After triggering the proximity alarm and falling out of his animal form, Teal collected himself and quickly changed into a giant bat to bank away from where he heard guards gathering to investigate his fall.
Flying around the city, he snuck back into the large central city glass arboretum of Elaenagoth and rejoined his friends. In his absence, the party carefully listened and observed (as best they could) the movements of the guards responding to the alarm. As the alarm quieted down, the party overheard some drow speaking in undercommon about how this latest event must have been “another one attracted by his presence” and “yeah these creatures seem to be coming more frequently then ever.”
The party gathered itself together and decided to employ both a distraction and an active camoflauge spell Ari had just finished mastering called Seaming. Casting her illusory spell, the party was made to look like drow soldiers. Tilia conjured some mephits and sent them off to cause havoc in a way that might pull guards near the central sky bridge to the castle away from the castle’s center.
The ruse worked, along with an assist from Jerry who heard the guards shout for the party’s help. He and Val peeled off, before “slowing down” and turning to rejoin their party. Once at the castle, through some clever talking and clever uses of charm person, the party managed to make their way to the second level of the castle without spelling blood. There, they encountered guards that questioned their intent and direction in heading towards Illiamarra’s chambers. A brief, but decisive battle ensued and the guards were dispatched. One guard, prior to dying, seemed to be seized by some psychic force and began speaking to the party with a personality that was not his own.
With Ari’s help in translating the Selu’taar phrases on the doors, the party found a title that read “Laboratory and Specimen Containment” as well as a room labeled “Treasury and Vault.” The party, intrigued by the psychic entity and by the prospect of help, went into the Laboratory. There they saw thousands of live “specimens” – including many different types of humanoids and monsterous creatures contained in vats of what appeared to be some sort of amniotic fluid. Illiamarra’s lab master was also present in the chamber. She began slinging spells at the party and quickly a few more guards joined her from the other chamber. With a clever watery sphere spell, Teal encapsulated the spellcaster and sent her head over heels into the bubble. Choosing to use her last breath of air to desperately try to kill someone near her to get out of the bubble, she inflicted harm – but was dispatched shortly there after.
Some of the guards were afflicted by the psychic entity – the vessels in their heads bulged and their eyes rolled back as their ears began to bleed from some unseen force. In the next room, the party found a large elder brain entity encased in a glass dome that seemed to dampen and contain its powers. It was being injected with various chemicals that seemed to be causing it pain. Many more specimen containers ringed the walls and went upward towards the ceiling some 100+ ft up.
The party had a conversation with the brain, it using a dispatched guard’s body as a proxy for its voice. The brain identified its self as Flawh. It made an agreement with the party – if they were to release it, and dismantle its container, the brain would provide information and…reinforcements to their cause. It apparently intends to unleash the specimens, kill Illiamarra and her subjects, and contact its colony to rejoin them.
The party agreed and was quickly informed about key chambers in the castle – including the treasury and a room containing an object of great value to Illiamarra protected by a multi-faceted magical trap.
The party disabled the magical trap using some clever dispel magics and another watery sphere to put out the flames of arcane energy surrounding the chest. They unlocked the chest and claimed the masolith artifact from inside.
Continuing on, the party saw gathering forces below them in the central chamber. Sneaking stealthy by, Jerry made his way into the next hallway and noticed a single guard at the end of the hall. He tried the old trick “look over there.” The guard fell for it, but Jerry’s dagger to the heart did not quite eliminate the guard before they could use their dying breath to sound their horn.
The jig is up and Illiamarra’s forces are on their way. Hearing (or sensing) footsteps in the distance running towards the castle, Flawh alerted the party and told them to release a work-like tentacled creature in the single biggest container tank in the room. Out fell a horrible monster that Flawh took partial control of to send outward to hold off Illiamarra’s forces. The party as bought itself some time with Flawh’s help, but time was running out so they charged forward towards their goal and destination – the phalacterium. Val sprung a power word kill trap and was instantly killed, before being brought back by falco with a quick revivify.
The path lies before them and they don’t have much time to plan or rest.
UNOMAHA D&D 