CHAPTER THIRTEEN:  The FURNACES of GEHENNA

 

Palladium Muse

There's a sudden pressure of silence over the tavern, and a booming sound outside. The door is abruptly kicked open and PM comes stumbling in, an unconscious Raeython over her shoulders.

 

Carefully, she disappears up the stairs, and is gone for a few moments. After a bit, she is making her way back down to the common room, slumping into a chair at a large table.

 

She's brought tequila without even asking for it. But the barmaid pauses before taking her leave.

 

"If you don't mind me asking, is my da with you?" she asks timidly, as the plate-mailed figure is obviously not in good spirits as she glares with dark eyes at the bottle of tequila.

 

"He'll be along shortly," is the curt reply. Falling quiet once more, she sips grimly at her drink, waiting for the others, leaving the portal open for them.

 

Che

Che stumbles into the tavern. Emerith runs to her father's side, "Papa, you're back! Are you alright?"

 

"Aye me deary, me's be fine, 'ust a wee bit tired. Get's me a tequila, wills ye?" asked the weakened dwarf.

 

Emerith hesitated with her response, fully aware that the tequila stills were still not functioning. "Wellllll, we had a little problem in the cellar, papa." Che slowly rolled his eyes upwards to his daughter, but did not raise his head. Emerith continued, "The stills had a..... ah..... accident father, they need fixing."

 

Che dropped his head downwards and was silent for a moment. "Gets me Quietus as an audience deary."

 

"Yes, father, with all haste."

 

B_FH

B_FH walks through the door. He then slumps in a chair next to PM, and orders a tequila from Eddie. Eddie gives a nervous laugh "Heheheh... we seem to be out of tequila B_FH."

 

B_FH says to Eddie as calmly as he possibly can, though it doesn't look like he's trying at all, "What do you mean we're out of tequila? That's impossible! Look, I'll get it out of the cellar myself." Eddie tries to stop him, but B_FH is determined. B_FH walks down the cellar stairs...

 

ArchMage Alexander

Appearing in the bar, Alex slumps into a chair, drained of energy. "Barmaid, a tequila please. Oh yeah, and a bowl of milk." Accepting the drink and the bowl he hands a small sack of coins to the girl, "That should pay off Faust's tab."

 

Aivanther

Having been waylaid by a pack network demons, Aivanther staggers into the bar. "Dang those infernal network demons, they just won't leave me alone! Wench, bring me a tequila!" Tosses some coins onto the bar.

 

Vintar

Finally, Wizzix slowly pushes the tavern door open and drags himself into the room. Through his eyelids he sees the other companions more or less gathered together at one of the tables. He makes his way towards the and falls down on a chair. Not even bothering to order a drink, he slumps back and just stares blankly in front of him, trying to sort out the past events.

 

B_FH

B_FH walks up the stairs, covered in tequila mist. He taps Eddie on the shoulder and says, "Can you tell me why Che's cellar is full of mist that tastes like tequila and everything is thrown around?"

 

Eddie responds, "Like I said, we're out of tequila."

 

"That's because it's all floating around down there! What happened?" B_FH says.

 

"Well," Eddie admits, "there was kinda an explosion..."

 

Raeython

Raeython staggers down the taproom stairs, and stumbles over to the table where his companions are gathering. His eyes are still glazed over, evidence he is still in his detached state of mind, but around his eyes there is a certain haggardness that wasn't there before. He plops down in a chair next to PM and whispers to the barmaid: "I could sure use a tequila".

 

PrinceLegolas

A few seconds after Raeython closed the door and sat down, the door opened again, and Legolas walked in, left the door open, took a few steps towards the bar, and fell on his knees. "Ugh.." he said, heavily breathing, "I'm tired... wounded... and thirsty...". Legolas took off his shirt, revealing a scarred chest. One of the scars was clearly more recent and still bleeding. "That damn mist hit me bad, and I barely noticed", he said. "But enough of that. Someone get me an uh... what's that called? Teckilah? Whatever. Gimme that.". Legolas took something out of his belt pouch, and held it before his face. "This little souvenir should be payment enough, now wouldn't it?". In his hand was a big, shiny ruby....

 

Palladium Muse

PM stares at Raeython for a moment before reaching out a hand. "If you will permit me?" she asks. After his nod, she rests it lightly on his forehead and mutters a few words.

 

His eyes widen as his head clears and his body refreshes, but the shock is muted, due to his detatched state of being.

 

After he's dealt with, she stands and makes her way over to PL, who is studying a large ruby with a grin. After asking his permission as well, and receiving it, she heals him too. The bleeding stops, but the scar remains.

 

She checks on everyone in the party, tending to any wounds they feel necessary, before reseating herself.

 

"I would suggest," she says in a quietly grim voice, "you all would allow myself and Alexander, if he is willing, to cast a nap spell on each of you. Ravenwind has been taken. By virtue of the rod of Loviathar she still carries, I can follow, but we need rest, and to regroup. What say you?'

 

PrinceLegolas

Seeing that his wound has healed, Legolas stood up, stuffed the gem back in his pocket, and drank the tequila one of the maidens just brought him. "Yeah.. Nice stuff this is. I'll pay later.". He took a chair, and moved it in front of the fireplace. He sat down, and closed his eyes. "No need to cast a spell on me for sleeping, Muse, elves don't need sleep. We meditate, or, at least I do. In four hours I will be refreshed. See you then."

 

Legolas raised his legs, and crossed them over each other, so he sat on his legs, on the chair. Everyone seeing this would have thought this was a VERY uncomfortable position, but Legolas liked it well enough, it seemed, for he remained silent and didn't make a move.

 

Raeython

Raeython's head swivels over to PM:

 

"What do you mean Ravenwind's been taken?"

 

PM quickly relates the events that happened while Raeython passed out. Raeython reaches into one of his belt pouches and comes out with a brown, gnarled root. Raeython takes a good bite out of the root and then turns to his fellow questors.

 

"This is the chiplanqua root. It will erase weariness and give a boost of vitality for a time. Ravenwind may not have time for us to nap. We must, or at least I must follow her now. Anybody else is welcome to join me, but I will go alone if I must. PM, would you please open the portal, Ravenwind may be in grave danger, and she needs help now."

 

Ravenwind

A brown-robed woman eith bare feet and a mane of red hair stepped through the tavern doorway. Her eyes were dark, and exotically tilted, but her features were dramatically similar to the yet-again-lost handmaiden of Torm. Obviously, this was Karasu, one of Ravenwind's half sisters. "I have come to speak with my sister, Ravenwind of the Hand of Torm," she said, her voice musical. "Can any here tell me where she is?"

 

The Muse replied, "Our best guess is, um, Gehenna, actually. The plane of the Forge."

 

In an unusual display of emotion, the young woman slammed a hand down on the table in front of the adventurers. It split and fell apart, dumping tequila liberally on the floor. "First the Abyss, and now Gehenna! Always in trouble, always in harm's way, and for what?" She glared at them all, and the more experienced adventurers held very, very still. The recognized in her the signs of training in the eastern ways of war.

 

"If you are going to find her, I will go with you this time," she added, rather firmly.

 

PrinceLegolas

At first, Legolas heard the woman enter while he was meditating, but he ignored it. When she started talking about 'going with you', and he heard Raeython earlier, saying he wants to find Ravenwind, Legolas stopped meditating and opened his eyes. He untied his legs and stood up from his chair. "Alright. Another adventure, I hear?" Legolas walked towards Raeython. "Can I have a taste of that root? Uh... at least, I assume I can join you in your quest once again?"

 

Palladium Muse

"Then, we will be off, if I may have some of that root, Raeython," the Muse asks. The ranger nods, and she takes a healthy bite.

 

Turning, she makes her way back out of the tavern, and into a back street. Closing her eyes, she raises her hands and begins incanting a series of strange syllables.

 

Soon enough, a vibrant blue portal opens in front of her, against a wall. The scent of sulfur and smoke seem to drift out of it.

 

Not waiting to see if anyone is near her, and getting a clear fix on the tug of the rod in her mind, she takes a deep breath and steps through.

 

SwordMage

SwordMage has arrived through the portal with the group around B_FH. He has lost his sword, cast some spells and got nothing out of the last adventure. With a puzzled look he notices that Legolas holds a ruby while the rest of the treasure found in the temple was dispelled.

 

"...Raeython, I don't know who you are and how you made that dispelling with your sword or whatever you did, and sure, you have some power, but...." SwordMage looks a little bit tired now. "..give her a chance to come back on her own. She wanted us to leave. What would happen if Ravenwind comes back in a few minutes but you're gone instead? Though you're conscious now, you seem a little bit weaker to me compared to the first time we went through the portal. Whatever or whoever awaited us in the temple will be warned now. I don't think it's in an intelligent idea to go back right now .. though I would follow you if nothing can holds you back."

 

"No, thanks, nothing for me, I .. maybe later" he answers to the wench.

 

Suddenly a strange woman enters the bar, smashes on the table, speaks some loud words and the last words he's able to hear are "Let's go!".

 

"Damned, how stupid!!! And I'm even more stupid to follow them!" SwordMage sees the Muse opening a new portal and follows her.

 

Raeython

Raeython turns to Karasu:

 

"Bah, follow along if you want, though this is no affair of yours!" Raeython snaps at Karasu. As soon as he uttered those words, Raeython grimaces in pain and moves his hands to his temples, where he briefly massages them. After a moment, his glassy-eyed expression is back and he says:

 

"Sorry about that Karasu, I don't know what came over me. If Ravenwind is your sister, feel free to join us."

 

And with that Raeython follows PM through the portal.

 

Vintar

Looking at the place wher the table had been, Wizzix wondered how on earth someone could smash a sturdy oak table in half. He quickly gestured at the patron that he didn't have anything to do with it, this time, and studied the hands of the woman from a safe distance, discovering not even a mark on them. When he heard PM mentioning the Gehenna, he shudderd, remembering what he had seen in the treasure chambre; his mentor, Gendell, had told him many tales about the other planes, and Gehenna wasn't the nicest place for this 'Ravenwind' to be stranded. For a moment, his common sense fought his curiosity. However, when he saw the portal opening up, revealing a glimpse of this strange new world, he couldn't resist and scampered through . . .

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind had been running through the void, unable to hear to see or feel, following the sense of evil ahead of her, unable to breathe, for so long now . . . she thought she had been running forever. But she did not panic in this darkness, unlike the darkness she had experience in the Abyss. This time she was more seasoned, more experienced. So she kept running, tried to keep pace with the ever-receding evil ahead of her. . .

 

Suddenly, she found herself plunging out of another portal. Her first gasp of breath choked her screaming, air-deprived lungs. Her leading foot dropped out of the darkness of the portal as well . . . and touched down on nothing. She fell, and as she fell, she stared in horror at the sights around her.

 

Four mountains hung in the sulphurous air of this plane, peaked at both top and bottom. She knew this place; knew it from the holiest of texts: Gehenna, the forge, where no soul could ever rest. She crashed into the surface of the closest mountain and slid, scrabbling desperately for a handhold, racing ever down the razor-edged obsidian and harsh pumice. Then her feet were dangling in air again—but she'd caught a grip on the edge of the cliff, and she hung over the edge of a precipice, breathing hard. She felt something fall from her belt, and glanced down to see the rod of Loviathar tumbling away from her, into the depths of the void beneath her feet.

 

Her muscles trembling with tension, she slowly hauled herself back over the edge of the cliff, and lay there, gasping for a moment. The evil of the plane oppressed her sprit, sapping her of strength.

 

Slowly, she stood, and, concentrating, found that she could forge that sword of light before her again. She stared at it in awe as it glowed fiercely in her bloody hands.

 

As if attracted by the light, she could see shadowy figures moving towards her, large, vaguely bear-shaped creatures. She could see horns on their heads, reflecting the dim light. "Yugolath," she whispered, dredging the name of one of the plane's few native inhabitants out of dimly remembered texts read in her years as a novice. She looked around her, desperate to retreat before they reached her.

 

But there was nowhere to run. Swallowing hard, she set herself for an obviously impossible battle.

 

Then another shadow slipped from between the rocks nearby. A man, wearing a symbol of Torm, and the insignia of an Inquisitor. She froze, staring at him. "Guy d'Mortis, at your service, m'lady," he introduced himself with a bow. "Might I be of some assistance to you? You do seem in imminent peril."

 

She just stared at him longer, flabbergasted. "Guy d'Mortis?" she whispered. Guy d'Mortis had been dead for over three hundred years, the most hated man the Inquisitors had ever produced.

 

Raeython

Just as Ravenwind's mouth was hanging open, a thin, horizontal bar of pure white light springs into existance about 20 feet away. The bar expands, then takes on the standard circular shape of one of PM's portals. PM, Raeython, and some of the other questors leap through the portal, and survey the twisted landscape.

 

Aivanther

"Damn, first the abyss, now Gehenna." mutters Aivanther. "All in a days work," he mutters sarcastically. Surveying the situation, Aivanther draws his saber and concentrates. He can feel the blade’s hunger, obviously there are demons about. Fortunately, the blade's hunger isn't strong, so the demons aren't that close. Examining his companions he walks over to Alexander. "How are you doing with spells? Do you have many left?" Alex simply said, "I still have some tricks up my sleeve, as well as spells."  Nodding, Aivanther waited said, "I'll do a little scouting." Using his ring, Aivanther disappears, and sneaks ahead searching for any clue as to what awaits the company.

 

B_FH

B_FH steps through the portal and sees a massive twisting landscape before him. Massive winding towers of pure rock seem to go on endlessly only to come back down a hundred or so feet later to form a giant arch. Canyons turn into mountains and the entire visible area seems like a thing of nightmares.

 

"Well this is a nice way to start the day." B_FH remarks. He looks around at his companions, and recognizes Ravenwind, her back to a cliff and what seem to be living shadows surrounding her. B_FH opens up his scroll case and pulls out a single scroll...

 

Figaro

“Huummm, interesting landscape. It might make a truly horrifing painting. I'll do some scouting around.” He fades into the shadows.

 

ArchMage Alexander

Peering into the darkness, Alex goes over his options. He did have some spells left, he also had his staff as well as a few wands and scrolls. He was hardly at his full strength, the psionic battle in the temple had drained him. But he was hardly defenseless either.

 

Comparing this landscape to the Abyss in his mind Alex spots something. A long ways off he catches a glimpse of some shadows as well as what seemed a glimmer of light on the terrible landscape. Calling the others attention to it he says, "What is that? Can anyone make it out?"

 

SwordMage peers out intently and says, "I'm not sure what the shadows are but I'd swear that that speck is a woman. There also seems to be a man over there." Leaning on his staff Alex wearily says, "I can't fetch her, if that is indeed Ravenwind, I don't have any teleportation or gate spells left. We'll have to do this the hard way, unless any of you have a better way."

 

Vintar

Stepping out of the portal, Wizzix sees the small speck of light, surrounded by the shadows, and remembers the strange sword that had formed in Ravenwinds hands, just before she had disappeared in the black void. 'That must be her', he thought. “Thank goodness we found her right away; the sooner we get out of here, the better,” He decided to show her the way out right away. After a quick chant a little flame popped up in his hand—he was getting better at this—and happily he threw it high up into the air, where it exploded in a burst of colors.

 

Palladium Muse

PM stopped and surveyed the mountainous, volcanic landscape, wondering why Raeython and Buffeh were looking directly at Ravenwind, while Alex and the others seemed to see her off in the distance.

 

Reaching inside she checked her other senses, and nearly reeled. It had been a while since she'd been to the Outer Planes, and now she remembered why.

 

“Wait!" she called out, taking precious moments away from helping RW, who seemed to be in no immediate danger, talking to what looked like another knight in scarred and scorched armor. She didn't know if the two who had faded into the shadows stopped to listen, but everyone else did.

 

"The laws of magic and everything else work differently here," she explained. "I won't be affected, but everyone else will...First, perception is twisted. Ravenwind is a bare few paces from me," she pointed, the others not seeing the paladin so close squinted. "That is real. Distance here is mutable, stay close, or you could end up walking off a cliff that looks miles away but is really right under your feet.

 

"Magic is changed here as well, all types of magic, except for spatial mages. Teleportation and Dimensional spells won't work. It's a one way ride. There are Gates in Gehenna that will get us out, but that's the only way we can leave.

 

"Clerical magic of all kinds is at a third of its normal strength, healing, undead, divination, everything. If there is a psionicist among us, don't use your powers. This is a dead zone, you could lobotomize yourself. Regular magic is iffy. Sometimes it will work normally, sometimes it won't work at all, and sometimes it will be more powerful than you ever intended. Take your time casting spells, or even using any magic at all. Magical weapons . . . they may not work."

 

There was a stir in the party, and Alex' voice could be heard. "Faust! Where is Faust!"

 

"Your familiar couldn't come. The powers of the Outer Planes could have severed your familiar's bond with you. We have to get to Ravenwind." Karasu, the monk, nodded firmly, obviously impatient to get on with it already, as were most of the other fighters. "And find a Gate to a friendly plane. If we can get to Sigil or an Inner Plane, Alex or I will be able to take us back to Faerun. Okay, I guess that's it, end of lecture..." She looked to Ravenwind, then to Raeython, who inclined his head.

 

Carefully, they began making their way toward the paladin.

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind saw the other adventurers appear from a portal in a blinding swirl of light. The gnomish conjurer set off a spell, almost in her face, almost blinding her for an instant, and she heard Palladium's shouts for the others to be wary of their own perceptions, and especially of the use of magic. She watched Alexander pale with shock, pain rippling through his frame as the horror of losing his link to his beloved familiar ran through him. Aivanther reappeared and caught his friend's elbow as he staggered, suddenly losing some of his vitality. "Are you all right?" the half-drow thief demanded.

 

Alex waved him off, "I'm fine; just feel a bit weak, that's all."

 

Ravenwind turned back to Guy, swallowing hard as she addressed the spirit of the long-dead paladin. "Forsooth, sir knight," she said, addressing him in his own dialect. "I pursued a great evil to this dread place; how came you here?"

 

"Fair warrioress, I sought to pursue evil where'r its loathsome head raised itself, most oft in the souls of the foul unbelievers," he replied, his tone almost declamatory. "One day, I know not how, I found myself here, and have been pursuing the demons that dwell here ever since."

 

"Do you know of any way out?" the Muse asked, pushing her way through the crowd.

 

"Way out?" he replied, puzzled. "What mean you?"

 

"A gate," the Muse asked impatiently, looking over her shoulder.

 

"Ah, mayhap I do. However, I may not use it myself, until such time as I have completed my quest here, and established an outpost of the Light in this godforsaken land." He looked off into the distance, his face proud and stern.

 

Wissix reached up on tiptoe to whisper to the towering barbarian, SwordMage, "He's a loony, isn't he?"

 

"Well, you might not be able to, but we need to, and quickly," the Muse answered, still looking over her shoulder.

 

Ravenwind restrained her friend, laying a hand on her shoulder. "Perchance, noble sir, wouldst thou lead us there anon?" she asked, slipping deeper into archaic speech.

 

"'Twould be my honor to be of service," he replied instantly. He paused, staring at those accompanying them. His tone turned belligerent. "However, I would first know why a chosen servant of the One True god, Torm, would travel with such a. . . menagerie." His scowl took in Aivanther, Wissix, and even Alexander.

 

"No time!" Raeython exclaimed, rushing forward. "Something's coming!"

 

Behind the crowd of creatures native to the plane, something massive and fiery soared, high in the "sky" of the plane, beating its massive wings. Drawn to the crowd of adventurers, like a candle to a flame, its presence caused the lesser demons on the ground to flee.

 

"Let's get out of here." Ravenwind suggested. "Now!"

 

Vintar

Wizzix looked at the new flame that had popped up in his hand, then at the massive figure above, then at Ravenwind. Quickly he snuffed out the flickering flame and scurried in the direction Ravenwind was heading. He looked at Guy again, wondering what kind of raving lunatic would bother to roam Gehenna, let alone try to make it a better place. “What’s the deal with this weirdo, anyway?” he whispered towards Swordmage.

 

B_FH

B_FH catches up to PM and says, "Ok, so if we can't shoot magic at it and our magic weapons might go screwy if we hit it with them, so what do we do? Wait till it lands?"

 

Palladium Muse

She looks at B_FH and Swordmage, then at the approaching baddies.

 

"Non-magical weapons will hurt them, but not much," she admitted. "I would suggest we run our butts off." With that, she turns tail, hot on Guy's heels.

 

A rumbling filled the air as the demonic legions neared, the twisted perceptions of the realm affecting their sense of sound as well as sight. The knight seemed to have no problem picking his way through the blasted landscape, but was also seemingly oblivious to their urgings to hurry.

 

SwordMage

SwordMage follows the Muse like the rest of the party to avoid being mislead by what- or whoever causes the strange effects.

 

Still a little bit tired in his mind he cannot resist to smile to himself when he hears “No magic, or be extremely careful.." but the smile fades away when he realizes that he has only his staff right now. “Mistake, mistake, mistake to follow them to this rotten place!” He can hardly see what's going on when they finally arrive near to Ravenwind. Or that's what they assume.

 

Then he whispered to Wizzix, "Yeah, this one looks like a moron though I don't know whether he is our friend or not. Haven't heard the whole story."

 

Raeython

A brutal, unworldly cry can be heard as the demon quickly closes the distance between itself and the party. As the demon approaches, Raeython can begin to make out its features. The demon appears huge and manlike, though at least twice the size of a big man. Its wings cover an impressive fifteen-foot span. As it nears the group Raeython can see its small, spiraled horns on the top of its head, and even from the distance he can see its eyes glowing with a fiery intensity. The demon lets out another bellowing scream of rage, and begins its dive towards the running party.

 

Daymon Katryl

*Not too far from the beleagued companions*

 

An unnamed Drow: "Vj'ark, what is that horrid screaming for? Why are your sentries rushing off like a gaggle of undisciplined peasants?"

 

Vj'ark, the Yugolath: *Deep, cavernous voice* "Mortals have invaded. My warriors want to taste their flesh."

 

The Drow: "Yes, yes, indulgence is an ever-present trait amongst you fools, but what if they are merely the beginning of a larger invasion force? You will have thinned out your numbers on some mindless killing and left yourself exposed for another possible attack. Don't kill the intruders, but capture them, so that we can question them."

 

"Capture... ALL of them?..."

 

"Well, I don't suppose I need ALL of them. Capture the magic users, for they will likely be the most knowledgable. Your troops may kill the rest at your leisure. Now GO!"

 

“As you wish, Daymon..." *turning, the large Yugolath spreads its wings and leaps into the air, catching a updraft of hot air and glides towards the distant commotion*

 

Ravenwind

The paladin leading the adventurers away suddenly halted, went rigid, and turned. "Foul beasts!" he snarled, ripping a sword from its sheath at his side. "You dare to show your ugly faces once more? I am Guy d'Mortis, Scourge of the Damned, Lash of the Unbelievers!"

 

"Ramrod of the Feebleminded . . . " Aivanther mumbled. Ravenwind raised her hands helplessly, and looked around to see whom the inquisitor was addressing.

 

"Hear me, ye black-hearted drow!" Guy roared, and his two-handed sword blazed with an eerie, purplish light. "Hide not in the shadows like the cowards you are! I can smell your evil even over the stench of this hideous place!"

 

Ravenwind blinked, and reached out with her senses. There was indeed a great deal of evil around them—but various pinpoints of it seemed to be moving closer and closer, moving as if to encircle them all. Then she felt the tell-tale tingle of magic in use. She braced for the spell's impact, but felt nothing. Glancing around wildly, she saw expressions of disconcertion on the various mages' faces. Alex opened his mouth as if to say something, but no sounds emerged. Understanding at once, Ravenwind snapped, "Aivanther, protect the mages! SwordMage, Palladium, use your weapons, defend yourself and the others, and fall back—towards that downward path. Raeython, Guy, Figaro—we're drawing the line here. May Torm defend us all!" She prayed momentarily, and a trickle of power suffused her, binding her to the other fighters in the group, helping them to move in harmony with one another.

 

But Guy was already rushing off ahead of them, charging blindly into the darkness. Raeython swore. "He's the perfect example of everything that's wrong with paladins." His voice was unnaturally harsh.

 

"Do you want to sit here and bicker, or do you want to see our last hope of getting the hell out of this hell-hole gets himself killed?" Figaro demanded.

 

Ravenwind muttered, "He's already dead."

 

They glanced over at her in shock.

 

Just then, they heard the sound of blade meeting blade, evidently not as far from them as they'd thought. The darkness lifted a bit as the bright violet flash of Guy's sword illumined the combat. The drow was good; very good, although evidently not a noble. His twin swords dodged and weaved, slicing into Guy's torso, probing for vital organs. But the paladin showed no signs of pain, no signs of  injury. Instead, he laughed. "Foolish! Mad, foolish creature! Do you really think you can defeat the Chosen of Helm?"

 

He delivered a tremendous overhand blow, and the drow fell to the ground, lifeless.

 

Ravenwind and Raeython exchanged a long, troubled look. There was a great deal here that disturbed them, not least that last statement.

 

Daymon Katryl

The Paladin raises his blade in challenge, ready to charge off towards the next opponent, but before he can surge forward with fanatical zeal, his wrist is grasped by a snarling Yugolath, who easily lifts that Paladin in the air and hurls him several yards away, then leaps after him, attemping to rend him limb from limb

 

Watching the short fight with interest, Daymon realized that the Drow's blades struck home several times, but the Paladin did not feel the blows, much further beyond even that pain immunity enjoyed by the most battle-crazed berserker. Looking again at the Paladin, battling three Yugolaths that have surrounded him and keep attacking his blindside, Daymon realizes that there is something wrong with this Paladin. Then breaking into a grin, he says "They sent an Undead Paladin to challenge an Anti-Paladin? The fool's power will now become my power over him... "

 

Stretching forth his hand, he begins the gestures that would ordinarilly turn undead, however, due to his dark nature, his powers work towards controlling the undead Paladin.

 

Meanwhile, the Yugolath Vj'ark has caught up with his fellows, and after screaming something incomprehensible, they cease their direct charge, and move to circle to companions, letting them run and tire themselves, while they effortlessly glide nearby, waiting for the moment to carry out their instructions.

 

Vintar

Staring at the numerous Demons circling the group tighter and tighter, Wizzix starts feeling a little queasy. Why didn't he just listen to himself when his common sense warned him not to take that chance? “You never learn, do you, idiot!?” he grumbled to himself. “Now you're stuck with a bunch of unholy demons . . . “ He stirred.  Unholy demons . . .

 

He grabbed his bag and ruffled through his trinkets; after a few moments he pulled out half a dozen small vials filled with a light-blue liquid. He tugged Swordmage’s sleeve and showed them. Swordmage’s eyes lit up; “Hmmm, holy water . . . “ he said, glancing back at the gnome.

 

Raeython

Raeython is astounded at Guy's seeming invulnerability to the drow’s attacks, and the ease with which he dispatched the dark elf. A muted growl is the only warning he gets as a winged demon launches itself at his back. Raeython pivots on his right foot as he ducks down, pulls out his new blade, and finishes off his turn by taking a swipe at the demon who is now flying over his head.

 

His blade manages to score a shallow cut on the demon's belly. When it connects, a small flash of vibrant green light can bee seen, and the demon howls in agony. As the demon makes a circle back around, it seems to falter in its flight. Raeython might be mistaken, but he thinks he can see small flowers growing from the slash in the demon's chest.

 

The voices in his head are as loud as when he first picked up the blade, and the sword seems alive in his hand; thirsting for demon blood.

 

Daymon Katryl

A puzzled expression appears on his face as he attempt at turning does not even register. Not a mere failure, for he has experienced that enough times in his life, but no feeling for a response whatsoever. Barking out a command in the Drow tongue to a few of the assembled Drow, they spread out to engage the crazed Paladin still battling the two remaining Yugolaths (Having dispatched one of the lumbering Demons)

 

Regaining his composure, he turns his gaze back towards the companions, and watches how the the battle goes. He sees one of the demons reel back, clutching not a bleeding wound, but a flowering wound. An eyebrow arches sharply at this unexpected turn of events, then chastises himself for momentarily forgetting where he is at.

 

With a pleased eye, he sees three of the ten Yugolaths that swooped after the companions converge on one of the fellows that appears to be dressed in the accoutrements of a magic users (Alex), impressed that the dense demons remembered his instructions at all in their bloodlust. The others take to pairing off against each companion, roughly going at it one or two demons per companion.

 

"Excellent. Soon we will find out why these fools have chosen this day to die here."

 

Glancing back at the nearby Paladin, he sees there is now only one Yugolath left, although the handful of Drow sent to engage him are still waiting to engage him.

 

Muttering to himself, "This one may prove problematic..."

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind sprinted to Guy's side, the sword shaped of light and will reappearing in her hand. Strangely, she felt no urge to dual-wield her spell-breaker, Kaltseax, with it; somehow, instinctively, it felt wrong.

 

One of the snarling yugolaths turned its attention to her, and she launched an offensive flurry, the brilliant white blade blurring as she struck as fast as anyone there had ever seen her move. She had faced demons worse than this in the Abyss, but she knew all too well how her last trip into the outer planes had turned out. This time, she was determined, that no one except their opponents would die.

 

She slashed at it, nipped at it, forced it back, further and further. She heard wingbeats approaching, saw the glimmer of a fiery beast's hide in the gloom, and grinned. Again she attacked, and the yugolath retreated . . and stepped over the edge of the precipice from which she had dangled not too long ago, falling into the surprised face of one of the winged demons, and dropping the stunned creature with its weight. From the snarling that ensued beyond the edge of the cliff, she surmised that those two fell creatures would be far more interested in grappling with one another for the moment, and would be out of the fight for the nonce.

 

Turning back to the companions, she saw that the magic users were sorely besieged, but that the Muse was smiling wickedly, as if she were only waiting for the hellspawn to come within a certain range before she acted. . . .

 

Palladium Muse

Catching Ravenwind's glance, Muse's evil grin deepened. Not being from this universe, non-verbal spells took the larger part of her repetoire . . . they were also of the nastier vs. supernatural and negative plane type creature variety.

 

Sword in one hand, her head snapped around as one of the demons swooped in on Alex. Lashing out with her other, the demon convulsed and fell heavily, narrowly missing the mage.

 

Its abdomen twitched as it writhed, and abruptly all its innards were now outwards. Intestines burst from its leathery skin to spill across the ground, ichor steaming and hissing as it hit the rocks, scoring them like acid.

 

Her grin grew fiercer as the demons took note and regrouped out of range. She was ready, she bounced a fist-sized shiny black sphere in the palm of one hand. Unfortunately, the spells lacked in distance, all she could do was wait. Hopefully someone had something they could use against them as they flapped overhead. Something that could be used in a sling, perhaps?

 

Vintar

Wizzix stuffed the vials under PM's nose. “Will these do, will they?” he asked, excitedly.

 

Palladium Muse

Not knowing how Wizzix divined her thoughts, and not caring, quite frankly, she nodded heartily at the gnome. Glancing around, she searched for something that could be used as a sling. Spying Karasu, she nabbed the gnome by one arm and pulled him after her as she ran towards the monk. Dodging flying hands and feet, she snatched off the woman's sash, barely escaping getting her block knocked off.

 

Dashing back to the mages, she handed Wizzix the sash and mimed using a sling. She knew better than to use one herself, she might conk herself with a vial.

 

 

pure_ultima

Ultima managed to dive through the portal entrance just as it was shutting. He opened his eyes as the rush of air surrounded him. He was rapidly approaching the rather painful looking floor of Gehenna. He reached back and pulled out his sword, which was glowing a bright blue. Arching through the sky, he sliced through a demons neck and landed in the thick of the battle. A few Drow saw him, and began to encircle him, but he held his sword with both hands and raised his eyebrows.

 

Daymon Katryl

"Vj'ark, your warrios are even more inept than you are..." mutters Daymon from afar as he watches what should have been an overwhelming force steadily lose ground to a handful of mortals. Humans and Elves, and . . . even a GNOME were defying the Demons under his command. This has the makings of being an interesting report to submit to his superiors...

 

More of the Yugolath move to charge off after the companions, but Daymon signals them to hold their position.

 

"Enough of your idiotic brethren have fallen to a handful of heroes (says this word with more contempt than normal) and I won't lose more of you to a reckless assault. Gej'vorn... GEJ'VORN!!!"

 

Sidling up behind Daymon is a shadowy essence, not quite there, and more visible out of the corner of one's eye than looking directly at it.

 

"Yessss, massster?" inquires the appiration.

 

"From the looks of things, those foolish beasts that charged off will not be returning, at least not amongst the living. These heroes (again the increase level of contempt) may be more powerful than a first glance would surmise. Follow them, observe their activities. I do not care if they wish to wander about this blasted realm, so long as their appearance has nothing to do with my own presence here. Follow, observe, but do not engage. That is all."

 

"Yessss... massster...." and with that, the apparition silently glides away, circling wide, but slowly approaching the companions.

 

Daymon stands still, an imposing figure standing on the far horizon, gazing thoughtfully at the beleagured forces before him, simultaneously admiring them for their courage and resourcefulness while berating himself and his command for allowing them to live this long.

 

Hearing the harsh sounds of Drow battlecries and curses, he turns and once again regards the Paladin now battling five drow warriors, who while landing several blows against the older man, blows that would have felled even a young warrior in their prime, he stands still, fighting back with the strength most unnatural. With a curse, Daymon begins to feel that he will inevitably have to face off with this oddly immortal adversary.

 

Aivanther

Struggling to defend Alex, Aivanther has an inspiration from when he fought some nishruu. Hurling his dagger, it sank deep into eyes of the nearest demon, giving him a second to prepare. Pulling out a bottle of special oil, he pours it over his sword and ignites it. Turning back to the onrushing demons he strikes and is pleased to see that they don't like this fire. "Come on, you ugly dogs!"

 

Daymon Katryl

Turning back to the Paladin that is occupied with some of his Drow warriors, Daymon still has the unmistaken impression that there is something... wrong about the older man. Acting on a bit of intuition, Daymon raises his hand, making a similar gesture to when he attempted to turn the Paladin. This time, he draws upon another of his innate abilities, also warped by his dark nature: Detect Good.

 

He feels a strong sense of discomfort emanating from the direction of the companions, along with one very sharp feeling coming from one of the women, the one with the red hair and the sword of white light.

 

This is not what caused his eyebrow to arch in another gesture of surprise. There was a distinct lack of the annoying feeling of "goodness" coming from the Paladin battling the Drow.

 

"My, this day does seem to get curiouser by the minute..." said Daymon slowly, to no one in particular.

 

B_FH

B_FH runs to the heart of the combat, trying to defend Alex. B_FH suddenly remembers, "I'm a spellcaster, too.” He breaks off defending Alex and starts to hack at the demons coming his way. After a second he's dispatched two of them only to feel a heavy blunt object hit the back of his head, hard...

 

ArchMage Alexander

Alex was in a bad way. He was already heavily drained with all his spell casting and other magical pursuits. To add to that he couldn't use any of the powers he had left with any confidence. And to top it all of he'd lost Faust.

 

Snapping back to the here and now, Alex growled. Swinging his staff he struck a reaching hand of one of his attackers. He was pleased to notice that though it wasn't glowing the brilliant green as it should, it still had a faint glimmer, and still had some power in it as shown be the demon's now-crushed hand. The demons backed away some with more respect. Now they circled him, considering him and his staff.

 

He heard Aiv's yell of defiance somewhere behind him, but that didn't matter now. Drawing forth what power he could, he reached through his staff and zapped a demon. Instead of a bolt of lightning striking the demon, the staff took on a bluish-glow. Curious about the effect, Alex lashed out at one of the fiends as they moved closer. To his surprise a shock of electricity lanced out from the staff and gave the demon a jolt, sending it reeling, and the staff's bluish-glow dimmed some. "This is a little better," Alex muttered keeping his eye on the now very cautious demon.

 

Having an idea he shouts, "Palladium, what would happen here if a broke a wand?"

 

Daymon Katryl

Glancing still at the Paladin, and his new discovery, Daymon hears a new sound coming from the direction of his bumbling subordinates: victory cries.

 

With a consistency that could make a man woozy, he turns once more and surveys the battle, searching for the cause of the sudden sounds of elation coming from the throats of the demons, when previously those same throats merely bellowed cries of rage and pain.

 

With a pleased eye, he sees the cause, one of the figures pitches forward drunkenly after being struck from behind, and immediately is snatched up by one of the towering Yugolaths. Leaping into the air, carrying the comatose form of the man like a rag doll, it glides away from the battle, drawing another of its fellows after it. Thinking that B_FH is still an active combatant, the second Demon tries to claw at him, disturbing the first Demon's flight, causing it to land unceremoniously, a good distance from Daymon's position. The two turn to squabbling in their own tongue, until finally the larger one bashes the smaller one, sending it sprawling. It then reaches down, grabs B_FH by the leg, and hauls him the rest of the way to Daymon on foot, dragging the poor man along the rough ground.

 

"Well, I am almost impressed. You actually managed to capture one of them. Too bad more of you died than them."

 

Turning to one of his lieutenants, he then says, "Anyway, bind him, gag him, remove his weapons, rings, necklaces, the usual. If this idiot actually DID capture a magic user ‘twould be foolish to leave him such an obvious means of affecting an escape."

 

Daymon then glances back to the old Paladin, still battling with his warriors, neither side gaining ground. The old man shows no signs of tiring, but then is severely outnumbered, and unable to gain any advantage.

 

Aivanther

Aivanther was entering the song of the blades. It was otherwise known as blade singing to his mother's people, and Aivanther only knew the little his grandfather taught him as a child, and found it hard to reach that point, but in his desperation he slipped into it. Spinning he sliced the arm off of one demon, his blade's crystal was made sharper by a magic that transcended the plains and the flames of the special Gondish oil helped as well. Conintuing the spin he sliced into another demon's leg and slit the throat of a third. Rolling under the desperate blows of the two remaining demons, he came up beside of the first slain demon and retrieved his dagger.

 

His effort to retrieve his dagger cost him though, he was sent sprawling, cloak torn from his back, by a demon strike. Desperately trying to keep his concentration, Aivanther climbed to his feet. To his dismay the flames on his sword went out. Trying not to give the demons, who were stumbling over each other in their eagerness, a chance to strike Aivanther went into a blur of strikes, forcing the two demons back.

 

Realizing this was taking him to long, Aivanther made a desperate lunge at the 'disarmed' demon. Though he suffered a minor blow to his side from the other demon, Aivanther hit home. The already-severly injured demon screamed as Aivanther pulled his blade out from its groin as it sank to the ground. The second demon was beginning to search for a way to escape, but Aivanther was once again lost in the song and wasn't going to let this thing escape.

 

Figaro

He stepps quickly out of the shadows, and backstabs the remaining demon, and while not doing anywhere near enough damage to kill it out right does manage to successfully distract it. He looks up at the Demon, and shouts, “You're all alone now. Run. Maybe you'll make it.” The demon hesitates just long enough for the rest of the party to join in a kill it. “Damn I knew I should have went after the one the was wielding the club.”  Gnashing his teeth at first, a thought occurs to him and he smiles.  “Other the other hand, it means we get to kill more demons!”

 

Vintar

Wizzix grabbed the sash and grinned. This was something he COULD do.. After placing one of the vials carefully in the folded sash, he started to swing it around his head, slowly letting it gain momentum, until a light humming sound could be heard. Awaiting his chance, he stared at the beasts circling overhead.

 

He heard Alexander shouting and saw the demons moving in on him, as if they sensed the mage was weakened in some way. His staff radiated with blue light, occasionally flashing up as a demon reeled back in dismay. Just as another beast lashed out, Wizzix released the vial, sending it flying through the air. It struck the demon square in the face, shattering into a thousand pieces; shrieking in horror, the beast felt the holy water burn into him like acid, bubbling on his skin as it began to dissolve.

 

Wailing, it crashed into the ground, where lay thrashing around, until after a few violent spasms it lay still. “Now that's some good stuff,” Wizzix thought contently.

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind saw B_FH snatched by one of the winged demons, saw the trajectory as it flew away. "Come on, everyone!" she shouted, and ran in pursuit. Her sister, Karasu, easily kept pace, and they pounded over the top of a small outcropping nearby, followed by those of the others who were not winded or injured. In the gorge that ran behind the outcropping, they could see the shadowy, slender figures of drow elves amidst the larger, more hulking forms of a few more demons. Ravenwind almost swallowed her tongue when she realized that one of them was a green abishai. The various figures retreated into a cave, and sealed the entrance with a rock so cunningly worked, that the entrance itself was completely disguised.

 

She crouched, to avoid notice, and her sister ducked behind a spire of rock quickly, noting that one drow and the abishai had remained outside as a guard. "This is going to take careful planning, not a direct confrontation," Ravenwind whispered.

 

"Truly, the wisdom of my elders is astonishing," Karasu replied softly, with a graceful little bow and a mocking inflection to her voice. "There is a chance that I can at least distract the largest demon, my sister, and perhaps destroy it," she added, after Ravenwind fixed her with a steely glare.

 

Ravenwind shook her head. "I know you've become quite good; your instructors speak glowingly of your ability to control your ki," she replied. "But that demon is an abishai. My Order is the best suited to deal with such. Aivanther, can you see the door at all?" she asked over her shoulder of the half-drow assassin.

 

He shrugged. "My father's people are skilled and devious," he admitted. "But I am more so," he added with a grin.

 

"We haven't much time," Palladium said grimly, the silence spell having evidently worn off by now. "They'll undoubtedly begin torturing the lad immediately. " She bounced the small black sphere in her hand. "Ravenwind, this spell will destroy that demon if I can land it on it, but it will do nothing against the drow." She turned to Wizzix, "Not that you didn't do a good job, my friend, but you'd best keep your holy water for whatever we find inside that cave."

 

"Then the drow is our first concern," Raeython put in, as he, too, came over the outcropping. His sword was blazingly green now, a vibrant viridian hue, that lit up the side of his face in an alien and disturbing way.

 

SwordMage scraped a patch of ground clear, and began sketching out their tactics. The barbarian fighter-mage seemed to have an outstanding grasp of strategy, and seemed a very clear thinker, for someone prone to frothing rages. Ravenwind had to admit, she was impressed.

 

"I'll cover our flank," Alexander offered wearily. "I'm not going to be much help right now on the front lines." The strain of separation from Faust was beginning to show, and Ravenwind didn't even want to think about how the cat would be taking this, back at the tavern. She touched his hand, and murmured a prayer, but the healing she could extend to him in this dark place was scant, at best.

 

"I'll stay with him," Ultima offered, giving the mage a worried frown.

 

Then she, Karasu, Palladium, and Raeython began creeping towards the massive abishai from the left, while Aivanther, Wissix, SwordMage, and Figaro set themselve to ambush the drow from the right. Guy stepped down off the outcropping in full view of the drow and the demon, and waved cheerfully at them. She could only pray that this worked . . . .

 

Back at the tavern . . .

ArchMage Alexander

A very agitated and weak Faust, glances up. Hissing he, jumped up on the bar. "Barkeep, I need something to drink. Forget milk, get me a bowl of ale." the cat hopped down and went to a table in a corner where he cursed mages and their idiocy in going to Gehenna.

 

And back in the Outer Planes . . . 

Raeython

Raeython has been unusually quiet ever since he entered this plane. With the exception of the one demon he took down with his sword, he has been in a world of his own. When Raeython destroyed the altar, the voices in his head seemed to diminished in volume. He was able to block out all but the faintest whispers coming from the sword. That all changed once they hit the plane of Gehenna.

 

As soon as he first set foot on this twisted landscape, something had changed in the litany of voices running through his head. The thoughts became more human, and more distinct. While he can't make out any individual voices, it is clear that the influence of the trees cannot reach in this place, but the essence of what was human still can. Raeython feels urgings in a hundred different directions, wanting him to do a hundred different things.

 

Then suddenly, he can feel a connection, a missing piece of a puzzle finally fitting into place, a key turning in a lock in his mind. For just one glorious moment, he was one with the host of druids. All of their reminiscent thoughts and feelings, Raeython could now understand. What before to him was a jumble of random thoughts and emotions now becomes a clear merging that can be understood. Just as Raeython understands what must be done now.

 

Raeython raises his sword and whispers an incantation. When he finishes, iron begins ripping itself out of deep veins running through the mountains. The iron runs up Raeython's body like quicksilver, forming layer upon layer of a metallic coating. He then points his sword down upon the gathering of drow and mouths another quick incantation.

 

Suddenly, huge jagged bolts of lightning begin streaking down from the sky, hitting ground and drow alike and detonating with a huge thunderclap every time they hit. He yells out, "PM, follow me" as he draws his other blade in his left hand and begins a running descent towards the abishai.

 

Palladium Muse

"I'm with you," she said, pleased at the return of her voice. "Hang on a moment, though." Impatiently, Raeython nodded.

 

Turning to Alex, she said, "Sorry I didn't answer your question before. Breaking a wand here..." a wicked grin spread over her face. "It wouldn't be pretty . . . think unchained wild magic in every direction, for as far as you can walk in an hour and a half from the breakage site. Good idea for a last resort, or to cover our escape once we reach a Gate out of here."

 

She swung back to the metal-clad ranger. "Let's go."

 

Raeython

On a sudden inspiration, Raeython reaches into one of his pouches and pulls out two white bottles. He tosses one to PM and downs the other in one tremendous gulp. He gives PM a wink and says:

 

"If you want to keep up, you might want to drink that potion. I'll clear the way, you take out the abishai. Just don't stop till we get there."

 

PM looks at him for a moment, then follows suit. The two of them then take off at tremendous speed over the hill, and into the chaos below. Raeython crests the hill, then accelerates to his full speed heading down the steep slope. Lightning bolts are still striking the ground intermittently, sending drow and demons flying through the air. They manage to make it about half way to the abishai, before they are noticed in the disorder.

 

Palladium Muse

They raced down the slope, PM deviating slightly to deal with the green abishai. It took her an instant to realize her most devastating spell would not quite work...well, not without some modification to the demon.

 

Very glad her speaking ability is back now, she incants and hurtles towards the demon, slapping a hand on its scaly hide while zipping past.

 

To the horror of those watching, the abishai begins to grow larger. It flinched as it felt the magic at work, but then realized it seemingly had backfired, as its seven foot bulk exploded upward and outward, until its toothy grin towered eighteen feet high. Muse, having had run past it, was now out of its periphery. It concentrated on Raeython instead, reaching out for the ranger, who must have thought PM had lost her mind.

 

"Yoo-hoo, Mr. Evil Nasty Demon Thing," it turned to see PM standing on a rising not too far from him, less than twenty feet. In her palm, she bounced the black sphere once more. "Thank you for the opportunity to cast this," she told it. "I've been dying to ever since I got here."

 

It snarled contemptuously and reached.

 

She threw the black sphere.

 

With a scornful snort, the abishai neatly caught it.

 

The small orb of magically contained anti-matter disrupted. There was a black flash, an inrushing of wind, and a tremendous explosion that shook the very bedrock they stood on, that did not reach more than five feet in any direction of the demon. Rather than demon bits flying in every direction, however, they dematerialized before they could even hit the ground. Even the smoke generated by the explosion was vaporized into component atoms before going nonexistent.

 

All that was left was a neatly symmetrical crater of rock where the abishai had stood, not even hot, not even a lingering trace of odor or smoke wafting from it.

 

Muse dusted her hands and tore across the rock after Raeython.

 

Raeython

Raeython was about to launch a litany of curses at PM as the demon grew to an even larger stature, when she threw the magical ball and the demon summarily exploded into nothingness. Raeython swivels his head and notices the disarray in the ranks of the drow after the lightning attack and the destruction of their most powerful demon. He deviates his path and heads right into heart of their grouping.

 

Raeython's new sword tears the throat out of the first drow before he even knew what was going on. The second fell to a groin thrust from his magical short sword as Raehthon danced to the right of the first drow. The third drow had more time to react and Raeython's first attack is parried by the long sword from the dual weilding drow. The drow immediately counters with his other sword, which Raeython counters with a lightning fast parry from his short sword. The battle which would have taken Raeython a few moments is then ended as the drow, unable to keep up with the incredibly fast sword thrusts, falls to Raeython's sword in his gut.

 

Raeython hears the sound of metal grinding, and feels a scrape across his back where another drow had circled behind him and attempted to stab him in the back. Raeython spins around and catches the astonished drow in the throat with his short sword.

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind swore in astonishment as the Muse obliterated the abishai. "I'm obviously not needed here," she remarked to no one in particular, as the rest of their party swarmed the lone remaining drow . . . just as the terrified dark elf raised the alarm, and a dozen elven soldiers, two high priestesses, two mages, and a handful of demons spilled out of the entryway, more guarding the passage behind them.

 

Swallowing hard, she reached out, and the glowing splinter of light that was her sword appeared in her hand, her fingers curving around its hilt. "So much for the plan," she said grimly.

 

Faerie fire sparkled around the forms of various of the questors, and a globe of darkness dropped on Palladium, obscuring her from the rest of the group. Aivanther was one of those marked out in purple flame, negating his ability to remain concealed in combat.

 

"Take out the spell-casters first!" Ravenwind shouted. "Torm, lend thy handmaiden thy strengh," she whispered in as fervent a prayer as she had ever voiced.

 

Guy, of course, was already charging towards the slender forms of the dark elves, shouting, "For Helm and glory!" as he slashed his sword in the air before him.

 

Karasu shook her head, staring after him, but quickly followed, her movements loose and easy as she squared off against her first opponent, bare-handed.

 

"Wissix, negate some of these spells!" Ravenwind cried, and leaped into the fray, facing off against a whip-wielding priestess.

 

pure_ultima

Ultima sat next to Alex and watched the explosion of the demon with wonder and amusement.  Then he saw the rush of Drow warroirs and priests. He leapt down the pumice slope, but heard Alex yell. Turning, he saw that there were a few Drow who had crept up and were encircling him. He was doing his best to fight them off with his staff. One fell, unconcious. Ultima leapt up the slope drawing his sword. He slashed across the nearest Drow's chest - he fell to the floor.

That sense again - of time slowing. His sharpened instincts told him to turn around. Turning, he saw a drow sword slowly arcing across the sky towards him. He raised his sword, which was glowing bright blue. Just before contact though the eyes of the Drow widened considerably and the sword fell from its hands. It fell to the floor and there stood... Bob the Kobold . However the triumphant kobold's grin was swept away, along with the kobold. The Drow that replaced the fallen kicked him aside and he bounced down the slope. Ultima turned to this drow and parried. The Drow grinned. Turning around was a remaining, if injured demon, swooping at him he hit Ultima full in the stomach and sent him flying over a short cliff, no a hill, and screeching down the pumice, sparks flying from his armor, and taking the grinning Drow with him...

 

Daymon Katryl

Speaking loudly above the din of combat, that seems to be getting louder, "Teranth, where are.. ahh.. there you are. Let us question the prisoner, before his ‘friends’ live the part of the Hero and try to rescue him"

 

"They are doing just that now, Daymon"

 

"Yes, well, then we shall have to skip the pleasantries, shan't we?”  He switched to speak Common.  “You there, wake up.”  He kicks B_FH's boot until he awakens.  “I trust you enjoyed your rest? Now, in exchange for our hospitality, you will answer a few questions. But before you answer them, know that if you tell a lie, then I will know, and I will break a finger for each infraction. If you do not answer a question, then I will do the same. As a magic user, that should get your attention, no?"

 

Turning aside to Teranth, "Are you ready?"

 

Teranth, "Aye, sir."

 

"Very well, let us begin" Turning back to B_FH, "I will remove the gag so that you may speak. I would advise you to comply with my instructions." Removes the gag, still leaving B_FH bound with his arms behind his back, each wrist tied to the opposite elbow, drawing his arms painfully tight.

 

"Now, question one: Why are you here?..."

 

 Turning from the questioning to address a large figure in a grey robe and cowl that hides its features, "Your forces have performed rather poorly, Txiant'zxchul. I had assumed that your Demons could have handled a small handful of mortals... ON YOUR HOME PLANE NO LESS." These last words were spoken through clenched teeth. Daymon's irritation is beginning to show.

 

Txiant'zxchul: "They have not won the day yet. They are mortal. They will tire, where we do not. They die and stay dead, where we do not. They fear death, where we do not. You must not lose this perspective."

 

"Yes, your philosophy is quite charming, and I will remember to recite it to my grandchildren. However, in the meantime, it would be useful if you personally showed these heroes why death should be feared. Now GO!"

 

Txiant'zxchul: "It would seem your control is slipping..." Daymon shoots him an evil glare, but the figure had already left the room.

 

 

At the entrance to the cave, a large figure, measuring about 6 feet tall, emerges from the mouth. The figure's features are completely covered, until it throws its arms wide, flinging the robe to the ground. Huge, scaly wings spread wide from its back, a long, prehensile tail whips back and forth, a deadly stinger tipping the end. As its arms stretch wide, a low booming sound can be heard, then suddenly, from the earth, eleven lemures erupt to stand about the red abishai. Roaring a challenge, the abishai leaps into the air, where its wings carry it easily towards the combatants, while the lemure foot soldiers steadily march towards them, a single-minded murderous intent their only focus.

 

B_FH

B_FH comes to and instead of coming to and being in the helpful hands of his companions he sees a rather loathsome looking drow before him. B_FH heard what he said previously so he decides to tell a half truth, it is ONE of the reasons they came but not the main reason. B_FH answers, "We came looking for Ravenwind." The drow asks a series of other questions that B_FH tactfully half answers. In the end B_FH has only 2 broken fingers. "80%," B_FH thinks, "that's not too bad . . . “

Aivanther

Cursing the drow, Aivanther drops back out of main combat and pulls out his bow. He begins to make life interesting for the magic-users, who seem to understand the magic of this plane and how to use it. Pulling a special arrow out, he breathes a prayer of thanks to Mask for allowing him to 'acquire' some arrows from a temple of Gond. Pulling back his string he aims for a spot right between all of the magic users, and lets the arrow fly. The drow are suprirsed when the arrow strikes the ground and explodes in a fireball, the volatile liquid in the tip bathing the drow in fire.

 

Turning his attention to a nearby skirmish, Aivanther puts a couple of arrows into one of Ravenwind's new opponents. He suddenly feels a tug at his waist and can feel a strong sense of hunger. Looking up he sees the red abishai and groans. 'Lloth's dirty fangs, I'm sick of demons!' As the beast swoops down, he fires a few arrows at it, making it angry but not injuring it to much. Creatively cursing in both the drow and elvish tongues, Aivanther scrambles away from the on rushing abishai.

 

Daymon Katryl

After the interrogation, the two Drow converse in front of B_FH, still in Common, allowing him to listen to each word...

 

Teranth: "He speaks the truth, mostly. The arrival of these fools here is the fault of that capricious bitch, Fate."

 

Daymon: "Aye, 'twould seem so. Then I would imagine that he is of no more use to us then?"

 

"Perhaps as a hostage. Heroes tend to go to great lengths to rescue hostages."

 

"Aye, you speak truthfully. A peculiarity that I have never understood. If they were foolish or weak enough to allow themselves to be captured, then they are not worthy to be allies, much less to be rescued."

 

Tarenth: "We could just kill him, sir."

 

"Aye, we could. He is of no use to us, and to bring him with us would just hinder us worrying about his continued captivity."

 

Addressing B_FH, Daymon says, "What say you, dog? Will you beg for your life like a coward, or accept your death with some semblance of dignity?"

 

ArchMage Alexander

Alex saw ultima fall and shouted. Twirling his staff he struck a nearby drow and knocked it out cold. Turning, he saw that it was only a hill, and that the drow and ultima were rolling down making a horrible noise. Twisting, he parried a drow’s blows, and prayed to Mystra that ultima would quit messing around and help him.

 

He despaired when he saw an injured, but still powerful demon, take the place of the recently fallen drow. Muttering to himself he went through the spells in his mind trying to figure a way to save himself. Desperately, Alex cast a cone of cold spell. Unfortunately Gehenna's odd magical properties didn't like that spell. Instead, a rain of icicles rained down on the whole area. Deciding a large ice storm wasn't the best place to stand, Alex grabbed Bob the kobold and ran. He bowled over a drow who was otherwise occupied drow with an icicle in his shoulder.

 

Coming up, he set Bob down and looked around. 'Nice job, Alex.  You didn't mean to do that did you?'

Aivanther panted quietly, gesturing to the rain of ice. Surveying the situation he saw that the demon

had been speared through by a large icicle. Alex shrugged, then turned to see what Aivanther was shooting out. He then began to utilize his considerable knowledge of languages to communicate his distress. Seeing the abishai he pulled a dagger from his belt and hurled it, stiking it in the shoulder. “This is not good,” Aivanther simply said, “You and bob dash down the hill, I'll try to take care of it.”

 

Daymon Katryl

Pulling the dagger from its shoulder, the wound left behind slowly begins to close up, as the abishai flings the dagger away. Banking sharply, the demon gained altitude.

 

Txiant'zxchul: "Mortal, look upon thy doom." Drawing upon its vast array of innate abilities, the baatezu casts scare, finding pleasure in causing terror in its victims. It then veers sharply downward, in a dive that its kind uses to deadly effect, its claws wide open and ready to rend the soft flesh of the assassin.

 

Meanwhile, the lemures have reached Alex, and move to surround him. Their instructions are nothing as elaborate as to capture him. Theirs is a far simpler command: Kill all mortals.

 

B_FH

Confronted by this question B_FH gets nervous. He realizes that his companions aren't about to burst in and hack this drow to pieces. B_FH then feels little slippery hands behind his back and he knows it's his frog familiar. He reliazes he can no longer communticate to it as Alex can no longer communicate to Faust. B_FH knows though that it is freeing him. Luckily that his frog is a cleric it also heals his fingers as best it could.

 

"You're question is a one that I cannot take lightly drow. Give me some time to think." The drow gives a disgusted nod and leaves the room leaving a Black abishai guard behind. Not long after B_FH's arms are free. He keeps them behind his back and tries to converse with the abishai. B_FH lies, "You know I'm a priest?" The abishai grunts. "Allow me to pray to Lathlander before I make my decision." B_FH says. The abishai grunts again. B_FH casts a spell.

 

Though it is extremly difficult, B_FH manages to blast out a Dire Charm spell from behind his back. The abishai is caught completely off guard as he thought B_FH was merely praying. B_FH tells the abishai to go bring him his equipment. The abishai complies.

 

B_FH then unties himself gets his equipment and pulls out of his scroll case a spell of Improved Invisibliity. B_FH can no longer be seen by the drow AND he has an abishai under his control.B_FH tells the abishai to open up all the doors until the exit of the compound. The abishai walks down the halls and B_FH follows.

 

After what seems like an eternity of walking past numerous guards B_FH hears what sounds like drow cursing coming from the room he escaped from. "Go faster!" he tells the abishai telepathically. The abishai begins to run and open doors.

 

Finally they reach the main door to the outside. Drow run down the hallway toward the now running abishai and B_FH loses the telepathic link with it. The charm spell wore off.

 

Luckily he's still invisible but for how long it remains a mystery. B_FH thinks, "Opening that door will dispel the magic and bring almost certain death. Waiting for my companions will probably be too long and the invisibility will wear off bringing almost certain death." B_FH pauses in though. "This is almost same question that the drow presented to me." B_FH gathers up his courage, "To hell with it".

 

B_FH opens up the door and runs like there's no tommorow...

 

Figaro

Mutters to himself, “'You know there I times when I almost regret the 'guides lost travelers’ part...” Figaro takes up watch over the entrance to the keep, sure enough the doors open and his lost 'traveler' comes running out at full tilt. "Hummm, wow he can really move when—whoops! More dark elves and demons!" Figaro sends several arrows out toward the pursuers, then quickly moves to a different vantage point. Sure enough a fireball spell rips across the distance to explode where he was standing moments before, but instead of an explosion, the only effect is a bright light. “Ahh, the fickleness of Fate. Well, I might not be able to kill all of the dark elves from here but I can slow them down,” he muttered as another falls to the ground with an arrow stuck in his thigh.

 

B_FH

B_FH sees Figaro and runs behind him, then coming to a stop he fires spells off at the oncoming pursuers so fast that Elminster himself would envy him. B_FH somehow speaks as he casts, "I don't beg drow". Within moments all the drow pursuers are on the ground thanks to Figaro's arrows and B_FH's spells. Without a word B_FH collapses to his knees and catches his breath...

 

Daymon Katryl

Storming down the hallway, a blade burning with eldritch fire in his hand, Daymon sees the abishai responsible for allowing B_FH to escape, and without slowing down, he removes its head from its shoulders, leaving it to fall lifelessly.

 

"Cretin,”  he spits out as he continues on towards the end of the tunnel.

 

Seeing pursuit as a waste of time and resources, Daymon instead turns to his lieutenant, Teranth. "These heroes are not a threat to our plans. We are wasting time here, and our inept demonic conscripts are showing their overall uselessness. We may proceed with our plans. Summon the Nightmares. We will leave immediately."

 

Teranth: "Aye, sir. Umm... what about our forces that are still battling the rivvin?"

 

"What about them? If they are too weak to slaughter a handful of rivvin in battle, then they are of little use to me. Our warriors do not know the details of our plans, and are by and large dispensible. Leave them."

 

"Aye, sir."

 

Turning, Tarenth departs to retrieve the Nitemares. Daymon remains at the entrance, gazing at the battle, watching the red abishai, Txiant'zxchul, score several hits against the two opponents it was facing with its poisoned tail (Alex and Aivanther). Frowning, he doesn't see them fall from the poison. Perhaps instead they will suffer as the toxins course through their systems. Hearing hoofbeats, he turns, and see Tarenth approaching astride his Nightmare, with another in tow. Mounting easily, Daymon turns to Tarenth.

 

"How many of our forces are left inside?"

 

"Two full platoons, and three squads of a third platoon of Drow. One full platoon of our Demonic help."

 

"So, fifty-five Drow, twenty Demons. I will not waste any more resources this day, when these meddlers are not part of our objective. Signal the troops, we move out immediately. And rig the cave with glyphs. If

 our intrepid friends feel the need to loot what we left, I wish to leave them a token of my gratitude for disturbing me this day."

 

"Aye, sir"

 

"At any rate, I left Gej'vorn behind to monitor these heroes."

 

"The apparition? If we mean to leave them, why concern ourselves further?"

 

"They stumbled across us once already by the intervention of Fate. Next time I would prefer to know beforehand. Gej'vorn will assist in that endeavor. Now, you are dismissed. Carry out your orders."

 

"Aye, sir."

 

On the horizon, or perhaps a mere 30 feet away, a large number of figures, some slender in size, some hulking in size, emerge from yet another entrance, and head away from the companions. Txiant'zxchul sees this, and breaks the engagement, and flies off after them, leaving the lemures to mindlessly fight the companions.

 

Figaro

After quickly refilling his quiver, Figaro makes quick work of all but one of the remaining Drow. He claps B_FH on the back.  “Good work! Are you ready to question your 'captors'? Take your time. He's not going anywhere for a while, with an arrow in each leg.”  He laughs.  “You must have really thrown a fright into that demon, I was sure he was going to come out and play. Guess they are not all stupid.  Humm, I hope the others have faired as well.”

 

Aivanther

 Aivanther was not happy. He was an assassin, trained to kill in one swift blow without being seen or heard. Instead he was fighting a very large and angry demon who had the annoying habit of stinging him. "Ow, dang it! I told you I'm immune to poison! Go bother someone else!"

 

He rolled to the side as the demon decided on a more up front attack. He narrowly avoided being decapitated, but still suffered a blow to the back sending him sprawling. He looked in horror as the demon came at him, about to slice him in two. All of a sudden, the demon was sent sprawling, and up walked Alex, except he was 12 ft tall. "Polymorph self, is odd here," he rumbled as he struck the demon across the face with his staff. Suddenly the abishai looked a bit less confident.

 

B_FH

B_FH coughs out a little bit of dirt and a little bit of the gag he was trying to bite through. "Where are Ravenwind and Rayethon?" B_FH asked.

 

pure_ultima

Ultima leapt up quicker than the dazed Drow and pierced it through the chest. He turned around and saw a few lemures racing towards him. He parried and thrust at the first. It fell, twitching. He brought the sword arching through towards the next’s head.  This was too easy, he thought. He then neatly twisted out of the way of the last lemure and brought the sword through its back and out its chest. He was then sent sprawling. As the demon was flying over head, following its fleeing masters it had whacked Ultima stinging blow around the back. Ultima stood up and dusted himself down. He picked his way carefully across the tortured landscape and stood by Ravenwind for a moment...

 

Ravenwind

Wading through the pack of minor demons that remained was not pleasant, but the rest of the companions made it through the enemy's lines to where Figaro had advanced to rescue B_FH. Karasu took one demon to the ground with a flying kick that instantly snapped its neck. "Sister mine," Ravenwind said approvingly, "you're getting to be more dangerous with your hands and feet than I am with a sword. . . ."

 

Palladium frowned as she studied the bleeding cuts and bruises on the young mage, and his swollen fingers, obviously broken, from where the bone fragments protruded through the skin. "He's going to need some serious help," she muttered. Removing a vial of unguent from a belt pouch, she rubbed the acrid-smelling oil on the worst of the lad's wounds, and some of them slowly began to draw together, knitting the flesh.

 

"Let's get out of here," SwordMage proposed, practical to the last.

 

Ravenwind frowned, disliking the mystery of why these drow and their pet demons had chosen to attack them. There had been no previous apparent connection between Loviathar, Malus, and Lolth, so it could well be a coincidence. She mentioned some of her unease as they began to follow Guy once more towards the Gate out of Gehenna.

 

"Fair maid, these elves of a darkened complexion have been here nigh on. . . " Guy paused in his declamatory reply. He looked puzzled. "I don't rightly know how long they have been here, plotting their evil deeds. I have seen signs of them for. . . a long time, but never encountered them." He stopped, frowning. Obviously, his inability to sense time's passage bothered him.

 

He continued on ahead, a puzzled frown still locked on his stern, proud face. Ravenwind hurried behind him, pained. For how many years, she wondered, had he wandered this plane, ever fighting, never quite able to redeem his once valiant and noble soul from the deeds he had done in the name of his faith?

 

pure_ultima

Everyone turned to follow Guy and Ravenwind.

 

Vintar

Wizzix sighed. He had been darting around, listening in on the drow magic wielders as they were casting their spells, and then sending a small blast of energy at crucial moments in the spell, disrupting them; one spell after another fizzled into nothing, leaving behind a lot of really agitated drow. Luckily, they couldn't direct their anger for long at the gnome before being slain by one of his companions. Still, he had received a few good lashes and welcomed the idea to get out of here.

 

He saw Figaro and B-FH come out of the cavern in one piece, much to his relief. He turned and followed the others, anxious for a good night's sleep.

 

SwordMage

"This one looks good, hopefully it's a real one this time..." SwordMage picks up a two-handed sword dropped by one the drows. He's thinking about the Inquisitor Guy. They all would have been in some real trouble without him and owe him a debt of gratitude. SwordMage regrets the unfriendly words he has exchanged with Wizzix about the paladin. Judging from what he has heard and seen this man is not alive and somehow bound to that plane but he's not very sure whether this is truth or not.

 

“Damned plane, still have problems hearing and seeing clearly,” he growled.  (mutter, mutter). “Oops, what will happen to him when we'll leave this plane?”

 

He approaches Ravenwind and whispers his worries into her right ear. Ravenwind nods to show that she has heard his words but she's still frowning so there is no sign whether his worries are justified or not.

 

Then again he is left alone with his thoughts. He's thinking about his new comrades. They are much more powerful than he had them ever expected to be—and more capable of than himself. He hardly even knows them and they seem to attract danger though everything went fine so far. “Well, it seems that I have much to learn' is his conclusion and he decides to question Wizzix about this holy water potion the next time when they are back in a safe harbor.

 

Aivanther

Aivanther loped alongside Alexander. Scanning the countryside, his eyes sometimes seeing through the illusions of distance, some times not. As his eyes probed the darkness, he felt the tangible despair of the plane. This was a horrible place.

 

Alex, who was slowly shrinking to normal size, rumbled, "I sense it to, most of the lower planes are like

this. They're pits of misery and torture. What's more, this one twists the very nature of reality. I can see the twisting and perverting of magic here. It's very disconcerting." he trails off as he mutters to himself.

 

Aivanther continues to search, but can't pick anything out. Moving ahead, beside Raytheon. Glancing down to the sword he says, "How are you, and them?"

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind and the others hurried after Guy, almost walking on his heels to avoid being left behind, at the mercy of the tricks this plane played on their perceptions. As the adventurers headed down the mountain's rocky, ashy slope, they began to see more and more humanoid shapes, some no more than wisps of shadow, others seemingly as fully-fleshed as they themselves. All wandered around the plane vacantly, ignoring the party, but pushing and jostling one another. "Petitioners," Guy explained in his resonant voice. "Damned here for actions in their lives, for following false beliefs, and whatnot else. Poor souls, how I pity them, but they have surely only received what they deserved."

 

Raeython looked irritated, as did most of the other members of their party. As they approached the edge of the mountain, where the land gave way to an open void, they could see another mountain in the distance, this one covered in lava, which flowed as freely as blood, Raeython began to question the shade of the long-dead inquisitor. "How came you here?"

 

"I was sent, to execute my glorious mission . . . "

 

“For what sort of crimes would someone be condemned here?" Raeython continued, his voice harsh.

 

Guy ignored the question for the moment, stepping out into the void. Wissix gasped, and SwordMage flinched, but the man's form remained level with theirs, as if he were standing on a solid path. Ravenwind swallowed hard, glanced at the Muse for reassurance, and stepped out into the void herself, cringing until her left toes struck something that felt reassuringly solid. But all she could see below her feet was the endless blackness of the void.

 

As she did so, Guy answered Raeython, "For deeds so foul that their soul is placed almost beyond redemption." For just an instant, Guy's voice faltered, but he continued on firmly, "Thankfully, Helm guides my path, and I could never fall so low."

 

Ravenwind choked, and finally gave in to the words that filled her mind. "Aidath, son of Rembar," she whispered. "Kaldan, son of Suron. Maya, daughter of Alla, Kyra, daughter of Lei. Manakallan, son of Rem. . . ."

 

The litany of names had an overpowering effect on Guy. The inquisitor's shade flinched back, and he stared at Ravenwind, stricken. "We of the Hand of Torm are required to memorize the names of your victims, Guy d'Mortis," Ravenwind whispered. "A list of the people you had tortured, imprisoned, and murdered in the name of your faith. For three hundred years and more, we have sought to atone for your deeds. Do you not dare to presume!"

 

She was shaking. Behind her, the others slowly braced themselves, and advanced onto the unseen path suspended over the void. Guy stared at her, his form flickering, as if, at long last, the inquisitor had found some reason to doubt himself.

 

Palladium Muse

PM stepped up to Ravenwind's shoulder, at the same time eyeing the narrow path they tread to get to the other side of the ravine that gaped below them. It was evident in the others' attitudes that not all of them could see this narrow spit of land stretching across.

 

"Perhaps, my friend," she murmured to Ravenwind. "This is not the best place to conduct this particular line of inquiry. He must be made to understand, but let us get to the other side before the attempt is begun."

 

With a gesture, the land bridge illuminated in a flash of purple light, the glow coruscating down the edges. Those who could not see the bridge relaxed a bit in relief, but it was short-lived when the span's slender width was revealed.

 

Daymon Katryl

Gej'vorn's eyes would have widened noticeably just now, had the apparition truly had eyes. Or a corporeal body, for that matter. As such, its form simply wavered between a trick of the eye and a shimmer in the air.

 

It did not know the identity of these adventurers, save for the Fallen Paladin, Guy. Gej'vorn was familiar with the Paladin, however cunning was not one of the foremost features of the apparition, and it had never put the reason for Guy always being here as because of his Fallen status. Pleased with its discovery, as it silently observed the adventurers as they traverse the narrow bridge, it hopes Daymon will be as pleased when he reports to him. And if he isn't, hopefully he will take his anger out on something else this time...

 

ArchMage Alexander

Alex, was leaning on his staff, drained from his odd polymorph spell, when something strange appeared. He thought maybe it was a trick of the plane's magic distortion, but he was sure he saw a shimmering in the air, with a distinct magical presence to it. Moving over to Aivanther and PM he points out to the spot. "Is it me, or is there something right over there. It's hard to see, but I can see its magic." Alex had to catch himself as his legs nearly buckled. "Dang it! I can't have this going on here!" holding out a hand to the concerned PM and Aivanther he says, "No, just give me a second, I'll be fine."

 

Vintar

“Hmmm . . . “ Wizzix cautiously tiptoed over the bridge, afraid his weight might cause the magic bridge to collapse. Its surface was smooth and hard, as if made of fine polished marble. He liked the way it reflected the purple light of PM's spell, the slender, transparent structure glowing softly; the edges, however, trapped the light somewhat, giving them a sharp glow. A truly magnificent sight..

 

Hearing Alexander’s remark, he turned around. “That's the bridge, silly! You could really use a refreshment . . . “ He fumbled around in his bag and took out a small vial, and shoved it under Alexander’s nose; 'I call it ‘Wizzix's headbutt;' guaranteed to give you a real kick in the face, heehee . . ..” He eagerly waited for the mage to accept the potion and tell him what he thought about it...

 

Raeython

Everything has been different for Raeython since he connected with the sword. Things have become much clearer. He thinks back to the fight with the drow and the spells he cast there; iron skins, and summon lightning. These spells require discipline far beyond what a typical ranger might muster, and are beyond their ken. Yet, he can remember casting those spells as if it were second nature. Something mysterious and seemingly wonderful is happening to the stoic ranger.

 

Along with these other things, he feels an enhanced connection with his fellow questors. If he concentrates, he can feel his companions, and there general state of being. He studies each of his companions and can see that they have to get out of this place as soon as possible. He begins scanning the horizon, and suddenly feels some sort of life form in the general vicinity. Though he can't pinpoint its location, it is clear to the ranger that whatever it is, it has evil intentions. Yes, finding a gate out of this twisted hell has become a priority.

 

"Guy, you spoke of knowledge of a gate through which we might leave this god-forsaken place. If indeed you know of such a gate, now is the time to take us there. My companions and I are in dire need of healing and rest, neither of which can be obtained here. Please, I beseech you, lead us out of this nightmare."

 

Ravenwind

Guy's form stopped flickering quite so badly as he regained some measure of his composure. The paladin's shade turned, and lead them across the purple-limned bridge, which, to Ravenwind's eyes seemed a bridge of air solidified by light. Still shaking, she followed, along with the others.

 

Halfway across, Alexander swayed, and nearly collapsed. Raeython quickly and practically hefted the mage over one shoulder, and continued to stride across this bridge set unimaginable miles over nothingness.

 

Ravenwind began to hurry her pace. She could feel something following them, and she had no great desire for any other fights. From the way SwordMage kept rubbing at the back of his neck, she suspected that the barbarian sensed the presence of an enemy as well. "Guard our backs," she whispered to him, and he nodded and fell to the rear.

 

At long last, they finished crossing the abyss between the cold, dead mountain on which they'd first found themselves, to the mountain of fire, from which plumes of molten rock spewed high above them. A rain of hot droplets fell upon them, but Muse quickly gestured, and a dome, almost shell-like in its opalescence, appeared above them, protecting them. "That won't hold forever," she noted grimly. "Hurry."

 

They stumbled across the rocky slope, still following Guy, avoiding trickles and streams of orange-red magma that inched down towards them. "There," Guy said simply, pointing.

 

High above, in the caldera of the volcano, stood a structure, seemingly made of fire. Ravenwind tried to swallow, but her mouth was too dry. "Inside that?" she asked.

 

Guy nodded silently, apparently unwilling to speak much to her.

 

Figaro

“Ahh, well, it shouldn’t be too tough.”

 

The company turns and stares at Figaro, almost as one. He then adds with a grin, “All we need is one ice bolt and the should crystalize the entire countryside. Brr, I feel a chill already! Well, seriously we should be able to use the laws, or lack thereof, of this plane to our advantage. Come on, we don't have much time to waste.”

 

Palladium Muse

Reaching into her pack, she pulled out a glowing blue sphere, roughly half a foot in radius. Now that they had paused, she approached Raeython and gestured for him to set Alex on the ground. Carefully, he did so.

 

Kneeling next to the mage, she pressed the orb into his hands. His eyes widened as magical energy flooded into him, revitalizing all he had lost, filling him to bursting. As he absorbed, the sphere shrank, until finally a few blue filaments of light sank into the palm of his hand and vanished.

 

"That should hold you until you can revive your own energies," she told him. "It is different than your own, and I don't know what that might do, but it will sustain you."

 

She helped the mage back to his feet and turned back to the rest of the party. The tugging at the back of Muse's brain at the whatever-it-was shadowing them made her speak more sharply than intended.

 

"Guy, do you know where this Gate leads?" Ravenwind's accusations made her want to stare at the man hard enough to pick him apart, but she smoothed her expression with some effort. "We must know so we might prepare," she added in a softer tone, but not much softer.

 

To Figaro, she said, "Your idea is worth trying, but elemental spells are not my strong suit."

 

Vintar

Wizzix stared at the blue sphere. “Okay . . , “  he thought, looking at his own little bottle. “Can't beat that. Not that MY stuff isn't that bad. I think. I mean you don't HAVE to take it. Oh, no. Just leaves more for me.”  Muttering, he emptied the bottle down his throat. After a few minutes of coughing and spluttering he could see again through a pair of teary eyes. “See, I feel better already.”

 

Actually, Wizzix was starting to feel very grumpy. There was something about this place that made him itch. In a sudden outburst he strode up the slope of the volcano towards the structure. “If nobody can give any clear answers, I'll find out for myself.”

 

ArchMage Alexander

Alex felt revived somewhat, but it was more like a caffeine or adrenaline rush than actual energy. Still, something was better than nothing. Gazing about he re-oriented himself with his surroundings. Overhearing Muse talking about elemental spells he perks up. "What's that, PM? I know something about elemental spells. What is it you need?

 

SwordMage

"Raeython, you're right, the sooner we're out of here, the better."

 

SwordMage is still scratching his back and thinks that this must be like the feeling everybody is talking about when walking over a graveyard at midnight knowing that there is something behind you. The Muse seems to see clearly even in this plane but maybe her senses are misleading her from time to time. Maybe this structure or the fire is an illusion? Maybe Guy hasn't spoken the truth? Maybe he's an illusion, illusions can talk to you, or he's misled by the illusion, or.... Arghhhhh, he thought.

 

"This drives me mad. Wizzix, wait a second, I'm coming with you. Alexander, you're well again, right? Palladium Muse, could you check whether this wooden stick will be burning or only pretending to do so? Fine, I'll trying to get near the fire with it. Check Figaro's ice bolt or arrow, too, if he finds some."

 

The small group walks slowly towards the structure. “What the heck are Ravenwind, B_FH, Raeython, Aivanther and pure_ultima doing there? Still gathering more information from Guy?”

 

Aivanther

Aivanther begins to search the area, trying to get clues about their surroundings, he had a bad feeling. After a thorough but fruitless search of the area, Aivanther goes to Palladium and Ravenwind and says, “You guys might want to decide what you're going to do. There's something out there. I can't find it but it's there all right, and I don’t like its feel.”

 

Ravenwind

Ravenwind had paused and considered long ere she spoke. Sensing the increasing distress and restlessness of her companions, she turned and addressed Alexander. “My sister has told me that in the course of her studies, she has been told that mages trapped on different planes are able to adjust their abilities to compensate for the plane’s warping effects on their powers. Is this not true?”

 

Alexander nodded. “I have been here long enough to notice the patterns of cause and effect,” he explained eagerly, “but have not had the strength until now to experiment.”

 

Ravenwind’s face was set in grim, stern lines. “First of all, I have just an inkling of what that fortress is, and if what I believe is true, all a frontal assault will accomplish is to have us on our knees before a very mighty power.”

 

Raeython nodded as well, obviously feeling the same sense of chaos and horror emanating from the structure that loomed above. “What is it?” Wissix asked, hopping up and down. “How could someone make something like that?”

 

“I suspect that it’s an outpost, of sorts,” Ravenwind replied, studying Guy carefully. “From the sensations I’m picking up from it—a sense of wildness, chaos, and evil, I’d say it’s not native to this plane, nor is the power that constructed it. Loviathar, who led me here, is native to Pandemonium,” she added, touching the amulet of Torm around her neck, as if to ward off the mention of the maiden of pain. “Perhaps this is of her doing; an attempt by her to stretch out her powers.”

 

 “Or an attempt by Malus,” Ultima piped up. The others turned and looked at him, surprised to hear him speak. He blushed and muttered something under his breath, and Bob the Kobold patted him on the head.

 

 “At any rate,” Raeython cut in, “if our information is correct” (here he and Guy exchanged long, hard glares) “this structure is our only way out. Alexander, prepare whatever spells you’ll need to get us across these magma streams without being burned to cinders.”

 

“Aivanther, SwordMage,” Ravenwind began, “we need a plan to get in there without being noticed. Maybe Wissix has some unguents to keep us all undetected by magical means, or perhaps the Muse still has a trick or two up her sleeve. But the longer we keep standing here, the better the chances of being caught. We need you two to devise the plan for getting in, being our experts on tactics and sneaking around, respectively.” Her dry smile erased any possible sting from her words.

 

Without further ado, the band set to work. . .

 

ArchMage Alexander

Alex concentrated hard, riding the magical flux of the plane. Magic was twisted here, but he was beginning to understand its twists and it made more sense in a way than magic from the material plane. "No, a bolt of ice won't do a thing, but I can get us across. There's no problem there, all I have to do is weave a spell similar to a telekinesis spell, except that the projection needs to be slightly different with the connections tighter and made with a more delicate touch. Then . . . " the mage rattled on, and the company began to regret the fact that Faust wasn't there to keep him from babbling. Finally he says, 'It'll be hard, but with your help, Swordmage, it shouldn't be too hard. Do you understand all we need to do?" Swordmage simple nodded and said, "You guide."

 

Vintar

“Something to make you invisible . . . “ Wizzix rummaged through his things and pulled out a small pouch. “I've got some pixiedust here; there's only one problem . . . I, err . . . kind of used it all to sneak away from my old mentor, so there's only enough left for one, perhaps two people.”  Wizzix handed the pouch to Ravenwind. Just like Swordmage, this place was starting to get to him. His constant moodswings were becoming more and more violent, as if he was loosing control of his emotions. The hot sulphuric air was heavy and nearly unbreathable. He coughed, trying to relieve himself of the choking air in his lungs, only to replace it by other fumes. Black blotches started to appear, dancing around before his eyes. He shook his head violently. “I think we'd better hurry.”

 

Palladium Muse

Alex and Swordmage readied themselves for the casting, while Ravenwind handed the pixie dust to Figaro and Aivanthar, as they'd have the most use for it with their special talents.

 

PM watched the two mages with interest, while keeping an eye on the fortress in the not-so-far distance. Movement caught her eye, and she moved to Raeython and Ravenwind.

 

"Something is getting ready to burst from that pustule," she said, nodding at the fortress. They peered at it, but even with her innate abilities, PM could only see it like an anthill that had been kicked, she had no clue what the other two could make out. Sometimes the plane could twist it so they could see things closer; she hoped it was the case this time.

 

Magic illuminated the area as Alex and Swordmage cast, and the flames around the Gate seemingly winked out like they'd never been. Guy started and stared.

 

"I cannot go further than this," he said to Ravenwind diffidently. She watched him coldly. "You must know that what I have done, I have done in the name of Helm and righteousness. Who are you to doubt me, when my god has not seen fit to do the same?" His voice grew heated at her continued icy gaze.

 

"That is between you and Helm," she said at last. "It is not for me to question his ways. Nor is it for you."

 

"You nimrod," PM finally snapped. "Haven't you figured it out yet? You've been hacking through drow and demons like they’re nothing, and have come through without a scratch! That's not divine protection, that's because you're dead!" Flare of temper over, she could only sigh as he looked at her uncomprehendingly down his long nose.

 

All this was forgotten as an enormous explosion detonated in the middle of the companions, flinging some off the bridge, to be barely caught by those remaining. No one seemed injured, only stunned.

 

"So," a woman's voice boomed around them, a voice they recognized. "You have come to save the holy fool from her fate, have you? Now you will feel the agony that is loviatar!"

 

Everyone except Guy was suddenly wracked from heel to head with pain, like they were being switched with nettles of steel. Looking up, they saw the avatar they'd confronted before floating above them, surrounded by several tanar'ri.

 

Ravenwind looked to PM, and through the pain, made a throwing gesture. PM shook her head, no more big bad implosions from her for now.

 

"I can still get us out of here, though," Muse snarled, staggering back to her feet. Shuddering against the waves of agony flooding through her, she managed to hoarsely shout to Alex and Swordmage. They looked up at her, and also scrambled upright.

 

"Your puny magics are of no use here! Cast as you will, your fate now belongs to my mistress!"

 

The demons spiraled closer, several gating in comrades. Soon the very sky was black with demons.

 

Guy unhesitatingly moved to stand in front of the mages, sword drawn, sneering defiance at the demons. Ravenwind shot him a dark look but stood shoulder to shoulder with him, shivering against the pain, her sword of light drawn as well.

 

The mages’ casting grew frantic, as they heard the avatar also chanting. It was an arcane race, who would win it?

 

Neither did. They tied.

 

The Gate wrenched open, filling the area with flickering dark purple light, like a bruise.

 

"This is NOT what it's supposed to be!" PM managed to shout in a voice gone hoarse.

 

"Who cares? It's a way out of here!" someone else shouted back.

 

The avatar began chanting again, and the tanar'ri fell upon the party. Battling for their very souls, they all fell back to the Gate.

 

The avatar finished her second spell, but no one saw any true manifestation of it as they went through the Gate. The pain inflicted upon them by the avatar was nothing compared to the torture of the Gate. It felt as if their bodies were turning inside out.

 

In a flash, they found themselves on a dirt road. Looking around, they saw a sign, "The Rusty Sword: Under Renovation, Still Open. All Gratuities Accepted".

 

"We're back," PM breathed.

 

"What have you done?" a voice shrieked at them. "You think by bringing me here you shall triumph? You think wrongly!"

 

Tanar'ri and Avatar moved in to attack once more, and Guy moved to defend.

 

PM could only stare at the result of planar magicks gone wrong.

 

Meanwhile, back in Gehenna . . . .

Daymon Katryl

"Ahh, Gej'vorn, you have returned. Do you have any interesting to report?"

 

"Yesss... Massster..."

 

After listening in silence, his only sign that he was listening the occasional raising of an eyebrow, Daymon waited until the apparition finished its reports of the events that occurred at the Gate.

 

"How... odd. The Avatar was gone afterwards? Good. She was a power that I did not like to contend with here. With her absence, I may broaden my scope. What of that odd Paladin? Did he go through as well? He did? Excellent! I would have liked to have studied him further. However, he was as much a nuisance to me and my plans as that bitch of an Avatar."

 

"Conquest of this realm has been made more possible by the intervention of those foolish heroes. When I move from here unto the Prime Material plane, I shall have to thank them personally. Or kill them personally. I haven't decided yet..."