Through The Jungle And Into The Demonskar

The party prepares for a boat trip and overland journey. The Chisel hires several boats and supplies them with food and other basic supplies they request. Morgan hires several retainers who have experienced the boat trip down the river before and are handy with a sword.

The next morning they depart Redgorge and arrive near the headless statue around mid-day. Snake and Jonl disembark from the boats and swim ahead to scout out the beach where the statue stands. They uncover a small group of gnolls hidden in the jungle, watching the river. While the boats come into view of the gnolls, Snake quickly slays all of them. More gnolls come out of the jungle, and attack Snake in mass, while the boats hit the beach. It is a massacre, but the party suspects that a few of the gnolls were able to flee.

The hired help is left at the beach to stand guard over the boats and wait for the main group's return. They are left with enough food for two weeks and instructed to return to Redgorge if the main group has not returned by then.

After several hours of navigating the trail, it passes by a cave tucked away in a small hill. A large sloth-like creature is found in the cave, which is confronted and slain. Inside the group finds an empty wand, its last charge spent. The wand has clear markings of the St. Cuthbert adorning it.

A night is spent camped in the jungle, during which Morgan has some sort of strange dream or vision or personal visit (he is not sure which) from a winged messenger in the form of a beautiful silver-skinned woman with large white wings holding aloft a flaming sword. She says that the Lord of the Demonskar knows of their approach, and he prepares for their arrival. They should be wary of treachery from her false sisters, and should look behind the watchers of the north to find the mighty weapon Alakast, wielded by Surabar in ages past.

Another day passes on the jungle trail before they arrive at the edge of the Demonskar and at what they believe to be the great pipe mentioned on their map. They follow the pipe under the Demonskar, using the map to guide them through the maze. Eventually, they arrive at a large fissure. A ramp leads down into a wide pit that splits the fissure where a nasty pool of steaming liquid rests and a portcullis-covered cave entrance is found. On the far side of the pit, the fissure continues to the north, where they see two large metal pipes jutting from the ground, making a loud deep bellow as the wind blows over them.

Chul takes the endless rope and spider climbs over to the far side of the pit. During the crossing, boulders begin to shoot out of a small hole above the portcullis, smashing into Chul who manages to stay clung to the rock wall.

An invisible Modisto walks along the rock wall above the small opening (with his slippers of spider climbing) and peeks inside. He discovers a dirt-covered, brutish, giant of a man watching through the opening with a large pile of round boulders next to him. Modisto throws a mirror image spell followed by a bounced lightning bolt and fireball killing the brutish creature as it feebly swings its fists at the illusionary duplicates.

Chul and Snake get through the hole and with great flexing of muscles and mighty curses they manage to crank the portcullis up.

As this is going on, the sound of wood scraping on stone can be heard further down the fissure, past the two great metal pipes. Shortly after, three more of the giant, brutish men come down to the pipes and begin tossing boulders at the rest of the party. As the rest of the group takes cover, Morgan takes shots at the giants with the crossbow.

Snake and Chul race down the only exit of the supposed guard room, heading north into a larger cave that looks like some sort of barbaric living quarters. They quickly decide to take the northeast exit (one of several) and pass a large wooden wall that has been pushed aside. They come out to the fissure where they charge into the back of the boulder-tossing giants. Melee is had and the giants are dispatched with Chul taking a battering at the fists of the giants.

The open portcullis awaits...