Session Number Four

February 7, 2005

            The man approaching the horses introduced himself as Othic, a local farmer, perhaps sixty or seventy years old. Two of his horses, Broadsword and Blaze, had run off for several days. They had returned but Othic was having trouble getting them back behind their fence. Caitlyn offered to help, and retrieved the horses by talking gently to them. Both horses appeared to be a little roughed up, as if they had gotten into a bit of trouble during their frolic away from the farm.

            Othic told the company that the town of Bellhold is rumored to be cursed. He advised them not to drink the water. The local copper mine used to be ruled by a copper dragon named “CopperDeath.” Othic invited the company to return the next morning, and he would feed them breakfast.

            In the town, the company found the townspeople complaining of headaches and not getting enough sleep.

            Mayor Hobb was planning the fiftieth anniversary of the overthrow of Copperdeath. The party heard the story of how the dragon had been laired in the mines deep beneath the lone mountain in the area. A band of adventurers had gone into the mountain and slain the dragon. Five adventurers had gone in to kill the dragon, and only two had survived.

            At the Bell and Clapper inn, the company meets the proprietor, a half elf named Tocket. His mother was an elf, and was one of the adventurers who fought copperdeath fifty years ago.

            The company learned that three of the local children had gone missing recently: two boys and a girl. The locals generally seemed to be on edge.

            The company heard that the bell tower in the middle of town was haunted by the ghost of a drunk who had been killed in the tower by the tremendous sound of the great bell ringing.

            The company learned that the owner of the local mines was Lucious Krekket.

            The company saw a wild haird man preaching on a soap box. This man, named Cobble, was ranting about how “He” was going to “swallow all of us.” Some passers by indicated that Cobble had started preaching like this a day or so ago.

            Many townspeople referred to “the nightmares.” The town’s wizards and clerics had mostly left Bellhold already; they got the nightmares first. However, a local witch named Utrish had predicted that the dreams would end soon. She claimed that she could see the future.

            At the Bell and Clapper Inn, Tocket let the company look at an old book of his. Reading through this book, the company learned more about the five heroes of Bellhold.

            The book was the diary of Thrommel Redstone, a dwarf, and one of the heroes who had died.

            Tocket’s mother was Alyssa Songsword, an elven bard. She survived Copperdeath, but was now dead. When asked about her demise, Tocket indicated that she had “gone back to the elven lands.”

            The human Torin survived Copperdeath. He left town with the treasure. No one knew what had become of him.

            Dorick the halfling had died in the battle with the dragon, as had the human wizard Hallius.

            The party learned that the Dragon had charmed lots of people into working for it, and was also served by many Troglodytes.

            Jacob had learned much about copper dragons in his studies at Caer Itomis. He informed the company that they are generally good riddlers and charmers. They have turquoise eyes. They prefer cramped lairs with mazes.

            The party also learned that a new group of local heroes had set off to find out what happened to the missing children, and to find out what was causing the nightmares. They were: Corum Mosstoes, a halfling; Deeke Forgeman, a dwarf; Caliandra Stormhold, an elf bard; and Petros Bellsen, a human. The heroes had set off for the river about a week ago, and had not been seen from since.

            Mayor Hobb, Lucious Krekket, his wife Phillipa Krekket, and the captain of the guard, Haldik addressed the town and assured them that everything was going to be okay. The company learned that there were ten or twelve local guardsmen, and they were evidently not doing anything to seek out the cause of the town’s problems.

            The next morning, the company set off for Othic’s farm for breakfast. As they approached, they saw a panicked man running down the road towards them. He identified himself as Tol, a hireling of Othic. He said he had found Othic torn apart this morning, with great chunks of his body missing.

            The company went to the farm to investigate. There they see two of horses wandering about the yard. The other horses are keeping their distance, and seem to be alarmed. Inside the barn, the company finds a gruesome scene; Othic’s body is almost completely torn in two. A bloody bit and bridle are strapped around his head.

            The company returned to the yard. Caitlyn recognized the two horses keeping away from the others as Broadsword and Blaze, the horses who had gone missing. As she tentatively approached, longspear in hand, she felt one of the horses reach out with it’s mind and dominate her body. She was paralyzed. She watched in horror as her own body turned to attack her companions. She was unable to warn them, or to explain that something was dominating her. In her mind, she heard a voice that she was sure belonged to the horse. It was taunting her, and telling her that the “beasts of the mountains” had given it the power to escape, and to seek revenge on the “whip makers.”

            As Caitlyn’s body attacked Berwyn, Seneca shot an arrow at horse. Then he too was dominated. The rest of the company attacked the two horses, who’s mouths elongated unnaturally to reveal carnivorous teeth. The party killed both horses, and Caitlyn and Seneca returned to normal, and apologized for their actions.

            As the session ended, Caitlyn was examining the bodies of the horses. She found small wounds on their foreheads, as if something had been hammered into their skulls. She prepared for a dissection.