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masterghandalf) wrote2022-08-19 06:18 am
masterghandalf) wrote2022-08-19 06:18 am
Spellfire Chapter Twenty-One: A Sunset for Several
MG: And so, everyone, here we are – the final chapter of Ed Greenwood’s Spellfire! Today, we shall witness Greenwood desperately try to tie off as many plot points as he can in a very haphazard fashion, and ultimately give us a barely foreshadowed final battle against a character who’s been mentioned all of three times previously. Aren’t you excited? Joining us for a final time will be Caelum and Errezha!
Chapter Twenty-One: A Sunset for Several
Caelum: Wow; it’s hard to believe we’re here already, isn’t it? And I’ve got to say, that even after twenty-one chapters, it really doesn’t seem like this story’s ready to end. Mostly because I’m still trying to figure out what the point of it was to begin with; a lot of it seems less like an overall plot than a bunch of random fights with random bad guys and some supposedly entertaining banter in between (and a love story that just sort of… happens, I guess?). Anyway, we open with a quote from Mintiper Moonsilver, Bard, who I think did last chapter’s quote too and has this to share with us: Mind you do your dying right. Most of us only get one chance at it. Well, that’s kind of morbid, but I’m not sure I can really argue with it?
MG: I can; as a consequence of the Realms’ overall really high power level, there’s a lot of clerics capable of casting resurrection spells out there, which means death can be surprisingly cheap even discounting things like the undead and literal acts of the gods. But I’ll have more to say on that in a particular scene late next book.
Errezha: Once again, I’m not surprised. So, we open the actual chapter with Thiszult, the Cult of the Dragon wizard Naergoth sent after Shandril last time, as he’s cursing up a storm. How, by Mystra, Talos and Sammaster, am I to find two children in miles of tangled wilderness? Perhaps a question you should have asked before you set out? Though I presume some divinations might help, if you have any prepared.
MG: I’d also chime in to note that the content of Thiszult’s curse is weird, especially in how it pairs Sammaster with Mystra and Talos. Mystra and Talos are gods. Sammaster, while the Cult’s founder, is not a god, and they revere him but don’t literally worship him. Normally, the Cult’s primary object of worship are their dracoliches themselves, though some individual Cultists also follow gods whose goals and dogma are considered compatible with the Cult’s, such as Bane, Tiamat or Velsharoon (minor god of necromancy and lichdom). Eventually, following Sammaster’s final defeat, the followers of Tiamat would manage to take over the Cult, and they ran it entirely by the time the Tyranny of Dragons adventure path in 5e came along, though that’s a long ways off from this book. The point being, there’s no world where Sammaster’s name ought to be coupled with two of the most powerful gods in the Faerunian pantheon as if he was their equal! Even by a Dragon Cultist!
Errezha: Well, one of Thiszult’s underlings tells him Shandril and Narm will likely stay off the road and try to avoid pursuit, but he scoffs at this, even though Salvarad, his superior, thinks so too. I cannot believe two who destroyed the Shadowsil, an archmage of the Purple – not to mention two sacred dracoliches – can be quite so stupid! Now, now. Power has nothing to do with intelligence. Case in point, Thiszult himself, who is apparently a reasonably powerful wizard but hasn’t figured out that Shandril only destroyed one dracolich, Rauglothgor. Elminster took care of the Shadowsil and Aghasztamn, with a single spell. Who in Faerun has the power to match them? More likely, they’ll creep quietly about the wilderness, slaying whoever the come upon, while the rest of us search futilely, until we’re all slain. I must reach them before dark – before they leave the road! And then you can die in daylight on the road, rather than in the wilderness at night. Brilliant planning! Thiszult then barks some more orders at his warriors, telling them to ride on to Deepingdale and the Thunder Peaks unless they see his sigil marked on a tree, in which case they are to turn aside and follow it, while mocking their intelligence. He then grabs one of the warriors and vanishes, leaving the remainder on the road behind him. The remaining warriors have to calm the horses, while complaining about the wisdom of chasing after two children who’ve destroyed dracoliches, on which point I have to agree. And they don’t think much of Thiszult or his chances, either. This latest Grandly Rising Wizard has no more wisdom or power than the others. One of the others threatens to tell Naergoth of the Purple your doubting words but the first says it’ll likely only come up as part of a report of Thiszult’s death, and that he’s been around long enough to know what he’s talking about. Having read the book so far, I’m inclined to agree. The warriors then ride on in silence seeing neither mages nor gouts of spellfire and being quite happy about that, and then we have a scene change.
Caelum: And we then find ourselves back at the Rising Moon, where Shandril has burst out of her room in a panic and is getting dressed, with help from Lureene. We must away… others come… I dreamed it… the cult, and others. Hurry and eat! Narm decides it’s best not to argue and does as she says, but I’ve got to wonder – did we know that prophetic dreams were part of Shandril’s powers? Because I don’t think we did, unless she’s just had a regular nightmare…
MG: No, prophetic dreams aren’t part of Shandril’s powers, and it’s not a normal nightmare either. We’ll get an explanation shortly. Whether it works or not…
Caelum: Okay; I’ll wait for it, then. Well, Shandril races downstairs to grab breakfast with Narm running barefoot after her, which makes Lureene fall over laughing for some reason. And she keeps laughing as Narm and Shandril grapple with each other over who gets the stew first. You two! …I doubt I’ll ever again see a mage of power so discomfited! Woohoo! Ah, but you look funny, gobbling like that! Well, sure, if by “mage of power” you mean “an apprentice who’s not quite as green now as he was a few months ago.” But Narm asks Lureene when Shandril woke up, and she explains that it was just after Narm went downstairs last chapter that she scrambled up in all haste, crying that she’d dreamed of foes fast on your trail. Narm just admits that she’s probably right, and then we have a scene change… back to Sharantyr and Jhessail, as Sharantyr asks if Jhessail’s spell worked properly. Jhessail said it did. The dreamweaving’s wearisome; no wonder Elminster was so reluctant to teach it to me. Yet I think I scared Shandril enough to get her moving! *crossly* Sending spells exist, you know. Was dropping one by Shandril or Narm – or both – with an actual message they could understand too much trouble? Instead of a dream that could probably be misinterpreted? I mean, I’ve woken up from nightmares thoroughly convinced I’m about to be eaten by a dragon, or Harann’s beard caught fire, or my parents are dropping by to visit, and I have to get dressed right now… and then immediately realized that’s not actually happening and then turned back over and gone back to sleep. So, uh, being a little more specific can be nice? But apparently the spell is so exhausting that Jhessail falls asleep on the spot, right in the middle of… wherever they are… while Sharantyr drew her sword and sat down nearby, laying the bare blade ready across her knees. After all, it had been overlong since Manshoon had worked mischief in Shadowdale. Wow; that makes it sound like he’s got a schedule or something.
Errezha: And more to the point, I’m sure Sharantyr’s sword is going to be such a wonderful defense against an archmage and his minions.
MG: And in 1E, Sharantyr was all of a second level ranger. That’s not even a speedbump to a guy like Manshoon. By 2e she was at seventh level, which in this context isn’t a lot better.
Errezha: Well, in my experience suicidal overconfidence is a sadly-too-common trait of adventurers… in any case, we now return back to the Rising Moon as Shandril kissed Lureene farewell and hurries outside to where Gorstag has their horses. He’s loaded them up with various supplies and foodstuffs – well, at least he’s good for something, for once – and then gives Narm a small, bright disk of silver which is apparently a shield of Tymora, blessed by the priests in Waterdeep long ago. May it bring you safe to Silverymoon. If you’d told him what it does, that might be helpful. Gorstag then admits he’s bad at farewells, but I hope to see you again before I die, with you both as happy and hale as now… I wish you well, both of you… you’ve chosen well in each other! He then kisses them both – even Narm, who you’ve only just met? – and then sends them on their way and raised his fist in the farewell salute warriors give to honored champions. At the sight Shandril burst into tears. Once they’re away, Lureene comes down to find him muttering prayers to Tymora and Mystra and Helm and hugs him from behind, at which he left off praying and began to cry. And all of this would be so much more heartwarming of Gorstag had proven himself at all competent at any aspect of fatherhood before this. We then have another scene change, back to the meeting place of the Cult of the Dragon where Naergoth Bladelord is consulting with another Wearer of Purple, Dargoth, who I think we met briefly at the big meeting a few chapters ago. Dargoth is incredulous that Naergoth thinks Thiszult can defeat Shandril who’s destroyed our best and most powerful? *snorts disbelievingly* I can only assume you mean Rauglothgor, who’s the only one Shandril personally did destroy. Because if you’re counting the Shadowsil and Malark, and they’re among your organization’s best… then no wonder you’ve failed to achieve any of your goals so far! Naergoth says no, actually, he doesn’t think Thiszult is up to the task, and so another of our bone dragons pursues her right now. Dargoth is shocked, as they don’t have many more dracoliches left – excuse me, you’ve lost all of two; how small is this organization? And how much damage have Shandril and her friends already done to what’s supposed to be one of this world’s premier villainous factions?
MG: And in any case, in subsequent appearances the Cult doesn’t seem to have a shortage of dracoliches to worship, so it’s a bit moot.
Errezha: *sigh* Of course not. However, Naergoth clarifies that he didn’t order this dracolich into the field; it was the dragon’s idea, and one does not forbid Shargrailar anything! Dargoth is stunned to hear this. For the love of lost Sammaster! Shargrailar the Dark flies? Gods preserve us! And the scene ends as Naergoth wryly observes that They’ll hardly start doing that after all this time, which is presumably because the Cult rejects the gods to worship undead dragons instead, but in context could just as easily be read as an observation regarding their recent strain of rotten luck in dealing with Shandril. And wait, Shargrailar, Shargrailar – wasn’t he referenced a couple of times as the most powerful of the Cult’s dracoliches? I seem to vaguely remember that. One would think, if he was set to play such an important role, he'd have been built up more effectively!
MG: Indeed, you would. Now, Shargrailar is in fact the book’s true final boss (we’ll see how effective he is at that shortly) and I went back and checked, and he was literally mentioned all of three times in the book prior to this scene. And one of those was as part of a curse using his name! We certainly had absolutely no foreshadowing that he was actually involved in the plot at all, and not just a piece of background lore. But I guess Greenwood needed a big, scary villain to close out the story, and instead of using one he’s already established (like actually doing something meaningful with those Malaugrym, hint, hint) he just decided to throw the biggest, baddest dracolich he could at Shandril. Without any meaningful buildup at all.
Caelum: Well, we then have another scene change as Suddenly they were in a place of fragrant vapors, pots and knives. This turns out to be the kitchen of the Rising Moon, and “they” are Thiszult and the Cult warrior he took with him. Thiszult calls out a greeting to Korvan – sure is lucky he’s the only one in here right now, isn’t it? – and demands to know how long ago did the wench leave? And what’s our way out of here? Korvan points the way and assures them that she and the boy-mage left but ten breaths back! He then points them at the stables, and Thiszult is pleased. The Cult thanks you, Korvan. You’ll receive an appropriate reward in the fullness of time. Which seems kind of ominous to me, but Thiszult just heads out with his henchman following behind, and we immediately get another scene change to Lureene’s perspective as she emerges from a pantry – guess Korvan wasn’t as alone as he thought – and demands if he knows the cultists. Which, uh, yeah, I think that’s pretty obvious? And I’m reminded again that Shandril and Narm didn’t warn Gorstag and Lureene about Korvan and the Cult when they had the chance! Korvan doesn’t answer and just charges Lureene, who throws a tin of flower into his face and runs out into the common room and then to the courtyard, where Gorstag is locked in combat with the Cult warrior. Behind them, the dark-cloaked mage spurred out of the yard on their black gelding. Then Korvan comes charging out the door with a cleaver and Lureene runs over to Gorstag, thinking she has to warn him – uh, Lureene, Gorstag’s already locked in combat with an armed opponent; if you distract him now, it could kill him. Just thought I’d say that. Luckily for her, before she gets there Gorstag manages to grapple his opponent’s sword arm out of the way and punches him in the throat. Throat, neck and man crumpled without a sound. Now Lureene calls to him to look out, and Gorstag manages to grab her and pull both of them aside so that a blow from Korvan’s cleaver misses them. Before he can recover and try again, Gorstag grabs him by the throat. So, first you molest my little one… and now you’d slay my bride-to-be! You threaten me with steel here in my own yard, and you serve the Cult of the Dragon… in my own kitchen… this has been coming for a long time… but at least I’ve learned something about cooking. Gorstag twists hard on Korvan’s neck, and there was a dull crack, and Korvan of the cult was no more. Uh, yay, I guess? Except I think everyone here kind of bungled this, including Korvan. Shandril didn’t warn Gorstag that Korvan was a spy, even though she knew he was, Korvan finally went all Papa Wolf on Shandril’s behalf, but only when she wasn’t actually around to benefit from it (instead of, you know, all the times Korvan was horrible to her and harassed her before) and Korvan, of course, got into a fight he couldn’t win and got killed. Good job, everyone! *beat* Lureene might actually have handled things okay, but she didn’t actually accomplish much.
Errezha: With Korvan dead, Gorstag hurriedly asks Lureene if she’s safe and if Korvan damaged the inn – she’s fine, and he didn’t, though she calls Gorstag Lord for some reason, even though I’m reasonably sure he’s no such thing, which seems both strange and a little unsettling considering these people are allegedly in love and about to be married. Gorstag then asks Lureene to fetch him the fastest horse they have while he grabs his axe – he’s going to go after Thiszult and hopefully catch up with him before he gets to Shandril. Lureene fears for his safety, but still heads off to the stables; Gorstag fetches his axe and returns to the courtyard to find waiting for him a grim-faced dwarf on a small, weary and mud-splattered mule. The dwarf asks the innkeeper if he’s Gorstag, and when he says he is asks if he’s seen a companion of mine, the adventuress Shandril? She waited on tables here, once… I hear she rides with a young mage, now, an’ hurls spellfire! Gorstag demands to know who the dwarf is and what he wants with Shandril, my daughter – why is it that Gorstag only seems capable of showing appropriately fatherly behavior towards Shandril when she’s not actually around to experience it? The dwarf doesn’t give his name, but says he's come from Shadowdale, and I’m sent by Storm Silverhand of the Harpers and Elminster the mage, and bear a note to tell you to trust me in this! He hands Gorstag the letter, but before he can read it Lureene comes back to reveal that Thiszult blasted the stables with lightning before he left. Dead… all of them. Every last horse and mule and ox… damn all wizards! Gorstag puts a comforting arm around Lureene, and then holds up the letter so they both can read it. Indeed, the letter is from Elminster of Shadowdale and Storm Silverhand of Shadowdale and identifies its bearer as Delg, a sword-mate of Shandril in the Company of the Bright Spear, after she left your house. He serves no evil master and bears Shandril no ill will. Trust us in this. Delg, it seems, survived after the Cult wiped out the rest of the company and was found by elves who took him to priests of Tempus, who tended his wounds. Tempus himself spoke, saying that Delg’s task was to defend the girl who wielded spellfire against seeking swords. So he comes to you for aid… aid this one best you can, and you will be honored greatly, and the letter ends with Elminster and Storm telling Gorstag he’ll be in their debt. *beat* Excuse me? Last we saw Delg, it was in chapter three. While we didn’t see most of the Bright Spear die on-page, we were also given absolutely no indication any of them survived, and Shandril has barely even thought of them since then. And now Delg shows up, completely out of nowhere with no foreshadowing, in the very last chapter, alive and well and having somehow met Elminster and Storm completely off-page? With a divine mandate to protect Shandril, no less? How? Also, why? Personally, in this case, I would be deeply suspicious that Delg was a spy, because of how remarkably convenient this all is! And say, aren’t there some shapeshifters roaming around this book who haven’t done anything in a while?
MG: Yes, there are, and we’ll be getting back to them shortly, but Delg is in fact the genuine article. And yes, it’s completely out of nowhere.
*Errezha snarls angrily*
Caelum: Well, Gorstag’s apparently convinced by the letter, and he tells Delg he just missed Shandril, who rode away a short time ago and now has a hostile mage in pursuit. Delg, understandably, is a bit upset to hear this. Hinges of the Nine Hells! This is no time to be standing about reading! …she’s in trouble again, and in need of old Delg! He then bids Gorstag farewell, tells him to leave this to him, and rides off. Gorstag and Lureene watch him go, then go back inside and try to avoid the stares of the guests – wait, they have guests? It honestly felt like it was just Gorstag, Lureene, and Korvan in the inn! Did none of them do anything during all the commotion earlier? However, one of said guests – a priestess of Oghma, whoever that is…
MG: God of knowledge and scholarship.
Caelum: Gets in their way and demands to see the letter. I must insist. Refusal would not be wise. Gorstag tells her its none of her business, and the priestess snatches for the letter with an arm that shouldn’t have reached that far. Oh, is this where the Malaugrym come into things, finally? After spending the whole book popping up occasionally and just being creepy shapeshifting tentacle people, are they finally going to matter? Well, Gorstag jumps back out of reach, the priestess demands the letter again, and Gorstag refuses to be ordered around in his own home, and which point she drops the act. Enough! Doom is upon you, fool human! Eh, as street performance bad guy lines go, it’s not bad, but not very original, either. Five out of ten? The Malaugrym turns back into her true form, the face drooped into a nightmare, the holy crimson vest melted away into a glistening black bulk and Lureene screams in horror. Luckily for Gorstag, he’s still got his axe, and dropping the letter to wield it two-handed, he starts chopping tentacles. Hot blue and wine-red gore spattered him. He snarled in fear and swung again… a droning, whistling cry rose from the nightmare thing. Tentacles severed. Rubbery innards cleft… Gorstag kicked and sliced and roared his defiance. Then the Malaugrym suddenly collapses, Lureene having stabbed it from behind with a kitchen knife, and Gorstag declares that it’s dead. We’ve done it! One less hunter after Shan! Yeah, and without even meeting her or inconveniencing her in any way. Not even sure which Malaugrym this is, but I’d have expected it to have put up a better fight. Was Gorstag ever even in danger here? Lureene, meanwhile, just wonders what else is chasing Shandril, too. Which seems fair enough. Gorstag asks if Lureene is okay, and she is, but there’s the little matter of corpses lying about, and its inevitable effect on our trade… And so, the scene ends as Gorstag retrieves Delg’s letter and heads off to fetch a shovel.
Errezha: Our next scene change takes us to… somewhere else as a noble lady of Waterdeep who had been staring into a glowing ball suddenly sinks to her chair in horror. This is Amarune of the Blood of Malaug who is horrified that Her daughter was dead. Trembling with grief and fury, she sprang from her seat… Sintre, gone forever! Ah, so Sintre was the Malaugrym who just died, then… and I seem to recall that Amarune was Sintre’s and Architrave’s mother, who has appeared all of once before this chapter! In her fury, Amarune opens and secret door and reveals a hidden chamber containing a hoard of enchanted things, weapons enough to shatter a dozen backcountry inns and scores of idiot innkeepers! Why, she might not stop slaying until all the dales were lifeless slaughter fields, with nothing left but vultures and crows! …I don’t think my mother would go to such lengths to avenge me. Am I wrong to be slightly jealous of the dead tentacle monster? *she notices Caelum staring at her weirdly* I mean, yes, this is horrible, what dreadful vengeance is it hand! Amarune thinks to herself about all the time and effort it took her to amass this arsenal and now, by all the Shadows, she’d use it to work many dooms! And then she stops in shock because suddenly there’s a man sitting in the middle of her treasures. A gaunt man in none-too-clean robes, who had a long white beard, a hawk-sharp nose, and blue-grey eyes that, meeting hers, were fierce and sad. *she shrieks in horror* The Prince save us; it’s him again? Why couldn’t we have been rid of Elminster when we left Shadowdale? And why by all the gods can’t he wash his robes!? Regardless, Elminster introduces himself, and gets down to business. Dhalgrave did not issue his most infamous decree for nothing… he did so because I offered him the same choice I’m now giving you. Dwell hidden among humans, doing them no harm, and live – or slay, and meddle overmuch, and die. Amarune is stunned that Elminster knows about Dhalgrave, but he goes on, explaining that he knows who Amarune is, and that as she’s mostly lived quietly in Waterdeep he’s let her be, but now he has an ultimatum. If ye lift a tentacle against any creature of Faerun hereafter, I will come for ye – after telling Dhalgrave and all of Shadowhome who ye are and where ye are. Then we shall all have good hunting… and our kill shall be Amarune. Eh, as threats go, it’s lacking a certain subtlety, but Amarune is convinced. The tall, trembling lady stared at him, eyes golden and terrible. Then she knelt… her forearms darkened into glistening tentacles, and with deft care she knotted them together in the Malaugrym gesture of abject submission. She asks Elminster to command her- ugh – but he just tells her not to go to Highmoon, and not to hurt anyone else anywhere, and he’ll let her live and keep her collection. I’m not even sure how he knew she was going to Highmoon – was he spying on her? How did he know to? Her children have been barely involved in all this, and she not at all! But Elminster goes on to tell her that avenging Sintre will only bring her more pain, and she should enjoy what she has, which is more than most people do, and then out of nowhere Elminster tells her he could be her friend, if she sticks to her promise to do no harm. I’d rather see ye laugh and be happy than have to slay ye, remember that. Hmm; I wonder if Elminster would be willing to extend such an offer to someone who couldn’t appear as a conventionally beautiful human woman? My personal experience with his type says no. In any case, Elminster teleports away, and Amarune is left alone to grieve, and finally she calls her servants to bring her a lot of wine, and the scene ends. And I have to say – what was the point of that? Greenwood seems to expect us to have some level of investment in this character we’ve only seen once before, and I have to wonder why?
MG: Honestly, it really just seems to be in service of Elminster’s studom. See, he can effortlessly terrify Lovecraftian horrors – even the most powerful of their kind, albeit offpage! And then he’s willing to befriend them, too (but only after threatening them into compliance first). What a guy, that Elminster!
Caelum: Well, we have another scene change, and this time we find ourselves with Shargrailar the Dark as he circles above the Thunder Gap. So, I guess our big final bad guy is finally making an appearance… with half a chapter to go. Shargrailar was the mightiest dracolich in Faerun, perhaps the most powerful there had ever been. Its eyes were two white lamps in the empty sockets of a long, cruel skull. It looked down on the world below with the cold patience of a being that had passed beyond the tomb, and yet could fly. Shagrailar thinks to himself that a human who dares to destroy dracoliches – even though he thinks of Rauglothgor and Aghasztamn as young fools – has to die, and also notes that Shandril is currently headed in the direction of his own lair. By random chance, I guess, since Shandril doesn’t seem to have any idea where you are or what you’re doing. And so Shargrailar is on the hunt, flying above the road like a silent shadow… it had been a long time since Shargrailar was interested in anything. Well, that’s… honestly kind of sad. If he's that starved for entertainment, surely there are some local bards he could hire, maybe? Are there any bards in the Cult?
MG: I’d also like to jump in to make a comment about power levels. If Shargrailar’s ever gotten official stats, I've never been able to find them; however, the most powerful Faerunian dracolich in the Realms who does have stats I’ve been able to find is Daurgothoth who is an epic-level wizard on top of being a dracolich and, in 3e at least, had a challenge rating of a whopping 50 (which, using the CR as a rough measure of power, I think makes him the strongest 3e creature who isn’t some sort of divine being I’ve ever seen given official stats). By contrast, an “ordinary” dracolich like Rauglothgor or Aghasztamn is probably going to be in the mid-to-upper 20s. Again, I don’t know where exactly Shargrailar falls on this scale… but as the greatest of the Cult’s dracoliches, I’d wager he’s closer to Daurgothoth than Rauglothgor. Just… something to keep in mind considering what’s about to happen.
Caelum: I’ll pretend I understood that, and just move on. We then have a scene change back to ground level, where Thiszult is hurrying on after Shandril and Narm, thinking that he’ll need to get either ahead or above them to use his special magic, whatever that is. He spends a while thinking to himself that, riding alone in these parts with no outward signifier of his allegiance, he needs to be wary of danger, and tries to work out a plan. He’s thinking about trying to catch Shandril sleeping when suddenly a man with eyes that are calm and golden and very, very cold steps out of nowhere into his path, spooking his horse. The man idly wonders what Thiszult is up to. Hunting spellfire, I wonder? With all your best blasting spells burning holes through your brain? Thiszult demands to know who the stranger is, and he introduces himself as Architrave – okay, that’s Sintre’s brother, right? – and then attacks; black tentacles stabbed out like sudden spears. Thiszult is thrown off his horse, but while Architrave wastes time killing the animal – seriously, what did the poor horse do to you? – he manages to cast a flight spell and it snatched him up into the sky just ahead of Architrave’s tentacles. Architrave himself, furious, shapeshifts into a small, obsidian-hued dragon and leaps into the sky himself to pursue. The false wyrm arrowed west in the wizard’s wake. This was no day for mercy.
Errezha: We then have a scene-change to Delg, as he sees Thiszult go flying above him and thinks to himself that it must be another wizard, after Shandril. Yes, the very one you’re pursuing, not that you seem to have picked up on that. He thinks to himself that it must be time for every last dragon and leviathan and many-headed thing in Faerun to join the chase and rides on, taking a moment to grieve for his dead friends and think that mayhap he’d join them soon. We then have another scene change and are back in Shargrailar’s head as he notices something following him. Another dragon? So small, and as black as seawater on a still night, but… cleaving the air at great speed. Shargrailar briefly wonders who this is – we know it’s Architrave – but decides he doesn’t care. Too long had it been since he'd pounced on something worthy of the effort, too long… Architrave has just a moment to look up in horror before Shargrailar strikes, effortlessly ripping him to pieces and tossing the remains from the sky. And there’s another of our Malaugrym down. Wasn’t that subplot just so worthwhile? Shargrailar takes a moment to bask in his kill – Ah, but that had felt good – and then continues on his way, until at last he sees two mounted human figures on the road below him, one male, one female, and realizes this is his true prey. He takes a moment to notice that Shandril is beautiful – honestly, I had no idea dracoliches knew or cared about human standards of beauty; how disappointing – and then like a gigantic arrow, the great dracolich plunged out of the sky. Silent death comes for you, mortals… We then cut to the ground below, where amidst a flurry of lights a woman appears beside Architrave’s remains, weeping that she had warned him. She picks up a jewel from beside the body and then, weeping, teleports her away back to a tower in Waterdeep before a certain Old Mage could catch her. Amarune again, it would seem. We then have a scene change to our other pair of Malaugrym siblings, Magusta and Stralane, as they watch all of this through a scrying spell. Magusta is amused by Architrave and Sintre’s deaths; so they both earn themselves the fate of fools. Her brother wonders who Amarune was, but Magusta decides that she must have just been a human mage, and it doesn’t matter now. With them both dead, we’ve all Faerun to ourselves to play in… so long as we watch out for Elminster. Stralane wonders if they might be able to handle him – after all, he’s only human. Magusta doesn’t want to risk it, though, which for some reason causes Stralane to wonder if she’s after spellfire instead while his back is turned. Magusta just points out that she’s more interested in watching the coming fireworks than taking part. Two score Zhentilar ride hard after the spellfire maid right now. Ugh – don’t we have random last-minute villains enough? Stralane is surprised, since he’d thought Shandril’s pursuers were Cultists, but Magusta clarifies this is a different group. The Zhents butchered them even as Architrave lay dying… Thunder Gap’s going to be a crowded place soon.
MG: I’ll note for Errezha’s sake that the Zhents won’t be arriving in time to take part in this book’s climax – they’re set up for the next one, Crown of Fire, which is Zhent-centric. And if you wonder how that can be when I’ve noted that this book was initially written as a standalone… I’m pretty sure this entire conversation between Magusta and Stralane wasn’t in the first edition, and I’ll explain why when we go through the foreword next installment (which also includes Greenwood’s explanation for why all this irrelevant Malaugrym nonsense was totally necessary).
Caelum: Anyway, we have a scene change back to Shandril and Narm, as Narm notes that someone is following them – someone short, on a mule. Hey, that’s Delg! Shandril turns back to look towards where she thinks the Rising Moon must be, tears touched her eyes – and then she saw bony death gliding coldly down out the sky. She barely has time to shout a warning; Narm pulls out the fireball charm Torm gave him and throws it, and Shandril had one glimpse of his white face before the world exploded. We then cut over to Delg watching as the great skeletal bulk arrowed down out of the sky. He realizes it must be one of those dracoliches Elminster spoke of and realizes he doesn’t stand a chance against this thing, but decides that if his friend is in danger he can’t turn away and urges his mule into a charge. And then we have another scene change to Thiszult, who sees a blast of fire from a distance and flies over to investigate. And then he realizes he’s got competition, and you know, you’d think he’d have seen the dracolich already? They’re not exactly subtle. A vast, dark skeleton wheeled in the air… a Sacred One! But how came it here? And who was it? So, I guess the Cult’s not big on coordinating with each other, huh? Shargrailar turns to regard him, and he realizes that he’d never seen one so large and terrible before! And I guess Shargrailar doesn’t like competition, because before Thiszult can declare himself an ally, blue-white lightning leapt and crackled from the dracolich’s jaw… he was dead… even before Shargrailar’s bony claws struck his body and tore it apart. His secret, long-guarded magic fell to the earth, lost in the endless trees below. Huh. Seems to me like Shargrailar’s got a pretty good track record of killing other villains – he’s done for both Thiszult and Architrave now! Now, maybe he can try killing our heroes instead? We then have a really quick scene change to the Wearer of Purple Salvarad, who’s watching through a scrying spell and sadly observes that Thiszult would never take the Purple now. Yeah, that’s… pretty obvious, really. And wow, was Thiszult a pointless character. Like a lot of the villains in this thing, honestly.
MG: And I’ll note that canonically, Shargrailar was a great wyrm red dragon before he was a dracolich, and thus breathed fire rather than lightning. I have to assume that either this was a continuity error here, or that he used some sort of spell.
Errezha: And so, we cut back to Shandril, who has stumbled back to her feet amid the stink of cooked horseflesh… faithful Shield had lived up to her name. Now, I had no idea Shandril’s horse was even called “Shield” or that she had any personality whatsoever, and Shandril merely seems glad that the horse died so that she might live. Shandril herself is unharmed; the dracolich’s flames had poured strength into her because of course they did. She then turns to see what has become of Narm, searching for him amid the wreck of their mounts while lightning – presumably from Shargrailar’s killing of Thiszult – flashes overhead. He had no protection against dragon fire. He could well be dead, and their child would never know its father. Oh, right. We had a brief mention of Shandril being pregnant several chapters ago, and then nothing since. I don’t think Greenwood is very interested in this plot point. Finally, she finds Narm under their baggage; he’s alive, but the left side of his face was black and blistered. Shandril calls out his name and manages to wake him up – just in time for him to warn her that the dracolich comes! And sure enough, Shandril turns to see that The legendary Shargrailar wheeled above them, vast and dark and terrible. Though it was only empty bones, the undead creature was awesome. Shandril shivered as she gazed at its fell might. Excuse me – one question. Shargrailar hasn’t announced himself; indeed, he hasn’t spoken at all. So how does Shandril recognize him? She didn’t even know who Shargrailar was until Narm told her about the Cult way back in chapter five. Did Elminster force her to memorize important dracoliches so she could recognize them on sight off-page? I don’t think he did. Narm, meanwhile, tells Shandril to run and save herself, and that he loves her, but she refuses to leave him. Up above, Shargrailar opens his mouth and Shandril casts herself in front of Narm as a shield; she tells him once again she loves him and gives a final kiss, and then searing flame swallowed them. We then cut back to Delg, who prays Clanggedin aid me! As he comes upon the scene of battle and sees Shargrailar’s flames envelop Shandril. He barely has time to curse before his mule bucks him off, and then raking claws swept the poor beast skyward, rending and tearing. My, my. This is not a good chapter to be an equine, is it? But killing the poor mule doesn’t seem to bring Shargrailar satisfaction. The dracolich let out the first angry sound it had uttered in many long years… destroying foes had never taken this long before. Oh, yes, surely nobody in all the millennia of your existence has put up as good a fight as… two teenagers who haven’t struck back yet and a handful of hapless horses and mules.
Caelum: Well, we then cut back to Shandril, as she strained to draw in the dragon fire that ravaged Narm’s helpless body. Wait, we’ve seen Shandril absorb power from spells before – I guess dragonfire counts as magic? But apparently this is more power than she’s used to handling, and her body’s not taking it well. Gods, the pain! We get a bit more description of said pain, and then Shandril realizes that Narm’s own life force streamed into her; she was draining him to death! Wow; I had no idea she could do that. Life force isn’t magic, is it? I mean, she’s not a vampire. Er, I don’t think. Shandril breaks off the kiss and pulls away, but Narm has fallen still and she’s terrified, but at the same time she’s full of magic, bloated with more than she could hold for long. She then remembers Gorstag saying that her mother could use spellfire to heal or harm which makes Shandril wonder could she heal as well as burn? Deciding she has nothing to lose by trying, she kisses Narm again and this time wills the energy out of herself and into him. And then she felt his feeble heartbeat strengthen… let him be once more whole and strong and – bony claws raked agony across her back. Shargrailar’s blow tears Shandril off Narm and throws her to the side of the road, and Shandril realizes that the dracolich doesn’t need magic to kill her – he can just rip her apart bare-clawed. Dazed and bleeding, Shandril thinks to herself about how she’s sick of blood and killing but finds strength in the knowledge that she can heal too and pulls herself up defiantly as she saw Shargrailar sweep down again, eyes glimmering at her from its cruel skull, claws outstretched. For old times’ sake, Shandril gets called the onetime thief of Deepingdale as she laughs in Shargrailar’s face, and then from her eyes, flames shot forth, two fiery beams of spellfire that struck the bone dragon’s eyes. Shargrailar screams and swerves aside, and then Shandril laughs and blasts him again with a white inferno of flames that roared from her mouth into the blinded dracolich. It reeled in the air, blazing, and crashed to the ground. Wait… is that it? I mean, this has been one of the better fight scenes in the book, all told, but still, I can’t help but notice that the moment Shandril actually manages to strike back, she ends the fight – against what’s supposed to be one of the most powerful creatures in the whole world – with two blows. Gods, I wish my life was that easy! Also, Shandril used her epiphany that she can do more than kill to… motivate herself to do some more killing. That’s a little weird. But sure enough, Shargrailar’s still thrashing around but Shandril ignores him as she rushes back over to Narm, first healing herself, and then using some of her remaining power on Narm. Then she looks around to see if Shargrailar is going to attack again, only to see an axe rise and fall in Shargrailar’s shuddering rib cage. Bone shards flew. The dracolich had already lost its wings and two claws, and was trying feebly to turn its head and blast its attacker… a hearty kick sent more pieces of bone flying. Yep, it’s Delg! His gleaming axe hacked tirelessly at the dracolich’s bulk. And maybe it’s just me, but for this to work, I’d think Shandril would really have had to have essentially incapacitated Shargrailar already?
MG: I think so. From their performance at the beginning of the book, I don’t think anyone in the Bright Spear was all that powerful and considering my earlier comments about what tier Shargrailar is probably on at full strength – yeah. He must’ve really been running on fumes after taking Shandril’s blasts for Delg to be any threat to him at all.
Errezha: Delg takes a moment away from his dracolich-chopping to call out a greeting to Shandril. This time you’re in luck: Delg’s here to lay low your pet! Shandril is so happy to see him she rushes over and hugs him, lifting him clear off his feet – is Shandril’s physical strength enhanced by her spellfire, then? The dwarves I’ve known tend to be quite heavy for their size. Delg! Delg! I thought all the company were dead! Yes, and you’ve hardly thought of them at all ever since. Otherwise, Delg’s survival might not have been such a sudden twist. Delg tells her that he thought she was dead too, but now he’s finally found her, and Shandril tells him that scarce a day passes without someone trying to slay us because of… that which I wield. Delg assures her that Storm and Elminster filled him in, and that they need to get Narm to safety; first, Shandril asks him if he knows Shargrailar, and when Delg says that he’s never seen it before I buried my axe in it she lets loose a bolt that blasted Shargrailar’s flopping skull to bone shards. And so passes Shargrailar the Dark, greatest of the dracoliches of Faerun… who went from a legitimate threat to anticlimactic afterthought in a remarkably short time, even for a Greenwood villain. And with his passing, this book has now seen the deaths of four powerful dragons, three of them dracoliches, one of them the greatest of all dracoliches. *applauds sarcastically* Dropping like flies, indeed. Ignoring her slain foe, Shandril turns back to Delg and laments how much of her life has been violence lately, and is butchery all the legends are built on? To which Delg merely says aye, and call me cynical but personally I would have to agree, not in all cases but distressingly many, and then he says again they need to get Narm off the road. Delg also promises Shandril that he’s her friend, and from now on, he’ll come with her, if she’ll have him. ‘An one needs little more in life than good food an’ good friends. The company’s gone now, all save for you… so old Delg’ll ride with you. And, because this is Greenwood, he makes a crack about how people will get the wrong ideas if he goes around befriending pretty young girls too often. But then at least he just asks Shandril to hold his axe while he sees to Narm, who is fine now after Shandril’s healing, and it was a happy camp that sunset. Well, for everyone but the horses, that is. We then have a scene change to the next morning, as the trio set off while a lone black falcon soared high above and, my, my, is that the Simbul? Where were you last night, o mighty Witch Queen, when you could have been actually useful fighting Shargrailar? Elminster’s bed, perhaps? On the way, Narm catches up Delg with the stories of Shandril’s adventures since he last saw her, while Delg told Narm fierce tales of Shandril’s daring with the company. All lies, I assume. We saw Shandril’s entire time with the Bright Spear, you’ll recall. Which consisted of her stealing from them and this somehow getting accepted to replace their dead thief, helping kill a couple of bandits they ran into (who may or may not have been working for the Malaugrym) and managing to survive when (almost) everyone else got killed by a green dragon and its pet wizard. That’s three stories, at most, and not very fierce or daring, at that. Finally, the turn to look back at the Dales, and Narm comments on how who could know, looking at it, that this beautiful land could be so dangerous? I don’t know; I’ve seen many picturesque places that are quite dangerous! Looks can be deceiving. But Shandril just says that we’ve found each other, and that’s worth it all. And then our chapter – and our book – ends as They turned and walked into the evening together. As soft stars came out above them, they thought of many mornings to be shared and were happy. *beat* Excuse me, but that’s it? The story doesn’t end, it just stops! Yes, Shandril defeated Shargrailar, but he wasn’t any sort of lasting threat, and ultimately not so different from any of the other random villains she’s faced, just bigger and scarier – nothing was actually resolved! Yes, I know it’s the first of a trilogy, but even so it should have some resolution, and I don’t think it was actually written to start a trilogy anyway! Agh! Greenwood!
MG: Well, that is indeed the end, for now. And Crown of Fire picks up almost exactly where this one leaves off, so yeah, I have to agree that it’s a stopping point rather than an ending, and not materially different from most of the chapter endings we’ve already had (save that the chapter is longer and rushes to tie off a lot of the irrelevant subplots we’ve collected). Not to mention that both Delg and Shargrailar come out of utter freaking nowhere with minimal foreshadowing at the last minute to provide some semblance of resolution to a book that’s been largely lacking direction for most of its length. Neither of them has much narrative weight. Shargrailar really just feels like he’s there to be a boss battle, and despite all the hype, he’s not much different than either of the other dracoliches we’ve already dealt with, and he and Shandril have no personal history or enmity, so defeating him doesn’t feel nearly like the big deal it should. Delg’s return, meanwhile, is clearly meant to be a heartwarming reunion, but the fact of the matter is that he barely knew Shandril, we barely knew him, and we’ve thought he was dead ever since chapter three, in which time he’s barely been mentioned or grieved at all, so his ‘big damn heroes’ moment here doesn’t feel meaningful or earned. But in any case, we are now done with the actual story of Spellfire! But we’re not quite done with this spork – next time, I’m going to cover Greenwood’s foreword to the second edition (which makes me seriously wonder if Greenwood actually read his own book) and then give my final thoughts on Spellfire as a whole. We’ll see you then! No pics this time; I looked for a pic of Shargrailar (who remains an important background NPC for his role in the Cult’s origins, as their first and most powerful dracolich, even though he got killed off here in his first novel appearance), but sadly, he’s never been illustrated, that I can find.
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So she's a kind of energy vampire. Hadn't missed that from Inheritance.
Come to think of it, I'd think the Inheritance cycle, for all its flaws, did handle to concept of undead dragon much better than this. The Eldunarya at least have an active presence in the story, and Úmaroth, while unintentional, is a much better villain than any of the dracoliches here.
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Say what you like about that series, but at least they drain energy on purpose, not accidently.
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Honestly, Shargrailar in particular reminds me of a couple of other characters from Inheritance who aren't dragons - namely, Varaug and Barst, who similarly come out of nowhere with minimal foreshadowing just to provide a boss battle before being handily dealt with anyway.
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