It's Culumbo...

...Mern and I went back into Eibon with Ballard and some more men.

Floria's divinations show a cache of gold just below the main courtyard, so rather than blindly roaming around the halls getting lost and trying to find our way I decided that we'd try to smash directly through the floor bypassing whatever ghosts and coopers and giant dogs were waiting around for us to come by.

It was a bad plan and it went badly. More undead horses attacked while we were digging, they must have come from the adjacent stables and they killed a couple of the men. Digging through the floor is too slow and attracts too much attention. I guess we'll have to go back to prowling the halls for gold instead of mining for it.

It's getting harder and harder to find men to accompany us into the fortress. The surviving mercenaries are upset by how things went today. I dont think the cleric who lost his arm will be coming back either.

…

I don't know how he did it but Ballard convinced the mercenaries to come back with us. Another professional came with us too. I don't believe his reasons for coming to Eibon are good, but whose are? He seems like he can hold his own in a dungeon which is nice since I've been surrounded by amateurs and sorcerers since Merrigold was lost.

We were able to actually make our way pretty efficiently, coordinating ourselves and cutting down some spider creatures and coopers without any injury or loss of life to speak of.

Everything went to shit when we found the impaled man. He had already been run through and half a dozen swords were stuck in him. The creature (I do not like to call it a man) should have been easily dispatched but it was unfazed when we struck and our weapons became stuck in its flesh. The Serpenthelm figured out that the weapons in it seem to empower it and we pulled them out, felling it but not before it struck Mern down. The old man was in rough shape but we were able to get him out of the fortress and heal his internal injuries.

I don't know or understand the details of Mern's connection to myself but I do not think it can be mere luck that such a feeble man is struck down so often and always recovers. It demonstrates a resilience which he does not otherwise appear to posess.

While we waited for Mern to recover I sought out Heraphalmos. The poor man is still searching for his prodigal wife. I fear we do him a great disservice every time we bring him into Eibon as the coins which he inevitably squanders cannot be worth his risk of life and limb. On the other hand, I'm able to watch out for him in the fortress and the streets and markets outside Yam are not especially safe. So I tell myself though I cannot deny that his presence is a comfort to me when we face with the horrors of Eibon.

We have made plans to reenter the fortress in a few days time and Heraphalmos has agreed to accompany us.

…

I saw a lady
and I saw myself
everything hurt so bad for so long
it was so bad forever
I can't go back
why would anyone go in there?
we're going to see the priests tomorrow, but i dont think i'm hurt. Maybe one of the others is. probably Mern. I hope Sweeper is okay.
I think the serpenthelm is helpful?
I trust him and Mern and Ballard and Sweeper
but I dont ever want to go back into Eibon