Tag: multi-chapter

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XXI

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which the miners are rescued, and our heroes prepare to withstand an attack.

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The alarm bell echoed from the mine and reverberated through the mountains. It was louder than I had thought possible—or, perhaps, the stillness of the night made it seem so. I shifted my axe to my left hand and took up a javelin in my right. My pulse in my ears was fast and strong. 

The guards beside the tunnel exchanged a look before they dashed into the mine. One took the lantern with him, and the blackness of the night overtook the hillside. From the city, a distant clamor of voices answered the bell, and soon the tramp of booted feet came up the path. 

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XXI” →

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Interlude Three

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which Khalim searches in the mine for Heishiro, and finds more than he expected.

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At first, Khalim could see nothing. The evening outside had not been bright, but the mine was black as the heart of the earth. The air was thick with dust and smoke that scraped down his throat as he breathed and made his chest burn. Gradually, faint lights swam out of the darkness—sputtering lanterns hanging at regular intervals, each encircled by a ring reflected from the dust in the air. 

It was a dim, filthy, miserable place. The miners, their backs bent and their heads bowed, shuffled down the tunnel under sacks of rock, listless and unheeding. The guards stood straighter, and their eyes were wary, but they were as dirty as the miners they watched. 

I have passed into the realm of the dead, Khalim thought with a shudder. 

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Interlude Three” →

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XIX

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which our heroes arrive at the mountain stronghold, and preparations are made.

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The storm lifted at last before nightfall. I took the horses out of our shelter and tethered them to a twisted tree nearby, under a sky painted in brilliant colors from the dust still in the air. The mountains were black beneath the fiery sunset, and the red plain to the east was stained a bloody hue. From the city to the peak, all was quiet. 

I slept then and did not dream.  Aysulu woke me before sunrise. We struck our camp and gathered our things in the dark, and as one final gesture of spite to the Ascended, I set fire to the chariot. It was against Aysulu’s advice, but I saw no reavers upon the plain, and I took measures to ensure the flames would not spread. We could not take the chariot with us, in any case. 

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XIX” →

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XVIII

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which our heroes escape the city.

Table of Contents

The winner’s chest was heavy, but it was small enough for me to carry in one arm. I took Khalim by the hand—let the Seven see with their unblinking, jewel-like eyes that he was mine and under my protection—and walked with brisk purpose down from the platform. 

The nobles on their cushions sat still, but the crowds below them had begun to surge toward the exits. Elsewhere in the city, I knew, the forces of House Darela and House Kaburh were attacking the city’s stores of food and weapons. The majority of the guard was here, in the arena, and they rushed toward the gates to slow or stop the miners’ exodus. We would have to move quickly. 

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Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XVII

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which the tournament is concluded, but there is much yet to do.

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We raced down the length of the arena in a thunder of hooves and rattling wheels. Aysulu bent her head against the wind, squinting into the dust. I could not hear the crowds over the noise, but I could just make out the spectators closest to the ground, gripping the rails and leaning out as far as they dared.

Pace by pace, our chariot was gaining ground. Jahan and Alaric traded blows ahead of us, their staffs knocking together with a force that could break bones. We slipped between the Lion and Wolf’s chariot and the wall and caught up to Jin and Heishiro.

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Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XVI

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which the chariot race begins.

Table of Contents

I awoke with the sun, and I heard the sound of someone moving quietly outside my door, stoking the fire and boiling water. Khalim still slept, a tangle of long brown limbs stretched out on the narrow bed beside me. He slept easy, his breathing deep and even. For the moment, no dreams troubled him. 

I do not remember if I dreamt, but now that I was awake, guilt plagued me. Had I made a terrible mistake? Maybe it would have been wiser to keep my distance, so that whatever was to come, I could believe at least I had not made things worse. But it was already too late for that—it had been well before the previous evening. 

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XVI” →

Chapter Four: A Home Without Joy (Part Two)

The Well Below the Valley cover image: A dead tree stands on a field of short grass, against a blank gray sky. Bottom text reads, "A fan-made Call of Cthulhu module."

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The investigators have arrived at last at the seat of the cult’s power: the hollow island in the North sea. Already, the Great Mother’s servants are gathering, and they will stop at nothing to prevent our intrepid heroes from ending their evil and saving the world.

In Part One of this chapter, the investigators procured transportation and sailed to the island, hiding their boat and making their way over the jagged rocks to the underground temple. Armed with the spell in the Westmont Text, and possibly some explosives obtained in Dublin, they must now enter the temple and seal the Mother’s well for good.

(All page numbers refer to the Seventh Edition of the Call of Cthulhu Keeper Rulebook, published 2015 by Chaosium, Inc. I am in no way affiliated with Chaosium or the writers of the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game system. Content notes for this chapter: eldritch horror, cult activity, forced drugging, abduction, monstrous pregnancy and miscarriage, explosions, and geographic destruction.)

Continue reading “Chapter Four: A Home Without Joy (Part Two)” →

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Interlude Two

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which the stage is set for the end of the tournament.

Table of Contents

As they left the industrial district, Reva split off to head through the back alleys toward the slums, and Aysulu and Garvesh went on to the noble quarter. It was almost fully dark, with only the faintest glow of the setting sun casting light on the hills beyond the city walls. Phyreios itself did not sleep during the festival, and already it was lit up in an array of torches and lanterns that outshone the glittering stars above. 

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Interlude Two” →

Chapter Four: A Home Without Joy (Part One)

The Well Below the Valley cover image: A dead tree stands on a field of short grass, against a blank gray sky. Bottom text reads, "A fan-made Call of Cthulhu module."

Table of Contents

The investigators and their allies have faced the summoned creature and the cult in Dublin. They are left with a number of bodies in an abandoned barn and a black scar on the earth in someone’s field, or with the city crumbling in the horror’s wake.  If the investigators failed to defeat the summoned creature, they will receive no more help from their allies in Dublin. All efforts will be redirected to mitigating the damage and saving as many people as possible. Even if it and most, if not all, the cultists have been killed, arrested, or otherwise put out of action, the repercussions of their activities continue. Specifically, there has been a bombing in the city followed by quite a lot of gunfire just outside it.  It would be reasonable to assume that both the British and Irish governments will conclude that the local IRA members have broken the terms of the treaty and the previous ceasefire and restarted a pattern of sectarian violence. 

(All page numbers refer to the Seventh Edition of the Call of Cthulhu Keeper Rulebook, published 2015 by Chaosium, Inc. I am in no way affiliated with Chaosium or the writers of the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game system. Content notes for this chapter: mentions of terrorism/bombing, cult activity, forced drugging, a general sense of doom.)

Continue reading “Chapter Four: A Home Without Joy (Part One)” →

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XV

Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea cover image: a wide, still river with forested mountain peaks rising on either side, underneath a clouded sky.
In which there is a fire-breathing lizard, a display of power, and a night spent in peace.

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Aysulu kicked her horse forward, nocking an arrow to her bow. I followed, keeping Khalim and Garvesh behind me. The salamander looked at us with one eye, small and shiny like a glass bead, and then turned its head to examine us with the other. Steam poured from its nostrils. 

It was customary, I learned, for the entire team to face their beast, even those who had no skill for combat. Khalim’s value to us in this fight was obvious, but I was less sure about Garvesh. 

He soon proved his worth. “I have read of these creatures,” he said, peering out around my shoulder. “They live in caves—it will be nearly blind in daylight. And watch for its tail! That will trip you as sure as its breath will burn you.”

Continue reading “Beyond the Frost-Cold Sea: Chapter XV” →