Session 85 - Attack of the Terminator Whores/The Lightning Towers - Campaign Day 988-992

 Campaign Day 988

The Stormbringers tracked a group of bandits into the mountains north of Aearavir. Rumor was that the bandit leader owned a magic suit of armor and Ove, the Stormbringer owner/operator, wanted it.

The trail led to a series of low hills and mountains. In the middle was a group of ruined domes.

City of Domes

The perimeter was scouted. There are numerous gaps and cracks in the outer "shell" where the vegetation has grown through it. Occasionally you find a decaying skeleton of an animal or man, half buried in the ground, overgrown with vines, but the bones are still blackened as if exposed to great heat.

Nothing to worry about.

Duo Daggaz the assassin was tasked with infiltration. The players hoped they could locate the bandits, whose tracks seemed to go into the domes, but never came out. Duo found a side passage and entered. The place in wrecked, generally.

Ruins interior.

Duo continues within. Duo reaches a chamber where the floor is covered in a thick green slime layer. There are several “exits” of various sizes. They appear to be roughly cut but precise square or rectangular holes. In several homes there are long tubes of unknown material that run out and into the room. One of the tubes empties here, and a slow river of slimy water gurgles outside into the floor. The smell here is strong and faintly unpleasant, like sulfur and decaying food. There is a body lying on a metal “grid” on the far exit which lies about 2 ft above the slinky floor. The body wears a faded green-yellow cloth, but it’s ripped and soiled, the skeleton is devoid of flesh, it’s all bones. The body appears human but Duo notes an indentation above the nasal cavity approximately in the center of the forehead, in which sits a dark, cracked quartz like crystal the size of a dime.

Now things get weird.


There are pale blue lights dangling from wires or ropes from the ceiling along the center, which illuminates the metal squares of the floor. The floor extends to within 10' of either side left or right, and Duo can make out (with his infravision) that the liquid below the metal floor emits or ingrates through holes near the water line along the long walls. There is a flow of sort, perhaps random, between the room and the holes. Each hole is about 2' in diameter and there are half dozen or so both sides. Standing near the top of the spiral stair case is what Duo can only think of as an over-sized teddy bear. It's wearing a pale blue jerkin. It's eye are flat black, but has a neotenous appearance. It's hands are holding a small rod of some sort, and there are small showers of sparks flowing from one end into one of the many metal rubes that line the walls and ceilings. Without turning its body, the head turns to face Duo.

He harmless and he wants to be your buddy.

The "teddy bear" speaks with a strange, soft voice: "Are you lost? Let me help you. Come closer. Wait here. Be not afraid."


Duo exchanges some small talk, but the "bear" persists. "Come closer. Identify."


At this point Duos' player opts to leave as the bear indicates that "help" is on the way, something called "Auntie."


The Stormbringers now decide its time to move in once Duo returns and tells the tale.


They find the same place where the bear was, but not there is a new person there. She si standing near the teddy near as if supervising.

An Auntie.

Ove elects to open fire immediately, wounding the Auntie, who flees, while the other grapple the teddy bear. Ove uses his helm of telepathy to scan the teddy bear while he questions it. He learns that the teddy-bear knows where the bandits are probably at - they are being "processed", whatever that means. They press onward, coming to a metal door and beyond are carpeted hallways with dark colored strips. The teddy bear has agreed to lead them to the bandits, but before they can get far around the far corner comes a squad of Aunties.


The players now declare they will prepare their oil flasks and get ready to throw them at the approaching women. Each of the Aunties is armed with a 2' long metal rod. The oil is hurled and the hallways is doused with flames...but the Aunties walk right through it.

The players now engage in melee against these things, allowing the men behind to hurl more oil or retreat. The result is that Ove is stunned and men are falling under the efficient strikes of the Aunties. At least one direct Molotov cocktail hit produces little to stop the Aunties. They host falls back to a 4-way intersection to maximize their next oil volley. One Auntie stands off while the rest engage one of the branches of men, and it's a complete beat down. Men are being stunned left and right and the players still have yet to take an Auntie down.


At this point the Stormbringer troops fail their first morale check as Ove, their leader, is out of action. In the panic, more men are knocked out, but the rest make it out alive. The Stormbringers pull up camp as fast as they can and ride back to Aeravir.


Now the players are not happy with this but still need a score to pay the men. They seek out a rumor out a lycanthrope infestation to the east of the city. With the help of Bardo the Ranger (a henchman), they track the beasts of a curious compound with towers on each corner, and a central mound complex. Gerolt approaches but he and his men are struck by a bolt of lightning from the closes tower, killing all of his heavy infantry. Gerolt notes that each tower has a glowing light near the top. Taking a chance, he pelts the light with silver arrows and by sheer luck hits! The lights go out all over the complex and the Nighthawks move in.


They find an entrance in the towers, checking every so many minutes to see if the lights on the towers are "on" or "off" - the are off for now. They find almost 20 pint sized humanoids inside, and gain surprise, slaughtering the inhabitants. There are ramps that lead down into the complex, doubling back towards the central mounds and downward. The halls are a dirty yellow color. They follow the sloping passage towards the "center" and encounter giant frogs, which they also kill. They eventually find a shaft leading down into a metal room that glows with a soft blue light. Charles the thief slinks into the room and see a panel with colored lights... and notes the shaft goes up a ways too.


Charles climbs the shaft to the next floor, which has a brown color. The shaft opens to a ruined area filled with debris. It also has a group of redskins enjoying a meal in peace. Charles returns with more of the Nighthawks, who charge into the room after climbing up the shaft with ropes. They slay all but one of the humanoids. Under questioning the redskins tells them that they joined because they were promised "ascension" by the owners of the place from a great and powerful (and sentient) crystal. The redskins also admitted they didn't know what that means, but it sounded good. Supposedly the place of ascension is "down there, in the red area."


Charles also found a strange glyph on the walls but the meaning is unknown to him.

Gerolt decides to return to Aeravir as time was running out in the session. Despite losing some men, he also has learned of a new threat behind the lycanthropes.