We return tonight to the group taking a night’s rest on their way to Ephthalas to help Aggie lay her parents to rest. While Helena sleeps, we are pulled into a flashback she has from several months ago. She is being escorted through the Undying Lands, a half dozen of her people assisting in a search for her brother. They all have small vials of some form of light that have been extinguished, one by one, as they travel through this dark realm. Helena is the only one whose light hasn’t yet
gone out. They are accosted by a group of Umtherans, denizens of the Undying Lands, and all but Helena are quickly struck down. As they turn to Helena we see an explosion of light, and the vision ends.
As we are pulled back to the campfire, we observe Helena and Vyr waiting patiently for the rest of the night to pass. They fail to notice a wolf approach until it is right up on them. After a short altercation Bjorn wakes and recognizes the wolf as Odo, a companion he hasn’t seen since he left New Norn. Settling back down to finish out their long rest, the night wraps up without further distraction. On the road the next morning they cross paths with a man named Rupret Cunningham, a tailor of some repute and owner of Cunning Hands Needlework. He and his wife, Evie, are headed to Andros for the Festival of the Drowning.
The group continues on and eventually find themselves next to a field of grain surrounding a house. The field has lost all color, turned gray, and even black and sickened as it nears the house. Bjorn recognizes this a
s findings associated with the Plague. As they investigate the blight a boy stumbles out of the house, yelling for help.
Despite protests from the rest of the group, Rue walks up to help the boy. Inside, Rue sends the boy off to his bedroom and finds the boy’s father lying in a separate room. He seems to be moldering from some form of black ichor, his mind gone and body barely in one piece. Behind the closed door, Rue puts the man out of his misery. As he steps back out of the bedroom Rue is attacked by the mother. She is not quite as rotted as her husband, but still beyond help. Rue dispatches her as well. Retrieving the boy from his room, Rue takes him back outside to inform the group of his findings.
Bjorn searches for the boy’s sister, who he reports is still missing. She is found in the basement with a barrel full of what seems to be glint that has lost its luster. The sister says it came from a man in the port of Andros who promised it would grow wheat stronger and better than any she has ever seen. Back outside the rest of the group is attacked by some form of bear-like creature that has also been consumed by this sickness. After a short but intense battle the creature is defeate
d, having taken Rue down with it. At the same time, Bjorn defends himself against the girl who has also turned feral from the ichor. He stops the girl and leaves the basement. Normandy helps Rue back to his feet and turn their attention back to the boy. Vyr offers up a mushroom that promises a quick and peaceful death.
Bjorn and Rue take the boy back to his bedroom. Taking Bjorn at his word that there is nothing that could be done to help the boy, Rue allows him to give the boy Vyr’s mushroom. Rue stays at his bedside until the boy, Philip, takes his last breath. Rue walks out of the house, stopping just long enough to set it ablaze.
Leaving the heartbreaking afternoon behind them, the group continues on. It’s not long before they are stopped by a group of seven dark knights, the leader holding a golden scepter. Six of them walk past, leaving one to battle with the group. After seeing Bjorn struck down by a single attack, it is obvious this monster is far too powerful for this group. As they run to escape, Rue is hit by a short vision. He sees himself among a group of extremely powerful warriors. An army. They are running through a battlefield, the sky itself on fire above them. Just as suddenly as it started, Rue is back in the forest with the rest of his current party. He also finds himself in access to power far above his current means.
He casts banishment on the knight, and although it does not entirely
take hold, the knight seems to be frozen in a state of semi-banishment long enough for the group to make their escape. They run through the night and into the next day, until they are sure they are no longer being followed. Before too long they find themselves in Ephthalas, the singular mountainous pillar and Abyssal Falls looming over them, and our game comes to an end.