Down near the base of the Brokenveil Bluffs, concern began to mount among Eris and Brett. It had been over half the day since Triple J, Endrin, and Conan set off in search of the renegade Danbol Zex. Worried a terrible fate had befallen her comrades, Eris rallied Brett and the two set off up the narrow switchback, forcing Nyx along in front of them. About 1000ft up the sheer rock mountain side, Eris heard Triple J’s voice enter her consciousness. The bard informed Eris that their pursuit of Danbol had lead them deep into a cave system within the mountains. Furious at her friends’ recklessness, the princess retorted, expending her response to the sending spell on scolding the bard without divulging that she and Brett had set off after them. As Eris, Brett, and Nyx continued their trek, Nyx lost her footing, nearly plummeting to her death if not for Eris’ quick reaction. Eventually, Eris and company reached the same crevice at the end of the switchback, followed it through to the jagged crater on the other side, and descended down the dark, narrow, chasm denoted by the conspicuous rope dangling down within. Following the faint tracks, they began traversing the caverns below, in search of their allies.
Meanwhile, Triple J, Endrin, and Conan had just finished a short rest and the base of the massive waterfall, following their second near death experience of the day. With three possible routes before them, they elected to briefly scout each of them out. Beginning with the tunnel to the left, they discovered dog like… gorilla… like.. tracks in the dirt. Though trying to be as stealthy as possible, Conan’s foot collided with a large rock, sending it tumbling down the tunnel. The party winced collectively and waited with baited breath as the rock continued to tumble out of sight. As they finally exhaled, seemingly safe for the moment, an audible growl emanated from further down the tunnel. With haste they darted back across to the other side of the central cavern and proceeded down the right most tunnel instead.
The short stretch of tunnel to the right gave way to a much larger cavern beyond. Amongst the many stalagmites, the group noticed the skeleton of a small humanoid, about Endrin’s size, as well as one of the stalagmites beginning to inch its way toward them. Startled, Endrin released a firebolt in the stalagmite’s direction. The blast collided, and one large red eye popped open on the stalagmite, staring right at the young wizard. A flurry of tendrils followed, bursting forth from the creature. Triple J sought cover behind another nearby stalagmite, and reacted with horror when that same stalagmite revealed itself to be another of these entities. Both creatures took turns gripping and dragging the members of FCG into their toothy maws, Triple J receiving the brunt of the damage. The bard did what he could to bolster his allies with the power of the spirits before falling prey to the monster’s appetite. In a rage, Conan hacked and slashed at the creature’s writhing tendrils, while Endrin struggled to evade the grasp of another. The situation looked dire as Triple J began to bleed out. Frenzied, Conan struck down the monster currently chewing on his friend. Endrin evaded the further creature, managing to get to high ground within the chamber. Patiently the wizard waited until both entities were in close proximity to one another. Death did not spare the cloven monster from Endrin’s wrath as the wizard created a gravity sinkhole, crushing both the living and the dead entity with tremendous force. With a final flourish, Endrin pummeled the creature to death with arcane missiles.
Both Conan and Endrin rushed to Triple J’s aid, managing to stop the bleeding and stabilize their chewed up friend. Conan and Endrin made a cautious retreat back to the central cavern, Triple J in tow. Whilst waiting for the bard to regain consciousness, Conan and Endrin tried to rest as much as they could while keeping a tense eye on the surrounding passageways. After a while, they heard a yelp from high above at the waterfall’s apex. Conan readied his blade, and fire ignited in Endrin’s palm as they waited to spring on whatever came down the shaft. The cool white light of Eris’ unsheathed blade began to fill the chamber as the princess slowly floated down the shaft. Spooked nonetheless, Endrin released an errant firebolt, streaking past Eris’ head. Brett and Nyx floated down close behind.
Still fuming about the danger that had befallen her allies, Eris brushed right past Endrin and Conan, and proceeded to lay her hands on Triple J, restoring the bard to consciousness. From the state of Triple J, it was evident, that the party should travel no further today, and Triple J began wearily creating their domed encampment. Once the dome was finished and relative safety attained, the party began pondering and discussing their next course of action.
The party concluded that their eventual destination would still be the Ashguard Garrison. Triple J revealed his desire to potentially meet his father, Xavier Emberstone, a proclaimed hero of the Dynasty on two accounts now, at the Garrison, and Brett concluded that bringing the Volstrucker, Nyx, in for questioning along with setting Endrin on his destined path were reason enough to head back with or without Danbol. The notion of his own fate intrigued Endrin, who then proceeded to probe Brett further with more questions regarding Dunamancy and the visions he’d been receiving. Brett regaled the party with tales of Kryn religion, specifically regarding an entity known as the Luxon and it’s significance in Kryn society, trying his best to impart the importance of Endrin heading to the city of Rosohna post haste. As Brett began to describe the Luxon and it’s many pieces, or beacons, further, Endrin grew noticeably uncomfortable. Eris and the others eyed the gnome suspiciously, who was clearly hiding something, and pressured him to be truthful in his unease. Reluctantly, Endrin produced a black case from his backpack and handed it to Brett.
The Lens agent dropped to his knees upon opening the box. The object contained within was no mere family heirloom of Endrin’s, but in fact one of the very Luxon Beacons Brett had been referring to. Shock and awe filled the dome. This very object, or at least on similar, had been the cause of the conflict between the Empire and the Dynasty. This very object was the font of eternal life, and the pursuit of the perfect being amongst the Kryn. This very object was the source of Endrin’s Dunamantic prowess. The gravity of this very object was not lost on a single person within the dome.
Quickly, Endrin wrested the beacon back from Brett’s grasp. Fire in his heart, Brett demanded they head to the Ashguard Garrison at once to deliver the beacon. The Lens agent quickly conceded, realizing he was now match for the combined might of FCG, and agreed to wait until they had rested, under the condition that this beacon be delivered to the hands of the Kryn Dynasty as soon as possible. The tension that now gripped the entire group could not be overstated. They all took turns taking uneasy rest and maintaining a close watch on the cavern around.
Brett and Conan shared the first watch while Endrin stayed awake as well, holding the beacon tenderly in his lap. Brett called Conan, an ex-Righteous Brand soldier’s motives into question once more and learned the bitter fate of Conan’s Xhorhasian wife and of the fighter’s resulting lack of faith in the Empire. Brett and Conan retired, rousing Triple J and Endrin for the next watch. As soon as Brett fell asleep, Endrin propositioned Triple J with the prospect of murdering Brett right then and there, eliminating any outside knowledge of Endrin’s beacon. Shocked at the idea of cold blooded murder, Triple J refuted Endrin’s arguments at every turn. Endrin worried that Triple J failed to fully grasp the power of the beacon and thrust it into the bard’s hands. After a moment, Triple J’s consciousness was consumed by visions of a gray beach and the possibility of his parents reuniting, or not, and the potential of all that lay before him. This experience, however, only strengthened Triple J’s resolve as he returned the beacon to Endrin. Triple J argued that a fragment of a god was too much for one person to control, while Endrin parlayed the safety of his ancestral home as well as his own desire for knowledge and power.
As the debate between Endrin and Triple J continued, suddenly they heard a splash in the lake just behind them. Their conversation ceased immediately as they watched a slender drow figure emerge from the water on the opposite bank. Slicking back his wet hair, Danbol took once glance at the puke colored dome, and immediately dashed down the leftmost tunnel as Endrin pointed and shouted at him.
