Blood's Awakening 06/16/2023 session recap

♣ Blood's Awakening: the party
♣ Blood's Awakening recap - part 1 - part 2 - part 3
♣ Previous session - Next session 

• Sandra, the owner of Bender in the Center, tells the party that they'll be hosting a sort of open mic session, later that night. Celio and Edna, being seasoned entertainers, won't pass on the opportunity to raise morale and decide to participate. Generally speaking, the whole party is interested and Polvere too offers to conjure some food and drinks later - if he has some spell slots left after Alexander Aerimus' trial, that is. This almost reveals his affiliation with a deity, but he manages to keep his cool (for now…)
• As The Rose of Winds leaves the inn, Polvere notices Aidan approaching. Everyone's baffled when he simply says hi and walks inside. Sandra and Aidan are friendly to each other, he's clearly a regular here. As Aidan is talking to Sandra, he reveals that Mohkvaris' invasion is leaving him terribly sleep deprived, but he seems to keep it together just fine, being charming and all.
• Vittorio speaks up: he wants to talk to him. Aidan, however, not only doesn't recognize him, but also mockingly accuses Vittorio of being an imposter, a young fella who wants to bask in Vittorio's past glory as a successful adventurer, and The Rose of Winds' attempts at proving the truth just amuse Aidan more. At that point Vittorio bursts out that he's been in Casarino, Aidan's hometown, and the mood of the conversation does a 180. Aidan agrees to talk, but only in private.
• They take the top floor's suite for themselves and they both take off their weapons. The party, excluding Caliban, is outside eavesdropping. From then on, all they hear is basically one huge fight that gets progressively worse.
• Aidan explains what Vittorio already knew: his family was amongst the many targets of the Red Hand (the criminal organization Aidan is part of) and he had no choice but to agree and join them. He also didn't want Vittorio to be involved, he meant to protect him. Vittorio is furious: Aidan decided what was best for him, not giving him a say whether he wanted to stay or leave. He even gets more mad when he finds out that Alexander Aerimus knew about Aidan's connection to the Red Hand the moment they met.
• During the altercation, Aidan admits to having loved Vittorio for years in the past and (tw: suicide mention, skip this paragraph if you don’t want to read it) he also adds would've hanged himself if it weren't for Vittorio just existing around him. Sadly, it was the same for Vittorio, who angrily admits he was just the shadow of the man he used to be when he came back from the war, and deep inside he knew that if it weren't for Aidan that took him on an adventure a few years later, he might've done it too. (HAPPY STUFF!!!!)
• Aidan also explains why he framed Vittorio for theft, years ago, in the Borlotto Company days. Some people in the Red Hand didn't like Aidan and what he was doing, so they began threatening to hurt his closest friend - at that time, Vittorio. He thought that the best course of action was for Vittorio to utterly hate him. Vittorio presses Aidan to know more, and Aidan lets him understand that those people who threatened him are long gone.
• Vittorio is creeped out, furious, tired, frustrated by the argument, and puts an end to it: from then on, Aidan will do his thing and Vittorio will do his job alongside his friends. They'll slay the dragon, bring the peace to Latavium, then they'll leave and Aidan won't have to interact with him anymore. Vittorio leaves the room and cries, supported by his friends' hug. (Aidan doesn't follow him, instead - after almost breaking down - he gets up and leaves through the window. Our PCs don't know about this; it was Alice's narrative touch :3c)
• The Rose of Winds reunites downstairs for some pick-me-ups, food, drinks and laughter to ease Vittorio's mind. Celio comes up with an idea: they should steal one of Alexander Aerimus' cannons!!! Everyone is excited about this plan and chimes in with their own idea on how to do it, and it's a memorable moment for everyone. Even Serpico, who acts as the party's voice of reason, can't help but have fun with them. They care, but aren't a party pooper. (we'll see if The Rose of Winds will steal a cannon or not. Diamante's note: I HOPE WE DO!!!!!!!)
• Polvere finally admits that he's a cleric of Tolium: saying it out loud is a huge deal, but he doesn't want anyone to celebrate him for that. He's mostly confused as to why Tolium chose him, but Vittorio tells him that he can see why; Polvere is a brilliant young man, one of a kind. Caliban asks Polvere if he's thinking about contacting his deity and if he can help with that, but Polvere replies that he won't do it. Tolium will have to contact him first!!! (Serpico's note: that's great but please don't burn down a temple to get his attention, ok…)
• After helping the people of Collevecchio Mondavio fix their broken homes, The Rose of Winds goes back to Alexander Aerimus' castle to talk about the trials. The Iron Falcons will prove their skill by completing a heist, while The Rose of Winds will have to show how versatile they are by clearing a dungeon. Alexander and Aidan will observe the situation via magic and Aidan will be available to help the adventurers, if needed. Both groups have two hours to complete their tasks.
• As Alexander is talking, Caliban notices something strange. One of the people in The Iron Falcons, a dwarf named Zolthar, seems terrified by Aidan's presence. Caliban makes a mental note of it and decides to keep this information to himself, for now.
• Entering the dungeon, The Rose of Winds faces four living armors in a pool of Grease, both very hard to dispel due to Alexander's status as an archmage - Caliban knows it. It's a funky fight, one where the constant slipping around only brings joy and laughter to the party.
• The Rose of Winds deals with the first room and continues exploring. Vittorio, however, is a bit distracted and acts impulsively, causing a trap to go off and hurt him. Whoops! Caliban gently reminds him to be more careful and they proceed.
• Polvere ventures forth and opens the next door. Awaiting the party is a huge stone golem, an annoying enemy but one that, with a bit of coordinated effort, the party slays efficiently.
• After that, another door. It's locked this time, and Caliban notices a trap hidden inside! Vittorio disarms it with his Thieve's Tools and extracts a very poisonous dart from the lock, which is given to Polvere - he's always happy to collect and study these things.
• The door remains locked and Vittorio can't lockpick it, it's beyond his abilities. Edna rolls up her sleeves and casts Reduce on the door: her lateral thinking pays off! The door, now small, falls to the ground revealing a huge room with five automatron armors inside, one of which is huge and looks awfully similar to an iron golem! CLIFFHANGER!!!!!