Centrum Glacies Session 75: Doppelganger
Week 75 Dungeons and Dragons Campaign in Centrum Glacies continues with the party still split up. The perpetrator of the murders finally reveals that they are a Doppelganger.
Like my other campaign, I’m turning this one into a book series. You can check out the first one here.
Anyway, just like my other campaign, there is a whole lot going on and I don’t want to elaborate on every moving piece in the story. You can see the whole thing in the book series.
!!!Trigger Warning!!!
This story deals with a cruel world with some horrific twists. So far, this campaign has featured: Animals getting killed, Genocide, lots of body horror, evil cults, brainwashing, torture, psychological warfare, child abuse, slavery.
One of the party members had an eye gouged out and lost an arm. Not exactly the way it happens in Berserk, but that might have been the inspiration for it. The group was incinerated in lava. But rather than die, they were transformed into Demons. They might be free from these transformations for now, but only time will tell what this means for them.
!!!Final Trigger Warning!!!
Teztcal, now with a baby White Dragon he had named Mini Me, headed back to Zerruz. The Orc City had a teleporter that he needed to use to quickly return to Zrin.
But when he tried to enter Zerruz, the Orcs guarding the main gate stopped him. By now, they all knew who he was. In fact the Orcs here were used to Teztcal causing chaos whenever he appeared. But none of them had expected him to return with a Baby White Dragon.
Vitality had followed close behind. She continued to worry about what Teztcal might do next and how it would impact her own future. It was too late for her to claim ignorance of what he was doing. So she did the next best thing. The Ranger helped convince the Orcs to let the two through, baby Dragon in tow.
Lucky for her, Teztcal had no intention of causing trouble in Zerruz. He truly wanted to go back to Zrin. The place he considered home. Vitality was too afraid to ask if this was actually where he was from.
Seeking the Party Out
Once they had arrived back in Zrin, Teztcal immediately headed to the guild hall. The Dragon got stuck at the entrance. He had forgotten that he wasn’t actually an Adventurer despite running around with Gold and Platinum Ranked ones. Which meant he couldn’t enter the Guild Hall without an actual member.
He eventually convinced Vitality to let him back in. Rather than thank her for her assistance, he launched himself into a tirade trying to figure out where the rest of the party was. He asked “Where did my retainers go?” Vitality claimed that HE is THEIR retainer. A lapse in her mask that she immediately regretted.
Regaining her composure, Vitality fed once more into his delusion. Her goal was once more trying to convince him to not follow his companions. Instead she begged him to wait here for them to return.
Her pleas failed this time. Teztcal was unconvinced and demanded to know where they were. Vitality groaned checked the guild board to see if the party was still at the party. She groaned again when she saw that they were.
Helping Against their Will
While the Guild hall was mostly quiet, there were still workers employed by the Guild. And one of them had questions. A Human Bartender asked Teztcal about how he had obtained a newborn White Dragon. And more importantly asked why he had brought such a dangerous creature into this room.
Teztcal, claimed this Dragon was his child. Which didn’t convince the Bartender of anything considering that Teztcal was not a White Dragon. When asked if the Mother was a White Dragon, Teztcal missed his point entirely. Clearly, he didn’t understand how his own species reproduces.
One of the other bartenders asked Vitality why she let the idiot back into the hall. She simply shrugged. There wasn’t a rational answer to such a question. Her mind mostly worried about what he would do in Zrin if she had refused.
Teztcal tried to convince the bartender to tell him where the party is. He could have gleamed this information from the Commission board, save for the fact that he couldn’t read. Vitality was glad for this lack of education.
Magically Helping Against their Will
They refused to tell him. Even after multiple attempts, they would not tell him Guild business.
Unfortunately, the Bartenders didn’t seem to realize that despite his bluster and lack of Guild membership, Teztcal was a powerful Sorcerer trained by the Cult of Obsidian. He had several non violent ways to get the answers he sought. So he tried to cast Mass Suggestion. One of the strongest options in his list of spells.
Unfortunately, for the Guild’s reputation, Vitality’s sanity, and the rest of his party he succeeded in putting all three bartenders under his power. They appeared to be resisting the spell in some capacity but told him where to find his companions regardless.
Teztcal sped out as to avoid the consequences of his actions. Vitality realized that such an action was one of the smartest things she had ever seen him do. He transformed into his dragon form when away from the Guild Hall.
Onward to Chaos
Vitality, realizing that there was no stopping this now, offered to show him how to get there so as to avoid him causing more chaos trying to find it on his own. But only under the condition that he attacked NO ONE except in self defense.
To add to this, she pleaded with him to follow the nobles’ rules. She once more played into his delusion by claiming that with all their stuffy rules, the nobility didn’t understand how to behave in the presence of a God. Teztcal agreed while crossed fingers behind his back told a different tale.
To Unmask a Killer
Back at the noble meeting house, Adriel claimed to know who the killer is. Even her apparent master didn’t know what she claimed. And she even had a plan to out them. But to do so, she told the party that no matter what happened, they needed to trust her. No matter WHAT happened.
The party returned to their room to discuss their suspicions further. Naturally they talked about Adriel’s rather ominous words.
Simon knocked on the door mid-discussion. That was pretty ominous too. In passing, Trent mentioned his dislike of vampires. Trent and Obrom noticed Simon twitched for a second at the mention of that topic.
Jyona meanwhile was oblivious to all the tension in the room. Trent hadn’t fully moved past his prejudices from before. Not to mention the group did not like Simon at all.
To Unmask a Vampire
Simon was taken aback as Trent accused him of being a vampire. That wasn’t something made lightly. Simon pointed out that there was an easy way to prove he was not a Vampire at all. And while he didn’t want to exit the meeting hall when a killer was still on the loose, he was more than happy to put their fears about him being a Vampire to rest.
Once outside Trent immediately tackled Simon. He intended to make sure the guard captain didn’t pull any unusual tricks. But Simon was a strong Dwarf and Trent did not posses comparable power. He easily broke free.
A good thing Simon didn’t seem offended by the extra level of suspicion and a aggression. The Dwarf admitted that with suspicions and tensions high, he could forgive such behavior. Trent began to question him. The former Druid was still not convinced that the Soldier was pulling a trick.
Simon shifted topics away from him not burning in sunlight. Instead, he mentioned that it was strange that Adriel was with Quinn. Specifically in the fetish room despite the noble having a wife. He also brought up that it was unknown who currently owned her slave brand.
Jyona blurted out that she heard that there is a vampire that can walk in the sun. Simon was again taken aback. He told them in a hushed voice to alert the closest guards, regardless of affiliation immediately if they ever confirm the existence of such a Vampire.
Tough Questions with Tougher Answers
Simon was getting uncomfortable not having a watchful eye of the goings on inside. But he stayed outside at the party’s request to answer a few more questions about the Cedric. Specifically they asked and why no one liked him.
Simon replies that he was a diplomat with an inflated ego that had recently soured relations with the Imperials. Other more talented diplomats would not have made the same mistakes. Including a few people present at this meeting. But he didn’t think any of the nobles were the killer. Instead, he suspects all the chaos at the party was the work of a demon.
He then mentioned that whoever has control of Adriel’s slave brand is telling her to kill. Which in turn would mean that this hypothetical Demon is using her as its instrument of death while staying away from danger.
The conversation looked to be complete and the party prepared to head back inside. But Simon had questions of his own. Specifically, he questions why Obrom thought it was a good idea to walk around invisible. He had been forced to lie to all his soldiers to avoid a conflict that would have distracted from the real incident.
Past Crimes
Obrom himself countered with a question of his own. He wanted to know how Simon how he saw him. The guard captain gave him a simple and plausible answer. The Dwarf showed him a relic that he kept on his person that allows him to see such magic.
Obrom was satisfied with this answer and so, explained why he went invisible in the first place. He wanted to figure out why the noble Aeyleth had a brand like his own. Simon proved why he was a guard captain by having an answer. He explained how the woman had risen through the nobilities ranks at an incredible speed. It was likely she was making deals with dangerous people to help her with her upward mobility.
Simon then turned the conversation towards Obrom. He asked the rest of the group if they knew about the Bard’s past. Trent asked him to explain. After all, the former Druid was worried about both Obrom and Teztcal and their allegiances as of late.
Obrom tried to sidestep the issue and didn’t really explain. Simon however was all too happy to elaborate. The Guard Captain explained that some years back, he almost got arrested.
Back Inside
The group didn’t have much time more to talk about that topic or others. Simon ushered them back inside, reminding them that they would all be missed if they lingered. With haste the four all returned inside and headed towards the main hall.
They entered to screams coming from the three at the front. Notably, Ayleth was screaming at Quinn about his wife. She accused the man of having an affair with Adriel. The Elf remained silent but stood at the back of the room, a glare visible on her face.
She then turned towards the entrance where the party had just entered. She redirected her rage towards Obrom. “YOU! You were in my room! What were you doing in my room?!” She screamed. Ayleth demanded that Simon seize him immediately.
However, Simon rejected her demand. He couldn’t as the party was here on guild business. Two of them were Platinum Ranked, the other Gold and no crime had actually been committed.
Kulras asked if something else is amiss as he heard that the Adventurer’s Group was looking for him. He completely ignored Ayleth’s continued protests.
Trent asked him what he knew about Cedric. since the party hadn’t been able to question him yet. Trent hoped he might give them a new perspective or at least a hint about the killer and their motive. Unfortunately he did not have much to say. Kulras preferred not to speak ill of the dead. That lack of a statement made it clear how the Merman felt.
Accusations
Ayleth drew attention back to herself. She pointed at Adriel and rudely proclaimed that as a slave she was not welcome in this space. She also asked what she was doing with Quinn a second time.
The Elf did not respond. Instead, she left the room in a huff. Jyona followed her out of the room. The Half Elf wanted to see if she could gain any clues from this heated moment.
Ayleth did not head to her and Quinn’s room. Instead, headed the other way towards Cedric’s room. Jyona tried to carefully follow behind. But she noticed Jyona following. Strangely she seemed glad that she was followed. The Elf told her that now had to do something drastic to unmask the killer. She sat in the magically poisoned chair and passed out almost immediately.
Back in the meeting hall, Ayleth left and glared at Obrom as she passed by. As soon as she was gone, Trent asked Simon, Kulrus and Quinn if she might be the killer. Neither thought she was the culprit. Her style was manipulation. Murder was out of the question.
Kulrus seemed intent to leave the meeting hall as well. Unlike Ayleth he actually was courteous enough to ask the party’s permission before passing through. Of course this was all a formality. They couldn’t have barred his way even if they wanted to.
Final Plans
Trent, Obrom, Quinn, and Simon spoke a bit more with the rest gone from the room. None seemed to be able to pin down who was responsible. Adriel seemed too obvious a culprit. That left Elanth as the most probably suspect. But it was still with little evidence.
Simon then left to go about his soldier duties. But it wasn’t long before he alerted the guards, and the nearby Adventurer’s to a serious problem. There was someone moving around the building invisible. And unlike before, he didn’t hide this information. What he didn’t say is who it was.
The Killer Strikes
But Trent and Obrom knew they would figure it out soon. They heard Ayleth scream from her room. “I should have known it was you, Adriel!” Jyona was too far away to hear the commotion, but the rest plus Simon ran as fast as they could to that corner of the building.
Adriel was standing there with a dagger to her throat. What everyone present didn’t know was that Adriel was also still slumped over in the chair in the room that Cedric had been staying in.
Back in that room, Jyona was panicking and going through her effects to find an anti-toxin. She wanted to save Adriel, and this was of course ignoring what the Elf had requested earlier.
Meanwhile, back in Ayleth’s room, the other Adriel did not lower her knife. Clearly several people including a Platinum Ranked Adventurer and a City Guard Captain did not intimidate her enough to stop.
“Any last words?” The Elf asked Ayleth. Clearly the assassin was having fun drawing this out. But that was a mistake because it gave Simon an opening. The Dwarf moved unbelievably fast and grappled Adriel.
Truth Revealed
Adriel, fought against his grip. And while doing so still had enough breath to taunt them all. “You really thought I was trying to help you, didn’t you?” The party suspected her to some extent. But this behavior was a little too blatant. There were hints that something strange was going on here.
Adriel deflected an attack from Simon. And with her fist. Adriel didn’t fight that way. But someone else present here did. The creature posing as Adriel dropped the illusion. Or rather changed forms. Elanth was the killer after all. And she was a Doppelganger too according to Simon who said so moments later.
The Doppelganger corrected his statement. She had killed the original Elanth and taken her place. They also claimed to have killed Kurlus. The Doppelganger admitted that the party had almost caught them earlier. Their suspicions about that illusion were well placed.
Obrom was enraged that a demon has killed another adventurer. Especially a Gold Rank one that he had known in the past.
The Killer Tries to Flee
The Doppelganger knew the game was up. It no longer had a clear chance to kill Ayleth. Not with so many enemies nearby. Instead it wrestled free from Simon and changed back into Adriel’s form.
Unbeknownst to everyone including the Doppleganger, the real Adriel was still with Jyona. Without thinking things fully through, the Half Elf dispelled the poison from the chair . This caused Adriel to jerk awake.
At first she looked ready to scream at Jyona which confused the Half Elf. But then her face softened. Realizing what was going on, she told Jyona that her ploy had worked. She had done this to draw Elanth out. The Elf had seen Elanth turn into Kurlus last night. She was in reality a Doppelganger!
Jyona followed Adriel out of the side room and now she finally heard what was going on nearby. The others were fighting Elanth.
Trent used his Druid Staff to turn into the radiant elemental. He was pissed and was using all his tools to slaughter this creature.
From the other direction, Adriel tried to rally the guards on the way to the fight. She even managed to warn a few of what was going on.
Chaos in the Main Hall
Realizing that it couldn’t remain in the guise of Adriel, The Doppelganger set off a blinding flash on the group and turned into Ayleth. In that form, it ran out of the room claiming everyone is trying to kill her.
The ploy failed however since the guards came into the garden room and saw the real Ayleth. She was sitting on the ground, part of her dress torn where a knife had sliced through.
Simon had no intention of letting the Demon escape. Once more, he moved unbelievably fast. In no time he caught up with the Doppelganger.
He called the guards to action. Jyona entered from the other end of the hall and proclaimed Simon to be the culprit. A very foolish thing considering that Adriel was nearby and had told her the truth. Perhaps she thought the Dwarf was the current form of the creature. Or perhaps as a noble herself, it hadn’t occurred to Jyona that the Doppelganger would mimic Ayleth.
She further didn’t believe him since she detected no magic from “Ayleth”. The issue of course was that Doppelganger transformations were biological and nor magical. Jyona had no way of knowing that though.
Teztcal Appears
As if there wasn’t enough chaos already, the main door burst open to admit Teztcal with Vitality and newborn in tow. Vitality was confused as she tried to take in all the chaos going on. She hadn’t expected to walk into a clash. Trying to find some semblance of sanity, she turned to her unhinged companion and announced that she comes bearing a Dragon God.
The Doppelganger saw its chance to escape with Teztcal’s entrance. It shapeshifted into a small fly and evaded Simon’s last ditch effort to knock it out of the air. Why the creature hadn’t done that immediately was anyone’s guess. Unfortunately, this meant that the Doppelganger escaped and was free to cause more havoc and murder elsewhere.
Jyona, Trent, and Obrom were frustrated that the creature had escaped as they finally noticed Teztcal nearby. The party at long last regrouped. Trent especially prepared to ask the Dragon several questions.
Simon approached up to Teztcal recognizing him immediately. Not even trying to hide his frustration, he said “if you try anything, I will end you.” Clearly he didn’t have the patience to deal with whatever chaos the self proclaimed God would bring.
Debating a Name
Obrom brought up the most important issue that everyone seemed to be ignoring. He asked about the baby dragon. Vitality went on to explain the short version of her and Teztcal’s misadventures. But it was clear there was a lot more to this story than she could mention in even a few minutes.
Simon turned the conversation back towards the most immediate and pressing issue. The Doppelganger got one over on them. And now a deranged and murderous shapeshifter was on the loose. He needed to get back to Zrin and prepare for the worst.
Ayleth finally calmed down after the attempt on her life. She emerged from her room, still wearing her now damaged dress. She took in a deep breath and asked why Obrom has the same mark that she does. Obrom mentioned a short version of the story that led to him being cursed. As well as the one responsible: Cult of Obsidian Scientist Jak-Rath.
Simon requested that any topic involving that Dark Elf be ended. He asked why anyone would willingly invoke that one’s name. Naturally the others explained their experiences with the Cult of Obsidian. Turned out that Simon had had a few encounters of his own with them.
Cold Brand
But the Cult was a problem for another day. As a guard captain, Simon had to deal with the more immediate problem. He called for all the guards to return to Zrin immediately. They needed to prepare the city since there was a Doppelganger on the loose.
After the soldiers left, Ayleth once more asked how Obrom got his mark. She wanted to know specifics beyond who gave it to him.
He explained he was sleeping in the ruins of an abandoned town. Then one day the mark appeared on his hand with the world growing dark and cold. That had been the first time spirits had attacked him.
She admitted that his story lined up with her own experiences when she first got the cursed mark. But before Obrom got a chance to demand that she elaborate on her version of this same tale, she left with the last of the soldiers.
Trent once more asked Obrom to retell all the events of how he got his mark. The former Druid refused to let him leave anything out. But this was a story he had already told them, and there was little more added of substance that Trent didn’t already know.
Arguments over Names
Obrom instead pivoted the conversation in another direction. He asked Teztcal about the Baby Dragon. Teztcal introduced it as Mini-Me, the Son of Divinity.
Trent refused to accept that as his name. The former Druid claimed it was insulting to the baby Dragon’s intelligence. Teztcal was outraged! Trent proclaimed that his name would be changed for the sake of his future.
Teztcal did not handle that information well at all. In fact, he transformed into his full Dragon form. And in the middle of the meeting hall entryway.
A Chance at Redemption
Adriel, who had completely ignored this entire situation had been talking to Quinn in the fetish room. But she returned and had some important information for Trent. She told him that while this whole situation with the Doppelganger had played, her dark Mistress had reached out to her. Given she was a spore Druid, Trent didn’t have to think too hard to figure out who she was referring to.
She states that the party needed to return to the guild hall in Zrin post haste as a commission was about to be available where Trent had the chance to earn his Druid powers back. They needed to grab this commission before another Platinum Ranked did.
Trent tried to leave, but Teztcal blocked his way. He was infuriated that the former Druid dared to tell him, the baby’s father that he had no right to name the child. He attempted to grab him and slow him down.
Vitality watched this happen feeling frustrated. She pleaded with Trent to let the issue slide for the sake of peace. Realizing that the Ranger was sensible, Trent begrudgingly accepted Mini-Me as the dragon baby’s name. Jyona grabbed Cedric’s cane and left.
Platinum Commission
Upon reaching the guild hall, Vitality went off to a corner. She needed to travel alone for a while. The party’s chaos had been enough for her for a while. And she had an unknown task of her own to complete.
Trent checked the notice board for the commission. There was one that stood out. And he knew after a quick read that it was the one he was looking for. The commission stated that adventurers were missing after investigating a corrupted outgrowth of the Jungle of Giants. The Circle of Cleansing had burned this section to kill the corruption.
The party accepted the commission and spent the remainder of the night exchanging travel stories of the events that had passed. Jyona gave Teztcal half of her cut of the party commission “for the baby”. Still she doubted it would be used responsibly.
Wrap Up
The party is reunited once more. But this Commission is Platinum Ranked and will likely be their most dangerous challenge yet.