Gnome's OOTA Story Thread [CLOSED]

"Indeed." The noble drow mutters and peeks out from his cover and uses the black eldritch rod to blast the aberration again with a purple beam of eldritch crackling force.

Eldritch Blast: 19 Force: 11 Necrotic: 5

Khessa curses beneath clenched teeth for her miss, then runs to Ebzer's side, unsheathing her greatsword and fighting in pairs with her brother according to the scheme they have already consolidated: as soon as Anator distracts the opponent, the blonde arcane warrior immediately delivers a blow with her enchanted blade.

 Blow with enchanted blade: 12 Damage: 10 (slashing)

Another flurry of blows and attacks are quick to fell the dangerous foe! As you recover from the decisive battle, another myconid hops down from the upper reaches of the area and joins in the rapport, introducing themselves in an unusually chipper manner. "Hello new softers! I am Gasbide! I am so excited to meet you! Are you from the surface!? I have so many questions for you! Do you know the density of oak and ash wood? How long is a furlough? What about your bricks, what are their dimensions!? I'm building building building! I need more things to build! Tell me everything!"

Khessa is relieved that the dangerous predator was eliminated before she could fight back: "Well done, friends! By acting together, we have neutralized this threat without difficulty! Now we can get back to dealing with..."

But before the blonde arcane warrior can finish her sentence, Gasbide enters with her exuberance and his questions.

"Pleasure to meet you, Gasbide!" the tall adventure seeks to make friends "I am Khessa, Khessa Cabbagefield. Yes, I come from the surface! Ash and Oak are both hard woods, but I'd say white Oak is the hardest. A furlough, you say? It is about 660 '. Oh, brick dimension now? The standard brick dimension is about 8'' X 4'' X 4''. Hey, now I've earned the right to ask you three questions!" she smiles and winks "Let's start with the first two. What is the last thing you built? And what's the most direct route to the surface, starting from here?"

"Just build build! The Great Seeder will tell us what it is in time! Now we build! Never been to the surface! But building to the surface! Might see someday!" The odd myconid dances about in a haphazard fashion as they answer.

Quote from Gnomesftw >>

"Just build build! The Great Seeder will tell us what it is in time! Now we build! Never been to the surface! But building to the surface! Might see someday!" The odd myconid dances about in a haphazard fashion as they answer.

"The Great Seeder is among us already?! Oh, my..." Khessa is excited "That's wonderful Gasbide! Can we see it? Where is it? But a thing does not convince me... why building to the surface? Are you planning to leave the Underdark?"

"Because the the Lady of Fungi will not stop with the Underdark." The noble drow mutters to himself, eyeing the new fungoid with suspicion.

"Don't know! Know soon though! Just build build build!" The odd myconid then jitters off back up around the strange scaffolding and partially built structures. "Why don't we move on," Basidia comments a moment later.

Quote from Gnomesftw >>

"Don't know! Know soon though! Just build build build!" The odd myconid then jitters off back up around the strange scaffolding and partially built structures. "Why don't we move on," Basidia comments a moment later.

"Sure Basidia," Khessa comes "let's go".

Then, when no other myconid listens: "So you'll make a zombie out of the alfa grick body here? And... any idea how we can enter the garden to check what's going on? Or we must find a way ourselves?"

The noble drow simply nods and is ready to continue following Basidia on the tour of Neverlight Grove.

Katryl is also the ready to continue following Basidia's tour. 

Just as you turn to leave the north ridge, another myconid comes down to introduce themselves as Hebopbe. They are curious as to why you are here, but after a brief exchange of dubious intent with Basidia, mentioning their disappointment at the lack of meldings lately, they turn back to the strange construction area and leave you all in peace.

Basidia comments, "The corpses are not reanimated, we feed them to the ground to enrich our soils. You will have to talk Yestabrod when we are done, they have been guarding the entrance to the garden." They then take you toward the southern terraces. These terraces are quiet and calm. The only sounds here are soft, “ploopy” splashes as water drips from stalactites above onto the caps of oversized mushrooms sprouting from mushy earth.

"That is strange," Katryl says. "When Loobamub asked us to kill the grick, he said to bring it to you to reanimate. Guess he was mistaken."

She continues to follow along with the myconid's tour. "This is very peaceful here. Where else are we going?"

Khessa shares Katryl's impression of the pleasant sense of peace of the southern terraces: 'If only all of the Underdark were just as peaceful!'

After enjoying the rare sensation for some time, however, the blonde arcane warrior focuses again on the need to discover (and possibly sabotage) Zuggtmoy's plans: "Do you know Basidia? We went to Gracklstugh before coming here and found a place where lots of Bigwig and Pygmywort were growing!" she recalls "By chance do they grow here too? And could we have some? You know, in case we are denied access to the garden... maybe by reducing our size we could be able to evade surveillance (and once inside we could return to our normal size)".

"Our efforts are focused on other ventures, but those do grow elsewhere." As you get closer another somewhat sprightly looking myconid comes down to meet you, saddled with a couple small packs. A moment later they introduce themselves as Rasharoo, leader of the circle of explorers. "These are visiting softers, they are going to help us investigate what is happening in the garden we hope." Rasharoo emanates a sudden feeling of distrust before speaking, "I do not trust Phylo, they keep asking us to expand our borders but we have all we need here."

"Pleasure to meet you, Rasharoo!" Khessa greets the new friend with enthusiasm "I'm Khessa, Khessa Cabbagefield! I and my companions do not trust Phylo either!" she winks "It is so obvious something is wrong with him... We will be glad to help you with your garden affair".

"Good to meet you as well," Katryl says. "It seems everyone is distrustful of Phylo. Shouldn't we try to figure out a way to investigate what's happening?"

Rasharoo says Phylo has been attracting...converting many of the myconids to their cause and plenty of zurkwhood guards. If you have been invited though they think that is the best time to see what's going on, and will support you if you are supporting Basidia. They have also planned several escape routes should they need to leave the grove, and know of ways to the surface, but have never been there themselves. They mention your best and safest chance to get to the surface is through one of the mine tunnels near Blingdenstone. 

Basidia then takes you back down and as a token of thanks, offers you a scroll of protection (against fiends specifically) and ushers you toward the garden. This plateau rises higher than the other terraces, screened by a natural fence of soaring zurkhwood stalks. Muffled murmuring can be heard from atop the plateau. 

The low muttering grows louder as you reach the top, turning into a symphony of moans, cries, and hisses. The only light comes from a few glowing mushrooms along the edge, but even in the gloom, you can’t miss the source of the sounds. The heads of creatures of a dozen humanoid Underdark races peek from the ground, mold and fungi growing around them.

One voice calls out loudly in Undercommon — a female drow fighting to speak. “Please … for your gods of light . . . kill me!” She manages to stir within her living grave, raising a spider medallion half-embedded in the bloated growth that was once her hand. Half her face is rotten and pustulate, a bed for the sprouting of scores of tiny mushrooms. “The Great Seeder … trap … she’s here … the Lady of Decay … Zuggtmoy …”

'So is this a priestess of that oversized she-vermin who thinks herself a goddess?' Khessa feels a sense of deep hatred come over her as she sees the symbol of Lolth - that vermin who rules the drow, who has corrupted them in her image and instigated them to behave in that way... which led to the kidnapping of her family and also probably marked the life of Traydark 'Maybe Zuggtmoy, if he had the power, wouldn't do any better... And indeed I want to stop her... But you, priestess, surely don't move me to pity!'

"Aren't you afraid to damn your immortal soul, priestess?" the blonde arcane warrior asks, mockingly "How do you think she will welcome you, your Lolth, when you appear before her immediately after begging for death in the name of 'our gods of light'?"

"Anyway," the tall adventuress concedes, "stopping Zuggtmoy is a priority, so, quite exceptionally, I'll do you the favor you ask of me... if you'll help us figure out how to sabotage her plans. What is it that the Lady of Decay wants to do?"