15 - Bargains and Betrayals in Loomlurch
| Session 1 | Session 14 | Session 15 | ||
| ◀◀ | ◀ | ▲ | ▶ | ▶▶ |
| Ashira Brolin Frostbite | Ashira Brolin Frostbite | Ashira Brolin Frostbite |
A dragon!?!
The scent of damp wood and withering flowers clung to the air as the adventurers entered Skabatha Nightshade’s eerie domain. The crooked hag, a monstrous figure draped in tattered finery, gestured toward a table already set for tea. Frostbite’s eyes darted over the porcelain cups and the steaming teapot, his unease growing with each breath.
A tin soldier, moving with stiff, mechanical precision, carried the tray to the table. As Frostbite hesitated, he felt the weight of the hag’s gaze upon him. With slow deliberation, he sat in one of the six chairs, followed shortly by his companions.
“What brings you here?” Skabatha rasped, her tone saccharine but sharp.
Ashira spoke first, her voice steady. “I want something back that I have lost.”
Skabatha tilted her head, a knowing glint in her eye. “Everything here is mine. Whatever do you mean?”
Frostbite clenched his jaw, willing himself to stay silent.
“My smile,” Ashira said simply.
“Ahhh…” Skabatha’s cracked lips curled into a smirk, her amusement plain.
Brolin and Dhanell joined in, each demanding the return of their lost skills, but Skabatha only chuckled, her skeletal fingers tapping against the tabletop. “These things are mine now. But… I am willing to trade.”
Frostbite fought the urge to snarl. Not liking where this was going.
Skabatha’s clockwork key, nestled into her back, began to slow as the conversation shifted. Talk turned to Will, the elusive rebel leader. She admitted she knew he was in the forest but, for some reason, could not find him. “Bring me Will,” she purred, “and I shall return one of your lost treasures.”
The suggestion sat like a stone in Frostbite’s stomach. Taking from one hag to give to another was one thing. Delivering a living soul? Unacceptable.
“There are other… options,” Skabatha continued, her eyes gleaming. “My lost children would do just as well. And, of course, the Elicorn.”
Ashira leaned forward. “Where is my smile?”
The hag’s lips curled further. “Ah, your smile is held in an item I possess.”
“And the third lost skill?” Brolin pressed.
Skabatha’s key nearly stopped as she considered. “If you travel to my sister Endalyn and disrupt one of her plays, I shall return the final skill.”
Frostbite’s fists tightened. The rage within him burned hot, but he stayed silent.
“Take your time,” Skabatha crooned. “But first, some food.”
The group was led deeper into Loomlurch, past unsettling paintings whose subjects seemed to shift when unobserved. Ashira and Maeve casually inquired about the missing paintings, careful not to betray their knowledge. Skabatha’s demeanor darkened, her key nearly halting as she scrutinized them. Then, with a scowl, she twisted the key herself, regaining control, and moved on.
In the kitchen, a sickly-sweet aroma wafted from a bubbling cauldron. A tired girl peeled potatoes under the watchful eye of a voice from beneath the floor. “Are those potatoes I smell?” it grumbled.
The voice belonged to Elkhorn, a dwarf imprisoned below. When asked about his predicament, he revealed he was a member of Valor’s Call, seeking to defeat the League of Malevolence. Frostbite’s fur bristled as Maeve tested an old key and, surprisingly, the grate creaked open. A whispered curse followed as she quickly shut it again, debating with the group.
“To hell with it,” she muttered and opened it again. Ashira worked the lock on the girl’s chain, setting her free.
“Go, quickly,” Maeve urged.
Elkhorn and the girl bolted for the exit. Brolin, ever the trickster, loudly shouted, “Will! You cannot free those children!” The words echoed through Loomlurch.
Skabatha, wherever she had been, heard. She stormed through the halls, mounted her rocking horse, and took to the skies in pursuit.
Zephyr grinned. “That’s our cue.”
Slipping past a patrol of tin soldiers, the group found Skabatha’s study. The room held an oval mirror - eerily similar to the ones in Bavlorna’s lair and the Hall of Illusions. A desk cluttered with books, a skull, and a wanted poster for Will sat ominously in the corner.
Maeve and Dhanell stayed to search for magical clues while Ashira, Zephyr, and Frostbite climbed to the next floor. They entered a bedroom where a decaying dollhouse rested on a nightstand. Frostbite’s keen eyes narrowed. This was no ordinary toy.
Ashira tried the lid but found it locked. Without hesitation, Frostbite shifted into his spider form and scuttled inside. The interior was pristine compared to its exterior, filled with life-sized trinkets - a golden eye, a violin, a broken hand mirror, and more. He called out in surprise, his voice unexpectedly intact.
Outside, Zephyr tried flipping the house. “Careful!” Frostbite chittered, scurrying away.
Maeve arrived, confirming the house was magically sealed.
“We should just take it,” Ashira suggested.
Frostbite shifted back and lifted the dollhouse - only for a jack-in-the-box in the corner to spring open. A serpentine green dragon emerged, hissing, “Leave that. It is Skabatha’s.”
Frostbite made a split-second decision - he hurled the dollhouse at the dragon and bolted. The rest of the group following.
Outside, Chucklehead called out something indistinct, and Zephyr flew to investigate. Frostbite, meanwhile, sprinted into the trees. Moments later, Skabatha soared over Loomlurch, scanning for the escapees. The girl and Elkhorn had vanished, leaving the group to follow Brolin’s lead.
They traced the trail back to Will’s hideout, where he greeted them with cautious optimism. The night was spent listening to Elkhorn’s tales of his adventures, the Palace of Hearts and the Jabberwock. Maeve played her lute, weaving music into the night. Frostbite, as always, was entranced by the sound.
Come morning, the group moved away from the children to discuss their options.
“Bringing in Will is a viable option,” Brolin admitted.
Frostbite bared his teeth. “I will not be part of that.”
“Disrupting Endalyn’s play is fine - she’s a hag too,” Ashira reasoned. “But there’s something else. Letters in Skabatha’s house mentioned the Elicorn. It’s tied to freeing the Queen.”
The group pieced together the puzzle - Skabatha and her sisters wanted the unicorn horn to ensure the Queen remained trapped. The Palace of Hearts was guarded by the Jabberwock, a creature loyal to the Queen.
Frostbite’s conviction solidified. “We free the Queen. If we succeed, she might return what we’ve lost.”
A new path lay ahead. But would it lead to salvation - or further into the hags’ web?
The next phase of the plan begins
| Session 1 | Session 14 | Session 15 | ||
| ◀◀ | ◀ | ▲ | ▶ | ▶▶ |
| Ashira Brolin Frostbite | Ashira Brolin Frostbite | Ashira Brolin Frostbite |
Updated on: 07:05
