Session 43: Flycatcher's Lair
General Summary
The remaining three party members tumbled out of the Grimoire behind Lins. Dropped directly into the chaos of battle, they jumped to action. Vin summoned her construct to beat the spider off of Lins' shield, and Zeke used his blind sense to fight the invisible ones. Meanwhile, Nemara's shadowspawn came quickly to her call and sent several spiders fleeing.
After Sigvurd tore himself and Kaida from their sticky webbing, he started to advocate retreat, noting the absolute hordes of ghostly spiders swarming in from every direction.
The party needed little encouragement, and beat down the nearby spiders as they fled. Nemara, stricken with panic, continued running as the group paused to catch up the wizard and paladin, and found herself alone in the fog, with a growling voice calling to her.
Her shadowspawn circled protectively, but was ripped through by the monster that apparated to shred both of them with its hooks. Sigvurd, fighting the memories of their previous wanderings, bolted into the fog after them and helped dispatch the thing.
By the time the party was reunited, the despair of the Shadow Plane had its claws in most of them. But after some persuasion, they managed to reach an agreement, and headed for a thin point of light in the distance.
Much later, exhausted in every sense, they found the source of the light: a tower with a group of Shadar-Kai. One of these pallid elves greeted them in the name of the Raven Queen, and after Zeke explained their situation, admitted that they did know a way to return to the world of light, but that the information wouldn't be free.
The pallid elves did not value money or function, but the sentiment and memories attached to a thing. The elves would require such payment from each party member in exchange for the information they needed.
With reluctance, the party looked through their possessions, and each offered up a thing that pained them to part with. Sigvurd handed over the owlbear helmet which had been one of his first trophies, and a memory of the time when the group was first forming. Nemara gave up the first thing she ever stole: a silver skull. Vin reluctantly gave up the bottle of wine that she had been saving for their eventual victory over the cult, surrendering with it all the dreams of their victory.
Turning to the last two members, Zeke had few items of his old life that he had kept: only a pocketwatch and some old vestments. The elf was at first unconvinced of the value of these items, given how long they'd sat disused in his pack, but the party was surprised when Zeke made his case, sharing the memories of when he wore those garments more regularly, of what they meant to him, and the ideals they represented. The elf was persuaded, and accepted them gratefully. Then he turned to Lins, who could only think of one material object with the value the shadar-kai demanded.
Wordlessly, she handed her longbow over. It was the bow she'd had since before the adventure began, smooth from use, with the glow that only well-worn yew can achieve. From their exploration into the cairn to the Doppelganger incursion into their fellowship, the one constant had been her longbow.
Resha accepted it like something holy, and swore that their generosity would be answered in kind.
As a flock of ravens descended on the offerings, carrying them away to the Raven Queen's castle, Resha told them there was only one permanent portal in the area: a mirror in the home of Granny Nightfinger.
After Sigvurd tore himself and Kaida from their sticky webbing, he started to advocate retreat, noting the absolute hordes of ghostly spiders swarming in from every direction.
The party needed little encouragement, and beat down the nearby spiders as they fled. Nemara, stricken with panic, continued running as the group paused to catch up the wizard and paladin, and found herself alone in the fog, with a growling voice calling to her.
Her shadowspawn circled protectively, but was ripped through by the monster that apparated to shred both of them with its hooks. Sigvurd, fighting the memories of their previous wanderings, bolted into the fog after them and helped dispatch the thing.
By the time the party was reunited, the despair of the Shadow Plane had its claws in most of them. But after some persuasion, they managed to reach an agreement, and headed for a thin point of light in the distance.
Much later, exhausted in every sense, they found the source of the light: a tower with a group of Shadar-Kai. One of these pallid elves greeted them in the name of the Raven Queen, and after Zeke explained their situation, admitted that they did know a way to return to the world of light, but that the information wouldn't be free.
The pallid elves did not value money or function, but the sentiment and memories attached to a thing. The elves would require such payment from each party member in exchange for the information they needed.
With reluctance, the party looked through their possessions, and each offered up a thing that pained them to part with. Sigvurd handed over the owlbear helmet which had been one of his first trophies, and a memory of the time when the group was first forming. Nemara gave up the first thing she ever stole: a silver skull. Vin reluctantly gave up the bottle of wine that she had been saving for their eventual victory over the cult, surrendering with it all the dreams of their victory.
Turning to the last two members, Zeke had few items of his old life that he had kept: only a pocketwatch and some old vestments. The elf was at first unconvinced of the value of these items, given how long they'd sat disused in his pack, but the party was surprised when Zeke made his case, sharing the memories of when he wore those garments more regularly, of what they meant to him, and the ideals they represented. The elf was persuaded, and accepted them gratefully. Then he turned to Lins, who could only think of one material object with the value the shadar-kai demanded.
Wordlessly, she handed her longbow over. It was the bow she'd had since before the adventure began, smooth from use, with the glow that only well-worn yew can achieve. From their exploration into the cairn to the Doppelganger incursion into their fellowship, the one constant had been her longbow.
Resha accepted it like something holy, and swore that their generosity would be answered in kind.
As a flock of ravens descended on the offerings, carrying them away to the Raven Queen's castle, Resha told them there was only one permanent portal in the area: a mirror in the home of Granny Nightfinger.
Notes
Items handed over:
- Silver skull (Nemara)
- Owlbear Helm (Sigvurd)
- Wine (Vin)
- Vestments (Zeke)
- Longbow (Lins)