Chapter 31: Of Monsters and Men
General Summary
Date: 24th of Eleasis to 28th of Eleasis, 1491 DR
Thick smoke filled the chamber, leaving the party blind as
Weevil began his escape. Virion sprinted after him, triggering a tripwire that set off an explosion. Loud boom echoed in the chamber and the monk fell to the ground. Ranvas holstered his gun and whispered the name of the wind that dispersed the fog.
The party quickly assessed the situation, while stabilizing Virion. They decided to leave Virion for now and continue chasing the dwarf. Bene turned invisible and headed towards one of the tunnel forks. Ranvas followed and noticed wires all around, warning Bene and Nomime. Bene and Nomime took the left turn and Ranvas the right. Ranvas’s tunnel lead to small house and the one Bene and Nomime took lead them back to the streets of Xanthral’s Keep. Weevil was lost, for now. While Ranvas dragged Virion to the small house to rest, Bene and Nomime looked around the town, which had turned eerily silent. Blood splatters were everywhere and windows were broken. At the tavern, someone was crying. The horses at the stables had been killed and piled neatly together.They decided to go to the main gate where they saw a bunch of villagers with bleeding eyes and manic expressions.
Meanwhile, while Ranvas was guarding the unconscious body of Virion, he saw a man approaching the house. Ranvas noticed the bloody eyes and the murderous look of the villager and shut the door. The villager tried to break in with his axe but Ranvas shot him immediately.
Bene and Nomime tried to avoid the villagers but they managed to grab Nomime and attack her. She fell unconscious and Bene tried to carry her to safety. The party met at the village’s church, where they thought they would be safe and be able to recuperate. The party gathered the villagers had lived under the influence of the False Hydra for so long that without it, they had gone insane. Ranvas suggested shooting down everyone from the top of the church but they settled for trying to escape the town.
Bene started to lead the party stealthily through the streets as the villagers were moving around, looking for the party. On the way to the main gate, the party saw disturbing things, such as one villager carving their own stomach. At the Town Square, some villagers were just laughing and mumbling to themselves. Nomime realized it would be safe to cross past them and lead the party through the Square. However, some of the villagers were starting to notice them. Ranvas wanted to distract the villagers and started running to the other direction, using his parkour skills. They heard a gunshot in the distance. Virion tried to speed the party’s movement by bashing through the walls of houses but gathered the attention of the crazed villagers. A the same time, Ranvas returned with more villagers on his tail. He informed the party that he did not fire his gun. The party knew Weevil must be around. Nomime lead the party on a less crowded street while Bene distracted the villagers by leading them into a house and vanishing among the shadows.
They arrived at the main gate which was barricaded with bodies and watched by several villagers. It was time for initiative. Ranvas attacked the closest villagers, trying to make his way towards the gate. Nomime was feeling vengeful after her last encounter with the villager and summoned a fire elemental to aid the party. More gunshots were heard and the party noticed Weevil at the top of the portcullis. Bene attempted to climb the wall but failed and settled for threatening the dwarf. Virion was punching villagers left and right, knocking them down instantly. This went on for a while as the party tried to inch their way towards the gate. At last, Ranvas managed to climb on top of the portcullis next to Weevil. Weevil tried to shoot him and hit him with an axe but Ranvas was as slippery as a fish. Weevil loaded a small gem into his gun, which piqued Ranvas’s interest. He soon found out what it was as he pushed Weevil down from the wall. Weevil shot the gem at Ranvas which exploded with fire. Ranvas managed to survive and turn the ledge to open the gates, letting the party pass to safety.
Weevil's escape was cut short when Virion ran up to the limping dwarf and stunned him with his punch. They tied the dwarf up and threw him on Virion’s back. It was time to head to Mirabar and talk to Harshnag. Weevil was not happy about this and begged the party to let him go, offering secrets and knowledge in return. He informed the party that firearms were not tolerated in Mirabar and he would surely be killed if taken there. The party concocted a plan to disguise Weevil as a prince from a neighboring dwarven kingdom. Bene used his masking skills to make this happen. They decided that Ranvas would stay outside the gates with Weevil while the rest would go find Harshnag.
The party rested and continued their journey to Mirabar. Ranvas and Bene argued whether Weevil should be allowed to walk freely or tied up. Nomime pretended to cast a spell on Weevil that would kill him instantly if he tried to flee. But before they managed to cut Weevil out of the ropes, he noticed two Frost Giants advancing on the party with a pack of wolves. How will the exhausted party get out of this? What more secrets is Weevil holding? Will the party find Harshnag in Mirabar? Tune in for next session to find out.
Missions/Quests Completed
Character(s) interacted with
