Ep. 57 The Stolen Child

## Watch

The Stolen Child | Khyber Shards #57 | D&D 5e Live Play

—Philip

The Stryke Force are up against a vine dragon. Ari has the idea to use water from the pool on it, and when the sizzling fog clears, a dryad is left. He gives them the staff, and tells them something has taken hold of the Heart Tree.

Esri places the staff in the door, and gets a vision from the inside, of a lonely girl who's been crying for help, but no one comes. The door opens, and they head up through what appears to be an opening in a tree. A mass of vines ooze blue goo, and it lashes out to attack them.

Shade gets pulled into it, and finds a young girl inside. While Esri and Pog try to get Shade out, Ari pours water on the vines, all the while trying to reason with the voice coming from it. Shade realizes the girl is getting hurt when the vines do, and they switch their efforts to trying to get her out instead. When she's yanked free, the writhing mass of vines falls to the ground, leaving the Heart exposed. From inside the mass, Shade lets out a huge bolt of lightning, scorching it dead, and finds that her mark has grown to cover her entire arm.

As the story starts fading to black, the girl begs them to take her with them. To Puzzledust's horror, they do just that, and they're returned to Eberron.

Everyone, that is, except Ari and Puzzledust, who the others have no memories of.

## Synopsis

Shade attacks the vine dragon. Ari takes water from the pool, hoping that it can cure the corruption on the vines. The creatures recoils from the arrows, unwinds itself from the tree, and it crawls towards them. With a roar, a green-yellow mist rolls out at the party. Esri casts dispel magic on it, weakening it somewhat. Pog hurts it badly with fire. Seeing that, Shade also uses fire against it.

With help from Esri and Shade, Ari throws the waterskin into the dragon's mouth. The dragon sizzles and writhes, and when the fog clears, there's a male dryad laying on the ground.

Esri takes some water from the fountain. Ari heals the preciously unconscious Puzzledust. Pog takes the staff from the dryad. Shade heals the dryad. He says something has taken hold of the Heart Tree. He heard its voice, a weeping despair that's eating into it. If the tree dies, the whole forest will die. They need to set the staff in the pedestal by the door and it will open to the Heart Tree. He heals them, and then sits back into the tree and slightly melds into it.

Esri takes a closer look at the staff, and is delighted to find that the magical properties would make it very hard for termites to destroy. He places it in the door, and blue veins run up it into his arm. He sees a forest tinted in blue, and hears a young girl screaming. She's been there for so long, and no one has come. Tendrils wrap around him, engulfing him until he can't see anything, and then he's back at the door.

The doors swing out, revealing a staircase leading to an opening in a tree. They go through and find a ball of vines almost shaped like a tree. Vines oozing blue goo cover everything. From it steps a dryad who's eyes have been replaced with writhing blue tentacles. They try wrapping Pog in vines, but he breaks free.

Ari tries reasoning with them to let the forest go, but they're not budging, so he pours the water on the vines. Pog kills the dryad with a spell. Shade and Kael tear into the vines. A voice calls out from the vines that she's not doing this. Pog pours water on it, and they briefly see a face.

Vines reach out and pull Shade into them, and she sees a small girl who begs for help. She tries reaching out to her, but passes out from the poisons inside the vines.

Ari and Pog start pulling Shade out, and are hit by the vines. Esri heals her. She pushes back in as hard as she can to pour the water in it. She sees that hurting the vines is hurting the girl, and if they don't get her out first, she'll die when it does.

Pog reaches in and yanks the girl out. The mass loses its grip on the Heart and falls to the ground.

Feeling the hatred and the destruction, Shade is overwhelmed and a huge bolt of lightning bursts from her, destroying the mass and leaving her laying on the forest floor. Her sleeve is burnt away, and everyone can see that her mark has grown to cover her entire arm.

The Heart Tree thanks them, and promises to take care of the girl, "as all good mothers do." The girl opens her eyes, and desperately begs them to take her with them, otherwise "it'll start again" and she'll be alone. Pog grabs her, despite Puzzledust's alarmed warnings to not ruin the story. The world starts dissolving around them.

They reappear in the library, Arlo waiting for them. Ari and Puzzledust aren't there, and no one has any memory of them.

## Locations

* Greymalkin Academy
* The Feywild
	+ The Temple of the Heart Tree

## Spells

* **Ari**
	+ Calm Emotions
* **Esri**
	+ Detect Magic
	+ Dispel Magic on the vine dragon
	+ Guidance on Ari (twice)
	+ Healing Word
	+ Poison Spray
	+ Shillelagh
* **Pog**
	+ Burning Hands
	+ Inflict Wounds
* **Shade**
	+ Cure Wounds
	+ Entangle
	+ Lightning Lure
	+ Produce Flame
* **Dryad**
	+ Mass Cure Wounds

## Quotes

"But that was fine, unless you were Ari, in which case it was very bad."
*—Colin*

"What happens in this story?"
"We're deciding that every day."
*—River and Pog*

## Trivia

* This episode is brought to you by the House Lyrandar Travel Agency. *Travel in your element.*
* Colin does the recap.