Cleenseau - Session 2

_in Taelgar from the pre-dawn of October 21st until the morning of October 25th
7 Robert I / DR 1719
Cleenseau and vicinity
on Earth: February 12th, 2023

The session beings with Najeer, Robin, Celyn, and Izgil in the hamlet of Taviose awaiting the arrival of a tracker to aid in following the spider trail into the woods. By noon, Warin the Woodsman has arrived from Valit and the group sets out into the wood following the trail of three spiders believed to be carrying humans captured from Taviose.

With the group is not only Warin, leading the way, but also a contigent of soliders from the Army of the West: Odo Cordwaner, the master sergeant, and three soldiers: Beatrix Thorne, Adam of Cleenseau, and Marion of Cleenseau. Odo, Béatrix, and Marion showed some experience, but Adam was nervous and anxious. Robin’s pep talk helped steady him though.

The travel through the woods is slow going, but Warin’s skill at tracking keeps the party on the trail of the spiders, despite mostly having to look up in the trees. Igzil’s suggestion of using Brot’s spyglass helps immensely and by the early afternoon the party has caught up with first spider, carrying an old man from Tavoise, Remy. The party attacks, and after some well-placed shots and quick thinking by Izgil, who cast Feather Fall, saved Remy. In the aftermath of killing the spider, two large wasps and a second spider attack, and Marion is badly wounded.

Realizing that neither Marion nor Remy are in good shape to continue deeper in the forest, Celyn and Warin find a defensible place to tuck the soliders in, and then the party heads deeper into the forest, still following the trail of the spiders. By late afternoon, the party has found a dark, thick, tangled place that is clearly some type of lair. Unable to penetrate the brambles and thickets, the party climbs a tree and scounts, and sees some openings to the south – and so heads that way.

To the south, the party found there way through the webs and brambles, and after being caught once in an almost invisible web, started just waving a stick in front of them as they went. This worked to avoid the traps, but did apparently summon two spiders, which were quickly defeated.

Before long, the party sneaks into the heart of the forest webs, where a huge dead tree, sheathed with webs, stands in the middle of a clearing in the forest. Sitting in the dead tree is a large spider-like creature, monstrous and somewhat humanoid, spinning a web around a human body.

The party defeats the ettercap, and a woman, Narrisa de Abadelle appears from the Feywild.

In the lair are several bodies:
* an old man, later identified as Nicholas the Beggar, who has been missing for 8 days
* a teenage girl, unidentified
* a lizardfolk of indeterminate age and gender, unidentified (later identified as Edur)
* two recently deceased humans from Taviose:
* Denis
* Nicole
* two very rotted and hard to identify bodies
* one is either a child or halfling
* the other is an army messenger, with some identification ensign suggesting they were member of the Fifth Company of the Dunfry Regiment of the Army of the West’s South Watch

Additionally, the lair contains a mysterious black substance, and some rough writing that indicates:
* One hatched
- Two hatched
- Two hatched
- Four hatched
- Two hatched
- Four hatched
- Four hatched
- Four hatched

On the return to town, the party deals with various loose ends:
* Najeer discusses charitable giving with Conrad and learns of Nicholas the Beggar and his recent disappearance
* Najeer discusses the egg with Brot Starsearcher, and brings it to his rooms at the Essford Manor
* The party discusses theories about what happened in the woods with Perrin Voclain, now restored to his home in Taviose
* A certain amount of celebrations of the party occur and the fame of the “Heroes of Tavoise” begins to spread
* The party investigates the spider nest in the woods, and recovers a certain amount of spider silk, with the potential for more. Najeer sends letters to his mother Susanne Garay discussing the possibility of a business proposition to make clothes with this silk