Escaping the Hag's Menagerie
With their refusal of Vethka's bargain lingering in the air, the Veiled Vanguard is immediately plunged into a desperate clash against the ancient Arch Hag. The party is tested to their absolute limits as they face her terrifying magic in the depths of her lair. Every choice in the cavern becomes a matter of life or death as the fate of the Vanguard hangs in the balance.
Battle erupted in Vethka’s lair as Sanasha struck first, but Vethka retaliated with a lightning blast and a screeching wail that knocked Naoki and Percy unconscious. Emelyne revived Percy with a potion, allowing Diablo to unleash a flurry of martial strikes before Sanasha shoved Vethka back. When Vethka knocked Naoki down a second time with a crackling wave, his final words fell silent as his umbrella slipped into the water. Counterspelling Vethka's escape attempts, Emelyne kept the Arch Hag bound long enough for Percy to invoke Divine Intervention, bringing Naoki back from the brink of death. Naoki transformed into a T-Rex to join the assault, but Vethka's lightning downed Emelyne, who was quickly stabilized by shadows. Frustrated, Vethka cast a 24-hour Mass Suggestion, charming and forcing most of the Vanguard to leave for their ship; only Emelyne resisted. As the rest of the party retreated, Vethka vanished in a flash of light, leaving behind a black wooden chest emitting dark smoke, which Emelyne stashed before their vision faded.
The Vanguard awoke on the beach with the Sovereign Pearl freed from the rocks and its crew completely unharmed and unaware of any missing time. Repairing the broken mast, they set sail, watching the island vanish into thin air behind them. Below deck, Emelyne revealed the Coffer of the Eclipse—an Abyssal container immune to stasis storage—and emptied its contents: 1,500 pitch-black stained coins, thousands in black-stained currency, six large pearls, three vials of Tears of Ichor, a Manta Ray Cloak, and an Abyssal Ledger map. When Thain appeared via projection with a 200,000 gold renovation invoice for Warden's Spire, Naoki offered the black coins and ledger as down payment. After accidentally dropping a white pearl into the ocean, Sanasha used her new Manta Ray Cloak to leap into the waves and retrieve it. Following a week of smooth sailing, the crow's nest finally called out: land ho.