We ended out last session on a rather scary cliffhanger…at least for Pop. The newest “Shiver Monster” had dropped down behind him and then apologized that he was about to be consumed in some fashion. This monster is the first of the Shiver Monsters that has been humanoid in form and the first that spoke in a humanlike manner. If there continue to be more and more Shiver Monsters, will they become more and more human in nature? Will they continue to be quite as easy to identify as they are now? Something to think about I suppose.
Jen had to miss again…Hurricane Helene aftermath…so Isabella was missing.
We’ll pick up with the attack on Pop after the break. As usual, my GM comments are in italics.
12 Pharast
- The Green Lady (as we’ve dubbed this monster) lifts her “arms” to reveal four long tentacles covered with rows of sharp fangs. Three of the four wrap around Pop, both damaging him and draining him.
- Darcy jumps to land on the Lady, but she deftly slips aside.
- Aimar sends his Flying Chisel (Spiritual Weapon) at the Lady, but she again deftly slides away. Worse still, the chisel strikes Darcy instead…fortunately, Darcy was able to avoid any real damage (Critical Failure on the roll.)
- Stan steps up and swings at the Green Lady, slicing her in half (again). The body turns into hundreds of green, iridescent beetles that fly off, all screaming in unison, “I’m so hungry!”
- Pop feels very drained and Tarquin is quite concerned about him. (Pop was down to a d4 Vigor and Tarquin’s personality this session was much more caring than normal…perhaps too much.)
- Aimar examines Pop’s wounds and declares that Pop will need more serious healing than he can provide (another Critical Failure). There is some discussion…taking way too long for Pop and Tarquin…as to where to go. Aimar’s temple is a good distance away. The Temple of Aroden is only a few blocks away. Despite the fact that Aroden is a missing (if not dead) deity, the group elects for expediency.
- Arriving at the dilapidated temple, Aimar goes in to find one individual kneeling at the altar and praying in the light of a single lit candle. He asks for aid in healing a friend.
- The individual does not rise or turn and only says to bring in the person, place them in the center of the aisle between the shabby pews, and leave the temple. Their friend will return to them in the morning.
- The group and Pop (not Tarquin) agree to this course of action. Pop is left, some place donations in the otherwise empty donation box, and leave to retire for the night.
13 Pharast
- Pop returns home all better.
- Most spend the day with their day jobs and in the evening head back to Bridgefront to talk to Elvo.
- Elvo had hears that one person had been killed the night before, fitting the M.O. of the Green Lady.
- He has been pretty busy helping new residents from other territories, especially the survivors of the burned building in the Crimson Wolves’ territory (the building with the mosquito-man den that the Acadamae professor and Orlenos noble had burned down with residents still inside).
- There was also someone that would like to meet the group. Someone a but higher-up…a member of the Cerulean Society. Elvo explained that this could be helpful as the gangs all report up to the Cerulean Society and this individual could use this to get information more easily from these gangs.
- After the group agrees to the meeting, Elvo says it will be with a man named Ciro and that he will send a message to Mac once the time and location is set. It should be tomorrow (14th Pharast).
- The party heads back to Steel Union territory to set up another ambush for the Green Lady. Again, it turns the tables and, this time, is able to approach Aimar with no one seeing or hearing her.
- She does not attack immediately. Instead, she asks why they would come back here when they know that she is so hungry.
- Aimar asks about her origin. The Green Lady only knows that she was formed by a small girl; she was nothing before that, but now she exists.
- She does not want to kill and feed, but she has to. She is driven to do so by her hunger.
- Aimar asks if she would prefer to meet the divine, but she does not understand the concept. This eventually leads to discussion of her death to stop the killing and hunger. She doesn’t appear to know how to die or what might kill her.
- Her hunger gets the best of her and she attacks. The others quickly come to Aimar’s aid and she is defeated again…but not before Aimar is damaged and drained as Pop has been. As the beetles all fly off again, they scream, “Why can’t I stop? Why am I so hungry?”
- After the fight, for the briefest of moments, Aimar see Pop’s eyes glow red. A trick of the light or something else? (I’m pretty sure that Aimar knows the answer to that a bit latter.)
- Although Aimar can heal some of his wounds, he cannot heal all of them and he remains drained. As such, the group heads back to the Temple of Aroden. Aimar enters and all is as it was the night before.
- Aimar speaks to the man about healing. Introductions are made. The man’s name is Viktor (I swear it was one of the random names that came up to choose from). He can heal Aimar and give him back what he has lost. But it will be at a cost…
- Aimar will share Viktor’s curse and Viktor smiles to show what he means, revealing vampire fangs. (This was handled by originally texting RJ previously and Adam this time a simple question, “Do you want to be half-vampire?” RJ said yes, Adam said no.)
- Aimar declines. There is some further discussion and Aimar and Viktor come to an agreement, sealed with a contract in blood, that Aimar will keep Viktor’s secret and Viktor will owe Aimar a favor.
- The rest of the group had waited outside of the temple. When Aimar came out, he still looks drained and shares that he did not accept the healing.
- Unsettled by Aimar appearing to not having accepted Viktor’s offer, Pop runs off.
- Aimar speaks to the man about healing. Introductions are made. The man’s name is Viktor (I swear it was one of the random names that came up to choose from). He can heal Aimar and give him back what he has lost. But it will be at a cost…
And that is where we ended the session.
Pop also ran off because RJ will be missing the next session. I really didn’t think we should have the fall out from Aimar learning what Pop has become without RJ here to play his character.
There was a good bit of discussion about how to proceed. The players know that they are really just treating the symptoms of whatever is going on. While they have saved many lives by their actions, they don’t really feel like they are all that closer to putting a stop to things. They know that the Professor and the Noble are involved as is the Sanctuary. Dealing with the former would definitely mean going up against one of the most powerful institutions and the most powerful noble family in Korvosa.
Dealing with the Sanctuary could easily do the same given the obvious relationship between all three. Some players think the Sanctuary could be their best way of learning more information…and they do have the set of keys that they took off of one of the orderlies slain and taken into their den by the mosquito-men.
We’ll just have to see how they choose to go about getting at the heart of what is going on.
At least meeting with Ciro should, hopefully, make things easier in their pursuit of the symptoms and trying to keep the monsters from slaying too many.
