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Vincent's Laboratory Notes and Footnotes (Updated December 30, 2007)
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<blockquote data-quote="Altalazar" data-source="post: 3250376" data-attributes="member: 939"><p>Notes – Chapter Twenty-Two – A Powerful Friend – and Belak’s Notes</p><p></p><p> We traveled through several more chambers of gardens and such, which I left to Willow to examine. We also found more alabaster friends, which would prove fruitful for later. They were quite beautiful, even covered in fungus-dung, or whatever it is they were doing. Willow said it was compost, and I take her at her word. </p><p> We found a chamber with a very powerful being, something of darkness and shadow. It had a beauty of a different sort from my alabaster friends. It was almost insubstantial. It was almost not there at all. It’s chill touch drained away the strength of one of my party. It was also strong! So strong that I could not control it, though I did quickly set it to cowering. No matter how many times I tried to hold my skull aloft to tame it, it remained wild and free. What a wondrous being! I will have to study this further, though I fear its insubstantiality makes it a poor choice for my research. One cannot easily lift a spoon or a pot with hands of shadow. </p><p> The chamber also had a statute, one that looked like a dragon. The Marshall stood before it and said, in Draconic, “Let the Sorcerous Power Illuminate my Mind” and found that it did, as a red mist enveloped him. He commanded his legions much more effectively, at least for a short time, and would return to that room later. </p><p> But none of that matters as much as what we found in the next chamber, down a long hallway, through some soggy stairs. We found all of Belak’s notes! Volumes of them! I could (and did) spend weeks studying them. Perhaps there is something to plant-flesh after all, but I would need Willow’s help to make sense of them. I had hoped to ask Belak about them, but then he did not provide us an opportunity. He did make an interesting comment before we slaughtered him, however. </p><p></p><p> Notes – Chapter Twenty-Three – Belak’s Grove – The Gulthias Tree </p><p></p><p> Beyond the room with Belak’s notes was an enormous underground grove. It was thick with thorns and plants and was difficult to traverse for us (except for Willow, of course). At its far end, though really its center, was an enormous tree. A singular tree of evil, its blackened, twisted limbs reaching upwards like beautiful alabaster hands clawing their way from the earth. Around its base was a cobbled courtyard surrounded by a half-height stone wall. </p><p> Standing at the base of the tree was two humans with skin of bark, a large frog, several twig blights, and Belak himself, in all his glory. As we reached the edge of the briars, he spoke to us. </p><p> “I am Belak, called the Outcast. The druidic society expelled me, the fools. And why? Because I dared to expand nature’s reach in ways their puny minds couldn’t grasp. I don’t care. I have found what I long sought, embodied in the Gulthias tree.” </p><p> He paused and then looked up at the tree behind him. “It’s beautiful, no? It lives, though it looks dead. In an age long past, someone staked a vampire to the earth on this very spot. The wooden stake was yet green and took root. And so grew the Gulthias tree, reverberating with dark primal power to those who can tap it.” </p><p> I would later learn from his notes that the vampire staked to the ground had something to do with the ancient dragon Ashardalon, though exactly how was unclear. I also learned from his notes that the twig blights grow from the seeds of the apple that grows on the tree. They mature in a year and then walk off in search of prey. And they can reproduce themselves as well in some way plants do, from a piece. Willow would understand better. </p><p> Belak then reached his climax of conversation. “While your remains would enrich the compost, you’ll better serve my needs as supplicants to the Gulthias tree, much like these two adventurers here. You retain your lives, after a fashion. Submit peacefully, or it will go the worse for you!” </p><p> And so then began the epic combat with Belak. Willow tried to entangle him and his ilk, though they were safe on the cobblestones. And Belak entangled all of us. And for good measure, a dozen more twig blights came from the brambles around us to join the five already by the tree. It was a long, slow fight, as we moved through entanglement and brambles to slowly make our way to the courtyard, slaying twig blights as we went. </p><p> Belak sent forth a ball of fire that seemed almost alive as it followed the mute bard around, burning him nearly to death. The adventure supplicant who used to be a paladin nearly killed Erky Timbers, and he did slay two of my alabaster friends! For that, he must be killed, though it did not matter, because as a supplicant, he was dead already. His sorcerous companion was felled by arrows. </p><p> Belak himself was finally slain by our combined strength when he was all that remained of his tiny empire. I did regret not having the chance to parlay with him about his research, but his notes should suffice. No need to talk to him if I have all of his knowledge in such an easily accessible form. And being dead does not prevent one from asking questions of one. </p><p> Hanging on the tree was a golden fruit, ready for picking. It has powerful healing properties, so we kept it, and hopefully we can keep it preserved for when we need it. </p><p></p><p> Notes – Chapter Twenty-Four – Back to Oakhurst – To sell for Research Funding</p><p></p><p> We returned to Oakhurst, leaving my alabaster friends behind (for now) so as not to alarm the good citizens there. We sold much of what we found and we claimed the reward for the two signet rings we found. Our funding would have been better had their owners still lived, but then my research has not progressed quite that far. I still had an idea about that, however, though I kept it to myself. </p><p> We found good prices for everything we sold. In particular, we found an old dwarf who was quite excited about the notes we found from an old dwarven citadel. It was the last refuge of Durgeddin the Black, a dwarven smith and leader of great reknown. The old dwarf told us the papers we found (and sold to him) showed the location of his citadel and forge. He said he would go to it himself, were he not so old and infirm, but he asked us to go for him. He said we could keep whatever we found there with no insult to dwarven kind, but he asked that we retrieve any weapons we could find forged by Durgeddin and sell them to him. He offered to give us the full market price for each, plus 500 gold coins, a very generous offer, according to the Marshall. Such coin could fund my research for some time. So we agreed to his contract and set out for the mountain citadel (after a brief stop for supplies in Oakhurst with our newfound coin). </p><p> And we had one other stop on the way. I returned to the corpses of the two adventurers by the tree. We buried them in shallow graves and then, over the course of week, we used the clear metal whistle over those graves, and raised them both as zombies, loyal to us. While not as pretty as my alabaster friends, they provided other benefits, with the help of Willow’s talents. </p><p></p><p>Book II</p><p> </p><p> Notes – Chapter Twenty-Five – Wilderness path to Mountain Entrance </p><p></p><p> Willow was quite excited about our trek through the trackless foothills before the small mountain that held the fortress. She pointed out tracks of orc patrols that led to the mountain as well as their former encampments and hunting parties. Her knowledge led us to easily ambush four orcs on patrol. Their corpses piled high, we headed forward, ripe with the knowledge that their brethren occupied the top of the citadel we sought. We reached the base of the mountain and began to climb, heading toward the entrance. As we neared the final turn along the edge of the mountain, two orcs came into sight. They were certainly going to be in for a shock when they saw our party, a dozen strong, a half-dozen still living, heading their way.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Altalazar, post: 3250376, member: 939"] Notes – Chapter Twenty-Two – A Powerful Friend – and Belak’s Notes We traveled through several more chambers of gardens and such, which I left to Willow to examine. We also found more alabaster friends, which would prove fruitful for later. They were quite beautiful, even covered in fungus-dung, or whatever it is they were doing. Willow said it was compost, and I take her at her word. We found a chamber with a very powerful being, something of darkness and shadow. It had a beauty of a different sort from my alabaster friends. It was almost insubstantial. It was almost not there at all. It’s chill touch drained away the strength of one of my party. It was also strong! So strong that I could not control it, though I did quickly set it to cowering. No matter how many times I tried to hold my skull aloft to tame it, it remained wild and free. What a wondrous being! I will have to study this further, though I fear its insubstantiality makes it a poor choice for my research. One cannot easily lift a spoon or a pot with hands of shadow. The chamber also had a statute, one that looked like a dragon. The Marshall stood before it and said, in Draconic, “Let the Sorcerous Power Illuminate my Mind” and found that it did, as a red mist enveloped him. He commanded his legions much more effectively, at least for a short time, and would return to that room later. But none of that matters as much as what we found in the next chamber, down a long hallway, through some soggy stairs. We found all of Belak’s notes! Volumes of them! I could (and did) spend weeks studying them. Perhaps there is something to plant-flesh after all, but I would need Willow’s help to make sense of them. I had hoped to ask Belak about them, but then he did not provide us an opportunity. He did make an interesting comment before we slaughtered him, however. Notes – Chapter Twenty-Three – Belak’s Grove – The Gulthias Tree Beyond the room with Belak’s notes was an enormous underground grove. It was thick with thorns and plants and was difficult to traverse for us (except for Willow, of course). At its far end, though really its center, was an enormous tree. A singular tree of evil, its blackened, twisted limbs reaching upwards like beautiful alabaster hands clawing their way from the earth. Around its base was a cobbled courtyard surrounded by a half-height stone wall. Standing at the base of the tree was two humans with skin of bark, a large frog, several twig blights, and Belak himself, in all his glory. As we reached the edge of the briars, he spoke to us. “I am Belak, called the Outcast. The druidic society expelled me, the fools. And why? Because I dared to expand nature’s reach in ways their puny minds couldn’t grasp. I don’t care. I have found what I long sought, embodied in the Gulthias tree.” He paused and then looked up at the tree behind him. “It’s beautiful, no? It lives, though it looks dead. In an age long past, someone staked a vampire to the earth on this very spot. The wooden stake was yet green and took root. And so grew the Gulthias tree, reverberating with dark primal power to those who can tap it.” I would later learn from his notes that the vampire staked to the ground had something to do with the ancient dragon Ashardalon, though exactly how was unclear. I also learned from his notes that the twig blights grow from the seeds of the apple that grows on the tree. They mature in a year and then walk off in search of prey. And they can reproduce themselves as well in some way plants do, from a piece. Willow would understand better. Belak then reached his climax of conversation. “While your remains would enrich the compost, you’ll better serve my needs as supplicants to the Gulthias tree, much like these two adventurers here. You retain your lives, after a fashion. Submit peacefully, or it will go the worse for you!” And so then began the epic combat with Belak. Willow tried to entangle him and his ilk, though they were safe on the cobblestones. And Belak entangled all of us. And for good measure, a dozen more twig blights came from the brambles around us to join the five already by the tree. It was a long, slow fight, as we moved through entanglement and brambles to slowly make our way to the courtyard, slaying twig blights as we went. Belak sent forth a ball of fire that seemed almost alive as it followed the mute bard around, burning him nearly to death. The adventure supplicant who used to be a paladin nearly killed Erky Timbers, and he did slay two of my alabaster friends! For that, he must be killed, though it did not matter, because as a supplicant, he was dead already. His sorcerous companion was felled by arrows. Belak himself was finally slain by our combined strength when he was all that remained of his tiny empire. I did regret not having the chance to parlay with him about his research, but his notes should suffice. No need to talk to him if I have all of his knowledge in such an easily accessible form. And being dead does not prevent one from asking questions of one. Hanging on the tree was a golden fruit, ready for picking. It has powerful healing properties, so we kept it, and hopefully we can keep it preserved for when we need it. Notes – Chapter Twenty-Four – Back to Oakhurst – To sell for Research Funding We returned to Oakhurst, leaving my alabaster friends behind (for now) so as not to alarm the good citizens there. We sold much of what we found and we claimed the reward for the two signet rings we found. Our funding would have been better had their owners still lived, but then my research has not progressed quite that far. I still had an idea about that, however, though I kept it to myself. We found good prices for everything we sold. In particular, we found an old dwarf who was quite excited about the notes we found from an old dwarven citadel. It was the last refuge of Durgeddin the Black, a dwarven smith and leader of great reknown. The old dwarf told us the papers we found (and sold to him) showed the location of his citadel and forge. He said he would go to it himself, were he not so old and infirm, but he asked us to go for him. He said we could keep whatever we found there with no insult to dwarven kind, but he asked that we retrieve any weapons we could find forged by Durgeddin and sell them to him. He offered to give us the full market price for each, plus 500 gold coins, a very generous offer, according to the Marshall. Such coin could fund my research for some time. So we agreed to his contract and set out for the mountain citadel (after a brief stop for supplies in Oakhurst with our newfound coin). And we had one other stop on the way. I returned to the corpses of the two adventurers by the tree. We buried them in shallow graves and then, over the course of week, we used the clear metal whistle over those graves, and raised them both as zombies, loyal to us. While not as pretty as my alabaster friends, they provided other benefits, with the help of Willow’s talents. Book II Notes – Chapter Twenty-Five – Wilderness path to Mountain Entrance Willow was quite excited about our trek through the trackless foothills before the small mountain that held the fortress. She pointed out tracks of orc patrols that led to the mountain as well as their former encampments and hunting parties. Her knowledge led us to easily ambush four orcs on patrol. Their corpses piled high, we headed forward, ripe with the knowledge that their brethren occupied the top of the citadel we sought. We reached the base of the mountain and began to climb, heading toward the entrance. As we neared the final turn along the edge of the mountain, two orcs came into sight. They were certainly going to be in for a shock when they saw our party, a dozen strong, a half-dozen still living, heading their way. [/QUOTE]
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