Raven Crowking
First Post
"G-g-GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF!" Glom screamed, as he tried to get away from the tongue. He tried to turn away from the glooey surface, hoping to break its contact with his flesh. Already he could see the impossibly long, narrow organ begin to pulsate like a throat prepared to slake an enormous thirst. With a wrenching twist (Escape Artist, untrained, 18+3 = 21) he managed to free himself from the appendage. It came off with a sickening popping noise, ghostly images like sharp ethereal barbs pulling painlessly away. With a sudden flash of insight, Glom realized that the tongue had not held merely his body, but his living spirit. The thing had meant to drain away his soul as a stirge drains blood.
With a cry of inarticulate rage, Glom sent another missile hurtling towards the creature, trying to burn it this time. "BURN! BURN!" the goblin yelled. (16 base damage, but see below.)
Loosened from the goblin, the creature's tongue streaked back into its mouth. The blast from the goblin's psyche hit the bulky thing full force, but its hide was slimy from long centuries in the drowned barrow, and the fire seemed to do little damage.
It snapped its fanged maw at Kregor, an attack that the half-orc easily avoided. Its two forward claws raked into the chamber, trying to slice flesh, but again Kregor merely danced out of the way.
"Freedom, huh?" Horsom fought to put at least a hint of bravado into his voice. Despite watching Kregor stand with it toe-to-claw, thus without injury, he found its eldritch aura and the constant susurrus of its voice in his mind unnerving. "How about I free you from your tongue?"
Horsom slung his bow onto his back and pulled out his battleaxe, ready to splash over to the struggling goblin to defend him. But the weird and snake-like organ was no longer visible. Grimly, Horsom realized that he would have to join Kregor or return to archery.
Selanil shivered as the thing touched his mind. It wanted freedom but Selanil vowed silently that he would die before letting that thing free into the world above. He calmly nocked another arrow and fired. (2 + 8 = 10, a miss.) Although the creature was bulky, the knobs in its skin were like bone, and the jelly-like meat of the thing seemed preternaturally tough.
Still, it seemed unlikely that the creature could get past Kregor while the half-orc lived. It was bulky, but neither fast nor dextrous. It would either have to push him out of its way, or kill him, to escape. Selanil smiled grimly. He vowed again that it would not happen.
Kregor was pleased that he had landed two solid blows, but he soon realized that it would take many more to bring this beast down. He had avoided its attacks thus far with ease -- although he knew that may well have been as much by luck as by skill. Rearing back, he concentrated and focused on his opponent. Drawing upon the strength that Gragnor had given him, Kregor swung his bastard sword. Had the foul thing's tongue still been attached to Glom, he would have targetted it. Instead, he sought to finish the fight if he could.
(1 + 10 = 11)
Gragnor lent force to the blow, but not accuracy, and the blow Kregor had hoped would cleave the thing's skull met only brackish water and fallen stone as the eel-like reptilian head reared back and the thing hissed in anger.
Then Dain reached the half-orc's side. With the creature still lodged mainly in the passageway, it was impossible to flank. The dwarf swung Tor-Angol (17 + 7 - 2 = 22, 3 + 3 - 2 = 4). He struck the rubbery flesh, but fear weakened the blow, and he could see no hurt where the mighty hammer had landed.
"I am with you," Dain said to Kregor, though he needed to grit his teeth to keep them from chattering, and he was uncertain whether he meant to bolster his companion or himself. The abomination's voice whispered promises and threats in his mind, in a low and insistant voice that made it difficult to be certain which plans were his, and which belonged to the thing they now faced.
The Miller's god, Dain realized. This thing was the Miller's god.
And betimes, in the long years before the Esk had imprisoned it beneath the earth, it had been the god of other beings, too.
With a cry of inarticulate rage, Glom sent another missile hurtling towards the creature, trying to burn it this time. "BURN! BURN!" the goblin yelled. (16 base damage, but see below.)
Loosened from the goblin, the creature's tongue streaked back into its mouth. The blast from the goblin's psyche hit the bulky thing full force, but its hide was slimy from long centuries in the drowned barrow, and the fire seemed to do little damage.
It snapped its fanged maw at Kregor, an attack that the half-orc easily avoided. Its two forward claws raked into the chamber, trying to slice flesh, but again Kregor merely danced out of the way.
"Freedom, huh?" Horsom fought to put at least a hint of bravado into his voice. Despite watching Kregor stand with it toe-to-claw, thus without injury, he found its eldritch aura and the constant susurrus of its voice in his mind unnerving. "How about I free you from your tongue?"
Horsom slung his bow onto his back and pulled out his battleaxe, ready to splash over to the struggling goblin to defend him. But the weird and snake-like organ was no longer visible. Grimly, Horsom realized that he would have to join Kregor or return to archery.
Selanil shivered as the thing touched his mind. It wanted freedom but Selanil vowed silently that he would die before letting that thing free into the world above. He calmly nocked another arrow and fired. (2 + 8 = 10, a miss.) Although the creature was bulky, the knobs in its skin were like bone, and the jelly-like meat of the thing seemed preternaturally tough.
Still, it seemed unlikely that the creature could get past Kregor while the half-orc lived. It was bulky, but neither fast nor dextrous. It would either have to push him out of its way, or kill him, to escape. Selanil smiled grimly. He vowed again that it would not happen.
Kregor was pleased that he had landed two solid blows, but he soon realized that it would take many more to bring this beast down. He had avoided its attacks thus far with ease -- although he knew that may well have been as much by luck as by skill. Rearing back, he concentrated and focused on his opponent. Drawing upon the strength that Gragnor had given him, Kregor swung his bastard sword. Had the foul thing's tongue still been attached to Glom, he would have targetted it. Instead, he sought to finish the fight if he could.
(1 + 10 = 11)
Gragnor lent force to the blow, but not accuracy, and the blow Kregor had hoped would cleave the thing's skull met only brackish water and fallen stone as the eel-like reptilian head reared back and the thing hissed in anger.
Then Dain reached the half-orc's side. With the creature still lodged mainly in the passageway, it was impossible to flank. The dwarf swung Tor-Angol (17 + 7 - 2 = 22, 3 + 3 - 2 = 4). He struck the rubbery flesh, but fear weakened the blow, and he could see no hurt where the mighty hammer had landed.
"I am with you," Dain said to Kregor, though he needed to grit his teeth to keep them from chattering, and he was uncertain whether he meant to bolster his companion or himself. The abomination's voice whispered promises and threats in his mind, in a low and insistant voice that made it difficult to be certain which plans were his, and which belonged to the thing they now faced.
The Miller's god, Dain realized. This thing was the Miller's god.
And betimes, in the long years before the Esk had imprisoned it beneath the earth, it had been the god of other beings, too.
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