The Mind Flayer Boss Room:
Zarek’s Arcana knowledge tells him that the tentacled creature is a Mind Flayer that is caressing a creature that he does not know but looks like a brain with 4 legs.
The Half-Orc appears to be a Xanathar Guild boss and as his minions retrieved who they thought was Renaer Neverember, the half-orc was in the middle of his interrogation of the captive, not realising that he had mistaken the prisoner’s identity. The Half-Orc is accompanied by a Xanathar Guild Human Bandit who was doing most of the beating.
Half-Orc: “What from where?”
The Half-Orc turns to the north and the stairs where Zarek was crouching.
Half-Orc: “Yes, I will, be sure of that.”
The Half-Orc having what sounded like a one-sided conversation.
Upon hearing Zarek, the Mind Flayer rises from the stone chair, sets its pet down, and glides across the room, intending to leave through the double door in the west wall. The mind flayer expects the Half-Orc and his Pet to cover its escape.
The mind flayer carries a 3-inch-diameter stone orb carved to resemble something that Zarek couldn’t spot.
The Xanathar Guild Human Bandit is fastest to react and charges the Rouge with his Scimitar hoping to keep the rogue engaged. The Half-Orc is next and he places his hands together, fingers splayed, mutters words in Orcish and a thin sheet of flames shoots forth from its outstretched fingertips.
The Xanathar Guild Human Bandit takes the brunt of the flames and Zarek manages to Dextrously use him as a partial shield.
Zarek: “That Half-Orc had no regard for his fellow Guild Member, what evil have we discovered here, they must think us Zhentarim Members.”
Zarek, think the worst over is last to go but not before the Pet appears at the top of the stairs and unleashes its attacks. Zarek feels the creature attack his mind and the cost is psychic damage. Then he feels that once inside his mind the creature attempted to take control, but Zarek’s mind was too strong to be succumb.
Zarek is then capable of react and dashes back down the stairs, towards his comrades, and as he turns the corner uses his Bag of Ball Barings to cover the area in front of the SLEEPING AREA contain the dead Xanathar Guild Human Bandit and the bound and gagged Duergar.
Zarek retells his actions to Alley and Renaer.
The Pet follows after the Rogue and fails to stay on its feet, allowing Zarek and Alley to fire their Bolts at it. This leaves them only with 1 ‘Walloping Bolt’ each. Renaer stands guard at their rear.
Having killed the Pet, and not seeing any sign of the Half-Orc, the adventurers ponder what to do next. They all fear the Mind Flayer, but also want to or need to save Floon Blagmaar.
With still no sign of the Half-Orc Wizard, the adventurers elect to continue on to rescue Floon Blagmaar. Renaer leads, with Alley next and Zarek at the rear due to his current loss of blood. In fact, in the same very state that Floon Blagmaar finds himself.
In the BOSS ROOM the adventurers find nobody except for the beaten body of Floon Blagmaar. Alley attends to Floon Blagmaar while Renaer stands by the double doors which Zarek said the Mind Flayer left.
Renaer reports to see that in the middle of this otherwise empty room is a stone pillar carved with a small symbol: a perfect circle with ten equidistant spokes radiating outward from its circumference. In the middle of this circle is a smaller circular indentation that bears a passing resemblance to a lidless eye?
Zarek is told to check around by Alley and the Rogue enters the room in the north-east corner. This room looks empty, but a thorough search by the Rogue reveals a rough-hewn tunnel hidden beneath a loose flagstone. The low tunnel leads north to another part of the complex? The tunnels do not look to be have used in a long while.
Renaer checks the other two curtained areas and finds that there are straw pallets on the floor, and rusty manacles are bolted to the walls. The second cell still has its lantern lit.
Zarek takes a quick look down the tunnel and can see its rough-hewed and that it is in total darkness. The Rogue pops his head up and heads back to check the raised platform where the Mind Flayer was sitting.
In a satchel, belonging to the Half-Orc is a ‘Spellbook’, which holds the next spells: Burning Hands, Disguise Self, False Life, Shield, Unseen Servant, and Witch Bolt.
Tucked behind the stone chair is a small, locked wooden chest containing 2 ‘Potions of Healing’, 16 gp, 82 sp, and 250 cp.
Zarek believes that the time had come to leave, though Renaer was wanting to check as much as they, allowing the injured to leave first if need be.
Nonetheless, they all left in the end together as the sound of voices and footsteps sounded from the SLEEPING AREA.
Alley: “announces that it sounded like the Half-Orc and he has more villains with him, we need to leave now.”
Zarek jumps down first and is followed by Renaer carrying Floon Blagmaar. Alley stays at the foot of the ladder to use her Spells on anything that dared show its face.
Again, Alley chooses to stand along in the Darkness by herself?
Zarek climbs the other ladder and listens for movement. The Rogue can hear the footfall of bare feet and a gentle humming coming from upstairs. There is also the smell of fermenting beer?
Alley catches up as Zarek lifts the trap door. Is become clear that they are in an innocent halfling family’s basement, the Peabody’s it later turned out to be, brews of beer in this cellar, which lies beneath their home on Fishgut Alley in the Dock Ward. Their cellar holds brewing supplies and lots of worthless clutter.
Zarek frightens the young Female Halfling, who runs away locking the door behind herself. Then after the 4 adventure’s climb up they are confronted by the whole Peabody family, armed with household weapons.
Zarek can persuade the Halfling that they mean no harm and they are believed, having dropped their weapons as a show of surrender.
The halflings haven’t noticed the secret tunnel that leads to the Xanathar Guild hideout; it’s concealed beneath a large flagstone that requires an effort to be lifted. The halflings are initially alarmed but were easily calmed. Upon learning of the secret trapdoor, they vow to seal it up again but allow the characters to make use of it if the need arises.
Zarek offer the Halfling Girl 2 Dragons and apologies for the trouble caused.
The 4 tired adventurers then catch a handsome Cab to the Yawning Portal where they are reunited with Volo, all smelling fantastically foul.