The Pandemonium Ring

A story about a lord and his ill fate.

You want me to sing, of a secret thing? You want me to sing, of our lord's silver ring? I know of a ring, a magical thing that does its master's bidding. It lit his way, and did obey, and think not I am kidding. The ring was our lord's most revered treasure, an artefact so great and old, it cannot be measured. When all his lands died away, and all his men wanted pay. Only one thing the same would stay. When the king had all his spare wealth used, he still owed more and was scared that his castle he would loose. One day he found a book in the lower vault, a book about the ring and how to hinder revolt.

He knew it was wrong, but no choice he had. Without a castle he would go mad. For months he tore his hair; confused, and full of despair. Then one night, the darkest of nights, he woke in his chamber by a light – Shining from below. From the light there came a call, asking if he had a room to bestow. The man promised that he would pay, a small fortune every day, if only the lord let him in, and let him stay.

The lord saw his chance, to use this to advance, and invited him in. The man had wolfish yellow eyes, stubble, and a blood-curdling grin. Despite this the lord gave him a room, and told him he could stay, till the next full moon. The man was pleased, shook his hand, and then sneezed. "Oh pray excuse me, lord." He then said. "I've been out in the cold for long, Sleeping in ditches, and not in a bed."

The wolfish man knew of the ring, of its magic and what powers it could bring. But to the poor lord he said naught, he knew it was pointless, it could not be bought. Only with magic lore, could it be done, of that he was sure. The man had learned how to bind a spell, with the help of water from a nearby well, to its victim, without him tell.

The lord received gold and silver every day, and his joy grew since in his castle he could stay.

 

Then one day, when he on his bed lay, with gold and silver all around, the strangest sound began to seep the ground. The castle began to quake, sending stones into the lake, breaking towers and walls, roofs and stalls.  “Why do you want me damned?” the lord calls. Angry and sad, on his knees he falls.

Through the broken roof he sees the sky, he asks his master “Why, why, why?” The wolfish man's lore then comes through the door and lures him to get the ring to the lower floor. The lord does this and more, he brings the book he had in store. When he meets the wolfish man, drawn by spell, his rage more strong, he will not sell. The book contained spells from all the hells and if used together with the ring, there was no telling what it would bring. The lord found a passage in the book, marked the edge, and gave it a look. He began citing the text page by page, till suddenly there was no next. A page was missing, torn out clean, the spell failed and it could be seen. People woke all across the land, by the sound of the castle sinking in the sand. There it is to this day, until the lord knows what to say.

Author's Note

Written for the NWN2 editor, the Pandemonium Ring adventure.