Road to Kebnegard, Chapter Twenty-Seven
Spying
Wednesday, May 9th, 988 AD
As we're walking towards our tents, Vera suddenly gets very, very ill, but Moishe starts feeling quite good. Somehow, this causes Reynaldo to think spying on the Moors will be a good idea. He Polymorphs into a field mouse and runs to the Moors' tent. When he gets nearby, he manages to hear Raheesh call to someone named Baqir, before a dog starts barking. Qadir steps out of the tent with a wolf named Var. Reynaldo runs away and breathes a sigh of relief when Var seems to lose the scent. Qadir and Var go back into the tent and Reynaldo Polymorphs into a bird and flies into branches. He decides the best way to eavesdrop is to to so from inside a Rope Trick, that way, Var can't smell him. He Polymorphs into an imp and flies right above the tent, quickly throwing up a rope and rushing inside. Var smells him again and pulls Qadir out with him. He once again loses the scent and they go back inside the tent. Reynaldo uses a funnel and sticks it out of the Rope Trick. He only gathers a few snippets of conversation: Raheesh says that Var is useless and that he wishes "a son of Mustali" was here with them. The Moors speak of Elven bones and the Elven kingdoms in the Pyrenees. Qadir also ominously says, "He knows something's up." The Moors also speak of the city of Guadalajara, or the wadi al-hara (the river of stones) (the two sound very similar), as well as a gate of some sort and something named Herioneo.
After the Moors seems to stop talking and bed down for the night, Reynaldo decides to wait out the Rope Trick so that he can fly with the rope and it won't fall on the tent. Unfortunately, Reynaldo forgot the duration of the Polymorph Self spell. It runs out about ten minutes before the Rope Trick spell does. Reynaldo decides to time a swing from the Rope Trick rope to the back of the tent and run for it. He is successful, but Var stirs again. Reynaldo burrows under the snow and heads back to the party's tent. Luckily, Var loses the scent yet again and no Moors show up at our doorstep.
Reynaldo: If anybody asks, I was hear all night. Just make sure they don't ask Stepanova. Ot Anna. Or Edward.
We rest.
Resting and Information
Thursday, May 10th, 988 AD
We decide to use the day to rest and perhaps gather some more information before attempting to enter the dungeon. We decide that the best way to throw the Eruption Stone into the lava is to use Wong's idea of casting a Rope Trick over the lava, placing the stone inside, and just waiting. A time-release capsule, if you will.
Reynaldo takes Read Magic and checks out the spell that Innocence gave him the previous day. It is Invisibility. Reynaldo jumps for joy and immediately asks Miaslav to take him to her. Being a big idiot, he does so and Reynaldo finds Innocence hiding under a mound of clothes in another tent.
Reynaldo: We're square, girl, but no more stealing of my stuff. Got it?
Innocence: So you're not going to kill me?
Reynaldo: No, I'm not going to kill you. As long as you don't ever steal my stuff again.
Innocence: Deal. It'll be good to finally get out of these dirty clothes. Wanna help?
Reynaldo: Fool me once... Wait, what were we talking about?
We speak with Orm about many things, including warning him about King Erik the Victorious. Orm says the real power behind King Erik is his advisor Thorgnir. He doubts we even saw the real King Erik when were there. He tells us that the skinless reindeer we fought are called Korne and that the secret cult we encountered in Polotsk, the one with the small pickax necklaces, are the Thugees, a religion from India which worships a death goddess named Kali. We tell Orm about Prince Vselov's letter to Jarl Bolthar and he tells us that Bolthar is a high-ranking Frost Giant, a general of sorts. He has a sword named Severer, which sounds vaguely alarming. We notice a strange map of the world on Orm's shield and he says it's a magical map. Whoever touches when Orm says the magic word can be tracked using the shield. Only Orm can see the dots which represent the people he's tracking. He asks if we'd be amenable to being tracked after we leave Kebnegard, and Ivan assents.
Later, Raheesh asks to speak to Reynaldo.
Raheesh: I was wondering if you knew where the Elves go to when they die? I've heard it referred to as the West, but I don't think that's what actually happens.
Reynaldo: Why do you think I would tell you, exactly?
Raheesh: There's no harm in trying.
Reynaldo: No harm, you son of a bitch? No harm? You're on an extermination campaign against the elves! Why would I tell you where to find more of them?
Raheesh: What? No we're on no such campaign. Our Caliph is half-elf. Why would we exterminate his people?
Reynlado: Then why did you kill my parents?
Raheesh: We were looking for information and things got out of hand.
Reynaldo: Out of hand? You razed the village! You killed every last woman and child!
Raheesh: Not every last one.
Reynaldo: Fuck you. Go ask your questions elsewhere. I wouldn't want to break my vow to Orm.
Later still, as the party attempted to speak with Orm about final plan details, they saw Qadir and a Lapp talking with him.
Orm: Are you sure?
Qadir: Var here says it was his scent.
Orm: I'll ask him about it, but even if it was him, I doubt he'll admit it. Ah, Reynaldo, just the man I wanted to see.
Reynaldo: What can I do for you, besides not attack these monsters on sight?
Orm: Where were you last night?
Reynaldo: In our tent. Why?
Orm: No reason.
Qadir and Var left, and we finalized the plan. Orm, his people, the Moors, and Arnor will create a diversion that will draw most of the giants away from the front entrance to the dungeon. Then, our party will attack, taking out any leftover guards and going in. We decide on an afternoon attack.
Assault on the Mountain
Friday, May 11th, 988 AD
Our time of attack is scheduled for around 2pm. We trek a couple of hours to Kebnekaise and see around 70 giants milling about, along with some Cyclopes, Ogres, and one ominous looking Pillar of Flame directly in front of the entrance to the dungeon.
Suddenly, there is a commotion to the east and most of the assembled creatures head off in that direction. Only four Frost Giants, a Cyclops, two Ogres, and that Pillar of Flame remain, as well as an unidentified number of creatures just inside the entrance to the dungeon.
As soon as the majority has cleared, Ivan charges forward and attacks the first giant he sees. This also happens to be the same giant Nicolae decided to blind. Jean-Claude and Reynaldo shoot a couple of giants with Lightning Bolts, but then the Pillar of Flame shoots a Fireball at them. Jean-Claude's borrowed Fire Cloak keeps him quite safe, but Reynaldo ends up well done. Thalia, Dorn, Conrad, Wong, Anna, Stepanova, Edward, and Shara joined the melee while Moishe hid behind a rock. Nicolae blinded another Frost Giant and the Cyclops, but they still managed to down Conrad. Then the Pillar of Flame summoned two Fire Elementals, which really was just unfair. After the two ogres, the Cyclops, and another Frost Giant were killed, Thalia, Anna, and Stepanova all took turns trying to kill the Pillar of Flame, but were downed in turn. Seeing two Frost Giants advancing on the mages, Ivan started yelling unkind, and frankly, somewhat impossible, things about their mothers. The two Frost Giants came over and Ivan held off three giants at once, until Wong and Dorn came over to help him kill two of them. Edward, meanwhile, was busy fighting one of the Fire Elementals until he killed it. Jean-Claude kept the other one busy.
When Ivan was fighting the last Frost Giant on his own, Dorn insisted on attempting to shoot the Giant with his bow and arrows. Unfortunately, Dorn more often that not hit Ivan in the back instead. After multiple warnings to "knock that shit off" or Ivan would kill Dorn, Dorn continued to shoot. Shara attempted to undue Dorn's damage by healing Ivan after every arrow, but Ivan was incensed. Dorn finally shot an arrow true and felled the Frost Giant, at which point Edward, Jean-Claude, and Reynlado called for a retreat. It was obvious that in the mowed-down stage they were in, they would not be able to destroy that Pillar of Flame or its second Elemental.
As the party was running away from combat, Ivan repeatedly hit Dorn with the butt end of his Spear and told him that if he ever did that again, Ivan would kill him dead. Everybody else just worried about how Orm would take the news that they had failed in gaining entrance into the dungeon.
End Chapter Twenty-Seven
