5- The Corrupted Path

Date: 8/22/2024

---

The party—Johnny Hotpockets, Clovis Wellhungh, Janos, and Narvane Shadowspell—found themselves in the deepening corruption of the forest, tracking the wyvern that had wreaked havoc in Greenvale. Under Dr. Elara Thorne’s guidance, they followed the trail of the creature, which had grown easier to track as the signs of its passage—twisted plants, stone-like bark, and a faint hum of dark energy—became more apparent.

Their journey brought them to an ancient forest shrine, its stone altar long overgrown and now corrupted by the same dark energy that tainted the land. There, they found an injured man, Roran, who had been attacked by the wyvern. Though grievously wounded, Roran provided the party with vital information—directions to the wyvern’s lair hidden within the jagged mountains. Despite Dr. Thorne’s protests, Clovis, seeing no way to save the man, ended his suffering with a swift stroke of his sword. The shrine, already unstable, began to crack and shift under the growing corruption, forcing the party to move on quickly.

As they pressed further south, the forest grew darker, and the air thickened with tension. The twisted trees and uneven ground reflected the artifact’s growing influence. It was not long before they found themselves in a narrow gorge, surrounded by towering cliffs and dense foliage. The oppressive atmosphere weighed on them, and the tight quarters forced them into single file, making them vulnerable.

The wyvern chose this moment to strike.

Swooping in from the rear, the corrupt creature let out a piercing shriek before decapitating one of Dr. Thorne’s porters in a brutal display of speed and power. The party quickly rallied, driving the wyvern off with a barrage of attacks, but not before it stung Dr. Thorne with its poisonous tail. The poison coursed through her body, paralyzing her as she fell to the ground, her life hanging by a thread.

Desperately, the party searched for a way to save her, but the poison’s effects were too powerful. In the end, they could do little more than craft a makeshift sling, allowing the remaining porter to drag Dr. Thorne back to Greenvale in the hopes that someone there could treat her. The party, now down a crucial ally, continued to track the wyvern to its lair.

The trail led the party to the base of a cliff, where a large cave loomed before them, the very air around it pulsing with the artifact’s corrupt magic. Jagged rocks jutted from the ground, and the trees around the entrance were blackened and twisted, their branches seeming to reach out like claws. Strange runes, glowing faintly with a sickly green light, were scattered along random rocks on the lower slope below the cave. These runes seemed to have no deliberate pattern but clearly carried an ominous message.

The party examined them, but their meanings were unclear. Clovis believed the runes foretold doom and destruction: “Forged in the depths, where stone meets flame, the Heart holds the power of creation and destruction. In the wrong hands, it brings only death.” However, Johnny interpreted them differently, seeing a potential path to salvation: “When the shard is torn from the mountain’s core, the land will bleed and the sky will darken. Only those of pure intent may restore the balance.”

Despite their differing interpretations, the party pressed on. Johnny, ever cautious, took the time to set a deadfall trap at the cave's entrance, rigging it to trigger when needed. With the trap in place, Clovis attempted to sneak up the scree-covered slope leading to the lair, while Narvane and Johnny flanked him and Janos brought up the rear. However, Clovis’s approach was betrayed by the sound of loose rocks shifting underfoot, and from the cave darted two young, corrupted wyverns.

The battle that followed was brutal. The corrupted young wyverns attacked ferociously, their scales glowing with the same dark energy that corrupted the land. Narvane fought valiantly, but in the chaos, he was stung by one of the wyverns and gravely wounded. As he delivered a crushing blow to his attacker, the wyvern’s tail struck him, and the poison spread through his body, paralyzing him and bringing him close to death.

Janos fought with relentless precision, his axe cutting through the air with fluid grace, belying his stocky frame. Clovis and Johnny fought alongside him, their combined efforts eventually bringing down the corrupted creatures. But the cost was high. Narvane fell, passing through the Black Gates of death after a rattling Last Breath.

Clovis, too, suffered during the battle. His left arm was rendered useless by a wyvern’s sting, and though he fought off the worst of the corruption, its lingering effects remained. Johnny was left unsteady on his feet, his hands shaking from the wyvern’s venom.

Just when hope seemed lost, Narvane suddenly gasped for breath, inexplicably returning from the Black Gates. What he saw there remained a secret, known only to him and Death itself, but his return left the party shaken and wary of what lay ahead.