View
Tue 8th Oct 2019 01:21

The Dragon's Lair

by Nepheri

With the dragon out, we figured we might have a chance to look around before it came back. And immediately our chances of fighting it were reduced as Lavia was once again captured inside her lyre. I picked it up, of course, but with a huge dragon nearby, I wasn't about to pluck any strings.
 
Inside the dark cave, we found four different sigils, on in each cardinal direction, from which the beams originated. I have no idea if there was a way to destroy these sigils. Maybe hacking away at them would have done something. Or maybe it would have triggered some sort of defence. All I could do was to pray for a solution. Literally. I prayed for the Raven Queen to help me dispel the magic locked in the seals. And it turns out that being a tiefling came in handy since I, eh, keep my tail flexible. One sigil was in a narrow crevasse where the rest of my body couldn't fit to touch the symbol, and one required the rest of the group to hack away enough ice that my tail could poke through. With the latter of those, Ellywick's new ability to call forth fire from her hands turned out to be really useful for melting the ice. And thanks to Dworik we found the position of the sigil fast enough to reach it in time.
 
With all four sigils broken, the temperature was starting to rise from unbearably frigid to merely extremely cold. I guess we shouldn't ask too much when in the lair of a white dragon. Speaking of which, said creature returned just as we were about to leave. We hid, but I suspect not very well. At least, with the city hopefully restored, I was at peace with that this might be the end of my story and was prepared to die - hopefully letting the others escape. I know that who dies has nothing to do with if they deserved it, my punishment lies in the Nine Hells after I've died, not in when I move on. But the others of this group are good people and I wish for the world, all worlds, to see more of them.
 
Fortunately, no one had to die. Ellywick somehow managed to convince the dragon that if it let us pass we would keep it fed and satisfied. Even more incredible is that Ellywick herself seems dead set on keeping this promise. This being helped disrupt the very flow of life to death by freezing it and then snapping the connection to life at will. We all know about how undead are kept from completely dying, but what the wizard who set this up did was create unlife, prevented from fully being alive. Both seem equally perverting what is meant to be. I wish I could reach out to the Raven Queen for answers. I wonder if I could reach out to this Raven Queen for answers...
 
We've returned to Castle Whitestone, and the people are waking up as everything thaw. Balance is being restored and those who are alive also live. There's a lot to take care of, but at least we can gather the dead and let them rest.

Continue reading...

  1. Business...
    11th of Uktar, 1489
  2. I'm ready for you, Raven Queen
    2nd Uktar, 1489
  3. You killed my father, now prepare to die
    2nd Uktar, 1489
  4. Dust to Dust
    1st of Uktar, 1489 DR
  5. Redbrands I
  6. Arrival at Phandalin
  7. Daddy Dearest
    1st of Uktar
  8. Day after
    30 Marpenoth, 1489 DR
  9. Lawful Stupid
    29 Marpenoth, 1489 DR
  10. Saving private Rupert
    29 Marpenoth, 1489 DR
  11. Dead to me
    29 Marpenoth, 1489 DR
  12. Close to Harvest
    28 Marpenoth, 1489 DR
  13. Recovery
  14. Insane Plans
  15. By the Book
  16. Dead feelings
  17. Disposed
  18. Dead Necromancers are the Best Necromancers
  19. Catching up
  20. Shipping
  21. Friendly or Not
  22. Unexpected Meetings
  23. Worlds Collide
  24. A very different city
  25. Festive Thornhold
  26. Thank you, my Queen
  27. Friends. Right.
  28. This is awkward....
  29. Landslide
  30. Dangerous Gnoll-age (sorry... the puns are spreading...)
  31. Cenceptions
  32. Seduction
  33. Wave Echo Cave II
  34. Wave Echo Cave
  35. Return to Phandalin
  36. Rest in peace, Declan...
  37. Crisis of Faith
  38. Thundertree II
  39. Thundertree I
  40. Path to Thundertree
  41. Orc hunting
  42. Redbrands III
  43. Redbrands II
  44. Far From Home
    ?? ?? ???
  45. Cold
    Tal'dorei, day 2
  46. Life, interrupted
  47. Hot and Cold
  48. The Dragon's Lair
  49. In the afternoon, we plan!
  50. A Song of Ice and Fire
  51. Celebration
  52. Relief is one hell of a drug
  53. Flight and Flutter
  54. Freedom of Movement
  55. At dusk we... do something?
  56. Pray for a quick end to our deception
  57. Catching up
  58. Fall
  59. Lizards in a hole
  60. Not Today
  61. Released
  62. A broken soul
  63. Skyfall
  64. Acid Falls
  65. Roped in
  66. Faith in Friends
  67. Insight into Emon
  68. A Calling
  69. Hypothetical 1: Healer (Ginny Di video)
  70. Hypothetical 3: Matchmaker (Ginny Di video)
  71. Hypothetical 2: Villain (Ginny Di video)
  72. For my Beating Heart
  73. Hypothetical 4: Prison guard (Ginny Di video)
  74. Hypothetical 5: Bard (Ginny Di video)
  75. Plagued Possibilities
  76. Visits in the Cloudtops

Find your way!

Resources

WHO WE ARE

LEGAL

Get the news

Listen to our Podcast

Our Allies

Dungeon Fog
Gold Ennie 2019 for Best Digital Aid
by 3 Armored Kittens · Prodromos v.1.1 - World Anvil 0.9.15.042 © 2017-2024 [en] | Anvil Time: 15:36, Nov 7 2024