"The Cradle of the Death God" - Tomb of Annihilation, Chapter 42

After defeating the Night Hags known as the Sewn Sisters, the party got some much needed rest. Sufficiently recharged, they prepared to open the Iron Skeleton Gate.

They inserted all five keys and opened the gate. A gust of hot air poured out. Before them was a corridor that descended a long set of stairs.

They emerged into a large triangular room filled with lava. The near wall ran along a ten foot ledge. Two balconies were located half-way along the two opposite walls, upon which were piles of pots, boxes, and jars. A balcony containing a glowing portal formed the apex on the far end of the triangle.

A fifteen foot wide platform was suspended over the lava in the center of the room by three heavy adamantine chains connected to the ledge and both balconies. Atop the platform was a large glass cylinder. The interior of the cylinder was filled with swirling glowing mists and thousands of tiny glowing motes. Three gaseous tendrils emanated from the top of the cylinder and writhed in the air as if alive. The cylinder resembled a life-sized version of the model of the Soulmonger they were shows in the Heart of Ubtao.

Hovering above and behind the Soulmonger was a vision out of nightmare. A grotesquely misshapen humanoid form, bloated and malformed, resembling a human fetus the size of an elephant but covered in sores, pustules, small cuts, an twisted growths engorged with purple blood. Its bulbous eyes were barely open as if half asleep. A long tapering tongue snaked out of its stupidly gaping mouth like a gruesome worm or tentacle.

It was the Atropal.

CHAPTER 42
"THE CRADLE OF THE DEATH GOD"

THE EXPEDITION

• Bramble Wolf - a theran barbarian wise-man (Wildhunt Shifter Druid) searching for the legendary origin of his tribe, recently transformed into a woman by a magic fountain, slowly becoming a goat due to a curse from a bronze staff. Current bearer of the spirit of the trustworthy god Moa.
• Apparently Jones - a blue-skinned demijin caravan guide and animal trainer (Air Genasi Ranger) from Akasa, the land of sky mountains. Having failed to find work in Port Nyanzaru as an animal handler, she has joined the expedition to the interior as a scout. Current bearer of the spirit of the foolhardy god of froghemoths named Kubazan.
• Xoc-Wik - a b'alam warrior (Tabaxi Fighter) from the jungles of Bres, searching for those responsible for the destruction of his tribe.
• Zeynap Shiravadakar - a Eusebean smuggler (Human Warlock) bearing the spirit of a celestial unicorn. Current bearer of the spirit of the nimble god I'Jin.
• Argent Truth-Sayer - a golden azi knight errant of Bhamut (Dragonborn Paladin) in the service of Bhamut, sent on a holy mission to join the expedition to destroy the Soul Monger. Current bearer of the spirit of the selfish god of wealth Nangnang.

NPCs

• Zorai - vyth (grey-skinned alien) explorer sent to Omu to investigate the massive seismic event that coincided with its destruction; trapped within a magic mirror soon after the destruction of Omu more than 150 years ago.
• Orvex Ocrammas - archaeologist and historian; rescued from the Fane of the Night Serpent.

The Soulmonger
The party paused on the descending stairs to make a plan. After much deliberation, they entered the  chamber. Xoc-Wik had succumbed to Brain Fever so Orvex stayed behind to watch after the b'alam archer.

Inside, they saw alcoves along the wall behind him. Each alcove was filled with bones, the skeletal remains of Omuans who had been shackled there to die many decades ago.

Zeynap channeled the celestial magic of his patron through arcane blasts towards the glass cylinder. Apparently followed up with arrows charged with magical electricity loosed from her longbow. Argent charged the cylinder, balancing on the massive chain that was stretched taut. Their attacks began to damage the heavy glass cylinder. Cracks began to form on its surface and its metal components were beginning to break apart.

The massive Atropal took notice and slowly opened its small torpid eyes within sunken eye sockets. The eyes glowed brilliantly with the purple necrotic energy of Skion. It glared at Apparently and Zeynap. The mere presence of the Atropal drained the heroes of their energy, leaving them physically exhausted. Its gaze caused crippling pain and seizures.

Vythi-Zorai fell down dead.

Zeynap redirected his magical energy, creating a zone of celestial radiance around the Atropal. The Atropal writhed in pain at the exposure to holy power and slowly floated forward.

Bramble transformed into a giant ape and leaped into the lava pit. The massive simian caught the chain and swung hand-over-hand to the balcony to the left. There it was large enough and close enough to engage the Atropal in hand-to-hand combat - freeing her companions to concentrate their fire on the Soulmonger.

The Soulmonger began to crack further. Green gaseous tendrils swirled around and struck at Apparently and Argent. The Atropal abandoned Bramble and closed with the ledge, focusing its attacks on Zeynap.

Despite the Atropal's intervention, Argent, Apparently, and Zeynap's attacks were able to destroy the cylinder. It exploded into shards of broken glass and metal debris. The souls trapped within escaped with the sound of thousands of sighing souls, swirling in a brilliant cyclone before dissipating into nothingness.

The massive fetal THING screamed in frustration at the loss of its food source. It struck out in anger at Apparently and Zeynap. Argent moved back to the ledge to help defend his companions. Zeynap channeled a celestial witch bolt of electrical energy at the massive creature. It soon exploded, drenching the room with rotting meat and black and purple ichor!

Enter Acererak
There was barely a moment to catch their breaths when a large skeletal figure magically appeared on the alcove at the apex of the triangle. It was tall and wore long purple robes that seemed to flow and writhe on its own. Its face was a glowing yellow-green skull wreathed in gaseous energy. It held in its claw-like right hand a long staff tipped with a skull decorated with ram horns. Around its neck it wore an amulet shaped like the green horned devil face seen throughout the tomb. A black sphere with a diameter as long as a man's arm hovered just behind the skeletal entity.

It was Acererak.

It looked around at the devastation, confused. It spoke an a thin reedy voice like a screeching clarinet.

"Wha- What happened here? Where's my Soulmonger? Wait- Where's my Atropal? WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO WITH MY ATROPAL??!!"

DM Comment-
I plopped down a Skeletor toy for Acererak. I did my best to mimic Skeletor's voice and insults. Lots of "You gibbering boob!" and "You floundering idiot!" and just general put downs of their intelligence and capabilities. He was a hoot! 

Bramble, Zeynap, and Apparently felt suddenly invigorated. The totem-spirits within them wanted revenge against the arch-lich. They felt empowered, energized, and ready to fight!

Argent replied, "We destroyed the Soulmonger. We killed the Atropal."

Acererak was taken aback, "You- you WHAT? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT? It was almost finished! It was THIS close to consuming enough souls to ascend to godhead! I was about to control a god with power over death! I mean, WHAT THE FUCK?"

Argent bragged of their achievement, "We have put a stop to your plan. Now we will put an end to you!"

Apparently attacked Acererak with arrows while Zeynap sent an electrical witch-bolt. Acererak sent the black sphere towards Bramble, who had transformed back into goat form after defeating the Atropal, and directed dark life-draining energy towards Zeynap. The black sphere brushed against Bramble's shoulder, completely obliterating all matter it touched. Bramble bleated in pain and jerked away.

After summoning a healing spirit wolf to assist Argent and Zeynap, Bramble once again transformed into a giant ape. She climbed along the wall  towards the apex, closing to fight hand-to-hand with Acererak.

"That's too close, you simian simpleton! Be gone!" Acererak pointed at her and sent the giant ape into a labyrinthine dimension whose only exit lay at the end of a complicated maze.

Acererak then directed the floating orb of darkness across the room to harass Zeynap.

Zeynap moved away from the sphere and Argent made his way across the chains towards the balcony on the right. Acererak momentarily lost control of the sphere which moved ten feet towards him over the lava. He soon rectified the lapse and redirected it back towards Zeynap.

DM Comment-
Given his Arcana skill of +11, which is doubled to +22 by the Amulet of Annihilation, Acererak pretty much automatically controls the Sphere of Annihilation (DC 25). However, I rolled a 2 that round.

Apparently was loosing magical lightning arrows into Acererak. The arch-lich tilted his head, "You Bumbling Boob! You have caused me harm!  You should feel flattered that I even consider it necessary to bring out the big guns to deal with you. DIE!"

Apparently Jones fell down dead.

Zeynap stopped to check on Apparently, hoping to stabilize her. He was shocked to find that she was completely dead.

DM Comment-
Zeynap's Player: "No saving throw?"
Me: "Nope. Power Word Kill. Welcome to the big leagues!"
Zeynap's Player: "Whaaaaa???"

Bramble reappeared from the extra-dimensional maze.

DM Comment-
Bramble's player rolled a 20.

Acererak replied, "I see you managed to find an exit despite your obvious mental deficiencies . Well, we'll take care of that!" Acererak once again banished Bramble to the arcane labyrinth.

Argent took a running jump from the balcony to the alcove, soaring over fifteen feet of lava. He landed next to Acererak. Zeynap moved out onto the balcony from which Argent just leaped. Acererak responded by releasing a wave of necrotic energy that disrupted the very living essences of both Argent and Zeynap. Argent withered and fell down unconscious.

Bramble once again escaped from the arcane labyrinth. Bramble leaped onto the walls and climbed over towards Acererak's alcove. She grabbed Acererak in her giant simian fist and jumped away from the alcove, falling backwards into the lava thirty feet below!

Bramble and Acererak hit the surface of the molten stone and immediately caught fire. Bramble bellowed but maintained her grip on Acererak. Acererak burned. The arch-lich writhed and screamed as he was engulfed in flame. Acererak was reduced to ash and bone.

DM Comment-
Bramble was getting 50 temporary hit points per turn on top of her Giant Ape hit points. Acererak was down to 93 hit points. He was going to teleport away as soon as it was hit turn, and he was next in the initiative order! They both took 54 damage when they hit the lava. At the beginning of Acererak's turn, he took another 68 points of damage and died! In retrospect, he should have taken the damage at the END of his turn which would have given him the opportunity to escape. Whatever, him dying was way cooler than him escaping. Plus, he's not REALLY dead. 

Bramble quickly transformed into a bird of prey and flew out of the lava. She landed next to Argent and transformed back into the form of a humanoid goat. She knelt next to the dragon man but he was gone.

DM Comment-
Bramble was hoping he had time to save Argent. Unfortunately Argent rolled a 1 on his first death save which counted as two failures! He died on the next turn. 

The Mist Gate
After the remains of their fallen friends were reverently given to the lava, the two survivors Bramble and Zeynap rested and recuperated. The spirits of I'Jin and Unkh  were still with them but the fervor of battling Acererak had passed.

They explored the two balconies. They found clay canopic jars, urns, glass jars filled with glittery ash, and other containers sealed with wax and inscribed with mystic runes. Bramble concluded that they were the phylacteries of liches allied with or beholden to Acererak. Bramble and Zeynap ditched all the jars and urns they could find into the lava.

They found that the iron skeleton gate was unlocked and they rejoined Orvex. The trio evaluated their options for escaping the Tomb of Nine Gods - climb out through the waterfall or take a different route? Bramble told the others that Peggy Deadbells had given him a black marble and said that the way out led through something called "the Ebon Pool" and that the charred bones pointed the way, though he admitted that he didn't know what that meant.

Not wanting to risk an encounter with Ringu or G'lyh'rul by swimming through the underground lake, or encountering the caretaker of the tomb, Mister Withers, they decided to explore what lay past the glowing portal at the apex of the triangular room.

DM Comment-
I asked Apparently's player to play Orvex for what remained of the module.

They made their way across the lava to the balcony at the apex and crossed through the glowing portal.

Chapel of Hate
They found themselves in an eerie chapel lined with columns. Strange long-limbed creatures were shackled to the walls of the chapel by their wrists. Their heads were covered. The creatures became agitated when the trio entered the room. At the far end of the chapel was a large tapestry. Before the tapestry was a stone table. A large burlap sack lay on the table, slowly squirming.

The trio ignored the chained creatures and cautiously opened the burlap sack.

DM Comment-
I asked the players who they wanted to be in the sack. I told them to choose their favorite surviving NPC, someone they liked. They discussed it and asked if they could choose a PC.

Within the sack was Nova Scotia Blackman. He was naked save for a primitive shift and was no longer a reanimated zombie!

Zeynap and Bramble exchanged warm greetings with their former companion. Nova explained that he had joined a group of other explorers to find a cure for his condition. Somewhere along the way he was captured by the Sewn Sisters. They said something about him being used as a final sacrifice to trigger the ascendance of the Atropal to godhead. They had said that since his soul was from another world, it carried special power. They restored his soul, which had been trapped in the Soulmonger, and prepared him for the sacrifice.

DM Comment-
Argent's player was also NSB's player, so he got to resume NSB. It was a nice bookend. I had thought about making the clone be NSB but went with Argent after his untimely passing two weeks previous.

Hall of Finality
The quartet discovered a hidden passage behind the tapestry. The floor of the passage was decorated with three paths made from colored tiles - a red path, a purple path, and a gold path.  Each of the three paths led to one of four door jambs. Each door jamb displayed nothing but blank wall. The fourth door jamb had no path but a decrepit skeleton lying on the floor pointed towards it. A plaque on the wall read "Behold the fate of those who defy me!"

I'Jin urged Zeynap to take the purple trail for no other reason than it was the god's favorite color. Zeynap rolled his eyes and refused.

Orvex closely examined the wall within the door jamb with no trail and found arcane wards. The party decided to ignore that one for now.

Zeynap walked the red trail towards its door jamb. The arch presented a blank wall. He touched it and found that his fingers passed into solid stone as if it were mud. He could only push forward. No amount of effort could cause him to pull back. He decided to go all the way in. Orvex shrugged and followed him.

Nova and Bramble, however, chose the gold path. They followed it and touched the blank wall within the arch. There was a peal of deafening thunder loud enough to buckle their knees and for  the stone of the doorway to crack and crumble. Beyond was an old dark hallway filled with cobwebs. A dimly lit room illuminated by a red candle lay beyond.

The Red Library
They cautiously entered the room and found a library filled with hundreds of ancient books. An old human lay asleep at a writing desk while a music box shaped like a five-sided lantern played a gently twinkling tune.

They woke him gently. He was surprised to have visitors, "Oh, why did you disturb me? I was resting nicely."

He introduced himself as Mister Fox and said he was the librarian here, bound to serve Master Acererak for eternity. He answered any question he could about the library but was unaware of anything outside this room, which he hadn't left in over a hundred years.

Nova looked around at some of the books with curiosity. He asked if he could take any of the books but Mister Fox steadfastly refused.

Mister Fox put on a pair of spectacles and examined Bramble closely, "Say, have I met you before? Perhaps in another life or another time?"

Bramble deduced that Mister Fox was the same being the party had met in the Wardrobe of the Infinite Labyrinth, but he said merely, "No, I don't think so."

A moment later, Zeynap and Orvex emerged from the wall in an alcove at the rear of the room, very confused.

Bramble addressed them matter-of-factly, as if their appearance was expected, "Come on, there's nothing for us here. Let's go."

The Ebon Pool
They returned to the hall. Zeynap channeled the celestial magic of his patron Brightmane to dispel the magic ward on the blank archway indicated by the skeleton. Bramble touched the wall and passed through. It soon became evident that Zeynap had not seen a second ward on the door for a wall of flame appeared at the entry to the passage. The wall of flame slowly started moving towards the party. They all moved quickly through the door.

They found themselves in a small confined room. In the middle of the room was a shallow basin made of brick. The basin was filled with smooth black liquid. The party stood around staring at it.

Zeynap took the bold path of stepping into it. He was standing up to his ankle in black liquid. When he stepped out, he saw that his boots and pants legs, anything touching the black liquid, was gone, though his feet were unharmed.

"Huh" he said.

Bramble tossed the marble into the pool. A black obelisk rose from the pool to a height of ten feet.

After a quick glance around to see what each other thought, each member of the party simultaneously reached out and touched the obelisk.

They found themselves standing around the black obelisk at the entrance to the Tomb of Nine Gods. They were outside. It was daytime. It was hot. It was muggy. It was pouring rain.

Welcome to Chult.

Credits

Dungeon Master - Christian C.

Nova Scotia Blackman - Jeff L.

Hasegawa Tōhaku - Jeff L.

Argent Truthsayer - Jeff L.

Bramble Wolf - Scott D.

Apparently Jones - Erica J.

Xoc-Wik - Jeff D.

Qhallebbewk Zriri - Jeff M.

Zeynap Shiravadakar - Jeff M.

Epilogue

The team reunited with Princess Mwaxanaré outside of Omu. They returned to her the Skull Chalice of Ch’gakare as well as the Scepter of Queen Napaka. They offered their assistance in removing the Nagini from Omu and re-establishing the city and her monarchy.

The princess thanked them but pointed out that all that would come in due time. First, she had to return to Port Nyanzaru. She had to establish her credentials. She would need their help to overthrow the corrupt merchant princes. After that she would hire an army to return and rebuild Omu.

Bramble seemed especially eager to help overthrow the merchant princes.

Nova Scotia Blackman vowed to return to the Tomb of the Nine Gods to find the Armillary Sphere which he hoped to use to return home.

Bramble wrinkled her goat eyes, "I can't help but think we forgot something important."

Zeynap replied, "Well, there's still a lot in there that we didn't take care of."

Bramble looked worried, "No, it's something else."

Meanwhile, back in the former lair of the Sewn Sisters, Xoc-Wik was just waking from his brain fever. He was alone.

"Hello! Hello? Where is everyone? Hello?"

The End

"The Great Mechanism" - Tomb of Annihilation, Chapter 40

Argent disappeared in a flash of flame and smoke. His empty armor, weapons, and equipment fell to the floor in a heap.

The shadim commander directed her minions to return to the mural from which they emerged. She waved at the surviving members of the expedition mounted on the statue of the war mastodon and followed her underlings. The flames on the floor subsided.

Bramble, Apparently, and Orvex climbed down from the statue of the war-mastodon and examined the empty paraphernalia that remained of Argent.

Smoke began to coalesce before them. The smoke resolved into a humanoid form - a mighty Chultan warrior wearing a horned head-dress and clad in armor of thunder-beast hide. Orvex reverently whispered, "Ch'kagare."

The ghostly form of Ch'kagare held out his hand. It held a chalice made from a human skull. The chalice became solid - real. The ghost of Ch'kagare nodded silently and proffered the chalice to the survivors.

Apparently took the chalice. The ghostly form stood at attention, looking away into the distance, and faded into smoke and fog.

Orvex was the first to break the contemplative silence, "Sho, uh, dibsh on his shtuff."

CHAPTER 40
"THE GREAT MECHANISM"

THE EXPEDITION

• Bramble Wolf - a theran barbarian wise-man (Wildhunt Shifter Druid) searching for the legendary origin of his tribe, recently transformed into a woman by a magic fountain, slowly becoming a goat due to a curse from a bronze staff. Current bearer of the spirit of the trustworthy god Moa.
• Apparently Jones - a blue-skinned demijin caravan guide and animal trainer (Air Genasi Ranger) from Akasa, the land of sky mountains. Having failed to find work in Port Nyanzaru as an animal handler, she has joined the expedition to the interior as a scout. Current bearer of the spirit of the foolhardy god of froghemoths named Kubazan.
• Xoc-Wik - a b'alam warrior (Tabaxi Fighter) from the jungles of Bres, searching for those responsible for the destruction of his tribe.
• Zeynap Shiravadakar - a Eusebean smuggler (Human Warlock) bearing the spirit of a celestial unicorn. Current bearer of the spirit of the nimble god I'Jin.
• Orvex Ocrammas - archaeologist and historian; rescued from the Fane of the Night Serpent.

NPCs

• Zorai - vyth (grey-skinned alien) explorer sent to Omu to investigate the massive seismic event that coincided with its destruction; trapped within a magic mirror soon after the destruction of Omu more than 150 years ago.

DM Comment-
I gave Argent's player the opportunity to make a new character. I thought of a couple of ways I could introduce them to the party. Since there are maybe only two sessions left in this campaign, he decided to promote Orvex from NPC to PC - so he made Orvex as a ninth level rogue. 

Sweet Dreams
Xoc-Wik and Zeynap, both back in the control room with Vythi-Zorai, finally shook off their Brain Fever and regained their bearings. Xoc-Wik unsuccessfully attempted telepathic communication with Argent. He was dismayed to learn of his passing from Apparently. Apparently guided him through the process of reorienting the cogs to the proper position and the remaining survivors made their way back to the control room.

They sealed the control room and decided to rest and recover.

As they slept, Xoc-Wik was visited by a strange dream. It was the drowned girl standing on the still water of a dark lake. The girl wore a long shift. She had long wet hair and dark voids where one would normally expect to see eyes. She held a red ball and asked Xoc-Wik if he would play with her. Xoc-Wik agreed.

The girl giggled and they two threw the ball back and forth. Xoc-Wik asked her questions. He learned that the girl's name was Ringu and that she lived in the lake. She was very lonely. No one ever came to speak with her. No one but Gorra, leader of the caretakers, and he just used her to make the slime which he used in his experiments.

He learned that she was not alone. A "bad person" named G'lyh'rul lived with her in the lake. She told Xoc-Wik that they'd never find the Soulmonger because they didn't have all the keys. She said she knew where the final key was but she couldn't tell him, she had to show him. Xoc-Wik would have to meet her in the lake so she could show him the way.

Xoc-Wik woke up rested but dripping wet. In his hands was a red ball. He told the others what had he experienced.

DM Comment-
I had meant to use Google translate to give the little girl a meaningful Easter Egg name like Oboreta Shojo or something, but I forgot. Xoc-Wik's player suggested "Ringu" so we went with that. 

The Lake

After sleeping, the party took some additional time to relax and prepare for the stress of the coming day. Bramble practiced juggling. Orvex practiced with Xoc-Wik's magical rapier. Zeynap recounted his adventures in a journal. Apparently performed the ritual to summon a new spirit animal - another bird-lizard which she promptly named "Archie".  Xoc-Wik made plans for the day.

The party assigned Vythi-Zorai to the controls of the gears of hate. They oriented the gears and retraced their steps to the access corridor and spiral staircase. They opened the metal hatch and walked out onto the short dock in the subterranean lake.

The water was dark but small blurry pin-points of bio-luminescent light could be seen on the lake's bottom. The water was viscous like slime.

The party climbed aboard the two rowboats and rowed underneath the two elevated walkways that connected the chambers to the giant cogs in the center of the lake. They were soon met by some ripples in the slimy water. Tentacles rose from under the surface. A large aquatic creature breached. It looked ancient and alien, with multiple eyes and wrinkled flesh around its head. Many tentacles writhed and flailed about.

The Thing in the Deep

DM Comment-
The aboleth had two personalities. It could have been the malevolent G'lyh'rul or the friendly Ringu. I asked the players to call High or Low. Xoc-Wik's player called "High". I rolled a d6 and got a high result. They got Ringu. 

Bramble, Apparently, and Orvex warily prepared for a battle.

The friendly voice of Ringu telepathically greeted them. The tentacles playfully motioned for Xoc-Wik to throw the ball. Xoc-Wik obliged and the two played catch for a moment and established their good intentions.

Xoc-Wik eventually asked about the hidden key. Ringu turned and led them to a small niche in the back of the subterranean lake. She told them that water poured into the lake from a higher chamber. She said she remembered Gorra thinking about the skeleton key being located there and that the intruders would never look for it there.

Xoc-Wik thanked Ringu who swam away pleased. Xoc-Wik then told the others he'd climb up the shaft, scout ahead, and either telepathically call for help if he needed it or return with the key. 

Hydra Fight!

Xoc-Wik struggled against the spray of the constantly falling water as he scaled the vertical shaft. When he reached the top he found a chamber about fifty feet wide. The chamber was a pool of water drawn from two large underground streams that drained down the shaft which he just climbed. He carefully looked around, his cat-eyes adjusting to the total darkness. On the far side of the chamber he saw a ledge about fifteen feet above the pool. On the ledge he saw a large chest or strong-box. Sitting next to the chest was a skeleton - the back of its skull formed a large key.

As he scanned the rest of the chamber he saw a large serpentine form sleeping in the pool. The form had five snake-like heads. Four of the heads were sleeping. A fifth was busy devouring some piece of meat. It was the hydra from the grotto under the palace! One of the two streams that fed this pool must connect somehow to the grotto.

He ducked down behind the cascading water. He was confident that he wasn't spotted. He telepathically communicated the situation to the rest of the party three hundred feet below. He wanted some consultation on his options - Should he try to get the skeleton without waking the hydra or should he wait for the others to climb the shaft and deal with the hydra as a group?

Bramble - addled as she was by the spirit of Unkh - could not decide. Xoc-Wik was finally forced to make the call. He would wait for their help. 

Bramble jumped out of the boat and transformed herself into a giant gorilla. Apparently, Zeynap, and Orvex climbed onto her back and she began scaling the vertical shaft. Xoc-Wik readied a tangle-foot arrow.

The sound of the giant ape climbing the waterfall alerted the hydra. Xoc-Wik loosed the arrow. The arrow exploded into a giant net of vines and thorns, pinning the hydra. Xoc-Wik then loosed several magically charged arrows into the hydra, killing one of its five heads. Bramble crested the edge of the waterfall and began slamming her giant simian fists into the hydra. Zeynap, riding on Bramble's shoulder, sent the continuous bolt of lightning from his Witch Bolt into the hydra.

The massive barrage overwhelmed the hydra. It fell into the water. Apparently leaped into the pool with her flaming sword, stabbing the hydra before it could grow a new head! The hydra was dead!

DM Comment - 
This entire scene was built to make up for the hydra fight I didn't get way back in Chapter 25! They cheated me then, so I placed the same hydra guarding the last skeleton key. Well, I rolled really bad for the hydra's initiative. It went last. Everyone went nuclear on the poor thing. I was dead before the round was half over! Orvex didn't even get to go! I may have got my hydra fight but I definitely got no satisfaction. 

Mimic!

The skeleton held aloft an ancient axe and leaped off the ledge. It charged Orvex. Orvex cut it down. The skeleton fell apart and the skull began to float towards the edge of the falls, forcing the party scramble after it. Apparently was finally able to grab the skull before it plunged over the side.

Bramble lifted Orvex to the ledge. As he went to open the treasure chest, it opened wide, revealing a huge maw filled with sharp teeth and a large sticky tongue! The chest was a mimic!

Orvex immediately stabbed the shape-changer with Xoc-Wik's rapier, killing it. The polymorphous beast shifted through several forms as it expired. One of its forms was that of Biff Longsteel. As its dying act, Biff Longsteel reached out an arm and pointed at Xoc-Wik. The beast died, melting into fleshy goo.

Everyone eyed Xoc-Wik suspiciously.

DM Comment - 
I really didn't feel like doing anything with the unresolved doppelganger situation so I used this opportunity to wrap that loose thread up. The final pointing was just meant to add some final suspicion. 

The Door of Devouring
They climbed back onto Bramble's shoulders and descended the waterfall. They regained their boats and once more encountered the aboleth Ringu.

DM Comment -
Again, I rolled in their favor.

They approached the metal hatch that led to the stairs. The outside of the hatch was shaped to look like the green devil face motif found throughout the Tomb of the Nine Gods. Small bio-luminescent crabs crawled off the dock and slipped into the water at their approach. When they neared the hatch, the devil-face spoke, "“I’m so hungry I could eat you alive, but I’ll settle for somethin’ else. Somethin’ livin’. Somethin’ light!"

Bramble, still a giant ape, reached under the water and produced several glowing crabs. They fed the crabs to the door. The hatch unlocked and swung open as it devoured its crunchy meal.

The Hall of Decay

The party made its way back around to the central cog. Xoc-Wik sent a telepathic message to Vythi-Zorai to reorient the cogs to allow access to the Cog of Blood, then reorient it again to exit through the north passage.

The passage turned left, widened, and descended a flight of stairs. At the bottom of the stairs was a long hallway strewn with debris. There was a side passage halfway down the hall to the left. The hall ended at a large archway. A bull's head adorned the keystone of the arch. A brass ring hung from the bull's nose. A room strangely lit by flashing energy lay beyond. The sound of turning machinery was deafening.

"Trap?" inquired Apparently.

"Trap." confirmed Orvex. "Wait here, I'll go exshamine that archway."

Orvex advanced slowly into the room. He made it fifteen feet in when all his equipment and clothing began to simply disassemble. Orvex soon stood naked save for a magic rapier.

Apparently winced. Orvex called back, "Get a good look, why dontcha!"

Orvex continued, naked, down the hall until he was standing under the bull's head. He pulled the brass ring. There was a sound like steam escaping. "Okay, give it a try!"

Xoc-Wik tossed an arrow into the room. When it failed to disassemble, the party reluctantly moved into the hall. Orvex had disabled the trap. Bramble gave Orvex the magical scintillating cape of Unkh to wear.

The Great Mechanism

Orvex and Apparently moved into the next room. They stood on a balcony in a wide vertical shaft. The shaft rose two hundred feet up and two hundred feet down. Another balcony was extended from the opposite side but was fifteen feet higher than the balcony on which they stood. Two giant gear chains ran vertically up and down the shaft. One chain constantly ascended while the other chain constantly descended. Both chains emerged from and disappeared from swirling vortices of energy, one in the ceiling and one in the floor.

"Wait, what's that?" inquired Apparently.

There was a flash of light. From it emerged nine cube-shaped mechanical entities, like the spherical being they encountered the previous day. These cube-things possessed four gossamer mechanical wings that beat like grasshopper wings. Four auto-loading dart-firing machine guns were mounted in front of each cube. Each cube wore what appeared to be square goggles over glowing glass eyes and leather flight caps on their squared "heads". They flew in triangular formations of three.

Behind them emerged a strange starfish creature, likewise made of cogs and machinery, piloting a crystal vehicle like a ten-sided polyhedron.

The nine flying cube-things made a dive-bombing noise as they flew towards Orvex and Apparently. They opened fire on the pair as they flew past, peppering the balcony with a shower of metal darts!

Apparently counter-attacked with her bow while Orvex surreptitiously lifted Apparently's unstrung short-bow without asking. Apparently noticed and shouted an objection. Orvex  explained he was just borrowing it as he strung the bow and nocked an arrow.

Xoc-Wik ran onto the balcony and loosed a barrage of arrows at the crystal vehicle, causing it to veer into the wall and crash. The starfish-thing fell but managed to grab some pipes on the wall and halt its descent. Xoc-Wik, Apparently, and Orvex retreated from the balcony and sought cover in the hallway.

Zeynap ran out onto the balcony and pulled a ruby bead from his magic necklace. It exploded!

DM Comment -
Record scratch!!

I told Zeynap's player that all of the fireballs on the necklace just exploded. He blanched! I asked him how many beads there were. He said eight. We did some quick math. Eight fireballs at 8d6 is 64d6, or 224 points of damage on a failed save! 

Bramble, Xoc-Wik, and Apparently were dead outright. Orvex has made his save and on top of that took half damage for being a rogue. He survived. Zeynap took the damage and was dying but was remarkably not dead outright. Orvex stabilized him. 

We started talking about what to do next. Did they want to make new characters and continue for what was probably only one more week? There was some serious discussion. I even said, "I want to show you something that might help you decide. This was meant to be a surprise for next week, but I want you to see why it's important we continue and not give up."

I went upstairs and brought down my terrain piece I built for the cradle of the death god as well as my custom sculpted Atropol. They were impressed but I had ruined the surprise. We decided to continue.

We were packing up and I decided to double-check the entry for the cursed necklace to see if I missed anything else.

Oh, look at that! The cursed necklace only does 15d6 damage total! NOT 64d6! Well, that makes a HUGE difference!

Suddenly, everyone had survived! Sure, some people were dying but a quick healing spirit fixed that! 

Xoc-Wik, Zeynap, and Apparently were unconscious from the blast. Bramble summoned forth a healing spirit wolf and quickly brought them back from the brink. All of the flying mechanical creatures had been destroyed in the blast.

The Orderer
Xoc-Wik climbed around the cylindrical shaft carrying a rope and the party was eventually able to make it across to the other side.

A passageway so narrow that everyone has to turn sideways and shimmy connected the far balcony to large dome-shaped room painted to resemble the night sky. Occupying the room was a massive clockwork device - a combination orrery and armillary. A central metal sphere, roughly ten feet in diameter, was surrounded by concentric brass rings. Arms ending in smaller spheres, each five feet in diameter, radiated from the central axis.

Zeynap approached the central sphere. A mechanism automatically opened a hatch and extended metal steps. Zeynap crawled inside and found a padded seat equipped with levers and dials. As he sat in the seat the inside of the sphere became transparent, allowing him to see the room outside.

Zeynap manipulated the levers and the rings began to spin and the smaller spheres began to revolve around the central sphere.

One of the outer spheres clicked into place and opened up like a metal lotus flower. Inside was a strange green creature with horns and wings, curled up in a fetal position. The opening of the sphere allowed the creature to unfurl its arms, legs, and wings and burst forth. A flaming energy coalesced into a large double-bladed battle-axe in its hands. It flapped its wings and became invisible!

Bramble transformed into a giant ape. Despite the creature's invisibility, it could be located by the sound of its flapping wings. Bramble charged the area and smashed the invisible creature with her massive simian fists. Apparently likewise attacked the empty space with her flaming sword.

DM Comment - 
I rolled a stealth check for the nycaloth with advantage and got a 2 and a 3. The others could track him using only their passive perception. It was sad. 

The creature abandoned its visibility and attacked Apparently with its axe. It then teleported to the other side of the armillary sphere. Bramble, Apparently, and Orvex gave chase and closed around the winged monster. The monster was surrounded and outnumbered and went down swinging. As it died it melted into a puddle of acidic goo.

Zeynap, able to witness the battle through the transparent inner sphere, was unable to assist. However, once the battle was over, he was able to master the controls that governed the movements of the concentric rings and spheres. He brought them into alignment.

The sphere disappeared from the room!



Zeynap was momentarily blinded by a flash of light. When his vision returned, he saw that the armillary sphere was now sitting on a paved road surrounded by a canyon of towering structures. Strange magical conveyances blared loudly at him while people sitting within the conveyances shouted unintelligible slurs at his direction. He seemed to be blocking some kind of traffic!

A uniformed guardian brandishing a billy club began to approach. Zeynap hurriedly reversed the levers and set the spheres and rings in motion. The armillary sphere disappeared and reappeared in the dome-shaped room he had left.

DM Comment- 
As fun as it would be to transport Zeynap to another plane of existence, I didn't want to end the campaign for him or his player, so I left the plot thread open and dangling. I wanted them to one day use the sphere to return Nova Scotia Blackman to his home plane!

Zeynap tried another arrangement. Once more the rings and spheres came into alignment but in a different configuration. One of the spheres opened and thousands of gold coins poured out.

Bramble rolled her goat-like eyes. "Useless." she bleated.

Zeynap tried again. The compartment filled with poison gas. He coughed and wheezed and nearly passed out but survived. He tried once more. This time a shining prismatic jewel the size of a plum to fall from a hatch in the ceiling of the interior. It landed in Zeynap's lap. "Nice!" he said. "But I think I'm done!"

DM Comment-
Ordinarily, you're only allowed one random result from the armillary sphere. I thought the results that Zeynap got were lame so I allowed him to keep going until he got something nice. My players were wary of the sphere because they remember the same device from Out of the Abyss. I even got to use the same prop I made! Technically, the first was an orrery while the newer one is an armillary sphere. I decided to combine them and make them both the same kind of device - a machine of modron invention that allows its user to control reality. 

In Out of the Abyss, the Orderer had gone awry, thus creating the twisted labyrinth of the Maze Engine.  In Tomb of Annihilation, it had been co-opted by Acererak and Whithers to reset time within the some of the rooms within the tomb. 

NEXT WEEK - THE THRILLING FINALE! MAYBE? POSSIBLY? WE'LL SEE!!

"The Hall of the Golden Mastodon" - Tomb of Annihilation, Chapter 39

Argent opened the wardrobe. A stinking cloud of smoke and ash poured out and filled the room with the smell of rotten eggs and burning flesh. There was a moment of darkness. The smoke faded to reveal that everyone in the room had been transported to another world. They stood in a stone arena in the center of an amphitheater. There was a wide pit in the center of the arena. Above the pit hung an iron gibbet on a chain. Inside the gibbet was a young girl with long black hair - the same girl from the watery visions! The girl seemed to be afraid and crying.

Sitting in the amphitheater were multiple rows of bizarre creatures - variously horned, barbed, calciferous, gaunt, winged, and hoofed. They began to cackle and cheer at the arrival of the newcomers in the arena below.

The largest among them, a winged serpentine figure with clawed arms and legs banged his long two-pronged fork-like weapon onto the ground. The audience became silent but still buzzed with anticipation.

The sky was dark with smoke and ash and underlit by innumerable fires. The landscape was rocky and inhospitable with tall spires like stalagmites and strange unearthly formations of obsidian and basalt.

The serpentine figure sat in a place of prominence and wore red jeweled robes and a powdered wig. It stood to address the newcomers.

"Greetings, mortals! Welcome to Narak! We, the shadim of Narak, long ago entered the service of the arch-lich Acererak. In exchange, we were offered the soul of this young girl. Per our arrangement with Acererak, the girl is allowed a defense. You have been selected to act as her advocates. You will face our own champion. If you defeat our champion - we will release our claim upon the soul of the girl. If we win - her precious soul will experience an eternity of torment to feed our insatiable hunger. You may forfeit at any time and be returned to your world. Do you accept these terms or do you forfeit?"

CHAPTER 39
"THE HALL OF THE GOLDEN MASTODON"

THE EXPEDITION

• Bramble Wolf - a theran barbarian wise-man (Wildhunt Shifter Druid) searching for the legendary origin of his tribe, recently transformed into a woman by a magic fountain, slowly becoming a goat due to a curse from a bronze staff. Current bearer of the spirit of the trustworthy god Moa.
• Apparently Jones - a blue-skinned demijin caravan guide and animal trainer (Air Genasi Ranger) from Akasa, the land of sky mountains. Having failed to find work in Port Nyanzaru as an animal handler, she has joined the expedition to the interior as a scout. Current bearer of the spirit of the foolhardy god of froghemoths named Kubazan.
• Xoc-Wik - a b'alam warrior (Tabaxi Fighter) from the jungles of Bres, searching for those responsible for the destruction of his tribe.
• Zeynap Shiravadakar - a Eusebean smuggler (Human Warlock) bearing the spirit of a celestial unicorn. Current bearer of the spirit of the nimble god I'Jin.
• Argent Truth-Sayer - a golden azi knight errant of Bhamut (Dragonborn Paladin) in the service of Bhamut, sent on a holy mission to join the expedition to destroy the Soul Monger. Current bearer of the spirit of the selfish god of wealth Nangnang.

NPCs

• Orvex Ocrammas - translator and guide for hire; rescued from the Fane of the Night Serpent.
• Zorai - vyth (grey-skinned alien) explorer sent to Omu to investigate the massive seismic event that coincided with its destruction; trapped within a magic mirror soon after the destruction of Omu more than 150 years ago.

DM Note- 

Xoc-Wik's player and Zeynap's player were both absent this week, so they suffered from Brain Fever. Apparently's player, who was absent last session, was back this week. Unfortunately, Apparently was trapped in the control room with Zeynap. I had her play Vythi Zorai until they could reorient the cogs and reunite with Apparently.

Ordinarily I'd just magically swap characters - like transpose Apparently with Xoc-Wik - but I didn't want the players to depend on that or learning to abuse it.

The Wardrobe of Narak
Despite being the drowned girl from his visions, Argent displayed no hesitation, "Let's do it! Any objection?"

Bramble, influenced by the spirit of Unkh, was overcome with indecision. Orvex shrugged. Zorai shook her head.

"We accept!" declared Argent.

The serpentine judge sighed, "Very well, we have chosen our champion!"

There was a flash of flame and smoke as a large creature covered in a thick carapace appeared in the far corner of the arena. It was the color of exposed bone. Large translucent wings like those of a wasp fluttered on its back. It bore in one armored hand a massive sword. In the other was a strange weapon composed of a long hollow tube.

"Begin!"

Bramble transformed herself into a giant ape and charged the bone creature from its left flank. Argent approached the creature from its right. The creature was pinned in the corner.

Bramble wailed on the creature, cracking the bony carapace under heavy simian fists. Argent called forth the magical yklwa he named "Plate Mail" and stabbed at the creature. Zorai took aim with her plasma pistol but had difficulty connecting with her target. Orvex huddled in the opposite corner and hid.

The creature focused its attacks against Argent. The hollow tube fired poison-tipped darts at short range. The poison from the darts caused excruciating pain but Argent was able to shake off the lasting after-effects.

Argent and Bramble's coordinated attacks ultimately defeated the calciferous devil. As it fell screaming it burst into flaming tatters and cinders.

"Very well," sighed the judge, "The child's soul shall be returned to devachan to await reincarnation." With a bang of its forked spear, the child disappeared from the gibbet in a flash of pure white light, "You shall be returned from whence you came!"

He banged the forked spear again and the party found itself returned to the five-sided room of the Cog of Blood.


The Wardrobe of the Infinite Labyrinth
The fourth glass bulb over the portcullis was now illuminated green. Argent looked around at the remaining wardrobes. "Well, that was the fourth one, let's do the second one." He opened the second wardrobe decorated with a grinning hag dangling a baby over her hungry mouth.

A purple gas billowed from the wardrobe, completely filling the room and swirling like a maelstrom. When the maelstrom subsided, the party found themselves standing in a large room - a laboratory and library. Two cages hung from the ceiling in which man-sized four-armed insectoid creatures were imprisoned.

Each of the members of the expedition stood within magic circles drawn on the floor, their glow slowly fading.

Windows revealed a strange gray landscape of rolling hills covered in twisting labyrinths as far as the eye could see. The sky was a strange twisting display of glowing auroras.

A humanoid figure wearing the robes of a scholar sat at a desk writing notes in a book. A bushy fox tail emerged from his robes behind the back of his chair. He turned to look at the newcomers, holding a pair of wire-frame spectacles to his fox-like face, "Greetings," the vulpine scholar checked his notebook, "Ah, right on time."

He stood and brushed himself off, "Welcome to the Infinite Labyrinth, the domain of Amon Tor. My name is Ygga Raxy. I have made arrangements with the arch-lich Acererak. He told me that someone would arrive at this moment from some point in the future. Per our arrangement, I am to make you an offer. If you can pay my price of one thousand gold pieces worth of gems, I will  answer any and all of your questions regarding the Tomb of the Nine Gods, which has yet to be built. You can place your gems here on this table. If you are unsatisfied with my answers, we can renegotiate the terms. Do you understand?"

Argent and Bramble accepted the offer. Apparently had all the gemstones back in the control room. They scrounged their purses and satchels and pooled their resources. They were able to pay the price.

The fox-creature proceeded to answer their questions truthfully and helpfully. He told them that the Soulmonger was located a little over a hundred feet beneath the Cog of Blood and the correct cog configurations to reach it. He told them that the Soulmonger was a device and could be destroyed given sufficient destructive force. He told them that there was no way to align all the cogs to allow free passage - someone always had to stay behind in the control room. He revealed the location of the Skull Chalice of Ch'Kagare in the Hall of the Golden Mastodon and the cog configuration that allowed access to it. He also explained that once all five challenges of the Cog of Blood had been met, the portcullises would remain forever open. They would not have to repeat the challenges.

Eventually the party ran out of questions and the fox-creature concluded their business. With a wave of his arcane hand they were transported back to the Cog of Blood.

DM Note- 
I changed this up to give the players a break from fighting and a chance to roleplay. They seemed to enjoy the encounter. I was able to provide a lot of useful exposition and foreshadowing without giving away any big surprises. Plus it gave them something to spend their loot on. Had they been unable or unwilling to pay, then the arcanoloth would disappear and release the two mezzoloths from their cages.

The Wardrobe of the Great Mechanism
The second glass bulb was now illuminated green.

Argent opened the third wardrobe decorated with clockwork gears. The interior revealed a vast space of interlocking gears and spinning drive shafts. A round metal sphere with spindly arms and legs rolled out and fell onto the floor in front of Argent.

The third glass sphere over the portcullis began to glow green.

The sphere was a mechanical being with a spherical metal body. It stood up and looked around with illuminated glass eyes. Its voice was sounded artificial and monotone, "Greetings. We are searching for us. We believe we are trapped somewhere in this plane. Can we help us find us?"

"Uh, sure. Who are you?" asked Argent.

"EHHHH! Please define that word. We do not understand."

"Which word?"

Argent and Bramble did their best to communicate with the mechanical creature. They soon learned that it had no sense of personal identity. Singular pronouns or forms of identification were alien to it. Every time anyone used a word such as "you", "him", "her",  or anytime someone referred to someone by name, the little mechanical being simply blurted "EHHHH!"

DM Note- 
This was incredibly fun to role-play!

Argent and Bramble soon adapted and eventually learned that the creature was a modron - specifically a monodrone - from a place called the Great Mechanism. Acererak had captured a group of modrons and put them to work building what the modron called an "Orderer" - a modron device that altered reality. They agreed to help the modron.

The Wardrobe of Skion
"Two more," declared Argent. He opened the fifth wardrobe.

The room darkened. Everyone was overcome with a sense of dread, a feeling akin to falling down a shaft while standing on solid ground. The light returned and they were standing in a ruined mausoleum. Only part of the walls and ceiling still remained, the rest was rubble. Around them was a vast field of crypts, graveyards, mausoleums, and sepulchers. The sky was dark grey. The air reeked of death and decay. Within the ruins of the mausoleum were four desecrated sarcophagi.

From each of the sarcophagi rose six glowing spheres of ethereal light, translucent and sickly pale. The balls of light attacked! Bolts of life energy shot out from each victim like lightning. Each bolt was greedily absorbed by the spheres of energy.

Argent responded by calling upon his patron god, Bhamot. The spectral form of a serpentine dragon appeared over Argent. All but two of the spheres of light fled the mausoleum. The remaining sphere were soon destroyed by Argent's magical yklwa and Zorai's plasma pistol.

Once the last glowing sphere was eliminated, the party was returned. The fifth glass sphere was illuminated, leaving only the first.

The Wardrobe of the Scourge
Argent opened the final unopened wardrobe. The party was transported in a swirl of dust to a ramshackle cage covered by a dome made of interlocking metal parts and junk. Hanging onto the outside of the cage were a motley audience of onlookers who hooted and cheered at the arrival of the party.

There were strange orange-skinned humanoids with flat sinister faces and long pointed ears. They were dressed like scavengers in an assortment of bits of armor, found parts of clothing, and bits and bobs of salvaged equipment.

Scampering among the taller humanoids were smaller humanoids with skin that varied from green to yellow to red to violet. Taller more muscular humanoids with lumpy yellow skin pushed the others around.

An orange-skinned humanoid stood at the top of some metal stairs at the only way into or out of the domed cage. The humanoid wore a long fancy coat with large metal shoulder pads. His hair was combed into a high pompadour. He held in his hand a microphone attached to a wire.

"Greetings all you marauders, dregs, and crushers! Welcome to - the THUNDERDOME! Tonight we have a special treat! A challenge promised to us by the arch-lich Acererak himself! These worthy opponents have been transported across time and space from the far side of Antara to face one of our greatest champions. Tonight, you will be witness to the battle between these adversaries - foretold to be some of the toughest in all Antarra - and our very own main man, the terror of Ji-Go, you all know him, you all love him, WARLORD EPSILONNNNNNN!"

There were sparks and fireworks as the gate opened and in stepped a tall orange-skinned warrior wearing plate armor. A cadre of orange-skinned marauders entered with him and formed a line to the left and right of the entrance.

The crowd cheered!

The announcer continued, "You all know the rules - the team with the last man standing wins. Are you ready? BEGIN!" The announcer ducked out of the dome and closed and locked the gate.

Bramble leaped into action, calling forth a wall of spiritual flame which appeared in front of the line of marauders. They all perished in the conflagration!

Warlord Epsilon stepped through the flames and confronted Argent. The two fought. One of Epsilon's blows caught the modron and destroyed it.

Bramble quipped, "Well, he didn't last long!"

After a brief battle, Epsilon knew he had lost. He threw down his weapons and conceded the match. 

The crowd booed but the announcer confirmed the defeat. 

"Congratulations, champions! Acererak promised us worthy foes and he did not disappoint! You have defeated our best! You will now be returned to your point and time of origin! Good luck to you!" 

The party was returned to the five-sided room. All five glass bulbs were now illuminated green. The portcullises opened.

Reunion
Xoc-Wik communicated the situation to Apparently Jones through his helmet of telepathy. During their time in the Cog of Blood, the heavy door sealing Apparently and Zeynap into the control room had once again lifted. The party moved back into the center cog and Apparently reconfigured the cogs so that she and Zeynap could rejoin the party.

This time, Zeynap, Xoc-Wik, and Zorai were left in the control room. The cogs were then reconfigured so that Argent, Bramble, Apparently, and Orvex could access the Hall of the Golden Mastodon.

The Hall of the Golden Mastodon
The party moved carefully down the corridor to the Hall of the Golden Mastodon.

They found a room shaped like a quarter of a sphere. The curved wall was decorated with a massive mural. The center of the room was dominated by a massive golden statue of a mastodon clad in battle regalia - an armored howdah was affixed to its back. The statue stood on top of a round dais. A small gap beneath the dais gave Apparently the impression that the entire dais and statue rotated, but no amount of force would budge the statue.

The mural told a story in pictures. Orvex explained that the murals showed Ch'gakare, the Chultan hero who stole the king of Omu's war-mastodon Ghom. As punishment, Ch'gakare and Ghom were banished to the Ennead Hells of Narak. There they fought and defeated a series of various and fiendish shadim before returning to Chult. Upon their return, they beheaded the king of Omu and turned his skull into a jeweled chalice.

DM Note-
I had Argent's player make a Religion check vs. DC 15 to identify the devils. He failed so got no info about what was coming.

Apparently climbed on top of the war elephant and found a star-shaped indentation in the back of its head. She told the others and they wracked their brains trying to think of what might fit.

DM Note- 
Argent's player said, "Ooh, I try the scepter!"

I asked for clarification, "Which scepter?"

He sheepishly replied, "I dunno." 

It was a funny moment but we both knew what we meant. I knew he had one of Queen Napaka's scepters and I wanted to know if he tried the real one or the copy. Not that it mattered, neither of them would have worked. 

Apparently finally remembered, "The star thing! Back in the control room! The knob on the level is shaped like a star!"

The party sighed and left the hall. They somehow got a message back to the control room to reconfigure the cogs, get the star-shaped head of the lever, and return to the Hall.

DM Note- 
Xoc-Wik was in the control room, so they didn't have anyone who could send a telepathic message. So let's just assume Xoc-Wik was keeping in constant contact. Sure, why not?

Back in the hall, they all climbed atop the elephant save Orvex who waited nearby. Apparently inserted the star into its socket.

The elephant started to rotate widdershins. A large stone slab fell from the ceiling and blocked the only exit from the room. Orvex gave a start. Suddenly, the entire floor caught fire. The flames soon reached six feet in height. Orvex screamed as his flesh burned and quickly climbed aboard the elephant with the others.

The elephantine statue continued through a full rotation. On its second round, four small devils with wings, their backs and tails covered in quills, emerged from the mural. They flew above the flames and launched quills from their tails at the adventurers on the elephant's back. Apparently, Bramble, Argent, Orvex, and Apparently's spirit animal Archie did their best to fight back but Apparently and Orvex but their weapons did little to eliminate the devilish creatures.

Upon the elephant's third rotation, three more devils emerged from the paintings - humanoid warriors with long thick tentacles growing from their chins like beards. The humanoids carried long pole-arms. Two climbed onto the tusks of the elephant and attacked Apparently and Archie from a distance while the third climbed the rear of the elephant to harass Bramble.

Bramble summoned a healing wolf and everyone on the back of the elephant moved through it as the elephant continued to rotate.

At the end of the elephant's fourth rotation, only one of the spined devils had been defeated. Two thin reptilian devils emerged from the wall. These devils were covered in thick spikes. They moved to the corners of the room and hurled small magical fireballs at the heroes on the elephant.

Apparently fell but was quickly revived by the spirit wolf. This time she felt the poison of the bearded devil's tendrils.

On the elephant's fifth rotation, a large winged humanoid with a long tail and long bull horns emerged from the mural. Argent noticed that the pattern indicated four, three, two, and one. He deduced that this would be the final devil. He called forth the holy power of the god Bhamut. Several of the devils cowered in the face of the power of Argent's faith.

Unfortunately, another devil emerged from the painting. The final devil was an armored female warrior with large feathered wings and small goat horns. She emerged with a heavy sigh like a bored teenager. She looked at the horned devil cowering in the doorway, "What's, like, wrong with you?"

She looked onto the elephant, "Oh, right!" She rolled her cat eyes, "WHAT-EVER!" She loosed three large arrows from her ornately carved bow at Argent.

Apparently once more fell but was once again revived by the spirit wolf. Archie was destroyed. HIs form instantly returned to the spirit world of Aeon. Things were beginning to look grim.

Argent leaped off the elephant and crawled along the ceiling using Nangnang's magic. The armored devil stepped into the room to better observe him, "Hey! Where are YOU going?" she demanded.

Argent told the others to close their eyes. He activated the cloak of Unkh and a blinding flash of scintillating radiance filled the room. The armored devil loosed three more arrows into Argent. He cried out and fell to the fiery floor, unconscious.

Bramble quickly summoned the spirits of healing to tend to Argent. The armored devil dropped her bow and picked up her shield and sword. Argent, suffering little from the burning floor, once more caused his cape to flare into brilliance, this time stunning the armored devil. Argent then withdrew a potion he had taken from Nangnang's tomb, opened it and drank what he believed to be a Potion of Superior Healing.

Argent's eyes began to bulge, his tongue stuck out, and he reeled! It was poison! The armored devil stabbed Argent with her sword. The dragon-man fell to the floor. She stabbed him again out of spite!

Bramble sent the spirit wolf to revive Argent. Argent was barely alive. The fire burned around him. He wouldn't last much longer.

Argent's Sacrifice

The armored devil shouted, "Okay! Wait! Hold it! Hold it!" she shouted, almost annoyed, "This is so BORING! Look, I'm just going to kill you, right? You're all going to die, and for what? Look, I'll offer you a deal. I'm bound to this wall and I'm forced to kill you, right? Well, I've got a clause. If I provide a soul to my boss, I get out of this stupid-ass job. C'mon! How about it? One little soul and you all get to walk out. Well, all but one of you."

Bramble considered it, but changed her mind. But maybe she would. She couldn't decide.

Argent stood up, wreathed in flame, "ME! Take me! Let them go!"

The devil's eyes widened and she smiled, revealing pointed teeth, "Oh, for SURE! Absolutely! Okay!"

She snapped her finger.

Argent disappeared in a gout of flame and ash, leaving behind his clothing, armor, weapons, and equipment.

TO BE CONTINUED...