The Adventures of The Unknown
Episode 10
“The Carnival of Isolde - Part II”

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                                    Seth DeCalea: Half-Elven Ranger
                                    Issic:  Half Dragon from Sigil
                                    Manderkarr: Dwarven master of Axe and asskicking.
                                    Piper Troublefinder A halfling with a taste for vengeance
                                    Shanagra Darmal: Nyandarian Druid late of Drychtnoth.
                                    Alexander: Ingaran traveler.
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The Place: The Unknown Lands, Lake Eonnoth
The Time: Summer, 11 Eul, Sixth Year, Eighth Age. 
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       Shanagra, Seth, and Manderkarr were in the Ale tent of the Carnival, and Shanagra had just met Alexander.  Alexander, a human with dark, curly hair, wearing studded leather armor with a toga over it, noticed a halfling strolling in.  The halfling likewise noticed the stranger and thought the toga was interesting.  Alexander also had a shield and a short sword.  Shanagra introduces Alexander to the halfling, Piper.  "This is Piper, Alexander.  Piper, this is Alexander."
“Great.  Another plague spreader.  Hello,” Said Piper.
      “Where might you hail from?” asked Alexander.  Piper refused to answer.  Alexander, looking at the halfling with dark eyes, commented about rudeness.
      "Rude?” said Piper,  “I thought it was pretty rude for the humans to kill off my people.”
      "So, where to next?" asked Seth.
      Manderkarr suggested hooking up with the Carnival and working.  “A good way to make some extra money.”
      "I have money," said Seth.  “Just less of it.”
      Shanagra said, "That is an interesting idea, Manderkarr.  Getting jobs here would solve some problems of crossing Drychtnoth."
      "Work, huh?" said Issic.  "We would see some interesting things here."
      "I will not display myself,” said Seth, a little upset at the idea.  Then another thought hit him. “Well... maybe an arrow demonstration."
      “Well, I am here to explore this new land and see how this Olanigan relates to Athena,” said Alexander.  “So I wouldn’t mind getting a job as a cover to do my research.”
      "I’m with the tree hugger again,” said Piper.  “I won’t let a bunch of drunkards poke at me.  Of course, what could I do?  Dress in drag and dance for coins?”
      “You look like you could do that rather well, Piper,” said Issic with a smile.
      "I could be a guard," said Seth the tree hugger.
      "All you have to do is something interesting,” said Issic. “I did not see one person that is already employed here get poked… except maybe that really cool nail guy."
      “Wood'n head,” offered Shanagra.
      “Well, back home, people, affairs such as these would charge for speech lessons and the like,” said Alexander.  “I am somewhat skilled in that area.”
      "I could make myself look like a human child and beg for a while," suggested Piper.  “But then I’d have to wear boots, and those are so confining.”
      "Hmm.  I bet people would pay to see the Brute and the Demon go at it,” said Issic.
      "So, who do we talk to?" asked Seth.
      "Start with the barker over there where we came in," suggested Issic.
      “The barker is the best place to start,” said Alexander.
      "I think we should talk to the Barker,” said Shanagra.  “I think the name of the owner of the Carnival is Isolde, but I don't know where to find her."
      "Ok, barker it is," said Seth.
      They found the barker up on a stand talking up a storm, pointing out various tents and what were in them.
      "Sir, we'd like to be employed by this fine establishment," said Piper.
      The barker bowed and said, "Tindell at your service.  The owner is Isolde.  I do not know if she is looking for new workers.  But you may feel free to mongrel."
      Seth, standing stoically, asked, "Where do we find her?"
      "So where is this Isolde so that we may discern as much," asked Issic.
      "She finds you.  If you wish to be a mongrel,” continued Tindell, “then you must be made aware of Carney law."
      “Oh, that sounds logical,” said Piper.  “Bet she reads palms and has a crystal ball or something.”
      "And where might we find a copy of these laws?" asked Alexander.
      "Carney Law?" asked Seth.
      "Mongrel?  Carney law?" asked Issic.
      "I will tell you the Carney law.  Rule number one: Do Your Part.  We all carry our own weight round here.  Rule number two: Do No Harm.  Even if you do something stupid to some George and that comes back around and puts the Carnival in danger, you break the rule.”
      "How do we not find her?" asked Seth.
      “Are those the only rules?” inquired Alexander.
      "So....what now?"
      “Rule number three,” said Tindell, “No complaining about the Twisting."
      Alexander perked up at that.  “What would that be?”
      "I’m turned off already," commented Piper sourly.
      "The Twisting is what the Carnival does to you.  It brings out the inner you, so to speak.  It finds your inner truth and brings it to the fore. "
      Seth muttered, "As long as I don't lose part of my soul."
       "Most of us were normal Georges at one time,” said Tindell.  “The Twisting made us into Troupers."
      "So that means what?" demanded Piper.
      "That means you will become a freak."
      "Again, How do we NOT find her?" asked Seth.
      Issic asked how the Twisting would affect him.
      "You will not be able to avoid Isolde for long," Tindell said to Seth.  Then the barker addressed Issic,  "That means you will likely become more dragonlike in nature, or more sexual, or more greedy, or whatever fault you may have will become increased."
      “Will we change physically?” asked Piper, afraid of what might come out of him as a result of this Twisting.
      "For some it is physical.  If your claim to fame is shortness, stay with us and you will become the Shortest man.  Check out the Hall of Horrors if you want to see the worst case scenarios."
      "And what if we decide to leave the Carnival at some later point in time?" asked Issic.
      "The Twisting is permanent."
      "But does that mean that we will not be able to leave?" asked the Ingaran.  The barker just smiled.
      "Ahhh, I don’t think I want to do this,” said Piper.
      "When does the carnival pass into Drychtnoth?" asked Seth.
      "I do not know Isolde's schedule."
      “I think we must meet with this Isolde," said Alexander.
      Issic looked at Shanagra to see what his reaction was.  Whispering to Shanagra, Issic said, " That is good question.. are we sure that the carnival is headed in the direction we need to go?"
      Shanagra said, "I don't know.  I don't think it would be wise.  I am likely to turn into a treant or something."
      "Well it could be...enlightening," said a very frightened and worried Piper, swallowing hard.
      "What the twisting does is show your secret self,” said Tindell.  “It takes your essence, whoever you are at your very core, and manifests it in the flesh."
      "I am very interested in observing this change in others,” said Alexander.  “I think it would be very intriguing"
      "Sounds very painful,” said Seth.
      "Well, what if someone is constantly sad and melancholic and crying inside?" asked Piper.  "Not that I am.  It’s hypothetical."
      "Then the tears would never stop for that person.  The ever-crying, perhaps."
      Manderkarr asked what was responsible for the Twisting.
      "Isolde, of course, is the source of the Twisting," said Tindell.  "I am sure I do not know, but the barker of the Hall of Horrors, I believe, thinks so.”
      "Isolde doesn't sound very nice," said Seth.
      “All I know is she has wings like an angel."  Seth laughed and the others groaned.  Issic flapped his wings a bit.
      "Wings,” muttered the halfling.  “Sound familiar, eh?"
      “I think we should check the hall out,” offered Alexander.  “If nothing else it would be interesting to see what it holds.”
      "I have been anxious to see this,” said Issic.  “Let's go, guys."
      They walked around the carnival until they found a long barracks tent with a huge sign in the front that read, “Hall of Horrors”
       In front, they saw a sinister man in black robes with long sideburns and a pair of spectacles.  "Professor Pacali at your service, sirs,” said the man.  “I am the so called Barker for the Hall of Horrors.  Barker.  What a demeaning term.  I worry for the mental health of those who would pattern their sense of self on stray dogs.
       "You strike me as the sort who appreciates the straight truth, unfettered by backward gypsy superstition or by the misanthropic vernacular of a performing freak.  Do you wish to know the true nature of Isolde's carnival?  You shall find it past that inner tent flap, but we must wait a moment before entering.  The  so-called skurra are still preparing the hall for presentation.  In the interim, allow me to properly present and welcome you to the Hall of Horrors.  We have just finished our fifth show this day.  It always takes a bit for the skurra to arrange things between showings.  This is the main event.  After that fraudulent buffoon Tindel shows the paying public a few worthy selections of our resident freaks, he drops them off here and leaves them to me.  For a few extra coppers, it is my task as lecturer to reveal monstrosities the likes of which put those misbegotten creatures outside to shame.  Here we house the TRUE horrors of the carnival."
      Piper stood and stared for a moment.  “I will go,” he finally said.
      "Have they warned you of the twisting?" asked Pacali.
      “We have been told of it but not in great detail,” said Alexander.  He took out a book and started writing something.
      “What is a skurra?” asked Manderkarr.
      "A skurra, dwarf, is one of the wagon tenders.  You will see them scurrying about wearing white face paint.  They do not speak.  And if that paint ever comes off.... well, let's just hope you are not in the grim reaper's way when that happens."
      Are they ghosts?  Why do they wear white face paint?” asked Manderkarr.
       "No one knows that, dwarf."
      Alexander stopped writing.  “This will be most interesting.”
       "Step into this vestibule,” said Pacali.  “Not only am I your guide, because of my mundane appearance, I also earn my keep by procuring the bottled abnormalities you see displayed around you."
       They entered into a tented room with shelves.  On the shelves they saw jar after jar of preserved monsters.  Little jars, about 8 inches in height, filled with some form of preserving fluid.  No two were the same.  One had two bloated heads staring into each other's eyes.  Another had more limbs than a spider.  They were loathsome to look upon.      “Interesting,” said Alexander.  “What is the fluid?  How long will it keep such things preserved?"
      "So, can we go on?" asked Seth.  He clearly did not like the little pickled monsters.
      "Vile little things, aren’t they?” said Pacali.  “Each one is a mixture of the innocent and the fiendish, I assure you.  These infernal infants are quite real, and was once drawing breath, but they were all too wretched to live."
      "Kind of like me,” said Issic, “though I am not sure which side is the innocent one."
      "All thing deserve life," said Piper. 
      “That is not true, Piper,” said Issic.
      “How do you know if something is bad until you let it live?” asked Piper.
      "Piper,” said Issic,  “It seems that you are assuming that these pickerels have been killed and not died on their own.”
      "He said they were all to wretched to live.  That means he must have taken their lives," said Piper.  “Are these the result of some one trying to have kids while working here?"
      “No,” said Pacali.
      “Where did you get these?” asked Manderkarr.
      "Alas, I cannot give away the professional secret of where I obtain these pickled punks."
      “Pacali’s pickled punks?” said Manderkarr.
      “Exactly, dwarf.  Pacali’s pickled punks.”
       They all could soon hear inhuman gibbering from beyond the interior tent door.  “Tindel, I am sure, told you,” said Pacali, "that the true horrors of the carnival are in here.  That is not quite true.  Isolde herself is the true monster.  But, we are ready, are we not?"  He indicated the interior tent door.  Piper ran in without waiting.
      "Were you not told of the twisting before joining?" asked Issic.
      Alexander, still examining the pickled monsters hurriedly asked, "Where do you obtain the fluid?  And how long will it preserve such things?”
      Pacali lifted aside the tent flap.  "I am afraid, I cannot answer the questions about the Punks.  Trust me, they are wretched and in here, you may see what they might look like if they were let live.  And I obtain the fluid by making it."  Everyone cautiously walked in.
       They saw a man encumbered by a thousand pounds of unnatural fat.  He could barely move under his own power.
      "This poor soul is called The Gargantuan.  His sister works here too.  Mola, the living skeleton.  He has not eaten a bite since he joined our carnival, yet he continues to gain weight.  Oh, he was just fine when he joined...
"How long has it been since he joined the carney?" asked Alexander, still taking notes.
       "Well, he gains about 60 lbs per year.  You figure it out."
      "That really is twisted if he does not even get to enjoy food while he gains the weight.  I wonder if he would lose weight if he ate,” said Issic.  Pacali was ushering them into the next section of the Hall.
       "Now, strangers, I would like to introduce you to Tenira Courant, or, as the atrociously exaggerated banners announce her, The Squid Woman.”  They could see a beautiful woman with tentacle clusters instead of forearms and hands.  "She started out three years ago with us as a mongrel pick pocket...  She now has no shapely forearms, no nimble fingers.”
      "I thought the twisting was to enhance what you were good at.  It seems to me that she can no long continue her trade,” commented Alexander.  Pacali just shrugged.
      "Well was that one elf lady with the snake twisted?" asked Seth.
      "Next, we have a subhuman.  Wait, you spoke of the snake lady?  Was she Twisted?  Of course she was.  She isn't an elf.  She is a polymorphed snake."  Pacali laughed.
       "Next, we have the subhuman.  He can eat anything.  He is immune to any toxin.  And here he is - The Geek!"
      "I'm quickly changing my mind about this," said Piper.
       They saw a twisted man.  He was sitting at a table filled with garbage and filth of all sorts.  His skin was jaundiced, his features sunken, his teeth long and sharp.
       "Isolde has turned this man into a living ghoul.  He gets sick only if he eats good food."
       The Geek took a frog, live, and ate it, bit by squealing bit.
      "Sir, are we being twisted just by being here?" asked Piper.
       "Oh yes, even by being here a few minutes, you start to Twist."
      "This is horrible," said Piper.  Seth, throwing up into a bucket put there for that purpose, agreed. “Lets not join the carnival!”
       Shanagra said, "Perhaps we should leave."  Issic agreed.
      "I want to see more, even though it might not be wise to spend much time here,” said Alexander.  “Sir are you being twisted?" 
       "Oh yes, Ingaran, I am definitely Twisted,"  he laughed.
      "I'd rather have a drinking contest with ten dwarves then stay here," commented Seth.
       "And now we have... The abominations...  We have six.  These are those who broke the Carney Laws, and Isolde punished them.  Do you have the heart to see them?"
"Well, if that way is the way out, I think we have to see them, don't we?" said Alexander.
       "We have a side door here for the squeamish."
      "I will see them,” said Piper.
      "Lets go then," said Seth.
      "Well, I suppose we need to get our coppers worth,” said Alexander.  “We need know what we were getting into."
       He them into the next section.  The first Abomination was truly horrifying.  It had a terribly asymmetrical body with drooping, twitching limbs.  His appendages seemed to have been collected from any number of incongruous critters.  A mismatched set of oversized jaws and crooked teeth started to howl  with such intense despair that it made the onlookers cry.
      “What did this poor soul do to break the rules?” asked Alexander, feeling unbearable pity for the thing.
      "It would be better if he went the way of the babies...  end his misery,” said the half dragon, also filled with pity.
         Pacali said, "On to the next... Pitiful case, eh?  Once was a halfling, like you," he said to Piper.
      "A halfling?" said Piper, swallowing hard.  “What did he do to deserve punishment, sir?”
      "Broke the laws,” said Seth sadly.
      "How much would it take to end his miserable pitiful life?” asked Issic.
       "We cannot kill the abominations, dragon man.  Remember Rule Two, which I am sure Tindell told to you.  Do no harm.  Kill an abomination, and Isolde will turn you into one."  Pacali led them toward the next Abomination.
       The next one was also a pitiful wretch, trembling and shaking.  A lamprey's mouth, circular and filled with teeth and a clawed arm completed its abnormalities.  It crashed into the cage walls, trying to bite the onlookers. 
      "Which rule did this one break?"
      "He killed a mongrel," said Pacali.
      Piper looked away from the cage.  “Poor thing.”
      "Surely I could buy his release of this life?" asked Issic.
       "You will have to bargain with the Devil for that, Dragon man."
       The third one looked like he was mostly crocodile. But his hand/claws were blubbery and unstable, and his head was that of a human being.  He cried and cried and cried.  Every now and then his body was wracked by spasms.
      “Crocodile tears?” said Issic, trying to make a joke despite the pitiful nature of the thing.
       "Exactly," said Pacali to the dragon man.  "Crocodile tears."
      Seth started to cry openly.  Shanagra tried to hold back his tears, but could not.  To think that that thing was once a human…
       A white painted man rushed in and silently gestured to Pacali.  "Ah, excuse me, but if you will take the side door, Isolde has ordered that the Carnival be on the move.  It is time to go for us."
      "This is disgusting,” said Piper.  “I better not meet this witch, Isolde, for she would get a big piece of my mind."
       Everyone left the tent quickly.  Issic gave a backward glance and thought of ending the crocodile man’s life, but Shanagra pulled him along.
       They saw tons of movement outside the tent.  Within ten minutes, every tent was packed onto huge gypsy wagons and were on the move.  Patrons stood about in groups watching... wondering...
       The people started to head back to town.  A child stopped in front of Issic and Manderkarr and said, "Did they forget you?"
       And that is when the screaming started.

      The people going back to the walled city were screaming.  Shanagra, Issic, Manderkarr, Seth, and Alexander saw metal monsters tearing the people apart.  Each one had six blade arms and a rotating blade mandible.  They stood ten feet tall and were slaughtering the people.  Blood was flying in the air like rain.
      “May Athena protect us,” said Alexander.
      "Charge!"  said Seth, running with his sword drawn.  When he realized what he was running toward, Seth came to a quick halt to look at the scene in utter amazement.  Piper held back, moving quietly and unobtrusively toward a tree.
      Alexander studied the monsters, looking for the thinnest and most fragile looking parts.  Seth, Manderkarr, and Issic moved in for the attack.  Manderkarr was blocking blows the machine was making to the people around.
      “What are these things, Shanagra?" asked Issic. 
      Shanagra said, “I do not know, Issic.  I do not know.”  He drew his sword and stuck it in the ground.  He raised his arms to the heavens, "Oh Mother, slam these monstrosities with your wrath!"
       Lightning ripped from the sky and smashed into one of the metal beasts.  It fell and Seth struck at it while it was down.  Suddenly it collected its legs under itself and stood up again to its full ten foot height.  Seth retreated hastily.  The monster continued its slaughter of nearby people.  Piper hid behind a tree.
      “Chains!  We can try and trap them up!  They'll tear ropes!” exclaimed Manderkarr, but no one came forward.
      Manderkarr was hit by the blades.  Blood, armor, bone and flesh flew into the air in a cloud that enveloped the dwarf and the render.  Manderkarr’s body went into shock over the massive amount of damage it sustained in a heartbeat and he collapsed.
      Issic slammed his sword into the metal monstrosity, striking at its legs to immobilize it, but a spark of light deflected the weapon, and then the Render attacked and Issic sustained flesh rending damage, but he was just a little quicker than the dwarf in getting out of the way. 
      Piper moved in closer and took aim with his dagger.
      "Shiney Trouble fly true!" said Piper, throwing his dagger.  It collided with the metallic figure on one of its knee joints with a muted clang and a flash of light.
      And, they all noticed, on a hill under the overcast skies, a dark figure.  A figure out of fables and legends.  A figure out of childhood nightmares.  An illithid.  And it was controlling these metal monsters.

To be continued…


900 exp. for the adventure

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Current Events:

Notes on Pacali:  Pacali hates Isolde and the Twisting.  (If only he knew that the face paint the skurra wear protects them from the Twisting!)  He does not discuss how the Twisting has affected him, but it most certainly has.  A former scholar, he languishes now as a lowly barker for this carnival.  He blames Isolde for his own misfortunes.  He believes Isolde is a succubus named Elsepeth with a fiendish plot to make everyone monstrous.

Notes on the Pickled Punks:  Pickled punks are hideous, unnantural infants.  No two are the same.  The worst thing about them?  They are alive.  The fluids they are in only keep them comatose.  Remember the Carny law?  Do no harm.   Pacali cannot let the Punks be killed.  Nor does he dare let them live free.

Notes on The Gargantuan:  The gargantuan is encumbered by a thousand pounds of unnatural fat.  He cannot move on his own.  He has an innate power to Command others.  He feeds off of his sister, Mula.  When she eats, he gets fatter, and she gets skinnier (she is the skeleton lady and was not encountered by the party).

Notes on The Geek:  Before the carnival, he was a rich man, but he let a young girl begging for food starve to death.  Now he can only eat garbage and poisonous, foul things.  He gets sick eating regular food.

Notes on The Abominations:  Those that break the carny laws by killing are often punished by Isolde.  They become the Abominations

Notes on Render Sheens:  10 foot tall monstrosities, these things were created by the mindflayers using their unique psionic circuitry.  There are many sorts of sheens, and these are the largest, most deadly encountered thus far.  They have six blade arms, a rotating mandible blade, and plasma breath.  They also have an electrical discharge attack as well as a defensive shield.  Their plasma breath, usable three times per day, is vented superheated plasma, creating a searing cone of superheated particles 90 feet long.  Note, these things are unsuited to resist magic.  All saves vs magic are at –2.  They are immune to mind influencing spells or psionics as they have no minds to speak of… only programming.

Notes on the illithid:  Odupt is an advance scout working for an elder conclave, testing the defensive capabilities of the humans.  A 3rd level psionicist/warrior, Odupt is 6’0” tall and has a 90% magic resistance.  He is a musician and is of the Tamer Creed.  He is a master with a longsword.