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SESSION 1: CHARACTER CREATION / THE OBLIGATORY INTRODUCTORY ADVENTURE

PART 3: WE HAVE TO DO WHAT NOW?

PCs: Jango, kenku bard 1 (Gruff); Alistair Fletcher, human wizard 1 (Mike)

[ In Adventure ]

“The Cult of Aether is sneaky. They don’t bulldoze towns and villages – no, they infiltrate, they hide. They masquerade as rebels, trying to rile up townspeople against their noble oppressors. A fine goal, to be sure – but can you guess who replaces them?”

“The cultists,” Alistair says grimly.

Leandra nods. “Exactly.”

“So you are here to…?”

“Execute a cult leader who is trying to spread his influence here. He is already gaining traction with the villagers, and is trying to raise them up against your local ruler, Maynard Felcroft. By no means a bad ruler, but everyone loves to hate the rich and powerful, no matter how moral they are.”

Jango clicks quietly. “Name?”

“Jorah Tyresius.”

“What do you want us to do?” Alistair asks.

“I need you to be my eyes and ears. You are villagers here, and people know you. Perhaps you’re interested in this Cult of Aether, and wish to know more about it. Perhaps you might even want to join them. Get my drift?”

Alistair smiles. “Indeed.”

“So here’s the plan. You’ll go undercover and infiltrate the cult. Tell me what Jorah is doing, what he’s planning, how much progress he’s made in this village. Tell me who he’s convinced to join the revolt, if one exists. That kind of thing. Can you do that for me?”

“Count on it, good buddy!” Jango says cheerfully.

Alistair nods. “Seems straightforward enough.”

“And whatever you do, don’t get involved. Got it? Do not try to fight anyone, or turn vigilante on me. Just gather information. No matter what you see or hear, you need to leave this up to my organization. I need you to promise me that.”

“Promise,” Jango says solemnly.

“Do you realize what we just agreed to?” Alistair eyes Jango, who is trotting cheerily along down the road as they leave the inn. “We’re about to join a secret underground cult as double agents. I have exactly zero experience with high-stakes espionage.”

Jango smirks. “Lucky you – I’m a professional.”

Alistair stares. “You can’t be serious.”

The kenku adopts a light, careful-toed gait, his talons completely silent on the cobblestone. “Sneaky… sneaky.”

The wizard chuckles. “Well, I aimed to befriend a bard, but it seems I got a rogue instead.”

“O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!” Jango declares, thrusting out one claw dramatically. “Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain!”

Now Alistair has to laugh. “I conjure you, by that which you profess, Howe'er you come to know it, answer me: Though you untie the winds and let them fight Against the churches; though the yesty waves Confound and swallow navigation up; Though bladed corn be lodged and trees blown down; Though castles topple on their warders' heads; Though palaces and pyramids do slope Their heads to their foundations; though the treasure Of nature's germens tumble all together, Even till destruction sicken; answer me To what I ask you.”

Jango stares, dumbfounded. “Did you write that?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You are a bard!” Jango breathes. “The bard!” He switches voices rapidly in his excitement, patchworking sentences together from a wide array of words he’s heard before – sometimes there’s no other way to convey what he wants to say. “I’ve heard that poem before, and the one you recited this morning, but I didn’t realize it at the time. How else could you know it by heart than if you wrote it?”

Alistair smiles. “So the kenku knows how to make sentences after all.”

“Tell me the truth! Have you published those poems under a different name?”

“I’m really not sure what you are going on about.”

“You are the Bard! The famous Bard! The anonymous poet who never signs his name!”

“Now you’re just being ridiculous.” Alistair studies him with wry interest. “Also, why did you never speak naturally before? Why bother confusing me like that?”

Jango clacks his beak nervously, reverting to his simple echoic, one-voice way of speaking. “People get nervous.”

“Well, it’s quite all right for you to speak how you’re comfortable. It will not bother me.”

The kenku eyes him. “Stop changing the subject.”

“…Very well. If I told you I was the Bard, would that satisfy you? Whether it’s true or not?”

Jango smirks. “Is it true?”

Alistair shrugs noncommitally. “Perhaps.”

“Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?” Jango hums. “Thou art more lovely…”

“…and more temperate.” Alistair can’t help but finish it. “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May…”

“I knew it!” Jango crows.

“That means nothing. Perhaps I just like to memorize poetry.”

“Mm-hm.” The kenku is completely unconvinced.

“So where do we begin? How do we find this Cult of Aether?” Alistair tilts his head, considering. “I suppose we should go where potential followers might congregate in large numbers. People who are willing to embrace new ideas…”

“The church?” Jango offers.

“I was thinking the marketplace.”

“The tavern.”

“Or a local inn.”

“Pick one,” Jango says wryly.

“Very well. Let’s check the church first.” Alistair sets off with a brisk, loping gait, and Jango hastens after him.

[ Out Of Adventure ]

Gruff: So are we doing a Macbeth thing?

Mike: Beg your pardon?

Gruff: We’re not saying Shakespeare, we’re just saying the Bard. Like how people refer to Macbeth as The Scottish Play?

Mike: But we’re just saying “The Bard” because Shakespeare doesn’t exist in this universe, and we’ve established that we’re not going to break the fourth wall. The Macbeth thing is because the play is cursed.

Gruff: How do you know Shakespeare isn’t cursed?

DM: Ooh, I just had a great campaign idea.

Gruff: What?

DM: The entire campaign is based on Shakespeare’s plays. So like, you have to bring Romeo and Juliet together without killing everybody in one quest, and stop Macbeth in another.

Gruff: I would totally play that. Can we do that?

DM: I mean, we could do that with this campaign. But I spent a really long time planning this…

Mike: Yeah, we’ll save that for later.

Gruff: But until then, sonnets and thinly veiled references!

Mike: Are we nerds? I don’t think it really hit me until now, how incredibly nerdy we are.

Gruff: So that didn’t dawn on you when you were putting imaginary numbers on a piece of paper that translate into a fictional character who does imaginary things in an imaginary world, whose actions you must determine by doing math, an activity which you refer to as fun?

Mike: …Damnit. [Laughter]
Gruff: Also, is this campaign going to turn into Game of Thrones? What with all this political stuff and machinations?
DM: God, no. I’m not nearly dedicated enough for that. I just thought this was the best way to introduce the Aether Cult as a force in the world – have you sneak inside.
Gruff: Because the dragon riders in Game of Thrones aren’t exactly the good guys…
Mike: To be fair, no one on Game of Thrones is really a good guy.
DM: Except for Jon Snow.
Gruff: You only like him because he’s dreamy and mysterious.
DM: If you actually watched Game of Thrones, you’d like him too.
Gruff: Hey, my buddy got me hooked on Stranger Things! I do one show at a time – I can’t experience the entirety of pop culture in one fell swoop.
DM: Is that your subtle and veiled way of saying you don’t have HBO?
Gruff: Damn you, Comcast! [Laughter]