The party returned to find the Iron Cup fort in lockdown mode. Too many people had gone missing and they weren't letting anyone in or out without express permission from Tovosia. So the group decided to spend the night on the Satyrdance, anchored at the shore.
They set sail at first light for the southern tip of the southern-most island. With Josian by their side, they hoped to incapacitate the pirate crew by spamming Sleep. However, as they sailed down the eastern shores, they were once again distracted by an interesting sight. A massive rock formation with steam billowing out of the base where the stone met the sea. The steam seemed to be coming out of shore-level caves. Once the party was sure the caves wouldn't flood and drown them and that the steam wouldn't boil them alive, they entered one.
Simon Rouse spotted a red glow coming from the back of the cavern. It was a tunnel with curiously dry air occasionally rushing out of it. He and Vraifigi crawled down to see what was up while everyone else found a dry spot to sit. Down below, a massive crystalline entity shuffled around a room filled with pearls and alchemical doodads. The two adventurers stowed their weapons and introduced themselves. The salt elemental was surprised, but took their straightforward introduction as a sign that neither were thieves. It explained, by scratching messages in the sandy cave floor, that it was summoned by the great wizard Koku to keep this room dry, and that while he was busy "doing wizard things," they could go talk to him. They found Koku in the next room. They patiently asked simple questions, so as not to break his concentration, and waited for the wizard to write out his responses one letter at a time on spare pieces of parchment. He asked them for some sugar and promised he would reward them with a magical item from his collection. Simon and Vraifigi considered this a fair deal and didn't feel like fighting the salt elemental. So they crawled back up to the surface and informed the rest of the party.
Aedric suspected that something was up with the rocky island they'd visited last session. He suggested the party check out the dolmen again. As they climbed towards the grave site from the shore, elves attacked! These ones were different, wrapped in mix of leathers, furs, and tattered Iron Cup uniforms. The party was quickly overwhelmed by a series of Sleep spells.
Everyone expected to wake up in whatever afterlife awaited them. Instead, they found themselves sewn into a giant seal-shaped flesh golem. They'd been stripped to their underclothes, but otherwise unharmed. Fortunately, Amalia was strong enough to rip herself free and help the others. They waited until the beast made landfall before jumping free. It was fast in the water, but clumsy on solid ground, so the party was able to just barely outrun it to the Iron Cup fort. Unfortunately, the guards thought the party's warning was a trick. When the seal-blob came thundering out of the fog, it was too late. The fort was destroyed. However, Vraifigi was able to loot a sack of sugar in the ensuing chaos. They traded this with Koku for a Pearl of Power, which would allow Josian to re-cast any 2nd level spell for free.
When they returned to the dolmen island, they found their equipment abandoned on the rocks. All untouched except for their rations. There was no sign of the shivering elves, save for the crumbs they left behind.
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