Well Vol woke up hearty and healthy, it turns out his god Kord was showing him a vision. I seed to it he was alright, but while we were distracted, the Sapling must have sneaked back into the city, I turned and saw his spider crawling over the wall. We let him do his own thing, but the rest of us went to where the beam ended, at another temple not far out from town. Vol spoke that it may be best that the Sapling had left; his vision had shown us confronting Lolth, the Drow goddess of spiders. It would be best that the spider affishenado not be around for her death and divine judgement.
Oh, to mention, the little raccoon, Discharge, he found an arcane book in the library that makes him speak the common tongue as long as he holds onto it. So we can understand him now, but he still chitters an awful lot anyway. Critters will be critters.
Outside the temple grew bushes upon bushes of those berries that the physician was using for creating the fog of disintelligence. I set to it to collect just enough berries for my own concoctions, and my companions were bored enough that I had to tell stories from my childhood to keep them entertained. As the stories ended, so did my picking, and we entered the temple together, and there was a tunnel. The tunnel was long, much longer than the width of the building. I am sincerely getting annoyed with all this religious cabara-shat in every religiously affiliated place. Nothing is straight-forward, there is always trickery at play, from my experience. Nottheless, we continued onward a ways, growing impatient, then suddenly we reached a room. In the room was three doors with a slot on each, and three ornate pedestals with a metallic tile on each. On one tile was engraved a skull, on another, a spider, and on the last, a bleeding goat head. We concluded to find Vecna, we should use the skull key, but on which door was just a guess. We chose the door in the front of the room, and entered cautiously into a prison. Skeletons sulked about the room, and we took them out without much of an exertion of effort. Discharge disintegrated three of them with a most powerful explosion of electricity. We all stood in awe of the magnificent display of purple and white tendrils of shock bursting around us. Even the single skeleton that remained seemed to gaze with impression at the display of raw power flowing out of Discharge. Vol took down that skeleton while the opportunity was present.
We did look around the room, much of the walls in the cells were lined with chains and shackles, meant for holding multiple prisoners. There was a rack in one cell, and in another was a decaying corpse of a legendary Beholder. Acid was seeping from it putrified body and had eaten a shallow pool into the floor. We kept our distance, but the little raccoon seemed eager to retrieve some acid for me for fighting; I had no vial strong enough to contain it, though, so I declined the... generous offer. We rested for a bit in the center of the room, surrounded by cells, on a blood-stained floor. This wasn't my most restful reprieve, but I was able to keep my mind free of what must have happened here in days past. The liquor helped much to take my mind off things. We drank and laughed and made merry, until we were ready to go, but I was still a bit caroused.
As we readied ourselves to leave, a few stones at the top of the stairs pushed out of the wall, and a hideous figure with a mask of half-goat and half-bull, in a dark cloak walked out of the wall. I knew it was the Sapling; I was with him when he bought the masks, but Vol didn't know. He saw the masks as symbols of the dark gods, and charged up the stairs with his ax raised. Fortunately for the Sapling, he had sense enough to lift his mask off and reveal his face. I'm sure Vol wasn't too ready to put hold on his weapon, but he did the better of his actions and stopped half way up the stairs. So there was another underground passage from the town into the temple. I wonder if this one leads to near the physician. I will have to ask of this when we have time to leisure about.
We continued as a whole group through the doors at the top of the stairs, into a dim room. The first thing of note was blood pooled in the floor, a massive statue in the center of the room, with live bodies around it, writhing from chains hanging from the ceiling, suffering from spikes through their bodies. Eerie as this was, and used to death as I was from my past in wars together with Vol, I'm not fond of suffering and pain. Death is one thing, but adding cruel, prolonged torture is evil, repulsive, and the slightest bit upsetting to the stomach, especially when you're watching it from standing in a pool of blood. The Sapling approached the alter beneath the statue, when a figure stood from the altar. Sapling has a tendency to announce our presence, doesn't he. The figure declared himself an acolyte of Torog, the god of imprisonment and torture. Torog then vanished into the pool of blood and arose in front of us in a rising orb of blood. It was a terrible battle; with every attack he leeched some of our life away, but we stood victorious at the end of it. That cabaran blood blister was better off dead; and so were the tortured bodies hung around the statue. Vol climber upon the statue, and after praying for their peace, mercifully killed each victim. I consulted my god Balinor, and after learning they willingly subjected themselves to this, as devotees to Torog, I decided to scavenge their corpses for humours, organs, marrow and the like for alchemical pursuits, to spite Torog. Upon realizing that I had harvested too many organs to carry, and in the wisdom bestowed of alcohol, I began to stuffing them in my platinum pouch in return for gold, as it was less burdensome to handle.
A door behind the statue was slightly ajar. We went through, and were returned to the room with pedestals and keys. In Vol's vision, Vecna was with Lolth, the spider goddess, so we exchanged the skull key for the spider key, and used it in the same door we first went through. We could see inside the room, there was a giant spider, too big to fit in the door, and it was carrying a human head in its jaws. The door shut quickly by our own decision. We tried it on the hidden door in the back, and entered into a room, just in time to see Lolth crush Vecna's skull in.
In my haste to pen this all down, I forgot to mention that Vol convinced Sapling that we were going after Vecna, and we might have to confront Lolth because she imprisoned spiders against their will and forced them to do her bidding. As far from truth as stars and water, but we needed him to despise her, else he may join forces with her against us. And as much accuracy with a halberd as a blindey at a dartboard, but when he hits, he hits fierce, and his spider (with a more fair eye to fighting) shares his mind too, it would be better to have him on our side if things went awry.
And Vecna's skull was crushed, and we were asked straightforward what were we doing in her chambers. Sapling spoke up immediately - as he tends to drag us with him into precariously undiplomatic rallies, such as Vecna, the first time, and his arson run in Ixeer. He commanded her (by what authority he thinks he has or has not, I claim him bold, if not stupid) to free her spider prisoners. She just laughed and asked what he was talking about. I looked at Vol in a semi drunken haze. I pulled out my fire bomb, and he drew his ax, to prevent her from revealing herself as Sapling's ally. We tried to start a brawl, but she easily dodged our attacks, and left us, not before calling two large spiders to attack and maim Sapling's pet. We dispatched them after a time, and settled into a watchful rest.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Friday, February 8, 2013
005 - The Village Idiots
Vol wouldn't wake up this afterdawn. Something was terribly wrong with him. My guess was that bullywogs gas cloud must have coated his lungs bad. He was going into small fits of shock and I managed to stabilize him; but whenever I would try to rouse him to consciousness, he would quickly slip back to darkness. Some medic I am, can't but pull my brother out of his mindsleep.
I had to get him to a proper doctor, one with better resources than I could manage. The little raccoon climbed a tree for to see for a town. He came back down, pointing in a roughly east direction, chittering about smoke on his little note pad. I asked the Wilden if his spider would carry Vol, gods know I can't, and he took to it, thankfully. This is something I asked him not to mention to Vol later. Since as kids, we spent a day of adventuring in the forest. We found a cave, and us being the intrepit explorores we were, entered to the wind. It so happened that we wandered into a spider's nest. These spiders were large, much like the Wilden's. We wouldn't have made it out were it not for father come looking for us. Since, we've always been on edge around spiders. We'd have even more trouble with the spider of the Wilden, were it not hairy like it is, for the ones in the caves were as sleek and hairless as a river stone. But we went east, toward the smoke. The farther we traveled, the darker the forest got It became incredibly dark, to the point I had to light a sunrod for my companions.
We noticed in the dim light, large-bodied plants, with long vines lithing from them, with knotted clubs at the ends. The vines shuddered with each of our footsteps, and when we got too close to one, it started swinging the club around, so we kept our distance. Avoided the bulbous things best we could, but there were other creatures there we didn't see until their viney arms were wrapping up our legs. I poured acid on the one crawling up mine, and pulled my leg out as hard I could. We stumbled into a pack of long-armed, bipedal plant creatures. I looked back to the spider, and he was already climbing Vol up a tree, keeping him out of danger, of his own volition, which was nice of him. I doubt the Wilden cares much for Vol, apart from having his strength on his side, and that we aim to start wars, but I could be wrong. As long as he's helping, though, I should not complain.
With Vol out of the picture, I had to switch up my tactics. I had to heal, of course, but I also had to take the offensive. I did well. I was a little surprised; I never considered myself a fighter. We continued to follow the smoke, and it wasn't long before we found the edge of the forest, with a large walled town just beyond that. We knocked on the heavy door to the town, and we were let in without much of a thought.
Once inside, we split up. Spider and I look for the clinic. We found it after some time; it was a small, run-down shack. I approached hesitantly. Didn't seem much like a good clinic, given the building was in shambles. I knocked on the door, and a slot in the door opened, someone looked out, and let us in. I saw the same dark veil in the doorway, as the ones in the temple, and I entered into a very large, round room, with something near 20 beds lining the curved wall.
I asked the physician to take care of Vol, and he asked for money. I had to take some from Vol's coin pouch, I swear to repay it though. I carried his pouch for safe keeping, too. The physician was extremely arrogant. I wanted to poison him, but it would have to wait the 3 days or so until Vol was awake and to good health. The spider and I left, and I followed it to a shop, where the Wilden was shopping for a mask and a robe. I entered, but the spider stayed outside and wandered off. The Wilden was explaining to the shopkeep that he wanted to buy a hooded cloak. The keep was inconseevably stupid; he kept presenting things like bathing robes and such and red curtain fabric. Here I entertained myself. I told him I would show him curtain folding techniques practiced by the most noble dukes themselves from beyond the sea, for a small charge. He watched in awe as I cabara-shat my way through the fold, giving up, and just rolling it up at the end. He gave me his bagel and an acorn. I told the dumb fellow that nobody would take this currency where I was from, and I asked for something shinier. He gave me a Healing Brooch and asked me if I could come in and fold clothes for him during my stay in town, I agreed and hurriedly left, as the little raccoon and the Wilden had stolen things and left while I had the shop keep distracted.
They were outside, with the crowd, watching as the spider danced on the rooftop. People were throwing gold at it.
My mind had been growing a bit thick and hazy up to now, and I remember having a hard time thinking clear. I was telling the Wilden about the physician, trying to enlist his aid in offing the prat, when... we forgot who we were talking about. Were we talking about... Vecna? We might have been! Oh, and the Wilden pulled out the red curtain he stole from the shop. This looks like it might be his cape. But it's not on fire. I can fix that. He set it on the ground, and I pulled out a vial of alchemist fire. We took a few steps back, and as the vial crashed at the ground at the base of the curtain, we were engulfed in flames. All this time, the little raccoon was pointing toward the town gate, but we were busy talking, so we just let him go out on his own. But as the fire swelled around us, I realized there was something about this town that was getting in our heads, and making us act stupid and think foggy. So I dropped to the ground and rolled out my fire, and raced out of the city walls with the Wilden close behind.
After sitting outside for a few hours in the shade of the forest, we were thinking like scholars again. The physician was the only person in town we met, ourselves aside, who was not limited of the mind. Had he done this to the town? He had Vol in his care, too! I was scared for him. If he had made the whole town stupid, what could he be doing to Vol, maybe making him stupid, too. He could be running unknown alchemy through on him out of his own driven madness, I don't know. The Wilden and I plotted out a great plan to rescue him, but after all that, we just knocked on his door and walked in. The Wilden talked with the doctor while I unhooked Vol from his IV, and belted him into the spider's saddle. The doctor grew very angry with the Wilden, and forcefully told us to leave, while drawing a fireball upon his palm. We left in quite a hurry. As we were running out of town, the townsfolk were cheering us on, as if we were in a race.
Outside the town, back in the forest, we set up camp. The Wilden told me that the doctor had created a mind fog that kept everybody in peak physical condition, not being able to be sick any more, but at the expense of their thinking. This fog was derived from a berry the grew near a local temple, along the path of the beam. But a lot of the berry was put into the fog. The Wilden thinks that only a few berries could cure Vol, at keep his intelligence clear at the same. I want to test the berry first, before we try them on him. Anyway, I will be off to bed now. Hopefully we make progress toward either another town, or those berries, tomorrow afterdawn.
I had to get him to a proper doctor, one with better resources than I could manage. The little raccoon climbed a tree for to see for a town. He came back down, pointing in a roughly east direction, chittering about smoke on his little note pad. I asked the Wilden if his spider would carry Vol, gods know I can't, and he took to it, thankfully. This is something I asked him not to mention to Vol later. Since as kids, we spent a day of adventuring in the forest. We found a cave, and us being the intrepit explorores we were, entered to the wind. It so happened that we wandered into a spider's nest. These spiders were large, much like the Wilden's. We wouldn't have made it out were it not for father come looking for us. Since, we've always been on edge around spiders. We'd have even more trouble with the spider of the Wilden, were it not hairy like it is, for the ones in the caves were as sleek and hairless as a river stone. But we went east, toward the smoke. The farther we traveled, the darker the forest got It became incredibly dark, to the point I had to light a sunrod for my companions.
We noticed in the dim light, large-bodied plants, with long vines lithing from them, with knotted clubs at the ends. The vines shuddered with each of our footsteps, and when we got too close to one, it started swinging the club around, so we kept our distance. Avoided the bulbous things best we could, but there were other creatures there we didn't see until their viney arms were wrapping up our legs. I poured acid on the one crawling up mine, and pulled my leg out as hard I could. We stumbled into a pack of long-armed, bipedal plant creatures. I looked back to the spider, and he was already climbing Vol up a tree, keeping him out of danger, of his own volition, which was nice of him. I doubt the Wilden cares much for Vol, apart from having his strength on his side, and that we aim to start wars, but I could be wrong. As long as he's helping, though, I should not complain.
With Vol out of the picture, I had to switch up my tactics. I had to heal, of course, but I also had to take the offensive. I did well. I was a little surprised; I never considered myself a fighter. We continued to follow the smoke, and it wasn't long before we found the edge of the forest, with a large walled town just beyond that. We knocked on the heavy door to the town, and we were let in without much of a thought.
Once inside, we split up. Spider and I look for the clinic. We found it after some time; it was a small, run-down shack. I approached hesitantly. Didn't seem much like a good clinic, given the building was in shambles. I knocked on the door, and a slot in the door opened, someone looked out, and let us in. I saw the same dark veil in the doorway, as the ones in the temple, and I entered into a very large, round room, with something near 20 beds lining the curved wall.
I asked the physician to take care of Vol, and he asked for money. I had to take some from Vol's coin pouch, I swear to repay it though. I carried his pouch for safe keeping, too. The physician was extremely arrogant. I wanted to poison him, but it would have to wait the 3 days or so until Vol was awake and to good health. The spider and I left, and I followed it to a shop, where the Wilden was shopping for a mask and a robe. I entered, but the spider stayed outside and wandered off. The Wilden was explaining to the shopkeep that he wanted to buy a hooded cloak. The keep was inconseevably stupid; he kept presenting things like bathing robes and such and red curtain fabric. Here I entertained myself. I told him I would show him curtain folding techniques practiced by the most noble dukes themselves from beyond the sea, for a small charge. He watched in awe as I cabara-shat my way through the fold, giving up, and just rolling it up at the end. He gave me his bagel and an acorn. I told the dumb fellow that nobody would take this currency where I was from, and I asked for something shinier. He gave me a Healing Brooch and asked me if I could come in and fold clothes for him during my stay in town, I agreed and hurriedly left, as the little raccoon and the Wilden had stolen things and left while I had the shop keep distracted.
They were outside, with the crowd, watching as the spider danced on the rooftop. People were throwing gold at it.
My mind had been growing a bit thick and hazy up to now, and I remember having a hard time thinking clear. I was telling the Wilden about the physician, trying to enlist his aid in offing the prat, when... we forgot who we were talking about. Were we talking about... Vecna? We might have been! Oh, and the Wilden pulled out the red curtain he stole from the shop. This looks like it might be his cape. But it's not on fire. I can fix that. He set it on the ground, and I pulled out a vial of alchemist fire. We took a few steps back, and as the vial crashed at the ground at the base of the curtain, we were engulfed in flames. All this time, the little raccoon was pointing toward the town gate, but we were busy talking, so we just let him go out on his own. But as the fire swelled around us, I realized there was something about this town that was getting in our heads, and making us act stupid and think foggy. So I dropped to the ground and rolled out my fire, and raced out of the city walls with the Wilden close behind.
After sitting outside for a few hours in the shade of the forest, we were thinking like scholars again. The physician was the only person in town we met, ourselves aside, who was not limited of the mind. Had he done this to the town? He had Vol in his care, too! I was scared for him. If he had made the whole town stupid, what could he be doing to Vol, maybe making him stupid, too. He could be running unknown alchemy through on him out of his own driven madness, I don't know. The Wilden and I plotted out a great plan to rescue him, but after all that, we just knocked on his door and walked in. The Wilden talked with the doctor while I unhooked Vol from his IV, and belted him into the spider's saddle. The doctor grew very angry with the Wilden, and forcefully told us to leave, while drawing a fireball upon his palm. We left in quite a hurry. As we were running out of town, the townsfolk were cheering us on, as if we were in a race.
Outside the town, back in the forest, we set up camp. The Wilden told me that the doctor had created a mind fog that kept everybody in peak physical condition, not being able to be sick any more, but at the expense of their thinking. This fog was derived from a berry the grew near a local temple, along the path of the beam. But a lot of the berry was put into the fog. The Wilden thinks that only a few berries could cure Vol, at keep his intelligence clear at the same. I want to test the berry first, before we try them on him. Anyway, I will be off to bed now. Hopefully we make progress toward either another town, or those berries, tomorrow afterdawn.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
004 - Sailing
It was a trek of three days across the burning hot sands. The sky was hotter than last time, and many a sight I mistook for shade and water. It was just as cold in the nights, though, but we made progress, even as a pack of hyenas stood to have us for their meals. But not too soon we found the coastal port town we had been looking for, called Ixeer. The desert town was small, and sitting by the water, like a child pretending it could fend for itself. Sure had its charm though. And by that, I mean it was a tasteless and boring town. Upon entering the main of the town, we noticed a bustling crowd cheering and crying and parading about a tiny creature. It was the little raccoon! We met with him and followed him and the crowd into the pub where we had drink and sup and did rest and learn of the little raccoon's separate journey.
He had gone to explore the night in the temple, and fallen into a pit, and found a long tunnel that connected to a shop in this very town! He then had a brawl with the weakened Vecna, and pulled him into a well, which doused his red fiery cape.
To be honest, I'm not much sure why I'm writing this down, I ain't believing a scrit of it. As seabound as this town was, it was too dry. Vol bought a boat that was just to be used for scraps, and I spent some money in the market to learn the Make Whole ritual, to fix it. The Wilden had his fixins on stealing a boat, but even after dark there was still crew under deck. The sun had set, and, while we were on the docks correctin' the ships shortcomings, the Wilden was abiding by a plan long dismissed by Vol and I. We found him missing and heard a commotion coming from the market in town. Smoke and fire, yelling. We were almost done with the boat, and we didn't want the Wilden to come running to us with the guard on his tail, associating us fine, upright, reasonably civil minds to his chaotic tendencies. Thankfully, he got caught up quick, and penned like a hog.
Afterdawn, we asked around town, and found him in the local prison. He was to be hanged, but we bought him as a slave, boarded the boat (we named her The Huntress) and set off to sail an 8 day voyage east along The Path Of The Beam. The days passed slowly, time was passed in talking. Vol and I came up with some keen nicknames for our travelling companions. I attempted to build an alchemy lab under deck, but even with the crates we brought aboard, I only had enough for an alchemy bench. Six days in, we were attacked by a flock of psuedo-drakes. Not like we had much of a choice, but to fight, and Vol was prized with a drake egg at the end of it. Not soon after that, the little raccoon alerted us to land off in the distance. We sailed a little until we found a neat inlet. We had a little trouble getting in around the reef, but we were able to anchor safely alongside a cliff.
Setting foot on a strange, new continent was exciting. New flora and fauna to explore and alchemize with. The forest right along the cliffs was strange, too. It was alive, moreso than usual. The trees made quiet grunts when brushed against, and moaned loudly when struck. There were large flowers with buds that opened into a mouth that would swallow whole anything that wandered near. They were a new curiosity; I wanted to find if their digestive juices would be useful, but even to approach one dangerous. It could sense you coming, likely through vibration through its roots, and it would snap at you with its jagged thorny mouth. We were ambushed by a group of bullywogs in a clearing, surrounded by many of these flowers. The bullywog chieftain let out a foul air that poisoned or choked us. These creatures are entirely disgusting! The little raccoon has an eye for strategical body placement, I think. He can maneuver them around with tendrils of electricity. He pulls them around him, then lets loose a shockwave of energy that emanates from him to those around him. He did though line up the chieftain just key, that Vol charged at him and shoved him into the maw of one of those fierce buds. We disposed of them just fine, but I'm still feeling sick from that gas cloud the bullywog belched up. We set up camp in this clearing for the night.
He had gone to explore the night in the temple, and fallen into a pit, and found a long tunnel that connected to a shop in this very town! He then had a brawl with the weakened Vecna, and pulled him into a well, which doused his red fiery cape.
To be honest, I'm not much sure why I'm writing this down, I ain't believing a scrit of it. As seabound as this town was, it was too dry. Vol bought a boat that was just to be used for scraps, and I spent some money in the market to learn the Make Whole ritual, to fix it. The Wilden had his fixins on stealing a boat, but even after dark there was still crew under deck. The sun had set, and, while we were on the docks correctin' the ships shortcomings, the Wilden was abiding by a plan long dismissed by Vol and I. We found him missing and heard a commotion coming from the market in town. Smoke and fire, yelling. We were almost done with the boat, and we didn't want the Wilden to come running to us with the guard on his tail, associating us fine, upright, reasonably civil minds to his chaotic tendencies. Thankfully, he got caught up quick, and penned like a hog.
Afterdawn, we asked around town, and found him in the local prison. He was to be hanged, but we bought him as a slave, boarded the boat (we named her The Huntress) and set off to sail an 8 day voyage east along The Path Of The Beam. The days passed slowly, time was passed in talking. Vol and I came up with some keen nicknames for our travelling companions. I attempted to build an alchemy lab under deck, but even with the crates we brought aboard, I only had enough for an alchemy bench. Six days in, we were attacked by a flock of psuedo-drakes. Not like we had much of a choice, but to fight, and Vol was prized with a drake egg at the end of it. Not soon after that, the little raccoon alerted us to land off in the distance. We sailed a little until we found a neat inlet. We had a little trouble getting in around the reef, but we were able to anchor safely alongside a cliff.
Setting foot on a strange, new continent was exciting. New flora and fauna to explore and alchemize with. The forest right along the cliffs was strange, too. It was alive, moreso than usual. The trees made quiet grunts when brushed against, and moaned loudly when struck. There were large flowers with buds that opened into a mouth that would swallow whole anything that wandered near. They were a new curiosity; I wanted to find if their digestive juices would be useful, but even to approach one dangerous. It could sense you coming, likely through vibration through its roots, and it would snap at you with its jagged thorny mouth. We were ambushed by a group of bullywogs in a clearing, surrounded by many of these flowers. The bullywog chieftain let out a foul air that poisoned or choked us. These creatures are entirely disgusting! The little raccoon has an eye for strategical body placement, I think. He can maneuver them around with tendrils of electricity. He pulls them around him, then lets loose a shockwave of energy that emanates from him to those around him. He did though line up the chieftain just key, that Vol charged at him and shoved him into the maw of one of those fierce buds. We disposed of them just fine, but I'm still feeling sick from that gas cloud the bullywog belched up. We set up camp in this clearing for the night.
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