Episode 47
"A Nightmare on Hag Street"
(c) 2002 by Tom Morin and J. Sage Schreiner

Tron, a desperately lucky elf, Matt Grossman
Norel, a battle-scarred ranger, Tom Morin
Nigil, a mysterious noble from a distant land, Kevin Osborn
Tarilian, an elvish troubador of unsurpassed skill, Sonny McKnire
Nuet, a powerful sorcerer, Tyrel
All others, J. Sage Schreiner


In the city of Bellport, a troupe of traveling actors was once again 
performing "The Most Bloody and Terrible Tragedy of the Borderlands", by
Steadysword, a play concerning events which had occured some months previously
in a nearby land. As the play unfolds a young half-elf is suddenly pulled into 
the shadows.

Nuet Torquann: What the... cousin?
Jainos Torquann: (Looking a bit singed and disheveled) I need your help. Some
companions of mine are in need of arcane assistance. I must repay a debt so 
I need you to come to their aid. It is dangerous but very important and may 
lead you to riches along the way. Are you willing?
Nuet: I have nothing else pressing though I'd like to see the end of the 
play...
Jainos: Even better, I'll make you part of it...
Nuet: But I never wanted to be in theater...
Jainos: (adjusts something on his ring causing them both to dissapear)

Meanwhile, atop the spire dawn is breaking.

Nigil: Zzzzz....
Norel: Yawn
Tron: Just piss over the side like this. Ahhhh....
Tarilian: I don't think so.

Nuet appears out of nowhere looking a bit disoriented.

Laurallie: We have a visitor.
Nigil, Tron, Norel: (Shwing!)
Tarilian: Nuet! (runs forward and gives him a hug) What are you doing here?
Nuet: Cousin Jainos said you guys could use some help...
Nigil: Jainos sent you? Did he tell you what we're up against? Cousin?
Nuet: Er... no.
Norel: It's like this...

Introductions are made and Nuet is brought up to speed on the quest. Nuet's
mother was an... adventuresome Torquann who had "dealings with elves" in her
younger days.

Nuet: And this is my familiar Zeph. He's a small air elemental.
Zeph: Waft.
Tarilian: Sniff. It's going to be just like the old days.

The party prepairs to descend. Laurallie casts invisibility to undead on the 
party.

Tron: I promise not to waste it this time.

They descend into the spire, traveling quickly and pointing out to Nuet the traps they've
discovered. Eventually they make it back to the room adjoining the chasm where
they fought the Mohrgs the previous day. Through the door they follow the corridor to a
room with several crypts and many doors leading from the room. Picking a crypt they
investigate closer.

Tron: Clear!

Inside they find a stone sarcophagus. After once again getting the all clear from Tron,
Nigil and Norel lift the heavy lid and set it aside. Inside they find bones intermixed
with silver. Within the next crypt they find a few small gems.

Norel: Let's see what's through these double doors before we open the last 
crypt. I don't want to get surprised.
Tron: (fiddles with the lock) Sorry guys. There's no way to open the door 
without the key.
Nuet: Alow me. Open Sesame! (casts a spell on the door causing it to open)
Nigil: He opened the door with only two words. It usually takes Tron 4 or 5 
and most of those are swear words.
Inside the party is confronted by a large dragon, made of beautifully carved stone. It rests 
atop a pedestal. Inside its mouth rests something shiny.

Tron: Must be another part of the key.
Norel: There's gotta be a trap in here somewhere.
Nuet: Jeez, you guys are paranoid.
Nigil: That's only because everyone is out to get us.

Nuet sends Zeph to take a closer look. The familliar flies around the 
dragon's head and reports back that the dragon's teeth are closed over the object. Tron goes 
in searching for traps. As he approaches the pedestal the statue moves.

Tron: Oh shit!
Dragon Statue: Ptui! (WHAM!)
Tron: Urk. I hurt.
Nuet: Zeph! Fetch! (The familliar retrieves the object)
Tron: Leaving!
Nuet: Zap! (Several magic missiles lance out from his fingers)
Tarrilion, Nigil, Norel: (wade in and quickly dispatch the monster)
Nigil: Good thing it wasn't a real dragon...

The object is indeed part of the key. When connected to the main piece it 
adds one of the dragon's forelimbs.
Tarilian: Who knows how many more peices there are...

The party now opens the final crypt finding it empty.

Tron: Empty? That can't be. (steps inside and dissapears)
Norel: Uhhh... Tron?
Nigil: He must have been transported somewhere. Let's find him!
Laurallie: Maybe we should wait for him to come back. If he comes
back, that is.
Tarilian: Go right ahead. Nuet and I will follow behind you.

Norel and Nigil dive into the room and dissapear.

Meanwhile, Tron finds himself in a small nook that opens up into a large 
room dimly litby a fire with a pot bubbling atop it. On either side of the pot a horrific 
humanoid form with sharp teeth and claws is tending the stew. Along one wall several 
Garrilions can be seen sleeping. So far no one has noticed him.

First Humanoid: Round about the cauldron go;
In the poison'd entrails throw.
Toad, that under cold stone
Days and nights has thirty-one
Swelter'd venom sleeping got,
Boil thou first i' the charmed pot.

Both Humanoids: Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.

Second Humanoid: Fillet of a fenny snake,
In the cauldron boil and bake;
Eye of newt and toe of frog,
Wool of bat and tongue of dog,
Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,
Lizard's leg and owlet's wing,
For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

Tron: (steps into the room then back into the nook and dissapears, 
reappearing in the empty crypt) Hey, where are Nigil and Norel?
Nuet: Err... They went looking for you.
Tron: Come on! There's gonna be a fight! (steps out and back into the crypt 
and dissapears)
Laurallie: Right behind you. (steps into the crypt and dissapears)

Meanwhile, Nigil and Norel have appeared in the nook.

Norel: Hard to see... no sign of Tron.
Night Hag: Eh?
Nigil: For Tron! (leaps forward and delivers a mighty blow) My weapon has no effect?

Tron and Laurallie arrive.
Tron: Getting kinda crouded in here. Go get 'em!
Norel: Flee! (Steps out and back in and dissapears)
The other three quickly follow suit. Unfortunately, so do the two night 
hags.

Night hag 1: (grapples with Laurallie)
Night hag 2: (sends a stream of magic missles at Nigil)
Nuet: These creatures are able to shrug off the effects of my magic.
Tarrilion: My magic as well.
Norel: Time to go old school. (dives onto Night Hag 2 and starts grappleing 
managing to bend back it's pinky causing it to shriek in pain) I hurt it! Ha!
Suck it down, bitch! You wanna piece of me, huh? Huh? Get some, get some!
Nigil: My turn. (Dives onto the pile)
Night hag 1: When shall we two meet again
In thunder, lightning, or in rain? (Scratch)
Night hag 2: When the hurlyburly's done,
When the battle's lost and won. (Chomp)
Night hag 1: Fair is foul, and foul is fair:
Hover through the fog and filthy air. (Squeeze)

Suddenly the two creatures dissapear.

Norel: That's not fair.
Nuet: What's with the rhyming?
Tarilian: That's called poetry. I thought you were literate? Anyway, I kind of
like it.
Night Hag 2: (appears near Norel and bites him)
Norel: I don't feel too good.
Laurallie: Obad-Hai burn you! (hits Night Hag 2 with searing light)
Night Hag 2: (screams in pain and dissapears)
Night Hag 1: (Appears near Nuet and blasts him with magic missles)
Nuet: Time for diner. Mooo! (polymorphs the Night Hag into a female 
cow)
Black and White Heifer: Mooo?
Nigil: Ha! Take that! (hits the cow but again does no damage)
Tarilian: My spells still have no effect against it.
Tron: Goldfish! You should have turned it into a goldfish!
Nuet: Sorry, I was hungry...
Norel: How do you grapple a cow?
Nigil: By the horns?
Cow: (Dissapears)

The party waits for a while but nothing appears.

Nuet: Most of our spells have been expended. Perhapse we should return 
tomorrow?
Nigil: Sounds like a plan.
Norel: First let's barracade the door to the teleporter.

After barring the door the party returns to the top of the tower before noon 
and spend the day resting. That night some of the party experience disturbing dreams.

Nigil: So, we meet again Gabriel.
Gabiel: (grins)
Nigil: Hey... I'm naked... and tied up... and you're naked...
Gabriel: Who's yo' daddy? Dats right! Who's yo daddy! Shake it! Shake it!
Nigil: NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Norel's dreams are no better.

Norel: Tron, help me, I'm naked and tied up.
Tron: Who's yo' daddy?
Norel: NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In the morning the two fighters are exhausted and feel drained.

Norel: (glares at Tron)
Tron: What?
Laurallie: These monsters have drained your constitution. I can use a spell 
of restoration to reverse it's effects and I'll remove the disease from Norel 
as well.
Nigil: we have to kill those hags.
Tarilian: But how?
Nuet: With a little luck my magic may penetrate their magical protection.
Norel: And there's always the old fashion way. Hitting them really hard.

The party descends back to the room with the crypts. Choosing a door they 
continue their exploration. It leads to a room with a fountain against one wall. A dragon's 
head sticks out of the wall as if the water that filled the fountain came from it's 
mouth.

Tron: It's empty but it looks like someone drew sounds on it.

Tarrilion: Alow me. Hmmm... it appears to be some kind of phrase in draconic. Ahem,
it reads:
"Shatter the bonds of Time
Until Ashardalon returns"

Suddenly a dark amber oily substance comes from the dragon's mouth and 
begins to fill the fountain.

Nuet: Hmmmm.... I'll take some samples. It could be interesting to study.

Finding nothing else the paty returns to to room with the crypts.

Tron: One more door to go.

Through the next door they see a smashed door and signs of fairly recent fighting of
girallons. The walls are splattered with blood, there are scorch marks and dead girallons.

Norel: Ape fight ape?
Nigil: Why would they fight each other?
Nuet: You maniacs! You blew it all to hell! Damn you! Damn you all to hell!

Through the smashed door the party can hear the sound of many approaching 
footsteps.

Tron: Close the door!

The party closes the door and forms up on the other side. Suddenly the doors 
are yanked off their hinges and several girallons come charging through.

Nigil: Not again...

Nigil is pushed backward alowing the beasts to enter the room. Sudenly a 
pink tongue lashes out at Norel as two Mohrgs come into view and the battle begins in 
earnest.

Laurallie: Obad-Hai burn you! (zort)
Tron: Get some! (twang, twang)
Tarilian: Take that! (slash)
Nuet: Feal my wrath! (hits the monsters with a lightning bolt)
Nigil: (hack, chop)
Norel: (hack, slash, chop, thud, thud, thud)
Nigil: Hey! Leave some for me!
Girallon: Raaarg! (beats the crap out of Nuet)
Nuet: (falls in a bloody heap)
Tarilian: I'll save him. (heals Nuet)

Soon the battle is over leaving the party bloodied but not too bad off.

Nigil: It's nice having a sorcerer on our side.
Tron: Bah. Reading sounds only gets you in trouble. Remember what happened 
to Rhahid when he read that note?
Nuet: What happened?
Tron: Boom! Heh. Killed his bird.

The party follows a hallway that ends in a door. Through the door Tron can 
hear a fire, a bubbling pot, and snoring. He motions the party back down the
hall out of  earshot.

Tron: I think the hags are in the next room.
Norel: We need a plan.
Tarilian: We should be at full strength. Let's go rest.
Laurallie: I think if we send Tron in alone as a distraction, we can take 'em.

They return to the top of the spire and rest. Once again Nigil and Norel are 
visited by haunting dreams. The next morning...

Laurallie: We're getting low on diamond dust... It's necessary for restoring
positive energy.
Nigil: I need a fix.
Norel: I'll wait.
Laurallie: Obad-Hai, return Nigil's vitality.

The party retrns to the hag lair and execute their plan. Nuet casts improved 
invisibility on all of the party and Tarilian casts haste on Tron, Nuet, and Norel.
Then  he casts see invisiblity on himself and Nuet. After Nigil smashes the door 
open the fight  begins.

Tron: Take that! (stabs a still-sleeping Giralon in the head)
Nuet: Fireballs coming online. (wooosh... BOOM!)
Tarlian: I can do that too! (Throws a gold orb from the Mohrg necklace) (BOOM!)
Giralons: (die a flaming death)
Night Hag 2: (dies a flaming death)
Night Hag 1: (shrugs off the magic)
Norel: (Grabs the short sword in both hands and hits the hag with all of his 
strength) I think I hurt it... a little.
Tarilian: Heads up! (hurls another golden orb, roasting the remaining 
giralons)
Night Hag 1: Nice try. (sends a stream of magic missles at Nigil which miss)
Nigil: I like being invisable. Hack. I just wish I could hurt her.
Nuet: Taste lightning! Zorm! Zorm!
Tarrilion: Stand still!
Night Hag 1: Your powers are weak.
Laurallie: Obad-Hai BURN YOU!!! Zorch!
Night Hag 1: Urk! (badly burned)
Tron: (hurls a flaming flask of oil at the hag setting her on fire)
Norel: Chop! A little more damage. Maybe.
Nuet: You're going down. Zort zort zort zort zort.
Night Hag: (falls to the withering hail of magic missles)
Party: YES!!!

Searching the room they find a magical ring on one of the hags and some 
platinum in a box in the firepit. There is a single door on one side of the room and a 
double door on the other. Through the single door they see a sarcophagus. Tron finds a 
trap and tries to disarm it but fails causing a block of stone to fall from the ceiling and 
hit him in the head.

Tron: What the ...? There was no way I could have disarmed that. Grrr...
Nigil and Norel move in and pop open the sarcophagus. Inside there are 
sounds drawn.
Tarrilion: It's in draconic... it says "Watch your head".
Tron: Very funny.

On the other side of the room is another door leading to a room with another 
sarcophagus and two doors.

Tron: That sarcophagus is covered in poison!
Norel: Laurallie, can you creat water to wash it off?
Laurallie: I used it to cool the platinum we found in the fire pit.
Nigil: Let's leave it and come back later.
Nuet: There's traps all over the place...

In the next room is yet another sarcophagus but no door.

Tron: All clear.

Nigil and Norel pop it open which releases gas that was traped within. Nigil 
and Norel hold their breath but Tron breaths deeply.

Tron: I feel terrible.
Laurallie: The gas has sapped your vitality. Obad-Hai, restore him!
Tron: All better, let's go. Gotta love health insurance.

The next room has an alter at one end and a door at the other.

Tron: No traps but more drawn sounds.
Tarilian and Nuet step forward and read the words.
Nuet: It's some kind of riddle.
Talilian:

What surpasses Ashardalon,
Is more despicable than the Great Wyrm;
The poor have it,
The rich need it;
If eaten, death follows?

Nuet: Oooo... ooo... I know! Nothing! (Keels over).
Tarlian: Oh no! Nuet! Nuet? Nuet?
Norel: What happened?
Tarilian: When we read the words we got trapped in some kind of spell. Nuet figured
it out... but I think it was an invitation to join the cult. Is he going to be okay?
Laurallie: I can't detect breath.
Tron: I told you no good comes from reading.
Nigil: Is he dead?
Laurallie: No, but he is close. It will take some time for his body to 
recover.
Norel: I guess we're done for today.
Tron: That sucked! Stupid cheesy altar thing! 

To be continued....