FCG charged deeper into the winding warrens in search of Conan. However, their advance was halted quickly by the endless tide of beasts still pouring forth from every direction. With heavy hearts, they were forced to retreat back through the crawlspace, sealing Conan’s fate. Triple J was distraught at the loss of his beloved friend. Tears flowed like a river from the bard’s eyes. Sick with sorrow at the thought of not even being able to retrieve Conan’s remains, Triple J departed back up to the central chamber where they had all rested together just minutes prior. Nyx, feeling the pangs of guilt for her role in isolating Conan, accompanied Triple J up the tunnel. She offered her condolences and an open ear as Triple J tearfully reminisced on his relationship with Conan. Triple J told her of their first meeting where Conan had gotten into a fight with some drunken goons while defending a maiden’s honor, and how Triple J, for the first and only time, actually managed to save Conan. As the pair reached the subterranean lake, Nyx gave Triple J some space to mourn in private while she went and collected colorful pebbles for an eventual memorial service. Triple J walked over to Conan’s armor in a daze, Conan’s death still too surreal to believe. Triple J sat his friend’s armor up as best he could and leaned against it, back to back. Choking back tears, Triple J began talking as if Conan was still right there, right behind him as he’d always been. Full of regret, full of sorrow, he sobbed and sobbed until the protective dome came to materialize around him. Finally Triple J fell asleep, exhausted, broken, still back to back with Conan’s only remains.
Down by the crawlspace, Endrin and Brett remained. With a moment of relative calm, Endrin couldn’t resist the urge to pull out the Beacon, placing it on the ground between he and Brett. The Lens Agent looked on in awe at the artifact as Endrin poured his consciousness into it. Too weary to extract more than a moment of solitude from the Beacon’s depths, Endrin withdrew to reality. Brett answered the pensive wizard’s questions regarding the Luxon Beacons as well as he could before the two rejoined the rest of the party up by the lake. Nyx caught the tail end of their conversation and her ears perked up at the mention of one of these Beacons. The sorceress hinted that she had seen one before, but, much to Endrin and Brett’s ire, refused to divulge any further information. Still suspicious of Nyx’s motives, Endrin and Brett bound her again before eventually going to sleep.
The next morning, a tough decision was made. FCG elected to head toward the Ashguard Garrison rather than risk their lives, yet again, searching for Conan’s remains. Clinging to the memory of his dear friend, Triple J gathered Conan’s armor and slung it over his slender frame before departing. The group traversed down the right-most path past the slain ropers and a multitude of small skeletons lining the cavern floor. After traveling for hours, they eventually came across a split in the tunnel. Seeking a better vantage point and perhaps an exit to the accursed caves, they proceeded upwards to the right. Cold air and the dim light of dusk greeted them as they trudged on, eventually emerging on a wide roost high up somewhere in the bluffs.
Curious, Triple J went up to examine one of the black deadwood nests and the eggs within. A screech then pierced the air as a trio of shadowy avian creatures descended upon the party in defense of their eggs. With their frontline no longer present, Triple J and Endrin endured the brunt of the assault before managing to destroy many of the creatures’ eggs, sending the shadowy entities fleeing into the dark gray sky. Hopeful for a chance to procure a shadow bird of his own, Triple J poked around the nests one more time for any remaining eggs. While no eggs were discovered, the bard did manage to find an eerie crystal, which Endrin identified as a shard of the Shadowfel itself. The three sorcerers of the group began squabbling as to who should be the recipient of the magic item as the party prepared to head back into the tunnels.
