The Danger Gang Knock back A Few Magic Pints
After another good night's rest, the Danger Gang decides, collectively, to check out what's behind the highly damaged door to the south. They head down there and it sounds like a bull in a china shop. Behind the door they find a seven and a half foot tall nude man, stitched together from lesser men. He is a Flesh Golem. He hits hard, but they hit harder and soon take him down. While his room is totally wrecked, the room past that is still in good condition. Inside there are a bunch of containers of liquids, seven of which detect as magical. They take turns sipping them. Karl first sips a green one that detected as Charm. It makes him talk like an Irishman, if for but a moment. Then he sips the blue, (which detected as combat) and it made him feel like he was totally ready to kick some ass. Can tries a milky white one; it makes his hands sticky. Martialis tries a glossy black one that detected as protection and immediately realizes it was not to be drunk. It smells like curdled milk. Karl tries rubbing some of it on a coin, and it leaves a clear waxy build-up. They'll figure it out later.
They go back to a previous room to talk to a demon that they had heard behind a door. He seems reasonably chatty. Seems Phillip IV summoned him and he's now some sort of free-willed undead, maybe a Lich. One was bound to pop up sooner or later. Anyway, he summoned this here demon (or Daemon) to help him with some scholarly stuff. He was to read a book called the Al Aziz, but was only to read every other word. Still, reading just every other word, even this daemon was scared. The Gang asks if there was any mention of octopuses, and he admits that there was a passage that went "octopuses...return...that...when...is...distracted".
Then Danger Gang thank him for his time and tell him they'll consider letting him out.
In the interim Can, has developed a case of the grumbly guts, so they take him back to town. Luckily, Zahrah is in a fine fighting fettle after her me time, and is ready to rejoin the party. They go back to the dungeon and Marty starts looking around for that Will-O-Wisp. He's confident that with a protection from lightening, he'll be alright. He scouts around for a bit, but he can't find the little bugger. He grabs Kotrag and Hush, hoping that Hush's eagle ears will help track him down, and she does indeed point him in the right direction. He sends them out, but Kotrag gets lost and ends up at a well where he loses a day's worth of memories. He's really confused. Hush tries to explain what happened as she leads him out. Meanwhile, Martialis has caught the eye (or whatever primary sensory organ a Will-O-Wisp has) of the Will-O-Wisp and tries to lead him into the room where they found the potions. The little glow bee is too smart for that, though, and won't take the bait. Marty grabs the rest of the Gang and they go to check out that Garden of Death.
Inside there's a eerie red glow and tons of crazy looking plants. The whole room detects as vaguely magical. There seems to be on especially odd plant, a rose of a deep color. Karl decides to go mess with it, and starts waving at it. The plant smacks him across the face with one of it's mighty tendrils. Marty yells, "What are you doing, that's a Blood Thorn. Karl is entangled in it's thorny vine and it starts drinking his blood. The rest of the gang decides they should do something about this. Unfortunately, Zahrah and Kotrag both get their arms entangled, and are therefor useless against this plant unless they plan to drown it in their blood. Martialis and Karl soon prune it down to size, but not before it has put a serious hurting on the party. They need to rest, but they're worried that the Will-O-Wisp might be waiting outside. They curl up right there for some rest.
Their rest is short lived, however. Kotrag, on watch, suddenly realizes that his companions have been replaced by some sort of demonic doppelgangers. The most foul in his eyes is the one that would presume to pose as Hush. It is a twisted, fun house mirror simulacrum, and Kotrag will have none of it. He rips into her with two, count them, two swords.
Unfortunately, Kotrag was wrong, under the influence of some kind of poison. Hush wakes up screaming, for the first time making an noise audible to the rest of the party. Wounded, Karl and Zahrah grab her and lead her out of the Garden of Death while Marty changes into a lion. Marty eventually subdues the Barbarian. Marty tries to drag him someplace more sensible, but as soon as he steps out in the hallway, he sees a mysterious glowing humanoid. He runs back to the garden. Karl, Zahrah and Hush are holed up in the room that used to have potions. Karl tries to help Hush's wounded psyche with some candied fruits, but she'll have none of it.
Meanwhile, back in Porthos, Gershom has begun to worry about his friends, having not heard from them for several days. He asks for a Divination, and YHWH tells him his buddies are in a bit of trouble. He scuttles down there. He starts looking about for his friends, but instead finds that same glowing humanoid. Gershom tries to turn it, but the beast tries a clever bit of chicanery, making himself appear to go away, while in fact just making his glow smaller. Gershom doesn't buy it, though. The thing swats at him, and he collapses to the ground in icy pain. Marty hears this and comes out to save him. They distract the thing and this that and the other, end up locking it the Garden of Death. Gershom, Marty, and Kotrag rejoin the rest of the party in the chemistry room. They hit the sack.
