D&D ADVENTURE! THE TEMPLE OF PIETER ONNE-DRAY

'Water melons?' Yngwie the bard gasped. "Speak not of such evil in this holy place." His eyes turned back to the half-snakeman, who was showing signs of returning to consciousness.
Rambulge frowned at the scroll that Seu had passed to him. That it was magical was beyond doubt, he could feel it in his fingertips, but the writing was a strange, sickeningly flowing script that hurt his eyes and twisted his mind. He could determine nothing of it's purpose.
The strange man moaned and stirred in his place on the ground. His eyes flickered open - they were suprisingly human in appearance. The first thing he saw was Bari trying to peer at his cloaca. The creature started bucking and straining at his bonds, but the paladin knew his bondage well - he was stuck fast. The gag in his mouth stayed in place, between teeth that gnashed in fury. Eventually he gave up the struggle and lay, breathing heavily, staring balefully at the group...

I thought I understood JB's watermelon thing as a reference to Game of Thrones, I've no idea where you guys have taken it now but I'll roll with it ;) And what exactly is this 'odd' feeling Robin feels for the snake? ;)
 

Asslessman

Member
Erm...I'm afraid it was just a poor attempt at finding a funny/silly thing to smash on the poor snakeman's head (like the Ming vase which made ma laugh like a maniac), that's all there was to it, I was lost after that :?

Seu approached the tip of his flaming blade in the direction of the Snakeman's throat and he looked at him in the eye :

"My friends and I have some questions to ask you. Be sure that any ill-advised action form you will result in only one response (he approached the tip). Some of us here hold deep grudges against you and some seem to be on the very thin edge between interrogatng you and killing you right now...
We are going to ask you some questions nowand the only thing I want to see moving is your head to either say YES or NO, do you understand me?"
 

Asslessman

Member
you have no idea how bad I wanted to start with "what is your name"
I was thinking about posting multiple questions at once to save time and to avoid unnecessary multiposting

Are you related to the IDRA?

Are you an officer around here?
 

Penddraig

Member
that would be my fault then :). In a roleplay group I belong to there is a long running joke that water melons are a harbinger of doom and destruction, mainly due to the fact that once, many years ago, someone utterly failed to break one open and he had an "accident" with it. I couldn't resist Robin encountering one in the past. Snake men, well Robin is used to horrible creature but i figured even he wouldn't like snakes, he'll leave the cross-species "association" to Bari.
 
The snakeman shook his head in answer to both questions. Yngwie cursed in frustration. "Seu, we're not going to get the answers we need from a gagged man. I say we let him talk." The elf pulled the blade from his belt, the one his friends had used to take their own lives. "If he calls out, I'll cut his throat... what say you?"
 

Asslessman

Member
"As you will Master elf; I think our companion knows where his interest is..."

As he said those words, Seu' resolve hardened and the fire from flamebrand seemed fiercer for a moment.
 
Yngwie cut away the gag from the creature's mouth, careful to avoid the sharp, inhuman teeth. The snakeman licked his dry lips with a long, forked tongue - it was quite repulsive.

"Where am I?" it hissed in a low, sibilant voice.

"We'll ask the questions," Yngwie replied, sternly. "Who are you? What happened here? Why have you desecrated this temple? What did you do to the priests who resided here?!"

"You have many questionss. I will answer as I can. My name is Hisston Bloodenthrall. I am a servant of The Missstresss. We came to this place and made it herss. The previous occupants didn't sseem to mind."

"What do you mean? Why didn't they mind?"

"They were dead. Ssss."

"Continue. What happened to this world? Why did IDRA abandon Platina?"

"Sss, what do I know of such things? We are Yuan-Ti, children of the Missstresss, the affairs of otherss mean nothing to uss."

"Tell me about your people."

"We are superior."

"Apart from that?"

The snakeman paused, looking at each of the party gathered there in turn. "If you do not leave thiss place now, you will not remain alive. Thiss temple is ourss now. It belongss to the missstresss."

"Who is this 'missstresss' you speak of?"

"She is the divine goddesss of the Yuan-Ti, who dwells among uss, and guidess our actionss. She will feasst on your ssoulss, or commend you to the pit. I am her favoured sservant, if you harm me, great ill will befall you." Hisston lapsed into sullen silence.

"How many of you inhabit this temple?" Yngwie's face was showing strain.

"Hundredss."

"The temple isn't that big!"

"We have made extenssive adjustmentss."

Yngwie was pacing up and down. "Well, what do you think?" he said to the rest of the party. Hisston eyed them, his human eyes glittering in the light of Flamebrand.
 

weazil

Moderator
Bari shuddered as a small tingle ran through his nether region at the prospect of visiting the Mistress' pit. Jordann was definitely testing him - daemons were one thing, but gods?

Wow.

"Why are you favoured above any others?" Bari asked once he'd overcome his... interest.
 

Penddraig

Member
Robin looked over from the shadow of the hidden door. "How do your people fight? What weapons? Do you use magics? You say that your people inhabit this temple but which areas do you frequent the most? How many of your people are warriors? Spellcasters? Clerics?"

Robin was starting to dislike this place more and more. What were they going to do with this creature once they had their answers?
 
Hisston the Yuan-Ti looked at Bari. "My likenesss pleassess the missstresss. I resemble her." He waggled his two sets of shoulders by way of explanation. "It is a great honour for those of my caste. I was not blesssed with sstrong ssnakeblood - I am unpure, and unsscaled," at this, he twitched his bound up tail. The party realised with disgust that his tail was in fact not scaly, but smooth, pinkish skin beneath the strange garment he wore to protect it. "I would be tending the sspawn pools and shoveling shit were it not for my unique... giftss. I am grateful to the missstresss for her blessingss. The ssnakemother was not kind to me... but the missstresss is kind. If you harm me, to you she will not be kind, sss."

Bari nodded. Multiple arms. He wondered what else the mistress had multiples of...

To Robin, Hisston sneered. "The Yuan-Ti are ssuperior. We place little trust in magicss, our prayerss to the missstresss are stronger than any feeble sspellcraft. Our weapons are sharp, and bite deep. Those of usss who are gifted with sstrong ssnakeblood can crush a man with our coilss before he can draw a weapon, or even breath." Hisston nodded vehemently at his statement.

"Answer my other questions," the ranger said, gruffly.

"You wish to know the besst route of esscape, don't you? Thiss is the reasson you wish to know our numberss and where they frequent. Your chancess of getting to the entrance are sslim, but there iss a way you might make it. I could show you, but I would need... assurancess... firsst." The Yuan-Ti eyed them warily, one after the other.
 

Asslessman

Member
"I remember when the premices of Wyrmrock Catsle were infested by vypers, my father would send people to destroy the nests... did you not hear him talk about spawning chambers Bufo?"

Looking back right into the eyes the snake-man :
"I hear you talk about insurances but you are at the wrong end of the blade to make any demand here. You can sense we are men of good and honor and you can understand we don't throw our words lightly so that will be your best insurance for now. Just imagine deceiving us or taking us for fools and you shall witness new levels of "unkindness", I'll personnaly see for that promise to be kept."

Hisston saw the look Rambulge, Robin, Yngwie and Seu gave him at that moment and he sensed they were not bluffing. The one that worried him the most though was the black skinned one with his shirt open on a hairy chest decorated with an impressive tiger fang. That one seemed the meanest. He acted all quiet and cool but Hisston had seen him look under his belt and Gods knew what else he had tried to do during his blackout... Part of him knew he didn't want to annoy that one...

Seu stood up, his blade tip still pointing at Hisston, he wispered to his companions near him "We have to now what they are about, we cannot let this unnoticed , if some evil action is at work , it has to be stopped! If we are to follow this creature's path we have to make sure he's not sending us to certain death, (looking at Bari and Eggbert) any of you can read through his lies?"

Getting back to Hisston " A man or whatever you might consider yourself, favored by the priestess must know what your goal is here. Tell us what it is, what do you seek? What is it you are preparing for and you want to accomplish?"
 

Penddraig

Member
"Wait," Robin paused,"you say that if it wasn't for your gifts you would be doing lesser work. What gifts are those? Is there some sort of contest between the Mistress and the Snakemother as with one you are blessed and one you are cursed? You also mentioned caste. How are your people organised, what do others of your kind look like and what make some superior to others?"
 

weazil

Moderator
I don't recall if we got off here because Cheesethrane (sp?) got off here, or if we got off here in order to do something to enable us to get to Cheesethrane? I'm asking because I was about to ask our newest friend about the rat, when it crossed my mind that I don't remember why we're here...
 

Asslessman

Member
We know Cheesethrane McDouche took the train to Crystal city and we had to follow him there but unfortunately, taking the train and getting out of it like hobbos in the middle of the city would have likely resulted in the IDRA raining sh*t and hell on our backs again. Yngwie suggested that we should take the route we're on because he knew it to be hidden. We just didn't expected THAT kind oif snakes and probably not THAT many of them... :).
It doesn't cost a thing to ask about him though... My main concern would be to have a way to know truth from lie in the snake-man's words...
 
Okay, recap time: you are chasing Wandemar Cheesethrane to Crystal City. He took the train, because he is rich, but your money was worthless when you reached IDRA Grand Central and you are currently banned from using their services due to certain misdemeanours, so you all hopped onto a goods train like hobos at the suggestion of the elf, Yngwie, and have hitched a lift to an unused platform leading to a world abandoned by IDRA for reasons unknown. Here you have found a sexy sex-temple overrun by Yuan-Ti snakemen, and have captured one of your very own to interrogate and make some sense of this whole mess. And here we are... and I'm pretty sure the only mice Hisston knows are the kind he eats for breakfast :grin:

Hisston gave Robin a long, hunted look. "Very well, I will tell you of my race. The Yuan-Ti are children of an elder god; in agess past, primitive humanss worshipped thiss ssnake god, and were blesssed with offsspring gifted with the asspect of sserpentss. There are many who choose to ignore our human heritage, but it iss true. Many of uss are born with weak ssnakeblood - we are the lowesst casste, unfavoured by the ssnakemother. Thosse who have sstrong ssnakeblood are sscaled, with sserpentine headss, sstrong tailss, poissoned fangss. The most blesssed among us, are almost pure ssnake. The ssnakemother is one ssuch. They are rare, but one or two in a hundred generationss. The ssnakemother kills the femaless, and the maless are kept for mating. The blood remainss sstrong. We remain ssuperior."

The snakeman paused for a moment, regarding the party with eyes that seemed to bear a burden of hatred and pain.

"When I hatched, the ssnakemother wished me dead. I was a mockery of the ssnakeblood - tailed, but with no sscales, and a human head. My only redeeming gift wass my four armss - thiss alone sspared my life. The missstresss demanded that I become her acolyte when I came of age, and took me into her sservice. The missstresss is my mother, my goddesss, and my-" the creature stopped abruptly. "The missstresss hass my loyalty. The ssnakemother does not."

Now Hisston looked at the party with determination. "The time for guarded wordss is over. If you are to act, the time iss now. I will be frank with you - I wish you to kill the ssnakemother. She liess not far from here in the birthing chamber. She has fed recently, and will be sslow, ssluggish. She hass but two guardss for you to vanquish, and once she iss dead, I will show you the way out. You would be doing thiss land a favour by eliminating her - the Yuan-Ti have but one goal, and that iss ssubjugation, cruel dominion of all other beingss." He looked to Seu, returning the paladin's steady gaze. "Your duty iss to fight evil, iss it not, paladin? I feel your aura... you have vows to uphold, you know this path iss right."

Hisston had said his part, and now went silent, awaiting the party's response.
 
Rambulge shivered as Hisston told his story, and that of the Yuan-Ti...such evil!

"So we are to put our trust in a snake?" he said quietly, almost to himself.
He wanted to believe in this monster's words but it almost seemed to convenient.
"How do we know you won't lead us into a trap, serpent?"
 

Asslessman

Member
"You 're asking us to help you betray and kill your own mother while explaining your ultimate goal is the cruel dominion of all beings? Only part you got right snake, or shall I say half-snake? is that I am bound to fight evil, but I mean ALL evil... your path isn't "right" at all to me and killing you mother alone won' tdo much if the likes of you are still here to desecrate this holly place...
Now tell me what is written on that scroll. Is is something you'd want your snakemother to see?
There is one question I want you to answer with the most care you can, is the spawning chamber guarded and if yes by who?"

Waiting fro the answer, Seu turned to his comrades to ask them a few question privately...

I asked HIsston about the spawning chamber so that we can go there and check if it's guarded or not and see if he' lying about that, We'll keep hims hostage and if he lied, he'll die.

If he did not, I would like to take his "mistress" into hostage and go kill the snakemother like he wants us to, having a bomb or some similar device prapared ni the spawning chamber would make sure no eggs are left. With the mistress under hand, we would basically have the only female available for reproduction so she would become a valuable asset to let us out without fighting the whole army.

This relies on the fact Hisston did tell part of the truth but if he doesn't lie on th erest , I'm willing to take the risk. Of course, any of you with a "detect lie" or something of the sort is welcome to use it.

You may also have a totally different and better view of the situation... :grin:
 
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