The Battle for Szith Morcane, pt. 5
Yes, we played this Saturday, although we still haven't finished the hostile take over of the drow outpost yet. I have only a short update for right now - unfortunately work has picked up and I'm finding fewer moments to write. This should set the stage for the rest of the evening nicely, though, so look forward to frequent updates the rest of the week until I'm caught up again...
*****
“Unwise seems haste at this time. On the run we have them, so regroup we should while deal with my ogres they must.” The hovering goblin moved to the edge of the chasm to watch the fate of his summoned monsters.
The other companions agreed with Higreld. Gnish approached Artimas and asked if he could heal some of his injuries, while Tierak prayed to Arawn and used her divine powers to drain five of the dark elven dead for life energy and raise eight others as newly animated skeletons to serve their cause. Welby, extremely weak, pulled some empty potion vials from his pack and started trying to milk the venom from the massive spider corpse before him. Bruskin chanted a quick detection spell and then directed the others to remove the most easily carried magical effects on the drow, such as rings and potions.
The fleeing drow quickly realized that the ogres would overtake them before they reached the safety of one of the caves. The two glaive wielders spun about and set to receive a charge while the remaining swordsman continued to flee. The ogres did not slow for an instant, and ignoring the stabs of pain from the dark elves’ desperate blows they crashed right through, knocking the elves from the web to fall to the river below.
As the last dark elf disappeared into the cave entrance he was replaced by a handful of archers that began to pepper the charging beasts with a hail of arrows. The lumbering brutes roared in anger and charged the entrance, but one of them was cut down before it closed the gap. The other leveled a tremendous blow against one of the elves, catching it with a horizontal swipe of its club and sending brains splattering about the area, but then several sharp glaive points emerged from the darkness behind the archers and transfixed the beast on their points, ending its life.
Higreld could not see the demise of his last pet, but he felt the energies tying the creature to the material plane disrupted and turned to the others. “Dead is the last ogre and approach now many more of the drow. Flee or press on now we must.”
Artimas gestured curtly, indicating that he did not wish to retreat, and Tierak ordered the fresh column of undead into motion. The column filed onto the webway followed closely by the all of the companions save Welby, who was simply too weak to continue and remained hidden in the shadows, and the battle erupted once again.
*****
Far below the companions Zedarr T’Sarran hissed in frustration. He cut an impressive figure with his topknot of flowing white hair, intricately engraved mithral breastplate, and pair of razor sharp doubled short swords clenched in his fists. Behind him a large black hunting cat with six legs and a pair of wickedly barbed tentacles protruding from its shoulder blades paced in the shadows, sensing its master’s displeasure. Zedarr remained motionless, his eyes burning holes in his sister’s back where he wished he could sheathe his blades.
“What now? I should be out destroying the interlopers, not hiding in this room while they run rampant through our city!”
Dorina turned from the scrying pool and favored her brother with a bloodless smile. “No, you insipid twit. We have plenty of soldiers left and even now the surface dwellers move into the jaws of our trap. Let them expend their resources a while longer, my brother, and then I will dispatch you to deliver the finishing blow.
“In the meantime, gather the others. We will prepare to strike together when the time is right."
The vampiress turned back to study the images playing out in the pool of water before her as the weapon-master ran down the hall to gather the other dark elf leaders.
*****
Zooky Funginackle knew something was afoot. She had been trapped in the drow city for almost three days and was beginning to lose hope of ever finding a way to break free; it seemed that at any given part of the day there were at least a dozen dark elf warriors with a clear view of her hiding place. Now something seemed to be distracting them from the vast chasm and web connecting the different layers of the city, and the two dozen warriors in this area grabbed weapons and rushed toward the entrance to the web, leaving one lone slave overseer standing watch in this section of cavern.
They piled out onto the web with hand crossbows held ready and an instant later the area erupted into broiling flames. When the smoke cleared she could not see a single elf still standing.
Zooky didn’t hesitate. The svirfneblin concentrated for a moment and shifted back to her true form, discarding her mushroom disguise, and took off at a run in the direction of the incinerated drow troop. She angled up the wall as she went until she zipped along upside down across the ceiling. Behind her she could hear the overseer yelling for her to halt, but she ignored him and raced on, moving onto the side of the cliff face and pausing for a moment to take in the scene. Above her a fierce battle was fought, fire and lightning leaping back and forth between several flying wizards and a small group of bold or stupid heroes invading the city.
Zooky scanned the drows’ opponents and her eyes grew wide. No! It couldn’t be – all of her people were dead. But there he was, spinning a deadly kukri in each hand as he prepared to face the charge of a spider riding drow officer. Somehow another had survived the destruction of her village and had found allies to help destroy the wicked dark elves responsible.
Her heart filling with joy, she shouted, “Gnish!” and started sprinting up the canyon wall as fast as her short legs would carry her.
I should have the intermission in the battle posted soon, followed by a look at what the dark elves are up to during the battle 
