Session VII: Shadow and Water

Hex's Ultimatum

Having just sustained heavy damage to the ship seconds prior, the party were ready to retaliate and open fire. However, Danuthi, hand firm on Clarissa and magic at the ready was prepared to teleport away if they abandoned their plan and simply initiated combat; the party opted against it. Instead, Corellia called out in the moment of silence with her magic, letting her voice boom over the sea, exclaiming to Hex not to fire, and that Clarissa was on board.
A second later, the sea boomed back. Everyone heard a female's voice speak to them like the waves spoke themselves. Hex said, "Apologies. I tend to come out shooting. The writing on the wall be clear in this situation it seems, literally and metaphorically. Finally come out to play, have you, Clarissa? Whoever captains that ship, I’d so trust you are here to hand her over out of the goodness of your heart. So, lower her into a longboat — alone — and leave. Your ship gets to stay afloat, and everyone wins. Your move. Make the right decision… and don’t keep me waiting."

Underwater Chess

The party thought of what to do given such a specific demand. Among them was a female human life cleric of Hwesta named Asterid, originally part of Weaver's crew, but had come over to aid in the protection of Clarissa. After some discussion with her, they decided to attempt to deceive Hex and the Ravager. Clarissa was convinced to swap her dress and parasol with Asterid's clothes.
Asterid would attempt to pass herself off in the rowboat and distract the Ravager. Meanwhile, people like Zephyrion and Arves would both fly and swim through the cover of night in an attempt to ambush the ship.
But, after Arves dove secretly into the water, he spotted a massive figure swimming its way up from the depths. It came to a stop beneath the Ravager, and Arves saw it to be a storm giant. Lightning crackled between its fingertips, and Arves used his wizardry magic so he could understand the giant. It reiterated to Arves to listen to Hex and not pull any tricks, or else. The party reconvened, and decided it would be best to have Fannik occupy the giant when things inevitably got dirty.

Sepu Thoon

Storm giants are always regarded in traditional lore to naturally be the strongest among other giants, and the exiled tyrant warlord, Sepu Thoon, is no exception. Once, he was a feared general of Attar-Une who fought in the name of Nydomer, the Giant King. But, that all changed the day the whispers and delusions of Loch seeped into his mind and took hold. In a violent attempt to rip open the fabric of space and send Attar-Une plummeting into the endless seas of the Plane of Water, Sepu Thoon was defeated and eternally cast out into Materia, where he has swam the seas of Kustaanos for ages, causing terror wherever he might in the name of Loch. He seeks to achieve the same goal in Materia as he hoped with his former home.

Asterid was lowered into the longboat and rowed out from the New Management II; it momentarily distracted the Ravager. However, thinking the plan was going to go south very quickly, knowing the party would be up against Hex, her entire crew, and a storm giant by themselves, Zephyrion took off toward Asterid, while Fannik carried the rest of the party as he took flight and the Paku'wat kobolds and crew opened fire against the Ravager. Danuthi and Clarrisa subsequently vanished, and the battle in the Bay of Parley began.

The Fight Begins

Tried as they did, the kobolds' aim with the cannons was too shortsighted. Every shot they fired went wide. Both their ship and Ravager veered toward each other as the party descended on the Ravager's deck. Then, from out of the water emerged the storm giant, Sepu Thoon. After cannonfire from the Ravager once again splintered the hull of the New Management II, a god-like lightning bolt grew out of Sepu Thoon's right hand, who brought it down full force straight through the party's ship, causing horrific damage.

Their ship was hit and listing hard, and the Ravager was untouched. The party realized there was likely only one thing they could do to put a dent in the Ravager's ship and get their followers in the coming melee. Exclaiming orders at Obaaji and his kobolds, a head-on collision course was set, and the New Management plunged straight into the port side of the Ravager; the kobolds and crew poured onto the Ravager from the main deck and through the cannon holes as they pleased at the same time the party landed on it; Arves, Corellia, and Vox was carried by Fannik. Asterid was carried by Zephyrion.

The New Management II, however had suffered too much damage. It's fate sealed, it began to sink.

The Battle on the Ravager

After releasing the party members, Fannik soared straight at Seputhoon, landing a mighty punch straight to his face, and both disappeared into the water.
Hex stood at the helm, a hobgoblin bodyguard nearby her, a monk capable of shadow and water magic, and her crew battled against the party's. With confidence, Hex declared the mistake everyone made in crossing her, and in a ritualistic chant directed for the god, Loch, conjured the same black rift the ship had once come from, and the ship immediately sailed through it again. In an instant, the party left Materia and found themselves, and the entire ship, traversing the fringes of the Plane of Water at a rapid speed, and from the ever-present water, Hex conjured a serpent-like water elemental to act as she commanded.
The party did battle against Hex on the fringes of this elemental plane. Corellia and Vox came very close to falling, but the power of Hwesta through Asterid kept them strong and able to go on.

Defeating Hex

Hex's powerful magic, granted to her through her devotion to Loch, sought to overpower the party. But, Hex was slain at the hands of Zephyrion with his doomerang, her hobgoblin first mate falling shortly after. With Hex bested, the rest of her crew slowly lost the will to fight, and what remained of them surrendered just as everyone felt a massive jaunt as the Ravager emerged from the Plane of Water upon... a lake?

Where, They Knowest Not

A lake, indeed, they had ended up at. The sky above them was still a nightly black, and the lake was surrounded on all sides by jungle fauna. Clearly, they were back in Materia, but where specifically, no one knew.
Just ahead of the ship's bow, at the edge of the lake, the party could see a watery cove entryway that led into a ruined temple structure of some sort. Based on what Arves could see, what architecture remained visible and legible from the overgrowth indicated it was an old temple to Loch. Putting two and two together, the party assumed wherever they were was where Hex used to hide away.

Looting The Ravager

The party scavenged the corpses on the ship and checked its storage and Hex's quarters. In the storage, Zephyrion came across basic dried fruit and drinking water, enough for the whole crew, and a full barrel of Gat Powder. As for the quarters, Corellia and Arves investigated its interior closely, and in many hidden compartments found things such as healing potions, treasure in the form of coin, and a spell scroll for comprehend languages.
In a hidden drawer at Hex's desk, Arves specifically came across an identical map for Goldbeard's Fortune that they already had. Only, on this one, a message was written in aquan, in strange blue ink. Arves understood it and read what it said: "Do not despair, my child. I see the pain you suffer on this journey for me, which drives you wild. You wish to further break the chains that bind me, so I will show you who knows the answer you yet not see. Down in a cove, its name bestowed from lords of crime hung by a knee, there you will find a witch of nobles be. Seek her first and all will come next. Then shall you find the heart inside the chest.”

The Captured Crew

As for Hex's crew, the lot of them clearly devotees of Loch, the party deliberated on what to do with them. Zephyrion mentioned making them into slaves, but Arves didn't want to have another situation where they spare their enemy and it comes back to bite them; he advocated executing them or handing them over to Weaver to be executed.

Corellia decided to take up the discussion with the crew in question, to which one of them, their leader an elf named Rhazien Sallow, spoke on their behalf. He advocated that between being executed on the spot or being handed over to Weaver, he and his crew were of course going to choose the option that kept them alive the longest. He also exposed to the party the confirmation that this was Hex's hideout.
Then, they were all locked in the brig. Hurt, and exhausted, the party put the kobolds and their hired crew on watch while they went to rest.

For the most of them, the rest of the night would be a comforting time to heal. However, the magic in Corellia's amulet stirred, and the energy in the temple began to move in a similar way. She knew not of the crossfire she was about to be caught in in her dreams.
To be continued...

Level Up!

Report Date
March 23rd, 2024
In-Game Start Date
Eadriscus 16th, 1301 AC
In-Game End Date
Eadriscus 16th, 1301 AC

Player Characters

Zephyrion Skyblade - An owlin fighter.
Vox - A hill dwarf, emerald kobold, ancestral guardian barbarian.
Corellia Emberfin - A tiefling-triton fighter.
Arves - A vedalkin scribe wizard.
Asterid - A female human life cleric of Hwesta.

Non-Player Characters

Hex - The half-elf warlock of Loch, captain of the Ravager.
Aria Swiftblade - A fairy champion fighter wielding duel battleaxes.
Ferris "Scurvy" Bort - A human spores druid retainer.
Fannis Lok - An exiled cloud giant.
Seputhoon - A storm giant acolyte bound to Loch in servitude.

Spyglass of Clairvoyance

Wondrous item, uncommon, 1,000gp (requires attunement)
This spyglass is ornately carved with mahogany wood affixed inside golden rings. On the glass, a divination rune can be seen etched into its surface.
Peer into the Spyglass (A). While you hold this, you may use an action to peer into the spyglass and activate the rune on the glass. You immediately cast clairvoyance, no components needed. The item regains this feature after 24 hours.
Ascended. While you are attuned to this, you can cast clairvoyance from the spyglass up to two times between rests.
“I spy with my little but very long-range eye...”

~ Unknown artificer