SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15TH - MASTER AND APPRENTICE CAMPAIGN 1 : SESSION 4 RECAP ; PART 1
Aldor’s notes on why I hate midnight
*A Personal Account, Unfortunately Accurate
If you’re wondering when things went wrong, the answer is just after midnight. It’s always just after midnight. Anyone who tells you otherwise has either never lived in Neverwinter or is trying to sell you something. We were at the shop—Odds and Ends, Dock Ward, where bad decisions come to retire—when the door downstairs stopped being a door and became splinters. Wererats. Of course it was wererats. Apparently Cade’s past military service came with a loyalty program. Cade did what Cade does best: stood his ground and dared the universe to disagree. I, meanwhile, did what I do best—watched from across the street, picked my moment, and introduced myself to a wererat’s kidneys with two daggers.
It screamed. Briefly.
Cade finished it with a warhammer strike to the head that made it very clear this creature would not be filling out a complaint form later. Upstairs, Ukalis was having his own exciting evening. One of the rats managed to bite him—which is bad, in case you’re new—and Ukalis responded by lighting the place up with firebolt and magic missile. The wererat decided that gravity was preferable to dying indoors and leapt through a second-story window. Ukalis, never one to let things end ambiguously, leaned out and finished it with another firebolt. Very theatrical. Points for style.
The Part Where We Almost Ruin Everything
After the screaming stopped, Ukalis’s arm started swelling like it was trying to escape his body. Infection doesn’t usually move that fast unless magic is involved—and surprise, it was. Meanwhile, Cade and I realized the wererat on the stairs was gone. Turns out if you don’t use silver or magic, wererats have a nasty habit of not staying dead. It crawled off into the night, probably muttering about revenge and tetanus. We cleaned the shop, hid the actually dead wererat who had inconveniently reverted to human form, and rushed Ukalis to the Temple District. Fifty gold later, he was cured.
Fifty gold hurts. Lycanthropy hurts worse.
We slept…Sort of. Then we opened the shop the next day like nothing had happened, because capitalism is the real immortal horror. I ran errands. Cade glared at customers. Ukalis smiled and sold mildly cursed trinkets (alleged!!). Late that night, a messenger showed up with a note. Midnight meeting. Docks. Mysterious benefactor. We all agreed that sounded like a trap.
Naturally, we eventually split up. (Tactics, you wouldn’t get it).
The Necklace Doesn’t Lie
Instead of walking blindly into danger, we decided to track Melania first using the necklace. It led us to a very nice part of town, which immediately told me I was going to hate everything about this. We waited, hidden, watching the estate. If someone was heading to the docks, they’d have to leave soon.
No one did.
Time ran short. Ukalis and Cade went to answer the invitation. I kept the necklace—and went inside.
Locks, Shadows, and Bad People
I picked my way through the house’s locked doors quietly, avoiding guards by inches and timing. Eventually, I found Melania.
Alive. But barely...
She was weak, shaking, and clearly not being held for charitable reasons. I got her moving, but then I heard footsteps.
A guard. Lantern in hand.
I disappeared into the shadows and whispered for Melania to hide.
She tried.
The guard spotted her—and that’s when I stepped in.
I came out of the darkness, drove a dagger clean through his ear, and caught the lantern before it hit the floor. No crash. No alarm.
If you’re keeping score at home, yes—that was an attack of opportunity and a sneak attack. Sometimes the rules and reality line up beautifully. The whispers call me the LeBron of Neverwinter, but I try not to read into the praise and let it get to my head.
When Luck Runs Out (and Then Comes Back)
More guards were moving now. The way we came in was blocked, so we ducked into a side room. There was a window. Of course there was a window. Fate likes symmetry. I nearly opened it onto another guard—waited, counted heartbeats, then opened it properly. We slipped into the garden and headed for the wall. I climbed first and reached down for Melania. She didn’t have the strength. I tried to pull her up…
Failed.
At this point, I did what any professional does when skill runs out: I spent my Inspiration and asked the universe to stop being difficult.
***Natural. Twenty. (E-Z)***
I hauled her up and over the wall in one clean motion, and suddenly we were out—really out. On the other side, under the moonlight, Melania looked at me and said exactly one thing:
“Take me to the Temple of Selûne.”
And that’s where I’ll leave it—for now — Check back for Part II to hear about Cade and Ukalis, who I’m sure were meeting with someone who was a well-meaning citizen trying to sell popcorn for the local schools…right….right?!
