Wolf in Familiar Clothing

After Zilvazaraat departed the party did some healing and restorations to recover from the battle with the Moon-Beast and Denizen of Leng.  

"Now what shall we do? This building did not seem to give us any hints or new areas to explore." Casia said wonderingly.

"There are several other areas outside," Fanara suggested.

"Wasn't there another area with buildings?" Milos asked.

"Yes the owl indicated that there were small buildings to the east." Amadeo recalled.

"We should check the Moonflowers for treasure before we leave." said Fanara.

A few magical items were found lodged inside a moonflower.  There was a breastplate, a heavy flail and a haversack, along with some coins. After collecting those items the party headed back out of the heavy jungle area to go eastward.  Jorgen made a detour to head to the north into deep shadows that cloaked the barren soil of the dense grove of coniferous trees. A twisting, disused trail wound its way into the depths of the wood.

"Where are you headed?" Fanara demanded.

"I would like to cover our back. We should check out this area first." Jorgen responded.

The path opened into a grove surrounded by towering trees. A sickly, overgrown ash tree, with tangled drooping branches jutting out at peculiar angles and malignant knots disfiguring its trunk moved into the grove and demanded to know the why they were trespassing.  The tree then launched off into a diatribe against the tainted soil and artificial sunlight.

"Who are you?" the tree repeated itself finally.

"We are not sure how we got here," Fanara responded, "But we appeared in the gazebo to the south. We mean no harm."

"You had better leave the trees alone. I am the gardener here." the tree responded and then launched into another rambling speech.

Milos, being suspicious tried to determine if there was something off with this tree. Just as he did that Fanara and Casia noted trees moving to block the party's retreat down the exits from the grove. Milos determined that the tree was suffering from some mental illness, possibly a psychosis.

Fanara then began a soothing discussion trying to persuade the tree that the party was not an enemy. When the tree next responded it was more friendly and introduced herself as Dawnbark, the gardener of the realm. She had been here many years and was tired of taking care of the area.  The psychosis still seemed prevalent as she would suddenly stop talking or launch into another subject completely.

"What else is in the garden?" Fanara queried.

"There is an Herb Garden to the east. To the south in the brambles is a Giant FlyTrap and a couple of Moonflowers to the west."

"We have already met the Moonflowers, they should not give you any more trouble."

"Thank you for performing that task."

"Could you lead us to the Herb Garden?" Fanara asked.

"Sure, follow me."

Fanara hitched a ride with Dawnbark as she began to stride right through the trees.  The rest of the party needed to follow the path which was now open as the trees moved out of the way. The trail led around a copse of trees into an area filled with a wide variety of plants, from mundane shrubs to aromatic herbs to colorful exotic flowers, growing in unkempt profusion in the garden. Glass greenhouses and fenced enclosures held more greenery. A small wooden shed sat to the southwest.

"What is in the shed?" Fanara inquired.

"Gardening tools and some defoliant," Dawnbark answered.

Fanara then began to search the gardens for spices and herbs. She collected allspice, nutmeg, saffron, and various rare herbs as the rest of the party was peering in the windows of the greenhouses. Milos and Jorgen were heading down the path as it continued past a couple of the enclosures. Fanara came to join the others at the greenhouses.  Just as Fanara was starting to open the door, Milos hollered that he had been grabbed by some tendrils of a plant in the enclosure.

The party saw a gnarled vine, as thick as a man’s arm and bearing hand-shaped leaves, that convulsed across the ground in an unnatural slither. This began a quick battle as the party moved to help Milos who was being constricted by the plant, an Assassin Vine according to Jorgen. Fanara moved down to use her hammer, Amadeo joined in with his great sword and Santrel fired magic missiles into the plant. Casia wormed her way around to join in from the opposite side.

"Could you help us our here Dawnbark?" Fanara pleaded.

Dawnbark was moving up and down the overgrown plantings muttering about the lack of care that had been shown toward the garden. She ignored the party completely. 

Just as they felt the battle was under control they saw a mass of tangled vines and dripping slime rise on two trunk-like legs, reeking of rot and freshly turned earth. It moved right through the enclosure and closed on the party. Identifying it as a Shambling Mound part of the party headed for the new monster which could also grab and constrict. These two creatures were relatively easy for party to put down.

After some well needed healing, Amadeo was especially low, the party headed toward the shed.  Jorgen checked for traps and locks but none were evident.  Opening the door he saw mundane gardening tools and a cupboard with doors.  Milos detected magic in the room likely in the cupboard.  He waded in and flung the doors open finding two wands, which Santrel received, and a jar, four vials of oil and six flasks. Milos gathered all the magic up.

Coming to the area Santrel had moved closer to a tangled mass of overflowing weeds and thorny brambles growing in profusion to the south west. He saw a hint of bleached white entwined in the barbed tendrils of the wiry thicket. Recalling the owl's warning he moved quickly away from what were likely bones.

"What did Dawnbark say was in the brambles, a FlyTrap?" he asked.

"Yes, and a giant one no less." Casia responded.

Next the party moved further west to another stand of trees. The path led into the stand of trees where several flat-topped tree stumps stood amid thick grass in a clearing, hinting that this place was once as thickly forested as the surrounding wood. Jorgen slowly approached one stump where an elderly cat sat.  As he moved near the cat began to talk.

"Finally some humans. What have you seen in this garden," it asked.

Fanara moved closer and began a conversation with the cat.  The cat related its tale. She was the familiar of Queen Yelizaveta of Irrisen "a long time ago" she sneaked away to explore the hut while her mistress went with Baba Yaga. While she was gone, Syvet felt her link to her mistress irrevocably ripped asunder. She never saw her mistress again, and while I believe my mistress is dead, she knows Yelizaveta's soul is not free, and believes that Baba Yaga has somehow prevented her mistress from passing on into the Great Beyond. Jorgen noticed Syvet's discomfort and that she seemed to be struggling with something.

Immediately the cat, or whoever was bothering the cat, put an evil eye on Jorgen.  Then the tendrils springing up through the cat attacked.  Jorgen was merely hit but Casia and Fanara, who thought they were far enough away were grappled.  The party sprang into action with Jorgen attacking and Milos winding around to provide flanking.  Fanara and Casia felt the tendril attempting to push a seed down their throats.  Santrel identified the creature as a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing. It had many tendril attacks as the battle raged with two party members grappled.

Santrel tried to cast spells two times and failed each time.  The party was attempting to surround the stump but as it did the stump attacked with fury and grappled Jorgen, Amadeo and Milos.  It lost its hold on Casia but the thing had many tendrils. Attacks from the party were wearing down the monster but Milos felt it trying to push a seed down his throat as did Fanara again.  The tendrils were also constricting the party but Casia, Jorgen and Amadeo escaped the grapple.  Santrel finally successfully cast a Burning Arc and the last attacks of the party were enough to see the cast figure shrivel to a pile of mass on a stump that melted into a gelid pile.

Milos channeled healing and then Casia wondered about the seed as she felt her stamina was affected.  Milos concurred and cast a Restoration on Casia to no effect. This worried the party and Milos began trying to determine what was causing the issues with himself and Casia. Examination determined that something was growing inside both of them.  Something sapping their constitution, who knew what the final result could be.

"Maybe the defoliant will work, Casia should drink some," Fanara suggested.

"Don't you think that might do more damage?" Santrel asked.

"Which one is it?" Casia asked.

Santrel identified the oils, liquids and tub of paste.  The flasks were the defoliant, the oils were goodberry and the tub was Defoliant Polish. Casia took one of the flasks and drank a couple of sips which inflicted more damage to her system but the alien was still growing.  She tried once again to no avail.

Meanwhile Milos was conversing with the gods.  He then lay down on the ground and took his dagger to begin cutting open his abdomen.  After a lengthy time he found a green fuzzy growth which he plucked out and deposited on the ground.  He then took a healing potion to pour into the would and lay still for a period.  After a total of an hour he proclaimed himself cured.

"Are you prepared for the same, Casia," he asked as she was vomiting out the defoliant and more.

"I suppose," she warily replied.

It took another hour but Milos was able to remove the growth from Casia using the same procedure. She began to feel somewhat better but was still weak from drinking the defoliant.  Milos offered a lesser restoration to remove the constitution damage.  He wanted to preserve his last Restoration if it was needed later.

Amadeo was looking at the Defoliant Polish and suggested he use it and then walk around the brambles and weeds to try and find the Flytrap.  Since that was the only area the party had not yet been in they decided it was a plan. Amadeo started by walking around the perimeter of the overgrowth and as he approached the very southeast a large plant moved and gobbled him up in a maw.  The flower mouth closed over him and it filled with acid with a tight seal.  As Amadeo struggled for breath he took acid damage from the digestive juices.  This spurred the rest of the party into action, Caisa fired the musket and Fanara cast enlarge on herself.  Santrel's fire based spells went off without a hitch and did additional damage to the plant.  It was also hit by Alchemist's fire from Jorgen.  The battle was quick and easy from the party's point of view but for Amadeo it lasted a half a lifetime. 

After the death of the plant Amadeo finished destroying all the brambles and weeds as the party looked for magic items of which there were none.  The ground was littered with bleached bones, humanoid, animal and alien but nothing of real interest.

"Well that leaves the greenhouses," Santrel said wearily.

"If we are looking for the keys to the hut, they must be well hidden," Casia intoned.

Moving apace Fanara led the party to the greenhouses. She opened the door to the first and saw dead plants inside except for one.  It was a strange plant consists of four spidery stalks, long green tendrils, and an inverted bell-shaped cap filled with spores. Within a moment Fanara and Milos were having a hard time breathing. Fanara slammed the door shut while identifying the plant as a Basidirond.

"Move quickly and go around the back.  There may be spores in the air here," she warned the group.

The second greenhouse was filled with dead and rotting plants and nothing else, no magic or anything.

"Should we talk with Dawnbark again?" Santrel asked.

"Sure lets ask her about anything else she knows," Fanara said.

Fanara led the way and began telling Dawnbark what they had killed in the garden hoping to keep her at least friendly toward the party. Dawnbark was half lost in a reverie and barely responded to Fanara.  Casia hurried forward with a new idea.

"Have you ever talked with Baba Yaga," she asked.

At the mention of that name Dawnbark flew into a rage and slammed Casia with a large branch. The treant looked more crazy than ever and Fanara and Casia began to attack. The rest of the party moved forward as they could. Then two other trees attempted to trample the rest of the party.  Amadeo stopped one in its tracks, the other strode over Santrel but was halted by Milos.

In short order the party took down Dawnbark. Santrel again used Burning Arc and the large sized Fanara inflicted great damage. Milos again gave the party healing and they found a magical ring hidden by one of the knots that marred Dawnbark's trunk.

After the healing and searching Casia was bummed at not finding either of the keys needed for the hut.  She suggested returning to the hut and taking a nights rest. So the party headed for sleeping once again.

DM's Notes: The group earned 5,866 XP for the session and now have 80,428, well on their way to 11th level.