Beasts of the Past and a New Ally

Geological / environmental event

On their way to the tomb, the party discovers an ancient shrine, and a new druid companion.

While the path to the tomb is known to them, along the way Wilphose notices a red gleam he hadn't seen before. Upon investigation he discovered a ruby the size of a small chest sitting on a pedestal in the middle of an ancient and crumbling shrine. Nearby, a Druid by the name of Lydia is watching disguised as a fox. She approaches Athis and Wilphose, soon revealing herself and telling them of the magic she's noticed around the old shrine. Wilphose and Prakash together confirm the ruby is magical, having an aura of transmutation. Wilophose makes up his mind, and snatches the ruby from the pedestal.

As soon as the ruby is removed the sky goes black. Kithu and Orpheus begin running towards their friends but not before is begins to rain heavily and the ruby is struck by lightning, shattering it to pieces and throwing Wilphose to the ground. The storm spreads far and wide and lightning strikes at the ground. Everywhere it strikes the ground shifts. Skeletons pull their way out, but not humanoid skeletons. These are birdlike, standing on two legs, with mouths full of sharp teeth. As the skeletons rip their way free of the earth they begin to grow muscles, organs, and skin. Soon the party is surrounded by a pack of Velociraptors. Just as they are about to attack a larger portion of ground erupts and a Quetzalcoatlus rips its way free, lunging towards the party. A fight ensues. The Raptors are dealt with quickly but the Quetzalcoatlus manages to consume Wilphose and try to escape. Before it can do so, the party manages to ground it, chopping off its head and pulling the unconscious Wilphose out of its gullet.

As quickly as it appeared the storm vanished. The party picked themselves up and, with their new companion Lydia in tow, continued on to the tomb.