The party continues to explore ‘The Lost Level’.
Alabaster takes the Elemental Gem of Air found in the stone giant lair, and Shazuu picks up the new broom of flying and makes his witchy way to the tiny castle perched atop the ironn spire. He disappears into the darkness, and the party recalls the broom. Mantis takes the broom, flies over, and looks for Shazuu, but only sees a creature the size of a mouse on the roof of the castle. He informs thge party, and returns to the castle. It seems that Shazuu shrank to the scale of the castle. Using the broom, the party ferries across to the castle, landing on the roof. The roof circles a courtyard, and Shining Brow translates a draconic scrawl which reads “Knock knock”. Shining Brow knocks on the door with his mage hand, and the door opens into a passage.
Mantis finds a door, and hears crashing sounds behind it. A sign on the door says “Homunculi unwelcome” in draconic, and a gold coin jams the door shut. MAntis opens the door, and sees a 12’ tall creature sculpted from clay destroying the furniture. Mantis offers help, but after getting an unintelligible response, gently closes the door. He moves to the next door, and opens the door to an empty room.
Translucent stained glass windows look out beyond the castle walls into the courtyard below, which is covered in sparkly gems and crystals. A statue of a plump humanoid sits in the center of the courtyard. While the party stares into the courtyard,
Tang Wu opens a door to a lab filled with garbage and alchemical equipment. The chamber is scorched by what look like 4 fireballs. Mantis finds another door jammed with an electrum coin. Behind the door is a throne room. An iron throne with clawed arm rests sits in an alcove. A large carpet is covered with a large, gaping mouth. Mantis flies around the room on the broom. When nothing happens, Shazuu determines that there is nothing magical in the room. Mantis moves on to another door, and finds a room. Shining Brow unlocks a door in the room which leads to a room with a couple of bats flying about. He then moves down the corridor to a flight of stairs leading down. In the room is a glass frame with a plaque which reads “Break glass in case of emergency”. The bats suddenly turn into large green skinned reptilian demons. The rest of the party returns as the combat begins. Tygorr manages to banish one of the nycaloths, and the party destroys the other.
The party begins to move down the stairs, but Tygorr finds another door, and the group back tracks to investigate the room. A statue of a mermaid sits in the center of the room, and four tridents are mounted on the wall. On the south wall is a mirror gate, with the word TUOYAW etched on the frame. Mantis pronounces it backwards, and the mirror becomes opaque, and a figure steps into the room from the mirror. A crazy looking old man in robes covered in eyes steps out, and counts the party. He grabs Mantis and pulls him close, saying “You’re not moving fast enough. You must get stronger. You must get to the end.” Pushing Mantis away, he askes if anyone has fed the roper lately, and disappears back through the mirror. The party leaves the room, but Kherek and Alabaster remain. When Kherek grabs one of the tridents, the statue changes, as tentacles and a toothy maw emerge, grappling Kherek. The party attacks, but Shining Brow and Alabaster are also grabbed by tentacles, as the roper begins to chew on its victims. Shazuu, however, is unaware that the rest of the party returned to help Kherek, and leads a group of no one down a hall in the level below. Tha Ropa severely damages the party, and the tridents fly from the wall and begin to attack the restrained party members. Meanwhile, Shazuu opens a door, and sees a purple humanoid with a tentacled head. Shazuu bolts away from the mid flayer and moves back up the stairs. Meanwhile, the party continues to struggle with the roper, but Alabaster manages to curse the roper. The tide of the battle starts to turn, Tygorr paralyzes the creature, and Shining Brow hits it with a lightning bolt. As the tridents continue their assault, and Alabaster finishes the beast with a guiding bolt. Kherek ignite his flaming sword with a loud “pah’koosh, and with the rest of the group, take out the tridents.
Shazuu leads the group back to the mind flayer to destroy the new threat. Shazuu charges in, slicing the creature in twain with his halberd. The head rolls off, and arms and legs fall away, as the group realizes this was a mind flayer mask on a mannequin in a cloak room. The racks on the walls are full of robes and wizards’ hats. Kherek begins to set up his hammock. The rest of party moves on to what seems to be a well appointed waiting room, with plush chairs, ottomans, and a plush purple carpet. As the group moves on, the group sees a large purple serpentine creature about 15 feet long, with gossamer wings. After being in a dungeon for this long, the group finally encounters a dragon. Mantis attempts to explain their presence, but Kherek finishes hanging his hammock and rejoins the party. Some of the party begins to attack the dragon. Suddenly the dragon chants something, and six dragons appear around the wide corridor. Shazuu strikes one of the new dragons and it disappears. Shining Brow fires a lightning bolt, and two dragons are destroyed. The party realizes they are illusions, and dispatch the rest, leaving the true dragon standing alone. The dragon shouts “Wait wait wait! Let’s make a deal!” Shining Brow speaks draconic and demands the dragon’s surrender. Tang Wu, unable to understand draconic, continues to pummel the beast until Kherek speaks to the dragon in a strange language. The dragon begins to barter with Kherek. The dragon apologizes for the attacks, claiming the party had invaded his domain. He offers a place of sanctuary in exchange for destroying a monster upstairs by removing it from the castle. The clay monster keeps coming back when the dragon kills it. The previous master of this castle may have had dealing with drow, and offers help to Kherek’s quest to destroy drow. Kherek recognizes this as a faerie dragon. The party agrees to help, and decide to rest in the cloak room. They set up a tiny hut, set watches, and get some rest.