The Pursuit of Power

Bliss is battling skeletons at the Foot of the Beast Inn when the rest of the Soup Troop arrive. Brodo notices the piles of bodies in the tavern wriggling as more skeletons arise from the flesh. Kinna, riding Pantherchu, calls forth a storm that tears part of the roof off the building. During the fight, Sirrias tries to use his gauntlet, but nothing happens and he hears a voice: "the child who has been prophesied to be the destroyer of worlds has been born". After the skeletons are defeated, they find Beefo in the bedroom hiding behind Bliss' shield. Bliss has a festering bite wound on her neck that's blocking her connection to Tymora from healing her. Sirrias is able to dispel the wound's magic, and Bliss collapses. Beefo summons six "Fluffies"; his usual small demons to carry her out. Outside the Tavern, Brodo finds a note from Bella, who returned to collect Felina and mentions that she still has business with Sirrias. Investigating the Tavern, Ghorza sees the bones are marked with necrotic druidic runes. Brodo speaks with the dead Bart the Innkeeper: Bart says the hooded visitors to the Inn attacked, carving evil runes into him and others before killing him and turning him into a walking skeleton. The figures were chanting about creating more "Garys". Beefo asks Kinna if he can stay at the Tower of the Silverwing until this whole thing is over. The party shelter at the town warehouse and Bella returns.

Sirrias and Bella take a walk outside and he asks her for advice on how he can get as powerful as she is. She suggests she can grant him some of her power with a bite. She serves no master but herself, but if she bites him, he'll be compelled to serve her after he completes his mission. Sirrias agrees, and Bella leans in and bites his neck, drinking his blood. He turns paler, about to feint in pain, but then his body heats up, flame engulfing him and exploding out. Bella is thrown into the distance and disappears. Sirrias stands in a crater surrounded by burning trees, his body burning. His neck feels cold, but there's no blood and he doesn't have fangs. He hears a voice in his head: "good, you shall make me whole, come to me my Sunderer... my other half". K'harth arrives after hearing the explosion and inquisitions Sirrias, who's disoriented and distracted by the voice, which says "Vesuvius awaits". Ghorza arrives and sees that Sirrias resembles the vision of him she had in her Shard, the vision of her supposed death. Sirrias tells them about his deal with Bella, but it seems to have gone wrong. The voice speaks again, "No more delay, I have waited eternity". Ghorza draws her sword at Sirrias and K'harth steps between them. Brodo arrives and casts Calm Emotions, hoping to settle things down. As Sirrias continues to hear the voice, he feels a rope of fire coil around him which is only visible to him, stretching on endlessly toward the mountain and dragging him there. He uses magic to break the grappling ropes hold, but it retreats and waits to strike again. The gang turn to run. He pulls out his crystal ball to scry Brisko and sees him on the mountain, the end of the flaming rope emerging from one of his eyes. The group get back to the warehouse to grab Bliss and Beefo and teleport away. Sirrias is again tethered by the rope and dragged. Brodo uses his lute's inate magic and his own inspirational abilities to help Sirrias break free from its grasp, and the rope appears to retreat back to the mountain. The party regroups at the shed from earlier, and hastily teleport to the Temple of Tymora for respite and to make some distance from this accursed town.

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