Session 13

The party stepped through the portal and into the Astral Sea.

After a moment of magnificent wonder, the four of them began falling toward a colossal mass several thousand yards below. Ebyn, Seknafret, and Xalen quickly arrested their fall - recalling the advice of the three wizards.

Travel in the Astral plane is controlled by the mind.

Brabara fell for a long way before she managed to stop. “Nope,” the big warrior said upon finally coming to a halt. “This is not for me.”

Ebyn zipped passed, floating through the void with ease, eyes wide with wonder. “What do you mean? This is amazing.”

“Don’t give up, Brabara,” Seknafret said while floating a short distance away. “It’s simple enough once you get the hang of it.”

Brabara’s stomach churned. Everywhere was up and down at once, and she struggled to make sense of it. “I can’t do it.”

Xalen drew up beside her. “Take my hand,” he said. “Let me guide you.”

Brabara took the offered hand and gripped it.

“Not so tight,” Xalen winced. “You don’t need to crush it.”

Brabara’s grip loosened a little, but Xalen still had to grit his teeth. “Okay. Now, follow me.”

They started out slowly at first.

“You’re doing great, Brabara,” Xalen said. “Just stay focussed on me.”

Beads of sweat formed on her forehead as she let Xalen lead her down toward the floating mass below them.

Their speed increased a little and Xalen squeezed Brabara’s hand. “I’m going to let you go, okay?”

“No!” she squealed.

“Relax,” Xalen said. “Just keep looking at me and try keeping your distance.”

Brabara scoffed. “What does that even mean?”

Xalen kept moving, and Brabara managed to keep pace with the young rogue. “Great, now we’re going to change direction a little. Just keep your eyes fixed on my back and picture yourself a few feet behind me.”

Xalen angled his flight and started moving off to Brabara’s left.

Brabara turned her head to track Xalen’s line, and she felt her own direction change in response. “I’m doing it.”

“That’s great,” Xalen said. “Now, let’s see if we can catch up with the others.”

Once she was stable and under control, the group slowly made their way down toward the mass of tangled flesh and viscera below them. Brabara had to admit that The Astral Sea was a beautiful place, filled with glowing clouds that floated in a void dotted with distant stars. Her stomach continued to churn as she navigated the empty place, but she found herself admiring its cosmic beauty.

Clouds surrounded them as they drew closer to the mass below. Sparse at first but growing steadily thicker the closer they came.

“What is that?” Xalen said pointing at a bright glow limning a nearby cloud.

Seknafret’s eyes narrowed. “Is there something moving in there?”

A pair of creatures burst from the cloud, large fishlike beings with a glowing beacon hanging from a stalk at the top of their heads. Wide mouths filled with nasty looking teeth opened as they drew closer. Brabara felt a wave of euphoria wash over her as she stared at the pretty light on the creature’s head, but a shriek from Xalen soon snapped her free of its lure.

Brabara swung her glaive around and willed herself over to where the young rogue was battling the agile beast. She smashed into its side with a satisfying crunch, her glaive skewering the monster’s body in a shower of pale liquid.

The second beast swam past them toward Seknafret and Ebyn, who fought back with blasts of eldritch energy and fire. Seknafret’s blasts knocked the beast back and away from them.

Brabara and Xalen made short work of the beast that attacked them. The hapless creature was no match for the combination of Brabara’s glaive and Xalen’s arrows, and it soon floated off unmoving into the void.

Another barrage of Seknafret’s eldritch blasts convinced the second beast to seek other prey as it flew back into the clouds and away.

The four of them paused to scan the nearby clouds, alert in case more of these astral predators prowled the area nearby.

A dark shape passed over them, mostly hidden amid the clouds.

“Did you see that?” Xalen said, pointing.

Ebyn nodded. “It’s big, whatever it is.”

“Were they tentacles?” Seknafret asked.

Brabara shuddered. “I hate this place.”

The group drew lower and saw three distinct sections of a broken ship strewn about the body of what could only be a dead or dying god. Settling on one of the three portions, the four of them flew down to land on the upper deck of the rear of the crashed ship.

As they approached, two green-skinned figures stepped out onto the deck. Loaded crossbows lifted toward them.

“That’s close enough,” the tallest one, a male, shouted.

"Who are you and what is your business here?" said the other, a female.

"We’re here to help you," called Brabara. "We are members of the Neverwinter City Watch, and we have come to lend our aid."

"Never what?" said the male.

"Never heard of the place," said the female.

The two of them looked at each other and shared a good laugh. The pair said something to each other in a language none of them recognised before lowering their weapons and beckoning the group down.

"Best get down here," said the female. "There's creatures up there, and worse, pirates who'll stick you as soon as looking at you. It ain't safe flying about."

“I’m Lysan,” the female said extending a hand to Brabara as she set foot on the wooden deck. “And this is my brother, Zastra.”

Zastra doffed his hat and gave them all an elaborate bow. “Welcome aboard the Lambent Zenith.”

Lysan scoffed. “She ain’t what she used to be, but she’s all we got.”

“What happened to your ship?” Ebyn asked, surveying the extensive damage.

“Pirates,” the pair said in unison.

“Got attacked a couple of days ago,” Zastra paused a moment. “Or… weeks? Maybe… Hard to be sure how long. Time doesn’t really work out here.”

“Definitely weeks,” Lysan added. “I think. Yes, it must be because that other small boat crashed here after we did.”

Zastra nodded. “Oh yes, that’s right. It had the tree on it.”

“Tree?” Ebyn said.

Lysan blinked. “That’s what Daveras told us. He and his companions fell foul of the pirates like us and his boat hit the mid deck out there.”

“And this was after the pirates had attacked you?” Ebyn said, becoming confused by the turn of the conversation.

Zastra nodded. “Exactly. We was floating along, minding our own business, when this massive tentacle ship came at us. They burst from the cloudbank before we could do anything and tore the Zenith apart. It’s a good thing this mass was here, or we’d be floating apart in the void rather than stuck down here together.”

“We saw something like that on the way down,” Xalen said.

Lysan nodded. “They’re still out there, waiting us out.”

Ebyn raised an eyebrow. “Waiting? For what? You said time doesn’t work here so they can’t starve you out, can they?”

Zasta snorted. “True enough, but boredom will make a person do some stupid shit no question. Eventually we’ll crack and them bastards up there will make a move.”

“We’ve lost Figaro already,” Lysan added. “Captain had to lock the poor guy up for his own good.”

“How many of you are here?” Seknafret asked.

“Twelve,” a booming voice said from the doorway.

Everyone turned, as a broad figure wearing a sleek red coat adorned with medals stepped onto the deck. Grey skinned with the head of a hippopotamus; it walked up beside them with a heavy stride. “I am Ilren,” the Giff said. “First mate of the Lambent Zenith. May I enquire as to your business upon my ship?”

There was an awkward shuffling as the group thought about how to answer that question.

“To be honest,” Xalen said finally. “We’re looking for an artifact of some power. None of us knew what we might find when we got here.” He looked around, arms motioning toward the wreckage. “We certainly didn’t expect this.”

Ilren’s tongue clicked. “I see, and now that you have seen our predicament?”

“Well… I guess that depends on what you might need from us?” Xalen finished.

Ilren chuckled, a deep rumble that caused his belly to wobble. “I don’t suppose any of you are shipwrights? Carpenters? Anyone who can help put the old girl back together?”

Brabara shook her head. “No, but perhaps there is something we can offer you.”

Ilren scoffed, “And what, pray tell, might that be?”

“A way off this floating corpse,” Ebyn said.

The Giff’s eyes fixed on the shadar-kai mage. “I see. A worthy prize indeed. Why would you do such a thing?”

Ebyn straightened. “Passage out of here in exchange for the artifact.”

“What makes you think we even have this object you seek?” Ilren countered. “Does the offer of help still remain if it turns out the artifact isn’t here?”

“Of course,” Brabara said before anyone could stop her. “We’re Neverwinter Watch, helping the helpless is part of what we do.”

Ilren smiled, his wide mouth curling to reveal two widely spaced molars. “That is excellent news,” he said with a meaty clap of hands. “Let me formally welcome you aboard, my friends.”

Ebyn glared at Brabara. “Okay then,” he began, eyes finally sliding back toward the first mate. “Now that we have reached an accord, can you provide the artifact?”

“No,” Ilren said, still smiling.

“And why is that?” asked Ebyn.

Ilren shrugged. “Because we don’t have it. You’re welcome to look around the ship if you like but I cannot give you what we do not possess.”

Seknafret cleared her throat. “Excuse me, Ilren. Your companions mentioned that you have one of your crew locked up. Is that correct?”

Ilren’s expression darkened, and he shot a glance toward Lysan and Zastra. “More confined to quarters, than locked up, but the distinction is not important. It is for his own safety.”

“How so?” Seknafret asked.

“His mind is gone,” Ilren explained. “Speaks only gibberish and gets angry if you go near him. Indra, the captain, had no choice but to lock him up.”

“Where is the captain?” Xalen asked.

Ilren’s head bowed and let out a heavy sigh. “We ain’t seen her in a while. She flew across to the front of the ship some time ago and hasn’t returned.”

The others turned to peer at the wreck of the prow floating a few hundred yards away. It was difficult to see clearly with the shifting clouds but there was no sign of movement there.

Xalen raised an eyebrow. “And you haven’t sent anyone to find her?”

Ilren shook his head. “No, we haven’t. It’s not safe out there, you see.” He waved an arm non-specifically around him. “There’s … things … out there. Predators.”

Just then, as if to underscore his point, several dark shapes moved past them in the clouds.

“See!” Ilren squeaked. “Between those, and the pirates, none of us are keen to risk it. Not yet anyway.”

“We should go over there,” Xalen suggested. “See if the captain is okay.”

Brabara swallowed. “I’m not flying over there. Not through that.”

“What about there?” Seknafret said pointing at the wreck of the middle part of the ship, more clearly visible through the mist. “We could make the journey in two jumps. First there, since it’s not that far, and then to the front. We’ll be much closer that way.”

Brabara eyed the section of wreck suspiciously, a slight nausea already growing in her gut. “I suppose.”

Ilren clapped again. “Wonderful. You will find the captain for us, yes?”

Ebyn frowned. “Remember why we’re here. We should search this part of the ship first before flying off on some potentially fruitless rescue mission.”

Ilren scratched his neck. “Search this part? … Oh, yes, for the artifact you seek. Of course, you are welcome to look around, but there really is nothing like that here.”

Xalen came up beside Ebyn to speak quietly in his ear. “Let’s check out the other parts of the ship first. If we find the Rod piece there, great, if not, we can come back and search this section later. Plus, if we do find the captain and bring her back, it’ll make poking around down there all the easier.”

Ebyn considered that for a moment before nodding in agreement. “I can see the wisdom in that, Xalen. Let’s head out.”

Using the power of their minds, the group lifted off the deck to fly the few hundred feet over to the middle section. A second ship - much smaller than the Lambent Zenith - crashed atop this part of the wreck and upon that second craft stood a giant tree with dark green leaves and pink flowers.

“Will you look at that,” Seknafret said. “The astral plane really is home to some strange wonders.”

Brabara eyed the strange tree suspiciously. “I hate this place.”

“There’s a way below decks over there,” Xalen said, pointing.

"I can't let you in there," a deep voice said from the direction of the tree.

They all looked around for whoever had spoken.

“Who’s there?” Xalen said, bow raised, and arrow nocked. “Show yourself.”

“But you can already see me,” the voice said again. “I’m not trying to hide.”

Brabara’s eyes narrowed. “Did that tree just talk?”

“I am Redbud,” the tree said. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Seknafret stepped forward. “Well met, Redbud. I am Seknafret and these are my companions. You said we shouldn’t go down there. Why?”

“There are parasites down there,” Redbud explained. “They will hurt you.”

"What kind of parasites," Ebyn asked. "Maybe we can get rid of them for you."

"Why would you do that?" the tree asked. "I don't have any gold or anything."

"We are looking for a magical rod," Ebyn explained. "If we help you, will you tell us about it?"

The tree considered that for a moment. "Ok, I'll tell you what I know, but first I need to be honest. There's no treasure down there, just my friend, Ikasa. I've been protecting him."

"Maybe we can help Ikasa," Ebyn suggested. "Who is he?"

"Ikasa is a dog," said Redbud. "I'd hate for him to fall victim to those horrible brain beaks."

"A dog?" said Brabara.

“That is what I said,” Redbud confirmed.

Brabara gasped. “Quick, let’s go. We must save it.”

Ebyn stepped between Brabara and the opening. “Wait.”

Brabara stopped, glaring down at him. “I’m not hanging around up here while you consult the auguries if that’s what you’re about to suggest.”

Ebyn sighed and shook his head. “I wasn’t, as a matter of fact. What I am trying to tell you is that I have a spell that could let me convince these so-called brain beaks to leave.”

“Okay, that sounds like a good strategy,” Brabara conceded.

“I just need to be in a position where I can see them all,” Ebyn explained.  

Brabara nodded. “Give me a few seconds down there first, I’ll have them all grouped up nicely for you.”

Brabara dropped into the hole belowdecks to find six unusual creatures floating about the area. Brain beak, it turned out, was an excellent description. Each one resembled a bulbous floating brain with a wide sharp beak attached. Long tentacles tipped with sharp barbs dangled from the floating brain, and all six jerked toward Brabara as she entered.

“Come get me you ugly bastards,” Brabara said before moving into the room.

The brain beaks floated around her, spiked tentacles writhing as they struck. Brabara’s armour protected her from the bulk of the attacks but those that did manage to pierce her defences hurt like hell.

Ebyn dropped into the hole behind her to see Brabara surrounded by the aberrations and he smiled despite the danger she’d placed herself in. He took a snake’s tongue and wrapped it around a piece of honeycomb from his component pouch and touched the weave with his words.

“Leave this place now,” Ebyn commanded, his voice bolstered by magic. “Continue moving away for as long as you are able.”

Five of the brain beak’s hesitated, their tentacles pulling away from Brabara as they began to exit. Only one remained, stubbornly refusing to succumb to the power of Ebyn’s suggestion.

Brabara attacked the remaining creature, her glaive cutting through its exposed flesh with ease and it soon fell in a tangle of beak and tentacles to the wooden floor.

With the brain beaks defeated, Redbud rearranged his roots so that the party could pass and reach Ikasa. The dog was very happy to see them and ran straight to Brabara with a happy wag of its tail. 

"I'm so glad to see you," Ikasa said as he jumped at Brabara.

"You can talk?" she asked, incredulous.

"The collar, it’s magical and lets me speak," the dog said between joyful licks.

Brabara reached into her backpack and removed her emergency leg of ham and laid it out before the dog. "Here, take this. I know you don't need food here but still..."

Ikasa ripped at the meat happily. "Thank you so much, I'm not hungry, but this is a wonderful gift."

In the meantime, Ebyn and Xalen searched the area, while Seknafret stayed above with Redbud.

They found a room set up as a kind of study with a locked strongbox disguised as a book. Xalen was unable to pick the lock, so Ebyn used his magic to coax the lock open. Inside was a vial of purple liquid, and a journal of some kind.

While the others searched, Brabara sat with the dog.

“Did you see Redbud up there?” Ikasa said, wagging his tail happily.

Brabara nodded. “We did. He told us you were down here.”

“He’d been protecting me. He kept his roots bunched over the entrance so the brain beaks couldn’t reach me. Redbud is a good friend.”

“Do you have many good friends?” Brabara asked.

“Oh yes, several. There’s Redbud of course, and Daveras, and…” the dog’s words trailed off, tail falling still and drooping. “And … well, I guess I have some new friends now, don’t I?”

Brabara reached forward to scratch Ikasa behind an ear. “Of course you do, but what made you sad just now. Is something wrong?”

“My friend, Palenna,” Ikasa said, head lowered. “I saw her jump clear of our ship when the pirates attacked. I was so scared that I didn’t tell Daveras or Redbud what happened. She’s probably still floating out there, scared and alone.”

Not far away, the box at Ebyn’s side clicked open again. A new secret stored within; “Ikasa saw Palenna float away but didn’t tell anyone.”

“I see,” Brabara said. “I understand how that must hurt, but it isn’t your fault, it’s the pirates who caused this not you.”

Ikasa was silent for a moment then let out a contented bark. “Thank you. I feel much better now having told you.”

Brabara smiled. “Right then. Let’s get you back topside to see Redbud.”

Ikasa’s tail wagged furiously, and he leapt into Brabara’s outstretched arms. “

The group returned with the dog to the upper deck, and as soon as Ikasa spotted Redbud he leapt from Brabara's arms and ran happily around the tree. Redbud moved his branches around to embrace the joyous animal.

“Thank you for helping him,” Redbud said as the dog nipped and licked at the treant’s thick bark.

“The brain beaks shouldn’t trouble you for at least the next few hours,” Ebyn said. “But there is nothing to prevent them from returning once my suggestion wears off.”

Redbud sighed. “It might be time we left this lifeboat and joined the others.”

“Good idea,” Brabara said. “You’ll be safer with the others on the rear section of the ship.”

“What will you do?” Redbud asked.

“We’re trying to reach the captain at the front of the ship,” Brabara said. “Her crew haven’t seen her in a while and asked us to find her.”

“Hmm,” Redbud said. “Be careful, friends, the mist around here conceals many dangers.”

They said their goodbyes and took flight once more.

It didn’t take long before the mid-section of the wreck became obscured by the mist behind them. They could occasionally see parts of the Lambent Zenith’s bow ahead of them and used that to guide them as they travelled.

That was when the attack came.

Two huge creatures, looking very much like one eyed sharks, flew at them from either side. One used its massive body to thud into Brabara, knocking her spinning into the mist, while the second snapped its gaping maw at Xalen.

The razor-sharp teeth left a long gash in Xalen’s arm, but the agile rogue was able to slip free and propel himself away from the astral predator.

Seknafret struck the one near Xalen with her eldritch blasts, the force of the blows knocking the beast back and away from the bleeding rogue. Ebyn followed this with a firebolt that seared the creature’s leathery flesh.

Brabara managed to keep hold of her glaive as she spun through the void. She could see the creature out there circling her but her uncontrolled spin made it hard to keep her weapon aimed in the right direction.

The monster struck again. It darted in, teeth snapping down on her leg. Pain lanced through her and she let out an angry snarl. The bite stopped her from spinning at least, and she managed to bring her glaive down onto the beast’s back, scoring several deep cuts.

“Can you see Brabara?” Xalen said to the others.

Seknafret shook her head. “I lost her in the mist.”

Ebyn pointed. “I spotted some movement in that direction just before, but nothing since.”

“Shit,” Xalen spat. “I’ll try and find her.”

“We’ll handle this one,” Seknafret said, and struck the beast once more with her eldritch blasts, knocking it further back with each hit.

A third creature appeared behind Ebyn. Different from the rest, it looked more like a ragged leather cloak than a beast, it materialised behind Ebyn and wrapped its wide wings around the wizard, engulfing him completely within its flesh.

Ebyn just managed to give a startled yelp as his body became wrapped in the newcomer, a yelp that soon turned into a scream of pain as needle sharp teeth pierced his flesh.

Seknafret concentrated her attacks on the wounded shark creature but kept her eyes on the thing that had Ebyn. If it escaped into the mist, they might never find the mage again.

Frustrated by Seknafret’s repelling blasts, the shark-like creature slunk away leaving Seknafret alone with whatever aberration had engulfed Ebyn. She spied movement below the tightly wrapped wings, Ebyn, who futilely struggled to free himself from its clutches.

Brabara and Xalen returned several moments later, blood flowing freely from numerous wounds.

“Where’s Ebyn,” Brabara said with a grimace.

Seknafret pointed. “In there.”

Brabara’s eyes widened, and a look of genuine horror washed over her. “No!” she screamed as she flew across to the beast, glaive ready.

“Wait!” Seknafret called out before Brabara could strike. “You might hurt Ebyn as well.”

Brabara paused a moment. “You’re right. But what choice do we have.”

“She’s right,” Xalen said, now floating beside Seknafret.

Seknafret frowned. “The other shark thing?”

“Dead,” Xalen said. “Yours?”

“Ran away,” Seknafret said, then turned back to Ebyn and let out a long breath. “Okay, I’ll keep some healing spells ready.”

Brabara, Xalen, and Seknafret attacked the ethereal cloaker as one. Glaive, spell, and arrow all struck the fell beast. Muffled screams could be heard within the folds of the monster’s leathery skin but none of them could see any other way to free their trapped companion.

The monster let out a primal howl, causing hairs to stand up on Brabara’s exposed flesh. A cold spike of fear threatened to break her resolve. Only the plight of her friend kept her from turning to flee the fell beast and she managed to push the urge down and stay close by.

The three of them struck the beast again and again, until finally the creature stopped moving to end up floating dead in the void. Brabara moved in and wrenched the monster’s clawed limbs open to reveal Ebyn’s unmoving form within, his own body covered in serious wounds.

Seknafret closed, channelling the divine power of her pact, and placed a healing hand on Ebyn’s chest. Everyone held their breath, and it felt like an age before the wizard coughed and sputtered back to consciousness.

Brabara swallowed him in a firm embrace. “We almost lost you there, buddy.”

Ebyn feebly tried to struggle free. “Enough with the hugs,” he gasped. “It’s like I’m in there again.”

Brabara’s arms snapped open, and she floated back. “Sorry, Ebyn,” she said. “I wasn’t thinking.”

Ebyn nodded. “It’s fine. I’ll be fine. I just need somewhere to rest for a bit.”

“We’re not far from the ship’s bow,” Xalen said.

Brabara extended a hand. “Hold onto me. I’ll get you the rest of the way.”

The group made it to the front section of the wreck and landed on its upper deck. Ebyn immediately removed a small crystal bead from his component pouch and settled down to perform a ritual.

“Stay close to me until I finish,” Ebyn said before beginning the incantation.

Ten minutes later, a dome of force sprang up around the mage, engulfing the Succulent Juices within its protective arc.

“We’ll be safe in here,” Ebyn said as he took out the journal they’d found hidden in the mid-section of the wreck and started leafing through it.

The others took the opportunity to recover as well, using the down time to tend their wounds and recuperate.

“This is interesting,” Ebyn said after a bit of reading. “It seems that the captain found the Rod Piece floating in the Astral Sea. She managed to attach it to the ship’s helm somehow which let them teleport from place to place.”

“So, the first mate was lying when he said he didn’t know anything about the artifact,” Xalen said.

Ebyn nodded. “Seems that way, yes.”

“Does the journal tell us where we can find the rod?” Seknafret asked.

“It does, but knowing the location alone won’t help us,” Ebyn explained. “The captain set up an elaborate security system to prevent access to that part of the ship.”

Brabara scoffed. “Surely that can’t still be working. The ship is in pieces.”

Ebyn shrugged. “Perhaps, or perhaps not. The pirates, for some reason, haven’t attacked the wreck. Maybe they know of the security system and are waiting for the crew to disable it since they can’t.”

“Must be impressive if that’s the case,” Xalen pointed out. “I wouldn’t mind meeting a person who can create protections like that.”

“Me too,” said Ebyn. “They must have an excellent grasp of the arcane.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to wait long,” Seknafret said, pointing outside the hut.

The others turned to see a stunningly beautiful red-haired female climb the steps to the forecastle where the group sheltered. The woman had a single beautiful white feathered wing on her right side and a prosthetic leg on her left - the same side missing its wing. She didn’t appear angry or concerned, she merely stood there and waited.