The Characters
Vahlna'LA Neria Ar'ae'oe Tha'nyssa
(Neria Bladesinger) –
Elven Protector (Barbara Darlage)
Lord Thó'ef Sharpshooter – Former Guardian
of the Silver Tree, Elf. (Vincent Darlage)
Vaelanth Sildain – Elven Monk (Donald Sutcliffe)
Tansden – Elven Monk/Cleric (Allen Myers)
Gyorn – Elven Druid (Chris Bradley)
The Place: Redshore
(small city): Standard;
Neria and Lord Thó'ef continued to mull over the shocking documents they
found. What did it all mean? Thó'ef said, "I think the
Shadow Shoal makes it a policy to keep tabs on anyone important enough to
assassinate, or, rather, powerful enough to stop them. That way when someone
wishes to hire them to assassinate one of the more powerful and influential
figures in Inzeladun, they can get the job done quickly without having to take
the time to gather intelligence on their target. We most likely just stumbled
upon one of their information caches."
Roland shook
his head. He had a feeling he was in way over his head. Here he was,
standing with a pair of legends, Thó'ef and Neria, looking at documents that
proved something or someone extremely powerful was at work. He was
of the opinion that the visions he and Phoebe received to lure them to Redshore
were meant to trap them. He had no wish to spring their trap and intended to
leave Redshore as soon as possible. That decided, he said as much to Neria and Lord Thó'ef,
then left before they could say anything back. Phoebe followed him.
She looked up to Roland. She admired him and so listened to his advice and saw
no need to contradict him. They returned to their castle.
Neria
sighed. "Humans," she whispered to herself. She felt it
was a good thing they lived so briefly. She and Lord Thó'ef would need
help, though. She passed her consciousness into Faerie.
In the
beautiful city of Oth'eiluslanna in Faerie, the realm of the elves, Vaelanth Sildain and Jasaeya Tansden
were summoned by the matriarch of their people. Both studied under the
Sel'luevinis Master, Tiaselar, for generations, and were considered Masters of
Sel'luevinis themselves. Vaelanth started off his life trying to perfect himself
and his "form" under the watchful eye of Tiaselar. Then about a
hundred years ago, the patriarch of the family died. The Matriarch sent
all of the young mature elves of the family on various quests and crusades.
Vaelanth completed his the quickest and was thus rewarded with the family's
sword. Having the sword forced upon him, Vaelanth has incorporated the
sword into his "Form". The Matriarch had told Vaelanth that
there were hidden powers within the sword that he could awaken if he set himself
to finding them. She hoped he would find further insight on this
journey. Tansden, in his journeys, found favor with Corellon Larethian,
and became one of his chosen, abandoning, for now, the way of
Sel'luevinis.
"Our
protector," began the Matriarch Arnanisellon, "Vahlna'LA Neria
Ar'ae'oe Tha'nyssa, is in need of aid. The situation is thus: A group of
assassins have been uncovered, and we believe they have uncovered and used the Shadar
Pool, something we hid from Mortal Men in long centuries past, after
Grindill abused our kindness with it. I will send you to her, and you
shall give her whatever aid she deems fit in restoring the Artifact to our
control once again."
The two
Elvish monks nodded and bowed. She threw magic dust into the air, and the
pair passed from Faerie into the dark realm of Inzeladun. They found
themselves in a human-built cottage or warehouse. Immediately Neria and Lord Thó'ef
greeted them. Neria was dressed in Ventadari
armor, an armor not made out of any known substance, but constructed entirely of
translucent layers of force. The armor was nearly invisible, but when
light hit the armor at a certain angle, a faint, rainbow-colored shimmering
appeared. She looked radiant in it. Lord Thó'ef was
dressed more simply, affecting only a light chain shirt and cloak. Neria updated the two monks on the last bit of information
Fifthbthidl gave them about the girl in the Hall of Records. They decided
they should go find this girl, the sister of the man who owned this shop.
Then the ground shook.
Running outside into the torrential rain, they saw a sixty foot tall earth
monster stomping through the city, right toward the Hall of Records. They
ran through the pelting downpour, ignoring the lighting, hoping the bolts
wouldn't find them. They ducked and dodged beneath building eaves and
awnings, trying to stay out of sight as they closed on the monster. As
they rounded the corner onto the streets, they noted a whole host of the earth
monsters. Elementals they were, most assuredly. Eight of them in total
were visible, ranging in height from a mere ten feet tall on up to the largest,
which was easily sixty feet in height.
They pulled
out their weapons, ready to engage the enemy; suddenly a burst of wind, and a
tornado-like creature swept out of the skies and slammed hard into Vaelanth
Sildain. Knocked aside by the force of the aerial creature's blast,
Vaelanth rolled into a ready crouch. Neria ran to the forefront, her
katana out and ready. The thing was dim and misty, and Neria's hair lifted
on her scalp as she looked for a sensitive spot wherein to stab her
weapon. There were none. Her hair billowed out behind her in the
wind storm that raged around her, and she slashed at the air elemental's cloudy
body. There was resistance there, and she instinctively knew she had cut
into the elemental horror that fiercely writhed and intertwined around her
limbs. The elder air elemental loomed above Neria in the gloom and
rain. Thunder echoed around her. Neria struck again and again,
unfaltering in both speed and accuracy. Under the magical blade she
wielded, the cloudy corporeal form tore like physical flesh, and the elder air
elemental reeled and tottered; its cries were awful to hear, although they were
certainly out of the range of human hearing. The elves, however, were not
so blessed, for they could hear the thing die under Neria's sword.
As she fought
the aerial thing, the Elven monks ran to battle the smaller of the earth elementals
that shambled toward the Hall of Records. Lord Thó'ef stood his ground
and shot arrows into the earth monsters, cursing at the winds and rains that
ruined a few of his shots.
Vaelanth
Sildain unleashed his sword, which could dance and fight without being held,
complementing his own moves and actions. It was a new form of
Sel'luevinis that affirmed Vaelanth's mastery of the art, for Vaelanth developed
the style, adding something new to the ancient art for the first time in three
generations.
When the
elder air elemental perished under Neria's expert attacks, the sixty foot mound
of earth trembled with anger, and focused itself toward her. It ordered
all but three of the elementals to attack the bladesinger. Seeing the
shift in focus, Vaelanth opted to attack the three assaulting the Hall of
Records. The others fought the rest. The sixty foot giant rock
smashed Tansden, nearly breaking every bone in his body. Tansden retreated
from the battle, and summoned the divine aid of his god. Soon, he was back
in the fray, using his martial arts training to dodge attacks while he used
divine power to aid and heal his allies.
Neria,
fiercely devoted to the art of the sword, had trained for decades, resulting in
a frighteningly efficient individual, and she used every bit of her skill
against these elementals. Her moves were deceptively graceful and gentle,
but she rained death upon these elementals, unleashing raw destruction.
Her elegant movements deflected the blows of the elementals while lazily
drifting back to score hits against them.
Lord Thó'ef
was an undisputed master of the bow, having developed his art to a state of true
excellence. Even in these winds he was able to aim accurately, sending
death on swift wings to the elementals that threatened this human city. Of
his companions present, he was the only one that saw humanity as worthwhile and
good. He would protect this city and its people with his life if he needed
to. He aimed his weapon at the gargantuan stone creature bearing down upon
them.
Urlkathoon raged when his elemental companion was killed by the female elf. Suddenly he recognized them. They were people who had populated the visions he had had. The female especially held a place in it. Urlkathoon had interpreted the visions to be a cry of help from his former master, who was restless in death now, and had been presenting Urlkathoon with views of new helpers. Recognizing them now, Urlkathoon called off the attack. Most of his elementals were destroyed, proving the power of these elves. Perhaps they were strong enough. Urlkathoon retreated as fast as he could. He had made a mistake. It wasn't the female's fault his air elemental companion was dead. It was his. He should have recognized them.
The giant sixty foot tall elemental turned tail and began to move rapidly
through the city, careful not to hurt any buildings. The elves pursued as
fast as they could. Catching up easily to the slow moving mountain, they
renewed their attack. Suddenly the mountain wasn't a mountain anymore; it
was a bird. Flying rapidly away, the bird sped toward the sea.
Vaelanth
Sildain was not about to let that bird get away. Using a form taught in
Sel'luevinis, the elf stepped briefly between the realms of reality and
unreality, and caught the bird in his arms. About seventy feet in
the air, Vaelanth prepared for the fall, concentrating on the proper form he had
mastered so well. Then, unexpectedly, the bird grew heavy in his
arms. He wasn't holding a bird anymore. He was now clutching a great
cachalot, or sperm, whale. Quickly he twisted as best he could to avoid
harm, but the great beast smashed him into the cobblestones beneath. Pain
wracked through his body.
Tansden leapt
also through the boundary of reality and unreality, and reappeared next to the
landed whale and slammed his whole energy into it. The whale turned to a
bird again and took off like lightning. Tansden slid between the borders
again and caught the bird as Vaelanth had done earlier. This time he was
over the waters of the bay. The bird again shifted into whale form and
fell toward the waters below. Tansden moved around the whale and rode it
into the waters. The impact of the water nearly tore him off the whale,
but he managed to hold on. The whale continued to dive, going deeper into
the cold, dark waters. Tansden released his hold and swam back up.
Vaelanth helped Tansden out of the bay. Tansden shook his head and said,
"It got away."
"We need
to get that girl from the Hall of Records," said Vaelanth.
"Amyrella,"
said Neria, supplying the name.
"Whatever. Let's get her," said Vaelanth. The four elves
started walking toward the damaged Hall of Records. The rain was letting
up, and the wind had died down. Suddenly both stopped altogether.
Neria grew alarmed. "Run!" she said, and the four of them took
off running toward the Hall of Records. Last time the storm quieted, it
had begun raining acid and lightning.
As they ran,
they caught sight of Amyrella running in the opposite direction. She saw
the elves and altered her course. "Catch her!" said Neria.
Vaelanth and Tansden, the fastest of the four, veered off and intercepted the
short, pretty human girl.
Amyrella was
outraged when the two elves grabbed her arms, but she didn't want to tip her
hand just yet. She was a lot more powerful than these foul elves
imagined. She was one of Ordiss Ool's favored assassins, and had, with
Ool's help, been one of the three who discovered the Shadar Pool,
murdered its guardian, and bathed in it. She acted, however, like a mere
clerk, a frail record keeper.
The two monks
dragged Amyrella to Neria and Lord Thó'ef. Vaelanth looked at Neria. She
nodded her head, giving him permission to begin the interrogation. "Where
were you going?" Vaelanth asked her.
She
considered just kicking his ass and escaping, using her wand of expeditious
retreat to help her out, but she didn't yet want to play out her hand.
At the moment she didn't think they knew anything of the Shadow Shoal but for
vague rumors. Still, she refused to answer. Vaelanth smashed her head
repeatedly against the ground until she was unconscious. When she finally
woke again, he asked her again the same question. Still she did not
answer. He pummeled her head against the ground again, then repeated the
question. Bleeding and hurt, she answered, "I was going to find my brother. After the elemental
attack on the Hall of Records, I decided it was time to leave town, like most of
the others have."
"Why go
after your brother?"
"He's my
brother. I don't want to leave without him."
"Who is
your brother?"
"Aaron
Kientai, the shipwright."
An owl flew
down and perched on the edge of a roof. Lord Thó'ef drew back and arrow,
and the two monks prepared for a renewed attack. Tansden, however, saw
that a note was attached to the owl's leg. Cautiously he unrolled the
message. It read, "I apologize for my earlier attack. I did not
recognize you at first. I am Urlkathoon. I would speak to you if you
would allow it. Meet me immediately at the docks where the ships are
built. I will explain my situation then." It was signed,
"Urlkathoon the Druid."
"Do we
go?" asked Tansden.
"We
go," said Neria. "I need to see if I can get a druid here.
It may help in talking to this Urlkathoon."
"What
about her?" asked Vaelanth, indicating the human girl in his and Tansden's
grip.
"Bring
her along."
In the
beautiful city of Oth'eiluslanna in Faerie, Gyorn the druid was summoned to the
Matriarch Arnanisellon. Gyorn was a well respected Elven druid, and the
one in charge of the city's growth. He trained younger elves, and had
considerable power at his disposal. Asked if he could spare some time to
help out Vahlna'LA Neria, he was only more than happy. He had long wanted
to meet the legend who was single-handedly waging a war against one of the worst
human empires he had ever come across in recent centuries. Within moments
he left Faerie and was standing in the human city of Redshore. It was
wet. At least the rains washed away the human odors, he thought.
Looking around he saw Neria, Lord Thó'ef, Tansden, and Vaelanth. Tansden
and Vaelanth were familiar to him, both were well-regarded masters of
Sel'luevinis, a powerful martial art. He couldn't help but to smile when
he met Neria, though. Her Ventadari armor
was all he had heard it to be, and thought it was a shame the art of making it
had been lost. She, however, had a grim aspect, so he knew immediately the
purpose was serious. A young human female was being dragged along between
the two martial art masters.
"I am
Gyorn," he said, pronouncing it Gee-orn, with a hard G. Neria nodded
and said, "Laurie launtar." She told them they were about to
talk to an apparently powerful druid, and she wanted a druid with her when she
did. As they walked to the docks, she updated them on the recent events in
Redshore.
They walked
out on the docks, the young human girl tromping her feet loudly, annoyed at
being forced down to the docks, wondering if Ordiss Ool were seeing this, or if
he were even around.
As soon as
they reached the end of the dock, a huge whale surfaced. Urlkathoon was a
64 foot long sperm whale with pitch black skin that was pocked with scars and
old wounds. The elves backed up a few steps when the whale breached the
surface. Urlkathoon rolled his eyes and spoke in a deep, booming
tone. "I am Urlkathoon. Have no fear. I have no intention
to attack."
"We are
here," said Neria, amazed to hear a whale speak.
"I was awakened
by a powerful aquatic elf druid named Tesseril; I learned the secrets of
the druidic way from her."
"I know
of her," said Neria. "She guards the potent artifact we call the Shadar
Pool."
"Aye,
that was her appointed task," said Urlkathoon. "She allowed me
to bathe in the pool, and, in so doing, I gained great insights and
wisdom."
"What
does the Pool look like?" asked Neria.
"A
roiling sphere of prismatic liquid, in which half-formed shapes and faces seem
just about to emerge before they are absorbed."
"Ah,
like in the visions," said Lord Thó'ef.
"Aye. I too have been receiving visions. She is not at rest,
and needs help. Several months ago, Tesseril was attacked by a powerful
assassin and his cohorts. I heard her mental call for help, but when I had
arrived, she had been slain, and her body and soul were absorbed by the Shadar
Pool. I went mad with rage and spent the next month stalking the seas
and wreaking havoc wherever I was. Eventually the rage subsided, and I
attempted to return to the Shadar Caves to figure out what had occurred and set
things right, but the caves had been discovered by a powerful kraken. In
addition, there is a powerful construct whose exact nature I am not aware of,
guarded the pool and likely has gone rogue upon Tesseril's death. I can't
risk invading the caverns on my own."
"Why the
attacks on Redshore?" asked Vaelanth.
"I used
my spells to speak with the plants, fish, and stones of the sea. From
them, I learned that three of the assassin's cohorts survived the battle.
I traced their movements back to Redshore and decided to exact his
revenge. I didn't know who the assassins were, and I didn't, and still
don't, understand human society enough to find out. So I decided to
destroy this city and everyone within, and in so doing, the assassins as
well."
Vaelanth and
Tansden laughed. It was an innovative way to kill one's targets.
Even Neria had to smile slightly. Lord Thó'ef, however, was quite
disturbed by the turn of events. "What if this had been an Elvish
city," he asked. Neria nodded and the mirth subsided.
Urlkathoon continued, "I have had visions lately of the Shadar Pool
and Tesseril, and I know her spirit is in pain, and that it knows who is
responsible for her death. With your help, I feel confident that we can
overcome the kraken and the artifact's other guards."
"We will
help," said Neria.
In order to prepare, they needed to get rid of the girl, but Lord Thó'ef would
not hear of her outright murder, which Vaelanth and Tansden proposed.
After much debate, they decided to tie her tightly to the rafters of an
abandoned building, hopefully to die of starvation and exposure before
rescue. Lord Thó'ef wasn't happy about that, but Neria gave the monks the
go-ahead.
After she was
disposed of, the group leapt into the bay and swam into the whale's mouth.
He would carry them down to the Shadar Caves. It was more than four miles
down beneath the ocean and a hundred leagues away from the shore. The
journey took four days to complete. It was not a comfortable four days,
living as they were in the mouth of a whale, but they had no other way to
survive the water pressure and numbing cold of the depths.
The entrance
to the Shadar Caves could be seen for some distance, as it was filled with
phosphorescent seaweed and bioluminescent fish. Urlkathoon opened its maw,
and the elves floated out, encapsulated in a bubble of air generated by
Tansden's divine magic. This bubble kept out the cold and the
pressure. The first cavern was massive and filled with an alien forest of
glowing seaweed of strange shapes and disturbing size. Luminescent fish
flitted among the undulant fronds, preventing the elves, and Urlkathoon, from
seeing far into the cavern. The floor and ceiling of the cavern were
anything but smooth. The ceiling averaged sixty feet high and in most
places the seaweed reached all the way from the floor to the roof.
Ithkarsus the Kraken watched the bubble with the elves enter the cavern,
followed by the whale that had been lurking about several weeks ago. The
whale shifted size, becoming smaller, and pushed the bubble along with its
snout. Ithkarsus commanded its dire shark friend to attack the
intruders. The shark, some fifty feet in length, glided through the
seaweed forest in silence. Ithkarsus cast meld into stone, and
merged into the side of the cavern. As the shark swam elegantly toward the
elves, Ithkarsus began casting a series of spells: endurance, bull's
strength, protection from good, true seeing, spell immunity, righteous might,
death ward, and divine favor.
As the kraken
cast spells upon itself, the shark moved silently through the cold water,
propelled by short sweeps of its crescent tail. The mouth was open just
enough to permit a rush of water over the gills. There was little other
motion, perhaps an occasional correction of its course by the slight raising or
lowering of a pectoral fin. The shark sensed the movement of the air
bubble and the whale. It did not see either, yet, nor did it smell them,
however the nerve endings that ran the length of its body detected vibrations
and signaled its primitive brain. The sweeps of the shark's tail
quickened, thrusting the giant body forward with a speed that agitated the tiny
phosphorescent animals in the water and caused them to glow brighter.
The shark
closed toward the bubble, and, when it was but forty feet away, it was upon the
elves with two quick thrusts of its tail. In an instant of horror, the
elves gasped at the size of the shark. The pectoral fins hovered like
wings, stiff and straight, and a wall of teeth rushed toward them.
Vaelanth saw his own image reflected in the black eye of the shark, and he
struck, as did Tansden. The maw of deadly teeth chomped down on
Tansden, and with a nimble twist, he barely escaped an agony he could barely
imagine. Lord Thó'ef shot arrows in the confined space, and Neria jabbed
her sword at the shark. Urlkathoon moved quickly and snapped at the shark,
dealing it a powerful wound, dragging it away from the bubble.
The shark was
dead, and Urlkathoon held the body in its mouth. Vaelanth cut open the
body of the shark to see if it had eaten anyone with treasure recently. It
had. They found, among more grisly remains, several cold and gemstones, as
well as a magical breastplate and a magical staff. After it was looted,
Urlkathoon released the disemboweled shark. The gray body
of the dire shark receded, falling downward into the gloom. It continued to fall
away, an apparition sinking into darkness.
Ithkarsus
slid from the wall, and surged forth to attack the intruders. Fearful, it stayed about a hundred feet back, using
its two longer tentacles to attack.
In one of its shorter tentacles, the kraken held onto its staff of life, to
provide healing if its attackers proved more powerful than it estimated.
Ithkarsus' tentacles raked across the elves, and they fought back as well as they
could, hacking at the tentacles. The kraken grabbed Vaelanth and drew him
out of the bubble into the cold sea, toward the kraken's waiting mouth.
The tentacle constricted as it drew the elf toward his doom.
The elves
battled as hard as they could, and finally Tansden went into action. He
summoned his divine magic and cast harm, robbing the kraken of energy.
Tansden then held out his fist and
summoned the magic of his Ring of the Ram. With a powerful blow,
the tentacle released Vaelanth and the kraken slowly drifted toward the bottom
of the cavern.
Urlkathoon took the elves to the southern end of the cavern, to a section of the
wall that was permanently enchanted with a phase door variant. The wall
remained solid until it was touched by someone who consciously willed the wall
to fade. Urlkathoon took the shape of a water elemental, for the passage
beyond was only ten feet wide and twelve feet tall. The passage was smooth
cut stone, and was rather lengthy. At the end stood three stasis doors of
opaque green force. Each had to touch the stasis door and focus their
minds on passing through. As the elves started to progress through the
doors, Urlkathoon reminded them of the mithral golem that protected the next
room, and was likely rogue now.
This next
chamber, the outer sanctum, was staggering in its complexity. The floor
was polished, prismatic colored marble, and the domed ceiling came to a point
fifty feet above. The walls and domed roof were covered with thousands of
small, intricate carvings of various individual elves, places, objects, and
things, each of which seemed to tell its own story. Flickers of free
floating flame swirled near the ceiling, providing illumination and reflecting
off the floor with dizzying beauty. The elves noted that the water
here was much warmer, and the pressure of the deep was greatly lessened
somehow. After testing, they found they could breathe and move somewhat
through the water, so they left the air bubble that Tansden was
maintaining. Urlkathoon said it was an ancient spell called airy water,
and made the water breathable by any land-dweller.
An eighteen
foot tall statue of gleaming white metal stood in the middle of the room.
It resembled a serene old elf with a look of great contentment and peace in his
eyes. It looked just like Sha'a, thought each of the elves. It was
the mithral golem. It moved with shocking agility and grace. Neria
wondered how the assassins had bypassed the golem. Then the golem slugged
her. Neria flew back across the room. Lord Thó'ef drew back his bow
and started nailing the golem with his most powerfully enchanted arrows.
Gyorn attempted to use magic, but the golem was extremely resistant to his
spells.
Both Vaelanth
and Tansden fought furiously, hitting it with all their might and using every
bit of their mastery of the martial arts to bring down the golem. It
pummeled each in turn, and each stroke was powerful beyond belief. Neria
returned to the fray, her katana slashing like mad, but she hardly made a
dent. She threw her extra longsword to Tansden, and he battled with it,
for it was powerful enough to cut into the mithral of the golem. The keen edges
of the swords rang upon the mighty body like an anvil, rebounding often without
cutting. It was a living body, but it was a body of living metal. It
screamed of abomination, and of life not meant to be. Its blows bruised
and smashed the elves. Bloodied but unbowed they continued the fight, as
unrelenting as the crude approximation of life before them was. Finally,
the mithral golem stopped moving. It was destroyed.
After a brief
respite, the elves and Urlkathoon, still in water elemental form, continued
their journey, walking into the inner sanctum. This huge chamber mirrored
the previous one, complete with polished prismatic marble floor and a soaring
ceiling lost in murky darkness. The walls were covered with hundreds more
tiny carvings, disrupted by only four alcoves and the door behind the elves that
led back to the outer sanctum. Unlike the last room, however, this room
was fairly dark. Portions of the floor and wall looked recently damaged by
some sort of powerful energy, and bits and pieces of matter, some of which
looked like bone and puffy flesh, floated lazily in the water.
All of that
paled before the source of the only illumination in the chamber, which emanated
from an object they immediately recognized on the far side of the room: a
roiling sphere of prismatic liquid. As the elves and Urlkathoon watched,
hundreds of half-formed ideas and thoughts seemed to crystallize just under the
surface of the pool, only to be absorbed and replaced by a hundred more.
Their stomachs churned and their brains reeled as they looked upon the sphere,
for its power was overwhelming.
"The Shadar
Pool," whispered Neria. Urlkathoon nodded.
Before another step could be taken, an image of a stunningly beautiful nude sea
elf, the one in the visions, manifested in the center of the room. She leveled
her eyes upon the elves and calmly said, "Leave the sanctum of Shadar,
elves. Such lore is not for you."
"We are
here to help," said Neria.
The sea elf
was not pleased. She flew into a frenzy, screaming and howling with bone
shattering rage. The sound was painful, especially to sensitive elf
ears. Their hands flew up to the sides of their heads, and they stepped
back in pain and agony.
Gyorn threw
up his hands. "Wait! We were summoned by you! We are here
to avenge your murder and to protect the Pool!"
Again the
naked image of the sea elf screamed out, and again the sound was horrible and
painful. Instantly, the water turned toxic. It tasted bad and the
elves gagged on what they were breathing. Tansden tried to reason with the
image, telling it they had come in peace, but needed more information on her
killers. Again the elf screamed out, and the pain was even more
intense than before. Seaweed sprung up from the marble and twisted around
the elves. Urlkathoon, in the form of a water elemental, swam around the
fronds easily.
Urlkathoon
begged the image of Tesseril, the whale's former master, to calm down.
Vaelanth also helped with the pleading. The sea elf calmed down
slightly. Gyorn stepped up, and, with the help of the others, began to ask
the sea elf questions, trying not to upset the spirit further. Gyorn was
able to extend the hand of friendship to the sea elf, and she accepted it.
Friendly now,
the sea elf provide descriptions of the four assassins that killed her.
One of the descriptions matched Amyrella, the clerk in the Hall of Records,
perfectly. Vaelanth and Tansden again voiced their opinion that they
should have been allowed to slay her earlier. The sea elf also said that
each of the assassins bathed in the Shadar Pool, which allows mortals to
transcend their own limitations and the power to achieve their truest
potential. The sea elf invited the elves to bathe in the Shadar Pool,
on the condition that they hunted down and killed the assassins. Each
agreed.
Neria stepped
first into the prismatic sphere. She felt power pour into her, and she
understood much that was hidden from her before. Much hate that burned
within her for the human race was quenched in the wisdom that she now
found. She was stronger. She could exceed herself, and spells that
she had been studying, but failing to grasp, were now child's play for her
now. Neria laughed.
Lord Thó'ef
bathed next in the lighted sphere. Within he found the answers he sought,
the answers that kept him from understanding Grimhelm's decision to leave the
world, taking most of the Guardians with him. He understood what happened
to Gunnthryd. He understood himself, and the bitterness he felt left him.
Vaelanth Sildain
learned secrets of ancient
Sel'luevinis masters that had been lost since the elves of the time of
Grindill's betrayal died. Stories of feats and abilities each thought were
mere fables, embellishments that were impossible, he realized now were truth,
and quite possible... and he would be able to do them. He would exceed all
other masters of
Sel'luevinis in ways that could barely be believed.
Tansden was
put in touch with the gods, and understood the nature of divinity in a way he
never had before, and understanding that would him to become one of the most
powerful servants of a god ever to walk on Inzeladun since the time of
Grindill's betrayal, when the Shadar Pool had been hidden.
Gyorn was
given a vaster understanding of the world and the place of magic within it, a
greater gift to communicate with nature and to be one with it. He
understood the wisdom and the instructions of such great druids as Anduin.
He understood the place of man and elf, and understood more fully the nature of
Faerie, the realm of the elves.
In the city
of Redshore, Ordiss Ool helped Amyrella down from the rafters where the elves
had left her. Ordiss was not pleased. Leaving Alisander right now
was not convenient for him.
"Who did
this?" Ordiss hissed at her once she was down. He felt like breaking
her neck right then and there and eating her heart.
"She
said her name was Neria. I did not recognize the others. The ones
that were with her earlier were not here."
"Others? Ones with her earlier?"
"A
chimpanzee, a half-elf, and a sprite of some sort that thought he was being
clever by being invisible."
"A
chimpanzee?" Ordiss Ool was confused. "Where are they?"
"I don't
know."
"Find
out!" Ordiss reviewed the information again. Neria. That
was not good. She was powerful and determined, and not likely to be
sidetracked. If she found out who he was and that he was involved, that
would lead her straight to Alisander. Lord Nadam was nearly
broken. He had taken blood last week, and had sequestered himself
away. He didn't want that plan disturbed. And what if she found out
about Lord Xathurst and the Forbidden Castle? What if they knew of his
plan to steal Grindill's power? Grindill was dead, but his power still
existed. He couldn't stay.
"Join your brother at the Coral Citadel. Do not return to
Redshore. Leave six assassins here. Have Garrison Scrimm use the
assassins to kill Neria and whoever is with her."
Afterwards,
Urlkathoon swam the elves back to Redshore. He had promised to stay and
continue to guard the Shadar Pool. Neria promised to lead the Elves
to destroy the assassins. The journey again took four days, but it somehow
seemed more comfortable than the ride down was.
The town was
celebrating when they arrived. Urlkathoon released the elves without
breaking the surface of the water, for he did not want the people of Redshore to
know that the whale that was attacking them still lived, nor did he want them to
panic. A fisherman pulled the elves out of the water. Nervously, he
rowed them to shore, unsure if the wet elves were friends or enemies.
Neria and the
elves sought out Eric Lorchester, the ruler of Redshore. Eric was shocked
to see them. He had presumed that Roland had fixed their problem.
But these elves? He went up to them.
"We have
a problem," said Vaelanth.
"Everything is fine!" exclaimed Eric.
"You
have an assassin cabal here. Your clerk from the Hall of Records is one of
them."
Eric couldn't
believe what he was hearing. Amyrella? "She hasn't been seen since
the elemental attack on the Hall of Records. I presumed she and her
brother fled."
"It is
likely they fled," said Vaelanth, "but not because of an elemental
attack. If they fled, it is because they knew we found out about
them."
They walked
through the streets of Redshore, trying to convince Erik that assassins did
indeed walk among them. Citizens passing by wondered why Eric was with
elves, and many became afraid.
"Are
there any other people who have mysteriously vanished in the last eight
days?" asked Neria.
"Garrison Scrimm has been absent," said Erik.
"Who is
that?" asked Vaelanth.
"He runs
the apothecary, selling herbs and remedies. He likes to dress in blues and
blacks, and is an older man. He is one of the old timers of Redshore, and
although many don't get along with him, he can be cranky, you know, he is well
respected."
"He fits
one of the descriptions," said Gyorn. The other elves nodded.
"Where
is his place of business?" asked Vaelanth.
The five
elves found Scrimm's Remedies. It was a modest building on the edge of
Highmarket. Like many of the other buildings, it was boarded up
tightly. Vaelanth tore down the boards over the doors and entered into the
tower on the south end. It was a small round chamber. Steps to the
north led up to another door. Entering that door, the elves found
themselves in the apothecary shop. Most of the wares were fairly
innocuous. They moved silently past the counter into the back rooms where
Scrimm lived.
Neria opened
the door to the living room. A fireplace was in one corner. Boarded
up windows sent slatted beams of light across the room. A table with four
chairs dominated the room. She opened a door in the corner, walking into a
short corridor. She opened up a door to some sort of storage room and
kitchen combination. Apparently he mixed a lot of his 'remedies' in
here. The next room was his bedroom. Dominant in the room, besides
the bed, was a large coral ring. He was in on it, then, thought Neria.
While Neria
and Lord Thó'ef investigated the bedroom, Gyorn, Vaelanth, and Tansden were
checking out the storage room. They noted several unique poisons.
While they looked around, they heard sounds. Suddenly they were under
attack by assassins in hiding, led by Garrison Scrimm himself.
Garrison
Scrimm was an older human male with shoulder-length gray hair. He was
lanky and spry, and his gray eyes sparkled with something sinister.
Dressed in black and wearing a mithral breastplate, he attacked Neria with his rapier
of wounding. Three other assassins were with him, attacking the other
elves.
Lord Thó'ef
shot arrows as fast as he could. One assassin sailed back against the wall,
nailed there by five arrows shot straight through his face. Gyorn and
Tansden battled one together, the druid and the monk pushing the assassin into
the bedroom with Neria and Lord Thó'ef. Vaelanth rushed an assassin like
a wild tiger, filled with the killer instinct, inflamed with the desire to
stretch this evil human at his feet. Vaelanth twisted around the
assassin's sword and struck the assassin with a straight left to the face and
crashed the hilt of his sword under the heart with a force that even surprised
himself. The assassin staggered, whitened. He had moved full into
the blow of a real master and the sensation left him weakened and nauseated.
Neria lunged
toward Scrimm with a dancer's grace, the steel sword flicking out at Scrimm's
face, but Scrimm managed the parry with his light rapier, stepping back.
Neria's katana rang like a bell as it met Scrimm's light blade. Steel
music clashed in the apothecary as the comabatants circled, advanced, retreated,
cut, parried and thrust. Garrison Scrimm found that his quick blade could
never quite dodge past Neria's guard. Her moves were deceptively slow, for
her technique was one of misdirection and subtlety. She guided Scrimm to
anticipate a different attack entirely, thus overbalancing him and making him
seem clumsy, despite his own catlike reflexes. In Neria's hand, the heavy
katana danced as lightly as a wand. Scrimm sweated, knowing that if blade
ever met blade with full impact, his rapier, magic though it was, would likely
be shattered into flying fragments. Neria, however, was not trying to
bring the full weight of her katana to bear. The bladesingers did not
believe in smashing blows or strong, crushing defense. Instead, Neria wove
a glittering wall of flying steel, a wall Scrimm's rapier could not
penetrate.
Realizing he
was facing a far superior fighter, Scrimm disengaged and threw one of his
subordinate assassins into Neria's path. She slew the hapless assassin in
a second. Scrimm tried escape, and he cast harm, touching Neria as
she skewered the assassin. Neria faltered, in agony. Gyorn and
Tansden was in there in a second. Tansden engaged Scrimm, forcing him back
as Gyorn summoned healing magic, restoring to Neria that which Scrimm had
taken. Neria pushed back into the battle with Scrimm and took off his
head.
Vaelanth's
sword play was no less masterful than Neria's. The assassin he faced was
hard pressed to keep himself alive. Vaelanth was toying with the assassin,
occasionally cutting the man just to irritate and disconcert him. The
ringing play of shimmering steel was a driving rhythm that was shaking the
assassin's usual cool nerves. He knew he was outmatched by this elf, an elf that
was practicing swordplay and martial techniques before the human was even
born. Vaelanth soon tired of the game, and, with a simple wrist movement
that the assassin could not anticipate, cut the man's throat from ear to
ear. Gurgling, the man fell to the floor.
The elves
looked at the coral ring. On four of their shoulders were strapped pieces
of skin. They had cut off the tattoos of the assassins, feeling sure the
tattoos would allow the correct operation of the coral rings. Although
Lord Thó'ef had volunteered to remain behind to make sure no one came through
behind the others, Tansden wanted to be the one remaining behind.
Vaelanth went
first, touching the center of the large ring and vanishing; he was followed by
Neria, Gyorn, and then Lord Thó'ef. After a brief instant of
disorientation, their vision cleared and they saw they were somewhere
else. The coral ring had transported them to a small sandy beach
overlooking a wave tossed lake. The air was pleasantly warm, and there was
not a cloud in the sky. The sand was black, as were the numerous spires of
coral jutting out of the sand around the lake's waters to heights of over fifty
feet. Yet they could see no land beyond the far side of the ring of black
coral spires. They were standing on a tiny coral atoll in the middle of
the ocean. They were standing on the lip of an extinct, submarine volcano,
and the "lake" was the crater.
"Either we are trapped or there is a way into the volcano and the assassins
live in the volcano," said Vaelanth.
"I can
go down and look," said Gyorn.
"That is
a good plan," said Vaelanth. "Be careful. If you see
anything even remotely dangerous, come back." Everyone nodded, and
the druid dove into the water, wild shaping into a shark.
Tansden sat
down on the bed in Scrimm's room. It wasn't long before his Elven hearing
picked up the sound of a human trying to walk quietly. He smiled. He
stood up and put his back to a wall. The assassins attacked, becoming
visible, and lunging forward with their deadly rapiers. A master of
Sel'luevinis these assassins had never faced before. Well, thought
Tansden, everyone should be exposed to
Sel'luevinis in their lifetime, even if it was at the end. With a
powerful circle kick, he broke an assassin's neck. They should be honored
to be exposed to so much of
Sel'luevinis so early in the lesson.
He dodged
around another deadly blow, and broke the man's neck. Another lesson
learned, thought Tansden. He stunned the third assassin, and knocked him
unconscious with a couple of simple pressure points. Tansden stripped him
naked, then tied him up.
When the
assassin woke, he escaped from the ropes. The nude assassin took off
running. Tansden laughed, and let the man have a good head start. No
reason not to let the human think he wasn't doing well. Good for the
self-esteem, he thought. He didn't want to kill a man who was feeling low
about himself. However he couldn't let the human escape, either.
After a
suitable interval, Tansden took off running. Tansden ran quickly and
lightly. The human, although light footed for a man, was an anvil-footed
clod compared to the elf. He caught the man in the middle of the street
and shoved him to the ground. He pummeled the man over and over. He
turned the naked human over. "Where does that coral ring take
people?"
The man
coughed up blood and phlegm. "To the Coral Citadel."
People on the
streets of Redshore watched in alarm. When Tansden looked up, they went
their own way, clearing that street. Tansden killed the human, and pulled
out a knife, and skinned off his tattoo.
Gyorn quickly
came back to the surface. Whatever was down there, he didn't want to mess
with them. Below the level that sunlight penetrated the water, the shaft
walls were infested with the burrows of aquatic undead sea monsters. When
he appeared at the surface, Tansden appeared on the coral atoll. Vaelanth
asked Tansden what happened in Redshore. Tansden told him about the three
assassins as Lord Thó'ef helped the druid out of the water. Gyorn told
them about the undead monsters, which he felt were some sort of shade.
"Well,
there has to be a way in," said Neria.
"I have
another idea," said Gyorn. "I can pass through the coral, and
possibly travel through it to their lair. Once there, maybe I can find the
door or whatever they use to get down there."
"Do
it," said Neria.
Gyorn
summoned up nature's power and stepped into the living coral.
Gyorn popped
out of the living coral in an empty room. Despite its lack of contents, it
was quite impressive. The walls were of pitch black coral and seemed to
shimmer with energy; flickering continual flames burned in the corners of the
room, and the floor was covered with a thick, deep-purple carpet.
Instantly,
Aaron Kientai and his sister, Amyrella, knew someone had entered the
Citadel. An alarm spell warded the entrance room. Hopefully
it was Garrison Scrimm returning with Neria's head. They walked into the
main hall to see who would emerge. They were prepared for the worst,
however. It might just be Neria with Garrison's head.
Aaron Kientai
was not a nice looking sort; his countenance was filthy, his manner coarse, and
his language offensive. His brown hair was never combed, and he had a
scruffy, patchy beard. His hands were covered with cars from fish bites
and accidents at the shipbuilding yard. Still, he had a surprising
grace. In contrast to her brother, Amyrella was quite beautiful, with
long, curly black hair worn loose to her mid-back. She had brilliant green
eyes, and unblemished skin. Her fingers seemed to be stained with inks,
from her occupation as bookkeeper, but they were actually blackened scars gained
from handling poisons. She moved with incredible grace, and was always
outwardly cheerful and smiling. The true depths of her sadism and cruelty
were kept well hidden, but knew no bounds.
Amyrella and
Aaron were Ordiss Ool's favorites, and he granted them this Coral Citadel as
their base. Aaron prepared to spider climb invisibly above the main
door. Amyrella walked toward the southern trestle table to hide
invisibly. They would concentrate the death attacks taught to them by
Ordiss Ool on whoever walked through the door. Amyrella prepared her
potion of fly and haste to be drank.
The druid Gyorn,
accorded a master of the Thousand Faces, shifted
his face and clothing to resemble one of the assassins they fought, taking on
the aspect of evil. He walked through the door he saw into the main hall.
Seeing the intruder was one of their own, Aaron and Amyrella became visible and
approached Gyorn.
"Why are
you here?" asked Aaron. "Did Garrison send you down?"
"Yes," said Gyorn, hiding his nervousness.
"Is
Neria and the elves dead?"
"Yes," said Gyorn. "We killed them, but there were some
difficulties. Garrison will be down in a minute or two."
Gyorn saw that this hall was softly lit by a few continual flames placed
on a dozen crystal chandeliers dangling from the ceiling fifty feet above.
The dim light cloaked much of the room in deep shadow. Five huge banquet
tables stood in the room, and on the opposite side of the room, Gyorn could see
one corner dominated by several musical instruments. The other corner held
an enormous iron birdcage. Several doors led out of the room.
"I am going to my quarters to rest," said Gyorn. Aaron and
Amyrella watched the druid open the door to the temple to Scrimm's hideous demon
god.
Gyorn felt
resistance to his entering, but he ignored the feeling. Probably some sort
of defense spell, he thought. Gyorn shut the iron doors behind him.
Iron pews filled the room, and a blood red carpet wound between the pews to a
large dais on the opposite end. A bloodstained altar stone sat atop the
dais before a tall lectern. Twin pools of boiling blood bubbled to the
north and south of the altar, each fed by a narrow effluvium that sprang from a
stone tube cut into the altar's base. A huge, blood red statue of a
leering humanoid loomed over the lectern, its arms and legs impossibly long, and
its face agape with a mouth full of needle-like teeth. The statue gripped
a rapier in each hand. Instantly Gyorn noted the inhabitants of the
room. He was able to see invisible objects, and he saw four powerful
demons, glabrezu, standing in alcoves behind the altar and on either side of the
grim statue. He did not let them know he saw them.
The glabrezu
were tasked to guard the altar from defilement. Since the newcomer was one
of the assassins, they didn't attack. One of them, however, noticed that
the assassin could see them. It climbed down from the alcove it was
squatting in and walked up to Gyorn. It sniffed him. Gyorn allowed
the approach, not wanting to fight four demons on his own and possibly alerting
Aaron and Amyrella that he was not one of their order. Fighting four
demons and two powerful assassins did not seem like a wise plan.
The demon
quickly scanned Gyorn's surface thoughts, then spoke, a hideous sound that sent
shivers down Gyorn. "You can see us," it said. "I would
make a bargain with you."
"What
sort of bargain?" whispered Gyorn, a bit shaken.
"Sacrifice someone on the altar and reopen the Gate so that we," he
indicated the other three invisible glabrezu, "may return home and end this
ridiculous guard duty."
"And the
bargain? What do I get for my troubles?"
The glabrezu
scanned Gyorn's mind again. "We can teleport you and your friends
down here."
"I will
consider it, but leave me for now so I can decide on the matter without feeling
coerced."
"Very
well," said the glabrezu, and he returned to his place in the
alcoves. Gyorn went through a door on the northern wall and walked into
some sort of conference room. A door in this room led to a sparsely
furnished bedroom. It contained a bed and an unholy font. A book on
the bed proved to belong to Garrison Scrimm. This must be his bedroom,
thought Gyorn.
Ordiss Ool
walked into the main hall of the Coral Citadel. Aaron and Amyrella were
staring at the iron doors to Scrimm's temple, wondering why the assassin had
entered in there. "What are you staring at?" hissed Ordiss Ool.
"Nothing," said Aaron, irritated. He did not want Ordiss Ool
here. He respected their leader, but he had loftier goals than the slimy
assassin appeared to have. Aaron, Amyrella, and Scrimm were tired of the
quiet assassinations done for amazing amounts of money for the world's
elite. They planned to systematically assassinate every leader in the
world and replace them in secret with puppet leaders loyal to the Shadow Shoal,
leaders loyal to Aaron, Amyrella, and Scrimm. They intended to take over
the organization from Ordiss Ool. Aaron was worried his teacher would
uncover their plot; Ordiss Ool was no fool. It was Ordiss that organized
the attack on the Shadar Pool, and gave them access to the magical
artifact. Aaron wondered where Ordiss Ool found out about the artifact.
Ordiss Ool,
however, had his own plans. The powerful assassin worked for two entities
that were both former mortals turned demigod. If they could do it,
so could he, he reasoned. He hoped to create a network of assassins so
vast that he could use their resources to make a bid for divine power.
Grindill was dead. But the demigod's power still lingered. He would
take that. He also planned to make the ultimate assassination. He
would assassinate a demigod and take his immortal power as well.
Ordiss Ool's
eyes narrowed, looking the brother and sister over. They were two of his
most trusted assassins, but that did not mean Ordiss Ool particularly trusted
them. He needed to indoctrinate more in his order, to bring them to the Shadar
Pool and bathe them within.
"Very
well," hissed Ordiss Ool. "I will leave you then. Matters
in Alisander are coming to a head, then I must travel to Indor. If Neria
and her allies are taken care of when I return, you will be
rewarded." Ordiss Ool did not see a need to threaten them with a
punishment if they did not take care of Neria. If they failed, they would
probably be killed by that vile elf. The assassin leader teleported
away. Aaron and Amyrella visibly relaxed. However, that
assassin that went into the temple after announcing that he needed rest
perplexed them.
They
apparently were of one mind on the subject. Both went forward and pulled
open the iron doors to the dark temple. No one was within. They
walked into the temple. Where did that assassin go? Surely Scrimm
had not entrusted the goon with the knowledge of the secret doors in here.
Their eyes drifted to the door on the the northern wall, the door that led to
Scrimm's conference room and bedroom. They headed for that door.
Inside Scrimm's bedroom, Gyorn heard the door open to the temple. Gyorn
turned invisible and hid. He watched Aaron and Amyrella search the
rooms, then leave. He listened for the temple doors to close before he
exhaled. He needed to get out of here.
Amyrella and
Aaron were perplexed. Something strange was going on. Neither
believed in ghosts, so they sought a more rational solution. Suddenly the
doors from the temple opened and the assassin walked into the main hall.
"Wait!" said Aaron. "Where were you?"
"I was
fetching something for Scrimm," said Gyorn.
"What?" asked Amyrella.
"I have
to get back. Talk to him about it."
"Where
were you?" demanded Aaron again.
Gyorn took
off running for the entry room. He need to get to the living coral and use
it to transport back to the surface. He rolled under Aaron's charge and
went through the doors, slamming them shut behind him. He quickly cast his
spell and dove into the coral, reappearing on the surface.
"They're
coming!" he yelled to the other elves. "Be ready!"
Instantly, Neria had her katana out, and Lord Thó'ef drew his bow, turning to
the left and right. Vaelanth drew his longsword, and Tansden likewise
readied himself. In the next instant, Aaron and Amyrella were among
them. They were only two, and the elves were five, but Aaron and Amyrella
were not particularly concerned. Ordiss Ool's training often had the
trainees outnumbered. Amyrella's rapiers were out like lightning, flashing
toward Neria. With a dance-like maneuver, Neria parried and
reposted. Vaelanth joined the battle, and Amyrella was pressed back,
fighting two veteran warriors. Lord Thó'ef battled Aaron while Gyorn and
Tansden cast spells to help out their allies. Lord Thó'ef fired his
arrows as Aaron shot back with his crossbow.
Amyrella soon
was holding her own against Neria and Vaelanth. Amyrella's sword-points
moved as though questing like snakes. Neria and Vaelanth were a little
uneasy and had to leap back often, for her swords were wicked fast and she was
able to draw blood from both of her Elven opponents. One rapier clanged
against Neria's katana, then the other sprang toward Vaelanth's neck in a
flash. The elf almost fell as he recoiled, and, even so, blood gushed from
a new slash in his neck. Amyrella ignored Neria's practiced feints
and deceptive moves, seemingly able to anticipate her moves with unnerving
accuracy. Neria and Vaelanth were forced to retreat from the lone
girl. Her sword point hissed past Neria's eyes, less than an inch away,
then nicked her left ear.
Aaron
toppled, his body a pin-cushion of arrows. Amyrella felt emotion rise up
in her at her brother's fall, emotions that caused her to falter.
Instantly Vaelanth and Neria sensed the weakness and were upon her. She
was now on the defensive, retreating from the onslaught brought on by the pair
of elves. Vaelanth knocked aside her guard and Neria's katana was
instantly buried in Amyrella's right eye, passing through her skull, bringing to
an end the Assassin's Guild of Redshore.
Each character received 16,300 experience points for this adventure.
Urlkathoon, Awakened Cachalot Whale, Druid 16: CR 23; Gargantuan Animal (aquatic) (62 feet long);
HD 30d8+270; hp 405; Initiative: +1; Spd swim 40 ft; AC 16 (flatfooted 15, touch
7); Attack +29 melee (4d6+14 bite), +24 melee (1d8+7 tail slap); Face/Reach 20
ft x 40 ft/ 10 ft; SA spells, wild shape 5/day, wild shape (tiny,
large, huge), wild shape (elemental) 1/day, SQ blindsight, nature
sense, woodland stride, trackless step, resist nature's lure, venom immunity,
timeless body; AL CN; SV Fort +17, Ref +16, Will +24; Str 38, Dex 13, Con 28,
Int 14, Wis 30, Cha 12
Skills: Animal Empathy +16, Concentration +28, Intuit Direction
+18, Knowledge (nature) +18, Listen +19, Spellcraft +25, Spot +20, Wilderness
Lore +29
Feats: Cleave, Natural Spell, Power Attack, Quicken Spell
Epic Feats:
Improved Elemental Wild Shape, Gargantuan Wild Shape
Equipment: Druid's
satchel, orb of storms, rod of elemental mastery, crystal ball with telepathy,
pearl of power (8th level spell), pearl of power (4th level spell), figurine of
wondrous power (ivory goats). He keeps his magic items stowed in his
druid's satchel until they are needed. Note that he cannot manipulate or
use most of his items while in his natural form.
Animal
Companions: Urlkathoon has used animal friendship to gain the companionship
of a pair of cachalot whales and a giant octopus. All three are currently
patrolling the shipping lanes near Redshore and attacking any ships they
encounter. They were not encountered by the party in this adventure.
Dominated
Elemental: Urlkathoon had dominated an elder air elemental with his rod of
elemental mastery.
Amyrella, Female Human, Rogue 2/ Ranger 5/
Fighter 4/ Assassin 11: CR 22; Medium size humanoid (5'3"); HD 9d10+13d6+88;
hp 178; Initiative: +15; Spd 40 ft; AC 32 (flatfooted 21, touch 27); Attack +32/+27/+22/+17
melee (1d6+5/ crit 12-20 +3 keen bane vs. humans rapier) and
+32/+27/+22/+17 melee (1d6+5/crit 15-20, +3 rapier); SA spells, favored enemy
(humans +2, animals +1), sneak attack +7d6, death attack (DC 24); SQ evasion,
poison use, +5 to saves versus poison, uncanny dodge (dex bonus to AC, can't be
flanked, +1 vs. traps); AL NE; SV Fort +20, Ref +28, Will +12; Str 15, Dex 33,
Con 18, Int 18, Wis 10, Cha 24
Skills: Bluff +15, Climb +16, Diplomacy +17, Disguise +24,
Innuendo +8, Jump +26, Forgery +16, Gather Information +17, Listen +14, Move
Silently +29, Search +8, Profession (bookkeeper) +10, Spot +12, Swim +14, Use
Magic Device +27
Feats: Greater two weapon fighting, Iron Will, Improved Critical
(rapier), Improved Initiative, Improved Two Weapon Fighting, Power Attack,
Track, Weapon Finesse (rapier), Weapon Focus (rapier), Weapon Specialization
(rapier)
Epic Feats:
Perfect two weapon fighting
Equipment: +3
keen bane versus human rapier, +3 rapier, ring of protection +5, ring of
chameleon power, ring of charisma +4 (does not take up a ring slot), wand of
expeditious retreat (22 charges), wand of stoneskin (14 charges), wand of cure
critical wounds (43 charges), wand of magic missiles (9th level, 27 charisma),
bracers of armor +5, gloves of Dexterity +6, amulet of health +4, boots of
striding and springing, cloak of resistance +3, Heward's handy haversack, 3
potions of fly, 3 potions of bull's strength, 4 potions of haste, shadow
shoal tattoo, 10 doses giant wasp poison, 4 doses of purple worm poison, 10
doses dark reaver powder, 10 doses blue whinnis poison, master key to all doors
in the lower level of the Coral Citadel.
The Razing of Redshore Part I | Current Adventures in Inzeladun | Chronology of the Write Ups | Inzeladun Updates