3 — Teotl & Mega-zotl

The band converged at the clubhouse to share all that they had learned. Alexandra relayed a fragment of folklore about Ahuizotl, and Dee shared that the mystery substance was life force, which their ritual spellbook called vitality and Alexandra knew as teotl.

At Thomas' suggestion, Dee used their magic to determine the origin of the vitality, and identified the essence of Chalchiuhtlicue and Marty. Impressed by Dee's mastery of the spell and their success in identifying a god, Medea gifted them Magical Resistance to illusions and enchantments, and encouraged them to seek their own answers.

Alexandra took some time to reach out to her own divine parent. After being pressed, Xiuhtecuhtli admitted that Chalchiuhtlicue longs to secure a place of her own in Vancouver and has her heart set on Lost Lagoon, setting her at odds with the fae Lady. Alexandra considered this, and wondered what role Lucy had played.

Thomas and Step looked into medical reporting and found that 6 months ago, three people from DTES were treated at St. Paul's for symptoms matching the side effects of vitality extraction. They also found an account of an "alien abduction" from someone who had an encounter with the Lady of the Lagoon a few months prior, and Henry said hi as he passed by.

Dee and Weave researched what kind of ritual Marty might have been attempting. With Weave's assistance, Dee took Harm but successfully reached through and pulled out an Aztec codex. Alexandra was able to read the text, which detailed the strengths and weaknesses of Ahuizotl, and depicted the ritual sacrifice of a true believer of the water gods. Using this knowledge, Dee and Step created a single-use epic weapon, and Weave procured some jade, which the codex indicated was attractive to Ahuizotl.

Agreeing that the only thing left to do was talk to The Lady of the Lagoon herself, the Woven Band went back to the Lagoon at sunset. There, Thomas found signs that the lakeside was disturbed by something large, and Weave "knocked" for entrance to the Lady's domain to be polite. Dee helped Weave transport the Band beneath the lake, but Weave arrived in a small room where Lucia preserved in an enchanted sleep and dreaming of rest that was long overdue.

Weave joined Lucy in her induced dream and talked to her. Lucy was unaware of what had happened, but she was content, and her body was uninjured and safely held in stasis. Weave wasn't able to break the enchanted sleep, so she picked Lucy up and carried her towards the Band.

The rest of the Band found themselves in the Lady's hall, and a combination of Alexandra's straightforward support of the Lady (which earned Chalchiuhtlicue's disapproval) and Thomas' smooth manoeuvring (which annoyed the Lady) made an ally of the Lady and saw Lucia "gifted" to them. Negotiations were interrupted by the arrival of a corrupted conglomerate of the Ahuizotl pack, fused into a three-headed monster.

Alexandra tanked the monster's attacks and kept it occupied with her formidable fighting prowess. Step joined her on the frontline, landing a hit with the single-use spear and finally activating their new epic shield with a touch of divine help from Tutorials. Dee used their magic to remove the Mega-zotl from the water to keep it from regenerating, destroying the Lady's throne in the process. Thomas attacked strategically, controlling the environment and setting up opportunities for the others. Weave made an opening for Alex with a handful of jade, and put herself in harm's way to heal her allies.

The monster was no match for the Band, and the combined efforts of Step, Thomas, and Alexandra resulted in an electrifying and fiery finishing blow.

Art credit: ferdinandladera