Jirobo puts the finishing touchs on his letter to his parents as the hub-bub echoes distantly to his ears. The tengu places the quill, one of his own feathers, back into the inkwell as he shuffles over to a window to look about outside to see if someone is injuried or just suffering a horrible bout of explosive bowels that is illiciting those sounds of distress.
Xanxan is surprised now that he sees the thing, and a bit excited, I've never fought one of these before! I'm not sure I've ever HEARD of these before!
He tries to flank so he can find some weak point in those shimmering scales.
Ko'ulu barely even registers the shape of the creature as he surges into the water. To him, its just another creature of the deeps, come to attack his companions and the town. He pulls his dagger from its sheath and dives after the creature, swimming towards it swiftly.
A wave of dizziness washed through Tully as the creature bit him hard on the shoulder. He struck back with his axe, cursing himself for not bringing his rapier.
Seeing the new foes close in, the naga lashes out at them as well.
Everyone has dived into the churning waters now but despite your overwhelming numbers, only Tully is able to connect with the naga. But he's unable to get as much power behind his swing with the axe even with the hit. As he does, he can feel the pulse of the poison in his veins continue unabated.
The naga strikes out and manages to clamp down on Callum's leg and he feels the heat of the poison begin working its way into his blood as well.
Callum cries out as he wrenches his leg out from the creature's mouth, leaving a trail of blood. Shaking his head, and gulping a breath to push through the poison, he growls and thrusts at the creature with both his weapons.
Xanxan attempts again to lunge his tiny rapier into the monster's back.
Ko'ulu starts grinning when he sees Callum move in the water and box the creature in.
Filthy fish is going to be floating belly up soon enough! he thinks as he surfaces for a breath, dodges the tail of the beast and dives back at the creature, stabbing at its coils.
As you're circling trying to find an opening, suddenly 6 more of the serpent-like creatures appear before you.
Callum and Xanxan are able to work in concert and land horrific blows against the creature, its blood fanning out around you all in the water. Tully keeps his head above water and begins a stirring rendition of a naval sea-shanty often heard in times of war. It's a bracing song that fills you with energy, although both Tully and Callum still can't seem to shake the debilitating effects of the creature's venom.
Enraged and a little scared by the wounding, the naga is suddenly surrounded by 6 more images of itself, all of them blending together and apart until you have no idea as to which one is the real creature.
Xanxan grinned wickedly even as he swam and fought when the blood from the foe fanned out, then suddenly there were six more of them?? We gnomes clearly should have kept illusion magics to ourselves! Guess we scared scaly pants here. Good.
He stabs for the back again, though he has to admit, he's not sure he's got the right back at all.
Tully nearly screamed as six more of the deadly creatures appeared in the water around him. He barely avoided drowning as his voice rose to a fevered pitch. You come to join your brother in death, vile creatures! None shall escape! Tully began weaving his words into the performance, and began weaving the performance into a spell.
Callum sinks a little as the poison courses through him before shaking it off once again and thrusting his weapons at the creature. His eyes blurring, making it seem as if there were more than the single enemy. Damn poison be hittin' me hard. We best end this quick. At Tully's cry, he realizes that he may not be the only one seeing multiple enemies.
The water suddenly boils with serpents and Ko'ulu grimaces.
This is bad! They must have been hiding in the mud, waiting to trap us!
Seeing litle alternative, and no escape, Ko'ulu lashes out with his dagger at the closest snake.
Despite the wounds it took, the naga looks at Tully with a smile and lashes out with a mental blast that buffets the young human's mind.
Xanxan stabs out at one of the serpents and while he feels no resistance meet his blade, the act helps break some of the illusion and the image pops in front of him. (.)
Callum lashes out twice and while the first attack seems like it should be a solid hit, he only manages to destroy one of the illusions, although he does catch another with his follow up swing. He can still feel the poison in his veins and doesn't know if that is what was throwing off his aim. Ko'ulu has equally poor luck but does mange to nick one of the illusions with his blade. ()
Even with treading water with his feet, Tully is able to ignore the poison in his veins and still manages to pull off the complicated gestures and sounds of his spell. But as he releases it, he can feel the firey energy of it dispate quickly amidst all the water. The naga, smiling at his failure, sends a mental blast slamming into the human and Tully's eyes roll back into his head as he slips below the surface.
Meanwhile back at the Commons, Tylos and Jirobo see a man burst through the doorway and run up to them. In a breathless voice he manages to pant out. Your friends ... fighting something ... in the water... by the drydock... Not hesitating for a moment, the two comrades race out the door.
Xanxan is pleased that at least he got one, but when he sees Kind Tully sink under the water he feels a moment of uncertainty, Do I help the lad, or keep fighting? If I desert the others, they might be oerwhelmed. Ah darn it. Hope ye snap out of whatever if is soon.
he works on keeping his flanking and stabbing hoping he can hit the real thing, or at least 'pop' another figment.
Ko'ulu's dagger plunges into the snake, passing straight through it and causing Ko'ulu to unbalance in the water for a moment. Suddenly there are a lot fewer snakes left to attack, but he has little time to wonder at this oddity, and stabs out at the nearest snake.
I hope that this one doesn't dissolve like a bit of sea foam!
Tylos looks over at Jirobo and dashes out the door.
Jirobo tears out of the Commons, running as fast as he can toward the direction of the drydock.
Callum flounders a bit as the poison coursed through his veins. Focus Cal! Ye can't retreat an' ye can't die. Fight! He grunts as he swings his weapons at the creature once again.
Hissing in anger, the naga lashes out at Ko'ulu and Xanxan this time, its tail whipping the water to foam around it.
Tully manages to snap himself out of his daze thanks to the burning poison in his veins and realizes that he's begun sinking towards the river bottom!
Meanwhile, Xanxan and Ko'ulu finally manage to land some solid blows against the creature, more of it's blood flowing free in the water. Callum doesn't connect directly, but he does manage to knock out another of the illusions.
The naga rears back and sinks its fangs into Ko'ulu's shoulder, hot venom spreading through the wound into his body. Its tail proves less effective against the nimble halfling.
Tylos and Jirobo move closer to the boathouse and they can now hear the sounds of combat, although they're still too far to see anything yet.
Xanxan feels heartened as they continue to whittle down the beast, though some of his friends ARE looking pretty rough.
The false snake vanishes as Ko'ulu's dagger pierces it leaving no snakes before him. Confusedly looking for a new threat, he starts to turn back, just in time to have the snake bite deeply into his shoulder sending a spear of pain through him. He thumps the creature in its face feebly, but it seems to drive the creature off for the moment as it swims a few feet back and seems to ready itself for another strike.
Arm is on fire...poison? Gotta end this quickly...
Callum feels his body begin to give way... Ye got one more in ye, man. Make it count.
The naga's eyes go vacant after Tully's spell and it simply rests in the water.
Xanxan's attack bursts the last illusion and he curses to himself before grinning as it frees Callum up to deliver a solid blow to the creature. Ko'ulu is less successful, the poison in his veins causing him to lose focus.
Tully manages to swim back to the surface and lets loose with a burst of sound directed at the naga. The snake-beast reels at the sound, its eyes rolling back in its head as it sags limply in the water.
Tylos and Jirobo sprint around the corner of the boathouse and see a scene of chaos as their companions swim in the water around some large serpent, blood staining the waters around them.
Xanxan knows an opportunity when he sees one, and attempts to take out a kidney....if this thing has kidneys
Got to be more soft spots somewhere...
Callum swims away and clambers up onto the shore, collapsing in exhaustion, the poison quickening in his blood, approaching his heart. "Help... Poison...," he cries out.
Jirobo gasps at the melee going on in the roiling water by the dock. He quickly speeds toward his friends who seem to be struggling with some thrashing form, "We come! Never fear, friends!"
Ko'ulu sees the snake suddenly stop moving after Tullyman screams at the creature, and he eyes it warily for a moment before realizing that he can see small twitches as it floats.
Its not dead! he thinks as he lunges at it once more.
Tylos runs with Jirobo towards the group and begins running through his spells in his mind to select the proper incantation.
Xanxan and Ko'ulu swim around the naga and catch it between the two of them. Still dazed from Tully's spell, the creature couldn't offer any resistance and finally fell to their combined blows.
Callum barely managed to crawl his way up on to shore, his every muscle seizing as the venom burned in his body. One of the workers attempted to help clean the wound out a little but it was too little, too late. Callum felt his life slip away as the world closed around his vision, his consciousness floating in inky silence.
Suddenly Tully's voice roared through the emptiness, a commanding tone that jerked Callum's heart into action again and with a flutter his eyes opened. He could hardly move, he felt as weak as a new born child but he knew he was alive. Somehow Tully had brought him back from the brink.
Jirobo and Tylos ran up as Ko'ulu and Xanxan were hauling the carcass of the creature on shore, the savage Mwangi man looking no worse the wear for the venomous bite he took. Callum was sitting up, with help from the others, his face ashen and drawn.
Despite it all, everyone was alive and that was enough.
Callum sits on the ground, exhausted, looks to Young Tully and nods, unable to voice his gratitude.