"The Monster in the Mirror" (RTx07) is the seventh episode of The Re-Slayer's Take. Timpani leads the Re-Slayers to meet his old friend on a desolate, wind-blown island after receiving a distress call. The villagers in the island town seem friendly enough… maybe too friendly…
Synopsis[]
The Re-Slayer's Take, through the Travel via Plants spell, cross a portal opened in an oak in Shoresight Isle, and Timpani immediately trips and falls, bringing the rest of the team (tied with ropes) down with him. Frog uses a shortsword to stick it into the stone cliff and stop their fall, after which they begin to climb little by little, while complaining about the situation; Timpani defends himself by explaining that after so much time the coast has eroded, and that the tree used to be further from the edge. He then tells them that his friend Duderonomous told him about strange ghosts haunting the very tides, and they head to the lighthouse; on their way there they find a villager that makes a surprisingly cheery comment about the bad weather: "Heck of a storm we're having!". When they arrive to the lighthouse they are greeted by "Duddy": a very distracted elf who, with some efforts, remembers Timpani from many decades ago. After some introductions (during which the elf notices Frog's mechanical nature and inquires about it), they are brought to the Honeycomb Inn. There, the noise only starts when they come in, but there are no normal conversations, only smily people repeating the same sentence the first villager told the group, which causes Heera and Farah to start theorizing about undead activity, even though their weapons aren't reacting to any threat. Duddy tells them that people in town used to be very grumpy, but that everyone became strangely happy after visiting the cliffs. He starts to explain that the Slayer's Take found something below the isle the last time they visited, but in that moment the bartender looks at the group, and the rest of the customers focus on them too, causing the weapons to activate.
As the battle starts, some of the adventurers notice in the reflection that forms in a puddle of beer, tentacles controlling people, and understanding that they are possessed in some way, the party focuses on defeating them without causing permanent damage. Frog stuns someone and Duddy takes his wand (which doesn't activate at first) while Idrin, after discovering those people are immune to Sleep, helps free Poogs, who was grabbed by one of the customers. Farah, guided by the reflections, shoots at one of the invisible tentacles, and when the villager attached to it is freed, they faint; following her friend's example Heera attacks another tentacle before Misty Stepping to a beam in the ceiling. Timpani Enhances Frog's Charisma and tells her to remind people of their actual lives and personalities, and when she tries, grappling a villager to remind him of his passion for art, he is freed and faints. Duddy manages to cast Light on Idrin's hands, and using that and the name of a daughter, the Xhorhasian wizard frees a local father. After Farah and Poogs try to free the bartender by themselves, Heera succeeds by reminding him of his dog. The remaining villagers don't stop coming, but with some effort, persuasion and precise attacks, they manage to knock all of them unconscious. Frog checks the reflection in the ale once moor, and suddenly she sees red eyes and a mental attack, after which she is pulled inside the puddle (or its reflection); Timpani manages to hold her in time, and with some help from the rest of the group they pull her back with them, after which Farah covers any potential reflection where the ghost might manifest. Worried after hearing the description of the creature, Duderonomous guides them back to the lighthouse, but when they arrive he appears to be confused, claiming that is not his house. Then, he turns, with his eyes glowing red and a third one opening in his forehead, and with a completely different voice he says that is, in fact, his home.
Featured characters[]
"Re-Slayers"[]
- Idrin Shadowstep
- His hawk familiar
- Farah Vallari
- Heera Agneheart
- Frog
- Timpani Guff
- Poogs
Returning[]
New[]
Mentioned[]
- Greg the seagull
- Persephone, a local girl
- Berenice, a local mother of two
Quotations[]
Trivia[]
References[]
Art:
- ↑ Re-Slayer's Take promotional art, by Elaine Tipping (source). Used with permission.
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