MoN 058 Things Go From Worse to Worse

After a brief discussion, the group continued westwards toward the single light. However, their numbers were now reduced. Jacob—concerned he would run out of film in this strange place—headed back to the trucks, and Alice volunteered to go with him to keep him safe.

After another 20 minutes of walking down yet another vast cyclopean passageway, they came to a T-junction. The light they had seen was just one in an immense string of lights running along another massive corridor. Consulting their compasses again, the group determined that turning left would likely take them in the direction of the shack they had almost assaulted what seemed like days ago.

To the west, things got stranger.

The Blue Chamber

Following the long string of lights for another mile or so, they came upon an immense octagonal-shaped chamber perhaps half a mile across. Here, the whole floor glowed with a disconcerting and clearly unnatural blue light. This odd phenomenon stymied the group for some while. No one seemed keen to walk on the odd floor, and Charles pointed out that anyone entering the chamber would be visible to anyone lurking in the passage they could just make out at the other end of the massive chamber.

Still, if they wanted to continue west, they had no other way to go. Cautiously, the group eventually advanced—to discover no ill effects or disasters whatsoever —and safely reached the safety of the next passageway. More lights led west, and the party duly followed them until they encountered another massive passageway heading roughly north. Here, the traffic was noticeably much heavier, and so the party decided to follow those tracks.

It was a fateful decision.

Chamber of Horrors

This passageway led into another massive half-spherical chamber. Many archways pierced the walls here—it seemed like a nexus of sorts. In the centre of the chamber, a smaller section of the floor pulsated with purple light. What looked like a half-dozen statues rose from amid the weird purple light. George used his binoculars to examine objects—foul and hideous statues of bone and wood—and was visibly unnerved by what he saw.

Still, there was nothing for it. The group cautiously advanced. Several of the group—notably Charles and Jeffrey—averted their gaze from the horrible sight of the statues, and this nearly proved Jeffrey’s undoing.

As several of the group gazed upon the loathsome horror of the statues, two large things—more of the hideous half-toad/half-bat things—stirred from behind their grotesque bulks. At the sight of them, George went mad—and, as an Englishman—found refuge in drink—while Kirk and James blasted away with their rifles. One of the things was immediately killed, but the other was quick and hurtled toward Jeffrey—who saw the thing but couldn’t react in time to save himself. Then, Gilbert was there: he shoved Jeffrey out of the way and took the full force of the thing’s attack. Badly injured, he was knocked to the ground. Moments later, the second of the two things was dead—killed by another fusillade of gunshots from Kirk.

The sight of the thing unnerved Jeffrey, and it tore open in his mind terrible knowledge he had long repressed. He recognised what the six statues were meant to represent—the largest statue represented Nyarlathotep in his Father of Bats form while the others depicted such fell, alien powers as Cthulhu, Azathoth, Yog-Sothoth, Cthugha and Shub-Niggurath.

With this recollection, the group decided the statues should be destroyed. Luckily, they remembered they had earlier discovered a generator and a small fuel dump. Back they went to gather enough petrol to set the statues ablaze. While they did this, Gilbert decided to stay behind at the generator to cover their retreat.

In short order, the statues were ablaze, and the party retreated to Gilbert’s position. However, the situation had changed behind them. Gilbert had spotted a lone man wearing a miner’s helmet and carrying a camera coming along the corridor. The man seemed to be inspecting the lights, and as he was unarmed, Gilbert—who had hidden himself—let him pass.

That’s Not a Camera

Now, the man wandered straight into the main party’s path. Kirk—intent on taking a prisoner for questioning—demanded the man drop his camera. Instead, the man raised his camera to reveal it was not a camera but some kind of odd lightning gun. A bolt of electricity burst from the weapon and struck Kirk full in the chest. Any other person struck by such a ferocious, powerful and seemingly impossible weapon would have been killed instantly. Kirk, however, was made of sterner stuff. Near mortally injured, he collapsed, and the camera-wielding man cried out with joy. In the resulting confusion, someone shot him. After a few minutes of panic, Gilbert, rushing up from the rear, managed to bring the near-dead Kirk back to consciousness while Charles and Jeffry tied up Kirk’s attacker.

Now, the party had serious questions to answer. Two of their number were seriously injured—Kirk, while conscious, was yet at death’s door—and they were many miles and hours walk from their trucks…

This post is a session summary for my weekly 7th edition Call of Cthulhu Masks of Nyarlathotep campaign.