Session 13 - Skerrin Pays the Price
General Summary
Using her preternatural charm with children, Zarra playfully learned the location of Naerth Maxildinarr's hidden Zhenterim prison from a local Termalaine child who had previously followed the militia lackeys of Lt. Skerrin Ristoff there. Anxious to free any innocent prisoners there (and primarily Old Man Gallaway ), the Queer Trio (plus the ghost-in-human-form Janth Alowar) traveled to the lonely forest location on the road to Lonelywood.
After first carefully reconnoitering the initial trail entry into the heavy woods, Skolas used his military gravitas to successfully bluff their way past the first set of guards. Using his Speak with Animals magic, Zanborin then "conversed" with the local rat population for hard numbers and locations of the remaining guards. He then stealthily scoped the entire camp before being outed loudly by the camp's own scout defender.
Zanborin purposefully led the camp scout and three of the chasing guards deeper into the woods on a wild goose chase away from his friends. Though he then circled back to the camp with expert stealth, Zanborin could not shake the camp scout whose tracking skills seemed to rival his own. Sadly for her, the scout's tactical skills did not. Sneaking right into Zanborin's trap at the jail annex building, she had not the time to realize her mistake before his crossbow bolt passed through her eye and brain with vicious efficiency as she fell silently, dead before she hit the ground.
Meanwhile back at the main cell, Zarra and Skolas determined that the odds of 5 against 2 were acceptable. After first casting a Shield of Faith to protect his imposing goliath friend, Skolas decimated his opponents with a mighty blast of holy energy that killed three of the four militiamen outright. Despite his effete mannerisms and his clear awe of the radiant power displayed by Skolas, Lt. Skerrin proved to be a committed and dangerous opponent. He managed to wound the raging Zarra severely before the combination of her mighty Dragon Fire Great Axe and Skolas' continuing holy blasts brought him low.
With his escape cut off by the late arriving Klaus Hildegard, Skerrin still refused to surrender in humility. He paid the ultimate price for his pride. Zarra's as-yet-unnamed axe, powered by the magic-infused scale from the legendary dragon Pyrothraxis the Red, sliced Skerrin's head cleanly from his shoulders, the sharp blade cauterizing the wound such that not a drop of blood spilled to the pristinely white snow below.
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