Karlach approached from the gale's opposite side, her physique, a barbarian's build, lifting the frail wizard with ease.
William looked over and saw a singular bead of sweat evaporating as it passed over her bountiful chest and flushed momentarily, his storm-colored skin changing to a bright purple before returning to normal.
He managed to turn his head just in time to see Karlach's gaze sweep across his face, feeling her eyes on him as if they were a tangible, physical presence.
She didn't even realize it, but a thin, almost imperceptible smile began to spread across her face.
As they neared the last there was a faint smell of sulfur and suddenly.
WHOOOSH
A pillar of flames surged forth, casting a glow that seemed to make the very shadows around them writhe and contort as if each shadow contained a legion of demonic creatures.
Hehehehehehe
The sound of laughter echoed from all directions at once, and from the pillar of fire stepped an offensively handsome man with high-quality clothing and a permanent smile that seemed to chill the very air despite the fire surrounding him.
"Oh if it isn't Zariels latest play thing, quite the muscles on you..." He eyes her up and down with a gaze that sends chills down her spine, her internal heart beats wildly, and with a grim expression, she pulls the battle axe from her back, pointing it towards the man.
Raphael was widely recognized as a Cambion, a hybrid creature born from the union of a human and a demon, specifically a direct offspring of the powerful demon Mephistopheles.
His heritage endowed him with extraordinary abilities, making him a figure of considerable influence and authority within his father's vast domain, the Nine Hells.
As a result of his connection to Mephistopheles and his inherent power, Raphael was granted his own personal castle, which he called in an ironic twist The House of Hope and territory, ensuring his continued existence and influence within the demon realm.
"Speak devil or I shall cut you down!" Karlach growled her hands wrapping tight around the battle-axe.
Gale summoned a fistful of lightning with great effort prepared for Whatever came next.
William remained surprisingly calm, having already spent some time in the human world, he had experienced the initial chapter and found Raphael's sudden appearance to be somewhat annoying.
Despite the fact that he knew Cambions were virtually immune to fire in most of its manifestations, he still summoned a ball of fire in his hand, likely doing so to maintain a semblance of control and an illusion of surprise.
Raphaels smile stretched to an unnatural degree and he raised his hands as if placating them, however the infernal red light in his eyes gave them no illusions of safety.
"Now... Now... None of that." He snapped his fingers, and as if they were a candle being snuffed out by a cosmic storm, both spells fizzled out into nothingness, and Karlach's axe stuck fast into the ground as if being pressed on by gravity itself.
They stared at him with a mixture of fear and anger unable to so much as move lest the devil finish the job but all those thoughts came to their collective heads Raphael held up his palms peacefully.
"I heard from a little bird that he missed a few peculiar worms!" He spoke in an opera-style singing voice much to Karlach's frustration.
"Let's talk in a more... Civilized place!"
He waved his hand and suddenly the world spun around them, a literal tornado of hellfire dragging them to somewhere else.
The fire disappeared shortly after they did, with a distinctive pop as if it was a puncture hole in reality being filled back in, and they reappeared in an oddly opulent dining room complete with an intensely roaring fireplace, which upon closer listening you could faintly hear the distant screams of tortured souls.
"Where the hell are we?" Karlach growled, reaching for her weapon which wasn't there. She still raised her fists in preparation.
"Oh, never change, you big strawberry!" He turns away from Karlach and looks towards Gale.
Gales' eyes crackle with magic, but he is unable to summon anything; the very nature of the Nine Hells altering the fabric of the weave to such a degree that he could not call on it lightly.
Raphael approached the wizard a strange glint in his eye however as he is about to touch Gale the strange circular tattoo on his chest glowed with and intense and hungry light causing Raphael to pull back as if he had just touched a hot stove.
"That's a scary bomb you carry, best be wary, little wizard!" His eyes shone with subdued desire as he looked at the tattoo on Gale's chest.
His eyes turned to William and glowed with an intense and piercing infernal light, and his face seemed to harden for a moment before returning to normal, his smile returning.
"You... You are different, what are you little Half-Drow be sniffs the air menacingly his skin seemingly turning a deep shade of red.
"This will make the game so much more fun hahahahaha!" He cackled while never breaking eye contact and William had a feeling, a terrible feeling that Raphael knew of his truth, the fact that his entire consciousness belongs to a realm outside that of the Forgotten Realm.
He turns away from all three and waves his hand, in a burst of hellfire the table nearby is suddenly filled with large amounts of delicious looking food.
"Dig in!" Raphael gestures politely as if he were pantomiming what approximated a good host.
Karlach and Gale look at each other unsure if they should so much as touch the food, but as they waited, William walked past them as well as the devil Raphael and took a seat, immediately dug in, taking large portions of food into his mouth as if it was the first time he had ever eaten.
Raphael couldn't help but chuckle softly, observing this rather impressive display of nonchalant attitude. Soon, Karlach and Gale joined him, convinced by his actions and taking their seats on opposite sides of the table.
After waiting for them to eat their fill, Raphael spoke, his voice maintaining a sense of regal superiority even as he radiated contempt.
"I would like to make a deal, a wager perhaps if one were inclined to gamble!" He sits in a chair, and a burst of hellfire erupts from it.
"You or at least Karlach and Gale here have a problem, a problem that comes with lots pain and tentacles in all the wrong places!" He gestures towards them as he says this.
"Let's say I can rid you of this problem, I'd like to offer you this service in exchange for an item."
Karlach snorts rudely, "and why would we..." She is interrupted by Gale who has his hands crossed in front of him, "What kind of item would interest a lord of hell?"
Raphael smiles knowingly his mouth bearing far too many teeth.
"Now, now, Little Gale. "
"It wouldn't be a wager if I gave you all the answers. Part of the fun is watching you struggle and squirm."
His eyes glow with intense infernal light for a moment before returning to normal.
"Just know that there is an item..." He paused for a moment, clutching his hand into a smoldering fist before releasing it.
"The one that is now spread amongst three admittedly powerful mortal beings, bring me this item restored, or don't. Either way, I get to have fun watching, just know that with I hold the power to rid you of your affliction."
Raphael's smile intensified and he snapped his fingers.
WHOOOSH
From the very depths beneath them, three pillars of twisted, contorting hellfire erupted, pulling them once more through the shifting realms before finally depositing them on the hard, unforgiving ground just outside the safe haven of the Grove.
"We are in deep trouble… and the devil is enjoying every second of it." Gale sighed.
He looked up at the now dusk sky, "I wonder what Master Elminster would say."
Karlach picks him up by his collar and growls, "What do you think he would bloody say? He would say that you are a fool if you trust the infernal powers even more so than that snake Raphael."
Gale subconsciously prepared a shocking grasp and was about to pry her finger off of him, but the wisdom, even butchered wisdom, she spoke reached the intellectual inside him.
Seeing the acceptance in Gales eyes, she put him down and patted down his robes before she apologized.
The three individuals stepped over the threshold into the Grove, and as the last vestiges of that infernal hellfire finally dissipated from the air, leaving behind a distinct, metallic tang that was clearly not indigenous to Faerûn.
The wards, in turn, responded.
Leaves shuddered. Stone runes etched into the archway pulsed once, twice, then settled, as if uncertain whether what had passed through them should be allowed to exist at all.
Shadowheart was already sitting there, patiently waiting.
She stood strategically near the central path, her hand resting loosely but firmly on the hilt of her mace, her posture giving the impression of a deceptively calm demeanor.
Despite the intensity of the moment, her eyes held a remarkable sharpness. They were focused directly on William, not on Karlach or Gale, who were both standing nearby.
Then, she directed her attention upwards, as though she was expecting the sky to open up once more.
"Tell me," she said, her voice calm and measured, "that you did not just bring a Lord of the Nine Hells, a being of immense power, brushing past the Grove's defenses."
Karlach barked a humorless laugh. "If by brushing you mean yanked us through his dinner hall, tried to buy our souls with good food, and tossed us back like toys… then yeah… That one."
Shadowheart's jaw tightened.
Before she could even utter a response, the very earth around her seemed to take a deep, shuddering breath.
Roots shifted.
Vines recoiled.
The very atmosphere felt thick with an ancient power as a tall, broad-shouldered figure materialized from between the stone terraces, the oak staff resting firmly in his hand, and his eyes, though faintly visible, seemed to glow with a soft druidic light.
Halsin had felt it too.
His gaze moved quickly across the group, lingering for a fraction of a second on each person. It settled briefly on Karlach's infernal engine, then Gale's chest, and finally landed directly on William.
As he spoke, his voice was low and resonant, carrying a clear sense of deep displeasure.
He explained, "The Grove felt a tremor, not a violent one, but rather a sense of recognition, as if something remarkably old and powerful had passed very close to the wards and caused them to react and flinch."
Shadowheart folded her arms. "Raphael."
It felt like the name itself was a curse, a constant reminder of some sort of misfortune or difficulty.
Halsin's grip tightened on his staff. "The Cambion Lord of the House of Hope."
Gale let out a slow, deliberate exhale, rubbing his temples out of sheer anxiety.
"He's definitely offensively handsome. He smiles way too much. And he talks like he's already won."
Yes, Halsin replied, stating with a straightforward firmness, "That is indeed him."
Karlach crossed her arms, the infernal glow beneath her skin seeming to pulse with an increased intensity. "He claims he's got a solution for our... tentacle dilemma."
Silence followed.
The Grove seemed to lean in.
Halsin's face darkened, not with any obvious fear, but with a more nuanced expression that seemed tinged with disappointment. "And he asked for something in return."
"Of course he did," Shadowheart muttered.
"They always do."
Gale nodded. "An item. Fragmented. Powerful. Currently… inconveniently spread among three people."
For a fleeting instant, Halsin closed his eyes, as if he were seeking guidance from some deep-seated, forgotten source.
When he opened them again, there was no trace of surprise or excitement remaining in his expression.
"Then he is circling something dangerous," he said, "and if Raphael has noticed it, others will follow."
Shadowheart's eyes finally returned to William, and this time, they lingered for a noticeably longer period. She then said, "He noticed far more than that."
William's gaze shifted, hardening into something that sent a shiver down Shadowheart's spine. She felt herself instinctively step back, her hand resting tightly on the mace at her hip.
It felt like he was looking straight into her soul, like he could see every hidden secret she kept bottled up inside, as well as the vast emptiness that seemed to reside within her being.
She lowered her head, and he turned his gaze away back to the Arch Druid.
"We really need to make absolutely sure that we manage to keep that item out of his reach, no matter what it is."
Halsin nodded his head, signaling his agreement. "You know, I've already taken care of packing up all the necessary supplies. The only thing left to decide is whether we cross the mountain or take the more perilous route of traversing the Underdark."