Session 23 – Mutants and Mongrels

Written by KoshcheiBessmertnyi

General Summary

Glitterstem repairs his jerkin, and attempts to divine the best course of action. At the last moment, the party again decides to proceed down the right-hand side of the lake. After finding its way to the wall, the group decides to take a quick rest – it is too fatigued by the travails of the previous day. The night – if night it is – appears to pass uneventfully, and the party proceeds toward the city, taking care not to come too close to the troll cave. Furtive glances back at the tower reveal the candle in the window to still be lit, though what this means is unclear. After breaking for a meal of raw, but apparently wholesome mushrooms a mile or two away from the troll cave, the party proceeds further down the cave, reaching a point apparently about two thirds of the way down toward the city. The pattern of lighter and darker periods in the city becomes even clearer, but obviously, the whole place is somehow illuminated, permanently.
Finding a place to camp underneath a ledge against the cave wall, the party sets up watches, and settles down to sleep. Within an hour, Glitterstem’s watch is disturbed by a large, fur-covered beast with an owl’s head. The gnome attempts to conceal the party while his companions awaken, but the beast stands a short distance away, and bellows, as if to issue a challenge. Glitterstem entangles the creature from the bottom, and, having changed into a spider, succeeds in enveloping it in a web from the top. The rest of the party responds with a typical barrage of projectiles, and Enkidu, along with the spider, lead the charge. The beast is badly pressed, but before it succumbs to the onslaught, it is joined by a companion – a mate, perhaps? – which fares somewhat better, and is able to knock down Miletus after the elf again tears his bowstring. Goltur drags the hapless warrior out of danger, but not before tasting the creature’s beak. With the assistance of the spell-slinging Theobald, the second beast is brought down, and Miletus is easily resuscitated. He then assists Enkidu in skinning the larger of the two creatures – the party is now in possession of a fine pelt. Enkidu channels Baghtru, and takes a bite of the beast’s raw heart, before laying out chunks of its meat to suggest that perhaps his followers had visited here (this after earlier efforts to leave Brotherhood markings).
Not wishing to attract undue attention, the group moves away from the carnage – perhaps another half mile toward the city. Yet the night’s activities are not over. While taking his watch, Miletus hears what appears to be an elvish-dialect speaking search party not 100 feet away from the group’s new sleeping place. Without waking his companions, he steals up closer. The group of dark-haired, slant-eyed elves numbers about half a dozen. They are lightly armored, and armed with spear throwers and reddish metallic paddles set with sharp black stones. Most of them sport metallic and stone talismans featuring spiders, serpents and felines. They are led by a female, who, after concentrating on something, divides the group in two to investigate the lay of the land, and to proceed in the direction of the tower. Miletus manages to stay hidden behind a pillar, and the elves eventually pass out of sight.
Taking extra time to fully recover, the party eventually rises, and continues its trek toward the city. After another half day of hard travel, and the pillars grow shorter, the land drops, and finally, the city is within striking distance, roughly a mile away. It is indeed divided into three semi-circles, separated by walls and moats. The skyline is dominated by two huge steppe pyramids on the water’s edge. Other towers rise up behind them in the inner and middle layer, while the outer layer seems to have simpler buildings nestled within a steep, terraced landscape. The whole city is lit up, though the nature of the lights seems difficult to determine. On the outside, pillars shaped like guard towers protect gates leading to the inner circle. Between the pillar that now conceals the party and these gates, smaller mounds rise up.
Deciding to seek out the mongrel folk that Gierek spoke of, the party moves around the city perimeter, passing a couple of gates to its left in the process. The area appears to be very pungent – perhaps the place where these creatures dispose of the city’s waste, or operate some sort of noxious industry. Eventually, the group spies three dark, cloaked figures carrying baskets and moving into the area of higher and denser pillars. The party surrounds them, and sees three curious, hunchbacked, hoofed, horned, and otherwise deformed specimens. Using a combination of languages and signs, they demand that they remove their cloaks and hand them over. Through Theobald’s ministrations, they reveal (in Undercommon) that they live outside the city under the mounds, and that they are picking mushrooms. It is clear that the creatures are outraged and frightened. Addressing Miletus as “Lord”, they express shock at the party’s desire for their vestments, being sure that the “Lord” would find them unclean. It is not clear whether they consider him a native, or just someone who seems similar enough to them. Glitterstem charges one to go fetch their warren leader, while the other two remain behind, though Theobald cautions about trusting the mongrels with any sensitive information. The third mongrel takes its leave, and the party remains, hidden behind a taller pillar, with the other two.

Report Date

05 Feb 2016