Session 16 (The Pirates of Atlas)

 

"Session 16"
The Pirates of Atlas episode
Episode no.	Episode 16
Original air date	December 3, 2023 (2023-12-03)

"Session 16" is the sixteenth session of the campaign The Pirates of Atlas.

Synopsis

Following the events that transpired in Atlas, Willem's Willies find themselves looking at three towering trees at the shores of the Wildlands with the night sky. Suddenly, a shadowy door emerges with Death accompanying Durgl who appears to be alive and well. Durgl pounds his chest as he coughs up and a ball of slime projects out. His voice suddenly changes. He says it was something he has eaten and refers to himself as "The Durgl". Durgl signs a paper with Death and Death hands Durgl his gun, the Frogger. Durgl says he wanted to take a vacation. Willem is confused and said he was fighting in the ship when Durgl was there. He asks what Durgl remembered. Durgl recalls what he had happened. In his memory, his crew vanished as he was on the verge of death. Death visited him and told him to take a nap. He was then revisited after a few hours and woke up. Reyen tells Willem that he does not remember how their ship remained in good condition and arrived to the Wildlands. Durgl begins to play a tune as the crew dances to it, happy to see their dear friend returning in good health.

As Vidro stands, he notices an object bouncing through the water towards them. As he focuses on it, he notices a shark fin. It is none other than Akula himself. The ship rocks violently as they see their old friend who is now a menace. Akula, having been gone for nearly two years, he is now tattooed all over with numerous scars. Durgl welcomes back Akula. Willem asks what has happened to Akula. Akula says they can speak about it over dinner. He is willing to cook them a good dinner once again. Reyen informs Willem that Ren has taken his leave, which is perfect since Akula has returned as the ship's chef. Akula said he was looking for his old crew and meant many new "friends" who worshipped as a god. He formed a new crew, hoping they could unite with them. One day, he returned to his new crew and found them all dead. He realized that his original crew was now under threat, he wanted to return back to protect them. Akula reenacts the individual who slew his crewmates. Akula says this individual was not as good-looking or strong as him. He tells them that it appears to be another "shark". Akula is happy to see Willem again, saying distance has made the heart grow fonder. Akula inquires if Akula Jr. is still alive and well. They tell him he is. Akula Jr. emerges from the cabin who is now two times larger whose eyes illuminate as it pounces on Akula. It gnaws at him playfully. Chowder emerges and floats upside-down, bumping against the ceiling as drool droops from its mouth. More tentacles sprout out of it.

As they get closer and closer to the shore, they make their way down to the mess hall. Akula stops by the ship's vault and searches for his hammer. Willem tells him that the hammer was a trap used by the Stormlord to track the crew. Willem tells him that the hammer went missing after their confrontation with the Stormlord.

Akula tells him how he obtained his fishhook and his need to enhance it by a person named Alinon. Reyen gives Willem a report of the Wildlands. He informs him that people are not allowed to venture into the forest as there are various competing territorial claims. There are also tribes who live in the Wildlands. There are elves and chimeric animals who live on the eastern portion of the Wildlands. On the western portion are humans and orcs. They are unsure what their affiliation is with. There is also a large town in the center of the island which is teeming with intelligent beasts. There are also a band of armored humans who have started an instigation against the elves. Willem turns to Durgl and tells him he remembered that Durgl was seeking the Golden Ribbit here. Durgl tells him that he knows that he needs to find an elf, Aylon, who may know where the Golden Ribbit is. Reyen says there are druidic elves and there are shamanistic trolls. Willem decides that they should pay a visit on the western shore. It takes two hours for them to venture along the shore.

As the ship sails, Willem throws out his prayer books and religious artifacts to sea.

Akula inspects the kitchen and is meant by a robot waiter who welcomes Akula, recognizing him as the ship's cook. Akula suggests that the robot's voice should match his to be welcoming and accommodating to the crew. Akula creates the Fruity Moody dish. It is fruitful medley which the crew is homesick for. Their bodies feel ready to tackle on the rest of the day and feel reinvigorated. Reyen asks Durgl more about the Golden Ribbit and his plans after obtaining it. Durgl presumes it would take quite a while to find it but once he retrieves it, he would return home to forge his path there, perhaps as a musician in a band, preferably by the name of the Grungets or the "Gargles". Reyen asks what happened in the revolution in Atlas and why he saw Willem throwing out his prayer books. Willem explains what had happened, including his decision to throw out the books. He had long believed the voice in his head was that of his god but it turned out to be a farce. He says he was unsure how he was able to swap locations with his alternate self. All this time his voice was the ghost of his alternate self. He said he has made peace with his alternate self. Happiness he felt is happiness his other self would feel. The common nexus in both of their selves' suffering is their father, the Stormlord. He admits his whole motivation to find the Stormwell was to seek the voice. Now that he knows what the voice is, his new goal is to simply get revenge and kill the Stormlord. Durgl still believes that the crew should have dropped a nuclear bomb on the Stormlord when they had the chance. Akula asks what a nuclear bomb is and Durgl explains what had happened when the crew was in Elytra. Durgl says they may still have the bomb with the chance to use it.

As they finish their meal, they hear a bell ring loudly as they dock in the harbor. Akula goes back into the vault to grab a Cloak of Protection and Gauntlets of Destruction. Flynn and Reyen stay back on the ship. They descend on rowboats and row to shore. They sense magical energy emanating from the large trees above. The particles which float down feel like snow. They walk towards the largest tree in sight which has natural lighting, glowing brightly against the night sky. Vidro says he feels uneasy being around these areas as he is an elf. He puts on a cloak and a mask to obscure his identity.

As they make their way through the forest, Willem asks if anyone is familiar with orc culture. Akula holds Willem's hand as they walk through the dimly lit forest. Willem and Vidro both notice a strange object inside what appears to be a cave off to the side of their path. Akula pulls out a torch to make it easier for the visually impaired to see. The cave is naturally dark and he notices a faint orange glow deep within the cave. Vidro stops everyone as he investigates for any potential traps. Vidro accidentally steps on a termite bug which lets out a screech. There is then dead silence. Vidro suspects it could be an alarm. Akula decides to lead the pack. He has his hook ready in case they encounter anything. They move towards the light source and discover it is a swarm of fireflies. The fireflies fly about and as they continue through this path, the cave ceiling gets lower and lower. They notice two paths. One of the paths require some crouching to go through. The other path is darker which continues on and on. Vidro uses his echolocation to assess each route. On the right path, it spirals downward with no signs of life other than a few stray spiders. On the left path, he detects a figure sitting, surrounded by small creatures. Vidro suspects this individual knows they are here. Akula reasons if this individual knows they are already there, they might as well confront this person.

They decide to go left to visit this individual. Akula decides to be on the back of the crew as he has to crawl. Willem hunches back in front of Akula. Vidro and Pravuil continue forward and Durgl is at the front since he is the shortest. The path gradually opens up into a dome-like room. They begin to see wood furniture in what appears to be a dwelling. In the center, they see a hooded orc who is cooking meat by the fireplace. He appears to be an old orc. The orc tilts his head and looks at them emotionlessly. At his side is his axe. Vidro apologizes for intruding and explains they needed to seek shelter. The orc speaks calmly whether they are assassins. Vidro says they are not, not even knowing who he is. The orc then says they may take shelter. He asks if they are hungry. He says his name is Ogrin. He says none of them are native to this land except for Durgl whom he recognizes as a grung. Akula shows him his fishhook as his reason being in the Wildlands. Durgl says he is seeking someone by the name of Aelon. Ogrin asks why Durgl is looking for her and he explains because he is seeking the Golden Ribbit. He says that she has been banished many suns ago and she cannot be located. He says she is an elven druid who lives long. Ogrin says they will find many things here in the Wildlands but many they may not wish to find. Durgl asks why he is hiding out here and who wants to assassinate him. Ogrin explains that war has been going on for years and that the humans and orcs have controlled the minotatus and other beasts, and have waged war against elves. Ogrin also explains the purpose of the three trees. Most tribes are indifferent to the trees. He says they are but the first landmark into the Wildlands. He also explains the other path next to them where no one has ventured out safely. He said many have come venturing for knowledge. Willem and Vidro speak on what to do, while Akula inquires Ogrin's meal, which is smoked fox. Akula offers to cook with whatever Ogrin has in the kitchen. Ogrin is amazed by Akula's cooking and devours it happily.

They inform him they will investigate the other path and he merely nods at them, looking as though he has already seen this scenario play out a thousand times with other parties. They then head towards the spiraling path.

As they descend down the path, they feel a light breeze blowing. They notice a partially built structure and notice that the spiral continues downward into the abyss. They hear the sound of water drops dripping down to the void below. They are unable to ascertain how deep the spiral goes. They reach upon what appears to be a deeper cave with pillars, mossy overgrowth, and stony structures. They notice three bodies strung across the floor. They are skeletonized, reduced to withered, dusty bones.

Vidro grabs one of his enchanted marbles, a golden one, and crushes it. It will grant him one absolute truth. Vidro asks his question. There is a deity down here, but not to protect this place. Its mind appears to be in hibernation. Vidro investigates the armor sets of the corpses. He notices that one of them, the one closest by the door, has green inscriptions on it which seem to be familiar but unaffiliated with any existing civilization. Vidro feels a numb pain as he reads it. He says he believes it is from the old world. He attempts to interpret the inscriptions but is unable to comprehend them. Willem leans down and places his hand on the floor to detect if there are any celestial beings. His arm shines bright red as it shoots out a radius of pulsating redness. He detects nothing.

They venture deeper through a circular hallway. Vidro tries to investigate. Willem notices holes, large enough for projectiles to shoot out, on the ceiling. Durgl notices old instruments and songbooks containing characters he has never heard of. Akula notices one of his tattoos shining faintly as he looks about a field of old technology. As Vidro looks atop one of the discs above, he is able to crank it as he tries to move it. He infers people used to work on this disc and required manual labor. Akula's glowing tattoo fluctuates between blue and violet. Vidro believes the technology may be druidic magic. Willem points towards the holes and warns them about the arrows. They are unsure what could potentially trigger them. Vidro notices holes which could be plugged in to block the arrows. Akula tries to pull back the lever and Willem helps him, pushing it. The lever gets unjammed and is activated as the arrows activate, blocked by Vidro's handiwork. The large disc door rolls open. Akula pulls out his axe and Pravuil helps as they crowbar it into the lever. They are able to secure it.

As they step through the disc and into the ruins, which takes about two hours to safely navigate through the hallway. Eventually they reach a fork with two paths. In between the paths is a metallic structure bound together by moss, thorns, and branches. It appears to be an encased, slumbering knight, a mix of machinery and nature. Akula approaches it and tries to wake it up. Suddenly, its visor begins to flicker and its eyes light up. Its armor begins to glow green and reanimate. It stands up and looks at Akula inquisitively. Akula communicates with the robot. It tells him that he is neither the warden nor the architects. It says they are not allowed further. Both paths are meant only for either the warden or the architects. Vidro asks what is stopping them from proceeding. It says if they proceed, they will be terminated instantly. Akula asks what a warden or architects are. The robot says the wardens are the protectors and the architects are the designers. It says it will scan them to determine their roles.

Vidro is a warden. Willem is a warden. Akula is an architect. Pravuil is an architect. Durgl is both. Durgl decides to follow the "warden" team. Vidro, Willem, and Durgl go down the warden path. Willem notices spectral power shooting from him as he sees phantom echo fighters walk alongside him. One of them tells him that this place is ancient, older than any of them. It tells him to be weary of the old as the old may wish to stop the new. They notice blue sigils adorning the ceiling with a distortion of light. They see what appears to be weakened teleportation circles. Further down the path is a great chamber before them with a portal entrance that looks it requires activation. As they continue, the path moves leftward and upward.

Meanwhile, the "architects" walk into an area which goes downward into what becomes stairs. Akula gets squished and they eventually come across a chamber. As they walk into the chamber, they notice six pillars that holds tall stone walls. They see fragments of soot and dust powder falling down slowly. They see what looks like four doors. Two doors lead to the left with a partially destroyed path. Two to the right have a green door and a gold door with sigils. They inspect the symbols. Pravuil notices that it is a sigl he recognized from the pantheon on the gold door. It belongs to a deity which is still being actively worshipped. Akula notices the green door matches the color of his own arm. They agree to split up, Pravuil to the gold door and Akula to the green door. Akula peeks at both of the leftmost doors which appear to be simply storage for armor and weapons. Pravuil and Akula grab 200 gold worth of equipment. They then proceed through their respective doors.

Vidro, Durgl, and Willem notice a red sigil, a purple sigil, and a white sigil. They check each of the doors. Willem opens the white sigil door first. Its sigil shines and lights up Willem's hand. He suddenly vanishes. Vidro grabs the purple sigil door and Durgl is left with the red sigil door.

They all spawn in cordoned rooms in a large chamber. Each room os barred. Above Pravuil has a gold sigil floating above it. Likewise, Akula has a purple sigil. Their hands glow their respective sigil's colors.

A floor below them, Vidro, Willem, and Durgl also have sigils of their respective doors. They see various consoles filled with switches and buttons. Surrounding them are jail cells which are magically darkened. There are also large pits which drop to nowhere. Vidro flies up and sees Akula, waving him down.

Akula takes notice of the consoles with three levers. He pulls each of the levers and nothing happens. He touches one of the orbs.

A voice suddenly makes an announcement. It welcomes them as architects. He pulls a lever again. A box emerges and a slender, pale red-eyed creature emerges as it creeps out. It lashes out its tongue and croaks.

Durgl calls upon a fire elemental with his instrument as it casts fire onto the creature. He then casts Bardic Inspiration to motivate his crewmates.

The creature, with no eyes, sniffs and goes on its four legs. It dashes towards Durgl.

It takes damage from the fire elemental and lunges towards Durgl. It then slashes Vidro and Willem. Pravuil does a Rebuke the Violent prayer which sends divine bolts at the creature.

Akula cranks down more levers. Another box emerges and another creature spawns. An umbral husk emerges alongside an angelic beast accompanies it. They hit the ceiling and start running across.

Akula frantically hits another orb. The room summons weapons and armor.

Vidro aims his gun at Willem and casts haste on him, infusing the captain with enhanced power.

The room suddenly turns red and says there is an error. It says that Vidro is marked as a warden, not as an architect. Vidro whisks into the upper level and joins Akula. The red light turns off.

Pravuil activates an orb and the room alerts him as it did to Vidro. He tried to break out from his console room. Vidro promises to help him get out.

The light spectral being is attacked and killed by Akula. He then is alerted that the husk is nearly dead. He is also informed that he may activate anything of his element. He asks for vines which shoot out and grab the husk.

Durgl takes out his Frogger and kills off one of the beasts and says "It's Durgin' Time". He finishes it off. He does a victorious dance over its corpse. The surviving husk is immobilized.

Akula hits another button and it informs him that all damage will be doubled. He hits another and it says it will summon grass, followed by a tidal wave. He hits another and suddenly it says part of the room will be on fire and the other will be destroyed.

Durgl continues dancing, oblivious to the floor below him crumbling. Some of the boxes are lit ablaze.

Vidro warps Pravuil out towards him. He then lunges himself towards the chamber where Pravuil was.

Willem lights the vines on fire and the husk tries to escape as it falls to its death through the chasm below.

The console room asks if they will proceed the trial. Akula says they are finished. The room turns blue and the bars lower. The doors at the end of the chamber open and glow bright gold. The floor reforms and the fires are put out.

They see a sigil on the doors with fishes swimming around. As they walk through a bright light, they find themselves a whole new area. Akula's tattoos begin to light up and becomes so bright as it begins to shimmer all over his body. They then see a dark abyss beyond them and they are floating above a cloud that becomes steps as they move forward. The moment they step off, the steps disappear. They approach a sandstone structure with an individual there busying about with books and looking around for rummage.

Akula calls for it. The individual shrieks. It turns out to be a female elf. Akula tells her they are Akula's Friends. Willem informs him that they are now known as the Willem's Willies.

They meet up with the elf and she seems oblivious to their trials. She says they are in the tomb of one of the Zodiac signs. It is the year 47 AH. She introduces herself as Aelin. Durgl realizes this is the same elf she is looking for. He tells her that he knows her friend, Kurt, and is seeking the Golden Ribbit. Aelin asks if they mind sitting down. She asks how he knows of the relic. He says it is because they are grungs. His parents are Murgl and Durgl Sr. She says she remembers them when she traveled to their city, Grunglzola. She says she knows where the Golden Ribbit is and she says she remembers seeing him when he was a tadpole. She says the Golden Ribbit has always been inside him and that he ate it as a baby. All this time it has been inside his bowels. The only way to utilize it is to take it to the Dreamwell which can become his own ribbit. She says she had come then to offer the relic to someone but Durgl ate it. To awaken it now, he needs to go to the Dreamwell to activate it, like water on a seed.

Akula asks if she knows if she knows Alinon. She says she does and is willing to bring them to him. Pravuil informs her that since this is a tomb of one of the Zodiac signs, they must destroy it.

Aelin hands Pravuil the sign of Pisces and says that that is the key. It appears this sign has already been dealt with. She then draws her attention to Akula and says he is being tested. She says his tattoos are a challenge and is a test from his god if he is worthy to be his champion.

Vidro says they are now in possession of 2 of the 12 Zodiac signs, the Sigil of Pisces and Pravuil's sword. Vidro remembers that each zodiac points to the next with clues. He says he also remembers Lordarin was where Reyen spoke of the key to the Labyrinth of Madness.

Aelin tells her that because they are in the temple of Pisces, Akula feels more powerful here due to his fishhood.

She says she was marked by a god of fire and must avoid trees due to her affinity with fire.

Willem rummages through boxes and finds a tentacled blob which suddenly smiles. It laughs and says he found it. It says its name is Pi. Willem asks if it can bring it out. It says it can and it was the one which pulled them in. They said they were unaware that it brought them down. It says it must have been its brother, Sces, who let them through freely. They realize this is one of the Pisces. Pravuil feels the sudden urge to kill it. It fears for its life. Willem says they will not. It says they can stay down here forever. Willem decides to be crafty and negotiate with it to let them out. It agrees to take them to Ogrin.

Akula suddenly realizes if either Pi or Sces can bring the Stormlord here and take them out. There is some back and forth before they give up, and Pi readies them to leave. As they are teleported, they see Sces along the way. They find themselves back in Ogrin's room who is shocked to see them. He congratulates them. He notices Aelin. Ogrin apologizes to her over the war between their races.

Akula remembers his axe and asks the captain to reimburse him. They bid Ogrin farewell and step out of the cave. Vidro notices a hooded figure walking by them. It is a lone orc with a blade by his side. It inquires them what the state of their purpose is and they explain they are simply going through safe passage. They are let through and continue their way on their nightward journey.

They find themselves entering the rolling Wildlands. They pass a break in the forestry as they see mountainous terrain with rivers. When dawn arrives, they walk past drunkards waking up for work in Critter Village. They notice various humanoid creatures such as foxes, racoons, and rabbits walking about.

They are greeted by cheerful merchants. An otter hoists a harpoon above and asks if they are interested in any of its fish. Pravuil purchases some salmon and eats it. Akula asks if the otter knows of "Azimona". The otter affirmatively says they know Azimona as he is his friend. Willem buys more fish in the hope that Akula will cook them later. The otter then leads them to the house of Azimona and knocks at the door. Azimona comes out. He is a harengon (a rabbit) who appears to be an artificer. He introduces himself formally as Azimona. Akula tells the druidic elf has lied as he was looking for Alinon. Azimona says that Alinon is his seventeenth brother. They are led through grassy knolls, inhabited by various harengons. Azimona calls for his brother. Akula corrects him and say they are looking for Alinon the Druid.

Pravuil and Willem spar over their recent loss in faithful devotion. The group then arrive a grassy overlook which has a valley below with a large tree. The tree is guarded by two large tree guardians. The otter greets the guardians and says they are looking for Alinon.

They are led through the large tree which is hollowed out and is enchantedly larger inside. They walk up the staircase which encircles the tree's diameter. They see a troll who looks at them and greets them as Alinon. They say they have brought back Aelin. Alinon says they should have kept her. Alinon asks if they are interested in dragon snout. He gives them each a lager of it. Pravuil does not drink it. Willem drinks it and is imbued with a once-in-a-lifetime fire breath ability. Akula is imbued with some dragon power. Alinon asks them what is the purpose they have come here. Alinon offers them yak steaks. Over dinner, he tells them of how gods roamed the world and they caused havoc. He then tells the god of sharkin to Akula. He explains that the god of sharkin is seeking a champion to succeed it. They are unsure how sharkin mate if they are always aggressive to one another. Akula concedes he has never seen a female sharkin. Alinon offers Akula to kill him and resurrect him in the form of another species. Akula says he does not need to as he is part of the most powerful race. Alinon says there are more powerful beings and in fact, can catch a whiff of such species on Akula. It turns out that it is the scent of Akula Jr. Alinon says eventually they must release Akula Jr. as he will grow into a gigantic beast. Alinon offers to show them more of Akula Jr.'s kind. He offers them another drink. It is putrid and disgusting. Alinon conjures an image of Akula Jr. and shows him his final form. They also inform him that they have a pet beholder. Alinon is impressed but wonders how they can take care of them once they mature. Alinon asks how they have been feeding Chowder, their pet beholder. It turns out that Willem has been feeding it illiterate screeds and Alinon says this has made Chowder intellectually stupid. The crew realizes this is the reason Chowder has been slow and always drooling.

Alinon steers them back on topic. He explains that Akula's tattoos' glowing effect derives from his god. He says his god's name is Cartonex. By killing other sharkin, Akula has been inadvertently challenging Cartonex. Alinon says if he wishes to continue down this path, he will eventually face Cartonex himself. Alinon asks him if he is immortal. Akula says he is not but does not care for Cartonex.

Alinon offers to prepare a ritual on Akula. He yanks a tooth out of Akula. He then snaps the tooth in half and blows its powder into Akula's face. Akula starts to feel anxious and a tinge of bloodthirst. His tattoos begin to light up and dance around him. They swirl around and land on his left chest. The newly reformed tattoo remain brightly lit. It is then activated. Akula feels his muscles pulsate and grow larger. His claws sharpen. He gains more strength in the process. A gelatinous jellyfish starts to emerge and floats around Akula. Alinon explains that the jellyfish is his to keep. It cannot talk but it can understand him. Alinon says fey can help him comprehend the jellyfish.

Alinon says now that Akula has accomplished what he needed, he asks the rest what they are here for. They say they are simply here to support Akula. They ask if Critter Country has any alignment in the war in the Wildlands. Alinon says they do not and are above the squabbles between mankind, orckind, and elvenkind. Alinon says he knows Vidro is an elf and his people's village lies to the north of Critter Country.

They then bid Alinon farewell and head out with Aelin. Vidro asks what happened to their village 300 years ago. She says she does not as she is only 200 years ago. They are met again by the otter who waited outside. He says he may have seen their crewmates come by weeks ago. It appears that Cannoneer and Elsa and Lara were here and were headed to the orcs. Seeing they must see their friends, Vidro wonders how he can travel there safely without needing a disguise. They do not have any invisibility potions which they need as the orc's shamans can see through disguises. Vidro decides he can try to cast one on himself and be able to preserve the spell throughout their time in the orcs' lands.

They then make their way and find themselves at the entrance of the orcs' fortified settlement.

Featured characters

Player characters

• Akula
• Anradeem Pravuil
• Durgl
• Jué Zosteif
• Ryul Vidro
• Maren
• Willem