I hate to post something random but I’ve been playing D&D all day and did not take time out to write a post. As a way to keep my streak going, here’s a first-person account I wrote of Lord Emil Warjos describing, in ballad form, the slaying of the Scourge of the Sunset Coast, the ancient red dragon, Tountomos Perjorative, Matron of Ashes. Thanks for your patience and readership.
Eigntontrom tek’n
Dragon slayer
Bhlt qdnosh
Enchanter
Hrontomos os qdnosh
Chaos (random?) Magic
Eignontrom tek’n
Dragon slayer
Rhaad gnetos woik
Knowledge get world
ne’a Troudom woik
Order (world? land?)
Tountomos, old female red dragon. Born before the Old Empire.
First we had to get a scale and a claw and a tooth of the dragon from her lair. Many lizard folk and kobolds guarded the caverns in which she slept, and a band of cultists dogged our trail, harassing us and seeking to delay us, for what reason we knew not.
But eventually we made it past the early defenses (a pit of oil that the slightest spark or flame would set off into a raging conflagration) and obtained one each of scale, claw and tooth.
Then bargain with the elves to help them enchant a weapon to slay it. We had to do several small deeds to win the favor of the elves and their queen, since none of us were of elfin blood. But eventually we began the process of enchanting the weapon. The final stages had to be done on the grounds of the old elven fortress. We explored the ruins and found that there was, at one time, underground passages, but they had all been collapsed and impassable. When Anansegr the Elven wizardess began the final ritual, an army of undead skeletons and zombies appeared and attacked her; we fought them long enough to complete the ritual.
We ended up with a single arrow of slaying. We protected it from the kobolds and lizard folk in the dragon’s thrall and carried it past the dragons defenses once again
We ventured back into the mountains, ran afoul of the dwarves there, escaped, and crossed into the dragons domain. We were attacked again by the cultists, and captured one of their number, a woman. Ilbhaan questioned her, trying to find out what the cultists were up to. She struck me as insane, babbling on about how magic was going to doom us all, and how much better off we would be without it. Her words struck deep into Ilbhaan. He spent much time in conversation with her. Eventually, he convinced her to help us slay the dragon. She was eager for its demise, but wary of Ilbhaan’s magic.
Once again past the dragon’s defenses, deeper, until we found the sleeping chamber of Tountomos.
She was waiting for us. Somehow, she knew that we had her doom with them.
She whipped up sorcerous winds to deflect any arrow; we began a holding action to wait out the spell. We took blows that would slay a normal man dead, and kept fighting. Chaisa held strong in her faith and helped the group maintain, but it was taking too long. Finally, Diggy managed to steal a gem from her horde and began climbing out of the cavern, which was enough to enrage her and cause her to chase after him. In the tight tunnel, the winds were no longer a factor, and Warjos was able to take aim and fire.
I aimed true. The arrow struck.
Tountomos was slain.
But before the Wyrm died, she called out Ilbhaan’s name, and called him close. Wary of a trick, he protected himself with what few spells he had left, and walked over. She spoke to him in a corrupted dialect of Draconian and Old Imperial, whispered to him a prophecy, and foretold his doom.
He was ashen-faced and not from the exhaustion of battle. He was silent on the journey back, not even speaking to Mlanda, the cultist. As he used up his spells, he did not replenish them, until they were all gone.
We were rich beyond counting. Winter came, and we took our rest. Gorm, who had always felt a bit distant from Dwarven culture, settled in town, retired. Diggy went on a journey to the center of the Old Empire and back. I took up service with Baron Khelmos the Bold, and eventually became his heir when he passed away. Chaissa took over at the cathedral and, with the dwarves’ aid, expanded and completed its construction.