With silence after a resolute gunshot from Lette’s pistol, Will rowed some of his crew into the cove to see the result of the skirmish. He struck a bargain with the party to return some of Swann’s funds; they paid him in return for letting his crew keep Darkscale’s ship. They retrieved one of Darkscale’s horns, Will’s crew dumped Darkscale and his crew’s bodies, and the group set off back for Naviga through the night. The journey back was fairly uneventful, though the group saw the vambrace crewmate go below decks but then saw no trace of him once they found hammocks themselves.
Once back in Naviga, the group headed for Swann’s manor. She seemed relieved that Darkscale would no longer be able to haunt the waters around Naviga, but there was still a sense of disappointment over her loss. She rewarded the party with her 8 tokens as well as some various treasures. Now, within 2 tokens of winning the contest, the party headed straight to Dieter’s home to gather the archaeology equipment.
Two knights guarding Dieter’s home allowed the party entry once they flashed Dieter’s silver ring. Within the grounds, what appeared to be an older gardener escorted the party to an equipment building nestled in the courtyard. Inside, there were several crates full of tools and cobwebs alongside a fresh crate packed with jingling archaeology equipment. A few members of the party gathered their strength and carefully made their way back to the docks.
The steward that looked after Dieter’s ship that had previously turned the party away seemed brightened this time, now that the party had retrieved the archaeology equipment. Once some mages took custody of the crate to place it safely below deck, the party settled onto the ship for their longer voyage.
During the first leg of the voyage, the party realized the young knight that originally took their names for the contest was aboard for the mission as well. They also learned that his name was Cassian, and that he was indeed the Knight-Captain of the Knight Order of Naviga. Another odd raven was also spotted atop a mast, though it vanished just as quickly.
As night fell, everyone aboard began to feel a strange presence, just as a fog rolled in. The fog obscured the nearby Black Spires and set the entire crew at an unease. The party split, some remaining above deck, while others went below to ensure the equipment was secure. While in the cargo hold, the party spotted a strange figure rummaging through a separate crate. As soon as the figure was alerted to their presence, it vanished in a flash of pink magic that left behind residue. The equipment seemed undisturbed, but before the group could investigate further, above-deck, the crew was attacked by crimson wisps of flames.
As the wisps were dispatched, they would echo what appeared to be human voices, saying things such as, “…an assassin!”, “…betrayed us!”, “…ship’s on fire!”, and “Abandon ship!”. None of the mages, the steward, nor Cassian seemed to know what the wisps could’ve been.
The steward spoke with the group about the figure that was rummaging below deck. Spells that leave residue tend to be powerful, and it appeared to be a form of teleportation, which is also a rare power. The figure seemed to have stolen a rusty necklace with a faded rune, according to the steward’s manifest. He did not have much info other than that it was Dieter’s, and that it was “recovered in the city”.
The ship arrived in the desert near Selina’s Blight at a small dock on the coast the following morning, likely stood up for the archaeologists. Once they had disembarked with the equipment, the party met Mord, the lead archaeologist of the dig site. He relayed his excitement over getting some support and interest from someone of note, as no other councilor, Mage Order, nor Knight Order seemed to pay their project much heed.
Once the retinue had crested a dune that gazed down upon the dig site, Mord explained the immense, historic sight the party beheld. Large sections of polished stone sat embedded in the sand, as if it had fallen from a large height. Mord explained these were the remains of the headquarters of the rebel group Scarlet, a sect that sparked a civil war over the mistreatment of dragonborn nearly 70 years ago, led by the believed-dead Selina. Mord explained that the King of the time, Korrin, dispatched a force of strange flying creatures to destroy the double-pyramid that housed Scarlet high in the skies of the desert. The black ruins in the sand now were the only mark of that history.
The party also saw large stalagmites of Doom Magic, though their usual purple magic had nearly vanished, leaving the crystals with the appearance of plain quartz. In the very middle of the dig site was a ring of Doom crystals that appeared to have just a touch of the purple magic left in them. Mord explained this site was where the Doomking first revealed himself, and where Selina joined him, gaining the moniker of Doomqueen. The party expressed interest in this site the most, so Mord escorted them there, pointing out a large section of the black stone he said they should tour afterward.
In the ritual circle, the party met Riel, a younger, elven mage that was deep at work trying to decrypt a spell. He explained that along the perimeter of the circle, there was a strange spell residue that left behind several runes. Riel stated he was able to decrypt the Doom runes in the spell, but other runes were unknown to him, and he couldn’t decrypt the spell’s formula due to those runes. He mentioned that another researcher nearby was investigating the death site of a Doomlord and that something from her site could help him, but that she had no interest in sharing her research with him. The party offered to speak to her on Riel’s behalf to help him finish his work.
At the smaller dig site, covered by a large white tent, the party found a small team of archaeologists digging up crystallized bones buried in the sand. When they tried to investigate a long table with some excavated bones, the lead researcher shouted at them to leave. At first, she seemed quite annoyed by their presence, but she changed her tone when she sized up their combat prowess. She offered to answer whatever questions they had if the party could handle strange presences inside a cluster of Doom crystals that seemed to grow angry when she and her team try to excavate larger chunks of the bones. The party agreed, and her team began to dig out an immense, smooth chunk of crystal.
When the large chunk was disturbed, dark presences could be spotted in the cluster of crystals trying to break out. Once they had cracked through, decrepit, mutated, and decomposing husks crawled through, purple Doom Magic flowing from their eye sockets. The party successfully slayed the decaying Doom husks, saw to their own wounds, then turned to see what the team had pulled from the sand…