To Sail or Not to Sail
A ship is sailing to Eiselcross the next day. Xavi, Lindy, and Larkin are set on continuing their journey together in search of the antidote of Frigid Woe. Chadrae and Scarlette, however, worry it’s a distraction from their respective objectives. As they settle in for the night at the Jolly Dwarf Inn, Xavi and Scarlette sit outside to discuss their options.
“I thought you wanted to go to Eiselcross, Scarlette. Is that not so?” Xavi asks softly, basking in the Moonweaver’s gentle glow.
“I do, but I’m not sure if I’m ready.” Scarlette seems cagey to Xavi, but he doesn’t want to press her to discomfort.
“Well,” Xavi ponders for a moment. “If you’re worried about being ready or not, you can worry less knowing you have friends by your side.” He offers a small smile and a nod of encouragement.
“We’re friends?” Scarlette is unsure.
“Of course. Not just Chadrae, but me and Larkin, Lindy too. We may not have known each other for long, but we have each other’s back.” Xavi turns to face Scarlette, the blue light of Catha reflecting off of his soft grey eyes.
“But why?” Scarlette’s eyes search Xavi’s face for a trick but can find nothing but care and honesty.
Xavi takes another moment to formulate his response. “Scarlette, I may not be able to convince you that we are your friends. But maybe I can convince you that we share a common interest. Eiselcross is a dangerous place. You have your own reasons for venturing there. I want to follow the blue crystals to stop more innocents from getting hurt. This cure for Frigid Woe is leading us to Eiselcross. We have a better chance at achieving our goals if we are together.”
Scarlette ponders Xavi’s words. Her throat is dry, it’s been a few days since she sated her thirst on those frogs. It reminds her of the last time she trusted someone who was kind at first.
“Sleep on it.” Xavi suggests. “For now, I think I am going to go to bed. Don’t stay up too late.”
There is a twinkle in his eye as Xavi leaves Scarlette sitting outside of the inn. She waits for another half hour. The night turns darker, as a cloud moves in front of Catha. Nothing but silence greets Scarlette as she pulls her hood up over hear head, and ventures off into the night.
Across the Sea
As the sun crests the horizon and the ship sets sail, all five adventurers are aboard as it heads to Eiselcross. It is a week’s long journey met with grueling travel conditions. But they arrive on the other side of the sea unscathed for the most part.
“Well I’m glad none of those sea monsters the captain kept talking about actually showed up.” Lindy sighs heavily as she disembarks off of the ship.
They meet their contact in the settlement of Syrinlya who arranges for transportation and supplies. The mysterious blue crystals have been tracked to one of the last places Urgon went: Salsvault.
Salsvault
Arriving at the dark blue stone door of Salsvault, Xavi senses faint abjuration magic everywhere. The walls and doors are made of some manufactured material, like the stone is magically reinforced.
Using the spell ‘locate object’, the party traverses through the maze that is Salsvault. The first room they come across is filled with chests. Each chest is filled with sand, but otherwise empty. Small humanoid footprints are scattered along the floor.
One mis-step by Xavi sets off the defenses and suits of armour spring towards them. Fortunately, the party – and mostly Scarlette – are able to handedly deal with their aggressors.
Alchemical laboratory
The next room is filled with dead bodies. Ancient, but preserved perfectly in the ice-cold that is Eiselcross. One central figure wears an emaculate apron and is adorned with beautiful mithril smiths tools. The design of the tools are beyond any the party has seen before. It must be of Aeorian design. The other bodies are dressed in ancient clothing, the styles unfamiliar. Settling into his role as the group’s history buff, Xavi recalls that the city of Aeor existed centuries ago during the Age of Arcanum.
“The Moonweaver has shown me glimpses of what happened. A great city, all-powerful and threatening to all who opposed it. When their power became too terrible and too great, the gods were forced to strike it from the sky, protecting the rest of Exandria.” Xavi recounts mystically.
Searching the bodies and the room, the party discerns that this must have been some sort of laboratory. No religious iconography is present, consistent with Xavi’s understanding of Aeorians and their deep dislike for divinity.
What’s behind door number 1?
Pushing one of the doors open, they discover horrificly dismembered bodies. A red ‘X’ painted on some of them. The parts are all preserved in the ice. Arms, legs, torsos. While many of the bodies seem old, like the technicians in the room prior, some of the bodies are more fresh. Was there a recent massacre? are these test subjects?
The next door opens to the outside, the walls and roof blown off. Re-casting locate object shows the vials are near. The magical pings lead them to a body of murky, cold, kelp-filled water. Recovering the chest, they find flashy, brass vials inside. A detect magic spell reveals a strong transmutation aura emitting from the vials. It feels similar to Frigid Woe, but in reverse.
Pocketing the serums, the party begins to crawl back through Salsvault. Curiosity getting the better of them, they open the last door they skipped before.
A twist of fate
A gigantic workshop lies behind this door, filled with ancient Aeorian architecture and machinery. A red-eyed, grey-skinned, humanoid turns towards them. The sides of his mouth curl into a wicked smile as a smaller, feral-looking creature fidgets beside him.
“Hello Scarlette, fancy seeing you here.” His deep voice is slow but drips with confidence.
Before anyone can do anything else, Scarlette slams the door shut. She pulls her friends along with her, out and away from Salsvault as quickly as possible.
Sprint to Syrinlya
They make the hurried trek all the way back to Syrinlya before Scarlette divulges.
“Who was that?” Chadrae asks, tentatively.
“Steve.” Scarlette pales. “He was so nice when I first met him. At the market, he sold fruit. He took me out on a nice date.”
Her face is almost one of nostalgia, before it turns ashen. “He’s the one who turned me into what I am today. He’s the one who killed my brother.”
End of an adventure
It is here that the party splits. Everyone is provided 500 gold pieces each for finding the antidote to Frigid Woe. Lindy and Larkin take the chest of antidote vials back to Palebank Village.
Larkin volunteers to bring a vial back to Croaker Cave and Hulil. Here, they are offered work with the Uttolot family.
Lindy Lohan reports back to Elrot. She tells him of the vampire lurking in Eiselcross, but it’s way above his paygrade. “I’m promoting you to captain, Lindy. You’ve done great work here. Return to Uthodurn and provide them with my report and your own. Take some vials back with you so they can be studied and reproduced.”
Chadrae decides to remain with Xavi and Scarlette, for now. The three regroup and begin scheming to take Steve down.
“This is not the type of adventure I thought I would have, when I first left home.” Xavi expresses to Scarlette as they pack for a longer expedition. “But, as Sehanine tells me, I need to embrace the unknown and walk unbridled into new territory.”
