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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 1184167" data-attributes="member: 2323">[PLAIN][Realms #242a] Angels & Insects[/PLAIN]Ixin was crafty with her Dancing Lights. The four colorful globes of radiance were easily three times as fast as their transmogrified pursuers and they changed direction at her whim, zipping over and under limbs and speeding around the trunks of trees. Still, she was hard-pressed to keep the insect creatures from getting close enough to recognize her ruse for what it was. Firstly, she was constrained by the limitations of her spell: no single light could move further than 10 feet from any other. Secondly, she was limited by the fact that she was trying to avoid sending the flying humanoids too near to where Ledare, Morier and Windstryder were hiding. And thirdly, the insects were using clever tactics, initiating flanking maneuvers and setting the moving lights up for sudden crossbow attacks.It was really just a matter of time...The globes of light orbited each other as they careened amidst the trees and Ixin directed them around the trunk of an oak tree of considerable size. Too late, she noticed one of the four insect men buzz down from above with its crossbow drawn. It fired a shot into the midst of the lights, not managing to score a hit on any of them. However, Ixin couldn't prevent one of the insubstantial glowing balls from slamming into the thing's chitin-plated chest. Of course, it caused no harm, but contact with the disbelieving creature disrupted the spell and the globe that had struck him dissipated at once, leaving Ixin with only three circling balls of light.The flying creature alighted on a nearby branch and barked to its fellows. Hanging at her hip, Arivexoth immediately translated the thing's words to Ixin. "Lights a trick!" the creature yipped. "We tricked! Braath be mad we chase lights! Mad we tricked!""Braath be mad we not guard!" one of the others countered but the first shook its horned head."Guard we do. Not chase lights," the first asserted, pointing at its bulging multi-facetted eyes. "Look we do. Find light maker. Chase light maker. Kill light maker!" Its four fellows barked their approval and Ixin let her spell lapse. The three remaining light globes drifted lazily to a halt and dropped to the ground where they burst like soap bubbles."Saltatus iubar... arthonath!" she chanted softly and pointed her finger. At the spot she'd indicated in the distance appeared the glowing figure of a man. The figure moved furtively through the trees, appearing and disappearing eerily as it passed behind the trunks of oaks and ash and pines."There! Guard there! Chase there!" one of the bug men yapped, pointing a clawed hand at the figure. "That light maker!""Kill!" a second bug man yipped and the other two took up the battle cry. "KILL!!!"They launched themselves from the branches and buzzed toward the shimmering figure at full speed.It didn't take Feln more than a moment to reach a decision. He took a breath and moved down the passage, as silent as a shadow. The bug-like clicking and clacking grew louder as he neared the side passage, and as he drew breast of it a foul midden pit stench assaulted his nostrils. Venturing a peek down the connecting passage, he spotted something large and multi-legged moving about in the chamber beyond. His darkvision could reveal little about the thing apart from the fact that it was both enormous and some type of vermin - most likely a giant spider or scorpion.Feln's breath caught in his throat as he darted across the mouth of the corridor. He could here a rustling now accompanying the clicking and clacking as if the huge arachnid had sensed his passing and was maneuvering itself into attack position. But no attack came and the half-orc slowly let out his breath and padded toward the far end of the corridor.Where the passage turned off to the left, Feln paused because he could now see faint light coming from that direction. He pressed himself against the passage wall and glanced around the corner. It continued passed the corner for only aouther 15 feet or so before emptying into a much larger chamber. The sound of dripping water was more pronounced and now Feln was certain that he could hear a girl crying.He moved forward and glanced out into the "chamber". What it really was, he saw now, was a central passageway twice as wide as the others that he'd moved through were. It extended away to his right as far as his eyes could see, and other smaller tunnels fed into it on both sides. The rugged limestone walls streamed with water and the floor was damp and mucky. He could see no tracks in the mud, however. To his left, the passage let into a squarish chamber illuminated my strange silver light. It was the girl, however, that immediately drew his attention. A beautiful, forlorn-looking young elf girl was chained to the floor of the chamber. Numerous bloody stripes across her chest and back indicated that she had been flogged. She was crying, but her eyes were clear, green, and full of an anger that could only be described as righteous.Sighing with relief that he'd found the object of his quest, Feln mentally willed his Hat to trigger his elf disguise and his features ran invisibly into their new shapes as he stepped out into the passageway.His only warning was the mud shifting beneath his feet before the trap went off and the ceiling collapsed on his head.Outside Vade heard the muffled crunch of falling rock echoing up from inside the cave. "Uh oh," he said.</blockquote>

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