26th session: Disrupting the ritual

4th moon, 26th day, year 4554
The brothers ask Gurax to find out the hows and whys of the ritual. Then they head down near the "palace" and Belos uses his necromantic arts to get the lay of the land. There seems to be at least 10 guards on duty at all times.

4th moon, 27th day, year 4554
The next evening, Gurax returns. He informs the T'orghs of the ritual and such. Apparently the dragon is trapped in the lava behind the palace, with only it's head (which is nailed to the ground) out of the lava. This is where the high priest and his flunkies will conduct the ritual. The chief will be atop of the palace building, where he will, after the dragon being sacrifized, demand a boon from his god, the Raven Queen. He will ask for an avatar, a champion, to come join them in their upcoming battle with the drows.

The brothers formulate a loose plan...

4th moon, 28th day, year 4554
The next morning, they protect themselves against the lava and breath of the brass dragon, then fly out over the lava in order to approach the palace island from "behind".

As they fly in, they are spotted, and as they "engage", Belos makes the mistake of staying out over the lava. His flying and protection from fire spells are dispelled, and he drops into the lava. He manages to get out, but is very very crispy. Battle continues with the guards, who are soon joined by more guards, the high priest and then finally the chief. The battles swings back and forth, before the Belos finally manage to kill the last duergar, while the two others are incapacitated.

After dealing with the under-dwarves, the T'orghs equip Rexnar with Belos' amulet and kill the helpless dragon and fly off, back into the Underdark. Since they have only 7 days until the soul is no longer preserved by the amulet, they use magic to travel like the wind through the tunnels and the forest.

5th moon, 4th day, year 4554
The brothers arrive home in time, and place the soul-stone on the altar, on the bloody scale. Before their eyes, it changes to a shield sporting a bloody symbol of Asmodeus.