Amanita (Chapter 17)
Template:Amanita nav The seven tomb complexes in this canyon were each marked with a different Horadric rune, representing different steps on a seven-tiered path to ultimate enlightenment. It probably didn't mean much. Tal Rasha was supposed to be highly respected, but he was in the tomb with a square rune, the lowest tier. It probably had more to do with where there was room. The canyon floor was littered with urns, burial chests, and dried-up human bones. Looks like the lost Tombs of the Magi weren't really so lost. Somebody'd made a good living smashing mummies for amulets and things. Of course, if I could find the place in only three days, the local nomads wouldn't have any trouble, and knowing how much money wizards usually have, there was probably too much loot around here not to go after it.
The canyon looked empty. The rocky ground wouldn't hold tracks, but I couldn't see or hear anything. Even the wind was quiet. Before I went any further, I took the waypoint back to Lut Gholein. The palace was still there, with no sign of Jerhyn. His cellars were empty. At Atma's, the two guardsmen were on the floor, snoring.
"Amy!" a voice called. Atma hurried over. "Is it true?"
"Is what true? About Jerhyn's palace, monsters in the basement, the hideous mass slaughter, all that stuff?"
She nodded, worry clouding the air. "Kaelan told us horrible things were invading the city from within the palace. The harems were all slain, as well as all the city guards but he and his friend. Is it true?"
"It was. I took care of it, though. Anybody seen Jerhyn? I couldn't find him."
"Warriv told me he saw someone fleeing into the desert on horseback, but his face was hidden. I thought only a madman would leave the shelter of our walls, but Kaelan's drunken tales made madness seem sensible. Were we really in such danger?"
"Yeah, it was pretty bad. Jerhyn had a sorcerer summoning demons in his cellars. He was trying to contain the guy, which is just stupid if you ask me. There's only one way to deal with a summoner, and containment isn't it."
"What was he doin' that for?" Geglash suddenly slobbered. Apparently, the mountain of soaked sot draped over one end of the bar had regained consciousness.
"He was crazy, pretty much." I shrugged. "He was a sorcerer."
"Maybe he didn't have anything to drink in there. I get mad when I don't have enough to drink. If you don't have anything to drink, it'll drive you to drink, but you don't have anything to drink, which drives you to drink, and... what were we talking about?"
"Nothing, go back to sleep. Speaking of sorcerers, is Drognan around?"
Atma shook her head. "His shop did not open this morning. I fear the worst."
"Look, if Jerhyn's gone, you're better off without him. Believe me."
"But who will lead our city?"
I shrugged. "Have you considered running for public office? You could make Geglash your official wine taster."
Atma frowned. "This is no time for jokes. I know nothing of running a city."
"I'm serious. The worst things in cities happen in bars and taverns. If you know how to run a tavern, you can handle a city."
"I'm sure you're not speaking from experience. In any event, with nothing to pay Greiz for his services, Lut Gholein will soon be overrun. If Jerhyn truly has fled, I have little doubt the city's treasury vanished with him."
"That might not be a problem either. I found Tal Rasha's tomb."
The look on her face was all the reward I needed. "You've found it? I always thought the tomb was nothing but a tale to frighten children... but it really exists?"
"Yep, it's there. The next step is to go in and get Baal. Plan B is to ambush Diablo when he shows up. If I get 'em both, it'll wipe out all their summons and make the desert a lot easier to clean up."
"You are already the greatest hero I have ever known. If you accomplish this, legends will echo your name for centuries. Is there anything we can do for you? Anything at all?"
"Hmm... can't think of anything. Geglash? Got anything for the conquering hero before she strides boldly into combat mortal against insurmountable odds?"
"Uh..." Geglash thought. I could almost hear the gears grinding. Finally, he spoke. "All my years of fighting, pummeling both the unsuspecting and the deserving, have yielded one insight: you can fight, or you can run. All strategies are but variations of these."
"Wow. What about fighting and running at the same time?"
That one seemed to stump him. He thought, and thought, and thought some more, until he fell asleep. I dropped five gold on the bar, and took a cigar. "See you soon."
Maybe I shouldn't have, but the first thing I did was go through the urns and chests piled up near the center of the canyon. Most were intact, and had valuables. My tomb robber was smart enough not to take it all at once, and flood the market. In fact, that might be him over there, crumpled on his side with a spear sticking out of his back. Beyond the body... Cat People, creeping towards me on little cat feet. When our eyes met, they broke into a run and were on top of me in seconds, swords swinging.
These cats were fast. I could not bring the bow up in time to shoot, or run fast enough to get some distance. Behind the sword cats were spear cats, working together almost like a military unit. All of them had shields. Only two kinds of enemies really give me problems: dead ones who don't care about poison, and ones with shields. The crossbow's slow loading gives them all the time they need to block. I've heard professional soldiers like crossbows, they're easier to use than regular bows. Professional soldiers also have rows of pikemen to hide behind while they prep their next shot. If I couldn't blow their minds, I don't know what I would have done.
The mental disciplines aren't easy, but I've always been pretty good with them. It's part of the reason I don't like mixing it up much. The strongest technique, the mind blast, hits the victim right in the seat of consciousness. For a few seconds, they won't know who they are, where they are, or what they were doing before. Mind Blasts are a great way to set enemies up or neutralize guards. It's rarely fatal, so you can stun bystanders without leaving a mess. You don't have to approach or expose yourself. And on Diablo's guys, sometimes they'll start attacking each other. Not for long, but enough to take some heat off of me. Regular people don't react that way, but regular people usually aren't as hostile as Cat People.
There were a lot of bodies in the canyon, mostly old but some very new. Even without the cats, I had a sneaking suspicion Diablo was already here. Inside the tomb, my first fight confirmed it: Vampires. They're undead, but they feed on the living, so you don't find them in tombs. Having living blood in them makes them more vulnerable to poison than most dead guys, so killing them wasn't a problem. Meeting Diablo in there might be a problem. Andarial wasn't too bad to deal with, but she was known to be a poor fighter. Diablo was supposed to be the toughest of all the demon princes. I'd much rather deal with Baal, alone.
I never did meet Diablo, or if I did see him, I didn't recognize him. The Horadrim's best and brightest were there, though. Their skeletons really clogged up the doorways. I could get the skellies with a single blast, but even after they attacked each other, the mummy just healed them and sent them back after me. My options were either to retreat and get the servants away from their master, or blast them while they were together in the middle of a room. Watching confused skeletons carving up their own master is a lot of fun after all the times those damned resurrecting bastards got in my way.
I found what I was looking for in the far southern end of the complex: an empty chamber with a socket in the floor, surrounded by the runes of the seven-fold path. One wall had deep scratches in it, like something very big had tried to get through. Yes, Diablo has been here, and left. He'd be back, when he had something to break that wall.
The staff was in my pack where I'd left it. I thought the headpiece was missing, but it turns out one of the amulets I brought back from the Viper temple was a headpiece. I'd given it to Cain, but he forgot to tell me after he heard I'd gotten in the palace. Back in the tomb, everything was like I'd left it. The cube joined headpiece and shaft, the staff went into the socket, and the wall burst open in a spray of lightning. An unidentifiable stench washed out of the hole. I didn't want to go, but I couldn't be sure if Diablo wasn't hiding nearby, waiting for me to open the wall. I dove in fast -- and stepped into empty space.
I rolled into the fall, which was about ten feet, and landed with a splat. I was on my knees in a dark room full of something slimy. A voice like a clogged drain belched "Looking for Baal?" As I fired blind, something wet crushed into me. Whatever it was, now it was sitting on my bow, bashing on my head with what felt like two axes. Out came the katar as I rolled away and tried to get to my feet. Whatever I was in, it was too slick to stand on. That mass of flesh was chasing me, sliding easily through the muck to slam me again. I skidded into a wall, and decided it might be a good place to stay. At least the thing couldn't knock me around anymore. Instead, it pushed into me, trying to pin me under its pulpy body. As I slashed, the only thing I could think it felt like was a giant caterpillar.
It hit me a lot, I hit it a lot. Finally, I stopped slashing and plunged my arms in, trying to reach some kind of vital organs under all the flab. Axe blows hammered down on my head and back until I was armpit-deep in the thing. There was nothing else to do: I took a deep breath, ducked my head, and carved my way in deeper. It seemed to object, but pretty soon I couldn't hear it anyway. Groping blindly through ropy coils of I-don't-WANT-to-know-what, I finally found something that pulsed, and cut it to pieces.
Whatever it was I did, the thing died, and flopped over like a sack of meat. I had to carve my way out upwards, through the thing's back. The things I'll do to save the world. Once I got my light relit, I had a look around. I was in an empty room, with a pile of guts, legs, and oozing fat slowly spreading out over the floor. It had a weird horned helm and a couple of daggers, but nothing special. Opposite the way I'd come in was a huge hole in the wall. I went to look -- it led to another tomb, probably the complex just south of this one. Looks like when they buried Tal Rasha, they made the front door strong, but forgot to reinforce the entire tomb. Diablo just went around, and made a back door for himself.
I went to check the rest of the tomb anyway. One side hall led to a prison chamber. It wasn't quite empty. Standing in the middle of the room, near a column draped with chains was... an angel. He couldn't be anything else. The angel was tall, and might have been handsome, but I couldn't think like that looking at him. His feet didn't quite touch the ground; he floated effortlessly above the slime. Light was leaking out of cracks in his armor. I never thought I'd ever see an angel. I must have looked pretty stupid, standing there staring at him. Then, his light shone on me.
I am the Archangel Tyrael.
for us all! It is good
runs out to see you,
before time oh wow though I
in Kurast, oh wow oh wow did expect
Mephisto oh wow oh wow you earlier.
from freeing oh wow Diablo came
keep them and freed his
You must brother Baal.
I could not stop them.
It only took an instant, then he faded away as I watched. Tyrael waited here for Diablo, but Diablo's servant freed Baal while they were fighting. Now he was hurt, and was going away to rest and heal. The civil war in Hell had ended abruptly, very recently. The maggot pile in the outer chamber was the lesser evil Duriel, left to kill me as a punishment for leading the rebellion against The Three. I knew everything I needed to know: where to find Mephisto, even what was going on in Kurast. I don't know how I knew. But I knew what to do.
Concluding thoughts:
- Is an Assassin with Burst of Speed active more vulnerable to poison? The Maggot Queen's venomous death seemed to hit Amanita harder than usual.
- Resurrecting creatures are even more annoying when they die slow.
- Mind Blast is a blast. The chance to convert at range is incredibly convenient.