Iron Dawn: Of Science and Sorcery Obscura
By Jave Harron
Notes: As they say…Out of the frying pan, and into the fire…
Chapter VI: Into The Fire
Boddyknock seemed quite worried. They were now stranded in a deep, dark cave with no way out. Boddyknock was worried, but he did not let emotions cloud his judgment. In a situation such as this, it was important to hold onto one's sense of logic and reason. Someone emotionally an panicky in a similar case wouldn't exactly be the best leader. "Attention, friends, I believe I know of a way out of here," the rational gnome said.
Cain focused his attention on the gnome. "Yeah. I'd be willing to take any suggestions on how to get out of here," the fighter said.
"This reminds me of the time my Aunt Sarah went looking for rare turnips underground," Jan Jansen said randomly.
"Quiet, Jan," Valygar cracked, "Now, if you'll continue, Boddyknock."
The analytical gnome began to speak. "It may be dangerous, but I believe that wall next to Cain might be easy to smash and open into a hollow tunnel," Boddyknock explained.
"How do you know that?" Jaheira asked.
"Knock on it," Boddyknock answered.
Jaheira approached the wall in question, and she rapped on it. It was indeed hollow inside.
"That strong looking fellow in the back could probably help burst through," Boddyknock said, looking up at Minsc.
"No problem for Minsc and Boo!" the burly ranger exclaimed, holding up his hamster.
After putting Boo away, Minsc kicked the weak section of wall down. The hole left behind seemed huge.
"Must've been more brittle than I first thought," Boddyknock mused.
"Why'd you say this could be dangerous?" Cain asked before stepping into the hole.
"These caverns are commonly used by Drow to travel to the surface and back," the gnome answered.
"How do you know that?" Valygar asked.
"In Lantan, we are trained to recognize some warning signs of such things. See those markings on the rear of that passage?" Boddyknock answered, gesturing to some strange markings on the wall.
"Yeah. Rangers know such signs as well. How do you know this is a commonly traveled path, though?" Valygar asked.
"See all those footprints? From the outline of the boots in the footprints, it seems a small army of elves passed here recently. Logically, it makes little sense for high elves or wood elves to pass through underground caverns, so I assumed by the frequency of the footprints that it was commonly or recently used by Drow," Boddyknock explained.
"He's good for a gnome," Valygar commented.
"Thank you, sir, and I recommend we flee deeper into the tunnel," Boddyknock suggested.
"Why? If it's a Drow route to the surface, then surely it's dangerous!" Cain protested.
"Look back at the entrance of the cave," Boddyknock gestured.
Looking back, the group saw a pipe had been inserted into the cavern. It was pumping a toxic-looking cloud of some sort into the cavern.
"I don't want to be around when that gas reaches us down here, so I'll lead the way," Boddyknock said calmly.
The group heeded the advice of the gnome and ran into the recently opened passage. After a near eternity of walking into darkness, fatigue set in.
Just as the group was preparing to sit down, chanting and footsteps were heard off in the distance. The Drow were close. From the intensity of the chants, it seemed they were getting closer. Fanatical Drow unknowingly bridging the gap with a group of tired, weakened adventurers was beginning to wear on their already downed spirits. It seemed like they were doomed.
Just as the Drow seemed to be closing in on them, another sound was heard. Gunfire echoed from down the tunnel. Bullets were ricocheting, and the horrific screams of Drow were heard. The Drow were an evil race, and deserved getting gunned down, but having them scream so loudly made the group uneasy. Normally, Drow were fanatical in fighting, and screaming was taken as a sign of weakness. Those who showed fear in combat were sacrificed to Lloth.
If something could kill and scare a probably well armed and well trained Drow war party, how bad was Alivina's army?
The group did not want to find out. If Alivina had sent in a pursuit team, then she knew where the group was. Obviously, she intended to corner them inside the caves near Trademeet. Alivina was cunning, it seemed. She was too stubborn to let the group go once they had entered territory her soldiers were on. Such was the willpower of the Overwoman. Now, the group had to find a way to survive that stubborn willpower, as well as nerve gas and advanced weapons.
Just then, an explosion came down the tunnel. A lone grenade landed several meters above the party's position in the stone hallway and exploded. The resulting cave in sealed them even lower in the cave. Hopefully, the rocks that were now sealing them in would ward off any soldiers from looking in their current position.
Miles away from the group's current position, plotting was going on. The Red Wizards were sitting together, kept up to date on recent events by a set of familiars and invisible agents around places Alivina's troops had moved to.
"Scouts report that Trademeet has been completely obliterated," Edwin said, folding his hands as the others looked at him.
"What about the Overwoman? Did you get a look at her in person?" a Red Wizard asked.
"No! For the last time, this Overwoman does not personally lead her troops into battle. She is not some simple-minded barbarian overlord. She is a trained, determined, and ruthless killer. Her soldiers have a similar mindset. They do not question orders. Alivina sits back and lets her soldiers do the dirty work. However, it is stupid to assume she is defenseless in combat," Edwin explained.
"Why? If she lets machines and henchmen do all her work, why assume she hasn't grown fat and complacent by now?" another Red Wizard asked.
"This is why. Normally, we don't have access to see Alivina doing any fighting, but her lackey Bismarck let us see this through divination," Edwin said as he poured the water into the magickal pool.
The image of a muscular woman with tan skin and sandy brown hair appeared. She wore a green wool jacket, much like her soldiers. However, Alivina had a different weapon with her. It was a shotgun she had modified herself. There was a modified revolver chamber inside the butt of the weapon. Whenever it was cocked, it would load another shell into the chamber. It did not take as long as another gun to reload, but still wasn't as fast as the mechanized guns mounted on the Overwoman's biplanes.
Alivina Andersmith's image cocked the shotgun, somersaulted backwards, and fired at several orcs around her. She dodged several hatchet strikes by mere millimeters, then shot the surprised orcs in the head one by one.
"Big deal! Any idiot fighter can take on orcs!" a Red Wizard explained.
"Alivina has a special ability. So great is her willpower and technological aptitude, any spells will not work on her. It is also rumored her willpower is so strong, death itself will not take her!" Edwin exclaimed.
"Quite a woman. How much willpower does she have?" another Red Wizard asked.
"She refers to her willpower as Der Wille zur Macht, or the Will to Power. She is the Overwoman, extremely individualistic, and able to negate any spell thrown at her. It is safe to assume she has willpower on par with, if not surpassing, one of the gods," Edwin answered.
"If that's the case, can she will people in and out of existence?" an unlucky Red Wizard asked.
"Alivina has her personal mage, Bismarck, watching us. I think she'll answer that question shortly," Edwin said with a smirk.
The Red Wizard from before vanished from his seat. No trace was left. No magical residues, no psionic modifications, or no evidence of divine beings was found. It appeared Alivina could indeed will people out of existence.
"Interesting. I wonder if she can do the opposite," another Red Wizard mused.
The Red Wizard from before appeared again.
"I've got an idea! Alivina seeks the Bhaalspawn, correct?" a female Red Wizard asked.
"Correct. We can probably detect them with divination spells," Edwin replied.
"How about we just cast a divination spell on all the Bhaalspawn around the world, and have her will them out of existence one by one until she finds the one she is looking for?" she suggested.
"A brilliant idea. I shall contact Bismarck at once," Edwin said.
Bismarck's voice echoed throughout the chamber. "The Overwoman is watching you with great interest. She overheard your ideas. Even now, we shall begin putting them into effect," the half ogre's condescending tone said.
All across the world, Bhaalspawn of all walks of life and races began to vanish. One by one they were willed out of existence, until eventually, only two were left. Imoen, and her brother Cain, were the two sole survivors. Unlike the other Bhaalspawn, they had gained enough power so they could simply not be willed out of existence. Now, they had to be extra careful. Alivina knew where they were, and would send her soldiers after them. If that didn't work, perhaps she would do the dirty work herself…