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Adventures in the Eastern Provinces
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<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 7585595" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p>“Is this in your rhyme, too?” PHUQ-69 cries, as the decrepit canvas tents try to wrap themselves around our heroes while the firewood bursts alight and sends flaming sparks at them. </p><p></p><p>“No!” Shifty replies, then corrects himself. “Well, yes- not these, but that!” He points at the obelisk.</p><p></p><p>The tools, too, spring to life, and a ghostly light flickers into being before starting to drain the life from those near enough. Our heroes find themselves suddenly pressed from all sides. </p><p></p><p>While the others engage the attacking campsite furnishings, Shifty springs forward, tumbling past the animated objects, and rushes to the obelisk. <em>'Seek to open weary eyes',</em> he thinks, recalling the verse, and scrambles up to the top of the thing, where he espies a hinge. He pulls out his thieves' tools and works at it. </p><p></p><p>He feels a great lethargy fall over him. He feels, in fact, very sleepy. </p><p></p><p>Blinking, he bites his cheek to help himself focus, and keeps working on the hinge. </p><p></p><p><em>There!</em> </p><p></p><p>He tricks it open, and the lethargy ends. </p><p></p><p>He leaps to the ground and returns to his friends, who are finishing disposing of the will-o'-wisp and camp gear. “Well done, people!” he beams at them. “Great job!”</p><p></p><p>“What's that thing you were messing with?” Shar asks. </p><p></p><p>“Come see, I disabled it. It's the 'weary eye' mentioned in the rhyme we found.”</p><p></p><p>P-69 and Sepia search the campsite for treasure while the others check out the obelisk. “Nothing,” the rogue reports, the two joining the others at the obelisk after a few moments. </p><p></p><p>“To yonder staircase, then,” says Kane, and the group turns back to their destination. </p><p></p><p>As they approach, the building's odd shape, irregular and curved, strikes them. It stands as high as the cliffs themselves, with thick wooden stilts as supports. The stairs that rise to it are made of wood, too, but the building itself seems to be composed of slabs of ill-fitting stone sealed with vines and other growth. It's very weird-looking.</p><p></p><p>Kane leads the way up the stairs, naked sword pointing ahead of him, a low growl rising from his deep in his chest. They spiral up through the floor of the suspended building. Within, a table holds a miniature landscape that includes the building. Most of the table depicts the top of the cliff- a complex systems of paths running between stone cairns.</p><p></p><p>“This must depict this place,” Bradford states.</p><p></p><p>The only other exit out of the building ends at a rope bridge that leads to the north, where another building, this one constructed from bright marble, stands. Rougher stone structures- a whole complex of them- stand to the northwest. </p><p></p><p>“Those aren't on the map,” Karl exclaims. </p><p></p><p>Sepia points at the rougher buildings. “And look. The stones making those up- they don't fit together well, but they're obviously not natural. Those are the gravestones. Somebody has repurposed them.”</p><p></p><p>Silence falls over the group for a moment. Karl finally breaks it. “Well, at least we know that whatever is happening to the fey folk around here is intentional. And that means that we can undo it.”</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>The marble building is another irregular one, though less curvy than the first. Inside, the walls, floor, and ceiling are completely covered in runes that seem to squirm and change when observed. The interior walls of the building curve weirdly and end in pillars, apparently part of the pattern of runes. </p><p></p><p>“Whatever is going on here, it's very complex,” Karl declares. “I think that the entire Garden of Graves has been reworked into some kind of rune magic to support... something.”</p><p></p><p>“Hello? Oh gods, help me!” </p><p></p><p>The woman's voice comes from a part of the room that is hidden behind one of the curving walls. Shifty whips out his dagger.</p><p></p><p>“Hello?” says P-69.</p><p></p><p>“Please, help! They've already sacrificed my family, and I'm sure that I don't have long! Please, free me!” </p><p></p><p>“I don't know...” Shifty mutters suspiciously, but the shardmind is already moving around the wall. There is the sound of rattling chains- </p><p></p><p>Then there are beetles everywhere, tearing at the party, emerging from tiny holes in the room's surfaces. </p><p></p><p>P-69 shrieks, and the woman's voice comes again- laughter, full of malice. </p><p></p><p>P-69 backs into view, scarabs scratching at him, biting and burrowing into his rocky skin. They scramble all over everyone. Blood is everywhere.</p><p></p><p><strong>Kaboom!</strong> A <em>fireball</em> detonates, and for a moment, the group can see what's happening well enough to realize that the woman and the scarabs- or at least, many of them- are one and the same. She shifts from the form of a beautiful eladrin to a swarm of ravenous beetles and back again, flowing around the chamber in a chewing frenzy. </p><p></p><p>Badly wounded, Shifty tumbles around the corner, hoping to gain cover, retreating forward. For a moment he's away from them. Gasping, he glances around. </p><p></p><p>There is a stone-rimmed pool, within which lays a key of bright metal. The rippling water makes it hard to tell exactly where it is, but... He hurries over and reaches for it. </p><p></p><p>The key isn't where it appears to be. He misses when he grabs for it, and as he does so, a serpent of water rises up in the pool. </p><p></p><p><em>Uh-oh,</em> he thinks.</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, the others are struggling with the beetle situation. Karlinden's magic seems more effective than anything else, but Kane, Bradford, Sepia, and Shar are all badly wounded. </p><p></p><p>“Over here!” Shifty's voice comes from around the corner. The others fall back- forward, rather- toward him.</p><p></p><p>With a wail, the beetle-woman and her little friends follow, hesitating as Karl blasts them with a <em>flame burst</em>. </p><p></p><p>Shifty gropes for the key, and after a moment, his hand closes on it- but not before the serpent smashes into him.</p><p></p><p>He vanishes. </p><p></p><p>Sepia and Bradford both fall to the relentless beetle-woman. But finally, Kane and Karl bring her down in turn. When they finally do, she collapses into a shower of beetles, most dead- but some scuttle away, out the tiny holes in the walls and floor. </p><p></p><p>The water serpent keeps lashing out at anyone near it. Sepia calls, “Get away from it! We don't need to mess with it. Shifty already grabbed whatever was in the water.”</p><p></p><p>“Speaking of whom,” Shar says, “we need to find him.”</p><p></p><p>“There's only one way!” P-69 steps up to the serpent, which lashes out.</p><p></p><p>The shardmind, too, vanishes. </p><p></p><p>“I'm not so sure that's true,” Karl sighs.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Shifty appears with a yelp. He's in cold, fast-flowing water. Not far downstream, the water disappears with a roar: it's a waterfall. </p><p></p><p>He swims to shore without too much trouble, but then realizes that P-69 has appeared behind him in the water, and seems to be having a bit less luck with the swimming.</p><p></p><p>“Watch out!” the gnome cries. </p><p></p><p>P-69 gives a loud yell as he is swept over the edge of the fall.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>The others heard P-69's yell. The waterfall he fell down was the same one they saw descending from above the cliff when they first passed through the stone ridge blocking access to the Garden of Graves. He's banged up by the fall, but still conscious.</p><p></p><p>However, the whole group is pretty battered from the last few encounters. “I think,” says Karl, “we should move an hour or so away and try to get a long rest.”</p><p></p><p>This seems wise. The party heads off into the Feywild to make camp. </p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> Death strikes one of our heroes!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 7585595, member: 1210"] “Is this in your rhyme, too?” PHUQ-69 cries, as the decrepit canvas tents try to wrap themselves around our heroes while the firewood bursts alight and sends flaming sparks at them. “No!” Shifty replies, then corrects himself. “Well, yes- not these, but that!” He points at the obelisk. The tools, too, spring to life, and a ghostly light flickers into being before starting to drain the life from those near enough. Our heroes find themselves suddenly pressed from all sides. While the others engage the attacking campsite furnishings, Shifty springs forward, tumbling past the animated objects, and rushes to the obelisk. [i]'Seek to open weary eyes',[/i] he thinks, recalling the verse, and scrambles up to the top of the thing, where he espies a hinge. He pulls out his thieves' tools and works at it. He feels a great lethargy fall over him. He feels, in fact, very sleepy. Blinking, he bites his cheek to help himself focus, and keeps working on the hinge. [i]There![/i] He tricks it open, and the lethargy ends. He leaps to the ground and returns to his friends, who are finishing disposing of the will-o'-wisp and camp gear. “Well done, people!” he beams at them. “Great job!” “What's that thing you were messing with?” Shar asks. “Come see, I disabled it. It's the 'weary eye' mentioned in the rhyme we found.” P-69 and Sepia search the campsite for treasure while the others check out the obelisk. “Nothing,” the rogue reports, the two joining the others at the obelisk after a few moments. “To yonder staircase, then,” says Kane, and the group turns back to their destination. As they approach, the building's odd shape, irregular and curved, strikes them. It stands as high as the cliffs themselves, with thick wooden stilts as supports. The stairs that rise to it are made of wood, too, but the building itself seems to be composed of slabs of ill-fitting stone sealed with vines and other growth. It's very weird-looking. Kane leads the way up the stairs, naked sword pointing ahead of him, a low growl rising from his deep in his chest. They spiral up through the floor of the suspended building. Within, a table holds a miniature landscape that includes the building. Most of the table depicts the top of the cliff- a complex systems of paths running between stone cairns. “This must depict this place,” Bradford states. The only other exit out of the building ends at a rope bridge that leads to the north, where another building, this one constructed from bright marble, stands. Rougher stone structures- a whole complex of them- stand to the northwest. “Those aren't on the map,” Karl exclaims. Sepia points at the rougher buildings. “And look. The stones making those up- they don't fit together well, but they're obviously not natural. Those are the gravestones. Somebody has repurposed them.” Silence falls over the group for a moment. Karl finally breaks it. “Well, at least we know that whatever is happening to the fey folk around here is intentional. And that means that we can undo it.” *** The marble building is another irregular one, though less curvy than the first. Inside, the walls, floor, and ceiling are completely covered in runes that seem to squirm and change when observed. The interior walls of the building curve weirdly and end in pillars, apparently part of the pattern of runes. “Whatever is going on here, it's very complex,” Karl declares. “I think that the entire Garden of Graves has been reworked into some kind of rune magic to support... something.” “Hello? Oh gods, help me!” The woman's voice comes from a part of the room that is hidden behind one of the curving walls. Shifty whips out his dagger. “Hello?” says P-69. “Please, help! They've already sacrificed my family, and I'm sure that I don't have long! Please, free me!” “I don't know...” Shifty mutters suspiciously, but the shardmind is already moving around the wall. There is the sound of rattling chains- Then there are beetles everywhere, tearing at the party, emerging from tiny holes in the room's surfaces. P-69 shrieks, and the woman's voice comes again- laughter, full of malice. P-69 backs into view, scarabs scratching at him, biting and burrowing into his rocky skin. They scramble all over everyone. Blood is everywhere. [b]Kaboom![/b] A [i]fireball[/i] detonates, and for a moment, the group can see what's happening well enough to realize that the woman and the scarabs- or at least, many of them- are one and the same. She shifts from the form of a beautiful eladrin to a swarm of ravenous beetles and back again, flowing around the chamber in a chewing frenzy. Badly wounded, Shifty tumbles around the corner, hoping to gain cover, retreating forward. For a moment he's away from them. Gasping, he glances around. There is a stone-rimmed pool, within which lays a key of bright metal. The rippling water makes it hard to tell exactly where it is, but... He hurries over and reaches for it. The key isn't where it appears to be. He misses when he grabs for it, and as he does so, a serpent of water rises up in the pool. [i]Uh-oh,[/i] he thinks. Meanwhile, the others are struggling with the beetle situation. Karlinden's magic seems more effective than anything else, but Kane, Bradford, Sepia, and Shar are all badly wounded. “Over here!” Shifty's voice comes from around the corner. The others fall back- forward, rather- toward him. With a wail, the beetle-woman and her little friends follow, hesitating as Karl blasts them with a [i]flame burst[/i]. Shifty gropes for the key, and after a moment, his hand closes on it- but not before the serpent smashes into him. He vanishes. Sepia and Bradford both fall to the relentless beetle-woman. But finally, Kane and Karl bring her down in turn. When they finally do, she collapses into a shower of beetles, most dead- but some scuttle away, out the tiny holes in the walls and floor. The water serpent keeps lashing out at anyone near it. Sepia calls, “Get away from it! We don't need to mess with it. Shifty already grabbed whatever was in the water.” “Speaking of whom,” Shar says, “we need to find him.” “There's only one way!” P-69 steps up to the serpent, which lashes out. The shardmind, too, vanishes. “I'm not so sure that's true,” Karl sighs. *** Shifty appears with a yelp. He's in cold, fast-flowing water. Not far downstream, the water disappears with a roar: it's a waterfall. He swims to shore without too much trouble, but then realizes that P-69 has appeared behind him in the water, and seems to be having a bit less luck with the swimming. “Watch out!” the gnome cries. P-69 gives a loud yell as he is swept over the edge of the fall. *** The others heard P-69's yell. The waterfall he fell down was the same one they saw descending from above the cliff when they first passed through the stone ridge blocking access to the Garden of Graves. He's banged up by the fall, but still conscious. However, the whole group is pretty battered from the last few encounters. “I think,” says Karl, “we should move an hour or so away and try to get a long rest.” This seems wise. The party heads off into the Feywild to make camp. [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] Death strikes one of our heroes! [/QUOTE]
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