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Session 6, Part 3: Danger Escapes...
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The others made it to the bottom of the stairs only to find it was too late.
A horde of cultists was waiting for them brandishing their weapons, and they didn’t think twice about stomping across the mangled body that was once known as Spiderfang. Holden was the first to engage in combat, but fighting on the stairs only held the rest of the party back.
After taking a few volleys of magic missiles, Drexel had an idea. The heroes were starting to even the odds, but the evil spellcaster was much more powerful than the party. With a whisk of his hand, Drexel called upon his innate ability as a tiefling to summon a sheet of darkness. As soon as the wizard had lost sight of the party, they started to pull themselves together and renewed the relentlessness of their assault. Borghin rained bolts down on the cultists like a furious storm, while Ziona summoned a celestial creature to gnaw at their legs.
When all of the attackers on the near side of the darkness had fallen, Drexel turned to the Air Genasi captive with a finger pressed to his lips. Holden and Drexel stood still to listen for movement from the hidden wizard and his two bodyguards while Borghin stealthily unlocked the slave.
Ziona hovered over Spiderfang’s limp and trampled body. With tears in her eyes, she prayed for Eilistraee to guide him into the afterlife. She had never witnessed a death before, and she felt helpless since Tansooth was wounded beyond the capacity of her restorative powers.
The party waited for the darkness to pass, readied with weapons drawn. Beads of sweat rolled down their faces with nervousness and anticipation. The evil wizard had far too much time to prepare, and although they knew that they could beat him, they were afraid that they could suffer another casualty. However, when the blackness began to dissipate and the remainder of the room was revealed, it was empty.
Searching around fanatically, they managed to find a secret door. Ready for battle, Holden whipped the door open, only to find that it was an ancient storage closet and not an escape passage. The room was very dusty and it was obvious that no one had entered this area for hundreds of years. Drexel’s eyes lit up when they discovered a very detailed instruction manual on the topic of enchanting magic weapons. There was other booty to be found in the secret room as well, including two scrolls, a spellbook, and a few finely crafted rapiers.
Still, the party had no answers as to the disappearance of the cultist wizard and his minions. They continued to search the room and Ziona helped them with the use of a detect magic spell. There were two areas of great interest, each radiating auras of magic. First a well-worn wooden workbench riddled with character from it’s many cuts and scratches radiated with the residue of spells that had been forged into magic weapons. The second was an 8-foot-wide circular area within a small alcove, carved to display a splendid city within a great forest. In front of the ornate wall stood a 1-foot-wide iron brazier full of a granular white substance, which was quickly identified as salt.
“That’s Myth Drannor,” exclaimed Holden, who was overly excited by the fact that he was able to identify the location.
Ziona stated in pure awe, “Wow! That wall is very magical!”
Holden waved to the rest of the party, “Give me a few minutes, I’ll figure this out.”
Meanwhile, the party talked to the Air Genasi, Arion, about how he had become captured. He explained that he was a wilderness wanderer who had been ambushed in the nearby woods. He said that the cultists referred to “putting him to work in the crypts.”
He offered to help the party track down the evil mage who had stripped him of his equipment. The party, now down one member, was more than willing to have Arion join their ranks. He rippled with finely toned muscles. He could definitely add that level of physical force that the group seemed to be lacking.
After doling out a weapon and some potions to Arion, the party organized a makeshift funeral for Spiderfang. They hauled his body upstairs, and placed him in a bed that was curtained off from the others. It was decided that beasts and animals would not likely find the body before they returned from avenging his death. Ziona spoke a short but poetic eulogy of her fallen friend who had perished before his time.
Returning downstairs, everyone was in a somber mood. Drexel turned to Holden and asked, “Let’s just get this over with, so how do we get through the wall?”
Holden’s face reddened. “Um, I still haven’t figured it out.”
Holden tried taking a handful and then walking through the wall unsuccessfully. One time he closed his eyes and attempted to confidently walk through, while speaking, “I disbelieve,” only to smash his face into the relief covered wall another time.
Over the next two hours, the party struggled with the mystery of the wall. Finally, Holden went back to experimenting with the salt, and as he rubbed some across the wall, a portal opened into a well-lit cave.
“Oh, THAT’s why there’s all of that salt on the floor.”
------------------------------------------
Still more to come…
-------------------------------------------
Session 6, Part 3: Danger Escapes...
-------------------------------------------
The others made it to the bottom of the stairs only to find it was too late.
A horde of cultists was waiting for them brandishing their weapons, and they didn’t think twice about stomping across the mangled body that was once known as Spiderfang. Holden was the first to engage in combat, but fighting on the stairs only held the rest of the party back.
After taking a few volleys of magic missiles, Drexel had an idea. The heroes were starting to even the odds, but the evil spellcaster was much more powerful than the party. With a whisk of his hand, Drexel called upon his innate ability as a tiefling to summon a sheet of darkness. As soon as the wizard had lost sight of the party, they started to pull themselves together and renewed the relentlessness of their assault. Borghin rained bolts down on the cultists like a furious storm, while Ziona summoned a celestial creature to gnaw at their legs.
When all of the attackers on the near side of the darkness had fallen, Drexel turned to the Air Genasi captive with a finger pressed to his lips. Holden and Drexel stood still to listen for movement from the hidden wizard and his two bodyguards while Borghin stealthily unlocked the slave.
Ziona hovered over Spiderfang’s limp and trampled body. With tears in her eyes, she prayed for Eilistraee to guide him into the afterlife. She had never witnessed a death before, and she felt helpless since Tansooth was wounded beyond the capacity of her restorative powers.
The party waited for the darkness to pass, readied with weapons drawn. Beads of sweat rolled down their faces with nervousness and anticipation. The evil wizard had far too much time to prepare, and although they knew that they could beat him, they were afraid that they could suffer another casualty. However, when the blackness began to dissipate and the remainder of the room was revealed, it was empty.
Searching around fanatically, they managed to find a secret door. Ready for battle, Holden whipped the door open, only to find that it was an ancient storage closet and not an escape passage. The room was very dusty and it was obvious that no one had entered this area for hundreds of years. Drexel’s eyes lit up when they discovered a very detailed instruction manual on the topic of enchanting magic weapons. There was other booty to be found in the secret room as well, including two scrolls, a spellbook, and a few finely crafted rapiers.
Still, the party had no answers as to the disappearance of the cultist wizard and his minions. They continued to search the room and Ziona helped them with the use of a detect magic spell. There were two areas of great interest, each radiating auras of magic. First a well-worn wooden workbench riddled with character from it’s many cuts and scratches radiated with the residue of spells that had been forged into magic weapons. The second was an 8-foot-wide circular area within a small alcove, carved to display a splendid city within a great forest. In front of the ornate wall stood a 1-foot-wide iron brazier full of a granular white substance, which was quickly identified as salt.
“That’s Myth Drannor,” exclaimed Holden, who was overly excited by the fact that he was able to identify the location.
Ziona stated in pure awe, “Wow! That wall is very magical!”
Holden waved to the rest of the party, “Give me a few minutes, I’ll figure this out.”
Meanwhile, the party talked to the Air Genasi, Arion, about how he had become captured. He explained that he was a wilderness wanderer who had been ambushed in the nearby woods. He said that the cultists referred to “putting him to work in the crypts.”
He offered to help the party track down the evil mage who had stripped him of his equipment. The party, now down one member, was more than willing to have Arion join their ranks. He rippled with finely toned muscles. He could definitely add that level of physical force that the group seemed to be lacking.
After doling out a weapon and some potions to Arion, the party organized a makeshift funeral for Spiderfang. They hauled his body upstairs, and placed him in a bed that was curtained off from the others. It was decided that beasts and animals would not likely find the body before they returned from avenging his death. Ziona spoke a short but poetic eulogy of her fallen friend who had perished before his time.
Returning downstairs, everyone was in a somber mood. Drexel turned to Holden and asked, “Let’s just get this over with, so how do we get through the wall?”
Holden’s face reddened. “Um, I still haven’t figured it out.”
Holden tried taking a handful and then walking through the wall unsuccessfully. One time he closed his eyes and attempted to confidently walk through, while speaking, “I disbelieve,” only to smash his face into the relief covered wall another time.
Over the next two hours, the party struggled with the mystery of the wall. Finally, Holden went back to experimenting with the salt, and as he rubbed some across the wall, a portal opened into a well-lit cave.
“Oh, THAT’s why there’s all of that salt on the floor.”
------------------------------------------
Still more to come…
-------------------------------------------
