As we waited for a passing person to bring the canoe, Ygnas convinced one of the supplicants to devotre his life to St Anya instead of giving up everything to become a candle. He went off to devote his life to St Anya. The rest of us split up what proceeds we had gathered and returned to our own affairs for some time. The tower of abraxus would have to wait.
Session map
We explored the rest of the small series of rooms that seemed to hold discarded equipment. The four pouches held 400gp, which we did not yet divide up among us. One room had barding for a horse, and another 4 sets of plate mail, along with an assortment of weapons. There’s value in those rooms, if we can get it out safely. The most interestikng room was the last, which had visible (and audible) ghosts along with a bricked-up doorway north.
Session map
Ygnas is still stuck in her niche, now minus her shield and one boot. We dragged her away to try a few things with little luck. We found Warnock in a niche in the north east niche room.
I was able to cast Protection from Evil, which made the sand keep its distance from me. Bless failed, somehow intercepted by the power that rules this place. However, while Ygnas can technically cast spells, they tend to fail rapidly. Relying on her spells to hold Minerva and the werewolves seems unwise.
Session map
The St Yggians held their Feast of the Virgins, a festival centered around finding the most pure and unsullied young womewn and putting them on display in a kind of beauty pageant. It seems like a contradictory idea to me, but I have minions who man the concession stands, so I’m all for it… but this time, the pageant winner was abducted by a vampire. At least, that’s what Nottanis told me when he decided vampires were above his pay grade and called me in.
Session map
We set off for the correct tower bright and early in the morning. The ravens flew us south, following the edge of the floating island, and we saw many towers around the edges. There were even ruined fortifications connecting some of the towers. We saw a tower made of sandstone, two more with a strange dome and a peaked roof.
About a quarter of the way down, we came to a river, flowing off the edge of the island and disappearing into mist. This suggests some powerful magic is active here, above and beyond merely levitating the island; the water would surely have run out long ago were it not magically replenished somehow at a rate equal to the outflow of the river.
Session map
We crossed the pit, finding a T intersection with two more doors. Between us, we listened to them all. We heard voices behind one; someone was chanting. Stria opened the one next to it, just a crack, and closed it quickly. She whispered that there were more Vol cultists there, discussing how to get past some monster obstacle. Behind the third door, yet more dragon cultists. There were no obvious valuables or reasons to reveal our presence, so we left.
I pulled myself to the top of the plateau just as Seleana was promising the ravens we had brought food. Just in time, too; one of them had given the druid a nasty peck on the shoulder that nearly tore her arm off. I laid the seed out according to the directions, while Selaena made silly caw caw noises. I can’t criticize too much, I’ll be doing the same thing later. They ate, and 7 of the ravens seemed amenable to becoming our companions. Which was good, as two new adventurers had joined the knight Stavros at the bottom of the cliff. Selaena and I struck a holy bargain of healing, and Denara smiled upon it enough to bless u-Heury for bravely keeping between the druid and the ravens.
Session map
After bringing Ygnas back, and getting her settled in at the tavern to recover, we reported to the wizards at the tower of the leaning goose. They were so excited by the report that they proposed an immediate return to Highfell, this time on the backs of giant ravens. The wizards claimed to possess a kind of magical birdseed that would allow us to befriend them, for a period of months at least. We could then ride the animals to Highfell. We could return the same way, but I insisted on a potion of feather fall for each member of the group. Just in case. Ygnas insisted she needed rest, but recommended her friend Selaena the druid to accompany us. The wizards suggested we look for a specific tower within Highfell, an octagon with a rectangular annex, once occupied by their patron.
Session map
By the time I caught up with the old man and his cart, darkness had fallen. We exchanged pleasantries and agreed to be allies for the night in case of trouble. We both went to bed, hoping to hear my friends catching up, but I drifted off.
I woke to Rowen poking me with a stick. The rest of the group had found horses somewhere and caught up. I didn’t want to ask where they got the horses, for fear I wouldn’t like the answer, but I least I wouldn’t have to make the journey to Thatchem alone. Unfortunately they brought a huge panther with them. The panther promptly pounced on Morin’s horse and dragged it away while I healed her wounds.
Session map
We traveled northeast for hours, doffing our armor to make better time for Ygnas’ sake. To be honest northeast was the only real choice for miles. Mountains blocked the north and south, and to the wet were salt plains. At least in grasslands there would be a chance of water and game, not to mention civilization. Eventually we came across a road, with diverging pathways northeast, northwest, and southeast. We chose northeast again, passing through a forest.