Session 20: The Dark Rises

Scene 1: The Fortress of Solitude

Our session opens with our heroes clustered on a small stone skiff flying out across the black depths of a nameless cavern towards the Fortress of Shraal, a demon of the Void. As they make their run for the entrance more skiffs begin to rise from below bearing leather clad, grey skinned drow corrupted by the power of the Void determined to cut them off from the Fortress.

Deciding to eschew speed for brute force ramming speed is declared and they smash in to the nearest skiff. Bodies are hurled everywhere and the enemy is driven out of the sky. Boarding the enemy skiff Morn destroys their original one sending their boarding party into the depths. The remainder flee and the group quickly make their way to the Fortress. As they enter the whole thing lurches, the Fortress is rising boring its way through solid rock to freedom.

Once inside they quickly navigate their way through drawn by the unnatural senses of Chiniko. They bypass deadly life sucking traps, tinker with ancient arcane engines and send ephemeral shadow demons fleeing with a miniature sun and in next to no time they find themselves before the Throne of Talisha, Queen of the Drow (and currently mind slaved minion of Shraal). She greets them, recognising Artemis from the description given to her by Kallista, his sister who she captured when she tried to steal the Heart. She offers Artemis free passage to rescue his sister from the pain amplification chamber she is trapped in. Accepting her offer he ducks down a set of stairs on his own leaving the rest of the group to face the Queen.

Scene 2: Mistress and Master

Talisha strikes hard and fast bringing the entire room into pitch blackness and sapping the strength from everyone. Assamber is struck first and wavers, he is in need of healing but no one can see anything. He Webs a huge area and then retreats inside of it to try and lock her down if she pursues him. Flame and Radiant spells are unleashed to try and light up her position and, finally, she is located. Morn charges and she is stunned, Azhanti lights her up even more and Chiniko brings the pain. Before she can react she is rendered swiftly unconscious. They rip the strange creature from around her throat freeing her from Shraals mind control and promptly make a deal with her for future aid.

Meanwhile Artemis has been making his way through the lower levels. It’s like a return to an old familiar friend, sneaking through other peoples’ homes trying to steal things and he does it very well. Guards are evaded, traps disabled and locks picked and soon he and Kallista are reunited. She is overjoyed at her release but anxious to recover the Heart, if Shraal manages to destroy it then the soul of any creature which dies will be drawn into the Void and spawn a shadow demon. They make their way quickly to the top rejoining the group for the attack on Shraal.

Entering the very top of the Fortress they find Shraal, a tentacled monstrosity ensconced inside a column of obscuring shadows focusing all of his will on the Heart of Ashrua. He stands on a pillar of rock surrounded by solidified shadow. Inside the shadow Void monsters can be seen writhing, desperate to escape. There are some preliminary insults and then the violence begins. I could relate the terrible dangerous conflict with the monstrous creature from beyond time and space and his insidious allies but it would be a lie. Instead the group brought down ridiculous levels of damage on his shielding shadows exposing him in a few seconds (two rounds total for a level 17 solo with over 400hp, they are level 14). As they prepare to strike the final blow however they are interrupted. A crossbow bolt encased in green fire shoots out of the darkness taking him in the skull. A man appears stood on one of the ring of stone spikes and claims the kill in the name of the Great Hunt. For once Artemis is the one suffering from kill stealing.

Scene 3: Catch it, no you catch it!

The man, calling himself Kubolta leaps from the spire snatching the Heart of Ashura as he goes. As he lands the Fortress, denied the power of Shrall begins to collapse to the cave floor. There then follows what can only be described as a game of Blood Bowl as various PC’s and NPC’s go diving for the Heart and it changes hands rapidly before finally spinning off into open play. As the group escapes to a nearby floating skiff the Heart rolls over the edge and falls into the darkness below swiftly followed by an enormous alabaster fortress. For now it seems lost forever.

Escaping with Kallista in tow the group begin to argue about what to do. Morn wants to use the Ring of Calling they took from the servant of the Giant Emperor Amaan to get him to find it. Chiniko thinks it’s a bloody stupid idea and Kallista, denied the opportunity to come along leaps over the side of the skiff to search the ruins of the Fortress. Artemis follows her and Morn and Azhanti teleport away using the ring leaving Chiniko and Assamber behind.

Our two intrepid explorers find themselves in a huge chamber with graven images of Giants crushing Dragons underfoot and great metal doors sealing the Prison of Amaan. Amaan was the last Emperor of the Giants who fell into such corruption that his own people sealed him away for all time. Only an artefact of Maran Gor, mother of the Giants could free him. Morn has two of those, the Heart and the Hammer. He bursts open the doors to reveal Amaans prison, sealed in ice and chained to his Throne but still very much alive and alert.

Negotiations quickly follow. Amaan has previously offered Morn a place as his lieutenant, if only because he possesses the means to free him. Morn is reluctant, he wants Amaan to display his power for him before he will release him. Amaan refuses, there is much disagreement and Amaan, being both stubborn and proud will not accede without first being freed. Finally a bargain is struck. Amaan will retrieve the Heart, teach Morn the powers of the Hammer and the Heart and respect the independence of Iceholme in return for his freedom.

At a blow from the Hammer the ice cracks and Amaan, a terror or the ancient world is once again free. In ages past the Giants contained him, now they are dead or missing. The dragons might have stopped him once but they are all asleep. The Primordials could oppose him but they are dead or hiding. He is however as good as his word. Just as Artemis and Kallista reach the Heart Amaan stretches his power through the Earth and recovers it. He promptly vanishes to continue his deadly schemes away from the prying eyes of mortals. What might come of this bargain is yet to be seen.

Our heroes finally return to the Ship of Dreams but with one final concerning event. Artemis returned to the ship via the home of the mushroom people to find their city in ruins and many of them dead. The Daughters of Mael, rulers of the Lokarnos had come to recover the blood traitor Alias Windstorm (the location of which the group gave up last week). The mushroom people explained that his consciousness had joined with theirs, his mind was now part of their Collective, the Sea of Thought. This did not go down too well with the tempestuous immortals and death and destruction was the result.

Three Hearts are now in the possession of the group, three parts of the Key to unlock the prison of Sopias. They have been warned twice now that they must not open it but they seem determined to continue. However, before they do so events from the past will haunt them and a message from the City of Kings draws them back to where everything began.

*cut scene*

The warrior Kubolta kneels on the hard stone floor before the Elders of the Hashashiyyin. “I have failed my masters, the Chosen Ones have recovered the third Heart. What would you have of me?” “Return to Hu’Maa and remain close to him, we must make sure he remains ignorant of the truth. If the Hearts are beyond us we must look to the Key, bring us the mother, we must make Catalia see the risks they take”