Story HourPost your ongoing tales from your campaigns, and read those from others for inspiration. Lots of other RPG boards post "Story Hours", but this is where it started!
On the other side of the bridge, Dulvarna stabbed her sword down into the water where the sahuagin had stood and connected with its shoulder, drawing more blood into the pool where Enlishia and Litiraan now stood. Dulvarna retreated along the bridge toward the harpies while Enlishia drew back from the sahuagin as it began to rise again and levelled her bow. She loosed two arrows into the sahuagin’s head at close range as it broke the surface and the sea devil collapsed back into the water and died there.
A water bolt lanced out from the other sahuagin as it rose to the surface, striking Dulvarna in the side again and sending her spinning into the rope hand rails along the side of the bridge. She felt pain spreading from the area as she breathed in an wondered whether the creature had managed to break ribs with the bolt. Dulvarna looked to her left and saw Erlmoor wounded again by one of his foes as his own blood pooled around him. Raising her blade, Dulvarna started along the bridge toward the harpies, determined to end the battle before more of her companions suffered.
Litiraan raised his wand and hurled lightning towards the harpies but the bolt flew over their heads and struck the far wall of the chamber. From the other side of the bridge, Lavren looked up as he saw the blue, crackling energy fly forth and knew that his brother-in-law was right to target the harpies. As he raised his wand and realised that Telkya blocked his view of the sahuagin, he too, took aim at the harpies and let forth two bolts of purple, eldritch power. The harpies both ducked and these bolts flew over their heads as Litiraan’s lightning had done. They seared into the wall beyond the bird-creatures and Lavren cursed.
Telkya turned and frowned at her husband for cursing and then raised her amulet toward the sahuagin. She uttered a prayer to Corellon and called down a column of divine light that burned the nearest sea devil. The creature snarled and hissed as its skin burned and turned towards the elf maid as though it planned to come for her next. Fortunately, Erlmoor blocked its path and held his ground, keeping the sahuagin at bay.
With piercing screeches, both of the harpies leapt into the air and swept along the bridge to meet Dulvarna. Both lashed at the warrior woman with their clawed hands and while Dulvarna beneath under the claws of one, the other’s claws tore at her cheek and sent her staggering away from the terrible creatures. Summoning what remained of her strength, Dulvarna turned back toward her foes and slashed her blade across, drawing blood from the belly of one and from the arm of the other. They screeched again and leapt back beyond the reach of the terrible blade.
In the water beside the bridge, Erlmoor roared and sprayed acid on the sahuagin before him and the harpies up on the bridge. He lashed out with his blade and chanted a prayer as he did so, his sword glowing brightly as it struck the sahuagin in the side. The creature lurched to its right and staggered as more of its blood stained the water around it. Erlmoor roared again and as he did so an arrow drove into the flailing sahuagin’s shoulder. He looked up and saw that Enlishia had regained the bridge and now stood above him with her bow raised. She reached for another arrow and Erlmoor smiled.
The sahuagin behind the two others barked out another command and then swam forward with its trident in its right hand. It raised the left hand as it reached the south wall of the chamber and with a series of click-like words, it hurled a blast of water at Lavren. The bolt of water struck the elf hard in the left shoulder and sent him staggering back through the water. He looked at his enemy and saw that the sahuagin was gesturing to the other sea devils and pointing at him with its trident. Realising that he had become the target that the sahuagin were seeking, Lavren looked around for the best way to retreat from his foes.
“We have to go,” he said to Telkya as a silver bolt from Litiraan’s wand struck one of the harpies on the bridge.
Telkya looked back at her husband and nodded so he turned away and clambered back onto the stone balcony. Turning, he raised his wand and cursed the nearest sahuagin, sending a crackling bolt of black energy into the water next to it. Telkya climbed from the water next to him and moved onto the bridge next to Enlishia. From there, she raised her amulet and saw that the sahuagin had wounded Erlmoor again but were now trying to get around the dragonborn to reach Lavren. She spoke the words of a prayer in her native tongue and loosed a bolt of golden light at the nearest sahuagin. The divine fire hissed into the water next to the creature and it rushed on, towards the stone platform where Lavren stood.
A harpy claw tore at Dulvarna’s shoulder but she paid the scratch no mind as she ducked under the claws of the other harpy. She slashed out low with her sword but the harpy beat its wings and rose two feet into the air to avoid the blow. It screeched again and Dulvarna hissed her hatred at the horrible creatures.
In the water next to the bridge, Erlmoor realised that the sahuagin were now trying to reach Lavren and moved in front of them again, lashing out with his blade at the wounded sahuagin. The enchanted sword glowed again as it struck home and this time, it clove through the creature’s neck and beheaded it. The sea devil collapsed into the water in front of its leader. Erlmoor turned on the other sahuagin and as he did, two more arrows flew from the bridge and drove into the creature’s arm. It hissed its annoyance and raised its trident to strike at the dragonborn. The sea devil stabbed at Erlmoor and he parried clumsily with his blade, hampered by the water but still he knocked the thrust aside.
The other remaining sahuagin swam along the south wall of the chamber and then rose to lash out with its left hand and strike the elf with another fierce jet of water that sent him reeling back from the edge of the stone platform. Litiraan crossed the platform to come to the warlock’s aid, raising his wand and unleashing a silver bolt toward the creature in the water. The bolt struck the water next to the creature and it hissed its annoyance at both elves. Lavren raised his own wand and cursed at the sea devil, hurling a black, crackling bolt at his enemy. The blast flashed past the sahuagin, missing it by a hands-breadth and struck the water with a hiss behind it. On the bridge beside her husband and her brother, Telkya raised her amulet and hurled a golden bolt of fire at the sahuagin and this time, the bolt struck home. The sea devil was wounded in its left shoulder and driven back a step but it hissed its defiance again and raised its hand to attack Lavren again.
One of the harpies lashed out at Dulvarna’s face and tore open her other cheek but as the other came forward, the warrior woman ducked under its flailing claws. As she rose, she wove her blade before her and then stepped forward, thrusting it into the harpy’s hip and driving it away from her, back along the bridge. Both harpies screeched their anger and then came forward once more.
In the water, Erlmoor raised his voice in prayer and lashed out with his blade, bringing it down on the sahuagin’s shoulder in a mighty blow. The sword struck with a loud thunder clap and the sahuagin reeled away and fell into the water. Enlishia, with her bow raised and an arrow nocked on the bridge above, waited for the creature to surface. As it did, she let fly with her first arrow but it flew over the sea devil and drove into the water beyond it. She nocked another arrow and let fly and this time, the shaft drove into the top of the creature’s chest. The creature screeched in pain and lashed out at Erlmoor with its trident but it was weakened and staggering. Erlmoor moved forward to finish it.
Another blast of water struck Lavren, hurled by the remaining sahuagin and almost at once, Litiraan answered with a silver bolt of his own. Again the missile flew wide and seared into the water next to the creature. Lavren lashed out with his own wand and sent a black bolt hissing into the water close to where Litiraan’s had struck. Again it was Telkya who found the mark, a golden bolt of flame searing into the sahuagin’s leg and driving it back a step. The creature snarled at the elf maid and then raised its hand to loose yet another blast of water.
Dulvarna leapt back as the harpies came forward flailing at her with their claws. She rushed back at her enemies and lashed out with her blade, scoring a wound along the belly of one of the harpies and driving both back along the bridge. She looked back to see how her companions fared and as she did, she saw Erlmoor plunge his blade into the throat of the sahuagin before him and drop it into the bloody water with its companion. The dragonborn waded to the bridge and clambered up onto the swaying structure beside Dulvarna. They exchanged smiles and then turned to bring death to their enemies.
Enlishia saw the sahuagin fall to Erlmoor’s blade and turned her bow toward the other creature a heartbeat later. She began firing arrows quickly then, two striking the water close to the creature but two more driving into the creature’s chest and driving it back a few steps. The sea devil lashed out with its left hand and hurled another blast of water into Lavren’s chest that threw him painfully back into the stout post that held up the bridge. Beside him, Litiraan raised his wand and hurled a silver bolt more accurately this time, the magical fire driving into the sahuagin’s hip. Lavren recovered and rejoined his brother-in-law on the edge of the stone platform, raising his wand and beginning a curse as he did so. As he loosed the eldritch blast he knew that his aim was awry and again, the arcane fire hissed into the water beside the sahuagin. To his right, Telkya raised her amulet and loosed golden fire but this too struck the water and the sahuagin recovered to come forward at the companions.
The harpies came fiercely at Dulvarna and lashed out with their claws, giving the warrior woman little chance to defend herself. They tore at her face and arms and drove her back along the bridge until she finally lashed out with a mighty swing of her blade. The sword clove into the ribs of one of the harpies and cut through both its lungs before stopping. The harpy gasped and then toppled over backwards, all but cut in half. The other creature screeched at its slain companion and Erlmoor came forward. The dragonborn’s blade sang out and slashed a wound in the harpy’s left leg that drew another screech from the creature. It looked up at its enemies as they came forward and knew that it had little chance to save itself.
Enlishia loosed two arrows into the water close to the last sahuagin but it was not enough to stop it hurling another blast of water at Lavren. Again the elf was thrown back into the bridge post and this time he cried out as something sharp drove into the top of his back. He staggered and both Litiraan and Telkya looked at him with concern before turning their attention back to the sea devil. A silver bolt from Litiraan’s wand seared into the water next to the creature as Lavren tried to recover from the hurts he had suffered. A golden bolt from Telkya’s amulet followed but still the sahuagin stood, defiantly in the water and raised its hand again.
The remaining harpy leapt at Dulvarna before either she or Erlmoor could react. Its claws reached her throat despite her efforts to fend the creature off and once they had reached there, they tore and ripped until blood was pouring down the front of Dulvarna’s armour. She stepped back and staggered as dizziness assailed her and then blackness overwhelmed her and she fell back onto the bridge. Erlmoor glanced down at Dulvarna and uttered a prayer while reaching down with his right hand. Divine light bathed his hand and reached out to Dulvarna, closing the terrible wounds in her throat. As her eyes opened, the dragonborn held forth his blade and rushed at the harpy. His blade sang out and the harpy fell back with a wound on its left arm. It screeched and hissed at the dragonborn as he came on at his enemy, a vision of vengeful wrath.
Enlishia raised her bow and fired again at the sahuagin only for the first arrow to drive into the water next to the creature. The second found its mark though, piercing the sea devil’s right shoulder and forcing it back. It hurled another blast of water into Lavren and flung him back but with that, it expended the last of its strength and staggered as it tried to come toward the stone platform. Litiraan raised his wand and loosed an unerring silver bolt this time that seared into the creature’s face and blasted out of the back of its head. The sahuagin fell into the red water to lie with its companions.
Lavren nodded his thanks to Litiraan and crossed to the north side of the stone platform from where he could attack the remaining harpy. He raised his wand and uttered a curse, hurling black energy at the creature. The bolt flew straight and seared into the harpy’s side, throwing it back along the bridge. Telkya came to her husband’s side and raised her amulet, loosing a bolt of gold fire that flew past the harpy to strike the wooden platform beyond it. The harpy screeched and leapt at Erlmoor, clawing at his arms as he tried to fend it off. He roared and lashed out with his blade, driving the creature away and as he did so, Dulvarna rose beside him. She lashed out with her blade and clove a deep wound in the harpy’s side. The creature staggered and as it did, Erlmoor stepped forward and thrust his blade into its chest. The sword point found the creature’s heart and with a gasp, the harpy fell back to lie beside its companion.
“You suffered badly in that battle and yet you stood firm,” said Vyrellis as Lavren examined the orb in a corner of the wooden platform on which the companions had uncomfortably spent the night. “Truly you are the hero I have been seeking to save me.”
Lavren looked up to see Telkya watching him from the far side of the platform where she tended to the wounds of the others and ensured that each was ready to go on. They had decided to head north from this chamber and Vyrellis had offered no contradictory advice.
“My life force is scattered throughout the pyramid,” Vyrellis went on. “My life force was splintered by the pyramid when Draxius slew me and you must find the three gemstones that contain it. If they are reunited I will have rest at least or perhaps life will return to me.”
“And do you where these gemstones are?” Lavren asked although he suspected that he knew the answer.
“I do not,” Vyrellis answered. “They are scattered in the pyramid and my memory of this place has faded in the centuries that have passed since I came here.”
“Then we go on,” Lavren replied. “And I will find the gemstones so that you can be free.”
The elf rose then as the others did and together they gathered their belongings before starting off across the northern bridge. The double doors at the end opened easily onto a staircase that climbed upwards into the darkness. Raising her blade, Dulvarna started to climb and Erlmoor walked behind her. At the top of the stairs the passage opened into a wide hall with three more passageways leading west, north and east from it.
“Ah, I remember this place,” said Vyrellis loudly enough for all to hear. “There are many enchanted items in the chamber to the east. Look to the door covered in frost and beyond are items that might prove useful to you but beware the icy guardians that await you.”
“How do we know that such items are still there,” said Litiraan. “How long have you been imprisoned here and how much has changed since you have been here?”
“I was imprisoned with Draxius for I was his queen,” Vyrellis answered. “He beheaded me in rage once we were imprisoned here, though I had borne him a son and ensured that his line would go on. I seek only his death which will free you from this place. I would not lead you astray.”
“And from you we have learned more of this place already than we could ever learn by wandering its halls for weeks,” said Enlishia. “We should try the eastern door.”
“I agree,” rumbled Erlmoor. “If a queen of Cormyr speaks from that orb then we must obey her.”
The others nodded their agreement and even Litiraan accepted the decision. Dulvarna and Erlmoor started forward toward the eastern doors with their blades raised. They were indeed limned with ice but they opened easily as Dulvarna pulled on the iron rings that served as handles. A blast of cold air exploded from within as the door was opened and beyond, the companions saw a room covered in ice. It coated the floor, the walls and the ceiling while four large ice pillars ran from floor to ceiling. To the south stood a metal door, covered in frost.
Enlishia started into the chamber, nocking an arrow to her bow as she did so. She moved to the centre of the chamber slowly as the chill of the room seemed to pierce her bones. As she reached the heart of the room, she raised her bow and looked around the room, seeking the enemies that Vyrellis had said were there.
“The pillars are starting to melt,” she called back to the others as she saw water began to drip onto the frost-covered floor.
The others followed the ranger into the chamber, Lavren moving towards the southern door with Telkya to examine it while the others moved into the centre of the room with weapons and wands raised to deal with any threat that might appear.
Suddenly, the melting pillars collapsed and from them staggered zombies limned with frost and icicles. Vapour rose from their half-frozen limbs as they stepped from the ice that had held them and slowly, they turned towards the nearest of the companions. Enlishia turned on the nearest one and loosed an arrow that bounced off the icy skin of the creature. She fired again and this arrow flew wide to clatter into the wall beyond the zombie.
Lavren turned away from the southern door and uttered a curse that loosed black, crackling energy into the nearest zombie. It lurched and staggered but did not fall. Another zombie lashed out at Erlmoor who ducked under the clumsy swing as Telkya turned away from the southern door. She raised her amulet and sent a bolt of golden light toward the zombie before Erlmoor but the bolt flew wide and struck the wall next to the creature. Erlmoor roared and lashed out at the zombie, slashing his blade into its leg and sending it lurching to its right but again the creature did not fall.
Dulvarna turned to face the zombie that had emerged next to her, already wounded by Lavren’s eldritch blast. She slashed Aecris across from right to left and clove the blade into the creature’s side. It lurched back the other way and then awkwardly righted itself. To her right, Dulvarna saw Litiraan vanish in a shower of light motes as a zombie emerged from the pillar next to him. He reappeared in the western doorway and turned to loose a silver bolt at the zombie before Dulvarna. The bolt seared into the creature’s back and sent it staggering toward Dulvarna. She raised her blade and then ducked as the undead creature flailed at her clumsily with its frost-covered arms.
Enlishia reached for another arrow as the two zombies that had been entombed in the northern pillars lurched towards her. She ducked as one swung at her but as she rose, a frozen limb smashed into the right side of her head and sent her reeling. The chill of the blow slowed her limbs almost at once and frost stiffened the right side of her face. She shouldered her bow quickly and reached over her back to draw her sword, lashing out at the nearest zombie as she did so. The zombie jerked back with surprising speed and evaded the wild swing leaving Enlishia to curse her ill luck. She looked back over her shoulder and as she did so, the southern doors opened. There stood a demon, upright on two insect-like legs. Its chitin-covered torso sprouted four segmented arms and a roach-like head swollen to monstrous size. It wielded a wicked trident with bloodstained tines. In that moment, Enlishia knew that battle was truly upon them.
Lavren heard the doors slam open behind him and turned to glance at the terrible creature standing behind Telkya. He cried out without forming any words and raised his wand to hurl a bolt of black eldritch lightning into the creature’s chest. The demon stepped back as the bolt struck it but it registered no pain. Telkya turned toward the demon and as she saw it, she leapt back into the chamber, raising her amulet as she did so. She hurled a bolt of golden light wildly into the stone of the doorframe and then ducked back as the creature seemed about to come forward. Erlmoor only glanced quickly at the demon before turning his attention back to the zombie he faced. He chanted a prayer and as his blade glowed brightly, he slashed it into the hip of the zombie and almost toppled it from the ruins of its pillar. He roared again and Dulvarna drew strength from him.
Dulvarna surged at the zombie she faced and spun around behind it while slashing her blade in low at the backs of the undead creature’s legs. She drew the sword across where the hamstrings of a living man would have been and the creature lurched forward, staggering again. From the doorway, Litiraan hurled another silver bolt that blasted into the zombie’s chest and the undead creature exploded into shards of frozen flesh that struck Dulvarna and tore chilling wounds in her arms.
The zombies that Enlishia faced surged forwards together, one clawing her side and the other lashing a chilling hand into her right shoulder. She staggered back as the cold and the wounds sapped her strength but still managed to raise her blade and lash out at the zombies before her. Her sword struck one of the undead creature’s legs and sent it lurching to its left and almost into the other zombie.
The demon came forward suddenly and stabbed out with its trident, driving the points into Lavren’s left leg, forcing him back out of the doorway. He cried out and retreated into the chamber, cursing the demon to loose another bolt of black energy into the terrible creature. It lurched against the doorframe but raised its trident again to strike at the elf.
Behind the warlock, Erlmoor ducked under another clumsy swing from the zombie before him. Telkya retreated towards the dragonborn and hurled another bolt of golden fire from her amulet that struck the stone of the doorframe. Erlmoor looked to his right as the demon advanced and then chanted another prayer that brought a glow of white light to his blade. He lashed out and struck the creature in the side with a huge thunder clap that knocked it to the floor amidst the ruin of the ice pillar that had entombed it. The zombie awkwardly tried to lift itself up to its feet as Erlmoor raised his blade to strike it down again.
Dulvarna moved sluggishly to aid Enlishia as the cold numbed her limbs but as she reached the zombies, she found strength returning to her. She weaved her blade before her and then darted forward to stab into the zombie’s hip. It lurched back a step and as it did, Litiraan hurled a silver bolt that seared past the zombie to strike the north wall of the chamber. The creature lashed out at Dulvarna but she ducked under the clumsy swing. The other zombie rushed at Enlishia and lashed out with its clawed hands. The ranger ducked under the blow aimed at her and finally managed to retreat from the zombies and sheath her sword. Sheathing her sword and unshouldering her bow, she nocked an arrow and loosed it quickly, the shaft flying wide of the creature to strike the wall behind the zombie. She drew forth another arrow and fired quickly again but the cold numbed her fingers and again the shaft flew wide. Enlishia cursed and the zombies came forward, snarling again.
The demon came forward out of the doorway and stabbed out with its trident, driving the points into Lavren’s left shoulder. The elf reeled back and retreated a few more steps until he was back to back with Enlishia. He raised his wand and hurled a bolt of black lightning at the demon but it flew wide and struck the doorframe next to the insect-like creature. The demon snarled and took another step forward.
Next to Lavren, Erlmoor ducked under another wild swing from the zombie he faced. Telkya turned towards the zombie and raised her amulet to loose a bolt of golden fire into the creature that sent it lurching to its right and staggering as though it were about to fall. Erlmoor saw his chance and surged forward, driving his blade into the zombie’s chest. It opened its mouth but no last breath came out and then it exploded into shards of icy flesh. Erlmoor raised his arms to protect himself from the flying flesh and then turned to face the demon as it emerged from the southern doorway.
Dulvarna rushed at the zombies before her, momentarily forgetting the chill in the room as battle fury surged through her. She lashed out with her blade, cleaving a deep wound across the left thigh of one zombie and then driving her blade on into the leg of the other. Both lurched back clumsily as Dulvarna pressed forward and as she did, Litiraan raised his wand and hurled a silver bolt of energy into the side of the nearest creature. It staggered again, bleeding now from several wounds but still it would not fall. Instead, it lashed out at Dulvarna who ducked under its flailing limb. The other zombie swung at her from her right but again she ducked and then raised her blade to keep the undead at bay.
Enlishia moved towards the doorway where Litiraan stood but found her cold-numbed legs would barely obey her. She lurched to where the wizard stood and then turned to raise her bow with an arrow nocked to the string. She loosed an arrow at the demon but it bounced aside, defeated by the creature’s chitinous armour. She nocked another arrow and fired again but this flew wide and clattered into the stone beside the demon. The creature snarled and lurched forward, stabbing out with its trident to drive the points into Lavren’s left shoulder. They drove in deeply and the elf cried out while the demon roared in apparent triumph. The creature jerked the trident toward him and pulled Lavren with it, the points of the terrible weapon lodged firmly in his flesh.
“Let me leave here and the elf lives,” the demon growled to the companions. “If you do not, he dies where he stands.”
“Never,” cried Lavren. “You will die here, not me!”
Despite the pain he felt, the elf drew forth his longsword and lashed out at the demon but again, the creature’s armour protected it and turned the blow aside. Desperately, he tried to wriggle free of the trident’s points but they were buried deep and all he succeeding in doing was sending more waves of pain down his left side. He cried out again and in the corner of his eye, he saw Telkya start forward.
“No!” he called out. “It would be senseless for both of us to fall here.”
Telkya hesitated and Lavren relaxed his struggle as numbness spread down his left arm, though whether it was from the cold or the wound he had suffered, he could not tell. Telkya raised her voice in prayer and held out her amulet. As she reached a crescendo, a column of divine dire descended from the ceiling of the chamber toward the demon. She realised almost at once that her aim was awry as the light descended behind the creature. Ice melted and then boiled with a hiss but the demon stood unharmed with her beloved husband a hostage on its trident.
Erlmoor stepped forward beside Lavren while chanting his own prayer. He swung out with his sword and as he did, the blade glowed brightly. The demon reacted quickly and jerked its trident to its right to parry the blow with the end of the shaft. Lavren cried out as he was jerked towards the demon again but he kept his sword raised, lest the creature snap at him with its terrible, insect-like jaws. It did not but instead cackled at his pain and the elf gritted his teeth, determined to die here with dignity if that was his fate.
Dulvarna looked over her shoulder and knew that she had little time to finish the zombies if she was to aid Lavren and the others. With a guttural roar, she rushed at them in a fury, her blade slashing left and right into both with single blows. The zombie that bled from several wounds was slashed across the chest and belly while the other was wounds in the side and the leg. Both staggered back but the first reached down to its belly as its putrid and frozen intestines began to burst from the wound. It looked down with its dull eyes and then fell over backwards. Dulvarna knew what was coming next and raised her arms to protect herself as a moment later, the creature exploded in a shower of frozen flesh. Litiraan raised his wand before the other zombie could recover and loosed a silver bolt into the creature. It lurched back and, sensing the urgency of Lavren’s plight, he raised his wand again and filled the northern part of the room with a wave of searing fire.
The zombie lurched and staggered another few steps away from Dulvarna and the warrior woman raised her blade and started forward to follow it. As she reached it, the undead creature lashed out backhand with its right hand, smashing Dulvarna across the face and sending her reeling away in turn. The horribly burned zombie hissed something unintelligible and then lurched back toward its enemy.
Enlishia nocked another arrow to her bow and raised it, taking careful aim at one of the joins in the demon’s chitinous armour. She let fly with the arrow and felt sure that she would hurt it this time but again, her arrow clattered off the armour and landed on the floor nearby. She cursed and retreated towards Dulvarna, looking back over her left shoulder at the battle between her friend and the last zombie. The demon roared then, drawing the ranger’s gaze back to its horrible, insect-like form.
“If you will not let me leave, then you will all die here,” the demon called out and then roared again.
As it roared a second time, a thick, noxious fume spewed forth from its mouth. Lavren coughed for a few moments and then reeled and swooned on the end of the demon’s trident while Erlmoor ducked low and covered his mouth with his arm. Telkya reeled back against the east wall of the chamber and did not see Lavren swoon. Only as she recovered did she see her beloved slide ingloriously from the points of the trident and fall heavily to the chamber floor, where he lay unmoving. Telkya cried out and took a step toward Lavren but then she realised that she could yet save her husband. Raising her amulet, she chanted a healing prayer to Corellon and divine light engulfed the fallen elf. His eyes flicked open and as the terrible wound in his shoulder closed, his hand left closed about his wand and the other grasped his sword.
Erlmoor glanced down at the elf and saw his eyes open. Realising that he had to buy his companion some time, he rushed at the demon and lashed out with his sword. The creature brought its trident across and parried, snarling at the dragonborn.
“You will be next, wyrmkin,” it hissed in the paladin’s face and then twisted Erlmoor’s blade away as it raised its trident again.
Dulvarna twisted around on the spot as she tried to shaken off the numbing cold of the wound that the zombie had inflicted on her. Using her momentum, she lashed out a huge blow at the undead creature, cleaving her blade into its side and smashing into its left lung. It staggered again, halting its advance and as it paused, a silver bolt from Litiraan’s wand drove through its chest and out of its back. The zombie lurched to its right and then collapsed beside the ruined body of its companion. The last zombie exploded in a shower of frozen flesh more quickly than its companion had and Dulvarna was showered with pieces of its corpse. She fell back as the chilling flesh splinters pierced her body and then she turned away to face the demon.
Beside Dulvarna, Enlishia raised her bow and fired two more arrows quickly but both bounced off the thick hide of the demon. The creature looked at her, snarled, and then leapt toward the doorway. As it did, it stabbed out with its trident, driving the points into Enlishia’s leg. She cried out and fell pack, the weapon tearing painfully free from her left thigh. Behind the creature, Lavren rose to his feet and levelled his wand before cursing at the creature in elven. A bolt of black, crackling energy flew forth but missed the demon by a hands-breadth to strike the wall behind it. Telkya rushed to Lavren’s side, flashed him a smile and then raised her amulet to loose a bolt of golden light into the demon’s side. It lurched to its left into the wall beside the outer doorway and Erlmoor charged.
The dragonborn lashed out with his blade with a prayer on his lips and as the blade struck the demon’s left hip, a pulse of divine light flowed into it from Erlmoor’s hand. The blade clove through the creature’s armour and drove into the flesh and bone beneath. The demon snarled and reeled back toward the dragonborn but as it did, Dulvarna charged in from its left and plunged her blade into its side. The demon reeled back and roared its pain and defiance. From behind it, in the doorway, Litiraan loosed a silver bolt that struck it in the bottom of its back and again it roared. Two arrows from Enlishia’s bow clattered off its armour again and the enraged demon leapt into the doorway where Litiraan stood. The demon turned to its left, snarled at the elf, and drove its trident into Litiraan’s shoulder.
Litiraan cried out and Lavren answered him with his own cry of alarm. He raised his wand and hurled another black bolt at the creature but it struck the stone next to the demon, doing it no harm. Telkya moved forward as quickly as her cold-numbed limbs would take her and raised her amulet, uttering a prayer as she did so. A bolt of golden light lanced out and struck the demon’s chest, searing through its chitinous armour and piercing its black heart. It snarled one last time and then fell over to its left, one of its arms reaching toward the freedom that it had so long sought.
“We should get out of this cold,” said Dulvarna.
“Agreed,” said Telkya as she reached out to take Lavren’s hand.
“We cannot leave the level,” said Vyrellis as the companions surveyed the chamber before them. They had tended to their wounds in the hallway outside the ice chamber and then had opened the double doors to the north that led out of the hall. A wide set of stairs rose before the company just beyond the double doors and rose into the gloom above. The stairs wrapped around the walls of the chamber, leaving a deep pit in the middle.
“”Why can we not leave?” asked Enlishia. “And why do you share your wisdom only when it suits you.”
“Lucky I am that you did not retrieve me from my captivity,” Vyrellis responded. “A sorry bearer you would have been.”
“But we still need to know,” Enlishia persisted. “Why can we not leave here?”
“We cannot leave because Draxius must be defeated three times,” the elf spirit answered. “And one of his forms resides on each of the levels of this pyramid. If we leave here, we will have to come back here to defeat him eventually.”
“Then if we turn back, you can lead us to him?” Lavren questioned.
“I cannot for I know not where he resides,” Vyrellis answered, softly this time, drawing a frosty look from Telkya. “But my memory returns all the time and perhaps I will know the place when we draw near to it. For now, though, we must turn back.”
“Then we shall turn back,” Lavren answered, drawing his own cold look from Telkya. “You have not led us awry thus far.”
“And I will not,” Vyrellis answered. “We go back and choose another path.”
“And what of those who do not believe you?” Telkya asked angrily. “Do we simply follow you blindly as my husband seems to do.”
“Telkya,” Litiraan said softly. “Vyrellis is right. We have not been led awry thus far. Although no treasures remained in the chamber they were likely taken by others years or decades ago. We have no other guide here and must trust the one that we have.”
“Your brother is right, Telkya,” Dulvarna said then. “We must put aside personal feelings and follow Vyrellis’ guidance. We have no choice.”
Telkya subsided then and the others, Enlishia included, nodded their agreement with their leader. Telkya simply frowned and followed the others as they turned away from the stairway and made their way out of the chamber and back into the wide hall. Dulvarna turned west into a wide hallway and the others followed.
The wide hallway opened after only a few feet into a wide chamber around which four stone monoliths had been arranged. Great plumes of energy streamed out of the monoliths and toward a central wall of arcane force. Vyrellis gasped as the companions took in the scene.
“My physical form is trapped within this arcane prison,” the elf spirit cried as Lavren retrieved the obsidian orb from his belt.. “For years I have waited for the magic that wards it to weaken and that time has now come. Free my body, and together we can escape from this horrid place.”
Litiraan stepped as close as he could to the crackling energy streams that came from the monoliths and as he drew nearer to the form at the centre of the four pillars, he saw that it was the headless body of an elf maid. Her flesh was perfectly preserved and her arms were crossed over her heart as though she only rested here and could return to life at any moment. He looked around at the monoliths for a moment and realised at once how the body could be freed.
“Topple one of the pillars and the spell will be broken,” he called to the others.
Lavren threw himself against the nearest pillar but it would not move and even when Dulvarna added her own efforts, still it would not be shifted. Only when Erlmoor added his weight to the struggle did the pillar begin to shift. Telkya even added her small form to the effort but still the huge monolith would not fall. Only Enlishia hung back, suspicion clouding her mind. She moved along the east wall of the chamber until she stood opposite the body that was suspended amidst the arcane energy and raised her bow, an arrow nocked. Lavren and Dulvarna gave one final shove and the monolith in the north east corner of the square fell with a crash to the floor of the chamber.
“Well done!” Vyrellis said to Lavren at once. “Now take me closer so that I might examine my physical form.”
The body of the elf maid fell to the floor and Erlmoor and Telkya moved to stand beside Litiraan who had remained standing at a respectful distance throughout the efforts to topple the monolith. Now, the elf wizard unconsciously reached for his wand at his belt as though he, as well as Enlishia, sensed some dark betrayal here. Lavren stepped forward until he stood next to the fallen form but as he reached the body, the obsidian orb that held Vyrellis’ spirit flew forth from his pouch and blasted into the chest of the elf maid’s body. There it lodged, where the heart once was with Vyrellis’ face visible in the breast of the fallen elf. Suddenly, the elf’s corpse began to move, pulling itself awkwardly to its feet while Vyrellis began to scream in terror.
“He has tricked me!” Vyrellis’ spirit cried out. “Slay the body and free me!”
Dulvarna leapt forward without hesitation, her blade in her hands already. She lashed out as she reached the headless elf body and cut a wound across the body’s left thigh. Erlmoor rushed in behind Dulvarna and drove his blade into the headless body’s other leg, driving it back a step for a moment. The corpse responded with a backhand blow with its right hand that sent Erlmoor reeling. It lashed out in the same way with its left hand and sent Dulvarna spinning away, struck in the face. The corpse held its hands out before it then and a wave of blue force energy struck Dulvarna, Lavren and Erlmoor. Dulvarna and Erlmoor held their ground but Lavren was thrown back away from the headless body while Vyrellis uttered profuse apologies for the hurt that she had done her bearer.
Telkya saw Lavren sent reeling and circled behind him, raising her amulet as a prayer came naturally to her lips. She raised the symbol of her faith and let loose a bolt of golden light towards the elf maid’s body. At the last, the corpse dodged to her right and the bolt flew past to strike the pillar in the southeast corner of the square. Enlishia circled around to the other side of the headless corpse and raised her bow, loosing one arrow and then another. Both arrows drove into the right side of the elf maid’s body and it lurched to its left.
Litiraan moved to stand beside Enlishia and raised his wand, unleashing a curtain of flame that engulfed the headless body and stopped short of where Dulvarna and Erlmoor stood. The body staggered and Vyrellis called out to the companions urging them on.
“Well done, my allies,” she called. “Strike harder and I will be free.”
Lavren moved to stand beside Telkya, flashed his wife a smile to reassure her that her was not badly hurt and then raised his wand. He loosed a bolt of black energy a moment later but again, the elf body moved at the last moment and his bolt struck the monolith close to where Telkya’s golden bolt had struck. Dulvarna surged forward, thinking the animated body distracted but as she swung out her sword, the elf corpse leapt back with an agility that its bizarre appearance belied.
Erlmoor roared and sprayed acid from his mouth but again, the elf body moved quickly and ducked under the noxious liquid. The dragonborn followed with his blade, though, and this time the corpse was not quick enough. The dragonborn’s sword lashed across the elf maid’s belly and cut a shallow wound that the corpse seemed to ignore. Instead, it slammed its right hand into the side of Erlmoor’s head, once and then a second time. Even as it struck the dragonborn, its left hand lashed out, clipping the top of Dulvarna’s head as she ducked. The hand thrust forward a moment later and shoved the warrior woman in the chest, pushing her back a step. Again the headless corpse held out its hands and a wave of blue energy struck Dulvarna and Erlmoor. Erlmoor was thrown back from the elf maid’s body and sent reeling but again, Dulvarna held her ground. With a steely determination, as she realised that she faced a truly powerful foe, she raised her blade and rushed at the elf corpse once more.
Telkya prayed fervently and raised her amulet as a column of divine flame descended towards the elf maid’s body. Again the corpse moved quickly, leaping forward to meet Dulvarna so that the divine fire descended behind it. From the other side of the headless body, Enlishia fired two more arrows in quick succession and these too, drove into the right side of the corpse. It lurched left and as it did, Litiraan loosed a bolt of blue energy that flew past the corpse’s back. Lavren loosed a black ray that flew past the body and then the elf maid clashed with Dulvarna.
Dulvarna spun around the corpse and lashed her blade across the back of its left thigh, forcing it to lurch and stagger forward. She spun back in front of it and as she did, Erlmoor raised his sword against his shoulder and held forth his left hand while he chanted a prayer. A ribbon of golden light shot from his hand toward the corpse but it ducked left, using Dulvarna as cover and the blast of energy seared past its right shoulder. The corpse leapt back and held forth its arms again, losing a storm of small, glowing, razor sharp daggers that exploded behind Dulvarna, engulfing her, Erlmoor and Lavren. All three were cut by the blades and were thrown to the chamber floor.
Telkya looked down at her fallen husband and then raised her amulet, loosing another bolt of golden light that flew wide of the corpse to strike the far monolith as her last had. Enlishia raised her bow quickly and loosed an arrow, seeking to distract the corpse somehow. The shaft flew wide of the mark and clattered into the northwest pillar. She loosed another arrow a heartbeat later and this drove into the elf maid’s right arm. This time, the corpse did not lurch and instead stood its ground but a moment later, Litiraan loosed a blue bolt into the body’s right side, throwing it to its left. Lavren leapt clear of the dagger storm and loosed a bolt of black energy but his aim was wild and the blast flew wide, striking the west wall of the chamber.
Dulvarna leapt to her feet and, ducking low to try and avoid the daggers, she circled around to the south to stand in front of Litiraan. She raised her blade and made ready to charge as Erlmoor followed her to stand in front of the southeast pillar. The storm of force blades followed the dragonborn and the warrior woman and engulfed Litiraan and Enlishia as it came, forcing both to leap away. The elf maid’s body raised its right arm and loosed a blast of black energy from its hand that struck Erlmoor in the chest and hurled him back into the pillar that stood behind him. The dragonborn staggered as his wounds threatened to overpower him and then he raised his blade with the last of his strength and made ready to charge beside Dulvarna.
From the north side of the monolith square, Telkya loosed a bolt of golden light that flew past the corpse again and this time struck the west wall of the chamber. Enlishia leapt clear of the blade storm, unwounded, and raised her bow, losing one and then a second arrow. Both shafts drove into the right thigh of the corpse driving it to the left again as it staggered, seven arrows protruding from its right side.
When Litiraan leapt clear of the blades, he was already cut on his arms and on his right cheek. He raised his wand despite the pain, he loosed a silver bolt that seared into the side of the elf body’s chest. Again it staggered and as it did, a bolt of black energy from Lavren’s wand struck its left side.
“You are saving me, my allies,” Vyrellis called out from the breast of the body but the companions were too preoccupied with their own hurts to pay the elf spirit much heed.
Dulvarna charged, rushing around behind the corpse and lashed her blade across the base of the elf maid’s back. The corpse arched its back and staggered forward and as it did, Erlmoor roared and rushed around to aid Dulvarna. He plunged his blade forward into the corpse’s left side and his blade flared with white light, sending a pulse of divine energy up into the dragonborn from its hilt. The paladin stepped back and caught his breath as the elf body spun on the spot to face its two nemeses. With a wave of its arm, the elf corpse moved the blade storm back away from Enlishia and Litiraan and moved it to engulf Erlmoor and Dulvarna and to once again sweep over Lavren. It lashed out with its right arm at Erlmoor and the dragonborn ducked under the swing but at the same time, its left hand struck the side of Dulvarna’s head and sent her reeling into her companion. She regained her feet just as the blades swept forward and slashed at her already wounded body.
Telkya hurled a ribbon of divine light from her amulet that flew past the headless corpse and struck the west wall of the chamber but as it struck, Enlishia loosed another arrow. The shaft flew past the corpse but before the arrow clattered into the northwest pillar, the ranger had nocked another to her bow. She let fly and this flew straight and true into the root of the body’s neck just below where its head had once rested. The body lurched to its right and as it did, a blue bolt from Litiraan’s wand flew over its left shoulder.
Beyond the corpse, Lavren fell to the floor as the glowing blue blades of force cut at him. Despite the pain of his wounds, the elf leapt to his feet and then vanished in a shower of light motes. He reappeared next to the east wall of the room and raised his wand, loosing a bolt of black energy into the back of the elf maid’s body. As the corpse jolted back toward her, Dulvarna ducked under the slashing blades and drove her sword into the belly of the elf body. She leapt back beyond the edge of the blade storm once she had struck and watched as Erlmoor plunged his own glowing blade into the right side of the corpse. He leapt back out of the blade storm and showed his teeth in a smile at Dulvarna but no sooner had he done so, than the corpse gestured desperately and the blade storm followed the dragonborn and the warrior woman.
The elf maid lashed out with her right hand and loosed a black ray towards Erlmoor and the dragonborn ducked to his right to evade the bolt. Beyond the elf body, Telkya hurled a bolt of golden light from behind the corpse that flashed past and struck the floor close to the southwest pillar. Arrows flashed past from Enlishia’s bow and then a bolt of blue force form Litiraan’s wand flew over the corpse. A heartbeat later, a bolt of black energy from Lavren’s wand struck the floor behind the corpse and then the storm of force blades swept over Dulvarna and Erlmoor.
The blades lashed into Dulvarna’s chest and she fell to the chamber floor just a few feet from the headless corpse. She rose almost immediately and rushed at the elf maid’s body with her blade before her. Erlmoor ducked under the blades and similarly charged at the corpse, but with a prayer on his lips. His blade glowed with a golden light and he swung out at the elf maid only for her to leap away. Vyrellis screamed her anger and frustration and as she did, the body lashed out at the dragonborn with her right hand. The paladin ducked under the blow but Dulvarna was struck by a backhand from the body’s other hand and sent reeling away. Telkya hurled a golden bolt that flew wide of the body and Vyrellis screamed again.
“You have to save me, else Draxius has truly won,” the elf’s spirit cried out but the headless corpse seemed almost unstoppable.
Enlishia raised her bow and fired two arrows quickly, both flying unerringly into the left side of the corpse but still the animated body would not fall. Lavren hurled a black bolt from his wand that flew past the body’s right shoulder and just missed Erlmoor drawing a growl from the dragonborn. Lavren nodded an apology but the paladin was already raising his blade to fend off the next attack from the elf maid. Meanwhile, Litiraan raised his wand, uttered a spell and hurled a ball of flame to burst behind the corpse. Fire billowed out and as it seared over the back of the elf body, it staggered and lurched towards Dulvarna and Erlmoor. They raised their blades to strike but as they did, the force blades swept over them again.
Dulvarna collapsed to the floor, wounded again but pushed herself up with what she thought must surely be the last of her strength. She lashed out with her blade and struck the elf body in the left shoulder, spinning it away from her and towards Erlmoor. The dragonborn fell then as the force blades tore into his right shoulder but he too, rose quickly. His blade slashed out and cut a deep wound in the elf corpse’s right leg but still the body would not fall. Instead it lashed out but again the dragonborn ducked. Dulvarna made ready to duck, anticipating the backhand toward her but instead, the corpse punched the heal of its hand into her breast and she fell back, winded.
Another golden bolt from Telkya’s amulet flashed past the elf maid from one side while a moment later, a silver bolt of energy from Litiraan’s wand struck it in the left arm. It lurched to the right and a black bolt from Lavren’s wand seared past its left shoulder where it had been standing. Dulvarna ducked under the blades and rushed the body despite the pain of her tired and wounded limbs. She slammed the hilt of her sword into the body’s chest and drove it back a step but as she looked back to see if Erlmoor followed her, the dragonborn fell to the onslaught of blades once more. The paladin roared as he rose and lashed his blade across the corpse’s belly but still it was not enough. Again the dragonborn began to pray but this time he sought peace from Lathander as he knew that he had expended the last of his strength. The headless corpse lashed out backhand with its right hand and as the blow struck the paladin, bright light and then blackness took him.
Dulvarna ducked under the forehand swing from the body’s other hand and looked down to where Erlmoor had fallen, knowing she would soon join him. Dimly, she saw another bolt of golden light flash past and thought that she was surely doomed. Only when the body lurched to the right as another arrow appeared in its side, did she dare to hope for salvation. A silver bolt seared into the corpse just after the arrow A moment later, a bolt of crackling black energy burst from the body’s belly and the elf maid’s form collapsed into grey sludge on the floor of the room. The storm of force blades vanished and Dulvarna allowed herself to fall to her knees beside Erlmoor. The battle was finally won and as looked over at the dragonborn, she knew that he would live.
“Draxius has betrayed me again!” Vyrellis raged as the obsidian sphere rolled out of the foul remains of her physical form. “He must die!” Dulvarna looked dimly toward the orb and nodded her agreement. It was their only chance to escape this place. Draxius had to die.
“What I cannot understand,” Erlmoor rumbled slowly over a mouthful of fried meat from his trail rations. “Is if you were imprisoned here with Draxius, then how did the royal line of Cormyr continue?”
The companions had made camp in the chamber of monoliths amongst the stones and placed careful watched on each of the entryways but nothing had disturbed them and they had rested for what they reckoned to be a night.
“We had a son,” Vyrellis answered from the orb which Lavren had placed beside him on the cloth sack in which he carried it. “We named him Bryntarth and he grew into a fine man before tragedy befell us.”
“Bryntarth I was a king of Cormyr late in the ninth century of the kingdom,” Litiraan said. “But no tome speaks of tiefling or elven ancestry.”
“He did become king,” Vyrellis exclaimed and those who looked towards the orb saw tears in her eyes as she spoke. After a long pause, she continued. “His heritage was barely evident and became less so as he grew.”
“Then the kings of Cormyr, down to Azoun IV himself, are descended from a tiefling,” Erlmoor rumbled unhappily.
“It seems they are,” Vyrellis said softly. “My son sired a mighty line if it still endures after five centuries. Of that I am proud.”
Again, tears came to Vyrellis’ eyes though she was a spirit encased in crystal and could shed none. She bowed her head and the others averted their eyes for a little while as the elf princess composed herself.
“Then how do the chronicles of Cormyr record none of this,” Enlishia said. “I learned little of the House of Obarskyr when I was schooled but I learned at least that they were great men and women, who crafted a kingdom where once there was none. How did scholars and sages not record this?”
“Perhaps some did,” Telkya answered. “But the victors in all conflicts choose which chronicles become history and if Draxius deserved his imprisonment here then perhaps his son and all who followed him were spared the difficulties of their ancestry.”
“Bryntarth did not know,” Vyrellis said sadly. “His father and I kept the truth from him for in his day, Draxius was a great man. Only in the days that became his last as king, did he become arrogant and dangerous. Perhaps the centuries weighed heavy upon him for he began it all as a mortal man or perhaps he simply believed in his own immortality and felt that he should rule all within his grasp. Whatever the reason, by the time he was imprisoned here, he was vicious and evil and deserved his fate.”
“But the blood of demons flows yet in the veins of Azoun and his progeny,” Lavren said. “How can we accept that, now that we know it to be true.”
“Because he is the king,” Dulvarna replied. “And he has ruled wisely for twenty years and more.”
“Dulvarna is right, my love,” Telkya said. “We must judge the kings of Cormyr that have come since by their deeds and not by their blood. Perhaps the blood of demons has given them the fire to defeat the enemies of the kingdom and the blood of the elves has given them the wisdom to choose true courses for the people. For now, we should linger no longer. Draxius must be defeated and his end draws no nearer while we eat here.”
The others nodded their agreement as Lavren looked with admiring eyes upon his wife. She had become stronger and wiser since he had known her and with each day, he found he loved her more and more.
They followed the southern passage out of the monolith chamber until, after a short way, it widened into a long, hooked corridor. A number of mirrors hung on the outer wall and a set of doubled doors pierced the opposite wall, across from the mirrors. From beyond the wall to the right came a shrill screech and the companions raised their weapons but they knew not from which direction their foes, if they were foes, would come. Suddenly, from the mirror in front of them at the far end of the corridor came a glowing amber ball no larger than a child’s marble. It flew like an arrow towards Dulvarna and Erlmoor.
“Take cover!” Litiraan shouted, just as the ball reached the group and exploded into searing flame.
Only Telkya managed to throw herself aside and as she did, she unwittingly exposed Enlishia to the full blast of flame as it tore through the group. All were burned and had their clothes singed but they recovered quickly and began to look around for the unseen enemy that had attacked them. Litiraan raised his wand and moved warily down the east wall of the corridor until he stood opposite the doors and Telkya followed him. Erlmoor rushed to the doors and, putting up his blade, he pulled them open. Within was a sleeping chamber with two beds and a table while in the centre, drawing blades for battle, stood three athletic humanoids covered with ebon scales. Each had reddish horns and leathery wings and as they turned their gazes upon the dragonborn, their eyes glowed with hell’s fiery hate.
“In here!” Erlmoor called to the others and Enlishia came forward at once with her bow raised.
“Cambions,” the ranger remarked as she crossed behind Erlmoor and took aim. “Half-devils born of women or succubi.”
She snarled and loosed an arrow that flew just past the cambion closest to the door but before the arrow could clatter into the opposite wall of the chamber, she raised her bow again. This time, the arrow drove into the cambion’s shoulder and drove it back a step. One of the creatures raised its blade and charged at Erlmoor while the wounded one recovered but just as it reached the dragonborn, Lavren came forward with his wand. A bolt of black energy lanced out and struck the cambion in the chest, halting its charge and sending it reeling into the wall of the doorway. The wounded cambion recovered quickly and charged to join its companion, spinning a huge greatsword above its head before slashing the blade down toward Erlmoor’s shoulder. Just before the blade struck, it burst into flames and then seared into the dragonborn’s flesh with terrifying ease. Erlmoor grunted in pain and fell back a step into the corridor but he raised his blade to defend himself, determined not to give more ground.
Dulvarna rushed to aid the paladin, lashing her blade from left to right and cutting a deep wound in the arm of the cambion that Enlishia had wounded. Behind her, Litiraan moved along the wall to aid her with his wand but as he did, a bolt of flame flew forth from the mirror on the south wall of the corridor and struck him in the chest, throwing him into the wall of the corridor. He raised his wand anyway but as he did, a dark and shadowy figure covered in a black, hooded cloak crept around the corner to the south. He turned his wand on this newcomer instead and loosed a silver bolt quickly that struck the wall next to it.
“A dark one!” he called to others as he recognised the creature and both Telkya and Enlishia turned towards the new enemy.
Telkya saw her brother’s plight and with sword and amulet in hand, she moved to aid him. Raising her symbol of Corellon, she uttered a prayer and sent forth a bolt of golden light that flew past the skulking dark one and struck the south wall next to one of the mirrors. She cursed and then raised her blade to defend herself from the creature’s inevitable charge.
In the doorway, Erlmoor glanced to the left to see how his companions fared and then roared, spewing acid over the cambions before him. As they shrank back, he raised his voice in prayer and struck out with his blade, the sword glowing brightly as he ended his entreaty to Lathander. The blade seared into the side of the cambion before him and sent it reeling into its companion. As its companion stumbled, two arrows from Enlishia’s bow drove into it and hurled it back into the chamber. Both cambions snarled, raised their blades and came back at their enemies fiercely.
Erlmoor parried the blade of the cambion that came at him and as he did, Lavren loosed a bolt of black energy into the half-devil’s shoulder and threw him back from the dragonborn again. The other cambion rushed at Dulvarna but she too parried its fiery sword with Aecris and held the creature at bay. She shoved the cambion back with her blade and then last out low into the side of its leg forcing it to lurch back another step. The half-devil roared its defiance but it was sorely wounded and Dulvarna knew she would finish her foe quickly.
As Telkya reached the bend in the passage, another of the cloaked dark ones leapt past its companions with a dagger held before it. It stabbed at her but she lashed her sword down and knocked the dagger aside. She leapt back from her foe to give herself room to strike at it but as she did, a bolt of flame lanced out from a mirror on the wall to her left and seared into her shoulder. She was hurled to the right and crashed painfully into the wall beside her. The other dark one rushed forward then and leapt between her and Litiraan. Telkya stabbed out with her blade and nicked its arm as it passed her while Litiraan slashed wildly at the creature with his own blade. The dark one turned once its was behind Telkya and stabbed at her with its dagger but by then she had regained her balance and leapt to her right to evade the blow.
“We have to retreat,” Litiraan called to Telkya and as she nodded, he moved back along the passage wall.
He turned to face the dark one that had outflanked Telkya and stabbed at with his blade but the creature reacted quickly, twisting its long knife around to parry the blow. Telkya retreated along the opposite wall and raised her amulet to loose a bolt of golden fire into the same creature’s side. It yelped and leapt to its right in shock and surprise but then it turned and Telkya saw a pallid, hairless visage and staring white eyes regard her with a furious anger.
Erlmoor roared again at the foe before him and then surged forward, slashing his blade across the creature’s chest. He looked back to his left again and saw that Enlishia was retreating from the dark ones as well as Litiraan and Telkya but the ranger already had an arrow nocked to her bow. She loosed the shaft and it flew past the nearest dark one, missing by barely a hands breadth. The dragonborn heard a hiss from beneath the dark one’s hood and then as the cambion recovered from the wound he had dealt, he turned back to the enemy before him. The half-devil slashed its blade in from Erlmoor’s left but as the dragonborn moved his blade down to parry, the cambion raised the sword, twisted on the spot and slashed the sword into the paladin’s right shoulder. He fell back as the flames around the blade seared his flesh and smoke began to rise from the wound. The cambion roared in triumph and came forward to try and finish the dragonborn but as it did, a bolt fo black energy from Lavren’s wand seared into its left side and hurled it back, giving Erlmoor time to recover.
Dulvarna’s foe came forward next and their blades clashed again, amber sparks flying from the cambion’s hell-forged blade as it clashed with Aecris. The warrior woman shoved the half-devil back and wove her blade before her to keep her foe guessing as to where she would strike at it next. She leapt forward and stabbed her blade into the cambion’s belly just above its hip. It gasped and fell back, reaching a hand down to the surely mortal wound. Then it let go the wound and raised its blade with a snarl of defiance. As blood poured down its side, it rushed at Dulvarna, determined to die in one last attack on her.
The dark one at the turn in the passage rushed at Telkya and slashed out high with its long knife. She twisted on the spot and raised her blade to parry before throwing the creature back and away from her. As she raised her blade to defend her self from the cloaked creature’s next attack, another blast of flame flew from the mirror on the opposite wall and seared into her side. Again she was thrown into the wall next to her and before she could recover, the other dark one turned away from Litiraan and leapt across the corridor towards her. It slashed at her wildly with its blade and she brought her sword across to hold the long knife at bay. From somewhere she found the strength to hurl this creature away her as well and as she did, Litiraan loosed a silver bolt from his wand into its back. The dark one lurched forward back towards Telkya and she stabbed at it clumsily. The creature brought its dagger down and parried the thrust of Telkya’s sword but she knew that she had bought herself a few moments. With her blade held up to defend her, she leapt back towards Dulvarna and out of the reach of at least one of her enemies.
Erlmoor felt his shoulder wound burning as he rushed at his enemy again and angrily shouted forth a prayer to give his blade and his body strength. His sword glowed brightly as it swung out high and though the cambion raised his own blade, the dragonborn’s sword smashed it aside. The divinely blessed blade clove into the cambion’s neck, tore through and out the other side, beheading the creature where it stood. Its head rolled back into the chamber and its body collapsed like a doll in front of Erlmoor. The paladin felt power surge through him and pain in his shoulder eased to a dull ache. Erlmoor stepped forward into the chamber with his eyes fixed on the third cambion.
Enlishia raised her bow again, determined to aid Telkya and Litiraan in their desperate fight against the dark ones. She loosed an arrow that tore through the cloak of the nearest creature and then in a quick, fluid movement, she nocked another to her bow and fired again. This shaft flew true and drove into the hip of the nearest creature sending it lurching to its left away from the ranger. Enlishia looked to her right to see how Dulvarna fared and saw the warrior woman’s blade clashed again and again with the sword of her mortally wounded foe. Each time sparks flew from the cambion’s blade and each time, its strength waned visibly.
Lavren saw this too and, deciding that his wife needed his aid more than Dulvarna and Erlmoor, he rushed to Enlishia’s side with his wand and his sword in hand. He raised his wand and loosed black, crackling energy into the side of the creature that Enlishia had just wounded. It staggered and lurched to its left again before righting itself unsteadily. Telkya turned and smiled at her husband and he knew that they would be victorious.
Dulvarna saw Erlmoor fell the cambion he faced and knew that it was time to rid herself of her own foe. The third cambion charged forward from within the chamber and lashed its blade into the dragonborn’s leg forcing him back toward the doorway and Dulvarna knew that her companion needed her aid against this new foe. She feinted low and as he tiring enemy moved its blade down, she brought her blade up high and slashed it across the cambion’s throat. The half-devil’s sword clattered to the stone floor of the chamber as it reached both hands to its torn throat and then it fell to its knees before Dulvarna. As the cambion finally fell forward, Dulvarna moved forward into the chamber to fight beside Erlmoor.
As the second cambion fell, the dark ones began to whisper to each other and suddenly, both ducked low to the ground and turned to flee. Telkya leapt forward as the creature closest to her turned away and drove her blade into its back, The sword drove out through the front of the dark one’s cloak and the creature exploded in a spout of dark shadow that engulfed Telkya. The elf maid waited for the darkness to clear from her eyes but it refused to and with a sudden panic, she realised that the death throes of the dark one had blinded her.
Enlishia saw the second dark one flee around the bend in the corridor and rushed after it with her bow raised. She slowed as a bolt of flame from the mirror on the east wall lanced out and struck the wall next to Telkya but then she rushed past the dangerous panes and rounded the corner. Ahead of her, double doors in the south wall were closed while a pair of portals in the north wall remained open but as she made her way forward along the corridor, she realised that the surviving dark one was trying to close them. Lavren came around the corner behind the ranger and looked toward the doors.
“We will not reach them before the creature closes them,” he said. “Unless we hurry.”
The elf surged forward and moved to the left side of the corridor as he neared the doors lest the dark one ambush him. He raised his wand and loosed a bolt of black energy into the creature as it began to push the doors shut. It hissed its annoyance and pain while seemingly regarding the elf with its white eyes but as Litiraan rounded the corner and loosed a silver bolt from his wand, it pushed the doors closed.
Inside the other doorway, the cambion and Erlmoor fought fiercely, the dragonborn keeping his foe at bay despite the wound in his leg. Dulvarna stabbed and slashed at the creature from its right but each her blows it met with its blade as well. It glanced towards the southern doors as they slammed shut and smiled at its enemies.
“Seems you’re trapped now,” the cambion snarled in Common. “Your friends can’t aid you.”
Enlishia raised her bow as she drew near to the doors but before she reached them, a bolt of flame seared from the mirror behind her and struck the wall close by. She looked back nervously and then carried on moving forward. Litiraan reached the closed doors ahead of her and rushed at the portals, slamming his shoulder into them. The dark one beyond was thrown back and the doors slammed open. The elf lashed his sword into the creature’s shoulder and drove it back another step and then a bolt of golden light struck the stone next to the doorway. He looked to his right and saw that Telkya stood beside Enlishia with her blade and amulet in hand, her blindness apparently cured. Enlishia rushed forward and loosed one arrow and then another. The first drove into the side of the right door but the second flew straight and true into the shoulder of the dark one. The creature staggered again and as it did, Lavren loosed a bolt of black energy into its side sending it reeling back from the doors. Litiraan surged into the chamber and desperately, the dark one raised its long knife to fend him off.
In the chamber, Erlmoor was driving back the cambion, having slashed his blade across its arm and cut a deep wound. The creature lashed out desperately in response but the dragonborn parried its fiery sword and then shoved the creature back just as Dulvarna came in from its right. Her blade drove into its thigh and forced it back another step. It looked toward the southern doors and realised that the companions had forced their way in.
“Our friends are coming,” Dulvarna said, seeing its glance toward the doors. “And no one can help you now.”
The dark one at the southern door lashed its blade across the top of Litiraan’s chest and forced the elf back a step but he ignored the injury and came back at his enemy. As he did, he glanced to his right and saw another bolt of flame sear from one of the mirrors in the corridor outside and strike Telkya, spinning her into the right hand wall of the passage. With a guttural snarl, he rushed at the dark one slashing left and right as the creature parried desperately. Telkya recovered quickly and rushed past her brother to stand beside Lavren on the far side of the doors. She uttered a prayer and hurled a bolt of golden fire that seared past the dark one and struck the far wall of the chamber beyond the cambion that faught Dulvarna and Erlmoor. Behind Litiraan, Enlishia raised her bow and loosed an arrow that drove into the throat of the dark one and it exploded into a cloud of darkness that engulfed Litiraan.
“We have to get out of this corridor,” Enlishia announced and she rushed past Litiraan through the doorway into the chamber beyond.
Erlmoor saw the dark one explode in the southern doorway and roared a prayer at the top of his voice. As his blade glowed brightly, he feinted to the left and then reversed his swing to drive his blade into the cambion’s left hip. It struck with a loud crack of thunder, smashing the half-devil’s hip and throwing it to the ground at Dulvarna’s feet. It rose quickly but unsteadily and lashed out wildly with its blade, catching Erlmoor unaware and droving the sword into his side. He fell to the right into the stone of the doorway as fire seared into his abdomen. As he looked up, though, he saw Lavren rush into the chamber and turn his wand toward the cambion. The elf uttered a curse in elven and black, crackling energy seared into the half-devil’s back. It lurched forward and Dulvarna rushed to meet it, plunging her blade into its belly. The cambion fell back, mortally wounded, with one hand holding its abdomen where its entrails were exposed. It snarled at its enemies and tried to raise its blade but as it did, Litiraan staggered into the chamber having apparently been hit by another bolt of flame from the mirrors. The elf raised his wand and loosed a silver bolt that flew past the cambion, inches from its back and struck the wall beside it. The half-devil looked around desperately, realising that it was surrounded as a golden bolt of fire from Telkya’s amulet struck the wall above its head. The creature let go of its blood-soaked belly and raised its blade just as Erlmoor swept out with his sword and beheaded it where it stood. The dragonborn looked down at his fallen enemy with weary eyes and then dropped his own blade. Weakly, he reached a hand to the wound in his side and then collapsed on top of the cambion.
“Something else lurks in here,” said Enlishia as she looked towards the northern doors.
The ranger rushed past the others and, shouldering her bow, reached out with both hands to pull open the doors. She looked inside and then stood back, aghast. There, before her, a skull floated in the air above a crystal orb on a wooden stand. Flames of unnatural colour surrounded the skull, casting light like a torch. The skull turned toward her as it realised the intrusion and shrieked – the same sound that the companions had heard when first they had entered the outer corridor.
Lavren heard the shriek of the skull and rushed past Enlishia into the northern chamber. He turned to face the creature, cursing it in elven as he did, and then loosed black, crackling energy toward it. The skull moved in flight with surprising agility and the bolt flew past the creature to strike the wall behind it.
“A flameskull,” Lavren called out, recognising the creature from elven lore he had read as a boy. “An ancient undead creature created by rituals lost to man and elf.”
Dulvarna heard her friend call out and gestured for Telkya to tend to Erlmoor. Then she raised her blade and rushed into the northern chamber after Lavren. As she reached the creature, it lurched back beyond the reach of her blade and opened its mouth to disgorge a bolt of flame. The searing bolt struck the warrior woman in the chest and hurled her back into the wall behind her. The creature seemed to snarl and then lurched to the right as Litiraan rushed into the room and hurled a silver bolt of magical force at it. Then Erlmoor appeared beside Dulvarna and she drew strength from the return of the dragonborn, pushing herself away from the wall and raising her blade to attack the skull once more.
Enlishia rushed into the chamber behind the others and raised her bow as she came. She loosed an arrow that flew forth and drove into the side of the skull. It shrieked again and she fired again but this time the arrow flew past the creature and clattered into the far wall. A blast of black energy from Lavren’s wand followed, also striking the wall, and then Dulvarna charged at the skull with her blade before her. She lashed out at the skull and nicked its crown before it could move away. It moved to its left and opened its mouth to loose another bolt of flame but as it did, Dulvarna struck at it again, chipping bone from the side of the skull. The flame seared out but as the skull lurched from the warrior woman’s second blow, the fire flew past Dulvarna and struck the wall behind her.
Litiraan loosed another silver bolt that flew past the skull and struck stone and then Telkya appeared in the doorway behind Erlmoor. She hurled a bolt of golden fire that struck the wall above the flameskull. Erlmoor rushed forward, circling around the crystal ball stand to meet the skull on the other side. His blade sang out but the skull flew back beyond his reach and again it seemed to snarl. An arrow from Enlishia’s bow streaked past the creature and shattered against the far wall but then the ranger fired again and this time, the shaft drove into the skull just above its left eye socket. Lavren moved back toward the doorway to protect Telkya and hurled black energy as he did. The bolt struck the stone wall above the skull and he cursed. The creature shrieked again and Dulvarna rushed at it.
The warrior woman’s blade sang out and again the skull moved but still she nicked bone from the flame covered back of the creature. It lurched in the air and opened its mouth to loose more flame. As it did, both Erlmoor and Dulvarna leapt forward. It lurched away from Dulvarna toward the dragonborn and the paladin’s met it with a huge overhead swing. It clove through the skull down to the jawbone and shattered the creature into a dozen pieces. The flames died instantly and the now inert bone clattered to the chamber floor.
Lavren reached for the new wand at his belt as the companions entered the room to the south of the corridor that held the mirrors. Telkya had found it and a potion that she had decided was a healing draught under the mattress of one the beds in the chamber that the cambions had fallen defending. Dulvarna had taken the potion and Lavren the wand which he had quickly determined to be more powerful than the one he currently wielded. As he drew the wand, the elf looked up the statue of a robed figure that stared down the length of the wide hallway. A short passage had led south and then east from the mirror hall before ending at the doors to this wide chamber. At the far end, an exact duplicate of the closer statue stood, regarding its counterpart with eyes of stone that had likely looked out sightlessly for centuries.
“I don’t like this,” Lavren hissed without knowing why he spoke quietly.
“Neither do I,” Enlishia whispered from beside him.
The ranger raised her bow, nocking an arrow to the string as she did, and then moved past Telkya into the room itself. She crossed almost to the centre of the room before a loud grinding sound filled the hallway and the floor began to tilt. Enlishia looked back plaintively at the others and then the floor tilted over sharply along with the south wall of the room and hurled the ranger bodily across into the stone wall. Before any of the companions could react, the wall tilted further and threw Enlishia out of sight as the floor took the wall’s place and another floor rotated up to take its place. As this floor appeared, it threw out a scattering of rats the size of small dogs that turned to hiss at the companions while glaring at them with fierce red eyes.
Telkya raised her amulet and loosed a bolt of golden light toward the rats but they scattered and the divine fire struck the new stone floor. Dulvarna stepped in front of the closest statue careful not to stray onto the area that had tilted and lashed out with her blade. The nearest rat squealed as her sword struck it and hurled it across the floor to lie in a bloody heap amongst its companions. The other rats glanced towards the body of their fellow as though contemplating it as a meal but then seemed to decide that the adventurers represented more tasty fare and started toward them. They rushed at the companions in a swarm, snapping at the legs of Telkya, Erlmoor and Dulvarna.
Erlmoor gagged as the overpowering stench of rot reached him along with the rats. He retched but raised his blade anyway and drove it through the nearest of the horrible creatures. To the dragonborn’s left, Lavren vanished from the doorway in a shower of light motes only to reappear to the south of the statue with his wand raised. The warlock cursed the nearest rat and loosed a searing black bolt from his wand only for the creature to dart aside. The bolt struck the floor where the rat had been leaving the rat unharmed. Litiraan raised his own wand but from where he stood in the doorway, his companions blocked his sight of the rats and he dared not risk loosing a spell. Instead, he moved closer to the statue and held up his blade, ready to aid Telkya should she need it.
Enlishia fell hard into a pit at the end of what had felt like a chute of smooth stone and felt things crunch beneath her. She lay still for a breath or two but then realised that she was not alone in the pit. A terrible odour of rot filled her nostrils and as she gagged, she realised that the things that had crunched beneath her were bones. She struggled to rise but before she could get fully to her feet, something lashed into her side and flung her into the wall of the pit. Desperately, she cried out and tried to scramble up the wall but the sides were too small and she fell back. Fear took hold of her then but still she shouldered her bow and drew her sword from her back. Using sense rather than sight in the darkness that surrounded her, she stabbed out at the creature that she knew lurked close by. Her blade struck nothing but air and as she heard the creature move, she felt tears run down her cheeks.
“Dulvarna!” she cried out. “Erlmoor!” But no one answered.
his anger while beside him, Telkya retched and lashed out at the rat before her. To Erlmoor’s right, Dulvarna lashed her sword across and gutted two rats with a single blow, the bodies flying away from her and smearing the floor with blood. Telkya leapt back as the rat before her ran forward and snapped at her but then Erlmoor roared again, spraying the two remaining rats with acid and searing them into blackened corpses.
“We have to save Enlishia,” he called out and rushed past the fallen rats to place where Enlishia had stood when the floor had tilted. Sure enough, the floor tilted again and Enlishia was thrown out of sight into the space behind the wall.
“He’s right,” said Lavren as he rushed forward. “We all must go into the trap to aid Enlishia.”
The elf rushed across the floor, expecting it to tilt at any moment but it did not and he crossed the smooth space without harm. Litiraan moved past Telkya and crossed close to the north wall but again the trap did not spring. Both elves shared puzzled looks as they pondered how to rescue their friends.
In the pit, Enlishia heard something else crunch down onto the bones followed by a low growl that identified the newcomer as Erlmoor. She felt sudden relief and though her unknown enemy still stood close by and lashed at her with what she assumed were tentacles, she felt hope return. At least she would not die alone, she decided, as a tentacle lashed out again and slammed her into the side of the pit.
Telkya looked across the smooth floor to her brother and her husband, momentarily undecided about what she should do next. They had both tried to trigger the trap and failed and now she hoped that perhaps venturing into whatever darkness Erlmoor and Enlishia had vanished into would not be needed. She could cross the smooth floor without stepping on it using her fey step but then the ranger and the dragonborn would be alone wherever they had been thrown to. Both Lavren and Litiraan looked at her with pleading eyes and she knew she could not leave them. She closed her eyes and vanished into a shower of light only to reappear a few moments beyond the smooth floor between Lavren and Litiraan.
“Perhaps we can trigger the trap from her and bring them back to us,” she said to both elves.
“I hope so,” Dulvarna answered. “I need you to bring me back.”
The warrior woman rushed forward with her blade before her and as she reached the far side of the smooth floor, the stone tilted again and threw her into darkness behind the south wall as it dropped away. She slid down a shoot in pitch darkness and then a stench of rot and decay assailed her before she landed painfully in a pit. Bones crunched beneath her feet and a large creature moved in front of her. She stabbed out with her blade and drove it into the flesh of the creature, hoping too late that it was an enemy and not one of her friends. Suddenly a tentacle with sharp barbs or teeth at its end slammed Dulvarna into the pit wall while others lashed out elsewhere around the creature. She heard Erlmoor roar and Enlishia cry out and knew that she had found her friends.
“We have to get out of this pit,” Erlmoor snarled as he tried to get leverage on the pit wall.
He roared his annoyance a moment later as he fell back into the pit and turned on the creature while calling out a prayer to Lathander. His blade glowed brightly, momentarily illuminating the three struggling companions and the creature they faced. Before them was a terrible creature with a squat body on short legs, two grasping tentacles with toothy maws at their ends and another tentacle with three eyes in a spike-guarded orifice at the end. Its skin was black and covered with rotting detritus and its body was dominated by a huge mouth filled with dagger-like teeth. Then Erlmoor’s sword clove into the top of the creature’s body and the companions were plunged back into darkness.
Lavren looked down at the smooth floor and then up at the south wall which was now back in place, although in reality it had last been the floor. The bodies of the terrible rot-covered rats had been hurled after Dulvarna and now a clean floor lay before the three remaining companions. The warlock stabbed at the new floor with his sword but the trap refused to trigger. Litiraan joined him as did Telkya but this new floor refused to move.
“They can’t be trapped,” said Telkya.
“Let us hope they are not,” Litiraan answered without conviction.
Enlishia threw her sword up onto the floor above the pit, slung her bow over her shoulder and ran at the pit wall, hurling herself up it and hooking her arms over the top. The creature, which she recognised as some corrupted form of otyugh, lashed out a tentacle that seared across her back but still she held onto the ledge and dragged herself slowly up out of the pit. Once she had cleared the pit, she clambered carefully up the smooth stone of the shoot until she judged that she was a safe distance away. Only then did she reach to her belt and light a torch to throw onto the stone in front of her. Her sword lay where she had thrown it close to the pit edge but she knew she could not go back to it. Erlmoor and Dulvarna glanced back and blinked in the sudden light but then they nodded their thanks and turned their blades on the otyugh.
In the pit, Dulvarna raised her blade over her head and brought it down on the top of the otyugh, cleaving another deep wound in the creature’s hide. It lashed out again with its toothed tentacles and Dulvarna ducked under its attack but Erlmoor was slammed into the pit wall again. The dragonborn roared and lashed at the creature once and then a second time with his glowing blade, cutting two more deep wounds in its fleshy body. Golden energy burst from the paladin’s blade as it struck the second blow and both Enlishia and Dulvarna felt new strength flow into them. Erlmoor roared again and Enlishia unshouldered her bow while reaching for an arrow. As she did, the floor beneath her tilted away and threw her again into darkness. The ranger landed hard in a space that she decided quickly was beneath the floor of the hallway above. Then she smelt the foul stench of death and nausea overtook her. She retched once and then collapsed to the floor, helpless as the rats that she knew surrounded her, scuttled closer.
Telkya and Litiraan watched the floor tilt again and waited for their companions to reappear as the new floor rose into place but they did not. Desperately, the two elves prodded at the floor with their blades as Lavren had done but the trap would not spring again. Still, they continued their efforts, hoping against hope that their friends would return.
Dulvarna slashed at the otyugh desperately as gore and blood poured from the creature. It staggered and then let out a terrible roar from its tooth-filled mouth. Again it lashed out with its tentacles and again Dulvarna ducked under the flailing appendage aimed at her. The tentacle aimed at Erlmoor lashed in his side, tearing at his flesh and hurling him back into the wall of the pit once more. Still he roared his defiance and drove his blade into the side of the otyugh. A thunderclap sounded as the blow struck home and then the creature’s tentacles fell limply beside its body. Finally, its legs gave way and the creature collapsed into the bones and rotting flesh on the floor of the pit.
“Time we left,” the dragonborn said breathlessly as blood poured from various wounds on his body.
“Agreed,” Dulvarna said.”
It was Litiraan’s blade that triggered the trap this time and to the companions’ relief, when the new floor came up from below, Enlishia lay on it. Telkya dragged her off the trapped part of the stone and began to tend to her wounds with cloth bandages and healing prayers. When the floor tilted up again, Dulvarna clung onto a fallen Erlmoor and again Telkya set to work to keep the dragonborn alive.
“Did we win?” Lavren asked Dulvarna.
“We won,” the warrior woman answered breathlessly.
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