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Chapter 2: A Blighted Land

Turn 45: Those Who Hear

As the second worm materialized, Nanoc reached for one of his potions and yelled out to the others: “Ok, you three take the worm on the right, and I'll get the one on the left!”

[Initiative: Nanoc: 22, Luger: 16, Danton: 20, Aseneth: 10, Worms: 13]

Luger put a restraining hand on Nanoc’s arm even as the barbarian drained his potion of bull’s strength (Nanoc +2 strength; total strength now 23).

“No,” said the cleric loudly. Take them one at a time. Move to the side of the one on the left, keeping it between us and the other worm!”

“Aseneth,” added Luger, “Now might be a good time to throw one of those fireballs!”

“I would like shooting,” yelled the sorceress, “but would burning down half of town!”

Nanoc literally roared as he felt the extra power and strength coursing through his veins. “Well Asya if'n your not gonna throw one o' them balls o' fire, then I am ready to go!”

“Hold still, Danton,” said Luger. “I’m going to give you a shot of what Nanoc just drank.”

With the Velunese standing wide-eyed next to him looking up at the two huge worms as they probed the air with their tentacles and then began to move towards the party, Luger cast his incantation (Bull’s Strength cast on Danton: +5 strength; total strength now 15).

Even as Luger was casting his spell and as Nanoc was drinking his potion, each of the two looked up and down the street as well as up at the rooftops, searching for the source of the strange laughter heard when the worms first appeared (Spot Checks: Luger: 19+4=23, Nanoc: 7+1=8). Although the strength and bloodlust rushing through Nanoc’s body prevented him from concentrating enough to see much of anything other than the two huge worms, Luger caught sight of a humanoid in a midnight blue cloak standing on top of a two level building mere yards down the street. Although the figure spun on its heel as if to run to the other side of the roof and disappear from the party’s view, it did not move quickly enough to evade the exploding wave of sound that Luger fired at it (Sound Burst: 5 damage). When the sonic attack hit the cloaked figure, it appeared to knock it over and it disappeared from view as it fell to the roof.

By the time that Nanoc and Danton rushed around the first worm, trying to keep it between themselves and the second creature, Aseneth had already fired an acidic magical arrow into its body, not far from the mouth and tentacles. Using their augmented strength, the pair hacked and slashed at the parts of the beast’s body closer to the ground (attack: Nanoc: 13+13=26; hit; 18 damage; Danton: 16+7=23; hit; 4 damage). Although the pair did considerable damage to the worm, cutting large gashes in its body, causing all manner of vile fluids to come oozing out onto the street, the injuries only seemed to drive the monster into a frenzy, and it brought its maw and tentacles down. All seven tentacles reached for Nanoc, seeking to rake and grab the barbarian.

Nanoc was able to dodge or deflect most of the tentacles with his axe, but there were so many that three of the things hit him with such force that it would have staggered anyone else (22 points of damage taken). The three tentacles that had gotten past his guard then grabbed hold of him and lifted him off the ground, towards the huge maw just overhead.

Although Luger had hoped that the tactics he had proposed would confuse the second worm and keep it from attacking anyone in the party, the thing ignored the melee taking place between Nanoc, Danton, and the other worm, and instead surged down the street towards the cleric and Aseneth. Luger had enough time to fire off his sonic attack against the figure on the roof, but seconds later, the second worm was upon him. Fortunately for the cleric, his heavy shield and enchanted chainmail absorbed most of the worm’s tentacle attacks, but he was hit by one of the things (7 damage), and the tentacle then wrapped around his waist, lifting him off the ground just as the other beast had done with Nanoc.

As Nanoc felt his feet lifted off the ground, he also felt the worm shudder as a volley of Aseneth’s magic missiles slammed into its body.

“That’s right, ya nasty critter!” shouted the barbarian. “Bring me right up ta yer mouth so I can stick my axe in it!”

As the tentacles brought him closer and closer to the maw, which opened wide to reveal row upon row of huge, razor-sharp teeth, Nanoc slammed his axe forward with all the force his strength-enhanced arms could muster, driving the blade deep into the purple flesh just above the rows of teeth (attack: 16+13=29; hit; 20 damage).

The effect of this axe blow was simply devastating. Even while Danton flailed needlessly at the worm’s body in the street below, Nanoc knew that his strike was a mortal one. The worm shuddered under the impact of the axe and then the tentacles that held Nanoc went limp, dropping the barbarian just before the entire body of the worm collapsed to the cobblestones. Nanoc crashed to the stones too, but rolled to minimize the impact and finally came to rest lying on his stomach at the foot of a set of stairs leading up to a residential building.

Held fast by the second worm, Luger did much as Nanoc had done, slashing Geistblatt into the skin around the creature’s maw even as he was drawn towards it (attack: 17+6=23; hit; 6 damage). Unfortunately, Luger lacked Nanoc’s raw physical power and his attack, while effective, was far from lethal. The tentacles brought Luger between the rows of teeth, and they then closed around his armored body (bitten for 13 damage).

“We gotta kill that thing fast!” yelled Nanoc, rolling over on his back, lifting his legs into the air and then whipping his entire body forward in a motion that put him back on his feet in a matter of seconds. Aseneth had now directed her magical fire at the second worm, but it shrugged off her attack even as it reared higher with its prize in its mouth.

In the street below, Danton was the first to reach the body of the second worm, slashing at it with his rapier, but unfortunately to little effect (attack: 13+7=20; hit; 4 damage). The slashing weapon was simply not well suited to taking on such a massive foe.

Luger was now effectively pinned, but he still had his sword arm free and slashed as best he could against the flesh of the thing holding him (attack: 17+6=23; hit; 4 damage). Almost as if in response to this strike, the worm tightened its teeth around Luger’s body once again (15 damage) and the pain was so excruciating that the cleric lost consciousness, Geistblatt slipping free of his grasp and clattering on the stones of the street below.

Just after Aseneth had peppered the massive worm with yet more magic missiles, Nanoc finally reached the lower portion of the thing’s body and slammed his axe into it with both hands (attack: 9+13=22; hit; 15 damage). The slash was so powerful that it came close to cutting the worm in two. But even though it did not quite accomplish such a mighty feet, it still opened up the worm’s innards and all manner of strange organs spilled into the street as Nanoc and Danton leaped aside. The upper part of the body came crashing down, and the mouth opened, releasing Luger’s battered body to roll into the street.

“He’s still breathin’, but it looks really bad!” said Nanoc when he and the others rushed to the side of the unconscious cleric.

“Leave that to me,” said Danton, fumbling in Luger’s pouches until he found a small blue vial he recognized as a healing draught. He quickly poured the contents of the vial down Luger’s throat while Nanoc held up the cleric’s head so that none of the liquid would be spilled out accidentally.

Luger coughed several times, but then his body shook and his eyes opened.

“The worms?” he asked weakly. “And what about the figure on the roof?”

“I cut those things up but good!” said Nanoc, “but I didn’t see nothing else. But if there is, don’t worry, I’m still feeling great! Like I could take on the whole cult o’ Tharizdun by meself!”

“Aseneth,” said Luger weakly, still able to sit up only because Nanoc held him up, “Did you recognize what sort of conjuring brought these great worms upon us? It was no magic familiar to me.”

“Magic bringing worms was very strange,” said the woman. “I was not seeing like this before, but I am still thinking it was being some kind of summoning spell. These worms were not being so smart to coming here on own and I do not believe was only accident or unlucky thing. Someone was making them come here.”

Danton gazed up and down the street. Even with the fight over and the stinking, leaking bodies of two giant worms filling the street, not to mention assorted onlookers and passersby gathering (well away from the dead worms), there was still no sign of the town guard anywhere.

“The militia in fair Woodstock is well and truly as worthless as the merchants hath said,” pronounced the Velunese disdainfully. “Elmo and his handful of men in little Hommlet were far more efficient.”

“I think I saw the summoner of the worms,” said Luger. “It was a figure in a blue cloak on the rooftops. I managed to hit him with a stunning spell, but I’m sure he’s recovered and made himself scarce by now.”

“You know,” said Nanoc, “that there Shooma lady done said there is some tower 'round here that is full o' rats. Well I'll bet that is jus' the kinda o' place them there rat-men a be a stayin'. I think we needs to go and take a look at that place. May-be they gots some kinda wizard who summoned these plug-uglies.”

“You could be right,” agreed Danton. “This rat-tower is likely the place to go. Karzak and I wert assaulted by rat-men, so such a tower seems like the most likely place to turn up Karzak ... and doubtless a boatload of rat-men besides. Indeed, while I therefore agree that 'tis to the tower that we must go, we'd better all go with maximum preparedness. 'Tis pointless to square off against an enemy without every man -- and woman -- having an ability to deal damage to them. If any are lacking such weapons, we must needs purchase or otherwise acquire them before braving the tower. Given that time is plainly of the essence, we probably don't have time for further preparation, be it additional magic or healing. But rushing into battle with rat-men and without the means to slay them would be foolish.”

“Say, Danton,” said Nanoc excitedly, “I almost forgot. Why don't ya have Asya check that rapier you took off the rat-man leader to see if it is magic? He seemed to have some other magic stuff, well at least a potion o' some sort. If not, I was gonna give Karzak my silvered short sword, but you’re welcome to it. I thinks from what Grundar done told me in his stories, it oughta be able to hurt them there rat-men.”

“Hmm,” mused Danton, “Tis not a bad idea. Canst thou, Asya ... er, Aseneth, canst thou check to see if that rapier we took is magical in nature? If so, I shalt use it instead of the silver shortsword, which Nanoc can keep.”

“I can checking later,” said Aseneth, “but not right now. I am now having only spells for fighting. And this is being alright if you and others are calling me Asya now—we are knowing each other long enough.”

“I can do it,” said Luger. “Just as soon as I patch myself up a bit. Nanoc, lift me to my feet.”

The barbarian lifted the cleric with ease, using only one arm. Once Luger stood unsteadily on both feet, he began converting other spells to healing and undoing the damage from the many bites he had taken. (Sanctuary X2, Remove Fear all converted to cure light wounds: 24 HP gained). The cleric then converted one last spell to reduce the injuries Nanoc had suffered from the first worm (Detect Evil converted to cure light wounds: 5 HP gained).

“I can do little more for now,” said Luger, “save for this.” Calling on Heironeous to aid him in discerning the presence of magic (Detect Magic), Luger sensed magical emanations from all three of the items that Danton had taken from the were-rat leader’s body—the rapier, the scroll, and the potion vial.

“Excellent, most excellent,” said the Velunese when Luger explained his findings. He held up the were-rat’s rapier and admired its fine edge and the way it gleamed even in the dim light cast by lamps overhead. “Since it surely cannot be that Geistblatt should remain the only exalted weapon in our midst, I christen thee Rat’s Tail. And so, henceforth, Rat’s Tail, I shalt carry you into battle, and together we shalt make pincushions of our enemies.”

“Cool!” said Nanoc excitedly. “Now that everybody gots a magic weapon, we gonna hit that rat tower, or what? This here extra strength I gots is good for a few more hours, so if’n we is gonna take a look at that tower, I say nows the time!”

“Indeed, we are ready,” said Luger. “Let us see if the fair knights of Heironeus will help us with our storming and rat-slaying.”

“Hmm,” mused Danton. “Aseneth's…er…Asya’s…point is also worth considering. If those worms were summoned, then frankly we wasted our effort killing them -- our target should have been whoever cast them—this strange figure that only Luger was sharp-eyed enough to espy. And, going forward, we must needs keep this constantly in mind: the appearance of bizarre monsters and the like should actually be assumed to be conjured. Thus, when they appear, we should do everything we can to locate and identify the conjuror. P'raps as hath been theorized, one of these rat-men is a conjuror? Asya, hath you ever heard tell that a rat-man couldst also cast spells? It seems to me that, logically, lycanthropy is no bar to the ability to cast spells, but I hath only mine intuition to go by. Howsoever that is, mine immediate operative assumption is that one of the rat-men is a sorcerer ... and it must be he who is to be first slain if ever we encounter him.”

“In Rinloru, I have seeing dead using magic many time,” replied the sorceress. “If they can doing this, why not rat-man also can doing magic?”

At this point, with the worms having been dead for several minutes, and with still not the slightest sign of the town guard making an appearance, some of the bolder bystanders drew closer to the party and the dead worms. Most simply gawked and bemoaned the town’s recent spate of problems, but one of the louder men in the slowly growing crowd was heard to complain loudly:

“First the guard, and now those darned paladins! I wonder why Alein and Torea aren’t here? They’re usually on top of anything that happens in West Hill. Is this damn neighborhood going to go the way of Southspur now?”

“Speaking of the paladins,” said Luger, “let us make haste to collect them, inform them of what has transpired, and then hit the tower.”

Far off to the southwest, the bell tower jutted high above all the other buildings in town. Even as the last light of day faded, the tower remained visible against the black sky beyond it. It might just have been his imagination, but Luger could have sworn he saw shapes or shadows moving about at the top of the structure.

***

As consciousness returned to Karzak, with it came annoyance and anger. Scowling at the stone gargoyles that surrounded him, he bellowed: “What 'cha be laughin' at, laddies? Yer ugly pusses be makin' me sick ta me stomach! Stop yer starin'! Har, har, har!”

Then, more coherently, Karzak drew in a deep breath and screamed at the top of his lungs: “Help! Help! Help! I be chained up within sight a' some arches!”

Unfortunately, with the strength of the wind whipping past him and the great distance to the street far below, Karzak realized that no matter how loudly he screamed, it was unlikely that anyone outside the tower would hear him.

”Some friends I be makin' in the bright world!” he muttered. “Runnin' off at the
first sight a' danger an' leavin' poor Karzak ta be fightin' the rat-men alone with a good fer nothin' axe! I shoulda been payin' heed ta me dear bearded mother! Never trust orcs, humans, an' all the rest a' them!”

“Help! Danton! Help!” he shouted.

“So, you’re finally awake,” came a sibilant voice from somewhere close at hand.

Not having heard anyone approach, the sound gave Karzak a great shock. Unable to move his body much at all, he wrenched his head about, looking for the source of the words. And then he found it. Standing at the top of the stairs leading down inside the tower were two tall, thin men with long dark hair. Karzak instantly recognized one of them as the man who had chased him, and metamorphosed into a rat-thing, the previous night.

“That's right, laddie, come an' unchain me so that I kin see if me axe cuts through yer scrawny, cowardly hide!”

“I think we learned the answer to that question last night, now didn’t we?” responded the man with a laugh, walking across the open floor of the area to stand two feet away from Karzak’s head. The second man only smirked, and began pacing about the outer perimeter of the area, weaving between the stone gargoyles.

Karzak thrashed and struggled against the chains, to no avail. “Why, O, why did I
ever sign up for caravan guard duty? Fie on it, fie!”

“Help! I be in some kinda arched building! Some kinda church! Help! I dinna have any ale! Me head be getting kinda dizzy without me aleskin!“

While Karzak screamed, the man standing in front of him only laughed. When the dwarf’s voice finally gave out, the man said:

“Now that you’ve got that out of your system, why don’t you tell us who you and your fellows are, and why you’ve chosen to interfere in affairs that are none of your business.”

“I won’t be tellin’ the likes o’ you anything,” spat Karzak, narrowly missing the man’s right boot. “Damn chains. O’ I jus’ wanna see the mountains again. That an’ an ale.”

“You do understand what has happened to you?” asked the man.

“I DINNA HAVE ANY ALE!” screamed Karzak.

“Perhaps not,” said the man, crouching down to look Karzak in the eye. “One week from now there will be a full moon in the sky, and when that happens, you will change—you will be one of us—forever. Much else will have changed in the town by then too. You will be a part of our New Order whether you like it or not—and a week from now, like it you will. These friends of yours are an insignificant threat to us, but if you tell us what they are about and help us to eliminate them, it would earn you much favor. Your place in the new Woodstock would be assured and you might rise in our hierarchy. After all, those your friends killed must be replaced. Why should you not seize the opportunity thrust before you?”

Karzak grumbled incoherently and thrashed his head about for several moments. “Oh, great! Just great! Now, I'm a' gonna be one a' them rat-men. Well, actually, a rat-dwarf! Oh! The ignominy of it all! Woe is me life! Woe to Danton! The only upside be the growth of a decent beard after the red dragon dun blazed me!”

“Danton, hmm?” asked the long-haired man.

Realizing his mistake, Karzak cursed the “damn chains” once more and then clamped his mouth shut.

“Suit yourself,” said the man, “but think upon my words. “You will join us, but whether as a lackey or a lieutenant is your choice.”

Without another word, Karzak’s interrogator stood up and stalked down the stairs, the second man following on his heels.

***

The Shrine of Heironeous was only a few blocks away from the scene of the battle with the summoned worms, and the party made it there in a matter of minutes. As Luger led the others up to the familiar structure, the shrine loomed out of a bank of thick mist that obscured most of the iconography that covered the building. Strangely, tonight the mist surrounded only the Shrine of Heironeous—there was no fog anywhere else. When the group was still a dozen yards away, a woman’s scream pierced the night from somewhere nearby. The words were indistinct, but the tone carried a sense of urgency and it sounded as though the shout had come from somewhere behind the shrine.

“What the heck?” asked Nanoc in confusion.

“Get back there, now!” hissed Luger. “You and Danton go that way, while Aseneth and I go around the other side! Quick!”

With visibility in the thick fog limited to no more than a few feet, the four party members proceeded with a mix of speed and caution. As they made their way around both sides of the shrine, low voices, distorted by the mist, could be heard, and then there was the louder sound of metal crashing on stone.

When Nanoc and Luger led Danton and Aseneth around the shrine and they converged behind it, everyone in the party could see two cloaked figures lifting an armored body off the ground and staggering under the weight as they tried to carry it off down a side street behind the shrine.

“That’s Alein!” shouted Luger, recognizing the unmoving body as that of the younger of the two paladins in residence. “Stop them!”

[Initiative: Nanoc: 19, Danton: 22, Luger: 17, Aseneth: 12, Cloaked Figures: 25]

When Luger shouted, the two cloaked figures immediately dropped the body of Alein to the stones and turned to deal with the newcomers. Moving with preternatural speed, each cast a spell in the blink of an eye. The first targeted Luger directly, and it took every ounce of willpower he had to resist the sudden compulsion to collapse to the ground and sleep (will save: 19+8=27; success).

The second spellcaster used a wand that fired off a burst of shimmering colors that produced particularly strange results amidst the fog. The flashing, swirling colors had a disorienting effect, forcing each of the party members to struggle to keep his or her mind focused on what was happening (will saves: Nanoc: 11+2=13; failure; Danton: 5+1=6; failure, Luger:10+8=18; success).

While Aseneth and Luger were experienced enough with magic to shrug off the disorienting spell relatively easily, both Danton and Nanoc found themselves mesmerized by the swirling colors and fog and each simply stood and watched the light show rather than attack either of the two spellcasters.

“One at a time, Aseneth, as before!” yelled Luger. “Hit the one on the left!”

While the sorceress blasted magic missiles into the figure Luger had indicated, the cleric’s own sonic attack (Sound Burst: 4 damage to all targets), hammered both hooded figures. The one hit by both his attack and Aseneth’s projectiles staggered under the onslaught, but neither one dropped. Instead they countered with more of their own magic, each repeating the same spell he had used previously.

This time the sleep-inducing spell targeted both Luger and Danton, still enraptured by the colored lights, but affected neither (will saves: Luger: 12+8=20; success; Danton: 15+1=16; success). The repetition of the shimmering lights once again failed to affect either Aseneth or Luger (will save: 11+8=19; success), but it staggered Danton once more (save: 10+1=11; failure), causing him to wander off towards the back of the shrine, talking happily to himself about the ‘pretty lights’.

Nanoc too had initially been enthralled by the magical colors and part of him was tempted to sit back and watch them light up the fog for a bit longer, but some other part stubbornly told his body to ignore them and instead cut someone in half with his enhanced strength and magic axe (will save: 12+2=14; success). The sight of Aseneth marching forward to engage some cloaked figure with her staff finally brought Nanoc out of his reverie and he charged forward to assist her (attack: 12+13=25; hit; 11 damage), cutting the cloaked figure down before the barbarian was really certain what he was doing.

His spells nearly exhausted, Luger withdrew Geistblatt and moved to engage the other spellcaster (attack: 18+6=24; hit; 6 damage). The clearly unarmored figure suffered a terrible slash from Luger’s weapon, and blood began to cover his blue cloak, but even thus grievously injured and with his fellow down, the figure did not give up. Instead he snarled and fired off his color-wand yet again (saves: Danton: 10+1=22; failure; Luger: 12+8=20; success; Nanoc: 14+2=16; success). While the wand finally had some effect on Aseneth and while it kept Danton in his daze, both Luger and Nanoc shrugged off its effects. Had not Nanoc’s axe cut the legs of the spellcaster out from under him (attack: 20+13; possible critical hit; 2^nd roll: 17+13=30; hit—thus critical hit: 50 damage), Luger would no doubt have finished the enemy a fraction of a second later.

Once both spellcasters were dead, the fog that had surrounded the shrine quickly dissipated and the magical lights faded. Aseneth shook off the effects quickly, but Danton staggered around for several moments complaining loudly and incoherently that he would “file a complaint with the management” over the “premature end of the light show for which we hath paid so dear.”

While Luger sought to revive Alein, who, he discovered, was still breathing, Nanoc quickly rifled the bodies of the two hooded figures, who were revealed to be a pair of middle-aged men when their cloaks were removed. Each of the two carried three potions, a scroll and a wand, all of which Nanoc quickly stuffed into his pack for later examination.

Unable to find any physical injuries on Alein, Luger finally simply shook her until she came around. When her eyes opened, she looked as if she had been in some deep sleep.

“Torea! They took Torea!” the paladin yelled when she finally became lucid.

“Who took her? And Where?” asked Luger.

“We were inside,” said Alein, “when we heard a cry for help from out back. Torea told me to stay inside, while she went to investigate. She went out the back door, but didn’t come back, so I followed. I came outside into a thick mist. There was no sign of Torea, but before I could do anything, something happened and I…passed out, I guess.”

“They knocked you out too,” said Luger, “and would have carried you off had we not arrived just in time.”

“We were hopin’ ya’d come with us ta kill a whole bunch o’ rats and find a loudmouthed dwarf,” explained Nanoc helpfully.

“Do you recognized either of these men we killed?” asked Luger, leading Alein over to the two bodies.

The young paladin examined the uncloaked faces of the two men for several moments before exclaiming, “That one was at that bookstore—the Reality Wrinkle it’s called—when that man was killed a couple of weeks ago!”

“What story might this be?” interjected Danton, having finally shrugged off the last effects of the color spray.

“Two weeks ago word spread that a man had died at the bookstore,” explained Alein. “Torea and I were on the scene before the guard…”

“What a shock,” muttered Danton.

“Everyone insisted it was an accident,” continued Alein, “and the owner said the man had fallen down a staircase, but his body was covered with tiny bite marks and seemed drained of blood. We told all this to the guard when they finally appeared, but I don’t think they actually did much of an investigation.”

“And where might we find said bookstore?” asked Luger.

“It’s only about three blocks from here!” said Alein.

“Now we go to rescue paladins from evil booksellers?” asked Danton. “What happened to Nanoc’s ‘storming of the rat-tower’?”

“If we help Alein and Torea now, they’ll help us later,” said Luger firmly.

Danton sighed. “Well, 'twould appear that Karzak hath inadvertently accomplished what dearth of evidence could not: it keeps us in Woodstock, rooting out evil free-of-charge to the locals, despite mine every desire to the contrary. If only dwarves were not so drunken, short-legged or both -- we might not have been separated at all. If Karzak still lives and rejoins the company, well, the next time I flee, I wilt have to give more thought to the fact that Karzak's legs are too squat to effect a speedy escape. 'Tis a genuine liability and now we must needs fight yet more evil without recompense ere we can even seek to liberate or avenge Karzak!”

“Aw, c’mon, Danton!” said Nanoc excitedly. “This is gonna be a great night! We already cut up those worms, now we get ta wreck a bookstore, and that’s not even talkin’ ‘bout sackin’ that tower when we get to it later. You ever pillaged a tower before? I sure ain’t. This is the best night on the town we’ve had since that big party by the river back in Hommlet!”

***

The Reality Wrinkle was a small shop near the eastern end of West Hill, located on a small side street called Arcane Way. According to Alein, it had three floors and specialized in the strangest sort of books: obscure philosophical treatises dealing with other dimensions and alternate realities, pseudo-theological texts of an alchemical or metaphysical bent, and the ravings of lunatics who delved too deeply into bizarre magical secrets. In short, it was the sort of place that Mauser would have loved, but that no one else in the party would ever have set foot in had not necessity required it.

Now, as the party approached the shop down a deserted street and slipped up the short flight of stairs leading to the front door, the place was dark and silent. There were windows on all three floors, but those on the first level were barred with a heavy iron grille, so Nanoc led the others straight up to the wooden door. Hooking his axe to his pack, the half-orc braced his legs and then slammed his left shoulder against the door (break door: 17+6=23).

The barbarian hit the door with such force that he smashed it right off its metal hinges on the first try. The door flew inward several feet and then crashed onto the floor.

Danton sighed. “I hath wanted to at least try to trip the lock, but you would have none of it. Now everyone in the building knoweth we are coming.”

“Bring ‘em on!” laughed Nanoc. “I feel strong as an ox! Heck, stronger even!”

When Danton activated his magical torch and the party members looked into the bookstore, it was immediately obvious that something was not right in this place. The front room of the shop was roughly forty by twenty feet, but the angles formed by walls, bookshelves, floors, and ceilings seemed wrong, as if space itself were warped here. Scrolls and tomes, some bound in materials no one recognized, filled shelves that lined every wall. A small table stood in one corner with two chairs pulled up to it. A counter jutted from the opposite wall. Behind the counter, a brocaded curtain hung in a doorway, its design depicting an alien landscape filled with tentacled creatures of unimaginable monstrosity.

“I hath a baaaaaaaad feeling about this,” muttered Danton.

The strange dimensions and décor of the store almost seemed to take on a life of their own, whether one paid them heed or not, producing a feeling of vertigo and nausea (fortitude saves: Nanoc: 8+6=14; success; Danton: 8+0=8; failure; Luger: 1+7=8; failure). While Nanoc and Aseneth were able to resist the effect, all of the others felt vaguely sick (-1 penalty to all actions).

“C’mon,” said Nanoc, “time’s a wastin.”

Followed in turn by Danton, Aseneth, Luger, and Alein, Nanoc made his way around the counter and pushed his way through the curtain into the back room of the shop. It was roughly the same size as the front room, and filled with more bookshelves. But if anything, the disorientation the party had experienced in the front room was more intense here. A door led out to the back of the building, and two more doors flanked a staircase heading upstairs. A faint, lunatic humming emanated from the area near the staircase.

“What the heck is that noise?” asked Nanoc. “It’s comin’ from that there closed door by the stairs.”

“I really don’t want to know,” moaned Danton.

“But it could be Torea!” protested Alein. “We have to check everywhere until we find her.”

“I was afraid someone would say that,” sighed the Velunese. “Very well, Nanoc, if you must.”

His axe in his free hand, Nanoc wrenched the door open. Behind it was a small closet, and inside the closest…was something out of a nightmare. When the door opened, a blob or ooze of some sort, covered with human-looking sets of eyes and teeth, surged out and threw itself at the barbarian.

[Initiative: Nanoc: 8, Danton: 10, Luger: 13, Aseneth: 16, Alein: 7, Thing: 8]

“Yuck!” blurted Nanoc, taking a step back. “That thing jus’ ain’t right!”

Danton only moaned again.

As the strange thing oozed towards Nanoc, its dozens of mouths began to make a bizarre gibbering sound that grated on the ears of everyone present, making the already misshapen room seem to spin before their very eyes (Will Saves: Nanoc: 5+2=7; failure, Danton: 14+1-1=14; success, Luger:13+8-1=20; success).

When the noise started, Alein collapsed to the floor, clapped her hands over her ears and began screaming, while Nanoc lowered his axe and wandered off aimlessly towards the back door. Everyone else was able to resist the strange effect, at least for the moment. As if this bizarre ability were not enough, the sickening creature next shot out a stream of spittle from one of its many mouths. This liquid ignited on contact with the air, creating a blinding flash of light (Fortitude Saves: Nanoc: 7+6=13; success, Danton: 11+0-1=10; failure; Luger: 13+7-1=19;success).

Most of the party was only briefly stunned by the flash of brilliant light, but Danton had the misfortune to be looking directly at it and found himself temporarily blinded. Because of the gibbering noise, he still knew where the misshapen mass was that caused his discomfort, and hacked at it with Rat’s Tail, in the hope of making it shut up (attack: 15+8-5=18; miss).

While Danton failed to strike the oozing horror, Luger was more successful, but to little effect. Geistblatt slashed into the thing’s amorphous body, but appeared to do minimal damage (attack: 17+6-1=22; hit; 3 damage).

“Keeping back!” yelled Aseneth. “Letting it attacking my rats!”

Moments later, those who could still see could observe as two huge rats appeared out of thin air next to the creature and began biting at it. More importantly than whatever damage they might do, the rats drew the thing’s attention. The mouths on the creature shot out on pseudopods from the main body of the mass and bit at one of the rats. Several attached themselves to it and pulled the rat back into the body of the thing, where it was quickly engulfed and absorbed.

After absorbing the rat, the horror spat once again, producing another flash of blinding light (Fortitude Saves: Nanoc10+6=16; success, Danton:19+0-1=18; success, Luger: 15+7-1=21; success). Fortunately, this time everyone had anticipated the move, and managed to avert their eyes as soon as something short forth from one of the thing’s mouths. While Alein continued to roll and scream on the floor and Nanoc bumped aimlessly against the back door, the three others were free to defend themselves while the horror turned its attention to the second, and final, rat.

The rat bit the thing once, before it was engulfed as the first had been, but the monster’s distraction enabled Aseneth to try to hit it with some sort of touch attack, Danton to flail at it and miss (attack: 9+8-1=16; miss), and Luger to cut a fairly large portion of the mass free from the main body (attack: 15+6-1=20; hit; 7 damage).

Then there was another flash of light (Fortitude Saves: Nanoc: 4+6=10; failure, Danton: 12+0-1=11; failure; Luger: 6+7-1=12; failure). This time the flash caught almost everyone in the room, including a cloaked figure who had just come bounding down the stairs in response to all the noise. Nanoc had finally managed to tune out the bizarre noise and recovered his senses enough to turn around, only to find himself looking directly at the monster when it spat again.

Aseneth and Danton (attack: 10+8-5=13; miss) bumped into one another as each, blinded by the light, sought to strike the gibbering mass, and the pair went down in a tangle, even as Luger held his ground and slashed the thing with Geistblatt yet again (attack: 20+6-5=21; potential critical; 2^nd roll: 7+6-5=8; miss—no critical: normal damage: 7 points), but still it continued to thrash about and the tiny mouths shot out again—this time at Nanoc, who used his sharp ears to bear down on the thing even when he could not see it. Two of the mouths struck and bit the barbarian (2 points damage taken). They sought to attach themselves to his skin, but any plan the thing might have had to engulf him as it had the rats was ended when he sank his axe into its center of mass (attack: 19+13-4=28; hit; 16 damage), killing the horror instantly.

Although blinded like everyone else in the room, the cloaked figure on the stairs still managed to fire off a spell at Luger and the cleric felt fatigue-inducing effects similar to what he had experienced outside the Shrine of Heironeous, shrugging off the urge to sleep now as he had then (Will Save: 12+8-1=19; success).

Luger’s vision returned more quickly than that of the others, and he was able to see the cloaked figure squatting on the stairs beginning another spell. Realizing that only one person could effectively take the fight up the narrow steps at a time, Luger shouted directions to Nanoc, and the barbarian bore down on the spellcaster even as the latter fired magic missiles at the half-orc in a feeble effort to hold him off (7 points damage taken by Nanoc).

In the enclosed space of the stairs and with the spellcaster having nowhere to go, Nanoc could hardly miss (attack: 14+13-4=23; hit; 13 damage). He swung his axe in a wide arc, destroying the wooden railing of the stairs and then slamming the weapon into the body of his attacker. This produced a high-pitched scream followed by silence.

By the time everyone’s vision returned a few moments later, Alein had finally stopped rolling and screaming on the floor, and the party was able to regroup.

“If such are the horrors we must face this near the entrance of this vile shop,” said Danton, I fear what we may discover upstairs or down. Perhaps ‘twould be wiser to withdraw and burn the place down from afar.”

Of course, neither Alein nor Luger would hear of such a thing, and Nanoc clapped his friend on the back.

“It ain’t that bad, Danton! Sure, that thing was pretty gross, but ya gotta admit, this is some kinda big-time fun!”

Unlike the cloaked spellcasters the party had encountered before, the dead one on the stairs was a young woman, and she carried nothing of interest, but did wear a set of engraved bracers and a shiny ring. Nanoc claimed these items, for whatever value they might be, and then the group considered what to do next. Several minutes had passed since the loud melee had ended, but no additional attackers had appeared.

At this point, Danton checked the single door in the room that remained closed (search: 3+11-1=13; Listen 7+7-1=13), but whether it was because there was nothing to be found or because his nerves were so much on edge, he neither saw nor heard anything unusual. Nanoc then wrenched the door open, discovering a set of stairs leading downward beyond it. Flashing the others a broad grin, the half-orc began the descent.

The stairway descended into what looked like a basement meeting room, with a long table surrounded by five chairs. A door was on the wall to the left. The dimensions of this room were even stranger than in the chambers above, increasing the queasiness that everyone felt (Fortitude Saves: Danton: 15-1=14; failure—cumulative –2 penalty to all rolls, Nanoc:5+6=11; failure—new –1 penalty to all rolls, Luger: 20+7-1=26; success—penalty to all rolls remains at -1).

“Tis at times like this I have difficulty remembering why it was I hath ever set foot outside Veluna,” said Danton with a low laugh, his voice shaking slightly.

“I don’t feel so good neither,” grunted Nanoc. “Actually I kind of feel like barfing,” he added. “Good thing I ain’t ate in a while.”

With only one door to investigate, Danton and Nanoc approached it cautiously. The Velunese gave it a once over and then pressed his ear against the portal (search: 14+11-2=23; listen: 16+7-2=21). While there were no traps that he could discern, Danton heard a great deal more than he would have liked when he listened against the door. From somewhere beyond he could once again hear an awful jabbering of the sort emitted by the nightmare the party fought upstairs, accompanied by what sounded like a woman’s moans or whimpers.

“There is another of those horrors behind this door,” hissed Danton, his face pale in the light emitted by his green torch. “That and something…or someone else…a woman perhaps.”

“Torea!” hissed Alein from across the room, where she kept an eye on the stairs leading to the room above.

“We gotta go in and see, Danton,” said Nanoc firmly.

The Velunese sighed. “I know, but I cannot bear the thought of another encounter with such a horror, perhaps accompanied by still more of these cloaked sorcerers—and I mean not to allow such a fight, for it might be the end of one or more of us, particularly if you are blinded and confused once more. But there is an alternative. Allow me to try one gambit before you rush in. If Torea is inside, mine plan will affect her as much as the others, but there is no avoiding it. If she is strong, she should survive…and if not, well at least our chances of living to raid that rat-tower of yours will be much increased.”

“I trust, ya, Danton,” said the barbarian, “always have. Do what ya gotta do, an’ if it’ doesn’t work, I’ll be into the breach.”

Danton nodded. He then carefully removed the little black pearl he had recovered from beneath the moathouse what seemed like a lifetime ago. Holding it carefully in his right hand, while he kept his torch in his left, he stood back from the door while the others fanned out around him. When he nodded, Nanoc wrenched the door open.

Beyond the door was what might have been a large chamber, if it had been confined to terms of measure that meant anything to mortal senses. When the party looked beyond the doorway, what was before a vague sense of wrongness grew into a grotesque affront to everyone’s sense of reality.

This room defied the boundaries of space as anyone present understood them. Distance seemed meaningless, angles that should not exist clearly did, and the room itself seemed to ebb and flow in time to an alien heartbeat. Garish brocades hung on the wall, and two figures in dark, hooded robes stood in silence. An incoherent jabbering erupted from a pile on the floor, a living heap of mouths and flesh and eyes—a bedlam of howling, hooting, and atonal singing. Curled into a ball on the floor at one end of the room—it was impossible to tell how far away—was a woman in a red gown, clutching her ears and covering her face with her arms.

Relieved to see that the woman, if indeed it was Torea, whom Danton had never met, appeared to be some distance away from the other three beings, the scout tossed the Bead of Force into their midst (throw: 10+5-2=13). The throw was not perfect, but it hardly had to be; when it landed at the feet of the two cloaked figures, it exploded with a force that shook the floor under the party’s feet, as well as whatever passed for a floor in the shifting room beyond the doorway (16 points of concussion damage to all creatures in a 10 foot radius of the impact point).

The explosion was so powerful that it seemed to tear at the very reality of whatever it was that lay beyond the doorway. The magic worked as advertised—after blasting the two cloaked figures and the nameless horror, each of the three was encased in a shimmering force prison. Normally Danton might have worried that they would escape before the party could flee, but all three appeared quite dead, and the greater danger at the moment appeared to be the very unraveling of reality in the chamber initiated by the explosion. The walls, such as they were, shifted and twisted, while the heartbeat that had moved the chamber seemed to fade. The bizarre angles appeared to close in, the distances to shrink. If such a thing were possible, it appeared that the room itself was about to implode.

Consciously ignoring everything around him save for the woman in the red gown, Nanoc charged into the room, past the three shimmering force prisons with their dead occupants, and scooped up the sobbing woman. By the time he threw her over his shoulder and spun about, the very surface under his feet seemed to be melting away, and he ran back towards the door with every bit of speed his legs could offer. As he drew close, he felt the floor beneath him giving way, and he leaped the last few yards out of the room and through the doorway. By the time Nanoc’s feet hit the ground, Danton was already slamming the door shut.

“It’s Torea!” said Luger and Alein in unison when Nanoc set the red-robed woman down carefully on the floor.

“But what happened to her armor and other gear?” asked the younger paladin. “Why did they put her in this dress?”

“Frankly,” said Danton, “I think we will all be much happier not knowing. But she is alive and we shouldst withdraw immediately—if not sooner—while we all remain in such a happy state.”

“No,” said Luger. “We have not yet learned anything about why she was taken—or who was responsible.”

“Twas lunatic men and women in blue robes that committed the act,” said Danton, “and that is answer enough for me. Report the kidnapping to the guard. Mayhap they will do something about this vile shop now.”

“Ya know they won’t,” said Nanoc, putting his hand on Danton’s shoulder. “Only we kin deal with this kind o’ stuff. The guard ain’t up to it—we gotta put these guys out of business fer good.”

Matching actions to words, the barbarian quickly drained two of his healing potions in anticipation of the battles yet to come (two potions of cure light wounds used: gain 25 hit points).

Danton shook his head. “I never thought I wouldst say it, but I find myself longing for the assault on the bell tower, when we might face ‘mere’ lycanthropes.”

“I’ve got to get Torea back to the Shrine,” said Alein. “But if you all are staying, come to the Shrine when you finish. We owe you our lives, and I know Torea will want to help you with the rats as soon as she’s able.”

With Danton still grumbling, the group made its way back up the stairs to the main floor and returned to the front door, where Alein carried her mentor outside. Once she was up the street and out of sight, the others made their way into the back room once more. Everyone still felt one degree or another of nausea.

“Asya,” said Danton, turning around to whisper to the woman as Nanoc led the way up the narrow stairs, past the body of the dead spellcaster, “if the opportunity doth present itself to destroy our enemies en masse, do not hesitate to take it. While your beau would love nothing more than to use that axe of his to go toe-to-toe with every horror this side of the abyss, I sense that we hath tempted Olidammara’s fancy enough for this night. Once more might be one time too many. And if that means that this building must burn to the ground, well there are worse things than fires.”

The woman was silent for a moment and her eyes locked on Danton’s in the green light of his torch. Then she nodded.

The stairs Nanoc followed opened up onto the second floor and then continued up to the third. When he and the others stepped out onto the second level, they found two small bedrooms with simple bedrolls and threadbare blankets spread on the floor, a kitchen with cupboards and counters, a table with six chairs as a dining area, and a privy. The room was dark and Danton’s torch provided the only light.

As the party searched through the small rooms in the dim light, fog began to roll down the stairs and into the area from the floor above, rapidly reducing visibility. When this happened, the party quickly gathered at the stairwell and began making its way up the stairs, which creaked under the feet of those least stealthy, chiefly Aseneth and Luger.

“Remember what I hath said,” hissed Danton over his shoulder to the sorceress. “If you hath a shot—take it!”

By the time Nanoc reached the top of the stairs and looked into fog-filled hallway, he and the others could hear low voices, engaged in what sounded like spellcasting. This fact was confirmed when the entire building and everything in it shifted and twisted, distances stretching and contracting, and a massive pool of blue slime splashed into existence in the center of the hallway ahead of Nanoc. By now everyone knew what would come next.

[Initiative: Nanoc: 4, Danton:12, Luger:18, Aseneth:23, Spellcaster(s):22 Worm:11]

“Do it or we’re all dead!” screamed Danton.

As the huge purple worm morphed into existence out of the pool of slime, multiple voices could be heard from down the corridor, at least one of them sounding like it might have come from the ceiling, but Aseneth was faster than anyone. Pushing Danton aside, she launched a great ball of fire down the hall.

The flaming mass roared over Nanoc’s head and around the worm, then flew down the hall, lighting the fog as it went. As it passed, it briefly illuminated a figure in a blue cloak clinging to the ceiling behind the worm before detonating in mid-air just below the cloaked person. The resulting explosion shook the entire building. A wave of heat washed over the party as flames engulfed the worm and everything farther down the hall, but Aseneth must have calculated her spell carefully, for none of the magical fire struck the party.

Amazingly, at least something or someone down the hall must have survived, for two large salvos of magical missiles rocketed out of the fire and fog towards Aseneth. However, as they drew close to the sorceress, all were somehow drawn into a golden brooch she wore around her neck, just above the half-moon pendant Nanoc had given her. The missiles all disappeared into the pendant with no apparent untoward effect on the sorceress.

As for the burning worm, it must have been truly a mindless pawn of its summoner, for the thing ignored the flames that engulfed its hindquarters and threw itself at Nanoc. Danton stepped forward to slash at it from one side, while Luger rushed up the stairs and took up a position on the half-orc’s other side. Each struck the beast (Danton attack: 18+8-2=24; hit; 5 damage; Luger attack: 14+6-1=19; hit; 4 damage), but to little effect. The worm’s tentacles slammed into Nanoc, but he swatted all but two aside with his axe before they could connect (two hits taken for a total of 16 damage). These two tentacles then wrapped themselves around Nanoc and began to draw him toward the worm’s mouth.

The barbarian responded in the same way he had before, keeping his arms free and waiting for the thing to pull him close enough to strike the worm the hardest blow he could to what passed for its head (attack: 10+13-1=22; hit; 16 damage). Nanoc’s axe smashed into the mass of purple flesh around the worm’s mouth, but it continued to draw him in—at least until Aseneth’s second fireball roared past and impacted at the far end of the hall—far enough away not to burn Nanoc, but striking the tail end of the worm directly once again.

This second explosion in such confined quarters was more than the already badly damaged structure of the Reality Wrinkle could take. The fireball blasted the wood and mortar and windows of the far wall out into the street beyond, and a large portion of the ceiling collapsed, bringing the spellcaster that had clung to the roof down with it. Even as the explosion and fire scorched the last of the life from the worm that held Nanoc, the floor collapsed under the thing’s incredible weight, causing both the flaming worm and Nanoc to fall through to the second floor below.

“Time to go!” yelled Danton. “This whole place is coming down!”

Aseneth, concerned for Nanoc, was already rushing back down the stairs, and it took little persuasion for Danton to get Luger to follow. By the time the trio reached the second level, smoke was filling the building and Nanoc was already on his feet and rushing to join them. The entire party all but flew down the last flight of stairs, rushing across the floor of the back room as the ceiling over their heads buckled under the weight of the dead summoned worm and the wrath of the spreading fire.

By the time that the party rushed out the front door, the second floor was collapsing onto the first and flaming bits of the house were falling around it on all sides. Fortunately for the neighbors, the houses in West Hill were generally spaced some distance apart, unlike those in the poorer parts of town, giving some hope that the fire might not spread.

When they reached the street well away from the burning remnants of the Reality Wrinkle, Danton, Nanoc, Luger, and Aseneth coughed out the smoke they had inhaled and struggled to catch their breath. What remained of the structure behind them continued to collapse and burn. And while neighbors looked on in shock from nearby buildings and even came out onto the street, there was, perhaps no longer surprisingly, no sign of the town guard anywhere.

________________________________________________________________

Notes for turn 46:

Please send postings for Turn 46 by the end of Thursday, February 22nd.

As you will note, Nanoc, Danton (and Aseneth) all received enough XP to reach 6^th level. Luger earned enough for 5^th level. Please do the level-up changes and let me know the results prior to, or with, your next postings.

Current date/time/location: 11 Srpanj; approximately 2330; Woodstock

Items gained this turn: 6 potions, 2 scrolls, 2 wands taken by Nanoc from spellcasters at the Shrine of Heironeous, bracers and ring taken from a spellcaster inside the Reality Wrinkle

Undivided Loot previously gained: none

Items used/lost/destroyed/sold this turn: Nanoc’s potion of bull’s strength, Luger’s potion of cure light wounds, Danton’s bead of force

FOES DEFEATED:

Active party members listed in green.

This Chapter:

Entire Campaign:

Current Status of the Party:

Note: known magic items listed in bold.

Nanoc

AC: 17

Hit points: 38/59

New XP: 3,750

XP total: 17,806

XP needed: 15,000

Equipment: masterwork great axe, great axe +1, silver-plated short sword, masterwork studded leather armor, 69 arrows, 2 quivers, backpack, waterskin, 24 days trail rations, bedroll, 2 sacks, 2 flint & steel, bearskin, tent, 50’ rope, 1 sap, masterwork mighty composite shortbow, masterwork shortsword, 6 iron triangles with inverted ‘Y’, three black cones made of some unknown substance, a black scepter decorated with a half dozen violet gems, a bead of force, metal scroll tube, a black cloak, two inverted ziggurat pendants; potion of bull’s strength, potion of cure light wounds(X2), potion of cure moderate wounds, potion of water breathing, potion of spider climbing, Aseneth’s House Torquann dragon ring, heavy riding horse and riding equipment, spare light riding horse and equipment, pack mule (mule carries: 3 tents, most of party’s rations and water, ‘peace offerings’ for gnomes), 6 unknown potions, 2 unknown scrolls, 2 unknown wands (one of which appears to shoot shimmering colors somehow), unknown bracers, unknown ring.

Gold: 1960

Silver: 220

Danton

AC: 15 (16 vs. one opponent)

Hit points: 22/22

New XP: 3,750

XP total: 17,056

XP needed: 15,000

Equipment: rapier, 6 daggers, light crossbow, studded leather armor, quiver with 33 bolts, bedroll, backpack, flint & steel, thieves picks, waterskin, 24 days trail rations, hooded lantern, gold ring engraved with the name Karakas, 1 sap, 1 metal key from Yusdrayl, Everburning Torch, scrolls with pyrotechnics and melf’s acid arrow, old journal, 8 iron triangles with upside down ‘Y’ inside, 1 protection from fire scroll, 5 scrolls of cure light wounds, 2 scrolls of cure moderate wounds, new journal, notebook, pen, ink, parchment in sealed waterproof box, pipe, tobacco, metal box, whetstone, six packets of tinder for lighting fires, gold inlaid dagger, Journal of Geynor Ton, a folded piece of parchment with a note addressed to someone named Festrath, spider pendant, a wand, tattered black cloak with burning eye emblazoned on it, disguise kit, letter to Master Dunrat, ochre-colored robe, potion of cure light wounds (X2), cure moderate wounds (X2), scrolls of animal messenger and stone shape, wand of magic missiles (5 charges), unknown potion from tavern in Nulb, light riding horse and equipment, potion of spider climb, a dozen vials of lantern oil, masterwork thieves’ tools, unknown scroll, unknown potion, rapier taken from were-rat leader (Rat’s Tail).

Gold: 1667

Silver: 0

Luger

AC: 20

Hit Points: 24/34

New XP: 3,750

XP total: 12,506

XP needed: 10,000

Equipment: longsword, heavy mace, light x-bow, dagger, 20 bolts, chainmail +1, large steel shield, 3 belt pouches, large bag, 50’ rope, 5 torches, hooded lantern, 3 oil flasks, flint & steel, 24 days rations, silver holy symbol of Heironeus, 3 flasks holy water, 3 healer’s kits, backpack, cleric’s vestment, traveler’s clothing, waterskin, bedroll, iron triangle with upside down ‘Y’ inside, eight cockatrice feathers, scrolls of cure light wounds (2), cure disease, neutralize poison, potions of bull’s strength, cure moderate wounds (X2), and haste; Geistblatt (ghost touch longsword +1), light riding horse and equipment, 5 vials of Furyondian Fire.

Spell Selection:

Level 0(5): Detect Magic, Read Magic X2, Light
Level 1(4+1): Domain: Protection from Evil

Level 2 (3+1): Domain: Spiritual Weapon

Turn Undead attempts left on current day: 7 of 7

Gold: 297

Karzak

AC: 11

Hit Points: 1/38

New XP: 0

XP total: 3,600

XP needed: 6,000

Equipment: none

Gold: 0