Session 15
From 4th Edition
3.5 Rears its Ugly Head
| Setting off into the desert with a cart-load of gold. |
|---|
| The sun is high as you set out from the ruined city into the arid wasteland. The white sand and scattered glass reflect the mid-day light violently, and you would stand no chance of seeing anything if you weren't wearing thick dark goggles you borrowed from the pirate's equipment shed. Even with them on, there's not much to see. The sky is clear and blue while the land ripples beneath in uniform waves, punctuated by periodic rocky outcrops.
The dry heat is almost refreshing after your extended stay in Port Nyranzaru, but the thermometer is still well over 120 degrees. According to Jones, the trip to Memnon typically takes the pirates about two days, and that they had more than enough supplies to help them endure the journey. Contrary to common practice, Jones prefers to transport his goods during the day, when most bandits and other desert marauders are asleep and those that aren't have a much more difficult time sneaking up on the party. Whatever his rational for the decision, walking through the desert during the day totally sucks, and you're not looking forward to any encounters that might be crop up, even if you can see them coming in advance. The cart you're guarding is a work of art. It's a massive wrought-iron affair, pitch black and covered in sharp spikes and gothic detail, composed with an aesthetic that would seem more appropriate for the carriage of a demon lord than its current function. It's either much lighter than it looks or it has some magical means to keep it from sinking into the desert sand. The pirate's gold has been locked securely inside, and you have a hard time imagining a bandit or anyone else forcing their way in. The cart is pulled by a part of huge lizard creatures that seem to have no trouble moving through the loose sand, keeping the cart moving at a brisk clip. The escorting band is composed of Jones, Dog, Arat, and ten sailors, plus yourselves of course. Jones sits perched on top of the cart, leading the expedition, while Arat hangs off the back, keeping a watchful eye out for danger. Dog seems to be back in good standing and sits perched on top of one of the lizard creatures, tending to it and the one adjacent. You are told that Dog was the one who caught and tamed the pair in the first place, and has established a special connection with his most favored pets. The rest of the men trudge alongside, keeping pace with the cart, all except for Thia who sits perched on top of the cart, scanning the horizon for approaching danger. Jones warns the group "Be on the lookout for any movement. We can assume that any people we encounter while traversing the desert are hostile, be they bandits or members of the military. There are even rumors of a desert giant roaming this area, so we need to be prepared for anything." Despite Jones' warning, the day passes peacefully, with frequent breaks to rehydrate the men and lizards. You haven't found any traces of bandits, and Jones and the rest are pretty optimistic about the rest of the journey. Eventually, the sun sets, spreading a spectrum of color across the sand and setting the horizon on fire. Niel, in the distance you suddenly spot a dust cloud being kicked up by something moving in your general direction. <Closer inspection reveals genasi warrior on the march> "Oh God! That's the last thing we need right now," laments Jones. "Let's find a spot to hunker down and wait for them to go away. With any luck, they haven't spotted us yet or won't pursue if we duck out of view." Taking the reins, Jones guides the lizards to the left of the path they had been following, directing them to take the cart behind a rocky outcropping and ordering his men to cover it with a tan sheet and then keep low themselves. Luck is not with you, however, as it soon becomes apparent that the troops are coming this way. You count at least a hundred of them as they approach, all well dressed and well armed. More curious, however, is what they're bringing with them. Several of the men together are dragging a large sled though the sand, on top of which sits a huge white sphere that reminds you of a giant pearl that had lost its rainbow sheen, and you can't help but wonder what sort of mission this company had been on before happening upon your party. The sphere seems to be quite heavy and sits low in the sand, which the soldiers struggle to move it. As you try and figure out what it could possibly be, you are startled by the sounds of shouts behind you. Rushing back, you find the cart, listing precariously on one side as half of it sinks into the sand. On closer inspection, you can see a crack disappearing into a cave below that must have been concealed by sand when the men were moving the cart. Jones and Dog are peering into the darkness below, and Jones looks up as you approach. "You're just in time. Arat's fallen down into that crevice, and he's not answering. I need you to go down and fetch him back up, so we can be ready to move as soon as possible. I'll take care of the soldiers when they arrive. The commander of the company that trains in this area is a friend of mine, and I should be able to convince him that we're not up to anything, but I don't want to be sitting around here after I've convinced them to leave, or we'll really seem suspicious. You four should keep out of sight as well. I don't want to have to explain anything I don't have to, so keep yourselves hidden after you've found Arat until I give you the signal." |
After clearing the stone columns blocking the ruined city's entrances and rolling the pirate's cart of gold into the hot desert, the party finds themselves under investigation by a wandering battalion of genasai soldiers. As the band conceals itself, Arat falls into a hidden cave and the party follows to rescue him.
Rather than a simple cave, the party soon finds itself in a mysterious abandoned complex, linked together by singing glass, which teleports the party members too and fro from chamber to chamber. After meddling around with sonic power chambers, they manage to restore sound to the complex and free Arat from teleportation glass in which he was trapped. Arat seized upon the idea of using the cathedral's sonic figure to startle the troops above and give Jones a chance to escape, but he found that the singing machine was not able to send the image far enough.
Seeking to turn up the volume, the party busted into the complex's control room and diverted all the sound into the cathedral, only to discover that they had freed a terrible monster that had also been trapped in the teleportation glass. After luring it into the complex's kitchen, the party killed the beast and summoned the cathedral's image and sent it above ground where it had a surprisingly potent effect on the soldiers, who fled at the first sight of the spectral "desert giant."
