I wrote this and shared it but forgot to post.
So, our adventurers are at it again. And they have two weeks of death and destruction to report upon. Sadly.
Last week our intrepid team set out to secure some hired men, which they did, chat with Xylarthan, which they did, and buy some shit at Nupo’s, which they did.
Theodora discovered during extensive research that Ember could possibly be restored without the use of the reincarnation spell. It would technically be possible to have the Were-Shark curse upon her reversed by the 12th level magic user. Reincarnation could possibly have been needed afterward but at least she would no longer be a Were-Shark. Big positives.
However, the Were-Shark blood that flowed through her veins had already done the job of bringing her back to life. So once the curse was removed, Ember was back to her old self again.
Outside of the fact that she was convinced to share her magic weapons and items and handed the twin magic daggers to Ves. (Very out of character :P )
Upon visiting Nupo’s before entering the dungeon the team was met with Moogle, a young teenaged orphan boy. He was minding Nupo’s shop while the older gnome was on a trip of unknown origin. It was out of character for him to be gone and it was also stated that he had been agitated and anxious before leaving. The team worried about him, though Moogle had no further information to share with the team. They vowed to look into it further, when they returned from the dungeon.
Instead they purchased a number of items and promised to pay on the usual payment schedule of once a month to the unknowing boy. (He was suspicious) The team tipped him to make up for it and the other comments of SOME members of the party that may have made the boy nervous.
Once in the dungeons though the team was singularly minded. They wanted to get to the third level, the chapel and the tunnel opposite, headed north, in hopes of finding the Dagonite people. Or an idol. Or both (the best option).
The party moved so quickly they were required to rest in the slug room, which was actually a pretty new experience for them.
As they made their way along the corridor beyond they saw no evidence of Lorna Doone, nor Ember’s lost Valkyrie spear, and they studiously avoided getting any closer to the Pool room and a possible Were-Shark encounter.
So down to the third level they went, via the long and winding stair case. Previously our adventurers have gone south and into the chapel so, hoping to find the Dagonites and/or an idol they move down the northward corridor.
It’s not long before they turn west and when the passage turns back to the north once more they are confronted by a monster that is seemingly made up from poop/feces. It has the look of the bodily function and smells strongly of sulphur. The creatures voice is high pitched by melodic and eerie.
It asks the party to approach, to hug it. They refuse for a multitude of reasons. Instead they engage in battle with it. Zook, the hired man is killed. Theodora presents a silver cross and shoves it toward the creature. This seems to somewhat hold it at bay while the party retreats backward toward the stairs and then into the chapel. The creature seems to be afraid of the room and stays back, retreating down the hall.
The party moves into the martini glass shaped entrance of the chapel and sets immediately to mapping the space to help with their understanding. The last time they had been there maps had come out different and confused.
They see the wide corridor leading off to the pit to the west and continue east. Along the south wall they see a series of columns. To the south remains the room with the corpse, from whom they had stolen the map in a previous session. Continuing east, in the north wall they pass a locked door with a bronze eye. Continuing further the come to a second twin door. The group follows the corridor and heads south where they pass three shallow alcoves each holding a sad looking cherub. Two narrower passages lead further south but the party turns to the west. There they find another door on the south wall and a wider, 30’ foot corridor. The hall ends in a football shaped room where they had previously seen the broken body of a knight who had fallen from an unknown place at an unknown height.
Running low on time the adventurers returned to the martini glass opening to the cathedral and onto the stairwell that would return them to the second level of the dungeon.
Unfortunately it would not be so easy. They were once again met by the flaming, sulfurous poop monster (gollum?). Theodora used the silver cross on it again only to discover that the being was on pretending to be bothered by the religious artifact (at least in her non-cleric hands).
The group would escape thanks to protection from evil and running. They made it back to the surface, passed by Moogal, promised him some money in passing, and bid a fond farewell to Zook (RIP).
The following week passed in a blur. Theodora had been writing a lot, being secretive. Ember was shifty, anxious, not like herself. Ves got busy. Sven kept talking about moving in with some dude. And Lorna Doone was still fucking dead and probably a Were-Shark in the dungeon. The team hoped at least she was happy.
And it was in that frame of mind that Theodora, as an olive branch, reached out to Ember. She had been dead. Felt the icy hand of it running along her spine. Death changes a person. Even if you have felt dead inside, until you are actually dead, you can not understand the emptiness, the hollow ache of it under your breast. So the gnome offered a lunch date, maybe a bit of adventuring. She knew that killing something would help improve the elf’s spirits. But first drinks!
The orphans were left behind under the care of Sven. Everyone was unsure of this decision but it was decided Ves may be yet worse.
Ember and Theodora rolled into the tavern, went straight to the bar and ordered drinks (a tankard of ale and tea respectively), asked for the daily special, and turned to check out the room as any smart adventurer does.
(The special was Seitan. Theodora shrugged. Ember ordered a bucket. It would turn out that she had no idea that Seitan was not a kind of chicken.)
There was a dwarf sat alone at a table with a pile of food in front of her looking lost, confused, and as all of the other tables were full Ember and Theodora appeared at her side asking to join her.
The dwarf, Merriweather Boom Boom, was indeed confused, not sure how she had arrived to town, where she was from or who she even really was. The food in front of her had arrived without prompting and Ember who had been sampling the platter immediately stopped. NEVER eat food when you don’t know how it arrived, or who it came from. Life lessons, learned.
The two adventurers found Merriweather interesting as her story seemed close to what both women had experienced upon their deaths and/or changes. And honestly, they were always happy to welcome a new member to the party. Especially pretty dwarves who seemed to have a penchant for thieving.
Excusing herself to the restroom, Theodora told Merriweather to avoid further gifts of food or drink, and that they two women had a brief errands to run but would be back so please stay until they returned. This was agreed upon.
Ember and Theodora travelled below into the basement of the tavern and made their way to Xylarthan’s tower.
It was discussed that they were all very concerned about Nupo. Xylarthan agree to open a dimensional door and go to the larger nearby town and ask for information regarding the gnome.
The idea that he may have once been a spy was brought up and that he could have knowledge the rest of the group was lacking. Worry loomed.
Theodora worried over Xylarthan leaving. He promised to keep her updated/stay in touch. What more can an apprentice with some kind of feelings expect?
The 12th level magic user had no more information on the gems the group sold to him but he was still wearing them, floating around his head.
Theodora and Ember return to the tavern to look for Merriweather Boom Boom and found her again at the table but now surrounded by a troop of dwarves men. The adventurers joined her and found themselves very welcome.
Using eye contact and a few subtle phrases the group of women worked up a way to distract the dwarf men (More drinks and Theodora showing a view of down her tunic) as they Merriweather picked their pockets. She managed to get some gold, silver and electrum pieces off of two out the the three.
After that the women fled, with a solid excuse that after eating all of the Seitan, Ember was going to be ill, and that they needed to visit the alleyway. The dwarves went to buy another round and await their returns. Instead the group went to Nupo’s to shop and return to the dungeons.
Moogle was still there, running the shop. He felt slighted by Ember and Theodora for not paying him during their last visit. This was annoying.
Merriweather made some solid purchases for a trip into the dungeon, including a silver quarrel, in case the were-shark returned.
The party was looking for holy water (in case they again came across the poop gollum). Moogle only agreed to look if the party paid at least some of what they owed. This was agreed upon reluctantly.
Holy water was obtained, half of the bill was paid, a dinner offer was proffered and rejected (Moogle has no manners), and some unreadable letters regarding Nupo were obtained. The letters were to go immediately to Xylarthan.
The team ventured into the dungeon through Nupo’s basement, Merriweather blushing and flirting with young Moogle, the group dragging her away with a solid shake of their heads. They progressed quickly through the dungeon, only stopping briefly to offer a hat to the tiny lizard dog-like creatures who demanded it of them, as they returned to the dungeon entrance of the tower.
Xylarthan had not yet left and was happy for the letters; he would read them in transit and report back to the group when he returned. Theodora offered to swing by to water his plants.
Back in the dungeon the group set off through the rough hewn tunnel to the room with the spiral staircase; however, upon their arrival, they heard the telltale sounds of gargoyles creaking throughout the space and promptly shut the door, turning and heading back the way that they had come from.
The party backtracked and went all the way past Xylarthan’s tower entrance and back to the lizard room. Upon arrival it was clear that the one who had “won” the hat had been made king and was helping quite a bit with egg/young “production”. The team, mildly disgusted and trying not to look, made their way across the space. Theodora offered the “king” a red ribbon that she was carrying on her person, he was thrilled.
The adventurers opted to try a new door. They entered the western most door of the three doors on the south wall. It was a map room. Perhaps they had seen that room before, Theodora was hazy on that fact. But the map made so much sense finally, understanding the names and places, the god represented, as they previously had not.
Theodora set to copying the map down as Ember examined the room and looked for secret doors or traps.
Information obtained from the map:
Ereshkigal, town in mentioned.
There is a large continent, somewhat heart shaped.
Ocean surround it, filled with classical sea monsters, etc.
The map is ringed by constellations like the zodiac.
Istus, a known goddess was linked to Inanna.
Chronoplus (seen as an eye) is directly above the map and is linked to Boccob (seen as an eye also). The look of some kind of lobster/insect creature.
Heget is seen in the west as a frog.
Nefertem is to the south.
Yhoundeh is also to the south, seen as an elk.
Shezmu is also to the south, seen as a lion.
Nang Kwak is to the east, seen as a reaper.
Nergul is the dark moon.
Nodens is to the west, seen as the dreamer.
No secret doors are found and so the group returns to find the small lizards still mating and enjoying themselves. Theodora smiles and offers the king a mirror so that he may seen himself in all of his glory. The gift is happily accepted and the party try the middle door on the southern wall.
They walk along the corridor there and come to a door in the south wall, this door leads to a room filled with trash and rat corpses. Moving along to the west there is a door and beyond another corridor. To the north is a room with six cloaked figures chanting, the team avoided them. The door on the furthest west wall opened to a room with shelving around it but with no light it was hard to tell exactly what was in there. Theodora had a flash back and was nervous that they could be approaching a sinister sounding wraith known as the Ship Builder.
A door along the south wall confirmed this fact but instead of entering the group retreated quickly, avoiding the wraith and the room where the “Gwar Cum” monster had been killed. Theodora felt a storage room had been tied in around there and an exit through the other side of the Gwar room. The area had been a confusing maze of empty rooms she recalled so the party returned to the corridor, wending along toward the north and west.
A door was located on the east wall with a spiral staircase leading up to a mansion where Herbert the Half-hearted and Theodora had once taken cloaks. The team had never actually cleared the exit/entrance though, unfortunately. (Check back on that?)
Finally the corridor terminated in a north/south corridor that was familiar. The group was fairly certain it was the place they had met Sexy Long Beard.
Seeing no reason to stop at the moment Ember pushed on ahead of the group and headed north toward the area where there had been a door. The elf found a door to the east, opened it, and found creatures (men?) battling?
Finally as Ember moved along something black and viscose dropped and fell from above, which quickly burned Ember, ripping through her like acid, armor and flesh.
Ember begged the party to loot her body as she died but they were terrified. Theodora took the Ring of Elafor to see through walls and then the party escaped swearing to come back and fulfill Ember’s dying wish or looting her body.
Dun Dun Dun...
- Theodora
