The Journal of Martouk

There are secrets in the Crystal Spire. Terrible dark secrets to be sure if the madness that overwhelmed tis poor teifling is any indication. When she was revived, there was a wile look in her eyes and a madness to her voice.

Teifling Warlock

You will never stop Malachai! We were chosen not you!

Paraphrased. Uncertain about the spelling.

Our battle with her was observed by a group of half-orcs. They confronted us afterwards, although it was obvious that they were not hostile. They are the inhabitants of the region surrounding the Crystal Spire. From them we learned that the teifling was part of another band of adventurers who entered the spire earlier. They were concerned that we would meet the same fate. We gave them our assurances and displayed bravado. They seemed skeptical, but let us pass.

When we arrived at the spire, I was moved by its size and beauty. Neglect and the ravages of time and nature, have taken their toll. Even a waterfall has eroded it's way through on one side. But despite that, this is still a place of formidable power and knowledge!

There was some sort of battlefield before the spire. The bodies of several grimlocks lay about. Before we had a chance to investigate, the bodies rose up and attacked us. Entrails flailing about, grabbing at my companions. To make things worse, these horrible ghouls came out of nowhere with mouths in their stomach tearing at anyone unlucky enough to be distracted by the zombies. We defeated the ghouls and zombies without too much effort, but it does not bode well for what we will find inside the spire.

Five of the eight great stone sentries still stood before its gate. If my memory serves (and it always does), these statues could be brought to life to defend the spire by placing an ioun stone inside it. What I would give to be in possession of such an artifact. Or to obtain the services of such a powerful golem.

Before entering the spire, my companions spotted a nearby cave. Although it doesn't look to be connected to the spire, it would provide cover for an ambush. Indeed, the cave contained several horrible aberrations that took nearly all of us by surprise. My Dimension Door came in handy again, taking me above the creatures to rain death down on them from a safe distance. We have encountered foulspawn like these before: manglers, berserkers, a hulk and a seer. The battle eventually went our way, but not without great effort. I fear we may have to recouperate before going back the the Crystal Spire.

Caledath;2225

Now that I think of it Martouk vaguely resembles my feysworn Mistress. I wonder if we might be related?

You take that BACK!!

This party is like the United Colors of Bennetton for D&D.

Just as I thought the peasants were finally giving this Eladrin the respect he deserves, it turns out they were just frightened of the zombies.
Normally, I would have written off such feeble zombies as nothing more than a nuisance. However, one peasant mentioned Gaius Mirti had performed some dark ritual in the temple at the center of their village.
Indeed, upon entering the temple of Pelor, we found that the priest had been slain and an enormous, evil tome lay on the alter pulsating with evil power. Most of the villagers had gathered in the temple but were afraid to approach the alter. Hesitant to approach myself, I attempted to close the book with magic, but it was too massive to do so.
We asked the villagers to leave for their own safety. They finally did, but only after some "convincing" from Kravaxsaar. Caledath and I studied the tome, our sanity tested with each turn of the page. I was intrigued, fascinated by the secrets and power that lay within, but there was no time to study or unlock those secrets. Already the peasants were desperately pounding on the temple doors. When we opened the doors to let them in, my, and Caledath's fears were confirmed: Every corpse of every creature within miles of here had risen from their resting places and were descending on the book.
There was no way to escape at this point. We watched as a poor dog tried to escape between the growing hoards of skeletons and zombies only to meet a grizzly fate at the jaws of some enormous skeleton... The temple was the most solid and secure structure around, so it made sense to barricade ourselves inside while we try to stop the magic that animated the dead.
Being in the house of Pelor, I beseeched the god for help while Caledath attempted to wrest control of the spell from the book. Meanwhile, all manner of zombies were crashing through windows, doors, and even tunneling from below. Veera did her best to fortify openings, directing villagers to move the pews and bookcases where needed. Ia, Sevrid and Kravaxsaar held off the zombies that breeched those barriers.
In the end, regretfully, the tome had to be destroyed. All that power and knowledge lost. Despite the malevolent sentience within it, I believe I could have mastered it with time.
Only after destroying the tome did the magic possessing the corpses recede, but not before Thorvald crashed through the window seeking revenge. Once again, he proved no match for his brother, even amidst all the zombies we were still fighting off. Unfortunately, Thorvald escaped again, turning into his gaseous form and flying out through the night.

We have not been here long, but already I am longing for the tall trees and running waters of the Twilight Forest. I am not easily given over to home sickness (not that I consider the Twilight Forest my true home).

Perhaps it was encountering Aron after so many years. My long absence is surely at the heart of his and his brother's straying from the path of reason and logic... It's been days since that encounter and still my mind drifts towards these thoughts.

Perhaps it was spending all that time in the Underdark with mushrooms and drow. Just thinking of that makes me sick. My biggest regret was not burning every drow in that place to ash. Maybe someday, when I'm more powerful, I shall return to complete that work.

Perhaps it's this damnable Mirti estate. With it's cold stones, ghosts and vampires. No sky overhead or leaves under foot. I'll never understand my companions excitement for reclaiming such a place. There is certainly knowledge to be gained and power to claim, but they are more interested in collecting taxes, trading with Duran Keep and trying to restore it to its former glory.

No, it's none of these things! They are merely distractions from my true path. I have already amassed considerable power while traveling with the group from Duran Keep. My companions are the adventuring types. They will get bored with managing a castle. Besides, there is unfinished business to attend. Gaius Mirti and Thorvald are still running around in the wild. They are as good an excuse as any to try out some of my new spells.