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<blockquote data-quote="Enk&amp;D'Shai" data-source="post: 465957" data-attributes="member: 7569"><p><strong>"Once More Into the Breach, Dear Friends," or "How Come They Get a Wall?"</strong></p><p></p><p>And it's post time! Right D'Shai?</p><p></p><p><span style="color: skyblue">Dagnabit! I'm on the phone! Leave me alone!</span> </p><p></p><p>Well, While D'Shai finishes up that important 900 number call, I'll take this time to say a few things and respond to a few of the comments we've gotten recently.</p><p></p><p>With GreyShadow's post, we've have just entered the "Wow" zone, where our devoted readers are reduced to saying "wow." Sure, we haven't hit the "wow" zone status of Sepulchrave II's story hours, but at least we're on the way.</p><p></p><p>As for something Badger said about simple enemies turning out to be not so "simple," buddy, you don't know the half of it. For those familiar with the Sunless Citadel, you might recognize quite a few of the villians we've encountered, but, as you might have figured out by now, not all the villians in that danged module turned out quite the same as the way Cordell wrote them...</p><p></p><p>Heck, sometimes when the characters look back on the whole thing we still don't know who exactly the good guys were (or even if they were us!).</p><p></p><p>By the way, D'Shai and I have just noticed that we're getting about 100 views per actual story hour post - if any of the other 70 or so lurkers out there want to post comments, please feel free - we love feedback (especially constructive criticism)!</p><p></p><p><span style="color: skyblue">With a pointed stick!</span> </p><p></p><p>Well, D'Shai seems to finally done with his "quality time," so let's get moving with a Tip o' the Day.</p><p></p><p><span style="color: skyblue">Tip O' the Day: Never make a man walk the plank if he is wearing a snorkel, fins, and a rubber innertube. Keelhaul 'em instead.</span> </p><p></p><p>What if there are sharks in the water?</p><p></p><p><span style="color: skyblue">Never works. Dark Knight Brand "Bat Shark Repellant." Ever since that stuff hit the market, you just can't get a decent plank walker.</span> </p><p></p><p>Adam West and Burt Ward are so going to sue you.</p><p></p><p><span style="color: skyblue">Bring 'em on! What are they now, like 137?</span> </p><p></p><p>Riiiight. And now... </p><p></p><p></p><p>*****</p><p></p><p>"Once More Into the Breach, Dear Friends," or "How Come They Get a Wall?"</p><p></p><p>Ander closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. Nothing was going right and his head pounded like dwarven forge hammers due to the pressure he felt. Theo lay nearby, still unconscious from the crossbow bolts he took in the stomach: he was lucky to be alive. Only Pack’s quick thinking, along with his curing potions, had given the Priest a chance. The halfling bard sat watching over the old cleric, tending his bandages and singing softly to him. </p><p></p><p>Ashrem paced back and forth in the small, familiar room the kobolds had once again provided them, making it hard for the woodsman to concentrate. The feloine was cursing himself for failing to notice the alarm that had led to Theo’s wounds and cursing even more the fact that they had wasted time on the kobold queen’s “test” in which they almost been killed by the lead rat and its minions. Ander himself was just glad that they had Aurora with them to handle the language barrier and politics of the confusing kobolds. <em>Gods know how we would have dealt with so many of them if she had not been here to interpret. Still, they will be dealt with…</em></p><p></p><p>Ander sighed deeply, knowing that it would be awhile more before the sorceress returned from her meeting with the queen. They had all agreed that while Theo was recovering that she should try to get more information about the forces they were about to go up against, especially since the kobold’s leader had been so ‘forthcoming’ in the matter of rats.. Still, he was not happy about her doing it alone, despite the fact that she had Meepo with her. </p><p></p><p>Thinking of Meepo caused the woodsman to shake his head. The little kobold was an enigma to the ranger. He was as violent as a raging northerner in combat and as docile as a trained dog when he was around Aurora. The kobold never took his eyes off her if he didn’t have to, and some times Ander caught the little bugger mimicking her motions: mimicking all their actions now that he thought about it, even stuffing things in his backpack the way Pack did. It drove him mad, especially the way he would stare at them when his name was mentioned and nod his head as if he understood them. Even more annoying: he would then do exactly what they asked him not to do. </p><p></p><p>“By Zuras, what happened? Where are we?” Ander glanced over and saw Theo trying to rise up onto his elbows, but pain shot through the priest’s face and he lowered himself back down. “I remember sprouting crossbow bolts in my belly like ears of corn, but what happened after that?”</p><p></p><p>“Pack dumped two healing draughts down your throat and we high-tailed it back to the kobold safe-room.” Ashrem growled, still obviously upset at the events. </p><p></p><p>Ander placed his hand on the feloine’s shoulder to calm him. “Are you feeling alright Theo? How long til you can move? I don’t feel comfortable leaving you here alone with the kobolds, while we venture off to find their stolen dragon.”</p><p></p><p>“Let me pray and with Zuras’ will I shall be fit for combat before Pack can find his flute.”</p><p></p><p>“I would not rush it.” Ashrem spoke, now that he had apparently composed himself, but certain words still had an icy tone. “We have plenty of time as Lady Aurora and her lap pet ‘Meepo’ are still conversing with our ‘allies’.”</p><p></p><p>“Nevertheless, I shall be ready in a thunderstroke.” With that Theo began filling the room with his chants and prayers in preparation of the coming conflict with the barricaded goblins.</p><p></p><p>It wasn’t long before the priest was finished and using his curative magics on himself, and shortly after that, to Ander’s relief, Aurora and Meepo came strolling into the room. The sorceress frowned as she entered but quickly smiled when she saw Theo up and fully recovered. Ander watched as she bounded over and wrapped her slender arms around the cleric’s neck, giving him a slight peck on the cheek as she held on. “Oh, Theo! It’s good to see that you are okay.”</p><p></p><p>“Yes lass, It’ll take more than a few thorns to stop a priest of Zuras, especially this one.” Theo seemed huge with the small sorceress draped around his neck, and Ander could tell that the priest was beginning to blush from the attention. From the looks on their faces, the others, especially Pack, seemed to find this as amusing as Ander himself did.</p><p></p><p>“Um Aurora, that’s a hug that Orloff would be proud of, but why don’t you let Brother Theo breath and tell us what you found out.” Ander smiled as it was Aurora’s turn to blush, but the slender female let go of the priest and gathered her composure to give her report. </p><p></p><p>“Yusdrayl is quite please that we passed her test by defeating Guthash and she has given me some gifts to aid us.” Aurora reached into her pack and produced several rolls of parchment. “These are spells written on scrolls. Two are for you, Brother Theo. I know they are not hymns from Zuras, but keep them in case we need them. Yusdrayl said they were healing chants. She also gave me two more, but I haven’t deciphered them yet.”</p><p></p><p>Theo walked forward and accepted the scrolls from Aurora, but it was obvious from the disdain the priest showed that it would take dire circumstances before he enacted another God’s spells. The woodsman doubted that he would ever understand the fanaticism of devout church followers: it was too much like putting all your eggs in one basket. <em>I wouldn’t go to a blacksmith for a good weapon when the weapon smith is just around the corner, so why should I limit myself to asking one god for a favor when another might do it better. To each wolf his own pack, I suppose. </em></p><p></p><p>“Well before the wine turns sour, let’s us plan out our attack. Aurora, fill us in with any new information as we do it.” Ander kept his voice flat, trying to get the other to understand how important it was that they have a plan and stick to it to avoid further setbacks and injuries. When he had met everyone’s gaze, he continued. “Aurora, ask Meepo if they have anything we can use to cross the spikes with.”</p><p></p><p>“Like what?” The bemused sorceress questioned. </p><p></p><p>“A table or a door might work.” The feloine answered before Ander himself could. </p><p></p><p>Aurora immediately turned and spoke to the kobold. It was unnerving to the woodland warrior to hear her voice mimic that type of guttural speech, but it was necessary. The question took several exchanges to answer but finally the sorceress turned and addressed the party. “Meepo says that he can go check but most of the wood has been used already for their barricades and fortifications.” </p><p></p><p>“That was a long conversation for such a short answer.” Pack joked. </p><p></p><p>“Well, he was curious about our ‘door fetish.’ You see I asked him about doors earlier and then again just now…Can we just move on?” Ander smiled as Aurora’s face turned red again, and the woodsman decided to save her. </p><p></p><p>“Okay, well we did see some rubble and broken furniture in the area we fought the rats; that will just have to do. Anybody have anything else?”</p><p></p><p>Theo spoke up. “I will ask Zuras for a cloud of mist to obscure the vision of the goblins to keep them from pelting us with bolts while we take care of the spikes.”</p><p></p><p>“And I can be the one to lay the boards down for the rest of you since I have Rosehaven’s cloak.” Pack interjected. “I have been testing it when we have been walking, and it’s incredible. No matter how much debris and stuff is on the floor, I always manage to find a firm safe place to put my foot. I don’t know how it works, I mean I even tried to step on some sharp boards but nope, nothing, my boot found a firm stable foothold. Glass, rocks…”</p><p></p><p>“We get the point, Pack.” Ander knew that if he didn’t interrupt the halfling he would talk for hours. “Just be careful, even with the mists they will still be firing at you. Aurora you give Theo cover with your magical missiles….”</p><p></p><p>“Missile!” The bark of the small kobold made everyone stop and turn to watch as Meepo looked on excitedly, anxiously waiting for the blue dragons to fly from Aurora’s finger tips. </p><p></p><p>“Oh goody!” Aurora clapped. “He’s starting to learn.”</p><p></p><p> “Cover Theo with your dragon darts while he casts….,</p><p></p><p>“Prays” The priest put in. </p><p></p><p>Ander sighed and eyed the cleric, who only raised his eyebrows in return. </p><p></p><p>“… as he prays and Pack you get the boards down on top of the spikes as soon as the mists give you enough cover to do so. Ashrem and I will then take the fight to them…”</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>* * *</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Ander looked things over once again: Ashrem was poised by the door ready to spring it open with Pack right behind him, boards in hand; Theo and Aurora waited patiently for Ander’s signal to begin casting; and Meepo looked around like a lost child. Confident that everything was in order, the woodsman gave the signal. </p><p></p><p>Ashrem pushed the door open and then fell back to allow Pack room to move around him. Aurora loosed a dragon missile through the open doorway while Theo began chanting: white mists billowed from his mouth as he did so. </p><p></p><p>Ander heard surprised yelps and activity from down the hallway but they soon turned to panicked yells as the mists rolled steadily through. It seemed to Ander that everything was going as planned, until the lights dimmed and became nearly useless due to the dense fog. Suddenly it wasn’t just the goblins who sounded confused and disorganized, and the woodsman heard the sharp twang of crossbows followed by Aurora’s feminine scream. </p><p></p><p>“ROAR-AH!” Ander heard Meepo yell as the woodsman ran towards the sound of her cry. </p><p></p><p>As he rushed through the mist, Ander saw Aurora slumped against the wall, a crossbow bolt jutting out from her shoulder. He watched as Theo pulled her out of the line of fire so he could attend the wound, but what worried the woodsman more was Meepo. The small kobold just stood there breathing heavily, staring in the direction that the bolt had come from: the ranger swore that he saw froth forming on the corners of the kobold’s mouth.</p><p></p><p>Before he could look more closely though, another volley of crossbow bolts rebounded through the hallway and Ander heard Pack yell for him. “Ander the boards are all down!” </p><p></p><p>“Ashrem, get ready!” was all that Ander yelled back before Meepo screamed at the top of his lungs. </p><p></p><p>“Meepo!” The woodsman cried, but it was too late. The enraged kobold sprinted off at full speed through the mists toward the goblin barricade. Ander ran after him trying to keep the small fellow in view and he watched as the scaly warrior leapt, using Pack’s huddled form as a springboard, and cleared the barricade, spear-point first. </p><p></p><p>The mists were too thick for Ander to view what happened beyond the barricade, but the gurgling thud of something trying to breath with a spear sticking through its lungs was clearly audible. The ranger then started navigating the halfling’s carefully laid out boards, trying hard to go as quickly as he could due to the sounds of intense combat on the other side of the barrier. </p><p></p><p>While the woodsman maneuvered over the boards, he watched Pack retreat back down to relieve Theo and wondered how the raging kobold had managed to get through without stepping on any spikes. When he finally reached the barricade, Ander climbed over, being careful to avoid the cruel barbs set atop. </p><p></p><p>As he climbed, the warrior noticed that Meepo had apparently gone berserk and held four goblins at bay with nothing more than a broken spear haft. Ander jumped down from atop the barricade and escaped out from the dense fog, bringing his staff to bear on the first goblin that came into range. The goblins, seeing an enemy that wasn’t a berserking kobold, quickly closed in on the lone ranger. </p><p></p><p>Ander spun away, forcing the rushing goblins to put their backs towards the barricade in order to fight him. The woodsman parried and dodged the goblins’ thrusts and smiled as he saw Ashrem’s black form emerge silently from the fog directly behind the attacking goblins. The feloine’s deadly blade pierced the backside of one, pushing out through its chest, before any of the goblins even noticed his presence. </p><p></p><p>The surprised goblins panicked even more when Meepo jumped on the closest one’s back and began biting its ear off, growling like a wild animal the entire time. Ander noticed, as he smashed the closest goblin with his staff, that the kobold was bleeding from multiple wounds, including his feet where small spikes had become embedded in his soles. The small scaly warrior looked exhausted and hurt, but he continued clawing and biting until the goblin he rode was dead, and then he too closed his eyes and fell backwards. </p><p></p><p>“Theo, we need your healing up here!” Ander yelled as he pointed for Ashrem to check the far door, fearing that the sounds of combat might have alerted reinforcements. The woodsman waited until Theo clambered over the wall and then he jumped up to check on Ashrem. </p><p></p><p>Ander joined the feloine at the door, where Ashrem placed his ears to the door and growled very low. “Get ready, they are almost on us.”</p><p></p><p>“Okay, we stand here. We can’t let them have this room back, it was too hard to take,” the woodsman proclaimed addressing the entire group. “Pack, guard Meepo and Aurora. Theo keep back until they are in the room.” </p><p></p><p>“I don’t need to be guarded!” Aurora shot back. Ander could see the burning fire in her eyes aimed right at him, but he also saw the tear in her blouse where the crossbow bolt had been. </p><p></p><p>Ander was saved from having to answer the sorceress’ stinging gaze when the door swung open and goblins swarmed into the room. The woodsman counted five armed little savages as they swarmed past him, and then he moved in behind them, closing the door to cut off any escape. </p><p></p><p>The goblins skidded to stop when they realized that their guards were dead and that they were now surrounded. Ander twirled his staff and moved in toward the first of the snarling creatures. Tiny blue dragons flew in and blew its face right off though before he could connect with his swing. Not to waste a motion, the woodsman reversed his swing and stepped in to smack the next goblin in line. </p><p></p><p>Once again, his swing was too late, as two more missiles blasted this goblin from its feet, nearly knocking his lifeless form into the ranger. Ander glared at Aurora but the sorceress only smiled and a semi-conscious Meepo wagged his tail like a happy puppy. </p><p></p><p>Turning his attention back to the fray, Ander saw Theo deliver an overhand swing that finished the goblin engaging him, but Ashrem was in trouble. The feloine was caught between two of the amber skinned devils. The woodsman noted that these two fought in tandem with each other moving in and out, keeping the feloine off balance with short arcing cuts. Already trickles of blood could be seen on Ashrem’s armor, while the two goblins seemed relatively untouched. </p><p></p><p>Ander moved in on one with a mighty two handed swing, but he misjudged the speed of the agile goblin and his blow only smacked into the stone floor. The woodsman noticed that Theo’s rescuing swing had a similar effect on the other side of the winded feloine. Even with both swings missing their mark, Ander knew that Ashrem wouldn’t waste the distraction. </p><p></p><p>As if on cue, the feloine sprang backwards off the wall and vaulted over his confused foes, landing right beside the woodsman. Neither warrior wasted a breath. Moving like a pack wolf and hunting cat, the two soon had one of the goblins isolated and flanked, leaving the last one for Theo to deal with. </p><p></p><p>The goblin smiled, showing Ander that he wasn’t out of surprises of his own, and a small curved dagger found its way to his left hand to join the small sword in his right. The woodsman rained in blow after blow with his quarterstaff but the small target dodged and weaved, avoiding every one. The agile goblin even managed to keep Ashrem from landing any of his well-timed shots. Still Ander knew that the goblin was riding on luck, soon he would make a mistake and he and Ashrem would make him pay. </p><p></p><p>It was Ander, however, that made the first mistake. The woodsman heard the familiar buzz of Aurora’s missiles and chanced a glance over to see the twin dragons strike the goblin engaged with Theo. When Ander glanced back to see the short blade of the goblin dipping beneath his defenses, he knew that he had erred. </p><p></p><p>Ander watched as the blade slid into his leather jack, just under his ribs. The pain almost overwhelmed the young warrior and only his training kept his staff in motion enough to deflect the dagger that the goblin tried to follow-up with. The woodsman staggered backward trying to keep his distance from the attacking creature but the goblin had whet his blade and followed with a flurry of blows. </p><p></p><p>Through the waves of pain, Ander fought on. The woodsman noticed, as he dodged and parried, that the goblin focused all of his attention on him, and had seemingly forgotten about the deadly feloine. That was the goblin’s mistake. </p><p></p><p>A moment later, Ander slumped against the wall, smiling at Ashrem, as the feloine cleaned his blade on the goblin’s lifeless corpse. Theo jogged over to tend Ander’s wound even though the priest showed a few of his own. Aurora also came over, a concerned look on her face. The look slowly changed to a shy smile as Theo’s healing chant closed his deep gash. </p><p></p><p>“Okay, we need a breather before we advance. Ashrem, scout ahead but stay hidden.”</p><p></p><p>“I think it may be too late for that, Ander.” Ashrem’s voice sounded calm, but the ranger knew that the feloine was upset. “It seems our little Pack has already taken it upon himself to do just that.”</p><p></p><p>The woodsman was on his feet instantly eyeing the door that now stood slightly ajar. With a few long strides the woodsman reached the door and yanked it open the remaining way. A short hallway stood on the other side that veered sharply to the right, and as he watched a small figure came bolting around the corner...</p><p></p><p>*****</p><p></p><p>Next Time: </p><p></p><p>"Double Vision," or "You Never Gnome Who to Trust"</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Enk&D'Shai, post: 465957, member: 7569"] [b]"Once More Into the Breach, Dear Friends," or "How Come They Get a Wall?"[/b] And it's post time! Right D'Shai? [COLOR=skyblue]Dagnabit! I'm on the phone! Leave me alone![/COLOR] Well, While D'Shai finishes up that important 900 number call, I'll take this time to say a few things and respond to a few of the comments we've gotten recently. With GreyShadow's post, we've have just entered the "Wow" zone, where our devoted readers are reduced to saying "wow." Sure, we haven't hit the "wow" zone status of Sepulchrave II's story hours, but at least we're on the way. As for something Badger said about simple enemies turning out to be not so "simple," buddy, you don't know the half of it. For those familiar with the Sunless Citadel, you might recognize quite a few of the villians we've encountered, but, as you might have figured out by now, not all the villians in that danged module turned out quite the same as the way Cordell wrote them... Heck, sometimes when the characters look back on the whole thing we still don't know who exactly the good guys were (or even if they were us!). By the way, D'Shai and I have just noticed that we're getting about 100 views per actual story hour post - if any of the other 70 or so lurkers out there want to post comments, please feel free - we love feedback (especially constructive criticism)! [COLOR=skyblue]With a pointed stick![/COLOR] Well, D'Shai seems to finally done with his "quality time," so let's get moving with a Tip o' the Day. [COLOR=skyblue]Tip O' the Day: Never make a man walk the plank if he is wearing a snorkel, fins, and a rubber innertube. Keelhaul 'em instead.[/COLOR] What if there are sharks in the water? [COLOR=skyblue]Never works. Dark Knight Brand "Bat Shark Repellant." Ever since that stuff hit the market, you just can't get a decent plank walker.[/COLOR] Adam West and Burt Ward are so going to sue you. [COLOR=skyblue]Bring 'em on! What are they now, like 137?[/COLOR] Riiiight. And now... ***** "Once More Into the Breach, Dear Friends," or "How Come They Get a Wall?" Ander closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. Nothing was going right and his head pounded like dwarven forge hammers due to the pressure he felt. Theo lay nearby, still unconscious from the crossbow bolts he took in the stomach: he was lucky to be alive. Only Pack’s quick thinking, along with his curing potions, had given the Priest a chance. The halfling bard sat watching over the old cleric, tending his bandages and singing softly to him. Ashrem paced back and forth in the small, familiar room the kobolds had once again provided them, making it hard for the woodsman to concentrate. The feloine was cursing himself for failing to notice the alarm that had led to Theo’s wounds and cursing even more the fact that they had wasted time on the kobold queen’s “test” in which they almost been killed by the lead rat and its minions. Ander himself was just glad that they had Aurora with them to handle the language barrier and politics of the confusing kobolds. [I]Gods know how we would have dealt with so many of them if she had not been here to interpret. Still, they will be dealt with…[/I] Ander sighed deeply, knowing that it would be awhile more before the sorceress returned from her meeting with the queen. They had all agreed that while Theo was recovering that she should try to get more information about the forces they were about to go up against, especially since the kobold’s leader had been so ‘forthcoming’ in the matter of rats.. Still, he was not happy about her doing it alone, despite the fact that she had Meepo with her. Thinking of Meepo caused the woodsman to shake his head. The little kobold was an enigma to the ranger. He was as violent as a raging northerner in combat and as docile as a trained dog when he was around Aurora. The kobold never took his eyes off her if he didn’t have to, and some times Ander caught the little bugger mimicking her motions: mimicking all their actions now that he thought about it, even stuffing things in his backpack the way Pack did. It drove him mad, especially the way he would stare at them when his name was mentioned and nod his head as if he understood them. Even more annoying: he would then do exactly what they asked him not to do. “By Zuras, what happened? Where are we?” Ander glanced over and saw Theo trying to rise up onto his elbows, but pain shot through the priest’s face and he lowered himself back down. “I remember sprouting crossbow bolts in my belly like ears of corn, but what happened after that?” “Pack dumped two healing draughts down your throat and we high-tailed it back to the kobold safe-room.” Ashrem growled, still obviously upset at the events. Ander placed his hand on the feloine’s shoulder to calm him. “Are you feeling alright Theo? How long til you can move? I don’t feel comfortable leaving you here alone with the kobolds, while we venture off to find their stolen dragon.” “Let me pray and with Zuras’ will I shall be fit for combat before Pack can find his flute.” “I would not rush it.” Ashrem spoke, now that he had apparently composed himself, but certain words still had an icy tone. “We have plenty of time as Lady Aurora and her lap pet ‘Meepo’ are still conversing with our ‘allies’.” “Nevertheless, I shall be ready in a thunderstroke.” With that Theo began filling the room with his chants and prayers in preparation of the coming conflict with the barricaded goblins. It wasn’t long before the priest was finished and using his curative magics on himself, and shortly after that, to Ander’s relief, Aurora and Meepo came strolling into the room. The sorceress frowned as she entered but quickly smiled when she saw Theo up and fully recovered. Ander watched as she bounded over and wrapped her slender arms around the cleric’s neck, giving him a slight peck on the cheek as she held on. “Oh, Theo! It’s good to see that you are okay.” “Yes lass, It’ll take more than a few thorns to stop a priest of Zuras, especially this one.” Theo seemed huge with the small sorceress draped around his neck, and Ander could tell that the priest was beginning to blush from the attention. From the looks on their faces, the others, especially Pack, seemed to find this as amusing as Ander himself did. “Um Aurora, that’s a hug that Orloff would be proud of, but why don’t you let Brother Theo breath and tell us what you found out.” Ander smiled as it was Aurora’s turn to blush, but the slender female let go of the priest and gathered her composure to give her report. “Yusdrayl is quite please that we passed her test by defeating Guthash and she has given me some gifts to aid us.” Aurora reached into her pack and produced several rolls of parchment. “These are spells written on scrolls. Two are for you, Brother Theo. I know they are not hymns from Zuras, but keep them in case we need them. Yusdrayl said they were healing chants. She also gave me two more, but I haven’t deciphered them yet.” Theo walked forward and accepted the scrolls from Aurora, but it was obvious from the disdain the priest showed that it would take dire circumstances before he enacted another God’s spells. The woodsman doubted that he would ever understand the fanaticism of devout church followers: it was too much like putting all your eggs in one basket. [I]I wouldn’t go to a blacksmith for a good weapon when the weapon smith is just around the corner, so why should I limit myself to asking one god for a favor when another might do it better. To each wolf his own pack, I suppose. [/I] “Well before the wine turns sour, let’s us plan out our attack. Aurora, fill us in with any new information as we do it.” Ander kept his voice flat, trying to get the other to understand how important it was that they have a plan and stick to it to avoid further setbacks and injuries. When he had met everyone’s gaze, he continued. “Aurora, ask Meepo if they have anything we can use to cross the spikes with.” “Like what?” The bemused sorceress questioned. “A table or a door might work.” The feloine answered before Ander himself could. Aurora immediately turned and spoke to the kobold. It was unnerving to the woodland warrior to hear her voice mimic that type of guttural speech, but it was necessary. The question took several exchanges to answer but finally the sorceress turned and addressed the party. “Meepo says that he can go check but most of the wood has been used already for their barricades and fortifications.” “That was a long conversation for such a short answer.” Pack joked. “Well, he was curious about our ‘door fetish.’ You see I asked him about doors earlier and then again just now…Can we just move on?” Ander smiled as Aurora’s face turned red again, and the woodsman decided to save her. “Okay, well we did see some rubble and broken furniture in the area we fought the rats; that will just have to do. Anybody have anything else?” Theo spoke up. “I will ask Zuras for a cloud of mist to obscure the vision of the goblins to keep them from pelting us with bolts while we take care of the spikes.” “And I can be the one to lay the boards down for the rest of you since I have Rosehaven’s cloak.” Pack interjected. “I have been testing it when we have been walking, and it’s incredible. No matter how much debris and stuff is on the floor, I always manage to find a firm safe place to put my foot. I don’t know how it works, I mean I even tried to step on some sharp boards but nope, nothing, my boot found a firm stable foothold. Glass, rocks…” “We get the point, Pack.” Ander knew that if he didn’t interrupt the halfling he would talk for hours. “Just be careful, even with the mists they will still be firing at you. Aurora you give Theo cover with your magical missiles….” “Missile!” The bark of the small kobold made everyone stop and turn to watch as Meepo looked on excitedly, anxiously waiting for the blue dragons to fly from Aurora’s finger tips. “Oh goody!” Aurora clapped. “He’s starting to learn.” “Cover Theo with your dragon darts while he casts…., “Prays” The priest put in. Ander sighed and eyed the cleric, who only raised his eyebrows in return. “… as he prays and Pack you get the boards down on top of the spikes as soon as the mists give you enough cover to do so. Ashrem and I will then take the fight to them…” * * * Ander looked things over once again: Ashrem was poised by the door ready to spring it open with Pack right behind him, boards in hand; Theo and Aurora waited patiently for Ander’s signal to begin casting; and Meepo looked around like a lost child. Confident that everything was in order, the woodsman gave the signal. Ashrem pushed the door open and then fell back to allow Pack room to move around him. Aurora loosed a dragon missile through the open doorway while Theo began chanting: white mists billowed from his mouth as he did so. Ander heard surprised yelps and activity from down the hallway but they soon turned to panicked yells as the mists rolled steadily through. It seemed to Ander that everything was going as planned, until the lights dimmed and became nearly useless due to the dense fog. Suddenly it wasn’t just the goblins who sounded confused and disorganized, and the woodsman heard the sharp twang of crossbows followed by Aurora’s feminine scream. “ROAR-AH!” Ander heard Meepo yell as the woodsman ran towards the sound of her cry. As he rushed through the mist, Ander saw Aurora slumped against the wall, a crossbow bolt jutting out from her shoulder. He watched as Theo pulled her out of the line of fire so he could attend the wound, but what worried the woodsman more was Meepo. The small kobold just stood there breathing heavily, staring in the direction that the bolt had come from: the ranger swore that he saw froth forming on the corners of the kobold’s mouth. Before he could look more closely though, another volley of crossbow bolts rebounded through the hallway and Ander heard Pack yell for him. “Ander the boards are all down!” “Ashrem, get ready!” was all that Ander yelled back before Meepo screamed at the top of his lungs. “Meepo!” The woodsman cried, but it was too late. The enraged kobold sprinted off at full speed through the mists toward the goblin barricade. Ander ran after him trying to keep the small fellow in view and he watched as the scaly warrior leapt, using Pack’s huddled form as a springboard, and cleared the barricade, spear-point first. The mists were too thick for Ander to view what happened beyond the barricade, but the gurgling thud of something trying to breath with a spear sticking through its lungs was clearly audible. The ranger then started navigating the halfling’s carefully laid out boards, trying hard to go as quickly as he could due to the sounds of intense combat on the other side of the barrier. While the woodsman maneuvered over the boards, he watched Pack retreat back down to relieve Theo and wondered how the raging kobold had managed to get through without stepping on any spikes. When he finally reached the barricade, Ander climbed over, being careful to avoid the cruel barbs set atop. As he climbed, the warrior noticed that Meepo had apparently gone berserk and held four goblins at bay with nothing more than a broken spear haft. Ander jumped down from atop the barricade and escaped out from the dense fog, bringing his staff to bear on the first goblin that came into range. The goblins, seeing an enemy that wasn’t a berserking kobold, quickly closed in on the lone ranger. Ander spun away, forcing the rushing goblins to put their backs towards the barricade in order to fight him. The woodsman parried and dodged the goblins’ thrusts and smiled as he saw Ashrem’s black form emerge silently from the fog directly behind the attacking goblins. The feloine’s deadly blade pierced the backside of one, pushing out through its chest, before any of the goblins even noticed his presence. The surprised goblins panicked even more when Meepo jumped on the closest one’s back and began biting its ear off, growling like a wild animal the entire time. Ander noticed, as he smashed the closest goblin with his staff, that the kobold was bleeding from multiple wounds, including his feet where small spikes had become embedded in his soles. The small scaly warrior looked exhausted and hurt, but he continued clawing and biting until the goblin he rode was dead, and then he too closed his eyes and fell backwards. “Theo, we need your healing up here!” Ander yelled as he pointed for Ashrem to check the far door, fearing that the sounds of combat might have alerted reinforcements. The woodsman waited until Theo clambered over the wall and then he jumped up to check on Ashrem. Ander joined the feloine at the door, where Ashrem placed his ears to the door and growled very low. “Get ready, they are almost on us.” “Okay, we stand here. We can’t let them have this room back, it was too hard to take,” the woodsman proclaimed addressing the entire group. “Pack, guard Meepo and Aurora. Theo keep back until they are in the room.” “I don’t need to be guarded!” Aurora shot back. Ander could see the burning fire in her eyes aimed right at him, but he also saw the tear in her blouse where the crossbow bolt had been. Ander was saved from having to answer the sorceress’ stinging gaze when the door swung open and goblins swarmed into the room. The woodsman counted five armed little savages as they swarmed past him, and then he moved in behind them, closing the door to cut off any escape. The goblins skidded to stop when they realized that their guards were dead and that they were now surrounded. Ander twirled his staff and moved in toward the first of the snarling creatures. Tiny blue dragons flew in and blew its face right off though before he could connect with his swing. Not to waste a motion, the woodsman reversed his swing and stepped in to smack the next goblin in line. Once again, his swing was too late, as two more missiles blasted this goblin from its feet, nearly knocking his lifeless form into the ranger. Ander glared at Aurora but the sorceress only smiled and a semi-conscious Meepo wagged his tail like a happy puppy. Turning his attention back to the fray, Ander saw Theo deliver an overhand swing that finished the goblin engaging him, but Ashrem was in trouble. The feloine was caught between two of the amber skinned devils. The woodsman noted that these two fought in tandem with each other moving in and out, keeping the feloine off balance with short arcing cuts. Already trickles of blood could be seen on Ashrem’s armor, while the two goblins seemed relatively untouched. Ander moved in on one with a mighty two handed swing, but he misjudged the speed of the agile goblin and his blow only smacked into the stone floor. The woodsman noticed that Theo’s rescuing swing had a similar effect on the other side of the winded feloine. Even with both swings missing their mark, Ander knew that Ashrem wouldn’t waste the distraction. As if on cue, the feloine sprang backwards off the wall and vaulted over his confused foes, landing right beside the woodsman. Neither warrior wasted a breath. Moving like a pack wolf and hunting cat, the two soon had one of the goblins isolated and flanked, leaving the last one for Theo to deal with. The goblin smiled, showing Ander that he wasn’t out of surprises of his own, and a small curved dagger found its way to his left hand to join the small sword in his right. The woodsman rained in blow after blow with his quarterstaff but the small target dodged and weaved, avoiding every one. The agile goblin even managed to keep Ashrem from landing any of his well-timed shots. Still Ander knew that the goblin was riding on luck, soon he would make a mistake and he and Ashrem would make him pay. It was Ander, however, that made the first mistake. The woodsman heard the familiar buzz of Aurora’s missiles and chanced a glance over to see the twin dragons strike the goblin engaged with Theo. When Ander glanced back to see the short blade of the goblin dipping beneath his defenses, he knew that he had erred. Ander watched as the blade slid into his leather jack, just under his ribs. The pain almost overwhelmed the young warrior and only his training kept his staff in motion enough to deflect the dagger that the goblin tried to follow-up with. The woodsman staggered backward trying to keep his distance from the attacking creature but the goblin had whet his blade and followed with a flurry of blows. Through the waves of pain, Ander fought on. The woodsman noticed, as he dodged and parried, that the goblin focused all of his attention on him, and had seemingly forgotten about the deadly feloine. That was the goblin’s mistake. A moment later, Ander slumped against the wall, smiling at Ashrem, as the feloine cleaned his blade on the goblin’s lifeless corpse. Theo jogged over to tend Ander’s wound even though the priest showed a few of his own. Aurora also came over, a concerned look on her face. The look slowly changed to a shy smile as Theo’s healing chant closed his deep gash. “Okay, we need a breather before we advance. Ashrem, scout ahead but stay hidden.” “I think it may be too late for that, Ander.” Ashrem’s voice sounded calm, but the ranger knew that the feloine was upset. “It seems our little Pack has already taken it upon himself to do just that.” The woodsman was on his feet instantly eyeing the door that now stood slightly ajar. With a few long strides the woodsman reached the door and yanked it open the remaining way. A short hallway stood on the other side that veered sharply to the right, and as he watched a small figure came bolting around the corner... ***** Next Time: "Double Vision," or "You Never Gnome Who to Trust" [/QUOTE]
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