Prologue - Part 1
Kaedyn dreamed. The door to a dark chamber opened. A Mind Flayer glided within. There were several pods. He couldn't really see within the glass. A pedestal stood in the center of the circular room. It looked almost like an unopened flower made out of the shell of some crustacean.
The Mind Flayer came to the pedestal and waved his long-nailed hand over it. The flower opened. Within, a glowing pool bathed light all around the chamber. Tiny tadpoles swam around within. There was something about those little creatures. Kaedyn found that he both loved them and feared them at the same time. He wracked his brain, but nothing came to mind as to why they would produce such anxiety in him. He could just somehow sense that their intent and purpose was not good; for him.
The Mind Flayer dipped his hand into the pool and pulled out one of the wigglers. Then he turned towards a pod not too far from the Half-Drow. Slowly, the dream faded in and out. He was partly in his own body and partly watching the scene as if hovering freely in the chamber. The Mind Flayer floated over to the pod. There was a Githyanki woman inside. She was conscious and struggling to escape.
The Mind Flayer casually stretched out his hand and she froze. It was obvious that his psionic powers were holding her fast. She stared at him in barely controlled terror. He seemed almost as if he didn't notice her. Without hesitation, he placed the tadpole on her cheek. It crawled up, and much to Kaedyn's horror, it dove under her eyelid and vanished. The Gith growled in pain and fell unconscious. Then the Mind Flayer closed her pod with a wave of his hand.
Then he turned towards Kaedyn, sensing that he was awake. Kaedyn's pulse quickened. He started to breathe more rapidly. He couldn't think. He was too dazed and confused. He tried to struggle as fear clutched at his windpipe; its icicle, skeletal hands threatening to choke the life out of him. The Mind Flayer glided to the pool and snatched up another tadpole. Then, without pausing, he came over to Kaedyn and held the creature right in front of his eye. The last thing he remembered at that time was the tadpole jerking its "face" up in front of his vision. It bared its teeth and tendrils just before plunging into his eye.
"Who are you?" a strange feminine voice asked.
In a flash, Kaedyn's entire self flashed before his eyes. He was a 1.8 meter tall Half-Drow Cleric of Tyr. He was kind-hearted, and he always enjoyed a good laugh. He loved to help others, but unfortunately his lineage got in the way a lot. Sometimes, he got too carried away with helping people, and he often trusted others a bit too much.
He had dusty blonde hair and purple eyes. On his left cheek he had a dragon tattoo that was a soft blue. It almost glowed when the lighting hit it just right. His pointy ears barely stuck out past his straight locks, and he probably could have hidden his heritage if not for the fact that his skin was as dark as night.
As a Cleric, Kaedyn focused on the Life Domain. He knew Guidance, Sacred Flame, Sparing the Dying, Bless, Cure Wounds, Guiding Bolt, Healing Word and Shield of Faith. He carried on his person a mace, shield and light crossbow. He wore chain mail and had in his pack a Prayer Book, Stick of Incense and Vestment. Under his armor he wore his normal street clothes and a Holy Symbol amulet of Tyr. He was knowledgeable in history, religion and medicine and was good at persuading, at investigating and was rather insightful at times.
"Who do you dream of at night?" the voice asked again. He was taken aback.
Instantly, the image of a human female came to his mind. She had long, black, wavy hair and crystal blue eyes. She was unbelievably beautiful; the most amazing being he'd ever seen. Her expression was warm and friendly. She was like a goddess of love and grace and elegance. He found himself instantly enamoured by her as her eyes met his. He barely remembered the gown she was wearing. It was something soft and silky, and she had golden bracelets and earrings and other jewelry. He didn't even really care what. All he could see was her.
Vexir was also in the chamber. Shortly after the Mind Flayer had placed the tadpole in Kaedyn's eye, he turned towards her. She was next. She had the same experience as those before her. Suddenly, her life flashed before her eyes as the voice spoke, "Who are you?"
She was 1.7 meters tall. She was a Drow Fighter, a Soldier of Lloth. She was strong and a no-nonsense kind of woman. She hated displays of weakness, and she hated failure; both her own and that of others. She was trying desperately to live up to her mother's expectations. Her mother was a Matron, and her father was a top ranking captain.
But deep down inside, though she put on a hard exterior, Vexir had a very sizeable flaw. She was just a bit soft-hearted. She didn't always approve of the overall lifestyle her people lived. She didn't like the idea of having a mate here or there to suit her whims. She didn't like fighting to prove herself over and over again. Though she was good at torturing people, she didn't enjoy it. She did these things because she wanted to drive that weak part of herself out. Nevertheless, she couldn't. It always remained no matter what she did to kill it.
As for her appearance, she had long, white, straight hair parted diagonally to the left and pulled back into a low ponytail. The end of the ponytail flared outward, almost as if it was a puff ball. A single strand hung loose near each ear as if framing her face. She had a hard expression more often than not with red eyes that were piercing and blazing like a fire.
She wore chain mail armor and carried a greataxe, usually on her back, with a longsword at her left hip. At her right hip was a quiver of bolts, and she wore a light crossbow on her back next to her greataxe's sheath. In her pack was a broken blade from an orc chieftain she'd killed some years back and a set of bone dice. She was intimidating, athletic and acrobatic, perceptive and skilled at survival.
Then she was asked, "Who do you dream of at night?" She was surprised by the question. She typically did not dream of anyone in particular. Romance was not something she generally thought about. A Drow male, strong and powerful looking, appeared before her. He was quite handsome with intelligent, red eyes. His white hair seemed to flow behind him as if carried on the wind. He sent chills through her. She immediately had desires coursing through her. She wanted him to dominate her. She wanted him to be stronger than her. No. That wasn't quite right. She wanted to wrestle with him for dominance. She wanted to compete to see who could rule over the other.
She was immensely intrigued. Who was he? Was he real? What was he like? Why was this happening? What did this mean?
Then it was Ryth-Shan's turn. As the Mind Flayer came within range of his pod, the Gith took the opportunity to spit in his face. The Mind Flayer was not at all pleased. Viciously, he slammed Ryth-Shan's head against the wall of the pod and then held him fast as the tadpole crawled up into his brain.
"Who are you?"
He was a two meter tall, one hundred kilogram Githyanki who was quite atypical. He did not serve Vlaakith. He honored Silvanus instead. He was a sarcastic smart-butt who loved animals and nature. He played the lute, was skilled at thieves tools, spoke Common, Gith, Ghaik and, of all things, Drow - for he had met a Drow druid once upon a time during his wanderings and he had taught Ryth-Shan the language - he was skilled with animal handling and survival, was perceptive and stealthy, and he was quite athletic. He wore a suite of scale mail armor, wielded two short swords, one on each hip, and his favored weapon was his longbow. He often carried a walking stick, though that was gone now after the abduction, and in his pack he had a hunting trap and a fine set of deer antlers from a buck he'd killed just a few months ago.
"Who do you dream of at night?" filled his head next. Stubbornly, Ryth-Shan fought against this. Whatever was happening, he didn't want any part of it. He tried to imagine something truly hideous. What was the worst thing he could think of? And so, at first, a Ghaik appeared before him. They were, in his mind, the worst beings imaginable. They were his favored enemies. He imagined it as if it was a female version of the species with ridiculously large breasts and wide hips. It was a repulsive sight to be sure. It wound up looking like a mix between a female ogre and a bloated Mind Flayer.
But then, something seemed to recognize that he was resisting. It pushed past his stubbornness and delved deep into his psyche. The nasty Ogre-Ghaik image vanished, and a gorgeous Githyanki female replaced it. She had black hair and bright black eyes. Her skin was rough and leathery and stunningly yellow. Her ears were like his, pointed and serrated in the back side. Indeed, she was everything that he longed for. She was everything that he wanted.
The dreams then shifted for all three. They were experiencing what their captors were experiencing. The head Mind Flayer who had just infected them floated out of the chamber. Then he was controlling the nautiloid as it dropped into yet another realm of existence. It descended over a highly populated city. There was a guard in a watch tower who quickly ran to sound the alarm. People in the streets were running everywhere to try to escape. A tentacle from the ship descended upon the watchtower and utterly crumbled it to ruin.
Then the tentacles were unleashed upon the citizens. Over and over again, people were snatched up and teleported into pods aboard the vessel. Dozens and dozens disappeared in black clouds of smoke as the tentacles touched them.
Then portals tore into the fabric of reality, and red dragons appeared in the skies. Riding on their backs were Githyanki warriors, Kith'raks, Vlaakith's elite knights. They swarmed the nautiloid and violently tore into it. The Mind Flayer Captain at the helm counter-attacked. One of the Kith'rak males was knocked free from his mount. He glided through the sky towards a swiftly approaching river. At the last second, his mount caught him and carried him back towards the battle.
Then one dragon landed atop the ship and breached the hull. A moment later, he breathed fire within. As a result, the ship lurched. The Mind Flayer Captain connected two of the "cables" for the transponder and plucked them like the string of an instrument. The nautiloid then escaped by porting to another realm. There were many ridges and canyons riddled with snow.
The dragons and Githyanki followed. They were Hells-bent on taking this ship down. Nothing would stop them until it was gone. As the ship bounced off of canyon walls, sending chunks of rock and debris everywhere, a gaping hole was torn into the portside aft underbelly. Then one of the dragons landed and stuck his head into the very chamber that Kaedyn, Vexir, Ryth-Shan and the Githyanki female were. He breathed fire right onto the glowing pool of tadpoles.
At the same time, Kaedyn, Vexir and Ryth-Shan saw that the Githyanki female was awake and struggling to get free. As she saw the red dragon breathe upon the pool, the flames belched throughout the room. The Mind Flayer Captain fought to escape the attack. He plucked the string again on the transponder just as the red dragon attacker leaped into the air. The nautiloid was gone from that place, and the blazing landscape of Avernus became the reality that they were catapulted into.
All around, a war was being fought between devils. The heat was unimaginable. The Githyanki female was freed from her pod. The damage the dragon's flames had done must have been enough for her to escape. She fell and looked up at Kaedyn as if somehow feeling a connection with him. Then she pushed this aside and staggered to the gaping hole in the ship's portside. As she stared out at the scene, fear consumed her. Imps and demons had noticed the invading vessel, and they were joining the dragons in the chaotic assault.
Then all went black. The pods released them. Kaedyn, Vexir and Ryth-Shan felt themselves tumble out of their prisons. They hit the floor hard. Someone or some-THING had given the command for the pods to let them go. They were needed, but by whom? It didn't matter. Consciousness began to return. They picked themselves up from the floor and began to look around.
"Oh my head!" Kaedyn replied as he shook himself. "Where am I?" All around, the chamber was ablaze with the remnants of dragon fire. Before he could really take in his surroundings, the pool of tadpoles exploded, and the light died instantly. Nasty fluid sprayed over the floor at his feet.
It was then that the three noticed one another. They were the only three left standing in the chamber. Nearby, a mind flayer lay dead on the floor, closer to Ryth-Shan's broken pod. A thrall of some kind was horribly burned to death on an upper platform. Other pods in the chamber were not open and were sparking with magical energy. Those who had been inside were blackened and charred. They must have died from the blast.
Kaedyn looked over at Vexir who was standing in front of her pod just to his right. She looked over at him at the same time. He was about to say something, but she took command of the situation. "Well. Don't just stand there. Search the room," she commanded. "See if you can find anything useful." Then she made eye contact with Ryth-Shan. "And you. Search the mind flayer near you and that upper platform. We obviously need to work together if we have any hope of surviving."
Kaedyn's eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he decided that arguing would not help the situation. Let her be the one to take charge. Someone needed to. As long as she didn't order him to do something stupid or something he didn't agree with, why fight it?
Ryth-Shan was of the same mind. His right eyebrow raised as if he was merely amused by her. He thought of a retort but decided against it. She might just get mad and attack him. He wasn't sure. He had only known one Drow before in his life, and he had been a good friend. However, because of this friend, Ryth-Shan understood that Drow were generally not nice people.
With the three of them working together, they quickly searched the room. Collectively, they found six health potions, six revivify scrolls, a potion of speed, and approximately thirty gold pieces. Their packs had been jammed into their pods with them, so they had all of their own personal belongings as well. Once the search was through, they gathered near the room's only available exit.
"Well," said Ryth-Shan with a smug grin, "shall we at least exchange names, or would you like me to just call you Drow 1 and Drow 2?"
Kaedyn chuckled. "I'm Kaedyn, Cleric of Tyr. Pleasure to..."
"Vexir." She cut him off sharply. "Now let's get moving."
"I'm Ryth-Shan, if you care to know," he said, but she was already making her way through the strange, membranous door.
"Fine," said Vexir over her shoulder. She had her greataxe out and was already into the next chamber.
Ryth-Shan and Kaedyn exchanged glances with one another. "Should be interesting, if nothing else," the Githyanki said.
Kaedyn chuckled again. "She's right, though. We definitely need to work together if we hope to survive." And then, he ran to catch up.
Ryth-Shan sighed as he watched him disappear into the next chamber. "Well. At least I might get a chance to kill some Ghaik." Then, without further hesitation, he joined them in the larger chamber beyond.
