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Message: <blockquote data-quote="jbear" data-source="post: 5168717" data-attributes="member: 75065">3rd Session: Towards LoudwaterThe dawn sky was dark with cloud. They arose from their slumber somewhat confused, perhaps as their bodies came down from the intense adrenaline rush of the day before, or perhaps just due to the beer. The simply got up and left, mumbling something about getting as far from the city as soon as possible. They left, climbing further up into the mountain, completely forgetting about the five horses tied up back at the ruins. They maintained a good rythm and had covered a lot of ground when a most common creature stopped them in the their tracks. A black cat sprang from a rock to the ground and sat in the middle of their path, staring at them. Considering the fact they had faced far more fearsome rivals just hours before, they became rather uncomfortable with the strange and sudden presence of such a small animal. After nervous whisperings as to what to do, Hogart took a step forward, hand outstretched. The cat trotted up to her fearlessly and sniffed at Hogart's hand. With a far from feline gesture, the cat looked Hogart straight in the eyes and began to speak with a sweet, feminine voice.-'The life of my sister is in danger. The darkness comes. If you love the light, if you care for it any way, follow me.'That said, the cat leapt back to its rock, and from one rack to the next arrived at a path tucked away above them. There it sat again awaiting them. The only protest came from Tron.-'We're going to follow  talking cat?? You have got to be kidding me! And what's it going to pay us with, dead rats perhaps?'But it was more hot air than anything else. Even Tron felt the tingle of something extraordinary about to happen. In fact, he was the first one to leap up the rocks after the cat,  and with considerably more vigor that he had used walking through the mountain towards a distant town to deliver a simple scroll to a frog. This smacked with the taste of magic! The others felt the same, the call towards the magical and unknown. The delved into the mountains following the cat, and although it was barely past noon, with every step the day darkened, as if something was strangling the light. Their attempts to speak more with the cat had failed as they walked along, as if the magic that had made it speak had disappeared like smoke. All they could sense from it was that it wanted them to hurry. They began to descend into a valley cautiously, as at every moment that passed it became more difficult to see in the swelling darkness. But there were more reasons to be cautious. The source of the darkness was palpably nearby, they could taste it. And it tasted like evil in its purest form. The path twisted around to the left and at last they could see where the cat was leading them. At the bottom of the valley a strange altar awaited them, weakly lit by coloured circles of  sickly light. The altar, carved into the valley rock itself like a minature mountain, had the form of a spider. A  stairway snaked up from the valley floor like a twisted grin, curling around five ascending circular platforms, each lit by a ring of distinct colour. In each circle stood two hooded figures, backs turned and hands raised towards the altar atop the peak, where an ebony woman fought against her chains amidst an arcane circle of monlithic stones. Above her a living, pulstaing shadow began to take form. Here was the source of the mountain's unnatural darkness, a fountain of unspeakable evil about to come to life at any moment as this macarbe ritual took place. What they were looking at escaped their comprehension. Angus had however seen similar things in the arenas of Calimsham, elaborate atrocities designed as gladiator's games to entertain the masses. But this was not meant to entertain anybody.-'It's a transfiguration ritual. They are going to turn the essence of that woman into something that they are conjuring down there, something terrible. Careful with those coloured circles, no doubt they are dangerous to anyone unconnected. It's possible they form some kind of arcane lock. We are going to have to find the key if we are going to help her.'Hogart bent down and picked up the cat whose tail was twitching wildly.-'Is that your sister down there, kitty?'-'It doesn't matter who she is, those people down there are Drow, dark elves,' interrupted Tanisa, taking out her great bow. 'They look like children, but make no mistake. They are Drow, they are born lethal. The woman on the altar is Drow too. We should kill them all, including her.'Rascabron stepped in front of Tanisa, staring at her with a fiery glow in his red eyes, his skin black as ink, his hair white as snow.-'And will you kill me next, oh just and righteous elf who from so far away sees so much... did you fail to see that I too am Drow? She, whoever she may be, has done something to displease her people, and as such, I hold her in better esteem than I do you. Screw the kids, but we are going to get the kitty cats little sister out of there.'-'They are only kids? Don't worry, I'll take care of this' added Tron pulling out his own bow. The chuckles broke the momentary tension and out heores set off again. _______________________________________________________________ Another new player joins the game: My sister-in-law, who was thoroughly disgusted at not having been included in the first place and most annoyed to discover that the 'guys night dnd game' had two women attending, and yet she had not been invited. Funny wee moment but it got sorted and so I designed a very elaborate rescue mission to explain how a drow warlock suddenly dropped into the game. Actually she arrived in full warlock costume, amulets, white long wig and face blackend with ... something black, gloves with long fingernails... quite a spectacular entrance into the game. Hogart was cycled through the control of a different player's wife's house but she was very quick on the uptake... 7 new players. Things were going well, slowly but well.</blockquote>

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