Chapter 16: Beneath the Starless Sky

[Inferno]

The Underground City, Beneath the Great Pyramid of Xuthalhotep
Lost City of Khemsa, Forgotten Kingdom of Verulia, Great Eastern Desert, the World of Hyboria
Day Ten. Mid morning?, 23rd day of the month of Yuluk, 1279th year of the Age of Aquilonia






The fight becomes a slaughter.

Loche and Tjoruy brutally massacre the two fleeing beastmen before they can take a step and the battle is ended. The adventurers have taken the Dark Ship.

Mako the conjurer steers her out onto the vast subterranean lake, unseen behind the wheel.



Kiri works the surging sails as Cruloc binds the adventurers' fresh wounds. (+1hp each)

Tjoruy the ramshackle prophet brews a healing draught of mushrooms in an ancient goblet and drinks of it. (+7hp) More remains, which he offers to his companions. "Brethren, the power of the chalice is waning. Drink from it, if you need healing. And enter the dream world with me." Cruloc and Zahra hesitate, despite their grievous injuries.

Xorzen searches the slaughtered dead. He finds nothing of use on the primitive beastmen. But from the dead sorcerer-priest he recovers a dozen Verulian silver coins minted millennia ago, a ghastly mask, a ring of keys, and an ebon stone disc carved with the all-seeing eye of Zargoth.



Loche drags the heavily muscled cadavers and hauls them overboard into the waiting water below.

Then, by the light of his lantern, Amethu sees something his eyes can't believe!



Gigantic glistening tentacles rise up from the black lake! They greedily seize the bloody corpses and take them back down into the stygian depths! As quickly as they appeared, they are gone without a trace!

Midship, Tjoruy enters a trance and divines that no dangers lurk below decks. He shares his prophecy with the adventurers but Xorzen listens at the hatch nonetheless. Hearing nothing, his keys open up the hold where he and Garrin find a lantern, chains, shackles and little else.

Only the captain's quarters remains. Garrin and Xorzen cautiously investigate and find it also empty of life. But wine, mushrooms and some kind of smoked meat are discovered in the dilapidated disheveled cabin.

On deck, beneath the eerie lichen stars, the adventurers see their frightful destination looming ahead in the distance: the Island of Death... and Zargoth.


Actions?!



Underground City Map:

Red S = The Dark Ship


Behind the DM Screen:

Augury success? [1d100] = 40 Yes.

Loche accidentally appeases the Sea Monster by throwing bodies overboard! Serendipity!

PC Status:

• Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 3/2: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 11/14, Spells: 7/7 1st lvl, 2/3 2nd lvl, Lantern
  Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 3: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 24/45
  Garrin: Argosian Atlantean Paladin 3: Move: 12", AC: 3(1), HP: 21/26, Laying Hands: 1/1
  Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 3/2: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 19/19, Spells: 3/3 1st lvl
  Loche: Pict Savage Thief 4: Move: 9", AC: 5, HP: 24/25
  Mako: Khitan Easterner Illusionist 4: Move: 12", AC: 7(5), HP: 12/12, Spells: 3/3 1st lvl, 2/2 2nd lvl
  Tjoruy: Verulian Osoran Cleric 4: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 26/31, Spells: 3/5 1st lvl, 2/4 2nd lvl
  Xorzen: Verulian Osoran Monk 3: Move: 17", AC: 6(4), HP: 16/16
  Zahra: Verulian Amazon Fighter 4: Move: 12", AC: 3, HP: 11/29

PC Magic:

• Protection from Evil (Garrin): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Garrin.
  Healing Mists of Osorus (Garrin, Kiri, Loche, Mako and Xorzen have breathed of the mists): All lost HP recovered with 8 hours of sleep. Wakeful rest, or sleeping less than 8 hours, enables recovery of 1 HP per hour. Duration: "months."
  Invisibility (Mako): Target: self.
  Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 28 rounds.

Player Resources:

• The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
  Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
  Hieroglyphs (the story so far, in images)
  An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[Urson]

Zahra
IF Tjoury's potion is still usable, Zahra will take a swig. She busies herself helping with the corpses, and jerks back in shock when she sees the Beasts feeding on the dead.

How does anyone get used to the movement? she says, taking a seat away from the rails.

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

"Crom's throne!" exclaims Cruloc, seeing the leathery tentacles drag the fallen beastmen down to their watery grave. His brief few moments aboard the ship has done nothing to allay his fear of deep water.

Instinctively knowing that even greater, fouler dangers yet await, he reaches for the mushroom brew.

"Bah! The raver fills my ears with his prattle. Perhaps if I slake my thirst with some of this piss, he'll start making sense!"

[Inferno]

DM:

Zahra and Cruloc each bring Tjoruy's golden chalice to their lips and feel themselves healed by its wondrous power. (+6hp and +7hp respectively)

The sacred cup is empty.

(Zahra and Cruloc, please Save vs Poison on 1d20)

Healing: Zahra: [2d4+1] = 5+1 = 6, Cruloc: [2d4+1] = 6+1 = 7

[Urson]

Zahra

Save VS Poison: 14
attribute check [1d20] = 5

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

Save vs. poison [1d20+4] = 20+4 = 24

Cruloc vulgarly drains the ancient goblet. After deducing that his tongue is not long enough to reach its bottom, he inserts a grimy finger into the vessel to dredge up the remaining mushroom fragments. The savage then uses that same finger to brush his teeth.

He nods and hands the goblet back to Tjoruy. "I've tasted worse," he comments, which in Cimmeria amounts to glowing praise.

[Scott308]

Loche

The Pict tries doing things he imagines to be "sailory" since he doesn't really have knowledge or experience doing so.

[ChubbyPixie]

Adjusting rigging and [insert smart boating terms that make it seem like you know what you're talking about here], Kiri helps guide the party to their inevitable confrontation. He can be seen mumbling to the air at his side, presumably in deep conversation with Grandfather.

[AleBelly]

Tjoruy takes the spent chalice from Cruloc's hands, tossing it in his sack. "The brew is mine, but the life force is Osurus'. I am glad how blessed he is."

He cries out in alarm as the tentacles pull the corpses into the dark deep. "Death alone will sate the appetite of this world." His gleaming eyes are transfixed on the isle, growing ever larger in their view. He lifts up his mud-caked mask and vomits on the deck...again.

[ravenn4544]

Amethu keeps watch... not having to utter a word about ensuring everyone stays in the boat....

[DadsAngry]

Mako:

With the enemy defeated Mako bursts into a sailing song he learned on his sailing voyage to this land.

"Our anchor's aweigh and our sails are all set
Bold Riley, oh, boom-a-lay
The folks we are leaving, we'll never forget
Bold Riley, oh, gone away
Goodbye, me darling. Goodbye, me dear, oh
Bold Riley, oh, boom-a-lay
Goodbye, me darling. Goodbye, me dear, oh
Bold Riley, oh, gone away
Wake up Mary Ellen and don't look so glum
By Whitestocking time you'll be drinking hot rum
The rain it is raining now all the day long
And the northerly wind, it does blow so strong
We're outward and bound for Bengal bay
Get bending, me boys, it's a hell of a way"

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

The barbarian suppresses the urge to howl.

[OGRE MAGE]

Xorxen looks over the mask to see if anything can be learned from it. If not, he tosses it to the deck, not willing to replace his own much cooler hawk face.

The very old coins he hands off to any takers, Cruloc if he’ll have them, having no need for monetary gains himself. The keys he stores away for later. Remembering back to what happened to Brother Soruk once he started singing, Xorxen keeps his distance from Mako.

Looking carefully at the ebon disk, the masked monk attempts to discern its use. He holds it in the palm of his hand, wondering if it has something to do with the movement of the ship. He will look around near the wheel area to see if it needs to be inserted anywhere into the driving mechanics of the vessel.

Finally, he shows the disc to Amethu. “What do you make of this thing, friend?”

[ravenn4544]

Amethu will study the curiosity for a few moments to see if this shape or sigil resonates with him magically or if the markings provide some other clue.

A thought does occur to him while he works, "perhaps it is a symbol for him to pass welcome in the places to come? perhaps some as yet to be determined answer..."

[Urson]

Zahra
Zahra scowls at Mako's singing, but says nothing. She looks more and more uncomfortable as the trip continues. How do people get used to the movements? she says to no one in particular. She'll stay seated near the middle of the ship for now, fighting mild seasickness.

[SocraticLawyer]

Garrin stores the wine and smoked meat from the captain's quarters in his pack. He is certain they will be needed before this quest is done.

Garrin also dumps overboard the hallucinogenic mushroom he took from the forest previously, but did not eat. Now that he knows the effect it will have, he has no need of it.

The paladin helps sail the vessel to their next destination.

[Inferno]

The adventure continues in... Chapter 17: The Island of Death