Chapter Text
Sometime after the Absolute Solver’s defeat, as normalcy returns (or at least whatever passes for normal after such a traumatic, planet-changing event), Uzi, N and Thad are approached with a simple question.
“Would you be interested in a game night?”
Uzi was caught off guard, to say the least. Even after saving the planet from being eaten by robo-satan, she was still the outcast of the colony. Most of her peers still forgot her existence or reacted in fear of her presence. It didn't bother her much, she had a handful of drones in her life she could lean on when things got tough or the lingering trauma threatened to crush her. Two of them were standing with her in the school hallway, equally baffled by the question.
Thad was the first to respond, his green eyes holding a friendly shine that masked his shared confusion. “Hey Abel. Still looking for peeps to try that game you found?”
The blue-eyed drone slumped a bit at the statement with a sigh, bringing them to the same height as their questioner. “I managed to get two others to try it and it’s been fun, but we need more players to do bigger things, and they recommended you guys!”
N perked up, interest in his golden yellow eyes. He was always quick to try cheering others up and was curious about this apparently fun activity he and his friends were being invited to. “Oh? What kind of game?”
Abel eagerly straightened up, stars in his eyes. “It's this old board game called ‘Dungeons and Dragons.’ One player is the game master, presenting the world and setting the scene. The rest of the players create characters within that world and control them, playing out their adventures or doing whatever they want. Whenever you have a character do something, you roll dice to determine if they are successful or not.”
“Ok, but why us?” Uzi chimed in, suspicion in her voice. Abel had never been outwardly mean or scared of her as many others were, but they had never really interacted outside of class when forced to pair up one time. He had come off as quiet and shy at the time, trying his best to keep up with her crazed ramblings and instructions while avoiding conflict.
He shrugged while reaching for the back of his neck, hand mindlessly playing with his brown plated hair. “I figured it might be something you guys would enjoy. It originally had a reputation as a nerdy game, but became massively popular in the mid two thousands.”
“Intrigue” a robotic voice exclaimed from behind Uzi, causing the four of them to freeze. The fanged maw of Uzi's tail slithered onto her shoulder, its sickly yellow eyes a reminder of the parasite that spoke through it. “Tessa showed interest in playing this game with us once. Her parents forbade it due to beliefs that it was linked to satanic worship. Giggle.”
Uzi was quick to swat at her rogue appendage, though Cyn's words lingered in N's head. If this game was something Tessa thought her drone friends would enjoy, then… “I think we should give it a go. It could be fun.”
“I'm down to try it” Thad added, stretching as he placed his hands behind his head.
Uzi was pinned. The two on either side of her had agreed; she would be a jerk if she turned down the invitation now. ‘Maybe it wouldn't be too bad’ she rationed in her mind. ‘Worst case scenario, it's a boring evening. Not like anyone would try anything stupid with a murder drone around, no matter how sweet he is.’ After mentally scolding herself for her last thought, she finally responded. “Ugh, fine. I guess it could be fun to try.”
“Oh, Sweet!” Abel beamed, with two large thumbs up. “We'll need to do a little preparation beforehand. If you guys wanna meet up somewhere or discuss it through DMS, let me know.”
“We could meet up during lunch?” N suggested. Classes had yet to start for the day so the reprieve could be a good time to make plans.
Thad sighed as he scratched the back of his head. “I got track and field practice then. How about you and I meet up after captcha class?” gesturing to Abel with his question.
“Sure, I can do both,” Abel said with a shrug of his shoulders. “So N and Uzi at lunch, Thad at the end of the day. That good?”
The three agreed, just in time for the bell to ring. With that, the group quickly wrapped up their business and parted for their different lessons.
The first and third lessons took forever to finish. Why young drones needed to learn human history that took place on a planet long dead made no sense to Uzi. At least N was with her for the second period, that alone made the boredom of human language class more bearable. As students flooded the halls on their way to the cafeteria, the two found themselves sitting at a table in a hidden corner. Both enjoyed a large jar of oil each, along with a shared plate of batteries and wires. The quiet of their corner was shortly broken, as N perked up at the sight of someone. “Hey Abel! Over here!”
The drone in question stumbled towards the table, several binders in his arms and a small black box in their hand. “Hey guys! Sorry, I’m late, had to grab some stuff.” He stacked the binders delicately on the floor, taking a seat between the two at the end of the table.
“The heck is all that?” Uzi eyed up the pile of papers on the floor, a stern look hiding dread. If that was some kind of homework for this game, she needed to get out now. N meanwhile looked with curiosity at the box, as Abel opened it to reveal a handful of strangely shaped plastic gems.
“Mostly notes I’ll need as the game master. There’s a few things we’ll need for character creation, but you don’t have to remember all of it.” A sigh of relief left Uzi’s voice box just as Abel asked “Alright, any more questions before we get into it?”
N quickly raised his hand, to which Abel nodded to go ahead. “Soooo… how exactly do we play this game?”
“Right, I only gave you guys the bare bones so far.” Abel brought his hand to his chin, as he thought of how best to explain. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke. “Ok, so, we start by making characters. Figure out what they’re good at what they’re bad at, and we represent this as a bunch of numbers on a character sheet, basically a small doc explaining the character. When we’re actually playing, I’ll describe a scene, then ask what you guys want your characters to do, or you can jump in if something catches your interest. Once you decide what you’re doing, we figure out which number on your character sheet makes sense to use and add it to the result of one of these.” He held up one of the plastic gems between his fingers. Looking at it closer, they could see numbers written on each facet. “If the total is equal to or greater than a number that represents the difficulty of the task, your character does the thing. I describe what happens next, and the cycle continues, telling the stories of your adventures in this fantasy world.”
N shone with awe at the idea of creating a story with his friends, while Uzi had her elbow on the table, fist against her cheek and eyes half-lidded. “And this preparation stuff?”
With a flick of the wrist, Abel tossed the plastic gem back into the box. “Just need an idea of the kind of characters you wanna play. We can make them now if you want, or I can give you some things to think about and we make them later.”
N almost jumped out of his seat in excitement. “Oo, I wanna make them now!” He turned to Uzi with stars in his eyes. “How about you Uzi?”
The emo drone simply shrugged. “Eh, I’d rather think about my options first.”
“That’s fair,” Abel commented, pulling out four more cube-shaped plastic gems. “So, N, if we’re doing your character now, let’s start by rolling numbers for your stats. Take these dice.” He placed the handful of gems in N’s hand. “Roll them. We remove the lowest number and add the rest together for the total. Repeat for 6 results in total and we’ll have the character’s stats.”
“Ok” N replied trepidly. He shook the dice within his cupped hand for a bit before releasing them onto the table. Removing the lowest number from the set gave “three, four, five… twelve!” Abel quickly jotted the number down on a scrap of paper, before gesturing for N to continue. Once they were finished, they had the numbers: twelve, thirteen, sixteen and three fourteens.
“Alright.” Abel chimed, tapping his pencil to his vinyl teeth. He reached for one of the binders and ran his thumb through it, looking for a specific page. “So these numbers will be your character’s six core abilities. They are the base of everything your character can do. We’ll sort them more out later, for now, we wanna choose your class, species and background.”
N nodded as though he understood what was being said. “Alright, where do we start?”
“Let’s start with your class. This broadly describes your skills, talents and tactics. Think of it as the kind of adventurer you want to be.” Abel pulled a sheet from the binder, clearly covered in many notes of various quality. “There are twelve classes in total; warriors, spell-casters, support, specialists. I’ve got a list of them here with brief descriptions. Give it a quick look, see if any interests you.”
The sheet was gingerly grabbed by N, as his eyes scrolled along the page. Uzi, not looking forward to a long silence while N chose an option from the paper, posed a question. “Any recommendations?”
“Oh! Umm…” Abel stuttered for a second, caught off guard by Uzi’s query. “Well, fighter and rogue are the quickest to pick up. Fighter often leans towards knights, tactician and mercenaries, while rogue plays more into thief, assassin and trickster tropes.” The emo drone seemed to wake up slightly at the mention of rogues. “Barbarians are fun, getting stronger just by being angry. Wizards can cast a million and one spells. Paladins are soldiers that get magic by setting themselves a load of rules. Clerics are like the ultimate support, getting magic from believing in a god or concept.”
Something in N’s instincts caught on a specific word used. “Support?”
Curiose, Abel elaborated. “Basically it's great at helping people, whether it be healing, making allies stronger, enemies weaker, or … taking ‘preventative measures’.”
That description was enough for N to make his decision. “Ooo, I wanna play that one!”
“Ok, so a cleric, good foundation for a team. Next, let’s look at your species.” After making a few more notes, Abel flicked through the binder, pulling out another sheet. This time, the list presented was accompanied by rough, sketchy drawings of various headshots. “This gives you a few abilities based on the circumstances of your birth. There’s like one hundred of them, but we’re going to focus on the main ten.”
Delectively grabbing the paper, N opted to place it between himself and Uzi this time, wanting to share the pictures of strange creatures on it. The human-like figures got the little emo’s attention, causing her to push herself up over the table to get a better look. “So this is how you look?”
She found herself transfixed by one depicting what looked like a human, with strange horns protruding from their forehead. N on the other hand, found interest in one depicting a human with oversized eyes and ears, and a button-like nose. “Ooo, what’s this one?”
“Oh, that’s a halfling” Abel answered, standing up a bit to see where N was pointing. “They were supposedly blessed with good luck by the gods to make up for them being short. You’d be hard-pressed to find one that isn’t curious and hospitable.”
A smirk found its way onto Uzi’s face. “You should so go for that one.” He hummed and nodded in agreement.
More notes were scribbled onto Abel’s scrap of paper, before once again searching the binder for another sheet. “Alrighty, two out of three. Now we just need your background.” Another list left the binder, this time with sketches of strange and detailed backgrounds. “This is what you did before becoming an adventurer. Like with species, there’s hundreds of them, but we’re going to look at sixteen from the core rules for now.”
Placed between them, N and Uzi examined the sheet with similar intrigue, drawn in by intrinsic scenes. One a dark alley leading from a brightly lit market, another a strange and complex series of astro-globes suspended within a vast library. N pointed to one depicting a large ship leaving the port of a town. “What about this one?”
“That would be sailor. With that one, you spent your life on the high seas; the wind at your back and the waves swaying the decks.” Abel got rather animated with their description, gesturing dynamically in an attempt to sell the profession.
Uzi cocked an eyebrow at the eccentric actions, while N was swept up in the theatrics Abel presented. “Ooo, I want that one!”
Sitting back down, Abel quickly added to the notes they had been taking. “And… done!” The pencil clicked against the table. “There’s more to go over, but we can save that for when we start the game.” The sheet of scribbles slid into the binder. “Just sorta helps with prep to have an idea of what we’re working with.”
N looked to his girlfriend with excitement and expectancy. “You ready to make your character Uzi?”
She gave a half-hearted shrug, before picking at the last few wires on the plate. “I dunno. Think I need more time considering my options.”
“Fair.” Abel casually gestured towards the papers left on the table. “You can take those to ponder over if you want. Might help.”
“Thanks.” She haphazardly grabbed the papers and shoved them into her bag. “Anything else?”
Abel brought a hand over his mouth, idle fingers scratching his chin. “Not that I can think of, but I did spend most of my thoughts on human history class. Some of the stupid stuff they did…” He gave a tired, airy chuckle.
The memory of her cold, metal desk against her head as she tried to sleep through the drones of ‘Earth’s World War V’ resurfaced. Not a difficult task, as that had only been an hour since their last lesson. “Ugh, tell me about it. It’s gotta be the most useless class we have!”
N gave a nervous chuckle to Uzi’s frustration, though both were caught off guard by a giggle from the blue-eyed drone. “Hmm, maybe. Though it can be amusing how often humans receive that ‘Darwin award’ of theirs.”
Puzzled, the two pressed for answers, with N speaking up. “Darwin award?”
Abel gave a knowing smirk. “An award given to whoever can die in the stupidest way.”
That couldn’t be real, could it? Humans celebrating dying in stupid ways? “Really?! That is so stupid that-”
Before Uzi’s ranting of her very deserved hatred of humans could reach full steam, a single sharp laugh cut her off. “Oh no wait, it gets better…”
For the rest of the lunch break, N watched on in joy (and fear) as his super cool girlfriend expanded her social circle. Sure, it was based on a shared interest in humanity's downfall, but that didn’t matter. She seemed to genuinely be enjoying the opportunity to bounce some of her more murderous thoughts off of someone new, and that they reciprocated with fresh ideas. The concerns of how this would affect the story they would play in the coming game night were things that could be pushed to the back of his mind for now.
A ring echoed throughout the school, signalling the end of the day. Leaving the challenges of captcha class behind, Thad gave a smile and wave to his fellow students, heading for the lockers before the trek home. They’d forgotten to plan where to meet up after class, he had a good idea of where Abel would be. Sure enough, he was found sitting on the floor outside his locker, scribbling notes and doodles in a black leather-bound book. “Figured you’d be here.”
Blue eyes quickly looked up from the book as it slammed shut. A single breathy chuckle escaped his mouth. “Yeah, realised we didn’t set a place to meet up, so decided to just wait in the open.” The book, along with papers and pencil were shoved haphazardly into a simple messenger bag.
Thad held his hand out to the drone on the floor, his trademark kind smile never leaving his face. “We head the same way home, right? How about we walk and talk?”
A smirk found its way onto Abel’s face as he clasped the hand in his own. “Sounds good.” A quick pull and he was up on his feet.
It took a few steps down the locker-lined corridor for the conversation to pick back up, Abel hoping to pick at the jock's processor. “So, you got those notes I sent you. Any idea for the kind of character you wanna play?”
Thad took a minute to think. The relaxed drone had sent him a small collection of text documents after lunch; each one a small summary of the basic things required to make a character for this game. He had skim-read it during captcha class, seeing as the teacher never really paid attention to what they were doing. He had a decent idea of what each part did but was still unsure what to choose. “Hm. Something simple. The magic stuff looks fun, but complicated.”
Abel responded quickly, with no hesitation in his thoughts. “Simplest you can get is a fighter, and a human one at that.”
He mulled over that response for a bit. Fighter seemed like a fun option, it had been described as skilled in combat and a master of many weapons. Humans were supposedly very adaptable, able to be moulded to whatever role was needed of them with ease. As he thought about the suggestion, the more he liked the idea. “Yeah, I’ll go with that.”
Thad’s decision had come quicker than Abel expected, catching them off guard. “Wow, ok, and background?”
The blond drone closed his green eyes for a moment with a hum, letting an image of the character form in his mind. He saw them as simple, humble and hard-working, pairing that description with a background he remembered from the collection. “They were a simple farmer before the spirit of adventure called them.” He added a bit of flare to his words, striking a fist into the air.
A look of intrigue masked Abel’s wincing at how plain this character was feeling. “Human farmer becomes fighter? That’ll work, feels a tad simple though.”
“That can be their name!” Thad exclaimed, beaming at the misunderstood suggestion. “Tad Simple.” Pride filled his servos at how fitting the name was.
Abel just stared at him for a full minute, this had to be a joke of some kind. In the end, he just held his hands up in defeat and sighed. “You know what? Ok. Feels a bit like a joke but it’s solid.”
The green-eyed drone suppressed a puzzled look, unsure what his cohort meant by such a statement. He quickly shrugged it off, not wanting to overthink it. “Cool. Is there anything else?”
Abel’s brow furrowed, a finger and thumb resting under his upper lip. “There’s stats, but we can deal with those at the start of the session.” He waved his hand as though shooing the thought away.
Thad answered with a simple “K;” leaving the two to continue walking in comfortable silence for a while. As the two approached the fork that separated their housing units, the vacuum was broken with an exchange of farewells and a reminder of the coming game night.
As Thad rounded the final corner on the approach home, he couldn’t help his feeling of anticipation for the event. He had attended game nights that Abel hosted before, and every time they were an experience. Be it a board game, video game or even cards, the blue-eyed drone had a way of making it fun, whether it be chill and relaxing, or wild and chaotic. That sort of energy, paired with Uzi and N’s dynamic; he imagined the result would be something amazing to behold.
The door opened with a sharp hiss, as purple light poured out of the room. Uzi stepped in, shoulders slack and deep bags under her purple eyes. She slid her bag off her back and threw it across the room, landing with a thud next to her bed. Shuffling to her desk, she collapsed into the large black office chair, spinning around from the momentum while letting out a drawn-out groan. School had been exhausting, a long day of all the classes that didn’t appeal to her. To add to her mood, N had left the bunker after school with V, gathering oil for the three vampiric drones. All she wanted right now was one of the tall disassembly drone’s warm and relaxing hugs, to bury herself in the fur of his jacket and melt into the feeling of comfort and safety.
But he wasn’t there, and without him, she needed something else to distract her from the irritable mood the day had left her with. Thinking back though, aside from the worst lessons possible, it had been an interesting day. She had interacted with a peer from outside her small social circle, and they hadn’t immediately tried to ignore her, bully and mock her, or scream in terror. They had instead invited her to a ‘game night’ of all things. They had even managed to bond during lunch over the stupidity of humans. Sure they had differing views on how to deal with them; she still believed all humans should be slaughtered, while they figured humans would quickly drive themselves to extinction. That didn’t diminish the fun she had just talking about the topic with someone who could add to it.
That sparked a thought, prompting her to lift out of her slumped position and look towards her discarded bag. Poking out of the top, the sheets that Abel had given her stood crumpled against her other books. She thought back on them working with N to create his character. Afterwards, he had spent most of the day thinking about them; his normal drawings of dogs during class were replaced with human-like figures, trying to understand their appearance. He even came up with a name for them, Nate Rose. It had Uzi pondering what kind of character she would make.
The three papers held her stare for a minute longer before being pulled out by a purple glow, a symbol forming around them of a hexagon with three arrows, each coming from an unconnected vertex. They floated towards Uzi, snatched out of the air as they got close. ‘Might as well try to come up with some ideas. Don’t want to turn up with nothing.’ Placing the notes onto her desk, and smoothing them out, she started skimming through the classes. Her eyes wandered the paper, coming to rest on one in particular.
Rogue:
Rogues rely on cunning, stealth, and their opponents' vulnerabilities to get the upper hand of a situation. Often tricksters with a knack for solving just about any problem, many start as criminals or crime fighters working against the law. Most have backstories marred with tragedy, abandonment and edge.
Without thinking, her hand crawled towards a nearby pencil, while her mind focused on pondering the ideas those few lines had created. ‘Ooo, a stealthy trickster sounds cool. Outsmarting opponents with deadly moves, hehehe.’ The page of classes was pushed afterwards, revealing the headshots of species underneath. She immediately found her eyes drawn to the same horned human as earlier, this time, taking to words written next to it.
Tiefling:
Linked by blood to a demon, devil, or some other fiend from the hells, tieflings are often ostracised for their links to the demonic. They can choose to embrace or lament their legacy, coming in three flavours.
…
Chthonic tieflings are more alien in appearance, often with purple or blue skin tones, and warped, twisted horns. They descend from the fiends of Gehenna, known as yugoloths; that act as mercenaries in the service of evil.
‘So they’re called tieflings, and they’re basically demons? Neat. It’s definitely the coolest-looking one.’ Pencil lead danced over scraps that had been discarded to the side of the desk. The list of human-like creatures joined them as Uzi moved to the last of Abel’s notes for a background. Among the scenes of carnivals, workshops and wooded groves, the one that caught her eye was a dark corner at the end of an alley. Crates were set up as a table and chairs with a tarp overhead keeping rain and moonlight out. On the table were a few bottles and coins, along with a knife stabbed through the simple cloth and into the wood below.
Criminal:
You scraped out a living by cutting purses, pocketing wallets or burgling shops. Your home was likely a dark alleyway, perhaps with a small gang of like-minded ne'er do wells looking out for each other. Or maybe you were on your own, fending against both the law and local thieves guild.
The image formed in her mind; hidden in the shadows, a tall human-like figure with pale purple skin, branching horns and a barbed tail. Dressed in dark leather armour, a knife and a small pistol were prepared in both hands as they readied for their lonely fight to survive the urban jungle.
Before the fantasy could continue, a ping brought Uzi back to reality as her phone lit up. Pulling it closer and opening the screen, she was greeted by a fresh notification.
1ostDr0ne sent an invite to: Dungeon Drones + 1 new message
[1ostDr0ne]: Hey, it’s Abel. Finished setting up the group chat
She’d forgotten that, like with most of the planning early that day. They had decided a group chat to discuss things related to the game would be a good idea, should they be unable to meet up. As she started typing in a response, two more messages came through.
[Thad]: Yo, looks good dude!
[SD_N]: Can’t chat much, hunting with v
[DarkxWolf17]: Sup
She pondered adding more before her eyes wanded to what her idle hand had done. On a large scrap of blueprint paper, was a rough doodle of the character she saw in her head. Looking at it intently, she felt her fingers type out another message before she could second-guess herself.
[DarkxWolf17]: Think iv got a character idea
[DarkxWolf17]: Rogue tiefling criminal
Bracing for some kind of comment, mean or insulting, the continued enthusiasm of Abel came as a welcome surprise.
[1ostDr0ne]: Ooo, good choices. Lot of backstory potential there. They got a name?
Taking time to ponder the question, Uzi sat in silence as she pictured the figure she had created, cycling through potential names before quickly typing out her answer.
[DarkxWolf17]: Darkshadow
[1ostDr0ne]: Very nice. I’ll make sure to have all the basics ready for the trial session. Here’s hoping y’all enjoy it!
[Thad]: Im sure it’ll be awsome dude.
She tossed the phone onto her bed, letting it sink into the messy sheets. A heavy sigh left her voicebox. Why did it still feel like a monumental task to talk with others outside her immediate friend group? As she melted further into her chair, she looked towards the drawing her idle hand had created, curious how this fantasy game that she hadn’t even heard of until today, had gotten her attached to something she had just created. Pulling herself closer to her desk, she reached for a pencil intentionally this time, fixing up the doodle to be something she was proud of. She lost herself in the process, only stopping when a low battery warning prompted her to head to bed to recharge.
Though normally her dreams were spent reliving the past, both pleasant and traumatic; this night, her processor created tales of Darkshadow’s adventures carrying her to a pleasant sleep.
Notes:
I was surprised I couldn’t find any fics that were ‘characters from a franchise play a TTRPG together’, so I decided to write my own. (It’s not just an excuse to merge running Dnd as a GM and creative writing together cos I currently don’t have the time for either. 😅) Decided to go with the cast of Murder Drones cos I found this franchise a day after the last episode and have been obsessed since. I’m writing the first session's chapters before uploading this, but don’t expect consistent uploads, this is my first fanfic and it can take me anywhere from a day to a month to write a single sentence just looking for the right words.
The spoiler bar here contains my plans for this fic, so please only open it if you can keep spoilers to yourself.
My current plan is for the first few chapters, session 0, to be a heavily modified version of “The Lost Dungeon of Rickedness” (the Rick and Morty tie-in) to see if the cast enjoys playing the game (if they don’t, I guess you’re only getting 2 or 3 chapters, depending on how long the session takes).
After that (if it continues), I’ll run them through either ‘Curse of Strahd’, ‘Tomb of Annihilation’ or ‘The Wild Beyond the Witchligh’. (The rest of the campaign books I have, I either haven’t read yet or they don’t feel appropriate for the current players.)
More of the cast will join in later. I have characters already planned for V, Lizzy and J, (though I am still debating if I should do Cyn, Doll and/or Tessa as well).
Also, I will be making and updating character sheets for each player in the story and linking them here in the footnotes if anyone’s interested in trying them (not for this first chapter though, seeing as they haven’t finished making them yet 😅).
Abel - Game Master
Uzi - Darkshadow - Tiefling Rogue Criminal
N - Nate Rose - Halfling Cleric Sailor
Thad - Tad Simple - Human Fighter Farmer— — —
This is my first fanfic, so please give me your feedback. Do you think I got the characterisation right? Did it make sense? Was it enjoyable to read? Anything would be helpful to improve.
Chapter 2: The Adventure Begins …
Summary:
The weekend comes, and the group gathers to try this game for the first time. After some finishing touches to their characters and last-minute preparations, they delve head-first into their first adventure.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The sound of boots echoed through the cold, dark, metallic hallways. The weekend had arrived quicker than expected, anticipation making the boring days a forgotten hazy blur. N and Uzi quickly made their way through the maze of tunnels, the latter having slept in from a long night of anime. The group had agreed to meet at an abandoned housing unit that Abel had taken over and converted into what he called ‘the office’. As the apartment came into view, the door had been left open, pale purple light pouring into the empty hall. N was the first to poke his head into the mysterious space. “Hello?”
Inside, the walls were lined with shelves, each with various boxes and books tightly stowed away. The living area split into two; one half had a large metal table with a glossy black screen framed in the centre, and several high-backed chairs made of plastic and metal surrounding it. In the other half, several bean bag chairs filled one corner while a small coffee table was pushed into another. The kitchen area was relatively normal if a bit of a mess. Thad and Abel were there, organising bowls of chips, wires and screws. The latter drone seemed on edge, as though the world could collapse at any moment, while the former remained his calm usual self.
Thad spotted the two guests as he took one of the bowls to the table. “Hey, good to see you guys!”
The two stepped into the room. Uzi moved to investigate one of the shelves, while N went to greet the others. “Hi, what you guys doing?”
Thad held up the bowl, showing off the thin copper wires that filled it. “Just preparing some snacks for the game, even managed to get some oil for you two.” He gestured to a glass pitcher filled with rich, cooling, black oil on the countertop. Nearby on the floor were two jerry cans; each with black stains around the handle and spout.
A light blush adorned N’s visor as his hand reached for the back of his neck. “Aw, you didn’t have to do that.”
Thad shrugged as he shook his head, continuing towards the table in the other room. “Just looking out for my buds.” he chimed as he gave a quick two-finger salute.
Meanwhile, Uzi marvelled at the collection of books and games crammed onto the shelves, some of which she recognised from her collection at home. Many of the boxes and covers showed signs of wear, though the worst of it seemed to be patched up relatively well. She felt compelled to ask. “Where did you get all this stuff?”
Abel spoke up as he left the kitchen with two bowls in his hands, a sheepish tone to his voice. “I may or may not sneak out of the bunder frequently to scavenge stuff.” It seemed strange that Abel was nervous about admittance. The other three had frequently left the safety of the bunker to have fun in the ruined cityscape since averting the apocalypse. At the same time, it made some sense. Many of the worker drones outside their tight friend group had always been timid and cowardly. For someone other than Uzi to brave the cold wastes in search of resources was quite the anomaly.
He continued, a bit of confidence building in his tone. “A lot of it was damaged by the weather, but doesn’t take much to fix ’em up.” Just as he put the twin bowls down, a spark of realisation jumped to his face. “Oh, while I remember.” He exclaimed, hands darting into his pockets in search of something.
From his pocket, he pulled a small floppy disk, similar to the master key for the bunker’s main door. A quick gesture with his eyes and hand towards Uzi allowed her to easily catch it as it flew through the air like a frisbee. She looked over it with confused eyes. “What’s this?”
“Key for this place, case you want to use the space for anything.” Abel’s answer was quick and simple, as he moved a seat to stand at the head of the table.
It was a strange gesture, not one Uzi would have expected. Looking around the room for a response, she saw Thad giving a massive smile and thumbs up. Confused, she put on her best nonchalant mask before responding. “Urr, thanks.”
Abel barely noticed any awkwardness (or chose to ignore it) in favour of getting the ball rolling. Turning to a shelf behind him, he grabbed three tablets and slid one to each drone across the table. “So. I put all the basic information you guys gave me into these.”
Each tablet lit up, screens displaying a cavalcade of information any human would struggle to process. “There's a bit more to do like appearance, fears, backstory as such, but I trust you guys to do that sorta thing in your own time. What we do need to sort out for now are the stats and your equipment.”
Taking a seat and pulling her tablet closer, Uzi looked at Abel with confusion. “Didn’t you already start on N’s stats?”
The question seemed to prompt Abel to start searching for something, looking through the shelves and boxes at the end of the room. He still answered the question, but almost as though on autopilot. “Yessss, you remember how we got those numbers?”
“Yea?” It wasn’t a perfect recollection. Roll the plastic cubes and add the three largest numbers right?
“Ok.” He pulled a large, black, velvety bag from behind a pile of books on the lower shelf, before gesturing with an open hand to the sunset-eyed drone. “Can I ask you to go over it with Thad while I help N sort out the last few things?”
“Eh, sure.” It wouldn’t be too much trouble and the way Abel beamed after saying that was almost as bright as N’s regular demeanour.
“Great! And erm…” He rummaged through the large velvet bag before pulling out three similar, yet smaller ones. The muffled clatter of plastic could be heard from each of them. “Here’s a set of dice for each of you.” Each bag flew a short distance before sliding along the table. Opening them up, each contained a set of plastic dice, just like the ones Abel had shown off during that lunch earlier in the week. The colours were different though, each set matching the drone that held them, but there was no way Abel could have planned this, could he?
As work on character creation continued, time began to fly. An hour of dice rolling, explanation and decision-making later, the three characters were finished and ready to play. Thad leaned back in his chair, resting his hand on the back of his head. N could hardly sit still, trying to contain all his excitement. Even Uzi showed signs of anticipation to start playing the game properly.
Abel quickly dove under the table, pulling out a small cardboard wall with various fantasy scenes drawn on it. He placed it between himself and the others before speaking. “Ok, we should be all set up now. So, if y’all ready?”
“Mhm.”
“Yep!”
“Finally!”
A cheshire grin rolled onto his face. All nervous left Abel’s body as though someone had flipped a switch. “Alright, in that case, without further ado, let’s begin…”
Near the small, rural village of Rusburgh…
It had been a long day of hard work on the family farm, the sun struggling to stay above the surface of the horizon. A young man whooped and hollered as he herded the last few sheep into their pans for the night. As he closed the gate behind them, turning to head home before getting tackled by a furry black and white monster. The creature lapped at the man's head, expressing affection the only way it knew how. “Ha ha! Come on! Down boy! Quit it!” His resistance was half-hearted, enjoying the unconditional love.
“Tad! Supper’s nearly ready!” A woman’s voice echoed over the fields. At that, the dog backed up, climbing off the man. Now covered in mud and dog slobber, he stood back with a jovial sigh.
“Coming Ma!” He yelled up the hill, before beckoning with his hand for the dog to follow. “Come Spot.”
Atop the hill was a simple house, cosy and quaint, inside and out. Tad made his way through the back door, next to which was a small shower stall. He stripped his overalls and boots off, hanging them on a large hook outside, while the rest of his clothes were thrown into a small basket near the door inside. After turning two valves to start the water, he picked up Spot, carrying them into the shower with them. After ten minutes of scrubbing to get the mud off of the mut, it only took three minutes for Tad to clean himself. Shutting the water off and stepping out, Tad grabbed a towel, quickly getting it over Spot to dry him off before he could soak the whole room with his attempt.
With Spot dry, he was let out of the steam-filled room, while Tad continued to dry himself. As he did so, his eyes were caught by a mirror in the wet room. Staring back with bright green eyes was a muscular young man, with tanned skin and short, curly blond hair bleached from many days of working in the sun. He flashed the familiar face a small, kind smile, before finishing up in the wet room.
Cleaned up and with fresh clothes on, he shuffled his way into a small dining room, the table and chair leaving little space to move around. Two people were already sitting at the table, one an older man with greying hair and a thick beard held in a braid, the other a little girl with big green eyes and short blond hair. “Big brother Thad!” she cheered as he walked in.
“Little sister Molly!” he cheered back, matching her energy. ‘Still struggling to pronounce her t’s, bless her.’
Just as Tad sat down, an older woman walked in with a large cast iron pot in her hands. After placing the black bowl on the table, she took a moment to brush some of the long, grey hair out of her eyes. “Look lively, it’s everyone's favourite, seven bean stew tonight.” Molly gave another energetic cheer as the older woman took a large spoon out from the pot, placing its red and brown content into a smaller bowl before passing it to Tad.
“You're the best Ma!” Tad praised, placing the bowl on the floor for Spot. The dog's nose was immediately in his meal, lapping up the red and brown mixture. As more bowls were passed around the family, everyone quickly joined in, digging into their stew.
The older man was first to finish, scraping his bowl for the last few bites. As he reached for the ladle resting in the iron pot, he spoke with a gruff and aged tone. “So, Tad my boy, something… important has come up. Now you don’t need to worry, I’ll be handlin’ it, but it does mean I’ll have me hands full for the next month.” Stew from the ladle poured into his bowl, filling it to the brim. Before starting on his second helping, he pointed with his spoon at his son. “Means you'll have to handle the Kingfisher festival market.”
Tad paused to look up from his meal confused. “You sure Pa? You've been lookin’ forward to that festival all year.”
Pa stared at a spoon of beans, a sombre look in his eyes. “Ey, but this ain't something that can be put off.” He stuffed the utensil into his mouth, pushing down feelings of regret in favour of stern advice. “So make sure you get some practice in. Never know when you'll find bandits or raiders on the road.”
Pondering over his Pa’s words for a bit with a spoonful of stew held in his mouth, Tad gave a quick nod to punctuate his short, simple response. “Ok, Pa.”
Molly’s ears had perked up at the mention of festivities. As soon as she finished her bowl, she pushed herself into the air, raising her hand. “Can I go thu the fesdival with Thad, Pa?”
Finishing her meal just after the question, Ma immediately replied in her comforting yet stern voice, the one saved for when she laid down the law. “Now Molly, you're going to be very busy then, won't you?” The young girl tilted her head in confusion before her mother continued. “You'll be starting school, making a lot of friends.”
Molly let out another cheer, while Tad finished the last of his meal. Standing up with his bowl in hand, he excused himself from the table, placing the bowl on the kitchen counter on his way to bed. Spot was quick to follow, placing his bowl on the kitchen floor. Moving from the kitchen into a small hall, Tad pulled down a ladder to the attic rooms, leaving it lowered for Spot to join him. He had to crouch to reach his bed, a small wooden cot next to a window, with a thick layer of straw to cover the oak slats. Laying down on the mat of hay with his hands behind his head, Spot curled up beside him, resting his head on Tad’s chest. He tilted his head to look at his canine companion, giving him another small, kind smile. “Night Spot.” were his last words of the day, as the exhaustion of the day's work crept up and he let himself doze off.
Meanwhile, in the nearby coastal city of Copperport…
The sounds of hunting dogs barking and leather boots landing heavy against the cobblestone echoed across the city. Someone had just attempted to steal a powerful weapon from the city guard’s barracks. Though they were unsuccessful, the law would not let them escape. The commotion forced many off of the streets, people hiding in their homes and businesses until the storm passed. Those who were less fortunate took to the dark, trash-filled alleys, a safe haven for those who worked in the shadows.
A young woman, shrouded in a dark cloak, stumbled into one such alley, a red stain forming where an arrow pierced through the fabric into her shoulder. As the shouting approached, they moved quickly, hiding behind a wooden crate that smelt of rotten fish. One minute, two minutes, the noise grew to a crescendo before dissipating into the distance. With the coast clear, they moved to a loose flagstone to reveal a small tunnel with a ladder, pulling the stone pack into place after descending the ladder a bit.
The bottom of the ladder opens up to a small room, barely 5 feet in size with a few worn wooden boards to hold the carved stone up. Half the room was taken up by a small wood and straw bed, with a 1-foot deep shelf opposite, filled with small nick-nacks and odd tools. The woman reached to the shelf and grabbed a bottle of red liquid that gently glowed when jostled. A potion of healing, the last of her supply. Moving to sit on the low bed, she started slowly working the cloak through the arrow, grunting in pain as it caught. With the cloak off, she quickly wrapped a small portion of it into a bundle and stuffed it in her mouth, preparing for the most painful part.
Her hand hovered over the arrow as she hesitated, long deep breaths to steady her nerves. After a long wait, in one swift motion, she tore the arrow from her flesh, muffled screams of pain escaping the makeshift gag. Not letting herself get lost in anguish, she hurriedly uncorked the bottle in one hand and poured its crimson contents onto the bloody wound. A sizzling followed, along with a new burning pain, as flesh rapidly knitted itself back together. It took a minute for the pain to dull, the potion’s job nearing its end.
As the looming of death faded from her mind, the woman pulled out a small messenger bag from under her, rummaging through its contents for her prize. She may not have been able to claim the weapon for herself, but she did manage to make off with the next best thing. From the bag, came a leather cylinder with a copper lid on either end. A twist of the cap revealed her reward, blueprints of the weapon that was nearly in her grasp. With this, she could recreate the chosen tool of her vengeance.
Not wanting to further dirty her prize, she carefully placed it back into the case and up high on the shelf. Her eyes caught something on display as she did so; a cracked hand mirror, the only reminder she had of her family. Looking back at her with piercing yellow eyes, was a young woman with pale purple skin, vibrant violet, short shaggy hair, and gnarled and worn, bone-like horns protruding from high on her forehead. Behind her, a forked tail slowly rose, the snaking appendage expressing a waning joy.
She steeled her expression for no one, not wanting to admit to any pain. Sitting on the bed again, she quietly muttered to herself. “I swear I’ll make them all pay. They’ll regret messing with m-... with Darkshadow.” She was met with silence to her claim, leaving the rest of her strength to fade. Weak and exhausted from the panic and rush of earlier, she shifted to lie on the bed, heavy eyelids slowly as the realm of slumber claimed her for the rest of the night.
Meanwhile, on a ship about three weeks away from port; the S.S.Assembly…
Waves gently rocked the ship and a calm breeze fluttered in the sails. The calmer weather was kinder to work in but made travel slower, the ship's movements more lethargic. Most of the crew felt the same way; with only a slither of sunlight left cresting over the horizon, many were ready to call it a day and tuck in for the night. But work still needed to be done if the ship was going to be safe for the night, and so the crew of twenty men strong pushed to secure their vessel. Sails raised, anchor weighed, and loose cargo tied down underneath canvas.
As one man, much shorter than the rest, finished tying his knots to hold the sails, an older gentleman with green skin and tusks that framed a pig-like snout hollered up to him. “Hey, Nate! How ‘bout a prayer to the gods for more of a tailwind tomorrow? Would like to make landfall before we’re old and grey.”
Nate quickly stood up on the yard, giving the man a sharp salute. “Sure thing captain!” He then quickly clambered to the rigging, climbing down and making his way to the barracks. Rows of worn hammocks lined most of the room, few with pillows and blankets but many with lovers underneath from personal trinkets. A small shrine constructed of driftwood at the back of the room broke the circuit of canvas and rope. As Nate approached, his eyes danced around the shrine, observing all the little offerings he had left there; Seashells, incense, coins, unopened wine, and at the centre, a simple mirror.
He gently took one of the sticks of incense, placing it upright in a small hole at the front of the shrine. From a small draw to the side of the shrine, he pulled out a small box, containing a dozen matches. Taking a match and striking it on the side of the box, the flame burst to life, dancing with a tiny heartbeat. He held the match to the top of the incense for a few seconds, before quickly pulling away and putting the flame out with a few shakes of his hand. As a thin trail of smoke rose, he placed his hands together and closed his eyes.
“We give thanks to you, Umberlee, the Wavemother. We give thanks to you, Thassa, Queen of the Depths. We give thanks to you, Procan, Sailor of Sea and Sky. We give thanks for allowing us passage through your domain. We ask of you, during this moment of peace, for the wind to carry us to our destination, to safety, to your salvation. Amen.”
Silence filled the room for a long moment before Nate released a heavy sigh, his opening eyes gazing into the mirror. Looking back was a halfling, tall as can be, with golden yellow eyes, short wavy silver hair, and pale skin, despite days of sailing under the beating sun. Something about it puzzled him though, as his reflection looked tired without reason, eyes drooping and smile faltering. He felt perfectly fine, so to see a version of himself so worn down…
Sounds of heavy feet and playful arguments entered the room before he could continue down his spiralling thoughts. As two of his crewmates walked in, the bigger of the pair spoke with a heavy voice, continuing whatever conversation they were having. “The hell you blaberin’ about?”
The other of the two, a twig relative to his friend but still taller than Nate, gave an exaggerated sigh. He spoke as though behind the counter of a pawn shop, looking to scam another customer. “Captain says we’ll be back at port within the month. Just sayin’ we should check out a few old places I know, ‘see the sights’ as it were.” He stage whispered the last part, nuzzling his elbow into the other’s side as he did so.
The big guy simply shook his head, a stern yet disappointed expression adorning his face. “Hell naw, you know how strict the Captain is. Ain’t no way he’ll let you off to play ‘Romeo’, ‘specially with such a flimsy excuse.”
Romeo slumped backwards, a puppet whose strings were just cut. “Aah, come on! You’re killing me here Oscar.” He caught Nate in the corner of his eye, quickly reaching out for his help in winning the conversation. “You’re with me, right Nate?”
Nate simply rubbed the back of his head, running fingers through his hair with a sheepish look. “Actually, I was going to ask if I could take some time to visit my mother and sister.”
Oscar gestured with his full body to the bashful halfling, while turning to face Romeo. “See! That’s a better reason for time off than to go play hooky.”
Defeated, he simply raised his hands in a shrug and shook his head. “Eh, figures I’d lose the argument once goody-two-shoes Nate got involved.” He then took a more inquisitive stance; an eyebrow raised and finger pointed. “So, how much time you lookin’ at?”
Nate jumped at the question, not expecting an interrogation. “Ah! Well, they live in Vogler, which is about… just under a week of travel from Copperport. So, maybe two weeks?” His fingers danced around each other, hands not knowing what to do.
Romeo gave a curt scoff, annoyed at the answer he got, while Oscar gave a single firm nod with his eyes closed. “Fair, works well with the Captain's plans.”
Most of the crew knew the plan at this point. They would be docking at Copperport and hanging around for about a month. The captain wanted them to find as many delivery jobs as possible, to get as much as they could out of their next voyage. Everyone was on board with this; not only a chance to get more work but also to relax, to not have to worry about keeping the place ship shape near twenty-four seven.
It seemed as though thinking about the rest of the crew had summoned them, as they trudged into the barracks, lumbering in straight lines to any available hammock. One irritable-looking man pushed his way past the three that had been talking, giving them a sharp glance to go with a few choice words. “Alright, you lot, either get to sleep or get out! I’ve got a couple of zee’s to catch.”
Romeo and Oscar each gave a half-hearted shrug, while Nate saluted with all the strength he could muster. “Roger that!” He made his way to a low-hanging hammock, clambering in with practised care. As he lay there, eyes getting heavy, he let the echo of waves and rocking of the ship draw him into a pleasant sleep.
“Are we done with introductions now?” Uzi questioned, a hint of whining in her voice. “I wanna get into some action!”
Abel was quick to respond, putting on the voice of an announcer. “So very near close, I just need you all to roll a d20 for me real quick”
Rolling their dice, Uzi got the highest number with a 17, while Thad got the lowest with a 9. “Sooo, what was that for?” N asked, puzzled by the sudden dice check.
There was a shift in the air, something had changed while they were asleep. That Darkshadow hadn’t noticed this change before it happened irritated her, as she groggily roused from her slumber. Her eyes took a while to adjust to… the… white? An empty white void as far as the eye could see. Over the edge of her bed, she could see a familiar wood and stone floor blending into the nothingness. Looking back up with her head on a swivel, she spotted two other people within the barren expanse, one in a bed similar to her own though a bit small for its occupant, the other held aloft in a canvas hammock. Cautious of how to act, she threw the bedding off her cot, onto what she could now tell was solid ground. Taking tentative steps, she made her way to the closest person, the one in the hammock. Eyeing up her potential prey, she debated between waking them for company or searching them for valuables.
…
“Hey! Wake up!”
The halfling woke with a startle, quickly falling to the floor to which Darkshadow gave a maniacal chuckle. The human rose slowly to the noise, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Stumbling to his feet, the halfling gave a hurried salute. “Sorry, Captain! It won’t happen again! Wait, what…?” Panic shifted to confusion as he started to take in his surroundings.
Stepping out of bed, the human took a moment to assess how he was dressed. He hadn’t gone to bed wearing his training armour, had he? Pushing the thought aside for something more pressing, he asked the question both he and the halfling had. “Where are we?”
Darkshadow’s answer was quick, laking any trust for the strangers. “No idea. Who are you guys?”
The halfling perked up, giving a salute and a big toothy grin. “Hello, new friend! I'm Nate, Nate Rose” He held his hand out to offer a friendly handshake.
Darkshadow looked at the hand with confusion and caution. No one acts that friendly without a motive. Meanwhile, the human grasped the hand with a loud slap and a firm shake. “Hi. I'm Tad Simple.”
“Seriously?” The two looked at the tiefling confused. Crap, she said the quiet part out loud. She quickly cleared her throat and looked away to hide her blush. “Darkshadow.” she said, as to end the interaction.
The three stood in awkward silence for a while, unsure what to say. Eventually, Tad spoke up with a question. “So… What are we all doin-.”
He was cut off by a thunderous voice announcing the presence of another. “Welcome to dream space, travellers of the cosmic.” The three quickly moved back to back as deep blue mist started to swirl around them. The mist started to coalesce into a humanoid form, an old man with a long white beard. Any other details were obscured by a thick robe that covered him from head to toe. Before anyone could react, he spoke again, with less thunder and more gravity. “I am Cronicus, archmage of divination.”
Nate cowered behind Tad, who stood with a defensive stance. Darkshadow was the first to speak, a knife drawn and ready to attack. “I assume you're the one who brought us here?”
The man showed no concern for the three’s reactions, his tone remaining neutral, yet grand. “Indeed, I have foreseen a darkness approaching this world, one that may bring you to cross paths with each other.”
Darkshadow continued to speak for the group, showing little trust in what she was told. “So, what? You want to off us before we join the dark side?” Tad and Nate flinched at her question, not looking forward to potential conflict.
The robes parted to reveal a single hand, frail and bony, raised in a way to request patience. “Nothing so vulgar I can assure you. I wish to test you, to understand my vision of the future better, and ensure you are ready for the path ahead.”
Tad and Darkshadow looked at each other perplexed, while Nate wished to push the conversation along. “So… what do we need to do this test?”
The old man gave an unsettling smirk, before shifting into mist once again. Spinning and swirling, the mist coalesced into a stone arch, beyond which was a stairway that led into an inky black. The thunderous voice spoke once more. “Step forward, and enter, your trial shall begin.” When no one showed any intention to move, it spoke again. “Fear not, you will not die in this dream realm, and should you make it to the end of this trial, you will be handsomely rewarded.”
The offer of a reward was enough for Darkshadow to tentatively step towards the door, Tad following out of curiosity, and Nate not wanting to be left behind. As each step echoed across the stone steps, the three entered… the Dungeon of Wickedness.
Notes:
So… looks like session 0 is going to take a bit longer to write than I thought… FUN! As you can see, I plan to interchange between writing from the character’s perspective, and that of the character’s characters… that’s not a confusing statement at all 😅.
Abel - Game Master
Uzi - Darkshadow - Tiefling Rogue Criminal - Chapter2-Uzi.pdf
N - Nate Rose - Halfling Cleric Sailor - Chapter2-N.pdf
Thad - Tad Simple - Human Fighter Farmer - Chapter2-Thad.pdf
Chapter 3: Delving Into the Wicked
Summary:
Darkshadow, Nate and Tad take their first steps into the world of adventuring, rising to take on the trial set before them. Within these first steps, they face goblins, bat-like monsters and deadly traps. How will Uzi, N and Thad respond to the chaos Abel presents them?
Chapter Text
The suffocating darkness surrounded them as they descended the stairs, only abating to the lit torch Tad carried. Darkshadow walked ahead, her eyes accustomed to the dark, while Nate trailed behind. As they approached the bottom, the flapping of winged creatures could be heard, and the sight of their leftovers messily dotted the floor. The final few steps led to a small room with a small wooden door and several small holes poking through the upper walls. Nate hid further behind Tad, cautious of the remains that lay on the steps. “That doesn’t look good.” His concern did little to slow his companions.
Darkshadow gave no thought to the bones in front of her, kicking them out from under her feet. “Eh, it’s probably just to scare us off.” She twisted the door handle with little concern, the screeching of its rusted metal inner workings echoing throughout the space. Before she could push the door open, panicked squabbling could be heard from the high-up holes, getting louder by the second. The group quickly took the same positions they did when confronting the old man made of mist, still unsure what they were doing. In a mere moment, three monstrous bat-like creatures darted out of the walls, flying in a panic around the room before going to attack the trio.
Abel started to shuffle papers back and forth behind his cardboard crenelations. “Ok, time for some combat.”
N and Thad looked at each other with small beaming smiles, while Uzi threw her hands into the air in celebration, a maniacal grin on her face. “Finally!”
“So, first we need to figure out the order of everyone’s turns by rolling initiative.” Abel held up a twenty-sided die between his fingers. “For this, roll a d20 and add your dexterity modifier to the result.” As the others rolled their dice, he shuffled through a few more papers before pointing to the purple one. “Uzi! Because of your alert feature, you get to add an extra two to the total.”
As dice clattered across the table, each drone called out their total. “That’s 16,” N called out with a chipper tone.
“9,” Thad stated with a sigh of disappointment.
“23,” Uzi proclaimed, with smug confidence.
Thad gave a whistle and N a thumbs up, impressed with the large number. Abel also responded. “Dang, now for the monsters, and … 13.”
With ‘initiative’ rolled, the three players looked at each other, silently asking who would voice their question. Thad quickly spoke up. “So, what does this all mean?”
Abel was back to shuffling papers around, stopping only to write notes on a few. “First up in the turn order will be Uzi, then N, then the monsters, then Thad.” He placed a dry-erase board over his fortifications, showing the order he had just described. “Each round represents six seconds in game. You can take an action, bonus action and movement on your turn, and can use one reaction per round.” With his organising done, he placed his elbows on the table and fingertips together in front of his face. Looking to Uzi, he spoke with a dark questioning tone as he asked. “So, starting off, Darkshadow. What do you do?”
Darkshadow rushed forward, brandishing two daggers as she swung at one of the creatures. Her first swing missed by a hair, but her second struck true, slicking the creature's head clean off. Nate, for his part, panicked, swinging his mace down on one of the creatures that had appeared next to him. It landed with a sickening crunch, viscera from the body splattering across the floor. The last of the creatures darted towards Tad, its long mouth prepared to pierce skin, but before it could strike, its chosen meal threw a wild punch that sent it flying into the wall. It landed in a crumpled heap, its body mangled from Tad’s strike.
Darkshadow scoffed at the creatures. “If this is all we gotta deal with, this’ll be a walk in the park.”
“What are you talking about?” Nate’s tone portrayed the stress of being in this strange place. “They’re still scary monsters that attacked us!”
Darkshadow sauntered up to Tad, leaning on his shoulder. “You kidding? You saw what mister muscles here did to one without a weapon, we’ll be fine.”
Tad simply shook his head, unimpressed with Darkshadow’s overconfidence and sympathising more with Nate’s concerns. He let out a heavy sigh as he strode to the door. “Whatever you say Dark.”
As they approached the wooden door for the second time, they heard muttering coming from the other side, though it was not loud enough to tell what was being said. Tad pushed the heavy door open, revealing two goblins sitting at a small table with a drink each. One had an eyepatch, while the other had a pegged leg. Both were looking awkwardly at the group.
Tad and Darkshadow simply stared back in confusion, while Nate raised his hand in an unsure wave. “H-hello!”
The two goblins waved back, maintaining the awkward silence as though they had been caught in a heinous act. Unsure of what to do, the group shuffled to a door on the other side of the room, their movements stiff and artless. Once the goblins couldn’t see the trio, they continued their conversation, making rude comments about people they didn’t know.
Past the next door, five statues stood in seemingly random spots within the not-quite-square room. Two of them were of figures unfamiliar to the team, while the other three reflected each person that stood in the room. At the base of each statue, a plaque read the same message, each written in a different language. “Only the first draft of the future has been written, change is always possible.”
As Darkshadow and Nate looked over their stone duplicates with confusion, concern and intrigue, Tad noticed a small square compartment hidden in the back of a statue depicting an aggressive angelic-looking figure. Pulling the draw out revealed a glass bottle containing an orange liquid with a dim yellow glow. Understanding it had value, but unsure as to what kind, he gently took the bottle and stuffed it into the bag on his back.
After Darkshadow attempted to knock over a statue of an elf (claiming it was looking at her funny), the group was left with a choice of two paths forward, both hidden behind frail wooden doors. Nate took the initiative, walking through the rightmost door while beckoning his companions to follow. They trailed after the halfling, passing through the darkening hallway, the sounds of an argument in an unknown language echoing from the other side of the next door.
Stepping into the well-lit room, two goblins chattered in an aggravated tone. Between them was the dead body of a third goblin, while behind them was a mound of golden coins. The two quickly took notice of the group, running up to them while pointing at each other, yelling in a language they couldn’t understand. Every so often, they slipped in a word from the common language, such as ‘murder’, ‘treasure’, and ‘choke’.
Tad and Darkshadow struggled to understand, but Nate was able to piece together what had happened. “They are accusing each other of murdering their friend over there.” He pointed to the corpse near the centre of the room.
Approaching the dead goblin, Tad noticed its body was bloated unnaturally, while Darkshadow’s eyes caught the gleam of gold near its mouth. She carefully moved closer, prying the mouth open and allowing golden coins to clatter to the floor. She looked at the other two goblins, feigned shock on their face. “Care to explain what this is about?” Her tone was impatient and irritated.
The goblins immediately caved, becoming ashamed as though they were caught with their hands in the cookie jar. One spoke in broken common, “We dare friend to swallow more coins than we.”
Darkshadow took the body, slitting it open for the promise of gold. Two hundred gold coins, coated in acid and blood, clattered to the floor. Tad looked on with disgust. Nate’s face portrayed concern and horror. The other two goblins watched on in fear, ready to run at a moment's notice. Darkshadow simply looked back at everyone, confused. “What? It’s not like he’s gonna use it.”
Thad winced at the scene described to him and the others. He turned to the perpetrator, a grim smile on his face. “Dang, that’s kinda messed up Z.”
N looked to his girlfriend with concern. The events she had helped describe were graphic and familiar, similar to less-than-pleasant memories of their fight with Cyn. “You good?”
“Bite me!” Uzi slammed her hands on the table before crossing her arms defensively and leaning back. “It’s a dream world, so it’s not like any of it matters.”
Abel gave a simple shrug, calm and ready to roll with the coming chaos. “Ok, if you say so. Anyway, back to it…”
Filled with fright, the goblins ran for the door, screaming in terror. Tad’s reaction was simple, stating the shared thought with a concerned hiss. “That’s… not good.”
Nate rushed to the goblins, certain that he had to do something to calm them, while Tad and Darkshadow followed suit. Entering the room though, his steps faltered. Standing in the centre of the room, listening to the two blubbering goblins, were four more green-skinned beings, each brandishing a long curved blade. As they noted the three intruders, one of them held up their blade, yelled something in the garbled language and started to run at them.
The goblins rushed the group, swinging their blades wildly, their attacks leaving a gash on Nate’s shoulder. Tad quickly responded, swinging his family's great sword through Nate’s assailant as though they were jam. Meanwhile, Darkshadow slipped behind the two goblins that they had chased here, her twin daggers singing as they struck vital spots on the two cowards. Not wanting to fall behind, Nate took a swing with his mase, but his reluctance to fight made him sloppy, the attack carrying no force behind it, landing gently against the goblin’s armour.
Even with half their numbers gone, the goblins continued their assault, getting a lucky slash across Tad’s cheek. He retaliated with another swing of his massive blade, sending the green skin that struck him flying across the room and skidding across the floor. Darkshadow, not wanting to be outdone, sunk her blades into the last two goblins. The first landed on the floor with a thud, while the other stumbled back, clutching the large wound on their chest that her dagger had left. Nate wasted no time finishing off the injured foe, swinging his mace down with such force that stone tiles cracked under the goblin's head as it crashed to the ground
As the calm aftermath of the skirmish settled in, Nate found himself frozen in horror at what he had participated in. Tad solemnly looked over the carnage, something he had trained for but hoped would never have to do. Darkshadow held no such concerns, once again digging her knife through the two goblins that had fled, fishing in their innards for golden coins. The blond farm boy turned to the gentle sound of soft metal falling on stone. “Seriously Dark?”
The horned woman looked up with a snarl on her lips. “Bite me! You try growing up on the streets!” She held her daggers defensively, like the claws of a mantis.
Tad held his hands up in surrender, with no panic or alarm in his movements. “Ok, Chill, just seems a bit excessive.”
Darkshadow slotted the blades back into their sheaths, seeing no fight within her allies. “Whatever.” With a huff, she crossed her arms over her chest and turned away from the massacre, a key from one of the bodies clutched in her hand.
With time to take in the room, it was a big circular space with several bedrolls scattered about the floor. Aside from the door they came through, two other paths branched off from here, one to the east, the other to the west. Darkshadow was quick to drag everyone to the eastern door, the one marked with a sign that read ‘Treasure’ in crude handwriting.
The door unlocked quickly with the turn of a key, revealing a smaller round room, walls lined with empty shelves and a wooden chest placed in the near centre of the space. Darkshadow’s greed propelled her towards the chest, coming to a sliding stop before it. In her haste for loot, she didn’t pay much attention to the thin line of string attached to the lid. Only once she lifted the lid slightly and the screeching sound of metal spinning shot through the air did she flinch. Her instincts and reactions carried her out of the path of a flying buzz saw launched from the mouth of the chest.
Nate and Tad rushed to her side as she lay on the floor, panting for the breath that had left her. Avoiding an attack that would have been a near-fatal strike left her in shock for a while, leaving Tad to investigate the chest. Inside, he found a wealth of gold and silver coins, along with two bottles that contained a glimmering red liquid. He split the content of the wooden treasure trove with Nate, the two agreeing that Darkshadow had taken enough rewards for now.
Once their companion was back on their feet, the group made their way to the next room, greeted by a strange sight.
A long, wide room loomed before them; mysterious runes and patterns covered the walls and floor. At the far end, a man with a long white beard, a pointy blue hat and stars on his black robes, announced in a dramatic voice. “You foolish adventurers! You shall meet your end within these walls, for none may leave this room while I live, and I am impervious to all known attacks!”
Everyone looked at the madman with unamused expressions. Darkshadow was the first to speak, her words dripping in sarcasm. “Sure you are.” She then gestured for Tad to step forward, indicating for him to take the first strike. His steps were passed as he slowly drew his sword before bringing down the blade in one quick, fluid motion.
The room fell silent as Tad’s greatsword, the same blade that had cleaved through goblins like butter not a few minutes ago, rested against the man’s shoulder, leaving not even a scratch. “No way…” Tad’s arms shook, the force of his strike finding a different path to escape.
The man spoke with the same bravado as before, causing Tad to flinch from the volume. “Ha ha! No blade can pierce my skin!”
Tad took several steps back, shocked he did nothing to the man in front of him. He stepped to the side. “Dark?”
“On it.” She responded, knocking an arrow into her short bow before letting it loose. It cut through the air quietly before striking the man in the eye…
… only for it to bounce off, the shaft snapping as the fletching and tip landed on the floor. “Ha ha! No arrow can pierce my eye!”
Darkshadow‘s frustration was palpable, a low growl escaping her throat. “Nate?” She asked, with a threatening tone that was not intentional.
Nate held his arm outstretched, a pendant held tightly in his hand as he muttered a quick prayer. “Umberlee, Thassa, Procan.” A magic circle formed around the man, causing golden flames to erupt from the ground, their form like crashing waves.
As the blaze died back, the man stood at the centre, still completely unharmed. “Ha ha! No spell can harm me!”
The three drones were stumped. N scratched his head, puzzled while calming his girlfriend, who looked ready to bite something in frustration. Thad thought long and hard before throwing his hands up in defeat. “What the heck are we supposed to do?”
The drone behind the cardboard screen spoke with an inquisitive tone as he reminded the group. “I did say the walls and floor are lined with patterns and runes. Maybe there is a clue somewhere if you want to look for it.”
The three looked at each other, confused for a moment, before rolling their dice. None of their rolls were bad; the lowest was Thad with a 14, and the highest was N with a 22. For some reason, Uzi was given advantage, her higher roll being a 17.
Abel grinned from ear to ear at the results. “So, you all can tell that these runes do hold a message, but you, Nate and Tad.” He paused for effect. “These words… they don’t make much sense out of context. You can’t understand what they’re trying to say.” He then turned to Uzi, optics narrowing as his grin grew wider. “Darkshadow.” Another dramatic pause. “Among the patterns, you recognise some of the shapes and runes from something you’re currently carrying; from there, you can pick out particular runes to know its name.
Uzi was more confused than before. “Oh?” She pondered for a moment before her eyes went wide. Reaching for her character sheet, she flicked through pages until spotting the thing that confirmed her suspicions. “OH!”
A devilish grin crossed Darkshadow’s face as she realised the solution, reading the name the runes on the walls spoke of. “Pistol.” At that word, strands of magic danced out of the walls, snaking into the tiefling’s hand. She raised her arm as the energy started to take a solid form, her hand grasping as it shaped a handle, trigger, and barrel. Then, the last of the magic faded, flaking off to reveal warm wood and cold steel. In her hand, Darkshadow held the weapon from her blueprints, the weapon of her dreams, the tool of her revenge. Her thumb brushed against the hammer, locking it in place with an echoing click.
The old man gave another announcement, as though he were an automated message. “Ha ha, no weapon can har- wait, what is-”
BANG!
His stutter, not knowing of the weapon in her hand, was all the signal Darkshadow needed to pull the trigger. The shot rang through the room, the shattering sound getting Nate and Tad to cover their ears. The old man stood there stunned, blood trickling down his nose and landing on the floor with a gentle plap. He reached up to a warm patch on his forehead, a red stain left on his fingers from the hole left by the bullet; his legs buckled at the sight. “Wha… What wa… was… that…?” He fell to the ground with a thud, unmoving, not breathing.
Darkshadow’s pride at her skill with the weapon was short-lived, as the magic it was formed from started to unravel, causing the gun to fade into wisps of energy. A forlorn expression grasped her face; she had tasted the power she sawt to claim, only to have it ripped from her. Nate came up from behind, patting her on the back while offering words of comfort. “It’s ok. With all the gold we’ve… found, I'm sure you can buy a real one of… whatever that was!”
The young woman let a small smile slip before quickly reestablishing her aloof personality. “Ye- Yea, whatever.”
With the door open, the group made their way into the corridor beyond, taking the right hallway with wordless agreement when the path forked. Entering the next room, they were greeted by a strange and disturbing sight; the space was packed with mindless goblin-like creatures, all wearing tattered blue leggings and old yellow shirts. Pushing their way through to the door on the other side, the goblins chattered, repeating the same self-undermining nonsense. This slowed Nate down considerably, as he tried to comfort every goblin, to no avail. When the other two reached the door, they saw five gems sitting in a glass case—blue, green, red, yellow, and purple. Next to the case, three conveniently sized sockets cut into the stone door, a perfect fit for the gemstones.
Tad picked one of the gems out of the case, holding it with such care, the green light refracting across his hand. A puzzled look crossed his face. “I guess these gemstones are keys?”
Darkshadow also picked one of the gems up, its blue shine refracting her image across its many facets. “Ok, but which ones?” Her brow knitted at the thought of guesswork.
Placing in the gems they each held, and another they pulled at random, the gleaming stones teleported back into the case moments after. They tried again with the other gems to the same result. Before their third attempt, they surveyed the room, looking for any clue that could provide a hint to the combination. It was when Tad saw Nate caring for another of the goblins that he took in the colours of their garments, and an idea crossed his mind. Placing the green, red, and purple gems in the door, they didn’t teleport back to the case, but the door remained locked. Her frustrations boiling over, Darkshadow threw the last two gems at the ground in a fit of rage, yellow and blue shards scattering across the ground as they shattered.
At that moment, all the goblins in the room began to melt away into nothingness, their screams not of pain but of relief. Even the normally stoic Darkshadow was disturbed by the scene, while Nate was left in shock. As the last remnant of the creatures faded, Tad walked over, trying his best to comfort the frozen halfling. “It’s alright dude, they’re… in a better place… probable.”
Nate didn’t respond, wordlessly moving towards the door. The others followed, but not before sharing a look of concern for their short ally. The next room was a simple one, a small space that could easily be locked off for safety. With how exhausting their first experience as adventurers had been so far, the group decided to take a short break to recover. Darkshadow cleaned her blades while Tad treated the wound he got from the attacking goblins. Nate simply sat on the floor with his back against the wall. After minutes of heavy silence, it became too much for Darkshadw, she had to try breaking the ice. “You guys good?”
Tad responded with a quick thumbs up. “All good!”
Nate, meanwhile, let out an airy sigh. “Ye- yeah, just… repressing.” His two allies grimaced before looking at each other.
Before silence could settle in again, Tad felt he needed to comment. “That can’t be healthy dude.”
The suffocating quiet lingered for only a moment before Nate asked a heavy question. “How do you guys handle it? All the killing?”
Tad and Darkshadow were stunned by the question at first; it was not something they had ever considered or even wanted to. After much internal debate, Tad was the first to speak up, trying his best to be nonchalant. “So, on my parent’s farm, we have quite a bit of livestock, and a good few of them we keep for their meat. It’s not easy, but it’s sorta part of the food cycle ya know?”
Darkshadow immediately spoke up after he finished. Her voice was much quieter than normal, while her body language made her seem smaller and more closed off. “I’ve killed… o- other people… before.” Tad and Nate’s eyes widened at the confession. “It was self-defence, some thug they sent after me when I got away. It… It wasn’t pretty.” She flinched when she felt something wrap tightly around her. Looking down, she saw Nate’s arms, holding her as though she would fall apart without him. Not resisting, she continued her story. “After that, i-... it became… easier… if they were in my way. But it still hurt every time.” She threw an arm over Nate’s shoulders, pulling him in closer. “The way I see it, this place isn’t real. So there’s no reason to feel guilty about what you do to get through.”
After a moment, Nate unlatched himself from Darkshadow, and another light sigh came as he breathed. “Thanks guys.”
Tad gave him a light punch on the shoulder. “No problem dude.”
Darkshadow patted his other shoulder. “Don’t mention it.”
Abel gave a light applause for the performance of the other drones, eyes wide and a small smile. “Some brilliant role-play right there. I’ma give you all GM inspiration.”
Uzi and N high-fived, revelling in the praise, and while Thad did enjoy the ovation, he felt the need to ask an important question. “And that is?”
Abel was quick to reply. “Oh yeah, it’s a one-use reroll for any check using a d20.”
A quiet whirring noise echoed briefly as N stretched his arms in the air. “Awesome.” His voice was tense with strain, releasing as he let out a long breath and brought his hand back down. “Mind if we take a quick break? My servos are getting stiff.”
Thad reached behind his head, pulling one arm with the other to a similar quiet whirring. “Yeah, we’ve been sitting for a while.”
A clatter and screech rattled the room as Uzi pushed her chair away from the table, quick to stand with an excited bounce. “And I’d like to take a look around. You got a lotta cool stuff around here!”
Abel blinked for a few moments, slightly stunned by the interest shown in his largest project. “Sure, I’m up for giving tours.” He pushed himself out of his chair, grabbing an empty can from behind his cardboard defences. “You wanna refill while we’re up?”
N gave a quick nod before reaching for his empty glass. From there, Abel made his way to the front of the group. “So, you know the game table, and the kitchen shouldn't need any explanation. Just be careful what you grab, some peeps leave their personal stashes there.” Quickly, N wandered over to the pitcher of oil, refilling his glass with the cool black lifeblood.
“The clear space there.” Abel gestured to the space in front of a large television, surrounded by different coloured bean bag chairs. “That space is for video games or more active things, like Twister.”
Moving down the hall, the first door opened to a dimly lit room, the floor covered in mattresses, pillows and blankets. “This room’s for sleepin’ if game nights go on for too long, though we also often use it for pillow fights and forts. Generally, it’s a room for comfortable and soft things.”
The next room looked like the bathroom that many of the other housing units had, though much of it had been refitted for a different purpose. The bath had been changed for a large wardrobe filled with dresses and costumes of various sizes and colours. The sink had also been removed, replaced with an assortment of mirrors making the entire wall reflect the room. “We have this as a changing room.”
“And lastly…” The door to the last room opened, revealing more clutter than was in the entire rest of the apartment. Two desks stood next to each other in the corner of the room. One had a large computer tower that slowly shifted through soft glowing colours and three monitors of different sizes and heights, while the other had a wide cutting mat with several burn marks; some heat, some chemical. Shelves circled the room, displaying various salvaged components and well-used tools. In the centre, piled on the floor were a smattering of half-finished projects and cryptic notes, from damaged game consoles to worn books. “This is the workshop, where I do most of my restoration and repair work.”
Uzi's eyes became stars, the space rivalling the modest desk in her room. “Wow! This is like the workspace of my dreams!”
A sweat drop loaded onto Abel's visor as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah, admittedly I spend more time here than my actual place, so I often nap here as well.”
Ideas she previously deemed improbable flowed into Uzi's mind, seeming much more likely to be possible in this engineer's dream space. “You gotta let me have a go in here sometime.”
The Blue-eyed drone beamed with pride at the praise from the bunker's most prolific inventor. “Sure, be nice to have someone other than myself in here” He then made his way into the corridor, turning to amble backwards. “But yeah, that's the tour. I guess when you guys are ready, we can head back to the game?”
N gave a signature smile and thumbs up. Thad made his way back to the table while doing finger guns. Uzi rolled her eyes before following everyone else. “Yeah, it's been pretty fun, I guess.”
Once everyone had passed, Abel quietly gave himself a small fist pump in the air. “Yes!”
Notes:
The bat-like creatures are called Stirges, and the goblin-like ones are … goblins…
No real goblins were harmed in the making of this chapter, only fake construct ones made using summoning magic. Their pain, however, was real…Abel - Game Master
Uzi - Darkshadow - Tiefling Rogue Criminal - Chapter3-Uzi.pdf
N - Nate Rose - Halfling Cleric Sailor - Chapter3-N.pdf
Thad - Tad Simple - Human Fighter Farmer - Chapter3-Thad.pdf
Chapter 4: To Dream of Destiny
Summary:
Our adventuring team continue to face the trials that lie before them. What manner of monsters will they face in this wicked dungeon of dreams?
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
As they wrapped up their short reprieve, Tad looked to his allies with expectancy as he resheathed his weapon. “Ready to head out?”
Nate adjusted his bag before giving a sharp nod and quick thumbs up. Darkshadow stretched her arms upward with a grunt, clearing any dreariness from her body. “Ready.”
Opening the door ahead, they stepped from the safety of the small room into a much larger space. Three tables lined the wall of this room, each with stacks of strange parts and papers scrawled with spells scattered about. A large, hairy creature ran to and fro across the room, reading papers and adjusting equipment. It had a burly physique and long arms that would drag across the floor and wore a large white coat. As the door closed behind the group, it quickly turned to the group, a wild look in its eyes. “What you whipper-snappers doin’ here?!” Before any of them had a chance to respond, he turned to the nearest desk, grabbing a purple crystal shard. “No matter! You help Tommy finish the churd!”
The three looked at each other, puzzled, before each asked a question. “Umm, who are you?”
“What are you?”
“What is a churd?”
The creature quickly faced the party, standing straight with head held high, one arm behind his back and the other holding the front of what was now clearly a lab coat. “Dr. Tommithy Twinhert, genius among bugbear. Churd is latest invention, but requires assistance with last few components. You shall help, and I shall give you key to next room.”
“O…k?” Tad and Nate looked to Darkshadow for a plan, to which she simply gave a confused shrug.
Tommy beckoned them to the table he stood at. On closer inspection, they saw him holding two strange devices close, each a disturbing amalgamation of metal and flesh. “First, flabulator requires connecting to chronometer with healing magics. Spell or potion will do.”
Once the stunning silence had finished settling, Tad was the first to step forward, pulling out the bottle of glimmering red. He carefully poured it over the joint Tommy held, and where the thin stream of liquid landed, metallic flesh knitted together. The boy winced at the disturbing sight. “Something like this… I guess?”
“Good good. Next…” Tommy dashed around the room, gathering several crystals attached to a long string. After tying them around one of the extra fleshy bits of the device, he reached for a dial that slotted into a small panel on a metallic portion before holding the amalgamation up to the group. “Gleeple requires calibration using magical fire.”
Darkshadow was quick to step up. “I’ve got this one.” She swiftly dove into the bag on Tad’s back and fished out the bottle of glowing orange.
“Hey!”
Tad’s protests were brushed off like water off a duck’s back. “Not like you knew it’s a bottle of alchemist’s fire.” Before either of her teammates could ask, Darkshadow hastily uncorked the container, releasing a torrent of flames from the glass prison. She aimed it towards the machine in the bugbear’s hands, coating it in burning orange as some of the pyrophoric liquid dripped onto the fleshy surface. Within the inferno, the crystal wreath shifted hue from a clear lavender to a burnt orange.
“Excellent!” Tommy ran to a table again, grabbing a tangle of metallic struts forming an odd-shaped frame. He placed the device everyone had been collaborating on into the steel cradle, putting it on his shoulder. “Lastly, spreem requires priming with magical missile.”
As the other two had managed to contribute to the ‘churd’, Nate looked between his two allies before holding his hand out, allowing a golden light to build within his palm. “I can handle this.” A moment later, the light shot forth from his palm in a brilliant blinding bolt, striking the iron nest with a guiding glow. The device hummed as it absorbed the energy, making several clicking sounds as the glow dimmed.
Once the spell had fully been absorbed, Tommy gave a raucous cheer. “Yes, Yes! Perfection!” Shifting the metal frame from his shoulder, he held the finished contraption in his hands. “My masterpiece, the churd is complete.” He buried his arm into his lab coat pocket, pulling out a small orange after rummaging for a bit. “Thank you greatly. As promised, here is key to next room.”
Darkshadow reached out tentatively, taking the orange with a confused expression. “Thank you?”
To that, Tommy gave a shallow bow before turning to the hall the group came from. “Good luck passing your trial.” He called back over his shoulder with a wave, taking the contraption with him as he left through the passage.
On approaching the door marked as the exit, the orange flew from Darkshadow’s hand, splatting against the stone frame as it shifted downward. The group stood in awkward silence for a moment as the passage onward revealed itself, a glistening moist sheen on every surface of the corridor. The three nervously looked at each other before steeling themselves for the next room
Curiosity nibbled at N as Abel described the scene, a question sitting at the edge of his tongue. The moment the game master took a moment to pause, he asked. “So, was that like, an orange key or stone or…?”
A cocked eyebrow and the tone he answered with were the only clues to Abel’s confusion through his smile. “Nope? The citrus fruit.”
That piqued Thad’s interest, there could have been something more to the conversation’s current focus. “So was it a magic orange, or poisonous?”
Abel sniggered, finding amusement at the group's fixation on what was supposed to be a brief, mundane description. “No, just a regular orange.”
Uzi followed with another question, using the voice she had been putting on when speaking in character. “So why do you think it was an orange?”
It took a moment for N and Thad to catch on with what the edgy little drone was suggesting with her enquiry, though when the spark of acknowledgement glinted in their eyes, Abel couldn't help but give a smile that would rival N's regular cheer.
The two took a moment to think about Darkshadow’s question, humming to themselves as they thought about it. Nate was first to respond, with genuine honesty in his words. “Maybe he was afraid of scurvy?”
The three continued walking in silence until a few beats later, they started to giggle and laugh at the ridiculousness of what they had just worked through. Their laughter settled as they reached the next room, a large natural cavern with a massive lake, the edges lost to a mist that hung low. In front of them, the slick stone floor gave way to a small wooden pier with a rowboat moored to the side, a stiff humanoid figure standing next to it. As they tentatively approached, the figure slowly creaked to life, their body on closer inspection an amalgam of wood and rusted steel. It spoke with a low gravelly sound, something… artificial. “Arr! Who be ye? More adventurers lookin' t' cross the lake?”
While the whole group were confused by the sight before them, Tad was the first to speak up. “Sure?”
The figure pulled a battered black captain's hat from behind itself, a white skull and crossbones painted on the front. “In dat case, I accept two kinds o' bounty. Ye can either answer me riddles three correctly, or ye can defeat me 'n me crew in combat, wha' ye say?”
The three looked to one another in confusion before Tad responded. “Err, one second.” Afterwards, the group huddled around each other, head down as they held their private meeting.
Nate spoke first, voicing his concerns. “So what are we going to do?”
Darkshadow was quick to respond with confidence. “We could take him.”
A slight panic entered the halfling’s tone as he followed up. “But he said he has a crew, and I don’t see anyone else so…”
Tad nodded in agreement with a hardened look. “Yeah, we have no idea how many are in hiding. It’d probably be smarter to try the riddles.”
The tiefling rolled her eyes with great exaggeration, sarcasm dripping from her words. “Fine.”
The huddle broke as they turned to face the robotic sailor. “Ok, we’ll answer your riddles,” Tad stated with an assured smile.
The figure gave a gnarled smirk as they pulled down an eye patch over their head from their hat. “Mighty well then, first riddle. A landlubber has a barrel full o' gold doubloons dat weighs five hundred pounds. Then he puts somethin' in the barrel, 'n har! Now it weighs less than five hundred pounds! Wha' did he put in the barrel?”
As they pondered the answer to the first challenge, muttering ideas such as balloons or feathers, Nate snapped his fingers and proudly exclaimed the answer that came to him. “A hole!”
The pirate-like robot chuckled as its hand swivelled along its wrist, swapping with a hook stored in a compartment in the forearm. “Good, next riddle.” It proclaimed. “S-M-H-D-W-M, wha' be next in dis pattern?”
Silence befell the group again as they searched deep in their minds for the answer. As he slowly unraveled the pattern in his head, Tad was the first to speak up. "I think I’ve got it. It stands for seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months. So the next one would be…"
Darkshadow looked at the human as she cut him off, realisation in her tone and glee on her face. “Y, for years!”
The automaton was caught off guard with how quickly they answered, midway through attaching a plastic parrot to its shoulder. “Mighty fine”, it responded, after finishing its adjustments. “Last riddle. Wha' be somethin' dat fades 'n goes o'er time but some o' its residue will always remain?”
As with the first two, the silence was broken only by murmurs of thought and water droplets from stalactites that filled the cavern. It took a few minutes longer for anyone to speak up before Nate and Darkshadow looked at each other with confidence, stating their answers in unison. “Memories.”
The robotic rapscallion gave a raucous cheer, the sound echoing throughout the cave much longer than it should have. “Ah har! Ye've answered all me riddles correctly. In dat case, ye may take me boat t' the other side o' the lake.”
Darkshadow and Nate gave each other a high-five in celebration, while Tad approached the figure of metal and wood. He bowed his head in respect as he replied. “Thanks! We'll make good use of it.”
With that, the group clambered into the wooden vessel, Nate taking charge as he readied the oars. Darkshadow quickly settled into the boat while Tad took a while longer to find his sea legs. Before pushing them off from the pier, the constructed captain gave a few ominous parting words. “Good luck ye scallywags. Ye'll needs it.”
Looks of suspicion and concern were shared among the three adventurers-in-training, unsure how to take the android's words. Whether unable or unwilling to turn back at this point, the team pressed forward. Nate kept the boat going at a steady pace as it cut through the water, quickly running against a sandy shore that led to a passage carved in the stone. As they trudged through the sand, Nate noticed Darkshadow playing with a coin that had a bright silvery shine. He recognised it as a valuable platinum piece from its shape but chose not to confront Dark about where she had gotten it.
Approaching the carved tunnel, it was choked with cobwebs, a door not far into the darkness tangled in the sticky silken threads. Darkshadow hesitantly pushed the door open, brushing the curtain of spider silk away. In the centre of the room, a massive disembodied humanoid head hovered above the floor, the bottom of its neck capped with some kind of metal device as it muttered gibberish to itself. As the group stared in many forms of horror at the creature, it quickly began to speak louder. "Mumford. Potato. Spelling. Casper. Igneous." At its crescendo, a piercing hiss came from beneath it, and a handful of thin strips of parchment fluttered before the three.
As the papers danced around the party’s feet, voices from the webbed shadows above chittered. Four large spiders descended around the head, one approaching Darkshadow at the front of the pack while the other three gave reverence to the muttering cranium. It gathered the parchments as it approached before presenting them to the band. In whispered chitters, it spoke with a ghostly voice. “Read, to self, not aloud.” They each looked at the paper strips with scepticism, trusting this to be a trap of some sort, but with no clear way to continue forward, they decided to take the risk.
At that moment, everyone was startled as their devices lit up, each with a light jingle. As they sat there stunned for a moment, Abel calmly gestured for them to check the message, another smirk on his face. Uzi looked to Thad and N, the former hesitantly opening the device while the latter looked puzzled over the message. Intrigued, she pulled the tablet closer to inspect what had been sent. It was a private message from Abel titled ‘DM’s whispers 🤫’.
[1ostDr0ne]: This is about the message you read.
[1ostDr0ne]: I’ll ask you to make a DC 20 Int saving throw. If you fail, you must follow these instructions to the best of your abilities. ‘The spiders are your long lost friends; you can trust them.’
— — —
After reading their nonsensical messages, the feeling of magic washed over them. As the feeling dissipated, Darkshadow and Nate spotted a golden glow coming from the wall ahead, forming the outline of a door. “Well that was weird, but pleasantly easy for once.”
As the two started towards the exit, Nate quickly picked up on something strange: The calm and grounded Tad was not following them. Instead, he hid in a dark corner, trying to be as invisible as possible. He turned to the young human, approaching as carefully as possible. “You ok Tad?”
The fighter bristled at the question, nearly ready to jump in fear. Sweat poured from his brow as he wore a cracked smile. “Wha, me? Na, I'm totally fine!” His eyes darted around the room like a dragonfly.
Nate continued questioning Tad with all the care he could muster while Darkshadow looked on in confusion. As she was about to act, her eyes caught a glimpse of Tad’s piece of paper as it fell from his hand. Faster than the others could react, she snatched the parchment, quickly reading over its message. ‘You fear everyone except the head. The head is the only one you can trust.’ With this and the magic feeling from earlier, she quickly put the pieces together. “Hey! He’s been brainwashed by some kinda magic that was on the paper strips.”
Hearing this, Nate took a moment to think as he formulated a plan. “Ok Tad, we might be able to help, but you’re going to need to trust us, ok?” Tad mumbled an agreement after a while, slowly willing himself through his building fear. “You’re going to have to follow us out of this room. That might clear whatever magic has got you so afraid. Think you can do that for us?”
Fighting past the panic building in his core, Tad took a shaky breath before giving a murmured response. “Ye-yeah, sure.” Following his two allies, his feet felt like lead being pulled through thick mud. As he crossed the threshold into the corridor beyond, the magic barbs latched into his mind released, and he let out a breath he didn’t know he held. “Wow, that was weird.”
Hearing the fear leaving the young man's voice, Nate sighed in relief, pleased that his plan worked. “What even was that?”
Tad shrugged. “I dunno. It was like… I couldn’t think clearly. Like I wasn’t fully myself for a while…”
A hand landed on his shoulder, drawing their attention to Darkshadow, who started to step down the pathway ahead while still facing the group. “Creepy, hope we don’t have to deal with anything like that again.”
The other two each gave a simple hum in response as they followed deeper into the hallway. It didn’t take long for them to enter another room. Three metallic levers were set into the wall on the far left, while the door in front appeared locked with a large lever handle. Above the door, a message was engraved into the stonework, written in dwarvish runes. Nate read it aloud as the group entered. “One lever in this room opens the door ahead.”
Without missing a beat, they each moved to one of the levers on the wall. “Fine, let’s get this over with.” Darkshadow pulled hers down first. As the lever hit the bottom of its arc, everyone suddenly teleported to the ceiling before quickly crashing back down to the floor. Between the pained groans of everyone else, the young tiefling’s frustrations were reaching their limits. “What the heck?!”
Standing back up while nursing his bruises, Tad went to pull down the next lever. As he did, a small potted fig tree appeared in the centre of the room. Everyone stared down at the potted plant for a minute before Tad voiced his confusion with a simple question. “What the…?”
Nate was the last person to pull a lever, reaching over his head to grab it and pulling it down with his full weight. As the lever slammed into place, the room became shrouded in darkness and a large glowing countdown starting from ten filled the floor. Everyone quickly prepared for a fight as the numbers ticked down, fading from a cerulean blue to scarlet red. 3… 2… 1… Their eyes stung as the light returned to the room, followed shortly by the sound of a single half-hearted party horn and a small sprinkling of confetti. As the tension in everyone released, Nate spoke up with a question, as though anyone could answer it. “What the…?”
With no further levers on the wall to pull and no other visible changes to the room, Tad asked the others a question, clear exhaustion from these events in his voice. “One of those must have opened the door, right?”
“It better have.” Darkshadow curtly responded, quickly striding over to the door. As she grabbed the handle, she froze as a look of realisation and frustration blanketed her face. “Guy?”
“Yeah?”
“The puzzle said a lever in this room opens the door. And this is a lever handle…”
Abel nearly greeted the floor as he doubled over, cackling. Wiping tears from his eyes, he tried to speak through his laughter. “I did not expect to get you guys with that one!”
“BITE ME!” Uzi snapped, though lacking any edge to suggest hostilities. If anything, it looked as though she was trying to smother an equally giggle-filled smile that threatened to grace her face.
Thad leaned back in his chair, hands resting behind his head as he let out a light chuckle. “Man, you got us good.”
A confused grin was worn by N, enjoying the atmosphere of everyone’s shared fun, but not understanding the joke. “Haha, I still don’t get it…”
As his laughter began to die down, Abel attempted to wheeze out his words as the story continued. “Ha… ha… Anyway…”
Making their way down the corridor, no one spoke of how exhausted they were, the only sounds being the grumbling murmurs of Darkshadows' frustrations at the room prior. As they approached the end of the cold stone passage, the shrouding darkness abated to two bejewelled sconces carrying flames that gave no heat. Between the sconces stood a large stone door that was left slightly ajar. Even from a distance, it was easy to see that this room wasn't intended to be easily accessed. Chunks of stone and wood lay strewn outside the door, riddled with broken locks. Magic wards sizzled ineffectively, their power reduced to nothing. Tad gave a weak cough to break the silence before trying to make small talk. “Well, if this isn't a boss door then I don't know what is.”
Darkshadow gave a large sigh of annoyance before repeating something she had said earlier with a more sarcastic tone. “Fine, let’s get this over with!”
As she strode to the door, ready to face whatever lay beyond it, Nate nervously ran up to join her while giving a light chuckle. “Here we go!”
Before Tad could follow, the ground shook as it began to gently tilt toward the battered doorway. Everyone could feel as though they were being pushed into the room. As they shuffled in, they saw a simple wooden table bearing a small, squarish cloth-covered object sitting in the middle of the room, illuminated by warm rays of light pouring from the ceiling. Patterns of scintillating green stones covered the floor and walls, forming the shape of a draconic creature in the eyes of Darkshadow. With only the table standing out in the room, Tad moved towards it, reaching for the cloth as he approached. Just before his fingers graced the tapestry, the green stones surrounding the area began to shake, ripping themselves out of the floor and walls. Darting like snakes to the centre of the room, Darkshadow and Nate managed to keep their footing, while Tad was thrown to the floor by the rush. The stones clambered over each other, regrouping themselves into the form of a snarling young green dragon. As it announced its presence with an ear-splitting roar, everyone prepared themselves for a gruelling fight.
Darkshadow reacted first, racing up to the winged lizard as she drew her twin daggers. As the knives racked across the dragon's scaled leg, only the tiniest of gashes were left on its hide. “You gotta be kidding me…”
The creature took a deep breath as it slowly reeled its head back, wispy green mist leaking from its maw. Everyone took this as a sign to brace for an attack, one the legends of dragons frequently spoke of. As they held their guard, the dragon lurched its head towards the ground, spewing a torrent of green clouds that quickly rolled over everything in the room. Though quick to hold their breath, the team felt the toxic vapours sap at their strength and burn their eyes.
Tad hoisted himself off the floor, recovering from the wyrm’s formation. A cough brought on by the last of the acrid mist brought speckles of crimson to the palm of his glove. Understanding the threat in front of him in a way Darkshadow didn’t seem to, he opted to draw a javelin from a small collection held on his back. He pulled his arm back before dragging it forward, putting all his might behind the throw. As it cut through the air, the javelin flew over the dragon, missing it entirely. After his shoulders had slumped in disappointment, he felt a strange magic restore his lost stamina, bathing him in a warm glow. He turned to see Nate, seemingly casting a spell meant to aid the ill and fallen.
Before the battle could continue, a booming voice cut through the tension. “ENOUGH.” With that, the room faded into mist, becoming nothing more than another dream. That mist familiarly swirled around the group before forming into the recognisable visage of the old man from the beginning. “I have seen all I need to.”
The sound of movement informed Darkshadow to Nate and Tad moving closer. She gave them a brief look to gauge their thoughts before pressing the wizard for more info. “And?”
The old man (Cronicus was his name, right?) hid his eyes under a wide-brimmed hat as he smirked. “I have faith that you will be able to walk the path fate seems destined to lay for you.”
“And the reward?” Darkshadow continued to press. She refused to have gone through all that for nothing.
A sigh escaped his lips as the wizard waved such single-mindedness aside. “You will find the treasures you acquired among your things when you awaken, along with a token that will carry what protections I can provide.” His tone changed to something more questioning. “Now, before you return to the waking realm, do you have any questions?”
Half a moment of silence passed before Nate surprised his allies by stepping forward. “What was the nature of this darkness you foresaw?”
The old man seemed sombre to hear such a question. His voice shook ever so slightly as he responded. “My vision was unclear. There were armies of the undead, vicious hags and a conspiracy that could unravel the multiverse”
This brought a question to Tad; unsure how he would help given his humble background. “And what do you expect us to do about it?”
A mist began to shift around the open space, slowly obscuring everything. The last thing any of them heard was the low, grumbling voice of the wizard. “That is something that can only be known in time. Speaking of its passing, you shall be waking any moment… Now.”
“At that moment, you all wake up in the beds you were sleeping in beforehand. By your side is a small leather pouch containing the spoils you each found in the dungeon, along with the gravity that it was more than a dream…” Abel smirked from behind his cardboard crenelations as he announced what the group experienced, pausing to gauge their reactions.
Thad and N sat in awe, with sparkles in their eyes as they drank in the finishing scene. Uzi, meanwhile, seemed more… irritated? Disappointed? It was hard to tell, even with the question she asked. “Is that it?”
The game master didn’t rush to defend himself, giving a light shrug as he replied. “That’s everything I had planned as a taster. You guys enjoy it? Yay? Nay” He shuffled his hand between thumbs-up and thumbs-down, tentative to seek out feedback.
They each looked around the group, reading each other before turning back to Abel. N was the first to respond, with a wide smile and glee in his eyes. “That was great!”
Uzi followed moments after, with a devilish grin as she clambered to stand on her chair. “Hell yeah! That was a lot more fun than I expected.”
A softer smile than they had seen prior found its way onto Abel’s face, before taken by surprise seeing a fist presented by a grinning Thad. Abel released a short sigh as his smile returned, and he met the fistbump with his own. As the gesture parted, Thad let his thoughts be known. “Nice”
Hands sharply clapped as Abel returned to his presenting persona. “Awesome! In that case, I invite you to join in with the adventure I’m running with the other group. We’ve been running every Saturday for the past month now.”
A thumbs-up from N, a sharp nod from Uzi, and from Thad, a brilliant smile. “Sure!”
Practically vibrating with excitement, Abel gave a quick cough to control himself before continuing. “Well then, seeing as we’ll use these characters, everyone advances to level two!”
The group erupted in cheers, with Thad and Uzi exchanging a loud high-five. N, caught up in the excitement but with something on his mind, asked, “Woo! What does that even mean?”
With a shrug and a roll of his wrist, Abel explained. “You get some new abilities and spells, some more hit points and generally get a bit stronger.” He continued to rattle off a few more details of levelling up while helping the others out with the process.
As the day rolled into the late hours of the evening (early hours of the morning?), Thad reached out with a stretch as a yawn escaped his throat. “Welp, it’s getting late, so I’ma gonna head out.”
At this, the others finally noticed the time, prompting N and Uzi to start packing away their things. Abel also began putting things away, moving books to shelves and empty bowls to the kitchen. “Fair, I’ll DM you guys later to workshop the story of your characters joining.”
“Alright, laters!” As the door closed behind them, Uzi and N began making their way back to her room, planning to spend the rest of the night (day?) together. It was strange; as they walked, they couldn’t help but share with glee the fun they had playing this new game. Speculating what adventures lay in store for their characters, who they would meet, and what they would fight. It seemed like no matter what happened, they would have fun telling these stories; their only hope was that they got along with the other two drones of this group. Maybe they would remember to ask Abel who they were…
[1ostDr0ne]: We got’em! 🎉
[Bu66le9um ]: Nice! 😘U r d best dm, you know that?
[Vi0len1]: So what nightmares you gonna cook up for us?
[1ostDr0ne]: Pack your bags kiddies, cos we’re going on a trip to Ravenloft!
[Vi0len1]: Hell yeah! Vampire hunt!
[Bu66le9um ]: Ironic 😏
Notes:
And that concludes session 0! I had a lot of fun writing this, like, way more than I would have expected. I’ll probably continue it, seeing as it’s helped a lot in keeping me sane during this teacher qualification course, but don't expect any schedule or anything with these. Chapter updates will be the Saturday after they’re done.
Abel - Game Master
Uzi - Darkshadow - Tiefling Rogue Criminal - Chapter4-Uzi.pdf
N - Nate Rose - Halfling Cleric Sailor - Chapter4-N.pdf
Thad - Tad Simple - Human Fighter Farmer - Chapter4-Thad.pdf
SDphon on Chapter 1 Fri 07 Mar 2025 01:32AM UTC
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Grimm_solver on Chapter 1 Sat 15 Mar 2025 05:25PM UTC
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EmptyR on Chapter 2 Sat 01 Mar 2025 02:30PM UTC
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