Bob lay on the floor, panting. After a few
minutes, he raised a finger and tried to stoke his rage once more. He realized
he was too tired to care, and went back to panting. “I’m…I’m gonna need five
minutes here, you, you party-splitting Westerners,” he mumbled.
Varien made his way back to the main
passage and ran into Radegast.
“Varien, was Xylon recently involved,
romantically speaking, with a dark-haired human woman?” Radegast asked.
Varien frowned. “Yes, her name is Elsa –
she’s a barmaid back in Phandalin, and-” he shook his head suddenly. “Wait,
this is not the time to talk about such trivialities, Radegast!”
Radegast pursed her lips. “I think you
might change your opinion on that if you were to see what just went down in the
next cavern over.”
Varien pointed over Radegast’s shoulder. “I
doubt it. Now, go fetch the rest of the party for us. We can’t let the Black
Spider escape!”
He and Theryn took the northern passage.
Radegast exhaled sharply. “Sure,” she
said. “Now, where did that passage lead
back to?” She turned, considering her options. “I could…I could cast minor illusion on this here arrow and
fire it back to tell them where to go…” She began wandering back in what she
thought was the right direction.
After a few wrong turns, she made it back
to the smelter cavern.
“Hey!” Radegast shouted. “Varien wants you
to pick yourselves up and follow him to the northwest! This arrow will point
the way!” She fired an arrow into the wall and promptly turned and headed
north, jumping down into the stone channel.
Alec was still sprawled on the ground,
unconscious and snoring.
Varien and Theryn came to a t-junction.
“Which way?” the monk hissed.
Varien swept his glowing sword to the west
and then to the east. “My instincts say west, but…”
There was a sudden thud as a pair of black-fletched arrows struck home, hitting the
paladin from the eastern direction.
“Yeemik!” Varien howled, and ran towards
the hidden goblin snipers.
The pair found themselves on a ledge
overlooking a rock-choked chasm. Nearby, ropes were staked into the stony
ground, leading over the edge of the escarpment. To the north, a stream
trickled over the side of the ledge.
Of the goblins there was no sign.
“Follow me, Theryn!” Varien used his boots of striding and springing to clear
the stream, and entered a worked section of the passage that led to a set of
stone stairs. He hopped down the stairs to the first landing.
And came to a sudden stop.
The paladin was frozen in place. Along the
lowest edge of his peripheral vision, he could see purple lines beneath his
feet begin to glow.
Theryn was a few steps behind the paladin
and saw the purple runes begin to glow with an unearthly light, with motes of
dark purple, like pollen, floating up around Varien in a cylindrical fashion.
“What the…” Theryn said. He took a closer
look and realized that Varien had blundered over a glyph of warding, one
specifically written to mimic the hold
person spell.
Still frozen, Varien caught sight of a
goblin sauntering around the corner, and leisurely lining up a shot with his
bow and arrow.
So
this is how I die, Varien thought.
Radegast followed the stone channel she had
previously scouted, and found herself standing on a sheer edge twenty feet
above a rocky chasm. She could see ropes hanging from the far ledge just south
of a waterfall.
Unhooking her grappling hook, she tied off
one end and gave it a toss into the darkened ceiling, choked with stalactites.
The grappling hook found purchase, and soon Radegast was swinging over the
chasm, her hair flowing in the wind. She swung over the stream and landed
catlike on the stone ground.
Bob got to his feet painfully as Xylon
continued to stand over the broken body of the doppelganger. He put his hand on
his brother’s brow and whispered a quick healing prayer.
Alec started awake and coughed. “Thank you,
brother!” he said as Bob pulled him to his feet. The Trevelyan brothers
embraced.
“Did I hear Radegast yelling something?”
Bob said to Xylon.
“Huh?” The wizard said distantly. “Oh,
maybe. I’m still a little confused…”
“We’ll sort out who screwed who when we get
back to Phandalin,” Bob said, clapping a hand on Xylon’s shoulder. “But for
now, we’ve got more pressing matters.” He turned to Erwen, who was watching Who
chow down on the broken body of the bugbear. “Druid, surely you must have some
healing abilities.”
“Oh sure,” Erwen said. He cast cure wounds on himself first, and then
turned to Bob and Alec, healing them as well.
Alec smiled and shrugged off his injuries.
“Just caught my second wind, I think.”
“I think Varien headed to the west,” Bob
said. Xylon took a look around and concurred. “Let’s go,” he said. Erwen and
Who followed behind Bob, Alec and Xylon.
Alec pondered the moments that propelled
him into this situation.
The goblin’s arrow struck Varien near the
collarbone.
Theryn grimaced and hefted his
quarterstaff, gingerly putting his weight into it as he pushed Varien’s frozen
form until gravity took hold.
Unable to stop himself, Varien fell
face-first onto the ground. He felt his nose crack and reached up to grab it.
He realized he could move.
Looking down, he could see that his feet
were mere inches from the edge of the warding script.
He looked up at the surprised goblin archer
standing before him.
“Wait, this isn’t how I die,” Varien said,
springing to his feet. “This is how YOU die!”
Theryn planted his quarterstaff and
pole-vaulted over the glyph, which already seemed to be fading in intensity. He
landed next to the paladin, swung his quarterstaff, which missed by mere
inches, and attempted to kick the goblin, who ducked.
“Whoops!”
the goblin shouted. He fired another arrow, which missed, and then spun on his
heel and disappeared down the passageway.
Varien cast cure wounds on himself.
“Hello boys,” Radegast said from behind
them. “Did you notice the glyph of
warding on the ground here on the landing?”
Varien pulled the arrow from his clavicle
with a sickening sucking sound. “Yes, yes we did.”
The paladin, monk and bard began creeping
down the passageway to the west.
An arrow flashed down the hallway, missing
the three of them and plunking against the far wall.
“Dammit!” they heard a goblin curse.
Then a deeper voice rang out in the chamber
beyond. “Come into my parlour…”
Xylon, Bob, Alec, and Erwen moved through
the barracks, stepping over the bodies of several ghouls and bugbears, and
found the passageway to the north. Xylon handed Alec the Clockdrive goggles.
The fighter put them on, and marveled at
his newfound ability to see in the dark. He also realized that he could see
great detail on surfaces up close and far away, as if he was using a magnifying
glass.
He came to a t-junction, and looked to his
left and right. Using his goggles, he could see something on the ground to the
west, like intricate chalk drawings.
“There’s something etched on the floor
here,” he told the rest of the party.
Xylon’s eyes narrowed. “Yes, now that you
mention it I can see it too. Likely a glyph
of warding ." He approached it carefully, squatting down near the edge of the
runes.
“What is it?” Bob asked.
Xylon slowly got to his feet and began
backing away. “They’re explosive runes, Bob. Best move back a fair ways.”
“Should we launch a fire bolt at it?” Bob asked.
Xylon shook his head. “Waste of a spell,
really. We can activate the glyph in other ways, but you’ll want to move back
to a safe distance.”
Bob, Alec, Erwen, and Who obliged the wizard.
Xylon cast mage hand and sent it towards the glyph.
The spectral hand seemed to hesitate before
gliding towards the glyph, and very gently settled atop it.
There was a sudden surge of supernatural
energy as lightning blossomed from the glyph, filling the corridor in both
directions with searching tendrils of electrical bolts. The party could smell
ozone, and all of Xylon’s hair stood on end. He turned to his friends and gave
them a thumb’s up.
From the hallway, Xylon’s mage hand was giving him the finger.
Varien, Theryn, and Radegast heard the
surge of lightning energy and felt strong vibrations from the south.
A sarcastic chuckle rang out. “Sounds as
though your friends have walked into my trap.”
The trio retreated, fearful at what they
would discover.
As they rushed into the waterfall cavern,
they ran into Bob, Alec, Xylon, and Who.
Seeing that he was all right, Radegast
swept up Bob in a sudden bear hug. Bob was surprised, but hugged her back until
he remembered who it was hugging him, and squirmed away.
“What happened?” Varien asked Xylon.
“Explosive runes,” Xylon said. “Triggered
it remotely. No harm done.”
“Good,” Varien said. “We’ve got the Black
Spider trapped here, and if we cover this exit and the one to the north, he
won’t be able to escape.”
Theryn held up a hand. “Wait, are we really
going to walk into a battle when we’re not at full strength? Some of us have
been through the meat-grinder today.”
“What would you suggest, Theryn?” Varien said.
“A tactical withdrawal?” Theryn said.
“Ah, but then the Black Spider would get
away, wouldn’t he?” Varien said.
Erwen nodded and wildshaped into the form
of a giant spider.
Bob quickly decided he would assist Varien
and cover the eastern passage with Theryn and Alec.
Erwen-Spider, Who, Radegast, and Xylon
moved down the now-cleared passageway and found a heavy set of stone doors
leading to the north.
Xylon nodded at Erwen-Spider and Who. They
pushed against the stone doors, forcing them open.
They could see into a large hall, the walls
of which were lined with six cracked marble pillars. At the north end stood a
nine-foot-tall statue of a dwarf seated on a throne, a mighty stone warhammer
across his lap. Large emeralds gleamed in the statue’s eyes.
The dust and debris covering the floor had
been swept to one side, revealing a tiled mosaic depicting an eagle locked in
mortal combat with a snake-like creature. A campsite of sorts had been set up
atop the mosaic, with half a dozen bedrolls and packs neatly arranged around a
rough-built fire pit. A wooden table stood on the west side of the room between
two of the pillars.
As Who and Erwen-Spider crept into the
hall, the white tendrils of spider webbing splatted down upon them. The owlbear
was held fast in place, while Erwen-Spider’s body proved immune to the sticky
threads.
“So good of you to join us,” a voice called
out, in a Drowish accent.
Radegast walked in. “Would you look at this
architecture!” She said, throwing her arms wide. “We can’t have a battle in an
environment of such historical significance.”
“Oh, is that so?” the voice said
sardonically. “I for one find this Dwarven stonecraft incredibly tedious. After
all, what scope for skill can holds grubbed out of the rock afford?”
Radegast continued to walk forward, nimbly
sidestepping a splash of spiderweb. “I would beg to differ, sir. Perhaps if you
considered the theories of Velgred Despafin…”
“I did not come here to discuss
architectural lessons with a half-caste,” the voice said.
“Ouch, that hurt!” Radegast said. “And
after all we’ve done for you here. Keep talking that way and I won’t tell you
where I’ve hidden the Forge of Spells.”
“What is she going on about?” Bob hissed to
Alec in the side passage.
“Perhaps I should mind my manners,” the
voice said. From behind a pillar stepped a male Drow, dressed in black leathers
with a cape that swirled around him. In his hand he held a black staff, the end
of which was capped with a stylized spider. “Tell me more about this Forge of
Spells you have, as you say, hidden away.”
“Well, you have to consider the force we
were able to bring to bear on the creatures in this mine,” Radegast said. “I
mean, did you see that wraith that we destroyed!”
“I know all about your friends,” The Black
Spider smiled. “The brash paladin, the Halfling druid who likes to play at
wildshaping, the monk.” He nodded at Who, who was grunting and struggling
against his spiderweb bonds. “The owlbear is new, but I believe he was King
Grol’s prized pet. At any rate, I know that your meddling friends number no
more than six.”
Xylon was a little disappointed that the
Black Spider didn’t mention him.
“I’ll be honest,” Radegast said. “I have no
quarrel with you, but you are holding a friend of ours captive, so perhaps we
could work out a trade?”
Varien took advantage of Radegast’s
repartee to sneak into the chamber.
“I suppose I should thank your friends for
clearing the eastern section of the mine, but I will spare them the platitudes
of gratitude,” the Black Spider said. “After all, I’m just not that good a
liar.”
“We appreciate your honesty,” Radegast
said. “But surely you must be interested in the Forge of Spells’ capabilities.”
She pulled out the glowing longsword. “Would you care to see it?”
“I will see it for myself, half-caste,” The
Black Spider said. “But from a distance, not up close. Put the sword on the
ground before you and step away.”
“There’s still a chance for a friendly trade,”
Radegast said, edging forward.
“I think not,” The Black Spider said.
“Fair enough,” Radegast said, and lunged at
the Drow with her sword.
A single tear rolled down Xylon’s cheek.
“Aha, half-caste! That’s the spirit!” the
Black Spider shouted, deftly dodging Radegast’s attack. He reached out for the
half-elf, his black-gloved hand suddenly withering and elongating. Radegast
swung her shield and blocked the Black Spider’s vampiric touch attack.
Bob rushed into the room, intent on hurling
a fire bolt at the Black Spider, but
as he ducked behind a pillar, he ran straight into a hidden bugbear.
“S’uh, dude,” Bob said, and cast shocking grasp , enveloping the bugbear
in crackling energy. He then turned and rolled behind Varien, and in the
process stepped on a goblin who had been about to stab the paladin from behind.
Theryn rushed into the room, quarterstaff
at the ready.
The bugbear swung his Morningstar and
knocked the monk off his feet. Theryn hit the ground, staring upwards with
sightless eyes.
“Well, well,” The Black Spider said. “At
last we have exchanged pleasantries. You’ve laid out many of my minions, so
it’s only fair that I do the same.”
Radegast made a desperate lunge for the Black Spider, but missed.
“We’ll see how you fare against a better
class of hired help,” The Black Spider said, snapping his fingers.
From around several of the pillars crept
four giant spiders. Erwen-Spider snapped at the nearest one with his mandibles,
and it responded by rearing up on its back legs, preparing to strike.
Bob froze as he gazed upon his worst fears
realized.
The spider above him sprayed him with
webbing and Bob was suddenly stuck to the stone surface of the hall.
Bob’s teeth began to chatter.
Alec ran forward and exchanged blows with
the bugbear.
Xylon felt his frustrations boiling over.
He strode into the hall and pointed at the Black Spider, bringing every ounce
of his regal heritage to bear.
“Knave, you will calm your spiders and
leave this place immediately!”
Xylon’s voice rang out, quieting the
spiders and the sound of fighting.
The Black Spider took half a step back, and
then recovered some of his panache. “Ah, I was not aware that I was in the
company of royalty this day!” He bowed mockingly towards Xylon. “Truly that
weighs heavily on my conscience.” He waved his hands at Xylon’s friends. “But I
wonder, what common cause could a Prince of Aval’ynn have with
these…commoners?”
Xylon continued to glare at the Black
Spider. “Think of them as my personal guard. I take any harm that comes to them
personally. You need to leave before the Kingdom of Aval’ynn decides to deal
with you directly and permanently.”
The Black Spider nodded. “I had not
anticipated raising the ire of an entire elven kingdom in the course of my
business dealings. I propose a trade. Allow me to leave, and I will hand over
the hostage you seek unharmed.”
“Aww, c’mon!” A familiar voice shouted.
From behind a pillar near the rear of the hall stepped Yeemik. The goblin
pointed at the Black Spider. “After all this, you’re just going to give up and
leave?” He pointed at the party members. “They have killed so many Cragmaw
goblins our tribe may never rebuild! I don’t believe this cowardice!”
The Black Spider spared an icy glance at
the enraged goblin. “I don’t recall asking your opinion on the matter, you
simpering worm. Be quiet when grown-ups are talking.”
Yeemik hurled his blade to the ground in
frustration.
“So, do we have an accord?” The Black
Spider said. “My freedom for the dwarf?”
Radegast sheathed her blade.
Varien clenched his fist at his side, then
exhaled. “You may go, after you tell us where the dwarf is.”
“You walked right by his quarters,” The Black Spider said. “I’m honestly
surprised you missed him.”
Varien stepped back into the passageway and
spied a sealed door. Breaking out the battering ram, he knocked it in and
stepped inside. Dusty draperies adorned the walls of the chamber, and the
rotted remains of a bed stood near a cold brazier. On the floor was a bound and
gagged dwarf who bore some familial resemblance to Gundren Rockseeker.
Varien walked back into the room. “He’s
alive. You can leave now.”
The Black Spider bowed deeply. “I will
leave you with a parting gift – the eyes of this dwarven statue are wondrous
gemstones. They are yours to plunder.” He straightened up. “Now, normally I
would say that you haven’t seen the last of the Black Spider, but in this
case-” He snapped his fingers and disappeared.
The remaining goblins came out from their
hiding places and stood near the bugbear. “That deal apply to us too?” the
bugbear growled.
“Just go,” Varien said.
The goblins and the spiders began filing
out of the room.
Yeemik picked his knife off the ground.
“Better luck next time, I guess,” he sneered.
Varien nodded to Erwen-Spider.
As Yeemik walked by, Erwen-Spider bit him
on the ass with his mandibles.
“Aww, c’mon!” The goblin shrieked and then
scampered into the darkness of the passageway.
Bob knelt down beside Theryn and stabilized
him.
“I’ve got Nundro,” Varien said. “Grab
Theryn and let’s get back to Gundren.”
“What about the Forge of Spells?” Bob said.
“Shouldn’t we try to neutralize it before we leave?”
“Yeah, but what about this statue?” Xylon
said. “The Black Spider said it was valuable.”
“Take a look, but we’ve got to go,” Varien
said. “The Black Spider might kill Gundren on his way out just to spite us.”
Xylon and Radegast took a closer look at
the statue. It was a statue of Dumathoin, the dwarven god of mining, and his
eyes indeed looked like they were studded with large emeralds.
Xylon detected an aura of abjuration magic
surrounding the statue.
“Hmm, it could be booby-trapped,” he said.
“Sounds like the Black Spider’s style,”
Varien said. To Bob he said, “Fine, let’s swing by the Forge of Spells on our
way.”
“I wonder if I could pry those gems loose?”
Xylon said to himself.
As the party returned to the Forge of
Spells, Radegast noticed that the green gleam of enchantment on her rapier was
fading, like a film that was evaporating from the surface of her weapon. She
asked the other members with Forge-enchanted equipment about it, and they too
realized that their weapons and armor were indeed glowing less brightly than
they had been an hour or so before.
The Forge of Spells still glowed, albeit
weakly. Radegast thrust her rapier into the green flame and worked it over with
tongs and hammer. It took about twice as long for her to get the enchanting
glow back to full strength than it did the first time, and when she finished,
the Forge’s glow was down to a barely flickering nub of green.
“So, the Forge is on its last legs, then?”
Bob said. “That sucks.”
The party made their way to the entrance of
Wave Echo Cave.
Gundren poked his head out from beneath a
pile of camping equipment. “Ach, what in blazes happened to you in there! A
whole mess of villains just marched out of here a few minutes ago, grumbling
all the while.”
“We faced down the Black Spider,” Varien
said. “And we rescued your brother.” He lay down Nundro’s body in front of Gundren.
“Me brother!” Gundren shouted with joy. “I
thought I’d never lay eyes on him again!” He rummaged through a crate of
equipment and came up with two healing potions. “Here’s one for your friend,” he
said, nodding at Theryn’s body. Then he knelt and drained the potion down his
brothers gullet, quickly replacing it with a stein of beer as soon as Nundro
spluttered awake.
Bob administered the healing potion to
Theryn and woke him up.
The Rockseeker brothers embraced and there
were manly (well, dwarfly) tears.
“And what of the Black Spider?” Gundren
said.
“The Black Spider lives, sadly,” Varien
said. “But he will not trouble you again.”
“Aye, well, you did what you could,”
Gundren said. “My brother and I owe you a debt of gratitude, and once the mine
is back up and running, you’ll receive your promised share, I promise you that!”
“That’s wonderful, Gundren,” Varien said. “But
what we could use right now is a good, long rest.”
“Excellent,” Gundren said. “But first, could I interest
you in a pint?”