Session 22: Beyond the Boundary

General Summary

The Claw finishes what they started. Big Eye closes his central eye, dropping the antimagic field, and the lesser eyes unleash a barrage of beams across the chamber, slowing, charming, pushing, burning, and worse. The Claw shrugs off the worst of it. Vutha claws and hurls, Kal flings elemental force and dead eyeball at live eyeball, Nyxek tolls the doom bell. Rad misjudges a jump between the pillars, but climbs back up in time to hypnotize a cluster of lesser eyes and keep them out of the fight. By the time Big Eye reopens his central eye, only one lesser eye remains.

Big Eye fires on Vutha, who had chased the lesser eyes into range. The lizard is slowed and charmed. The beholder wants Kal closer. Kal is happy to oblige, bringing Nyxek along. A death ray catches the Vox Harmonic and nearly drains him dry. Nyxek is forced to heal while Vutha eats the last lesser eye. Rad, staying low, purges the restraining magic from Vutha. Then Kal and Nyxek pour everything into Big Eye, Kal with a rapid stream of elemental strikes, Nyxek with the Flame Tongue and a summoned spirit claw of the Emperor. The beholder goes down. The rest of the Claw stands stunned at Nyxek's performance.

They search the chamber and find no coin hoard, only a set of heavy chains, carved with runes and embedded with strange magical components. An inscription along the length names them property of Clan Nyxek. Nyxek takes the chains.

The battlefield itself turns out to be the hollowed husk of a massive, long-dead beholder. Its central eye socket opens onto a tunnel leading out through the Boundary.

Outside

The Claw steps out onto a rocky stretch of coastline. A skyship hovers nearby. A fox-shaped figure leans over the rail. "Ahoy there! Are you refugees?"

The caller identifies himself as Thunderfox, captain of the vessel. He calls for the Baron to come topside. A pit fiend strolls up from below deck and introduces himself as General the Baron Aginnad. He is very curious about the Empire.

The Claw is guarded. They let Nyxek speak. Nyxek announces his name and begins reciting his titles before both Thunderfox and Aginnad cut him off, "Nyxek? THE Nyxek? Sire of eighty-eight?" Nyxek is equally pleased and horrified. The crew grows cautious. Nyxek explains he has a wayward son whose actions shame Clan Nyxek and who must answer for them. Aginnad knows the name immediately: Diirhaas, the White General, scourge of Reaver's Deep.

"Take me to him," Nyxek says, "and I will remove your burden." Thunderfox reminds Nyxek who commands the vessel and makes clear it is him, not the Baron, who decides who boards. Nyxek acquiesces. Vutha steps forward and introduces himself as the Godeater, here to slay Mekka-Tiamat and devour her, though there is an order to things, and Diirhaas and his dragon are next on the list unless someone else wants to volunteer.

Thunderfox exchanges a look with Aginnad. Aginnad shrugs. "Let 'em fight." The captain agrees to carry the Claw north toward Razzakstad and closer to Reaver's Deep, in exchange for general information about the Empire.

Aboard the Vigilance Zephyr

The Claw boards a skyship for the first time. The cold hits immediately. Outside the Boundary, the temperature is a misery none of them were prepared for.

Nyxek bristles at the word "information" and announces he is not a spy. Aginnad smooths things over, he is less interested in military intelligence and more interested in the world generally. Foreign cuisine. Local customs. When Kal produces Dragon Nip pizza, Aginnad is delighted. Nyxek and the Baron talk. Aginnad mentions offhandedly that he had thought Nyxek was the White General. Nyxek does not recognize the title. Rad explains, as plainly as he can, that he is a time traveler from a future he has come to prevent.

A dwarf named Cumvel latches onto this and begins debating the fractal nature of probability. Rad holds his ground: the timeline you inhabit is the only true timeline. The debate is cut short by an incessant dinging from the side of the boat. Draxelas is standing at the rail, talking into a glowing crystal.

Nyxek recognizes an ident-a-hedron immediately. He orders Kal to grab Draxelas and Vutha to eat him. Thunderfox objects. Rad steps in and inspects the device to see what communications Draxelas has been running.

The Problem of Draxelas

Draxelas admits everything. He has maintained connections with smugglers and criminal networks outside the Boundary throughout the expedition. His contacts make him wealthy. He offers Nyxek a cut.

Nyxek refuses. This is a line he will not cross. He orders Draxelas executed. Thunderfox refuses to allow it and makes clear he will fight to stop it. He offers an alternative: drop Draxelas off.

Nyxek nods. Vutha throws Draxelas over the rail. Kal gets in a parting kick for distance before Draxelas can fly himself to safety. Draxelas is marooned. The Zephyr continues north.