The Darkness Within – Recap episodes 160-165

Arguile, Glad, Salix, and Zechs find themselves inexplicably transported to the distant past, landing in Sloane’s Second Age rather than the Nymora of their time. Struggling to understand their predicament, they attempt to gather information discreetly, but Zechs inadvertently reveals their origins. This earns him a referral to the priestess of Nireana and ultimately to the priestess of Tumra, where he becomes visibly disturbed by the revelations he receives. Meanwhile, in the present, the rest of the party watches their companions in a catatonic state, their eyes glazed over. Shanks and Galahad attempt to discern the cause, only to hear a voice declaring, “These are the tithes that must be paid.” The goddess Aphy reassures them that their friends are safe and urges them to aid from their side. They resolve to investigate the leadership that enabled Nymora’s suffering, instructing Greyleaf to seek his mother’s connections. Before parting, Hoshino performs an act of kindness, reuniting a lost child with their family, a rare moment of light in a place marred by pain.

In the past, the group consults the priestess of Tumra, who informs them that this journey is a lesson for Zechs and all of them. When Salix inquires if the lesson is forgiveness, they are corrected, the actual lesson is acceptance and closure, they hear from an absent but familiar voice. As they explore the city, they sense the rising tension of the approaching conflict between the Panteran Pantheon and Malar. They hear of erratic wildlife and growing fear of Malar’s influence, suspecting an impending disaster. Zechs theorizes that a site of his future sacrifices may already exist and be occupied by Malar and his followers. The group stealthily investigates, finding a massive bonfire surrounded by many figures. In the present, Greyleaf’s mother welcomes him and his friends, sharing a moment of reunion before shifting to the serious matter. After a short prayer, she bluntly acknowledges their foes, providing a wealth of names while advising caution. The party learns of her formidable past and her service during the arrival of the Vitalis family. With their newfound intelligence, they form teams, Shanks and Greyleaf, Hoshino, and Galahad, each tasked with specific roles. With Hoshino’s Seeming spell altering their appearances, they set forth, ready to confront the forces that have plagued Nymora for generations.

We return to a tense scene as Arguile, Glad, Salix, and Zechs attempt to deceive the cultists as they nervously try to figure out their next steps. While their deception works, the cultists still find themselves drawn to Zechs, for reasons they can’t quite put their finger on. Eventually they are asked to join and watch the cult perform a ritual. There’s a lot of chanting, a familiar dagger, and a body that goes into the fire and begins transforming… It’s an unsettling scene, and one that sends a chill down the spines of the group. Before them is the avatar of Malar. With Hoshino’s spell underway, the group separates to do what is needed while Zechs and the others do what they must do. Shanks and Greyleaf head off briefly to see The Royal Vagabonds, Greyleaf’s old crew from when he was still Kyver, and get more intel on their target. Their target has a unique taste, and the rogues know how to use it.

Meanwhile, Hoshino comes upon a very familiar tavern and meets Heely Hands and Kalkari, while waiting to see JM… or in this case, Mr. Bell. Mr. Bell talks plainly with Hoshino, telling him that in all his time, and across the many realities, he’s never come across Hoshino Matsuo, bard of 100 towns. He is an anomaly or a wild card in a deck of wild cards, and wants to use it to their advantage to stop the Constable. A crazy plan, but if it works, it can change, EVERYTHING and start to set things right, or at the very least give their situation a fighting chance. Mr. Bell knows the party may not agree, so he only wants to bring Hoshino along if he thinks the party will agree. Shanks and Greyleaf head off to the Velvet Fang, stealthily observing the venue and awaiting a visual of their target. After some time, they get eyes on their prize and tail him upstairs to where he is in a rather precarious situation, but not unusual for a customer of this fine establishment. The rogues check their surroundings, wait for the right timing, and follow their plan. Shanks uses his Blink Dog Dagger to get across the room and cover the man’s mouth before he can call out for help. Greyleaf gives his companion some gold, and she tells him that while she won’t get in their way, she can only assure them a few minutes before things get out of her hands. More than enough time for Mr. Scotch and Mr Bonnet, who interrogate their target for information regarding the cult, its members, its doings, and anything else helpful and of note. They leave without much fuss and slip back into the bustling city of Nymora. We finish with the 4 in the past; as Malar’s avatar says, “Let the wild hunt begin.”

With Malar’s avatar calling for the start of the Wild Hunt, the currently awestruck party sneakily breaks away from the cultists and decides to follow closely but stealthily to figure out how to stop Malar. Upon re-entering Nymora, it is a scene of pure chaos; the group sees the avatars of Nianke, Nireana, and Xidea come into corporeal form to stand against the avatar of Malar while the avatars of Aphy, Tumra, and Gosyn see to the aid of the citizens. The battle is intense and happens quickly, with Xidea delivering the death blow to Malar. With the scene dissolving, the goddess Aphy appears before the group, looking towards Zechs, and asks if they understand. The lesson was that TOGETHER, the group may overcome this next endeavor, but while this would extract Malar, this would not destroy the aspect of him residing in Zechs, nor do they have a way to contain it. This causes apparent conflict within Zechs as he doesn’t wish to let this aspect of Malar upon the planes and worries that this would only add to the other aspects already out there. Aphy explains to Zechs what he must do, including interrupting the ritual this evening at the site of his sacrifice. She does what she can to quell his concern and urges that he must try to focus on what he can do right now, as it’s not on him to try to stop Malar entirely as that is a task that he can not do right now due to time and resources amongst other things.

In the present, Hoshino is on his clandestine mission to track down Five Shadow. He finds Five Shadow at his place of work while under the ruse that he also works for the Cult as an auditor of sorts. This gamble pays off, as he successfully casts Charm Person and can begin to squeeze him for every bit of information he can on the Bloody Paw and their current dealings. Hoshino receives information on tonight’s ritual, its importance, and the notable members who will attend it. Upon leaving, Hoshino meets up with Greyleaf and Shanks, who have just finished their mission, as Shanks receives word from Zechs that they’re awake. There is an exchange to determine where to meet to exchange all the information they’ve all gathered. Greyleaf reminds Shanks to let Zechs and the crew know that they may encounter some guards down in the Vineyard but not to be alarmed as they were there to keep watch. As the group reconnects, Hoshino informs Zechs that he cannot help him with the Malar extraction. Still, he has the opportunity to make a massive difference in their efforts to thwart the Constable’s plans. There is a heavy conversation as the allies turned friends go their separate ways, but they know it’s not goodbye; it’s until next time, leaving each other a token of their friendship and something to keep their spirits high when times seem rough.

We pan over to Galahad, who makes his way to the “hunting club” to meet Hushed Coil under the guise of Silent Knight. He gives the guise of someone who wants to join “the cause,” and Hushed Coil is all too excited to divulge information and get this recruit. Galahad learns that most people there are waiting for tonight’s main event. Galahad ensures that these guys don’t make it to tonight’s ritual but doesn’t kill them. Instead, he gets them so incredibly drunk that they essentially can’t function. With one final act of raucous behavior, Galahad bashes through the door, vanishes into the night, and starts to make his way to rejoin the group.

The group meets back up, some still in their Tabaxi guise but pauses conversing to check if anyone is following the group. A quick check confirms that there was someone, but they are no longer there when Shanks investigates. They are relieved to arrive at the inn and see that the Magnificent Mansion is still there. One of the servants relays a message from Hoshino to the group, apologizing for his abrupt departure but assuring them he will be back and offering endearment to them all. As the message ends, they pick up on a new figure waiting for them to notice his presence. A halfling fellow by the name of Turk introduces himself, and after a round of introductions and clearing any suspicion of him, he tells the group that he was sent here to help the group however he can.

Before they can figure out just how effectively they can use JM’s most recent addition to the Collateral team, the group exchanges the information that they gathered from what Zechs and the others saw in the past, the information Shanks and Greyleaf squeezed out of their target, and the name Enich, whom Galahad reveals as Arguile’s alternate and a paladin of Arioch. The group then began to form a plan for a while. However, with Zechs still uneasy about unleashing his aspect of Malar onto the planes and feeling like they’re getting played somehow, it took some time before the group reached a consensus. Zechs, with of course Duo, along with Galahad, Turk, and Glad would assist Zechs, while Arguile, Shanks, Greyleaf, and Salix keep an eye on things outside with Enich and any of the Paw members potentially interfering with the ritual.

As they make their way to the ritual site, the scent of blood is in the air, and fire is ablaze in the distance. The group can faintly make out bodies missing their skin. There is a brief exchange that is somewhere between tense and uncomfortable. Enrich confirms that the dead Tabaxi are the idiots from the lodge that Galahad got piss drunk and also tells Zechs that the only reason this is happening is that he is divine punishment for this plane, at least partially. With niceties out of the way, the group splits into the ones who will help Zechs expel Malar and the others who are to keep watch on the paladin of Arioch and Lieutenant of the Constable. The ritual begins, and Zechs and Malar have a final exchange before their fight to end things, one way or another. While on the outside, Enich expresses his boredom and begins approaching the waiting party, preparing to attack.

The battle had commenced for both teams… Maybe it was a sign of fortune, divinity, or whatever you may wish to think, but the team worked together, dealing heavy damage to Malar and Enich. Galahad shows the divine wrath of Bahamut when Malar goes after Zechs and deals an impressive blow. Turk more than shows his abilities in spades, as he uses his form of dread to inflict fear into the god of the Wild Hunt. After which Zechs deals some up close and personal shots at Malar imbued with a touch of divine energy. Enich needed to heal himself immediately after Shanks’ first volley of arrows. Salix uses Juniper’s Bloom to cast Gravity Fissure on Enich, which he manages to avoid the brunt of but with his back pressing against the wall, it’s time to start taking them more seriously. Glad uses her divine magic to cast Bless on the group within Zechs’ mind. Malar begins to cast Fire Storm when Turk counterspells the god keeping his new team safe and out of harm’s way. Back outside Enich summons shadows that keep the team at bay and they regroup. Malar summons wolves to even the playing field, which are taken care of almost immediately before a sinister laugh comes from him, and he summons even more of them.

Enich uses his Dread Lord ability to begin shifting the tides. With that, the group hesitates to approach as per Galahad’s earlier warning, and Enich starts shouting about how cowardly they all are. Galahad puts Kana’s Fury into Malar’s chest, twists it, and says, “Didn’t I tell you I was going to wear you?” Malar chuckles before fading, and the group wakes up to see a battle only a few feet away. Enich approaches Salix with his Flame Tongue Longsword and strikes them down. Turk casts Heat Metal on Enich’s armor as a tactical move to make any further attacks toward the group at a disadvantage. Enich turns to Turk, points his sword to him, and casts Blight. Even with the combined efforts of the entire group, Enich is giving them a challenging time. Having already donned sturdy armor, the combination of the Shield spell makes it seem impossible to hit him. Greyleaf takes Salix and backs them away from the ensuing fight. Glad heals Salix and picks them back up before casting Magic Missle towards Enich. Arioch’s paladin is up, but he’s on the defensive. Zechs drops the Hunter’s Mark, whom he put on Enich upon entering the fight, and instead summons “Wolfy,” his Beastial Spirit, to assist Galahad as best as it can in this battle of the paladins.

As we approach the end of the fight, Shanks can get a shot off with his purple-worm-tipped arrow, dealing a heavy blow to Enich. Salix, now back up, uses Call Lightning to affect Enich is area, but Galahad and Wolfy get caught in the spell. Thankfully, they manage to survive and deal another blow to Enich, who isn’t going down without a fight. Greyleaf manages to attack Enich with his Onyx Blade. Enrich casts Destructive Wave as he strikes the ground, and a wave of thunder and necrotic energy hits nearly everyone. Galahad attacks Enich, slashing him across his chest, taking the back end of the sword, and hitting him in the side of the head. Enich exchanges a few words with Galahad before going unconscious. Glad uses Sacred Flame to finish the job, and Enich goes to the afterlife.

After the fights, Zechs collapses from exhaustion; he’s not in harm’s way, but shows no signs of waking up. Before leaving the site, Galahad displays a sign ensuring that no more sacrifices will happen here, as per the vow of the Champion of Bahamut. The group takes Zechs to his parents’ place so he can rest and wake up in a familiar setting with his parents watching him. The night is young, and after a night like they had, revelry is long overdue. With that, they head out to the Faint Mandolin and enjoy the many drinks the establishment provides, some mood enhancers courtesy of Salix, and the melodic sounds of their new ally, Turk. What is now par for the course for the party, the drinks keep coming, a deep conversation is had, and they run into a familiar face at their next venue, The Jaded Kitty Kat. A wide grin and enthusiastic voice greet the party as Little G is in town and doing some celebrating of his own. The group updates Turk on how they know their associate Little G dubs Turk, THE Turk, which gets a welcome response. Towards the end of the evening, Greyleaf and The Turk discuss their origins, fondness for magic, and Greyleaf’s family before heading back to Zechs’ parents’ place for the night. The following day, in Rinde and Setti’s home, the party is joined by a familiar face: Iqra of the Cloak of Feathers. 

She gives news that she is a messenger for JM as they are otherwise held up, but offers to answer any questions they have. There is an exchange as The Turk works out which JM they’re referring to as he realizes that the JM he knew was Mr. Bell, and the JM who sent them was the one who last spoke to the party, presenting as a woman. She tells the party to let Zechs know that Argo is safe and recovering in Nereas, that Cenari received word from the Circle of Friends that are looking into a group known as the Light of Elrin in Luxenborough, and that one of their party members has received the boon from the Daughter of the Flame. Iqra informs Arguile that an army of fiends has overtaken Ors Themar for the first time in history and is making their way toward Nakoroa. Additionally, the Masterful Gains Guild in Gamsby is trying to stop a splinter group known as the Umbral Veil that is trying to disrupt the weave throughout the city. At the same time, some operatives were dispatched from the guild to stop them. None have reported back in and have since gone missing. They say that if Mechfall loses its arcane power, it’s the same as putting a lit match next to a powder keg. Upon asking about The Constable and any of his Generals, Galahad is told that The Executioner has also been mentioned as pulling her punches. It’s not information they saw firsthand, but they were informed of it. Iqra informs Arguile that Enich is not his only alternate and to beware of the one carrying a rifle with him. We end with some details regarding the Pincushion Maker and the calamities of Sloane.