The Moon Orbs Ch. 01-02

Chapter One

"In and out, right?" asked the knight. It was not merely a question, but rather a statement to his young companion. "And if there's trouble, stay behind me."

His companion nodded, an athletically toned Half-Elf, but did not answer. Her mind raced, picking the lock was the easy part, and she hadn't thought it would set off an arcane ward upon doing so. The ancient Giants thought of everything. Even though their civilization had long since collapsed, their antiquities were be magically sealed, a testament to their abilities. The problem, of course, was how to get to the relics in order to study them.

"Almost got it," The artificer said. "Keep that staff of yours ready, Arantash. There's no telling if something was locked inside as well as our artifacts."

"As always, Lady Scrius." Arantash replied. Most knights preferred the longsword, greatsword or even the mace, but Arantash was well trained and capable of delivering powerful strikes with a staff. A simple weapon of the people, one of the poor and desperate; however, in Arantash's hands it was lethal. When augmented with divine energy, the paladin was able to send even the mightiest foes reeling. Now he leaned on it, using its mass to bare the weight between himself and the adjacent wall. "When all the undead nasties pour out of there, they shall meet their doom." His tone was sarcastic, but Nara knew she could always count on him to protect her.

"Please, how many time do I have to tell you: Enough with the 'Lady' stuff. I'm no better than you or the next person. Please, Arantash, call me Nara." She grunted, as she was finally able to see the arcane energies warding the vault. She cursed to herself, "Oh please. Why in the name of The Mockery would they ward it with something like this. Hand me my reagents, please."

There was no reply, only the sound of moving footsteps. She asked again, "Reagents, I need them. Please pass them to me."

Nara Scrius felt another mind attempting to contact hers. "What'd you do?"

Nara knew whenever Arantash opened his mind to hers it was because speaking would be detrimental to their current situation. Although he looked, and was human in many regards, he was not. He was one of the few blessed with a benevolent quori spirit, a spirit from Dal Quor, also known as the realm of dreams.

"I didn't do anything out of the ordinary," she thought back to the Kalashtar.

"You, Miss Rigitta?"

Luci Rigitta was too busy staring into a shadow nearby to reply. She drew two arrows, and pulled the string back on her bow. After another moment, she lowered it, "Sorry," she thought back to the other two; "I could have sworn I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. It's these damn cold-fire torches you're using, they're playing tricks on me. I wish you both could see in darkness as well I can." She tapped her goggles. "...Wait. There it is again, very subtle movement. Don't you see it?"

Neither the paladin or artificer's eyes were as sharp as the ranger's, all they could see was deep shadow.

"Put out the torches!" Luci screamed, firing two arrows into the darkness that lay behind them. With the torches extinguished neither Arantash nor Nara could see anything, they had to trust their companion. The sound of metal striking stone indicated one arrow missed its mark; the other, the sound of an impact indicated Luci had indeed seen something in the long corridor behind them. The noise of the arrow being pulled out of flesh and thrown onto the floor soon followed. A bolt shot from the darkness and ricocheted off Arantash's armor, their enemies were intelligent, obviously armed and presumably could see in darkness. Extinguishing the torches was the wrong move, and all four archeologists, including Bombadur a surly Dwarf from the Mror Holds and an impassioned worshiper of Kol Korran.

"I got the light!" Bombadur thought frantically back to the group. With a thought, his weapon ignited with cool radiant energy. The hallway exploded into view, four short-statured elves, whose skin was dark as onyx and hair as white as freshly fallen snow, had crossbows aimed at each of the explorers. One other creature stood behind the others, it was much like a Centaur of legend, instead of equine, however this creature had the bottom-half and tail of a scorpion. Whatever that creature was, it was clearly in charge.

"why have you come here?" it asked in the Elven tongue. Through their collective mindlink set up by Arantash, Nara was able to translate for the party.

"It asked us, 'Why have you come here?'"

Arantash propped his weapon against the wall and held his hands out, attempting to show the creature and his dark-skinned Elf allies he meant no harm. He replied in the common tongue, hoping that the creature could understand, "We have come to find the artifact the Giants laid to rest here eons ago. We wish to bring it back to Khorvaire -- to Sharn in Breland, or Aundair's Arcane College! We must learn from these relics of history, lest we repeat what happened centuries ago!"

"What lays behind that gate is a mystery to you?" one of the creature's allies asked, showing they did understand the common language of Galifar. "How can you not know? It is hardly just an artifact. They say it is lock, key and portal combined into one supremely powerful orb. The Orb of Kythri, the Churning Chaos."

In his excitement, Bombadur spoke with his mouth, not his mind, "This is one of the Moonorbs? Only three of the thirteen have ever been found. Surely, Kol Korran smiles upon us today! Quickly, give miss Scriush her reagents and get that vault open!"

A crossbow bolt whistled through the air, striking Bombadur in the shoulder. He reeled back and fell to the ground upon the bolts impact; a wave of weariness flooded his senses as the poison began flowing through his veins. These were obviously no ordinary bolts; these strange elves and their scorpion-bodied ally must have created these magically.

As he could feel his anger welling up inside, he also felt a surge of energy. He grit his teeth and pulled the bolt from his shoulder. "Big mistake, little man." As quickly his feet could take him, he sprinted down the hallway. Two more bolts struck him as he ran but he was unfazed. Bombadur screamed slamming his Urgrosh into the side of one of the dark-skinned Elf's face, killing him instantly. The poison was still coursing through his veins, but all Bombadur could feel was the rage built up inside. These strange Elves might have started it, but he was going to finish the fight. A quick follow up to his first attack felled another of the Elves, slicing a deep gouge in his shoulders, chest and abdomen.

Only Luci heard Arantash's last request as he closed their minds in case the creature had any psychic abilities of its own. "Luci, can you take the other two archers?"

"Yes, you and Nara, subdue that... that... whatever in Khyber it is!" she replied. She tossed a bottle on the ground and smoke began filling the room. It was a flask Nara had prepared for the ranger earlier should trouble arise. Luci was aware the Elves keen eyes could see through the darkness better than their own, but looking through smoke would be another matter. She already knew where the Elves were, and they would have to guess where she was going, even if they managed to clear the smoke from the room, she would still have the upper hand. So would Bombadur, assuming he even noticed the smoke through his rage.

Arantash scanned the area with his thoughts, it seemed the strange creature had some psionic abilities of its own because he could not sense its approach. Settling into a defensive posture, one that provided cover to his ally while she prepared her infusion, Arantash prepared for the creature's attack. It never came. It instead went for easier pray, perhaps using its own psionics to sense the Paladin's extremely well trained defensive abilities. Bombadur was an easier target. He was throwing all his strength into his attacks, he would never be able to block one well placed attack from the Scorrow's barbed, poisonous tail. Tremendous pain followed by a burning feeling throughout Bombadur's body after the attack. He fell to one knee and began coughing and gasping uncontrollably.

Bombadur turned around the face the creature. He tried to smile and intimidate the creature, "This ain't the first time I've been poisoned!" But it was no use, the poison was already running its course. Bombadur fell to his knees and vomited up a mixture of blood and bile.

"But it will be your last," one of the dark-skinned Elves replied. He held his crossbow up to the immobilized Dwarf's head and pulled the trigger.

*  

Chapter Two

"Noo!" shouted Luci, but it was too late. Though impaired by the smoke the Elves and the creature had the upper hand over Bombadur. The Elf had just delivered the finishing blow to her friend and ally when she let her arrows fly. True to her aim, the two flaming arrows bit into the Scorrow's carapace. The creature shouted in pain and turned around. A mixture of poison and blood dripped from its tail.

Arantash pushed a thought into her mind, "Keep it up, Luci! One's inner light shines strongest when another's is extinguished!"

"My light shinned for him!" she shouted both at the Elf and to Arantash. Two more arrows flew from her bow, these impacted the two remaining Elves, killing on and severely wounding the other. He collapsed to the ground, clutching his chest where the arrow had punctured his lung. Luci waved the smoke out of the way as she approached the one remaining enemy.

"Please," he gasped, "please, don't open the seal. You don't know what..." he trailed off as Luci pulled the arrow from his chest.

"What were you thinking?!" Luci shouted at Arantash. "What in Khyber were you and Princess doing that whole time? I thought you were this group's protector?! And now Bombadur's dead! Oh, I hate you so much right now! What do you have to say for yourself?!"

The Paladin had no answers. He should have reacted sooner. He should have known the Scorrow would attack Bombadur, not Nara. He should have charged into battle with he and Luci. Instead he took a defensive stance in order to protect Nara, whom he believed the Scorrow would attack. She was the one attempting to unlock the ward. And he knew Bombadur was a liability. He just never suspected a creature like that would get the drop on the Dwarf.

"I'm, I'm sorry," he finally said. Luci threw herself into his chestplate. He put his arms around her, attempting to give his friend and ally comfort as she began to sob. "Oh, Luci, I'm so sorry. He lives on inside you now. Remember him and his light shall never fade." The Path of Light was an ideal and thus not a typical religion. Still, the mysterious force known as il-Yannah to the Kalashtar people gave Arantash his powers. "I cannot bring him back, but I can put his soul at rest."

"You two do that," Nara said, still stunned at what had occurred as well. "I must finish disenchanting this ward."

"No, that can wait. We must all honor our ally," Arantash replied. He knelt down next to his Dwarven friend and closed his eyes. "Your light shall shine in all of us from now on, old friend. May it shine brightest for Lady Luci." Though not a worshiper himself, the Kalashtar knew Bombadur was a worshiper of the Sovereign Host and added, "Onatar will be lucky if you help him stoke his divine forge with your light now as well."

"Amen," Nara and Luci said. Luci added, "May Dol Dorn guide you from The Keeper's clutches and into a never ending field of glory."

"She will need a moment on her own," observed Arantash. He put his arm around the Half-Elf, hoping to comfort her as well. "Come. Finish your ritual so we may leave this place and give him a proper burial."

The two moved back through the darkened hallway to their original location next to the large door. As Nara worked, Arantash looked back through the hallway to see Luci hugging and sobbing into Bombadur's lifeless body. "He loved you too," he said under his breath.