Chronicle - Ishtur

Halls of Ishtur

The stairs broadened further and turned a corner to emerge onto a balcony looking out on a large room that was set for a banquet. Similar arches could be seen in the other corners of the room, with stairs leading up that looked similar to the ones we had just travelled, but ours was the only one not in use. The main feature of the room was a large, jet black round table with about fifty gnomes eating a hearty meal. Soft cushions were laid around the rest of the room with other gnomes relaxing, talking and drinking. In fact, drinking was a major feature in the room, with plenty of it being served to everyone. The place was well lit, and heated by two massive fireplaces opposite us; there were not fires in the hearths, though, but lava bubbling within the spaces. Above us the ceiling was decorated as if looking up at the sky outdoors, and the walls were decorated as if we were in the outdoors as well, with fields and open spaces all around making the room seem even larger than it already was. It was as if we were stood in a glade at the edge of a forest. All of the scenes were exquisite and potentially very valuable due to the extensive us of gemstones.

None of the gnomes were looking in our direction and no guards were posted, and it was clear that the entrance was considered to be safe. There was one very old gnome sat on a raised chair at the table. He wore a white silk shirt with green embroidery and ruby buttons. Male and female younger gnomes were sat to either side of him, and it was possible that they were his children. His wife stood to his side, patting at his mouth and pouring more wine for him. Melai spoke to us, but mainly Lanzi, saying "let's not be throwing dweomer around". This suggestion was to be completely ignored, as the nearest gnomes started in panic as they noticed us. Lanzi decided that he would announce our presence formally, but eschewed normal protocol and used dweomer to sound a thunderous trumpet fanfare that filled the room with noise and probably echoed for some distance through the rest of Ishtur!

Complete panic seized the room, once they regained their hearing, with guards drawing swords, guests hiding under the table and the King spluttering on his wine. More guards could be heard approaching down the other staircases at the sound of the pandemonium. Those gnomes that were slightly more composed looked to their King for guidance. Regaining his composure, he raised his hand to stop his guards advancing on us. Standing, he formally welcomed Melai as an honoured guest at his table for the feast, and Melai replied formally in return. The King, actually Ichshoos himself, raised a staff of office and indicated that room should be made at the table for his new guests. He kindly agreed to speak in Common for the benefit of those of us that could not speak gnomish, for which we thanked him. We approached in the order we would be presented at court, and sat at the places that were quickly laid for us. The King apologised for not being ready to receive us, and explained that they were celebrating All Hallows festival.

Melai spoke quickly in Elven to ask for a private council, stressing that we bore urgent news of dire consequence. King Ichshoos agreed to take council separately, indicating that his son, Marranack, would look after us and that he would join us shortly. We followed Marranack to the stairs opposite the place we had entered from, speaking in common again as we left. Marranack spoke of his father, which is how we came to know it was Ichshoos himself, and confirmed that he had indeed lived in the First Age. He took us to a sparse room with a small table in its centre. Chests and a writing table were also in the room, at the sides. Marranack explained that this was his office, and it would be less noticeable if we met with him here. He cleared the room of servants so that we could talk more freely.

We warned that Reshgarin was to be betrayed by Iki-Moko's acts, that Baradule was influenced but that the younger son was an agent of evil and sought to aid with the onset of Ragnarak. Marranack thanked us for the warning and took his leave to pass on the warning to those that needed to know. He said that his sister, Sakinra, would attend us and take us to another room. She asked us to follow her, taking us on a short journey through empty halls and finally stopped to open a hidden door, inviting us to enter.

There was a round table inside, with a large book in its centre, and a fireplace to one side. The room was decorated as if it stood in an open glade - it was obvious that the gnomes used a lot of imagery from the outside world despite living underground. Nymphs and other creatures, including halflings and pegasus were visible in the decoration. We were served wine, and Melai offered to share it with Sakinra, but she explained that she could not as All Hallows was the men's day and she could not drink. Once we had made ourselves comfortable, Marranack and King Ichshoos entered. Melai stood and bowed deeply, so we all did the same. Melai then poured wine for everyone and proposed a toast to lasting friendships, which was gladly echoed.

Ichshoos was particularly interested in Lanzi having the codicil, but Melai spoke first to make formal introductions, this time refering to Hintzu as the ringbearer. Ichshoos had not heard from Gwendolyn for some time, and in fact Melai was the last to see her. We told him of Perion's offer of sanctuary in case he were to be contacted by Gwendolyn. We also repeated our warning of the threat to Reshgarin, and went on to speak of the threat to Caladhon. Ichshoos tasked his son to warn his cousin; he was aware of the betrayal in his own halls, and planned to allow it to happen in order to reveal the traitor, but then act to prevent it.

Ichshoos said that our coming was of great heart to him, as he had thought us killed by Tun Mi Lung, perhaps thinking specifically of Melai, and he was glad that this was not the case. He knew that Demogorgon was strong to the South, and it was he that arranged the illusion of Minas Morgul burning with his great friend, Ishtur. We spoke of our mission to find a route to strike at Inwe; Melai wished to heal the wounds in the Elven race. Ichshoos knew the way to Morgrad, but it was barred. We asked about his treaty with the Drow, and he laughed, saying that it did not bind them other than to remain neutral, so he would show us the way. He warned, though, that there was an army in our way so he could not see how we would survive the journey.

Ichshoos then asked for our aid with a matter affecting his own people. There was a demon serving Demogorgon seeking the secret routes through his domain. His people could channel it into a trap, but they needed our aid in fighting the thing. He offered a shielding spell that would prevent the enemy from seeing our use of the palantir as thanks for our help, at which Lanzi's eyes took on the dreamy look they always did when he discovered new dweomer. He moved toward the table and pointed at the book; it contained the history of the 3rd Age by the reckoning of the Elves, and he offered it along with the spell. In return he asked if he could copy some of Lanzi's codicil, although not the Book of Elorand. He also allowed Lanzi to take the Book of the Astral Plane and a compass.

Ichshoos then spoke of the gem that had caused so much strife. Unglak and his father had lived in Balem, but the dwarves took their kingdom by force, destroying their home, and no gnomes live there now. The gnomes fear the dwarves now, delving deep underground and using the planes to travel to avoid them. He told us that Orodruin had a hearth in Morgul, and he would know how to destroy the gem. The stone was found in Zundar, where the power attracted attention; Ichshoos had encountered many stones of power, but Unglak's stone was more powerful than any other. It was the stone that was the great evil uncovered by the gnomes. Ichshoos indicated one of Hintzu's rings; it was he that had found the gem that now was part of the ring of fire. The Elven gems were originally gnomish, and Ichshoos warned not to carry the gems unbound. He confirmed that his people could bind the four rings together.

Melai spoke on my behalf, explaining that my mace had been destroyed in the journey through the plane of dust, and asked whether the gnomes had a weapon that would be suitable for me to carry. Ichshoos spoke to one of his attendants and a mace was presented to me, for which I was very grateful. Melai then turned to Hintzu, asking him to give his bow to her, which he did; she explained that he had lost his bow in the fight with Tuar Chan and that the weapon he bore now was a poor alternative. With that, she snapped it across her knee! Hintzu looked shocked; what madness was this! Ichshoos smiled, and ordered that a suitable weapon be brought for the ringbearer, along with some powerful arrows.

At this point Marranack returned with a message; Reshgarin was dead, killed by traitors, and King Ichshoos' grandson had died fighting the demon. Ichshoos ordered that the traitors be put to death immediately, and that Sakinra would divine those responsible. He then called for the council of Agramar to be called, and that they were to act on the message relayed through Sakinra. Ichshoos then took his leave as a warning horn bellowed in the chambers outside.

I examined the mace I had been given; it was very light for a weapon of its size, square in cross-section with gnomish runes along its length, and an ivory knob caused spikes to emerge at one end, making it easy to carry when not in use. It was a very nice weapon indeed!

A young female gnome entered, showed deference to Melai and asked us to follow her. She also brought a Dai Ku for Hintzu, as ordered by the King. It looked a fine weapon as well. She did not leave, though, and instead asked us to hold hands while she chanted. The world went grey around us and she pulled us through otherwise solid walls behind her. We emerged into a great hall filled with gnome warriors, and about a hundred foot below us was a large cavern filled with more ranks of gnomes facing off against a double gate at the far end. Our guide took us down into the cavern below before returning us to the world we knew.

Battle for Ishtur

The gnomes formed up into units; their task was to defend the gates as we attacked the demons ascending the stairs beyond. There was a loud crack as the gates were opened, and a black giant with flaming hair forced his way into the cavern. He breathed fire from his mouth, torching several gnomes in front of him. Boulders and arrows started to fly into the cavern as the gates opened wider. Irregular rows of ogres, orcs and trolls were surging forward behind the giant, all wearing the symbology of Demogorgon. The stair the gnomes had spoken of could be seen beyond, leading down a deep crevice in the mountain. We were given a blessing by the gnomes, and the urge to enter the fray as quickly as possible took us.

Melai charged into combat, sweeping Agan in wide arcs and dealing massive damage. I charged straight at the giant, swinging my new mace straight into its nuts. As it connected a voice in my head silently screamed at me to "Press the button!" Unthinkingly I did so and a massive fireball exploded in front of me, obliterating the giant and killing many of the foe around us. I simultaneously used the crown to raise a wall of positive energy across the gateway, forcing the enemy back. Hintzu started to loose arrows at selected targets, killing a couple of trolls. Lanzi raised some mirror images; understandable considering the sheer numbers facing us! A whole army was making its way up the stairs through the mountain.

Melai killed the last troll on our side of the wall of radiance, and then unleashed a storm of ice into the centre of the enemy vanguard. I created a deadly fog to slow and injure them, and Melai used her mind or dweomer (it was all happening so quickly it was hard to tell) to kill many of the lesser creatures that got too close to her. The weight of the army was pushing creatures forward, but they were being slain by the radiance as they got too close. Lanzi added to their discomfort by creating a toxic cloud in their midst that, combined with my fog, hid most of the army from view. Hintzu picked off the last of the visible foes with arrows, and we paused to catch our breath.

We quickly decided that the momentum of the attack had been blunted and that now was the time to go invisible and fly out to locate our target. Lanzi made the preparations with the carpet as Melai instructed the gnomes to close the doors after us. I called on Odin to protect us from evil as Melai made Hintzu and me invisible. Some sporadic arrow fire was still coming in, but nothing hit us. We climbed onto the carpet as the mages made themselves invisible as well. We gained height and swept out of the gates, which began to close as we did so.

We could see Minas Morgul to our left as we rose, and another door into the mountain between us and the great tower. The enemy were advancing towards those gates, taking fire as they did so. We could clearly see the great winged demon towering over its troops; it must have been some fifty foot tall! Its skin was shiny, almost like silver, but its wings were black. There were siege engines behind the demon, but they were not yet being deployed. Thousands of lesser demons were dotted amongst the army and there were many flying creatures around, which concerned us. We took the opportunity to apply some protective dweomer and prayers; Melai gained the ability to fly, Lanzi protection from normal missiles, and I helped to protect Hintzu from the effects of fear. The sight of the great beast was terrifying, so it was good that Hintzu was heartened by Odin's protection. Odin also protected me from the effects of fireballs, and Lanzi gifted Hintzu with the ability to fly as well.

There were a number of illusory creatures below us, but we were able to see through the dweomer, and they were unlikely to trouble the gnomes. What were real, though, were the three winged demons that teleported next to us! Melai reacted first, attacking one that was threatening Lanzi; her action broke the protection of Odin, but she killed the creature instantly! Hintzu used his bow, but had to use his better arrows to have any effect on them, after a few good hits with those another one fell. I banished one back to its own plane; it was powerless to resist Odin's command. Lanzi called a shimmering globe into being around us, offering us some sort of protection, as Melai switched targets and killed the last of them.

There was not much respite, as another group of demons appeared, this time green in colour. Melai again reacted first, and again cut one down with a lethal strike from Agan. Hintzu and I fought against others in close combat, not having time for anything else. Lanzi created an image of himself ahead of us in order to increase the range of his dweomer. Melai cut another down as Hintzu did the same, they both then turned on the one creature left, the one I was fighting, and between us it was hacked to pieces.

Lanzi used his increased range to launch magic missiles at the great demon, but they were reflected back at us! Thankfully the globe that he had surrounded us with protected us from harm. Hintzu launched arrows at the beast at extreme range - it was hard to miss such a large target - but they had no effect on its mirror hide, although someone in the army was skewered by a stray arrow. A wall of fire appeared in front of us, forcing us to slow down as more green demons appeared to attack. Lanzi was scratched, but not badly, and Melai came to his aid, killing the demon with a quick blow. Melai stepped off the carpet, using her ability to fly to attack the other demon that had appeared.

I uttered a prayer to Odin as invisible creatures started to attack Hintzu and Lanzi. The stoneskin protected Hintzu from harm as the mirror images did Lanzi. A fireball exploded around us, but again we were protected from harm on the carpet; Melai used her mental powers to protect herself. Melai and Hintzu then battled against the invisible foe, and between them were able to kill it. It had been just one foe, a pit fiend, and it became visible as the lifeless body fell to the ground below, turning to ash before it impacted.

We flew through the wall of fire, again protected, and Lanzi projected another image forward. I gave myself protection from evil so that I could concentrate on supporting the others. More red demons appeared to attack, and Lanzi was soon down to only two images to protect him. I called on Odin to protect Lanzi from evil so that he too would have some respite. Melai fell on the new foes, killing two with a series of well placed cuts. Hintzu also fought heroically, killing another of the foe and turning to face the last. Lanzi and me focussed on the great demon, and I assisted him to lower whatever magic resistance it might have. He then fired a ray of some sort at it, but again it was reflected back without effect.

I was fortunate to escape with my life, as Agan whistled past my face; Melai had taken the direct route to the last of the red demons, straight over our heads! As she moved forward she quickly cut through the demon's slow attempts to defend itself and killed it with a finishing blow. The mace was speaking to me again, and without thinking I pointed it at the great demon, activating another of its abilities. Meteors streaked towards the beast, falling slightly short and immolating a large area of its minions with explosive fire. Melai paused to drink a potion, anticipating the fight to come.

The great demon lauched itself into the air with alarming speed for its size. It ripped into the image of Lanzi, clearly not intelligent enough to realise that it was an illusion. At the same time four more red demons appeared to attack us, and a large red demon appeared by Lanzi's image. Hintzu hurled a fireball at the great demon, but the flames just washed over it harmlessly; turning instead to the immediate danger, he was more successful in cutting down one of the lesser demons beside us. Lanzi tried another ray (of disintegration) at the great demon, and again it had no effect. The demons attacked Lanzi, dispelling another of his images and injuring him. Melai and Hintzu rallied to his aid, killing one foe each with devastating blows. Melai was quickest to reach the last one, cutting it down quickly before it could retaliate.

Once again a fireball engulfed us, but washed over the globe that Lanzi had protected us with. Another red demon joined the great demon, and the three of them flew towards us. Both Hintzu and Melai switched to bows, moving off the carpet to present multiple targets for the foe. One of the red demons fell after a volley of arrows, and Lanzi took the opportunity to raise more mirror images in his defence. Arrows were being directed at us from below now, having attracted the attention of the enemy army. I had to deflect several arrows, the armour I wore moving my limbs more quickly that I thought possible, but could not call on Odin whilst so distracted. Our archers finished off the other red demon shortly before the great demon reached us.

The demon lowered its head and charged straight at Melai with incredible speed, slashing with claws as it passed. Melai was caught by the charge, and was forced back a good five yards before regaining control of her flight. Just as we thought it had passed, its tail came sweeping round at the carpet; I was hit solidly and Lanzi lost all of his images in an instant - Hintzu was only saved from harm by his stoneskin protection. Melai turned on the beast, scoring solid hits with Agan, and Hintzu joined in with a flurry of blows. Lanzi conjured a great sheet of ice that fell onto the demon before suffering a solid blow from its tail; I knew how that felt!

Hintzu and Melai pressed their attack, but the demon twisted in mid-air and grabbed Melai by her leg. With a flick it sent her flying back again, but in the process it ripped her leg off! I tried to banish it with a powerful cry of power, but it did not seem to be evil in nature and I succeeded only in deafening Hintzu. He continued his attack anyway, continuing to damage the beast. A huge hand appeared in the air and grabbed the creature, giving us a moment to take stock. Melai used the opportunity to staunch her blood loss, but could not recover her limb. However, her dweomer allowed her to fly anyway and she attacked with renewed fury. The creature lashed out in turn, at all of us now we were close. Melai and Hintzu were hit, but I suffered the worst; I was thrown off the carpet by the force of its tail hitting me square on. All I could do was shout "Avenge me!" as I fell towards the rocks below.

As I plunged downwards there was little time to do anything, but the strange connection I had formed with my new mace gave me the most desperate of ideas. With nothing to lose, I pointed the mace at the rocks fast approaching from below and activated another of its powers, causing the stone to turn into a fleshy mass of meat just before I impacted. A great puss-like explosion surrounded me as the flesh erupted at my landing. I had certainly broken many bones, but by the intense pain I felt I knew that by some miracle I was still alive - just. Admittedly I had just landed in some style right next to a hostile army and could not even stand let alone fight, but compared to a few seconds ago things were looking up!

I could see the battle still raging above, as Hintzu and Melai fought the beast and Lanzi concentrated on controlling the great hand that was trying to crush it. The beast was giving as good as it got, and everyone was suffering great damage. Melai was bitten again, and this time she fell, lifeless, towards the rocks. Hintzu reacted quickly, using his ring to slow her fall to that of a feather. Determination filled my heart and I used the powers of my mace to heal my wounds and knit my bones. I stood, rising from the mess of flesh to confront the army advancing on me. Their advance was checked slightly as Hintzu landed a killing blow on the great beast above, and they moaned as its body fell towards us!

Lanzi dropped a fireball onto the troops immediately in front of me. The demon, thankfully, was falling away from my position and Lanzi directed the carpet down to where I stood. Hintzu flew separately, hoping to recover Melai's body. I raised a wall of fog to obscure the progress of the enemy, then charged towards the nearest ogre. I landed a solid blow, and it seemed surprised that I had charged forward instead of running. It fell dead, arrows protruding from its chest as Hintzu joined the fight. Lanzi reached me with the carpet and I was gratefully rescued, rising up to meet Hintzu and carefully tend to Melai. I was able to bring her back to life, with Odin's grace, but would need to spend much time in prayer before attempting to regrow her lost limb.

Hintzu raised a wall of fire and smoke around the body of the great demon to protect us from archers as we retrieved its body. By using the cloth to shrink its size and weight we were able to carry it with us, and quickly gained height, flying back towards the gates to Ishtur. I healed Hintzu and Lanzi on the way, as they both had sustained terrible wounds. Melai used a scroll from Lanzi to allow her to fly again, compensating for the loss of her limb for now.

We arrived back at the gate quickly, and it was clear that a major battle was underway. The gate was breached and the gnomes battled to stop a pocket of enemy forces from growing inside. Melai dropped an ice storm into the enemy forces, which included five giants. I threw a fireball from my mace, which was loving the carnage, and Hintzu raised a wall of fire to encircle some of the foe, burning them as they crushed together to escape the heat. Hintzu continued to attack, loosing arrows and bringing down a fire giant. Lanzi added to the chaos that Hintzu had caused by creating a toxic cloud inside the fire wall ring, killing many of those that had not already fallen. Hintzu took down another giant with arrows as we crossed into Ishtur's realm. It was clear that the gnomes were now able to push back the attackers.