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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Hairy Minotaur" data-source="post: 4439975" data-attributes="member: 11574">The Dark Crystal?Haimish turned from the undead cavalry and peered across a broken landscape dotted with festering pools of rot. Huge cysts erupting with decaying botflies cratered around several paths that all led to the same bone tower structure. Scanning the horizon in every direction Haimish realized that the tower was the center of this plane and regardless of which direction he chose, all paths led to the same fate. Despondent, Haimish sat and waited for the wraiths and their skeletal horses to reach his location. The bard watched the shifting faces of the creatures beneath their cowls, like a mirror in a dark room smearing the light from a flint strike. The tormented faces of the damned stared unblinkingly through decades of torture to revel in their new “bodies”. The lead horse pulled up alongside Haimish and threw up its indistinct hand to motion the others to stop as well.  “My lord welcomes you into his care, I am to escort you to his presence where your transformation will be completed and you will join our ranks.” The wraith leader issues while extended his wispy hand to the bard.Haimish reached out for the help up, but stopped as he saw his own hand come into view, purple and swollen with negative energy, the memory of pink flesh seemed far off as if in a dream from long ago. Accepting help from the wraith seemed natural and felt like the right thing to do. His body moved up with his hand towards the wraith’s and just before they met the bard’s mouth uttered a single word. In an instant Haimish was teleported some one hundred yards behind the undead retinue towards the bone tower. The undead leader reached out with its consciousness and located the live flesh of Haimish within seconds. The bard hefted himself up and the new weight on the ground called forth the spiny maggot-like botflies from their holes in the ground to investigate the new meal. Haimish dimensioned doored several more times until he reached the base of the bone tower. The cavalry still hot on his tail, the bard casts fly and shot up the side of the mountain looking for a way into the edifice. The bones of dozens of equine skeletons rattled in the decaying wind as they approached their prey with unearthly speed. Haimish realized by going up and not out from the tower he was helping the wraiths catch up to him. Ceasing his ascent, Haimish dropped onto the loose bones on the exterior of the tower. Hoping to find an entrance or least a nook within which to hide, not so much from the wraiths themselves, but from the feelings that he wanted and needed to be with the wraiths, his mind not yet ready to accept what his body had already done so. Haimish’s blackened hands began digging into the bones, several of which were splintered and shattered, others had been there so long they welcomed the chance to break when his hands grasped them. Sickly yellow pus oozed from cuts and punctures along Haimish’s arms, still he dug. The horses were getting faster now and the dark red of the sky seemed to hover over his body now as he worked feverishly to create a hole that continuously refilled itself. “Fortunately for you, I have all the time I need to wait you out as your will dissolves away to be eaten by my master. Your body no longer calls your mind master, and soon you’re your resolve will lock away your mind in an eternal cell from within. You too shall enjoy the visuals I will show you.” The wraith statesHaimish spat at the creature as the bones beneath him started to shift and let his body sink into the pile. Haimish had already discarded all of his fear and swore that whatever fate was waiting on the other side of these bones, that Menthos would make this sacrifice worthwhile. The black sphere released itself from Haimish’s grasp and rolled down the bone mountain only to be gobbled up by a large skull and pulled with the bones. Haimish looked back out at the wraiths to stare indignantly at them, however the looked of horror on their faces brought fear back into the heart of the bard.********************************************************“Wow.” Eeyore exclaims rapping on the interior walls of the crystal shard.“Whatever made this has power beyond anything the beholder is going to throw at it.” Dahlgren says.A soaked Adokul wrings out his robes after being saved from drowning by Dahlgren, the floor party met the ceiling group where the water drained off the underside of the crystal and they found a way in there. “I would like to meet the dwarf that carved this from a single rock!” Kourk exclaims  “What makes you think this dwarven made and not drow made?” Aust asks“It was mined, and not bought.” Kourk retorts“Just because you find the practice of a labor fee necessary does not mean I do. My people quit fancy your degenerate race’s work on the stone with live in. Without your work one of us would have to build our own lavatories. So for that I thank you.” Aust responds“I am happy to be of assistance to you, it feels good to know that our craftsmanship is recognized even in places far removed from regular dwarven foot traffic.” Kourk says proudly“Doopa, think man with weird beard should build ogre lava story too.” Doopa remarks“Hey Adokul, get up here and find me my money. I don’t want to be hanging around here any longer than I need to, this places has odd energies about it.” Dahlgren demandsAdokul nods and steps out in front of the party. The room they are in appears to be the trash dump as the floor is scored from a ramp to the north all the way to the hole in the floor. Several small debris items litter the floor including dried blood.“Well, whatever lives here must be intelligent as it gets rid of its trash.” Menthos comments“Doopa not throw out trash and Doopa is smart. So this not be Doopa brother, Doopa brother never throw out trash.” The barbarian enlightens the group“Yes, I think you’re very right in that theory.” Adokul says to Menthos The party trudges up the slippery ramp and enters a small room with crystalline “windows” where the crystal is thin enough to give a distorted view of the outside cavern.“Doopa, pound on this spot here for a moment and see if you can crack or break it.” Dahlgren asks“Pfft. I already told you this is dwarven crafted, that window wouldn’t break if Gruumsh himself came down and looked at it.” Kourk repliesDoopa takes a couple of swings at the crystal but doesn’t manage to do any damage to it. The party moves on and through an archway and into a large hall with several side exits.“Well, which way?” Dahlgren asks“I think we should cross to the other side and continue to head up towards the center of the structure.” Adokul suggestsAfter crossing the first twenty feet and peering into the side exits, the party notices that the exits are dark, much darker than what they’ve seen from the rest of the crystal thus far. Dahlgren and Aust head over to check out the left room and after rummaging in there for several minutes they exit.“Anything good in there?” Adokul asks“We’re in deep. Mind flayers.” Dahlgren answers“What?” Kourk replies“These.” Dahlgren says and places the severed chin of a dead mind flayer over his own, rocking his head from side to side to give the tentacles motion.“Fabulous.” Menthos states“All I need now is a good purple skull cap and my disguise will be complete, I’ll look the part, and Adokul you can suck the joy right out of the room. It’ll be a smash hit.” Dahlgren responds</blockquote>

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