From Bad to Curse

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## Synopsis

In Season 2, Chapter 10: From Bad to Curse, the assault against the Sunken King was only just beginning as Orba stood her ground on the raised platform – her allies ascending the pillars but frequently rebuffed by the undead servants holding the perimeter.

A change in strategy got us moving in the right direction, for though the summoned units *did* pose a real threat, they rarely targeted Orba with their attacks – so as long as the rest of us could endure the onslaught, we were free to start chipping away at the skeletal monstrosity itself.  More than once it was not our foes but the terrain itself that proved to be the biggest obstacle; the wind and wet rock sending us tumbling to the lowest levels and forcing us to waste time returning to the battlefield.

In these moments of vulnerability, the Sunken King wound up ferocious, two-handed strikes with his corrupted blade – but Orba quickly realized that shifting colors within his opalescent eyes were telegraphing the attacks… an undoubtedly timely discovery given that she was unlikely to withstand more than one of these vicious blows.

From a distance, Graven paired up with the young Reaper to chain together cantrips – an effective way to circumvent the heavy plated armor worn by our adversaries – but it was Ka'imi who put together the final volley that found its mark and broke the spirit of the Sunken King.

The obsidian columns sunk back into the ground and the storm all but subsided, leaving us exposed in the vast meadow to reflect on this victory that balanced on the razor's edge.  All that was left of the barnacle-encrusted skeleton was a single, gilded skull – and as Orba reached for it, she could feel that after proving herself here she could call on such a spirit to protect her in the future.

At the same time, Ka'imi enjoyed just a short bit of respite from the voice in her head – though when it did return, it came with some introspective clarity about the nature of its curse.  Centuries ago, before the Ebbwoods became a haunted ruin, a husband and wife suspected the local gravedigger of forbidden necromancy – and for his supposed crimes he was murdered by the Sheriff and his men.

The voice knew that he played some part in this story but he wasn't certain which one – so he needed Ka'imi to travel to the Ebbwoods in the hopes of piecing together additional memories that could help them both better understand why they'd been cursed in this manner.

It looked like our halfling friend would be traveling with us for a bit longer – but someone who wouldn't be coming was Sebastian Charles, the elf who'd gotten caught up in the storm and suffered a grisly injury to his arm.  Initially he was bound for the Ebbwoods as well, searching for a friend who'd gone missing, but we talked him out of risking his own life and promised to look for clues as to his friend's whereabouts.

After traversing through Myriad Meadow, we waited until the trees started to pop up in greater numbers before making camp – a well-deserved rest if there ever was one. Despite feeling rather exposed to the elements, it was a mostly quiet night – though during her watch, Orba did hear some scratching and found a symbol etched into a nearby trunk… possible evidence of Kobolds that had apparently taken up residence in the ruins.

In the morning we took a moment to reiterate our intentions within the Ebbwoods: learn more about Ka'imi's predicament, smack the lodestone and (if we could manage it), infuse Safira's bow with additional combat techniques as per Sarn Darrow's instructions.  It was a lot to tackle, but a good night's sleep left us feeling up to the task – and as we rode deeper into the forest, we waited to see if Mr. Curse would pipe up.

## Trivia

* Natural one count: four natural ones were rolled in this Chapter. 1 by Erica, and 3 by Anthony.