Loose threads The Seal is still broken and the Minotaur of the Whisperwoods are still at risk of turning feral, Abysslum still has many mysteries to be explored
Participants Rezkishk Nagakuda Reginald Kariyah Qeyella Wolfram of Ulfsmund Dez
Locations The Abysslum / The Whisperwoods
Short summary:
The party ventured into Abysslum to find and repair the seal keeping the Minotaur from deteriorating into bloodthirsy beasts. After exploring and encountering and defeating a strange entity known as Mrs. Hands, they found themselves too injured to risk continuing.
Full Report
The journey begins with our party viewing recording rod from a guild agent showing King Aseron discussing to threat Abysslum poses to their people. A Minotaur, Captain Varkos Stonehorn, describes sending 8 of their soldiers in, tied in line, only for none to return.
Abysslum was opened, and anchored, and will continue to pull more in as long as it remains so.
You do not charge in, you do not rescue anyone as long as it remains open. You go in small, disciplined groups to find what cracked the seal, remove it, and bind the crack. These were the instructions given by Aseron. And his decree should the seal remain opened is that Varkos, and all of his people, shall be sealed inside without apology.
After a meeting with the Duke of Hygon and the Whisperwoods themselves, Duke Syltorin Margaster to further discuss the threat the cracked seal holds, our party set out for the journey Abysslum, leaving the safety of the city. The entrance itself was innocuous and could easily have been missed, nothing more than a small split in the stone itself. But the mental tax standing near it had were almost immediate. We all felt it, as if our fight or flight instincts were on overdrive, our heartbeats quickened, our breathing was unsteady, and our bodies felt hindered.
Then we heard the voice. No, not a voice, but a sudden finished thought not of our own. "FOWARD," it demanded of us. As if our minds contorted to fit the demand, we all felt the pull, each of us coming to our own conclusion of how "Forward," was the only answer. We charged in, high on glory, as if our initial hesitation never existed. "Forward," was all we needed to know, to chant.
And we were welcomed. Welcomed to the Abbysslum.
Not waiting for everyone to make it in, we were grabbed by large hands heading out of the Abysslum, pulling us all inside. Coming back to our senses, we first noticed how we were no longer outside, but inside a large, stoneworked dungeon. Second, we noticed we were no longer a single unit, but have instead been split across two parties. Rezkishk, Dez, and Kariyah in one group, and Nagakuda, Reginald, and Wolfram in the other group.
As we each explored the dungeon in our respective groups, we noticed peculiarities with our surroundings. First, despite being filled with the undead, large insects, and various traps, we also found many items of use scattered about. From potions to shield us from harm, mystical campfires that healed our wounds, and enchanted weaponry to fight back against the very undead that we encountered.
Second, our felled enemies did not remain. Instead, they sunk into the very floor itself, leaving no trace of their existence.
And third, it seemed we were being watched. Rezkishk's group had an encounter with a strange figure, though all we could make out were it's large hands, They come from over the walls itself. "Come join us in Steelhold," it spoke, "We'll tell you everything you need to know about this place." Before the group could react, the figure vanished, leaving more questions than answers.
As each group faced their own battles from grotesque undead, oversized dragonflies, skeletal mages, many skulls to be added to a strange collection, and a large trapdoor spider that was felled with a single blow when Dez ricocheted a bullet of the ground itself (a feat he was unable to replicate), each group managed to meet up once more.
After a certain Ratfolk activated a trap when opening empty chests, the group had found themselves ambushed by more undead, with the room sealing itself off with steel bars. The bars had formed a large cage around the room that would then be carried by the same hands the group had witnessed.
After a hard-fought battle that would leave Dez cursed by a Wraith, the group was informed by the entity behind these hands that we were on our way to this Steelhold. The entity proclaimed themselves as "Mrs. Hands", and that it had been trying to rescue us. This, obviously, turned out to be a trap, and the party discovered 4 of the 8 missing Minotaur, but they were beyond saving. Mrs. Hands has been behind the undead infesting the dungeon, and the 4 Minotaur had joined her ranks amongst them.
The fight was close, leaving 4 of the 6 members severely wounded and on death's door, but emerged victorious. It was agreed upon by the group that the mission needed to come to an end, and they have failed their initial task. The party was too wounded to continue, there was no sign of the seal or evidence as to who or what cracked it, and Dez's curse could not be allowed to progress to it's deadly conclusion.
There were no signifiers on the Minotaur to determine their names, descriptions would have to do to conclude the deceased. The party recalled, their pride wounded, yet alive.
Abysslum remains open, the Minotaur remain in threat of it's calling. But the adventurers will not let this defeat stand. They will learn from this loss, and continue ever Forward.
PS: To whomever finds the large tree in the shape of a middle finger, we do no know what wood-based Kineticist could be to blame for this.