Dungeons and Dragons Day 25: Trauma Induced Transformation
One Survives:
Sigvard wandered in the darkness of Nihilin’s cruel realm. His memories were returning now that he was free of his mortal body. Remembering the truth of his past and his master, Lord Death, made him press on.
Avoiding the hordes of deadly Undead, Sigvard was confronted with a different challenge: Traps. Being already dead was pointless in Nihilin’s realm, but it continued to be a nuisance as the Death Knight continued to knocked unconscious again and again. It took countless frustrations before he found an exit. And when he did…
Awakening
Grez, Caic, and Hadron awoke and found themselves in an open field. Though all seemed initially well, the color scheme of the sky was … off. And as the three stood up, they pointed this coloration to each other. Relieved to see each other alive, they noted that their former rivals in the Battle Arena in Iron had appeared in the same clearing.
There was no sign of other life and that concerned everyone else present greatly. Gonk affirmed that he would be returning the Dwarven City. He had a bad feeling about the state of things given that Kranaak allegedly had taken over. Rangar left immediately and declared his intent to connect with Orc Tribes in what was left of the world. Orengar asked the group if they would want to join him and search for the Elves. The party declined. They feared that Elves would be no different than dealing with Dwarves had been.
Instead they decided to join Naked Monk who had decided to head towards the capital of Spatia, Diamond. The Monk hoped that someone there might know how to overcome his dark affliction. The only problem was that the group had no idea where they were and thus they might end up wandering lost for days if not weeks before they had any sign that indicated the way forward.
Solar:
They did not go far before a massive surge of light appeared in front of them. Caic bowed his head in reverence, and the rest of the party watched not sure what would happen next. When an Angel appeared from the light, it became obvious why Caic had acted the way he did. However, the rest of the party drew their weapons. Every Angel they had encountered in the past had attacked them on sight. And unfortunately for this specific holy being, there was an aura around him that was unsettling.
The Angel gripped his weapon, a massive mace but was looking past the party. This caused the group to see what had caught such a powerful creature’s attention. What they saw made them forget the Angel for a moment. A portal was forming from the shadows and a figure was stepping between them. When the person was completely through, the entire party was shocked.
“Sigvard?!” Grez asked confused.
“We saw you die!” Caic exclaimed.
“I did die.” The Death Knight explained. “But that ended up being beneficial. I am now in my proper body as befitting my station among the Undead.”
“Spawn of Nihilin!” The Angel suddenly screamed and rised his weapon ready to strike. “Where did you God banish my master to?”
“I serve Lord Death.” Sigvard declared. The rest of the party was confused. “I am as much an enemy of Nihilin as you.”
One Sided Battle:
The Angel responded by attacking and in one massive blow, and with an insane amount of holy energy, he knocked the Death Knight to the ground. Such was the difference in power. Realizing the danger, Grez looked at the moon and began his transformation. Nearby, Naked Monk did the same.
Hadron stepped up to fight the Angel amid Caic’s protests that he would only get himself killed. Like the Death Knight he was defeated in quick order. Thanks to his higher toughness, it took two swings from the Angel’s weapon but the Barbarian Warlock was in a critical condition.
“The stench of Kranaak hangs heavy on you.”
“He is my friend!” Caic declared and glared at the Angel.
“Do you understand what you face Paladin?” The Angel asked. “I am a Solar of Exscutchon! An Archangel of the highest order! Attacking me is the same as attacking the very God we both serve! Stand aside and let me clense this filth from the world.”
“No!” Caic declared and swung at the Solar. He too was met with defeat. Knocked to the ground and with a nasty wound, the situation continued to become more dire.
Naked Monk met a similar fate. Apparently he had been honorable enough to attack this foe despite running being the more logical move. Only Grez in his great ape form remained, and the Monk roared in preparation to avenge his friends.
Transformation:
One swift flurry of swings put Grez on the defensive and even with his massive size, he barely held off the attacks. The explosions of holy magic pushed the Great Ape back preventing him from using his strength properly. Another series of swings from the Solar and Grez was weakened to the point where the transformation ended. Out of breath, and prepared to meet his end, the Monk steeled himself for one final set of attacks.
But as his emotions continued to build, a power awoke in the Monk that he did not know about. The air and ground shook as a transformation beyond anything he had ever experienced in his life empowered him. With an aura that was just as menacing as the Arch Angel he now faced, and feeling far more confident than he had even seconds before, Grez smiled with newfound power.
But rather than get a chance to test his new power, the Angel gasped and lowered his weapon. “Impossible!” The Solar yelled. “You can’t be!” The being vanished in the same bright light that had brought him here.
Aftermath:
Grez helped awaken Caic who then healed the wounds of the others so that they all stood. Grez was still in his new form and the party questioned him about the aura. He didn’t know what had happened, though he claimed that from his home-world, his race was capable of a transformation that significantly increased their power. However, the form could clearly not be maintained long. Already his aura was fading. As the Monk returned to normal, his own wounds and fatigue returned.
“Let’s rest for a bit.” Grez declared before he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.
Living Trees:
A few days later of silent walking through the different and yet not world yielded little of interest. The fact that there were still animals about meant there were likely Humans near as well. However, what gave the group pause was a sudden growth of trees nearby.
Hadron felt something was off, and used his bag of tricks to conjure a goat. Sending the creature to investigate the trees, he watched in shock as the branches swarmed at the animal and crushed it. A living forest! What other odd things were happening in this world ruled by evil Gods?
The Barbarian Warlock normally used physical attacks to best his foes, but this specific enemy called for a different tactic. One fireball later and the trees were all incinerated.
Artin:
Sigvard was suspicious of trees just randomly appearing out of no where. Using his now Undead enhanced senses, he searched nearby for any signs of intelligent life. Only thanks to his former Elven heritage did he find her. A young Elf Women had been attempting to hide in the brushes nearby.
“Who are you?” The Death Knight asked the flustered Elf. “Answer honestly and you will not be harmed.
“And I am supposed to trust a minion of Nihilin?”
“How many people do I need to explain to that I serve Lord Death?!” Sigvard was getting very frustrated. He motioned to his nearby companions. They are alive. I am the only Undead. “Now please tell us why those trees attacked.”
After a bit more tense discussion with the Elf, they learned her name was Artin. After the Dark Gods had taken over, Magic had been unleashed upon the world. Artin had been tasked with retrieving a book in a nearby cave, but she had been attacked by bandits and while the trees she had summoned had driven them away, she had lost control of them. Admitting that the very reason she had been nearby was to ensure that no one was hurt by her creation, she asked if the party could help her.
Entering a Dungeon:
Nobody voiced any objections and most of the party realized that there was probably other treasure besides this spell-book. As a secondary bonus, Artin promised to help them find their way to Spatia proper after she got the book. The cave entrance was not particularly well hidden and this off warning flags that Artin might be leading them into a trap.
With all these things in mind the party dived in. What seemed like a cave from the outside was actually something that was built by hands. The walls were too smooth and the work more magnificent than the Dwarven City. Caic had no problem pointing this out time and time again.
The group saw a bonfire past the first room and expected trouble, but all that remained was a map. Apparently the dungeon they had entered was massive as the map referred to it as such. The only name on the map was “The Shrine” though the party had no idea what that meant.
Another Angel:
Looking at the layout of the Dungeon, the group saw an isolated room separate from the rest of the labyrinth and decided to go that direction first. Dodging multiple traps thanks to Hadron using animals conjured from his bag of tricks, the group encountered little resistance. Though there were some monsters, they were nothing dangerous. Though there continued to be signs of nastier creatures somewhere. And Artin warned that the Bandits had fled into this cave as well.
The first real obstacle came from a really unusual trap. Grez had gotten into the habit of knocking down doors with energy blasts by now in case there was a trap that triggered. However, hitting the door itself was the trigger. A massive band of light formed, and though the party did not understand the circumstances behind it, another Angel had appeared from the door.
By now the party assumed that Angels would attack on sight, and the dark aura around the creature confirmed these suspicions to be true. Caic sighed, preparing to fight a being who he still wanted to consider an ally. The rest of the party was eager to slay this newest holy being who wanted them dead.
While as before it was a fierce battle, this Angel was not a Solar and the party managed to kill the foe. The group was a bit tired and decided to rest after searching the room for treasure. Instead they found nothing but scribbles of the bandits. The problem was that the words made little to no sense. Finding no treasure and feeling like this adventure towards this dead end had been a complete waste of time, the party turned the other way.
Bandits?:
They did not travel long before they encountered a group of people. They were all human and looked a little filthy. These were likely the bandits, but the party decided they would ask them questions first before they made a move.
Things were starting to look up after the Apocalypse happened. But Artin’s goals remain unknown. Sigvard still has many mysteries to solve as well.