Kel calls for another blessing from Desna, then steps forward to touch Lefrik as he falls from the spider.
Lefrik tore himself from the monstrous spider's grasp and moved aside as Calla's arrows soared in. These arrows finally connected squarely, and punched through the spider's armored hide. Another volley of quarrels flew in, one striking Kelendra in the arm. She felt the insidious drow poison taking effect and tried to resist.
Kelendra takes 3 damage and must make a DC12 Fort save or fall asleep
R8: Kelendra, Lefrik, Calla, Drow, Bruendor, Anklebiter, spider
current hit point status:
anklebiter -40 (stoned!)
bruendor -27
calla -21
kelendra
lefrik -74
A small shape detaches itself from the Anklebiter statue. Eyes rolling in the sockets, hair standing out wildly in every direction, the homunculus opens and closes its mouth as if to speak, but no sound issues forth.
Voiceless as it is, Magpie's mind is a cauldron of chaos and madness.
'Who took my pie was it you was it you it goes hruuugh that is not my cow was it you was it me eight nine ten will you will you be my friend hooray hooray it's a wonderful day for I have found my COW! PIE! HURT! EMPTY! ANGRY! MURDER!'
The words dissolve into a hideous, crazed scream as the homunculus once known as Magpie launches itself at the spider. Its only self-image now, however, is !
Bruendor watches Magpie launch herself at the spider, and a flash of insight strikes him. He rushes around the thing's huge body, getting to a point where he can take advantage of her distraction, and stabs at the thing's vital points.
The creature spun in place, snapping its legs in defense and keeping its attackers at bay. It bit and clawed at Lefrik once more, but the barbarian was able to get out of the way of all but one strike, and that claw was so weakened by Anklebiter's spell that it did no lasting damage. But those eyes were fixed on Calla, whose magical arrows had stung it so badly. They glowed red for a moment, then a blast of fire shot out from the orbs, engulfing the inquisitor in flames!
Calla takes 43 fire damage, or half that if the passes a DC19 Reflex save.
R9: Kelendra, Lefrik, Calla, Drow, Bruendor, Anklebiter, spider
current hit point status:
anklebiter -40 (stoned!)
bruendor -27
calla -64 (-42)
kelendra
lefrik -74
Lefrik rises, seeing that they are not running, and realizing they are very close to death anyway, "Kel, I'm sorry to make your work harder but..." He switches weapons and swings, the barbed vicious great axe of the trog earlier now in his hands. Maybe IT has the enchantment that will hurt this monster.
Even if he's risking his own life, maybe it will save his friends.
plus
HP 28/68
AC 22, touch 18, flat-footed 20
Fort +10*, Ref +6*, Will +12*; CMD 22
Divine retribution (DC 16) 0/6; Judgments 1/3; Bane 8/8; Discern lies 0/8
Arrows: 12/29; cold iron arrows 0/29; bolts 0/20; elf-bane arrows 0/3
Spells: 1/5 (first-level); 0/5 (second level); 0/3 (third level) Consumables: Gravity Bow ring 0/3
Effects: protection from evil (+2 AC, +2 saves)
Healing judgment (2 pts. fast healing); Justice judgment (+2 to hit)
Calla grunts as she drops almost to the ground to duck the flames, hissing as her skin still blackens in some places.
Still, her goddess' magic continues its work and then blisters immediately start subsiding as she stands again and fires three more arrows toward the spider creature.
Kel continues healing Lefrik.
Another scattering of quarrels skitters off the stone as the struggle continues. Lefrik managed to swing his axe, but his wounds hampered his movement and he faild to connect. Kelendra noce again healed him, while Calla managed to place another pair of arrows solidly into the spider's thorax.
Calla receives 2 healing
Lefrik receives 24 healing
R9: Kelendra, Lefrik, Calla, Drow, Bruendor, Anklebiter, spider
current hit point status:
anklebiter -40 (stoned!)
bruendor -27
calla -40
kelendra
lefrik -50
Undeterred by failure -- or anything resembling sanity -- Magpie continues to hurl herself at the spider, venomous saliva running down her chin as she tries to get inside the monster's guard.
HP 28/68
AC 22, touch 18, flat-footed 20
Fort +10*, Ref +6*, Will +12*; CMD 22
Divine retribution (DC 16) 0/6; Judgments 1/3; Bane 8/8; Discern lies 0/8
Arrows: 12/29; cold iron arrows 0/29; bolts 0/20; elf-bane arrows 0/3
Spells: 1/5 (first-level); 0/5 (second level); 0/3 (third level) Consumables: Gravity Bow ring 0/3
Effects: protection from evil (+2 AC, +2 saves)
Healing judgment (2 pts. fast healing); Justice judgment (+2 to hit)
"Calistria!" Calla curses, letting out a silent scream of frustration.
Bruendor continues his hacking at the spider's carapace, cursing at his inability to find a weak point in the thing's thick hide.
Bruendor's strike finally found a weak spot in the spider's carapace, and the creature sagged as the blade hit something vital inside. The dwarf barely had time to run out from under the thing as it collapsed, legs sprawling everywhere. The glowing eyes dimmed as the creature died, leaving nothing between you and the portal but a huge obstacle to clamber over or around.
Bruendor grimaces as spider-beast ichor spill over him, but took grim satisfaction in the death of the creature. He couldn't savor the victory for long, though, as the whizzing of small crossbow bolts reminds him. "Calla!", he shouts. "Show these indy bastards that half a surface elf is more than a match for a dozen of them!"
For his own sake, he turns his attention to the still, stone form of the goblin wizard, and Magpie's rampaging insanity.
Calla growls wordlessly.
"I'll take care of the damn drow, you just get the gate open."
Magpie is, for the moment, content to savage the dead spider. Displaying brutality well in excess of her size, the homunculus kicks, punches, and even savages the thing with her teeth. Ropey strands of venom hang from her chin. If she had a voice, she would probably growl....
Calla growls wordlessly.
"I'll take care of the damn drow, you just get the gate open."
Lefrik seizes their stone friend "I have Anklebitter."
He mutters low to the stone goblin "Don't worry friend, we'll get this undone."
The Goblin statue fails to respond in any meaningful way.
"Huh, now we know the situations required where I'm the one who wins a debate with you," The barbarian jokes lightly "We'll get it undone anyway."
Bruendor reaches out to restrain Magpie, taking a few bites and scratches from her for his trouble. "We'll get him fixed, Maggie. Don't you worry." She couldn't hear it in her psychic trauma, but his voice cracks with the words.
The homunculus thrashes in the sudden grip, and tries to sink her teeth into Bruendor's thumb!
"OUCH! Dammit, Maggie, I'm trying to help!"
When it becomes clear that the crazed homunculus won't cooperate, Bruendor tries to restrain her. "Sorry, this is for your own good," he says as he wrangles the construct.
"Get to the gate," Calla orders, as she quickly checks the slain Vonnarc warrior for anything of use, praying to Calistria to let her find any magic (and a key). "Lefrik, grab Anklebiter's statue!"
Kel sends forth a billowing cloud of mist to protect the party from the archers, then moves toward the portal.
The portal arch was solid gray, looking like a lustrous, but plain stone. The spot on the arch where the keystone would normally lie to activate the portal was blank. Kelendra's fog spell stopped the hail of crossbow bolts for now, but someone was going to have to figure something out quick.
"Already did!" He says to Calla, having seized it as soon as he could, the gray stone being in his grip and he moves forward.
He is moving towards the gate
"Come on, there's got to be instructions or something on how to turn this thing on!", Bruendor exclaims with exasperation. He pored over the stonework, trying to see if there were hidden arcane symbols or switches.
Calla frantically searched the drow for anything of interest, especially an activation key of some sort for the portal. Though she found several magical and mundane items, she didn't find anything that looked like a keystone.
Bruendor looked over the portal arch, looking for runes or anything. He found several, but nothing made any sense to him. There were no activation switches or anything obvious.
"Dammit, I can't make heads or tails of these symbols!", Bruendor cries out in frustration, giving the aiudara a swift kick. "Calla, Kel, quick, translate!"
Calla growls, but leaves her task to head for the gate.
"No key, but he has something that are of value. Better to not leave them for the drow," she says, as she inspects the gate.
"I'll get the body, focus on the gate!", Bruendor replies, racing back to drag the drow's body with them.
Kel starts poking and prodding at the stonework in an attempt to activate the portal.
As Kelendra and Calla observed the portal, neither could make head nor tail of the markings. They were obviously elven in origin, but...ancient, even for that long-lived race. Neither could figure out how to activate the device without the key stone.
Then, as Kelenda was leaning close, inspecting the keystone area and the surrounding glyphs, she felt a tug on the chain around her neck. Sitting stock still she could feel the pendant around her neck, the bloodlink, bouncing off her chest and pulling towards the keystone slot. Looking down, she could see a faint yellow glow coming from beneath the moving bulge in her shirt where the amulet was swinging towards the portal, seemingly by its own power.
Calla snorts.
"Perhaps that's the answer," she notes.
"Great, answers are good." A pause as more mystic weird stuff goes on "Preferably right ones."
Kel pulls the glowing pendant from her shirt and shows it to the party. "Perhaps these can trigger the keystone, so much has happened I can't remember if they were a part of our return plan?" Kel slowly moves in the direction of the pendant's pull.