Sea of Soulless Armor
Roughly 16 Years After Albert's Exile
Barrier Cavern, Surface
Albert, Sschass, Helen, and Frruh hurried into the massive cavern, stretching five times a man's height, and reaching long and broad enough for the troglodyte and giant armies to pose in formation at its far ends. It was enormous - by surface standards.
There was occasional echoes of the shouting of the troglodytes and giants as they challenged, provoked, and taunted each other across the cavern. Occasionally, a combatant would bang a sword against a shield, or throw a boulder or a javelin at the translucent magical barriers stretched before both groups, but all for naught - the barriers held the peace between these ancient enemies, and kept them away from the Avernites inside.
The crystal generating the barriers, and the target of the Avernites' attack, sat serenely on a pedestal in the middle of the cavern. It wasn't very large, but it was producing a fair bit of light. The unassuming crystal was guarded by a single warrior, clad head to toe in plate mail.
"What is that thing doing here?" Helen asked grimly.
Now that she had said that, Albert recognized the armor. That wasn't a warrior. That was a doomguard. And now that he was looking for it, he saw what his friends had meant about the ones Erika had made - it wasn't breathing.
Albert took a moment to force himself to start breathing. He looked it over, then looked over his friends and himself, tempered by their adventures on the surface, and said, "We can take this thing, but we need to be ready. Everyone ready?"
They all agreed, and then they moved forward.
Albert could almost see the blows he needed to make, every skillful sinew singing in him. As he anticipated, the doomguard blocked his first stroke, but the second, the one Albert really meant to connect, did, cleanly, penetrating the armor at just the right spot. His gut couldn't be prepared despite the warnings - he saw the whole creature's body flow, split and divide in moments, and then there were two doomguards, one facing him, the other quickly turning and batting aside Sschass' spearpoint.
Sschass intentionally tangled his two-tined spear in the doomguard's claws, using this leverage to twist the doomguard's arm unnaturally, but it gave no cry of pain. He extricated the spear and rammed it into his chosen point on the doomguard - and then there were three doomguards.
Frruh raked all the doomguards at once with lightning - and then there were six.
"Helen, bless and shield us, and Frruh, haste us!' Albert called. Helen had been planning that already, and did so - her own offensive spells were not as effective as Frruh's, and would've just made more doomguards. Albert and Sschass couldn't block the new doomguards in the large hall, and so both foes pressed in on Frruh and Helen. She struggled to keep hold of the physical shield she bore, wincing at the powerful blows and clangor of metal on metal. Frruh moved his own shield and dodged as he noted, "The new ones are definitely smaller!"
Albert managed a strike at one of the new ones, and it split off a smaller doomguard yet - but it was still quite a bit taller than he'd have liked.
Helen stumbled as a doomguard hammered on her shield. She was able to finish healing Frruh, but a doomguard caught her on the back, and she shouted in pain. Albert looked back in alarm, but the doomguards were hemming them all in, and she was already beside him, so there wasn't much more he could do. Thankfully, her chainmail had blocked the worst of the assault, but still! They were about to drown in a sea of soulless armor.
"Back to back!" he shouted. "And focus on the hurt ones!"
"Right," Sschass grunted in agreement, striking a thunderous blow against one of the smaller doomguards on his side, despite the many wounds on his shoulder and the outer side of one of his arms. He at least forced the doomguard and its developing copy to give way, so Helen and Frruh managed to get their backs against Albert and Sschass.
Frruh forced himself to focus on his movements despite the pain from new injuries, and a small but fierce bolt of flame catapulted from his hands, driving through a weak point in the doomguard just created from Sschass' last stroke. Immediately afterward, two doomguards caught him on the helmet. He fell to the ground, ears ringing, coughing up blood.
The doomguard he had struck crumbled into uselessness. As the first of the doomguards fell, the portcullis began to open.
Albert risked a glance back at Frruh, curbing the lift of his heart. All of them were still moments from death. "We'll have to take them all!" he shouted.
Helen wanted to shake him awake, tell him he was being unreasonable - but he wasn't, they were surrounded by a crowd of doomguards, who hadn't let up their assault. So she instead healed Frruh, as best as she quickly could, and forced her tired arm to hold her shield higher as the things hammered on it again.
Albert managed to take one of the smaller doomguards next, then Sschass. Frruh, clawed again by several doomguards, summoned all his will to make a small, perfect, incredible bolt of flame, and brought down another small doomguard.
Swallowing hard, Albert next brought his blade to bear on one of the older doomguards - there were no more very little ones. He forced back together his quailing heart as his target divided into two targets, then split in two again on his next blow. In a moment, he was glad - Frruh brought all four down with a spray of lightning.
The Avernties were panting, streaming mingled blood and sweat, but the ring of doomguards was now on the ebb tide, and the jetsam of their stony remains was soon all that was left.
"We did it," Sschass breathed as they healed each other.
Albert pointed over a shoulder with his thumb at one of the barriers and said wryly, "Good, now there's just two more armies to beat." Helen and the others laughed.
After they had healed themselves, Sschass sized the crystal up, then thrust one of the tines of his spear into it. The crystal cracked, and he hit it again, and it crumbled. Instantly, the barriers holding the armies back collapsed. Both sides made guttural exclamations of surprise, then, shouting gleefully, charged their ancient foes on the opposite side of the cavern. The adventurers, having anticipated this, ran towards the tunnel through which they had come, whose opening was in the center of the cavern.
Albert gave a glance over his shoulder as he ran, feeling that something was wrong, and saw that his friends had not all started to run - Sschass still hunched by the pedestal in the middle of the cavern, gathering crystal shards. Albert squawked in disbelief and shouted, "Sschass, come on!" The giants' rocks were already whizzing over Sschass' head towards the oncoming troglodytes, but at least one had been meant for Sschass himself.
Sschass put the fragments in a pouch and started running from his crouching position. Frruh and Helen had already turned back, hearing Albert's shout. Albert now turned back himself. A few troglodytes began to hurl javelins at Sschass. Frruh hasted Sschass, then the rest of the team. Sschass caught up to them just as the vans of the armies began a gleeful melee. The adventurers ran down the tunnel through which they had come in. Sschass faced behind them at first, spear pointed outwards. However, they were followed only by sounds of war cries from the battle behind them. Now that he thought about it, although the troglodyte javelins had been harrowing at the time, more of them had probably been meant for the oncoming giants.
Once they were safely outside, Sschass said, "Look," and he took the pouch off his waist, then poured the crystal shards he'd been able to carry into his scaly palm. The shards gleamed in the light, but no longer had energy of their own.
Helen said wryly, "Your girl's lucky! You went and got her a pretty present in the middle of that mess!"
"Ss, ss," Sschass hissed sarcastically as Albert laughed. After a moment, Sschass said, "It looks like the crystals the vahnati are supposed to use. We should get the Bunker to verify this."
"It did look like a vahnati crystal, and I thought that myself when we first saw it," Frruh agreed. "Of course, crystals are used by more than just vahnati."
Helen said skeptically, "The vahnati have strange, powerful magic, but could they really rip that lot," she gestured behind them, "out of history? That is incredible power."
Sschass shrugged and said, "There is much we don't know about them."
Albert shook his head, saying, "Sure, the vahnati hate the Empire, but we're allies - they would've told us, especially knowing we were going to the surface. They helped us make the teleporter to get here - they wouldn't leave out something this big."
Sschass sighed and agreed, "It does seem unlikely they'd put us in that kind of danger."
Helen supplied, "Honestly, when we saw the doomguard, I thought that was more evidence implicating Erika. But I shouldn't have leapt to conclusions - other powerful mages can make them. Right, Frruh?" He nodded.
Sschass mused aloud, "I wonder if we will find more clues if we find another monster lair?"
Albert groaned, then added, "We haven't gotten paid for this one yet!"
They started walking to the grove where they had left the horses (untied, in case giants or troglodytes came upon the animals.) Frruh, after being pensive some time, said aloud, "We may find more clues in another lair. But I begin to wonder if some other party is planting all these clues, to watch us doubt and fight each other."
Helen replied, "It'd be a good strategy. But at some point, one party does have to be responsible, and you can't conceal everything from everyone. We'll have to keep looking, and see what the Bunker says about what we know now, thanks to Sschass."
As the adventurers approached their horses, Rover tossed his mane and whinnied. The other horses looked up, and they all started ambling towards them.
Frruh threw up his hands and said, "Rover still doesn't like me."
Helen insisted, "He was happy to see you," and Albert put in, "Exactly."
Frruh finally allowed, "An alternate explanation." And at least Rover didn't shy away when he put his hand through his mane as Albert had shown him.
Some days later, Albert, Helen, Frruh, and Sschass neared Ghikra, the settlement of their vahnati allies in Upper Avernum. Though the vahnati had expressed reticence about venturing onto the surface, since they were convinced the sun would harm them, they wanted to be on hand to maintain the teleporter they had helped make, and explore the caves of Upper Avernum.
On the road there, a vahnati patrol gave them a friendly greeting. Such patrols were needed to help combat the goblins who had somehow made homes in Upper Avernum. In fact, a few months ago, Albert and the others had helped a different vahnati patrol face off against a goblin force.
Ghikra was a settlement of intriguing life and color. The vahnati were tall and thin, grey-skinned, with bulbous black eyes, and were clad in robes and ponchos of various colors. Though they clearly loved raiment, they rarely wore hats or helmets. They appeared frail and harmless to those who ignored the peculiar waveblades and razordisks at the sides of their warriors, or who had not seen them unleashing fierce beasts from magical crystals during the war against the Empire. The architecture, like that in the vahnati homelands below Avernum, consisted of pale blue domes, whose interiors held furniture suited to vahnati limbs, and ornate rugs.
The group took their time, chatting with vahnati children and other passerby, purchasing vahnati armaments in the marketplace, and contemplating magical secrets from their mages. However, they eventually sensed that they could put off their errand no longer. They reluctantly took the ultimate matter to Rentar-Ihrno, a vahnati incantatrix whom rumor placed in the same league of power as Erika Redmark.
"Avernites, welcome to Ghikra!" Rentar-Ihrno said as she saw them. "And wait, you are the new team chosen to explore the surface, are you not? A privilege. I am Rentar-Ihrno."
The warm welcome calmed their nerves, and they returned the respectful cordiality of her greeting. Her accent was strong, but her vocabulary and enunciation was excellent, so it was easy to understand her.
Albert said to her, "Rentar-Ihrno, we come with something delicate to ask about."
"Please continue," Rentar-Ihrno said.
Perhaps sensing Albert's reluctance to actually ask the question in the presence of a hero of the Empire war, Helen said, "Rentar-Ihrno, you may have heard that we found the surface plagued by various monsters manufactured there recently. We found a crystal there used by the makers of the plagues. Our mages have confirmed the crystal was manufactured by the vahnati. We wanted to ask if you knew of vahnati who would wish to do this, or of strangers who may've obtained the crystals."
Albert wished that vahnati faces showed emotion the same way that human ones did. He honestly couldn't tell if the news or accusation surprised Rentar-Ihrno a whit. After an awkwardly long pause, Rentar-Ihrno told them, "I understand, and will help you as I can, but I do not have the answers you seek. Our soul crystals, if that is what you refer to, house magical copies of monsters - you may have seen our mages selling them here. Not only do they not do what you describe, but I assure you we only sell them to reputable persons such as yourselves. I have not learned of any thefts, either."
Frruh added, "If it would help you, this particular crystal was used to create a powerful magical barrier."
"Thank you," Rentar-Ihrno told him. "Again, I am not aware of thefts or irresponsible sale. It is possible another vahnati clan has awoken in our homeland that would be fully or partially responsible. It is also true that I am not our people's final authority. To assure you of our clan's intentions, I believe our Crystal Souls would like to grant you an audience."
"The Crystal Souls?" Albert blurted.
"The same captured by the Empire, yes," Rentar-Ihrno agreed. "Our most cherished ancestors' souls, preserved by our magics as crystals."
"I meant no disrespect," Albert said hastily, though the idea had always both been interesting and intensely creepy.
Rentar-Ihrno made an alien gesture that was probably acceptance and began to lead them, while Helen whispered, "Then maybe try keeping your mouth closed?"
"I'll try, I'll try," he muttered back.
"This is a strange honor," Sschass murmured to Helen, and she nodded back as they entered a heavily fortified and defended dome.
Rentar-Ihrno paused just after admitting them. "I shall wait here and let you speak to them alone. They speak in your minds, I believe is the way you would put it. Or perhaps your souls. I am unsure of the difference between the two."
"So are we," Helen half-joked.
Rentar-Ihrno either caught the humor or was at least not offended, and continued, "Do not anger them. But please also have pity on them, and excuse Jekknol-Bok especially," Rentar-Ihrno apologized. "The Empire tormented Jekknol-Bok. The years of peace have not yet been enough."
As they entered the room, they could see the Souls, blue crystals about three feet tall, set on stone pedestals. They pulsed with slight glows that reflected off the polished tile as they spoke to the adventurers in their minds. Startling as it was at first, it was actually easier to understand these creatures than live vahnati, without the burden of accent.
Still, Helen cast several glances at Albert as the conversation wore on. Friendliness was one of his good points, but he seemed to insist on talking about everything with the Crystal Souls - the Empire War, the Souls' experiences with the Empire, what the Souls remembered about Captain Tompkins and the other Avernites who rescued them, the potential of the surface - except for the one thing they had come to talk about. Finally, with clear reluctance, he asked the question.
Vyvnas-Bok replied, "There must be some sort of mistake, or perhaps unscrupulous persons stole our crystals after slaying their owners. Besides, our race is harmed by the sun - we are assisting you so you can have the surface."
Caffren-Bok asserted, "We are not interested in the surface ourselves, but we do not begrudge it to you. The plagues are not our doing."
Frruh commented to Caffren-Bok, "I must say, I admire your courage. You've moved from your homelands to a new place, one much closer to the Empire that so wronged you all."
"All must face their fears," Caffren-Bok replied. "And sadly, it is not as though time in safety has yet helped Jekknol-Bok. From here, we can guide our people and yours. If need be, we can help you face the Empire head-on, with our united strength - the cowards haven't before had to face the magic prepared Crystal Souls can unleash together."
Jekknol-Bok interjected, "Empire! Pain, suffering! No! No!"
Vyvnas-Bok and Caffren-Bok began to glow steadily, and Jekknol-Bok quickly added, "Know. Not here. I know. Safe now. You told me. Still seeing. Still - aah! Aah! No! Not now. Know in past. In past. Stop, cowards! No - you not them. Pain - pain - PAIN!"
Vyvnas-Bok said peacefully, "Jekknol-Bok, these are from our friends, Avernites."
"Avernum, help us against Empire, save us," Jekknol-Bok said, his glow diminishing. "Ten years ago. Helped us. Saved me. Saved us. Tompkins. Renault. Feinman. Iago. We saved them. Returned favor. Paid back Empire. Pain for pain. Pain for pain." His glow started to increase again.
Caffren-Bok told him, "Jekknol-Bok, safety is here. Remember the present. We are here, in Ghikra."
Rentar-Ihrno started towards the adventurers, and Albert and Sschass started towards her, motioning apologetically. Helen, frustration forgotten, cast a glance back at Jekknol-Bok - but even if his crystal could feel touch or hear her consolations, the wounds in his spirit were deeper than she could heal in the time they had. She followed Sschass and Albert out, and Frruh followed her, bowing to the Souls before he left.
As they camped that evening in the cavern just outside Ghikra, Helen commented, "Unsurprisingly, everyone has denied the allegations. Maybe someone's lying. Or maybe someone framed all of them. But where do we go from here?"
"At least two of the three suspects were framed," Frruh noted. "Framing or actually doing the deed are the only reasons to leave behind things like what we found in those factories."
Sschass countered, "But what if several groups are working together? I wouldn't be surprised if the dragons joined with the vahnati, for example. Erika - I think she considers her honor satisfied with the previous emperor's death, but she might help any or all of them just to show off."
Helen asked again, "What do we do with all this, though?"
Albert asked, "What can we do? We either get more evidence or somebody 'fesses up. And with no idea how to make either happen, I say we just stick to our real mission and keep exploring. Or maybe our job is monster extermination at this point."
Helen agreed, "Planted or not, we do find more evidence the more we tangle with the beasts."
Author's Note: It's been some time since I've actually played through Ghikra, and though in some ways I remember it well, in some ways I don't. None of this should be assumed to be canon, and Rentar-Ihrno and the Souls may be out of character. Also, a minor note: in the game, as I recall, you speak to the souls separately. It makes sense there, but in thinking about writing the scene, it also made sense to me to have a sort of group conversation, since everyone is in the same room.