Oriel laughed at my question. “What is a Paragon, huh? I guess you wouldn’t have those in the Material Plane. Or the ones you did have would be impossibly rare. Perhaps even mistaken for demigods.”

She took a breath, and said, “You see, Paragons are a variation of a normal species. Like the Celestials and Ordinals and the like. However, a Human Paragon is as similar to a normal human as a dragon is to a kobold. In every way, a paragon is faster, stronger, smarter, more perfect than the creature they resemble. Their skin resists magic and blades, and even when wounded, they heal faster than you could imagine.”

I frowned. “That sounds like a tall order to kill one, then. What kind of paragon are we hunting, then? And what would be the easiest way to kill them?”

Oriel shrugged. “There are no easy ways, but violence ought to work well enough. Enough killing and it will take them down. Whether you can survive long enough to deal that much damage, I cannot say.”

The winged drowess looked me in the eye. “As for who you are hunting, that is simple. His name is Sidriel, and, until recently, he was a normal trumpet archon, no different from any others of his kind. However, something happened when he was on an expedition into the forests of Izrail, hunting heretics. He left a simple archon, and a moon later he returned a paragon of his kind.

“If that was the only change, then none would care much about it, other than trying to figure out how he gained such power. But his attitude began to change. He became twisted, and cruel. The Temple’s Inquisitors were about to try and bring him in for questioning when he fled the city, where he was met with a back of giant wolves with black fur, which a hunter claimed were Blackmane Wolves. Now, he is looking to unseat me from my position, here, or worse.”

I nodded. “So, something happened to him, and whatever enhanced him, changed him? If I were speaking about a human, I would consider whether he had been bitten by a werewolf, or something similar. But that curse shouldn’t work on an archon.”

Vestele’s Knowledge (The Planes) check: 1d20+19 = 26 (Success)

“Ah, that might be true for the normal version,” Vestele said, frowning as she did so, “but my studies mentioned that there was a ‘greater’ form of the Lycanthropy curse. A form that would work upon fey, monstrous humanoids, and outsiders, as well as the normal humanoids and giants that the lesser version can afflict. And the ‘source’ of the curse can include magical beasts, instead of just animals. Those two factors combined would make for a very dangerous foe.”

Oriel uttered a curse in the celestial tongue, twisting the fair words into something harsh, and grating. “If such a curse is real, then it would explain everything. The Blackmane Wolves are paragon creatures, themselves, the perfect form of an ordinal dire wolf, with the ability to run through the air. If Sidriel got infected from a werewolf version of one of those wolves, then he would become a paragon, himself. And it is well known that lycanthropy can twist a person’s morality the longer they suffer from the affliction.”

I took a long moment to consider that. “In that case, we’re looking at more than just a single paragon to kill. We’ll need to count on fighting the wolves, as well. If they are as tough as you say, and they can run through the air, then we will need to prepare for them before heading out.”

Oriel nodded. “That is true. With only the five of you, taking on the Blackmane pack as well as Sidriel without proper gear would be foolish. Fortunately, I know of someplace where you might be able to find some gear that would do the trick.”

“Oh? And where might this be?”

“The Grimhold Repository is located on just this side of the barricades blocking off the inner city. It is a storehouse for trophies or captured spoils from battles across the planes. More specifically, its vaults hold those items that were deemed too corrupting, or too dangerous, to be allowed into the hands of mortals, and many of them are chaotic or evil in nature, making them anathema to the residents of Izrail.”

I frowned, “Why keep them, then? Why not unmake them in some way?”

“Because there are items there which can be a boon, in the right hands. Izrail is not isolated from the rest of the planes, after all. As a plane of good, there are those of a righteous fervor but with a more chaotic bent who might be bought, or rewarded, with a weapon of chaos. And as a plane of law, well, there might be a time when others who are not as righteous, but are just as lawful, may want to acquire something that might sway someone else to their side. Simply put, the items inside are too valuable to be destroyed.”

“All right,” I nodded. “That sounds like a good place to start. But what about carrying those weapons around? Won’t they be easily recognized by those who know what to look for?”

“Oh, certainly. If you try and carry them openly, then any archon would feel their presence. However, a wizard I knew happened to discover the formula for a ritual magic that would allow you to ‘transfer’ some of the traits and abilities from one piece of gear, and add them to another. The old piece would be destroyed in the process, of course, but the old gear would gain new abilities, in addition to what they already had.”

Siora whistled appreciatively. “And who was this wizard? Because that kind of ritual would turn the planes on their heads, if it became known. Even if, as I’m guessing, there is a price to pay, to fuel such a ritual.”

Oriel grew grim-faced. “He was a wizard of Thedra. One of the more frequent visitors I would get through the portal. A brilliant mind, and delightfully devoid of any concerns about ethics or morality. All that mattered was the research. I would supply him with material components, and he gave me copies of his research, among other things. He was in the capital of Magika when the new portal opened. I saw him dragged out, before the Temple, and executed for ‘heresy’.”

I nodded. That was the kind of thing religious zealots did, of all stripes, it seemed, when they were not as welcoming of different beliefs as our group was. “In that case, we can use his work as the first step towards thwarting the will of those who caused his death. What price is needed to conduct this ritual? Because, as Siora said, I refuse to believe that there isn’t some kind of price to be paid.”

Oriel just nodded grimly. “And you’d be right. Beyond the fact that you would be destroying a powerful magical item to gain a portion of its powers on those you already have, there’s most certainly a price to be paid. You will have to sacrifice a living creature, as well. According to my friend’s notes, the more powerful the sacrifice, the greater the number of abilities you can transfer over.”

She took a breath. “Now, obviously, such an act would be considered extremely evil by just about everyone. That shouldn’t bother you all too much. But the notes also say that those who conduct the ritual will be marked in some way, identifying them as an agent of evil. If the mark is seen, then it could cause problems for you later. Multiple uses of the ritual could have greater effects.”

“What kind of effects?”

The drowess just shook her head. “My friend didn’t know. He had only done the ritual once, as a test, but his notes said that he could ‘feel’ that the change was just the beginning. And I’ve never done anything like that, myself. I’m already an ‘Impure’ one. If I got branded with some dark mark that got the archons to pay more attention to me, then I would be killed outright, if not taken to the Inquisition to be made example of.”

“Hmm. So, the first thing we need to do is to sneak into the storehouse, and find a way to liberate the goods without anyone being the wiser, yes?”

“Yes. If you set off the vault’s defenses, there’s no telling what the response of the army will be. As I said, it is close enough to the barricades that a patrol could be quickly dispatched to investigate. And if the patrol goes missing, the army will start causing problems, for sure.”

Siora nodded. “In that case, I don’t suppose there is another way in, besides just going through the front door?”

“There is an access in the sewers. Who made it, or why, I have no idea, but, if you can solve the three puzzles that lock it, you can get into the storehouse. I know not what is behind that door. The one time I tried to access the vault, the minion I used to try the locks failed one of the puzzles, and was killed. I decided against trying it myself.”

“Killed how, exactly?” Siora asked. “If we know how they were killed, that gives us hints as to what kind of traps to expect later on.”

Oriel nodded. “I don’t know if it will help or not, but a trumpet archon was summoned by the trap’s failure. Thankfully, I kept myself hidden while the rogue went about his work. Once she killed my minion, and didn’t see any other intruders, she went back to whence she came from.”

“Well, that’s an effective defense. Especially since the archon would likely have some means of contacting the masters of the vault once the summoning was done. Even if they were defeated, so long as they weren’t actually from this plane, then they would still be able to raise the alarm.”

I sighed, and said, “Well, we’ll just have to make sure we don’t trip any alarms, then.” Looking back to Oriel, I asked, “While we’re in the storehouse, do you think you can find someplace where we could conduct the ritual? I assume it will need to be warded in some way, to keep prying eyes from finding it.”

“Actually, I have a space like that already set up, near here. Sometimes my ‘guests’ from the Material Plane needed to conduct rituals away from their plane. There’s an altar and space that has been warded properly to keep it from being discovered. That will keep anyone from sensing the ritual’s magic.”

“You have been working on undermining this realm for some time, I see.”

The drowess shrugged. “I have no loyalty to it. They’ve given me nothing but suffering, so I see no reason why I shouldn’t repay them in kind. It is simply keeping the balance clear.”

“In that case, the next concern, assuming that we manage to pull off the heist, will be the other ‘material components’ for the ritual. We’ll need quite the supply of sacrifices, if we’re going to enhance as much of our gear as we want.”

“Oh, I have the perfect choices. As I said, I’m not one to keep debts, and I don’t like others keeping them, either. House Runeglide has several outstanding debts, and they’ve been one of the biggest supporters of the war. According to my information, they were one of the houses that sent their agents across to ensure the portal was opened where it was.”

The drowess got a predatory look on her face. “While the house’s heir is with the army, and safe on the inside of the barricades, the rest of the house are at their estate at the city’s edge. As you might guess, they are ordinals, and not well loved by the Impure. Especially since they often join in the ‘cleansings’ now and then. And the servants are as bad as the nobles. I can balance a few accounts if they were to ‘disappear’.”

I nodded with a smile of my own. “People in power always forget that the people below them have teeth. They just need one chance to strike, and then a king bleeds as easily as a pauper. In that case, we’ll leave that part to you. If you could give us directions to the vault, without our needing to go aboveground, that would be even better.”

“Of course! Here’s a copy of a map I made of the sewers. Nice and orderly, just as the lawful jerks like, but it makes for easy mapmaking. Just let me mark the route, and you’ll be good to go. By the time you return from the vaults, I’ll have the volunteers ready for the ritual.”