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• Arhian Vos – Human Monk
  • Pet: Pabu (Young Red Panda)
• Hartmut Helmsworth – Elf Monk
  • Pet: Kalistia (Young Blink Dog)
• Sindri Waggletop – (Forest) Gnome Wizard
• Rettniss Kulvith – Water Genasi Druid
  • Pet (?): Vindri (Sindri Voodoo Doll)
• Avacyn “Jolyne” Uloth the Merciless – Half-Orc Paladin
• Twilight Skybane – Tiefling Bard
  • Pet: Gem (Sailor Parrot With A Mouth)
  • Pet: C.C. (Copy Cat, Mimic Bag Of Holding)

• With Nikalos’ departure the party resumes their original reasoning for coming inside the Redstone Caves – to find and put a stop to the Cult of Belaros who has been trailing Twilight
• The party is aware that when mortals strike a deal with the demonlord Belaros – that eventually, somewhere in their bloodline – the seed he plants in exchange for agreeing – gives birth to a Tiefling – which he then, at the age of sixteen – requires them to be sacrificed – their partially mortal and demonic soul – giving Belaros an anchor to the mortal world – or so it is believed.
• The Cultists of Belaros who help complete the ceremony in which the Tiefling is sacrificed gain temporary powers from Belaros’ dark blessing – a sensation the cultists continuedly chase to feel again.
• Knowing that they’re going after cultists – Avacyn uses Divine Sense – suspecting she will be able to detect any demons – but she’s overcome with light first as an angelic voice says in her mind, “My name is Zenafal. The stories are true – I am the wounded angel that fell from the heavens and pierced my back on the mountain top – it is my blood that pours through these mountains eternally, my heart that you hear beating – I sense darkness has long tried to corrupt my radiant essence – and now, a dark cult is here in hopes of corrupting my essence and completing a sacrifice. I can gift you with radiant blessing if you accept my gift and allow a piece of me within you.”
• Avacyn nods and accepts Zenafal’s gift.
• Once Avacyn accepts her gift – she can hear Zenafal say, “I can bless your companions as well, should they accept.”
• Avacyn explains the situation – and all but Rettniss accept. Rettniss explains that she has seen how her grandmother once dealt with darker forces that promised things – and Rettniss believes the voice could be part of a ruse from the very cultists they’re trying to track down or some kind of demon.
• Zenafel explains that her blessing can affect healing too, if that helps. This only further convinces Rettniss that this is some form of demon
  • Zenafal’s Blessing:
    • Paladin +1d8 Radiant Damage to any attack (melee, ranged, magic, etc.)
    • Wizard +1d4 Radiant Damage to any attack (melee, ranged, magic, etc.)
    • Monk +1d4 Radiant Damage to any attack (melee, ranged, magic, etc.)
    • Bard +1d4 Radiant Damage to any attack (melee, ranged, magic, etc.)
    • Druid +1d6 Radiant Damage and Healing (melee, ranged, magic, etc.) – unfortunately, this blessing was not accepted
• The path before Avacyn now lights up – where the red dust – she can see black foot prints that glow with dark energy – it seems to be four figures and two large dog prints that are also exuding evil – and down below – something darker – a demon of some kind.
• The party begins to follow Avacyn who claims the footprints glow with black energy against the red dust of the cavern
• The thundering sound of the heartbeat gets louder and louder – and only Rettniss seems bothered by it and she realizes that it must be the angel’s blessing is protecting the others – but she manages to remain coherent
• Up ahead – they hear voices – but the thumping of the heart drowns it out for Rettniss, who proceeds to fail her Dexterity check when Pass without a trace was active (my home rule is pretty much just don’t critical fail and pass without a trace works perfect…)

• Rettniss proceeds to tumble down the stone cave incline slightly, making enough noise that the people just beyond – who’d been chanting suddenly stop
• A moment later – a magical darkness covers the cavern beyond

• With their position revealed – and the cave ahead cloaked in darkness – Sindri casts Light on a stone and throws it down – and clearly sees symbols and runes on the floor indicating some kind of ritual
• Rettniss quickly makes her way back to the party – just in time to see a fireball beam from out of the magical darkness centered on the party!

• Rettniss feels the heat first and is quickly able to dive from cover (successful Dexterity save against the fireball), Sindri who is so focused on the runes fails (critical fail!), Twilight, Hartmut, Avacyn and Arhian all quickly dive for cover – with only Sindri taking on the full blast of the fireball – the others taking half damage.
• Avacyn drags Sindri aside. The forest gnome, whose robes are singed, along with the edges of his beard and hair, mutters, “That didn’t feel good.” He then scowls at Rettniss, who had somehow managed to avoid the blast – but also had been the one who tripped and alerted the cultists to their presence.
• As the battle starts, Arhian and Sindri both leap up (Natural 20s!), followed by Twilight, Avacyn, Hartmut and Rettniss – inside the darkness – the cultists – and the demon see the adventurers prepare for battle and also prepare for what they might do next
• Arhian fires blindly into the magical darkness to see if she can hit anything
• Sindri casts Detect Magic and sees a demon inside the darkness and a cultist – but more shockingly – the whole room floor seems to glow with runes like he’d never seen before – but he can piece together – it’s some form of conjuration – based on the color of the glow – and knows it’s undoubtedly some kind of summoning circle
• Sindri returns the favor with a fireball – back towards where the original one had come from –

• As Avacyn rushes in – she lets out a scream of pain – as her armor is heated up – something or someone has cast Heat Metal
• As the darkness is lifted – the demon is revealed –

• And a cultist casts from the back – and begins casting Fireball again – however, Sindri is able to quickly counter spell it
• The room also shows signs of being a ritual – with an altar in the center

• The cultist and demon are defeated – and the party enters the cavern to examine the area – and just then the runes on the floor light up – and a force wall rises – and a pulsing energy emits as three cultists and two, two headed dogs emerge from the other side, from within the force-wall. The cultists unleash the two headed dogs…

• As the rounds of battle go on – after the second round – the summoning circle ignites – and many of the party begin to feel their strength being sapped from them – so much so, after a few rounds, Hartmut is rendered unconscious as all of his strength drains from him
• Sindri notices that the altar in the center seems to be the key – the runes around it the root – and he shouts to destroy the altar – between the dogs, the armored war casting cultists, and now being distracted to destroy the altar before more of their own fall unconscious – the war priest cultists are able to deal significant damage
• Once the altar is destroyed the cultists know they will not be able to complete the ritual here and Belaros will punish them – so one rushes up to the party, all gathered around the altar, and ignites himself – triggering an explosion that causes significant damage – the second cultist races over to do the same – but a well placed barrage of magic missile – to prevent the cultist from triggering his self destruct, and kills him
• The last remaining dog bites its own neck taking its own life (critical fail)

• The party searches the one cultist who did not manage to blow himself apart, and finds a note…