Session 06
General Summary
After a peaceful night's sleep, it was dawn on 13th February. Nex Pervenio's next mission was
twofold - deal with a cultist trying to summon extraplanar servants and see what ill fate had
befallen the dwarven mercenaries sent before them.
Dash equipped himself with a new suit of magical armour, taken from Emperor Trajan's crypt.
Soon after he felt the Deck shuffling itself, to show the Fool as the top card. It withdrew the new
powers it had granted just the day before. Was it jealous?
Sister Columba led the gladiators to a jagged hole in the midst of the ruins. A knotted rope
dropped into inky black. With a shrug of the shoulders, they swiftly descended some 50 feet down
a shaft. They found themselves in a small room, with a corridor leading away. This area was more
damaged and disrupted than where they'd been the day before. Walls and ceiling were often at
crazy angles, with deep cracks and piles of loose rubble all around. The tracks of many booted feet
could be seen in the dirt. All was dark and silent.
Round a corner was the site of a massacre. Dozens of bodies were strewn about the chamber. They
were an even mix of dwarfs and cultists, seemingly killed in a pitched battle with one another.
More rubble and deep cracks broke up the floor. An exit was spotted in the far corner. As Nex
Pervenio moved cautiously in, checking the bodies, they realised they were not alone - creatures
had come to feast, attracted by the carnage. Bats, disturbed by the torchlight, came swarming out,
their incessant flapping distracting anyone close by. Worse, a hideous skeletal centipede crawled
out of a rift, the sound of its bony carcass dragging on the floor filled all with dread.
One swarm of bats headed for Mika in the doorway, another for Dash and a third for Valun. The
osteopede made a skittering charge into the fray, slashing all in its wake and inflicting seeping
wounds. Shinobi and Argus engaged the osteopede, while the others focussed on the bats,
realising that sword and bow were less effective than usual but blasts of magic worked wonders.
With startling speed and lethal intent, the osteopede charged Dash and rended him mercilessly,
killing him instantly. Such a shocking turn of events forced the other gladiators to realise the
severity of the situation.
Mika battled on against the bats, trying to clear the escape route for his comrades. Fortunately his
druidic magic was potent against these foes. Meanwhile Argus and Shinobi continued to grapple
with the osteopede, wary of its ferocity, but all the while inflicting steady damage to the undead
monstrosity and the bats. Of course Valun was doing a magnificent job of protecting him
comrades and healing their wounds. The osteopede lunged menacingly at shinobi but luck was on
his side and he dodged every blow, well aware he could easily have shared Dash's fate. Nex
Pervenio fought grimly on and eventually the osteopede and bats lay defeated.
But it was a hollow victory as they were forced to retreat back to camp, hoping against hope that
something could be done for Dash. Fortunately Sister Columba knew the sacred rituals able to
restore life. It was a lengthy process, consuming many expensive materials. But by evening, Dash
was up and about again, a truly miraculous recovery. Oddly, the Deck shuffled a Skull to the top,
normally a dire signal but apt on this occasion and Dash felt the Deck was somehow pleased with
the recent turn of events, seeming to revel in such dramatic happenings. As such it once again
blessed him with greater powers!
The fate of the dwarfs was explained, although Joseph Bugman himself had not been amongst the
dead, nor his nephew. Nex Pervenio vowed to return the next day and continue their mission.
14th February and they were soon back at the site of Dash's brush with his own mortality. Down a
tunnel, firelight could be seen and otherwordly growling and barking heard. Dash and Shinobi
crept forward for a closer look. A large cage dominated the room, home to several fiery hounds.
On top of the cage, reached by ladders, were some cultists. While the others moved a little closer,
Dash aimed his bow at the central cultist and let fly. He took several arrows and looked badly hurt,
though still able to release the cage door mechanism, while his comrades returned fire on Dash.
Argus and Mika entered the room and Mika used his druidic powers to knock all his opponents off
their feet with a gigantic gust of wind. Shinobi scooted rapidly around the edge of the room,
aiming for a cage ladder. The fiery hounds leapt back to their feet and swarmed Argus and Mika,
breathing out fiery magma to burn and weigh down their foes, supported by bow fire from the
cultists. Shinobi was up the ladder like a shot and leapt between the cultists like a slippery eel,
inflicting heavy wounds before he was gone again off the far side of the cage. Still the fiery dogs
used pack tactics on Argus and Mika, still the cultists sent in bow fire and also threw bottles which
spewed poison over a wide area. Shinobi again sped up the ladder and got amongst the cultists.
This time they drew swords and engaged him in melee. But before long Nex Pervenio prevailed,
their foes all dead on the floor. A further tunnel led out of the far corner of the room.
One of the cultists had a magic item on him, would Dash dare take it and risk upsetting the Deck
again?
Report Date
10 Apr 2024
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