NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sniktch" data-source="post: 477840" data-attributes="member: 7704">The sentriesThey entered the crypts and pushed further into the underground.  As usual, Welby and Malobar scouted about sixty feet ahead of the others, relying upon their natural stealth and magical enhancements to keep them hidden from any watchers in the dark.  They moved slowly to match Igor’s shuffling gait.  The tunnel gradually wound lower and lower beneath the earth until at last it opened into a large cavern.  They paused until the light of Artimas’ torch became visible behind them and then started across the floor of the cave.  Suddenly, a large black shape sprang out of the darkness at the two scouts.  “Spider!” the elf yelled and Welby dove to the floor, feeling a hairy leg brush against him as he rolled across the floor.  At the same time bowstrings sang out from the darkness and a volley of arrows flew over their heads toward the light of the torch.Grick heard the warning shout and started forward, grunting in pain when an arrow flew out of the inky tunnel and struck him in the forearm.  Two more arrows whistled out of the gloom and struck Jack standing next to him.  The monk pulled the arrow free and grimaced at the sight of the venomous paste smeared on its head, then broke into a full run and soon came upon the fight between the two rogues and a large, horse-sized spider.  He jumped right over the combat and continued forward, finding himself approaching a yawning hole in the floor of the cave.  Two dark elves with shortbows melted from the shadows across the opening, firing arrows rapidly at the approaching monk.  Grick plucked one arrow from the air but could not dodge them all and cried out as three more arrows bit into his flesh.  One of the elves then leaped into the opening, grabbing the walls and scrambling on all floors down the chute like a spider, while the other held his ground and readied another shot.Malobar lunged forward, scoring two hits on the soft underbelly of the spider.  To his dismay, no blood welled from the wounds and the spider showed no signs of feeling any pain from his attack, biting at him with its powerful mandibles and forcing the elf to give ground.  Welby scrambled back into the fray and hacked two of its legs off, and as the spider turned to deal with the threat he plunged his sword into its head up to the hilt, slaying it instantly.  Seeing his opponent fall, Malobar turned to the dark shaft in the ground and drank a potion, gaining for a short length of time the ability to fly.Quinn ran forward toward the sounds of battle, yelling for Artimas and Jack to follow.  Artimas started off but saw the dwarf was still standing rigid and still in the hallway.  “Jack?” he asked, leaning towards his companion.  The dwarf did not reply for a moment, then a whistling snore came from the depths of his great helm.  Artimas removed Jack’s helmet and discovered that the bold templar had succumbed to the drow's venom and was sound asleep.  The necromancer grabbed the torch from Igor and ordered the zombie to guard the helpless dwarf, then cast a spell and started flying down the passage, fighting to hold back the laughter that welled up within him. Grick leaped over the hole in the ground and knocked the dark elf archer from his feet with a vicious kick.  The sentry rolled back out of reach and snapped a shot at point blank range into the half-orc’s gut, then dove over the edge of the pit and started scampering down the walls and out of sight.  Grick tore the last arrow free and raised his flask to his lips, draining several gulps of strong liquor to dull the pain, then hopped onto the lip of the chute and began running down the side with his slippers.  He heard the sound of rushing air as Malobar overtook him and flew past, hot on the drow’s tail.The passage leveled out after a short descent and the rogue almost caught the fleeing sentry, but then the passage dead-ended at another opening in the floor that the retreating figure disappeared into.  Malobar didn’t hesitate but continued the chase, flying through this second hole and ending up in a larger cavern.  He sensed the dark elf’s form running from him just a few short feet away, but a new shape loomed out of the darkness; the shape of an unarmed dark elf that moved into his path and spit a stream of caustic, burning fluid into the elf’s face.Grick saw Malobar fly into the hole after the fleeing guard and dropped into the opening behind him.  As soon as he touched down he realized that they were in trouble.  A new figure stepped into the elf’s path and launched a spray of blood that splashed onto the rogue with a sickening sizzle.  This new opponent resembled a dark elf in size and shape, but here all similarity ended.  It was skinless; puss and blood oozing from the exposed muscles, sinews, and organs as it stared malevolently with unlidded eyes.  Beyond this horrifying attacker another large spider and two dark elves with glaives rushed forward to join the combat.Malobar dodged past the skinless terror but was not quick enough to evade the next dark elf, who opened a long cut along his side as it brought its polearm to bear.  He stepped in past the weapon’s reach and countered, opening two nasty bleeding gouges on the drow.  Behind him, Grick launched a rapid series of punches and kicks at the bleeding monster, connecting solidly with every blow.  The monk screamed in pain as each successful hit caused a spray of acidic blood to burst from his opponent’s form, and the half-orc fell away, badly burned.  The monster pressed its attack, stepping up and backhanding the monk and driving him into the path of one of its warrior allies, who speared Grick with its glaive.  Four sickening green bolts of magic flew out of the darkness then and sizzled into the monk, who slipped in a patch of his own blood, banged his head off the stone floor, and did not rise again.Malobar backed up to stand over the body, launching a desperate series of slashes left and right to keep his opponents at bay.  The weird skinless drow and spider moved to flank him while the two dark elf warriors raised their wicked glaives and smiled evilly, while out of the range of his blindsight a dark elf wizard prepared another spell.  The elf considered flying away but could not leave Grick to the tender mercies of the drow.  He renewed his attack, spinning nimbly to the left and cutting into the warrior he’d already injured, at the same time yelling, “Grick’s down!  I need help!  Hurry!!”</blockquote>

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