# Age of Worms Storyhour [Updated December 26, 2006]



## Spatterlight (Jul 30, 2006)

*Introduction*

Our group has recently begun the Age of Worms adventure path and I decided to start a story hour. I am playing Scorch, introduced below, and the storyhour will be mostly from his perspective. 

*Table of Contents*

Background
Characters
The Whispering Cairn


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## Spatterlight (Jul 30, 2006)

*Age of Worms: Background*

The information below provides some context for the setting of the adventure. It will be updated as time goes on and more of the town is interacted with.

[size=+1]General Background[/size]

Diamond Lake is a mining town with over one thousand citizens. The population is primarily humans, but a number of halflings and gnomes make their home here as well.  Most of the people in town are workers from the mines.  The lake the town is named for is set between three hills and the town is on the shores of the lake itself. Many years ago, the town was known for its fishing trade.  However, pollution from mining has killed most of the fish in the lake and the trade has all but disappeared.

*People*

_Ragnolin Dourstone (Male Dwarf):_ Ill-regarded and cruel mine owner.

_Chaum Gansworth (Male Human):_ A younger mine owner and the proprietor of the "The Rusty Bucket", a local restaurant.

_Allustan Neff (Male Human):_ Brother of the mayor. This friendly wizard is rumored to be the smartest man in town.

_Balabar Smenk (Male Human):_ An older, wealthy, and ambitious mine manager. As of late, he has been aggressively buying out mining claims from bankrupt competitors. He is known for his ruthlessness, love of excess, and gaudy tastes.

*Locations*

_The Emporium:_ A gambling hall, brothel, and sideshow. Run by Zalamandra, a female human, and staffed by a number of freaks and former workers from a traveling sideshow.

_The Feral Dog:_ A dive noted for cheap ale, brawls, and dog fights.

_Jalek's Flophouse:_ A former fish warehouse converted into a flophouse when the lake was polluted by the mines.

_The Rusty Bucket:_ A restaurant that long ago specialized in fish, but now offers more conventional fare. Considered neutral ground between the mine owners.  

[size=+1]Locations Near Diamond Lake[/size]

_The Cairn Hills:_ The crags surrounding the city of Greyhawk that have many ancient burial complexes of long-dead civilizations. The majority of them have long been looted by treasure hunters out of Greyhawk and the surrounding area.


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## Spatterlight (Jul 30, 2006)

*Age of Worms: Characters*

*Current Characters*

*Aiyda (Female Human, Bard):* A young songstress just setting out into the world.
*Cypress (Male Elf, Druid):* A servant of nature sent to right the wrongs committed against the environment.
*Doctor Voo (Male Human, Cleric of Wee Jas):* A prophet of the Stern Lady recently roused from a quiet life.
*Max (Male Halfling, Rogue):* A talent scout and opportunist ready to twist any situation to his advantage.
*Natasha (Female Human, Ranger):* An idealist with visions of solving the world's problems.
*Scorch (Male Human, Fighter):* A washed-up gladiator seeking a second chance at fame and glory.
*Sergi (Male Human, Sorcerer):* A vain sorcerer-artist escaping the tyranny of his father.
*Inactive Characters*

*Cypress (Male Elf, Druid):* A servant of nature sent to right the wrongs committed against the environment.

Below is a description of each character's history, appearance, and a link to the character's current miniature. History and appearance were provided by each player.


[size=+1]Aiyda[/size]
_Female Human, Bard_

*Background:* Aiyda has spent her entire life in Diamond Lake. The daughter of a prostitute employed at the Emporium, she is Doctor Voo's half-sister. Growing up in the Emporium she has witnessed many terrible things. She has also heard all manner of stories of riches and fame that can be found on the road from the former sideshow performers and freaks of the Emporium. Fearful she will be dragged into her mother's occupation, Aiyda has set out to explore some of the area around Diamond Lake.

*Appearance:* Aiyda stands 5'7" and is 16 years old. She has a rather boyish figure, but she has started to fill out and become more womanly. Aiyda has light caramel skin, arresting apple green eyes, and long, loosely curled sun-streaked brown hair. She has gently curved lips, high cheek bones, and a rather pert nose. Her slightly almond-shaped eyes are surrounded and framed by thick lashes and delicately arched eyebrows. She generally fancies blouses and a style of pants/skirt that was all the rage in Greyhawk several years ago.

*Miniature:* Link


[size=+1]Cypress Teak[/size]
_Male Elf, Druid_

*Background:* Cypress and his companion wolf, Root, have been drawn to Diamond Lake by the destruction of nature's balance by the mining activities. Caring little for the laws of man, Cypress considers himself to be an extension of nature's hand, returning things to their rightful state. He believes that just as animals find a balance within their environments, so should humanoids, by force if necessary. Cypress has befriended Natasha, who shares his love of nature and the hated of her father, Balabar Smenk.

*Appearance:* Cypress stands 4'9", weighs 89 pounds, and is of an indeterminate age. He has a lean figure, pale skin, and shoulder length dark brown hair. His eyes are a steel gray and his face is usually hidden in shadows from the hood of his dark gray cloak. In the rare times his face can be viewed clearly, a long scar running lengthwise along the left side of face can be seen. His clothing is of fine elven make and he favors earthen colors such as deep browns, subtle earthy greens, and dark crimsons.

*Cypress' Miniature:* Link
*Square Root's Miniature:* Link

*Note:* Root was killed in Session 2 by a swarm of beetles. In Session 3, a new wolf named Square Root was brought into play. We are all hoping Cypress doesn't have to go out and find Cube Root. 


[size=+1]Doctor Voo[/size]
_Male Human, Cleric of Wee Jas_

*Background:* Doctor Voo has long been a denizen of Diamond Lake and owns a small shop. Here he creates all manner of strange brews, unguents, and powders for sale to the townsfolk. For the faithful of Wee Jas, or for those with no one to bury them, Doctor Voo presides over many burials and funerals. He also spends time with his younger half-sister, Aiyda. As the story begins, Doctor Voo has recently been pulled from his quiet life by visions and dreams sent by his dark goddess. It seems he has been quested to seek out a rare artifact and the Whispering Cairns is calling to him.

*Appearance:* Doctor Voo stands 6'2", weighs 190 pounds, and is 35 years old. He has a slim build and dark black skin. His long dark hair is kept in dreadlocks and his eyes are murky and weird. Doctor Voo has a jagged scar from an improperly stitched wound over his right eye. He customarily wears black robes and bares a staff topped with a human skull. Hung around his neck are a string of skeletal remains and a holy symbol of Wee Jas.

*Miniature:* Link


[size=+1]Maximilian Shecklestein (AKA "Max Sheckles")[/size]
_Male Halfling, Rogue_

*Background:* As slick as they come, Max is a smooth-talking conniver and expert showman. For years now, he has been setting himself up as manager and agent for all manner of artists and talent. He has hit a bit of rough patch lately, with Scorch his only remaining client. Recently, he has discovered Aiyda in Diamond Lake and is sure she is the next big thing. Always ready to seize any opportunity, Max is delighted to hear of an ancient tomb known as the Whispering Cairn that yet may still be filled with treasures. He immediately begins forming a crew to plunder it.

*Appearance:* Max stands 2'11" and weighs 33 pounds. Svelte and suave, Max has lightly tanned skin and black hair, slicked back and combed to perfection. He has almond colored eyes and usually has a cigar clamped in his mouth. His clothing is a little shabby, but he keeps what he has neat and clean. He also wears a rather dashing cloak.

*Miniature:* Link


[size=+1]Natasha Smenk[/size]
_Female Human, Ranger_

*Background:* Natasha is the daughter of Balabar Smenk, a powerful and ambitious mine manager in Diamond Lake, and younger sister of Sergi Smenk. Like her brother, Balabar has plans for his daughter to help the family business. In this case, he is planning to marry her off to another mine owner's son in an attempt to expand his holdings. However, Natasha despises her father for all the misery and destruction his scrambling for power causes. She feels that the drive for consolidation of power is the root of much evil and has begun espousing a philosophy of equality for all people. The one thing she does share with her father is a love of gladiator matches. When Scorch wandered into town, she immediately took notice of him. 

*Appearance:* Natasha stands about 5'5" and is 18 years old. She has an athletic build, dark black hair that is cut short, and blue eyes. Despite much time spent outdoors, her skin is fairly pale. She generally wears dark clothing, favoring pants and tops that show off her abs, and a bright red cloak. Natasha usually does not wear jewelry, finding it impractical, but does have a choker she wears everywhere.

*Miniature:* Link


[size=+1]Scorch[/size]
_Male Human, Fighter_

*Background:* Scorch was once at the top of his game and was one of the premier gladiators of his day. However, after a humiliating defeat at the hands of B'Tok the Brute, a merrow (aquatic ogre) of tremendous strength and ferocity, he left the games behind in defeat. Ten years have passed since then, all of them squandered in bitterness and regret. As the story begins, Scorch has been in Diamond Lake for about six months, slowly drinking his life away.

*Appearance:* Scorch stands 6'3", weighs about 200 pounds, and is a little over 30 years old. He has red hair, which is showing the first signs of retreat about his temples, and piercing green eyes. He is routinely unshaven and is usually pretty dirty. When not in armor, Scorch generally wears only a loose pair of trousers and his boots. His fists are habitually wrapped in strips of cloth and he never wears a shirt unless forced to. His skin is tanned and his body is covered with tattoos and scars. The most noticeable tattoos are the word SCORCH written over his stomach in huge letters and the flames which cover his hands and forearms. Many of the other tattoos are in recognition of fights and gladiator matches he won long ago. He is also missing the pinky and part of his ring finger on his left hand.

*Miniature:* Link


[size=+1]Sergi Alixander Smenk [/size]
_Male Human, Sorcerer_

*Background:* Sergi is the son of Balabar Smenk, a powerful and ambitious mine manager in Diamond Lake, and older brother of Natasha Smenk. Balabar has put his son to work in the family business, despite his complete hatred for it. An artist at heart, Sergi has no love for the backwater town of Diamond Lake, which he finds to be depressing and completely lacking in any form of culture. As the story begins, Sergi has begun to look for a way to escape the small town. He is also trying to protect his sister, Natasha, from her infatuation with Scorch.

*Appearance:* Sergi stands 5'11" and is 25 years old. Sergi has a lean build and pale skin. His black hair is shoulder length and he has dark eyes. Fastidious and clean shaven, Sergi always takes the time to look his best and closely follows the fashion trends of Greyhawk. Currently, he favors tight clothing of light colors.

*Miniature (Center Blue Robed One):* Link

*Note:* In Session 8, Sergi gained a familiar. This was the bear cub that was rescued in Session 6 and his name is Audit. His odd name is the result of a complicated group in-joke involving bears, taxes, and a whole lot of grappling.


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## Spatterlight (Jul 30, 2006)

*Session 1*
_June 16, 2006_

Scorch leaned back in the chair, his legs sprawled out in front of him on the rough table. Over a bewildering array of dirty bottles, stained wooden plates heaped with small greasy bones, and an overturned tankard, the gladiator watched a mongrel tear into a three-legged dog. The vicious bite drew a spray of bright arterial blood, sending one of the filthy serving girls squealing and the mangy denizens of the Feral Dog into a roar. Scorch distractedly watched as the dying dog was taken to the kitchen and the betters settle their scores. He was not surprised when a disagreement over a wager came to blows.

"So, this is how it ends for our kind." Scorch thought, his good right hand unsteadily lifting a bottle to cheer the doomed dog. His drunken mind wandered and as always it settled on that day, now ten years past. The distant buzz that must have been crowds yelling. The smell of the sea and blood and sweat, the blue-green of the marrow's scaly hide as it jerked him to his feet by his face. A sudden swelling of sounds, howls of approval and screamed jeers. And then falling, dirt, a cracking of bone, and darkness.

A sudden blow to his head catapulted him to the present. The gladiator tried to spring to his feet, but as he was sitting with his boots on the table, he instead went sprawling. With a mighty crash, the table fell and all its contents went flying. Scorch stumbled to his feet, his face flushed with embarrassment and anger, preparing to deliver a crushing blow to whoever threw the first punch.

Instead, he saw Max putting his sheathed rapier back into his belt. Calmly he pulled a comb from a pouch, smoothing his slick hair back into place, "Really, Scorch! I am not sure if you are aware of this, but the sun has not even reached its zenith!" Scorch stared blankly for a moment, his mind reeling. The halfling continued, "And I can not have my prime talent wasting his valuable time here. Now, I suggest you take a brief constitutional. We have business to discuss!" Scorch lurched out of the Feral Dog, holding his hands up to his eyes as the bright sunlight stabbed at them. Behind him, he could make out the sound of catcalls and fought the urge to go back in.

Staggering into the center of the large square that formed the center of Diamond Lake, Scorch spun around to confront the halfling as he came out of the Feral Dog. Scorch thrust a single dirty finger at his manager, ready to explode into a drunken tirade. Max nonchalantly glanced at the gladiator, "Well then, that took a few coins to straighten out. It will, of course, come out of your earnings." Scorch sputtered for a moment, unsure what to say as the rage left him. "But they have been fewer and fewer in these latter days." Max continued, "However, it seems that too might change. Walk with me, Scorch."

Scorch, his anger now forgotten, walked the muddy streets of Diamond Lake with the halfling. "An opportunity has presented itself that may make us both quite rich. It has come to my attention that a trio of treasure seekers out of Greyhawk have recently entered town." The halfling stopped in his tracks, nodding to the side, "Well, speak of the devil, there they are! Do you see them?" Across the street, in front of the general store stood three people, speaking to the owner and apparently asking for directions. They were clearly explorers and adventurers, but that was not what caught Scorch's attention. The larger of two men, handsome and young, wore an oversized belt signifying a high rank in the gladiator circles of Greyhawk. Scorch growled, "I see him." 

Max nodded and moved on, "Do not stare then. It appears that they are seeking information on the Stirgenest Cairn, which has long been played out. However, there are other cairns in the hills that might still hold treasure of elder times. One of which I have recently discovered is called the Whispering Cairn. The children of the town use it as a play space, but to everyone's knowledge no one has gone very deep into it." Max continued, in a lower voice, "Particularly after that unfortunate business about that girl disappearing." 

Scorch furrowed his brow, "Wait, wait. What that last part?" Max looked up, smiling angelically, "Children play there and it is largely unexplored. I hope I am not going too quickly for you." The gladiator gave him an icy glare, but said nothing. Max continued, "As I was saying, we must act before they do. It is only a matter of time before someone points out they are looking in the wrong place." With a theatrical movement, the halfling swirled around, stopping Scorch. "So, how would you like to expand your horizons a bit? I think the title of treasure-seeker and adventurer suit you quite well. In addition, I have already lined up some excellent talent for this expedition! Really top-notch people."

Scorch scratched his heavily stubbled chin with a dirty hand. "Adventurer, huh? This isn't another scam like that one you got me involved in Free City is it?" Max feigned hurt, "We have discussed that many times. Really that was a series of extremely unfortunate events over which I had no control ..." The gladiator cut him off, "Whatever. I'll do it. I need the coin something bad. When are we going?" Max looked up, "Unless you have more pressing engagements, we shall leave post-haste. I hope, with your busy schedule of drinking, you can find the time to ..." Scorch shot him another angry stare that silenced the smirking halfling and said, "I'll be back with my stuff."

The gladiator weaved his way back to the Feral Dog to get his last remaining possessions; his blades and armor, his helm and shield. As he approached the Feral Dog, his thoughts were broken when a shrill voice called his name out from across the square. Turning, he saw it was Natasha, her red cloak flapping wildly as she ran. Scorch instinctively put his good hand to his temples, preparing for the onslaught, as she raced to him. She hit him like a tidal wave; all news, gossip, names, rumor, girl insight. Threads of information wove and twisted, and like a drowning man, Scorch tried to grasp at anything to keep afloat -- "My father is such a bastard. Did you know he..." "Uh-huh." -- "Did you see the gladiator in town?" "Yep." -- 

And finally she arrived at something he seized on. "So, me and some of the others are thinking about going to the Stirgenest Cairn and see what we can find. Come with us!" Scorch nodded for a moment, "Yeah, we're not doing that." Natasha looked dejected for a moment as the gladiator continued, "Max has something cooking. Something about a place called the Whooshing Cairn. No, that's not right. Whispering Cairn?" At the mention of the Whispering Cairn, the girl's face lit up, "I've been there! Most of us from town went there when were children...It's a very eerie place." Scorch gave a grunt, "Well, that's where I am going. If you want to lead the way, grab your stuff and meet back here." The girl nodded and darted off, disappearing around a corner. The gladiator watched her go, feeling the first twinges of a headache creeping up from the base of his skull. Deciding he could use a drink to calm his nerves before he got his equipment and left, he entered the Feral Dog once more.

Several hours later, Max and Natasha guided a woozy Scorch to the spot outside of town Max had chosen to gather his team of treasure hunters. Standing in the shade of a tree were three figures. Scorch immediately recognized one of the people and staggered forward, "Doctor Voo! How's it going, man?" The cleric of Wee Jas smiled, his strange eyes turning toward the gladiator, "Good mon, no worries." The gladiator pumped the cleric's hand, "Glad to see you." And then, in a drunken whisper, he added, "I wanted to say, man, I don't know what you gave me the other week. It tasted like crap, but hey, the problem downtown is all good. Thanks!" 

Lurching around, he took a look at the other people, a dim flutter of recognition drifting across his sodden brain. His eyes first settled on the pretty young lady standing next to Doctor Voo. The gladiator openly ogled her for a moment, trying to remember where he had seen her before. The girl took a step back and wrinkled her nose at the train-wreck before her, "Wow. I didn't think he could smell worse than last time I dropped medicine off for my brother. But I was wrong." Hearing her voice, Scorch remembered that this was Aiyda, Doctor Voo's uppity little sister. 

Unable to think of a snappy comeback, he turned his attention to the last figure. This one he knew. It was Sergi, Natasha's older brother. Scorch grinned, mocking her immaculately dressed brother, "Hey nerdlinger, nice outfit. Extra fancy!" Already staring in disgust, Sergi turned to his sister, "Seriously, Natasha! What do you see in this uncouth barbarian?" Before she could answer, Max gave a shout, "Enough!" Looking around, he smoothed his cloak, saying, "It is of greatest importance that we move out. I believe we have only a limited time before those treasure hunters make their way to the Whispering Cairn. We must make haste." Amidst some grumbling, the group set out along the lonely road toward the cairn.

With Natasha in lead, the group traveled for two days. Late in the afternoon of the first day, the group was attacked by a colony of stirges. During the fray, a mysterious elf and his pet wolf sprang from the forest, assisting the beleaguered group. After the fight, Natasha introduced the elf as Cypress, a friend of hers. The quiet elf explained that he was on an errand of importance, but agreed to travel with the group to the area near the Whispering Cairn, as that was were he was heading anyway.

As twilight approached, the group decided to stop for the evening. The group made camp, but it soon became evident that Scorch had come completely unprepared. Having no tent, bedroll, or even rations, it was only the kindness of Natasha that saved him from a long cold night. Accepting her offer over the protests of Sergi, Scorch proceeded to crawl into her tent, his knees popping loudly as he crouched down. The evening passed without incident, the moon riding high in the cloudless sky.

The next morning, Scorch emerged from Natasha's tent, seeing Natasha standing next to Aiyda across camp. The bard gave him a withering look as Natasha excitedly whispered something in her ear. For a moment, Aiyda's eyes widened, but then narrowed into a hard stare of unadulterated disgust. Not liking the look or where this was going, Scorch began to put on his armor, when Natasha bounded over and began to help him. Scorch looked helplessly to the sky as she fussed with one of the armor's straps, asking for the third time whether it was too tight. Glancing to one side, he saw Max silently laughing as he preened himself. Catching the eye of the halfling, he growled "Shut up." Looking under one arm, he saw an astonished Natasha staring up at him. Sighing, he nodded at Max and said, "Not you, baby. Him." With a grin, the halfling snapped his tin of pomade shut and smoothed the last errant strand of hair into place. Jumping to his feet, the halfling turned to the others, "Let us away! Untold riches await us!"

The group moved out and by noon on the second day, Natasha, Aiyda, and Sergi, all of whom were locals, guided them off the main road. They followed a weed-choked side path they assured the group would take them to the cairn. Before they arrived, however, they stumbled upon a crumbling building surrounded by a low ruined wall. Aiyda, remembering a story a barfly at the Emporium had told her, mentioned that it was an old mining office. Natasha went to one knee, taking a look at some vague patterns in the dirt and lingering over several broken lengths of grass. Glancing at the office and then looking back to the group, she said, "Looks like something has been here lately. Whatever it is, it is definitely not human." 

Deciding to take a look in the office, but fearing there may be monsters afoot, the group drew their weapons and approached the building. Scorch took lead and with a resounding crack, smashed in the door with one well-placed kick. Inside a large room, several startled lizard men were already jumping to their scaly feet to meet the invaders. Biting and clawing, they crowded the door and Scorch hacked into them. Seeing he was blocking one of the few passages into the room, he moved in. As he did, a side door swung open, revealing a large lizard man with a spiked club and tortoise shell shield. This thing, obviously their leader, yelled in their savage tongue and gestured to the back of the room, where a large set of doors could be seen. Two of the lizard men broke off and swung open the door.

From within, several large lizards lumbered forth to join the fray. The others in the group had now entered into the room as well, hacking at all manner of reptile. Scorch bellowed a challenge to the leader of the lizard men and soon the two were locked in melee. The gladiator desperately tried to pierce the creature's defenses, but each blow was turned away by scale or shield. With a savage blow, the lizard man clubbed Scorch, dropping him. The others in the group fought vigilantly with spell and steel and soon the lizard men and their pets were defeated.

The battle, however, had taken its toll. Scorch was revived through the curative magics of Cypress and Doctor Voo, but soon their spells were exhausted on the many wounds of the group. Max, who had not been hurt in the battle with the lizard men, decided to take a look around. Climbing into what was once a kitchen through a broken window, the intrepid halfling soon found trouble. While rummaging through a collapsed shelf, he accidentally disturbed several snakes that had made their lair there. The halfling leapt through the window to escape and ran back to the front door of the building, screaming all the way. Scorch, hearing the yelling, strode through the building to see if Max was hurt. As he made his way into the kitchen, the serpents spotted him and attacked. After a brief but tense battle, the snakes were defeated.

After much discussion, the group decided to take a cursory look around the office for any more dangers. In the room the lizard man leader had been in, the group found a ragged nest and also made a gruesome discovery. A dead man in armor lay crumpled in one corner. Examining the corpse, Doctor Voo concluded that the man had been taken by violence and judged the wounds the work of the lizard men. Speaking up, Cypress quietly stated he had been looking for this man and that he would have to leave soon to report his death. Finding a few trinkets under a loose floor board, the group quietly moved back into the kitchen. After searching around a bit, a door was found that lead into a pitch-black basement. Descending a rickety staircase, it soon became apparent that the basement was filled with rats and the group only took a brief look around. However, the quick search was fruitful, as a number of mining implements and an old box filled with coins were found. 

Weary from the battles of the day, the group decided to spend the rest of the day recuperating. They set about cleaning up the old mine office a bit, for it seemed an ideal base camp for their forays into the nearby Whispering Cairn. Doctor Voo suggested they give the dead man they had found a decent burial and lead the brief ceremony. Scorch refused to assist in any of the activities, instead lazing about on the sunken porch of the office, watching the others go about their work. Natasha got her revenge that evening after Scorch had fallen asleep. She carefully smeared poison ivy inside of the gladiator's armor and boots and the next day, it was only a pungent ointment provided by Doctor Voo that saved him for the terrible itching.

For several days, the group stayed at the office, still recovering from their wounds. Each night, they could hear the rats in the basement moving about. Deep one night, the rats slunk from the cellar and struck. Max and Sergi, who had been sleeping in the main room, were struck and only managed to give a strangled cry before being swarmed by the little monsters. The others soon managed to make their way into the room to fight the giant rats. Having lost the element surprise, they were quickly dispatched by the remainder of the group. The next day, the group recovered and Cypress and Doctor Voo assured that no one would get sick from the unclean bites of the great rats.

Fully rested and a couple days later than anticipated, the group gathered one morning and set out for their ultimate destination: The Whispering Cairn.


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## Spatterlight (Aug 2, 2006)

*Session 2*
_June 23, 2006 _

"So, Aiyda. You're a bard right?"

Aiyda rolled her eyes and tried to ignore Scorch as the group made their way to the Whispering Cairn. Never one to take a hint, the gladiator continued unfazed, "Well, I was wondering if you have any stories about adventurers. I am new to this gig and I could use some tips," and then in a slightly louder voice added, "because my manager is mostly useless." The songstress glanced at the gladiator, trying to determine if he was serious. Seeing he was, a smile crept across her face as she pretended to think, "Of course! Let me tell you a story about a hero of antiquity!" Scorch listened intently as the group walked. "In elder times, the great hero Enesto Voritad set out to slay the dread dragon Kelperath. Striding across the world, he brought his own rations, bedroll, and tent, for the journey was long ..." The gladiator threw up his hands, "All right! Message received! Man, I'll tell you what. You are lucky you have your looks, because ..." Aiyda smirked as Natasha cut Scorch's tirade off, "We're here."

The group stepped into a small clearing in front of a sharp uprising of stone in the hillside. Set into the stone was a monolithic gate, its edges weathered by untold ages. Peering through the gate, very little could be seen as the light of day soon faltered, giving way to utter blackness. Natasha took a look around the front of the entrance, reporting there appeared to be some prints of animals. The group drew their weapons and prepared themselves for battle. Binding light with an ancient song of hope in the face of darkness, Aiyda's caused the tip of her spear to glimmer and shine brightly. 

Scorch and Doctor Voo went first, followed by Natasha and Aiyda. Sergi, Max, Cypress and Root followed close behind, their shadows dancing wildly in the enchanted light of Aiyda's spear. The group passed beneath the gate and entered into a long stone hallway, its sides carved with a perplexing array of shapes and geometric designs. Many of them had been damaged by the hands of time and vandals, but enough remained to give everyone a strange, uneasy feeling. Aiyda whispered, "When we were children, this is about as far as we would go." Natasha nodded and added, "Well, most of us." Sergi, who had been examining the shapes in the wall closely, whipped around, his voice rising in defense, "I had a gastrologic emergency!" Aiyda and Natasha chuckled at the expected reaction, as Sergi continued, "Well, if you are done having your sport with me, I believe I have found something of interest!"

Leaning close to the wall, he gestured for the others to do the same. "I noticed a slight breeze here and if you listen very carefully, you can hear voices!" He furrowed his brow, "Well, at least they sound like voices. I am unable to determine if they are saying anything." Everyone held still for a moment and soon enough a quiet whispering sound could be heard, coming from all directions in the hall. Sergi inspected the wall once more but was unable to divine anything from the odd glyphs.

The group continued on and shortly reached a crossroads in the path. The whispering of the halls continued faintly in the background as the group decided to inspect the left passage first. Scorch crept forward down a short passage, finding a weird broken sculpture. He called back to Sergi, "Hey fancy pants, this looks up your alley." Sergi walked by the gladiator and harrumphed, "I have a name you know!" The sorcerer examined the thing, which was a large stone sculpture of a long oblong ring covered in runes. One side of ring was clearly broken off, leaving the remains looking somewhat like a horn. Sergi called Aiyda up as well, as she was a knowledgeable sort, but neither was able to determine what it was.

Finding nothing else of interest, the group returned to the crossroads and took the right passage. This hallway was short as the left passage and was strewn with rubble. In one corner, the group found the skeletal remains of a small humanoid, as well as a dry rotted backpack and bedroll. Doctor Voo quickly determined the skeletal remains were of a child, although he was not sure of the race. Sergi, Aiyda, and Natasha all looked at each other with an expression of dawning comprehension. Natasha was the first one to speak, "When we were younger, we all heard rumors of a little girl going into the cairn on a dare but never returning. I thought it was just an old wives tale." The other two nodded in agreement as Doctor Voo reverently gathered the bones for later burial. Scorch retrieved the backpack and slipped it on, despite its sad shape, for he had come so unprepared he did not even have a pack.

Returning to the main hallway, the group continued along straight and found themselves in a large chamber. On either side were two large alcoves, their contents lost in shadows, and against the far wall, the passage continued deeper into the hills. Faintly, a green shimmering could be seen down this passage. Cypress was pointing out this eldritch light, when suddenly a deep growling sound reverberated in the chamber. Several wolves venturing forth from each of the side alcoves, their heckles up and fangs bared. With a sharp bark, the animals loped forward, their sharp teeth snapping at the invaders.

Reacting quickly, Scorch and Natasha took the wolves coming from the left. With sword and sickle, the two cut into the advancing wolves, hacking down three before they could flank the larger group. Meanwhile, on the right, Doctor Voo swung his heavy flail, sending one wolf reeling while his half-sister stabbed with her spear. Cypress and Root struggled against another of the animals, Root and one of the wolves locked in a deadly combat. Max shot several arrows at a beast lurking in the back and Sergi blasted the wolves with fans of arcane fire and globs of sizzling acid. Almost as quick as it began, the battle was over. The cold floor of the cairn was now slick with spilt blood, but most of it was that of the beasts and no one in the group was seriously hurt.

While Doctor Voo and Cypress mended the few wounds of the group, Sergi decided to take a look in the right alcove. Moving carefully into this chamber, he found it choked with rubble. Peering into the shadows, he could make out that there was another small area behind the piles of tumbled stone. Seeing no one was watching him, he scrambled over the debris of the ancient cave-in and skittered down the far side. For a moment, the sorcerer was out of sight. Natasha, however, had seen him disappear and confidently strode up the pile of stone. Sergi jumped as his sister inquired about what he was doing. Stumbling in the loose stone, he gestured to the ground, "I have found the lair of the beasts! Before you startled me, I was simply examining it to see if there was any treasure. But alas, all I have found is this empty satchel." Natasha's eyes narrowed in suspicion, "Empty, huh? You had better not be lying to me." Sergi looked hurt, "Of course not!" He turned the pack upside down and nothing fell out, "See? Empty as Scorch's skull!" Natasha gave an noncommittal uh-huh and helped the sorcerer back over the ruins.

The two Smenks returned and the group explored the left alcove. The bright light of Aiyda's spell revealed a large chamber dominated by a massive fresco. The painting took up the back and sides of the alcove. Seven long halls were illustrated, each seeming to radiate out from the center of the area. In addition, each of these halls was adorned with a painted lantern on a slender chain. The seven lanterns were each a different color: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet.

Sergi and Aiyda examined the painting, which seemed mostly untouched by ages of neglect. The songstress appeared to be deep in thought and then snapped her fingers. "I got it! The glyphs on that broken sculpture we saw earlier, the use of the seven colors of the rainbow, all point to the Wind Dukes!" Seeing that most of the group had no idea what she was talking about, Aiyda pontificated, "In the previous epoch, an elder race of lawful beings known as the Wind Dukes fought Miska the Wolf Spider..." Sergi interrupted, "At the Battle of Pesh in the great war of Law and Chaos. I have heard stories of that age." Aiyda continued, "Did you know the battle was actually settled quite close to Diamond Lake?" Sergi nodded, the two continuing to discuss the topic for some time. Scorch grew increasingly disinterested and returned to Natasha, who was standing near the central passage. He glanced down the long hallway were the mysterious green light flickered and hooked his thumb in the air, indicating the two people deep in learned debate. He said loudly to Natasha, "It's a freaking nerd-off down there. I hope nothing comes up, like, I don't know ... that weird green light down the hall and eats us while we settle this very important matter." 

With both Sergi and Aiyda giving him dirty looks, the group reassembled and continued down the main passage toward the mysterious emerald light. Moving forward, they soon found a set of stairs which ascended to a huge chamber. This chamber split off into seven short passages, five of which had dusty lanterns of colored glass hanging low. The lantern directly across from the passage the group entered was still lit, a light glowing dimly through the green glass. In the center of the room was a large white marble sarcophagus, its cover carved with a regal looking androgynous figure. The group crept into the silent room and began to spread out.

Aiyda and Sergi took one look at the sarcophagus and then to each other, saying simultaneously, "Wind Duke." Scorch examined the green lantern, finding a torch was inside. Gently taking it out, he discovered that the flame gave off no heat. Doctor Voo explained to the gladiator that the torch had been enchanted with a spell of eternal flame. Max ranged around the room, finding several strange circular depressions under the yellow, green, and indigo lanterns. Natasha and Cypress found a shattered skeleton beneath the blue lantern and noted something else unusual. Unlike the other short tunnels with lanterns, the ceiling here vaulted forty feet up. The druid looked up and reported that in the shadows, he could see another tunnel.

After spending sometime examining the room, the group decided to try and open the sarcophagus in the center first. Fearing deadly traps, Max examined it for any signs of sabotage. Seeing none, he gestured for Scorch and Doctor Voo. The priest produced a shovel, which he habitually carried as part of his faith, and he and Scorch began to jimmy the sarcophagus open. The heavy lid began to rise when a gout of flame suddenly shot out, catching both men. With a resounding thud, the lid slammed back into place as the two men danced back, patting out small fires. Scorch wheeled angrily to Max, "I thought you said it was okay!" Max looked at the sarcophagus once more, "I said the outside appeared devoid of hazards. How am I to know what lurks within?" Red flared in Scorch's vision and he stalked toward the halfling, his good hand grasping for his manager. Without fear, Max calmly noted, "But now I see something of interest. I notice that there are circular marks on the ground near the sarcophagus. Perhaps it could be turned?" Scorch stopped to look at the floor. His rage already diminishing, he turned back to the priest, "I see it. Doctor Voo, ready to give this thing a turn?" Doctor Voo nodded, "Yah mon, but let me soothe those burns first." After a few moments, the Green Lady's blessings were called down and the duo was healed.

Grunting and cursing, Scorch and Doctor Voo rotated the heavy sarcophagus clockwise. As the sarcophagus pointed to the yellow lantern, the rumble of ancient machinery deep beneath the earth could be heard. Slowly a circular area below the yellow lantern shuttered upward, revealing a gleaming steel tube. Without a sound, a split appeared in the tube and widened, forming a doorway. Max gave this a quick look, but the group decided to keep moving the sarcophagus. 

As the sarcophagus pointed to the green lantern, another steel tube slowly rose. The tube clattered to a stop and a door split open silently. From the shadows of the tube, a swarm of beetles vomited into the main chamber. In addition, picking their way through the trundling horde, were two strange creatures. Vaguely spider-like in shape and larger than a wolf, their central body was dominated by a huge alien eye. The single eye of each gazed at the group with malign intelligence. Sensing prey, the abominations gave a weird tittering cry and charged forward, their hard claws clacking loudly on the stone floor.

The group hastily grabbed their weapons and prepared for battle. Root ran in front of the group and was quickly overtaken by the beetle swarm. Giving a final heart wrenching cry, the wolf went down and was lost in a sea of beetles. Natasha, Scorch, and Doctor Voo hacked into the large spider creatures while Max and Sergi threw vials of oil at the swarm and lit them with torches. Aiyda sang a song of hope, lifting her companions' spirits, and then helped burn the swarm with flaming oil. Cypress launched arrow after arrow into the spider creatures. The beetle swarm, having been stalled by Root's assault, never reached the main group and was soon dispersed by fire. The alien spider-things fought wildly, lashing out with their many legs. Scorch was stabbed several times, eventually falling to one knee and collapsing. Doctor Voo was also wounded severely and fell to the cold stone floor. Natasha and Sergi, using the last of his magics to blast the monsters with sparking bolts of electricity, finished off the two monstrosities. 

With many of the group hurt after the vicious battle, the group retreated to the mine office.


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## Spatterlight (Aug 2, 2006)

*Session 3*
_July 7, 2006 _

The pain crept in under the comforting blackness, bringing unwelcome news of suffering and woe. Scorch awoke to find himself in the ruins of the mine office, Doctor Voo adjusting the makeshift bandages that bound his many wounds. He sat up with a groan, the cleric of Wee Jas helping him. He looked at Doctor Voo for a moment, saying nothing. 

The priest’s mouth broke into a wide grin, "Nah, mon. The Green Lady not be reaping any souls this day." Scorch exhaled, relieved. The priest then continued, "But the bugs did be the taking the wolf. Nasty sight." The priest called out to his goddess and mended Scorch's wounds, knitting them cleanly. Feeling better, Scorch got to his feet and stretched for a moment before leaving to see what the others were up to.

Two days passed as the group recovered and they made some improvements to the former mine office, including jury-rigging the well for fresh water. Natasha hunted for the group during this time and Cypress was gone as well, returning to the woods in mourning for his lost wolf and to complete his mission of returning news of the dead man the group had found. 

On the third morning, the enigmatic elf returned with a new wolf companion. Scorch was practicing sword-play in the weedy front yard when he caught sight of the druid and his companion. The gladiator yelled to the druid, "Got a new wolf, huh. Is his name Root Two?" Max, who has been sitting on the porch combing his hair, quipped, "Square Root, then." Scorch glanced at his manager inquisitively, obviously not getting the joke. Cypress, however, seemed to like the name and so the wolf was named Square Root.

The group, now whole once more, set off for the Whispering Cairn. Quickly recounting their steps, and finding the place undisturbed, the group made its way to the large room with the sarcophagus. The group set about figuring what their next move was. Sergi used his magic to scan the room for signs of enchantment and found little. Doctor Voo and Scorch tried to pry open the sarcophagus once again, with a repeat gout of flames dissuading them from further attempts.

At Max's direction, Scorch checked out the two metallic tubes the group had previously raised, which were under the yellow and green lanterns, but saw nothing. From the center of the room, Max scowled at the gladiator as he checked out the tube beneath the green lantern, noting that Scorch was not actually entering the tube. The halfling called out, "Get in there, man! How can you see anything from out here?" Scorch shot him a look, "I'm using the Max Sheckles' method of trap detection. I only look for danger on the outside." Max made a distracted shooing gesture toward the tube in response. Scorch grumbled a bit about getting a new manager, but did as he was told.

Scorch stood within the strange cylinder and the door suddenly slid shut. With that, the tube began to groan and shake. Scorch had the distinct feeling the tube was descending. Rapidly. "This will end badly", he thought and prepared for impact. With a mighty crash, the tube hit the bottom of the shaft, cracking open and sending the dazed gladiator to the floor. Getting to his feet and finding no more than his ego bruised, he took a look around. Thankfully, he had taken the eternal torch from the chamber above as the area was otherwise dark. He found himself in a small chamber that lead out into a hallway. Scorch was going to step out a little further, when he heard the skittering of many bugs and decided to stay put. He had his fill of those damnable swarms that infested this place.

Calling out to the group above, including a few choice words to Max, the group eventually threw down some rope and began to descend. All but Square Root, who was now guarding the main chamber above, climbed safety down the shaft. The group then moved forward a bit, finding a crossway in the hall. Scorch picked right and since no one had any better ideas, they went that way.

As the group went forward, the flickering light soon revealed a strange room. This chamber was dominated by a quivering hive of beetles and a weird fountain that oozed viscous orange goo. Scorch groaned as he saw the beetles were the same as the swarm he fought before. Soon enough, the hive spat out a swarm of beetles. In addition, several more of the odd spider creatures crept out from their hiding spaces, surging toward the group.

Better prepared than before, the group broke out flasks of oil found at the mining office and launched them at the incoming swarm. Sergi held out his hand, a glimmer of fire swimming between thumb and index finger, and blasted them with repeated gouts of flame. This ignited the oil as well, but because of the tight quarters, Scorch was also caught in the fans of flame. Sergi tried not to look like he was enjoying it too much, but it was clear he very much was. The swarm surged forward, but was soon burnt to a crisp. Natasha, Doctor Voo, and Scorch fought the spider creatures, easily dispatching them once the threat of the swarm was dissipated.

The room now thick with smoke and filled with the choking odor of smoldering chitin, Doctor Voo and Cypress healed the many wounds of the group. Aiyda and Max had a look around, finding several man-sized lumps crusted over beneath some dried goop. They dug them out, finding several skeletons dressed in red leather and bearing an eight-pointed sigil. Aiyda noted the sigil belonged to a group known as the Seekers, a group of corrupt historians and adventurers. After finding a few interesting trinkets, such as rings and vials on the remains, and seeing nothing else of interest, the group began to move out.

Watching most of group shuffle out of the fountain room, Scorch looked back in time to see Sergi scoop some of the ooze out of the fountain and gulp it down. Scorch stared at Sergi in disbelief, "I have done some stupid things in my life, but man...". Sergi smiled at the gladiator, "It is quite tasty, actually!" He then gripped his stomach as it threatened to rebel, "You want to ... try ... some?" Scorch shook his head, "I may be new to this adventuring gig, but when I see an evil-looking, bug-infested goo oozing from a weird fountain in the middle of a tomb, my first instinct is not: put in mouth. Idiot."

Moving out, Sergi holding his stomach and Natasha berating him for his foolishness, the group decided to find out where the left hallway lead to. The hall terminated in another room, this one dominated by a strange red statue holding what looked like a large staff. There were also several stone slabs, one of which held the skeletal remains of a humanoid garbed in red leather armor. Seeing no immediate threat, Scorch and Natasha entered the room. Almost immediately they were ambushed by two of the strange spidery creatures. Springing into action, the two monstrosities were quickly dispatched by the group. However, as soon as the rush of battle had worn off, Scorch and Natasha found themselves inexplicably fatigued by the encounter. Fearing the room bore some foul curse, they left. Doctor Voo and Aiyda entered to retrieve the remains on the slab, only to find themselves exhausted by the trivial task. Retreating back to the crossway, the group briefly explored the only direction left, finding it ended with a room filled with water.

Seeing no other way to go, the group climbed back to the main chamber with the sarcophagus. As the group took a breather, Max took a look around. He gingerly stepped into the cylinder that stood under the yellow lantern. With a whirl and a click, the door closed and cylinder descended into the earth. After a bit, the door opened and the intrepid halfling was alone in a small chamber. Taking a quick look around and seeing no way to return to the surface, he extinguished his torch and hid in the darkness while he waited for help.

The tube beneath the yellow lantern proved to be a stubborn device. After much trial and error, the group eventually figured out to operate the tube so it would easily transport people up and down. Initially, the tube would not return completely to the surface and the sarcophagus had to be turned many times. After some time, an unseen button in the lower reaches near Max was found and the system was puzzled out. After this debacle, Scorch leaned against the sarcophagus, trying to catch his breath after moving the heavy thing. He hooked a thumb into the air, "So this sucks and I am going home." And with that, he stumbled his way back to the miner's office, followed by the others.

The next morning the group set out once more for the Whispering Cairn. Having divined the mechanisms of the cylinder beneath the yellow lantern, the group set out to explore the ruins beneath. The group assembled in the small room that the cylinder terminated in and moved forward, finding only one hallway out. However, their explorations were quickly cut short as a huge stone block hindered their passage. Putting their backs into it, Scorch, Natasha, Doctor Voo, and Max moved the heavy stone block out of the way. As soon as they did, a mysterious green gas filled the chamber, causing the group to sputter and cough. However, except for a few runny eyes, no one seemed to be seriously effected by the vapors. Deciding the gas must have lost its potency to the ages, the group pushed on and found a strange hallway in front of them.

Looking down the hallway, the group saw six alcoves, each holding a regal looking Wind Duke statue. Scorch looked down the hallway, calling for Max to take a look ahead. The halfling ranged forward, his eyes scanning the shadows and floor, seeking skulking monstrosities and deadly traps. He was looking at one of the statues, when a blur of motion out of the corner his eye caught his attention. Whirling around, he was confronted by a strange monstrosity. The creature appeared to be two huge bloodshot eyes connected by a ropy stand of sinew and nerves. It floated through the air and caught the halfling by surprise. Before Max could act, the monstrosity had wrapped its stands around his neck and began to strangle him. With a shout, the group ran forward to help Max, only to find the abomination had one more weapon at its disposal. Beams of fear shot from the grotesque eyes, catching Scorch and several others. However, the sight of amicable halfling's face turning a terrible purple dispelled any urge to run. The group quickly cut down the abomination and revived Max, who after the careful administrations of Doctor Voo and Cypress, was shaken but otherwise well.

Continuing on down the corridor, the group reached a large room, dominated in the center by a huge stone block. To the left and right, there were openings in the wall, but the rooms beyond were hidden in shadows. In addition, on the right side was another strange oozing fountain, as well as an infestation of a vile looking mold. Since no one was sure what kind of mold it was, the group avoided it and investigated the left chamber. Inside, they found what looked like the personal chambers of an important person. A bas-relief of a mighty Wind Duke dominated the wall and a stone slab formed a bed of sorts. In addition, several drawers made of stone were strewn about, looted in ages long past.


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## BlueAnt (Aug 7, 2006)

I'm really enjoying this story hour, thanks for sharing it!


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## Spatterlight (Aug 12, 2006)

*Session 4*
_July 14, 2006 _

"Anyone else hear that?"

Natasha turned away from the bas-relief of the mighty Wind Duke, tilting her head slightly as she listened intently. With concerned looks flashing between the group, they back-peddled into the main chamber, quietly drawing weapons and preparing words of killing magic. The silence of the cairn was broken by a thick, rhythmic, suck-slosh sound that echoed weirdly in the vaulted chamber. From the shadowy edge of light, a trundling horde of creatures emerged from the main hall. A miserable swarm of fat things, their flesh a putrid pink and studded with cancerous growths, oozed and wheezed down the passage. Malformed claws grasped at the stone wall and floor, pulling the monsters toward the group in a revolting wave. Flapping over the horde of the damned, a tittering imp with a cruel face and wickedly barbed tail sprung into view. The devil pointed a spindly finger at Scorch, saying in a giggling voice, "Run fool! Run to the mold!"

Scorch's brain seized on the command and he turned to run into the center of the mold on the far side of the room. Rounding the great block of stone in the center of the room, the gladiator distantly noted that it seemed to be getting colder. He charged directly into the center of the mold, his breath coming in great plumes of vapor in the frigid air, and could feel the strange brown fungus steeling his warmth and vigor. Realizing the danger he was now in, the glamour that the imp had beguiled him with broke. Turning toward the devil, he staggered toward it to wreak his revenge. But his limbs, now wooden with the deadly chill, failed him and he collapsed shivering to the floor.

Meanwhile, the horde of gibbering pink things swept into the room, claws wildly raking the air in search for mortal flesh. With sickle and hammer, Natasha strode forward and confronted the wave head-on. She slashed and bludgeoned the mindless things, but soon found their spongy hides resilient to all but the fiercest of blows. Aiyda sang a song of hope to buoy the spirits of the group as Cypress commanded Square Root into battle and launched an arrow at the imp. Sergi summoned a quivering blob of acid in his hand and hurled it at the horde, but it ran off the monstrosities like water. For a moment, the sorcerer thought his magic had failed him, but as the acid ran down the abominations to the stone floor, a sizzling hiss could be heard.

Doctor Voo and Max made their way around the great block of stone in the center of the room to assist the fallen gladiator. Doctor Voo and Max crept along the side of the stone block, making sure to stay clear of the chilling mold. With an urgent prayer to the Green Lady, the priest revived Scorch, who jerkily rose to his feet with the help of the cleric. For a moment, the world whirled as he tried to gain his bearings. He saw Doctor Voo and Max surge forward to confront several of the monstrosities. 

He saw the monsters. He heard Natasha and Sergi cursing from the other side of the chamber, clearly having a hard time putting the things down. And then he heard his father and the room was no longer there, replaced by the blinding light of the summer sun beating down on the bloodstained field of the coliseum. His father passed the ways of the gladiator to his son, "Now, you are going to fight a lot of strange things here and some of them are going to turn your blade with ease. But, they all have a weakness. For instance, if you got something that looks like you want to sleep with it or it looks demonic, or if it's both, use cold iron first. If that doesn't work, go with silver." Max's panicked scream for Scorch to kill something brought him out his fugue, his good hand already reaching for his cold iron morningstar.

One of the last things the gladiator had not hocked for booze or whores over the long years of decline, the cold iron morningstar smashed into the first of the pink things. However, the creature merely deformed slightly then sprung back, the force of the blow dispersed. With a curse, Scorch dropped the morningstar and drew another vestige of his former career: a silvered short sword. Stabbing furiously at the creature with the glittering blade, he easily pierced the creature's defense and two of the slavering things were slain in short order. Max and Doctor Voo picked off another of the monsters, while Natasha and Square Root slowly but steadily felled several of the things through sheer brute force. 

Meanwhile, the impish leader of the horde chose to bedevil Cypress, Aiyda, and Sergi who were behind Natasha and Square Root. Cruelly teasing Aiyda in Draconic, the impish flittered about and stung several times with its barbed tail. Each poisonous jab brought a numbing of the limbs and the songstress was stung numerous times. By the time Scorch and the others finished the last of the pink things, Aiyda was almost unable to stand. Seeing its horde slaughtered, the imp gave one last giggle and vanished. Poisoned, almost dead from exposure, and all wounded, the group once again retreated to the mine office.

Once back at the mine office, the group had a long conversation about what to do next and how they could avoid having to retreat so many times. Eventually it was decided that two members of the group would return to Diamond Lake and purchase some supplies, such as healing potions and scrolls, with the coin unearthed from the basement of the office. Assisted by his half-sister, Doctor Voo also wrote a note to the other clerics of Wee Jas in town to ask for assistance in divining the powers of a magic ring that had been found. As they were not really needed at the office and neither of them were locals, Max and Scorch were chosen to return to town.

The duo set out and by noon the second day had arrived in Diamond Lake. Max and Scorch crested a small hill, looking down on to the small town. The gladiator gazed across the town saying, "So we are going to the bar first, right?" Without skipping a beat, the halfling responded, "Absolutely." Ambling down the hill, the two men made their way to the Emporium and drank the rest of the afternoon away.

After night had fallen, Max and Scorch emerged from the bar. They made their way to the nearby graveyard, figuring this was the best place to meet up with the followers of the Green Lady. Before Max could stop him, the gladiator boldly pushed open the decrepit iron gate to the cemetery and shouted, "HEY, WEE JAS PEOPLE! I HAVE A NOTE FROM YOUR FRIEND DOCTOR VOO!" Scorch gave a thumbs up to his manager, who shook his head in disbelief. For a moment, there was no response. Then a thin figure with long black robes crept out from the shadows of an ancient mausoleum. 

The silvery light of the moon revealed a pale young woman with eyes as dark as midnight. The woman hissed, "What does _he_ want?" The gladiator gave the note to the priestess, who unfolded it with long spidery fingers. Reading it quickly, the woman furrowed her brow and looked to the duo, "Have you read this?" Scorch and Max shook their heads, the gladiator adding, "Of course not, it was for you people." She handed it back and Scorch and Max quickly read it, seeing it was filled with wild demands for strange items and services, in addition to the request for aid with the divination of the ring. The woman darkly glared at the two men, "For the services Voo wants, we request a hundred gold coins." Scorch and Max looked at each other in surprise as they were not planning on spending any gold for this, with the gladiator exclaiming, "I thought you were all on the same team here! Ah, screw this!" Without a look back, Scorch turned and stomped back to town with his manager close behind.

Making their way down the moonlit roads to town, the two decided to go to the house of Allustan Neff, a wizard who was rumored to be the smartest man in town, to see if he could identify the properties of the magic ring. Despite the advanced hour, Scorch pounded on the wizard's door until the shutters on the upstairs window flew open. From the window, a ruffled older man peered down into the darkness, telling the duo to return tomorrow during more reasonable hours. Having accomplished nothing of note on the first day in town, Max and Scorch spent the night at a local inn.

The next day, the two returned to the home of Allustan. This time they were welcomed in and the wizard asked how he could help. Max produced the magic ring, explaining that they had recovered it from the Whispering Cairns and needed to know what it did. The wizards seemed quite interested in the Whispering Cairn and asked several questions about it. After this, he explained that he could cast the spell required, but it would cost quite a bit of gold. Not wanting to deal with the Wee Jas people, Scorch agreed to have the spell cast, but said they could not pay for it immediately. The wizard smiled and explained that this was not a problem at all, if the gladiator was willing to sign a writ that he would perform an unspecified task of equal value for the wizard in the future. Not seeing another option, he signed the papers and the properties of the ring were divined. After an hour of intense study, Allustan revealed that the wearer of the ring would float like a feather if he ever were dropped from a great height. 

Max thanked the wizard for his help, but before they left, Scorch gestured to several bookcases overflowing with a bewildering assortment of tomes and scrolls, "Allustan, you got anything in there about adventurers that I can borrow?" The wizard arched an eyebrow and said haughtily, "I am surprised you can read." The gladiator glanced at the stacks then back to the mage, "Yeah, I minored in it at Kick Wizard Ass University. Want to guess my major?" The wizard appeared unfazed by Scorch's bravado and pulled three volumes from the shelf, "I believe these three will be of some assistance." Scorch took a look at the titles briefly before shoving them in his pack:


_The Adventures of Enesto Voritad: An Epic Struggle against the Dread Dragon Kelperath._ By Enesto Voritad. 
_One Thousand and One Ways to Die: A Compendium of Hazards, Traps, Poisons, and Various Other Unpleasantries Commonly Encountered by the Adventurer._ Fourth Edition. By Kassandra Pennington 
_Sufog and Tanlag: Adventurer Do's and Don'ts._ Twelfth Edition. By Tam Annick.
The duo then set out from the wizard's home to secure some healing potions and scrolls. After asking around, they were told that the best place to find these items would be the Church of Saint Cuthbert. When the two arrived, services were being held. Having dealt with Scorch's impatience before, Max wisely suggested that the gladiator go have a drink at the nearby Feral Dog while the halfling dealt with this. Seeing no problem with this plan, the gladiator took his leave. 

Max waited quietly outside the church until the mass was over. Once the congregation had left the church hall, the halfling approached an acolyte to ask about the availability of healing magic. The acolyte explained that while potions and scrolls were available, he had to be sure that they would be put to uses appropriate to the doctrines of St. Cuthbert. Max answered several questions about his activities and also signed a contact that he and several others would attend a service at the church in the near future. With everything in order, the halfling purchased the healing supplies and headed for the Feral Dog to pick up Scorch. Finding him at his old table, Max smiled as he approached, "Let us away! I have secured all of the healing supplies. Oh, and you have to go to church in a couple of days." Scorch made a sour face at the news and finished his beer.

Max and Scorch completed their errands with a quick stop at the general store, buying some rope, rations, a new bedroll and backpack for Scorch, and a heavy iron cauldron that Doctor Voo had requested. Their job done, the duo walked back to the mine office and rejoined the rest of the group. Having rested for several days, the group was healed of all their wounds and the last lingering stiffness induced by the imp's poison had also passed. Supplies were distributed and Max informed the group of the mystical properties of the ring. After a heated argument between Scorch and Natasha over who should bear the ring, the gladiator eventually gave up and Natasha claimed the enchanted ring.

Now complete once more, the group set out for the Whispering Cairn. Retracing their steps from several days before, the group returned to the large chamber beneath the yellow lantern. Having found the left room to be the ransacked remains of a private chamber, they decided to have a look around the larger room. In their haste, they had not seen a door in the far wall of the large chamber and decided to open this first. With blade and spell at the ready, Scorch kicked open the door, only to find that it was a latrine. Seeing no danger here, Scorch and Doctor Voo decided to clear away the mold to allow for exploration of the last room. Lashing Doctor Voo's staff to his shovel, the gladiator and priest slowly scooped up the freezing mold and deposited in the latrine. The process was time consuming, but except for an occasional shiver, was uneventful.

The dangerous mold now cleared, the group examined the last room. The flickering lights of the group revealed a sculptor's workroom filled with tools of the trade, as well as several sculptures in various states of completion. In addition, several large black egg-shaped sculptures could be seen. Sergi, an artist himself, gave a gleeful shout and sprung into the room. As he did, the black ovoid sculptures changed shape, transforming into crudely man-shaped things. The creatures ground forward, flailing with stone fists, to assault the group. The battle was brief but intense, with the group reducing the things to rubble in short order.


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## Spatterlight (Aug 16, 2006)

*Session 5*
_July 30, 2006 _

The rocky monsters dispatched with ease, the group set about to give the sculptor's room a thorough search. Among the dusty tools and half-completed sculptures, several things of note were found. Max pointed out a heavy square of strange red metal, whose purpose was not immediately clear, was likely valuable and should be taken. In addition, one of the sculptures had a fine wooden quarterstaff that Cypress took. Finding nothing else of interest, Natasha and Scorch carried the chunk of metal back to the tube, while the rest of the group gave the large chamber a final look over. 

Max carefully investigated the large stone that dominated the central chamber. After several minutes of diligent search, the halfling found a hidden lever. He raised it and with the great rumbling sound of unseen machinery, the stone retracted with glacial slowness into the ceiling. Peering beneath the rising stone, the shattered remains of an unfortunate treasure hunter could be seen. Doctor Voo carefully scooped the remains out and Max sorted thought them. Several tiny sculptures had miraculously survived the ancient trap, although the fragments of several less fortunate relics were also found. Lastly, a pair of goggles was recovered. A quick cantrip by Sergi determined that the eyepiece was magical and Max immediately put them on. His eyes suddenly loomed comically large behind the thick, dirty lens. Staring intently at a button on the cuff of his sleeve, the halfling reported that the goggles had improved his eyesight dramatically, but only for close up work.

The halfling was rubbing his eyes, the goggles now dangling loosely about his neck, when the gladiator and ranger returned. Scorch hitched his thumb into the air, "Looks like something weird happened upstairs. Something washed the tomb floor." Natasha rolled her eyes, "We went upstairs with that block of metal. It looks like something crawled out of the shaft beneath the green lantern and was very wet. We didn't stick around to see what it was and I couldn't tell anything by the tracks." The members of the group looked at each other for a moment before Aiyda said, "Looks like the flooded room had something in it after all." Taking one last look at the central room, the group prepared for battle. Two by two, the group used the tube beneath the yellow lantern to return to the main chamber.

Expecting a fight, the group cautiously advanced into the center of the chamber of seven lanterns. Natasha once more investigated the dripping trail, which clearly lead from the shaft beneath the green lantern down the hallway that lead out of the cairn, but was unable to determine what had dragged itself from the deeper recesses of the tomb. The ranger looked up from the puddles just in time to see the dead men pouring into the main chamber, their grim claws dripping with putrid water and long tongues lolling wildly. Giving a warning shout, the rest of the group turned to face these horrors. The gaunt hunched things launched into a frenzied attack with filthy claws and fangs, ravenous for living flesh after being denied for untold ages.

 The group met the undead in brutal melee. One of the things was cut down quickly, but the group soon learned that even the slightest scratch brought by claw or fang brought the threat of paralysis. The muscles of both Scorch and Square Root locked up in revulsion, but the others fought on. Fearing all would be brought low by the ghouls, Doctor Voo produced his holy symbol in one hand and held out his skull-tipped staff in the other, calling upon the name of Wee Jas. As the Green Lady's name echoed in the chamber, the creatures gave a thick garbled moan and fled in terror, their arms covering their dead eyes. The undead vanished into the shadows, running down the hallway toward the entrance of the cairn. The cleric turned to the others saying, "They will not be going far. We best be setting them on their way to hell soon."

The brief respite proved enough, for before the dead could regain their senses, feeling returned to the limbs of the afflicted. Unwilling to let the creatures get too far, or worse escape the tomb into the wilds, the group followed the glistening tracks of the ghouls. The wait was short, for when the group reentered the large chamber where they had once fought wolves, the undead launched themselves from the shadows. Attacking from both sides, the creatures attempted to bring down the cleric of Wee Jas. After a brief melee, they were successful, causing the deathly chill of the grave to seize him. The brutal battle continued, with several members of the group eventually paralyzed, but one by one the ghouls fell. Most were cut down with Scorch's blade or Sergi's spells, but the last one, which was menacing Doctor Voo, was felled with a vicious stab delivered by his half-sister.

The danger of the undead put down for good, the group healed their wounds and waited for numbed limbs to regain sensation. After a quick discussion, the group decided to return to the chamber of seven lanterns. Scorch and Natasha turned the heavy sarcophagus once more, causing the last of the metal tubes to rise from the ground beneath the violet lantern. Max slipped on his enchanted goggles and carefully looked at the tube and found the device was not what it appeared. After a few moments of silent examination, the halfling revealed that this tube was a trap designed to crush and grind those who entered it. He noted several shards of bones and torn shreds of cloth and leather; all that remained of the tomb robbers who had come before. Doctor Voo once more reverently collected the bones with his shovel and it was Max who spied several glittering baubles among the remains. Collecting their loot, the group decided to explore the strange shaft that ran above the blue lantern.

Here, unlike all the other tunnels with lanterns, the ceiling vaulted forty feet up and another tunnel could be faintly seen at the top. Natasha looped some rope around her and prepared for the climb. Rising slowly but steadily, the ranger made her way up the ancient stone wall. Soon, she pulled herself up onto a small ledge and secured the rope for the others. As they climbed, she peered down the tunnel, which appeared to extend for quite some as she was unable to see the end. Cypress, with Square Root held close to his chest, was hauled up last. Once more reassembled, the group made their way down the tunnel with Scorch and Doctor Voo in lead.

Moving down the hall, the group soon saw the tunnel terminated in a huge stone face. Easily as big as a man, the face had a stately, serene expression and its great eyes were closed. In addition, on the floor and walls, many gouges and scrapes could be seen, as if something had been dragged down the hallway toward the main chamber. Having witnessed the trickeries of the long vanished Wind Dukes, Natasha and Scorch made a makeshift safety net at the end of the hallway out of her tent. Once this was complete, Max secured the ring of feather falling from the ranger and headed toward the great face, each step cautious and measured. With bated breath, the group watched the halfling creep forward. 

Nothing of note happened until Max began to examine the face. At the halfling's touch, the eyes of the face suddenly snapped open and shown brilliantly, filling the tunnel with a dazzling radiance. In addition, the mouth, once calm and neutral, opened wide and a tremendous gale began to blow out. At first, the wind was moderate but soon it began to howl with ever greater force. Max was the first to be tossed back, as he was smallest, and was soon ejected from the tunnel. The magic of the ring activated as he fell and he floated safely to the ground. Doctor Voo began to climb back down the rope, his sister following him. In Aiyda's haste, she missed a knot in the heavy rope and crashed to the floor, losing consciousness. Meanwhile, Scorch and several others in the group were befuddled by the strange light and could not fight against the wind. The gladiator, his spiked armor throwing sparks as it gouged the stone, was drug down the tunnel and eventually flung over the ledge. He plummeted to the floor, his manager already shouting orders to him before he reached the ground. Reacting to the commands through a haze of pain, he gradually saw Max was doing. Using the fallen Aiyda's bedroll, he spread it between them and they pulled it taught, attempting to catch the others in the group as they fell.

The plan was mostly successful and likely saved the life of the lithe Sergi, who had been knocked senseless by the lights. Natasha was the last of the group to leave the tunnel, for instead of trying to escape, she fought forward through hurricane-strength winds and mind-bending flashes of light toward the face. Using all her strength, she managed to get to the face and for a brief moment, glimpsed another room beyond the mouth of the great face. Then she too was blown away.

Catching their breath at the base of the blue lantern tunnel, the group listened to the wind howl for some time before it finally stopped. The healers in the group revived Aiyda and Sergi, but Natasha had been knocked out and for the moment, there was nothing they could do. While waiting, Scorch shook out the bard's bedroll, which was now quite tattered and bloodied, and guffawed, "Now who doesn't have a bedroll, huh?" Everyone in the group turned silently to the gladiator in disbelief, glaring at him. Scorch shuffled uncomfortably for a moment, the quietly rolled it up, muttering, "Everyone's a critic."

Battered and bruised, the group returned to the mining office to recuperate from the trying experience. The rest of the day, Doctor Voo and Cypress cared for the group; applying strange salves and making them drink pungent teas that dulled pain. As night fell, Natasha awoke, but was still in a great deal of pain. She still had enough energy, however, to berate the gladiator as he attempted to make peace with Aiyda. He tried to replace the bard's ruined bedroll with Natasha's, figuring they would not need two. However, the ranger began to yell at him for giving away what was not his. Finally, the gladiator exclaimed, "Baby, I was trying to be nice!" She held out her hand, "Whatever! Get out of here. We can share." Throwing the blanket over herself and the bard, Natasha made a final shooing gesture and the bard stuck her tongue out at the gladiator. Cypress was passing by and spied the two girls, arching an inquisitive eyebrow at Scorch. "It's not what it looks like", Scorch said as he closed the door behind him, "Unfortunately." Walking with the elf to the next room, he spread his own bedroll on the bare floor of the ruined office and soon fell into a dreamless sleep.

The night was uneventful and as the sun rose, the druid and cleric, their spells renewed with the day, healed the last of the lingering wounds. Hale once more, the group set out for the Whispering Cairn. Seeing that the only area that had not been explored was the flooded room in the chambers beneath the green lantern, the group descended to this chamber. 

Moving down the hallway, it soon became apparent that in times long past, the flooded chamber had been something else, for a set of great stone stairs could be seen leading down into the murky darkness. The group lingered for a moment and Sergi stooped down at the water's edge, cupping the water in one hand and drinking it before anyone could stop him. Natasha was berating the sorcerer for his foolishness, when suddenly the still waters swelled upwards, flowing around the startled sorcerer, and pulled him down. Springing into action, Scorch, Natasha, and Max took a deep breath and leapt into the water. For a moment floundering in the unfamiliar environment, they soon found the slippery stone floor and began to move toward the panicking sorcerer. As they drew closer, they saw a pair of thin blue eyes hovering about Sergi and could see that the current was different about him. Although none of them knew it, the sorcerer was in the grips of a water elemental.

Struggling to free Sergi from its clutches proved difficult, but Natasha was able to rest him from it, only to have the elemental grab her. Meanwhile, the battle had attracted unwanted attention. From deeper in the watery chamber, several more of the ghouls emerged from a shadowy passage. The group despaired, for surely being paralyzed under the water would mean death, but Cypress and Doctor Voo had other plans. Summoning porpoises from elemental planes and celestials seas, the holy men turned the tide of battle. The battle raged for quite sometime, but the timely assistance of creatures native to the water proved invaluable. Eventually, the water elemental was dispersed and the restless dead were put down. Gasping for air, those who entered the water staggered out and fell to the stone floor, their only thought on their next breath.


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## Spatterlight (Aug 27, 2006)

*Session 6*
_August 4, 2006_

*Note:* I was unable to attend this session, so this will be a short update. Special thanks to Sergi's player, who helped write this summary.

The gladiator pulled himself to his feet, water running down his armor, and wearily leaned against the wall, "So, no more fighting in water. Agreed?" Everyone nodded. After a few moments to catch their collective breath, Natasha and Scorch dove back into the murky water to retrieve several items that been lost in the battle. Looking about, the two found several other items of note. One of the ghouls, as well as the tattered remains of another corpse found in the depths, had some coins and each bore the signet ring of the Seekers. Furthermore, one of the corpses had an enchanted short sword and a ruby lantern. Bringing the red lantern into the light, the group could see it was made of a strange crimson metal and red crystal panes. It quickly became apparent that it was nearly identical to the other lanterns hanging in the chamber of seven lanterns. Although they had paid it no mind earlier, they had noted that both the red and violet lanterns were missing in the main chamber above.

Climbing back up the shaft to the chamber of seven lanterns, the group hung the ruby lantern in one of the empty slots, so that it matched the painting found earlier in the cairn. Seeing that now only one lantern was missing, the group began to discuss their options. Suddenly, Sergi gave a flourish and produced the indigo lantern, claiming that he had been keeping it safe in his possession. He had discovered it in the lair of the wolves in an earlier expedition of the Whispering Cairn. The sorcerer was berated at length, but Sergi asserted that his actions were true and heroic. Natasha venomously disagreed, calling her brother a jerk. After everyone calmed down, they hung the indigo lantern and waited patiently for something to happen. When nothing happened, Max suggested that the lanterns may need to be lit. Many a backpack and traveling bag were overturned in search for the correct number of torches and sunrods to complete the task. The lanterns now glowing and the chamber filled with a rainbow of colors, the group decided to challenge the great stone face once more.

Ascending to the tunnel high above, the group cautiously advanced down the hall, waiting to be blown back once more. However, this time, the mouth was wide open and revealed the chamber Natasha had glimpsed before. Clambering through the open mouth, the group strode into a large chamber that appeared to be half filled with grapefruit sized iron balls. A slender stone bridge spanned the length of the room to a door on the other side of the chamber. There were also were many holes in the walls and ceiling, each about the size of the iron balls. Sensing a trap, the group elected Max to go forth and investigate this strange room, with Max being the only descending vote. Grumbling about how a man of his obvious importance should not be undertaking such hazardous tasks, the halfling made his way across the bridge. When he reached the halfway point, numerous iron projectiles shot forth from the openings in the walls. With catlike reflexes, Max darted back towards the entrance of the room. However, even his quick reaction was not enough, for he was pelted by the metallic projectiles.

The group began to deliberate their next move, when Natasha became frustrated and attempted to cross the bridge. Carefully stalking across the bridge, she trigged the trap and the iron balls began to fly across the room. One of them caught her square in the stomach, sending her into the pile of iron balls. A strange creature with many tentacles squirmed out of the pile and attempted to devour her, but the thing was quickly dispatched. However, as the group battled they heard a strange voice begin to fill the room. The voice was that of a child and it provided a running commentary on the brief melee.

Rising from the floor, a ghostly spirit appeared and before the group could act, possessed Aiyda. Claiming to be of the Land family, he told the group he would open the door on the other end of the bridge if his bones were laid to rest with his family on their plot on the outskirts of Diamond Lake. Seeing no other way to proceed, the group returned to town.

Once back in town, the group traveled to the Lands farmstead. The group found a decrepit house surrounded by the remains of several fields, which were now being reclaimed by the forest. After searching around for a bit, they found the burial plot of the family. Much to their surprise, they found that the graves had been recently dug up. Unsure of how to proceed, the group decided to investigate the farmstead, only to stumble upon several bears who had taken it as their home. A brief battle broke out and several of the more knowledgeable in the group were surprised to see such aggression in the bears. Once the fight was over, the reason became apparent as a small bear cub came mewing out of a darkened room. Natasha immediately adopted the orphaned creature as her pet. Max quickly searched the house for any trinkets but found none. However, he did make a gruesome discovery: a human arm with a single tattoo. The tattoo was familiar to both Natasha and Sergi, as it was the sign of a gang of thugs that worked for their father and often hung out at the Feral Dog.

Returning to town, the group entered the Feral Dog and scanned the crowd for any faces that the Smenk siblings knew. Almost immediately, the two spotted a large half-orc named Kullen that they recognized as the leader of the gang. Aiyda was chosen to go over and talk to him. However, the half-orc had other ideas and forced the bard outside the tavern. The group followed and Doctor Voo was unable to contain himself any further. He pointed a finger at the brute and demanded that he release his sister. He also then accused the bandits of grave robbery. At these accusations, a fierce melee broke out. Sergi attempted to invoke his father's name to stop the battle, but this only seemed to enrage the half-orc. After a prolonged and bloody battle, the group was victorious. While three of the men were killed, the fourth was taken alive for questioning. Severely wounded by the vicious battle and depleted of spells, the group retreated to Jalek’s Flophouse. They spent the night at the seedy establishment, hoping to avoid drawing attention as best they could.


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## Spatterlight (Aug 27, 2006)

*Session 7*
_August 18, 2006_

The next morning dawned clear and calm. One by one, the group awoke, stiff from sleeping on the hard floors of Jalek's Flophouse. Doctor Voo was the first to notice that Cypress and Square Root were no where to be found. Natasha only shrugged, saying her friend came and went as he pleased and would return when needed. As the rest of the group prepared themselves for the day, Aiyda and Max quietly stepped out. The songstress and halfling walked to the Emporium, where Aiyda spoke to several of the denizens in hushed tones. Soon they were introduced to a rather shady halfling named Hal. In the darkened booth, Max exchanged a small pouch of gold for an exquisite set of thieves' tools. Hal took the gold, hefted it in one hand and slid it beneath his cloak, and left without another word.

The two rejoined the group in the flophouse and Max's announced that everyone but Doctor Voo would have to attend mass at the Church of St. Cuthbert. Everyone groaned, but the halfling reminded them he had signed a contact to bring five people to a gathering of the faithful. Leaving the cleric of Wee Jas behind to brew up some potions and keep an eye on the prisoner, Max, Sergi, Aiyda, Natasha, and Scorch set out for the center of town. At the Church of St. Cuthbert, the faithful were just beginning to gather. An acolyte named Hameneezer, the same man who had sold Max healing potions before, guided them into the hall of the church. Here they met the pastor, Jierian Wierus. Greeting the newcomers heartily and staring at each with penetrating gaze that is the domain of zealots and madmen, Jierian called for them to stand at the front of the hall. The group reluctantly did so, each silently wishing to get the ordeal over with as quickly as possible.

The pastor began his sermon, extolling the values of self-sacrifice and avoidance of all that would cause one to stray from the path of righteousness. The oratory continued and soon the priest was pounding the pulpit to emphasize each of the words he spat out. He worked his flock into a frenzy and soon they were whipping themselves, each lash driving out sin. As the faithful reached a crescendo of cries of pain and calls for redemption, Jierian's eyes flared with divine fire and he turned toward the group. With a voice not quite his own, he thundered, "I have seen a vision! A dark time is coming! A writhing time! An Age of Worms!"

Not sure what to make of this, the group said nothing, and the cleric continued his bombastic oratory over the ecstatic cries of his flock. The service ended shortly after and the group was left to speak with the pastor. He confirmed that St. Cuthbert had sent him several visions of a nearing time of strife and woe. When the time came, he hoped his parishioners would be ready to meet their god. Excusing themselves, the group quickly left the church, but not before they were offered bloody rags from the service, which were considered holy items by the faithful. Only Scorch bought some.

Their contractual obligation fulfilled, the group returned to the flophouse to interrogate the gang member they had taken alive the previous evening. Max talked to the man, explaining that they were only really interested in finding out where the bones of the Lands family were being taken. The thug, whose name was Todrik, explained that his gang had been employed by Balabar Smenk, a wealthy and ruthless mine owner, to dig up some bones for a weirdo living in the old observatory on the outskirts of town. This had not been their first run and Todrik explained that the guy at the observatory only took deliveries at night. He also confirmed that they were the ones who had exhumed the remains of the Lands.

"Trouble at the observatory!?" Scorch grinned, "I've been reading about this. Classic heroic stuff ..." Scorch was cut off in mid-sentence as Aiyda smacked him in the back of the head. Turning quickly on the girl, he darkly glowered at her, "You had better have a good reason for ..." The bard stared levelly at the gladiator, "It is where my mother was found dead five years ago." Scorch stared at the girl for a few more moments and then said, "Good enough." Aiyda questioned Todrik about this and he seemed to know something about it. The group cut a deal with the thug: They would let him go the next morning and would have to leave town, but he would tell Aiyda everything he knew about the events surrounding her mother's death.

Todrik told Aiyda that her mother, who had been a prostitute at the Emporium, had once been a favorite of Balabar Smenk. He was not clear on all the details of what happened later, but she had apparently attempted to extort money from the mine owner immediately before her death. As was often the case with Balabar, when he cleared up one of his problems, someone ended up dead. Aiyda was taken a back, as this revelation only raised more questions. The one foremost on her mind was why her mother had attempted the blackmail, but Todrik could not provide any information about that.

The rest of the day was spent quietly at the flophouse. However, as night fell, the group was incessantly bothered by townsfolk. First, the owner of the flophouse came by to collect his due. Shortly thereafter, Jierian Wierus, the fiery pastor of the church of St. Cuthbert, visited. Apparently, this was a normal occurrence, as the priest would attempt to convert the downtrodden into the faithful. Natasha got into a heated argument with the man over his ways and it was obvious that he and Doctor Voo had crossed paths before. In addition, the cleric noted the prisoner Todrik and after telling him his story, the thug was taken into the care of priest. No sooner had he left, than there was another knock at the door. This time it was the sheriff, looking for the group who had a fight the night before behind the Feral Dog. Aiyda knew the sheriff was susceptible to bribes and with a sack of coin, a pretty smile, and a few choice words was able to send him on his way before the group was hauled in for questioning.

Frustrated by the constant interruptions, the group decided to sleep out in the forest. Moving out into the woods surrounding the old observatory, the group made camp and plans for the next day. After much discussion, the group decided to investigate the observatory in the morning in the hope that the strange man who collected bones there would be asleep. With no further interruptions, the group slept soundly.

The next morning, the group scouted out the observatory. The structure was in disrepair, as it had been reportedly abandoned many years ago. After moving about the structure, the group could see no windows on the first floor and the only way in appeared to be a door set in the side of the building. They climbed up the stairs that led to the sole door and Max examined it, finding it locked. After several attempts with his new kit, he finally managed to jimmy the lock.

With a nod from Max, Scorch kicked the door open. The door thudded into the wall and revealed a room filled with skeletons, whose empty eye sockets burned with pinpricks of malignant crimson light. Three brutish looking skeletons brandished scimitars, while three more lurked behind a makeshift barricade, each holding a crossbow in their fleshless hands. The gladiator drew his cold iron morningstar and charged into the room, smashing into one of the skeletons. Natasha and Doctor Voo followed, the ranger hammering the skeletons back. The crossbow bolts of the undead proved to be coated with poison, as Sergi was hit and immediately felt ill. The priest called upon his goddess and several of the skeletons attempted to flee, only to be cut down by Scorch and Natasha. While the situation in the room was easily in hand, a new menace crept from its unseen lair beneath the outside stairs.

Tiny vaguely humanoid things, seemingly made of discarded bits of bone, teeth and hair, crept up and assaulted Max, Sergi, and Aiyda, who were still outside on the stairs. With the attention of the warriors and cleric on the skeletons, the trio fought a desperate battle to keep the things at bay. However, their screams for help were heard and once again, Doctor Voo called out to the Stern Lady. He held his holy symbol high and upon hearing the name of the goddess and seeing her symbol, the undead retreated. Max followed them and looked over the stairs, calling out that they had retreated to a hole beneath the outside stairs. Scorch pushed a table that had been part of the barricade out of the room and down the stairs. He shoved it in front of the hole and kicked a few heavy stones into place to seal the undead in their den.

The undead destroyed or routed, the group took a moment to mend their wounds before moving on. The entry chamber contained only a single door besides the entrance and Max inspected it for traps and locks, finding neither. Opening the door slowly, the group could see that it opened into a long hallway, along which were four doors on one side and another hall on the other. The main hall terminated in a large door. Quickly inspecting the four doors, it was found that each led into a small and simple bedchamber. The halfling quickly rooted through each, turning up some coins and baubles in one, but nothing of interest in the others. The hall on the other side of the hallway led to another room, where nothing of interest was found. Their options exhausted, the group opened the final door in the main hallway.

The chamber beyond was a vast formal dining room dominated by a huge table. A feast was laid out and all the seats but one were occupied. Each of the fine chairs had an exquisitely dressed corpse in them, some rigid with recent death and other slumped over in advanced states of decay. Prepared for battle, the group entered the chamber, but the corpses did not stir. However, as the group edged closer, they could see that an enchantment was upon the dead, as sometimes they twitched or gave a faint groan. Now close enough to almost be overwhelmed by the stench of death, they could see that each of the bodies had an untouched meal put out before it. The unoccupied place at the head of the table, however, had an empty dish before it and a half finished glass of wine.

Being something of a gastronome, Sergi sampled the food and wine and declared both delicious. He grabbed a bottle of wine that had been put out and took a seat at the head of the table. As he did so, one of the corpses slowly turned toward Sergi, thanking him for the tremendous feast before them. Another declared that Filge was a fine man and that it was only that myopia of old men that lead to his expulsion from the wizard's academy. The accolades continued until almost all of the corpses had spoken and then once again, silence reigned in the room. Everyone in the group looked at each other and shrugged, unsure of what was going on here or who Filge was. Natasha pulled her brother from the head chair and sat down. The corpses once again sang the praises of Filge and their words and gestures were exactly the same as before.

Quite disturbed by the gruesome dinner party, the group decided to keep moving, but not before Max had absconded with the silverware from the table. The dining chamber had two doors and a large staircase that lead to the second floor of the observatory tower. The rooms behind the two doors were quickly searched and they were found to be a small kitchen and storeroom. Moving up the stairs, the group found themselves in a large bedroom chamber.

This chamber was dominated by a large bed on a dais in one corner. Beside the bed was a night table with a sizable tome with a cover made of black leather. In addition, there was a halfling-sized form wrapped in gauze and dressed in fine clothes and a top hat. This strange figure held a platter, upon which rested a human head. There was also a work table with four odd cylinders, each filled with a peculiar chromatic fluid. There was also a large statue of an angel holding a sword. Lastly, there was another staircase that led to the top floor of the observatory.

Seeing no immediate dangers, the group moved in. Max eyed the fine top hat as Scorch nodded toward the bed and whispered something in Natasha's ear. She giggled like a schoolgirl as Aiyda rolled her eyes and walked over to the work table. Here, Sergi was already contemplating drinking one of the cylinders of weird liquid, but seeing his sister was watching him, decided to restrain himself. Max had a look under the bed for any lurking horrors, but finding none, inspected the book upon the night table. The halfling was unable to read the cryptic notes it contained, but having seen spell books before, slipped it into his sack for possible sale later.

Having grown bored with the contents of the desk, Sergi walked over to the swathed figure and closely examined the decapitated head. Unable to restrain his curiosity any further, he poked at the thing with a gloved finger. Immediately, the head began to howl in alarm. All eyes were suddenly on Sergi, who shrugged innocently. Glancing to the stairwell that lead to the upper floor, the group surged upwards, hoping to catch the wizard they suspected to be there off guard as possible.

Cresting the stairs, the group was greeted with a strange sight. In the center of this vaulted chamber was a large blue figure splayed out on a stone slab. Its abdomen had been cut open and was held that way with various surgical clamps. Looming over the corpse was a gaunt man with ashen skin. The thin black robed man was accompanied by a skeleton. Around the dissection table were four large glass cylinders, each filled with a murky yellowish fluid. The fluid was not opaque enough to hide the silhouette of the man-shaped things that floated within it. The chamber itself was lit with sunlight that filtered though slats in the dome of the observatory and was focused on the dissection table through four great mirrors that hung in each of the corners.

The gaunt man, seeing the intruders, gave a word of command. With a great cracking sound, the four glass tubes exploded, sending gouts of vile smelling liquid running in all directions, and the creatures within lurched forward. Two of them were humanoid and clearly dead, but each was traced with strange runes that had been carved into their unfeeling hide. The other two were in an advanced state of decay, but were vaguely reptilian in nature, although they stood in the manner of man.

Scorch charged forward and confronted one of the rune-carved zombies, quickly finding that the creature was far more resilient than the lesser undead they had so far encountered. Natasha entered the chamber as well, but the black robed man cast a spell of terror on her, sending her screaming back down the stairs. Meanwhile, Doctor Voo entered in the center of the chamber, calling upon the favor of Wee Jas once more. The skeleton simply collapsed and he sent the two reptilian zombies scurrying before him. Aiyda sang a song of hope in the face of death and lifted the morale of the group. Sergi evoked sheets of flame to incinerate the other rune-carved zombie and Max fired several arrows at the gaunt man. The wizard launched spell after spell at the group, but only his first seemed to have any effect. Doctor Voo turned to the gaunt man and whispered a prayer to the Green Lady. The wizard's eyes suddenly grew wide with fear and he cowered before the might of the Witch Goddess' servant. By this time, the dweomer on Natasha's heart faded and she charged back to the battle at full speed. Enraged at being caused to flee in panic, she drew her shortsword and charged across the observatory's floor. Dodging one of the zombies still fighting, for the other had been hacked down by Scorch, she soon loomed above the wizard, her blade at his throat.

The black robed wizard threw up his hands, "Spare me and I will tell you everything!"


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## Sergi Alix Smenk (Aug 30, 2006)

Spatterlight said:
			
		

> *Session 6*
> _August 4, 2006_
> 
> *Note:* I was unable to attend this session, so this will be a short update. Special thanks to Sergi's player, who helped write this summary.
> ...




I am disappointed in you *spatterlight*. Where is it that I single handedly solved the mysteries of the whispering cairn. Where is it that I was the one who defeated Kullen and his gang and the rest of our merry band then showered me with praise and admiration? Where does it say that Aiyda, after I defeated Kullen, decided to thank me by reviling for the first time to a man, the secrets to carnal pleasure she learned from her years attending her mother at the emporium. I gave you a transcript that was true word for word and you only print half of the story. For shame.


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## Spatterlight (Sep 4, 2006)

*Session 8*
_September 1, 2006_

The wizard rose slowly to his feet, Natasha's blade unwaveringly at his throat.

The pale skinned man looked at the group and introduced himself as Filge. In the background, Scorch took out the enchanted greataxe that had once belonged to the thug Kullen and proceeded to hack down the remaining zombies. Filge explained that he was a necromancer and had just recently moved into town, saying that had been called by Balabar Smenk. He went onto say that Balabar had helped the necromancer gain entrance into the prestigious Wizard Academy in the city of Greyhawk in the past and the mine owner had called in the favor.

Natasha glared at Filge, "Why has my father called you." The necromancer seemed startled at this, peering at the girl then to the group, focusing on Sergi, "You are his children. I did not recognize you. I suppose you were too young to remember me." He fell silent for a moment then continued, "Your father wanted me to take a look at something. A strange worm that been that had been found in one of the mines. I will show you it and tell you what else I know." The group descended to the makeshift bedroom below the wizard's laboratory.

As he entered his chamber, he revealed a secret chamber and took out a small sealed jar. The jar was half-filled with a viscous yellow-brown fluid in which floated a fat gangrenous green worm. Filge explained, "Your father found this in the mines. I got the impression that this was not the only one." The necromancer held the jar in front of him and the worm gave a tepid twitch, "The worm has a connection to the undead, which was why he asked for me to come to Diamond Lake. He has provided me with this former observatory as a secret laboratory to conduct my research. For I believe ..." Scorch interrupted, "Another classic! A secret laboratory in the old observatory! So, when are we going to see this laboratory?" The necromancer glanced at the gladiator, "You were just in it, you fool!" The gladiator glanced back up the open stairs, "I guess that counts, but traditionally they are underground or you know ... secret."

Filge continued, "As I was saying, I believe Balabar would have had more need for my services, as there appears to be a cult known as the Ebon Triad operating in the mines." Seeing the confused looks among the group, Aiyda clarified, "I have heard of these people. They worship three dark gods: Erythnul, Hextor, and Vecna." The necromancer nodded and the group continued questioning him for some time. The group found out that Filge had not personally desecrated the burial plot of the Lands, although he had commissioned the thugs who had done so, for he needed bones for the creation of undead servants. In addition, he also explained that several of the colorful cylinders that were found earlier were his creation; a unique variant of the familiar potion that upon injection were reported to be of greater strength than if imbibed. Lastly, at Scorch's insistence, Filge gave the group the command word for the undead thing that was wrapped in bandages in the necromancer's room, although the gladiator was told the creature no longer functioned properly.

After discussing several issues at length, the necromancer asked what was to become of him. Briefly discussing it amongst themselves, the group agreed to let Filge go, with only Sergi dissenting. The sorcerer retreated to the dining chamber in a pout, sitting in the master chair at the table. The group stripped the necromancer of most of his possessions, but did allow him to keep a spellbook the group had found earlier. Scorch offered to see Filge out of the observatory and as they passed the dining chamber, Sergi struck the necromancer with a small jolt of electricity. Sitting smugly at the head of the table, the sorcerer silently dared the necromancer to launch a retaliatory spell. 

Filge turned to Scorch, "Would you mind if I struck back?" Scorch glared at Sergi, saying to Filge, "Yeah, don't do it. I am sleeping with his sister and if he turns up dead, I will have hell to pay." The necromancer glanced at Scorch, "Your not with the bard?" The gladiator sighed, already starting to like the man, "Nah, she's all tease. No follow through." He hitched a thumb toward the door, "Come on, let's get you out of here before Fancy Pants gets any other bright ideas." Once out on the stairs of the observatory, the gladiator slipped the wizard several gold and platinum coins, "Listen, go back to Greyhawk and lay low for a while. Don't talk to Balabar or his cronies." The necromancer nodded and Scorch continued, "No hard feelings on breaking up your gig here, right?" The necromancer shook his head, "No. And thank you for the coins." The two shook hands and the necromancer made his way to the road, turning the wrong way first, then reversing and heading off to the great city of Greyhawk.

Closing the door behind him, Scorch returned to the others. The group quickly set about cleaning up the place a bit and spent the night in the observatory. For the most part, the night was quiet, but Natasha claimed to have seen someone lurking outside after dark. Also, the next morning Doctor Voo looked particularly haggard and explained that Wee Jas Herself had visited him in his dreams. The Witch Goddess told the priest that the Ebon Triad was to be crushed and that he was to be Her hand in this matter. 

Later that morning, the group received a mysterious message that they were to meet up with a person known only as "C.G.". This rendezvous was to be held the next day, after dark. Following this, the group split into two to accomplish several tasks. Scorch, Max, and Sergi went into town to gather needed supplies. The first stop for the three was the wizard Allustan's house. Sergi purchased the peculiar incenses and other implements that would allow him to summon a familiar. Scorch also brought the broken servant undead to see if Allustan could fix it, but the wizard was unable to divine what was wrong with it. Following this, the gladiator, who had been given a list by Natasha, went out into town to buy some healing scrolls from the Church of St. Cuthbert and some other miscellaneous supplies. Catching up with Max in front of the Emporium, the gladiator declined to visit the brothel with his manager. Max shook his head and made a whipping gesture as he entered the establishment, calling out to the girls beckoning him inside.

Meanwhile, Aiyda, Doctor Voo, and Natasha took the bones that had been animated by Filge and returned to the burial plot of the Lands. Doctor Voo, who had carefully sorted all the bones the night before, laid the remains of the Land Family to rest once more. As he did so, he realized that the ghost of Alastor Land would soon disappear from the world, now that its bones were at rest. If the group was to gain passage to the last of the chambers of the Whispering Cairn, they would have to hurry to the tomb.

Meeting up at the observatory, the group quickly rented some horses and set off at a gallop to the Whisper Cairn. Finding the tomb as they left it, they used torches to light the seven rainbow lanterns in the main chamber. Climbing back up to the chamber above the blue lantern, the group made their way to the room behind the great stone face. After a few moments, the spirit of Alastor rose from the floor once more and gave a smile. From across the thin stone bridge that rose over a sea of iron balls, the door gave an audible click.

Waving to the group, Alastor's ghost once more vanished from sight. The way now cleared, the group started to make their way over the stone bridge. The Smenk siblings and Aiyda darted across the narrow bridge and once more the deadly iron spheres began to fly. Scorch attempted to follow them, but was slowed by his heavy armor and was caught by one of the balls. The thing struck him hard and knocked him off the bridge into the piles of balls below. Meanwhile, Max and Doctor Voo picked their way over the iron balls, choosing a slower but safer path.

As the Smenks cleared the bridge, one of them hit the previously locked door and it swung open. Beyond the door was a grand chamber dominated by a huge pit. Rising from the center of the pit was a platform upon which rested a pillar of wind, which gusted to the ceiling. The central platform had once had four narrow bridges to it from a stone ledge that ran the parameter of the room, but two of them had broken off. In each of the corners of the room a great bas-relief could be seen. From the darkness of the pit, three humanoid creatures glided forth. Each of these creatures had thick armor as white as snow and strange wrapping covered in alien runes fluttered about them on unseen winds. In each of their hands was a pale longsword and behind the visors of their helms flickered eyes the color of a clear autumn sky.

The creatures silently advanced on the trio at the door and they sprung into action. Aiyda moved into the room, singing a song of hope and light. Natasha dashed in as well; her hammer and shortsword already out. Sergi fired a crossbow bolt and prepared to blast he creatures with magic. Meanwhile, Scorch picked up Max in one hand and held him to the top of the bridge. Both Scorch and Doctor Voo attempted to scale the wall, but their armor held them down.

Natasha and one of the guardians meet in melee, with both getting in several telling blows. Aiyda and Sergi, in the mean time, where blasted by lightening as another of the guardians brought its two blades together with a thunderous cacophony. Sergi retreated into the main hallway, blasting the creatures with bolts of magic as he went. Here he dropped to the ground, holding his spear out to help Scorch and Doctor Voo climb up. Aiyda retreated from one of the creatures after unsuccessfully trying to cause the creature to slip on a patch of grease she had conjured with a bawdy cant. She went to help her friend Natasha, who had already been hit several times.

Doctor Voo climbed up the wall with Sergi's assistance and hammered at one of the guardians who had made its way into the room of iron spheres. Scorch followed, repaying the sorcerer's kindness by deeply cutting Sergi with his armor spikes as he madly scrambled over him. Grabbing his enchanted greataxe, the gladiator swiped at another guardian who had glided into the trapped chamber, but was unable to connect, the thing deftly avoiding each blow. Max had better luck, his rapier striking one of the creatures several times.

The battle grew increasingly desperate as one by one, the group succumbed to their wounds. Two of the guardians were defeated, but by the time these two had fallen, only Scorch still stood. Blood seeping from multiple wounds and his vision wavering, the gladiator was locked in melee with the last of the guardians. Fingering his grip on the blood-slick handle of the greataxe, he knew he would have to finish this now. Exerting the last of his great strength, he brought the greataxe in a vicious overhand arc. The guardian swung back at the last moment and the brutal chop missed by inches, careening into the floor. He staggered back in disbelief, his hands going numb and letting the greataxe clatter to the floor. He whispered, "Not again...", and crumpled to the ground with a sickening thud.

The tomb once again fell silent and the sole remaining guardian of air returned to its chamber. For a long time, the quiet was only disturbed by the occasional groan of pain from one of the defeated group. Then from the floor, a ghostly head protruded and slowly took in the gruesome sight before him. Alastor, far too curious to pass into the afterlife without seeing what was on the other side of the door he had lost his life attempting to open, floated beside Doctor Voo. Exerting all his will, he forced his hand into the land of the living and carefully took a potion from the priest's pouch. He poured it into the cleric's mouth, who suddenly came to life sputtering and cursing. The dead boy dropped the empty vial and fled into the floor once more. Doctor Voo quietly tended to those out on the bridge first. Then he shed his armor and quietly crept into the larger chamber to retrieve Aiyda and Natasha without rousing the guardian.

The group, some still unconscious but all alive, retreated to the mine office and spent several days recovering before daring to venture back into the Whispering Cairn. During this period, Sergi summoned his familiar, which when he awoke from the heavy trance induced by the ceremony, was found to be the bear cub Natasha had saved. For her own obscure reasons, ranger had named the bear Audit and the sorcerer kept the name. Several days later and once again feeling hale and whole, the group retraced their steps back to the room where they had fought the guardians before. This time, the creature was quickly dispatched as only one guardian remained and the group knew what to expect.

The room now cleared of dangers, the group examined each of the great bas-reliefs that where in each of the four corners of the room. Each depicted the great primordial war of Law and Chaos and each moved, retelling the ancient story. In some, the Wind Dukes could be seen warring with the great Miska, the Wolf Spider. The group carefully looked at each, often turning to Aiyda or Sergi to fill them in on what was happening. After the group had investigated these, they turned their attention to the column of wind that whooshed in the center of the chamber. Following the wind, the group could see there appeared to be circular hole in the ceiling. Scorch took out one of the bloodstained rags that he had bought in the Church of St. Cuthbert and dropped it into the column. The rag fluttered for a moment and then shot up the column through the hole.

One by one, the group stepped into the column of air, which lofted them into a small chamber. At the far end of the chamber lay another sarcophagus, this one upon a stone platform with a short set of stairs that lead to the sarcophagus. Over the great sarcophagus was another bas-relief, this one showing a noble Wind Duke being struck down by an orb of utter darkness. Max checked the stairs for any of the Wind Dukes' treachery, but found none and continued upwards. As he reached the top of the stairwell, a proud voice spoke out, asking in tongue of the halflings to speak its name. Max looked back at the group uneasily and shrugged, carefully retreating back down to the floor. Aiyda thought hard for several moments, an ancient name dancing on the tip of her tongue. Finally it came to her and a smile spread across her pretty face. Stepping boldly up the stairs, the voice once more intoned, this time in Common, and Aiyda answered.

The name spoken, the seam between the lid and base of the sarcophagus shined with azure light. Max crept back up the stairs and carefully examined the seam for any traps but found none. He called up Scorch, Natasha and Doctor Voo to help him open the heavy lid. Before they got there, he decided to give the lid a shove, and it slowly and silently slid off on its own, revealing the remains and treasure of the Wind Dukes.


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## Spatterlight (Sep 4, 2006)

Sergi Alix Smenk said:
			
		

> I am disappointed in you *spatterlight*. Where is it that I single handedly solved the mysteries of the whispering cairn. Where is it that I was the one who defeated Kullen and his gang and the rest of our merry band then showered me with praise and admiration? Where does it say that Aiyda, after I defeated Kullen, decided to thank me by reviling for the first time to a man, the secrets to carnal pleasure she learned from her years attending her mother at the emporium. I gave you a transcript that was true word for word and you only print half of the story. For shame.




Scorch does what Scorch wants!


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## Spatterlight (Sep 11, 2006)

*Session 9*
_September 8, 2006_

The last of the secrets of the Whispering Cairn uncovered, the group made their way out of the tomb. Nearing the entry of the cairn, several forms emerged from the shadows on either side of the hallway. Stepping forth from the darkness, a motley crew of armed townsfolk commanded the group to drop their weapons and hand over the loot they had found. Scorch was pretty sure that he had seen a couple of these people from the Emporium, but his memory was always hazy when he left that place. However, Aiyda clearly knew them, asking "What are you doing here?" It was a bouncer from the Emporium named Rory that answered, "We heard what you have found here. The walls of the Emporium have ears. And we want it, so drop your weapons and hand over the goods, before you get yourselves killed." For emphasis, he jabbed his sword toward Scorch, who sneered at the bouncer.

For terse seconds, no one said anything, looks of concern flickering between the members of the group. Then, without a word, a decision was made and Sergi conjured a beam of fire. The flaming ray struck a bald, older man who was brandishing a club and immolated him. The howls of pain from the man broke the shock of the sudden attack and the townsfolk struck. Rory attempted to stab Scorch, but his blade skittered over the gladiator's armor harmlessly. A shrew-faced woman attempted to club Natasha, but she was obviously unfamiliar with the weapon and missed by a large margin. From the rear of the party, four more townsfolk, hidden until now, came screaming and converged on the sorcerer. Stabbing and beating Sergi to the ground, he quickly fell to the brutal assault.

Without emotion, Scorch gutted the burning bald man and glanced to Rory, saying, "Still time to run, man." The man's face screwed tightly, rage burning bright in his eyes, and the gladiator knew the fools would stand and fight. Natasha hacked at the woman with the club, but found that she was actually quite wiry and failed to connect. In the rear, Aiyda sang a song of hope, even as a woman, who Scorch was pretty sure was a dancer from the Emporium, tried to drown her out with her own shill calls. "We would have let you go Aiyda! We just wanted these outsiders. But I see how it is." The dancer then tried to run the bard through with a wicked looking long knife, but the songstress dodged out of the way. Meanwhile, Doctor Voo called out to the Green Lady and healed some of the wounds of Sergi, who awoke in a haze of pain. Max drew his rapier and swung in behind a half-orc who was brandishing two shortswords and was moving in behind Scorch. He stabbed upwards, catching the man off guard and nearly killed him with one surgical strike.

The gang from the Emporium pressed their attack, but fell one by one. Scorch cut down the half-orc, with help from Max, and then turned on Rory. In the rear, Sergi threw bolt after bolt of magic and Aiyda and Max cut down the wounded with ease. Soon, the only would-be thief that was still standing was the woman who had been attacking Natasha. The woman, who Aiyda called Nurelle and told everyone was a card dealer at the Emporium, dropped her club and Scorch kicked out her knees, forcing her to the ground. Staring up with eyes filled with anger and humiliation, the gladiator then kicked the club out of reach and said, "Looks like there is going to be some openings at the Emporium." No one laughed.

Max quickly stripped the bodies as Doctor Voo prepared them for burial, as the group was unwilling to carry the corpses back to town and the doctrine of the Witch Goddess would not let the bodies be left behind. Scorch and Doctor Voo carried the remains of the Emporium Gang out of the cairn to a spot in the nearby woods Natasha had chosen. The morning and afternoon were spent digging the grave for the would-be thieves. As the light of the afternoon sun slanted through the still trees of the forest, Doctor Voo commenced a brief ceremony in honor of the dead. At its conclusion, Scorch filled back the graves and the group secured their loot and saddled up.

Pushing their horses to a full gallop, the group quickly rode back to Diamond Lake and returned to the observatory. There they found several more notes from C.G. imploring them to meet up with him. Although Scorch had not yet put this together, both the Smenk siblings and Aiyda knew that C.G. was most likely Chaum Gansworth, a mine owner and the proprietor of the "The Rusty Bucket", a local restaurant. They quickly hatched a plan to meet up with the man later that night, as they had already missed several rendezvous.

Before they could connect with Chaum, several tasks needed to be done. Scorch offered to take Nurelle to the Church of St. Cuthbert. Speaking briefly to the acolytes there, he explained what had happened and glared at the woman until she told her story as well. The acolytes gladly took her, explaining that she would be turned over to the sheriff. Scorch groaned inwardly, as he feared the woman would be free in no time given the corruption in the guard, but there was little that could be done now. With a half-hearted blessing to St. Cuthbert, the gladiator left the Church and returned to the observatory.

Meanwhile, Aiyda returned to the Emporium. After speaking to several of its denizens, the songstress purchased enough supplies to make a decent, if makeshift, disguise kit. Returning to the observatory, the bard prepared a disguise for Natasha, and after convincing Sergi that she found men in makeup attractive, Sergi as well. At Natasha's request, Aiyda made the ranger appear as Nurelle, a clever plan already unfolding in her mind. Long after dark, the group now cleaned up and disguised, made their way over to The Rusty Bucket.

The restaurant was crowded and one by one the group filtered in. The disguised Natasha entered last and asked the maitre d' to inform Chaum Gansworth that Nurelle, a card dealer from the Emporium, was here to work a special shift. After an unsuccessful attempt to catch the owner's attention, Natasha told the maitre d' to tell him that she had been sent to the observatory the other night and something must have been confused, as she missed him. This time, the message was received and Chaum waved the disguised ranger over to a secluded table in the rear of the restaurant. Natasha flashed a signal to her brother and he joined her at the table, with the others in the group slowly filtering over.

Overflowing platters of food were put out for the group, as Chaum introduced himself and the group did the same, although he seemed to know what they had been up to. Buttering a roll, he quickly got to why he had called them here. "I have no love for Balabar Smenk, a man so detestable, that even his own children have turned against him." He gestured across the table with a dull knife to the Smenks and they nodded. He continued, "I believe that he will be the death of this town, if he is allowed to continue. As you all know, Balabar has consolidated quite a bit of the mines under him. But there have always been a few mine owners who rather die than let Smenk buy them out and would never even talk to him. Until recently, I counted Ragnolin Dourstone, the dwarf, as one of them." He took a bite of his roll and then continued, "But it seems even that has changed. Recently, Ragnolin has been seen associating with Balabar and Smenk has even been into Dourstone's mines. Also, there have been a number of outsiders seen going in and out of Dourstone's mines. And these are not miners ... they wear robes and hoods that hide their faces."

Chaum waited for a moment, allowing a waitress to pass, and continued, "I am _most_ curious to know what is going on down there. And I need some dependable and discreet people to investigate this. But, of course, I can not have this connected to me. However, if your group was to investigate this aberration, for your own personal reasons, well ... " Suddenly, the door of the Rusty Bucket swung open, and six men with a shortsword in each hand darted in. They ran crouched low, their blades down, and charged toward the table where the group sat. Someone in the crowd screamed, "Assassins!" and all the guests of the restaurant made a mad rush for the exit.

The assassins seemed to have specific targets as they singled out Natasha, Sergi, and Chaum. Aiyda sprang to her feet and immediately sang a song devoted to the power of the common man. One of the murderers was cut down by Scorch as he drew a dagger from his belt and buried it in the back of one of the men. Another was felled by Max as he stabbed with unerring accuracy with his thin rapier. One of the assassins attempted to jump on the table in a gambit to kill Chaum, but was clobbered by a vicious blow from Doctor Voo's staff. Natasha ran another through as Sergi launched an arrow of flame at one, catching him square in the abdomen and setting him aflame. The man took several steps and then collapsed to the ground. The last assassin strayed too close to Doctor Voo, who called out to the Green Lady and put his outstretched hand over the assassin's heart. A corona of black energy flared briefly around the priest's hand and the eyes of the murderer grew wide in sheer terror as his heart convulsed and then fell silent. The corpse hit the ground with a thud, acrid tendrils of smoke wisping from his chest.

Quickly locking the doors to the restaurant, Max gave a cursory search of the bodies and quickly looted them. The halfling found no identifying marks on the bodies, but Aiyda noted that their fighting style was indicative of one of the lesser assassin guilds of Greyhawk City. Chaum, who looked a little shaken by the assault, quickly offered fifty gold coins to each of the group to investigate the Dourstone Mines. Chaum also agreed to supply any miscellaneous mining supplies that were needed.

Natasha queried Chaum at length and both Aiyda and Natasha seemed to think he was being truthful. As part of questioning, the group found out that while the mines where an around the clock operation, there was a day of rest in two days when the mine would not be as busy. Deciding that they would attempt an infiltration of the mines at that point, the group also found out some details about the employees of the mine. The group did a bit more planning and most of the group returned to the observatory. Finding a wheelbarrow in back of the restaurant, Scorch loaded up the corpses and walked with the Doctor Voo and Aiyda to the graveyard outside of Diamond Lake. 

Two days passed as the group gathered supplies and prepared to infiltrate the Dourstone Mines.


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## AnAverageDM (Sep 12, 2006)

great story hour. keep it up.


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## Sergi Alix Smenk (Sep 12, 2006)

Great update. So do you think were finally done with the WC? Since the mine office is like a day and a half away, I like the idea of moving to the old observatory. I still think we could have gotten a little bit more money from Gansworth. Oh well. When we sneak in to the mines I think we need to be very careful. I’m all for getting rid of evil cult followers, but I don’t want to be killing off any guards just doing there job, especially when it’s us that’s doing the breaking and entering. I never gave much recognition to the law though, so I’m not going to loose any sleep over trespassing. Well, you keep the updates coming and I’ll keep reading them. You just have to work a little bit harder to capture my true likeness. Braver, stronger, more powerful. Get to it.

S.A.S


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## Sergi Alix Smenk (Sep 27, 2006)

so where is the next update of my heroic deeds. your slipping splatterlight


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## Spatterlight (Sep 29, 2006)

*Session 10*
_September 15, 2006_

The two of them swept through the crowd at the Feral Dog, taking in the scene and seeking their quarry.

Aiyda locked eyes with a group of four dirty miners sitting in the back of the dive and gestured to Max to follow. Weaving through the mangy crowd, the duo threaded their way to the table. The men moved aside to give room for the girl, not noticing the halfling till he jumped into a seat and tipped his hat. A dark expression soured each of their faces at this, but the halfling was quick and glib.

Calling for a round and trying to keep their attention from the winsome bard, the halfling quickly laid out an offer. The group needed information about the mines and would be willing to pay for it. The promise of easy gold sharpened the attention of the men, who told the two quite a bit about the mines and their general workings. After earning the miners' trust, Aiyda and Max made another offer: They needed to infiltrate the mines unseen, but would need a distraction. The miners whispered among themselves, a sly smile dawning on each of their faces in turn. A deal was set: At sundown the following day, a day of rest at the mines, the duo would get their distraction. Small sacks of gold were covertly passed and a plan was set in motion.

The next day, the group gathered the final supplies for the adventure ahead and ran various errands. As dusk approached, the group crouched behind a small hill that overlooked the Dourstone Mines. The sun turned red and began to sink beneath hills, the purple twilight giving way to true dark. Doubt grew that the miners would not hold to their side of the bargain, but Max kept faith and peered down on the working men. Suddenly, a great cry came from the mine and there was a tremendous scrambling of men. Judging from the shouts, it seemed that a canary had turned up dead and the mine was now unsafe.

Seeing the signal, the group stealthy ran into the mine, garnering no attention in the mass confusion. Moving along the shadowy passage, the group followed a crude map the miner's had described to Aiyda and Max the night before. Their destination was a section of the mines that had been forbidden and they found it readily enough. A makeshift barrier of worn wooden planking barred the way. Scorch carefully pried several of the boards back, shooed all through, and then carefully put the boards back as best he could.

Once this was done, the group found themselves in a long tunnel. This passage terminated in a large room with a platform which was tethered to a thick chain. The lift swayed over a pit of darkness and no one could see the bottom. All quickly leaped aboard and Scorch, with assistance of several others, slowly lowered the lift. The group descended two hundred feet into the earth, with only the jingle of chains and grunts of those working the lift disturbing the silence of the underworld.

The lift shaft opened into a sprawling chamber. Three doors could be seen, two marked and one unmarked. The sign of the eye and hand of Vecna was upon one and the clasped arrows of Hextor were on the other. In the distance, a marbled floored room with a pool of dark liquid could be seen. Suddenly, several figures and all went dark. With a tremendous thud, Scorch dropped the platform to the ground and the group prepared for battle.

The gladiator sprung over the side of the platform, his greataxe already in his hands, and charged out of the darkness toward where he had last seen the figures. His rash decision turned out to be nearly his last, as when he emerged from the sorcerous blackness, the figures were waiting for him. The figures, each of which was darkly skinned and had small horns jutting from their foreheads, hacked down Scorch with greataxes. Hearing the war cry of the gladiator cut short, the group quickly moved forward and out of the inky darkness.

Aiyda sang a song of light and hope as the group sprung forth and set upon the strange humanoids. Blades flashed and arrows flew as several of the figures were cut down in short order, but one managed to retreat to the door bearing the symbol of Hextor. Bleeding profusely, he used the last of his strength to fling the door open and call for help. From beyond the door, a din of metal could be heard and a swarm of armor clad skeletons poured out. Doctor Voo called out to Wee Jas several times. Each time, the undead were put to rest and soon the area was cluttered with crumbling bones and battered armor.

Scorch was revived and the group pushed their assault, entering the room from whence the skeletons had sprung. They were immediately assaulted by a regimen of foot soldiers wielding battle axes. This force proved fairly weak and were quickly dispatched, but they held the line for long enough. From further in the complex, a thundering of hooves was heard and from a side passage, a massive boar roared into the room. Its eyes maddened with rage, the creature tore into the ranks of the group, nearly killing Aiyda. Working together, Natasha, Max, and Scorch managed to butcher the crazed thing and Doctor Voo administered a potion of healing to save his dying sister.

A moment of calm descended on the complex and the group healed themselves as best they could. Then the keen ears of Natasha heard a distant chanting from the passage the boar had emerged from and she dashed down it. Scorch was right behind her, followed by the others in the group. The passage split into three ways, but the ranger was sure the chanting was coming from behind an impressive door immediately in front of the group. Sharing a look, Scorch and Natasha kicked in the door.

The duo was immediately confronted by a gigantic ape, its fur black and eyes blazing with infernal light. The two reacted and began to strike it and Sergi drained its strength with an ebon beam. With several devastating strikes, the enfeebled ape was dispatched and vanished in a cloud of stinking vapors. The ape now gone, the group could see the room beyond. In this vast chamber, they could see a huge six armed statue, as well as several undead and more of the strange horned men. The undead lumbered forward as one of the horned men caused darkness to envelope the passage. Doctor Voo attempted to lay the living dead to rest with a command from the Green Lady, but found these zombies resisted the call of his goddess. As Natasha and Scorch battled the undead in inky blackness, a new threat appeared.

From one of the side passages, a group of horned men, a mighty warrior, and what could only be the head priest came charging down the hall. Now outflanked by the enemy, the group grew desperate. Sergi, who had been conserving his arcane might, began to release bursts of flame, which caught all of the tightly packed soldiers. Several of them fell, even as Max danced between the minions of Hextor, laying them low his rapier.

Hacking and slashing, some of the zombies were cut down and several of the party entered the main temple of Hextor. Here, the horned men had pulled back and sent arrows at the group as they emerged from the darkness. Aiyda used a wand that had been found in the Whispering Cairn to shatter many of the horned men's greataxes. However, one of the horned men who still had his weapon charged Doctor Voo, who had just exited the darkness and caught him by surprise. Unable to react in time, the greataxe struck true and cleaved the head of the priest from his shoulders, sending it rolling across the blood slick floor. Screaming in fury, Aiyda cut down the man-thing that had killed her brother.

The battle raged and soon almost all of each of the parties now lay dead or dying on the floor. Of the group, only Max and Aiyda still stood as the head priest called out for their surrender. Max responded by driving his rapier through the last remaining horned man's heart. Now out numbered and wounded, the head priest fled.


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## Spatterlight (Oct 7, 2006)

*Session 11*
_September 22, 2006_

Scorch carefully wrapped the slain Doctor Voo in sheets he had found, trying not to hear the muffled sobs coming from the next room. The temple was quiet except for the weeping Aiyda and murmured words of comfort from the Smenk siblings. Max silently padded around the temple, taking stock of the riches of the fane and looting the fallen. Occasionally, the halfling gestured to the gladiator to help move some heavy item. In short order, the halfling had everything of worth in the temple in neat piles.

Max called the group together once Aiyda had steeled herself and wiped the tears from her eyes. The intrepid halfling gathered all the glittering trinkets and coin of the temple and Scorch put this in a sack. It was quickly agreed that this loot would be used to revivify the slain Doctor Voo. The group hoped that the followers of Wee Jas near town would be able to perform the ceremony. All the other items would be stored in a side room for retrieval later.

Seeing that was done, Max turned to the group, combing back his hair. "Well, it seems that the high priest of this temple kept a journal." He held up a large, crimson book with the sign of Hextor upon it. "That armored fellow who ambulated post-haste after I skewered his man was mostly likely Theldrick, the author of this volume. I have taken the liberty of scanning it for interesting bits." In a clear and surprisingly carrying voice, the halfling read out loud to the assembled:

_The Faceless One grows increasingly concerned. That addled beast Grallak Kur has yet to provide new insights into the Overgod's nature. The crude missives he sends speak of the worms, of a slumbering power that must be awoken, but nothing more. I wish he would go back to the black pit that spawned him if he has nothing more to offer.​
The Faceless One tells me this ties into an ancient figure, a being of great power. Of course, he tells me little else. He enjoys keeping his secrets, but he forgets that they flourish only behind the protection of Hextor. His latest taunt is a scroll that he tells me contains all the answers I seek. Of course, the fool wrote it in a cipher. Were it not for the dictates of the Ebon Triad, I would lead my troops into their damnable labyrinth and kill every last bird and wizard within it.​
Grallak is the key. Thank the Scourge that he trusts me and not the Faceless One. Otherwise, I doubt the Faceless One would bother imparting anything to us. We cannot trust these mages. When the Overgod arises, I think it will be time to settle some old scores.​_The halfling flipped though many pages to one he had dog-eared, scanned the page, and continued: 

_Grallak Kur has finally yielded a useful clue. I personally delivered it to the labyrinth, and the Faceless one giggled like a blood addled berserker when he saw the message. Grallak spoke of the worms again, of course. He says that even now they stir and writhe. The world is like an apple infested with them. All seems well for now, but soon they burst through the skin and swarm across the land. Still, part of this vision troubles me. Grallak spoke of a great power behind them, but the Ebon Triad teaches that these worms will awaken the Overgod. Is there some other power at hand here that we cannot see? Is it friend or foe?​
The Faceless One knows more, but he of course has little to say. Perhaps Grallak has invented everything. His monstrous kin are few in number and battered after their pilgrimage through the Underdark. If he is an imposter or trickster, we may need to root him out of this place. In that case, our agents must make another supply run. Six coils of rope, and perhaps bows and more arrows, should do the trick. With the petitioners leading the way we can uncover any ambushes they have within the cliffs.​_The halfling closed the book with a thump, "There is more, but mostly it is prayers to his bloody god." The group discussed the contents of the journal at length, but much of it was confusing and they could make little sense of it. After further discussion, the group decided to leave the temple and head for the surface.

The group crept out of the Temple of Hextor into the central chamber. As before, this area was silent and still. Looking over to the area where the lift landed, they could see that it was no longer present. Given that there was no mechanism to lower the lift from the current area, the group decided to take a look at the area behind the unmarked door. Max carefully examined the door for traps and finding none, let Natasha open it.

The door opened into a rough hewn cave which twisted into darkness. Seeing the caves had no source of light, Aiyda summoned an invisible servant and had it grasp a sunrod. Cloaking the force in a black robe from the temple of Hextor, she sent it out in front of the group, hoping it would draw any ambushes. In addition, Scorch activated a sunrod and stuck into his belt. The group picked their way down the narrow cavern, often stopping to allow Scorch, who was carrying the body of Doctor Voo, to catch up. As the group was about to turn a corner, the sunrod the unseen servant was holding suddenly shattered. Natasha peered ahead and spied several humanoids skulking behind several stalagmites. Whispering back to the others, the group quickly prepared for combat and charged around the corner.

The narrow cavern opened into a larger chamber whose floor was studded with stalagmites. As the group ran into the cavern, arrows flew from the darkness and shattered the sunrod that was in Scorch's belt. The room would have been plunged into utter darkness if Aiyda had not cast a light spell earlier. With all the sunrods extinguished, three humanoids charged forward. They were gray skinned, had ragged long black hair, and most disturbingly, had no eyes. Despite this lack of sight, they tracked the group and swung widely with rusty battleaxes. The battle was brief and two of them were cut down in short order. The third attempted to flee, but was slain before he could reach another cavern on the far side of the chamber. The skirmish over, Natasha told the group the things were grimlocks, a subterranean race of blind humanoids whose sense of smell and hearing were second to none.

Activating more sunrods, the group ventured down the cavern the grimlock had attempted to escape to. The cavern was narrow but soon opened up into a vast chamber. As the group entered into this chamber room, they were assaulted by two large wolf things who sprung from behind a thick cluster of stalagmites. In addition, arrows flew from the darkness, shattering sunrods and extinguishing their light. A pitched battle was fought, but the wolf-things were put down quickly and two more grimlocks were slain.

The battle over, the group lit the last of the sunrods and moved further into the room. They soon found that the far side of the vast chamber dropped off suddenly, plummeting sixty feet to a rocky cavern floor. At the base of this cliff a cavern entrance could be seen. Iron spikes had been driven into the side of the cliff, forming a perilous route to the floor far below. Suddenly, arrows shot up from somewhere in the chasm and drove the group back.

A hasty plan was formulated. A rope would be dropped over the side of the chasm and Natasha would climb down quickly. To draw fire off the climbing ranger, Scorch would use Natasha's ring of feather falling and drop in first. The others in the group would join next, with whomever not climbing providing covering fire. In addition, before anything thing happened, Aiyda cast a spell of light on a javelin and this was tossed over the cliff face to provide illumination to the warriors.

The gladiator leapt off the cliff face, his bastard sword and shield at the ready, and fell slowly to the cavern floor. Natasha scrambled down the knotted rope, deftly leaping off the rope near the base of the cliff and drawing her weapons. The two of them shared a glance as their noses wrinkled. An almost unbearable stench wafted from the cavern entrance that had been seen from above. As they looked into the gloom of the cavern, a gurgling, thick groan-roar issued forth and two bizarre creatures lumbered toward the duo.

They were both monstrous ovoid things with three stumpy tentacles that served as legs. A huge mouth, filled with jagged and shattered teeth, gnashed wildly, hungry for the prey that had stumbled into its layer. Three more tentacles, once brisling with a cluster of eyes, wavered in the air. Grasping with two of the tentacles, they grabbed Scorch and Natasha and drew them in. Scorch dropped his bastard sword, shoved his shield into the abomination's mouth, and bloodied the thing with his spiked gauntlet. Meanwhile, Natasha stabbed at the creature with her shortsword, driving it deep as she realized these things were hated aberrations. Seeing the two were in trouble, deadly magic rained down on the creatures from Sergi as well.

The one grappling with the ranger was the first to die and once Natasha was free, she rolled over and ran the one assaulting Scorch through. Kicking the corpse off him, the gladiator let it take his shield and jumped to his feet. Natasha, meanwhile, ran to one side and spotted the hidden archers. From a barely seen overhang in the chasm wall, she saw three grimlocks with bows. Aiming the glowing javelin at the creatures, she threw it. Her aim was true and the javelin stuck out of the side of the blind humanoid. Now with a valid target, the group at the top and bottom of the chasm shot arrows, bolts, and magics at the creatures. 

However, while hits were scored by both sides, neither seemed able to strike a killing blow. Soon the grimlocks, low on arrows, retreated down a cave that opened beneath their overhang.


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## Spatterlight (Oct 11, 2006)

*Session 12*
_September 29, 2006_

Weary, wounded, and all but depleted of magic, the group retreated from the caves of the grimlocks.

Moving back out to the central area, the group held a brief counsel and formed a plan to escape the Dourstone Mines. It was decided that Scorch would climb the lift shaft and lower it back down for all. The gladiator stripped out of his armor and put on Natasha's ring of feather falling. Carefully, he picked his way up the two hundred foot shaft, using one of the corners to help brace him. Sweating and cursing, he pulled himself up into the cavern that held the lift. Peering out into shadowy darkness, he could see no one waiting in ambush. After a brief pause to catch his breath, he lowered the lift back down for the others.

With glacial slowness, the group hoisted themselves back up and made their way to the barricade. Natasha listened for a moment, hearing the distant sounds of miners at work, but nothing untoward. In addition, the ranger found that the barricade had been broken and there had been no attempt to hide this damage. With no one in sight, the group put on dark robes from the temple of Hextor and began to make their way to the surface disguised as cultists. Soon enough they encountered several miners, but Max's silver tongue and gold coins convinced them that they had seen nothing unusual.

Once near the entrance of the caves, the final potion of the group's plan was enacted. Using the last of her magics, Aiyda turned herself invisible and summoned another unseen servant. Cloaking this one in a dark robe as well, she quickly soaked it in lantern oil. With a flick of a tindertwig, she lit the cloak on fire and marched it out into the center of the mine yards. A great commotion arose as the fiery thing danced and fluttered about. Seeing that the guards and miners were distracted by this strangeness, the rest of the group escaped unnoticed into the surrounding forest. Spying her friends vanish into the tree line, the bard beat a hasty retreat, the servant collapsing sputtering to the ground.

Meeting up in the woods, the group decided to visit the graveyards where the servants of Wee Jas were known to congregate. Here it was hoped that that the slain Doctor Voo could be brought back to land of the living. It was now deep in the night, but knowing the nocturnal nature of the priests of the Green Lady, the group was soon rattling the gates of the boneyard. A pale figure cloaked in black robes glided from behind an ancient mausoleum. Intoning grim warnings to leave this place, other robed figures appeared from the shadows and soon the group was surrounded. Aiyda spoke for her brother, pleading for the followers of the Witch Goddess to revive their fellow servant.

The figures were silent for a moment, than the group was told to wait as one figure departed for the graveyard. One hour later, a pale woman dressed in the regalia of a high priestess of Wee Jas ventured from the shadows of tombstones, a procession of dead men shuffling before her. The zombies parted for their strange mistress and she spoke to the group in a low, rasping voice. "What you ask has not been done for many years. The Great Green Lady requires sacrifice for this immense task." Scorch brightened at this and was about to offer Sergi, who had grown fidgety during the wait, but she continued before he could make a deal. "Each of you will be required to give up a dearly held procession. Such is the will of the Witch Goddess!" Pinning each of the group with her intense gaze, she called out the things that were to be given: Scorch was to give up his enchanted greataxe, Natasha her ring of feather falling, Max his beloved mystical goggles, and so on. As the last of the tribute was given, the undead stumbled forth and bore the body of Doctor Voo into the boneyard. The high priestess told the group to return the next day and the task would be done. Silently, the group returned to the observatory, each falling into a deep exhausted slumber.

The next morning, some of the group set out to sell the loot that had been recovered from the Temple of Hextor. Aiyda and Max set out early in the morning while Natasha and Scorch decided to spend the day in their bedroom. Soon Sergi, unable to tolerate the noise emanating from the room above, set out for town as well. The bard and halfling sold some of the trinkets, buying several potions and other pieces of equipment. However, they could not find what they truly sought: a healing wand. After asking around, they were pointed toward the garrison at the center of town. The garrison, which housed soldiers from Greyhawk City that guarded the mines, also had a temple of Heironeous the Invincible. It was here that duo was joined by Sergi.

While Max and Aiyda worked out a deal to secure a healing wand, Sergi struck up a conversation with several of the servants of the Invincible. The sorcerer off-handedly mentioned that he and his friends were dealing with an evil cult and the acolytes immediately grew grave and their questions pointed. The Smenk family was known to consort with all manner of vile characters and was rumored to be guilty of terrible acts to further their own ends. Sergi was taken into the garrison for further questions and Aiyda and Max offered nothing more than a wave, for the sorcerer was getting on their nerves.

Sergi was taken into a room with in the church and was interrogated at length by a young and attractive paladin named Melinde. After several hours of questioning, during which he spoke at length of interests and goals but nothing evil, he asked a query of his own. Coming out of the temple beaming, he told the group later that he had secured a date with the holy warrior.

The rest of the day was relatively quiet, the group waiting for nightfall to visit the graveyard and meet up with the revived Doctor Voo. Several hours after dusk, the group ventured to the graveyard and once again was confronted with enigmatic worshippers of Wee Jas. The high priestess moved from the boneyard, a procession of the moldering dead trailing her and carrying Doctor Voo. The priestess made a broad gesture and Doctor Voo, who looked weak was but very much alive, was set to his feet. Aiyda and Scorch rushed to his side to support him as the followers of the Witch Goddess drifted back into the shadows. Before she went, the high priestess gave Doctor Voo a look and something passed between them. The cleric nodded once to the priestess and then closed his weary eyes, the high priestess vanishing into the darkness.

They were halfway back to the observatory when the priest opened his eyes again and spoke in his deep gravely voice, "A change has been set upon me by the Green Lady. I have strayed far from the path, mon, but now I'm brought back to the fold." Everyone looked at the priest with concern as he continued, "No longer will I heal with a touch. Only the touch of the grave will come from my hand." Doctor Voo went onto explain that his ways had always been counter to the doctrine of the followers of Wee Jas, causing much friction with them. However, after his death and resurrection, his Goddess had touched him directly and he would commit his small heresies no more. No longer would he heal when he could harm. The undead would be his servants, rather than fleeing from him. And so, he would further the will of his goddess.

The group returned to the observatory and was soon asleep, still weary from the battles the day before. However, there was no peace that night, as in the predawn hours, the group was awoken to the sounds of rummaging and a single thought searing into their brains: 

*WHERE IS THE FRAGMENT?*​Startled aware, the group found their lair had been invaded by strange monsters. Red skinned creatures, their legs those of a goat and beards made of serpents, stalked the observatory, endlessly thought-shouting their question. A wickedly barbed halberd, its ends clean and razor sharp, were clutched in their claws. There were two of these things in total. Accompanying them were a mob of the pink abominations that the group had encountered in the Whispering Cairn.

Natasha sprung from her sleep, kicking the slumbering Scorch awake as one of the red creatures was rooting though one of their closets. The duo rolled out of bed, grabbing nearby weapons, and were swarmed by the mindless pink things. Max, who had unbeknownst to Scorch and Natasha had taken to sleeping in their chamber, jumped to his feet, his rapier in hand and began to skewer the fat things. Meanwhile, one of the red creatures stalked though the bedroom, obviously looking for something. Not finding it, he immediately began to climb the stairs to the upper chamber.

Doctor Voo and Aiyda had settled in the upper chamber and were already fighting a battle of their own. From the shadows, came a tittering giggle familiar to the bard. The songstress dodged a surprise blow as the imp that had vexed her in the Whispering Cairn tried to jab her with its stinger. The bearded devil strode up the stairs, its halberd flashing at the cleric and bard, and they desperately attempted to repel the invader with magic.

In the chamber below, after a rough start, Max, Scorch and Natasha made quick work of the pink things. Scorch's silver blade once more proved useful and Natasha and Max worked as a team, striking the monsters with telling blows. Soon the pink creatures had been vanquished, each disappearing in a puff of acrid smoke. The bearded devil that was stabbing at the bard and cleric suddenly vanished and reappeared before Scorch, its beard hissing and spitting. Max and Natasha attempted to reason with the thing, but as soon as it found that they had no idea of what it was searching for, it flew into a frenzy and attempted to gut the gladiator.

As Scorch stabbed at the creature and held its attention, Natasha swung around nimbly to flank the thing. Aiyda and Doctor Voo, no longer menaced by the bearded devil, ran to help the others. Aiyda used her bardic magics to make her brother impossible to see and the cleric ran down the stairs, darting about invisibly and healing the beleaguered fighters. The fury of the group upon it, the bearded devil was cut soon cut down.

While the main of the group was battling these invaders, Sergi was having difficulties of his own. The sorcerer had taken to bedding down in the main dining room, where the murmuring approvals of Filge's zombies lulled him to sleep every night. He awoke with a start as the second of the bearded devils ransacked several of the guest chambers. The sorcerer attempted to blast the creature with his most potent killing spells, but found the creature was seemingly immune to all magics. The creature charged over and began to grapple him to the ground, eventually forcing him to submission while the devil tore open Sergi's pack.

The devil suddenly let the sorcerer go as the rest of the group charged down the stairs, ready to assist the sorcerer. A brief melee broke out at they desperately tried to kill the devil, but he flew into a rage and felled the group one by one. Soon only Doctor Voo, still invisible, was left standing. Using the last of his magics, the priest healed Scorch, hoping he could finish this. 

The gladiator wobbled to his feet, his silver shortsword wavering in front of him, and called out a challenge. The bearded devil glared at him and then vanished into thin air.


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## Sergi Alix Smenk (Nov 28, 2006)

hay, where's the update? people need to know about the hot date i went on.


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## Spatterlight (Dec 6, 2006)

*Session 13*
_November 17, 2006_

*BANG! BANG! BANG!*

Scorch's eyes fluttered open and his gaze slid down the hall to the entrance of the observatory. With a groan, he wobbled to his feet and shambled toward the source of his aggravation.

*BANG! BANG! BANG!*

"All right, all right!", The gladiator leaned near the door, each movement reopening wounds from the night's slaughter, "Who the hell is it?!" A cheerful female voice responded, "This is Melinde, Champion of Heironeous! I am here for my date with Sergi Smenk!" A moment passed, Scorch trying to comprehend what madness had landed on his doorstep. Sergi with a date? With a girl? This he had to see.

The gladiator kicked a heavy chair away from the door and flung it open. Standing outside was a pretty young woman dressed in full armor and prepared for battle. She gasped as she saw the shirtless Scorch, "What happened to you?!" Scotch ogled her for a moment, "What kind of date are you ..." He paused and looked down on his battered and filthy body, "Oh, this? Yeah, we got ambushed by a bunch of demon things last night. Well, you might as well come in."

Scorch closed the door and shouted down the hallway, "Hey Sergi! Your quote/unquote date is here!" Turning to the paladin, "Come on into the main room. Gotta warn you though, it is a slaughterhouse in there. And we have some brown-nosing zombies in there too. Ask Sergi about them, it's a great ice breaker." With Melinde nervously gripping the sword on her belt, the gladiator turned and lumbered back down the hall.

While Scorch was talking to the paladin, Sergi quickly making himself presentable. Using minor magics, the sorcerer quickly cleaned himself and mended several tears in his clothing. He had just finished as Scorch and Melinde entered the main room of the observatory. Sergi fluttered across the room, his hands gesturing wildly, "My dear, please excuse the deplorable conditions of my humble home. We should talk outside in the fresh air! ..."

Melinde smiled, "I have seen worse and I am just glad you all survived. Otherwise, your noble friends would not be able to accompany us on our date this afternoon. I thought we could go cleanse the evil cults you said infested the Dourstone Mines."

By now, the rest of the group had filtered into the main room and gave each other puzzled looks. Sergi gaped at the paladin for a moment, words failing him, and she continued.

"It is all set! My brothers and sisters have secured the mines and wait for us even now. But, we cannot have you walking around in such condition!" Reaching into her pack, she withdrew a wand, "Mr. Sheckles, the wand of healing that you ordered has arrived early. Shall we put it to good use and get everyone ready to fight evil?"

The group agreed and was healed quickly. Moving through town purposefully, they stopped only briefly to pick up some last minute supplies. The streets and taverns of Diamond Lake were much busier than normal this afternoon, idle miners from the closed Dourstone Mine taking advantage of their unexpected day off.

Arriving at the Dourstone Mines, they found it as Melinde said. She briefly met with several of her order and then the group descended into the mines. Soon they were lowering themselves into the area that held the temples of Erythnul, Hextor, and Vecna. Having only partially explored the caves devoted to Erythnul, the group chose to investigate these first.

The group retraced their steps and soon entered the first of the great caverns. On their original sortie into the caves, the group was ambushed here by several grimlocks here. Once again, several figures could be seen lurking. With a mighty cry, Scorch charged forward to attack, only to find that as he closed the distance to the enemy, the lights of group went dim and all was shadows. 

In this eldritch darkness, the grimlocks swarmed out and this time their appeared to be a leader among them: a raging grimlock warrior with two daggers. Scorch met this one head-on and found that the creature was an expert with the blades, stabbing him repeatedly. Meanwhile, the others in the group made short work of the blind humanoids, easily cutting them down. The grimlock leader, sensing his warriors had fallen, fled the battle, the shadowy darkness going with him.

Unwilling to follow the retreating grimlock, the group mended their wounds and continued on. Moving carefully through the caves, they soon found themselves in the large cavern with a precipitous drop to more caves below. The cliff face here was covered in arcane shadows and it was difficult to see the far side of the cavern. Deciding to work their way to the cave floor sixty feet below, a hasty plan was devised. Natasha would clamber down the cliff face while Scorch and Melinde lowered Doctor Voo to the floor using rope. Then Melinde would be lowered by Scorch. The others in the group, Aiyda, Sergi, and Max, would do their best to climb down the rope or use the iron spikes that studded the cliff face.

As Natasha climbed down the rocky cliff, using only the iron spikes, she came under attack. Once more, arrows shot from the darkness, first striking the ranger then the dangling Doctor Voo. Sergi scrambled down, but about halfway lost his grip and tumbled to the hard floor below. Doctor Voo cut the rope when he was still approximately ten feet off the floor and was sent sprawling. The rope slackening, Melinde secured herself and with Scorch's help was lowered down the cliff, with Aiyda and Max following her. Eventually, Scorch climbed down as well.

In the meantime, Natasha was climbing the far wall, eventually coming up to a stone outcropping below the ledge a trio of grimlock archers was using as a firing platform. One swooped down to meet the ranger in melee, but was quickly dispatched by her sword and hammer. The other two grimlocks were cut down with a barrage of arrows, bolts, and magic from the rest of the group. Max delivered the killing blow on the last of the blind humanoids, using a halfling trick shot to strike a grimlock that was cowering behind cover.


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## Spatterlight (Dec 17, 2006)

*Session 14*
_December 1, 2006_

Natasha was the first to hear it, but soon it was evident to all: the rhythmic beating of a war drum. 

The group exchanged nervous glances as they looted the corpses of the fallen grimlock snipers. Conferring quickly, they decided to explore a lower cavern before venturing to a higher one. Picking their way down the cavern, they soon came upon a vast chamber, the edges of which were strewn with moldering bones. The war drum boomed here, echoing weirdly through the caves. Glancing upwards, the cavern vaulted into shadows, although a rope bridge could be seen. 

From these shadows, a great beast suddenly sprang forth, landing on the cavern floor with a grace unusual for something its size. The creature was clearly a dragon, its crimson scales glittering and its strange eyes surveying the group. Rising to its full height, which was as tall as an ogre, the dragon spoke in a deep rasping voice, "Agree to serve me and you can keep your worthless lives. Defy me and I will slaughter you here." The dragon spread its wings and waited for an answer.

Several of the group pulled back, unsure of what to do, as the dragon was clearly a powerful foe. Scorch, however, felt no need to hesitate as he remembered a passage from the works of Enesto Voritad, a great dragon slayer: If the color of the dragon is in the rainbow, kill it. If it is your coin pouch, befriend it. With a mighty shout, the gladiator charged in, the dragon biting at him as he closed. Its eyes narrowing in anger, the dragon vented its fury on him. In a whirl of claw, fang, wing, and tail, the creature beat the gladiator to an inch of his life. Bloodied, but still standing, Scorch firmly held his ground to allow the others to get into place.

Following Scorch's lead, Melinde charged the dragon as well. Aiyda cast a spell, linking the minds of several of the group on a subconscious level, allowing them to coordinate their attacks with uncanny precision. Natasha sprung around the great creature, hoping to gain some advantage by flanking the dragon. Doctor Voo moved forward to bring the blessing of the Witch Goddess to the failing gladiator. Sergi cast multiple spells, blasting it with magic and also draining it of its strength with an ebon beam. Max flung a bag of tanglefoot at the dragon, which caught it squarely, binding it with a rapidly hardening alchemical substance.

The dragon, furious at the assault, breathed a tremendous gout of fire at the group, catching most of them. The group survived this fiery assault and attacked, but one by one the members of the group fell before the might of the dragon. Soon only Natasha and Max still stood and the dragon raged against the halfling. 

Using every halfling trick he knew, Max managed to duck, jump, and roll with almost all of the great dragon's attacks. After leaping out of the way of the creature's mighty tail swipe, the intrepid halfling pressed his attack, striking at the dragon's knee. The dragon roared in pain, faltering to one side, and gave Natasha the opening she desperately needed. With sword and hammer, the ranger brought the dragon down.

Somewhere, the war drum went silent.

When no more attacks came, the group healed themselves and decided to continue exploring the caves. Climbing back to the upper cavern, they soon crossed the rope bridge they had spied from below. Once across the bridge, they soon found themselves in another set of caves. Dimly, to one side, they could make out the glitter of coins and several humanoid shuffling about in them.

It all came together for Scorch at that moment. Muttering under his breath, "Those bastards are stealing my dragon horde!", he starting walking toward them. Raising his sword, he shouted, "Hey. Hey! Yeah you! Get the hell away from there!" As the gladiator approached, the creatures swung around and he could see they were more grimlocks. The blind humanoids swarmed toward the group, while one in the back pulled two daggers from his belt. Scorch recognized this one, as he had been stabbed multiple times previously by the grimlock, and called out to him. Recognizing the voice of the gladiator, the grimlock smiled and charged Scorch.

Any element of surprise lost, the group met the grimlocks head-on. Scorch hacked at the dagger-wielding grimlock, hoping to make short work of him. But as before, he proved far tougher than his appearance dictated. Scorch cursed as the flashing blades of the grimlock easily cut through his defenses again and again. 

Meanwhile, the others in the group fought the swarming grimlock warriors. Natasha darted forward, spotting a grimlock wielding a greataxe, and met him with sword and hammer. Aiyda sang a song of hope and Doctor Voo crushed the grimlocks with his flail. Sergi blasted the creatures with fans of flame and bolts of magic, as Melinde hacked her way into the line of blind humanoids. Max, moving with difficulty over the rough stone floor, made his was to assist Natasha, stabbing grimlocks as he went.

Faced with the full fury of the group, the grimlocks began to fall. The dagger wielding grimlock was slain by the combined force of Scorch and Melinde, with arcane assistance from Sergi. The others in the group made short work of the grimlocks, but not before Natasha was dropped by the greataxe-wielding grimlock. 

Scorch was about to turn his fury on this grimlock, when another of the humanoids materialized. Unlike his unseeing brethren, this strange grimlock had almost comically large eyes. He immediately began to strike out at the group, cutting a bloody swath through them.

The others in the group desperately fought the grimlock with strange eyes while Scorch turned to fight the greataxe-wielding grimlock, which was now menacing Max. The gladiator surged forward, slicing with his broadsword, and scoring a hit on the humanoid. The grimlock, foaming at the mouth and screaming in its guttural tongue, brought down his greataxe in a vicious arc. 

The mighty blow split bone and steel with equal ease and Scorch fell, dead before he hit the ground.

The others in the group rallied against the remaining grimlocks, with the one that killed Scorch the first to fall. The eyed grimlock, however, proved far more difficult to slay. Calling out to his bloody god, the grimlock brought down the fury of Erythnul on the group and mended his own wounds. Max was eventually able to use a tanglefoot bag to glue the creature to the floor, where the remainder of the group managed to fell the powerful grimlock priest after a prolonged battle.


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## Spatterlight (Dec 17, 2006)

*Interlude*

The gladiator opened his eyes, seeing only a swirling white mist. Although he felt no pain, he put his hand to head, "Aww man, not again." Staggering to his feet, he found himself in a featureless place of endless glimmering mists. "Dead. Again." He absently ran his hand across his shoulder and chest where the mortal wound had been struck, "Gods-damned greataxes."

For a moment, he drifted back to the last time he had been here. He had been warned that the ettin gladiator known as Bi-Tor would be his match and gave no quarter. But he had been at the height of his popularity and strength and took the challenge on despite the long odds. The match was prolonged and extremely bloody, but in the end, he had been defeated by Bi-Tor, who in a fit of bloodlust decapitated the fallen Scorch. It remains one of the ettin's more popular fights.

Of course, his father, a wealthy gladiator, had him returned to life shortly after the battle. But there had been money and power back in those days and there was precious little of either now. So, the gladiator waited in the strange mists.

He did not wait long. Suddenly there was a flash and he stood before three mighty celestials, their forms wrapped in robes of light. Their eyes were pools of righteous fire and they peered down on the gladiator. In a voice that boomed throughout the mists, one spoke:

"John Murin!" 

The gladiator was taken back as the celestial spoke his true name. He had been Scorch for so long he almost forgotten it.

"You have fallen in battle on the mortal plane. Our brothers and sisters call for your return to life there."

Scorch pumped his fist, exclaiming, "Yes! Max must have pulled some strings for me!"

Another of the angels spoke, its eyes blazing with fire:

"He is not worthy to return! His sins are too grievous and he is too weak for the trials ahead." The angel produced a scroll with dense script, which trailed off into infinity.

"Damn it, you have been keeping a list?" Scorch looked down for a moment and then back to the angels, "Come on. I have been trying. I am actually doing something with my life. I have been fighting evil monsters and cults. You guys hate those guys right? What with all this talk of worms eating the world and such. I'm your man!" He paused for a moment, "And I actually have someone to live for ..."

The gladiator was cut-off, as the final angel intoned, "It is foretold that his blood will slay the Worms."

For a moment there was a great silence, the celestials peering down on the gladiator. Then a decision was made.

"John Murin. We shall return you to the mortal plane ..."

Scorch gave them a thumbs-up, "You made the right decision."

The celestials continued, "But know this. Your blood will slay the Worms. But it will not be by your hand the task is done."


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## Spatterlight (Dec 26, 2006)

*Session 15*
_December 8, 2006_

Scorch woke with a start, strong hands holding him down. He could hear a cry and many voices, then the deep voice of Doctor Voo cutting through all, "Don't be moving, mon. The job not be done." Calling out to the Green Lady, the cleric of Wee Jas used the last of his healing spells to close over the worst of the many wounds suffered in the battle with the grimlocks.

With the help of Natasha and Doctor Voo, Scorch got to his feet and looked around. He was still in the cave where the battle had been fought, but now the bodies of the grimlocks were gone. All of the group were alive and although a bit ragged, looked mostly hale. Glancing over to where the treasure pile had been, he could see his companions had already been to work. The piles of coin and other items had been laid out and organized. But there seemed to be less than he had seen before.

"We used some of the coin and gems we found to bring you back!" Natasha clung to Scorch's arm as he walked some of the cramps in his legs out, "Everybody agreed it was the best way to go!" Sergi began to say something, but was silenced by a withering glance from his sister. Melinde looked over, "The faithful of Heironeous keep a scroll of life on hand for such emergencies. I returned to the surface to retrieve it, but I fear it was not all I brought back." She looked down for a moment, "The situation above has changed. The sheriff has established control of the mines and has removed my brothers and sisters. There is still a great deal of confusion and I was able to slip back into the mines. But I fear that we shall not be able to return to the mines if we leave. Whatever needs to be done in this den of evil, must be done now."

The group quickly conferred and agreed to rest in the cave before tackling the only remaining temple, that of Vecna. The rest of the day and night passed quietly, the group doing their best to prepare for the difficult task ahead. The hours passed slowly in the caves, but eventually the silence was broken by a strange chanting that echoed through the caverns. It was quiet at first, the words indecipherable, but soon it began to reach a crescendo and the one word of the chant became evident:

*OVERGOD! OVERGOD! OVERGOD!*

Grabbing their weapons, the group ran toward the central chamber where the three temples came together, chasing the sound. As they closed on the heavy stone door that sealed the caves of Erythnul, they could all hear the thundering chant beyond. Taking a moment, they prepared themselves for battle, casting defensive spells and drinking potions. As the last of the preparations were made, the signal was given and Scorch shoved the heavy door open.

The chant faltered as the group barged into the main chamber. At the far end of the vast chamber a great number of creatures were congregated, their cowled heads turning to spy the interlopers. On the ground, a flock of strange bird-like humanoids were gathered, their beady inhuman eyes gazing at the group. They drew their shortswords and squawked and crowed in their tongue. Above them, on a raised stone platform, stood four cloaked human cultists and two other figures. The first was Ragnolin Dourstone, the dwarven mine owner who while rather gruff, was well-regarded and thought to be a decent man. Next to him was a robed figure that had no face.

The dwarf seemed rather haughty and was about to call to the group, when the Faceless Man next to him suddenly shoved him off the stone platform. Ragnolin, a look of astonishment on his face at the betrayal, fell into a large pool of dark water at the base of the platform. As the mine owner sank beneath the surface of the deep pool, the Faceless Man called out in a loud voice, "The sacrifice has been made! Kill the invaders! Clear the way for the Overgod!"

Scorch, Merlinda, and Nastasha surged forward and formed a defensive line in the chamber, steeling themselves for the onslaught of bird-men. Aiyda sung a song of hope and life as Doctor Voo called out to the Witch Goddess and threw silver shavings to the ground, erecting a powerful ward against evil around him and those close by. Sergi blasted the Faceless Man with bolts of force, but the robed figure completed an incantation and the bolts splattered harmless off his newly erected defensive spell. Max, his rapier in hand, darted between the legs of the group, looking for opportunities to stab his feathery foes.

Aiyda called out, "Watch out! These bird-men are kenku and are all sneaks. They work best in groups. Don't let them gang up on you!" The kenku hit like a wave; all black feathers, dark cloaks, glittering talon, and sharp blades. Scorch and Melinda began to hack the creatures down, as Max and Natasha flitted about the swarm, striking and stabbing, taking the lives of the bird-men with every stroke. Aiyda once again linked the minds of the group with a spell, allowing them to coordinate their attacks with ease.

Still on the platform, the four cultists hastily cast defensive enchantments and girded themselves for battle. The Faceless Man called up foul beasts from the infernal planes, bringing a truly massive centipede and a black-furred ape with glowing red eyes to threaten the group. The summoned creatures charged in, but were suddenly stopped as Doctor Voo's ward repelled them.

Taking few wounds, the group quickly dispatched the kenku. The Faceless Man, seeing the first line of defense faltering, struck at the group with a bolt of lightening he cast from a crumbling scroll. The four cultists finished preparations for battle than descended to the floor of the chamber, hastened by a dome of silence erected on the platform by Aiyda.

Scorch and Melinda hacked at the summoned monsters, cutting down the fiendish ape first. Melinda went to strike down the great centipede, which in its dim fury had continued to try to attack Sergi and Doctor Voo, both of whom were protected by the priest's ward. In the meantime, Natasha and Max had run forward, bringing their blades to bare on two of the cultists who barred the way to the Faceless Man.

Scorch charged forward to fight two of the robed cultists who had broken off from the main group, slaying one and sending the other running. As he did so, the summoned centipede vanished behind him, only to be replaced by another fresh from the lower planes. Sergi sent a beam of ebon light hurling at this one, easily overcoming its resistance to magic and sapping it of its strength.

The battle raged on as Scorch raised his blade and began to chase down the fleeing cultist. As he approached the cultist, who had taken shelter near the dark pool, the water in the pool began to boil and hiss. Suddenly, dank water geysered from the pool and a huge misshapen form sprung from its depths. The thing was the size of an ogre and had six arms. Three of them ended in twisted claws, but the others were useless lumps of flesh. Opening its malformed maw, it revealed several rows of broken fangs and gave a guttural roar.

The Faceless Man shrieked, "THE OVERGOD HAS COME!"

Scorch struck before the creature could recover from the aftershocks of its summoning. Taking his bastard sword, he drove it into the creature with all the force he could muster. The blade sank deep and the creature roared with pain, but its inhuman frame took the blow as if it was nothing. Venting its rage on the gladiator, it bit deeply and raked him with its terrible claws. Scorch staggered back, his wounds nearly fatal.

The others in the group rallied at the sight of this new terror. Doctor Voo and Aiyda moved forward, healing those they could reach. Sergi sapped the Overgod's strength with another ebon beam. Natasha and Max, working as a team, neatly dispatched the three remain cultists, while Melinde hacked at the second giant centipede.

Scorch backed away from the Overgod, his shield deflecting blows from the beast. He staggered back toward Natasha and Max for help, hoping that Doctor Voo could reach him and heal his grievous wounds. The cleric was approaching when the Faceless Man took advantage of the situation. Drawing forth another scroll, he unleashed a powerful lightening bolt that tore through the tightly clustered group.

Scorch fell to ground, dead once more, his corpse charred nearly beyond recognition.

The Overgod roared in victory and lumbered over to the others in the group, its claws and teeth rending flesh and steel with ease. One by one, the others fell beneath the fury of the Overgod and soon only Sergi and Melinde stood to face the monster. Depleted of spells, the sorcerer stabbed feebly at the creature with his shortspear as Melinde slashed at it. However, when the Overgod went to attack Melinde, the sorcerer felt something snap within him. With a savage stab with his spear, he ran the creature through and it toppled over, its malformed limbs twitching.

For a moment, there was stunned silence. Then the sorcerer gave a mighty whoop and screamed at the top of his lungs, "I KILLED THE OVERGOD!" 

The Faceless Man, not anticipating this turn of events, grabbed a vial from one of the dead cultists and drank it down. His form grew misty and soon he was nothing more than a wisp of smoke. Moving slowly away, he escaped up the elevator tunnel that led to the mines and the surface. Although the group attempted to stop him, they had no magics that could do so and soon he was out of sight.

The battle over, the group healed themselves as best they could and mourned the loss of Scorch. As no new threats appeared, the group stayed in the temple overnight, helping themselves to the many treasures of the temple of Vecna. The following day, the group returned to the surface. As they emerged from the mines, they found they had lost all sense of time, for while they expected early morning, it was in fact late at night.

A call came from the darkness and suddenly lights began to flare on the mine yard. "Well, it's about time. We have been waiting for you." A figure approached and continued, "Now, why don't you make this easy on all of us and throw down your weapons and let us take you in?" As their eyes adjusted, they could see it was the sheriff and he had brought a handful of his best men. Although not threatening the group, they had their longswords out and they glittered in the light. For a moment, there was a terse silence and a decision was made.

The group went on the offensive, unwilling to submit to the corrupt sheriff, as he was known to be in the service of Balabar Smenk. The battle was short and brutal, but the group easily overwhelmed the sheriff and his men. As the brief melee concluded, the sound of clapping drew the group's attention. From the shadows of the mine yard, two figures strode forward: Chaum Gansworth and Balabar Smenk.

Chuam gave a broad smile as he clapped, "Well done! Well done!" He strode forward, "You have done much better than I expected." He shook his head, "But there has been a change of plans. With Ragnolin dead, his mines are ours for the taking. Balabar and I have come to a mutually satisfactory agreement. Your services will no longer be need..." A long silver blade suddenly sprung from Chaum's chest and he slid to the ground, clutching it. He garbled something unintelligible and looked up at Balabar, who wiped off the killing blade on his cloak, with eyes that glittered with hate. "Now don't look at me like that Chaum." He then vicious kicked the dying man, "It's just business."

He looked at the group, "Well then, where does that leave us?" He snapped his fingers and suddenly figures darted from the shadows, forming a line in front of him. "As you can see, I have not been idle. I too have gathered a band of adventurers." He made a broad gesture to the gathered figures in front of him. 

One of the adventurers was clearly a warrior and held a massive greataxe at the ready. Another was heavy armored and adorned with all manner of skulls. Her holy symbol and the scythe she held clearly marked her as a priestess of Nerull, the dark god of death. Another was a slight and pretty woman with mean eyes, while another woman held a short sword and mace. The last two were male and one was clearly a spell caster of some sort, as he was dressed in red robes and held a staff. The last was a halfling who held a bow.

The group stood silent for a moment, gazing at these dark reflections of themselves, when Balabar spoke, "All of you have been a thorn in my side for too long. This ends tonight." He leveled his rapier at the group, "Kill them all!"

Aiyda reacted first, shattering the greataxe of the warrior with a spell, as she had had enough of these deadly weapons. Melinde charged the vile cleric of Nerull and met her in melee. Sergi blasted his opponents with bolts of force and huge gouts of fire. Natasha sprung forward, stabbing with her short sword and smashing with her hammer. Doctor Voo waded in as well, crushing the enemy with his flail. Max darted forward, trying to engage the halfling, but found that he was too fast. At first Max was hopeful the halfling had some charmed boots that allowed such rapid speed, but was disappointed to note that he was barefoot.

Meanwhile, the pretty woman began to sing, strengthening her allies. The warrior pulled a crossbow and began to fire at the group, but without his greataxe, seemed to have lost his strength in battle. The cleric of Nerull called out to her dark god, but was quickly silenced by Melinde and Natasha. The halfling sprinted around at uncanny speeds, peppering the group with deadly arrows. The woman with the hammer and sword darted through the melee and delivered a few vicious strikes before being cut down. The mage cast baleful spells at the group, but his magics felled none of the group.

In the meantime, Balabar drank a potion and soared into the air. After a moment, he dove down, stabbing with uncanny precession as he flew by. Each stroke struck at the heart, sending both Melinde and Aiyda to the ground nearly dead. It was only the timely intervention of Doctor Voo that healed the near mortal wounds and got the two back on their feet.

The battle was swift and while Balabar delivered several near fatal blows, the group rallied against their doppelgangers. Soon, the only two of the enemy adventurers still alive were the mage and halfling. Seeing their fellows cut down, these two fled into the night. Balabar, still in flight but now bereft of allies, began to speed off through the air. A hail of arrows and bolts followed him and it was Natasha who scored the killing blow.

Balabar crashed to ground, dead by the hands of his children.


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## Spatterlight (Dec 27, 2006)

*Epilogue*

Following the death of Balabar Smenk outside the Dourstone Mines, Melinde and the followers of Heironeous called a town meeting to allow the group to show their findings. Based on what they had seen and found, it was clear the both Ragnolin Dourstone and Balabar Smenk had been involved in the Ebon Triad cult that had wormed its way into the town and mines. Furthermore, Melinde spoke at length of the corruption of the slain sheriff, although on this matter, she appeared to be preaching to the choir, as many of the townsfolk had suffered his depredations.

At the news of the deaths of the three hated mine owners and the cleansing of the vile cult from the town, a great cheer went up. There was much talk on what would become of the mines that were the lifeblood of Diamond Lake. Neither Chaum Gansworth nor Ragnolin Dourstone had any heirs and neither of the Smenk siblings had any interest in running the mines. So in accordance with Natasha's philosophy of equality for all and Sergi's searing hatred for anything mine related, the siblings turned over the mines to the people of Diamond Lake. Truly a new day had dawned on the town of Diamond Lake.

Several days following the death of Balabar, Melinde invited the group to the temple of Temple of Heironeous at the garrison for a victory party. Here they were presented with Greyhawk medals of valor for their valiant deeds. All but Doctor Voo was present for the ceremony, as the priest had been summoned by the followers of Wee Jas to their temple in the Cairn Hills.

However, all the events of the day were not as joyous. After spending as much time with Sergi as she could, the paladin revealed that their relationship could go no further, as she had been reassigned to Blackwall Keep. The keep was been subject to escalating assaults by lizardfolk raiders and a paladin of her skill was needed to reinforce the garrison there. After saying her goodbyes to Sergi and the rest of the group, she left Diamond Lake to travel to her new post.

Scorch was buried the day after the battle with Ebon Triad at the cemetery just outside the town proper. The ceremony was a simple affair and Doctor Voo presided. Except for his few friends in the group and Melinde, no other mourners attended the brief service. The stone over the gladiator was unadorned and simply read: "John Murin". Following the ceremony, all but Max returned to town. The halfling leaned on Scorch's tombstone, staring at the fresh earth and thinking of the times the two had spent together. Struggling to keep back tears, he quietly took a burnt piece of parchment from the pocket of his vest.

He had found it on the inside of Scorch's armor when he had been preparing his old friend for burial. The folded scrap of parchment had been singed badly, but the single word of "Max" could still be seen on the outside. The halfling unfolded it once more and saw the simple, careful writing of Scorch:
_
-- Max,

If you found this, I am dead. I got a good idea that my ride in the world is going to be a short one, so I got two things I want you to finish.

First, make sure Natasha turns out okay. She is strong, but she will need help and somebody to talk too. Stick with this or I will haunt you till your last day. Second, get my sister Jenny on this business with the cults. She still runs under the name Zephyr in the gladiator circles. You will need her help on this and she has always been the strongest of my blood. When you get a hold of her, I want you to give her my mace and shortsword. You know which ones. She will need them.

Sorry.

-- John
_​The halfling folded the note and slipped it back into his pocket. Wiping an errant tear with the back of his sleeve, he patted Scorch's tombstone and walked off towards town in silence.


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## Spatterlight (Dec 27, 2006)

Well, this is going to be the last update for a while. Our group generally rotates between campaigns after we run through a module or two. I hope you all have enjoyed the story hour so far.


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## WampusCat43 (Dec 29, 2006)

Very well written.  Always good to see another DM's take on the story (we're currently battling through _A Gathering of Winds_).

If you're interested in some of the "stuff" I put together for the various episodes so far, send me a PM.  Good luck!


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