Chapter 19: Endless Nights

[Jeff]

I'll bring Adamant up to speed later in the round, at which point Melethos's adventure below will come back to this main thread.

[Brian]

Okay, boss.

[Jeff]

Well, there are no immediate foes present in view, at the moment. So we're out of turn-based mode now.

Below

Adamant fights the lethargy that wants to take over, even as he falls; it's this vapor...

Then the rope snaps; either Adamant's too heavy or it's too rotten, but it gives, and suddenly Adamant is falling. He is certain he is falling much farther than a single deck below; much further. But he doesn't hit the ground hard, weirdly, but his three-toed metal feet settle on wooden planks, though he's still in the green vapor. And he know he's got to get out of it before

He tries to take in his new surroundings. It still looks like the hold of a ship. It's stagnant, though, and it reeks of death and decay.

There is Melethos! And Calirataia is in the tiefling's arms. Both are backlit by a raging bonfire; a strange place for such a fire. Ships and fire . . . not usually a good mix.

Even Melethos now notices the flames lickinng at the column.

Does Adamant have Delver's Light active?

Above

The fiend has disappeared into the green misasma rising from the giant hole in the sterncastle's deck.

Shorak, closest to it, sees no sign of Adamant, but he's suddenly aware that the rope that Adamant went down no longer looks as taut.

Histra's wraith settles to the deck nearby and turns its glowing eyes on Shorak. It just waits there.

Histra lets out a desperate sigh, grabs Belarin's hand and squeezes it tightly. "Too close, my love." She tugs on him, intending to lead him toward Relwalyn . . .

[Dave W.]

the delver’s light is on high, though I’m told that’s not as effective during the long night...

[Dave W.]

out of rounds ...
Adamant tries to shake free of the inertia. He forces one foot to move towards Melethos! And Calirataia. Then the other. He steps ou tof the green vapor. “Melethos! What has happened? Is she okay? Are. you?”

[Brian]

"By the gods, Adamant!" Melethos holds out the dryad. "Take her and move behind me. Heal her, then wake her. If she can't reach the Dragonfly on her own, use your glaive to open a door. She must get back to the ship." He lowers his voice. "Remember the mission. If you need to, leave me behind. On your oath to Dol Arrah, you will do this!"

[Dave W.]

“I have just used the glaive’s dimensional travel. I can not again until the next sunrise.” Adamant says with true pain. Nevertheless he picks up the dryad and moves a bit further back. He sits her against the mast.

---

He’ll take her 10 feet behind Melethos 1 se, 1s from Mel’s place. Can he tell what’s wrong with her? Is it disease, unconscious that cure wounds would fix, paralyzed? Poisoned?

[Brian]

Melethos sighs in frustration. "Very well. Do what you can for her, lay your hands on her. Then help me. The fiend will be back soon. Don't hold back. We need to hit it with everything we have." He draws his sword and turns to face the vapor. "Be quick, my friend. Be very quick."

[Dave B.]

Shorak just sighs. "Now what?' He asks as he goes over to Kal to get his rope of entanglement back. "I would just jump down, but I'm feeling very week at this point. I'm also not much for suicide missions." He looks around, trying to find some inspiration as to what to do next.

[Joe]

Streko arrives just in time to hear SHorak's concern. He reaches back into his haversack and hands him a vial of red liquid. "If we are to attack and save Calaritaia, drink this first. It will heal you somewhat and also, I believe, give you flame breath. This belonged to one of the Sulatar mages we fought...so long ago, it seems. He then lays hands on his friend, flooding with with warm, healing energy. I have one last major spell, but I must keep it in case I need to flee with the dryad. I hope this helps.
__________________________________________________

Streko casts Cure Wounds at 5th Level on Shorak for → 23 hit points. He also hands Shorak the "liquid flame" potion.

I've moved it from Streko to Shorak's inventory.

[Ken]

Belarin lets Histra direct him back toward Relwalyn. Brute force may not save the day, but talking to the person who started this nightmare might just work.

[Dave W.]

While he looks at Calirataia he says, "Can you still talk to Kal? Maybe we should all get in one place... we may need good Streko. You can mention that I didn't need the rope. Apparently landing is safe?"

[Darren]

"Dammit," Kal curses as he watches the fiend descend. "I don't have enough energy to get all of us down there and back up again, but I can get them out." He tosses the rope in his pack to Shorak. "See if you can fashion something longer and get it down there. Keep the deck clear. Hopefully I'll be back soon."

I'm coming down to you, Melethos hears, and without another thought, Kal dives headfirst into the pit. As he descends, he gathers the arcane energies around him and what was an uncontrolled fall turns into a rapid flight.

________________
Maximum effort.

Kal will jump into the hole and cast Fly on himself.

Quick meta-game (which you could all see from the sheets, anyway), Kal's got two Dimension Doors in him, plus he could burn one of his 5th level slots to cast it a third time, so he can ferry everyone out as long as we have time to make that happen.

[Jeff]

Above

Jan 11, 2021 1:19:30 GMT -4 Ken said:

Belarin lets Histra direct him back toward Relwalyn. Brute force may not save the day, but talking to the person who started this nightmare might just work.

Histra says, "That creature, it's a Mabarian gaunt, I'm sure of it. Not undead itself but capable of creating the undead."

She releases Belarin's hand and approaches the ghost. "Relwalyn, we can bring you peace. We must slay your slayer. Can it be done?"

The spirit looks less agitated now. With none of the other undead on deck, and the fiend out of sight, her appearance begins to shift. Soon she no longer resembles a rended corpse but the woman you saw earlier, garbed in fine adventurer's leather, a short cape, and a jeweled dagger at her belt. Her feet now touch the ground like a living person's. She looks at Histra, seeming unsure what to make of her.

"What happened here?" Histra presses.

The spirt says, somewhat numbly as if recounting a recent event, "Willan Kraal summoned a demon, hoping he could command it to slay the Serpent. He blamed me for those deaths, but it was he who riled the Serpent. He wants veangance, but did not consider when he is doing so. His spell called not to the depths of Kyber but to Mabar only. It is Long Shadows. Fool! He will doom us all."

Histra gives Belarin a look. Quieter, to him, she whispers, "She will not accept that she is dead. That is fine."

To the ghost, she says, "What can we do to help?"

"Kill it. It cannot be unsummoned. Not now."

Meanwhile, near the stern, Kal prepares to plunge into the green-vapor-filled hole!

So Kal is using a 4th-level spell slot for Fly, right? FYI, when you cast at 4th, you can target another person as well to benefit from Fly (delivered by touch).

Below

Adamant takes Calirataia into his arms. He knows the cold metal cannot be as comfortable as a flesh-and-blood creature's embrace, but in her current state, he doesn't think the dryad will notice. Now that he's seeing her closely, he tries to figure out what's wrong.

A Wisdom (Medicine( check from Adamant is in order!

[Darren]

SHIT! Kal is out of 3rd level slots! I totally missed that. But I also didn't know about the letting other people Fly by using higher level slots, which actually gives me a totally different idea. So that being the case, Kal will just jump in without casting Fly on himself. He figures the other two reached the bottom, so hopefully he'll be okay. I'm guessing he can't just Dimension Door down, since he doesn't really know where down actually is.

[Brian]

As Adamant tends to the dryad, Melethos tenses, waiting for the fiend to appear. He knows enough time has passed that Streko's spell has ended.

Why isn't it here yet?

[Dave W.]

Jan 11, 2021 11:40:47 GMT -4 Jeff said:

A Wisdom (Medicine( check from Adamant is in order!

Adamant focuses on the dryad that he impossibly loves. "Host, help me save her", he prays.

dlw32: 1D20+6 → 26(20 + 6) CRIT!

[Jeff]

Down Kalarian falls, and he very quickly finds the green vapor he's falling through to be more alarming than the free-fall. It's making him feel weaker just passing through it.

I need a Constitution saving throw from Kal!

Below

Adamant looks the dryad over, checking the strength of her pulse (not great, but still going) and looking for wounds. Searching her body for something that would indicate the injection of poison. He sees nothing of that; only some minor scraps from being handled unpleasantly. She appears to be comatose. But then he understands that she has been weakened by something else, something like poison but not poison. She partook of Streko's feast, she should be inured to poison.

Instinctively he looks over to the green vapor that hangs in the air nearby. Having felt the same siphoning sensation from it, he concludes that Calirataia had been exposed to that miasma for too long, it must have placed her in that state. It's necrotic in origin, not poisonous.

---

Adamant's out-of-character observation: Calirataia has suffered 5 levels of exhaustion and she's at 0 hit points (which accounts for her unconsciousness). She is stable and not dying, but very vulnerable.

Some special abilities and environmental hazards, such as starvation and the long-term effects of freezing or scorching temperatures, can lead to a special condition called exhaustion. Exhaustion is measured in six levels. An effect can give a creature one or more levels of exhaustion, as specified in the effect's description.

1 Disadvantage on ability checks
2 Speed halved
3 Disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws
4 Hit point maximum halved
5 Speed reduced to 0
6 Death

[Darren]

So here I thought, "Hey! Kal has a +5 on his Constitution saves! That's pretty good! He's got this!"

Yeah. No. I got a 6. Natural 1. F U, dice roller.

[Ken]

Jan 11, 2021 11:40:47 GMT -4 Jeff said:

To the ghost, she says, "What can we do to help?"

"Kill it. It cannot be unsummoned. Not now."

"Not the best answer," says Belarin. "Can it be bound, if not necessarily unsummoned?"

[Dave W.]

"I can bring her to consciousness but she is spent." Adamant narrates for Melethos, "I do not know if she will be able to do much good. Streko could do more but mostly she needs days of rest."

He leans in towards Calirataia and whispers to her, "I may be cold, but I can bring you some warmth." He gently cups her cheek and calls on Dol Arrah's healing power.

---

3rd level cure wounds.
dlw32: 3D8+3 → 16(3 +2 +8 + 3)

[Jeff]

Below

By the time Kal feels his body slowing and stopping, with feet planted awkwardly on some sort of lower deck, his body heavier than it did. The green vapor is taking his energy away. He knows he's got to get out of it fast.

He sees Adamant and Melethos here with Calirataia safely in hand. He takes in the scene quickly and also instinctively covers his nose with his sleeve. It reeks of death down here. A bonfire, seemingly conjured by magic (Melethos?) and Adamant's light are the only source of illumination down here. Where the light fades into gloom, he can make out what appears to be a thick carpet of corpses filling the hold from wall to wall; all details about the bodies are obscured.

Joe: I assume that Cure Wounds was as a 5th-level spell, given your number of rolls?

Above

Streko's spell of healing soothes the worst of Shorak's injuries, but he's still far from feeling safe.

Both halfling and halfdrow watch as the wraith that Histra sent over begins to glide back towards her.

Jan 11, 2021 14:42:17 GMT -4 Ken said:

"Not the best answer," says Belarin. "Can it be bound, if not necessarily unsummoned?"

Histra shakes her head. "I don't . . . I don't know. I don't think there is. We're halfway between our world and its. Temporal banishment is the best we can achieve." She turns to the ghost. "Relwalyn, we are here to save you and your crew."

The ghost stares back. "That is well. Rhashaak's Fang has important work to do, and I must reach my destination. We must survive. Gilros and Hallaeril can help us. They are wizards of my order." Belarin notices a slight Eldeen accent, maybe Aundairian. 

Histra nods. "We will seek them. Will you stay here, Relwalyn?" 

"Yes."

Histra takes Belarin a short distance away. "We are hurt, but we are not dead yet. A gaunt has only one method of healing. It must absorb its own creations. If there are more of them in this ship, then it will get stronger again. If not, then we have a real chance to destroy it. We've hurt it already. Let us regroup. If the dryad is safe, then there is no hurry. We need to rest and heal. We cannot take a day, because I think we need to get back to the Dragonfly before Long Shadows ends, but we can take an hour or two to rest. Would that help?" With the necromancer's hair still wet and her body still shivering, she still manages a teasing smile. "Aren't you glad I came? How much about Mabar did you learn in your youth?"

Below Again

After Adamant casts his spell, Calirataia convulses. It looks agonizing, but it passes in a few seconds. She stirs slowly and her eyes flutter weakly open. Her body is less lax now, and some tension returns to her limbs. She is so light in the warforged's arms, she feels almost like a spring sapling.

"Adamant," she says very slowly, her breath smelling of honeysuckles. "Your eyes are a welcome sight, where . . . wherever I am." She tries to reach up with a finger to touch one of his eye-gems, but it falls back down. She is too weak. But she smiles anyway, not even trying to look around yet.

Many second shave gone by. The fiend has not reappeared.

Calira now has 16 hit points.

Attachments:

[Brian]

Events are happening fast. Kal stumbles onto the deck. Behind Melethos, Cali starts to speak. Adamant's light makes the tiefling's bonfire unnecessary. With a gesture, he dismisses the flames.

"Kal," he says, grabbing his friend. "Can you get the dryad onto the Dragonfly? We need to hurry, before the fiend gets here."

[Dave W.]

Below
"shhh," Adamant replies, and he touches her hand trying to re-assure. "We are here now. Melethos has chased you a good way. He will have a story for you. But rest for now."

He stands and moves to Melethos but keeps an eye on the dryad. "We are not safe. And more than a little injured. I could spare a little healing for you or save that power for fighting the fiend."

"Hello Kal, Come out of the vapors please. They will weaken you."

[Darren]

Kal gasps at the cold seeping into his bones. He steps quickly towards his friends, his arms out towards them, shaking his head as though trying to clear it. "Thank the gods you are safe!" he says, looking around desperately. Confusion crosses his face. "Where is the fiend? It dropped down this hole before I did!" Kal looks back up the way he came. "I don't understand how we didn't just fall. And now I'm concerned." Kal looks around. "Melethos, what is the situation down here? I assume you looked for a way out?" Kal begins to look for any and all exits to the room. "I can give the three of us the ability to fly, and hopefully Adamant can carry Calitraia," Kal notices the dryad is conscious, "Hello, Calitraia. It is good to see you up again." Then he continues, "Or I can transport us up one at a time, but my strength may run out before I get all of us up top." Kal looks up again. "Either way, I'm concerned. I'm not sure that we can just fly back up the way we came. And I'm afraid that targeting our location with teleportation may be risky, since I'm not completely sure where we are." Kal grits his teeth. "What is the situation, Melethos?" he asks again, as though he hadn't already asked.

[Jeff]

Sorry, Darren. Meant to add this to the post above, the result of that Con saving throw:

Kal has gained 1 level of exhaustion. This means he now has disadvantage on all ability checks.

If an already exhausted creature suffers another effect that causes exhaustion, its current level of exhaustion increases by the amount specified in the effect's description.

This will only go away when he takes a long rest (or magic like Greater Restoration is used).
Kal is now especially wary of that green vapor. If he goes into it again . . .

[Brian]

"No!" Melethos replies. His voice echoes in the hold. "Cast Fly on me and Adamant if you can, but get Cali out of here now. Dimension Door her back to the Dragonfly." He lowers his voice. "Behind us is a dragon skeleton. That's where the green vapor comes from. And there are other threats, but we don't have time. Move, before the fiend returns!"

[Dave W.]

“Agreed. Give us all flight, we stay within arm’s reach of each other, one of you on either side of me… Dol Arrah’s aura will protect us. I can carry Calirataia. If any of us look to be in trouble we grab the other.”

“But we need to move before the others come down to find us. They are fairly stubborn you know.“

[Ken]

Jan 11, 2021 15:47:14 GMT -4 Jeff said:

Histra takes Belarin a short distance away. "We are hurt, but we are not dead yet. A gaunt has only one method of healing. It must absorb its own creations. If there are more of them in this ship, then it will get stronger again. If not, then we have a real chance to destroy it. We've hurt it already. Let us regroup. If the dryad is safe, then there is no hurry. We need to rest and heal. We cannot take a day, because I think we need to get back to the Dragonfly before Long Shadows ends, but we can take an hour or two to rest. Would that help?" With the necromancer's hair still wet and her body still shivering, she still manages a teasing smile. "Aren't you glad I came? How much about Mabar did you learn in your youth?"

Belarin raises an eyebrow. "Yes, dear. The lesson, as always, is that you've fallen in love with an idiot." He rubs her wet tresses playfully. "Let's rejoin the others and see if they're recovered Calirataia." Belarin moves quickly aft.

[Dave W.]

“I can see I misunderstood.” Adamant catches the look from Melethos. “I’m sure you have the right plan. I am not in my best form just now. But whatever we are going to do, we need to do it now.”