Assassin Ambush

Nat’s ears were still ringing from the screaming crossbow bolts that had just flown past Erin. He saw an arrow strike a nearby tree, the shaft quivering. A pit had suddenly opened up right beside him, swallowing their fire and plunging everything into darkness. They seemed to be surrounded by enemies, but he couldn’t see anyone. It seemed to be a well-planned and coordinated ambush, which meant the bad guys thought they had them right where they wanted them. Time to change that. Dancing along the crumbling edges of the pit, he grabbed Erin and Wren each by one arm. “Heading about a hundred feet north-northwest!” he yelled out in Elvish (praying their enemies wouldn’t understand him) then cast Dimension Door.

They reappeared just off the road, well away from the fighting. None of them could see a thing in the dim starlight, so Wren decided to change that, too. She dashed down the road, back towards their campsite, fishing in her pocket for a rock she kept with Continual Flame cast on it, then threw the rock as far down the road as she could. As it rolled to a stop, one of their attackers was illuminated; she held a wicked-looking composite longbow and wore the red armor and mask of the Red Mantis Assassins. Tomas, who’d just started scrambling away from the pit, saw the light come flashing into view, and as soon as he spotted a target, he feathered her with an arrow.

Shadow had understood Nat’s message, and thought the wizard had the right idea. He skirted the pit, and reached out to Tomas and Jax. “Ready to get out of here?” he called, but Jax shook his head. “I’m staying here!” he replied. Shadow shrugged, gripped Tomas’s elbow, and Dimension Door’d into a thick stand of trees to the north.

Within a few seconds the victims that the assassins had thought of as sitting ducks had almost all vanished from sight. Erin didn’t want to give the attackers time to regroup and search out her friends, so she dashed down the road, waving her sword over her head and screaming at the top of her lungs: “Come and get me you cowards!” The archer spotted her (he couldn’t miss her, really), and fired an arrow into her shoulder. “Is that the best you’ve got?” she laughed. But from somewhere in the darkness beyond the archer, Erin heard the screaming crossbow bolts again. She’d stepped into the area illuminated by Wren’s light rock, and was a clear target for the crossbowman. One bolt swept harmlessly past her, but the other punched through her armor and her lung, sending a spray of blood from her mouth as she struggled to draw breath.

Jax was the only person still in the original target area. Something gashed his back as one of the Red Mantis Assassins suddenly appeared next to him, a pair of sawtooth scimitars in hand. From out of the darkness, a pair of Scorching Rays of electricity flashed through the night; one missed, but the other struck Jax square in the chest, leaving him vibrating with the charge. Jax didn’t really enjoy being the center of attention, so he took a quick step back and shook out a small bag of Dust of Disappearance over himself. The assassins’ enchanted masks allowed them to See Invisibility, but even those couldn’t penetrate Jax’s Dust. When he vanished from their sight, they just assumed he’d teleported away like his friends.

Nat had claimed one of those masks for himself, back when they’d killed a pair of Red Mantis back at Vencarlo’s home. Now he slipped it on and activated its Darkvision power. The nightscape suddenly lit up, and he could see assassins arrayed all around them: northeast of their original campsite was a Red Mantis making arcane motions, like he was preparing another spell, and he could see the assassin who had just attacked Jax, looking around for a new target. There was the Red Mantis archer, of course, standing in the circle of light facing Erin, but beyond her was another figure. He was not dressed in Red Mantis gear; he wore a leather vest over drab brown clothing that looked like it would blend in well to the wilderness background, and a floppy felt hat, and he held a magnificent repeating heavy crossbow that he had just fired at Erin.

Wren could only see one of those targets, so she charged at the archer and slammed her mace into her chest. That was also the only target Tomas could see, so he sent a rapid-fire stream of arrows into her that sent her sprawling into the dirt. “Here – take this!” Shadow called to Tomas, and tossed him his Red Mantis mask (also acquired from Vencarlo’s).

Erin couldn’t see who had been firing the crossbow, but she knew where the bolts had come from so she took off in that direction at a run. She spotted the crossbowman in the dim light as she got closer, and closed with him. He snarled and backed away, fumbling to reload a new clip of bolts into his repeating crossbow. The Red Mantis who’d gone after Jax spotted Erin, and went after her; Jax, invisible, slashed him with his rapier as he ran past, catching him by surprise. He kept after Erin, but the wound threw him off balance and his blow missed her. The Red Mantis sorcerer’s Magic Missiles didn’t miss though, and Erin was reconsidering her strategy of trying to draw fire.

Jax could see Erin was in trouble. Using his Tricky Spell ability so as not to give away his position, he silently cast Haste on himself and Erin, then snuck up behind the Red Mantis harrying her. Wren was also preparing to go to her aid, but another Red Mantis suddenly appeared out of thin air as it swept its scimitar at her head; she narrowly ducked under the swing, but found herself unable to disengage, so she smashed her new assailant with her mace.

Tomas pulled on the Red Mantis mask Shadow had given him, but didn’t want to take the time to figure out how to activate any of its powers right now; he could see the assassin attacking Wren just fine. He took careful aim and fired a Vital Strike that struck the Red Mantis right in the kidney, drawing a scream of pain.

Shadow’s Low Light Vision gave him a better view of the battlefield than his friends. He could see the sorcerer to his south, and he crept forward, casting Greater Invisibility and Displacement on himself as he moved. The Red Mantis spellcaster was completely unaware of his presence until Shadow opened his mouth and breathed out a crackling bolt of electricity. The caster screamed as sparks danced between his teeth and smoke rose from his eye sockets, then he collapsed to the dirt.

As if Erin didn’t have enough problems, a Giant Praying Mantis suddenly materialized right next to her. It swung at her with great clacking claws, and one of them opened a nasty gash on her arm, but she avoided being grabbed. As she dodged the oversized insect, she heard a muttering in the darkness to her left and noticed that the wounds on the crossbowman and the assassin beside her seemed to heal themselves. Erin knew she was outnumbered, but her strategy to get the enemy to focus on her rather than her friends was working. She gritted her blood-stained teeth and said a silent prayer to Iomedae. Ignoring the giant bug and the assassin at her back, she laid into the crossbowman for all she was worth. Her sword gashed the man twice, but the flames on its blade seemed to have no effect on him. He slammed the new clip home, then took a step back and leveled the fearsome weapon at Erin with a glare of hatred. The first bolt slammed into her chest, pushing her back half a step. The second ripped through her throat, flying all the way through and spraying the assassin behind her with blood. She swayed for a moment, her lips moving in silent prayer, then she fell, dead.

The Red Mantis behind her didn’t waste any time with celebration; he spun on his heel and went after Wren, but she parried his blow. Jax again got in a surprise attack as he ran by, but Jax didn’t follow; instead he stepped over Erin’s body and attacked the crossbowman, taking him totally unawares and opening painful wounds.

Nat could see a convenient line of enemies: two assassins attacking Wren, and behind them the giant mantis. So he summoned an Elemental Wall of acid that caught all three of them, and the night was filled with screaming as the acid ate away at their flesh. One of the assassins died as he tried to scramble out of the wall, as did the giant mantis. The other didn’t even get the chance to try to escape as Tomas feathered him with arrows. The crossbowman and Jax were also caught in the spray of acid sputtering off the wall, but it did little damage.

The crossbowman moved away from the wall, looking for new targets. He didn’t seem to have the assassins’ ability to see in the dark, and with Wren now hidden behind the wall, he couldn’t see anything to shoot at. Jax could see him just fine though. He looked down at Erin’s crumpled body and thought of Erin’s sister, Jit, who’d died because of him. His fury overcame his grief, and he charged at the crossbowman with a wordless roar. Jax’s sword ran straight through the man’s body, then he twisted it cruelly as he jammed the hilt again and again into the killer’s back. When the body stopped twitching, he let it slide off his blade and onto the ground.

Nat dispelled his Elemental Wall and Shadow cast Fly, rising up to scan for any more attackers. They couldn’t see anyone, and Wren walked over to pick up her light rock, to use it to help the search. But as she bent to pick it up, another Red Mantis appeared as he attacked her, stabbing her with his sawtooth scimitar. He wore an odd medallion around his neck, a dark metal stylized mask with only one eye, and she recognized it as the holy symbol of Norgorber, deity of thieves and assassins. Seconds later, his own face mimicked that of his deity, as one of Tomas’s arrows entered the back of his skull and emerged from one of his eyes.

As Wren retrieved her light and moved down the road, the illumination fell on Erin’s body. The cleric rushed to her side, but it was clear that Erin was beyond the reach of any normal healing. “Give me some space!” Wren commanded, and her friends formed a loose circle around the cleric and the dead paladin. Wren knelt by Erin’s side and began to pray to the Lady of Graves. She had seen Bishop d’Bear perform this ritual once, years ago, but she had never attempted it herself. She offered up her petition to Pharasma to release Erin from her place in the Boneyard, and sprinkled diamond dust over the body as payment for her soul. The dust glittered in the starlight, then rose slowly off the body, forming a sparkling outline of Erin’s form that glowed softly, then settled back into the corpse. The body continued to glow for a moment, then Erin drew a long, gasping breath.

Erin was still as weak as a kitten, so Wren cast Restoration to help her regain strength, followed by lots of group healing. As they made a new camp (with no fire, and vigilant watches), Jax was still upset that they’d been able to be taken so completely by surprise. “How the hell did they find us, anyway? We’re out in the middle of nowhere!”

“Scrying would be my guess,” Nat offered. “They couldn’t have found us when we were protected in the Dead Warrens, but once we got out here …”

“And that guy with the crossbow looked like some sort of tracker,” Tomas said. He was examining the man's weapon; it was nickle-plated with the name "Vindicator" engraved on the side.  “They might have just popped in tonight, or they might have picked up our trail right after we left the city.”

“Geez! Is this what it’s going to be like every night?” Jax wondered. “Never knowing the next time these Red Mantis guys are going to show up to slit our throats in our sleep?”

“Sounds like we need to kill some bugs,” Shadow said with a smile that suggested he was looking forward to the opportunity to play exterminator.

Fortunately, no one tried to slit their throats the rest of that night, or the next. As they travelled, the stands of forests grew fewer, the farm fields and pastures more dominant. The northern face of the Mindspin Mountains rose in vertiginous cliffs above the plain, and at last they found themselves looking up at Citadel Vraid. The citadel was actually a fortress comprised of three castles: Bastion Dominus, Bastion Tyrannous, and Bastion Ferox. Each was built on an outthrust spear of rock and connected by narrow bridges; from the ground, it created the illusion that each castle floated on an isolated island of stone.

At the foot of the cliff, situated at the terminus of the road leading up to Citadel Vraid, was the picturesque village of Colmar. The houses and shops had exposed beams of dark wood with whitewashed plaster walls; most had flower boxes overflowing with brightly colored flowers. A burbling stream ran through the center of town, spanned by a number of arching wood and stone bridges. The residents of Colmar gave the party friendly nods and waves as they passed through town. Compared to the plague and riot-wracked city they had left, it was almost a shock to see clean streets, unbroken windows, and healthy, happy citizens. Several homes had small black goats tethered and grazing in their front yard. Wren nodded at one as they passed. “Those goats – they’re often a way for followers of Asmodeus to show their faith,” she said out of the corner of her mouth. The others looked up at the Hellknight fortress above them; it was clear who was in charge around here.

There was only one inn in town: The Good Shoanti. The sign hanging above its entrance showed a Shoanti warrior impaled on the lance of a mounted Hellknight. They held a short debate outside about whether to risk staying at the inn, but the sun was already setting and no one much relished the thought of sleeping on the cold hard ground again. So they steeled themselves for a hostile reception, and pushed open the door. But the rotund innkeeper behind the bar greeted them warmly. “Welcome to Colmar! Always nice to see some new faces in town! I’m Claude DePaul, and this is my place. What can I get you? Drinks? Food? A warm bed?”

“Yes!” answered Shadow, and soon they found themselves seated with mugs of crisp frothy ale and bowls of hot rabbit stew in front of them. “Bernice! Send the kids upstairs to get rooms 3 and 4 ready for guests!” Claude called, and two youngsters with clean sheets and filled washbasins scurried up the stairs.

“So you folks come down from Korvosa?” Claude asked as he served them.

“Oh no,” Nat replied hastily. “We stayed well clear of there – heard things aren’t too good in the city.”

Claude nodded in agreement. “I think that was probably wise of you – we’ve been hearing nothing but bad news coming out of Korvosa lately. What brings you to town?”

“Well, we might have some business with the Hellknights,” Jax offered tentatively. “What can you tell us about them?”

“The Knights of the Nail are the best thing that ever happened to this area,” Claude replied enthusiastically, and several locals drinking in the inn nodded in agreement. “This whole area was overrun by savages not that long ago. My own great-grandparents’ whole family were massacred by a Shoanti war party – my grandfather was the only survivor. If Queen Domina hadn’t brought in the Knights of the Nail, it wouldn’t be safe for decent people to live anywhere between the Mindspin Mountains and the Ashwood. But the Knights of the Nail took care of those filthy redskins – drove them out of here and back to the Cinderlands, where they’re not a threat to anyone but themselves. And having their headquarters right here is great for Colmar, and the whole region. They get most of their grain and meat from local farmers, buy all their beer from the brewer who made that ale you’re drinking, and all their other supplies have to come through Colmar, so places like my inn, the blacksmith, the wainwright – we all have plenty of business.” One of the locals raised his glass: “To the Knights of the Nail!” and all the other locals joined him in a toast.

“Like I said, we might have some business with the Hellknights,” Jax continued. “What kind of reception would we expect if we go up to the citadel?” He was worried about the fury of the Hellknights being unleashed on them as they approached, but Claude seemed unconcerned. “As long as you’re polite about it, you shouldn’t have any trouble. Local folk go up there all the time with deliveries and trade. Don’t know what your business is, but if you state it at the gate and don’t act …” he eyed their weapons “… uppity, then I don’t see why they wouldn’t hear you out.”

The party finished their meal, and a few more beers, then retired to their rooms. Once the door was firmly shut, Jax turned to the others. “OK – so all we need to do is stroll up to the Hellknights’ stronghold, and ask politely for them to release one of their Shoanti prisoners to us. Just what do you think it’s going to take to convince them that’s a good idea?"

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There were 3,200 XP that I didn’t account for last week, and you earned another 7,200 XP this week, putting you at a total of 126,177 XP with 145,000 required for Level 12.