Session 05: Let's Take a Dip

As they touched down, our heroes found themselves in a subterranean tunnel, its floor strewn with debris from the collapse above. The darkness around them came alive in shades of gray as their darkvision pierced through the veil. Treading cautiously over the uneven ground, weapons drawn, they pressed forward. Suddenly, the eerie silence was shattered by the stealthy scuttle of clawed feet. A horde of giant rats burst forth from the crevices in the walls, lunging with bared teeth. The ensuing skirmish was fierce but short-lived, as the adventurers’ blades danced, cleaving through fur and flesh. The rats were vanquished, but not without exacting a toll. Pebblesong lay grievously wounded, and the adventurers, spent of their resources, decided to rest in the gloom of the tunnel to recover their strength.

With the break of a new day, they advanced through the dark corridors. The dwarven senses tingled as they navigated through the blend of natural caves, ancient tunnels, and dilapidated sewer ways. A clear trail of bootprints guided their steps, leading them to a chamber whose elegance starkly contrasted the rough-hewn paths that led there.

Tall, smoothly carved stone pillars touched an arched ceiling, while the walls bore arcane symbols and mysterious phrases. The room’s centerpiece was a quartet of sunken pools, each filled with a different hue of liquid – clear, blue, green, and a cloudy white. Their surfaces sparkled under the flickering lights, an invitation to the unknown.

The goblin Hat was the first to heed the call, shedding gear with fervent haste, and with a spirited leap, plunged into the first pool. The waters embraced Hat with a chilling grasp before spewing them back out, their eyes wide with the thrill of unbound realities and infinite vistas now open to their mind. Undeterred by the ominous aura, Hat delved into the next pool. This one held not visions, but grim premonitions of death that sent shivers down Hat’s spine. Yet on they went, into the third pool, whose waters scorched and poisoned, and then the fourth, which sapped away energy, leaving Hat weary but with a strange sense of newfound resilience and an enhanced intuition.

As Hat emerged from the last pool, a key materialized, spinning slowly in the air as if held by unseen hands. The sight fueled Bartholemeow’s resolve, who now took his turn, followed by the rest of the party, one by one, each embracing the trials of the pools. Only Waer’dara held back, the first pool’s chilling exhaustion a deterrent to further venture.

Once all had faced the trial of the pools, a short rest was in order to regain some semblance of strength from the ordeal endured. The key now in the firm grip of Thalmiir led them to an ornate door sealing the far end of the chamber. As the key slid into the elaborate lock with a satisfying click, Thalmiir paused, suggesting a moment of reprieve to gather their strength before stepping through to whatever awaited them beyond. The adventures thus far had tested their mettle against vermin and mystic waters. Now, as they steadied their breaths and bound their wounds, the secrets nestling in the depths of this subterranean shrine hummed quietly, awaiting their return.