Rose gathered them in the cellar and prepared the Teleportation Circle. “It might not be safe to come back here, at least at first," she told them. “Wait for my word before you come back, or check in with me.” With that, she sent them to their destination of choice: the palace of Cindre.
They arrived to find themselves alone in a dark wine cellar. They took a moment to get their bearings before they heard an old man’s voice. “Who’s there?” he called out. Ardwyn quietly rushed toward the voice, hearing his slow steps and seeing the light of his torch as he proceeded down the stairway. She briefly mimicked the sounds of a mouse, which the man seemed to believe, but he nonetheless continued down the staircase. Ardwyn switched to plan B, lurching into his sight and pretending to be a drunkard who had found her way into the wine cellar. The old man rolled his eyes, scolded her, and sent her away. “You can find your own way out. I need to check something,” he muttered, gazing toward the nook where the rest of the party was hiding. “Wait,” cried Ardwyn, “who are you?” He turned toward her, still with a sour look. “I am the steward in charge here. My name is Perrin.”
Perrin, they recalled, was the name of the mage they had befriended at the Silver Tower so long ago, now part of the conspiracy with Cedric and his clerics. He was the man who maintained the Teleportation Circle here. He was first surprised, then bemused as the rest of the party stepped out of the shadows and introduced themselves (with Valra casting Spider Climb and walking sideways along the wall). Last came the Duchess, who stepped up and gave him a light punch in the arm, dispelling the magical disguise that had still clung to her. Perrin’s eyes widened in recognition, and he dropped to a knee to greet her. “Welcome home, my lady.”
The seven of them gathered in a circle for a long conversation about their next steps. First, Anna told them everything she knew, sharing several interesting bits of information: Xavier was responsible for casting a spell of Nondetection three times a day to protect the Capital Hall from spying. Baldric held long one-on-one meetings with his advisors and ministers every day, but they all complained that they didn’t get as much time with him as the others. The city guards seemed to think that the Peacekeepers were spread too thinly around the country, with the bulk of their manpower currently surrounding the Elfwood. Apparently, even thought her life had been sheltered, there was a lot that she overheard.
She also showed them what was in her pack. Most of it was not of any immediate use, such as a portrait of her grandmother and some books on history and military tactics. But she also gave them a handful of small, flat jade amulets that she had purloined from the pocket of Xavier’s coat. He had given her one of these amulets and told her to “wear it always” to prevent her from getting sick. Anna presumed that they somehow protected against soul sickness. There were seven amulets, so everyone took one, with the exception of Tessel. The paladin insisted that her faith made her immune to disease, and so the last amulet was saved for Lorwyn Unghart (Ardwyn’s sister and Ralnur’s adoptive mother).
Next, now that the Duchess had been rescued, they had to decide what to do. Should they stay in hiding? Stir the unruly people of Cindre to rebellion? Some other clever scheme? Anna expressed nervousness, but she said she was prepared to do her part, whatever they decided. After much discussion, the group developed a plan. First, Perrin would go around the city and gather as many Cindrean loyalists as possible. (He had kept his position until now by pretending to be a doddering old fool, but there may still have been spies planted in his employ. Until he called together all his known allies, the loyalties of the palace’s servants and guards were suspect.) Next, Anna would give a speech, officially announcing her ascent to power and making clear that she was in Cindre of her own free will. Lastly, they would teleport away with the Duchess to somewhere safe and out-of-the-way.
Perrin rushed off to begin gathering the loyalists, promising to have them ready by noon of the following day (about 36 hours from now). He offered to install them in the royal bedchamber or his own more modest suite, but Adamir questioned whether or not it would be safe, so they camped out in the cellar, resting.
They each passed the time in their own way. Ardwyn read through some of Anna’s history books, then swapped ghost stories with Ralnur. (Anna tried to share her own ghost story, but it ended up being more historical than horrifying.) Anna spent most of her time trying to write a worthy speech, and she asked for help from everyone. Ralnur suggested that she mention “how we’re definitely gonna bathe in the blood of our enemies”, but Anna did not seem especially convinced. Tessel gave an effective lesson on rhetoric and the lofty art of oration; Ardwyn advised the Duchess to “listen to the paladin, but maybe turn it down a notch.” Adamir suggested reminding the audience of her lineage, and to “be strong but fair”. Valra, unlike the rest, merely sat in silent meditation with the Duchess as she wrote. After a few hours, the Duchess got up, putting a hand on Valra’s shoulder and thanking her earnestly.
The next day, with only a few hours left before the planned speech, Ralnur heard the sound of someone descending the staircase. He rushed over and saw a man in servant’s garb about to enter the cellar. They both froze in place and stammered out unpersuasive lies. “Uh... I was just... the wine... you see...” The man stepped forward and tried to look around the corner, but Ralnur, recognizing a spy when he saw one, tried to grab hold of him. The man twisted away and ran, shouting at the top of his lungs “HELP! THEY’RE DOWN HERE!” Ralnur swung out his axe and gave the man a shallow cut before his target managed to get out of reach.
The others, hearing the commotion, jumped to their feet. Adamir stayed behind to guard the Duchess, while the rest sprinted to the top of the staircase. Tessel, first to arrive, saw nothing except an uninteresting black rat. The rat, however, promptly turned invisible, making it very interesting indeed. “Umm, I just saw a really suspicious rat disappear!” she called out to Valra. “What am I supposed to do?” the druid asked. “I don’t know, but you’re a magic animal person!” shouted the confused paladin.
On the other side of the room, Ralnur raced to catch up with the “servant” who had discovered them. He again made a grab for the man, and this time luck was with him, as the man tripped over his own feet and landed in the half-orc’s grip. Ralnur knocked him unconscious without hesitation and returned to their hiding place downstairs.
Tessel, still hoping to track down the suspicious rat, took a chance on her Divine Sense, and she was rewarded with the sudden and terrible knowledge that a fiend was nearby, standing on the staircase. She felt the devil turn and flee past her, accompanied by the skitter of a rat’s claws. “Right there!” she called out, pointing at the spot. Valra quickly cast Dispel Magic, and sure enough, the rat popped back into visibility, simultaneously morphing into its true form: an imp.
Ardwyn rushed to join them, throwing her magical dagger, which tore through the imp’s wing. Tessel then ran forward, imbuing her longsword with holy power before smashing it into the imp’s side. With a blast of white light, the creature slammed into the wall and crumpled to the floor, dead.
The party gathered again at their makeshift camp in the cellar. Ralnur shook the captured spy awake and gave him a cold stare. “Tell us who you are, or I am going to cut off your head right now,” he said calmly. The intimidation worked wonders. The man leaned back in fear and sputtered his story. “Tristan... my name is Tristan. There were four of us. Two servants, a Seraph, and a druid.” Ardwyn looked at him skeptically. “Did your ‘druid’ transform into a rat?” she asked. “Yeah, he was a rat the whole time. He was supposed to help us find you,” he replied. The rogue kicked the corpse of the dead imp. “That’s you’re druid right there.” Tristan gazed in horror at the imp’s body, muttering excuses under his breath as the truth slowly dawned on him. “I never meant... I didn’t know...”
As their captive slowly came to terms with what had happened, the party considered their situation. According to Tristan, there were still at least two people nearby who were searching for them. Should they move to a new hiding spot, or stay put? Should they keep Tristan captive, kill him outright, or put him to work? After much consideration, they decided to use the man to get the others off their trail. Tristan, who still seemed shaken, agreed to find his companions and lead them away from the palace. Valra muttered discontentedly, not trusting that he would keep his word, but Adamir tried to seal his loyalty with a few quiet threats before his departure. Afterwards, Ralnur sidled up to the ranger, offered a friendly fist bump, and confided “I woulda killed him if the princess weren’t here.”
Although the last few hours were tense, they passed uneventfully. Perrin arrived right on time, smiling. “There’s quite a crowd waiting for you! I trust there wasn’t any trouble?” He stopped smiling when told about the infiltration, but promised that the loyalty of the servants and guards wouldn’t be a problem now that he had called together the loyalists. After making sure that everything was ready, he led them out of the cellar and toward the palace’s great hall.
The hall was filled with dozens of Cindrean citizens, all of whom turned to stare as the Duchess entered. Tessel and Perrin stood on either side of Anna as she took her place before the throne, while the rest of the party fanned out around the room, looking for any signs of trouble.
As the crowd quieted down, Anna drew in a breath... but before she could start her speech, she was interrupted by a disturbance in the crowd. A large man threw off his cloak to reveal the armor of a Seraph. “Are we going to put up with this nonsense! The girl has been kidnapped! Release her at once!” Ardwyn was standing nearest to the Seraph, and she pushed through the crowd, trying to stealthily tie up his boots, but she only succeeded in drawing the crowd's attention even more as the man kicked her hands away. Perrin began to deny the charge of kidnapping, but Tessel shushed him, suggesting that the Duchess could speak for herself. And she did. “I was not kidnapped,” she declared angrily. “I am here of my own free will!”
The Seraph was not deterred. “The girl has obviously been enchanted!” he yelled. But the Duchess had found her voice. “I have not been enchanted. I am of sound mind. And you are not welcome here. Seize this man!” At first, the crowd did not move, wary of the danger. But Ralnur stepped forward and grabbed him, wrenching his hands behind his back. Seeing this, the crowd joined in enthusiastically, with every hand nearby reaching to hold the Seraph captive. Ardwyn planted a kick onto the Seraph’s armor with a backflip before tying him up. “I watched Adamir do this once,” she commented happily as she knotted the rope.
With the interruption complete, the Duchess delivered her speech. She began with pointed references to her great aunt Saphira and grandmother Lanna, and she announced that she had returned to Cindre to take up the burden that they had once carried. Although she did not state outright that she had been kept in Balenor against her will, she made it clear that it was her choice to come home. Anna also subtly introduced the party, referring to the heroes who had assisted with her return, but refraining from mentioning that they were the same heroes who had supposedly died 44 years ago. At the end of her speech, Anna warned that she might have to stay out of sight for a short time, but implored the crowd to spread the word of her return. Although it was clear that she was not accustomed to public speaking, she delivered her words with confidence and enthusiasm. When she finished, they cheered.
Perrin led the party back to the staircase, gesturing for Ralnur to join them and leave the Seraph in the hands of the crowd. They congratulated Anna during the brisk walk down to the cellar and back onto the Teleportation Circle. Perrin was smiling again and a bit out of breath when he spoke. “So, where to?”
Their answer: “Highrock.”
