Light Wrapped in Darkness
(Smokegirl is reading some of the reviews.)
Smokegirl: You know what Banditoes? You're absolutely right! I should be a lot meaner to Magicman's PCs. So watch closely. I call this little technique *pulls out a fork* Death by Fish Fork!
(Smokegirl runs off cackling. Soon screams can be heard from the PC lounge. The whole bunch barrel past, some in their underwear, screaming and pursued by Smokegirl.)
Smokegirl: Get back here you cowards and die like PCs!
Magicman: Thank you for your acknowledgement people. I will get started right away.
(The PCs go running by again.)
Smokegirl: I'll catch up with you eventually! You can't run forever!
Magicman: -_//'
***
The hills were dark and covered with shadows. Light had no place under the strange fog that seemed to coat the entire region. Even though it was high noon, it was still difficult to see ten feet in front of your face. The elves and half-elves could see through the darkness with their infravision, and Minsc had a helmet that granted similar powers of sight, but Yoshimo was merely human and had no such special attributes. So Taurus had the party stay together with no one out scouting.
So, they were all in a group when the strange human woman appeared from the fog.
They had no chance to hail her before she snarled at them, wolf-like. "No! I will not be robbed of my revenge!" She howled with fury and changed. Her body rippled and contorted and transformed into a great wolf monster. But instead of attacking, she fled into a nearby cave.
"After her! She might be responsible for these disappearances!" Taurus plunged after her, followed by Yoshimo. Jaheira lingered a bit. "No werewolf could produce the dark magic I've been sensing," she whispered, but she followed her companions anyway.
The cave was surprisingly dry and spacious. It was black as sin though, so the elves took the lead while Yoshimo and Minsc waited behind. Viconia's eyes, perfectly suited to peering through the absolute dark, took the lead, Taurus right by his side. Jaheira and Aerie followed from behind.
A slavering sound echoed off the walls, as though some beast was tearing the flesh off of human bones and crunching it down some horrific gullet. Aerie trembled at the sound and stuck close to Jaheira, who gave her a smile of reassurance even though her own heart flip-flopped in her stomach.
The cave suddenly opened up into a wide cavern. Taurus peered through the dark, his weapon raised to defend. Then he saw her, the werewolf woman. But she must have heard him first, for as soon as he set eyes on her she whirled and glared back like a cornered wolf.
"Damn you manlings!" she growled in her throat. "Can't a wolf eat her last meal in peace?"
"You've preyed on your last innocent victim fiend!" Taurus challenged back.
The were-woman snorted. "I only killed this man to gather strength! I will die this day one way or another, though I will not die easily."
Taurus frowned. "What in Mystra's name are you talking about?"
The were-woman stared incredulously. "What are YOU talking about? You did come to kill me, did you not?"
Jaheira stepped forward. "We are here to find out what is killing the people of Imnesvale and stop it from continuing. If you are not the one, then we have no quarrel with you. Why don't you tell your side of the story and we can decide what to do afterward?"
The were-woman shrugged. "Why not? It's been a while since I've had anyone to talk to. Go on then. Sit down and I'll talk."
Taurus gave a raised eyebrow to Jaheira. 'What are you getting at?' he seemed to say. Jaheira raised one back. 'What's your hurry?' she seemed to respond. Sighing, the crintri just sat down to hear what was to be said.
The were-woman sat too, cross-legged on the stony floor. "My name is Anath. And I was once the leader of this region's wolf packs. Once" she said bitterly. "Before the Shade Lord came."
"Say what?"
Jaheira elbowed Taurus in the ribs and motioned for Anath to continue, which she did.
"The temple east of here has always been off limits to my wolves. It was dedicated to Amaunator once, before darkness came to dwell there. One day a great darkness filled the sky. My wolves were afraid and came to me for answers. I thought it to be an eclipse. I was wrong."
"The Shade Lord, trapped within that temple long ago, arose from its depths. I transformed and leapt at him but could cause him to harm. He laughed at my efforts. I'll never forget his voice." Anath shivered. "'Anath' he said, 'You shall be the means to my revenge'. He then slew my wolves and brought them back with a glance. But they were no longer the wolves I knew. They had becomes his hounds; Shade wolves. Neither living nor dead. They seek me to kill me and force me to join their dark army. But I will hide no longer. I will go to the temple and slay the Shade Lord or die in the attempt."
"You wish to die" Aerie murmured. Anath looked at her a moment. Then she turned back to Taurus.
"So that is my tale. I wish only revenge. Must I kill you to get it?"
Taurus shook his head slowly. "No. I think that we have a common goal here. You want the Shade Lord dead. We want to stop the killings. Perhaps we could work together?"
"If you wish. Meet me at the temple east of here and we shall see what can be done."
Anath closed her eyes and a shudder tore through her body. When they were open again, they gleamed yellow. Slowly she stood, fur growing and muscles bulging all across her body. When she growled, it was not a human who stood in front of the companions but a werewolf. Anath eyed the companions long and hard. Then she padded from the cavern on all fours into the shadows beyond.
Viconia glared at Taurus. "We're going to trust a were-wolf? Have you finally lost it abbil?"
Taurus shrugged. "I wouldn't know. What I do know is that we're going to do whatever it takes to help those villagers."
"Did it ever occur to you that there might not actually BE a Shade Lord? That this might all be a trap?"
"Yep. And if it is, then we'll just have to get out of it, won't we?"
Viconia sighed and smiled ruefully. "You're going to be the death of me yet Taurus."
Taurus smiled too. "I hope not."
***
As the party traveled through the forest, Taurus could not help drawing his katana and eyeing the surrounding trees suspiciously. It was nearly night now and the gathering darkness seemed to give a malicious form of life to the otherwise still surroundings. He leaned over to Jaheira and whispered. "I could almost swear that this forest was alive."
Jaheira raised an eyebrow. "Forests ARE alive Taurus. But they are usually indifferent to most travellers. These trees are ancient, but there's more to it than that. There is a darkness brooding in this area. Even if it were not night, it would still be dark out."
"Can you tell what's wrong with the forest?" Taurus asked, still not daring to raise his voice above a whisper.
Jaheira looked him in the eye. "Magic" She said shortly. "Dark magic that's even older than this forest."
Their whispered conversation was interrupted by a shriek at the front of the party.
Taurus ran for the front, along with Jaheira. At first they could not see anything unusual. Then they saw the shadows under the trees writhing as though they were alive. Jaheira gasped. The shadows WERE alive! They were surrounding someone, Aerie, and were trying to drag her back into the depths of the forest.
"Aerie!" Minsc, Yoshimo and Taurus rushed into the darkness after the beset elf-maiden. Viconia whispered a prayer to Shar and the area lit up with a brilliant flash. The shadows were revealed against the light with hideous detail. Their tendril-like arms were latched onto Aerie against her struggles and her pulling her away. The light made them hiss and release the avariel as they turned to face their attackers. Forgotten, Aerie collapsed and shivered with fright. Jaheira rushed to her and pulled her to safety while the men wreaked havoc on the perversions of life.
Breathing hard, Taurus gave Aerie a comforting look. "Is everybody alright? Then I'd suggest that we get a move on before more shadows are drawn to the fight."
Before long, the party reached the crumbling stone terrace of an ancient building. Clearly it had once been a place of worship, but shadow had long since erased any trace of its deity. A nearby fountain, that once had been so clear and pristine was now oozing some black filth.
Their footsteps eerily muffled, they advanced across the terrace. Chills crept up Jaheira's spine. The dread that had been growing in her heart since her arrival in the hills was swelling even further with every step that they took. Something was going to happen, she realised.
Suddenly a howl and a series of growls, nearly drowned by the slithering hiss of shadowy movement came from ahead. In unison, the party rushed for the noise, all weapons drawn and defensive spells on their lips.
Anath the werewolf was caught in the midst of a horde of shadows. Howling, she slashed at them but her fierce claws could do nothing. These beasts were non-corporeal and could not be harmed by such crude measure. However, their shadowy grasp proved lethally effective in sucking the life force from the frantic Anath and draining her of her soul.
The companions ran to her aid but to no avail. It was far too late; she had lost too much energy. But still her sharp eyes caught sight of them. Shuddering and gasping for breath, Anath nevertheless managed to gasp out one brief message.
"The mirror! Focus what light is left on the crystal...and avenge my pack!" Even as she gasped that last warning, a shadow wolf leapt from the darkness and fastened its teeth in its former leader's throat.
As one, the shadows turned on the companions. As one great ring of solid darkness they advanced.
Taurus glanced around, searching desperately for some way of escape. Then Anath's last words came to his mind. In a flash of insight, he understood. He glanced to the left. Yes, there they were. An ancient mirror and a grey and clouded crystal.
"Yoshimo".
The thief looked at his leader.
"In a moment, I'm going to charge through this gang of shadows. When I do that, I want you to make a break for that mirror and point it at the crystal. Everyone else run for the crystal."
"Do you have a plan?" Facing death in the eye, Jaheira wanted some reassurance. To her disappointment, Taurus shrugged.
"I don't know. If this works, we'll all live for a few minutes. If it doesn't then we won't care in the next life."
Viconia smirked. "You may be an idiot sometimes abbil, but you are smart. Very well then. If this is the last fight then I will make the Night Singer proud!" Then she raised her mace and screamed a battle cry to her goddess, "Lil alurl! For Shar!" as she hurled herself into the host of darkness. The shadows, seemingly taken aback by such a reckless attack, delayed slightly as the drow hacked into them with wild abandon.
Taurus chased after her, yelling "Hey! I'm supposed to take the lead!" and widened the gap. Minsc followed screaming and Jaheira and Aerie brought up the rear.
As a column, the companions broke through the ranks of darkness. On all sides shadows hissed and seethed, straining to touch and tear loose the soul. Blades hacked off shadowy hands and arms and staves and maces smote shadowy heads and soon the companions were racing for the crystal. Taurus and Minsc took the rear, stubbornly defending against any of the creatures that dared to get to close, but they could not last forever. The darkness had no limits, and the warriors were showing signs of fatigue-
A blinding light lit the entire terrace all of a sudden. Unearthly screams of agony shook the air itself. Taurus risked a turn from the rapidly degenerating fight to see what was happening. When he saw his friends waiting under the crystal, light flaring furiously in every direction, he smiled. His plan had worked after. 'It'd be a shame to die now and cheat the Shade Lord of his chance to kill us' he thought jokingly.
The shadows in full retreat, Taurus and Minsc rejoined their companions. "So" he said cheerfully, "What's next?"
The party debated what to do next. Exhilarated by the struggle with the shadows, Minsc wanted to proceed recklessly and smite all evil within (though smite was Boo's word). Jaheira and Yoshimo insisted on taking a breather, while Viconia wanted to get the job done, but also to live in the process.
While Taurus played mediator among the group, Aerie stayed out of it altogether. Instead, she was kneeling by Anath's body. As she knelt, she removed her flower circlet from her head and gently placed it upon the dead werewolf's chest. Then she reached into her pack and pulled out a small handful of gems. One by one, she placed them within the circle in the Avariel symbol for peace after death. Finally, she whispered a prayer as she passed a hand three times over her chest.
A figure came up behind her. "Boo was wondering what you are doing Aerie?"
Aerie smiled slightly but it quickly faded. "I'm performing a rite of passage for poor Anath. She died to save us. This is an ancient Avariel ritual to ensure that she finds peace in her death. My mother taught it to me as a child and, as a priestess it was to be my duty to perform it on others." Aerie sighed. "I just wanted to honour this once before we carry on."
Minsc nodded wisely. "It is always a great sadness when someone is lost. But to remain with the dead is a greater sadness."
"Say it brother" Lila threw in.
Aerie smiled. "You're a very wise man Minsc."
Minsc hemmed and hawed. "Minsc not so smart. That's Boo's job."
"Well either way I'm glad to have you as a friend." Aerie hugged the big ranger, who seemed rather surprised but hugged her back.
***
Inside, the temple was even darker. The party was forced to light torches to see, and even then the visibility was limited. This darkness was home to more than just shadows. The companions found themselves backed against some sort of shadow wall while a pair of skeletal warriors wielding heavy two-handed swords advanced with a small pack of shadow creatures behind.
Jaheira cursed as she bashed one with her staff while the other punched Taurus in the face. "These things just don't want to die!" She shattered one hand, forcing the creature to drop its weapon, then hissed in pain as the other hand raked across her armour, piercing and slashing at her tender flesh beneath. "What in the Abyss are you clerics doing?! Would turning these things be too big a job for you two?!"
"Oh relax" Viconia retorted, ignoring the fact that they were under attack. "We've got it covered. No need to worry."
Suddenly the shadows in the rear all burst, sending weird shadowy goop flying in all directions and covering the party. The two skeletons turned on each other and began hack and tear at their respective corpses. Yoshimo whistled. "Nice work there, girls."
Aerie beamed and Viconia snorted. "It was no challenge" she said, still glowing with her goddess' power. "They were just undead."
That said the merry band made their way into the next chamber where Taurus called a short break. This gave Yoshimo a chance to go rooting through the room, where he made a rather interesting find that he shared with his friends. It revolted Aerie, which amused Viconia.
"You just destroyed a pack of undead monsters but an old chewed up skeleton frightens you?" The drow rolled her eyes dramatically. "Shar help me."
"It's not the same thing" Aerie muttered then kept quiet.
In the ensuing silence, Yoshimo packed the bones away. 'You never know what may come in handy' he told his common sense.
About an hour later, the group resumed their exploration of the temple. Almost immediately they were attacked by more shadows. However, these shadows were different. They had a leader, which addressed them immediately.
"You ssshall not have the massster'sss consssort!" it hissed with malice in its shivery voice. Then the whole mass (Taurus counted four) attacked in a rush.
The touch of the shadow dead may be deadly, but the creature itself is easy to destroy with magic or enchanted weaponry. And so, not being in the mood to horse around, the companions slaughtered the undead monsters and sent them back to their own dimension.
On the corpse of one of the shadows, Yoshimo found a key. Immediately, he tried it on a nearby door that had the look of a prison cell. As it turned out, it WAS a prison.
"Ho noble friends!" a voice called from inside. "I see that more adventurers have come into this evil place."
Yoshimo backed off and pushed Taurus forward. "I was never a good spokesman" he muttered as Taurus inquired the prisoner's name.
Said prisoner was a halfling, about four feet tall with her reddish hair done in many braids. She wore armour, carried a bow in one hand and spoke with self-assurance not found in many halflings as she looked unafraid upon armed strangers.
"Your Grace, I am Mazzy Fentan, a valiant servant of justice and righteousness" she said, pride clearly swelling in her. "As you could see, I could use some help."
Taurus smiled. "Then you shall have it. Come, lets be free of this miserable cell and discuss what exactly is going on."
Mazzy was a likeable person as halflings tended to be. She revealed to the party that she was what was called a Sword Blade of Arvoreen, the halfling goddess of war. In effect, this made her the closest thing to a paladin that halflings could become.
"And what brings you here?" Jaheira asked, sipping her tea.
Mazzy's cheerful expression faded into one of gloom. "My companions and I were hired by Mayor Lloyd to stop the murders being done in these hills."
Taurus nodded. "That's why we're here too. Why don't you tell us of your attempt?"
"We discovered that the murders were being caused by a dreadful Shade Lord and its minions, which had been sealed away below the temple long ago. It recently broke free and has begun to take control of this region."
Viconia whistled. "What exactly is this thing?"
"It is a non-corporeal being that can not survive in our world without a host." Mazzy looked squarely at Viconia. "For now, it occupies Merella, the ranger of the nearby town. But Merella's body grows weak and tired, and soon he will require another."
Aerie shivered as Mazzy continued her tale. "Through tomes and ancient scrolls, we learned that to confront the Shade Lord we must gather pieces to Amaunator's symbol. Only this can unlock the monster's chamber. But it is not so easy. The Shade Lord controls a shadow dragon. It was this beast that slew my companions and I am unsure how to defeat such a creature. The Shade Lord kept me alive, claiming that I was to be his 'consort'. I can only assume that he intended to use me as his next vessel."
The silence was broken by Lilracor. "Ooh! I've always wanted to kill a dragon."
Jaheira sighed. "So Mazzy, what would you propose now?"
"I suggest that we work together to kill the Shade Lord. In safety there is numbers, after all."
Taurus nodded. "Agreed."
Yoshimo had a question. "What do we do about the Shadow Dragon?"
Taurus shrugged. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
The thief sighed.
***
Magicman: And that, as they say, is that. Next chapter they'll work their way through the temple and find all sorts of cool secrets and such.
(Smokegirl is still chasing the PCs.)
Smokegirl: Getting tired yet?! Wanna just give up now?!
Gemini: Over my dead body!
Li: That's the idea, you idiot!
Gemini: If we weren't being chased by a psychopath, I'd make you regret those words!
Li: Oh yeah?
Gemini: Yeah!
Magicman: -_//' What am I going to do with them? Anyway, stayed tuned!
(Smokegirl is reading some of the reviews.)
Smokegirl: You know what Banditoes? You're absolutely right! I should be a lot meaner to Magicman's PCs. So watch closely. I call this little technique *pulls out a fork* Death by Fish Fork!
(Smokegirl runs off cackling. Soon screams can be heard from the PC lounge. The whole bunch barrel past, some in their underwear, screaming and pursued by Smokegirl.)
Smokegirl: Get back here you cowards and die like PCs!
Magicman: Thank you for your acknowledgement people. I will get started right away.
(The PCs go running by again.)
Smokegirl: I'll catch up with you eventually! You can't run forever!
Magicman: -_//'
***
The hills were dark and covered with shadows. Light had no place under the strange fog that seemed to coat the entire region. Even though it was high noon, it was still difficult to see ten feet in front of your face. The elves and half-elves could see through the darkness with their infravision, and Minsc had a helmet that granted similar powers of sight, but Yoshimo was merely human and had no such special attributes. So Taurus had the party stay together with no one out scouting.
So, they were all in a group when the strange human woman appeared from the fog.
They had no chance to hail her before she snarled at them, wolf-like. "No! I will not be robbed of my revenge!" She howled with fury and changed. Her body rippled and contorted and transformed into a great wolf monster. But instead of attacking, she fled into a nearby cave.
"After her! She might be responsible for these disappearances!" Taurus plunged after her, followed by Yoshimo. Jaheira lingered a bit. "No werewolf could produce the dark magic I've been sensing," she whispered, but she followed her companions anyway.
The cave was surprisingly dry and spacious. It was black as sin though, so the elves took the lead while Yoshimo and Minsc waited behind. Viconia's eyes, perfectly suited to peering through the absolute dark, took the lead, Taurus right by his side. Jaheira and Aerie followed from behind.
A slavering sound echoed off the walls, as though some beast was tearing the flesh off of human bones and crunching it down some horrific gullet. Aerie trembled at the sound and stuck close to Jaheira, who gave her a smile of reassurance even though her own heart flip-flopped in her stomach.
The cave suddenly opened up into a wide cavern. Taurus peered through the dark, his weapon raised to defend. Then he saw her, the werewolf woman. But she must have heard him first, for as soon as he set eyes on her she whirled and glared back like a cornered wolf.
"Damn you manlings!" she growled in her throat. "Can't a wolf eat her last meal in peace?"
"You've preyed on your last innocent victim fiend!" Taurus challenged back.
The were-woman snorted. "I only killed this man to gather strength! I will die this day one way or another, though I will not die easily."
Taurus frowned. "What in Mystra's name are you talking about?"
The were-woman stared incredulously. "What are YOU talking about? You did come to kill me, did you not?"
Jaheira stepped forward. "We are here to find out what is killing the people of Imnesvale and stop it from continuing. If you are not the one, then we have no quarrel with you. Why don't you tell your side of the story and we can decide what to do afterward?"
The were-woman shrugged. "Why not? It's been a while since I've had anyone to talk to. Go on then. Sit down and I'll talk."
Taurus gave a raised eyebrow to Jaheira. 'What are you getting at?' he seemed to say. Jaheira raised one back. 'What's your hurry?' she seemed to respond. Sighing, the crintri just sat down to hear what was to be said.
The were-woman sat too, cross-legged on the stony floor. "My name is Anath. And I was once the leader of this region's wolf packs. Once" she said bitterly. "Before the Shade Lord came."
"Say what?"
Jaheira elbowed Taurus in the ribs and motioned for Anath to continue, which she did.
"The temple east of here has always been off limits to my wolves. It was dedicated to Amaunator once, before darkness came to dwell there. One day a great darkness filled the sky. My wolves were afraid and came to me for answers. I thought it to be an eclipse. I was wrong."
"The Shade Lord, trapped within that temple long ago, arose from its depths. I transformed and leapt at him but could cause him to harm. He laughed at my efforts. I'll never forget his voice." Anath shivered. "'Anath' he said, 'You shall be the means to my revenge'. He then slew my wolves and brought them back with a glance. But they were no longer the wolves I knew. They had becomes his hounds; Shade wolves. Neither living nor dead. They seek me to kill me and force me to join their dark army. But I will hide no longer. I will go to the temple and slay the Shade Lord or die in the attempt."
"You wish to die" Aerie murmured. Anath looked at her a moment. Then she turned back to Taurus.
"So that is my tale. I wish only revenge. Must I kill you to get it?"
Taurus shook his head slowly. "No. I think that we have a common goal here. You want the Shade Lord dead. We want to stop the killings. Perhaps we could work together?"
"If you wish. Meet me at the temple east of here and we shall see what can be done."
Anath closed her eyes and a shudder tore through her body. When they were open again, they gleamed yellow. Slowly she stood, fur growing and muscles bulging all across her body. When she growled, it was not a human who stood in front of the companions but a werewolf. Anath eyed the companions long and hard. Then she padded from the cavern on all fours into the shadows beyond.
Viconia glared at Taurus. "We're going to trust a were-wolf? Have you finally lost it abbil?"
Taurus shrugged. "I wouldn't know. What I do know is that we're going to do whatever it takes to help those villagers."
"Did it ever occur to you that there might not actually BE a Shade Lord? That this might all be a trap?"
"Yep. And if it is, then we'll just have to get out of it, won't we?"
Viconia sighed and smiled ruefully. "You're going to be the death of me yet Taurus."
Taurus smiled too. "I hope not."
***
As the party traveled through the forest, Taurus could not help drawing his katana and eyeing the surrounding trees suspiciously. It was nearly night now and the gathering darkness seemed to give a malicious form of life to the otherwise still surroundings. He leaned over to Jaheira and whispered. "I could almost swear that this forest was alive."
Jaheira raised an eyebrow. "Forests ARE alive Taurus. But they are usually indifferent to most travellers. These trees are ancient, but there's more to it than that. There is a darkness brooding in this area. Even if it were not night, it would still be dark out."
"Can you tell what's wrong with the forest?" Taurus asked, still not daring to raise his voice above a whisper.
Jaheira looked him in the eye. "Magic" She said shortly. "Dark magic that's even older than this forest."
Their whispered conversation was interrupted by a shriek at the front of the party.
Taurus ran for the front, along with Jaheira. At first they could not see anything unusual. Then they saw the shadows under the trees writhing as though they were alive. Jaheira gasped. The shadows WERE alive! They were surrounding someone, Aerie, and were trying to drag her back into the depths of the forest.
"Aerie!" Minsc, Yoshimo and Taurus rushed into the darkness after the beset elf-maiden. Viconia whispered a prayer to Shar and the area lit up with a brilliant flash. The shadows were revealed against the light with hideous detail. Their tendril-like arms were latched onto Aerie against her struggles and her pulling her away. The light made them hiss and release the avariel as they turned to face their attackers. Forgotten, Aerie collapsed and shivered with fright. Jaheira rushed to her and pulled her to safety while the men wreaked havoc on the perversions of life.
Breathing hard, Taurus gave Aerie a comforting look. "Is everybody alright? Then I'd suggest that we get a move on before more shadows are drawn to the fight."
Before long, the party reached the crumbling stone terrace of an ancient building. Clearly it had once been a place of worship, but shadow had long since erased any trace of its deity. A nearby fountain, that once had been so clear and pristine was now oozing some black filth.
Their footsteps eerily muffled, they advanced across the terrace. Chills crept up Jaheira's spine. The dread that had been growing in her heart since her arrival in the hills was swelling even further with every step that they took. Something was going to happen, she realised.
Suddenly a howl and a series of growls, nearly drowned by the slithering hiss of shadowy movement came from ahead. In unison, the party rushed for the noise, all weapons drawn and defensive spells on their lips.
Anath the werewolf was caught in the midst of a horde of shadows. Howling, she slashed at them but her fierce claws could do nothing. These beasts were non-corporeal and could not be harmed by such crude measure. However, their shadowy grasp proved lethally effective in sucking the life force from the frantic Anath and draining her of her soul.
The companions ran to her aid but to no avail. It was far too late; she had lost too much energy. But still her sharp eyes caught sight of them. Shuddering and gasping for breath, Anath nevertheless managed to gasp out one brief message.
"The mirror! Focus what light is left on the crystal...and avenge my pack!" Even as she gasped that last warning, a shadow wolf leapt from the darkness and fastened its teeth in its former leader's throat.
As one, the shadows turned on the companions. As one great ring of solid darkness they advanced.
Taurus glanced around, searching desperately for some way of escape. Then Anath's last words came to his mind. In a flash of insight, he understood. He glanced to the left. Yes, there they were. An ancient mirror and a grey and clouded crystal.
"Yoshimo".
The thief looked at his leader.
"In a moment, I'm going to charge through this gang of shadows. When I do that, I want you to make a break for that mirror and point it at the crystal. Everyone else run for the crystal."
"Do you have a plan?" Facing death in the eye, Jaheira wanted some reassurance. To her disappointment, Taurus shrugged.
"I don't know. If this works, we'll all live for a few minutes. If it doesn't then we won't care in the next life."
Viconia smirked. "You may be an idiot sometimes abbil, but you are smart. Very well then. If this is the last fight then I will make the Night Singer proud!" Then she raised her mace and screamed a battle cry to her goddess, "Lil alurl! For Shar!" as she hurled herself into the host of darkness. The shadows, seemingly taken aback by such a reckless attack, delayed slightly as the drow hacked into them with wild abandon.
Taurus chased after her, yelling "Hey! I'm supposed to take the lead!" and widened the gap. Minsc followed screaming and Jaheira and Aerie brought up the rear.
As a column, the companions broke through the ranks of darkness. On all sides shadows hissed and seethed, straining to touch and tear loose the soul. Blades hacked off shadowy hands and arms and staves and maces smote shadowy heads and soon the companions were racing for the crystal. Taurus and Minsc took the rear, stubbornly defending against any of the creatures that dared to get to close, but they could not last forever. The darkness had no limits, and the warriors were showing signs of fatigue-
A blinding light lit the entire terrace all of a sudden. Unearthly screams of agony shook the air itself. Taurus risked a turn from the rapidly degenerating fight to see what was happening. When he saw his friends waiting under the crystal, light flaring furiously in every direction, he smiled. His plan had worked after. 'It'd be a shame to die now and cheat the Shade Lord of his chance to kill us' he thought jokingly.
The shadows in full retreat, Taurus and Minsc rejoined their companions. "So" he said cheerfully, "What's next?"
The party debated what to do next. Exhilarated by the struggle with the shadows, Minsc wanted to proceed recklessly and smite all evil within (though smite was Boo's word). Jaheira and Yoshimo insisted on taking a breather, while Viconia wanted to get the job done, but also to live in the process.
While Taurus played mediator among the group, Aerie stayed out of it altogether. Instead, she was kneeling by Anath's body. As she knelt, she removed her flower circlet from her head and gently placed it upon the dead werewolf's chest. Then she reached into her pack and pulled out a small handful of gems. One by one, she placed them within the circle in the Avariel symbol for peace after death. Finally, she whispered a prayer as she passed a hand three times over her chest.
A figure came up behind her. "Boo was wondering what you are doing Aerie?"
Aerie smiled slightly but it quickly faded. "I'm performing a rite of passage for poor Anath. She died to save us. This is an ancient Avariel ritual to ensure that she finds peace in her death. My mother taught it to me as a child and, as a priestess it was to be my duty to perform it on others." Aerie sighed. "I just wanted to honour this once before we carry on."
Minsc nodded wisely. "It is always a great sadness when someone is lost. But to remain with the dead is a greater sadness."
"Say it brother" Lila threw in.
Aerie smiled. "You're a very wise man Minsc."
Minsc hemmed and hawed. "Minsc not so smart. That's Boo's job."
"Well either way I'm glad to have you as a friend." Aerie hugged the big ranger, who seemed rather surprised but hugged her back.
***
Inside, the temple was even darker. The party was forced to light torches to see, and even then the visibility was limited. This darkness was home to more than just shadows. The companions found themselves backed against some sort of shadow wall while a pair of skeletal warriors wielding heavy two-handed swords advanced with a small pack of shadow creatures behind.
Jaheira cursed as she bashed one with her staff while the other punched Taurus in the face. "These things just don't want to die!" She shattered one hand, forcing the creature to drop its weapon, then hissed in pain as the other hand raked across her armour, piercing and slashing at her tender flesh beneath. "What in the Abyss are you clerics doing?! Would turning these things be too big a job for you two?!"
"Oh relax" Viconia retorted, ignoring the fact that they were under attack. "We've got it covered. No need to worry."
Suddenly the shadows in the rear all burst, sending weird shadowy goop flying in all directions and covering the party. The two skeletons turned on each other and began hack and tear at their respective corpses. Yoshimo whistled. "Nice work there, girls."
Aerie beamed and Viconia snorted. "It was no challenge" she said, still glowing with her goddess' power. "They were just undead."
That said the merry band made their way into the next chamber where Taurus called a short break. This gave Yoshimo a chance to go rooting through the room, where he made a rather interesting find that he shared with his friends. It revolted Aerie, which amused Viconia.
"You just destroyed a pack of undead monsters but an old chewed up skeleton frightens you?" The drow rolled her eyes dramatically. "Shar help me."
"It's not the same thing" Aerie muttered then kept quiet.
In the ensuing silence, Yoshimo packed the bones away. 'You never know what may come in handy' he told his common sense.
About an hour later, the group resumed their exploration of the temple. Almost immediately they were attacked by more shadows. However, these shadows were different. They had a leader, which addressed them immediately.
"You ssshall not have the massster'sss consssort!" it hissed with malice in its shivery voice. Then the whole mass (Taurus counted four) attacked in a rush.
The touch of the shadow dead may be deadly, but the creature itself is easy to destroy with magic or enchanted weaponry. And so, not being in the mood to horse around, the companions slaughtered the undead monsters and sent them back to their own dimension.
On the corpse of one of the shadows, Yoshimo found a key. Immediately, he tried it on a nearby door that had the look of a prison cell. As it turned out, it WAS a prison.
"Ho noble friends!" a voice called from inside. "I see that more adventurers have come into this evil place."
Yoshimo backed off and pushed Taurus forward. "I was never a good spokesman" he muttered as Taurus inquired the prisoner's name.
Said prisoner was a halfling, about four feet tall with her reddish hair done in many braids. She wore armour, carried a bow in one hand and spoke with self-assurance not found in many halflings as she looked unafraid upon armed strangers.
"Your Grace, I am Mazzy Fentan, a valiant servant of justice and righteousness" she said, pride clearly swelling in her. "As you could see, I could use some help."
Taurus smiled. "Then you shall have it. Come, lets be free of this miserable cell and discuss what exactly is going on."
Mazzy was a likeable person as halflings tended to be. She revealed to the party that she was what was called a Sword Blade of Arvoreen, the halfling goddess of war. In effect, this made her the closest thing to a paladin that halflings could become.
"And what brings you here?" Jaheira asked, sipping her tea.
Mazzy's cheerful expression faded into one of gloom. "My companions and I were hired by Mayor Lloyd to stop the murders being done in these hills."
Taurus nodded. "That's why we're here too. Why don't you tell us of your attempt?"
"We discovered that the murders were being caused by a dreadful Shade Lord and its minions, which had been sealed away below the temple long ago. It recently broke free and has begun to take control of this region."
Viconia whistled. "What exactly is this thing?"
"It is a non-corporeal being that can not survive in our world without a host." Mazzy looked squarely at Viconia. "For now, it occupies Merella, the ranger of the nearby town. But Merella's body grows weak and tired, and soon he will require another."
Aerie shivered as Mazzy continued her tale. "Through tomes and ancient scrolls, we learned that to confront the Shade Lord we must gather pieces to Amaunator's symbol. Only this can unlock the monster's chamber. But it is not so easy. The Shade Lord controls a shadow dragon. It was this beast that slew my companions and I am unsure how to defeat such a creature. The Shade Lord kept me alive, claiming that I was to be his 'consort'. I can only assume that he intended to use me as his next vessel."
The silence was broken by Lilracor. "Ooh! I've always wanted to kill a dragon."
Jaheira sighed. "So Mazzy, what would you propose now?"
"I suggest that we work together to kill the Shade Lord. In safety there is numbers, after all."
Taurus nodded. "Agreed."
Yoshimo had a question. "What do we do about the Shadow Dragon?"
Taurus shrugged. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
The thief sighed.
***
Magicman: And that, as they say, is that. Next chapter they'll work their way through the temple and find all sorts of cool secrets and such.
(Smokegirl is still chasing the PCs.)
Smokegirl: Getting tired yet?! Wanna just give up now?!
Gemini: Over my dead body!
Li: That's the idea, you idiot!
Gemini: If we weren't being chased by a psychopath, I'd make you regret those words!
Li: Oh yeah?
Gemini: Yeah!
Magicman: -_//' What am I going to do with them? Anyway, stayed tuned!