# 45. Session Forty Five — The Blades Master **In-game start:** Summer 14 | **Played:** 6 May 2026 [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/01 - Sessions/Session 44 - Cleansing Feydown|← Session 44]] · [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/00 - Campaign Overview/Campaign Overview|Campaign Hub]] · [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/01 - Sessions/Session 46 - The Vekuda Archive & The Temple of Nyxthys|Session 46 →]] ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Session Artwork/Session 45/Halvorn bedroom night.jpg|780]] > [!abstract]+ TL;DR > - The group departed Vosandra’s mansion in the early morning light and resumed travelling through [[Lavenshire]] toward their final stop before [[Bastion]]: the town of Halvorn. > - **Arrival at Halvorn Estate:** Loud, brash, and insulting, he staggered through the estate while [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] attempted to soften the damage by apologising for his lord’s behaviour and claiming he had simply “been in his cups.” > - **Elena and Sister Margaret:** Though initially surprised by a cleric of [[Nyxthys]] requesting entry into a Seraphan chapel, Sister Margaret welcomed her regardless. > - **Quiet Moments Before Dinner:** For a single afternoon they laughed together like a normal family. > - **The Storm and the Manor:** She explained she could now communicate telepathically with [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] in much the same way she connected to her swarm, because she subconsciously considered [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] part of her “community.” > - **Emily Halvorn and the Truth About Vhail:** Finally, she revealed the one thing she still possessed from the journal: a black parchment contract hidden within a secret compartment. > - **Raphius and Elena:** [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] struggled to understand why the curse had become his burden when he himself had made no deal. > - **The Road to Bastion:** [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] continued meditating and almost began hearing the “voice” or “song” of the world itself > [!star]- Memorable Moments > - 😂 **Cringe — Talador / Raphius:** Before the carriage door opens Talador downs an entire decanter of wine and instantly becomes his loud drunken persona; Raphius spends the arrival apologising to everyone and insisting his lord is merely **“in his cups.”** > - 😂 **Dinner Disaster — Talador:** When polite conversation is no longer sufficiently destructive, Talador opens his shirt and starts drunkenly displaying battle scars until Claude Halvorn finally loses patience and ends the dinner. > - 😬 **Awkward — Raphius / Persephone / Mealla:** A silence at the table becomes so unbearable that Raphius starts complimenting the estate while Persephone and Mealla quietly fight the urge to laugh. > - ❤️ **Heartfelt — Persephone:** Persephone remembers one afternoon at the Golden Pheasant when her mother laughed with her like a normal parent — one of the only childhood memories where she felt genuinely safe and ordinary. > - ❤️ **Promise — Elena / Raphius:** The cursed blade conversation ends with the stark promise already hanging between them: if Raphius becomes lost to it, Elena will kill him. > - 🤯 **Connection — Mealla / Persephone:** Mealla realises the Aetherite change lets her speak to Persephone the way she speaks to her swarm — because somewhere beneath conscious thought, she now considers Persephone part of it. ## Session Notes The group departed Vosandra’s mansion in the early morning light and resumed travelling through [[Lavenshire]] toward their final stop before [[Bastion]]: the town of Halvorn. [[Talador Devell]] warned everyone that, once again, he would need to maintain the persona of a drunken fool in order to keep suspicion away from them. He also admitted he had provided no advance warning to their hosts and expected a poor reception. ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Session Artwork/Session 45/Halvorn.jpg|780]] As the carriages rolled through the countryside, the landscape shifted noticeably: - Cultivated farmland - Vast fields and crops - Cooler weather - Rising winds and distant thunder The group quietly discussed their cover story and agreed to keep details vague, revealing as little as possible while [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] focused on finding [[Emily Halvorn]] quickly. ### Arrival at Halvorn Estate By midday the town of Halvorn came into view. It was the largest settlement the party had encountered so far outside a true city: winding streets, traders, large homes, and signs of wealth and influence everywhere. The carriages eventually climbed toward an impressive manor flying seven flags and surrounded by immaculate rose gardens. Before stepping out, Talador sighed heavily, downed an entire decanter of wine, and immediately transformed into his drunken persona the moment the carriage door opened. Loud, brash, and insulting, he staggered through the estate while [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] attempted to soften the damage by apologising for his lord’s behaviour and claiming he had simply “been in his cups.” The group was greeted by Quincy, a bald, sharp-featured gnome butler with pointed ears and a reedy voice, who escorted them into the manor and announced them before Lord Claude Halvorn. ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Characters/Claude Halvorn.jpeg|780]] ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Characters/Nathan Quincy.jpeg|780]] Claude Halvorn carried a powerful presence: - Silver-haired - Leather-faced - Stern jawed - Intensely formal His irritation at Talador’s behaviour was immediate and obvious. Lady [[Emily Halvorn]] soon joined them, dressed elegantly but modestly. Unlike her husband, she recognised [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] instantly and greeted him warmly enough to trigger Claude’s own recognition of the disgraced paladin and his family name. The tension became uncomfortable quickly, and the Halvorns decided everyone should settle into their rooms before speaking further over dinner. Quincy escorted the group upstairs to their chambers. ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Session Artwork/Session 45/Halvorn dinner.jpg|780]] ### [[Elena]] and Sister Margaret While most of the group settled in, [[Elena]] quietly asked Quincy whether there was anywhere she could pray. He directed her to a small chapel of [[Serapha]] run by a woman named Sister Margaret. [[Elena]] eventually found the chapel and met the meek, white-robed woman tending it. Though initially surprised by a cleric of [[Nyxthys]] requesting entry into a Seraphan chapel, Sister Margaret welcomed her regardless. [[Elena]] attempted to seek advice regarding powerful curses, but Sister Margaret immediately panicked and admitted she had no experience with such things. [[Elena]] reassured her before kneeling to pray privately to [[Nyxthys]]. During her prayer she informed her goddess that: - Two of the eight traitor Hands had now been killed - [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] was becoming increasingly intolerable - She needed help restraining herself from killing him before freeing him from the curse ### Quiet Moments Before Dinner Elsewhere in the manor, [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] prepared for dinner while [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] helped braid her hair. The act became unexpectedly intimate and calming for both of them, with [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] reminiscing about braiding her younger sister’s hair back home. [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] in turn shared one of the few genuinely happy memories from her childhood: When she was seven, her mother once took her to a tavern marked with a golden pheasant. For a single afternoon they laughed together like a normal family. [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] admitted it was one of the only times she had ever truly felt safe or ordinary as a child. Meanwhile [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] sat alone sharpening his sword and polishing his armour, quietly contemplating: - His return to [[Solland]] - Vhail - [[Emily Halvorn]] - The truth he hoped to uncover ### Dinner with the Halvorns That evening Quincy escorted the group into an enormous banquet hall where a string quartet played softly while Lord and Lady Halvorn waited beside their chairs. The dinner began painfully awkwardly. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] eventually broke the silence by complimenting the estate, while [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] and [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] quietly struggled not to laugh at the unbearable tension. [[Elena]] formally introduced herself as a cleric of [[Nyxthys]] from [[World of Tarin/02 - Places/01 - Nations & Regions/Elaris]] when questioned. Then [[Talador Devell]] arrived. Drunk, loud, demanding wine, and thoroughly humiliating everyone involved. Claude Halvorn’s disgust toward him became impossible to hide. Conversation turned toward politics and trade: - Halvorn horse trading - Devell mining interests - Lord Postar’s growing influence - Curfews and troubles throughout [[Solland]] [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] described the dangers the party had encountered, but Claude dismissed most concerns, insisting the Crownsguard and Kingsguard would handle matters. Then the conversation turned directly toward [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]]. Claude Halvorn bluntly demanded to know why an exiled murderer had returned to [[Solland]] at all. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] insisted upon his innocence and declared he had come to clear his name. The atmosphere instantly soured. Emily visibly shrank into herself. Talador attempted to derail the moment entirely by stripping open his shirt and drunkenly displaying his battle scars to the room. Finally losing his patience, Claude Halvorn ordered him to sit down and abruptly ended the dinner. ### The Storm and the Manor After dinner the manor splintered into separate quiet moments. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] attempted to discreetly request a private conversation with Lady Halvorn and was eventually invited to meet her privately while the storm gathered outside. [[Elena]] withdrew to a quiet room overlooking the storm and resumed studying [[The Final Journey]] beside a fireplace while [[Myst]] kept watch from atop her chair. [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] and [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] meanwhile discussed the dinner and [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] revealed more about the strange changes caused by the [[World of Tarin/06 - Items & Artifacts/Aetherite|Aetherite]] shard. She explained she could now communicate telepathically with [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] in much the same way she connected to her swarm, because she subconsciously considered [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] part of her “community.” [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] immediately worried this might somehow turn her into a bee. ### [[Emily Halvorn]] and the Truth About Vhail [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] was eventually escorted into a private chamber where [[Emily Halvorn]] waited for him. She first demanded secrecy. Then she revealed the truth. Claire — Vhail’s wife — had uncovered something terrible before disappearing. She had entrusted Emily with a journal belonging to Vhail himself. Though the journal was later stolen, Emily possessed a secret few knew: She had a photographic memory. And she remembered everything written within it. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] confessed that Vhail had been a good man and mentor, and that killing him had been one of the hardest things he had ever done. He admitted he still desperately wanted to clear both his own name and Vhail’s legacy. Emily then revealed what the journal contained. According to Vhail’s writings: - Solland’s frontier war had become a disaster hidden behind propaganda - Crownsguard losses were devastating - Vhail himself was collapsing under the strain - He became desperate for a solution Then a man named Jacob approached him. Human. Middle-aged. Unremarkable. Jacob offered Vhail power in exchange for his sword. The deal was simple: - Jacob would imbue the blade with strength - Vhail could keep it for one year - Then the blade must be returned Vhail agreed. Jacob took the sword away for three days and returned it transformed. Afterward Vhail became stronger than ever: - Victorious in battle - Pushing back the frontier - Winning impossible fights But he also began feeling: - Hunger - Greed - Corruption - Taint Still, he continued using the blade for Solland’s sake. Then the year ended. Jacob returned to reclaim the sword. And Vhail refused. Emily believed breaking the pact doomed him. Finally, she revealed the one thing she still possessed from the journal: a black parchment contract hidden within a secret compartment. She handed it to [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]]. It read: “To each shall our pact be fulfilled. Soulbound and unbreakable. Under his eye. Q’ruhm.” Emily theorised that whatever Q’ruhm truly was, breaking the contract had cursed Vhail permanently. She apologised that her testimony alone would never clear Raphius’ name — only recovering the stolen journal could do that. ### [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] and [[Elena]] [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] immediately sought out [[Elena]] and showed her the contract. [[Elena]] recognised it instantly. It matched the contracts already recovered from [[Zuri Kulum]] and Otsi Darkscale. She condemned Vhail harshly: - Foolish men seeking power - Bargains with devils - Reckless ambition without care for consequences And when she learned Vhail had broken the agreement, she declared that he had not only damned himself but left everyone else to clean up the aftermath. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] struggled to understand why the curse had become his burden when he himself had made no deal. [[Elena]] proposed a terrifying possibility: By killing Vhail, ownership of the pact may have transferred to him. They discussed Q’ruhm itself and whether the devouring entity trapped within the [[The Elilim Seal|Elilim Seal]] alongside [[Myvendra]] could somehow be the same being. [[Elena]] admitted neither she nor [[Pipe]] truly understood what Q’ruhm was, making the curse vastly more dangerous. [[Elena]] also confronted [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] directly about the blade: Was it sentient? Did it speak? [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] confessed that he could feel its joy and eagerness, and that in dreams it had almost spoken to him outright. [[Elena]] found this deeply troubling. She warned that every day he edged closer to becoming what Vhail had become, and reminded him of the promise she had extracted from him: If he became lost to the blade, she would kill him. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] again told her that if he ever endangered his friends, she should end his life. [[Elena]] snapped. She accused him of already violating that promise yesterday in the [[Feygrove Forest]] when he magically compelled her to moo beneath the pixie’s enchantment. Then the argument exploded. [[Elena]] furiously declared: - The end does not justify the means - He violated her free will - He committed an atrocity against her - Worst of all, she believed he would do it again She compared him directly to [[Merric Veil]], saying at least Merric had been honest about hurting her. Then she ordered [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] out of her sight. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] left in silence. ### Dreams and Faith That night [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] attempted true sleep rather than trance. She entered the dream realm again and stood upon a plane of glass beneath the looming silhouette of [[Myvendra]]. [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] begged for clearer answers regarding her past and herself, but the encounter only grew tense and frustrating. The following morning [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] visited the chapel alone and prayed to [[Serapha]]. He asked whether hurting his friends could ever truly be justified if it meant saving [[Solland]]. He confessed guilt and fear that he was destroying the very relationships he cared most about. Sister Margaret quietly joined him and gently reassured him that faith did not always provide immediate answers, but urged him not to lose faith entirely. ### The Road to [[Bastion]] The group departed Halvorn shortly afterward. Talador immediately expressed relief at finally dropping his drunken act and asked whether Claude Halvorn intended to murder him after the previous evening’s disaster. During the journey Talador educated the party about [[Bastion]]: - The monarchy - The Crownsguard - The city’s rigid structure - Public loyalty to the Crown - The coming Crucible trials He warned them strongly against openly criticising the Crown, explaining that every citizen swore an oath and dissent carried consequences. He also described the daily Dawn Bell ritual at 11 o’clock honouring those lost at Frontier’s Reach. [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] explained to Talador that Postar had likely stolen Vhail’s journal during a masked party, making recovering it far more complicated. Meanwhile: - [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] repeatedly failed to re-enter the dream realm - [[Mealla Glynn|Mealla]] continued meditating and almost began hearing the “voice” or “song” of the world itself - [[Elena]] trained furiously until exhaustion, avoiding [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] entirely while studying [[The Final Journey]] - [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] deliberately kept his distance from her Over the following days the farmland gave way to increasing civilisation until, finally, the colossal square silhouette of [[Bastion]] appeared on the horizon. The city was overwhelming: - Massive ancient walls - Enormous gates - Traders and crowds - Arguments and shouting - Filth and produce mingling in the air - Noise everywhere The guards inspected the carriages before permitting [[Talador Devell]] and his entourage entry into the ancient city. [[Bastion]] had finally been reached. ## Session End State > [!success]- Where Things Stand > - She explained she could now communicate telepathically with [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] in much the same way she connected to her swarm, because she subconsciously considered [[Persephone Amoransia Damnari|Persephone]] part of her “community.” > - He admitted he still desperately wanted to clear both his own name and Vhail’s legacy. > - [[Raphius Sunward|Raphius]] again told her that if he ever endangered his friends, she should end his life. > - He asked whether hurting his friends could ever truly be justified if it meant saving [[Solland]]. > - The group departed Halvorn shortly afterward. ## Session Gallery > [!note]- Additional Artwork > ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Characters/Emily Halvorn1.jpg|780]] > ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Session Artwork/Session 45/Halvorn bedroom day.jpg|780]] > ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Characters/Raphius 01.jpg|780]] > ![[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/99 - Attachments/Session Artwork/Session 45/Halvorn House Interior.jpg|780]] [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/01 - Sessions/Session 44 - Cleansing Feydown|← Session 44]] · [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/00 - Campaign Overview/Campaign Overview|Campaign Hub]] · [[Lineage of the Veiled Kin/01 - Sessions/Session 46 - The Vekuda Archive & The Temple of Nyxthys|Session 46 →]]