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Message: <blockquote data-quote="JollyDoc" data-source="post: 5597073" data-attributes="member: 9546">THE HOUSE AT THE EDGE OF TIMEAt the heart of Thousandbreaths lay the House at the Edge of Time. It sat at the center of an isle in a large lake atop a mesa. On one side, it overlooked a panorama of the forest itself, while the other side looked out over time and space…an endless gulf of stars and blackness. The lake spilled over the edge of the mesa in two places, to the left and right, forming the twin nameless rivers that framed Thousandbreaths and eventually met again at the Whirling Lake. The House appeared to be accessible via a long stone causeway that connected its island to the mesa’s edge. A gatehouse flanked by towers guarded the entrance beyond the bridge, while in the courtyard beyond, tall dark trees rose and rustled in the constant soft breeze. Hundreds of windows stared out of the House itself, and stone angels hung from every gable. The outline of the structure was as beautiful as it was dangerous, with knife-like crenellations, spear-topped towers, and eaves and shingles made of blades. The companions started across the causeway, fully aware that their every move was no doubt being observed, but resigned to their course just the same. Sure enough, when they had reached roughly the halfway point, the waters of the lake exploded upward in a geyser as a huge form erupted into the sky. At least superficially, the enormous creature resembled a dragon, save that it had two heads and flew despite the fact that it had no wings. “I am Tarlaxian, the Linnorm of the Lake!” the monster roared. “My Lady bids you both welcome and farewell! She is honored that you have come so far, yet saddened that your journey has been for naught, for it ends here!”‘I am with you,’ Stevhan heard Briar’s voice in his mind. He had been steadily feeling the sword’s power grow ever since they had entered Thousandbreaths, as if it were preparing for this final confrontation. He felt as if he and the blade were becoming one on some level. Gripping the hilt firmly in both hands, he raced across the causeway. One of Tarlaxian’s heads snapped at him as he came, and as its teeth pierced his flesh, they burned like acid. He could feel his flesh dissolving beneath the wound, yet he did not falter. He dodged the second head and drove forward with Briar. The enchanted blade pierced the linnorm’s scaly chest as if it was naked skin, and the creature didn’t merely roar in agony, it literally shrieked.  Tarlaxian pawed at his chest, wrenching the sword free as he recoiled. Then, both maws opened simultaneously and spewed great gouts of acid towards the heroes. Stevhan was still too close, and so it was Davrim and Velox who took the brunt of the blasts, though Davrim’s cat-like reflexes allowed him to avoid the worst of them. Mox was also caught in the spray, but the sorceress’s own draconic bloodline rendered her impervious to the caustic flood. Velox, who’d been in mid-charged, was forced to his knees by the deluge. Behind him, Tungdill rose into the air in his cyclonic, elemental form. As he did so, lightning churned within the vortex, growing in intensity until it lanced out in a massive storm bolt. Tarlaxian went rigid as the bolt struck, conducted even more quickly through his body by virtue of the fact that part of him was still in contact with the lake. Davrim took that moment to move in closer. Bow in hand, he fired two rapid shots. One of the arrows flew straight through the wound Briar had already opened, and managed to puncture one of the linnorm’s lungs. Tarlaxian wheezed as he coughed out a fountain of blood from one of his throats. Davrim dropped his bow as he ran forward, drawing his sword simultaneously. The linnorm tried to head him off, whipping his serpentine tail at the inquisitor’s legs. Davrim leaped over it, and slashed both of Tarlaxian’s throats as he landed. The two-headed linnorm sank silently back into the lake, the water turning crimson as he vanished beneath the surface.  ________________________________________________________________At the far end of the causeway, the shining gatehouse barred entry into the courtyard of the large building with a lowered portcullis. In the walls above, arrow slits leered down while a solid smooth wall some forty feet high extended away from the gatehouse in both directions to two more towers. Davrim showed no hesitation in marching up to the lowered gate and grasping the bars in his gloved hand. Instantly, the iron began to dissolve, leaving a hole large enough for a man to pass through.“Nice job, boy,” Tungdill said dryly, “but I think them fellas ain’t too impressed.”Davrim moved back towards his companions and followed their gaze up towards the battlements. Standing silently atop the wall were no less than a dozen figures. At first glance, they looked like elves. They were clad in black leather armor, and bore rapiers at their hips. But the unnatural green glow that each one emanated, not to mention the translucency of their flesh, revealed them to be something far more sinister. The house guards had once been members of an ancient elven community that formerly dwelled in the Stolen Lands, but they were abducted and executed by Nyrissa in a foul ritual that transformed their souls into undead minions enslaved to the nymph’s every whim. Now, as they gazed down upon the trespassers into their Queen’s domain, their only imperative was to snuff the lives of the intruders just as theirs had been so long ago. In unison, their mouths yawned wide, and a mournful wailing filled the air.“Well that’ll be enough of that!” Tungdill growled.The druid waved his hand, and a curtain of fire erupted along the battlements, engulfing over half of the ghostly soldiers. Their keening became piercing as the arcane fire burned even their incorporeal flesh.“I completely agree,” Mox said. “I prefer to announce my presence in my own way.”A glowing, transparent sword appeared in her hand, which she then flung towards the battlements. It flew straight and true, and seemed to take on a life of its own as it reached the ghosts and began to hack into them as if they were still alive and hale.Velox’s eyes clouded over, but instead of turning towards the spirit guardians, he instead looked past the portcullis to the courtyard, where something else had caught his attention. Without a word, he ran through the gate, his sword in hand. Davrim and Stevhan watched him go, then looked at one another questioningly. They glanced back at their other friends.“You think they can handle this?” Davrim asked.Stevhan smiled as he looked at his wife. “I think they’ve got it covered.”The inquisitor nodded, and then the two warriors followed their general into the courtyard. They didn’t get far until they saw exactly what had drawn Velox’s eye. The large courtyard was a two-tiered region covered with thick grass. Paths wound to and from various doors, and a single, wide flight of stairs allowed easy access to the courtyard’s second tier, where several towering oak trees loomed over the main body of the house. Atop the second tier, something massive had awakened. Resembling an enormous lizard composed entirely of organic matter, the beast shook loose soil from its earthy wings and exhaled dirt particles with every breath.“Gods…,” Stevhan breathed. “It’s a zomok! I never believed they existed!”“Well believe it now!” Davrim shouted. “What in the Hells is it?”“They’re also called plant dragons,” the ranger replied. “They are said to be defenders of nature, but they are not choosey about how or whom they defend it from.”As if in response, the zomok opened its gaping maw and exhaled a blast of flying dirt, bark, stones and moss that completely engulfed the three warriors.Back outside the courtyard walls, the spectral warriors had  launched their counterattack. En masse, they leaped from the battlements and drifted down to the ground. They landed all around Mox, Selena and Tungdill, and as soon as they did so, they reached out their long-nailed fingers and began to touch the companions. Each touch was like a jolt of electricity as it caressed the skin of the living. Mox flung herself away from the spirits, breathe acid on them as she withdrew, but the creatures moved with incredible swiftness and managed to avoid the brunt of the spew. Tungdill chose fire for his defense, weaving a snake of flames that wound among the dead elves, giving them pause and buying him a few precious seconds.Velox, Davrim and Stevhan finally managed to extricate themselves from the debris field  created by the zomok’s breath, but by that time, the creature was bearing down on them. Velox extended his palm and a blast of searing light hammered into the plant dragon. It roared in fury, enraged by the use of its ancient nemesis fire. Stevhan charged forward, Briar glowing brightly. As he struck, the mystic blade flared even brighter, and where it carved into the zomok’s plant-like hide, the vegetation simply shriveled and died. The beast roared again, striking out blindly in its pain. One rock-like claw opened a large gash across Stevhan’s chest, but as he spun away from the attack, Davrim and Velox charged in. The oracle struck, and his sword tore a rent completely through one of the zomok’s wings, while Davrim thrust and slashed repeatedly with his own blade. The zomok spewed forth its terrible breath once more, but by that time, the trio was widely separated, and it could not bring the full fury of the blast to bear upon them all. Stevhan struck one last time, and Briar unleashed its blight a second time. The zomok howled piteously as it collapsed upon itself and died. At the gate, a life and death struggle still raged. Tungdill and the sorceresses had managed to destroy a few of the ghosts through a combination of Mox’s arcane sword, magic missile barrages from Selena, and unrelenting blasts of fire from the druid himself. Still, every touch by the spirits sucked a little more life out of the trio. Then, in the next moment, Velox, Davrim and Stevhan charged back through the portcullis. Stevhan saw his wife surrounded by spectral elves, and charged blindly in. Mox saw his mistake, and his danger immediately. Though the ranger was heavily armored, this counted as nothing to the ghosts, whose hands could pass through metal as easily as water. Mox had only just barely been holding her own thanks to the mystic enchantments she wove about herself each day. Now, as the spirits turned their attention on Stevhan, they struck him at will, beating him to the ground in a matter of seconds. Mox rushed to his side and grabbed him by the arm. A moment later, they vanished in a flash of light. Meanwhile, Davrim and Velox waded into the melee, and though their swords were only partially able to touch the incorporeal bodies of the spirits, it was more than enough. In short order, the tide of battle turned. Within a matter of minutes the last of the ghosts had been dispatched, and the way forward was clear.____________________________________________________________Velox and Mox agreed that the front door to the house was a much too obvious a choice. Instead, they entered the gatehouse, and from there they were able to get into one of the towers, and then inside the inner walls themselves. The rooms and chambers they passed through were a mind-numbing study in contrasts. While one room was clean and bright, with liveried spectral servants and gaiety, another was collapsing and decayed. Some chambers had been damaged by the arrival of the heroes who slew Nyrissa yesterday, and would also do so tomorrow in that world of the impossible. Yet as strange as the warpings were, stranger still was the fact that they remained constant, as if a storm of fractured time had torn through the structure, only to be frozen forever in the middle of a chaos of a hundred different eras.They came to a room that was dominated by a domed cage, its verdigris-encrusted surface caked with mud. A black bear stood lifelessly within they cage. A rubble-choked hall extended from one side of the room. It was yet another in a series of bizarre tableaus, but as the companions passed through the chamber, the bear lumbered onto its hind legs and began a slow, but strangely graceful dance, made all the more grotesque by the fact that the bear was obviously dead. Though disconcerting, it seemed ultimately harmless, and so they ignored it, as they’d done all the other strangeness they’d seen thus far. A small door at the far side of the room gave onto a richly decorated, cathedral-like chamber that appeared to be almost new. Turquoise tiles adorned the walls, with a false gallery hanging some ten feet above the tiled floor. An ornate wooden bridge crossed the chamber thirty feet above the floor, connecting doors on the building’s second floor. Incredible paintings covered the ceiling, depicting animals in sylvan scenes. The first scene showed a wolf in a forest with a child’s severed hand clenched in its jaws. The second depicted a great viper approaching a crib, while the third showed a huge bear stalking a mother and child. An archway decorated with a scene of a dragon eating a mounted knight at one end of the room opened to a great iron spiral staircase leading upward, while at the other end of the hall sat a regal throne made of marble shot through with green veins. Two statues of beautiful women wielding upraised swords stood behind the throne, while a long purple carpet ran the length of the room. Numerous chairs and benches lined the walls. Kneeling before the throne was the most beautiful creature the companions had ever seen…so much so that it was actually painful to look upon him. Superficially, he looked like a human male, but he was at least seven-feet-tall when he rose to his feet, and large, feathered white wings grew naturally from his shoulders. He wore a full-length white robe, and had a great-sword belted at his waist.“You shouldn’t be here,” he said in a voice like crystalline wind chimes. “You do not understand the affairs in which you meddle.”“He’s…a deva!” Velox exclaimed. “A member of the angelic choir!”“Precisely,” the angel replied. “So my presence here should tell you that there are powers in play here that are beyond your ability to comprehend.”“Then explain it to us,” Mox said coldly. “Explain why the Powers would deign to concern themselves with the doings of mere mortals such as us. Why would the Heavens want to participate in the destruction of our kingdom?”“You have been warned,” the angel said, his voice iron, his face darkening.“Davrim,” Mox turned to the inquisitor, “what do you sense?”Davrim focused his attention on the deva, attempting to read his aura.“He’s pure,” Davrim acknowledged. “He is what he appears to be.”“Then he’s been ensorcelled,” Mox said. “Tungdill, can you dispel the enchantment?”“I’ll give it a try,” the dwarf shrugged.He spoke a few guttural words, and power radiated from him in a wave.“That will be enough of that!” the angel roared. “I have offered you mercy and your lives, but I will tolerate no assault upon my person! You shall not be allowed to interfere here further!”The angel waved his hand and a wall of whirling blades appeared out of thin air. Tungdill cried out as the steel shards tore into his flesh. Selena and Davrim leaped aside just in time, ending up separated from their companions.“That’s proof enough!” Mox shouted. “He’s another of Nyrissa’s pawns! Destroy him!”Mox hurled a blistering bombardment of arcane bolts at the angel, but the missiles were deflected by some unseen force before they ever came near him. Simultaneously, Selena unleashed a lance of destructive power, but an almost casual wave of the deva’s hand dissipated the spell in mid-air. Suddenly, a massive explosion of fire detonated in the center of the throne room, engulfing Selena, Tungdill and Mox.“That didn’t come from the deva!” Davrim shouted. “Velox, do something!”The oracle was lost in his battle trance, but he was already ahead of the half-orc. He wove a spell, and a ripple of magic emanated from him, intended to reveal anything hidden or invisible within the chamber. There, hovering some twenty feet above the throne, a strange figure was revealed. It looked like nothing so much as a swarm of scarlet worms that maintained the general shape of a man clothed in black robes.“By the Old Crone…!” Selena breathed from where she lay on the floor, her gown still smoldering. “A worm-that-walks! I’ve only ever heard of one in existence, and that was the arch-mage Kyuss, but he was destroyed decades ago!”The Wriggling Man, as the creature was called, did not recall his life before his death, save that he was once a powerful human wizard who had come to the First World for a now-forgotten mission. That he failed in this mission seemed obvious, for it was after his failure and death that his mind and spirit infested the worms that fed upon his rotten remains, and he was reborn. He now served as Nyrissa’s personal advisor, and his mistress had tasked him with stopping the bearers of Briar at all costs.“Whatever it is,” Mox hissed, “I’ll bet it still burns!” She opened her mouth, and her eyes became slitted and yellow as she breathed a blast of acid at the worm thing. To her utter amazement, the mass of writhing worms seemed to split, allowing the acid blast to pass harmlessly through its mass. The Wriggling Man was preparing to retaliate, when Velox abruptly appeared in the air beside him. In an eye blink, the mage turned his assault on the oracle, blasting him first with ribbons of scorching fire, and then sending a shimmering bean of green energy at him. When the ray touched Velox, it simply dissolved a sizeable chunk of flesh from his arm. For a moment, his battle trance flickered as the incredible pain registered in his psyche, but then Iomedae seized him once more.Davrim still had his eye on the angel. He simply could not wrap his mind around the possibility that a divine servant could be willingly serving evil. As he approached the deva, the angel drew his blade and charged towards him. Davrim blocked the blow…barely, but he felt the impact down to his toes. He countered and swung his own blade in a low arc, but at the last instant, he flipped the sword so that it was the flat that struck the deva. The angel leaped into the air, and Davrim swiped at him again, but his momentum carried him over the blade barrier and out of the inquisitor’s reach. Tungdill, his skin screaming from cuts and burns, hauled himself to his feet. He reached out a hand to help Selena to hers as well.“So what do you know about that critter?” he nodded towards the Wriggling Man. “What’s it take to kill’im?”“It’s a composite creature,” the witch replied, “so it does no good to attack him as you would an individual. You must use magic that engulfs him as a whole.”“Gotcha,” the dwarf nodded. “Like this?”With a word, he conjured a column of white fire beneath the Wriggling Man.  The mage groaned as pain filled him for the first time in as long as he could remember.“Yes, exactly like that,” Selena smiled. “This might work as well.”She crossed two fingers and a bolt of lightning arced through the air. The Wriggling Man’s body jittered and shook, and then suddenly, he simply vanished.”Velox looked about him in all directions, trying to see if the mage had simply adjusted his position. Instead he saw the deva closing in on an unsuspecting Mox and Stevhan. The oracle darted down towards the floor and landed directly in front of the angel, who immediately raised his sword to strike. Though full in the throes of his battle trance, Velox to could not bring himself to kill the being. Instead, he looped his own blade under the angel’s and stripped it from his hand, sending it flying several yards away. The deva didn’t stop. He darted around the oracle and made for the door through which the companions had first entered the throne room. There in the doorway was the dead, dancing bear, still cavorting mindlessly. Before Velox could register what was happening, the angel slammed his fist into the bear’s chest, and as he did so, the bear exploded in a massive conflagration that filled the entire throne room. Velox threw himself to the floor, and the bulk of the blast passed over him. He then surged to his feet and threw himself at the deva, hammering the pommel of his sword into the back of the angel’s skull. The being collapsed, stunned.“He’s still here somewhere,” Velox spoke, though his words were in tongues. “I can sense him.”He moved towards a set of doors at the far side of the chamber as his companions struggled to regain their composure from the explosion. Throwing open the doors revealed a short hallway with more doors opening off either side. Moving quickly, Velox opened the nearest portal. The walls of the high-ceilinged room beyond were fractured, and the elements had rushed in. The chamber had clearly once been some sort of washroom with stone walls and numerous tubs, but the place was currently a shambles. As Velox was pulling the door shut again, he saw the debris in the room begin to shift, moving up into the air, seemingly of its own accord, in a spiraling column. Within moments, three more such columns were forming, and it was only then that the oracle realized what he was seeing, for he’d seen something similar ever since he’d known Tungdill. They were air elementals…big ones. He slammed the door shut again, but it was already too late. As he sprinted back towards the throne room, the doors blew open behind him as first one, then another of the elementals emerged into the hallway, fast on his heels. “Watch out!” he shouted a warning in the tongue of the Celestials to his allies.Tungdill turned at the sound of his voice, and his eyes went wide as the first of the elementals roared into the throne room. The whirling vortex caught the dwarf before he knew what was happening, and slammed him into a wall…hard. He both heard and felt his ribs snap, and he knew from his sudden inability to breathe properly that he’d most likely punctured a lung. Velox turned and ran back to help his friend. Davrim at his side. The pair hit the elemental like a force of nature unto themselves, and within seconds, their flashing blades shredded the creature. That didn’t prevent the second elemental from blowing into the chamber like a miniature cyclone. Cursing, Velox conjured a firewall across the doorway, hoping to prevent the other two from following. Mox exhaled a blast of acid on the outsider, and at the same time Tungdill, still wheezing from his injury, sent a bolt of lightning into the elemental, burning it to a cinder from the inside out.From the shadows on the far side of the throne room, the Wriggling Man watched the melee with amusement. He loathed the elementals. They had torn him apart on more than one occasion in a most embarrassing manner. Now, however, they were occupying the mortals nicely. He stepped into the room and began weaving a spell. An arc of electricity leaped from his hands to Mox, and then bounced to each of the other intruders in turn. If he had a mouth, the mage would have smiled. “Selena! Tungdill!” Mox cried out as she struggled to get her muscles back under control after the electric jolt. “Follow my lead!”The Queen returned her own lightning bolt at the Wriggling Man, and in rapid succession, Selena hurled twin fireballs, and Tungdill conjured another column of fire. The worm-that-walked shrieked and writhed as his body was consumed. Davrim and Velox charged him, and began hacking pieces off of him as he burned. “Stand aside!” Mox commanded, and when the two warriors moved, she breathed fire as hot as magma upon the Wriggling Man, dissolving him into a pile of ash.Velox moved to his fire wall, and when Davrim and Stevhan nodded their readiness, he dispelled the barrier. When the remaining two elementals rushed out, the warriors were ready, and it was only a matter of moments for them to completely destroy the outsiders. It was only when calm and quiet had returned to the chamber, that the companions noticed that the deva was gone.</blockquote>

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