Mind Flayer Minions

Deep in the mountain, Sack had located one of the smaller but richer royal treasuries. It was locked and trapped of course, but to an intruder of his abilities that was almost an inconsequence. He was soon inside, and gazed around at the splendour of gold and jewels that flashed and glittered in the radiance of the Blade of the Sun. Once, his burglar's heart would have leapt at such riches; now, with a quarter share of the hoard of the Dragon his to command, it was only of passing interest. Of far more merit to his eyes were enchanted pieces, and some of these he gathered up before heading back.

Further down, Surya had been less successful. He had not found the armouries he sought; his path had brought him into the mighty forges that lay beneath the mountain city. Normally, these would be alive with the ringing of hammers, the thunder of blast-furnaces, the rumble of coal feeding the fires; illuminated by the play and flare of the fires and sparks of metal-working. Now, however, it was dead and cold, the might anvils, presses, moulds, rollers still and silent. More than anywhere, this place conveyed the utter abandonment of the dwarven city.

After a few minutes, however, the Tellaran saw the unexpected - movement. A human-shaped shadow was moving between the darkened machines of the forge. Its' footsteps were heavy and metallic, and as he approached it, Surya realized that it was huge - fully two feet higher than his own tall frame, and more heavily  proportioned; like a dwarf in fact. He moved closer, and saw a huge, manlike machine of shaped, fitted and articulated steel, pacing back and forth amongst a heap of bodies. As the warrior approached, he realized with a sinking feeling that while most of the bodies belonged to the same Gith-like creatures they had fought near the portal, some of them were those of dwarves.

Nonetheless, Surya approached it without his weapons readied, and spoke to it in the Dwarftongue. On becoming aware of his presence, it turned towards him in a hostile fashion, but the harshly-accented words of its' masters seemed to give it pause. Its' gaze rotated across between the dwarvish bodies, the Gith bodies and Surya's frame - which was of course far nearer to the latter in size.  For a few moments more it seemed dubious, but Surya continued to talk to it in the Dwarftongue and finally it seemed to accept that he was there to help.

Some sign language was sufficient to establish that the creature - which had "Talamos" carved on its' steel chest in dwarvish runes - had killed the slain dwarves by accident, while trying to prevent them from leaving (presumably under some evil compulsion). The Gith it had slain to defend the dwarves. Talamos was no mental giant, and incapable of speech, but Surya managed to convince it that he and his companions were there to rescue Talamos' masters, and that it could aid that aim by helping him (and them). Convinced, the construct lumbered after him as he set out to return to the council chamber.

Meanwhile, back in the council chamber, Hildraft was getting nervous as he sat alone in the darkened hall, illuminated only by the eerie and unnatural mauve glow from the Portal. His worries prompted him to relocate to the end of the table furthest from the gateway, pausing only to admire the table itself; stone, but polished by the dwarves' art to a finish better far than polished wood.

His suspicions were confirmed when, again without the slightest warning, twelve more gith humans, including two in much better armour and with larger swords, rushed through the Portal and charged towards him. As he unleashed a Flame Strike, he noticed a single plate-armoured Mind Flayer emerge from the portal last of all and lurk near it, its' tentacles writhing. He felt a wash of energy pass his mind like a falling rock, and then was at grips with the screaming Gith.

His axe swept across, slaying freely, as the mental monstrosity's mind clawed at his defences, trying to crack open his brain from a distance. He was holding his own, but things were looking dicey, especially as the two knights were charging along the top of the table towards him (scarring it enough to make him wince). Among their warcries he discerned references to themselves as Githmorein - meaning "Gith who remained".

Just when things looked bleak, first Sack and then Surya came charging into the chamber, attracted by the noise. Sack took one look at things, clapped his Teleport helm on his head, and jaunted across the chamber to appear right in front of the Mind Flayer. He began attacking it, but it didn't draw the sword slung across its' back; it turned the blast of its' brain on the half-orc and began trying to smash his mind into unconciousness.

Surya drew his swords, gave a berserker yell, and bounded up onto the table top to meet the two Githmorein knights head-on. Tormentor and the Sword of the Dead Legions rent and tore, and the two part-humans cartwheeled off the table onto the floor dead. Whirling, Surya cut down two more of the Githmorein soldiers, leaving Hildraft to finish the last as Talamos the Golem thundered into the chamber, shouldering his way through the doorframe in a shower of debris.

At the other end of the room, Sack had managed to despatch the Mind Flayer before it could escape through the Portal, and was on the verge of attacking it when Hildraft recognized the script on its' chest and called a halt.

Surya had carried on down the table towards the Mind Flayer, and now became curious about the Portal. He concluded he'd peer through, just enough to get a look, and no further. However, when his head touched the shimmering interface, he found himself dragged in and propelled gently out the other side.

Into somewhere totally alien. Xerxes' information had been faulty or outdated; Heppetah was not even vaguely Alairlike. Surya found himself standing on a small, flat platform of rock with jagged edges. It appeared to be floating in space; around him he could see what looked like night sky in all directions, complete with stars. At various distances around floated other chunks of rock, some small, some vast; several seemed to have cities and towns built on them. A very long way away, one of the larger ones appeared to be the site of major construction; a huge structure was being built, the purpose of which Surya could not deduce at this range.

One of the nearer platforms was occupied by a large number of Githmorein and Mind Flayers, and Surya waved his Rod of Daylight cheerfully at them and treated them to a blast of sunshine, before stepping back through the Portal with the news that company was to be expected.

Hildraft immediately started laying down protective spells, commencing with a Blade Barrier laid directly across the front of the Gate to block its' exit. Sack lugged two heavy stone chairs onto the table top (causing Hildraft to wince again) and assembled all his and Surya's arrows within easy reach, ready to use the Bracers of Vrasten. Surya placed himself to the far right of the Gate, swords drawn.

Five minutes later, a large force of Githmorein soldiers came rushing through the Gate - straight into the Blade Barrier. In a truly awesome display of gore, the thirty or so warriors simply dissolved into bloody mush in the whirling magical blades, slain instantly. A few seconds later, fifteen knights followed them through, and these made it through the Barrier alive, though wounded.

Instantly Sack's arrows began to fly, and the swords and axe of the other two to bite. Talamos seized two Githmorein, recognizing the nemesis of his masters, and simply hurled them bodily back into the Blade Barrier, killing them instantly. The knights fought well, but were outmatched and unsupported by either soldiers or Mind Flayers, and were all slain.