User Tools

Site Tools


chronicles:strange_aeons:chapter1

Differences

This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.

Link to this comparison view

Both sides previous revisionPrevious revision
Next revision
Previous revision
chronicles:strange_aeons:chapter1 [2017/05/21 21:45] samchronicles:strange_aeons:chapter1 [2017/07/05 21:26] (current) sam
Line 41: Line 41:
 The library was inhabited by ratlings, who tried to kill us but we slew them or drove them off. Apparently they came up from below after the ceiling fell in. They mentioned something big and flappy outside in the trees. Beyond the library was another aggressive ratling, a sorcerer this time, and he teleported away before we could kill or capture him. The library was inhabited by ratlings, who tried to kill us but we slew them or drove them off. Apparently they came up from below after the ceiling fell in. They mentioned something big and flappy outside in the trees. Beyond the library was another aggressive ratling, a sorcerer this time, and he teleported away before we could kill or capture him.
  
 +==== Session 4 (2017-05-22) ====
 +
 +There have been interesting developments, which provide even more evidence that something really strange has been going on. Moving north beyond the library we found the body of Doctor Arosh Chawaar, as well as some 
 +
 +Eventually we came across the room of Eleige Losadro, the asylum's administrator. She was in there, sat in the middle of the room in a pool of her own blood. A fountain of wispy yellow mist spewing out of her mouth. Gregor thought there was an outer planer portal inside her from where the mist was issuing.
 +
 +I cast //Message// on her, and she seemed to suddenly take notice of us. There is a brief fight, in which her mostly empty corpse is slain.
 +
 +Looking around her room, there are a number of paintings with the name of **Ulver Zandalus** on them. They are of endless empty cities with yellowish brick walls, similar to the passage we dreamt ourselves in before we awoke here. She also had a collection of occult books, and an Osirion-style pyramid with an eye in it.
 +
 +==== Session 5 (2017-05-29) ====
 +
 +We encountered a room full of paper wrapped parcels which was defended by cultists wearing rune covered rags. It seemed to consist mostly of clothing, so probably the belongings of patients staying here. There were also 13 china dolls (of girls in patterned dresses) which had been arranged to stand around a paper with a sketch of a landscape. In the middle of the sketch was a standing stone.
 +
 +Further on we found the records room, which was full of filing cabinets sorted by patient name, though everyone starting with 'R' was missing. Finding records for ourselves, we discovered that we were committed here by Count Hastardon Lowls earlier this month.
 +
 +There was a locked room which contained more interesting records, and within that a secret room which seemed to consist only of records of Ulver Zandalos. Having a quick skim through things it seems he was committed here in 4685, just over 30 years ago, transferred from //Pharasma Lamentations// in Rosenport. We also picked up a short sword in a crimson scabbard, with a pommel in the shape of a cardinal. It was named 'Red Destiny' and showed up as being enchanted.
 +
 +Any further exploration was blocked by a door which seemed to be seeping blood. Catiana went through the walls next to the door, and discovered a corridor filled with blood, so we tried to find another way around.
 +
 +Exploring a garden open to the sky, we were attacked by a //Nightgaunt//, which tried to grab several of us and fly off with us. Fortunately we managed to bring it down before it could. In a toolshed there was a collapsed staircase that went a //long// way down, which we decided against exploring.
 +
 +Going back a different route, via the entrance hall, there was a room with a haunted bird cage which was capable of picking us up and throwing us against the ceiling. Catiana dealt with that.
 +
 +Further north again, we come across the other side of the blood filled passage. The blood seemed to be coming out of an old woman who was sitting in front of a window next to some empty medications. Trying to get anywhere near the trail of blood caused it to whip up and attack us. After some thought we found some more medications for the woman and the flow of blood was stopped, though not before it had swallowed Ray (he managed to escape).
 +
 +Beyond that was a room filled with darkness, and a child's voice inside kept asking for someone's shadow lantern. Fortunately we remembered the name as being one of the children being looked after by Winter, and returning to him we wound that he did indeed have a shadow lantern, which we were able to borrow. That seemed to put whatever haunting was present there to rest.
 +
 +==== Session 6 (2017/06/05) ====
 +
 +We spent some time going through books from the library and Losandro's diary, trying to get an idea of what has been going on here. Myself, I took a look at the sword in a red scabbard, and got an image of a well dressed woman, and a feeling of order and trust. Then there was an impression of being pushed down to choke and die in swampy mud near to an old stone building.
 +
 +Afterwards we explored the north end of the Asylum, and found where most of the inmates were holing up. There was a make shift camp that seemed to be full of cultists and strung up dead bodies. One of them came over to us, indicating that we should follow him and play along as cultists. He introduced himself as Wren Elbourne, a doctor who was looking after these people before getting caught up in whatever was going on. Ulver is apparently responsible for everything that is going on, having convinced everyone that he is a prophet who will lead everyone to the land of dreams. There is also a woman named Aggie, who is a dangerous psychopath who was responsible for the dead bodies in the camp.
 +
 +According to the Doctor, Ulver claims to have made his dreams real, and has locked himself away in a maze of fog somewhere upstairs. He calls his acolytes the //oneirogens//. One of them is in a tower on the northwest of the island, and we decided that there would be a good place to start to try and make sense of this insanity.
 +
 +==== Session 7 (2017/06/12) ====
 +
 +Beyond the cultist camp were the kitchens and gardens, the latter of which were apparently filled with undead. The chefs assumed that we were just another bunch of cultists, so gave us free access to the area. Apparently they are also very short of food, having subsisted over the last supplies of potatoes left in the asylum.
 +
 +Beyond the safety of the kitchens we encountered some strange creature that looked very much like a silvery lizard. When it attacked us, I suddenly came over nauseous as Catiana seemed to take control of my link to her, growing greatly in size and strength. After I recovered, the lizard was dead.
 +
 +We did make our way around to the other side of the garden, keeping to the ruined rooms and passages, but nevertheless ran into some ghouls that broke through a wall to get to us. Fortunately we managed to fight them off. Seeking recovery, we headed back to the chapel and the library, and read some of the books there trying to make sense of this place.
 +
 +==== Session 8 (2017/06/19) ====
 +
 +Last night we were woken in the night by invisible humanoid creatures we later determined to be //soul slivers//. They seemed to be trying to kill Winter and steal the statue of Desna. My sister took control of her manifestation again, and together with the rest of the group managed to slay the creatures.
 +
 +In the morning Sheena mentioned that she had been awakened by a voice in her head, though nobody else had heard it. The creatures were female and both had mirrored skin, with flesh underneath. We never determined where they came from.
 +
 +We spent the rest of the day exploring the north western part of the asylum. There were more ghouls, and also a ghast, and eventually discovered one of the //oneirogens// in the tower which was spewing fog. We slew it, and the fog seemed to weaken a bit. Outside of the tower we could see a number of large cancerous oozes which were trying to climb the walls to get to us. We drove them off and decided to head back so as not to attract more.
 +
 +Finally we cleared the garden of the ghouls that dwelt there, and saw a unicorn.
 +
 +==== Session 9 (2017/06/26) ====
 +
 +The unicorn we found today was not friendly, and seemed to be contributing to the yellow fog - or at least, it cleared a bit after we killed it. For the night we headed back to the library to rest and read up.
 +
 +Unfortunately Sheena 'discovered' some waxwork statues which we hadn't noticed before, and fiddling with them caused them to come alive and attack. They were being controlled by the ratling sorcerer we had met earlier, and this time we managed to find and slay him.
 +
 +The following day we decide that we had to deal with Ulverzandalus and his final henchmen, so go up to the first floor where he and his acolytes live. We encounter the murderess Aggra, and after a tough fight manage to slay her. Looking over her possessions, we find a Harrow Deck, which I take a look at, getting a feel for it's history.
 +
 +It was not a good experience. I have vague memories of a cold, arid place where many realities came together. There were three people there - veiled and robed humanoids which felt totally inhuman. One of them pulls down their veil, to reveal horns and clawed fingers with a mouthful of tentacles. If it wasn't for the others pulling me out of the dream it had spun, I probably would have been lost to the //Denizens of Leng//.
 +
 +==== Session 10 (2017/07/03) ====
 +
 +Beyond Aggra's quarters the floor was covered with rubble from the floor above and the rooms filled with the thick yellow fog. There were more //oneirogens// here, four of them, and we managed to slay them, though trying to see anything through the fog was difficult.
 +
 +It was then that we finally came across Ulverzandalus, who seemed capable of causing great pain just by looking at us. After we defeated him, his wounds began to spew forth fog, and his body began to dissolve. Expecting some terrible void to open or something, all of us expect for Sheena fled back to the previous room. Sheena yelled out that it was changing into something, and ran back to us.
 +
 +It was then that we saw what it had become - the Tattered Man from our nightmare which we awoke from when we discovered ourselves in this place. Eventually it was defeated, and it's body dissolved into mist. Almost immediately the fog cleared from the island, and in the distance we could see the shore, and the jetty where a small rowing boat was moored.
 +
 +Returning to the ground floor the cultists seemed to be pleased to see us, possibly freed from whatever mind control the Tattered Man/Ulverzandalus had over them.
 +
 +Winter wanted to go back to the mainland, so Sheena and myself accompany her leaving the others to finish tidying up in the asylum.
chronicles/strange_aeons/chapter1.1495403152.txt.gz · Last modified: 2017/05/21 21:45 by sam