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Arendel’s Serpent's Skull Journal. (Complete! 06/25/13, With Pictures!)
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<blockquote data-quote="Abciximab" data-source="post: 5822867" data-attributes="member: 46017"><p style="text-align: center"><strong>Session 28.</strong></p><p></p><p>Lamashan the 19th (Cont).</p><p></p><p>Just after the festivities started, Osond returned to tell us that the Radiant Muse wanted to meet with us right away. We climbed the district ziggurat, topped with the Spear of Eager Striving. With what we have seen so far, it appears this district is dedicated to the arts.</p><p></p><p>Also at the top of the ziggurat was the Radiant Muse herself, a Lillend (an extraplanar creature with the torso of a beautiful woman on top and the coils of a serpent below). It would seem Lillends were not that uncommon in ancient Saventh-Yhi, as they acted as muses for many of the artisans of the district. Obviously smitten with her beauty, Max leaned in and asked me a whispered question that I shall not note for posterity. My answer was, “you really don’t want to find out.” Max accepted this with a nod.</p><p></p><p>The Radiant Muse told us we were welcome to stay for just one night unless we could demonstrate any meaningful artistic talents. I immediately started to panic as two of our group volunteered to demonstrate their “artistic ability.”</p><p></p><p>My fears were confirmed as Ace stepped forward and opened with, “Your large breasts remind me of an amusing story I once heard in a Tavern…” I shall not relate the rest of the vulgar story here, suffice to say we were all left speechless at its, I hesitate to say, “climax”.</p><p></p><p>I was only slightly less panicked when Taraz stepped forward. He began to relate portions of the holy script of Sarenrae, some of which can be quite beautiful and moving. Unfortunately he chose passages related to the structure of the religious hierarchy and layout of the temples. “…And all the Temples of The Dawnflower shall be set with Windows Facing to the East and Windows Facing to the West so that the Divine Everlight shall fall upon the Altar at the Dawn and Eve of each day.” </p><p></p><p>I don’t think I blinked or breathed through the entire fiasco. Thankfully the Radiant Muse was not angered by our uncouth display, even going so far as thanking us for our “performances” (and believe me when I say, you could hear the quotes around the word “performances”). She then mentioned that perhaps our skills might lie in other disciplines. </p><p></p><p>It was at this point where my horror arose once more as Max stepped forward. “You got anything that needs killin’?” </p><p></p><p>I thanked the gods.</p><p></p><p>She told us more of the bestial vampire that had been preying upon the people of her village. Osond had already mentioned this creature in passing, but she went into greater detail. It seems this creature is more animal-like than most vampires and calls it a Vrykolakas, a Feral Vampire. She told us it looks vaguely humanoid, with leathery brown skin, hunched shoulders, crooked legs, and a long, bony neck ending in an almost ape-like head. Apparently the trouble started a few weeks ago and attacks happen every three or four nights. She told us the creature lives to the east, perhaps in the Boggard’s territory. She noted that if we could solve this problem for her, we would be welcome to explore this district.</p><p></p><p>At this point, we returned to the feast and then rested for the night in an offered hut. We rested until dawn.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center">----------</p><p></p><p>Lamashan the 20th.</p><p></p><p>I used a Sending spell to inform Amivor of our situation. He replied that they were relocating camp to the central isle and would soon send scouts to meet us lakeside, near the village. </p><p></p><p>Looking at our map, we noted a building in the middle of a lake to the southeast. We thought that a good place to start and borrowed a couple of canoes. It was not too much trouble porting them to the lakeside. We encountered a patrol of Boggards who were, once again, unwilling to parlay. </p><p></p><p>Lakeside, we noted a green glow coming from the entrance to the top level of the flooded ziggurat. The paddle out was uneventful. Once there, we climbed to the top as that appeared to be the only entrance. Within the small structure was a green, glowing bottle filled with mist. Within the mist from time to time I saw a demonic looking face. As I was inspecting it, a voice from the bottle said, “I know all within Saventh-Yhi! Ask and I shall answer!” </p><p></p><p>Somewhat taken aback, I started with the obvious. “Who are you?” </p><p></p><p>“I am Tentagard! I am the voice within! Filled with the knowledge of all! You there! Mighty Shoanti Warrior! Have you a question?”</p><p></p><p>Max, having noted on the way over that much of the surrounding neighborhood had sunk into the quagmire asked, “What happened here?” It was at this point the bottle shattered and a great Hezrou Demon stood before us. I quickly retreated and cast Haste. </p><p></p><p>The creature pointed at Max and bellowed, “I have always wanted to fight one such as you.” Well, I assume he meant he had had enough of life on this plane and wished to return home, because even shifting to gaseous form did not save the creature from our wrath.</p><p></p><p>We searched the area and, finding little, moved on toward this districts Spear. Even from a distance we could see a thatch hut atop the ziggurat next to the spear. As we got closer, we determined that this was probably a farming district and the spear was the Spear of Abundance. </p><p></p><p>Climbing to the top of the ziggurat we were surprised by a terrifying croak. It would seem this was the lair of the Boggard chief and his retinue. Max confronted the chief in single combat while we held off the mooks. Though the chief actually put in a good showing, after less than twenty seconds he had cast aside his falchion and fell to his knees in surrender, as did his tribesmen. Though Max had been enjoying the fight, since the chief was one of the most able opponents he had recently faced, he accepted their surrender as any honorable warrior would.</p><p></p><p>As none of us spoke their language, Ace summoned a couple of Hound Archons so they could use their Truespeech to translate for us. Through them, the chief, called Garluu, told us of the tribe’s troubles and woes. It all started with the appearance of the Vampiric Beast a few weeks ago and had now been compounded with the disappearance of their Oracle, who had been keeping the creature at bay. Yes… Ahem. I nonchalantly drifted to the back of our group to hide my recently acquired magical cloak.</p><p></p><p>Through the Archons, we were able to broker a personal peace with the Boggard tribe and even extend that to the Tribe of the Sacred Serpent. The Boggards also mentioned their Great, Green God who lives in the lake to the south (we had somehow avoided confronting him). We are considering going back to see this creature, but are hesitant to jeopardize the peace we have negotiated. We did warn them of others exploring the area that might not be as merciful. We showed them the symbol of the Pathfinders so they would be able to recognize their new allies.</p><p></p><p>Garluu offered to have his warriors escort us to the lair of the Vampiric Beast and we accepted. They took us back to the west, to a tower where we would find the creature. We entered the Beast’s home, which was filled with the bones of its victims and quickly put an end to its reign of terror. </p><p></p><p>At this point it was getting late, so we returned to the Tribe of the Sacred Serpent and the Radiant Muse. We told them of the peace offering from the Tribe of the Green God which they accepted and seemed generally pleased about. They felt the end of conflict might lead to a period of growth and prosperity within the region. With the death of the Vampire, the Radiant Muse informed us we had earned free passage within the district and could come and go as we pleased.</p><p></p><p>That evening, we met with the Pathfinder scouts along the shore and traded reports. The move was complete and the Pathfinders were now in control of the central isle, with access from two of the four bridges. We learned the Sargaven government had finally arrived and that the Pirates had been having difficulties with disease ravaging their camp. We all assume it is some mix of syphilis and scurvy.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Abciximab, post: 5822867, member: 46017"] [CENTER][B]Session 28.[/B][/CENTER] Lamashan the 19th (Cont). Just after the festivities started, Osond returned to tell us that the Radiant Muse wanted to meet with us right away. We climbed the district ziggurat, topped with the Spear of Eager Striving. With what we have seen so far, it appears this district is dedicated to the arts. Also at the top of the ziggurat was the Radiant Muse herself, a Lillend (an extraplanar creature with the torso of a beautiful woman on top and the coils of a serpent below). It would seem Lillends were not that uncommon in ancient Saventh-Yhi, as they acted as muses for many of the artisans of the district. Obviously smitten with her beauty, Max leaned in and asked me a whispered question that I shall not note for posterity. My answer was, “you really don’t want to find out.” Max accepted this with a nod. The Radiant Muse told us we were welcome to stay for just one night unless we could demonstrate any meaningful artistic talents. I immediately started to panic as two of our group volunteered to demonstrate their “artistic ability.” My fears were confirmed as Ace stepped forward and opened with, “Your large breasts remind me of an amusing story I once heard in a Tavern…” I shall not relate the rest of the vulgar story here, suffice to say we were all left speechless at its, I hesitate to say, “climax”. I was only slightly less panicked when Taraz stepped forward. He began to relate portions of the holy script of Sarenrae, some of which can be quite beautiful and moving. Unfortunately he chose passages related to the structure of the religious hierarchy and layout of the temples. “…And all the Temples of The Dawnflower shall be set with Windows Facing to the East and Windows Facing to the West so that the Divine Everlight shall fall upon the Altar at the Dawn and Eve of each day.” I don’t think I blinked or breathed through the entire fiasco. Thankfully the Radiant Muse was not angered by our uncouth display, even going so far as thanking us for our “performances” (and believe me when I say, you could hear the quotes around the word “performances”). She then mentioned that perhaps our skills might lie in other disciplines. It was at this point where my horror arose once more as Max stepped forward. “You got anything that needs killin’?” I thanked the gods. She told us more of the bestial vampire that had been preying upon the people of her village. Osond had already mentioned this creature in passing, but she went into greater detail. It seems this creature is more animal-like than most vampires and calls it a Vrykolakas, a Feral Vampire. She told us it looks vaguely humanoid, with leathery brown skin, hunched shoulders, crooked legs, and a long, bony neck ending in an almost ape-like head. Apparently the trouble started a few weeks ago and attacks happen every three or four nights. She told us the creature lives to the east, perhaps in the Boggard’s territory. She noted that if we could solve this problem for her, we would be welcome to explore this district. At this point, we returned to the feast and then rested for the night in an offered hut. We rested until dawn. [Center]----------[/Center] Lamashan the 20th. I used a Sending spell to inform Amivor of our situation. He replied that they were relocating camp to the central isle and would soon send scouts to meet us lakeside, near the village. Looking at our map, we noted a building in the middle of a lake to the southeast. We thought that a good place to start and borrowed a couple of canoes. It was not too much trouble porting them to the lakeside. We encountered a patrol of Boggards who were, once again, unwilling to parlay. Lakeside, we noted a green glow coming from the entrance to the top level of the flooded ziggurat. The paddle out was uneventful. Once there, we climbed to the top as that appeared to be the only entrance. Within the small structure was a green, glowing bottle filled with mist. Within the mist from time to time I saw a demonic looking face. As I was inspecting it, a voice from the bottle said, “I know all within Saventh-Yhi! Ask and I shall answer!” Somewhat taken aback, I started with the obvious. “Who are you?” “I am Tentagard! I am the voice within! Filled with the knowledge of all! You there! Mighty Shoanti Warrior! Have you a question?” Max, having noted on the way over that much of the surrounding neighborhood had sunk into the quagmire asked, “What happened here?” It was at this point the bottle shattered and a great Hezrou Demon stood before us. I quickly retreated and cast Haste. The creature pointed at Max and bellowed, “I have always wanted to fight one such as you.” Well, I assume he meant he had had enough of life on this plane and wished to return home, because even shifting to gaseous form did not save the creature from our wrath. We searched the area and, finding little, moved on toward this districts Spear. Even from a distance we could see a thatch hut atop the ziggurat next to the spear. As we got closer, we determined that this was probably a farming district and the spear was the Spear of Abundance. Climbing to the top of the ziggurat we were surprised by a terrifying croak. It would seem this was the lair of the Boggard chief and his retinue. Max confronted the chief in single combat while we held off the mooks. Though the chief actually put in a good showing, after less than twenty seconds he had cast aside his falchion and fell to his knees in surrender, as did his tribesmen. Though Max had been enjoying the fight, since the chief was one of the most able opponents he had recently faced, he accepted their surrender as any honorable warrior would. As none of us spoke their language, Ace summoned a couple of Hound Archons so they could use their Truespeech to translate for us. Through them, the chief, called Garluu, told us of the tribe’s troubles and woes. It all started with the appearance of the Vampiric Beast a few weeks ago and had now been compounded with the disappearance of their Oracle, who had been keeping the creature at bay. Yes… Ahem. I nonchalantly drifted to the back of our group to hide my recently acquired magical cloak. Through the Archons, we were able to broker a personal peace with the Boggard tribe and even extend that to the Tribe of the Sacred Serpent. The Boggards also mentioned their Great, Green God who lives in the lake to the south (we had somehow avoided confronting him). We are considering going back to see this creature, but are hesitant to jeopardize the peace we have negotiated. We did warn them of others exploring the area that might not be as merciful. We showed them the symbol of the Pathfinders so they would be able to recognize their new allies. Garluu offered to have his warriors escort us to the lair of the Vampiric Beast and we accepted. They took us back to the west, to a tower where we would find the creature. We entered the Beast’s home, which was filled with the bones of its victims and quickly put an end to its reign of terror. At this point it was getting late, so we returned to the Tribe of the Sacred Serpent and the Radiant Muse. We told them of the peace offering from the Tribe of the Green God which they accepted and seemed generally pleased about. They felt the end of conflict might lead to a period of growth and prosperity within the region. With the death of the Vampire, the Radiant Muse informed us we had earned free passage within the district and could come and go as we pleased. That evening, we met with the Pathfinder scouts along the shore and traded reports. The move was complete and the Pathfinders were now in control of the central isle, with access from two of the four bridges. We learned the Sargaven government had finally arrived and that the Pirates had been having difficulties with disease ravaging their camp. We all assume it is some mix of syphilis and scurvy. [/QUOTE]
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