Part I Synopsis

For three months, six travelers have shared the same nightmare: an unseen woman sings from the darkness while a black fortress stands beneath a violent storm at the edge of the world. Their search for the fortress brings them to New Norn on the island of Fengroth during the funeral of the tribe's eldest shaman. There, the aging warrior Dyrnick Vosh disputes with the elder Magda Navaa and asks the strangers to accompany him to the Ebon Keep. Dyrnick claims the dead shaman foresaw a pale chalice spilling darkness across the land, awakening the ancient Dreg'Damor from their crypts, and plunging Fengroth into an eternal winter. He explains that the Dreg'Damor came from Dragdah, practiced sorcery capable of restoring the dead, and ultimately destroyed themselves with the power they tried to control. The keep remained abandoned until Marquis Selendra Cassiandros sent Lord Vindelgar Delgar to restore it five years ago, but the Delgars have since ended trade with New Norn and disappeared behind the dangers of the north. Turpentine, Mystique, Olive Prescott, Hale "Frail," Keybor, and Budvar Javi accept Dyrnick's offer of 250 gold each and set out with him.

The company crosses the Gelcarine Forest, where the animals have fallen silent, the trees bleed diseased sap, and coral growths have overtaken the land. During the night, flowered, reef-like wolds attack the camp and repeatedly regenerate from ordinary wounds until the travelers combine magic, fire, and coordinated attacks to destroy them. The forest floor then collapses beneath the party, depositing them in an ancient cavern where the song from their dreams suddenly stops. An ornate black-and-silver sarcophagus opens after the group solves its rotating-rune puzzle, revealing a strange lantern built around a floating white crystal. Touching the lantern produces a vision of warriors whose shadows are drawn into a pale chalice and of an ancient, bone-clad chieftain declaring that the lantern is a key that will reveal the truth. Speaking the inscription on its frame ignites the crystal, pushes back supernatural darkness, and reveals a hidden passage out of the cavern. The party emerges near a forest pool, recovers an amulet that protects its wearer from the cold, and reaches the Fangled Bridge, where statues of Lord Vindelgar and Lady Tasha Delgar commemorate Gavra's claim over the region.

Beyond the bridge, the travelers meet the Eccleton minstrels and their patron, Piatra Thorlbrin, who are journeying to the Ebon Keep at the invitation of Piatra's sister Annalise. The musicians teach the group Tyve's traditional song, whose lyrics promise to pour a drink for the land "until we all expire," and they point out a nearby carving advising that music soothes the savage beast. That night, the nightmare song enthralls the minstrels and compels them to walk north, while one violently resists anyone who intervenes. The lantern's white light breaks the enchantment, and the party persuades the shaken performers to return to New Norn. After another day's travel, the company reaches the flooded ruins of Gelfar on the shore of the Black Channel and sees the storm-shrouded Bleakmire beyond the water. Before they can secure passage, the Nornian ranger Giren Malonan arrives with an accusation: Dyrnick's daughter has told the council about her ailment, and Dyrnick must return to New Norn to face justice for what he has done.