Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is coming! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Ambergate Chronicles - Galahorn or the Curious Adventure of the Glass Coffin
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="eris404" data-source="post: 2819486" data-attributes="member: 5338"><p>Negotiating the way out of the mines is tricky. The little band is now burdened with extra gear and three exhausted children. No one has slept well, nor eaten recently. Ishii is still bruised and George's leg, though nearly healed, is still tender and trembles when he puts any weight upon it. They are relieved that they encounter no one on their way out, though they give the nymph's grotto a wide berth just in case. The rope climb leaves them shaky, sweating and panting. Night is descending - again? No one can say how long they have been underground.</p><p></p><p>They pause at the river to drink and wash the grime and blood from their faces. Jade leads them through the woods, which, even with its mysterious evening noises, is refreshing and peaceful compared to the mines. They dream of hot food and warm beds.</p><p></p><p>Jade notices the villagers first. In truth, it is a farmer living on the town's outskirts; he stands still as a scarecrow in his fields, but Jade feels the man's eyes upon them and is unnerved by his open stare. Closer to town, they encounter a few more townsfolk standing quietly and very still, blocking the path to the town. Their eyes shine in the gloom. The party alters its course through the fields and the sentinels react, running with a loping, animal gait towards the town.</p><p></p><p>Closer yet: the villagers move in dense, synchronized packs, hunting our terrified little party. The children are too frightened to even cry and cling to the arms and clothes of the students. It makes running difficult.</p><p></p><p>In the town, they chose a lane, find it choked with villagers. A quick dodge down an alley finds a temporary escape route. The plaza beyond is filling with people with burning eyes.</p><p></p><p>"They move quicker than zombies," Dante observes between gulps for air. "I don't think they're dead. Don't hurt them."</p><p></p><p>George exchanges a look with the elf and sees agreement in his face: they might not have a choice.</p><p></p><p>Their lungs are on fire from exertion when they reach the belltower at the town's center. Of course, its door is locked; George recalls, in between hysterics, that the townsfolk told a legend about a drunken man had fallen asleep and died in the tower from the force of the bell's ringing. His hands shake as he out digs the bits of copper wire he had hidden in his pocket. He shapes the wire and realizes its too soft to make a good tool. It bends in the lock. He wipes his forehead with his sleeve.</p><p></p><p>Serai, Ishii and Jade have formed a small circle around the children, Dante and George. The townsfolk, the entire population of the town, are rushing towards them now; they are pushing each other, stepping over their fallen neighbors, all trying to grab, to maul, to bite the students at once. It is difficult to remember that these snarling, living zombies are innocents, but the students do their best not to hurt them. Serai uses her powers to create bright, stunning flashes, but she is too tired to do so for long. Jade wrestles with one villager only find three others clutching at his hair and clothes. Ishii fairs somewhat better. He is smaller and quicker and can land precise blows that incapacitate without doing great harm.</p><p></p><p>George reshapes the wire, doubling it for strength, and tries again. It's difficult in the din to hear or feel the lock's tumblers move. In his mind, he prays to whatever god will listen and swears he will study with great diligence every lock, every mechanism, any and every device with complex moving parts, if only he can pick just this one lock.</p><p></p><p>He feels a piece move, tries the handle and nearly faints when the door opens. Dante shoves past, with three terrified children clinging to his coat. George follows, shuts the door and locks it.</p><p></p><p>"There's another fricking door!" Dante shouts from the stairs. Panicked, he grabs the doorknob and rattles it, vainly hoping to force it open. George brushes him aside; wielding his misshapen wire, he catches the pins and forces the lock open. The door is heavy to protect against the sound of the bell and it takes both students to open it wide enough for Dante to slip through.</p><p></p><p>The bell at the top of the tower is massive. Inscribed on its rim is a single word: Wyrmcall. Dante is in awe of it; suddenly it doesn't seemed so far fetched that someone this close to it could be killed by pealing. He lays the glowing crystal on the groaning floorboards beneath Wyrmcall and runs.</p><p></p><p>"Ready, George!" he yells down the stairs. George is at the door when Dante slips through and they shoulder the door in place. Dante is downstairs pulling at the rope before George reaches the bottom.</p><p></p><p>The entire tower seems to shake as the bell tolls. Even with the door closed, George has to cover his ears to protect from the noise. Dante pulls on the rope and is swept off his feet by the power of the bell's motion. The children and George watch as the Dante rings Wyrmcall over and over, until he is too exhausted to hang on.</p><p></p><p>After the last peal, George asks, "Did it work?"</p><p></p><p>Dante opens the tower door. The three students outside are facing a crowd of bewildered, frightened villagers, stunned into silence. No one says anything for a long a moment, until one man steps foward, shyly twisting his cap in his hands. It is the workman from the foundry they spoke to the first day they came to Bellhold.</p><p></p><p>"I expect your bell will be first in line," he says.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="eris404, post: 2819486, member: 5338"] Negotiating the way out of the mines is tricky. The little band is now burdened with extra gear and three exhausted children. No one has slept well, nor eaten recently. Ishii is still bruised and George's leg, though nearly healed, is still tender and trembles when he puts any weight upon it. They are relieved that they encounter no one on their way out, though they give the nymph's grotto a wide berth just in case. The rope climb leaves them shaky, sweating and panting. Night is descending - again? No one can say how long they have been underground. They pause at the river to drink and wash the grime and blood from their faces. Jade leads them through the woods, which, even with its mysterious evening noises, is refreshing and peaceful compared to the mines. They dream of hot food and warm beds. Jade notices the villagers first. In truth, it is a farmer living on the town's outskirts; he stands still as a scarecrow in his fields, but Jade feels the man's eyes upon them and is unnerved by his open stare. Closer to town, they encounter a few more townsfolk standing quietly and very still, blocking the path to the town. Their eyes shine in the gloom. The party alters its course through the fields and the sentinels react, running with a loping, animal gait towards the town. Closer yet: the villagers move in dense, synchronized packs, hunting our terrified little party. The children are too frightened to even cry and cling to the arms and clothes of the students. It makes running difficult. In the town, they chose a lane, find it choked with villagers. A quick dodge down an alley finds a temporary escape route. The plaza beyond is filling with people with burning eyes. "They move quicker than zombies," Dante observes between gulps for air. "I don't think they're dead. Don't hurt them." George exchanges a look with the elf and sees agreement in his face: they might not have a choice. Their lungs are on fire from exertion when they reach the belltower at the town's center. Of course, its door is locked; George recalls, in between hysterics, that the townsfolk told a legend about a drunken man had fallen asleep and died in the tower from the force of the bell's ringing. His hands shake as he out digs the bits of copper wire he had hidden in his pocket. He shapes the wire and realizes its too soft to make a good tool. It bends in the lock. He wipes his forehead with his sleeve. Serai, Ishii and Jade have formed a small circle around the children, Dante and George. The townsfolk, the entire population of the town, are rushing towards them now; they are pushing each other, stepping over their fallen neighbors, all trying to grab, to maul, to bite the students at once. It is difficult to remember that these snarling, living zombies are innocents, but the students do their best not to hurt them. Serai uses her powers to create bright, stunning flashes, but she is too tired to do so for long. Jade wrestles with one villager only find three others clutching at his hair and clothes. Ishii fairs somewhat better. He is smaller and quicker and can land precise blows that incapacitate without doing great harm. George reshapes the wire, doubling it for strength, and tries again. It's difficult in the din to hear or feel the lock's tumblers move. In his mind, he prays to whatever god will listen and swears he will study with great diligence every lock, every mechanism, any and every device with complex moving parts, if only he can pick just this one lock. He feels a piece move, tries the handle and nearly faints when the door opens. Dante shoves past, with three terrified children clinging to his coat. George follows, shuts the door and locks it. "There's another fricking door!" Dante shouts from the stairs. Panicked, he grabs the doorknob and rattles it, vainly hoping to force it open. George brushes him aside; wielding his misshapen wire, he catches the pins and forces the lock open. The door is heavy to protect against the sound of the bell and it takes both students to open it wide enough for Dante to slip through. The bell at the top of the tower is massive. Inscribed on its rim is a single word: Wyrmcall. Dante is in awe of it; suddenly it doesn't seemed so far fetched that someone this close to it could be killed by pealing. He lays the glowing crystal on the groaning floorboards beneath Wyrmcall and runs. "Ready, George!" he yells down the stairs. George is at the door when Dante slips through and they shoulder the door in place. Dante is downstairs pulling at the rope before George reaches the bottom. The entire tower seems to shake as the bell tolls. Even with the door closed, George has to cover his ears to protect from the noise. Dante pulls on the rope and is swept off his feet by the power of the bell's motion. The children and George watch as the Dante rings Wyrmcall over and over, until he is too exhausted to hang on. After the last peal, George asks, "Did it work?" Dante opens the tower door. The three students outside are facing a crowd of bewildered, frightened villagers, stunned into silence. No one says anything for a long a moment, until one man steps foward, shyly twisting his cap in his hands. It is the workman from the foundry they spoke to the first day they came to Bellhold. "I expect your bell will be first in line," he says. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Ambergate Chronicles - Galahorn or the Curious Adventure of the Glass Coffin
Top