13: Serpents of Sarpedon
As the cursed adventurers and their ghostly crew sailed the small islands of southwest Valterra, rumors of forbidden treasure drew them towards the lost isle of Sarpedon. Any good sailor knows to never go looking for Sarpedon but Ember, Aralia, Gabriel, Jin-e, Rowan, Vash, and Metztli were already cursed- so they had nothing to lose and everything to gain.
The shores of Sarpedon were littered with remnants of an ancient civilization. Strange creatures, mysterious ruins, and grand statues welcomed the party. As they ventured inland, the adventurers were assailed by foul basilisks. X the Mystic’s 4th rule of Dungeon Survival says:
“No one carves statues of frightened warriors. If you see one, keep your eyes closed and your ears open.”
Rowan must have skipped that page.
The team survived but the second son of Lonethorne was now a fine marble statue. The adventurers were able to extract venom from a basilisk corpse which cured Rowan of his petrification (right after a few of his stone fingers were accidentally snapped off).
Mostly intact, the party navigated their way to a foreboding cave entrance in the side of a cliff, a sure sign of treasure. Inside the cave, the brave dungeoneers found an ancient abandoned temple. The 4th rule of dungeon survival held true- statues of terrified warriors lined the dark halls of the long lost temple.
Serpentine effigies loomed above insidious traps and living stone sentinels. Foe after foe fell before the hero's combined might and no stone was left unturned in pursuit of the fabled treasure trove. Instead of gold and jewels, Jin-e’s sticky fingers met a clutch of lovely giant spiders, much to his dismay.
As the party entered the inner sanctum of the temple, they were met with nothing but eerie silence. Still no cache of ancient treasures. The party was on high alert- but not high enough. The accursed matriarch of the temple stepped out of the shadows behind Jin-e. The Manslayer turned to face this foe and instantly fell prey to her petrifying gaze. A brutal battle ensued; blood spattered the fair marble floor.
The serpent-haired monstrosity of lore tore into the adventurers who had dared defile her sanctuary. Brave though they were, the heroes were crucially injured by the accursed countess and beginning to get desperate. Rowan, lying behind cover, clutching a bleeding wound, retrieved a small wooden box from his bag. The marvelous pigment.
Using the magic paint, the young wizard hastily scrawled the likeness of a small hand mirror on the floor and it sprang into existence as expected. Rowan used the last of his strength to cast a mage hand, holding the mirror, toward the fray. The ethereal hand barely reached Vash, who was in the monster's clutches with several sets of snake fangs buried in his flesh.
Closing his eyes tightly, Vash snatched the mirror from the magic hand and thrust it before the creature's beautiful and awful face. The monster mistress of the temple met her own gaze- and the room fell completely silent as she was instantly turned to stone.
The curse of stone was broken and the Medusa's victims, including Jin-e, were cured. The party heard a cry in the room, it was from an odd young boar man. The child explained his name was Chrysaor and the late Medusa was his mother, who he claimed had turned him to stone by accident.
The heroes decided to bravely rescue the orphan from the ancient temple and raise him as their own. Chrysaor agreed to come along and showed the team into his secret living chamber. While Chrysaor gathered his belongings, the brave adventurers bravely looted all of Medusa's treasures. Several mysterious artifacts, including a locked journal, a magic mirror, and a serpentine sword, were now in the party's hands.
Chrysaor accompanied his new family to the Fortune. Now free from his isolation, a whole grand world of opportunities was laid out before him.
Comments