A Battle of Survival for a 1 or more characters of Level 1-3

For the past two weeks you have pursued the notorious group of outlaws known as the Red Hand gang, led by their infamous leader, the black hearted Seth Denigan, long known for his acts of cruelty and callousness to all who have had the misfortune of crossing his path.

But now the reward promised to you by Lord Halford for his head lies tantalisingly close at hand, the outlaws are just hours ahead of you and unaware that you are hot on their heels.

The road you find yourselves on is a lonely back roads one, empty of travellers. A violent earth tremor shook these sparsely populated parts recently, and no doubt the outlaws have decided to take advantage of the chaos following the quake to loot the shattered towns and villages.

Dark sombre clouds scud overhead and a chilling wind picks out chinks in your armour. Behind you lies a lonely, empty village, mysteriously deserted. You didn’t stop for long there, something about the silence of that desolate place sent shivers down your spines.

Now as you urge your horses through a bank of tree’s you see the bulk of a mountain lying ahead and nearer at hand a solitary figure wearing grey robes, staff in hand hurries your way. He stops as if considering fleeing, but you see his shoulders slump as he realises flight is impossible, and then you are drawing abreast of him.

“A bleak day for travel” he greets you “and few there be that seek entry to these accursed lands”

His name is Tarn Goodfellow, which he will disclose if asked. He is cautious in his replies, preferring to tell the truth whenever possible.

If asked about his occupation, he will reply

“I am a merchant by trade, I have worked these roads for many a year, selling pots and pans, for all manner of things, but principally for the fungi’s and mushrooms prized by alchemists and workers of magic”

If questioned about whether he has met the bandits, he will respond:

“No, I have met no one, you are the first travellers I have encountered since leaving the village of Byford, many leagues and two days distant”

He will then elaborate of this statement by adding:

“As I came down the road I saw a curious thing. The quake had shaken the mountain, the side of which had slipped, crashing down into the forest below, and in the newly created cliff I saw all manner of rooms and tunnels”

“In all the years I have travelled this road, I have never known that such a place existed. I thought to investigate but then I thought on the tales of the evil that dwells in such places, so I hurried onwards”

The Entrance

Once the party leaves the merchant (unless they take him captive) they will quickly find themselves climbing the lower slopes of the mountain. The trail ascends in a series of zigzags until it passes through a cutting across the crest of a razor backed spine, and then descends a steep V-shaped valley.

Then, rounding a bulge in the mountain side,

Ahead, the path has disappeared beneath a morass of tumbled clay and stone, above which is a freshly torn scar in the mountainside. Near the top of the slide, dark against the tumbled expanse of white clay, are exposed galleries and passageways -- evidently the caves of which the tinker spoke.

Near the slide, concealed in a small copse of willows are the bandits horses, 9 in total. All are normal riding horses for the purposes of resale and Hp. One particularly large and vicious brute with a glossy black coat, will attempt to bite anyone who approaches too closely. It can be identified as Black Seth’s mount.

Pannier’s dangle from the flanks of each horse, which if searched will be found to contain, food, water and wine for several days, as will assorted pieces of cheap jewellery and assorted coinage to the value of about 100 gold pieces.

Careful observation will reveal tracks leading from the sward in the direction of the slide, a short walk across the slope.

On reaching the slide, the party will find ample evidence of the bandits passing; the impressions of the bandit’s boots have sunk deep in the freshly exposed clay. The slide can be climbed until about 20’ from the top; here a vertical cliff forms the final step to the caves beyond. A rope dangles from a ledge above and a confused melee of footprints surround it.

Climbing the rope brings the party to the ledge. A quick glance will be enough evidence to reveal that it is not natural, but part of a room once constructed within the mountain. The floor of the ledge is flagged, and on the far side, in the sloping wall is an archway about 6’ tall. Lying off centre is a mound of brown rag. The rags will disintegrate if handled roughly, and what it once was will remain a mystery.

Room 1.A low narrow tunnel of about 7’ or 8’ connects this room to the main passage. Inside the room is utterly pitch black, once illuminated the party will find themselves in tall beehive shaped chamber. Two oblong dark masses occupy the centre of the room, the remains of a tiny fire between them.

On closer examination the dark objects will suddenly resolve into two mummies lying on pallets. The creatures are of no known race. The passing of years has reduced them to dried husks of no more than skin, hair and bone. From the one that has survived in a greater state of preservation the characters will see something that might have looked like the head of a curious raccoons on a slender furred humanoid body.

Utensils and furnishing are sparse consisting of no more than bedrolls, some low simple furniture and equally simple eating implements. These people whoever they were lived frugally, that much is evident.

The tunnel walls fall away as you emerge into a chamber. The cavern seems airy and you have the sense of a massive void. Ahead, the flickering light of your torch illuminates a low stone parapet that curves away into the darkness on either side. A confused medley of footprints indicates that the bandits milled around uncertainly here, before going to the parapet

The Temple

You find yourselves looking down into a vast circular room, the floor of which seems very long way down. A flickering lantern casts a pool of light across the mysterious room, and in its light you can see a small building of whitish stone, with a colonnaded portico, which somehow doesn’t seem to fit with the simple and austere stonework that you have observed so far. Across the far side you see a staircase descending into the gloom and around the outside, ovals of the deepest darkness indicate the presence of many tunnels.

As the party descends the staircase, from far away, but quite clearly they will hear the cry of a seagull.

If the players ask, tell them the location is some 80 miles (or kilometres, leagues) or more from the nearest coast.

As the player’s characters approach the building you should built the mood of unease. Should they scout around the building (describe it as a temple – if they think its one) they will find only the one entrance, a set of large double doors on the portico. Surrounding the temple is a bed of cinders, for which there is no rational explanation (there are no burn marks or soot adhering to the walls of the temple despite the fact that the ashes go right to the foot of the wall).

Touching the marble of the building will produce a sensation of disgust and nausea. The stone will feel slimy and the characters will have the strongest urge to wipe their hands clean. A check will reveal no trace of moisture and a close examination of the stone will give the unsettling impression that the green swirls running through the white marble seem to writhe with a life of their own.

As the characters approach the double doors they will hear from the darkness behind the scream of a woman in the pains of giving birth. The acoustics of the vast chamber echo weirdly and it will be impossible to estimate the direction or even the distance of the source of the scream.

On the portico, the characters will discover a large pool of blood, some of it splattered and trickling down the walls, columns and doors. Streaks marks leading to under the double doors indicate that a number of heavy objects have been dragged into the temple.

Should the party enter the doors:

You swing the doors open …

… and find yourselves staring at the decapitated head of Black Seth, mouth opened in an eternal rictus scream.

Hearts hammering from the shock, it takes you a moment to recollect yourselves and tear your gazes from the terrible spectacle of the decapitated head on the marble pedestal and the slow trickles of blood.

Then a moment later you wish you hadn’t as you take in the forest of human limbs dangling from the roof, and the slow drips of blood puddling in crimson pools on the floor

As you step from the building you hear an enormous hollow boom, the sound echoing and re-echoing throughout the chamber. Its difficult to estimate the direction of the boom, all you can say for certain is that the thud emanated from somewhere to your left, deep in the bowels of the complex.

Then before the last echoes have died away you hear a viscous sucking sound.

And then the clatter of booted feet, running. “Help” someone cries distantly “help us!” as the thuds of the boots come closer. In one of the passages to your left you see a bobbing light, steadily approaching.