But is it art?

Session 82

We discover one of the witches was carrying a very important stick of some sort... a Greatstaff of the Bheur Hag, but it seems to only be usable by one of their kind.

Briya and Æsheryn try to figure out how to free the Queen. It's very power stuff that maybe a Greater restoration could handle, but killing Truush will most likely make it much easier to get rid of.

We psychically tell the King that the Queen is safe but unable to be moved. It's now time to move further into the castle. As Æsheryn pokes his head out into the hallway he notices that it's eerily quiet. Reaching out again to the King in order to ask him where the portal is; he replies through battle sounds that the Material-plane one was already destroyed, but he's always suspected that Truush had another one; probably in his private sanctum.

Cass recalls that "Horseman" is more of a title than an actual physical description. They have also been depicted as colors and movement. (Think the Nazgûl-esque from Lord of the Rings). Briya uses this description to cast locate creature, and immediately feels one about six or seven levels above us.

We do meet some resistance on the way up; but we epically knock them down with knife stabs, shillelagh hits, and celestial light all around. Finally, we enter a room with spilled ink. Is this perhaps where the note written for Maltheo was made? There's an uncovered doorway in the back leading to a dark room that seems ancient.

We hear, "Oh… you're a bit early. But no matter, we've been expecting that you would come."

We notice in the room the four "horsemen" (they're the same as the oracles from the one-shot!) are there in the main hidden room. But there's another room behind that, fully open, where we see Truush and a massive arcane structure with swirling green lights and a giant crystal floating in restraints above; this must be his portal to the hells.

"I'm afraid you're a little bit too late… I'll open the gate again, and we'll take the castle once more."

Initiative

Lotus - 23
x Horn Gold - 21
Maltheo - 20
x Bright Day (white)
Briya - 13
Æsheryn - 13
x Red Sun
x Black Night
Cass - 7
Truush

Gold goes for Æsheryn. Long pointy metal gold stick and attacks thrice. All miss thanks to Æsheryn's defenses. Maltheo tries to hit Gold and misses with 17; moves to Truush and misses with a 16. Gold uses a legendary action to attack Æsheryn again. Hits with cold damage and 10 speed reduction. Bright Day hastes himself. Moves to Æsheryn and attacks. Briya casts Bones of the Earth. Pillars of stone bursting from the ground. Diameter 5 ft. by 30 ft. Each AC of 5 hp, crumbles into 10 ft radius of terrain. Dex save if not want to be lifted. Can squeeze them into the ceiling.

Black & Gold succeeded; Day and Red failed; They are mashed into the ceiling.

Gold uses a legendary action to shadow step up to Maltheo.

Æsheryn tries to banish all 4 horsemen. Red and Gold succeed on their save, while White and Black both fail and are banished. Red Sun uses dimension door to escape to Æsheryn. Cass casts Globe of Invulnerability around her allies.

Truush to bite attacks Maltheo with a legendary action for some heavy damage. Claw hits for 16 (and Maltheo saves against something with a Str nat 20). Tail lash misses. Gold then attacks Maltheo and misses but then hits with some cold damage. Truush uses a legendary action to cast Shroud, a 30 ft radius of magical darkness.

Astral arms activation gives Maltheo the ability to see in it though. Maltheo attacks Gold but is parried. 18 misses Truush, but ki point increases it to 21. Hits for 7 but misses stunning strike.

Gold uses a legendary action to hit Maltheo for 20 cold. Briya wildshapes into giant albino bat, flies toward Maltheo, Gives herself fire shield (cold). Æsheryn heals and then tries to hit Red but Red saves. He's then counter-attacked by Red, but saves, and is now immune to "temporal strike". Cass heals Æsheryn.

Truush fades the magical darkness at the start of his turn. Attacks Maltheo. Hits for some damage and grapples/restrains him. Gold goes for the opportunity of restraint. 21 cold damage. 8 cold damage. More damage. He goes unconscious.

Truush uses a legendary action and hits Maltheo twice for 2 death save failures. Maltheo gets 1 success on his turn. Briya attacks Gold and hits for 6, then grapples, restrains, and pulls Gold away. Legendary action from Truush misses Maltheo. Æsheryn channels divinity to Preserve Life on Maltheo. His self-healing is counter spelled though.

Red moves past, is whacked by Æsheryn, and goes up to Maltheo. Hits three times for 44 damage. Truush uses a legendary action to hit him too. Maltheo goes unconscious again. Cass casts vortex warp to shunt Maltheo next to her into the protective Globe of Invulnerability.

Truush casts an 8th level square spell: Horrid wilting. Maltheo 1 death save. Cass takes 48 damage and her globe of invulnerability fades away, but Banishment from Æsheryn stays up. Maltheo's life hangs in the balance.

Notes:

Æsheryn immune to temporal strike. Concentrating on banishment.
Briya giant albino bat and bones of the earth
Red & Gold do not currently have Temporal Strike charged up