Rue d'Auseil

The next several days were spent traveling through Nexuses that were mostly deserted.  Some times small rodents were spotted.  In others larger animal life was spotted in the distance or around corners but these never approached the party.  The last three magic items were a Rod of Lordly Might, a Ringe of Spell Storing (Air Walk, Mage Armor) and a Spell Lattice (Dimension Door).

While traveling the group continued to restore sanity and reduce the possibility of further problems with Madnesses that had afflicted the party.  By the time Erich said that they were approaching the Seine River the group was back to relatively good health.

Late that day the party reached the banks of a River.  Erich wrote on his pad that this was the Seine leading to Paris.

Riot and Ruin in Rime

The party decided to head out to the rest of the underground area, firstly going to the northeast.  This led to another pentagonal chamber. A ten-foot-by-five-foot block of greenish black marble sat at the north end of this pentagon-shaped chamber. A large section of the top of the block had been cut away and lined with a strange steel alloy to form a basin or pool. A scent like a mixture of lavender and ozone lingered in the air. The walls and floor were smooth stone as elsewhere, but also remarkably clean.

The Mutate

The Elder Things cast Stoneskin on Agna and Ciprian to support their battle with the Mutate.  They also made sure the party understood that letting the Mutate escape from the Laboratory would be devastating for Bohlvarai and the heroes both.

"What else do we need to know about the Laboratory?" Ciprian asked.

"The whole complex is protected by a Permanent Wall of Force.  Additionally here are three small pentagonal stone chips cut from a pinkish translucent stone.  We are not precisely sure what they’re used for, but we know they somehow are required for a locking mechanism to the vault that holds the Star Stela."

Bohlvarai Archive

"Ursina, are you feeling well?" Ciprian asked.

"I feel slightly sick. Maybe this thin air is affecting my health now." Ursina responded.

"Should we continue on to the Archive?" Gavril queried.

"I think we need to at least see the Archive.  We can then decide to return to the warmth of the drained city to get a nights sleep if we need to." Armania suggested.

The party headed on to the Archive and came upon a long plaza at the end of which stood a modestly sized, five-sided pyramid. The pyramid was constructed or possibly carved from sandstone by some titanic force, sections of it bear rings and multicolored ripples of color on the surface. The pyramid was a little more than ninety feet in diameter. A ten-foot-wide doorway was visible on the southern face, and window-like openings were set into the sides approximately two-thirds the way to the top.

Knowledge Stone

Fighting the thin air the party finally got around to some healing.   Searching for treasure of the Wendigo turned up nothing.  So after a short rest the group headed once again toward the spire.

The trek to the site of the spire was without further incident.  The group arrived breathing hard but not impaired in any other way.

A five-sided spire stood as a monument on a ten-foot-high base that is accessible via a ramp that spiraled up the base’s side. The stone was approximately twenty feet in diameter and forty feet tall, and was marked by countless small runes, glyphs, and sigils. Five smaller triangular stone markers, all of which pointed to the center spire, surrounded the monument.

Frozen Bohlvarai

Ursina kept an eye on the penguins who remained haphazardly moving around the same area.  Agna kept attacking people or herself randomly.

"The dwarf has an insanity spell cast upon her," Ciprian stated, "We should try Break Enchantment on her."

Armania used her Break Enchantment staff on Agna but it had no effect whatsoever.

Ciprian meanwhile cut down the web at the ceiling but it had no magic or other effects in or behind it.

Erevel noted the thrown web still moving and Armania said to Erich to play a high note if he was outside the web.  She immediately heard the lowest note the viol could play.

Ambush

After standing around in silence for several minutes, Agna spoke up.  "I believe that Endure Elements or Endure Elements, Communal would do the trick.  So would life bubble."

"How long do those last?" Gavril inquired.

"Endure Elements is for 24 hours, but I would need seven of them.  That uses all my first and second level spells, not that I use them alot."

"We don't know how long we will need this protection," Ciprian piped in.  "Maybe only for a short time."

"But what if we need it for longer, like the whole day?" Gavril countered.

"I would like to be protected," Erevel added.

Reydeloptrix

The huge dragon opened its mouth and breathed a blast of acid that caught several of the party.  Gavril luckily jumped out of the path but the others were not so lucky.

The party was still a distance away from the dragon but found that Geists began emerging from the surrounding ruined buildings.  The creature were incorporeal and had a bite that would reduce the subjects constitution.

Gavril fired arrows at the dragon but they did little damage.  Armania cast invisibility on herself as Ciprian identified the dragon as an ancient nightmare dragon and cast mirror images.  Ursina cast invisibility while Erich began a performance against the enemies and cast Arcane Concordance.

Aevan-Vhor Star Stelae

Wrangling about the magic items took a while to complete.  As usual the group could not make definitive decisions on who wanted which items.  The most popular items were the more powerful Cloaks of Resistance.  The two Ioun stones were divided between Erevel and Ursina.

Erich found his tunic and dagger in the loot, but was left with a lesser Ring of Protection. Paullus took several items as he recovered his memories and ability to talk and woke up with his old self active once again.

The group took a night's rest and started out early for the vineyard following the directions of Lord Eldarius.

Lord Avaric's Might

The sarcophagus chamber was quiet and dusty.  No prints were evident in the room and the carvings on the walls were just unnerving.  Ciprian moved forward to the actual sarcophagus and noted that it was not sealed.  He could move in in gaseous form.  He whispered to the group as he entered the burial coffin.

Erevel kept watch on the chamber, while Gavril and Agna were busy looking back into the maze, sure that they would soon be attacked.

Gavril found the inside of the sarcophagus did not hold a body and he moved around in the dark.  He then decided to take time to become corporeal once again but before that he told Gavril and Erevel to check out the other doors.

Catacombs

After seeing the Dybbuk try to escape Ciprian jumped up and over the creature to stop it from leaving the Gaol.  Ursina used the wand to Heal Erevel but it did not get rid of the deafness.  Agna's flurry of arrows, with help of a couple of critical hits, dropped the Dybbuk to the ground.

The party then moved to explore the rest of the cells in the Gaol and Ciprian looked down at the character in the pit.  Gavril opened the only locked cell and found a magic dagger on the floor along with two magic items in a wooden bucket in the corner.  Ursina noted that one other cell had something magical in a crack in the masonry of the northwestern wall.  Digging she found a purple colored prism shaped stone.

Gaol of the Damned

Ciprian messaged the group suggesting that they all meet at the kitchen.  They would try to enter the locked room from there while also distracting the cooks.

The group met in the dining hall with Gavril being made invisible by Armania.  He then entered the kitchen with Erevel and Ciprian right behind.

"We are low on the chicken snacks and some other items are missing altogether," Ciprian stated.

"Sorry sir, we will replenish them directly," the main cook responded.

She loaded a tray for delivery and her assistant took it out to the dining hall.

Delmaria

Nor is it to be thought that man is either the oldest or the last of earth’s masters, or that the common bulk of life and substance walks alone. The Old Ones were, the Old Ones are, and the Old Ones shall be. Not in the spaces we know, but between them, They walk serene and primal, undimensioned and to us unseen... unseen and foul in lonely places where the Words have been spoken and the Rites howled through at their Seasons. The wind gibbers with Their voices, and the earth mutters with Their consciousness. They bend the forest and crush the city, yet may not forest or city behold the hand that smites.
                                                         

                                                                                —H. P. Lovecraft, “The Dunwich Horror”

Private Parlor

Ciprian had entered an octagonal room with the two Sayona.  Ovonda was lying upon the pillows unbuttoning her dress while Ultor stood by the door.

The rest of the party was outside the room with Armania and Ursina having cast Greater Invisibility.  Gavril took it upon himself to begin a fight with these creatures.  He did not appreciated the attempt to Dominate his mind. Accordingly he stepped up and unleashed a full attack on Ultor. He noted that the creature had a gaze attack but ignored it for this interaction.

Ultor responded by slamming the door shut and locking it.  Ciprian's voice immediately went up an half an octave asking for the party to enter the room.

Suns Set Over Aevan-Vhor

The nethermost caverns... are not for the fathoming of eyes to see; for their marvels are strange and terrific. Cursed the ground where dead thoughts live new and oddly bodied, and evil the mind that is held by no head. Wisely did Ibn Schacabao say, that happy is the tomb where no wizard hath lain, and happy the town at night whose wizards are all ashes. For it is of old rumour that the soul of the devil-bought hastes not from his charnel clay, but fats and instructs the very worm that gnaws; till out of corruption horrid life springs, and the dull scavengers of earth wax crafty to vex it and swell monstrous to plague it. Great holes secretly are digged where earth’s pores ought to suffice, and things have learnt to walk that ought to crawl.

                                                                                          —H. P. Lovecraft, excerpt from the

                                                                                            Necronomicon in “The Festival”

Seeking the Living Among the Dead

And lo! I beheld a light in the depths of the lake below that pulsed to the very beat of my heart, and I knew that this was the selfsame flare in the firmament I beheld in my dreams. I felt the pulsing within my very soul, echoing back through my memories, and perceived this light had come to the world eons ago, when the stars themselves first took umbrage against those pathetic and unworthy creatures who dwelt below, scouring away the most unworthy. And I knew that what pulsed within me was growing, and that it was not my heart that was pumping within my breast, for I had long been a dead thing, and this instead was the pulse of the seed of God. 

“Iä! Iä Xhamen-Dor!”

                                                                                                          —Il-Asziph Mavmameniris,

                                                                                          Ninshaburian apostle of the Star Seed 

The Whispering Tree

Gavril continued to read his Manual of Quickness of Action trying to have enough study to receive its bonus.  The rest of the party attended to healing and then they determined that four members would need Restoration spells to remove the strength damage the Shadows had inflicted.

After that was put to rest they began identifying the magic items.  The potions were all of Cure Serious Wounds while the short sword was a Luck Blade with one wish remaining.  The white gem sporting diadem was a Kineticist's Diadem which was of no use to any of the party.  The mouth of the heavy, dark iron cauldron is shaped like a monstrous maw and is large enough to accommodate a single Medium creature. It was determined to be a Cauldron of Resurrection, which could either perform Raise Dead or Resurrection on a single medium or smaller creature.  The cost was heavy at 5,000 or 10,000 gold worth of materials but if one of the party happened to die it could come in handy.

Chaos's Calliope

In the morning the group stepped out of the tiny hut into seemingly normal light.  Looking up at the sky they saw two pitch black spheres surrounded by a nimbus of pale, yellow light.  Cassilda indicated that the twin suns of Carcosa never shed more light than they saw.  The daytime sky was alien, as the surrounding star field remained just as visible as it was at night.

"The suns are such that you can even look at them without damage," Cassilda assured the party, "Though doing so may lead to nausea, headaches and bad dreams."

After sharing a meal and memorizing spells, Cassilda addressed them once again.

"I bid you good luck and promise to watch out for you and aid you if I can.  You recall I cannot oppose Hastur directly. You should head to the east/southeast." She then teleported away.

Plaza of the Pallid Mask

 “I do not know how you are here, alive, but this is where your quest ends. I will see to it myself!” the Pallid Mask intoned before casting a spell at Erevel.

Ciprian identified the spell as Phantasmal Killer but Erevel withstood the horror for minimal damage.  Gavril had targeted the creature as his Quarry while Ursina moved out of direct line of sight.  Paullus fired his bow at the creature but did no damage and Armania tried to hit the enemy with Magic Missiles but the spell fizzled.

Erevel stood dazed, looking absently toward the sky.

Audience with the Queen

The party stood wondering where they actually were.  What were they supposed to do and how?  Where would they go next?

"I am in need of a restoration and can supply healing for everyone who was damaged," Ciprian began.

"I am in great need of healing," Armania said hurrying over to Ciprian.

The rest of the party moved to surround Ciprian as he began the Greater Paths of Glory.  After that was accomplished, Ursina cast a restoration on Ciprian healing his Wisdom damage.

"Do we need to squeeze through these cracks?" Erevel asked.

"There is a wider passage down here in the southeast," Gavril added.

Where Dark Winds Whisper

"Does anyone need a restoration or limited wish?" Ursina inquired.

"I will need one after we sleep.  I am still down strength," Gavril responded.

"After reading more about the Path to the Black Stars ritual, I may need a restoration after performing or maybe in the middle as I will lose wisdom as the ritual continues," Ciprian said more worried than earlier.

"I will take two of them after the sleep," Ursina responded.

"Will you need help in casting the ritual?" Erevel asked.

"It would help some if I can get four people to be secondary casters," Ciprian said.

"We can decide tomorrow," Armania said.

The Mandate of Heaven

"I really could use a rest to regain spells.  I have used several today already."  Armania stated.

"Will the Saffron Prince have an issue with us activating the last Stela?" Erevel asked.

"I could send Barnabas to scout the area to see if there is any creatures wandering the city or at the Stela." Agna suggested.

"It would be good to know if any wandering monsters could hinder us on our way," Armania added.

"I will send Barnabas to scout," Agna replied.

Star Sworn Nagas at the Ritual

After getting Ciprian's attention, the group began to discuss how to proceed from here.  Paullus was unresponsive so Armania cast Limited Wish on him and he snapped back to his reticent self.  But at least he responded to the party.

After some additional healing and restorations to bring the party back from some of its greater damage, both to body and mind, the group decided to take another day of rest on the morrow as they still needed to heal.  Hoshbagh joined them, and began eating their food once again.  Gavril was looking for some more healing potions as he had used all he had.

The party then spent a night of restful sleep although Agna was around as they woke up.

Star Seed

"Will we need to fight this evil underwater?" Gavril asked inquiringly.

"More than likely, but we can use some spells to help us," Ciprian responded.

"I have Life Bubble, which allows normal breathing underwater for everyone," Paullus chimed up as a shock to everyone.

"I think I should scout the lake before we head out there.  Maybe there is something on the island," Ciprian said taking flight on his horse.

The Inner Seal

"So can you bring me white robes?  I want to be able to use your wind walk to make a furious escape at times?" Ciprian asked Eamiran after learning of her capabilities.

"Certainly master," she snickered. "If that is all I have work to do."

"You can go now but I may need you on the morrow,"

The rest of the party settled down for the evening after requesting items from Hoshbagh.  She said she would meet them at the well in the morning.

Nightmare Roost Finale

Gavril, Erevel and Agna had surrounded the the Hunting Horror. Ciprian was performing but as he was invisible no one could take advantage of the performance. Armania and Kaklatath flew at a distance from the creature and Ursina was in between ready to heal when needed.

The incessant wind that was blowing seemed to increase and Gavril and Agna found that they couldn't move with haste.  The Horror shook his head and threw Erevel across the abyss hitting a far pillar for significant damage.  The tail slapped Gavril and grappled him.  The constriction was so intense that Gavril lost consciousness.  The wings then battered Agna as the creature healed more damage.

Terror Hall and Nightmare Roost

Armania wanted a restoration as soon as the party awoke from their rest period.  No one seemed affected by Night Terrors and the group was a full strength.

The conversation gravitated toward where to explore next.  The room with the Air Elementals?  The Guardians room, where there were two passages that they hadn't explored yet?  Or the balcony room?

Erevel was ready to head anywhere and had to be stopped from heading off alone. Finally Ciprian acceded to Gavril's request to head for the Air Elementals since the group may have to seal up the fissures in the floor there also.

Heresy Devil reads the Necronomicon

Agna studied the floor and found footprints of the Moon Beasts plus goatish hoof prints leading to the northwest.  Ciprian was eager to head off in that direction but Gavril wanted some healing first.

After the healing was completed the party headed to the northwest and wandered around the passageways again, up and down curving in inexplicable manners and crossing crevices.  The prints did not seem to waver from their heading, no side trips to the walls or stopping.

The group found themselves coming toward the lake where they had fought the GraveKnight from the northeast, the only path the group had not taken.  A study of the lake bottom found no evidence of the Necronomicon, neither did a review of the hidden Yithian cache.

Weiralai Returns

 "Should we continue into the chamber?  Maybe we can make it past these Air Elementals without their noticing us," Ciprian suggested.

"How do we know the passage out of this chamber leads anywhere?" Gavril countered.

"We don't," Armania added in.

"So what if we turn around and head to the other exit from the Leng Ghoul chamber?" Gavril said.

"OK, if that is the way we want to go, then let's get going," Erevel said anxiously.

Horror at the Camp Site

Ciprian, concerned about not seeing the on going battle, cast Greater Dispel Magic on top of the smoke cloud.  Dejectedly he saw that the smoke did not disappear.  If any other result happened he could not assure.

Gavril was still spitting vitriol at Erevel as Kaklatath moved closer to and slightly into the smoke but she was not able to make out any figures.

Armania had Getaway ready to go and invoked it, allowing the whole party to escape to the camp outside Neruzavin.  As the party arrived, they noticed the camels were missing, along with Hassad.  Worse they saw a dead Ash Giant corpse lying atop its blood soaking into the baked ground.

The Saffron Prince

"Would it be possible to get another Restoration in the morning?  I am still feeling weak." Gavril opined.

"You can't have another one for that case for 4 more days." Ursina responded.

"I have to live this way for that much more time?  This is a pain." 

"We can remove or reduce some madnesses for others." Ursina shot back.

"On another note, can you check to see if I have some sort of disease or poison?  I have had a problem for more than one day," Gavril again whined.