LOST TRAILS: THE HARROWDALE HORROR: PART 4

[ewancummins]

https://imgur.com/gallery/lJ4WQiX

[ewancummins]

Sir Clive stands his ground as the others take cover, run inside, or shoot from the portico.

The monster batters the knight, but his armor protects him from harm and his mighty sword returns blow for blow.

A shutter in the attic flies open. Alain leans out, fingers extended to send sizzling conjured arrows at the monster.


The creature rolls away, sliding downhill to escape.

Alain fires more acid-dripping arrows.


Kat, having wasted several bolts, squints into the rain and shoots again.
This time, the bolt sinks into her target's body.

The thing continues downhill, rolling limply, and then breaks apart in a wide spill of steaming, smoking mud, slime, and rotted vegetation.

---------

Indoors, Raen and Periele find a ceremonial baton that looks heavy enough to strike as a cudgel but light enough to hurl.
Through the window, Raen sees the monster has disappeared.

[Lord Skybolt]

Alain thinking back to the thing in the basement goes to Raen saying"We need to take care of that stuff in the storage basement . So if you can open the door I can try to get rid of it real quick, before we rest up here and Recoup our energies ."

[alhoon]

Raen clicks his tongue, tired, scared and depleted from magic. "I am out of magic. Does it have to be done now? The thing there cannot escape, can't it wait till tomorrow? We are not out of danger completely, I think it is best to save whatever spells you have still remaining friend."

[ewancummins]

INDOORS, THE LOBBY
AFTER THE FIGHT


Periele stands by the broken window in the lobby, peeking out with the damp curtain held to partly conceal her from any unseen watchers lurking in the buildings across the flooded lanes and lawns.

''It does not seem to be letting up. I wonder--''
Thunder drowns her words.
Lightning flashes over the town, followed by another rolling peal.
The heavy downpour continues.

[kintire]

Kat slips inside and sits down on the floor, back against the wall sucking in deep breaths as she recovers from the exertions. her chain shirt glitters with droplets of water, and her clothing clings to her, wrinkled and dripping. haer hair sticks to her face or hangs in strands, water darkening the wall as she leans her head against it.

"What is wrong with this place? What was that thing? Benn, did you call it a Mandragora? Did some sorcerer create it?"

She listens to the pounding rain on the roof, and grimaces.

"I'm never going to be dry again..."

[Adam]

"It resembled the Mandragora found in the swamps of Darkon. I read of them in a tome when I was researching...other plant-like creatures," he stops to catch his breath. "They're composed entirely of animate vegetation, imbued with enough of a primitive consciousness to be hostile."

He looks around. "Anyone else wounded? I have some more healing incantations available for the day."

[Lord Skybolt]

"It resembled the Mandragora found in the swamps of Darkon. I read of them in a tome when I was researching...other plant-like creatures," he stops to catch his breath. "They're composed entirely of animate vegetation, imbued with enough of a primitive consciousness to be hostile."

He looks around. "Anyone else wounded? I have some more healing incantations available for the day."

To Adam :"I could use some minor healing* to make sure I'm at full strength by tommorrow if you have them to use ."



*Cure Light wounds would be enough .

[Lord Skybolt]

Raen clicks his tongue, tired, scared and depleted from magic. "I am out of magic. Does it have to be done now? The thing there cannot escape, can't it wait till tomorrow? We are not out of danger completely, I think it is best to save whatever spells you have still remaining friend."

"Yes, right now as I do not want to leave anything in place that is a possible menance in a place I plan to bed down in and the chest may have stuff we could use in our comming search of the town . My energies will be recharged with good rest and some Mediation tomorrow ."

[kintire]

Kat looks at Raen

"You should get some sleep and recharge your arcane might. A fully prepared archmage is a big plus in this place! How are we to burn buildings down in this rain?"

She gives him a rallying grin and climbs to her feet, glancing to Alain.

"I can open any trapdoors you need opened, and I'm happy to cheer you on as you clean fungus. And you might want me to look over that chest of yours before we go opening it!"

[alhoon]

At Benn's words Raen turns to the archivist. "Really? Such a thing in my homeland? Did you kill it?"

Giving a sigh, Raen shakes his head. "Very well" He says. "It's not that I have been such a useful "archmage" today."
He moves to the trapdoor. "Kat, be ready please. You too friend... "
And he opens it.

[ewancummins]

At Benn's words Raen turns to the archivist. "Really? Such a thing in my homeland? Did you kill it?"

Giving a sigh, Raen shakes his head. "Very well" He says. "It's not that I have been such a useful "archmage" today."
He moves to the trapdoor. "Kat, be ready please. You too friend... "
And he opens it.

STORAGE ROOM

The mage opens the trap door, taking no special precautions but showing evident wariness...

A puff of pink-brown dust rises a foot or so above the gap as Raen jerks upright and hops backward to avoid being dosed again by the strange mold-like growth in the cellar. It seems to settle or dissipate quickly.


The door falls into an open position.

Alain and Kat, move ahead a bit so that they can peer in without getting too close.

Many tiny stalks quiver and squirm in the layer of reddish-brown mold that coats the three chests and covers a good part of the floor, but otherwise nothing appears to move down there in the shallow underground chamber.

Alain attempts to burn away the weird fungus-like organism with flames from his hands.
He sees that his spell charred a strip of unvarnished wood along the bottom of the trapdoor but did no harm at all to the infestation in the cellar. The stuff's not even discolored by the flame-gout.
Conjured acid, though, works very well indeed. Using up more of his remaining store of magic power, Alain scours the cellar as best he may without entering it.

Kat double checks the space with a light.
No moldy stuff she can see...

After waiting a little while for the acid splashes to do their work, Kat steps down into the cellar, ducking her head to avoid bumping it.

Crouching, face covered with her makeshift cloak, she examines the chests. What mold remains, mostly on the farther sides of the three chests, shrivels as acid drips down onto it from the lids. The hardwood panels hiss and sizzle. Even the heavy brass furniture shows pitting and discoloration. A sharp, unpleasant odor fills the air, reaching her nose through the damp cloth pressed over it.
But there are no spore clouds that she can see.

All three chests appear to be locked.
The keys the party recovered, which open the cells, do not open these chests.

PART TWO:

Kat opens the locks on two of the chests, but the third lock is stuck fast.

She tries forcing the third chest, but even with help from the others and with the minor corrosion from acid, the lid will not budge. Solid carpentry!
This job might require an ax.


In the two chests she did pop open, Kat finds:

1)

a waterproof oilskin liner that folds over the items stacked within the chest

a clay jug filled with loose, granular steel-blue stuff

a little tin box containing what look like the 'tinder-twigs' alchemists back home sometimes sell

four tubular, hollow things of bright-colored paper, each about a foot long, with conical caps and vanes that combine to give a somewhat arrow-like appearance

a brown glass jug containing silvery-white powder

six phials, each filled with a different hue of fine metallic particles

2)

eight bottles of spirituous liquors, labelled

a bolt of green silk

an ornately carved wooden puzzle-box/trick case---
Kat, adept at working with such mechanisms, gets it open and uncovers a stack of thin ivory plaques inside, like cards or tiles used for some sort of board/table game.

[ewancummins]

Alain manages, after some time working with his set of burglar's tools, to remove the hinges of the third chest.


CHEST #3

four copper tubes of the sort used to hold maps and scrolls, with watertight screw on tops
parchments inside...

a taxidermist-preserved cat with wings, which upon closer examination show no stitch-work attaching them to the deceased feline's body

three small sacks of coinage of various denominations

a ledger with writing in it

[Lord Skybolt]

Handing the ledger to the mage, Alain gets to counting with a rather big smile on his face .

[kintire]

Kat keeps an eye on the count with a sightly amused grin, occasionally taking a swig of Spiritous Liquor.