"You want to adore master? Master is a glorious dragon! Yes, yes, adore master like Bile!"

Kaleas paused for a beat as he chose his words - and his change of topic - carefully; he also took the opportunity to ease out of his fighting stance into a merely guarded one. "Bile. How many of your clan are now left?"

"Have clutch of eggs, if gather bodies and give to master can animate bodies to serve until new clutch ages. But, Bile last one," it said.

Kaleas couldn't help but be surprised by one of those claims, but he dutifully kept his reactions in check. "Your dragon-master is also a necromancer? That's unusual. What else can they do?"

"Come, you meet and master can accept your adoration!"

"That sounds like a pretty bad idea," Ranndal says to the others.

Kaleas managed to slip in a sidelong glance of agreement before returning his attention to the kobold.

He took a deep breath before proceeding. "Bile. You need to collect the eggs and leave. A master that raises the dead, no matter how glorious, will bring a bad end to your clan." He paused to point to the bodies littering the area. "The others are dead now because the master had you raid for them. And if the master will raise them as undead to serve, the master may do even worse with your eggs. You are not being protected by your master, you are being used."

The huntsman tended to his companions as best he could whilst the interrogation of the remaining kobold took place. His shoulders, neck and shoulders still ached from the icy blast he'd been served by the little runt... which meant there was not a whole lot of sympathy. Even so, Ehryk could understand the defense of their lair and the subservience to a more powerful creature. Nature was rife with such circumstances...

After gathering whatever arrows he could find that weren't damaged, Ehryk asked, "How do we disable the boulder?" It was still running its course around and around and around..."

"What color is your Master, Bile? You do realize that your master will probably kill you for your failure here, but rather than raise you again, he'll likely just eat you. How far away is his lair?"

Brom wasn’t sure of some of the looks or where the conversation was going.  At a pause he did pipe in.

“Can’t have Brom’s coin.  Gold for King.”  He set his sack of 700gp down in front of the kobold to prove it.

"Oh, all gold is for glorious White Master, lovingly called Szartharrax by the true followers. Yes, give gold big man and you will be exalted as loyal and rewarded, yes yes!"

Bile gave a strange look at Kaleas. "Why would master punish Bile? Master adores Bile, Bile raised Master. Master is destined for greatness. Meet master and he will prove himself worthy of such praises and adoration!"


Bile spoke a word in draconic and the boulder rolled itself back into its starting position. "Boulder obey Bile!"

Kaleas seemed about to say something, then switched to a slightly different subject. "You raised him? How did you find him?" His ears angled together in a fashion reminiscent of raised eyebrows on a human face. "And did you give him that name?"

"Raised him, yes! Found him, yes, blessed by the high one, yes! Found the egg, while seeking a home. And master declared his own name when he hatched, such a wondrous master!" The kobold seemed to be experiencing some weird paternal adoration, which considering kobolds, is unheard of, ...  "Come, come I show you to master, next generation of eggs and you'll worship him, and all violence toward kobold stop, yes?"

Kaleas was silent for a moment, clearly feeling the weight of the options being weighed. Then he looked about at each of the others present as he asked quietly, "Does anyone wish to say anything to this?"

“NO TAKE KING’S GOLD!”  Brom counters in a loud threatening manner as he packs the hood away again.

Intimidate 12

There was only grim silence from most and a loud repudiation from Brom. Kaleas's attention focused back on the kobold, not quite grim but certainly sober and serious. "Bile. Kobolds often worship dragons. Others rarely do. To others, a white dragon is most often a threat. Something to be eliminated. So are raiders who strike and take for the sake of a master, dragon or otherwise. If we don't do it, others will come in our stead, and they will kill you, and your master."

He paused for a moment as if considering whether to say more or simply let their blades do the talking, but in the end he chose to speak again. "There is only one way that I can see to keep that from happening: you and your master must take the eggs, and nothing else, and leave. Not just this catacomb: leave the Vale. There are colder lands to the far north that would better suit a white dragon. Go there, away from all others, and don't raid again. Give your master only what you can produce yourselves."

"If you are gone, and the things that you took are returned, then the Vale-folk will have no reason to continue striking against you. This will be difficult, I admit, and your master may not be willing to agree to it. If not, you may still take your eggs and leave without your master. Your clan will still have a chance to survive elsewhere without him. It won't if it stays here with him. Do you understand?"

"Leave for colder climes and not bother Vale... Yes, Bile will see if master agrees to this plan," the kobold said. Threats of violence hinted were not lost on the kobold. Live another day to worship master where not many bad people try to kill clan is smart!

Unless Kaleas (or another stops Bile) the kobold will head out...

Kaleas didn't stop Bile. He did motion for the others to follow, and himself followed Bile a few paces back and slightly to one side, at least until the point that Bile reached whatever room his master dwelt in. There he waited at the entrance, or whatever vantage would least intrude while allowing them to observe the exchange between kobold and dragon.

He had a feeling that it would go poorly, but at least there was a chance...

OOC: not going to type out the entire exchange…

Bike used masterful pleas and entreated the master to the benefits of relocating to a remote location far from adventurers who would kill the clan or master. The dragon agreed that it was far wiser to live away from civilization and grow stronger as a tribe. They gathered the few remaining survivors, their pet rock, and eggs and departed never to be heard from in the vale…

Kaleas felt a sense of relief when the dragon, against all odds, proved amenable to reason. There'd been enough blood spilled for one day, and while there was no guarantee about the future, a white dragon that was willing to put wisdom ahead of pride was enough of a rarity to let live, and the kobolds might remember his words when the next temptation came.

That was for the future. For now, they were leaving. He even helped them to collect their things in preparation for moving out.

Inside the cave where the master resided was a shallow pool with a shrine to some undeath deity. The necromantic aura from that pool was nauseating to any that drew near.

And dragon or not, anything with intelligence would realize the veracity in which the group tore down its followers is a battle best to avoid. Dragons are cunning and would learn from mistakes.

With the draconic assemblage gone, Kaleas returned to the final chamber and stared hard at the necro-pool. That had to be dealt with.


Which deity (or equivalent) is that shrine to?

Unless it seems too potent/cursed to do so safely, Kaleas (and hopefully also Ehryk) will dismantle the shrine and perform a cleansing/sanctification to get rid of its influence before we leave.

00:44, Today: Secret Roll: Kaleas rolled 18 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 13.  Shrine?

This message was last edited by the player at 00:49, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

The shrine is dedicated to Vecna. Evil God of the Undead and Necromancy. Lord of Secrets.

Deconstructing the shrine and performing rites to cleanse the area of its influence would take some time, but it would be time well spent. A source of necromantic power in the depths of a crypt was trouble, with or without the involvement of an ill-intended god.

After that they could undertake a final sweep of the entire place to ensure that there were no other hidden secrets - more likely than normal given the shrine - or lurking threats, including "presents" that the kobolds might have prepared and left unused during the assault.

Ranndal (as well as, one suspects, Brom) will set about cheerfully "deconstructing" anything that isn't a natural feature.

The shrine is dismantled, the powers of necromancy are disrupted, and the one remaining trap is discovered and destroyed.

You are thanked and rewarded for returning the goods to the merchant (200 gold as promised). The suggestion to destroy the place is evaluated...


OOC: Is there anything particular your group wishes to do?