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Alzar returns and the secret door cannot be opened, and he even tries the Grave Key to no lock. Alzar uses the Chime of Opening to open it.
This is a clean and open space. Undamaged by the sinking beneath the lake and the subsequent years. There is a large staircase down in the center of the chamber, and there are small rooms inside here that Alzar can see around. There are 4 large statues in the area, probably golems, guarding it. You how that is. Can’t have a secret area without a statue coming alive.
Alzar heads to the door to the right, and will check out that area first. There is a room here that is roughly triangular with a 30x20 feet rough shape to it. It’s an old, well furnished apartment. There are numerous old pieces of furniture or decorations that have faded with time. Silver candle holders, a canopy bed, and such. Alzar’s eyes light up when he sees a bookshelf in the far wall. But this room gives off a palpable Antipathy effect for any lawful characters. It feels somehow off to Alzar’s sense of order. Alzar has to make a save to enter the room, and fails. He steps back and heads back in after a few minute and makes another save. He wants to check out that bookshelf.
Alzar loses a point of Dexterity when he heads into the room and two more while searching. They’ll return after ten minutes of leaving it. Meanwhile, after searching everything first ,a pale voice comes to alzar…
“Who visits me after all these centuries?”
A form begins to coalesce into the velvet chair, an insubstantial form of a ghost. He is hiding behind the cowl of his cloak and Alzar cannot see his face, which of course protects him from an aging attack. With such a proper host, Alzar agrees to sit down.
This is the ghost of Draconus, an old 20th level wizard who helped rally forces of law against the Lords of Chaos. This shrine was intended to be the launching point for a major offensive against the Hollow World, and that could not be allowed. Therefore the ghost was imprisoned in the shrine as he died as a punishment for the victory he helped achieve. He tells Alzar about the top level, which is the shrine, and a lower level below it the proper base. He knows little of it, having been here forever . There is a key that must be assembled to head down, and it should mostly be in the center area, although a mage took one piece with him and fled.
Alzar inquires about how Draconus kept himself sane, revealing his under Necrology expertise. “Oh I know that you are fully evil, and not aligned with my own good interpretation of law. But are a greater champion for law than you realize, and we both struggle against them. I cast a Wish to keep my alignment, and another my spells, and now I am a ghost with my old memories, beliefs, and powers.”
He talks to Alzar’s long as Alzar wants. He has not spoken to anyone in a long time. The books on the shelves have been read over and over again. But he cannot leave this shrine, he is cursed to remain here. He does have one of the keys, and it fits the one Alzar already found, and he begins to assemble the Chaos Key.
Alzar heads over to take a look at the books and reviews them. They are actually ancient books on magic and religions. They are all documents that relate various histories and such of societies and people down here in the Hollow World. Alzar asks if he can come back later to make copies of them for his collections and Draconus agrees. There’s no secret knowledge. Alzar heads into OtherSpace and grabs a generic book there that’s on some minor topic he was reading and loans it to Draconus to read. It’s from Thorasia, so it’s not even this plane, but hey, it’s something, right?
Alzar tells Draconus about the huge library he has been collecting all of his life. Books from various worlds, and from places like the home of Castanamir, the Temple from the UnderDark, and even from Mystara’s own past, and the Temple of the Frog. As Alar tells him more and more about this library. Draconus is increasingly intrigued. Building it up is one of Alzar’s passions. And Alzar makes Draconus a deal. Alzar will take out the Temple of Chaos below, and end it, before it regains it’s full power and reawakens Chaos here below, and then Draconus will come with Alzar back home and can move into the library and become its warden, guardian, and read all of the various books he has there. They make the pact.
(See the cover image for this room and this person, btw
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