Chapter 03: Again, the Brother of Death

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Session Number: 203
Date: Sunday 16 March 2014
Venue: Densial's
PCs & Players:

Breg Rog3/Clr10 (Fergus) (kills: none)
Calico Drd13 (Yeran) (kills: none)
Lionel Rgr6/Wiz1/ArcA6 (Ash) (kills: none)
Rowaine Pal13 (Craig) (kills: none)
Troll Wiz13 (Densial) (kills: none)
Violet Drd13 (Tammi) (kills: none)

XP Awarded: TBA

Calico casts his usual retinue of morning spells, then casts a new spell: Superior Resistance. Breg is interested in looking at the tracks the creature left inside the cavern. He first casts Status on Rowaine, Troll and Lionel, then takes a close look at the Stone Shaped area of floor at the cavern entrance. It still appears safe. He enters.

Inside, stooped over the far left ruined brazier, is a familiar, feral humanoid creature. "It's back!" Breg warns. The creature looks up. "Haaaargh! You return? Fools! FOOLS! Did I not tell you you would die here? If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine!" Lionel moves to the cave mouth. The creature makes no move. Breg casts Magic Circle against Evil, centred on himself.

Init: Monster, Rowaine, Violet, Calico, Breg, Lionel, Troll.

TOR1
The creature keeps a very close eye on Breg. Rowaine moves in front of the dwarf, then whispers "Gather around! I am going to cast a spell." Violet moves towards Rowaine. Calico turns into a legendary eagle and flies inside the cavern near Rowaine. He readies an action to cast Blinding Spittle at the creature should it come into range. Breg casts Life's Grace on Rowaine. "Lady paladin, this will protect you from its evil touch." He then moves to point position. Lionel readies an action to attack if the creature attacks. Troll doublemoves inside.

TOR2
The creature moves to the centre of the cavern and stops, looking at the party intently. It then blurts, "Encased in a crystal prison without a door, but only the first, there are five more!"

"He's said that before," Lionel says.

"May we pass through the door?" Violet asks. "Please?" Lionel adds.

"Haargh! Prove yourself!"

Lionel raises his bow. "Prove yourself worthy to defeat the evilness of Chalychia!"

"I am suspicious," Breg says. "It seems to be wanting to lure us towards it."

The creature spreads its arms wide, inviting violence. Rowaine looks around and casts Divine Protection. Violet climbs higher and begins casting a spell: Sudden Stalagmite. Before it is complete, the creature fixes Violet with an icy, evil stare and says, "Come here, my pretty!" Violet is protected by Breg's Magic Circle against Evil and is unaffected. Violet's spell completes and a stalagmite erupts from the ground. The creature sidesteps and avoids it. Calico casts Blinding Spittle. The ball of empowered saliva splatters over the creature's face and blinds it! He then closes the distance. Breg casts True Seeing on himself, moves twenty feet towards the east wall and looks around. The spell reveals nothing more about the creature or the cavern, although he sees Calico's humanoid form superimposed upon that of the eagle. Lionel steps to the left and fires three arrows. All find their way but are turned by the creature's dessiccated skin. Troll launches a Fireball, but the creature simply ducks behind Violet's stalagmite and avoids the flames. Breg trots forwards.

TOR3
Rowaine charges in with her axe. It is a glancing blow, but fuelled both by Harley's momentum and Moradin's anger it bites deep nonetheless. In reply, the creature launches a flurry of elbows and open-handed chops. Without its sight, half the attacks are aimed at space. The other half land uselessly upon Rowaine's armour. Violet moves towards the west wall and climbs, then casts Call Lightning. A localised storm bursts forth with vertical electrical energy that he creature somehow anticipates and dodges. Calico flies closer and casts Spirit Drawers Jaws. A large, ghostly reptilian skull shoots forth and clamps down on the creature. Its teeth would rend a lesser man… The creature suffers no injury, but is grappled. Lionel stalks deeper into the cavern. Troll Acids the creature, right past Rowaine's ear. The orb hits, acid liquifying skin and flesh.

TOR4
Harley steps in, letting Rowaine's axe fall. Two out of her three blows strike and injure. The creature wriggles free of the jaws then backs towards the wall. Rowaine and Breg launch counterattacks as it leaves: Breg misses, Rowaine hits. The creature narrowly avoids tripping over the wreck of a brazier, saying "Haaargh! Hrmhh! Solve the riddle of swords, the last shard behold!" Violet looks under the brazier the creature stumbled over, but finds nothing that Troll's acid hasn't destroyed. She flies over the creature and tries to rap it on the head with her wand, but her aim is wide. Calico commands his dinosaur head to grapple the creature again. It hits! Again, the creatures's emaciated profile is not harmed by the teeth but is immobilised by its bite. Calico then moves just short of the creature, drops his eagle form, then concentrates on the creature, searching for magical emanations. All the creature's clothes radiate magic.

"How do we get through the door?" Calico asks.

The creature seems conflicted, then in a moment of insane clarity says, "I hold the next shard of True Death, but beware my fiery breath!"

Breg closes and whacks ineffectually at the creature with his mace. Lionel shoots three more arrows: two merely scratch the skin, the third simply bounces off. Troll lobs more acid, striking his target and causing running, goopy burns.

TOR5
Rowaine attacks a further three times and injures the creature, who kicks and punches four times in return. The three on-target blows are again turned by Rowaine's armour. Violet 'casts' Wall of Bear, turning into a dire bear and launching herself off her floundering carpet towards the creature. Both of her slapping claws mark the creature but she cannot find purchase with her massive jaws. She finds her feet nearby. Calico urges his disembodied dinosaur head to pin the creature - successfully. "What are these braziers for?" he asks. Violet-bear growls intimidatingly nearby.

"You may destroy them but it will not help you! Haaargh!"

"Open this door for us!" Calico commands. He is met with maniacal laughter.

Breg misses with his attacks. Lionel decides not to waste any more arrows.

Troll says, "How do we get through the door?" The creature laughs some more. "You can't!" Troll follows up with acid, poorly aimed.

"Let me go," the creature says. "Release me!"

"How do you get through the door?" Troll repeats.

"Let me go and I will tell you!"

"Tell us and we will let you go."

The creature turns gaseous, but is still grappled.

"Gonna shoot you again if you don't tell us how to get through," Troll warns.

The creature assumes solid form once more. "Do your worst. I have … done terrible things!"

"Then do something good."

"What happened at the monastery?" Calico asks.

The creature struggles to get free, and manages to break the pin. Calico repeats the question.

"You cannot bind me!"

Calico attempts to regain the pin and fails. "Did you kill everyone at the monastery?"

"Go to HELL!"

"You can be redeemed if you…" The creature cuts Calico off with more disturbing laughter. It then tries to break the grapple and succeeds, throwing the spiritual jaws to one side. It tries to get through Breg but cannot.

"Lessen the load of your soul," Breg says. "Do something good at your end."

"My soul is GONE…"

"And it will soon depart this world but you have one more chance to lessen your load before you go."

"DO IT!"

"How do you get through the door?"

"FREE ME!"

"You will not be free. Give us the information we need. The door."

"You open it, FOOL! Hahahahahahhhh!"

"How?"

"Give me back my eyes!"

"Your eyes are lost to you."

Calico attempts to grapple it again, and succeeds.

"If you want your freedom in death," Breg says, "Tell us. How does the door open?"

The creature does not answer. Breg notices that its clothing is the same as that of the slaughtered monks back at the Monastery of the Rising Sun.

"You must die," Breg says, "But I will intercede with my god and Sehanine for your soul."

The creature hisses at his words. "Release me. However you will."

"Give us the information we need first."

"I give you NOTHING! Nothing. Chalychia will watch you all ROT!"

"Chalychia has abandoned you and will not succeed."

The creature chuckles. "Do it!"

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