Isla Monstruo, Rumble in the jungle

Session 2

 

When last we left our intrepid adventurers, a wedge-shaped head full of teeth was pushing aggressively through the foliage.  The T-rex strode toward its nest until it looked down and saw Warren in the open muttering about chickens and omelets…and now…

 

              The t-rex has long lines of red scales running the length of its back and sides.  Its claws are transparent as if constructed from diamond.  A ruff cut red gem is set between its eyes.  Faced with this apex predator, Warren does the only thing he can think of.  He taunts the giant mutant lizard.

              Meanwhile, Yuri uses Warren’s distraction to sneak into the nest.  He is surrounded by three-foot tall eggs and the remnants of the dinosaur’s meals, including several bits of treasure and adventuring gear.  His eyes are drawn to a moldering bag with two books inside.  The titles call to him, “studies in biological instability” and” ritual circles, protective theory.”  While Yuri is contemplating looting the nest, Tanner shifts into a skunk form intending to ward off the giant lizard.  As he turns his business end toward the threat, he forgets the pit trap Yuri has so recently exited.  The druid slips and reprises his friend’s descent twenty-feet down into the hole.

              Back at the nest, Warren is unable to activate his clan’s taunting rage ability but does manage to annoy his opponent.  The t-rex’s forehead gem begins to glow just as Warren starts running in a zigzag pattern toward the pit trap.  The little barbarian nimbly dodges energy beams while sprinting toward and leaping over the hole.  The t-rex starts to yell about protecting the precious—making it the third weirdly mutated talking monster the adventurers have encountered so far.  Warren taunts his opponent again, this time successfully, managing to get it to charge straight into the pit trap…where it falls right on top of Tanner.

              A vicious battle follows as the party tries to wear the monster down while it sprays energy beams from its forehead gem and starts to force its way out of the pit.  At first things are going well.  Yuri sprays the monster with magic missiles fired from sideways finger guns.  Warren draws his great sword and begins hacking at the tyrant lizard’s abdomen splattering blood and viscera everywhere.  Tanner manages to climb the monster’s legs almost to the top of the pit.

              Then their luck runs out.  One of Yuri’s magic missiles exposes a red substance formerly covered by scaly hide.  The t-rex is slowly enveloped in a cloak of magical red fire as the substance combusts and spreads.  Tanner makes his way out of the pit only to be scooped up into the beast’s mouth where he is savaged and thrown into the jungle to impact a tree.  He falls confused, bleeding, and concussed.  Warren, mighty Warren, opts for a mad charge which ends with a fall down into the pit trap.  He begins to climb up the lizard’s leg but is stomped, buried up to his nose, and set on fire as the mutant beast uses him as a stepping stone to finally exit the pit.  Yuri is trying to decide between looting the nest of treasure or grabbing an egg and running when he hears a second giant creature approaching the nest.  He casts invisibility on himself and hopes not to be noticed as the first lizard’s mate smashes its way into the clearing.

              Nearby, Tanner recovers from his fall and transforms into a forest wasp.  He marks both lizards with scent markers hoping to summon a swarm of his kin on his behalf.  The creatures begin arguing whether this is a w-h-o-l-e snack and if not if getting the stinky food from before and dropping it in the pit would equal a h-o-l-e snack.  They seem rather dim but not dim enough to miss Warren digging himself out of the ground, yelling chicken! At the top of his voice, and scrambling out of the pit to continue the fight.  The mutant dinosaurs box Warren in with their tails and start to close in for the kill.

              Tanner tries to fly into one of their noses and sting their brain but runs out of energy at an inopportune moment.  He barely manages to land beside the nest before the shape change ends.

              Yuri has finally had enough.  He ends his invisibility spell and holds his dagger to one of the eggs.  He begins a parlay to trade their lives and safe passage in return for not hurting the “precious.”  The lizards have to run through the logic several times but finally agree not noticing that Yuri has absconded with the two books as the party makes their exit down the path the second lizard came from.

              The group travels for several hours, finally making their way to a crossroads at a natural stream.  To the north the jungle thins, opening into a dry savanna before transitioning into lava fields.  A huge volcano spews clouds of multicolored smoke in that direction—they assume in the island’s heart.  Farther west and south, their path crosses the stream and continues deeper into the unknown jungle depths.  To the south lies the recently vacated island’s shore and to the east is the area they have recently explored.  The stream appears to be a central gathering place for local wildlife based on the quantity and variety of tracks.  Yuri finds a set of goat hooved tracks that seem to indicate regular patrols from some kind of armed presence, though what that might mean is not clear.  The tracks cross the stream and follow deeper into the jungle.  From this vantage it is clear that the island is huge, not just a small tropical land mass.

              The group makes camp needing to rest and heal.  Warren has serious injuries and Tanner is still confused after the tyrant lizard’s savagery.  Everyone recovers and restores their spells while hoping nothing interrupts their brief rest.  They do some basic research and identify the purpose of their three new items.

·       Book of biological instability.  This tome acts as the “consult” part of ritual requirements for rituals used to promote mutation in natural creatures and plant life.  This is a book of chaos.  Its use will have random affects depending on target(s), design, and quality.

·       Book of circular warding.  This tome acts as the “consult” part of ritual requirements for rituals used to create circles of protection.  The strength, duration, precision, and area of affect determine the remaining requirements.

·       Horns of the chieftain.  These runic horns can be used as part of a ritual challenge to grant leadership over a local monkey troop.  The strength of your rule depends on how well you maintain morale and how much the troop prospers.

Finally rested, the party travels farther down the path.  After a while, the trail is lined with ever increasing numbers of charms and symbols.  Colored yarn wraps bone and dried lumps of flesh.  Angular runes are carved into trees and rocks.  Finally, they come to a break in the foliage.  A small cave opens on the face of a hill at the center of a clearing.  The ground is baron and devoid of feature save the charred trunk of an ancient tree that has been carved into a totem pole near the cave’s mouth.  More of the strange angular writing covers the pole.  Bits of bone and hide break up the writing as if someone has used them as punctuation amidst the script.

 

What will they do?

 

Find out next time on the next session of isla monstruo.