Jojo slaps his forehead. "I'm an idiot."

"I wouldn't say I'm a hundred percent on it, but he was improvising something for some reason."

"I felt nothing off them, but of course that's to be expected, rakshasa have magic, they can cast nondetection-"

"Jojo not need to beat self up. Jojo need to beat rakshasa up. After rest."

Jojo nods firmly. "Shall we set up camp by the pool and the pedestals? It seems like the most defensible position available."

"It's the spot to beat, yep. Suppose the water's drinkable?"

"I wouldn't count on it."

They head over to the pool and set up camp. Belmarniss is once again on last watch, and is once again woken up by Garrus.

Would she like to read more of Deekin's book?

Yup, spell prep intending on fighting rakshasas mostly and then Deekin's book.

After killing Nora Blake, Alan returns to Drogan's home, infant in hand, and talks to his fellow apprentice Mischa Waymeet. She's another paladin, but she's about fourteen years old, and she looks up to him. He explains, numbly, that something terrible happened: that Nora Blake is dead, but he managed to rescue her son. He gives the boy to Mischa to care for until the mess is over. She protests that she's hardly fit to care for a child; he agrees, but asks if she would have him carry an infant in his pack while slaying monsters. She reluctantly takes charge of the infant, and Alan sets out again.

He leaves Hilltop without incident, this time, and encounters a helpful arcane archer, who informs him that a group of the kobolds fled into the nearby Crypt of Ascalhorn after being assaulted by gnolls. He goes in, destroys some undead, and reaches the kobold encampment. The kobolds request that he help them escape the crypt, and in exchange they will give him the artifact they stole, a mummified hand once belonging to the lich Balpheron. Instead he slaughters them. He is furious with the kobolds for hurting his master, furious with his master for being hurt, furious with himself for being hurt in turn. He takes the mummified hand from the kobold leader's claw, and it whispers to him of a hidden power he could learn to wield: one that is less fickle than the holy wrath of a paladin, one that is more useful to his ends. He listens, and he thinks: can I afford to refuse? He takes his first step down the path of the blackguard.

She wonders how Deekin got ahold of this story given that he doesn't seem to be present for the events. When he's up she asks.

"Deekin come in a little later, not to worry. But Boss was surprisingly cooperative interviewee about stuff before Deekin show up. Deekin think Boss really wanted to get stuff off chest."

"But he didn't have reasons for the whole start of darkness bit?"

Deekin sighs. "Deekin never able to get straight answer on why Boss kill Nora Blake. Maybe 'keep baby' was mean joke, got out of hand. Maybe Boss think Nora be bad mother alone. Maybe maybe maybe."

Nod.

"Alright, are we ready to hit these probable bastards? I've got my arrows all lined up."

"I'm set but we should have a plan."

"We should. Uh, Shareesh seems like obvious bad news, Jojo should occupy him as much as possible. Depending on what his lackeys are like we might want to take them out early or just focus fire on the boss. What else?"

"Deekin going to cast Shadowbard before fight," Deekin contributes. "Deekin only realize he had that spell when stuff start to go bad."

"Enserric, do you have any powers you wanna mention? I seem to have leveled so I have some fourth level spells now but obviously only the ones I had written down in advance."

"I stab things and channel their life force into my wielder in the form of healing energy, that's more or less my raison d'être. Regrettably, unless someone has the ability to sanctify my blade, I can't penetrate the hide of a rakshasa. They're tricky, those outsiders."

Jojo clears his throat. "Fortunately, when I prayed to Tyr this morning he granted me a spell for that very purpose. It only lasts for a minute, but it should let all of our weapons penetrate their resistances like there was nothing there."

"Good stuff. I've got Lesser Globe of Invulnerability now, I'll want to park in that for the fight insofar as I can."

"Oh, that's a very good one. I'll stand by you and shoot anybody who tries to herd us out of it?"

"Sounds good to me."

Jojo takes the opportunity to cast Shield Other on Belmarniss from the Staff of Defense.