Central Core Central walkway Portal #1 Portal #2 Portal #3 Entrance Catwalk Catwalk Hollow Interior Tower #2 Detected Enemy Frozen Zombie Empty bookshelf Empty bookshelf Empty bookshelf Empty bookshelf Empty bookshelf Empty bookshelf Empty Room Empty Room Empty Room Empty Room Healing Throne Empty Room Library Double Doors Frozen Hallway The Wand of Days The Room of Days Broken statues Man-shaped ice gap Central Core Tower #4

Chapter 8: The City That Waits

"Leave it to this party to try to recreate the Sun." -- The GM

Tower #4 D allying only briefly in the extreme cold, the group picked a tower and headed for it. The bridge led through an archway, where a catwalk ran from the entrance to a circular platform at the center of the hollow structure. Three smaller platforms were spaced at even intervals around the central, with stairs leading to them. Upon each of these smaller platforms was a tall metallic arch.
  Stepping carefully down the stairs to the first platform (the upper right one on the map), Zem stood before the archway. Made of a silvery metal and filled with a grey mist, to one side was a circular panel which held three palm-shaped depressions. The first was colored blue, the second black, and the third red. Three symbols were inscribed above the arch, one each in blue, black and red. Zem thought the archways resembled teleportation gateways similar to ones used in the Kaydian homeland. Placing his hand in the blue depression caused it to glow softly with blue light. New symbols appeared on top of the arch in a blue script. They were similar to a demonic language Mystical knew, and said "Tower of Health". A hand placed in the black depression caused it to glow softly and the blue to fade out. The words atop the archway were replaced with different symbols which Mystical read as "Hub" The red control caused "Periphery" to appear.
  The second platform (the bottom one on the map) held a similar archway filled with grey haze. The word "Kainrath" was written in demonic script above the archway. Mystical remembered that Kainrath was another city which had worshipped Orcus, but couldn't recall anything else about it. The final platform held an arch filled with yellowish haze. A control panel with a single yellow palm print stood to one side. There was no symbol carved above the arch, and though the palm print began to glow a soft yellow when Rosvenir touched it, no lettering appeared.
 
Mystical
  Orcus had really screwed these people. He'd removed Moil to a demi-plane, which is a small bubble universe hidden inside some other plane of existence. The funny thing about demi-planes is that its impossible to keep the borders sealed. Some amount of mixing takes place, and if you can find the boundary you can push through to whatever is on the other side.
  I decided to test a theory. I cast a Fireball downwards towards the mist at the bottom of the tower. I got a good look at the walls as it went down: they are smooth, with no platforms below this one. The ball travelled about four hundred feet before it entered the mists, and a second later it just winked out. It didn't detonate, so it didn't hit anything. It must have passed through the border and into whatever plane the Fat Bastard moved Moil to. Knowing him, its probably the Elemental Plane of Fire. He'd enjoy the irony of a frozen city surrounded by True Flame.

The Narrator
  Not wishing to try their luck at Portal travel, the party left the tower. There was some lettering above the archway, and after clearing the ice it could be clearly read in the same demonic script: "Tower of Portals".
  Crossing the causeway to the next tower, someone had the bright idea to knock the ice from the lettering above the archway before entering. The moment the ice was cleared from the sunset pattern carved in the stone everyone had to make an RR versus 100th level Arcane magic. Amazingly, Mystical and Rosvenir both made it. Everyone else succumbed and fell into a deep, unwakeable slumber. Pulling people away from the edges of the bridge, the two attempted everything they could think of to wake the rest. Nothing worked. Fortunately Kahlen's Awake spell was cast unconsciously, and she sat up of her own accord.
  Dragging the sleeping party members into the tower, Mystical created a Wall of Stone to block the entrance and built a small fire to keep them from freezing to death. Kahlen repeatedly cast Awakening, allowing additional RRs until Kurik, Zem, and Endira had shaken off the effects of the spell. Only Haergronagin remained asleep.

Haer's dream sequence
bounding through the fields of the Shire, not a care in the world, the prarie meadows blooming on a warm spring day. His mother's voice calls out: "Haer, you must come back now, we need you to wake up!" The young halfling doesn't want to leave, and runs faster.
"What do ye think you're doing, coming back 'ere with this measly take? A blind dwarf with one 'and chopped off could've picked more pockets than this!", said the Master thief, towering over the hobbit standing before him. "It was the best I could do, sir," said the apprentice, "the city guard keeps an eye on halflings in the market, sir." The Master growled, "If this be the best you can do ye'll never pass the initiation into th' Guild of Thieves. Yer only recourse will be to wake up."
Don't look down, thats no good. Fifty foot drop would be the end of me. One foot in front of the other, thats it. Just like the Guild training hall, only now its real. Good. Pathetic lock on the window shutters, just as expected. Oil the hinges, check for wires... none. Open the shutters. Slip over the sill and into the wizard's bedroom. There he lies, sleeping like a baby. Step once... twice... make no noise. Good. Pull the packet of sleeping powder out of the belt pouch, make sure he has a nice, deep slumber for the next few hours while I rob his house. YIKES! The wizard sits straight up in bed. "I think you had better wake up now, Haer", said the Archmage Bigby.
"It looks about thirty feet down. Jobe, would you do the honors?" said the diminutive thief. Jobe focused his eyes on something unseen down the hallway, and extended his arms to touch the corridor walls on either side. Muscles in his arms tightened and exerted force on the stone. More muscles in Jobe's chest and abdomen flexed, wedging him firmly in place. Still more muscles in his back extended to their fullest, causing the ancient mortar of the walls to creak in protest. Muscles that Haer didn't even know existed flexed and bulged in Jobe's neck, rooting him to the spot. Jobe was now, quite simply, immovable. Tying a rope about the warrior monk's waist, Haer stood at the edge of the pit and prepared to descend. "Wait," said his companion, "don't you think you should wake up first?"

Day 25 Tower #2
  Kahlen had cast Awakening a total of seventy times, thirty five on Haer before finally awakening him. Her magic was nearly spent, and she needed rest to recover. Also it was positively balmy inside the cave Mystical had created compared to the cold outside, encouraging sleep. The party got some rest.
  Eight hours later when Kahlen felt recovered Mystical dispelled the walls of stone and exploration of the second tower began. Kurik cast Detect Enemies and found two, at the locations marked with red symbols on the map. Haer checked each door for traps, finding none. The floors of the tower were covered in a layer of ice, and frost coated the walls. Most of the rooms were completely empty, stripped bare by the elements and the strange nature of the demi-plane. Only rooms which held something of note will be described in this Chronicle.
  The first room entered (marked "A" on the map) held a large, throne shaped chair heavily carved with symbols and runes. An intricate sunrise was carved into the back, though obscured by a thick layer of ice. The throne looked out upon Moil through a ten foot opening in the outer wall of the tower, which had once been a glass window. Rosvenir identified the signature of numerous spells enchanting the throne, all of a restorative and rejuvinative nature (as of healing).
  Continuing in counterclockwise direction, the party came to a long hallway (marked "B" on the map) which was almost completely choked with ice. Icy stalactites and stalagmites had formed and in some places extended until they merged together into a thick column. Not liking the idea of traversing a place where things could drop from above, Mystical created a Wall of Fire and a Wall of Ice sculpted into a trough to carry the melted water down the hallway and out the window of the throne room. The ice melting slowly under the magical assault, the party decided to return later.
  Retracing their steps the group explored a number of empty rooms before coming to a large room at the end of the outer hallway (marked "C" on the map). Kurik's spell had detected an enemy in this room, so Rosvenir cast Merging to get a look inside. It was a library, with a number of empty bookshelves running floor to ceiling which unfortunately blocked his view.

Kurik's report to the Church, delivered via Tithing Bag
  Rosvenir, Zem and I advanced slowly into the room towards the spot which Pandeos had revealed. We found the enemy between two bookcases, an undead creature frozen under a layer of ice on the floor. As we approached the ice began to crack as the abomination broke itself free, and the battle was joined.
  The creature radiated intense cold, and could focus it into a magical attack. I summoned the holy magics to Repel the undead, but felt a powerful impediment to the spell and it had no effect. I prayed to Pandeos to grant me the strength to Turn it. Mystical encased the creature in a Wall of Ice, attempting to confine its magical cold attack, but the effort was for naught. The abomination turned its power upon me, and I felt the air freeze even as I finished the Litany. Pandeos heard my prayer and granted the strength to make the Repel Undead effective, but I was frozen in a casing of ice.
  I do not know exactly what happened then as I struggled to free myself. At some point Mystical dropped the Wall of Ice, Zem chopped off one of the creature's legs, and for reasons I still do not understand Rosvenir created an illusion to make himself appear exactly like the zombie [Editor's note: Rosvenir rolled a 66, causing him to cast a random spell instead of the Starbolt he intended]. Endira shattered the ice encasing me with a powerful note from her magical lute, but was then hit by its attack and herself frozen. Zem rushed to free her while the rest of us rained down attacks upon the creature until it died its second, and final, death.

The Narrator
  A second enemy had been detected in the room across the hall (marked "D" on the map). Rosvenir cast another Merging spell to peek in. The room was quite small, and filled with the broken remnants of marble statues. Only one statue remained intact, lying on its side against the far wall. It had a cloth band with a metal disk around its head, upon which Rosvenir detected a magical Trigger of some sort. Deciding there was no reason to open this particular can of whoop-ass the party continued exploration along the inner hallway.
  Traversing several more empty rooms and a hallway led to a pie shaped room (marked "E" on the map). Along the curved outer wall were seven colorful panels upon which frost did not encroach. The seven scenes depicted a path through various terrain, each at a different time of day. Though the terrain varied greatly from frame to frame the path seemed to connect at each edge to form an unbroken whole. The scenes depicted:

  1. a path through a dark predawn forest
  2. a road through a grassy prarie at sunrise
  3. a steep mountain pass in the morning
  4. a path alongside a roaring river at noon
  5. a road leading through wide city gates in late afternoon
  6. a path through a tended garden at sunset
  7. a bridge over a chasm of darkness in dim twilight
Breaking through the ice covering the floor revealed an elaborate mosaic, with an inscription in the same demonic language used elsewhere in Moil. Mystical was able to read it: "Manifest the Power of the Wand of Days." Rosvenir cast Spell Typing to determine that the panels held a form of channeling magic, along with a trigger of some sort. He believed that each panel had a slightly different magic enchanting it, and that they all had the function of recharging something.
  Returning to the hallway at "B" found it mostly cleared of ice. At its end were tall double doors carved in a sunburst pattern. Haer picked the lock and the doors swung easily open. The room beyond was tiny, and the walls were obscured by an extremely thick layer of ice. The center of the room and floor were completely clear, in which space stood a strange metal pedestal topped with a curved apparatus holding a thin wooden wand. The pedestal was carved with ornate runes, which Rosvenir deciphered using a Literacy spell: "The Choice of Days empowers the Wand, but the Choice cannot be from here." Rosvenir detected a strange absence of magic on the wand and pedestal, like a void where power should be.
  Returning to room "E", Kurik touched the wand to the panel which depicted a path beside a river at noon. Nothing happened. When the pedestal was set in the room and the wand placed back in its holder, the wand began to glow slightly. When Kurik touched the panel again the word "kindle" appeared on the wand and the panel glowed with a soft light. When other panels were touched they would begin to glow and the previous panel fade, but the word on the wand did not change. Removing the wand from its holder, Rosvenir attuned to it. It is an Arcane device which will activate when the person holding it speaks the word "kindle", projecting a light as bright as the sun. The wand has ten charges.
  Only two rooms remained to be explored, the two beyond room "D". Returning to one of the rooms near the tower entrance, Mystical cast Intangible Object on the wall to allow passage. The room marked "F" on the map was unremarkable save for a cleared patch in the ice on the floor in the shape of a humanoid figure. No explanation for the cleared patch was found. The room beyond was empty.

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Experience awarded for this session: