Diary of Zaaz Bloodfortune:
I feel our journey has entered its
third and final stage. As any witch knows, maiden, mother, crone, so
go the stages of life. Now, we enter what must surely be the final
stage of our quest. My power and that of my companions has grown
again, but so have the challenges. Looking back, I am amazed in how
much we have progressed since we first came to Heldren, as simple
travelers, so very long ago.
Once we finish with the corpse and lair
of the dragon, divide up the loot. Divination Sticks, a Scepter of
Suzain, gold, gems, scrolls, etc., all in all, it is wealth a few
months earlier I would have felt beyond measure. We take the Warrior
of Ning back to her home and do a bit of trading for items of import
to each of us, then go back to the Skyfire Mandate and Spurhorn to
meet with the General and receive what was promised.
News of our victory throws Spurhorn
into a great celebration and we spend a few days drinking, carousing,
and partaking of the earthly pleasures. Still, even with every door
and celebration open to us, I and my companions know more is to come,
so we temper to celebrations with training. Were it by my wishes, we
would have stayed long in that place, but the curse of that black
rider still is upon us. After a day, it was a restlessness. After
four I found myself constantly drawn to look to the road.
Taking the two headed eagle we head
back to the hut, new companion joining us. For the days we stayed in
Spurhorn, Sadobras and Nevrah talked long of her going with us, and
so she had. Her might will be greatly appreciated I feel in the days
ahead. Once at the hut we used the keys obtained to journey again to
where the hut would take us.
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| Little Otik room |
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| Vasilisa Doll room |
After a few moments, the room
transformed and we found ourselves in a room surrounded by golden
bird cages. Within were not birds, but Demovoi, some live and some
dead, most muttering incoherently. Tauvum cleaned and cured one, I
passed it a bit of dried meat and we bade it to tell us its story.
These house spirits had evidently heard of Baba Yaga and come to work
for her. She agreed yet something they did must have annoyed the
great witch for soon they were in cages. Her disappearance left none
to feed them and so they have been starving since. Dalomar and Yoska
noticed that their muttering seemed to be the same thing, over and
over, and cast Tongues to understand them.
From distant world to distant world, at last
we come home. many huts for many worlds, but all start here.
Vasilisa and her little doll. Hungry children in a house of
gingerbread. Little Otik, the forsaken son come to claim his
birthright. Grandmothers breadcrumbs, all snatched up. What little
birds pecked them up.
None of us is
sure what if any meaning their words hold, but I try to remember them
should their meaning come clearer. We convince the one we are
talking to once again to work in the hut and ask it to free his
brethren once we let it out. We also noticed that three of the cages
were not merely painted gold but are gold in truth. That should help
pay for things we need.
Looking outside from a window, I can
see a bone fence in disrepair and overgrown gardens. An old metal
wagon rusts away. Tall trees of an ancient forest are in the
distance and it appears to be spring.
Spreading out we explore the hut. As
before, it is filled with traps and tests. Snori finds a room made
of candy and cake and eats some before he sees through the illusion.
The garbage and rot he consume put him to sleep. Sadobras notices
that the back of the fireplace seems strangely deep and discovers
that portals of magic are cunningly hidden to take us different
places within the hut.
In the room with the candy and cake, we
fight three Boogiemen, battling creatures of fear. Tauvum keeps two
of their bodies to turn into fearsome zombies. Dalomar finds a room
filled with skulls, their jawbones clacking and repeating Vasalisa
over and over. On a table in the room is a small doll held by four
rusty nails. I try to examine it and learn the hard way that it is
trapped. After Yoska put me out, we find a soul focus ruby where the
doll had been. Another room contains a single candle and when we
enter our shadows come to life attacking us. A room filled with
vines and overgrown ivy hides assassin vines and a Mandragora,
calling for its mama. We feed the Mandragora and move to the
strangest room of all.
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| Yeah, you blew her up. |
Within the room seems to be a derelict
cottage with a single window. When we look out, we see a strange
spider like creature approaching. As Tauvum looks out, we see he is
spirited out into the icy landscape and stands naked and unmoving.
The window seems to be seething with the magic of abjuration. As we
try to figure out what magic this is, swarms of wasps come streaming
from within. Recognizing this as Creeping Doom, I call forth a cone
of cold and kill the swarms. Without warning the window breaks and
out steps the giant spider like creature. Tauvum returns, but is no
longer wearing his clothes and gear. The creature is tremendously
resistant to magic and its strong will fights against my hexes.
Tavum summons a Djin to fight with us and Yoska casts haste. It
helps, but we our attacks are failing to hurt it. Finally, a hex of
agony manages to take effect and in its nauseated condition we manage
to finish it off.
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| The Coffin Man |
After more exploration, we find that
one of the rooms contains wine barrels that conceal another portal
within. In the room there is a black shadowy creature with a crooked
scythe sitting in front of a door. Spread throughout the room are
coffins. He gestures to us and bids us forward. Expecting battle,
we are wary, but in the end manage to converse with the being. He
tells us that he is the coffin man, cousin to Baba Yaga, and he is
surprised we have made it so far. Still, he warns us against the
world outside.
The world is a world decimated by war.
Brother and Sister, separated by the vastness of the stars have lured
Baba Yaga. One is the mad monk and her son, thought murdered long
ago. The other is Baba’s daughter, Queen Elvana. This world, the
world beyond this door, is a strange one with odd magics.
Still we tell him, the curse upon us
gives us no choice and we must go on. He stands to let us through,
but Dalomar notices the coffin he sits upon is filled with powerful
magics. We urge him to give us what assistance he can, but he will
not give us what lies within. Finally, Tauvum manages to convince
him to trade for his new Scepter. Within the coffin we find many
powerful items. A sword of flame-tongue, sword of the planes, elixir
of hiding, a scroll of chain lightning, a scroll of mages sword, a
scroll of hold person, a scroll of reincarnate, a scroll of wall of
stone, plus gold.
Once Tauvum graciously allows us some
of the items which he has bought, we debate if we should go out now
or wait till we can be back at full strength, having used some of our
spells earlier. Frustrated with the talk, Yoska opens the door and
it is not the spring we expected. A cold morning greets us with the
smell of cinders and burning. The hut is perched upon a hill
overlooking the remains of a burned out village set within a forest.
Little remains of the buildings, but a few walls here and there.
Beyond there is a wide, ice chocked river.
Dalomar and Yoska go out to explore the
village, while Tauvum and I head up to the roof of the hut to watch.
As Dalomar advances, he is invisible, but from above we can see his
progress in the snow. After a few steps down the hill, there is a
massive explosion that he just manages to avoid taking great damage
from. More explosions begin and we can see puffs of smoke coming
from the village. The enemy are using some kind of strange ranged
weapons and are firing them towards us. Hard to say for sure, but
they seem similar to gnomish pistols, yet they fire quite quickly.
Wanting to be of assistance to our friends who have taken shelter
behind some kind of wagon, I grab ahold of Tauvum and use Dimension
Door to take us to a spot behind those using the weapons. I had
thought we would be out of view of what we soon saw to be soldiers,
but alas we were not. Shifting long tubes on the ground, men drop
things into them. The tubes spit the strange eggs out and soon I’m
struck by two of them. Groups of the men turn their strange long
pistols towards me and I am struck by four different groups, killing
me instantly.
I was dead. Floating within the void
and staring at the light of the next life. As I floated closer to the
light, I heard mother once again. “Wait, Zaaz. Have faith in your
companions. They will need your help. As we give, we also receive,”
she told me. It seemed to be for quite a long time, yet soon I heard
Tauvum’s voice calling to me. “Will you return to us, Zaaz?” he
asked. When I agreed, I heard him call again, “Then behold the
power of the shadows. And next time, ASK before you touch me with
those filthy human hands.”
Light filled me and I woke once again
to the pain of life. Resting I heal and prepare to fight again.
Once night has fallen, Yoska goes out
to scout again with Dalomar. When he returns, he brings one of the
soldiers and we learn a bit of what is beyond the huts door. The
soldier has been dominated and says he gets orders from Gregory
Rasputin. Not far from where we are is an encampment at a prison in
a strange land called Russia. Within they are working on something
called a World Anchor. At times the World Anchor shines a heavenly
light and all can see the church there as it once stood. He
describes the camp as being in the center of a vast cleared area,
with towers and guards, plus armored wagons called Tanks. We also
learn more about the rifle weapons the soldiers wield.
We think to rest a bit more, but
suddenly the hut begins to run towards the encampment. It stops in
the woods near it after a time. Dalomar, thinking to scout more, flys
over the encampment while invisible, but quickly learns that their
searchlights seem able to unmask his invisibility. Still, he is able
to get a good look and sees it has large 30’ towers, barbed wire, a
15’ fence, and more. During his scouting he also uses the mirror I
gave him so that I can also see the camp and towers. From time to
time horses go out, which we learn latter are actually Dulahans, led
by Commander Poklvic Levente. He is also a Dulahan, but one covered
with flames. He also spots a goat, pegged in front of one of the
buildings.
After discussing the matter, we decide
on a plan and wait till late in the night. We ready ourselves and
teleport into one of the towers. Immediately we put the four guards
under suggestion. Two are ordered to go to sleep, one to continue
moving the search light as expected, and the last to have a friendly
conversation with us. Within the tower we see a more powerful
version of the rifle that had killed me. Also, some control panel of
the World Anchor device. Interrogating the guard we learn that the
house near the graveyard is the house of Rasputin. Another large
building there is a prisoner barracks. Giving another suggestion to
the guard, we sneak down into the prison barracks and interrogate one
of the prisoners. We find they are emaciated and strapped to their
beds. The one we speak to tells us that some come by each night and
drink the blood of the prisoners.
Using Dimension door we transport
ourselves into Rasputin’s house next door and find ourselves in the
kitchen with a young man and little girl. Talking with them, we
learn that the girl is Anastasia and the boy is Alexi. They seem
also dominated and somewhat befuddled, but believe they were saved by
Rasputin when they were to be executed. It was then that I made
another mistake. One that hopefully won’t be as great as the one
that led to my death the day before, but still serious. Frustrated
with the pace of events, though my companions were talking in a
friendly manner with the boy and girl, I decided it was safer for us
to simply put them to sleep. Warriors they did not appear to be and
in their already somewhat befuddled state I assumed they would
quickly go to sleep. Casting a sleep hex upon them, the girl quickly
succumbed, but the boy did not. I tried a second time, yet again he
was able to resist. At a yell from him, we suddenly heard a powerful
singing coming from the well next to the house. As Alexi and I
struggled to go to visit the source to the magnificent singing, my
companions mostly tried to stop us. Sadobras tossed a pit under the
boy and an iron door before me.
Still, I knew I could not let that stop
me and I struggle to reach the source of that music….
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