Live session 20 — 14 June 2026
The group finds itself in a dark cavern beside a pool of crystal clear water. Near the edge lies a humanoid skeleton with a badly broken leg. The remains tell a grim story: the person appears to have fallen, broken their leg, and then desperately tried to crawl toward the water before dying.
“Don't touch, uh, don't touch,” Ruben warns.
The skeleton is decades old, its bones weathered by time. Beyond it, carved into the natural cavern wall, stands an ominous entrance. Above the dark tunnel looms the image of a deity's face, staring down into the chamber.
Ruben approaches the skeleton cautiously. He studies the remains, searching for clues about who this person was. The bones reveal that the deceased was human, fully grown, and had likely died of dehydration after suffering the broken leg. The body has been here for many years.
“Well,” Ruben concludes, “the good thing is that it died of a natural cause, so mostly their leg while falling and died of dehydration. So it's been here for a while, so I think it's relatively good news.”
Beside the body rests a satchel. Rather than touching it directly, Ruben conjures a spectral hand and has it retrieve the bag. While he begins examining it, Lana studies the entrance. Her divine senses detect no undead presence nearby, which offers some reassurance. Curious about the strange visage above the tunnel, she and Kroak examine it more closely.
Kroak eventually recognizes the figure.
It is Baphomet, a demon lord associated with the Endless Maze. Kroak knows the name and little else beyond Baphomet's association with the Abyss and his infamous maze.
Meanwhile, the satchel yields its contents. Ruben discovers twenty gold pieces, two healing potions, a vial marked with a skull that appears to contain poison, a heavily used deck of playing cards, and an unfinished map. The map depicts the chamber they are currently in and several nearby rooms.
The discoveries raise more questions than answers.
“I find it a bit weird that you die of injuries if you have healing potions with you,” Ruben remarks.
The skeleton's sword still lies nearby, sheathed and badly rusted with age. It is old, but not ancient beyond memory. Whatever happened here, it happened within recorded history.
As the group debates their options, Daiki becomes increasingly interested in the water. The pool is crystal clear near the edge before descending into darkness. Using dancing lights, Daiki sends glowing firefly-like lights down into the depths.
The lights sink and sink and sink.
Even at great depth, no bottom becomes visible.
“I mean, I can go down,” Kroak says, “but it might be hard to come back up.”
Attention eventually returns to the entrance beneath Baphomet's stone face.
The dark tunnel resembles a throat leading inward. Daiki flies ahead to investigate while the others remain behind. Passing through the mouth-like passage, he discovers a chamber beyond. A luxurious door stands opposite the entrance, closed and imposing. Nearby stand two large statues resembling the monstrous visage outside.
When he returns, he reports what he has found.
“Okay, I didn't see a door on the map, but I saw very big statues.”
“Big for you or big for us?” Kroak asks.
“Well, they were very big for me, so I think they will be big for you as well.”
The group continues discussing possible escape routes. The water remains one possibility, but nobody knows where it leads. The tunnel beneath Baphomet's face is another.
Before making a decision, Daiki flies upward to inspect the chamber's ceiling. There he discovers another obelisk resembling the one in Chult. Unlike the one they encountered earlier, this one bears a complete ring of runes.
Kroak flies up to read them.
The inscription contains the same phrase they encountered before, but this time it is finished:
“Speak love's words and enter the endless maze.”
“The endless maze,” Kroak repeats.
“This is not the right way. We should probably turn back, guys. I don't think there's an end here. It says so on the obelisk.”
Lana grimaces.
“I was really thinking if we spoke the word love, maybe the opposite should be hate or something. Maybe it will flip us back.”
“We can try,” Kroak replies.
Ruben remains unconvinced by the ominous title.
Despite Lana's reservations, curiosity wins out.
The group advances.
Ruben flies ahead first, scanning for magical effects and traps. His magical senses reveal nothing. The statues emit no magic. The entire complex feels ancient, drained, and abandoned.
“I think there's no magic anymore,” he reports.
As they move into the room beyond the throat-like tunnel, Daiki examines the large door more closely. Listening carefully, he hears nothing beyond it. The door is locked, fashioned from thick wood that appears remarkably well-preserved despite its age.
“Okay, so this looks like wood from a very old tree,” Daiki tells the others. “It looks very good, but it's locked. Anyone can unlock it?”
Instead of opening the door immediately, the party investigates the surrounding area.
Lana studies the statues. They depict Baphomet once more, this time in his full glory, charging forward aggressively. The matching statues stand on either side of the chamber in perfect symmetry.
“So many options,” Kroak mutters. “I'll take the stairs down.”
Lana keeps close to Kroak while Sszethik accompanies them. The group descends together.
The stairs curve around a corner and open into another chamber. There is no door, merely an open room.
At its center stands a stone slab.
A body lies upon it—or rather, what remains of one. The victim has long since withered into a combination of skeleton and dust, bound to the slab by every limb.
“Dead body,” Lana says immediately.
Daiki peers around the room and spots a fireplace along one wall.
Kroak investigates it hopefully.
“Maybe you can use that to go back up.”
They stick their head into the fireplace and look upward, only to discover there is no chimney at all. The structure ends in solid stone.
“Oh, that's just bad design. Who uses this place?”
Lana checks once more for any trace of undead influence. Again, she senses nothing.
Ruben turns his attention to the remains on the slab. Drawing upon his knowledge of anatomy and dissection, he examines the scene carefully.
The room resembles a torture chamber or morgue.
Rust-covered blades lie scattered across a nearby table. Branding irons rest among them. Ancient blood stains have soaked deep into the stone, forming dark trails that lead toward the fireplace where victims appear to have been burned.
The evidence is horrifying.
Ruben studies the room in silence before finally speaking.
“It's such a pity that I don't have Lorehold experience. I mean, we could have gotten so much information out of these remains and objects. It should speak to us, right? We learned about it in archaeomancy for beginners. What can we get out of this, do you think?”
Kroak studies the chamber carefully, looking for any signs of wounds or clues left behind. The room reveals little. Its walls are bare and clean, save for old blood caked across the floor. There are no runes, no inscriptions, nothing that distinguishes it beyond its grim purpose. Everything about it suggests a place built solely for torture.
Ruben extends his senses further, searching not just with his eyes but with magic as well. Yet there is nothing. No lingering enchantments, no hidden magical traces. The room remains exactly what it appears to be.
“Well, it seems to be a torture room,” Ruben says. “I mean, we could explore the walls if there's anything secret, but we could also go back up.”
Daiki turns his attention to the table. The old knives and branding tools lie scattered across it, rusted and decayed. He searches for journals, papers, anything that might explain the room's purpose, but time has claimed almost everything. If papers once existed here, they have long since rotted away. Only fragments of blades and branding irons remain.
Lana examines the brands, hoping to recognize them, but the metal has deteriorated beyond recognition.
“Should we go back?” Ruben asks.
“I think so,” Kroak agrees.
“You watched it. Let's go back.” Daiki says.
Back upstairs, they discuss their next move. One option is a set of doors. Another is a second staircase mirroring the first.
“The other ones. Be symmetrical,” Kroak suggests.
Daiki shrugs. “Also, would have hurt us if they were home, since we are screaming and talking so loudly.”
“Doesn't seem like anyone's home,” Kroak replies.
“I haven't said anything for the last five minutes,” Lana points out.
Daiki still favors the door. Kroak volunteers to investigate the opposite side and begins working on the lock. Before long, a satisfying click echoes through the corridor.
Meanwhile, Daiki flies ahead to inspect another room. At first he spots only a table, but as he moves closer he realizes it is entirely different from the torture chamber.
“It’s an alchemist’s table,” he declares.
The room is filled with scrolls, quills, parchment, books, and empty vials. A wealth of objects lies scattered across the tabletop. Then Daiki notices something else: a circle inscribed on the floor.
“There’s a lot of cool stuff here!” he calls back. “Like books and scrolls and circles on the floor!”
“Daiki, I think it would be wise not to cross the circle,” Ruben warns. “You never know what's going to happen.”
At the same moment, Kroak finishes opening the other door and discovers another staircase leading down.
“I found stairs! Yours sounds interesting though.”
The group quickly decides to stay together. None of them are eager to split up in such a place.
Returning to the alchemical room, Ruben studies the circle from a distance while Kroak investigates it more closely. The markings are familiar enough for Kroak to recognize their purpose.
“It used to be a teleportation circle,” they conclude.
The circle appears intact but dormant. Whatever power once flowed through it has long since vanished.
“So exit,” Kroak says. “I think it's fine. You can just step on it.”
Even Ruben’s magical senses find nothing active within it.
Curious, Kroak examines whether it could be restored. The structure itself remains undamaged, but the knowledge required to reactivate it lies far beyond their understanding.
While they inspect the room, Ruben notices a faint magical aura coming from one scroll stored among the cabinets.
“Careful, careful.”
Using Mage Hand, he carefully retrieves it from a safe distance.
“A map?” Kroak guesses.
The scroll proves far less dangerous than expected. Ruben unrolls it and discovers a spell scroll of Find Familiar.
“Guys,” he says, excitement spreading across his face, “I think this is a special day for me. I have found my first spell scroll that I can add to my spellbook.”
Kroak immediately tells him it should be theirs.
Ruben hesitates. “Well, because you can't wield it and I found it.”
Kroak raises an eyebrow. “Isn't it… aren't we sharing everything that we find?”
Realizing how it sounds, Ruben quickly explains. “It's a spell scroll that lets you create a creature that bonds with you.”
“Find Familiar?” Kroak asks.
“Exactly.”
“Oh, that is cute,” Daiki says.
Ruben nods enthusiastically. “Many wizards have a familiar that helps them. It would actually be a great asset to move on in my studies.”
“Okay, that is really nice,” Lana says, “but can we continue? Because we are in a place of some weird demon.”
While Ruben celebrates his discovery, Kroak continues searching the room and spots something else resting in plain sight.
An iron key.
“I found it!” they announce. “A key. Maybe for the exit. Maybe for the door that I just locked. Who knows?”
“What is it made of?” Daiki asks.
“I don't know. Metal.”
“It is iron,” Lana says confidently. “I know it because everybody in my village works with it.”
“Oh, you like it? You can have it.”
“Why should I have a key?”
“I'm trying to be nice.”
Lana finally accepts it, though not without confusion.
The group gathers several intact empty vials before returning to the staircase. Before leaving, Daiki decides to test the teleportation circle personally. He steps directly into the center and taps at the floor.
Nothing happens.
“Fires of hell light up, you get teleported to the six-hundredth layer of the Abyss,” Kroak teases.
Still nothing happens.
As they prepare to descend, Lana reveals that she no longer needs Daiki’s magical light. Instead, she spins her glowing pendant like a tiny lantern.
“You’re going to get a wrist injury,” Kroak warns.
Eventually they reach the locked door below. When someone finally tries the iron key, it slides perfectly into the lock.
The door opens.
Beyond lies a large circular chamber.
The room is vast and domed, its walls and ceiling completely covered in maze patterns. Endless lines twist and connect across every surface. Some sections are isolated, others interconnected, but nowhere is there a beginning or an end. The air smells strongly of smoke. At the center of the room stands the remains of a great pyre. Charcoal and ash blanket the floor. Burned benches lie scattered around it. Mixed among the debris are fragments of rope, bits of wood, and several skulls.
“Does it look like a static fire or does it look like an impact and boom?” Daiki asks.
It resembles a deliberate pyre, carefully constructed and burned over time.
“Someone loves to have a picnic here,” Daiki remarks.
Ruben kneels beside the remains and begins a proper investigation while Daiki focuses mainly on the smell.
The scent is bitter and overpowering. Ruben, however, uncovers something far more interesting. Human bones lie among the ashes, but so do strange skulls bearing elongated fangs and unnatural bone growths.
“This is interesting,” Ruben says. “It's a mix of species. We have humans. Something interesting that I don't understand, to be honest. Kroak, maybe we can bring one of these skulls back to Strixhaven.”
Kroak examines the remains but struggles to identify the creature. The skull appears human, yet horribly deformed—twisted into something more beastlike.
“I think we could take one for analysis later,” Ruben says.
“Sounds good.”
Kroak stores one of the skulls away for future study.
As they continue exploring, Daiki studies the maze-covered walls. Every surface is covered. Endless paths branch and reconnect with no apparent destination.
Ahead stands an altar.
Suspended above it floats a glowing sphere of light. Beneath the orb hovers a brass bowl, hanging impossibly in the air. Strange runes and symbols swirl around it in constant motion.
“This is not good, people.”
“People who are good at detecting magic and reading runes,” Lana calls, “you might be necessary to check out.”
“Me. I'm the one that's good at reading,” Kroak replies as they move forward.
Nearby towers an enormous statue of Baphomet. The maze motifs continue throughout the chamber, reinforcing the connection to the demon lord and his Endless Maze.
Kroak begins studying the runes. At first they seem incomprehensible. Yet as everyone watches, the symbols shift and transform. Gradually the runes resolve into words they can understand.
Lines of text appear, floating in the air around the bowl.
“A star yearned for by grasping hands.”
“Untainted gold cleansed of all impurities.”
“Skull of a beast cleansed in anguish and flame.”
“The final breath of a faded soul.”
“The blackened heart of a once great lord.”
Within the bowl itself another phrase circles endlessly:
“A cup of the purest water.”
Ruben immediately begins copying everything into his spellbook.
The bowl radiates obvious magical power. Light swirls around it, illuminating the altar from every angle.
Daiki stares at the list thoughtfully.
“I've got some ideas already.”
Lana studies the scene uneasily. The magic feels powerful and deliberate, as though the listed items are meant to fulfill some greater purpose.
Then Daiki suddenly acts. He flies back toward Kroak, retrieves the beast skull they collected from the pyre, and lifts it toward the bowl.
“It's a skull of a beast cleansed in anguish and flame, right?”
Kroak immediately shakes their head.
“I don't think we want to do that. Usually when you fulfill the things, it summons the scary shit.”
Realization dawns. Ruben begins piecing together the clues they have already found. They have discovered the skull of the beast, witnessed a faded soul and a final breath within the beginning, and encountered the exceptionally pure water at the start of their journey. They still need to find a blackened heart and whatever is meant by the final clue involving something cleansed of all impurities.
Daiki immediately suggests coins. Lana remembers the pristine golden coins they found earlier. Ideas begin flying around. Daiki proposes blessings, cleansing impurities, and several increasingly ridiculous alternatives that prompt groans from the others. Kroak finally asks why everyone seems so eager to complete the ritual at all.
"You want to complete your spell."
Ruben shrugs. "I think it's just a puzzle. I think Daiki and I like to solve puzzles."
"We solved it," Kroak insists. "We know the answer."
Ruben disagrees. Confirmation is what matters. If they perform part of the ritual, they can observe the result and decide whether to continue. Proceeding cautiously seems reasonable enough.
Their discussion turns toward the missing blackened heart. Daiki wonders where they could possibly find the blackened heart of a once-great lord. Ruben points out that there are still rooms left unexplored. Kroak strongly prefers searching the remaining chambers before meddling with an unknown ritual.
"I'd feel better if we checked out the other rooms first."
They warn that nobody knows what the ritual might do. Perhaps it could awaken every corpse in the complex. Ruben acknowledges the possibility but reminds everyone that escaping this place likely requires solving something. Eventually the group agrees to continue exploring.
They move away from the ritual chamber. Daiki asks whether anyone has examined the towering statue overlooking the altar. He carefully studies it from a distance, unwilling to touch it, but finds nothing beyond what they have already seen elsewhere: the same statue as before, only much larger and more imposing.
Meanwhile Ruben prepares to cast Detect Magic as a ritual.
The floating orb that hovered above the altar now remains roughly sixty feet ahead of whoever leads the group. Kroak steps sideways experimentally, but nothing changes. Lana grows increasingly uneasy.
"People, there is a light now following us."
The orb seems attached not to any individual but to the group itself.
Kroak opens a nearby door. Beyond lies a hallway. At the far end sits a chair and a chest.
Eventually Ruben and Kroak decide to proceed with a group ritual to improve the Detect Magic spell. They stand together, drawing a literal circle marked with runes upon the floor. Ruben takes the role of primary caster while Kroak channels additional energy into the ritual. Runes swirl through the air, pass through Ruben's spellbook, and merge into the growing magical construct around them.
"This is cool, Kroak."
"Yeah. We should have done this before."
As the ritual unfolds, Sszethik watches in open awe.
While the others focus on magic, Daiki strolls toward the chest at the end of the hallway. It appears completely ordinary. He opens it and peers inside.
Instead of treasure, he finds rusted scraps of metal, assorted debris, and a handful of loose coins. About ten gold pieces lie at the bottom.
"There's nothing there," he calls back. "Just some stupid rusted stuff."
As Daiki closes the chest, however, he notices something else: a narrow slit in the wall nearby. It looks as though part of the wall might be able to open. The discovery quickly becomes Lana's problem. After checking carefully for traps and finding none, she pushes against the concealed section. The wall swings inward, revealing a hidden chamber containing a cupboard and another chest.
Once again she searches for traps. Finding none, she attempts to open the chest, only to discover that it is locked. At Daiki's suggestion she tries the enormous iron key they have found earlier, but the key is absurdly oversized for the tiny lock.
The cupboard yields no key, though it does contain several filled vials.
Lana decides subtlety has failed and wedges her javelin against the chest. After some determined prying and a great deal of effort, the old chest finally cracks open. Two vials shatter inside.
Immediately the smell of acid fills the air.
Inside they discover a healing potion, one intact vial of acid, two antitoxin vials, and two vials of basic poison. The shattered containers explain the acrid smell.
Lana begins sorting everything into the party inventory.
Daiki eyes the loot. "You want to keep them for yourself. Why not?"
"I have no interest in these things."
The conversation shifts toward party treasure. Lana reminds him that they agreed to share everything equally. Daiki hesitates and finally admits that he had considered keeping some of the gold coins because he thought his hoard might appreciate them.
Lana remains calm.
"It is your choice. You found it. If you don't want to contribute to the party, that is your choice. But we said we would share equally."
After a moment of thought, Daiki relents and adds the ten gold pieces to the communal treasure.
The cupboard itself contains even more curiosities. Besides old linen clothing, there is an iron mask and several vials filled with an unidentifiable black substance.
Lana immediately claims the iron mask but wisely refrains from wearing it.
Daiki gathers the strange black vials and carries them back to Kroak just as the ritual concludes.
Still convinced there must be more secrets nearby, Lana attempts to move the cupboard itself. Unfortunately, the ancient furniture proves unstable. It topples over with a tremendous crash.
A string of curses erupts from beneath the collapsing cabinet.
The noise echoes through the halls.
Hearing the commotion, Ruben and Kroak hurry toward the hidden room. By the time they arrive, Lana has already crawled free. The cupboard now partially blocks the concealed doorway.
While everyone sorts through the aftermath, Kroak examines the mysterious black liquid. Holding a vial up to the ever-present floating orb, they study its thickness and smell.
The substance is thick and viscous, almost like tar.
Curious, Kroak smears a little onto Daiki's arm.
"Maybe this is how you make a blackened heart."
The black substance spreads like sticky tar across his skin. Then, without warning, it vanishes completely.
Ruben checks for magical auras through his enhanced Detect Magic but senses nothing new nearby.
With the hidden room thoroughly explored, the group turns its attention to the next unopened door. Before anyone rushes forward, Lana insists on spreading out.
"If something goes wrong, if a spell hits us, we need to scatter."
Everyone takes up positions behind chests, around corners, and anywhere else that offers cover. Even the floating blue orb remains nearby, silently observing.
Finally the door is opened.
Beyond lies yet another circular chamber.
The sight prompts immediate groans.
"It's an endless maze."
The room features a cobblestone floor surrounded by familiar decorative patterns. In the center, hanging from above, something glimmers. A brilliant blue gem dangles from the ceiling, occasionally dripping onto the stones below. It shines with a soft radiance, like a star suspended in the darkness.
Daiki stares at the floating gem and grins. “It’s a star.”
“So,” Kroak says, eyeing it as it drifts through the air.
“Oh, a star, you’re in for—” Ruben begins.
“It’s moving!” Daiki exclaims, breaking into laughter.
While Sszethik studies the strange object, following its movements with fascination, Kroak heads into the room. The floating ball of light moves with a will of its own, drifting in ways that seem almost alive.
“I used to find familiar scrolls and now I have a familiar. It’s a ball of light. It could be many things.”
“We didn’t have time to inspect it,” Ruben says. “But now I see the magic of it, right?”
The magic is obvious. The orb radiates clear evocation magic. Ruben and Sszethik put their heads together, discussing possibilities. At first they think of magical lights mounted on staffs, then explosions, then other possibilities, before realization dawns.
“No, no explosion,” Ruben says. “This is a driftglobe.”
“Oh, that’s a cute magic item,” Daiki replies.
“It is a magic item for making light,” Ruben explains. “It follows you around and stays within sixty feet of you.”
“Why, Kroak?”
“Because when I lick—”
“Lana, touch it so it follows you,” Daiki says.
Stepping farther into the room, Kroak examines their surroundings. A gem hangs suspended in the center. The room itself is circular, with a cobblestone floor, decorative maze patterns around the edges, and no visible exits.
“No doors?”
“No. This is the terminal room. The final room.”
Still unconvinced, Kroak circles the chamber. “I’ll see if there’s another secret door. Here there was a secret door. This looks like the end, but who knows? Maybe there’s another somewhere.”
They search carefully, moving around the entire room, but find nothing. As they continue investigating, they step onto the cobblestones.
A moment later, a hand erupts from the stone floor and clamps around their ankle.
Kroak is yanked downward.
“This is less than ideal.”
More hands emerge from the cobblestones, grasping at their legs. The stone floor itself seems to transform, fingers reaching higher and higher, dragging them down into the ground.
“Guys, all hands on deck!”
The hands tighten. Kroak struggles, taking a painful blow as they try to wrench themselves free. Kroak tears loose from some of the grasping fingers and manages to pull one foot free. They stagger toward the edge of the room.
Meanwhile, Daiki has a far simpler solution. Flying over the dangerous cobblestones, he reaches the center, plucks the gem from its hanging place, and flies back without incident.
“I got a gem.”
While Daiki secures the prize, Lana watches Kroak continue struggling against the hands. The hands keep dragging at Kroak as they beat their wings, trying to lift away.
Lana carefully walks around the edge of the room, avoiding the cobblestones entirely. Instead of dragging them toward her, she grabs hold and helps lift them upward.
“Grab my leg!”
Together they pull. Kroak strains against the hands and finally breaks free. The grasping fingers claw at empty air for several moments before slowly sinking back into the cobblestones and becoming stone once more.
“Thanks for your help.”
“You’re welcome.”
Ruben approaches. “What did you get? I hear some noise.”
“I have the beautiful star.” Daiki exclaimed.
“Oh, was it your grasping hands that got the blue star?”
“No. It was the grasping hands from the cobblestone, I think.”
“What do you want to do with the gem?”
“Add it to my hoard.”
“I think we need to give it to that altar,” Lana says.
“Add it to my hoard,” Daiki repeats stubbornly.
“The question is what we should do with the ritual,” Ruben says.
“Oh, I thought you said you didn’t want to do that. So now I can keep it for my hoard.”
“I think we agreed that we would share everything that we find, right?” Ruben raises his eyebrow.
Daiki sighs. “I already gave ten gold pieces.”
With the room explored and the gem recovered, the group heads back. The driftglobe remains floating nearby.
—————
The group opens the southern door and discovers another hallway. No magic reveals itself. Instead, the room contains boxes, a door, and a chest.
“Hey, I found a chest, guys.”
Kroak immediately comes over. Ruben examines the chest but finds nothing unusual.
“I think we should try to open it.”
Inside are black robes and a curled-up piece of faded parchment.
“That’s my color. It’s pretty,” Kroak says.
The robe is ancient and badly worn. As Kroak tries it on, the fabric tears even further. Meanwhile, Ruben carefully lifts the parchment with magic, unfolding it as gently as possible.
Ruben begins reading aloud.
“‘May you never be far from his princely gaze. I hope this letter finds you and your brethren in good health. You will be pleased to know we have been making excellent progress in our research. Transcribing Lost Abyssal continues to be slow, but we have finally found the tomb which gave us the breakthrough we needed. We are certain that this time we have accurately translated the text.’”
The letter describes a ritual intended to raise Bakasura.
“Oh.”
“‘As we had suspected, the ritual to raise Bakasura requires a large number of blood sacrifices.’”
“Oh, this is not great.”
“‘However, a key point we now understand is that we need a mixture of both willing and unwilling victims.’”
“Oh.”
“Wait, wait,” Lana interrupts. “It’s going to inhabit someone?”
“Of course.”
The letter continues.
“‘This contains details with which to concoct the potion and the specific requirements of all sacrifices. It also contains information on the host Bakasura will eventually inhabit.’”
“It makes for fascinating reading. Unwilling victims must have their visage forcibly marked as beasts, whereas the willing victims will actually undergo a physical transformation to savagery, changing them both inside and out.”
“We saw something like that,” Lana says.
“Exactly.”
The letter ends with promises of further discussion and a closing signed by Baltasar.
“The fuck is Baltasar?”
“Quite a mysterious letter.”
There is one more detail. The note is dated.
“Oh wow.”
“This will be two hundred years old.”
“Almost three hundred.”
Ruben studies the date, digging through old memories of his Faerun history club.
After some thought, he recalls a major political event: King Relimbar of Impiltur returning from exile and reclaiming the throne.
He eagerly shares every detail he can remember.
Kroak listens with growing amusement.
“I always kind of doubted what you were doing at the study group, but this is really showing me that you’re doing stuff.”
“What did you think I was doing?”
“I don’t know.”
“It’s very good that you know all this stuff,” Lana says, “but can we just continue?”
Beyond lies another circular chamber. In the center stands a well.
“Oh. The clearest, purest water.”
“Don’t touch it, you might spoil it.”
“Well, well, well,” Kroak says.
The moment the door opens, however, a pungent acidic odor fills the air.
“It does not smell well.”
The room is larger than the last. A circular stone ring rises a foot above the floor, marking the edge of the well. The shaft descends deep into darkness. There is no visible water, only some indistinct liquid far below.
“So the acid is not from the well?”
“The acid smell? You cannot tell.”
“I know what we have to do here,” Daiki declares. “We have to put a gold coin inside so it gets clean, right?”
“Oh, the acid might help to remove impurities,” Ruben muses.
“But why are we? We don’t want to perform the ritual.”
“Oh, that’s right.” Daiki hugs the gem possessively. “I’m keeping this gem for my hoard. Thank you for reminding me.”
“But what is the plan then?” Kroak asks. “We can fight about the stuff after we’re done. Ruben wants the scroll, and you want the gem, and there’s the gold and whatever else we’re going to find. There were potions.”
“But I am keeping it. I’m keeping it with me.”
“Guys, we have to escape first,” comes the reminder. “We can decide who gets what later.”
“Maybe I will make this my dragon lair. I don’t know.”
“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of food down here.”
“Point.”
Everything around them appears dead and rotten.
—
“So we are not summoning this thing. But we are also not solving the puzzle to get back home.”
The question hangs in the air beside the foul-smelling well.