February 14, 1372 finally arrives: a partly cloudy day with the temperature barely struggling up above the freezing point.
By dawn the mansion has been reduced to a pile of smouldering timbers piled over the cellar; cool enough now to dig out Darian, Jesse and anyone else who was pinned in there.
Just after you fish them out, though, Igor admits a young, rather overweight man through the gate. He is in the robes of a cleric of Odin, and he looks rather pale.
He goes to Equinox.
"The High Priest Navan requests that you come to the temple immediately," he says without preamble. "The female prisoner has escaped."
"Well damn," Gilstrock says. "Can I at least try to find thawbreaker yet?"
"Bullshit! How did she get out? We were right there!!!" Al says kicking whatever is near him, which happens to be Gonzo.
"HEEEEY Watch wut youse doin' der!" complains Gonzo.
"Damn! We have to find her!" Al replies as he readies himself to go back to the Temple, with Salaam's remains.
"Al," cautions Equinox, "you may be holding the item that Ryshara is the most interested in reacquiring. We ought to protect that box as much as we are able. If you are going to carry it, then I think you ought to be invisible."
"Okay," is all he replies, "perhaps we should go back to Father Navan and give the box to him."
"Al, if you wish to be invisible, I can do something about it."
"My thanks, Darian.. sure, please do, but if Ryshara has demon blood coursing through her veins, she can probably see invisible beings, but give it a shot. Then I will head straight for the temple to hand over Salaam's remains."
"What makes you think that the temple is a safe place for Salaam's remains? It's only safe if they resurrect him, immediately. After all, if Ryshara could escape from there, she can get back in."
"Frankly, they'd probably be safer with us. If you'd like, I can try to fit the box into one of my pouches."
"I would ask for the priests to bring him back, as he would be most helpful in our journey, especially for those who are going back into Hell," Al retorts.
"If they can do it, great."
Darian casts invisibility on Al.
Niko offers, "I've got a ring that'll help if you want to borrow it, Al."
"Thanks.. but I will take Darien's offer," he replies to Niko, smiling.
"Damn." Jesse says before uttering a long string of words in an unknown language before grabbing what remains of her gear. "Lets go find out what happened." Turning to the messanger, she asks, "Was any of your temple hurt?"
"The two guards were murdered."
"I wonder if she had some help escaping?" Op Code ponders. "How did she manage to escape, if she was under continuous watch?"
The cleric shakes his head.
"I do not know. There do not seem to be any signs of a struggle."
Once Al fades from view, he breaks into a jog, with the box of Salaam's remains carefully tucked in his left arm against his body. He jogs to the temple and looks for the high priest.
"Al, I think you going alone is a very bad idea. I think everyone should go with you. We do not want to lose Salaam again, because Salaam may be able to answer a whole lot of questions for us."
Al stops with a huff. Clearly pissed, but the fear of Thor still fresh in his mind, he returns and says, "well, no time better than the present. Let those eager to search the ruins of Occa's house search, while ethe rest of us go back to the temple."
"I'll stay and search the ruins," Op Code motions.
"I'm going to the temple, I need to do a few things," Orlon replies.
"I can stay here and continue to search. Jesse, you'd better go."
Darian turns to the temple priest. "Did your temple send a messenger to get our other friends?"
Emm remains behind to look for Bubba and any other items that might have survived the fire. Dor goes with those returning to the Temple.
Gilstrock will go looking for Thawbreaker first, his armor second. But he really misses Thawbreaker.
"Frau, can you keep the looters at bay while we're gone?" Gilstrock asks.
"Off course."
"Great. My kind of woman," Gilstrock replies.
"Indeet?" she says, her eyes narrowing speculatively as she eyes Gilstrock.
So, everyone but Op Code, Emm, Darian and Gilstrock head back to the temple...
By some strange temporal twist, Kadlian, Kailar, Aron, Agulhas and Roganna arrive at the temple of Odin at the same time as the MAIN party.
The respective clerical guides lead you down into the lower level of the temple, where Gar and Ryshara were held.
This area consists of a long hallway, one side of which is lined with doors which lead into a series of small meditation chambers. At either end of the hall are doors as well. One leads outside, while another remains closed.
Lying on the floor in one of the meditation rooms is Gargy, still tied up, gagged, and generally immobilised. Kailar and Agulhas immediately mistake him for Occa, the arch mage who leads the MAIN party.
There is no sign of Ryshara.
On the floor before the cell lie the corpses of the two acolytes who were supposed to be guarding the prisoners. Going by the angle of their heads you would say that their necks are broken.
"I have failed you," Navan says to you. "She was more resourceful than we had thought. Not only did she escape and kill two of my disciples, but she also raided the temple treasury, and took some of our richest treasures."
Looking to Kadlian, Aron asks, "Would this be a good time to fill us in?"
"When Occa went to hell, he was killed. Some of the group rescued him, but it wasn't really Occa. It was this Gar creature that is currently tied up.
"Gar teleported the group out of Hell and happened to arrive at a spot near where Zanax was. Zanax approached the group and asked Gar for help, believing him to be Occa. I can't believe he never checked for evil, but maybe Zanax does not do that as a matter of course."
"Zanax asked Occa to teleport him to Hork," adds Robert.
"Anyway, Gar helped Zanax out by teleporting him to somewhere else other than Hork. And Zanax was then occupied by some other demon and polymorphed into his accomplice, this Ryshara thing that escaped."
"Ryshara is Zanax?" asks Kailar.
"Ryshara wears Zanax's polymorped body. I believe Zanax's soul and Occa's soul are kept by Gar's master."
"So, Gar and Ryshara came back to the group and they pretended that she was rescued by 'Occa' when he dropped Zanax off at Hork.
"Somehow, Equinox smelled a rat and got Darian and Gilstrock to go with him to a temple where they paid a priest to cast a commune. They got a bunch of answers and then talked to others in the group. Two more commune's followed and then other investigations until something happened that tipped their hands and Gar and Ryshara attacked the group and set fire to the house.
"That is all I really know."
"Shit!" Al replies, "Ok, Father, can you call upon the power of Odin and resurrect Salaam?"
"I am not of sufficient capability to cast a resurrection," replies Navan. "Orlon?"
"Yes, I can cast Resurrection," Orlon replies. "This is as good a place to do it as any. I just need to pray awhile."
"Great Thor, allow your servant to view the Weave," Al intones as he casts Detect Magic. He then looks at Navan to see if he has the same readings as he saw on Ryshara.
"What kinds of treasures?" Roganna asks gently. "How exactly was the creature immobilized? Gagged, bound and what else?"
"She was tied as gagged when you brought her to us. These poor souls were to watch her, but it appears that they were lax. As for the treasure, a number of very valuable jewelry were taken, as well as several magical swords, some potions and a spell book."
"They are with their god now, and most likely at peace and continuing their calling in a different way. I am sure they were not lax, though perhaps inexperienced with creature such as this. Apparently she, he or it is something we have little understanding of at the moment," Roganna says softly. "What manner of spellbook was this? Something special? or magical?"
"A travelling magic user spell book. A recent donation."
"I wonder if she had outside help," the bard says. "Kadlian, as I recall, your group once owned a crystal ball. I do not know what is needed to operate one, but if we could use it now, we may be able to apprehend this fiend."
"Navan," says Equinox, "I would sure like to know what happened here. Why don't you Raise the guards that Ryshara murdered, or at least cast a spell permitting you to speak with their bodies?"
Navan nods.
"I shall pray for the spells."
"No need to brother Navan," Orlon nods. "I can cast that spell right now. Besides asking them how Ryshara escaped, is there anything else you want asked of them?"
"Actually I was going to pray for raise dead," replies Navan.
He turns and departs.
"Kailar, you have the crystal ball still, right? If you have it on you, please use it. Otherwise, let us go back to the inn and retrieve it."
"Yes, I have it with me. Who would like to use it?"
"I, too, am going to pray for some spells," says Equinox and he follows Navan to find a place to meditate.
Tully says, "Maybe we should search the temple to make sure she isn't here. That would be the last place I would generally look."
Roganna chuckles, looking at Tully for the first time. She lowers her voice in just in case. "Excellent! I've actually heard of tales with those lessons, about hiding in plain sight or doing the absolutely obvious so people will think it is in fact too obvious and would never look!"
He begins searching the temple with Navan's permission.
"Please do so," says the rotund cleric, whose name is Truck.
Roganna helps as well. Again, speaking quietly lest there be ears around she asks, "What shall we look for? Could this creature perhaps impersonate another of the clerics here? Or can it become an animal, like a cat or rat? I suppose some spell might help us, like a detect magic or detect evil, though I no longer have access to such spells. Did this creature show up as detect evil when any of you tried it?"
Tully shrugs. "If she doesn't detect evil, then that won't work. Maybe look for something or someone out of place. She might be a shapeshifter. I hate to point out the obvious again, but has anyone talked to Gar about her? He might know more about her."
"I think they are waiting for special spells that will detect lies before they speak to him. It won't do us much good if he lies to us, and from what I've pieced together, he's lied before concerning her," Roganna replies, continuing the search as best she can.
Tully shrugs again. "Some information is better than none. Even a lie may reveal something."
Roganna turns to Al before he leaves. "Wait Al, you said that this creature showed some odd ... something when you detected her? Is this something you can look for again?"
"She did not emanate any evil per se, more a core of magic. As if she was a magical construct of some sort, of course, the intense magic she was radiating could have covered what evil she may be," he replies, unsure if what he described is really what she is.
When you see Orlon preparing to cast speak with the dead, you put off your searches and listen to the conversation.
Orlon then goes to the corpses of the guards, cast the spell, and begins asking, "How did Ryshara escape?"
One of the corpses whispers, after a long pause.
"We...were...in...the...hall...talking...when...her...door...opened...and...she threw...some...sand...at...us... Suddenly...I...felt...very...tired...had...to...sleep..."
Jesse chews her lip, "Was any one with her? Did you hear any voices in her cell or were you talking too loud? Did either of you loosen her bonds? Did either of you feel any mental compulsions to aid her?"
"Was there anyone else present, beside yourselves, when her door opened?"
"No...one...else...was...there."
"Also, can I assume from your words that she was not bound or gagged anymore?"
"She...was...not...bound...or...gagged..."
Checking her cell, you see her bindings, including Robert's belt and dirty hanky, lying on the floor.
Aron looks at the bindings.
The bindings are undone and intact. Robert retrieves his belt and hanky.
Once the questioning is done, Al goes over to Orlon and says, "Perhaps bringing Salaam back would yield information and aid us in our search?"
"After we are done questioning these guards, I will then pray for a resurrection spell," Orlon tells Al.
Jesse chews her lower lip again before speaking, "Perhaps Drionor, Gonzo and Equinox could go with Kailar, and see if you could find Ryshara with the crystal ball. She is probably invisible, so you may need to factor that into the equation. Do you have teleport memorized? If so, you could go and fetch her hither, alive or dead, I don't think it matters at this point."
She turns to Tully. "You are right Tully, we need to talk to Gar. Al, Orlon, do either of you have those detect lie spells ready? I'd like to go in and talk to the punk now. I'd like Roganna, Kadlian, and Al with me on this. The rest of you, I suggest get back to Occa's mansion, or what remains of it, and protect it. Ryshara may try hard to get back there to get equipment she has left. Where is the equipment we lifted from them? We need to keep that safe. Anyone else have ideas or comments?"
"Yes," replies Equinox, "I am going to go pray for some spells."
When the questioning is done, Equinox retires with Navan, and Orlon goes off to pray for resurrection.
Jesse, Roganna, Kadlian and Al go to interrogate Gar.
Niko, Tully, Robert, Vardui, Gonzo, Dor, Drinor, Kailar, Aron and Agulhas depart.
Jesse, Roganna, Kadlian and Al return to the cell where Gar still sits, bound and tied.
You remove his gag.
Gar says, "What? What happened? I saw the dead guards."
Looking at Gar, Jesse chews on her lower lip for a minute, concentrating on him.
She then speaks. "Ryshara has escaped, and killed two of the guards in the process. Where would she be going, and why did she not take you along?"
"I don't know where she was going. She isn't from this planet, so I doubt she has a set destination. Because she knows that I am not on the same side anymore."
"Tell me again how you two met? I thought that your old buddy had a hand in that," Jesse says, "It seems you might know more than you are letting on. And of course, you want us to loosen your bonds and all in exchange. Am I right?"
"You mean Vrith. Yes, he had her soul. Of course I know more than I have told, but I have made no pretense that I didn't. I wanted a deal with you and instead I get tied and gagged. I don't see much reason to cooperate...I have been honest and it hasn't done much good."
After Al leaves, Jesse purses her lips.
"Gar, the problem is that we need some proof of your sincerity. From where I sit, you're clearly a mercenary, and you are right now blowing with the prevailing wind. You took something that can tip the balance of what we here are fighting for, and that bothers me. So, right now the balance sheet is pretty poor in your favor," the bard says. "I don't have lots of time or patience at the moment. So, if you want a body, and want to live, I can arrange that. In return, you begin to spill more details so that we can stop Ryshara and then deal with your former captor. At the conclusion of this little escapade, you'll get your own body, money as a reward and your freedom to do what you wish."
Gar shrugs. "I am not sure why you feel that way. I didn't harm Zanax...that was more bad luck than anything. Vrith opened a portal to him and he came with me without question. Even when Vrith was stealing his soul, I did not turn on him. And I had little choice in the matter. Either help Vrith or lose my soul again and be bottled up for eternity."
He pauses.
"Also, I have never harmed any in this group. The fireball was Ryshara's. I cannot cast fireball any longer. Well, I guess I did try to hurt Emm. He is very annoying."
"I think you mean Equinox the druid," the bard says.
"Yes. The druid. If I could have, I would have killed him. Now, you can't fault me for being honest, would you? Of course, let me point out that my goal was to leave. I didn't want to harm anyone. In fact, it was you all who attacked me."
Another pauses.
"As for Ryshara, she is a lowly mage who Vrith had captured. He placed her soul within Zanax's body as he placed my soul in Occa's. At best, she can cast up to 3rd order spells. She may also have psionics. I don't expect that finding her would be hard for me. I know her true form and her name. Give me a crystal ball and I will locate her easily enough. The mindblank will have worn off by now.
"Now, I don't want money. I want freedom from all of this. I want revenge against my former patron Hecate and Vrith. I am willing to aid you all. Yes, I am evil, but I am a lawful citizen. I do not break my word if I can help it. And, even if you think I am saying it, I am considering giving up my ways....they have done nothing but betrayed me. Perhaps a new patron is in order. If I could regain my powers, wonderful, I would be of more help to you. If not, then I can still cast a single magic missile spell."
He says no more.
Jesse nods, "I understand your feelings, Gar. I just want us to both be clear. I have you word then, that you will do nothing to harm me or my comrades, and you will assist us in retrieving Occa and Ryshara, if possible. In return, you gain freedom and assistance and revenge."
"You have my word. I will not harm any of you and will do all I can to help you."
"Thank you Gar." the bard says and then proceeds to untie Gar.
"No problem." He rubs his wrists. "Ok. Where is the crystal ball? Let's find Ry."
"Jesse, just one moment, please."
"Gar, my name is Kadlian Lun'Folard and the leader of another group of adventurers that has ties to this one."
Gar nods. "My pleasure."
Kadlian chuckles. "We shall see."
"I have heard pieces of what has transpired over the past few days, but there are things missing. So, I would like you to start at the beginning for us. Occa and his group were in Hell in search of their friend's soul, Salaam and Occa was killed. What happened after that?"
"Occa was captured and taken to Vrith. Vrith took his soul and contained it. He then released me into Occa's body. He said I could be free if I helped him. I said that I would do so, of course. He then told me about Occa, although truthfully, I could feel some of his memories lingering in this body. He gave me a scroll and told me to bring the scepter to him."
A pause.
"He then arranged for me to be found by the party. Along with Salaam's soul so that we could then head back to the surface world. My part was over quickly for I convinced the party to use the scroll. We used it and it opened a gate. Right there before us was Zanax with the scepter. He asked for my help..or rather, Occa's help. I agreed to teleport him to Hork, but instead took him directly to Vrith.
"Of course, Vrith set upon him immediately with his minions. I actually sided with Zanax because I knew the cause was lost. Zanax lost his soul to Vrith's artifact."
"Why did you side with Zanax if his cause was lost? And why did no one suspect you at this point?"
"I saw no harm in it." He shrugs. "I don't know really...no real reason. If I had turned on him, Vrith, would have had an easier time. As for no one suspecting me, what do you mean? You mean in Occa's party? Why would they suspect me?"
"But, in siding with Zanax, did you not make you position with Vrith untenable? What did you have to gain by siding with him?"
"No, of course not. I didn't act against him directly. Even so, what would he care? I brought the man that had the scepter. That is all he cared about."
"I would have thought he would view that as a betrayal. Not very smart when he holds all the cards. Then I am curious by what you mean you sided with Zanax? What did you do?"
"I cast defensive magic to help."
"Did Vrith notice your casting? And what spells did you cast?"
"Probably. It was monster summoning VI.""
"I wonder why no one from Occa's party suspected you considering the ease in which you were 'rescued'."
"It wasn't that easy. They had a battle to fight."
"Yes, but someone told me it was against a very easy opponent. I do not remember what it was they fought, but I just remember someone saying it was a very easy fight. Someone should have wondered at the time why Occa and Salaam were not guarded by demons."
Gar shrugs. "Trogs. Go figure. Maybe they wanted to believe it because hell is no place to be."
Kadlian looks very surprised. "They fought troglodytes!? And no one thought that odd? Who was in the group that found you?"
"I think they did. However, they found 'Occa' and Salaam, so were happy.
"Vrith then took the scepter. I asked what he wanted it for and he said that he had a buyer for it. He would not tell me who. However, he did ask if I wanted a bodyguard. I said, of course. He put Ryshara's soul into the body of Zanax. I then polymorphed him into her true form...that of a drow. We then modified it a bit till she is what you saw. We then rejoined the party."
"I determined later with the help of the mage in your group that ithe buyer was Hecate. I travelled to see Hecate to find out what she had planned. She took away my powers for my pride. Of course, for this, I hold the utmost contempt for her and will one day destroy her. Anyway, I have some other theories on this, but I am not sure of the relevance at this point."
"Which mage helped you?"
"I can't remember her name. She has multiple personalities."
"Ah, Rage."
"Does that answer your question?"
"Mostly. Thank you."
"No problem."
The conversation peters out.
It is late morning when Orlon, Al, Navan and Equinox rejoin Jesse, Roganna and Kadlian with Gar.
Things seem to be pretty comfortable between the latter four of them, now.
The clerics and druid all have their spells set and are ready for anything.
It is around noontime when Jesse, Roganna, Kadlian, Orlon, Al and Equinox return to the house. With them is Gar, now ungagged and untied.
They find the others hard at work clearing debris from what remains of the house, under the strict supvision of Frau Hilda. Also with them is Aron.
Once the group is gathered and you begin to question Gar again, Al casts his first detect lie spell.
Jesse speaks.
"Hi folks. We need to round up Darian before heading over to meet up with Kailar, so we can use the crystal ball to search for Ryshara. She is a low level mage, capable of no greater than 3rd order spells, at least as best our information is to date. Gar here thinks he can tune into her on the crystal ball, and with Darian around, we should be able to pinpoint her. She may have psionics and that may be how she escaped."
"That is pleasant!" Al says sarcastically. "So, let's go. I can cast detect lie when Gar seeks out Ryshara with the crystal ball. What kind of deal to you make with the demon and how do you know he will keep it?"
"Hey, screw you Paladin! I am no demon...what a dork."
Jesse frowns.
"How does anyone know when they make an agreement?" the bard replies, "At some point, one must offer equal trust to others. Gar has agreed to assist us in getting Occa and Zanax's souls back, in getting at Ryshara, and helping to get Vrith and Hecate, if possible, as well as bringing no harm to the group. In return, he gets his freedom, his revenge, and money to reestablish himself. If you do not want his assistance, that is your choice."
Kadlian replies, "Jesse has made a deal with Gar. I have done nothing but ask questions which he gave me answers for. I detected no inconsistencies in his answers, but that does not mean he was truthful."
"Jesse also wanted to 'make a deal' with Ryshara, way back when," says Equinox, "What is the deal you have now made with Gar, Jesse?"
"Excuse me?" the bard says before throwing up her hands. "Whatever."
Kadlian frowns. "Equinox, she told you about the deal she made with Gar. So, I suggest you start with the detect lie spell, Al and determine that all he has told us is true. That is what we are going to do, is it not, Jesse?"
"Hey, I am right here." Gar says, waving his hands above his head. "No need to speak about me like I am not here. Besides, I was truthful."
"My apologies, Gar. From their attitude, it is apparent that they distrust you greatly. If I appear to share that attitude, my words will be listened to."
He shrugs. "I guess I can't blame them. However, no need to be rude."
"Also, Jesse, I remember something about Hecate that might be important. When we were recovering the artifact, we encountered a female vampire that was a priestess of Hectate. It appears that she was guarding it, although it was quite unclear if the devils that we met in the next room were part of the vampire's guards or not. Anyway, she said something to Rage that was quite disconcerting at the time."
"She said that Rage was fated to become a servant as Hecate."
Gar speaks up. "She is being wooed by Hecate. She confessed that to me."
"So, I find it strange that Hectate wanted the Sceptre again, when it seems like she could have had it long ago."
"Perhaps, perhaps not. She may not have been able to bring it to her in hell."
Gar staggers for a moment. He shakes his head and says hastily, "Hecate just contacted me. She wants me to trick you. I told her to piss off. I want you all to know that, in case she kills me remotely. She is behind all of this!"
He seems slightly worried.
"Loverly," is all Jesse says.
"Why? When she could have had the Sceptre at any time from her female vampire?" asks Kadlian.
Gar shrugs.
"I would hazard a guess that the scepter needed to be released by mortals. Similar to the legend of Excalibur, the magic sword that only Arthur could pull from the stone, but once out, anyone could use it," Jesse says.
Gar staggers again. "We must make haste back to hell. Vrith likely has the scepter yet. We may be able to get it before it falls into the wrong hands as well as save your friends Occa and Zanax."
"Let's find Ryshara and then depart to hell quickly!"
You grab the unwitting Darian, and then all go marching back into the city, to the Inn of the Drunken Dwarf, to seek out Kailar and his crystal ball.
They find Niko, Dor, Kailar and Agulhas, along with Kadlian's remaining followers, in the common room, just finishing lunch.
Niko nods to Kadlian and the others, as his mouth and hands are currently occupied with food.
After a few chews, Niko asks Kadlian, "Did you find her? And when do we ship out?"
"No, and I do not know, yet."
"Kailar, we need to borrow your crystal ball, please."
"We're wasting time. If we have to go to Hell, let's go."
Niko snorts. "You wouldn't be so eager to go if you had been there before."
Kadlian shakes his head at Aron. "Our team is not going. Jesse's team is."
"Going to hell is not like going to the market, Aron. There is lots of preparation that needs to go on, including the mode of transport there,"
Jesse says, "If we don't plan properly, we die, and that is a very bad thing to happen there. We still need information."
"Kadlian," Equinox speaks up, "I have no interest in returning to Hell, and Thor told me to go North. I would like to go with you again."
"Yes, you said so yesterday. And I told you then, as I will tell you now, I need to talk to the rest of the group before that happens. And a large part of the group is still in Strabath. You will have to be patient."
"Since I accomplished my mission in helping recover Salaam, I would like to join Equinox, as Thor commanded the same of me as well," Al says to Kadlian.
Al then turns to Gar.
"And I am not a Paladin, you demonic wind bag, and you are evil. The only reason you still exist in this plane is because Jesse thinks you will play nice. Please give me a reason to prove her wrong!" Al says as he stares right into Gar's eyes.
Gar smiles. "When I was at full power, I would have never tolerated such talk from the likes of you. Now, it seems I must. Not sure if being 'good' is all it is cracked up to be. Anyway, I don't have the power to do anything, so count yourself lucky. However, I should warn you that if my conversion isn't successful that you are #389 on my shit list. Also, I should tell you that the first 385 on my list are likely dead from old age since I haven't been on this world for over 600 years."
He shrugs. "So, maybe you will get your reason. Until then, I am here to help get your friends back."
Jesse chuckles.
Gar moves forward, "Let me see the crystal ball."
Kailar looks questioningly at Kadlian.
"I thought he was a bad guy."
"Was being the operative word. Gar is trying to prove himself to be a friend. Give him the chance."
"I am a 'bad' guy, but I am trying to not be since I know what the final payout is going to be. Besides, we can help each other so working together makes a great deal of sense."
With some hesitation, the gnome produces the crystal ball and hands it over to Gar.
Gar stares into it, trying to locate Ryshara.
Niko finishes his meal and checks his equipment while the others look at the crystal ball.
After some minutes of intense concentration he gives up. All he was able to get was static...which eventually cleared up after a fashion to show an infomercial for Abslide. Apparently Ryshara must either be dead, magically protected from scrying or in a location that is protected from scrying.
"So much for that," says Robert. He then turns to Orlon. "Are you ever going to try to resurrect Salaam?"
"Any luck with the salvaging of any of the equipment?" Al asks, frustrated that their momentary success hinges on a "reformed" demon.
"We're working on it," replies Vardui. "It will take several days to dig it all out."
"Let's do the deed," Orlon smiles.
Al takes out the container. It is a small gold box. Embossed on it are the words 'Some stupid cleric of Thoth'. Opening it, you see inside the Soul of Salaam: a glowing field of energy in the shape of a large, erect penis.
Orlon pulls out some holy water, waves his holy symbol around and prays to have Salaam resurrected.
However, nothing happens. The high priest slowly realises that an actual physical part of Salaam's body is required for the resurrection to work. All you have is his soul, which is not material.
It looks like a wish will be required to bring back Salaam.
Jesse addresses the gathered members of both groups. "Kadlian, when will Hlarn return? It seems we should gather tomorrow and discuss our plan. I would like to have your group with us, a quick hit with lots of power all at once should help make our task at hand in short order. "
"Not for another two weeks. He only left two days ago."
"Where did he go? This is probably important enough to try to call him back."
"Dwardarf," answers Kadlian. "I do not know if he has made it. And while I am not unfamiliar with the area, I do not know where exactly he went."
She pauses before continuing. "If we are to work together with Kadlian's group, we need a clear understanding of our goals and how best to integrate our two forces. There can be no ego's going on this trip, as that will defeat us surely as the demons will. We will need to use everyone's skills to the best ability. That we can discuss in greater detail tomorrow when the rest of Kadlian's forces are assembled, but perhaps a few of us can sit down and begin to plot out some strategy."
"The goals of this operation are as follows. (1) recover Occa's Soul, (2) Recover Zanax's soul and (3) recover the scepter. I feel the recovery of the two lost souls is of more importance than the recovery of the scepter. From what we have learned, one is not useful without the other two," Jesse says, ticking off points on her fingers.
Kadlian nods. "I can live with that order."
"In the more immediate term, we have a salvage operation to undertake, to get any lost equipment from the house we can so that we can see what material we have for a proper raid. We also need to see what we can find on this demon, from what Gar has told us, and see if we can find his weaknesses. And this magical device he has, Gar, how does it work? Can he capture multiple souls at once? Or is it a single soul at a time? Also, can you provide us with a layout of this fortress?"
"I don't know how it works but I think it only affects one person per round. I cannot provide a layout of the fortress, unfortunately."
Jesse turns to Emm. "Emm, can I have the items that were taken from Gar and Ryshara? I suspect Ryshara's items were at one point Zanax's and we can confirm that with Kadlian's group here."
"Her items were Zanax's. I identified them so I can tell you what they do."
Emm hands over the items with a wry smile. "I hope this doesn't become a habit," he says to no one in particular.
"If she had a holy avenger, than certainly. I believe he also had a ring of invisibility. I am not sure what other magical items he carried, but I can check with the others."
"I am sure we didn't take a holy avenger...we both would have been burned."
"Zanax lost the Holy Avenger, when the Mestom agents attacked us in the ruins. He had a Frost Brand, a ring of shooting stars and boots of levitation I think. Not that I keep track of what other people have or anything."
"I thought he simply was not allowed to use it. Do you remember what happened to it?"
"I think he hit a Mestom agent that had an anti-magic field up and it lost all magical properties."
"Ah. I had forgotten about that."
Next, the bard faces the followers of Thor, Al and Equinox. "Al, Equinox, can you put off your quest for Thor for a few days? Recovery of these souls is of paramount importance, in my opinion, and then we will separate and recover the other two items, so that we can control them."
Jesse turns to her husband. "Do we have a way to get a wish cast? It may be better to wait a few more days to get Zanax and Occa back and use one wish for all three of them. Again, from what I hear, RayJay is out of town, and I don't know if we can get a hold of Stiff at this point, although, if we could, he would be a most valuable asset. I know he said he wanted to retire, and was tired of running around the world, but his help would be tremendous. Anyone know how to contact him?"
"We could scry him and see if he notices."
"Please try, Kailar."
"After we recover the still intact equipment from the mansion, I can check Occa's scrolls... I don't have the ability nor any scroll. And I don't know how to get in touch with Stiff. Orlon, you're a good friend of his. Can you contact him?"
"Not directly, without knowing exactly where he is, and then I have to be familiar with the area. The crystal ball may be your best bet," Orlon replies.
"The only other option I can think of is to locate Stiff in the crystal ball and then teleport to his location. But, I've never used a crystal ball and I don't know if Kailar remembers what Stiff looks like."
"I think I have an idea on how to reach Stiff."
Niko rolls his sleeve up a bit to reveal a wrist communicator "Come in Hardboard."
Niko gets no answer.
Kailar moves to Niko to examine the item on his arm.
"What is that? What does it do? Where did you get it? Can you get more? Who made it? Was it a wizard or a priest? How many charges does it have? Is it an artifact? It looks new. What's a Hardboard? Is that the command word?"
Niko regards the gnome. "It's a communicator. It allows people to communicate over vast distances. It was made for me by the spaceship of Hardboard...a mage and former member of Occa's group. It's not magical and there is no command word."
Gar says, "Did you say spaceship?"
Niko shrugs. "Something like that...maybe he said skyship...all I know is that we were able to travel tremendous distances in a very short time."
"Could I go there?" Gar asks excitedly. "One of those things was discovered during my time."
"I think that does it at the moment. Any thoughts?" the bard says, looking around at the mass of heros.
"I don't believe I will be at all useful on this venture. Is there something I could do here that might bring about our goals?"
"You do not think your illusions would affect the fire giants?"
"Fire Giants.... Probably. Devils and the like, not much chance of that."
"If you could occupy one giant with your illusions, your presence would be worth it."
"Yes," says Equinox, "I have a suggestion. And," he adds after a pause, "a worry. We are placing a lot of faith in Gar here. No offense, Gar, I do not want to get any higher on the Shit list. But if we ALL go down to Hell, together, to a room and place chosen only by Gar, Gar might come to the conclusion that he might receive greater benefit by turning us ALL over to Vrith than by helping us deal with Vrith. In order to protect against that, we should create a safety net. Like, for example, if we can get a Wish cast, have the Wish triggered to teleport us all, fully healed and souls intact, back to Thor's Temple in this city should Gar betray us?"
Gar says, "No offense taken...a wise idea. However, I wouldn't limit to betrayal by me or anyone for that matter. Make it simple so that it will be a catch all in the event everyone dies."
He pauses for a moment. "You know...I know this might be farther than you are all willing to go in trusting me, but you might want to consider using me to trick Vrith. Something to consider."
"Mercenaries. Gar is right, we are going to need cannon fodder."
"Kadlian, you are talking about people going to the planes of hell and probably dying. Do you think many mercenaries will sign up for that? Do you think they would be trustworthy in the heat of the battle? We should also not refer to them as cannon fodder. I would be unlikely to assist someone who places little or no value on my life."
"They will likely sign up if they are offered enough money. And they will be trustworthy if they know we are there only way back home. It is worth a try. They have to know that we would not be going if we did not think we would make it back."
"We might make it back, but will they? Referring to them as cannon fodder infers that their lives are expendable. "
Gar rolls his eyes. "Ask any mercenary how expendable they are...they are realists; not idealists like you."
Jesse laughs. "Agreed. We will consider that option, but I am not inclined to hire outside help."
Kadlian chuckles. "We will not refer to them as cannon fodder in the negotiations. And I would not treat them as such, either. But, we do need people to occupy all our opponents. Otherwise, we risk being overwhelmed by sheer numbers."
"Any transmuters or conjurers in this group? We could build an army fairly quickly."
"I'm a sorcerer, Gar. What did you have in mind?"
"Summoning and conjuring spells. Polymorphing of horses, dogs and the like into creatures that we can use. That sort of thing."
"Kailar can do polymorphing, so can Rage."
"Great. Horses, dogs, cats, rats....I will make a list of good possible creatures. Does anyone have any control scrolls or potions?"
"You probably should wait until the rest of my group is here. Other than Kailar, all our mages are in Strabath."
"Very well," Gar says.
"That's a 4th order spell. I can manage to cast a few of those. Plus, if we can get Stiff to join us, he can cast a few of those monster summoning spells of high order."
"Say, Kailar...can you cast Shadow Monsters? If so, you could load up on those kinds of illusionist spells..."
"Also, I know there are limitations to the teleport spell in regards to weight. Is there a limitation to this enhanced teleport spell?"
"Yes, there is. Does anyone have a teleport spell?"
Darian shakes his head. "Not at this moment, although I'm capable of casting it. What did you have in mind? The teleport without error spell is beyond me, however."
"Kadlian, to answer your earlier question, the 'enhanced teleport' spell is limited by the same weight restrictions as the regular teleport spell. Since I'll be reading it from a scroll, I'm assuming the spell is as powerful as the person who penned the scroll. However, even if Ray Jay penned the scroll, it's unlikely we'd be able to take everyone as they are, presently. We'd need a way to reduce the weight. The way we used to do it with Occa or Stiff was to climb inside the portable hole. Of course, that poses problems if we intend on teleporting right into Vrith's inner chambers. We should come in, somewhere close, but hidden from immediate sight."
Tully says, "I have a portable hole."
"That's great!"
Gar says, "We could always go in where I was found. However, you should know that we aren't sure where that is...we would have to find Vrith. It would mean a dungeon crawl most likely."
"That could be a problem. We're likely to attract attention and allow Vrith time to prepare. Do you know of anyplace close to him?"
Gar pauses, then says that he did not recall seeing any alcoves or anything. For that matter he never saw the full dimensions of the chamber, for its extremities were lost in darkness.
Gar says, "I could try to scry down there, but Vrith might detect it."
Darian nods. "He probably would. I'd advise against it."
Jesse takes in all the information. "OK, so we'll meet back here in the morning to talk with Kadlian's group about joining us. The rest of us will head over to the house to continue salvage operations. I'm going over to do some more research at the guild to see what I can find that will help us. If we can find Stiff and see if he'll join us, that would be great too."
Darian moves over to the crystal ball. "Kailar, may I try and find Stiff?"
"Certainly."
Kailar hands the crystal ball to Darian.
"Thank you."
Darian stares at the crystal ball intently and tries to find Stiff.
An image of the arch-mage refuses to form.
He hands the crystal ball back to Kailar.
"I will go, even if the rest of my group decides against it."
"Kailar, see if you can Hlarn on your crystal ball. While we cannot send someone after him right now, when Rage and the others return tomorrow, we can try then."
Kailar scries for Hlarn.
An image forms in the crystal ball. The gnome sees Hlarn the dwarf trudging down a snowy, slush covered road, which runs through a heavy forest.
"As for Equinox's suggestion, a wise idea, and I suggest he and Al investigate the cost and feasibility of this option," Jesse says with a nod to the druid.
Jesse takes the items from Emm, and turns to Gar. "What can you tell us of these items? The ones that were Zanax's should go back with Kadlian's group, while we will return yours to you when the time is right, okay?"
Kadlian nods. "Thank you, Jesse. I appreciate that."
Gar says, "This is what I know:
Plate Mail (protects better than full plate + shield)Large Shield +? (protects)
Long Sword, Frost Brand +3/+6 (detect good/evil and precious metals)
Dagger +?
Ring of Water Walking (Ring of Water Elemental Command - need to slay
water elemental by himself to activate)
Ring of Shooting Stars (Fairie Fire and Sparks - other abilites not known)
Ring of Invisibility - originally Damius'
Boots of Elvenkind
As for my stuff it is:
2 potions of fire resistancea folded handkerchief - a well of many worlds
ring of detect lies (not worn)
ring of invisibility
dagger of venom
sheet of smallness
wand of metal/mineral detection
ring of wizardry
scroll with an active sepia snake sigil on it
Spell books
book - a portal to the abyss
5 coins with continual light
crystal rod of cancellation
Scroll: chain lightning
scroll
That is it."
He finishes. "Any questions?"
Drinor speaks up. "If we are going to Hell, will I need a magical weapon in order to damage the creatures there? If so, I'll need to borrow one for the duration of our trip."
"Good point," says Emm. "Bubba became inanimate when we were there last. I too will need to find something magical on that plane. Assuming everything didn't burn up."
"That is going to be tough. No one is selling magical weapons in this town due to the war down south."
Robert smiles.
"I'm sure there's lots of weapons in the community chest...if it survived."
With that, the gathering breaks up. The party led by Jesse, Orlon et al head back to the house. Kadlian's group goes and gathers their things for a trip to Strabath.
Jesse heads over to the mage's guild. The rest of you return to the house and resume the salvage operation. Al remembers that he has a lot of atoning to do, and so gets on with it.
It is late afternoon when Kailar, Sian, Aron, Roganna, Kadlian, Dor, Malvis, Rage, Niko and Carburator arrive at what was left of Occa's mansion. They see what amounts to a large hole in the ground in which a pile of charred timbers and scorched bricks have collapsed...evidently the remains of what was once a fine mansion. Many people are working at sifting through the wreckage and sorting through the debris...but it is clear that they have their work cut out for them.
Jesse and Gar are not present.
Gilstrock stands up and wipes the sweat off of his brow.
"Hello everybody," he says. "We're just trying to find as much of our old stuff as we can so that hopefully our trip to Hell won't go to hell."
Kadlian looks at the mansion. "What a mess. How long is it going to take until we can go, then?"
Rage looks over the ruins.
"What happened here?" she asks.
"Have you considered using a reduction spell to reduce parts of the rubble, or a levitate, to raise it at all?"
Darian appears out of the rubble, covered in soot. "I thought about reduction spells, but it didn't really seem useful. Most of the heavy timbers are easily moved by Gilstrock and Gonzo and trying to reduce anything else didn't seem worthwhile."
"As far as levitation goes, I hadn't really thought of it. Lots of the rubble might be easier to deal with if we could levitate it. I haven't had the chance to memorize any new spells in the past few days."
"Darian, I have brought those who will storm Hell with me. Where is Jesse and Gar? I thought we should start our planning session as soon as we can."
Darian nods. "Mage's guild, both of them. But, we didn't expect your group to be here until tomorrow."
"If you've got free time, we could use the help."
Niko goes to help, hoping they can reach the basement safely later today.
Dor and his horse start helping to clear debris.
"Let's see who can move the most. You or me," he says to the horse.
"Nay," says the horse, and gets to work.
Kadlian looks at his group and shrugs. "Seems I misunderstood their urgency. Those that do not wish to help, secure rooms at the Inn of the Drunken Dwarf. I will help them here and join you later."
Those who leave, leave. Those who stay get to work, and toil until nightfall.
It is late evening before Jesse and Gar return.