Sessions 016-018

Sessions 16-18:

The 15 foot tall stone statue of the Brass-Dragon 'Hlal' stands before you, posed in a coil similar to a cat and it's tail. The eyes on the statue begin to first glow gold in color, and then quickly turn into a bright white
flames. The black cat from the back of the temple runs up to the statue, and climbs on top of the statue's head, laying down on top of it in a similar fashion as the statue itself. A dragonic voice booms throughout the temple, it sounds as
if it is a cominbation of a man and a woman speaking in perfect harmony, the voice is so loud that it almost seems to shake the very ground below you,
"Who dares defiles my altar with the presence of a Pelor Cleric?!"

After a tense moment of silence, the fire within the eyes of the statue extinguish, and the black cat sitting upon it's head gives a large yawn and stretches out playfully. A friendly casual voice instead is heard, "I jest, I really don't give a fuck."
The cat then jumps down and in a blink of an eye, transforms into a humanoid shape with copper color scales like a dragon adorning the skin, but mostly in the appearance of a human with darker skin. Turok gives out a hardy laugh, "My Lady Hlal, you nearly convinced me of your wrath!" She brushes her deep red hair back in a flirtatious manner, "Oh Turk, when have I've ever been wrathful about anything." Turok's eyes shift around the ground before speaking, "...when the Crusaders ruined this temple and slain most of your followers?" Hlal taps her fingers on the stone altar in front of the statue, and ponders into the ceiling, and soon snaps her fingers. "Ah yes! That really did piss me off, but that was like, what a hundred years ago? I-" She stops mid sentence, and her eyes fix on Dez. "You made it!" Hlal runs towards Dez, and embraces him in a hug around the waist.
Dez: Approves of the herbology book from Samuel Oakheart, says Dez had served Hlal well, one last task before he is ready to take the Oath. Warns of demonic invasion, an old gate leading to the Infernal Plane being actively sought after

Nyx: Thankful to her for watching over Dez, who often can get himself in trouble. Warns that Lily is expecting her, and has setup several traps moving to the northside of the mountain where she has been waiting, but for what, she doesn't know

Dane: Admires the prank of shitting on the food, and her overall playful demeanor. Samuel the Oakheart had passed on the message through the mountain winds of her arrival, and a rare creature has been following her since she left the sacred grove - it will appear before her soon, when it feels she is ready, and claims it's native origins are unknown

Dax: Hlal admires his pursuit for magical knowledge, and says there are several books within the temple that are quite old, and may help him. Scattered across the Temple are loose books and scrolls, and many more on the walls. Hlal admits that she knows very little of the wild magic of the natural world, and hopes that Dax will return again to teach her when he has mastered it himself.
Prifi: Hlal understands quickly that she is different than other Order Clerics, and the winds have spoke of the purity of her heart, that perhaps her example can be the one the rest of the Order can follow. Says this Temple was erected many years before the Ashford Nightmare, and there is a wealth of wisdom within in that has survived. Admits that the Order's senior clergy would consider it all heresy and condemn it to destruction, but finds it odd as that is not Pelor's original teachings... she fears that Pelor himself may be imprisoned or slain, and she has not heard from him in almost 200 years. The increasing number of fiends and demons entering the mortal/material realm is troubling, and is assisting the rest of the Celestials by sharing her knowledge collected over the years to discover what to make of what is happening. When shown the scroll, Hlal's friendly and humorous posture becomes more serious.
"This... is a problem..." She slowly walks to the east side of her temple, and pulls an old and dusty book off the shelf. She solemnly returns to the group, "I haven't seen writing like that in a very long time, and it confirms what many of us feared. The means to reopen a gate to the Infernal or Abyssal Realms still exists, and someone, or something, is actively working to open it again." She opens the book, and dust pours from it's pages before getting lost in the wind. "This is a personal record of one
'Taggart Quill' who fell victim to the Heretic's cult, formed shortly after the so-called "Heretic" was exiled from his small village. Promises of life after death, food when there was none, or just an escape from the helplessness these people felt was enough for many of them. Out of all my libraries around the world, this is the only known written record of a Heretic follower. The words written here are older than me, and contains a great evil - do not speak it out loud. Should you choose to read it, don't do it alone, ensure someone you trust is around to bring you back in the event your mind and soul is lost within it."
The book is made of pitch black leather, cracked and fading in places. The pages are clearly very old and some appear to be flaking away. No distinguishable symbols can be seen anywhere on the cover, spine, or back.
Kliffington — 02/19/2021
The Party exists the Shrine, and begins to travel once more towards the north side of the mountain where they believe they can find Lilly Two-Pint, and possibly more answers to what is occurring on the mountain. It has early in the morning when the Party arrives to a 10 foot wide, 10 foot deep river entering into a large cavern opening. Dax sends Nonami ahead to scout, and discovers a small group of Iron Fist mercenaries, armed and armored with wooden shields, spears, chain mail and crossbows. The Party determines their own methods of crossing the river, and quickly engage in combat with the mercenaries. At this moment, Dez reveals that he has wings retracted and hidden on his back, making it no question to the rest of the Party that he is clearly something more than human. The battle lasts less than a minute. One of the mercenaries was an apparent bird enthusiast, and detailed drawings of various bird species was picked up by Dane.

The caves appeared to be a dead end at first, but after some investigation, it was discovered that a complex mechanical system lay hidden under and along the cave walls. Utilizing Prifi's knowledge of mechanics, Nyx's knowledge of Thieves Cant (Boat?), Dax's magical abilities, Dane's keen sense of observation, and Dez's ability to fly, the Party manages to discover a trigger to unlock the cavern wall which slides to left on a track and pulley system.

Once inside, the darkness among the hidden area is lit by various candles, and the first ones to enter are caught in their first trap - a volley of crossbow bolts fired from another mercenary team lead by a large bald human male wielding a Greatsword who is clearly commanding the mercenary fighters. Dez is struck by one of the bolts, but the damage is minimal
The Mercenary Captain orders the Iron Fists to kill Dez, and withdraws further into the cave to grab reinforcements. The Iron Fists drop their crossbows, instead of reloading them, and equip their spears and shields in an attempt to form a shield wall. Expertly placed ranged attacks from the Party quickly dispatch two before Dez enters melee range and finishes off the original three targets. Dane then hears the foots steps of the reinforcements which arrive seconds after the first three Mercenaries are slain. A short, close quarters battle inflicts additional injuries on the Party, but the minor wounds are quickly treated.
Kliffington — 02/19/2021
Turning the corner, Dane and Dax lead the Party forward when the sound of a mechanical click hints them to a trap (Successful DEX Save). Dax and Dane manage to roll out of the way just before a large steel cage crashes down in the middle of the cavern hall. No one is caught or injured.

The Mercenary Captain is now seen to the left of the hall, in an open area that looks to made into a make-shift office with a desk. The Captain has his arms folded, and a Basilisk appropriately named "Spike" is commanded to attack the Party. Dane manages to loose two arrows rapidly, one strikes Spike, and the other hits the Captain in the shoulder.

Dax attempts to magically charm the Captain, who is hostile to the Party, but Dax somehow manages to successfully charm his target. The Captain, now identifying Dax as a close friend, commands Spike to halt before apologizing for not recognizing Dax sooner.

After a short playful banter among old friends, the Captain disarms his cage trap, and reveals that a pitfall trap awaits them ahead. He willfully and happily answers all Dax's questions. Meanwhile, Dane and Prifi treat the arrow wound to Spike as a sign of good will. The Captain reveals that Lilly "hasn't been the same" and still owes the Iron Fists money, and has taken refuge in a lower level of the complex by a ladder to the right

The Party approaches the trap they were warned about from the Captain, and Prifi examines the mechanics. She discovers that it operates by weight on hinges, and a simple rock can prevent the false bridge from falling, dropping them 10 feet into a pit of wooden stakes. Prifi successfully disarms the trap, and the Party is now able to safely cross.
Investigating a left passage, a tall and muscular Orc in full plate armor examines a rusty old prison with a fully decayed humanoid skeleton, his back facing the Party. It is the same Orc from yesterday that had fled when the Party first arrived at the base of the mountain. Dax turns the corner and begins casting a flurry of Firebolts, eventually reducing the Orc to his knees and into a surrender, dropping his axe and shield. When Dax removes the earth from under his feet, a faint laughter is heard before the pit is filled with black smoke, travelling down the hall. Once the smoke fades, an alchemist check by ? reveals it was just a simple black powder smoke screen and was otherwise harmless.
Kliffington — 02/19/2021
The Party returns to the right passage and discovers a ladder leading down a man-made hole to a lower level. Dez is first to drop down, with Dax playfully casting Feather Fall on his way down. The rest of the Party soon follows.

A blonde Halfling is seen looking down into a barred pit full of humanoid skeletons, playing with a dagger in between her fingers and tossing it in the air before catching it. It is assumed to be their target, Lilly Two-Pint. Dez seizes the opportunity and throws a javelin, hitting the Halfing directly... however, as the javelin strikes, the image of the Halfling fades in a puff of white smoke, and the javelin strikes the dirt ground. Soon after, Lilly springs forth from a pile of hay and rushes Dez, wildly stabbing at her. Dez recovers her javelin and with a divine smite, thrusts her weapon into the face of her target half way down the staff, the white holy light of divine might exploding black blood unto the cave ground.

A giggle of a young female Halfling is soon heard echoing around the cave, it's exact location unknown. "I was wondering who they would send to try and kill me, of course it is the elf that never questions her master and always does what she is told." Dez looks back at the body hanging from his javelin to see a red Imp hanging from it, not Lilly.

The voice was that of Lilly Two-Pint, and further speaks on retrieving the Heretic Book that Prifi has in her possession and returning it to "her Infernal Lords" An ambush of Quasits (in the closet) and Imps spring forth from several barrels and crates, surrounding the Party.
The battle is intense, and Nyx is heavily wounded from several attacks from Imps. Dax is a target of a Quasit "scare" but resists. Dez also suffers moderate wounds, in which he magically heals with Lay on Hands. Nyx's wounds are later patched by Prifi combined with medical first aid. Lilly Two-Pint remains hidden, but reveals herself by throwing a poisoned dagger, then follows up with a Mirror Image spell - creating 3 identical versions of herself. Dane attempts to shift her mark on Lilly, and the first arrow destroys an illusion, while the second hits, and critically wounds her. Lilly's illusion is now broken, and she stares at Dane with contempt before disengaging from the battle, dodging all attacks of opportunity and escaping up the ladder.

Dane sneaks towards the office looking for signs of Lilly, but hear Durok speaking to the Captain, followed shortly by Turok, who claims to see an Order boat approaching from the sea, while Hlal is summoning them both to fufill their "blood oath" - they both quickly leave

The Party pursues, but immediately loses track... the Mercenary Captain sees Dax and greets him, and asks if he has seen Lilly.

Later, as the Party searches the tunnels, a cry of pain from the Captain and a bloody slash is heard - investigation finds the Captain dead over his desk, and Spike confused, sniffing the ground and searching for the attacker

Foot steps are soon heard towards the exit, Prifi attempts to attack, but the target escapes, pushing the wooden raft into the river and begins paddling away

Dez drops his pack and flies to the raft, landing on top of it, the water splashes up from the river and lands on the raft, revealing an invisible figure of a Halfling. Lilly attempts to trip Dez into the river, but Dez resists and wrestles with her, soon finding an opening to strike with his sword.

The sword lands firmly, blood runs as swift as the river itself, and Lilly slumps over into Dez's chest, limp and lifeless...