Tales from Tabletop

Session 11.1: Into the Abyss

Chapter I: A Breath

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A quiet fell over the group as Selene finished describing what the Firstborn had revealed.

Hamish mulled over her words carefully, stroking his beard in silence.

Jezran swallowed, then muttered, "That's...wow."

Ari's response was far less muted.

She grabbed Selene's shoulders and turned her body to face her. Staring into her brown eyes, Selene could see an odd mixture of desperation and anger in them. Ari had only one question for her, "Where?"

"Wha—?" Selene sputtered.

"Where did they take him?" Ari demanded.

"Ummm...I..." Selene stammered, trying to figure out how to get there from here, "I can't really say, I just...know where the Hall of Heart is."

"Lendrig said he needed him for the ritual," Jezran reasoned, "He's probably there as well. So if we find the Hall of Heart, we'll find Argent."

Ari mulled over Jezran's words. Eventually, she released her grip on Selene and said quietly, "I guess that will have to do."

A mixture of guilt and disappointment touched her features as she gave Selene a silent apology. Selene gave her a comforting smile.

I know how much you two care about each other, Ari. After all, I... Selene felt a heat rush to her face as she suddenly remembered that quiet moment she had seen between the two elves. Quickly, she averted her gaze and tried not to think about it.

From her periphery, she could see Ari's eyebrow raise in confusion.

Jezran noted none of this, and carried on.

"Now that that's settled. Let me ask the more pressing question, what if the Firstborn was lying? How would we know it was telling the truth?" Jezran asked, "It's possible the Firstborn is only tricking us so we can't stop it in time."

Hamish's hands stopped moving as he turned to answer Jezran, "I may have answer to that, my friend."

Rising from his seat, he motioned toward the door, "If Selene is feeling better, let us go outside. I believe we might find something there to help."

A pregnant pause occurred among the group as they closely watched Selene move to get out of bed.

Selene rose up from the bed without any trouble, much to the relief of her friends. No longer fearing the worst, they followed Hamish out the door.

As they walked through the halls of the estate, Selene noted they were now in disarray. Dried blood from the previous attack still marked the walls, but now there appeared torn and scattered debris everywhere she looked. Opened doors revealed strewn clothes and broken furniture, as if the whole place had been ransacked.

"W—where...is everyone?" Selene asked, her voice catching as her eyes met the glazed expression of a corpse staring vacantly through one of the open doors.

"They're all at the dockyard, scrambling to craft something seaworthy from whatever they can find," Jezran sighed, "Lendrig's final words were enough to scare them all. Besides, if he does revive the Igryss, anyone still in the city will be dead as it unearths itself."

"Friends remain to ensure you were safe, then—" Hamish began, but was cut off as Ari's expression soured.

"I was going to find Lendrig and wherever he took Argent," Ari declared. For a moment, her eyes flashed a cyan before returning to their natural brown.