Session 12: The Prison

NPC's
Silver Man, Aster, Nema, Pink-haired Child

Location
The Royal Sanctum, The Castle, Prison Plane, Royal Laboratory

Summary
The party comes to consciousness in different locations:


 * Cryllos wakes up in a flower field, surrounded by forest and blue skies. He spots a cozy house, in which he meets the Silver Man. He learns that the field they are in is a prison plane. The Silver Man makes a deal: he helps Cryllos get out alive, and in turn, Cryllos becomes a vessel for him to see the world. The Silver Man adds a promise of power, but Cryllos declines, much to his surprise. They look at the exit, which is a labyrinth with glyphs falling, a sea of fire, molten gold, and many other horrors. Cryllos accepts the deal, and the Silver Man taps his forehead, placing an "eye". He finds a weird root formation with golden lights. It is, in fact, a snake guardian. He is terrified and distraught, but he manages to kill it. It shrieks oddly humanly and leaves a puddle of liquid, which he jumps through. He lands next to the others.
 * Alastor, Oleander, and Garoon wake up in a suspended cage of roots. Alastor is glowing and able to sense the Queen. Below them are scientists in a workshop. They notice that all of their weapons are missing and Alastor has a vine around his neck. Oleander uses their rats and a Kraken tentacle to make a horrifying flail. The cage descends and the scientists surround them for examination. Aster emerges from the crowd and tries to convince them to work with the queen, accidentally revealing her name. Alastor uses his new power to make the cage to fall apart. After driving the scientists away, they find test files and read them. They see Cryllos falling out of seemingly nowhere.

Alastor gets the vine off of him, but the party hears footsteps running towards them. They escape through a tunnel and enter another, smaller, laboratory. They find Nema inside a lantern, a child chained to a table, and a scientist. Alastor flirts and convinces the scientist to leave for a while. The party take the two unconscious captives and leave through the tunnel. They find another room and overhear Aster having a conversation. Everyone except for Cryllos (who said he would protect the captives) pursue him. Aster waits in the storage room with Maribelle. Alastor, looking through, notices the sheep's change in appearance. Oleander uses their power to trap Aster. The group hears people approaching the area.

Misc.

 * Lab reports
 * Alastor: “The subject has merged with the crystal; it can be removed, but the method of which is unknown. He may have a greater connection to the heart, thus he may be a candidate for king. There are possible methods of removal: using a dagger, death, contact with the heart, a replication of connection, etc."
 * Garoon: “The subject appears to be fairly average, but we found traces of strange chemicals and magic, implying that he may have been used as a possible experiment in the past. He can be used as leverage against the one with the crystal.”
 * Oleander: “The subject appears to be one of Arbora’s chosen; they are 60% through the procedure, meaning that they may lose a sense of self in 3 months. They may be urged to follow Arbora’s orders in as little as a few weeks. They may be hearing whispers. The transformation will be complete within one year, and they will be drawn to Guard forest and true heart, which will speed it up.