Episode 43 - The Black Bloom

Previously on All Drow All the Time, the party’s battle with Noctharl, the Wyrm of the Lightless Deep, reached its breaking point. The shadow dragon unleashed his necrotic breath for a third time, dropping Nick Beardless and Wynter, only for Scomitch’s healing to bring them back into the fight.

The clash raged on until Nick cast enlarge, as his heart grew three sizes that day, as he delivered the axe blows that finally chopped the wyrm down.

As Noctharl died, the shadows peeled away, revealing the ember-lit silhouette of a red dragon. Insubstantial, not alive, but a memory sculpted from firelight. The specter rose from the collapsing darkness and spoke:

“You have broken the chains of the Shadowfell. You have freed Pyregor the Ember Tyrant from the Wyrm of the Lightless Deep. For this, I return willingly what was once taken from the Duergar.”

Nick Beardless strode to the water’s edge and demanded, “Lord Wyrm, bequeath me the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords, so I may use their own weapon against them to show the Duergar are more than their equals. And if you do not, to hell with you!”

Ignoring the duergar’s bravado, Pyregor offered each party member a gift. Tributes once demanded, now freely returned:

• Spell – An ebony scroll tube containing a spell of one’s choosing

• Magic Item – Shadowfell Brand Tattoo (ink and quill)

• Blood – Rune of Survival, granting recovery from certain death

• Song – Doss Lute

• Vow – Necklace of Pyregor the Ember Tyrant, holding a fragment of his fire

As the final relic surfaced, the lake erupted into a massive whirlpool, dragging the black waters into a violet Shadowfell portal. Pyregor’s ember outline flickered, sparks drifting from his fading form as the last of the water vanished.

After resting and examining their new treasures, the party pressed deeper into the back tunnels of the Back Road.

A vast cavern opened into a field of obsidian-petaled flowers. From its center rose Nyrissa of the Black Bloom, a dryad, but nothing like those of the surface. She welcomed the party into her garden with unsettling delight.

While exploring with Scomitch’s Starchild, the group uncovered several ancient artifacts from the Duergar within the bloom.

Then the shadows shifted. Cloakers peeled themselves from the darkness and glided forward.

The dryad clapped her hands in excitement. “Blood, marrow, flesh, and protein from the surface. It’s all here, ready. Fresh as Blooming Day!”

Roll initiative.