¶ Beasts From The Ether
While The Thirty of Turlo explore the depths of Mount Turlo, several travelers heed a warning from Doran.
¶ Something in the Woods
After being rescued by the travelers from the Cavern of Lost Souls, a note is found on Doran that sucggests there is something mysterious and dangerous lurking within the Putrid Forest that needs attending.
As he regains consciousness and heals his wounds, Doran reveals that he had sought shelter in the Cavern of Lost Souls as a means of escaping some horrid creature that emenated a strange enemy, not familiar in The Forsaken Lands. He urges the travelers to enter the Putrid Forest and dispatch the creature for the sake of the collective good.
Eight heroes step to attend the mission:
- Newsten
- Klaus Keen
- Cousin of Chosen Bald
- Lar Sunstrider
- Cade Brushgather
- Osbert Buckley
- Traveler #563
- Traveler #3538
¶ Gearing Up
Not willing to wander into unknown peril without properly equipping themselves, several of the heroes make use of the newly erected Item Shop and purchase tools to help their mission.
Newsten sports a new Rusty Shield to defend himself with.
Cade Brushgather carries a Potion to cure potential wounds.
Lar Sunstrider and Klaus Keen bring a pair of Keys to help them uncover the trecherous paths ahead.
¶ Observation
Meanwhile, King Offling finds Julian Tryhard floating near the edge of the Putrid Forest, suspended in the air by some balloons he found while exploring the outskirts of the forest. He has organized with Dilbert to station himself in position to commentate on the happenings within the forest, and Offling joins him in the review of events.
Together, they relay the happenings of the event to all who care to listen.
¶ Enter The Putrid Forest
Approaching the Putrid Forest, the heroes gather their wits and begin their adventure.
Klaus and Lar Sunstrider begin by using their Keys to reveal a Snake Pit near the entrance, and tracks to some with some Wild Boars deeper in the forest. Heeding their advice, the group enters on the leftmost path, venturing straight into a Pack of Wolves.
The battle between the heroes and the wolves is more protracted then most expect. The back and forth of bites and strikes between them carries on for some time, but eventually the intreped warriors are able to fell the wolves.
By the end of the encounter all but Traveler #3538 had been wounded with Cousin of Chosen Bald suffering the most serious damage. Newsten had been similarly battered, but his use of the Rusty Shield prevented him from serious wounds.
¶ Boons of the Woods
As they gather themselves and venture forward, Cade Brushgather leads them through some vegetation until he discovers a mostly vanished skeleton with a rotted leather pouch containing another Potion that Cade picks up and brings with him, doubling his stock and all but assuring his survival through the forest.
Continuing through the forest, Osbert recognizes some tracks made by rather large canines, possibly the wolves they had encountered earlier. Following them, he is led to a running stream that offers an opportunity for the group to rest and a cool drink. Together, they take a moment to compose themselves, and regain their strength for the journey ahead.
¶ Friend Turned Foe
Pressing onward, the group enters some thick brush and slowly begin to get separated from one another. Then, something bites Traveler #3538 that infects him with a madness, causing him to turn on Newsten who was the only member of the group still with him.
Forced to defend himself against his ally turned rabid, Newsten fights as the two are locked in a bloody duel waiting for the others to find them.
The two battle for quite some time, trading blows in the woods as their friends scamper to locate the source of their commotion. In the end, they are discovered and only Newsten is alive. Traveler #3538 has been slain.
Though he survives, Newsten is badly wounded and has no means to recover from the wounds. Knowing that the beast Doran spoke of still awaits them, Newsten begins to feel his own mortality setting in.
Still shaken from the fight with his former ally, Newsten feels a deep confusion. The forest's sounds echo, and tricks of light play with his mind. He grows paranoid and perplexed by the chaos of the woods, and in his heightened state of fear begins slashing out at nothing until he turns and clips both Klaus Keen and Cousin of Chosen Bald with his weapon.
¶ Howling at the Moon
Sensing that they must be getting close to Doran's beast, they press forward again as the night grows darker and the brush grows thick enough to obscure their vision. Klaus Keen leads the band until they hear something approach, spotting eyes in the distance that shine through the blackness ahead.
The party braves on and prepares to face whatever may come, until from the inky dark steps a Moonrunner Wolf from another dimension, primed for attack.
The wolf and its accompanying cat familiar prove a formidable challenge to the party. Dealing one vicious blow after another, the duo begin whittle away the party's resolve. Newsten fights valiantly, but the wounds from his previous battle are too great and the Moonrunner Wolf exploits his vulnerabilities to claim its first kill.
Shortly after, Cousin of Chosen Bald is violently attacked by the Moonrunner Wolf's familiar and sent to the forest floor in a pool of his own blood; the wolf howling as it claims its second victim.
Enraged at the loss of their comrades, and frightened for their own lives, the rest of the party continues to combat the beast from another dimension with all of their heart. They hack and slash at it, chipping away its resolve until finally, Lar Sunstrider deals a fatal blow and kills the beast.
¶ Going Home
After checking the corpse of their enemy, the party locates another Moonrunner Wolf, possibly a cub. They tie it up and send it to Newsten's family so that they may decide what to do with it. Lar Sunstrider takes a Diamond Gauntlet from the wolf's den, and Her Ash is donated to the grave of Cousin of Chosen Bald.
The party returns to the inn, solemn at their lost allies, but grateful to retun home with their own lives.