Legend of the Black Reef IX (High Seas, Jaern)

The players put their plan into action, setting up their list of powerful casts to alter the abyssling population. The nest attacks, and they battle to defend the Heart of the Sea from being destroyed before it can finish casting. Ultimately, they succeed, and the powerful psionic waves go out - altering the entire nest into an entirely new form of abyssling.

These new abysslings are lightly iridescent and warmer in color, critically weak to psionics, herbivorous, and lack a hivemind. They are also capable of breaking down existing abyssling hiveminds and turning them into more of themselves. People can still be infected, and their bodies will change, but their minds will not be affected. The party names this new strain "peaklings". Several of them manage to attract small, docile peaklings and plan to keep them as pets.

As the Heart of the Sea uses the last of its energy, Jaern's body is reconstituted. They put on a disguise and join the party for their last foray through Elegian, where they have a last dinner together before being teleported out and going their separate ways. Cyrus assassinates abyssling-allied city leaders just before he goes, and also invites the party back at a later date to join him at his home.

Uriel and Cyrus return to the Black Reef with a peakling and loose the conversion there, freeing the gestalt souls trapped within the Neptune's Fang creature and restoring the reef from its severe infection. Life begins to return in earnest. Jaern says his goodbyes and leaves to explore the planet.