Editing Landsoftheblacksea:Main Page/adventures/asala (section)

== Summary ==

The party journeys along the Southern Reach Road, along the northern border of the Dire Fens, to the town of Asala, in the west of Athervon, where Darithe hopes to receive absolution from the Abbot of a monastery there.  But they find the town under the curse of a terrible creature, "The White King", or sometimes "The Pale Lord", which rises once per generation to abduct children in the town and killing any that would stop it.  The party investigates, calling on the monks of the Abbey d'Ortou and researching their library.  Darithe also speaks with the Abbot of the monastery, and is given the quests that she must complete in order to absolve herself of the murder she has committed: first, to stop the reign of the creature in the town forever; and second, to bring her former Guildmaster in her hometown of Belis-ar-Weil, Fergasse, and his gang to the King's justice for their crimes.  The party discovers that one family in the town - the Auvrays - have been a particular target for this creature for every generation it has appeared, tracing back the family tree to the time of the Jhonian occupation, where the records cease.  They visit the Auvray House, offering their protection and help in defeating the monster that preys upon the family's heirs - only to be viciously attacked in the mansion by the family itself!  The party dispatches the twisted family and discovers a secret passage in the basement of the mansion that leads to secret passages under the crypts of the hill it is built upon, as well as records that imply that the family signed a pact long ago that gave them wealth, at the price of the curse upon their children once per generation at the hands of the Pale Lord.  The party finds the lair of the White King below, and after a pitched battle manages to slay it.  Attempting to clear the tunnels of other foul creatures, Fariya is slain by a loathesome ooze-creature, which the party later manages to return and dispatch.  After navigating several other monsters, traps, and puzzles, the party exits the tunnels and decides to head north to the seat of the Comte of the Province and from there to the seat of the Southern Duke to claim rewards promised to them.  They encounter Teal, a strange woman who asks to accompany them and join their party.