Beneath the Surface

**"Beneath the Surface"** is the thirty-sixth episode of *Mountain of Mystery*, airing on December 26th, 2023.

The session was DMed by TanisJr93 and hosted on his channel on Twitch.

## Summary

*...continued from session thirty-five*
Having decided to recover the next egg from one of the islands in Fevergulf Lake, Lazarus suggests that the team could travel by river from the Ustaloch, east through the Gehen Basin and the Ashkeeper Peaks into southern Xhorhas, or south through the Wuyun Gorge to Nicodranas, and then by boat around the southern shore of the continent and up into the Lake; Siobhan suggests that the ocean might be safer but the river would be faster, and Prints and Kahlan both agree that speed is more important than safety at the moment. Sado asks if Qhore has any remaining *Flight* spell scrolls, and the Dragonborn admits that he has about half-a-dozen, which Thava compels him to give to the party; the group decides to save the scrolls for a potential escape, and Qhore suggests that the team can visit Sado's monastery in the Ashkeeper Peaks to acquire more resources.

Siobhan questions the likelihood of finding a boat with a captain willing to transport the group into Xhorhas, and Jean heads outside before returning several minutes later with Jagger, who admits that he has successfully sailed the waters of the Ustaloch and the Gehem Basin many times; Jean also admits that he has known Jagger for a long time, and tasked the man with keeping an eye on Shiloh, Siobhan, and the Bar Barian while the Bard was away from Trostenwald. Jean offers to pay Jagger to transport the group; the captain explains that he is currently unable to set sail due to a swarm of undead aquatic creatures along the shoreline, and the party agrees to handle the situation. As the group begins preparing to leave, Qhore gives Sado an enchanted teapot before Kahlan gives the Goliath a tea weird that she purchased from Pumat while the team was in Zadash.

Siobhan then steps behind the bar and retrieves the rapier she used to defeat Orison Moore, passing the weapon on to Kahlan; Lazarus then explains to Jean that he and Kahlan had arranged to speak with Prince Eidys after the completion of their Vergesson rescue, and the Bard agrees to cast *Sending*: "*Your Highest, Prince Eidys. I have a message from Lazarus Oldman. He requests your presence in The Bar Barian of Trostenwald at your earliest convenience*." Jean receives a reply: "All the way in Trostenwald? I have meetings; I have business. I'm a very busy man; I just can't– well, for Lazarus, I suppose I'll just have to cancel them all." Siobhan recruits both parties to help rapidly clean the tavern, and about twenty minutes later, three people materialize in the center of the dining room: the Prince, a royal spellcaster, and an Heirsguard.

Lazarus, Kahlan and Eidys step into an office, where they explain the details of the asylum breakout and learn that Syndock Truscan had successfully covered up the fact that any patients had escaped; Eidys confirms that the team is heading to Xhorhas to recover the next egg, and suggests that he should personally head to the Menagerie Coast to check on Trouble and her father, and Lazarus recommends that he start at the northern end of the coast and work his way south. The three then leave the office as Alistair and his team arrive in the dining room for breakfast, and at the Aasimar's telepathic request, Eidys personally congratulates Sado in front of the Monk's fellow student for his part in the team's successful escape: "I hear you went on a interesting mission recently, and due to your immense efforts, you were able to get an entire team of people in and our of a very dangerous place, almost single-handedly. ... I would like to humbly thank you, Sado, for your service to the empire and its people."

Lazarus notices the astonished look on Alistair's face, after which the Prince, the spellcaster, and the Heirsguard depart the tavern for Port Damali, and Siobhan admits that she used the visit as an excuse to get the bar cleaned. The team finishes packing by early afternoon and leaves the bar as well, discovering the caravan of Prints's tribe scattered throughout the town and the nearby fields and hills, and Prints changes her Cloak of Many Fashions from bright pink cloak to solid black with dark feathers and the hood pulled up to hide her face; as the group proceeds along the roadway, Sado notices members of the caravan watching them with distrust, until the Sorcerer finds her way blocked by an older Tabaxi man who is barely controlling his own hatred. Prints recognizes the man, and insists that she's leaving town, while Sado stands guard behind her and Lazarus positions himself roughly between the two Tabaxi.

The man ultimately just watches as the group passes, warning them: "You should keep your eyes on *that* one. *That* is where the danger lies." Lazarus assures the man that the group will keep an eye on Prints, and the team continues through the eastern fields for the next several hours, approaching the western shore of the Ustaloch by dusk and noticing five Giant Crabs and half a dozen undead Kuo-Toa along the water's edge. The group coordinates their attacks before Prints casts a *Fireball*, destroying eight of the creatures at once, after which Cash casts *Shatter* to kill another Crab and injure a fourth, Kahlan casts *Fire Bolt* to kill the fifth Crab, and Lazarus kills the final Crab with a crossbow bolt.

Having cleared the shore so quickly, Prints tries to call out to the team, but her wild magic surges, and pink bubbles spill out of her mouth instead of words; six seconds later, she grows two inches, and six seconds after that, she vanishes as she is physically teleported to the Astral Plane. There, she spots a Planar Raider populated with a large crew of figures, including the armored knight and the monk that the team faced at the farmhouse along the Bromkiln Byway as well as a third man wearing a cloak the color of midnight and grinning at her as it spots her. She then returns to the shore of the Ustaloch, where Lazarus catches her by the arms and nothing happens for the next six seconds, after which she transforms into a massive sunflower in a pot; six seconds later, she momentarily transforms back into her natural form before immediately transforming into a sunflower in a pot for another six seconds, after which she transforms back into her natural form again and begins to *Levitate*.

Six seconds later, a spectral shield materializes in front of Prints, forcing Lazarus several feet back from her, after which nothing appears to happen for the next six seconds; after that, the Sorcerer vanishes again as she is once more physically teleported to the Astral Plane, appearing on the deck of the Planar Raider next to the armored knight and the monk. She spots Pearce in the disguise she last saw him in among the figures on the ship, and the armored knight tells her: "It's only a matter of time. Live while you can, before your world burns." The Tabaxi then returns to the shore of the Ustaloch, where Lazarus catches her in the air and sets her down on the ground moments before a Death Slaad bursts out of the creek and attempts to attack Sado.

The Rogue shoots the creature with a crossbow bolt and casts *Hex* on it before Prints casts *Haste* on Sado, after which Kahlan misses with a pair of *Fire Bolts* and Cash misses with a *Guiding Bolt*; Sado then unleashes his Breath of the Dragon and punches the creature before going into a rage, after which the creature casts *Cloudkill*, hitting the entire party with a burst of necrotic gas and attempting to flee. Lazarus darts along the creekline and shoots the creature again, after which Prints strikes it with a *Lightning Bolt* and a pair of *Eldritch Blast*s, and Kahlan strikes the Slaad three times with her new rapier, delivering a devastating blow that she infuses with a degree of her psionic energy. Cash strikes the creature with his warhammer, after which Sado kills it with a pair of punches.

Having cast *Lightning Bolt*, Prints's wild magic surges again, and she becomes invisible; Lazarus telepathically suggests that she hold onto his arm, and she reappears after another minute. Jagger uses *Prestidigitation* to clean the viscera off of Kahlan before leading the party along the shoreline to a dock where they board his boat, the *Windbreeze*; while launching, Prints notices Endless sitting on the bow of the ship, learning from him that the undead creatures afflicting the loch at the result of a magical artefact submerged somewhere in the water. He explains that the Raven Queen wants the item removed and indicates the direction that Jagger should head; when Lazarus admits that Endless is part of the team, Prints notices a reaction from the Reaper.

Kahlan offers to resummon Mazikeen in the form of an octopuss in order for the familiar to search underwater, but the boat arrives at its destination off the southern coast of the island of Crookedstone in ten minutes, and Prints casts *Air Bubble* on herself, Kahlan, and Sado; they and Cash dive into the loch while Lazarus waits on the boat with Jagger, and the Cleric casts *Light* on his armor to illuminate the murky waters. The Tabaxi notices that her Visor is whirring and clicking as it zooms and focuses, quickly locating a glimmering amulet on the floor of the lake; the Sorcerer casts *Mage Hand*, retrieving a box that she realizes the Visor is allowing her to see through. She then notices that she can also see the ethereal echoes of creatures swimming through the water, as well as Endless's more complete form, and the Reaper smiles at her before saying: "Look who just awakened their Vestige."

The group returns to the surface and climbs aboard the boat, and Prints realizes as she does that the Visor is now allowing her to see into the Ethereal Plane; she also sees a ghostly woman along the southern shoreline of the nearby island, looking out across the water with an angered expression. Endless explains that the spirit returned to the Material Plane after death because something was stolen from it, and Prints opens the chest to reveal a faded heartstone inside. Jagger angles the boat close enough to the shore that Prints is able to use her *Mage Hand* to deliver the chest and its contents to the woman, whose previously-scarlet aura visibility lightens and settles as she calms.

Receiving the heartstone, the woman walks back into the forest and returns to a dilapidated hut, entering before disappearing; from the shoreline, Endless waves to the group and disappears as well.

*...continued in session thirty-seven*
## Notes

* The events of the session occurred on 10 Duscar 839 PD.
* Alternate titles for the session include, but are not limited to:
	+ "The Safest of Waters"
	+ "Denizens of the Loch"
	+ "A Forceful Presence"
* After Prints cast *Fire Ball*, NimueofAvalon rolled a 2 for her wild magic surge, and N3rdyTeacher rolled the following effects (*1:35:05–1:50:25*):
	+ 49 – You can't speak for the next minute. Whenever you try, pink bubbles float out of your mouth.
	+ 11 – Roll a d10. Your height changes by a number of inches equal to the roll. If the roll is odd, you shrink. If the roll is even, you grow.
	+ 32 – You are transported to the Astral Plane until the end of your next turn, after which time you return to the space you previously occupied or the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied.
	+ 91 – If you die within the next minute, you immediately come back to life as if by the *Reincarnate* spell.
	+ 42 – You turn into a potted plant until the start of your next turn. While a plant, you are incapacitated and have vulnerability to all damage. If you drop to 0 hit points, your pot breaks, and your form reverts.
	+ 41 – You turn into a potted plant until the start of your next turn. While a plant, you are incapacitated and have vulnerability to all damage. If you drop to 0 hit points, your pot breaks, and your form reverts.
	+ 45 – You cast *Levitate* on yourself.
	+ 52 – A spectral shield hovers near you for the next minute, granting you a +2 bonus to AC and immunity to *Magic Missile*.
	+ 59 – You regain your lowest-level expended spell slot.
	+ 31 – You are transported to the Astral Plane until the end of your next turn, after which time you return to the space you previously occupied or the nearest unoccupied space if that space is occupied.
* After casting *Lightning Bolt* on the Death Slaad, N3rdyTeacher rolled the following effect for her wild magic surge:
	+ 89 – You become invisible for the next minute. During that time, other creatures can't hear you. The invisibility ends if you attack or cast a spell.

## Quotes

* "I, um... I'm not much of one for making friends. Never really had any until now, I suppose." – Kahlan Karsus
"Mm." – Sado Thuliaga
"But back before the asylum, when I was waiting at Pumat's for my dagger, I saw something that made me think of you, something that you might enjoy, and purchased it with the intent that it we survived whatever was going to happen at the asylum, that I would give it to you, and then everything happened, and I forgot until your master gifted you that lovely teapot." – Kahlan Karsus
"Thank you, Kahlan. I appreciate this very much." – Sado Thuliaga
"You're welcome." – Kahlan Karsus
"It seems it's already found it's home." – Sado Thuliaga
"You're very welcome. I... I appreciate everything that you have done for us. You too, did not have to keep traveling with us, and you did, and you've been nothing but kind to me, and it has not gone unnoticed." – Kahlan Karsus
* "What is a plan without a complication?" – Lazarus Oldman
* "I hear you went on a interesting mission recently, and due to your immense efforts, you were able to get an entire team of people in and our of a very dangerous place, almost single-handedly." – Eidys Dwendal
"I suppose that is true, yes." – Sado Thuliaga
"People with skills like that are rare, and a gift to this great empire, and as the Prince of this empire, I would like to humbly thank you, Sado, for your service to the empire and its people. I hope, in the future, we can call on you for aid, should the empire need." – Eidys Dwendal
"Alright." – Sado Thuliaga
"Right then." – Eidys Dwendal
* "You should keep your eyes on *that* one. *That* is where the danger lies." – Tabaxi Man
"He's not wrong. I'll give him that." – Fresh Prints
"Well, that's why we're gonna take his advice, and keep you with us." – Lazarus Oldman
"Thanks, Laz." – Fresh Prints

* "🎶" – [[]]

## Episode

* [ Twitch]
* [ YouTube]