The warded door had opened on its own. Beyond it, Uravian waited with iron construct-devils and barbazu guards. He asked the party to deliver Carman Rajani's soul—preferably in Carman's living body—and offered gold, assistance, and passage deeper into the Gauntlight. The party refused to commit and withdrew to consider its options. [S65 00:16:10; S65 00:32:19; S65 00:32:23; S65 00:38:00]
Uravian's imp confirmed that he could look through her eyes, warned that a straight fight against him and his guards was unwinnable, and named pride as his weakness. She offered Devil's Luck—one better saving throw per day in exchange for a century of service after death. Even after Veve negotiated the term down to ninety years, the party declined. [S65 01:35:38; S65 01:39:07; S65 01:42:33; S65 01:47:04; S65 01:47:14; S65 01:49:26; S65 01:49:37]
The party prepared a safer second meeting: appear interested, reduce Uravian's escort, move toward neutral ground, inspect the contract, and retain the option to walk away. Recall-knowledge discussion identified the iron guards as construct-devils within two levels of the party and suggested that Uravian could wield much stronger magic. Abbas's augury gave no omen when asked whether the negotiation would go well. [S65 02:05:45; S65 02:17:50; S65 02:23:36; S65 02:23:56; S65 02:33:12; S65 02:49:51; S65 02:49:56]
Inside Uravian's domain, the party noticed a family tree tracking the Rajani line. Uravian said his bargain with Belcorra and later obligations to higher infernal powers required a Rajani soul. He traced that demand to Vol Rajani's time in Nidal, said concealment magic had hidden Vol after she fled, and admitted there might be another untraced branch of the family somewhere in the world. [S65 02:57:46; S65 03:05:32; S65 03:06:56; S65 03:26:02; S65 03:31:20; S65 03:32:11]
The unsigned draft offer expanded to 1,200 gold, a Quill of Passage, access beyond the barrier, help against the grave knight, and guidance for disabling the Gauntlight. Uravian could not cure Venris's affliction. He also clarified the price: a delivered Rajani would die when Uravian extracted the soul into a vessel. [S65 03:39:10; S65 03:41:12; S65 03:45:29; S65 03:46:15; S65 03:48:08; S65 03:58:42; S65 03:59:29; S65 04:09:00; S65 04:09:14]
After avoiding the grave knight on the way out, the party built a Cozy Cabin in the woods for a private debrief. Cid revealed that one name on Uravian's Rajani family tree matched an ancestor's family name. Together with Cid's ability to activate Rosa Argentis's Blossom Veil, this suggested—but did not prove—that Cid may be a Rajani descendant. [S65 04:15:04; S65 04:20:15; S65 04:25:42; S65 04:26:14; S65 04:26:45; S65 04:26:55]
That possibility produced a dangerous loophole plan. If Cid is a Rajani, the party will try to make the contract count him as delivered the moment it is signed, trigger Uravian's promised rewards, and bind both sides to nonaggression. Venris volunteered to sign. The plan still depends on persuading Uravian to accept the wording and detecting the hidden condition that infernal contracts often contain. [S65 04:34:03; S65 04:37:56; S65 04:44:39; S65 04:49:20; S65 04:50:34]
Research in the Gauntlight library established that a contract devil can scry at will upon creatures whose contracts it holds. The party took an infernal-tales book as a possible research aid, then went to Wrin. She denied ever contracting with a devil and agreed to spend the night reading the stars to investigate whether Cid truly belongs to the Rajani line. [S65 05:19:03; S65 05:19:11; S65 05:24:55; S65 05:30:10; S65 05:34:02; S65 05:38:20; S65 05:38:46]
The night ended on two fresh mysteries. A silhouette lurked around a corner in Otari and vanished before the party could investigate. At the Dawnflower Library, Bandy waited with priests and an unknown visitor; she began the introduction just as the session closed. [S65 05:47:03; S65 05:47:45; S65 05:49:08; S65 05:49:29; S65 05:50:13]
| 00:00:14 | Recap at the Opening Door After pregame setup, the party recapped the four recovered pendant fragments, their avoidance of the grave knight, and the warded door. The GM clarified that the door had opened on its own while Abbas was beginning his chants, revealing whatever waited beyond. [S65 · 00:15:06 · turn 0173 · scene 001] |
| 00:24:10 | Uravian's First Offer Beyond the door, Uravian greeted the party with two iron construct-devils and two barbazu guards. He demanded Carman Rajani's soul, preferably in Carman's living body, and offered gold, assistance, and access deeper into the vaults. The party refused to commit, withdrew, and watched Uravian close the doors behind them. [S65 · 00:25:35 · turn 0406 · scene 002] |
| 00:49:42 | The Party Weighs the Devil's Bargain The party debated whether to fight, bring Carman as bait, negotiate, or seek another route. Abbas recalled that Uravian's contract-holders might serve as conduits for his powerful scrying. They rejected signing any infernal contract, narrowed their options, and decided to consult the imp who had previously helped them find pendant fragments. [S65 · 00:52:20 · turn 0909 · scene 003] |
| 01:34:24 | The Imp's Warning and Devil's Luck The imp confirmed that Uravian could look through her eyes, warned that a straight fight against him and his guards was unwinnable, and named pride as his chief weakness. She offered Devil's Luck—one better saving throw per day in exchange for a century of postmortem service. The party negotiated the term down to ninety years but declined the bargain and left. [S65 · 01:35:38 · turn 1851 · scene 004] |
| 02:03:45 | Planning a Counter-Negotiation Using the imp's warning, the party planned to claim interest in Uravian's offer, move the negotiation to neutral ground, reduce his escort, inspect the contract, and preserve the option to withdraw or attack. Recall-knowledge discussion identified the iron guards as construct-devils within two levels of the party and suggested Uravian possessed substantially stronger magic. The GM awarded everyone a hero point for the planning. [S65 · 02:05:45 · turn 2315 · scene 005] |
| 02:35:57 | Augury Before the Return After a short break, Abbas cast augury about whether the negotiation would go well and received no omen. Veve also reviewed an outer-sphere alignment spell for possible combat. [S65 · 02:43:47 · turn 2967 · scene 006] |
| 02:50:37 | Why Uravian Wants a Rajani The party re-entered Uravian's domain and noticed a family tree tracking the Rajani bloodline. Uravian explained that his contract with Belcorra and bargains with higher infernal powers left him obligated to obtain a Rajani soul. He connected the old demand to Vol Rajani's time in Nidal, said powerful beings had lost the trail after Vol fled under concealing magic, and mentioned the unverified possibility of another hidden Rajani branch. [S65 · 02:57:46 · turn 3297 · scene 007] |
| 03:39:10 | Drafting the Price of a Soul Uravian agreed to move the eventual contract discussion near the training rooms with two guards. The unsigned draft grew to include 1,200 gold, a Quill of Passage, passage through the barrier, help against the grave knight, and useful guidance for disabling the Gauntlight; Uravian could not cure Venris's affliction. He made clear that fulfillment required a Rajani in his possession and that he would kill the victim by extracting the soul into a vessel. [S65 · 03:39:10 · turn 4014 · scene 008] |
| 04:13:00 | Cid's Rajani Connection The party avoided the grave knight while leaving the Gauntlight and created a Cozy Cabin in the woods for a private debrief. Cid revealed that a name on Uravian's Rajani family tree matched an ancestor's family name, offering a possible explanation for Cid's ability to activate Rosa Argentis's Blossom Veil. The party treated the ancestry as promising but unconfirmed. [S65 · 04:15:04 · turn 4754 · scene 009] |
| 04:34:00 | A Contract Designed to Complete Itself The party developed a loophole plan: if Cid is truly a Rajani, they would try to make Uravian's contract count the Rajani as delivered immediately upon signing, trigger the rewards at once, and bind both sides to nonaggression. Venris volunteered to sign. After learning that infernal contracts often contain hidden conditions, they agreed to verify Cid's ancestry, seek Wrin's help, and research how Uravian's surveillance works before proceeding. [S65 · 04:34:03 · turn 5208 · scene 010] |
| 05:09:13 | Infernal Research in the Gauntlight Library The party returned to the Gauntlight library, finding no major change beyond more grave-knight tracks. Their research established that a contract devil can scry at will upon creatures whose contracts it holds, explaining how Uravian watches infernal agents. They took a book of tales about devils back to town as a possible aid in recognizing hidden clauses and infernal creatures. [S65 · 05:10:53 · turn 5946 · scene 011] |
| 05:26:00 | Wrin Reads the Stakes Back in Otari, a guard relayed that Bandy wanted to see the party. They visited Wrin first, verified that she had never signed an infernal contract, and told her about Uravian, the Rajani demand, and Cid's possible ancestry. Wrin agreed to spend the night reading the stars to investigate Cid's lineage, then sent them to Bandy while she prepared. [S65 · 05:27:17 · turn 6237 · scene 012] |
| 05:45:00 | The Lurker and Bandy's Visitor On the way to the Dawnflower Library, the party glimpsed a person lurking around a corner, but investigation found no one. At the library, Bandy waited with priests and an unremarkable robed or plainly dressed stranger. She began to introduce the visitor as the session ended. [S65 · 05:47:03 · turn 6659 · scene 013] |