No matter where you go, there you are.
After wandering the streets for what felt like most of the night, the party finally decided to return to the entrance to the catacombs that was located in the house with the sun marking. After Feather Falling into the catacombs, we found another crudely scratched sun symbol which assured us we were on the right track.
Soon we discovered why the symbols were so crudely drawn. Urkel, as it turns out, was a ghoul. A ghoul that still managed to follow his faith in Pelor from his previous life, when he was a paladin of Pelor! Luckily, Drusilia was out of turnings for the day, or she may have dusted the poor fellow before we found this out. She can be a little trigger-happy around undead sometimes. (Not that I can blame her!)
After resting, Urkel provided us with the information on where to find Kartharsis. He also provided Drusilia with a very nice mace, a new holy symbol, and a scroll. He then asked her to end his misery, which she did using the new mace. Rather than smashing him outright, it turned him to dust! Drusilia then gathered the dust, and after a moment of prayer, it turned to diamond dust! Thanks to Urkel, Drusilia was then able to restore us all to health!
Now we have made it to the lair of Kartharsis and are planning to enter. The trip here was uneventful, except for a swarm of rats and a couple vampire spawn that we had to handle.
I did find a moment when we weren’t in danger to play a little game with Aramil. When we re-entered the tower that he had torched earlier, I made an illusion as if the tower were not at all damaged! Being the arsonist that he is, he was very upset, and began ‘climbing’ the illusionary stairs looking for what could have gone wrong! This lasted only a few minutes before Ghelt put an end to it, but it was good for a laugh. Maybe it will also help him realize the power of magic, so he will quit playing at being a fighter?
In any case, it is time to concentrate on the task at hand, and I must prepare.
~=Fafnir Flamebrewer=~
Well instead of staying at the inn and fighting all night we went back to the house with the sun symbol on it. Valon, the Bard, used a feather fall spell to get us all down. Drusilia noticed another sun symbol on the ground in the eastern part of the corridor, and so we went that way. After a while the feeling of being watched went away, and I began to feel better. We went to a room, and there was a ghoul jumping around. Lo and behold, it was Urkel. After some debate I went to sleep, Pockets watched for me, then I got up and studied my spells, when I was done I noticed Urkel was giving Drusilia some things. A greater holy symbol and a very powerful mace. It was in that moment that I realized Urkel had at one time been a paladin of Pelor. It’s amazing what true faith can do.
Drusilia then fulfilled his last request on earth, to end his misery. She’s upset now, but she’ll be fine. Valon was given a map, and we went above ground to the tower I’d torched. I wanted to enjoy my handiwork, but when I entered there was no harm done at all, I even walked up to the very top. Then I got hit by a door. This was strange till it all disappeared. Ghelt told me that Fafner liked to play illusions on the party and at one point even played a mean joke on Drusilia. She also told me he had a thing for a mule they had for a little while, but I don’t even want to understand that.
Anyway, Pockets was asked to check this trapdoor to see if it was locked, and it wasn’t so when Valon opened it he was nearly turned into stone. He was able to shake that off, and started down the ladder which collapsed out from under him. Feather fall came in very handy at that point. After some work, Ghelt attached a rope to a crowbar and holding on to it I began to climb down. There was some give at first, but no one said anything to me so I continued down.
Valon and I were soon attacked be Vampire spawn. Then the party came down right on top of me. With their help we took care of them, and after walking a little were attacked by dire rats and some wraith things. We were able to fight them off, but I’m weaker, and we still need to fight this vampire. May the gods help us.
When I last wrote my notes we were in the bar, having just ran off some nasty creatures. So it is there that I will pick back up. And here the story starts with a very familiar sound, party arguing over what to do.
Alas, Valon stood strong and suggested we go back to the building with the sun symbol and look for Urkel. A born leader that one is, I am very proud. We head out through the rain and lightning back to the crumbled building we had seen earlier. When we got there, a feather-fall spell was used to get us down to the catacombs. There we found the remains of what used to be a set of stairs that would confirm what the “Angel” said.
The further we go the more problem I have with this “Angel” idea. If you ask me the party has taken everything it has said as if it was an undisputable truth. Me, I don’t put one hundred percent trust in anything but me. And sometimes, I don’t trust myself completely. Many a story has begun with truths, just to set up the sucker for the kill. I need not look too far back to see this in my own life. Yes, there is a particular mage who will regret sending me and my friend here.
Well, back to the catacombs. At the bottom, once the party decided that light would help our efforts, we discovered another crudely drawn sun symbol. This convinced Drusilia that we had to be on the correct path. (Like a fish to a worm these clerics and their gods.) Anyway, we followed the path to a room with a ghoul. As it turns out, it was good that the I wasn’t the first one there, for Urkel would have been shot right off the start.
Drusilia quickly entered a strange conversation with the Urkel and explained to the party that we would be better off resting here. Hmmm. With a ghoul that we can trust, she says. Just to be safe I let Aramil rest first while I kept my bow aimed at the Urkel’s head. I had heard him say to her that he just wanted a nibble, and pointed to her arm.
The next morning we were all their and the Urkel was talking to Drusilia again. He explained some history of the area and what needed to be done. The Urkel then went to a place in a wall that I had not noticed and pulled out some items. He gave them to Drusilia, they appeared to me to be worth a great deal, but I still don’t like this creature.
Drusilia tells us that the Urkel was once a paladin of Pelor. Not a very good one if you ask me, he has been a ghoul for a thousand years. I just don’t like those flesh eating freaks. I don’t care what they did before. The Urkle then said his job was done and he wanted to die. Waahhhoooo, sword is out and I am going at him. Then suddenly the Dwarf tackles me and says that it should be done by Drusilia. Despite my struggles, she holds me down until the task is finished by Drusilia.
I offer a bag to use as a means of carrying the remains, then they seem offended that I mention how much they might be worth. A strange group I have fallen into.
After a few minutes Drusilia ask me for the bag back that I had the remains in, she opened the bag to find it full of diamond dust. Then she wouldn’t give it back. At least she used some of the stuff to restore my weakness and some of the other party members also.
Among the items given to us by the flesh eating freak, was a map of the catacombs. So the party set out to kill the vampire thing that lives under the tower that Aramil burned. When we got their the party was looking for the way into the catacombs, I found a doorway and stood back for the party to learn a lesson. I wish it wasn’t such a dangerous one though in hind-sight. First Valon went over to open the door without a proper check for traps, instead of talking I ducked behind Aramil. (They have to learn to respect me and my skills.) A powder comes out of the door when Valon tried to open it, and it nearly killed him.
I handed Valon my everburning torch to look into the hole, and it couldn’t chase the darkness at all. (I should have stepped up after that and helped.) Luckily someone thought of casting a powerful light spell on the torch, which defeated the darkness spell and showed a ladder that only went a few feet, but the drop was a long one after that. So Valon started down the ladder, he was going to tie a rope at the bottom and climb down. But as he got onto the ladder, the pins released and Valon and the ladder fell. Lucky for us Valon can cast feather-fall, or we would be having the party leader argument again. This was a well thought out trap, this means we are close. Nobody puts an easy trap near their loot.
As the party figured out how to get down, Valon and Aramil (who used a spider climb) came under attack by vampire-like things. We did a group feather-fall and helped them in the battle. Although, I think that Aramil will have a different version since Drusilia fell on his head. Then as the party gathered itself we were attacked by a hoard of large rats. It was a short battle, but it served its purpose, we made plenty of noise killing the creatures off.
We are close now, I can feel the hair on the back of my neck standing up. Soon we will fight the big vampire, I would feel better if we had some sunlight on our side, or an army of Paladins, yes that is what I think we need.