Session 22: On the Trail Report

When the dawn came again, it streaked across the dour Vestidian landscape in great bursts of white. The light danced across the bald faced hills, speckled by trees, yet dared not venture in the low place or shallow caves. For the party it was yet another day, which meant further brush ups against terror and violence. In fairness, they received in equal measure the violence and terror they created. That is the job of mercenaries, along with whatever they were paid to actually achieve.

The party didn't stay in camp for long. Nezhar was a long distance away still, and the Lord Inquisitor's party couldn't be far behind them. Within an hour of waking, the group was silently packing their gear, intending to head west. Flynt was elsewhere at the time, however, as sleeping was a pass time he had long ago put aside. He sat amongst the trees a mile or so from their camp, with only the distant form of the ravaged tower marking the route back. There he communed with Ácolitus, speaking with the creator and master. The Light Bringer told Flynt that his personal mission required him to move northward now, toward the region of Worthend. The exact imagery was vague: Within a dark, stone walled city lay a broad path of cobbled stone that descended into an unknown darkness. Aside the path stood large pillars of Vestidian stone with chunks broken away by time or mortal struggle. Just beyond the point of termination of the path that slid into the darkness loomed a great hall with a rounded dome, a husk without lights of life. Everything within seemed like pieces from a forgotten tomb, left to the open air until the day an unfortunate somebody stumbles upon it again. To this sight Ácolitus attached no man or further direction, as was custom to his ways. All Flynt new was that this place was the object of his mission, and that it was north of him.

When he returned, the rest of the party were mounted and anxiously awaiting his return. Fear reigned among the newer members of the party that he had abandoned them entirely to leave on another "spirit vision" by order of his shady master. If that were the case they would have no leads, or chance against Nezhar. Marcarius kept them calm, and informed them with a smirk that wandering the night was a common practice for Flynt, and that he always returned in the morning. Wisdom proved correct, and Flynt appeared once more and told them about his new directions from Ácolitus, in even more uncertain terms than had been told to him originally.

No matter how obscure the lead, the party didn't have much of a choice but to follow if they wished to deal away with Nezhar. They began to travel northward by way of Flynt guidance. In their travels they approached what seemed to be some aged village buildings. Marcarius goes to investigate, and is horrified to see that the Zjol'kel actually tears right through the center, leaving the majority of the town in the forgotten mist and only a few other buildings on the other side. They explore this ruin. Kronlim finds a fine Vestidian shirt among the abandoned buildings. Yanis and Flynt went to explore the edge of the Zjol'kel which loomed so close. Roy and Leowulf stepped into one of the then unexplored houses, which was bisected by the Zjol'kel, leaving loose rock and timber splinters dotting the black rock and dense mist of the maw. Inside the furniture was mostly broken and abandoned, with only a few pieces in any way intact. Everything inside was glazed with dust. If anyone had been to this broken village within the past years, they seem to have left everything as they saw it. Probably some wisdom in that.

It was Roy and Leowulf who broke the silence of the ruin. Within the broken house lay protrusions of bone and metal, not unlike flowers coming to bud in the spring. What these things were was a mystery, as they clung so close to the precipice of the Zjol'kel. Leowulf stepped up onto the rocks and began to heave them aside. One by one, the stones sent out violent pangs as they tumbled into the misty abyss. A scene began to reveal itself. The skeletal remains of two warriors were pinned beneath the rubble, still coated with chainmail strapped on with rotted leather. They still grasped weapons, but these were plunged into an unrecognizable mash of flesh and dull spikes. Excavating further, Leowulf came to discover that this wretched thing had once been alive, presumable one of the monstrosities of Typhon used to wage his war. It was unmoving and had the swords of skeletal remains plunged into it, but it wasn't clear if it was truly dead or not. Leowulf took his sword and stuck it into the beast. A thick cloud of black smoke burst forth from the creature and swirled through the room before being carried away by the wind. Leowulf stared in horror as the rocks below him began to shift and crumble, plunging into the Zjol'kel with heaving crashes of rock dashing across the cliff face. The massive hulk of flesh rose from the rubble, showing its three muscle bound arms, protruding spikes, and other features.

Fight ensues. Leowulf is battered heavily. Roy is knocked out door by a thrown body. Marcarius sneaks inside while it's distracted to stab at its flank, Flynt and Yanis charge in, and all hell breaks loose.

The fight ends with Yanis being in the grip of the beast as it is knocked backward into the Zjol'kel. Yanis falls down with it, causing him brutal harm. The rest of the party descend after him slowly as they lick their wounds and bandage themselves.

Illusion of the village being destroyed. Party sees the advance of Typhon, Nezhar, and the unholy host as they pour in from the east and wash across the west. They free from the scene as fast as they can, knowing full well the dangers of these alleged illusions. Flynt catches a glimpse of an armor clad figure with a sword with dangled scales on the cross guard. It was hard to make out details, but Flynt could surmise that the figure was Typhon, his predecessor in the role of the judge of Ácoltius. Nezhar was easier to distinguish. He stood between 25 to 30 feet high, towering over the village hovels below. His skin was a sickly brown, leathery texture with patches of crimson red across the body. He possessed six great, muscle bound limbs that terminated in great claws and carried him like a spider. His facial features were obscured by a tremendous plume of soil and crushed rock. His foremost limbs tore up the earth in great armfuls and heaved it aside in great arcs. Following the pair was a sky of storms, pelting down lightning that seared the ground below, and hordes of mangled and wretched looking beasts.

As they fled from the scene, the party encountered a single woman standing just outside the village, staring at the oncoming horror. Flynt recognized Naiara and turned the group to run toward her. They speak. Party flees into a copse of trees/fall into abyss and appear back in Vestidia.

Party makes camp on far side of Zjol'kel and rest for the night. While waiting, Marcarius notices a fire being tended to on the other side, and gave a weak smile of realization. Lord Inquisitor Hadrianus and his men moved quickly, lest it was a chance encounter with some other people it was sure to be them. The village had seemed abandoned and avoided for years, so the likelihood of a random meeting was low.

At dawn they speak to the Corgastorians. They convince Hadrianus to help them to defeat Nezhar, for now at least.

The party intends to move southward, but failures at tracking send them a bit more west than they would have wished. They end up on the boundaries of the Tombwood, staring into the dark and foreboding boughs of the sagging trees. While the party waits nearby the edge to examine the map, Marcarius feels a strange feeling of looming danger emanating from the forest. He stepped closer and peered in, but could make out nothing from the tangled morass. Disturbed by this, Marcarius tells Flynt about the feeling, and watches as he marches straight toward the trees. A fight ensues between the cultists that burst out at the party. They question one of the survivors, who tells them that many sacrifices are intended to strengthen Nezhar, and that more of them dwell among the trees in the wood. With that information, the party moves into the forest to set up their camp.