Chapter 2: A Shining Pillar of Deception

Exploring deeper into the lighthouse, the group goes counterclockwise from the circular entrance chamber into the next room. It is a pantry, filled with row upon row of shelves that once held food stores. It is obvious that the pirates looted most of these supplies. Next room around appears to be the kitchen area, with more stonework in this room than wood. A stone oven dominates one wall of this room. Nearby stands a sink, and cupboards line the walls, their doors hanging open. One corner holds a table and five chairs. The dishes and pots from the cupboards are gone, probably looted by the pirates. After that follows an empty, quiet storage room, a small chamber devoted to the storage of outerwear, including boots and rain gear of all sorts that appear searched through but untaken. Following that, next room around, is the bathroom. This chamber contains four pits that go through the floor into the ground. Herbs are normally used to sweeten the air, but they have not been replaced for the past six weeks. There are no sounds here except the buzzing of small insects somewhere, and the odor of faint mildew.

After the bathroom, the group finds themselves back in the entrance foyer, having gone all the way around the base floor of the lighthouse. They cautiously go through the central archway into the central staircase, and head up the spiraling stone steps. Aside from a rising din outside, the sounds of shouting and the faint clanging of steel, they don’t hear anything around them as of yet.

Carefully creeping into the first chamber on the next floor, the group finds themselves in a workroom. Tool racks are mounted on the walls of this room, and large tables occupy the center. Most of the tools are gone, and various tiny parts such as bent nails and tools litter the floor. The room smells faintly of sawdust. Proceeding counterclockwise into the next room, this chamber contains an adult-sized bed and an empty wardrobe, plus bookshelves whose contents now lie scattered on the floor. The next room around appears to be a sitting room. A comfortable-looking sofa and two upholstered chairs make this room seem cozy and inviting. In front of the sofa is a small table, and bookshelves line the wall. Most of the books now lie heaped on the floor. Beside one of the chairs is a small bag with knitting needles protruding from it. The group stalks through the sitting room into the next one, calling out for Alterith as they keep their weapons at the ready. A double bed dominates this room. Beside it stand an open, empty wardrobe and a night table with a lamp. Clothes are strewn everywhere. The smell of death hangs heavy in here. As the group scans the room, they notice a young middle-aged woman's body lies crumpled and bloody in the corner by the bed. One remorseful look at the terrible scene somehow tell the group that their compatriot has already been here and moved on.

With one more room before they appear back into the main workroom on this floor, they pause, muscles clenching for a moment. It is inconceivable that Alterith meet his end here – that is not in question. However, they cannot shake the feeling that they could still be there, lurking in the shadows, especially after calling out for Alterith. Straining their ears but hearing nothing, they peer around the doorway, into another bedroom, probably for guests of the Kojar family, as evidenced by its simpler furnishings – just a bed and an empty wardrobe.

Still no contact. Alterith – and whatever scoundrels must be farther up the stairs. They go back into the workroom and back into the center stairwell. Up they go, Squin navigating himself with difficulty but as quickly and smoothly as he can.

The room they enter into on the next floor is a larger, empty room. Nothing but broken crates clutter parts of the floor. Counterclockwise into the next room, the group is almost overpowered by the stench. Its source is easy to see—a child’s corpse lies rotting amid scattered toys on the floor. A small bed stands against one wall, and beside it is an open wardrobe, its contents scattered about the floor. A window on the outer wall lets in the sunlight. The group shudders, some of them flushing with just rage. They can almost feel Alterith’s anger hanging about in the air when the halfling was here earlier.

The next room over is filled with furniture sized for both adults and children. Boxes of toys and books line the walls, and hobby horses and toy carts stand here and there. It was probably a play room for the children. A similar putrid stench like that of rotting bodies assails the nostrils in the next room. On one side of the room stand an open, empty wardrobe and an adult-sized bed with books lying open atop it. More books fill the
shelves along the walls, and a telescope stands beside the window. Clothes litter the floor. Investigating, the group reveals Mirval Jr.’s body lying decaying in a corner of the room, covered by the discarded clothes.

Back to the lighthouse stairway, the group looks up at the ceiling, and the top of the lighthouse just above it. He must be there. They rush to the top, breaking back into the sunlight, momentarily dazed. Recovering, they find themselves standing on a stone floor covered in the broken shards of a glass housing. The center light has been smashed, along with several mirrors and smaller lamps surrounding it. They are in a small glass-walled 10-ft diameter chamber, with a 5-ft walkway circling it just outside. On the other side of the smashed central light is Alterith, peering over the stone edge, back to them.