Note: The characters are effectively in the past at the time of the rise of the sorcerer kings, though it is really just a memory, and they cannot really change anything there. Still, they are learning a lot.
The group was on their way to the Water Temple, and met a trio of guards
from their sorcerer king friend Dregoth on the path. They barred the
group's way and demanded they prove they could go further.
The map with Dregoth's symbol did not seem to be sufficient and the
fight started. The group defeated them with a bit of trouble, but not
too much and found an orb of obsidian 4 inches in diameter. They did not
find out a lot about it, but it was a sign of allegiance to earth.
They then got to the temple and found out it was in a whirlpool-like
depression in the foothills of the mountains. There were to pillars with
water flowing down the sides and a pool at the entrance. The pool was in
fact a water elemental of strong power, but the party, due to the boon
they had already gotten from Water in their own time, were able to pass
with no problem.
They found out there were four tests to do before being accepted and
reaching the innermost sanctum.
The first challenge was pretty simple and the party passed it easily,
the story telling of the primordial's balance and the party had to
choose which of the primordials they would choose, and he of course
chose water.
The second challenge was a bit more challenging with a floorless room
and a disk set into open air. The story was of the present, how Fire and
Earth had betrayed Water after water had done the most to beat the gods
in the great primordial and god war, a war that was basically over, the
gods fled or dead. But now water was under threat, with air absent, and
fire and earth working together. In this room the players had to swear
off all allegiance to the gods, which the party found very easy to do.
The third room was was an alternate future, in a room filled with fire.
Here, the party had a lot of trouble as they could not attune to the
disk and failed the first two attempts to do so, only barely succeeding
in the last one. The fire hurt a lot. In this room the story was of an
alternate future, which was very easy to understand as they were from
there. Here they learned that water did not win at this time and indeed
had not won up to their time. Here, they chose to be champions of Water
and received their globes of power. Each globe would allow them a BLB
bonus to all skill rolls vs water creatures. It would also prove
important soon.
They also learned that Earth was converting water to earth, and actually
trying to really destroy her. They also found out the secret that
mortals could kill primordials, as the gods had granted them that power.
In addition all characters gained knowledge of a ritual to open a portal
from Athas to the Water area of the elemental chaos. A ritual of 16th
level of power.
The final room was water's main temple on Athas, holding a portal that
lead directly to Water's realm in the elemental chaos. But it was
guarded by a creature of earth to test the party's willingness to
sacrifice and not give up.
A major fight ensued, with the party noting how the creature made
multiple attacks every turn, and just blasted away at the party again
and again and again. But in the end the creature was defeated, though
Sasaya was killed.
And then the characters met the spirit of water directly, focused through
a crown of gold on the avatar in the pool. The spirit of water was quite
interested in the character's story as well as their plans to help her
in the far future, which for a primordial was not too far anyway.
In the end, Water put a portion of her immortal essence into each of he
globes the party carried inside their bodies. She was willing to trust
they could put it to good use in the future.
