Toilday, Lamashan 28

There was a pointed but quick discussion among the party. I expressed my concern about being able to return from another plane, but Takkad or Kane said they had Plane Shift. That took me to the side of entering – this is what we’d been working towards and now it was time to meet the real Karzoug.

Takkad cast True Seeing on himself to see if there were any unseen issues on the other side of the portal. Nothing could be seen from this side, but we weren’t sure if True Seeing would work across a gate. He did report he could see misty, ghostly walls that seemed to be moving, or swarming. There were 16 evenly spaced columns of fire which lit the “room” up and, for all we knew, also kept it warm. There was a giant – no, huge – purple gem in the center of the room surrounded by bands of gold. (Rigel’s mouth dropped as she gaped at it.) Kane cast Spell Turning on himself while Avia brought forth a magic circle. Nolin quaffed a potion of Fly while Sedgewick buffed up his charisma with Eagle’s Splendor. Sabin cast haste.

Takkad suggested we not all bunch together as if waiting for a fireball. I bristled a bit, but he was right.

We were nearly ready. I cast telepathic bond among myself and most of the group (everyone but Sabin, Sedgewick, and Kane) so that they could communicate silently with each other on the other side. Takkad cast Holy Aura which would grant us some amazing enhancements for a short time. Rigel, of course, went invisible and Kane finally stepped through. “Status lost,” reported Takkad – so that’s one thing that wouldn’t work across planes (no big surprise, really.) Avia activated her boots, and Nolin also stepped through. Sabin and Sedgewick quickly followed. Then I entered.

There was an immediate, distracting sensation as I entered, but it faded quickly. And if I’ve learned anything in my adventures, it’s to think in three dimensions. Since nothing appeared to be threatening us on the ground, I immediately looked up upon entering and saw an ugly bipedal creature floating there with – was it gems? – embedded in his skin, that I figured must be Karzoug. Telepathically, one of my companions confirmed it, so I shrugged and did what was expected of me. I threw a fireball at him while my friends were not near him. He shrugged it off, but I think both he and my friends would have been disappointed had I not. It’s not like I wasted it, because I communicated through the link that it failed because of his spell resistance. Besides, if needed, I had 32 more fireballs I could cast (although, sadly, not all at once.)

Takkad entered after me, glanced at Karzoug, and communicated that “what we see is what we get”. He was not an image, he was not an illusion – he was the real deal. Then Karzoug announced, “Let’s finish this” or something like that and … four fireballs flew from his hand and exploded in a mostly overlapping fashion. My natural fire resistance helped some, and I was able to dodge a bit, leaving me only modestly injured, but he seemed to suddenly change position in an awkward and almost impossible fashion, like he teleported to the same spot but not precisely the same spot. But an instant after seeing this, I was able to guess he’d used a spell I was aware of but had never seen: Time Stop. He’d just given himself the opportunity to do more in an instant than we could do in half a minute. This would likely not be good. I knew, though, that the spell could not be used to specifically attack a person, but he’d have a chance to heal himself, buff himself, and perhaps toss out some area effect spells.

And sure enough, a yellow fog immediately dropped to the ground and began to spread out. It was cloudkill – we were strong enough it wouldn’t likely kill us but it would force us to move because, well, it was still a fog and blocked the sight for everyone on the ground (except maybe for Takkad, but he was already in the air). Avia entered and moved up to engage Karzoug, while Nolin straight off did a charge, doing some real damage to Karzoug and, I think, catching him by surprise.

For my next trick, I stepped a distance out of the cloudkill and cast Greater Dispel at Karzoug, and discovered that he’d also set up a Spell Turning. It came back to me, and fortunately, I was unable to dispel any of the spells on myself (primarily Holy Aura and Haste). I grinned, because Greater Dispel was high enough level that it would have used up a lot of the spell turning, and the next spell anybody cast at him would likely have at least some partial effect. I wasn’t doing any damage, but I was slowly stripping down his magical protections and that’s just as useful.

Sabin quietly moved up behind Karzoug. Karzoug was now flanked.

Takkad channeled energy to help most of the people affected by the cloud and the fireballs. But Karzoug’s glaive threw yet another fireball – you read that right; his glaive was an intelligent artifact and capable of aiding in his defense, and it damaged not only Takkad but also Avia and Nolin. Karzoug also clawed feebily at Nolin, whose protective rune of Greed ironically sent at least as much if not more cold damage back to Karzoug. Karzoug, incensed, sent a quickened lightning spell at Nolin, dinging him up noticeably.

A greater air elemental appeared alongside Karzoug and smacked him, and I saw Kane grin.

And then our trio of fighters laid low the mighty Rune Lord of Greed. First Avia, and then Nolin got 4 hasted attacks on him and cut him up badly. A contingency spell sprung into effect, making him gaseous, but Nolin simply smiled and his magical axe inflicted even more damage upon the gaseous form.

He regained solid form and fell to the floor below with a surprisingly-pleasing thud.

With his death, there was a tremendous flood of blindingly (literally; Sedgewick was blinded by it) white light as the mass of souls which had been trapped in (or formed the basis of?) the walls surrounding this small alternate plane were all released at once. The massive release of positive energy immediately healed everyone (although Sedgewick remained blinded) and we found ourselves at the base of the tower we had ascended the previous day. The remnants of the runewell were freezing in the harsh cold. And the corporeal remains of a Rune Lord.

Because it’s a habit we’ve developed, we removed his head.

Kane healed Sedgewick, and we began to look at things remaining on Karzoug’s body.

There were about 20 ioun gems that had been embedded in his body, but every last one of them was now shattered.

[1693] Glaive, intelligent, neutral evil and transmutational. It possessed a keen intellect, and was able to flame and dance. It possessed dark vision and could speak via telepathy. Once a day it could cast major image. Three times a day it could cure moderate wounds on its wielder. It could cast fairy fire, and it had fireball as a dedicated power. Its “life purpose” was to defeat spellcasters. And it. Would. Not. Shut. Up.
[1694] Rod of greater quicken. 3/day up to level 9.
[1695] wand of blood money [33]
[1696] wand of dispel magic [24]
[1697] wand of stoneskin [17]
[1698] belt of great strength +6
[1699] boots of dexterity +6
[1700] sihedron tome. Can hold an infinite number of spells, and a spellcaster could prepare spells as +6 intelligence.
[1701] Robes of Xin Shalast – +6 AC, SR 24, aids casting by casting as +1 caster level. 2 pockets are handy haversacks and wearer is comfortable at all elevations.
[1702] ring of protection +5
[1703] ring of freedom of movement
[1704] amulet of Greed. Just pretty now – it was attuned to the runewell in Karzoug’s special plane, and granted the wearer +5 AC, removed the need for food or water, fly ability, and the ability to heal rapidly from wounds.
[1705] ruby inscribed with rune of wrath ~1100gp
[1706] 1500 gp of ruby dust
[1707] 10000gp of powdered gemstones
[1708] Talons of Lun. Ornately worked gloves with fine gold filigree. +3 attack bonus (1d4 x2), crit does x3, will save at DC20 or victim goes permanently insane. (save for 1 rd of confusion instead). Wearer is immune to insanity and confusion, but WI -2 due to constant voices in head.

We decided to permanently destroy the runewell to permanently disable the amulet. Nolin, Sabin, and Avia used it for target practice and soon it was rubble (and ice). We decided the glaive must be destroyed (somehow) and Karzoug must be destroyed (somehow) so that he cannot be resurrected by a misguided soul. Various ideas were tossed about on how to do that; the most sane seemed to involve a bag of holding and portable hole.

The cracked runewell gem is still likely to be very valuable, even with a huge fracture. So we will take it with us:

[1709] large cracked purple gem

Given what is here, that we haven’t even picked up, we will be as wealthy as we want. But we also have some larger issues to consider.

1) This is also an archaelogical treasure. How much should be preserved, and left for scholars?
2) This city already has residents. While we need to figure out a suitable way to let them know Karzoug is dead, we also have to consider what group (or person) might try to seize control of the city, especially in consideration of possible visitors seeking 1)?
3) Thinking of 1) and 2) intersecting … what level of responsibility do we want to take on regarding visitors’ safety, given that few people can find the city without us telling them?

For a group that started by battling goblins in Sandpoint, we’ve come a long way. There is a lot of talk about people’s plans – many border on “retiring”. On the one hand, you could say I’ve been lucky to make it this far. On the other hand, I’m still a young adult. I feel I’ve got more in me yet.

I think I’ll check with Father and see how the store is doing. Maybe we can feed some of our artifacts through both Derell in Sandpoint and my father in Korvosa. But I also want to hear what the rest are doing. If there’s another interesting journey to be had, I might be up for that.

== Toilday, Lamashan 28, 4708; Spires of Xin Shalast; afternoon ==

With True Seeing cast I looked through the portal and saw a vast cylindrical chamber more than a hundred yards in diameter. The walls were fog-like, but I could see faces moving about the surface, pushing up against it to reveal their gaunt features, as if the fog were an elastic membrane holding in a horde of souls, each trying to escape.

Sixteen columns of eerie fire were evenly spaced about the chamber, fully illuminating the space with their sickly glow.

An intricate pattern of channels was carved into the floor, which led to disturbing speculations to its purpose.

In the dead center of the room was a giant diamond shaped pool. Suspended above that by a large metal ring was an enormous bluish purple gem, girdled by a gold band with the rune of greed engraved upon it.

We had no plan, but it was obvious we were going enter. I called out a few recommended tactics:

“Wait until I cast a protective spell on us all before moving in. And do not gather on the other side: spread out as much as possible. If you can fly or move through the air, get off the ground and increase the distance between each of us.”

Karzoug. We knew he was in there, waiting for us, and I wanted to provide as much protection as possible for us all, and so I cast Holy Aura. My other suggestion was just common sense: there was no need in making ourselves easy targets for every area effect spell he might know.

Others cast their own spells and Nolin quaffed a potion. Sabin hasted many of us, and Trask linked some via a telepathic bond.

Kane stepped through first.

Immediately I lost track of him via the Status spell, but we already guessed that the portal led to another plane, and so this came as no surprise. We watched through the shimmering field as he stepped to the left and out of view.

Nolin then stepped through and flew upward.

Sabin followed, with Sedjewick close behind, and they moved straight in.

Trask passed through and over to the left, and we could see him look up as he began to move his hands.

I activated my boots and flew in and straight up. I was greeted immediately by a warning from Nolin, “Karzoug is directly above you — see if it is just an image.”

“Oh, it’s definitely him,” I replied.

He was about twenty feet above me, glaring down at us. Gems were embedded in his skin, and he wore a magnificent cloak. In his right hand was a flaming glave. He had long and deadly looking finger nails that looked like claws.

I could tell from the smell of baked dust that Trask must have launched a fireball at Karzoug, but the runelord appeared unfazed.

Karzoug barked, “Enough of this!” and pointed a finger in our direction. Four sparks flew out and around the room before each exploded as a fireball.

Karzoug then did… something. It was confusing to watch. He was floating there in one pose after casting his Meteor Storm spell, and then instantly he was standing slightly off to one side with a totally different posture.

But on the floor something more obvious had changed: a thick cloud of heavy yellow vapor spread out along the floor, engulfing my companions. I could tell some of them were poisoned, and realized that somehow Karzoug had managed to cast Cloud Kill without us noticing him do it.

Rigel entered at that moment — I could not see her, but she popped back into presence of my Status spell. She seemed totally unaffected by the cloud.

Avia came through and I sent her a quick update via the telepathic channel. She looked up and flew straight toward Karzoug. Nolin charged and cut into the runelord, claiming the first real blood of the battle. I flew over to provide healing support, and planned to maybe give Karzoug a few surprises of my own.

And then Sabin moved up behind Karzoug.

Down on the floor Sedjewick ran out from the poisonous cloud and over to the fountain. He still managed to sing a song of courage, despite the occasional cough or sputter.

Trask tried to use Greater Dispel Magic (one of my personal favorite tactics), but it rebounded back onto himself. Mercifully it did not cancel his magical protections.

Karzoug’s flaming glave then lept from his hand and launched a fireball at Avia, Nolin and I.

Karzoug clawed at Nolin, but the latter’s Rune of Wrath inflicted cold damage in return.

“Eat quickened lightening bolts!” Karzoug quipped as he zapped Nolin with arcs of electricity.

A giant air elemental appeared beside us and bashed Karzoug. I could hear Kane snicker below.

Avia closed the distance and landed a series of incredibly heavy blows, followed immediately by savage attack from Nolin.

A momentary look of pain and confusion crossed Karzoug’s face before he transformed into a cloud of gas.

Sabin wasted no time in slicing through the cloud with his ax, and Karzoug transformed back into his normal form. But now he was just a corpse.

There was a blindingly bright flash of white light, and the souls I had seen in the walls whipped around into a massive whirlwind which encompassed the entire chamber.

When the light faded we found ourselves at the base of the center of the spire. The pool, Karzoug’s runewell, had also been transported here, although it was quickly freezing over, and Karzoug’s body was there too.

His glave tried lamely to continue the fight, even after we told it to stand down or face destruction. It blustered on in the way the insane and egotistical usually do before dropping to the ground.

Wait, what? That was it?

We quickly gathered around Karzoug’s body, and Sabin removed his head — detached head and body were then placed in separate bags of holding.

Oddly enough all of the injuries we had suffered within the cylindrical chamber had been healed. But Sedjewick had been struck blind by the great flash of light. Kane quickly sured him of that malady, and we looked over what we had stripped from Karzoug’s body.

[1693] Runelord’s flaming glave. +2 keen flaming glave with dancing and a neutral evil intellect; it possessed dark vision; could hear, read and speak languages; was telepathic; once a day could create a major image; three times a day it could cast Cure Moderate Wounds upon its wielder; it could cast Faery Fire; and it had Fireball as a dedicated power
[1694] rod of greater quicken: 3 times a day up to level 9 spells
[1695] wand of Blood Money (33 charges)
[1696] wand of Dispel Magic (24 charges)
[1698] +6 belt of giant strength
[1699] +6 boots of dexterity
[1700] Sihedron Tome: a leather bound volume with a sihedron star on the cover. Rumored to have been crafted by a mage dragon during the reign of emperor Xin, this book could hold an infinite number of spells, and could prepare spells as if the caster’s intelligence was +6. It contains all of the spell’s Karzoug knew
[1701] Robes of Xin Shalast. +6 AC; SR 24; spells cast as if caster were at +2 levels; 2 pockets that acted as handy haversacks; immunity to the occlusion field and the effects of high altitudes, including the death zone
[1702] +5 ring of protection
[1703] ring of Freedom of Movement
[1704] Amulet of Greed. Attuned to the runewell such that while in the runewell (where Karzoug was confined) it granted: +5 AC, no need for food or water; fly at will; heal rapidly from wounds
[1705] ruby inscribed with the rune of wrath (for use with Sign of Wrath)
[1706] 1,500gp of ruby dust
[1707] 10,000gp of gem stone dust
[1708] Talons of Leung: fine gloves with embroidered gold filigree: grants +3 on attack and damage for natural claw attacks (1D4 damage); 3X critical; DC 20 will save on critical or target is insane, otherwise target is only confused; wearer is immune to confusion and insanity; -2 to wisdom as alien voices run through the wearer’s mind

It took Sedjewick’s Legend and Lore ability to identify the glave and the the gloves, but even he was unable to understand the amulet. For that I pulled out the Quill and asked the Peacock spirit.

It was clear that the glave, along the Karzoug’s ex-champion’s sword, would be destroyed. None of us had any desire to allow the continued existence of intelligent evil weapons that took control of those who handled them.

The amulet caused more debate. Some wanted it destroyed and others thought it was now a harmless relic. I was among the latter, and argued that it could do no good (or harm) unless the wearer were inside the runewell. Specifically, “that runewell,” as I pointed to the pool of frozen water before us.

Why not just destroy the runewell itself? It no longer radiated power, and so Nolin, Sabin and Avia hewed it to rubble with their adamantine weapons.

The huge blue-purple gem had been teleported here along with the runewell, but now it was cracked. No matter: it was still valuable, and so we dismounted it from its elaborate set up and took it.

[1709] cracked, huge, blue-purple runewell gem

We spared the metal ring in which it was mounted, thinking we may be able to sell it and the gem stone for a better price than either one alone.

And speaking of prices… we were going to be ridiculously rich. The items we had with us alone were enough to ensure that, but we had left large amounts of incredibly valuable treasure in the spire.

Nolin, Sabin and Kane returned to the spire to ensure all was secure, and when they returned we began to make plans.

It will take quite some time and effort to remove all of the valuables from the spire. We will use our library as a staging area, where we can classify the treasure, divide magical items among ourselves, and then sell the rest… or keep it until we need more cash.

We have come up with a plan for totally destroying the two weapons, plus Karzoug’s remains (no sense risking resurrection) that involves a bag of holding and a portable hole.

We need to alert the remaining inhabitants of Xin Shalast that their leader — in fact all of their leaders — are slain, and they that there is no point in remaining.

Little doubt only lamia and rune giants are all that is left, and it will take physical proof that Karzoug and his aides are all dead. We have all of the bodies, and so this should not present a problem, although we will not allow direct contact with Karzoug’s body (not even a single hair). Perhaps a wall of force can be used to keep them from it.

Nolin wants to topple part of the spire to act as proof. This is not a bad idea, but I fear attempting to do so may cause the entire structure to fall, and we should make sure anything we want has already been removed before trying.

I think we should remove Karzoug’s face from Mhar Massif, which should be straight forward, given enough Earthquake and Stone Shape spells.

Personally I do not care if the lamia and rune giants remain in Xin Shalast, so long as they remain off the plateau and leave us in peace.

While we discussed these short term goals, we also began thinking toward the future.

We will inform our allies in Magnimar and Sandpoint of what has occurred, but will refrain from providing the location of Xin Shalast itself.

For scholars (and the Pathfinder Society) we will reveal the location of Runeforge, and how they can access it, and will provide my maps and notes for their usage. We can sell them some of the Runelord relics we have collected as well.

Most of us want to pay a visit to Sandpoint, where this entire adventure began more than a year before, and relax for a short while before moving on.

But what does “moving on” imply?

Kane and Rigel speak of returning to Fort Rannick (oh yes, another of our acquisitions) to beef up its security and bring commerce and stability to the region.

I cannot see myself settling down, and already I am looking over the maps Sabin and I found in Fort Rannick, showing other the location of other places that may need our aid, or pique our interests. But for those quests I will need to start a new journal, for this one has but a few blank pages remaining.

“So Sabin, let’s talk about Viperwall.”