Lost Mine of Phandelver Story

Interlude: Recovery (Rose)

20 Tarsakh 1491

Prepared Spells

Level One

• Color Spray

• False Life

• Magic Missile

• Sleep

Level Two

• Hold Person

• Misty Step

• Invisibility

• Nystul's Magic Aura

Component Pouch

• 1/4lb charcoal

• 5 sticks incense

• 1 pkg herbs

• 15 rose petals

• 1 feather (raven)

• 50mL dwarvish whiskey

• 10mg multi-colored sand

• 2 inch stick of iron

• 1oz gum arabic w an eyelash

• 1 2in×2in silk square

Dear Diary,

Finally, I have some time to sit down and relax. The past two days have been eventful for all the wrong reasons. When we returned from our venture at Cragmaw Castle, we healed Gundren as soon as we were able, but his time in the goblins' care took a toll on him. Despite Peri's best efforts, he's still too weak to travel, (completely understandable, given the horrendous state of that castle, I'm amazed he doesn't have an infection.) So we're waiting until he recovers before we make any further progress investigating Wave Echo Cave.

In the meantime, we've busied ourselves helping the townsfolk of Phandalin with various tasks. The other night I was told of a nearby shrine tended by Sister Garaele, a priestess of Tymora, the goddess of luck and good fortune. According to my source, the sister had left town for a few days, then returned wounded and exhausted. When I told Peri about it, he insisted we check up on her, saying that he needed to "take care of his fellow enlightened" or something to that nature. And while I don't personally subscribe to worship of these "gods" that the people of Faerun are so obsessed with, I didn't have any reason to turn him down.

Over at the Shrine of Luck, we met Sister Garaele, and she informed us that she was a member of The Harpers, a scattered network of adventurers who monitor threats across the countryside. Recently, Garaele's superiors asked her to persuade a banshee named Agatha to answer a question about a spell book. Garaele sought out the banshee in her lair, but the creature didn't appear to her, and after two days, the sister returned. She asked that we go as an intermediary to bring a suitable gift (a jeweled silver comb) and persuade her to tell us what she knew about a spell book belonging to the legendary wizard Bowgentle. In exchange for our assistance, the sister offered us three potions of healing which, while nice, isn't exactly a king's ransom. Still, with Peri being bound by duty, and Sonny by a bleeding heart, we agreed to undertake the mission. And, I suppose, I'll admit to being at least a little curious about the spell book myself.

We followed Sister Garaele's instructions to the abandoned town of Conyberry, which had been sacked by barbarians years ago and left in ruins. From the town, we walked along a trail that led into Neverwinter Wood. Eventually we came to a screen made from warped branches of trees standing close together, woven into a domelike shelter in the shadows with a low opening for a door. Looking at it reminded me of the coven back home, actually. The weaving of primal and arcane to make natural homes is very Feywild. Unfortunately, Peri didn't agree with my assessment, insisting that the house was "creepy" and that we should leave and come back another day. (I suppose that's what they mean by "fraidy cat.") Thankfully, we were able to convince him that there was nothing to be afraid of, but that Sonny would hold his paw if he got scared (which, of course, he did the whole time.)

We entered the banshees hut, but found the place abandoned. We almost gave up and went home, but just then a chill ran through the room, and the banshee appeared in the center of the room, asking what we sought. Thankfully, I have experience with spirits from my training with Brunhilde. The key is to avoid direct eye contact and be polite (but never fawning, they can sense insincerity.) I presented Agatha with the silver comb as a "token of our esteem," which she gladly accepted. She told us that she knew we sought information, and told me I could ask one question.

Tempted though I was to ask for specific magical secrets, we had made an agreement, and I am nothing if not a witch of my word. I asked her what she remembered about Bowgentle's spell book, and she informed me that she had traded the book to a necromancer named Tsernoth from the city of Iriaebor more than a hundred years ago. She didn't know what became of it afterwards.

Assuming she was being truthful, we thanked the banshee for her time and returned to Phandalin.

We reported back to Sister Garaele with our findings, and she thanked us with the agreed upon price of three potions of healing. She said that it was enough information for her and The Harpers to resume their search for the book, and that she appreciated our efforts. Personally, I am a bit curious about what that old spell book contains. I'll need to check in with her later for updates. Until then, we have plenty to focus on here.

Speaking of which, it's getting late and I should be getting to bed. Hopefully tomorrow's efforts will be more fruitful.

Until then,

Rose

P.S. I forgot to mention: after using detect magic on the sun elf statuette Viola found in Cragmaw Castle, I've determined that it has divinatory properties. Definitely warrants more study.

Interlude: Recovery (Sonny)

Hey Ma,

I hope you're doing well. I'm sorry to be bothering you with this, but something has come up that has me mighty confused, and I need your advice. The trouble started after we returned from Cragmaw Castle. Like I mentioned in the letter I wrote Pa yesterday, Gundren has been bedridden since we got back, so we've passed the time till he gets better doing odd jobs around Phandalin. 

This morning, we went over to the Edermath Orchard, since a friend of ours had mentioned that the owner used to be an adventurer like us. I figured it would do me some good to get some farming in (gotta beat off the rust before I get back home for harvesttime, afterall) and the others thought we could hear some cool stories from talking to Daran, the owner of the orchard. 

Daran is a retired adventurer; says he spent a lotta years down on the Dragon Coast, working as a marshal and herald before coming back home to Neverwinter. He's a member of this group called the Order of the Gauntlet- a group that protects the innocent from folks that would exploit them. He thanked us for helping out with the Redbrands, and for getting Gundren back safe. 

He also told us about some rumors he'd heard about someone digging around the ruins of Old Owl Well. What's worse, a few prospectors in the area have told tales of being chased off by undead in that area. Daran asked if we'd be willing to investigate- find out who was there and what they wanted. When we asked what he was so worried about with an old abandoned well, he told us that the ruins were an old watchtower of an ancient magical empire called Netherill, and that he was worried some dangerous ancient magic might be buried there. Of course, as soon as he mentioned old magic, Rose insisted that we get there as soon as possible (which I don't think Daran took too kindly to) and we didn't have much else to do besides (his orchard is pretty small, and he manages well enough with the handful of farmhands he has on staff) so we agreed to head north and investigate.

After two days of hiking, we eventually reached the ruins. The 'watchtower' was mostly just a bunch of ruined walls surrounding a courtyard with the well at the center. As we got closer, we caught a whiff of something foul- do you remember when that rat got wedged between the walls in Gil's room, and we didn't find it until a month later? It was like that, but times ten. We walked up to the well and a bunch of zombies came shambling out- like something out of Uncle Jack's stories, I swear. Thankfully, Peri was prepared, and sent them packing with their holy symbol- just shone a light at em and they all turned tail and ran (or whatever their version of running was- it wasn't very fast.)

Hearing the commotion, this bald, tattooed wizard came scrambling out of a nearby tent, asking what we were doing there. We told him we were there investigating the well, and to see what was going on with the zombies. He introduced himself as Harmun Kost, but wouldn't tell us what he was doing at the well, and demanded that we leave. We were only there to observe and report, so I was ready to be done with the whole thing, but Rose insisted that he was bad news, and that we couldn't leave him to his own devices. So, we decided to stay and keep him talking. He didn't like that very much, and pretty soon we had another fight on our hands.

Thankfully, Peri's light thing seemed to do the trick, and we were able to scare off the zombies long enough for me to take down Harmun. After running the rest of his forces off, we turned back to Phandalin. Things went pretty smooth, other than a tussle we had with some orcish folk who were passing through, but they didn't give us too much trouble either.

When we made it back to Phandalin, we told Daran what we'd found and that we'd handled the situation. He thanked us, then we got to talking about his adventuring days, and different fights he'd had, and we got to talking about our adventuring days and the fights we've been having. And I guess he liked my stories in particular, cause when all was said and done, he took me to the side and asked me if I'd be interested in joining the Order of the Gauntlet. I told him I'd sleep on it, and ask you what you thought. He laughed at that, which I didn't appreciate, but he'd been polite till then, so I didn't figure on starting nothing.

So I guess that's my problem, mama. I want to get back to you. And to pa and the others, but things keep cropping up out here that keep me away. And the scariest part of it is, I think I'm starting to like adventuring- but I know that every moment I spend out here is a moment I could be spending with the people who need me back home. I feel mighty selfish and stupid for not knowing what should come natural, and I guess I hope you can set me straight.

I love you, mama. And I hope to see you soon.

Love,

Sonny

Interlude: Recovery: Verne

My Dearest Anais,

After all the toil and worry, we have finally done it: Gundren is home safe. In truth, the man is rather ill, being currently confined to his bed for the time being, but much better to be sick in bed than in a cold dungeon surrounded by goblins. But I am getting ahead of myself.

Upon the morn of our rescue venture, we entreated the aid of Krustt, a bugbear formerly under the employ of the Redbrands, to guide us to Cragmaw Castle, where our friend Gundren Rockseeker was being held prisoner at the behest of a mysterious figure known as the Black Spider. Once we arrived, we sneaked into the foyer and quickly dispatched the guards before slowly working our way through the south end of the building, rallying against the goblin forces we found there, finally coming across the leader of the sordid company: a grizzled old bugbear who called himself King Grol.

We fought and slew the king, as well as his attendants and a silent drow who we believed to be the Black Spider (having heard the mastermind was a drow from Redbrand leader Iarno Albrek,) but who instead turned out to be a doppelganger. With Gundren secured we had but to escape the castle and the remaining goblin forces, but before that, I had a mission.

As you well know, I am a lover of all beasts, and I cannot abide by their mistreatment or confinement if I am in a position where I may remedy their situation. And in our surveillance of the castle, I found an offshoot tunnel in which a large creature was held behind a barred door. Compelled by duty, I elected to free the creature from its prison with the aid of Sonny, who was very brave in his action, (ill-considered though it may have been.) The creature we found turned out to be an owlbear: an impressive beast of mysterious and likely unfortunate arcane origin. Woe be unto the magicians who created these beasts, only to be torn asunder by beak and claw.

To free you of worry, my young friend is fine, and in the comfort of hindsight, the events were in fact quite comical. You see, we opened the door with the intention of letting the creature run out of an entrance at the north end of the tower, but for reasons that escape me, Sonny began banging on his shield and entreating the monster to chase him, which of course, it did. They ran helter-skelter down the hall until reaching the entrance where the owlbear batted Sonny away like a cat would a ball of yarn before trotting off into the sunset, happy as a barnyard pig.

As I said, Sonny was fine after the ordeal, and we had an enlightening conversation about the role of adventurers and the purpose of violence as a balancing force for good. In truth, most of my speech to the lad was repurposed from things Thalia told me of her time in the king's army. Regardless, I believe my words eased his mind, and we were able to continue our escape.

We next came across a shrine protected by goblin priests and a slithering, tentacled creature that nearly strangled Peri, but thankfully we were able to save them, as well as restore the shrine, which I believe was a good experience for them. Additionally, we found a magical statuette (shaped like a sun elf, believe it or not) that Rose believes can be used to divine answers about the future. The fruits of her research remain to be seen, but I trust the young mage's erudition.

With most of the goblins cleared out, we thought ourselves free of Cragmaw Castle, but alas- it was not so. We were caught on the front steps by a band of hobgoblins returning from a hunt. The prey: elves. I could of course not let this abhorrent deed go unpunished, and with my allies at my back, we destroyed the hobgoblin forces and brought Gundren safely back to Phandalin.

And so we are, once again, back at the Stonehill Inn. We have been busying ourselves taking care of assorted goings-on around town while Gundren recovers. And I believe tomorrow, we will be heading northeast along the Triboar Trail to investigate the lair of a banshee, an abandoned magical well or the presence of orcs somewhere along the trail. Never a shortage of things to do while out on the open road, I suppose.

Well my dear, I shan't bore you any longer with my ramblings. I do hope you enjoy these stories- I look forward to the day when I may read them to you in the land beyond. But for now: I must rest.

With Love Everlasting,

Verne

Interlude: Recovery (Peri)

20 Tarsakh

Prayer

“I gratefully thank You, O Morning Lord, for the light you bring to my heart, that I may spread your radiance across the land.”

Thanks

Thank you for showing me the dark, so that I can appreciate the light

Thank you for giving me opportunities to smite evil in your name

Thank you for leading me to your shrine, that I may restore it to glory

Blessings

I pray for blessings for my allies, who keep me company on the road:

I pray that Rose may find a spell of light, so the darkness scroll she found does not overtake her spell book.

I pray for Sonny, that you may guide his hand and make his decision easy. (But please make him stay- I’d be sad if he went home.)

I pray for the peaceful passage of the owlbear. Verne said it was ok to set it loose.

I pray for Viola, that she finds some treasure that’s hers. I think she was sad to give up the invisibility potion.

I pray for Gundren. May he make a speedy recovery.

And I'll also pray for the goblins of Cragmaw Castle. I hope your light can reach them in the land beyond.

Closing

Thank you Lathander, Inspiration’s Dawn, for all you do. For the warmth and light you wash over us. Till the next dawn comes.

Amen.

Interlude: Recovery (Viola)

Total Treasure from Cragmaw Castle and Other Ventures 

Coin

5pp, 170gp, 232ep, 435sp, 750cp

Items

Pearl - worth 100gp per Peri

Potion of healing (5)

Spell scroll of darkness

Jeweled box - worth 25gp per Peri

Ring of protection that I definitely don't need

Vials of perfume (3) - worth 10gp each per Halia

Sun elf statuette - worth 100gp per Halia (potentially more, if Rose is right about it being magic)

Chalice, knife and censer - worth 150gp, 60gp, 120gp (NOT donating, sorry Peri)

Spell scroll of silence

Spell scroll of revivify

Map to Wave Echo Cave

Other

Verbal agreement from Gundren Rockseeker promising us each a 2% stake in the mine (which seems a bit slim, considering we saved his life but still- mama's a mining magnate now!)

Value Total

5pp, 755gp, 435sp, 750cp

Split

1pp, 151gp, 87sp, 150cp each

Rose - potion of healing, spell scroll of darkness

Sonny - potion of healing

Verne - potion of healing, spell scroll of silence

Peri - potion of healing, spell scroll of revivify, ring of protection (which seems silly, since they have armor and a shield, but they did scare off the zombies so that we could get the ring in the first place, so whatever.)

Viola - potion of healing (yippee)

Chapter 7.1: Wave Echo Cave

Fifteen miles east of Phandalin, the party trekked through the vales of the Sword Mountains. Though the weather was nice, and they'd not encountered any monsters, the five hours hiking in the hot sun had taken its toll on the adventurers. Viola took up the rear, occasionally muttering curses under her breath and kicking pebbles off the mountain path. Ahead of her was Rose, who leaned heavily on her staff, plodding along and wheezing. Next was Peri, who after growing dizzy from dehydration, was being carried on Sonny's shoulders. The fighter had agreed to do this, forgetting that his tabaxi friend had recently purchased a new breastplate, the weight of which was now forming an increasingly painful cramp in his lower back as he climbed. The only member of the party not struggling was Verne, who happily led the pack, strolling several paces ahead of the others with a peaceful smile. 

"What a marvelous day for a hike, my friends," the ranger sighed, breathing in the mountain air.

"Stuff it, old man," Viola huffed, tramping along the trail. "Tell you what, if we do find the spell forge, I'm gonna use it to wish away all the mountains, so we never have to do a stupid hike like this again."

"That's The Forge of Spells, not the "spell forge" Rose lectured between gasps, "and besides, that's not how it works. The Forge enchants-"

"Ugh, will you shut up already?" Viola groaned. "We get it, you’re smart."

Rose scowled, but she and Viola were both too tired to argue. Luckily, they soon came across a narrow tunnel hidden amongst the foothills, where Gundren's map indicated the entrance to Wave Echo Cave would be.

The tunnel led into a large cavern supported by a natural pillar of rock and containing three stalagmites. The northeastern section of the cave had collapsed, forming a ten-foot-wide, twenty-foot-deep pit. A sturdy hemp rope was tied off around a nearby stalagmite and dangled down the side of the pit, at the bottom of which was a rough-hewn tunnel heading northwest and east. In the western part of the cave, behind the column of rock, were three bedrolls and a heap of ordinary supplies- sacks of flour, bags of salt, casks of salted meat, lanterns, flasks of lamp oil, pickaxes, shovels and other gear. Amid the supplies, however, was the body of a dwarf, slumped and lifeless.

Verne ran to the body and inspected it. "Anybody you know?" Sonny asked, nervously.

"Not personally, no," Verne shook his head. "But I believe this is one of the brothers Rockseeker. He looks remarkably like Gundren, and that besides, I do not believe anyone else knew the location of the cave."

"Looks like he's been dead for a while- at least a week, I'd guess" Peri said, looking over the body with a pitying gaze.

"What do you think did this to him?" Sonny asked, looking around. There was no visible sign of a struggle, nor were there any other creatures in the cavern.

"I can check for any magical influences," Rose offered. "Maybe a spell did this." The witch held up her hand and started quietly reciting a ritual chant. After a few minutes, her hand began to glow with a white aura, and she paced slowly around the cavern, taking care not to stray too far from the group. As she returned to the center of the campsite, the aura suddenly turned orange, increasing in intensity as she drew nearer to the dwarf. Rose frowned as she passed her hand over the body, finding that the aura shone most brightly around the man's feet. She dismissed the spell with a sigh and said, "I can't find anything to suggest magical foul play. Whoever did this was simply skilled- they must have attacked the Rockseekers faster than they could react, and took one of them prisoner without disturbing the surroundings."

"What was that orange glow when you went around his feet?" Peri tilted their head curiously.

"It seems our friend here is wearing magical boots. They appear to have a transfigurative property, but beyond that I'm not sure what they do." Rose replied.

"Good enough for me." Viola said as she stooped down and began taking off the dwarf's boots.

"What are you doing?" Sonny asked, alarmed.

"I'm taking the magic boots." Viola said, as though it were obvious. "I don't think he'll be needing them any more, all things considered."

"I guess not, but don't you think you should have some respect for the dead?" Peri mewed softly.

"Respect for the dead? You're literally wearing a dead man's ring of protection right now!" Viola said, exasperated. "Not to mention Sonny’s sword and half the spells in Rose's book. So I don't want to hear about "disrespecting the dead" when we regularly take magic items that would otherwise rot forever. We are a troupe of filthy raccoon scavengers, and I will not be apologizing for it." The rogue plucked the boots off of the dead dwarf's body and stood defiantly with one under each arm.

"That's different, Viola, we know this man." Peri pleaded.

"Oh yeah, what's his first name?" Viola gestured down to the face of the dwarf, and though the tabaxi tried to come up with an answer, they couldn’t. "Thought so." the halfling sighed, placing the boots into her pack.

“Fret not, my friend. We can bring his body back with us to Phandalin and give Gundren the opportunity for a proper goodbye.” Verne said, patting Peri on the shoulder. And though the cleric frowned, they nodded their assent.

That resolved, the party walked to the edge of the pit, carefully climbing down the rope before plunging deeper into the dark, mysterious mine.

Chapter 7.2: Into the Dark

The party followed the tunnel east, eventually spilling out into a natural thirty-foot-high cavern. The walls were carved with simple reliefs showing dwarf and gnome miners hard at work. Below them, nearly two dozen skeletons in rusted scraps of armor were scattered across the cavern floor. Some were dwarf skeletons, while others were orc remains. Half a dozen large brass lanterns stood in niches or on ledges around the cavern, but none were lit.

“How awful,” Peri whispered, pressing their paws together and reciting a prayer. “To die in such a senseless conflict.”

“Was it senseless?” Verne mused. “When I look upon this, I am reminded of our exploits in the Redbrand Hideout or Cragmaw Castle.”

“That’s different,” Viola argued, “we only killed those guys so we could rescue Gundren and the Dendrars, not over some stupid artifact.”

“Make no mistake. I do not regret our actions, nor am I suggesting you do so. I am merely stating that these men- dwarf and orc alike- believed their actions to be righteous.” Verne stated. 

Before any of them could respond to the elf’s position, however, there was a loud flapping sound, followed by a flash of brown leathery wings as a swarm of creatures dropped from the ceiling. The first one bee-lined towards Rose, but was promptly deflected by an arcane shield. In response, the witch pulled out her wand, letting loose a volley of magic missiles that burst their avian adversaries on impact.

Two more of the creatures dropped down on Sonny and Verne, who deflected and dodged the strikes of the creatures. Sonny pivoted around his elven ally, and with two strokes of his sword, felled their foes.

Viola, seeing the threat of the flying creatures, but not having any near enough to strike with her swords, drew her crossbow, steadying her aim before loosing a crossbow bolt into one of the creatures and deftly avoiding another as it swooped.

Unfortunately, Peri was not quite so lucky. While they fumbled at their hip trying to draw their mace, one of the creatures dropped down, plunging its long, thin beak into the tabaxis arm, drawing a sickening pulse of blood from the wound. The cleric grappled with the creature, attempting to pry it off themselves with their claws, to little effect.

Now that all the creatures had left their perch along the ceiling, Verne drew his blades and ran, first dispatching the creature attached to Peri, then swinging wide at the one engaged with Rose, barely missing the creature with his swing. Now agitated, the creature lunged at Verne, sticking into the elf’s neck as the other had done with Peri. In response, Rose aimed her wand and said, “Stay still, Verne,” before blasting the creature with a point-blank fire bolt.

With one creature remaining, Sonny dashed over to Viola and swung his sword in a wide arc, cleaving the winged beast in two. “Everybody alright?” Sonny asked, wiping the blood off his sword.

“I will be, my friend,” Verne sighed, uncorking a potion of healing and quickly drinking it.

Peri’s hand instinctively moved to their holy symbol, but the elf waved them down. The cleric frowned, but respected their ally’s wishes. After they’d confirmed that everyone was unharmed, the party gathered their supplies and proceeded down the hall, but as they left, Peri glanced at the scattered remains of the creature on the ground, briefly wondering if theirs was indeed a “righteous” cause.

Chapter 7.3: Skeletons and Keys

A few paces down the passage, the party came to a dead end in the hallway, with two doors on either side. Verne pressed an ear against each door and confirmed he heard no sound from either, while Viola checked for hidden traps. After a quick deliberation, they decided to open the door on the right first. Inside, splintered stone benches and heaps of rubble from a partially collapsed ceiling filled the room. Amid ruined stone bunks and toppled weapon racks were the bones of several dwarves and orcs. Verne took a cautious step into the room, and as soon as he did, the bones began to rattle and knit together, forming several skeletons that charged with rusted weapons.

Immediately, Sonny rushed forward, his broad shoulders taking up the majority of the entryway, shielding his allies from the skeletons. He swung his sword at the nearest skeleton, his blade crashing through its brittle ribcage with ease. Its frame compromised, the skeleton feebly returned a stroke of its own, which was deflected by the young fighter. Another skeleton shambled up and met with similar results, unable to bypass the splint armor and sturdy shield.

Rose clamored behind Sonny, trying to get a good shot at the skeletons, but couldn’t find one in the narrow space, her fire bolt pinging uselessly off the stone wall. “We appreciate the help, but we’re having trouble getting a clear shot,” Rose sighed, preparing to fire another blast. “Sorry, I’ll get right on that,” Sonny grunted as two more skeletons came crashing into the first, driving against the fighters arms.

Verne, undeterred by the tight quarters, took a step back before launching two arrows beneath each of the fighter’s arms. The first shot embedding itself into the crumbling shield of a skeleton, and the other piercing into a brittle skull with a resounding crack. As if taking a cue, three of the skeletons toward the rear of the chamber drew shortbows and fired shots of their own back at the elf, one of which clipped him in the side. Verne hissed as the arrowhead cut his skin, tightening the grip on his bow.

Viola, wanting to clear space for herself and the others, ducked between Sonny’s legs, taking advantage of the obscurement before lunging out and hacking the two nearest skeletons apart, giving the fighter a brief reprieve.

With the space cleared, Peri stepped forward, presenting their holy symbol and driving all but one of the skeletons back with a burst of divine radiance. Sonny charged this outlier, slashing its shield arm off, giving Rose all the opening she needed to finish it off with a fire bolt.

The skeletons clamored at the far end of the room, rattling their bones and clacking their jaws at the party, but none daring to draw nearer as long as Peri held their holy symbol. Verne fired off a shot, damaging one of the skeletons enough for Peri to dispatch it with sacred flame. The battle went on in this matter for some time, the party working together to dispatch the skeletons while staying in the safety of Peri’s light. Once the skeletons had all been destroyed, the party let out a collective sigh, thankfully unharmed save for some light scrapes.

As the others regrouped, Viola padded over to the other door, silently opening it and peering inside. The chamber appeared to have been an office or storeroom of some kind. A large stone counter bisected the room, set with three dusty balance scales made of iron. Cubbyholes carved into the north wall were stuffed with dusty paper scraps. Several long-dead corpses- gnomes and orcs by their look- were sprawled across the floor. Viola strolled around the counter, finding a locked iron strongbox. The rogue grinned, flicking out a well-worn set of lockpicks before getting to work. Viola’s fingers moved rapidly, easily feeling the proper placement for each of the tumblers before, with a satisfying ker-chunk, the lock fell open. Viola’s eyes widened as they fell upon a pile of coins, clearly stashed long ago by the former owners of the mine. She reported her findings to the others, who were disappointingly (at least, to Viola) not as excited about her discovery. Still, the party quickly divvied up the coin before resuming their search.

Chapter 7.4: Ghoulish Doubt

The party walked north, returning to the hall in which they’d fought the bat creatures. This time, they chose to walk straight through, exiting through the northern door and further down the hall, eventually coming to another intersection of hallways, with a door in front of them. 

“What say you, friends?” Verne asked the others, “left, right, or investigating the room?”

“Well, we’ve gotta check everywhere for Gundren’s brother, right?” Sonny mused.

“Or the Black Spider,” Viola offered, pointedly.

“Let’s check the door, Verne,” Peri requested, before sheepishly adding, “but be careful.”

The elf nodded, unslinging his bow from his shoulder with his left hand before opening the door with his right. Inside, old stone bunks in orderly rows lined the walls of a small chamber with a corroded iron brazier full of old coals at the center. The bones of a half-dozen dwarves and orcs lie strewn about, clad in scraps of armor. Above these were three gray, hunched figures who squatted among the remains, pawing at the scraps and gnawing on the bones. One of the figures lifted its head, a set of large milky eyes observing the tasty morsels that had just wandered into its den. Its mouth opened, and with a horrific squelching roar, it lunged forward.

Reacting quickly, Viola somersaulted between Verne’s legs, quickly drawing her crossbow and loosing a shot that pierced into the neck of one of the ghouls. It staggered back, thrown off balance by the sudden attack.

Rose then ran into the room, drawing her wand and sending a cascade of flashing colorful light at the creatures in an effort to blind them, but found the ghouls to be more resilient than she’d thought. Each of the creatures shook their heads and snarled, unfazed by the illusory spell. The witch turned and ran out of the room, two of the creatures swinging their gnarled hands at her. She managed to avoid one of the strikes but the other caught her under the arm, tearing a deep gash across her ribs. The witch let out a cry of pain, staggering out the door and leaning against the wall just out of view of the ghouls.

Enraged, Sonny charged through the door, batting one ghoul away with his shield before swinging his sword at another, chopping its head off just above Viola’s crossbow bolt. The ghouls descended on Sonny, but the young fighter proved too resilient, easily blocking their claw strokes with stops and parries.

With Sonny keeping the ghouls occupied, Peri bounded into the room, confidently drawing their holy symbol and reciting the same prayer they’d just used on the skeletons. The light burst from the medallion towards the ghouls, but rather than be turned, the creatures simply shielded their eyes and continued their assault on the fighter. “N-no, that’s impossible,” Peri stammered. “Why isn’t it working?!” As they let out this cry, the light of the holy symbol flickered, then died. The cleric swallowed hard, feeling a lump in their throat and tears beginning to well in their eyes. They recited a different prayer, this time summoning their spiritual weapon, but with their confidence dashed and their focus along with it, the shape was amorphous and strange. Peri moved it towards the ghouls who easily avoided the strike, seeming to mock the young tabaxi with their open-mouthed snarl.

“Do not lose heart, friend,” Verne encouraged from the hallway. The ranger knocked two arrows, sending one flying into each of the ghouls chests. As the arrow struck the foe nearest Peri, it began to glow bright green, bestowing the hunter’s mark on the creature.

Following Verne’s lead, Viola dashed into the room, slid between the legs of the ghoul and fired another shot of her crossbow as she popped up from the ground, piercing through the brain of the ghoul and dropping it to the floor.

Out in the hallway, Rose gasped, her ribs stinging like fire where the ghouls claws had struck her. She gripped her wand and peeked briefly through the doorway, sending a fire bolt at the last remaining ghoul, but so quickly did she retreat from the door afterwards, that the bolt barely singed the undead creature.

Thankfully, the ghoul turned its head in the direction the flame had come from, giving Sonny all the opening he needed to pierce the creature through the chest with his sword, putting its rampage to an end. As the fighter sheathed his weapon, he ran out into the hallway. “Rose, are you alright?” he asked, hesitatingly reaching a hand out to the witch.

“I’m fine,” she whispered, uncorking a potion of healing and slowly taking a drink. Her face was a stoic mask, but her hand trembled as she held the bottle.

Unconvinced, Sonny walked back into the room to get Peri, but found the Cleric on their knees, crying beside their misshapen spiritual weapon. “It should have worked. Why didn’t it work?” they sobbed, tears rolling down their face.

“Hey buddy, what’s wrong?” the fighter asked, kneeling down next to the cleric.

“I couldn’t turn the ghouls,” they sniffed, not bothering to wipe away their tears, “I can’t make my spiritual weapon look nice, I can’t direct sacred flames the way I need to- the priests were right about me, I c-can’t do anything right.”

“The priests?” Verne asked, leaning against the wall of the barracks. “From your home temple?”

Peri nodded miserably. “They’re the ones who raised me back in Waterdeep. They found me when I was just a kit, taught me all about Lathander and how to be a devout follower. But no matter what task they gave me, I would find a way to goof it up, and they would punish me. They always used to tell me how hopeless I was- that I would never be able to find the light of Lathander if I didn’t learn to focus and be serious. That’s why I wanted to travel with you guys. So I could find artifacts of Lathander and bring them back to the temple to prove them wrong, but…I haven’t been doing that at all.” The cleric’s shoulders slumped, and the misshapen spiritual weapon faded into golden dust.

Verne folded his arms and thought for a moment, then said, “I am not over-familiar with the gods, but Lathander is known as ‘the Dawnfather,’ yes?”

Peri nodded, and mumbled, “I at least know that much.”

“I do not wish to invalidate your feelings, my young friend, nor would I dare question the wisdom of such seasoned priests, but I find it silly that one could possibly look at you and not see the embodiment of the dawn.”

“What do you mean?” Peri asked, wiping their nose on their sleeve.

“Our first night in Phandalin, at the Stonehill Inn, while the rest of us were gathering information, you chose to entertain a young boy and his mother with a story, did you not?”

The tabaxi tucked their ears down, “Yeah, I did. Sorry, I guess I was goofing off again.”

The elf shook his head and smiled, “You misunderstand me, friend. I am not chastising you- quite the opposite, in fact. You saw two people despairing over the unknown fate of their friends and neighbors and chose to brighten their day not with scripture, not with divine rites, but with laughter. Yours is a spirit that can brighten even the darkest corners of this world, my friend. Please do not allow others to dim it.”

Peri blinked up at the elf, their lower lip quivering before running forward and burying their head in the elf’s leg, their shoulders shaking as they cried. Verne smiled and patted the tabaxi’s head, reassuring them that all would be alright. Sonny and Viola stood from the floor, and once Peri stopped crying, they all exited the abandoned barracks.

As they walked down the hall, Sonny turned to Viola and said, “I didn’t realize the little fella had so much pressure on ‘em. I hope they’re alright.”

“Eh, I’m sure fuzzball will be fine,” Viola replied, lacing her fingers behind her head, “especially after that pep talk from Verne. When do you think we get our ‘you’re amazing' speeches?”

“Whenever you would like it,” Verne called from the head of the group, grinning over his shoulder. “I have plenty to offer. I do, after all hold you in the highest regard.”

Viola’s face flushed and she turned her eyes to the ceiling, angrily avoiding eye contact with the laughing fighter behind her.