The party stands on the surface of the water near where the drowning star once was. Gimbol hands Vesper the orb, it burns Vesper, causing Vesper to sink deep into the ocean. Suddenly the party can no longer stand on the water and plunge into the surface. Moss swims down to retrieve Vesper, and Gimbol takes back the orb, allowing the party to stand on the water’s surface once more. The party then returns to the boat.
Gimbol converses with the “Orb of the First Dawn“, it asks him what he desires, and Gimbol replies that he wants Durim back, and Parsons gone.
The Orb expresses that it doesn’t like Moss
Why do you want to blow him up
Why not, don’t we love chaos?
The Party returns to Blackreef, seeing rising smoke, and battered ships. As they approach the port, an eerie silence hangs over a ruined landscape. The shattered ships and rotting docks are shrouded in a thick, ashy mist and slicked with patches of ice. Further nearing the port, dead bodies float in the sea water, and the ground is littered in piles of ash.
Moss notices the rot looks familiar, and speaks with the Scepter of Oaths. The scepter reveals that the orb doesn’t like it.
Hes a dick. Stay on his good side, he’s probably the most powerful out of all of us.
The party notices a figure kneeling, covered in gashes across their back.
The Figure calls for Carl, the little orange cat the party has seen since the assassination of the Emperor. The cat jumps on the figure’s shoulder, and the figure is revealed to be younger looking version of Cantor, wearing a blindfold. Charum gestures to the cat.
I’d like to introduce you guys to Charum the Chainbreaker, the last god.
Moss asks the cat (Charum) where the other gods went
As far as I know, I’m the last.
Moss asks what the flame is, Charum explains that it’s a parasite that showed up when gods fell.
Apparantly you’ve made your friend angry, and he is soon to find other friends.
Cantor explains he showed up to see how things were going, and fended off JoyBoy’s attack.
Parsons now knows the last god lives.
Cantor spreads his wings f ash and fire, further explaining:
We can’t let mortals wield these artifacts, need to restore gods and break cycle
Cantor walks off, as his shattered halo and youth disappear.
Gimbol makes his way to the bar to speak to Varnus and the disguised halfling guarding the door, finding only the halfling.
Gimbol questions the halfling about the amulet, and his strange experience as Bullog
That’s not my shadow.
The halfling explains the amulet should just disguise someone, but somehow it seems to have done more than that.
Interesting, You have two souls in you
Gimbol reaches into his own mind, feeling that he has bits of someone else memory, someone that may have attached to him when he revived.
Vesper and gimbol wander about town. Gimbol asks Vesper if they know anything about souls, Vesper doesn’t Vesper is an idiot.
The ghost of the little girl pops out of Vesper’s ebony viol:
I do, Maestro grin, he knows. Hes a bad bad man, he knows all about souls though.
Vesper vaguely recalls, and the girl continues: >You dont want to meet him, he’s an evil man
The party meets back up at bar, and Sol returns to the vampire manor with Moss. Moss enters without trouble, but Sol is unable to enter until invited in. Sol speaks with the owner of the manor who is totally not a vampire:
Later at the rooms at the bar, a messenger hands vesper a note, an invitation to a circus familiar to those who know where it is, the place where first Vesper first joined the circus. Vesper tips the messenger, and the messenger backflips twice, disappearing into the shadows.
Sol speaks to the flame and reveals the plan to restore the gods
Not a Vampire dude walks into the tavern, the bar hushes, and he returns his servants with him back to his manor. Jin and Moss tail them stealthily, Moss less so.
Sol gathers the townsfolk and makes a speech, telling the town they can stay in Lunaris and that she’s going to help rebuild Blackreef. In the crowd Vesper spends this time looking at the invite, and shows Jin. As they speak the little ghost girl appears:
Of course your the esteemed guest, you were last time
The Girl revealed to be named Annabelle explains:
Gimbol asks Vesper what they remember of Maestro Grin
Moss and Sol return to the manor, but they are turned away as the lord is unwell, Moss sneaks into the manor as an ant, while Gram returns Sol to the tavern in a carriage.
Moss asks the servants where the lord of the manor is, but they won’t tell him. He asks what exactly the lord of the manor is, assuming him a vampire, and the servant a thrall. The servent then reveals:
Late at the tavern comes a knock at Vespers door, the messenger from the previous night:
We missed you last night, come to us, or we come to you.
One of Parsons’s minions attacked Gimbol in the tavern to take the orb, however the orb destroyed the intruder and saved Gimbol:
Kinda felt good killing that man
Vesper’s brain stopped working but was able to parse the following potentially inaccurate information somehow:
The Party heads the way that may be towards the Carnival of Shadows, finding a path through an eerie forest. The sounds of nature are conspicuously missing, leaving only the sound of the wind and a quiet creaking. The party comes across two pillars affixed with black lanterns, as they step forward, both become lit.
No no no, before the main event you must prove that you can handle it
Two marionettes appear and invite the party into the carnival.
Entering the first tent, filled with many carnival mirrors, one by one they shatter, and a tightrope across is revealed. Vesper crosses whilst juggling, receiving a vision of the things they did in the circus, Vesper falters and almost loses balance, but makes it across. Vespers turns and looks, the tightrope wasn’t spanning broken grass, it was across a deep void.
Vesper, you’re just as good as I remember, you may proceed
The marionette points at Jin,
You, I have something special for you
The second tent is full of spinning posters of people’s faces, with a glowing keg at the far end. Jin recognized the faces as loved ones, People Jin cherished the most,people they hurt. A poster of Jin’s mother speaks:
Why, why do you need it.
Jin feels pain and sorrow as he continues to the next, his father:
It could have been better, but you let it take you, why?
He continues to a poster of himself:
You know you want to take a drink, take it.
From a cup dripping with red and black liquid, Jin goes to take a drink.
Some just decide to give in to their temptations
Gimbol handles the next tent, being challenged to perform for a crowd. Gimbol struggles as the crowd starts booing. The performance makes Vesper twitch, and the crowd becomes openly hostile.
As they open up the next tent, the two marionettes speak:
Well that did not go as planned, but since our guest of honor is here, let’s let him enter
The party enters the largest tent, acrobatic shadows dance about, and a figure surrounded by dancing shadows lingers near the back near the soul well.
Vesper, you’ve returned and you’ve brought us more souls!
The figure is revealed to be the same one Moss glimpsed at last circus, but now unmasked.
Our best soul reaper has returned to us, how the circus has missed our brightest star! Do you remember all the shows we’ve done together?
The crowds gasps, and the figure suddenly appears next to Vesper.
Each soul you brought, a masterpiece. The last was your magnum opus, the little girl was best one.
Suddenly Vesper is moved to the center spotlight, the crowd cheers as spectral jugglers appear. As the fight starts Vesper is conflicted.
The fight continues and the Maestro speaks:
Very good all!
The lanterns shadows begin to stretch, and tent goes black:
How many of you can fight in the dark?
A ghostly figure of Vesper throws a child into the soul well, and the crowd responds with thunderous applause.
Soon the Maestro grows bored and questions if these are really the best souls, Vesper convinces the maestro they are not, and that he should look elsewhere. The maestro agrees as shadows appear around Vesper.
Let’s reap some souls!
Thunderous applause erupts, and the Maestro spirits Vesper away as they both disappear down the soul well.