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Message: <blockquote data-quote="htetickrt" data-source="post: 1458207" data-attributes="member: 16534">Tierak Morcane Trella has one idea. "Anybody got a torch or other source of light we can throw onto the floor when we go in there? I want to blind those Underdark cockroach rat bastards as we enter. They're expecting us, so we need to get back some element of surprise. We'll need the light regardless since not all of us are blessed with the ability to see in darkness. Hey, where are my bats?" Realizing that they are long since gone due to her lack of continued concentration, the skilled druid summons a new bat with a spell. Expending a charge from her staff, she instructs it to explore the next room with its echolocation. The bat leaves forthwith on its mission, returning a minute later with news. Before it vanishes to reappear in its native land, it imparts to Trella the lay of the cavern. She relays the following: “Battie says there is a short passageway, about thirty feet long, that leads into an irregularly shaped cavern. The cavern is sixty feet long at its longest, and forty feet long at its widest, and seems to have no other exits. Battie didn’t get a good look at the drow, but from his description of their camp it sounds like they’ve been there for a while. The female halfling is near the far end of the cavern, tied to a post.” Dobi attempts to maintain a bit of his dignity after his decidedly ungentlemanlike showing in the face of the maurezhi. "A Cormyrian damsel in distress; we must rescue her at once.” Drawing a pair of daggers and rendering himself invisible, the halfling moves stealthily into the room, looking for a promising target. Clearly the combination of the damsel and his recent indignities has changed his opinion regarding a diplomatic solution. Quid hurriedly blesses the party before Dobi leaves. Acknowledging Trella’s suggestion—and compliment—she then casts ‘daylight’ on a nearby stone, placing it in a pocket until the right time presents itself. Finally, she casts ‘comprehend languages,’ deciding that she might have an opportunity to gain some potentially useful information if a hostage could be taken, and so should therefore be ready for this. At least this is what she tells herself after she realizes that the magic requires her to touch the spell’s subject. Danek, who was preparing similar magic, snorts and falls silent. Quid glances at her, adjusts her holy symbol and pronounces, “Strike while the Iron is Hot (Ventures 23:7).” Kai, who has been looking sheepish since her fear was dispelled, brightens at the news of humanoids in the next room. "If they speak elvish, I can use enchantment spells on them," she enthuses. "Oh, this could be good! Does anyone want to be invisible?" "ME! ME! ME!" Andy exclaims with hand raised. "Well, all right," Kai replies, giving him the spell. "But don't do anything rash. Those drow could be really tough. Remember you're visible once you attack." She tries not to make it sound like a hint. Andy puts on his serious face. “I just want to get close to them to launch a stunning attack. Did you know I was stunning?” The monk chuckles at his own pun. Danek makes a sour face, and after a long while offers, "I could stay here and watch our backs or something. I'm not afraid," she growls, glowering around at the group's members in turn, "I just.... I mean—well, I don't want to get in the way," she finishes, turning her back immediately and stalking to the wall of the room, where she kicks a rock for good measure. Rhien, growing ever more concerned for Dobi’s welfare, pats Danek on the back. “That’s good thinking,” he says, before moving into the passage, pausing briefly to heal his remaining wounds through deep concentration. Quid calls upon Waukeen’s favor to strengthen her attacks before joining him. Cupping the daylight-infused rock in her hand, she worries that Dobi has not properly read Acquisitions 12:15: "Appearances are not always as they seem. Thus thou shall require cash up front." Kai moves into position, turning Lenara invisible when she sees the wizard entering as well. The sound of casting spurs the rest of the group onward, and Kyree’s arm and Quid’s hand are in motion even before the illusory wall is breached. Unfortunately, they are too late for Dobi, who was apparently seen quite easily by the twin drow mages. Lightning bolts fly from their quickened hands, flying without fail toward the halfling. Only raw instinct saves him, as he dodges both bolts. Rhien follows his lead, reacting instantly to the attack. The monk watches from a safe distance as lighting slams into the stone wall to his right, scarring it with the violence of the twinned spell. The lightning only illuminates the cavern for an instant, and Kyree has to wait for Quid to throw her stone to fire. This happens a moment later, accompanied by the frantic casting of both mages. Nanoseconds before all drow present are blinded by the light, the two wizards summon chaos into being. First, webs completely block the passage leading into the cavern, capturing Kai, Andy, Lenara, and Buttercup in their sticky strands. Second, two larger bolts of lightning arc toward the partially-stuck party. One heads straight at Kyree, the other at Quid, and neither is able to avoid the subsequent shock. More horrifyingly, each bolt splits into eleven smaller ones, arcing toward each party member and frying all save Dobi and Rhien in turn. Infuriated, Kyree nails one of the blinded, well-lit mages with four arrows. Despite the mage's stonelike skin, the potent archer draws drow blood. Running alongside the arrows with superhuman speed, Rhien easily avoids the blinded drow fighters, reaching an uninjured mage in time to pummel him viciously. Three blows later the drow’s face is barely recognizable as his body crumples to the ground, dead. The drow’s shocked twin snarls at Rhien and takes flight, easily reaching the top of the cavern. Kai speeds up her own motions before smoothly ‘suggesting’ to one of the fighters in Elvish, “Don't you think we can all just sit down and work this out like civilized people?” The majority of the drow ignore her, but two of the blinded warriors, apparently willing to discuss things rationally, sit down on the rough cavern floor and wait patiently to speak to Kai. Worried suddenly for her life, the sole female drow in the room activates a hidden item and levitates to the ceiling, out of reach of all melee attacks. The three fighters still willing to fight quaff two potions in rapid succession, joining their leader in their air after the draughts take effect. Deciding discretion is the better part of valor, Cerridwin makes use of her freedom from the webbing to join Danek outside of the cavern, singing a healing ditty as she goes. Khail covers his movement in the opposite direction with a bolt of holy energy that scorches the mage’s chest, causing him to sputter in anger. Dobi takes a quick glance around, notes no one on the ground to attack him, and charges over to the prisoner. He as about to introduce himself when he realizes that he is invisible, and so settles for starting work on her ropes with his dagger. Lenara gives up her futile struggling and fires off two missiles at the mage. Both dissipate harmlessly before reaching him. Andy flexes his muscles and, to his great surprise, breaks free of the webbing entangling him. The monk mends some of his own wounds before advancing. Trella takes flight with the aid of her staff, reaching the airborne drow for some ‘aggressive negotiations.’ Buttercup tries and fails to dispel the webs holding him in place. Quid calls upon Waukeen to mend her numerous electrical burns. Next to her, Kyree curses at his inability to target the mage through the total cover afforded by the webbing. Instead the archer takes aim at the sole female, burying four arrows into her ebony skin. Blood flows freely from her numerous wounds as she turns a baleful eye to her hated surface-elf kin. Kai and her drow counterpart trade castings. Numerous webs vanish at her command, while lightning again blasts the party at his, felling Lenara. A second spell of the drow becomes clear as Rhien rebounds from an invisible wall of force that repels the monk’s leaping attack. Finally accustomed to the bright light flooding the cavern, three drow warriors descend to display expert skill with their rapiers, scoring deep wounds in the flesh of Kai and Kyree. The sorceress grimaces, but focuses on the obvious priestess of Lolth floating above her, and her inevitable response to the party’s assault. When the drow merely withdraws a wand and blasts Kyree with a ray of searing light—causing the elf to exclaim, “Hey, what did I do?”—she contemplates the meaning of this action. While Khail attempts to dispel the webbing with his blade, and Andy tries unsuccessfully to scale a wall, Dobi finishes cutting the prisoner’s bindings, freeing her to take actions of her own. She immediately runs to the pile of her equipment and begins rearming, deciding to save thanks and introductions for later. Twenty feet above them, Trella pummels her hapless foe, forcing the dazed priestess to back off to take stock of the situation. Buttercup lumbers to Lenara, noting with relief that the wizard has managed to stabilize on her own. Picking her up in his meaty hands, the half-orc spirits her away from the combat to join the other two outside. Inside the spherical wall of force, the drow mage quaffs a potion, healing a great number of his wounds. Satisfied with his level of health, the mage immolates himself in blue flames designed to injure any who dare touch him. Kyree ignores him, slaying the supposed priestess with a pair of arrows, and injuring a warrior with two more. Kai grants Khail flight, then concentrates on the mind of the uninjured flying warrior. Despite his heritage, the drow is unable to cope with the full force of Kai’s personality, and the sorceress dominates his will completely. Seeing the situation in hand, Quid burns another spell to heal herself. Rhien begins scaling the wall behind the wizard, waiting for his opportunity to strike. On command, the dominated warrior flies gently to the ground to join his compatriots. The remaining two contemplate surrender, but upon seeing the feral mask that is Trella’s face, they reconsider, opening deep punctures in the flesh of Trella and Kai with their aerial assault. These latest wounds overcome the sorceress’ considerable endurance, and she crumples to the earth, bleeding heavily. Able now to fly, Khail takes to the air after Kai’s nemesis. Easily reaching him, the paladin severs muscle from bone with one mighty swipe. Andy returns to the wall, this time climbing it with ease. Dobi watches Calla carefully, looking for a plot twist that would result in his being stabbed in the back by an attractive halfling he just met, but he only observes her donning her bracers and cloak. Trella shrugs off her injuries, returning them in kind. Two more bashes to the head leave the warrior on the brink of unconsciousness. For good measure, Trella spits at the dark elf, exclaiming, “How do you like them apples, b*tch?” He has no response. Danek rushes in then, desiring to aid the group in some way. Seeing Kai down, the barbarian is overcome with unexpected emotion and goes to kneel at her side. Words spill from her mouth before she knows what she is doing, and healing magic is extended to the sorceress, returning her to consciousness. The smile she gives Danek nearly melts the barbarian’s teenaged brain. The remaining drow mage spies Rhien on the wall, and realizes that his time is about done. Figuring at least to take some people with him, he dismisses the wall of force, flies away from Rhien’s reach, and casts two spells in rapid succession. The first summons a griffon of fiendish descent between Trella and Khail, while the second creates a storm of hailstones around Kai and Kyree. The hail is brutal, taking out Kai and Kyree, while injuring Danek, Andy, and Quid. The griffon proves less efficacious, exhibiting an utter inability to strike the paladin. Barely cognizant of his surroundings by virtue of copious injuries, Kyree calls upon his newfound faith to mend a minor wound. He rises slowly to his feet as Quid, noting that Kai is down and bleeding heavily, chooses to heal the sorceress with potent magic. For the second time in ten seconds, Kai returns to consciousness. Rhien notes this with relief, leaping from the wall and racing along the ground to keep up with the mage. Despite being near death, the drow warriors fight bravely on, or at least those who still desire to fight do. Trella is pierced only once by a rapier, but Khail’s foe proves more adept, landing three blows against the powerful paladin [42 hp]. Khail responds, slaying him with two strokes of his blade. Andy continues his climb, readying himself for a leap off. Trella caves her foe’s skull in with one swing before flying over to deal with the mage. As Danek heals Kyree further, Calla finishes gathering her things and begins looking around for her savior. Dobi remains silent, watching her carefully. Meanwhile, the drow mage continues to make life difficult, first enveloping the four women present in a cone of frigid air that leaves Quid at death’s door, and then zapping Trella and Khail with a bolt of lightning from a different angle. Khail shrugs it off, and sends the fiendish griffon back to its own plane with two swipes of his holy blade. Andy, bereft of a nearby target, calls to the paladin, “Hey, Khail! How about letting me ride piggyback? I was, uh, trained in that in the army and stuff.” Khail shows hints of his former stoic personality as he shrugs and answers, “Sure.” Excited, Andy leaps from his perch, barely catching onto Khail’s legs. The paladin sighs as the young monk scrambles up his back. Deciding that the new halfling is at least not evil, Dobi drops his cloak of invisibility and approaches her with palms raised. She seems suspicious of his sudden appearance, but allows him to sing a few words of magic to heal her sole wounds. Quite out of patience, Trella ignores injuries that would have felled the rhino whose skin she wears, and instead takes her frustration out on the mage. She smashes the butt of her staff into the wizard’s chest, receiving from his fire shield almost the same damage as she deals. The realization that her next strike could kill her penetrates her anger-clouded brain, and the druid backs off slightly. On the ground, Danek runs to Quid, and just barely manages to revive her. The priestess groans and lifts herself to a sitting position. “Sweet Lady Waukeen that hurt,” she exclaims. Cackling evilly, the mage focuses on Khail, sorely injuring him with both a lightning bolt and a barrage of magic missiles. Though the doughty paladin survives, his passenger fares far worse. The lightning fries Andy’s already addled brain, and sends his shattered body tumbling to the ground, his arms still grasping Khail’s shoulders in a macabre display of resoluteness. Trella feels a surprising sense of loss as she watches his descent, but is quite surprised to see the body turn to dust, leaving only a smattering of items to fall to the ground. Catching an ethereal wind, the dust swirls, gathering into a vaguely humanoid form before, with a flash, reforming into an entirely new shape. The new Andy is a female halfling of Dobi’s stature. Though most of his skills have made the transformation, the change is still substantial, and New Andy can only gape at himself in astonishment. The “civilized” drow on the ground regard her with mild polite interest. Unwilling to let the mage live another second, Kyree fires off four arrows through the deep cover of the webbing. All strike their marks, leaving the drow on the brink of death. Quid takes him over the edge as her flaming sling bullet snuffs out his life, leaving the group to assess the damages and deal with the fallout. On cue, one of the seated drow asks in elvish, “Are you perchance ready to speak now?”</blockquote>

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