the Jester
Legend
Kicking Demon Ass
The second door brings a marilith to attack them, but it falls before our heroes in an instant. Driven by their anger and grief over Sybele, the party moves through the demon like a hammer.
“We should just go straight to the demilich,” Thrush urges. “Right to the heart of things! And we’ll make him release Sybele!”
“If we leave a bunch of demons behind us,” Rex warns, “Acererak will just bring them to fight us when we attack him. We should clean up this room on the way.”
Patyn nods. “But we’ll find a way to get her free, Thrush.” He claps the man on the shoulder.
Ulla giggles as she shifts form into that of a marilith. She scoops up the destroyed demon’s six blades and practices with them for a few moments. The power of the form is exhilarating- six arms! She grins to herself, ready for whatever challenge comes next.
The next door summons a horrid demon with the aspect of a boar mixed with a horrible, ape-like body. Tiny soiled wings sprout from its back like feathered warts. It’s huge, which simply allows more of our heroes to assail it at once. Ulla slithers forward, blades crashing into the monster, and Rex and Patyn leap to the fore as well. The nalfeshnee (whose name is Felgunnt) roars, enters a rage, and tears into Patyn, slashing and biting at the hunter of the dead viciously.
As the battle rages, Angelfire wonders, What’s behind these secret doors, anyway? She glances at the party- they seem to have things well in hand, here- and then dimension doors 5’ past the secret door painted with Felgunnt’s fearsome visage.
Just a 10’x20’ empty room. Directly behind her, obvious from this side, is a door. She opens it and finds herself directly behind the demon.
Perfect, she thinks, hasting herself from her boots of speed. Then she strikes forward, smiting the demon, and incandescent Abyssal blood fountains all around it. Felgunnt, countless millennia old, is extinguished.
The final door is painted with the image of a powerful-looking vrock. The vulture-demon is depicted holding several tiny human forms in its fists. As soon as they touch the panel, Apok the demon appears, and immediately battle breaks out. Thrush dashes forward, hacking at the monster’s leg, but his blade turns from its tough skin. Londo springs forward and smashes its foot with his flail, crushing several toes so completely that they separate from Apok’s body completely.
Apok looms half again as large as a normal vrock. He gives out a shrill scream as his toes are crushed and turns his angry red eyes on Londo. As the demon draws back to strike, a huge cloud of spores puffs out from his body, and all of our heroes gag and cough. Then the demon’s great claw slices down, ripping across Londo’s chest. Gouts of blood splatter as his other claw tears across the blackguard’s shoulder and right arm. “Aargh!” cries Londo, and then the huge beak slams into him as well. He staggers and collapses to the ground, crawling while he groans and leaks his vitae on the tiled floor. Dizzily, he pulls out a wand and starts curing himself.
“Leave him alone!” Angelfire cries sternly, and her falchion flashes at unbelievable speed, hacking at the demon. Apok roars a mighty challenge and returns Angelfire’s full attack in kind. Blood sprays everywhere in copious amounts from both of them.* Patyn leaps in and aims a high blow at the vrock’s face, while Thrush attacks it like a lumberjack working on a large tree. Finally, Angel deals the final blow, and Apok falls, crashing down onto the ground and shattering many tiles.
Breathing hard, our heroes pause to heal. As Horbin begins casting healing magic, however, he discovers that it is difficult to cast at all- and its effects are dampened by the negative energy here.** “We’ll have to be careful,” he says worriedly.
“Let’s return to Var to heal,” suggests Orbius.
“No!” Thrush barks. “We aren’t leaving Sybele behind!”
“We don’t have a choice,” Patyn says tiredly. “If we wish to rescue here, we must face the demilich with our strength, not weakness.” He shakes his head. “We will rescue her, Thrush. But not if we’re killed trying.”
“Uh-oh,” says Lester. He’s frowning as he regards his trump of Var. “Here, you try,” he mutters, passing the card to Orbius. Rex and Ulla exchange glances.
It proves to be difficult but possible to establish trump contact from the Fortress to Var. “This won’t work for a quick escape from here,” Orbius sighs. “We should keep that in mind.” The group steps through a rainbow and returns to the palace in Var. In a few moments Horbin’s healing powers have mostly repaired everyone.
“Well, I’ve got some stuff to take care of,” Angelfire says. “I’ll see you guys later at the Three Rubies.***” She then heads into town to seek legal advice.
After seeing Sybele fall, Angelfire has decided that it’s time to file a will.
Orbius and Lester greater teleport to see Anvar and the forces of the Temple of Elemental Good that he’s arrayed. It turns out that they’ve been having some difficulties with giants and orcs. The L offers to return them to Var, but his followers are proud, and Anvar is perhaps prouder still. “We’ll take care of it,” he insists. “We’re fine.”
That afternoon, when Lester and Orbius teleport back to the castle, they are confronted with an angry accountant tendering Lester a bill for damages he’s inflicted on the castle at various points. “Sure, sure,” Lester mumbles, glumly handing over a bag of coins. Mere minutes later, he stumbles into the Queen, who reproaches him for certain instances of past carelessness that have led to extensive repair bills or inconveniences.
It seems that with Malford out of town, Lester is falling out of favor.
Fortunately for him, however, that evening at the Three Rubies he meets a very interesting lady.
Next Time: Lester meets a lady! More divinations! And make ready for... Conclusions!
*Each of them dealt well over 100 hit points of damage to the other!
**In game terms, all healing was minimized in the Fortress of Conclusion.
***An upscale tavern our heroes like to frequent.
The second door brings a marilith to attack them, but it falls before our heroes in an instant. Driven by their anger and grief over Sybele, the party moves through the demon like a hammer.
“We should just go straight to the demilich,” Thrush urges. “Right to the heart of things! And we’ll make him release Sybele!”
“If we leave a bunch of demons behind us,” Rex warns, “Acererak will just bring them to fight us when we attack him. We should clean up this room on the way.”
Patyn nods. “But we’ll find a way to get her free, Thrush.” He claps the man on the shoulder.
Ulla giggles as she shifts form into that of a marilith. She scoops up the destroyed demon’s six blades and practices with them for a few moments. The power of the form is exhilarating- six arms! She grins to herself, ready for whatever challenge comes next.
The next door summons a horrid demon with the aspect of a boar mixed with a horrible, ape-like body. Tiny soiled wings sprout from its back like feathered warts. It’s huge, which simply allows more of our heroes to assail it at once. Ulla slithers forward, blades crashing into the monster, and Rex and Patyn leap to the fore as well. The nalfeshnee (whose name is Felgunnt) roars, enters a rage, and tears into Patyn, slashing and biting at the hunter of the dead viciously.
As the battle rages, Angelfire wonders, What’s behind these secret doors, anyway? She glances at the party- they seem to have things well in hand, here- and then dimension doors 5’ past the secret door painted with Felgunnt’s fearsome visage.
Just a 10’x20’ empty room. Directly behind her, obvious from this side, is a door. She opens it and finds herself directly behind the demon.
Perfect, she thinks, hasting herself from her boots of speed. Then she strikes forward, smiting the demon, and incandescent Abyssal blood fountains all around it. Felgunnt, countless millennia old, is extinguished.
The final door is painted with the image of a powerful-looking vrock. The vulture-demon is depicted holding several tiny human forms in its fists. As soon as they touch the panel, Apok the demon appears, and immediately battle breaks out. Thrush dashes forward, hacking at the monster’s leg, but his blade turns from its tough skin. Londo springs forward and smashes its foot with his flail, crushing several toes so completely that they separate from Apok’s body completely.
Apok looms half again as large as a normal vrock. He gives out a shrill scream as his toes are crushed and turns his angry red eyes on Londo. As the demon draws back to strike, a huge cloud of spores puffs out from his body, and all of our heroes gag and cough. Then the demon’s great claw slices down, ripping across Londo’s chest. Gouts of blood splatter as his other claw tears across the blackguard’s shoulder and right arm. “Aargh!” cries Londo, and then the huge beak slams into him as well. He staggers and collapses to the ground, crawling while he groans and leaks his vitae on the tiled floor. Dizzily, he pulls out a wand and starts curing himself.
“Leave him alone!” Angelfire cries sternly, and her falchion flashes at unbelievable speed, hacking at the demon. Apok roars a mighty challenge and returns Angelfire’s full attack in kind. Blood sprays everywhere in copious amounts from both of them.* Patyn leaps in and aims a high blow at the vrock’s face, while Thrush attacks it like a lumberjack working on a large tree. Finally, Angel deals the final blow, and Apok falls, crashing down onto the ground and shattering many tiles.
Breathing hard, our heroes pause to heal. As Horbin begins casting healing magic, however, he discovers that it is difficult to cast at all- and its effects are dampened by the negative energy here.** “We’ll have to be careful,” he says worriedly.
“Let’s return to Var to heal,” suggests Orbius.
“No!” Thrush barks. “We aren’t leaving Sybele behind!”
“We don’t have a choice,” Patyn says tiredly. “If we wish to rescue here, we must face the demilich with our strength, not weakness.” He shakes his head. “We will rescue her, Thrush. But not if we’re killed trying.”
“Uh-oh,” says Lester. He’s frowning as he regards his trump of Var. “Here, you try,” he mutters, passing the card to Orbius. Rex and Ulla exchange glances.
It proves to be difficult but possible to establish trump contact from the Fortress to Var. “This won’t work for a quick escape from here,” Orbius sighs. “We should keep that in mind.” The group steps through a rainbow and returns to the palace in Var. In a few moments Horbin’s healing powers have mostly repaired everyone.
“Well, I’ve got some stuff to take care of,” Angelfire says. “I’ll see you guys later at the Three Rubies.***” She then heads into town to seek legal advice.
After seeing Sybele fall, Angelfire has decided that it’s time to file a will.
Orbius and Lester greater teleport to see Anvar and the forces of the Temple of Elemental Good that he’s arrayed. It turns out that they’ve been having some difficulties with giants and orcs. The L offers to return them to Var, but his followers are proud, and Anvar is perhaps prouder still. “We’ll take care of it,” he insists. “We’re fine.”
That afternoon, when Lester and Orbius teleport back to the castle, they are confronted with an angry accountant tendering Lester a bill for damages he’s inflicted on the castle at various points. “Sure, sure,” Lester mumbles, glumly handing over a bag of coins. Mere minutes later, he stumbles into the Queen, who reproaches him for certain instances of past carelessness that have led to extensive repair bills or inconveniences.
It seems that with Malford out of town, Lester is falling out of favor.
Fortunately for him, however, that evening at the Three Rubies he meets a very interesting lady.
Next Time: Lester meets a lady! More divinations! And make ready for... Conclusions!
*Each of them dealt well over 100 hit points of damage to the other!
**In game terms, all healing was minimized in the Fortress of Conclusion.
***An upscale tavern our heroes like to frequent.
