Continuing their voyage toward Pravus, The Rectifiers spotted a ship on the horizon as they passed the Altas Mountains to the south. After a short deliberation, they decided to veer northward into a cold mist to avoid the other ship. Small chunks of ice floated in the water as they slowly drifted through the mist. After a while, a ship drifted nearby, though it was empty when it passed by. Thinking their troubles were over, the party wanted to veer back south, but were ambushed by swimming assailants that clambered onboard. They wore sleek leather armor and bore finned vambraces bearing a symbol of teeth biting down on a coin. Immediately recognizing this as Turner’s symbol, the party dispatched the pirates, though a few of The Rectifiers nearly drowned in the scuffle. Most of them were saved by the brave actions of Ed, proving his trustworthiness to them. With this near brush with death, the party collected some of the vambraces as proof, and finished their voyage toward the city of Pravus.
Nightfall had set in by the time the voyagers arrived in the pseudo gateway to the Frozen Lagoon. On their left, they saw the towering city of Pravus sat atop the cliff, overlooking the bay. On the right was the much more elegant city of Syreni, appearing to sit upon the water itself. The party spied the main tower of Pravus. Blue and purple luminescent fluid covered the top floor of the tower, dripping down the stone. The town itself had an aural glow of a similar color. The docks were below the city, with a tunnel connecting it upward to the city proper. Wanting to resupply and orient themselves to the area, the group decided to port in Syreni first.
The Rectifiers were immediately swept away in the elegance and craftsmanship of Syreni. The buildings were finely crafted stone, the docks a similar design. Adorning the buildings were colorful ribbons, banners, and flowers. Canals coursed throughout the city. Two knights awaited them at the docks, adorned in extravagant armor with capes and plumes, a blue shade giving all three colorful lives. The knight that spoke recognized their regalia immediately and had their ship attended to by some nearby dockhands. He offered to guide the party into the city to get what they needed. First, the knight lead them to the barracks, where they found content knights lounging about with various sirens accompanying. They met an older gentleman that sold them potions in finely crafted glass bottles. Once business was done, the knight lead them to an inn to stay the night, using a small boat to navigate through the city. At the inn, the knight formally introduced himself as Knight Captain Gareth, and told the party to ask for him at the barracks if they needed anything further. With that, The Rectifiers bought rooms (some with accompanying sirens) and rested.
The next day, the group returned to the docks to find a more discreet ship they could charter to Pravus. Inside the stone and glass harbor house, the party met the dockmaster who readily offered one of Syreni’s extravagant, elegantly decorated ships. The party hopped aboard and set sail across the bay to the other peninsula. As they neared, the sky grew dark, stars appeared in the sky. Though they had left early in the morning, Pravus seemed to be nighttime regardless. They moored the ship into the deserted docks.
They were met with a shut portcullis, blocking the way to the tunnel leading upward into the city. On the other side sat a lone guard, who leapt up methodically to open the portcullis. He seemed to not hear the party. He gestured and offered a welcome in the same methodical manner. After a moment, he returned to his stool. As the party chatted a moment, the guard repeated all of his movements he had just made in the exact same manner. Unsettled, The Rectifiers journeyed upward into the city, blue-purple torches lighting the way.
On a trip to the mage’s guild before venturing to the ominous tower, the party found mages in various states of looping. Some were successfully mixing a potion over and over, while others were failing to cast a spell until finally they succeed, only to repeat the entire process. Finding nothing of value, the party marched onward to the tower. As they journeyed through the city, they found the townspeople going about everyday life, but in the same methodical manner as the guard at the gate. The only anomaly the party found was a thief with a coin purse being apprehended by a guard. The two were frozen completely solid. The group ventured to the mansion in front of the tower.
Two guards ushered them in immediately, guiding them into the tower courtyard. The party bravely ventured inward and upward. Inside, they found the same blue-purple liquid dripping down the stone walls. At the top of the tower, they were met by a closed door. In the corners of this door were purple crystals sprouting forth from the wood. The group ushered themselves into the bedroom in which Azalea once found herself locked.
Everything was mostly how she had left it, though they now found Selina asleep in the bed, her arms folded over her chest. She offered no response when the party tried to wake her. When they tried to lift her from the bed, a blue burst of a spell repelled them away. It seemed to originate from a book lying on an end table. The book seemed non-professionally bound. On the front cover was a warrior woman carrying a sword. She was stepping onto the peak of a mountain. The book was giving off an aura of blue and purple lights, similar to the tower. Karth opened the book to investigate, but as he did so, the party’s vision was obscured by a blue light.
What followed were three strange, utopian dreams. Karth, Ed, and Gale had to find creative ways to break out, to the apparent displeasure of whatever force had brought them here. What they saw was their own experience, but the rest of The Rectifiers had yet to see what awaited them…