Dragonlance Chapter 5 Pax Tharkas

 

Chapter 5: Pax Tharkas

The light from the blue staff lit up the passageway as the heroes entered the Tomb of Kith Kanan, First Speaker of the Sun.  The secret doorway sealed shut behind them leaving no way to go but forward.  Reaching a crossroads they turned right towards the stench of decay.  This passage let into a large burial chamber.  Goldmoon cast a protective spell to aid her friends but this triggered the tomb guardians to animate and start shuffling out of the crypt.  With fifty walking corpses in front of them the party fled back to the crossroads and picked a different direction.

This time they found the actual tomb of Kith-Kanan.  His mummified body was sitting on a throne flanked by two stone statues and he a magical great sword across his lap.  After some discussion on what do, as most of the party did not want to touch the sword, Goldmoon cast Speak with Dead to ask how to get into Pax Tharkas, which turned out to be through the other tomb, and how to get past the Tomb Guardians.  The answer to this was to carry his sword as a warding symbol.  The spirit graciously said Goldmoon could take the blade if she agreed to pass it on his defendants.  Goldmoon agreed to give the blade to Gilthanas next time they met.  As they left the chamber Tanis muttered that Laurana was also a decedent of Kith-Kanan but no one seemed to listen.

Having navigated past the second tomb and through several locked doors the party reached a circular room with a giant chain that headed upwards into the fortification above.  Behind one of the exits was a treasure room filled with bars of, now worthless, gold.  The room had spectral protectors and people left quickly taking the other door up to the cellar of Pax Tharkas where they found plenty of food that had been looted from the seeker lands.

Deciding Tasselhoff was the best scout he was turned Invisible and sent into the fortress but mere moments later everyone rushed after him hearing the high pitched cry of "Taaannnissss!!!!".  The first room was grizzly torture chamber with two dead elves who had suffered a brutal interrogation before dying.  Once Tass had calmed down he continued his exploration but after another hour had passed and the Kender had no returned Tanis said it was time to go look for him.

Outside the room a long corridor led to stairs up.  Before ascending the three doors were checked and revealed the prison cells of the female prisoners.  Caramon was recognised by Maritta the Seamstress and she explained what was happening.  The Children were kept upstairs guarded by a dragon, the men were at the mine on the far side of the fortress and the women were kept here.  If any one group tried to escape the others would be killed.  Tanis asked after Laurana and was told she was next door in the maidens room as the Draconians could not tell a Human and Elf apart but had been going around killing all the Elves they could find.  Heading in Tanis was confronted by his childhood sweetheart.  She slapped him in the face and ranted about his actions.  It was left to Goldmoon to calm her down and pass over Wyrmslayer, the ancient Dragon Slaying blade.  She seemed to have a good tactical mind and put forward the proposal for the humans to disguise themselves and go with the parties of women that go to feed the children and men in the evenings.  

Upon learning of magical healing properties she urged the heroes to visit Elistan who had contracted a wasting disease in the mine and was in another cell nearby dying.  As Goldmoon entered his cell something strange happened and the blue staff started to glow a sickly green.  There was a second prisoner, the only other survivor of the disease, in the cell feeding gruel to Elistan.  Riverwind dragged him out of the room and the Blue Crystal Staff went back to the normal blue glow.  While Goldmoon healed the dying man Riverwind and Raislin investigated the other miner and found he had a green gem imbedded in his chest that pulsed like a heart.  The miner was called Berem and he had found this gem in the mine.  Goldmoon placed her staff against the gem and it melted.  The former crystal turned into a liquid that oozed down the staff towards her hands.  Tanis tried to stab it but it just flowed onto his skin.  Flint grabbed the other end as the dust settled the object has vanished absorbed through his skin.  Within moments Flints wounds started to close up and heal!

That evening Riverwind and Caramon when to the mines and ready the men for the escape plan the following day.  Goldmoon and Raislin went to the children's room where they found the happy Kender playing with Flamestrike the Dragon and the human children.  The senile old dragon had decided the children were her own and was looking after them all like a mother.  Goldmoon filled Tass in on the plan and he handed off a scroll he had looted from Verminaard's study and explained he had found out where the chain went.  It was part of a defence mechanism that would drop a giant block of stone into the entry way of the fortress.  The scroll was actually a letter to Verminaard from Ariakas, Emperor of Ansalon talking about the invasion plans.

Returning the woman's prison a plan of escape was created.  Someone had to remain with the underground mechanism to activate it while the rest of the refugee's were led to safety.  The main concern was the one, or two, dragons that might burn everyone to death during an escape.  Laurana volunteered to go activate the mechanism as she has fifty years of training as a warrior and was best placed to fight her way out against the guards.

The nest morning the plan seemed to be working.  Tass led the children out into the yard for their morning exercise and while Flamestrike was dining on her breakfast of a whole cow led them towards the mine and Tanis guided the women past the patrolling guards to also escape.

Hopes were dashed though as Ember, a second dragon, flies out of the fortress and lands on the ramparts.  The figure of Verminaard on the back speaks his voice echoing across the open space. “I have tolerated your impudence for the last time…slaves are cheap and plentiful.  How often have I warned you all of the consequences of insurrection? Now I destroy your families! I destroy your children! Ember, burn them! Burn them all!” Ember, overcome with bloodlust, roars an ear-splitting war cry.  As Ember leaps from the wall, Flamestrike pauses. Confusion shakes her as she looks from the children to the great engine of death above her. Suddenly, her dim eyes take on clear focus as she makes a decision. “No,” she seethes. “You will not harm my children.” Curling her long neck upwards, Flamestrike sends forth a horrifying spout of fire, straight at the flying dragon and the Dragon Highlord as she surged forward to grapple the other dragon.

As the two great beasts fight Verminaard is knocked from the saddle and falls to the ground.  Magic slowing the deadly fall before he hits the stone floor.  Riverwind, Flint and Caramon charge at him hacking down the remaining Hobgoblin Soldiers as they go.  Two mighty battles happen simultaneously. One in the sky and the other on the ground.  Grinding of gears and stone can be heard as a great block of stone falls in the entrance crushing the thirty strong regiment of Hobgoblins that was forming up to march on the heroes and the escaped slaves.  

As the battle rages Tanis and Riverwind are blinded by the magics of the dark queen Verminaard used but even blind the great warrior of the plains was able to land a killing blow on the Dragon Highlord.  Goldmoon used the last of the power in her staff to restore their sight.  As she did this the two dragons, both heavily injured, crashed into the courtyard.  A few arrows struck Ember and with a flick of her head she breathed fire across the courtyard.  This quickly ended any further interference as Caramon and Riverwind tried to bandage their dying companions.

As they worth to keep their friends alive a lone figure carrying a large sword could be seen running along the battlements.  With a great leap Laurana landed on the dragons back and plunged the Dragonslaying blade into Ember's head.  Engulfed in flames as the beast died it was only moments before, those still conscious, saw a near naked elf walking out of the fire.  The blade had protected her, but not her clothes from dragon breath.  Laurana wrapped herself in a cloak from the fallen soldiers and helped the heroes gather together and leave.  Raisin snatched his wand from the floor as it rolled away from the body of Ember.  Flamestrike was left lying on her side breathing heavily muttering with, what may be her final breath, "You will not harm my children”.