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Message: <blockquote data-quote="gideonpepys" data-source="post: 7100913" data-attributes="member: 79141">Session 11 (134) - Part Two: The Steam Pump RoomThey received a sending from Captain Smith to the effect that the three gnoll ships had been dealt with and they were awaiting further orders.  He also said that Silky had spotted a large, dark shape deep in the water beneath the Impossible.  It had been following them for some time, but Silky was too frightened to go down and investigate.  Captain Smith had given orders for the mascot to keep an eye on this mysterious object and would put some distance between them if it tried to approach.They followed the gull’s report to the largest cave within view.  Water pipes led inside, running all the way down to the town, and a magically warded blue carpet led inside, protected from wear and tear, dirt and mildew.  They killed the guards before they could use their signal horn, and headed inside. Uru planted a magical eye in the entrance to the cave, so he could keep watch from a distance for any approach from Karch.  Taking to the ceiling, he then ranged ahead of the others, fascinated by the spark-gap lighting (and using his Bleak Candle to hide despite its light).  He soon came back to report the first real line of defence: many gnoll archers, ranged throughout a huge pump room, and a pack of hyenas.  Staff and robes whirling, Glaucia led the assault, keen to take on the Cult of the Steel Lord.  She protected her family with a ward against arrows, and the unit followed in behind them. With a wave of his sonic staff, Merton sent the hyenas whining and howling to the back of the pump room.As soon as they entered a cry went up from one of the gnolls: “We’ll hold them off. Be ready to kill the hostages if we fail.”  An archer dropped the lights and a priest revealed himself when he assailed them with unholy fire despite the darkness. The archers used its light to pick out targets, but Glaucia’s ward protected them.  Gupta had brought her RHC Standard Issue Equipment Kit, but couldn’t find her sunrods in the dark.  (She made a mental note to reorganise things in future.) Uru’s ghostly friends soon switched the lights back on and Leon at once took out the nearest gnoll.  In response, the priest summoned another column of fiery light, but this one took out munitions planted on huge water tanks, flooding the whole area.  Worse still, the water was electrified.  The agonised howling of hyenas was thankfully short-lived.  Conquo grabbed Gupta and got her out of the flood water, while the rest of the team and their allies rescued themselves.  Conquo then launched himself at the platform near the southern exit and, though it bent and buckled under his weight, was able to make a dash for where he hoped hostages might be. Leon and Rumdoom followed him.Another cry went up: “They’re coming! Quickly, kill the hostages!” Beyond, a whole host of feral cultists stood, spears bristling, gnashing their teeth.  Conquo rampaged straight through them, tossing gnolls about like mere weasels.  But he was brought up short by the steel anathema of a cult priest, who threw him against the chamber wall and pinned him there.  At that moment, Pardo pounced from the shadows and attacked Conquo.  But this was an inferior duplicant and, with a howl of frustration, Pardo withdrew invisibly, unable to harm the huge golem.  Rumdoom took on the remaining gnolls and went down under a scrum. Leon scoured them with witchfire and the stench of burned hair filled the cave.  Rumdoom struggled to his feet, unhurt.The priest attacked Conquo with his magical flail, but should have stayed out of reach: Conquo thumped him hard enough to kill him and continued his relentless trundle into the cave complex.  Two gnoll cultists raced ahead of him, turning around only when they reached a cave that was decorated with a huge frieze depicting Gradiax’s hoard.  When they refused to cooperate, they too were dropped and Conquo soon found the secret door they had been ‘guarding’.Meanwhile, the pump room had been secured.  Lya immediately began to search for a means to open the downward hatch.  Korrigan reminded her that they would not be here but for the Beran fleet and their first duty should be to rescue the hostages if they could.  Lya duly relented and their truce stood firm.Back in the mines, Pardo attacked Leon.  Gupta now stood on the entrance gantry and asked the gnoll fanatic a Question, “Don’t you remember what you made her do?”  Pardo stood frozen in his tracks as Glaucia pounced and destroyed him.  As he fell he cried out, “I will forever be at my master’s side.”With Rumdoom and Leon alongside him, Conquo pressed on through the secret door.  Beyond they found dozens of pallets occupied by captured Berans.  Some had already been murdered by a group of four gnoll cultists dressed in a wicked parody of human physicians, with white clothes and masks on their faces.  They were killed quickly. Each of the supine forms was blindfolded, adorned with shamanic beads and ritual paint, and had a small vial of witch oil on their chest.  Once this was removed, they were able to move, though the ones who had been here longer than a few weeks found it difficult to do so.  One, a dwarf, was particularly wizened and appeared to have entirely withdrawn into himself.  When released he did nothing but shiver and curl into a foetal position.  This turned out to be Khaled Valchek!  Leon persuaded Rumdoom not to kill him right away and said they would deal with him later.  Kenna Vigilante was found among other conscious prisoners in cells to the south. She volunteered to galvanize the military personnel and join the unit.</blockquote>

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