he welfth alisman
art 1 ower n he ky

The following morning Colloran had a serious and concerned look on his face as he sat down with the others at breakfast.
"I need to return to my order in Specularum. The lamp we recovered from the nagpa needs to be investigated and possibly destroyed." The paladin said earnestly. "We have delayed here long enough."
"We should destroy it now." Said Ako. "It could easily fall into the wrong hands or corrupt us before we can hand it to your order."
"We would be fools to destroy it." Said Rellan, "It can be used to control undead. That would make it a powerful weapon in the right hands."
Colloran's face went purple with rage. "We do not know the full range of its powers. My order has spent generations studying and seeking artefacts such as this. We know more than any other the dangers such items pose."
Rellan snorts but doesn't argue any further. Just then Cain entered the tap room and sat down, a concerned or thoughtful look on his face.
"I had a dream, a premonition, a foretelling, whatever you wish to call it last night." He said at last. "An icy wind blowing across a snowy landscape, flat not mountainous. Two people are scrabbling in the snow, you Trimus and you Darkhawk. They stop and look up at a distant glint in the sky. Darkhawk, you said 'Its here.' Before continuing with your digging. A heavily cloaked figure, I'm not sure who this was, approached hunched up against the wind and said 'Hurry. They are coming.' Who 'they' were or what the glint in the sky was I have no idea. These visions just come unbidden into my head. I have learnt to trust them, after all one brought us together, did it not?" "Do you know where this was?" asked Trimus.
"No it was not anywhere I recognised." Replied the mystic. "Nor do I know whether this is far in the future or just a few hours away. There were no clues to either in my vision. It is probably best to ignore it for now."

They finished their breakfast quietly before returning to the Phoenix, a crocodile of villagers following behind. The children where cheering and waving makeshift flags of a flame and a burnt rod as they skipped along beside their parents. They had spent an hour or so the previous evening studying what maps and charts could be found in the village and they now new that Specularum lay a day or so distant to the south east. With that information in mind they boarded the skyship, waved goodbye to the villagers of Kotsmar and took off. They remained visible for a while circling the village enjoying the look of awe on the children's faces before flying south east towards Specularum.

After a few hours journey, Jodotha spied a circle of fire some one hundred feet across in the sky directly ahead. In the cabin behind he and Ako could hear an argument raging. The rogue opened the door so he could see what was going on. Darkhawk was standing in the centre of the cabin, holding his amulet in his hand. Though the fighter's back was turned Jodotha could see that the amulet was glowing brightly.
"Ako." Said Darkhawk, turning to face the cleric at the controls of the Phoenix. "We must enter the ring."
"Don't be stupid! Don't listen to what he says." Argued Trimus. "It is the evil powers trying to recapture us after we thwarted them. They want the lantern."
"I agree." Said Colloran, "We must keep going. No more delays."
"Ako, listen to me. We must enter the ring. It is vital." Pleaded Darkhawk.
Ako brought the Phoenix to a standstill and turned around. "Why is it so important that we enter this ring?"
"A voice, a female voice, is calling me, pleading with me to enter. The voice is familiar, but I cannot place it exactly." Said Darkhawk.
"That is hardly a recommendation for entering something unknown." Said Rellan dryly.
"If you won't go in I will. Alone." said Darkhawk with steely determination in his voice.
"Oh no you won't" said Trimus and cast a spell upon the fighter who froze in mid stride as if paralysed. He gave Trimus a despairing, frustrated look before his eyes widened and he transformed into the form of a Celestial Knight. This desperate act freed him from the effects of the spell.
"What are you playing at Trimus!" demanded Darkhawk.
"It may have been safe for you to enter but what about us?" Explained Trimus. "And as for you going on alone, that is even more foolish. We have no idea what dwells beyond the ring."
"It's gone." Said Ako from the control room. "It just vanished."
"See Darkhawk, if we had gone through as you wished we may never have managed to get back from where ever the other side of that ring is."
Darkhawk nodded and sat down, the talisman about his neck no longer glowing.
They continued for a few more hours, nobody speaking, Darkhawk sitting morosely, turning the talisman over in his hands. Suddenly he leapt up with a yell. The talisman had started glowing again. Almost simultaneously Ako brought the Phoenix to a standstill. Once more ahead of them, closer this time was the fiery ring.
Ako edged the skyship closer to the ring before casting a spell.
"It doesn't appear to be a trap." he said.
"Nor is it evil." Said Rellan who had also cast a spell.
"I believe it is a portal." Said Trimus. "Look the sky is bluer in the centre then it is outside the ring."
"We must go in." pleaded Darkhawk. "The voice is calling me."
"Don't talk to me about voices." Said Jodotha, the events in Kotsmar still all too fresh in his mind.
"Take her in." said Trimus, stalling Colloran's objections with a raised hand. "It has blocked our path twice now. If we don't go in now we will have this discussion all the way to Specularum. Let's do it."
Ako nodded and eased the Phoenix forward. As they passed through the ring there was a slight jolt and immediately they sensed that they were no where near where they had been. The sky was in a different part of the sky, which was blue and below them stretched a carpet of clouds. Poking through the clouds a few hundred yards ahead was a tall tower. Circling the tower were a number of dragons of all colours. As they approached the tower more details could be made out. It was constructed of a pale marble with veins of green and pink and was at least eighty feet across. Its smooth surface was pierced with numerous openings and windows. At one of the openings two figures could be seen waving. As Ako slowed the skyship and brought it close to the opening they recognised the figures, Torvas and Alasandri the testers of Darkhawk. After Ako had landed the skyship in the domed room Darkhawk stepped out and bowed in greeting. Torvas, wearing a plain grey tunic and trousers appeared pleased to see Darkhawk while Alasandri in a golden robe holding a hoop of similar hue seemed less happy.
"Hello chosen one." Said Torvas. "Welcome all. We are pleased you accepted our call."
Darkhawk turned and smirked at the others.
"Let us go somewhere more comfortable, your ship will be safe here." Said Torvas.
He led them down a spiral stair to an area of branching passage ways where a young, slender elf was waiting.
"This is Derrendarile." The elf bowed. "He will show you to your rooms."
The elf led them in silence through bare corridors past a number of doors till they were shown into a large room furnished with a number of leather chairs and sofas. There was also a large table laden with fruit, wine, ale, pastries and sweet rolls. A bookcase containing an assortment of scrolls and books filled one wall while on others were hung large tapestries depicting battles against hordes of undead. Derrendarile bowed and left.
Trimus fingered the tomes and scrolls. None were texts of magic but he plucked a few books from the shelves and curled up in one of the chairs to read them. Darkhawk looked intently at the tapestries, at first he didn't find what he was searching for then with a smile he spotted it. He called Colloran over and pointed to a figure in armour the shade of midnight.
"He must be a celestial knight. He, or another very like him, appears in each of the tapestries." He said proudly fingering the amulet around his neck.
Trimus came over to join them. "These battles took place between two hundred and two thousand years ago. The books I found make mention of the celestial knights. They fought many battles against liches, spectres and zombies."

While the others were engrossed in examining the tapestry and listening to Trimus' lecture, Jodotha slipped through the door and out into the corridor. He moved quietly down the corridor, paused as an armoured knight came out of a door, said something in a foreign tongue to someone inside then walked off down the passage whistling a martial air. Jodotha waited for the knight to turn a corner before continuing along the corridor. He passed the door that he had seen the knight emerge from and carefully opened the next one along. He had to fight back an impulse to gasp as squatting with its back to the rogue was a large red dragon staring out of a wide archway, much like the one through which they had entered the tower. As quietly as he could he closed the door and slumped back against the wall, his pulse pounding in his temples. He opened his eyes once his heartbeat had slowed down and saw Cain looking at him.
"What are you doing?" the mystic asked quietly.
"Exploring." Said Jodotha curtly.
"We should go back, Alasandri and Torvas will be back soon, if we are missing then questions will be asked. We are guests here. Those that live an work here are very powerful and you could find more trouble than you can handle."
They moved aside to let a serving girl go past carrying an armful o fresh linen.
"Just one more door." Pleaded Jodotha.
"One more then." Said Cain reluctantly. "You are like a child in a sweet shop, Jodotha."
Jodotha grinned cheekily and checked the next door along the corridor, hearing voices in the room he listened at the next which was silent. He opened the door and looked in. Inside was a room much like the one that Jodotha and the others had been escorted to, though this one had a window that looked out onto the sky. Reluctantly he closed the door and returned to the others. He smiled however when he saw Rellan about to open the door to the dragon room. He moved silently along the corridor and waited for the elf to open the door before coughing. The elf jumped back drawing his sword in a fluid motion. Jodotha just smiled and waved cheekily at the elf. Cain just shook his head and urged them back into the chamber before they could cause anymore trouble.

Colloran shook his head when Jodotha entered but the rogue just shrugged and helped himself to a plump pear before slouching in a chair.
"Interesting guests they have here, Darkhawk." He said. "Rellan and I saw a red dragon a few doors down."
Darkhawk ignored the insouciant rogue preferring instead to study the tapestries.

Jodotha was getting restless again by the time that the door opened. Torvas and Alasandri walked in and sat on the edge of one of the sofas.
"Darkhawk, please sit down, we have a few things to say." Said Torvas. "We have been watching your progress. Despite our earlier doubts we have decided to admit you to the order of Celestial Knights."
A broad smile lit up Darkhawk's face.
"Should you decide to accept there is one thing we request, it may correspond with your needs, we require the Twelfth Talisman, the talisman you gave to Rintrah." "It is not ours to return." said Trimus. "We no longer have it."
"It was not your to give away in the first place." Said Alasandri, a sliver of steel in her voice.
"I will call upon him, he may be free to come here and deliver it in person." Said Trimus. He clasped the amulet and silently called upon his mentor. Yet again there was no reply. "I have not been able to contact him for a while, he may be too busy to answer. As I do not know where Rintrah is, I know not where your talisman is. What is special about it?"
"Give me the amulet Trimus" said Alasandri holding out a pale delicate hand. Trimus shrugged and placed the metal figure in her hand.
Torvas stood and walked over to one of the tapestries. "To answer your question, Trimus, the Twelfth Talisman was wielded by those who were our enemies. Originally it was the same as the other eleven but somehow the twelfth was flawed and those who used it became corrupted and used the powers of the talisman for evil." Torvas pointed out a dark figure in the background of one of the hangings. "This is the Shadowking. An evil creature and all that we do is aimed to destroying him. He was one of us who became corrupted by the talisman and summoned all that is evil to his banner."
"We had the talisman and yet we were not corrupted." Said Ako.
"Yes but the stone at it's heart was damaged reducing it's power." replied Torvas patiently. "The Shadowking has the power to repair it and use it again against us. We must have it back so that we can destroy it permanently or if that fails hide it so it can never be used against us." He stopped as Alasandri gasped and looked up. All turned to face the young woman and saw a cloudy shape form above the amulet she held.
"I have been trying to locate your mentor, Trimus." She gasped as the cloud began to take shape and substance. "I traced him to Eastern Glantri but then I had trouble getting past some heavy magical wards when I broke through this started to happen." She indicated the face forming in the cloud. "I recognise him." She said shakily, "It's Morbion."

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