Session 21, VP1

Bronze, Lauren, Reinhold, Sylvie, & Donner arrived at the Colosseum with weariness trailing in their wake. Thankfully, it seemed the large fires Naivara, Lauren, & Sylvie had lit the night before lend the townsfolk some aid in deterring the possessed shades.

No visible damage was apparent, & the defenders reported to have suffered barely any losses. With this knowledge, the group decided that they needed sleep if they were to be of any further use when night fell.

Across town at the Pokemon Center, that same conclusion was reach by Bergie, Gunnar, & Naivara. They had managed to get Saffa to proper medical attention, despite a brief run-in with Soltinnmunnr. Both parties let themselves drift off for the moment.

Once awake, Bergie gave Lauren a call. He updated them on how the desert trek fared, & suggested the two groups meet up to plan for the coming battle. Lauren passed this information onto their friends, & both sets of trainers made their way down to the remnants of the open-air market.

Each group shared some information about the day’s events, to get them all onto the same page. Naivara, Gunnar, & Bergie were nonplussed to hear that the military was planning to shell the town in 3 days’ time. Such an attack would almost certainly do nothing to Gudbrund or his two remaining Spirits, but would devastate the surviving townsfolk & possessed shades.

The sword now hanging above their heads added a sense of urgency to their discussion. Actions had to be taken quickly, but of what kind? Several ideas were brought forth on how to proceed. Each one had risks & downsides, making it difficult to reach a consensus.

It was generally agreed that the best course of action would be to somehow take out the two remaining Spirits, then go after Gudbrund directly. The methods of doing such were hotly debated. Eventually, with sunlight wearing thin, the trainers decided to seek out their targets underground.

Yes, they would be entering their foes’ domain, but they would have the element of surprise on their side. Doing so, however, meant leaving Drillsberg for the evening; the townsfolk would have to fend off the coming assault on their own.

Although none of our heroes were happy with this thought, it was agreed to be a necessary evil. As they gathered their belongings and made ready to trek towards the Nest Cave, Donner spoke up. The guilt he still carried for his failure to protect the Puphest in Ever Dam was too heavy. He could not bring himself to leave the people of Drillsberg, no matter the cost.

Somber farewells & wishes of luck were exchanged, & the party made their way back to the lift out of town. Realizing that speed was integral, the plan was to backtrack the path Gunnar, Bergie, & Naivara had just taken while escorting Saffa to safety. Cutting across the grasslands would make for easier travel than trudging through the desert, and every second saved increased their chances of success.

The sun continued its descent to the horizon as the trainers traveled in silence. Each step away from Drillsberg seemed like grains of sand, falling in an hourglass. There was little light to spare as they reached the cliff-face bordering Nest Cave.

Gunnar took out his rope, and released Skalmvaer to hold it. One at a time, the trainers made their way down the rope to the desert floor. Luckily, they saw no sign of the roving predator that had hunted Bergie Naivara, & Gunnar. A setting sun provided one last draught of light, & our heroes entered Nest Cave.

Even armed as they were with knowledge of what lay inside the cave, Reinhold, Sylvie, Bronze, & Lauren were still awed at the sight. The swarm of dogs surrounding Ever Dam had appeared to be beyond count, but this was something else entirely.

Frigga's Womb was a desert that stretched for miles in the heart of Varfjall, teeming with life above its sands as well as beneath. In this cave, it appeared as if that very sand had come to life with chittering red carapace, a mass of living armor reflecting what scant rays of sun had yet to die. Every inch of the cavern slowly moved. At their feet, Trapinch nestled tightly together for warmth to survive the desert cold. The walls & ceiling could barely be seen beneath the dream-like fluttering of Vibrava wings.

With a gesture for quiet, Bergie broke the spell that draped on the moment like velvet down. Following his lead, the trainers carefully wound their way through Nest Cave, towards the small tunnel entrance within.

The portal before our heroes was small & plain. Nothing about this place sang of myth & magic, yet they knew that life beyond their ken dwelt within. Gunnar drew an unlit torch, Lauren took hold of their flashlight. And Bronze? Bronze closed her eyes.

A ghostly wave of static seemed to sweep across the trainers, raising skin & hair alike. When Bronze reopened her eyes, there was no mistaking that a barrier had been crossed, a line between truth & story impossibly blurred. Gleaming amidst the black, Bronze's yellow eyes pierced not just the shadows; wherever her eyes shone, wall & floor made themselves known. Walls ceased to matter to, as immaterial as the chill air of the newborn night. Nodding to her friends, Bronze turned, & began to lead them into the impassable dark.

It was not long before the group saw Bronze's gaze swing back their way once more. In a whisper, she warned that she could see several shades lurking ahead. Though the numbers seemed much smaller than that of the previous night, care would still need to be taken in order to pass through without harm.

Gunnar told of how he had used the natural confines of the tunnel to his advantage when saving Saffa, an idea that seemed of use now as well. With those wielding sleeping lights ready to use them, Bergie released Stompy. The flickering flames on Stompy's ankles were nearly blinding as they shattered the pitch black cocoon circling our heroes.

Immediately, the sound of footsteps further down the tunnel rang out. Battle began as the trainers steeled themselves for the coming work. Shade after shade lurched towards them, heedless of how many of their own fallen they trampled in the process. Every one that fell bought the party momentum, a small measure of feet forward.

Time was difficult to grasp in the throes of combat, but in time, the group found themselves at the entrance to a still underground lake. Floating at its center was one of Gudbrund's Spirits, staring up to the ceiling in curiosity. Upon noticing the trainers, it turned its attention in their direction instead.

Faint words in Elder Vanic crept into the ears of our heroes, sending involuntary chills down their spines. Gunnar, the only one who could understand the language, responded in an aggressive tone. The Spirit rolled both of its shoulders, and began to stride straight towards them, a mass of shades following suit around the lake edge.

The many blows being exchanged made it difficult to keep eyes on the Spirit; its ability to turn invisible rendered this an impossibility. Unsure of where their primary foe was lurking, our heroes continued fighting against the small horde of possessed townsfolk.

A resounding crack echoed through the tunnel the group was using as a chokepoint. For a split second, Bronze could see the Spirit materialize, as it demolished a large chunk of the ceiling. With a pointed cry, Bronze managed to land a blow on the Spirit before it faded from view, allowing Sylvie to follow suit.

Thankfully, the rocks that had fallen did no great deal of damage to any of our heroes, but had created a small blockade of rubble splitting the group in two. Afraid of what might happen if they stayed separated, Reinhold & Gunnar turned their attacks to the rocks instead of the shades. In short order, the rubble had been removed, while the rest of the party continued to whittle down the shades.

Every time a shade would fall, Reinhold removed Gudbrund's gem with the Sapphire Gible Dagger, & victory seemed close at hand. As the group focused their attacks on the two remaining shades, several things happened all at once.

From behind them came a monstrous din, an earthquake in miniature. In front of them, the last shades sank to the ground, defeated. And within their ranks, a breath was caught, as Sylvie felt a familiar pain make itself known. Leaving their friends to free the last townsfolk, Gunnar & Bronze sped off in the direction of the still-echoing sound. Lauren's blooming telepathy felt a spike of anxiety coming from Sylvie, & they moved toward her to help.

Rounding the corner, Bronze & Gunnar found the Spirit, wounded, standing before a massive cave-in. Unlike the small rubble they had dealt with but moments earlier, this blockade filled the width of the tunnel from wall to wall. Words in Elder Vanic were exchanged once more, & the Spirit's arms morphed into living halberds, eager to hew flesh.

Unable to speak, Sylvie swayed in placed on her feet. Her hands clutched the sides of her face as her eyes seemed misted over. On reflex, Lauren's worry manifested itself on the psychic plane, syncing up with Sylvie's visions. The pair stood rooted in horror as Bergie & Reinhold gathered the freed townsfolk to a safe corner.

The Spirit thrust both bladed arms at the two trainers it faced. Gunnar managed to just barely dodge the cutting edge of the blade, as the other bit home into Bronze's hip. Hearing sounds of the battle, Bergie & Reinhold began running to help their friends. Just as they skidded around the corner, Skeldr let loose a cascade of boulders from his craggy maw. As the final stone slammed into the Spirit's torso, it flew back into the rubble, clearly in agony. The Spirit let out one last haunting sentence, before disintegrating into ash.

At the same instant, Sylvie let out a startled scream of fear. Lauren shook themselves out of the trance shared between the two, and pulled out their Pokedex with a shaking hand. The rest of our heroes gave the cave-in a cursory glance as Lauren had a quiet, pained phone call. The last thing that came through the speakers was the faint crackle of fire, & the silence of a promise unable to be spoken.

Once they had converged once more, Sylvie & Lauren quickly told the rest of their friends that they needed to return to Drillsberg as quickly as possible. Before they could explain why, a sudden splash rang out from the lake behind them. Turning as one in fear, the group dared not even breathe. Just as they were about to voice their confusion, another splash took them by surprise. Warily, Naivara sent Flamon flying forward to light the area.

In the soft, orange glow of his feathers, all of our heroes could plainly see a form fall heavily into the lake's surface. Directly above its rippling waters was a small hole, a trapdoor that opened into the Temple storeroom. And from that hole, a steady drip of headless bodies began to rain down.