The laird of the castle is polite and quite friendly. So friendly that after an intensive research effort, he offers us some very quaffable whisky. It’s just as well as Cassil comes back from the little fishing village where a keen bookseller has also been telling her of the local lore.

We share our new-found knowledge. The island to the North-West of the island we are on has housed an abbey dedicated to Umberley the goddess of the sea for the last couple of centuries – maybe longer, who can know for sure?

The laird understanding that our next stop will be the abbey warns us against useless superstitions and old folks’ tales. He also asks us a favour. He would like to build a lighthouse to help the village main trade prosper again. We agree as a gesture of gratefulness.
As we take our leave, the guard, butler and general chamberlain stops up. He tells us of the dock – a shrine dedicated to Umberley. Sailors of all trade used to drop small offerings to stay in the goddess’s good books. A few years ago, a storm arose and broke the very same dock where the shrine stood.

We walk back to where Kwalish and the airship are. Kwalish – who mans the ship at all times – refuses to tell Ryen how to free the air elementals powering the beautifully useful contraption. I silently note that Kwalish just called us his “companions”. I wonder if he can drink spirits in this new body of his.

We have a rough idea of where the abbey is but no maps so we rely entirely on Kwalish’s common sense and navigational skills. He drives us safely to what looks like the spot. A storm rages – localised just above the abbey. This doesn’t exactly scream natural. If we believe the keen village seller, a green sea monster lurks in the depths nearing the village and the abbey reclaiming souls at leisure. As we do not particularly wish to make their acquaintance with other pressing matters at hands, we jump on the shore through the airship feather-fall equipped door. Our landing on the rocky slope is gentle as can be. Cassil has spotted a shimmering green shape in the water and a small and wrecked boat not too far from where we now stand. We decide to investigate the wreck for bodies we could bring back to the village.

“What are you doing here?” I think it must have been the sound of the crashing waves that covered the steps approaching behind us. The tone is threatening and despite the orders, we turn to find ourselves facing a human, an halfling and an elf. The problem with this mantle of Justice I am now sporting, quite elegantly I might add, is that I cannot say a lie. I can omit details but I have never been really good at that either. So I just tend to… spill the beans as they say.

I start sharing our wonderful tale of adventures which they immediately seem to appreciate. Honesty will get you far. They, a party of nine sailor adventurers, inadvertently crashing the boat we were investigating earlier. Clarkson Gerrick, Waldo Barday and Ren Tempest have been left behind by the rest of their companions to set camp while they explore the abbey in search of rescue. We offer to take them off the island as a gesture of good will as long as they tag along with us to explore the abbey. It’s been three days since their companions have gone which does not bode especially well.

As we near the abbey, our eyes take in the corn fields, previously tended to, now overgrown. Hop bushes – tokens of a beer brewing past – are thriving, blending with the wild plants. The hedges around the abbey which must have been a nice space to stroll around are now resembling a maze.

As we enter the maze, we find one of the party’s sword on the ground. Ryden decides to check for traps and we are then attacked by 4 skeletons. As we swiftly deal with the unnatural creatures, more appear and eventually a 12-foot monstrosity attacks our party.

Gerrick nearly dies trying to help fight this thing. We eventually gets inside the abbey. Ryden is the first to enter the door, ajar, and spots the huge stone waiting to meet with an unfortunate head. As he progresses, he finds three bodies belonging to the sailor adventurers’ party. One is on the other side of a huge gap at the bottom of which rests another body, pinned to spikes.

This still does not bode well. But you know, one can get used to a trail of death.

With the help of Ryden, I take the entrance door off its hinges, only after Ryden triggers the rock trap. We lay the door on top of the gap using it as a bridge and reach what looks like a dining hall with a solo diner with a surprised-to-see-us-here look on his face.

The man, in a ragged priestly robes and looking possibly old but we are not sure, is bent over a bowl of something hot, eating his tea. Ryden quickly assesses the presence of undead enemies behind heavy tapestry curtains – with the help of his newly found unnatural friend Usk I assume.

We argue over the best approach for what seems an eternity which the man in the background probably left wondering what in heaven this is all about. We synchronise our first two attacks and the man’s stance changes dramatically. A vile smile cracks his face up and we are in business, baby.

The fight is intense.

Cassil summons wolves and her snake. Ryden looks like he is attacking, dodging and jumping around all simultaneously. I painfully firebolt these abominations before remembering who the true enemy is. The human in the middle of the room. We fight and struggle for a long time, I fail to use hold person against the priest. I decide to use my physical hold person by dashing the priest and wrapping my arms around his knees. At this point, the fight must have looked pretty ridiculous from afar. He tries to hit me with his mace and misses and then summons horrible-sounding creatures floating about my head – Cassil later told me they were wraiths. They hurt me badly. I continue to hold, release silence from the gem and bite the man as hard as I can in the thigh. It’s disgusting. I won’t do it again.

Ryden enters the silence zone and before I can do anything ends the life of the priest. We argue in silence but with a lot of gusto about this.

Cassil uses her power to question the dead with the following:

  • Who’s your master?
  • “I serve Zaxhus.”
  • Where is the Pendant of Wisdom?
  • “The abbot wields the pendant.”
  • Where is the abbot?
  • “The abbot is in the catacombs.”
  • Why did you destroy the shrine?
  • laughs “The jealous bitch destroyed it herself.”
  • How many of your allies protect the pendant of wisdom?
  • “Hundreds.”

We find Umberley’s signs defaced everywhere in all kind of manners with Zaxhus’s signs. We proceed with the search of the premises. In the kitchen, a cauldron holding overcooked vegetable and meat hangs over the fire. In what looks like a wine cellar, we find where the priest was probably sleeping. Behind a locked door further down the corridor we find a shackled woman dwarf, one of the sailor adventurer’s party. She is in shock and tells us she can see Zaxhus in her sleep. We try to comfort her and indicate where she can find her companions. We walk her back to the abbey’s entrance.

I summon my eye to scout the floors below. There is another floor before reaching the catacombs. Inside the catacombs, skeletons are keeping guard. A number of zombies and ragged-looking priests have been busy searching for something. I can see holes in various places. A less-ragged-looking priest seems to detect my eye passing near him. I find a door at the back and it leads back to a cave which has an exit at sea level. In the cave, lies a small treasure.

I message Kwalish and asks him to find the cave entrance at sea level to block Zaxhus’ priests exit or check where they go.

We go down a level to explore the floor below. It is mainly cells with sleeping mats and a bedroom – probably the abbot’s. It is defaced with Zaxhus’s signs. Cassil finds healing potions. Ryden wants to use the bedsheet, whereas I want to lay a trap for the abbot. We eventually decide to lure them out and make their exit difficult allowing us to deal with them a few at a time. We put obstacles in the way and traps that Ryden kindly prepares.

Eventually we make enough noise to attract their attention. Several waves of enemies come at us and we fight them as best we can. Black tentacles appear on the floor making us entering difficult if not impossible. Zaxhus himself appears to us in our minds and this shakes me to my very core.

I contact Kwalish again and he tells us that he thinks he has found the cave’s entrance but something seems lurking in the water so he prefers standing guard outside.

We finally manage to rush in. Ryden gets to ride Cassil – at last – after she summons a direwolf and herself turns into one. They both defeat what looks like sailor adventurers’ turned zombies. I rush the door as Ryden mentally prepares to pick its lock. In the sea cave down below, we find a half-eaten priest, the abbot and a green dragon.

The abbot is definitely wearing the Pendant of Wisdom. Ryden tries to smoothtalk the dragon with talks of cult and veneration and treasures and comes close to persuading it. But the abbot who sees through our plan denounces us and attacks the dragon. The dragon then decides to release its breath and I release my tiny hut from the gem to protect our party.

The abbot looks badly hit but continues to fight. Until the dragon eats him and the pendant with him.

We continue to negotiate with the terrorist and I am still wondering if we are addressing an avatar of Umberley. I “suggest” to the dragon that it should give us the pendant and let us go in peace. Surprisingly, it works. It even gives us one of its names “Chersyrath”. Ryden becomes obsessed with rooting for the dragon.

Kwalish later explains that there are two types of genus draconus:

  • chromatic tending more towards malevolence
  • metallic tending more towards benevolence

For a bit of history, they abbey got infiltrated twenty years ago by Zaxhus priests. When Zaxhus woke, it was the first place he identified as holding the artifact. They gave visions to the priests and started digging to find the artifact.

We return the rest of the sailor adventurers to the village and find ourselves at the laird’s castle again. We tell him of our adventures and the laird surprisingly – despite Ryden’s arguments – recoils at the idea to organise a dragon’s cult… who would have known? The laird is kind enough to give us hospitality and a gold reward of 500 coins for our troubles.