The paladin looked closely at the newcomer who had suddenly materialized. There was something familiar about him.
At once he recognized the man. It was the druid he had rescued at the Battle of the Glade: Indigo!
What was he doing here? And how did he get here?!
The great wyrm didn’t leave Edward much time for speculation. Passing about sixty feet above him, the dragon breathed, catching Edward in a cone of brutal cold that inflicted heavy damage on the paladin. The dragon then flew off toward the air elemental monolith, shrugging off the opportunistic damage Edward inflicted on him.
"Indigo! Teleport us to that dragon, quickly!" Edward called out to the flying druid.
Meanwhile, Ardaric, wounded in passing by the cold of the great wyrm, flew toward the city, then teleported to the top of the gate tower. Fulk, also injured by the passing dragon, cast greater dispel magic on the dragon, but to no effect.
Below, on the battlefield, of the four surviving crew of the battering ram, one was still insane and babbling. The other three sensibly fled the battle.
Complying with the paladin’s request, Indigo teleported with Edward next to the great wyrm, then cast quickened snake’s swiftness on the paladin. Immediately, Edward struck the dragon for heavy damage! But Haxiasssskaash was no mere wyrmling. He instantly soared upward 200 feet, then focused on Edward and dispelled all the spells on him! The dragon then continued flying upward another 150 feet.
Firiona flew at high speed toward the dragon, intending to blast it from the skky. But the horror of the dragon was too much for her as she approached. She was shaken! Still, she remained composed enough to cast maximized darkbolt at the great wyrm, inflicting serious damage. Green Arrow did considerably less damage with the one arrow that managed to strike its target.
Seeing a need for his assistance, Fulk cast protection from energy (cold) on himself, then flew at speed toward the dragon.
Indigo pulled out a scroll with the cloud walkers spell. Reading the scroll, the flying druid moved up sixty feet with Edward, who held his action long enough to ask a few questions. "Unexpected help is the best kind!" cried Edward. "But how did you know to come here? How did you even know where here is?"
"I had a dream," replied Indigo. "Or a vision, more likely. It came to me seven days ago. I knew I must find this place, and quickly, for you would be in dire need."
"Thanks to Hieroneous that you did!" exclaimed Edward. "This is getting rough."
Indeed it was. The great wyrm had flown sixty feet above Firiona, then cast breath weapon substitution (sonic) on himself! With his augmented breath weapon, Haxiasssskaash targeted Firiona, and did severe damage to her. Wisely, Firiona retreated toward Lina, away from the dragon. Fulk, however, rushed directly toward the dragon!
Before the city walls, the defenders were shocked to witness the air elemental monolith suddenly disappear. Banished! By some unknown or unseen force!
Lina raced through the air toward the mobs of orc fighters climbing the city walls and knocked down one of the ladders, sending the orcs tumbling to the ground. Gordian remained buried, unable to assist. The three surviving soldier troops readied their attacks against the oncoming undead orcs, as did the veteran fighters and the captain. The fierce orc veterans finally reached the top of the city walls. All the other mobs of orc fighters kept up the escalade. Three more reached the top of the walls. Their marshall’s watchful eye warned them to be wary of impending attacks!
With an explosion of dirt, snow and rocs, the frost worm suddenly burst up from underground and fell upon the defending troops before city walls! The veteran fighters and their captain were crushed, pinned beneath the vast bulk of the worm. Many were killed.
And then, from some invisible or unknown source, the middle wall of fire blocking the enemy’s way to the city flickered and went out. Dispelled!
Gordomar and Eberulf sped along the top of city walls toward the western corner, to get closer to the frost worm. But Willichar pointed a finger at the white monster and spoke words of power. Immediately, the gargantuan beast rose up off the troops trapped beneath it and rose into the air, as Willichar’s reverse gravity took effect!
Orc reinforcements joined the mobs of orc fighters battling archer band 5. Three more defenders fell. As they battled, the remaining orc fighters crowded in, killing three more archers. Two orcs fell to the archers’ counterattack.
The defending archers looked east along the wall, behind the mobs of orc fighters, and were dismayed. The orc veteran fighters had reached the top of wall, together with their marshall.
From the tower gate, Ardaric observed the fighting on the city walls. He quaffed another potion of cure serious wounds and recovered to full strength and fighting form. Godomar raced back toward the tower gate, while Eberulf sped toward archer band 4 to aid their defense. Willichar blasted an orc fighter mob with a cone of cold, killing three and wounding another.
From the east end of the wall, archer bands 7 and 8 launched hails of arrows at Audovald, even as he took full defensive measures to evade the barrage. They weren’t enough. The undead wizard fell, pierced with many shafts.
Back toward the gate tower, mobs of orc fighters continued battling archer band 5. Two more archers fell. But then came the voice of the city’s heroic defender. "Stand fast, men of Chalons!" Ardaric cried. "They shall not prevail!" The venerable fighter quaffed another potion of cure serious wounds and headed down the tower toward the city walls.
On the field below the city walls, soldier troops 1 and 3 repositioned to a full defensive stance against the frost worm. Troop 2 likewise took a defensive position. The veteran fighters and the captain who had survived the frost worm’s onslaught, no longer crushed by the bulk of the monster, got back on their feet and reformed.
The undead orcs advanced relentlessly. Lina killed three of the undead orcs, but the survivors, both of them (!), climbed up a ladder toward the top of the city walls.
Off in the distance, the stone giant and his mammoth mount kept up the charge toward the city, accompanied by the ettin and the sirrush, which seemed to be regaining health even as it ran. The flying wedge of stone giant fighters continued to lead in the van. The were now within 300 feet of the city!
The sole survivor of the battering ram crew remaining on the field continued to babble, still insane.
Back on the north walls, Elana and Arimir continued battling the giants. The battalions of stone giant fighters kept on climbing, more and more reaching the top of the walls. The two dominated giants put up a strong defense, as did the earth and air elemental monoliths, but the assault of the invaders was relentless.
The sight at the south walls was astonishing: a writhing, squirming, forty-foot blue-white hulk, suspended vertically in mid-air, holding on to the wall by its huge mandibles.
Even more incredibly, the gargantuan beast began to hiss . . . magical syllables! It had attempted to dispel the spell holding it in mid-air! It was unable to do so, perhaps due to its vertical orientation. It wasn’t the only attempt to fail. Godomar’s attempt to cast ray of entropy at the beast was also unsuccessful. And Ardaric rushed up to the worm and hurled his hammer at the creature, but he too missed.
The captain, with his veterans and all surviving soldier troops, fell back toward the city. The archer bands continued their struggle against the orc mobs who had now breached the city’s defenses and began to flood into the city. Eberulf and Godomar stood together, preparing defensive spells. Willichar, farther down on the other side of the walls, made similar preparations. The ballistae maintained defensive fire. Lina took flight toward Firiona’s position.
Suddenly, the huge suspended bulk of the frost worm tipped over from vertical, breached the city walls, and crashed downward into the city. It had dispelled the reverse gravity cast upon it! The blue-white monster immediately burrowed under the main street of the city!
Within the city, all surviving defenders from the south wall, captain and fighter, archer and caster, battled the mobs of orcs who were now flooding down into the city, destroying buildings, burning fortifications, slaughtering everything and everyone they could reach.
Ardaric could observe both the fighting inside Chalons and the approaching formations of stone giant fighters and their allies. He recognized the one riding the mammoth. It could be no other.
Undurr Stoneskin. Half-earth elemental. Elder stone giant. Earth elemental savant. Mighty sorcerer. King of the stone giants of the northern Griffs and beyond.
Ardaric quaffed a potion of heroism, readying himself for what could be his final battle. Fortified, he flew down before the city and headed for the main battlefield.
Meanwhile, Gordian finally emerged from under the snow pile that had entrapped him. He held his position, trying to clear his head. He looked up.
Above the battlefield, Indigo cast assay spell resistance at the mighty white dragon, trying to determine if his spells could affect the monster. Having an idea of what he faced, he followed up immediately with an empowered flamestrike. He was shocked to observe that his spell did no damage!
"Must have some other defense, I guess," thought Indigo to himself.
The dragon lord flew still higher over the battlefield, then spoke the mystical syllables of the mind blank spell. Firiona, seeing the monster pull away, sped after the dragon. Green Arrow tried to bring down the dragon with an epic arrow of death, but missed! He held afterwards, reassessing his strategy. Fulk’s pursuit was equally fruitless, as his flamestrike too failed to damage the flying monster.
Pursuing the monster as well, Indigo flew up to 300 feet above the battlefield, ready to take on the great wyrm. But he wasn’t prepared for the ferocity of the monster’s assault. Haxiasssskaash charged toward Indigo and bit the flying druid for serious damage!
Seeing that fire seemed not to affect the great wyrm, Firiona blasted the dragon with an acid storm, inflicting minor damage. Green Arrow sent another arrow of death at the dragon. It struck! But it only damaged the creature rather than bringing it down.
Fulk felt a small clawed hand quickly touch his shoulder. Instantly, the cleric bent over double, in writhing ruin! He plummeted to the battlefield below, clutching his stomach and screaming in agony. At almost the same time, Green Arrow, still some distance away from the falling cleric, felt himself under magical assault. Something was attempting to drain him of life energy! But whoever or whatever was attacking him had failed to reckon with his scarab of protection! The powerful talisman absorbed the attack against the elven archer.
Lina reached Firiona’s position, and immediately cast feeblemind at the dragon, unaware of its magical protection. The spell failed to affect the great wyrm.
Now, astonishingly, Indigo assumed the form of a bizarre, eyeless, grinning creature–a gloom! The flying gloom assaulted the great wyrm from behind. The dragon bellowed as Indigo’s sword struck a vital organ! But Haxiasssskaash was not so easily undone. The mighty wyrm struck back with tooth, claw and wing. Indigo was severely wounded.
But while the dragon was focused on Indigo, Firiona, flying at high speed, recited the words of a powerful spell. Suddenly, the great wyrm disappeared into a shimmering force structure. "Got you!" Firiona exclaimed. Green Arrow flew up next to Firiona, bow drawn.
"What just happened?" the elven archer asked Firiona.
"I sent him into a maze!" Firiona answered, pleased with herself. "He may break out at any moment, so keep your bow drawn!"
Lina applauded Firiona’s success against the dragon. But then she felt something touching her, unseen and unheard. She felt her vitality draining away. A spectral touch!
And even more disturbingly, on the battlefield below, yet another horde of corpses seemed to rise again as animated undead, with no source visible to the adventurers!
Lina responded by shapechanging into a ghaele eladrin, then used its power to become a ball of light. She flew off fifty feet and regrouped, watching the battlefield.
Down on the battlefield, the surviving battering ram crew giant still babbled insanely.
But now, Undurr and his mammoth, still rushing toward the city, reached the abandoned catapults, with the ettin and the sirrush beside him. The flying wedge vanguard was now within 70 feet of the city walls. They all kept advancing at a furious pace.
The vanguard of stone giant fighters advanced thirty feet more. There they halted, then all of them reached into bags they carried. They drew out huge rocks, and hurled them over the city walls! Powerful earthquakes struck the city, heavily damaging multiple structures within!
On the north walls of the city, the battle had come to a successful conclusion, as Elana, Arimir and their summoned allies had defeated and slain, or driven off, the stone giants attempting to breach the city’s defenses. Realizing that the other adventurers would soon need his help, Arimir first polymorphed the earth elemental into its air elemental analog, and commanded it to fly him back to the main battle. Once there, Arimir dimension door’d onto the south wall in front of the city gate, and with the elemental, prepared for battle.
Elana followed, then dimension door’d to Indigo, preparing to heal his wounds. She could hear the rampaging enemy forces from inside the city, and the desperate cries of the defenders. Was there no way to stop the devastation?
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