Yspadadden is a powerful Diviner and has the personalia of False-Priest Harald, the villain of the previous expedition, last seen escaping justice on the back of a Nightmare (Feeling Lucky Priest?). After some weeks tracking him around the fringes of civilisation in the badlands north-west of the city, Yspadadden is most surprised to find that Harald is now in Chittagong.
Yspadadden gathers together his comrades from the previous trip. The Loki Priest, Stumpy, is not to be found but Lenore brings along another friend called Elsa. She looks a slip of a girl but is a strong and agile fighter, skilled in outlandish martial arts. Yspadadden thinks she ought to wear some proper armour.
The Dwarf has pinpointed the False-Priest’s location to the Bar Mascarana, an upmarket nightlife venue in one of the better quarters of the city. Those with skills in such matters – Trevillion, Lenore and Jezza – go to there to see what they can discover. They return saying that while they can find nothing specifically about Harald, there is to be some big, secret gathering in their basement a couple of nights hence.
“Cultists, I bet,” says Trevillion
” What are cultists? What do they do?” asks Elsa, innocently.
“We’re down on cultists,” says Yspadadden, darkly. No more is said on the matter.
“If it’s a basement, there’s bound to be a sewer entrance,” says the Dwarf. He goes off to find his friend Ranji Rat, for he is the most skilled sewer-man he knows. Ranji says he knows the back entrance to Club Mascarana well and agrees to guide them there.
On the appointed day they follow Ranji down into the ancient sewers beneath Chittagong. They find the way guarded by a pack of were-rats, but make short work of them. They find themselves on the fringes of a huge throng of black cowled figures, clustering around an altar to which a naked girl is bound. Above her a priest stands, sacrificial dagger in hand. Elsa can now see why they are down on cultists.
They do not hesitate but wade into the mass of hooded figures with their blades. Though massively outnumbered they have the initiative and the benefit of complete surprise. It becomes apparent that many of their foe have no particular skill at arms and fall like chaff before their blades. Panic grips the cultists and they begin to flee, most rushing upstairs to Club Mascaranas. Yet there remain some dangerous individuals amongst them. The priest casts some magics at them and displays some skill with a blade before he is cut down. A witch levels a wand at Yspadadden and would have broken his leg with a black magic curse, but for the Dwarf’s protective amulet. She too is slain. And there is Harald the False-Priest. He is cornered by Yspadadden and Trevillion and dispatched. Yspadadden lops off his head and puts it into a leather bag.
The cultists are all dead or fled. The party comprises a number of very expert looters and they set about their business. It will not be long, they suspect, before paid-for security from Club Mascaranas comes down the stairs in force and it would be best if they were no longer there when they did. The freed captive is Jada, a street entertainer drugged and captured a few hours ago. She comes from some Cheapside tenement and is very grateful to be alive but dirt-poor. There will be no reward for returning her to her family. Nevertheless they all feel they have done a good deed. Most of the loot comes from the bodies of the witch, the priest and Harald. They find several gold medallions with rat motifs that are plainly some sort of token. Yspadadden says they have power. On Harald’s body they find an enchanted scroll – Summon Nightmare.
They leave the way they came and Ranji leads them safely back to Yspadadden’s Chittagong tower to count and split the loot. Jezza is given Harald’s head, which he cunningly chooses to give to Vega to pass on to Mr Marcellus. He thus restores himself in the good books of the gang boss’s head honcho.
G-34
OE Date: Summer 697
Characters: Yspadadden, Ranulf, Ubaron, Trevillion, Jezza, Lenore, Elsa NPCs: Ranji Rat
Real World: Winter 2015; Where: Bristol