"Is there a nice large concentration of them for Celestia to light up?"
Celestia steps forward, Prefferably of frsot giants, I know they'll enjoy the heat... she chuckles, almost maniacally.
Chill turns and gives the first grin Celestia has seen from him.
That is the word of truth. They are not fond of warmth.
He turns back and continues, drawing a dagger.
With a flick of her Rod Celestia starts the battle off with a bang. A bead of flame flies forward, landing in the middle of the tents on the east side, Quickly joined by a huge ball of flame from the sky falling apon the heads of the other tents. Both flames burst simultaneously, Each a prime example of their respective magics as flame so intense it could melt steel washed over the camp for but a moment, Igniting the cloth tents and setting any supplies aflame.
Celestia laughs, twirling her whip around herself, having fun once more. By the gods it's been years since I've last seen that! she says gleefully.
Seeing the devastation, Tetro in a clear voice commands the party. His words may be heard by Black-Ice, but their true power is not for the frost giant.
"Charge fast, charge hard! Seek and destroy any enemy spellcasters!"
As amber flame erupts in a cyclone of fiery light, you don't even hear screams till the flames die out. Even from this distance you can smell burnt flesh and earth, and a slight wave of steamy air reaches you as you approach.
Those voices you do hear are mostly the panicked sounds of mammoths and two howling wolves. As you charge down towards the camp, all you see is a charred hole in the snow and ice with steam obscuring vision for a moment longer. Entering what remains of the camp you see almost twenty large burnt skeletons and three severely burned frost giants.
Two of them look up as you charge in, and they holler in fear and, grabbing the other survivor, drag her towards the mammoths and wooly rhinos, clearly attempting to escape.
Tetro announces to the party:
"Capture them if you can! We can ask a few questions!"
Unless the others are determined to kill the fleeing giants, they're captured.
You maneuver to surround the runaways, and despite their size freeze once realizing they are surrounded. One of the males, a warped specimen of its kind, frowns down at you, throwing his greataxe over your heads and thus dramatically out of reach.
"Do you count a dragon among your allies?" He grunted, trying to readjust his stance despite carrying an ally and his legs being horrifically twisted and malformed. "I will only speak to it or to your leader. Otherwise I say nothing."
Svartokshe smirks at the giant. "I don't remember the last time you were so submissive, Graff."
Graff started at Svartokshe's voice, glaring into the human's eyes. "You dare challenge us, Black-Ice?" The giant - Graff - turns to you all once again. "I change my terms. He leaves or we say nothing."
Tetro turns to Black-Ice at Graff's words:
"I will be happy to speak with them."
Once Black-Ice is clearly gone, Tetro will turn to the three.
"Black-Ice spoke of you as his rivals. Whom do you serve? And where are they now?"
Celestia chuckles at the comment about a dragon, thinking of the camparison herself...
She doesn't speak but she does consider the group. If they where so pittiful as to be routed by her spells she might have waisted her power... Ah, so long as this day goes by without needing another rain of hellfire all should go well...
However, she considers those that lived and wonders if this was the other party sent to retrieve the torc, or perhaps this was some third unknown...
Chill stands ready. If the giant acts in a way that is hostile, it will regret it, briefly.
While watching he muses to himself, that went well.
Graff puffed out his chest. "We serve our eternal master, the Deathless Frost. He has finally learned of the Torc's hiding place and has sent his servants to collect it for him. He has promised to reward those who return it to him."
"Svartokshe is one of his favored servants, as is our group's leader. However, that does little to garner lasting favor with Kostchtchie. He will pit his servants against each other, as he has now. This task has been made a contest by our master. All his powerful servants have been informed of this hunt and many have converged on this location."
"Our leader, Ferric, has already gone ahead to recover the Torc. He left us here to guard the entrance, as he learned that a white witch had entered the Veil already. We are - were - to intercept her should she try and escape this way."
Celestia steps away from the group, going to examine her handywork with the chared skeletons...
As she does she pulls out a large onix and examines one of the giant skeletons... Looking for a warrior among them... Once she finds one that seemed like it had at least minimal skill with a weapon she begins her casting,
Celestia calls to the dead giant, coaxing the flames of it's demise to return and Grant it unholy life. Come, Join me and OBEY! she cries, Finishing her spell with a fourish. The Onix in her hand vanished in a burst of black flames, which shoot into the skeleton, illuminating it's empty eyes and bringing it back to the land of the living. It clatter and creaks at it's black burned bones reignite and melt the snow around it.
Now... Retrieve whatever weapon you used in life and follow, but keep far enough away you wont burn anyone. she tells the skeleton.
The former frost giant took a moment to regard its new form, its blazing eyes looked up from its hands to look at Celestia. It somberly nodded and moved to an ax head that laid to its left. The wooden handle was no more, but the giant moved to a charred ogre, removed a femur from it, and replaced the ax's handle; the blade of which began to glow with intense heat. So rearmed, it marched to a distance that its flames caused pleasant warmth to the party, favoring being closer to Celestia.
The giants still living stared in horror at the thing that was once perhaps a clansman. Their icy eyes darted from it to the one that summoned it, realizing that this little woman held powers to rival that of dragons.
Hevn circled above you and gave a call to you, swooping near your heads and then returning to Svartokshe, crying at you if you delay for too long.
Celestia beams, Proud that she got those looks of terror from the Giants "there is no harm in letting them live, after all they deserve their own chance to redeam themselves. I say we let them return to their charge with news that they where routed. Let their master punish them as seen fit.
She looks to the others, imagining they wouldn't mind letting them go either... Except for the demon worshippers. She was pretty sure they wanted to kill them. Celestia of course would object if they made a move. She kept her hand on the pommel of her whip, ready to draw it...
Freydis listens quietly and finds herself pleased that Tetro was willing to take the reins in dealing with these creatures. She had no desire for discourse with giants over who ruled them. But at the sight of the fallen giant rising once more, her whole body tenses, eyes widening. Bitting her cheek till a small pool of blood forms in her mouth, her surprise was only surpassed by her fury at the abomination that her supposed ally had called upon.
Another one...how have I been so blind?
Humming a quick prayer, she finishes with a quick spit of red across the snow.
"Enough of this." Freydis hisses, pausing before motioning upwards at Hevn and maneuvering her horse towards Black Ice's location.
When the flaming giant skeleton rises, Tetro eyes it with respect for the power involved.
"Well, that'll keep us warm, and we can send it in first."
I'm not completely in love with the idea of undead, but they have their uses.
"Duly noted, Graff. You have been *mostly* cooperative, and I for one am inclined to let you go and face what fate your master's master has in store for you. If there are no objections, we will be on our way."
Tetro speaks in a tone that strongly implies that he really isn't too bothered by the fate of these giants, one way or the other.
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Celestia looks at Freydis as she leaves, Ah, that's right, she worships pharasma. ah well, Her shortcomings to not realize that a tool is a tool... she chuckles. After all I might as well have animated it using an transmutation spell, and it would still be as ghastly to her... Typical... she looks at the skeleton. I see no issue, after all, it is just a mindless slave. she turns back to the party, No different than those living that I command. Anyways, all things settled, let's send them on their way, beaten and whimpering back to their master.
Chill watches the summoning, and shrugs.
undead are either useless or dangerous. Just keep it out of the way, otherwise I'll return it the grave.
He heads to the blsck ice.
Svartokshe awaits you at the entrace as the three giants flee southwest. You see the blizzard is almost upon you, and you wonder if even the giants will survive this.
"Well handled, all of you." Svartokshe looks up at the "fire giant" and smirks. "We enter here." He bows a little, allowing you four to enter first.
Inside you see something akin to a cathedral's antechamber, and inside the ice is a pale, shimmering blue when not covered in white snow. At the far end a wide stairwell spirals upwards into the Veil's upper reaches. To the left you see a large, gaping hole that the stairwell seems to spiral around. As the burning skeleton enters, he seems to sway slightly, not off balance but perhaps listening to something.
Another note, this pale blue ice that makes up almost all of this structure is unaffected by the giant skeleton's flames. The snow or more familiar ice is, but not this tinted stuff.
"I have a lyre of building, so I could try tunnelling with it through this blue ice, whatever it is. Otherwise, the stairs are the best option I can see."
Celestia begins casting a spell on herself, Channeling the energy into her body in case of a dire wound.
Once that is done she cast a simple spell to detect any magic within the blue ice.
,
Let's move out
Chill starts up the stairs, carefully examining to way ahead.
As you head up the stairs, about forty or fifty feet up you come across three lumps of darkened ice beside a hole in the stairwell's wall. Looking out and down you can see the strange hole at the stair's origin.
Upon getting closer, you see these lumps of ice contain bodies. The ice covering them is mundane, as is much of the walls lining the stairs, the steps are the blued ice.
Tetro takes a few moments to examine the bodies.
Freydis shifts her weight, disquieted by the cacophony of whispers of the departed so close to the material plane. "The dead...their voices pierce through this place. " She follows the group once all have ascended, taking a moment to listen to each voice before turning her attention to their rear flank, watching for any approaching enemies.
Chill looks at the bodies, and looks at where the party is going. Hmmf. Is there any magic here? I don't want to end like these ones.
Celestia steps forward. Well the blue ice is called true ice... It's amazing there is so much of it. Otherwise the rest is more recent, likely caused by our witch friend... Best we be on gaurd...
Chill nods, and moves forward, carefully scanning. (half speed)
Tetro slows Aghi and they both keep their eyes peeled.
Svartokshe taps the frozen bodies with the head of his axe, clucking his tongue.
As you pass by the bodies you all hear a sudden roar as from below you from the gaping hole a column of steam erupts. The scalding water accosts you all.
Tetro and Aghi act as one and dodge to the side, evading the deadly column. Both ready themselves for combat, as Tetro shouts:
"Stand ready!"
Chill misjudges, and takes the full blast
Celestia tries her best to avoid the skaldomg water, her skeleton however doesn't seem perplexed in the least by the heat...
St. Freydas, far less dextrous than her companions, does her best to avoid the dispersal but stumbles against them in her attempt to scramble out of the way taking the majority of the damage.
Tetro will spur Aghi back and away from the deadly steam.
With longspear in hand, he begins formulating a response.
With a wave of her hands Celestia casts a spell, causing the stone and rock around the geyser to shift. She forms 20ft wide, 30ft tall wall between her party and the blast, shielding them from any further water. Hell's be damned! she cries.
Drawn up from the earth deep beneath the ice, travelling through the true ice, earth and stone materializes in the wall's hole, cutting off the scalding steam. The water that struck you immediately begins to freeze, but it could have been much worse. Thin sheets of ice fall away from your bodies as you move.
Heading up, you come to an antichamber. To the south - your left - you see a collection of arrow slots in a curved wall that resembles the inside of a castle turret. To the north another stairwell winds upwards.
Celestia slides a hand across her frost caked hair, glad her magic kept her nice and warm despite the frost covering her. Let's keep an eye out on anything similar to that geyser. she says.
She then scans the area, making sure to look out for anything that may pose a threat to her, Big guy, your up front! she commands her minion. If anyone here deserves to die first, it's you...
St. Freydis, reeling from the geyser slams a gauntlet against her chest and imbues healing to her wounded form.
Tetro turns his head to Freydis and softly says:
"If you have a little healing to spare, Aghi here could use some. But he can gallop on for now if not."
St. Freydis's dull eyes dart about, observing her allies wounds. While not as severe as her own, they require treatment none the less. She gives Tetro a nod and chides herself internally for not noticing sooner. Whispering a soft prayer of penance to Pharasma, a soft grey fog swirls outward clockwise from her, encompassing all within 30 feet including mounts, mending skin burned from the geyser.
Celestia pulls a staff from her pack and waves it. Those with the worst wounds come here, I have healing.
i could use a bit of healing, thanks
"My thanks, Freydis. And Celestia, while a few of my burns remain, Aghi's are a touch more severe."
Rather than waist a spell on the superficial wounds chill and the others took, she walked over to the horse and flourished the holy symbol hanging from her staff Be healed! Qe irisva! she says, the last two words in Draconic.
The runes along the staff light up and holy energy flows from the wood and metal into the animal, washing away his burns, even returning the fur that would have otherwise been permanently burned away.
Alright, but back to what matters she says, getting back to looking around.
However as she does she whispers the arcane words to a spell, filling herself with the determination and will of a hero.