Session 8

The spiral stairs descended deep underground to end at a long hall.

Upright slabs of stone were set into the walls on either side of this large burial chamber. The faded likeness of a robed human was carved into each slab, above writing long since worn to the point of being indecipherable.

Ten slabs in total, five on each side. Identical in style except one – the last one on the right – which seemed to be blank, apart from a yellowed scrap of paper stuck to it.

The entire chamber was free from dust.

“This place seems unusually clean. Not even a cobweb.” Xalen noted from the base of the stairs.

“We are in Evernight,” Seknafret reminded him. “Perhaps things a different here.”

“Plenty of dust and leaves outside as I recall,” Xalen pointed out. “But sure, it might be that a land of undead won’t have much in the way of insect life.”

“Or it could be gelatinous cubes,” Ebyn said. “Remember that dungeon we explored on the way to Yartar.”

“Oh yes, that was gross,” Brabara said. “That super clean tunnel with the invisible acid jelly monster in it.”

Xalen rubbed his forearm. “And painful.”

“Exactly,” Ebyn said. “It could be the same thing here. Let’s check before we go further into the room.”

Ebyn spoke a few quick arcane words to send several firebolts down the length of the room watching closely in case they struck anything on the way.

“Looks clear,” Xalen said. “I reckon it’s safe to proceed.”

Brabara walked across to the slab with the paper on it. “There’s something written on here.” She leaned closer, squinting. “’Newmy’s room’, it says.” She looked up. “What’s a newmy?”

A spectral figure emerged through the slab in front of Brabara.

“I am,” the figure said brightly. “It’s wonderful to have visitors after such a long time.”

Brabara jumped back in alarm, hands gripping her weapon tight. “You’re a ghost?”

Newmy’s shoulders slumped, and she sighed. “I am. I knew this job was too good to be true, and now I seem to be bound here forever cleaning this lonely place.”

“Job?” Brabara said. “Why does a ghost need a job?”

Newmy chuckled, frizzy blue hair floating around her elfin face. “I wasn’t a ghost when I took the Job,” she explained. “The Dolindar’s hired me to keep the place clean while I, and they, were still alive. They paid me several lifetimes of wages up-front and had me sign some kind of contract.” She shrugged. “I was kinda desperate, so I took the money and signed the papers and here I am still working even after the Dolindars have passed.”

“How terrible for you,” Brabara said, any thought of violence forgotten. “These Dolindars sound like awful people.”

Newmy shook her head. “They weren’t so bad, just lonely and sad all the time. They hated it here but had no way of getting back to wherever it was they came from.”

“But now they’re all dead and you’re still here working for them,” Brabara said.

Ebyn approached the spectral figure. “Is there no way for you to be free of this deal?”

Newmy shrugged. “There might be. I reckon if I could just get the whole place clean it would satisfy the terms, and I could leave but it’s not something I can do.”

“Why is that?” Ebyn asked.

“The monsters,” she said indicating the doors at the end of the room. “I don’t go down there because I am afraid the monsters will hurt me.”

“What kind of monsters?” Brabara said.

Newmy shrugged. “I don’t know exactly. Just that the Dolindars buried down there aren’t resting right.”

“What if we were to get rid of the monsters so you can finish your task?” Brabara offered.

Newmy’s eyes brightened. “You’d do that for me?”

“Can you tell us what’s down there?” Xalen said.

“It’s only a few rooms,” Newmy began. “I don’t remember exactly because it’s been so long since I was there last. A crypt, a treasure room, and a big room behind some kind of puzzle door. It would be so wonderful if you could take care of the monsters. I’ve been here for so long and to tell the truth, I never really liked working for the Dolindars anyway.”

Newmy frowned and placed a hand to her mouth. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure why I said that.”

Ebyn felt a sharp click at his side. He reached down to find the box he’d been given by the librarian at Candlekeep had clicked open. His eyes widened. He removed the box from the pouch where he kept it and stared in wonder at the narrow gap in the lid.

He’d had the box with him for years and never managed to coax the lid up. Yet here it had opened on its own.

Fingers shaking, the young mage looked inside to find a folded scrap of paper, barely wider than a finger. With care, he took the narrow sheet out and unfolded it to see the words written upon it.

“Newmy never liked working for the Dolindars.”

The secret Newmy just shared was now held within the box.

“What does this mean?” Ebyn said holding the paper toward Newmy.

“What does what mean?” the ghost said looking genuinely confused.

“What you just told us, that you never liked working for the Dolindars, it’s written on this paper inside a box I have had with me for years.”

Newmy’s jaw dropped. “It is? How could you know that?” she said. “I’ve never told that secret to anyone.” She frowned and her eyes narrowed. “I’m not even sure why I told it to you. Have you tricked me somehow?”

“Me? tricked you?’ Ebyn scoffed. “You must have put it there.”

Newmy gasped, her expression one of pure indignance. “I did no such thing.”

Ebyn studied Newmy’s face looking for any sign that she might be lying or trying to deceive them in some way. “I don’t know what you have done, or how you have done it, but just be aware that I will be watching you,” he said returning the paper to the box and the box to his pouch.

Newmy shrugged, the upset from moments ago seemingly forgotten. “Okay. But you’ll still take care of the monsters, right?”

“Of course we will,” Brabara replied before Ebyn could open his mouth.

Newmy gave a wide smile. “That is wonderful news.”

“You mentioned something about treasure,” Xalen said. “Which way is that?”

“Oh yes,” Newmy replied. “It’s, ah, down that way.” She pointed at the door on the left. “No, it’s that way.” She pointed instead to the door on the right then turned back to the first door again. “Actually, I don’t remember. Sorry.”

Xalen laughed and approached the right door. “Alright, so let’s just try this one. Are there any traps we need to be concerned about?”

Newmy shook her head. “No traps, just monsters. Do be careful.”

He pulled the door open to reveal a narrow set of stairs going down. The group made their way down to a square chamber with six stone pedestals arranged in two rows of three in the centre of the room. Each pedestal had a dust covered item resting upon a dusty velvet pillow.

“I guess we found the treasure room,” Xalen said as he stepped inside.

He spied a second set of stairs going down, cut from the stone on the same wall as those they’d used to enter the room. “Only one other way out,” he said pointing.

The writing carved into the base of each pedestal read, “What good are treasures when home is denied?”

“These Dolinders really did feel sorry for themselves,” Brabara said as she read the inscription. “I wonder what they did to earn such a punishment.”

Xalen shrugged. “They weren’t short of wealth either. There’s at least a few thousand gold worth of items on these pedestals. Who imprisons a family with all their stuff?”

Eldon gasped and pointed at one of the treasures. “This book here. I have been trying to find a copy for years and here it is.”

“So, take it,” Xalen said.

“We’re not grave robbers,” Seknafret said. “We’re here to find our way home, not to desecrate someone’s resting place.”

Xalen scoffed. “It’s not like they’re going to miss it. Plus, it doesn’t seem like these Dolindars were particularly nice people.”

“Ah yes, the ready excuse of the thief,” Seknafret spat. “I will have no part in this.”

Xalen’s smile widened. “More of a share for the rest of us then.” He scooped the coins and other items into his bag of holding. “Don’t worry, Eldon, I’ll make sure you end up with the book.”

Seknafret shook her head and looked away. “On your heads be it.”

They descended the second set of stairs to a small rectangular chamber. Ten feet wide, and fifteen feet long, the room had another set of stairs going up on the opposite wall, and a large stone door on the right.

The door bore an inscription written so that each letter was etched into its own tile and each word appeared on a line by itself. The starting point of each line was offset oddly compared to the line above.

DOLINDARS
   EXILED
     FOR
      NO
  MISDEED

Xalen stepped over to get a closer look. “This must be the puzzle door Newmy mentioned.” He passed a practiced eye over the arrangement and used his tools to poke and prod at various points around the writing. “Looks like each letter can be pressed individually, and the correct combination of letters will open the door.”

“Ok,” Brabara said nodding.

“Does anyone want to take a guess at what the combination might be?” Xalen said with a smug grin. “Or do you want me just to tell you the answer?”

“Just open it if you’re sure,” Ebyn said. “The theatrics are not required.”

Xalen pouted for a moment. “You lot are so boring.” He started pressing the letters, A, L, O, N, E, on each row of the text.

A loud click preceded the sound of stone scraping on stone as the door slid open to reveal a large chamber beyond. Its floor was covered in sharpened steel blades rising vertically from holes in the floor. A raised dais stood beyond the blades with a squat stone sarcophagus atop it.

Xalen stood aside to let Brabara enter.

She crossed the threshold and stepped gingerly to the right of the door, careful to avoid cutting herself on the visibly sharp blades. Seknafret came up to the door and peered through the darkness just as a large shape rose from behind the sarcophagus.

The creature was vaguely humanoid but covered in twisted misshapen lumps. It hissed at Brabara and lashed out at Seknafret with an arm that somehow stretched across the room to strike the hapless warlock in the gut. The jagged spike on the end of the creature’s limb hooked her like a harpoon.

Seknafret screamed as the spike pierced her body then shrieked as the monster reeled her across the floor and onto the dais beside it. The sharpened blades tore her body to shreds as she was dragged to lie prone at the monster’s feet. A sudden feeling of deep loss emanated from the thing as it loomed over her, feeding on Seknafret’s fear and pain.

The beast lifted its other arm, ready to strike Seknafret again when Brabara landed with a thud beside it. She brought her glaive around and sliced twice, opening deep wounds in the monster’s bloated torso.

Eldon stepped forward with his holy symbol brandished before him. He chanted, calling upon the power of Denier like he’d done with the vampires outside the mausoleum, but this time it had no effect.

“It’s not undead,” the priest said stepping back. “I don’t know what it is.”

“It’s a sorrowsworn,” Ebyn called. “Beings whose powerful emotions caused them to be corrupted by the Shadowfell.”

“Thanks for the history lesson,” Brabara called back. “How do we kill it?”

Ebyn shrugged. “Like you kill anything else, I expect,” he said and launched a firebolt that struck the monster squarely in the chest. “Looks like fire will work.”

Still prone, Seknafret disappeared in a cloud of mist to reappear back in the room with the others, blood streaming from many wounds as she struggled to her feet. Brabara continue to slash at the monster with her glaive while Xalen peppered it with arrows as he flitted about the large chamber with his winged boots.

The creature lashed out with another wicked harpoon toward Brabara. It struck her side, but she managed to wrench herself painfully free before it could drag her anywhere.

“Brabara, step back,” Ebyn called.

The large warrior lunged with her glaive and took a step down off the dais, weapon held out to keep the creature at bay.

A bright wall of flame erupted in the space Brabara had just left and encircled the fell beast. Screams of agony and loss were torn from its throat as the fire consumed its corrupted body.

The stench of burning flesh filled the air and a harpoon arm shot from beyond the flames toward the doorway as the beast thrashed. The arm twitched several times before the screaming faded, and it fell still.

Ebyn left the burning wall in place for several seconds after the screams ended. Once satisfied that the sorrowsworn was dead, he released the magic to plunge the room back into darkness.

Brabara moved back onto the dais beside the monster’s charred body and poked at it with her weapon. “Its super crispy now. I’ll look around.”

She searched the area and found a lever on the floor behind the sarcophagus. She pulled the lever without hesitation and the vertical blades retracted into the floor.

Ebyn gasped. “What just happened?”

“There was a lever here, so I pulled it,” Brabara said.

“You pulled it?” Ebyn said. “What if that triggered some calamity?”

Brabara shrugged. “But it didn’t.”

Ebyn rolled his eyes. “This time, sure, but that may not always be the case. At least warn us if you’re going to do something like that.”

“Okay, fine,” Brabara said. “Next time there is a lever I’ll be sure and clear it with you before altering its position.”

The pair stared at each other across the room for a few seconds when Seknafret stepped between them, looking much better after using her magic to recover. “Stop bickering. We’ve got more important problems than who pulled what, when.”

“Who pulled what,” Xalen sniggered.

Seknafret shot him a look that soon removed the smile from his face. “You’re all acting like children.”

Xalen landed on the dais next to Brabara and studied the lid of the sarcophagus. A barely readable name, “Kevetta Dolindar”, was carved into the stone of the lid along with the phrase, “Home again, to rest forever.”

“Should we open it?” Xalen asked.

Brabara nodded and made ready to push against the lid. “On three?”

“Wait!” Ebyn shouted, standing at the entrance of the room. “Let me see if there is any magic effect in place first.”

“How long will that take?” Brabara queried.

“About a minute,” Ebyn replied. “You’ve seen me do it many times before.”

Brabara and Xalen glanced at one another and grinned.

“Too long,” Brabara said and pushed the lid aside.

“We just talked about this!” Ebyn squealed.

Eldon leaned closer to Seknafret. “Are they always like this?” he whispered.

Seknafret raised her arms in frustration. “Yes. It’s infuriating.”

A purple glow emanated from the base of the coffin. Brabara pushed the lid further to the side to get a better look and found a roiling swirl of silvery purple energy.

“Eldon,” she said, eyes fixed on the strange sight. “You might want to take a look at this.”

The priest walked over to where Xalen and Brabara stood and peered into the sarcophagus. “That’s it. A Crevice of Dusk and our way home.”

Brabara looked sceptical. “So, what, we just step in there and end up back in the real world?”

Eldon nodded. “Something like that, yes.”

“It doesn’t look big enough,” she said.

Ebyn and Seknafret stepped across to join them on the dais.

“Who wants to go first?” Ebyn asked.

“We can’t go yet,” Brabara said. “We promised Newmy we’d clear the place of monsters. We haven’t finished exploring the whole place yet.”

“What if we meet more sorrowsworn?” Ebyn pointed out. “Seknafret only barely survived the last one and I can’t cast wall of fire again today.”

“Brabara is right,” Seknafret said. “I thank you for your concern, Ebyn, but we did assure that unfortunate spirit up there that we’d help her. I am fine, and now that we know what to expect we should be better prepared if another of those things lurks down here.”

“Fine by me,” Xalen said. “Could be more loot too.”

Ebyn sighed. “Fine, whatever, but can we at least remove the lid completely so if we do need to get out of here in a hurry, we don’t have to waste time with that?”

Brabara nodded and she along with Eldon and Xalen managed to lift the heavy stone lid completely off and place it down on the floor alongside the sarcophagus.

“Let’s go,” Brabara said, then left the room and headed up the stairs to the unexplored side of the mausoleum.

The stairs ended in an undecorated stone door. Brabara tried to push the door open, but it refused to move.

“No lock. It must be stuck,” she said. “Back up a bit so I can get a run at it.”

They filed back down the short staircase to the room at the bottom. Brabara took a few deep breaths then sprinted up the stairs. She slammed into the door with a meaty thud and a few bits of stone broke free to bounce back down the stairs.

“One more ought to do it,” she said as she came back down and repeated the process.

This time the meaty thud was followed by a crack and a loud crash. Larger stone chunks tumbled to the bottom of the stairs along with a sizable cloud of dust.

“I’m through,” Brabara called. “Shit! There’s something in here.”

A spiked limb struck Brabara from out of the gloom, followed by another, less than a heartbeat later. Brabara’s glaive was back down the stairs, so she fished around at her belt for her crossbow then tossed it aside realising the beast was already too close for such a weapon.

“My glaive!” she shouted. “Bring my glaive!”

Xalen ran up the stairs behind her. “Here,” he said, placing the weapon in Brabara’s flailing hand.

She gripped her glaive and brought it around in a desperate arc. “Can we get some light up here?”

A second pair of spiked limbs thrust toward her. One of them buried itself deep into her shoulder and Brabara yelled in pain.

She could feel the monster pulling at her, using the spike inside her to drag her around. She braced against the wall with one arm and wedged her glaive in the rubble of the broken door to stay in position.

“Brabara! Move!” Xalen said. “I can’t get in there.”

“No,” Brabara said, pain edging her voice. “There’s more than one of these things in here and if I move, they’ll get out.”

“What do you want us to do?” Xalen asked.

“I dunno,” Brabara wailed. “Blow the room up or something.”

“Righto,” Xalen said, tore a bead from his necklace and tossed it into the room.

Fire blossomed from the bead when it struck the wall and exploded in an impressive conflagration that burned the two spike limbed monsters inside.

“Nice,” Brabara said, still impaled by one of the spikes. “Now do it again.”

Xalen looked down and saw he only had two beads remaining. “Need to get another one of these one day,” he muttered as he tore a second bead and tossed that as well.

The fireball flashed again, filling the room with flame and singeing Brabara’s eyebrows. One of the beasts was immolated and dropped to the floor in a final spasm of agony leaving only one of the beasts. Badly injured, but alive.

Brabara released her grip on the wall and moved so Xalen and the others could get through to engage the last of the monsters.

Xalen squeezed past and moved to the corner of the room with arrows flying. Ebyn ducked in behind the rogue and sent a firebolt toward the beast, striking one of the creature’s five spiked limbs. Seknafret came in after, raised a finger and delivered a blast of energy to the monster. The eldritch blast pushed the beast back and tore the spike free of Brabara’s flesh.

Brabara tucked the glaive under her injured arm and charged at the creature, impaling it against the wall. “Let’s see how you like it,” she growled.

The monster sagged, blood flowing over blistered flesh. It coughed weakly, then slumped forward, dead.

Brabara twisted her glaive savagely before wrenching it out and spat a bloody gob of spittle at its corpse. “That really hurt.” She pressed a hand against the hole in her shoulder. “I don’t suppose you have any healing left do you, Seknafret?”

“I do, but it’s not much,” Seknafret said.

Brabara took a deep breath. “Then save it in case something else hits us.”

Xalen pointed at another set of stairs that exited the room. “I reckon this is it for the tomb. These stairs probably lead back up to the first chamber where we met Newmy.”

“I hope that’s true,” Brabara said still rubbing at her wound. “Maybe I will take that healing if it’s okay with you, Sekna?”

Seknafret placed a hand over the wound. A brief glow emanated from beneath her open palm and the wound closed, though blood continued to weep from it. “I told you it wasn’t much.”

Brabara stepped back and moved her shoulder in tentative circles. “Thanks, it feels much better.”

They took a few minutes to search the room but found nothing of any interest or value and continued up the second set of stairs.

As suspected, the door at the top opened into the first hall where Newmy waited. She smiled warmly when she saw them emerge, but her expression changed to one of grave concern when she noted their wounds.

“Oh my,” she said. “Are you all okay?”

“A few bumps and bruises,” Brabara said with a wince. “Nothing that we can’t recover from. The important thing is that we have taken care of the monsters.”

Newmy’s smile returned. “You have? That is wonderful. I can finally clean this place properly.”

“And you can finally go to your rest,” Seknafret said.

Newmy sighed. “Wouldn’t that be nice. Thank you all so much, you have been so very kind to me. I wish there was a way for me to return the favour.”

“There is no need for that, Newmy,” Brabara said. “We just did what any right-minded person would.”

“I think we’re done here,” Ebyn said. “Let’s leave Newmy to finish her cleaning while we get the hell out of this place.”

The group said their farewells to the talkative ghost and returned to the chamber where the crevice of dusk waited.

“A stable crevice like this will be linked to a fixed location in Neverwinter,” Eldon explained. “Even though we will have to traverse it one at a time we will all come through to the same place on the other side.”

“Any idea where it will come out?” Xalen asked.

Eldon nodded. “Somewhere in the graveyard. Since that is where we are in this plane it will link to a similar place there.”

“I should go first,” Brabara said. “If it does come out somewhere where there’s undead or whatever I’ll be able to keep them at bay while you all step through.”

“But you’re injured,” Seknafret pointed out. “Perhaps one of us should go first.”

Brabara shook her head. “I’ve still got plenty of juice in the tank. Don’t worry about me.”

Seknafret gave Brabara an appraising look. “You’re sure?”

“I am,” Brabara said firmly. “Is everyone ready?”