Session Thirteen: The Cook's Tale

Everything, All at Once

Sabina and Garnier, who have both been trying to corral their gambling-addicted companions, both independently realize that if the addiction has a magical component, perhaps divine intervention could mitigate or remove it. 

Sir Henri tries to get away from Sabina to return to the Baton to gamble, but Sabina latches onto his arm and refuses to let him leave. The knight finds her grip quite formidable, and remains, though his hunger to return to the table grows.

Jim approaches the Baton and is immediately recognized by Sabina, who calls him over. Jim is reticent to do so, but eventually obeys. Sabina learns that he has come to participate in the High Stakes room to win Jules’ freedom. Sabina tells him, in no uncertain terms, that doing so will merely doom him to a lifetime of servitude to the Baton. Jim, still in the thrall of his own gambling addiction, is difficult to convince.

In the meantime, Maurice and Magnus, finding no one is supervising them for the moment, purchase more chits. Magnus buys a small fortune and has a guard escort him to the High Stakes room. Maurice exchanges a much smaller sum and goes back to his favorite roulette table.

Upstairs, Renee is saved when a guard bursts into the brothel hallway, stating loudly that there is an incident and demanding the brothel’s healing kit. Renee follows him outside to find Pierre and Sir Jean-Marc wading through a crowd of onlookers, holding a bloodied Jules. She follows them outside. The guard does as well, baffled that Pierre—a self-professed physician—never takes the proffered healing kit.

Jim Again

Back to the Shrine

Bringing Jules out of the Baton does little to improve his dissipated condition, and so Sir Jean-Marc, at Sabina’s urging, tosses the young man onto Ambrose and prepares to ride to the shrine. As the group prepares to ride off, Garnier seizes his opportunity and slips into the High Stakes room after Magnus. In a daring gambit, he steals half of Magnus’ chits and flees the Baton, forcing the enraged mercenary to follow after him. To compound the insult—and to ensure Magnus follows—Garnier mounts Bartholomule and uses her to outdistance Magnus and follow the others to the shrine.

The entire company—less Maurice—arrive at the shrine perhaps a quarter hour later. Magnus, exhausted, but still enraged, runs into the shrine after them and tries to throttle Garnier, only to be clouted soundly on the helmet by Sir Henri. The company quickly confers with the Reverend Father and, explaining their dire need, enters the shrine’s chapel, dragging Magnus along with them.

One holy rite, and an anointment of holy oils, later purges Magnus, Sir Henri, Jim (dragged along by Sabina), and Jules of their gambling lust. Jules, however, still remains distant and without affect. The company tells the Reverend Father of their fears that the Ruinous Powers are involved and show him the slip of paper they found on Jules’ person. The company decides to try to burn the parchment, and the Reverend Father gives them a dish and holy oil to improve their success. He sends them outside to perform this task while he prays to the Lady for guidance.

Jules Returns

The company pours holy oil in the dish, says a prayer to the Lady, ignites the oil, and burns the parchment. Immediately, Jules comes around, confused and swearing. He has no idea where he is and has no memory of the last few days. The company soon realize that they preferred his previous personality much better.

Upon questioning, Jules reveals that, while going to the Baton to make a little money at the tables, he encountered a weeping monk with a book. Jules spoke with him and the monk said that, while he didn’t want to ask, he was sure that Jules had a wish that he wanted granted. Jules was then told that could get what he desired by writing his wish in the Lady’s book, which the monk carried. When Jules snapped that he couldn’t read, the monk agreed to write the wish in the book for him, which Jules accepted. The monk did so, tore out the wish, handed it to Jules, and went on his way weeping.

Jules then goes on to explain that he won big for a while at the Baton, but his luck turned, and he soon was heavily in debt. He said that Monsieur Corentin was kind enough to give him a job to work off his debt and…that was the last thing he remembers.

Hearing this, the company decides it would be safer if Jules would return to his mother’s place, which Jules adamantly refuses. Jim, however, knowing what the group is capable of, says that he will make arrangements for himself and his friend and drags Jules out of the shrine, saying very quick and very polite replies.

Shortly after the duo leave, the group are approached by an acolyte, who gives them a metal container. They are told that the contents of the container are being loaned to them by the Reverend Father, and that they should open it when the time is right. They are also told to return this gift once they have made use of it. The company promises to do so and departs.

Back to the Baton

The company discovers, to their shame, that they have completely forgotten about Maurice. They return to the Baton in order to reclaim him and to put an end to the foul magic pervading the place.

Upon arrival, Sir Jean-Marc is approached by Amelia, who tells the knight that she has secured an interview with him and Monsieur Corentin. In all the confusion, Sir Jean-Marc asks if his friends can attend and then receives an answer in the affirmative. He is then taken aside by Amelia who tells him, in a terrified whisper, that there is evil afoot in the Baton. She begs Sir Jean-Marc to protect her and, when he promises to do so, she kisses him on the cheek and leaves.

The company enters and finds Maurice, who has been on a losing streak at the table and has just bet the last of his funds. Perhaps due to the arrival of his friends, or perhaps due to the grace of the Lady, he hits it big on his final bet, walking away with 36 Gold. Garnier accompanies both Maurice and Magnus to the front desk, where the two cash in their chits for actual money. Garnier decides to keep one of the chits as a memento of this awful place.

It is about this time that a guard informs Sir Jean-Marc that Monsieur Corentin will meet with the group on the upstairs veranda. The guard then escorts the company to the veranda to wait for him.

The Upstairs Veranda

Monsieur Corentin

The veranda is empty apart from a large guard presence and a bartender named Ruby, who is told to give the company drinks for free. Magnus immediately befriends Ruby and takes advantage, ordering several drinks and a large plate of food for himself.

After some time, Monsieur Corentin arrives, flanked by a pair of guards. His amiable demeanor rapidly deteriorates when the company accuses him of all manner of nefarious deeds and plots. The company demands to see the records of the people who are working off their debts at the Baton, and Corentin is so intimidated that he agrees, sending one of his guards to fetch Amelia and the appropriate records.

Magnus becomes convinced that Corentin is lying to them, so he hauls off and belts him in the stomach, driving him to his knees. Corentin milks this injury for sympathy, but gets very little, as he insists that he has no idea what the group is talking about.

Since Amelia has not yet arrived with the records, the company asks Corentin to send for the cook. When she is brought up and presented, Corentin is aghast at her diminished and zombie-like state. He tells the group that he has no idea why she is like this, that he is too busy to work directly with the new hires, and that Amelia handles all the day-to-day administrative tasks of the Baton.

His words confirm some of the group’s suspicions—especially Garnier, Sabina, and Renee—and they now are fairly certain that it is not Corentin, but Amelia, who is actually the mastermind behind the strange goings on at the Baton. The company realizes that they, however briefly, have the advantage. They know, but Amelia might not know that they know.

Monsieur Corentin

J’Accuse!

Sir Jean-Marc says that he will go downstairs to “see what’s keeping Amelia.” He does so, only to find her coming up the stairs to the veranda. Amelia, looking terrified, tells Sir Jean-Marc that she has found evidence of Corentin’s evil deeds, and asks him to come with her so that she can show him.

Sir Jean-Marc does, accompanying her through the gaming room downstairs and into the brothel hallway. The rest of the company follow Sir Jean-Marc at a distance, weapons ready. They all notice, to their growing concern, that the gaming hall and brothel hallway are now deserted and eerily quiet.

At the far end of the brothel hallway, Sir Jean-Marc calls Amelia’s bluff and raises his mace. Amelia cackles at him and, rather oddly, tugs a single long, pink ribbon out of her hair. Sir Jean-Marc, suspecting that foul magic is about to be employed, strikes Amelia, sending her crashing into the wall.

“Guards!” she cries, and four heavily armed men burst into the hallway behind Sir Jean-Marc, cutting him off from the rest of the arriving company.

Amelia stands and, holding out her ribbon, shouts, “Come, sister! Awaken! Let us introduce them to the litany of the delicious pain!”

She then transforms to a horrific demonic thing, holding a barbed and many-tailed whip.

Session Twelve: The Cook's Tale

The Baton du Coquine

The company follows Jim’s directions to the gambling hall, which proves to be an opulent, two-story structure in the middle of Poissy. Upon entering, they see that most of the guests are in high spirits, enjoying their winnings, their companions, and their revelry. A few, however, seem much more dissipated—one of whom is the woman who Sir Jean-Marc earlier saw flogging her jewelry. While all in the company are on their guard, Pierre is especially alert, for he has the nagging fear that there is great evil at work in this establishment.

The company splits up. Garnier minds Sir Henri, Magnus, and Maurice as they exchange coin for gambling chits and begin playing table games in a large and airy hall. Frieda, Sabina, Pierre, Sir and Jean-Marc sit at a bar in the concourse, order very expensive drinks, and begin gossiping with a bartender most gregarious. Renee, meanwhile, finds her way to the second floor, where she begins a solitary search for Jules.

The First floor of the Baton du Coquine

Gambling Men

The three gamblers win, and win big. Sir Henri, who is playing cards with several others, wins many friends at his table by spending a percentage of his windfall on drinks for the table. Magnus, too, tips his table’s dealer generously, and Maurice’s wins draw cheers from the roulette table and unwanted attention from a very drunk female patron of the baton.

Garnier does not partake, and grows increasingly concerned at the strange and overwhelming avarice that infects his three companions. He has great trouble not only convincing them to stop gambling, but also to get them to hand him part of their winnings for safekeeping. Magnus threatens violence until Garnier brings up his friend’s dear old mother. Magnus backs down, but only barely.

Sometime later, with the assistance of Frieda and Sabina, Garnier manages to tear his friends away from the tables and all but frog marches them out to the cashier to turn in their chits for coin. He is disgusted at the enabling behavior of the cashier, who winks and nods at the three gamblers and insists that they have enough now to enter the “High Stakes Room.”

Garnier resolves to keep an eye on his companions to make sure they do not return to their pursuits. With all that has gone on during their travels so far, he begins to suspect that foul magic is at work.

Belly Up to the Bar

Inquiries to the gregarious bartender prove largely fruitless. They learn that he is happy with his job, that the Baton is a lovely place to work, and that his oft-mentioned superior, Corentin, is a fine and capable man to work for. Unfortunately, the bartender has only been recently hired and knows very little about the other employees. The group brings up Jim and Jules to him (and to a nearby and very baffled guard) with no results.

Pierre abruptly decides to order food from the kitchen, despite its expense. When it is brought out to him, he launches into an excoriating—and quite atypical—tirade about the low quality of his meal. The bartender offers to make things right with the cook, at which point Pierre loudly demands that he be permitted to speak to the cook himself. Both the bartender and Pierre’s companions are baffled by his behavior.

Wanting to avoid a scene, the bartender offers to take Pierre into the kitchen. Sir Jean-Marc offers to accompany his friend. The two are brought across the concourse to a closed door, which is suddenly thrust open from the other side. A woman comes rushing out and crashes headlong into Sir Jean-Marc, spilling chits across the floor. Sir Jean-Marc assists the lady to rise and collect her chits. She apologizes profusely, seems to get quite moon-eyed and awestruck by the dashing knight, and introducers herself as Amelia, second-in-command to Monsieur Corentin and accountant of the Baton.

Pierre takes the opportunity to ask Amelia if he could meet with Monsieur Corentin at some future point. Amelia apologizes once again and says that Monsieur Corentin is very busy throughout the day, both with the management of the Baton and with numerous other appointments. However, She will speak with him and see if she can arrange for a time for the two to meet. She then excuses herself and, blushing after once again locking eyes with the knight, runs off.

Amelia

Renee’s Procurement

Renee ventures upstairs, where she encounters a man employed by the Baton. She enquires about “her friend” Jules, but the man seems not to know who Jules is. Renee, wondering if the man is lying about this (and other things), strikes up a veiled conversation with the man about the other, less well-known facets of the Baton.

The man smiles, says that he understands, and will arrange for Renee to interview with people who might pique her interest shortly. He tells her to enjoy herself while he speaks to the appropriate people, before disappearing into a heavily guarded doorway that blocks off much of the second floor.

Renee processes the conversation and realizes that a) she has just discovered that the Baton has a secret brothel and b) she has just asked to procure the brothel’s services. In a panic, she races downstairs, finds her companions at the bar, and tells them what she has done. Her companions are vaguely amused at this, and will promise to come running if Renee gives a signal.

Renee asks Sabina if she could borrow her pistol, hoping to use that to give “the signal” when the time comes. Sabina strongly refuses, and before Renee can offer justification or compensation for the Imperial-made weapon, the man appears at her side and offers to escort her upstairs to her “interview.”

The Kitchen

Pierre, Sir Jean-Marc, and the bartender stride through a room filled with gamblers at tables and into the Baton’s kitchen. There, the bartender introduces them to the cook, an exhausted looking woman with a sunken chest and hollow eyes (with prominent dark circles beneath). Pierre launches into a tirade about his dissatisfaction with his meal, and says that he wants it replaced and that he wants to “talk to his friend Jules, who referred him to the Baton,” so that he can tell him how unhappy he is. 

She responds to Pierre’s complaints with a flat affect and a halting tone, but does promise to make everything right. Sir Jean-Marc, noting the cook’s sedate expression, claps loudly in front of her face, provoking no response.

Pierre says he is a barber-surgeon, and would like to examine the cook. This draws protests from the bartender, but he is quickly placated when Sir Jean-Marc hands him a Crown. At the knight’s insistence, the bartender waits outside while Pierre conducts his investigation.

Pierre finds nothing wrong with the woman, at least physically. After additional questioning, the pair learn that the cook is a former patron of the establishment, who went heavily into debt at the tables. Monsieur Corentin was kind enough to give her a position in the kitchen so that she could work off her debt. She also, frustratingly, has no idea who Jules is.

The pair leave the kitchen and begin to ask pointed questions of the bartender, but they are interrupted when Amelia steps into the room and asks them if anything is amiss. Pierre repeats his food complaint, but does say that the cook is willing to make good and cook him a fresh meal. He repeats his desire to speak to “his friend Jules.”

Amelia, to the pair’s delight, says that she knows who that is. She explains that he is one of the Baton’s cleaners, and she is happy to help the pair look for him. All four return to the bar, in part so that the bartender can return to his work, and in part so that Pierre and Sir Jean-Marc can tell the others what they have learned.

All the while, Amelia is clearly expressing her crushing fondness for the knight, blushing and making every excuse to touch him on the elbow.

The Baton, Second Floor

A Bit of Fresh Air

Sir Henri sits at the bar. He realizes that he is absolutely famished and considers ordering a meal. Just before he commits his coin, a fresh plate of food (Pierre’s) is brought out and placed at the bar. Sir Henri, not questioning his providence, begins eating it.

Sabina, concerned at Sir Henri’s behavior, all but grabs him by the ear and drags him all the way out through the front hall and into the street outside. She continues walking until she and Sir Henri have put some distance between the Baton and the prying eyes of its guards. Sabina then rounds on Sir Henri, asking him about his strange behavior and his sudden addiction to gambling. When the newly minted knight is unable to form a coherent response, she says that members of the company have become aware that there are strange doings and foul magic at work in the Baton, and that Sir Henri needs to find some resolve.

The Brothel

Renee is escorted into a fine hallway and introduced to several scantily clad individuals of eye-catching physiques. One woman asks her to choose who she would like to spend time with for the next hour or so, to which Renee, more than a little put off by the closeness of the flesh and the reek of perfume in the air, says:

“I want to spend my time with Jules. He works here. I want him and no one else.”

Her new friends are taken aback by this very specific request, but are more than happy to find Jules for her. The man who had arranged for her visit bows and promises to go out and look for Jules. Meanwhile, Renee’s new friends try to ply her with finger foods and heady wines.

Jules, at Last

After dropping off the bartender at his post, Amelia brings Sir Jean-Marc and Pierre around to various rooms that the company, to this point, had not been in. In the third room that they visit—which seems reserved for private parties and banquets—they find a slender, sunken-chested, hollow-eyed man that matches the description given to the company by Lunette Corbin. Amelia confirms this by calling the man—Jules—over. She then apologizes for having to attend to other duties and leaves the room.

Jules Corbin

Jules, unsurprisingly, expresses the same flattened affect and the empty stare of the cook. Sir Jean-Marc and Pierre confirm what they already know, which is that Jules also has debts that he is paying off by working as a cleaner at the Baton.

The pair quickly confer and decide that it would be best to contrive of a way to get Jules off of the Baton’s premises. Thinking quickly, Sir Jean-Marc draws his dagger and opens a cut on Jules’ arm. Jules feels the pain, but seems mostly unbothered by it, and Pierre takes the opportunity to hoist him up and drag him bodily from the room.

The pair—and Jules—enter the crowded gambling hall outside, and Pierre makes a scene by shouting, “this man is wounded! I am a surgeon! Bring me bandages and hot water!” all the while helping Sir Jean-Marc carry Jules ever closer to the exit. Several guards run off, and several of the guests scream in alarm, but none have the social clout to dare to impede Sir Jean-Marc’s progress.

As the two men carry a bleeding Jules toward the concourse, Pierre sees a familiar-looking scrap of paper tucked into Jules’ shirt. He fishes it out and reads the smudged and uneven handwriting.

Great Lady, have mercy. Jules Corbin desires a profession worthy of his stature

Session Eleven: The Cook’s Tale

 A Roadside Consultation

The company’s journey to Poissy is briefly delayed when Sir Jean-Marc develops a noisy, wet cough. Pierre checks over the knight and applies fresh bandages, but these do little for his new symptom. There is some discussion of balancing Sir Jean-Marc’s humors and applying some heat and dryness to him, but this cannot be easily done by the side of theroad.

The company’s journey resumes, and Henri the Innkeeper regales them with the legend of Saint Maxence. The saint was a Grail Knight of great renown who fell in battle against a Chaos daemon who ravaged the countryside. Not content merely to slay the knight, the daemon tore Saint Maxence’s head from their shoulders and, cackling, went on to despoil the town of Poissy.

Just when all seemed darkest, the divine power of the Lady restored Saint Maxence briefly to life. Carrying their head under one arm, the blessed saint raced to Poissy and dueled the demon a final time. With a mighty blow that shattered their sword, Echarde, Maxence laid low their terrible foe. Knowing that Poissy was safe, Saint Maxence allowed the miracle to leave them, and they died again. This time, forever.

Henri goes on to say that the blessed saint was laid in state inside of a church just outside of Poissy. Two days after their internment, a great tree rose up out of the ground, swallowing the knight and their sepulcher and tearing the roof off the church—which has become a most blessed pilgrimage site ever since.

The Corbin Farm

The Corbin Farm

The company arrives at the farm of Lunette Corbin, Henri the innkeeper's cousin, where they are greeted by a yapping dog of excitable disposition. The dog’s barks soon draw the attention of the lady of the house, who comes running out of the chicken coop with a roar of, “JULES?!” This outcry only serves to confuse the company and startle Sir Jean-Marc’s horse.

Henri makes introductions. Lunette apologizes for the confusion and says that she was hoping that her good-for-nothing son—whom she banished from the farm—had finally mended his ways and returned home. She invites the company in for lunch and catches Henri up on the doings in and around Poissy.

After lunch, the company parts ways for a bit. Garnier, Magnus, Sir Jean-Marc, and Maurice travel into town to shop at the local markets. The rest remain on the farm, helping out with various chores and speaking with Lunette.

Lunette’s favorite topic of conversation is her good-for-nothing son, Jules, who seems to have no direction in life and no interest in learning a trade or even serving as a common laborer. Glad for an audience to listen to her troubles, she describes her son's many failures and defects. When it became clear to her that she could not beg, cajole, or threaten him to better himself, Lunette kicked Jules off the farm until he “made something of himself.”

At present, it appears that Jules has done little other than move in with “his wastrel friend” Jim, who lives in Poissy and works as a common laborer. Lunette has heard tell that Jules and Jim do little but gamble and drink.

It is at this point that Pierre notices that Ambrose, Sir Jean-Marc’s horse, left behind to rest and feed at the farm, becomes noticeably agitated whenever Jules’ name is mentioned.

Lunette Corbin

Shopping in Poissy

Having finally come into some money, Garnier purchases clothes that—to him—seem quite fashionable and dashing, but which makes him seem somewhat ridiculous. His new favorite purchase appears to be a large and jaunty hat, which he touches, adjusts, and gesticulates to at every possible opportunity.

While Garnier struts around the markets in his new clothes, Maurice and Magnus make more practical purchases and Sir Jean-Marc looks for an apothecary to find a cure for his unpleasant cough. The knight soon runs into a rather slick purveyor of various liquids, guaranteed to cure any illness Sir Jean-Marc has heard of and several he has not. Sir Jean-Marc purchase a tall glass bottle of a dark elixir and immediately drinks the entire thing. This horrifies the seller, who quickly loses himself in the crowd as the knight’s stomach begins to bubble most ominously.

While Sir Jean-Marc steadies himself, he happens to overhear a conversation at a nearby jewelry stall. A young woman has emptied a small box of jewelry onto the table, and is aggressively haggling with the merchant for as much coin as he is able to give. Her tone is worried and quite strident—so much so that the jeweler has begun looking around nervously.

Sir Jean-Marc, realizing that one or both of the people involved in the transaction are in distress, walks over and attempts to intervene. His good deed is immediately interrupted when the full effect of the elixir takes hold and he projectile vomits all over the stall.

The Shrine of Saint Maxence

An Illumination of the Blessed Saint Maxence, Grail Knight

The company comes back together at the Corbin farm. Sir Jean-Marc is quiet, light-headed, and recently rinsed after his embarrassing display in the Poissy markets.

The company, at Henri the innkeeper's insistence, then travels to the Shrine of Saint Maxence. They travel to the roofless church, pray at the holy tree, and purchase the saint’s pilgrim bag as a token of their visit.

While at the shrine, the members of the company gossip with the clergy in attendance and learn the following:

• The splintered blade of Maxence’s sword is kept in the catacombs below. Though it is normally available to be viewed by pilgrims, it has been recently been put “off limits” by the Reverend Father after someone tried to steal it.
• The pilgrims the company has been following for many days were there the day before, and that they were all lovely people. Gascon Gascoigne was quite a memorable fellow, and insisted on his pilgrims seeing Echarde, the blessed blade.
• A mysterious monk with a book came to the shrine and prayed fervently to the saint and the Lady. Those that spoke to him said that he was in some distress and, though they encouraged him to stay to rest, meditate, and lay down his burdens, he told them that he had business “further east.”

Squire Henri is very interested in seeing the blessed blade himself, and so begs a favor of the Reverend Father. The elderly priest, aided in walking by a young acolyte of thirteen or so, grudgingly acquiesces—likely more because of the presence of Sir Jean-Marc than due to anything that Squire Henri has said.

The Reverend Father leads the company down into the catacombs, where they view Echarde, which rests on a cloth of red velvet behind a locked gate. Even those in the company without a larcenous bent can see that the lock on the gate has been badly scratched, as if someone tried to pick the lock in the dark.

The company stand in awe of the blessed blade. They are also all moved by both Squire Henri’s impassioned request to the Reverend Father and his humble piety before the blade. They wonder out loud why the young squire has not yet been made a knight. When Squire Henri turns to Sir Jean-Marc and puts the question to him directly, Sir Jean-Marc says that it’s because he hasn’t gotten around to knighting him yet.

Following this admission, the company awkwardly heads back up to the surface, with Henri the innkeeper chattering all the while about how grateful he is to have seen the blessed blade.

It is then that Sir Jean-Marc calls for everyone’s attention. The company, the other pilgrims, and the clergy in attendance all look on as he motions for Squire Henri to join him in front of the tree of the blessed saint. Once there, Sir Jean-Marc gives a lovely speech about Squire Henri’s constancy, virtue, humility, and service, and asks him to take a knee. He then proceeds…

to have a massive coughing fit that doubles him over and makes him see stars.

…but after that, he knights Squire Henri, to the applause of all and sundry!

The Shrine of Saint Maxence

A Surprise Visit

The company departs the shrine and starts making plans on what to do next. Sabina seems most interested in talking to Jim and finding out what’s going on with Jules. The rest of the company thinks this is a fine idea—apart from Henri the innkeeper, who does not wish to involve himself in his cousin’s family squabbles. He bids them all a fond adieu and says that he will meet them at the farm later.

It is the work of but a short half-hour to locate Jim’s small apartment in a seedy part of Poissy. The freshly knighted Sir Henri strides up to the door and knocks loudly, to which someone inside shouts a greeting and asks him what he wants. Sir Henri announces himself, which causes the person on the other side of the door to chortle and say, “Sir?! Ha! Pull the other one!”

The company, hearing this, reacts with shock and bemusement. Several say, quite loudly, that Sir Henri must answer this disrespect, while Garnier, offhandedly, wonders if they shouldn’t just kick the door in. This is all the permission that Magnus apparently needs to kick the door in.

In the grimy apartment beyond, a portly young man sits on the floor, surrounded by mostly empty jugs of cheap wine. He stares at the company in terror as they invade his living space and surround him on all sides.

The young man is Jim, Jules’ friend, who is only too happy to answer the company's questions. He does, however, pepper his responses with, “I’ve got money. I’ve paid off my debts. I’m up now. I’m on a streak!” and “please, please don’t kill me!”

They learn that Jules and Jim have become frequent visitors of the Baton, a gambling hall that has recently opened in Poissy, and that Jim now works there so that he can pay off his numerous debts.

The company, now very curious, decides to visit the Baton and see what’s what. They leave Jim to his drinking and his squalor, but not before Magnus—rather magnanimously—tries to place Jim’s front door back in its frame.

Jim, in Happier Times

Session Ten: The Reeve’s Tale

An Army of Giggling Flesh Things

Hee-hee-HEE-hee!

Despite the horrors they face, the company and the guards of Berjols keep their heads about them and continue to fight tactically. Several waves of the hideous creatures fall prey to weapon blows, break themselves on the company’s shield wall, or, most inexplicably, vanish from sight in clouds of greenish mist, never to be seen again.

The brave Sir Jean-Marc, who guards the right flank, gets the worst of the battle. Much of the time he faces at least two of the giggling, bouncing attackers, and it is all he can do to protect his comrades and himself against such a determined onslaught. One of the creatures strikes a lucky blow on his shield arm, easily rending plate and mail and tearing apart the skin beneath. Though Sir Jean-Marc wavers, he does not fall, and soon the right flank is clear of the creatures.

It is at this moment that a much larger version of the giggling, round-bodied monsters hauls itself from the farthest of the mushroom colonies. With a deep, booming laugh, the creature slowly rolls toward the company. Sir Jean-Marc, realizing that he cannot let the monster near the shield wall, breaks ranks and engages the creature in single combat. This action draws disbelieving shouts and angry screams from his companions—mostly from Sabina. As the dauntless knight fights toe to flabby toe with the beast, the back line fires a volley of arrows, bolts, and shot into the creature.

Magnus, Squire Henri, and Captain Julien take control of the shield wall and swing it around toward the creature until they surround it. The massed fighters rain blow after blow into the hideous thing until, with a final, quavering, “ho ho ho,” it deliquesces into a puddle of slime and dies.

Further Investigations

The Vile Temple

While Pierre bandages Sir-Jean Marc’s wound, the others look over the ruined temple. Special attention is paid to a greenish gemstone held in the hands of the gruesome statue that lords over the chamber. Fearful that this might be the power that called the creatures into the temple, the company shoots at it and smashes it until it is reduced to a fine powder.

Captain Julien orders his guards to return to Montressor and Berjols and return with oil, picks, prybars, and such laborers that they can find at the late hour. His plan is to utterly destroy the awful temple as quickly as possible.

The captain also remarks how odd it is that three of the colonies are purplish-black, while three are white. Magnus and Sabina both say that they think they know why this is, though they are reluctant to tell the captain. Julien presses them and the duo explain that they suspect that the mushrooms have changed color after feeding on blood.

At Captain Julien’s request, the company carefully forages around in the three purple mushroom colonies. It is not long before they uncover the greasy bones of three people. It appears that the mushrooms have fed well—and quickly—on these remains. Though neither the captain nor the company need further confirmation, they do find a familiar-looking slip of yellow parchment amidst the bones of the closest pile.

“Great Lady, Tristan wishes to find his comrades and punish the one responsible for their disappearance.”

A Heroes’ Welcome

The company departs the cavern with the captain and the remains of the three fallen guards. They praise the Lady for finally being freed from the stench of the temple, and gratefully sup the sweet springtime air.

They return to Montressor, where news of their discovery and victory has already spread. Sabina begs off of the impromptu celebration so that she can wash the stink out of her clothes. Captain Julien, meanwhile, commandeers a villager and their cart to transport himself and his three dead guards back to Berjols. Before leaving, he tosses his hefty pouch to the company. A count later on reveals that he has given them 36 Crown—much more than even Maurice had haggled for.

The company eventually retires to the village hall, where they eat and drink for free. Most of the company drowns their memories of the temple with numerous cups of strong beer. Sir Jean-Marc and Magnus are particularly notable for quantities imbibed, but the others also partake.

Early on in the celebration, Frieda finds the group and, with journal in hand, begins peppering them with questions about their recent battle. She helps to refill cups in between taking notes, and soon has the gist of the story before the company drinks themselves into incoherence.

At some point in the night, Garnier wanders off and comes back, having purchased a bottle of cologne from one of the villagers. He passes the bottle around to his companions and all but orders them to mask the temple’s stink. Renee, who is already quite inebriated by this point, quaffs from the cologne bottle before Garnier is able to snatch it away from her.

The Next Day

The evening blurs into a hazy fog.

Sometime later, the company awakens beside the village hall’s cooling hearth. Nursing their headaches, they eat a quick breakfast and make ready to continue eastward, after the pilgrims.

As they leave the village hall, they see none other than Henri the innkeeper, who is sitting atop his little cart. In addition to his loyal mule, Henry is accompanied by both Bartholomule and Ambrose, whom he rescued from their forced exile from Berjols.

Henri tells the company that news of their deeds has reached him, and he once again states that he is quite pleased to be traveling in their company. He mentions that the next stop on their pilgrims’ progress is the Town of Poissy, also known as the resting place of Maxence, the so-called “Headless Knight.”

Henri also says that they should be able to rest and eat in Poissy very cheaply, because he has arranged with his cousin—who lives in the town—to stay at their home for the duration of their visit.

Lastly, Henri says that the company shall not want for food on their journey, as he spent some time yesterday restocking their provisions from the shops in Berjols. Hearing this, the company asks Henri if those provisions include bread or baked goods of any kind. When Henri answers in the affirmative, the company persuades him to toss all flour-based products into Montressor’s midden heap.

A Wise Idea to Watch Your Carbs, Good Masters!

Session Nine: The Reeve’s Tale

A Tale of Two Locations

A slight retcon from the previous session finds Maurice, Magnus, and Garnier hiding their loot from the bandits in the forest before going to Berjols to report to Captain Julien. They find that Bartholomule and Ambrose have been summarily ejected from the town, likely due to intestinal distress, and have been tied up just outside the front gates. They also see quite a commotion, which comes from the guards telling visitors that Berjols now has a case of the Bloody Flux.

They meet the captain, who is pleased at the death of the bandits. He sends two guards out to collect the corpses and the evidence. The trio are paid three Crown total for the dead bandits and then promptly leave to collect their loot and return to Montressor.

They meet with the rest of the company, apart from Squire Henri, who is still lost. After a brief catchup, Pierre, Renee, Sabina, and Frieda go back to Berjols to tell Captain Julien what they discovered in the mill. Frieda also stops by the temple of Verena to research the weird symbols everyone keeps seeing everywhere.

Captain Julien

Captain Julien—now sporting his brand new “enchanted” sword, takes the news that his missing guards are likely dead as well as can be expected. He looks over the shredded tabard that the company discovered and deems it suspicious enough that the miller should be arrested. He pays the group ten Crown and says that he is off to get a warrant from the Lord Mayor of Berjols. 

The group collects Frieda a short time later and returns to Montressor.

While they were away, Maurice, Magnus, Garnier, and Sir Jean-Marc were able to flog their recently acquired goods to the villagers of Montressor. The group’s smooth patter, combined with Sir Jean-Marc’s social status, earns the company another four Crown.

Once the mercantile work is done and almost all the company has reunited, it is decided Squire Henri has been missing long enough. Several members of the company venture out into the woods to locate him, managing to find him by following the faint scent of onions on the wind.

The Cave

Squire Henri, meanwhile, has found a stream and followed it up into the hills, where he discovered the entrance to a cave. The air within and around the cave is incredibly putrid. Its stench drives the squire back, but not before he sees several footprints and a dusting of flour near the cave entrance.

Suspecting that this was the miller’s original destination, Squire Henri resolves to go inside and explore. He soon realizes that he lacks anything that could be used as a light source. Desperate to make one, he tries to build a fire.

When the search party locates him, they see him squatting behind a bush, sweating profusely, and rubbing a pair of sticks together.

The search party is also without any means to make light, but Sir Jean-Marc insists that his keen eyesight will allow him to defeat the darkness of the cave. Peering in from the entrance, the knight sees little but a set of steps at the back of the cave leading down.

The search party (and Squire Henri) decide to return to Montressor to purchase flint, tinder, torches, and lanterns.

An Arrest

The company is, at last, all together again.

Frieda quietly informs them that the symbols they saw on the deathship in Annecy were those of Tzeentch, one of the Ruinous Powers. She also mentions that she searched for information on the “wish scroll symbols” that the company keeps finding everywhere, but that she didn’t turn anything up. She says that she might find more information in a larger Temple of Verena, but warns that additional research on the Ruinous Powers might be dangerous.

Sir Jean-Marc visits Roland the Miller’s cart and dares him to eat one of his own baked goods for a potential reward of six silver shillings. Roland calmly selects a tart and eats it, suffering no ill effects. It occurs to Sir Jean-Marc that it Roland has likely not been altering the flour that he himself uses. Disgusted that his cunning plan was so easily defeated, Sir Jean-Marc pays Roland the cost of the tart and leaves, grumbling.

Roland finishes his workday sometime later and takes his tray of baked goods up to the mill. Magnus, who wishes to both keep an eye on the miller and engage in psychological warfare, takes a stool, goes up the hill and sits down a short distance from the mill’s entrance.

The rest of the company buys light sources and makes plans to return to the cave, only to be interrupted by the arrival of Captain Julien and six guards. Julien has his guards hide around town while he approaches the company.

He tells the company that he wants to get Roland out of the mill before attempting to arrest him, as he is afraid there is other evidence that the miller might try to destroy. He asks Renee to think of a clever distraction to draw Roland out of the mill. Renee agrees, marches to the miller’s now abandoned cart, and proceeds to kick it to pieces while screaming and swearing as loudly as she can.

Roland comes roaring out of the mill, demanding that Renee stop. When she doesn’t, he rushes at her and tries to clout her in the skull with a rolling pin. Renee ducks out of the way and readies her net while Magnus, whom Roland was too enraged to notice, slips up behind him and breaks his stool over  the miller's head.

While Roland staggers around, dazed, Renee deftly nets him and brings him to ground. Captain Julien and the guards emerge from their hiding spaces to rough up the miller some more and take him into custody. The miller screams and rages as the guards enter the mill to conduct a thorough search.

The Mill, First Floor

The Cave, Part Two

Once things have settled, the company tell Captain Julien about the cave, mentioning the flour dusting the entrance and the foul smell. They point out that the smell is similar to that of the mushrooms they found, and say that they suspect Roland is also hiding evidence there. The captain agrees, and orders Flora, one of his guards, along to accompany them on a search of the cave.

Hearing of the cave, Frieda begs off and stays behind in Montressor. The rest, including Flora, head off into the wilderness, reach the cave and, lighting torches and lamps, descend into the depths.

They find that the set of stairs leads them into a wet, dank chamber whose overpowering reek is enough to confound their senses. Sabina, fearful of what might hang in the air, ties a kerchief over her nose and mouth.

The chamber they discover is decorated with badly tarnished bosses of hideous design, and features numerous mushroom colonies that have grown into large hillocks throughout the room. The colonies in the back have sprouted eerie, translucent, yellow-white mushrooms, but the three in the front have mushrooms that match the color of the ones found in the mill.

Dominating the room from its plinth in the center is a statue of a bloated, festering, nightmarishly hideous daemon-thing. Much of it is, mercifully, concealed behind growths of lichen and curtains of rotting moss, but what can be seen of it is still quite disquieting.

The company sends Flora back to the captain to tell him what they have discovered. Flora is all too eager to quit the scene and flees as soon as permission is given.

Moments after Flora departs, the mushroom colonies begin to shudder and shake, and deranged, cackling laughter issues up from within. The company recoils in horror as at least a half-dozen creatures push their way out of the mushrooms to titter and giggle at them. The creatures are fleshy spheres, perhaps two feet around, and are a nightmare of ragged mouths, horns, and sharp teeth.

The company immediately retreats.

The Statue in the Temple

Mounting an Assault

The company flees back to Montressor, where they find Flora speaking frantically to Captain Julien. The company adds lurid detail to Flora’s story, and their description of the horrible flesh beasts visibly terrifies the captain, the other guards, and  various Montressori onlookers. Only Roland, who is manacled and tied to a lead that is affixed to the captain’s horse, seems disinterested at the news.

Panic spreads, with several members of the company suggesting, quite loudly, that there are likely other members of the community involved in the plot. When Roland the Miller is confronted with this, he shrugs.

“You’re right, of course. We’re all in on it. You’ll have to kill everyone in the village, just to be sure.”

Magnus, whose emotions are running high, and who has had more than enough of Roland, decks the miller in the mouth and screams at him. It takes the combined efforts of several guards to drag Magnus off of the miller.

This random act of violence from Magnus is enough to sober everyone on the scene. Captain Julien talks options, and makes it clear he is unwilling to leave the cave be if there are monsters living inside it. The company is reluctant to help the captain clear the cave, or help in any other way, until he offers ten Crowns. The company seems more interested after that, but still unwilling, until Maurice and Pierre manage to sweet talk a desperate Julien into giving them 20 Crowns.

Once they have secured their fee, the company gives their full support to the captain. Magnus, who has significant experience fighting the greenskins, is given the task of forming a battle plan. He decides that two guards will take Roland to Berjols, while the rest will go to the cave along with the company. Magnus, Sir Jean-Marc, Squire Henri, Captain Julien, and his guards will form a shield wall at the temple entrance, while the rest of the company pick off the creatures with bows and crossbows. 

The Cave, Part Three

Prepared for battle, the guard and the company descend into the cave. At least a dozen of the awful flesh things boil out of the mushroom colonies to meet them, and the battle is swiftly joined.

As unearthly giggles and cackles fill the air, the company locks shields with the guards and looses missiles into the scrabbling, bouncing, swarm. Several of the creatures die to arrows, while others are dealt heavy blows by those in the shield wall. The creatures explode as they die, their sour flesh pulling apart to release swarms of black flies that bite, sting, and attempt to crawl in the defenders’ mouths, ears, and noses.

The flesh creatures seem not to care that they are outnumbered, or that their own ranks are thinning. Still giggling, they continue their reckless attack…

The Bosses on the Cavern Walls