Argent Silvermage
First Post
We so need a ranger or druid. We suck in the wilderness.
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NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
Zad/Wizardru's Story Hour (*final update 11/12*)
- Thread starter Zad
- Start date
Zad
First Post
Frozen Elegy - Chapter 3
Frozen Elegy – Chapter 3
OOC Notes:
Exp for last session is 3505 for 7th level characters, 3815 for 6th. Most of the party became 8th level with this.
Exp this session is 1135 for 8th, 1400 for 7th.
This Week’s Adventure:
The trip to Hollowsky was… eventful. First we were attacked by a group of baboons. These monkeys were anything but lucky however and they were driven off handily. I couldn’t shake the impression that they were somehow hunting us specifically but it was just a feeling.
Two days out from Hollowsky, we came across a caravan. It had been attacked, and there was plenty of blood. But there were no corpses of either man or beast. Inspection showed it to be a Lathenmire caravan of armor and weapons but the goods were still there. The strongbox was even there though it had been opened with the key. Papers, logs and letters of mark were still in the box but the cash was missing. Elizabeth took custody of the strongbox with the intention of returning it to the Lathenmires regardless of their distaste for her.
It was only as she was walking away from the caravan that Bellsin noticed a slow sound – drip, drip, drip. He looked up and was gripped with shock and revulsion.
Staked to the cliff-edge were the bodies of the caravan. Guards, teamsters, even the horse, all impaled into the rock face with bone spikes. Each had been methodically skinned. It was clear that this had only been done hours ago.
No one said a word. There were no words to describe it. When Lady Ophelia asked, we told her “You are better not knowing, and not seeing it, My Lady.”
Not too long after, we reached an inn and settled for the night. “Settled” is a bit of a wry joke actually – it was anything but.
The creature responsible for the attacks launched an assault on the inn. I’m not clear if it was simply attacking outlying prey, or if its intent was to destroy everyone there. But it did, at one point, realize the Blue Tyger Legion was defending, and attacked with renewed fervor, calling in hordes of small kobold-like creatures.
The battle was short but bloody, and we repelled the assault and destroyed most of the attackers. We could only assume that these were the creatures that Captain Skellerang wanted destroyed, but it was doubtful he knew the extent of the problem. Bringing back hides for the bounty was impractical to say the least – there were more than eighty creatures dead. Instead, the tally was counted and Lady Ophelia signed an affidavit as a witness.
Lady Ophelia also spent some time with the innkeeper. I understand she gave him a considerable sum of money to fortify the inn and repair the damage. As a local noble, she had an interest in the safety of travelers.
The next day we arrived in Hollowsky. It was a small, sleepy village – more like the middle point of a cluster of farming communities. Lady Ophelia assured us we would never again pay for a meal or lodging in Hollowsky, and we rested at the town’s small inn. The townsfolk were at first wary of the heavily armed Legion, but as other travelers arrived telling the tale of what happened the night before, fear turned to respect and admiration, and the townsfolk seemed to feel much better knowing the horde was destroyed. We talked to some locals about our destination and they were able to offer a few (very few) landmarks to help fill in our map. We also heard tales about a lost city in the jungle to the north which has reportedly claimed the lives of many adventurers. Some said it was a Spellweaver city, others said “snake people” live there, and the Spellmason wiped them out. Overall though, the locals seemed to know little outside their immediate demesnes.
Lady Ophelia returned to the inn from her manor just as we were setting out the next day. She gave us a letter, requesting we deliver it to Priestess Jenya, which of course we were happy to do.
The mountain itself was easy to spot – it was the tallest peak to the south, and its snowy cap made it stand out against the others nearby. We set off southward, going through plantations growing various grains. In only an hour’s travel, the wilderness took over and there was no sign of civilization.
We saw different paths as we approached the mountain. Some were deer tracks, while others seemed worn down by larger feet. But we were in an open snowy area when Bellsin and Krisfallion stopped. They were looking up the mountain.
“What is it?” Astrid asked.
“I don’t know… something’s wrong,” Bellsin said.
After a moment, Kris said “Why is the mountain moving?”
An avalanche of snow had detached and was coming down the mountain. Needless to say, everyone started running.
Kris got to Maris, spoke a few works and began walking on the air, moving straight up, so they were both safe. Once safely above, Kris used a spell to let Glyph turn into a thin white mist, and he too was safe.
Elizabeth was running hard but didn’t think she was going to make it. It took a moment for her to focus her mind, but then she finally faded. She looked almost ghost-like now, partially here, and partially in the astral plane. She drifted upward.
Bellsin managed to get to cover just on speed, but Astrid and Grinder were not so lucky. The snow overwhelmed them near the edge of the slide, and they were covered over. Once the snow stopped moving we began searching around but to no avail.
It was Bellsin who finally had the epiphany, and searched for magical auras. In this way we tracked down Astrid before she suffocated and were able to dig her out. We found Grinder the same way, but of course there was less urgency since he wasn’t so much worried about breathing as he was rust.
We had barely began moving again when we learned that the avalanche was no accident. Two creatures were lurking uphill. They looked like large blocks of ice with a blue light inside. They seemed displeased we had survived and began moving closer to attack.
“Ice and chill, ice and chill, no further will you go up hill. This is the Black Order’s will,” they chanted together.
It took us some time to get close enough to engage. The creatures were clumsy, and Astrid brought her halberd into one and the impact sent a network of cracks out into the creature’s icy body. Before much else could happen, Maris released a spell she had been working up for several seconds. She reached the crescendo of the spell’s power and fire erupted across the creatures. They immediately melted, and once breached the blue light and wind gushed from the icy body and they cracked, shattered, and then finally melted away to nothing.
“Who is the Black Order?” Kris asked.
“Beats me,” Maris answered. “Maybe if they re-freeze, you can ask them.”
We moved further up the mountain, and in a short while came to a set of carved stone stairs. The height of the steps strongly suggested something larger than a human made them. At some points the steps weren’t needed and stopped, only to resume again farther up. They lead upwards and came around a bend towards a misshapen pile of rocks. A second look showed that it was an old fortress, with towers and walls partially collapsed. As we grew closer we could begin to hear music carried on the wind – something low and depressing like a funeral dirge.
The entrance had a portcullis but it was raised and skewed and looked stuck. Two large statues flanked the doorway, but there was no ice on them. Bellsin watched them carefully and saw one scratch the back of his neck. Giants.
Bellsin scouted a path through trees and cover that he thought would get us closer so we wouldn’t have to cross two hundred feet of open ground vulnerable to the giant’s thrown boulders. He cut the distance by half, and we braced to charge.
The girls leapt out together and began running down the slope towards the giants, sped along by Maris’ spell of haste. The giant – and I say “giant” because only one seemed to notice – sighed in exasperation and then threw a rock towards the other giant, yelling at him to get up. They both grabbed their axes from where they were resting against the wall. They didn’t seem to be in a very big hurry about it.
Grinder was closing the gap fastest and as it ran by the first giant it slapped at it with its axe. This was what Glyph had in mind, allowing Astrid and then Elizabeth to get inside the axe swing and attack the giant. The girls both landed hard blows, but when the giant went to swing at Elizabeth, the axe turned back and cut into the giant’s leg thanks to a curse from Maris.
Between fiery spells from Maris and the weapons of Bellsin, Astrid, and Elizabeth, the giants didn’t last long at all. But what puzzled me more was the lackadaisical way they prepared. Were they attacked so often it was boring to them? Were their attackers so trivial to dispatch? Why would they be so cavalier about it?
The fortress was as run-down on the inside as it looked to be on the outside. If the giants ever cared for this place, they had stopped long ago. The music got louder as we entered. The foyer had several exits including some collapsed ones, and we went down a passage that the music seemed slightly louder from.
In the next chamber we found a giant sitting on the floor. He had a torch in his hand and was burning his fingers repeatedly. From the scarring and charring on both his hands, it appeared it was something he did often. He paid no attention to us.
“That looks like it hurts,” Astrid said.
“It’s the only thing that makes it stop. Who are you? You don’t look like me. You’re not in my mind. What do you want?” The giant was trying to focus and seemed to be teetering on the edge, or perhaps past the edge, of sanity.
“I’m seeking some answers,” Astrid said.
“I don’t have answers. All I have is the music. It won’t stop… won’t stop…”
“Where is the music coming from? Who brought it here?” Astrid asked.
The giant burned himself again, lucidity returning to his eyes for a moment. “A foul thing, we locked it up. It makes the music. It won’t stop. We can’t leave, even if we wanted to give it up. It’s our charge. Until the quiet watch, but it is not my turn to go outside. So I have to burn it.”
“Who is it?” she asked.
“It’s not a ‘who’. It’s a thing – an abomination. We bound it. It is our prisoner. We took it from the field of battle and we bound it. It won’t shut up, won’t stop. Can’t you hear it?”
I should mention that we came to this place to see if we could find something that was relevant to our set of keys. We had entirely no idea what we were looking for but this seemed promising somehow.
“Do you want me to stop the music for you?” Astrid asked helpfully.
“You can’t stop the music. You don’t have the power. We don’t have the power. We were tricked out of the keys, now there’s nothing to left to let it out.”
Promising indeed.
“What keys? Are there specific keys?”
The giant singed himself again. “The demon general gave us several keys. Now they’re all gone.”
“Who could have done that?” Astrid said.
“We gave them away. We had to. So no one could let it out.”
“So of the keys were brought together would that let it out?”
The giant grunted. “That might unleash the binding. I don’t know. Might give us our powers back, might make us whole. It might release us from the curse.”
Astrid nodded. “So where is this monster?”
“In the icy prison below, guarded by the Jarl. Always guarded by the Jarl.” He was losing his grip again.
“Down those stairs over there?” Astrid asked, indicating a set of stairs on the other side of the chamber.
“There is no way to get to it. We buried the entrances so it is unreachable.”
Glyph whispered “What is unreachable to a giant may be reachable by smaller creatures.”
“And how many of you are there here?” Astrid said.
“Not counting the Jarl, there are eight of the Black Order. Servants of Nabthateron. He marked us, told us to retire form the field and so we did, with our prize. That did not stop Nabtatheron’s failure though.”
Kris commented “Well there’s your Black Order.”
Astrid asked one final question. “Does this thing have a name?”
The giant looked pained. “If we knew its name we may have been able to do more with it.” Lucidity retreated again and the giant began rocking and moaning.
We went towards the music as best we could. We passed other giants – one was slowly pounding his head against a wall while another was holding his ears. They too had no interest in us and we did not provoke them. Another room held a group of ogres, the spirit beaten out of them – they cowered in a corner until we left.
After several corridors we found a caved-in passage which we were able to alternately squeeze through or climb over. The music got noticeably louder once we were on the other side.
The hallway was slick with ice and lead to a large chamber. In the middle was a large blue crystal. A skeleton was prostrate before the crystal, still wearing a cape the size of a tapestry. In the center of the crystal was a shadow or body of some kind. The crystal was floating in the chamber, bound by a series of chains from all sides holding it in place. The chains ran to metal plates in the floor and on the crystal.
Personally I was waiting for the skeleton to rise up and attack us – the spirit of the Jarl still bound to this world. That didn’t happen. Instead, a piece of ice came at us from where it sat along one wall. It was as if a troll had been carved out of perfectly clear ice.
Astrid looked at her halberd. I could practically hear the thought. Ice. Hammer. Hmf. She shrugged and lunged at the creature, Elizabeth on her heels. Astrid landed a flurry of deep strikes to the creature, and the body began cracking and chipping. After several blows, the creature was covered in deep cracks. Elizabeth moved for her own set of long cuts, but upon landing her first blow, the creature fell apart into a hail of fist-sized chunks.
Everyone’s attack suddenly stopped short. Elizabeth looked to Astrid who shrugged. “I loosened it for you.”
Glyph and Maris examined the ice carefully, worried that the creature might somehow reform like a real troll. Nothing seemed to be happening but after longer observation, pieces did begin to move towards each other. They consulted and determined that they would need to shatter the ice to smaller pieces to finish the creature for good. Glyph had recently enhanced Grinder to deliver a jolt of electricity with his bite, and Glyph now manipulated this enchantment to make the iron dog’s jaws vibrate with great intensity instead. Grinder set about living up to his name, grinding the pieces of ice into crumbs. He rather seemed to enjoy it.
Meanwhile Elizabeth had the keys out, and she and the others were examining the crystal. Several plates holding the chains had keyholes, and one had two keyholes. They were even numbered, thus avoiding use of the master keys.
We inserted the keys into five of the plates and turned them. As we did, each chain in turn fell away from the crystal. Oddly, nobody questioned whether we should release whatever thing was in here. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend” seemed good enough for everyone. Finally we inserted the final two keys and turned them, and the last of the chains fell away. The music stopped.
At first there was nothing, then slowly the crystal prison began steaming. There was a sudden flash and the room was filled with steam. After a moment, the steam settled to the floor, revealing the prisoner.
He was tall, but not so tall as a giant. His white wings still had a hint of frost on them, and his white toga blew gently in an unseen wind, dancing over skin like ivory. His face was both happy and stern at once.
He stepped forward away from the prison, and bowed deeply.
Elizabeth found her voice first. “Are you well?”
“I am free at last. I appear to be in your debt,” he said. His voice was musical and made other words spoken sound harsh and dull in comparison.
“We are the Blue Tyger Legion,” Glyph said. “May we ask your name?”
“Indeed, I know of you. I am Ulaaloo. I have been imprisoned here for many years, since the Redgorge battle.”
Elizabeth was looking at him carefully, still slightly nervous. When she couldn’t find her answer, she asked. “May I ask whom you serve?” Elizabeth was most certainly not a student of celestial affairs, but she had the impression, both distinct and as it happens correct, that an angel such as this was a servant of some deity.
“My time is short but I will answer what I can. I served St. Cuthbert, and serve Him still – fear not for me in that respect…” he said.
Kris was bothered and broke in. “Wait, you said you know of us? How could that be?”
“I have been kept appraised of your progress but now that I am freed I’m afraid you may have done yourselves a slight disservice. I have mere moments here before I will be politely asked to return to my place of origin, and after that not-so-politely, due to the current rules of astral mechanics. But an ally of yours has spoken to me several times of your situation.”
“And whom might that be?” Elizabeth said, troubled.
“Lady Jenya perhaps?” Glyph suggested.
“No but her name is known to me. She is known to but one of you thought she has in her way watched over you. I cannot reveal her name to you now, though you would know her as “N”. One of you knows of whom I speak. Such involvement is, to some degree, forbidden.”
“But how is freeing you a disservice?” Elizabeth asked.
“It has cut one of your lines of communication. No longer can I offer advice to her, particularly on how to protect you. But I believe the days of you needing protection are coming to a close and soon the day will come when she must ask for help from you. Turbulent times are about to come upon you. Nabthatheron stirs.”
Astrid asked “But wasn’t Nabthateron destroyed?”
The archon looked to each side of him at some unseen presence. “Nabthateron was shamed and denied return to Hell by Grazzt. He resides on the Prime still. His particular dispensation is… vexing.”
He paused and looked again. “We are on the border of politeness ending, so I must summarize quickly. I will help you in what way I can and sometime soon I may be able to return and help. If you seek counsel, speak to Jenya. She may be able to summon me for your aid. Tell her my name that she may ask for me. Should you encounter N, convince her that she walks a dangerous path. There are rules even we follow, more so than you.”
He looked again at the nothing beside him and nodded. “My time here is done. Thank you again. I hope to return the favor someday.”
So saying, he faded away. As he did, for just a moment, there was a strange hint of a shadow as if two robed creatures were standing next to him.
“Well I suppose we found what we came to find,” shrugged Astrid. “Let’s get out of here.”
And so we did. The giants were befuddled by the cessation of the music, but most were too far gone to understand they were really seeing us. Those that were more lucid were simply too confused to challenge us or give chase. We exited the fortress without incident and went down the mountain. It was a long hike but two hours after sundown, we entered Hollowsky, safe and sound.
Loot:
Two expensive necklaces from frost giants.
Frozen Elegy – Chapter 3
OOC Notes:
Exp for last session is 3505 for 7th level characters, 3815 for 6th. Most of the party became 8th level with this.
Exp this session is 1135 for 8th, 1400 for 7th.
This Week’s Adventure:
The trip to Hollowsky was… eventful. First we were attacked by a group of baboons. These monkeys were anything but lucky however and they were driven off handily. I couldn’t shake the impression that they were somehow hunting us specifically but it was just a feeling.
Two days out from Hollowsky, we came across a caravan. It had been attacked, and there was plenty of blood. But there were no corpses of either man or beast. Inspection showed it to be a Lathenmire caravan of armor and weapons but the goods were still there. The strongbox was even there though it had been opened with the key. Papers, logs and letters of mark were still in the box but the cash was missing. Elizabeth took custody of the strongbox with the intention of returning it to the Lathenmires regardless of their distaste for her.
It was only as she was walking away from the caravan that Bellsin noticed a slow sound – drip, drip, drip. He looked up and was gripped with shock and revulsion.
Staked to the cliff-edge were the bodies of the caravan. Guards, teamsters, even the horse, all impaled into the rock face with bone spikes. Each had been methodically skinned. It was clear that this had only been done hours ago.
No one said a word. There were no words to describe it. When Lady Ophelia asked, we told her “You are better not knowing, and not seeing it, My Lady.”
Not too long after, we reached an inn and settled for the night. “Settled” is a bit of a wry joke actually – it was anything but.
The creature responsible for the attacks launched an assault on the inn. I’m not clear if it was simply attacking outlying prey, or if its intent was to destroy everyone there. But it did, at one point, realize the Blue Tyger Legion was defending, and attacked with renewed fervor, calling in hordes of small kobold-like creatures.
The battle was short but bloody, and we repelled the assault and destroyed most of the attackers. We could only assume that these were the creatures that Captain Skellerang wanted destroyed, but it was doubtful he knew the extent of the problem. Bringing back hides for the bounty was impractical to say the least – there were more than eighty creatures dead. Instead, the tally was counted and Lady Ophelia signed an affidavit as a witness.
Lady Ophelia also spent some time with the innkeeper. I understand she gave him a considerable sum of money to fortify the inn and repair the damage. As a local noble, she had an interest in the safety of travelers.
The next day we arrived in Hollowsky. It was a small, sleepy village – more like the middle point of a cluster of farming communities. Lady Ophelia assured us we would never again pay for a meal or lodging in Hollowsky, and we rested at the town’s small inn. The townsfolk were at first wary of the heavily armed Legion, but as other travelers arrived telling the tale of what happened the night before, fear turned to respect and admiration, and the townsfolk seemed to feel much better knowing the horde was destroyed. We talked to some locals about our destination and they were able to offer a few (very few) landmarks to help fill in our map. We also heard tales about a lost city in the jungle to the north which has reportedly claimed the lives of many adventurers. Some said it was a Spellweaver city, others said “snake people” live there, and the Spellmason wiped them out. Overall though, the locals seemed to know little outside their immediate demesnes.
Lady Ophelia returned to the inn from her manor just as we were setting out the next day. She gave us a letter, requesting we deliver it to Priestess Jenya, which of course we were happy to do.
The mountain itself was easy to spot – it was the tallest peak to the south, and its snowy cap made it stand out against the others nearby. We set off southward, going through plantations growing various grains. In only an hour’s travel, the wilderness took over and there was no sign of civilization.
We saw different paths as we approached the mountain. Some were deer tracks, while others seemed worn down by larger feet. But we were in an open snowy area when Bellsin and Krisfallion stopped. They were looking up the mountain.
“What is it?” Astrid asked.
“I don’t know… something’s wrong,” Bellsin said.
After a moment, Kris said “Why is the mountain moving?”
An avalanche of snow had detached and was coming down the mountain. Needless to say, everyone started running.
Kris got to Maris, spoke a few works and began walking on the air, moving straight up, so they were both safe. Once safely above, Kris used a spell to let Glyph turn into a thin white mist, and he too was safe.
Elizabeth was running hard but didn’t think she was going to make it. It took a moment for her to focus her mind, but then she finally faded. She looked almost ghost-like now, partially here, and partially in the astral plane. She drifted upward.
Bellsin managed to get to cover just on speed, but Astrid and Grinder were not so lucky. The snow overwhelmed them near the edge of the slide, and they were covered over. Once the snow stopped moving we began searching around but to no avail.
It was Bellsin who finally had the epiphany, and searched for magical auras. In this way we tracked down Astrid before she suffocated and were able to dig her out. We found Grinder the same way, but of course there was less urgency since he wasn’t so much worried about breathing as he was rust.
We had barely began moving again when we learned that the avalanche was no accident. Two creatures were lurking uphill. They looked like large blocks of ice with a blue light inside. They seemed displeased we had survived and began moving closer to attack.
“Ice and chill, ice and chill, no further will you go up hill. This is the Black Order’s will,” they chanted together.
It took us some time to get close enough to engage. The creatures were clumsy, and Astrid brought her halberd into one and the impact sent a network of cracks out into the creature’s icy body. Before much else could happen, Maris released a spell she had been working up for several seconds. She reached the crescendo of the spell’s power and fire erupted across the creatures. They immediately melted, and once breached the blue light and wind gushed from the icy body and they cracked, shattered, and then finally melted away to nothing.
“Who is the Black Order?” Kris asked.
“Beats me,” Maris answered. “Maybe if they re-freeze, you can ask them.”
We moved further up the mountain, and in a short while came to a set of carved stone stairs. The height of the steps strongly suggested something larger than a human made them. At some points the steps weren’t needed and stopped, only to resume again farther up. They lead upwards and came around a bend towards a misshapen pile of rocks. A second look showed that it was an old fortress, with towers and walls partially collapsed. As we grew closer we could begin to hear music carried on the wind – something low and depressing like a funeral dirge.
The entrance had a portcullis but it was raised and skewed and looked stuck. Two large statues flanked the doorway, but there was no ice on them. Bellsin watched them carefully and saw one scratch the back of his neck. Giants.
Bellsin scouted a path through trees and cover that he thought would get us closer so we wouldn’t have to cross two hundred feet of open ground vulnerable to the giant’s thrown boulders. He cut the distance by half, and we braced to charge.
The girls leapt out together and began running down the slope towards the giants, sped along by Maris’ spell of haste. The giant – and I say “giant” because only one seemed to notice – sighed in exasperation and then threw a rock towards the other giant, yelling at him to get up. They both grabbed their axes from where they were resting against the wall. They didn’t seem to be in a very big hurry about it.
Grinder was closing the gap fastest and as it ran by the first giant it slapped at it with its axe. This was what Glyph had in mind, allowing Astrid and then Elizabeth to get inside the axe swing and attack the giant. The girls both landed hard blows, but when the giant went to swing at Elizabeth, the axe turned back and cut into the giant’s leg thanks to a curse from Maris.
Between fiery spells from Maris and the weapons of Bellsin, Astrid, and Elizabeth, the giants didn’t last long at all. But what puzzled me more was the lackadaisical way they prepared. Were they attacked so often it was boring to them? Were their attackers so trivial to dispatch? Why would they be so cavalier about it?
The fortress was as run-down on the inside as it looked to be on the outside. If the giants ever cared for this place, they had stopped long ago. The music got louder as we entered. The foyer had several exits including some collapsed ones, and we went down a passage that the music seemed slightly louder from.
In the next chamber we found a giant sitting on the floor. He had a torch in his hand and was burning his fingers repeatedly. From the scarring and charring on both his hands, it appeared it was something he did often. He paid no attention to us.
“That looks like it hurts,” Astrid said.
“It’s the only thing that makes it stop. Who are you? You don’t look like me. You’re not in my mind. What do you want?” The giant was trying to focus and seemed to be teetering on the edge, or perhaps past the edge, of sanity.
“I’m seeking some answers,” Astrid said.
“I don’t have answers. All I have is the music. It won’t stop… won’t stop…”
“Where is the music coming from? Who brought it here?” Astrid asked.
The giant burned himself again, lucidity returning to his eyes for a moment. “A foul thing, we locked it up. It makes the music. It won’t stop. We can’t leave, even if we wanted to give it up. It’s our charge. Until the quiet watch, but it is not my turn to go outside. So I have to burn it.”
“Who is it?” she asked.
“It’s not a ‘who’. It’s a thing – an abomination. We bound it. It is our prisoner. We took it from the field of battle and we bound it. It won’t shut up, won’t stop. Can’t you hear it?”
I should mention that we came to this place to see if we could find something that was relevant to our set of keys. We had entirely no idea what we were looking for but this seemed promising somehow.
“Do you want me to stop the music for you?” Astrid asked helpfully.
“You can’t stop the music. You don’t have the power. We don’t have the power. We were tricked out of the keys, now there’s nothing to left to let it out.”
Promising indeed.
“What keys? Are there specific keys?”
The giant singed himself again. “The demon general gave us several keys. Now they’re all gone.”
“Who could have done that?” Astrid said.
“We gave them away. We had to. So no one could let it out.”
“So of the keys were brought together would that let it out?”
The giant grunted. “That might unleash the binding. I don’t know. Might give us our powers back, might make us whole. It might release us from the curse.”
Astrid nodded. “So where is this monster?”
“In the icy prison below, guarded by the Jarl. Always guarded by the Jarl.” He was losing his grip again.
“Down those stairs over there?” Astrid asked, indicating a set of stairs on the other side of the chamber.
“There is no way to get to it. We buried the entrances so it is unreachable.”
Glyph whispered “What is unreachable to a giant may be reachable by smaller creatures.”
“And how many of you are there here?” Astrid said.
“Not counting the Jarl, there are eight of the Black Order. Servants of Nabthateron. He marked us, told us to retire form the field and so we did, with our prize. That did not stop Nabtatheron’s failure though.”
Kris commented “Well there’s your Black Order.”
Astrid asked one final question. “Does this thing have a name?”
The giant looked pained. “If we knew its name we may have been able to do more with it.” Lucidity retreated again and the giant began rocking and moaning.
We went towards the music as best we could. We passed other giants – one was slowly pounding his head against a wall while another was holding his ears. They too had no interest in us and we did not provoke them. Another room held a group of ogres, the spirit beaten out of them – they cowered in a corner until we left.
After several corridors we found a caved-in passage which we were able to alternately squeeze through or climb over. The music got noticeably louder once we were on the other side.
The hallway was slick with ice and lead to a large chamber. In the middle was a large blue crystal. A skeleton was prostrate before the crystal, still wearing a cape the size of a tapestry. In the center of the crystal was a shadow or body of some kind. The crystal was floating in the chamber, bound by a series of chains from all sides holding it in place. The chains ran to metal plates in the floor and on the crystal.
Personally I was waiting for the skeleton to rise up and attack us – the spirit of the Jarl still bound to this world. That didn’t happen. Instead, a piece of ice came at us from where it sat along one wall. It was as if a troll had been carved out of perfectly clear ice.
Astrid looked at her halberd. I could practically hear the thought. Ice. Hammer. Hmf. She shrugged and lunged at the creature, Elizabeth on her heels. Astrid landed a flurry of deep strikes to the creature, and the body began cracking and chipping. After several blows, the creature was covered in deep cracks. Elizabeth moved for her own set of long cuts, but upon landing her first blow, the creature fell apart into a hail of fist-sized chunks.
Everyone’s attack suddenly stopped short. Elizabeth looked to Astrid who shrugged. “I loosened it for you.”
Glyph and Maris examined the ice carefully, worried that the creature might somehow reform like a real troll. Nothing seemed to be happening but after longer observation, pieces did begin to move towards each other. They consulted and determined that they would need to shatter the ice to smaller pieces to finish the creature for good. Glyph had recently enhanced Grinder to deliver a jolt of electricity with his bite, and Glyph now manipulated this enchantment to make the iron dog’s jaws vibrate with great intensity instead. Grinder set about living up to his name, grinding the pieces of ice into crumbs. He rather seemed to enjoy it.
Meanwhile Elizabeth had the keys out, and she and the others were examining the crystal. Several plates holding the chains had keyholes, and one had two keyholes. They were even numbered, thus avoiding use of the master keys.
We inserted the keys into five of the plates and turned them. As we did, each chain in turn fell away from the crystal. Oddly, nobody questioned whether we should release whatever thing was in here. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend” seemed good enough for everyone. Finally we inserted the final two keys and turned them, and the last of the chains fell away. The music stopped.
At first there was nothing, then slowly the crystal prison began steaming. There was a sudden flash and the room was filled with steam. After a moment, the steam settled to the floor, revealing the prisoner.
He was tall, but not so tall as a giant. His white wings still had a hint of frost on them, and his white toga blew gently in an unseen wind, dancing over skin like ivory. His face was both happy and stern at once.
He stepped forward away from the prison, and bowed deeply.
Elizabeth found her voice first. “Are you well?”
“I am free at last. I appear to be in your debt,” he said. His voice was musical and made other words spoken sound harsh and dull in comparison.
“We are the Blue Tyger Legion,” Glyph said. “May we ask your name?”
“Indeed, I know of you. I am Ulaaloo. I have been imprisoned here for many years, since the Redgorge battle.”
Elizabeth was looking at him carefully, still slightly nervous. When she couldn’t find her answer, she asked. “May I ask whom you serve?” Elizabeth was most certainly not a student of celestial affairs, but she had the impression, both distinct and as it happens correct, that an angel such as this was a servant of some deity.
“My time is short but I will answer what I can. I served St. Cuthbert, and serve Him still – fear not for me in that respect…” he said.
Kris was bothered and broke in. “Wait, you said you know of us? How could that be?”
“I have been kept appraised of your progress but now that I am freed I’m afraid you may have done yourselves a slight disservice. I have mere moments here before I will be politely asked to return to my place of origin, and after that not-so-politely, due to the current rules of astral mechanics. But an ally of yours has spoken to me several times of your situation.”
“And whom might that be?” Elizabeth said, troubled.
“Lady Jenya perhaps?” Glyph suggested.
“No but her name is known to me. She is known to but one of you thought she has in her way watched over you. I cannot reveal her name to you now, though you would know her as “N”. One of you knows of whom I speak. Such involvement is, to some degree, forbidden.”
“But how is freeing you a disservice?” Elizabeth asked.
“It has cut one of your lines of communication. No longer can I offer advice to her, particularly on how to protect you. But I believe the days of you needing protection are coming to a close and soon the day will come when she must ask for help from you. Turbulent times are about to come upon you. Nabthatheron stirs.”
Astrid asked “But wasn’t Nabthateron destroyed?”
The archon looked to each side of him at some unseen presence. “Nabthateron was shamed and denied return to Hell by Grazzt. He resides on the Prime still. His particular dispensation is… vexing.”
He paused and looked again. “We are on the border of politeness ending, so I must summarize quickly. I will help you in what way I can and sometime soon I may be able to return and help. If you seek counsel, speak to Jenya. She may be able to summon me for your aid. Tell her my name that she may ask for me. Should you encounter N, convince her that she walks a dangerous path. There are rules even we follow, more so than you.”
He looked again at the nothing beside him and nodded. “My time here is done. Thank you again. I hope to return the favor someday.”
So saying, he faded away. As he did, for just a moment, there was a strange hint of a shadow as if two robed creatures were standing next to him.
“Well I suppose we found what we came to find,” shrugged Astrid. “Let’s get out of here.”
And so we did. The giants were befuddled by the cessation of the music, but most were too far gone to understand they were really seeing us. Those that were more lucid were simply too confused to challenge us or give chase. We exited the fortress without incident and went down the mountain. It was a long hike but two hours after sundown, we entered Hollowsky, safe and sound.
Loot:
Two expensive necklaces from frost giants.
Argent Silvermage
First Post
Grinder
My homunculus really got a work out, but it's really proving worth the expense.
I'm considering making another but giving it alternate upgrades from the "Big G".
I can't wait till 8th level (Glyf's a level behind the rest of the group) and take Craft Construct! I've already stated out a Griffon Effigy!
My homunculus really got a work out, but it's really proving worth the expense.
I'm considering making another but giving it alternate upgrades from the "Big G".
I can't wait till 8th level (Glyf's a level behind the rest of the group) and take Craft Construct! I've already stated out a Griffon Effigy!
LordVyreth
First Post
Heh, I forgot that this game takes place in the same world as the last one. The Judges could interfere with the plot as things continue quite a bit!
Argent Silvermage
First Post
Yeah.. It was interesting to see if and what would happen. We as the players didn't even know if there WERE still judges. The characters had no idea there even were such creatures (And still don't).LordVyreth said:
WizarDru
Adventurer
Zad said:
And you'll find the answer is a little different than one might expect. While it isn't called out as much in the story hour, there are several ties to the previous one as well as occasional nods (some of which don't make it in to the story hour, for brevity's sake) to the previous story-hour. References to the worship of Dravot and his followers, for example. There are also some that haven't been discovered by the party....YET. Suffice it to say that at least two of the former members of the Savage Sword of Meepo have a finger in the pie that is Cauldron, though it is generally off of their radar. We still love those characters, you understand....and laying them down was HARD.
Frozen Elegy also gave me a chance to stretch my legs...I hadn't realized how much I enjoyed some of the freedom of using my own story. What this portends for the rest of the story arc, I couldn't say...though it may suggest that my editing will tend to increase over time, not decrease. That isn't to say that the Shackled City will jump of the rails...but the train may move to a different track from time to time. This is much easier to accomplish with a developed world and developed characters...something I now have in spades.
Argent Silvermage
First Post
I'm a sad unemployed bear.
Ok. Now no one who knows me will ever doubt that I spend WAY to much time thinking about my characters but even I think I've gone overboard on this one.
At the moment The Tygers are living out of the Drunken Morkoth and due to his "experiments" I figured Glyf would be better served with his own place.
Ok so we have that. Now I just spent hours going over in my head and putting down on paper what he will need in it other than to say his lab and the essentials needed for it. I have PLANS! Plans I tell you. I can't be safe in just a regular house oh no! I have to look up spells and itewms that will turn Glyf's little 3 story home into a fortress. Including staff and guards.
Being out of work is just bad for my psychie.
Ok. Now no one who knows me will ever doubt that I spend WAY to much time thinking about my characters but even I think I've gone overboard on this one.
At the moment The Tygers are living out of the Drunken Morkoth and due to his "experiments" I figured Glyf would be better served with his own place.
Ok so we have that. Now I just spent hours going over in my head and putting down on paper what he will need in it other than to say his lab and the essentials needed for it. I have PLANS! Plans I tell you. I can't be safe in just a regular house oh no! I have to look up spells and itewms that will turn Glyf's little 3 story home into a fortress. Including staff and guards.
Being out of work is just bad for my psychie.
Zad
First Post
Demonskar Legacy - Chapter 1
Demonskar Legacy – Chapter 1
OOC Notes:
Exp is 400 for 8th, 525 for 7th.
Loot split from last run is so small that it’ll be thrown with the next split. The only thing worth anything is the necklaces which Elizabeth bought out.
This Week’s Adventure:
The next few weeks were very busy. Not busy in the “repelling an invasion” sense, but certainly didn’t seem restful.
While we were gone, a basked of adamantine ingots had arrived for Astrid’s new armor, and Elizabeth got to work straight away on it. She was hoping to get it done so Glyph would have time to enchant it before something else happened. She also had a message to deliver to Jenya, but the heat-reheat cycle of working with the strange metal kept creating situations where Elizabeth couldn’t deliver it at any reasonable hour.
Finally Elizabeth got the hang of it and made it over to the temple as evening services were closing. As she waited for the attendees to depart, she saw several town notables, including Lord Vhalantruu, and the Lord Mayor, surrounded by a large group of bodyguards. There were some sour looks directed his way, most followed by some amount of contrition at the thought that St. Cuthbert would disapprove. The Mayor, it seemed, was not entirely sober, which was rather shameful but he didn’t seem to care.
We also noticed the Azlaxin’s, and managed to overhear young Zachary adamantly denying something – “… it wasn’t true. It was a lie, and it didn’t happen. And there was no public nudity involved…” Zachary seemed genuinely embarrassed and upset but his father was having none of it.
Once the crowd had departed, we entered the temple and waited quietly in the back while the High Priestess finished with her tasks. Jenya finished up, and walked towards us. She seemed genuinely glad to see Elizabeth, and we went into the study.
Elizabeth first delivered the message from Lady Knowlern. Jenya received it with some concern on her face but did not disclose the contents. After that, Elizabeth related the events that took place at the frost giant ruins. It wasn’t long before Jenya stopped her and asked for a scrivener to record this story. Jenya listened with great interest, and noted that Ulaaloo’s name is recorded as one of the host, but he had not been heard from in some time.
“I mention he made a point of asking us to give you his name, that you might be able to call on him in future divinations,” Elizabeth added, “though I’m not certain how the Star of Justice works in such matters.”
Jenya nodded. “I wish I had it yesterday. I was using the Star to help Lord Vhalantruu, who was attempting to determine the whereabouts of Lady Celeste. She has gone missing and no magics have been able to find her.”
“Disturbing indeed. Has she been missing long?"
"Since before you returned with Lord Splintershield's son. Lord Vhalantruu has solicited divinations from all the temples in town and the Blue Crater Academy as well but none have yielded any information," Jenya said, concern in her voice.
"Perhaps Ulaaloo can help if you try again. If a lead turns up, I would be willing to investigate this further, but right now I am unsure where to begin. But this brings me to a question I have,” Elizabeth asked. “It was clear that Ulaaloo was going to be forced off the plane very quickly, but I don’t understand why. He’s an angel – what was making him leave?”
“I believe that would be the Judges. They are powerful beings that exist outside the normal celestial hierarchy, enforcing a set of rules set down some twenty years ago. These rules were created after ever-increasing incursions onto this plane from outside elements, and then after the Great Greyhawk Wars, they were further strengthened. The rules were… how shall I say… fully ratified in the last ten years. The Judges are not fallen angels per se, but more like volunteers – a neutral system of removing creatures that do not belong here. These rules are quite complicated and over time loopholes were uncovered and new rules enacted.”
“Whom exactly do these rules govern?” Elizabeth asked, concerned.
“They govern extraplanar beings like angels and devils and the higher powers they serve. I don’t fully understand the reasons or even the full rules. I do know this though: Cascades of more than one generation cannot pass. It is completely prohibited by the rules.”
Elizabeth stared blankly back at Jenya who then remembered she wasn’t talking to someone versed in such things. “Angels and devils can summon more of their kind. Those new beings can summon more, and so on. This is called a ‘cascade’. It can quickly turn the Prime into a war zone between heaven and hell. The rules allow the first being to summon more of its kind, but those beings cannot summon others.”
“And these Judges eject those that do not belong?”
Jenya nodded. “For more powerful intruders, there are the Arbiters. These creatures are more powerful, and their aspect was increased with the arrival of the deity Dravot. Their powers are enhanced by his portfolio, and they have absorbed some of the power of the abyssal and infernal in their role. But the Judges are not creatures of Pelor.
“Have you seen these Judges?”
“No. I have never even seen a drawing of one. But planar mechanics is not something I study, and I confess I am not an expert.”
Elizabeth laughed. “Compared to me, you are. But let’s change the subject all the same. You are a pillar of this community and your opinion is both worthy of respect and likely to be fairly neutral in this. Everyone I’ve spoken to of late has complained about the burden of the taxes. Certainly there are more guards around, but it seems there have been no repairs made since the flood.”
Jenya thought for a few moments before answering. “It is true that the burden is high, but it is also true that there have been many monster attacks. I have known Terseon for many years but I fear he may have become lost in his desire to create order. I agree that there are many repairs that are sorely needed though.”
“Well that may be something we can help with, if we can ask for your help first. We were asked to investigate some monster attacks to the south, and offered a bounty to do so. We were... successful - perhaps more successful than anyone expected, since no one knew the true scale of the threat. The bounty is sizable but if we were to split it among us, it would be… “ Elizabeth trailed off. “Let’s just say we think the money could be better used elsewhere. We would like to contribute the bounty to the community and pay for repairs to things damaged by the flood. We are unsure how far this money will go, or even what projects might be best undertaken. That is where we need your help.”
Jenya seemed slightly surprised but very pleased. “Ah I see. Well that is something I would gladly help with. That money will go a long way in this matter. And I know just the man for the job – Keygan Gelve.” Jenya began writing a letter, explaining “Tell him that we feel his penance has been adequately served and justice has been done. I am asking him to undertake these project, for which he will be compensated of course. They should be well within his skills to accomplish. I’m suggesting repairs to the Trumpet Street Dock, the retaining wall on the crater’s edge, and repairs to the orphanage.” Jenya handed the completed letter to Elizabeth.
“Excellent. I’m pleased that his punishment is served – he seemed quite worn last I saw him. Thank you so much for your help High Priestess,” she said, with a hint of smile.
Jenya gave a mock frown at the jest. Then it turned to a real frown as Elizabeth departed and a messenger arrived. I couldn’t tell what he might be doing there but Jenya recognized him and wasn’t thrilled.
Elizabeth immediately went to see Keygan, who happily received her. He seemed very pleased by her news and indicated that the projects should be very practical and he would set about the work immediately.
Her last stop was the Lathenmire guild house, to return the log books from the attacked caravan. She was received rather skeptically, and it was clear that they didn’t like her – in most cases actively hated her. But for all that, they did respect her and there was some genuine appreciation at the log books being returned.
Astrid on the other hand spent some time watching City Hall. The suspicions were that something was going on, and Astrid was preparing in case she needed to infiltrate later. I spent some time with her watching the comings and goings of the various messengers (of which it seemed there were several ranks) and others.
Astrid also did some carousing with the various members of the watch, with whom she instantly fit in. She heard some interesting rumors about Zachary Azlaxin, and also Todd Vanderboren. Some of the men expressed concern that Skellerang has become more and more obsessed and intolerant of lawlessness. Others were on escort duty, accompanying around tax collectors and none to happy about it. The taxes in the city were now equal to, or more than, Sasserine. Astrid was even told that the Blue Tygers would probably be hearing from the tax man soon.
The tax situation was getting worse, and things were coming to a head. Notices started to appear around town.
Citizens of Cauldron, let your voice be heard.
Come one, come all to City Hall this evening. Those in power must learn that we do not welcome their indulgences. Their vices shall be borne by our pockets no more. The tax collectors are the lapdogs of their greed – let not their shadows besmirch our stoops.
Speak your will! Voice your pain! Help us return Cauldron to her children!
The Blue Tygers looked at a copy over dinner at the Drunken Morkoth.
“This isn’t good,” Elizabeth said flatly.
“Not good at all. It’s a riot in the making. The guards are under orders to take these down but they’re going up faster than they’re getting ripped down,” Astrid said.
“Maybe we should go and see what might be done,” Bellsin said.
“Actually I was thinking the opposite – none of us should get anywhere near this rally,” Elizabeth said.
“How do you figure?” Kris asked.
“Nothing good can come of it,” she explained. “If the Blue Tygers show up, it will be bad for us no matter what. Are we there supporting the rebellious people? That’s not good. Are we there providing help for the guards? Also not good. People will assume we’re taking sides, and neither works well for us. And if a riot does break out, what can we do? Help the people? Bad idea. Help the guards? Also bad. We could send some of us covertly, but if anyone recognizable is there, or we show up in force, it could be a disaster.”
Nobody had an argument for that. But while Elizabeth was explaining, a messenger arrived and came to the table. He handed his letter over to Bellsin who was skimming it while Elizabeth was talking.
“Well it makes perfect sense to me, but it doesn’t matter now – we’re going anyway,” he said, tossing the letter on the table. “It’s from Jenya. She’s heard rumors that Sir Alek will be at the rally, and she’s worried about him. She’s asking us to go and see if we can find him.”
Everyone sighed.
The square in front of city hall was packed with people. Near the building, town watchmen stood, their arms locked together and their halberd shafts across their bodies forming a perimeter. The crowd was rowdy but there was no sign of Sir Alek. We spread out trying to spot him but it was virtually impossible to see anyone specific.
That all changed when a man stepped on up the rim of the fountain and addressed the crowd. I couldn’t see very well, but Elizabeth recognized him immediately.
“Oh no,” she said. “It’s Maavu.”
“Fellow citizens, hear me!” he cried out. The crowd hushed immediately. “Hear my voice and repeat my words tenfold so that those who have turned their backs on us are forced to hear! Hear me, for I speak for all of us!”
“My name is Maavu Arlintal and I am one of you! I call Cauldron my home. I live and do business here and I have for many years. Many of you know me, and I know you. We are all hard-working, trustworthy people!”
The crowd was cheering appropriately. Maavu was no bard but he had the crowd’s attention all the same.
“Hard times have fallen upon this land. The roads grow more dangerous, and it threatens to cut us off from our neighbors and partners in trade! An inn full of people – one of them the high priest of one of our own temples – was senselessly attacked and the people all murdered, not a day’s ride from here! In recent days, dragons – yes dragons – have threatened the skies and passes! Stories of creatures unthinkable lurk in the fringes of the wild.”
“But we are a tough people, and have weathered tough times before! Heroes like the Blue Tyger Legion and brave citizens like yourselves have answered the challenges of protecting our lands, although others are charged with that duty.”
“But the troubles have also found us at home. We have suffered in recent months as have our sons and daughters who were stolen away from us by evil lurking beneath our very streets! We have suffered as the rains came and flooded our dear city and threatened to erode the very foundations of our livelihoods! A vile umber hulk from the darkened tunnels of the Abyss itself has torn through our homes and business in broad daylight – I know for I suffered a great loss that day. I came away with my life and consider myself fortunate but I mourn those who perished.”
“But again we have not lain down, for we know how to get through hard times. Again we have been blessed by the actions of brave citizens who have put their lives on the line to defend the defenseless. And again, others who should have answered that call have done nothing.”
“Alas I misspeak, for actions have been taken. The leaders of Cauldron have spoken through the voice of the tax collectors! The offer promises with each outstretched palm, with each cut they take! ‘For the good of Cauldron’ they say! ‘To repair the damage’ they say! ‘To help those in need’ they say!”
“But what have they done with your hard earned coin? Nothing! Where are the repairs to the buildings damaged by the flood? They haven’t done any! Warehouses stand abandoned about to fall into the lake! The only repairs that have been done have not been done by our leaders but by the Blue Tyger Legion, who again have risen up to do what others should have done, taking the tax money they were paid as a reward and using it to rebuild our city! Where are the repairs to the streets and structures damaged by the hulk? They have not been done! And I was not the only one to lose business and property that day… There are many who have received nothing but empty words for their suffering.”
“As I said, many of you know me, and you know me as a man of action. I am not one to complain without a plan of recourse! I am here to say that Cauldron needs new leadership, a new protector who is not corrupt on power or gold. I am here to tell you that a challenge has been issued for the removal of Terseon Skellerang as Captain of the Town Guard.”
“I have here in my hand the formal written challenge, which has been presented to Skellerang and the Lord Mayor. This challenge invokes on of Cauldron’s oldest laws – the Law of Peers. Under this law, the five founding families of Cauldron have the right to challenge the office of Captain of the Town Guard if one of them should feel that he is unworthy, immoral, or incapable of seeing to his duties – the protection of the people! This law, laid down with the founding stones of our city, has never been needed – until now.”
“By the Law of Peers, only one of the five founding noble families has the right to challenge the Captain of the Guard. This does not leave much hope that one with the interests of the common citizen – you and I – will be represented. But I am here to tell you that the one who has issued the challenge is such a man. He heralds from one of the founding lineages, but his life has not been one of pampered luxury, oh no. He knows what it means to suffer, as you do, and to rise above it, as you have before. The challenger is indeed one of the brave, heroic citizens whom I have spoken of, who is willing to risk death to protect our city.”
“I am speaking of Sir Alek Tercival. “
The crowd was getting more and more worked up. A riot was most certainly in the works.
“Sir Tercival, a paladin of St. Cuthbert, has issued the challenge in accordance with the old ways, and the Laws of our city. But so far no response has been made. By law, the issued challenge should be made public by the Lord Mayor, but Fatty Navalant hopes to protect his puppet Skellerang by keeping the challenge a secret! No doubt that he hopes to send his new army of half-orc thugs – an army feeding off your bread – to deal with the upstart challenger with a crossbow bolt in the back! By the Law…”
Maavu stopped and pointed, noticing the arrival of one of the guard sergeants with a group of men. “Look citizens! Another puppet of corruption, with his thugs to protect him! Sent, no doubt, to silence the will of the people!”
The sergeant, a name named Krewis, was not happy. Astrid knows him and he’s a decent fellow but in an impossible situation. He hardly had a chance to say a word before the crowd turned on him. It was all a jumble of yelling and jeering.
A young man pulled out a dagger and jumped one of the guards with Krewis, and the scene exploded. The guards were killed in moments. Sergeant Krewis managed to drink a potion and none of the nearby rioters could bring themselves to attack him. Such magic was strong but would only go so far.
The girls started trying to move through the crowd to try to diffuse the situation – neither had weapons drawn. But the situation got worse.
Before the rally, Bellsin was as suspicious as any of us. The difference is he took what turned out to be an incredibly wise step in preparation – he had cast a spell that revealed invisible objects. Whatever he might have been looking for, I don’t think it was what he actually saw. A creature came out of an upper story window of city hall. It looked like Maavu might if he had been turned into a ghost – it was floating wispy creature who’s arms and legs faded into nothingness at the ends but it bore a definite resemblance. Bellsin called out and stabbed at the thing as it passed by him at remarkable speed. It let out a terrible wail and lances of red light shot from its eyes as it suddenly appeared to everyone else. The eyes held terrible power but nothing obvious happened.
Sergeant Krewis was in deep trouble - a mob was nearly on him and they'd tear him apart if something wasn't done fast - that potion wouldn't hold for long. Kris used a spell to calm down the people in the immediate area, which bought some time. Maris then yanked Krewis to her through the ether, so he was now, effectively lost in the crowd. Once Kris had Krewis close, he said “You need to get out of here before you get hurt son. Trust me.” And he cast a spell, and Krewis dissolved away into a thin mist. Krewis didn’t understand the magic but wasted no time in floating to safety.
Bellsin was with Maavu trying to deal with the creature. The only good part about its arrival was that it terrified the crowd into dispersing rather than rioting. The girls got close enough and began surrounding the creature, attacking it. Maavu knew he was in great danger, and drank a potion that turned him into gas as well. But the creature moved closer and attempted to inhale him and devour him.
Bellsin and Astrid attacked in a desperate bid to save Maavu. Astrid’s enchanted halberd found purchase and the creature shrieked and dispersed, releasing what hold it had on the gaseous Maavu.
The square was still a chaotic scene. Kris was protecting Maris, and Glyph was trying to keep the rioters and the guard from killing each other. A large group of guardsmen was entering the square, ready to fight but letting anyone who was simply running away pass them by.
Maavu moved close to Elizabeth and whispered. “I’m so sorry. Thank you for your help. I wanted to bring you in on this earlier but… Something evil is working within Cauldron’s government. Seek me at Redgorge. I have allies there I want you to speak with. Visit the Redhead Miners inn. When asked the appropriate answer is ‘mortar’. Take care of yourselves. I’m sorry – I didn’t want this to happen.”
“I know,” she replied. “But given the situation, it was unavoidable.”
Maavu drifted away and the Blue Tygers set about trying to get everyone to disperse – a task at which Astrid excelled. Weapons were put away while this was being done so there was no threat presented. Captain Skellerang arrived at the front of a platoon of reinforcements, and looked as though he was seriously considering locking us up.
Fortunately Sergeant Krewis returned and reported what he saw which helped. The situation was not pretty, and not without its cost, but there was no doubt it would have been much worse had we not acted.
The bells in the town hall began ringing, and a few figures stepped out on to the balcony, including the Lord Mayor and Lord Vhalantruu. Lord Vhalantruu was whispering in the Mayor’s ear pointing out over the square.
The Mayor began yelling in a shaky voice. “I hereby declare that there shall be no taxes levied for three full months. Furthermore, I extend a general amnesty for anyone who left the town square during the riot. No one will be sought in connection with the events here tonight. Anyone who has already been arrested will be released after paying a small fine with no further action taken. Except for Maavu Arlintal – he is wanted for treason.” The mayor quickly withdrew inside, but town criers took up the message and repeated it all night.
“But he said nothing at all about the challenge. Interesting,” commented Astrid quietly.
For the rest of the evening there were no disturbances in the streets. The patrols were heavy but peaceful. Of note was that there was not a single half orc among the patrolling guards that we saw that night as we went to see Jenya.
Once the details were told, Jenya looked even more tired than before. “I know of the Law of Peers. Alek’s father bankrupt the family, and his mother died in childbirth, but he is a descendant of one of the five founding families. He was left an orphan of the state, destitute, embarrassed and penniless. Another orphan child,” she pointed at herself, “became his friend and took him in. He and I both found and served St. Cuthbert in our own way.”
“Alek’s claim is legitimate but untested. Skellerang may claim it’s a plot and that Alek is either a dupe or trying to use an unjust law that was never removed from the books. Skellerang has become harder and harder to get access to and I am not sure what he is really thinking these days. I support Alek’s choice to remove Skellerang, though it pains me to do so. He has become too attached to order and he may be drunk with power and a source of some corruption. He may think the only way he can make this city safe is to rule it with an iron fist. As for Alek, I haven’t seen him in weeks – only once since the vampire was vanquished. It’s always been a dream of Alek’s to restore his family estates and buy back the ancestral manor. Some of his adventures have been for the purpose of generating items of antiquity to sell and pay off his father’s debt, which is still outstanding. Most of these went to Tygot.”
“Recently I used the Star of Justice to seek Alek. It told me:
Late on the path of justice trapped between glass and stone he weeps where many can see him but he can see only himself.”
“Even less helpful than usual,” Maris commented.
Just then the bells at city hall began ringing. Jenya moved to the window and threw open the shutters. From the temple we could see a fire lower in the caldera.
And it was moving.
“Why are there are fire elementals in the city?” Maris said quietly.
edit: added a few details that escaped my pen
Demonskar Legacy – Chapter 1
OOC Notes:
Exp is 400 for 8th, 525 for 7th.
Loot split from last run is so small that it’ll be thrown with the next split. The only thing worth anything is the necklaces which Elizabeth bought out.
This Week’s Adventure:
The next few weeks were very busy. Not busy in the “repelling an invasion” sense, but certainly didn’t seem restful.
While we were gone, a basked of adamantine ingots had arrived for Astrid’s new armor, and Elizabeth got to work straight away on it. She was hoping to get it done so Glyph would have time to enchant it before something else happened. She also had a message to deliver to Jenya, but the heat-reheat cycle of working with the strange metal kept creating situations where Elizabeth couldn’t deliver it at any reasonable hour.
Finally Elizabeth got the hang of it and made it over to the temple as evening services were closing. As she waited for the attendees to depart, she saw several town notables, including Lord Vhalantruu, and the Lord Mayor, surrounded by a large group of bodyguards. There were some sour looks directed his way, most followed by some amount of contrition at the thought that St. Cuthbert would disapprove. The Mayor, it seemed, was not entirely sober, which was rather shameful but he didn’t seem to care.
We also noticed the Azlaxin’s, and managed to overhear young Zachary adamantly denying something – “… it wasn’t true. It was a lie, and it didn’t happen. And there was no public nudity involved…” Zachary seemed genuinely embarrassed and upset but his father was having none of it.
Once the crowd had departed, we entered the temple and waited quietly in the back while the High Priestess finished with her tasks. Jenya finished up, and walked towards us. She seemed genuinely glad to see Elizabeth, and we went into the study.
Elizabeth first delivered the message from Lady Knowlern. Jenya received it with some concern on her face but did not disclose the contents. After that, Elizabeth related the events that took place at the frost giant ruins. It wasn’t long before Jenya stopped her and asked for a scrivener to record this story. Jenya listened with great interest, and noted that Ulaaloo’s name is recorded as one of the host, but he had not been heard from in some time.
“I mention he made a point of asking us to give you his name, that you might be able to call on him in future divinations,” Elizabeth added, “though I’m not certain how the Star of Justice works in such matters.”
Jenya nodded. “I wish I had it yesterday. I was using the Star to help Lord Vhalantruu, who was attempting to determine the whereabouts of Lady Celeste. She has gone missing and no magics have been able to find her.”
“Disturbing indeed. Has she been missing long?"
"Since before you returned with Lord Splintershield's son. Lord Vhalantruu has solicited divinations from all the temples in town and the Blue Crater Academy as well but none have yielded any information," Jenya said, concern in her voice.
"Perhaps Ulaaloo can help if you try again. If a lead turns up, I would be willing to investigate this further, but right now I am unsure where to begin. But this brings me to a question I have,” Elizabeth asked. “It was clear that Ulaaloo was going to be forced off the plane very quickly, but I don’t understand why. He’s an angel – what was making him leave?”
“I believe that would be the Judges. They are powerful beings that exist outside the normal celestial hierarchy, enforcing a set of rules set down some twenty years ago. These rules were created after ever-increasing incursions onto this plane from outside elements, and then after the Great Greyhawk Wars, they were further strengthened. The rules were… how shall I say… fully ratified in the last ten years. The Judges are not fallen angels per se, but more like volunteers – a neutral system of removing creatures that do not belong here. These rules are quite complicated and over time loopholes were uncovered and new rules enacted.”
“Whom exactly do these rules govern?” Elizabeth asked, concerned.
“They govern extraplanar beings like angels and devils and the higher powers they serve. I don’t fully understand the reasons or even the full rules. I do know this though: Cascades of more than one generation cannot pass. It is completely prohibited by the rules.”
Elizabeth stared blankly back at Jenya who then remembered she wasn’t talking to someone versed in such things. “Angels and devils can summon more of their kind. Those new beings can summon more, and so on. This is called a ‘cascade’. It can quickly turn the Prime into a war zone between heaven and hell. The rules allow the first being to summon more of its kind, but those beings cannot summon others.”
“And these Judges eject those that do not belong?”
Jenya nodded. “For more powerful intruders, there are the Arbiters. These creatures are more powerful, and their aspect was increased with the arrival of the deity Dravot. Their powers are enhanced by his portfolio, and they have absorbed some of the power of the abyssal and infernal in their role. But the Judges are not creatures of Pelor.
“Have you seen these Judges?”
“No. I have never even seen a drawing of one. But planar mechanics is not something I study, and I confess I am not an expert.”
Elizabeth laughed. “Compared to me, you are. But let’s change the subject all the same. You are a pillar of this community and your opinion is both worthy of respect and likely to be fairly neutral in this. Everyone I’ve spoken to of late has complained about the burden of the taxes. Certainly there are more guards around, but it seems there have been no repairs made since the flood.”
Jenya thought for a few moments before answering. “It is true that the burden is high, but it is also true that there have been many monster attacks. I have known Terseon for many years but I fear he may have become lost in his desire to create order. I agree that there are many repairs that are sorely needed though.”
“Well that may be something we can help with, if we can ask for your help first. We were asked to investigate some monster attacks to the south, and offered a bounty to do so. We were... successful - perhaps more successful than anyone expected, since no one knew the true scale of the threat. The bounty is sizable but if we were to split it among us, it would be… “ Elizabeth trailed off. “Let’s just say we think the money could be better used elsewhere. We would like to contribute the bounty to the community and pay for repairs to things damaged by the flood. We are unsure how far this money will go, or even what projects might be best undertaken. That is where we need your help.”
Jenya seemed slightly surprised but very pleased. “Ah I see. Well that is something I would gladly help with. That money will go a long way in this matter. And I know just the man for the job – Keygan Gelve.” Jenya began writing a letter, explaining “Tell him that we feel his penance has been adequately served and justice has been done. I am asking him to undertake these project, for which he will be compensated of course. They should be well within his skills to accomplish. I’m suggesting repairs to the Trumpet Street Dock, the retaining wall on the crater’s edge, and repairs to the orphanage.” Jenya handed the completed letter to Elizabeth.
“Excellent. I’m pleased that his punishment is served – he seemed quite worn last I saw him. Thank you so much for your help High Priestess,” she said, with a hint of smile.
Jenya gave a mock frown at the jest. Then it turned to a real frown as Elizabeth departed and a messenger arrived. I couldn’t tell what he might be doing there but Jenya recognized him and wasn’t thrilled.
Elizabeth immediately went to see Keygan, who happily received her. He seemed very pleased by her news and indicated that the projects should be very practical and he would set about the work immediately.
Her last stop was the Lathenmire guild house, to return the log books from the attacked caravan. She was received rather skeptically, and it was clear that they didn’t like her – in most cases actively hated her. But for all that, they did respect her and there was some genuine appreciation at the log books being returned.
Astrid on the other hand spent some time watching City Hall. The suspicions were that something was going on, and Astrid was preparing in case she needed to infiltrate later. I spent some time with her watching the comings and goings of the various messengers (of which it seemed there were several ranks) and others.
Astrid also did some carousing with the various members of the watch, with whom she instantly fit in. She heard some interesting rumors about Zachary Azlaxin, and also Todd Vanderboren. Some of the men expressed concern that Skellerang has become more and more obsessed and intolerant of lawlessness. Others were on escort duty, accompanying around tax collectors and none to happy about it. The taxes in the city were now equal to, or more than, Sasserine. Astrid was even told that the Blue Tygers would probably be hearing from the tax man soon.
The tax situation was getting worse, and things were coming to a head. Notices started to appear around town.
Citizens of Cauldron, let your voice be heard.
Come one, come all to City Hall this evening. Those in power must learn that we do not welcome their indulgences. Their vices shall be borne by our pockets no more. The tax collectors are the lapdogs of their greed – let not their shadows besmirch our stoops.
Speak your will! Voice your pain! Help us return Cauldron to her children!
The Blue Tygers looked at a copy over dinner at the Drunken Morkoth.
“This isn’t good,” Elizabeth said flatly.
“Not good at all. It’s a riot in the making. The guards are under orders to take these down but they’re going up faster than they’re getting ripped down,” Astrid said.
“Maybe we should go and see what might be done,” Bellsin said.
“Actually I was thinking the opposite – none of us should get anywhere near this rally,” Elizabeth said.
“How do you figure?” Kris asked.
“Nothing good can come of it,” she explained. “If the Blue Tygers show up, it will be bad for us no matter what. Are we there supporting the rebellious people? That’s not good. Are we there providing help for the guards? Also not good. People will assume we’re taking sides, and neither works well for us. And if a riot does break out, what can we do? Help the people? Bad idea. Help the guards? Also bad. We could send some of us covertly, but if anyone recognizable is there, or we show up in force, it could be a disaster.”
Nobody had an argument for that. But while Elizabeth was explaining, a messenger arrived and came to the table. He handed his letter over to Bellsin who was skimming it while Elizabeth was talking.
“Well it makes perfect sense to me, but it doesn’t matter now – we’re going anyway,” he said, tossing the letter on the table. “It’s from Jenya. She’s heard rumors that Sir Alek will be at the rally, and she’s worried about him. She’s asking us to go and see if we can find him.”
Everyone sighed.
The square in front of city hall was packed with people. Near the building, town watchmen stood, their arms locked together and their halberd shafts across their bodies forming a perimeter. The crowd was rowdy but there was no sign of Sir Alek. We spread out trying to spot him but it was virtually impossible to see anyone specific.
That all changed when a man stepped on up the rim of the fountain and addressed the crowd. I couldn’t see very well, but Elizabeth recognized him immediately.
“Oh no,” she said. “It’s Maavu.”
“Fellow citizens, hear me!” he cried out. The crowd hushed immediately. “Hear my voice and repeat my words tenfold so that those who have turned their backs on us are forced to hear! Hear me, for I speak for all of us!”
“My name is Maavu Arlintal and I am one of you! I call Cauldron my home. I live and do business here and I have for many years. Many of you know me, and I know you. We are all hard-working, trustworthy people!”
The crowd was cheering appropriately. Maavu was no bard but he had the crowd’s attention all the same.
“Hard times have fallen upon this land. The roads grow more dangerous, and it threatens to cut us off from our neighbors and partners in trade! An inn full of people – one of them the high priest of one of our own temples – was senselessly attacked and the people all murdered, not a day’s ride from here! In recent days, dragons – yes dragons – have threatened the skies and passes! Stories of creatures unthinkable lurk in the fringes of the wild.”
“But we are a tough people, and have weathered tough times before! Heroes like the Blue Tyger Legion and brave citizens like yourselves have answered the challenges of protecting our lands, although others are charged with that duty.”
“But the troubles have also found us at home. We have suffered in recent months as have our sons and daughters who were stolen away from us by evil lurking beneath our very streets! We have suffered as the rains came and flooded our dear city and threatened to erode the very foundations of our livelihoods! A vile umber hulk from the darkened tunnels of the Abyss itself has torn through our homes and business in broad daylight – I know for I suffered a great loss that day. I came away with my life and consider myself fortunate but I mourn those who perished.”
“But again we have not lain down, for we know how to get through hard times. Again we have been blessed by the actions of brave citizens who have put their lives on the line to defend the defenseless. And again, others who should have answered that call have done nothing.”
“Alas I misspeak, for actions have been taken. The leaders of Cauldron have spoken through the voice of the tax collectors! The offer promises with each outstretched palm, with each cut they take! ‘For the good of Cauldron’ they say! ‘To repair the damage’ they say! ‘To help those in need’ they say!”
“But what have they done with your hard earned coin? Nothing! Where are the repairs to the buildings damaged by the flood? They haven’t done any! Warehouses stand abandoned about to fall into the lake! The only repairs that have been done have not been done by our leaders but by the Blue Tyger Legion, who again have risen up to do what others should have done, taking the tax money they were paid as a reward and using it to rebuild our city! Where are the repairs to the streets and structures damaged by the hulk? They have not been done! And I was not the only one to lose business and property that day… There are many who have received nothing but empty words for their suffering.”
“As I said, many of you know me, and you know me as a man of action. I am not one to complain without a plan of recourse! I am here to say that Cauldron needs new leadership, a new protector who is not corrupt on power or gold. I am here to tell you that a challenge has been issued for the removal of Terseon Skellerang as Captain of the Town Guard.”
“I have here in my hand the formal written challenge, which has been presented to Skellerang and the Lord Mayor. This challenge invokes on of Cauldron’s oldest laws – the Law of Peers. Under this law, the five founding families of Cauldron have the right to challenge the office of Captain of the Town Guard if one of them should feel that he is unworthy, immoral, or incapable of seeing to his duties – the protection of the people! This law, laid down with the founding stones of our city, has never been needed – until now.”
“By the Law of Peers, only one of the five founding noble families has the right to challenge the Captain of the Guard. This does not leave much hope that one with the interests of the common citizen – you and I – will be represented. But I am here to tell you that the one who has issued the challenge is such a man. He heralds from one of the founding lineages, but his life has not been one of pampered luxury, oh no. He knows what it means to suffer, as you do, and to rise above it, as you have before. The challenger is indeed one of the brave, heroic citizens whom I have spoken of, who is willing to risk death to protect our city.”
“I am speaking of Sir Alek Tercival. “
The crowd was getting more and more worked up. A riot was most certainly in the works.
“Sir Tercival, a paladin of St. Cuthbert, has issued the challenge in accordance with the old ways, and the Laws of our city. But so far no response has been made. By law, the issued challenge should be made public by the Lord Mayor, but Fatty Navalant hopes to protect his puppet Skellerang by keeping the challenge a secret! No doubt that he hopes to send his new army of half-orc thugs – an army feeding off your bread – to deal with the upstart challenger with a crossbow bolt in the back! By the Law…”
Maavu stopped and pointed, noticing the arrival of one of the guard sergeants with a group of men. “Look citizens! Another puppet of corruption, with his thugs to protect him! Sent, no doubt, to silence the will of the people!”
The sergeant, a name named Krewis, was not happy. Astrid knows him and he’s a decent fellow but in an impossible situation. He hardly had a chance to say a word before the crowd turned on him. It was all a jumble of yelling and jeering.
A young man pulled out a dagger and jumped one of the guards with Krewis, and the scene exploded. The guards were killed in moments. Sergeant Krewis managed to drink a potion and none of the nearby rioters could bring themselves to attack him. Such magic was strong but would only go so far.
The girls started trying to move through the crowd to try to diffuse the situation – neither had weapons drawn. But the situation got worse.
Before the rally, Bellsin was as suspicious as any of us. The difference is he took what turned out to be an incredibly wise step in preparation – he had cast a spell that revealed invisible objects. Whatever he might have been looking for, I don’t think it was what he actually saw. A creature came out of an upper story window of city hall. It looked like Maavu might if he had been turned into a ghost – it was floating wispy creature who’s arms and legs faded into nothingness at the ends but it bore a definite resemblance. Bellsin called out and stabbed at the thing as it passed by him at remarkable speed. It let out a terrible wail and lances of red light shot from its eyes as it suddenly appeared to everyone else. The eyes held terrible power but nothing obvious happened.
Sergeant Krewis was in deep trouble - a mob was nearly on him and they'd tear him apart if something wasn't done fast - that potion wouldn't hold for long. Kris used a spell to calm down the people in the immediate area, which bought some time. Maris then yanked Krewis to her through the ether, so he was now, effectively lost in the crowd. Once Kris had Krewis close, he said “You need to get out of here before you get hurt son. Trust me.” And he cast a spell, and Krewis dissolved away into a thin mist. Krewis didn’t understand the magic but wasted no time in floating to safety.
Bellsin was with Maavu trying to deal with the creature. The only good part about its arrival was that it terrified the crowd into dispersing rather than rioting. The girls got close enough and began surrounding the creature, attacking it. Maavu knew he was in great danger, and drank a potion that turned him into gas as well. But the creature moved closer and attempted to inhale him and devour him.
Bellsin and Astrid attacked in a desperate bid to save Maavu. Astrid’s enchanted halberd found purchase and the creature shrieked and dispersed, releasing what hold it had on the gaseous Maavu.
The square was still a chaotic scene. Kris was protecting Maris, and Glyph was trying to keep the rioters and the guard from killing each other. A large group of guardsmen was entering the square, ready to fight but letting anyone who was simply running away pass them by.
Maavu moved close to Elizabeth and whispered. “I’m so sorry. Thank you for your help. I wanted to bring you in on this earlier but… Something evil is working within Cauldron’s government. Seek me at Redgorge. I have allies there I want you to speak with. Visit the Redhead Miners inn. When asked the appropriate answer is ‘mortar’. Take care of yourselves. I’m sorry – I didn’t want this to happen.”
“I know,” she replied. “But given the situation, it was unavoidable.”
Maavu drifted away and the Blue Tygers set about trying to get everyone to disperse – a task at which Astrid excelled. Weapons were put away while this was being done so there was no threat presented. Captain Skellerang arrived at the front of a platoon of reinforcements, and looked as though he was seriously considering locking us up.
Fortunately Sergeant Krewis returned and reported what he saw which helped. The situation was not pretty, and not without its cost, but there was no doubt it would have been much worse had we not acted.
The bells in the town hall began ringing, and a few figures stepped out on to the balcony, including the Lord Mayor and Lord Vhalantruu. Lord Vhalantruu was whispering in the Mayor’s ear pointing out over the square.
The Mayor began yelling in a shaky voice. “I hereby declare that there shall be no taxes levied for three full months. Furthermore, I extend a general amnesty for anyone who left the town square during the riot. No one will be sought in connection with the events here tonight. Anyone who has already been arrested will be released after paying a small fine with no further action taken. Except for Maavu Arlintal – he is wanted for treason.” The mayor quickly withdrew inside, but town criers took up the message and repeated it all night.
“But he said nothing at all about the challenge. Interesting,” commented Astrid quietly.
For the rest of the evening there were no disturbances in the streets. The patrols were heavy but peaceful. Of note was that there was not a single half orc among the patrolling guards that we saw that night as we went to see Jenya.
Once the details were told, Jenya looked even more tired than before. “I know of the Law of Peers. Alek’s father bankrupt the family, and his mother died in childbirth, but he is a descendant of one of the five founding families. He was left an orphan of the state, destitute, embarrassed and penniless. Another orphan child,” she pointed at herself, “became his friend and took him in. He and I both found and served St. Cuthbert in our own way.”
“Alek’s claim is legitimate but untested. Skellerang may claim it’s a plot and that Alek is either a dupe or trying to use an unjust law that was never removed from the books. Skellerang has become harder and harder to get access to and I am not sure what he is really thinking these days. I support Alek’s choice to remove Skellerang, though it pains me to do so. He has become too attached to order and he may be drunk with power and a source of some corruption. He may think the only way he can make this city safe is to rule it with an iron fist. As for Alek, I haven’t seen him in weeks – only once since the vampire was vanquished. It’s always been a dream of Alek’s to restore his family estates and buy back the ancestral manor. Some of his adventures have been for the purpose of generating items of antiquity to sell and pay off his father’s debt, which is still outstanding. Most of these went to Tygot.”
“Recently I used the Star of Justice to seek Alek. It told me:
Late on the path of justice trapped between glass and stone he weeps where many can see him but he can see only himself.”
“Even less helpful than usual,” Maris commented.
Just then the bells at city hall began ringing. Jenya moved to the window and threw open the shutters. From the temple we could see a fire lower in the caldera.
And it was moving.
“Why are there are fire elementals in the city?” Maris said quietly.
edit: added a few details that escaped my pen
Last edited:
Argent Silvermage
First Post
The worst thing about the whole mob scene was that we are all used to KILLING large crowds of opponents.
http://www.enworld.org/forums/showpost.php?p=1192000&postcount=267
Reading this I miss Bolo. I really miss the little Hobbit/Elf/Janni and his little dog too.
http://www.enworld.org/forums/showpost.php?p=1192000&postcount=267
Reading this I miss Bolo. I really miss the little Hobbit/Elf/Janni and his little dog too.
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