Thanks to Fay for providing this week's recap and summary.
Quick Summary
Gunnar’s get ready to celebrate Cherishana but with the twist of a social ambush on “Rin” after the dinner’s conclusion. Valuable moments are spent together celebrating until everything is put on the line during the conversation with the Hashalaraq. Chicory’s insight cuts through to the truth of the Hashalaraq’s nature, Ellsee makes a heartfelt persuasion, Rin makes a plea, and Solstice makes a deal with potentially mind-changing consequences. A ticking clock is set for Gunnar’s and allies, including a new temporary one.
Session Recap
The session started with the group during their downtime together in the preparation for Cherishana. Solstice spends her downtime working on the soul cage research with Jereum as well as doing her Cherishana shopping, meanwhile Ellsee spends her time with Ellie and Laetus, introducing the two to each other, and Chicory and Arye continue to stick close to each other after recent events.
We enter back into the narrative with Ellsee planning together with Solstice, Chicory, and Arye how to approach their plans for confronting “Rin”. The group decides to approach “Rin” after dinner and to be careful with who they invite to the dinner, keeping their friends and family out of the fray. Solstice additionally suggests approaching Rin/the Hashalaq as a potential ally, and treading carefully to avoid a full out fight. The group also decides that the best place for this confrontation to happen is at Chicory and Arye’s apartment, giving the group the tactical advantage.
Solstice prepares a special plan while the rest of the group shops: She prepares the components for the incantations Chains of Penance and To Grasp The Sun as a combo that would leave “Rin” unable to move or use magic. As Gunnar’s wrap up their preparations, everyone converges back at Chicory and Arye’s apartment.
Despite heavy minds knowing what will happen after dinner, sweet moments are had between everyone as the group cooks and bonds in the preparation of dinner. Soon guests arrive for the Cherishana dinner, including Cozy, Tryfa, Reverie, and of course, “Rin”. From an outside perspective, no one looking in would be able to tell there anything other than a sweet meal shared between friends and family, until the scene transitions beyond dinner.
The confrontation starts with Ellsee opening up a telepathic channel with Gunnar’s before Solstice approaches Rin with a casual and forward acknowledgment of how many “people” are truly there for the conversation. The Hashlaraq responds surprisingly openly and with pleasure, freely admitting to their presence and how they have yet to share any developments with the Kalisharai yet.
The Hasahlaraq asks Gunnar’s to help convince Rin to willingly join in their union, admitting that they were once in a perfect union that shattered when their host betrayed them. However in finding Rin, The Hashalaq has become hopeful again at the prospect of having a connection but has beetn prevented from bonding fully with Rin by him fighting against the bond. With both the crown in their possession as well as the potential boon of empowering Rin with their abilities, The Hashalaq attempts to drive a hard bargain with Gunnar’s for their help.
Ellsee and Solstice work together to play the Hashalaraq’s game, using their deception, insight, persuasion to play as if they are willing to entertain the Hashalaraq’s request if they allow Rin to come out and speak their feelings on the situation. It’s Chicory who is able to cut through part of the Hashalaraq’s bluffing by determining that they don’t have access to any of Rin’s mental abilities, including their perception and his gift in lying, gaining the group another upper hand in negotiations.
The three slowly widdle down the Hashalaraq’s reservations about letting Rin speak until they finally relent, claiming that while it will only hurt Rin in the long run, they will let the group talk to Rin but only to persuade him. When Rin back to, the group is quick to check on if he is alright but Rin’s response is to question whether it matters or not, feeling hurt and confused by seeing the group appearing as if they were willing to entertain Hashalaraq's proposal.
Solstice is the first to go over to Rin, holding his hand and giving a message of unwavering trust and support for what it is Rin wants, with her saying “If you want this, I’ll help you get it. If you don’t, you don’t need it”. Rin expressed self-doubt at their own wants and questions if maybe they could be more useful to Gunnar’s with the Hashalaraq’s help, but Solstice is quick to refute that Rin is more than his use to Gunnar’s, and that she genuinely wants Rin to think what would be best for him and no one else.
Ellsee and Chicory chime in with their care for Rin and their will to fight for what he wants for himself, which along with a kiss from Solstice to Rin’s hand finally breaks down Rin’s doubt of his own wants. Rin finally admits simply that he doesn’t want what the Hashalaq is offering, and immediately the Hashalaq starts fighting Rin back internally.
In a momentary decision, Solstice seeing this conflict asks Ellsee to take advantage of this moment to rip the Hashalaq from Rin and psionically throw them to Solstice. Ellsee, committed to standing by Solstice instead of holding her back, twists fate around them to use Weal and is just barely able to rip the Hashalaq from the Rin but is unable to fully put it into Solstice and it still remains tethered to Rin.
With the facade of persuading Rin dead in the water, the group enters combat with the Hashalaraq. Solstice starts off with realising their previously built plan of casting Chains of Penance through To Grasp The Sun on the Hashalaraq, trapping it in space without the ability to move or cast spells. The Hashalaq goes next with an attempt to possess Rin but can’t fully enter them so they are still able to be targeted.
Chicory holds a Kairos attack against the Hashalaq while Ellsee throws a Mind Thrust against the tethers between the Hashalaq and Rin in addition to attempting to persuade the Hashalaq to calm down. Solstice then is up with a stellar persuasion to the Hashalaq to join with her instead of Rin, opening her mind up to the quori and feels them possess her.
Chicory and Arye, seeing this happen, puts it together that the Hashalaq might just intend to possess Solstice temporarily to force her to drop concentration on Chains of Penance and then just leave her again to target Rin. Arye comes up with the plan then to knock Rin unconscious to eliminate them as a possibility for Hashalaq to possess, and Chicory follows with a heavy heart having to attack their friend.
Ellsee is up next and with the peaceful possibilities dwindling, they dedicate themself to seeing Solstice’s plan through by creating a mental link between her, Solstice, and the Hashalaq both to check in with Solstice and persuade the Hashalaraq. Ellsee tries to convey to the Hashalaq that bonding with Rin just isn’t going to be an option, but that doesn’t mean they have to be alone again. Meanwhile Arye comes up and apologetically continues her and Chicory’s plan to knock out Rin with an absolute monster of a hit against him.
The Hashalaq uses their turn to respond to Ellsee, asking if Ellsee would do the same in their position; to throw aside the person they wished to partner forever with. Ellsee responds with by saying that love is many difficult things but it has to be returned before you put it on someone, and Solstice tells the Hashalaq that she loves Rin too and that they can still see him. The final nail comes in the form of Rin holding his own dagger to his throat telling Solstice “You know I’ll do it” which finally breaks the Hashalaraq’s hopes for a future with Rin.
While the Hashalaq finally relents and turns itself to looking inward at Solstice’s mind, Rin and Ellsee form a telepathic link where Rin pleads with Ellsee to stop Solstice. Ellsee refuses, saying because she loves Solstice she has to let her make her own choices and asks Rin to do the same with his own love for Solstice.
With the combat paused, the moment hangs while Solstice reaches out again to the Hashalaq in her own mind. She declares to it that this is what love is, messy, complicated, and the tool of one’s own destruction, but nonetheless extending that love out to the Hashalaraq. The Hashalaq responds that that doesn’t always have to be what love is, but that the perfect love they once had was a lie in the end. Solstice then says:
“Love without struggle, without tension, is harder, but its…I would say it’s real. Water without wave, there’s no back and forth, it’s easy sailing but there’s no breeze, there’s no salt in your face, there’s no air.”
Solstice continues to argue that even though their connection can’t be perfect, just because Rin doesn’t want them doesn’t mean that they are worthless and cannot have love again, and that there is potential with Solstice and them as partners, as quori and host. The Hashalaq responds with some willingness, but tells Solstice that any partnership between them would have to be extremely temporary. If the Hashalaq were at it’s full power, maybe they could have made Solstice a full Kalashtar, but as it is now they can only stay joined for a maximum of 24 hours before Solstice’s sorcerer magics burn away the Hashalaq and The Hashalaq would absolutely madden Solstice.
The Hashalaq finds itself in a hopeless place of knowing Rin doesn’t want them and Solstice can’t sustain them, but Solstice promises the Hashalaq with just a little bit more time, they could find another option for it such as a temporary stay in the soul jar or possibly working together with Laetus. The Hashalaq relents, and agrees, for just 24 hours to work together with Solstice and Gunnar’s.
With a ticking clock set, the session ends with the Hashalaq and Solstice’s tentative partnership, and a looming fast-set timeline on the horizon.