Thistletop, part 7 (Friday, Lamashan 12, 4707 AR)

The heroes eventually severely injured their adversary, who threw down his weapons and begged for mercy. He promised to help the heroes however he could if given his life - this promise was mostly legitimate.

When the man surrendered, he did what he could to ensure his continued well-being. He gave his wealth to the heroes and they let him go.

The heroes continued their exploration.

Chieftain's Harem. Dozens of ratty cushions, lumpy pillows, and rumpled dogskin furs lay heaped in the south half of this chamber, which smelled of a nauseating mixture of vinegar and rotten flowers.

The stink in the air was, horrifyingly enough, perfume worn by the four hideous goblin women who lounged about in this chamber. These four were Warchief Ripnugget's wives. One of Nualia's allies,  Bruthazmus the bugbear, was also encountered here.

Bruthazmus was cruel and abusive to most others in Thistletop (including Nualia's other allies, excluding these delightful goblin wives), but had taken to treating Nualia with respect. He wore an elf-ear necklace.

Bruthazmus reacted to intrusions on his personal time with roars and curses. The heroes killed them all, except one goblin who managed to escape.

Prison. The southern wall of this room was a bank of cells with iron doors, six in all. The rest of the room was obviously a torture chamber; a rack sat against the far wall, an iron maiden stood to the north, and a fire pit smoldered below a spiky cage dangling from a chain to the ceiling to the east. Each cell was enclosed by a locked iron door.

Chapel to Lamashtu. Stone fonts containing frothy dark water sat to the north and south of the eastern entrance to the room, and twin banks of stone pillars ran the length of the long chamber. At the western end, shallow stairs rose to a platform about two feet off the ground. The walls surrounding this platform were lit by hanging braziers that emitted glowing red smoke, giving the place an unnerving crimson lighting that threw the bas-relief carvings of countless monsters feasting on fleeing humans into lurid display. A black marble altar stone, its surface heaped with ashes and bone fragments, squatted before a ten-foot tall statue. The sculpture depicted a very pregnant but otherwise shapely naked woman who wielded a kukri in each taloned hand and had a long reptilian tail, birdlike taloned feet, and the snarling head of a three-eyed jackal with a forked tongue. The left kukri flickered with fiery orange light while the right one glowed with a cold blue radiance.

Two lean creatures that looked like jackals with smoking red eyes and black fangs lurked in the shadows of the chamber. The creatures hovered near the ceiling in the north and south sides of the room. When the heroes opened the door to the chapel, the creatures quickly raced down through the air to attack, their howls heard throughout the complex.

The howls of these monsters when they attacked affected Shalelu, Bruthien, Tsela, his pet and their goblin prisoner. The goblin prisoner shrieked and panicked and ran in circles, Bruthien hid under the pillows in the harem, while Tsela, his pet and Shalelu were running away from the scene in fear. The baying was quite loud, and should suffice to alert every denizen of Thistletop that intruders have entered the chapel.