The first whip managed to strike Iris - the other two she managed to avoid with a quick twist of her body, blurring to nearly-inhuman speeds. Instead of hanging around to smash the pillars, however, she darted over to the stairs heading up. Either the Queen was no longer here - in which case Iris needed to find her - or she was, in which case she probably wouldn't want to let an intruder simply keep wandering around, and by her actions would reveal some useful information. Either way, the Lady of the Dawn tended to take advantage of things.
<"NO!"> As you approach the stairs, Rhoswen steps out of one of the pillars and assaults you with a powerful blast of air.
Iris calmly sidestepped the blast and smiled slightly as she spun around, then pointed her staff at Rhoswen and retaliated in kind with another of her most powerful blasts. <"I ask you a third time, Queen Rhoswen, and there will not be a fourth - for when you make a decision, you must accept the consequences. Will you reconsider and take a better path?">
for
Rhoswen staggers back ... and then collapses as a shadowy mass emanates out of her, coalescing into the form of a Shadow Demon. It immediately lashes out with a flurry of quick strikes.
It then glides backward a step before detonating an explosion of necrotic energy.
<"I'll take that as a no."> Iris said resolutely as she stepped forward in pursuit of the beast. One of the creature's claws had managed to strike her, but its foul powers weren't nearly enough to pierce her iron will. More to the point? It had gotten into melee range with her, and she was strongest when she could shine right in her enemy's face... and even more so when her foe was evil.
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You utterly obliterate the demon. With its destruction, the plants start to wither as the tower begins to shake. If there's anywhere else you needed to go, you'd be wise to do so quickly.
Iris considered for just a moment before striding up the stairs. She wasn't sure what was up at the top, but it was probably worth examining. Fortunately, she was rather faster than most mortals - and one way or another, she suspected that she'd be able to get where she wanted to go.
She did, however, start healing herself as she ascended the steps.
When you reach the top of the steps, a disc of rose-colored crystal descends from the roof above. When you step onto it, it rises back up. There, you find a magic circle containing a six-pointed fairy star. Nearby is a twisted and gnarled staff of black oak: the Crook of Cildhureen.
"Oh, good." Iris said, grabbing the Crook she'd come here for. "Now how do I make you work? ...Send everyone back?" she said, shaking it a bit as she strode back towards the disc. The sooner she left this place, the better, she suspected.
As you touch the Crook, you feel it tapping into the energy of Rhoswen's tower. Its position in the fairy star (not to mention the great height) likely act as a way to greatly amplify the magic within.
After a moment, Iris reached into her bag and pulled out a couple of books, flipping through them and occasionally glancing back at the Crook. <"Let's see, I probably need to..."> she muttered in Celestial as she worked.
Her knowledge of magic and the planes wasn't as omniscient as it had been once upon a time. That was one reason she'd gotten some modern books - they could help her fill in the gaps that her mortal mind literally hadn't been able to hold when she'd made this body. Full goddesses weren't limited by the physical structure of mortal bodies - but in her current form, she was.
Actually working with spellcraft was rather less of an issue, thanks in no small part to previous enchantment she's worked on Mihrel. The efforts, of course, were aided to no small degree by the divine power still flowing through her body.
<"Ah. This should be good."> she said as she was confident she'd pieced its operations together and could perform the necessary ritual.
As you complete the ritual, there's a distant *whoosh*, and the air begins to tingle as a powerful binding spell knits its way through the very fabric of the demiplane. Then there's a *crash* as one of the palace's side towers collapses. With Rhoswen slain, her fortress crumbles. Fortunately, you're significantly faster than most, and this combined with some well-placed warps allows you to avoid being crushed beneath a mountain of thorny rubble. It will take some time to retrace your steps back to the portal from whence you entered, but you shouldn't have much difficulty doing so.
Iris strode forward at a fast clip as she moved, watching the spell as it took hold once more. "Hm. I may have to send someone back here later." she mused. It was no good for the inhabitants to be trapped forever, after all - sooner or later, the dawn came. For now, though, it appeared more like evening had arrived, and all who would stay would have to accept the consequences of their actions.
As you pass through the portal back to the Material Plane, you feel some of your power returning. While there's still much work to be done, defeating Rhoswen and the shadowy entity possessing her has removed a great source of darkness from the demiplane. And with the darkness gone, it will be much easier for light to return.
As she finally stepped back onto the Material Plane, Iris stretched slightly... and she felt bigger. With a smile, she looked down at her hand and flexed it a few times. She raised a hand to the side of her head a moment later. <"Sorathel. Return to my domain and start preparing it for my homecoming. Be polite when you leave the mortals."> she directed. <"I still have some things to do before I return home."> As she cut the connection, she focused on her staff - and a surge of new power shot through it. Before, it had simply been a very powerful magical artifact - but her growing power meant it could continue to regain what had been lost. Now it had returned to artifact status - minor, as of yet, but even minor godly artifacts surpassed many mortal magics. <"And on the first dawn, the people watched as the sun rose above the horizon."> she whispered, citing her holy book. <"Within them sang a wish - that the light would come again and again, until the end of all things. From this wish, the Goddess of the Dawn came into being and took form in every dawn on every world.">
As she moved, she focused on another part of her power. Her reserves of energy had been lowered, but she still had a bit left, and it would take a little while to get back to the fey. So...
You felt Sorathel's nod of assent as you cut the connection. When you finally return home, it will be ready to welcome you. If you recall correctly, you're quite a ways from the fey encampment, but you're confident that you'll be able to locate it again.
The forest looks very different now that Rhoswen's influence has begun to fade. As such, you initially set off in the wrong direction. Before too long, though, the diminishing of the fog begins to reveal landmarks that help you reorient yourself. Once you're on the right path, it's a relatively simple matter to find the fey encampment. There, you find them in a state halfway between confusion, optimism, and concern. Their scouts haven't reported any sightings of Rhoswen's soldiers for almost six hours, and the base camp near the portal to her demiplane is empty. Nobody's done much to figure out what's happened, as they're worried about walking into a trap. Fey are fond of tricks and illusions, after all, and the defenders' forces aren't sufficient to repel an all-out assault.
As she returned, Iris tapped her staff on the ground and surrounded herself with a Daylight spell. She'd never been terribly good at subtlety, and calmly walked right up to the camp. <"Queen Rhoswen is no longer a problem. Gather your leaders, if you would, for I'd like to explain what happened."> she said in Sylvan. As she strode forward, she focused on the other powers within her, searching for a Celestial appropriate to her needs. Of all choices her body could currently handle... ah, yes. One of the Hound Archons would suffice.
As fey tend to be rather dramatic, and your entrance is suitably eye-catching, the camp promptly descends into a bit of chaos. In the ensuing hullabaloo, nobody particularly pays attention to the muscular Hound Archon that abruptly materializes in front of you. It comes as no surprise that it seems mildly uncomfortable to be here: it would probably rather be hunting barghests at the moment, and there's definitely nothing orderly about its surroundings.
<"Active lot, aren't they?"> Iris said in Celestial as she walked by the fey. <"I'd like you to take a message for me to this girl..."> She took a few moments to describe Chimi, including the girl's physical appearance and multiple details of the surrounding area. <"The message itself is 'If you desire the light of the dawn, pray and I shall answer. Iris.' It shouldn't take too long to find her, and I won't need you to return to me afterwards."> Celestials were often busy. As a Goddess, Iris had basically no hesitation when it came to assigning tasks to them - they were called the servitors of the gods for a reason - but nor did she like to take them away from everything else they were doing.
She was not, of course, going to force Chimi into being a Cleric - that would be wrong. Even so, Iris wanted to give her the first opportunity to say yes or no. After that, she could work on building her own faith. And Absalom seemed like a good place for that, all considered - so many people had followed those reaching for the Starstone, and many were lost. That was exactly the kind of group she preferred to reach out to.
The archon gave you an affirmative grunt before teleporting away. He clearly had better things to do (at least in his opinion), but your favor was trivial, and your demeanor was one that commanded respect.
Nodding in satisfaction - and faintly amused by the reaction the archon might have when he realized who she was, because even celestials didn't actually deal with gods that often unless they were special like Sorathel - Iris moved on to find the leaders of the fey here. She moved carefully as she went, never quite jostling anyone but continuing to move forward at a steady rate.
You find the trio of fey leaders heatedly debating strategy. Sending out more scouts, increasing their defensive perimeter, or relocating to establish a new home base are all potential options. You find it telling that nobody's considering the fact that you might have actually succeeded. That's the fey for you, though. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the hardest to see - especially to beings so used to trickery and intrigue.
As Iris strode forward, she idly tossed the Crook of Cildhureen onto the ground near the fey leaders. Given its origins, she suspected it had various shadowy powers - something she had absolutely no interest in using aside from its power over the barrier locking that realm away. Indeed, her clerics were forbidden all shadow and darkness magic except in direst need. <"The barrier is fixed, and Queen Rhoswen no longer a problem."> she said, making her voice just loud enough to be clearly heard. <"Does she have any troops remaining in this realm?">
The resulting silence in the forest glade was deafening. After a rather lengthy pause, one of the centaurs hesitantly retrieved the Crook. <"... That would certainly explain where her troops have vanished to. Tell us everything.">
Iris shrugged slightly and relayed the tale - how she'd gone there, fixed the wall, entered the castle, tussled with Queen Rhoswen, and watched her turn into what looked like a shadow demon. From there, it had been a simple matter of grabbing the crook, fixing things, and walking out.
<"Unfortunately, it seems there was no peaceful solution. Nevertheless, things should be better here now.">
Your tale is met with much jubilation. Some of that is doubtless due to your far-from-inconsiderable storytelling abilities, but most appears to be genuine happiness from the fey. After all, who doesn't love a good story of good vs evil, light vs darkness, or other time-honored tropes. If there's anything they can do for you, you have only to name it.
<"Oh. Right. Such is often offered for deeds done."> Iris said, blinking. <"Well, there should be a proper balance in all things. If you have any information on artifacts of light, I would appreciate it if you could tell me about them.">
While the fey aren't aware of the whereabouts of any such artifacts, they do have a couple suggestions that may or may not be relevant. <"The distant deserts of Katapesh are perpetually scorched by the sun. It's possible that artifacts of light might be drawn there. And if not, the Grand Bazaar can surely find you an adequate substitute."> Alternately, <"Light cannot stand darkness, and there is no place darker than Nidal. There, you can find the Tower of Crane - master of darkness, lord of nothingness. Long is the path, and dangerous. Filled with peril both within and without, both in between and beyond.">
Iris smiled gently at the way their thoughts took them. There was no true substitute for the sun - all such things could only be lesser imitations of radiance. Still, they probably meant as well as the fey ever did - and the deserts might be rather fun to visit for awhile. It was, at any rate, a great place to start seeding her church. <"I see. Yes, Katapesh should do nicely. I shall be on my way, then. Oh, and do take good care of that Crook, yes? It would be quite unfortunate if it were misused. For now, I believe I shall be on my way - I have some things yet to do before the end of the day."> With that, she set off again. She wanted to check on the guests from the wedding - and then see about travel to this Katapesh area.
The wedding guests were extremely luck, as it turned out. Rhoswen's army had mainly been occupied with the local fey, so they hadn't gotten around to attacking the village. Hiding on the outskirts of town, unsure of whether or not to enter, you found a very contrite-looking Tenzekil.
Iris smiled as she stopped near the gnome and bent down so she could look him in the eyes. "Queen Rhoswen is defeated, her plans scattered, and peace returned. And you... are forgiven." she said. "Not because you helped me when I asked, because deeds alone mean nothing for forgiveness. You are forgiven because I believe you understand what happened today and why you were wrong. It may take some time for the others to come around, but it's very rare indeed for sincere effort to not be recognized. Do not let guilt consume you - no matter where you have gone or what you have done, you can always start anew. Go in peace in the light of the dawn. But if you are still troubled..." she raised her staff and drew her holy symbol in the dirt. "Carve this from wood with your own two hands, carry it with you, and pray to the dawn. Know that Iris, the First Light, will always shine for those who wish to change for the better."
With that, she began heading into the village itself (though she would stop if Tenzekil called out to her).
Tenzekil begins to sob as you walk away. Your words seem to have made quite the impact. Perhaps, with time, they will soothe his troubled heart. Entering the village, you find the majority of the populace barricaded inside their homes. Those with some military training are keeping watch, but it's clear that they possess minimal threat. It's truly fortunate that your efforts were successful, as the people here would almost certainly have been wiped out if Rhoswen's forces had launched an attack with any seriousness.
"Everybody! You may relax now - the threat is ended." Iris called as she walked forward, making no attempt whatsoever to hide herself. "I have dealt with the instigator of all this, and they shall not bother you again. Is anybody hurt?"
"No. Thank the gods!"
"Good." Iris said, satisfied. "Then rest, and look forward to tomorrow being much quieter." Not every new day needed to be exciting. Sometimes, the opposite was preferred.
The villagers are more than happy to give you a bed for the night. You're pretty sure you can stay here as long as you want, in fact. People tend to appreciate it when you save them, after all, and they've already shown that they could desperately use a guardian.
In the morning, as the sun rises, you suddenly hear the beginnings of a prayer. It's tentative and unsure - but unmistakably from Chimi. In her mind's eye, she appears to be picturing a glowing staff and a rising sun. Interestingly, you hear a second voice coming from the samsaran as well - one of familiarity and intense longing.
As she felt a prayer, Iris smiled slightly - then pushed out a little magic towards both of the voices. She hadn't recovered enough strength to fully empower her followers, but she could provide the earlier levels of magic - and if Chimi chose to pray, then she would receive the reward of the faithful and as much power as Iris could give.
Maybe I should teach her a few of the tricks... Iris mused as she waved goodbye to the villagers not long after breakfast. Some powers were just more useful when used in certain ways, though others she refused to provide - it was rare indeed when a Cleric had successfully petitioned her for a spell of darkness.
It was hard to say never on things like that - with followers on many world and uncounted individual situations, you occasionally ran across events where the cause of good could only be adequately supported by such a power. Iris wasn't so prideful as to let innocents people suffer because she didn't like spells that created darkness. That said, it really was rare for there to be no other, generally better solution.
For now, however... it was time to see where her feet took her.
Back in Absalom, you quickly learn that there are any number of rumors concerning the weird fog that had started enveloping the nearby woods. Fell magic, a fey invasion, an unusual natural occurrence, are the most popular options. Ultimately, though, it's just another odd happening. ... Perhaps people have become a little too assured of their safety. Even though Absalom's never been conquered, that does't mean it'll remain that way if it ceases to be vigilant.
Well, Absalom also had adventurers galore - the Society could probably handle any normal matters. Shrugging slightly, she gave them a report for the record - it was good for people to know the truth - before heading down to the docks. She had a long way to go, and the sooner she could arrange for passage, the better. She'd never really enjoyed staying in one place for too long, though if it took more than a day or so for her ship to leave, she'd probably wind up administering aid and planting the seeds of a church in the city.
There's a merchant galley scheduled to leave for Katapesh with a load of trade goods within the week. The captain offers you passage for 200gp.
That much was well within her budget, and Iris calmly handed over the funds to reserve her spot. She doubted any merchant would simply take the money and run - not when continuing to operate in Absalom was much more lucrative to begin with. Of course, since she had the time... well, might as well start nurturing a church here in Absalom.