Session Sixty-Three: Gray Plumed Mountain Part 3

Note: For those unfamiliar with Dark Sun, psionics are called the Will for wild talents and the Way for trained psionicists.

The group yelled out, as Kalino was dragged into the silt. More tentacles rose out of the silt and began whipping the other members of the group. They did their best to fight off the tentacles, but were worried about Kalino drowning in the silt.
Alaxander used the way to phase and float slowly into the silt. He moved beneath the creatures brown bulbous body and used the way to mentally strike the creature. The mental strikes were able to partially lift the create out of the silt, for just a moment. The rest of the party readied their long range weapons, for when the creature would appear. As soon as Julius was able to see the creature, he used the way to start heating it up.

Eventually the creature was defeated and Kalino used his magic to levitate out of the silt, coughing up huge globs of mud. Kiara threw Kalino a rope and they were able to drag him to safety. The group saw a stairway on the other side of the room, but the group was unsure how to find their way through the room of silt. Alaxander used the way to open a dimensional doorway, which allowed the group to bypass the silt-filled room.
They next came to a door and went through it, instead of continuing down the main hallway. The small room beyond the door was empty, but the hall leading away from it was a round tube that was slowly spinning. Shade tried to quickly run through it, but slipped, fell, and was pushed out. He was covered with grease.
Julius thought the grease might be flammable, so he told Shade to back away and used the way to light it on fire. The grease burst into flames and quickly burned itself out. Julius was smug with satisfaction.
Shade tried again, this time going slowly, but at the far side of the tube, a door opened and human man moved out of it. He began firing arrows at the half-elf. Shade slipped and fell again, and was pushed out of the large tube. The man retreated into a doorway.

Now, knowing there were enemies on the other side of the tube, Shade backed off and pulled out his bow. In a rare instance of bravery, Julius decided to go first. As he crouched and slowly walked through the spinning tube, Shade fired at the human, to try and keep him from firing at Julius.
When the man began to fire anyway, Julius used the way and the wall behind the man exploded! The man fled through the doorway and Julius made it safely to the other side. Shade followed, but was forced to move slowly through the spinning tube. The human man emerged and this time he was wielding a dragon's paw.
As the group was slowly making it's way through the tube, the human man battled Julius and Shade. Alaxander teleported himself to the otherside, by passing the tube. A human woman soon joined the fight, emerging from the same room the man had emerged from, and began casting spells. With each spell she cast, parts of Vashti were turned to ash.
Despite his skill with the dragon's paw, the man was overwhelmed by Shade, Julius, Alaxander, Kiara, and Kalino. He fell onto the stone below, bleeding from the numerous wounds he had received. The group turned their attention to the female defiler.
The human woman was soon surrounded. She pulled a rune covered halfling skull from her bag and crushed it with one hand. An instant later, she was gone and in her place was a ten foot tall dune reaper.
The dune reaper was a fierce combatant and the group took some some serious blows from it. However, like the man wielding the dragon's paw, the dune reaper was no match for the combined strength of the group. When the dune reaper fell, to Shade's bone alhulak strike, it reverted to the form of the human female.
She attempted to run, but the group trapped her in the room.
She held a hand toward Vashti and said if they did not grant her passage, that she would kill the plant creature. The group tried to attack to woman before she could draw energy, but the under estimated the defiler. The woman was able to pull life energy from Vashti, turning pieces of her body to lifeless ash. Before the defiler could draw even more life energy into herself, the group beat her into submission. 
The group decided to rest and for some reason, unknown to the group, the spinning tube in the hallway stopped spinning.

Day 4, Week 1, Macro, Friend's Vengeance, 190th King's Age, Sun Descending

While they were able to sleep for a couple of hours at a time, strange lights kept leading monsters into their room. The monsters were not particularly ferocious, but it was enough of a distraction to keep them from sleeping soundly. Eventually, the group gave up trying to sleep and returned to the main hallway.
The hall lead to a set of triple stone doors, which were open. The group passed through and kept walking. A hundred, or so, feet later, the ceiling and walls turned into a clear membrane of some kind. Beyond the membrane was magma, still in its liquid state.
Sixty feet ahead of them, they could see that the membrane opened into a dome. As they cautiously approached, they could see a monstrous braxat beetle inside of the dome. They could also see that beyond the braxat beetle was a wood and leather bound chest. They knew something important was inside and that Keraptis would have his game.

Join us in two weeks for another exciting session of Adventures Under the Dark Sun. 

2nd edition AD&D Dark Sun Cast of Player Characters 
Julius: Human male psychokinetic. 22 years old. Played by Dave. Speaks Balican, Tyrian, and Giant. 
Alaxander: Human male psychokinetic. 18 years old. Played by Ben. Speaks Balican, Tyrian, and Elf. 
Vashti: Human female clairsentient/water cleric. 20 years old. Played by my wife. Speaks Nibnese, Gith, Tyrian, Balican, and Urikite. 
Shade: Half-Elf male ranger/thief, 18 years old. Played by Chad. Speaks Balican, Elf and Tyrian. 
Kalino: Human male fighter/preserver. 20 years old. Party NPC. Speaks Rammin, Tyrian, and Balican.