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Lazybones's Keep on the Shadowfell/Thunderspire Labyrinth
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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 4878849" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 68</p><p></p><p></p><p>Jaron stepped back, but did not flee before the dragon’s rush. His hands shook slightly as he fitted his last arrow to the string, but the steel head did not quiver as his drew the bowstring to his cheek. </p><p></p><p>But the dragon was faster, too fast; it covered the gap between them in a few bounds, its jaws snapping out to enfold him in a single deadly bite. </p><p></p><p>In the scant instant before impact, a huge form, almost as big as the dragon, came hurtling out of the corridor, colliding into the drake with the force of a boulder tumbling down a mountain. The dragon was flung aside by the force of that collision, and both it and the newcomer hurtled in a mad confusion across the crowded space of the hall, finally slamming together into the far wall with enough force to make the stones tremble. </p><p></p><p>Carzen had gotten back to his feet, and still held his sword. But he meandered back and forth, staggering dazedly as he made his way over to where Mara had fallen. The woman warrior was conscious, but her battered arm hung limp at her side, and while she fumbled against the floor with her other hand, she couldn’t quite manage to get up. Both of them stared in amazement at the scene developing in front of them. </p><p></p><p>“What in the hells…” Carzen began. His confusion only deepened when he heard a familiar yell superimposed over the roars coming from the dragon and its foe. </p><p></p><p>The two fighters saw that the new arrival was the dire boar they’d encountered earlier. Pinning the dragon against the wall, it twisted its head violently, working its tusks deeper into the monster’s body. The dragon, caught off-balance, responded with a violent storm of claws and teeth that forced the boar back, bleeding from gashes across its face and shoulders. Blood from both creatures started gathering upon the floor below, splatters joining into a muddled pool that was further scattered by their frenzied movements. </p><p></p><p>And sitting astride the boar, shouting his lungs out, was Beetle, having the time of his life. There seemed no way he could have kept that precarious perch through the charge and impact with the dragon, yet somehow he did, clinging to a bony spur jutting from its back as though it were a saddle horn. </p><p></p><p>The boar, driven to a mad rage by its imprisonment, took out its frustrations upon the dragon. Its hooves beating upon the floor, it surged forward, snapping its head up as it gored the dragon again. One tusk, already slick with blood, stabbed into the dragon’s belly like a curved dagger, ripping the scaled hide and releasing a fresh gout of dark, stinking blood. Beetle contributed by throwing a small knife that glanced off the dragon’s skull, narrowly missing an eye. </p><p></p><p>The dragon’s rage easily matched that of the boar, and while it was now bloodied, it responded with no less violence. Seizing the boar with its claws, it fired off another blast of toxic gas that scoured it at point-blank range, bleaching the thick bristles that covered its hide. The boar staggered back, temporarily blinded and dazed by the attack. The dragon’s breath had also finally dislodged Beetle, who was flung across the room by the force of the blast. The halfling somehow managed to get his feet under him as he landed, and he tumbled to a safe if somewhat awkward stop, coughing to clear the remnants of the poison from his lungs. </p><p></p><p>The dragon exploited its advantage as it had against its armored foes earlier. The boar’s angry grunts became squeals of pain as the dragon’s claws dug deep furrows in its hide, but those cries were abruptly cut off as it sank its jaws into its neck, driving it down into the ground, pinning it there despite its weakening struggles. </p><p></p><p>Carzen bent down to help Mara, trying to ignore the way the room started spinning when he lowered his head. He had to put his sword down, but he was able to take her good arm and pull her to her feet. She grimaced in pain as the movement jarred her battered arm, but her eyes were mostly lucid as they fixed on him. </p><p></p><p>“My… sword… where…” she stammered. </p><p></p><p>“We have to finish it, now!” Gral shouted. The dwarf had come up to join them, his staff raised and surrounded by a wintry glow as he continued to draw upon his magic. He hesitated by Vhael, clearly torn between two conflicting duties, but after a moment stabbed the head of the staff forward like a lance, unleashing another beam of magical cold. </p><p></p><p>“Stay here,” Carzen said to Mara, propping her against the wall, while he reached down to recover his sword. He almost lost it there, as the hilt of the weapon drifted out of focus when he dipped his head, and his equilibrium likewise threatened to desert him. But he gritted his teeth and recovered, taking up the sword and stepping forward toward the dragon for one final confrontation. </p><p></p><p>The boar’s struggles had grown weaker, and the dragon continued holding its death-grip upon the creature, digging its claws in deeper, holding its jaws tight around the boar’s neck. Finally, with a shudder, the boar collapsed, blood splattering out around it as its bulky torso settled to the floor. The dragon drew up, its jaws soaked with fresh blood, droplets spraying as it roared in triumph.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 4878849, member: 143"] Chapter 68 Jaron stepped back, but did not flee before the dragon’s rush. His hands shook slightly as he fitted his last arrow to the string, but the steel head did not quiver as his drew the bowstring to his cheek. But the dragon was faster, too fast; it covered the gap between them in a few bounds, its jaws snapping out to enfold him in a single deadly bite. In the scant instant before impact, a huge form, almost as big as the dragon, came hurtling out of the corridor, colliding into the drake with the force of a boulder tumbling down a mountain. The dragon was flung aside by the force of that collision, and both it and the newcomer hurtled in a mad confusion across the crowded space of the hall, finally slamming together into the far wall with enough force to make the stones tremble. Carzen had gotten back to his feet, and still held his sword. But he meandered back and forth, staggering dazedly as he made his way over to where Mara had fallen. The woman warrior was conscious, but her battered arm hung limp at her side, and while she fumbled against the floor with her other hand, she couldn’t quite manage to get up. Both of them stared in amazement at the scene developing in front of them. “What in the hells…” Carzen began. His confusion only deepened when he heard a familiar yell superimposed over the roars coming from the dragon and its foe. The two fighters saw that the new arrival was the dire boar they’d encountered earlier. Pinning the dragon against the wall, it twisted its head violently, working its tusks deeper into the monster’s body. The dragon, caught off-balance, responded with a violent storm of claws and teeth that forced the boar back, bleeding from gashes across its face and shoulders. Blood from both creatures started gathering upon the floor below, splatters joining into a muddled pool that was further scattered by their frenzied movements. And sitting astride the boar, shouting his lungs out, was Beetle, having the time of his life. There seemed no way he could have kept that precarious perch through the charge and impact with the dragon, yet somehow he did, clinging to a bony spur jutting from its back as though it were a saddle horn. The boar, driven to a mad rage by its imprisonment, took out its frustrations upon the dragon. Its hooves beating upon the floor, it surged forward, snapping its head up as it gored the dragon again. One tusk, already slick with blood, stabbed into the dragon’s belly like a curved dagger, ripping the scaled hide and releasing a fresh gout of dark, stinking blood. Beetle contributed by throwing a small knife that glanced off the dragon’s skull, narrowly missing an eye. The dragon’s rage easily matched that of the boar, and while it was now bloodied, it responded with no less violence. Seizing the boar with its claws, it fired off another blast of toxic gas that scoured it at point-blank range, bleaching the thick bristles that covered its hide. The boar staggered back, temporarily blinded and dazed by the attack. The dragon’s breath had also finally dislodged Beetle, who was flung across the room by the force of the blast. The halfling somehow managed to get his feet under him as he landed, and he tumbled to a safe if somewhat awkward stop, coughing to clear the remnants of the poison from his lungs. The dragon exploited its advantage as it had against its armored foes earlier. The boar’s angry grunts became squeals of pain as the dragon’s claws dug deep furrows in its hide, but those cries were abruptly cut off as it sank its jaws into its neck, driving it down into the ground, pinning it there despite its weakening struggles. Carzen bent down to help Mara, trying to ignore the way the room started spinning when he lowered his head. He had to put his sword down, but he was able to take her good arm and pull her to her feet. She grimaced in pain as the movement jarred her battered arm, but her eyes were mostly lucid as they fixed on him. “My… sword… where…” she stammered. “We have to finish it, now!” Gral shouted. The dwarf had come up to join them, his staff raised and surrounded by a wintry glow as he continued to draw upon his magic. He hesitated by Vhael, clearly torn between two conflicting duties, but after a moment stabbed the head of the staff forward like a lance, unleashing another beam of magical cold. “Stay here,” Carzen said to Mara, propping her against the wall, while he reached down to recover his sword. He almost lost it there, as the hilt of the weapon drifted out of focus when he dipped his head, and his equilibrium likewise threatened to desert him. But he gritted his teeth and recovered, taking up the sword and stepping forward toward the dragon for one final confrontation. The boar’s struggles had grown weaker, and the dragon continued holding its death-grip upon the creature, digging its claws in deeper, holding its jaws tight around the boar’s neck. Finally, with a shudder, the boar collapsed, blood splattering out around it as its bulky torso settled to the floor. The dragon drew up, its jaws soaked with fresh blood, droplets spraying as it roared in triumph. [/QUOTE]
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