Elain says before we enter "Thumps can you tie the dragon up, don't want him escaping while we are in there"
He looks at Melgrom in the daze of the charm spell (assuming it is still up), defiant "No, I won't swear. If this is sacred ground to giants it should be destroyed, and I will be the one to destroy it...that I swear."
Urth, immediately you realize there is a door to the south that is jammed due to a solid ice wall. You also note 2 secret doors hidden in the stone work back near the way you came in. Finally, you see many iron sconces around the room that could perhaps assist in lighting the area if desired.
Harshnag looks down at Urth, then to the frost giant statue, then shrugs and puts his greataxe in its hands. Nothing happens.
He grumbles "Hmm, I had not heard of this...portal. Those are the ancient runes, from before Ostoria...wait, I know that one...Ise...'Ice'." pointing to the lower right rune. "And these must be the Sons of Annam the All-Father. Grolantor, of the hills...Skoraeus of stones, Thyrm of frost, Surtur of fire, Memnor of cloud, and Stronmaus of storm..."
Illuvin frowns when his new warlord buddy expresses such a negative opinion of sacred ground of giants. "Just because some giants are causing mayhem doesn't mean you have to destroy a holy place. But if that is your attitude..."
Turning to Sohar, "What do you think? Even if we escort them out of here it seems they will return with I'll intent. Oh, and Mr. Warlord, why don't you tell us the truth about why you are here"
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"Nature has a balance that must be preserved and all play a part in that," Sohar responds to the dwarf's queries.
...he suddenly changes his tone, a hint of genuine sadness "Understand ...one of our member was taken by ice spiders, we've tracked them here."
At this, Harshnag interjects "Impossible. The temple would not tolerate vermin. Your tracking skills have led you astray, and now many of your 'member' are fallen."
"How would the temple stop the ice spiders, Brother Harshnag?"
"Sohar, what now?"
Turning to Sohar, "What do you think? Even if we escort them out of here it seems they will return with ill intent."
The shift in mood nonplusses Sohar for a moment who does not expect any decision-making to fall to him. But he takes a deep breath and replies, "Clearly we cannot allow them to enter. Perhaps if we find their comrade, they will leave peacefully. They were unable to enter before we arrived. In the meantime, I can watch over them and the youngling, I suppose."
Elain says before we enter "Thumps can you tie the dragon up, don't want him escaping while we are in there"
"Not sure the Dragon is happy with that idea."
No, elain is petting the creature, one hit away from death tho
Urth walks around the giant hall igniting the many iron sconces around the room, "there is a door to the south that is jammed behind a solid ice wall. There's also two secret doors hidden in the stone work back where we came in."
Melgrom looks the warlord squarely in the face, glaring at him.
"Then it would be best if we just kill you now, cause if you come back and desecrate this place, it wont just be you who is killed, your entire tribe and probably many others will be as well, and your name would be cursed by your tribe and all others for the sheer stupidity of your act and your spirit will find no rest in the afterlife, is this what you want, for your people to be hunted by giants and your name to be cursed?"
Illuvin, "No, friend, not 'just because' of that...but because every giant is my ritual enemy. Such is true for every Uthgardt, decendents of the slayer of Gurt. I came to find our tribe member, plunder the treasures of this place, and destroy the rest."
Sohar, you recall that Ice Spiders are a much hairier version of normal giant spiders, typically white with red eyes. Their webs are sticky like their forest cousins, but it is the stick like the way a hand might stick to frosty iron, not the usual mucus secretions.
Harshnag responds "...our gods are not dead, nor distant. Legend has it there are guardian forces that cleanse the Eye of the All-Father..."
The dragonling screeches "Svabol re wux...gethrisjir ekess tir mrith astahi? ...Svabol di ve?"
Urth, as you go around lighting the sconces, you notice that simply touching your flame to the sconce alights some kind of magical flame in its place, providing light and warmth just like a real flame.
To the warlord, "So what would you and your berserkers do to my companions and I if we let you loose right now?"
Whispering to whoever is nearby, "Nothing good will come of letting them leave this place alive."
At Melgrom's comment, something surges inside the barbarian, flushing his face with burning fire. Illuvin's spell is perhaps the only tenuous bindings holding him back... "You know nothing of the North or my people." he states simply. "Let the giants come to me, yes...I will not waste energy in the hunt and find a greater strength in my axe. Let my name be cursed, yes...when the invading settlements are burning the women and children will cry my name from their trembling lips...Wormblod!!" he shouts defiantly, his name, perhaps.
Illuvin, at your question he seems to struggle with the answer "You are strong warriors for having subdued my men...and our shaman. But you wield magicks and travel with giants, we will never be allies..." there is awkward pause before "...but...perhaps we could remain friends..." Hard to tell if that's just the spell talking or what.
"....Did you say your name was wormblood?"
He nods, shouting proudly "Wormblod, chieftan of the Great Worm Tribe."
Wormblood starts to glow to Melgroms site as he lifts his heavy Xbow and unloads a pair of bolts into him.
"Kill the bloody fool, if the rest do not struggle leave them, but Wormblood dies, he is nothing more then a bloody fisted tyrant"
Illuvin feels the spell's link to Wormblod fade, as the berserker rages, blood spurting from his huge heaving muscles "Rrrrrg!!!"
...but Melgrom's bolt mustve severed a tendon, and all the muscles in the world can't budge Thumps' restraints. He snaps out at Melgrom, biting, uselessly.
Illuvin looks on in sadness that the warlord is so set in his ways. Flinching with each twang of the crossbow he turns and strides into the room with the statues to observe the runes. "Anyone have any idea what these say? I can cast a spell that will divine the meaning to me but it will take a while. Feel free to explore while I do so." With that he digs out a book from his pack and flips through a few pages. Finding the one he wants he sits and begins chanting.
Looking down at his crossbow and shakes his head and drops it to his chest and instead takes out his axe.
"You have garnered no honour here Wormblood, may yeh god look on you in disgust for you crimes against the goodly folk."
Melgrom then proceeds to kick him to the ground, heft his axe and behead Wormblood.
The other bound warriors struggle in the bonds and within the thorny brambles in protest, but its hopeless. The great chieftain's head tumbles down the steps of the Eye of the All-Father...
Melgrom proceeds to clean his axe of the blood.
Who knows what this death will bring. The other barbarians try to flee as fast as they can, despite the pain of the thorn brambles and the restraints (rolling if necessary). They will be out of sight back towards the entrance in a few moments if left alone.
Melgrom attempts to grab one before they get to far.
"Now were do you think your going lad, we ain't finished talking yet."
...Melgrom, they are at your mercy; you successfully grab one. He struggles in your hands, still trying to get away.
"Oh settle down already, I ain't gonna kill yah, all I wanna know is how in the bloody name of moradins hairy ass did yous get the hatchling!"
Melgrom shakes him for emphasis.
"...when...when dark elves overran the orcs allied with Arauthator in Nesme, we plundered the ruins and found the snowy egg there among the orc treasure..."
"Oh bloody hell...."
Melgrom just shakes his head as he mulls over this new info mation, he then cuts the barbarian free of his bindings while kicking him towards the exit.
"Go on, get outta here and don't even think about coming back!"
Elain strokes the dragon and says "there is a new master now"
"In a momentus show of bad decision making, the wyrmling already considers you it's master and would like to know what your plans with it are." Illuvin shakes his head as he walks towards the archway. "Harshnag will you give me a boost up to the runes? This magic requires me to touch writing to understand it."
When the chieftain says his name Thumps moves quietly to the back of the group and makes a start to be nonchalantly blending into the shadows rapier drawn but he notices Melgrom's actions and looks to Sohar to gauge response. When the death strike hits, he nods approvingly, "Ya know Tymora is not exactly a blood and justice sort of deity but I think that broke the right way."
Molok walks over to the dwarf and, looking down on him, rumbles.
"You have no honor. You kill a bound warrior like he was a pig. You are a coward and I will have nothing to do with you...begone little dwarf and crawl back into your dank, dark caves."
The gloiath turns and walks away from the dwarf, his anger barely in check.
Elain speaks Draconic, and says to the dragon "Will you wait out here while we go inside?"
Melgrom turns his head and spits at Moloks comment.
"Bastard deserved no honor and you can be sure as anything that he would of done the same thing to us, theirs a line being Honorable and being stupid and you better learn it bloody fast if you think risking your companions lives just so a mass murdering tyrant has chance for a "Honorable" death."
As Illuvin touches the rune, a great bellowing fills the halls...a deep resonant "HUR HUR HUR!!!!" like an incredibly stupid person laughing...
Harshnag holds his ears and rolls his eyes, grumbling.
Hearing the creepy laughter, Melgroms head shoots up to search for the source, hands instinctively shooting to his crossbow.
"Great, now what."