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Chapter 3: The Temple of All-Consumption

Turn 76: Obliteration

“I fear swords, or magicks for that matter, are of no more use here!” yelled Sparhawk as he, Danton, and Tenaris ran towards Syll and Luger. “Short of Heironeous' servants coming down from heaven, methinks we must not give battle directly! Let us see if we cannot drive them into the Water Temple to wreak havoc and death. I doth not see any other option at the moment!”

Syll and Luger had stopped not far short of the stairwell leading up to the party’s hidden redoubt. “If we can find an area with a small stone door that is not easily accessible from the corridor behind it, I have a scroll with stone shape,” said the elf, “and I can seal the door behind us. That will stop this guy, or at least slow him down. Then we can look for a secure area and hole up for the night.”

“I do not think we will be given the luxury of rest,” said Luger as he watched the three stragglers rush towards him and Syll. “These beasts will track us and Hedrack, or whoever their master is, will not let any barriers get in their way. No, we need to reach our former hiding place. The narrow stairwell will provide a choke point where we can fight the beasts one or two at a time and retain the high ground. We need to kill these things now.”

As Danton and the others reached the elf and cleric, the first two lions were already in the wrecked guard post at the western end of the long hall. Rather than rush forward immediately, the two beasts held their ground as if waiting for something…or someone.

“Alas, but methinks fighting wilt avail us naught!” said Danton, between gasps for air. “Luger, Sparhawk and mine fearless Lady art already sorely injured, and our enemies appeareth untouched. And, should any of those three falter, Syll and I hath not the brawn to stand against them. We cannot go to the lake, for we shall surely die there -- whether by suffering the blows of kuo-toa or having our boats blasted out from beneath us.”

”Quickly!” hissed Sparhawk. “Those foul beasts art bearing down on us! Shalt we decide in favor of Syll or Luger's plan?”

“Fighting these things with blades is hopeless,” said Tenaris firmly. “So making a stand without other means of destroying them will only get us all killed. We have to flee in the hope of facing them another time on our terms. I have no idea where best to go.”

Danton looked back at the pair of lions, which still held their ground. “On balance, mine thought is that we should brave the ‘cloaker hallway,’ seal it off with stone shape, and attempt to muddle our way through there, though I am persuadable otherwise.”

“We do still have the option of the dock,” said Syll. “That would both spare us the risk of becoming trapped in the ‘cloaker hallway’, which we have never explored, and leave our hiding place a secret.”

There might have been much more debate, but at that moment, the second pair of lions leaped into the guard post and all four of the beasts launched themselves down the hallway at full tilt—straight towards the party.

“Follow me, my friends!” said Luger as he turned and ran for the stairs leading up to the party’s hideout. “It is not likely that our enemies know about that window or they would have sealed it long ago. If we exit it and seal it behind us, they will simply find the empty room with no apparent exit. They will search for secret doors, but will likely suspect we used magic to escape. We can return and use stone shape again to open the window and re-enter the mountain undetected! Now, let us fly!”

“Wait!” yelled Syll. “Let’s just try to lose these guys, then sneak to our hidey place and get in it, and seal off the stairway at the bottom! I could make it look like there was never any doorway there!”

“The time for discussion has past, mine elven friend,” said Sparhawk, pushing Syll towards the stairs. “I shalt bear the brunt of the attack whilst mine companions do as they can to enable us to evade these foul denizens of this wicked temple! But this is not the end. There will be another time.”

Syll shook his head and cursed, but he could see he had no real choice at this point, so he too turned and ran for the stairs.

“If milady wants to fight side-by-side, thou art welcome to,” said Sparhawk to Tenaris as the two warriors followed Syll and Danton in Luger’s wake. “Hopefully, I wilt give thee some reason to trust me.”

As Sparhawk and Tenaris reached the bottom of the stairs and left the long corridor, the paladin glanced down the hallway to the west one last time. Behind the four onrushing lions, he could see that the armored reptilian figure had arrived. The man, creature, or whatever it was rushed down the hallway after his pets, looking for all the world as if Syll and Luger’s magical fire had not so much as singed a scale on his skin.

Luger reached the room at the top of the stairs first. Once there, he rushed to the window, threw it open, and then ran about in the room until the others arrived, hoping to further confuse the lions when they arrived. Syll arrived next, making straight for the window and climbing up and out onto the mountainside. The elf then removed his stone shape scroll and prepared to start casting.

Danton rushed into the room and to the window, but when he reached the aperture, he turned to look for Sparhawk…and Tenaris. Moments later, the pair rumbled through the doorway and Tenaris turned to slam shut and lock the door.

When Sparhawk saw Danton waiting by the window rather than diving through it, he called out, “Thy love and thy chivalry art noble indeed, but do not forget in the coming battle that thine lady is hardly helpless. Indeed, it appeareth she art willing to stand in front. Do thy job and let her do hers! Otherwise, we wilt all be in mortal danger.”

While Danton hesitated, Luger dove out the window and onto the rocky ground outside. When Tenaris and Sparhawk began to run across the room, Danton finally followed Luger through the window. At that same moment, Syll began to read words of arcane power from the scroll.

Tenaris never even slowed down when she approached the window. The woman leaped through it at full speed, landing on the ground outside and rolling in such a way that she was back on her feet in the blink of an eye.

By the time Sparhawk jumped through the window, far less gracefully than Tenaris, the outlines of the window were already shifting and the stone around the opening closing together. Sparhawk crashed to the ground with a metallic clang just as the sound of wood being smashed could be heard. Danton and Luger, who were gazing intently through the closing hole in the mountain, thought they could see the door at the far end of the room explode, but then the window was gone and there was only the side of Mount Stalagos in front of them.

“On your feet, Peter,” said Luger, extending a hand to help pull the paladin up. “We must move quickly—our flight has only just begun. If we succeeded in covering our exit as I believe we did, I do not think it likely the temple forces will pursue us. Hopefully, the lion master will assume we gated or escaped by some other magical means. But, either way, we need to get far away from the south entrance and the forces arrayed there.”

***

After fleeing Mount Stalagos, the party moved south and west, descending to lower elevations and gradually moving around the base of the mountain. After two hours of hard hiking, the group had to stop long enough to rest, heal, and eat—and decide on a course of action now that it seemed there were no pursuers right on their heels.

“Mine concern,” said Danton as he gnawed on a piece of dried meat, “is that we may now be trapped outside of Mount Stalagos. We know the window room hath been found. Even if they think we used wizardly teleportation to depart the room, that chamber wilt be heavily guarded henceforth. The nearby front door wilt also be heavily guarded. And, given the passage of time, surely the alarums we hath set off hath reached the ears of Mereclar and his flunkies at the side entrance by now. And while I hath all the faith in the world regarding our collective powers, and especially those of our spellcasters, I worry that we wilt not be able to reenter the Temple again.”

Swallowing and taking a drink of water, he added, “Granted, that would give Tenaris and me a chance to become better acquainted o'er a glass of wine or two and perhaps a concert or the like in a place far from here... but it would not advance the current quest. And, thus, evidently 'twould not save the Oerth from destruction.”

Sparhawk put a hand on Danton’s shoulder in a reassuring way, “We hath limited options, 'tis true. But, have faith mine friend. We hath come through many dangers and wilt survive this. The forces of light are more powerful than those that hide in the darkness. And, that is an encouraging thought. We wilt find a way to defeat our enemies, if we work together. All hope is not lost, not whilst we hold true to each other.”

“Let’s make for Rastor as soon as we finish eating,” said Luger, who was going from person to person and using his healing powers to deal with the many wounds everyone except Syll had suffered. “There is more of a chance to hide there than is likely in the woods or foothills around the mountain. The most likely place to hide is probably Tymerian’s shop. Perhaps we can hide in a basement or storehouse. I don’t think the inn or anywhere public is a good idea.”

Danton shook his head. “I think not, good Luger. I have no doubt whatsoever that the cult hath more spies than ever in Rastor. And while I alone might enter and depart the village unseen, our whole group cannot. Do we really want that reptilian fellow and his lions to descend upon us while we sleep in some basement? No, I think we have to move as quickly as basic safety concerns permit toward the side entrance of the mountain. Let us find a secure campsite, heal our wounds, rest and regain our strength, and then make for the side entrance in the morning. When we get there, we'll have to try to bullshit—pardon mine Furyondian,” he said with a glance at Tenaris, “our way inside—no, better still, if we hath another of these stone shape spells ready, we could possibly stone-shape our way through the murder-hole area next to the blasphemous hall. That would surprise Mereclar and his toadies.”

”Once we get inside,” continued Danton, scratching his chin, which had not been shaved in many days, “I'm not sure where we'd flee. We'd probably have to kill Mereclar and his whole group first, which may be a challenge. Then we might want to hole up in the Earth Temple, since it's hopefully still relatively light on enemies.”

“Keep in mind,” said Luger, “we’d holed up in the window room for two days. The room was covered with our scent and I do not think the lions are going to know where we went once we entered the room. They're just going to know the trail ends. Personally, I think we should come back via this same route. Heironeous can grant me the power to move stone in my own way, so opening the window once more would not be a problem, but it is true that they might post guards there in case we come back. Oh, how I'd love to destroy the Air Temple...”

Danton shook his head again. “I think that, were I the lion-master or Air Temple, I'd occupy the window room with guards at least for the foreseeable future—given that our disappearance is mysterious, I'd expect they'd do the same. Thus, I don't really know if we can reenter there anytime soon.”

“No,” said the Velunese, “the more I think about it, the more I think we need to enter via the side entrance, using stone-shape to penetrate the murder holes and going in like gangbusters, using heavy-duty bang-bangs, fireballs, holy smiting and the like, to obliterate Mereclar and crew. After that, I'm kind of inclined to sneak back into the Earth Temple, but I'm open to suggestion, and a lot may depend on circumstances.”

“Sneak back into the Earth Temple to do what, Mr. Bang-bang?” asked Tenaris lightly. Somehow, despite the fact that she was covered head to toe in grime and blood, much of the latter her own, the woman remained in good spirits.

“Don't ask me, Lady Death,” said Danton in a similar light tone. “I'm making this up as I go.”

“If Mereclar's authority at the side entrance has not been superseded,” said Luger, “he may be open to a bribe. But even if not, unless his forces have been considerably augmented, I do not see them as much of a challenge to us. The problem with destroying them is we'll bring attention to that area and the lions will be loosed upon us again.”

“I still think leaving the mountain was a mistake,” said Syll, “but it’s done, so I’ll let the issue go. But Luger is right about those lions and their master. I suspect that anywhere we go in the mountain now and make a big splash, that guy—who I think is Hedrack—is going to be all over us with his pets. So, if we can get back inside, then let’s take the fight to him, rather than waiting for him to come after us. Luger can use his powers to find powerful bad guys, right? Let’s do that tomorrow and deal with this guy once and for all.”

“I don’t know,” commented Luger. “Causing damage and losses is certainly gratifying, but it is likely keeping us from our true goal and enemy: the Doomdreamers. Perhaps it is time to enter the Outer Fane and work our way more deliberately towards our goal. We have keys to the Earth and Fire doors to the Outer Fane. Once we deal with Mereclar and company and are back inside, let us head the opposite direction of the Earth Temple—that is, let us go south and east from the side entrance, rather than north and east as would take us to the Earth Temple.”

“I am guessing,” continued the cleric, “that the bridge we once crossed previously led to the Air door, because that would appear to be the door farthest from the Air Temple. It stands to reason that the bridge we’ve only seen in the distance—and never trod upon or climbed up—is likely to be to the Fire door and the bridge on the East side—the one we climbed with our erstwhile Water Temple allies, is likely to the Earth door. Getting there would mean crossing the Water domain. I think the South bridge goes to the Fire door and that is what we should make for.”

“How come you to such conclusions, brother?” asked Sparhawk.

“I suspect the doors are placed as far from the domains of their associated elements as possible,” explained the cleric. “Or, to put it another way, the temples are placed far from the doors by design. It seems to go along with the way these Doomdreamers think – only the strong will be able to pass through their enemy’s domains to obtain entrance into the Outer Fane. Maybe that is how this fifth temple gets its members. I am betting on that southwestern bridge being the Fire door…or possibly the Earth door. Either way, we would have the necessary keys to gain access. Therefore, I favor heading that direction once we are back inside the mountain.”

“Heading south would also lead us into unexplored territory, and, hopefully, our ‘friend’ and his lions would not look for us there,” added the cleric.

“An interesting stratagem,” mused Sparhawk. “Heironeous favors the wily, at times, like the heroes of the ancient epics Danton doth rightly long to hear sung by a bard to the accompaniment of fine music.”

Danton laughed and put his arm around Tenaris’ shoulder. “You know, mine beauty, sneaking out the window together hath made me feel like a teenager again. If we had the time, I'd do it right and haul you off somewhere to make out for an hour or two and then sneak you back in such that no one wast the wiser.”

Then the Velunese sighed dramatically and added, “But, since we hath no such time, I guess we'll have to flee for our lives instead.”

“Haul me off?” asked the woman with mock anger and surprise. “With those skinny arms? Not likely. If anyone had to do any hauling, I'd have to haul you.”

And, matching actions to words, Tenaris grabbed hold of the arm Danton had placed around her shoulders, put her other arm around his waist, and deftly lifted him off his feet, spun him about, and set him upside down over her left shoulder.

While Danton squirmed and protested, Luger, Syll, and Sparhawk laughed heartily.

“Indeed, milady, indeed,” said the paladin, turning his head sideways to gaze at the upside down Danton.

”Danton,” added Sparhawk, “if thou keepest up such apprentice-like flirting, I shalt throw, rather than haul, thee through any nearest window.”

***

After eating their cold meal, the party members picked their way carefully around the mountain before darkness fell, ultimately setting camp in a rocky area west of Mount Stalagos that was far from any trail and provided a good deal of cover. Everyone washed and cleaned up as best they could in a small stream that ran down from the mountains above. By this time, everyone’s wounds had been healed fully, but all of Luger’s spells had been used in the bargain, and the cleric, still wearing his armor, fell into a deep sleep shortly after the camp was set. Syll and Sparhawk took the first watch, the two men sitting and pacing silently until well after midnight. At that point they awakened Danton and Tenaris, who, to everyone’s surprise, had finally agreed that someone other than she could share a watch with the paladin.

When he was sure everyone else was asleep, Danton approached the elf woman, and said, “Tenaris, mine thorn-covered rose, I hath something to discuss with you that hath troubled me for some time.”

“What would that be, o’ ‘he-who-was-hauled’?” she said lightly.

Ignoring the taunt, Danton replied, “On more than one occasion, you hath commented that others in our group were…biased…against elves, when I never felt this to be the case. And I hath wondered what had led you to such conclusions.”

“You really want to rehash all that business with Nanoc?” Tenaris asked, her tone changing instantly.

“Not that per se,” said Danton quickly, “though I acknowledge that Nanoc, though acting in good heart, wrongly jumped to conclusions about Syll. There were a great many misunderstandings that day, worsened by words said in haste. But I can assure you that Nanoc never harbored any ill will towards elves. Nor does Sparhawk, for all his Furyondian theatrics. But I hath long felt that perhaps your feelings with both men hath been colored by previous experiences or situations that might hath led you to conclusions that—though understandable—were not correct.” (Danton diplomacy: 19+9=28)

For several moments, Tenaris looked very angry in the moonlight that bleached out her hair and skin to an even paler shade than usual. But then she breathed out loudly, and her features softened—somewhat.

“You of all people, should know, Danton,” she began, “that the history of the elves and the other races of this world is largely the story of the latter taking our lands away by force and blood. Where once this whole continent was ours, now only Celene and the Lendore Isles remain, and we in Celene are under constant threat from all sides. This is why Queen Yolande refuses to have our country drawn into the petty squabbles of our…neighbors. The elves have suffered much at the hands of others.”

“I am no historian,” said Danton placatingly. “Though I hath studied the subject, ‘tis true, in mine view, life is too short to be spent sitting in some ivory tower, penning dull tomes that few ever read and assigning blame here and there for all the world’s ills. And you, mine beauty, are made for more vibrant things than sitting about debating who did what to whom in eons past. Yet the blatherings of historians aside, I hath sensed something more…personal…behind your occasional…strong…reactions to what might be perceived as slights.”

“History isn’t something that’s dead and gone to elves, Danton,” replied the woman. “We live history. We are history. But it’s true…there are…other things…but I don’t want to talk about them….”

Tenaris trailed off before adding suddenly, “Don’t worry. I’ll let the Nanoc business drop if you will…and I’m trying to get along better with Sparhawk, although I still think he’s crazy sometimes. But surely now that we are finally alone, our time could be better spent than discussing such things, wouldn’t you say?”

Part of Danton would have liked to press the issue further, but when Tenaris moved close and stood up on her toes to kiss him, his resolve melted in an instant. Another man might have been able to resist the obvious effort to be distracted in such a manner, but not Danton Verbrugge.

“Gimme some sugar, baby,” he said as he lowered his head to meet Tenaris’ lips half way.

***

When Luger awoke to take the third and final watch, he sat in the darkness and called on Heironeous to grant him knowledge that would aid the party as it planned its return to Mount Stalagos (Cast Commune: costs 100 XP). Sitting cross-legged on a large rock overlooking the camp where the others slept, Luger spoke quietly, asking questions of the Invincible in the hope of receiving useful answers.

“Is the entire mountain on the alert for us now?” he asked aloud.

“Yes,” spoke a strong, deep voice in his mind.

“Can the green lions which tracked us be dispelled?”

“No,” boomed the voice that only Luger heard.

“Are the lions and their master still looking for us?”

“Unclear,” replied the voice, causing Luger to scowl for a moment.

“Do our enemies know how we escaped?”

“No,” said the voice, bringing a thin smile to Luger’s face.

“Is the west gate the safest entry point for us now?”

“Yes.”

“Is it wise for us to re-enter the mountain using the window we escaped through?”

“No.”

“Is the southwest door to the Outer Fane the Fire door?”

“Yes.”

Luger smiled once more, then took a deep breath, and asked, “Is my friend Nanoc alive?”

“No.”

Luger sighed loudly and then asked his final question, “Are our enemies able to scry or locate us from afar?”

“Unclear.”

***

Hours later, when the others awoke to a hot late summer morning, over breakfast, Luger told them what he had learned. Based on his information, everyone now agreed that a rapid return to Mount Stalagos, via the western side entrance, was the best course of action. Danton and Sparhawk were disappointed to learn that, by all indications, Nanoc was in fact dead. Although Syll and Tenaris were polite enough not to say anything, when Luger revealed this fact, the elves exchanged a glance that conveyed mutual relief.

“Huh,” said Syll, after Luger announced the reptilian lions could not simply be dispelled. “Maybe they really are just green lions, with all kinds of funky powers. Now that has potential. Where’s a charm monster scroll when you need it? Maybe I could charm one and then keep it. Now that would be a good pet!”

After they finished eating, the party members quickly gathered up their gear and began the long hike up and around the western slopes of Mount Stalagos to reach the side entrance. Eventually they came to the winding path that they knew would lead right up to the massive double doors that most of them had first entered what seemed ages ago, but had in fact, only been a matter of weeks. Before they rounded the final bend, Syll cast an invisibility spell on Luger, while the cleric cast additional spells on himself (Cast Endurance and Bull’s Strength: +3 con, +4 strength).

With his enhancement spells and invisibility in place, Luger went forward alone towards the large cave entrance that held the massive double iron-bound doors, attempting to move as quietly as he could (move silently: 20-2=18). He did surprisingly well, considering the armor he was wearing and all the gear he carried. Danton would have been impressed.

As Luger approached the entrance, back around the bend, Danton kissed Tenaris and said, “Lady, if e'er you had thorns, you may need them now.”

Placing a hand on her shoulder, “And if you should die, Rose of Mine Heart, knoweth that I shalt die with you ... and p'raps, if it suit the gods, we should explore Elysium hand-in-hand, you and I. I judge that there art far worse things to ponder.”

Tenaris smiled and laughed. “Don’t be so serious! This will be great fun, Mr. Bang-bang!”

When Luger entered the cave, instead of approaching the doors, he made straight for the southern side of the cavern. Once there, he placed one of his hands on the stone, grasped his holy symbol in the other, and called on Heironeous to create an opening just to the left of where he stood (Cast Stone Shape).

The sound of Luger’s words provoked an immediate reaction on both sides of the cave. The cleric could hear a flurry of activity and voices as what he presumed were guards scrambled to the alert and looked out through the many murder holes on both sides of the cavern for the source of the incantation. But, of course, they saw nothing, and moments later the stone in front of Luger melted away, creating a six foot high opening that was nearly three feet wide.

[Initiative: Tenaris: 26, Syll: 23, Luger: 22, Sparhawk: 18, Enemies base: 18, Danton: 5]

While the others rushed up the path behind him and towards the entrance he had created, Luger stepped through it before any of the shocked defenders behind it could react. The cleric found himself in a small room, no more than fifteen feet to a side, with closed wooden doors on its eastern and southern sides. Four armored human men were present. Two of them stood at the murder holes, holding bows and looking out. Two others were closer to the hole Luger had just created, and they had dropped their bows and withdrawn bastard swords and wooden shields as they stood looking in shock at the sudden opening in their defenses.

Taking one last advantage of his invisibility, Luger cut down the two men in front of his newly created ‘doorway’ before they even realized what was happening (attack: 12+12=24, 17+9=26; two hits; 11, 9 damage). As the cleric’s invisibility faded, the two remaining guards both turned and fired their crossbows at him, but both were so stunned that their aim was well off the mark.

As they sprinted for the opening Luger had created and partially secured, the other members of the party faced a barrage of crossbow fire from the guards on the other side of the cavern. Syll, unarmored as always, took one hit (4 damage), but the others managed to avoid or block the bolts fired in their direction, and then they rushed into the guardroom where Luger confronted the two remaining men. By the time they arrived, the cleric had dispatched the last two guards even as they scrambled for their blades and shields (attack: 15+12=27, 13+9=21; two hits: 10, 8 damage).

By this time, alarm bells could be heard ringing in several different directions. Tenaris made straight for the door to the east and threw it open. Four armored gnolls were immediately visible, three of them running down a narrow corridor towards the party while the fourth furiously rang a bell hanging from the ceiling.

Tenaris charged out to meet the onrushing gnolls. The woman cut down the first gnoll in the blink of an eye. She then stepped over its body, blocked a strike from the second gnoll, and cut it down as well. Because the corridor was too narrow for anyone to fight alongside the elf woman, the others were forced to follow along behind, hoping she would be able to reach the wider corridor some thirty feet from the door through which she had rushed.

Unfortunately, it soon became apparent that the third gnoll was both smarter and tougher than his fellows, for rather than rush right onto Tenaris’ blade, he held his ground and tried to take advantage of his greater size and arm length to keep her at bay. The woman was forced to dart under his massive axe, which she blocked with her shield, and hack at him. She eventually cut down this gnoll as well, but precious time was lost in the bargain. By the time the third gnoll had fallen, the one that had been ringing the bell had grabbed up his own axe to defend the end of the corridor and try to keep the party bottled up in the narrow space. Behind him, more human and gnoll defenders were rushing to his aid.

“Syll! Luger! Do something!” screamed Danton. “We cannot be trapped here and have Tenaris do all the fighting! We must break into the open!”

“If I throw fire, it’ll get us too,” muttered the elf.

Although Luger had wanted to save the party’s most powerful spells for later and engage the rank and file soldiers in this area purely with sword and shield, he could see that Danton was right. Although Tenaris had cut a swath through the gnolls—the fourth one went down even as Luger watched—the hyena-men had managed to delay the party long enough to trap it in the narrow corridor. Tenaris was simply facing too many foes, with more arriving all the time, to break out of the narrow space. Luger thus called on Heironeous and detonated a Holy Smite in the center of the wider corridor (30 damage in an area with a 20 foot radius). It was unavoidable that Tenaris would be caught up in the area of the spell’s effect, but unlike one of Syll’s fireballs, Luger’s holy blast would not harm the woman.

There was a burst of brilliant white light that washed through the wide hallway beyond where Tenaris fought, extending back into the side corridor to sweep over the elf woman, and Sparhawk behind her. When the light passed, huge numbers of men and gnolls lay dead in the wide hallway, and the way forward was clear.

As Tenaris rushed out into the main hallway, Sparhawk was right behind her. As he stepped over the bodies of those destroyed by the power of Heironeous, the paladin exulted in the display. “Today is a good day to die—for them!”

With Tenaris and Sparhawk leading the way, whole party moved into the main north-south corridor. There were no longer any enemies in the immediate area, and the way north to what Danton had christened the ‘blasphemous hall’ was clear—at least for the moment. Off to the north, well down the long hallway, more reinforcements were coming. Leading the way were three reptilian men—troglodytes—in heavy armor, followed by a very large number of shambling undead.

“Hold here!” said Luger. “Peter and I shall turn those zombies—or whatever they are—while the rest of you deal with the troglodytes!”

“Forget that,” said Syll. “I’m torching ‘em all.”

The elf launched a ball of fire around Tenaris and Sparhawk. The flaming projectile grew in size as it flew along, until it finally slammed into the stone floor in the midst of the knot of onrushing enemies (Fireball: 25 damage in a 20 foot radius area). The result was nothing short of spectacular. In the enclosed space of the corridor, the troglodytes and zombies had nowhere to go. Every last one of the undead was incinerated, along with one of the reptile men. When the flames faded, what had been a mass of enemies was reduced to a pair of troglodytes. It appeared that one of the two reptile-men had been engaged in some kind of spellcasting, but whatever he had been doing was ruined by Syll’s pyrotechnics.

Once Syll had engaged the enemy force, there was no restraining Tenaris and Sparhawk. The pair rushed down the long hallway, right through and past the blasphemous hall, and at the two troglodytes. Syll, Luger, and Danton followed behind, much more slowly and cautiously.

As Tenaris and Sparhawk engaged the two troglodytes, each had to fight off the nasty stench the creatures emitted (Sparhawk fortitude save: 13+10=23; success). Each managed to refrain from gagging, and Tenaris took on what appeared to be a warrior troglodyte while Sparhawk had at the spellcaster (attack: 1+12=13, 11+7=18; both miss). Although the troglodytes’ thick armor blocked both Caladbolg and Tenaris’ blade, Syll hit the spellcasting creature with a volley of magic missiles to keep him off balance (11 damage).

Unfortunately, the magic missiles were not enough, and this time the spellcasting troglodyte managed to complete his incantation, launching some sort of spell at Sparhawk (Sparhawk will save: 17+7=24; success). But whatever the spell was, it did not even slow the paladin down. Even as Tenaris cut down the other troglodyte, the paladin continued hacking at the spellcaster (attack: 12+12=24; 14+7=21; both miss), but to no avail. The full plate armor the reptile-man wore seemed utterly impervious to Caladbolg’s bite.

Seeing that Sparhawk was getting nowhere with the spellcaster, Syll poured on another volley of magic missiles (13 damage), and Luger and Danton joined the melee (Luger attack: 6+12+2 flanking bonus=20, 16+7+2=25; both miss, Danton attack: 11+10+2=23, 4+5+2=11; both miss). Amazingly, despite the fact that he was no alone and almost completely surrounded by five foes, the armored troglodyte continued to ward off all attacks save for Syll’s spells, which once again had ruined whatever incantation he had begun. Now that they were in close proximity to the creature, Luger and Danton were also confronted with its stench (fortitude saves: Luger: 11+13=24; success; Danton: 15+4=19; success).

It was only when Tenaris, who had the advantage of attacking from the side that the fallen troglodyte warrior had previously protected, entered the fray with the spellcaster that the battle finally came to an end. The woman stabbed the troglodyte twice in the side and he crumpled to the ground.

With the troglodyte spellcaster down, there were no enemies in sight for the first time since the party had blasted its way back into the mountain.

“Where is Merclar? And that ogre buddy of his?” asked Luger. “I haven’t seen them anywhere.”

“Methinks, I know,” said Danton, pointing back towards the blasphemous hall. “Did you not see when we rushed past to engage these stinking creatures? The doors to Merclar’s barracks area are sealed up tighter than a drum. ‘Tis likely the man—and whatever forces remain to him—are ensconced inside.”

Moving cautiously back south to the edge of the blasphemous hall, Danton gazed around the corner in both directions. Off to the west the hall led to the main double doors leading outside. Not surprisingly, these were closed and barred, and no one was about. To the east, some forty feet from the intersection, were another closed set of double doors. These were almost as large as the doors leading outside, and they two were made of iron-bound wood.

“Time for a little more bang-bang?” asked Tenaris with a laugh when she joined Danton in peeking around the corner.

“I think so,” said the Velunese. “And while we should conserve our spells if there are not good, obvious targets when the doors go down, if we do spot a cluster of defenders, then I would ask that Luger and Syll hit them with everything. If we are to eliminate the defenses here, loot the place, and then move on, time is of the essence. It will hardly save us spells if, by seeking to conserve them, we are still fighting here when our friend with the lions arrives!”

Syll’s first fireball aimed at the doors caused them to shake on their hinges and melted away large amounts of the iron that strengthened them (20 damage to the doors), but they still held. After the flaming projectile hit, men’s voices could be heard from behind the doors—some raised in what sounded like panic—but then Syll struck again. His second shot was even more powerful than the first, and this time it was too much for the doors (26 area effect damage in a 20 foot radius) and they exploded inward under the impact, raining down flaming wood and metal in a large radius.

[Initiative: Luger: 23, Tenaris: 17, Syll: 14, Danton: 11, Sparhawk: 9, Enemies base: 1]

When the door went down, Mereclar, his ogre lieutenant, and a large number of human and gnoll warriors became visible, apparently gathered for a last stand. Mereclar stood near the back of the forty-foot by forty-foot room, next to the massive quilled beast the party had seen here earlier. Off to one side was the ogre, clustered near a group of men crewing a ballista. On the other side of the room was another ballista crew and another group of men. Eight gnolls were scattered about the chamber.

The party members held back just long enough for Syll to fire off one last fireball, which targeted the ogre and the men around him—including the ballista (27 area effect damage in a 20 foot radius). At least five men, four gnolls, the ballista, and the ogre were caught in the blast. The ballista was blasted to so much kindling, while all of the others caught in the explosion were killed instantly—save for the ogre. Although the ogre was scorched from head to toe, he somehow remained standing.

Luger, Tenaris, Danton, and Sparhawk charged the room at that point. The remaining ballista crew managed to get off a single shot before the party reached the entrance, but the massive projectile flew over the party’s heads. And then the four party members were at the entrance to the chamber, where a cluster of gnolls and men rushed forward to meet them. Tenaris cut down a gnoll and began wading into the second rank of defenders, as did Luger (attack: 8+12=20, 19+7=26; potential critical hit: 2^nd roll: 11+7=18; critical hit; 11, 24 damage from two hits) and Sparhawk (attack: 17+12=29; potential critical hit; 2^nd roll: 19+12=31; critical hit: 21 damage). The swing with which Sparhawk cut down the gnoll in front of him was so powerful, that it almost killed a human warrior standing nearby (cleave feat gives free attack: 2+12=14; miss), but the man leaped back and out of the way just in time. Only Danton was unable to dispatch the gnoll that blocked his way forward (attack: 8+10=18, 11+5=16, one hit; 7 damage).

The mostly human defenders that remained gave ground under the fierce assault of the party, but then Merclar revealed one last surprise he had held in reserve. At the half-elf’s command, the beast next to him opened its huge maw and emitted the most awful howl that anyone in the party had ever heard before (will saves: Tenaris: 7+3=10; failure, Danton: 11+4=15; success, Syll: 18+8=26; success, Luger: 3+13=16; success, Sparhawk: 7+7=14).

The sound was truly terrible, but all of the party members, save Tenaris, managed to shut it out and keep fighting unhindered, but the sound seemed to unhinge the woman, and she began screaming like a banshee and flailing about with such abandon that both friends and foes alike tried to give her a wide berth. Then Mereclar sent his pet to attack the woman, while he rushed forward to face Sparhawk.

Mereclar fought with two weapons, a longsword and a shortsword. Sparhawk had only rarely encountered opponents who fought with such a style and he initially found it hard to deal with two blades without the benefit of a shield. Mereclar hit him twice and knocked him back towards the doorway (hit twice for a total of 12 damage). At the same time, the scorched ogre attacked Luger with a massive club, smashing it into the cleric’s chest with such force that it knocked all the air out of his lungs (hit for 18 damage)

Luger countered quickly. Before the ogre could pull his club back either to use it for defense or for another swing, the cleric darted under his guard and skewered him twice with Geistblatt (attack: 9+12=21; hit; 19+7=26; potential critical hit: 2^nd roll: 20+7=27; critical hit: 10, 16 damage). The ogre dropped like a pile of bricks—just in time for Luger to leap aside as the remaining ballista crew at the back of the room launched another massive bolt at him. The projectile slammed into the stone wall a foot away, sending a cloud of stone and dust to rain down on the cleric.

Back in the doorway, Danton continued to engage the single remaining gnoll, but, preoccupied as he was with Tenaris’ safety, he could not seem to finish the creature (attack: 4+10=14, 6+5=11; both miss). Fortunately, he was still fast and alert enough to avoid the axe swings of his larger, but slower, opponent. Despite Danton’s concern, by all appearances, Tenaris was doing fine. In her apparently enraged, berserk condition, she hacked at the quilled monster again and again, while her incredible speed allowed her to avoid both its bite and its quills.

Although Sparhawk continued to have difficulty defending against two blades (hit for 8 damage), it also quickly became apparent that Mereclar had no real defense against Caladbolg. The combination of Sparhawk’s strength and the massive two-handed sword knocked Mereclar’s smaller blades aside when he tried to use them for defense, and the paladin struck the half-elf hard twice (holy smite attack: 15+12+3=30; hit; 19 damage, regular attack: 14+7=21; hit; 11 damage). Mereclar grunted in pain and screamed for his surviving soldiers to come to his aid.

“It will help thee not,” admonished Sparhawk as he bore down on the garrison commander. “Justice is at hand, as is thine end.”

From behind all of the others, Syll fired a barrage of magic missiles into the room, targeting four different human soldiers (5, 2, 3, 3 damage). None were killed, but all four seemed seriously wounded by the barrage. Three of those Syll had hit still rallied around Mereclar and tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to aid him against Sparhawk (one hit on Sparhawk: 6 damage).

While Tenaris continued to hack away at the quilled monster from the front, Luger, who was no longer challenged by anyone and thus free to move about as he liked, attacked the monster from its flanks (attack: 15+12+2 flank bonus=29, 17+7+2=26; two hits, 11, 7 damage). Geistblatt cut deep into the monster, but it remained fixated on Tenaris, and finally managed to pierce her defenses, biting the woman in the abdomen. However, even while it still held her in its jaws, Tenaris, mad with rage, slashed the creature twice more in the head before its grip slackened and it collapsed, quivering to the ground.

The ballista crew had been about to fire another bolt at Luger, but just before they could get the shot off, another volley of Syll’s magic missiles (4, 4, 2, 5 damage) rocketed through the room, killing two of the four men they struck—including both members of the ballista crew.

Although Danton’s preoccupation with Tenaris cost him another wild swing (attack: 4+10=14; miss), when the gnoll in front of him nearly took his head off with its axe immediately thereafter, it forced the scout to concentrate enough that he was finally able to get Rat’s Tail through the beast’s defenses and stick the blade deep into its chest (attack: 12+5=17; hit; 5 damage). It was finally enough—the gnoll, clutching its chest even as Danton withdrew his rapier, collapsed backward, finally allowing the Velunese to enter the chamber where the others fought.

At this point, only Mereclar and three other men were still standing, and all four of them surrounded Sparhawk. But that did not last long, at least not for Merclar. Growing weary of fighting the man with the two blades, Sparhawk finally ran him clean through with Caladbolg (attack: 13+12=25; hit; 10 damage). Even as he twisted his blade free of the half-elf’s body, Sparhawk swung it at one of the other men (cleave feat free attack: 5+12=17; miss), causing him to back away. Unfortunately, the two other men both attacked the paladin from the opposite side at the same moment, and he was struck twice (total of 13 damage).

But now the three men harrying Sparhawk were all alone, and the rest of the party bore down on them. Tenaris cut one man down in a flash, followed by Luger, who killed a second (attack: 13+12=25; hit; 12 damage). Danton tried to finish the last man, but he kept looking at Tenaris to ensure she was not injured and missed by a mile (attack: 1+10=11, 4+5=9; both miss). It was left to Sparhawk to deal with his last attacker, and he did not disappoint, literally cutting the man in two with Caladbolg (attack: 19+12=31; potential critical hit; 2^nd roll: 20+12=32; critical hit; 23 damage).

And with that, the fight was over. The party was back inside Mount Stalagos and, by all appearances, the western gate garrison had been slain to the last man.

With time being of the essence, the search of the garrison area was, of necessity, a short one. With Sparhawk at his side, Danton quickly moved through the outer areas, mapping those parts he had not seen previously and looking for anything of value. To the south, the only door in the garrison complex that the party had never before explored was the one in the guard post where Luger had cast his stone shape spell. The southern door in that room led to a narrow east-west corridor a hundred feet long. At the western end were another set of murder holes that looked out on the path leading up to the cave and the main gate. At the other end was a hidden door that Danton uncovered (search: 9+15=24; success) that led into the dark chamber where the two sets of tracks for mine carts led off to the south.

In the northwestern part of the garrison complex, Danton examined only briefly the now-open door that led to the northern set of murder holes looking out on the cave outside the doors. The narrow room was barren, the stones stained with age…and other things. There were a few crossbows scattered about, obviously hastily dropped, but that was all.

On the east side of the main north-south hall in the garrison complex, Danton and Sparhawk found two rooms. The larger of the two, twenty by ten feet, was at the end of the short hallway. It was totally empty save for scraps of torn cloth and dark stains on the floor and walls. The second room, on the north side of the small side-hallway, was even smaller. The far wall of the room bore a large symbol made of wood painted black. The symbol resembled an upside-down, two-step pyramid. Also in the room were a bed, a chest of drawers, a table, and two chairs. The table was covered in sheets of thick vellum and sported a lamp that glowed with a violet light. In one corner a set of manacles was bolted into the wall.

Danton snatched up the violet light, along with the papers he found on the table. In the set of drawers he found, amidst a mass of clothes, a bag of gold coins, a gold necklace, and a rolled up parchment. He gathered up all of these items and returned with them to the main barracks room where Mereclar and his men had made their last stand. By this time, Luger, Syll, and Tenaris had searched and looted the four side rooms connected to this larger chamber.

Moving in a clockwise direction, the first of the four chambers had been a bedroom for a single person—the ogre by all appearances. There was a great deal of junk in the room—a wrecked chainmail shirt, an oversized backpack, bits of clothing, bones, and general refuse (search: Syll: 17+3=20, Tenaris: 9+2=11, Luger:12+0=12). Amidst all the garbage, Syll managed to find a bag of coins and a golden dagger.

The next room was crammed to the seams with twenty bunk beds. It too was unkempt and chaotic, covered with food, clothing, and trash. The trio did not bother to search this room at any length. The third room was similar to the second, crowded with beds, enough for twenty people. Next to each bed was a small trunk. The room was cluttered and ill-used, with graffiti on the walls, clothes on the floor, and weapons here and there. The graffiti said such stupid things as, “Old Three-Fingers was here,” and “Marvick is an idiot.” Once again, Luger, Syll, and Tenaris did not waste their time searching here.

The last of the four rooms, the one believed to belong to Mereclar, was the only one that was well-kept and tidy. It had a bed, large rug, table, two chairs, and a chest. A green quiver, filled with arrows, hung from a peg. Next to it hung a gray cloak (search: Syll: 6+3=9, Tenaris: 2+2=4, Luger: 9+0=9). Luger, Syll, and Tenaris found nothing else here. They hauled the chest out of the room for Danton to deal with, along with the cloak and quiver.

Once Danton and Sparhawk were back and all of the items the two groups had recovered, along with the body of the fallen troglodyte spellcaster, had been gathered together in the main barracks room, Syll scanned for the presence of magic on the many items (Cast Detect Magic). The items that proved magical were the purple lamp Danton had found, the two scrolls he had recovered from the table with the lamp, the cloak from Mereclar’s room, Mereclar’s studded leather armor, a set of lenses Mereclar had worn (which the party had not even noticed until Syll’s spell detected their presence), the ogre’s massive club, and a morningstar the troglodyte spellcaster had carried. Everything else appeared to be mundane.

Danton opened the chest without any difficulty (search: 10+15=25; no traps found, open lock: 15+12=27). Inside were coins, two flasks of Furyondian Fire oil, a stack of clothing, and a few papers. When he examined the papers, they appeared to be a series of notes made by Mereclar about his efforts to recruit more orcs from the nearby camp to join the forces of the Temple of All-Consumption to replace the losses the various garrisons and temples had recently suffered, as well as a few comments on orders he had received from ‘the powers that be’ to keep an eye out for someone called the ‘Champion of Elemental Evil.’

Danton also had a look at the one sheet of parchment he had found in the northern bedroom that had not resonated magic. It was written in a language he could not read, so he handed it to Luger.

“It’s Draconic,” said the cleric. “It reads as follows…

Master Terrenygit,

We wish to extend to you our admiration for the way in which you have administered the forces defending the western gate. Under your care it has been secure against the intrusions of those who do not understand our need for seclusion. But now we have a new task for you. As you know, your kin in the Earth Temple have been felled by assassins, their temple brought low. We ask that you seek out more of your people and bring them to the mountain that they may rebuild and repopulate the Earth Temple under your leadership. Great reward shall come to the priest who rebuilds the Earth Temple and helps secure the mountain against those who would violate our retreat.

Things will go much better for all of us if you seize this opportunity.

--Hedrack, High Priest of the Outer Fane.”

“Oh, my head still hurts from the sound that thing made,” groaned Tenaris when Luger finished reading. “What are we going to do next?”

“I know not,” said Sparhawk, before Danton could reply. “But I feel you all should know something. Caladbolg hath spoken to me once more. By virtue of our bond and the foes slain here today, its powers hath increased—but not without a cost.”

________________________________________________________________

Notes for turn 77:

--Please send postings for Turn 77 by the end of Friday, November 30th.

--Tenaris, Syll, and Sparhawk have all gained levels. I’ll raise Tenaris, but I’d appreciate it if the appropriate players could raise Sparhawk and Syll and send me the results as soon as they have the chance.

--Because Sparhawk has reached 7^th level, Caladbolg’s powers have increased as well, but so has the strain the bond between paladin and weapon places on Sparhawk. In addition to the powers it had previously, Caladbolg is now a +1 mighty cleaving great sword (this gives Sparhawk an additional cleave attack per round). But these powers come with a cost: Sparhawk loses two hit points, suffers a –1 penalty to all his reflex save, and a –1 to all attacks). He can break his bond with the weapon if he wishes, in which case these penalties all go away, but then Caladbolg reverts back to being merely a +1 greatsword.

Current date/time/location: 19 Kolovoz; approximately 0900; The Temple of All Consumption

Items gained this turn: (none of these have been divided as yet)

Magic items: purple lamp, two scrolls from the table with the lamp, the cloak from Mereclar’s room, Mereclar’s studded leather armor, a set of lenses Mereclar had worn, the ogre’s massive club, and a morningstar the troglodyte spellcaster had carried.

Mundane items: Note from Hedrack to Terrenygit, huge amounts of weapons and armor of various types the party could take if it wanted, golden dagger, coinage worth a total of 900 gold, a golden necklace, and two vials of Furyondian Fire oil

Undivided Loot previously gained: none

Items used/lost/destroyed/sold/left behind this turn: none

FOES DEFEATED:

Active party members listed in bold.

This Chapter:

Entire Campaign:

Current Status of the Party:

Danton

AC: 16 (17 vs. one opponent)

Hit points: 47/47

New XP: 1943

XP total: 44,334

XP needed: 45,000

Equipment: 6 daggers, light crossbow, studded leather armor, quiver with 33 bolts, bedroll, backpack, flint & steel, thieves picks, 3 waterskins, 30 days trail rations, hooded lantern, gold ring engraved with the name Karakas, 1 sap, 1 metal key from Yusdrayl, Everburning Torch, old journal, 8 iron triangles with upside down ‘Y’ inside,1 inverted ‘Y” pendant in a brown triangle, new journal, notebook, pen, ink, parchment in sealed waterproof box, pipe, tobacco, metal box, whetstone, six packets of tinder for lighting fires, gold inlaid dagger, Journal of Geynor Ton, a folded piece of parchment with a note addressed to someone named Festrath, spider pendant, a disguise kit, letter to Master Dunrat, ochre-colored robe, potion of love, a dozen vials of lantern oil, masterwork thieves’ tools, Rat’s Tail (Rapier +1), silver and gold brooches, bracers of armor +1, potion of hiding, pouch of unknown dried herbs taken from the home of Tal Chamish, emerald pendant, a small ebony troglodyte statuette, a curved dagger, six sticks of incense, an emerald pendant, boots of elvenkind, 1/3 of Oamarthis gems, tattered dwarven book, pearl from the Dark Lake, potion of cure light wounds, nine inverted Y pendants with blue-green squares behind them, 3 iron keys from Fire Temple forces, inverted y pendant with red diamond background, map of Fire Temple area, letter from Hedrack to Tessimon, 2 vials of unknown liquid #1 and three vials of unknown liquid #2 (Turn 66), healing elixir from the fungal forest man, masterwork dagger, sack of random bits of metal intended to be used as chess pieces, 4 bottles cheap red wine, 2 pink pearls, potion of cure light wounds, 2 dwarven scrolls found on the balcony over the dark lake, cloak of resistance +1, Fachish’s papers

Equipment: backpack, water skin, 30 days rations, bedroll, tent, 2 daggers, masterwork great sword (Justice), longsword, composite longbow, 1 quiver with 20 arrows, ink & inkpen, 50’ silk rope, whetstone, 1 vial holy water, half plate mail+1, masterwork large steel shield, 2 candles, signet ring and sealing wax, gilded warhorn, chalk, 2 mirrors, flint & steel, 5 pitons, 20 pieces parchment, 2 empty sacks, silver holy symbol of Heironeous, Everburning Torch, black cloak, inverted Y pendant, gauntlets of dexterity +2, potion of cure light wounds, pearl from the Dark Lake, gold-inlaid black urn, Tessimon’s jewelry box, golden orb set with amber, Book of the Dark Eye, Caladbolg (barbed great sword +1), potion of cure light wounds, two dark vision potions and one strength enhancing wafer from the fungal forest man, 2 pink pearls

Spell Selection:

Level 1 (2): Protection from Evil, Divine Favor

Turn Undead attempts left on current day: 6 of 6

Lay on Hands healing points left on current day: 18 of 18

Smite Evil used today?: YES

Gold: 153

Silver: 0

Tenaris

AC: 23

Hit Points: 50/57

New XP: 1943

XP total: 22,713

XP needed: 21,000

Equipment: longsword, chitin full plate mail, large steel shield, masterwork morningstar, 5 javelins, 2 troglodyte spears, inverted Y pendant, 30 days rations, potions of cat’s grace, spider climb, 1/3 of Oamarthis gems, cloak of resistance +1, black robe, Bracers of Kord (strength) +2, potion of cure light woundsX2, pearl from the Dark Lake, short sword +1, large steel shield +1, two strength enhancing wafers and one healing elixir from the fungal forest man, Masterwork longsword, Maicarya (flaming short sword +1), 2 pink pearls, longsword +1

Gold: 327

Silver: 30