And thanks to, Solar's Happer, there is far less misspelled words.
***************
A little holiday shopping and then the business get's serious!
There was a messenger for Keldorn, and Markaan said.
"Now that we have the demon's heart, and my Planar Sphere, you can go and meet your family, we'll meet you back here, before we go to the Temple of Helm to heal our wounds."
And once Keldorn had left and they stood there by themselves, Markaan, Korgan and Haer'Dalis. Haer'Dalis asked.
"What or where are we going now?"
"We go to the Temple of Talos, I am not going to pay my soul to the all seeing damaged head ornament, and I am going to find out a thing or two from my brother's demons."
After arriving to the temple and receiving some healing for their wounds, Markaan asked for some aid in the other problem, for he wasn't able to summon his old familiar, the Imp.
The priest asked. "Do you know its name"
"Of course, it's written in this parchment."
"Thank you, I'll go and do some of the search."
The priest went to perform the rituals needed for the divination and conjuration spells, so Markaan waited.
When the priest returned, he had peculiar smile on his face and Markaan noticed this.
"Well. What you need is my help as it seems as the Imp has been banished from this plane of existence, but.. I can help you in it's returning, of course I need a donation for to cover the expenses."
Now the priest?s smile was even larger, almost unhuman.
This made Markaan to think, he retreated a little and casted a spell. But the result was a surprise to Markaan, as there he sensed no enmity from the priest, nor from anyone else in the room, although the priest's aura was true neutral. This just made Markaan more suspicious. Thinking this he casted another spell, a spell that would reveal parts of the undetermined future.
"Hhmm, ah, ouh, wow, a clever shot from me, even if I say so myself." Markaan spoke to himself under the spell, and as it wore off, he was clearly more pleased, and the priest asked from Markaan.
"Pleased, so can we start."
"Yeah, yes, yes."
Then in exchange for the gold the priest gave Markaan a scroll to read, and so they read the content of it simultaneously. A portal opened to a plane Markaan had never seen before and the Imp jumped for joy, and out of the portal. But it brought along another creature with. It had two legs, four arms, and its torso was a metal cube with clay that formed its face.
"Priest you never told me there could be coming two." But the priest was not there, he had departed to the winds, and so was the gold.
"Ah, Markaan, my master, I have missed you!"
"So, where have you been?"
"Well master, do you want me to lie, or not to tell you the truth?"
"Ah, it doesn't matter, but next time I can't recall you on my own, I'll leave you where you are, clear." And he began to stare the other being.
"OK, so no need to lie... So you want see this nice ring on my tail and to meat my new friend, this...
Then Markaan just turned away and released his Minor Sequencer spell to the new creature, two Acid arrows flow to it and it fell on the ground.
"Ouh." The Imp said. "But then again, I never really liked its too mechanical mind anyways."
"Now, we don't have to drag too much items with us, so let's move!" Markaan said, and they left to meet Keldorn, and then they went to the Government District.
~***~
"...turnips." The gnome said.
"Ah, I am sorry to bother you with this, but as the supervisor for the law, I have to ask. Was he troubling you, as there is a no selling of item allowed in the goverment district?"
Markaan answered, "No, I really wasn't listening, I think that he wanted to talk about the weather, or something such. But if you are interested, I saw a witch being burned near here."
"Yeah, but we can't take response of peoples beliefs as I think that the witch would soon had been trialed for murder or some such. But I am sorry for the intrusion. Goodbye, citizen." The guard wave at Markaan and left him with Jan Jensen.
~***~
"I should have never killed that darn ogre in the circus, ah, but it was so gad darn ugly, and the voice, aarrgghh, nah that was a bad idea anyway. But form where in the unheaven am I going to find my healings now, as I can't afford all those temple 'contributions', I can barely afford the spells from the Adventurer's Mart, ah and I have to pay the bastards of the Cowled Wizards the 5000 gp if I am to cast any of those spells in this cursed city, but only if... Ha, now I got it! Wha ha haa, this will be fun." He smiled.
Then the Imp came close to him and whispered things to his ear. "Ouh, yes!" He said. "But first I need to, ouh! Ah, now I know. I have got a present for you." Markaan smiled, and took a small sac containing few potions, and gave it to Jan Jansen.
"It's time to go on for some holiday shopping, but first we take some drinks." Markaan takes one of his last healing potions and clinked it with the other's as they chosen their's. For Korgan, it was wisdom from a dwarven holy water, ale. For Keldorn it was a Potion of Agility. For Haer'Dalis it was a Potion of Fortitude. And for Jan it was a Potion of Master Thievery.
After which Markaan and the others continued their way to the Adventurer's Mart.
And all of a sudden there was an ambush. One of the thief said, "No one crosses the Shadow Thieves and lives!
"Shadow Thieves, eh." Jan Jansen was more than a little afraid.
"Don't be afraid my little friend, I already saw this coming a mail away, actually it was in the temple. By the way, it's: No thief crosses my shadow and lives! Kill them."
Before he attacked Haer'dalis spoke. "So that?s why you made us drink those potions!?
"Yes, among other things, yes." Markaan conformed, little absent minded.
~***~
The battle was over soon, and as luck would have it, Haer'Dalis was wounded, but not seriously, and Keldorn had avoided losing his head by evading a sneak attack. So they went to the temple of Helm, and after some healing they continued their way to the Adventurer's Mart. After they had stayed for a while inside they back out again, wearing with bride his new Robe of Vecna and Staff of Rynn, Markaan asked. "So, how does the Fortress Shield and Rifthome Axe suit to your hands Korgan?" "Well, the shield is strong but I have seen better dwarven made axes, but then again, most of them couldn't be thrown like this one."
"U-uh, and what do you Haer'Dalis, think about the Bracers of Defense and Helm of Brilliance?" "Useful item." He smiled.
"I can't understand your desire of acquiring rare and extremely expensive items Markaan, especially when you then act horrified of the expenses when it come to healing the party's wounds. When you could use that money for the less fortuned, and those that suffer greatly from all kinds of horrors this world loses upon them. How are you so consumed by greed?" Keldorn said as if passing judgement on Markaan, of being a heretic.
"It's not greed, it's the knowledge of being better." Markaan answered, holding his chin high, making his opinion clear.
"Ouh, how truly blind you are! I see no good things in this corruption in you, and we even have a thief amidst us." Keldorn said and looked intentionally to Jan. This made Jan nervous, so he turned away from him, but it was obvious that he had something to hide. And he said.
"I saw all those shiny things! And as we couldn't buy any for me, I guess I was lucky that this just happened to drop into my pants."
"Wow, you have a nice shiny thing on your hand, ouh, and it has quite much magic stored in it. Let's see it. Wow!" Markaan commented.
"Ah, by the way, hmm, did you really think I wouldn't see you taking it or let you keep it." Markaan smiled to this now, and all a sudden the gnome in front of him begins to feeling quite small. "You know, I myself also need that kind of rings." After which he casted very fast a Finger of Death spell, and touched Jan...
And after hearing a planar portal opening beside him, Markaan says.
"Ouh, our friends from the school of bad wizardry have come to greet us, ready yourselves."
There was only one, but Markaan raised his left hand and waved, and the spell revealed three more mages, and as his right hand waved a wand, a Cold of Cone froze two of them and one saw it better for him to escape with a Planar Portal spell. But this only made more of the Wizards to portal in, while Markaan raised his defenses.
"You will submit to our rules!" The one Cowled Wizard yelled, as he casted a lightning ball that burst through the Imp and banished it. Another casted Symbol of Fear and so Korgan and Haer'Dalis, began to hesitate on what they should do, but Keldorn saw clearly what was going on and began to dispel the symbols effects in his comrades.
"I doubt that any of you'll ever, get further through my defenses. You have any idea what I have done? I have faced the drow; I have killed three dragons, and a whole hive of Beholders. And killed two liches in this city, ouh, you didn't even know that there even were any. Hhmm. And you call yourself a wizards?!" Markaan said, as more of the wizards kept pouring in, to the streets.
"Ah, let's see how you do with this then." The first Cowled Wizard said, and casted Summon Hakeashar. One of them casted Conjure Water Elemental spell and yet other, casted Breach spell on Markaan.
"Better than you with this!" Markaan kept smiling and released a Chain Contingency. It Mazed the one and casted an Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting, and another protective spell.
"Ouh yeah." Said yet another Cowled One, as his allies did the dying part of the fight, he casted another Breach spell on Markaan, other newcomer did the same, while the last one casted Disintegrate.
Markaan's Spell Trap absorbed the spells.
"We need to breach his defenses with more power." Said the soon half dead mage, just before being at the receiving end of Korgan's thrown axe, then Haer'Dalis went to finish him off. "We'll fight by your side." The dwarf said, and went to attack the Hakeashar.
"Ah, I really don't like where this is going, Markaan!" Until now, close to Markaan standing Keldorn began to make his option clear. As a paladin should always fight all evils, even within those, who he had vowed to die for, it was clear that if he was going to attack, it was against Markaan now on the Cowled Wizard's side.
"Ouh, I have a quick fix for that." Markaan said and took something from his backpack, and placed it on Keldorn, the last of his Thrall control Collars. "Ok, it's time for you to join us, and defend me." Now to zombified Keldorn did as was commanded without any objections and joined the rest of the party in their attacks against the Cowled Wizards.
Then a highly decorated mage came though with Teleportation spell, and as soon as he did, Markaan noticed the ferocious defences on him. So he casted Spellstrike on him. And said. "Darn, I forgot the Minor Sequencer! Korgan, you need to hit him as I ca..."
~***~
"n't, WHAT?" There was a huge burst of fire incoming against Markaan. The Archmage had casted a Time Stop, and released all the fury of the Fire Plane against Markaan, and so he had to rely on his last option, a Teleportation Field on to his feet, just to get out of the way.
Then as Markaan raised his arms to prepare for another spell... he just stared... in disbelief.
The Archmage was dead; there was a huge hole in his chest!
It's a mystery how, or by whom this was done by, but most of the wizards were dead!
And so, the fighting was over...
"Wha ha haa, a good fight, I won! So what should we do now, ha ha haa." Markaan stated, .
"Well, maybe we should send the zombie to his lair!" Korgan remarked.
Edited by Jarno Mikkola, 17 December 2007 - 01:10 AM.
