- [x] tell Valia that Gaia has taken an interest in her, so no matter what she’s done in the past, she needs to make it out of here for the future of the Meadow and Peace
Valia opens a trap door under the altar. Artair heads down first, followed by Kabel, then Valia. They arrive at a round room with no clear way forward, and Artair finds a trap in the middle of the room. Valia recognizes that Elio cast the trap, and a dark mirage of Elio appears warning that there will be a challenge to pass.
An undead Theo rises from the ground along with two zombies and two skeletons. He accuses Valia of betraying everything she lived for. As Artair finally defeats Theo, his spirit appears. He turns to Valia and tells her that he forgives her. The darkness disappears, and Elio explains that he, the other elders, and the high priest were all turned into puppets. He opens the way forward.
Kabel finds a 6th level scroll of Scatter.
They proceed down the hallway and fall into a tree. Hanja’s cursed spirit explains that there is one tree among the grid of 49 trees that has the key to escape. Kabel finally finds the tree with the exit.
Kabel hears a sending from Tad; he returned with his party to help defend the meadow, and asks that Kabel brings him treasure if he survives. Sarita then messages using Mina’s sending stone and reports that Mina was hurt. Artair recommends she finds a plane of existence to hide Mina.
The party lands in a field of flowers, and solves a puzzle, releasing Kara’s spirit. Kara tells Valia that she and Valia’s father placed a leaf into her when they sensed that the tree was in danger 30 years prior. She holds the tree’s true vitality.
They approach an altar and see two transparent crystals held by the hands of the statue. As Kabel approaches, the crystals turn green and black. Kabel grabs the black crystal and is transported to Myrkul’s realm. Myrkul tells Kabel that he and Gaia both want Jarad to be destroyed because he desecrates both life and death. However, once Jarad is destroyed, Myrkul wants Valia to be killed. If Artair does it, he will be gifted with immense power. If Kabel does so, Myrkul will resurrect Kabel’s slain students and allow them to help clear Kabel’s name.
Myrkul tells Kabel that the Tree of Life has upset the balance between life and death in the Under-Wilds; killing Valia will allow Myrkul to destroy the tree in a way that doesn’t destroy life in the Under-Wilds.