Forgotten Realms:

Angels and Demons

Part XXXIV

"It started about a month ago," Strider relayed the story. "My brethren and I had come to trade for supplies. Our retreat is about half a day's march to the north. So, at least once a month we come to trade. As was usual, we were welcomed lukewarmly, but weren't run out of town.

Some of the townspeople here aren't fond of us, weren't fond of us. Not surprising to be sure. We are people of the wild, live out of towns and amongst nature. Though we help travelers, we rangers tend to stay to ourselves. Our ways are different than those of the townspeople, but we respect them.

Anyway, we had restocked our provisions into our packs and were about to head back when our animal companions sounded the alarm. We had to leave them outside the town, but they still kept an eye on us. My wolf companion was the first to howl at what was coming. I hope Storm Shadow is okay out there. I haven't heard from him in a while." At this the ranger ran a finger up to his eye, to clear some irritant from it. "My fellow rangers responded to that. We called out to the guard, who at the time wasn't sure of what to make of us. In a few moments though it was all moot.

From the East came a horrid wind, one that smelled of hellfire and yet chilled you all in one. Many of us heard our companions let out strangled gasps of pain. One, a guy by the name of Bear found his companion dead. Poor guy went nuts as he held the small fox." Strider had to wipe some more of that irritant from his eye again. "Bear was named because he's so big and hairy. Yet, he was the gentlest guy you'd ever meet. Don't get me wrong, cross him and he'd make you hurt. It just took a lot to anger him.

He had found the fox wounded, from one of the townspeople's annual hunts. Bear nursed the little guy back to health, and that was that. Ever since they were inseparable. Bear never had the fox fight with him, only to sniff out hidden things and find people who were lost. We all loved seeing those two together. Damn those swine!"

"It's okay," Kirann said. "I take it Bear didn't make either?"

"I don't know," Strider replied. "Still, I have to finish this. You all need to know what is going on, and that won't happen if I let the memories take me. It was about then that we saw the shadow form on the ground, and everything start to shrivel and die.

That is when we saw them, men and women dressed in dark robes. Most were pure black, but somewhere a deep purple or dingy crimson. They called on Nature like druids did, but the power felt different, corrupted somehow. Bear rushed them, only to be knocked back by newly materialized fallen paladins. I could tell that much, and by the armor that they wore. The same colors colored their plate armor, and they each wielded a weapon made of dark crystal.

Bear fell before them, and I can only guess he died. More would before this day was done. Just after Bear, some of the guards here rushed out to defend the town. Others started herding the townspeople. I managed to get a shot out with my bow, the arrow however embedded itself into a risen vine. It just up and clasped the arrow out of the air.

There must have been a wizard among them, because soon portals opened. They spewed out eldritch abominations, bests that would horrify even the bravest into cowardice. They fell upon the townspeople, ripping them apart, eating them, and some doing far, far worse.

I grabbed the nearest child and ran towards the panicking people. Managed to take down three beasts, but not sure how. Mielikki must have been watching over me, because I don't remember anything other than firing my bow over and over again. Next thing I know, the guards are calling for a retreat to the barracks.

The captain, a woman by the name of Gretchen stood her ground as the others ran around. Shouting orders, she took control of the situation. I'm sure she felt the same terror as I, but she fought against it. Thanks to her, we started to move the townspeople, or what remained of them, to the barracks here. Last I saw her, one of the abominations tore her apart in front of her men. One valiantly went to her, only for him to be impaled on a tentacle.

Their sacrifice carried the day though, as those you see before you took up positions in here. However, one final guard perished that day, and he is the reason why we remain. He had studied magic, along with his fighting arts. Knowing that the room had to be held, he stood outside, waiting for the things to come close. Then as if his life was nothing, he called a series of fireballs down on his position. It destroyed the buildings, nearly brought this one down, but most importantly took out the abominations.

In the end we were left with two guards, another ranger and I, to protect the survivors. Since then we've used what little resources we had, and whatever we could scavenge. We haven't seen any more abominations, but companies of skeletons and zombies are common. You're the first people we've seen come from out of town. I haven't seen anyone else from our retreat come to investigate. I just hope that they haven't been attacked as well."

"You have done well," Kirann said. "The others though, I am sorry for your loss."

"Just tell me you've been sent with an army," Strider said. "I really don't want to be stuck here for longer like this."

Lorinda answered, "I'm sorry, but I was sent here to investigate the wound in Nature. My party came to assist, but it's just us."

Strider laughed, "This is one time I wish you would have lied. These people could have used some hope, even false hope."

"We will bring them hope," Kirann said. "Not a false sense of hope, but the honest to goodness real deal. Now what else can you tell us?"

Strider sighed, as if pondering if it was worth the effort, "We think there is only a small party left, one of the druid like casters, one of the dark wizards and at least two fallen paladins. The real problem are the undead. They are numerous and like to swarm."

Walton had tuned out. He knew his old powers would be useful here, but he no longer had them. He could still obliterate and dismember any enemy that got in his way. How that was going to help out beyond the obvious, was beyond him. He also couldn't face their group leader, not as the failure he was.

"Your friend there has the look of a paladin about him," Strider said, his voice full of hope. "Can he turn or banish the undead?"

"Our plan should be taking out the wizard controlling the undead," Kirann quickly said. "Then the antidruids you were talking about. With those two groups down, it's just the fallen paladins. Between you and us, they'll fall."

Strider smirked, "That easy huh? You are either really foolish, really brave or just that damned good. I'm not sure which yet."

The next day dawned, with darkened fields showing blackened crops. The skeletal soldiers parading around the ruined town didn't even notice the change. The continued on their endless, tireless march. Bones clinking together in a horror xylophone melody, which sent a shiver down the spine of anything living. Under their rotted noses, a group of six went about searching, scouting. The Challengers were on the move.

They moved from broken house to broken house, looking for any other survivors and supplies. They kept an eye out for the diseased ground, and just how atrophied the ground was. Not surprisingly the damage became harsher, the closer they came to their original path. That path they had strayed from, when noticing the town.

What did show in the light of day, was a line of impaled and shriveled bodies. Each one died in a state of pain or suffering, which left their corpses seemingly screaming silently to the sky above. These must have been the residents taken by the attackers, and their life forces taken. The result of such would leave the shriveled atrocities on display for the Challengers to see.

"By all that is merciful," Val let out a strangled gasp.

Raven agreed, "I could live a thousand lifetimes without needing to ever see this again."

Kiran nodded, but kept silent. They would end this, no one should ever die like this. What he was looking at was more than evil, it was irredeemable. The things that did this were more demon or devil than any being. He was hard pressed to think even Orcs would be this savage, though there were stories out there that said they were.

By midday they were away from the small town, and the feel of insidious decay grew harsher by the footfall. None of them felt safe, instead feeling like the enemy could appear at any moment, to destroy them. The overbearing oppressiveness of the situation tarried after them, hounding them like a ravenous beast.

They came upon a clearing, where swirling lines of dead vegetation circled around a dark clad figure. The figure was chanting away, with the air around them looking smoky and used. Colored a sickly off-white gray, the air rushed around the antidruid. Not even the disgusting smoke from city factories could match the offensiveness of the air around the antidruid.

A portal opened up and spat out a dark clad wizard, and a young child. The kid was screaming and crying, to which the wizard slapped the child. Only by pure force of will did Kirann not pop up and scramble towards the wizard. His blood ran hot and his anger swelled up inside. He wanted nothing else but bring down the wrath of the heavens upon their heads. He had to keep his cool, or they might all end up like the impaled bodies back in town.

Raven went to jump up, but found Kirann's hand holding her down. He put a finger up to his lips, letting her know to be silent. Why became apparent, as two dark armored figures marched up, dragging behind them a line of heads. Each line was a thick rope, and nets attached to the rope held the severed heads of their victims. They trailed for twice the length of the fallen paladins.

"This area is the center of the corruption," Lorinda said, the words feeling foul as she said them. "The wrongness here is overwhelming, I have to do something about it."

"What about the child!" Raven interjected.

Kirann put a calming hand on her back, "We're going to save them. We still have a ways to go, though."

"I thought my race was only capable of such monstrosity," Leilani growled. "This whole area needs to be purified by fire."

Lorinda looked at the invaders, her voice more a growl, "You may leave them as ash, but Nature will return life here."

"We play this smart," Kirann said. "There are four of them, six of us. Take out the wizard and the druid, the rest will fall easier."

"Easier you say," Lorinda nudged him. "Always the optimist, aren't you?"

The antidruid took that time to stop and look at what the evil wizard had brought. Leering down at the child, the corrupter of nature grabbed the child snake strike quick. The child whimpered, afraid of another physical strike. The antidruid smiled evilly and the wizard rubbed their hands together in great expectation.

Whatever they had planned for the child, it wasn't good. Even as the Challengers closed the distance, the evil party began to chant. They were out of time; these people were about to harm this child. The Challengers could either do something, or watch as the child was killed in front of them. The smart thing would have been to catch the caster off guard, but that would have meant possibly allowing the child to die. That wasn't an option, they were going to do this the hard way.