Beleg discovers that the half cooked fish of the Farrunish people does not agree with him. He is sick as if unto death and finds himself incapacitated for many days. Patrick is still missing in action. While Sabretooth, hearing tales of combat missed, throws aside his wine bottle and seeks to join others before more glory escapes him. Naught is heard of Mourning Elk, who arrives safely in Heltorun and is quickly reminded why he hates cities, crowded places and politics in general.
Back in the town known as New Farrun, Budokai and Oghren prove to be quite difficult to hold in a common, let alone crude prison. Though without arms, armor or equipment, the two slip their cell and look to fulfill the wishes of their new best friend from the Deep, starting with the death of Quin Rhal.
Meanwhile, Quin, Mai and Sabretooth have met again with the King to discuss their misgivings about his Curate. Their thoughtful supper is provoked by the arrival of Oghren. Sabertooth stands to face his charmed friend and dispatches him after a few minutes of combat. Their hostile companion is tied securely and placed under close watch. Then, realizing Oghren's escape probably signals Budokai, the three adventurers leave the King and consult the sorcerous powers of Mai to discover their aged friend.
After rousting a family in the middle of the night from their home and spending hours searching that domicile, to no avail, Sabretooth, Mai, and Quin discover that Budokai has hidden the magic items he owns in a common rain barrel to throw off pursuers. Fearing that such an accomplished thief would be able to do them damage no matter what precautions they took, the party decides to leave Farrun and travel back through Menea proper toward Heltorun, hopefully drawing Budokai after them.
The ruse works. After a few days on the road, the night is rent by the gutteral warnings of Sabretooth. He almost too late discovers their camp has been infiltrated and that Quin is under a strange woman's knife. The attacker is quickly subdued and discovered to be Budokai in disguise. He is tied and bound alongside Oghren.
The party then makes haste for Heltorun and the ministrations of the local cleric. The cleric is able to remove the magical charms, heal the wounded party and preach an unwelcome sermon to the sellswords all in one swoop. With a rejuvenated and reunited intact party, a decision must be made. Oghren presses his fellows to join him on a quest for his fallen star, but Budokai thinks only of his wife back in New Farrun and the danger she faces if the Beast from the Deep is unchecked. The others are determined to accompany their friend.
Before leaving Heltorun, they stop in the shop of the infamous Swanson the Broth-er. There the apothecary confirms that the potions of nightshade given them by the Curate were not of a healing, but poisonous character. They quickly ascertain that Swanson to has some skill at detecting and distilling poisons for various "rats" of all sizes. They buy some of his deadliest stock and return to the town of New Farrun with a single-minded purpose.
A fortnight later, in New Farrun, the party discovers that the Curate has slipped the hold of the charm spell and deeply apologizes for his part in their previous misadventures, as does the town butcher. He presents the party with their priest, Patrick, who looks bedraggled and pale from many days ministrations at the hands of the local curate. The party then hatches a scheme to use one of the deceased Diviner's horses as bait for the Beast from the Deep. After slaying and quartering it, they carry the first part of the carcass to the place where the Beast's former charmed minion had dropped-off slaughtered pork.
After nightfall, when the bait was taken, they prepped another hunk of horsemeat with a vial of the poison sold to them by Swanson the Broth-er, and waited. An hour later they found what appeared to be blood, vomit and horseflesh floating in the sea. The party waits for daylight and when it arrives, Sabertooth flies out on his hippogriff combing the water for more evidence of a poisoned sea beast.
He soon discovers its seemingly lifeless carcass floating about a mile offshore. The party borrows a fishing boat from the town and sets out after it to be sure. This time, Quin remains on shore, ready to test any charmed and returning members of the party. Mai flies over the waves, as before. Oghren, Sabretooth and Budokai row out into the deep for the recovery.
Looking over the side of the boat, the tentacled beast appears lifeless, so Oghren and Sabretooth dive into the depts to fix it with harpoons -- the better to tow it to shore. Once within striking distance, however, the beast comes immediately to life and strikes out at the Dwarf and Half-orc party members. They fight valiantly and are soon joined by Budokai, who abandons the boat. From up in the sky, Mai uses her sorcery, but finds herself locked in a sphere of invisible force, just as before. Down in the depths the battle rages poorly for the party, that is they are slowly being crushed by dozens of grasping tentacles. They manage to sever many, but the battle is surely going to the beast, when Sabretooth suffers an uncommon stroke of genius -- for a Half-orc.
Foregoing any attacks against the tentacles and allowing them to continue to squeeze, he measures his opponent carefully and throws his two foot darks at his bulbous head. The airy water provided by the magic shell serves him well and his missles strike home. The beast is dispatched at long last, with three fifths of the party near certain death, one rendered ineffectual, and the last member on shore, alone.
They then secure the beast with the harpoons and tow it ashore to present to the King of New Farrun. There its carcass is burned in a giant pyre and the people come out to celebrate and throw accolades. It seems the sellswords are heros, yet again.
A healthier appearing Beleg wanders out from the crowd anxious to congratulate his fellows, but unwilling to stray too far from the privy.
*edited to changed Samantha to Patrick 2/18
*edited to change Sabertooth to Sabretooth 2/27
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