(S04) What Lies Beneath

1. The day begins at the Pierce family home. A young female dwarf knocks on the door in the early hours of the morning in search of Navlok Pierce. She introduces herself as Ebrah Stormhelm and hands Navlok a letter from Magiloy (see Magiloy's Missive).

   
   

   Navlok recognizes Ebrah as the daughter of the infamous Captain Ulysses Stormhlem, one of the most fearsome pirate captains of the seven seas. Ebrah informs Navlok that the party is to report straight to Magiloy in the case of her unlikely demise while accompanying them within the Vaults.

The party returns to Gauntlight Ruins to investigate further. 

As they search, they discover a Giant Scorpion guarding a small area leading into the shrine. The party recedes from the threat and head towards the Gauntlight's base. In the center of the circular chamber, a fresh blood stain covers the floor. Kaynan Gelveron recognizes this as a haunt of sorts. This is where Belcorra Haruvex died. Kaynan exorcises the haunt, but the blood seeps into the ground and an apperation of Belcorra appears to descend with it...

The party climbs the circular staircase wrapping around the chamber to ascend to the cupola. The magical light at the top of the Gauntlight shimmers an eerie blue. The light is rather faint. The party takes some time to Recall Knowledge and discovers the following:

• The light appears to be in "sleep mode" after the attack against Otari. It will recharge to its former state in 28 days.
• A typical lighthouse beam passes through lenses to be controlled and/or focused. This light appears unfiltered and uncontrolled.

At the base of the stairs, the party finds a decrepit sitting room and a ruined meeting room.

Navlok finds a secret door connected at the end of a hallway connected to the meeting room. He opens it and comes face-to-face with weird, bug-eyed, goblinoid-like creature...a Morlock.

ROLL INITIATIVE!

The party rushes into the room as the lone morlock calls for backup. It's a 4v4 brawl. Once the fight begins to swing in the party's favor, one morlock flees through a set of double doors to the west. The party deals with the present morlocks and then pursue. They open the double doors to find the morlock frantically praying in front of an altar. It turns to attack the party as its pleas are interrupted. The party slay the last enemy.

The shrine before them appears to be dedicated to "The Ghost Queen." The party deduces that this is a moniker for Belcorra. A human corpse is laid out in front of the altar. No one recognizes who this was, but the party does notes that he was dressed in thief's leathers and had a bird tattoo on his right shoulder. Kaynan recognizes the tattoo. Many Otari citizens have the same tattoo with the same placement. As the rest of the party stews on the topic, Navlok discovers another secret door along the northern wall. 

The party enters through the opening and into a crypt. This hallway features three alcoves with sarcophagi in each; most are empty. As the party advances down the hall, a shadowy hand reaches around the corner to grab them. They have encountered a Shadow.

ROLL INITIATIVE!

This shadow is special. It has been buried with the highest honors among the Belcorra's servants. This is the restless spirit of the Majordomo. The party hastily moves past the Majordomo to the room on the other end of the hall, but not without injury. They step foot into a circular room with smooth stone walls. A ribbon of pale blue light coils and slithers through the air like a tether between the ceiling and the floor. The floor of the room is a massive sand pit containing the remains of a gargantuan purple worm. Its flesh is devoid of color, it's bones brittle, it has likely been here for centuries.

Once everybody settles into the room, the majordomo pursues...but it cannot pass the threshold into the chamber. The majordomo takes a step back and fades into shadow. The party takes the temporary sanctuary to treat their wounds.

Navlok takes note of another entrance into the chamber along the western wall. The party follows and enters a hallway where yet another secret door is found along the southern end. On the other side is a small circular chamber with a moss-covered skull mounted on its otherwise empty walls. Kaynan suggests the skull is evil and should be destroyed. Navlok and Jek try to convince him otherwise, but his sword shatters the skull and the room grows dim.

The party moves to the north to see what awaits at the other end of the hallway before them. They step into an old torture chamber with several pieces of broken equipment. They do not find anything of note within. They continue towards the west and enter into a far stretching hallway with many doors. However, one in particular catches their eyes. Due north, is a frail wooden door with a glowing green light emanating from the gaps between the door and the doorframe.

The party opens the door to find a small square washroom. The northmost wall is surging with translucent energy glowing eeriely green. The light begins to coalesce into thin ribbons and shape itself to spell out the following words along the wall:

"I was Otari. Save me from below" 

The spectral text seeps off the wall and onto the floor where it reassembles into a ghostly emerald snake and slithers to the west! The party chases after with Navlok leading the pursuit. The snake slithers under a door and the party bashes it in! As they do, bones scattered across the room begin to move on their own and form a Skeletal Giant.

ROLL INITIATIVE!

Navlok tumbles through the assembling skeleton and crosses the room to follow the snake's path. Ebrah lets loose a 3-action heal spell to aid the party and fell their foe. Jek & Kaynan use sword and sorcery to put an end to the immediate threat.

The session ends with the party catching up to Navlok and following the snake's path down another hidden flight of stairs. With the real dangers of this place closing in tighter around them, the party LEVELS UP.