The party left the House of Pale
Lanterns to its apparent bloody end at the hands of the Drow bounty hunter
Tinve Aleeza’baen,
and ventured back down the disused sewer tunnel, discussing their next move as
they travelled. Their plans however, were cut short by screams – both demonic and human alike – echoing down the tunnel from
topside. Venturing up and into the courtyard of the ‘Flowers in a Cursed Land’ Brothel they were met with a grisly
sight: Panicked patrons scurried all over the place, while demonic shapes
flittered on rooftops overhead. The sky has turned a deep crimson colour, and
above them hung a huge and terrible image of a total eclipse. It was clear that
their time had run out, and the Eclipse ceremony was finally upon them.
Barging past the panicking men and
women of the brothel, they stepped out into the street, only to be greeted by
four figures; a tiefling brandishing a long, thin blade, a goliath barbarian, a
robed man holding a wicked looking mace and a man wielding a greatsword,
dressed in the outfit of a Warrior of Elemental Chaos. Each of these men had a
black blindfold over their eyes. Turning to Alain Fu, they spoke of him as “brother”, and asked for his return to their
side. Alain Fu, stepped forward and within a moment unleashed a spell at the
men, ignoring their cryptic requests. A battle ensued, and strange demons that
bore the upside heads of women were summoned, demons that seemed to excite the
Cyrinishad in Christophe’s procession. All where dispatched however, as Tinve emerged
from a side alley to assist.
Quickly deciding that the best course
of action was to fight their way to to Lord Azzur’s palace to seek the ruler’s aid, Christophe first paid Tinve to
assist them, to which she told him she would consider it. Making headway
through the stricken streets of Khare, they arrived on Palace Street, only for
the way to be blocked by a fierce looking goat-headed demon, and some
horrifying tentacles that seemed to burst up out of the ground. Seeing off this
threat, they were soon treated to a fresh terror, as the tentacles belonged to
a much larger beast that was hidden beneath the ground – a Devourer, a giant ravenous demon
born from the filth and gore that collects in the deepest recesses of the
Abyss. Retreating from this vile creature, Alain Fu unloaded the full force of
his spells into it, serving both to harm it considerably, but also to rile it
up something fierce. Bursting through the wall of spells Fu had erected, the
Devourer charged forth, grasping Fu in its vile talons and swallowing him
whole. The rest of the party ran towards the creature, hacking away at its bulk. Knowing Alain Fu would not survive
long in the belly of this monster, Eored formulated a plan. Leaping into the
fray, he threw himself atop the demon, took out his Elixir of Gaseous Form and
hurled into its
gaping maw, losing his little finger to its teeth in the process. Within moments
the huge demon dissolved to a gas and was carried away on the wind, leaving
Alain Fu lying on the pavement. With no time to lose, the party gathered their
wits and headed towards the Palace.
Tinve had done her job after all, and
the fierce War Troll that guarded the palace gates had been dispatched by her
crossbow bolts. Disheartened by the loss, and fearing the burning acidic rain
that was pouring from the sky, the remaining gate guards soon lost their
resolve and fled their post. Forcing their way inside the palace, the party
came face to face with Lord Azzur upon his throne, guarded by a small handful
of Banite Templars. The leprous king of Khare, shaken with rage, demanded the
party tell them who was responsible for all this.
Before any could answer, the doors
behind them burst open, and in walked a man who could only be the famed
Pilgrim, with a coterie of demons and Varlets. In answer to Azzur’s question he declared “I am!” in a thunderous tone, and removed
his leather mask. All were took aback, as the face they saw was the face of
Alain looking back at them…
Tune in next time for the shocking
truth behind the Blind Varlets….
