Malchor has memories of the first massive hall that they enter. It was here on their first journey that they were waylaid by devils and were forced to flee for their lives. This time, a concerted effort is made to avoid the pillars that dot the massive room and travel along the perimeter while they are still airborne. The ole ‘once around’ shows multiple ramps leading up and down as well as interesting looking side passages.

The first stair that they pick ends up about 350 feet above the hall, in a rune-covered room complete with palantir and comfy chair. To gain access they had to remove several seals and unlock several locks. Why so locked? Some head scratching is undertaken, but the room is left for later. Off they go...

Much of the group’s latest endeavors have touched – directly or tangentially – on the plots and machinations of the emperor to the east, Coburgn. Perhaps it is time to have a go at the root of all evil so a happy retirement might be undertaken without a cascading crisis interrupting their enjoyment of fine ales and airship rides. Some legend lore is undertaken and there are some additional scraps of data unearthed. The story of the gate captain’s rise to power and some subsequent expansionist hijinks are mulled over. It seems that the arc of history seeks a second meeting ‘twixt Malchor and the conqueror of the east. To the airship!

The airship journey is undertaken with additional paranoid precautions...

The group shrouds themselves in protective magic and utilizes their vast array of magical devices to make this trip to a lethally inhospitable place a bit…anticlimactic.

They fly through the poisonous gas and lethally hot atmosphere without a care. When they encounter five salamanders they casually destroy them with chain lightning spells, barely slowing down in the process.

They spy the partially ruined keep in the distance and swoop in for a closer look.

Another group of salamanders and a pair of exceptionally large fire elementals are dispatched in short order.

The group presses on, using a password to bypass the exceptionally large and annoying doors. Once inside they confront the dread lord of the place. Resembling a towering demon made of smoke and ash, it attacks vigorously...

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...

The aether yields scraps and the War Wizards do their bit. The spymaster gathers a few threads and the bibliophile monks of the Singing Swans give the greatest part of the puzzle, but when all is assembled, it looks like the name of a powerful storm giant clan is involved. The OG Stormbringer was reviled for his raids on the seaports of the Sea of Fallen Stars. Eventually, the loss of income was too much to ignore and the merchants pledged a large sum to whomever could restore peace. Peace came once the patriarch was beheaded and the clan scattered.

It looks like the offspring are back and looking to avenge dear old dad with some sort of naval assault . Or maybe they are working for Coburn to destabilize the region...