Dear Tabby,
We survived! Though some of us are still a little worse for wear. I got hit by these weird smoke demon monster things and they seemed to just suck the strength right out of me. I’m writing this to you from the common room couch because I’m too weak/tired/don’t care to make it to my bed. It’s not the worst thing that could’ve happened, what with the potential for Mindflayers but, it’s not the best. Our new house staff is amazing though and just brought up some tea and pastries, so I’m happy. Anyway, let’s start from the beginning.
Bran was in the room. And he and Barrett were having a conversation as if he expected Barrett to be there. He thought Barrett was sent by some guy named Nihiloor (who we found out is in charge of the Xanathar) and that Barrett was supposed to punch Bran and then rescue Maran and bring him back to Nihiloor. Confused? I still am.
Barrett went with this “plan”. He gave Bran a nice wop to the jaw and continued to find Maran. And that’s when Dhann, Z, and I made our move. Z knocked Bran right out with a sleep spell and we tied him up and gagged him. This intimidation tactic did the job a little too well because when our fair Bran woke up a minute later, he was so scared that he didn’t want to go anywhere. Then without warning, this weird smoke monster appeared out of nowhere and scratched me in the back something fierce! I immediately freaked out! I’m just not cool with demon things. So I broke down the nearest door, grabbed Bran, and Thunderstepped the heck out of there like Barrett from a Hag’s hut. Of course, when I reappeared, Bran wasn’t there and poor Z got caught in the thunder blast.
We fought those smoke demons the whole time we were trying to get to the floor below where Maran was supposed to be, but Barrett said the guards were all dead and Maran was nowhere to be found. That’s when things even got worse. Bran started smoking. Like black smoke was pouring from his mouth and it seemed like these creatures were taking it in and with that his life. We would hit ‘em hard, but then they’d just suck some more life back out of Bran. Z tried to heal Bran while Dhann, Barrett, and I shot all the spells we had at the demons. When we thought we had them, the demons changed into other demons. WTF! I was exhausted and could barely carry my own weapons so I threw out the snake staff as a distraction. Dhann was radiant blasting left and right, and it was Barrett who hit them with the final blow.
But even when they disappeared, Bran was still dying. It turned out there was an amulet embedded in his chest and that was tied to all the monsters. Z had pulled that thing right out of Bran’s body: blood, skin, and all! And that’s how we were able to kill the monsters. Z wasted no time and grilled Bran with a bunch of questions. That’s how we found out who Nihilor was. In the end, Bran did not survive. Dhann tried to revive him, but there was nothing we could do. We searched the entire place, and besides the smell of fish, some platinum, and a fancy weapon there was not much left for us at the fishery. We sailed back to the mainland with a dead Bran in our boat and a brain with legs watching us from the shore. Yeah, you read that right.
It was a crazy fight, and we have definitely felt your absence. Hopefully, you’ll be back soon, and when you do, we have some potions and ingredients for you that we grabbed from Maran’s lab. Hope the crazy dreams aren’t keeping you up at night. And I expect we will celebrate your 18th birthday in pure Trollskull fashion when you return. I never thought I’d find another place to call home, but Trollskull is filling that void, and it’ll feel even more so when you’re back.
Stay safe,
Ely