Session 26: Manticores and the Unseen

General Summary

The party, after the meeting in Bysaes Tyl and the encounter with the Volstruckers, took the unbeaten path from a bridge between Bysaes Tyl and Icehaven south. They took the better part of the day using the spell water walk to travel up the river on the water itself to avoid leaving tracks to be followed. After that, they stuck close to the river and followed it south in a cool, drizzling spring weather.
Crossing a fjord near a T in the river, they skirted the edge of a chunk of the Pearlbow Wilderness to the west and then moved south again once the trees cleared and the plains of grass revealed themselves.
After a day of traveling this, they heard a large growl coming from the forest to the east, following by screams and yells. Curiosity and a desire to help others lead them into the forest to see what was happening. Atreena jumped into the trees and snuck ahead. Brother Les also took precautions but the rest trudged through the trees and brush.
The much quicker Atreena found a pair of lion-like beasts with bat-like wings and tails covered in spikes threatening a female human and male dwarf, with a male human just recently disemboweled underneath it. It was asking the other two if they had food to offer in exchange for their lives.
The party quickly jumped in to save them.
Pooka rushed up and used his lash of shadows to practically flay the skin off one of them quite quickly and easily, but that was just before it roared in rage and put the fear of its wrath into Pooka and Zanthros. Pooka decided it was best to just squat and grab his legs in fear, and Zanthros kept as many trees between him and the creatures.
Atreena stayed in the shadows of the trees and let fly her necrotic energy from her hands.
Brother Les created his holy sun weapon and bashed at the creatures.
Eglantina blasted at them with her fey energy.
One went down really quickly but the second creature attempted to fly away, but it had to clear the tall canopy at first. The party quickly moved under it and blasted at it or used other means to strike it down, crashed through the branches to the ground.
Brother Les immediately rushed over to the body of the dead human and used a spell of revivify, destroying a chunk of diamond, to mends the destroyed abdomen and bringing life back into him.
The party was immediately thanked for saving them, especially the killed human. They introduced themselves as Thergel Oredigger (male dwarf), Vesh Graves (female human), and Victor Harven (male human). As a small part of their thanks, they allowed the party the spoils of harvesting one of the manticores for their own purposes. Pooka set out to do that with pleasure. He pulled out his knife, and with Vesh's help, found some good soft points to be able to cut the wings off, pull the teeth and severe the tail, maximizing the areas of good harvest.
The hunters took the party to a small, hidden wagon and loaded up the harvested manticore parts and offered to take them back to Yrossa and pay for a night of drinks and beds. The party took them up on the offer. The next 2 days Pooka discussed the topic of harvesting creatures and Brother Les injected himself into every conversation that the hunters had amongst themselves, for fear that the 3 were plotting against the party.
After the few days, the party found themselves coming to the small crossroads town of Yrossa. The hunters led the party to a typical sized tavern on the edge of town called The Stylish Hound. Vesh and Victor left them to take the harvest parts somewhere else and Thergel took the party inside the tavern to buy them drinks and food. Brother Les, still wary, blessed the food and drink from any ill poisons, then the party feasted heartily on the first warm, hearth cooked meal since Shadycreek Run...at least a month ago (months if you count the time in alternate planes).
After a few hours, Vesh returned and gave Thergel a nod, which Thergel then got up and asked the party to follow him to the back of the tavern as he had another possible way of thanking them. The party hesitantly followed Thergel through the kitchen to a door, where he knocked a seemingly random pattern. The door then opened and Thergel led the party through the door, down a dark corridor lit by occasional torches, which then went downstairs and then followed a series of turns until another door which opened to a small room no bigger than 25 feet in radius with another door on the opposite side. Pooka really had to hunch down.
Thergel left them in the room to meet someone, and then when the door was closed, the entire room went black. Even those that could see in the dark found their site was lost...except for Eglantina who's eyes can pierce magical darkness. The party heard, and Eglantina saw, the opposite door open and a pair of humanoids came into the room. One was a male red tiefling with swept back horns dressed in comfortable attire. The other an older human male with a shaggy beard and dressed rather fashionably.
The human thanked the party for saving his people and saw value in the party and what they could accomplish. He apologized for the darkness but he calls himself the "Unseen Man" and said he must keep his identity secret. He also knew the secrets of certain members of the party (Zanthros and Eglantina) and did not seem to have a problem with it. He offered them a job to clear out a nearby hidden location that his organization recently tried to re-acquire but his people never returned. He'd like to find out what happened to them and if trouble is found at the location, clear out that trouble. He could pay them for their services.
Brother Les explained that the party needs to get to the Menagerie Coast. The Unseen Man stated that if they perform this service, he could help guide them on their way more easily. Then he thanked the party again, stated they should await in The Stylish Hound and meet their guide to the hidden location in the morning. Then the two left and the lights came back.
Thergel comes back in and led them back to The Stylish Hound and the party took a rest in a bed that didn't sway on the ocean for the first time since Shadycreek run as well. The party spent a few hours that night figuring out how to disguise Eglantina and Zanthros. They tried multiple different ideas until Atreena finally remembered she had a disguise kit she'd been carrying for a while and they dyed Eglantina's white hair to a red, and applied make up differently. They cut Zanthros' hair shorter and he borrowed Brother Les' finer clothing to wear (instead of Zanthros' usual robes).
The next morning, the party found Vesh waiting for them in the tavern. She explained she is the guide and had them get started on the road to the hidden location in some nearby hills outside of town.
Along the way, Pooka and Vesh discussed harvesting creatures and techniques. Pooka found a new creative outlet opening before him!
After a few hours, they travelled up into the hills to the north east of Yrossa and come upon a two story broken down stone tower. Atreena climbed up the side and found the second floor had trash and a cold campfire. The first floor's door were missing, so the rest of the party went in and found very little except for a door that led into a small room and a ladder leading down.
The party went down the ladder to a subterranean level of the tower. Vesh stated that she would wait for them to return with news of it being cleared. She was obviously worried about what lay inside. A wall that obviously divided the circular tower had a portion of it destroy, the mechanism of it being a secret door revealed. In the room behind that, a set of steps led down even further. The party went down the steps.
Underneath the tower was a dark set of natural corridors leading east and south east. Some unnatural stonework could be seen and Eglantina, with her devil sight, could see a large pile of metal equipment to the east. The party chose to wander southeast.
The ground occasionally stepped down, deeper under the ground. It branched to the north at one point but they continued south-east until they found a door in the natural wall. Atreena checked it and found no traps, not locked and no sounds on the other side. They opened it to find a small room with a broken bed and a chest. Some coin was inside.
The checked the rest of the cave to the east and found it ends. They backtracked to the branch to the north and headed down that path.
They found themselves on the other side of the pile of metal, but closer this time. The pile of metal was absolutely rusted and old. It appeared to be a collection of grates, tools, weapons, chains, poles and other iron objects.
Then the pile started shifting at the noise of the party, and a pair of rusted metal wings rose out of the pile. Then a pair of metal, rusted, dragon-like heads rose from the pile as well. They stared at the pair, then let out a shriek like someone scraping old, rusty forks against sheets of metal. They moved to attack.
What kind of creatures are these? What lies in the pile of metal? How can the Unseen Man help get the party to the Menagerie Coast quicker?

Report Date

27 Mar 2021