Of Men and Machines Session 9

Onward Unto Darkness

  The plan discussed and set upon, part of the group headed back toward the central chamber. Meanwhile, Fel'Shu stayed in the small storage room and prepared to head back into the water. He took a deep breath and descended into the darkness again. He emerged in the cavern with the wererat a few seconds later, this time more confident that previously. He sat in the water, undetected in anticipation of the rest of the group's arrival.   The rest of the party navigated through the winding corridors and pathways. As they approached the target cavern, they could smell the filth and the must of the rat nest. The group approached carefully, cautious to not alert its denizen. Keck entered first, with Tim the Not-so-Tiny close behind him. They first began to investigate a pile of hay with a small blanket on it, surmising that it must be the creature's bed.    Keck round the bend of a natural stone wall, only to be set upon by a set of glowing red eyes and flashing claws. He tried to dodge and talk some sense into the furious creature, but to no avail. The creature attacked furiously and Keck was forced to defend himself. Tim, seeing his friend was under siege, joined the fray.   Tim's fury pushed the creature back to the edge of the cavern. It let out some kind of distress call which was answered by squeeks echoing from across the cavern, along with some very loud ones coming from a nearby hole. Fel'Shu and Damakos approached cautiously while Malark and Eshshann the Pocket rounded out the back of the group still in the corridor.   Rats poured forth from the hole in the ground and swarmed on Tim. Between the wererat's attacks and the swarm of rats, Tim would be overwhelmed, but his relentless endurance prevented him from being felled. Fel'shu took his flaming lantern and launched it at the creature. It exploded and set it alight. It screamed in horror and agony as the other fighters continued their assault. A final blow from the party would be enough to down it, while Tim and Keck continued to finish off the swarm of rats. The remainder of the vermin scurried away back down the hole.    The were rat seized violently and its skull burst open, revealing a walking brain with four limbs. Fel'Shu acted swiftly with a somersault over the party and a dropped elbow on the brain. Keck finished it off with a well place blade between the hemispheres.    With a moment to relax, the party checked the chest that the wererat seemed so keen to protect. They found 72 gold pieces, which they split between the party, along with 5 art pieces each worth 25 gold pieces each and an ancient looking dagger which seemed to match the carving of the dagger on the wall. Their financial state was starting to improve.  

The Descent

  The group was battered and bruised, and decided that they would take a short rest in the now-deceased wererat's chamber. Fel'Shu volunteered to take watch and stood valiantly near the hole in the ground. Unable to see the bottom, he kicked the dead intellect devourer down the pit and kept an ear out for it hitting the ground; it sounded about 300 feet deep. His keen perception allowed him to hear what sounded like voices or other sounds toward the bottom of the pit. He told the rest of the group what it sounded like and they all agreed to put their ropes together for a descent.    Fel'Shu tied the rope around his waist while the rest of the party lowered him down. He was only able to make it about 150 feet down when he could hear - more distinctly now - voices in an unfamiliar language down below. He could see several smallish figures toward the bottom that seemed to look up to Fel'Shu's light in the tunnel. One of them ran out of the field of view. Meanwhile, Fel'Shu began hurling insults at the figures below.   

"You seek the strength of the Phasnosh. It will not be yours." - Anonymous Voice in the Darkness

  A moment later, the figure that ran off seemed to return with a taller figure. That's when Fel'Shu heard its voice in his head. The voice accused the monk of seeking the treasures of the long-dead Phasnosh Civilization. Unable to descend farther into the hole, Fel'Shu gave the signal to the group to begin pulling him up. The rest of the party began to hoist him up.     The Vault   Fel'Shu shared his discovery with the party, and Damakos theorized the presence of mind flayers, with the key indicators being the presence of the Duergar and the intellect devourer. Nevertheless, they had other concerns beyond the potential threat below. Eshshann the Pocket's spell had done plenty to seal that particular hole, although it was likely that there would be others. With that in mind, they headed back to the wall carvings.     With the dagger in hand, the group stared at the wall and revisited the instructions. They would need a blood sacrifice, but they didn't know how much. Keck and Tim took a chance and each sliced open their palms and spread their life essence on the scales depicted at the same time. A clunking sound behind the wall followed by the grinding of stone on stone resulted in the wall lifting into the ceiling; an ethereal blue light poured forth.    Before them four armored guards stood watch silently over a stone sarcophagus in the center of the room. The stench of stale air hung over them. After some time, they determined that there was no danger in just entering the room. Tim and Damakos set to work removing the sarcophagus cover, which proved to be harder than expected. Eventually it slid across, releasing a green miasma into the room. Most felt fine, but Damakos began to feel sick. He would shake it off soon enough though, and the axe that he claimed from the resident of the sarcophagus proved to be worth the temporary sickness.    Curious about the writings on the wall, Eshshann cast Comprehend Languages, which allowed him to read the inscriptions on the sarcophagus. It read: Here rests the remains of High Lord Lak'had, governor and lord of the Trenris region of Odithia. "Odithia" was the ancient name for the continent of Oduth, and had been the Phasnosh name for the land several thousand years before.   There was nothing else to be found in the tomb, so the group headed back to the main chamber and out into the barn to seek a well deserved rest...