A/N: WHAT IS UP MUCKAAAACHUNGAAAAS!? IT'S TRAVEZTY! And I'm almost done with my move and honestly, my back is killing! Who knew my parents had so much stuff, and such a heavy pair of dressers!? OH MY GOD! Anyway, I am hoping you guys are enjoying this story so far, as I'm honestly loving writing this story for you guys, and I'm actually really enjoying writing this story, as I'm not only playing the game I love, but I'm also using characters created by my friends/beta-readers.
In any case, I'm taking a break from writing this story for a bit as I need to focus on finishing up the move before I can actually continue writing, otherwise I'm not going to be able to fully focus on the story as well. Aside from this, the real fun is going to take place very very soon! How soon? Like next chapter soon! In any case, I am so excited to continue this story as soon as I am finished moving. So I hope you guys are ready for this story's biggest reveal so far! Please enjoy this chapter and be sure to Follow, Favorite, Review, and Share this story with anyone and everyone you know who likes D Content! Catch ya on the Flipside! NAT 20!
Chapter 3: Sins of the Creator
A Long and Toothy Yawn is heard as Rahab wakes up from his sleep, smiling as he looks to see Seren is still sleeping against him, in which Rahab smiles as he gets an idea, carefully and quietly taking on his human form as Seren seems to cuddle and straddle him as he lies on his back. However, her eyes flutter open as she sees him finish transforming. "Morning Handsome…" Seren whispers, smiling as she looks at Rahab.
"Morning…" Rahab whispers as he looks at her, blushing slightly. "You really have a way with words don't you?"
"I know I do!" She whispers back, "Besides, you're the first person I considered a friend, not only that, you inadvertently saved my mother and allowed me to be born during the first few hours of your birth, so you saved me before you even knew me!" She snuggles up to him, holding him close, "My Knight in shining bronze armor…" Rahab blushes at this as he hears her say these things, "I was hoping that after we deal with Scorch… Maybe we could hang out and have dinner sometime?"
"I think I would like that, Seren…" Rahab whispers, smiling as he looks at her, and he smiles as he gets up, but then notices that the Dhampir's true beauty, chocolate brown hair, hazel eyes, a supple and voluptuous body that is one any man would desire for a wife, and any woman would kill to possess themselves. He smiles as he brings out his Brewing Supplies, and looks through Eryna's supplies as he begins to think about how to wake everyone up and smiles as he finds something that might work. 'Okay let's do this…!' Rahab thinks as he sets up the kettle. 'Set the Kettle to boil, but leave the whistle open so it doesn't wake the party rudely… Then take the coffee beans and grind them up to the consistency of fine gravel and toss them into the Elvish Press…' He then does that with the mortar and pestle, 'Add Freshly Grated Ginger Ginger and ground Cinnamon into the Press and set it aside until the water to reach it's boiling point…' He does as he thinks and then soon the water is boiling, "Once the Water is boiling, pour it into the Elvish Press and give the coffee a good stirring until it starts to foam before placing the plunger back on top to allow the spices and coffee to start brewing, then wait 5 minutes…' He smiles as he waits and the group starts to wake up. 'Then, press down on the plunger slowly and evenly, and once it is fully at the bottom pour into different cups and…' He smiles, "It's ready!"
Everyone sniffs the air as they smell the coffee, and, inspired by this, Eryna cooks a simple breakfast of eggs, knowing they don't have enough monster ingredients to make a nice boosting meal, but she doesn't seem to mind as the coffee really helps her perk up. Once they get themselves fed and ready to go, they pack up camp and head out the southern door to explore the area, however, as soon as they walk out the southern door, they enter into an area where many tunnels intersect at this natural, thirty-foot-high cavern. The walls are carved with simple reliefs showing dwarf and gnome miners hard at work. Below them, nearly two dozen skeletons in rusted scraps of armor are scattered across the cavern floor. Some are dwarf skeletons, while others are orc remains. Half a dozen large brass lanterns stand in niches or on ledges around the cavern, but none are lit. The group gasps as they look at this but, Rahab, sensing something is up, turns his head upwards, and 10 pairs of eyes look down at him. "AMBUSH!" Diving down from the ceiling, 10 Stirges take up the form of a moving swarm that dive down towards the group, all of them moving in unison as they
As the Swarm of Stirges dives down towards them, Rahab takes a deep breath as he feels the Flames Build up in his chest and pass into his arms, "TASTE MY FIRE!" Rahab calls out, managing to burn a couple of the Stirges but not dealing much damage to them, at least by what it looks like. "Damn!"
"Well if Fire doesn't work!" Seren says, concentrating, "What about Ice!?" She then summons her Wrath of the Sea as the ocean spray spreads out from here and the Stirges really don't like that as they all get coated in ice and get sent flying backwards for a distance. This seriously irritates the swarm as it dives back into the fray and decides to attack Rahab, their probusci all piercing through his skin and getting into his veins.
"OW! MOTHERFUCKER!" Rahab shouts in pain.
"Rahab!" Link shouts, rushing over and begins to rip the stirges off the dragon's body, who groans as each one is pulled off.
"RAHAB!" Eryna shouts, "Brace yourself!" She says, as she whistles a song, and suddenly the dragon, along with the stirges, begin to feel something strange. Rahab, thanks to Eryna's warning, is able to keep himself from falling victim to whatever it is she cast, and Damosarion charges in unleashing a Divine Smite on top of his sword swing, in which the Stirges scream in agony as this happens. Rahab, really not liking what these pests did to him, starts laying into them with a burning punch with anger in his eyes.
"YOU BLOOD SUCKING PARASITES!" Rahab says before unleashing a torrent of flames upon the parasites. Seren smiles as she walks over and simply forces her aura upon them once more and the stirges all turn to ice sculptures before collapsing and shattering. Rahab smiles as he looks at this as he then takes out one of his Healing Potions and pops it down with a smile, but, unfortunately, the taste is terrible. "Blegh… This is nasty stuff!"
"Trust me, Homemade Healing Potions taste so much better… I can teach you how to make them if we find the ingredients." Seren says, smiling, "Though it takes 8 hours of work and 25 Gold Coins worth of materials to do so."
"I can teach you what Monster Parts actually work to speed up the process!" Eryna says. "I don't think we'll be finding what we need here though, so I think we should clear out this place first before we head back on the trail to Flame's Shadow." Everyone nods and they decide to head through the southern tunnel, which leads them to two different doorways. Deciding to the door on the right, they slowly open the door to find splintered stone benches and heaps of rubble from a partially collapsed ceiling fill this room. Amid ruined stone bunks and toppled weapon racks are the bones of several dwarves and orcs.
"Looking around here, it seems like there was a fight in this place a while back…"
"Yeah, and it seems the Manticore had been around early enough to feast upon the fresh corpses and gather whatever treasures were here to make a hoard for itself." Link says, "Though this place appears to be far more ancient than what the corpses suggest." However, that is when the group begins to hear the sound of the bones moving as the coalesce and reanimate into 9 Skeletons, but then further coalesces into a swarm of skeletal remains
"Skeletal Swarm!" Link says, shocked.
The Skeletal Swarm's multiple glowing eyes see Damosarion and recognize the Holy Symbol around his neck and charges at him, swinging it's multiple weapons and cutting past his Chainmail, which Damosarion snarls in pain as he breathes in sharply. Unfortunately, Rahab and Damosarion roar in pain as they hear the clattering of the bones making it impossible for them to hear. Seren, looking at the creature, snarls as she claps her hands together and sends a blast of thunderous sound at the Skeleton, causing some of it's bones to physically crack, while Link, running the numbers in his head, draws his bow and fires a shot, the arrow's initial piercing damage barely sinking in, but the magic of the arrow getting further in with a smile on his face. Rahab, Royally pissed at this undead monster, begins swinging his fists, causing it to shatter a good number of bones while cracking others. Damosarion, seeing this swings his Crystal Sword, the radiant energy also sinking in deeply against the monster as it resists the blade.
The Swarm Rattles it's bones loudly in frustration as it once again tries to attack Damosarion, only for it to fail to strike through his armor this time. Seren, utilizing a weaker version of the spell she did before, she sends out another wave of sound that rips through the swarm's bones once more, causing the crack again. Link smirks as he sees this, draws his bow once more, taking careful aim, and his eyes glow slightly as his bow begins glowing in his hand with magical energy, "EAT THIS!" That is when he fires the arrow and it flies out, the aura around the generated piece of ammo transforms into the form of a mighty Amethyst Dragon that flies towards the undead swarm and bites down on it, causing the bones to shatter and fly all over the place.
The group takes a breather as they look around, but find nothing that could be of any interest, deciding to check out the other room, they find something that really catches them off guard. The chamber they enter has evidence that it was once an office or storeroom of some kind. A large stone counter bisects the room, set with three dusty balance scales made of iron. Cubbyholes carved into the north wall are stuffed with dusty paper scraps. Several dead corpses,gnomes and orcs by the look of them—are sprawled across the floor, their flesh stripped off their bones. "So I was right, this was a mining operation…" Link says as they look around, "And this looks like the Foreman's office… Which means…"
"Which means?" The group asks.
"Which means there is some loot around here!" Link says, his eyes shining as he starts to look around, and dives behind the desk before pulling out a strongbox with a smile, everyone facepalming. "Haha! Here we go!"
"Same old Link." Eryna says, smirking. Link smirks as he takes out his lockpicks and begins doing what he does best, and begins working on unlocking the strong box. Everyone, though, sees how Link focuses and becomes completely absorbed with what he is doing, carefully moving his lock picks and feeling how they struggle and shake with his turns, and carefully readjusting the position of his picks before he finally gets it unlocked.
"Got it!" Link says, his ears cutely wiggling his ears adorably with happiness as he opens the strong box and finds a ton of coins inside, specifically 600 copper, 180 silver, 90 electrum, and 60 gold. "Haha!"
"Now that was actually kind of cool!" Rahab says, "You managed to open it pretty easily! That was impressive!"
"It wasn't easy though… Whoever locked this thing put a Master Level Lock on it! I was lucky I managed to guess the proper position of the pick early on before making minute adjustments to see which direction it needed to go and then adjusting those adjustments as I went." Link says, "Picking locks isn't easy when it's of this level as I, more often than not, tend to break my picks when it comes to these Master Locks."
"Still that's impressive!" Eryna says. Link smiles at her and soon, they make their way out and walk out towards the Old Entrance and soon they decide to take the path to the right, which, after a short bit later, Seren gets to the front of everyone.
"Wait, everyone stop!" Seren says, pointing into the passageway. "We can't go that way! I smell something bad going down that way!"
"What is it?" Rahab asks.
"Got a torch?" Seren asks, to which Rahab nods and pulls out a torch and lights it before tossing it inside the passageway, revealing dense carpets of weird fungi covering large sections of the floor in this cavern. The growth includes puffballs a foot across, weird shelf fungus growing on stalagmites, and large stalks and caps a good five feet tall. Some of the puffballs glow with an eerie green phosphorescence, but the moment the torch hits the ground, the fungi quickly release a dense cloud of spores that immediately explode, with the group being sent flying backwards into the walls, thankfully having been 20ft from the center of the explosion and everyone hits the walls hard. Everyone groans as they feel the pain from the hit, with Seren and Link taking the worst of the impact from the explosion. "Ouch…"
"Smart move, Seren… Though I think we're going to need some Troll Stew of Regeneration after that…"
"I'll get on it… Once I manage to dig myself out of this hole…" Eryna says, which everyone looks to see Eryna landed face first into the wall and is buried up to her waist in a hole.
"Hold on, we'll get you out of there!" Rahab says, with him and Damosarion rushing over and grabbing her legs and trying to pull her out, but unable to do so!
"Damn it, Eryna's stuck fast!" Damosarion says.
"Let me give it a try!" Link says moving the boys aside, "Eryna, sorry if this is gonna be awkward, but let me explain… I'm going to press my pelvis against your rear so I can get some extra leverage by bracing my feet against the wall! So sorry in advance!"
"Do whatever you need to, just get me out of here!" Eryna says. Link nods as he grabs her hips firmly, but with a gentleness only a lover would hold, and then gently moves his pelvis against her rear as he gets his legs into position. "Alright, One… Two… Three!" He pulls hard and Eryna comes out, with the two bouncing backwards a bit, with Eryna landing on top of his hips.
"Phew, thanks Link…"
"No problem, Eryna!" Link says, but then notices something pressing against somewhere unmentionable, and he blushes bright red 'So big and soft!' Eryna smirks at Link seductively as she gets off him and dusts her rear off. 'Great… I think I agree with Damosarion now…!' With this, everyone decides to take a short break, but, Eryna actually decides to hold off on actually using the Troll Meat, and instead makes them all something to drink with Rahab's Brewing Supplies, which she goes back and quickly carves up some of the Stirges, as they hadn't completely melted yet. Quickly she sets up some water to boil in a kettle while throwing the partially melted Stirges into the water and stirs it before it begins to boil, then she uses some plants she knows are used to make tea and she pours them into the bottom of the Elvish Press and then pours in the water and let's it steep. Once it is ready, she presses down on the plunger and then serves it up.
"It's ready!"
Stirge Water Tea
The group gently sips the tea with smiles on their faces as they feel the hot liquid flow down their throats, with Rahab smiling. "Hmmm… I don't feel any different…" Rahab says.
"That's because my teacher never bothered to use Stirges in his dishes, let alone even think about using them. So I don't know what kind of effect that the stirges will do." Eryna explains, "Sorry guys…"
"Well let's take a look at what we know about Stirges…" Rahab says.
"They're blood sucking parasites… That's it…" Link says, "Although… Damosarion… Mind if I use you as a test dummy?" Damos gulps and nods as Link draws an arrow and stabs him with it, Damos yelping in pain. However, the moment that happens, they see the arrow dissolve and then the wound bleeds for a few moments before it stops. "Wait, it's bleeding more than usual!"
"That's it!" Rahab says as he bites his thumb and gets his finger bleeding and everyone realizes. "I think I have a name for this tea: Stirge Tea of Bleeding! When drank, the wounds are dealt but slashing or piercing deal a small amount of bleeding over time… Although… It seems it only lasts for about a random amount of time after the damage is dealt." Rahab then takes the bottle from the health potion he had used yesterday and then pours what is left of the tea into and hands it to Link. "I'm entrusting this to you for when we go to face that damn Chromatic. I don't know how long this Tea will last in a fight, so make… every… shot… count…" Link looks at Rahab, a serious look spreading across as he looks at the Bronze Dragon. After patching up Rahab and Damosarion, the group continues onwards, making their way through the now empty fungal cavern…
However… Once they exit the now Burned Cavern, they see the signs of battle that the Chimera had laid waste to this place with the signs of a ferocious battle and while some corpses are charred, others are ripped apart, but all show signs of having been eaten. Despite this, glittering minerals in the ceiling of this large cavern catch the light and send it back to create the impression of a starry night sky. Dozens of skeletons—many crushed under fallen debris from the Chimera's attacks—are scattered across the floor.
The cave is large enough that it contains two freestanding structures. Each of these stone buildings is proportioned for human use, as opposed to the dwarf-sized doorways and furnishings you've seen elsewhere in the mines. Both structures have battered and blackened masonry walls, their double doors cracked and scorched.
The cavern is divided by an escarpment, into which a flight of stairs has been cut. Passages lead out of this area to the north, south, and west. However that is when Seren stops him, "Wait, do you sense that?" Seren asks, looking towards Eryna.
"I do! There is powerful magic nearby!"
"Magic?" Rahab asks, shocked and soon they begin cautiously approaching what appears to be a large door with melted iron hinges. "Let's check door number one! Damosarion!"
"Right!" Damosarion says, the two of them wrench the door off its hinges and put it down to the side. When they look inside, they see dust, ash, walls blackened by fire, and heaps of debris beneath the sagging ceiling show that this room was damaged by a destructive blast. The furnishings—tables, chairs, bookshelves, beds—are charred or splintered, but otherwise well preserved. A scorched iron chest stands near the foot of one of the beds. They also see something lying against the wall, the perfectly preserved, if charred, body of what was apparently a wizard who seemed to have Died taking a blast of dragonfire to the face as he rushed to aid his fellows. "Tamara's mercy…"
"Tamara? Who are you to say the name of the Silver Lady?"
"I am Damosarion, a Paladin Sworn to her service!" That is when they see a dark, shadowy apparition flow out of the shadows. "Who are you?"
"I am Mormesk, one of the patrons of this mine and creator of the Spellforge. Cursed I am to witness the corpses of my men and those who brought that blasted Chimera here to murder us and leave us to wander Wave Echo Mine…" Mormesk says, "I was a devotee of Tamara, praying in my unlife to release my fellows from their torment and hunger before I pass on to join her. At last she has answered my prayers… Tell me, have you put all of my fellows to rest."
"I am not sure, Faithful One, we have only explored a portion of the mine. However, we have put a number offended to rest, and the Chimera who murdered you breathes no more." Damosarion says truthfully.
"I see. Please return here once you have completely cleared the mines and put my men to rest so that I may join them!" Mormesk says, "Take the badge from my body, it is a special badge, it will grant you authority in the mine in my stead. Those who still retain their minds will recognize it and will listen to what you say."
"I understand, we will be back soon, Mormesk!" Damosarion says, gently removing the badge as they all make their way towards Door Number 2, with Damosarion opening it. What they see is a large workshop that was badly damaged by the spell battle that laid waste to the mine. Worktables taking up two corners of the room are scorched, and the plaster has been burned off the masonry walls. In the middle of the room, a stone pedestal holds a small brazier in which an eerie green flame dances and crackles. The brazier and its pedestal appear to have been untouched by the forces that destroyed this area.
Behind the brazier of green flame floats a spherical creature measuring roughly four feet in diameter. Four eyestalks protrude from its central mass, two on each side. In the center of the body is a large eye that stares at the party. "Hello," says a thick, burbling voice inside their heads. "Welcome to the Spellforge, I am Gr'zct, protector of the Forge, how might I be of service?"
"Greeting Gr'zct!" Damosarion says, stepping forward, "We come here on behalf of Mormesk!" He shows the Spectator the Badge, the creature's eyes extend and examines the badge.
"So… He is dead…"
"He is currently trapped within the realm of Undeath, and will not pass on to Lady Tamara's side until all of his men are freed. I believe that includes you as well. However, before we release you from your service, can you explain to us what happened here?"
"Indeed I can." The spectator says. "Wave Echo Mine was originally designed to be a pitstop for adventurers attempting to make it to Flame Shadow Mountain, which is said to contain the remains of a Bastion that was once held by a silver dragon. However, they discovered the mine instead and the Spellforge situated inside. In these mines, Mormesk, and his adopted father, Ivaldi, set up their fortune here, earning a fortune in gold, silver, and gemstones. The Mine and Refinery ran smoothly for 10 years before the Lord of Nightshade came to warn Mormesk and Ivaldi of a traveling band of Orc Raiders led by a Chimera heading this way. The wizards, gnomes, and dwarves made as many preparations as they could but, unfortunately, it was not enough…"
"The battle was far more even than the orcs expected as they brought in Ogres to try and speed Up the process, but Lord Mormesk had dealt with them easily. After that… I cannot say, but I did see the Chimera, and I managed to close the doors before it blasted me… I've been trapped here ever since."
"I understand… By order of Lord Mormesk, I hold your oaths fulfilled and your contract terminated. Wave Echo Mine appreciates your work and loyalty for so long. Thank you for everything." Damosarion says, looking at Gr'zct and the Spectator nods as a portal opens and it slowly floats away.
"Thank you for having me… Let me warn you who raised the dead here… It is Lord Ivaldi, Lord Mormesk's adopted father… The Dwarf was so devastated in losing his son that he used a crystal found in the mine, the Darkheart, to raise the dead to aid him, vowing not to join his son in the afterlife until the Chimera lies dead among those it murdered." Gr'zct says.
"And the Chimera died outside the mines, so the curse couldn't be fulfilled." Rahab says.
"If you seek to free this mine of the Undead, you must ease Lord Ivaldi's pain and allow him to pass on." The Party nods as they hear the Spectator's last wish before he returns to the Far Realm. However, as the group turns to leave, Link points out something that really gets everyone's attention, a breastplate that contains a golden dragon motif, and a solid brass mace. Rahab looks at these items and mentions them to the group, but Damosarion says they should leave it, as they have much more important things to worry about.
"Damosarion? You alright?"
"No… But I will be once we shatter the Darkheart." Damosarion says, an uncharacteristic growl in his voice.
"What is the Darkheart?" Rahab asks.
"A Dark Artifact that has the power to grant the user one Wish, but at a terrible cost…" Damosarion says, "What's worse is that even if it is destroyed, the pieces will eventually be drawn back together and reformed in a random location in the depths of the Earth, unless somebody actively seeks to restore it."
'Fuck! Now I remember! The plot device I created for this world! I fashioned it after Inuyasha's Shikon no Tama! I completely forgot about it! Fuck-fuck-fuck-fuck-fuckity-fuck!' Rahab thinks as he realizes what is going on.
"Rahab? Are you okay?" Seren asks, "You're looking kind of pale!"
"Yeah, just fine!" Rahab says, his voice going up an octave. Everyone notices this but they decide to continue onward with their journey, deciding to take the Western Passage. 'I know I built a way into the Darkheart to destroy it permanently by turning it's own power against itself, but what was it!? Gah! It's been so long that I can't remember!'
"Hold!" Damosarion says, holding out his arm as Rahab is scratching his head. As they look into the room ahead of them, they can see a blast furnace and a mechanical bellows powered by a waterwheel dominate this large chamber. The furnace is cold and dark, but heaps of coal are piled nearby, along with carts full of unrefined ore. The waterwheel sits in a ten-foot-wide channel cut into the floor of the room, but the channel is dry. Passages exit to the west, south, and east. The empty channel exits to the north and east.
More than a dozen withered corpses are scattered around the room. These slain dwarves and orcs are still wearing the remnants of their armor. Floating above them is a skull engulfed in green flame. Rahab looks as 8 zombified dwarves skulk around and he sighs as he looks at them, knowing what is going to be coming. However, thankfully, it seems they don't notice that they are there, and Rahab smirks and then signs to the entire party, with everyone nodding, with Eryna translating for Rahab. Rahab begins to carefully creep to an angle where he can hit as many of the Zombies in a 30ft line to deal as much damage as possible, and draw the attention of the Undead, from there the others will ambush them, taking them by surprise. Link takes out his bow and takes aim whilst Damosarion prepares for a strike, while the girls get ready to cast their spells. Once everyone is in position and ready, Rahab breathes in deeply, "FIRE DRAGON… ROOOOAR!" With this, the Zombies and Flameskull turn to him and everyone has a chance to lash out at them, with Damosarion swinging his Crystal Longsword, down onto one of the zombies, while Link fires one of his arrows and takes out another that turns towards the Dragonborn. With this, Eryna and Seren blast out their spells, with Eryna whipping her two fingers from her head to lash out at the Flameskull and strike it while Seren unleashes a Shatter right on top of the Flame skull and the two Zombies surrounding it, with one of them getting hit hard while the skull and it's other zombie resist it. "NOW ATTACK!"
"INTRUDERS!" The Flameskull shouts and unleashes blasts of arcane energy from it as it aims at Eryna, who simply snaps her finger as a barrier appears and blocks all three darts.
"Magic Missile… Good thing I have this Shield Spell."
"GAAAH!" The Undead screams in frustration. One of the Zombies begins to make it's slow trek over to Damosarion, reaching him and swinging it's arms, but they don't hit, as the Dragonborn dodges. Another Zombie attempts the same thing but this one manages to strike but the strike barely hurts the dragonborn. Eryna, seeing her chance, throws a Sorcerous Burst at the weakest of the Zombies and manages to destroy it. A third Zombie, one close to Rahab, trudges close to him, getting in range to strike but missing by a mile, and falling prone into the channel. Damosarion, swinging his crystalline sword once more, slices one of the Zombies his radiant sword, but the creature still barely holds on, while another Zombie moves towards Rahab as well, only this one strikes true towards Rahab, only for the the Bronze Dragon in Human Form to block the attack and then strike back with one of his own, sending it's head flying away.
"All too easy!" Rahab says, smiling, as he turns to the Zombie that fell into the channel with him and stomps on it's head, sending it's cursed brain matter everywhere. One of the Zombies closer to Link begins making it's way closer to him, but cannot reach him, with Link drawing his bow and unleashing his arrow, dealing serious damage to it. Seren, seeing her chance, fires a Ray of Frost at the same zombie and destroys it. The Flameskull screeches in anger and this time decides to go for broke as it aims a massive ball of fire at the group with Rahab being nowhere near them.
"FIREBALL!" Damosarion shouts, shocked.
"BRACE YOURSELVES!" Eryna shouts, in which the Fireball flies at them, and Rahab's eyes widen.
"NOOOOOOO!" Rahab shouts as the Fireball explodes near all of his friends. Rahab can only feel tears flowing down his cheeks as he screams in nothing more than pure rage as the Flameskull laughs in absolute cruelty. "YOU BASTAAAAARD!" Rahab roars as he sees Red and begins swinging as his hands erupt with Acid instinctively, landing two mighty blows on the Flameskull, dowsing some of the Flameskull's fire and melting it's bone slightly, the Flameskull shooting beams of fire at Rahab, who is powering through the pain, which shocks the Flameskull, causing it to miss it's second strike. Rahab, now mad with rage, grabs the skull and completely melts it with Acid as he crushes it in his hands, tears flowing down his cheek as he turns to where the smoke is, where his friends were, and he falls to his knees, and begins crying, unleashing a roar of pure sorrow, despair overwhelming him… Until a light flows into his view, a familiar glow as he sees Damosarion using Lay on Hands on Eryna and Seren. The Dragon's eyes widen as he looks at this and limps over to them, rushing to Seren's side.
"Seren…" Rahab says, rushing over to her and then hugging her, while starting to cry.
"I'm alright…" Seren says, hugging him, "I'm fine…"
"I thought you were…" Rahab says.
"I won't die that easily… Though that was way too close for comfort…"
"Stupid…" Rahab says, holding her close, crying. The group decides that, at this point due to how they had all nearly gotten killed, to whip up a Troll Meal of Regeneration, due to the fact they desperately need it right now, and Eryna, despite the pain she is suffering from her burns, gets ready to cook a meal, but Link decides to help her. They check through their rations and find something that might be good to make, in which Eryna smiles as she begins to prepare the food.
"Okay so rehydrate the Troll Meat, and then bring the water used to rehydrate it to a boil… Add in Vinegar and Soy Sauce to flavor out the meat, and mince up some onions and Garlic and add it to the pot. Chop up the Troll Meat into cubes and then toss it into the pot to boil… As it is boiling, prepare your favorite carbohydrate to go with it, preferably rice, but thankfully we have some barley as a substitute!" She then boils up the barley and broth with meat using Rahab's flames, "Once both are done, fill the bowls with the barley and then scoop out some meat and broth with a ladle and them to the bowls of barley, also be sure to add the onions and garlic as well, and then add as much sauce as one person likes and… It's Ready!"
Troll Adobo
Everyone begins to scarf down the Troll Meat Adobo as they begin to feel their injuries rapidly begin to heal as they regain their full strength, everyone smiling as they eat the food, smiling at the salty taste giving them a physical and mental boost as they relax and recover from this near death experience, especially the girls, who are leaning closer to the guys. However, after about an hour and their wounds fully healing, the group continues on their way through the refinery eastward towards what appears to be another barracks, where they see stone bunks line the walls, which is lit and heated by a glowing iron brazier in the middle of the room. This was odd as they all walk in and slowly enter carefully, but inside they happen to hear some people talking. "I'm hungry…" One of them says.
"Well why don't you go test your luck against that Chimera or maybe those crazy undead!?" Another shouts, "Face it, we're stuck and we're going to starve here!"
"That doesn't have to be the case!" Eryna calls out from the entrance, and the group sees five really tall humanoids with really long arms.
'Bugbears…' Rahab thinks, looking at them.
"Who are you!?" One of the five bugbears shouts. "Here to plunder these mines?"
"We've already cleared out most of this place, as well as killed the Chimera…"
"Wait, was that why there was an explosion earlier?" One of the Bugbears asks.
"Tch… So you guys are tough!" The Lead Bugbear says, but then he throws down his Morningstar. "We told those idiots that attacking this place was a bad idea, even if we did have greater numbers and monsters on our side…"
"Well you're free to go if you can find a way up and out, but how about we cook you a nice hot meal first before you go?"
"Why should we trust you?"
"What other choice do you have?" Rahab says, "You guys are starving, so why don't you get one last meal in your bellies before you try your luck elsewhere?"
"He has a point Jarreth… What choice do we have?"
"Grr… Fine… But no tricks!" To this Eryna brings out the remainder of the Troll Adobo for the Bugbears to eat, and they are all crying as they taste food for the first time in days, so they are beyond happy to finally have a bite to eat. "Thank the Gods for this! You know, you guys are alright! If you ever find yourselves in the Frostbite Mountains, near the village of Kyrtul, you can say that you're friends of Jarreth and the clan will help you, as long as you don't cause trouble!" He then hands Eryna a goblin totem and she nods.
"Thank you!"
"No… Thank you, pretty lady! Alright, let's get out of here!" The Bugbears bug out as fast as they can, with Rahab smiling at this, in which they head through the western door and then decide to take a turn northwards along the hallways there, in which the group soon happens upon a large cavern, where a wide rift fills the eastern half of this cavern. A stream pours out of the west wall, then tumbles down into the rift and flows out again to the north. Several ropes are secured to iron stakes along the western edge of the rift, leading down to the chasm floor. However, as soon as they enter, Seren notices something and rushes over to what appears to be a large pile of rubble that draws her attention. With the aid of the others, they clear it away to reveal what appear to be rather ornate silver gauntlets, embossed with the golden face of a roaring ogre upon them.
"Gauntlets of Ogre Power!" Eryna says, smiling as she looks at them, "Nicey-Nice!"
"Very…!" Damosarion says, "I think it's only fair that you get to keep them, Seren, you did find them!"
"Nah, not really my thing!" Seren says, tossing them to Damosarion, "You might need these more than I do!"
"Wait, really?" Damosarion asks.
"Yeah, we'll need the strength of a lesser giant when we go up against a Young Red Dragon anyway! So go ahead and take them!"
"Alright then!" Damosarion says, putting them in his bag for now, however that is when he stops "Oh shit! Wait a moment, I'll be right back!" He then rushes off at high speed and within a few minutes he comes back. "Sorry about that, I just remembered I needed to pour holy water on the remains of that Flameskull or it's going to come back to bite us in the ass later!"
"Oh shit, I completely forgot about that!" Rahab says, "Thanks for remembering!"
"Yeah…" Damosarion says, "Just… Give me a Minute… I need to catch my breath!" After taking a few minutes for Damosarion to regain his breath, they all continue onward, following their instincts and go back down the hall they came from and go along the western path towards a pair of double doors that seem to carry a Holy Symbol upon it. Eryna looks with wide eyes.
"So this place was dedicated to Dumathion, the Dwarven God of Mining…" Eryna says, looking at the entrance, to which Damosarion bows his head in respect, with Rahab doing the same, and soon the others follow suit as they open the doors. Before them, they see six cracked marble pillars line the walls of this hall, at the north end of which stands a nine-foot-tall statue of a dwarf seated on a throne, a mighty stone warhammer across his lap. Large emeralds gleam in the statue's eyes. Kneeling before the Statue is a dwarf with white hair, but his skin is gray and sickly as he hears the doors open. "Mormesk… My son? Is that you?"
"No, Lord Ivaldi, I am afraid your son cannot enter here…" Damosarion says, walking forward.
"Oh my poor boy…" The Dwarf says, turning around as everyone sees that part of his flesh along his face, neck, and torso have decayed away to the bone. "Then the Chimera still lives?"
"No…" Eryna says, walking forward, "It lies dead, but outside the mines, and, as per the wording of your wish, it does not lie dead amongst those here…"
"Then it is indeed true what has been said of this cursed stone…" Ivaldi says, roaring in anger. In his hand, everyone can see a black heart made of black crystal that pulses with a menacing crimson glow that brightens and then dims, as if with the pulsing of a heart.
"My lord, I am sorry for your loss, but your son refuses to join the afterlife without you, but you cannot leave unless you allow us to destroy the Darkheart!" Damosarion says, looking at the decaying dwarf, who flinches at the thought of destroying the Darkheart.
"No! It is mine! Though it may cause me misery, it is mine until the contract is fulfilled!" The Decaying Dwarf says.
"Hold on… I just had a thought… Eryna, do we have any more Chimera Meat left?" Link asks
"We do, why?"
"Well… If the Chimera must lie dead in the Mines…"
"Oh…!" Eryna says, as she reaches into her bag and brings out pieces of salted Chimera Meat, and places them down upon the ground. That is when the entire mine begins shaking and there is a scream of frustration and fury that emanates from the Darkheart, as it an evil pulse is heard before the gemstone starts glowing brighter, the stone actually reverberating as it starts beating like an actual heart and the Dwarf's body is turned to ashes.
"Damn you!" An evil voice erupts from the Heart, "The Darkheart will always find those who seeketh out it's power!"
"I will make sure to get rid of you for good!" Rahab says, glaring at the object, causing everyone to turn to him in shock, "I never should have created you in the first place!"
"Then, as my Creator, I thank you for giving me my existence, but until you do find that which will banish me for good… All I can say is…" That is when a black menacing portal opens up around it… "Good Luck!" It then laughs as it passes through with Rahab trying to grab it… Only to miss as it vanishes.
"Rahab…?" Damosarion asks, a snarling coming from his lips, "What do you mean you created that… Thing!?"
"In a previous life, I had created it as part of an experiment…" Rahab says, telling them a half-truth while being as honest as he could, "Unfortunately, the experiment went nowhere and I discarded it… I thought it was destroyed like the rest of my experiments were, but then I was born in this world, and I learned about the legends that rose up around it… Now I realize my experiment was never destroyed, and someone, or something, had found and corrupted it…" Everyone looks at him, but all of the bullshit they could cut with a knife, but they do read him as being somewhat honest with them.
"So you created this thing, discarded it, and now it's probably doing what it was designed to do?" Damosarion asks, "Why did you create this thing in the first place!?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you…" Rahab says, looking at them, "However, when I said I was reincarnated into this world, I am telling you the truth."
"That much we could tell, though why don't you tell us everything?"
"Would you really believe me if I told you, and better yet, would you look at me the same if you did?" Rahab asks.
"That depends on what you're hiding…!" Damosarion says, snarling, "So this better be good!"
"Fine!" Rahab says as he takes a deep breath and calmly explains how he conceptualized this world, the Darkheart, and a couple of other concepts for this world, yet, when things didn't work out, he threw the concepts into the trash. When he died in his own world, when he thought he was going to go to Hell for all the bad things he did, he was reborn as a Bronze Dragon, and into the same world he had thrown in the trash, it having come into his own without his intervention from the most basic concepts.
"So what? Are we to kneel to our creator?" Damosarion asks, "Do you expect worship?"
"No, Damosarion, I'm in no way divine, I'm mortal, same as the rest of you, I merely conceptualized the ideas that the Gods used to create this world, and I've had no part in it's creation aside from the scattered ideas that were in my mind. Everything here has been new for me." Rahab explains, "While I did create the Darkheart as a Plot Device for a story I had originally intended, it's dark powers are far more vile and cruel than even I could have possibly imagined… It must be destroyed… I do remember that I built a way to destroy it permanently by turning it's own dark powers on itself… But I abandoned the concept so long ago that I don't remember it." He then looks at them, desperate and fearful, and they look at him, most of them confused as to what to do… All except Seren… Who walks over to him and hugs him, "Seren?"
"You deserve to be here more than anyone else… And if anything, this is your chance to make up for creating that accursed object in the first place. You can achieve redemption by helping us rediscover how to destroy that thing, and take it out of the picture for good…" Seren says, looking at him, "You abandoned our world without knowing it would come into fruition without you… But now our world needs it's creator to set things right."
"I don't know what will happen… I almost lost all of you today… I don't know what I'd do if that actually happened." Rahab says.
"We won't fall that easily, not with you at our side!" Seren says, smiling at him.
"Shit…" Link says, "Here I thought you were just a Bronze Dragon, yet you're our creator who abandoned us? I guess you got a lot to make up to the world, so I'll make sure it collects it's due!"
"And I'll help!" Eryna says.
"GRR!" Damosarion says, scratching his head, "Tamara teaches to exercise forgiveness… And While I don't want to I-"
"Then don't…" Rahab says, looking at Damosarion, "Don't forgive me if you don't actually want to. I don't know what the Darkheart did to you or those you care about, but I do want to fix things if I am able to."
"Let me finish!" Damosarion says, "While I don't want to forgive you, from reading you, I can tell you honestly had no idea our world would be spawned from your discarded ideas, including the Darkheart. So while I want to be angry with you, I can't, because everything that happened throughout history was, more or less, a string of continental sized freak accidents caused by your ignorance and lack of knowledge. So I'm going to make sure you redeem yourself for every single sin your creation of the Darkheart has caused throughout history by seeing that damned artifact destroyed! It won't bring back those who died either in the pursuit of it's destruction or using it, but it will make sure that, once it is destroyed, no further victims will be created."
"I understand… And I swear I will spend the rest of my long life, should I survive long enough to destroy that Artifact, in doing so." Rahab says, smiling as he sheds tears at his friends, smiling at them.
"My son…" Ivaldi says as the ghost of Ivaldi appears and the shadowy ghost of Mormesk appears and hugs the ghost of his father, "I am so sorry I had trapped you here for so long!" That is when other spirits appear, and they all smile at Ivaldi.
"Let's go home father…" Mormesk simply says, smiling at his adopted father. The Party returns to Mormesk's quarters, where they find the lock box containing 1,100 Copper, 160 Silver, 50 Electrum, 3 small diamonds worth 100 gold each, and a wooden pipe adorned with platinum filigree. Not only that, much to the surprise of the group, they manage to find something on Mormesk's bookshelves that will aid them… A Map of Flame Shadow, something that will help them get the drop on that damned dragon. However, before the group decides to leave, they all locate a narrow ledge overlooking a large cavern that houses a surging, seething body of water. The rhythmic booming heard throughout the mines is louder here. At regular intervals, a fresh surge of water funnels into this chamber and slams against the wall just below the ledge. The echo suggests that this cave might be one arm of a much larger cavern to the northeast. This entire section of water is steaming, and is the absolute perfect temperature for anyone seeking to take a bath. To this, everyone decides to enter the water and get themselves cleaned up for the journey ahead, using the hot water to allow them to clean themselves perfectly. Once this is done, they get dressed and make their way back outside, disappointed in not having found the Chimera's Hoard…
However, they had managed to find the Darkheart and save the souls of a mine filled with lost souls, and they managed to get some treasure and magic items out of it. Now their next stop is a 2 day journey to Flame's Shadow, and now that they have the map to Flame's Shadow, they feel confident they can do this. "Wait…" Link says, "Is it me, or did anyone forget that Scorch said he had an army with him?" Everyone looks at him as he says this, and everyone is thinking the same thing:
'FUCK!'