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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 1730312" data-attributes="member: 2323">[PLAIN][Realms #281] Break Like the Wind[/PLAIN]Ixin had witnessed several 'Challenges of Claw and Wing' during her youth on the islands of Io's Blood. But the one she always remembered most vividly involved her grandmother, Lady Dominor Corastrixarosvith, and one of the great wyrm's own children, a dragonmongrel named Farnathrakinax. The challenge was supposedly one of honor and something about a place on the Council being denied to the younger dragon because of his mixed blood, but whatever the reason, it ended with ur-Corastrixarosvith facing off against ur-Farnathrakinax above the Field of Challenge on the Council Aerie. The outcome of the challenge was never truly in doubt, and Ixin remembered well the sight of the defeated challenger falling out of the sky, the sun glinting violet on his scales, smoke trailing from his tattered wings. Almost at the last moment, before he was sure to be broken against the stoney surface of the challenge area, ur-Farnathrakinax had twisted his enormous body and stretched out his wings to stall his descent.Ixin remembered the scene as she fell and the memory saved her life. She twisted awkwardly to face the up-rushing ground and spread her wings. There was a jerk and a painful tearing sensation as her wings caught the air and temporarily broke the pull of Rontra's Grasp, allowing her to drift down to the ground. She still landed hard, but she rolled with the impact - or tried to - and managed to avoid any broken bones. The exertion of using her wings took a lot out of her, however.She looked up at the swirling mass of vapor and drew mana from her inner reserves. "Magicus telum!" she intoned and directed two bolts of force into the airy thing as it bore down on her. The Magic Missiles knifed through the creature and the suggestion of the face within the mist contorted in pain a moment before it was on her with incredible speed. It slammed into the drakeling with bone-jarring force, driving Ixin off her feet. She landed on the ground a half-dozen feet away and lay there for a moment, stunned by the impact.Feln growled in anger and went immediately to the rope. He was surprised to see that Grisham was already shimmying down toward the valley below. The barbarian was some twenty feet down from the cliff edge and descending fast - but not fast enough. Feln looked at the rope, looked at the ground... and jumped. He plummeted past Grisham and looked down to see the valley floor coming up to splatter him and then he grabbed for the rope. It was the sort of legendary feat that none of those who witnessed it would have believed possible had they heard the tale sung by a bard, but Feln had spent almost two decades learning to climb and the magical ring that Ixin had found further augmented his already considerable skills. He caught the rope in one hand, swung himself over and began to descend it at a fast - but controlled - pace."Gods!" Ledare hissed as she saw the half-orc's unbelievable display. She steadied the rope for Grisham and shouted for the others. "Hurry up! Let's get down there!""I don't need the rope," Vade said and began scuttling down the cliff using his Slippers of Spider Climbing.Morier moved for the rope and started down as quickly as he dared. He made no pretensions about being as talented a climber as either Grisham or Feln were and he moved with the belief that "slow and alive" was of more value to the others than "quick and dead"."Oi... what we 'ave 'ere is a Wind Monster," Karak pontificated. "They can be tough opponents... We need magick to defeat something as spiritual as this." After Morier was out of sight down the rope, the dwarf looked at the Janissary a little sheepishly and added, "By the by, Ledare you be mindin' if I borrow the twin moon blades that I be seeing me brother's fellows use sometimes? I believe I need the kiss o' the Moon Goddess to even hit yonder Wind Monster.""Take them!" Ledare barked, turning her shoulders so that the dwarf could grab the swords crossed over her back. "But get down there!" Karak took the Matched Pair weapons and and smiled at Ledare."Ye have me thanks, lassie," the dwarf said and stepped off the cliff, buoyed at once by the magic of his Ring of Feather Falling. Even with the magic, his descent was fairly quick and he shot passed Moirer, Vade and Grisham as he fell, muttering a prayer as he went. Ixin managed to sit up and begin weaving another Magic Missile spell when the thing slammed into her again. She struggled to retain her focus, but it was no use; the spell was disrupted and it fizzled even as her grip on consciousness did the same.The misty monster gathered itself up and came at the next closest target: Feln. It was incredibly fast and it was on the martial artist almost as soon as he heard the telltale roar of its approach. He had just enough time to wrap his arms and legs tightly around the rope before it slammed into him, sending him roughly against the rocky cliff face. Pain blossomed all along his side, but he maintained his grip and kept climbing downward as fast as he could. The wind slammed him against the cliff again, opening fresh wounds all over his back, but he maintained his grip long enough to let go of the rope again and plummet toward the ground. Miraculously, he managed to catch himself on the rope again once he was out of the creature's reach. From there, he continued his slide downward. Karak waved to the half-orc as the dwarf fell past."Last one down be a rotten fish," he taunted. A moment later, Karak landed with a clatter and readied the borrowed scimitars. He looked up at the hazy form roiling above him and muttered a hasty prayer. "I know you 'n' me've not seen eye-to-eye in a while, My Queen, but I am still your faithful. I just be mad, so let's put this aside for now. I ask ye for your aid, Shaharizod. Please bless me and my fellows for what lies ahead." Filled with Divine Favor, Karak dug in his heels and waited for the "Wind Monster" to come for him.He didn't have to wait long. It hurtled downward like a falling rock and struck him with nearly as much force. The dwarf's ears rang from the impact and he shook his head in surprise before closing with the thing. The scimitars were unfamiliar weapons although he had seen his brother use one often enough to know that they could be deadly. He threw considerable power behind the blows, but the monster avoided the blades with ease, darting to the side with unnatural swiftness.Nearby, Feln landed unnoticed and tumbled toward Ixin's unmoving form. He uncorked a healing potion as he went and carefully poured the contents down the sorcerer's throat once he reached her. She coughed and sputtered and opened her eyes, alive, but just barely conscious.Meanwhile, Karak endured another slam from the wind and slashed the scimitars into the mass of vapor. He put more care into placing his attacks and less muscle this time but still his off-hand was too unwieldy to strike properly. He felt the blade in his primary hand catch on something within the mass of air and mist and saw the wind monster jerk in apparent pain. He suffered mightily for that minor victory, however, as the thing redoubled its efforts to destroy him. He groaned in pain as the deadly winds pummeled him from what seemed all directions. But still, he stood his ground somehow, certain that the next blow that landed on him would be his last.A throwing axe slashed into the vaporous thing from behind, hurled by Grisham who had finally made it to the bottom of the rope. The axe drew another jerk of pain from the Wind Monster and it threw itself at this new enemy with wild abandoned. Karak took the creature's momentary distraction as an opening to slash outward again with the scimitar. Despie its divided attention, it seemed ready for him and deftly avoided the blade.Vade had also made it to the ground, and took a moment to turn himself invisible. He wasn't sure that the creature actually had a back to backstab, but he thought that being invisible was always a good way to enter a fight. He maneuvered himself into a good position, his hand on his dagger, but not drawing it lest the light on the enchanted blade betray his presence.He didn't get a chance to draw the weapon before the Wind Monster began to spin in place, generating a massive whirlwind 40 ft. tall that sent up a vast cloud of dirt and debris where it touched the ground. The cloud blossomed outward, quickly blotting out all vision much beyond and arm's length.Vade managed to nimbly avoid getting sucked into the cyclone, and couldn't see what was happening through the cloud of dirt, but he heard a scream nearby that might have been Grisham.On top of the cliff, Ledare had too good a view of the proceedings 100 feet below. The whirlwind rose up out of nowhere, slamming into Grisham and tossing the man backward. More horrifying, however, was the fact that the top of the wind cone, which was at least thirty feet across, easily plucked Morier off of the rope. The albino might have screamed but if he did his voice was drowned out by the thunderous roar of the cyclone as it sucked him down into its spiralling depths.</blockquote>

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