Hardcore Heroes Otherside: Episode 4

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== Synopsis ==
Van and his party, having arrived at a mysterious pyramid, face a dire situation when a portal within it summons dangerous creatures, leading to a brutal battle that results in the death of Kain and many peasants. As Van tends to the wounded and manages the aftermath, including making the best use of the monster corpses for food, he confronts unsettling developments involving the possessed peasants who are now being worshipped. The pyramid's interior reveals intriguing features, including a shifting mirror-like portal, which Van decides to approach cautiously after regrouping and preparing. Amidst these challenges, Van and Mother Ellyse explore the pyramid, seek divine guidance, and prepare for what lies ahead, grappling with the ramifications of their grim circumstances and the strange new world they are navigating.
==Recap==
=== Heatstroke ===
Van finds himself a house with a random table on which he casts Know age, however the spell returns him an error as if it exceeds the parameters of the spell. Kain slightly concerned asks what he get out the spell and when Van tells him, proposes maybe the age of the table is more like a constant, or perhaps it predates some point of measurement required for the spell. They're not big on physics however so Kain instead tells Van to look into a reflective surface at which Van, for the first time, notices that he seems to have developed acne and also dandruff, and also has a habit of scratching habit now which is entirely unlike him. 
While Van is considering his bad hygiene Kain goes to examine one of the people who were possessed the quickest. At first the man is a little uncomfortable from the attention, but when Kain asks if he has felt any changes since they arrived goes on tirade how they've walked across half the earth, seen people cannibalized, seen people starve, gotten this weird hunger yet not hunger and haven't ate since forever ago, ton of things. But there's also positive aspects like he seems to have gotten a little toned, been free from carbs for a while Kain chuckles at the last bit, but not getting anything related to the changes he and Van seems to be experiencing moves on.
Ignoring The Great Pyramid for now, the 95 people plus the party disperse throughout Heatstroke in search for a keep, though it doesn't seem like the town possesses one. Since Mother Ellyse is new to the place as well they are forced to assume it's either in the pyramid or there isn't one. They are interrupted briefly when a woman collapses, starvation having taken all of her strength, but Van stoically urges them forward. 
=== The Great Pyramid ===
They close in on The Great Pyramid, but before they take to the steps Van tries, but fails at casting Augury to see what fate they will meet by going upwards. Kain tries organizing a balanced force for ascensions and defense of the peasants, but it takes a while and irritates Ellyse in the process, eventually they have one knight staying behind to look after the towns people while party together with Ellyse, a knight and 16 spearmen, 3 crossbowers, 10 javaliners ascend. 
The war party stops about 40 feet before they reach the top to organize their forces, but in middle of that a mist begins gently rolling down the pyramid steps from the entrance at the top. Weapon at the ready they continue upwards, noticing a red light filtering through the doorway to the temple, colour being something they haven't seen in god knows how long. The pyramid blocks being 6 feet tall they have to get close to the doors to even get a proper shot with ranged weapons. Van takes the front position and pushes open the door while keeping cover from side, inside he sees a turning, swirling red eddy with a heart of black and spiral arms coming off of it.
=== The Slaughter ===
Out the portal them promptly come 3 smoke mephits, 3 displacer beasts and 3 giant-ass spiders. Van seeing this shuts the doors and yells at people to head down the stairs, confused Kain is trying to understand whats happening while the peasants tumble down the pyramid like fat hamsters. Because Ellyse is basically at a third of her movement Van picks her up and tries to help her along, but before long the door bursts open with the creatures coming down at them.
The party with Ellyse and the knight turn around to take the charge while the displacer beasts charge down the sides of the pyramid. Crossbowmen miss all but one shot and javelins have the same luck. Mephits blind Van and phase spiders almost manage to poison Dicky and Kain, with Kain being only one to successfully retaliate with a critical. Displacer beasts shrug off a few more bolts as they charge down towards the crowd. One the spiders goes for Ellyse, Dicky is poisoned and almost dead. Displacer beasts tear into the crowd of peasants only taking a single spear hit and killing multiple. Next round Kain is blinded while Vans eyes clear but despite that he manages to miss again. Dicky is killed, but Kain kills one the spiders in exchange. Long ranged weapons barely scratch anything while Displacer beasts kill 4 more peasants. With peasants incurring severe penalties for starvation most of those who aren't possessed miss and then the whole crowd breaks, though not before one of the displacer beasts and two mephits are killed. Party kills off the spiders with Ellyse almost dying, but a timely heal by Van makes sure she doesn't die immediately, Dicky isn't so lucky and dies. Displacer beasts maul the last two standing people- Kain and Van for multiply attacks one after another until Kain is left at 1 HP, but Van manages to drop one. However the next round the feline criticals Kain so hard he has a single round of life left with Van still being threatened by the last standing enemy now faced with choice of either healing Kain or killing the displacer beast which might then kill him in the next round.
Van chooses to attack the beast, kills it, but is too late to heal the withering away Kain. There among the steps of the holiest site in Eridon Van stands alone among a pile of corpses of people, friends and enemies. Not wasting any time he then casts Hold poison on Mother Ellyse and runs down the steps to check on Kel Breda, but the knight appears to have passed as well. He goes back up the pyramids and heals Ellyse just in case. In the pile of corpses at base of the structure Jeeves turns up, having hid under a few. Van calls him up to help with the other cleric, informing him of the passing of Kain which Jeeves appears to be very saddened about.
=== Bed & Breakfast ===
Slowly people start filtering back and it seems like they have now about 80 people plus Van. Timidly Van checks out the interior of the room atop the pyramid and it appears that the portal has disappeared, the walls and ceiling appear to be covered in carvings depicting the constellations. There's also an even more detailed altar in the room. 
After having spent a few minutes in the room Van and Ellyse realize they can feel their gods, far away, but graspable enough to memorize some spells over long periods of time. Van commands the peasants to gather up the monster corpses so once he gets his spells back he can turn them into food. He also drags Kain's body somewhere secluded, takes his weapons and burns everything else with the ranger, apologizing to him for not being able to leave his corpse in a natural place.
Jeeves interrupts him sometime later and informs Van that there's some people worshiping recently possessed peasants aka the demons inside of them. Van comes up to one the people and tells them that there's nothing to worship in these creatures, that they're not some great divine power or even that strong, the person somberly argues that at least they won't feel the hunger anymore, but Van shakes his head telling him that no one knows what will happen to all of their bodies once enough time has happened, instead Van invites all of them to help cook the displacer beasts and with his incredible charisma all of them stand up and go with the cleric.
With about 1000 pounds per beast the whole group is going to be fed fairly this time, but despite this there is talk of the possessing demons in such a light that makes Van uncomfortable. For now it's more in an ironic tone so Van doesn't feel like policing the crowd, but is aware that if it spreads he may need to do something about it. Instead he goes to converse with Mother Ellyse whose still resting, she suggests that perhaps praying together like in Shirebrook could yield a stronger connection to their gods.
As time goes by they explore the pyramid and find bedrooms, empty spaces, an inner temple and something that an excited peasant cannot find words to explain to Van. For now Van orders the people to stay away from what is described as shifting mirror like portal so he can rest and regain some health in case something jumps out of it mirror. 
Before resting  Van leads a group prayer and asks Chis if she has any information on how to get out from this plane of shadow he is in, but only gets the word distantly back. Exhausted he has the nobles organize watches and then sleeps in the temple. After waking up Van memorizes Cure poison for Ellyse, some cure wounds and few others. Ready to take on the mirror at the basement Van heads down.
The mirror is of an oval shape with wobbly, distorted, flickering surface and what appear to be flames coming off it. It is 7 feet tall and 4 feet wide with both sides of it appearing the same. Van studies the floating mirror and then instructs the folks to keep away from it, not yet ready to try entering it himself with the spell selection he has now.
== Experience and changes. ==
* Van gains 12461XP for a total of 115617XP
* Kain is killed by a displacer beast and leaves the party
Category:Hardcore Heroes Episodes