The Doomed Bastards: Reckoning (story complete)

[Lazybones]

How can Dar see what's going on on the far side of the monster's body?

Well, the monster had lifted him into the air, at that point, giving him an escalated perspective on the battlefield. And if we're talking about the same paragraph, the sentence about the lack of damage on its backside was directed at the reader rather than Dar's perceptions.

Definitely check out both of Shemeska's story hours, if you haven't already.

You know, I tried to get into Shemeska's stuff, and just couldn't quite get rolling with his material. I'm not a huge Planescape fan, so maybe that's it. Still, I've noticed that it has a ton of views as well as considerable longevity, so maybe I'll give it another shot.

Shilsen's and Jollydoc's Story Hours are ones I have subscribed to, along with yours.
The styles are different, but, it's still pretty nice.

I haven't read Shilsen but will take a look. I did read some of Jollydoc's stuff when his Shackled City was paralleling mine, but it wasn't really to my taste. I didn't read an awful lot, however, and I never got a hold of the later Adventure Paths, so I'll take another look at his more recent stuff.

Thanks for the recommendations! I really miss some of the old greats, especially spyscribe's Halmae and Sagiro's long-running SH. And I think Sepulchrave's just teasing us now with a once-every-two-years-post.

Now for some demon action...

* * * * *

Chapter 313

DEMON ATTACK


They materialized all around the cavern, teleporting in with a series of hissing pops accompanied by a sweet stench of singed flesh. They were the cadre that they’d battled above in the valley, some of which still bore the marks of wounds suffered in that engagement. The six babaus appeared around the edges of the room, while the hezrou materialized a second later near the edge of the foul slick that had been the dung monster. The vrocks appeared near the exit, surrounded once more with mirror images, and a moment later it became clear that the demons had gotten some new friends, as a final pair shifted into reality near the toad-like hezrou. One was a hideous, man-sized demon with a dirty white hide, feathered wings, and massive blades, like cleavers attached to its forearms. A third eye that glowed red burned in its forehead. The last demon was a vile creation, a bloated fly-like thing that hovered in the air, and which began to issue a low-pitched buzzing noise as soon as it had fully materialized in the cavern.

The demons shrieked and leapt to the attack. Alderis, who had been farthest back toward the edge of the chamber, was assailed by three babaus that leapt upon him, their claws eager to rend his flesh. His stoneskin protected him from their raking attacks, but two seized upon him, pinning his arms and interfering with his ability to use his magic. His shield guardian, standing not far away, started immediately to come to his aid, but the construct was intercepted by the zovvut, which laid into it with powerful blows from its huge claws. The guardian had several feet and likely several hundred pounds on the demon, but those vicious blades carved deep gouges into its armored torso, driving it back.

Another babau and one of the vrocks rushed toward Honoratius, while the last two babaus charged at Allera. The demons had clearly marked the efficacy of the enemy spellcasters in their last engagement, and were intent upon neutralizing them early. Honoratius looked about calmly, marking each of the demons, then cast a delayed blast fireball, substituted for sonic energy, on his position.

The blast of concentrated energy reverberated throughout the chamber. Honoratius, using the mastery of shaping she had gained as an archmage, wrapped the wild pulse of sound around herself and each of her companions, creating bubbles of protected space where the destructive energies did not reach.

Everything else, however, was pretty much devastated.

Demons screamed, the sounds buried under the intensity of the sonic discharge. None of the demons were destroyed outright by the spell, but the babaus, chasme, and zovvut were in dire condition, and even the more potent demons had been sorely damaged. The only demons that escaped were the two babaus that were grappling Alderis, protected by the small hole that Honoratius had created in the spell’s blast around the elf.

A babau leapt at Honoratius, black blood oozing from its skin where Honoratius’s spell had ruptured it. The archmage avoided the initial attacks, her wards protecting her from harm, but was overcome when the vrock unleashed a powerful shriek, stunning both her and Alderis.

Thus far, only seconds had passed since the demons had appeared, and the warriors, most of whom were washing in the stream, were still trying to grasp what was happening. Allera, standing at the edge on the streambed, turned to see two seriously injured but still dangerous babau demons rushing toward her. The healer raised her hands and invoked a repulsion spell that filled the chamber. The two demons halted in mid-charge, screeching in frustration as ichor dripped down from their nostrils and ears.

The second vrock drew upon its Abyssal powers and summoned a dozen dretches to the Prime. The hideous little demons popped into reality around Allera. Several of them toppled over into the muddy riverbed, where they rose and started clawing at the nearest foe.

Dar had hurled himself to his feet as the first demon had appeared in the chamber, and he vaulted up the steep slope of the riverbank onto the cavern floor. Valor blazed hungrily in his hand, a shaft of blue steel that shone brightly in the weak light. He had started toward the knot of demons in the center of the room, the hezrou, zovvut, and chasme, but he hesitated as the dretches appeared around Allera.

The healer saw him turn, and shouted, “GO!” even as several of the small demons started clawing at her arms and legs.

Dar turned back, but the delay had proven costly, as the hezrou spoke a word of blasphemy.

The dire syllable reverberated through the cavern. Alexion, Zahera, Tullus, and Marcus all fell to the ground, blasted insensate by the dark potency of that utterance. Nelan was dazed, and two dretch immediately shambled over to him, eager to take advantage.

Dar started forward again, but his head started to swim as the effects of the chasme’s sonorous droning began to seep into his mind. He fell to one knee, but then shook his head and rose, fury blazing in his eyes.

The fighter charged, and the hezrou demon leapt forward to meet him. Its size allowed it to attack first, striking the fighter across the face with a claw. The blow smashed hard into his helmet, knocking his head roughly back. But Dar took the hit and shrugged it off, stepping under the demon’s outstretched arms to smite it hard across the belly.

Valor flashed like a beacon of blue flame as the sword cut the demon’s body wide open, drawing a gash that stretched from its right hip to just under its left arm. The creature fell to the ground as ichor and entrails spilled out from the terrible wound, and it expired in a noisy, thrashing mess.

Dar looked up at the chasme, which rose into the air and summoned an unholy aura around itself.

Alderis, stunned by the vrock’s stunning shriek, fell to the ground with three babaus tearing and ripping at his flesh. Thus far his stoneskin had been the only thing keeping him from being torn to pieces, but one of the babaus had already begun hitting him with targeted dispel magics, and the other two were quickly working through the ability of the spell to absorb damage. One got its claws around his throat and started twisting, trying to strange him to death.

The shield guardian trod forward, ignoring the zovvut that continued to tear at its back with its claws. The construct leaned down and batted aside the babau trying to asphyxiate its master, taking up a defensive position over him.

Allera ignored the dretches tearing at her and leapt down into the riverbed. She immediately dove for Alexion, who had fallen face-down into the muddy water when the hezrou’s blasphemy had struck. With a grunt she pulled the knight over onto his back, ignoring the dretch that was trying to claw at her face. She already bore several wounds, but her magical armor offered at least some degree of protection. Thrusting forward, shouldering the demon aside, she bent and placed her hands on the knight’s neck, purging him of the fell power that held him. A second dretch a few feet away foolishly tried to scare her, but the magic slid off her without effect.

The knight stirred as the soft blue glow seeped from her hands into him. His eyes widened as the dretch leapt on Allera’s back, screeching noisily.

Chaos reigned in the center of the room. Honoratius began to stir again, recovering from the vrock’s stunning shriek. The babau had overborne her, but she too was protected by stoneskin, and its follow-up attacks were proving as ineffective as its initial attempts. That changed as the vrock leapt forward, smashing her across the face with a claw. Mirror images fluttered around it as it lunged down, its beak opening wide to snap off her face.

Dar surged into them, roaring a cry of battle. He took off the babau’s head with a precise sweep of Valor, and then laid into the vrock. Whether by luck, instinct, or some other agency he drove through the images and clove into demonic flesh, driving eighteen inches of steel into its chest cavity. The demon fell backward, trying unsuccessfully to summon its magic to escape while blood poured from its punctured heart into its lungs.

Dar pulled Honoratius to her feet, then rushed off to help Alderis. But before he got to the elf, Nelan spoke a holy word.

The spell sounded a note of purity that swept away the foul memory of the hezrou’s blasphemy. The dretches were blasted into greasy smears, while the remaining babaus blinked out as they were banished back to the Abyss. The zovvut, chasme, and remaining vrock were able to resist the spell, however. The vrock rose up over a bloody carcass that had been the cleric Tullus, and leapt at Nelan, its wings flapping wildly as it flew across the chamber like a streaking bird.

The chasme hit Dar with a ray of enfeeblement, sapping some of his strength. It was paid back a moment later, however, as Honoratius fired a cascade of sonic rays into it. It fell to the ground, black ichor oozing out of its cracked carapace.

Alderis staggered to his feet as the babaus disappeared. His shield guardian turned to face the zovvut, but before Dar could reach it the elf peppered it with a series of magic missiles, and it expired.

Nelan cried out as the vrock dove at him, clawing with all four of its limbs. One clipped his head, cutting deep gouges along his right temple under the edge of his half-helm. He staggered back, but determination flared in his eyes as he invoked the power of the Father and dismissed it.

Quiet returned to the chamber, save for the noise made by Allera and Alexion as they dragged their still-paralyzed companions out of the way of the steadily growing river. Dar and Honoratius walked over to where Nelan knelt over the ravaged body of Tullus. The priest hadn’t had a chance; he’d been paralyzed by the hezrou’s blasphemy, and the vrock had been able to rip open his body from neck to crotch, splattering his insides in a wide swath in a matter of seconds.

“He was a good man,” Nelan said, looking up at them. “He volunteered for this mission, almost as soon as he’d returned from the frontier.”

“We’ll bring him with us,” Dar said. “Maybe Allera can...” He trailed off.

“We will need to rest, and tend to our equipment,” Honoratius said. She touched Dar’s armor; the straps holding the breastplate to his chest had suffered heavy damage and in two places had been completely eaten through; the armor hung loose, and was probably only solid hit away from falling off him entirely.

“Not here,” Dar said. “Get your things together. As soon as the others have recovered, we move out.”

 

[Sabriel]

... wow. Just... wow.

 

[jensun]

Your clearly going soft LB.

In the old days the demons would have ported in while the PC's were still struggling with the dung monster...

 

[Neverwinter Knight]

I agree with jensun, Duncus (short for Dung Orcus) and then the demons? And only one casualty? But knowing you, there's more misery for the DB going forward.

You should definitely take a look at JollyDoc's Age of Worm story hour. That adventure path had a great epic/doom touch to it. Also, he wasn't anymore easy on his players then you are to the DB, so I think you'll like it.

 

[Lazybones]

Heh, check back after next week and ask if I'm taking it too easy on our heroes then.

* * * * *

Chapter 314

THOSE STILL STANDING


“Tullus was a servant of the Light, who dedicated his life to the service of the Father. Xenos lived and died as a Dragon Knight, sworn to protect the people of Camar from the darkness. May both of them lie sheltered within the blessed glow of Soleus, who brings life to this world, and who drives back the shadow wherever he shines.”

There were a few acknowledgements around the circle that stood in quiet attention around the cairn where they had laid the remains of Tullus. The pile of stones was not large; they had cremated the body. Of Xenos there had not been anything more than part of his skull and a few half-dissolved bones, but those too had been added to the grave that held the remains of two of their company.

“All right, get your gear together,” Dar said. The companions prepared quietly. There had been little conversation of any sort in the last few hours, and even Allera’s heroes’ feast that “morning” had not eased the somber mood that clung to them like an unpleasant scent.

They were in one of the small rooms near the caverns where they’d battled the dung monster and then the demons. They had camped in this complex before, on past visits; the rooms were situated not far from the Second Temple of Orcus, and had seemingly been abandoned for quite some time. They picked a room where the door was mostly intact, and braced it with both iron spikes and with some extra boards that they had salvaged from one of the other rooms.

Allera had tried to resurrect Tullus, using the magical rod that they’d found near the First Temple above. She had reported that the device functioned as intended, but Tullus had not stirred.

“Resurrection only works if the soul is willing to return,” Nelan had said. None of them had put words what was on all of their minds, that it was far more likely that the failure of the spell lay with the agency of the Demon. It put a hard edge on what they were doing here, the knowledge that the fate of the cleric and the knight could be theirs at any moment.

Honoratius had been compelled to leave shortly thereafter. Though clearly reluctant, Dar had agreed that they should hold their ground and rest for the remainder of the day, allowing the spellcasters to recover their magic and the archmage to regain enough strength to return. Letellia was grave, worried about the strain that each casting of the transposition was placing upon her uncle. But they had no choice; without the archmage they would have almost certainly already been annihilated.

After the debacle with Tullus, Dar had taken Alderis aside for a few minutes, and spoke to him quietly. The fighter gave the elf something, but neither spoke of it when they returned to the group.

They remained close together. When someone needed to attend to private functions, they used a corner of the room, shrouded by a cloak. No one paid heed to the smell, even though it was a clear reminder of their battle with the dung monster. After what they’d experienced in Rappan Athuk already, such things had become trivial.

Their clothes had been ruined; what was left was gathered together and discarded. Fortunately they had brought extra clothes for each of them in Letellia’s magical pouch. They also had an ample supply of leather cords, linen thread, and metal wire, which they used to make repairs to their damaged gear. Dar spent a long time carefully rewrapping the hilt of Valor, staring at the spiked door, as if expecting visitors at any moment.

But no attack came, and the companions took their rest uneasily. It was impossible to gauge the passage of time, down here, especially since their magical fires did not consume fuel. They rested, and prayed, and read, and tended to their gear. They were wating for Honoratius to return, and it happened shortly after they finished Allera’s feast. Letellia started shaking as the transposition settled upon her, and then she toppled over. Marcus and Zahera barely caught her in time. Allera was there in a flash, and held up the groaning woman’s head, peering into her eyes.

“Archmage... archmage, is that you?” she had asked.

After a few moments, the vague look in Letellia’s brown eyes had slowly focused on the healer. “Yes... yes, thank you. I am... I am here.”

Once she had recovered enough to speak to them, Honoratius had related grim news from Camar. Neither she nor Patriarch Jaduran were able to scry Rappan Athuk or its environs at all; their efforts revealed only a pure blackness that seemed to pulsate within their viewing devices. Another wave of harsh storms had blown in off the ocean, slowing the progress of the army southward, but they main force had still managed to reach Highbluff a half-day ahead of schedule. The dwarves were driving the march, covering more ground per day than the taller humans, spending upward of sixteen hours a day trudging through mud and wind and rain.

The combined Camarian and Razhuri fleet heading south had outrun the storms, but it had met its own disaster. Honoratius reported that a red dragon had assaulted the fleet as it sailed down the coast. Six ships had been utterly destroyed before Tendaji Jaddo’s crews, assisted by the steel-eyed bowmen of Sukat Koth’s Emorite contingent, were able to drive off the creature. Several of the remaining ships had suffered heavy damage in the attack, and the fleet had been forced to seek refuge in one of the sheltered coves that dotted the coast, and attempt repairs.

Honoratius also related that she had not been successful in finding a spell that would allow them to penetrate the barrier that surrounded Rappan Athuk. “For the moment, I can still pass back and forth, using the transposition, she said. “But it is becoming... difficult.”

“Is there any good news, wizard?” Dar had asked.

“We still live,” she had responded dryly.

Now it was time to set out again, into the dungeon. Nelan’s ritual farewell to their fallen comrades had been the last thing holding them back. Weapons were tested, pouches examined to verify that spell components were near at hand. As Alexion and Marcus hammered the spikes free of the door, Dar glanced back at the small cairn. “What is it?” Allera asked.

“I had suspected of Tullus...” The fighter shook his head. “It is nothing. Let’s get moving.”

Once the door was open, and the knights had confirmed the corridor outside remained clear, Nelan began incanting a spell. They would be guided forward by two sources; the passages that Honoratius had been able to divine from the Codex Thanara, and the insight provided by Nelan’s find the path spell. The latter was facilitated by the former, as the archmage’s researches had clued them in on what they needed to find.

“Show me the way to the doorway that leads from the Gates of Hell to the Portal of Darkness,” Nelan said, as he completed his casting. The others watched the cleric expectantly.

There was a slight flash from his divine focus. The cleric nodded, and said, “This way.” Alexion moved out ahead of him, taking the lead as they resumed their progress forward deeper into Rappan Athuk.

They made their way down the corridor that led to the Second Temple, but at the intersection near that huge chamber Nelan led them north instead of south. Allera’s gaze lingered for a moment on the broad corridor they left behind. It was there, in the desperate battle for the Second Temple, that they’d lost Talen. And before that, both Theodoros Zosimos and Marcus Valus had been killed, on an earlier visit. The healer still had nightmares of the time she had spent as a captive of the cultists of Orcus, and she shuddered.

The north passage led them to a round chamber that accessed three staircases, narrow, winding flights that offered access to other levels of the dungeon. Nelan did not hesitate, directing them to the first stair on the left, which descended into darkness. Alexion led the way again, and they descended single-file, with the heavy tread of Alderis’s shield guardian bringing up the rear.

The staircase descended for an interminable time, bending back upon itself several times as it took them deeper into the bowels of the world. Allera could feel a tightness in her legs by the time that the brilliant light from Nelan’s shield revealed an open space below.

The stairs deposited them on the edge of a vast underground cavern, its dimensions such that even Nelan’s daylight spell could not reveal its full extent. Several huge natural columns supported the ceiling high above, and forests of fat stalagmites rose from the uneven floor. Allera tasted moisture on the air, and as the companions paused to look around, she could hear the faint gurgling of water; likely another of the underground rivers that seemed to pervade the bedrock that housed the interlaced levels of Rappan Athuk.

“Which way, Nelan?” Dar asked.

“To the left, there,” the cleric replied, pointing across the cavern. From her perch on the stairs Allera could not make out what lie in that direction, save the stalagmites that rose up like broken teeth out of the cavern floor.

“All right, move out,” Dar said.

The cavern floor was rough and difficult, with fungus growing in the crevices, and in the crowded spaces where the jagged stalagmites clustered together. Nelan’s glowing shield revealed mushrooms and lichens in colors ranging from crusty browns to stark violets and shining greens. Some were streaked with the color of fresh blood, which added a garish-looking caste to the scene. It also revealed the twisting course of another underground stream, which bisected the cavern from right to left. Nelan was guiding them toward the left, where the stream disappeared into a low opening in the cavern wall.

“Looks like we may be getting wet again,” Dar said.

They made their way toward the river tunnel. They were alert for trouble, but none of them were sharp-eyed enough to distinguish the subtle distinction that would have warned them of the danger before it struck. Zahera saw something, a slight motion out of the corner of her eye, but when she turned, all she saw was a toothy row of stalagmites on the far side of the stream. Nelan and his bright light were facing toward the left, so the details of the opposite bank were vague with shadows, but she still would have seen anything creeping among the rock formations.

She had already started to turn back when one of those stony pillars moved.

The knight opened a mouth to shout a warning, even as she set an arrow to her bow. But her cry was beaten by an angry hissing noise, and something flew out of the shadows right at her. Zahera’s shout became a cry of alarm, but the attack was not meant for her. The missiles shot past her and struck Nelan, and Zahera could see that they were long, thin tendrils, like the tentacles of the giant squids that her father would catch in the deep blue waters of the Inland Sea. Six of them had struck the cleric, affixing to his legs, arms, and torso, and one even to his neck. Nelan reached up to grab that one, but before he could even try to free himself weakness overcame him, and he collapsed to the ground. As his shield fell, the darkness rushed in to the edges of the weaker light cast from their torches.

The tentacles holding Nelan grew taut, and the cleric was yanked roughly forward, had he was dragged over the rough ground toward the stream. But his companions were quick to respond to the attack. Dar and Marcus rushed to Nelan’s aid. The young cleric tried to pull his superior free of the sticky tendrils, but their grasp was tenacious, and he could do no more than slow the rate that he was dragged toward the stream.

Dar, however, took a more direct approach. Valor came down in a blinding arc, severing two of the tentacles entirely, and deeply scoring a third. That had an immediate effect; the remaining tendrils holding Nelan immediately detached, and shot back across the stream.

Zahera lifted her bow and fired in the direction that the tendrils retreated, but in the half-dark it was difficult to tell if she hit anything. Alexion came running back from the front of the column, his pick at the ready, but there wasn’t anything immediately obvious to attack.

Meanwhile, Alderis, aided by his elvish vision, had identified the source of the tendrils, and he hurled an empowered fireball across the cavern. The brilliant explosion of flames blinded them for a moment, but they could hear the high-pitched, alien shrieks of something on the far side of the river.

No, not something. Some things...

Even as the flames died, their unidentified foe attacked again. But this time, there were multiple streaks of tentacles. Out of one barrage of six, only four struck Alderis, who was warded with layered magical protections. But those four were enough to completely drain his strength, and he fell to the ground.

The other barrage targeted Dar, who was hit by all six of the tentacles. For a moment, the fighter roared and yanked back against them, and it looked as though he would simply ignore the strength-draining properties of the tendrils. But as they drew taut, Dar visibly weakened, and Valor trembled, and dipped as the fighter struggled to keep his feet as the tentacles pulled him step by step toward the stream.

 

[Lazybones]

Chapter 315

ROPERS


Allera rushed forward. She started toward Dar, but Marcus and Alexion got to him first. Marcus hewed at the tendrils holding the fighter, while Alexion dug his pick under one of the tendrils stuck to his armor, yanking it free with a solid tug. Dar himself, weakened but not helpless, managed to get Valor up and sawed through a tendril, cutting it in two.

The healer ran to where Nelan had fallen. She crouched over him, and saw that he was alive, if completely helpless and unable to move. His arm was trembling as he tried to reach for something. Allera looked and understood. She reached over and took up Nelan’s fallen shield, torn from his forearm by the monster’s initial volley. As she it, the daylight spell on its front space blazed out over the chamber.

In that light, their foes were cast into sudden and stark relief. Allera saw that there were three of them, misshapen pillars that were almost indistinguishable from normal stalagmites until they moved. The tendrils that they used to attack jutted from their sides, and in the center of each there was a huge, gaping maw that shone with crystalline teeth.

Now that the foe was clearly revealed, Honoratius blasted them with another fireball. The blast engulfed all three, but Allera could see that they possessed some sort of spell resistance, for two of them appeared to be untouched by the blast. The third, however, was ravaged by the flames, and toppled over, slain. The one that had assaulted Dar released him and drew its tentacles back, as did the one holding Alderis. Apparently the creatures were intelligent, and could identify and target the greater threats. Allera glanced over her shoulder at Honoratius, and saw that the archmage had recognized the same thing.

Zahera continued firing her bow, and now that she could clearly see her foes, her arrows were scoring hits. She got an arrow into the craggy maw of one of the creatures, and in response it fired a barrage of strands at her, hitting her with five of them. Zahera was tough, but she was not invincible, and her bow fell from her hands as she fell to the ground, utterly drained by the creature’s assault. This time it did not even bother to start pulling her in, retracting its tendrils into its body as it sought out another foe.

Allera had expected the other one to target Honoratius, but that was before Dar charged. As soon as the monster released him, the fighter rushed forward the stream, which was deep and fast-moving, and almost ten feet across at its narrowest. Weakened and burdened as he was, trying to leap it was a foolish gamble.

Naturally, he jumped.

His boots splashed as he landed on the far bank, on the very edges of the stream, and he nearly went down as loose rocks shifted under his feet. But then he was over, and charging toward the nearest of the creatures. Behind him, Alexion cleared the stream cleanly, but Marcus landed two feet short, and fell hard into the water. His momentum carried him onto the far bank, and he was in no danger of being swept off, but neither could he quickly get up, his hands clawing for purchase on the slick stone as he tried to get his footing. Beatus Incendia clattered into a shallow crevice a few feet away.

The creature shot its tendrils at Dar as the fighter charged. Again he was struck by all six, hitting him in the chest, legs, and arms. He fought in vain to free himself as the monster dragged him in, like an angler working a reluctant fish.

Allera used a restoration spell to purge Nelan of the weakness caused by the monster’s tendrils, but didn’t linger as he stirred and got up. Zahera was closer to her, but she ran over to Alderis, who was warded by his shield guardian, standing sentinel above his limp form. Without orders, the construct had not moved except to protect its master. A severed tendril lay on the ground where the guardian had ripped it free. The elf’s eyes followed her as she ran up, but he could not even muster enough strength to speak.

Honoratius stepped behind a stalagmite that offered at least some cover from the creatures. He targeted the one that had snared Zahera, and before it could fully retract its tendrils for another attack, he hit it with a disintegrate spell. This time he overcame its spell resistance, and the monster crumbled into dust as the green beam struck it.

Dar gave in and lunged forward as the monster brought him within reach, its ugly jaws opening wide to receive him. Valor glanced off its stony hide, and it roared something in a language Dar did not understand. Its tendrils drew him close against it, and he felt its jaws bite down on his arm. Fortunately the hide bracer protecting his forearm held, and he was able to yank the limb free before it could get a more solid grip. He looked up and saw its eyes, dark orbs recessed into its body, staring at him with hatred.

Alexion charged past him, driving his pick down with precision into one of those eyes. The monster spasmed as the pointed head of the weapon slammed through the socket, and Dar was flung free as it collapsed, the long tendrils going limp as it died.

It took him some effort to drag himself to his feet, but he was able to do it before Alexion was there to help. “That all of them? Is everyone all right?”

“We’re all right here!” Honoratius shouted back. Allera was tending Zahera, and she looked up at the three on the other side of the river. “You may want to let us string a rope before you come back over,” the healer said. Marcus, limping slightly, grinned sheepishly.

“What were those things?” Zahera asked, as Allera restored her strength to her. The rod that she had taken from Tribitz was almost completely drained of power, but she still had a small pouch of diamond dust in one of her pockets, and her wand of lesser restoration.

“They are known as ropers,” Honoratius said, as Alderis ordered his shield guardian to assist the others in recrossing the stream. “They are a not uncommon hazard in the tunnels of the Underdark.” No more of the things appeared, and they were reunited on the near bank of the stream in a matter of minutes. Allera treated Dar’s weakness using her wand, and then they set out again, Nelan again directing their course using his find the path spell.

His light revealed the path well before they reached it. As they drew close to the stream tunnel, they could see that a path ran along its side. Similar to the one that they had taken in the Great Cavern, this one was narrow but otherwise sized to accommodate human travelers, and appeared to follow the course of the stream for as far as Nelan’s daylight spell penetrated.

“This is the way?” Dar asked.

Nelan nodded.

“Wonderful,” Dar said. He glanced around at the faces of his companions, and settled on Honoratius. “How will we know when we reach this ‘Gates of Hell’ place?”

The archmage’s expression was inscrutable. “You will know.”

“Damn it, that’s what I thought you were going to say. Well, no sense waiting for that bastard to send more demons after us. Let’s get moving.”

He took the lead himself, heading into the tunnel, bending slightly to keep his head from scraping the low ceiling. The others followed in single file, the guardian again coming last, trudging through the stream, the swift current flaring around its chest as it followed in their wake.

 

[thelettuceman]

Thanks for the recommendations! I really miss some of the old greats, especially spyscribe's Halmae and Sagiro's long-running SH. And I think Sepulchrave's just teasing us now with a once-every-two-years-post.

*chuckles*

Yeah. Sepulchrave is really just a SH-tease these days. That Story Hour, along with yours, are my two favorites. I still go back to read Wyre once in a while to get some inspiraton.

 

[Richard Rawen]

Well, I'm afraid I have no new suggestions of merit
You already mentioned JollyDoc, and my other linkage - Lost Boys vs Sunless Citadel - is a fun read, but not very long yet, still on it's 4th page.
I went to my "To Be Read" folder and alas, none of those fine stories have gotten more than a stutter over the last year or so.

Blarg. I've now deleted three separate lines after following the train of thought to a wrecked SH Honestly I don't know what happened to the rest of the long-term authors on this site.

As to your fine work, Ropers! ? ! Wow... what a flashback that gave me, and what a pain in the arse they provided the heroes. As they traverse these dark passages I wonder about an encounter with Drow, if your game/story-world includes them.

In any case, loving the story, the Arcanists are definitely living up to billing, Dar of course kicks arse, along with the sundry meat-shields, and Allera and the clerics are performing up to par, but what about our favorite Priest?

 

[Lazybones]

In any case, loving the story, the Arcanists are definitely living up to billing, Dar of course kicks arse, along with the sundry meat-shields, and Allera and the clerics are performing up to par, but what about our favorite Priest?

Oh, he's... around.

* * * * *

Chapter 316

THROUGH THE GATE


They followed the stream path for several hundred yards. The tunnel curved slightly to the right, but otherwise remained unremarkable. They occasionally had to duck to avoid rock formations that jutted from the low celing, but for the most part the stream tunnel was smooth and the trail easy to follow. The wizards had no difficulty at all, drifting casually under the power of their overland flight spells. Honoratius indicated markings on the tunnel walls that indicated where the water level had risen in the past, which likely explained the lack of obstructions. There were no tracks to indicate that others had come this way recently, but they knew enough about Rappan Athuk by now to know that this observation did not necessarily mean anything.

As they pressed on, the stream grew swifter and deeper, and Alderis’s guardian had more difficulty keeping up. Finally, Honoratius cast a spell upon the construct that allowed it to rise up above the surface of the water. The spell did not grant it any power of lateral movement, but with its weight effectively neutralized by the archmage’s magic, Alderis was able to easily push it along, hovering behind it with his overland flight spell providing enough propulsion for both of them.

The levitation spell only lasted a short time, but before it faded they identified a breach in the side of the tunnel that indicated a possible exit ahead. The river path ended at that point, and as they crept forward they could see that there was in fact a passage beyond. They started in that direction, but before they could reach the opening, Nelan clutched at his head and sagged against the tunnel wall.

“Nelan! Are you all right?” Allera asked. She began to summon her powers, but the cleric waved her off with a hand.

“No, I’m all right.”

“What happened?” Dar asked.

“A surge of power... I don’t... wait, my find the path spell, it’s been broken. I cannot sense the correct direction any longer.”

Honoratius cast a spell and scanned the area. “There is definitely a tangible aura of magic and evil in this place,” she reported after a few moments. “It grows stronger ahead.”

“Before you were hit... the spell was guiding you that way?” Dar asked, pointing to the breach.

The cleric nodded. “Then I guess that’s where we’re going,” the fighter said. “Carefully, and quietly. Alderis, keep that clunking heap of yours back aways; we’ll never surprise anything with it stomping around. Alexion, you’re on point.”

The knight took the lead again as they moved as quietly as they could into the passage. The tunnel beyond was narrow and rose slightly as they made their way through it. It had a low ceiling, and the shield guardian could fit only with great difficulty; Alderis fell behind as he escorted it through the tunnel. Glancing back, Dar gestured for Zahera to keep an eye on him.

After about fifty feet or so the narrow tunnel opened onto a wide passageway that split off to the left and right. To the left, the passage sloped steeply down, and it looked as though it might even pass under the stream they had just traversed. In the other direction, the passage forked after just a short distance, and it was that way that they headed after a few moments’ whispered exchange.

The stonework here was very rough and very old. The clerics looked very uneasy, and their hands stole frequently to their holy symbols, as though the silver torches could drive back the foreboding that filled this place. All of them could sense a cold malevolence in the air here, along with a faint sizzle of power that prickled the skin and sent icy chills down their spines.

At the fork, they briefly paused to shine Nelan’s light in both directions, and to listen for noises. The tunnel to the left twisted and appeared to dead-end about eighty feet ahead, but a quick probe by Alexion revealed an iron door set into the stone at its finale. The companions went that way, the shield guardian warding the fork behind them.

The door was of solid construction, its hinges recessed into the stone lintel, and it had clearly had been kept in good condition, bearing signs of recent use. There was a latch with a keyhole, but the mechanism was such that they could not see through the small opening into the space beyond. Dar carefully tried the door and was not surprised to find it locked.

“Well?” Nelan asked, his voice low.

“Doors like this one aren’t installed to guard empty rooms,” Dar said. “There’s something important behind it.”

“It will take time to force it,” Alexion said, “Time and a lot of noise. Even with your strength, general.”

“Perhaps we can eschew brute force for once,” Honoratius said. She reached into her magical pouch, her arm sinking up to the elbow into the extradimensional space within. She had no difficulty finding what she sought, a small, tightly wound parchment scroll marked on one end with a label that indicated its contents.

“A knock spell?” Allera asked.

The archmage nodded. “It often pays to keep a few extra copies of utility spells, against just such a need.” She turned to Dar. “It is highly likely that the spell will alert anyone behind the door, assuming that our presence has not already been detected.”

The fighter nodded, and gestured for everyone to prepare themselves. The archmage unrolled the scroll and read the spell, speaking in soft but clearly audible words that thrummed with magical power. There was a gentle click from the door, and then Dar thrust it open, driving his shoulder into the hard metal.

The chamber beyond was of considerable size, perhaps fifty feet across and eight feet long. The stone of the floor, walls, and ceiling alike had been cut and polished to a fine sheen, and bore streaks of black and red within that formed natural, twisting designs in the rock. The door opened in the center of one of the longer walls, and appeared on first glance to be the only exit.

The place had been decorated with a gruesome décor. Upwards of a dozen panels decorated the walls around the perimeter of the chamber, relief carvings that depicted scenes both abstract and grotesque. Two rows of pillars ran down the length of the chamber, and through them they could see an altar of sorts at the end of the room to their right. Gold glinted in their lights upon a pedestal of stone, which rested atop a dais accessed by three broad steps of black marble.

But their inventory of the place was interrupted by the fact that they chamber was occupied. A half-circle of gaunt, humanoid creatures stood in a half-circle before the dais, clad in long gray robes that obscured the details of their forms. They turned as Dar thrust the door open. As the light from Nelan’s shield spilled over them, the companions could see that these things were in no way human. Their skin was a blotched violet-gray, and glistened faintly with slick moisture. Their eyes were milky orbs, their fingers long and sinuous. But the worst thing was the lower half of their faces, their chins replaced by a nest of long, twisting tentacles that dangled down several feet, probing before them as if tasting the scent of them on the air.

“Illithids!” Honoratius warned, even as the first of the creatures unleashed a mind blast upon them.

The wave of mental power was devastating. Alexion and Zahera screamed and crumpled, followed a moment later by Marcus, who slumped against a pillar before sagging to the floor. Dar managed a step forward, Valor trembling in his hand. “Get... out... of... my... mind!” he growled, his jaw tight with the effort of resisting the mind flayers’ potent mental abilities. But then another of the illithids hit them with another mind blast, and the fighter, overcome, fell to the ground, his sword striking the stone with a loud clang.

 

[Lazybones]

Chapter 317

FLAYING THE FLAYERS


Allera invoked a holy aura around herself and her companions, a protection that proved extremely timely as several more mind blasts washed over them. The semiconscious warriors groaned and twitched, but the casters were able to resist the mental probes that washed over them, flaring around the edge of the healer’s divine shield.

Alderis flew into the room, ascending as he passed between two of the black pillars. The elf extended a hand toward the center of the flayer line, toward a creature that bore black runes upon its robe, and which wore a torc of shining gold around its neck. The elf’s cone of cold blasted into the mind flayers, driving them back, and coating the entire dais and pedestal with a rime of frost. The leader and one of the other illithids were able to resist the elf’s magic, avoiding harm, but the others were not so fortunate. None fell, but they staggered awkwardly, the chill blast sending cold penetrating to the bone.

They got rather warmer a moment later as Nelan called down a flame strike.

The cleric’s magic was not quite as potent as that of the elf, but the creatures had already been considerably weakened, and four collapsed to the ground, reduced to blackened husks. Again the leader resisted the magic, but the remaining two were in dire condition.

Honoratius was the last to enter the room, and as the archmage stepped forward between the pillars, the illithid with the torc drew upon its mental powers and plane shifted away. The other two attempted to follow, but before either could focus its power Honoratius hit them with a series of sonic blasts. Both creatures screeched and crumpled onto to the hard floor.

Allera tended to the stunned warriors, who recovered quickly from the mental blasts. They examined the room carefully, but there were no further threats present, or at least none that could be readily discerned.

“It does not bode well that illithids are in league with our foe,” Honoratius said, once they had all recovered and secured the door. Alderis had brought in his shield guardian while they planned their next move. “That one that escaped will likely return with word of our presence, although the imprecise nature of planar travel may buy us some time.”

“The markings on its robe... those sigils were in Abyssal,” Alderis said.

Honoratius nodded. “I noted that as well. Evidently the leader was a priest of Orcus.”

Zahera had stepped atop the dais, and was moving closer toward the stone pedestal close against the wall. The pedestal bore three golden plates, shining squares each a few inches across. Honoratius forestalled her before she could get any closer. “I recommend caution with that,” the archmage said. “I detect a strong aura of magic, and evil, coming from that object.”

Dar unlimbered his club, and walked over to the dais. Zahera stepped aside, and before any of them could offer challenge or comment he lifted the heavy weapon and smashed it into the pedestal. There was a flare of red light that briefly rimed the fighter, but he ignored the discharge, and struck the pedestal a second, and then a third time. On that third blow the stone cracked, and the pedestal came apart.

A past Dar would have sifted through the rubble for the gold, but the fighter just turned and said, “Let’s get moving.”

As they checked their gear and returned to the door, Alderis stepped over to the remains of the pedestal. Kicking aside a few bits of rubble, he found a small golden ring, which he slipped into a pocket.

They left the illithid temple behind and returned to the fork they had encountered earlier. This time they bore right, following the corridor deeper into the complex. They passed several side tunnels, which they scouted quickly to verify that no enemies waited in ambush. The first such tunnel led back to the underground river, while the second dead-ended in a pair of spur passages. The main corridor ran onward for hundreds of feet, until they estimated that they had come farther than their initial trek along the banks of the underground river. Their caution did not ease, and they moved forward slowly, checking every crevice and spur and side-chamber that they passed. Nelan’s daylight spell expired, and Honoratius indicated that she only had a short time remaining to her before she would be required to relinquish Letellia’s body for another day.

“Maybe we should fall back, seek out a secure place to rest,” Allera suggested.

“The enemy knows we are here. If we withdraw, they may rally and strike us in force, wherever we camp,” Alderis pointed out.

“If we’re going to fight them, might be better to have the archmage with us,” Marcus suggested.

“The knight-commander said it was often better to take the fight to the enemy, to face him on your terms rather than his,” Alexion said.

“Did he, now?” Dar said. “All right, we’ll press on for a few more rooms, but mage, give me a few minutes’ warning before you bug out.”

“Noted, general.”

They followed the passage for only a short distance further before it opened onto a small room with multiple exits. None of the three passages concealed enemies, at least not as far as they could discern. With their torches, it was likely that a foe would see them long before they themselves could detect the threat. But there was nothing to be done for that; Alderis could grant the power of darkvision, but he could not grant that boon to everyone in the group without seriously compromising his own spell selection. And in any case, you didn’t think of it, Dar thought to himself, as Zahera and Alexion checked the passages. There were too many unknowns here, like a man wading into water at night, not knowing where the ground might drop off suddenly, leaving him flailing blindly.

Zahera reported that the first passage opened onto another long hall of worked stone. They moved into that adjoining area, their torches driving back the darkness ahead of them. The hall was about twenty feet wide, and buttressed with curving arcs of black stone at regular intervals along its length. To their left, the hall ended after about thirty feet, so they proceeded on to the right. The hall opened onto a slightly larger chamber after about forty feet, resuming again on the far side. The chamber had two exits, a pair of heavy wooden doors reinforced with strips of rusted iron, and a twisting, narrow passage opposite the doors that looked to have been burrowed into the rock.

“Scout it out,” Dar commanded, indicating for Alderis and Marcus to watch the way they had come and the way ahead. Honoratius, Allera, Nelan, and Dar watched quietly as the knights examined the tight passage and the wooden doors. Their search turned up nothing except for some old dung in the corners of the room.

“The doors,” Dar said, gesturing for everyone to take up positions around the portals. Once they were all ready, he grasped onto the rusted handle of one of the doors and yanked it open. This time, no enemies greeted them, only a small, triangular-shaped room with another door on the right wall. This room was in worse disarray, and was cluttered with filth, dirt, and the debris of what might have once been furnishings. The air in the room was stale with decay, but no undead monstrosities stirred out of the trash to molest them.

“General,” Marcus hissed, before they could explore further.

They turned back to see the cleric crouched along the wall on the edge of the far hall. “Something’s coming, I think.”

They shifted their position to ward the hall, Dar closing the wooden door shut behind him. As they stopped moving and listened, they could hear something... a low growl, coming down the hall, toward them.

“Shroud the lights,” Dar whispered. They concealed their torches, muting the light to a faint, hazy glow. As the darkness rushed eagerly in, they watched the hall, and waited.

They did not have to wait long. They could hear the owner of the growl approaching, accompanied by a soft scrape of claws on stone.

“Now!” Dar hissed, drawing out his torch and tossing it to the ground. As the others uncovered their lights behind him, the fighter stepped around the corner to see a pair of ugly, hulking black hounds.

They were “dogs” only in the loosest sense; even Dar could clearly mark the otherworldly ancestry of these creatures. Their hides were covered with a foul, oozing secretion that left marks on the floor in their wake, and their eyes glowed with a deep, feral glow. They lunged at Dar with furious abandon, and as their slavering jaws opened wide, flickers of flame played around their black teeth.

Dar met the first with a downward slash of Valor that split its skull wide open. The second lunged and snapped its jaws down on the fighter’s right leg, trying to drag him down. Dar held against its weight, long enough for the others to reinforce him. Alexion’s pick bit deep into the beast’s side, and it released Dar to turn upon this new foe. Unfortunately for it that opened it to another attack from Marcus, who smote the creature with Beatus Incendia. Its spine severed, the hound collapsed in a bloody heap.

“Abyssal hounds,” Honoratius said, looking down at the bodies with distaste. “There will be more of them; they hunt in packs.”

“They weren’t so tough,” Dar said, grimacing as he examined the wound in his leg. Allera cast a cure light wounds spell, fully restoring him. “Let’s see where they came from.”

The hall continued for only about fifty feet before it opened onto the corner of another, larger chamber. This one had a low ceiling, perhaps twelve feet above them, but it extended for a good sixty feet from right to left, and was upwards of forty feet across. The hall continued from the wall opposite, but they could just make out several exits on the far side of the room to their left, recessed doorways set into the stone wall.

It was evident even from a casual glance that this place was the lair of the fiendish hounds. Black slicks glistened on the walls and floor, and ugly piles of feces lay everywhere, scattered amidst broken bones and other assorted trash.

“It’s a freaking kennel,” Dar said.

“Yes, but where are the occupants?” Nelan asked.

Alexion had moved forward along the left wall, holding his torch up high to spread the light. They could see that the three doors in the rear of the chamber had been damaged, with gaping holes where large chunks of wood had been chewed away.

They also saw the glowing points of hostile eyes, staring at them.

Alexion dropped his torch and drew out his pick. The magical flame did not go out, but it cast odd shadows as the illusory light flared and flickered.

The growl started with a distant rumbling, like an earthquake. It was followed by the hounds, issuing from the openings in the doors, one after another until the streams merged into a wide line that closed steadily with the companions.

“More from the far hall,” Marcus warned, indicating several more hounds that crept into the chamber, their sinister eyes fixed on the intruders into their lair.

There were nearly two dozen in all, closing the circle, their growls promising a grim accounting.