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Chapter Thirteen: Hearts and Darkness

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Dannigan

Kaerri's Man. =)
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(Part 1 of 2)
Bren shook his head in genuine regret as nothing they did seemed to have any effect. "Not happy thoughts, but very you thoughts, if that makes sense. Either we aren't doing it correctly, or that's not the key. I'm sorry, Nivirea. We'll have to keep working on it." He patted her shoulder and turned to look at the others. "Perhaps it will be best if we focus on other things for the moment. We're still trapped here, after all, and the fire isn't getting any brighter. Now that we're all of our right minds, at least, if not of our proper bodies, shall we see about this Dead Dragon Bridge and its challenge? It would seem that's the next logical step in our journey."

"I agree, Lord Bren," Healer Bria used his title as if to show her respect of his wisdom. "To stay here will be our doom. Our salvation, whatever it may be, lies ahead of us." Bria knelt down on the tunnel floor and reached for Oscar, her arms held out in silent offer. Oscar acknowledged her and approached, climbing up into her arms and around her until he was sitting on her backpack, looking over her shoulder. His little black eyes examined the corpses of the goblins.

He was about to speak, when suddenly, the wind roared outside. A wall of white snow tossed to and fro, howling all the while, as unnatural and fearsome as a dark wizard's spell. In the blink of an eye, that black wind came barrelling down the tunnel and at you! The goblin and young warg corpses fidgeted and flapped as if alive. Their weapons and belongings scattered across the stone floor, skidding this way and that. Your clothes and hair tossed about as if it had life of its own.

"Haaa ha ha haaa!!" Mad female laughter came from outside, mocking and delighted and altogether invisible and unreachable. The longer you heard it, the harder it became to concentrate, especially for Luna.

As the black wind shot through the tunnel and in that instant, the campfire went out and as its fire died, all was bathed in cold, lifestealing darkness. All, that is, except the gleaming of a single flame, a sole source of heat and light that, thought tossed and embattled, refused to ebb. It was the Sunfire Blade in Otiorin's hand. It was now the only source of radiance in a shadowy field of darkness, for the Moonlit Edge's glow seemed muffled as if a cloak had been thrown over it.

The black wind shrieked and increased, threatening to bowl you over, perhaps to reverse its course and suck each one of you outside into the wintry night!

There was only one thing to do.

"Run for it!" Oscar shouted. "The magic of the Maiden of Pain is upon us!"

* * *​

(Part 2 of 2)

You fled for all you were worth. Your very lives were on the line and you knew it. All that mattered now was outpacing the danger before it caught you. Bria drew out her fighting stick and with a word, the wooden weapon lit like a flameless torch and helped to guide your way. You had the chance to do the same with your tools, for in this moment, light and movement meant life. Behind you, the black wind grew to such fierceness, it picked up the goblin bodies and dashed them against the walls, floor, and ceiling! The sickening sounds of breaking bones and splitting skin echoed down the cavern after you. All the while, the black wind reached for you in its horrible, cruel dance.

In time, that hated wind died down. Your feet carried you through tunnels only Otiorin and Oreleth knew. Gasping for breath, the Wayward Wanderers, more wayward than before, came into a great cavern that towered over your heads and fell downward into dark depths unknowable. There before you stretched out a long gap and a passage that continued down it. On your side and the opposite, intermittent blackened stains of blood continued to mark an unholy trail into the unknown.

The sounds of cavern creatures, small and hidden, echoed throughout the cavern. Water dripped incessantly from the ceiling, but unlike when Oreleth and Otiorin were last here, there was no sunshine from above to aid you. The only illumination now was what you brought with you and what little of that reflected from the walls of moss and lichen and tiny pools of water.

The Moonlit Edge gleamed freely once again. Your feet were on steady ground. But one glance forward reminded you that there were things in the universe much larger than you. Dwarfing all was a great and ghastly skeleton of a once-deadly dragon. The grand reptile that now served as a bridge across the gap, his bones appeared white and sturdy in the light of your magic weapons. The Dead Dragon Bridge.

Other changes became noticeable since the roguish half-elf and warrior elf last trod here - no voice greeted you from the beyond, and the mouth of the dragon was closed. A wall of teeth firmly barred your progress...

...but not overly far behind you, the black wind threatened still.

Your bodies were bruised, your gear and clothing quite dirty and disorganized, but everything you owned was still with you (whether you truly owned it or not, in the case of Nivirea and Luna). The cold was still present as if winter had invaded this very place, and though it was enough to make every one of you long for a fire, it did not appear to have the ill effects of the enchanted snows from outside.

Bria was the first to speak. She was ruffled and chilled. "Oh dear, what do we do if that wind comes after us with this in our way?" She looked for answers, but she was not the only one.

Oscar gazed long at the dragon, then at Otiorin, then back at the carcass of the terrible beast. "What indeed..." Oscar's eyes gazed about in wonder.

What do the Wayward Wanderers do?


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg
(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
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Luna looks at the closed mouth and muses, "Perhaps we can force it open. Look for something that can be used as a lever and a bolder that can be a fulcrum. With that and our combined strength, we should be able to continue on our path." She sorceress then follows her own advice and begins to look for items that would fit the bill.
 
The elf nods. "That sounds like it could work. Lets see what is lying about that might be usable." With her bow in hand, Oreleth kicks on its Continual Light power, and in the pool of light that it provides, begins to move out, looking for something that could be used. A long, large bone, perhaps, or a stalagmite.

"Bria, is your fighting staff magical? If not, I would hesitate to try using that to pry open the mouth; it would most certainly break. But if it is enchanted, would that grant it extra strength to keep from breaking?"
 
Character sheet
Hit Points: 26/26
Armor Class: 22
Touch Armor Class: 16
Spell Points: 3/3
Hero Points: 1/1
Mighty Blow uses: 1/1
Interpose uses: 1/1
Color code: 3399ff

Bren took a moment to count heads and make sure everyone's all right, once the party reached a point beyond the wind's influence. He tossed an angry glance behind them at the all-too-chilly reminder of She-who-sent-them-here, but for now there were more important things to do. He stared up at the dragon-skeleton bridge, seen by him for the first time. Nodding as the party began discussing nonmagical ways of opening the "gate" that blocked their progress further into the cave, he replied, "That may work if we can find something appropriate. On the other hand, I have a magic item that may just work as well. It makes a distinct sound when used; however, prying open these jaws may make just as loud a noise." He reached in his pack and pulled out a gleaming mithril tube about a foot long. "Shall I? Or do you need a moment to prepare yourselves? No telling what will happen if the teeth are forced open."
 
Oreleth turns and makes her way back the short distance she had wandered until she is there, standing alongside Bren once more. With her bow in hand, she says, "I stand ready. Use whatever magics that tube has to offer and let us proceed forth before we all freeze to death here in this cave."
 
Luna positions herself near the large paladin in silence, hoping that this plan to open the jaws will work before the freezing cold winds make their way into this cavern and engulf them once more.
 
"Bria, is your fighting staff magical? If not, I would hesitate to try using that to pry open the mouth; it would most certainly break. But if it is enchanted, would that grant it extra strength to keep from breaking?"

Bria gazed upon her old fighting stick. Illuminated by magic, it gave off a soft white light that seemed to add a little touch of peacefulness to whatever it touched. She twirled the familiar one-handed weapon with terrific force and grace. Such energy would have been deadly in anyone else's hands, but not hers. Never hers. "Oh, my wooden rod? It's no match for dragon bones, I'm sure."

He reached in his pack and pulled out a gleaming mithril tube about a foot long. "Shall I? Or do you need a moment to prepare yourselves? No telling what will happen if the teeth are forced open."

As Bren drew this thing forth, Bria gasped and smiled, pointing at it with girlish glee. "Oh, right! I wish I would have thought of that!" She glanced at her own backpack and grinned. Part of the fun of adventures were to solve problems like these. How good it was, Bria thought, to be among friends who were as creative as they were good-hearted (or, in Nivirea's case, near-enough to be comfortable with).

From her shoulder, Oscar studied the item in Bren's hands. His beady black eyes watched with calmness. Soon enough, he had it. "An excellent solution, Brendoran! That should function quite nicely against this roadblock, for the mechanical aptitude of goblins cannot stand against such magic."

Otiorin felt a strange pull from within. It was not from the Moonlit Edge, which glowed softly by his side, nor the Sunfire Blade which crackled angrily and flashed a single bright flare of fire. Long had Otoirin lived with the force within him. The dragon-blood. And though he knew himself to be now a half-elf with only roguish skills, that dragon-blood called still. Feelings stirred inside of him that were not his. The edges of his sight glimmered strangely, magnetically-drawn to the eye sockets of the great, dead beast that hung before them. Of all the Wayward Wanderers, Otiorin alone knew - these were not just faded bones in the dark.

Bria, ever interested in Otiorin's feelings, followed his gaze and no caution at all approached the dragon's skull. She marvelled at its size and grandness. "Wow! Oh, how I wish Kaerri and the others were here! They would remember rescuing my departed soul from the--"

"Silence!" It was Oscar, his animal ears turned in alarm. Swiftly, he looked back down the tunnel with unblinking eyes, his body and tail low and flat against Bria back. Bria gasped and looked at the tunnel's mouth.

Oscar the red panda sage was not the only one who was alerted. Luna, Oreleth, and Otiorin could hear faint but constant swooshing sounds from down the tunnel from which the Wayward Wanderers had fled. It was like listening to a wind that would not die. The distant clatter of something cracking against the stone walls of the tunnel erupted and vanished in the span of a heartbeat, and the swooshing sounds were growing.

Something was coming from whence you had traveled.

Oscar spoke softly and with great seriousness. "Brendoran, act swiftly." His whiskers twitched. "We will not be alone for long."
 
Character sheet
Hit Points: 26/26
Armor Class: 22
Touch Armor Class: 16
Spell Points: 3/3
Hero Points: 1/1
Mighty Blow uses: 1/1
Interpose uses: 1/1
Color code: 3399ff

Bren nodded at Oscar, sparing only a momentary glance at the passage behind them. Turning all but a small fraction of his attention forward to the great dragon bridge before them, he raised the Chime of Opening and struck a single silvery note from it, willing the gate to open.
 


And open it did!

At Bren's chiming, that one musical note tolled like a high, beautiful bell echoing wonderfully off of the walls of magnificent cavern like some heavensent choir. When the note finally fell, a small crack appeared along the mithril tube Bren carried.

Those mighty jaws, large enough to swallow horses, or perhaps even adventuring parties, rose and parted ominously, revealing the rows of great ribs and spine and tail that made up the rest of the Dead Dragon Bridge.

With the wind kicking up behind you, it was an easy choice to step toward the bridge that led deeper into the unknown and away from the dangerous winds, but no sooner than you had taken three steps across the earth that a terrific flash of bright white light struck above and all about you. Your sight, for the span of three heartbeats, was gone.

For a single instant, a terrible quaking sound rooted you to the spot! It was a tremendous blast of thunder so great it shook you to the core. Your senses were dazzled like never before. When you recovered them, the black wind sounded nearer, but now the dragon's skull and body were alive with action!

The gruesome, horrid thing stared down on you with lifeless eyes and yet there was a sense of unlife in it too. A terrible monster that had long ago met its end now seemed to notice you and in that noticing there was the opportunity to parley.

"TRRRIMASSS-TARASSSS!"

The monster's jaws snapped and hissed, its head cocked at an unnatural angle. The thing's voice boomed throughout the cavern with such power that the water drops above trembled and seemed to flee in mad terror. Even the snow shivered. The monstrosity hung in the air like some disembodied fiend from a child's worst nightmares, a reptile skeleton draped by the faintest blue of magic hue of what may have once been a lustrous leathery hide. It hissed impatiently. There was no making a safe way through those jaws now.

She had spoken in Draconic in the bold voice of a female of her breed and only those who had studied that ancient tongue could understand and give reply.

"GREEEE-TIIIINGSSS!"

"I know her now!" Oscar looked on in awe. "Behold, Wayward Wanderers! SkySting, the Living Lightning! The Unkillable One is here before us trapped here all this time in undeath!"

SkySting heard this account and gave Oscar a single approving nod. Then she continued.

"THOU HAST AWAKENED ME! A RIDDLE FOR THEE, THEN! ANSWER TRULY AND BE REWARDED! ANSWER FALSELY OR NOT AT ALL AND I LEAVE THEE TO THY DOOM."

The span across the gorge was quite long. The bottom of the gorge could not be seen for it was bathed in darkness. Without a way across, the Black Wind would have plenty of opportunity to have its way with the Wayward Wanderers.

"ART THOU PREPARED OR SHALL I ALLOW THE WINDS TO TAKE YOU AS THEY DID ME?"

Otiorin, alone, felt his blood stirring strongly in his veins. The old presence inside of him, willing and familiar, chuckled, pleased. It seemed to dare him to call upon it. Otiorin could tackle this encounter without it or he could take the chance and call upon it - but to what end, there was no certainty.

What do the Wayward Wanderers do?


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg
(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
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Otiorin Taletreader

Unruffling himself after the buffeting from the wicked wind took moments and Otiorin was once more ready for action. He lifted The Sunfire Blade in his hand and dolefully whispered to it, "I'll have to put you away for now. I'm not familiar with your weight and heft like I am with Moonlit Edge's, but I swear I shall learn how to."
He slid the sword back into the sheath that now hung from his belt and retrieved Moonlit Edge. Her blade glimmered with her familiar pale radiance and he smiled despite himself.
"I have some important decisions to make once we're safely back where we belong."
He turned to Bren and whispered, "I'm ready when you are."
 

As Otiorin attempted to sheathe the glowing sword, a strange thing occurred. A bright blast of orange fire erupted from it as if in protest. When he tried to sheathe it a second time, a second gout of hot flame lit up, almost singing him.

Otiorin noticed another change. The Sunfire Blade, long and far more beastly than any average bastard sword, seemed to alter itself right there in his hand. The fiery brand seemed to lighten and take on the balance and weight of a shortsword. Indeed, in just moments, Otiorin experienced the certain feeling that he could wield the weapon as confidently as he had the Moonlit Edge.

As the Sunfire Blade crackled, the Moonlit Edge glowed a soft pale light, calm and soothing. Soon, the Sunfire Blade's angry flames lowered to warm and comfortable level, especially given the cold in the cavern.

Had the blade calmed for certain? Otiorin could not tell. But it seemed likely.

The bones of the long-dead dragon watched this with some interest, as did Oscar. The furry sage addressed Otiorin as he kept his black eyes on the danger before you all. "Remind me later, dragon-blooded one, to tell you what I learned long ago of the sword you now wield."


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg
(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
Last edited:
Character sheet
Hit Points: 26/26
Armor Class: 22
Touch Armor Class: 16
Spell Points: 3/3
Hero Points: 1/1
Mighty Blow uses: 1/1
Interpose uses: 1/1
Color code: 3399ff

Bren stared up at the undead dragon. Though he'd said himself that he didn't know what exactly would happen when the chime was activated, he certainly wouldn't have expected this! His adventuring career previous to meeting the Wayward Wanderers had included some experience with dragons, and he realized, though he couldn't understand her words, that this one might not necessarily be an enemy, odd as that seemed. For one thing, she was talking rather than attacking. He took a deep breath and stepped forward with a little bow. "Forgive our intrusion, Unkillable One," he said, using Oscar's name for her as an honorable title. "I am Brendoran Sarabina, paladin of Mielikki. I'm afraid I don't speak your tongue, but by your leave, perhaps one of my companions can translate your words? You seem to understand ours without need of such a translator." He glanced at Oscar and Otiorin, whom he guessed would be the most likely to know draconic, then at the others, hoping someone present could do the translating. Then he returned his gaze to the great undead dragon looming over them. "A curse laid upon us by my goddess's enemy has driven us into this cave, and her Black Wind has driven us to the gorge you span. Moreover, there is a quest we seek to complete here. It is my understanding that the Gully Gulch Goblins have gained access to the dungeons beneath Castle Anguish and are using them to commit foul acts, which I would put an end to, and that our path to these dungeons lies beyond your gorge." He stopped there, in case the others wanted to speak up as well. He vaguely recalled Paladin Bria mentioning a challenge at the "bridge" that had now awoken, but he couldn't remember anything specific she'd said about it, if indeed she had said something specific. Maybe the dragon herself was the challenge.
 
Oreleth looks down at her bow, then up at the massive skeleton and knows that there is no way that the party can take on such a massive foe with any hope of winning. Best for us to solve this riddle and have it allow us to move on. It is either that or we succumb to the freezing winds behind us!I "Brendoran? I would think that with us in our current state, we would be best suited to trying to solve this riddle before our time runs out and the ill winds behind us come into this cavern. It is that or we all perish here."
 
Luna nods in agreement with the elf. "I agree. With all of us putting our heads together, we should be able to solve this riddle. If not . . ." She looks back at the passage behind them. "We freeze and our quest is at an end. Unless you can sweet talk our way past, we are stuck with few options."
 


As Bren spoke, Oscar studied the young paladin with a practiced eye and as Bren spoke, so did Oscar, translating his words with great skill.

SkySting took interest and replied, her voice seething with emotion. Again, Oscar translated.

"Thou speakest as leader and so I address thee alone! Thine words ring true, ser knight; the maiden of rainforests hath left her mark of favor upon thy very soul and you are undeniably her willing servant forever!

"But as surely as the holy do not suffer evil in their company, nor doth SkySting the Undying suffer the witless or the foolish!

"Answer true and I shall share a boon! Answer falsely or not at all and meet thine ends as fools! Thou hast but one try!

SkySting's eye sockets began to crackle with bright flashes of lightning. Bolts so bright they stung your eyes shot out of her maw as the undead dragon snarled her riddle to you.

"CLIMBING THROUGH DARKNESS THICKER THAN NIGHT,
FIGHTING, REACHING, YET OFT OUT OF SIGHT,
UNTIL THE DAY THEY BREAK OPEN AND FREE,
TO WORSHIP THE SUN BEAUTIFULLY."

"Answer!"
she snapped impatiently. "Or tonight, thee and thine shall surely meet thy deity in person!"


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg

(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
Last edited:
Luna smiles. Riddles were always fun for her to try to figure out. This one seemed fairly simple to her. She says to Bren, "I believe it would be a seed, sprouting up a new plant! The darkness they climb through is the soil, since it is thicker than night. They 'fight' their way up to see the sun, until the day that they break through the soil and see the sky for the first time."
 
Oreleth nods slowly. "That . . . sounds right to me. I would agree that the answer is a new plant growing from a seed. I am willing to place my trust in Luna that she has come up with the correct response. But Brendoran, you are the voice of the party. What say you? Do you agree?"
 
Bren half-turned from the dragon to confer with his companions. He nodded at Luna. "That was my first thought as well," he replied. "However, before I offer it as the answer on everyone's behalf, I'd like to hear from the rest of you. If another solution comes to mind, please share it! We have time to consider, if only a little, and tis best to be sure."
 
Otiorin Taletreader

As the dragon spoke her riddle, it was all he could do to conceal his mirth. He had, in his youth, read of Halflings who had passed such riddles in the dark of a subterranean cavern such as this and this riddle sounded as if it had come from that same story. He nodded sagely as Luna answered quietly, for her answer was on his lips.
"I would say more, 'Flowers' rather than simply 'plants'. Any plant might haul itself out of the darkness of the soil, but only flowers reach up as if to worship the sun. Beautifully, I might add."
 
.:| Nivirea - The Sorceress |:.

"It's seeds," Nivirea nodded at last. "It has to be. Though the 'oft out of sight' part is confusing. Aren't seeds always, if not almost always, out of sight? Strange phrasing... or something more?"
 
Character sheet
Hit Points: 26/26
Armor Class: 22
Touch Armor Class: 16
Spell Points: 3/3
Hero Points: 1/1
Mighty Blow uses: 1/1
Interpose uses: 1/1
Color code: 3399ff

Bren nodded as each person brought a new perspective to the riddle's solution. "Frequently, but not always; some grow closer to the surface than others, while some are dug up (either accidentally or on purpose), and a few even grow in the air." He looked around the group. "It seems we have our answer then, for together I believe we've found it."

He turned to face the great undead dragon. "Lady SkySting, our answer is this: the seeds of a plant, particularly of a flower." He was about to explain, but thought better of it. He didn't want to irritate her, and anyway she might well have heard their discussion.
 

"LOTRO Legacy" by Chance Thomas for The Lord of the Rings Online - Riders of Rohan Soundtrack


He turned to face the great undead dragon. "Lady SkySting, our answer is this: the seeds of a plant, particularly of a flower." He was about to explain, but thought better of it. He didn't want to irritate her, and anyway she might well have heard their discussion.

"SEEEEEDS!!"

Skysting's reply was as sudden as it was violent - with a single swish of her awesome tail, she struck the side of the cliff you were standing upon and shattered it! The ground at your feet immediately buckled and groaned before it gave way, and in the span of two rapid heartbeats, all fell away with you standing on it. The Wayward Wanderers lost all balance as gravity greedily pulled you down into that lightless, forlorn chasm below.

"PLAAAANTS!!"

A great flash of electric blue sped past you as you flailed in mid-air with nothing to grab onto. Feelings of helplessness and despair often accompanied wingless creatures who had nothing to stand on.

"FLOWERRRS!!"

A great wind thrust upward. From beneath you, with speeds that would have shamed the fastest bird, her electric blue form rose up from the depths of the cavern straight at you like a draconic skeleton rising out of the Abyss, her eager jaws open and massive claws held wide. Before you could act, you landed heavily against something hard and unyielding. Then you realized you were moving in the opposite direction - upward! As a dangerous hail of rocks and stones bounced all about you, you felt your hands and arms clutching wildly against the form of a draconic skeleton!

It was Skysting!

As quickly as she had dropped you, she had sped down below you and back up again. Now she had caught you up on various parts of her body. Brendoran was on her head, Oreleth, Bria, and Oscar were along her open spine, Nivirea was held in her left front claw, Luna held in the right front, and Otiorin constricted up nicely in her tail as pretty as you please. Up you went at speeds well beyond those of most winged creatures. Now, thanks to the glow of the phosphorus lichen, you saw the entirety of the cavern as the undead dragoness flew you up and away from the cavern she had once been the bridge for. Her aim became clear. She was flying you to parts unknown, through large tunnels and caverns, past a brilliant waterfall, to a place somewhere altogether new - and it was all you could do to hang onto her for your very lives!

As she flew, SkySting the Undying seethed in a combination of heartfelt relief and pent-up aggravation. "Dwarves and moles! Umber Hulks and Pech! Crystals and volcanoes! Earthworms and Drow! And worst of them all - underwear! These be the answers I hath previously been forced to suffer in my time as the dreaded Dead Dragon Bridge! At long last! Someone hath the mind to answer truly!!" Her bony wings flapped swiftly as if there were leathery skin between them and she zipped along through the chilly air with gracefulness and absolute certainty. "Know this, fleshlings! For this, I take thee past the goblins' poisonous ambush! Past the painful traps of spikes and flames! Beyond the reach of that idiotic dung-brained ogre and his blasted tree trunk he cruelly smasheth into all living things! Of these things, I hath had enough!!"

SkySting's twirling flight rose and rose until she came to a steep plateau overlooking the grand cavern. From this perch, three hundred feet above the cold rock below, you could see many a tunnel and cave and too many holes to count easily. In the distance, the waterfall twinkled frostily. The dragoness deposited you somewhat gently upon the floor of the plateau beyond which lay yet another tunnel and a strange pink luminescent glow that seemed to ebb and flow in the air. Between you and the tunnel, however, stood three stout-looking oaken chests ringed with steel reinforcement, rusted with the touch of time. Upon each of these were strange diagrams, but you were too far to see them clearly.

She cackled like a witch. "Here I place thee and soon I shall take mine leave of thee! But first, note yonder chests. Treasure! Treasure for thee. One of the three remains while two fade into rust and dust. Whichever thou chooseth to open first shall remain. The rest shall wither and pass on like all of thee in good time."

"Th- thank you, mighty SkySting!" It was Bria who squeaked. "It seems you have saved us a great deal of toil and trouble and rewarded us too!"

"This be an additional reward for the end of utter stupidities, I assure thee..." SkySting curled her bony form into a cat-like pose while bits of her crackled and sparked with rapid spontaneousness. "I shall spare the time for questions three before I make off. Three and no more!" She scratched impatiently at skin that was not there. "Heroes as thyselves always have questions. But anger me not with meaningless prattle! Ask of me intelligently or stay silent as the stones lest lose mine temper and baste thee everlasting in mine awful breath!" Her eyes glowed with stormlike force. For even in the grip of undeath, SkySting the Undying had no patience for fools.

"Ask or I shall fly away!"


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg
(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
Last edited:
With the initial terror of falling, then flying, has passed, Luna shakily stands up and straightens her robes and brushes her hair out of her eyes. "I, too, would like to add my thanks to you, noble one, for giving us these gifts." She then turns to the party and says in a softer voice, "Once more we are face with a challenge, but this one is a good one. What questions shall we ask? We must decide quickly, or else lose this opportunity forever. I for one would like this curse upon me and Nivirea broken, so we would be ourselves once more, but that knowledge may be missing from our benefactor's mind. Perhaps we should ask about the bridge that the Goddess Loviatar has, so we can find it and end her evil plans? M'lord Bren, would you once more speak for us?"
 
Oreleth takes a moment to get her bearings, then offers a bow to SkySting. "Thank you, great one. We shall have questions for you shortly."

Moving over to be close to the others, she says in a quiet voice, "We seem to have no time limit on the treasure chests, just the three questions. I agree that we should have only one voice ask for the group, and Brendoran is a good choice for this." She pauses, thinking. "We should ask about our whereabouts, and find out if we are in our homelands or in another dimension altogether. I would suggest that to be our first inquiry."
 


SkySting's bony tail curled back and forth like an impatient cat's. Through hollow eyes, she glared at Oreleth while crackling blue strokes of energy lit along her body. "Thou hast an unusual definition for the word 'soon,' elf. Where art thine queries?"

The undead dragoness tapped one claw and looked to the air below the cliff. For her, freedom lay in that direction. She eyed it longingly.


kamil-tondera-rox-skull-dwa.jpg
(Image credit: Kamil Tondera)
GAME DETAILS Location: The Dead Dragon Bridge.
Mode: Exploration
Click Blue Box for Ambiance =)
"D&D Ambiance - Dark, Dank Cave" by Sword Coast Soundscapes


 
Last edited:
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