When we last left the gang, they found themselves underneath the burned out ruins of Dr. Ford’s old home, in a room filled with purple crystals, and a large spinning contraption, all hooked to a table.
Upon further investigation the gang found that the machinery was upwards of 60+ years old, dating back to the 1920’s, looking like a primitive particle accelerator. Additionally, upon the table there appeared to be stains that looked like blood.
His curiousity getting the better of him, Neil pulled the lever on the machine, causing the gyroscopic ball of energy to spin faster and faster, after which a strange robotic creature appeared from the ruins off to the side of the room!
A fight ensued, with Anton sliding his bat to Kelly-Ann, who grabs it. Jessica throws a rock at it causing a large dent! The gang spread out, preparing to attack, and Anton grabbed Kelly-Ann’s crowbar from her backpack and heroically ran up to the contraption and savagely attacked the bottom and legs, causing sparks to fly! Kelly-Ann took the bat and hit hard at its legs, this time felling it. Unfortunately, in the felling, it fell on top of Anton, pinning him to the ground.
After many tries and much consternation, the gang was able to finally free their companion.
Upon further examination of the room, the gang found a door surrounded by glyphs, much like the ones at the base of the particle accelerator, and that had a single silver keyhole. Peering inside, through the keyhole, they found what appeared to be a sort of office, with a desk and chair.
Goblin attempted to kick the door, only to be thrown back by some sort of electrical energy, causing her hair to stand on end. Not finding any sort of key, the group vowed to return to this room once we had more information, also promising not to say anything to the two boys, Liam and Miller, back on the top, lest they want to explore the dangerous place.
Of note, found and gave to Anton, the user manual for the strange robot. The gang also each took a crystal and the robot’s eye lens as trophies of their encounter with the thing.
The gang then headed back topside and had Miller and Liam lead the gang to their hideout.
There they got to the clearing, but did not enter, as in addition to the clubhouse, the gang saw a rusted out pickup truck and the beleaguered Mr. Lovecraft, whose son had gone missing two months ago, and whose spirit was allegedly haunting the clubhouse.
Anton, being the talkative one, headed up to Mr. Lovecraft, followed by Goblin. Mr. Lovecraft said he was here looking for his son Stuart. He showed Anton and Goblin a book of drawings by Stuart that were…strange. Various animals, and over and over again, an eye with a slit for a pupil. He claimed that Stuart was looking for “Black Liquid” and said Stuart was…different. And weird. Having not found him and having had one too many beers, he walked home, leaving the truck and the keys in the ignition.
The rest of the gang, including Liam but excluding Miller, entered the clearing. Miller, while claiming not to be afraid of the clearing, refused to enter the clearing.
Upon examination of the clubhouse, the gang indeed found writing on the walls, drawings similar to the book Mr. Lovecraft had shown Anton, along with many of the slitted eyes. Of note, written on the wall was “HALP ME,” and “I DONT NO WERE I AM” in red chalk. Eerily, there were also the letters “I C U” written in the same red chalk nearby.
Investigating the area nearby, the gang found some other things of note: a partially burned note saying that Stuart was being suspended for throwing a chair out of a window. Liam explained that he remembered that day, having seen the incident first hand. Stuart claimed “they were watching” him through the window, and threw the chair to make “them” go away. The gang also found a strange scrapbook of sorts, showing hand-drawn (obviously by Stuart, and neither Miller nor Liam recognized it), and some toys. Pictures included a man passed out surrounded by beer bottles, a woman and girl with halos, a boy beaten up by other kids, a boy at night surrounded by eyes with a single slit, and a boy at night with black light coming from a point out in front of the clubhouse.
After talking with Liam further, it was discovered that Stuart had…powers. He could move things without touching them, and one time even killed Liam’s hamster. It was after this questioning that Liam’s eyes glazed over, and he entered the clubhouse followed by Goblin and Anton. Liam grabbed chalk and scribbled onto the wall “HE IS HERE.” A large sound was heard, and Anton and Goblin scrambled outside to find the trees of the clearing (and only surrounding the clearing) were moving and swaying violently, with the sound having been the crack of a tree falling. Anton, Goblin, and Zane went to check on Miller, as the tree fell near his location. The unthinkable had happened: the tree had fallen on Miller, who was now dead. But something strange happened…his face dissolved and a disembodied hand formed and began clawing its way towards the gang!
Zane then warned the gang that something…he didn’t know what, but something big was coming their way!
It turned out to be a snarling, rabid-looking bear!
Everyone rushed to the truck, except Kelly-Ann who had the keys to the truck (to prevent Goblin from just taking the truck; poor decision in hindsight), who was attempting to usher Liam to the truck, Liam still in some sort of daze. Kelly-Ann, while in the clubhouse, saw all of the drawn eyes looking around, then staring right at her!
Goblin, thinking on her feet, hotwired the truck and managed to get it running when a tree fell behind the truck, trapping us in the clearing!
Three hikers came out of the forest, gaping at what they saw, only to be killed by a large, rabid-looking elk! They, too, melted, and began forming disembodied body parts.
A vision was seen, of a boy in a ball, weeping in the darkness. Tentacles reach out for him, the boy screams, and suddenly we found ourselves back in reality.
A large pit of darkness opened in front of the clubhouse, out of which a number of writhing tentacles emerged. The disembodied body parts, sans head, coalesced into some sort of creature roughly the size of a boy, and began to amble towards the gang!
Despite her best efforts, Kelly-Ann could not hold on to Liam, and Liam was dragged into the pit of darkness! Next, in her attempt to get into the truck, Jessica was pulled into the darkness as well. Refusing to let Jessica go, Kelly-Ann threw a handful of salt at the creature ambling towards the gang and jumped in after Jessica and Liam.
Not knowing their fates, but assuming them dead, Goblin drove the truck into the treeline, only to get the truck stuck. Anton, Neil, Goblin, and Zane made a run for it, trying to flee from the nightmare they witnessed.
Meanwhile, Liam, Jessica, and soon afterwards Kelly-Ann, found themselves in some sort of rocky void, with tentacles reaching from below and a large tentacle coming out of a source of light at the end of the cavern. Stopping Liam from moving forward, the two girls saw what appeared to be a bulbous cocoon, upon which lay Stuart’s head, his body being consumed.
Heading over, Kelly-Ann examined it while tentacles reached for her. A voice said that it needed only one more victim to return, and Kelly-Ann, in an act of bravery and courage, chose to end the existence of what was no longer Stuart, slicing the cocoon open with her pocket knife. The voice screamed “NO!!!” as the tentacle from the light receded, though the tentacles from the deep cracks still grabbed on to her.
Suddenly, a great horned owl flew down and transformed into the Strange Man, who told Kelly-Ann to grab his hand. After a moment of trepidation, she did, as did Jessica.
The rest of the gang, bruised and beaten, scared out of their wits, stumbled away from the horrific carnage that was the clubhouse glade, until they reached a curious sight: another clearing with the Strange Man crouched over Kelly-Ann and Jessica, with Liam sitting to the side, playing with his Star Wars toys.
Other than being a little dirty, the three looked perfectly fine, and felt fine, like everything that had happened was naught but a bad dream.
The man turned to the gang at large and introduced himself as a Mr. Lyon, and that we had prevented Shaggoth from returning by escaping as he would have taken us and been stronger for it. He went on to say that, while we can see the darkness, it could see us, and that we should look out for ourselves and each other. He bid us farewell, telling us that we should come visit him at the Twilight Lodge sometime. Disappearing, he left behind a single owl feather.
What has become of our heroes? What, if anything, will they tell the authorities? What will they discover in or at the Twilight Lodge?
Join us next time, Dear Readers, for the continuation of our story!!
The Daily Dungeon Master Blog 