Session #36 - The Curse Is Lifted

“To summon Nintra Siotta you will need to do two things,” Zyrian said.  “Light six candles and place them around the outer portion of the circle in the middle of the room.  Then you must call her using three of her names.”

“Three?” asked Kent.  “We know her name, and that she is called the Princess of Shadowglass.  How many names does this witch have?”

Katla walked over to Donyxn and rolled up his sleeve, reading the tiny script running down his left arm.  “The Lady of Dread Omens,” she said.

Zyrian nodded.  “Indeed, that was another of her names.”

In preparation, Almont used some healing magic on Donyxn to get the tiefling back into fighting condition.  He then began an incantation that was unfamiliar to the others, and a moment later a seven-foot-tall creature appeared.  It looked like a tabaxi, a bipedal leopard, but its fur glowed a radiant blue.  In its right paw it held a large mace.  

Kent stopped mid swig and slowly pulled his flask down from his mouth.  He looked at the flask, then at the creature, then back at the flask.  The creature regarded him serenely.

“This is Lopey,” Almont explained.  “He is a celestial spirit and will aid us in the fight to come.”

Katla withdrew a potion from her robe.  “I will go invisible before we enter.   Are we ready?”

The four adventurers exchanged glances while Lopey stared at the metal door.  They all nodded in agreement.

Katla drank her potion and disappeared.  The other three each held one of the rune keys and prepared to insert them into their places.

“One last thing,” Zyrian said.  “Whatever happens, don’t let her leave the room.”

“Why not?” asked Donyxn.

“It would be bad.  Very bad.”

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The door slid back into the wall without of sound, revealing a large circular room about 80 feet in diameter and capped with a crystalline dome rising to a peak height of 50 feet.  Six eight-foot high bookshelves protruded from the walls like spokes in a wheel, though they only extended about 20 feet into the room.  The shelves divided the outer portion of the room into eight identically-sized spaces, each with a circular wooden table and a pair of chairs, as a well as a tall silvery mirror against the wall.  The center of the room was taken up by a 30-foot diameter conjuring circle inlaid with various swirls and patterns.  Six unlit candles sat on the floor along the outer ring of the circle.

“I suggest we take up two separate positions,” Kent said, quickly taking in the room.  “I’ll go to the section directly across from here.”

“I will go with you, Kent,” said Almont.  He turned to the Celestial.  “Lopey, remain here with Donyxn, and do not let anything leave the room.”  The celestial nodded stoically.  None of them knew where Katla was, but they trusted her to find an advantageous spot from which to attack.

The cleric and rogue walked around the circle in opposite directions, lighting the candles as they went.  When they took up their positions at the opposite end of the room, Almont spoke.  “Nintra Siotta, Princess of Shadowglass, Lady of Dread Omens, show yourself!”

A purple cloud formed inside the circle, quickly filling the space all the way to the top of the dome.  It swirled for a few moments before being sucked out through the dome.  Left standing in the middle of the circle was a nine-foot-tall female humanoid, her skin glittering and reflecting light as if it was glass.  Her pink cape seemed to dissolve into a trail of mist behind her.  Unnaturally long fingers extended even further with sharp talons.  

Nintra laughed.  “You are even stupider than I could have hoped, to have brought yourselves here to me.”

“Smart enough to kill you, witch,” Kent retorted, nudging Almont with his elbow and winking with satisfaction.  

The cleric shook his head.  “Enough words, witch.”  With that a spectral warhammer took shape in front of Nintra and smashed her, specks of glass-like dust bursting from the impact location.  

“You dare to strike me,” Nintra said in barely controlled rage.  It was not so much a question as an accusation.

Lopey strode into the circle and smashed the witch with his mace.  She turned so rapidly that it looked as though she simply flipped directions like a mirror image, her taloned claws raking the celestial.  Radiant energy poured out of the wounds as the blue cat disintegrated.

“Uh oh,” Kent muttered.

Then things took a turn for the worse.

Six glass-like warriors in full armor stepped out of mirrors in different parts of the room.  Kent rushed at the one closest to him and shoved it up against a bookshelf.  Retrieving the Immovable Rod from his belt he used it to pin the creature against the shelves.  On the the other side of the room, closest to the entrance, Donyxn attacked another with the Sword of Zariel.

Nintra snorted.  “Well this shouldn’t take long.”  Four of the glass warriors converged on her in the center of the circle.

A ball of lightning streaked across the room and slammed into the witch, electrical charges popping across her body as she yelled in anger.  Katla re-appeared, her spell causing the invisibility effect to end.  She was stationed near the door about ten feet away from where Donyxn battled a glass warrior.

With Nintra now focused on Katla, Almont saw any opportunity.  Steam rose from his skin as he spoke the words, his temperature rising rapidly.  The release came as the entire circle in center of the room was embroiled in an inferno rising ten feet into the air.  The sound of glass crazing and another anguished howl from Nintra could be heard within.  

As the flames dissipated the five figures remained upright, though the four glass warriors showed scorch marks.  Nintra was clearly enraged.  She pointed first at Katla, whispering some kind of spell.  The elf flew backwards as if a rope tied around her waist had been pulled by an incredibly strong hand, disappearing into the mirror closest to the door.   Turning back toward Kent and Almont another word caused the mirror behind them to shatter, shards of glass battering and cutting the pair.  

The four glass warriors in the center of the circle attacked the cleric and rogue, while another continued to struggle to get past the rod holding it against the bookcase.  On the other other side of the room Donyxn traded blows with a sixth.  

Nintra turned and began to walk toward the door.  At the same time a mirror to the north end of the room unceremoniously disgorged Katla, the elf somersaulting as she hit the floor.  She quickly took in the situation and launched a fireball into the middle of the room, once again engulfing Nintra in flames while also catching two of her glass warriors, one of which shattered from the heat.  

As the fire began to dissipate Nintra disappeared, then reappeared directly behind Donyxn and raked the tiefling with her claws.  Her glassy skin showed cracking and black burned streaks, but she was still incredibly dangerous.  

“Sorry Almont,” Kent said as he sprinted across the room to aid Donyxn and keep Nintra from the door.  The cleric was left surrounded by three of the glass warriors, but he knew Kent’s course of action was the right one.  He swung his warhammer with abandon as blows from glass swords rained down upon him. 

A shadow flew across Kent as he raced toward Donyxn.  Looking up he saw Katla flying across the room on a pair of dragon-like wings. She opened her mouth and flames spewed forth, once again bathing Nintra in magic fire.  The witch screamed in frustration, blinking out of existence yet once again, this time reappearing in the north end of the room.  

Kent continued forward to aid Donyxn, his scimitar flashing as he shattered one of the glass warrior’s legs.  As it lost balance and began to fall Donyxn struck it with his sword, shattering the creature and blasting the pair with shards of glass.  On the other side of the room Almont destroyed another of the warriors, though he was being worn down as the two remaining continued to batter the cleric.

Katla’s altitude allowed her to spot Nintra as soon as the witch reappeared.  The sorceress rose higher on her spectral wings, another ball of electrical energy growing in her right hand.  The others had never seen Katla call forth a chromatic orb this large.  Nintra’s eyes grew wide as it leapt from the sorceress’ hand, striking the witch in the chest.  The electric discharge cracked with intensity, and her form turned to dust and fell to the floor.  

The remaining glass warriors disintegrated into piles of dust and the room fell silent, other than the crackling sound of a few small fires.  

“Kent!”  Donyxn’s anguished shout turned everyone’s attention back to the door.  Kent stood there, scimitar in hand but unmoving.  As Almont and Katla came closer they understood why Donyxn was so shocked - Kent had been turned to a statue of glass.  Donyxn, meanwhile was almost completely covered in tattooed script, the lettering even appearing on his face now.  

“We must put out the candles,” Katla said softly, working her way quickly around the circle and extinguishing the flames.  “Putting them out will take away Nintra’s last chance to reform.  It should also break the curse.”

Almont and Donyxn continued silently staring at Kent.  As Katla blew out the last candle, they both shuddered.  Almont could see the tattooed text fading from Donyxn’s face.  Rolling up his sleeve the cleric saw that his own tattoos were also disappearing.

Kent, however, remained unchanged.

“I exhausted most of my magic,” said Almont solemnly.  “But I did keep one spell in reserve.  While it did not successfully remove the curse from me while Nintra was still alive, perhaps it will work on Kent now that she has been destroyed.  If not…”

They trio exchanged glances.  Katla and Donyxn nodded in agreement.  Almont rubbed his palms together, then held them up in front of Kent’s glass face.  Whispering the spell, the cleric felt the power of Kiri-Jolith flow through him.  Kent began to glow from within and a few moments later his glass features began to soften, becoming flesh once more.

Almont put his hands down as Kent looked around.  “What?” the dwarf asked.  “Is it done?”

Donyxn exhaled loudly.  “It’s done.”