The Dragonguard briefed the Navigan sailors on their plan to sail to Pravus then use the lighthouse to magically warp to Haven to save time. The sailors said they would follow them the long way to Haven, hold the ship there, and restock, resupply, and repair while they sail to the Magerony with Mirina.
On the way out of the Atrae port, the Dragonguard stopped by Noki’s ship, anchored farther out to sea. Akalar and Noki caught up with one another, Noki explaining their treasure-hunting gear was mostly repaired and that he and his crew would return to treasures and courier services for Morrithana. As they bid one another farewell, Noki said he would likely stay around the Sea of Scales.
As the group sailed by the island housing the Scarlet Temple, Antar’s connection to Celeste was strong enough to materialize an image of himself onboard. He told Celeste Aurora’s mind had fully settled. Antar had mended it the best he could, though he added her mind does still “wander”, reaching out to places even he cannot sense. Lucien would know more once they made contact, but he assured Celeste the “other” presence in Aurora’s mind was gone, or at least it was no longer burrowed into Aurora. Antar concluded his visit by saying he would dedicate all of his magic toward contacting Lucien. Antar said he would await their return from the Magerony at the Scarlet Temple.
Amalia also received a letter from Selina, replying to her own. Selina revealed that Sariel’s body was still emitting magic, and Selina was interested to find out if that magic could still be harnessed in some way, perhaps to find a remnant of her or even Willow Stasia. She would reach out to Amalia if she learned more about it, but until then, she would remain in Luxen continuing her restoration efforts on the once-capital.
Before settling in for the evening to rest, The Paragon sailed by Sulan, finding The Glowing Oasis fortified by Knight and Mage Order ships, seemingly preparing for possible Mageron attacks. Dieter had contracted a large enough crew to allow multiple shifts, so even as the day crew retired for the evening, a fresh night crew took the helm to continue sailing as the Dragonguard themselves settled in to rest.
The next day, the cliffside city of Pravus came into view. Brownstone buildings covered the top of the cliff, and mechanical lifts ferried people and goods up and down from the city to the seaside docks. Much of the harbor appeared to be newly built, and many of the anchored ships bore the sigil of a tower with a metal gear.
As The Paragon settled into a dock, a contingent of Knights approached the vessel to greet them. At the lead was a brown-and-blue-haired siren bearing the same Pravus sigil. She introduced herself as Knight-Captain Azalea, one of the Former Rectifiers. She explained that they saw their ship approaching the High Harbor, and Councilor Avelle sent a delegation out to meet them personally. Avelle had also extended an invitation for dinner while they stopped in the city. The Dragonguard agreed, and Azalea guided them to a lift to the city.
While ascending to the city itself, Azalea explained she was a bit of a tinkerer and metalworker, and that the lifts were her idea. Before, the former councilor let the docks atrophy and siphoned much of the profits to his own pockets. It was inefficient to use the tunnel carved into the cliff, so Azalea imagined a more effective means to stimulate the port. Now, the taxes and funds were funneled back into the city, causing an explosion in new infrastructure and housing.
Azalea escorted the group through the city, finding it a very tightly knit community. Restaurants and plazas were bustling with activity. They strolled passed many neighborhoods, each having their own community gathering, dance, dinner, or game. Eventually, they came to the councilor complex, a gated campus housing several buildings, and beyond the palace, a lighthouse. Azalea gestured to the inn, explaining it was usually for visiting dignitaries, and that several suites had been prepared for them. Inside, she explained each floor was named after a Former Rectifier, and that their rooms were on the “Amanthia Floor”. Once she showed them their rooms, she advised them to rest and freshen up, and to return to the lobby for dinner. A knight would be waiting to escort them to the ballroom within the inn itself. The Dragonguard retired to their rooms for the afternoon to refresh and don more appropriate attire for their dinner with the councilor.
The Dragonguard descended to the lobby in another mechanical lift, manned by staff of the inn. In the lobby, the Dragonguard found the inn much busier. It seemed as though the Knights and Mages of the city were also invited to have their own feast, as well. They were escorted to the ballroom by a female Knight whom they very politely introduced themselves to, learning her name was Rillena. Inside the ballroom, countless tables were set out for the Mages and Knights in the outer wings and on the balcony, but the place of honor in the center was set out for the Dragonguard.
At the head of the center table was the Councilor Avelle, a red-haired woman who still wore pieces of armor befit her former Knight station. On her right was Azalea. As the Dragonguard approached, they rose from their seats, the group noticing the pair had matching red scarves and rings. Avelle kindly welcomed them to the city, speaking to the heroes with great ease, as if she was quite accustomed to it. When asked why they had stopped in Pravus, the Dragonguard explained their mission. She seemed familiar with the spell used in certain lighthouses, but that it was quite a rare sight. Avelle added they were quite welcome to the lighthouse, though they noticed Azalea seemed to bristle at any mention of the tower.
As food and wine were ferried in, Avelle asked the Dragonguard to regale her with stories of their own heroics. Each member of the Dragonguard took a turn sharing a favorite story of theirs from their journey so far. Azalea added her own comparisons to the journey of The Rectifiers, saying they always thought Saren was the real architect of the Crisis. She couldn’t believe they had the real villain right under their noses the entire time.
Eventually, Councilor Avelle noticed the late hour and made to retire for the evening, a gleam in her eye toward Azalea. As the two turned to leave, she turned and said it had been a pleasure to host them. She understood that they could not stay much longer, but that she’d love to host them anytime after they fully “retire” like Azalea. The Dragonguard finished up their refreshments and retired to their own rooms, as well. Lumen told Celeste and the others the dragons would be out hunting to get away from the “mind-haze” their heads were in from the wine.
As they slept, Aksell dreamt. He sat on a rooftop in Tenso next to Keane. Keane kept flipping a coin over and over. In the dream, Aksell kept hearing a strange sound below their rooftop, in the alleyway, but it was too foggy and dark to see. Eventually, Keane flipped the coin in Aksell’s direction, saying, “Eyes up!”
Aksell jolted awake, grabbing his weapon instinctively. It was still the middle of the night, but Aksell noticed Borum’s skull had somehow been moved to a small stool by an open window. He could hear a strange whisper emanating from it. As he warily approached the skull, weapon ready, a sudden strike came from behind. An assassin’s blade struck Aksell, applying some sort of strange poison. The assailant was garbed in black and under their hood was a purple crystalline mask in the shape of a skull. The assassin shouted, “We herald the end! You will be our vessel!”, then attacked.
Aksell fended off the attacker while the others were awakened by the clamor. As they exited their own rooms, they found many more attackers present in the inn hallway. The Dragonguard maneuvered through their rooms and balconies to regroup. They rallied together, shed the sleep from their eyes, and eventually vanquished the strange assassins.
Aksell returned to his room to investigate, first going to Borum’s skull. When he picked it up, it somehow nicked his hand and absorbed the drops of blood. Borum’s voice laughed maniacally, saying, “There are powers even higher than the Doomking! I will circumvent him entirely!” The skull then melted away into purple liquid which quickly evaporated. A strange wind blew in from the open window…