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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ziona" data-source="post: 320164" data-attributes="member: 484">Fearsome BattleThe battle raged on after the death of Doc Midnight.  Drexel continued to battle the Spectre, while his companions faced the orcs and vrock below.The orc priests were well versed in combat, and were not willing to let any of the intruders live.  As far as they were concerned, Doc was only the first sacrifice to Gruumsh, while the ranger would be their next.  Haley assisted Dent against the orc assault, but it was proving to be a strain on the half-elf.  He knew if they did not defeat their foes soon, that his parents and mentor would never be avenged.  The thought burned inside him, encouraging him to persevere.  However, when the next blow caught him in the chest, Dent felt his strength leaving him as he fell to the ground in a bloody heap. Haley’s ferocious roar alerted the companions that something was wrong.  From across the room, Lox watched the life slipping from another dear friend, and something inside him snapped.“Noooooooo!” he screamed.  Clasping the Rod of Wonder in his small halfling hands, Lox pointed it at the vrock that was towering over him and shouted, “ROD OF WONDER!”As the rod’s ability was activated, Lox was suddenly visible again.  The vrock screeched as he spotted his next victim, but suddenly was unable to move fast enough to strike the halfling.  The vrock’s movement was labored, and before he knew it, Lox had run away from him and headed in the direction of the tiger.“Dent! Dent, get up!”Lox stood before the orc priests that had killed Doc, and maybe even Dent. He pointed the rod at the first orc, but before he could shout his command, he saw Dent jump up from the ground with his axe in his hand.  Lox just stood there motionless from the shock of seeing Dent suddenly revived.  He expected to see Ziona, or at the very least, Glindil beside the ranger, but neither of them were nearby.  He watched as Dent raised his axe and hammered into the back of the first orc, which slumped down to the floor as it took it’s last breath.  Enthused to see his friend up and fighting again, Lox took out his short sword and began slashing away at the orcs with Dent and Haley.Meanwhile, Venus and Ziona had managed to defeat the orcs that were a threat to them.  Venus had used his mighty scimitar to slaughter the evil one-eyed vermin that had attacked Drexel.  Now, the Soldier of Lathander was making his way towards the vrock.Rossal alerted Ziona that Doc was in dire need, and she darted to the place where Rossal said Doc had fallen.  As Ziona arrived, she knew that her friend was beyond her help.  She knelt beside him and closed his lifeless eyes.  After saying a brief prayer to Eilistraee, she wiped her tears and turned to face the evil creatures that took Doc’s life.  Before she could join Venus in the attack on the vrock, however, Drexel flew down and met her on the ground.“I can’t beat you,” he shouted to the spectre on the way down, “but I know someone who can!”The spectre was gliding down towards Ziona and Drexel at a fast pace.  Ziona dropped her bastard sword and held out her holy symbol in an attempt to turn the creature.  The spectre only laughed in a wicked, hollow moan.  “Your God is not strong enough here, false drow!”The spectre made an attempt to attack Drexel, but missed the tiefling entirely.  As the ghostly figure flew back into the air, it began casting on the two companions.  However, Drexel cast Magic Missile, which interrupted the spectre’s spell, and gave Ziona the chance to cast Searing Light.  The combined force of the spells, coupled with the Spellfire that Drexel had already attacked with, annihilated the spectre.During this time, Venus had begun his assault on the Slowed vrock.  The vulture-faced demon was dead before it could even react to the massive amount of damage that the angry vampire inflicted upon it.  Dent, Lox, and Haley finished up their bout with the remaining orcs, and Glindil was there to nurse their wounds.The heroes gathered near their fallen friend and stood for long silent moments.  Lox sniffled, and Rossal and Glindil hung their heads low.  Ziona’s grey skin had paled, while Drexel and Dent’s eyes were rimmed with red.  Haley stood by the ranger, whining softly.  Venus stood statuesque, with a grim frown that creased the features on his face.“What are we going to do now?” asked Venus.“We must take him back to town as we did with Nuttin,” said Dent, his voice above a whisper.“Is there nothing you can do, milady?”“He is beyond my aid,” said Ziona with sadness.  Lox’s lower lip trembled and the tears found their way down his cheeks again.  As Dent knelt to console the halfling, Lox turned in anger.“It’s not fair!” he shouted. “I don’t understand it! I saw Doc die and I saw Dent die, but then you got back up…how did you get up, but Doc hasn’t?”“Lox, do you remember the ring that Prynne found when we were in the maze so long ago?” asked Dent.“A ring? What ring?”“This ring,” said Dent, holding out his hand.  On his index finger he wore an ivory ring that was carved to look like a snarling feline.  “It’s the Ring of Nine Lives that Prynne left to us when she departed the maze.  It saved my life twice during this battle.”“Twice?” said Venus.“Yes.  Lox must have seen me fall the second time.  Haley was the only one around the first time I…I died, I guess.”“Thank Eilistraee for the ring,” said Ziona, “or we might have lost another friend.”“So…Doc isn’t coming back?” asked Lox with sorrow.“I’m afraid not, Lox,” answered Dent.“Perhaps I can teleport myself and Doc back to town,” said Drexel.  “Will the rest of you be alright to travel back? Perhaps you should accompany me as well, Ziona.  We’ll have to make funeral arrangements.”“Funeral arrangements?” cried Lox.  “No! No, Doc can’t be dead…we can’t lose anyone else!”“Lox, please calm yourself,” said Ziona comfortingly.  “Death is a natural part of life. We will all pass from this life to the next.  Doc passed before we wanted him to, but it’s a natural process. We all must die eventually.”“Well, I wish Doc didn’t have to die!” protested Lox.  As the words slipped from his mouth, the remaining ruby in the ring Lox acquired disappeared.  “None of us wanted Doc to die, Lox,” said Dent.  “But it happened, and now…”“Died? Who died?”The heroes turned to see Doc Midnight as he began to sit up.“Doc?  Doc! You’re alright!” exclaimed Lox excitedly.  The party could hardly believe what they were seeing.“Yeah, well…why wouldn’t I be?”“Well, you were dead,” said Lox matter-of-factly.Drexel’s look of wonder turned to a look of understanding as he noticed the silver ring the halfling wore on his finger.  Shaking his head, he checked his pouches and found that his Ring of Three Wishes, (which had one remaining wish), was gone.“How is this possible?  The Dark Maiden be praised! I cannot understand this,” said Ziona with a smile.“I think I can explain,” said Drexel with a smirk.  “Someone’s hands have been wandering into pockets where they don’t belong.”“Ah,” said Venus.  “It’s the ring that came from the rakshasa’s treasure.”“Precisely,” said Drexel.Lox just looked at the ground with his hands behind his back.  His face was flush and he suddenly appeared to be more bashful than any of them had ever seen him.“I just wanted to get my Rod of Wonder back,” he said quietly.“And so you have,” said Drexel.  “You have proven that you are capable of carrying the rod without endangering the party.”“However,” interrupted Dent.  “you took things from everyone that didn’t belong to you, Lox.  If you expect everyone to trust you, you cannot do that again.”“Okay,” said Lox.  “I promise.”“Personally,” said Doc, “I’m mighty glad that Roundy took your ring, Drexel.  I suppose I’d be feeding the tree otherwise!”“Oh, don’t worry,” said Lox taking off the ring. “You can have your ring back, Drexel. Oh, and your bat dung.”The group laughed for a few minutes, then gathered their things and carried on, pleased to have survived the fearsome battle.The Adventure Continues…</blockquote>

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