The group set out for the Necrogond with renewed confidence and energy. Their four weeks of preparation proved to be well spent. The four made their way through the Necrogond with much greater ease than on their first try. Although they still were surprised by monsters on a couple occasions the four did a much better job of guarding against ambushes.
The four found the cave that had repelled them four weeks ago. Using their map the team was able to make progress a lot quicker. As in the valley, they also fought much better. They even encountered another of the turquoise shadow monsters but were able to keep this one from using any magic.
The team proceeded past the room with the unstable floor and soon found an ascending staircase. The floor on the next floor was better than that of the chamber they had just left but it did have a few large chasms. The floor also had a few small ponds. Strangely enough there were few monsters on this floor. Those that were there the group handled with little issue.
However, exploration of the floor revealed that there was no easy way to proceed. The four found a hallway with an ascending staircase that they could not access; there was a chasm that cut the group off from the hallway. The chasm was far too wide to cross and so the team had to pull out their rope and drop down through the chasm. This brought them to a very large chamber.
"Something's wrong here," noted Suzanne as the four climbed down the rope.
"I know what you mean," said Ron. "Where are all the monsters?" The group could now see the majority of the large chamber. There was only one wall obstructing view of the chamber. From what the four could see, there were no monsters around.
"Cheer up, guys! This is a good thing!" said Alice.
"I concur with Susie and Ron," said Thomas. "I feel like we're being set up."
"Well I take it as a good sign," persisted Alice. "I think all the monsters decided to hang out around the entrance of this cave so they could turn away any adventurers like us that might come by. We've broken through the lines!"
"I guess that makes sense," conceded Ron.
"I hope you guys are right, but stay on your guard," cautioned Suzanne. "And I think we should try to move quietly for a little while. If there is something waiting ahead I don't want them to know we're coming."
Suzanne cast a spell on the group that helped them make less noise. They still had to walk slowly and carefully but without the spell the armor that the four of them wore would have made attempts at stealth futile. Weary of being ambushed the whole way, nevertheless the group was able to make it to an ascending staircase without incident.
The next floor was a good deal more scenic than the last few floors. A river ran straight through the cavern. Going across the river were several bridges. The bridges were decorated with emerald statues of human warriors, very similar to those in the cavern's entrance. The walls were gorgeous; there were jewels embedded in the walls in such formations that they made great pictures. The wall nearest to the four depicted a fierce warrior made up of various jewels. The group almost let out an exclamation but managed to appreciate the artwork in silence.
Although initially awed by the chamber, the four quickly regained their focus and proceeded with care. And it was good that they did for the trap they were expecting was sprung as soon as they stepped on one of the bridges. From out of nowhere a loud, screeching sound blasted through the chamber. Any attempts at stealth were broken by that noise. Across the river were three hallways. Out of two of the hallways came two lions with orange fur, purple manes, fierce red eyes, and wings upon their backs. From behind the group a turtle monster crawled out of the water. The turtle had dark orange scales and a green shell. It had grey frills on its head which resembled that of a dragon's more than a turtle's.
Alice drew a stream of fire in front of the two lions with her staff but the lions ran through it unharmed. Suzanne and Ron moved to cut the lions off but one of them took flight and went after Alice. Alice tried to duck under the lion's claws but the lion gave her a good strike on her back, the impact caused her to fall down. The turtle moved towards Alice, ready to chomp her head off, but Thomas stepped forward to engage the beast. The turtle rewarded Thomas' maneuver with a vicious snap to his midsection. Thomas' armor held but the impact still inflicted some pain.
Thomas thought he had an opportunity as the turtle had left its head exposed. The turtle turned its head causing Thomas' strike to hit it at an angle. Against most creatures the strike would have done considerable damage but the turtle had thick scales that caused Thomas' strike to glance off.
While Ron made his way over the bridge to help Thomas and Alice fight the two monsters, Suzanne dueled against the other lion monster. The lion that had stayed on land was noticeably more sluggish than the one that had taken flight. Noticing this, Suzanne decided to go for the wings to ensure it would keep that sluggishness. The lion pounced, bringing both its powerful paws towards Suzanne but it was too slow and Suzanne was able to roll to the side. With a couple quick strikes she shortened one of the lion's wings, rendering it useless, and removed the other.
Thomas' assistance with the turtle gave Alice the time to return to her feet. As the lion had proven resistant to her staff, was still in the air, and Alice wanted to conserve her magic she decided to help Thomas with the turtle. Alice tried to aim her strike in such a way that the turtle would give Thomas a great shot at its neck but it only took a subtle move from the turtle to make Alice's strike near useless. Another subtle move ensured Thomas' attack would be no more effective. The turtle then let out a burst of flaming breath upon the whole bridge. Towards the cave's ceiling the flying lion cast a spell, causing a stream of fire to run across the bridge. If the bridge had been made of wood the four would have been in bad shape indeed.
Ron fought his way through the flames and joined Thomas and Alice against the turtle. Having noticed that the turtle did such a good job protecting its head he decided to take a shot at one of its legs. His guess proved correct as he landed a direct hit on the creature's front right leg. Its scales still took a considerable amount away from the blow but Ron's magical blade found its way past the scales and drew blood.
"Withdraw from the monsters!" shouted Suzanne as she plunged her sword into the grounded lion. "We need to get out, more are on the way!"
The other three all heeded Suzanne's advice. The surviving monsters rewarded their prudence by covering the bridge in flames again. The three gritted their teeth and made it through. They soon saw what Suzanne had been referring to. Two of the skeletons were blocking one of the hallways.
"Break through the skeletons! Use your magic!" shouted Suzanne. There were two other hallways the group could go through but given the level of organization the monsters had displayed, Suzanne had a feeling that the path of most resistance was the right one. At least the four had fought these monsters already and so had a good idea what would work on them.
Rather than engage both monsters and face 12 swords Suzanne held up and chanted a spell. A bolt of lightning came down from the cave ceiling and struck one of the skeletons. The skeleton managed to resist the next magic attack, an explosion caused by Ron's sword. Its partner was clearly harmed, however.
The two skeletons bore down on Suzanne and Ron, who had now caught up to Suzanne. 12 swords pummeled the two warriors, inflicting numerous cuts and bruises. Alice conjured up a huge river of flames, with a jet of flame bouncing up and down the river, which consumed the two skeletons and destroyed them. The four were then engulfed in flames as the turtle had caught up to them and let loose its breath weapon again.
The four broke into a run forward, weary that more monsters would be on the way. Thomas and Alice began chanting healing spells as they ran as they had taken considerable damage in the encounter. The hallway ran straight ahead to another large river and also had a branch to the right. Suzanne took the briefest of moments to make a decision. Down the branch Suzanne could see some more monsters rushing for them. In front of them were no monsters and Suzanne believed the bri
dge would take them over the river and to the right. This would take them around the monsters but still get them to what the monsters were guarding.
Unfortunately this path did not prove any safer than the other. The four took the bridge but were given three ways to go from there. Turtle monsters swarmed towards land from the river. They were attempting to form a long line blocking access to the farthest hallway. Once again, Suzanne bet on the path of most resistance.
"Don't stop healing!" shouted Suzanne. She began chanting her own healing magic. The turtles were not fast enough to cut the group off but were able to subject them to a gauntlet of flaming breath. The combination of flames and spell-chanting made it almost impossible for the three spellcasters to breathe enough to keep running but their adrenaline kept them going. Ron began using his sword's magic in a desperate attempt to thin out the turtles' numbers but they proved quite resistant to the explosions and most did not take any damage at all.
The group took the farthest hallway and finally distanced themselves from the turtles. They were relieved to find the next chamber empty of monsters. Nevertheless, they kept their mad dash. As soon as they exited the chamber they found themselves next to another river. Turtles were once again rushing out of the water towards them and several flying lions were hanging around the cavern ceiling.
Although the lions had proven resistant to most magic thrown their way Thomas decided to take a chance by casting a spell. A large whirlwind appeared and engulfed the lions. Although the wind did not appear to have caused much pain directly it caused havoc with the lions' flight. Several were forced to land and those that did not were thrown away from the group.
Thomas' spell proved crucial as the four were able to close the distance and begin ripping through the lions. As before, the lions were much worse fighters while on the ground. Up ahead the group could see an ascending staircase with light shining through it; a beacon of hope that it was almost over.
The four were making great progress cutting through the lions but were not moving fast enough to avoid the coming turtle. Alice cast spells on Suzanne and Ron to boost their strength. Thomas and Alice then continued cutting through the lions while Suzanne and Ron fought the turtles. There were too many turtles for them to hope to kill but they needed only try to keep the immediate shoreline clear to keep themselves from being overwhelmed by flaming breath. The turtle monsters were clearly reliant on their scales to protect them. Their subtle moves were enough to keep them safe in most cases but Alice's spell made those moves insufficient. Suzanne and Ron were now able to cut the heads off the turtles with ease.
A group of skeletons had just turned the corner and was running towards the group when Thomas and Alice finally broke through the line of lions. Suzanne and Ron disengaged from the turtles and the four made another dash for the staircase. Flames appeared all around them, produced by turtles' breath and lions' flame but the four persevered.
Finally, the four left the cave, coming out on the top of a steep hill. The group did not stop there; they ran as fast as they dared without risking taking the steep drop. After a minute of running they realized they were not being chased. Their run finally ended and they took a minute to catch their breath. They had made it through the cave alive.
Chapter 28: Ramia
"When the moon is full, the lake will show the way."
That phrase was the last hint for the location of the silver orb. The four had braved the Necrogond Mountains and finally arrived at the area they had been told to search. The group could find no sign of any other humans, not even cannibals. Fortunately, they did find a lake.
"It's called the Lake of the Spirit," said Alice. "I'm afraid I know little more than that. We probably wouldn't even know the name of the lake were it not for the Great Wars. Those are the only times in history that the tribes of the Necrogond have had any real contact with the rest of the world."
"Do you know anything about that purple fog that's on the lake?" asked Suzanne. In the middle of the lake was a large cloud of purple fog. Due to the fog, the four could not see across the lake.
"Nothing more than I wouldn't recommend breathing it," answered Alice.
"Could that be where the silver orb is?" asked Suzanne.
"Your guess is as good as mine," said Alice. "I guess if I were going to hide a shrine a big cloud of probably poisonous fog would be a good way to do it."
"I disagree," said Thomas. "It's too easy."
"It's always too easy to you," interrupted Ron.
"Hear me out," responded Thomas. "The cloud may keep anything from seeing what's in the middle of the lake but it still looks very suspicious. We have to believe the Archfiend hasn't found this shrine yet, otherwise this whole excursion has been pointless. If there was a lake with a giant purple cloud in its backyard I'd think it'd investigate it. And I'm sure it has some minions that are immune to any poison that may be in that cloud."
"The man at Billville also mentioned the full moon," said Suzanne. "We probably won't even be able to see the purple fog when night falls. Plus, we'd need to build a raft to get to that cloud. Before we do that, let's investigate as much of this land as we can. We'll make sure to come back to the lake every night to watch for the moon. We scheduled our trip around the full moon for a reason, after all."
After escaping the cave the group had gone down the hills to a forest. The forest stretched northeast for a half a day's journey to the Lake of the Spirit. Directly north of the cave was a large lake, larger than the Lake of the Spirit and connected to that lake by a river. There was no large purple cloud in the middle of this lake. Instead, the tallest peaks of the Necrogond Mountains rose out of the water seemingly to the sky. At the top of those peaks was a large castle.
Alice did not need to give a history lesson on the castle; all four of them knew its history. It was named Venorl Castle. Legend had it that a forgotten king had built the structure long ago. The king had sought to unite the tribes of southern Tarasia into one kingdom. His efforts were destroyed by the rise of the Master Archfiend and the First Great War. No human would try to establish a kingdom from Venorl ever again though some of the Necrogond tribes took up residence there on occasion. The Archfiend who began the Second Great War would take up Venorl as the seat of its power before being thrown down by Desmond. Now the current Archfiend was residing in Venorl Castle.
On the third night the moon was completely full. Throughout the night the group watched the Lake of the Spirit for some sign as to where they should go. For hours they watched the lake, paying particular attention to the moon's reflection on the lake. It was Thomas that spotted something strange in the reflection.
"Look at the seaweed sitting on the reflection!" Thomas said suddenly. His sudden outburst startled the other three.
"Keep it down, Tom!" whispered Suzanne. "What do you see?"
"The seaweed!" responded Thomas, now whispering. "See how the seaweed forms such neat, horizontal lines upon the moon's reflection? See the organized breaks in the seaweed, forming columns? See the shapes they form? I've seen those symbols before!"
"Tom's right!" exclaimed Alice, her voice almost breaking out of a whisper. "It looks like writing!"
Ron took a hard look at the seaweed. "You guys are right!" he said. "But it doesn't look like any language I know of."
"I don't know it either," said Alice.
"Tom, you said you've seen those symbols?" asked Suzanne.
"Yes," confirmed Thomas. "It's a dead language; near forgotten to the rest of the world. When Venorl was first built many of the tribes of Southern Tarasia used a common language. They did not write as we do but carved their symbols into trees and rocks. The language is read vertically, starting at the top."
"Can you read it?" asked Suzanne.
"I think so," replied Thomas. "But it will take a bit. I'm not well versed in this language."
"Try to hurry," said Suzanne. "We don't know how long the seaweed will stay like that."
Thankfully, the seaweed st
ayed still while Thomas tried to decipher the symbols. "The trees that are always green," he said after some time.
"'The trees that are always green?'" echoed Ron. "What does that mean?"
"Evergreens," guessed Suzanne. "Look over there." She pointed at a nearby tree. It was an evergreen, unlike the vast majority of trees nearby.
"What about evergreens?" asked Ron.
"We'll have to wait until morning," declared Suzanne. We'll hardly be able to see the evergreens or their surroundings now. They'll stick out easier in the morning."
The next morning the group started looking for evergreens. From the lake there was only one evergreen the group could see, the same one Suzanne had pointed to the preceding night. The four examined the evergreen but could find nothing suspicious. Ron saw another evergreen off a small distance away.
"It said 'trees' right?" Ron had asked. "So maybe it's not about one particular tree."
The group walked to the other evergreen and took a look around. Again, there was nothing suspicious about the tree or the area around it. From that tree the group could see one other evergreen besides the one they had just examined. They walked over to this new evergreen. A pattern was quickly established. The four walked to the next evergreen and found that only two evergreens could be seen from this one: the one they had just been at and one other.
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