Session 21 – Skulls Everywhere
Campaign II, session 21. Previous: Session 20.
Vierath consults with Huugul – “how can we find your bones?”
After concentrating for some time, he indicates that Zydell has been the closest, and relatively recently.
Zydell shares that, while the rest of the group had been resting and performing other errands, he had visited the Catacombs of the Ancestors, where the citizens of Vedycaer inter the ashes of their dead. While there, he had noticed a number of vagrants being allowed in through a basement entrance that opened into the city sewers.
The party decides to investigate, and finds that a large congregation of vagrants have formed a colony nearby in the undercity. As the group moves out of the Catacombs and into the sewers, vagrants begin to mob around them, begging for coin.
Zydell offers money in exchange for knowledge on an “Edran Corvane” – the last heir of a once-glorious noble family, who is rumored to have found a home among the vagrants. The nearest vagrant, calling himself “Bloopo”, offers to help. The sight of Zydell’s gold coins sets off a frenzy of beggars until he draws his weapon and starts to threaten them.
After accepting some coins, Bloopo has to admit he doesn’t actually know who “Edran” is – “but we’ll listen and look out for you, can you describe him?”
Unfortunately Zydell doesn’t know what Edran looks like. Instead, he changes tactics: “Just take me to whoever’s in charge here.” Hearing this, Bloopo goes white, and all the other vagrants back off.
With a gulp, Bloopo starts to explain. “They been killin’ us sir. They moved in and took over. I’ll take ye as far as I can, please help us.”
With Bloopo as an escort, the party enters the vagrant colony. The sight of Bloopo’s face keeps the other vagrants quiet as they go deeper. Eventually Bloopo pauses and asks, “Please sir, if ye don’t mind, it’s just down the way. There’s a new door with a big red skull on it; it’s locked. The bosses are back there. I’m just too ‘fraid to go further.”
Zydell allows Bloopo to stay back, but does reduce Bloopo’s payment. The party finds the door as indicated, as well as a few chambers past it. While Vierath moves forward to examine the lock on the door, Mireya steps forward and checks out those rooms.
Each of these chambers is cramped full of vagrants, but one of them has a wretched smell – a corpse lies splayed across a filthy mattress, and the wall behind it is painted with a mural depicting a fiery scarab beetle surrounded by worms. On the floor surrounding the mattress are dozens of scraps of paper, all with variations of the phrase “Behold the Scarab on Two Legs, the Living Death Immortal” written in a shaky but educated hand.
The beggars threaten to scream if Mireya doesn’t pay them off.
‘Rath hears some movement on the other side of the door, and decides to make a hasty lockpicking attempt. Unfortunately his pick breaks in the lock. After a bit of discussion, the party decides to back off from here and proceed further down the sewers – after all this is starting to seem like a distraction from finding Huugul’s bones (Huugul himself doesn’t seem to be sure yet).
After a few minutes of walking, the party finds a suspicious-looking carve-out in the sewer tunnel wall. A quick investigation finds a secret passage! Opening it, they find an evil altar crafted from human sinew and bones, with a naked vagrant chained to it. The vagrant immediately starts shouting for help – until the party threatens him for silence.
Down a side tunnel from this room, they hear further shouts of alarm. Zydell steps towards the noises and attempts to pretend that he’s the one in charge here – “Stand down before your superiors!” he shouts at the grim knight in black plate armor and shield, with a red skull painted on both.
The foe charges forward and slashes at Zydell with his jagged blade, leaving a nasty wound that burns with pain. He swings back in retribution but is deflected by the dark knight’s shield. Mireya follows by brandishing her sword of beguiling and speaking its command word. The knight turns and calls out for his allies to stop and parley – but they don’t seem to listen to him.
The spellcaster beyond summons some minor spirits – manes – and orders them to bypass the knight and attack the intruders. The dark knight begins chopping through the manes. Edwither helps drop the manes with his mage missiles. The sorceress then casts another spell – Edwither and Zydell resist, but the knight drops to the ground, apparently slumbering. Zydell and Ed continue to take down the manes, but the other defenders draw back.
When the dust settles, the characters have secured an apparent barracks: eleven cots each have a chest of silver pieces at the foot. Fenmyra has freed the prisoner and smashed up the evil altar – ten small agates are revealed in the rubble. And Tessine finishes off the knight in his sleep, discerning that his armor and shield are both magical.
After some discussion, the party decides to abscond with the loot they’ve recovered. The plan is to identify the plate and the shield, sell one or both, and see whether Huugul has any better information about where to look next.