October 22

## Consultation

After returning to base with Ghost Dance, the Contenders began brainstorming. The new guy was unable to give them many details on his past, due to persistent amnesia that wiped out his memories of everything before the world-wide blackout. Knowing that they were out of their depth, the team took Ghost Dance to the Champions, hoping that they could find answers with the other heroes' expertise.

Witchcraft, looking drawn and haggard, agreed to see them, and quickly deduced that Ghost Dance was suffering under a curse that was slowly draining his mind. She recognized the magic because she was the target of a similar curse, and she identified the magic as belonging to the Scarlet Circle, a world-wide cabal of evil magic-users. Although she was unable to tell them the identity or location of the curse's originator, she did say that the spell appeared to be crossing dimensional boundaries-- meaning that its originator was on another plane.

Witchcraft apologized for not being able to break the curse herself, and warned Ghost Dance that he was headed for a total mental collapse if the curse continued unabated.

## A Quick Jaunt

After discussing what interplanar forces might wish Ghost Dance harm, the team rejected the idea of travelling to the Blazing World, as its nearly infinite realms would prove impossible to search at random. Ghost Dance had vague memories of travelling to an unknown world, however, and persuaded the team to come with him to search for his attacker.

The reason for his reluctance was clear upon their arrival. They found themselves in a bizarre forest of colossal trees that mapped vaguely to the mundane world, but without any sign of civilization. A strange purple moon hung in the sky, and unknown creatures stalked the shadows all around them. Ghost Dance saw that the curse had manifested itself in a large bird of prey which sat on his brow. The unrecognizable bird refused to leave, and periodically pecked at the man's head to spur him on.

Hardback spawned some insects to search the forest, and soon they were on their way towards the only human that he could detect in the entire plane.

## Old Stones

The forest soon gave way to reveal the overgrown remains of an enormous stone temple. The team followed the sound of chanting until they reached a ritual circle at the heart of the temple complex. The circle was surrounded by the ghostly forms of stone-age warriors, and a sinister shaman stood at its head. On a pillar at the center of the circle, a human sacrifice, wrapped head-to-toe in bandages, was pinned by a spike through its chest and surrounded by sinister runes. This unfortunate victim was still alive despite its grievous wound, and the shaman clearly drew strength from its suffering.

The bird on Ghost Dance's head flew back to the shaman, resting on his shoulder, and the team knew that they had found the curse's origin at last.

## Rumble in the Jungle

A fierce battle ensued between the Contenders and the shaman, who used dark magic and was backed by his ghostly entourage. An enormous serpentine beast called the Unhcegila appeared as Ghost Dance attempted to cross the runed circle, blasting the heroes with frigid winter winds and snapping them up with its mighty jaws.

The ghostly warriors proved to be little more than a nuisance to the heroes, but the Unhcegila was more formidable, and crushed both Hardback and Cort in its coils. Ghost Dance focused on battling the shaman, blasting him with lightning and pummeling him with super-strength as the spellcaster attempted to blind him with the pecking beaks of spectral birds.

Ghost Dance managed to taunt the Unhcegila with waves of hunger, but although this distracted the creature from his helpless friends it also backfired, as the beast immediately devoured Hardback before turning on him. Hardback nearly died in the snake's crushing gullet, but thankfully the creature was defeated first by the rest of the team and its form dissipated into mist, leaving Hardback behind wounded but alive. The shaman summoned a swarm of birds to peck Justicar's eyes out, but as the man was already conventionally blind this did little real harm. With the serpent banished and the ghostly warriors routed, the team was able to finally subdue the shaman and interrogate him for his secrets.

## Table Talk

"I shoulda had bugs! I shoulda had *multiple* bugs ready for that! I wasn't bug-ready."

- Hardback laments his lack of entomological preparedness

"What, Justicarius, no justice?"

"I'm amping myself up for justice."

- Hardback and Justicar

"Well, I don't want to be the only one over here *not* womping on a giant monster."

- Justicar

"You guys wanna be homeless?"

"I mean, I lived in a *snake*."

-The team weighs the relative benefits of paying for a secret base or being eaten by a snake for free

I think history shows you can't.

Only recent history shows that!

-Hardback trying to defend his honor after a loss to Perfidy

I'm gonna do it man to bug to manbug.

-Hardback, planning a talk with John Wolf

He reaches under the table and produces a pic of a sad mutant girl.

-John Wolf toying with Hardbacks insectile heart