Astvanor Session 175 (11/21)

[cinaed]

Session 175: Day 28 of Saedan (11/21)

Elathias has his hands behind his back. Now he strains his shoulders and tells them that if they just lay down their weapons it would be a lot easier, but he guesses it just has to be this way. He never likes being forced into corners.

Hava hears in the back of her mind a very small noise like a gasp that doesn’t sound like something knows how to gasp, as Evie says for her to watch out.

Galowen watches as reality ripples and twists in front of him before a tear shreds itself open and a spectral blade lashes out at them. Hava, warned by Evie, raises up her hand and summons water that turns to ice to block the first attack from Galowen. The second attack strikes Galowen.

Elathias prickles with a sharp disdain as he notices Hava’s movement and tells her that she shouldn’t get involved when it has nothing to do with her. He points and sends four Eldritch blasts towards her. Galowen’s paladin aura eases some of the blow, but she feels the force of it sink into her bones and she can’t move.

Elathias then retreats to behind some of his constructs as Az surveys the battlefield and casts Shatter in his direction. The spell damages three of the ballistas, a construct, one of the spider creatures, and Elathias, though Elathias resists the spell and goes invisible.

One of the ballistas moves forward and sends a volley of three bolts towards the group. The first one hits Glyn, the second Galowen, and the third at Adraetha. Glyn disappears and Galowen dodges.

Adraetha, who has been struck by the horror of Elathias’ attacks, now holds up a hand that grows vines with sharp thorns to attack Elathias’ army. Then Hava sees a splash of blood as a bolt imbeds into her chest and drops Adraetha unconscious to the ground.

Invisible, Elathias shouts out in horror and says she wasn’t supposed to attack anything.

The next ballista goes, striking Hava and then Diana with another volley. The third ballista hits Diana and Hava again, clearly aiming for the closest people.

Diana, pierced with multiple bolts, flies carefully over the battlefield to get over to the other side where the other ballistas that Az didn’t damage are situated. She can see the metal the ballistas are made of, that ripples like flowing water, and then she realizes this is also soul steel, faces of souls pressing against the surface like they are trying to claw their way free of their prisons. Each one of these are teeming with trapped souls. A fair portion look like they are from places Elathias has attacked previously, but she also recognizes Kiva’s assistant who was murdered at the Dawnscale Trading Company.

She sees people in clothing from every country and continent. There are thousands of victims encased in this steel.

Diana breathes out two draconic breaths, spraying acid over the nearest three ballistas, a construct golem, and one of the spider constructs, and then another breath that strikes most of the enemies.

One of the ballistas explodes, though the explosion doesn’t damage the other constructs around it as Adrin rushes over to one of the ballistas and bites it, fiery teeth carving into the wood.

Hava looks at her mother’s bracelet and uses it to cast Spare the Dying on Adraetha. As she does, she looks in the direction Elathias last was, reminding him that he did this to her and that he can’t help Adraetha.

Then she casts Dawn, summoning sunlight in a cylinder in the middle of Elathias’ construct army. The radiant light spills across them, damaging them. As she does, two of the ballistas go down and Diana is injured by the explosion.

Galowen examines the constructs, weighing his options before he casts Ice Storm in the area where Elathias was last. He moves away from the spectral sword and then draws on the power of his sword, activating the cold damage as ice crawls over the metal.

Audacity bolts over to the closest ballista and then readies himself for when Elathias reappears.

The spider constructs attack next, one attacking Diana and the other attacking Galowen, Yolov, and Hava with a fiery breath before the golem lumbers closer and attacks Hava and Galowen, missing Galowen but hitting Hava.

As soon as Elathias reappears, Audacity’s fist ices over and Elathias grimaces and resists whatever magic Audacity just cast, before Elathias sends Eldritch Blast towards Hava and Galowen.

Yolov moves Es across the battlefield and casts Lightning Bolt through a ballista, destroying it, and striking Elathias.

He looks between Adraetha and Elathias and tells Elathias, “You said you don’t want to hurt anyone. I wonder if you believe your own lies, because everything we have learned over the last few months about you proves that false. Anyone who has refused you, who were more useful to you dead, whose pain would have caused your enemies suffering, you have killed or harmed. The druidic grove in Previdian, the people imprisoned and tortured by Endurance, the Dawnscale Trading Company, all the souls trapped in your constructs, Alu’dar. Adraetha is the one who spoke the truth tonight. If everyone’s life is a story, you have written yours in blood as a cautionary tale. I will be glad to help Galowen and Hava with your final chapter.”

Elathias hisses that he has never wanted to hurt anyone, it’s not his fault that people don’t understand what needs to be done. Do they think he has done any of this with joy in his heart? As Audacity tells him to shut up, Diana gets struck down by one of the stone golems.

Elathias glances askance at Audacity and tells him that they’re not worth bothering with. Soon he will help carve out a new pantheon. When Audacity tells him no one wants him as a god, and Elathias starts to speak of the one he’s been the right hand man for years, Audacity tells him to shut up again.

Elathias says that he’s tired of Audacity and casts Power Word Stun on him and hits him with the Blade of Disaster as Az quickly re-evaluates and Dimension Doors over to Diana, whisking her away to Hava’s side.

As Elathias disappears again, one of the ballistas aims at Audacity and strikes him.

Hava heals Diana and then backs up further from the golem as she draws on her Twilight Sanctuary and spreads healing to her friends as Galowen strikes up at the golem lowering over the group.

Audacity manages to shake off the stun and tells the group that Elathias was right next to him but is gone now.

The first spider construct attacks Audacity, hitting him once, as the construct golem lumbers forward and swings down at one of Yolov’s Mirror Images, shattering it, and then hits Galowen.

Yolov looks around and says flatly that Elathias spoke of being the right hand man to someone. Are they expected to believe he will stay loyal when he already betrayed his pact to the Archfey?

Elathias appears, furious and seething that Yolov knows nothing and doesn’t understand that he’s finally found someone worthy of being served by him, before Yolov casts Psychic Lance. Elathias attempts to Counterspell and Yolov Counterspells it as Elathias fights through being incapacitated.

The ballista fires at Audacity, who catches the bolt and then throws it back at the ballista before he gets struck again.

Elathias casts Synaptic Static on everyone, affecting Az and Diana with the full effects and Galowen’s aura warding off some of the damage.

The Blade of Disaster hits Audacity, dropping him unconscious and then striking him again as he lies there bleeding.

As the group watches Audacity fall, Elathias disappears once again.