Upgrade your account to a Community Supporter account and remove most of the site ads.

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 388741" data-attributes="member: 1210">Old Friends ReturnThe cave the party enters is large, studded with wet stalagmites and stalactites dripping down from above, and it has a passage out the back of it.  Our heroes move forward to investigate, chatting as then move- and then Krunkshank hears a strange sound.  It sounds like the squeak of moving metal."Do you hear that?" he asks the group, moving up to stand before the dark passage.  He peers down the long cavern, looking to the limits of his darkvision- and two metal hounds come bounding out at him, charging at him before he has a chance to act.  Both hit him and try to latch onto him with their steel jaws, but he manages to force both of them away.  He gives a great cry of pain as they savage him, but whips out his axe and swings wildly at one of the gear hounds.  Horbin draws out his mace, calling upon Dexter for a circle of protection from law.  Vito, meanwhile, conjures a magical staff, which pummels one of the constructs attacking Krunkshank.  Droidi moves in, a flame springing to life in his hand.  One of the metal beasts turns to him and savagely catches him in its jaw for an instant before he throws its grip off.  Krunkshank trades blows with the monster on him; Horbin, meanwhile, begins to summon a monster.  Before he can finish, Droidi has tumbled away from the one that snapped at him and it bites Horbin instead, ruining his spell and catching him!  The gear hound shakes him, disorienting him, but he manages to keep his wits.  Then Droidi hurls a flame at the thing holding him.  Vito hears something- a strange, tortured gait; and a word- “Flee!  Flee... you fools...”What was that? he wonders.Horbin struggles with the monster holding him, taking advantage of the moment of damage to slip out of its grip, tearing his shoulder as he does it.  A shrill sound signals a sound burst from Vito, further damaging the gear hounds.  Then Droidi steps in and tears into the one on Horbin, attacking with both claws and both bites.  He rends it to pieces.  Krunkshank has suffered several bites from the one he’s battling, but the dwarf feels his blood sing.  He’s enjoying the back-and-forth dance of axe and bite, and he’s just destroyed the one he’s on.  Then a chill runs through his spine as he hears a voice- something familiar in it- croak out, “Flee... run...” And stepping from the tunnel to face our heroes are two of their old friends: Titus the Clockwork Master and Anvar, the Paraelementalist.Both of whom, the reader may recall, vanished after the strange clockwork vessel sank.  Both of whom now show... a few changes.Anvar has a large metal hammer-looking thingy mounted on his shoulder.  He’s also got some sort of crackly face-mounted wand-looking metal tube thing next to the right side of his face, with some sort of metal lens over his right eye.  He also has a large crystalline gem set in his forehead.  He croaks again: ”Flee...”Titus has already hasted himself, and he too has a crystal in his forehead.  He also has some sort of shoulder-mounted metal device that suddenly barks and fires a burst of slugs into Krunkshank’s midsection.  He gives a great cry of pain, staggers back a few paces, and drops to one knee. The entire party is gaping.  These are two of their friends!Horbin tosses a shatter spell at the crystal in Anvar’s head, but it resists.  And then, as the two clockwork servitors begin to move forward, Krunkshank cries, “Anvar my friend- I’m sorry!”  And he seals the passage with a wall of stone.And it’s not over yet, since Anvar can cast Pass Through Earth and Stone on himself!Next time I can I’ll update this and finish the fight off- if not tonight, then prolly not for a couple of months, I’m afraid.... but I will try to finish this off before I leave.  Aw, crap, that still leaves Captain Clambake and the lich to tell... Did I say lich?  Heh... forget I said that.Lich.  These guys are only around 8th level, after all.</blockquote>

Verification