[Stomoxys]

I slept a long time this morning, choosing to ignore both Wolfram and Keri who came by, but eventually, hunger overcame my desire to sleep. Nuur-Karif had been awake all night, staring at Irdol's corpse which appeared to be perfectly normal. They had calmed down during the night, so I pointed out the danger Yana is in. Undoubtedly, Larma's spies are well aware of us, that Nuur-Karif has taken a keen interest in Yana and that Yana attended meetings with Lunas and us right before Irdol and Lunas died. Assuming they are not spying for Larma themselves, of course. I did not mention the last part and Nuur-Karif agreed. We should anyway move on towards Ur as soon as possible to destroy the wraith, but we would probably have to attend to Madan for a night first. They went to talk to Isa and Yana, leaving me alone with the corpse. While I had my own knives, they left me one of theirs and told me to bite it. This is something they do when they prepare for combat and is a part of their worship of Ashtar.

The dungeon was empty except for me and nothing happened. After a while, Wolfram showed up with some papers which I believe is a report they wish to send back to their religious order in the Cities of the Prince. They have been asking about ways to send a letter, but I have advised against it. It would have to be sent with merchants and could easily be intercepted which would make it too risky, even if they knew how to encrypt the contents, which I do not believe they. It does not help that their order is considered criminal here in Arland. I also read them my notes about the various demons, as they wanted to prepare to meet Madan and Tuza. However, the half translated notes still did not provide many clues. Considering that Tuza is connected to the plague bringing Burrowing Rat, the most likely aspects seemed to be the ones involving hot thoughts and bad smells, but that did not give us much to go on. This was a good opportunity to question them about their shape shifting. They claimed they had always been able to do it and it was a gift from Tityra, but they had not always been able to control it. Now, however, they are mostly in control and it was completely different from what is going on in the brown forest, though it was unclear in what sense. I will aim for the vitals if they get out of control.

We were interrupted by bells from outside, but they did not sound like an alarm and the guards upstairs speculated that they were calling a meeting. Wolfram still wanted to visit Madan, but they did not wish to leave the corpse unattended, so we decided I should ask Pakk and Gromann or Ebsalon to watch the corpse. Looking for Nuur-Karif, I went to the chapel and found them standing and praying. Usually, they are on the floor, wrapped in snakes, but they had not slept all night and did not want to fall asleep. They repeated that Irdol was gone and there was no need to guard the corpse, but they would anyway have to sleep before they could visit any demons. They had also gotten the impression we were expected at the meeting, so we did not stay long in the chapel. After a quick detour to my room to get my clothes, we went to the inner courtyard that was packed with staff and soldiers. Remi appeared from the nobles quarters and proclaimed that Lunas was dead and Isa had an announcement. Isa then emerged, marched to a dais in the center of the courtyard and promptly left again. Notably, their dress was now decorated with apeoid symbols of authority. The crowd was confused while Remi was looking around with consternation. This went on for about a quarter of an hour before Wolfram appeared in the doorway of the nobles quarters. Someone was trying to push them into the courtyard, but the large human refused, holding on to the door frame and looking rather sickly. Their irrational fear of crowds were causing issues again, but eventually they were left inside with the door open and Isa marched out again. In their short speech, Isa proclaimed themselves the king of The Evening Fortress and the enlightened leader of the council of 12, before dismissing the staff and soldiers. I am sure the other nobles will be greatly displeased by Isa claiming the title of king and will consider it a declaration of war, but it is not like these titles mean anything. While an enlightened apeoid is a bit of an oxymoron, the other title is more interesting. Ebsalon was the leader of the Council of Eleven, but it appears Isa has more or less unilaterally declared themselves the new leader of the mages.

Me, Nuur-Karif, Grogg, Wolfram, Nujan, Pakk, Gromann, Ebsalon, Keri, Yana and Remi were required to attend a meal with Isa. Wolfram had to be rounded up, but eventually all were gathered in the dining hall. Isa opened by asking Grogg if they considered Wolfram a companion, which they confirmed. They then proclaimed that we were those the prophecy foretold would disturb the threads of fate, but also mend the threads together. Consequently, we were no longer welcome on The Evening Fortress and would have to leave the next day. As a last request, they wanted us to bring the stupid horse spear to Mir. I wonder if Isa wants to get Mir killed, but that is not really any of our concern. Nujan was ordered to go home to Kajar and take control. They clearly did not relish the prospect, but Isa insisted and told them to take responsibility and get their litter to cooperate. In the end, Nujan relented, but would follow us for a while before going home. I will interrogate them later on what exactly Isa meant. Ebsalon, Pakk, Gromann and Keri were told to bring Madan to The Tomb of Kings, which I believe is the island in the middle of the wetlands. There, Madan would be laid to rest and I got the impression this would bind Tuza, similarly to how Gritt was bound in the crypt. Yana was told there was a ship going west, but they would rather travel with Nuur-Karif. While this will be distracting for Nuur-Karif, it is best to keep a potential spy close so I can keep an eye on them.

Finally, Isa turned to Remi and demanded that they should pick which family they would serve. This brought protestations, but Isa's eyes started glowing and a lightning bolt hurled towards Remi's head which exploded like an overripe melon. Luckily, I was able to take cover behind Grogg, but the rest of the party was showered with the contents of a human head, followed by a flood of vomit from the troll. Considering that I've seen Grogg happily eat brains directly from an ape skull, I do not know why they reacted like that. Wolfram, on the other hand, got to their feet and threw themselves at Isa, but was blocked by some kind of spell and Isa danced away. In the ensuing melee, Wolfram was roaring at Isa to end their spell casting while Keri, Nujan and Ebsalon tried to keep them away. In the end, Grogg stumbled over, still vomiting, and subdued the hysterical human while Ebsalon retreated with Isa up the stairs. We were detained in the dining hall while Keri arranged for the disposal of the corpse. With the experienced help of Nuur-Karif, they were able to compress it into a chest that were taken out through the kitchen. After a bit, Isa returned and announced that they would pardon Wolfram for their crimes if they were willing to confess, which luckily they did. We were then invited to continue the party upstairs.