We’ve spent the last 3 or so days here, in the Border Keep, after the initial battle with the undead that were haunting the throne room. Since, Beskar has busied himself crafting some plate armor from the scraps of the undead guardians. His rituals are fascinating to watch. It’s clear he has some kind of divine inspiration. I wonder if he’d even make a fitting follower for the Queen, if he wasn’t a male. Chet has hidden himself in a study, plying his wizarding skills transcribing some scrolls. Surprisingly secretive. C’Nut however took it upon himself to study the ghouls outside. I watched him for a while during his work, he took notes and made paintings of the things. It does appear that they leave the keep each night for some time, returning before dawn.
My mistress put her time to better use. We found a Tentacle Rod of Ghaunadaur, the ooze god, in the wyvern’s nest and she was rightly wary of using it without consulting our Queen. She prepared a shrine in what must have been a chapel for the humans that lived here. Truly my mistress is blessed; she received an omen in blood from our Goddess without delay. It was a drow prayer rune meaning:
ori'gato l'sarol d'dosst ogglin
tlu dosst sarol qua'laen dosst ogglin.
Let the weapon of my enemy
Be my weapon against my enemy.
Lolth does not mince words, the rod is ours to use freely with her blessing. Niaelo promised a surface elf’s life in praise for the guidance.
We also ventured into the lower levels for the first time. Many intriguing things indeed. A nest of carrion crawlers, an undead sage, and a profane shrine to some fey power.
The carrion crawlers posed a fair threat in the confines of the first cobwebbed tunnel. My mistress was even paralyzed for a moment by a squirming tentacle. We fled through another door and locked the crawlers on the other side. It’s no matter. Alrenas Lolthu, nilos dulhar. Before Lolth, all are weak. But we’ll destroy them later.
In the passages beyond, we found an armory and a well furnished study. The armory didn’t have much beyond simple weaponry, but it could outfit a band of goblin raiders if my mistress willed it.
In the study, we found Oneus the Sage, an undead and seemingly unaware of that fact. The room was thick with pipe smoke and bright from a magical brazier. He writhed and mumbled when my mistress told him that his masters, Lord and Lady Lockborn of the Keep, had been destroyed. She has much to learn about the surface. The peoples of the surface are in many ways complete opposites to the drow, and don’t relish betrayal. She’ll learn with time. C’Nut and Beskar were able to salvage the situation and Oneus told us many useful things about the region.
The final room was a shrine, to some fey entity. It appears that Lady Lockborn was something of a warlock like my mistress, but instead of honoring the Queen, she honored the “Winter Prince”, some kind of frost elf. C’Nut received a message from this “Winter Prince” after touching a magic mirror in the room. It did not seem intended for him though, but to Lady Lockborn, telling her to spread cursed coins across the land. Cursed coins? That’s seriously the kind of schemes they’re plotting? Through our hands, Lolth will crush them. I do not doubt it, my mistress’s hatred of the surface elves is something to behold. She destroyed the shrine.
After that we made our way back to the keep, driving away some of the courtyard ghouls in our path. There are some more preparations to make before we depart for the Witchwood, but not many. Perhaps we’ll see more of the “Winter Prince” soon.
