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<blockquote data-quote="DonTadow" data-source="post: 2347827" data-attributes="member: 22622"><p><strong>Episode 27: Know Thy Neighbor</strong></p><p></p><p>Episode 27: Know thy Neighbor</p><p>Pachon 7, 1122</p><p></p><p>"From the Mouth of Shiva"</p><p></p><p>I feel them coming to me, their presence and hearts devoid of evil. Except one, but he knows not what he does I feel. They journey through the ice portal as I did so many 100s of years ago. They are well prepared for humans. Only seconds go by as the ice forms around their bare flesh. The priestess of Isis, bless her soul, has managed to make them articles of underclothing made of fire, very smart. I grow a liking to her and hope she is the one whom bonds with me. They find themselves at the top of Vlash’s Hill, as I have named it, on the edge of the great valley shaped as such a massive dragon. The frozen Yuan-ti army that guarded this place was destroyed by the dark one, whom for some reason has escaped my radar after infusing her demon fire into one of the caves in the Valley.</p><p></p><p>Four of them came through the portal. A brawny half-dragon whom I sense has the presence of Infrit in her. That stubborn old fool has found a home, inside of a half-dragon with a stubborn heart and a reluctance to do well. Another one travels with them, a warrior whom feels more powerful than I believe she knows. The priestess also travels, so confused of if she is doing Isis’s true work she is. Little does she know that so long as her heart remains pure Isis will know the true intent of her actions. Finally there is a man made of iron and steel whom wishes to know the intentions of his creation. His compassion is more so inside of his steel chest than that of many of the men I’ve met.</p><p></p><p>They hike down the hill, nearly tumbling at times and reach the bottom of it, causing a minor avalanche that buries several of them. The half-dragon, Vivian, wields the great Masamune, the sword once wielded by Infrit, and realizes its power to melt the snow around her. They make their way to the cave and find the small one, whom dwelled in the demon fire that the party is unaware of. They heal his false injuries. They wish to turn back, but the hearts of several of them tell them to move forward as well as the convincing of the little one, Nikylik. Nikylik turns into a winter wolf to resist the cold. A smart little one to turn into a beast protective of these dire winter elements.</p><p></p><p>They journeyed quickly towards the great Ice Mausoleum I dwell in. Mostly convinced by Nikylik that the dark one they previously battled was inside. They believed the lie. When they came to the bridge over the massive gap they grabbed the rings that pulled the bridge up attached to the side of the cliff wall. They pull the rings pulling up the bridge but making Xenolpha aware of their presence. This Ice Plane Nexus rests on the back of the large Beholder. He raises a giant stalk as the party crossed the bridge and a ray shoots out. I can see the five being’s souls float away from their bodies and back into their bodies. Except that the souls go into the wrong bodies.</p><p></p><p>Puzzled and bewildered they are confused by the occurrence, but realize and hope that maybe I can help them out. They venture forward with their souls in the wrong bodies. They reach the front door of the Mausoleum.</p><p></p><p>There they meet the guardian, the young Ice Dragon whom guards the door. He tells them what he once told me. To leave or die. They struggled to understand the bodies they were trapped in. Syxen (whose soul was inside of Alexandra the priest) stood idle, frustrated with the fact that he no longer had his massive body and felt quite useless attempting to understand the divine magic of Isis. Vivian (inside of Syxen’s body) struggled a bit with the slowness of the beast but quickly adapted as fighters often are built similar. She charged at the beast. Alexandra (inside of Rin’s body) along with Nikylik (inside of Vivian’s body) flanked the dragon and used their new overwhelming strength to make quick work of the beast. Vivian sliced off a toe of the dragon, an act I am unfamiliar with. I hope that Infrit teaches that woman some wisdom.</p><p></p><p>They enter into the mausoleum. They fin themselves in the entry room where the great door to my chamber is before them. But first they must prove themselves worthy. They must travel throughout the mausoleum and find the 9 keys to open the door. They quickly figure this out and enter the open door on the east wall. They enter into the first room that contains two mirrors. They ponder breaking the mirrors a bit and inspect them thoroughly. Vivian and Alexandra take up the rug and Vivian drapes it over one of the mirrors. The 1 key appears and they rush to put it in the door. They decide to put it in the door on the west of the room (which has holes for 3 keys).</p><p></p><p>They proceed to the next room with the puzzle. Rin fumbles with the small gnome hands she must not work with and solves the puzzle very slowly finding the number 2 key. The number 3 key was not far behind as they defeated Iglon, the Ice Devil, in the next room to find the number 3 key in his belly. However, it was not without consequences as the Ice Demon used the same spell the Beholder used, putting Syxen into Nikylik’s body, and Rin into Vivian’s body and Nikylik in Alexandra’s body.</p><p></p><p>They rushed back to the door on the west side of the entrance room and opened it revealing another chamber with large wooden Egyptian Hound statues. Again Rin proves that she is more than muscle, smartly turning into a small owl and floating high enough so the dogs could not reach them. She retrieved the key on the other side and flew back to the party receiving key number 5. After realizing they missed a key they went back to another room through the east door they skipped. There were three tables with boxes on each. Nikylik, using the magical abilities Vivian rarely does, checked all of the boxes and deciphered the magical puzzle. Alexandra then stumbled upon the key in the right box.</p><p></p><p>They proceeded back to the entrance and through the west door and through the next room. There, they witness a horrific and grotesque sight. Five men wounded mortally lay before them. They could not speak but cried and whimpered for someone to end the agonizing pain they were in. Nikylik sought to end the suffering as he wielded he mighty Masamune but was stopped by Syxen, whom quickly pulled out a potion and shoved down the throats of one of the men. Syxen’s actions were quick enough to get to the man before the Masamune’s blade came down on his throat. The man disappeared. Syxen went around and gave each a potion. They all disappeared. NO key appeared so the five ventured into the next room. But a flash of light occurred and suddenly the five found themselves back in the room, on the floor dying. They then watched themselves enter the room and heal them. They were lucky as the results could have been death if they had killed them. Sadly it would have been death by their own hands. Luckily they made the right choice and received key number 6.</p><p></p><p>The next room appears to be one massive trap. The Ice walls and floors of the mausoleum changed and there were paintings, statues and a giant checkerboard. IN the midst was a fountain with the key in it. Alexandra bolted towards the key and grabbed it, fearless in her new body. Rin held her breath, as she was sure that her body would be destroyed but it was not. The room appeared to be a big decoy, but soon they heard a grinding noise coming from the next room.</p><p></p><p>Vivian enters first, her too fearless in her new body. She disappeared.</p><p></p><p>The others followed and saw Vivian strapped on a slab of stone. A pendulum swung above quickly approaching the large steel body. There were five levers in the room each with a large blade above each of them. Fearful for his body, Syxen ran over and pulled a lever. The blade came down appearing to cut Syxen (Nikylik’s body) in half. The others wishing to save their friend followed suit. Body parts flew and bodies were destroyed by the blades over the lever but the giant pendulum stopped. The slab disappeared and turned into a key, but the death seemed permanent. Another illusion as the group has found out.</p><p></p><p>In the last room there sits Dwindlemeer, a powerful sorcerer encased in ice, his own personal torment. He offers the group a trade, one soul for the key. There is much wrangling as several of the group ponders what would happen. Then came the surprise. The half-dragon soul, Vivian, steps forth in the big iron body. She offers her soul. I expected it to be Alexandra. Dwindlemeer extends his finger and a black mist engulfs Vivian. The souls switch again as Vivian momentarily returns to her body before it is engulfed and incinerated. Nikylik’s soul went on to Syxen’s body. Alexandra and Syxen, upset, try to attack it, only letting go of their fury. Dwindlemeer repeats, it was a fair trade, and he warps everyone back to the entrance.</p><p></p><p>They discuss that they must move forward and not let the loss of a comrade affect them. They must get the crystal for Vivian.</p><p></p><p>They insert all the keys into the door and enter my chamber. I was awaiting them. All of them.</p><p></p><p>My chamber is immaculate as it is my resting place. It is large made of the same thick ice as the rest of the mausoleum. Four well-crafted hound statues lay in the corners as a large albatross arch holds the ice crystal.</p><p></p><p>It did not surprise me when the Lich Queen transformed from a melted ice cycle attached to the gnome’s clothing. However, it did surprise me that the shadow following the group did not manifest yet. If the group had figured out they were being tailed, either of the powerful beings may have killed them.</p><p></p><p>The Lich Queen was strong. She radiated of evil aura. Sick twisted magic. I somehow she had borrowed the pure evil magic from her god. She babbled as all villains do. About how she rescued the young gnome and compelled her to lead the party here. She had visited previously, but she could not figure out my illusions puzzles and left frustrated. Her plan seemed simple. Allow the party to do the dirty work as she had done up until this point I believe. Her entire scheme has led these individuals up to this moment.</p><p></p><p>We both levitated and began exchanging blows dedicated from our gods. I would prove that Isis is not to be fooled with. But this Drow Lich, this disciple of Lolth was powerful. As we tussled the others did well distracting her, allowing me to take advantage of her diverted attention and land my ice hands into her crown. The Lich Queen was powerful though throwing anyone back who distracted her, crashing them into he wall and destroying their weapon. Nikylik attempted to use the Chosen sword, but was smashed into the wall before he could land good blows. However, I had taken the upper hand. Syxen used Nikylik’s small body to sneak around and touch the crystal behind me, Syxen attempted to grab the crystal. The Drow Lich grew upset killing him on the spot with a dark shadow spell, forbidden magic used by only the vilest gods. I had enough, as I feigned to the ground. Creating most of the illusions in this place, I believe that subterfuge is sometimes better than direct contact. The Drow Lich became overconfidence and summoned shadows to kill the other 3 party members. But I had a surprise. As another party member went down, bleeding and dying, my ace came through. I had resurrected and made a bargain with Vivian. I gave her the memories formally repressed from her. In return, she must open her heart to the mission of Isis and save her friends and I. Vivian emerged from the arch leaping for the sword. She swiped at the Drow Lich but missed. The Drow Lich retaliated but caught the second swing, a vicious blow that split the being in half. The fight was almost over.</p><p></p><p>The shadow emerged. It was a being the group was familiar with. But little did they know that even this being held a secret. Xioloch they called him. But I know that that body once belonged to a being called Xioloch but it now houses something more sinister. There was no way that even I was to beat him, as Xioloch cast his spell, I cast one as well and everyone but Xioloch fell to the ground. He ran over to the Ice Crystal and took it. He mocked them.</p><p></p><p>He let his guard down. The banishment spell I cast under my breath had taken effect and the being was forced to wherever he had come.</p><p></p><p>I stood and told them they were safe now. But it was time for my destiny to be fulfilled. The stupid sorcerer had made off with my last trick, an illusion for I had merged with the Ice Crystal long ago. I healed and resurrected the gnome and reversed the soul switch. After watching them, I had finally felt comfortable enough to go with them. Sacrifice is important to me and they displayed sacrifices the entire day. My final task before merging myself with my bow, was to use my last bit of divine magic to send them back to through the portal. I only wish I could help them with the situation the one they left behind has created.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="DonTadow, post: 2347827, member: 22622"] [b]Episode 27: Know Thy Neighbor[/b] Episode 27: Know thy Neighbor Pachon 7, 1122 "From the Mouth of Shiva" I feel them coming to me, their presence and hearts devoid of evil. Except one, but he knows not what he does I feel. They journey through the ice portal as I did so many 100s of years ago. They are well prepared for humans. Only seconds go by as the ice forms around their bare flesh. The priestess of Isis, bless her soul, has managed to make them articles of underclothing made of fire, very smart. I grow a liking to her and hope she is the one whom bonds with me. They find themselves at the top of Vlash’s Hill, as I have named it, on the edge of the great valley shaped as such a massive dragon. The frozen Yuan-ti army that guarded this place was destroyed by the dark one, whom for some reason has escaped my radar after infusing her demon fire into one of the caves in the Valley. Four of them came through the portal. A brawny half-dragon whom I sense has the presence of Infrit in her. That stubborn old fool has found a home, inside of a half-dragon with a stubborn heart and a reluctance to do well. Another one travels with them, a warrior whom feels more powerful than I believe she knows. The priestess also travels, so confused of if she is doing Isis’s true work she is. Little does she know that so long as her heart remains pure Isis will know the true intent of her actions. Finally there is a man made of iron and steel whom wishes to know the intentions of his creation. His compassion is more so inside of his steel chest than that of many of the men I’ve met. They hike down the hill, nearly tumbling at times and reach the bottom of it, causing a minor avalanche that buries several of them. The half-dragon, Vivian, wields the great Masamune, the sword once wielded by Infrit, and realizes its power to melt the snow around her. They make their way to the cave and find the small one, whom dwelled in the demon fire that the party is unaware of. They heal his false injuries. They wish to turn back, but the hearts of several of them tell them to move forward as well as the convincing of the little one, Nikylik. Nikylik turns into a winter wolf to resist the cold. A smart little one to turn into a beast protective of these dire winter elements. They journeyed quickly towards the great Ice Mausoleum I dwell in. Mostly convinced by Nikylik that the dark one they previously battled was inside. They believed the lie. When they came to the bridge over the massive gap they grabbed the rings that pulled the bridge up attached to the side of the cliff wall. They pull the rings pulling up the bridge but making Xenolpha aware of their presence. This Ice Plane Nexus rests on the back of the large Beholder. He raises a giant stalk as the party crossed the bridge and a ray shoots out. I can see the five being’s souls float away from their bodies and back into their bodies. Except that the souls go into the wrong bodies. Puzzled and bewildered they are confused by the occurrence, but realize and hope that maybe I can help them out. They venture forward with their souls in the wrong bodies. They reach the front door of the Mausoleum. There they meet the guardian, the young Ice Dragon whom guards the door. He tells them what he once told me. To leave or die. They struggled to understand the bodies they were trapped in. Syxen (whose soul was inside of Alexandra the priest) stood idle, frustrated with the fact that he no longer had his massive body and felt quite useless attempting to understand the divine magic of Isis. Vivian (inside of Syxen’s body) struggled a bit with the slowness of the beast but quickly adapted as fighters often are built similar. She charged at the beast. Alexandra (inside of Rin’s body) along with Nikylik (inside of Vivian’s body) flanked the dragon and used their new overwhelming strength to make quick work of the beast. Vivian sliced off a toe of the dragon, an act I am unfamiliar with. I hope that Infrit teaches that woman some wisdom. They enter into the mausoleum. They fin themselves in the entry room where the great door to my chamber is before them. But first they must prove themselves worthy. They must travel throughout the mausoleum and find the 9 keys to open the door. They quickly figure this out and enter the open door on the east wall. They enter into the first room that contains two mirrors. They ponder breaking the mirrors a bit and inspect them thoroughly. Vivian and Alexandra take up the rug and Vivian drapes it over one of the mirrors. The 1 key appears and they rush to put it in the door. They decide to put it in the door on the west of the room (which has holes for 3 keys). They proceed to the next room with the puzzle. Rin fumbles with the small gnome hands she must not work with and solves the puzzle very slowly finding the number 2 key. The number 3 key was not far behind as they defeated Iglon, the Ice Devil, in the next room to find the number 3 key in his belly. However, it was not without consequences as the Ice Demon used the same spell the Beholder used, putting Syxen into Nikylik’s body, and Rin into Vivian’s body and Nikylik in Alexandra’s body. They rushed back to the door on the west side of the entrance room and opened it revealing another chamber with large wooden Egyptian Hound statues. Again Rin proves that she is more than muscle, smartly turning into a small owl and floating high enough so the dogs could not reach them. She retrieved the key on the other side and flew back to the party receiving key number 5. After realizing they missed a key they went back to another room through the east door they skipped. There were three tables with boxes on each. Nikylik, using the magical abilities Vivian rarely does, checked all of the boxes and deciphered the magical puzzle. Alexandra then stumbled upon the key in the right box. They proceeded back to the entrance and through the west door and through the next room. There, they witness a horrific and grotesque sight. Five men wounded mortally lay before them. They could not speak but cried and whimpered for someone to end the agonizing pain they were in. Nikylik sought to end the suffering as he wielded he mighty Masamune but was stopped by Syxen, whom quickly pulled out a potion and shoved down the throats of one of the men. Syxen’s actions were quick enough to get to the man before the Masamune’s blade came down on his throat. The man disappeared. Syxen went around and gave each a potion. They all disappeared. NO key appeared so the five ventured into the next room. But a flash of light occurred and suddenly the five found themselves back in the room, on the floor dying. They then watched themselves enter the room and heal them. They were lucky as the results could have been death if they had killed them. Sadly it would have been death by their own hands. Luckily they made the right choice and received key number 6. The next room appears to be one massive trap. The Ice walls and floors of the mausoleum changed and there were paintings, statues and a giant checkerboard. IN the midst was a fountain with the key in it. Alexandra bolted towards the key and grabbed it, fearless in her new body. Rin held her breath, as she was sure that her body would be destroyed but it was not. The room appeared to be a big decoy, but soon they heard a grinding noise coming from the next room. Vivian enters first, her too fearless in her new body. She disappeared. The others followed and saw Vivian strapped on a slab of stone. A pendulum swung above quickly approaching the large steel body. There were five levers in the room each with a large blade above each of them. Fearful for his body, Syxen ran over and pulled a lever. The blade came down appearing to cut Syxen (Nikylik’s body) in half. The others wishing to save their friend followed suit. Body parts flew and bodies were destroyed by the blades over the lever but the giant pendulum stopped. The slab disappeared and turned into a key, but the death seemed permanent. Another illusion as the group has found out. In the last room there sits Dwindlemeer, a powerful sorcerer encased in ice, his own personal torment. He offers the group a trade, one soul for the key. There is much wrangling as several of the group ponders what would happen. Then came the surprise. The half-dragon soul, Vivian, steps forth in the big iron body. She offers her soul. I expected it to be Alexandra. Dwindlemeer extends his finger and a black mist engulfs Vivian. The souls switch again as Vivian momentarily returns to her body before it is engulfed and incinerated. Nikylik’s soul went on to Syxen’s body. Alexandra and Syxen, upset, try to attack it, only letting go of their fury. Dwindlemeer repeats, it was a fair trade, and he warps everyone back to the entrance. They discuss that they must move forward and not let the loss of a comrade affect them. They must get the crystal for Vivian. They insert all the keys into the door and enter my chamber. I was awaiting them. All of them. My chamber is immaculate as it is my resting place. It is large made of the same thick ice as the rest of the mausoleum. Four well-crafted hound statues lay in the corners as a large albatross arch holds the ice crystal. It did not surprise me when the Lich Queen transformed from a melted ice cycle attached to the gnome’s clothing. However, it did surprise me that the shadow following the group did not manifest yet. If the group had figured out they were being tailed, either of the powerful beings may have killed them. The Lich Queen was strong. She radiated of evil aura. Sick twisted magic. I somehow she had borrowed the pure evil magic from her god. She babbled as all villains do. About how she rescued the young gnome and compelled her to lead the party here. She had visited previously, but she could not figure out my illusions puzzles and left frustrated. Her plan seemed simple. Allow the party to do the dirty work as she had done up until this point I believe. Her entire scheme has led these individuals up to this moment. We both levitated and began exchanging blows dedicated from our gods. I would prove that Isis is not to be fooled with. But this Drow Lich, this disciple of Lolth was powerful. As we tussled the others did well distracting her, allowing me to take advantage of her diverted attention and land my ice hands into her crown. The Lich Queen was powerful though throwing anyone back who distracted her, crashing them into he wall and destroying their weapon. Nikylik attempted to use the Chosen sword, but was smashed into the wall before he could land good blows. However, I had taken the upper hand. Syxen used Nikylik’s small body to sneak around and touch the crystal behind me, Syxen attempted to grab the crystal. The Drow Lich grew upset killing him on the spot with a dark shadow spell, forbidden magic used by only the vilest gods. I had enough, as I feigned to the ground. Creating most of the illusions in this place, I believe that subterfuge is sometimes better than direct contact. The Drow Lich became overconfidence and summoned shadows to kill the other 3 party members. But I had a surprise. As another party member went down, bleeding and dying, my ace came through. I had resurrected and made a bargain with Vivian. I gave her the memories formally repressed from her. In return, she must open her heart to the mission of Isis and save her friends and I. Vivian emerged from the arch leaping for the sword. She swiped at the Drow Lich but missed. The Drow Lich retaliated but caught the second swing, a vicious blow that split the being in half. The fight was almost over. The shadow emerged. It was a being the group was familiar with. But little did they know that even this being held a secret. Xioloch they called him. But I know that that body once belonged to a being called Xioloch but it now houses something more sinister. There was no way that even I was to beat him, as Xioloch cast his spell, I cast one as well and everyone but Xioloch fell to the ground. He ran over to the Ice Crystal and took it. He mocked them. He let his guard down. The banishment spell I cast under my breath had taken effect and the being was forced to wherever he had come. I stood and told them they were safe now. But it was time for my destiny to be fulfilled. The stupid sorcerer had made off with my last trick, an illusion for I had merged with the Ice Crystal long ago. I healed and resurrected the gnome and reversed the soul switch. After watching them, I had finally felt comfortable enough to go with them. Sacrifice is important to me and they displayed sacrifices the entire day. My final task before merging myself with my bow, was to use my last bit of divine magic to send them back to through the portal. I only wish I could help them with the situation the one they left behind has created. [/QUOTE]
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