An end to the Dungeon

We spent a  few days clearing the remainder of the dungeon for the Black Dragon, but I have no idea why. There seemed to be no method to the monsters it contained, or even purpose for building it. Seeming just a maze filled with beasts.

The halfing Kamala either knows little about her life before the dungeon, or it playing things very close to the vest. Still she seems to be a healer, and I find nothing directly objectionable about her, so we bring her along.

As we leave the dungeon, we encounter the Black Dragon who have been waiting at the exit, and inform us that they will let us join them. Based on their demeanor alone, I feel like they may fight against evil, but I really can not be sure. We will continue to gain their trust, but I will keep an eye out for doublecross.

The Hunt Begins

We have arrived in the town of Lao-Zun and it appears to be in the beginning of a ceremony of sorts. The Festival of the Water Dragon. I am always wary of festivals devoted to the worship of dragons, as they often serve as a front for demons in disguise. Luckily, most dragons are too proud to associate with outsiders, and if it turns out this Water Dragon is actually a dragon, the town should be fairly inhospitable for demons.

Upon arriving, Rex points out a local tavern, the Laughing Lama, and we can assume burly adventurers lurk inside. Once inside, we notice immediately that we stand out, as the populous entirely wears black robes with little decoration, those with decoration seem to be well off. My worn leather coat, and regular to [continent] garb stands out drastically. Rex's robes stand out less, but there is little we can do at the moment. The boat ride took the majority of my money, and we will probably need what we can to persuade our potential new hires. We grabbed a seat at the bar, and ordered drinks, which appear to be some form of bean wine. Its interesting, but I'd prefer the traditional mead of home.

In watching the locals what strikes me as odd, is that even though many carry swords or various weapons, none are particularly big. Traditionally for these quests I would hire the biggest guy I can find, but I can't see many all that much larger than my companion Rex. He isn't especially big for a human either. As we are getting a bit discouraged, we notice the lama from out front has followed someone inside. This woman stands easily a head over the rest of the room, and her shoulders are easily twice as broad. Across her back is an exotic sword of some sort, and she is clad in the skins and leather of a wild-man from [place]. This could be our hired sword.

I let Rex take lead on the conversation, as has been our custom so far. He seems to get along better with the locals than I. He introduces us, explains that we need some hired muscle and reviews all the standard practices. As soon as he mentions the offer to split any found treasure, or spoils during the adventure, a voice cries out from behind the lama. It comes from one of the most filthy creatures I have seen, but by all appearances is human. He explains to Kish, I gather the woman, that they should take the job and are short on cash. While he is persuading her to take the job Rex and I switch to goblin, a language we discovered we both know fairly well, and debate his inclusion at all. Neither is especially thrilled to travel with this filthy little man, but the woman would be a welcome addition. We decide to offer them a split share, but they will have none of it. In addition, it appears they are inseparable for some reason and Kish won't leave him. We relent, and begin hashing out the specifics of our journey and acquainting ourselves with one another. Apparently the fitly man apparently has no name?

While familiarizing ourselves with our new companions, two men drag a third over to our table and introduce themselves. It appears them have overheard us in our discussion, and wish to help rid the land of demons. I gather they are more focused on the destruction of evil in general, but the devoted can always be a great ally. The third man appears drunk, and as I take a second to size them up, he appears to be a child. I'm not sure why these men bring their child on quests, but it is theirs to do as they please. As I go to ask about it, I notice their attire. One wears the traditional chainmail of our home country, but appears to be a priest of some deity. The other is dressed very much as a local. I don't want to offend the locals by misunderstanding their customs, and don't have time to debate with the priest, so I leave it be. Humans have always seemed careless with their children but this is probably not the time for the discussion, we will have to do that later. We agree to let these three come as well, because as I said, the devoted will rarely betray you.

From the other end of the bar, I overhear some men discussing the Black Dragon. Now I have no idea what that could possibly be, but after years of demon hunting, the Black Anything is always a good place to look. I send our new friend Kish with Rex to inquire further with the men. She falls into the routine fairly well, and seems familiar with the job assigned her. They chat for a bit, and then Rex leaves motioning for us to follow. Zathras and his cleric friend grab the boy and follow me out front. Rex explains that apparently those men are members of a Black Dragon cult, and that they may have caught on to our occupation. He couldn't get a solid read really, either they were the cult and he successfully infiltrated them, or they want help getting rid of the cult. He went on further to explain that they want to meet at the Dragon Rock at dawn. We find it best to scout the area ahead of time, and lay in wait, while Rex and Kish meet up at the formation on the outskirts of town.

Come dawn the robed figures arrive, and greet my companions and tell them that before they can go further, they must do something. The fairly standard initiation package, but what surprised me was that he then acknowledged us as well. As we made our way to the group, he opened a mystic portal to some other location. I was able to trace it out and the portal remained on the material plane, and we all followed through. He explained the challenges lay within.

Awaiting inside, was a rough hewn stone room, with a variety of twisting and maze like patterns. We traveled through them a bit when the boy shot bright and awake, seemingly unconcerned for his sudden change in surroundings, and alerted us to some Giant Rats. They were dispatched easily enough, and he seemed to think this was the challenge. I explained to him that it almost certainly was not, but rather simply some rats that found their way into the dungeon.

While traveling we discovered a cadre of wolves and dust spirits. We battled them, but as soon as it started they revealed themselves as Dretch and Quasit. The lowly servitor demons used for menial tasks and keeping guard at fringe locations. A sure sign that we were either sent down here to eradicate the demons, or to be killed as interlopers in the demonic scheme. Either way, we were able to defeat them before they summoned too many of their brethren. Further down this labyrinth we encountered a larger demon trapped in what was effectively a hallway, probably as a sort of guard or trap. We took it to be a sign that we were going "the right way". As for the demon itself, it seemed relatively in-sentient but also very hostile. It very well might have taken the entire team if my grease spells weren't up to snuff. Due to the confined space of the hallway it was unable to stand, and the party was eventually was able to take it. But not before some serious wounds to the barbarian woman. Luckily the priest was able to heal them easily with a few whispers to Kord.

We continued through the maze for quite some time, until finally we found a suitable area to make camp for the night. While doing so, we also managed to discover a cloaked halfling figure lurking in the shadows. The filthy man seemed unnaturally warry of her, but I found nothing especially off putting, and we offered to let her camp with us. Hopefully she will regail us with how she came to be here, and any hints about our purpose while we make camp.

The Begining

With the destruction of my order, I have decided to seek aide in my quest from the rest of the world. I cannot remain in seclusion and must expand to rebuild the order. While I do not have the skills of my elders, I have completed the trials and am fully versed in our techniques for protecting this world.

I have been in the local town of [____] for some time now investigating what I can of demonic threats. The first thing that I am made aware of is that not only is my order forgotten, but the entire war we fought as well. The devils have done an amazing job at destroying the histories, and our seclusion was clearly not the right choice. We thought it would protect us from infiltration, but it appears we have become antiquated and forgotten.

In town, work as a demon hunter has been difficult to come by. Most people either don't see the demonic presence, or don't want to hear about it. I have mostly been taking work clearing the dog like Dire Rats from sewers and rescuing farmers daughters from marauding goblin hordes. These things are never obviously or directly related to the evil outsiders, but I can sense their influence behind the curtains.

One thing of hope in this time, for my quest, is the discovery of a man on a similar quest. A warlock by the name of Rex has enlisted my aid in tracking down the demon that killed his mother. He has heard rumor and whispers of the demon having made its way to Asiana and aims to track it down. I offered my services, and we have arraigned to travel by boat to the port city of Lao-Zun. Once we arrive, we plan to hire on some added muscle. The demons have a habit of flooding their lairs with cultists, and magical beasts. A few strong warriors is never a bad thing in those circumstances.

Purpose

This is to be an in character record of each session from Raz's point of view. I plan to outline what was done, and Raz's take on everything that has happened.