Hana followed Pallas and Nalos out of the chamber Spernik and his kobolds were holed up in. There was a part of her that wanted to stay and try to talk some sense into Arannis and Camilla along with Nordak. However, she didn't feel like it was something she could do, especially as she felt somewhat responsible for the way their conflict continued to grow. She was the first to notice Camilla's ambitions to become leader of the group and it was she that suggested to Arannis the idea of standing up to himself even when he felt conflicted over it. Had Hana never got involved and didn't make any suggestions to Arannis, Camilla likely would have become the group's leader without any conflict. Pallas and Nalos may have complained but it wouldn't have led to any foolish duels to the death.
Even knowing of what happened, Hana wasn't sure if she would have done anything different because she truly believed Arannis was meant to lead. She knew that Camilla was a fine woman and her background made her a fine leader but it was Arannis that stuck with the group through everything. He was honorable and respectful when it came to dealing with others, and even while Pallas and Nalos made fools of themselves, he tried to compromise with them rather than crush their spirits with his authority. Arannis may have been quiet and reserved at times but he was also someone who never hesitated to charge into battle regardless of the odds. He was the kind of leader the group needed.
Now, all Hana could do was hope that Arannis could prove himself to Camilla. The tribe she was a part of valued martial prowess and often challenged each other to competitions. Most of the challenges from her home weren't as dangerous as the duel between Arannis and Camilla but they helped others bond despite any disputes. While Hana was trained to fight with a staff, she never wanted to prove herself physically and relied on her magic. Still, Arannis and Camilla were both warriors in their own way, so if it took fighting to settle their differences, then they would fight it out and hopefully move on from their conflict before they returned to Phlan.
There wasn't much else Hana could do so she turned toward Pallas and Nalos, who were focused on the pillars in the entry chamber.
"...come back for the gemstones later," Pallas told Nalos. "There might be more fighting and if I break my leg climbing up one of those pillars, we're going to be in tough luck."
"I guess you're right," Nalos said with a nod. "There are two doors we haven't checked yet. Which should we go through first?"
"Perhaps if we're worried about the undead, we shouldn't try going through a door when half of our group is busy elsewhere," Hana suggested.
Nalos and Pallas looked at each other, and after an unspoken agreement, shook their heads.
"We'll go through that door," Pallas pointed to one of the doors to the side seemingly at random. "I have a good feeling about that one."
"Excellent idea, Pallas! Lead the way!"
Hana sighed and followed after the pair as they went over to open the door. Another reason why she didn't want to try to convince Arannis or Camilla to stand down from their stance was because that would take time. She may be able to pull it off with either one of them, but while doing so, Pallas and Nalos may have gotten into trouble on their own. The two were her friends, but even then, they weren't the smartest adventurers of their group. It wouldn't be good for them to run into any kind of danger, and while Hana thought Nordak wouldn't mind going with them, she felt he may be able to soothe the troubles between Arannis and Camilla better than she could.
With the light of Hana's staff lighting the way, the trio of adventurers stepped through the door into the next chamber. The room was shaped like an octagon with the ceiling rising high above them. There was a ledge that the group stepped toward that overlooked a large pool of murky water. Hana glanced around the room and grimaced to see that the walls were lined with charred bones. To her left, she noticed an intact skeleton break apart from the wall, animated and aware of intruders. Hana gasped and quickly looked over her shoulder to Pallas and Nalos.
"There's undead in the chamber!" Hana warned the pair.
"You can say that again," Pallas said, his eyes focused on the water. "Get away from the pool. Now!"
Hana backed away from the pool along with Pallas and Nalos just in time. Two sets of claws grabbed the ledge and two rotting corpses pulled themselves out of the water. Hana froze in place at the sight of the corpses' mottled skin, sharp teeth and claws, and hollowed eyes. She took a step backwards, trembling at the sight of the ghouls. She fought back against the memories that flashed in her mind of a massacre she witnessed at the hands of other ghouls during her travels. Nalos glanced over his shoulder at the sorceress and offered her a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, Hana!" Nalos said quickly before turning back to the pool, scimitar and shield in hand. "They're not ghouls!"
"Don't lie to me, Nalos!" Hana exclaimed, shaking her head rapidly. "I've seen too many ghouls in our adventures to not recognize them."
"They're lacedons! I've fought them a few times underwater!"
"Kid, lacedons are just ghouls that can swim," Pallas pointed out with a sigh. "We'll keep them away, Hana! Just help us out with your magic!"
Pallas struck at one of the lacedons, slamming his drinking horn into its head followed by a punch to its throat. It kept marching forward with the other lacedon, ready to tear into the adventurers. Hana did her best to steady herself so that she could help. Fortunately, Nalos held his hands over his chest and brought them down afterwards, sending a violent wave of sound towards the lacedons. The undead went flying backwards into the pool and Hana knew from facing the same spell herself that they were hurt badly. She took a deep breath and charged at the charred skeleton that advanced at their sides. She slammed her quarterstaff into its side and the skeleton crashed down into pieces. It wasn't her preferred style of fighting but she figured that her quarterstaff was better at destroying skeletons than her flame-based magic.
Unfortunately, Nalos' spell wasn't enough to destroy the lacedons as both of the undead crawled out of the pool, growling violently. Pallas crushed the skull of one of the lacedon's with his drinking horn but the other pressed on toward Nalos. The triton held his shield to hold out against the lacedon's claws but Hana could see that the undead would break through his defenses. Pallas spun around to face his final foe but he wouldn't be quick enough to help Nalos before he was injured. Hana took a deep breath, held a shaking hand towards the lacedon, and chanted in Draconic.
Three flaming rays emerged from her fingertip, each striking the lacedon across its side and setting the undead abomination aflame. Nalos pushed the lacedon away from him with his shield and it collapsed down to the ground, unmoving as the flames burnt the flesh away. Hana took several deep breaths, trying to move past her fear now that the lacedons were dead. They wouldn't be able to hurt her or anyone else ever again now.
"See, Hana," Nalos gestured towards the lacedon she set aflame with his scimitar. "Lacedons aren't that scary."
"Easy for you to say," Hana shook her head, struggling to even look at the destroyed lacedons.
"Easy for us to say?" Pallas threw his hands up in the air. "We were the ones who they would have torn into."
"Hana, I don't understand why you're afraid of ghouls and such," Nalos said, smiling. "Your magic is pretty powerful. You can burn away any ghouls that even think about attacking you!"
"Can ghouls think?" Pallas questioned, stroking his beard in thought. "They seem pretty feral to me."
"They're feral and they typically travel in packs," Hana pointed out. "My magic has its limits."
"And you travel with your own pack," Nalos pointed a thumb towards himself. "As long as we're together, you don't have to worry about any ghouls getting close to you."
"Well, I suppose you did blast them away," Hana admitted. "Can we head out? That terrible rotting smell is starting to get to me."
"Sure thing," Pallas nodded. "We'll come back and check the room for treasure later. Let's see what's through the other door."
Pallas led the way with Nalos following behind him. Hana took a few steps after them before looking back at the fallen lacedons. The resemblance they had to terrifying ghouls was unsettling but the sorceress focused on what Nalos had told her. Since she arrived in Phlan, her magical power has grown considerably. Hana had her adventures with her friends for the experience and thought that Nalos had a point. As long as they could keep any ghouls back, she could burn them away with her fire. She sighed and turned away from the pool to catch up with her friends.
Nordak only had a precious few moments to talk some sense into Arannis and Camilla while he lit a torch. With Hana and her magic no longer able to light the way, Camilla needed a way to see in the dark. He took his time lighting the torch even though he soon realized that his words fell on deaf ears. Arannis and Camilla intended to go through with their foolish plan to settle their discourse, even if it may mean serious injury. Nordak would be able to heal them but his divine magic had its limits. All it took was for one of them to let their rage take over them and they would have to bury someone by the stones outside.
Finally, Nordak sighed and held the lit torch to Camilla.
"I wish that you would both consider better ways to settle this debate," Nordak said. "I only hope that after this is all settled, I'll still have some respect for the both of you."
"This has to be settled, Nordak," Camilla told the dwarf as she took the torch from him. "Between the poor example he sets for the group and that he is too lenient with his leadership, Arannis isn't fit to lead us in a professional capacity."
"Maybe Camilla's right but I won't give in so easily," Arannis said, tapping the hilt of his sheathed swords. "If Camilla can beat me in a fight, I will honor the terms of our challenge and step aside for her to take charge. Our group isn't like a typical adventuring party and it's only best to settle who should lead the same way our group was founded."
Nordak sighed and shook his head. The debate over who should lead the adventurers was a foolish one to the dwarf. Both Arannis and Camilla placed more importance on leadership than was necessary. All the work they did as adventurers consisted of finding and taking jobs, seeing the task done, and collecting the reward. Perhaps in the future, when they had found renown as adventurers in the region and dealt with more prominent figures in Phlan, a leader would be necessary. Until then, there was little to be done with a leader except for telling half of the group to not explore a potentially dangerous dungeon on their own. Alas, it was too late for Arannis and Camilla to see that, Nordak thought to himself.
While Nordak had taken his time to light a torch for Camilla, Arannis took the time to look through each room adjacent to the chamber they were in. With his eyes adjusted to see in the darkness, he was able to spot the different details of each room. Two of the chambers, one with glossy black walls and the other with shiny green wall tiles, were empty aside from dead kobolds with the green-walled room having a poisonous gas that thankfully didn't spread out. There were two other chambers opposite from one another that each had a stone platform on which a scale rested. One chamber, covered in a thick layer of mist, had white walls, while the other chamber had blue-and-yellow tiles on the walls. The fact that each chamber represented a chromatic dragon wasn't lost on the adventurers.
"So, which one are we going to explore first?" Nordak asked.
"I see no problem in splitting up," Camilla answered with a shrug. "Arannis can claim one scale and I can claim the other scale."
"Another challenge then," Arannis nodded. "I can agree to that."
"And I guess I can watch the prisoner," Nordak muttered under his breath, glancing towards the captive Spernik. "Can one of you wait for the other to succeed at least? I'd hate for you both to get into danger at the same time and have to pick who to save."
"Very well," Arannis turned to Camilla. "You can go first. Your pick."
"If you insist," Camilla said and turned toward the stairs leading to the chamber with blue-and-yellow walls. "I'll take this chamber. As it so happens, blue is my favorite color."
"Just be careful, lass," Nordak warned. "Those kobolds in the other chambers didn't die of natural causes. There's a trap somewhere that we can't see."
Camilla stepped down the stairs leading into the chamber, her torch lighting up the room. Nordak and Arannis watched the paladin carefully make her way to the platform. There weren't any dead kobolds in the room to give any hint of what kind of trap waited for Camilla but Nordak recalled that blue dragons had lightning breath. Camilla approached the stone altar, and as she reached out to take it with her free hand, Nordak finally noticed copper studs in the wall.
"Camilla, wait!" Nordak called out.
However, Nordak's warning came too late, and as Camilla removed the scale from the altar, lightning surged from the walls and towards the floor. The paladin screamed out in pain as she was caught in the trap and dropped the torch to the ground. Arannis took a step to help her only for Nordak to grab him by the hand, shaking his head. If anyone else ran in, they would be shocked by the trap and injured as well. The lightning looked painful but Camilla was resilient enough to make her way back to the stairs. When she stepped on the first step, the lightning stopped shocking her. Camilla stepped up to rejoin Nordak and Arannis, her hair noticeably on end as she grimaced.
"Are you alright?" Arannis questioned with a frown.
"I'm still alive, aren't I? Camilla answered with a grimace. "Fortunately, I was able to recover the key fragment as well."
"Do you need healing?" Nordak offered, taking out and lighting another torch.
"I can heal myself, but thank you," Camilla told Nordak and channeled divine magic to heal herself. "That just leaves one more piece of the key to recover."
"And it's up to me to get it," Arannis said and stepped toward the final chamber.
"Be careful," Camilla told the dark elf. "We still have our duel to consider, don't we?"
Arannis chuckled. "I suppose we do."
Despite their differences, Arannis didn't want Camilla to perish from the chamber's trap. It didn't matter if they didn't get along, he wouldn't want any of his companions to die during an adventure, even if it would be an easy way to settle the debate on who should lead. Arannis was also pleased to see that the feeling was mutual. Camilla would likely be able to step up as the group's leader if the trap in the next chamber killed him but her warning seemed sincere. They still needed to earn the other's trust but Arannis was glad that they could find some sort of common ground.
Arannis cautiously stepped down the stairs leading into the mist-covered chambers. He took a moment to think about what the trap could be and decided that it had to relate to a white dragon to fit the theme of the other chambers. After a moment of thought, he recalled that white dragons lived in arctic environments. The room was chilly compared to the rest of the dungeon but nothing stuck out to the warrior. Arannis could see the mist came from the key fragment on the altar but very little that told him what to expect should he try to claim it.
It was when Arannis made it to the steps that led up to the altar that he found a clue on what the trap was. His boot nudged against something, and when he knelt down, he could make out a severed kobold head through the mist. He grimaced at the sight and realized that whatever the trap was, it had nothing to do with the cold and that the mist was meant to conceal the trap. He had to admit that it was a clever trap, and after some thought, jumped onto the dais the altar was on. Given that he didn't see any corpses, Arannis felt that he could safely avoid the trap's trigger if he skipped the steps. Without any sign of an activated trap, he claimed the white scale from the altar and the mist faded away. Arannis jumped off the dais toward the same spot he jumped from before and made his way to rejoin his companions in the central chamber.
"Good work avoiding the trap," Nordak said, eyeing the chamber. "I'm surprised the kobolds didn't turn on Spernik for sending so many to their deaths."
"We can get through the final door and see what the Cult of the Dragon was after," Arannis held the scale-carved rock, feeling how cold it was through his gauntlets. "Should we wait for the others?"
"They should have been back by now," Camilla noted with a frown. "I see no harm in going ahead without them. What are the odds that there's something we need to fight behind a sealed door?"
"Don't let your guard down, lass," Nordak said in a cautious tone. "Be that as it may, I agree that we should continue on."
"The others will catch up when they're finished looting the dungeon," Arannis nodded in agreement. "Let's go."
Camilla stepped forward, placing the blue scale into the keyhole until she heard a snapping noise. Spernik struggled against his restraints and tried to scream out through the gag. Realizing that they couldn't let the cultist try to escape while they searched what was on the other side of the door, Arannis calmly took out his shortsword and slammed the hilt of his blade on the back of Spernik's head. Spernik fell forward to the ground, unconscious, and Camilla looked at Arannis, shaking her head in disapproval. Arranis shrugged and stepped up to the door, placing his part of the key on the indent.
The door slid down into the floor, revealing the way forward. Torches provided light in the chamber, the red and orange tiles on the wall gleaming the light. Given the previous four rooms, Arannis realized that the chamber must have been designed to represent red dragons. At the end of the chamber was another altar upon which a metallic red shield engraved with runes floated in the air. Arannis tilted his head, and after comparing it to the scales he and Camilla realized, gasped in shock. The shield was a genuine dragon scale. He had seen a black dragon scale for himself not long ago and could make out the similarities in how it was shaped with the red dragon scale.
"What is it?" Camilla asked, stepping toward the altar.
"A dragon scale," Arannis explained as he walked alongside the paladin. "An actual dragon scale."
"So that's what the Cult of the Dragon was after," Nordak muttered quietly, following behind the pair. "What's so important about a bloody scale though?"
"I don't know," Arannis admitted. "They can be sold for a lot of gold but I think that the Cult of the Dragon isn't interested in gold."
"If only Spernik would reveal what his plans were," Camilla sighed and shook her head. "Let's take the scale, find the others, and make our way out of this place."
"Turn from your path, mortals," a cold and distant voice called out. "If not, you forfeit your lives."
Arannis took out his longsword so that he had a blade in each hand. Camilla unholstered her maul and Nordak clutched his holy symbol of Kelemvor as shadows formed from the corners. Two rotting corpses stepped out, seemingly out of thin air, and a third undead monster rose from the floor between the adventurers and the scale. Unlike the two zombies from the corner, the undead that stood before the adventurers was garbed in dark armor and a cloaked hood covered its head. Two burning eyes glared at the trio as the undead warrior, more intelligent than the zombies they face, and waved his hand dismissively.
"A wight," Nordak spat at the ground. "We should have waited for the others."
"We need not fight," the wight told the adventurers. "Turn away now and I will let go unharmed as long as you do not bother the relic."
"What's so important about the dragon scale?" Arannis asked with a frown.
"Hear my story, mortals, and learn why I was cursed to live like this," the wight said. "I am Skovoc and I was once Scalebinder of the Circle of the Scale. My followers resided in the mountains you stand in now and with the relic, I had intended to subjugate a mighty dragon with only my voice."
"But it failed," Camilla pointed out, shaking her head. "There wasn't ever any magic to the scale, was there?"
"So it would seem, Skovoc's shoulders slumped down. "Scorlworyx, the Scorching Wind, led his armies of orcs and kobolds against my temple. My followers fell, but even in death, I wouldn't let anyone claim my relic. It may have failed in my moment of need but it belongs only to me."
"And you have no intention of harming the people of the Moonsea?" Arannis questioned.
Skovoc shook his head. "My duty is to guard the relic, nothing more."
"Then we'll leave you to it," Arannis took a step back. "Let's head out."
"Not so fast, lad," Nordak shook his head. "I worship Kelemvor, Judge of the Damned, and he will not stand the existence of an undead abomination. Skovoc, I'll put an end to your cursed existence."
"As will I," Camilla gripped her maul tightly. "Do not listen to Skovoc, Arannis. We fight now."
"So be it," Skovoc shook his head in disappointment.
Arannis gritted his teeth in annoyance. As tempting as the gold was from selling the dragon scale, he didn't think the violence would have been worth it. Nordak may have been worried about the power of Skovoc, but now, the cleric was ready to destroy the wight regardless of how difficult it would be. At least Camilla had shown herself capable of standing up to the undead and that they weren't outnumbered against the undead. This was as close to a fair fight that the adventurers could ask for.
Skovoc held one hand out, directing the zombies to charge at the adventurers, while another formed a blade of fire to hold onto. Arannis and Camilla stepped up in a defensive formation in front of Nordak, who conjured a spectral sword above the group. Nordak directed the blade toward Skovoc, who blocked the divine spell with his sword of fire. Arannis and Camilla left Nordak to his fight to focus on the zombies. Camilla swatted the zombie that charged at her with her maul, enhancing her swing with divine magic that tore the undead apart.
Unfortunately, Arannis lacked magic of his own and had to rely on cutting down the zombie he faced as fast as he could. Unfortunately, undead proved to be rather resilient when it comes to being stabbed and they lacked survival instincts. Arannis stabbed his longsword through the zombie's chest but it kept coming at him, shoving him back. The warrior took deep breaths as he backed away, avoiding another slam, and slashed out with both of his blades. Despite delivering two powerful cuts across its chest, the undead monster continued standing.
While Arannis held his own against his foe, Nordak and Camilla fought against Skovoc. The dwarf had circled around his friends to get closer to his quarry, narrowly avoiding a swing of Skovoc's flaming blade. He held his holy symbol and chanted a prayer, enveloping the wight in a gray light. Before Skovoc could advance to strike at the dwarf, Camilla swung her maul at his side. Her weapon became coated with a golden light and Skovoc screamed in agony. The wight fell to the ground, his bones and rotten skin crumbling away to ash. Nordak's spiritual weapon slashed across the back of the remaining zombie and the cleric blasted the undead with divine fire, bringing it down. Arannis kicked at the corpse once with a grimace.
"I'm starting to get tired of fighting undead," Arannis shook his head, defeated.
"It's never easy but someone has to do it," Nordak shrugged. "The fight's done."
"And the scale is ours," Camilla nodded, stepping up to claim the relic. "I'm sure the Lord Sage would be interested in this for its historical value. He may pay us a bonus in addition to the books we've recovered for him."
"It'll be a long journey back," Nordak commented, stroking his beard in thought. "At least we're not in any rush."
"There's one last matter we have to resolve," Camilla said, turning to Arannis. "I propose that we rest here tonight, while we have shelter. We duel during the morning and settle our feud once and for all."
"Agreed," Arannis said with a nod. "I look forward to our fight."
"And I look forward to winning," Camilla smirked. "Now, I'll go find the others. Nordak, if you wouldn't mind tending to Arannis' injuries. I don't want him to give any excuses tomorrow."
"So be it," Nordak grunted. "I want it noted that you're both fools for resorting to violence."
"Perhaps so," Arannis admitted as Camilla walked out. "But I wouldn't have any other way."
Nordak sighed and shook his head in disappointment. Fighting Camilla in a duel gave Arannis a chance to remain leader but that wasn't the only reason he was fighting now. He had seen the way Camilla fought against Skovoc and his minions and was impressed by her skill and power. Arannis wanted to see if he could defeat Camilla with his fighting experience when she wasn't holding back against him. He had yet to feel any spark of excitement fighting Spernik's kobolds or Skovoc's undead minions, but against a paladin, he wasn't sure if he would be able to hold out.
That only made the duel more exciting for Arannis.
A/N: We have reached the end of the dungeon and it's time to start wrapping up The Courting of Fire.
In other news, I'm thinking about starting a Discord server for my fanfiction projects. The truth of the matter is that there are scam artists going around the website, reaching out to writers about commission art. If it had been one person or account doing it, I wouldn't have thought much about it, but I've been getting spam messages every other day. If you look in the reviews, you'll find one such scam artist now based on how similar the messages are. The moderators aren't doing anything to put a stop to this, and while I plan on staying and posting stories on this website, I want an environment where true fans can gather.
I just want to note that this announcement doesn't have anything to do with the important announcement I teased last chapter. That'll come up soon enough.
Until next time.
