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The Complete Masks of Nyarlathotep d20
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<blockquote data-quote="Nebulous" data-source="post: 4287198" data-attributes="member: 31465"><p><strong>Part 3: The Living Wind</strong></p><p></p><p>At this point, Hans pointedly asks if the Living Wind has any weaknesses--a question asked about thirty seconds too late--and the Tall Man scribbles a new symbol in the sand:</p><p></p><p>A bolt of lightning.</p><p></p><p><span style="color: Red">[GM Note: this begins a plan of trying to rig a "shocking device" from their accumulated batteries. Not a bad idea exactly, but absolutely useless when you see what they're up against]</span></p><p></p><p>The Tall Man is insistent that they begin their quest, and he still has offered nothing in the way of explanation or gratitude or compensation for a job well done/attempted. With another slice of his uncommonly long digit, a crack opens in the wall as if a veil were peeling apart and the group is urged toward it.</p><p></p><p><img src="http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/caves.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>There is a wide corridor beyond curving left and right into utter darkness. A thick layer of dust covers the great octagonal flagstones beneath. It is completely still and silent, with the unrelenting weight of millions of tons of rock above their heads. The three Abo helpers are shaking now and regretting their decision to accompany these guys. The group heads right, and after about a mile down this tunnel, they see something at the edge of their flashlights.</p><p></p><p>And the sight of this makes Lester tremble with fear. He has seen it before in his dreams.</p><p></p><p><img src="http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/polpit.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>A rectangular hole gapes in the floor of the tunnel. On the far side, a huge unhinged lid lies on the flagstones. They approach the hole slowly and have the impression of great yawning depths below, and they hear the faint whistle of wind. Their lights cannot penetrate the depths. There's barely room to skirt around the edge, so tying a rope to Chad's waist, he carefully circumvents until he reaches the other side.</p><p></p><p>The lid is heavy, and all senses of self-preservation scream at them to "Close This Hole." Chad tries, but despite his great strength, it's not enough. They throw more ropes across, hoping to anchor them somehow, but the wind has picked up, blowing dust around in swirling eddies. A chattering sound begins somewhere far, far down in those Stygian depths, an inhuman voice that rakes their ears. A sound that grows increasingly louder with the wind!</p><p></p><p>Desperation soars through them. Chad heaves mightily, throwing all of his weight and brawn into pushing up the lid while the others pull. Precious seconds slide by as wind roars by the ears and the eerie, garbled croon of something massive and hungry surging up from the depths. The lid finally tilts upright, and then slams down with an echoing thud. But it is still not latched, so they manically begin fumbling with large, bulky latches obviously not designed for human fingers. Only one latch is secured when</p><p></p><p>SLAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!</p><p></p><p>The trapdoor shudders violently as something pushes up from beneath, and the investigators quickly bolt down the second latch. Wind pipes and whistles through the cracks, accompanied by the disturbing guttural growl and eerie whistling of what can be nothing other than the Tall Man's Living Wind. The investigators can see why they were so scared of this thing now, but they have little choice: either continue and find another way to kill it, or go back and admit defeat.</p><p></p><p>If there even IS a way back now.</p><p></p><p><span style="color: Red">[GM Note: Ah, to so willingly trust this giant, fanged Tall Man. Wait til you see what happens if you piss him off!]</span></p><p></p><p>They continue along the remote dusty corridor for about another mile, until they hear in the distance that same horrible slurping and whistling and groaning, the sound of wet mucous strained through alien orifices. They are actually at a junction with two smaller tunnels branching off from the main one, but they tentatively creep forward, but the sound of the Living Wind retreats, having moved in the opposite direction.</p><p></p><p>They eventually see a dim, dim light in the distance and move toward it. Before reaching it, they hear a familiar sound: the rhythmic hum of an electric generator. Sure enough, they find a single light bulb strung from the ceiling on a long stretch of wire bearing left and right into infinite darkness. A gasoline powered generator keeps the weak light alive. Human footprints exist here, all around the generator and continuing down the new tunnel.</p><p></p><p>They're about to move on when they hear the splitting of stone again, and The Tall Man fearfully steps out. He doesn't stay long, and the investigators do not attempt to follow him. Apparently though, there are many such trapdoors as the one they closed, some without doors at all, and the Living Wind exists in great number in the deeper vaults. More discouraged than ever, they head left, and eventually exit the tunnels in which they have been wandering.</p><p></p><p>But the new environment does not make them feel any safer. It opens up into an enormous black plaza, stretching up and left and right and all around them to unknown distances. The wires continue up to a ceiling somewhere, and far, far in the distance awaits another bulb down the line. They stay along this rough path until they see a few more bulbs twinkling like lone stars in space, and then beyond that:</p><p></p><p>A blue glow.</p><p></p><p><img src="http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/alienthing.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>The blow glow increases. Much larger than a light bulb, and they finally find themselves at the outskirts of a bizarre machine they cannot readily identify. Alien tubes and walls bend at obtuse angles. Crusted with untold age and decay, the machine is a whole area unto itself, rising up several stories above their heads, groping into the darkness with its weak azure tint. Unknown metal and the faint wisp of ozone accompany the structure, but even while they're poking around, curious but fearful, Lester spots several bobbing lights coming closer from an adjacent tunnel.</p><p></p><p>Chad, Lester, Hans and the three Abo's gather together and carefully approach the tunnel entrance, trying to see who or what is coming from the darkness, but they're too distant. But the headlamps and flashlights of each group are soon readily visible to each other, and a voice calls out to them:</p><p></p><p>"Who goes there?" Chad and Lester don't understand the language, but Hans does: it's native Koori-speak. He answers back in same: "Who are you?", but the other group, still about fifty feet away, spreads out in the twenty foot wide tunnel. There's about five or six individuals, very hard to tell in the deep gloom.</p><p></p><p>"Who are you?" the other group asks again. There is a distinct blue pinprick coming from the unknown group that doesn't look like a flashlight. And then Hans, in his naivety and fear of the horrible circumstances they find themselves in, truthfully answers:</p><p></p><p>"We are just explorers! We're lost down here, and maybe--"</p><p></p><p>"Agh! KILL THEM!"</p><p></p><p>That's their answer, in Koori, which only Hans and the mooks immediately comprehend, but the next instant unleashes a thunderclap of light and blue fire! </p><p></p><p>Electricity spews and arcs down the tunnel, spraying the entire party in a wide berth of pain and flame. Clothes ignite and flesh sears as tendrils of energy spew from the tip of some sort of gun, enveloping all six of them. Screaming, the investigators stagger back, horribly burned, but another arc unleashes unleashes, slamming them again. The mooks die, screaming as their eyes pop and skin welds to the walls in grisly patterns. A few Action Points later, with Lester very nearly dead, the investigators are running FULL TILT away from the strangers, back toward the glowing blue machine. They tear out of the tunnel and hide around the cusp, while Chad tosses two sticks of dynamite back and readies an action to fire the moment anyone comes barreling through.</p><p></p><p>And seconds later three Aboriginal men with clubs do spring out of the tunnel, and BAM! BAM!</p><p></p><p>The dynamite explodes in a bloom of fire, shattering bones and sending limbs flying into the black plaza like sparking cinders. The other enemies retreat deeper into the tunnel and the investigators stand at the entrance, popping off a few pistol and rifle shots, but the darkness makes it hard to reach a target. One enemy is felled though, but the most potent Abo bearing the bizarre gun spins around, ready to let loose with another barrage of energy.</p><p></p><p>At that moment though the investigators hear the very unwelcome and unwanted wail and gibbering of a Living Wind approaching from the dark recesses of the plaza. And in a moment of indecision, almost pinned between THAT thing and a foe with a lightning gun, they retreat, trying to reach a haven of darkness or cover somewhere else. But three failed Luck Rolls suggest otherwise, and they are unable to reach cover before the Living Wind surges into the blue glow like some swirling demon.</p><p></p><p><img src="http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/polyp.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>It is a massive amorphous being, shimmering with slime and translucent flesh, parts of it fading in and out of view as if slipping into invisibility. Uncountable tentacles flail and beat the air while hungry mouths gape and snap, huge distensible maws that lurch out hungrily for anything within reach. It spots the investigators who are shell-shocked at the thing's appearance, but scant seconds later an arc of electricity spews from the far tunnel!</p><p></p><p>Chunks of the being's ethereal flesh explodes into ectoplasmic goo, showering the ground with green and gray gunk, and the Living Wind spins toward the source. The man in the tunnel entrance wields the gun, and screaming, and unleashes another round of burning plasma straight into the Living Wind. The creature reels from shock, but is hardly near death. It surges forward, tentacles almost magically appearing from thin air, and they encircle the man's arms, legs, torso and neck, and with a sickening slurp and pop and squeeze, he is easily dismembered and disemboweled, every piece of his body showering the ground within half a dozen yards. The lightning gun falls ineffectually to the ground, while the Living Wind moves into the tunnel, stuffing it full, and chases the one man left.</p><p></p><p>And there is a single hot lightning gun left on the ground, slathered with blood, viscera and slime...</p><p></p><p><img src="http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/gun.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>...as the investigators fearfully glance at each other, still standing out in the open...</p><p></p><p></p><p>And there we stopped.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Nebulous, post: 4287198, member: 31465"] [B]Part 3: The Living Wind[/B] At this point, Hans pointedly asks if the Living Wind has any weaknesses--a question asked about thirty seconds too late--and the Tall Man scribbles a new symbol in the sand: A bolt of lightning. [COLOR=Red][GM Note: this begins a plan of trying to rig a "shocking device" from their accumulated batteries. Not a bad idea exactly, but absolutely useless when you see what they're up against][/COLOR] The Tall Man is insistent that they begin their quest, and he still has offered nothing in the way of explanation or gratitude or compensation for a job well done/attempted. With another slice of his uncommonly long digit, a crack opens in the wall as if a veil were peeling apart and the group is urged toward it. [img]http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/caves.jpg[/img] There is a wide corridor beyond curving left and right into utter darkness. A thick layer of dust covers the great octagonal flagstones beneath. It is completely still and silent, with the unrelenting weight of millions of tons of rock above their heads. The three Abo helpers are shaking now and regretting their decision to accompany these guys. The group heads right, and after about a mile down this tunnel, they see something at the edge of their flashlights. And the sight of this makes Lester tremble with fear. He has seen it before in his dreams. [img]http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/polpit.jpg[/img] A rectangular hole gapes in the floor of the tunnel. On the far side, a huge unhinged lid lies on the flagstones. They approach the hole slowly and have the impression of great yawning depths below, and they hear the faint whistle of wind. Their lights cannot penetrate the depths. There's barely room to skirt around the edge, so tying a rope to Chad's waist, he carefully circumvents until he reaches the other side. The lid is heavy, and all senses of self-preservation scream at them to "Close This Hole." Chad tries, but despite his great strength, it's not enough. They throw more ropes across, hoping to anchor them somehow, but the wind has picked up, blowing dust around in swirling eddies. A chattering sound begins somewhere far, far down in those Stygian depths, an inhuman voice that rakes their ears. A sound that grows increasingly louder with the wind! Desperation soars through them. Chad heaves mightily, throwing all of his weight and brawn into pushing up the lid while the others pull. Precious seconds slide by as wind roars by the ears and the eerie, garbled croon of something massive and hungry surging up from the depths. The lid finally tilts upright, and then slams down with an echoing thud. But it is still not latched, so they manically begin fumbling with large, bulky latches obviously not designed for human fingers. Only one latch is secured when SLAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! The trapdoor shudders violently as something pushes up from beneath, and the investigators quickly bolt down the second latch. Wind pipes and whistles through the cracks, accompanied by the disturbing guttural growl and eerie whistling of what can be nothing other than the Tall Man's Living Wind. The investigators can see why they were so scared of this thing now, but they have little choice: either continue and find another way to kill it, or go back and admit defeat. If there even IS a way back now. [COLOR=Red][GM Note: Ah, to so willingly trust this giant, fanged Tall Man. Wait til you see what happens if you piss him off!][/COLOR] They continue along the remote dusty corridor for about another mile, until they hear in the distance that same horrible slurping and whistling and groaning, the sound of wet mucous strained through alien orifices. They are actually at a junction with two smaller tunnels branching off from the main one, but they tentatively creep forward, but the sound of the Living Wind retreats, having moved in the opposite direction. They eventually see a dim, dim light in the distance and move toward it. Before reaching it, they hear a familiar sound: the rhythmic hum of an electric generator. Sure enough, they find a single light bulb strung from the ceiling on a long stretch of wire bearing left and right into infinite darkness. A gasoline powered generator keeps the weak light alive. Human footprints exist here, all around the generator and continuing down the new tunnel. They're about to move on when they hear the splitting of stone again, and The Tall Man fearfully steps out. He doesn't stay long, and the investigators do not attempt to follow him. Apparently though, there are many such trapdoors as the one they closed, some without doors at all, and the Living Wind exists in great number in the deeper vaults. More discouraged than ever, they head left, and eventually exit the tunnels in which they have been wandering. But the new environment does not make them feel any safer. It opens up into an enormous black plaza, stretching up and left and right and all around them to unknown distances. The wires continue up to a ceiling somewhere, and far, far in the distance awaits another bulb down the line. They stay along this rough path until they see a few more bulbs twinkling like lone stars in space, and then beyond that: A blue glow. [img]http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/alienthing.jpg[/img] The blow glow increases. Much larger than a light bulb, and they finally find themselves at the outskirts of a bizarre machine they cannot readily identify. Alien tubes and walls bend at obtuse angles. Crusted with untold age and decay, the machine is a whole area unto itself, rising up several stories above their heads, groping into the darkness with its weak azure tint. Unknown metal and the faint wisp of ozone accompany the structure, but even while they're poking around, curious but fearful, Lester spots several bobbing lights coming closer from an adjacent tunnel. Chad, Lester, Hans and the three Abo's gather together and carefully approach the tunnel entrance, trying to see who or what is coming from the darkness, but they're too distant. But the headlamps and flashlights of each group are soon readily visible to each other, and a voice calls out to them: "Who goes there?" Chad and Lester don't understand the language, but Hans does: it's native Koori-speak. He answers back in same: "Who are you?", but the other group, still about fifty feet away, spreads out in the twenty foot wide tunnel. There's about five or six individuals, very hard to tell in the deep gloom. "Who are you?" the other group asks again. There is a distinct blue pinprick coming from the unknown group that doesn't look like a flashlight. And then Hans, in his naivety and fear of the horrible circumstances they find themselves in, truthfully answers: "We are just explorers! We're lost down here, and maybe--" "Agh! KILL THEM!" That's their answer, in Koori, which only Hans and the mooks immediately comprehend, but the next instant unleashes a thunderclap of light and blue fire! Electricity spews and arcs down the tunnel, spraying the entire party in a wide berth of pain and flame. Clothes ignite and flesh sears as tendrils of energy spew from the tip of some sort of gun, enveloping all six of them. Screaming, the investigators stagger back, horribly burned, but another arc unleashes unleashes, slamming them again. The mooks die, screaming as their eyes pop and skin welds to the walls in grisly patterns. A few Action Points later, with Lester very nearly dead, the investigators are running FULL TILT away from the strangers, back toward the glowing blue machine. They tear out of the tunnel and hide around the cusp, while Chad tosses two sticks of dynamite back and readies an action to fire the moment anyone comes barreling through. And seconds later three Aboriginal men with clubs do spring out of the tunnel, and BAM! BAM! The dynamite explodes in a bloom of fire, shattering bones and sending limbs flying into the black plaza like sparking cinders. The other enemies retreat deeper into the tunnel and the investigators stand at the entrance, popping off a few pistol and rifle shots, but the darkness makes it hard to reach a target. One enemy is felled though, but the most potent Abo bearing the bizarre gun spins around, ready to let loose with another barrage of energy. At that moment though the investigators hear the very unwelcome and unwanted wail and gibbering of a Living Wind approaching from the dark recesses of the plaza. And in a moment of indecision, almost pinned between THAT thing and a foe with a lightning gun, they retreat, trying to reach a haven of darkness or cover somewhere else. But three failed Luck Rolls suggest otherwise, and they are unable to reach cover before the Living Wind surges into the blue glow like some swirling demon. [img]http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/polyp.jpg[/img] It is a massive amorphous being, shimmering with slime and translucent flesh, parts of it fading in and out of view as if slipping into invisibility. Uncountable tentacles flail and beat the air while hungry mouths gape and snap, huge distensible maws that lurch out hungrily for anything within reach. It spots the investigators who are shell-shocked at the thing's appearance, but scant seconds later an arc of electricity spews from the far tunnel! Chunks of the being's ethereal flesh explodes into ectoplasmic goo, showering the ground with green and gray gunk, and the Living Wind spins toward the source. The man in the tunnel entrance wields the gun, and screaming, and unleashes another round of burning plasma straight into the Living Wind. The creature reels from shock, but is hardly near death. It surges forward, tentacles almost magically appearing from thin air, and they encircle the man's arms, legs, torso and neck, and with a sickening slurp and pop and squeeze, he is easily dismembered and disemboweled, every piece of his body showering the ground within half a dozen yards. The lightning gun falls ineffectually to the ground, while the Living Wind moves into the tunnel, stuffing it full, and chases the one man left. And there is a single hot lightning gun left on the ground, slathered with blood, viscera and slime... [img]http://www.med.unc.edu/~saasha/Masks/gun.jpg[/img] ...as the investigators fearfully glance at each other, still standing out in the open... And there we stopped. [/QUOTE]
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