Escape from the Labyrinth

"Escape from the Labyrinth"  is the thirteenth episode of the Dungeons and Dragons campaign Sword of the Godslayer. It follows episode 12, " Bronze Guard ".

Synopsis
''Finally finding the prized artifact, the adventurers must find a way to escape the labyrinthine temple. However, they are confronted by a sinister black dragon who is also interested with the sword.''

The Black Dragon
As the group finally get a hold of the Godslayer Sword, a battle erupted above the temple. The bronze dragon guarding the island is fighting against a black dragon. However, the it gets thrown down towards the party and transforms into a humanoid form.

The black dragon perched along the temple's pillars, flanked by four griffin-riding elf-like monk-dressed humanoids. The dragon introduced itself as Nighith and demanded that the party hand over the Godslayer sword. Minos stepped forward to ask why, but the dragon did not answer.

Azula made use of the distraction and handed over the sword to Marley. The rogue wrapped it in his Cloak of Hiding to turn it invisible. Lira stood next to Minos and said she would surrender the sword, but only to the dragon itself. The dragon refused however and instead gestured for one of his companions to fetch the sword.

Lira took the the fake sword that they got outside the temple, wrapped it in cloth and handed it to the monk. The monk mounted his griffin again and brought the replica to the dragon. The enemies then left through the hole in the ceiling. Azula took a moment to heal everyone, including the guardian, though it neither woke nor changed shape. They left the temple, but as they cross the bridge, another pair of the elf-looking humanoids appeared in front of them.

Heralds of a Different Plane
Nicolas asked them about their griffins, but they told them that they were not allied with the dragon. To distinguish themselves, they explained that they are of the gith race, and are not from this plane. They traveled to the material plane to chase and punish their heretic brethrens who were seduced by the evil black dragon Nighith. One of the monks introduced himself as Saarth.

The adventurers told the monks that the heretics had flown away with a Godslayer replica. When asked where the real one was, the group managed to convince them that the actual Godslayer was still in the temple. The two monks conceded and sat down to meditate, planning to wait until the heretics returned to the temple once they realized that the sword they got was a fake. However, the group felt guilty for potentially leaving them to their deaths and decided to camp with them. They all took shelter in the forest outside the temple.

Before settling down to rest, Nicolas and Marley explored the forest along the cliff edge. They managed to bring back another replica of the Godslayer, to be used as another decoy for the heretics. As they rested, the bronze dragon woke up and introduced herself as Kaleth. She thanked the group for healing her and, after realizing that they still have the real Godslayer sword, she insisted that they get out of the island and take the sword with them before Nighith figures out their deceit.

Leaving the Island
They agreed, and Nicolas asked if Kaleth could give them a ride to their ship using her dragon form. The proud dragon refused to acquiesce to their request, but decided to help them in another way. She transformed into a dragon and flew off to fetch their ship.

The group wanted to convince the githzerai monks to come with them but, neither could be roused from their meditation. So Marley and Lira grabbed them towards their ship instead. Once at the edge of the cliff, they saw that Kaleth has cleared off the numerous shipwrecks that littered the coastline, allowing for their ship to enter the islands' bay. They all thanked the bronze dragon and jumped off towards their ship.

When they got back to the ship, the group gathered in one of the cabins to study the Godslayer sword. Azula and Marley determined that it had great power, but something needed to be done to unlock its strength. Afterwards, Azula wrapped the sword in the cloak and stowed it in her bedroll.

As dawn neared, the group was woken by yelling on deck that the ship was under attack. They climbed up to join the crew and saw the griffin-riders and the black dragon who were circling overhead. Just as Lira came up, one of the heretics jumped from his mount and landed across her shoulders. She hit the ground, but Marley was able to drive off the heretic with his rapier.

Caught Up
Two other riders jumped down and attacked Nicolas and Minos, thus the group quickly divided into three to face them all. Since the deck was crowded by the fighters, Lira climbed to the crosstree and fired her bow from above. Scout followed closely on her heels, anchoring himself against the swaying of the ship. Marley saw the last griffin-rider dismount as well and land on the railing at the bow, yelling at them to surrender the sword. The rogue attempted to push him off, but the heretic overpowered him. As Nong-Poi ran to help, the black dragon breathed acid onto the ship.

The ship's crew managed to fire a cannon volley into the dragon, but the ship still tilted alarmingly and began to sink. All lost their balance except for the heretics, Marley, Minos and Lira. Nicolas was dragged down by his armor again and fell overboard, though he managed to grab onto a tumbling barrel before hitting the water.

Marley tied a rope around the bow railing and threw it to Nong-Poi, saving the monk from sliding further. The rogue took the replica sword from his pack, showing it to the nearest githzerai and throwing it overboard. The griffin-rider dove into the water after it.

Amidships, Minos knelt quickly and plunged his sword into the deck. Both clerics had been standing near him before the ship had been damaged, and he reached out to help them as they slid past. When Azula reached for him however, the leader of the griffin-riders noticed the long, wrapped package in her pack and tackled her around the waist. Minos caught Auren with his free hand, while Azula - with the leader still holding her - grabbed his leg.

Lira mimicked Marley, knotting her rope to the crosstree and dangling it near Minos. Minos threw Auren to the rope, but he missed and slid further down. Luckily, one of their allied githzerai grabbed the life cleric and helped him reach the lifeline.Azula kicked downwards at the leader, landing a crippling blow between his legs. Here, the leader's griffin flew down to help, but since its rider was clinging to Azula, it missed the narrow target.

Lira focused her fire on the leader, and was satisfied when he stopped struggling and attempting to reach Azula's pack.The leader's griffin stopped attacking Azula abruptly, flapping upwards to hover in front of Lira. Slightly startled, she cast Speak with Animals and heard the griffin confide that it was not a wild beast and that it needed a rider.

Thrilled, Lira knelt briefly to allow Scout to clamber onto her shoulder and belt, before jumping to the griffin's saddle. The ship shuddered again and nearly all fell overboard. The other griffins abandoned the fight and began searching for their riders in the dark water. The black dragon, already difficult to see in the early morning, vanished into the dark as well.

Minos lost his grip on his sword as the ship tilted again. He and Azula slid toward the water, and Auren just managed to grab the other cleric's hand. Azula attempted to catch Minos, but missed. Much like Nicolas, Minos' armor dragged him overboard and he vanished from sight. By then, the ship had sunk further, with water up to its mast. Marley and Nong-Poi abandoned the rope tied to the bow and swam to join the others on the mainmast. They took account, and were worried when they realized that the only two without darkvision were missing.

Concerned for Minos, since he had not been able to grab a buoy, Lira directed the griffin to circle low to the water. She called out for him, but was unable to hear any answer. Instead, the ranger discovered four crewmen. She had the griffin pull the mast rope to them, so they could gather with the others.

Marley and the crewmen chopped through the mast just under the crosstree, hoping to keep their makeshift raft from being dragged deeper with the ship. Knowing that Nicolas had spent longer in the water, Lira went further out to search for him and left the others to find Minos. Auren used Locate Object to search for Minos' armor, but only found scraps of it floating nearby.

Lira's griffin flew increasingly larger circles away from the shipwreck, with the ranger calling for Nicolas as she went. Though she was unable to hear any answer, Scout perked up his ears and managed to lead her to the paladin. They found Nicolas bobbing alone, still clinging to the barrel. Lira reached down for him, but the griffin stopped her and admitted that it could only carry one.

Nicolas instead handed up his polymorph staff, which he had been unable to use on himself. Lira took it and turned the paladin into an eagle, freeing him from the riptide. She then led him back to the Sloan's mast. Lira, Nicolas and Marley - the latter two in eagle form - continued searching for Minos, but only found two other crewmen.

Lira eventually flew off to find help and came upon a fleet of fishing boats. After managing to calm down the panicking fishermen, she led them to the shipwreck survivors. The group finally reached shore, in a small fishing village several miles west of Soliton. They took account, and realized that only one of their two allied githzerai remained with them.

They had kept the Godslayer safe, but the adventurers regretted having lost their financier and liaison.

Godslayer Expedition

 * Auren
 * Azula
 * Lira
 * Marley
 * Minos
 * Nong-Poi
 * Nicolas

Temple-Island

 * Kaleth
 * Nighith
 * Saarth

Next Episode
"Escape from the Labyrinth"  is the third episode of the third chapter, '''Heretics. It is followed by episode 12, "Love on Mermaid's Rock'''".