Alvec Snaptail

Morning’s light awoke Alvec. The boat's gentle rocking made his stomach uneasy as he readied himself. They were getting answers today. That was the plan. He’d barely gotten dressed when Illaria knocked on his door.

“Not to be giving you bad news, but LuCol wants to speak with us first,” she said as she stood in the open doorway.

“Alright. Let's go debrief with him.” Alvec agreed. The two of them went round, gathering up the remaining members of their motley crew. The Cheese Acolytes, in all their glory, went to LuCol’s flagship. They found him in his captain's room, sitting behind a desk, his hands crossed in front of his face. Clearly trying to hide a wide smile.

“So not only was I right about everything, having spotted something infernal that had slipped by Ghol and his men. I also gambled correctly on a band of misfit adventurers to deliver a crushing victory. Crowley missing and presumed dead, and many of the infernals were neutralized or fleeing. Some ships were raised successfully and crewed by devils as we suspected, but this infernal fleet has been scattered, and we’re actively engaging to prevent them from forming up into one armada.”

“I’m glad to be hearing all of this,” Illaria stated as she smiled wide. She doubted deep down that Crowley was dead, but she knew that he was at least without a hand.

“We owe much thanks to you; the bards are already singing about how you took an eye, a hand, and some of his intestines with your blade,” LuCol said as he bowed low to her. “But last we spoke, you rather rushed our conversation. Understandably so, but I believe you mentioned “intruders.” might I ask what exactly you meant by that?” he asked, turning to Naya.

The girl snapped her spine up straight and looked alarmed. She’d never meant to mention them in the first place, not without asking the group if it was even ok to. She anxiously looked at Alvec.

“What do you say, guys? We trust LuCol enough to bring him into this mess?” Alvec asked as he looked around the room.

“He gave us information that led to us fighting and defeating Crowley. He kept his word so I would be trusting him,” Illaria confirmed.

“Bait trust Illaria’s judgment.”

“I see the risks, but I’d raise the benefits. He’s high up in the Blue; if Vato was right, I’d rather have allies like him.” Mavec replied.

“He owns a displacer beast; he can’t be that bad,” Naya said, nodding yes. What on earth is a displacer beast???

“Alright, gods above, how do we even describe this?” Alvec said. “We encountered strange creatures throughout our travels. At first, we could have brushed it off as a fluke, but emerging information makes us concerned that this is very much a guided effort, and the end it leads to is an empire-threatening scenario.”

“Vato, the archwizard of divination, had such dark visions of what was to be coming that he was glad he would be dead well before Kavaas returned,” Illaria added.

“Kavaas translates to Foul Light in Old Imperial, but we don’t know what it is other than we suspect it's connected to these strange monsters,” Mavec said.

“During our first encounter, a dying man thrust a notebook to Alvec. We assumed he meant to only share it with a man named Tyir, but we’ve now met Tyir, and we think he mistook Alvec for him,” Naya said.

“The journal was encrypted. Tyir promised to break the code on it and reveal it to us as soon as we finished this campaign,” Alvec assured him.

“Alright, so Vato saw a strange invasion of monsters?” LuCol asked.

“Yes, but I think it's worse than that,” Alvec replied.

“Worse, how?”

“We haven’t ruled out that these monsters were specifically directed at us,” Mavec replied. “Once is a fluke, and twice is a pattern. More strange monsters came after us shortly after we recovered the journal.”

“We’re still researching that possibility. Independent of the Kavaas and Monster talks... we also suspect the Gold Banner is possibly compromised. We have no solid proof of that... yet. They used us to take out infernal activity in Sha-Laial, but we noticed a few oddities that made me think it wasn’t a coincidence. First, the summoning circle was old and well-used. Secondly, the particular devil they seemed to be in league with just so happened to be an Erinyes, the same devil as my grandmother.” Alvec added.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

“Hey, did you tell us that before?” Naya asked.

“Sorry, I kept that one close to my chest,” Alvec admitted.

“Rude,” Naya replied.

“That's certainly a lot of information to drop on me,” LuCol said as he turned away from the party and gazed out the aft window. “Sounds to me like we should be checking on that encrypted journal before anything else. Perhaps it will clarify these “intruders,” as you and Vato called them. Let's head on over to the medic tents. LuCol led the way, and in a matter of minutes, despite protests from the nurses, they were ushered into the room Tyir was in. The poor guy’s skin was a strange color. It looked to be a rose gold.

Alvec grimaced. “Healers burn really did a number on you.”

Tyir groaned. “It’ll take weeks for this to fade, but my skin has never been softer. Those infernals were relentless. I swear one of them tried to pick me up,” he said with a laugh.

Alvec joined in awkwardly with him. “So about that... pretty sure they were trying to kidnap you.”

“Are you serious?”

“We may have met your mutual grandmother while on our mission,” Illaria chimed in.

“Wait, are you saying we’re cousins?” Tyir asked.

“Yeah, that's the assumption anyway. The Erinyes we fought made it very clear that I was the prime target. Crowley insinuated that there was another tiefling whom they could use for whatever ritual they were planning. Needless to say, you and I must be careful while we sort out what exactly they want to use us for.”

“So you're saying we’re using the buddy system with you, Alvec. Echo can sleep with you from now on,” Naya said as she pointed towards the wolf waiting just outside the tent.

Alvec let out a long sigh. Echo was a good boy, but cuddling up with him all night was not his idea of a good time. “Tyir’s got the 3rd Arcane regiment of the Red Banner on his side, so we don’t have to worry too much about him, at least.”

“Enough with the chit that; you got the journal decided yet?” Mavec asked, bringing the conversation to heel.

Tyir nodded silently. “Is it safe to do this here?” he asked, his eyes locking onto LuCol.

“We’ve brought him up to speed,” Mavec replied.

“Alright, place any protections you want to, and we’ll begin. I’ll read it to you all out loud, and then we can discuss.” Tyir said as he pulled out the journal and flipped it open. Alvec rushed around quickly, establishing a set of protective wards. They’d be hard to spot, if nothing else. Tyir began to read in a collected voice.

-----

Infernal activity present across all provinces, but at a small scale.

Permanent small portals made and maintained in large cities. Little coming through them.

Presence in rural areas limited, except for Throne lands. Mid-caste devils spotted in Throne lands. Unable to determine if they are remnants or new.

Unusual amount of attention given to spirits. Infernal agents approach children of Akrixi and keep others away. Mid-caste infernal attacks noted on manifest spirits.

Gold Banner Army's strategy consistent. Heavy reprisals against plotting nobles and small-scale infernal contact. Constant surveillance of portal sites, but no intervention. All confirmed portal sites currently monitored by Gold Banner Army.

Pattern: When portal site accidentally discovered by locals, Gold Banner Army directs local army troops or local mercenaries to resolve issue while masking involvement. Effective, but unusual.

Reason given for inaction. Marshal Gholl claims Gold Banner Army searching for high caste remnant devils. Extent of surveillance on portals masked in hopes of getting eyes on remnants.

Pattern: Chain of command in Gold Banner Army unbroken. No rogue elements likely. Strategy and tactics probably dictated from top down. Marshall Ghol has Ageneon's complete faith. Thorough evidence required to turn opinion against Gholl.

Three week surveillance of Gold Banner Army Central Depot complete. No evidence of infernal, demonic, arcane, or fae magic. Central depot defenses likely too powerful. Must seek intelligence from alternate source.

1. Bishop Aso RaMol

2. Lord Saeing TaeShas

3. Master Ving Itell

4. Admiral Chelen TaeShan

5. Golden General Ozole Gelten

6. Red Colonel Zhuen Thali

7. Lord Kes TaeOl

Pattern: Each of these figures dined privately with Marshall Gholl. Soon began displaying erratic behavior. Some continued on in their duties, others retired. No evidence of seditious activities or contact with infernal agents.

Master Foten Fal

Iskala Ralel

Pattern: Foten Fal dined with Marshall Gholl, soon became ill and passed away. Reason given: Stomach ailment exacerbated by exotic spices in meal.

Iskala Ralel convicted of treason, Marshall Gholl invited her to dinner as pretext to get her away from the temple. Evidence of fight clear. Evidence of treason flimsy. Others dined with Marshall Gholl without incident. Connection sought.

Pattern: Seven often move about empire without restriction. Often nearby those with civil power or martial power. Possibly some form of hidden communication between them. Seek to use Koyal’s theorem to find connection. Ozole Gelten attending Celloct’s birthday party at extreme distance from other seven.

Success. Thread of communication uncovered at Arcane/Phrenic border. Window opened briefly. Communication primarily in language I do not comprehend. Some names in modern Imperial heard. Ageneon, Vato, Cellocht, TaeCol, Alusai, Tayen, Nanjao, Quector. Phrase Kavaas repeated frequently.

Must seek greater resources to observe the thread for greater amount of time with less risk of discovery.