Session 2x1

Session 2x1 occurred on 20 February 2021. The aim of the session was to kill the Sybillant Hydra. The players were Nordin (Boggo), Gino Kaye (Wolfkiller), Paul Staxx (Bulwark), wizefool (Bert) and Big Spoon (Tyriok).

## Summary

The party started north, resisting the Hydra's calls. Boggo theorized that the Hydra's calls are affected by the position of the stars, strengthening or weakening it accordingly. On the second day, in hex 013.022, the party spotted one undead marked by the sign of Rust. Wolfkiller killed it by kicking it off a ledge. The party found the undead's former campsite, which mentioned a "Matron" which the author lost sight of, followed by the author claiming they were "seeing clearly" for the first time before dying in the mountains. The party split up to scout for the Hydra's nest.

Heading back to the cave containing the dead man's old campsite, the party found a natural opening leading to a cavern filled with silver. The party then headed back to Dryvault on day three for climbing supplies and rope. In Dryvault, the party also opened a quarry with tools purchased from Glain.

Upon re-entering the cave, the party became trapped by Blood Mist appearing just outside. Forced deeper into the cave system, Boggo fell into water and Bert jumped after him, both becoming Cold. A glowing wyrm with a crystalline lantern hanging from its tail appeared in the cave and attacked the party. In the fight, the wurm killed Bulwark, but Tyriok shattered the lantern with his sword and the resulting blast killed the wyrm. Faced with both Wolfkiller and Bert dying of cold, Tyriok chose to try and save Bert. However, Tyriok could not escape the cave with Bert in tow, and ultimately let him go and escaped to safety.

## In-character tales

### Tyriok's retelling

*The door to the tavern bursts open, and Tyriok stumbles in, his clothes and armor encrusted in limescale, his face and exposed skin covered in sunburns. He falls to his hands and knees on the tavern floor, and from his tortured throat manages to escape a single phrase. “They’re all dead.”*

*Several hours and a warm bowl of stew and blanket by the hearth he seems to have recovered enough to recall what happened.*

Day One, We spent the morning preparing for our journey, Bert shopping, Boggo filling waterskins. As we set out in the afternoon, Wolfkiller found a set of wagon tracks of a heavily loaded wagon. Sitting around the campfire we shared tales of what we had heard of Hydras and what we knew about this one. The cries began in the evening, but those of us who could stuffed their ears, and we withstood the hydra’s voice through the night. In the morning, Boggo mentioned that the calls of the Hydra were stronger the last time he ventured out, something about how it’s affected by the position of stars.

(013.022) The second day came with a journey into the mountains, the going was tough, switchbacks and ravines stymied our process until Bert scrambled up a rock face and tied a rope at the top to help the rest of us up, Wolfkiller spotted a Restless Dead marked with the sign of Rust, the second time I’ve encountered neglected undead left by the Rust Brothers. What are they doing in this region? Wolfkiller suggested using the Restless Dead as bait for the Hydra, it tried to grapple and hold him in place, seeing it was going to be of no use to us, Wolfkiller kicked it from the ledge we had just scaled to break upon the rocks below. We found what might have been the thing’s campsite, Bert found a note which mentioned a “Matron”, losing sight of her and then “seeing clearly” for the first time, whoever they were, they got stuck in the mountains to fatal ends.

Deciding to split up and explore the area to find the Hydra’s nest, Bulwark and I ventured out into the burgeoning rain, we were greeted with an amazing vista looking over the Grovewood, being able to see the Ice-encrusted village of Faywater, that water demon must be something indeed. In the mountain range across the way, white smoke rose from around where Deadhook Fortress must be. Bulwark mentioned that if the day had been clear we would be able to see his village from here, we shared a short conversation before heading back to the cave. Bert and Boggo ventured deeper into the cave lowering Bert down into a natural opening in the rock. Finding a massive cave glittering with silver we decided to return to town to gather rope and supplies to delve into the cave and retrieve the treasure.

Day Three, we returned to town and set back out, easily re-tracing our steps to the cave, and that’s when everything went wrong.

It started downpouring, draining into the cave, making our camp freezing cold, as Bert and I huddled around the fire, Bulwark standing at the cave entrance smelled copper on the air and charged back into the cave shouting that the Blood Mist was upon us. We scrambled into the cave, Bert nearly falling to his death, we all scrambled down the escarpment, Bulwark nearly getting stuck in the entrance, dislocating his shoulder to squeeze through and escape the Mist. We lowered ourselves down into the Caves, Bert went down the rope first, making it to the bottom and swimming out to the island scattered with silver. Boggo started down next, but as he did, the rope frayed and snapped and he fell into the stalagmites below, his face bouncing off one and splashing into the water. I started the climb down freehand, and Bert seeing this quickly leapt into the water to try and save him, he dove, and dove, but his small frame couldn’t keep the halfling bard above the water and Boggo sank into the depths, Bert swam back to the island in the center but collapsed of cold. I reached the bottom of the waterfall and swam into the center quickly trying to bundle Bert into furs and warm his small body.

From another part of the cave, a strange glow that we had noticed from the top of the waterfall shifted out of the cave it was in and began to come closer. Wolfkiller who was already climbing his way down the falls, fell and hit the water. A huge wyrm emerged, a shining lantern crystalline -thing- hanging from it’s tail. As it circled the island and passed beneath the waterfall, Bulwark leapt from the heights falling down and impaling the thing with his sword. I can’t explain what happened next, it was as though everything that had happened in the last few moments, just, didn’t. When the glow from the lantern cleared, Bulwark and Wolfkiller were still at the top of the waterfall, and the beast emerged from the cave, swimming underneath the waterfall again, towards Boggo’s body I assume. Bulwark leapt again, this time the beast was ready for him, but he still inflicted terrible wounds upon it, but it sank its sword sized fangs into the man and he went unnaturally still in the water. Wolfkiller leapt as well, sinking three arrows into the beast as he fell, hitting the water must have knocked him about because I could see he was still alive, but he couldn’t make his way to the island.

So I stood, alone, against the beast though it was heavily wounded by my compatriots. It lunged at me unnaturally fast, I tried to block the blow with my sword but its fangs bit into me, and I could feel the poison that had killed Bulwark coursing through my veins. Determined not to die while my foe still live, I pushed through, tearing myself free of it’s mouth and landing a crushing blow with my sword, severing it’s head. As I felt the rush of victory flow through me, I was again blinded by the glow of the crystalline lantern. Time reversed again and I found myself, moments before my attack landed, I struck again landing a felling blow, and again it’s lantern flared. The third time, it lunged for me and I rolled beneath it, coming up and striking at the lantern itself, my blow landed true despite the whipping motions of its tail. The lantern shattered under the blade of my sword and the energy of the universe itself was unleashed in that cave. The wyrm fell dead. I swam out into the water and pulled Wolfkiller to the safety of the land, but I now had a terrible choice to make. Wolfkiller and Bert were dying of cold and I could only warm one with the meager torch and my body heat. Seconds stretched into an eternity as I had to decide which of my compatriots would live and which would die. I chose Bert, and warmed him as best I could, and when I was done, Wolfkiller’s body was stone cold. Taking stock of what I could carry, I loaded as many coins into Bert’s knapsack as I could carry as well as carrying the goblin himself. I briefly looked behind me, considering the water’s outflow from the cavern, but it was dark and I couldn’t be sure it wouldn’t plunge down into another waterfall, or trap me underwater in caverns of stone, so I decided to try and climb my way back out again.

The ropes we had brought with us were intact, but in the chaos of the Wyrms attack, no one had attached them at the top, so I was forced to freehand climb my way up the rock face next to the waterfall. My whole body aching from the effort I managed to make it up to the tunnel we came down from the mountain cave above. In the dark, still gripping Bert I began to crawl my way up towards the light and survival. I was a meter from freedom when it happened, my foot slipped, I quickly twisted myself to wedge Bert and I into the passageway, but I was trapped now. I couldn’t move to gain purchase to pull us out without sliding back down to what would surely be our certain death. I couldn’t save him. I had to let him go \*Tyriok goes silent for a few long moments at this point in the re-telling\* I didn’t look back, not that I could see him in the dark, but I let him go and grappled at the wall with both hands, pulling myself free from that hell-pit.

I’ll go back, when I’ve recovered, but I’ll never be as strong as I was before. I need to go back, to get their bodies, and to claim the treasures they died for.

*Tyriok raises his glass, loudly shouts a toast in Orcish and drains his drink, sinking back into the chair, pulling the blanket close around his shoulders and staring moodily into the fire.*

### A letter to Wolfkiller's next-of-kin

To the brothers and sisters of Wolfkiller the Hunter:

It is with great sadness that I must inform you that your brother, Wolfkiller, has been slain.

He had joined with a party of adventurers that had gone out to slay a Hydra. While pursuing it, his party was drawn into a cave and trapped by remnants of the Blood Mist. While escaping through an underground cave network, the party was engaged by a Demonic Lantern Worm.

In a selfless act to save what remained of the party, your brother jumped from a ledge almost 100 feet in the air to fire his bow multiple times the Demonic Lantern Worm, even though he knew he would not survive the fall. He was successful and injured the creature so badly, the last standing member of the party was able to slay it.

Unfortunately, the lone survivor did not know to retrieve his elven ruby so he could be brought back.

If you are ever able to come to our town, I will arrange for someone to take you to the cave so you can attempt to retrieve his ruby.

*Balric, Merchant of Dryvault, friend of the Elves*

### Boggo's Last Song

The King of Cragfall hid his stash,

Hiding under an unnatural flash.

The rogue went down and he saw it all,

Nearly dying in a nasty fall.

A true hero hauled him up,

“Soon, we're gonna fill that cup.”

Or so the little men said!

The cold has felled another friend,

But on our hero there was no dent.

The flood came in and killed our rest,

A truly divine survival test.

In the cave we made our dive,

To bring back treasure to our hive,

So the little men said.

The last verse remains unfinished.

### Bulwark's epilogue

On the pebbled shore of a vast lake sits a humble village, ringed by tall coniferous trees. A woman stands on the shore, watching two young girls play by the water's edge. A chill gust of Southern wind sweeps across the lake, causing the woman to pull her furs tighter around herself.

"Bree! Tallah!" the women cries, "don't get too close to the water! You may just fall in and catch your death!"

The two girls laugh joyfully as they place a small, wooden toy boat on the water lapping at the shore. The model boat is charmingly ramshackle, as if made by an enthusiastic, yet unsteady, child's hand. Despite this, the boat appears to be sea-worthy, and bobs confidently in the rippling shallows.

The girls stand back and admire their handiwork. "We are gonna sail this boat all the way across the lake!" shouts the brown-haired girl.

"Yes, and then it will sail all the way up the river!" exclaims the black-haired girl.

They both sing loudly together, in an off-key harmony, "All the way to Daddy! All the way to Daddy! Daddy come home!" The girls laugh and skip on the pebble shore, waving as the little boat is carried across the lake by the gentle current.

The woman watches the boat until it disappears from view. "Please..." she whispers under her breath, "please come home safely Bulwark."

### Far from Dryvault

An unassuming scholarly looking middle aged human sits in front of a small red ledger book, collecting reports and sending news to a short list of trusted individuals. Coming across a small piece of parchment brought in from the Forbidden Lands, his eyes widen ever so slightly before returning to his serene expression.

“So... that old ghost Bert finally ran out of luck,” he mutters with a small shake of his head and the slightest of sighs. He flips to the front of the ledger and draws a single stern line through the name ‘Camembert Softstep’. He flips the book closed, revealing a gold lettered title ‘Order of the Sly Fellows’, before pulling out a small bottle and matching glass, pouring a thin line of liquor and swallowing it down with a cough. He raises the glass toasting the dead before setting both the red ledger and the bottle back in a desk drawer and returning to his duties as though nothing had happened.

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