"And now, of all people, the Witch of Alushinyrra herself writhes in Granny Skaryn's web. You were ever so good at making mortals think they were more than they were made to be, dearie. But who would have thought that you'd convince yourself of that as well?"
Skaryn Moonwhittle
Tired from their lengthy approach to the Broken Mountains, the Wayfinders decided to stop to make camp in the forests at the foot of the mountain before continuing their search. While resting, Arueshalae excitedly informed Raija and Korra that she had done what she previously thought to be impossible: she had her very own dream, and wished to show her two dear friends. However, doing so would require Arueshalae to take their hands, breaching an as-of-yet unbroken barrier for the touch-starved succubus.
With Korra and Raija's permission, Arueshalae took her friends' hands. Her touch bestowed a slight, abrasive burning sensation, but soon gave way to unconsciousness as the trio entered Arueshalae's dream.
The trio found themselves on a gathering of featureless, floating rocks adrift in a sparsely starry sky. Arueshalae concentrated, causing objects to appear on each rock. A campsite upon one, an active forge on another, and a fully stocked dinner table on the next.
Korra and Raija congratulated Arueshalae on her accomplishment, but also noted that nothing in the dream was strictly Arueshalae's own; the objects conjured by their companion were all borrowed from the notes of the dreams of the other members of the Fairhaven Frontier. They encouraged Arueshalae to think of what she could dream of, something that was uniquely hers.
As Arueshalae pondered this, a little flustered at this mental obstacle, she had a sudden lapse in concentration that caused a shade from her past to emerge. The shadow of a winged man reached out to Arueshalae, calling out for his 'venomous butterfly' - a name that sent Arueshalae into shock, pulling herself and her companions out of the dream.
In the waking world, Arueshalae was badly shaken. Korra and Raija's attempts to calm her down did not have much effect, and she spoke about the shadow; it had been a shade of Dimalchio, a figure from Aruehsalae's sordid past. He had once been an Azata, a freedom-loving exemplar of peace and Desna's grace, and the very pride of Elysium. Arueshalae had made him fall in love with her, corrupted him, and then abandoned him in the Abyss. Once her greatest triumph, he was now her greatest sin and shame, and despite her best efforts, she was unable to forget him.
Arueshalae was eventually able to fall asleep, leaving Korra and Raija with Vesper. Vesper believed that the best thing for Arueshalae was to confront this Dimalchio, and face the worst of her past in order to put it to rest. Korra and Raija disagreed however, believing that a slow path to recovery was what was best for their friend. Vesper noted that she may not have much choice, but agreed to let the matter rest, knowing that Korra and Raija had what was best for Arueshalae at heart.
Vesper also noted that Arueshalae reminded her of herself; Vesper had also committed horrible acts as a priestess of Lolth, and it took much time to forgive herself. She hoped that the succubus could someday find peace, no matter how it came to her.
In the morning, Arueshalae awoke feeling marginally better, though still somewhat shaken. The party continued their search, and after a day's worth of seeking locales similar to that listed in Guildmaster de Nerac's dossier on the Crystal Rose, they eventually found a waterfall that was split in several places by thorny trees and crystalline growths.
The Wayfinders, following a glow from within the waterfall to a hidden cave, found the hidden Crystal Rose in a tiny grotto. They looked at it with suspicion, believing it to have been found far too easily. However, as this thought crossed their minds, they all began to fall unconscious as the Rose's magic took hold over them.
The party found themselves inside a grim dungeon with slowly fluctuating walls and floors. Arueshalae recognized the trap as the likely work of a deadly night hag; horrible witches that had fallen to such great evil even by the standards of hag-kind, that they became fiends and made their homes in the Grey Wastes of Hades.
As the party investigated the dungeon, they came across a pair of partially open sarcophagi, within which were many mangled leonin bodies. This unnerved Korra, who still strode forward to investigate. A disembodied cackling voice soon confirmed Arueshalae's suspicions; the night hag Skaryn Moonwhittle had lured the party into her illusory trap, and began using apparitions and conjury to play on the party's regrets and fears to elicit their despair upon which she intended to feed.
Raija offered Korra encouragement and comfort and urged her to step away from the sarcophagi. Unwilling to let her prey escape, Skaryn caused the sarcophagi to overflow with blood, and from the pooling blood emerged orcish warriors, calling forth the memory of the slaughter of Korra's clan by the hands of orcish invaders.
The summoned orcs attacked, led by a fiendish tanarruk. Despite the horrific attack, the party managed to emerge victorious, conquering Korra's despair. Arueshalae revealed that she had once been an associate of Skaryn during her time in Alushinyrra, and the hag referred to Arue by her old title; 'the Witch of Alushinyrra', a title that greatly unnerved the succubus.
Exploring further, the party discovered a platform forged of cloudsteel from the plane of air. Skaryn spoke to the party from an unknown location once again, taunting Raija for being exiled from her home. Such words did little to injure Raija's indestructible ego, however, and so Skaryn resorted to more conjury. The cloudsteel platform was soon marred by the emergence of a dao slave driver, which attacked the party with her massive earthen hammer.
The Wayfinders proved too fast and difficult to pin down for the dao, however, and emerged victorious. The vanquishing of two nightmares opened up the way further into Skaryn's Nightmare Vestibule, pressing the party onwards.
The next room contained a sight that made Arueshalae nearly faint. Sitting upon a throne was an apparition of Arueshalae during her worst years, at the height of her power as an evil succubus. Skaryn recited many of Arueshalae's worst crimes as her nightmare doppelganger approached, bidding Arueshalae to return to the easy and profitable life of a captivator of mortal souls. Arueshalae angrily refused, and thus Nightmare Arueshalae attacked.
Nightmare Arueshalae proved a fearsome opponent, able to overpower her opponents' senses and inflict a myriad of debilitations upon them. Raija in particular was susceptible to the succubus' charms, and nearly lost herself to Nightmare Arueshalae's control. However, Vesper used her magic to suppress the enrapturing succubi magic, bringing Raija to her senses long enough to continue the fight.
Emboldened by the support of her allies and the progress she had made, Arueshalae managed to land the killing shot on her reflection, and loudly proclaimed that she would never go back. Nightmare Arueshalae dissipated, but more was left within the dungeon - and Skaryn Moonwhittle's patience was wearing thin…
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