The Dark Idol

Duke Hayor Gesrorben, merchant and private collector, wished to increase his expansive collection by acquiring even more strange and alluring artifacts from the fallen Elven Empire. It was then that he entered contact with Elonia, who after getting dumped by Koltar, was seeking ways to increase her wealth and power, with the hopes that Koltar would one day take her back.

Using the occultic skills she had learned before, Elonia was able to accurately identify items of great magical value, and notify Hayor. For her services, Elonia would receive a generous amount of gold from the duke.

It was then that an adventurer approached Elonia with a strange stone figure, the statue depicted a being that appeared to have the top part of a gigantic frog, four hooved goat legs, and a humanoid shaped phallus. The idol was uncovered by the adventurer on one of his expeditions into the ruins of the Empire of Koruthar, but because no one recognized the figure represented in the idol, he was unable to sell it.

Elonia also did not recognized the figure depicted in the idol, but it appeared familiar. She had some knowledge of The World Eater and his frog-shaped apostles, due to her involvement in a Slaad cult during the events of the The 0 consequence, one shot. She was apprehensive to sell the idol to the duke, but the adventurer was more than happy to part with it, and she knew Hayor would pay good coin for such an alluring and provocative artifact, the benefits outweighed the risks in Elonia’s mind.

The sale was made, the Duke displayed the item at his next exposition, Elonia received a fat sack of gold, and all seemed well.

That was until Diama, the Duke’s maid, who was in charge of cleaning the basement where all the artifacts where stored, slowly began to fall under the idol’s dark influence. Seeking to appease her new master Yog’Mayur, also known has “The Unseen Replacer”, the maid built an alter in a secret room inside the mansion. She would then use the idol´s phallus and the seed of various men around town, including Hayor, to create many monstrous children, nor human nor slaad, these half breed creatures where only the first step in the life cycle of a slaad replacer.

With the nightmares becoming increasingly more frequent, Hayor had his basement checked and disposed of, being sure that something he bought was haunting his dreams. However, he did not know the idol resided in the secret room right next to his bedroom instead, of which he had no knowledge of due the house being a relative recent purchase, and the nightmares persisted.

Determined to continue his social climb, the Duke arranged a new exposition, this time displaying fake artifacts he had made to lend validity to his fantastically false adventure stories, these would surly not bring him closer to madness. The party was set to happen at the 26th of Yellow Soil 539HE.

At the party his maid and butler were working as staff, and the list of attendants included Elonia, Jargo, Tiny Tim accompanied by the two Bazooka Sisters, Slit Darkness, Oswald McStrongmen and Bagrid Damascus.

Leomund Torrance was later quickly employed on the day of the party, due to the previous bard that was meant to play at the party not showing up. Unbeknownst to all however, the maid had viciously murdered by bard when he arrived at the mansion, branding his body with the mark of Yog’Mayur, and stuffing his body inside the piano in the ball room.

The duke was also later assassinated during the party, only having time to write “idol” before collapsing from madness and injuries. But with two murders completed, the dark ritual had begun, THEM would now only need to feed off fear and paranoia to enter our realm.

First the Bazooka Sisters and Tiny Tim ran into the darkness of the forest, seeking to flee the recent crime scene, but were caught by a slaad replacer who aimed to keep the guests trapped inside the house. One of the sisters was immediately killed, while the other was impaled with the severed arm of her sister. Tiny Tim presumedly watched all this happen, and although he made it back to the mansion, he was left into a catatonic state of pure panic.

Jargo was never seen again.

Leomund, while attempting to reach the body of one of the bazooka sisters was attacked by the reanimated severed arm, and saw a creature resembling himself in the woods, even if the other guests saw no such figures. But Bagrid was able to identify that some kind of strange, orange goo caried necromantic properties, and it was the cause of the monstrous arm, but he would only later truly realize the extent of the mysteries held in the goo.

After witnessing all this, the guests removed leaving the mansion as an option, instead proceeding to barricade all the doors and windows at the bottom floor, and began to look for clues on the duke’s murder and the strange events unfolding around them.

They uncovered many clues, Elonia was seen whispering to the maid, Slit acquired a fireball scroll and a dark tomb about Yog’Mayur, becoming infected with HIS seed, and Sebhas the butler uncovered the secret door leading to the room containing the idol.

With the aid of Bagrid, Oswald was able to pick the lock of the heavy iron door without the need of the master key possessed by the maid, but strange sounds both inside and outside the room caused Oswald to close the door once again. Elonia, who seemed to act weird since the start was put on trial by the other guests, she admitted she sold the item to the duke, and she knew the idol held dangerous dark powers, but she had nothing to do with their current predicament.

However, their discussion was interrupted by something knocking at the front door. The guests moved downstairs to access what was at the door, except Elonia who remained in the bedroom, the maid who was at the door checking on the secret room, and Slit who was at the library before also quickly making her way downstairs.

Elonia was never seen again.

On the floor below, Sebhas peaked through the keyhole to attempt to see what was outside, he was terrified when he saw his own shape looking back at him, but the form seemed distorted and abnormal, one could easily tell that was not the Sebhas, but a terrifying being.

Oswald also looked through the keyhole, also seeing himself in a distorted form.

But they did not have much time to process what they just saw, for on the floor above Slit, who was making her way downstairs, pushed the maid out of their way, making direct contact with the maid’s stomach. From this contact Slit felt many unnatural moving parts, perhaps her skin covering attire hide more than modesty. And in a moment of quick decision, Slit swung her axe into the maid’s chest, revealing the maid’s disturbing form that resembled her master, half frog, half women, with four goat legs and a gigantic centipede like member leaving her pelvic region.

The maid engaged Slit in combat, immediately birthing a frog baby she had kept inside her. The other guests arrived at the scene and gave assistance, with the Sebhas eliminating the baby with a powerful stomp, while the other guests attempted to either damage the maid, or evade her attacks.

The monstrous maid changed the targets of her attacks to Leomund, since she could feel Slit had been infected with the seed of Yog’Mayur, and was thus more useful alive. Unfortunately, Leomund had been left quick weak from before, and although he evaded the first attack, the maid pierced his throat with her claws, and his chest with her centipede.

Bagrid launched spells, Oswald threw some daggers, and Sebhas used his trusted slingshot, eventually taking out the maid, who seemed to creepily dislocate all joints in her body as she fell to the ground, from a combination of sustaining to much damage, and being unable to hold her monstrous form.

Although the perpetrator was dead, there was still not a moment to rest, they could hear various creatures smashing the doors and windows on the ground below, and from the other side of the secret door, many screeches could be heard.

Slit prepared her fireball scroll, and when the secret door was busted opened, dozens of human baby frog hybrids came pouring down, but they were instantly scorched by the burning fires of the scroll, leaving the Dark Idol exposed, and lighting the bedroom on fire.

They attempted to destroy the Idol with an arrow, but the arrow seemed to somehow slowdown and phase through the statue. Seeking answers, they were magically completed to read the dark tomb once again, and it told them a sacrifice would free them from their current nightmare.

Tired and falling into the madness, Slit took the hero’s way out and sliced their own head with an axe, becoming the final martyr. Their blood began to move on its own, slowly reaching the Idol.

By magically inspecting, Bagrid realized Slit´s blood had been infected with traces of the orange goo.

Oswald attempted to stop the blood, but he had neither the tools, nor the time, for the slaad replacers had breached the mansion, and now at the staircase stood three precise copies of Sebhas, Bagrid and Leomund. A booming screech could also be heard from the woods, signaling the coming of something big.

Sebhas aided Oswald, by killing a half-burned baby frog breed who had latched on to Oswald’s leg. And they though one another with grapples, for Sebhas believed they needed to stop the blood from reaching the idol, while Oswald, who had finally fallen into madness, wished to sacrifice Sebhas to “the mist” outside and leave this place.

During all this the slaad replacers remained still, and out of the guest’s way, for unbeknownst to them, Slit had spared their lives with her sacrifice.

Sebhas finally accepted to leave the mansion, when none other than Slit reopped the secret door. Revealing that despite her large axe wound that split her head open, she could still stand, and they held the Idol calmly in their hands, signaling the rebirth of something yet unknown.

Sebhas and Oswald jumped through the window of the second floor, managing to survive they ran into the woods. Oswald pushed Sebhas to the ground, and offered him as a sacrifice to “the mist”, but nothing happened. Sebhas understood this was the most likely the work of Oswald’s madness, and choose to simply tell him to get himself together and run.

They began to run deep into the forest, but as they looked to the side, they saw Slit standing still, holding the idol, with Sebhas and Leomund on her side.

They ran faster, but still they saw Slit standing still, merely watched them.

Their legs would not allow them to go faster, but still they saw Slit.

As feelings of their inevitable end began to seep in, the forest ended, and they now stood at the side of a road. Looking around they could only see and hear the fire consuming the mansion deep in the forest, but no monsters, no copies, no Slit.

They took a short and merciful breath, and made their way to the nearby village.

Bagrid however, was unfortunate enough to be at the library when the booming screech was heard. Gazing into the forest below he was left mad, seeing Yog’Mayur directly. The gwarf saw a raving mass of orange goo rise from the forest, slowing taking shape as it swirled and ravaged, mouths formed as they screamed and bit, webbed hands shaped unleashing claws on each of its fingers, four goat legs leaving the ground as effortlessly as a ghost moving through a solid wall. Whether this was real or a product of madness is unknown, but the damage to Bagrid’s mind was most assuredly real.

Bagrid was seen again.

Leomund was seen again.

Sebhas was seen again.

Slit was seen again.