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Shackled City Epic: "Vengeance" (story concluded)
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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 2889836" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 603</p><p></p><p>Arun screamed and swung his hammer with all his strength at the demon prince. The powerful blow was poorly aimed, however, and Graz’zt scale armor seemed to gather to meet at the point of impact. The head of the hammer glanced harmlessly away, doing no damage. </p><p></p><p>Graz’zt, meanwhile, returned with a backswing that easily penetrated the paladin’s guard, the head of the weapon crunching solidly into Arun’s arm. The plate protecting the limb buckled, and Arun was knocked sideways, nearly losing his grasp on his hammer. The sizzle of burning flesh filled the air as the acid coating the demon’s blade fed eagerly on the dwarf’s arm and neck where it had splattered. </p><p></p><p>“You are pathetic,” the demon said. “You are so easily manipulated, it is barely worth the effort it takes.”</p><p></p><p>Arun let out a ragged growl that did not sound like anything a normal creature would make. His broken shield fell from his grip, and he brought the hammer up to strike again, telegraphing his intent. </p><p></p><p>Graz’zt almost casually brought up his blade to block. </p><p></p><p>At the last instant, Arun shifted, and brought the head of the hammer down <em>onto</em> the sword, just above the hilt. A flash of energies erupted, accompanied by a spray of acid and a sound like the cracking of the world. The two combatants fell apart, and when the glow faded, Graz’zt was revealed holding only the hilt of his shattered sword. </p><p></p><p>A loud clang filled the room as the rest of the blade clattered noisily upon the cavern floor a few feet away. </p><p></p><p>“I do not need a sword to put you down, dwarf!” the demon hissed. It came at him in a sudden rush, its claws growing and thickening until they formed long black tendrils that hung at its sides. The Prince’s hiss, like Arun’s earlier growl, was something basic and bestial as he lashed out at Arun. The black claws pierced his armor as though the shining mithral was woven lamé, digging deep into his flesh, drawing out blood and life in equal portions. Arun was staggered; no mortal, not even the divine champion of Moradin, could have taken that assault and not faltered. </p><p></p><p>The rest of the companions were in little position to intervene. Callendes went down hard as the balor statue’s backswing clipped one of his wings, the jagged metal that represented a flaming sword snapping the bones and tearing half of the wing clear off him. The statue walked with a slight limp, where Cal had blasted it with a <em>disintegrate</em>, but the thing—construct, animated object, fiend, whatever!—had apparently resisted the bulk of the effect, for the spell had only vaporized a small portion of the leg where Cal had hit it. The statue ignored the <em>invisible</em> archmage, focusing upon the archers. While slow, the thing had a reach equivalent to a real balor, and it used it effectively as it swung its huge weapon at the nimble elves. </p><p></p><p>Dannel had darted back out of its way, but as he saw Callendes go down, he immediately spun and ran back toward it, firing as he went. Several cracks already spread across its chest where the arcane archer had scored hits, but the damage did not appear to impair the animated monstrosity. </p><p></p><p>“Dannel, the leg!” Cal urged. </p><p></p><p>The elf saw immediately what the gnome had indicated; at the point where the golem-thing had been blasted with Cal’s <em>disintegrate</em>, its limb had been shorn until only a concave band of metal supported its weight. </p><p></p><p>The song filled him as he drew and fired. The corrosive arrows he’d taken from the guards below slammed with precision into that weak point. The statue lifted the leg ponderously as it stepped forward to deliver a finishing blow to Callendes, but as its full weight settled upon the damaged limb, it snapped with a loud crack. The iron balor started to fall, but as it went down, it lunged forward in a last attempt to take at least one foe with it. </p><p></p><p>Callendes, crawling away, put on a last burst of speed, and darted out from under a smashing blow that again cracked the iron floor with the force of it. </p><p></p><p>This time, however, the sword was not wrenched free. </p><p></p><p>As soon as he saw that the avariel was clear, Dannel spun back to Graz’zt. He called upon the power of his quiver, and an arrow popped out, ready to be fitted to his bow. Almost reflexively, he checked within, where the ends of arrows within the extradimensional space could be tallied with a glance. </p><p></p><p>Only three missiles greeted his query. </p><p></p><p>Three shots left. </p><p></p><p>Arun felt his strength draining from him as Graz’zt dug his black claws deeper into his body. But then the dwarf’s expression hardened, and Arun pulled himself up, staring into the hateful eye of the Prince. </p><p></p><p>“You have strength,” the demon said. “I like that… it means you will be of that much more use to me when you finally break.”</p><p></p><p>“I may break, demon, but I will never yield,” Arun said. But as Graz’zt probed deeper, the black tendrils twisting inside the paladin’s body, a scream was torn from him. </p><p></p><p>But then Graz’zt stiffened, and his claws were yanked out of the dwarf’s body as his body arched. Behind him, Mole had taken up <em>Aludrial’s Shard</em>, and dragged the heavy blade across Graz’zt’s hamstrings. In the diminutive hands of the gnome the sword did not cripple the demon lord as had been her intent, but the sneak attack had nevertheless provided a slight opening for the beleagured paladin. </p><p></p><p>Before Graz’zt could recover, Arun brought his hammer up in a sudden motion that struck the demon at the base of his ribs. The blow straightened the demon, but it did not knock him off his feet. </p><p></p><p>“NOW!”</p><p></p><p>The hammer came down, slamming into the Prince’s left leg just above the knee. The blow landed with a solid thwack, but the limb held. </p><p></p><p>“YOU!” </p><p></p><p>Arun snapped the hammer up, driving it into Graz’zt gut. The fiend’s armor absorbed part of the strength of the blow, but as the holy energies of the weapon blasted through the Prince, he grimaced slightly. </p><p></p><p>“DIE!” </p><p></p><p>Arun all but screamed the last word, as he whipped the hammer around in a short arc that culminated in the demon’s face. Graz’zt’s head was knocked around, by the force of the blow, and he actually staggered back a step. When he turned back to face the paladin, the demon’s face was further marred by a trail of blood from the corner of his mouth, and a gap in his smile where several teeth had been jarred free. </p><p></p><p>“Your anger is delicious, <em>paladin</em>. But like everything else, ultimately futile.”</p><p></p><p>Arun roared and leapt forward with the hammer coming up yet again. But before the dwarf’s first step could land upon the floor, the Heart of Axion came to life. </p><p></p><p>Time seemed to slow to a crawl. </p><p></p><p>A gray radiance exploded from the gem in the demon’s eye socket. It seemed somehow… <em>alive</em>, the shining glow overlaid with what seemed like wisps of spirit that twisted in protest as the light drove them outward. They expanded outward and took on cohesive form, forming sinuous cables that connected the Prince and his foes as they plunged into the bodies of Arun and Mole. The dwarf and the gnome stiffened and screamed, paralyzed by the touch of that raw power. The gray tentacles flexed and pulsed with energy that flowed from the bodies of the two adventurers, through the Heart, and then out into the body of the Prince. As those pulses flared out through Graz’zt, enveloping him with an echo of that gray shining light, his wounds began to knit shut. The demon lifted his head and shouted in exhultation as the power of another epic spell filled him, the cost paid by the life force of his son, trapped in the Heart of Axion. </p><p></p><p>Or now, perhaps, the Heart of Athux. </p><p></p><p>The radiance, fueled by the energy stolen from Mole and Arun, continued to spread. It found Lok, cowering behind the throne. It found Dannel, even as the elf fired one of his last arrows. It continued to spread, its light dominating the great vaulted hall, forming a hemisphere centered on the Master of this place. </p><p></p><p>And within that sphere, Graz’zt laughed, as the doom of Occipitus was sealed.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 2889836, member: 143"] Chapter 603 Arun screamed and swung his hammer with all his strength at the demon prince. The powerful blow was poorly aimed, however, and Graz’zt scale armor seemed to gather to meet at the point of impact. The head of the hammer glanced harmlessly away, doing no damage. Graz’zt, meanwhile, returned with a backswing that easily penetrated the paladin’s guard, the head of the weapon crunching solidly into Arun’s arm. The plate protecting the limb buckled, and Arun was knocked sideways, nearly losing his grasp on his hammer. The sizzle of burning flesh filled the air as the acid coating the demon’s blade fed eagerly on the dwarf’s arm and neck where it had splattered. “You are pathetic,” the demon said. “You are so easily manipulated, it is barely worth the effort it takes.” Arun let out a ragged growl that did not sound like anything a normal creature would make. His broken shield fell from his grip, and he brought the hammer up to strike again, telegraphing his intent. Graz’zt almost casually brought up his blade to block. At the last instant, Arun shifted, and brought the head of the hammer down [i]onto[/i] the sword, just above the hilt. A flash of energies erupted, accompanied by a spray of acid and a sound like the cracking of the world. The two combatants fell apart, and when the glow faded, Graz’zt was revealed holding only the hilt of his shattered sword. A loud clang filled the room as the rest of the blade clattered noisily upon the cavern floor a few feet away. “I do not need a sword to put you down, dwarf!” the demon hissed. It came at him in a sudden rush, its claws growing and thickening until they formed long black tendrils that hung at its sides. The Prince’s hiss, like Arun’s earlier growl, was something basic and bestial as he lashed out at Arun. The black claws pierced his armor as though the shining mithral was woven lamé, digging deep into his flesh, drawing out blood and life in equal portions. Arun was staggered; no mortal, not even the divine champion of Moradin, could have taken that assault and not faltered. The rest of the companions were in little position to intervene. Callendes went down hard as the balor statue’s backswing clipped one of his wings, the jagged metal that represented a flaming sword snapping the bones and tearing half of the wing clear off him. The statue walked with a slight limp, where Cal had blasted it with a [i]disintegrate[/i], but the thing—construct, animated object, fiend, whatever!—had apparently resisted the bulk of the effect, for the spell had only vaporized a small portion of the leg where Cal had hit it. The statue ignored the [i]invisible[/i] archmage, focusing upon the archers. While slow, the thing had a reach equivalent to a real balor, and it used it effectively as it swung its huge weapon at the nimble elves. Dannel had darted back out of its way, but as he saw Callendes go down, he immediately spun and ran back toward it, firing as he went. Several cracks already spread across its chest where the arcane archer had scored hits, but the damage did not appear to impair the animated monstrosity. “Dannel, the leg!” Cal urged. The elf saw immediately what the gnome had indicated; at the point where the golem-thing had been blasted with Cal’s [i]disintegrate[/i], its limb had been shorn until only a concave band of metal supported its weight. The song filled him as he drew and fired. The corrosive arrows he’d taken from the guards below slammed with precision into that weak point. The statue lifted the leg ponderously as it stepped forward to deliver a finishing blow to Callendes, but as its full weight settled upon the damaged limb, it snapped with a loud crack. The iron balor started to fall, but as it went down, it lunged forward in a last attempt to take at least one foe with it. Callendes, crawling away, put on a last burst of speed, and darted out from under a smashing blow that again cracked the iron floor with the force of it. This time, however, the sword was not wrenched free. As soon as he saw that the avariel was clear, Dannel spun back to Graz’zt. He called upon the power of his quiver, and an arrow popped out, ready to be fitted to his bow. Almost reflexively, he checked within, where the ends of arrows within the extradimensional space could be tallied with a glance. Only three missiles greeted his query. Three shots left. Arun felt his strength draining from him as Graz’zt dug his black claws deeper into his body. But then the dwarf’s expression hardened, and Arun pulled himself up, staring into the hateful eye of the Prince. “You have strength,” the demon said. “I like that… it means you will be of that much more use to me when you finally break.” “I may break, demon, but I will never yield,” Arun said. But as Graz’zt probed deeper, the black tendrils twisting inside the paladin’s body, a scream was torn from him. But then Graz’zt stiffened, and his claws were yanked out of the dwarf’s body as his body arched. Behind him, Mole had taken up [i]Aludrial’s Shard[/i], and dragged the heavy blade across Graz’zt’s hamstrings. In the diminutive hands of the gnome the sword did not cripple the demon lord as had been her intent, but the sneak attack had nevertheless provided a slight opening for the beleagured paladin. Before Graz’zt could recover, Arun brought his hammer up in a sudden motion that struck the demon at the base of his ribs. The blow straightened the demon, but it did not knock him off his feet. “NOW!” The hammer came down, slamming into the Prince’s left leg just above the knee. The blow landed with a solid thwack, but the limb held. “YOU!” Arun snapped the hammer up, driving it into Graz’zt gut. The fiend’s armor absorbed part of the strength of the blow, but as the holy energies of the weapon blasted through the Prince, he grimaced slightly. “DIE!” Arun all but screamed the last word, as he whipped the hammer around in a short arc that culminated in the demon’s face. Graz’zt’s head was knocked around, by the force of the blow, and he actually staggered back a step. When he turned back to face the paladin, the demon’s face was further marred by a trail of blood from the corner of his mouth, and a gap in his smile where several teeth had been jarred free. “Your anger is delicious, [i]paladin[/i]. But like everything else, ultimately futile.” Arun roared and leapt forward with the hammer coming up yet again. But before the dwarf’s first step could land upon the floor, the Heart of Axion came to life. Time seemed to slow to a crawl. A gray radiance exploded from the gem in the demon’s eye socket. It seemed somehow… [i]alive[/i], the shining glow overlaid with what seemed like wisps of spirit that twisted in protest as the light drove them outward. They expanded outward and took on cohesive form, forming sinuous cables that connected the Prince and his foes as they plunged into the bodies of Arun and Mole. The dwarf and the gnome stiffened and screamed, paralyzed by the touch of that raw power. The gray tentacles flexed and pulsed with energy that flowed from the bodies of the two adventurers, through the Heart, and then out into the body of the Prince. As those pulses flared out through Graz’zt, enveloping him with an echo of that gray shining light, his wounds began to knit shut. The demon lifted his head and shouted in exhultation as the power of another epic spell filled him, the cost paid by the life force of his son, trapped in the Heart of Axion. Or now, perhaps, the Heart of Athux. The radiance, fueled by the energy stolen from Mole and Arun, continued to spread. It found Lok, cowering behind the throne. It found Dannel, even as the elf fired one of his last arrows. It continued to spread, its light dominating the great vaulted hall, forming a hemisphere centered on the Master of this place. And within that sphere, Graz’zt laughed, as the doom of Occipitus was sealed. [/QUOTE]
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