Desert Sands V: The Stone Rolled Away from the Sepulchre

General Summary

As Teleptyon called for a tactical retreat out of the narrow hallway they currently shared with a flaming gnoll, he cast his voice to be triggered if anything came around the corner, shouting “Stop, mangy dog!” As Riven made her way into the hallway to renew the attack, her presence triggered the voice and she was so startled by it that she backed away. Theophilus meanwhile restored Asbjørn's energy, which had been depleted by his rage. Teleptyon began channeling bolts of arcane energy in case there was an attack of opportunity. Kegho and Asbjørn began to work their way down the hallway through the dark, with Alexandru following behind with a lit lantern.

In the chamber beyond, the party heard the guttural chanting of the kobold shaman.

Alex came around the corner fully to a despoiled chapel, his lantern light revealing a kobold shaman chanting, a gnoll charred by Alex’s flask and a kobold spear-man, who threw an obsidian dagger at Alex as he entered the room, but missed. Asbjørn tackled the charred gnoll warrior. Alex slashed at the shaman and Riven loosed an arrow at the shaman as well.

The kobold shaman chanted a slow dirge.

Alex, the spear-man and the shaman slash wildly at each other, but in the chaos no strike made its mark. Asbjørn continued abusing the pinned gnoll.

Theo entered the room and—fully charged with the fervor of the newly reborn—held his mace aloft and channeled his faith through it. A spectral form of the Hammer of Ator flew from it and dispensed justice on the despoiling shaman’s cranium, exploding it.

The gnoll slipped from Asbjørn’s grasp. With the shaman now widely dispersed. La Compagnia focused their attention on the spear thrower. Kegho, Riven and the spear-man all attacked each other, but a bolt of energy obliterated it mid strike. Teleptyon grinned widely in the background as Riven quickly wiped viscera off her bow and arrow and straightened the feathers.

Kegho turned his attention—and Skullcleaver—to the gnoll warrior, but even landing a mighty blow he was unable to finish it. Theo turned the Hammer of Ator against it, and further bloodied it, but a bolt of arcane energy channeled by Teleptyon finally finished the warrior. Teleptyon gloated most boorishly.

With the enemies dead, La Compagnia turned its attention to the altar of the despoiled chapel: a kingly figure gripping a warhammer with the head of the hammer resting between his feet. Below him was an inscription “Primum id dones mihi, si id teneas” which Theo translated as “First give to me, then you can keep it.” Alex attempted to place the slain gnoll warrior on the altar and Theo placed gold coins, but nothing happened.

The barbarians took this time to search their slain enemies and found 10 silver and a large sword.

Alex and Teleptyon had an idea and tried to get Theo to repeat the inscription from the earlier room "I will fight Chaos in all its forms, and uphold the will of Ator. This I pledge through the honor of my words," but Theo didn’t follow, so out of frustration they both swore fealty to Ator and a secret passage opened to the northwest of the room.

They found the crypt proper and a chest. Teleptyon waited in the antechamber with his snake finger, nervous about sanctified spaces. Alex found no traps on the chest and Theo removed a journal, three vials and 15 gold coins.

Teleptyon yelled into the room “Does the journal say anything important?” But it was too late for scholarly pursuits as the Barbarians had begun lifting the relics of Gregorious out of his sarcophagus. Each of the other sarcophagi disgorged a skeleton bent on protecting the holy relics, except for the sarcophagus on which Riven sat. It rattled but its skeleton was unable to get free.

One of the skeletons impaled Theo, who barely survived but whose clothing was shredded in the process. He called out to the Ouranic gods to terrify the undead, but as the skeletons were holy skeletons protecting the resting place of the paladins of Aelos, he instead took command of them and bade them “yield.”

Asbjørn was quite taken by St. Gregorious’s sword, but Theo was intent on returning it to the Adza Monastery.

On the return trip, Theo read the journal finding that the sword was blessed and that the vials were of a healing elixir.