war wizard
First Post
But for the adopted Daywalker, the end result of the final encounter may have been very different.
JollyDoc's Shackled City: FINAL POST [Updated 11/2!!]
JollyDoc
Explorer
R-Hero said:AHEM!!!![:]](http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png "Devious :]")
Let us not forget the adopted Daywalker that [Spoiler Deleted] at the very end.
There has to be something written on the Lords of the Iron Fortress, even if its just a shorthand account.
Yeah, yeah, yeah...I think I will post it as a synopsis, as suggested. Probably have Rusty telling his wild story of planar travel to Jenya over a beer.
JollyDoc
Explorer
INTO OBLIVION
As the rest of the band hurried down stairs into the foyer, Kiko dashed quickly through the archway across the balcony and up a short flight of stairs to the third story. He did not believe Lord Vhalantru would be there, especially not now with the house slowly going up in flames, but he didn’t want to provide the noble an easy escape by being careless. A brief room-to-room search revealed only richly appointed guest rooms and no sign of anyone inhabiting them. The guards must have been posted in the hallway to prevent break-ins by enterprising burglars. The monk rushed back downstairs, expecting his companions to have dispersed to search the rest of the house. Instead, he found them still gathered in the foyer, apparently engrossed in examining several statues there. “What are you doing!?” he shouted. “Have you lost your minds? We don’t have time to admire the sculpture!”
“Easy lad,” Rusty said. “Take a closer look. These ain’t just ordinary artwork.”
Kiko shook his head in exasperation, but nevertheless stepped up to the nearest statue. It appeared to be a depiction of a male dwarven warrior wearing plate armor and carrying a greatsword. At first, Kiko noticed nothing unusual about it, but suddenly he realized that the craftsmanship was extraordinary. Though no art critic by any means, even his untrained eye could see the almost life-like quality of the detail. It was disturbing in its authenticity. Furthermore, the statue did not rest upon a pedestal, but instead was freestanding. The other three sculptures were equally impressive. One was a female halfling crouched with a staff in one hand and a short sword in the other. Another was an unarmed and unarmored human male poised in what Kiko immediately recognized as the joom-bi ready stance of his own unique fighting style. The last statue was of a male gnome holding a morning star and clutching a small shield. The symbol of the gnome god Garl Glittergold hung around his neck. “What are these?” the monk asked quietly, momentarily heedless of the flames crackling behind him.
“I’m not sure,” Rusty answered, “but I can tell ye this ain’t like any stonework I’ve ever seen. T’ain’t natural.”
“You’re correct, my lord,” Gunther said. “It is not natural at all. In fact, I would venture to say it’s magical. Though I can’t be sure, I think these were once living, breathing people, and now they’ve been petrified.”
“Petrified?” Grimm asked. “What do you mean? They were turned to stone? By whom?”
“That’s the question o’ the day lad,” Rusty answered. “By whom…or by what?”
______________________________________________________
Towards the front door, in the main entry, they came across four more of the strange statues: a female elf dressed in robes; a male elf clad in forest garb and carrying a long bow; a female elf in armor and carrying a shield emblazoned with the crest of Corellon Larethian, chief among the elvish gods; and a second male elf wearing a cowl and carrying a vine-like whip. It seemed that Vhalantru was quite the collector of rare art. It also seemed to the group that their situation was even more dangerous than they had expected.
Beyond the foyer they found a large parlor, an opulent dining room, and the kitchens. All were free of inhabitants, and seemed to have no other exits, save for the latter room, which had a small wine storage area off the far side. It was Tilly who found what they were looking for. He was searching among the casks and wine racks, hoping to find evidence of a cellar entrance, when his hand simply passed through one of the walls. The little rogue shrieked in fear for a moment, thinking he had triggered some sort of trap and had lost a hand because of it. Then, realizing he wasn’t feeling any pain, he slowly drew his hand out of the wall, finding it intact and unharmed. An illusion then, he concluded. “Look here,” he shouted to the others, and then as they all stared in wonder, he simply stepped through the false barrier. One by one, the Bright Axes followed, finding themselves in a circular room containing six more of the life-like statues. There was a male halfling with a quizzical expression etched onto his face; a female elf aiming a wand; a female human drinking a potion; a cheetah; a male human with his long sword and short sword crossed in a blocking maneuver; and last, a bear. The six figures were arrayed in a circle around a ten-foot wide shaft in the middle of the floor. It seemed to plunge straight down, and even with the keen eyes of some of the party members, no bottom could be seen.
“It would seem that we’ve found our rat’s bolt hole,” Kiko remarked dryly as he gazed into the black depths of the shaft. “I would say that our path has been chosen for us. I’ll go first. The rest of you follow as you may, but please…don’t take too long.” With that, the monk stepped off the edge of the opening, free-falling into the darkness and disappearing from sight. Reckless as the act seemed, it was actually completely premeditated. As Kiko dropped, he kept his body within inches of the wall of the shaft. Every second or so, he would reach out and lightly touch the wall with his fingertips, or his feet. Gradually, this continued friction began slowing his descent. When he finally fell from the bottom of the shaft, it was at a speed no more than if he had jumped down a distance of ten feet. Landing lightly, he found himself in a thirty-foot high, forty-foot diameter cylindrical chamber. Carved into the rough walls at various heights were twenty-one shallow alcoves, each holding an ancient statue. A twelve-foot high opening in the north wall led into darkness. Unfortunately, Kiko also found he was not alone. Three half-orcs stood before the archway, and as one they turned towards him. The chamber was pitch black, and only the soft blue light from the monk’s kama revealed the features of the guards. As they lurched into its shallow radius, Kiko saw that they weren’t quite…whole. Their faces seemed partially eaten away, and bone and sinew showed through their skin in various places. They bore no weapons, reaching for him with ragged claws and bared teeth. “Now would be good!” he shouted towards the blackness far above him.
At that very moment, his companions were already on their way. Dalthon and Gunther had pooled their magical resources to imbue the power of flight on themselves, Grimm, Rusty and Tilly. It was Rusty who arrived first at the bottom of the shaft, just as the zombies had completely encircled Kiko. “Bah!” the priest scoffed, seeing the anxious look on the monk’s face. “Is this all yer hollerin’ about? Stand back laddy and watch the Lady’s power at work.” Rusty then drew his amulet bearing Mystra’s symbol from beneath his breastplate. Holding it aloft, he shouted: “Return to your graves, worm food! By the power of the Weave I command it!” One by one the zombies shielded their eyes, moaning in agony as the holy light poured over them. Their desiccated bodies began to collapse inward, turning to dust. However, just as each one imploded completely, a brilliant flash of red light erupted from them. Standing in their places were now three frog-like humanoids, with sickly yellow skin covered in black ichor. “That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Rusty muttered, lowering his holy symbol and backing towards Kiko. One of the creatures waved its clawed hand in a large arc, and a shimmering portal appeared in mid-air. From this doorway, four more of the monsters appeared, hemming in the priest and the monk.
Just then, Gunther and Dalthon flew into the chamber and observed what had transpired. “Demodands,” Gunther shouted to the sorcerer. “Outsiders native to Carceri! This could be trouble!”
“Do you think?” Dalthon replied sarcastically. “Don’t just hover their gawking, do something!” With that, the sorcerer soared along the ceiling, then focusing on three of the demons, he hurled a ball of roaring flames towards them. It exploded with a terrific blast, flinging the outsiders in all directions, and buying Kiko and Rusty precious time. Apparently inspired, Gunther repeated the feat from the far side of the room, causing minor damage to the other four demodands, but also managing to divert their attention momentarily. Rusty didn’t waste the opportunity. Calling on one of his most powerful miracles, he conjured a blistering blast of diamond-like shards of pure solidified holy energy. The spray ripped through the flesh of the demodands, but passed harmlessly thru Kiko. The creatures howled in agony, and one of the ones that had stepped through the portal suddenly winked out of existence.
It was at that point that Grimm and Tilly arrived. The rogue had rendered himself invisible on the way down, and he now flew down behind one of the ravening demons, slicing at it repeatedly and taking it completely by surprise. Grimm landed like a sledgehammer right in the middle of the horde. With pure instinct, Kiko leaped to the half-ogre’s side, standing back to back with his brother-in-arms. The demodands surged forward, slashing and ripping at the two warriors, but it only took a well-placed strike from Grimm’s chain, and a barrage of kicks and blows from Kiko to fell two more of them and cause the rest to retreat several cautious steps. Though the faces of the outsiders appeared feral and stupid, their piggish eyes betrayed a cunning intelligence underneath. As one, the four demodands began gesturing and swaying. Before Kiko and Grimm knew what was happening, four waves of magical energy washed over them, and each could feel several of the defensive enchantments placed upon them suddenly cease to exist. “I think we might have underestimated them,” Kiko whispered over his shoulder to his friend. “Nah!” the half-ogre laughed, “This just makes it more interesting.” With a simultaneous war cry, the pair leaped forward, carrying the fight to the demodands, overwhelming the monsters with their sheer ferocity. Behind them, Rusty summoned Mystra’s might again, in the form of a single word of Holy power. The blast of energy further weakened the already beleaguered creatures, and though they fought like demons-possessed, the battle was ended quickly, and decisively.
______________________________________________
“Natives of Carceri, ye say?” Rusty asked Gunther.
“Why yes!” the theurge replied cheerfully, excited that his liege was interested in the information he had to offer. “There are actually three known species of them: the farastu, which we just encountered, the kelubar, and…”
“Yeah, yeah,” Rusty waved his hand dismissively and Gunther’s face fell. “I just think it’s awfully interestin’ that a bunch o’demons from the plane the Cagewrights are tryin’ to open a portal too are runnin’ around underneath the good Lord Vhalantru’s house!”
“Quite a coincidence, I would agree,” Dalthon said thoughtfully from across the room where he had been investigating the arched exit there. The dark opening gave onto a second shaft, descending even further below ground, this one apparently every bit as deep and dark as the first. “I suppose the rest of our answers will be found down there. While our ability to fly still lasts, I suggest we press on and have Vhalantru answer them personally.”
Cautiously, and as quietly as they could, the party descended the second shaft, this time with Kiko riding piggyback on Grimm so as not to stumble into another ambush alone. After about one-hundred feet or so (by Rusty’s best estimate), they came upon a large and intricate circular door measuring nine feet across that seemed to seal off some sort of side passage leading from the main shaft. The portal was made of interlocking parts composed primarily of darkwood, bone, iron and adamantine. Its face had been worked into the likeness of a stylized beholder with ten eyestalks. Set into each eyestalk was a different colored gemstone, and set into the large central eye was a transparent crystal the size of a human fist. The thick, stone door frame surrounding the portal was shaped like a ring and carved with eight strange glyphs. “Do ye ken it?” Rusty asked Gunther as they hovered before the door. “Yes,” the smaller dwarf nodded, seeing that the glyphs were letters of the Undercommon alphabet. “It spells OBLIVION.” “Sounds like a nice little vacation spot,” Rusty snorted. “I vote we leave it be fer now. Don’t see no way past it anyhow.” The others couldn’t argue, and so they continued their descent.
__________________________________________
The bottom of the shaft was unremarkable, save for two archways leading from it east and west. To the west was a short hall blocked at the far end by another of the large, circular doors, identical to the one they had just passed. To the east lay a second, larger circular chamber, empty except for a scattering of old, gnawed bones, dried droppings from some large animal, and tattered bits of leather. On the north side of this room was a third OBLIVION door. “It would seem we have no choice now,” Grimm remarked to no one in particular. Tilly sighed, then cracked his knuckles. “Let me have a look at it first. Living in that old locksmith’s shop has given me sort of a knack for this kind of thing.” The little rogue stood squarely in front of the large portal, examining it thoroughly with his eyes first, and then running his hands across its surface. Finally, he nodded in satisfaction. “It’s trapped alright,” he announced, “but I think I can disarm it. Just the same, the rest of you might want to stand back.” Not needing to be told a second time, his companions all moved a respectful distance away from the great door. Tilly began touching each of the ten gemstones in sequence, then the central eye. He quickly stood back afterwards, eyeing the door expectantly. Suddenly, five of the gems flared brilliantly, and then five beams of scorching light arced from them, slamming into the halfling and smashing him to the floor. “Tilly!” Grimm shouted, rushing towards him. “I’m…okay,” the rogue stammered, though the smoke rising from his clothes and his hair seemed to contradict that statement. “I…almost had it. Maybe one more try…” “Ferget it!” Rusty shouted. “Last thing we need is fer you to get yerself kilt. Lemme try somethin’ first, and then ye’ll get a second chance. Stand back, all o’ye!” Obediently the others retreated again. Rusty began a prayer, moving his hands in large circles. When he had finished, he put his hands on his hips and said, “Now yer clear.” Tilly wasn’t exactly sure what the priest meant. He could see no effect from Rusty’s spellcasting, and as far as he could tell, the trap was still active. “Umm…are you sure?” he asked. “Of course I’m sure!” Rusty barked. “I got me a null-magic field around me. It’ll keep those beams from fryin’ yer tail while ye disarm the trap.” Tilly nodded in dawning comprehension, and then went to work. In a matter of minutes, he was satisfied that the deadly trap was indeed disarmed, but unfortunately, the locking mechanism on the door was still to intricate for him to bypass. Once again, Rusty had the solution.
Gathering the group into two circles, Gunther and Dalthon both called on their transdimensional magic and willed themselves and their charges to the other side of the portal. On the far side, they found yet another circular room, this one twenty-feet high, with brick covering the walls, floor and ceiling. Some of the bricks in the north wall had been neatly removed, creating rows of cubbyholes and giving it a slightly pockmarked look. Many of the cubbyholes appeared to hold bits of treasure. One piece in particular caught Kiko’s eye. It was an exquisitely crafted kama, glowing softly and with its blade coated in a thin rime of frost. The monk reached for it, testing its heft and balance. Suddenly, a loud grinding noise sounded from behind him and he whirled on his heel. The very floor of the chamber seemed to be shifting and churning, reshaping itself into two large, animated stone statues…golems! The rest of the group was caught equally by surprise, and for Gunther, it was a fatal error. The theurge had just turned to look at the golems, when a massive, hammer-like fist fell upon him, crushing him to the ground where he lay unmoving, his body twisted at an unnatural angle. “Gunther! No!” Rusty cried, dashing towards his cohort. The second golem prepared to send him to join his friend, but it was then that Grimm, Tilly and Kiko sprang into action. Throwing themselves between the golems and the dwarves, they managed to divert the attention of the behemoths, giving Rusty one desperate chance to capture Gunther’s spirit before it departed the prime material plane forever. Summoning a powerful spell from Mystra, the priest invoked a revivification upon his friend, seizing his spirit just as it left his body, and jolting him back to life. The theurge gasped, opened his eyes and blinked uncontrollably. Rusty scooped him up and dashed for cover on the far side of the room.
Meanwhile, Grimm, Tilly and Kiko were dealing decisively with the golems. Though the constructs were enormously strong, they were also slow and it didn’t take long for the three well-trained friends to outmaneuver them and smash them to so much harmless rubble.
Rusty tended Gunther’s remaining wounds, all the while admonishing the younger dwarf to stay out of harm’s way, even though the theurge had not voluntarily put himself there in the first place. The chamber itself seemed to be a dead-end. The treasure was abundant, and apparently for the taking once the guardians had been neutralized, but there was no other way out. Once more, Dalthon and Gunther transported the group to the other side of the door, and then they regrouped before the western portal. “Let’s do it,” Rusty said, and linking hands one final time, Dalthon, Rusty and Grimm dimension doored, followed immediately by Kiko, Tilly and Gunther.
As the rest of the band hurried down stairs into the foyer, Kiko dashed quickly through the archway across the balcony and up a short flight of stairs to the third story. He did not believe Lord Vhalantru would be there, especially not now with the house slowly going up in flames, but he didn’t want to provide the noble an easy escape by being careless. A brief room-to-room search revealed only richly appointed guest rooms and no sign of anyone inhabiting them. The guards must have been posted in the hallway to prevent break-ins by enterprising burglars. The monk rushed back downstairs, expecting his companions to have dispersed to search the rest of the house. Instead, he found them still gathered in the foyer, apparently engrossed in examining several statues there. “What are you doing!?” he shouted. “Have you lost your minds? We don’t have time to admire the sculpture!”
“Easy lad,” Rusty said. “Take a closer look. These ain’t just ordinary artwork.”
Kiko shook his head in exasperation, but nevertheless stepped up to the nearest statue. It appeared to be a depiction of a male dwarven warrior wearing plate armor and carrying a greatsword. At first, Kiko noticed nothing unusual about it, but suddenly he realized that the craftsmanship was extraordinary. Though no art critic by any means, even his untrained eye could see the almost life-like quality of the detail. It was disturbing in its authenticity. Furthermore, the statue did not rest upon a pedestal, but instead was freestanding. The other three sculptures were equally impressive. One was a female halfling crouched with a staff in one hand and a short sword in the other. Another was an unarmed and unarmored human male poised in what Kiko immediately recognized as the joom-bi ready stance of his own unique fighting style. The last statue was of a male gnome holding a morning star and clutching a small shield. The symbol of the gnome god Garl Glittergold hung around his neck. “What are these?” the monk asked quietly, momentarily heedless of the flames crackling behind him.
“I’m not sure,” Rusty answered, “but I can tell ye this ain’t like any stonework I’ve ever seen. T’ain’t natural.”
“You’re correct, my lord,” Gunther said. “It is not natural at all. In fact, I would venture to say it’s magical. Though I can’t be sure, I think these were once living, breathing people, and now they’ve been petrified.”
“Petrified?” Grimm asked. “What do you mean? They were turned to stone? By whom?”
“That’s the question o’ the day lad,” Rusty answered. “By whom…or by what?”
______________________________________________________
Towards the front door, in the main entry, they came across four more of the strange statues: a female elf dressed in robes; a male elf clad in forest garb and carrying a long bow; a female elf in armor and carrying a shield emblazoned with the crest of Corellon Larethian, chief among the elvish gods; and a second male elf wearing a cowl and carrying a vine-like whip. It seemed that Vhalantru was quite the collector of rare art. It also seemed to the group that their situation was even more dangerous than they had expected.
Beyond the foyer they found a large parlor, an opulent dining room, and the kitchens. All were free of inhabitants, and seemed to have no other exits, save for the latter room, which had a small wine storage area off the far side. It was Tilly who found what they were looking for. He was searching among the casks and wine racks, hoping to find evidence of a cellar entrance, when his hand simply passed through one of the walls. The little rogue shrieked in fear for a moment, thinking he had triggered some sort of trap and had lost a hand because of it. Then, realizing he wasn’t feeling any pain, he slowly drew his hand out of the wall, finding it intact and unharmed. An illusion then, he concluded. “Look here,” he shouted to the others, and then as they all stared in wonder, he simply stepped through the false barrier. One by one, the Bright Axes followed, finding themselves in a circular room containing six more of the life-like statues. There was a male halfling with a quizzical expression etched onto his face; a female elf aiming a wand; a female human drinking a potion; a cheetah; a male human with his long sword and short sword crossed in a blocking maneuver; and last, a bear. The six figures were arrayed in a circle around a ten-foot wide shaft in the middle of the floor. It seemed to plunge straight down, and even with the keen eyes of some of the party members, no bottom could be seen.
“It would seem that we’ve found our rat’s bolt hole,” Kiko remarked dryly as he gazed into the black depths of the shaft. “I would say that our path has been chosen for us. I’ll go first. The rest of you follow as you may, but please…don’t take too long.” With that, the monk stepped off the edge of the opening, free-falling into the darkness and disappearing from sight. Reckless as the act seemed, it was actually completely premeditated. As Kiko dropped, he kept his body within inches of the wall of the shaft. Every second or so, he would reach out and lightly touch the wall with his fingertips, or his feet. Gradually, this continued friction began slowing his descent. When he finally fell from the bottom of the shaft, it was at a speed no more than if he had jumped down a distance of ten feet. Landing lightly, he found himself in a thirty-foot high, forty-foot diameter cylindrical chamber. Carved into the rough walls at various heights were twenty-one shallow alcoves, each holding an ancient statue. A twelve-foot high opening in the north wall led into darkness. Unfortunately, Kiko also found he was not alone. Three half-orcs stood before the archway, and as one they turned towards him. The chamber was pitch black, and only the soft blue light from the monk’s kama revealed the features of the guards. As they lurched into its shallow radius, Kiko saw that they weren’t quite…whole. Their faces seemed partially eaten away, and bone and sinew showed through their skin in various places. They bore no weapons, reaching for him with ragged claws and bared teeth. “Now would be good!” he shouted towards the blackness far above him.
At that very moment, his companions were already on their way. Dalthon and Gunther had pooled their magical resources to imbue the power of flight on themselves, Grimm, Rusty and Tilly. It was Rusty who arrived first at the bottom of the shaft, just as the zombies had completely encircled Kiko. “Bah!” the priest scoffed, seeing the anxious look on the monk’s face. “Is this all yer hollerin’ about? Stand back laddy and watch the Lady’s power at work.” Rusty then drew his amulet bearing Mystra’s symbol from beneath his breastplate. Holding it aloft, he shouted: “Return to your graves, worm food! By the power of the Weave I command it!” One by one the zombies shielded their eyes, moaning in agony as the holy light poured over them. Their desiccated bodies began to collapse inward, turning to dust. However, just as each one imploded completely, a brilliant flash of red light erupted from them. Standing in their places were now three frog-like humanoids, with sickly yellow skin covered in black ichor. “That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Rusty muttered, lowering his holy symbol and backing towards Kiko. One of the creatures waved its clawed hand in a large arc, and a shimmering portal appeared in mid-air. From this doorway, four more of the monsters appeared, hemming in the priest and the monk.
Just then, Gunther and Dalthon flew into the chamber and observed what had transpired. “Demodands,” Gunther shouted to the sorcerer. “Outsiders native to Carceri! This could be trouble!”
“Do you think?” Dalthon replied sarcastically. “Don’t just hover their gawking, do something!” With that, the sorcerer soared along the ceiling, then focusing on three of the demons, he hurled a ball of roaring flames towards them. It exploded with a terrific blast, flinging the outsiders in all directions, and buying Kiko and Rusty precious time. Apparently inspired, Gunther repeated the feat from the far side of the room, causing minor damage to the other four demodands, but also managing to divert their attention momentarily. Rusty didn’t waste the opportunity. Calling on one of his most powerful miracles, he conjured a blistering blast of diamond-like shards of pure solidified holy energy. The spray ripped through the flesh of the demodands, but passed harmlessly thru Kiko. The creatures howled in agony, and one of the ones that had stepped through the portal suddenly winked out of existence.
It was at that point that Grimm and Tilly arrived. The rogue had rendered himself invisible on the way down, and he now flew down behind one of the ravening demons, slicing at it repeatedly and taking it completely by surprise. Grimm landed like a sledgehammer right in the middle of the horde. With pure instinct, Kiko leaped to the half-ogre’s side, standing back to back with his brother-in-arms. The demodands surged forward, slashing and ripping at the two warriors, but it only took a well-placed strike from Grimm’s chain, and a barrage of kicks and blows from Kiko to fell two more of them and cause the rest to retreat several cautious steps. Though the faces of the outsiders appeared feral and stupid, their piggish eyes betrayed a cunning intelligence underneath. As one, the four demodands began gesturing and swaying. Before Kiko and Grimm knew what was happening, four waves of magical energy washed over them, and each could feel several of the defensive enchantments placed upon them suddenly cease to exist. “I think we might have underestimated them,” Kiko whispered over his shoulder to his friend. “Nah!” the half-ogre laughed, “This just makes it more interesting.” With a simultaneous war cry, the pair leaped forward, carrying the fight to the demodands, overwhelming the monsters with their sheer ferocity. Behind them, Rusty summoned Mystra’s might again, in the form of a single word of Holy power. The blast of energy further weakened the already beleaguered creatures, and though they fought like demons-possessed, the battle was ended quickly, and decisively.
______________________________________________
“Natives of Carceri, ye say?” Rusty asked Gunther.
“Why yes!” the theurge replied cheerfully, excited that his liege was interested in the information he had to offer. “There are actually three known species of them: the farastu, which we just encountered, the kelubar, and…”
“Yeah, yeah,” Rusty waved his hand dismissively and Gunther’s face fell. “I just think it’s awfully interestin’ that a bunch o’demons from the plane the Cagewrights are tryin’ to open a portal too are runnin’ around underneath the good Lord Vhalantru’s house!”
“Quite a coincidence, I would agree,” Dalthon said thoughtfully from across the room where he had been investigating the arched exit there. The dark opening gave onto a second shaft, descending even further below ground, this one apparently every bit as deep and dark as the first. “I suppose the rest of our answers will be found down there. While our ability to fly still lasts, I suggest we press on and have Vhalantru answer them personally.”
Cautiously, and as quietly as they could, the party descended the second shaft, this time with Kiko riding piggyback on Grimm so as not to stumble into another ambush alone. After about one-hundred feet or so (by Rusty’s best estimate), they came upon a large and intricate circular door measuring nine feet across that seemed to seal off some sort of side passage leading from the main shaft. The portal was made of interlocking parts composed primarily of darkwood, bone, iron and adamantine. Its face had been worked into the likeness of a stylized beholder with ten eyestalks. Set into each eyestalk was a different colored gemstone, and set into the large central eye was a transparent crystal the size of a human fist. The thick, stone door frame surrounding the portal was shaped like a ring and carved with eight strange glyphs. “Do ye ken it?” Rusty asked Gunther as they hovered before the door. “Yes,” the smaller dwarf nodded, seeing that the glyphs were letters of the Undercommon alphabet. “It spells OBLIVION.” “Sounds like a nice little vacation spot,” Rusty snorted. “I vote we leave it be fer now. Don’t see no way past it anyhow.” The others couldn’t argue, and so they continued their descent.
__________________________________________
The bottom of the shaft was unremarkable, save for two archways leading from it east and west. To the west was a short hall blocked at the far end by another of the large, circular doors, identical to the one they had just passed. To the east lay a second, larger circular chamber, empty except for a scattering of old, gnawed bones, dried droppings from some large animal, and tattered bits of leather. On the north side of this room was a third OBLIVION door. “It would seem we have no choice now,” Grimm remarked to no one in particular. Tilly sighed, then cracked his knuckles. “Let me have a look at it first. Living in that old locksmith’s shop has given me sort of a knack for this kind of thing.” The little rogue stood squarely in front of the large portal, examining it thoroughly with his eyes first, and then running his hands across its surface. Finally, he nodded in satisfaction. “It’s trapped alright,” he announced, “but I think I can disarm it. Just the same, the rest of you might want to stand back.” Not needing to be told a second time, his companions all moved a respectful distance away from the great door. Tilly began touching each of the ten gemstones in sequence, then the central eye. He quickly stood back afterwards, eyeing the door expectantly. Suddenly, five of the gems flared brilliantly, and then five beams of scorching light arced from them, slamming into the halfling and smashing him to the floor. “Tilly!” Grimm shouted, rushing towards him. “I’m…okay,” the rogue stammered, though the smoke rising from his clothes and his hair seemed to contradict that statement. “I…almost had it. Maybe one more try…” “Ferget it!” Rusty shouted. “Last thing we need is fer you to get yerself kilt. Lemme try somethin’ first, and then ye’ll get a second chance. Stand back, all o’ye!” Obediently the others retreated again. Rusty began a prayer, moving his hands in large circles. When he had finished, he put his hands on his hips and said, “Now yer clear.” Tilly wasn’t exactly sure what the priest meant. He could see no effect from Rusty’s spellcasting, and as far as he could tell, the trap was still active. “Umm…are you sure?” he asked. “Of course I’m sure!” Rusty barked. “I got me a null-magic field around me. It’ll keep those beams from fryin’ yer tail while ye disarm the trap.” Tilly nodded in dawning comprehension, and then went to work. In a matter of minutes, he was satisfied that the deadly trap was indeed disarmed, but unfortunately, the locking mechanism on the door was still to intricate for him to bypass. Once again, Rusty had the solution.
Gathering the group into two circles, Gunther and Dalthon both called on their transdimensional magic and willed themselves and their charges to the other side of the portal. On the far side, they found yet another circular room, this one twenty-feet high, with brick covering the walls, floor and ceiling. Some of the bricks in the north wall had been neatly removed, creating rows of cubbyholes and giving it a slightly pockmarked look. Many of the cubbyholes appeared to hold bits of treasure. One piece in particular caught Kiko’s eye. It was an exquisitely crafted kama, glowing softly and with its blade coated in a thin rime of frost. The monk reached for it, testing its heft and balance. Suddenly, a loud grinding noise sounded from behind him and he whirled on his heel. The very floor of the chamber seemed to be shifting and churning, reshaping itself into two large, animated stone statues…golems! The rest of the group was caught equally by surprise, and for Gunther, it was a fatal error. The theurge had just turned to look at the golems, when a massive, hammer-like fist fell upon him, crushing him to the ground where he lay unmoving, his body twisted at an unnatural angle. “Gunther! No!” Rusty cried, dashing towards his cohort. The second golem prepared to send him to join his friend, but it was then that Grimm, Tilly and Kiko sprang into action. Throwing themselves between the golems and the dwarves, they managed to divert the attention of the behemoths, giving Rusty one desperate chance to capture Gunther’s spirit before it departed the prime material plane forever. Summoning a powerful spell from Mystra, the priest invoked a revivification upon his friend, seizing his spirit just as it left his body, and jolting him back to life. The theurge gasped, opened his eyes and blinked uncontrollably. Rusty scooped him up and dashed for cover on the far side of the room.
Meanwhile, Grimm, Tilly and Kiko were dealing decisively with the golems. Though the constructs were enormously strong, they were also slow and it didn’t take long for the three well-trained friends to outmaneuver them and smash them to so much harmless rubble.
Rusty tended Gunther’s remaining wounds, all the while admonishing the younger dwarf to stay out of harm’s way, even though the theurge had not voluntarily put himself there in the first place. The chamber itself seemed to be a dead-end. The treasure was abundant, and apparently for the taking once the guardians had been neutralized, but there was no other way out. Once more, Dalthon and Gunther transported the group to the other side of the door, and then they regrouped before the western portal. “Let’s do it,” Rusty said, and linking hands one final time, Dalthon, Rusty and Grimm dimension doored, followed immediately by Kiko, Tilly and Gunther.
Neverwinter Knight
First Post
Yes, taking a cohort can be risky, given the level difference. They're often quite useful, but die easily... 
Did the door have a combination lock after all?
Did the door have a combination lock after all?
Neverwinter Knight
First Post
Thanks, JD, but I for one would rather find out the old fashioned way.JollyDoc said:
JollyDoc
Explorer
Neverwinter Knight said:Yes, taking a cohort can be risky, given the level difference. They're often quite useful, but die easily...
Did the door have a combination lock after all?
Stay tuned! The Bright Axes certainly haven't seen the last of the OBLIVION doors, and constantly d.dooring around them will become taxing after awhile.
Neverwinter Knight
First Post
You meanJollyDoc said:
1. you hope he'll stick around 'till the end,
2. you had a TPK this weekend and won't finish the campaign or
3. you finished the campaign.
?!?
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