Dark Alliance: A Kirin's Tale

by Blackdrag-rose

Baldur's Redux: Personal Issues

Jherek was surprised and overjoyed to discover that they had recovered the Oceanic Urn, more in the sense that he heard of the spies that Randalla had found on their ship and feared that it had been stolen from them before she got them back to Baldur's Gate, but he was glad to have it in their possession.

"With this artifact in our possession we are ready to move onto the next stage of our plan." Jherek stated, which Rain knew had to deal with the Elemental Foundations that had been mentioned during the conversation that they had eavesdropped on, back in Firewind Manor, meaning they would no doubt be heading into all four of the Elemental Planes, "However, now is not the time to discuss such matters, as I need to check in with Omduil and make sure he's ready for the next stage... you are free to rest and recover your strength. I will send for you when the time is right."

As Jherek departed from the warehouse, with the container that held all four artifacts they had recovered, Ysuran told them that he had been speaking to Omduil as well, in fact he was the one that he was funneling most of his rewards into to help him out, earning him more skills and more of his memories. Rain figured that this might be the best time for them to deal with whatever problems were plaguing their friends, those who received money from her friends and granted each one new powers and skills as time went on, since they had time before Jherek summoned them. Dorn discovered that Randalla had a request for him, as a druid by the name of Allana was calling on him for assistance, while Vhaidra learned from her family member, who sat in the corner, of the whereabouts of those who murdered her family and the scrolls that would boost her power. Borador, on the other hand, learned of the existence of Gandam's Hold, apparently a special place for dwarves due to what Rain could tell, that was being guarded by a basilisk of all things, but if they could claim the Hold their clan would be able to actually pay off their debts, causing her friend to smile as he talked with his clan brother.

Allessia and Ysuran also had unique quests to undertake, the former being directed to an ancient mausoleum that rested at the foot of the Sunset Mountains, to deal with a cleric of Cyric, while the latter was told by Omduil that he had made for the Clock Tower of the Clock Woods some time ago, as he claimed Ysuran had trained under him and wrote the book that he carried.

"It seems like you guys have some exciting quests to go on." Rain remarked, which was the truth as she thought about what they had learned when each of their friends had talked to the person they had been helping so far, but even as she took a moment to think about this information she knew her friends would want to tackle their quests alone.

"What will you do while we're gone?" Allessia asked, confirming Rain's thoughts on the matter, they would be separating for a time to deal with their individual quests, which she wasn't annoyed by since she knew that each of them could handle the dangers that were currently waiting for them in their destinations.

"Probably stay at the inn and meditate for a time... help calm my mind for the next stage of Jherek's plan." Rain said, which made her wonder if he might have another mission for her to do while her friends were busy, though she highly doubted it since he would have mentioned it before they left the warehouse, "Don't worry about me, as I have faith that you guys can complete the quests that have been presented to you by your allies and connections."

Her friends stared at her for a few more moments before nodding their heads as they headed down the street that lead out of Baldur's Gate, where their horses were waiting for them, allowing Rain to see each of them off as they headed out to claim glory for themselves and their respective allies. Once they were gone, however, Rain headed back to Omduil's so she could meditate and be close by in case Jherek needed her to get something for the next stage of their plan, where she found the elderly wizard and her Harper friend discussing what to do next. There were components Omduil required so he could teleport the heroes to the four Elemental Planes, but based on what she could see neither of them needed any additional help in making sure everything was accounted for, especially since they had the Elemental Keys that would let them activate the Elemental Foundations. One thing that all three of them agreed on was that the Zhentarim would have guardians in place to keep the four key components of the Onyx Tower's revival under their control, so they could reform the tower when it was time for them to do so, and with Rain's power Jherek was sure they could figure out how to seal the structure completely.

As Rain sat down, however, she realized that her meditation would have to wait, because while she knew that Jherek had faith in her skills she had no idea why he felt that she had the power to seal the Onyx Tower, though that was when she glanced at the blade she had used to end Eldritch a lifetime ago.

"Of course, the Onyx Blade... a weapon forged in the heart of the tower itself." Rain remarked, something that caused the pair to glance at her for a moment, though she found that Jherek nodded his head, because after hearing all the tales on what happened, and getting Rain's take on the battle, he suspected that it might be the key to ending the threat of the Onyx Tower, once and for all, "If we can track down the core of the tower, that which keeps it intact despite Eldrith's final demise, I can pierce it with the sword, after combining it with my own powers, and maybe, just maybe, seal the tower so no one can use it against the Western Heartlands."

"That is our hope as well, provided we beat the Zhentarim to the tower itself." Jherek said, because while there were likely guardians protecting the Elemental Foundations, which made sense considering that they were in the hands of their foes, he suspected that Kharne or one of the higher ranking members might be lurking near where the tower last stood, likely to get inside it before anyone else did.

"And to ensure our success, I will restore your memories as well." Omduil stated, where he turned a hand towards Rain for a moment and magic danced around his palm for a few seconds, something that caused her to pause as she felt an odd feeling in her mind, likely the magic doing exactly what the wizard had told her, "Jherek told me that you were searching for a way to recover your memories, like Ysuran before you, so allow me to speed up the process... maybe whatever lies in your past will help us seal the Onyx Tower."

As Rain sat there she felt her memories, those she had hunted for so she could rediscover who she was, surged out of the darkness that they had been trapped in since her arrival in Baldur's Gate some time ago, giving her a chance to observe and relive what happened before she came to this world. She took the opportunity to meditate as Omduil returned to his preparations, allowing her to go over her memories without drawing too much attention to what she was doing, finding that she wasn't from this planet at all, much less the various Elemental Planes that Adrianna had told her about ages ago, rather it appeared that she was from a world called Equus. There she lived as the ruler of the Kirin, though it was hard to tell what her official rank had been, where she discovered that her previous race had been a four legged one, like a horse but with some of the unique features that blessed her current form. She did consider the fact that she had been a terrible leader, as her kind apparently had the power to be engulfed in flames, their 'Nirik' forms, after being angered, so to make sure no one got angry over what someone else said she had every Kirin step through a spring to silence themselves, which had been broken fairly recently according to her memories.

There was also something that lead her to being brought to this world, one of her kind had gone missing and she had, of course, gone out to find her, before something happened and she teleported to this world, with no memories and a brand new body, but the experience had been well worth it.

After a couple of days her friends returned with news of their various successes, as Allessia had slain the cleric of Cyris and stopped his foul plans, Dorn had aided the druid in preserving nature while taking out a dragon, Borador claimed the long lost Hold for his clan, Vhaidra brought news of the downfall of her targets, and Ysuran had pieced together the last bits of his memories. All five of them were far stronger than they had been the last time she saw them, in fact each one told her and their allies of their quests, where Rain smiled as each one recounted their private adventures, utilizing their talents to get the job done, as it was nice to hear that they were successful. Jherek was also pleased to hear of their progress, due to the fact that taking out dragons and stopping dark clerics from raising armies of the undead were things that the Harpers did, or at least would hire capable adventurers to do, so some of their deeds actually freed up some of his organization's resources. At the same time Omduil was also glad to hear this, as it meant that nothing would stop them from heading into the Elemental Planes and claiming the Elemental Foundations that were linked to the Onyx Tower, though while he got ready Rain told them that she'd share her discoveries with them later, once this quest was done.

She knew that once everyone was rested and ready to go they would delve into four dangerous realms and clash with the residents of each place, causing her to wonder just what sort of guardians the Zhentarim had enlisted to defend the four Foundations as she looked forward to what the future held in store for them.

Comments

[Night_Moon60606]

ok, two guys took down a Dragon? yeah, i call BS...unless the thing was barely out of its shell, even the weakest True Dragon is more than a match for two guys swinging shiny sticks...

[Blackdrag-rose]

11582654 As memory serves the dragon for Dorn's quest is an arrogant one, a green one at that, and the druid doesn't actually help him complete his quest, so Dorn did it all on his own.

[Night_Moon60606]

11582672
but that just raises even more questions! Greens are FAR from the weakest of the Chromatics, and given that i have to assume that its size class is at least Large if not more, that would make its AC 18, 136 HP, three attacks per turn with Multiattack and assuming hes attacking it in its lair which would be in its natural environment where it can take advantage of its Amphibious nature...even with arrogance factored in, Greens are natural schemers, they almost never fight fair if they can help it, nasty tricks and misdirection are their bread and butter...i dont care how good a single guy is, fighting a Dragon is a Party effort, it has to be...

now, the Stats i quoted are from a Young Green, Adult and older Greens are much bigger and much more powerful...and sneakier!

[Blackdrag-rose]

11582680 I don't know the age of the dragon, so I can't say anything about that, but Dorn was called in specifically to kill it and he did... so I'm going to guess it might have been a somewhat young dragon.

[Night_Moon60606]

11582688
how big is it? as big as the character, slightly bigger or a lot bigger?

[Blackdrag-rose]

11582707 I believe the green dragon in question was the same size as the white dragon from the second act of the first game... though the only difference between them is that the white one couldn't talk and the green one can.

[Night_Moon60606]

11582742
how big compared to the PCs? most Humanoids are Medium sized, with a few Races like Gnomes and Halflings being Small sized. your basic Minotaur is Large size, most Giants are Huge or even bigger. that being said, if this Green is at least the Size of that White, then its at least Huge, thats an Adult Green, AC 19 with 207 HP, Frightful Presence on top of Multiattack, Legendary Resistances AND Legendary Actions? Adult Green Dragons are CR 15 Monsters for a reason.

[Blackdrag-rose]

11582765 Looking at a video fight of the white dragon and the green dragon they do look to be the same size... while a human character, like Dorn, comes up to the base of their neck, as far as I can tell.

[Night_Moon60606]

11582779
ok, so...best case scenario...they are both Large siz...that would make them both Young Dragons. still not something anyone is going to Solo...

[Blackdrag-rose]

11582932 Well, that is very interesting to know... however, it doesn't change the fact that Dorn can, and did, kill the dragon.

[Night_Moon60606]

11582948
then he must have been using a rigged D20 to get Nat 20 Crits all the damn time...