Beyond Good and Evil

The party arrives near a vine-covered entrance to ancient ruins buried beneath the forest. As they pause for a short rest, a strange figure appears—a tall, spectral man in tattered yellow robes and a cracked porcelain mask: Hastur, the King in Yellow. He asks for their names. Only Kilijan answers. Unimpressed but calm, Hastur inquires about their purpose. They answer: to punish the Woodwalker for spreading destruction across the Feywild. Hastur chuckles softly and challenges their morality, reminding them that even the animals they devoured moments ago may have seen them as monsters. Before vanishing into the haze of the forest, he issues a warning: "Do not seek the tree in the ruins. It leads to a demiplane of Shadowfell, where even truths decay." Then, with a wave of his hand, he curses all but Kilijan—silencing their voices, stripping them of speech.

Despite the curse, the party presses forward into the crumbling ruins. They find a shimmering black portal pulsing with necrotic energy—a gate to Shadowfell. They step through—and are flung into a void-like realm of floating stone and whispering winds. Stone elementals erupt from the darkness, forcing the party into a desperate battle across broken, drifting islands. They leap from rock to rock, drawn toward a central platform where the Woodwalker lies dormant, feeding on planar energy.

On the brink of death, the battle is interrupted by a cataclysmic event. From the dying Woodwalker rises a Chaos Dragon, coiling with rot and madness. From the skies descends a luminous Harmony Dragon, born of the clouds. The two titans clash violently, and the adventurers are reduced to mere debris in their wake. Weneon nearly slips into the abyss. Kilijan catches him—just in time. Hastur reappears, observing the cosmic spectacle. The party pleads for aid. “I warned you,” he murmurs. “This is beyond me.” With no other choice, Greg sacrifices precious power to teleport the party back to Revillon, barely escaping annihilation.

Each member wrestles with what they've seen: Kilijan meditates, contemplating the endless war of balance. Mycha investigates the Yellow King’s legend, and his mind nearly unravels. Weneon, haunted, sees his father’s reflection in the water and seeks counsel from General Taylor. Manasa quietly tends to the MS Melcior, his boat named after a lost love. The dockworker Babkin offers comfort through idle chat. Greg prays in silence, eventually finding Kilijan and confessing why he abandoned them in the swamp.

Among the shattered stone and moss-cloaked ruins of the Villa of Leaves in Phandalin, Gambino sits in silence. From his coat, he pulls a single coin from Wildemount—his only keepsake from the world he once called home. He stares at it for a moment before tucking it back into his pocket. Behind him, Krampus appears, cloaked in human form. Beside him walks Endolyn, her eyes glowing with the presence of Tarrok. Draped over her shoulders is the Mantle of Leaves, once worn by Bambarin. Gambino stands. The left side of his face is fully visible now—severely burned, as if from the explosion of some volatile liquid at close range. Krampus asks, “Are you finished with what you needed to do here?” “I am,” Gambino replies as he straightens his coat. Endolyn adds, “We found the piece we were looking for. It was exactly where you said it would be—south of here, in a cave.” “Of course it was,” Gambino responds. “Take it to the desert.” His gaze turns toward three mercenaries, beaten and bleeding on the ground, gasping for air. He steps onto the chest of one, leaning down to speak—but before he can utter a word, a deep voice cuts him off. “I’ve gotten everything I could out of them.” Gambino looks up to see Chernobog, towering above him. “There’s no point in torturing them any further,” he continues. Gambino rises to his full height—not nearly enough to match Chernobog—and asks, “So they were sent for the dwarf from Emrys?” Chernobog nods. “By order of the authorities. His grandfather’s debts.” Gambino smirks. “And they slipped through your fingers?” “I know where they are. Graviher.” “And Lorilon’s cloak?” Before Chernobog can answer, a raspy voice chimes in. “The cloak is with my associate from Kara-Tur. She contacted me. It was located and retrieved in Graviher.” It’s Vates, lounging at the edge of his carriage, only half his head visible from within. Behind the reins sits Safwalyn, absent-minded and silent. Vates continues, “Though I do have to correct our sailor here—they’re not in Graviher anymore. They’re in the Feywild. They crossed over last night, which could mean... many things.” Krampus chuckles. “Perhaps they’ll meet that traitor Moroz.” A gentle wind stirs the trees of Phandalin. In the distance, Gambino looks out toward the mist-shrouded peak of Mount Hotenow. “What do we know about the others? The dwarf is being hunted by his grandfather. What about the one wearing Malcer’s cloak?” “An orphan. No one left,” says Endolyn. “That’s what Garresh told us. He’s willing to assist, for his usual price—whatever that means.” “Everyone has someone,” Gambino replies. “Pay him, my lady. The Oeble coffers run deep. And the serpent-blooded one?” Vates snorts. “If your hounds hadn’t torn Neverember apart so quickly, we might’ve learned something.” As he mentions the hounds, the scene cuts to a group of corrupted Leaves, standing in silence beside a flickering dimensional portal near the ruins. “Be careful those same hounds don’t tear you apart, goblin sorcerer,” Gambino mutters. Then, to Chernobog: “You watch for when they leave Graviher.” To Krampus: “You ensure the machine reaches the desert.” To Vates: “You and your assistant will escort Lady Endolyn in your carriage on an official visit... to Felshrun.” Endolyn blinks. “Why Felshrun?” Gambino exhales deeply. “You’ll be meeting the Tooth Fairy. And Vates will want to extract whatever is left of her afterward.” Without another word, Gambino approaches the corrupted Leaves. They step aside as he walks through the portal. One by one, they follow. The others remain still, staring at the closing shimmer of the gateway. Krampus’s voice cuts through the silence: “You heard him. What are you waiting for?”