The Key in the Yeti

Once the den stopped trying to kill them, the party had to do the less glorious work of surviving what came after. Virgil was still unconscious. Jonah and Victor had both gone down in the fight. Nick had a frightened cub in his arms. Ash was already moving toward the exit with Cynthia's husband, choosing the actual rescue over whatever else the cave might offer. But the den still had secrets. Near the eastern side, beside the place where Nick found the cub, there was a small pouch. Inside were two healing potions, a silver ring, and a crumpled note from someone who had clearly not survived the cave with dignity. The note was signed J.H. Whoever J.H. had been, they had found the locked chest and lost the key in the worst possible way. The Yeti had swallowed it along with part of the unfortunate adventurer's pack. J.H. had waited in the frozen den, hoping nature would solve the problem, and eventually given up. The party did not have the luxury of waiting. Maine cut into the dead Yeti and searched through the mess until he found the key lodged in the creature's stomach. It was gross, necessary, and exactly the kind of work that turns a locked chest from mystery into property. While Ash carried Virgil back toward Cynthia's cave and the others limped their way out, Maine opened the chest. Inside were two prizes worth the trouble: a Potion of Heroism and a Frost Brand longsword. The den had been a place of hunger, failure, and bad luck before My Alchemical Romance arrived. Virgil had nearly died there. J.H. apparently had. The bears had lost their protectors, and PBJ had lost a home. But the party left with Virgil alive, a cub in Nick's care, a new frost weapon, and proof that someone else had tried to brave the same frozen path before them. The cave had not been only a rescue. It had been a warning.