Centrum Glacies 2021 Session 23: Aftermath of a Battle
Week 23 in 2021 of this Dungeons and Dragons Campaign in Centrum Glacies continues as the party rests in the aftermath of a battle.
Like my other campaign, I’m turning this one into a book series. However I’m still working on that project. Give it some time.
Anyway, just like my other campaign, there is a whole lot going on and I don’t want to elaborate on every moving piece in the story. You can see the whole thing once the book series starts hitting virtual and real shelves.
!!!Trigger Warning!!!
This story deals with a cruel world with some horrific twists. So far, this campaign has featured: Animals getting killed, Genocide, lots of body horror, evil cults, brainwashing, torture.
Most recently one of the party members had an eye gouged out and lost an arm. Not exactly the way it happens in Berserk, but that might have been the inspiration for it. The group at large is currently succumbing to magical wounds that appear to be turning them into Demons.
!!!Final Trigger Warning!!!
Malcolm talked to the shopkeepers. Now that he knew about their true natures, he tread more carefully around them. Not only were they Gold Ranked Adventurer’s but likely dangerous criminals too. But they had all had been controlled by Faxina. There was no telling if some of her demonic claws still scratched at their brains.
Notably, when Malcolm spoke to the Druid shopkeeper, whom he had considered the most trustworthy of the four, she acted in a drastically different way. It was only for a moment, but he saw a glint of metal hidden in her back pocket. Fingers reaching towards it warned of her considering intent to kill.
Trent did not see this. Malcolm was relieved because the last thing this group needed right now was anything else that could risk fracturing them. Adrenne and the Druid had only recently stopped being at each other’s throats. And then there was Faustus.
Faustus didn’t see anything. He didn’t seem to be feeling anything either. This worried his allies as he had acted increasingly distant as their adventures on the Abyssal Continent continued.
Jyona grew increasingly annoyed as well. She wanted to tinker and learn. But so long as she remained here surrounded by the Orcs, she could do neither. So she pressed the others into leaving.
Eventually Party returned to the inn. They needed to plan their next move and leave soon. There were plenty of other enemies nearby. The longer they waited, the more likely they would find trouble.
Mistakes:
As the inn, they spoke to Yotul who told them a bit about the Orc’s measurements of honor. Prior the party had been told to enter the Cult of Obsidian’s base at the lower level and work their way up. Turns out they would have been sent to their deaths if they had followed that advice.
The Orcs had thought to the test the party by tricking them into hunting the strongest prey first. The innkeeper knew better. She told them it was far wiser to go to the top floor first and kill the initiates.
When the party asked how they could trust her information, she reminded them that fire and brimstone were more concentrated deeper in the ground. A group that worshipped fire would want to be closest to those flames. Notably the higher ranking ones.
During this conversation Jyona decided to blab secrets best kept hidden. Not only did she mention stuff about the Demon transformations, but several other key tidbits like the artifact that Faustus carried. Good thing Yotel was their ally.
Trent decided to teach his tigers to dance. Something to break up all the negativity in the air. They had fended off a Psychic Vampire and a Psychotic Demon. They had reached the aftermath of a battle. But more fighting was on the horizon.
The Group left the Orc town and returned to the canyon. The Cult of Obsidian had a base nearby. Now they had to climb the mountains on the other side to reach it.
The group talked and thought about their journey. Since they had already cleared the Demons out of this canyon, it was a pretty chill time for a walk. This might as well be the safest place in the Abyssal Continent.
At the Speed of Sound:
The safety didn’t last though. They Encountered Gor-Venal another Platinum Ranked Adventurer. He decided to test whether the party was a liability. Vowing to kill the party if they proved too weak to stand up to the others, he demonstrated why he was one of the elites of the Guild.
Unlike Zyn and Engelique who had countless tricks at their disposal, Gor-Venal only had one. But that one attack was something he claimed had been perfected almost his entire life. He didn’t use any strange magic. Instead, he used punches that broke the sound barrier. And his body could keep up with those strikes too.
Wrap Up:
If the party wants to make it to the aftermath of a battle, they will have to take on a veteran who perfected his fighting technique before any of them were born. Will they be able to satisfy him?