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<blockquote data-quote="ltclnlbrain" data-source="post: 1500332" data-attributes="member: 12882"><p>Chapter 6</p><p></p><p>The night passed without incident. Berek founds a relatively open area where he could dispose of the bodies without risking setting fire to the forest. With that grisly work out of the way, he joined the others in rest. Grundar arose from his reverie about four hours before the others; he watched the sun rise over the treetops while waiting for the others to awaken.</p><p></p><p>After a brisk breakfast, the adventurers retraced their steps about half a mile and took the road they bypassed the night before. Within a bend of the stream ahead rose a low hill, crowned by the ruins of a domed building. Most of the dome had collapsed, leaving a jagged roofline above thick octagonal walls. The structure was made of polished white stone that was now covered with a thick patina of dirt and climbing ivy. Ancient designs of moons and stars lined the upper portions of the outer walls, interspersed with narrow, slitlike windows. A pair of massive green bronze doors marked the main entrance.</p><p></p><p>“I would assume the entry way is trapped,” said Terenon, “but I have no skill in finding such things. I believe the key you took should work for the door." </p><p></p><p>Grundar walked up to the bronze doors and began checking out the area for traps, being careful to take his time. Once he was satisfied that there were no traps, he put in the key and tried to unlock the door. Unfortunately, the key didn’t fit. “Looks like it goes somewhere else,” he said, shrugging. He pushed on the door a bit, but it didn’t budge. “It’s stuck.”</p><p></p><p>The group studied the door for a bit, trying to figure out how to get in. Getting fed up with waiting, Allanon stepped forward and waved for the others to get behind him. Grabbing at the raw essence of magic in the Vale, he formed it into a spell and gestured at the door commanding it to open.</p><p></p><p>Nothing happened.</p><p></p><p>Well, not exactly nothing. Allanon could feel his whole body getting smaller in size. The whole world seemed to grow until he finally stabilized at a height no taller than Gill. He looked around in surprise at the results of the surge, and the rest of the party burst out in laughter. About a minute later, he grew back to his normal size.</p><p></p><p>Terenon looked at the wild mage with amusement. "I have the spell knock. Obviously you are in a hurry." The mage let the arcane syllables slip from his mouth, and the rusty doors squealed in protest as they swung open.</p><p></p><p>A magnificent dome once crowned the building, but it had collapsed long ago, leaving the interior open to the sky. Heaps of rubble lay here and there. In the center of the building, a large platform rose 10 feet above the floor, supported by thick columns. Steep, narrow stairs led from the floor up to the platform, and slender balconies accessible via other flights of stairs ran along the north and south walls. Some sort of pedestal or mount stood atop the platform, and a small bronze door was located beneath the platform</p><p></p><p>The adventurers passed through the door and looked around, but before they had time to see much, two arrows flew at them from on top of the platform! One bounced off of Allanon's mage armor, but the other sunk deep into Terenon's shoulder. Now that they had attacked, the group could see two gargoyles clad in studded leather armor and wielding shortbows at the lip of the platform, cloaked in shadows. From beside the door, a third gargoyle charged at Osterel. It rammed into her with its horns and gored a large hunk out of her side, causing her to scream in pain. Its horns dripping Osterel's blood (which changed colors at random like her eyes), the gargoyles hissed menacingly.</p><p></p><p>Before anybody could react, the gargoyles on the platform sent a barrage of arrows sailing at the mages. One arrow sunk deep into Allanon's chest, while the second was barely deflected by the mage armor. Unfortunately, the two arrows aimed at Terenon hit their mark, causing the wizard to collapse to the ground, dying. The third gargoyle tore at Osterel with its claws. The first claw opens up a bloody streak across the chaond's chest. She staggered to her knees, but not for long; the second claw tore across her throat, opening it up and causing her blood to spray all over the creature and the floor. Osterel collapsed in a quickly growing pool of blood, lying quite still and lifeless.</p><p></p><p>“Rhys! Terenon is down!” shouted Grundar. The spry elf drew his rapier and tumbled around Osterel’s killer, opening a small puncture wound in its chest with his blade.</p><p></p><p>"Fat lot of good being quiet did us!" Berek shouted as he rushed towards the platform, boots clomping loudly on the floor. "'Least if I had blown through the door we mighta had the element of surprise for a moment or two!" He scarcely missed a beat as he reached the stairs, leaping upward on them two at a time. Drawing near the gargoyles, his teeth snapped together with a loud clack, foam bubbled at his lips, and his shoulder lowered as he lines his body up for a bull rush. Shouting like a madman, the dwarf charged into the one on the left, plummeting down with him the 20 feet to the ground, landing hard and throwing chunks of stone across the room.</p><p></p><p>As Rhys moved over to tend Terenon’s wounds with Torm’s holy energy, Gillian raced up the stairs as well. Instead of leaping off the platform like the dwarf did, she took a few moments to get her bearings. Heaps of rubble cluttered the platform's surface. At its center stood the wreckage of a great device--a machine composed of lenses and gears aimed blindly toward the sky. Three foul nests of uncured hides and gore-spattered clothing lay atop the platform as well. Gill then lashed out at the last gargoyle with her spiked chain, scoring a hit.</p><p></p><p>The gargoyle on the ground lashed out at Grundar with its claws, teeth, and horns, but he was able dodge or parry each of the attacks. Grundar responded with a flurry of quick strikes that created several more bleeding wounds on the creature’s body.</p><p></p><p>"I may have been too late to prevent ye from shooting your blasted pin-pricks," Berek howled at his foe as he rolled to his feet, gobs of spittle flying with every word, "but I'll be damned if you'll leave this place in one piece!" The dwarf looked mad before—now he looked truly insane. Blood dribbled down his chin from where he'd begun to gnaw on his lip in anticipation, while his fingers flexed and twitched randomly on his hammer hilt. His foe scrambled to its feet and, flapping its stony wings took to the air. Berek delivered a massive parting shot with his hammer, but the creature survived and flapped across the room.</p><p></p><p>The third gargoyle spread its wings and lifted off the platform; Gill took a parting swipe at it but the chain passed harmlessly beneath. The creature flew backward and fired its bow at her, but she easily deflects the arrow out of the way.</p><p></p><p>As Allanon and Rhys concentrated on defenses against the gargoyles, Terenon regained consciousness and rose shakily to his feet. He thought he had been dead, and that scared him. Cursing the gargoyles’ ancestors, the mage counterattacked with a blast of chain lightning. Unfortunately, the nimble creatures were able to completely evade the deadly magic.</p><p></p><p>The two gargoyles in the air flapedp about the room, firing their bows at Gill. She deflected one of the arrows but was struck in the shoulder by the second. Again the third gargoyle lashed out at Grundar, and again he avoided the attacks.</p><p></p><p>Seeing that the gargoyles were giving as well as they were taking, Rhys closed his eyes briefly before chanting, "Torm's might is known to all, for evil is his foe. No matter the time or place or form it takes, no barrier can stop it. Guide our arms and strengthen our hearts while the true words of the one true deity cause pain to our enemies’ ears and fill their minds with fear and dread." The magic of the spell flowed through his allies and enemies.</p><p></p><p>Berek stepped up and engaged the landbound gargoyle in melee—though, strangely enough, he seemed to be splitting his time between swinging his weapon back and forth and freeing a hand to...well...punch himself in the side of the head. Whatever the reason Berek had for doing it, it certainly didn’t slow him down. He kept on swinging his maul until the gargoyle was a bloody pulp on the ground, then swung some more for good measure.</p><p></p><p>Deciding they could use some aerial support, Allanon began to cast a spell to summon a celestial griffon. As he worked his magic, Terenon worked some of his own and telekinetically tore of the gargoyles’ bows out of its hands.</p><p></p><p>Seeing Allanon beginning to summon something, the gargoyle that still had its bow fired at Allanon, scoring a hit in his shoulder. Luckily, the sorcerer was able to retain concentration on the spell. The second gargoyle charged down at Rhys and lashed out with a claw, but he managed to knock it aside with his staff.</p><p></p><p>Grundar moved to flank the gargoyle in front of Rhys and scored a deep hit in its back, eliciting a cry of pain and a spray of blood. Gill also lashed it several times with her spiked chain. Overwhelmed by the vicious assault, the creature collapsed. </p><p></p><p>Allanon utters the last syllables to his spell, and a large griffon with silver wings appeared and tore at the last remaining gargoyle, dragging it out of the air and causing both of them to plummet to the ground. Allanon then drew upon the wild magic of the Realms and the gargoyle's form began to change, transforming into a small, cuddly bunny rabbit. The griffon, glad to see a reasonably-sized snack, proceeded to tear the rabbit apart.</p><p>-------------------------------------------------------------------------</p><p>"That was so stupid of me,” muttered Terenon. </p><p></p><p>Once the griffon had finished its meal, Allanon had moved over and patted its mane. He had thanked it for its help before dismissing it. Rhys had then tended to the mages’ wounds as Grundar collected the gargoyles’ valuables.</p><p></p><p>“I can't believe I didn't prepare better,” Terenon continued. “The spells I save will be of no use when I'm dead." He looked to Rhys and smiled wanly. "You saved my life. Thank you. I owe you a debt I intend to repay." </p><p></p><p>Rhys returned the smile. “Terenon, I am grateful for your thanks, but it is nothing that any one of us would have done for another given the opportunity. We're all in this together. I'm sure at some point you'll return the favor.”</p><p></p><p>Berek snorted derisively and rolled his eyes. “Enough o’ this mushy stuff, let’s get on with it.” The dwarf paused for a long moment after speaking, clearly choosing his next words carefully. "Not that I really care, but I don't suppose any of you would be plannin' on buryin' or coverin' or somethin' your friend over there? I mean, she was yer friend, wasn't she?" Berek turned pointedly towards Osterel’s body as he said this, rubbing uneasily at the back of his neck.</p><p></p><p>Terenon turned to Berek with an unsettling smile. "She was more of a pet. She was one of those who we are fighting. I twisted her mind to serve us. She deserves to rot where she dropped."</p><p></p><p>Gill and Rhys shared a concerned look, but said nothing. The halfling then coughed a bit to change the subject. “Hate to say it, but I have to agree with the dwarf’s first sentiment. That fight was pretty loud, and if that Orichalxos or anybody else is around, they already know we’re coming.”</p><p></p><p>“Well then, madame,” said Grundar, gesturing toward the now-open door in the base of the platform, “ladies first.”</p><p></p><p>Beyond a door was a spiral staircase that descended about 20 feet, eventually opening into a small, subterranean chamber about 20 feet across. A passage to the west led to a low, vaulted room filled with crates, sacks, and casks. To the east, a larger passage led to a massive set of bronze double doors. Along the north wall was a small, rusty door made of iron plate.</p><p></p><p>After a cursory search of the supplies that turned up nothing interesting, the party opened the large double doors. The doors opened into a large but cluttered room, perhaps 50 feet long and 40 feet wide. In the center of the chamber stood a great machine made of tarnished brass and rusted iron. It consisted of several globes suspended from long arms that revolved slowly around the center of the device. Along the walls were crude workbenches and shelves piled high with musty old tomes and parchments covered with arcane scrawlings. The air smelled of some strange incense.</p><p></p><p>Grundar didn’t like the look of this. There had to be something more here. Concentrating hard, he spotted it; a disturbance in the air behind the machine. A large creature was lurking invisible here, waiting for an excuse to attack. Grundar leaned over to his comrades and whispered, “Somebody’s here.”</p><p></p><p>“We should try to communicate first,” replied Terenon. Then, stepping forward, he called out, “We mean you no harm. We are not here to fight you. We only wish to talk.”</p><p></p><p>The creature dismissed its invisibility spell, making it visible to all in the room. And what a sight it was.</p><p></p><p>It floated before them, a bulbous body with a huge, empty eye socket in the center of its face and a large maw filled with daggerlike teeth. Small eyes, attached to ten wriggling stalks, sprouted from the top of the orblike body. A beholder, but one that had seemingly gouged out its own central eye.</p><p></p><p>“Oh…crap,” whispered Allanon.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="ltclnlbrain, post: 1500332, member: 12882"] Chapter 6 The night passed without incident. Berek founds a relatively open area where he could dispose of the bodies without risking setting fire to the forest. With that grisly work out of the way, he joined the others in rest. Grundar arose from his reverie about four hours before the others; he watched the sun rise over the treetops while waiting for the others to awaken. After a brisk breakfast, the adventurers retraced their steps about half a mile and took the road they bypassed the night before. Within a bend of the stream ahead rose a low hill, crowned by the ruins of a domed building. Most of the dome had collapsed, leaving a jagged roofline above thick octagonal walls. The structure was made of polished white stone that was now covered with a thick patina of dirt and climbing ivy. Ancient designs of moons and stars lined the upper portions of the outer walls, interspersed with narrow, slitlike windows. A pair of massive green bronze doors marked the main entrance. “I would assume the entry way is trapped,” said Terenon, “but I have no skill in finding such things. I believe the key you took should work for the door." Grundar walked up to the bronze doors and began checking out the area for traps, being careful to take his time. Once he was satisfied that there were no traps, he put in the key and tried to unlock the door. Unfortunately, the key didn’t fit. “Looks like it goes somewhere else,” he said, shrugging. He pushed on the door a bit, but it didn’t budge. “It’s stuck.” The group studied the door for a bit, trying to figure out how to get in. Getting fed up with waiting, Allanon stepped forward and waved for the others to get behind him. Grabbing at the raw essence of magic in the Vale, he formed it into a spell and gestured at the door commanding it to open. Nothing happened. Well, not exactly nothing. Allanon could feel his whole body getting smaller in size. The whole world seemed to grow until he finally stabilized at a height no taller than Gill. He looked around in surprise at the results of the surge, and the rest of the party burst out in laughter. About a minute later, he grew back to his normal size. Terenon looked at the wild mage with amusement. "I have the spell knock. Obviously you are in a hurry." The mage let the arcane syllables slip from his mouth, and the rusty doors squealed in protest as they swung open. A magnificent dome once crowned the building, but it had collapsed long ago, leaving the interior open to the sky. Heaps of rubble lay here and there. In the center of the building, a large platform rose 10 feet above the floor, supported by thick columns. Steep, narrow stairs led from the floor up to the platform, and slender balconies accessible via other flights of stairs ran along the north and south walls. Some sort of pedestal or mount stood atop the platform, and a small bronze door was located beneath the platform The adventurers passed through the door and looked around, but before they had time to see much, two arrows flew at them from on top of the platform! One bounced off of Allanon's mage armor, but the other sunk deep into Terenon's shoulder. Now that they had attacked, the group could see two gargoyles clad in studded leather armor and wielding shortbows at the lip of the platform, cloaked in shadows. From beside the door, a third gargoyle charged at Osterel. It rammed into her with its horns and gored a large hunk out of her side, causing her to scream in pain. Its horns dripping Osterel's blood (which changed colors at random like her eyes), the gargoyles hissed menacingly. Before anybody could react, the gargoyles on the platform sent a barrage of arrows sailing at the mages. One arrow sunk deep into Allanon's chest, while the second was barely deflected by the mage armor. Unfortunately, the two arrows aimed at Terenon hit their mark, causing the wizard to collapse to the ground, dying. The third gargoyle tore at Osterel with its claws. The first claw opens up a bloody streak across the chaond's chest. She staggered to her knees, but not for long; the second claw tore across her throat, opening it up and causing her blood to spray all over the creature and the floor. Osterel collapsed in a quickly growing pool of blood, lying quite still and lifeless. “Rhys! Terenon is down!” shouted Grundar. The spry elf drew his rapier and tumbled around Osterel’s killer, opening a small puncture wound in its chest with his blade. "Fat lot of good being quiet did us!" Berek shouted as he rushed towards the platform, boots clomping loudly on the floor. "'Least if I had blown through the door we mighta had the element of surprise for a moment or two!" He scarcely missed a beat as he reached the stairs, leaping upward on them two at a time. Drawing near the gargoyles, his teeth snapped together with a loud clack, foam bubbled at his lips, and his shoulder lowered as he lines his body up for a bull rush. Shouting like a madman, the dwarf charged into the one on the left, plummeting down with him the 20 feet to the ground, landing hard and throwing chunks of stone across the room. As Rhys moved over to tend Terenon’s wounds with Torm’s holy energy, Gillian raced up the stairs as well. Instead of leaping off the platform like the dwarf did, she took a few moments to get her bearings. Heaps of rubble cluttered the platform's surface. At its center stood the wreckage of a great device--a machine composed of lenses and gears aimed blindly toward the sky. Three foul nests of uncured hides and gore-spattered clothing lay atop the platform as well. Gill then lashed out at the last gargoyle with her spiked chain, scoring a hit. The gargoyle on the ground lashed out at Grundar with its claws, teeth, and horns, but he was able dodge or parry each of the attacks. Grundar responded with a flurry of quick strikes that created several more bleeding wounds on the creature’s body. "I may have been too late to prevent ye from shooting your blasted pin-pricks," Berek howled at his foe as he rolled to his feet, gobs of spittle flying with every word, "but I'll be damned if you'll leave this place in one piece!" The dwarf looked mad before—now he looked truly insane. Blood dribbled down his chin from where he'd begun to gnaw on his lip in anticipation, while his fingers flexed and twitched randomly on his hammer hilt. His foe scrambled to its feet and, flapping its stony wings took to the air. Berek delivered a massive parting shot with his hammer, but the creature survived and flapped across the room. The third gargoyle spread its wings and lifted off the platform; Gill took a parting swipe at it but the chain passed harmlessly beneath. The creature flew backward and fired its bow at her, but she easily deflects the arrow out of the way. As Allanon and Rhys concentrated on defenses against the gargoyles, Terenon regained consciousness and rose shakily to his feet. He thought he had been dead, and that scared him. Cursing the gargoyles’ ancestors, the mage counterattacked with a blast of chain lightning. Unfortunately, the nimble creatures were able to completely evade the deadly magic. The two gargoyles in the air flapedp about the room, firing their bows at Gill. She deflected one of the arrows but was struck in the shoulder by the second. Again the third gargoyle lashed out at Grundar, and again he avoided the attacks. Seeing that the gargoyles were giving as well as they were taking, Rhys closed his eyes briefly before chanting, "Torm's might is known to all, for evil is his foe. No matter the time or place or form it takes, no barrier can stop it. Guide our arms and strengthen our hearts while the true words of the one true deity cause pain to our enemies’ ears and fill their minds with fear and dread." The magic of the spell flowed through his allies and enemies. Berek stepped up and engaged the landbound gargoyle in melee—though, strangely enough, he seemed to be splitting his time between swinging his weapon back and forth and freeing a hand to...well...punch himself in the side of the head. Whatever the reason Berek had for doing it, it certainly didn’t slow him down. He kept on swinging his maul until the gargoyle was a bloody pulp on the ground, then swung some more for good measure. Deciding they could use some aerial support, Allanon began to cast a spell to summon a celestial griffon. As he worked his magic, Terenon worked some of his own and telekinetically tore of the gargoyles’ bows out of its hands. Seeing Allanon beginning to summon something, the gargoyle that still had its bow fired at Allanon, scoring a hit in his shoulder. Luckily, the sorcerer was able to retain concentration on the spell. The second gargoyle charged down at Rhys and lashed out with a claw, but he managed to knock it aside with his staff. Grundar moved to flank the gargoyle in front of Rhys and scored a deep hit in its back, eliciting a cry of pain and a spray of blood. Gill also lashed it several times with her spiked chain. Overwhelmed by the vicious assault, the creature collapsed. Allanon utters the last syllables to his spell, and a large griffon with silver wings appeared and tore at the last remaining gargoyle, dragging it out of the air and causing both of them to plummet to the ground. Allanon then drew upon the wild magic of the Realms and the gargoyle's form began to change, transforming into a small, cuddly bunny rabbit. The griffon, glad to see a reasonably-sized snack, proceeded to tear the rabbit apart. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "That was so stupid of me,” muttered Terenon. Once the griffon had finished its meal, Allanon had moved over and patted its mane. He had thanked it for its help before dismissing it. Rhys had then tended to the mages’ wounds as Grundar collected the gargoyles’ valuables. “I can't believe I didn't prepare better,” Terenon continued. “The spells I save will be of no use when I'm dead." He looked to Rhys and smiled wanly. "You saved my life. Thank you. I owe you a debt I intend to repay." Rhys returned the smile. “Terenon, I am grateful for your thanks, but it is nothing that any one of us would have done for another given the opportunity. We're all in this together. I'm sure at some point you'll return the favor.” Berek snorted derisively and rolled his eyes. “Enough o’ this mushy stuff, let’s get on with it.” The dwarf paused for a long moment after speaking, clearly choosing his next words carefully. "Not that I really care, but I don't suppose any of you would be plannin' on buryin' or coverin' or somethin' your friend over there? I mean, she was yer friend, wasn't she?" Berek turned pointedly towards Osterel’s body as he said this, rubbing uneasily at the back of his neck. Terenon turned to Berek with an unsettling smile. "She was more of a pet. She was one of those who we are fighting. I twisted her mind to serve us. She deserves to rot where she dropped." Gill and Rhys shared a concerned look, but said nothing. The halfling then coughed a bit to change the subject. “Hate to say it, but I have to agree with the dwarf’s first sentiment. That fight was pretty loud, and if that Orichalxos or anybody else is around, they already know we’re coming.” “Well then, madame,” said Grundar, gesturing toward the now-open door in the base of the platform, “ladies first.” Beyond a door was a spiral staircase that descended about 20 feet, eventually opening into a small, subterranean chamber about 20 feet across. A passage to the west led to a low, vaulted room filled with crates, sacks, and casks. To the east, a larger passage led to a massive set of bronze double doors. Along the north wall was a small, rusty door made of iron plate. After a cursory search of the supplies that turned up nothing interesting, the party opened the large double doors. The doors opened into a large but cluttered room, perhaps 50 feet long and 40 feet wide. In the center of the chamber stood a great machine made of tarnished brass and rusted iron. It consisted of several globes suspended from long arms that revolved slowly around the center of the device. Along the walls were crude workbenches and shelves piled high with musty old tomes and parchments covered with arcane scrawlings. The air smelled of some strange incense. Grundar didn’t like the look of this. There had to be something more here. Concentrating hard, he spotted it; a disturbance in the air behind the machine. A large creature was lurking invisible here, waiting for an excuse to attack. Grundar leaned over to his comrades and whispered, “Somebody’s here.” “We should try to communicate first,” replied Terenon. Then, stepping forward, he called out, “We mean you no harm. We are not here to fight you. We only wish to talk.” The creature dismissed its invisibility spell, making it visible to all in the room. And what a sight it was. It floated before them, a bulbous body with a huge, empty eye socket in the center of its face and a large maw filled with daggerlike teeth. Small eyes, attached to ten wriggling stalks, sprouted from the top of the orblike body. A beholder, but one that had seemingly gouged out its own central eye. “Oh…crap,” whispered Allanon. [/QUOTE]
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