PBEM Orlantia

The Story So Far
Chapter 031

PBEM Orlantia: Falling Back.

With a still burning bottle in his hand, Mystir followed orders. Falling back to the staircase he turned his back on the nightmarish monster and headed back down the stairs.

The fight was over, at least for the wizard. Having no useful spells and not being adequate in traditional combat, there was nothing more he could do to aid the battle.

His final steps down the stairway were labored. The rush of energy the battle created was quickly fading, and the stress upon his mind and body was overwhelming. Upon reaching the bottom, Mystir moved along the eastern wall a few paces and slid down to a sitting pose.

Looking about the room to see he had already reached safety, the boy asked aloud, "Are we ever going to take that thing down?"

Mystir placed the bottle against the wall an arm's length away, taking care not to spill its rag-stoppered contents. On the other side of his body, the wizard leaned his staff against the wall.

Between long stretches of closed eyelids, the halfelf watched the rest of his group falling back into the chamber as the small remaining flame in Alana's cocktail finally burned out. They were injured. They were spent. It had been a rough day - with first the golem, then the nightmare. Mystir wondered if they would have to face the nightmare again, or if it would leave that place now that there was no field of regeneration.

Only time would tell. And right now, time is what they needed most.

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: The Last Retreat.

Afyanna found herself on the verge of despair. Her first quest might be her last. And worse, how many would die and suffer simply because she had failed - just because she wasn't good enough? At least Joree had stopped 'her' foe. Afyanna's still commanded the field. But unlike Joree, Afy had no such self-sacrificing magic at her disposal. Would she even use it if she did? She wasn't sure, finding it difficult to concentrate through the pain as she hobbled back toward the secret stairway.

*Live to fight another day,* she thought, and that was all she could think. Uselessly throwing her life away in a futile show of defiance would be a sin against her lord, her training, and her friends, so she followed the only remaining option that she could see, and retreated.

Wyn grimaced as he stood up and discovered he was holding onto Alonwë, pulling himself up using the sword wedged in the fallen Timber's knotty eye. Despite his pain, once fully erect, he pulled upon the sword and tried to free it, but it would not relent. Perhaps if he had not been so injured he could exert more force, but as it was now, it was a useless endeavor. Sparing not a second to look back to see what he knew must be there, Wyn instead carried himself toward his comrades, seeking cover and an opportunity to clear his mind from the pain and consider his decreasing options. He almost stumbled down the secret stairwell, but managed to get inside before taking a wall and sliding down its side to a resting position, the secret door's activation mechanism just within his reach.

The nightmare paused from its intended rush as the little gnome scurried under the pews. The gnome, obviously, now held the nightmare's full attention for the moment, and that didn't bode well for Bebe. Still, behind stone pews of adequate cover, she found comfort, and lashed out at the creature with the power of her spell once more. A thin, blue light streaked toward the nightmare and struck it on its chest - an icy coating frosting over it, then melting, though the spell did elicit a satisfying snort of minor pain from the hell horse.

In anger and fury, and truth be told, determination to teach such a puny thing its place in the greater scheme of things, the nightmare reared up and smashed its hooves onto the stone pew protecting Bebe. The blasted thing shattered, sending stone shards at the little gnome, spraying her with sharpened slivers of granite with enough force to pierce her skin. Minor as they were, there was more than a few wounds, and her face ran with streaks of blood. She was lucky she had not been blinded.

Now the snorts issuing from the beast were not pain, but more akin to maniacal laughter and satisfaction. Bebe ducked under some other pews when it appeared the hell horse was about to do it again.

Just then a brilliant flash of light from Alana's outstretched finger, fortunately, caused the beast to falter and stagger back, once again using its innate speed and ability to fly to gain a safe distance as it furiously blinked its eyes, trying to refocus.

It was not a good place to be, Bebe decided, and using the momentary window of opportunity, she scrambled back under the pews and shot out toward her friends, running as fast as gnomish legs could carry her, reaching her fellows just as the nightmare charged the pack of them once more to give chase to the defiant upstart of a gnome.

Valin and Sef shot in unison, and bolt and arrow provided what covering fire Bebe needed. Valin's bolt went wide its mark, but Sef's arrow both hit and pierced the damn thing's hide for a change. Yet he did not take time to relish his victory, instead loudly insisting all fall back into the stairwell.

"Get in there, you fools!" he barked, his true feelings of their recent antics finally surfacing. No one who remained outside dawdled, and in an instant they were all inside.

Wise or not, in compliance with Sef's wishes or not, he didn't know, but Wyn tripped the mechanism once Sef - the last of their party - cleared the door. The whisper quiet mechanism of weights and counter weights behind stone walls could be heard as the giant slab of stone slid down, then forward, and sealed the stairwell off from the temple. They had escaped the creature. Or had they? Their position was not all that greatly improved, considering.

Despite achieving a new measure of safety, Bebe fretted about Bramble's well being, not knowing how her animal companion was doing, and unable to provide even as much as a comforting word.

Alana, too, looked around in the dim lantern's light for Lucian. He was nowhere to be seen.

*The damn cat,* she chided, but she wasn't really angry so much as afraid for her friend.

Mystir glanced up when the stairwell grew much darker with the closing of the secret door. They were safe. But what now? He was supposed to be a genius, after all. He should know what the next best course of action to take should be. But he didn't. Perhaps it was time for him to finally concede brains weren't always the answer.

A loud thump was then heard through the wall. Then another. Sledgehammer-like, rhythmic pounding on the stone door began in earnest. The damn nightmare was trying to bash down the secret door. Worse, given its unnatural toughness and stone smashing strength, it might be able to do it. All it required was time, and the party was rapidly running out of that.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Wolf At The Door.

The party sat quietly on the steps leading down to the steel door, the mood somber and grim. The relentless pounding on the secret entrance told them all they needed to know about their foe on the other side of the stonewall.

After a few moments to take stock, they began to pick themselves up and focus on the problem in hand. Sefarlain, in particular, had been studying the secret stone door.

"If this continues," he began, "we have at best about half an hour. The creature may stop or it may not. I don't think we can afford to find out by just waiting. I suggest we all move down to the bottom of the stairs and have a look at the corridor down there. Either we see if the nightmare will risk coming down the stairs into an enclosed area, and we attack it there, or we look for an alternative."

There was a long pause.

"I don't see any obvious alternatives at the moment." suggested Valin. "We're stuck behind this door with no means of escape. What are you suggesting?"

"Well, there's not much choice now. There's the vault door. Do we open that and chance everything?"

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Limited Possibilities.

"Well," the wizard started, "I only see a few possibilities, myself." He peered about the others, making sure those interested would be able to hear him. "We can attempt to brace the door and wait it out. Open the door and launch a counterattack. Or explore the sealed door, and possibly the room behind it."

*Stay focused,* Mystir repeated in his mind. *Think.*

"No matter what the decision is," he continued, "we need to get the wounded down to the bottom. They will be in both our, and harm's way, if they remain on the steps."

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Reading Magic.

Things looked grim. If they had the stamina, the corridor would have proven to be an advantageous place to fight, but most of them were already badly wounded. It was a pity they didn't fight the nightmare within the corridor in the first place. It might have helped. But it was too late now to fret over lost chances. Yet they had to do something - soon.

Alana and Valin carried Cosher, then Tyrulf down to the ten-foot by ten-foot landing. There was room there from them to stretch out their unconscious friends and make them 'comfortable' as possible.

"How about that captured spellbook?" Valin asked Mystir.

The young wizard had been considering it. Earlier he had failed to discern the true nature of two of its spells. Luckily he had a Read Magic spell prepared, and since there was little else to do with it, he began casting it after a quick warning of his intentions.

The mystical lettering and symbols swam in his mind; shapes and pictographs that had heretofore been unintelligible and apparently meaningless seemed to come into focus. Like a friend describing a shape in the clouds above, trying to show you what he imagined he saw there, the images slowly gained a more recognizable, even familiar meaning as he pondered them. Hell, he knew what those spells were after all. It had been obvious. He actually wondered how he had failed to grasp their archaic significance the last time he had looked.

"Ah, yes, I see the spells within this tome are Magic Mouth, and the highly useful Invisibility spell, which I knew before. But I don't have the components for these first two. Then there's a copy of the regular Continual Flame, and also that of the Flaming Sphere. I don't have time to prepare them - nor really the full ability, to tell the truth - but they could still be of use to us here and now. If they are used, however, they would be forever gone to us."

"You can do that?" asked Alana, somewhat impressed.

"Certainly. It would be like reading a spell off a scroll, sort of, though a bit harder since there is no true power locked up in these words. I could supply the power, perhaps. It's just a matter of understanding, and, well, having the right materials. Oh . . . ," he trailed off. "No. No. I don't really have the things I need to cast these degenerate spells. Some of them are simple things, too. I don't suppose any of you have some brimstone, do you? I'd bet Alana has some tallow for cooking, and we can scrape up some iron filings, but does anyone have some brimstone? We'd need that for the sphere of fire. Powdered ruby of a considerable quantity seems unlikely, and the Continual Flame wouldn't help much here anyway. Eyelashes are no problem, but gum arabic? Common enough in a city's alchemist's shop or by a handy acacia tree, but not here, so sneaking around invisibly doesn't seem to be possible right now. And even if Alana might have a bit of honeycomb in her stores, who has any jade? Not that a Magic Mouth would really help here."

Mystir sighed despondently, finally concluding the captured spellbook wasn't going to be of much help in the near future.

"Wait a moment . . . " Mystir said as he looked about the room. Eyes turned toward him to discover the wizard's gaze was now fixed upon the great door to the vault of iniquities. His Read Magic spell, far from over, was making the glyphs more recognizable in minor ways.

"What do you see?" Alana wanted to know.

"Corellon Larethian's seal is the central one. Some of it suggests 'Angelic Fury?' I think," Mystir offered. "The topmost seal is of Hanali Celanil, your goddess, Alana."

"Yes, that one was glowing a bit before when I was casting my spells down here, but the light's faded now," Alana told everyone.

"That one's 'Love's Fury,' whatever that might suggest," Mystir went on.

"The bottom most one depicts Moradin, the well-known god of the dwarves. It suggests 'Earth's Retribution' as near as I can guess. Sounds ominous," he added.

"Pallas Athena's seal is the rightmost one. Looks like 'Horrible . . something?' No, 'Awful Truth' for that one. Gods, I have no idea what all these mean, despite what I'm saying."

There's one more," Valin said, pointing.

"Yes, the leftmost has Odin's seal. "Memory's Abeyance?" he said questioningly. "Honestly, I'm not sure I'm helping here at all. Anything would be a mere guess as to what they might do. It's a practical certainty, though, it isn't safe to mess with these things. But then, we're past safe now, aren't we?" he swallowed, as the pounding continued from up the stairs.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: The Question Of The Seals.

"If we could only unleash that magic on the nightmare," Alana began, "that would surely take care of the beast."

"I wonder if there is no way we could invoke the magic invested in those seals. The seal of my goddess was glowing, as I mentioned before. Perhaps that means they react to danger that could compromise the integrity of the vault - like when the nightmare would come storming in here," she added hopefully.

"Well, it is not much, but the beast certainly does pose a threat. Do you know something more about these things, Afyanna?"

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Leap Of Faith.

Afyanna read the warning aloud to her companions: 'You look upon the iniquities vault of Moonstone Temple, wherein evil lies, sequestering it from those without. Break not these seals, nor enter this vault, except in His most Holy name.'

The holy warrior let that sink in a moment before she continued. "What little I know of these vaults is that they are not to be opened except for reasons of the Church. The warning is very clear that evil lies within."

Febriwyn broke his customary silence. "Are you going to risk getting yourself - and us - killed when the solution to killing that thing may lie just beyond that door?"

*Then again, there may be nothing to aid us,* came to Afy's mind, but she held her tongue.

The holy warrior considered the situation. Corellon Larethian set her upon a path to free the innocents of this area. Though there had been many trials, there had been few actual clues upon which way to proceed. His hand had led her to this place. This place, indeed. A temple to Him, whereupon they had vanquished that which had felled another of His warriors. They had freed her spirit and set about cleansing the temple and the surroundings.

But the one true enemy, the one He had tasked her to slay, had eluded her. She and the party hunted it, hurt it, and suffered great losses. But it kept coming. Now the nightmare was the hunter. It had them trapped. Trapped in this place. This place, indeed.

Afyanna's eyes were drawn again to the great symbol of Corellon Larethian in the center of the sealed doors. They were here, in His temple, before His vault, and on His quest.

Afy looked to the faces before her. She could see some of them well considered this would be where they would fall. She probably mirrored that look. Some, like Alana, still held out hope that this was but yet another trial to overcome.

"From what I know about the seals," Afyanna told the druid, "they are meant to stop the unworthy from entering the vault. They are meant to kill either that person, or all things in an area. I think they react to being opened and can't be 'used' by us on the nightmare. It's also possible that if for some reason the nightmare decided to rush past us and break down the vault door - the wrath sealed in those symbols could very well kill us, as well as it. I don't think it discriminates friend from foe."

"But the symbol of my Goddess glowed," she said.

Afyanna shrugged. "I honestly don't know why, Alana. Maybe it's because you were healing in Her name. Maybe it's from that ring you carry - though it doesn't seem to be doing anything now. I just never got the impression that these types of seals were 'good' things. They are meant to do what is necessary to keep people out."

"As bad as that thing is," she said with a nod towards the resounding thuds, "there are things far worse in the world. And they are kept in places like this."

"So, we die then," Wyn stated. "Is that it?"

Afyanna hadn't faced this kind of situation before. She had only been recently tapped by Corellon Larethian and didn't have the years of study and training that most of His acolytes receive. It was hard coming from a military background where there were actions and reactions. Situations had rules. And there were rules for situations that didn't have rules for them already. Afyanna was not yet accustomed to acting purely on faith. Perhaps it was time now to take that leap and act on faith alone.

"Look," she said. "I'll be honest with you. I personally feel that we should not open those doors. I don't have much knowledge of these vaults, but I know they were not to be opened."

She looked again at the great symbol in the center. "But I'll grant you that we have been led to this very place by Corellon Larethian to slay the beast that is just outside this hall. I do not know how to open those seals. But, I am a Holy Warrior of Corellon Larethian, and perhaps that will be enough."

Afyanna looked specifically to each member of the party, holding each of their gazes. "I will not make this decision myself. If I fail, it may be all of us who are destroyed by whatever wrath I incur. Therefore I ask each of you - do you want me to try?"

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Preparing.

"We may have no hope of facing this beast, despite its injuries, as we are. But those seals are sure to do far more damage," said Febriwyn as he sat at the base of the stairs against the right wall.

A sadistic smile flicked across Febriwyn's lips, "At worst, we fight this thing and the last of us alive trips the wards. Perhaps Corellon will save us before then. Perhaps the closeness of the beast will unleash their power or breaking down the door will do it, but I'm pretty sure that He has us here to ensure it dies; one way or the other."

Wincing slightly, Febriwyn offered his well-cherished short sword to Sef.

- Febriwyn (Brandon)

PBEM Orlantia: Suspicious Silence.

Valin spoke, after examining the door to the vault. "It's locked, of course," he said, matter-of-factly, as he cocked and armed the town's heavy crossbow he carried. "We'd have to unlock the door first, if anyone intended to just open them and simultaneously break all five seals. Of course you could just smash any one of them. That would release the power of only one seal. I'm just sorry to say I think doing that would either release all the power on whoever broke it, or on everyone in the immediate area - and probably in as undiscriminating a manner as Afyanna suggested. So unless you know the words of passage, unless you are sanctioned to do so, I'm guessing it wouldn't end well. But whatever the outcome, at least four other seals would remain to guard the vault if only one were broken."

It was true, Afyanna thought that they didn't want to die AND leave the vault unguarded, if it came to that.

"If you do decide to break a seal, I'd vote you only broke one," Valin went on. "Which one, however, is the million gold piece question. Not that I think any one of them has to be better - they're probably all designed to seriously trash anyone who doesn't open or pass them properly. And just so you know, Afy, I don't think being His representative alone would cut it. Recall, Anlashok wouldn't even try it, and he sounded more powerful than you. And even if it were, at best that might apply to your own lord's seal. You see, whatever lays beyond these doors is of sufficient concern to have caused five separate religions to lend their protection - not just yours."

"Mrrreeeeeoooowwwww!" came a muffled cry from beyond the secret door. Whatever it was, the pounding stopped. Everyone froze and listened. Nothing. There was no sound.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Nitty-Gritty.

Bebe knelt next to Tyrulf and popped one of two Goodberries she had into his mouth. Although not powerful, the berry seemed to relax Ty and allowed his ragged breath to ease into an exhaustive sigh.

"Sorry Rulfy, but we may need the other for later," she said, half thinking of her poor Brambles suffering out there. A tear came to her eye as the image of the wounded wolf scampering into hiding crossed her mind.

*She's a tough ole girl. She'll hang on, Ehlonna willing.*

Bebe looked up as the discussion leaned towards breaking the seals of the door, and she said, "I am all for taking a peak at what's in there, but I think it should be the last of the last resorts. We don't need to be facing yet another beast. Look what happened when we had to face two at once, much less a third unknown. Our current situation's dire enough as it is without another little nasty popping up. This door needs some serious research. What if the evil contained is beyond our control and we released it upon the local populace? So many different wards from different religions appear a little too unprecedented for my liking."

She looked around the group after considering the tumultuous thoughts running rampant in her mind, then moved closer to the door and began reaching towards one of the wards before thinking better of it and pulling her hand back.

"I think we should line up along the wall, time the strikes on the door and open it as the hellish bitch puts its weight upon it, and then knock the living fire out of her as she tumbles by. By Hades! We may even get lucky and it will break its neck on the way down. At least we can force it down the stairs towards the door and allow it to trip the wards."

She looked around at her ragged bunch of adventurers and said, "At least the hell-horse will take the brunt of any power released. Who knows? Maybe one of us will survive to send word to our families of our selfless sacrifice."

She suddenly began to chuckle at the would-be world saviors and said, "I can see the heralds singing our plight; 'Fiendish Foal Falls Flat, Frazzled Fighters Futile Foray Finishes Fallen Fiery Freak.'"

Everyone looked as if they had a terrible onset of a headache, or perhaps gallstones. *That's the real problem in this realm - no one has a sense of humor.*

Saying a quick prayer to Garl Glittergold - to help those less fortunate stop being so uptight - she gripped Mick and walked a little ways up the stairs.

Suddenly, the pounding stopped.

- Shelly (Bebe)

PBEM Orlantia: Cat Curiosity.

"LUCIAN" Alana exclaimed. "Lucian is out there," she repeated to the others, worry creasing her features.

"He'll get hurt; I have to get him!" she exclaimed, and with that the druid rushed to the door, intent on saving her furry friend.

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: What Awaits?

Sefarlain took the shortsword gratefully from his elven comrade and nodded his thanks.

When the continuous thumping stopped, the ranger secretly hoped that the nightmare had given up, but he knew his adversary better than that. Where else could they hide? They were in no position to fight the beast for hours to come, and it seemed that the vault would consume all of them if the seals were broken.

Alana ran to the door once she heard Lucien cry out, clearly intent on opening it.

"WAIT ALANA!" the ranger called, and sent a desperate glance toward Afyanna.

*Should we leave the vault?* he wondered.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: Too Quiet.

"Alana! Wait!" Afyanna yelled to the druid as she passed.

"But Lucian is out there!" she cried.

"I know, but he sounds fine. If the nightmare were still at the door . . . " she left the obvious unsaid. "We'll get him in just a minute. Let's think this through, first."

"Mystir," Afy called to the wizard, "any idea why the nightmare didn't simply phase through the doorway?"

The young wizard's face twisted in thought for a moment and replied, "I suppose it's because it has never seen this side? We touched on this earlier, but if it were to phase back into our plane while intersecting an object, the results could be deadly."

Afyanna didn't understand the whys and where-fors, but she understood the message. Still, the beast had seemed furious with them for escaping.

*I would have thought it would have attempted it.*

"Any chance the beast is just phased out and waiting for us to open the door for Lucian?" she asked. At her cat's name, Alana's eyes darted between Afy and the door release.

Mystir just shrugged his shoulders matter-of-factly.

"Are you thinking of opening the door?" asked Sefarlain.

"Lucian or not, we can't stay here indefinitely," she replied.

Sef didn't like the idea of being trapped in the stairwell any more than she, and his face showed his reluctance to leave - and for good reason.

Looking around at everyone, she knew they really had no options. They couldn't stay where they were. But the nightmare might be outside laying in wait.

"Let's get Lucian," she said. "We'll stand ready on either side of the doorway, leaving a clear shot for Valin's crossbow. If the nightmare starts through the door - lay into it."

As she was describing her plan, her thoughts darted in another direction.

"What is it?" Valin asked of her puzzled expression.

"It just occurred to me, what if we are not the only reason it wants in here?"

"We're the only thing in here, save for the vault," Valin said.

"Exactly," Afyanna said slowly, still deep in thought. "What if that is what drew the nightmare to this area? What if there are things in that vault that are drawing the beast here? I mean, doesn't it seem odd that a beast that can phase in and out would happen upon a hidden temple? I had assumed it was staying around for the healing field - which I suppose is possible. But what if it were drawn here by whatever evil is contained within the vault?"

"I suppose it's possible," Mystir chimed in. The young wizard had more than a little curiosity etched on his face. "But what does that offer us?"

"You said something about the seal of Corellon Larethian implying 'Angelic Fury' I think?"

"That would be my best interpretation," he agreed.

Afyanna thought a moment before speaking. "If the nightmare truly does want into the vault itself, then it will make its way down here if we leave the doorway open. I'm thinking that perhaps if I break the seal of Corellon Larethian when the beast drew near, that may be enough to kill it."

"You'd kill yourself too!" Alana said.

Afyanna's eyes clouded over a moment. "That may be true. But I have to have faith that this Angelic Fury will destroy this evil creature, even if it means my life."

"So what do you propose?" Wyn asked.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. "We do like I mentioned already - we all ready ourselves for a fight at the doorway. But should the creature not show itself, you should drag our hurt comrades with you and into the rooms to the left. At least from there you have a couple avenues of escape."

"And you?" Sef asked.

"If the nightmare doesn't show itself, I'll come back down here and wait by the vault door." Afyanna thought carefully about her next words. "And if the beast appears down there, I'll break the seal of Corellon Larethian."

With that, they made ready by the doorway.

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Detect Nightmare.

Mystir moved past the group and inspected the door. Tapping the stone, the boy shook his head.

"Did anyone notice how thick this was?"

"About nine inches," Febriwyn replied, approaching the upper steps.

The wizard bit his lip in thought. *That's too thick; it won't tell us anything now, but it may give us a warning.*

"We must hurry; we have to save Lucian," Alana pleaded.

"Okay," Mystir started, "here's my suggestion." He looked into each of their eyes as he spoke. "We need to get out of here, for if the nightmare comes back, it will surely break through and engage us. We can't be trapped like this." The boy paused to gauge their reactions. "I am unsure as to where to go; I have a few suggestions, though."

"Continue," Afy insisted.

"Well," the halfelf went on, "we can hole up in the remainder of the temple; its not secure but it has more than one way out if need be. Then there is the way we came, but that leaves us open for attack from the moment we leave the temple until we reach the caves. And my last suggestion would be to head toward the catacombs."

"If we leave, I'm in favor of the catacombs," Sef interjected. "I don't like the idea of open ground with that beast about."

"Anything is better than being trapped," Bebe added. "What about the wounded, and what about Brambles?"

"We carry or drag them," Mystir continued. "But once we step outside of this passage, we're committed."

"How do we know that it's safe to try?" Febriwyn asked. "I don't want to be trapped as much as anyone else, but we don't know where that thing is."

"Then we make sure it's safe," the wizard added. "I'll cast Detect Magic and scan about for it."

Afyanna thought about the idea. "Will that tell you where it is?" she asked. "What if it's on another plane?"

"Well, it would have to be in range and be in the direction I'm facing." The boy looked at the door. "And this thing is the first obstacle; I don't think I can scan through it. As for another plane, I don't think I could detect it there, either."

"But what if the nightmare is after something in the vault?" Afyanna asked. "It should be protected at all costs."

"Well," the wizard replied, "if that were the case, then it likely would have beaten this door down long ago." The boy briefly paused. "Besides, it wouldn't be able to enter the vault unless it broke the seals, and I'm sure that would destroy it."

The holy warrior nodded as she thought over the wizard's words.

Turning towards the rest of the party, Mystir continued. "I should be able to locate the beast well before it is within striking distance. If the thing is still here, then we return and try to wait it out, and if it's not around, then I say we get out of here." Again the wizard looked about over the reactions of the group. "But once I start casting, I only have about a minute to scan, so we must be quick about it."

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Dweomer's Light.

None of the plan really suited Wyn, but even now, he was the Johnny-come-lately, and would be out voted if it came to it. He recalled all too well why he was a loner most of his life - putting his safety in the hands of others never set well with him, even when he knew and trusted them. And he had just met these people, for all practical purposes. But he was committed to the group for now, and in a bad place where he didn't know if he'd even survive. The pain in his hip and leg throbbed, reminding him of what probably lay beyond those few inches of stone the others were so intent upon opening.

Mystir began chanting, casting a spell, trusting all the others to be ready and waste no time in a well-coordinated effort - however foolish Wyn though it.

Afy tripped the door's mechanism and Wyn watched it slide back, then up, the massive stone weight impressively moving without apparent effort thanks to hidden counter weights within the walls. Unseen, and whisper silent, the elf was awed by the construction. His hand actually on the door this time, he could feel its massive weight move him back without effort, like a feather in a breeze - his own puny weight as nothing in comparison. The thing was a marvel - and he had to admit the dwarves were masters at their craft.

Then it occurred to him. *I wonder what would happen if someone was under that when the door closed? It'd probably crush 'em if they didn't move out of the way in time,* but he had no spare seconds for other thoughts.

The last archaic words of power rolled off Mystir's tongue just as the stone door locked into its open position. Surprisingly, only silence and darkness greeted them - their lantern light spilling out in the darkened corridor. Nothing was moving. Everything remained silent.

The boyish mage took a tentative step out into the hall and looked right, then left. Nothing. He walked out toward the temple, expecting to see something, but was surprised to see nothing. The temple area was dark. The Continual Light rock that had been on the altar was gone - as was the nightmare, as was Lucian.

As he eyes lingered on the altar, however, things changed. It began to glow, to brighten, and he wondered why.

"I can't see a thing," whispered Alana, who had been so close to Mystir's back the two were almost one.

"What do you mean? The place is bathed in light," Mystir pointed out.

"Huh? What light?" she asked.

Then it struck the boy. His vision had been 'altered,' of course. He had been so surprised by the absence of the nightmare, and of any appreciable light, he had momentarily forgotten his spell.

The altar itself was glowing of magic, and as his gaze lingered further, the altar appeared to grow in luminosity, despite the fact he could now discern it wasn't actually illuminating anything around it like a 'real light' would be. It was the dweomer of the thing, and his enhanced vision that could discern the multiplanar nature of objects around him that he was witnessing. And whatever it was, it was powerful.

*Moonstone Temple,* he thought. *Moonstone. It even looks like a crescent moon in shape. And it's magic,* his thoughts ran, trying to piece it all together. *And it's divine in nature, too. Umm . . . duh,* he scoffed at his own discernment.

"Where is it?" someone asked from behind him. He thought that a foolish question, for the altar was right in front of them. But then he realized they didn't mean the altar.

The question snapped his focus back on other matters and away from the altar. Turning about the room, he could see no other traces of magic, except the few he would have expected, such as Alonwë, glowing from the salve, no doubt, still stuck in the Timber's eye socket - and . . . yes . . . the Timber itself had a residual signature of sorts. Not very powerful.

Joree's body was there, but no magic was upon it. Her magical light was conspicuously missing.

*Damn,* he thought. *I wanted that.*

"Now what?" he asked.

"Well, what did you see?" Alana asked, and Afy's face, followed by Wyn's, were right there as well, waiting for an explanation.

Sef, on the other hand, wasted no time and went straight for his sword, trying to pull it free. It was stubborn, but pushing and pulling it back and forth, it loosened, and eventually came free, finding its rightful place once more in his sturdy hand.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Exiting the Stairwell.

Afyanna had grown accustomed to the light of the temple - first from the soul field, and then the similarly bright light from Joree's stone of light. This time, however, the only light came from the lanterns that they had used within the vault's stairwell. In fact, they had been about to snuff it out when they realized that the temple was no longer lit.

Because of her elven heritage, Afy could see better than some of her companions, she knew, but it was still not as good as full light. And it was disturbing. Not the darkness exactly, but that the nightmare, presumably, had made the effort to actually remove the stone of light from near the altar.

As that thought flitted through her mind, Afyanna made certain to get to the wall opposite the hidden doorway. Surprise had a habit of freezing a person for an instant, and a wary foe could use that fact to plan their attack. And being in a doorway made matters worse by confining both one and those behind them to one small space. Afy got clear of the doorway and made room for the others to do the same.

"Shhhh," she whispered, holding up a hand to slow the party's movements, quietly listening carefully to the surroundings. A beast that was trying to throw them off by removing their light still might be careless enough to give its presence away through sound.

The nightmare had been anything but predictable the entire time they had been tracking it. Even so, it was hard to NOT think of what it might or should do. The beast had to be nearby. Why would it leave? And why would it take the stone of light if not to confuse its attackers? For that matter, HOW could it 'take' the item?

Hearing nothing for the moment, Afyanna eased forward toward the main temple area, then made her way towards the altar. She could make out the hulk of the Timber still lying on the floor, and she could see the rise of the altar behind it. She carefully made her way to the end of the hallway, staying close to the wall the whole way. Still, the holy warrior made certain to keep from scraping her armor on the stone.

Once at the entrance to the temple proper, she halted and listened carefully again. Was the nightmare out in the main area? Where was Brambles? And Lucian?

Afyanna slowly leaned her head out and looked around the corner.

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: Missing Kitty.

"Lucian, Lucian," Alana called. She didn't dare call out louder, but her voice should carry far enough for the cat to hear her.

"Come on, you silly fur ball; now is not the time to play games."

The dark had startled her. It sure hadn't been that dark before. Nevertheless, she had expected a familiar thump against her legs any moment. After all, Lucian, being a cat, would have far superior sight than she. When the thump didn't come, she started to worry again.

It felt eerie that the nightmare had disappeared so suddenly. But what really unnerved her was that Lucian was missing, too.

Had the infernal beast somehow carried the feline away with him? Could he do that? And wouldn't she have heard Lucian's yowl of protest in that case?

"Well, what did you see?" she testily asked Mystir.

At least he got to see something, judging from his remark about the place being bathed in light, while she was literally left in the dark - for despite the lantern light, their illumination was almost trivial in comparison to what had been there before.

A few moments earlier, all she had wanted to do was open the door and rescue Lucian. All things considered, he should have been there. Now that he wasn't, she simply had no idea what to do next. Why could things never be simple?

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Exploring The Darkness.

"I don't like this. Not one bit."

Perhaps it was stating the obvious, but Sefarlain had to vocalize his fear. Even his sensitive eyes were having difficulty adjusting to the gloom.

"First things first, everyone. I think we need to move to the catacombs, or another place of safety while we are so weak. Let's move the others and lick our wounds where we are safe. Maybe we can work out what's going on."

The ranger tended his lantern so that a soft glow allowed the party to see where they were walking. As they discussed what to do next, Sefarlain moved over to Mystir and Afyanna to speak to them some more. The ranger had a gleam in his eyes, the mere flicker of an idea that in the poor light was lost to his friends.

"Mystir, I have a question for you as you are more experienced in these matters than I. The nightmare has disappeared. Maybe it has fled or maybe it has moved across planes. However, the light rock has also gone and it was also magical. Do you think perhaps someone took it, or has it gone with the nightmare as it vanished? Mind you, I have my sword, and it has the salve on it. So it, too, is magical for the moment."

He gripped Alonwë's hilt, not wanting to think of the consequences of his sword vanishing along with the light rock. Some things did not bear thinking about.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia: A Heavy Burden.

Valin stepped forward, a concerned look on his face, and spoke. "If we are to make a run for it, it'll be slow going indeed. Carrying two unconscious dwarves is no mean feat. It'll take four of us to do it at all, or we may injure them further. Or do you propose we might leave them behind for now, locked up inside the stairwell?"

"Shhhhhhhhhhh," Afy whispered, listening for sounds from the darkness beyond the lantern's light. She thought she heard something, and then moved further out into the temple to get a better perspective.

Flickering light played in a barely perceptible way from the corridor leading into the pantry, and she could hear faint noises, though she could not exactly identify them.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: A Desire For Patience.

Speaking quietly so as not to disturb the ones trying to listen for the nightmare, Febriwyn said, "You have a good point. Even if the nightmare has left for a while, it will take us quite a while to get to the catacombs. We have to carry our wounded, and although I can walk, I would be a lot slower."

He pondered the situation for a moment further and then added, "Perhaps we should rest down here, at least for this evening."

- Febriwyn (Brandon)

PBEM Orlantia: Animal Help.

*I wonder where those things made off to,* Mystir wondered, thinking about the nightmare and the glowing stone.

The young boy turned back towards the rest and asked, "Do you think that your animal friends could tell us what happened?" His question was mainly directed at the druidic pair, but they were a group, so he addressed them as such.

Realizing that the creatures were likely injured, and as not to seem rude, he added, "We need to treat them of any injuries, of course, but they may be able to give us the best course in leaving this place."

Looking about the temple, the wizard realized that the animal companions were nowhere to be seen. Mystir felt foolish. In his attempt to locate the nightmare, and then to acquire the stone of light, he had completely forgotten about the wolf and cat.

"Umm," the boy was at a loss, "where are Brambles and Lucian?"

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Time For Action?

As the faint sounds and the dim light reached the group's attention, the ranger realized that the opportunity was one not to be lost. Could they at last find out who was behind this nightmare creature's reign of terror? Had someone as yet unknown been controlling the situation up until then? Perhaps that explained the sudden appearance of the creature at the worst possible time.

There was only one way to find out.

"We must follow this sound," he hissed to the others. "I'm going to cast as well."

Summoning up the memories of his tomes, he cast his Detect Magic spell before setting off after the light, hoping others would follow him.

- Justin (Sefarlain)

PBEM Orlantia:Where Art Thy Cat?

"I don't know where Lucian is," Alana responded to Mystir's question concerning their animal companions. "But I clearly heard him; didn't you all clearly hear . . ."

"Shhhhhhhhhhh," Afyanna said, and that shut the druid up for the moment. Now she too heard some faint noises. When Sefarlain announced his intention to investigate, Alana was quick to agree. Perhaps that was where Lucian had disappeared.

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Toward The Unknown.

Afyanna silently replied with a short nod to Sefarlain's suggestion to follow the disturbances from the pantry. The halfelf grimaced from the stabbing pains in her ribs and arm. There were others who had been more hurt than she in the recent combat, so her healing had to wait. Nevertheless, she pressed onward past the altar and towards the hall.

The temple seemed much larger now than it did only a dozen minutes before. Without the light from the field or stone, the walls and outer rows of pews were cloaked in darkness. The wall could be inches beyond the limit of her sight, or many feet, if she hadn't known already. More than a wall could be hidden in that darkness, she knew.

Sefarlain moved along the hallway ahead of them at a low crouch, keeping close to the wall. Afyanna made a point to keep a short distance from the elf, since she knew he was far more silent than she. Again she marveled at how silently he moved, despite his quickness. She tried to note how he shifted his weight and how he chose his steps. She knew that although she might learn from him, the small amount of improvement she would gain would still pale to the amount of noise she created. Perhaps it was hopeless, but it didn't stop her from observing.

As the others began to move across the main temple chamber and toward the hallway leading to the large pantry beyond, Afyanna held a finger to her lips and kept them from getting too close to the more stealthy ranger. They would be more than close enough to help should anything attack, but she did not want their noise to be the cause of the attack.

They were fewer now, since some members of their party lay unconscious in the secret hall to the vault. But if luck would start to work with them rather than against, then surprise could prove a powerful ally should they meet something in the pantry ahead.

- Rick (Afyanna)

PBEM Orlantia: A Closer Look.

Two dwarves remained behind in the darkened stairwell. The secret door closed, even unattended, they would probably be safe there for a few hours more. But if the others should die in their immediate endeavors, doubtless the two dwarves would perish with them. But it could not be helped.

Alana looked about the temple but could not find Lucian, while Bebe almost frantically searched the back pews for Brambles. The main party left her behind, though, since the noises coming from the pantry seemed more urgent to them - but then, it was not one of their closest of friends who might be laying somewhere nearby in agony, perhaps even dying. Brambles had taken an awful hit, and nothing had been done to treat her, let alone comfort her, so Bebe was determined to rectify that first despite the other pressing matters at hand.

Sef - followed by Afy and Wyn - crept along the hall, hugging the wall, until he came at last to the pantry entrance.

From there he saw at once the story - though what it all meant was not so obvious. The Continual Light rock of Joree's lay upon the floor, as if discarded, and the pantry looked strangely new and interesting now that the ranger could see it better. But it was not the pantry items within that commanded his attention. No, it was the nightmare, stomping, even scrapping or pawing at something in a darkened corner behind some old crates.

Whatever the nightmare was after, it held its attention completely.

Sef could see a quick charge from where he stood might reach the beast in short order. If luck was with them, they could fall upon their prey and, through surprise, overwhelm it with a few lucky shots. But if luck was not with them, well . . . how many more might fall? And retreat would be much harder, given the distance back to any place of relative safety. They would be cut down before they got too far.

*Still,* he mused to himself, *there are two or three different routes of escape. If we had to fall back, splitting up would mean only a few of us would fall here and now. Those who survived might live to fight the hell horse another day.*

He did not like the grim thoughts, but reality was a harsh mistress.

Stealing back a few steps, he whispered to Afy, Wyn, Valin, Mystir, and Alana, briefly explaining in sign language and short utterances what he saw.

- JimGM.

PBEM Orlantia: Let's Do It.

"Lucian," Alana whispered, indicating to everyone there that she thought the cat might be what the nightmare was so frantically trying to reach. But why the beast would have so much difficulty dealing with the feline, she could not fathom. The old crates could hardly pose much of an obstacle. But she often thought there was more to Lucian than met the eye, so it was definitely feasible that he was what held the nightmare's total attention at the moment.

The thought of her furry friend was almost enough to make the druid rush headlong towards their hated nemesis to rescue her cat. There had been a time when she would have done just that, but the training she received with the monks had at least given her enough discipline to think before she acted. It didn't make things much easier.

Even though Sef had, out of necessity, been brief in his descriptions, Alana understood that he thought they had a real chance at finally defeating the beast, but an equally good chance at perishing in the attempt. The druid swallowed. A short time back she had been wondering if she could have done what Joree did. She still didn't know. The fact of the matter was that she thought life was sweet and there still were many things she would like to experience. It would be hard to let it go when she had just started to live.

If only they weren't so depleted of resources. But it was time to act.

Alana pointed to herself and held one finger up, whispering the word, 'Flare.' She still had that one spell left. Now she wished it had been a Guidance spell instead. Yet it could still serve a purpose. After all, perhaps this was exactly the reason she had stubbornly hung on to it till now, even though she had been tempted to use it to heal on numerous occasions. Perhaps it could still save a life if used as a diversion when making their escape, should they fail. Or better still, used as a diversion to enable one of them to deliver the killing blow to the nightmare. That one spell might give them just the edge they needed to succeed.

Alana decided it was worth a try. The nightmare should not be allowed to escape. Now that they had removed the soul field the beast had been using to heal itself, it might not return to that place. Who knew where it would resurface to wreak more havoc? But there was no choice.

In short words, she explained this to the others, finally saying, "Let's do it," in whispered tones.

- Wilma (Alana)

PBEM Orlantia: Nearly Useless.

The idea of defeating the nightmare, once and for all, was appealing. But Mystir had to consider the reality of the situation, at least from his point of view.

A whisper to the rest of the group stated his position. "I'm useless." Without a single spell at his disposal, arcane or divine, the wizard was left with mundane devices. Although proficient with the sling, he wasn't very good at it.

- Kevin (Mystir)

PBEM Orlantia: Surprise Is Key.

Afyanna nodded in understanding at what Sefarlain was saying. Strike now, strike fast, and strike hard. This might be the last chance they got to defeat the beast before it moved on to new hunting grounds.

*In our condition,* she thought, *this may indeed be our last attempt.*

They would need to charge the nightmare. There was no other way to close the distance without being heard before they could strike. Their only chance would be speed and surprise. Sefarlain, though, could no doubt get very close before he would be detected. That could be their advantage.

The holy warrior indicated to Sef through short, sharp, hand motions, and a quiet word here and there, that he should charge first. The rest would follow mere seconds after. If they all charged at once, the hell beast would hear them and have time to react. But if Sef was already upon it by the time it heard them, that might be all the advantage they needed.

*He is also the only one who could survive the first hit,* the detached, military side of Afyanna's mind noted, though she discounted Alana's and even Mystir's ability to take a punch - despite never having really seen them hit, so she didn't really know how well they'd stand up to actual punishment.

Afyanna gripped the hilt of her sword tightly. The faint tendrils of light filtering into the hall from the pantry played across the oily salve, turning the steel into a shimmering blade of blues and reds.

*Surprise is key,* Afy knew. *We have to finish the beast in the first few seconds, or it may be over for us all.*

Valin signaled to the group, his cocked crossbow in hand. With a sweeping circular gesture, he indicated Sef and others should move into the pantry a few yards first, then charge the beast. With his crossbow, he then showed how he and other missile weapons would have a clear line of fire in those first few seconds if they didn't have to contend with the backs of their charging comrades. Sef nodded - and Wyn, too, seemed to understand and agree, concealing his misgivings about his now hampered ability to be stealthy with a bum leg. He would still try. Even Mystir, now, rethought his sling. He wasn't that bad. He might not hurt the beast, unless he got incredibly lucky, but he doubted he'd hit his friends if they angled in on their charge like Valin suggested.

Once they were all clear on how to proceed, Afy quietly followed Sefarlain as close as she dared to the pantry, then halted, waiting for him to go.

The seconds ticked away as she watched Sef silently thread his way into the room. The pain from the previous fights began to ebb as the adrenaline started to flow. Afyanna's every muscle began to tense from the energy building up within. This time they would be the ones attacking - not reacting from its attacks like before.

Sef then stopped and went into a partial crouch. He raised his temporarily enchanted sword slightly in an obvious signal to be ready - then broke into a sprint over the remaining distance to the creature.

*One . . . Two . . .*

Valin fired. Mystir did, too.

Afyanna leapt from her position and charged into the pantry, directly at the nightmare. Then all heard Alana casting her spell.

They all closed their eyes for a second or two, trusting to their innate bearings as they ran, and could sense the bright flash through their eyelids. Then they quickly opened their eyes to see what awaited them.

- Rick (Afyanna)