"Captain's Log," Fifth Entry

I write this from within the hag's lair. We did it. It wasn't easy, but we did it.
 
Melody took us to the entrance, as promised. What looked like a cave mouth lead down for... I don't know how far. But this place - it's like nothing I've ever seen before. Lit by weird fungi, filled with Auntie Nettle's traps and pets. There was even a weird kind of fungal fruit that's apparently strong enough to make even Chuck take leave of their senses - gonna have to try one of those later. I clocked a few of these purple things clinging to the cavern ceiling, and Caeli told us they're a kind of predator, and typically only dwell in the deepest, darkest bowels of the earth. We couldn't have gone that far down, could we? The descent would've taken longer. Makes me uneasy, being this far away from the open sky.
 
We survived the trip to Auntie's inner sanctum, somehow, but the hag herself was a nightmare. I've seen week-old corpses in better condition than her. Speaking of corpses, she had a couple, practically entombed in mushrooms. Fouler than foul. Melody told us she could be reasoned with, but she wanted something I'd never be willing to provide. Seems Lord Swain - Lord Swine, she called him - made a deal with her. In exchange for beauty, he'd give her his firstborn daughter, to raise as her own. I'd sooner go crawling back to my captain on my hands and knees than kidnap a girl to give to someone like Nettle.
 
We tried to talk her down, but she wouldn't hear it. Wouldn't even agree to stop tormenting Willowdale if we went to talk to Lord Swain on her behalf. I'm pretty sure I heard Caeli offer to kill him for her - got some questions for her about that, later - and Birb tried to make an appeal to her better nature. Two sides of a coin, those two are. In any case, it didn't matter - negotiations broke down, Caeli subtly signaled us, and we nearly got the jump on her.
 
Wily one, Nettle was. Disappeared in a cloud of spores, tried to blow some foul dust on us that leaves you gasping for breath. Luckily, behind all those tricks, she was just as mortal as anyone else. Caeli caught her in some kind of beam of light, and Birb fought with skill, and a zeal I didn't know was in him. Chuck, amazingly, managed to shrug off the high long enough to hold off her 'pets,' then blasted the hag herself straight into a wall. I'd never seen them fight before, and I'll admit that I harbored a few doubts, but I swear I'm never underestimating those three again for as long as I live, or may the sea take me.
 
In any case, the deed is done, for better or worse. Melody will likely be disappointed we had to resort to violence, but somehow I think this is one of those rare times a killing won't burden my conscience too much. At least the people of Willowdale are safe. I hope.