Tell No Tales

## Introduction

`*The long walk down Cliffside leaves you standing at Sharn’s docks. The commission letter you received last week weighs heavy in your pocket*`

“In one weeks time, you are to board the Lyrandar galleon, The *Antelope*, bound for the Lhazaar Principalities. With the aid of the Antelope and her crew, you are to return the traitor Mishra ir’Dastar to Droam to stand trial for her crimes. Her return is vital to the Foundations continued diplomatic presence in Droaam.”

*J`ust ahead, a small assembly of your fellow Wayfinders wait in front on the Antelope, presumably on the same mission as you.`*

## Expedition Summary

The Wayfinders board the ship only to discover that they're not the only ones called in for this mission - there's another dozen Wayfinders, led by a half-orc name Dranna. They found out from her that Mishra had been closely allied with one of Droaam's warlords, but she went dark six months ago and now the Daughters of Sora Kell, rulers of Droaam, want her badly. They also find out that she's based somewhere around Port Krez in the Principalities, and so they set sail.

Along the way, they discover that the first mate of the *Antelope,* Zorah d'Lyrandar, definitely has an axe to grind with Mishra. They make port in Cliffside, a small village on the edges of the Principalities for a resupply, and they manage to dig up some additional information on the *Dawntreader*, the previous Wayfinder-sponsered vessel sent to hunt Mishra down. It had last docked here in Cliffside nearly a year previous, and Zorah's brother had just been named captain, explaining her vendetta against Mishra.

They come across a vessel in peril as they're hunting for Mishra's ship, and to their surprise discover that it's the *Dawntreader* that's attacking the other vessel. Captain Cromwell overrules Zorah's urge to pursue the *Dawntreader* in order to pick up survivors from the failing vessel. They make their way to the ship when all of a sudden, the elemental bound to the ring of the sinking ship is released! They quickly take care of the rogue elemental, but not before Quarion is thrown off of the deck. Just as the elemental wisps away into nothingness, the *Dawntreader* turns and heads straight for them. Ivello, Ketaal and Séula man the ballista and let loose a volley, injuring a minotaur mage on the deck and tearing the jaw off of a troll. Séula convinces Dranna to put him in a catapult and toss him over to the other ship; however, he misses the deck but catches himself on the hull before he climbs inside. Ketaal realises too late that the trolls are throwing stone at the elemental containment ring, and rushes back to try and repair it. As the pirate ship comes around for another pass, Quarion nails the opposing ship's elemental ring, turning the attempted ramming of their ship into more of a gentle docking. Ivello anchors the Lyrandar pilot of their opponent's ship away from the wheel, and Ketaal sets the casting minotaur alight with \*heat metal\*, creating a stand off between the two forces. Until, that is, a young human woman announces her presence as Mishra ir'Dastar. They look to be taking the Wayfinders captive. Quarion impales himself on a nearby ballista rather than let himself be taken prisoner. They're all forced to close their eyes as a young medusa is brought out on deck. Ketaal tries to converse with the young girl, but she is silenced by her troll guards quickly. Mishra then forces the young medusa, Treska, to stone Dranna and toss her overboard.

They're quickly taken in captivity along with the crew of the *Antelope,* and all of the Marked Lyrandar crewmen are separated from the general population. Andar, the minotaur from earlier, is in charge of the inspection and punches Ivello in the face, coincidentally hiding his Mark of Detection. Ivello and Ketaal begin to suspect that not everything is as it seems aboard the *Dawntreader*, and wish Séula (who's somehow managed to infiltrate the crew) the best of luck. Treska come down with their meals, and tells Ketaal to trust Andar.

Two days pass in the prisoner's hold before they're taken off of the ship, in a town that's been somehow built in a massive cave. Andar announces that all of the prisoners are first going to haul the goods off of the ship, then they'll be auctioned off. The goods in question are the petrified bodies of the Marked Lyrandar. Ivello and Ketaal manage to grab Séula aside for a moment, where he assures them that he's planning a rebellion with Andar to overthrow Mishra and get these Droaamites back home. Andar joins them in the warehouse as they finish moving the statues and they find out that Mishra's voice has mysterious proprieties that make you want to do what she says. Mishra had wed the original Warlord of this tribe and convinced him to attack Sheshka, the Queen of Stone. He failed, and was killed in honorable single combat. Andar had every right to challenge Mishra for leadership of the tribe, but she commanded him to cede his claim, so he did. She stole Treska from Caazhak Draal and fled for the Lhazaar Principalities.

The Wayfarers come up with the plan to challenge her to single combat, armoring their chosen champion before the fight with as many enchantments and mundane preparations as they could. They lie in wait for Mishra at a bar she frequents, giving up after a few hours of waiting. They return to the warehouse to find Andar comforting a crying Treska, who had never realized the weight of what she'd done to the thirty-odd Lyrandar sailors that she'd petrified. They come up with the contingency plan of letting it be known that Zane, Zorah's brother and her current pilot, has died and that she needs to collect a new one. They figure that it'll draw Mishra out long enough for Séula to challenge her.

The encounter her outside a bar, and Séula lays down the challenge. She attempts to immediately seize control of his mind to make him yield, but the rage in his blood fights off her influence. He continues her assault on Mishra as Ivello and Ketaal realize that Treska is helping Mishra by absorbing some of her damage. Realising this, Ketaal and Andar ferry her away, beyond the range of the spell. Séula is shrugging off everything that Mishra can throw at him. He eventually defeats her, soundly slamming his maul into her face to end the fight as she slumps unconscious. Meanwhile, Treska sees this and turns Andar to stone before running over to the fallen former Warlord, the woman who had twisted the child's mind.

Séula, now Warlord, resigns immediately and makes Treska the new Warlord. Ketaal is quietly furious with the shifter for putting the small child in charge of the tribe, but he ignores that for now and unpetrifies Andar. Treska's first act as Warlord is to burn down the Dawntreader with the (abusive) trolls on board, much to Ketaal's satisfaction. Andar, Ivello and Ketaal corner Séula and demand to know what he was thinking, putting an 8 year old child in charge of the horde. The shifter eventually realizes his mistake, and the party goes to track down the young Warlord. Ivello manages to convince her to name Andar Warlord, and they go and release all of the petrified Lyrandar heirs. Zane is in bad condition, and Ketaal stabilises him in time for Zane and Zorah to have a happy reunion. Some of the Lyrandar heirs are in too bad of shape to revive safely, so those are stored in the hull of one of the other ships and it's decided that they'll be dropped off in Sharn when they pass by on the way back to Droaam.

They dock in Vralkek, and find a boat to ferry them off to the Great Crag, home of the Daughters of Sora Kell and the seat of their power. They land in Znir, and decide to rough it out in the wilds rather than to risk the roads. The next evening, they arrive at the base of the Crag as evening falls and decide to camp at the base. There they find a group of travelers, a delegation from Morgrave University, eager to move in now that the Wayfinder Foundation has fallen out of favor. It turns out that the leader of the Morgrave team, Professor Schwarzvald, is familiar with some of Ketaal's essays, and the two get to arguing over minutiae of old Dhakaan. They wake up the next morning to discover the Morgrave team gone, but Mishra left alone, though with a note mentioning that he was tempted to take her along.

They make it up the Crag, and although Mishra resists, they make it into the city. they make their way through a perfectly preserved Dhakaani military fortress. In the centre, a deep, dark hole with stairs leading into the heart of the Crag. They descend the stairs, and everything gets a little weird. Ketaal, Andar and Treska start hearing voices, and Ivello is concerned at how everyone seems to be effected except himself. they meet with a bloodied Schwarzvald, a bandage over one eye, and he claims that he got what he came for... at a price. He asks them how they got through the maze, which confuses the Wayfinder, as they cam down an endless staircase. He parts ominously, and they move on to the Sisters. Their entry hall is tiled with thousands upon thousands of polished bone tiles made out of *dar.* TheSisters call out for them, clearly expecting their arrival. They are pleased by Ketaal's immediate bowing, and demand that all three Warlords, former and current, step forth. Ivello stands up to Sora Katra and tells her to leave Treska alone. The Sister dismisses him, and Katra speaks to Séula, saying that he was her choice, but he gave it away. Tereza speaks to Mishra, telling her that she has now played her part, and Mishra immediately slumps over. The Wayfinders are assured that they are now back in the Sister's good graces, and dismisses them. they leave, and the staircase is a simple door. When they turn back around, the door is gone and it's simply a wall.

Ketaal heads straight into the nearest bar and proceeds to explain to Ivello and Séula that he literally just faced figures out of folklore in his enclave, monsters that ate his grandfather, among many, many others. *And they knew his name*. They banished the bad by toasting the future, and memories of friends lost.

## Epilogue

*Weeks later, back at sea, Zane and Zorah pilot their vessel with a carefree ease neither has felt in far too long*

*Thurrani dividers stand on the ships bow, at their sign, she ship comes to a halt, and a pair of Warforged dive into the water.*

*After a long search, the “divers” give their signal, and a heavy net is lowered, and then raised. In addition to the warforged, a kelp covered mess occupies the net.*

*Séula pushes aside the crowd of curious sailors, clawing the leathery mess away, until...*

*There on the deck of the Wild Goose, is a furious, petrified Dranna*

Zane: “They have the potions to cure her back in Sharn Séula, your friend will live again!”

*The second Forged pulls more kelp aside*

“What should we do with this one? I know you only sent us down for one statue, but we didn’t know which?”

C*hest splayed open, face frozen in utter agony, the petrified form of Quarion has been recovered too*

Zorah: “Well I’ll be fucked by a Unicorn...”