaves the room, a cloud of blackness begins to spread from the room with the void prison. Presuming Pale Night is materializing behind them, the troupe flees the citadel and as they head back down the stairways all manner of strange creatures watch the battered and bloody group stumble out of the tower
Flight through the city in the darkness to climb the city walls and escape into the plains. Followed by a two day trek to the northern Tothkubad gate that will take them to the crossroads in the void that will take them back to the cemetery stone.
January 16, 7762
After a two day trek across the icy, wind-swept plains of Tothkubad the group reaches the volcanic mountain range of eastern Tothkubad. As they travel south along the edge of the mountains they spot a group of winter elves observing them from the top of a cliff.
Eventually they reach the portal at the end of “the narrow cavern without a roof” and Mar’Khabazza scouts it. He sees that the portal and cavern is held against them by humans and some kind of demonoid. From the carnage across the cave it appears that this group has slain a different group of winter elves who were standing watch here. These elves bore the token of the bone lord Henzik.
The troupe slinks off to rest, heal, and summon strength to fight their way though to the portal.
January 18, 7762
Battle at the Tothkubad portal. Ravenna fights through her disorientation and tosses a fireball that immolates the group of humans, and battle is joined. The battle among the rocks and broken slabs of the cave: Mar’Khabazza slays the demonoid creature after Ravenna determines it isn’t a demon after all. Magnus slays two winter elves while Arlaina and Savenia Loresong hide among the rocks.
January 20, 7762
After two days in the void, the group emerges at the cemetery stone, Ravenna still struggling to retain her sanity before the onslaught of the knowledge spark.
There is a six hour hike though the darkness back to Opal. They reach the Salt House to discover that occupancy has been banned due to plague. At the least, the skull and bones painted on the front gate indicates it so. Spend night in the Tempest after checking in on the house staff. The women have been living at Masha’s house:
Masha – cook
Naisha – Mar’Khabazza’s bodyguard
Gredi – daughter of Mordant Grimsby (8-years old)
Kehopu – caretaker of Gredi
while the men have returned to their homes:
Sentinel Fengus – guard with magic sword
Lotwil Veriatus – steward
January 21, 7762
The morning steam whistle rouses the group and after a heart breakfast downstairs decides to hear to the library for answers about Ravenna’s situation. After realizing that the image she’s been holding in her head of a man praying was actually Lorekeeper Mykos, he becomes her first disciple.
Ravenna attunes to the library and discovers that the library itself is artifact created by the God of Knowledge. This is one of twelve libraries scattered across the world and any knowledge (written or thought) entering the grounds is automatically added to the total body of work, available to the God of Knowledge upon meditation and reflection. In addition, sitting on the stone chair allows communication with any other being sitting in any of the other eleven chairs.
Seeking answers of his own, Mar’Khabazza spends the night in the abandoned temple to the Sun God, created by the cult that was slain by the snow leopard, the Eidolon. Divining nothing, he leaves the temple and speaks with the elven winemaker who is again sitting barefooted on her porch. She is in a melancholic mood and when pressed she is sad that no one cares about the destruction of the moon. She speaks of the slaying of the original Sun God leader (the statue of himself is found in the transept of the building) and speaks of the Eidolon as some kind of elemental force.
Ravenna goes whoring at the menagerie. That night, while passed out she is drawn into the cabin of the fates. They instruct her on the godspark, the “Master Knower” and that with time she will become more skilled at knowing anything about anything but the skill requires developing and is based on how close she is to the people who know it, and how many people know it. And the knowledge is only gathered from being with a soul: elves, winder elves, sudaar, and duergar to not have souls, but humans and dwarves and demons do.