Demons Of The Burning Night: Part Five

General Summary

With the brass guardian defeated, the party return to the central hall but pause to investigate an odd pile of ash that has accumulated in one of the less-traveled side passages. The brass guardian had clearly not patrolled this area as the ash is both deep and disturbingly shaped. Aided by the light of their torches and candles, augmented by Sylke's enchantments, the party discover that the "ash" is likely the remains of a temple priest or guard who became trapped. Disturbing the ash, Cran discovers a small finger bone and some crudely scrawled writing. Much of what the poor unfortunate man left behind is unreadable but a few words can be made out:

"Katerine never told me … trapped now … the Wards are active."

Continuing rather more cautiously to the central hall, the companions discover a trapped sarcophagus (the crude poison vapor mechanism has leaked making the trap ineffective) but little else. Back in the large chamber, Cherry unlocks the three small stone doors that eventually lead into storage rooms. Sylke takes the opportunity to rest; battles with the wyvern (who knew it could make such fine adventuring fare?) and the brass guardian have left the mage exhausted. The storage rooms contain rusted armor and weapons though one of the locked chests holds a very finely crafted set of chainmail. The Amarrishi were masterful metalworkers and the tiny metal links that make up the armor are a rare alloy, telenium. Made from mithril and xenium, the alloy is incredibly strong and light; the art of forming the alloy and shaping it has been lost for centuries – the armor is quite unique. The double doors that lead westward bear the same warding device that all of the smaller doors carry, they also prove impossible to pick. However, the hinge pins can be removed; with some considerable noise, Cran hammers these out. Two brass guardians are alerted by the noise and as the door is pulled away they move swiftly into the hall to engage the party. Though the fight does not last long (incredibly precise strikes by Numal and Sylke defeat both golems), Cran's arm is broken and Sharna is almost disemboweled. Ugnan's resilience and supernatural healing abilities are tested to the point of near exhaustion. Considerably shaken by the pain and severity of the wounds he takes on, Ugnan nods weakly at Cran's suggestion of further exploration. The hallway beyond the door descends past a number of proud weapon-bearing Amarrishi statues to end in another set of doors. These too are locked but Cherry's growing familiarity with the intricate locks of the temple, allow her to trip the mechanism far more swiftly this time. The hall beyond is stepped and lined with statues again. In the centre, there is a large raised stone sarcophagus. Three glowing glass balls illuminate the room; a fourth, in the north west corner lies shattered on the floor. Glancing up, Cran and Ugnan can see cracks and a large jagged break in the ceiling that is letting bright daylight into the room. An earth tremor some time in the past clear shook the room; a number of statues toppled over and some of these probably smashed the fourth globe. A number of doors line the walls but before the party can continue, a tall figure emerges from a chamber on the opposite side of the room. The creature carries a long glowing spear and pauses just long enough to sniff the air before charging towards Sylke!