Report: The Black Fox Hunt
General Summary
During our last expedition, we made a pact with an enchanted wolf named Flame to help kill or drive out the “Black Fox” from the Creeping Wood. It so happens that our bandit problem was somewhat nearby- meaning that we could take advantage of the forward base of operations set up by the Hell Howlers. It is a shame that they were otherwise occupied, because I’m certain that their demon-hunting prowess would have been extremely useful. Nevertheless we assembled a team of devotees: Argren, Stiks, Aunt Robin, and of course myself. We made plans to leave the next morning with the first group to go to the camp, headed by Aldric Gates.
While I slept, the Archangel Excoria visited me. I was bolstered by her visit, and given guidance that I yet have a larger part to play. Surely her divine blessing would help ease the troubles that we would face the next day.
Along the way we were beset by goblins bearing a three pointed crown tattoo. At this point we did not understand the meaning, but after dispatching them we moved forward with trepidation. Upon reaching the camp, it was, quite frankly, a mess. The Hell Howlers may have a holy mission… but their ways are quite profane. Perhaps I can influence their followers and bring them even more under Celestine’s light.
We met up with two guards: Ren Barlow and Seera Wick. We helped clean the camp, and stayed the night to rest, ready to face the Black Fox on the morrow. At dawn the next day we bowed our heads in prayer, bolstering our courage. Despite not knowing where the Black Fox’s lair is, we trusted in Celestine that Flame would find us, and direct our righteous quest.
Instead of Flame, however, we were ambushed by Twig Blights, and despite being plants, they began to wreak havoc on our small party. Yet mere seconds into this ambush came Flame, bounding through the woods, and helping us torch the blights. We had to convince him that Argren was part of our number, despite Flame not having met him before. Reluctantly he agreed to allow him to continue with us, and lead us to what he believed to be a “human den” (Truly it was an abandoned settlement of elven druids). We took a brief respite in this camp, but we were attacked by more tattooed goblins. They were heavy with the scent of the Black Fox, and Flame was quite certain that he was nearby. Much to Stik’s pleasure the Black Fox was in fact… a fox.
He led us on a chase through the darkening wood; we almost lost him several times, but Flame’s keen sense of smell kept us on track, while Robin’s ability to move through the dense underbrush helped us find the easiest paths. At the entrance to a massive bramble dungeon the Black Fox turned to face us, bellowing a challenge and morphing into a hulking one-armed, triple-horned… DEMON. This reaffirmed my suspicions, and our righteous band hurtled headlong into the dense morass of brambles, having to move carefully to not tear ourselves to ribbons.
Inside the dungeon Robin worked hard to keep us on track, carefully making a map while Flame lead the way- warning us of the many pitfall traps. We made our way through nearly a dozen rooms filled with goblins, mimics, mummified elf corpses, corpse crawlers, a summoning circle, and a goblin shaman that spoke of an “old master” and “new master”.
Finally after winding our way through most of the dungeon we came upon the lair of the demon- one with whom Argren was quite familiar, as it had apparently killed many of his family. Not only was this mission a holy one, but one of vengeance as well. Despite our weariness we knew that the showdown had to happen this day, and we entered to the booming mockery of the hellish beast.
We faithful few attacked under the banner of Celestine, and while my compatriots flew at the demon in a fury, I called out to Excoria, beseeching her aid as she had mentioned in her dream. Filled with a holy light I advanced on the demon, blasting radiant energy while the rest of our party fought doggedly on. Unfortunately the demon landed a fatal blow on Flame: and despite our rocky beginnings, I felt true heartache at the loss of such a stalwart companion. We would not have made it through the dungeon so easily without his help. Finally when we were on the verge of defeating the demon, he assumed the form of a fox, and fled from the fight, fearful of our holy power.
In his fear he left behind the Silveraxe: a relic of Argren’s family, and summoned the tormented ghosts of his lost siblings, which we had to put to rest, along with Flame’s ghost. Stiks battled bravely with the Silveraxe, but the mental anguish of holding such a cursed item was eventually too much. Argren bravely took up his ancestral weapon, and with it banished the last of the ghosts, leaving us alone in the room, battered, broken, and most importantly victorious.
The Black Fox may not have been permanently banished back to Hell, but he now knows that Celestine’s servants will hunt him, find him, and kill him. We also extracted a Rundiri elf named Tranquil Stone, who had been there to perform some pagan rite. The world may not always be as simple as good versus evil, but on this day it was, and the light triumphed over the shadow cast by this demon.
Penned by Jene Dark
Adventuring Party: Jene Dark, Robin Foster, Argren Silveraxe, Stiks
Date: 21AUG21
Report Date
21 Aug 2021
Primary Location
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