Return to the Tomb of Horrors finally gets a Story Hour!
James McMurray
First Post
It wasn't too much work. I used PCGen to generate character sheets for all of the combatants. Only the ones with memorized spells required much thought.
I also had the great minds here and at webrpg's message boards to draw on for creatures to come out. (plus a few ideas from my wife, who is responsible for the brewer gnomes that will be setting up shop to sell refreshments to survivors.)
I also had the great minds here and at webrpg's message boards to draw on for creatures to come out. (plus a few ideas from my wife, who is responsible for the brewer gnomes that will be setting up shop to sell refreshments to survivors.)
James McMurray
First Post
Having faced Meourgetok Natalia in battle before, Lorelei was aware of his potency. For 2000 years she had chased the dead god across the planes, hoping to reunite him with his essence, albeit not in a manner he wished. Meourgetok, a Hunefer, the mummified remains of a dead deity, cursed to search for his essence eternally in a vain attempt at regaining his divine spark, saw Lorelei, and the ancient rivalry flared anew.
Over 3,000 years ago, the cycle of gods before this one ended. Meourgetok, then the god of strength and decay, was torn kicking and screaming from his ancient throne in the Abyss. But he would not stay down. His spirit was interred in the depths of Mount Celestia, but his body roamed free. Lorelei, an enforcer for the newly appointed sun god Pelor, was sent to retrieve or destroy this most heinous of undead, lest he unsettle the balance of power in the divine courts by somehow regaining his essence and re-ascending.
A millennia ago, Conrad Adar had stumbled across the Hunefer in a rage, rampaging through a devilish city deep in the fourth layer of hell. He wisely fled the scene, but research and magics told him Meourgetok’s story, and he concocted a plan that would gain him the most powerful soul ever trapped by a contractor devil. Approaching the Hunefer carefully (after the rage had died down) he proposed to show the creature where its essence was, if it would only agree to not harm Conrad.
Driven mad in his quest for rebirth, Natalia agreed near instantly, and Conrad plane shifted the two of them to the base of Mount Celestia. As the waters of the ocean of holy water burned their feet like acid, Conrad knew he had to work fast. “Your soul lies within that mountain, which is made of the same stuff as these shores. You will never be able to regain it. It’s a pity a fool such as you must be cursed to forever roam, soulless and empty. Damnation! I’m glad I’m not you.”
Hearing the truth in Conrad’s words, Meourgetok realized his quest for his being was fruitless, and the rage returned. As his fist slammed into the devil, the penalty clause was invoked. Not even the might of a half-dead god can withstand the power of a contractor’s tome. Conrad immediately plane shifted out, and although the hit from Meourgetok and the burns from the ocean took a year to heal, it was well worth it.
Five years later, as Conrad roamed the streets of Union in search of new souls to add to his tome, he came across Lorelei. Not knowing that her quarry was safely trapped away, she too had undertaken a fruitless quest. When Conrad learned of that, he leapt into action to gain yet another soul of great power. Two such souls of this magnitude would most certainly entitle him to a full partnership in the Baatorian Legal Association.
“My dearest Lorelei, what if I were to tell you I knew where your prey lie?”
“What do you want from me devil, I’ll not sign your papers.” Lorelei responded.
“Tut-tut dear, you and I both know the destruction that thing is capable of while it roams free. It has even rampaged through hell in its quest for rebirth. You and I both know that having it free is not a situation anyone but the maddest of men would desire. There are no papers to sign, no contracts. I will take you to where he is so that you may assure yourself that he is no longer a threat to the cosmos.”
“Very well fiend, but be forewarned, I will brook no treachery from you. Though I may fall in a devil’s snare, know that you will fall before me.”
Lorelei reached down her mighty hand and touched Conrad, in preparation for the plane shifting. As she did so, the litigator reached into his robe and drew forth his tome. “Put that away fiend!” Lorelei warned, but before she could make due on the threat in her voice, Conrad pulled open the tome.
“He is right here, go to him and our deal is complete.” As Lorelei’s body and soul were ripped into the book, she realized too late her foolishness for dealing with a devil.
But now, after a thousands years of torment in the Tome, she suddenly finds herself free. All around her humans and demi-humans cry in fear, but from those voices she picks out a familiar sound: the wails of the Hunefer victims. Looking around, she sees him! Finally her quarry can be destroyed!
-------
Meourgetok spies his tormentor almost immediately as well, her 25’ frame towering above the screaming crowd and her full plate gleaming in the morning sun. He screams a cry of rage and a command to the mummies his touch has created in the crowd, hastes and displaces himself and charges her. Before he can reach, she steps sideways into the ethereal plane and begins to prepare herself for battle (starting with a haste of her own).
As his mummies continue charging blindly towards where she was, Meourgetok activates his True Seeing and his being flares brightly, surrounding him in an unholy aura. He moves to where she is and begins to slam the people around him that are paralyzed with fear, creating more mummy minions. Meanwhile Lorelei is rapidly preparing for battle, with quickened spells and abilities to increase her titanic battle prowess to epic proportions. She then moves away and returns to the Prime.
Seeing her reappear, Meourgetok and his mummies charge. They have moved towards another battle, and the combatants there scream in mindless terror at the sight of the dead god. Lorelei attempts a greater dispelling, but none of the Hunefer’s effects are ended, and she raises a magic circle against evil which does manage to keep him at bay, until he dispels it moments later. Lorelei summons an Astral Deva to help her combat the minions, and when it appears the sight of Meourgetok sends it into a panicked catatonia. Meanwhile the mummies charge, and one of them reaches her but fails to strike. Her return attack does not miss however, and the beast is sent reeling from her massive war hammer’s blow, made even worse by the fact that her Righteous might has increased her size to a towering 50’ tall.
Meourgetok leaps onto Lorelei, but her magics return the force of his blow back upon himself. He is barely nicked by the blow, but is forced to reassess the situation and he again casts greater dispelling. Many of her spells are dropped, including the Fast Reflection (an epic spell which rebounds melee attacks upon their instigator).
Lorelei raises another fast reflection, another magic circle vs. evil, and unleashes a fire storm. After the fiery blast Meourgetok is unscathed, but his minions fare poorly. All but two are destroyed outright. The titan has also managed to stretch the spell’s effect to include a few demons in a battle raging between demons and celestials not too far from their position.
The two remaining mummies attack the Deva, crashing their fists into its catatonic form, and shaking it free of the fear. The Hunefer also charges, and again hits himself. Lorelei’s war hammer slams home and the flare from its fiery blast sends the beast reeling. His wounds begin to close almost as quickly as they are formed though. It will take more than a single shot from a war hammer to drop this thing, even if it is fiery, gargantuan, and undead dread.
The Deva leaps up just as a mummy is swinging at her, and the beast falls! It never rises again though, as her mace rings true and the beast crumbles instantly to dust, destroyed by its holy power.
Meourgetok breaks through the circle and dispels the renewed reflection. Two slams hit home on Lorelei, and her skin rapidly begins to decay. The pain is intense as his supernatural rot sets in, and she know she does not have long before she too becomes a mummified servant of the dead god. Acting quickly, she moves away and casts a Mass Heal. Her movement has taken her into range of the two half-celestials, so she targets them as well. She also manages to affect the Deva, who is barely scratched by the mummies, but thankful nonetheless.
Her strength renewed, the Deva assaults the last remaining mummy, but does not manage to destroy it. She gets hit again for her efforts, but knows that if they continue to trade blows like that, the abominable undead will crumble long before she does.
To be continued. . .
Over 3,000 years ago, the cycle of gods before this one ended. Meourgetok, then the god of strength and decay, was torn kicking and screaming from his ancient throne in the Abyss. But he would not stay down. His spirit was interred in the depths of Mount Celestia, but his body roamed free. Lorelei, an enforcer for the newly appointed sun god Pelor, was sent to retrieve or destroy this most heinous of undead, lest he unsettle the balance of power in the divine courts by somehow regaining his essence and re-ascending.
A millennia ago, Conrad Adar had stumbled across the Hunefer in a rage, rampaging through a devilish city deep in the fourth layer of hell. He wisely fled the scene, but research and magics told him Meourgetok’s story, and he concocted a plan that would gain him the most powerful soul ever trapped by a contractor devil. Approaching the Hunefer carefully (after the rage had died down) he proposed to show the creature where its essence was, if it would only agree to not harm Conrad.
Driven mad in his quest for rebirth, Natalia agreed near instantly, and Conrad plane shifted the two of them to the base of Mount Celestia. As the waters of the ocean of holy water burned their feet like acid, Conrad knew he had to work fast. “Your soul lies within that mountain, which is made of the same stuff as these shores. You will never be able to regain it. It’s a pity a fool such as you must be cursed to forever roam, soulless and empty. Damnation! I’m glad I’m not you.”
Hearing the truth in Conrad’s words, Meourgetok realized his quest for his being was fruitless, and the rage returned. As his fist slammed into the devil, the penalty clause was invoked. Not even the might of a half-dead god can withstand the power of a contractor’s tome. Conrad immediately plane shifted out, and although the hit from Meourgetok and the burns from the ocean took a year to heal, it was well worth it.
Five years later, as Conrad roamed the streets of Union in search of new souls to add to his tome, he came across Lorelei. Not knowing that her quarry was safely trapped away, she too had undertaken a fruitless quest. When Conrad learned of that, he leapt into action to gain yet another soul of great power. Two such souls of this magnitude would most certainly entitle him to a full partnership in the Baatorian Legal Association.
“My dearest Lorelei, what if I were to tell you I knew where your prey lie?”
“What do you want from me devil, I’ll not sign your papers.” Lorelei responded.
“Tut-tut dear, you and I both know the destruction that thing is capable of while it roams free. It has even rampaged through hell in its quest for rebirth. You and I both know that having it free is not a situation anyone but the maddest of men would desire. There are no papers to sign, no contracts. I will take you to where he is so that you may assure yourself that he is no longer a threat to the cosmos.”
“Very well fiend, but be forewarned, I will brook no treachery from you. Though I may fall in a devil’s snare, know that you will fall before me.”
Lorelei reached down her mighty hand and touched Conrad, in preparation for the plane shifting. As she did so, the litigator reached into his robe and drew forth his tome. “Put that away fiend!” Lorelei warned, but before she could make due on the threat in her voice, Conrad pulled open the tome.
“He is right here, go to him and our deal is complete.” As Lorelei’s body and soul were ripped into the book, she realized too late her foolishness for dealing with a devil.
But now, after a thousands years of torment in the Tome, she suddenly finds herself free. All around her humans and demi-humans cry in fear, but from those voices she picks out a familiar sound: the wails of the Hunefer victims. Looking around, she sees him! Finally her quarry can be destroyed!
-------
Meourgetok spies his tormentor almost immediately as well, her 25’ frame towering above the screaming crowd and her full plate gleaming in the morning sun. He screams a cry of rage and a command to the mummies his touch has created in the crowd, hastes and displaces himself and charges her. Before he can reach, she steps sideways into the ethereal plane and begins to prepare herself for battle (starting with a haste of her own).
As his mummies continue charging blindly towards where she was, Meourgetok activates his True Seeing and his being flares brightly, surrounding him in an unholy aura. He moves to where she is and begins to slam the people around him that are paralyzed with fear, creating more mummy minions. Meanwhile Lorelei is rapidly preparing for battle, with quickened spells and abilities to increase her titanic battle prowess to epic proportions. She then moves away and returns to the Prime.
Seeing her reappear, Meourgetok and his mummies charge. They have moved towards another battle, and the combatants there scream in mindless terror at the sight of the dead god. Lorelei attempts a greater dispelling, but none of the Hunefer’s effects are ended, and she raises a magic circle against evil which does manage to keep him at bay, until he dispels it moments later. Lorelei summons an Astral Deva to help her combat the minions, and when it appears the sight of Meourgetok sends it into a panicked catatonia. Meanwhile the mummies charge, and one of them reaches her but fails to strike. Her return attack does not miss however, and the beast is sent reeling from her massive war hammer’s blow, made even worse by the fact that her Righteous might has increased her size to a towering 50’ tall.
Meourgetok leaps onto Lorelei, but her magics return the force of his blow back upon himself. He is barely nicked by the blow, but is forced to reassess the situation and he again casts greater dispelling. Many of her spells are dropped, including the Fast Reflection (an epic spell which rebounds melee attacks upon their instigator).
Lorelei raises another fast reflection, another magic circle vs. evil, and unleashes a fire storm. After the fiery blast Meourgetok is unscathed, but his minions fare poorly. All but two are destroyed outright. The titan has also managed to stretch the spell’s effect to include a few demons in a battle raging between demons and celestials not too far from their position.
The two remaining mummies attack the Deva, crashing their fists into its catatonic form, and shaking it free of the fear. The Hunefer also charges, and again hits himself. Lorelei’s war hammer slams home and the flare from its fiery blast sends the beast reeling. His wounds begin to close almost as quickly as they are formed though. It will take more than a single shot from a war hammer to drop this thing, even if it is fiery, gargantuan, and undead dread.
The Deva leaps up just as a mummy is swinging at her, and the beast falls! It never rises again though, as her mace rings true and the beast crumbles instantly to dust, destroyed by its holy power.
Meourgetok breaks through the circle and dispels the renewed reflection. Two slams hit home on Lorelei, and her skin rapidly begins to decay. The pain is intense as his supernatural rot sets in, and she know she does not have long before she too becomes a mummified servant of the dead god. Acting quickly, she moves away and casts a Mass Heal. Her movement has taken her into range of the two half-celestials, so she targets them as well. She also manages to affect the Deva, who is barely scratched by the mummies, but thankful nonetheless.
Her strength renewed, the Deva assaults the last remaining mummy, but does not manage to destroy it. She gets hit again for her efforts, but knows that if they continue to trade blows like that, the abominable undead will crumble long before she does.
To be continued. . .
James McMurray
First Post
Meanwhile, the skies above tremble from dragon rage. Glorianna, a proud golden dragon is best from all sides by a trio of chromatics bent on bringing her down. Flame Tongue the Red, Bile the Black, and Dancing Death the Blue circle her, looking for an opening.
Flame Tongue casts haste, then her form wavers and shifts under the effects of a blur spell, while Bile and Dancing Death meet 50 yards away. Bile summons forth mirror images of himself, while Dancing Death erects a shield. Intent on teaching these young upstarts a lesson in respecting their betters, Glorianna does not yet leave. Instead she too hastes herself, and erects a shield of force.
Flame Tongue moves towards the two other chromatics and hastes Dancing Death as well. Dancer shoots forward towards Glorianna and unleashes a crackling column of electrical breath, but it falls short of the mark. Bile summons magics to raise his strength, while Glorianna hovers and cast mage armor and protection from evil, greatly increasing her odds of survival in melee combat.
Flame Tongue answers with a protection from good, and his attempt to blind Glorianna fails. Dancing death climbs and flies under Glorianna’s soft underbelly where he unleashes another blast of his breath. This one strikes home and static plays across the great gold’s scales. Bile prepares himself for a devastating attack by casting a True Strike spell, but realizes too late that Glorianna is too far to make it effective, so he opts to instead vomit forth the acid breath that gave him his name. Glorianna replies with a breath attack of her own, and the cone of gas engulfs Dancing Death. The mighty blue feels his strength ebb quickly as the gas takes effect.
Flame Tongue again tries to blind Glorianna and fails, while Dancing Death circles for yet another blast of his shocking breath. Glorianna responds with a cone of fire and then flies away, healing herself.
Flame Tongue rockets by and snaps with his mighty jaws, but they rebound off of the gold’s protective magics, and Glorianna dimension doors away and casts endurance before turning back to face her foes again. Dancing Death casts Ghoul Touch, hoping its stench will slow her down, but it fails to harm her. Bile, realizing the gold owns the skies currently, casts expeditious retreat and hurtles after her. He is now confident that she cannot escape him.
Glorianna flies up out of the reach of the chromatics and casts bull’s strength. Dancing Death breathes upon her again, but between the healing and the endurance the damage is slight. Bile continues to chase and enlarges himself in preparation for an all out assault.
Flame Tongue flies up and his vampiric touch misses, while Dancing Death also misses, his weakened body unable to penetrate the gold drake’s scales. Glorianna hovers over Flame Tongue and her strikes rebound off of him. She then casts blink, increasing her odds of survival even farther. Bile tries to grab Glorianna to send them both hurtling to the ground, but he shakes loose.
Flame Tongue, seeing that dragging her to earth may be the only way, also takes a swipe at her. He does connect, but she shakes loose from his grip as well. Glorianna’s return frenzy tears into the black, tattering his scales and tattering his wings. Fearing he may be about to fall anyway, Bile stops his forward flight and takes several swipes at the old gold drake. The first two rebound off and fail to grapple her, while the remainder miss as he plummets to the ground out of reach. Without his forward momentum he could not stay flying. He slams into the ground 500’ below, but almost immediately shakes his head and moves to stand up. He does give Dancing Death enough of an opportunity to get a claw swipe in.
Flame Tongue tries to grapple Glorianna as well, but his only reward is a front row view of the claws that explode in his face with draconic fury, and the fire that engulfs Dancing Death. Dancing death ignores the flames and reaches through them to grab Glorianna around her neck. As the two plummet towards the ground Flame Tongue takes a passing swipe and connects. Below, Bile is shaking himself from his long fall and looks up as his keen senses detect something incoming. He is not fast enough though, and a massive mound of blue and gold scales slam into him. Unfortunately for Dancing Death, Glorianna managed top twist and turn, landing with a claw on his chest. Although both are hurt by the fall, only Glorianna stands again, pulling her claw from the shatter chest of the Blue.
Bile, nearly dead from having two dragon missiles hit him from 500’ up turns to flee. As Glorianna goes to stand, Flame Tongue sees his opportunity. He hurtles from the sky and slams into her. Both are badly damaged, and Glorianna barely manages to shake herself free before dimension Dooring straight up and flying away. Flame Tongue heads off in a different direction, leaving the outcome of the battle undecided as the three dragons head for far corners of the area to lick their wounds.
Flame Tongue casts haste, then her form wavers and shifts under the effects of a blur spell, while Bile and Dancing Death meet 50 yards away. Bile summons forth mirror images of himself, while Dancing Death erects a shield. Intent on teaching these young upstarts a lesson in respecting their betters, Glorianna does not yet leave. Instead she too hastes herself, and erects a shield of force.
Flame Tongue moves towards the two other chromatics and hastes Dancing Death as well. Dancer shoots forward towards Glorianna and unleashes a crackling column of electrical breath, but it falls short of the mark. Bile summons magics to raise his strength, while Glorianna hovers and cast mage armor and protection from evil, greatly increasing her odds of survival in melee combat.
Flame Tongue answers with a protection from good, and his attempt to blind Glorianna fails. Dancing death climbs and flies under Glorianna’s soft underbelly where he unleashes another blast of his breath. This one strikes home and static plays across the great gold’s scales. Bile prepares himself for a devastating attack by casting a True Strike spell, but realizes too late that Glorianna is too far to make it effective, so he opts to instead vomit forth the acid breath that gave him his name. Glorianna replies with a breath attack of her own, and the cone of gas engulfs Dancing Death. The mighty blue feels his strength ebb quickly as the gas takes effect.
Flame Tongue again tries to blind Glorianna and fails, while Dancing Death circles for yet another blast of his shocking breath. Glorianna responds with a cone of fire and then flies away, healing herself.
Flame Tongue rockets by and snaps with his mighty jaws, but they rebound off of the gold’s protective magics, and Glorianna dimension doors away and casts endurance before turning back to face her foes again. Dancing Death casts Ghoul Touch, hoping its stench will slow her down, but it fails to harm her. Bile, realizing the gold owns the skies currently, casts expeditious retreat and hurtles after her. He is now confident that she cannot escape him.
Glorianna flies up out of the reach of the chromatics and casts bull’s strength. Dancing Death breathes upon her again, but between the healing and the endurance the damage is slight. Bile continues to chase and enlarges himself in preparation for an all out assault.
Flame Tongue flies up and his vampiric touch misses, while Dancing Death also misses, his weakened body unable to penetrate the gold drake’s scales. Glorianna hovers over Flame Tongue and her strikes rebound off of him. She then casts blink, increasing her odds of survival even farther. Bile tries to grab Glorianna to send them both hurtling to the ground, but he shakes loose.
Flame Tongue, seeing that dragging her to earth may be the only way, also takes a swipe at her. He does connect, but she shakes loose from his grip as well. Glorianna’s return frenzy tears into the black, tattering his scales and tattering his wings. Fearing he may be about to fall anyway, Bile stops his forward flight and takes several swipes at the old gold drake. The first two rebound off and fail to grapple her, while the remainder miss as he plummets to the ground out of reach. Without his forward momentum he could not stay flying. He slams into the ground 500’ below, but almost immediately shakes his head and moves to stand up. He does give Dancing Death enough of an opportunity to get a claw swipe in.
Flame Tongue tries to grapple Glorianna as well, but his only reward is a front row view of the claws that explode in his face with draconic fury, and the fire that engulfs Dancing Death. Dancing death ignores the flames and reaches through them to grab Glorianna around her neck. As the two plummet towards the ground Flame Tongue takes a passing swipe and connects. Below, Bile is shaking himself from his long fall and looks up as his keen senses detect something incoming. He is not fast enough though, and a massive mound of blue and gold scales slam into him. Unfortunately for Dancing Death, Glorianna managed top twist and turn, landing with a claw on his chest. Although both are hurt by the fall, only Glorianna stands again, pulling her claw from the shatter chest of the Blue.
Bile, nearly dead from having two dragon missiles hit him from 500’ up turns to flee. As Glorianna goes to stand, Flame Tongue sees his opportunity. He hurtles from the sky and slams into her. Both are badly damaged, and Glorianna barely manages to shake herself free before dimension Dooring straight up and flying away. Flame Tongue heads off in a different direction, leaving the outcome of the battle undecided as the three dragons head for far corners of the area to lick their wounds.
James McMurray
First Post
Hey, ya gotta give a little to get a little.
James McMurray
First Post
Bakground on a couple of captured combatants
Kirenalo’ Juhalsonarost was a proud fiend. She had ridden her beauty and strength to the top of Orcus’ chain of command. A Marilith with nearly 3,000 years of experience in the Blood wars behind her, she was no fool, except when it came to her desire for power. She and her massive bodyguard Drach (one of the bullish Goristro demons) were never far from the power struggles surrounding Orcus’ rulership. She preferred to work from behind the scenes and try to bring him down without a fight, as she knew she could not overpower him while he held the Rod.
All that changed when, as she luxuriated in her palatial rooms, she looked up from her bed to see a figure standing before her. Conrad Adar wore fully covering robes, and the eyes which shone forth from within his hood were a fiery red. He knew she would wonder who it was and not attack immediately. Drach, never far from her side, leapt into action, but a wave of Conrad’s hand froze him in place. “There is no need for that,” Conrad hissed. “I am here to offer you power.”
Kir was never one to hurl herself into battle, preferring instead to watch and learn before dragging her foes down. Conrad had judged her correctly. “Who are you that you would wish to help me?”
“My name is unimportant. I know of your desires to topple Orcus, and I have no great love of him myself. I want to help you drag him down. And to do so, it will become necessary to wrest his wand from him. I can help you to be instrumental in that.”
The two spoke for a bit, and when Drach’s paralysis wore off, Kir told him to leave. She and Conrad spoke for quite some time. Conrad revealed to her the prophecy of the final battle, and how he believed that it would lead to an assault on Orcus’ palace in approximately 35 years. He also promised her that he could ensure she would be there to see that happen, and could be the one to wrest to wand from Orcus’ grasp.
That possibility was too much to ignore, and Kir foolishly agreed. “Very well then Adar. I will join you in this endeavor. However, I will brook no treachery!” Conrad laughed, as he had heard those exact words a thousand times before.
“Excellent. Then our bargain is complete. I will call you when the time comes.” Conrad reached into his robes and pulled forth his tome. Kir was dragged, screaming and cursing, into the book where she would await Conrad’s call. Drach, every the loyal bodyguard (odd for a demon, but perhaps he had his motives as well) grabbed onto her scintillating tail as it passed. He too was ripped into the tome. Although it was quite accidental, Conrad was happy to add to his tally of souls. The more souls he trapped, the closer he was to his true goals, of which the Wand of Orcus was only a tiny, almost secondary, part.
Conrad turned and strolled casually out of the Marilith’s palace, without even a trace of fear. His years of triumph had made him cocky and brash, and he did not even worry that he was deep in the heart of a Tanar’ri stronghold. That was almost his undoing, as he passed around a corner and almost bumped into Carnolathingaraniteioqwafiti. The Cerebelith was there on business, but immediately sensed within Conrad the stench of Baator. He flew into action, first attempting to wrest control of the devil’s mind, but Conrad’s will was too strong. Realizing that his foe was stronger than he at first thought, he shouted out a warning and called out to his brother in an attempt to summon him. There was no answer from the treacherous sibling.
Conrad reached into his tome and pulled it forth. He called upon his newly acquired servant Kirenalo’ and when she came forth he ordered her to grab the Cerebelith that assaulted him. Although she tried to resist, the power of the Tome is near insurmountable in such a short time, and she found her tail snaking around the Cerebelith of its own accord. When he was fully wrapped, Conrad called out again, dragging the two Tanar’ri back into the tome.
He allowed himself a long loud laugh, and then immediately took the more prudent action and plane shifted away from the Abyss and back to the halls of Baator, to record his newest dealings.
Now, almost 40 years later, the tome was destroyed. And Kir was out for revenge. But first she needs to stretch her arms a bit. It has been too long since she felt the calming warmth of blood flowing over and around her.
---------
It was a rare day indeed! For reasons unknown, a large pack of demons had begun an assault upon a small coastal town at the base of Mount Celestia. The raiders sizzled and burned in the surf of the vast holy Ocean, but they soon pressed up to the shore.
Petitioners were their main targets, and they grabbed them one, two, or even more at a time. Having grabbed them, they immediately began to plane shift and teleport away with their captives.
The town’s alarm went up, and Striker Michaelson answered the call with his troops. The Planetar and his strike team of three hound archons, an Astral Deva, and 5 flights of Lantern Archons teleported to the village and joined its Leonal Guardinal in defense of the shores.
Although they quickly made short work of the demons, without even having to use their memorized spells, they were unable to trace the fleeing demons to where they could free the captives.
In the calm after the battle, a single glowing Avoral rocketed out of the sky to land before Striker. “I know how we can free the captives, sir.”
Striker’s reply was laced with hate and threat, “Drop the shroud, fiend. And speak quickly. You have 5 seconds to convince me that I should not destroy you where you stand.”
Conrad’s Avoral skin fell away, and as it hit the shores, it turned to worms that burrowed and fled deep into the soil of Mount Celestia. “Very well then, we shall dispense with the pleasantries and get straight to business. In the past few hours, here and at several other coastal towns raids have been conducted. These raids have gathered approximately 250 petitioner souls. These souls are currently being held captive on the Abyss. I know where, and will be happy to take you there. In exchange, I will request one service from you.”
“What would that be, fiend?”
“It is a relatively simple matter, but its nature requires that I not reveal the details until I can be sure you are on board. If word of my endeavors were to reach the Baatorian Legal Association, they would most likely disbar me for malpractice. I can assure you however, that neither you nor any other good creature will be damaged by my request. Nor will the battles between your people and mine be affected by this request. Finally, the request need not be answered immediately, you will be given time to rescue the captives before it comes into effect.”
Striker was loathe to even consider dealing with the devil, but also knew that it may be his only way of rescuing captives. His celestial sight proved to him that everything the fiend said was true.
Conrad spoke up again. “I do not intend to pressure you. Please take all the time you need to contemplate this deal. Remember though, your petitioners are certainly not in pleasant company. Every minute that passes could be another good soul ground to its essence to feed the Tanar’ri birthing pits.”
Strike knew it was foolish to agree, but could not bear the thought of those good souls, pure enough to reach Celestia, being fed to embryonic demons. “I will not agree to your request devil, without first knowing what it is.”
Conrad sighed. “Very well then, but before I tell you I must have your assurance that no one will hear of this deal from you. Were it to be known I even made this request, the guild would have me destroyed or worse.”
“Don’t try to play upon my conscience beast. I have none where your kind are concerned. I will tell no one of your request.”
Conrad seemed visibly relieved. “I would like for you and your team to travel with me for a short time. In my company you can observe the inner workings of the Baatorian Legal Association. You will learn firsthand how their members engage in treacherous acts to trick souls into their servitude. I am sure you would agree with me were I to say that the laws must be followed and that deals must be kept. However, you would also agree that the spirit of the bargains is more important than the letter, and that a deal entered into under false pretenses should not be binding. Would you not?”
Exactly to plan, Striker was getting impatient with the devil’s condescending tone. “Of course I would. Get on with the explanation.”
The impatience, Conrad hoped, would translate into a lessened scrutiny of the words he used. Should Striker be too busy waiting for the end of the bargain to occur, he would miss the tiny clues as to the true nature of the deal. Conrad had never actually said how he would travel. Nor had he said that he agreed with the ideas espoused, or disagreed with the guild, only that if he were to say these things, the Planetar’s nature would force him to agree.
Conrad continued spinning his web. “Certainly you would. Any individual capable of reaching your lofty position would certainly agree. But to the point, as you say.” By the look on Striker’s face, Conrad could tell that it had worked. All thought of the previous intricacies of the deal had passed, and Striker was now fully focused on the final section of the deal.
“With the knowledge you gain from traveling incognito with me, your people could be able to better understand our methods. And thus better combat them. Together you and I could become a force for reform in the Baatorian Legal Association. Your learning our ways could lead to a better understanding, and through that understanding, better means of combating those methods.” Conrad’s voice swelled with the (empty) promise of a better world and a more ethical BLA.
Striker, his celestial senses again assuring him that every word the devil spoke was true, stood at ease to think. “The petitioners.” Conrad quietly said, interrupting the Planetar’s chain of thought and driving him to make his rash and foolish decision.
“I’ll do it. But I will keep an eye on you as well as your brethren, fiend. And I will brook no treachery!”
“Excellent! You could be the agent of reform for the BLA! But first, we must rescue the petitioners. Gather your troops and we will head out.”
Striker gathered his men and prepared for the plane shift. Moments later they were on the fire scorched and blackened fields of the abyss. Over a rise they could just make out the tops of a spire. But whether the screams that filled the air came from there or from the very ground itself was impossible to determine. “Wait here fiend. We shall return shortly.”
Striker led his squad over the rise, and in a fierce assault they quickly rescued the captives. Some few were taken hostage by the demons and destroyed, but the vast majority of them survived. All lantern archons were dispersed in the raid, but such is the life of a shock trooper. Striker knew their essence would escape this foul plane and return to Celestia to be reforged into a fighting vessel.
Conrad himself opened the gate which would return the petitioners to the shores of Mount Celestia. As the last one stepped through, he turned to Striker. “And now to complete the deal. You and your men will travel with me.” He reached into his robes and pulled out the Tome. “In here!”
Moments later, the entire squad had been sucked kicking and screaming into the devil’s tome. Conrad’s watched them squirm and writhe across the cover before getting dragged in completely. As a small smile formed on his lips, he surveyed the scene of the destroyed Tanar’ri outpost. The smile turned to an ear to ear grin and then a boisterous laugh as he contemplated the response his superiors would give when they heard how he had tricked an entire team of celestials into destroying a Tanar’ri outpost, planted several Baatorian spies into a group of petitioners, and finally captured the Celestial troops.
Two days later he was declared a full partner in the BLA.
Kirenalo’ Juhalsonarost was a proud fiend. She had ridden her beauty and strength to the top of Orcus’ chain of command. A Marilith with nearly 3,000 years of experience in the Blood wars behind her, she was no fool, except when it came to her desire for power. She and her massive bodyguard Drach (one of the bullish Goristro demons) were never far from the power struggles surrounding Orcus’ rulership. She preferred to work from behind the scenes and try to bring him down without a fight, as she knew she could not overpower him while he held the Rod.
All that changed when, as she luxuriated in her palatial rooms, she looked up from her bed to see a figure standing before her. Conrad Adar wore fully covering robes, and the eyes which shone forth from within his hood were a fiery red. He knew she would wonder who it was and not attack immediately. Drach, never far from her side, leapt into action, but a wave of Conrad’s hand froze him in place. “There is no need for that,” Conrad hissed. “I am here to offer you power.”
Kir was never one to hurl herself into battle, preferring instead to watch and learn before dragging her foes down. Conrad had judged her correctly. “Who are you that you would wish to help me?”
“My name is unimportant. I know of your desires to topple Orcus, and I have no great love of him myself. I want to help you drag him down. And to do so, it will become necessary to wrest his wand from him. I can help you to be instrumental in that.”
The two spoke for a bit, and when Drach’s paralysis wore off, Kir told him to leave. She and Conrad spoke for quite some time. Conrad revealed to her the prophecy of the final battle, and how he believed that it would lead to an assault on Orcus’ palace in approximately 35 years. He also promised her that he could ensure she would be there to see that happen, and could be the one to wrest to wand from Orcus’ grasp.
That possibility was too much to ignore, and Kir foolishly agreed. “Very well then Adar. I will join you in this endeavor. However, I will brook no treachery!” Conrad laughed, as he had heard those exact words a thousand times before.
“Excellent. Then our bargain is complete. I will call you when the time comes.” Conrad reached into his robes and pulled forth his tome. Kir was dragged, screaming and cursing, into the book where she would await Conrad’s call. Drach, every the loyal bodyguard (odd for a demon, but perhaps he had his motives as well) grabbed onto her scintillating tail as it passed. He too was ripped into the tome. Although it was quite accidental, Conrad was happy to add to his tally of souls. The more souls he trapped, the closer he was to his true goals, of which the Wand of Orcus was only a tiny, almost secondary, part.
Conrad turned and strolled casually out of the Marilith’s palace, without even a trace of fear. His years of triumph had made him cocky and brash, and he did not even worry that he was deep in the heart of a Tanar’ri stronghold. That was almost his undoing, as he passed around a corner and almost bumped into Carnolathingaraniteioqwafiti. The Cerebelith was there on business, but immediately sensed within Conrad the stench of Baator. He flew into action, first attempting to wrest control of the devil’s mind, but Conrad’s will was too strong. Realizing that his foe was stronger than he at first thought, he shouted out a warning and called out to his brother in an attempt to summon him. There was no answer from the treacherous sibling.
Conrad reached into his tome and pulled it forth. He called upon his newly acquired servant Kirenalo’ and when she came forth he ordered her to grab the Cerebelith that assaulted him. Although she tried to resist, the power of the Tome is near insurmountable in such a short time, and she found her tail snaking around the Cerebelith of its own accord. When he was fully wrapped, Conrad called out again, dragging the two Tanar’ri back into the tome.
He allowed himself a long loud laugh, and then immediately took the more prudent action and plane shifted away from the Abyss and back to the halls of Baator, to record his newest dealings.
Now, almost 40 years later, the tome was destroyed. And Kir was out for revenge. But first she needs to stretch her arms a bit. It has been too long since she felt the calming warmth of blood flowing over and around her.
---------
It was a rare day indeed! For reasons unknown, a large pack of demons had begun an assault upon a small coastal town at the base of Mount Celestia. The raiders sizzled and burned in the surf of the vast holy Ocean, but they soon pressed up to the shore.
Petitioners were their main targets, and they grabbed them one, two, or even more at a time. Having grabbed them, they immediately began to plane shift and teleport away with their captives.
The town’s alarm went up, and Striker Michaelson answered the call with his troops. The Planetar and his strike team of three hound archons, an Astral Deva, and 5 flights of Lantern Archons teleported to the village and joined its Leonal Guardinal in defense of the shores.
Although they quickly made short work of the demons, without even having to use their memorized spells, they were unable to trace the fleeing demons to where they could free the captives.
In the calm after the battle, a single glowing Avoral rocketed out of the sky to land before Striker. “I know how we can free the captives, sir.”
Striker’s reply was laced with hate and threat, “Drop the shroud, fiend. And speak quickly. You have 5 seconds to convince me that I should not destroy you where you stand.”
Conrad’s Avoral skin fell away, and as it hit the shores, it turned to worms that burrowed and fled deep into the soil of Mount Celestia. “Very well then, we shall dispense with the pleasantries and get straight to business. In the past few hours, here and at several other coastal towns raids have been conducted. These raids have gathered approximately 250 petitioner souls. These souls are currently being held captive on the Abyss. I know where, and will be happy to take you there. In exchange, I will request one service from you.”
“What would that be, fiend?”
“It is a relatively simple matter, but its nature requires that I not reveal the details until I can be sure you are on board. If word of my endeavors were to reach the Baatorian Legal Association, they would most likely disbar me for malpractice. I can assure you however, that neither you nor any other good creature will be damaged by my request. Nor will the battles between your people and mine be affected by this request. Finally, the request need not be answered immediately, you will be given time to rescue the captives before it comes into effect.”
Striker was loathe to even consider dealing with the devil, but also knew that it may be his only way of rescuing captives. His celestial sight proved to him that everything the fiend said was true.
Conrad spoke up again. “I do not intend to pressure you. Please take all the time you need to contemplate this deal. Remember though, your petitioners are certainly not in pleasant company. Every minute that passes could be another good soul ground to its essence to feed the Tanar’ri birthing pits.”
Strike knew it was foolish to agree, but could not bear the thought of those good souls, pure enough to reach Celestia, being fed to embryonic demons. “I will not agree to your request devil, without first knowing what it is.”
Conrad sighed. “Very well then, but before I tell you I must have your assurance that no one will hear of this deal from you. Were it to be known I even made this request, the guild would have me destroyed or worse.”
“Don’t try to play upon my conscience beast. I have none where your kind are concerned. I will tell no one of your request.”
Conrad seemed visibly relieved. “I would like for you and your team to travel with me for a short time. In my company you can observe the inner workings of the Baatorian Legal Association. You will learn firsthand how their members engage in treacherous acts to trick souls into their servitude. I am sure you would agree with me were I to say that the laws must be followed and that deals must be kept. However, you would also agree that the spirit of the bargains is more important than the letter, and that a deal entered into under false pretenses should not be binding. Would you not?”
Exactly to plan, Striker was getting impatient with the devil’s condescending tone. “Of course I would. Get on with the explanation.”
The impatience, Conrad hoped, would translate into a lessened scrutiny of the words he used. Should Striker be too busy waiting for the end of the bargain to occur, he would miss the tiny clues as to the true nature of the deal. Conrad had never actually said how he would travel. Nor had he said that he agreed with the ideas espoused, or disagreed with the guild, only that if he were to say these things, the Planetar’s nature would force him to agree.
Conrad continued spinning his web. “Certainly you would. Any individual capable of reaching your lofty position would certainly agree. But to the point, as you say.” By the look on Striker’s face, Conrad could tell that it had worked. All thought of the previous intricacies of the deal had passed, and Striker was now fully focused on the final section of the deal.
“With the knowledge you gain from traveling incognito with me, your people could be able to better understand our methods. And thus better combat them. Together you and I could become a force for reform in the Baatorian Legal Association. Your learning our ways could lead to a better understanding, and through that understanding, better means of combating those methods.” Conrad’s voice swelled with the (empty) promise of a better world and a more ethical BLA.
Striker, his celestial senses again assuring him that every word the devil spoke was true, stood at ease to think. “The petitioners.” Conrad quietly said, interrupting the Planetar’s chain of thought and driving him to make his rash and foolish decision.
“I’ll do it. But I will keep an eye on you as well as your brethren, fiend. And I will brook no treachery!”
“Excellent! You could be the agent of reform for the BLA! But first, we must rescue the petitioners. Gather your troops and we will head out.”
Striker gathered his men and prepared for the plane shift. Moments later they were on the fire scorched and blackened fields of the abyss. Over a rise they could just make out the tops of a spire. But whether the screams that filled the air came from there or from the very ground itself was impossible to determine. “Wait here fiend. We shall return shortly.”
Striker led his squad over the rise, and in a fierce assault they quickly rescued the captives. Some few were taken hostage by the demons and destroyed, but the vast majority of them survived. All lantern archons were dispersed in the raid, but such is the life of a shock trooper. Striker knew their essence would escape this foul plane and return to Celestia to be reforged into a fighting vessel.
Conrad himself opened the gate which would return the petitioners to the shores of Mount Celestia. As the last one stepped through, he turned to Striker. “And now to complete the deal. You and your men will travel with me.” He reached into his robes and pulled out the Tome. “In here!”
Moments later, the entire squad had been sucked kicking and screaming into the devil’s tome. Conrad’s watched them squirm and writhe across the cover before getting dragged in completely. As a small smile formed on his lips, he surveyed the scene of the destroyed Tanar’ri outpost. The smile turned to an ear to ear grin and then a boisterous laugh as he contemplated the response his superiors would give when they heard how he had tricked an entire team of celestials into destroying a Tanar’ri outpost, planted several Baatorian spies into a group of petitioners, and finally captured the Celestial troops.
Two days later he was declared a full partner in the BLA.
James McMurray
First Post
Thanks! I've had a lot of fun creating them. Now I just have to figure out how the Half-Celestial Elven wizard was captured, and the Half-Celestial Laernian Cryo-hydra.
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