Citadel's Shadow II, Session 17

Citadel's Shadow II, Session 17 was a session of the Citadel's Shadow II campaign, played on Mar. 24, 2019 (UTC) (Mar. 23, 2019 for some participants).
==Personnel==
===Game Master===
*GM: played by Michael Lee Viviano
===Player Characters===
*Fern the Siegemaster: inventive fox-person student played by Rail Runner
*Juan de Fulmando: sword-wielding human alchemist played by Alden Loveshade
=== Non-Player Characters ===
* Jinxi: androgynous jester with poppet Jack
* Ursula Nidonge: female human mercenary
* Yagritte Ratreaper: female dwarven rat exterminator
== Events ==
=== 1742 ===
Ulthrane 14 (Middleday) (continued): Fern the Siegemaster, Jinxi, Juan de Fulmando, Ursula Nidonge, and Yagritte Ratreaper were in Packer's Cave in Trynser City, continuing to investigate the city's odd rat infestation.  Juan said, and Yagritte agreed, they needed to take the unconscious Giles Mumfret to the hospital.  Giles, the operator of the Witch on a Stick, was badly injured, covered with "rat nibbles."  Fern improvised a litter from a couple of poles and a sheet.  By agreement of the group, Juan, who insisted of being watched so he wouldn't be accused of stealing anything, got a crown from a pouch on the dead body Packer (Vilburd Gruskin).  The pouch contained eighteen crowns, six silver dragons, and five copper.  Jinxi went to use it to get someone to help take out Vilburd; the group agreed the amount would be taken out of the share of Krendall Moulerbos who wasn't there because he had gotten drunk.  Giles' hands were covered with rat dung, more evidence that he, while delirious, had made the rat-dung-held-together skeleton of Vilburd.
Jinxi soon returned with a man who had a one-horse cart, and they transported Giles to the hospital.
Fern sniffed the air, but didn't smell anyone other than the party.  Juan said he was at a loss, but Fern said they hadn't explored the rest of the cave yet.  Juan said, "We walk a few yards, somebody gets hurt and we have to go for treatment. We walk a few more yards, somebody gets hurt and we have to go for treatment. Repeat."  Meanwhile, Yagritte took the remains of Vilburd to his hut.
They continued on in the cave.  They came to a partially opened door.  Juan and Fern listened; while Juan couldn't detect anything, Fern heard sounds of both large and small rats.  Yagritte opened the door with her scythe and rushed in, and Juan asked the gods for speed in battle and rushed in faster.  The group went in to attack the rats--but they didn't see any.  They saw scenery, columns, architectural forms, backdrops, etchings.  Fern said she thought it might be trap.
The group could smell an overwhelming rat stench, then heard a great deal of squeaking in the corners, and then rats came out.  Each large rat had a "swarm" of normal-sized rats with it.  A large rat tore through a painted canvas of a night scene; Juan swung at the rat and missed, his blade ripping through the canvas.  Fern aimed her rifle at a large rat, and Ursula fired a blast.  Fern and Juan both got bit.  Juan killed a large rat, Ursula killed rats, Fern shot and killed a rat.
Yagritte suddenly attacked Juan!  Juan went into all-out defense, and the rat on Yagritte left her to go after Ursula.  Ursula got bit in the face, and Juan and Fern got bit again.  Juan ran away from Yagrite to Ursula, but missed the rat on Ursula.  Ursula fired at rats, and Juan screamed for her to help Fern, who was now fighting with claws, as Yagritte attacked Juan again, and Juan defended.
Ursula said, "Yagritte, I don't want to hurt you!"  Yagritte seemed to be in a daze.  Fern ran to Yagritte to try to stop her, but she dodged.  Fern felt something odd, like the fur on her scalp seemed to crawl, but managed to grab Yagritte.
Fern smelled the most hideous rat stench ever, in the far corner of the room. It smelled like rats and rat dung and oozing pestilence.  In that corner, the group discovered what looked like a tight cluster of large rats that scrambled towards them.  They seemed to be attached to each other, moving as one.  They were attached at the tails with filth.
Yagritte mumbled, but did nothing.  Juan also felt something odd, like bugs were crawling in his brain, but attacked the cluster of rats.  Ursula attacked too, both of her hands aflamed and grabbing the rat cluster.  Juan swung at the flaming rats and hit them with his sword.
Everyone in the room felt as if a storm in their head had suddenly stopped.  Yagritte said, "Juan... I am soo sorry!"  Juan said, not to worry about it, then said, "I think we killed...The MultiRat Master!"  Yagritte called it "a rat king."
Jinxi ran in, and said rats were running right by them.  Juan sat down, worn out.  The group discovered the rats were running off as they normally would do.  Fern, Juan, and Ursula performed medical treatment on the injured,  Jinxi said Giles got to the hospital, and "was as nutty as a walnut bush."  Rats scurried by, but did not attack.
The group checked the two remaining rooms, and found tavern items in one and another held furniture.
The group walked outside. The sun was behind the hill looming over them, but the sky was still a turqouise shade of blue. It was late afternoon.  Yagritte trudged to the cabin, and started singing a dwarven dirge.
Juan reminded everyone that Jinxi was planning to perform that evening at amateur night at Madame Maude Lynn's Theater of Thrills, and that he might do something too. (Citadel's Shadow II adventure 2019 03 23)