Abyses 53: Mindflayer Mystery

# TL;DR

* Rat King kidnapped a juvenile Elder Brain.
* The party collected evidence of the Mindflayer’s presence in the form of monster parts and an eyeball shield.
* Bernhol found a journal belonging to the ESK’s poisoner but hasn’t gotten the chance to read it.
* Hgraam requested council with the Deep King which will take place in a few days, and advised the party to get as many influential figures to speak against Errde as possible.
* The party found contracts submitted to the ESK written in invisible ink, which Rat King was able to read due to true sight (which he will have for another 30 minutes). Bernhol suspects there is a nonmagical method to revealing the messages but hasn’t found it yet.
* The contracts were mostly submitted by the Deep King and are evidence of his progressing madness. Capt. Errde Blackskull was listed amongst the targets he requested.
* The Stone Guard are raiding the ESK hideout tonight (in about 10 hours).

# Tunnel Investigation 1

* There were some magical minerals and potions in the pool with the disembodied brain.
* Ivis collected some distinguishable body parts from the Aberrations and Bernhol picked up one of the Eyeball shields that had shot out psionic blasts during the fight. Chilly took possession of a laser gun that the Mindflayers luckily never got the chance to use on the party.
* The brain tried to manipulate Rat King’s memories twice. He put it in an opaque cookie jar with some briney water from the pool it was in.
* More Mindfollies attacked the party while they were investigating.
* Bernhol found a journal belonging to a poisoner for the Empty Scabbard Killers named the Gray Alchemist. Skimming through he was able to notice that the entries become sparse and erratic near the end.
* Bernhol also found some odd leather scraps that appeared to be made from the skins of fish or reptiles that had messages written on them in invisible ink.
* The party exited the Whorlstone tunnels from a secret entrance seemingly created by the ESK prior to their corruption, while Chilly reunited with Beegee and went out the passage created by the Earth Elementals of Clan Cairngorm.

# On the Surface

* The party exited into the Derro district of the city where they saw two Stone Guard viciously beating a derro for claiming to be the Deep King.
* Ivis intervened and the guards took the derro away, leaving Ivis with a parting threat.
* The party then passed Chilly and Beegee, who had taken the liberty of destroying the passage they used to get into the Whorlstone Tunnels.
* Next they visited Stonespeaker Hgraam, hoping that if they presented her with evidence of the Mindflayer hive she would help them get Capt. Errde punished for her negligence.
* The brain tried to manipulate Hgraam’s memories as well.
* After some convincing Hgraam seemed open to the party’s scheme and penned a notice to speak with the Deep King in a few days, however she advised that the party try to get as many influential citizens of Gracklstugh to speak against Errde as they could.
* The party got Hgraam’s opinion on the various contacts they had amongst Gracklstugh’s upper crust, she said that in order of the amount of sway they’d have over the Deep King they’d be ranked as:
	1. Gatokarr Xundorn- Head of the Keepers of the Flame.
	2. Ylsa Henstak- Head of Clan Henstak.
	3. Oundrock Rabblerouser- Notable member of clan Rabblerouser.
	4. Churg- Kuo-Toa and Sloobludop refugee who was made into the Plebian Representative largely thanks to Errde’s influence.

# Tunnel Investigation 2: Only Rat King

* Rat King ran back into the Whorlstone tunnels to search for any evidence they may have missed before the Stone Guard raid the lair and destroy everything.
* Some of the corpses in the hideout were already beginning to reanimate.
* He collected some of the materials used to create Intellect devourers, found rat nests that were around 6-12 months old and presumably were built around the time the ESK fell to the Mindflayer’s influence.
* In the last chamber he explored, Rat King saw a Duergar strapped to a lab table undergoing some kind of physical change.
* The brain was able to speak through the Duergar’s mouth and see through his eyes.
* Rat King threatened to kill the brain if it did not tell him what was written on the leather scraps. The brain said that destroying its body would not kill it, as it had already implanted a seed of its consciousness in everyone who passed it while Rat King carried it through the city. Meaning if Rat King killed the brain it would survive by taking over the mind of a random citizen of Gracklstugh.
* Rat King ran back to the Acquaintances and asked fergus to Send for  Grazilaxx.

# SoB Q&A

* Rat King, Fergus, and Bernhol went to meet with Grazilaxx while Ivis stayed in the city.
* She identified the brain as a juvenile Elder Brain, and assured Rat King that it was likely just bluffing in a bid to survive and advised that they kill it as quickly as possible.
* She also told Rat King that the Elder Brain could influence its thralls up to a range of 3 miles.
* She bestowed Rat King with true sight so that he may read the hidden messages scrawled on the leather. They were apparently assassination targets assigned to the ESK, and the overwhelming majority of them were seemingly ordered by the Deep King himself in response to perceived faults in the targets.
* The most disturbing contract read:

> “Faster this time. Faster! I want to hear heads rolling by the time the ink dries on the tip of my quill! Or veins bursting black with poison, or lungs filling with water, or faces melting in forges… I don’t care how you do it, just do it faster! THANGUS IRONHEAD!!!!! HOW DARE HE TRY TO ENCROACH ON MY FAMILY’S BUSINESS???? BOIL HIM! BOIL HIM IN OIL AND FEED HIM TO ROACHES! WERZ SALTBARON THAT SNIVELING SQUEALING WRITHING LITTLE RAT! BIND HIS FEET AND THROW HIM OFF HIS BELOVED DOCKS! Captain Blackskull… I’ve smelled treason on her since she was but a lass. She’s always had an eye on my throne, but she’ll never get it! All she’ll get is what’s coming to her. Yes, that’s what she’ll get! His Arrogance, His Rotundity… the Pampered, the Portly, the Scheming Red… Freeze the Wyrmsmith until his heart turns crystalline, then smash it to bits!"
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* Rat King and Grazilaxx made copies of the note then she teleported away and the party reconvened in the city.