>>5305712Two days are spent preparing to delve into this forgotten darkness, and to reclaim what your people have lost. In those two days, you choose two rings to attune to… And one which you will destroy.
“It is a great waste,” the Novice laments.
She complains, but without any great histrionics, for she sees why you have decided to do this thing. The Demon Ring and its dark inhabitant are simply too dangerous to work with. You may have come to find an affinity for outcasts of a certain stripe, but that does not extend to heretical acolytes, or their demonic masters. Instead, you wear the Ring of Protection on one hand, and the Ring of Elemental Command on the other, allowing your magical energies to attune them to you over time, and you allow the Cartographer to do likewise with the Ring of Spell-Storing, at least for now.
“Is there a way to dispose of such a thing?” you ask, gesturing the demonic circle, which you have placed upon a nearby rocky outcropping in the kobolds’ cave.
The Novice crosses her arms and narrows her eyes in concentration and recollection. It doesn’t bode well—demonology is also, clearly, outside her main discipline.
“It should be possible, by creating a magic circle to contain and dominate the demon. It would be easier if we knew its true name.”
You summon Hapo, and the Translator, but the one-armed kobold does not know the being’s true name, and the Translator (who has passing familiarity with the occult glyphs of the inhabitants of the Hells) can offer no real advice.
“At least,” he correct, “nothing to help you destroy it NOW. You could carry it down, to where our guide found it, and see if there is a record of the being’s name there. Then, the name could be used to bind and destroy it!”
Hapo says nothing, simply staring at the ring with an anguished expression. You can tell he’s much rather it not be destroyed. You imagine he’d much rather be wearing it, best of all.
“We could attempt the circle of demon-protection, then destroy the ring anyway,” the Novice suggests. “If you’re going through with this sup-optimal course of action, that is. We may not be able to banish the demon in the manner which is easiest, but you have a magic weapon. When the circle is erected, and the ring destroyed, the demon will emerge. Then, you can slay it. It will be weakened and trapped. You can simply slay it.”
What do you do?
>Take the demon ring with you, and destroy it once you have the means to do so thoroughly and efficiently>Set up a magic circle and smash the ring, then duel the demon—you’ll waste no more time, and risk no demon-related complications[Post focused on selecting your kobold allies and entering the ruins after work!]
