Welcome back to the Dragon's Den Actual Play Blog! For the next few weeks I will be playing the newest case in the Sworn by Ghostlight game by Matthew John! Long-time followers of the blog will remember the first case, the Ebonwood Effigies. My play through of 'The Wings of Rot' picks up a few years after the dramatic close of the first case, from the perspective of Assistant Detective of Occult and Ghostlight Mysteries, Selma Belright. What darkness will Selma discover in the Rift?
For this entry in my SbG series, I'll be using Starforged moves, Ironsworn Oracles, Ironsmith Expanded Oracles as well as the built in Oracles from the Wings of Rot tri-fold.
Begin a Session
“I don’t know what to do, Jari,” Lenny said, looking up at the elderly woman across from her.
“It is a big task you have undertaken, child,” the gray and wrinkled woman said in a quiet, but firm voice. “You and I both know that something untoward is happening down here. The Rift I knew has changed, and not for the better.”
“But we have improved so much through the Community Center,” Lenny replied.
“Indeed we have, and there is always much more to do. But, the community center is not what I am speaking of.”
“You mean the Vanished, and the Echoes too, don’t you?”
“You know your own aunt has appeared to me on more than one occasion. Something is not right, and our Community will suffer if we do nothing.”
“I know Jari. You’re right. I will try to be civil to my cousin. If she shows.”
“She will come. She has done well for herself on the Surface, but her heart will always be with the Rift. I know you resent her for leaving you behind, though.”
Lenny wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. “She abandoned us all. I don’t know if I can be so forgiving.”
“Try, for the sake of us all. Selma will be our only hope. I can feel it in these old bones.”
Selma Belright, Occult Detective
Personal Case Journal
17 July, 0120 GLR
The Rift
Set a Course
Resource Update
The rusty, creaking walkways of the Overhang bring back memories of my childhood, running along the dangerous girders and scaffolding with Lenny and our friends. The familiar metallic thud of my boots on the metal reverberates in my ears like a half forgotten lullaby.
I’ve never regretted my decision to go to the Surface and pursue my dreams, but Lenny’s words all those years ago sometimes echo in my mind. Never as loud as they did while I trekked down the planks and ladders of the Overhang, though, and my insides jittered with the anxiety of confronting her again.
I found the ladder down to the Midst, the central, and most inhabited, portion of the Rift, with little difficulty. My mind flashed back to the night, ten years earlier, when I climbed this ladder to what I hoped would be freedom—and a new life—far away from the poverty, fumes, and darkness of the Rift. I was right, in many ways, of course. The world above was bright, but no less noxious—Ghostlight was already becoming the main source of energy at the time, but steam and coal were still being used in massive quantities and the air in the industrial districts was always thick with black and gray smoke, an ever present haze. It took me several weeks to adjust to the light and to the smell, but life at the Monaþstone University was everything I had hoped it would be despite the atmospheric issues plaguing the city. I was not ashamed of my choice for a better life, but I did regret leaving Lenny behind. She deserved a better life than the one I left her in.
The planks and girders crisscrossing the Midst were in even worse shape than I recalled, some of which probably hadn’t been changed for a century and were rotting or broken altogether. I found myself clinging to the large beams running from the dark stone of the Depths far below up to the Overhang and leaping from beam to beam, hoping that the next footfall didn’t send me plummeting to my death in the darkness below.
Closer to the center of the Midst, the passages became sturdier, if not safer, and I was able to walk without much fear of breaking a board or putting my foot through a rusty grate. A few of the boards looked to have been replaced recently, and were in stark contrast to the gray-green of the old boards. Finally, after a treacherous hour, I arrived at a large square made of slimy concrete and iron rebar—one of the few concrete areas within the Rift—and populated by various tents, suspended tarps, and ramshackle buildings with rusted tin roofs. A flickering neon sign hung on a rusted iron arch. It read “Moonshard Market.”
Ironsmith Character Name Oracle
Oracle
Moonshard Market hadn’t changed much in my decade on the Surface, but the people seemed different. Somehow, the grim faces of my memories had been replaced by something bordering on contentment. There was laughter, and the sound of live music, emanating from one of the larger structures. The sign above the door designated it as the Reverie. I certainly didn’t remember it being here. Children ran down one of the green-stained concrete avenues, laughing carefree as they chased one another. The sights and sounds of this strange, yet familiar, place brought a smile unbidden to my face.
Lenny’s note did not specify exactly where I should meet her, so I wandered the streets of the Market, yawning despite the adrenaline coursing through me. It was strange, seeing shops and stalls open and children playing in the streets when it was the middle of the night on the Surface. The Rift had, long ago, settled into a pattern of sleep and waking based on the altered circadian rhythm that living so far below ground—and out of sight of sun and moon—for centuries had created. I remember how difficult it was to acclimate to the Surface’s schedule when I first arrived at the University.
As I walked, I began to notice some of the folks watching me from the doors of their shops or from behind tables laid out with their wares. Some of these people I recognized, though they were older now than last I saw them, and smiled and waved in greeting. A few returned the smiles and the waves, but just as many glared at me suspiciously. One person, however, ran out from beneath a brightly colored tarp and gathered me in a tight hug.
“If it isn’t Selly!” the graying woman said brightly as she squeezed my shoulders. “I thought I’d not see you again!”
“Hello Auntie Espen,” I replied, burying my face in her voluminous hair. She smelled of home, and in that moment I realized how much I missed my family. “I got a letter from Lenny asking me to come.”
“Yes, yes, Alene told me she had reached out.” Espen took my hand and began leading me deeper into the Market, towards a towering brick and mortar building that I did not remember.
As we walked, Aunt Espen continued to chatter at me happily. “I heard you graduated from the University with highest honors, dear. Your mother would be so proud! I know I am. What are you doing up there in the light of the sun now?”
“I am a detective for the Bureau of Investigation’s Ghostlight Activities division.”
“A detective! My little Selly, a detective!” Espen laughed, and patted me on the back. “You always were so very bright.”
“Where is Lenny, Aunt Espen?”
“I’m taking you to her dear. She’s at her office in the community building.”
“Office? Community building?” I asked, stunned.
“Yes, yes, dear. Our Alene is something of a community manager for the Midst now. She’s working with old Jari to better the community. The first thing she did was turn the old warehouse—you remember the one that you two used to play hide and seek in before the floor collapsed? Yes, that one—she managed to convince some of the skilled masons and carpenters from the Overhang to help construct that big, brick building you see over yonder.”
“Lenny did all that?”
“She did, she did! She’s also put folks to work reinforcing the collapsing infrastructure. You might have noticed how some of the planks and girders further away from the Market are in disrepair?”
“I did, yes. Nearly fell to the Depths.”
“I’m certainly glad you didn’t!” Espen said, smiling at me. “It’s a new initiative she’s started, and they’ve already begun repairing or replacing things nearer to the Market.”
“I noticed that too. Seems like Lenny has been busy all these years.”
“She has. I’m quite proud. Oh, look, here we are.”
The bricks of the community building were not new, I could see. Many were cracked and chipped and of various shades of red and brown. Some of them even bore the remains of peeling paint of various colors. I couldn’t fathom where so many bricks could have been found down here, but I remained impressed with what Lenny had accomplished.
The front door to the building was made of old, black wood, with a thick pane of cloudy, greenish glass set in the center of the top half.
“Is this made of ebonwood?” I asked, running my fingertips along the pronounced grain of the wood .
“Ah yes, I believe it is. You’d have to ask Alene where she found it though.”
The inside of the community center surprised me at how clean and put together it was. The interior would not have been out of place in some of the office spaces on the Surface. The floors were polished wood, and the cream paint on the walls seemed fresh and well-kept. It was truly like walking into another world.
A tall woman stepped out of the room at the end of the main corridor. Her curly brown hair was cropped short, a dramatic difference to the wild mane of hair Lenny sported when we were young. Her smile reached her eyes, making the dark orbs sparkle. When she saw me, however, her smile fell and her eyes narrowed. I was sad and happy all at once to see my cousin again. She had grown into a beautiful woman with striking features and a strong personality. Lenny had made something of herself, even though—and maybe because—I went to the Surface. I was proud of her, seeing her standing there emanating confidence and assurance. But my heart sank into my stomach as her smile turned into a frown and her bright eyes darkened into a scowl. She was still hurt that I left her—and I ached knowing how much pain I had caused her. Something else rose up in me as well. I missed her. My studies, and then my work at the Bureau, helped me clamp down on the loneliness and the regret of abandoning my family in the Rift. Standing there in front of Lenny for the first time in a decade, all of those pent up emotions threatened to rush out of me.
"You came," Lenny said gruffly. "Wasn't sure you would."
“Of course I came.”
“What do you mean, ‘of course’?” Lenny scoffed. “Did you conveniently forget you abandoned me, er, your family?”
“I have lived with the knowledge that I hurt you when I left,” I replied, hoping my true emotions were visible on my face.
“Yes, you lived with the hurt on the Surface in the light of the sun, and clear blue sky.”
“You’d be surprised how similar the city is to the Midst, cousin.”
“I’ve been there, Selma. I know there’s more than a few hundred feet of stone and metal separating the Rift from the city.”
“Girls,” Espen interrupted. “I know there’s a lot to be said between you. But Jari asked me to remind you, Alene, that we need Selma’s help. Do try to be cordial, wouldn’t you?”
I’d never heard Aunt Espen’s voice have the edge it did when she addressed Lenny just then. I appreciated her intervention, but I knew the time would come where Lenny and I would have to have it out, if only to air the grievances she had with me.
“Fine, yes, mother. You’re right. This is more important than how I feel.” Lenny’s scowl lightened noticeably, but her smile did not return. “Come with me.”
She led me into the room she had come out of. It was appointed sparsely, with an old bookshelf in the far corner and a small desk made of a mostly flat piece of wood propped up on four cinder blocks. The desk seemed exceptionally out of place in what was otherwise a fine building.
“I assume you’re aware of the vanishings?” Lenny asked once we were inside the office.
“Vanishings?” I asked, not sure exactly what she meant.
“Surely the Bureau hasn’t completely abandoned the Rift? I thought you’d have at least heard Rifters are vanishing.”
“I have not heard. But tell me what you know.”
Lenny opened a folder on the desk. Inside were several black and white pictures. Each picture depicted the same scene from different angles. A moth was carved in the stone, its wings spread wide as if it were flying.
“What does this have to do with missing persons?”
“One of these carved moths has been found near the last known position of each of the missing people. They are crudely carved, like someone etched them into the stone, or other surface, with a knife or chisel.”
“Can you show me one?”
“There’s one nearby.”
Gather Information
I followed Lenny out of the community building. She turned north, and passed between two rows of rundown shacks currently serving as stables for a herd of small, underfed sheep. At the next intersection, Lenny turned right and then disappeared down an alley. When I caught up, she was standing in front of a low concrete wall. In the wall, I could clearly see the carved moth, but also noticed something that wasn’t depicted clearly in the pictures. The moth seemed to be trailing a light of some kind—with my ability to “see” traces of Ghostlight, this light actually seemed to give off a faint glow, despite being only carved lines.
“See these lines here?” I asked, pointing. “I think they are depicting Ghostlight.”
“Why would someone carve Ghostlight and a moth near a disappearance?”
“I don’t know. Let me try something else.”
I pulled out my standard issue scanning device, tuned its scanning apparatus to a wide band and held it up to the carvings. The gears whirred and clicked as it performed the scan. When it was finished it gave off a small puff of steam and the small screen displayed the results.
“I’m getting trace readings of Ghostlight, as well as something else the scanner can’t quite deduce. Whatever the second substance is, it appears to be some kind of stone, a crystal maybe.”
“What does that mean?” Lenny asked, taking a step back.
“I think it means that whoever, or whatever, is responsible for the missing people has some connection, or ability with, Ghostlight. I’ve seen individuals harness Ghostlight to perform what could only be described as magic on a number of cases I’ve worked on over the last couple years.”
“Magic isn’t real.”
“Are you so sure?” I smiled at my cousin.
Lenny frowned back at me. “Don’t patronize me.”
“I’m not, I swear,” I stopped smiling. “I swear to you that this is something I’ve seen before. We are looking for someone with a close connection to Ghostlight.”
“I don’t know anyone in the Midst who has any knowledge at all about Ghostlight, but I’ll ask around.”
Gather Information Result
Resource Update
Oracle
Progress Update
As we walked back to the community building, something clicked in my head. I remembered several things all at once and took a moment gathering and ordering my thoughts before speaking.
“Lenny, what do you know about ‘wings of rot’?”
It was almost like a cloud passed over Lenny’s face, and her eyes became glassy. She didn’t answer for a long moment, then said, “I don’t know anything. I’ve heard of them, of course. It's some kind of old myth from before the moon cracked, I think.”
“Is that all you know?”
“Are you accusing me of something?”
“Not at all,” I sighed. This would be more difficult than I thought. “I had a vision, just before your note arrived. My mother appeared—don’t laugh—in the flame of my Ghostphorescent lamp while I was compiling a case report. She said ‘There is not much time! Listen to me. I've seen them. The Lost. They are alive. For now. Find them. Find me. The Rift. Seek Reunion. Seek...Wings of Rot.’”
“Did you say ‘the Lost’” Lenny asked, her eyes suddenly alert.
“Yes, that’s what mom’s…spirit said anyway. What do you know?”
“Not much, honestly,” Lenny replied. “But I know someone who might. It’s getting late, why don’t you stay at the community center tonight. I’ll ask around tomorrow and see what I can find out.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind me staying?”
“Jari says you’re the key to this whole thing. I haven’t forgiven you, Selma. But I trust Jari’s insight. So yes, I don’t mind you staying.”
What information will Jari reveal? What does the moth carving mean, and does it have a connection to the Wings of Rot? Find out in the next case log!
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