After today’s brief encounter with death, I thought it might be prudent to start a diary.. I'll make it a point to recap how we came to this point, but that is for another day.
We made our way up the mountain after leaving the town of Land’s End, looking for the mountain base of "The Priests of Camouey", the. The blizzard seemed to accelerate the closer we got closer to the villain’s lair and as the hour got late we happened across an abandoned cabin. Filber, being the prolific rascal he is, barged right in and scarfed a prepared feast without even a breath of hesitation. However it appears that the house was indeed abandoned. No mortal hand would punish Filber's transgressions.
Jeph and I made about sorting our trusted steed, Horsey, and he fashioned a superb shelter that Horsey took quite a liking to. When we negotiated watch rotation, Spooks announced they would like to be on watch for the night. I scoffed at the idea and reminded them of the last encounter with the wolves and made a wager to put their eyes to the test. With one hand I extinguished the lights and with the other I sent on of Filber's discarded apple cores straight at Spook’s face. To my amazement, Spooks swiped it out of the air with ease. I suspect this sudden gift of darkvision was not a divine blessing… Most disturbing… I fear the demon which Spooks consorted with so long ago is tightening its grip upon them as Spooks's prowess on the battlefield grows day by day…
We settled on watch rotations and my sister and I found a private corner to… sleep.
We awoke to the unmistakable stench of Filber’s midnight snacks. He was warning us of mysterious voices in the night, shouting that we must follow. I consulted with Ava, and she felt confident that Steph, Filber, and Jeph could handle themselves out there and we could remain in the cabin downstairs, just in case. I agreed to allow them to entertain their midnight question, and they attached a rope to themselves and headed out. I began to inspect the devastated remains of the well prepared dinner besieged by our dwarves companion as I couldn't find rest just yet.
Initiative Roll - 20 (2)
Before to long a great tug wrought forth on the rope and Jezebel sprinted out to aid our companions before any of us had a chance to raise an eyebrow! I followed, with Ava and Spooks close behind. As we sprinted down the rickety bridge, we saw an arrow fly high into the sky. This was the unmistakable marksmanship of Steph, our woodland guide. We knew serious danger was just downrange.
Jezebel raced on, and launched her spear downrange, smirking as arrogantly as ever, clearly connecting her trusted spear with our foe. Short to follow, I beheld a glowing ghost attempting to freeze Filber in place. No doubt vengeance is at hand for his consumptive transgressions. I beseeched the gods to grant my target with punishment from the sacred flame, but my prayers went unanswered as the fiend dodged the spiraling light with uncanny agility.
In a flash, our full company came upon the wright and belayed all manner of magical assaults. In particular, Jeph’s flame seemed to drive the ghost into a particular agony. After my sister fell upon it with all the martial skill and power gained at our beloved monastery, it appeared her unmatched might was ineffective against our corporal foe. However, it did server in distracting the fiend, and I let upon it the full power of my Guiding Bolt, and it connected with divine intent. However, I must have done quite a number on it as in a panic if fled away, raised it hands, and then…
darkness..
I came to, with Filber standing above me. Before I could celebrate the sight of a friend bringing me back to this world, a firebolt flew over our heads, going wide from the still moving ghostly fiend. Steph seemed to have found his aim and landed an arrow right between its eyes, but its clear mortal damage has little to no effect on this creature.
As I regained my footing I summoned a divine channel of life and healed the wounds of Ava, myself, and Spooks. Just as soon as I acted, the ghost rose up into the air and blasted my sister square in the chest with an icy blast. In retaliation, Spooks and Jeph unleashed their chaotic flames. Each hit more devastating than the last. Alas, the field persisted. Steph seemed to mutter something to himself, perhaps he was beginning to lose his senses?
In that same moment that Steph began a quiet monologue, Jezebel, (clearly enraged from the perceived loss of her beloved brother) launched herself across the ruined temple wall and icy traps the ghost hoped would delay our advance with the skill becoming of our monastery's top warrior monk. Unfortunately, her blows did not appear to finish the fiend, so I channeled the last spell in my muster to send the creature back to the void, and at last the Gods were merciful. In a flash, it was all over.
The Blue Gemstone
As we investigated the ruins that the ghost inhabited, there was an ongoing debate as to exactly what caused this curse to fall upon us. It did seem rather unusual that a creature of such power would pledge itself to defend a collection of salted pork and apples.. But then my eyes came upon a shimmer emanating from a statue in the old ruins.
The discussion became white noise as I drew closer. Some strange blue gemstone made itself known to me but it was beyond my knowledge. I beckoned Jeph's aid in uncovering what this object might be.
Jeph recognized it and these ruins as a temple of Mara, and this to be a conduit to this world much the same as the eagle talon we failed to protect during the siege of Land's End. With some incredible luck we happened upon this artifact ahead of our foes and we spent the last of our strength removing it and taking it back to our hopefully no-longer-haunted lodgings.
We fell into a deep sleep after a battle hard won.