On our way to the lighthouse, led by the haughty General Montgomery, we discovered a horse tied to a tree and a corpse about 20ft away. We surmised that the corpse was that of the owner. General Montgomery and Pyhora tried riding the mare, but it proved unwilling to let anyone ride it. Pyhora untied the mare, but she was unwilling to go with us, so Pyhora tied it up again. It was a loyal horse, that much was for sure. That evening, General Montgomery mentioned going back home to his family after raising an army on the island, and Pyhora pointed out how he had never made it to the rank of general officially, which made him laugh.
That night, I found a lady’s garments in a bush, including underwear, which was a bizarre sight to see. Silthon suggested the clothes belonged to a lady who was involved with the corpse for her own fetishes. It was a strange thought but a possible one. Silthon had a slightly lewd imagination~. Argon mentioned seeing a lady in the night swimming. It’s possible the clothes were hers, for they were gone when morning came.
Gordon was not at his cabin. There was a note that said he would be gone for a few days. Luckily, Pyhora was able to steer Gordon’s ship due to his time as a naval soldier, so we were able to get to the lighthouse island, with which I had become very familiar with at this point. We entered the lighthouse swiftly and went down the trapdoor that had an iron latch on it into the underground corridors. Argon used his familiar to try and grab the book in the center of the magic circle where the fire elemental had appeared before but failed as a sudden burst of light and the sound of wooshing came from the circle. We prepared ourselves for the worst as the fire elemental soon arrived carrying scimitars. A fierce battle ensued that involved incredible strikes from all of the party members, including General Montgomery’s mace, Argon’s guiding bolt, Pyhora’s longsword, my spiritual weapon of a sword, and Sithon’s finishing punch that took it down. It was much stronger and more heavily armored than the previous time we fought, but with a healthy dose of luck, we managed to prevail at long last! When we checked out the magic circle, we found that the book in the middle had vanished. Argon’s familiar had also been destroyed, leaving behind only Argon’s holy symbol that it had been carrying. Perhaps this had been a warning of things to come…
We descended a set of stairs to the southeast. General Montgomery and Silthon stepped on a part of the floor with a glyph near a chest that did not affect Silthon but did make General Montgomery fall to the floor and lay still, paralyzed. Argon stepped on another glyph that almost lead to a spirit possessing him, but he managed to resist it and take a few gold pieces. Unfortunately, another ghost possessed him, and it seemed to be a pirate judging from his voice. He ran upstairs. Silthon and Pyhora managed to grapple him, and when they came back the possession had finished. Meanwhile, after playing my viol for a few seconds, I decided to show mercy to the General and cast lesser restoration on him, ending his paralysis. After a short rest, we found a precarious bridge. We tied a rope around Argon as he crossed over to the other side. Though somewhat unwilling, I also managed to cross over to the other side along with the others. We encountered a heavy aura of magical darkness. I tried casting my channel divinity to dispel the darkness, but the darkness parted when I stepped forward.
The Battle against the Undead Pirates
Suddenly, the darkness parted, revealing a large chamber with an old, looming ship with a greenish hue to the south floating above greenish water. There was no crew on the ship, or so we thought until we were assaulted from the southeast by undead humanoids that had rotting skin, pale eyes, and their mouths were moaning pirate jargon. I managed to cast my best channel divinity: radiance of the dawn so far by hitting 8 zombies at once! It was truly an excellent sight to behold!
Just when I thought our victory was assured as my light took down over half of the zombies, we heard a hearty laugh coming from the west. It was the ghost of a pirate captain named Blackhawk, referring to the undead as his boys. He flew at us and nearly killed us all! He had a variety of arsenals, including a frightening aura that affected over half of the party, his necrotic grasp, all the while resisting most of the attacks we could throw at him. Accursed ghost! In a moment of indecision, I decided to attack the captain who seemed weak instead of stabilizing Argon who was unconscious, leading to his death in a stroke of truly terrible luck… It was my arrogance at believing he would be alright for just a few more seconds, when I should have followed his example of stabilizing General Montgomery when he was knocked unconscious…
The Aftermath
After what seemed like hours, we finally defeated the pirate captain, which somehow freed Blackhawk from his curse. He reappeared at the helm of the ship and apologize for attacking us, which I reluctantly had to accept as he allowed us safe passage out of the island and recounted his tale. He told us that he had tried to run away with a maid whose father was an evil sorcerer. The father tracked him down and placed a curse on him and his crew, forcing them to be bound to the lighthouse as undead pirates. He promised that the soul of Argon, if it had nowhere else to go, could join his now free band of swashbuckling souls. He took us back to town on his ship and then departed for the open sea after a final, brief conversation with Pyhora about keeping an eye out for certain lost souls out at sea. Likely comrades from his navy days, yet I was too distracted by my own swirling thoughts to listen in detail.
Though we managed to solve the mystery of the lighthouse, my heart was burdened heavily with guilt at the realization that I could have helped a comrade survive, yet I decided not to attack in a moment of indecision… I will not repeat this mistake again… My desire for protect my comrades must take precedent to my desire for bloodshed. This I swear by Lathander, the god of dawn and renewal. In order to ensure that I remember this lesson deep within my heart, I used the obsidian shard I get close to me to carve on one of my torches the name of the one whose life was the price for awakening me to the reality of Sleeper Island. It will also serve as a funeral pyre for him as he leaves the light of this life. Perhaps I should make one for Snipper as well. I did not directly witness his death, yet I remember the hyperactive gnome like it was yesterday. General Montgomery’s enthusiasm for pestering others actually reminds me a little bit of Snipper.
In memory of Argon. A cleric that usually work a mask. Also had a raven. In memory of Snipper. A wizard with many minds inhabiting one small body. Also had an owl.
As I finished carving the name “Argon” onto my torch, perhaps my eyes were playing tricks on me, for I saw a glimpse of an ephemeral figure wearing a hood over a mask peer out over the galley of the ship as it sailed off into the distant sunset yet looking ahead towards a new dawn.
