61 - Killing Kings, Drying Dryads

Gemini goes to gather the bodies of the Fey.

Axel goes to help her, as Nesvalyn turns to Persy.

Gemini prepared a Fey traditionally burial, putting them in logs, half burying them in the log, and rubbing them with the nearby mushrooms to spread the spores.

Persy doesn't react.
After an hour, the burial is done, and we're leaving easily and retracing our steps with Persy's perfect memory.
Axel goes first within the circle, and Persy follows.
By the time we get out of the Fey demiplane, many guards are surrounding us.

A large person is coming through, and a Dwarf is coming (which was doubting as he's small, even for a Dwarf), dressed in fine linen with golden broderies. Along jewelries, he has a black oiled pristine beard breaded.

The Barbershop's receptionist is brought, and is still woozy.

Gemini casts [Dimension Door] and leaves alone, and the rest of the party is arrested, as we're on our way to the Royal palace of Halim.
It used to be a big city, but since the "apocalypse", the city shrunk massively. The palace is obviously huge compared to the remaining town.
We see the tops of the trees, which was the only place with some plants within the area.
We're led to a side entrance to be let rot in the dungeon.

After 3 hours, there's the guard shift, and a drunk guard stumbles in and watches us.
A new guard comes in and leans in and whispers to us, revealing to be Gemini under cover.

When looking at the cell door, there is no hole, only a shape near the ceiling.

Gemini gets back the guard.

He gives the keys to Gemini.

Gemini opens the jail for the group, and we're discussing for our next move.

Persy doesn't react.

Persy shuts down and closes his eyes, trying to remain control. Nesvalyn puts his hands on Persy's shoulders.

He opens his eyes.

We're back on discussing what to do next, until Hugh notices something.

When Hugh points out Gemini is missing, we hear cluttering upstairs, and we all go there. We're in a side court of the Palace, while Gemini with a railgun and her Warhammer killed 4 guards.

Gemini doesn't listen and heads towards the courtyard. We're going through with ease.

We reach easily the Throne room, with the King Suhail al-Halim along a few Royal guards.

The remaining Royal guards leave the room, and with less people, we notice behind the throne an opening made with a trunk of a giant tree.

We all follow the King, and it looks like a local forest paradise making us forget the sun apocalypse, with a large pool of water with an usual water.

When we're checking the water pool, we notice a corpse half dissolved.

Gemini just drop kicked the King inside the pool of water, suddenly the splashing stops and he let a scream and the water turns red, and its uplift by a root in the air. It seems that the tree is drinking something out of him, and the ground starts rumbling.
Nesvalyn leaves the room as a recon to be sure there's no reinforcement.
Hugh casts [Speak with Plants] to communicate with it.

Hugh pulls out a little flask, takes a sip.

The root with the King slightly dips inside the water.

Nesvalyn gets back and regroups with the party.

We prepare a bit to kill the tree, and Hugh leaves.

[Nature - Pass ✔] Persy recalls reading a book about it. This is not a tree, they're a monster that shapes like a tree.
[Investigation] Nesvalyn doesn't notice a weak point, a few roots are going in the ground, but most of them are going in the pond.

We prepare ourselves to take down the Dryad, preparing for a combined first strike before it can react.

As the tree falls on the ground, Axel feels a burning from inside and one of the chain inside them breaks, but they say nothing, as they're looking somber.

The Dryad body oozes away and disappears.
Hugh casts [Heal] on Gemini.
Gemini goes searching the princess and finally find her bed room. When going in, it's a pre-teen girl reading a book, and Gemini knocks on the door.

Gemini steps in the room.

We're getting back to the revolution place while gathering with Melody.
As we're making our way to the Blood Bond HQs, we notice on the town square center that the people gather around a well and they seem excited.

We're returning to the Blood Bond's HQ, and we're explaining the situation, which seems to confirm Niqyya's thought that the Dryad was holding the water. She also thanks us heartily for saving Halim.

From now, we prepare ourselves to explore the Golden Sea, looking for the Scale, being our next step in our quest against The Undying.

Next session: 62 - The City that never sleeps