DIT 17: "What The Hell Is That Smell?!"

Discovery, Exploration

You found a glyph key allowing you to directly transport via Black Gate into the Prison of Filth zone in the Far Realm Cysts sector. Taking advantage of this stroke of luck allowing you to move more quickly to another sector and get you closer to controlling the requisite number of Black Gates to get to the Phylactery Vault you find yourself in an area that reeks to the Nine Hells - which is fitting since it has a bunch of otyughs.

You fight your way through the otyughs in their trash heap of a cave. A couple of times you think the stench will overwhelm you, but you manage to choke it down. The otyughs prove to be a tougher fight than you anticipated, with one of them even managing to snatch Brehana out of her harness on Pubert’s back and slam her into the wall. The poor creature soon pays for that disrespectful act, as do its companions and you make your way father south in the Prison of Filth.

The next room contains a large blood-red circle drawn on the floor, the twisted runes around its edge glow with a sickly purple light. Immediately ascertaining how dangerous the circle is and that it can be used to summon creatures from the Far Realm, Malice and Brehana agree it needs to be destroyed. Unfortunately, the first attempt goes awry causing a pulse of magical power to severely affect Pubert, Taru, and Malice’s abilities involving thought and reasoning. This furthers their resolve to destroy the circle and so a second attempt is made and thankfully succeeds.

From here you venture through the adjacent White Gate leading to Forest of Weakness zone in the Forests of Slaughter section. Here you encounter a group of owlbears, but all they seem interested in is food which you give them and so they ignore you as you pass by, engrossed in the meal of rations you left on the ground for them.

Near the Black Gate in this zone is a pool that has a soft yellow glow. Pubert checks it out by swirling a javelin in it, and even talking to it but ultimately you choose to not dwell upon it and move to the west.

There you find a grove of trees. Malice wants to inspect the area with Detect Magic but due to his current state after the incident with the summoning circle, he finds that he cannot concentrate long enough to use the spell, so Brehana does so instead. But before she can finish the ritual, she is attacked by a strange creature. It and several others like it drop from the trees.