Report Filed with the Triumvirate: Lord Flame Heart and Emma

[Sypthe]

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MEMORANDUM – CLASSIFICATION: URGENT – BY: ENOIC, SYLVAIN
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Synopsis:
It has become apparent from a recent encounter at the cemetary known as the ‘Necropolis’ that a devil by the assumed name of “Lord Flash Heart” has been summoned to this plane. He was either never bound to any master, or has broken its chains. He has a penchant for deception and masquerade through which he collects souls.

Furthermore, we encountered a group of discarded Exigo experiments that posed us with a dilemma that led to a mentally handicapped girl's mind being destroyed.

Full Report (I: Necropolis)
Myself and Briana Rogers were in the ‘Necropolis’, laying to rest the undead, when we ran across strange metallic beetles. They were the approximate size of a middesized dog. They did not respond to spoken language, their only replies being ‘pip pip pip’ and other such beeping noises.

While investigating them, the two creatures took place on opposide sides of us, and began moving in strange, arcane-seeming patterns. Lacking arcane knowledge, we decided to delay judgment to perceive the effects before acting. Within moments, we started to feel agonizing pain. We decided to slay them then.

Expecting the Exigo to be part of this, I searched through the scraps remaining, and indeed found several parts bearing old scuffed insignia of the Exigo. You will find the pieces I recovered as such in storage under #237242.

During this search, however, a shade made itself known to us. I moved to slay it, but it spoke and ran off. We went in pursuit. I spoke to the shade, and offered him the chance to defend himself to the charges of undeath. He refused to make such defense, and I sentenced the creature to death, which was summarily executed.

Around this time, Brunus Ironbreaker (leader of the Sundren Free Brigade) arrived, and during the conversation that ensued, two children appeared. I was wary, their presence (at night) in an undead-infested graveyard was suspicious, but Briana had no such compunctions. I am unaware if she was or was not under mental domination by the creatures, but using the Gift of Judgment from the Even-Handed, I assessed their souls. Having never encountered such overwhelming evil before, I ordered Briana back so I could arrest them for further study / questioning.

Briana refused, and I requested Brunus Ironbreaker to restrain and later gag her. The creatures would not be manacled, and before I succeeded, they revealed their true nature when more of their kin arrived. Myself and Brunus dispatched these child-like-wights swiftly. Briana, upset, departed at this moment. Moments later, we heard the sound of battle – our companion had been beset by many more such wights. We rushed to her aid, and were surprised to find the child-wights had the aid of a fountain-of-blood come alive. It, too was dispatched.

The next scenes are more vague, as this is where my memory was affected by severe injuries I sustained not much later. Brunus, I and Briana ventured back, but were stopped by a virtual army of the undead. We held them off, but in the distance we could make out the shape of an enormous devil, wreathed in flame (later to be identified as Lord Flash Heart).

The creature commanded the undead, and kept sending bigger and stronger waves of minions. Brunus carried us most of the fight, but eventually, I regret to inform you that a surprising blow took me out.

When I came to I had been brought to the outskirts of the Necropolis. Briana and Brunus had taken my unconscious body with them and ran. Behind us, we could hear that the army was very much not defeated. We concluded to report to Father Melchior, which we subsequently did.

Part 2: Father Melchior

As you will no doubt find in Father Melchior’s own reports, we spoke extensively on the threat. Briana and he both knew the fiend’s name, and were severely distraught by its presence. They explained that the devil in question enjoyed masquerades, and found its victims through deception, acquiring their souls.

One of the priestesses of the temple (a so-called ‘Broken One’ of Ilmater) suggested we investigate the matter of a missing girl (Emma) who had been brought in for care many years before. The details will be described in the next section.

[Sypthe]

Part 3: Owen, his wife, and Emma
Briana and Brunus, at this juncture, had other pressing obligations. Realizing I required assistance, I went to the Second Wind inn, where a druidess joined me, and Tery Mard (Sundren Free Brigade, Corps de Grace). Together, we went to the farm of Emma’s family.

Owen (her father) spoke with us. At first he was wary, thinking we worked for a man named ‘Red Jack’, a local bandit who has been extorting the countryfolk. When he ascertained we were not, he told us the following.

Emma, at age four, was kicked by a cow, in the temple. The damage to her brain was too extensive for even our divine healers in this temple, and she remained as simple as a child from that point on. Recently, she had vanished, and Owen believed that Red Jack may well be implicated in the matter. Our conversation was interrupted by two people joining our imprompy team: a man named ‘Dan’ and a woman named ‘Elise’ (spelling may be incorrect). Subsequently, we were assaulted by bandits.

After dispatching these, we encountered several more metal beetles that were obsessed with a particular rock that contained an ore of an unknown type. We dispatched them, then more bandits beset us. They appeared to be fleeing, however, and one surrendered. I placed him under arrest and interrogated him.


He told us that he and ‘his men’ (accidentally implying himself to be a leader or the leader of the band) had found several of these devices, and had hoped they would be useful. Instead, the beetles attacked them. He gave us directions to where his men had been slaughtered. I locked the bandit up (temporarily) in Owen’s basement, after ensuring he had no contraband on him, and later handed him over to the Legion.



We ventured to the location so indicated.

[Sypthe]

Part 4: The Refuse
For clarity sake, I will list here those that were with us in the caverns we found:
- Sylvain Enoic, Paladin of Tyr
- Briana Roger, warrioress with minor magical aptitude (via study and a wand).
- Tery Mard, bowman, tracker, Corps de Grace and Sundren Free Brigade
- Unnamed Druidess, with what appeared impulse-control difficulties.
- Elise, unknown.
- ‘Dan’, scout, later revealed to quite likely be a criminal element.

We followed the caverns until we reached a strange room. In the center of this room was painted on the floor a large arcane symbol. In the center of this symbol stood a slab, with Emma on it. She was ‘hooked up’ to many tubes and wires leading to a console deeper in the room.

Scattered about the room lay various piles of assorted metals, that turned out to have been discarded prototype golems of Exigo. Also, fluttering about, was an imp-like creature that spoke in a deep, bass voice.

Each ‘golem’ in the room was able to speak, and we were informed that they were all semi-sentient creatures. Being prototypes, however, most were discarded by Exigo in favor of better (final) models or dubbed failed experiments. They had not lost sentience, however, and sought to find a way to obtain all other constructs that had been discarded by Exigo, and were currently in their storage. The beetles had gone out to find metals, to repair the golems already in the caverns.

Their plan was to ‘repair’ the ‘damaged’ Emma – essentially repairing her brain, granting her full cognitive capabilities. They wanted to use her to gain access to Exigo storage, and liberate their kin. The question was posed before us: would we let them repair her brain, or would we take her and return her to her family in the state she was in before: with the mental capacity of a child of 4 years old.

At this moment, I told my companions that I would take sole responsibility for this decision – that I would take all their arguments into account, but that in the end, I would decide the girl’s fate, so that their consciences remained clean. They agreed. Arguments were given.

I then determined the following: Being not the girl’s legal guardian, I had no right to allow such an operation. Furthermore, seeing as how divine healing had not restored her, I believed that the Gods must have other plans for the girl than for her to be ‘healed’. Therefore, I refused the offer, and told them to let the girl free, so we could return her to her parents.



Briana took matters into her own hands, and when I was not looking made her way to the controls of the machines. Somehow, she managed to engage the repair process. I tried to stop her physically, but was stopped from doing so by ‘Dan’, who stopped me out of fear that turning off the machine mid-process would destroy us all.

Emma’s brain was repaired, but she lacked her personality and memories. The constructs had not deemed that important to keep, and erased it. Tery and Briana were distraught. Emma, or what was left of her, thanked us and told us we could have any rewards we sought. Being an opportunist, Dan walked over and told her in silence, while Tery, Briana and I sought to exchange our reward for her personality, memories and humanity.

The creature said it could not grant that. I then said we were done there. I requested my reward to be: something to never forget what happened here. It came in the form of the armor you will see me wearing. Dan received his reward: boots. Each packet came with a singular flower. I gave mine to Briana, and instructed her to have it put inside the sap of a tree, and thusly fashioned into an amulet for her never to forget either.

After this, we departed the scene. I informed Owen and his wife that they ‘should not expect to see their daughter again’. I kept the details of this statement to myself, but should my superiors feel it warrants to tell them the full tale, I will naturally do so. I turned the bandit over to the Legion, and then went to write this report.

Recommendations:
1) The Exigo matter should be investigated. They are creating semi-sentient creatures, and it should be investigated if illegal magics are involved in this.
2) Lord Flash Heart should be brought to justice. I propose we create a false masquerade-ball, and plant several of our agents in the crowd. He should be easily identified through our divine judgment.
3) I recommend further investigation of the cavern we encountered (directions are included with this report) by an adjudicator. The creatures there will have to be assessed. Whether they be perversions of life or not is a matter I find myself incapable of judging, with my lack of experience. Guidance of my superiors in this would be appreciated.

Signed,

Sylvain Enoic, paladin of Tyr, Lesser Follower (Triumvirate).