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41: The Rebinding Ritual

🎧 Podcast Link • January 30, 2026

Arrival at the Crash Site​

The session opens with the party aboard Captain Buckle's vessel, now past the harbor and sailing toward the crash site where Luna fell. As they approach, a caller announces: "Hi, the crash site. It's almost here."

The Impossible Ocean​

As the party makes their way to the front of the boat, they witness something extraordinary—a border where the sea simply ends. A sheer drop reveals a perfectly dry ocean floor within an open ring of water, hundreds of feet below.

The ocean forms a swirling vortex with stark walls, roughly 300 feet down to the exposed seabed. And there, sprawled across the ancient ocean floor, lies the glowing skeletal remains of Luna—the fallen moon goddess.

Christopher (DM): "You see the skeleton of a glowing winged figure. She appears to be about 400 feet long."

The scale is staggering. This is no metaphor—they're looking at the actual corpse of a god.

Conference with Bafael​

Bafael approaches Ohma and requests a private meeting with the entire party before arriving at the ritual site. Through Silas's psychic phone connection, the conversation becomes a strategy session about their true allegiances.

The Question of Direction​

Bafael: "Have you decided what you are going to do when we get to the crash site?"

Silas: "I have concepts of a plan."

The discussion quickly turns philosophical. Bafael challenges the party on their ultimate goals:

Bafael: "I don't know your direction. You seem like you think about what is right now, but I don't know what the end goal is. You fight the dragon. You fight the empire. Are you going to fight everyone?"

The Mercenary Revelation​

Bafael reveals crucial information: the dragon knights on this ship are mercenaries, loyal only to whoever pays them.

Bafael: "They are mercenaries. So if you have money, we can take this boat back. Right now, they are aligned with St. George. So if you do something, they will fight you unless you offer a better price."

Silas: "Or we do something and they don't realize we did something, and we don't have to pay them anything."

Understanding the Stakes​

Olivia presses for more context about the Order of St. George's relationship with Eldoran:

Olivia: "I want to know how long they've been working with Eldoran. They've done a lot of war crimes."

Bafael explains the alliance: Eldoran wants to kill all the gods so their god Eldora becomes more powerful. St. George wants to kill all dragons. Together, they believe they can use the Eldoran moon weapon to destroy the draconic gods, including Noraxis—Luna's dragon lover.

The Scorpion Philosophy​

Bafael shares his philosophical perspective on destruction:

Bafael: "Not every destructive force is evil. It is in itself an aspect, an agent of chaos, an element of our universe moving forward. A scorpion is a scorpion, right? But is a scorpion evil?"

He reveals two scorpions at the ship's zoo—and a cultural superstition:

Ohma: "One scorpion, three scorpion, five scorpion, but two—never. It is a very bad omen."

The Dragon Orb's Purpose​

The party debates whether to use the dragon orb to help revive Luna. Bru conducts scientific experiments, walking the orb around the crash site and observing its behavior.

Bru's Scientific Analysis​

Bru rolls an impressive 31 on his Arcana check (with Flash of Genius) and discovers fascinating properties:

Away from the altar:

  • The orb subtly pulls matter and energy toward it—like a black hole in miniature
  • This aligns with Astro's nature as a being of the void

Near Luna's body:

  • The orb shoots out blasts of energy that cascade over the skeleton
  • Like Roman candles that dissipate across the goddess's remains

At the ritual altar:

  • Complete inversion of behavior—chaotic, unpredictable energy fluctuations
  • The altar appears to be a "teeter-totter" point that can redistribute cosmic forces

Bru: "It feels like the orb wants to be close to the goddess's body, not this weird altar thing."

Astro Speaks​

As they debate, Silas's backpack suddenly speaks with an angelic voice—Astro addressing her fallen sister:

Astro: "I will help you, sister. This world will remember the mighty love of Luna and Noraxis."

Luna's weak voice responds: "Are you there? Please help me."

Then, directed specifically at Silas:

Astro: "Do what you want, Silas. I will not be stopped."

The Sabotage Plan​

Rather than choose between factions, the party develops a clever middle path: complete the ritual (necessary to reseal Astro) while sabotaging the Order's tracking equipment so they can't locate other dragon orbs.

The Distraction​

Ohma and Olivia create a diversion by challenging each other to arm wrestling on deck.

Athletics Checks:

Ohma dons his wrestling persona, showing off his Belt of Giant Strength. The match draws a crowd, with betting erupting among the sailors. After a tense bout that goes back and forth, Ohma slams home the victory to huge cheers.

Infiltrating the Relay Room​

While the arm wrestling match captivates the crew, Silas rolls a 27 on Stealth to sneak Bru and Elspeth toward the captain's quarters, where the relay equipment is housed.

Inside, they find a 1960s-era satellite dish with a revolving antenna and a console at its base. The artificers get to work.

Group Arcana Check:

The combined roll exceeds DC 20, achieving full success:

  • They hijack the signal, routing the real coordinates to their own local storage
  • They sabotage the relay network, sending erroneous signals to all other receivers
  • Only the party will know where the other dragon orbs are located

Silas: "Neither faction is better off. And we have not made either side better off."

A New Plan Emerges​

The party agrees on a comprehensive strategy:

  1. Complete the rebinding ritual - Astro must be resealed regardless of other considerations
  2. Steal the tracking data - Prevent Eldoran and St. George from finding other orbs
  3. Eventually steal power from Eldoran - Use the energy from their moon weapon or artifacts to revive Luna
  4. Destroy the god gun - Prevent Eldoran from shooting Luna again once she's revived

Silas: "To hell with this dragon. We mess over Eldoran and then we use that to help Luna. Everyone cool? Let's do the ritual."

Descent to the Ocean Floor​

The party descends the 300-foot drop using a combination of techniques. Bafael demonstrates the monk approach—wave dashing in and out between water and air, rapidly descending.

Ohma follows with similar grace, performing what the party describes as "360 no-scopes" on the way down.

Olivia, ever practical, insists on life vests and uses the repelling ropes, occasionally catching herself when the wave-dashing technique doesn't quite work.

Luna's Voice​

As they walk across the ancient seabed toward the goddess's remains, a weak voice enters their minds:

Luna: "Who... who is that? I'm so weak. My bones feel like they might break."

The voice grows stronger as they approach her head—also the location of the ritual site.

The Rebinding Ritual​

The party reaches the ritual area near Luna's skull. Four pillars hold spherical objects. A pedestal with a large ceramic bowl marks the center.

Setting Up​

Bafael directs the preparations:

Bafael: "I have learned this through my studies. I brought this big sack of salt. You said you brought the spheres of violescence from the ship. Let us arrange it now."

The party places the four violescent orbs on mantles and lays out seven circles of salt in the prescribed pattern.

The Blood Requirement​

Bafael: "We must all pour our blood into the bowl. We must give our blood freely, and then it will start the ritual."

Silas does something rare—pulling out an actual dagger instead of his psychic blades:

Silas: "Normally psychic daggers do everything I need just fine."

The blood falls into the bowl and coalesces into a mercury-like droplet, shimmering and condensing. Ohma bites his thumb in classic tough-guy fashion. Elspeth contributes with her perpetually chapped, bleeding hands.

Bru hesitates, flipping a coin to decide. It lands on heads.

Bru: "All right, I guess it's fine."

Speaking the Name​

The final component: speaking the dragon's true name. Silas rolls back his sleeve, revealing the name written on his forearm in phonetic script—neither player nor character has ever gotten it right.

Silas: "Astrolinomini Norox..."

The orb shoots from Silas's backpack, hovering above the blood bowl. It begins to shake violently.

The Psychic Battle​

The party is pulled prostrate above the seven salt circles. Christopher calls for saving throws—wisdom, constitution, charisma, or intelligence.

Round One​

Olivia's Aura of Protection provides +3 to everyone. The artificers throw out Flash of Genius bonuses to support the weaker rolls.

Results:

  • Elspeth: Natural 20 → 27
  • Ohma: 25 (popped into shell for advantage)
  • Bru: 22 (with Flash of Genius)
  • Silas: 20 (with Flash of Genius)
  • Olivia: 20
  • Leliana: Barely passes

Round Two​

Another wave of psychic energy. Leliana screams:

Leliana: "My mind! My mind!"

She takes 12 points of psychic damage but remains conscious.

The party feels their consciousnesses forming a bubble, slowly moving in on the orb—like a coordinated assault on the dragon's prison.

Round Three​

Final push. The party rallies, with Flash of Genius flying between members.

Elspeth (through the psychic link, slapping Silas mentally): "Get it together. Come on."

Everyone passes their saves.

The Binding Succeeds​

The sphere collapses inward. A wrenching, grinding sound—like metal scratching against metal—fills the air as the orb rebinds itself.

Phantasmal chains appear, reconnecting around the orb in layers. The party slowly falls to the ground as the ritual energy dissipates. The orb lands gently in the now-empty blood bowl.

Silence.

The dragon Astrolinomini Noraxis—Astro, the void dragon, the world-eater—has been resealed.

Cliffhanger: Dragons Approach​

As the party catches their breath, a shout from above:

Dragon Knight: "We've got a live one!"

Three grappling hooks spring from the ship, piercing a huge blue dragon flying overhead.

The session ends with the Order of St. George doing what they do best—and the party caught between a freshly-sealed god and an active dragon hunt.

Key Information Learned​

The Crash Site:

  • Luna's skeleton spans 400 feet across the dry ocean floor
  • The site creates a natural dimensional balancing point
  • Luna is alive but extremely weak—able to communicate telepathically
  • Astro's orb reacts differently at different locations: pulling energy normally, expelling it near Luna, and becoming chaotic at the altar

The Ritual:

  • Requires: blood freely given, violescent spheres, salt circles, and speaking the true name
  • The blood coalesces into mercury-like substance
  • Participants experience waves of psychic assault
  • Success manifests as visible phantasmal chains around the orb

Astro's Nature:

  • Can communicate independently of the orb holder
  • Expressed desire to help Luna—her "sister"
  • Claims she "will not be stopped" regardless of what Silas chooses

The Party's Plan:

  • Sabotaged Order's tracking equipment while capturing the real data
  • Plan to steal power from Eldoran to revive Luna
  • Must eventually destroy the god gun to prevent Luna being shot again

Character Moments​

Silas: Orchestrates the sabotage plan and leads the party through moral complexity with pragmatic wisdom. His willingness to do "the ritual we need to do regardless" while undermining both factions shows his growth as a leader.

Bru: His scientific approach to the orb—walking it around measuring energy signatures—demonstrates the artificer mindset. His coin-flip decision to give blood shows his chaotic approach to commitment.

Ohma: Faces the emotional weight of seeing his goddess's fallen body. His wrestling match with Olivia provides necessary distraction while his monk training allows graceful descent to the ocean floor.

Olivia: Her Aura of Protection proves crucial during the ritual's psychic assault. Her insistence on life vests before descending shows her practical retired-detective mindset.

Elspeth: Rolls a natural 20 on her save and provides Flash of Genius to struggling party members. Her mental "slap" to Silas through the psychic link shows her no-nonsense support style.

Leliana: Takes the brunt of the psychic damage but perseveres through the ritual, demonstrating her dedication to the party despite being the newest member.

Unresolved Threads​

  • How will the party handle the dragon currently being hunted by St. George?
  • Will Luna recover now that she knows allies are near?
  • What will the Order do when they discover their sensors were sabotaged?
  • Can the party access the stolen tracking data before St. George realizes the deception?
  • Where are the other dragon orbs, and who will reach them first?
  • How will they steal power from Eldoran without alerting the empire?
  • What is Astro's true plan regarding Luna?
  • Will the mercenary dragon knights become a problem when alliances shift?

Notable Quotes​

Silas: "To hell with this dragon. We mess over Eldoran and then we use that to help Luna."

Bafael: "I cannot lead you to this ritual. You lead me to this ritual."

Bru: "It feels like the orb wants to be close to the goddess's body, not this weird altar thing."

Silas: "Neither faction is better off. And we have not made either side better off." (explaining the sabotage strategy)

Astro: "Do what you want, Silas. I will not be stopped."

Elspeth (telepathically): "Get it together. Come on." (mentally slapping Silas during the ritual)

The session concludes with the ritual complete and Astro resealed—but with a dragon battle looming and complex allegiances more tangled than ever. The party has bought themselves time and information, but the real challenges of navigating cosmic conflicts between gods, empires, and ancient dragons are only beginning.