Session 13 - Creatures of the Deep

General Summary

Soon after leaving the mines, Roger synthesizes a cure using the liquid magic. Arimanthos has a few hushed meetings with some of the members of the Red Sand Consortium, and in the middle of the night, wakes the group to leave under cover of darkness. For awhile, he looks back nervously, by soon relaxes as the sun begins to rise.
Through the fog of the early morning, they hear shouts of pain as an old fisherman is being attacked by a giant crab. Thinking quickly, Skara bolts the crab and pulls the old man aboard.
"May the gods of the sea bless you young men. I prayed for heroes, and here you are. I need heroes like you to help Darkpool. Something has riled up the creatures of the deep; unnatural, evil, shambling things! They come out of the waves and take people in the night!"
When the group first sailed to the al Shabaab Oasis, they passed by this town completely, thinking it was just a stray lighthouse. Now as the man guides Iva through the jagged rocks, a small village comes into view. They can see it was built under a large cliff, blocking out what little sunlight penetrates the fog. A few men sit on their small fishing boats, and nervously wave to their friend.
After making landfall, the man tells the group that they are having a meeting in the old lighthouse that night, and the group should attend. Nath sees a man walk up to the shore and disappear without a trace. Skara and Fenrir investigate some of the broken down shacks and find strange marks and the remnants of a claw. Amon tries to talk to the townspeople, but they all seem suspicious of outsiders.
Finally night falls, the group makes their way to the old lighthouse. Tightly packed into the cramped quarters of the lighthouse are all of the villagers who remain in Darkpool. It is obvious that most of these people are related, and most display the same pale, weathered skin and disarmingly dark purple eyes. The man they saved that morning speaks up.
"Well, it looks like I found help, and here’s hoping they’ll be our salvation. I suppose we should tell them about our troubles."
The elders blame the lack of faith of the younger generation, believing they have turned their backs on the gods of the sea. Some believe their over-fishing has led to the sea itself fighting back. Still others believe the town has been cursed by a sea witch. The people fight between themselves as a storm whips up. Rain pounds the lighthouse as lightning flashes, illuminating the arguing villagers. A shocked cry rings out, and the assembly gazes nervously toward the stairwell leading down. There, seawater creeps steadily upward, approaching the stain that marks the highest tides and flooding the entire lower story.
The tentacles of a Kracken begin to enter the lighthouse from the doors and windows. Amon is dragged under the water as Skara and Nath try to save townspeople. Fenrir begins to shepherd the remaining people of Darkpool to the top of the building.
When Nath realizes his bardic friend has been dragged under, he dives into the water. His years as a sailor have taught him many things about underwater combat, and is able to deliver a frighteningly strong kick to the Kracken, causing it to release his friend. When the creature realizes that these men are no easy prey, it slips back underwater.
The remaining people of Darkpool agree that this was a servant of their sea god. It has been the tradition of this town for over a millennia, to consummate their wedding night in a temple that juts up above the seas surface. The younger generation has not been following the old beliefs, and have angered the gods, they ask the group to investigate the temple the next morning.
Iva sings a beautiful sea shanty under her breath, obviously nervous, as she steers the small craft provided to them skillfully through the jagged rocks. She sniffs the salty air and nods towards a large dorsal fin. A small domed spire peaks out from below the waters, like the top of a cathedral. A small hole in the wall allows them access. Amon detects a illusion spell has been cast over this place and is able to find a secret staircase leading down.
The air is dank and heavy, and seems to have been bottled up within the confines of this structure for centuries. Carvings and reliefs decorate the walls, and what looks like a model of stars planets and other celestial bodies slowly rotate from where they hang on the ceiling. Two demons spring out and attack the group. They fight around the temple to Nethys with Fenrir fighting Frost and the rest of the group taking on Bolt.
Moving around the constalation themed room, Fenrir is able to skillfully fight off Frost. The demon is pushed back to a wall and just before Fenrir is able to deliver the killing blow, the moving model of the moon on the ceiling blocks out the model of the sun. Suddenly, Frost begins to grow in size, patches of fur poke out from the chinks in his armor as his nose grows into a snout. The werewolf is then able to begin to turn the tides as his newfound strength better matches Fenrir.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group struggles to pin the lightning fast Bolt down. Amon is able to slow him down with an bolt shot from his crossbow, as Skara is able to destroy him with a pillar of flame.
Frost, in his rage, make a desperate swing for Fenrir. The young hero is able to nimbly dodge the attack and beheads the beast. Nath, who had fallen into a pool of water, find a small chest filled with gold.
A man appears before the group. He wears a mask of white and black, half his body glows like a cinder from a fire.
"I yield," he laughs to himself as he approaches the group, "It seems good has won over again. I will grant you any knowledge be it lost or forgotten if you only ask. I know all that is and was, but I do not know what is to be"
The group asks many questions of the mysterious man, and discover many things. First, that the man is Nethys, a god of magic and knowledge. Skara asks him what happened to his missing father, and is told in hushed tones by the deity. Nethys admits that this village consists of half human, half demon hybrids, a failed experiment of his. The disappearing villagers is him cleaning up his mess. They learn the locations of the remaining five demon generals: one plots from Castillo castle, two have used the chaos to set themselves up as rulers of the noble houses of Atheroes, one still sleeps, and one lives in the new village once known as Sandpoint. Finally, they discover that the demon lord they fight, is actually a god. Impressed by what he sees, Amon takes an oath and becomes a follower of Nethys.
Returning to rowboat, the group instructs Iva to return them to The Seawolf.

Report Date

05 May 2019

Primary Location

Darkpool