Disaster Strikes
Arrogan 4th - 21st
Danat Peres, Amblay the Marraq sorcerer, Aravan the Elenorian fighter and Raven, Drenai spy enter the bustling citadel of Van Myrid, reputed to be one of the richest kingdoms on Grayhawk. The heat is stifling and the crowds seem to fill every available space. To ensure they are not too obvious Aravan swaps her horse with Danat’s talking white stallion and after a brief conversation with a guard on the gate they are allowed through.
Amblay brings up a thought shield – a Marraq ability of the mind that prevents attacks and scrying minds. Raven takes the party into the Drenai embassy via a secluded back entrance. Within minutes they are presented to the Drenai ambassador Herretal. Raven introduces him as the head of Drenai Intelligence abroad…and her father! The ambassador hugs Danat and thanks him for the rescue of his daughter. He offers them hospitality and a place in the guest quarters for the duration of their stay in Van Myrid.
Conversation soon turns to the apparent traitor within the palace. Danat hands Herretal the letter, which comes as no surprise to the ambassador. Danat is eager to get to the three leaders of Van Myrid in an attempt to expose the traitor. Herretal comes up with a plan to announce the engagement of Danat and his daughter, Raven. He will invite all the nobility of the citadel in a hope of bringing the three leaders into the embassy.
That night the party bathe and relax in the safety of Herretal’s abode. Drenai security is tight. The guards are unobtrusive but present in numbers. For the first time in weeks they sleep soundly…
…The clattering of a shutter against a window frame wakes the three companions in the middle of the night. Outside a sandstorm rages. Denied sleep because of the noise Danat, Amblay and Aravan move about the embassy. There are no guards present outside their rooms; all three draw weapons as they move through the corridors of the embassy…as they move into the master bedrooms it becomes clear that they are alone!
Amblay stretches out his powerful Marraq mind, over a mile in all directions. There are no minds to be felt! At the top of the staircase, on the fifth floor of the embassy, they take over a guard post that offers a good defensive position. They can see two streets outside the embassy as well as a large square around which many other embassies are situated. Still they see no-one.
Through the cacophony of the storm the peel of a bell can be heard. Moving slowly into the embassy square is a dark robed figure, a lone individual in the chaos. Amblay pushes his mind out to the figure but recoils it instantly. Even the slightest brush against it reveals a massive presence and a deep-rooted evil that makes him shudder. He quickly looses an arrow into the midriff and the black shaft buries itself deep into the evil figure. The party watch in horror as the shaft melts, the residue is then absorbed into the cloak.
Amblay takes Retaliator (Hujal’s creation – pistol crossbow made from the Mara Tree) and shoots the figure once more…with identical results.
"I have come for you Danat Peres!" the figure yells. Then he turns to the embassy itself and unleashes an unnamed power against the structure. The three companions realise that the first floor of the embassy is collapsing, they feel themselves in free-fall as the walls, and ceiling and floors collapse in on them…
All three wake suddenly…drenched in sweat. No sandstorm, no dark figure. After a brief discussion about their collective dream they find Herretal and Raven at breakfast. Amblay puts a picture of the figure into the ambassador’s mind. "It is Sadhagar," he says solemnly. "High Priest of Malakar in this citadel."
Amblay takes himself away for most of the morning. In the comfort and safety of the embassy he embarks on the task of duplicating each and every one of his spells onto parchment provided by the embassy staff. A foxes cunning aids the creation of these scrolls. Eventually, at noon, he tucks away the twelve spells into his backpack.
That evening Herretal brings Amblay, Danat and Aravan to the cells in the basement. Sat bound to a solid wooden chair is one of the men-at-arms responsible for the deaths of Hujal and Scourge. Four Drenai guards are present. "We found him snooping in the grounds," a guard says.
For the next half hour Herretal and Amblay interrogate the minion of Vostrar. The ambassador asks the right questions and Amblay is able to pick the thoughts from the captive to reveal the plan. The rest of his companions are in the Dragon’s Claw Tavern in the Merchants Quarters meeting with an emissary of Malakar, who is paying them well for their services. Later Amblay finds the minds of the rest of the men-at-arms and is able to further discover the true treachery of what they intend. Dressed in Drenai garb (to look like embassy staff) they will attempt to gain access to the building an attack Danat. Aravan instructs Herretal to make sure all his men roll up their left sleeves; she hopes this will make the attackers easier to spot when the attack occurs.
Forewarned with this knowledge the three companions decide to set a trap in the stables. Amblay takes a decent vantage point on the first floor overlooking the entire stables and courtyard. Aravan hides in the hey loft at one end of the stables and Danat secures himself close to the entrance. With four Drenai guards at the stable gate they wait for their attackers.
Three of the men-at-arms enter through the main door of the embassy but two go to the stables. At the very moment they step past the threshold they are ambushed. Amblay looses two quick shafts at the trailing attacker but is surprised to see him parry one and dodge away from a second. Danat is upon the same man, his knife fast in front of him, a blur of speed and power.
But these two men-at-arms are skilled. Danat’s blows are expertly turned aside and – at first opportunity – the defender turns attacker with awesome force. A flicked longsword fells Danat, an eighteen inch gap opens in his thigh to expose bone, sinew and a lot of blood. The martial artist collapses in pain but fights on regardless. The second man-at-arms swiftly fells the first real Drenai guard and pushes back the others. Amblay can see his companions are troubled and shoots into the melee (against his better judgement). The arrow punctures a Drenai guardian in the throat and suddenly the odds turn in favour of the dangerous men-at-arms.
With Danat on the ground and struggling the two remaining Drenai guards and Aravan attack in unison. But the men-at-arms are here for one reason…and that is to kill Danat Peres. They both single-mindedly attack the crippled warrior. When the inevitable deathblow comes it is swift and shocking – Danat’s head sails clear from the battle.
Momentarily distracted the men-at-arms return to face three assailants. One of the Drenai guards has stepped under the defence of the attackers and drives a longsword up into the mouth of the man-at-arms and slays him instantly.
Amblay discards the darkbow and instead peppers the slyer of Danat with magic missiles. The last man-at-arms is worn down by Amblay’s magical assault and – inevitably – succumbs to his wounds. The Drenai guard cuts his throat.
Aravan turns from the fight and heads into the main embassy itself where sounds of combat can be heard. From the stable courtyard an open door beckons and she meets the last of the men-at-arms who is being pursued by a handful of Drenai guards. The last warrior runs straight onto the woman’s blade, her shortsword punctures an eye socket and exits from the back of the skull.
In a quiet moment Amblay and Aravan recover the magic from their fallen comrade, Danat Peres. An unlikely union; a Marraq friends with an Elenorian (the race who persecuted them for centuries), Amblay speaks quietly to her: "I don’t know about you Aravan but I have had my fill of human affairs. What say we abandon this city and head south?"
* * *
And so Amblay the sorcerer and Aravan a female Elenorian warrior utilize the fly spell to head south. They roam over the impressive Olshay Range and beyond. Past Drenai and further south over the plains of the Nadir tribesmen, with every league they put between themselves and Van Myrid the two companions put the past firmly behind them.
The lands of Darim and Kulland are visible beneath them as the weeks pass. Only when they spot a creature high above them; a large unnamed beast, do they descend into an unknown land…the land of the Tileans.