Sending the Gnolls ahead, the seven warriors strode down the lane which circumvented the obsidian skyscraper until they discovered the entrance which yawned widely onto the street. The opening had been constructed like a massive gouge which dug deeply into the tower's interior. Steeling themselves, the group collapsed into a thick stripe with Ramfell and Minas at the front and Gunjir at the rear before plunging into the contrasting darkness of the tower's shadow.
The entrance opened up into a tall chamber with polished, angled walls which the dry interior drove the wind into fierce acoustics, amplifying the ambient sounds into fierce roars and purposeful whispers. The opposing side of the chamber rose in a series of hemispherical steps towards a thin exit to open air. The lights which sprang from Ramfell and the two Shifters bounced and rolled against the far ceiling like smoke in an overturned glass. As they finished their study of the massive hall, the warriors proceeded towards the small archway until the fricative sound of crackling energy interrupted their stride. Flanking their goal, twin forms bubbled and hardened in the walls and grew crude limbs before pulling their polished black forms from the very substance of the tower. The seven ripped their weapons free of their scabbards, preparing to charge the two creatures until the ground at their feet sprang three larger creatures of the same substance, wielding asymmetrical limbs, one bladed; one broad and circular.
The three creatures at the front brought their thicker arms to bear in front of their bodies before collapsing upon their two finer allies, blocking the arch entirely. Ramfell, Gunjir, and Minas charged into the now solid wall of stone as the two enemies at the rear began to spin delicately before forming small clouds in the air which released torrential shards of black glass at extreme velocity at the young warriors. Howling in frustration, Gunjir and Ramfell tore at the middle of the shielded foes, trying to dislodge him from the group while Vulcan and Mahog stole towards their teammates as Torym tried to interrupt the twin turrets by unleashing a rain of his own while leading their fire away from the others.
Succeeding in pulling the middle guardian free of the others, they left a small gap between the shielded ones and the two needling creatures of stone. Seeing opportunity, Ashpaw sprinted quickly towards Minas's back before leaping over both the Shifter and the freed construct, landing squarely in the middle of the stone abominations. Seeing the immediate danger posed to the Gnoll, Minas dug into his satchel, removing a handful of earth. Throwing it between the legs of the shielded enemy, he struck his spear on the ground, causing a bright and loud spark. From the charged earth, a mass of vines sprouted around Ashpaw, covering the small combat area with obscuring foliage. Ashpaw easily ducked two misdirected attacks from the backward-swinging arms of the shielded creatures before driving one of his daggers into the nearest of the two rear constructs which still sprayed with futility at Torym.
Their secure line failing, the foremost constructs tried moving to compensate. This movement set them at odds just long enough for the three warriors at the front to tear them from their feet, exposing the remaining needling creature to Vulcan's thunderous hammer. Without an ally to protect, the three shielded creatures, now surrounded, were quickly dispatched without ceremony.
----
Cautioned by surprise, the seven braved the unprotected arch slowly. Ramfell, the first to check, let it be known that it was simply an exit to a large flight of stairs which curved, exposed, up the exterior of the tower. Gunjir, wary of further ambush from these creatures, elected to stay behind to keep more from following. He swore that if he heard battle, he would alight the steps and follow. Quickly, the group formed a single-file line and mounted the stairs. The lazy wind proved to be a great antagonist on this climb, its merest breath threatening to toss them to their deaths as they rose a hundred fathoms into the sky.
Feeling new chill in the air from the height, an end to the steps became visible above them, where the tower plateaued before becoming a thinner spire further up. Due to their height difference, Torym's gaze broke the plateau simultaneously with Ramfell, even though he was second in the snaking line of seven which leaned cautiously against the tower. What they saw drove them to an immediate halt: A large circular plane, upon which sat four pillars that held the smaller portion of the tower hulking overhead. Beneath the pillars, chained to its center, a prisoner had been fastened to the floor. Hairless and unadorned, the humanoid creature writhed under its bindings. Its pale skin flickered and whipped as though he was a small flag in a monsoon.
Hundreds of thin strands of light sprouted from him into the distance, where they licked lazily on the wind. Three of these lines arced towards the ascending warriors. The prisoner followed these lines with his head until he saw his new visitors. From his eyes and mouth poured a milky white light as he made a mournful sound that echoed through the landscape.
Suspecting another trap, Torym vaulted over the small bit of tower still obscuring his body from the plateau and fired an arrow, preemptively at the creature. Howling in pain, the prisoner's gaze turned to a fierce scowl as he barked a powerful word at Torym, the force of which sent a blast of air so powerful, it threw Torym from his perch. With a teetering "thud," the red Gnoll hit the stairs, narrowly escaping a fall to his death.
Angry at Torym for his brashness, yet not wanting to chance a flailing end, Ashpaw and Ramfell vaulted the steps and set upon the creature whose fate had now been determined. The Half-Orc and grey Gnoll swung at the chained creature wildly, slightly unsure of which bits of its shifting anatomy was vital. The remaining warriors cleared the steps, surrounding the prisoner as Torym and Mahog obscured his sight of them from behind the pillars. His retaliation consisted solely of violent bursts of wind, flooring the troupe and shoving them away from him as he roared tornadic commands to the very air.
Seeing one of the axe wounds erupting with wind and sound, Vulcan struck at the prisoner's shoulder, raking the chains through the whistling breach. In agony, the creature's head whipped to the side and glared at the Orc with an ancient and alien fury. As Minas drove his spear into the creature's opposing shoulder, all of the warriors were blown back from him.
With a terrifying howl, the timeless prisoner strained against his bindings until his wounds expanded and finally tore his arms from his torso. Hurricanes of wind poured over the warriors from the holes at his sides. Against the wind, Ashpaw, Ramfell, and Vulcan regained their footing just as the creature leapt at them and swung a clawed foot in a wide arc, sending them sprawling again. Seeing an opening, Minas stabbed with his spear and hooked the creature. He dragged its roiling form to him before slamming into it with his shield, sending the creature careening into one of the pillars. Mahog snagged Vulcan by the arm and drove his glowing fist into the Orc's chest, invigorating his companion with new power. Two arrows pinned the former prisoner to his pillar only moments before Vulcan's mace drove its head down into its own chest.
The wind from its wounds slowed to a soft whistling before abruptly tearing its body to fetters. Occupying its former chest cavity, a large, grey orb spun so quickly, it drilled a dent into the obsidian as it landed. Waiting for it to finish turning, Torym lifted the heavy orb and looked skyward. He scanned the reaction of his compatriots before making space for it in his pack.
Ramfell looked at his axe with uncertainty before turning to Torym. "We may not have had to kill him, you realize."
Torym didn't turn. "Maybe not. What does it matter?"
Mahog interrupted. "Everyone, look!"
The warriors wheeled on their axises as they watched the stormwall surrounding them begin to fall from the sky like a massive curtain, rippling towards the earth from entropy.
----
They mounted the remaining stairs to the pinnacle of the tower in short order. They arrived at a smaller, circular plateau which housed a strange mechanism at its epicenter. At the top of an altar, a small depression in a flat area was surrounded on three sides by elongated depressions with twin niches apiece. Seemingly certain of its purpose, Torym fetched the orb from his pack and set it in the depression. Testingly, four of the amber stones were set in place.
The orb began to spin slowly, gaining speed as well as volume quickly. The six warriors nearly jumped backward as a blast of light formed a solid blue pillar into the sky. As their eyes followed the cacophonous beam, they arrested upon a single black dot adjacent to the beam which began to grow larger. Plummeting towards them like a massive arrow was a winged reptile larger than any foe they had ever faced. Without an exit, the group raised the blades of their weapons to the skies to ward the beast from landing.
At the last possible moment, the creature diverted its course, aiming for the thin stripe of stairs. Clearly too large to fit upon them, the beast clawed into the side of the tower, setting the ancient stairs crumbling with its weight. As it began to snake its way up the treacherous spiral, its wings flapping wildly to keep it against the solid surface of the tower, Ashpaw placed one of his daggers between his teeth and ran, sliding off of the edge of the plateau. He landed on the creature's tail, digging into its flesh with his weapons and bracing himself against the remaining stairs, keeping the creature from advancing without losing its balance.
Its head and foremost claws rose above the plateau, where its bright amber eyes immediately closed against a volley of six arrows which shredded its face. Opening one eye, it looked to the skies and roared plaintively, as though responding. Vulcan followed the stare to a black stormcloud which wafted towards them in the distance against a clear sky.
"No!" Ramfell yelled. "More?!"
"Kill it! Kill it quickly!" Vulcan shouted as he brought his mace into the flailing creature, breaking its beak in a bloody display.
Ashpaw yanked hard as the monster reeled from the blow, exposing its neck. Immediately, Minas drove his spear into the creature's jaw and pulled its head low to the waiting attacks of Torym, Mahog, Vulcan, and Ramfell.
It had barely breathed its last before Ashpaw clambered up its twitching body and tore its eyes from its head. Ramfell and Minas prodded at the corpse until gravity took its hold and claimed the cartwheeling monster.
As Ashpaw jammed the beast's eyes into the two remaining holes in the mechanism, they heard a shout from below. Gunjir had nearly completed his ascent, alone, and called to his companions to be careful with their leavings. He surmounted the broken stairs with huge leaps and had only just gained his footing when the topmost plane of the tower began to click and turn like a clockwork device.
From this distance, the cloud of dragons could not be mistaken for anything else. The beam's color began to shift wildly as it folded upon itself and began to spiral and descend, causing an uproar among the approaching dragons. Within moments, it became clear that the light was forming a transparent dome of blue energy.
At the outmost edge of the tower's pinnacle as the flying nation set upon the tower, Gunjir turned to his companions. "To the center, brothers! Fight from the center!"
Before he could turn again to face the attackers, a claw hit him laterally, taking him from his feet and the tower entirely. The grasping creature fought to bite the Hobgoblin as Gunjir's axe smashed into its scaly face repeatedly before it fell unconscious, dropping him into the mouth of an ascending attacker. The victorious creature rose above the six remaining and reeled its head back, preparing to strike before its eyes bulged, and its wings failed, driving it like a hammer to the earth thousands of feet below.
Fighting off swipes and the occasional acidic spray from the dragons' throats, the warriors held fast as the dome completed, shutting them off from the attacks entirely. The construction complete, the ambition of the dragons changed entirely as they fought direly to change direction and flee from the tower, beating their wings faster than the air could support. Some began to fight harshly against the wind created by their brothers, only losing altitude moments before the dome around the warriors erupted with a silent shockwave, lighting the sky in a bright arc before shredding the thousands of dragons into a blizzard of moist confetti.
As a thick rain of red and black fell upon the dome, it became very clear that the warriors had begun to move. The dust that carpeted the crater began to roil southward as they were pulled to the North. After what seemed like several minutes of this invisible travel, it abruptly ended, sending the warriors cascading against one another in the dome. Pushing against each other to see what had changed, their gaze was fixed to the mile-high wall of dust that hit them like a hammer.
The tower buckled as the metal shards which peppered its surroundings bounced unevenly through its city before breaking the obsidian monument with their incredible momentum. The warriors fell earthward in their dome, rocked from the forces destroying the tower. Before the fall could kill them, however, the dome erupted again, bouncing them in the air and sending a clean sphere of air into the tumult of the dust. After this eruption, the dome failed, and the group fell the remaining five yards to the ground in an exhausted and battered heap.
They arose as one, grimacing at the extreme pain of surviving such a fall as they watched the billowing canyon of dust leave them for the North, rising as it traveled.
( Jon exited the campaign, because he began his work overseas. We worked together to find an appropriate way for his character to leave the story. Farewell, Gunjir. )
Now that I have had time to dwell, it may not have been a great idea to launch an immediate attack on that prisoner, but to see that orb afterwards was such wounderous sight that it struck any doubt from me at the time.
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