The Curse of Underhill

Twas a clear day on the morning of the sixth day of Jali. The day star was just beginning to crest over the eastern hills as I approached the quest board. As I walked I could see one of the caravan guards pass me by heading towards the nameless tavern. A Dwergish ranger by the name of Janice Goldwell. I came to the quest board and sure enough I saw that Ms Goldwell had left a rather short but to the point letter, "urgent, haunted tower". My curiosity had been peaked and I quickly joined up with a group of dwerg who seemed ready to take on this task. Their leader was a cleric of Teyva by the name of Dwufe. He was quite a somber looking fellow dressed in the plain black and white tabard of his holy order, which was draped over his armor. He was accompanied by a druid named Caoimhe (pronounced key-va. I know it's odd but she insists that's how it's spelled). And lastly the mighty warrior known only as Smitty, welding a battle-axe just as large as himself.
 
We went to see Janice at the dining tent where she told us of our quest. While out on patrol one of her number, a half elf named Thomas Brimble, stumbled upon an old run down watch tower. Thomas was flustered when he reunited with Janice, claiming that he saw a ghost. They did not have enough time to investigate as Janice was scheduled to meet with family visiting the caravan, and so she was offering coin to anyone brave enough search the tower on her behalf. Naturally our cleric took it as his duty to lay any spirits to rest, and so we set out on our journey.
 
We traveled north west for two days following the map given to us by Ms Goldwell. It did not take us long to find the tower, altho it was oddly placed. Rather than being built at the top of a hill for better visibility, the tower was placed in the valley between the hills, as if to be hidden behind them. The ruin was old and covered in dust and vines, however the stone was holding up quite nicely. This was clearly of Dwergish craftsmanship and the rest of my party confirmed that the tower was roughly 30 years old.
 
As we searched the tower, the signs of combat became apparent. Chips in the stone and scorch marks along the walls indicative of a siege of some kind. Shortly after, Caoimhe exclaimed that she had found a secret door built into the flagstone floor. I could not see it but I have learned that if a dwerg tells you there is a secret door, chances are there is a secret door. It was sealed by magic and could only be opened with the right password. I tried the only Dwergish password I could think of but to no avail. As it was beginning to get late we decided to make camp for the night.
 
Taking first watch, nothing extraordinary occurred, much to my displeasure. I laid my head to rest and fell fast to sleep. In my dreams I could see the tower. Standing atop of it was a Dwergish maiden looking out from the crenellations across the hillside below. Her golden hair glistened in the moonlight, and her voice rang out as she sung her somber tune.
 
Here I stand, and here I wait
My eternal task, to watch this gate
Frozen in time, Althaea's doom
For now our village shall be her tomb
And so I stand forever still
Held by the curse of Underhill.
 
Suddenly I was awoken by the sound of grinding stone. I opened my eyes to find the ghostly apparition of the maiden from my dream floating above the trap door as it slowly opened, reveling the secret tunnel beneath. As quickly as she appeared the ghost was gone. The cleric Dwufe was the first to enter the path before us. I had no idea what was going on, but not wanting to miss out on the adventure I quickly gathered my things and took up the rear.
 
As we ventured forth into the dusty tunnel we could hear the baleful moaning of the undead ahead. We were set upon by Dwergish ghosts who shouted at us, demanding we leave this place. With a solemn prayer to his goddess, Dwufe was able to dispatch the ghosts as a burst of holy light pulsed outward from him. "They may be gone for now, but I can still sense their hatred. They will soon return." Said the cleric.
 
We hurried forward and soon the tunnel opened into a large cavern. I could hardly believe my eyes. Before us, built from stone was a town. Or at least the beginnings of one. There were not many buildings, a smithy, a tavern, a shop and a few houses nothing more, all of Dwergish make. The cavern was large enough to continue construction, and it seemed that was the intention, however the entire place was abandoned. As we searched the buildings, we were able to find the crests of the various clans that lived here, all of them Hildwerg including the most notable among them being the Brokenstone clan.
 
At the farthest end of the cavern we could see a red light piercing through the darkness. We decided to press on and investigate further, not knowing when the ghosts still haunting this place would strike again. As we followed the light to it's source, we came across a grizzly sight. The bodies of dwerg in armor befitting paladins of the Radiant Trinity were strewn about on the floor. Their flesh had long ago fallen away from decay. A pack of ghouls that look to have once been alfar in life were gathered around their leader, the vampire known as Altheae Liadon.
 
She was preoccupied with her attempt to destroy the source of the red light, a large Ruby placed on an altar by the wall. Her form was constantly shifting, corporal one moment, ghostly the next, as if she were trapped between realities.
 
When she noticed our presence, she and her minions immediately turned their attention to us. The ghouls rushed forwards eager to feast on our flesh while Altheae attempted to ensnare Dwufe and Smitty in a magical web. The web however was no match for their combined strength, as they managed to free themselves with ease. Dwufe called out to his goddess for aid causing most of the ghouls to flee while Smitty dispatched the rest with his mighty axe. Caoimhe provided ranged support by throwing enchanted stones at the enemy while I engaged in a battle of wits with the vampire.
 
Our eyes locked with one another as I attempted to inspire my allies. I could feel her magic intertwining with my own causing my spells to fail. It was a clever distraction on my part however, for while the vampire remained focused on me, she did not notice Smitty's axe coming closer and closer.
 
Now engaged in melee combat with Smitty and Dwufe, Altheae turned her attention on them, brandishing her claws and fangs. My spells proving to not be of use here, I drew my blade and joined the frey.
 
Even with her minions defeated Altheae proved to be a challenging foe in her own right. Her claws rended our flesh while her ice magic threatened to freeze us solid. Even as our weapons made purchase against her, we watched as the vampire's wounds began to mend before our eyes.
 
Finally the battle came to an end as Smitty brought his axe down to bare upon her neck, separating the vampire's head from her shoulders. Before the body could touch the ground it became incorporeal and was sucked into the glowing red gem. With another blow from his axe Smitty shattered the gem causing all the spirits trapped within to be free. The ghost of the dewrg maiden wearing the armor of one of the fallen paladins looked upon us fondly before setting off into the great beyond.
 
The curse was lifted and the day was won, or so we thought. By freeing the spirits within the gem we had unwittingly freed the vampire as well. We could hear her maniacal laughter echo throughout the cavern as her spirit was set lose into the world.
 
With our task complete, we licked our wounds and made our way back to Glenhaven. With Altheae Liadon free, it is only a matter of time before she strikes again.