Spellbound, Session 17
{{DM}}
Sergei and Svetlana go visit Valin and learn a few things:
- That he can't say much about the Hellfire Engines, having never seen or heard of them; whacking them with sticks is a good start.
- That he can provide a couple of items that someone with Use Magic Device could use, with spells like Disable Construct (Harm for constructs).
- That he knows quite a bit about the ethergaunts, and has what very well might be the ultimate weapon against them, whenever the party wants to get around to that. Svetlana may go to Deep Imaskar.
Adryn, Devora, and Zarek will go to Bezantur to report on what they've seen, and ask the counsel of the Eternal Flame. The result:
- Zephraim determines through divination that, while Eltab may be the culprit, the Cult of the Black Flame has obvious interests there, and is most likely involved.
- He devises a plot to quickly destroy the countless demons so that the Heart of Flame may be properly dealt with. To accomplish this, the party must find the Heart itself, and, when they get there, deposit a token so that Zephraim and Alerion can teleport in to work the spell.
- The spell will take some time to cast, so the party will have to hold off the inevitable tide of demons while Alerion protects Zephraim for the duration.
- If all goes well, he should be able to banish all demons from the dungeon.
Back Into the Dungeon
The party will return to where they fought Bal'Geddon, and descend a long spiral stair into darkness. They are attacked by dm:Umberfiends.
((Torment: Fortress of Regrets))
The staircase straightens and descends between two massive curtains of magma--flowing upwards. A blinding, fiery brilliance emanates from below. The stairway eventually lands on an iron platform suspended over a pool of lava that seems to be feeding the reverse lava falls.
Opposite the stair is a path that leads to a tunnel through a column of magma. Here, the party meets Adammon, accompanied by a demon army. He sics a dm:Hellfire Wyrm on the party. ((Skies of Arcadia: Jealous))
Through the tunnel, beyond the curtain of magma, they find a massive cavern. It appears to have been carved from solid rock, glowing red hot from the nearby fire node. They have excavated the tip of some sort of massive, red crystal, and are digging into it with their Hellfire Engines. ((SoA: The Last Time))
The party must destroy the engines. ((SoA: Boss Battle)) While this is going on, Adammon, runs inside the crystal.
In the cavern excavated from the crystal, Adammon is chanting before a wall of translucent red stone, so pure it looks like solid ruby. Within it is the glow of the Heart of Flame, emanating from below.
The group will hopefully think to summon Zephraim and Alerion, who will banish the crap out of Adammon. Then, the final battle begins. ((SoA: Last Battle, Opportunity))
The red-cloaked man appears, summoning all demons from the dungeon to attack the party. They filter down the tunnel in a constant swarm, balors, mariliths, and lesser beings alike. The party must fend them off for a full 10 rounds (minus a few at the beginning as the demons make their way in) while Zephraim casts his spell.
When Zephraim completes the epic spell, all light sources, natural and magical, are extinguished, save for the glow of the Heart of Fire, which visibly dims. The demons are burned to ash, one and all. As for Zephraim, his eyes glow with primal fire, and his body seems suffused with divine power.
((Anakin's Dark Deeds))
As Alerion pats him on the shoulder to congratulate him, his hand instantly burns to char. He looks on, astounded, as Zephraim begins to menace him. He propels the party away with unstoppable divine power, and lays his hand upon the Eternal Flame's chest. Ardyn watches helplessly as his father is consumed in profane fire. Zephraim then turns to the party.
"The time of the Black Flame has come. The time of the Hidden Lord is now."
((Battle of the Heroes))
The party throws themself at him, but he has tapped into a reserve of primal fire too powerful for mortal means. As they do, the cavern begins to shake apart; the crystal disintegrates, and the abyss below is slowly revealed.
"Only the blood of Flameborn, the blood of the Lord of Flames, can quell the rage that I have unleashed. The Heart shall burst, and fire will consume this land. The Black Flame will cleanse humanity."
In the end, as Ardyn attempts to undo his evil by destroying the Heart itself, Zephraim destroys him in much the same way as his father. "Your sacrifice means nothing, child. Just like your father. You have failed them all. You were their last hope."
As he casts Ardyn's burning body into the fire below, Devora seizes the key. "No, fucker. There is another." She charges him and leaps into the chasm; Zephraim lunges after her, losing his footing as well. They fall into the Heart of Flame, and the key is destroyed.