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Lahapraset
The party finally entered a larger cavern at the center of which was another pool of green liquid, which looked less caustic than the previous ones. On the other side of this small green lake were a lavish bed, divan, table and chairs. They seemed oddly out of place in this sinister cave. Strange pods also adorned the walls, but they seemed much healthier than the ones in the other caves. An elven man stood silently near the cave’s entrance, while an elven woman with wild black hair sat on the divan. She greeted the characters and invited them to come and sit with her.
The elf introduced herself as Lahapraset, and her companion as Chinoy. The group understood that they were, of course, Proteans. A discussion took place regarding the companions’ need to escape Kakishon. Lahapraset told them of the parallel with the Proteans, who also sought freedom. She informed them that only one bolt remained that kept the door of this reality tightly shut: the Earth Seed at the center of the Shaitans’ temple. When the Proteans had built this world, four seeds had been used as basic building blocks: one for each primal element. Those of fire, air and water had been consumed in the world’s creation, but the Earth Seed had endured through the ages as a stable focus for the entire world. It kept Kakishon stable and prevented the Proteans from using most of their influence to manipulate its reality. If the Earth Seed were destroyed, they would be able at long last to create an exit for themselves from the prison where Nex had cast them millennia ago.
Lahapraset also explained that Magiyawalla, the Imentesh Protean that Obherak kept inside the Earth Seed, was still alive, kept between life and death in a most cruel way, which was even worse for a Protean, as she suffered greatly inside this immutable block of stone that was the opposite of her very essence. She told the companions that it was within her power to send them away from Kakishon, but that she needed them to destroy the Earth Seed and free Magiyawalla first.
It was clear that the group had a difficult choice to make: to ally either with the Shaitans or the Proteans, and fight the other faction. It was not an easy one to make. Even though they had collaborated well with the Shaitans so far, several members of the group were uneasy to hear about such cruelty from Obherak. There was also the matter of leaving the Isles of Not. Kelonis thought he would be able to teleport the entire group back to the islands of Kakishon with a Teleport spell and some creative uses of bags of holding and Gaseous Form, but Lahapraset seemed to be able to send the characters anywhere thanks to her magical green pool, which was possibly more reliable.
In the end, though, the companions simply didn’t feel that they could trust and ally with the Proteans. Kelonis also used a True Seeing spell and confirmed the suspicion that Lahapraset was in fact an Imentesh Protean and that Chinoy and the three black lizards were Naunet Proteans. Fawzy decided they would remain neutral: he politely rejected Lahapraset’s offer and asked her to send them away from Kakishon. That way, although she wasn’t getting what she wanted, the group at least wouldn’t follow Obherak’s wishes and wouldn’t destroy the Proteans.
Lahapraset seemed greatly saddened to hear the monk’s words, but she did not order an attack, probably gauging the heroes to be quite powerful. She solemnly asked them to step into the pool one by one so she could send them back to Golarion, in a tower that had belonged to the archmage Nex long ago.
Fawzy was the first to step into the pool. It was not acidic in nature like the other ones had been. He prepared himself to finally leave Kakishon, but at the last moment, he noticed a strange expression in Lahapraset’s eyes, and his intuition revealed to him that he was about to be tricked: in fact, how could he know for sure that the Protean would really send him back to Golarion? It would be easy for her to teleport the companions into deadly locations one by one to punish them for refusing her offer… At the last moment before he vanished, he jumped to the edge of the pool and prepared to strike Lahapraset!
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Kakishon – day 38 (continued)
The creators’ destruction
Fawzy was not someone who appreciated being lied to, and he liked being teleported to mysterious and deadly places even less. Therefore, he unleashed a furious flurry of blows upon Lahapraset before she could complete her spell, slaying her nearly instantly. Howling with anger in their chaotic language, the black lizards regained their natural shapes as Naunet Proteans: massive snake-like beings with huge claws and two tentacles at the ends of which were two wicked maws. They attacked the two nearest group members: Toba and Hayia, wounding them badly and constricting them with their thick tails. Meanwhile, Chinoy bombarded the adventurers with magic, first blasting them with a Chaos Hammer spell, then resorting to shooting Acid Arrows at Kelonis and Fawzy.
As usual, Kelonis provided waves of healing on his companions, and Kazim quickened everyone’s movements with her magic before blasting the Proteans with bursts of Magic Missiles. This did not work as well as usual, as they were protected against magic. Abdelmotaleb’s arrows were less dangerous than usual as well, since the creatures were only vulnerable to weapons aligned with an aura of law. Fawzy proved especially potent in this fight: his adventures had brought him very far along the path of the monk, and now his unarmed blows, besides being improved by Tempest, were also very deadly against creatures of chaos.
The companions finally defeated the three Naunet Proteans, and Chinoy, having been wounded by Fawzy already and seeing that he had no hope to defeat the hated invaders, used his magic to disappear. Already, the signs of Lahapraset’s death could be seen: the pods growing on the walls were starting to wither and the waters of the pool were becoming more like acid.
Liquid chaos
Once the battle was over, the companions realized that everything was not quiet yet: some incoherent screams of anger, pain and fear were coming from the tunnel at the back of the room. They headed in that direction and reached yet another cave with a pool. Within the green waters, magical liquid tentacles emerged to keep captive a creature that looked much like Lahapraset’s true form: an Imentesh Protean. The monster was struggling against the tentacles’ grasp, and it was the one emitting the screams. Guarding it and the cave were two more Naunet Proteans who barred the companions’ way.
Kazim used a magical scroll to be able to speak with these Proteans. She learned that the captive Imentesh was named Thaiyanathan and that he had gone insane. He was being held here by Lahapraset until the Proteans found a way to escape Kakishon. The Naunets said that only the blessed chaos of the Maelstrom could heal Thaiyanathan’s broken mind; they also knew that the adventurers had slain Lahapraset and asked them to leave.
Unfortunately for them, Abdelmotaleb soon grew bored of this discussion he couldn’t understand, and he began shooting arrows at Thaiyanathan. The Imentesh was nimble and very resistant to the projectiles, though, so Abdelmotaleb was unable to cause him any serious damage. One of the Naunets began fighting Fawzy and Kelonis, while the other one engaged Toba in battle. Driven berserk by the threat of combat, Thaiyanathan was finally able to break free from the tentacles, and he cast a spell that Abdelmotaleb thankfully resisted: Kazim knew that the Protean had tried to turn him into a rabbit!
Once the two Naunet Proteans were slain, Fawzy and Toba waded into the green pool and attacked Thaiyanathan while Abdelmotaleb and Kazim shot it. The insane creature proved the most difficult of all to kill, as it dealt severe damage to Fawzy, even managing to grapple him, but eventually, Toba’s axe put an end to the mad Protean’s misery. As soon as Thaiyanathan expired, the pods adorning the wall began to wither, as in the previous cave, and the pool’s waters began to sizzle with a chaotic energy. Toba disappeared instantly; Fawzy was able to resist that magic and quickly returned to shore.
A brief moment of panic washed over the rest of the group: what to do? If Toba had been teleported to a dangerous place, she would need their help! Yet the greedier members of the group were loath to leave this place without looting the Proteans’ treasure first. In order to force the group’s hand, Abdelmotaleb ran back toward Lahapraset’s cave, pretending to be possessed and in trouble. The others saw right through his ruse, though, and decided to step within the pool and go to Toba’s help.
Left alone with his faithful snake companion, Abdelmotaleb took a few minutes to search the caves. He quickly found a large coffer in Lahapraset’s cavern and he transferred its valuable contents into his bag of holding before returning to Thaiyanathan’s cave and finally stepping into the pool of liquid chaos.
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One last night with Iqilma
The ranger appeared on the pier near the Pleasure Palace under a starry night sky. Thankfully, everyone was quite safe indeed. The rest of the group was there, speaking with Neshari and a few other slaves. Some time later, the Shaitans arrived, and heard the tale of the adventurers’ victory. The mission was done; the heroes had killed several of the Proteans. They weren’t sure how many were still left in the Isles of Not: had only Chinoy escaped, or were there many other islands with Proteans in that strange place? They weren’t sure, but they hoped that Obherak would be sufficiently pleased with their efforts.
While Abdelmotaleb showed Toba and Kelonis the treasure he’d found in the cave (trying to hide some of it for his own keeping, but the others were not so easily duped), Kazim and Fawzy questioned Iqilma about the fate of Magiyawalla, the Imentesh Protean that her father was keeping captive within the Earth Seed. It seemed like quite a cruel fate for this creature. Iqilma shrugged and said that the Proteans were wicked creatures who were trying to destroy this world; her race and theirs were at war, and Magiyawalla was merely one of the casualties. She had tried to assault the Shaitans’ temple and was paying for her folly. The Shaitan princess clearly felt no empathy for the chaotic creature that was fundamentally opposed to her race in nature.
A discussion followed between the companions: what to do now? One option was to take a ship back to Khandelwal, but such a journey would take eight days in the best case. Another one was for Kelonis to teleport everyone back to the Golden Bowl, but Iqilma would have to remain at the Pleasure Palace. Abdelmotaleb tried to convince the others to go by ship, but was overruled by all the others, who wanted to return to Golarion with all due haste: they had already been here for over a month. Who knew what evil Jhavhul had already wrought on their homeland?
Iqilma also spoke with the gruff ranger and told him that, as much as she would love to go with him on great adventures to become a heroine of legend like Nefeshti, she was also afraid of leaving Kakishon and breaking her father’s heart by going against his wishes and abandoning him. Thus, she convinced Abdelmotaleb to go with his companions by Kelonis’s magic and return to their world as quickly as possible to oppose Jhavhul. Once that was done, the heroes could always come back to Kakishon via the scroll.
Abdelmotaleb reluctantly agreed, and the group prepared for the teleportation. Kazim made herself and Toba gaseous by her air magic, and they entered Kelonis’s handy haversack. The elf then cast the Teleport spell on himself, Fawzy, Abdelmotaleb and Hayia. Alas, the chaotic magic of Kakishon made its influence felt at that moment, and the spell fizzled uselessly. Kelonis cursed in elvish and told the group that he would need to rest for the night before praying to Abadar to grant him another attempt at using this potent magic. Abdelmotaleb smiled and knew he had just been granted one more night of passion with Iqilma before he and his companions would leave Kakishon, perhaps never to return.
Kakishon – day 39
Farewell to Kakishon
The following morning, the group was successful in teleporting back to the Golden Bowl. The sphinx Zulfiqar greeted them and let them enter the Shaitans’ temple. Using Kazim’s levitation magic, they floated down and met Obherak and his followers. The warlord smiled grimly and told the adventurers he knew they had been successful: already, he felt that the Proteans’ chaotic influence on the world had greatly diminished. He would now keep his end of the bargain.
The unconscious Protean was removed from the Earth Seed by two Shaitan warriors, and then Obherak entered within the block of primordial stone. Another Shaitan gestured for the heroes to touch the stone once Obherak had empowered it. They companions placed their hands on it and seemed to merge within the magical stone… they were absorbed by it, moved through it… ever so slowly…
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Here are the characters at level 11:
Toba (NN Female Dwarf Rogue, Level 11) – Worships Sarenrae
Str: 18 Dex: 18 Con: 24 Int: 7 Wis: 8 Cha: 9
AC: 24 HP: 175 Fortitude: +11 Reflex: +12 Will: +3
Initiative: +8 Speed: 20’
Melee attacks: lifestealing greataxe +15/+10 (1d12+8, x3)
Ranged attacks: +1 heavy crossbow +13 (2d10+1, 19-20)
Feats: Martial Weapon Proficiency: Greataxe, Weapon Focus: Greataxe, Toughness, Power Attack, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Vital Strike, Improved Critical: Greataxe.
Traits: Missionary, Pesh Addict.
Skills: Acrobatics 17, Bluff 5, Climb 14, Escape Artist 9, Intimidate 7, Knowledge: local 7, Knowledge: Religion 2, Linguistics 2, Perception 13, Sense Motive 6, Sleight of Hand 7, Stealth 17, Swim 4.
Languages: Kelish, Dwarf, Common.
Main equipment: Lifestealing Greataxe +2, Chain Shirt +3, Amulet of Health +2, Holy Symbol of Sarenrae, Phylactery of Faithfulness, Ring of Protection +2, Necklace of Fireballs, Gauntlets of Ogre Strength +2, Belt of Dexterity +4, Cloak of Resistance +1, Heavy Crossbow +1, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bag of Holding Type 1.
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Fawzy/Vardishal (LG Male Human Monk, Level 11) – Worships Iomedae
Str: 18 Dex: 18 Con: 14 Int: 10 Wis: 18 Cha: 13
AC: 29 HP: 130 Fortitude: +11 Reflex: +13 Will: +13
Initiative: +8 Speed: 60’
Melee attacks: flurry of blows +18/+18/+13/+13/+8 (2d8+7 +1d6 cold) (with Tempest)
Ranged attacks: javelin +11 (1d6+4)
Height: 5’11”. Weight: 200 lbs. Age: 25.
Feats: Improved Grapple, Dodge, Scorpion Style, Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist, Maneuver Training, Weapon Focus: Unarmed, Extra Ki, Deflect Arrows, Improved Initiative, Toughness.
Traits: Reclaiming Your Roots, Courageous.
Skills: Acrobatics 23, Climb 11, Escape Artist 12, Intimidate 10, Knowledge: History 6, Perception 19, Sense Motive 18, Stealth 14, Survival 6, Swim 9.
Languages: Kelish, Common.
Main equipment: Tempest, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Ring of Force Shield, Amulet of Mighty Fists +1, Cloak of Resistance +1, Bracers of Armor +4, Headband of Inspired Wisdom +2, Monk’s Robe, Belt of Physical Might (+2 str/+2 dex), Boots of Elvenkind, Gray Bag of Tricks, Horn of the Golden Draught, Rod of Flame Extinguishing.
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Abdelmotaleb (NN Male Human Ranger, Level 11) – Worships Gozreh
Str: 16 Dex: 18 Con: 14 Int: 10 Wis: 12 Cha: 9
AC: 23 HP: 146 Fortitude: +12 Reflex: +14 Will: +7
Initiative: +6 Speed: 30’
Melee attacks: +1 frost fire outsider bane scimitar +15/+10/+5 (1d6+5 + 1d6 cold, 18-20)
Ranged attacks: +1 mighty (str +3) composite longbow +18/+13/+8 (1d8+4, x3)
Favored enemies: Gnolls (+4), Undead (+2), Evil Outsiders (+4)
Favored terrains: Desert (+4), Underground (+2).
Animal companion: Hayia, medium viper.
Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Endurance, Weapon Focus: Longbow, Blind-fight, Many Shot, Deadly Aim, Improved Critical (Longbow), Far Shot, Critical Focus.
Traits: Gnoll Killer, Reactionary.
Skills: Acrobatics 14, Climb 11, Handle Animal 3, Heal 4, Intimidate 13, Knowledge: Dungeoneering 4, Perception 15, Ride 9, Sense Motive 3, Sleight of Hand 10, Stealth 17, Survival 18, Swim 4.
Languages: Kelish.
Main equipment: Halberd +1, Composite Longbow +1 (+3 str), Mithral Chainmail +3, Slippers of Spider Climbing, Amulet of Health +2, Cloak of Resistance +1, Fire Outsider Bane Frost Scimitar +1, Belt of Dexterity +2, Lesser Bracers of Archery, Bag of Holding Type 2, Efficient Quiver, Ring of Protection +1, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bottle of Air, Chime of Opening.
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Kelonis (LN Male Elf Cleric, Level 11) – Worships Abadar
Str: 13 Dex: 14 Con: 12 Int: 16 Wis: 22 Cha: 16
AC: 28 HP: 107 Fortitude: +11 Reflex: +7 Will: +15
Initiative: +2 Speed: 20’
Melee attacks: +1 longsword +10/+5 (1d8+2, 19-20)
Ranged attacks: Light crossbow +10 (1d8, 19-20)
Cleric Domains: Nobility, Travel.
Height: 6’5”. Weight: 180 lbs, Age: 140, Date of birth: Erastus 29th, 4570.
A tall, handsome elf with dark hair and golden eyes. His demeanor is haughty and superior. He wears an elegant cloak over an ornate plate armor.
Feats: Selective Channeling, Scribe Scroll, Extra Channeling, Heavy Armor Proficiency, Leadership (domain ability), Dodge, Shield Focus.
Traits: Seeking Adventure, Forlorn.
Skills: Appraise 12, Diplomacy 14, Heal 11, Knowledge: Arcana 8, Knowledge: History 10, Knowledge: Religion 17, Knowledge: Planes 13, Linguistics 8, Perception 9, Sense Motive 10, Spellcraft 17.
Languages: Common, Elven, Kelish, Draconic, Gnoll, Ignan.
Main equipment: Wayfinder, Light crossbow, Longsword +1, Full Plate Armor +3, Heavy Wooden Shield, Cloak of Resistance +2, Hat of Disguise, Ring of Protection +1, Handy Haversack, Periapt of Wisdom +4, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Phylactery of Positive Channeling, Staff of Healing, Lesser Silent Metamagic Rod.
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Kazim Xobhadi {Cohort of Kelonis} (LG Female Human Sorceress, Level 9) – Worships Abadar
Str: 8 Dex: 16 Con: 13 Int: 10 Wis: 12 Cha: 21
AC: 18 HP: 69 Fortitude: +4 Reflex: +6 Will: +7
Initiative: +7 Speed: 30’
Melee attacks: dagger +3 (1d4-1, 19-20)
Ranged attacks: Ranged Touch +7
Bloodline: Air Elemental.
Height: 5’5”. Weight: 120 lbs, Age: 24, Date of birth: Lamashan 27th, 4685.
A pretty, well-mannered woman with short brown hair and a kind look in her eyes.
Feats: Eschew Materials, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Combat Casting, Improved Initiative, Toughness, Dodge, Spell Penetration.
Skills: Appraise 4, Bluff 9, Diplomacy 7, Intimidate 9, Knowledge: Arcana 9, Knowledge: Planes 9, Linguistics 2, Spellcraft 10, Use Magic Device 9.
Languages: Common, Kelish, Auran.
Main equipment: Amulet of Natural Armor +1, Belt of Dexterity +2, Cloak of Charisma +2, Bracers of Armor +2, Ring of Protection +1, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bag of Holding Type 3.
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THE IMPOSSIBLE EYE
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Fire and math
After what seemed like an eternity, the group emerged suddenly into a room with walls of polished brass. The air was at a scorching temperature: those who were not wearing the rings of fire resistance that Artel Norrim had crafted for them immediately put them on, and Abdelmotaleb cast a spell to shield Hayia from the heat. When the companions looked around, they saw that they were in a treasure room that had been mostly emptied: upturned coffers and amphorae surrounded them, with only a few dozen coins and gems scattered on the ground, as if beneath the notice of whoever had ransacked the place. Strangely, thick walls of flame blocked the four exits from the room. Each of these exits was identified by a rune, and another set of runes was engraved on the ceiling around the painting of a lizard.
Then, the heroes realized that a scroll was burning at their feet: it was the Scroll of Kakishon! Fawzy quickly put out the flames with his newly-found rod of flame extinguishing, but the damage seemed to be done: the scroll was badly burned, and Kelonis wasn’t sure it could ever be used again…
Abdelmotaleb and Toba began gathering the scattered coins and gems while the others examined the room. Kelonis translated the runes, which were written in Ignan, the language of fire creatures. On the ceiling was written: “Half or triple plus one”, while the runes above the arches identified them with numbers from one to four.
For several minutes, the group wondered where the hell they had appeared. What was this place? Who had looted this treasury? Why was the Scroll of Kakishon here, but not Jhavhul? What did the Ignan runes mean? Kelonis guessed that the scroll had burned not because Jhavhul had placed it here recently, but rather because of the group’s arrival. Indeed, entrance or exit from Kakishon placed some strain on the scroll’s magic, and the elf guessed that the group’s last exit had perhaps destroyed the scroll for good. Abdelmotaleb gripped his bow grimly: would he ever be able to see Iqilma again?
None of the companions had any idea what the riddle on the ceiling meant, so they decided at random to go through the archway marked with the number three. Fawzy extinguished the flame wall with his rod and saw beyond it another room similar to the one they were in. He and Toba were the first two to enter that room, but as they passed where the flames had been moments before, they suddenly felt a strange magic gripping them, and they disappeared! After a few moments of hesitation, the rest of the group decided to follow them…
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A cruel trap
Fawzy and Toba appeared in mid-air in a large room that was mostly filled with a huge lake of lava. They found themselves falling rapidly toward a vortex of swirling magma…
“What the f*** ???” was, of course, the first thought that popped up into their frightened minds.
Thankfully for Toba, she was quick enough to open up the vial of flying potion at her belt that she had just received as her share of Lahapraset’s treasure; she gulped it down and began flying just one instant before her feet touched the magma. She began floating up, safe for now.
Sadly, Fawzy was not so lucky: he had many abilities and magical items at his disposal, but none that could prevent his fall into the vortex of lava. Pain unlike anything he had felt before assailed every inch of the monk’s body; but he found it within himself to ignore this pain for a few moments and focus on survival. Summoning his reserves of ki, he increased his speed and swam through the burning liquid toward the platform he had seen as he fell.
Kazim and Abdelmotaleb were the next two to appear. Thankfully, Kazim had already cast a Fly spell on herself before leaving Kakishon, and she was fast enough to cast another one on Abdelmotaleb before he fell all the way down into the lava. Moments later, the other two appeared; Toba caught hold of Hayia, and Kazim cast another Fly spell on Kelonis.
The companions quickly flew toward the platform. In a superhuman display of athletics and stamina, Fawzy had been able to swim all the way from the lava vortex and had climbed on the platform. His skin was completely burned by the lava, and it would have continued to burn him, causing his death, if he had not used once again his rod of flame extinguishing to save his own life. With a look of great concern on his face, Kelonis approached the burned body of his friend and invoked his most powerful healing spell: Heal. Soon enough, Fawzy was whole again, but shaken at having gone through such a cruel trap… What insane mind had created a teleportation mechanic that brought its victims over a vortex of lava? Surely a very twisted and sick one…
While the others recovered from this ordeal and wondered what was going on and what to do next, Kazim ran her hands over one of the walls of the room. Every surface in this place was made of highly polished brass that seemed impervious to fire. She had a sudden rush of realization, and she spoke with Kelonis in a low voice. They cast a few spells around them, studying their behavior, and then they announced to the rest of the group that they were likely not in Golarion, but rather, on the Elemental Plane of Fire. Kazim had indeed recognized the material of the walls as Living Brass, a highly magical metal infused by the souls of those who had misused the wishes granted by efreet.
The group then wondered if Jhavhul had come back to the Elemental Plane of Fire, his home world, to gather his treasure and raise a larger army? Fawzy knew, through the mind of Vardishal and discussions he’d had with Kardswann, that Jhavhul’s family were once powerful nobles of the City of Brass, the capital of the efreet empire on the Plane of Fire.
Kelonis then told the group that he would need to rest again and pray for a Plane Shift spell that would finally bring them home to Golarion.
“It won’t work,” said a deep voice in the Kelish language.
Everyone turned in surprise toward the nearest wall. The reflection of every member of the group appeared there, but also the reflection of a large creature that was not in fact among them. Tall as a genie, his skin was dark like that of a Mwangi man, and his long hair was white. They weren’t sure exactly what he was, but he was far too tall to be a human.
The dark man introduced himself as Ezer Hazzebaim and spoke these words: “We are in Bayt Al-Bazan. This palace is accursed—an inescapable trap devised by the grand vizier of the sultan’s court. I have not the time to tell my tale, though a tale worth telling it is, but I too am a victim of this eternal prison and grow weary of its confines. We will speak again. If you would be free, then heed my words well, for we may each hold the key to the other’s escape.”.
Then, Ezer seemed to grow weak and his image faded from the brass’s reflection. The companions discussed his words among themselves: indeed, Jhavhul’s fortress was called Bayt Al-Bazan. Fawzy had heard from Kardswann that after Jhavhul was vanquished by Andrathi and Nefeshti, his brother Al-hassan had taken control of the family’s holdings, but that he had somehow been disgraced by the sultan of the City of Brass. But it seemed now that there would be no escape from this place due to the grand vizier’s curse.
“So we have escaped one prison only to enter another,” said Kelonis grimly. “That’s just wonderful…”
“Yes, if we were to be stuck in a prison, I’d rather be back on the beaches of Kakishon, personally,” commented Kazim.
Unsure of what to do, Fawzy used his rod again to extinguish the curtain of flame that blocked the only archway out of the platform. The group went through it and found themselves back in the treasury with the lizard sign on the ceiling…
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The perpetual flame
Using his magical rod again, Fawzy extinguished the flames that burned within the archway marked “one”. Beyond stood another similar treasure room; the group ventured within and noticed that it bore the same runes as the previous one, except that the animal depicted on the ceiling was a vulture. As they looted the scattered coins and gems that lay discarded on the floor, the curtain of fire re-formed behind them. With the last daily charges of his rod, Fawzy cleared the way through the archway numbered “four”, which let to yet a third treasure room, this one decorated with the image of a scorpion.
The adventurers couldn’t find a pattern between the various animals they’d seen so far. While they looted this third treasure chamber, Toba found a strange magical flame within an alcove. It burned like regular fire, but could be picked up like an item. Suddenly, the image of Ezer Hazzebaim appeared again in one of the brass walls, and he spoke these words:
“The secret of the brass ship is in the divine fire that guides its way. Light the prow or the waiting post with the flame that cannot be quenched.”
Toba understood that the flame could be placed on a plinth she had noticed on the platform near the lava vortex. In fact, that platform had seemed like a pier of some kind: perhaps this lake of lava could be navigated by the efreet like water for humans. After placing the perpetual flame within a lantern, the group decided to return toward the pier, but three curtains of flame barred their way. Alas, Fawzy’s rod was used up for the day, so the adventurers had to run through the fire. Toba, Abdelmotaleb and Fawzy were quite agile and were able to avoid most of the damage, but Kelonis and Kazim were badly burned by the time they exited the treasure rooms. Thankfully, Kelonis still had a lot of healing magic at his disposal, and he soothed these burns. Hayia had been completely protected from the flames thanks to a spell her master had cast on her.
Kelonis placed the flame on the brass plinth, and after a few minutes, a large brass barge appeared from the canal of lava to the north. Of course, it was unclear whether there was such a thing as “north” on the elemental plane of fire, but Kelonis had noticed that his Wayfinder always pointed in the same direction, which the group agreed to call “north” from then on.
The companions climbed aboard the barge, which seemed sized for efreet. While sitting on the large seats, they felt like children in a man-sized boat. Kelonis placed the flame at the prow of the boat and willed it to move. The magical boat followed his command and moved toward the north tunnel, thankfully avoiding the lava vortex that had almost engulfed Fawzy earlier. The boat moved slowly in this wide, high-ceilinged tunnel in which the lava lazily flowed toward the vortex. The magic of the boat kept the adventurers from experiencing the extreme heat of the lava river. The companions decided to hide in the boat, in case enemies waited ahead. As the boat moved, they heard the familiar sound of a large water fall, just like they had recently encountered in Kakishon. But as the boat rounded a bend in the tunnel, they realized that this, of course, wasn’t a waterfall: it was a lava-fall!
A surge of panic gripped the heroes, but they decided to trust in the magic of the efreet barge and they let it navigate toward the falling curtain of liquid burning death. Kelonis prayed to Abadar for protection; Fawzy waited impassively, completely at peace with himself; Abdelmotaleb cursed like a drunken sailor while Kazim shivered and gripped her seat so hard her knuckles turned white. Thankfully, as the brass boat approached, the lava fall parted to let it pass without harming its passengers, and the vessel kept moving toward a pier in a large room similar to the one they had left. There was no lava vortex here, but a wide stairway led up to another section of the palace. The companions quickly climbed out of the barge and began ascending the stairs. As they did so, Abdelmotaleb looked for tracks, but found none.
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The lava canal
At the top of the stairs, the group went through a locked door thanks to Abdelmotaleb’s chime of opening. They entered a large room that overlooked the lava falls. As they examined this room, a huge bronze disk in the east wall emerged from the wall, and the cacophony of huge metallic paws filled the room and made the ground shake: this disk was but the tip of the conical head of a gargantuan construct that had the body of a lion. The thing bashed Toba, but the dwarf had time to react to its approach, and she was only pushed back a few feet.
“No-one Bull Rushes a Dwarf!” exclaimed Toba stubbornly.
The strange construct was very resistant to weapons; Fawzy and Toba did the most damage to it, but they had the help of Kazim’s Magic Missiles, Abdelmotaleb’s arrows, and Kelonis’s Spiritual Weapon. It finally crumbled into a heap of metal. The alcove where it had been hidden was empty.
The companions continued exploring further and found a large circular room where the lava river was flowing toward the falls. A large tunnel led to the northeast, but its bottom was filled with lava and it was blocked by a thick grate of living brass. It seemed that the companions had reached a dead end.
The group wondered what this place was: why was there so much lava? Kazim explained that in the Elemental Plane of Fire, lava was like water, so this was perhaps the equivalent of sewers in this world. Abdelmotaleb noticed a discoloration of the wall on the other side of the lava river, as if something had flowed down that section of the wall. After receiving a Fly spell from Kazim, the ranger went to examine it more closely and found a hidden door near the ceiling, which opened on a narrow tunnel that led up in the dark. Its walls were made of very smooth living brass and would be nearly impossible to climb without magic.
After getting his weapon enchanted with magical light, Abdelmotaleb flew up the tunnel and reached a room that contained only debris, a large door, and a metal grate on the ceiling. Disturbing cries similar to those of a maddened bull came from above; they had a strange metallic sound. Abdelmotaleb also saw red clouds streaked with flames beyond the grate, which seemed to open on the roof of the palace. For the first time, he was seeing the sky of the Plane of Fire.
The ranger flew back down and the group decided to go up the tunnel. Abdelmotaleb carried them up to the opening one by one, then gave each one his slippers of spider climbing: this way, they could climb up the slippery chute without using more of Kazim’s magic to make everyone fly. Eventually, everyone made it into the room, where the bull’s tormented cries could still be heard.
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The Cult of the Incarnate Flame
Beyond the door, a flight of stairs led down to a corridor with a door on the left and a larger room to the right. All surfaces were still made of living brass, and the corridors were wide, the stairs had high steps and the doors were also very large in size: clearly, this was a place built for much larger beings than humans. Abdelmotaleb saw the tracks of man-sized clawed feet on the ground, going from the room on the right to the one with the metal grate in the ceiling. Toba, Abdelmotaleb and Fawzy, the three stealthiest group members, went to examine the room to the right. It was empty except for a door and another tunnel that led to a platform protected by a barricade. On this platform were some brown-scaled lizardmen who were manning a large ballista. One of them noticed Toba, so the companions retreated behind the corner and gestured for the others to join them. Kelonis heard that the lizardmen spoke Draconic among themselves, so he began speaking loudly with them, only peering out slightly beyond the corner, to avoid getting shot by the ballista.
A discussion began between the elf and these lizardmen. Kelonis gave them his name and said he was a Pathfinder, a writer of stories; he claimed he wanted to learn more about this place to write about it. The lizardmen said they belonged to the Cult of the Incarnate Flame. They were worshippers of Flauros, whose name Kelonis recognized as that of a demon lord of fire. After speaking with a lizardman soldier for a while, Kelonis was addressed by another one who seemed to be their leader: he said his name was Bassadoum. All this time, Kelonis and the others were still hiding behind the corner. Kelonis was shouting back and forth in Draconic with the lizardmen.
Bassadoum revealed much information about Bayt Al-Bazan: the masters of the palace were all dead, and the place was cursed. Its inhabitants and the intruders who had come over the centuries were unable to leave because of the grand vizier’s curse. Many of the guards and slaves of the Al-Bazan family had been slain by the fire giants that the grand vizier had sent into Bayt Al-Bazan. Only a few, like Bassadoum, had survived over the ages. Some of those who had died had come back as unholy spirits, like the Imam, a creature of darkness that was always hungry. Bassadoum warned Kelonis to avoid the Imam, otherwise he would be eaten too.
The Cult of the Incarnate Flame had few dealings with the other denizens of the palace: undead, thieves and the fire giants. They guarded their domain, prayed to Flauros and ensured the survival of their clan. They especially hated the thieves who came to Bayt Al-Bazan from time to time in search of treasure, and who found themselves unable to leave. These thieves were very dangerous and also risked eating Kelonis, according to Bassadoum.
When Bassadoum asked where he was from, Kelonis said he was from Katapesh. Bassadoum recognized the name and said that Jhavhul, one of the former masters of this place, had gone to Katapesh but had never returned. After his departure, his brother Al-Hassan had become the new master. He had been killed by a group of Marids while he was focused on a complex plan with his ally from another world. The Marids had attacked the same night that the curse of the grand vizier had struck. They had been killed by Al-Hassan’s guards after assassinating him; Bassadoum thought the Marids had come here to retrieve a great treasure that Jhavhul had taken from them, something that he was keeping in the treasure vaults below, and that he often went down to enjoy while he had still been the master of Bayt Al-Bazan, long ago. Bassadoum did not know how many lower levels there were, as slaves were forbidden to go there.
Kelonis tried to question the lizardmen more thoroughly about the exact nature of the enemies they might find in this place, but Bassadoum remained vague, only saying that there were “thieves everywhere”, and that the Imam and mad efreet lurked above, along with the giants. The thieves came from the same direction the adventurers had now come from, and could be found behind a hidden door in the room with the crouching lion, the broken lion. When asked about the sounds of torment coming from above, Bassadoum merely said that they belonged to a mad efreet being tortured by the fire giants.
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Beyond the broken lion
After the conversation with Bassadoum, the companions wondered what to do. While they were discussing among themselves, Ezer appeared again and spoke these words:
“An eye of brass was forged of old to grace the grand sultan’s court. This eye could pierce the veils of secrecy, distance, and time with its impossible gaze to bring the grand vizier of the grand sultan tidings for his master’s ear. This Impossible Eye is that which binds us even now, but it was stolen and now lies within these very walls, the cause of our imprisonment and the means of our escape. You must find the eye! I depend on you! And you depend on me!”
The group was unsure where to go now: the lizardmen had said there were many ways to go up and down to other sections of the palace, but that none of these accesses were through their domain. To the north was a stairway leading to the giants. The group decided to go find the thieves, so they returned to the door near the room they had emerged from. Behind it, they found a room with the mangled statue of a strange creature with the body of a lion, the wings of a dragon and the head of a jackal. This head had been badly damaged. The creature held a bloodstained stone cup between its front paws.
Searching the room, Fawzy found a secret door. It led to a large room that featured four large empty alcoves. Abdelmotaleb found the place surprisingly clean and Toba found a trap that would activate if someone left the alcove the companions were presently in. To test the trap, Fawzy took a weasel out of his gray bag of tricks and threw it into the central section of the room. At first nothing happened, but after a few seconds, the ceiling of the entire room seemed to melt into liquid brass. Toba and Fawzy were able to escape the room before the burning deluge it them, but the others were burned and had part of their life essence drained by the unholy nature of this metal. Abdelmotaleb raged as Kelonis healed their wounds and restored their energy with a wand taken from the Proteans’ lair.
“I can’t believe I was forced to leave the sunny breaches of Kakishon and the soft skin of my beautiful Iqilma to end up in this hellhole!” growled the ranger. “Those damned lizardmen tricked us! They are like gnolls to me now!” That was the gravest insult the ranger could ever give to someone.
Fawzy tested the trap again and threw another weasel from his bag into the room, triggering another flow of molten brass, which disappeared when it hit the ground, like the first time. Of course, this time, the companions had remained safely in the room with the broken statue. Suspecting that there must be a secret door here (otherwise, it seemed like madness to put such a deadly trap in a dead end behind a very hard-to-find secret door!), Fawzy was rendered gaseous by Kazim, and searched the room. He did not trigger the trap, but after a few minutes, he did indeed find a secret door in one of the walls.
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Smuggled goods
Fawzy regained his solid form on the other side of the secret door, in a room where some smuggled goods had been stacked against the walls. There seemed to be nobody guarding the stash. The monk opened the secret door and gestured for his friends to join him. Abdelmotaleb tried to avoid the room’s trap by walking along the walls with his slippers of spider climbing, but alas, he still triggered it and suffered the pain of the molten brass. Kelonis brought the rest of the group more safely across with a Dimension Door spell.
The adventurers looted what they could easily carry among the stolen items, which contained several valuable art objects and pieces of jewelry, a decanter of endless water and several vials of holy water sealed with the sun symbol of Sarenrae. Kelonis pointed out that these last items were illegal in the City of Brass. Toba felt relieved to see the familiar symbol of her goddess in this treacherous place.
As the group discussed the presence of this holy water, the wavering form of Ezer once again appeared in the reflection of the brass walls, and spoke:
“Yes, holy water like that contained in these vials is indeed illegal in the city, but has been known to be kept as contraband in the troves of certain unscrupulous groups. They were brought here by the thieves and assassins of the Flickering Candle, scum so vile that they would betray even their own master. Keep these vials preciously, for waters blessed by the gods themselves are necessary for our success. Remember, as the Impossible Eye holds the secret of my escape, so do I hold the secret to yours.”.
The group continued forward. Abdelmotaleb had seen tracks on the ground: those of gnome-sized feet and of what seemed to be giant snakes.
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Abdelmotaleb’s anger
Abdelmotaleb felt even more irate than his companions at being a prisoner of Bayt Al-Bazan right after having escaped captivity in Kakishon. Having been a prisoner of the gnolls during his youth had given him a phobia of being in servitude to anyone, and an almost claustrophobic need to escape the fiery citadel as quickly as possible.
So it was that, when the group next entered a room that contain a number of sleeping pallets on which three injured kobolds were resting, he shot them to death despite their harmless appearance. He and Kazim then argued about this unnecessary cruelty, but they were soon interrupted by the appearance of the place’s guardians, who had surely been alerted by the kobolds’ death yelps and the adventurers’ raised voices. From one door emerged two hideous green-skinned beings covered in long and sharp spikes: barbed devils; meanwhile, from the hallway behind the characters came a large salamander armed with a spear, as well as a huge fire elemental.
A difficult battle began: the devils used their magic to hurt the companions with a cloying miasma of darkness; one also tried to paralyze Abdelmotaleb by magic, but he resisted. Toba and Hayia moved to fight them in melee, but they soon found themselves grappled, painfully impaled on the devils’ barbs, and frightened by their evil aura.
The salamander had created a Wall of Fire to block access to the rest of the group, but the heroes went around through the corridor and faced the salamander and its elemental minion. Fawzy nimbly dodged the salamander’s spear and kicked it in the head, stunning it before unleashing a deadly barrage of punched and kicks. He felt Vardishal’s rage pouring through his soul: the templar was getting some measure of revenge, for he had been killed by a creature just like this one, so long ago. Even though vengeance was a feeling that Fawzy never let get a hold of him, he was happy that the templar was getting a sense of closure. Tempest also empowered his blows more than ever, since it was specifically forged to destroy creatures from the plane of fire. After mere moments, the noble salamander was slain by the monk’s onslaught. Strangely, it made no sound as it died, merely smiling in an eerily serene manner.
Meanwhile, the elemental was killed by Abdelmotaleb’s arrows and Kazim’s lightning magic. The companions then hurried back into the main room, on the other side of the wall of fire, to help their wounded companions. As Fawzy attacked the devils in melee, Abdelmotaleb and Kazim kept providing ranged support and Kelonis moved in to heal everyone. One of the devils struck Fawzy, but was unable to grapple him. The other tried to wound Kelonis, but the cleric remained impervious to its attacks, clad in full plate armor as he was. Fawzy struck the devils, but was taking horrendous damage from the spikes that protected their hideous bodies.
Finally, Toba recovered her wits and was able to lend a hand to her companions, stabbing one of the devils with her axe. The fiend howled in pain and dissolved in a foul cloud of green smoke. Left alone against the heroes, the other devil hissed in rage and vanished. Kelonis grumbled that most devils were able to do this at will.
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The Flickering Candle
The companions caught their breath and received healing from the elven cleric. They then took a few minutes to search nearby rooms, finding some torture equipment and a laboratory among them. They also found the prison of a sobbing djinn that seemed strangely oblivious to their presence. The companions tried to communicate with him using every language they knew, including Auran, but the creature kept on wallowing in misery. Using a key they had found, they opened its cage; Fawzy and Kazim carefully approached it. It seemed quite inoffensive, but also completely impotent. Even though the more “jaded” members of the group wanted to leave the useless creature behind, Kazim brought him out of the cage by the hand, hoping that Kelonis would be able to cure him of his apparent insanity the following day. She wondered if the poor djinn had been tortured so badly that he had gone insane.
As they returned to the main room where they had fought just minutes before, the adventurers ran into a group of salamanders led by another noble salamander that looked unerringly like the one they had killed earlier – except that it wielded a scythe instead of a spear. It was almost as if the two were twins or clones of one another. With the salamanders was also another huge fire elemental.
The noble salamander addressed the companions in Ignan, then in Common, angrily informing them that they had trespassed on the territory of the Flickering Candle and that they had dared attack its slaves as well as “The Bursar” (which seemed to be the name of the first salamander). The companions replied that Bayt Al-Bazan did not belong to them, but to Jhavhul. As they refused the salamander’s demands to throw down their weapons, another fight soon erupted.
Unfortunately, this battle was even deadlier than the previous one, because several of the enemies had in fact been waiting under the cover of invisibility. As the fight began, four efreeti appeared, shooting rays of fire and attacking the heroes with their big falchions. A black-clad elven assassin also appeared, clinging to the ceiling like Abdelmotaleb sometimes did with his magic slippers. He shot arrows at Kazim, badly wounding her. To make things even, worse, the barbed devil that had previously escaped teleported back into the room with a sadistic cackle.
Toba and Fawzy found themselves at one end of the room, fighting the noble salamander, the elemental, and the bulk of the regular salamanders, while the rest of the group were at the other end, closer to the djinn’s prison, and were beset by the efreet, the elf, the devil and two other salamanders.
The adventurers fought like legendary heroes that day, surrounded by incredibly powerful enemies on all sides. Toba was badly wounded by the noble salamander, but Fawzy was able to dodge attack after attack using his ki powers. He and the dwarven rogue struck powerful blows to their enemies. Abdelmotaleb also rained his deadly arrows against the enemies, killing two of the efreet, but he sustained several nasty wounds, as his ranged attacks made him more vulnerable in close combat. He was soon bleeding badly and hoping that Kelonis would be able to keep him alive. Meanwhile, Kelonis valiantly resisted the devil’s attacks: he was almost invulnerable in his mighty armor and blessed shield. He channeled wave after wave of healing energy to aid his friends, although unfortunately Toba and Fawzy were too far away to receive this blessing. The elven assassin shot arrows, lightly wounding Abdelmotaleb, but wasn’t as dangerous as the efreet or the devil overall. As for Hayia, she was severely maimed and grappled by the two salamanders that were attacking her. She was at the brink of death for pretty much the entire fight.
As the carnage took place around him, the djinn prisoner stood idly sobbing, remaining totally useless. Soon, he was sent sprawling to the floor as one of the remaining efreet roughly shoved him to the side to get to Abdelmotaleb.
Eventually, Fawzy and Toba killed all their foes: the noble salamander, the huge elemental, and five salamanders. They rushed back to help their friends, who were dire straights. The devil was now wrestling with Abdelmotaleb, squeezing him against his deadly barbed hide. The ranger was deadly with his bow, but caught in this mortal embrace, he wasn’t able to do anything. Kazim cast a Glitterdust spell at the elf to try and blind him, but he resisted it. He seemed furious, though, for it prevented him from turning invisible again. While Kazim began blasting the devil with lightning and Magic Missiles, the elf gently floated down to the ground and prepared to assassinate the ranger who was caught helplessly in the devil’s grasp.
Kelonis rushed past an efreeti to reach Abdelmotaleb, and tried to cast a Freedom of Movement spell to release him, but alas, he took two painful wounds from the efreeti’s falchion, which broke the concentration of his spell. Fawzy and Toba also tried to go help Abdelmotaleb, but an efreeti barred their way, and they had to fight it first. It fell in moments, and Fawzy rushed toward the elven assassin, stunning him with a powerful kick to the back of the head. The devil turned toward the monk and grinned sadistically, showing rows of sharp yellow teeth. He strengthened his hold on the blood-covered Abdelmotaleb, literally squeezing the life out of him. The ranger’s eyes widened in pain, and then went glassy: he was dead.
Kelonis immediately placed his hands on Abdelmotaleb and called upon one of his mightiest prayers: suddenly, a Breath of Life surged through Abdelmotaleb’s body, and the ranger came back to life with a sudden gasp.
By then, Fawzy had slain the elf and Toba had killed the last efreeti. The barbed devil turned toward Fawzy and the two began hitting each other with vicious blows. It was clear that, sadly, the devil would win at this game, since Fawzy was taking terrible wounds from its barbs. Once it became clear that the battle was lost, though, the devil teleported away yet again. Fawzy and Toba quickly came to the help of Hayia against the last two salamanders, saving her from certain death.
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Mercenaries
The fight had taken a terrible toll on the heroes, but on Abdelmotaleb most of all. During the instant of his death, time had been frozen in his mind and he had imagined himself captured by his worst enemies: gnolls, efreet and undead. Being captive was the worst experience for him, and he felt utterly miserable knowing that he was captive of Bayt Al-Bazan, along with the rest of his group and even all of the enemies they were encountering. He remained grimly silent from then on, ignoring Kazim’s attempt at comforting him.
Kelonis healed everyone’s wounds, and once he was done, another group of fiery creatures entered the room, this time from the stairs that led down in the north wall. There were five azers (fire-dwarves) and six floating imp-like creatures with red skin. These creatures had come ready for battle, but once they beheld the carnage that had taken place here, they seemed to be understandably in no mood to fight the heroes. Kelonis informed them that the Protectors of Kelmarane were now in control of this area and that any who opposed them would die. The azers and mephits quickly agreed to serve these new masters, so their lives would be spared.
The group questioned the azers, which was made easier by the fact that three of them (Karpos, Seribik and Akatur) spoke Common. They learned that there remained three efreet of the Flickering Candle, as well as some fire-birds called pyrolisks and the barbed devil Kabaness. There were also some kobold slaves here and there, but they were harmless. Karpos said that Kabaness had appeared downstairs, where they had been calmly smoking a hookah, and had told them to get upstairs with the remaining efreet and mephits to aid Master Matajinn (the elf). Indeed, it seemed that Master Matajinn (a name which meant genie-killer in Ignan) had been the leader of these troops, and he in turn served Grandfather Musalla, a noble efreeti who lived elsewhere in the City of Brass. The members of the Flickering Candle had been prisoners of Bayt Al-Bazan for a long time now, periodically receiving smuggled goods and prisoners held for ransom, but never given back. Since nobody could escape this fortress, those who brought provisions or smuggled goods became captive as well. This seemed quite odd to the adventurers…
Regarding the crying djinn, the azers said that he was the last prisoner who had been brought here. He had been badly tortured by The Bursar (the first salamander the group had fought), who was indeed the twin brother of the other salamander, The Heyyab Cutthroat, a vicious serial killer from the City of Brass who had gotten in trouble by killing one of the concubines of the grand sultan’s favorite nephew, and who had sought refuge in Bayt Al-Bazan to escape retribution.
The members of the Flickering Candle had fought the Guardians of the Forbidden Gate (fire giants serving the grand vizier) and the Cult of the Incarnate Flame (fanatical lizardmen who worshipped a fire demon) on several occasions. They said that Master Matajinn had been the only one who had been able to bypass the molten brass trap that separated the area of the Flickering Candle from the domain of the Cult of the Incarnate Flame. Indeed, among the valuables the group had found on the elf’s corpse, they had found some strange items that Toba had failed to recognize as thieves’ tools: Kelonis was appalled that such an experienced rogue as her was not familiar with them. Before leaving, Kelonis took a few minutes to try and question The Bursar’s corpse, but the salamander resisted his spell.
The azers didn’t know where Kabaness was now. He had been badly wounded when he had come to fetch them, and had said he would free the pyrolisks to make an ambush for the characters. The group asked the azers to show them their lair, and the next area they entered contained several open cages, and some large fire-feathered birds were exploring the room. A brief fight ensued, but the companions were resistant to fire thanks to their magical rings, so the birds couldn’t do much damage to them before expiring. To the party’s frustration, there was still no sign of Kabaness here.
Through some windows, the group saw the majestic City of Brass. It made Katapesh itself seem like a small village in comparison. Although the streets of this city were tantalizingly close, the azers informed the characters that if they tried to simply leave by climbing, falling or flying, they would simply be teleported back inside the palace. The azers then led the characters through many rooms on various floors, where the Flickering Candle had lived. They were now mostly empty, as most of the members of the assassin band had been slain. Only a few puny kobolds remained, and the characters gave them orders to clean up the mess downstairs.
Eventually, the azers led the group in Master Matajinn’s bedroom, which was lavishly furnished, albeit for beings of gigantic size. A nice view of the roof and inner courtyard of the palace could be seen from the windows, so the group got an idea of the shape of the palace. The only thing that would bother them in their attempt to rest here were the cries of the tortured efreeti that came from the courtyard below, where two fire giant guards stood watch near the metal statue of a raging bull, inside of which the efreeti was being held.
Only Abdelmotaleb was soothed by the painful cries of the agonizing efreeti. The others tried to ignore the sounds and go to sleep anyway. They took turns standing watch and ordered the azers to stand guard outside the room (and to keep an eye on the still-sobbing djinn they had freed).
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Bayt Al-Bazan, day 2
Iavesk’s gratitude
After a few hours, the companions felt refreshed, having recovered from the ordeals they had endured so far in Bayt Al-Bazan. They felt more determined after their victory over the Flickering Candle. Kazim had managed to unlock a new spell in her mastery over the element of air: she could now fly in an almost-permanent manner.
Thankfully, no enemy had disturbed their rest. Kelonis used his rejuvenated magic to heal the djinn’s psychological trauma. The blue-skinned creature stopped sobbing after a few moments, and looked around in surprise. Wiping its eyes, it seemed to regain a noble bearing that the characters had not seen until then. In a deep voice, it bowed and introduced itself as Iavesk. As a reward for saving him, he offered to serve Kelonis for a year and a day. The companions were happy to have such a being aiding them, and offered him several magical items so he would be well-protected.
The companions then went down several floors to a corridor where there were some rooms for the resident’s enjoyments: a gambling den and a maqha, all decorated with statues and frescoes of four-armed efreet of both genders. In the gambling den, the group faced the last three efreet of the Flickering Candle. A battle erupted, in which the azers aided their new masters against their former ones. The efreet fought valiantly, wounding the azers, Toba and Fawzy, but they were eventually slain just like the rest of their allies upstairs.
The group searched the rooms of this corridor, coughing in the maqha’s toxic atmosphere, especially Toba, who tried to smoke some khanishar (efreeti tobacco) instead of her dwindling supply of pesh, but almost choked from it. Using the key they had found on The Bursar’s corpse, they also found a locked storage room filled with valuable goods like wine amphorae, but they decided to leave this bulky treasure behind, as they had no intention of wasting time trading in the City of Brass, should they ever be free of Bayt Al-Bazan.
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The Guardians of the Forbidden Gate
The group returned upstairs and entered the enormous courtyard with the howling brass bull. They fought two soldiers of the Forbidden Gate in that place: massive fire giants armed with greatswords. As the battle started, the companions heard the sounds of barking and howling coming from further ahead, as well as the dull clanging of metal against metal.
Toba and Fawzy charged ahead, their speed enhanced by Kazim’s air magic; the group of Azers followed them closely. From further back, Abdelmotaleb shot his deadly arrows and Kazim fired some lightning blasts at the giants. Kelonis used a wand to summon a ghostly crossbow that fired by itself. The fire giants were very strong and were able to wound both Fawzy and Toba. With a mighty cleave, several of the Azers were also wounded. Karpos, the one among them who had been the most talkative and helpful so far, was unfortunately slain in this battle. Nevertheless, the heroes then prevailed against the two enormous enemies.
Kelonis healed the surviving members of the group just in time for another battle, as three more giants and three burning hounds entered the courtyard from one of its many entrances. Their advance was slowed down by an Ice Storm cast by Kazim. Fawzy, Toba and the remaining Azers then closed in and began battling the enemies. Fawzy struck with great power and was helped by Abdelmotaleb from afar. His opponent soon fell to the ground, its neck broken by the monk’s powerful feet. Toba maneuvered to get behind another giant, to strike at its weak spots while the Azers distracted it. Unfortunately, two more of the Azers fell under the giant’s blow. Kelonis channeled healing energy to save their lives. Eventually, all enemies were defeated, most thanks to the massive damage caused by Fawzy, Abdelmotaleb and Toba.
Once everyone was healed, the group went down a hallway from which more noises were coming. A set of double-doors at the end suddenly opened, and from out of them came out a pack of hellhounds led by a gigantic specimen of their race. These fiery dogs were urged forward by the bellows of a one-armed fire giant wielding a whip. Kazim summoned another Ice Storm to harm the enemies. Another furious battle ensued, but the hounds were relatively easily slain, as the companions and the Azers were pretty much immune to their fire breath. This time, even Hayia and Iavesk participated in the battle, slaying their fair share of burning dogs. The fire giant also failed to do any serious damage beyond tripping one Azer with his whip.
After Fawzy and Toba received some healing, the party opened the door behind which metallic sounds were being heard. They entered a smithy where they fought a massive giant so engrossed in his work that he had ignored the sounds of battle outside his room. He tried to pummel Toba with his red-hot warhammer, but thanks to her dwarven training, none of the blows struck true. The raging smith quickly fell under the combined onslaught of the Protectors of Kelmarane.
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Allies lost and gained
Next, the group explored several rooms that were mostly empty, with the exception of three fire giant corpses. Seribik, the oldest of the Azer warriors, explained that they had been killed by the Flickering Candle in a recent raid. The next room was cavernously large, and had apparently once housed the cavalry of Bayt Al-Bazan, but had more recently been the camp of a group of fire giants and hellhounds. A group of strange fire creatures that looked like red-skinned babies tried to escape when the group entered, but Abdelmotaleb mercilessly shot them down. His cruelty was condemned by Iavesk and Kazim, but they could do nothing to prevent him from doing the same thing in the future…
Another large room lay beyond, where two more fire giant guards were fought. They were very strong, and the battle was difficult. Iavesk the djinn perished under the blade of one of the giants, and two of the Azers also died from a deadly cleave by the other giant. Only two Azers remained: the veteran Seribik, and Akatur, a coward who was always the last one to join fights, but who kept complimenting the heroes on their prowess, trying to stay in their good graces.
Several stairs led up and down from this section of the palace. The group investigated a trap door in the floor of the last room and found that it led to another big room on the floor below. In that room, they found a large dark shape resting: they discovered that it was a fire giant whose legs had been broken. Fawzy and Kazim approached him peacefully and learned that the giant spoke common. He said that his name was Gilbans and that he had been brutally punished by his mad captain for trying to make an alliance with the Cult of the Incarnate Flame. The captain was named Argbadh Karambagya and was wallowing in misery in his chambers above, driven mad by his many years of imprisonment in Bayt Al-Bazan. The only creature who hadn’t yet felt his wrath was his pet, a massive hydra called Embertongues.
Gilbans agreed to help the companions to escape the palace in exchange for some healing. He seemed to thirst for revenge against his former allies, and said he was ready to crack some skulls. Before healing his broken bones, Kelonis cast a Quest spell on him to ensure his loyalty.
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The mad captain
Gilbans led the group to a nearby room where they fought another fire giant and his two hellhound pets. Using The Bursar’s spear, Gilbans was the one who killed this other giant; a sadistic grin of vengeance crept over his face as he watched his former comrade die. Once both hounds had been killed, the group examined the large room and saw that a series of murder holes showed the entrance of Bayt Al-Bazan. Unfortunately, Gilbans and the Azers told them that they couldn’t leave through that exit: everyone who had tried to do so only got teleported back into the palace. Guarding the entrance, tied to a huge metal spike on stairs leading to the courtyard above was a huge fire-breathing hydra. It couldn’t attack the group from that position, though, so Abdelmotaleb killed it with arrows safely behind the murder holes.
Gilbans warned the group that another one of his peers was guarding the stairs where the hydra had been, ready to throw a crate filled with small salamanders, as well as rocks, to anyone intruding from that passage. The group therefore used another set of stairs and continued exploring the upper level of the palace. They found a large room filled with a pool of yellowish liquid; the air in that room was extremely acrid, barely breathable for the denizens of the material plane. Gilbans and the Azers searched it, but found nothing. Toba went with them, but soon left, as she risked choking in that hazardous place.
Another room led to a platform that overlooked the streets of the City of Brass, far below. They contained some tablets and mosaics dedicated to the cult of Ymeri, the Queen of Inferno. Seribik informed the group that she was an extremely powerful creature on the plane of fire; her powers were close to that of a goddess.
Around that time, Ezer Hazzebaim once again appeared in the reflections of the brass walls and gave another mysterious hint to the group:
”The Eye is sequestered behind souls of brass. The orb of fire can repeal their eternal essence and free their ward.”
The group wasn’t sure what that meant. They wondered if these “souls of brass” meant the mortal souls that were contained within living brass. But that didn’t seem a clear indication, as the entire palace was built from that substance.
After going up another set of stairs, the group killed the fire giant that stood sentinel over the main entrance’s stairs. A large iron crate nearby shuddered with the movement of the captive salamanders within it, but the companions didn’t touch it. The sounds of battle had triggered the roar of what seemed like several monsters from behind a nearby door; Gilbans instead warned the group that this was Embertongues the hydra. They were close to the quarters of Argbadh Karambagya.
The party entered Embertongues’s lair and began battling the eleven-headed hydra. A nearby door opened, and an enormous giant stepped through to join the fight. He stood 25 feet tall and his skin had the appearance of bronze. He looked almost more like a giant animated statue than like a living being, but he was no golem. His face was half-melted, with long scars of a verdigris color. Gilbans would later inform the group that this damage had been caused by acid during an attack by the Flickering Candle.
Kazim cast an Ice Storm over Argbadh Karambagya, but the enormous captain soon exited it and roared with a booming and sardonic laughter that drove fear into the hearts of Gilbans and Toba. Meanwhile, poor Seribik had nearly been bitten in two by Embertongues. The companions were able to slay the hydra, and then approached Argbadh Karambagya warily. Abdelmotaleb had ordered Akatur to attack him, but the cowardly Azer had stayed far back, more afraid of the bronze giant than of the ill-tempered ranger. Fawzy was badly wounded by Argbadh Karambagya, but with a powerful series of attacks, he was able to defeat this bronze colossus who stood over four times his height.
Kelonis healed everyone’s wounds, even bringing Seribik back from the brink of death. Toba found some magical boots on the bronze giant’s corpse which miraculously changed to match the size of her own feet: they would enable her to run faster. The next room was Argbadh Karambagya’s bedroom, and within it, the group found some treasure, as well as some crumpled and torn up letters from the grand vizier giving the giant false and empty promises of being freed at some undetermined time in the future.
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The master of Bayt Al-Bazan
After exploring some mostly empty rooms around Argbadh Karambagya’s lair, the group found itself on the roof, near the 100-foot-tall pyramid that had been built there. To the east, the palace over looked a vast sea of fire, a vision that was most breathtaking, and which the two Pathfinders of the group would surely describe in great detail in the tale they would write about this epic adventure (assuming they survived).
Two fire giants accompanied by two enormous hellhounds attacked the group here. For once, Akatur joined the fight in earnest, but the only reward for his bravery was a near-fatal wound. Thankfully, Kelonis’s healing touch saved him at the last moment. Abdelmotaleb shot especially deadly arrows against the hellhounds, as he was very skilled against such fire outsiders. Likewise, Tempest also struck with improved blows against them. After a few moments of extreme violence, all four enemies were dead.
The group then explored the pyramid, which was dedicated to the cult of Ymeri. Inside the small building at the top of it, they found a secret trap door that Kazim opened with her magic. Spiral stairs lead down to a chamber at the heart of the pyramid. Within it, the adventurers found a glass orb that was filled with magical fire. Seribik solemnly said that this was Ymeri’s Breath, a sample of fire from the very heart of the Plane of Fire; it was extremely precious.
After they left the pyramid, the group discussed what to do next: they had heard that the upper south section of the palace was inhabited by strange spirits such as an immortal dwarf and Imam Shabendeh, a shadowy creature served by beautiful slaves. Once again, Ezer appeared and gave a few pieces of information to the group:
”A fiery orb from days of old lies suspended betwixt brass and sky, yet hidden from mortal eye. It is the key to your quest. In ancient adoration did this fiery heart lie, and only by heart’s blood of the true believer can the way be opened.”
”Seek the Impossible Eye between city and sea, where portals of brass guard respite prized. Look above the gilded cataracts.”
”The chief eunuch of old sits upon a throne that is not his own, but his old master’s covetousness has taken hold of his soul. If his claim upon his master’s holdings can be disproved, he is without his immortal anchor and can be slain.”
Toba questioned the necessity of killing this dwarf. Fawzy hoped that by presenting Ymeri’s Breath, they would prove themselves the new owners of the place. Along the way, the group freed the tortured efreeti from the brass bull. It had been kept alive inside by some sadistic magic, which constantly burned him with divine fire. The efreeti was but a burnt-out husk of its former self. Mad with rage, it tried to attack the group, but Fawzy mercifully put an end to his life before he could cause anyone harm. The cries of pain had finally stopped to reverberate all around the courtyard, and Abdelmotaleb seemed to be the only one who missed them.
The group then entered through massive double-doors into a large domed room where three thrones stood majestically between sets of fire pits. Sitting on the main throne, which was much too large for him, was a translucent beardless dwarf dressed in elaborate fineries. In an annoying high-pitched voice, he commanded the adventurers to bow before him. The group refused and instead asked him a number of questions. They learned that he was called Qilzar Agha Bagoas. After a while, only Akatur bowed down to him; the craven Azer apparently didn’t want to take the chance to incur his wrath.
Bagoas stubbornly claimed to be the master of Bayt Al-Bazan, constantly demanding that the companions kneel (which Kazim finally did, to try and appease him; but which failed). He ignored or countered every argument that the group presented:
- Only members of the Al-Bazan family should be the masters.
- Bagoas’s name wasn’t Al-Bazan.
- Jhavhul wasn’t dead; he was just imprisoned, so he should be the master.
- The companions had the Fire Orb, but Bagoas just stated that they were thieves who stole it.
- Bagoas couldn’t remove the curse that hung over the palace, so the grand vizier was the true master of the place.
- He had no slaves to obey him.
- If anything, it was the Imam who should be the master of this place.
- He was a dwarf, without even a beard.
Finally, Abdelmotaleb taunted Bagoas about being able to piss anywhere in the citadel without him being able to do anything about it. The supernatural dwarf’s eyes glowed a brighter intensity of yellow as he exclaimed: “Now, you have gone too far!”, rising from his great throne.
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Death in the palace
As the adventurers and their allies moved to attack Bagoas, he quickly drew a large glowing rune in the air. Those who were closest to him (Toba, Fawzy and Kazim) hesitated under the power of this spell. They began to believe that Bagoas truly was the master of this place, and that they needed to stop the others who were trying to do him harm. Abdelmotaleb was further back, though, and he caused a lot of damage to the spectral dwarven eunuch with his arrows. Gilbans resisted the strange rune and was able to destroy the ghostly apparition with The Bursar’s magical spear. As Bagoas disappeared with an anguished moan of frustration, the fire giant chuckled as he looked at his new weapon with satisfaction.
While the group searched the room, Toba saw a beautiful red-skinned woman watching them from above. In the next room, the group fought a trio of mad efreet who had been praying before an altar to Ymeri. While they searched the area, Bagoas returned, but the adventurers were able to avoid another fight thanks to some diplomatic words.
The next area that the party explored had once been the palace’s harem. It now contained only beautiful but long-unused furniture, along with the bones of women of various races: genies, humans and elves. In one of the room, the group heard eerie whispers and was attacked by four invisible monsters. Kazim was able to reveal a few of them with a Glitterdust spell; they looked like red-skinned beauties such as the one Toba had earlier seen, but they caused terrible wounds with their long fangs and claws. Upon their death, they regained an appearance of skeletal horrors which Kelonis recognized as great ghuls: undead formed from the corrupted corpses of genies.
Using his magic, Kelonis questioned the skull of an elven woman who had died in this harem. He learned some useful information from her. She and the other women had all been killed by Imam Shabendeh shortly after the curse had taken hold of Bayt Al-Bazan. After Al-Hassan’s death, the imam had turned into a horrible black djinn. The bones that had been found in the heated pool were those of Al-Hassan’s wives, who had been efreet. The elven woman and the other elves and humans had been odalisques, slaves serving the master’s wives. She didn’t know anything about the Impossible Eye. Bagoas had indeed been the chief eunuch of the palace, one of Al-Hassan’s highest-ranking servants. He had been killed by Imam Shabendeh just before the insane priest had gone on a rampage in the harem.
The skull also revealed that Jhavhul’s most precious slave had been kept in secret below the palace, in a place that only Jhavhul himself knew how to reach. It had been whispered among the slave girls that this mystery woman was none other than the marid princess Shazathared, who had been condemned to remain Jhavhul’s prisoner until she told him ten thousand stories.
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The Imam’s black storm
The group left the harem and then visited a strangely idyllic garden that contained tall trees and a river and small lake of clear water. It seemed like a scene from the material plane, except for the burning red sky above. High up in the trees hovered enormous dragonflies, and as the group explored the surroundings, a huge tiger came out of the bushes. Abdelmotaleb was able to befriend it, however.
The area seemed like a good place to take some rest, so Toba shed her armor and clothes and went for a bath in the small lake (much to Akatur’s enjoyment). At the bottom, she found a necklace of precious stones that she placed around her neck. After a few minutes, the dozen giant dragonflies suddenly attacked the group, and a brief battle began. Kazim blasted many of them with an Ice Storm, and Toba did the same using a stone from her other necklace, a necklace of fireballs. It did not take long before the companions (with help from the big tiger) had killed all of the insects. They set up camp and began resting, for Kelonis had used up most of his magical powers keeping them alive through this dangerous trek across Bayt Al-Bazan.
Before they slept, the companions, especially Fawzy, Kazim and Kelonis, spoke with Gilbans and the Azer, curious about their lives in Bayt Al-Bazan, and about the City of Brass itself.
Unfortunately, after a few hours, the evil Imam Shabendeh found the group and attacked them. He appeared as an indistinct but extremely menacing shadow within a swirling black cloud of ashes and lightning. As he charged into the midst of the adventurers, the cloud grew in strength, and was soon blasting everyone with the force of a windstorm. Only Toba and Akatur were spared, as they had been sleeping farther at the back. They tried to hide, but were soon attacked by four more invisible ghuls. Toba took several nasty wounds, and the unfortunate Akatur was torn to pieces by the vicious undead.
Abdelmotaleb couldn’t shoot arrows in the furious windstorm, so he and Hayia made their way out of it with difficulty. Fawzy, Gilbans, Seribik and the tiger fought the imam in close combat, but they were taking severe damage from the lightning storm around them. Meanwhile, Kelonis had recognized the black djinn’s weakness, and tried to defeat him by reciting some powerful prayers to Abadar, his lawful god. Alas, Imam Shabendeh countered him in his deep, foul voice, which covered the elven cleric’s prayers completely.
Kazim cast a Haste spell on her companions, but wasn’t strong enough to escape the windstorm. After using her magic to protect herself from lightning, she shot Magic Missiles at Imam Shabendeh. Meanwhile, Kelonis finally escaped the cloud and cast a True Seeing spell on Abdelmotaleb to enable him to see and shoot the ghuls now attacking Toba.
Within the raging storm, poor Seribik, the last Azer, was slain by the imam’s lightning. Fawzy and Gilbans struck their enemy many times, and finally, the corrupted black djinn perished, briefly turning into a howling cyclone of black wind before disappearing.
Once the storm had vanished, it didn’t take long for the group to finish off the remaining ghuls. Kelonis and Toba said prayers for the dead Azers. Even Abdelmotaleb was sad to see them dead, despite his dislike of Akatur. He had despised his cowardice, but Kelonis had explained to him that Akatur had only tried to preserve his own life, because he had been weak.
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Bayt Al-Bazan, day 3
The Impossible Eye
The companions rested and recovered their strength. Then, they went to speak with Bagoas again, accusing him of failing in his duty to protect his master’s harem. They also implied that if anything, the Imam should have been the master of Bayt Al-Bazan, since he had killed Bagoas. Nevertheless, the ghostly dwarf still stubbornly clung to the belief that he ruled here, claiming that Al-Hassan himself had named him the new master of the palace with his last dying breath.
After climbing some stairs leading up from the garden, the party fought two mad efreet on the ramparts overlooking the City of Brass. As they explored this area, some members of the group heard the sound of large wings nearby, but they couldn’t see any creature making such a sound. Further, they found a dining hall filled with rotting food: most likely the lair of the Black Djinn. Nearby were some kitchen and larders filled with fresh food. After doing a bit of searching, Abdelmotaleb found a secret door behind which a stairway led to the upper level of the palace’s main dome.
The group reached a series of opulent rooms that had clearly once belonged to the ruler of Bayt Al-Bazan. It featured two balconies, one overlooking the city, and the other the sea of fire. The middle room contained two brass doors and two curtains made of precious metals; at its center, a strange wavering of magic disturbed the air in a specific spot. The companions understood that this was the place that Ezer had told them about in his cryptic advice. Fawzy felt that the orb of fire they had found below the pyramid was growing hotter in here. He took hold of it and passed it through the shimmering air, causing a portal to appear. Beyond it was a circular room which featured only an ornate mirror.
Ezer’s image appeared within the mirror once the group approached. His voice filled with elation, he spoke these words:
“At last the prize is found. Give the glass ablutions in a dozen and one sacred draughts. While it is still wet, one must place his palms against the pane and wish for the imprisoned to be released. Then shall I be freed to remove us from this accursed place. But hurry, the window of opportunity closes quickly; the eyes of the grand vizier search you out even now.”
Kelonis, fearing a trick, asked Gilbans to touch the mirror after he had poured Sarenrae’s holy water on it. The giant obeyed, and thankfully, nothing happened except for Ezer finally appearing out of the mirror. He stood about as tall as the fire giant, and he wore elaborate purple and golden robes over his muscular frame. His skin was dark, his long hair white, and he carried a greataxe at his back. For a few moments, he merely basked in the glory of his long-awaited freedom. Only after that did he take notice of the characters, and his demeanor turned most haughty and unpleasant. He took the mirror with him and headed toward one of the balconies, claiming that he needed to study the Eye in order to find a way out of here. Fawzy was worried that he meant to escape by himself and leave the adventurers stranded behind.
While the rest of the group followed Ezer out of the magical chamber, Toba and Abdelmotaleb searched it more carefully. They knew that Shazathared had been imprisoned in Bayt Al-Bazan during Jhavhul’s reign, and although they had been told that she had most likely been kept deep below the palace, they found that it made more sense for her prison to be much closer to Jhavhul’s quarters.
The discussion between Fawzy and Ezer soon turned into a sour contest of wills. Thankfully, the monk’s presence was very imposing, and Ezer was the one who backed down, letting go of the mirror, which Fawzy gave to Kelonis to study. In a condescending voice, Ezer explained that the “little elf” wouldn’t be able to find a way to break the curse, but that he could.
Suddenly, the sound of large wings was heard again, and a huge red dragon appeared near the balcony, breathing a searing cone of fire on Ezer and Fawzy! Both were wounded, and Fawzy used his ki powers to appear on the dragon’s back. He tried to strike it, but the creature’s scales were incredibly hard. Gilbans also rushed the dragon, but failed to pierce it with his spear. Kelonis hastily retreated toward the magical hole, wanting to keep the Impossible Eye safe.
Ezer followed him, but stopped along the way to unleash a terrible Slay Living spell on Kazim, nearly killing her. Gilbans came to help her, along with Toba and Abdelmotaleb, who had heard the sound of battle through the open magical hole. Meanwhile, the red dragon had begun flying away from the balcony. In a booming voice, he ordered Fawzy to get off from him. The monk hastily reached an agreement with the creature to give back the Impossible Eye to the Grand Vizier in exchange for the lifting of the curse. They would attack Ezer together.
Fawzy reappeared, once again thanks to his ki, next to Ezer, who was now surrounded by the group. Unfortunately, the huge dark-skinned man was a terrible enemy, and he was able to wound Abdelmotaleb and to kill Gilbans with a mixture of magic and his deadly axe. Fawzy jumped to Kazim’s help: she was at the brink of death, and he saved her with a potion of healing. The young woman’s eyes fluttered open, and she pointed her finger at Ezer, casting a Dimensional Anchor on him to prevent him from fleeing. The giant was surrounded by a green aura and roared in fury, realizing he wouldn’t be able to escape.
Kazim fell back into unconsciousness, and all this time, Kelonis stayed in the magical room, greedily guarding the Eye from anyone that would try to harm or steal it. Finally, the red dragon landed on the balcony and unleashed its fury on Ezer, tearing him to pieces.
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The Grand Vizier
Toba mourned the death of Gilbans. Meanwhile, the dragon discussed with the rest of the group. It demanded the return of the Impossible Eye, but fearing treachery, the adventurers convinced it to go get the Grand Vizier so they could give him the mirror in person. During the dragon’s absence, after having healed his companions, Kelonis studied the Eye. He found that it was a major artifact with great powers of divination. He was able to use it to see Shazathared’s prison, which was a room with a beautiful fountain. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure exactly where that room was.
Soon enough, Grand Vizier Abdul-Qawi approached, riding the great red dragon that had killed Ezer. With him were five powerful-looking efreet each riding their own red dragon. He spoke with the characters, and an exchange was agreed upon. Calling on powerful magic, the Grand Vizier made a grid of magical white beams of energy appear around Bayt Al-Bazan, and he unmade the curse that had turned it into a prison. The companions felt that a weight had been lifted from their shoulders, and they knew they were free. They held up their end of the bargain and placed the Impossible Eye in front of them. Using his magic, Grand Vizier Abdul-Qawi caused it to float into his grasp. He gently caressed it, satisfied to have it within his hands once again.
Kelonis asked him about the origin of the curse, eager to record it for the Pathfinder Society. The Grand Vizier, who had heard of the Pathfinders before, indulged him and confirmed the story that they had heard before: centuries ago, Ezer Hazzebaim had stolen the Impossible Eye with the help of Hassan Al-Bazan. He had taken the artifact back to Bayt Al-Bazan, and to prevent him from escaping and also to punish the Bayt Al-Bazan family for their hand in this treachery, the Grand Vizier had placed a curse on the entire palace.
The companions told him that Jhavhul had recently returned and had been able to escape from Bayt Al-Bazan, but the Grand Vizier assured them that this was impossible. He mentioned, though, that he knew that Jhavhul had recently appeared in Katapesh and that he was causing quite a lot of mayhem. This being said, he bade the mortals a good day and flew away with his guards.
After making their way back down, the group told Bagoas that the curse was lifted, but he remained adamant in his desire to stay and rule over “his” palace. Searching the area, the group found a room where a strange creature was barricaded. It claimed to be called Memrach and to know the palace inside-out. When it learned that the group were searching for a female prisoner, he said he would go look for her himself. Displeased with the creature’s obnoxious attitude, Fawzy transported himself to the other side of the door with his ki, and stood next to a gigantic man with gray skin and four horns on top of his head. He looked pretty dangerous. With a menacing chuckle, Memrach waved to Fawzy and disappeared by his own magic.
Once the barricade was removed, everyone joined Fawzy into searching the room. Kelonis said that Memrach was probably a Sepid Div, a powerful demon-like creature. Abdelmotaleb found a secret niche with a brass chest that contained three diamonds and a brass plaque. Kelonis read the Ignan inscription on it, realizing with joy that it was the deed to Bayt Al-Bazan! The companions triumphantly returned to the throne room, where they showed it to Bagoas. The chief eunuch became visibly tense. The companions were able to get him to admit that Shazathared was being held beyond the treasure rooms below, and to explain the way to get past the number-coded walls of fire.
The key was the phrase “Half or triple plus one”, but Bagoas clarified that one could take any number and end up with a sequence of the numbers 4, 2 and 1. Even numbers must be divided by two, odd numbers must be multiplied by three, and then added to one. He also explained that, while walking through a correctly-numbered curtain of fire, one could picture the animal assigned to a given room in order to be teleported directly inside it. True to their word, the companions gave him the deed to Bayt Al-Bazan. Bagoas smiled when Toba placed the brass plaque at the foot of his throne, and he even had small tears of joy in his eyes. Abdelmotaleb felt very satisfied that the new ruler of Bayt Al-Bazan was a dwarven eunuch, the ultimate disgrace for Jhavhul’s family.
After leaving the giant tiger in the garden for now, the group used Kelonis’s teleportation magic to return to the lizard treasure room. They then followed Bagoas’s “4, 2, 1” directions, extinguishing the walls of fire with Fawzy’s magical rod. A few more treasure rooms were explored, each with some minor discarded treasure and its own animal depicted on the ceiling: dragon, snake, jackal, lion and salamander. Eventually, one of the walls of fire led to a tunnel that exited the treasure rooms. Before venturing down that hallway, Toba returned to explore the rest of the treasure room after having been protected from fire by Kazim’s magic, very nimbly avoiding the damage from most of the walls of fire. When she took them in the correct sequence, the fire wasn’t harmful, but on several occasions, she seemed to lose track of the proper sequence, which caused the walls to burn harmfully and prevented the teleportation effect from working. She found mostly dead ends beyond the unexplored walls, and finally rejoined the group.
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Shazathared
Before the group went very far in the tunnel, Toba detected a pit trap ahead of them. They went over it with a mixture of acrobatics (Fawzy, Toba and Abdelmotaleb), flying (Kazim) and short-range teleportation (Kelonis). Then, the group entered a series of three rooms built in stone rather than living brass, as was the rest of Bayt Al-Bazan. Their walls were decorated with frescoes showing scenes that seemed to be from the Material Plane, perhaps from Osirion. Their theme was the passage from life into death.
In those rooms, the companions encountered a group of seven Azers led by a mysterious man-shaped creature named Grovth. This being was dressed with an elaborate green robe and a full veil masking its face. Grovth claimed to be the servant of an efreeti called Sammadar, who had come to Bayt Al-Bazan with them about a week ago in search of a great treasure (which the companions understood was none other than Shazathared herself). They had lost some of their Azer warriors fighting the guardians of the treasure rooms, and had become separated from master Sammadar. This seemed to match the tracks that Abdelmotaleb had seen earlier, of a large group of Azers accompanied by a man-sized creature and a larger one like an efreeti. They had also found remains of large humanoid guardians made of clay.
Kelonis was the one talking to Grovth and the Azers, as they spoke Ignan. He translated to the rest of the group from time to time. They told Grovth that they were those who had lifted the curse of Bayt Al-Bazan, and that they had slain many enemies to reach that goal. Kelonis made it strongly felt to Grovth that his group was not to be trifled with. Grovth agreed to let the companions move on through their camp to the stairs beyond, without giving them trouble. Kelonis sensed that he gave in too easily though, and suspected some foul-play on the horizon. To be safe, Abdelmotaleb placed an Alarm spell at the entrance to the large stairway before moving deeper in.
The group was now back into the main section of the palace, which was made of living brass. The grand stairway showed signs of recent battle: dried blood and broken pieces of Azer armor could be seen on some of the steps. The main shaft was shrouded in darkness, but a foul odor wafted up from its depths. While the group was wondering how to proceed carefully to the top, perhaps by securing some ropes against some of the steps, an enormous insect somewhat reminiscent of Thkot Tal, the monstrosity they had fought in the lair of the Carrion King, emerged from the pit. This vision of nightmare was surely the reason why Grovth and his troops had remained separated from their master for so long. Yet the heroes were able to quickly slay it: Kelonis cast a Destruction spell on it, and Toba and Fawzy were able to cause it tremendous wounds. The creature tumbled back down the shaft before it even got the opportunity to attack any of the adventurers!
Up the stairs, the party entered a tunnel lined with alcoves that had likely once held items of value, but which were now empty. Further ahead, the corpse of an efreeti hung upside-down from chains on the ceiling. He had been pierced by the spikes of a deadly trap. The companions assumed that this was what remained of Sammadar. Searching the area, they found two secret doors. Behind the left one, they found a room that had once likely been a treasure room, now completely ransacked. The mummified corpse of an Azer lay against the far wall, its torso cleaved in two by a huge blade. Had this been an over-zealous guardian who had tried to prevent Lord Jhavhul from emptying his family’s treasury? Kazim found a wand of Magic Missiles on the skeleton.
The other “secret door” was in fact an illusory section of the wall. Beyond, the group fought a group of fire elementals of various sizes. It would have proven a tremendous challenge for lesser mortals, but the adventurers had little trouble slaying these burning outsiders, especially thanks to the power of Tempest. The master of these creatures was a towering dragon made entirely of flame, but it also perished, blinded by Kazim’s Glitterdust spell and destroyed by the weapons of the other companions.
Beyond another room containing several magical items, the group found the magical fountain that they had glimpsed earlier in the Impossible Eye. It was the prison of Shazathared, and from the limpid waters rose the Marid Songstress herself. She was splendid with her smooth skin as blue as the sea, and her long flowing azure hair. In a voice as melodious as a clear stream of water, she praised the adventurers on their bravery and skill to reach her prison. She also had felt that they were the ones who had been responsible for lifting the curse that kept everyone in Bayt Al-Bazan captive. Now, she explained that by breaking the fountain, the companions could free her. They did just that, and she at long last emerged from her prison. She thanked her saviors profusely. Although at first everyone was in awe of her majestic beauty, Kelonis recovered his wits soon enough to tell Shazathared their entire story, from their humble beginnings as mercenaries hired by Garavel to kill some gnolls in Kelmarane to their most recent heroic exploits such as killing numerous fire giants and even a Black Djinn. Shazathared listened avidly to the elf’s tale, and the companions knew that they had now reached the ranks of the heroes from all of her other stories. They could scarcely believe that they were now among the protagonists of tales such as those that Garavel had once told them around a campfire!
Shazathared then explained that she had been kept prisoner here by Jhavhul; the condition of her release was to tell him ten thousand stories, and the last time she had seen him, she still had 2012 stories to tell. Near the end, Jhavhul’s interest in her had waned, as he had instead become obsessed by Ymeri, the Queen of Inferno. It was to win the heart of this mighty semi-goddess that Jhavhul had emptied the treasury where many previous rulers had accumulated untold wealth over several millennia. Shazathared mused that Jhavhul was a powerful warrior, nearly invincible in combat, but that his one weakness was the yearning of his heart. Now, it seemed that he wanted to awaken Xotani the Firebleeder, but why? Had he found a way to control this terrible creature? Did he hope that by laying waste to the Material Plane, he would impress Ymeri?
The news that a group of Marids had tried to free her, but had perished, greatly saddened Shazathared. She feared that her brother had likely been among them. The group learned that the fire elementals had worshipped Shazathared as a mysterious goddess, being her guardians yet not understanding what she truly was. She then informed the companions that she could use her magic to bring them back to the Material Plane and that she could also grant one of them a wish. She wouldn’t go against Jhavhul, though: she feared getting captured again (after being driven nearly insane by her centuries-long captivity), and she said she was a poet, not a warrior.
Kazim was the lucky recipient of Shazathared’s wish. She wished to be “as charming as her”, which brought a smile to the Marid’s lips; she liked the young woman, in who she sensed the presence of djinn blood. She also gently touched the golden chains around Fawzy’s wrists, feeling within Tempest the essence of Vardishal’s soul. Touched by the tragic fate of that Templar of the Five Winds, Shazathared had tears in her eyes for a moment.
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Return of the Protectors
The companions formed a circle around Shazathared, everyone holding hands, and the Marid used her magic to whisk them away from Bayt Al-Bazan. They all appeared in the desert, a familiar sight at last. Above them, the sun hung high in the bright blue sky. Sand dunes sprawled around them as far as the eye could see. They would normally have found the air to be of a scorching heat, but it actually felt refreshing compared to the sweltering atmosphere of the Plane of Fire. Abdelmotaleb shouted happily, feeling free at last. Kazim flew around merrily, and Fawzy quietly grabbed fistfuls of sand and let them sift gently through his fingers.
They were home…
Shazathared smiled and told them she felt confident that they would prevail against Jhavhul. She also sensed that they would meet again, and that she would hear the conclusion of their epic saga. She gave them her good-byes and disappeared, turning into water that quickly seeped through the burning desert sands.
Kazim flew high above, then came back down after a few minutes. She reported seeing a large city to the west, and a caravan to the south. The group went to meet this caravan, whose members informed them (in familiar Kelish, much to Abdelmotaleb’s joy) that they were in Osirion, just a few miles from its capital, Sothis. According to Kelonis’s calculations, they were about 315 miles due north of Katapesh. The date was Neth 3rd, 4710: 43 days had passed since they had entered Kakishon, which meant that after all, time had passed at the same speed in both worlds. The merchants of the caravan had heard rumors that an army of efreet had indeed attacked Katapesh, causing some destruction, but that they had left after some time.
Kazim suddenly smacked her forehead and reminded the rest of the group: they had forgotten the giant tiger in the garden of Bayt Al-Bazan! Abdelmotaleb had wanted to bring it back to their world, but had forgotten it in the excitement of freeing Shazathared from her prison.
The companions then discussed their next destination. One option (proposed by Abdelmotaleb) was to take the quick journey to Sothis to sell the enormous treasure they had accumulated in their recent adventures and to buy more powerful items in preparation for their final confrontation with Jhavhul. Kelonis argued that they could travel by teleportation to Katapesh, which contained an even larger market than Sothis, and that there they would learn about Jhavhul’s actions and get in touch with the Pathfinder Society. Fawzy suggested instead to go to Kelmarane first, to make sure that things were all right over there, and to inform their friend and former mistress Almah of everything they had been through. After some time, they decided to go to Kelmarane first. Using his magic, Kelonis transported everyone to the group’s large mansion within the village.
The adventurers were surprised to see how much things had changed in the two and a half months they had been away: cracks lined the walls and furniture had been damaged and moved around. Things looked dirtier. But stranger still was the fact that a group of red-skinned, dangerous-looking janni thugs were sitting around a table in the living room, playing dice. Two beautiful human women were meekly serving them wine. They were almost nude and bore the marks of regular beatings on their soft skin. Thick iron collars were fixed to their necks, with heavy chains dangling from them.
The janni turned angry glares toward the group of unlikely intruders who had appeared out of the thin air. “What the hell are you doing here?” they demanded with a growl.
“This is our house,” replied Fawzy firmly. “The Protectors of Kelmarane have returned!”
And with that, both the janni and the adventurers reached for their weapons…
Gratz Moonbeam and thanks for the effort you have done and that could be useful to anyone who will have to start a new Legacy of Fire campaign (But you have also wonderfully reported Rise of the Runelords, I still use it for my home game, Curse of the Crimson Throne and the module Hangman's Noose... am I forgetting something?)
Did I mentioned you that JJ told me in a chat that he is reading your story hour for the work he is doing on the upcoming revision of RotR? Ok I'm joking but he should do that and this could add a lot to his next year must buy hardcover complete AP.
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Gratz Moonbeam and thanks for the effort you have done and that could be useful to anyone who will have to start a new Legacy of Fire campaign (But you have also wonderfully reported Rise of the Runelords, I still use it for my home game, Curse of the Crimson Throne and the module Hangman's Noose... am I forgetting something?)
Did I mentioned you that JJ told me in a chat that he is reading your story hour for the work he is doing on the upcoming revision of RotR? Ok I'm joking but he should do that and this could add a lot to his next year must buy hardcover complete AP.
Funny guy ;)
It seems that James has way too much on his plate to have time to read the campaign journals in this section of the board, but I hope someone at Paizo is able to, so they can get this format of feedback about the adventures. I know I'd be interested to read people's campaign journals if I were designing adventures. :)There's also my Savage Tide journal, don't know if you read that one already. The fun thing is that it's written in-character.
Go and grab the Savage Tide journal if you have missed it ! It's awfully good.
I am way behind in the reading of the Legacy of Fire one (end of holydays, etc.) but will make apppropriate appreciative comments ASAP.
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= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
THE FINAL WISH
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
Toilday, Neth 3rd, 4710 (continued)
Uninvited guests
Unfortunately, the jann thugs were quite fast to react, and they were able to deal some nasty damage to the adventurers at the very start of the battle. Three of them drew scimitars and fought in melee range; one of those roughly pushed one of the slaves out of the way as he did so, knocking her to the ground before she got back up and ran upstairs, screaming in fright. The other three drew bows and shot arrows; they seemed particularly skilled at hurting humans; Fawzy and Kazim were their two main targets, and both got unfortunately very badly wounded during the fight. To make things worse, the janni were able to turn invisible after attacking, and they yelled loudly to sound the alarm. Clearly, reinforcements were expected to reach them soon from outside.
Fawzy and Toba fought back in melee, but it was difficult to hit the fast-moving janni under the cover of invisibility. Abdelmotaleb also had some difficulty shooting at the right location, but he was able to score a few hits with his arrows. Kazim then caught two of the archers in a Glitterdust spell, making them appear and blinding one of them, before casting a Haste spell to help her allies with the speed of the wind, the natural element matching the genie blood in her veins. Once some of the jann were visible, Abdelmotaleb's animal companion, the venomous snake Hayia, slithered forth to bite them.
The remaining captive woman tried to strangle one of her tormentors with the heavy chain that dangled around her own neck, but unfortunately, she was no warrior, and wasn't able to disable him. Her name was Farzima and she was Kelonis's second slave: he had first purchased Sereya from the traveling merchant Amwyr Yuseifah, but she had unfortunately perished when the old wizard Zemeyset had fallen under the affliction of lycanthropy. Kelonis had later bought Farzima here in Kelmarane, and it was only later, in Katapesh, that he had acquired his third slave, Teski, the Taldan slave he had received from Amwyr as a gift. Kelonis hurried to heal Kazim and Fawzy, who were being nastily wounded by the jann, and then he cast an Invisibility Purge spell that prevented their enemies from turning invisible and performing devastating surprise attacks. Once they were visible, the jann swiftly perished under Toba's massive axe, Fawzy's powerful kicks, and Abdelmotaleb's deadly arrows.
While Kelonis healed his companions and Toba recovered from her battle-rage (satisfied that she had saved some innocents, thereby pleasing Sarenrae), Abdelmotaleb went upstairs to check if more enemies lurked there and Fawzy approached Farzima to ensure that she was all right. The beautiful dark-haired young woman seemed stunned that the Protectors of Kelmarane had returned at long last and had saved her. She hastily explained that Jhavhul and his army of efreet, jann and elementals had attacked Kelmarane about a month ago, and had swiftly overcome its defences and slain its soldiers. Since then, the rest of the population had been taken captive, although the soldiers of Fort Abdelmotaleb had not been defeated yet - but they had been unable to oust the invading forces from Kelmarane. Farzima urged the heroes to retreat to Fort Abdelmotaleb for now: there were too many enemies in the city, and she feared they would be overwhelmed and either slain or taken captive.
Abdelmotaleb shouted in alarm from upstairs and hurried back down: indeed, he had seen through the windows that a large force of jann were closing in on the building, along with two huge and bizarre spiders. Teleportation seemed the best means of escape, yet Kelonis could only take four other people with him. His intention was to leave the slaves behind, but Toba and Fawzy were against that idea. After a brief discussion, Fawzy put Hayia in his bag of holding and used his monk's abilities to disappear and reappear several feet to the north of the village, toward Fort Abdelmotaleb. Toba hurried upstairs and gave one of her potions of invisibility to the second slave girl, who was cowering in the corner of a room. Once Toba was back downstairs, Kelonis teleported to Fort Abdelmotaleb, along with Kazim, Toba, Abdelmotaleb and Farzima.
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Nefeshti
The soldiers defending Fort Abdelmotaleb, as well as the haggard refugees who had taken shelter in the fortress, were quite astounded to see their commander and his companions, the Protectors of Kelmarane, materialize out of the thin air in the main courtyard. They hadn't dared hope to see them come to their aid, not after being gone for so long. The fortress was damaged, as if it had withstood some assaults. Half of Abdelmotaleb's troops, brave rangers of the Severed Paw, had already died in the conflict against Jhavhul's forces. Yet they hadn't been defeated. They were still led by Nifissia, the slave Abdelmotaleb had bought from Amwyr.
The rangers of the fort had, thankfully, been helped by unlikely allies: troops belonging to Nefeshti herself. Alas, only two dozen of her jann warriors remained, as well as the templars Kardswann and Zayifid, who had been atoned for their sins of the past, and who had rejoined their mistress.
There was so much to see to, so much to do. The companions could hardly believe that they were finally in the presence of Nefeshti, the legendary djinn who had defied Jhavhul so long ago. The beautiful veiled woman had also heard about them and bowed respectfully before them. She said that she had finally emerged from her long period of exile and mourning when she had heard that Jhavhul had returned to the Brazen Peaks. So, all this time, when she thought that her mortal lover, the wizard Andrathi, had sacrificed his life to slay Jhavhul, even that terrible notion had been incorrect: he had merely sacrificed his life to imprison Jhavhul... Now, Nefeshti had only a fraction of the power and a fraction of the troops that she had possessed centuries ago: it seemed impossible that she would be able to stop Jhavhul before he completed his ritual and awoke Xotani the Firebleeder, which would then rampage across Katapesh and the surrounding nations.
So far, Nefeshti's troops had been able to defend Fort Abdelmotaleb and to perform guerrilla warfare against Jhavhul's forces in Kelmarane, thereby freeing some of the human prisoners, but hadn't been able to do more than that. Only the arrival of the Protectors of Kelmarane gave her hope that she would be able to achieve more than that.
Nefeshti described that Undrella the harpy and Blobog the goblin were also aiding her troops by scouting the region and providing valuable information, in addition to Zayifid's spying in the House of the Beast. It was certainly awkward for Zayifid to be in the presence of the adventurers who had bested him in their earlier adventures, but now, the heroes were glad that they had spared him and let him go: he was now on their side.
Unfortunately, although Nefeshti had regained the services of Zayifid and Kardswann, she had lost her other two remaining templars: Davashuum had betrayed her, finding her weak and deciding to join Jhavhul's forces; and he did so after murdering his own brother, the gentle healer Pazhvann.
Also present in the fortress was the Pathfinder Badra, who the group had previously met in Katapesh. She told them that Jhavhul and his army had emerged in a great conflagration of fire from the smoldering ruins of Rayhan's house, and had then attacked Katapesh city from within. A great number of city guards had perished trying to drive them away, but eventually, the mysterious Pactmasters of Katapesh had bribed Jhavhul to make him agree to leave their city. The efreeti warlord had accepted the fortune that they gave him and had traveled to Kelmarane across the desert. The Pathfinder Venture-Captain Aurora Steelbloom had tasked Badra and her fellow Pathfinder Marzuk to follow Jhavhul's army at a safe distance and to learn what they could about it. The two Pathfinders had taken refuge at Fort Abdelmotaleb, but alas, Marzuk had died during a battle. Badra was now trying to help the defenders as best as she could. She offered some of Marzuk's magical items to Kelonis, figuring that his group had the best chance of making a difference in this situation.
Kazim was sad to hear that her father's house - now her house - had been ravaged by Jhavhul and his minions. She worried about the fate of Eramin, her mute but loyal servant. Likewise, Kelonis wondered what had happened to Teski, his slave who had been present at the house during the attack.
The companions learned the fate of their other friends from Kelmarane. Two of the slaves they had freed from the House of the Beast, Sarrif and Emmid, had escaped safely to Fort Abdelmotaleb. Alas, others had fared more poorly: Almah, Haleen and Mother Temir (the high priestess of Kelmarane's temple of Sarenrae) had been taken captive by Jhavhul and had been sent to the House of the Beast, along with the old wizard Zemeyset, who was still the efreeti's prisoner. Father Zastoran (the old cleric of Nethys), Jank the goblin, Hadrod and Hadrah (the old couple who tended a herd of goats) and the mercenaries who had served Haidar Yunan (the Falcon Emir of Ipeq turned were-leopard) were all dead, slain during the attack on Kelmarane. Garavel, Almah's right-hand man, was missing and presumed dead.
Things were bleak indeed...
Fawzy arrived at the fort some time later: he had run all the way from Kelmarane, with Hayia coiled around his shoulders. He confirmed what others had said, for he had seen Kelmarane from afar: many buildings had been damaged or burned down by Jhavhul's army. The Battle Market, Kelmarane's main building, had been destroyed by a magical brass tower that had "exploded" from within it. This tower now stood amidst the ruins of the old Battle Market, at the summit of the hill around which Kelmarane was built. The city was guarded by about a hundred jann and several hundred gnolls: former followers of the Carrion King who had rallied under Jhavhul's leadership and now laired in the temple of Sarenrae. Nefeshti also explained that the army included fire giants, elementals and efreet, though many of those more elite troops had been brought to the House of the Beast to protect Jhavhul. Now, Davashuum had been left in charge of Kelmarane, and he was most often within the brass tower.
Fawzy felt ambivalent regarding Nefeshti: she was a very good person, but he also saw her as weak, without self-control. She had let herself fall prey to despair for centuries... Yet he felt that Vardishal's spirit was thrilled to be back in the presence of his former mistress. Nefeshti passed her fingers over the golden links of Tempest with a look of extreme nostalgia in her eyes, and as she did so, Tempest awoke as it never had before. Fawzy felt Vardishal's thoughts more clearly through an empathic link (unfortunately, something he had tried to minimize since he got the weapon...). He felt that Tempest had gained new powers, magical spells it could use to protect and aid him.
Fawzy also gave Spooky the cat to Nefeshti. As the noble woman gently petted the familiar of her former lover, Fawzy told her the story of their journey to Kakishon, and how Andrathi had defied Jhavhul for a time there, alone against his entire army. The lucky aura that had followed Spooky and that had helped Fawzy now extended to his companions as well.
Nefeshti used her magic to create an illusion representing Kelmarane's layout, as she and the Protectors of Kelmarane began talking strategy in the main room of the keep. As Jhavhul's forces were split, Nefeshti explained that it would be better to attack those in Kelmarane, to get rid of them and avoid getting caught between two armies. Nefeshti's templars and Abdelmotaleb's rangers were badly outnumbered, but if the Protectors of Kelmarane were able to perform some strategic strikes, they could give them an edge.
Yet the adventurers and Nefeshti knew that, before he had been exiled to Kakishon, Jhavhul had had less than one hundred wishes to go before completing his ritual to awaken Xotani the Firebleeder, a feat that required the utterance of a thousand wishes. They had heard that Jhavhul was using mortals to utter these wishes (as he could not grant wishes to himself, or another member of the genie kind). He offered one of his daily wishes as a gift to the mortal, but required that the mortal use two of their wishes to serve his own purpose. That meant that, every day, Jhavhul got 2 wishes closer to his goal. And he had been back for around thirty days.
Fawzy wondered if the group should really bother with Kelmarane: wasn't it more urgent to go straight to the House of the Beast and stop Jhavhul? Abdelmotaleb and Toba wanted to attack Kelmarane first: to kill some gnolls, and to liberate the temple of Sarenrae. Nefeshti agreed with Fawzy that their time to stop Jhavhul was running out. What's more, she explained that Jhavhul's reckless use of so many wishes in the same area, even if it hadn't been for such an odious end goal as raising Xotani from the dead, was an abomination and an affront to the law of their kind. Wish magic reformed the fabric of the universe, and had to be used carefully. Jhavhul was betraying their entire race with his actions. She also explained that his over-use of wishes in the region had created wish-warps: areas where magic had been rendered chaotic and unpredictable.
And yet, Nefeshti was of the opinion that the adventurers, as well as her remaining troops, should free Kelmarane first. If only because, according to Zayifid's reports, Jhavhul was now located in a secret level of the House of the Beast that neither he nor the adventurers had ever discovered during their exploration: a level whose entrance required a special magical key that, as far as he knew, only Davashuum possessed.
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Here are the characters at level 13:
Toba (NN Female Dwarf Rogue / Barbarian, Level 12/1) – Worships Sarenrae
Str: 18 Dex: 18 Con: 25 Int: 7 Wis: 10 Cha: 9
AC: 25 HP: 204 Fortitude: +15 Reflex: +14 Will: +6
Initiative: +8 Speed: 40’
Melee attacks: lifestealing greataxe +18/+13 (1d12+8, x3)
Ranged attacks: +1 heavy crossbow +16 (2d10+1, 19-20)
Feats: Martial Weapon Proficiency: Greataxe, Weapon Focus: Greataxe, Toughness, Power Attack, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Vital Strike, Improved Critical: Greataxe, Lunge.
Traits: Missionary, Pesh Addict.
Skills: Acrobatics 20, Bluff 6, Climb 16, Escape Artist 10, Intimidate 9, Knowledge: local 9, Knowledge: Religion 3, Linguistics 3, Perception 17, Sense Motive 8, Sleight of Hand 8, Stealth 19, Swim 5.
Languages: Kelish, Dwarf, Common.
Main equipment: Lifestealing Greataxe +2, Chain Shirt +3, Amulet of Health +2, Holy Symbol of Sarenrae, Ring of Protection +2, Necklace of Fireballs, Gauntlets of Ogre Strength +2, Belt of Dexterity +4, Cloak of Resistance +1, Heavy Crossbow +1, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bag of Holding Type 1, Boots of striding and springing, Bag of Holding Type 1, Headband of Wisdom +2.
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Fawzy/Vardishal (LG Male Human Monk, Level 13) – Worships Iomedae
Str: 18 Dex: 18 Con: 14 Int: 10 Wis: 21 Cha: 13
AC: 30 HP: 151 Fortitude: +13 Reflex: +15 Will: +16
Initiative: +8 Speed: 70’
Melee attacks: flurry of blows +20/+20/+15/+15/+10 (2d8+7 +1d6 cold) (with Tempest)
Ranged attacks: javelin +11 (1d6+4)
Height: 5’11”. Weight: 200 lbs. Age: 25.
Feats: Improved Grapple, Dodge, Scorpion Style, Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist, Maneuver Training, Weapon Focus: Unarmed, Extra Ki, Deflect Arrows, Improved Initiative, Toughness, Lunge.
Traits: Reclaiming Your Roots, Courageous.
Skills: Acrobatics 26, Climb 13, Escape Artist 14, Intimidate 10, Knowledge: History 6, Perception 22, Sense Motive 21, Stealth 15, Survival 7, Swim 9.
Languages: Kelish, Common.
Main equipment: Tempest, Ring of Sustenance, Ring of Force Shield, Amulet of Mighty Fists +1, Cloak of Resistance +2, Bracers of Armor +4, Headband of Inspired Wisdom +4, Monk’s Robe, Belt of Physical Might (+2 str/+2 dex), Boots of Elvenkind, Gray Bag of Tricks, Horn of the Golden Draught, Rod of Flame Extinguishing.
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Abdelmotaleb (NN Male Human Ranger, Level 13) – Worships Gozreh
Str: 16 Dex: 18 Con: 14 Int: 10 Wis: 12 Cha: 10
AC: 24 HP: 167 Fortitude: +14 Reflex: +16 Will: +9
Initiative: +6 Speed: 30’
Melee attacks: +1 frost fire outsider bane scimitar +18/+13/+8 (1d6+5 + 1d6 cold, 18-20)
Ranged attacks: +1 mighty (str +3) composite longbow +21/+16/+11 (1d8+4, x3)
Favored enemies: Gnolls (+4), Undead (+2), Evil Outsiders (+4)
Favored terrains: Desert (+4), Underground (+2), Mountain (+2).
Animal companion: Hayia, medium viper.
Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Endurance, Weapon Focus: Longbow, Blind-fight, Many Shot, Deadly Aim, Improved Critical (Longbow), Far Shot, Critical Focus, Improved Precise Shot.
Traits: Gnoll Killer, Reactionary.
Skills: Acrobatics 20, Climb 13, Handle Animal 5, Heal 5, Intimidate 17, Knowledge: Dungeoneering 5, Perception 18, Ride 10, Sense Motive 4, Sleight of Hand 11, Stealth 20, Survival 21, Swim 7.
Languages: Kelish.
Main equipment: Halberd +1, Composite Longbow +1 (+3 str), Mithral Chainmail +3, Slippers of Spider Climbing, Amulet of Health +2, Cloak of Resistance +3, Fire Outsider Bane Frost Scimitar +1, Belt of Dexterity +2, Lesser Bracers of Archery, Bag of Holding Type 2, Efficient Quiver, Ring of Protection +2, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bottle of Air, Chime of Opening, Headband of Intellect +2, Decanter of Endless Water, Handy Haversack.
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Kelonis (LN Male Elf Cleric, Level 13) – Worships Abadar
Str: 14 Dex: 16 Con: 12 Int: 16 Wis: 22 Cha: 16
AC: 29 HP: 126 Fortitude: +13 Reflex: +12 Will: +17
Initiative: +3 Speed: 20’
Melee attacks: +1 longsword +13/+8 (1d8+3, 19-20)
Ranged attacks: Light crossbow +13 (1d8, 19-20)
Cleric Domains: Nobility, Travel.
Height: 6’5”. Weight: 180 lbs, Age: 140, Date of birth: Erastus 29th, 4570.
A tall, handsome elf with dark hair and golden eyes. His demeanor is haughty and superior. He wears an elegant cloak over an ornate plate armor.
Feats: Selective Channeling, Scribe Scroll, Extra Channeling, Heavy Armor Proficiency, Leadership (domain ability), Dodge, Shield Focus, Lightning Reflexes.
Traits: Seeking Adventure, Forlorn.
Skills: Appraise 13, Diplomacy 17, Heal 13, Knowledge: Arcana 9, Knowledge: History 11, Knowledge: Religion 20, Knowledge: Planes 16, Linguistics 9, Perception 11, Sense Motive 11, Spellcraft 20.
Languages: Common, Elven, Kelish, Draconic, Gnoll, Ignan.
Main equipment: Wayfinder, Light crossbow, Longsword +1, Full Plate Armor +3, Heavy Wooden Shield, Cloak of Resistance +2, Hat of Disguise, Ring of Protection +1, Handy Haversack, Periapt of Wisdom +4, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Phylactery of Positive Channeling, Staff of Healing, Lesser Silent Metamagic Rod, Dusty Rose Ioun Stone, Belt of Dexterity +2.
= = = =
Kazim Xobhadi {Cohort of Kelonis} (LG Female Human Sorceress, Level 11) – Worships Abadar
Str: 8 Dex: 16 Con: 13 Int: 10 Wis: 12 Cha: 22
AC: 21 HP: 84 Fortitude: +4 Reflex: +6 Will: +8
Initiative: +7 Speed: 30’
Melee attacks: dagger +4 (1d4-1, 19-20)
Ranged attacks: Ranged Touch +8
Bloodline: Air Elemental.
Height: 5’5”. Weight: 120 lbs, Age: 24, Date of birth: Lamashan 27th, 4685.
A pretty, well-mannered woman with short brown hair and a kind look in her eyes.
Feats: Eschew Materials, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Combat Casting, Improved Initiative, Toughness, Dodge, Spell Penetration, Greater Spell Penetration.
Skills: Appraise 4, Bluff 10, Diplomacy 8, Intimidate 10, Knowledge: Arcana 10, Knowledge: Planes 11, Linguistics 2, Spellcraft 11, Use Magic Device 11.
Languages: Common, Kelish, Auran.
Main equipment: Amulet of Natural Armor +1, Belt of Dexterity +2, Cloak of Charisma +2, Bracers of Armor +4, Ring of Protection +2, Ring of Minor Fire Resistance, Bag of Holding Type 3.
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Wealday, Neth 4th, 4710
Taking back Kelmarane
After resting for the night, the Protectors of Kelmarane prepared themselves for the great battle to come. At dawn, they left Fort Abdelmotaleb along with Nefeshti, her two dozen jann warriors, Kardswann, Zayifid, Undrella, Blobog, Badra and 15 of Abdelmotaleb's most skilled rangers. Fawzy used the newly awakened power of Tempest to summon a mild sandstorm to mask their approach from the watchers in Kelmarane.
Kelonis then teleported the five companions inside the watch tower by the north-eastern bridge, which was just next to their residence. There, they fought more of Jhavhul's jann warriors; again, the thugs focused their attacks mostly on Fawzy, who was wounded, but the Protectors of Kelmarane prevailed and defeated their assailants quickly, and rather quietly, as Kelonis had cast a Silence spell on the area. But as they climbed to the top of the watch tower, they realized that another sentinel posted there was sounding the alarm from beyond Kelonis's spell: a female janni archer was shouting for reinforcements, but thankfully, her voice was partly drowned by the howling sandstorm. Fawzy made a spectacular jump to go all the way from the bottom of the tower, to its summit twenty feet above. Toba joined him via the stairs, and together, they killed the watcher.
Everyone gathered at the top of the tower, and they noticed a huge form approaching in the sandstorm: a Retriever! Toba returned downstairs discreetly to attack the creature from behind, and Fawzy jumped down to confront the enemy on the ground as the others got ready to attack with spells and arrows. The spidery monster was frightening both in appearance and size: its leg span was around thirty feet, bigger than the tower! It struck Fawzy with a grey ray that almost turned him to stone, but the monk resisted. It was also able to wound Kazim and Abdelmotaleb with its sharp legs, and to shoot a ray of ice at Kelonis. But, thankfully, the group prevailed and killed it: Toba scored the killing blow from behind, having stealthily approached from around the tower's corner.
Another abyssal spider soon attacked the group, but it was also dispatched without any major problem other than Kazim being badly blasted with a ray of ice. While Kelonis healed the group, Kazim used a Whispering Wind spell to inform Nefeshti that the time had come to launch the attack. Fawzy also concentrated on Tempest to stop the sandstorm: over the next ten minutes, the winds would abate, having served their purpose of masking the advance of their troops.
The group then teleported up to the top of the postern gate protecting the slope leading up to the summit of Kelmarane's hill. No defenders were there: instead, they were located on the second floor, to be safe from the sandstorm. A trap door allowed Fawzy and Toba to drop down and fight the five jann archers and their efreeti leader. Fawzy stunned and promptly killed this efreeti while Kazim and Abdelmotaleb provided ranged support from above. Within moments, all enemies were dead. The heroes opened the gate so that their troops would be able to move up toward the former Battle Market.
Continuing their ascension, the Protectors of Kelmarane approached the temple of Sarenrae. It was in a shockingly bad state, having been damaged and defiled by the monstrous gnolls. A horde of around a hundred of the hyena-headed humanoids barred their way, and a great battle begun. If Felliped had still been alive, he might have sung of this great battle for years to come, for it was a heroic thing indeed. Toba, furious that her place of worship had been desecrated like this, rushed into the ranks of the gnolls with a great war-cry, gripped by a powerful rage. Fawzy and Kelonis went after her, slaying more gnolls. Abdelmotaleb shot his arrows from afar with merciless precision, shouting insults at the gnolls all the while... these gnolls that he hated so much! Those who tried to escape from Toba's wrath were cut down by Abdelmotaleb's deadly arrows. Kazim flew above the mass of combatants, mostly safe except for the occasional arrow that was shot her way, and she blasted the gnolls with lightning and ice.
The fight lasted for several minutes, although under the adrenaline, it seemed to last longer, as each moment was intense. Abdelmotaleb ended up running out of arrows, and he charged into the fray, hacking at the gnolls with his (actually, formerly Zayifid's) ice-coated scimitar. Hayia stayed by his side and killed several gnolls with her poisonous bite. Toba panted heavily as she had reached the end of her rage. She was covered in blood and was surrounded by heaps of dead gnolls. She only had enough energy left to load her heavy crossbow and to shoot bolts at the few remaining gnolls who were trying to flee.
They did it: the Protectors of Kelmarane killed one hundred gnolls in that glorious battle!
After Kelonis was done healing everyone, the group entered the desecrated temple. They fought the gnolls' high priest of Rovagug and his two gigantic spiders. Kelonis cast a Destruction spell at him, but Rovagug protected his minion, and he survived. Toba charged him, hacking at him with her axe, as Abdelmotaleb riddled him with arrows. The gnoll yelped in pain and used a potent prayer to heal all of his wounds, but before he could follow up with an attack, Toba finished him off. The group then focused on the spiders, who were killed after inflicting minor wounds on Fawzy and Toba.
Toba sensed that she was now blessed by Sarenrae for having driven back the infidels. Exploring the rest of the temple, the group found and freed three badly mistreated acolytes of Sarenrae that had been kept prisoner by the gnolls. Alas, Toba knew that Mother Temir, the high priestess, had been taken by Jhavhul to the House of the Beast. But the group still had to face Davashuum in the brass tower before they could go and rescue her...
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Wealday, Neth 4th, 4710 (continued)
Into the Brazen Tower
Nefeshti and Abdelmotaleb's troops were victorious in retaking Kelmarane. Thanks to the heroic strikes of the adventurers, the liberators of the city had been able to defeat and rout Jhavhul's forces. Some jann had retreated within the brass tower at the Battle Market, and others were still hiding in the ruined town, but would be rooted out in the hours to come. Already, many of the captive citizens had been freed. Davashuum hadn't been encountered in the battle, and it was believed that he had remained within his fortress, the place called the Brazen Tower.
Alas, this victory had come at a high price: both Zayifid and Kardswann, who had courageously led the charge to liberate Kelmarane, had perished, swarmed by Jhavhul's troops. They had heroically slain dozens before being killed, though.
While Nefeshti and her troops created a diversion at the front of the Brazen Tower, the Protectors of Kelmarane entered via some windows on the second floor of the main tower, using a combination of magical flight, climbing and jumping. They found themselves within a luxurious room, but when they proceeded further, a terrible blast of lightning was triggered. Then, while Kelonis was providing some healing, the trap was triggered again! By now, Kelonis, Kazim and Hayia had gotten badly shocked (the other three having managed to completely dodge the lightning due to their extraordinary agility). The group fled through a door that led them to a bridge that connected to one of the smaller side-towers. Looking back, Toba finally noticed the lightning trap, which got triggered when one stepped on the large carpet at the center of the room.
As Toba examined the lightning room's doors for traps, Abdelmotaleb opened the door leading into the small side-tower and was attacked by four invisible jann soldiers. He got badly wounded, but with the help of his friends, the jann were defeated. After doing some looting and healing, the group noticed a beautiful red-haired young woman looking at them from the bottom of a shaft that opened at the center of the jann's barracks. She was located two floors below, in a kitchen. Kelonis recognized her as Qura, one of the inhabitants of the village. She claimed to have been kept captive by Jhavhul's forces, and used as a cook. Kelonis flew down and brought her back up with him. The young woman thanked the heroes profusely for saving her, informing them that Davashuum was probably at the top of the central tower. She had in fact been in the process of preparing a special poisoned meal for him, in the hopes of putting an end to his reign of terror over Kelmarane. Kelonis assured her that the group would use a more direct mean of getting rid of him, before flying down outside the tower, carrying her and leaving her under the protection of Nefeshti's troops.
Once Kelonis returned, the group went back to the lightning-carpet room, and went through a door into another similar room beyond. Six more jann soldiers ambushed them from the cover of invisibility. At the cost of a few other severe wounds, the group was able to kill all of them, except one who fled, protected by invisibility.
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Wealday, Neth 4th, 4710 (continued)
Beneath the tower
The group went down a brass ramp and came to the ground floor of the tower, where they fought two enormous guardians: fire elementals that had the shape of serpentine dragons. They were powerful, but the heroes were able to destroy them. After doing so, they opened the tower's main doors and touched base with Nefeshti and the troops. A great cheer went up when the soldiers realized that the Protectors of Kelmarane had been successful in infiltrating the tower and opening its doors from the inside.
With soldiers surrounding the tower to make sure no enemies would enter or leave, the adventurers continued their exploration, taking another ramp which led to the tower's basement. A large quantity of boxes and goods that had been plundered from Kelmarane were stacked here. A glittering portal also stood in a corner of the room. Before the group could investigate, though, they were attacked by an animated obsidian statue shaped like a demon and two efreet who had been waiting under the cover of invisibility. Although they sustained a few wounds, the heroes prevailed again: Fawzy was able to knock down the golem (!) with the power of Tempest, and Toba finished off the construct, smashing it to rubble with her greataxe. A look of fear passed over the efreet's features as they realized who they were dealing with, and they were soon slain as well.
Kelonis and Kazim sensed great magic emanating from the portal, but they weren't sure where it led. The House of the Beast? Bayt-Al-Bazan? Somewhere else entirely? For now, the group decided to leave it alone. After finding a ring of keys on one of the efreet, the group freed several prisoners they found in the jails that were close by. Among them was Garavel, who was still alive, much to the group's surprise! The companions healed him and brought him up to speed, looking forward to hearing more of his stories, and knowing that he would surely tell their own heroic story before long (assuming they all didn't get killed by the awakened Xotani, of course...).
Four of the other prisoners were townsfolk who had displeased their overlords. One of them was a formerly rich merchant named Ahmad Ali Bhura, whose daughter was also a captive of Jhavhul's forces. He pleaded for the heroes to rescue her as well, though he wasn't sure where she was kept. The last prisoner was a gnoll slaver who begged for freedom and mercy in broken common, but he got none of that from Abdelmotaleb. He did get an arrow through the skull, though.
Then, since Kelonis and Kazim had depleted most of their magical energy for the day, the group decided to rest before exploring the upper levels of the tower. Leaving the Brazen Tower under heavy guard, the two spellcasters went to rest, while Toba, Fawzy and Abdelmotaleb helped the troops clear up Kelmarane of any resistance from the remainder of Jhavhul's troops. Now the town was theirs.
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Oathday, Neth 5th, 4710
Davashuum
Early the following morning, the heroes returned to the Brazen Tower. Exploring the upper levels, they found the bedrooms that most likely belonged to Davashuum and another of Jhavhul's officers that they had heard about from Garavel and some other liberated prisoners: the Clockwork General, a being that seemed to be an intelligent construct. He had clearly not used his bedroom much.
In the other smaller tower, the group found Madra bint Ahmad, the daughter of the merchant they had freed the previous day. She was flabbergasted to hear that he father had been kept prisoner as well: she had believed the jann's lies that they were collaborating with him, and that if she behaved well, he would be rewarded with riches by Jhavhul. But now the charade was over, and she was safe: the adventurers brought her out of the tower and witnessed a tearful reunion between daughter and father.
It seemed that the only way to reach the highest levels of the tower was through the central shaft, which did not possess any user-friendly features such as stairs. Using a combination of magical flight and climbing, the group reached the third floor of the central tower, which was the war room of the Clockwork General. This creature indeed looked like a man made of metal, and his behavior and voice were oddly inhuman, yet much more sophisticated than one would expect from a construct. Kelonis believed that he was in fact an Inevitable, a member of a race of creatures devoted utterly to the concept of law - the opposites of the Proteans they had encountered in Kakishon.
The Clockwork General had been examining a tactical map of the region, which showed the Brazen Tower with a black flag above it, and the rest of Kelmarane filled with white flags. Things did not seem to be going well for his faction...
A fight soon ensued with this metallic man, and although he wounded Toba several times with his sword, he was brought down by the group's concerted efforts. However, the heroes noticed that he was regenerating, and Kelonis explained that such Inevitables could only be destroyed by chaotic weapons... and, of course, the mostly-lawful group had none. Kelonis tried a Plane Shift spell to send the general's body to another realm, but that failed. Yet he was then able to utterly consume the general with a mighty Destruction spell. And that was the end of him.
The group then reached the fourth floor of the tower, which was Davashuum's abode. They entered it after getting a Haste spell from Kazim (they were, obviously, expecting a fight). Four hideous monsters awaited them there: they seemed to be constructs made of the corpses of a group of gnolls. As the creatures moved to attack, Davashuum also revealed himself, coming out of invisibility: he severely damaged the poor Kazim with his staff, Maelstrom. While Toba was efficiently and brutally dealing with two of the golems, Kazim blinded a third one with a Glitterdust spell. Abdelmotaleb shot the one Kazim had blinded, as his loyal Hayia fought the fourth golem.
"Impostor!" growled Davashuum at Fawzy. "You are not worthy of wielding Tempest!"
"It is you who are not worthy," replied Fawzy. "You have betrayed your oath to Nefeshti to join a madman. You are a disgrace as a monk."
The two monks then fought each other. This was the pinnacle of Fawzy's career, to be opposed to another master of the martial arts. And all in all, it went extremely well for Fawzy: he totally dominated Davashuum, easily defeating him with a barrage of powerful and extremely precise blows. Although no outward damage appeared on Davashuum, he was slain by broken bones and internal bleeding, and he toppled back, utterly defeated by the mighty Fawzy. To seal their victory, the companions then destroyed the flesh golems.
Yay ! Coming back too !
