Game summary for May 10, 2007; present characters included Eol Seregon (half-elf hexblade), Grot Bloodtunneler (shield dwarf barbarian/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/vigilante), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), and Valgen (afflicted wererat human fighter/rogue).
Having slain the tiefling cleric, the party pondered their next move. Grot ran over and tried to take what he believed to be the apostolic scrolls and found he could not move them. They then began opening doors, finding the room with the massive ulgurstata in stasis and the bedroom of the tiefling. While they explored, the body of the cleric erupted with Kyuss worms and staggered to its feet as a newly risen spawn of Kyuss! The undead creature placed a worm on one of the party members, but a quickly thrown moonsilver shard destroyed it. The team moved around the spawn and beat it to the ground and burned up its remains with alchemist fire.
Returning to the bedroom, Valgen attempted to use a key to open an ornate trunk. When he did, a large green Kyuss worm burst from his chest, fell to the ground and dissolved into goo. With the trunk open, the group pulled a number of items forth, including gold, jewels and magical treasures. Not content with their haul, Valgen continued to fiddle with the trunk until he triggered its trap again. Suddenly, he was sucked naked into the carved scenery adorning the chest. With a crash, his armor and equipment hit the floor where his body had been. Reacting quickly and thinking slowly, Grot used the key to open the chest as well, and the same fate befell him.
The group gathered the equipment of their allies and dragged the chest back to the Titan’s House, where they hid it in the ruins. They then returned to the coenoby. Not knowing how to rescue their friends, the group decided an 8-hour siesta was in order. Approximately four hours later, they awakened to a vision of their two friends being consumed by a massive Kyuss worm. Eol used a potion of invisibility and went back to the trunk. He found that the images of his friends had disappeared, and a very satiated green worm appeared where they had been. He slinked back to his companions to deliver the bad news.
Early the next morning, after recovering their strength and spells, the remaining Mercenaries received a visitor. One of Prendergast’s soldiers asked Eol to follow him. Curious, the half-elf tentatively trailed behind and was taken to a well-furnished out-of-the-way boudoir. Within, a provocatively-clad Aridarye began questioning Eol and his team’s ties to her husband. She made it abundantly clear (with all the ample abundance available to her) she wished to become better friends with Eol and establish a mutually beneficial relationship. The stoic half-elf politely refused her physical advances but did agree to keep in communication with her. A flash of spurned anger burned in her dazzling eyes but quickly faded with a forced, beautiful, smile. Aridarye arranged for a short foray out of the arena for the team to consult their wizard contact, Dagsumn. Aridarye managed to get the team carried out in carts hauling the belongings and linens of the gladiators who would not be returning from the field. Eol vowed to return and attempt to win the Games and possibly eliminate Prendergast if he proves to be the murderous cur the party suspects.
Once at Dagsumn’s, they met up with their manager, Urtos. He is incensed they have dealings with Aridarye and swears she is trying to get to him through them. After calming down, he did agree to bribe the minor officials in the arena to allow new gladiators to join their team. He even concocted a far-reaching, but nearly plausible cover story: the party used illusion magic to hide their true appearance and abilities in the first fight to better their chances against unprepared opponents in the second round. Urtos had also managed to recruit a giant for the team, Iapetus Hasur, an old friend of Aker’s.
Now, the party must find two new gladiators to join them, buy additional supplies, sell off items they have recovered, and get back to the coenoby within a few short hours.
