Ansha laughs quietly. “Morgrym, this is the Abyss, also. That said, I don’t think it’s really necessary to check out Echostal. We’re not going to find anything without a fight, and we’re going to be better off keeping a low profile, considering how outnumbered we are here.
Raising an eyebrow, "Well, that just proves my point, lass. We're still alive and we're still defeating the blasted Abyss." He nods, thinking he's made a pretty good point, yet still wonders if what he said made any real sense.
Scratching his head in thought at that last bit, "Well, as much as I love a good fight, I know we canno' fight the whole city. Even I'm not that crazy." Angling his head slightly as he narrows his eyes, Morgrym wonders if he really IS that crazy. I might be that crazy. Am I?............... Naaaah. I guess not ......... not this time anyway.
"Great. Well, as we don't know which direction to go, and we're in a maze anyway, let's go North to start, and see if we can pick up the threads of a trail from there."
Lershim himself can't do much along these lines, but he'll try to help out.
vs DC 10
Nodding, "North works." Morgrym will lead the way, hoping they can find some kind of proper way to go within the labyrinth.
Damiel disappears into the town with a mischievous look on his face. To some it might by excitement, while to others it was longing, and yet to Nasira it was a look of accepting fate. While traveling deeper into the maze would require the entire groups efforts to survive you all are quite certain that Damiel will at least be able to stay hidden if he wants to by himself.
With Damiel gone, the party discusses the next course of action. It is decided that they should bypass the town for now as to not attract any attention to themselves for the time being. Morgrym (using a surge as you will get it back tomorrow) manages to orientate himself with the maze and is certain that if they should ever want to return here he can guide them this way.
Taking a turn as soon as they can to leave the town the party travels for most of the day before Morgrym's intuition tells him that at the next fork inthe road they have a choice. They can take a left to go to the Breathless Mountains (of which he is not 100% assured that he fully understands) or back to the Meandering River (which Morgrym can easily navigate).
"We've already been to the Meandering River, Morgrym. Let's go to the Mountains and see what we can learn." suggests Lershim.
That said, he's fine with either direction really. Whatever Morgrym decides, he goes along with.
Nasira says, face serene, "I have faith in your judgement, Morgrym. For now, the knowledge you are gaining from these travels will aid us later. It is less about where we go than about us going there."
Looking to Lershim and then Nasira, Morgrym turns and looks in both directions before, "Alright. The mountains it is. The term 'Breathless Mountains' leaves me a bit wary, but the more we know, the better. At least, I think that's how it works in this blasted place." And with that, Morgrym goes left, into uncharted territory, his trusty earthbreaker in hand.
Morgrym leads the team onward to the Breathless mountains. Like previously in the mountains the names implies both its beauty and the high peaks to which you must traverse. Either through the magic of the planes or for some other reason that you know not mixed within the mountain range and deadly cold waterfalls of great heights and splendor can be found causing the path to be even more treacherous.
As you are traveling a whisper is carried on the wind…faint but recognizable as familiar to those that can catch it.
Our connection’s weak
Speak only in Desna’s prose
Her one gift to us
Sir Garith and I
Are among Her butterflies
A vision he had
Master the Mountains
Monster in the depths revealed
Its blood is the key
Those familiar with Arueshalae know that this is her voice.
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Looking at the mountains as they travel, Nasira asks, "Do you believe we will need protection from the elements as we climb those high passes?"
Lershim continues to feel as a fifth wheel on the wagon - useless most of the time. He worries a little that the others will notice, but there’s little he can do about it. He only hopes there are occasions for him to show his worth.
Damned Abyss. It’s much less fun than he had hoped. Maybe they should have gone to town. You know, just for a bit.
He grins despite himself and waits to be lead around the mountainside.
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Looking at the mountains as they travel, Nasira asks, "Do you believe we will need protection from the elements as we climb those high passes?"
Pondering that a moment, "We might, lass. If ya got magic that'll help protect us, I'm thinkin' it might be a good idea to keep it handy. If this weren't the Abyss, I wouldn't be quite as concerned."
Holding up a hand to get the others to halt, "Shhh!" he exclaims, listening intently. When the voice stops, Morgrym looks to the others, "Did any of ya here that?" Without waiting for a response from anyone, "Connection is weak. Speak only Desna prose. Her gift to them. Sir Garith and I are among her butterflies. A vision was had. Master the mountains, there's a monster in its depths, and its blood is the key."
Turning to the others, "It was a gal's voice. A nice voice, too. Very... soft and peaceful, I'd say. Odd. Especially in this place. I swear, though, feels like I've heard that voice somewhere, but I just can't place it."
Morgrym then looks to Nasira, "And Garith, Nasira? Is he here, ya think? By the gods, it's been a time since he left ta gather more of his own ta help fight in the Wound. A part of me just thought he was a casualty by now. Hm." He ponders that a moment before returning to the task at hand.
"Anyway, what do ya suppose the words mean?" He looks around at them all. "Obviously, we have ta conquer the mountains themselves. And then we're gonna have ta deal with some monster at the heart o' the mountain, I'm guessin'. And apparently, its blood is the key ta opening a door... or something. I don't really understand much else, though." He shrugs.
=
”Not sure I’d trust any voices here. Even the friendly ones.” Thurin replied. He was in no way trained for outdoor survival, but he stood near his kinsman, helping in any way possible.
Nasira frowns. "I cannot make out the words, but now that you've pointed it out, I hear the voice. Quite nice, indeed. I feel Desna's prose is a clue, but I am hardly a scholar. Puzzles are not my strong suit."
Ansha remains oblivious to the voice, apparently too preoccupied with the hardships of traversing the mountains. She missed hot baths.
The enchantress is quick on the uptake, however. Having previously (briefly) met Arushalae, and aware that the succubus had a connection to Desna, she says, “That’s probably Arushalae. I’m surprised that her telepathy can reach this far. But her words are worth keeping in mind- even if they’re a bit cryptic. Usually, sendings and the like are.”
Ansha remains oblivious to the voice, apparently too preoccupied with the hardships of traversing the mountains. She missed hot baths.
The enchantress is quick on the uptake, however. Having previously (briefly) met Arushalae, and aware that the succubus had a connection to Desna, she says, “That’s probably Arushalae. I’m surprised that her telepathy can reach this far. But her words are worth keeping in mind- even if they’re a bit cryptic. Usually, sendings and the like are.”
With a look of recognition, "Yes! That's the voice I heard. I knew it sounded familiar. It was Arushalae. Thanks, Ansha."
"Do ya think we should respond to her?" he asks them all.
”Test it. See if it can give us information to get through these mountains.” Thurin offered.
Weapon Equipped = None
Conditions = None
War hatchet Anista: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex, +3 magic +2 focus -2 two-weap Damage: +11 dex +3 magic
Ranged Dagger: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex Damage: +11 dex
Mythic Power: 16/17
Legendary Power: 4/4
Demonic save: Reroll save vs Demon (1/1)
Resiliancy: gain 30 temp hp when brought below 0 (1/1, 1m)
Spells: Fly (3/3, +4 fly, 5m, boots), Prestidigitation (at will), Shield: (7/7, +4 AC, 15m)
War hatchet Anista: Feather Fall (1/1), Heroism (3/3, 140m), Invisibility (3/3, 14m), Liberating Command (1/1, +20 escape artist)
vs DC 30 (mythic)
vs DC 10 to aid
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”Test it. See if it can give us information to get through these mountains.” Thurin offered.
Raising an eyebrow, "Test it? Ya want me ta test it?" Furrowing his brow as he stares at Thurin for a moment, he turns away breathing a heavy sigh. "Not sure why it's gotta be me. I don't know nothin' about pros. Or even cons. I'm just here ta smash things. Me test it? Really? Ya got ta be kiddin' me..."
Taking a deep breath, Morgrym returns with a response as best as he can. "Um, okay. Here goes nothin'."
Taking it slow and methodical,
"Information please
Through the mountains that we go
A specific path
What must we prepare
That make our travels secure
To reach the monster
What is the monster
Which lies in the depths below
That we must conquer."
Sighing heavily, he looks to the others and says, "Blast it all, I've no idea what I'm doin'. I doubt any of that made sense. It didn't ta me." He shrugs. "I hope that's somewhat close ta what you were lookin' for, Thurin. Not sure if it's gonna help though." He shrugs again, not feeling too confident about his 'return message'.
Despite the horrific predicament they were in, Thurin smiled. ”Did far better than anything I could have, lad. Why else do ye think I asked ye to do it?!” Slapping the other dwarf on the shoulder he waited to see if the ad hoc plan would bear fruit.
Ansha seems mildly impressed, eyebrows rising as Morgrym speaks his haiku aloud. “I wouldn’t have expected you for a poet, Morgrym.”
Meanwhile, her own efforts at land navigation completely fail, as the elf looks around their environs in complete bewilderment. If you’ve seen one mountain, you’ve seen them all, right?
Apparently not.
Despite the horrific predicament they were in, Thurin smiled. ”Did far better than anything I could have, lad. Why else do ye think I asked ye to do it?!” Slapping the other dwarf on the shoulder he waited to see if the ad hoc plan would bear fruit.
Raising an eyebrow, "I guess. We'll see what happens," he says, not sounding to positive.
Ansha seems mildly impressed, eyebrows rising as Morgrym speaks his haiku aloud. “I wouldn’t have expected you for a poet, Morgrym.”
With a resigned look, "Hm. Yeah, me either. Still don't."
"Nice poetry Morgrym. Keep this up and you're going to need a stage name, you hipster!"
Lershim grins, and hopes he can lead the group where they need to go.
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With a flash of insight, Ansha exclaims, “Oh! If I remember right, in this layer of the Abyss, there’s a particular type of moss that grows on the south side of trees.”
Survival aid
The tallest mountain
Hollow out from its center
Reveals the monster
The Father of Worms
In His lair you must survive
Fail…all our hopes gone.
Listening in, he turns to the others when it ends. "If y'all didn't catch any of that, the tallest mountain will show us the monster. Also, it's called a 'Father of Worms', whatever that means. We have ta kill it. If we don't, then the world is doomed. No pressure," he says plainly. "Tallest mountain, here we come." Morgrym moves out, leading the way.
As they walk, he takes a quick and curious glance toward Lershim. "What in the Nine Hells is a bloody hipster?" he mutters.
For 24 days Morgrym leads the party onward through the Breathless Mountains. During which time each of the companions prove their worth over and over again in the form of magical protections from the elements, to timely guidance in directions, to spotting hazards and beasts that are easily overcome but would delay the journey, and so much more. Finally, on the 24th day you are ready to reach the peak of the tallest mountain in the range. Before looms an immense cave clearly 40 ft high and wide. The edges of which are scraped by the passing of an immense creature. With a deep breath you plunge forward into the depths. The cave gives way to a twisting, tortuous route with multiple paths that branch off the main path. the main path leads into the bowels of the plane. Miles upon miles are you traveling taking 4 days of time until you realize that this is yet another part of the maze...The Lightless Maze.
Thankfully you have a follower of the sun god that can provide light and guidance in such times and places. As Nasira casts her spell to pierce the darkness she notices that the power and strength of the spell are somewhat dimmed here. The essence of the plane strives to counter her efforts but strong is her faith and powerful is her incantations. The light reveals nothing ahead but more twists and turns in the path with the occasional branch. Sounds are distorted down here but what you are certain of, all of you is that there is a beast down here. But unless you are mistaken, the sounds from the beast are too small to have caused the damage to the entrance that you saw 4 days earlier.
You recall tales of a powerful nightcrawler known as the
Father of Worms, said to have risen from the corpse of
a long-forgotten demon lord who once ruled the realm
that was eventually claimed, transformed, and replaced
by Baphomet. You also know that the blood of
the Father of Worm is incredibly caustic, and legendary
for being capable of melting open even the most difficult
locks.
Weapon Equipped = war hatchet Anista, war hatchet
Conditions = Heroism (140m)
War hatchet Anista: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex, +3 magic +2 focus -2 two-weap Damage: +11 dex +3 magic
Ranged Dagger: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex Damage: +11 dex
Mythic Power: 17/17
Legendary Power: 4/4
Demonic save: Reroll save vs Demon (1/1)
Resiliancy: gain 30 temp hp when brought below 0 (1/1, 1m)
Spells: Fly (3/3, +4 fly, 5m, boots), Prestidigitation (at will), Shield: (7/7, +4 AC, 15m)
War hatchet Anista: Feather Fall (1/1), Heroism (2/3, 140m), Invisibility (3/3, 14m), Liberating Command (1/1, +20 escape artist)
Lershim, when it becomes clear they’re finally near the creature, requests Heroism from Anista, his war hatchet. Receiving it, he then offers, ”I could scout out ahead a little if you liked. Not far, as I don’t trust the shifting nature of the plane not to separate us, but a little ways just to see ahead. I can become invisible you see. Or rather don’t see.” The little man grins at his little joke.
He takes out his war hatchets, making himself ready for what’s to come. He looks to the two passages and listens to try and determine what the most direct path to the beast might be as he waits for the party to decide what to do.
(heroism)
In anticipation of sneaking head, he'll cast Prestidigitation to clean himself up - hoping to dampen any lingering odor.
(heroism, invisibility)
He does not, at this stage, have darkvision. So there's a real limit as to how far ahead he can go if there are no other light sources. Gotta fix that now that I think about it!
- - -
Their time in the maze was almost pleasant. Outdoors treks through the mountains with the occasional monster? It was like being back in the Five Kings Mountains. Only they weren’t. They were in the abyss, and it was designed to lull the unwary into a false sense of security. Time and time again this was proven correct, as it took their mythically enhanced skills to survive. Thurin assumed that this would be no different than any other challenge they would face.
”Be careful, lad. Worse things that beasties out here, and we’d hate to lose ya.”
“The Father of Worms…” Ansha muses. “A nightcrawler said to have arisen out of a dead demon lord’s corpse. Incredibly acidic, if the tales are to be believed.”
The elf peers into the darkness beyond the reach of Nasira’s light spells. “Good for opening locks, I hear,” she quips.
As she does so, she masks the casting of a true seeing spell behind her words—just in case.
With his breaker in hand, "Yeah, lad, be careful." Morgrym echoes his fellow dwarf as he keeps his eyes roving for potential trouble.
Lershim nods before turning invisible and heading down each passage a little ways to see what he can see before the light fails. He's hoping the enemy needs light, or has light, so he can see them from the darkness.
But he doesn't go far. Certainly not so far as to lose sight of the lights the party carries.
Person moves about 30ft in multiple directions trying to get a sense of what path to take. The darkness is impenetrable beyond Nasira’s light spell. That being said he feels that the path to the north or east would be correct as the sounds seem to reverberate a little louder in each of those directions. Are there multiple foes or a linked passage up ahead?
Weapon Equipped = war hatchet Anista, war hatchet
Conditions = Heroism (135m), Invisible (9m), Shield (15m)
War hatchet Anista: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex, +3 magic +2 focus -2 two-weap Damage: +11 dex +3 magic
Ranged Dagger: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex Damage: +11 dex
Mythic Power: 17/17
Legendary Power: 4/4
Demonic save: Reroll save vs Demon (1/1)
Resiliancy: gain 30 temp hp when brought below 0 (1/1, 1m)
Spells: Fly (3/3, +4 fly, 5m, boots), Prestidigitation (at will), Shield: (6/7, +4 AC, 15m)
War hatchet Anista: Feather Fall (1/1), Heroism (2/3, 140m), Invisibility (2/3, 14m), Liberating Command (1/1, +20 escape artist)
Lershim returns after a very short time. "Well, there's not much to see. North or east seem the most likely to end up with something. Could be a linked passage, could be multiple critters." he rubs his hands together.
"Let's go north, shall we? Then we can swing east to make sure we get 'em all. And I gotta get me some specs." he sighs.
He casts Shield on himself, since we’re close enough to hear movement. Lasts 15 minutes. I also have heroism up from earlier. Still running. Of course, I’m also still invisible, considering how little time that probably took (I took off 5 minutes anyway).
Lershim waits for a front line to form, and he tucks in right behind it. He draws his war hatchets. Grinning, he’s ready to go.
Thurin nodded. After two months of similar events, it seemed like standard operating procedure. Whatever they came across would die, just like everything else that had the misfortune of crossing their path. Any creature here couldn’t be that tough…
"Blast it all! I wasn't even thinkin' about yer lack of seein' in the dark. I just remembered somethin' that may prove useful for ya, lad." Morgrym digs within his pack and pulls out a dragon's scale and holds it up.
A silver dragon's scale.
"This was given ta me way back ago. I'm thinkin' it'll aid you far better than meself. It'll help ya see in the dark. Sorry I didn't remember it sooner. And 'no', I didn't kill a silver dragon. This was Terendelev's who was killed by a demon lord." He offers it to the halfling.
Scale from Terendelev the silver dragon guardian:
This scale bestows upon the bearer the ability to cast darkvision as the spell 3 times per day at CL 19. *A character who already possesses darkvision increases his own by an additional 60ft.
"And north works for me." With that, Morgrym leads the way northward.
Weapon Equipped = war hatchet Anista, war hatchet
Conditions = Darkvision (19h), Heroism (135m), Invisible (9m), Shield (15m)
War hatchet Anista: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex, +3 magic +2 focus -2 two-weap Damage: +11 dex +3 magic
Ranged Dagger: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex Damage: +11 dex
Mythic Power: 17/17
Legendary Power: 4/4
Demonic save: Reroll save vs Demon (1/1)
Resiliancy: gain 30 temp hp when brought below 0 (1/1, 1m)
Spells: Fly (3/3, +4 fly, 5m, boots), Prestidigitation (at will), Shield: (6/7, +4 AC, 15m)
War hatchet Anista: Feather Fall (1/1), Heroism (2/3, 140m), Invisibility (2/3, 14m), Liberating Command (1/1, +20 escape artist)
Terendelev's Scale: Darkvision (2/3, 60’, 19h)
Lershim takes the scale with honor in his heart. ”Wow. You were there that day? Mighty impressive! I shall make sure I do not lose this!”
He takes the scale and immediately casts the spell (19 hours!). ”Anyone want this as well?” He offers freely.
Ansha masks the castings of a mirror image and a magic circle against evil behind further commentary on the origins of nightcrawlers in specific and nightshades in general. She then follows after the group, sticking close to Nasira.
”Might as well.” Thurin said. ”A right rare relic this is.”
Nasira nods approvingly at Morgrym’s wise gift.
"Hm. The tunnels extend maybe a hundred or so feet," Ansha muses, squinting a little. "That right-hand tunnel curves out of sight fairly quickly, though. Maybe we should take that left-hand tunnel."
The party decides to move together as a group once Leshim comes back. A few preparation spells are cast sd Terendelev is fondly remembered. Moving northward you see that Ansha is correct as the path twists to the left and seems to pass under itself.
Weapon Equipped = war hatchet Anista, war hatchet
Conditions = Darkvision (19h), Heroism (135m), Invisible (9m), Shield (15m)
War hatchet Anista: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex, +3 magic +2 focus -2 two-weap Damage: +11 dex +3 magic
Ranged Dagger: Attack: BAB +11/6/1, +11 dex Damage: +11 dex
Mythic Power: 17/17
Legendary Power: 4/4
Demonic save: Reroll save vs Demon (1/1)
Resiliancy: gain 30 temp hp when brought below 0 (1/1, 1m)
Spells: Fly (3/3, +4 fly, 5m, boots), Prestidigitation (at will), Shield: (6/7, +4 AC, 15m)
War hatchet Anista: Feather Fall (1/1), Heroism (2/3, 140m), Invisibility (2/3, 14m), Liberating Command (1/1, +20 escape artist)
Terendelev's Scale: Darkvision (1/3, 60’, 19h)
Lershim follows the front rank, slowly spiraling down and around. He twirls his war hatchet as he walks. He'd whistle, but he's just not that loud. But he is, for the moment, in a good mood.
Nodding, "Left tunnel. Let's move." Morgrym begins to head that way but quickly stops, looking back at Ansha curiously. "A hundred feet or so, lass? And then it curves out of sight?" Morgrym looks down the tunnel, unable to see that kind of distance himself. "Nasira's light isn't that good. What are ya, part dwarf? Yer a strange one, lass. I can never tell if yer castin' yer magic, and apparently, you can see in the dark. Even farther than meself. Anythin' else we need ta know about ya that yer not tellin' us? Yer not Noticula's sister or somethin' crazy like that, are ya?" Just as soon as he asks that, he hurriedly retreats from that question. "Ya know, never mind. I'm thinkin', the less I know, the better." Morgrym turns and heads down the left tunnel.
The elf winks. “I’m an only child.”
“But if you must know, there is a spell called true seeing that pierces even magical darkness. Invisibility, too, and all manner of illusion.”
”Costs two hundred fifty gold, though.” Thurin said. ”Pricy. I’d hope
That whomever made you spend it at least has the decency to have that on the corpse.”
Ansha seems mildly surprised that Thurin is familiar with the spell. She’d long ago figured out how to forego the sorts of material components he was referring to, though. “Turns out that eye ointment can be made from just about anything, if you’re creative enough,” she quips.