Book One

[cybersavant]

Armasse officially began at noon, with the blessing of the festival by Lord Hulrun himself, ruler of Kenabres. The crowd gathered in Clydwell Plaza quieted as the aged inquisitor took the stage, clad in shining, resplendent armor. He cleared his throat, but just as he was about to speak, a bright light shone from the west, as if the sun were rising from the wrong direction. Hulrun’s shadow fell huge and distorted across the cathedral’s facade. A moment later, the sound of a thunderous explosion ripped through the air and earth, along with a violent tremor.

To the west, the fortress known as the Kite—the location of Kenabres’s wardstone—had vanished. In its place, a brilliant plume of red fire, lightning, and smoke erupted into the heavens.

A moment later, a powerful roar accompanied a welcome sight rising from the crowd—Kenabres’s greatest guardian, the ancient silver dragon Terendelev, who had until that moment been attending the opening ceremony disguised as a human. Above, another form appeared, as nightmarish as the dragon was breathtaking. A humanoid shape three times the size of any man, with skin coated in fire and lightning, gripped a flaming sword and whip. The creature’s identity was immediately obvious: Khorramzadeh, the Storm King of the Worldwound, had come to Kenabres!

As the ground continued to shake and disgorge demons into the streets, the dragon and the balor lord clashed above. The fight was over in a few harrowing moments, as the balor cut deep into Terendelev’s body, swooping down to strike the dragon and arresting her charge. A few more blows, and the titanic duo spiraled downward toward the crowd.

The sight of the dragon smashing into the facade of the Cathedral of St. Clydwell is one no witness would ever forget. At that moment, a titanic demon erupted at the far end of the plaza, reducing several buildings to ruins as it smashed into this world. The rift it created shot across the plaza, and this time there was no escape—it opened below your feet, angling away into darkness.

Even as you fell, the dragon noticed your plight. Though she saw death standing over her, she seized this final chance to save a few more souls. After she uttered a few arcane words and stretched out a bleeding talon, you felt her magic take hold of you, slowing your plummet into the darkness as if you were feathers falling into a pit. Yet the fall remained as inexorable, and as you drifted downward into the depths, the last thing you saw was the Storm King standing before the ancient silver dragon, his sword lashing out and cleaving full through her neck. As her severed head fell, the rift above you slammed shut, and the light of the world above was gone.

[cybersavant]

You fall down - several hundred feet it seems. You dust yourself off and look around. Nine others also stand around in the dark cavern. The distant squeaks of bats echo broadly, suggesting that this underground space is large and relatively open.

The ceiling and far walls of this vast cavern recede into darkness. On one side, the wall has collapsed in an enormous mound of rubble—here and there the arms or legs of victims who didn’t survive the fall protrude. In the back of the cavern, a disturbing shape looms. Nearly the size of a horse, what appears to be an immense black spider crouches silent and still on the ground.

[Demilich]

Ahlannah releases her familiar that she was holding onto on the way down.

Pointing to the spider, "Anyone that cant see the spider? I can make some light for anyone that cant see it?" she asks as she watches it, waiting for responses from the others and starts casting Mage Armor on herself for fear the spider will attack the party.

[Edeldhur]

Helgash

Helgash landed heavily, his eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness of the cavern. The memories of Terendelev's sacrifice and the Storm King's attack still fresh in his mind, he steadied himself and took in their surroundings. The distant echoes and the ominous shape of a giant spider caught his attention, as well as the beautiful woman's words.

After quickly surveying the group for injuries and offering a brief prayer for guidance, he drew weapon and shield and moved to interpose himself protectively between the spider and the group - "My eyes can pierce the darkness, but yes please. Illuminate the area for others who may need it, and maybe it will push the arachnid away"

[cybersavant]

Helgash
After quickly surveying the group for injuries and offering a brief prayer for guidance, he drew weapon and shield and moved to interpose himself protectively between the spider and the group

there are 2 wounded

[Edeldhur]

They will be Helgash's next concern if the spider does not attack

[Anodyzed]

Upon the unexpected fall, and the inglorious landing, Elias first determined his own health wasn't suffering, then cast Light hoping to see what all else was going on.

Seeing the spider, he pointed it out to the others. I'll watch that if you all can tend to the wounded. Trust me, I'll let you know if it approaches.

[CeriantheCat]

Kelden Sunblade



He had been gathered with many of the others to watch the ceremonies when everything seemed to happen at once. It all happened so fast he didn't even remember anything other than the horror at seeing the dragon fall. In the complete darkness his hands slid down his side a light prayer on his lips as he searched frantically for the hilt of his scimitar, breathing a sigh of relief as he found it. He prayer switched lowly, "Sarenrae provide me with the light of your wisdom."
he finished casting the simple orison Light onto his scimitar making it gleam like a torch. He glanced about and rose slowly further patting himself down and checking to make sure nothing was lost about his possessions.

[Machivellimoo]

Galen Whisperwind

"It never fails..." Galen thought as he pulled himself out of a awkward position. Noticing the remains of his candy floss stuck to his chest, a wry smile creeps across his face. "Better this floss than the spider's..." Galen readies his sword and creeps forward. "Yes I see the spider, yes we should kill it."

[nande]

Neia

Having only arrived in town the day before the festival, Neia was encouraged to postpone her enlistment in one of the myriad knightly orders until after the celebrations, and so found herself wandering the busy streets of Kenabres before the demons attacked. Such large crowds and bustling atmosphere were entirely new experiences for the young aasimar, such that when the Kite exploded in she initially mistook it for part of the festivities. By the time she had gathered her wits and readied her weapon to defend against the sudden invasion, the ground beneath her feet had opened up and she fell into the darkness below.

As she floated downwards, a halo of pure light formed above Neia's head, joining the illumination provided by the spellcasters, and once grounded she moves between the wounded citizens and the lurking spider, ready to defend if the monster makes an attack.

[cybersavant]

Aravashnial Who's here? What are your names? Are any of you able to fight? Who has dealt with fearsome beasts before? We must reconnoitre the area and find a way out."


Horgus Gwerm "Who put you in charge? You're obviously blinded." He stands up, "Oww", and promptly reseats himself on the rubble. "My clothes are ruined. Look at them."


Anevia Tirabade remains calm and quiet until Aravashnial speaks. "I'm Anevia Tirabade. You will need help to get out of here. There is only one exit out of this cavern, as we have no way to dig through that rubble."

[Demilich]

Ahlannah

Turns to the ones speaking, "We have more important things to deal with at the moment. We will be deciding who will be in charge and where we go next, after we deal with this giant spider." gently waving her arms, trying to signal that they calm down and be quiet.

Turning back towards the spider, "We have to deal with this spider before we talk about who, what, where and why?"

[Dwarfjsgm]

Scratch rubs his sore bottom. Seeing the poor dragon lose her head had saddened him. Now he's back underground with strangers, and, oh my, a huge spider. Once he's dusted off, he'll look around,

"Hi. Um, I'm Scratch. Not that I don't mind being underground, but does anyone know where we are?"

[Demilich]

Ahlannah

Turns to look at Scratch for a moment, before turning back to the spider, " Names Ahlannah, Wish I could say that its a pleasure, but, nice, to meet you. Dont know where we are? The obvious answer, is, deep underground, perhaps, under the city, or whats left of it, when ever we manage to get back to the surface."

[Anodyzed]

The tall redheaded human with the green eyes, who was worried about injuries, calls out. I'm Elias Blackwood. I'll do what I can to tender to the injured, but I'm not a healer, I'm a singer! I'd been hoping to get a gig on a stage after the merriment of the afternoon was slowing down. Now, who knows? But just maybe, if we don't approach that spider, it will just watch or even lose interest and go away.

[CeriantheCat]

Kelden Sunblade


Finally having his bearings he slowly pulled out his crossbow drawing an easy aim at the spider.

"Kelden Sunblade Cleric of the Dawnflower. If you something of a ranged weapon ready it we volley fire at the spider on my mark. If you lack a ranged weapon be prepared to rush it after we fire."

[GreyWolfVT]

Svendt once back up and head straight draws his rapier and watches the spider, he himself ready to strike the thing should it move to attack.

sorry if I wasn't supposed to post

[Edeldhur]

Helgash

Lets get this moving

Helgash takes a deep breath, focusing on the task at hand. The memories of Terendelev’s sacrifice fuel his resolve.

"Listen up, everyone," he begins, his voice calm but firm. "We need to ensure this area is secure before we can tend to the wounded properly." He glances at Elias and nods, "Elias, you've got a good point. We should avoid provoking the spider if we can. But we must be certain it isn't an immediate threat."

Turning to Kelden, Helgash continues, "Kelden, keep your crossbow ready, but let's not rush into an attack just yet. I need someone to come with me to get a closer look. We’ll move slowly and carefully, avoiding any sudden movements."

He then addresses the group, "If anyone here has healing skills, please tend to the wounded while we check the spider. Neia, your halo provides excellent light. Can you assist Elias in making sure the injured are stable?"

Helgash grips his morningstar, the weight of his duty heavy but welcome. "Let's stay alert and work together. Terendelev saved us for a reason. We honor her by surviving and fighting back."

With a nod to Kelden or another volunteer, Helgash begins to cautiously approach the spider, ready to react if necessary.

[Demilich]

Ahlannah

"I can burn it with fire, if it decides to attack." she says, as she moves to follow Helgash, hands raised, a spell prepared, ready for the final wording to be spoken. She is wary, but confident. As she comes closer, Helgash would begin to get an uneasy feeling from her, not from her body language, just, from her being close to you. She seems normal enough.

Her familiar, a black cat, watches from a spot by the rubble

[nande]

Neia

Upon hearing the knight's eloquent commands, Neia nods and slowly backs away from the spider, moving towards those injured in the fall. Her knowledge of first aid is rudimentary at best, though she is ready to aid Elias in his ministrations all the same.