Session 60 & 61: CSI Hiru

The group allows Erresentimendu to follow them around while they investigate the throne. A dead dragonborn, assumedly Bormarech, is seated on it, clutching an axe made of green crystal. Humanoid and demonic corpses are littered around the throne, and mist is seeping from a wound in Bormarech’s chest. Grombrin tries to heal the wound, but it doesn’t work, confirming that he really is dead. He grabs the axe, which shrinks down to their size. As he inspects it more closely, he is repulsed by Mereteth’s presence, but senses a life-draining magic in it. He gives it to Cho, who might be able to use it. They decide that they should tell Dinoksu'um about Bormarech’s body.

First they look behind the other door, where they see the rotting corpse of a dragon. Cho pokes it with his glaive to see if it’s dead, causing a cacophony of screams to echo out. The corpse then stirs to life and bites him. Cho strikes back with his glaive while the dragon screams out in Draconic, stinging everyone’s minds with a psychic attack. Nan starts crying while she shoots a barrage of radiant and arcane bolts at the dragon, blowing holes through its body, ending with a killing shot through the head. When asked about her mood swing, she laments that the dragon was afraid and in pain, though she concedes that putting it down was for the best. The others observe that the statue of Pruzahtur may have amplified her emotions.

They try to identify the dragon, but it isn’t of any known type, resembling the statue. Grombrin inspects the walls and feels a draft between some bricks. Cho grabs an adamantine breaching hammer and smashes through the wall. Beyond is a cave with a stream flowing through. Grombrin sniffs out some iron ore and smashes a big chunk of it out of the wall. They travel into the cave, expecting it to lead outside, but it continues for a long time, so they turn back to the dungeon. When they track back, Erresentimendu has a brief conversation with the giant demon in an unknown language. They then open a door they passed earlier and find a small room with a silver statue. Mendu warns them that it’s an exploding trap.

Grombrin throws a copper ingot at the statue, causing it to speak a sentence in an unknown language. Nan dispels the magic on the statue and they safely pick it up. Grombrin estimates that it’s made of solid silver, so they put it in the bag of holding. There are two more doors here, and a hidden stone door that leads back to the poison room, evidenced by some gas leaking through. Cho wants a break before facing any more dangers, so they go back to Dinoksu'um first. They pass by the body of the poison gas mage, from whom Mendu collects a green gemstone badge. Grombrin then stays behind with Mendu while the others pass through the poison gas to speak with Dinoksu'um.

Cho explains that Bormarech is dead and shows the axe as proof. He asks who killed Bormarech, but they don’t know. He thinks the axe may allow him to leave his station, so they decide to bring him to Bormarech. They get Mendu to hide in another room before giving Dinoksu'um the axe and shepherding him through. When they pass by the demon, he wants to fight it, but Cho drags him away. When they reach Bormarech’s throne, Dinoksu'um performs a prayer and then starts chopping up the demonic corpses. Cho joins in to speed it up. Dinoksu'um then puts the axe back into Bormarech’s hand and stands completely still, quietly whispering something. The wound in Bormarech’s chest starts to close up very slowly as the magic fog turns into normal fog.

While they wait, they hear a crashing sound and aggressive yelling from closer to the entrance of the dungeon. Nan stays with Bormarech while the others go to investigate. Cho moves ahead and finds, in the room with the portal, an orc-like demon attacking a coyote-like creature. Cho deems the orc to be the greater threat, so he runs in and chops it. The coyote then uses that opportunity to disintegrate the demon with a lightning bolt. The coyote thanks him for his assistance, first in Abyssal but then in common. He explains that he is a researcher working for Pha’uel to investigate the demonic portal.

Meanwhile, the others arrive through an alternate path, avoiding the poison room by passing through an encampment littered with tabaxi and dragonborn skeletons. They ask the coyote’s name, but like the other demon, he doesn’t want to give it. He asks them questions, so they tell him about the tabaxi, dragonborn, and the other demons here. He then asks them for their names and blood samples, for his master’s records. Grombrin gives him a sample of his fire, but the others refuse to give their blood. They ask him if he knows anything about the demon Inquisitive, who got away with the protective runes of the Spike. He assures them that those wards are hard to break even by someone who knows the runes.

They also ask if he can close the portal. He answers that he has no authority over it, but can give it a try after finishing his investigations. He says the portal was inactive for a long time until someone recently meddled with it. Against Arran’s recommendation, Grombrin uses his identify spell on the portal and finds out that it is a piece of Ho’od’s obsidian throne, commonly used to create a portal and unusually hard to remove. Interacting with it can infect a mortal with Ho’od’s bloodthirsty madness, which Grombrin felt but warded off.