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Chapter 3: The Temple of All-Consumption

Turn 78: Creatures of the Dark

Forcing himself to snap out of his temporary shock at the sight of the dragon, Sparhawk called out, “Yonder dragon, I doth not suppose thee wilst aid us in slaying the Doomdreamers and releasing thee in return from this foul place so that thou mayest enjoy the comforts of repose in a nice mountain and pile of gold, doth thee, prithee?”

From the bottom of the platform, Danton withdrew his crossbow and shouted, “Yes, Let us see if the wyrm can be parleyed with! But methinks we're in for it now!”

“Hail, mighty wyrm!” screamed the Velunese at the top of his lungs. “And hold thy claws and deadly breath! There is no need for combat here, when surely a deal can be struck which shall prove mutually profitable.”

Sparhawk wanted to flee from the top of the platform and rejoin the others below before the dragon arrived, but there was simply no time. The beast was flying so quickly that if the paladin made for one of the ladders on the side of the platform, he would surely still be on the ladder—and effectively unable to defend himself—when it arrived.

Tenaris, by contrast, gave no thought to flight. Hearing Sparhawk’s shout about the dragon, she withdrew her sword and shield and rushed to the paladin’s side at the front of the platform.

Seeing the wild look in the woman’s eyes, Sparhawk muttered, “And thou sayest that I am crazy…”

[Initiative: Tenaris: 24, Danton: 17, Luger: 14, Syll: 13, Sparhawk: 11, Green Dragon: 8]

“Avoid bunching up!” yelled Luger from the base of the platform. “We don’t want him to be able to hit us all with a single blast of his breath!”

Tenaris and Sparhawk had no real space to spread out, but those at the bottom of the platform did—Syll, Danton, and Luger moved so as to put a good ten feet between each of them.

The dragon continued to fly straight at Tenaris and Sparhawk atop the platform, and as it did so, Danton, Luger, and Syll all cracked off various forms of long range attacks against it. Danton fired off a pair of quick shots with his crossbow, and although his aim was true, the small bolts seemed to have little impact on the heavily armored reptilian flyer (attack: 19+8=27, 17+3=20; on hit—potential critical—2^nd roll: 16+8=24; regular hit only: 3 damage). Luger and Syll were much more effective. The cleric launched a bolt of holy light at the dragon (Cast Searing Light: 17+9=26; hit; 22 damage), while the sorcerer detonated a massive fireball on the ceiling just above the dragon, managing to engulf the creature fully in the blast (Cast Fireball: 26 area-effect damage).

The bright light created by Syll’s fireball and Luger’s Searing Light briefly illuminated the cavern and gave the party the best view it had yet of its foe. The dragon had bright green scales and was about twenty feet long from head to tail, a relatively young beast, but still larger and likely more powerful than the blue dragon some in the party had encountered months earlier at the ruined moathouse east of Hommlet.

Although burned and blasted by those on the floor of the cavern, the dragon continued to fly straight towards Tenaris and Sparhawk, breathing forth a cloud of noxious gas that swept over the pair and most of the top of the platform (Sparhawk reflex save: 7+6=13; fail; 26 damage taken). From what those below could see, it looked as though Tenaris managed to dive and roll below most of the green cloud, but Sparhawk was hit full on by the noxious fumes and he could be heard gagging and retching.

Seconds later, the dragon slammed down atop the platform, causing the structure to tremble under the impact and swinging its tail at Tenaris in an attempt to knock her off. Below, Danton’s breath caught in his throat as he watched the woman leap above the tail in order to avoid being sent flying. Amazed yet again at her death-defying agility, the Velunese cracked off two more shots with his crossbow, but to no avail (attack: 1+8=9, 8+3=11; both miss).

With no more ranged spells he could use without hitting Tenaris and Sparhawk as well as the dragon, Syll unslung his rarely used longbow and fired off a shot at the dragon’s armored body, but so out of practice was the elf, that his shot went far wide, striking the ceiling of the cavern nowhere near the dragon (attack: 4+7=11; miss).

Taking a different approach to the problematic tactical situation, Luger made for the nearest ladder and began climbing up the side of the platform as quickly as he could in his chainmail.

Atop the platform, wielding Caladbolg with both hands, Sparhawk held the blade high and yelled, “Thou shalt not hath me thy foul hell-beast!  I shalt extinguish thy smoke and maketh a new suit of armor from thy scales!  Thy tongue and horns, I shalt sell in some lowly market-place as a homespun cure for impotence! I shalt feast on thy flesh roasted in the dying embers of thy funeral pyre!"

With these bold words, Sparhawk hacked at the dragon’s thick scales, but to no avail (attack: 9+12=21; 10+7=17; both miss). The beast’s natural armor was simply too thick—even for Caladbolg.

Although it had tried to sweep Tenaris off the platform, Sparhawk’s attacks and yelling had plainly drawn the bulk of the dragon’s attention, for it came at the paladin with teeth, claws, and even sweeps of its two mighty wings. The dragon attacked from so many different directions at once that Sparhawk felt as though he were fighting a half-dozen foes, not a single one. As the dragon’s maw sought to close around his own throat, Sparhawk blocked it with Caladbolg, but he was hit and buffeted by several of its other natural weapons (total of 23 damage taken). First a claw ran along the left side of Sparhawk’s body, then another hit him in the right leg. These twin attacks staggered the paladin. When a wing smashed into his face a second later, he collapsed into blissful unconsciousness.

Watching Sparhawk fall and seeing the dragon turn to devote its full attention to Tenaris, Danton’s heart leaped into his throat. He wanted to scream to the elf woman to leap off the tower to escape, but he could not form the words. All his numb mind could manage to do was fire off shot after ineffective shot at the dragon (attack: 5+8=13, 10+3=13; both miss). Nearby, Syll did only marginally better (attack: 20+7=27; potential critical hit—2^nd roll: 8+7=15; regular hit only: 2 damage).

Neither Syll nor Danton could see exactly what was happening above since the bulk of the dragon’s body was now between them and Tenaris, but the woman could be heard screaming—whether in pain or some sort of elven battle rage, those below could not be sure. Danton assumed the worst and kept firing (attack: 17+8=25, 15+3=18; both miss). Shot after shot struck the dragon’ s body, only to bounce harmlessly off its armored scales. And his one lucky hit aside, Syll could do no better (attack: 17+7=24; miss).

When Luger finally reached the top of the ladder, after what had seemed an endless climb, he found himself facing the dragon from behind as it continued to engage Tenaris, whom Luger could not see. Drawing his shield and Geistblatt, Luger sought to take advantage of the element of surprise, but his blade could do no better than Caladbolg had done before it (attack: 14+10=24, 15+5=20; both miss). So impenetrable was the dragon’s armor, that Luger could not help but wonder if its natural defensive capacities had been enhanced somehow. Still, Luger’s useless ‘hits’ on the dragon drew its attention, and the beast whipped its tail around at him. The cleric blocked the swipe with his shield, but the impact made his arm numb and still nearly knocked him backward off the platform.

More arrows and bolts from below flashed past Luger and bounced more or less harmlessly off the dragon’s scales (Danton attack: 20+8=28, 18+3=21; one potential critical hit—2^nd roll: 7+8=15; regular hit only; 8 damage; Syll attack: 8+7=15; miss). From all the screaming and impacts he could hear, Luger knew Tenaris must be taking an awful pounding. She would fall within moments and then the monster would turn to Luger himself. Realizing there was only one real option left, the cleric kicked Sparhawk’s body off the side of the platform and then called on Heironeous to let fall His divine fire atop the rear section of the dragon…and atop Luger himself, given the close quarters. Targeting the beast anywhere else would engulf Tenaris in the flames, and Luger doubted the woman was in any kind of shape to survive such an ordeal (Cast Flame Strike: 42 area-effect damage). As soon as he cast the spell, Luger leaped over the dragon’s tail and tried to avoid the worst of the divine fire (reflex save vs. own spell: 20+7=27; success; 21 damage taken).

As the column of fire hit it, the dragon roared in pain and thrashed about atop the platform, shaking the entire structure as it moved, all in attempt to escape the fire Luger had called down. The beast opened its maw wide and belched forth a second cloud of poisonous gas, which swept over both Luger and Tenaris. This final onslaught was too much for the woman, who collapsed, but Luger held his breath and moved as far away from the dragon as he could as burning chlorine filled his nose and lungs (reflex save vs. breath weapon; 4+7=11; failure; 20 damage).

Gagging and with his eyes burning, Luger staggered back towards the small wooden structure atop the platform even as the dragon, badly burned judging by the scorch marks along much of its body, leaped into the air—shaking the entire platform once again—and flew off towards the north.

When Syll saw Sparhawk’s body fall from the platform, the elf cast a Levitation spell on it before it hit the ground. Moments later, when the dragon flew off the platform, Syll followed up by withdrawing a wand and launching a parting fireball at the monster as it went (17 area-effect damage). However, the blast was a weak one and the dragon managed to dive down enough to avoid most of its effect. Syll watched with a mixture of frustration and admiration as it disappeared into the darkness off to the north.

While Syll observed the departure of the dragon and Luger collapsed heavily against the outer wall of the office atop the platform, Danton screamed, “Tenaris!” and began ascending the nearest ladder like a madman.

Danton’s mad screams made Luger get to his feet once again and he actually reached Tenaris before Danton. Finding a pulse, albeit a weak one, the cleric began converting a variety of spells to curative purposes, following up to do the same with Sparhawk once Syll levitated the unconscious paladin back atop the platform. This process, along with the effort involved in healing his own wounds, drained Luger of virtually all his remaining magic, but he had no real choice in the matter (All remaining non-domain spells converted to healing: Tenaris +60 HP, Sparhawk +60 HP, Luger +9 HP). Even this was not enough, and Tenaris consumed a healing potion, while Luger quaffed both one of his own and another offered to him by Sparhawk (2 cure light wounds: +20 HP).

While Luger’s healing magic brought Tenaris back from her devastating injuries no worse for the wear and she immediately began inquiring as to the fate of the dragon, Danton was an emotional wreck, literally throwing himself at the woman and pleading with her not to be so reckless in the future.

“If anything had happened to you, mine heart, I wouldst have hunted that dragon to the ends of the Oerth and either slain it or died trying! Why just the thought of your death is enough to make me want to jump to my doom from atop this tower!”

“Yet thanks to Heironeous—and Luger—you art hale and whole,” continued the Velunese, wiping tears from his eyes. “Truly, you elves art a peculiar bunch. Any one of you hath the potential of outliving all of the collective lives of the rest of us, yet you art cavalier to the extreme with violence and risk!”

“It’s really no big deal, Danton,” said Tenaris, shifting about uncomfortably under all the attention. “I took a few hits, but I’m fine now.”

Danton gave a ragged laugh and shook his head as if he could still not believe all he had witnessed. “I hath no time to explore the psychological or sociological niceties of it, but I would be curious to learn whether any scholars hath determined that extreme longevity bringeth with it an exceedingly relaxed view of danger. As for we Velunese -- or, at the least, as for me -- well, our candles burn out too quickly, so we treasure what time we have and attempt to maximize it. 'Tis a curious thing.”

“And what about me, pray tell?” asked Sparhawk, interrupting the exchange. “I too hath nearly found death in the form of that vile beast. Have you no concern for me?”

When Danton did not even seem to register his words and did not look away from Tenaris, Sparhawk only sighed. “I long for nothing more than a nice quiet night sitting by a fire in some inn, sipping at some wine and enjoying the ballads of the heroes of old, but ‘twould seem we canst not get even a few moments’ rest in this infernal place. Oh, how I needeth a vacation.”

“You and me both, bud,” said Syll wryly. “You and me both.”

“But,” said Sparhawk, getting to his feet for the first time since the battle, “Such is not to be. Instead, off we go to battle again, though I suppose we canst attempt a few words more 'fore we are covered in cleansing dragon fire—if our friend there possesses will enough to focus on matters at hand,” he finished with a nod at Danton, who was still fawning over Tenaris—to the woman’s growing irritation.

“Although our spells are depleted, I think we ought to move far from here as quickly as we are able,” said Luger. “Had we slain that beast, I would have liked to claim a claw or tooth as a token of our victory. We might also have searched for the dragon’s hoard, but with it alive, we had best be long gone when it returns.”

“Thou doth not wish to pursue the beast to its lair?” asked Sparhawk.

“No,” said the cleric. “For one, the dragon is likely familiar with the area, while we are not. It could lead us to an ambush, a trap or simply regroup and use some hidden healing magic and return for another engagement, while we lack the magical healing and firepower to go a second round with it. Plus,” he added, “although it was young, that was no ordinary dragon—some enchantment made it well nigh impossible to strike it with a weapon.”

“I noticed that too,” said Syll, “but it’s really not surprising. Dragons were the original sorcerers after all.”

“What?” asked Sparhawk skeptically.

“It’s true,” insisted the ex-smuggler. “Magic is second-nature to dragons. They can cast spells at will, without books, scrolls, components or anything else—just like any other sorcerers. In fact, some of us believe that the sorcerers of today are the descendants of dragons. Can’t you sense the true nobility and awesome power of ancient bloodlines when a sorcerer stands before you?”

“Uh, frankly, no,” said Sparhawk with a scowl.

“Well, you should,” said the elf. “Still, I’m a bit disappointed that I didn’t inherit the whole shape-changing thing from my dragon ancestors, not to mention the armored scales, and the massive wings…”

"If dragons were truly so noble, that one would hath parleyed with me,” interrupted Sparhawk. “I intended to ask him about the possibility of an alliance of sorts, whereby we would promise to help him find release from these caves and enable him to seek out a nice hoard in a lonely mountain somewhere far from the meddlesome digging and greed of dwarves, not to mention the foulness of this temple. But, did he listen? Or even giveth me the time to explain mine plan? No, the brute hath attacked and that was that.”

Syll waved his hand dismissively. “This doesseem like an odd place to find a green dragon, and flying at us like that does seem a bit undignified for a real dragon. A dragon with moxie doesn’t go on the offensive like that. It waits for its prey and slaps it down when it gets too close. I should know, being part dragon myself. But this one seemed kind of young, so maybe he just doesn’t know any better yet.”

This exchange regarding the bloodlines and behavior of dragons might have gone on for some time, had not Tenaris suddenly drawn all eyes back to her by saying loudly, “I said I’m fine!”

As Luger, Syll, and Sparhawk turned to look at the woman, she wrested herself free of Danton’s embrace and stood up.

There was an uncomfortable moment of silence, and then Danton tried to move past the awkwardness and attention by saying, “Very well, I suppose, Lady Death, given the absence of available ore carts, that you'd now prefer to walk the razor's edge and cheat death by diving headfirst into yon blob-filled standing water? But as for me, when comes time for mine own suicide, methinks I'd prefer falling on Rat's Tail and trusting that it's point be sure and true.”

“Anyway,” continued the scout, keenly aware that everyone was still staring at him. “Looking at mine map of the area, methinks our best path forward lieth on the narrow strip to the south along the standing water. I doth not like the water, and surely more awful things shalt issue forth from it -- we hath already seen the blob, and we saw the ripples in the water. So methinks an attack from that vantage point seemeth likely. Even so, methinks that is the best way. I am not very curious at this point about the glimpse of the other railways that we hath seen, and mine guess is that most of them emanate from the second track that we skipped when we descended into the mines. The track leading from the conveyor chamber, by contrast, seemeth askew from mine map, but cartography under the present circumstances -- especially with suicidal elves taking the helms of the ore carts -- is an imprecise thing. All these elevated tracks could be, and methinks likely are, part and parcel of the same railway. For present, I'd prefer that we go south.”

“Fine by me,” said Luger, “I am none too keen on entering any of the watery passages without any sort of water breathing, water walking or other such spells. My goal is still to reach the fire door via the most direct route and enter the Outer Fane.”

No one else offered commentary on Danton’s proposal, so the Velunese said, “Very well, then we shall proceed south along the watery way. But before we go, I would like to lay claim to to Mereclar's magical studded leather armor, the purple lamp, and the lenses Mereclar wore—unless someone else wants them. If the latter two items are better suited to a magic user, perhaps Syll should have them. I'm particularly curious as to the properties of the lenses. Syll, hath you managed to identify the lenses and perhaps the lamp or any other of the magical items, during our travels from the gate complex?”

“Uh, not exactly,” replied the elf. “Between driving ore carts, fighting blobs, and slugging it out with dragons, I’ve been a bit busy. On top of that, I’m pretty well tapped out on spells for the moment, but if you’ll give me a few minutes, I’ll see what I can do the old fashioned way.”

[Syll spellcraft checks: 1+11=12, 5+11=16, 14+11=25, 14+11=25, 5+11=16, 17+11=28, 19+11=30, 2+11=13; cast Read Magic twice]

In the end, using a combination of spells and his own extensive knowledge of unique trinkets and items of all sorts, Syll was able to discern the purpose of most of the items the party had recovered from the gate complex area. The purple lamp was effectively another everburning torch, the two scrolls had the clerical spells neutralize poison, silence, cure light wounds (twice) and cure moderate wounds on them. The cloak was a cloak of resistance +1, the armor was studded leather +1, and the lenses were eyes of the eagle. Syll was unable to determine the enchantments on the club and morningstar, so identification of those items would have to wait until at least the next day when he would have magical means available.

Danton ended up with the enchanted armor, which he immediately donned in place of his old set. As he rifled through the unclaimed items, he also filed away the note from Hedrack to Terrenygit. The Velunese presented Tenaris with the golden dagger and necklace, as well as the Furyondian fire oil—hoping he had judged correctly that she was the sort whose mood might be improved by jewelry and explosives, while Syll gave Luger the two scrolls, the magic lamp, and the morningstar. For himself, the elf claimed only the eyes of the eagle. Sparhawk ended up with the magic cloak, since he was the only party member who did not already have one, as well as the enchanted club. The coinage was divided evenly, with 180 gold per party member.

With the “loot divided” as Syll put it, the party was anxious to move on, lest the dragon return. The group climbed down from the platform and moved quickly back out of the cave via the tunnel to the northeast. Once they neared the water once again, Syll kept a close eye on it using his newly acquired lenses.

“Wow, I can really see everything with these,” marveled the elf as he gazed out on the dark water. “Too bad they aren’t x-ray lenses too,” he mused, casting a glance at Tenaris that Danton did not like one bit.

“Let’s just get past this water as quickly as possible, shall we?” prodded Luger.

From the mouth of the tunnel that led back to the platform, the party turned south and walked alongside the underground lake for two hundred feet, with the lake gradually widening to the east. By the time the party finally reached the far southern end of the lake, in an area where the path continued south while tunnels branched off to the northwest and southeast, the far side of the lake was no longer visible in the light of the group’s magical torches.

“So which side passage are we checking first?” asked Syll.

“I prefereth to stick to the central passage,” cautioned Danton, “but I suppose we could entertain side passages if they harbor any possibility to advance the immediate goal or to obtain some quick or desirable booty…and for once I’m not really talking about Tenaris when I say that…”

Sparhawk groaned. “Oh, if only that vile wyrm hadst chomped away a bit more and taken me from mine misery of enduring this endless love prattle. Mayhaps I shalt fall on mine sword instead! Or, I canst merely wait for Danton to lead me to mine death after a plunging fall!”

“And what of thee, o’ Lady Death?” asked Danton with a look at Tenaris, who had been mostly silent since her outburst atop the tower when he had expressed what was apparently excessive concern after her encounter with the dragon. “No rejoinder? Did the dragon make off with your tongue, or art you too busy considering your next means of giving me a heart attack?”

“I think she just doesn’t know the second definition of ‘booty’,” said Syll, “meaning your awful pun was lost on her. Now, c’mon, let’s check out this first cave here.”

Although Danton was concerned by Tenaris’ silence, he knew this was not the time and place to try to talk to her—not with all the others around—so he motioned for Sparhawk to join him as he moved towards the tunnel to the southeast. The tunnel was very narrow—only one person could move through it at a time—and very short. It ran for less than ten feet and then opened up into a small cave, twenty feet to a side, that appeared empty save for rocks strewn about the floor.

[Danton search: 2+15=17]

“Nothing here,” said Danton, “I see naught worth…” he began, before a great rumbling shook through the cavern and tunnel around him for a good six seconds, causing rocks to fall from the ceiling in the small cave.

“It’s an earthquake!” yelled Syll from the larger cavern behind Danton and Sparhawk. “Get back out here!”

Sparhawk and Danton spun on their heels and rushed back through the narrow tunnel even as rocks continued to fall into the room behind them. The duo quickly made it back into the main cavern near the southern edge of the lake. While the shaking had been minimal here, where Syll, Luger, and Tenaris had waited, the cave that Danton and Sparhawk had briefly looked into appeared to be collapsing entirely.

“Well, that was…productive,” said Danton sarcastically.

“You must have stepped on something,” remonstrated Syll. “I mean, we’ve never had an earthquake in this whole mountain before, and that one was pretty localized.”

“Another trap thou hath missed?” asked Sparhawk mildly.

“We’re wasting time here,” said Luger. “We need to get to the bridge. The more time we lose, the more likely we are to have that reptilian fellow and his lions on our heels again.”

“Let’s just check the other side tunnel,” insisted Syll. “We really have to be more thorough in our explorations or we could miss some good stuff.”

Between Tenaris’ silence and nearly having a ton of rocks dropped on his head, Danton found his mood souring, but rather than waste more time arguing, he sighed and moved off towards the northwestern tunnel. It ran for forty feet before turning south and opening up into another cave, some fifteen feet in diameter—with very rough, grooved walls. There was what looked like a second such cave immediately to the south of the first. There were cold, hard droppings of some sort scattered about on the floor, and a foul odor filled the air (spot checks: Danton: 16+10=26, Syll: 18+9=27, Tenaris: 17+2=19, Luger: 15+4=19; Sparhawk: 11+2=13).

The party members scanned the area for any signs of danger, but could see nothing. Danton and Sparhawk moved through the chamber, dodging around the droppings, and into the second cave, which was free of the foul smelling mounds. The others followed. The Velunese gave the second cave a quick once-over (search: 11+15=26), but found nothing of value and no other exits.

Having found nothing, Danton, grumbling under his breath about Syll’s ‘good stuff’, motioned for Sparhawk and the others to follow him back out. As the scout and the paladin made their way back out, with the others trailing behind them, Danton felt the small hairs on the back of his neck stand up as some instinct warned him of danger. “Move, Sparhawk!” he yelled, pushing the paladin to one side and then jumping in the opposite direction himself (reflex saves: Danton: 11+9=20; success; Sparhawk: 9+7=16; failure)

At that very moment, a stream of concentrated acid poured down from somewhere above onto the very spot where Danton and Sparhawk had been walking. Danton managed to avoid the stream completely, but Sparhawk was not so fortunate. Despite Danton’s push, the acid rained down on the paladin, burning his hair and skin (19 damage taken).

Stunned by the sudden attack, Danton held up his magical torch and looked for its source. Now that he knew approximately where to look, he could see a narrow ledge fifteen feet off the ground where some sort of strange, long reptilian creature crouched, almost entirely hidden from view and largely shielded from attack.

[Initiative: Syll: 24, Danton: 20, Tenaris: 17, Creature: 14, Luger: 11, Sparhawk: 6]

Wiping burning acid from his eyes and fighting the urge to scream in pain, Sparhawk ran from the cave, yelling, “Danton, while I shalt always be by thine side to absorb the shock of battle, be battered and bruised, and fall into thine many unseen traps, this is simply too much! Onward! Forward! Or, shalt I say, retreeeaaattt!”

Waving Caladbolg wildly as he went, Sparhawk added, presumably to the creature that had sprayed him, “I shalt deal with thee later!”

Since no one in the party had much left in the way of effective ranged spells and there seemed little to be gained—save for a face-full of acid—by staying to fire bows and bolts at the creature on the ledge, the rest of the group took its cue from Sparhawk and ran out of the cave after him.

Once back out in the main cavern, most of the party turned about to ensure they were not being pursued by the acid-shooting creature, while Sparhawk hastily drained a curative potion (Cure Light Wounds: +12 HP).

“Are you sure you hath completed your schooling in the art of trap detection?” complained Sparhawk to Danton after the potion had healed most of the nasty acid burns he had suffered. “I am thinking of demanding to see the diploma of thy spy-school. Perhaps the rector doth require a good talking-to. Or could it be that your vision is simply failing?”

“My apologies, Sir Sparhawk,” replied the Velunese, with a glance at Tenaris, “I know not what has come over me. Perhaps I am…distracted. But be that as it may, I hope that our experiences with the falling rocks and now that vile creature—whatever it was—hath demonstrated the wisdom of sticking to the main path.”

“Hey, you never know unless you look!” said Syll defensively. “There could have been great stuff in one of those caves. As it turned out, there wasn’t, but there could have been!”

Since the acid-creature was apparently not going to pursue the party, Sparhawk pointed off down the main tunnel to the south with Caladbolg. “If this path wilt take us away from this foul beast and bring us to the domain of the Doomdreamers, then lead us on to further troubles and dangers, brave scout!”

“To the Fane it is,” said Danton firmly. “Let us now move as directly as possible and deal with the villains within. I suppose our mission there is simple enough: slay Hedrack and the Doomdreamers. And, should we come across that horrific contraption that grinded Erky into pieces, I am strongly of the mind that Syll should use his magical fire to melt it into slag—if he can keep his eyes on the prize and avoid being sidetracked by dreams of avarice.”

As the group got underway once again, Danton, still preoccupied by thoughts of Tenaris and how he might get back into her good graces, tried to get the woman to at least crack a smile by making jokes about her and Syll’s wild handling of the ore carts.

“Eh, everybody’s a critic,” said Syll dismissively. “Least I didn’t crash.”

“My driving speaks for itself,” said Tenaris finally. “I need say no more.”

Although the elf woman’s words were terse, the tone was light, and Danton thought he might have caught the faintest hint of a smile at the edges of her mouth. That would have to do for the time being, he concluded, turning his attention back to the path ahead.

Beyond the two perilous side caves, the main tunnel narrowed to less than ten feet and moved away from the underground lake. It ran for a hundred feet, more or less due south, before growing into a much wider cavern, some forty feet wide and over a hundred feet long. This long, high-ceilinged cave appeared to be natural, perhaps from a bubble in the magma formed by some long-ago eruption of Mount Stalagos. The dark walls, ceiling and floors were covered in black, violet, and white fungus. In places it grew in clumps 3-4 feet high and twice as long, punctuated by the occasional toadstool—some the size of small trees—giving the impression of a weird underground forest. The cavern was damp and smelled sour.

“Gee, that fungus guy on the other side of the of the mountain who sold us those nasty potions that gave Sparhawk the trots would love this place,” commented Syll as he took in the panorama in the light of the torches now carried by Luger, Danton, and Sparhawk.

Small animals could be seen in the shadows, moving about amidst the fungal growths. Rats, mice, bats, and even what might have been a badger, flitted and skittered about on the edges of the torchlight. Such animal life had been conspicuously absent in most of the parts of the mountain the party had explored, and its presence here came as a real surprise.

Two narrow tunnels moved off into darkness on the eastern side of the cavern wall. They too were filled with fungus. Syll looked as though he wanted to explore both, but Danton and Sparhawk moved right on by, sticking to the main cavern. After walking for roughly a hundred and twenty feet through the fungal forest, the party finally came to the far end of the cavern, where two more exits were visible. The first was a ten foot wide rough, seemingly natural, tunnel that angled off to the southeast—filled with mushrooms, toadstools, and other growths just as the previous two had been, while the second exit was a set of stone stairs—clearly not naturally formed—leading steeply upward and to the south.

[Spot checks: Danton: 11+10=21, Syll: 17+9=26 Tenaris: 11+2=13, Luger: 17+4=21, Sparhawk: 7+2=9]

Danton was still considering which way the party should go when he heard a whistle from Syll that caused him to look about. When he did so, he spotted rapid movement towards the party from the fungus-filled corridor to the southeast. Out of the tunnel came charging a massive creature that looked like a cross between a great ape and a beetle. The black creature stood nearly 8 feet tall and was covered with insectoid armored plates. It had powerful rear legs and long, muscled arms, as well as a bulbous head with antennae and a pair of long pincers or mandibles. The thing moved towards the party at great speed.

“Ah, here we go again,” said Sparhawk wearily. “It seems mine vacation shalt never come!”

[Initiative: Tenaris: 23, Syll: 23, Luger: 21, Danton: 19, Creature: 12, Sparhawk: 7]

As usual, Tenaris was the first to react. As soon as she saw where Danton and Syll were looking, the warrior drew her sword and shield and rushed forward to take the charge from the massive creature bearing down on the party. She began hacking away at the thing even as Syll fired off a spell that went wild (Cast Ray of Frost: 2+7=9; miss). Luger and Sparhawk moved to take the creature from opposite sides, while Danton slipped around behind it. Luger struck the armored monster with Geistblatt(attack: 11+10+2 flanking bonus=23, 3+5+2=10; one hit; 4 damage), but Sparhawk was not able to bring his massive weapon to bear so quickly.

Coming around the creature’s back and dropping his torch, Danton could see clearly in the magical light the grooves between the armored plates on the monster as it engaged Tenaris. He plunged Rat’s Tail through one of the grooves and then through another, producing high-pitched squeals from the creature each time (sneak attacks: 10+10+2=22, 10+5+2=17; two sneak attack hits; 26, 19 damage).

Danton’s precision strikes caused the insectoid monster to rear back on its legs and spin its head about wildly. As it did so, it produced another high-pitched whine, that, combined with the wild spinning of its multi-faceted eyes, produced a strange effect on those unable to cover their ears and avert their eyes (will saves: Tenaris: 4+3=7; failure, Danton: 10+4=14; failure, Sparhawk: 5+8=13; failure; Syll: 18+9=27; success, Luger: 2+13=15; success).

While Syll and Luger were able to avoid any harmful effects, Tenaris suddenly froze in her tracks, enabling the monster to knock her armored body aside with ease. At the same time, Danton simply turned and began to wander off back down the tunnel in the direction from which the creature had come. But it was the effect of the creature’s gaze on Sparhawk that was strangest of all.

“Bring forward the ballistae, Captain!” bellowed the paladin. “The demonic hordes have occupied and despoiled our lands long enough. Today is the day we re-take that which is our birthright and sendeth these curs fleeing all the way back to Dorakaa with their tails between their legs! Atttttttaaaaaaaaaaaaack!”

And with that final, mad scream, Sparhawk plunged Caladbolg into the side of the insect-creature (attack: 9+12=21; hit; 16 damage). The thing had already been leaking ichor from the spots where Danton had stabbed it in the back, and Sparhawk’s screaming assault proved more than it could take: the bulbous head and eyes stopped spinning and the thing fell forward onto the ground, smashing all manner of fungal growths as it fell.

“Onward to the Shield Lands!” yelled Sparhawk. “Destiny and Liberation are at hand! Bwah-hah-hah-hah-hah!”

The paladin ran off to the north, through the heart of the fungal forest, with rats, bats, and mice scattering before him in full retreat as he led the Knights of Furyondy on a mad charge into the heart of the Empire of Iuz.

Syll made as if to follow the screaming paladin, but Luger put a hand on his arm.

“It’s best to leave them be. Now that the creature is dead, the effects should pass shortly. But in the meantime, I’ve no wish to be mistaken for a member of the ‘demonic hordes.’ Do you?”

“Nope,” said Syll. “When you put it that way, I think I’ll wait right here. Say, what’s that Danton’s doing down there in that other corridor. It looks like he’s snorting mushrooms…”

***

Somewhere between five and ten minutes after Sparhawk ‘slew’ the strange creature with the bulbous eyes, each of the three party members that had been affected by its gaze regained his or her senses. Tenaris snapped out of the stupor into which she had sunk and picked herself up off the ground, Danton ceased snorting fungus and mushrooms, and Sparhawk returned from a successful campaign leading the legions of Furyondy across the length and breadth of Iuz’s empire of darkness.

While Luger was polite enough to act as though he had never witnessed the bizarre behavior of the three ‘returnees’, Syll was still snickering as Danton led the party up the steep flight of stairs to the south—with the Velunese wanting to get as far from the underground forest as quickly as possible. The stairs ascended for almost forty feet before ending at the mouth of a forty- foot by forty-foot cavern with an opening on its southeastern side.

A large corpse lay in the center of the cave, desiccated and maggot ridden. Its black, armor-plated skin and long clawed arms immediately marked it as being of the same species the party had just fought. However, this creature was long since dead and its head was missing. The cave was otherwise empty. A sour smell lingered in the air and a few insects buzzed around the body.

“Well, thank goodness that one is already toast,” whispered Syll conspiratorially to Luger. “Otherwise we’d have the three amigos up to their antics again. I don’t think I’m ready for another ‘campaign against Iuz’ just yet.”

Danton’s keen ears caught the gibe, but he also heard other faint voices from somewhere in the distance (listen: 18+8=26) and he motioned for Syll to be silent. Moving ahead of the others as quietly as he could (move silently: 19+23=42), Danton traveled southeast down the tunnel leading out of the room with the dead creature, going for nearly a hundred feet and hearing the voices grow louder all the while. Finally, he came to a spot where the tunnel narrowed and angled southwest. He could see that the area around the corner was lit by something and he could hear what sounded like two loud voices, but they spoke in a language he did not understand. Pressing himself up against the wall of the tunnel, Danton inched forward, hoping to get a look at what lay ahead (hide: 7+13=20).

When he finally reached the corner, Danton looked around it and saw that the tunnel opened up into another natural cave not far ahead. The cave seemed roughly forty feet long and beyond it another tunnel ran south before ending at a wooden door in a stone wall clearly built by humanoid hands. In the cave itself was a large pit, at least 10 feet across, as well as torches on the walls. The western end of the room had two patches of uprooted, dead fungus mashed into what appeared to be large beds or nests. Between the pit and the nests were two tall, muscular humanoid creatures with scaly greenish hides that looked scarred and pocked from many battles.

Having taken in all this in a moment’s glance, Danton pulled his head back out of sight and slipped back up the tunnel to the others (move silently: 3+23=26).

“What hath thou seen?” asked Sparhawk when Danton returned. “Surely there art no beast in all of Oerth to make thee lose thy tongue, O great philosopher! To all of our detriment, to be sure.”
________________________________________________________________

Notes for turn 79

--Please send postings for Turn 79 by the end of Friday, December 14th.

--Danton has earned enough XP to reach 10^th level. Sparhawk still needs to be raised to 7^th level. Please make the level-up changes, let me know what they are, and send me updated copies of your character sheets.

Current date/time/location: 19 Kolovoz; approximately 1400; The Temple of All Consumption

Items gained this turn: none

Items used/lost/destroyed/sold/left behind this turn: 4 potions of cure light wounds consumed, Danton’s old studded leather armor left behind

Undivided items: none

FOES DEFEATED:

Active party members listed in green.

This Chapter:

Entire Campaign:

Current Status of the Party:

Danton

Hit points: 47/47

New XP: 640

XP total: 45,304

XP needed: 45,000

Equipment: 6 daggers, light crossbow, studded leather armor +1, 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, letter from Hedrack to Terrenygit

Gold: 1025

Silver: 430

Luger

AC: 22

Hit Points: 70/82

New XP: 640

XP total: 42, 054

XP needed: 45,000

Equipment: masterwork heavy mace, chainmail +1, masterwork large steel shield, 3 belt pouches, large bag, 50’ rope, flint & steel, 30 days rations, silver holy symbol of Heironeus, 3 healer’s kits, backpack, cleric’s vestment, traveler’s clothing, 3 waterskins, bedroll, iron triangle with upside down ‘Y’ inside, eight cockatrice feathers, scroll of cure disease, Geistblatt (ghost touch longsword +1), 5 vials of Furyondian Fire, cloak of resistance +1 (+1 to all saves), potions of reduce, nondetection, 2 silver and 2 gold brooches from Woodstock, tattered black cloak with burning eye emblazoned on it, note from Master Hedrack to Master Uskathoth (in Draconic), one largetriangular metal bar and one large diamond shaped metal bar, 2 emerald endants, book on history and worship of Elder Elemental Eye cult, one inverted Y pendant in brown triangles, scroll with remove paralysis and protection from elements, Oamarthis note, 3 books: The Worship of the Elder Elemental Eye, A History of Evil Cults, and The Temple of Elemental Evil, Aseneth’s House Torquann dragon ring, ring of jumping (+30 to jumping checks), 1 iron triangle with inverted ‘Y’,three black cones made of some unknown substance, a black scepter decorated with a half dozen violet gems, metal scroll tube, one inverted ziggurat pendant; scrolls of contagion, greater magic weapon, bracers of health +2, potion of bear’s endurance, scroll of bless, hold person, and dispel magic, 2 pink pearls, large steel shield +1, scroll with neutralize poison and silence, scroll with cure moderate wounds and cure light woundsX2, purple lamp (everburning torch), unknown magic morningstar

Spell Selection:

Level 0 (6):

Level 1 (5+1): Protection from Evil (Domain)

Level 2 (5+1): Aid (Domain)

Level 3 (4+1): Divine Power (Domain)

Level 4 (3+1):

Level 5 (1+1):

Turn Undead attempts left on current day: 7 of 7

Gold: 448

Silver: 0

Syll

AC: 15 (16 versus one opponent)

Hit Points: 46/50

New XP: 640

XP total: 29, 823

XP needed: 36,000

Equipment: Ring of Protection +1, Cloak of Resistance +1, Urrtarr’s spellbook, Masterwork Longsword, backpack, 3 water skins, 30 days rations, bedroll, magnifying glass, 2 flint & steel, 10 candles, map/scroll case, parchment, ink & pen, mirror, oil flask, 40 arrows, clothing, longbow, 1 dagger, sack, 50’ rope, chalk, 5 torches, storm whistle, 5 bells, gold brooch, lamp, black cloak, inverted Y pendant, rose quartz gem, ring of climbing, bracers of health +2, 1/3 of Oamarthis gems, scrolls of Pyrotechnics, Protection from Fire, Animal messenger, Summon Monster II, Change self, Enlarge, Sleep X2, Wand of Monster Summon I (8 charges), potion of water breathing, potion of cure light wounds, potion of lesser restoration, ring of feather falling, wand of fireballs (12 charges; caster level 6), potion of protection from elements (fire), potion of cure moderate wounds (X2), 2 pink pearls, eyes of the eagle (+5 to all spot checks)

Spells per level per day:

Level 0: (6) (6 used)

Level 1: (7) (7 used)

Level 2: (7) (2 used)

Level 3: (6) (6 used)

Level 4: (4) (0 available until can rest)

Gold: 3737

Silver: 42

Sparhawk

AC: 17 (19 when using longsword/shield combination instead of great sword)

Hit Points: 49/60

New XP: 640

XP total: 23,903

XP needed: 21,000

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, 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, 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), two dark vision potions and one strength enhancing wafer from the fungal forest man, 2 pink pearls, suit of chainmail +1, cloak of resistance +1, unknown magic club

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: 0 of 18

Smite Evil used today?: YES

Gold: 333

Silver: 0

Tenaris

AC: 23

Hit Points: 63/66

New XP: 640

XP total: 23,683

XP needed: 28,000

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 wounds, 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, golden dagger, golden necklace, 2 vials Furyondian fire oil

Gold: 507

Silver: 30