Iris looked at Tenzekil for a few moments, a rather sad expression on her face. "You know so little of strength." she said. "But even so, I will forgive you - you do not understand what you are doing, and so cannot be fully accountable for your deeds. I give you this first chance - stand down and seek a better way. It is not too late to change and step out from this queen's shadow. If you refuse to back down when confronting me, you will not live to see the next morning." With that, flames erupted around her as she activated her Fire Shield.
You can tell that the gnome isn't nearly as enthusiastic as he was during the wedding attack. Your resilience and refusal to give up seems to be beating down his resolve. There's a long pause as he considers your words ... and then he gives a sigh of resignation. "Either you kill me now, or the Queen kills me when she finds out that I'm doing this. I guess there's really no point, is there?" The curtain of bees parts, allowing you access to the gap in the wall.
It was so nice when people accepted her offers the first time around. For ages, she had offered three chances to those who did wrong. The first offer represented the dawn - a new opportunity to change their ways. The second was the day, a continuing presence of brightness and hope there for them to seize. The third offer was dusk - the light moved on at its own pace, and if one refused to accept it, it would pursue them no longer. Fourth chances were rare, especially for those who threatened harm to her. As a goddess, she respected free will, and by the third offer they'd made their choice abundantly clear. For good or ill, they were obliged to accept the consequences.
Iris hopped across the wall, approaching the gnome... and smiled as she bent down to look at him. "If someone recognizes the wrong they have done and seeks to improve themselves, they are quite safe from me." she said. "I will not fault you if you wish to hide until this is over, so that you may see the fallout. But when the light returns, I ask that you think about what you have done... and what you should do in the future. But for now, would you be so kind as to give me some directions? I need to get this ward properly functioning again."
Tenzekil's shoulders slump and he looks dejectedly at the ground. The hum of the bees surrounding him takes on a somber note. "There's spaces in the wall for the wardstones, but to complete the sealing ritual, you'll need Queen Rhoswen's staff as a focus."
"Easy enough to acquire." Iris answered - she had no doubts about her ability to accomplish most things she set her mind to, even weakened as she was. "I suspect she will refuse to change her ways, but even so, I intend to give her the chance. The only ones beyond redemption are those who choose to be. Besides, I didn't come this far just to give up because there's an obstacle in the way."
"If you truly intend to face the Queen, her fortress lies forty miles to the east in the crook of the mountains."
"Easy enough to find, then. I intend to proceed at speed. I suggest you wait somewhere safe - outside this place, anyway. If the locals give you trouble, find Sorathel and tell her the First Light has forgiven you. She will see to it that you come to no harm." With that, Iris oriented herself, then set off towards the mountains. The sooner this issue was resolved, the better.
Tenzekil nodded and rushed away, his face somber and shoulders slumped with shame. Sometimes mercy and forgiveness is a more painful punishment than death.
The woods are strangely quiet and empty as you travel. There's definitely a subtle sense of wrongness as you continue onward, that only grows stronger as you near Rhoswen's fortress. After a few hours, the undergrowth parts, and you see it: a massive thorn-wrapped palace rooted upon the valley floor. Intimidating spikes cover its walls, projecting outward with deadly intent. Three separate towers rise from the tangle, reaching toward a dark canopy of trees as tall as any mountain.
Palace
"One of these days, they'll come up with a better sense of design." Iris said, feeling just a little disappointed in how true-to-form this fey was being with the castle design. She kept moving, though, looking for anything that might resemble an entrance - that, or good windows. Fighting an entire castle's defenses might be a little much as she currently was, so it was better to circumvent what she could. Besides, she'd been walking for hours, and was of a mind to bring this matter to a close.
There's a large gate at the front of the palace, but you could probably climb the thorny tower walls if you wanted to enter more surreptitiously. The two side towers are 100ft tall, and the main central tower reaches 30ft above that. You also see a balcony on each tower if you don't feel like going all the way to a roof.
Iris nodded slightly as she looked, then swept her gaze around again to search for guards. It seemed... unlikely... that a place like this would be totally unguarded from the outside.
You can dimly make out a quartet of spriggans atop a parapet on the third floor of the main tower, but the area otherwise appears empty. If there are, in fact, more guards present, they're either very well-hidden or inside the palace itself.
Iris nodded slightly, then Warped to get in under the view of the Spriggans - preferably on the second floor. In a tower, the ruler was usually at the top, so that was the first place to check. The faster she got there, the better off she'd be.
The smells of fresh-tilled earth and in-season fruit fill this balcony orchard. A footpath leads among a half-dozen slender trees bearing pale, luminous apples. Small shrubs and other leafy plants occupy the spaces between. In the middle of all this, you see a shambling mound of vegetation tilling the soil and pruning the trees. It looks up in curiosity as you warp into a corner of the balcony.
<"Continue tending to your garden."> Iris said in fluent Sylvan, striding forward as she looked for a path up. Part of her plan here was simple - act like she belonged and avoid making the locals to upset. She wasn't here to kill them, after all... and besides, she liked gardeners. It was a wonderful job.
The mound shrugged and went back to tending the plants. Knowing how gardeners tended to behave, as long as you didn't bother it or harm the plants, it would likely leave you alone.
Nodding slightly and stepping around the garden area, Iris moved through the larger of the two doors. They seemed more likely to bring her to a path that would let her get to the Queen.
This long, flowing chamber includes both a kitchen and a dining area. A fireplace dominates the southern portion of the room, facing a moon-shaped well. To the north sits a heavy table of darkwood, surrounded by a dozen chairs. Gnome-sized open barrels near the well hold water.
As you enter, a pair of satyrs look up from their cooking, irritated at the interruption. <"We're not finished yet! Get out of here!">
The magical aura smashed into Iris' will... and washed around her as she shrugged it off. <"Keep cooking and leave me alone."> she answered, barely sparing them a glance as she crossed the hall to the next set of large doors. One of the best ways of avoiding conflict was acting like you had the right to be somewhere.
(...And to a certain extent, that was true. The sun proceeded where it wanted to go and didn't really care what else was in the way.)
The doors revealed a landing with stairs leading both up and down - in addition to more doors to the east. Evidently you've entered one of the side towers.
Ah, a path that was easy enough. Quite calmly, Iris made her way up the stairs. In a tall place like this, she suspected the queen's area would be near the top. ...Either that or she'd hideously misjudged and there was a big, accessible throne room on the bottom floor, but paranoid rulers usually liked to be separated so they could call people up instead of having their throne area a centerpoint people almost had to go through to get anywhere. The design and placement of a throne area said a lot about the area's inhabitants...
You find a quartet of thorn spriggan guards at the top of the tower but no throne room. Although, to be fair, throne rooms are rarely found in a castle's outer towers, so that's not much of a surprise. In this regard, at least, Rhoswen seems to be of a more traditional mindset.
<"Stand aside. The Lady of Spring has come to call upon the master of this castle."> Iris said, striding forward as she spoke in a commanding tone. Some guards would stop people no matter what, but she was hoping to convince them to... see reason. She didn't want to hurt any of them more than she had to.
<"She isn't seeing visitors at the moment. Come back later.">
<"She's seeing me."> Iris said, continuing to move forward. <"You can get in my way in a futile and doomed attempt to stop me, or you can stand aside and remain to serve her tomorrow. Think carefully, for you will accept the consequences of your choice - whatever it might be."> Fire erupted around her body as she activated her Fire Shield power.
The spriggans sneered at you - although they kept a careful distance from your flames. <"Are you looking for a fight or something? She's not up here.">
Celabratory strains of a violin orchestra fill this large chamber as dozens of masked partygoers dance to the tune. Multicolored flames mimic their rhythm from small braziers lining the walls. Their light also illuminates artful tapestries of forest animals and fey sprites along the western half of the room. A wooden stage takes up the northwestern wall.
As she set foot inside the room, Iris began to dance her way through - narrowly avoiding each dancer in her way with completely inhuman grace as she moved towards what looked like steps heading upward. It had never been her style to sneak through places - and she figured the dancers were more likely to pause long enough for her to get through, from confusion if nothing else, if she moved even better than they. (The fey had a well-deserved reputation for elegance in their dancing - but she was determined to perform even better than the most extraordinary performance they'd see from anyone else tonight.)
For a few seconds once you begin dancing, your feet move on their own volition, mimicking the dancers. Then your will reasserts itself, and you regain your senses. As you continue navigating your way across the dance floor (being careful to avoid bumping into anyone), you feel another tingle in your mind. Someone's trying to read your thoughts.
As she felt someone trying to access her mind, Iris smiled slightly... then hardened her will into a not-quite-metaphorical wall of blazing light. The thoughts of the gods were not for mortals to access so easily... for one thing, it had the unfortunate side-effect of turning people into a gibbering mess as they struggled to comprehend. It was safer for everyone this way, and would serve as a good warning for the caster that they were attempting something... well, something they probably shouldn't be doing. If nothing interrupted her, however, she'd continue making her way up the steps.
Flowering vines decorate this magnificent chamber, hanging from thorny columns that rise into archways surrounding a vaulted ceiling. Songbirds flutter within small, golden cages dangling from these vines. Adorning the west wall, twin tapestries depict a setting sun and a rampant moon over a primal meadow. To the east, a carpet of woven summergrass leads to a polished mirror before an ebony throne.
Seated on the throne is an imperious fey who can only be Queen Rhoswen. <"Challenge me in my own realm, will you"> the fey-queen sneers as you enter. <"The Second-born know their doom has arrived and you're the best they could send?">" She gestures toward the mirror before her throne. <"Look there, if you dare,"> she taunts. The mirror shows images of a raging battle between the good creatures of the forest and her Fellnight army, as well as the villagers huddled in their homes, frightened as mist and shadows close around them. <"This prison can no longer hold me. Your sad tale ends here, your mind shattered and soul cursed for all eternity.">
Iris looked at the raging queen for a moment, more than a bit of sorrow in her expression. <"The smallest candle can hold any amount of night at bay."> she said quietly. <"And I am the Candle of Hope itself."> One of her many epithets - but quite relevant, all things considered, as she activated her Divine Inspiration of Hope and allowed the radiant light to surround her. <"But everyone deserves a chance, and you are no exception. So I ask for the first time and appeal to what reason you still have: All of the defenses of your realm barely slowed me on my way here, and still you vastly underestimate me. Will you not reconsider your position and seek a future better than the one you are currently heading towards?">
Rhoswen curls her lip dismissively and launches a salvo of thorns in your direction.
In response, Iris lifted her staff and pointed it at the fey queen. A brilliant light began to gather on the tip as the Lady of the Dawn poured energy into it, and a moment later, she unleashed one of the fiercest blasts her body could currently produce.
for
The strategy here was simple, of course. If she was struck, then she would strike back much, much harder. Part of this was just stubbornness - in the face of someone who was both hostile and the ruler of a realm of darkness, Iris had no intention whatsoever of allowing herself to be considered the lesser power. The darkness did not consume the light - it fled from the smallest candle, and her very existence centered around proving that.
<"I ask you a second time, queen of this shaded realm. They say that pride comes before the fall - and if you persist in this, your fall will arrive. Will you not choose to recognize the situation you're in and set aside your pride in favor of a better path? You do not have to lose everything today.">
Your spell lands a direct hit on Rhoswen ... and passes harmlessly through her. The fey queen gives you an evil grin and launches another barrage of thorny missiles.
Iris considered for a moment. She was pretty sure she could burn right through any resistance to spells, so if magic went right through someone... illusions, most likely? The fey were often known for such. They weren't the only ones with such power, though. She tapped her staff on the ground... and vanished a moment later, stepping away from where she'd been as she looked around the area.
Now that you're invisible and have a moment's peace to look around, you notice tiny holes in each of the six pillars in this room. They're positioned at eye level....
Remaining invisible - it'd last long enough for this, easily - Iris began moving around the room in a quick sweep to see if she could find anybody hiding inside one of the pillars. And if she did... well, she'd either shoot a blast in or physically rip it apart, depending on how big the holes actually were.
After silently circling the room, you note a pair of dark green eyes staring out of one of the pillars.
With a shrug, Iris pointed her staff at the inside of the tree. Having a gap she could see through was probably the Queen's idea of being smart, but as far as Iris was concerned, that just made her more vulnerable. Complete cover would have been much safer, and with a twirl as she reappeared, Iris triggered a consecrated Holy Smite right in front of the queen's face.
You know what's a good way to make a fey queen angry? Seeing through her trickery and making her blind. Rhaswen's newly-sightless eyes turn black with fury. <"YOU DARE!?!"> Then she melds into the thorny column and vanishes as it crumbles around her. That's when the smokey air elementals attack.
Iris honestly couldn't be too mad. It was the way of darkness to flee from light - and being bothered was as silly as complaining that rain fell down. Instead, she sent magic power surging into her weapon, whirled around, and unleashed a rapid series of strikes on the elementals - aiming to take first one down, then the other. <"I dare a great many things."> she said quietly, fairly sure the Queen could still hear.
for
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As you banish both elementals, the pillars around you lash out with thorny vines.