The Dark Killer Ascending

Skarkin senses sorcery all around him. Jekyll casts dispel magic but fails to make an impression on the magical and physical traps around them. Daryal turns to the newest member of the party; a thief called Spider, and with his help they manage to escape the deadly traps designed solely to keep them pinned down.

Later another newcomer, a sorcerer called Garibaldi, joins them. Both of these men are soon linked by the Blood Bond of Rootvile, killed and reborn into the strange family of travellers.

Kadesh’s familiar crow spots movement ahead of them. At first the illusionist thinks they are horses but on closer inspection he notices the five horses have human torsos, human arms and carry longbows; centaurs. Furthermore they each feel the tell-tale brush against their minds – telepathic centaurs.

The party move out with Daryal at the lead and soon are greeted by the centaur leader; Gregorn. He explains that the centaurs were – in the time of queen Illyanth – Marraq hnters because of their unique telepathic powers. "Now we have no prey and all that was civilised in Elenoria is gone. The palace has been flattened by the dreaded Glaennyn called Hamroth and in its place is raw power."

On hearing this Arian slips into the nothingness of the Void and vanishes. Without the party’s knowledge he seeks out the power that lies in the north, soon he sees the desolate area that was once the centre of Elenorian power. It is reduced to flat granite rock, no trees in sight, at the very centre of the devastation Arian spots a fist-size globe of raw energy – with the magical intensity of a small sun. He shudders at the enormous power of it and returns – through the Void – to report to his companions.

Gregorn agrees to follow the party from a safe distance, to shadow them in the absence of anything better to do. Daryal is grateful as her haragei senses the shadow becoming more powerful, the danger of Quothas becoming more acute.

The next day the crow sees movement ahead and Kadesh brings the party to a halt. Daryal and Jekyll scout ahead and come upon a dreadful scene. Swinging from a thick oak tree are five mutilated bodies, hung by the neck. They realises that these are the bodies of the five centaurs – their human torsos ripped from the horse and hung up before them – around the neck of the dead Gregorn is a silver chain with the jewelled skull attached.

Daryal and Jekyll dismiss it as a trap and on their return to the party they decide to give it a wide berth. Soon Daryal moves ahead as the crow spots an Elenorian woman struggling with two very young elven children. The female assassin closes in; she notices the elf possesses talons instead of hands but there is no other sign of demonic influence.

Jekyll is close in the shadows as Daryal approaches her whilst the rest of the party remain either at bow range or close enough for a spell. Daryal makes herself known to the terrified woman and realises that she – like them – is being terrorised by Quothas.

"I am Lisaan," she says, "and these are two children I rescued from Illyanth’s breeding farms before…well before the glaennyn came to end the war. I am one of the few remaining Illdara – half elven, half demons handmaidens of Illyanth but I mean you no harm. I just want to escape."

Daryal thumbs her newly-acquired amulet of the planes she took from the fallen thief Vinda Sharian. "Where do you want to go Lisaan? I have the means to take you anywhere."

The Illdara smiles hopefully.

But a flash of blackness passes Jekyll; the young female assassin cannot even see the shape because it moves so quick but suspects Quothas. She is already on the move against it. Daryal watches as the shadow expands in her vision. At first she thinks it is a missile attack but – at the last instant – she realises it is Quothas. Without hesitation she activates the amulet, opens a portal to the Astral Plane and drags Lisaan and the two children back through the portal before slamming it shut.

Jekyll spits a Rootviled dart at Quothas which catches his high on the chest. The dart sticks in but does not penetrate the armour but Quothas has already attacked. Two spinning, flaming shurikens are thrown at her as she advances. Jekyll dives aside to avoid them but when she regains her balance the deadly Quothas is gone.

Garibaldi, Skarkin and Arian all try missile attacks but Quothas only provides them with a momentary target before he is gone.

Daryal returns and Kadesh spirits them all away into a rope trick to regain spell energy. They remain for twenty four hours inside the extra dimensional space with both assassins; Daryal and Jekyll, trying unsuccessfully to create a vaporous poison to deal with Quothas.

Next night they head north in darkness once more. Soon theysee a small flame ahead, like a single lantern or torch. Skarkin lines up an arrow but as he is sighting it he realises – with a cold shudder – that something is very wrong. "Petrification!" he yells and the party are alerted to the fact that some magical form – or perhaps a severed medusa head – lies in their path.

Unbelievably Skarkin tries to shoot at the dangerous light but catches a glimpse of the shocking visage ahead. Within seconds he – and all of his equipment – is turned to stone, the shock and horror etched onto his statuesque expression forever. Garibaldi launches a magic missile at the shape and it catches fire. Both Daryal and Jekyll sense they are being tracked, they realise that Quothas is close to them. They expect an attack but the killer withdraws. Confused, Jekyll looks around to see the dart he fired at their killer stuck firmly into a nearby bower. Jekyll shivers at the talent and arrogance of the killer.

Daryal binds her eyes with a scarf and – with Jekyll touching her, moves in using haragei. Their suspicions are confirmed; it is a decapitated medusa head, no doubt left by their enemy Quothas. With revulsion Daryal leads them away from the scene and heads north.

Hours later there is a sudden unexpected explosion that engulfs Daryal. At first the shocked party think she has been hit but the noxious, acrid smoke is a distraction to affect Daryal’s vision and get close to them.

To their horror they all realise that the dark shape behind Jekyll is indeed Quothas! Weapons are drawn quickly. Daryal senses the danger immediately and uses flee to escape the initial assault. Kadesh casts improved invisibility and backs off as the fighting starts. Garibaldi casts magic missile, which hits Quothas but merely dissipates harmlessly and does not get past the killer’s magical protection. Arian Darkeyes lashes the Void Blade at the dark shape but Quothas is alert to it and ducks under the attack.

Jekyll spins but her blade is blocked by the flashing blur of Quothas’s defence. She moves away from the expected attack but realises – too late – that Quothas is a master of distraction; she has dodged into the next attack rather than away from it. Jekyll’s head spins from her shoulders; an awful spout of blood erupts from her neck as the body falls away lifeless.

Quothas punctuates his attack with a second ear-splitting explosion, another distraction designed to give him an escape route. Just a fraction of a second is all that he needs and he is gone.

Arian buries the body of their fallen companion. The mood within the camp is gloomy. Daryal chews over the death of two of her closest companions. "This bastard is picking us off one by one!"

They head north once more, this time more vigilant than they have ever been. Their sour mood provokes petty bickering and arguing; Daryal senses that they are making it easy for Quothas. The sound of raised voices only serves to help him get close. Indeed Daryal senses that danger is growing, getting closer by the second.

She is quick to react as a shadow looms over the party but her dart sails harmlessly past the dark figure approaching them. Arian, however, has a truer aim; his sling deadly accurate at close quarters as – amazingly – the bullet punctures the eye of the shadow and smashes through brain and skull. The figure is catapulted backward, dead as it crashes to the ground.

They are exultant but slowly the grim realisation that the body on the ground is a Bretonian – indeed they have slain Illeum’s spy. But the power of the facet of Stealth is unmistakeable. Although it is not obvious to them immediately it is there. Kadesh and Daryal turn their backs on the body as they try to spot Quothas. Arian, Garibaldi and Spider stare at the dead body wondering whether to search it or to defend against the imminent attack from Quothas…