Gambit Accepted
Airship Preparations
- Theobald saves 8 Yvernus civilians using his Lesser Restoration spell.
- Theobald, Adeena and Adikia plan to return back to Ironfleet Compound. As they pass by the library, they see Splix researching.
- The librarian catches a glimpse of Adikia and Adeena, and she asks them to return the abjuration tome for Adikia’s bow. Adeena returns the tome and Adikia receives the bow.
- Adikia remembers losing her violin that was gifted to her by her adoptive parents. She also remembered her parents’ deaths.
- Theobald, Adeena and Adikia return to the Ironfleet Compound on their steeds.
- Back at the Ironfleet Compound, the three reports back what transpired in Ankyra’s Old Castle Compound.
- Gandour and the party decide to continue the trial run of the airship later in the afternoon. He asks the party to suggest some names for the airship. To make things more interesting (and uplift the party’s spirits), Gandour holds a naming competition of the airship.
- Kiris wins the competition. The airship is formally named as the Bloated Dragon.
- The party inspects the Bloated Dragon’s decks.
- Just as the party is about to ride the Bloated Dragon, Splix returns bearing a message from Savras University about Professor Embersense’s location. Professor Embersense and his apprentice, Fiamil, are currently researching an ancient structure resurfacing from the sea. Splix suggests a destination to Gandour, and the latter accepts.
- For the test flight, the party is accompanied by Gandour and two engineers.
- The flight proves uneventful, which was good news to the party. However, the Bloated Dragon is slow.
The Queen’s Gambit
- Upon arriving at the destination, Gandour and the party could not find the ruins. Splix uses a spyglass to check for ruins; he finds a shallow sandbar that they can land on.
- Thoradin sees an abnormal phenomenon: the seawater rising like a hill. The party checks and sees that the hill is actually the roof of a marble structure. Upon investigating, Kiris confirms that the magic must have been cast on the structure to hide it.
- The party descends the fifteen-foot rise and comes to see the structure’s doors. In front of it is an arena with 8x8 checkered squares. On it are broken chess pieces. The party cannot enter the arena as it is enveloped by a magical force field.
- The party reads the inscription on the door:
THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT
TO ENTER MY LIBRARY, YOU MUST FIRST DEFEAT ME
IN A BATTLE BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK;
MY QUEEN WILL PLAY FOR THE LIGHT OF KNOWLEDGE,
AND YOUR KING SHOULD CHOOSE YOUR DARKENED KNIGHTS.
LET YOUR KNIGHTS RETRIEVE THE DARKENED BLADES,
SO YOUR KING HAS A SWORD CROWN TO BEAR;
ONLY THEN YOU CAN ENTER THE SQUARED BATTLEFIELD
AND UNDERTAKE MY PRECARIOUS DARE.
YOUR DEFEAT WILL YIELD DEMISE
SO YOUR KNIGHTS MUST PROFESS THEIR MIGHT.
IF YOU WIN, I’LL PERMIT YOU TO RISE,
AND THY DARKENED SOULS I WOULD ENLIGHT.
- Each member of the party except Kiris spots a Darkened Blade underneath the sands.
- The party solves the puzzle and finds the Darkened Crown. Kiris wears the Darkened crown.
- Kiris enters the arena; other members of the party can now enter as well.
- The party defeats the queen piece and they solve the game. The ancient structure’s doors open.