A chill wind blows, and the alcohol-scented mists of memory roll away to reveal our heroic party as they reap the rewards of their brave exploits. When we left them last, they had just defeated the remaining garrison of the Orcish town of Hammerholt. Paladan in particular was glad to have exacted his vengence for his humiliating defeat in single combat by the Orcish war chief. However, when they explored the settlement that they had newly conquered, they were dismayed by the revalations they uncovered. For it developed that Hammerholt had been built over two hundred years before, while the treacherous Halflings of Applegrove had been settled for scant seasons.
Furious over having been used so, our brave warriors decided they would return to Applegrove and punish their erstwhile employers. After collecting tribute from the defeated Orcs, they began to march back, before remembering their magical carpet. Thus equipped, the heroes soared over the endless plains in style, but were ambushed by a quartet of manticore riders before they could reach the village and make their purpose known. Aided by her insiduous magics, Lilith was able to convince their captain that their intent was without malice -- at least, for the Orcs -- while her companions cheerfully slew the remaining warriors. With the assent of the surviving Orcs, and joined by a tree that Calox had Awoken using his magic staff, the heroes descended on Applegrove with their hearts full of wrath.
When they arrived in Applegrove, the adventurers were greeted with joy, initially. Randolph, though aghast at the devastation his town had suffered, took solace in the knowledge that his troubles would soon be over. He did not realize just how right he was until Lilith's tail wrapped around his throat, while his moustache lived on in her disguise kit. The remaining Halflings soon shared his fate, as they all fell before the adventurers' blades, arrows, and spells. Emboldened by the deaths of all the guards, the heroes went to engage in their customary looting, but their success was short-lived. From the direction of the Orcish camp came the sound of fighting and explosions. While the party had been slaughtering the constables, the fearsome devil Malduk, pit fiend general of the Nine Hells and a terrifying warrior, had descended on the Orc encampment with his legion of bone devils and laid waste to their forces. Totally unprepared for a battle this desperate, the heroes found themselves face-to-face with an agent of Asmodeus himslef.
But Malduk was not there to fight them. Laughing at their pitiful attempts at defense, the terrible fiend declared that he was there to offer employment. He had been impressed by the heroes' performance on his last errand, although he was incensed that Balthazar had granted them a wish in exchange for his freedom. They shifted to Malduk's palace on Avernus, the first of the Nine Hells, where our brave adventurers prepared to negotiate the terms of their reward. As they would soon discover, it was to die for...