Saturday 7 July 2012

11th of Garm-mah, 641 S.C.

The Journal of Rafiq al-Rashid

We had been sailing for no more than a few days when the weather began to turn against us. The wind howled through our sails and waves crashed over the deck. What was once a calm blue sea had turned into a maelstrom. I gripped the railings for support and saw a dark shape skim under the water towards us. Our ship rocked violently as it passed underneath before breaching the waterline just beyond our prow. A tail as thick as I am tall surged out of the water and came down upon the decking, snapping the dhow in two. Wood splintered and rigging snapped under the force as we were sent flying into the sea.
I managed to find purchase on what was once some decking and readied myself to repel the creature. As it raised its head again, I could see that my companions had similar plans. Every now and then, between the beast’s thrashing, I could make out the small figure of Raouf clinging to some tendrils while digging deep grooves in its hide with his blade.

After what felt like a lifetime later, we dealt the killing blow and the creatures lifeless corpse sank below the crashing waves. As it disappeared from view, the turbulent ocean simmered down back to the serene mirror-like surface and we were left stranded on whatever makeshift rafts we could muster. Ahead, a collection of jagged rocks came into view. Too exhausted to mount a response, we allowed ourselves to drift with the current towards solid ground.

I awoke a few moments later to a clear blue sky and a pounding headache. Every muscle in my body ached in protest as I rolled over to cough up a hearty mixture of blood and saltwater. Never again, I swore to myself. The next trip I take will be over land. Maybe through a desert or somewhere. There was a flurry of commotion as I waved the gulls away and crawled up onto higher ground, where I saw my companions had followed suit.

We spent a few moments gathering ourselves and taking stock. It was fortuitous that most of our equipment washed up on the rafts, but it would appear that the Mufti’s wondrous carpet now resided at the ocean floor. These rocks offered little more than desolation, but we discovered one small curiosity that may bring hope: No more than 10 feet below the surface, a small aperture opened up into a tunnel that stretched out below the rocks themselves. Given the option of dehydration again or being pecked alive by gulls, we figured that whatever lay below could be no worse than where we were.

Pang was first to dive below the surface, making light work of the ocean currents. We watched as he poked his head through the hole for a few moments and then slid through the opening. Roauf and Shade were next to follow suit, leaving myself and Maissa treading water. Taking a moment to secure my equipment, I plunged beneath the waves and made for the cave mouth.
I can’t have been more than a foot into the cave when the water appeared to halt completely, as though a wall of air barred its progress. I didn’t have much time to comprehend the sudden change in environment when gravity took hold once more and I was sent tumbling into the darkness below.

We crashed and clattered down the passageway before coming to a halt on a finely worked stone floor. I stood up and worked a couple of cantrips to dry out my clothing before the form of Maissa came barrelling down the tunnel moments later. Looking ahead, the floor panned out into a huge stone cavern. Four pillars of what must have been ornately carved coral stretched from floor to ceiling and there in the centre, stood a gathering of abyssal fiends. There was little time to prepare before the beasts pounced, each with rending claws and poisonous aura. I threw up whatever shielding spells I could and had it not been for some fortune we would have been easily overpowered. As it stood, we were able to repel the creatures and an expertly thrown dagger brought a swift end to the largest beast.

Pausing for a moment to bandage my wounds, I was able to take in more of the environment around us. Littering the floor and columns were glyphs in the hundreds each one finely carved into the masonry with more care and attention than we had come to expect from the fiends. My limited study into the elemental histories told me that this was a temple to Bheestah, the elemental princess of water.
Ahead was a raised platform where several offerings sat placed within a circle of pure white salt. Whether the salt was placed to protect the offerings from the fiends, or as part of a wider ritual it was hard to say. But whoever placed them would be long gone by now.

It was only when we reached the platform did we discover the true wonder of this temple; a wall of water stretched from floor to ceiling and behind the shimmering surface loomed a dark and alien shape. Tentatively we drew nearer, weapons drawn and prepared for a second bout of combat. Instead the shape revealed itself to be a huge metallic shark-like construction, clearly of manmade design. Bolts and rivets secured the various sections of metal hide together and along the side at regular intervals were small glass windows.

[ Incomplete. ]

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