There are spells running and since the ship is tilted at a 40 degree angle, flying is really the only way to get around quickly and quietly. Off they go!
The group investigates a chamber once filled with barrels of fresh water – now a lot of broken barrels and a large puddle. They look at the cargo piled up to the ceiling and think about how to excavate the space behind it – where it seems there is a room of some sort. But, then again…tick tock, tick tock… so off they fly.
They swoop through hallways and find doors that lead to rowing benches – full of deceased rowers and one troll who has survived by eating everyone within range. The group is oddly merciful and leaves without slaying it. They return to the large sleeping chamber and unleash a wave of silent death as the silenced fighters fly from hammock to hammock and slit throats. They eventually find their way to a tilted hallway where they are surprised by the appearance of a strange sea-hag with a crystal eyeball embedded in her forehead and the smoke shrouded summoner of demons from the deck fight a few missions past. There is a moment of panic and then the mages get to work. A finger of death removes the hag as a source of concern and a follow-up disintegrate spell makes the other scary thing go buh-bye! A quick plunder and some tears shed over the cool stuff that got disintegrated and they’re off again, returning to a lower deck.
They discover a large room with a hammock and a chest bolted to the floor beneath it. The room is oddly barren, and when the floor space is compared to an adjoining area, it seems there is a false wall and a space behind. The group darts from room to room looking for access. They open a door to a large chamber festooned in spider webs and populated by human headed spiders with little baby arms instead of mouthparts – gross! They are also attacked by a vampire-druid. They pummel the druid into going gaseous and Goldpiece tracks the monster back to its lair by becoming gaseous and following behind it. A quick teleport and the team is reunited. The sarcophagus is examined and the beast is eventually dispatched for good.
Pressing on, the adventurers enter a large armory. Again, given the nature of the tilted deck, most of the contents are arranged downslope. The glint of magic is detected by the every scanning wizards and they set out to find the shinies. Around this time a spirit / poltergeist / ethereal creature makes an appearance and starts telekinesing weapons around the room. An axe splits Cosmic’s skull and his lifeless body slides downhill to join the rest of the debris. Suitably alarmed, the rest of the group organizes a brigade of unseen servants from Malchor’s crown to excavate the magic while swords, axes and spears fly around the room. The spirit seems irked. The group is also irked. With time on the fly spells running out, they decide to cut their losses and skedaddle.
Atop the airship they ponder the next move while the fallen Cosmic is returned to the living. The group is a bit salty and there is debate about what to do to finally finish this problem. IN the end, a return to the original plan is discussed, with some minor modifications. A few days later, while the group hovers nearby invisibly waiting to give support. Malchor returns with the sphere of annihilation. Though the sphere seems determined to obliterate him, he manages to maintain control long enough to carve dozens of forty by twenty foot holes in the side of the ship. He also removes the front of the keep and carves through the upper deck in multiple places. Everyone is nervous, waiting for the other shoe to drop…but nothing ever comes of it. After a few minutes of destruction, they enter through the gaping holes in the side of the ship and see that there is a hidden deck, just above the keel. Books lie scattered about in a library and there is an alchemical laboratory that has not fared well when the ship was dumped ashore. Further exploration is undertaken and some ubergolems are found and fed into the sphere. Eventually they find a room with a strange glowing gem. Machinations are undertaken to obtain it – and careful note is paid to the black (pudding / ooze / jeey / amoeba / whatever) that surrounds the base of the pedestal. Luckily, there is a sphere for that. Malchor manages to maintain control and the group slices the top off the pedestal and eventually find a second gem – seemingly identical to the first. Both gems are fed into the sphere and then some stuff starts happening.
The remains of the ship start unraveling, the powerful magic that held it together drains away with the destruction of the gems and the group flees through the sides of the vessel as it collapses around them. This could have been inconvenient if it had happened at sea! There is a follow up event a moment later as a large waterspout erupts from the ocean nearby – as though something large has detonated underwater. Popular opinion is that the large construct / golem / whatever that was walking the ocean floor is now gone. High fives all around! We are the champions!
Back to the (air)boat and then while the airship is piloted back to the manor house, the group goes to see Kormier and to check up on the status of the rescued prisoners. When they arrive, they see Immersea in chaos. A band of demons rampaged through the tow, slaying indiscriminately and causing destruction on a grand scale. Kormier and Kompany eventually repelled the invaders, but at great cost! The group sets about helping as much as possible, with the wizards making raw materials and the druid aiding with plant regrowth. The fighters lend their strong backs and Malchor’s army of unseen servants are used to clear debris and shuttle supplies about. The fallen are being raised and the paladins and clerics are moving about to help the wounded.
Thus it is one afternoon when the group is having lunch that the air splits open once again, but this time immense fire elementals accompanied by iron-clad fire giants and a pair of salamanders pour through the rift. They begin indiscriminately slaughtering any townsfolk at hand while the fire elementals start torching the accumulated supplies. The group springs into action…Elulyn unleashes a chain of lightning bolts while Kiko – now renamed as The Turbulent Gardener – bombards the salamanders with rocks and sleet. Malchor sets about using lightning of his own, while the fighters prepare to engage with whatever weapons are to hand. The Justicar sets off to intercept one of the elementals and dismisses it back to its plane. The next few seconds see terrible magics unleashed and while the awed villagers watch, the threat provided by the giants and elementals is neutralized and the salamanders are forced to flee though the portal.
The following day brings a visit to Kormier – apparently there were multiple portals opened and destruction was visited on every major (and a lot of minor) cities and towns in Cormyr. The economy is teetering on the verge of collapse and it will take concentrated action to prevent the kingdom from sliding into chaos. The War Wizards request a meeting, which the mages and Ivan attend – while the rest of the group departs for the manor house. There, they make upgrades and fortify the compound. Additional landscaping and various improvements are undertaken until the mages rejoin the group.
The news is grim. Apparently, the raids were at the behest of a particularly strong demon who inhabits his own private space in the fiery elemental plane. He must be neutralized, or the country may slide into anarchy – removing one of the last major obstacles to the expansion of Coburgnia. It is a good thing that the group managed to eliminate the seaward threat, but powerful forces still threaten to topple the kingdom. Thus the group finds itself equipped with amulets and spells, braving the astral plane to journey to the domain of this powerful foe and to (hopefully) end the threat.
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