A Dark, Dark Hole Conclusion

General Summary

[by huckleberry]
Leaving the aberrant nursery, the group turned their attention toward the other twisting doors. Investigation into the non-Euclidian spaces included; a door that would not let itself be opened and, upon reaching it's limit, abducted Hazel for untold amounts of time, despite only moments passing to her friends. an outhouse that Sebastian felt the need to detonate, showering himself with excrement, but uncovering a incredibly useful collar. an ordinary supply closet that defeated Riven's pride.
One of the final doors led to the room where the night hag was desperately attempting to finish a ritual to create an exit from the nightmare realm. She could not resist taunting the girl she terrorized prior to the arrival of the heroes, which incited a fury in them and they charged her. A fight ensued, and the hag attempted to use her magic to defend herself, even unleashing a Nightmare steed into the room and turning Riven into a frog. But the experienced warriors were overwhelming in their strength, stunning her into submission and tearing into her incapacitated body. As the steed attempted to combat the mushrooms overtaking it's body courtesy of Hazel, Sebastian soothed the savage animal with a gentle song and climbed atop the fiery mount, now temporarily tamed. In her dying words, choked with blood and bile, the hag begged them not to let her die in this realm, expressing that she was also trapped here. They did not grant her request.
With gentle prodding, the little girl revealed that this was not a place of the night hag's creation, but something older and darker. Something that, once you know about it's existance, it's eyes fall on you and it knows about yours. As the others finish the ritual and create an exit, Riven charges down the hall to open the last remaining door and confront it. The door had begged all of them not to open it, but it was opened. On the other side was a window, looking out into the foggy woods. It was there that Riven saw The Man in the Hat staring back from the fog, watching them. As dread overtook them, Riven fled back to the exit and the party left, emerging in the woods near the standing stone.
But the girl had been in the nightmare a long, long time.
Upon exiting, her body withered and aged centuries in the span of seconds, leaving a dry husk where the child they had saved once stood. In tearful shock, the group began the solemn walk back to town. The cave mouth had vanished for now, but the threat of it's reappearance still looms and as they trudged away, they were sure something was watching them. It was a split second, but peering at them from behind a tree, Riven could have sworn they saw a Man in a Hat.
+1 Songs of Glory: Eliana, Hazel, Riven, Sebastian/Matthias

Report Date

28 Aug 2024