Session #102 (part ii)
The roar was like nothing they had ever heard, as if the sound had already shaken its way out of the marrow of their bones before being echoed by the wyrm’s maw.
“Lords and Lady, please let my faith be a shield to protect me from that which was ever an enemy of our people,” Kazrack prayed as he moved towards the dragon.
“This isn’t how the bloody plan is supposed to work ” Gunthar explained, moving off to the right to take a wide approach to the stone island the dragon had landed on. She moved her great head back and forth to take them all in.
Ratchis ducked down in the murky water, so only his head from the nose up broke its surface, while Martin abandoned his casting of arcane eye and cast alter self instead, changing into his oft-used Tanweil form. He followed Ratchis’ example.
“Bast Bless us with your light ” Roland chanted, and suddenly he was glowing, illuminating the corner of the cave that held him and Ratchis and Martin.
“Intruders dare enter our domain again?” Glamorgana’s voice was sibilant. It snaked its way around the ears, and made the head swim. “The little ones serve us, but you. . . You all we shall devour ”
“We should spread out ” Bastian said.
“No Gather to me ” Ratchis said, sticking his head up and moving close to Martin. Roland splashed over there as well, waiting to cast his prayer spell when all his allies were in range. Bastian obeyed, but stopped when he saw the dragon reel back and then throw her head forward with a gasp. A noxious cloud of green vapor roiled over Kazrack and then unfolded over Martin, Ratchis and Roland. Gunthar had not listened to Ratchis’ call.
They cried out in alarm and Roland was able to leap clear of any real harm, but once again Ratchis called them back, hacking and tearing as the vapor clung to him. Martin saw the Wurfel Kraft in Ratchis’ hand and said, “Grapes ” (1) The lips of his current form giving him a sibilant tone as well. The Friar of Nephthys activated the cube as Martin stepped into its area, Roland followed suit with Bastian on his heels, but Gunthar approached carefully, coming around the long way, out of what he hoped was out of range of the dragon’s breath weapon. And Kazrack’s dwarven legs could not carry him back in time, for with another blast of fetid air from the wyrm came another cloud of gas, and the dwarf was nearly overcome, even though he was able to wrap a hand about his face and nose and duck most of the way down into the water.
Kazrack reached the others and called to his gods to protect Martin from evil. Gunthar changed direction and moved into the darkness towards the central island. Bastian moved to climb the rock beside them, and aid Kazrack make his way up as well.
“Oh Great Queen Bast Thou who art as powerful as thou art graceful I ask you to grant us the benefit of a prayer that we might over come this ancient serpent ” Roland chanted.
Martin and Roland were driven back by a splash, as suddenly the dragon was about ten feet away. The huge maw came in and Ratchis felt the long teeth grind against this back and sides, as the protection of the Bracers of Axo-Morë let him slide out without being torn in half.
“Sagitta Igneus ” Martin cast, and two bolts of flame went flying at the dragon’s head, but she moved with great speed for a thing of her size, and easily avoided them. “Ratchis Gate ”
Still reeling from the ferocity of the attack, Ratchis pressed the side of the cube Martin the Green suggested, and the nearly invisible field, turned a bright light blue. The dragon bit and clawed at the cube with anger, but even her preternatural strength could not break through its magic. Frustrated, she was suddenly in the air again, landing with a splash near the solitary Gunthar.
“Oh sh*te ” Gunthar turned to run, but the dragon’s head slammed into his head and shoulders, sending him stumbling through the muck.
“She’s playing with us,” Roland growled softly.
Soon all but Gunthar were atop the six-foot high platform of stone, within the protection of the cube.
“We may not be able to defeat her,” Ratchis said.
“Gunthar is going to die ” Martin exclaimed. Roland cast cure critical wounds on Kazrack, and Martin followed up with bull’s strength on Roland. Ratchis cast divine favor.
“We need to rescue those gnomes ” Kazrack said.
“They have been here for a long time, and as much as it pains me to see them in captivity, we do them no good getting ourselves killed,” Ratchis said. “We should retreat and return another time.”
“Can we do that?” Bastian asked. “Hurgun made it sound like this was important somehow. . .”
“We have all the time in the world,” Roland replied. He might have smiled if he were not wearing a panther’s face.
“But we have to try to get Gunthar,” Ratchis said.
“Do we?” Kazrack asked, and Ratchis frowned.
Coordinating their efforts, the Keepers of the Gate rolled the cube into the murky water with a great splash, and made sluggish progress in the direction of the stepping stones leading up to the island where the gnomes still stood, shaking in silent fear.
Luckily for Gunthar, the dragon took off for the other side of the cavern when it heard the splash. The Neergaardian had suffered two deep claw punctures, and his shoulder had been worried by dragon teeth. He had withdrawn over and over again, stabbing at its face and breast whenever it got close, and then withdrawing again. None of Gunthar’s blows could cut through the wyrm’s scales, and finally he dove into the deep water and swam into a deep depression all about the large island. He struggled with the weight of his armor and gear, still clutching his short sword, and soon found himself atop a pile of copper and silver coins that filled that submerged area. He tried again and again to swim to the surface, feeling his lungs burn hotter and hotter. (2)
The Keepers of the Gate were startled by the sudden clatter of the dragon landing atop the cubic force field of the Wurfel Craft. “Sundial ” Martin said to Ratchis, and the half-orc quickly did it. As Roland cast aid on the still wounded Kazrack. “Attack ” the watch-mage cried. (3)
Bastian leapt and slammed the dragon the best he could with his hammer, but his blow was as ineffectual as Kazrack’s first halberd thrust (4), but the second wedged the head of the weapon into the muscle of a foreleg. Again, they felt the dragon’s roar reverberate through their bodies. Glamorgana leapt back off the cube, deftly and breathed her noxious breath again.
Ratchis and Bastian winced and fought to wipe their faces of the gas that ignored the force field altogether. Kazrack, Martin and Roland felt the burn as well, but were able to duck into the water before they had breathed in too much.
Roland cast protection from energy on himself, realizing the gaseous breath was caustic, not poisonous. Kazrack called to his gods to heal the worst of Ratchis’ wounds.
“Gunthar is dead,” the half-orc murmured.
“What?” asked Kazrack.
“The dragon came back and Gunthar is nowhere to be seen or heard,” Ratchis said. “He must be dead. We should retreat.”
Kazrack grunted his displeasure, but the group changed direction, willing the cube of force to head towards the vine-choked entrance to the cavern.
“Is this how it shall be?” the dragon hissed, and they closed their eyes to concentrate on pushing the cube along. “The intrepid heroes? The stalwart adventurers that enter the dragon’s lair, stick their little heads under their tortoise shell and roll their way home? Hmmm?”
“Do not listen to her,” Martin the Green warned. “Dragons are said to have the power of suggestion.”
“My goddess protects us,” Ratchis said.
The dragon landed between the Keepers of the Gate and the entrance, turning her body quickly, the reflection of Roland’s light spell shimmering off the rolling green and black scales.
“We can play this waiting game for a thousand years,” she laughed, and the laughter of a dragon was dreadful to hear, as if the sound rolled around and curdled in your stomach. The dragon took off again and landed atop the six foot high piece of stone the Keepers of the Gate had been on just a few moments before. They moved along at a snail’s pace.
“You know. . .” Martin began quietly, re-adjusting the stubby wings of his altered form nervously. “She might familiar with the Wurfel Kraft, and is waiting us out, knowing it cannot last long enough to get us very far. . .”
“We need to decide what we are doing ” Kazrack barked. “Are we fleeing or taking a stand?”
“Oh valde venes autheo acha narro,” Glamorgana chanted, and the vines and roots in the entrance began to roil.
Ratchis sighed. After a heated whispered moment, they turned the cube and began to head back towards the dragon.
In the center of the cavern they heard Gunthar’s voice. He had managed to climb to the top of the depression and pull himself above the water, and while the dragon was preoccupied, he had made his way up to the center raised stone island.
“Hey Wormy I got your little gnome friends here I’m gonna have to kill them before I get to you ” He swung his sword over his head dramatically.
With a snap of her wings, Glamorgana took off once more, landing behind Gunthar and spinning around to bite him. The gnomes scurried out of the way, one of them shrieking in absolute fright. “Ya bitch. . .” Gunthar mumbled as teeth snapped on his arm and shoulder with great speed. He jerked himself free with a gush of blood, and collapsed onto the damp stone, dying. Glamorgana took to the air once more and landed right in front of the cube. The rest of the Keepers of the Gate had made some progress, but the cube slowed them down quite a bit, and they stopped to cast some healing spells, including one on Thomas who has been burned by the dragon’s caustic breath.
“Would it not make more sense to disengage the Wurfel Kraft now and attack?” Glamorgana asked, pointing her remarks towards Ratchis. The half-orc snarled feeling the enchantment of her suggestion wash over him harmlessly.
“We’re going to have to get closer,” Martin whispered to the others. They moved towards the dragon, trying to make towards the stepping stones, but she continued to shift over, just out of reach, but ready with her deadly bite.
“Sagitta Magicus!” the dragon chanted and three arrows of light slammed into the cube and dissipated. She roared in frustration. The Keepers of the Gate moved again, and again Glamorgana shifted over to block their progress. They stopped to allow Martin the Green to cast greater invisibility on Ratchis. Roland cast divine favor. And then they moved right into the dragon, as Martin having taken over control of the cube changed it to only keep out living matter. There was a flurry of weapons, trying to reach through the field at Glamorgana, as she gnawed and clawed at it to no avail. She snarled and leapt back when Kazrack’s halberd found a weak spot in her scales and drew steaming green blood that spattered on the cube and then dripped through a half a moment later.
Martin chanted an arcane word and a sickly green ray flew from his finger and struck the dragon. She suddenly drooped and fell back even further, her wings dragging through the murky water, as she found her great strength greatly diminished. (4)
“Let me out of the cube! I will fell this dragon myself!” Kazrack barked, frustrated with his inability to follow up on his attacks.
“Sagitta Magicus!” the dragon chanted again, and this time the magic missiles struck Kazrack in the chest. The party moved forward, with Bastian taking hold of the the Wurfel Kraft at Martin’s behest. The dragon retreated once more and sent three more arrows of light into Kazrack. Bastian pressed the side of the stone cube depicting a bunch of grapes and the cube’s brightness and azure tone dimmed. Ratchis and Kazrack charged with a choral roar.
Martin began an elaborate somatic dance, tracing a circle in the water as he chanted loudly.
Kazrack grimaced as the dragon slammed her head into his charging form, but he was able to turn and cut her deeply on the neck. Glamorgana moved with unnatural alacrity, lifting a claw to smack away Ratchis and avoiding his great sword, even as she used the momentum to rear up and avoid Roland’s pounce at her head.
There was a blast of white light as a great white glowing bison, six feet at the shoulder appeared and charged at the dragon, leaving a wake in the muck. Roaring with pain and anger, Glamorgana took off once again and landed atop the island. A short bark was all it took for the gnomes to fall in line in front of her again. Gunthar continued to bleed out beneath her.
She sucked in and then let out a blossoming plume of her caustic breath. Kazrack and Ratchis cried out in pain from the burns once again, while Martin ducked as quickly as he could into the water. He felt Thomas spasm beneath his hood and then felt the sharp inner agony of his familiar’s death. His arcane power was diminished and he collapsed in the water letting out a sob. (5) He had been casting another summoning spell, but it was disrupted.
The dragon began creeping across the stepping stones as quickly as she could, making for a natural stone corridor they could now see winding into the darkness of the deep left portion of the cavern. She was leaving a trail of green blood behind her, dragging her tail as if crippled. The lip up to where she went was about four feet above Ratchis’ head..
“Oh Great Queen Bast, thou who art as powerful as thou art graceful, smite this wyrm with a column of you holy flame![/I] Roland prayed, and a pillar of flame appeared from the darkness above engulfing the dragon. When the smoke and steam cleared the dragon emerged untouched. The spell could not get through its draconic resistance to magic.
Bastian fired a crossbow bolt that went wide of the escaping dragon, as Ratchis and Kazrack cast healing spells upon themselves. Ratchis followed this up with a spell on Kazrack, as the dwarf was still looking seriously wounded.
Glamorgana hurried into deeper into the passageway, and while they could see her tail still emerging from the darkness, the rest of her was obscured. They heard the breaking of glass.
“She has a whole cabinet of potions back there!” One of the gnomes cried. “She can chew through glass as if it were bread!”
“Potions? She’s healing herself!” Martin croaked as he took to the air, his stubby wings flapping furiously. He came down on the raised shelf, as Ratchis, still invisible, pulled himself up beside him. Roland leapt up onto the shelf easily, and snapped his jaws at Kazrack’s cloak to help the struggling dwarf up. Kazrack kicked futilely. Bastian made it up as Martin began his emphatic casting of a summoning spell once again, and the bearded warrior turned to help Roland pull up Kazrack, but still they struggled, the dwarf’s eagerness undermining his potential success.
Glamorgana whirled around with a roar and charged at Martin the Green. The watch-mage ducked in time with his casting, never losing his rhythm, and another celestial bison appeared, even as the dragon pulled away from the chop of Ratchis’ dragon-hilted masterwork greatsword. The bison charged right by, missing the wyrm completely. It bellowed as the dragon clawed it deeply.
Ratchis thought he could use the distraction to move within the dragon’s defense, but miscalculated, feeling the claws and bite rip into him. Being invisible seemed to prove no help against this foe. “Sagitta Igneus ” Martin chanted, he pulled his hand away nervously as he released the spell remembering that an invisible Ratchis was engaged with his target. The flame arrow went wide. The second fiery bolt dissipated as it struck the dragon. She brought her claws down on Ratchis once again, but the Friar of Nephthys would not withdraw even as he felt sore muscles tear and his blood seep from him. He drove his sword deep into the left side of the dragon’s breast. She reared up again, and the sword was drawn out leaving a ragged wound. Ratchis flicked the blade up with wrists, catching her under the snout, sending a cascade of steaming green blood all over them.
Her screaming roar was like nothing they had ever heard.
Kazrack finally made it up, dragging himself over the lip onto his stomach and scrambling to get to his feet. Roland turned away from the dwarf and to lay another curing spell on Ratchis, as the dragon withdrew once again, but he could not find the half-orc.
They heard the tell-tale deep inhale before the stinging breath of the dragon was all over them again. Kazrack swayed and fell, but on the edge of death, Ratchis charged. He leapt over the monster’s head as he brought his sword down with a powerful hack on one of her haunches. Once again she reared up, but Ratchis was ready, putting his sword up to catch her with the tip of it where her head met the body. There was a tearing sound of sinew and muscle and a rain of green blood as she came down, her own weight helping the blade cut her tough flesh.
The half-orc took three hurried steps back as the huge form of the dragon collapsed with a final breath.
The Keepers of the Gate let out a cheer, even as Roland brought Kazrack back to consciousness with a spell, but the cheer quickly died. The dead form of the dragon began to change and melt. In a moment it was a pile of vaguely dragon-shaped ice and snow, and then it was a puddle with tiny dissipating crystals shining in the light of Roland’s spell. (6)
“Oh, no. . .” Martin the Green gasped, recognizing what he saw. “That was not the real dragon. . . We are so dead. . .”
Suddenly, they were falling through an infinite plane of blue and white, their senses warping and their minds reeling until they were eager for the coming unconsciousness.
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Notes:
(1) Pressing the side of the stone cube that depicts a bunch of grapes creates a force field that keeps out gases, wind, etc. . .
(2) DM’s Note: Gunthar failed a swim check two rounds in a row.
(3) Pressing the side of the stone cube that depicts a sundial keeps put all living matter, allowing weapons to go through.
(4) DM’s Note: Martin’s ray of enfeeblement drained 8 points of the dragon’s strength.
(5) DM’s Note: Martin failed his saving throw, losing 2000 XP, which dropped him to 9th level.
(6) DM’s Note: This battle took 43 rounds.
