Day 37 (S28)

Just before sunrise, around 8am: We took his body, the book, and the symbol to the tree we use to travel here, and Rina burned the book and symbol with her Prestigitation. One of the orphans was sleeping at the tree holding a sharpened broomstick. We took the broomstick to build our little fire, and Rina replaced it with paper - child still asleep.

Kin spoke similar rites to that he would for one of Oara’s followers, asking that his soul be sent to peace. Rina cried a little, Alice had no emotion.

Roy Richmond showed up behind us, worried that we were actually going to burn the body. We said we wouldn’t and asked he go back to the church and wait til 9 like we agreed.

We took the body, wrapped in a rug from the inn, and gave it to Roy, who was actually personally grateful. He told us he would speak highly of us, but we knew he was lying about that. Roy took the body and went into the church, the Pinky finger following close behind him.

We got back to the inn and debated how we were going to get Rina close to death. Alice and Kin debated just beating her to death, but strangulation seemed the “most fun” to Rina. So Alice used plant growth to make vines to strangle her, she gave in to them as much as possible. Rina succeeded a death save, despite that being the opposite of the point. So Alice smacked her with the vines to do damage, taking her down to 1 death save remaining. This is when Rina’s soul was ripped from her body and transported straight downward. Through the earth, into a very grey and rocky plane. She saw a shepherd, who seemed to recognize her as they made eye contact - she was in the Niktalia Eternal plane.
But she was quickly moved farther downward until she appeared inside a bedroom. She was not able to move, but she could see the room was large with high ceilings and gems throughout the crystal blue walls. Everything was opulent and over the top, just the floor was worth more than an entire city. She then sees Agronoch on the edge of his bed, impatiently and anxiously waiting. He sees her, then gets up quickly “What took you so long??” She looked at him, confused, it had only been a few hours. He then came closer and gathered himself as if he was about to do something unpleasant. Rina then saw a magic circle that she was in the middle of. Enoch took a deep breath and stepped in - his skin immediately starting to get small burns and wounds that stung him. “We don't have much time, but we can talk here. This is as close as we can get for now. They are watching me all the time, I can't ever say anything. But it WORKED, Rina, it worked! Caspian is here, he didn't need to complete the mission to still get here! And… Aurelius is here, too.” “You have Aurelius??” Rina exclaimed. “He is here! Now we know about where we go after we die” Enoch answered. “You mean you didn't know??” Rina exclaimed again. “I am figuring it out… but you need to talk to the missing Finger (who we thought was found Dead in his Chambers), he knows more than anyone. And the bear! The bear on the island. But you have to go now. We will talk again soon.” Then Rina was pulled back into her body, the vines disappeared, and she completely passed out. Everyone got a long rest.

We slept til about 6pm, then decided to finish any shopping we needed in town. Rina got Water Breathing as a ritual spell, 2 Minor healing potions and 2 greater healing potions, as well as some honey for Mayoay’s bees. Kin and Alice got everything they needed for spell components also. Alice also got a potion of true polymorph.

We then went back to the tree, the orphans all there guarding the tree. Kin gave them each sharpened broomsticks that he had bought for them, and Rina gave the boy who was there earlier ink and a quill to write with. He then started journaling the things they were doing to help keep the tree safe. All of them basically worship the Bound. Rina finally gave them our names.

We got back to our home in Castle Frey, most of the house is finished being fixed up, our cook was there with a large bird-like creature she had gotten from the woods to make for us - she baked it in a large stone oven that was recently installed. We all enjoyed a nice dinner. Kin used sending to Francis so we could get a meeting with Sullivan Frey the next morning, he agreed on 10am. We all rested again.

Day 11 of the 2 weeks of diplomatic immunity