CXXVIII. The Ascent

General Summary

When the ledge they had teleported to crumbled, the Ring & Wren fell into the roaring wind and gust of the storm that surrounded Primordius Mons. Amari cast Feather Fall on everyone but Soora, who pulled out the wings of her Cloak of the Bat. Unfortunately, though their descent had been slowed by the spell, the wild winds were as strong as ever. Soora was whipped away from the rest of the party by a wind current. In the low light, she tried to teleport to the side of the mountain and get a hold of it, but she immediately lost her grip and began to slide down. King pulled out a rope and cast it out to the rest of the party before they could be scattered to the winds; everyone managed to catch it except Jäger, who continued falling away as a result. He angled himself to fall toward the mountain, and once he was close enough, he used his hammer to hook into the side, carving into the red rock. Soora, who was still slipping, saw Jäger beneath her and aimed herself toward him. She landed lightly on his shoulders. King pulled out the Flying Carpet, which almost tore from his hands in the wind. He managed to get it under control and flew towards the mountain as well, barrel-rolling to dodge another bolt of red-hot lightning on the way and dragging his friends behind him. Once he was hugging against the slope vertically, Wynna and Amari teleported to a safe ledge. Kohinoor, however, knocked into the side of the mountain--hard--and lost her grip on the rope. King pulled out the Mithral Bond and cast it out, ensnaring Kohi in it and yanking her up to him. She breathlessly thanked him. The Ring & Wren regrouped on one ledge. The peak of the Sire of All Mountains could not be seen. It seemed an endless stretch of rock lay above them. The climb would be long and arduous; luckily, King had brought Rope of Climbing.

The Climb

Day One

As the party made their way up the mountain on this first day, the rain that blew in hard sheets against them turned into snow. After a full day of climbing, they managed to find a ledge sturdy enough to rest at, though the rest was more of a break than a true respite. The howling winds and unwelcoming terrain prevented them from gaining the benefits a rest normally afforded them, though they were no more tired than usual as they prepared to continue. King took ten minutes to encouraged the party.

"Whatever happens, we have to keep climbing. Don't give up."
-Drayton King

Day Two

The climb of the second day exhausted Wynna, but otherwise passed without much incident. The peak still could not be seen.

Day Three

On the third day, the red stone gave way to black. Kohi and Jäger exhausted themselves climbing. The party chose to rest on a ledge with a statue of a gaunt, wizened old man hunched in on himself and holding a cane. Amari, ever curious, looked the statue over. He'd been using his Boots of Spider climb to walk up the face of the mountain.

"What secrets do you hold?"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

The statue's stone eyes opened. He spoke in a croaky voice.

"What brings you to Primordius Mons?
- Statue

"We must climb to the top, I think. We need to find something lost...we've been climbing for days, searching for the titan."
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"If you seek the peak, you're climbing the wrong way."
-Statue

Several party members cried out in disbelief.

"This mountain is upside down? The peak is at the bottom?!
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"Explain yourself, old man."
-Drayton King

"How do you know?"
-Jäger Ironbeard

"Because I live here. I've always been here. Where else would I go?"
-Statue

"So what's at the top?"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"The Hierotitan, the master of this mountain."
-Statue

"And how is he?"
-Drayton King

"He's been better."
-Statue

"...Seems things are topsy-turvy."
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

The Statue cackled. King was convinced that it was hiding something.

"What's your name, friend?"
-Drayton King

"I don't have a name. I'm the old man of the mountain."
-Statue

King sidled up to the statue and spoke lowly; conspiratorially.

"How about this? I'll give you a name, and you give us a way up the mountain."
-Drayton King

The statue stroked at his stone beard as he thought about it for a moment. His fingers scraped against it loudly, and he squinted at King before grinning widely.

"Deeeal."
-Statue

"Shake on it then."
-Drayton King

The statue reached out his hand slowly, as though he thought King were trying to trick him. The two shook hands.

"What's my name?"
-Statue

"Back where I'm from, when we see someone who's as short as you, but we love him very much, we call him Grimp. This place could use a little bit of Norbrough in it, so I'll call you Grimp."
-Drayton King

"You may call me Grimp."
-Grimp

Grimp smiled wide as he said it, clearly pleased. Then he started giggling.

"...I was just kidding!"
-Grimp

Amari jumped up, incredulous.

"Are you serious? What if I'd gone all the way to the bottom?!"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"Then you would have had to start all over again! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
-Grimp

King looked incredibly annoyed.

"Do you do that to everyone who comes up?"
-Jäger Ironbeard

"You're the first people I've met in a long time."
-Grimp

"What do you do all day?"
-Jäger Ironbeard

"I'm a statue. I sit here."
-Grimp

"We're the first people you've met in a long time, and you trick us??"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"I've been thinking of that one for a while!"
-Grimp

The party prepared to try and get some rest as Grimp continued to delight in his prank. Amari asked Wynna if she could tell what kind of creature Grimp was. As tired as she was, the best she could figure was some kind of earth elemental.

"You know, you're farther than you'd hope, but closer than you'd think."
-Grimp

"Who was the last person you saw come up here?"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"Hmmm...it was probably about six hundred years ago...a little fellow, like him."
-Grimp

Grimp pointed at King. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Soora with Obsidian.

"It was you. You look different from last time..."
-Grimp

"Oh, you recognize me? Uh...how'd it go last time? I don't remember...
-Soora Huine

"Maybe not well then. Ha ha!"
-Grimp

"Did I say why I went up there last time?"
-Soora Huine

"Hmm...the Hierotitan had done something and needed to pay."
-Grimp

"When you said the Hierotitan has been better, what did you mean?"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"He used to make quite a ruckus up there. He's quieter now."
-Grimp

"...And what do you know of the Astral Terror?"
-Amari of the Ring & Wren

"I don't know what that is."
-Grimp

Waythe and Grimp made conversation as the rest of the party tried to rest. Once again, while they were able to sleep, they did not truly feel rested upon waking. Before they continued their climb, King made to carve the word LIAR into the side of the mountain behind where Grimp stood. Wynna stopped him, asking if he had yet eaten. King sullenly put the knife he was using down, but once Wynna left, he finished the carving. As the party ascended the cliffs, they could see Grimp rubbing it out.

Day Four

On the fourth day, the climb further exhausted Wynna and Kohinoor: the composition of the mountain had changed from black stone to icy cold metal, and the falling snow became a raging blizzard. The party could scarcely see in front of them, blind in the ice. That night, Wynna cast Greater Restoration on herself and Kohinoor so they wouldn't slow the rest of the party down the next day.

Day Five

Soora and Amari became exhausted on the fifth day, but King, wiping his eyes as he climbed onto a ledge, could see through the storm: a purple, black and blue abyss dotted with millions of motes of light, and streaked with pink and blue nebulae. He was the first to reach the peak. The rest of the party stopped to catch their breath when they reached the top, with Amari laying on his back and looking at the stars.

The Peak

The peak was the size of a small island, and almost completely flat. Across the peak, the party could see collapsed columns and the ruins of what looked to be a classical pantheon. In contrast to the storm they had just passed through, the peak of Primordius Mons was completely silent. The group decided to rest before going to explore the ruins. Amari insisted that Wynna rest, so Jäger took first watch. About an hour into the rest, Jäger spotted a procession of ten robed figures approaching the party. One was carrying a banner with a sigil of a featureless white mask, which all of the figures looked to be wearing. The procession stopped about forty feet from the party, at which point the leader stepped forward and spoke:

"You, who have ascended Primordius Mons: my lord would speak with you."
-Herald

"Can we rest first?"
-Jäger Ironbeard

"My lord is not a patient lord."
-Herald

The party consented, and followed the procession to the temple complex.

"We mean no harm."
-Jäger Ironbeard

"You mean no harm, yet you carry weapons on the holy peak?"
-Herald

"It is from ignorance. We ask your lord's forgiveness."
-Drayton King

"...He may yet forgive you. I am but his herald."
-Herald

The group ascended a massive marble staircase that rose to a forum. Inside more figures kneeled, completely hidden in their robes, with heads to the ground in silent prayer. The room was cold; no torches were lit. On the far side of the room, the sky could be seen through a giant hole in the ceiling where the roof had collapsed. Below this hole was a titanic throne, upon which sat a massive figure drawn in bangles and gold jewelry, and draped with a huge while cloak made of the fur of a great beast; on its head, a banded crown. A flash of bone revealed the figure to be skeletal, missing one arm and half of its torso. In life, the creature had only a single, large eye in the center of its face. The party was shocked.

"Behold: the ruin of our lord. The stars took him. He would not submit, and so he was smote."
-Herald

"Submit to who?"
-Wynna Cannari

"The Shape."
-Herald

Jäger, on edge, drew his hammer.

"Calm yourself, Lord Ironbeard."
-Kohinoor Sattari

The herald began to moan: the tone could only be described as a lamentation.

"O, what ruin! What terror! O, it is not a choice, for there is no choice but submission! As we have submitted, so shall you!"
-Herald

Jäger seized the herald by his robe and began to shake him. Grub-like larvae tumbled from his robes and splattered on the floor.

"O, it approaches! Submit! SUBMIT!"
-Herald

The party could see stars begin to wink out of the sky above them as a massive shadow passed over the temple.

"O, the Shape! Submit! Submit now before it's too late! Give what you have to eat: your flesh. It is the only way. Or, like our lord before you, it will take your flesh by force!"
-Herald

Arcane symbols began to glow around the party: they could see that all of the temple's worshippers were nothing but swarms of larvae held together by robes and masks. The larvae began to form masses in the shapes of hands that tried to grab at the party. And looming above them all, what looked to be an asteroid approached the temple.