The Ashen Company are gathered in their villa, discussing next steps to take down Nassandrial. Null suddenly notices a fly in the room, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. It hovers near the party and Null is immediately suspicious. Switching over to Ashen Argot, Null relays the presence of the fly to the party and urges our swift exit. The fly seems to notice the the switch in language, which panics Null further. "WE NEED TO GO", she says, handing the over the rock from the cliffs outside of Zazuza. Berrik obliges, and the party teleports away.
The desolate cliff edge overlooking the sunken city of Zazuza has changed little since they were there the previous day. The Ashen Company, however, won't ever be the same after all that they lost. Still, like the cliffs, they are resolute against the hostile forces that threaten to pull them asunder. They have to finish this - For Cade.
We decide to proceed first on foot. Berrik casts seeming on the party to make us look like shipwrecked pirates (real tough ones though, who shouldn't be accosted). Nessie appears as a regular horse. Null rubs dirt all over her clothing for good measure. The party treks forward cautiously, with Null scouting ahead.
Before too long, we reach the edge of the jungle. A cacophony of animal sounds surrounds the party. The foliage is so dense, it would be easy to get turned around in here. We decide to check with the locals. Flynn casts Speak with Animals (thanks to group patron Latharial) and tries to coax someone over with the promise of rations, made a little more appetizing with the help of Prestidigitation. After failing with an unfriendly jaguar, Flynn finds some success with a monkey. The rest of the party witnesses Flynn and the monkey shriek at each other (small talk to establish trust). Eventually, Flynn brings up their draconic quarry when he enquires about other threats in the jungle. The monkey points northward and says that we'll know we're in the right place when the animals have gone silent. He then wishes Flynn good luck, implying that this endeavour is a fatal fool's errand. Flynn tosses a ration to the monkey and we press on.
After some time on foot, we reach the edge of the swamp. We're heading in the right direction - the wildlife has gone eerily quiet and a noxious fog hangs over the terrain ahead of us. Knowing we are limited on Protection from Poison scrolls, we want to avoid trekking through the swamp as much as possible. A new plan is hashed out. Silas summons Reno, his camel Pegasus, and takes the party's haversack and bag of holding. Flynn ushers everyone else into the jar, which Silas will also carry. Silas casts Protection from Poison on himself. As quickly and quietly as possible, Silas and Reno fly through the fog and into the unknown.
After some time, Silas spots some Dragonflesh abominations below. They are akin to the dragonflesh grafters we have seen before, but more "complete". Silas lands Reno and is spotted. Time to scrap, I suppose. Initative! Lotty only has time to cast Protection from Poison on Null before Flynn evicts everyone from the jar. As the air outside the jar is toxic, she unfortunately spends most of the fight casting it on everyone else, so as to avoid the party succumbing to the poisonous atmosphere. In addition to the poison in the air, the abominations themselves are poisonous and attack the Ashen Company with a combination of physical attacks and acid belches. It's truly putrid! After fireballs from Berrik, an astonishing crit from Null, and some fantastic EB and Hex combos from Flynn, these monsters are soon bested. We feel pretty good about ourselves, but time is ticking and we have to keep moving. With the jar now no longer an option, Berrik uses white exaltium to twin a polymorph spell. Flynn and Null are turned into Giant Owls, and will carry Lotty and Berrik respectively. Silas will ride Reno, as before. Off we go!
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| Built like brick shithouse, you can't knock this gal over with a pail of water. |
We fly for 10-15 minutes before encountering a ruined village - several simple building with thatched roofs, decrepit and succumbing to the surrounding swamp. We slow slightly, enough for Berrik to notice an old foe peeking out from a doorway. It's the Dragon Blessed, the super sturdy druid who RUINED our library and caused immense structural damage to our home. Before Berrik can shout a warning, Flynn's polymorph is dispelled and both he and Lotty tumble to the ground. Before we can decide what to do, Silas loses his Protection from Poison and the Dragon Blessed dispels his mount. Berrik and Null land, then Berrik drops Polymorph on Null. Flynn watches as the Dragon Blessed flees into a tree, using Transport via Plants to get to the far side of the village. The rest of the Ashen Company begin to lose their Protection from Poison. In frustration, Flynn starts lobbing firebolts at trees. It makes everyone feel a little better, but it's not enough to stop her antics. We can't get a lock on her and now the air is killing us. We can't stay here. The Ashen Company flees the ruined village, running as fast as they can. Eventually they make it to a safe place to stop and hunker down. Lotty quickly finishes upping everyone's Protection from Poison. As we end the session the druid doesn't appear to be following, but our element of surprise is gone. Nass surely knows we're here.