Mutant Future session 3, part 1; 12.15.09

Bucky McLeroy, the whitetail deer anamorph, ran the thin plastic card through the slot of sluts next to the giant gate. There was an immediate click and a hum as the gate began moving, opening into the vehicle storage room. Bucky and his companions, Hedgehog Jack and Brother Mathias, watched as the door magically opened into the room they are in. Their discovery of the ancient lock mechanism by the gate allowed their giant donkey friend, Bottom, to join them. Bottom had previously been stuck in the passage beyond this gate. He was too large for the smaller passages the other three adventures had used to get around the gate.

“Now that we’re all in here, what the heck is that,” Brother Mathias turned to face a large circular pit which dominated their end of the vehicle storage room. “I,” began Hedgehog Jack, but he was interrupted by Bottom. “Let’s see how deep it is,” without warning Bottom turned and kicked Candy Cane into the pit. Candy gave a brief grunt and scream, but she vanished into the depths of the pit in the blink of eight mutant eyes.

Hedgehog Jack cleared his throat, “I was try to tell you all, I threw a torch in there and couldn’t tell where it landed.” His companions, including Bottom, were all stunned by Bottom’s sudden and swift elimination of Candy Cane. “That’s a deep pit,” Bottom added in a stunned tone.

The circular pit was twenty feet across, Bucky pointed out, “There’s a ledge up on the wall around the pit. There’s also a ladder that leads up to the ledge. I’ll climb up and investigate it,” he volunteered. “You there,” Bro Mathias said, selecting one of his followers. “You, Bacon Fat, climb up to the ledge with Bucky while I remain here and perform the proper penance for our newly lost sister, Candy Cane.” Brother Mathias began to mumble is liturgical nonsense as Bucky and Bacon Fat mount the ladder to the ledge around the mysterious pit.

At the top of the ladder Bucky found that this ledge went halfway round the giant pit below. In the middle of the ledge they discovered a shrine of the ancients. “There is a shrine to Cau-tion and Poos,” Bucky announced to the companions gathered around the pit. The shrine contained many lines of messages in the ancient languages which Bucky investigated as best he was able. “There is a lever next to Poos’ name,” Bucky announced. “I’ll attempt to push the lever,” he added. Bucky attempted to move the lever only to discover that it was immobile. “The shrine also has the slot of sluts. It may respond to the Magic Card of Activation,” he suggested.

“Oh say can you see the sacred stash of tokens to Visa the spirit of finance…” Brother Mathias abruptly stopped his meditations. “Brother Axel Grease take this, the Magic Card of Activation, to our Brother Bucky,” he instructed while removing the card from his neck and handing it to Bro. Axel.

Bucky placed the Magic Card of Activation into the Slot of Sluts and slid it back out as they had recently learned to do. “Cau-ton has accepted the offering of the Card of Activation. I hear a humming within the shrine now,” he announced. “Try to move the lever now,” Brother Mathias shouted. Bucky pushed the lever forward activating some mechanism down inside the Pit of Mystery and the companions waited in stunned silence to discover the results of their latest action.

After what seemed like an eternity, but was only a minute or more, the companions could see that a section of the floor was rising out of the Pit of Mystery. As the floor came into view they could see a large cage and the shadow of something moving within the cage. “What by the Financial Fathers is that,” said Bottom. “It’s a cage on a raiser,” responded Bucky from his post on the ledge. “No, there’s somethin’ in the cage,” yelled Hedgehog Jack.

The “raiser” reached a few feet from the floor level just as Jack finished his comment. The shadow took one step and was out of the cage and into the artificial light of the vehicle storage room. The creature that stepped into the light appeared much like a giant man but a giant man with four arms. The companions where silent for a shocked moment which was long enough for them to realize that the giant four armed creature only had one eye.

The one eyed creature continued to move away from the cage and the companions quickly gathered their thoughts and their actions. Brother Mathias began shouting orders, “Bacon Fat and Axel Grease, you must descend form that ledge and join us in combat with this terror!” The creature moved aggressively toward Bottom who quickly moved to avoid him. Bottom spun around and kicked the creature back toward the cage. Bucky quickly fired an arrow from his long bow but failed to hit the creature.

Hedgehog Jack was still morning the loss of his very good friend, Candy Cane, and was too shocked to help combat the monster. Bacon Fat and Axel rushed into the fight and joined Bro. Mathias in casting sling stones at this horror from the Pit of Mystery. The one eyed creature from below rushed at Bottom again and grabbed the giant donkey with two of his four fists. Bottom was able to kick the creature back into the pit as Bro. Mathias yelled, “The magic items, don’t we have some magic items of destruction? Buck, you should pull the lever thus lowering this creature back into it’s very spawning pit.”

“Oh, yeah,” said Bucky. “Oh yeah, I have a magic item of destruction,” responded Bottom. “Let me find it.” While Bottom looked through his belongings for a magic device, Bucky released another arrow but failed to hit the, rather large, beast. Then Bucky pulled the lever and activated the raiser into downward motion. “I’ve found it, I’ve found it,” Bottom shouted. “Launcheth thou the Magic Device of Destruction in the direction of this pit beast,” Bro. Mathias instructed. Bottom managed to properly manipulate the Magic Device and throw it before the beast could climb out of the pit again.

The Magic Device released an explosion as it hit the raiser at the feet of the pit- spawn creature. The creature gave a yelling scream of pain and beat at the walls of the pit. The raiser continued to lower, “It appears the creature was only harmed by the device but was not slain,” Bro. Mathias announced. “I have a Magic Device of Destruction too,” Bucky volunteered as he tossed a second device into the pit. The resulting explosion released fire out of the top of the pit and produced a scream that could only signal the death of the pit-spawn creature.

--- We finished the Mutant Future adventure on Dec. 22 and we're back to playing first edition AD&D now.