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Message: <blockquote data-quote="gfunk" data-source="post: 786806" data-attributes="member: 1813">Session 28 The Cathezar “I’m terribly sorry Lady Noir, but I have no idea where the High Inquisitor is.  You might say that we did not part on the best of terms.”Noir gave High Justice Darius a quizzical look.  For as long as she had known him, both he and Joachim had shared a close relationship.  “Sorry to impose on you High Justice, but the matter is quite important.  Hor’ahun’s keep has been destroyed by the forces of Lolth.  We fear that either Entropy’s stronghold or the Temple of the Triad may be next.  Do you have any inkling of where he might be?”Darius paused, recalling the conversation he had with Joachim, “All I can tell you is that the High Inquisitor mentioned something about fighting the drow on his own terms.  What that means exactly, I couldn’t say.  By the way, where are Entropy and Hor’ahun?  I thought you said they came with you.”“Oh . . . well . . . they both told me that they were not sure if they were welcome.  As I’m sure you are well aware, they are not exactly the most scrupulous individuals in Faerun.”“Bah!  Be that as it may, they always have a home in the Temple of the Triad.  All of you, the Triumvirate, have proven yourselves powerful allies in the cause of Tyr.  Please, accept my humble invitation and stay with us the night.  I’m sure that the High Inquisitor will return in a day or two.”-------------------------------------------------------------Acolytes led the trio to rooms that were quite lavishly decorated, considering the spartan nature of the Tyrites.  As they moved through the Temple, Noir thought that something was amiss with Entropy.  She had known the Alienist for some time and they had often visited this Temple together.  However, Noir could not remember an occasion where Entropy looked so . . . uncomfortable.“Entropy, do you have any problems on your mind?  I understand that you are rightfully concerned about H.E.L.L. but surely your sizable army can deal with the opposition.”Entropy stopped in mid-stride.  With a blank expression on her face, she stared at the paladin, as if trying to pry into her soul.  Seconds passed . . . then a minute.  Though immune to fear, Noir felt a sense of dread, “What is it!?”The Alienist finally broke her silence, “What do you want out of life?”Somewhat taken aback by the question, Noir nevertheless answered quickly, “To see Cormyr restored to its former splendor of course.  Why do you ask this now?”Entropy looked distant, wistful, “The path you have chosen is certainly a difficult one.  Though the gods grant you with many powers, they also place many restrictions upon you.  You are asked to uphold honor, good, and virtue while fighting those without such noble values.  While your enemies can resort to any type of chicanery or deceit to defeat you, you must still follow the straight and narrow path.  As you well know, our opponents -- the drow – are the most evil, sadistic race in Faerun.  How much longer can you cling to your paladinhood in the face of such wickedness?”“You ask a good question Entropy.  I did not think such philosophical musings were your forte.  Yes, it is true that I gain my divine spells from goodly deities and I must maintain a certain standard of conduct.  However, in exchange for my penance they have given me many powerful abilities to combat my foes.  Though as you so . . . eloquently put it, the paladin’s code is, at times, a difficult one to follow.”As Noir spoke, Entropy’s eyes became more animated and alive.  It was almost as if she already knew what Noir was going to say.  “Ah, but do you really need to make such dire sacrifices for your divine power?  What if I showed you a better way?  You would still be powerful, yet you would not be beholden to maintain such an impossibly perfect moral code.”“What are you suggesting Entropy?”“I suggest nothing.  I am merely speaking hypothetically.  You have long fought against so-called evil beings.  What if you could destroy them with raw, unadulterated power?  Just think, no restrictions, no morals.  The ends justify the means.”Noir blinked several times, trying to see if her friend was joking.  “Well, since we are speaking hypothetically, I must say that there times that I agree with your position.  It is galling to be stunned again and again by the demons of the Abyss when they discharge their evil energy.  If one more Balor blasphemes me, by the Red Knight, I’ll . . . ““I can give all of this to you.  I am the head of a particular organization who seeks results above all else.  You would gain the power of a paladin, and more!  But you would be free to act at your own discretion.”Noir considered the proposition carefully.  She was on morally tenuous ground here.  The paladin admitted to herself that she was often angered by the hypocrisy of the Cormyrian nobility who sat safely in exile while their subjects were enslaved.  She had spent the last few weeks trying to liberate Tilverton but Darius had informed her that the Undying Temple still stood!  How much longer would she have to tolerate failure?  Was her cause not just?  Her goals not noble?“Entropy, I must admit what you offer me is tempting.  But I cannot . . .”“Think about it.  That’s all I ask.  Let me know your answer in two days.”-------------------------------------------------------------    That night, sleeping in the Temple of the Triad, all three adventurers had troubled dreams.  But only Entropy’s nightmare woke her.“MISTRESS!!!  WE NEED YOUR HELP!!  THE TOWERS ARE FALLING!  THE GUARDS ARE BEING SLAUGHTERED!!”Entropy nearly jumped out of her bed.  In her mind was the voice of Phibrizzo, the captain of her armed forces.  He called her now via the telepathic link that they shared.“Phibrizzo, calm down and tell me . . .”“WE CANNOT HOLD!!  EVERYONE IS DEAD!  PLEASE HELP ME!!!”Without further hesitation, Entropy ran into the rooms of Hor’ahun and Noir nearly turning their beds over in an attempt to wake them.“There is no time!!  Lolth is attacking my towers now!!  We must go!!”As Noir quickly put on her full plate with the help of the temple acolytes, Entropy and Hor’ahun cast abjuration after abjuration upon themselves.  When all were ready, Entropy opened a Gate to the Astral Plane.  From there, she opened a Gate back to the Prime – directly in-between her three towers.-------------------------------------------------------------It was a scene that only Talos, the god of storms and destruction, could love.  The sounds of battle were thick in the air as Entropy’s forces were fighting – or rather being slaughtered – two powerful, seemingly demonic beings.One resembled a lion, though it was much, much larger.  The other looked like a Stone Giant, albeit with a clearly abyssal heritage.  Around them were the bodies of unfortunate soldiers – killed in a myriad of ways.The lion-like creature dropped the soldier it had crushed in its powerful maw and assessed the new threat that had arrived.  Though all his foes were invisible, the lion’s hyper-acute senses rendered that fact irrelevant.  With a powerful leap, he landed in front of the them.Immediately, Noir and Hor’ahun raised their weapons to defend themselves.  But the beast did not strike, but rather it concentrated as it sent forth a blast of unholy energy from its very being.  Noir and Hor’ahun, as powerful as they were, were momentarily dazed.  At the same time, many soldiers surrounding them immediately fell to the ground – instantly and irrevocably slain by the unholy power of the spell.Strangely, Entropy was unaffected.  The beast could not know – indeed Entropy’s companions did not – that the Alienist’s soul had become as evil as the demon’s.Quickly coming to her friends’ aid, Entropy conjured an extra-dimensional maze around both the lion-like demon and its giant kin.  Silently, both disappeared.The Alienist’s form began to shift and grow larger.  Eventually she was 20 feet in height, taking the form of a Storm Giant.  With a greatly increased lung capacity, she screamed at the top of her voice, “YOU FOOLS!!  Retreat now!!  All is lost!”  She hoped her henchmen would heed her commands before more of them fell.Before she could act further, a caped drow male quickly flew towards her position.  Though Entropy was invisible, he seemed to have no trouble finding her.  As the drow approached, he drew a rapier, “Welcome to your death, fool.  You have interfered with the Lady of Spiders for the last time.”Moving quickly, the drow thrust his rapier forward repeatedly, trying to pierce a vital organ.  Though he was a master with his heavily enchanted weapon, his blows were cleanly deflected by the plethora of defensive spells Entropy had erected.  The Alienist nearly laughed out loud at the shocked expression on the drow’s face.  Obviously, Lolth had sent her best and they were plainly insufficient.Then, Entropy realized it wasn’t her that the drow was frightened of.  With mounting dread she turned around . . .Before her, Entropy saw a large creature, clearly female but with a snake-like trunk.  Well-versed in extraplanar lore, Entropy first thought it might be a Marilith except that the creature before her had six arms and, in them, held a hellish tangle of cruelly-barbed spiked chains.Smiling, the being spoke to Entropy in a mix of Abyssal and Infernal.  To Entropy, who spoke only one of these tongues, it was gibberish.  However, the demon’s next move was not so ambiguous.Magically, the snake-like demon projected all six of her spiked chains at the Alienist.  Unlike the drow, who had utterly failed to hit his target, the chains all hit – ripping and tearing flesh with terrifying ease.  The barrage was more than Entropy could take, in a nauseating spray of blood and gore her 4,000 lb form crashed to the ground. The Cathezar had claimed her first victim . . .</blockquote>

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