The Adventurers, the Orphans, and the Gems, Recap 1/24/21

 The Adventurers, the Orphans, and the Gems

The team spent the last week preparing for their upcoming adventure; reaching out to a local home for orphaned children and requesting to take in a child or two around the age of seven or eight. They also did a little shopping. 

They received two orphans; a boy and a girl, twins, named Pongo and Perdita. The teams fed them a quality filling meal and informed them that they would be learning the way of the adventurer. The twins seemed less interested than the group had hoped. They the group honestly wasn’t sure how long the twins would be around for. 

Leaving their strong hold the group ventured to the local tavern. It was discovered through this venture that no one had seen the hired men who had gone with them into the dungeon the week prior. The group had hoped that the men had found their own way out after disappearing over the edge of the underground stream.

They loudly announced to all listening, who would not make eye contact with them, that they intended to take their orphans into the dungeon for vocational training AND to find their former hired men who were missing. 

But first, they set off to meet with Xylarthan, traveling underneath the bar, through the dungeons, and into his tower. 

Xylarthan offered little information in regards to the grand cathedral of the dungeon or the broken vial the group had collected. He did tell them that the vial was very old. 

He had more information though about Grishknack, the supposed Vampire ruler of the now named Klargarsar. 

Grishknack (the vampire part was an unsubstantiated rumor so status unknown) was the ruler of the tower and the town before Raglam, when the town was known as Grishknack. He is believed to be dead, killed by Raglam and his followers, but it is possible that he only disappeared and is still somewhere, waiting.

The group, with some answers, promised to visit again soon, and slipped back into the dungeon. They made their way along the corridor to the fountain covered in angels, and remembering it’s healing powers for those of Lawful Good status, Sven, with the aid of Theodora filled a flask of the water to take with the party. They hoped it would help to heal Sven or the orphans if their was an incident or any sort.

Turning back around they followed the corridor back to the west and past the corridor to the tower. They walked through the circular room and came to the door at the other end, finding, of course, a corridor. 

The team opted to go south where the corridor swiftly (after 10 feet) turned off to the west and almost immediately were confronted with a “couple of dudes” which actually meant five kobolds, who were unhappy with company. They asked our adventurers for their treasure. The group played off the traditional, “We’re broke as a joke” routine. 

Finally they offered two of Embers apples, Sven explaining that they were magic, giving the consumer magically advanced strength. The Kobolds were intrigued. Theodora sweetened the pot with the offer of adding a dagger to the bounty; so they could cut the two apples and share them easier. 

The deal was struck. However the group had to turn around as the Kobolds were pissed when they began following them down the passage way.

And so they returned east and turned back to head north. And then west further down the corridor. Making what they would find out was a square. Before they discovered this though they entered the room in the center of the passages. The center held a pit of unknown depth. 

Ember was the only one interested in leaning over the edge and as she did a tentacle came out of the hole, grasping for her, thankfully missing. 

The party got out of theirs as fast as fucking possible as other tentacle began coming up to join their compatriot. The door was rapidly spiked closed.

Continuing south our adventurers found a door, once opened they realized they were back to the naturally hewed rock corridor that would lead them back to the three doomed room, which lead back to Nupo’s basement. 

So they turned around and set off east, then north, and followed the corridor until finally reaching the Tower magic sewage run off stream that they had been looking for.

Ember and Ves loaded onto the raft that the group had bought, brought, and dragged through the dungeon up until this point and off they went!

Sven, loaded up with Theodora and the orphan children, scared and crying after their short time in the dungeon, waited a moment longer.

As their raft rode the rapids of the sewage stream, Ves became dislodged, losing the lantern to the waters, and nearby drowning. Ember, who managed to stay on the raft attempted to help them, by using a grappling hook, managing to connect with the stone bridge above, and grab Ves before they disappeared over the edge that the hired men had been lost to the week before. 

At this time Sven and his passengers splashed over the edge and launched themselves, thanks to the Pegasus’ incredible strength, onto the banks. 

Theodora using her Infra-vision, was able to spot Ves and Ember gripping precariously to the rope and lit a torch, guiding Sven to save their friends. Sven, using his teeth, pulled their rope and the two adventurers to safety. They were wet and fairly pissed. 

The orphans were still fucking crying so Theodora attempted to calm them and fed them a snack.

The team opted to follow the path of their lost hired men, because they are good people who actually want to help, sometimes. And save their crumbling reputations. 

Through the west door of the slug room there was a a vestibule and then another room. Which, of course, had more fucking Kobolds, who took Sven a little too seriously when he asked if they had seen any dead people. It turned out, they WANTED to see dead people and the team would do. 

Ember was lanced by a spear. And the group escaped through the only other door on the north wall as the assholes cackled behind them.

The travelled along another corridor, damp, before being confronted by a fungus wall to the north, a fungus covered and possibly moving corridor to the west, and a door to the east.

They opted for the door.

Inside was a dedicated corpse in an ancient robe on a throne. Beside him were two hovering gems, a red and a green. Ember riffled his pockets. Theodora examined his hollow face.

The team, led by Ember, decided to take the gems and be prepared to run. The first was knocked from its position and picked up in a cloak. The second was grabbed by the orphan, Perdita, who refused to hand it over and swallowed it. 

The girl made a run for it. Ember threatened to kill her. Her brother all but bit off Theodora’s ear before she could stop him and fled. 

The girl was let go and the two were put to sleep by Theordora, Ember collected them, while still threatening to disembowel the girl. But instead they were hog-tied together and thrown over Sven’s back. The team was getting that fucking jewel back one way or another.

After that, they opted to just leave, and find out what the jewels were and maybe lock up the orphans for life. 

The Kobolds were gone, the group travelled back through the slug room, the north, and back to the well. Theodora levitated Sven up the passage as he held the rest of the party. They exited through Nupo’s basement. 

Nupo’s isn’t even surprised anymore. He almost just seems disappointed.

The orphans awoke. The group fed them on their straw bed. But nothing was over. They would get that jewel. And they were definitely going to need to speak to Xylarthan again.

- Theodora