Work Text:
Letter From Taash to Mateo
This map is vashedan. Someone is fucking with you. I went to Bedlam Cove. There is nothing there. No one ever found Fortune’s Treasure and no one ever will—because it’s FAKE. Everyone knows that!
Taash Talks: Bedlam Cove
We found the cave. Mateo left out that the tomb is underwater. There was an overhang that blocked the view of the cave. I dove pretty far to be able to see it. Something felt off. Being near the cave was like standing next to a yawning dragon. Kinda cool. But not where you want to be standing. Where did Mateo get that map?? He won’t tell me.
Taash Talks: The Tunnel
That cave is messed up. I can’t tell how long it is. Too long to be swimming underwater. The slope of it goes up so there might be air pockets somewhere. Probably too far to go on one breath. Mateo is not up to that kind of swim. He’s old. Would be suicidal to try. No. I don’t care about the treasure that much.
Taash Talks: No Air
Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck. My lungs almost exploded by the time I found an air pocket. There was barely enough space in there for my horns. Definitely chipped the tips on the ceiling. The rocks were so slippery I could barely hold on long enough to breathe. Needed to save some air to get back so I didn’t stay long. I saw a weird light flick on and off like a firefly near my feet. Lampfish? There was something else down there too. Couldn’t see it with just the fish light. It touched my feet. Felt sticky. Didn’t like it.
Tugged twice on the rope to let Mateo know I was still alive. The next air pocket was bigger. There was a ledge to sit on. A skeleton was already sitting there. They didn’t mind sharing. Had a few coins on them. Nothing that made me think there might be a hoard nearby. Didn’t want to know where their hands and legs went. No wonder they never made it out.
Though I might have hit a dead end but then I saw another hole. It was really small. Too small for me to turn around if things went bad.
And it was dark.
Taash Talks: Shrine
The last part of the tunnel wasn’t that long. Except at the end there were spiders. Way too many spiders. Ghost spiders. They ran away when I breathed some fire at them. Gross.
The cavern I found had runes around the entrance. I didn’t recognize the language at all. Need to tell my mother about them.
Tugged the rope three times and took it off. Found an old piece of wood that worked well enough as a torch. The next chamber was huge with all kinds of bones around. And there was a statue made out of bones right in the center. Gave me the creeps so I left it alone.
Taash Talks: The Stone Speaks
I saw some pictographs on the walls. They didn’t make sense. When did any of this happen? Maybe none of that happened. Maybe it was just a story. Some of the figures kind of looked like mountains with faces. There are tall rocks above the cave? I don’t know. My mother would know.
Fought through hundreds of spiders down there. The ghost kind and the regular kind. At least they were scared of my fire though I didn’t bring the supplies to keep doing that without burning my throat. The torch started to burn down. I think I heard whispers down a side passage. Either that or the heat was getting to me.
Taash Talks: The Ancient Spirit
Someone built that place. The style was geometric with lots of metal parts. Looked dwarven to me. Maybe Ergunauth was a long lost dwarven settlement and not a tomb at all. The increased heat must mean I was getting close to a volcano. Stepped in an acid pool. Lucky I have tough feet.
There were no bones down there except for the statues. I figured out I could light them with the torch. Something magical kept them burning. They didn’t match the style of the the structures at all.
I saw spirits in the distance. They always disappeared before I could get close enough to talk. But I found veilfire runes near where I saw the spirits. I guess they were trying to show me something after all. The runes said something about an ancient spirit named Fortune or Bedlam. I couldn’t tell which without Shathann’s books. Could be both. Asking the spirit for it seemed suspiciously easy. Spirits are always cryptic when it comes to treasure.
Taash Talks: Evil
There was more. The spirit used to be worshipped by a lot of people but they sealed it away. I don’t know when. I think it’s a demon.
The stone floor was almost too hot to walk on. My sweat sizzled where it fell. Even the ghost spiders were gone. The stone rumbled deep below.
Taash Talks: Bone Altar
I ran away. Don’t tell Hollix.
The demon Bedlam climbed out of a lava pool in the final chamber. Fiery. Charred. HUGE. I fought it but it was as strong and faster than a dragon. Axes didn’t work on it. That was before I saw the bone altar with the shades circling around it. There was no treasure. It was all a trick to bring sacrifices to the demon. No one I know can defeat at demon like that. It had luck like loaded dice. Messed up!
I almost didn’t make it out. When I dove into the water Bedlam grabbed my ankle and dragged me back. We fought again. But even demon lords are a little scared of dragon fire. I got some sick burn scars out of it. Never doing that again.
I burned the map. Sorry Mateo.