D&D Campaign – Dragonlance, continued.

So, Paul (not to be confused with the same Paul who played Pawl the Dorf in our web series) is running the 5e Dragonlance campaign – and I posted about one of the previous sessions I really enjoyed (so far, I’ve been immensely enjoying this whole campaign really).

Well tonight, was another one of those sessions – where we did a round table of everyone discussing each character’s greatest fears – and then how they overcome it (it’s a part of the campaign, unless Paul improvised this part?) – so the story is vague to avoid spoilers in case anyone reading this is going through the 5e Dragonlance campaign.

• Allen Silver – Half Elf – Bard
• Ambrosius – Minotaur – Fighter
• Kamb Font – “gnome” (actually a Changeling, but the party doesn’t know that) – Rogue
• Leil’thienne – Drow – Artificer (Alchemist)
• Talis Silverrose – Human – Wizard
• Aelamin Willowspirit – Half-Elf – Paladin (Knight of Solamnia)

The Nightmare and the Courage.

The world melted away – reality was swept away from Talis Silverrose, discarded for the nightmare before him.

His half-elf companion who had been traveling with him the longest – Allen Silver – a librarian standing before Astinus of Palanthas, as ashes of books flittered down like dying butterflies, the roar of the red dragon, who had torn down the Great Library in Palanthas and had breathed her fiery breath that ignited the ancient and fragile pages of the Great Library. Astinus of Palanthas had been staring at Allen as the ashes settled on his face, his pale features drenched in the fragmented knowledge that burned all around. Tears streaked down his face for the knowledge lost, the only thing visible on his darkened face.

Talis’ gaze turned towards the towering minotaur companion, Ambrosius and saw that the minotaur stood at their grave, mourning that they had died before him and that none of them were able to make a difference in the world – and here he stood, older than all of them except Leil’thienne, and yet he was the sole survivor of the most recent battle – the others had fallen and died a brutal death at the hands of the draconians and dragons, and there was nothing his experience or strength could do to save his companions.

Talis turned to Leil’thienne – she was an elf like none he’d ever seen before – and now he could see why. The Cataclysm had done something – the impact it had not only on the world – but magic itself had created a vortex that had somehow shunted Leil’thienne and her family into Krynn. She watched in horror, as they fled this great war that she and her companions had found themselves in – and her family had at long last found a way to return home again – and this had done so, without her. She watched in horror as they had left her behind.

Talis turned to Kamb Font, the gnome who was as quick with his hands as any kender Talis had met – but what he saw was not a gnome. As Talis stared in awe – he saw that Kamb looked nothing like a gnome – instead, Kamb was as tall as Talis and almost looked human – except the features on his face were… for lack of a better word, featureless. His flesh a ghostly color, his hair as white as the purest of snow – and he watched as Talis and the others, seeing Kamb for what he truly looked like were horrified and fled, leaving Kamb, revealed – and this was not the first time he was alone – but this was the first time he ever truly felt alone and it felt as if his own psychic blades had ripped his mind and heart apart.

Talis’ gaze then went to Aelamin Willowspirit – the elf who had become a Knight of Solamnia. Aelamin was a bitter reminder of Talis’ own path – the Knight he should have become. Aelamin had been chosen by Paladine to receive the blessing and evidence that the gods had returned – or perhaps that they’d always been here and that it is the people who turned their backs on the gods. But he watched as a massive platinum dragon stood before Aelamin, who clenched a shattered lance, the fragments at his feet. The dragon growled that Aelamin’s faith had not been strong enough – had it been, the lance would have never have shattered. Only because Aelamin’s faith had faltered had the lance shattered, and with the lance shattered, Aelamin’s enemies had swept through the land – and the Dark Queen could not be stopped.

“This is what you wanted,” a familiar voice sounded behind Talis. Talis realized despite seeing – and believing he could ‘hear’ what the other endured – that had not been the case. These words he just heard – from an all too familiar voice – had been the first since everything had gone dark. He turned to see his father, adorned in Knights of the Sword – next to him, Talis’ brother, Rhen, adorned in Knight of the Crown. “You wanted to be a powerful mage,” his father continued, his arm firmly around his other son, Rhen. “This is why you left the Knighthood. To be a Mage. To save the world. Now is your chance. Tell me, do you have the power?”

Talis turned – all around him, the dead lay – their sightless eyes gazing at him, as if he’d been their only savior. Talis’ robes were drenched in blood, the white robes soaking up the ankle deep pool of blood that gathered in the battlefield. The rest of his robes were covered in ash from the fires, coloring them black. He stared at the approaching army of draconians and dragons.

“Well, son,” his father said, expectantly. “Show us your power. Save us all.”

But Talis’ magic was not endless – he’d expended every ounce of magic in him. He wasn’t even sure how he was standing.

“I can’t,” Talis choked. “I have no more spells.”

“Just as I thought,” his father sneered, as if he knew this was how it would end. “A useless wizard.”

A useless mage.

A useless mage.

The words echoed in Talis’ heart as the armies drew closer and closer.

A useless mage.

A useless mage.

Those were not his father’s words.

His father was sorely disappointed in Talis and his choice to become a wizard.

But his father would never call him useless.

In the end, Talis was still family.

A useless mage.

Talis looked up at the approaching army descending on him and his family.

“Solinari,” Talis shouted. “This is a Test. A Test I will not fail. I call on you now to fill me with your faith and your magic.”

Solinari suddenly burst into white light – brighter than the sun. The white light spread across the land like milk spilled across black sand, devouring the shadows and filling Talis with more magic than he’d ever felt before.

He opened his eyes – his pupils as white as the moon. His body glowed and his fingers crackled with unbridled magic that he released upon the army – eviscerating them, shadows of darkness devoured by the light of magic. Talis let out a scream as the magic poured out of him – every nerve in his body burning.

He collapsed to the ground, and turned his head – and saw his father smile at him, beaming with pride.

Talis suddenly saw the others again…

Allen Silver had picked up several of the books that had not yet burned. “Astinus of Palanthas,” he said with a forceful voice to the stoic being before him, “these books may burn – but the enemy will only win if we do not write what we know. We have memories to draw from – and we must write them down – we must keep writing so that others will know what happened! We must write so that history is not forgotten or repeated! Though they’ve burned the Great Library to the ground – and yes, endless amounts of volumes of knowledge have been lost – if we do not survive to write this down – then those who burn these books truly do win.” Astinus of Palanthassuddenly smiled and though his Great Library burned around him, he shoved the burning tomes off of his table, grabbed a clean parchment, and barked at Allen to stop standing there and get him some ink – the ink on his table had dried in the fire.

Talis saw that Ambrosius’ had not changed much. However, he saw the towering minotaur’s sad expression change ever so slightly – as the mourning turned into a sense of pride. Ambrosius realized that though his companions may have died in the battle, they had died with great honor, defending the land and dying for what they believed in. Whether the war was won or lost, it did not matter – they had died for a cause they believed in and their sacrifice would always be remembered – even if that meant Ambrosius sharing their tale so that their memory is never forgotten.

Talis turned again and saw that he – and the others, returned to Kamb Font – the odd… changeling-like person that he was and all brought him gifts of appreciation. After all, Kamb seemed to enjoy material things – and Talis and the others had not fled from him – but rather, each had run off to find a gift that Kamb would enjoy, as a means of thanking him for always risking his life for them. They embraced Kamb for who he was and held onto him tightly.

Talis saw Leil’thienne next – she was in a cave, and she had reached her family. They had not left without her – her mother had left the portal open and waited. Leil’thienne placed her hands on her mother’s face, tracing her mother’s ageless features. “It’s OK, mother,” she smiled. “I am fine here. I have made friends who accept me. This is much for me to see and learn on this world and I would like to stay. When the time is right, I will come home to you.” Her mother wept as the portal closed behind her, leaving her daughter on Krynn.

Talis then turned to Aelamin Willowspirit. He had kneeled down before the platinum dragon, the fractured lance at his feet, tears of shame running down his face. As his tears fell, they landed on the rusted, fractured lance that had broken with his faith had broken – and as his tears streaked down the rust, they ate away at the rust, revealing the lance’s unique steel. In doing so, Aelamin whose head had been bowed before the platinum dragon, could now see that it had taken the form of the Dark Queen herself – Takhisis herself. Aelamin grabbed the fractured lance and stood, “No,” he growled. “My faith was never broken. This has all been a lie. An illusion.” And in Aelamin’s hand, the lance was no longer fractured – it was whole, and it gleamed brightly light up by a white light. “The darkness has been driven back from my eyes and I see you for who you are.” He shoved the lance into the very heart of Takhisis herself, who reared back and roared in fury and pain.

Everyone awoke from the nightmare.

A nightmare, each of them realized, they’d all shared together.