This story is based off the incredible Dungeons and Dragons campaign written by FallenPrimer aka Conner McCartan. I am merely just retelling the story for the players to look back on.
-Lia Lao (Best Warlock Ever) aka Amanda Savig
Chapter 1: A Party?
Major Tom sat at the bar, waiting for his new adventure party to show up. They definitely are a rag tag team, he thought to himself, to be made up of criminals and society's outcasts. He contemplated if this party would actually last. The only people who seemed like they would last were the elf named Niavara, the bounty hunter Raefew and their own military trained dragonborn Onrades. Those three should be okay, but the other half would prove to be difficult keeping alive down in the Siosk. I mean, a tiefling for a cleric? Who had ever heard of such a thing? The sorceress may have some potential. Her family history should prove her to be powerful if she can harness her powers. The warlock may go evil on us at any moment. Maybe we'll get lucky and she'll die quickly down there. His thoughts trailed off as he heard footsteps approach from behind.
"Are you Major Tom?" a quiet voice trying to sound authorative asked.
"Yes, I indeed am," he replied as he turned to face a female tiefling. "Freedom I presume?"
"Yeah, that's me."
"Well, you're the first to arrive. Take a seat and we'll wait for your other party members to arrive."
Freedom gave a slight nod and took a seat a couple spots down from the major, ordering a mug of ale while wrapping her tail around the bar stool leg. She takes a few sips every now and then, her heart racing as she thinks of how dangerous this could become and wondering how Arch-Priest Raneban would take this. He seemed to be okay when she told him of the opportunity, but maybe he was nervous for her? After all, he had raised her after she was abandoned on the steps of the cleric tower in her infancy.
The two stayed quiet as the minutes passed, waiting for the other party members. While sitting there, Freedom began to make glances at the major. She was absolutely infatuated with what sat on the top of his head: a bright feathered hat that was rather large and noticeable from a great distance. I wonder where I can get one of those… Freedom thought to herself.
Soon, the two were greeted by another voice. "Hello! I'm looking for Major Tom?"
Major Tom turns and sees a blue cloaked sorceress behind him, "That's me. Come to join the adventuring party?"
"Yes, I am!" She says in a bubbly, excited voice! "I'm Rylle! Nice to meet you!"
"Yes, yes, I know who you are. I know everyone who will be in this party. You're just the second person to accept my invitation. Take a seat and let's see if anyone else will show up."
Despite Major Tom's brashness, Rylle doesn't let it bother her and takes a seat next to Freedom. "Hi!" She exclaims, "Isn't this exciting?"
Freedom, being slightly taller, looks down at her, "Yeah, I guess so."
The third party member makes herself slink along the wall, blending into the shadows with her dark clothing. So this is the adventuring party? Psh, a group of weaklings more like it. Making sure to keep herself unnoticed, she stays in the corner and watches as someone walks in.
Giant footsteps fill the tavern, and the quiet grumbling between patron's silences as a heavily armored dragonborn walks towards the bar. He looks and sees the two strangers sitting next to the major, hoping that the rest of the party will be there. The last thing he needs is to be with barely half a party when he could be working at his post and being able to go home to his wife and two children.
"Ah, Onrades! Happy you finally showed up! These are two of the other three that shall be joining you."
"Where are the others at?" He asked in a deep booming voice, despite him asking at a "quiet" level for him. "They should have been here by now."
"Calm down, it appears a couple are running late. Take a seat and relax."
Onrades sits at a bar stool, the bar keeper looking especially nervous when the seat creeks and groans under the dragonborns' mighty weight. Ordering a mug of mead, Onrades contemplates if teaming up with strange people like this is a smart idea.
The door opens for the next party member, only she stays quiet. Much like the person hiding in the tavern, she chooses to stay hidden, not only to scope out her future party members, but to also stay hidden from the public eye, not wanting to be scrutinized for her false accusations. She brushes a strand of greyish hair behind her ear as someone enters the tavern.
Dressed in dark clothes, Lia scouts the room, immediately taking note to someone at the piano just a short distance away. I wonder if I could get away with looking in his pockets. Deciding that now wasn't the time and there were too many people, she slinks forward.
"You Major Tom?" She asked the man with the feathered hat.
"Lia Lao. You finally made it. My condolences again to your late mother. It must have come as a shock."
Swallowing, she responds. "Yes, it was. Bandits are quiet the pests."
With a nod, Major Tom looks at the party seated at the bar, "Well it appears that you all made it to me, except for two, but they will be dealt with soon. Now, your first task starts tomorrow. I will meet you all at the Siosks doors tomorrow morning. Get some sleep, you all are going to need it."
"Why can't you just tell us now?" Lia asks, crossing her arms.
"I believe you are to do as I say. Now go." Major Tom tells her sternly. Lia backs off and makes her way out of the tavern, in a mood to hunt bandits to vent her frustrations.
"See you guys tomorrow!" Rylle says cheerfully as she too exits the tavern behind Lia.
"Major, I will be seeing you in the morning then." Onrades says with a nod of respect and leaves with Freedom following him out.
Major Tom watches as they all leave before going over to the right side of the room to where a cloaked figure sits in the shadows. "Niavara, I wouldn't expect anything less of you to hide in the shadows."
She looks up at Major Tom, not really seeming to care what he has to say.
"Shall we be seeing you in the morning, or are you going to slink off to your black market again?"
"Oh, you'll be seeing me. But don't think I am going to be enjoying any of this or care about any one of those fools." With that, she broods out of the tavern.
Major Tom sighs as he makes his way over to the final party member across the room. "Raefew, you did make it! And here I was almost hoping you wouldn't show up. We would be able to hunt you down and kill you then. Serves you right after killing your adopted father."
"I didn't kill him!" She shouts, throwing her hood back to look at him more clearly.
He chuckles, "So you say, but your story is too farfetched to really believe."
Raefew huffs and leans in her seat. "So they're what I'm going to be working with? Most of them are going to die down there, you do realize that right?"
"Which is why you are important to us. You were a bounty hunter until you became a criminal of Gafa Baile. You know what to do in a bind and how to stay alive, besides your elf and dragonborn, the others will die. I need you to be down there and work for me."
Raefew sits quietly, taking in what her life had become in such a short amount of time. "I heard what you told the nincompoops, I'll be at the Siosk in the morning." With that, Raefew throws her hood up and walks out into the night.