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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Jon Potter" data-source="post: 1765404" data-attributes="member: 2323">[PLAIN][Realms #284] That's a Spider?!?![/PLAIN]"Well... well...," Karak muttered getting slowly to his feet and turning to face the gargantuan arachnid. "What 'ave we 'ere? It seems you and me woke up a mighty big one, ranger." Grisham said nothing in response, but the dwarf saw him clutch the wolf fetish around his neck and mouth a few words over it - a prayer most likely. It was the first time that Karak could remember seeing Grisham look frightened or reluctant to enter into battle."Listen up lads and lassies! We seem t'ave woken up a beastie 'ere in the night!" the dwarf bellowed in the loud baritone that he normally reserved for forge chants and he heard the others stir on the far side of the fire. "Me and the tracker will hold 'em back for a while! Get up an' wake up! Get your wits about you, and when we need you I will go a' callin'.  This nae be somethin' we can nae handle!"The spider seemed unimpressed with Karak's inspirational words. It let out an unnatural shriek and darted forward, sinking its fangs between the plates of steel armor and into the dwarf's flesh. He roared in pain from the stab wounds and felt the burn of venom, but he didn't worry about that in the slightest."I'm a dwarf, ye great hairy git!" he taunted. "You can nae poison a dwarf!" It was true that his tremendous natural fortitude had saved him from the spider's venom, but it was a near thing. And the bite itself had felt like getting stuck deeply by a pair of spears. But there was no reason to let the spider know that.Vade was the first roused out of his bedroll, and he grabbed the sling under his pillow and a rock off the ground as he rolled to his feet. "Hey you! Stinky spider!" he sing-songed and let the stone fly. It struck the spider in the mass of eyes that covered the front of its head and it turned its attention to the halfling. "Over here! Can't catch me!"Ixin was next up and she hurriedly fumbled in her cloak for a potion of Mage armor. She downed it and saw a shimmering glow surround her body for a moment before it faded to an invisible barrier."Now spider! You and me are a'goin' ta tussle!" Karak growled, stoking the fires of rage within himself. He gripped his waraxe firmly with both hands and struck the spider's nearest leg. Once! Twice! The blade bit deeply, nearly severing the limb. The arachnid horror squealed in agony at the blows and drew the leg back reflexively, giving Grisham an opening to roll under the limb and tumble around the creature."Flank it! Flank it!" he was yelling as he went. Unfortunately, the spider wasn't as distracted as the man had hoped and it darted forward, plunging its fangs into Grisham's back as he moved. He screamed as the bite sank down, but he kept rolling and brought his longsword up and into the creature's soft... ahem... backside, burying the sword hilt deep in its vitals. The spider shrieked again in pain, and this time the cry was of a timbre high enough to shatter glass."Wand, wands, where are my wands ?" Morier was asking as he scrambled out of his bedroll. "Oh yes, here they are!" he got to his feet and moved toward the battle, readying the Wand of Burning Hands as he went.Flen rolled into a crouch, shook the sleep from his head and then darted into the fray. He stayed near Karak to provide a distraction to the spider - or at least another viable target.The spider turned toward the tormentor who had just deprived it of the opportunity to ever procreate. Grisham tried to ward off the attack with his handaxe, but it plunged its fangs into the barbarian's chest, staggering the man.Vade watched the ranger get mauled by the giant vermin. He'd had worse times and although he held no love for Grisham, he knew that once the barbarian fell, the spider would turn its attention to one of his friends. He drew out a flask of alchemist's fire and threw it with all his might against the creature's side. It shattered there, coating the spider's abdomen in flaming goo. The hit was a little too close to Grisham, and the man was splashed by a few flaming drops. The scent of burning hair filled everybody's nostrils.Nearby, Ixin cast Dancing Lights in the space near Grisham, conjuring a humanoid form composed entirely of ghostly light. If the vermin was confused by the apparition, it was difficult to say, because a moment later, Karak was savaging its legs again with his waraxe. One cut sank deeply, but the second was turned aside by the spider's thick natural armor. On the vermin's other end, Grisham found his luck deserting him as neither his sword nor his handaxe could penetrate the creature's heavy chitinous armor."Irakulus!" Morier shouted, pointing his wand at the spider and sending a cone of fire across the thing's legs. It shrieked in pain as its hair crisped and its exoskeleton charred. It seized the opportunity to turn and bite into the albino's torso, pumping poison into his body. Morier was no dwarf and he felt the venom burn through his veins, stealing his strength. He fell back weakly.Letting out a ululating kai shout, Feln vaulted over near the eldritch warrior, did a hand spring and drove both feet into the spider's head as it turned back toward Grisham. It was a powerful blow, and while it didn't finish off the creature, the vermin was clearly staggered by it - so much so that it missed sinking its fangs into the barbarian. It also failed to see Vade's sling stone before it struck the pulpy mass trailing from its ruined abdomen. That tiny impact was all the more the thing could take, however and it shuddered and careened onto its side with a resounding crash.Karak stepped in close and buried his waraxe in the creature's still-flaming belly; Grisham planted Winower's blade in the spider's head. Vade jumped up and down, waving his sling."Yippee!" he cried merrily. "I did it! I did it!""Yes, little one," Grisham agreed as he staggered forward, his leather armor slick with his own blood. He smiled approvingly at the halfling. "Well done."Vade looked shocked at the man's back as he passed, but before he could reply, Feln called for their attention. He was holding Morier's pale body in his arms while the albino shivered and foamed at the mouth. "He's been poisoned," the half-orc announced unnecessarily."I'll... I'll be fine," Morier managed to stammer unconvincingly."Sure you will," Grisham said, producing a potion from his belt. "Once you drink this." He crouched down, roughly grabbed Morier's face and poured the liquid down the elf's throat. Morier sputtered and choked, but the tremors wracking his body quickly subsided."Thank you," Morier said and tried to sit up. His body felt like lead. Grisham grunted in acknowledgement of the albino's appreciation, but looked critically at the way the elf was moving weakly. "We'll see how you feel in the morning. If your strength is still gone then, I'll give you another potion I've got. It should restore some of the weakness.""Lucky you had tha' potion, tracker," Karak panted as Grisham turned away from Morier and turned toward the dwarf. The barbarian nodded and limped toward him."I spent some time doing bodyguard work in Battle City," Grisham told him. "Some of the shadier gangs there like to use poison on their blades. I got pretty good at fighting off the ill effects, but it pays to have a little insurance on hand.""Aye," Karak agreed, leaning heavily on the handle of his axe."Now how's about you break out that wand of yours and patch me up some," Grisham suggested, indicating the bleeding wounds on his chest. He grinned at Karak. "I'm afraid that if the wind starts blowing, I'll sound like a flute with all these holes in me. Wouldn't want anyone to mistake me for a bard."</blockquote>

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