The session began where it had left off, deep in the elemental prison of Earth in the lair of the Medusa that had fought the characters. The characters decided that a long rest was in good order for everyone and since the area was defensible with only one approach the characters decided to pitch their invulnerable dome in that entrance. They rested.
When the resting was complete the adventurers decided to head off and explore more using the exploration pattern, left, left, left, left . . .. Their scout the Ranger Korin went ahead and returned to report that e passage they were following was a long one. They decided to continue. Soon he came back to report that it ended in a cavern with some figures playing in the shadows of the gloom. When they all gathered at the entrance they saw that the dust was less in this area and that the figures were Earth Elementals, one was the same size as the ones they had fought in the Temple of Earth and of the other two, one was larger and one was smaller. They were playing a game using a round boulder and kicking it at one of three targets that was guarded by one of the other Elementals. They decided to try to walk by the man shaped lumps of stone. As they approached, the larger one stopped and said something that sounded vaguely like pebbles falling on a rock from height. The middle sized one stopped too, but the little one kicked the boulder into one of the targets gaining a point against one of its fellows, before joining the others.
The largest held his hand forward and spoke with words that sounded like two large stones grinding together. In his hand it had seven valuable gems. The Elementals were blocking the access to the rest of the cavern. The Warlock cast a spell to Comprehend his language. The Elemental repeated, "Free passage for a good gem, one per body". The party conferred and they offered the Elementals 7 gems, 100 gp value apiece. The ones in the Elemental's hands were valued at 1000 gp. The the Elementals seemed to know the difference and held out for more. The players offered them copper and the Elementals responded, "Metals not good, Gems good!". The players mimed that they had no more to give them and the Elementals gestured, "Fine, one time pass, no more." and they widened their stance and shifted to allow the characters freedom to pass. "Where were we?" in a voice like gravel ground under foot. The little one piped up in a voice like crystal snapping in a vice grip, 3-4-1, Garnet in possession." "No, no, 2-4-1, you took unfair advantage after I called a time out…".
The party moved passed them. In the extreme end of the cavern there was a cold breeze in the air and the dust left the area entirely. There was a magic circle inscribed on the ground, in the shape of a circle. It was like the triangular symbol that sent them to this prison in every way except its shape. The wind emitting from the area suggested that it was leading to the Air Prison. At this point the characters began talking amongst themselves about the nature of their prison and where it could be located. The properties of the prison were very much like where they came from but different. The Warlock expressed one of the leading theories of the common people from e streets of Jarda near the Bardic College, that pure elemental planes existed and came together to create the world around them in different quantities in different areas, while the Gnome countered with some scientific knowledge that he read in a book once that Elementals came from pure examples of their element found in the world and were an expression of the natural intelligence of the world. The Dwarf said at she had heard a mixture of the two versions, that dwarves were created in the same way that Earth Elementals were but that was countless generations ago on a different plane of reality. But that miners often encountered Earth Elementals in homogeneous rock groups deep underground. The Druid said that she thought that Elementals felt natural and part of nature to the extent that she had heard rumours that some of her Order could assume the form of Elementals when they were more powerful and that since she couldn't shape change into anything but natural beasts, that made her feel the Gnome might actually be correct, for once.
The Warlock then stated that he did not want to head off to the Air prison right away, as there was some unfinished business he felt they had to do here. He told them that he was looking for a gem of power, a magical gem for the Golden Orb of Death. He felt strongly that there was one located in each of the Elemental prisons and he really did not want to come back here again. The others were noncommittal about his feelings, but they agreed that if he asked the Elementals playing that game at the entrance to the cavern about the gems of power and they did not know anything about them, they should all go to the Air Prison and be free of this toxic air. The Warlock reluctantly agreed. But then asked how they were going to speak to the Elementals? The party looked at him and told him that was his problem and started heading to the portal. Phil stopped and said, I have a spell that could bridge the language gulf between races . . .. It was decided that it would be cast on Vistra, as she was considered the most trustworthy of the party members, but also the most likely to survive a direct assault by the Elementals if they are insulted. Vistra privately thought this was the real reason.
The spell cast, Vistra approached the game playing Elementals. "3-5-8, take that Spinal!, I Jet will win with one more point! Stop. The flesh bags approach." Vistra asked the Elementals about magical gems and the Elementals said they knew of nothing like that. Vistra turned to leave, but Cal, asked if the Elementals knew who had most of the gems around here. The Elementals knew that, they said that the the Overlord and two fleshy serpents had most of the gems around here. Do you know where they are? The Elementals point to the North, to the North East and the South East. Which is the biggest Fleshy Serpent and could you lead us to its lair? The Elementals said they could, but they wanted half of all the gems if they were going to fight the Fleshy serpent. The party considered it and asked if they would fight the fleshy serpent with them, and they said no, we will only lead you there. So the party said then we will only give you a fourth part of the gems. The lead Elemental Jet countered quickly three parts of ten, but we get first choice, final offer. The party agreed. The Elementals led the way directly heading through the rock wall. After a few minutes the Elementals returned. Vistra then said, please lead us through the airy passages, we can not walk through rock. The Elementals laughed like an avalanche and struck out again leading them along a path they could follow.
Along the way, jet chatted occasionally with Vistra, saying they did not believe that flesh bags were intelligent and thought they were mewling animals. It said that the Flesh serpent was strong and had six elemental allies. He gestured to a cave and said they are in here and they walked into the nearest wall and extended a limb to point the way.
The party elected to tell Korin to scout out the lair of the dragon to see what he could see. Korin came back after a few minutes. He said the page age split into two entrances, one about thirty feet across and another that was a little more than a crack that one person could slowly squeeze through with care. The cavern beyond was well lit, with plumes of fire jetting up from unseen gasses regularly on the wall and from fissures in the ground. There was a pool at the back of the cave that was relatively in the dark with only a few gas flames lighting the pool. He recalled that the cave was smooth as if the wals were melted and they entire area smelled of strong vinegar. There were pools of water littered all over the place and there was no dust in the air anywhere. He could not see the Fleshy Serpent, but there were six badger like Elementals playing or fighting in the area before the pool.
They asked if Korin wanted to start the battle by killing as many of the elemental creatures as he could. A little sparkle glinted in his eye at the suggestion, suggesting that someone would need to have a little talk with him at a later time, and he was off. The party crept slowly up the larger path. As they neared ready they signaled Korin and he drew back his hand a loosed three arrows in quick succession, killing two outright and maiming another. Then without pause he drew back two more arrows and struck down a third and wounded a second. Not to be left out the Gnome mounted on his celestial giant mountain goat, charged into the room. The pseudo-Elementals dived into the earth to protect themselves from the deadly attacks that had killed half their number, perhaps also to flee the clatter of the suicidal Gnome. The rest of the party approached the future battle field with trepidation slowly. The gnome continued his mad rush until he reached the water's edge, hoping that if there was a 'fleshy serpent' it would reveal itself. The tactic worked flawlessly. At that very moment the image of the paladin astride his goat, with both of their flesh sloughing off into a pool of acid made sense to the Warlock, and he told the Paladin to raise his shield! Without second guessing his allies odd foreboding command, he did so, and the stream of acid that splashed off his shield at point blank, his mount stepped to the side as the slew of flesh melting liquid drained off his shield. The real foe now on the battle field and most of the companions far away, the Cal called for those that could see him to rally to their foolhardy paladin's defense and to Charge!
Inspired they ran as fast as they could to reach him before the beast could dismember Moolite, once and for all. The paladin with noble intentions made a rude gesture towards the dragon and turned tail, hoping to lead it to his fellows. The dragon not taken by his bravado, shrugged off the challenge to duel him personally but instead grabbed hold of a short sword in his scaly talon and grabbed a potion of the the same shelf of the cave and drank it down in one second, then turned towards the creatures that would dare threaten it in its lair.
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I have always been a big fan of equipping monsters with their own treasure. How often have adventurers defeated a monster and found that it had a ring of regeneration in the hoard? To many times, if the creature is intelligent, I treat the monster as if it had a brain. So, when threatened, the dragon grabbed two magic items, a Defender short sword and a potion of Speed and used them. The armour class of the dragon rose from 17 to 22 and the dragon could move twice and make two bite attacks and two claw attacks or breathe acid and make a bite and two claw attacks, except this time one of the claws would be with a sword and cause less damage, but still.
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Cal seing the Dragon do something strange pulled his Wad of Paralyzation out and tried to paralyze the dragon. The dragon failed its saving throw and was paralyzed. Io fired her Wand of a Wonder and the dragon fell down a 10' pit, but as it was in the water, it suffered no damage. Vistra, seeing the strange behaviour in the mister decided that there was no alternative, but to invoke her Blessing of the Hidden goddess and she charged into battle with the weight of a glorious Dwarven warrior, that was hasted. She charged forward at twice her movement, and lashed out at the scaly beast, the normal flurry of attacks were at advantage to hit, because it was paralyzed and her damage was all critical, because she could line up each stroke to cause maximum effect. She struck the dragon three times, paused and with a surge attacked another two times dealing a whopping 110 points of damage. The dragon's head landed ten feet further back than its body and sank into the pool. The Elementals emerged from the wall I time to look at the amassed treasure, they selected three of the gems as their due and told them to keep the rest. The total value of the gems selected was 7000 gp, the initial asking price for free travel to the air portal and so, they reasoned they had earned that price as well. The other treasure included a lot of gems and the sword and a potion of healing. Also was the Water Gem of power, which the Warlock placed into the crown of the Skull artifact. They decided that they would travel to the Prison of Air and see what was there.
When they arrived they were on a pinnacle in the center of an airy prison. The walls were tall and ended in sky with an odd blue and green moon in the sky along with the Suns of home. The prison was shaped like an oval about a mile deep and half as much wide. The plain below was scattered with snow squalls and blowing winds, there were eddies flowing through the winds stirring the snow on the ground. The path was treacherous heading down to the plain and there were slips and falls, but they managed to reach the bottom without incident. When they gathered themselves to make thier way to one of the cave mouths they saw from up high they noticed eight men rise up from behind folds in the terrain. They were dressed in piecemeal armour and fur covered hides. The men looked hard as if they had passed through hell and were gaunt from a few missed meals. The lean muscles on their forearm was steady as they drew their bows, one called out, your equipment or your life.
Cal retorted, your equipment or your lives, we just defeated a dragon, your call. Then he suggested, but I rather we just be allies instead. The Bandit leader Gank shouted out, we already have and ally, and we don't need you. At that moment the wind shifted and the snow was instead driven toward them from behind and a large icy white serpent rose up towering over them but far enough away that the battle would be far from certain.
"I will bargain with you," it said, "you look like you are strong and are better able than my current allies. You can kill them if you can, but let me make common cause with you. You will find my desires are simple and my aid great". All of this was in accented Jardanese. Anxious to extend the stand off and to put off combat from two sides, Cal asked, what it wanted? The beast, hovered off the ground, and glanced over its shoulder and said, I desire freedom and I want to evolve. The desires of the dragon seemed odd. "Why don't you just fly way from this prison?". To which it replied, there is a ceiling and moreover this place is not where my kind live, there would be no evolving out there. What is Evolving? I grow when I eat my kind. I have not grown in over a century, I desire it much, all of our kind do, and this prison is barren of our kind, so I recognize that I need freedom, for that I will aid you the best I can. Korin asked if we free you where will you go? To where it is cold and far from you. Then why not stay here, it is cold here. Yes it is cold but I can't evolve here, take me with you and let me eat the others to evolve. Did you hatch here from an egg? I saw no egg, I gained sentience here a century ago and fought for dominance and evolved as far as I could go. The others, are they a mated pair? Mated? We do not mate like you animals, we are Dragonkind we grow powerful be eating each-other's essence, it has been a long time since I could evolve and the others are stronger than me and they each want eat me so that they might get an edge and eat the other. Let me aid you, let me evolve and I'll help you find freedom. What says that you won't betray us when you get what you want? What says that you won't betray me too, I know, I will swear and oath to your goddess Scoria and pray she strikes me down if I betray the oath, will that satisfy you? Enough, we will talk in the morning, you may rest with my minions, or you can eat them if you wish, but either way let's meet and destroy our enemies and gather your magic gems and free ourselves from this place. Shall we?
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