Session 55 - Endings and Beginnings

General Summary

Near the entrance to Kathend Irthos the squirrel watched. It had been quite a while since the big ones and gone and vanished into the place that smelled and looked all wrong. He knew he should head downslope, off to forage, to find other squirrels and safety of true forest. But things were not quite the same as before the little big one, the one who stopped pain, who always had nuts in her pocket and a shirt lined pot in her pack, who smelled almost like a tree, had healed him. When had a pot become more homelike than a nice leaf nest? And what was all this thinking?  
He sniffed, something else was here, also waiting, smelling a little like the small-big one who talked sense sometimes.  
He stayed put and waited hidden in the spindly tree by the rocks where he could just see where they had disappeared. The others, there were 2 (or not?) It was confusing, they waited too.  

From Laura’s journal   While resting – between time.   So glad I left Ficus in the woods outside. I have come through most of these skirmishes in good form thanks to Diana’s bow, but this is no place for those who cannot defend themselves! I wonder if time in here runs the same as in our world? I know these rests keep time from passing here, but these magics seem so odd. I think we are in some sort of chaos palace and would rather that I knew nothing of places beyond the earthly woods, fields, mountains, and seas a gnome should know!
We entered the last barrier-supporting chamber to be met with fire and ice that would spring up between the pillars. There must not have been a trigger near the sarcophagus because that thing, former dragon born king or whatever he had been; did not set anything off when he came up out of it to keep us from putting out the brazier. So, to battle again. Hassan dodged to one side and cast that giant hand to grasp the rotting dragonborn thing. But it evaded somehow. Tertia stepped between places and engaged him while Bandua snuck around the edges (he said later that we should all have seen the pressure plates and just avoided them! I still, to his consternation, don’t have that eye for stone, give me dirt and roots any day!) Kleeck and his celestial companion engaged as well. It seems in this place that Hassan’s luck is more capricious than elsewhere… I am sure we are not exactly on our own mortal plain. This dragonborn prince was not easy to defeat but we were able to overcome him. A couple months ago that would not have been the case. Has it really been only months?
Written later, on the way to Bandua’s stronghold:   Having removed the last flame wall before our rest, we approached the large white orb portal, would there be a city beyond? Or just another chamber full of minions and some other door? Or would we finally face Maagog and whatever/whomever we found with him? Having rested fully without the passage of time thanks to the magic hourglass of the Titans, and made preparations each after their own fashion, we entered. Tertia’s sword gleamed with Apollo’s light thanks to Kleeck’s prayers, and we all felt steadied by it. Morale was high thanks to Hassan encouraging words. On the other side the portal was surrounded by shallow water and some rocks, ahead of us we could see a large throne.
He was both bigger and smaller than I expected. I paused, not being sure of the safety of stepping into the water that surrounded the portal. Maagog was both pleased and amused to see us. And I think a bit startled that we had made it this far. He did not talk long though, and his statements simply suggested our imminent destruction and general lack of knowledge. He has no love or respect for “warmbloods” especially soldiers of Rome; and that lack of respect led to overconfidence. I am not sure he understood how quickly we “warm bloods” learn.
This did not mean the battle was easy, fighting one who plays as easily with shape and gravity as with a sword is not something I wish to repeat. Hopefully from here my bow can be used for food and defense not offense!
Maagog stopped talking and chanted some arcane words lifting chaos around us. We could not see far or move easily and solid things metamorphosized around us. A rock became a chicken then pot of soup that solidified back to rock. A toad stool turned to an eagle then a rock and back. The water froze and steamed and then did both at once. And we could not see Maagog - Hassan sounded like he was moving towards the middle of the room, at least that is how I interpreted the splashing… I tried to go straight towards the rock that had been in front of me and ran smack into Mkali. At least he is soft! Not being able to see, I am not sure what all the others did, but I heard movement and soft curses, as quickly as it started everything settled and cleared. Maagog was much closer. Tertia stepped forward to engage him, and suddenly we were all falling towards the ceiling while he grinned and talked about our quick defeat. I did not listen.
We landed HARD on the ceiling, but I managed to keep my feet. Others were not so lucky. Battle was joined, although necessarily at a distance. Bandua was grumbling about having to use a bow. Mkali bounded to the wall and started to climb down (up?) towards the floor. I shot at Maagog... missed some, hit some. Thank the gods for the bow, Diana knew what I would need in this crazy fight. Maagog flipped gravity again and Tertia quickly read a scroll letting us down more gently as she ran once again to engage him. I think Kleeck was having a bit of trouble maintaining focus between flipping of directions and chaos as Apollo’s light kept going out on Tertia’s sword. He put it back several times I think, but I was focused on hitting Maagog and did not keep that close a track.
Each time Bandua, Tertia or Mkali got close Maagog would pull a trick and slip off or reverse down to up; then he yanked Tertia to him across space and right out of the battle - for what seemed like a very long time! Later, from her description it sounded like he dumped her into a space of pure chaos just to get her out of the way. His mistake as she came back fighting, but severely shaken and wounded. Maagog thought he had killed her as she sank to the floor at one point, but Kleeck’s channeling of Apollo’s healing power aided in Maagog's downfall.
For a time, luck seemed to have left Hassan: each time Maagog played with gravity Hassan seemed to land with a crunch. He would cast a spell and Maagog would bat it away. But it seemed that in this fight attacking at range was the key. Hassan, and I kept firing arrows and magic at him. Bandua as well each time he was “moved” too far away. May I never have such desperate need for bow skill again! I should have been more scared. Perhaps this is what the tales of battle rage are about, but it was all so clear and oddly calm, although details seem to have left me now. Perhaps I was just tired of all the fighting and relieved to be at the end.
Success! Tertia had the final blow, although not with her sword despite all its enchantments and re-enchantments. She sent magic at him bit after bit like hail of glowing darts while Bandua was winding up for another round with his axes, and I was reaching for another arrow. Hassan, Tertia, and Bandua were all very engaged at the end and Kleeck kept Tertia on her feet as well as sunlight in the proceedings to impede Maagog!
He was dead. Meaning that we had a little time to breathe and then a spell to perform and a wish to make else Maagog would renovate and become an undead destructive vengeful menace to Roam and this age again.
Hassan pulled Bahamut’s horn out of the bag and handed it to Kleeck. He looked at us all and asked if we were agreed on the selfless wish to end this and send Maagog to his eternal rest. We each nodded. Enough.
Kleeck put his beak to the horn and blew. And we all wished. It was a glorious sound but not something of this time or place, not something I can easily describe.
Maagog’s spirit rose from his crumped body and looked at us once more. Nodded and went, just as the horn vanished from Kleeck’s hands. I wish Maagog rest.
We thought to look around a bit more. Figure out more of this place, I for one was still wondering about the ancient city. But the ground began to shake, and it was clear that a very hasty exit was necessary as Maagog’s realm of chaos came apart and the runed city shook back into place, a pile of dust and rock.

Waiting, the squirrel listened to the quiet, it seemed to grow even more still and wrong. Then a touch of not quite sound, not quite beauty…. And a shaking that was becoming more pronounced… The squirrel had the sense that the big ones would be back, walking away from the wrongness that was no longer wrong, just escaping the sudden settling lots and lots of dusty rock.
Then they were. He bounded over and ran up the small gnome’s leg.

Ficus had not gone down the mountain to the safety of true forest. I guess he has been with me too long. The hazard of magic and wild things. So as soon as we emerged from the settling city he came chittering and galloping up my leg. That was the only reason I was not quite as startled as the others to see two figures walk towards us. The Goddess Venus, and the spirit of her paladin Angerona were waiting for us as well. Waiting with answers, healing, food, and a boon for each. And a clear message that the answers should not be shared.
One of the answers is that our mystery lady of the status in the temple is Angerona. She was Venus’s first paladin and is thought by those who care for her status in the temples to be a secret goddess. Angerona is not so pleased about it, but it serves the safety of Rome so who am I to question it. She seems to have accepted this status quo. Although, I wonder at this need now. Yes, I have fought to defend Rome and she will persist, but perhaps the price is too high? For now, I will leave that to the gods and their clerics, but like Kleeck perhaps I have seen too much. It startled me that he would ask to be released from Apollo yet at the same time I understand. In ways we are each like wounded wild things, in need of gentle handling and quiet. I am glad he will travel with us a bit further.
The crime of the titans was acting to kill the gods’ parents, making them the land and sky with blood and tears for a sea. Venus says there can never be reconciliation between our gods and the Titans due to this, but I wonder: must there always be battles like this? Can we not have peace between warm bloods and cold bloods? Must the mortals echo their gods? The gods think peace is not an option, and I am but a simple Gnome. Best to help an old dwarf to rebuild his holdings, build family out of what we have made and lost and take a young skilled Aarakocra with us at least for a time. So much has changed, or I have changed much. I thought I would always be a forest gnome living with the folks then finding a mate talking to the squirrels and owls, maybe sharing some little skill with healing with others round about… Then Lugdunum and all the rest.
May the gods speed Hassan on his road to catch the assassin and resurrect Aegyptus. I trust that Tertia will watch his back and write us of their adventures! Hopefully we will be able to visit as the years go by, although time is shorter for humans… I also hope that Tertia’s family grows and prospers with her share of the wealth we stumbled / fought our way into over the last months. It seems strange to go separate ways so quickly
Mayhap I should have asked Venus about my family, but like Kleeck I can only go forward. I have seen too much and changed too much. Perhaps I will go back to the Green Company at some point, but for now Bandua needs help and Kleeck a kind of healing that is not physical. Diana grace us all with time to grow and heal!

Missions/Quests Completed

• Campaign Milestone: Extinguish the black flame
• Campaign Milestone: Defeat Maagog
• Campaign Milestone: Wish Maagog to know peace

Report Date

23 Nov 2022