This session started off with a meeting of the Senate. Each of the characters was present with the exception of Sepheir Q’n. The following was established about the meeting with wagers made by the characters.

Senate Meeting
-A full contingent of Duke Alexandros Tammel’s personal guard is present
-The Consol is missing his ceremonial scepter
-Tammel’s wife is seated close to Eschyr
-Eschyr has not noticed that she is carrying a poisoned dagger
-Uther (Kevin Parrot’s character) has the scepter
-Duke Alexandros Tammel, Blooded of the Fox gave it to him
-Dalin’ar’s sister accompanied him to this meeting
-Dalin’ar has noticed the dagger
-Tammel has chosen to groom Uther as his successor

As the meeting proceeded, Zyll U’Saer stepped forward to state that his lands had been Troubled by raiders. Cassian Sheeda put forth the motion that a party be put together to deal with the threat. This force consisted of the PCs and Praetor Marcus Valar, Blooded of the Serpent. During a break in the Senate meeting, the duchess made her move, attempting to stab Eschyr with her poisoned dagger. She was stopped by Dalin’ar who cut off her hand.

The following was determined about the crime scene.
-The knife is new and prominently bears the blacksmith’s seal
-The hilt is old and has the same unreadable language as a poem that Eschyr owns
-The blacksmith works for Eschyr’s father
-The poison on the blade was actually intended for Duke Alexandros Tammel, Blooded of the Fox
-The knife is a ceremonial blade
-There are two other people who want Duke Tammel dead
-The blacksmith’s mark has a very subtle and hard to spot Spider motif
-The knife was purchased by Baron Rue, Eschyr’s wife’s brother
-Count Valar also wants Duke Alexandros Tammel, Blooded of the Fox dead
-He wanted the Duke dead so that he could marry his wife, Duchess Fallow Vera
-Cassian has been suspicious of the Duke for some time
-And was led to these twists and theories during his investigations
-But he has no concrete proof to tie the duke to anything
-The other person who wanted [[:alexandros-tammel|Tammel] dead was Zyll U’Saer who suspects the duke of murdering his father
-Several swordsman present took note of Dalin’ar’s move
-The knife is made of orichalcum
-The move is being called Dalishana or Dalin’ar’s Beautiful Disarm

The following was also established during play about the party that Palatine Corana Eshu held.
-There was a horse race that resulted in a Ven injury
-There was a second duel
-The party is one of the most talked about and well-received of the season due to all the bloodshed
-Dalin’ar Adrente was in the second duel
-He won the duel despite having drank quite a bit from the wine fountain
-Dalin’ar dueled Cassian’s brother
-The brother was angry about the marriage arrangement between Dalin’ar and Cass
-Duel was to the blood
-Dalin’ar was the challenger on the basis of dishonor
-He gave Cass’s brother an injury that resulted in a scar
-Cass’s brother also tried to duel him but was denied
-His brother discussed entry into the sword academy that Duke Tammel’s wife runs
=He publicly embarrassed himself and was “escorted” away
-Uther was Dalin’ar’s second
-Valar was the second for Sheeda’s brother

The following was determined about the pirates that the Ven had set out to deal with on Zyll’s urging.
-They are not sailing warships
-The “pirates” were hired by Dalin’ar Adrente
-Their goal is to kill Praetor Marcus Valar, Blooded of the Serpent
-Their armaments cannot be traced back to Dalin’ar
-All of the pirates’ provisions are of high quality
-The four boats maneuver at high speed
-There is a powerful sorcerer on board
-The boats were made for boarding, not ramming
-The flags are repurposed livery of Duke Tammel’s
-The sorcerer is from the cult of Sora
-The wind is in the favor of the PCs
-When Valar notices the flag he smiles
-The sorcerer is Vaderic’s “husband”

A Mass Murder ensues which sees the pirates fought off, but not without some of the Ven taking serious injuries. Praetor Valar and Dalin’ar get into an unsanctioned duel. Dalin’ar cut off Valar’s hand but ended up loosing an eye in the duel. Cass made the two Promise not to seek to do harm to one another until Summer. Both agreed. One of the pirates was taken alive and wagers determined the following.

-They were hired through intermediaries in the city port
-They were sent specifically to kill Praetor Marcus Valar, Blooded of the Serpent
-He does not believe his employer is present
-They were being payed with non-Ven currency
-Recognizes Vaderic’s robes
-They set sail with six ships but lost two to pirates
-They were joined by ten very strange, tattooed men
-The ships are carrying all-female pleasure slaves
-Tattooed men claimed to work for an individual they called the “Black Widow”
-Most of the weapons are from a blacksmith in Uther’s district
-The ship that bore the sorcerer also carried a chest that gave the crew nightmares
-The chest was brought by the tattooed men
-That ship got away
-Dalin’ar doesn’t know that these are his pirates

About the tattooed men
-The tattoos are in the same language as the poem and the etching on the dagger
-The tattoos are blessings from the Sorcerer Kings

Other established facts
-Valar also hired pirates and they now have the nightmare-inducing chest
-Dalin’ar hired his pirates in response to Valar’s
-Cass’s sister is madly in love with Uther
-The only thing she loves more than him is justice