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"Feathers, we're gonna need some channeling action." Quasit calls back to the tengu. Meanwhile, she digs into her pack, pulls out a holy water and readies a throw.
+50% for swarm AoE damage
Selena seems rather unimpressed, and considers this test a moment, before casting detect magic and considers the fog.
Maka slammed foot on the ground, sending a pillar of flames to rise beneath the swarm. "Test this!"
Fin's arrows take out a number of the undead corvids, and then Maka's eruption of flames burns a great number of them. The remaining ravens swarm towards the group, somehow dodging aside from Quasit's thrown flask. They swarm around Quasti, Bulvi, and Maka, pecking and scratching with filthy talons.
Selena can tell there's magic in front of her.
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"Tezuzu! Talk to them in crow talk or channel the snot out of em!"
"Yes! Yes! Don't rush me, Monkey!" says Tezuzu as he digs frantically through his pack. He tosses away his reading stylus, his silk pajamas, his mummified banana, his glass eye, and his back-scratcher before turning his pack upside down and just dumping everything on the ground.
"Of course it would be silly to talk to them. They are quite undead and utterly incapable... bah! Where is it!" he huffs, pawing through his things.
Then he notices his holy symbol is hanging about his neck, just as it always is. A pained expression crosses his face, and he claps his beak twice in consternation. "I must be going senile."
He stands, steps forward, presents his holy symbol, and channels positive energy to harm the undead.
Then he spares a look at the strange fog.
"Findurel my friend, you may wish to redirect your fire toward -- that..." he says, nodding at the menacing cloud.
Tezuzu's channel finishes off the last of the undead ravens. He's not quite sure what to make of the fog, however, other than that it looks like it's moving with deliberate purpose towards the party.
Bulvi blocks most of the crows but there are too many, soon his eye lids are badly damaged and his eyes filled with blood. "I've got some awkward news, I can't see... I think one of them opened up a vein."
The fog rolls forward surprisingly swiftly, engulfing much of the party.
Maka feels the fog sucking in a greater portion of her life force.
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As the vile fog rolls over her and everything in view takes on a sickly greenish hue, Quasit belatedly tries to suck in a deep breath. But she finds herself coughing and gagging and seeing her skin crease and wrinkle and darken.
"it's... sucking our life out... scatter! Get out! she gasps, then tries to escape the fog's cruel embrace.
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Tezuzu grabs Bulvi and tries to drag him back up the corridor.
"I think the next time we come to a settlement, we should try to find you a helmet. Or at least some goggles." he chortles, doing his best to hide his alarm at Bulvi's bleeding eyes and smoking skin. "I'm not your personal eye doctor, you know."
Surprisingly, Fin's arrows seem to damage the fog severely.
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"Agh you stupid fog!" Maka yelled as the fog sucked away her life force. With a jet of fire Maka launched into the air. As she neared the ceiling she flipped, sending the flames at her feet launched towards the fog.
Maka's blast burns away the fog, leaving the room in sudden stillness save for the party.
Now that you have time to look around, besides the doors out of the room the only thing of interest you see is a bedroll next to a small chest.
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Quasit blows some greyish steam from her exposed arms and gives a deep sigh of exasperation. "Cayden's Codpiece, now I itch ALL OVER! Thanks creepy fog for making me feel just a little more gross today!" She gives her arms a good rough rubbing and wriggles violently in her clothes. Then she glares up at the ceiling. "I think we've been tested enough now, thank you!" she shouts.
And then she notices the chest. She cocks an eyebrow and looks back at everyone else. "I assume no one objects to me opening that?" she says.
She approaches the chest cautiously and looks it over for obvious traps, scratching at her neck as she moves.
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Fin lets out a sigh of relief as Maka's fire burns away. "Well done, Mistress of Fire..."
He runs back to check on Bulvi, laying a hand slightly on the warrior's shoulder. "Bull, what is this love you have for flocks of ravens, my friends...it's a good thing Tez bought those scrolls to remove blindness. Hopefully we won't have to face ravens again for a while..."
Returning to the room, he retrieves Izzy and then makes a gentle apology to Sakitu. "Sorry, I yelled at you, Hlao-roo...it was the heat of the battle and I needed just a little space to maneuver away from the fog. Much obliged for you reacting as quick as you did..."
And then she notices the chest. She cocks an eyebrow and looks back at everyone else. "I assume no one objects to me opening that?" she says.
"Not at all, Q...perhaps a second set of eyes might help?"
...and if they find it locked or trapped, he'll try to assist Q in that as well...
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"Bull, what is this love you have for flocks of ravens, my friends...it's a good thing Tez bought those scrolls to remove blindness.
"I did?" says Tezuzu. "I mean... yes, of course I did! I was just about to use one, don't rush me! I had to properly look over his wounds first! This is quite a delicate thing, after all."
Tezuzu pokes at Bulvi's eyes roughly with his claw-like finger a few times. It's not clear what this is supposed to accomplish.
"Yes. Just as I suspected. Quite blind." he announces triumphantly.
"Hopefully we won't have to face ravens again for a while..."
"Present company excepted, of course?" counters Tezuzu, his eyes twinkling. "I'll try not to take that personally."
He then pulls out the requisite scroll and casts it.
The chest is neither trapped nor locked. Within are a few changes of clothes and a single scroll.
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Sakitu is relieved when the fog dissipates. "I have no idea what that was but I'm sure it wasn't going to be good if we all got encompassed by it." She smiles shyly as Fin addresses her. "I know, you were just looking out for me. And I really appreciate that. Now we should see what Quasit found."
As Sakitu peeks over Quasit's shoulder she sees the scroll and tries to sense the kind of magic on it but it is too advanced for her.
"Thanks Tez. I have a helmet... it's just clearly really useless against small birds. Bulvi rubs some of the blood from his eyes.
"I see the fogs gone. We passed the test then?"
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Fin frowns and then shrugs at Selena. ”Perhaps Jadrenka left that for us? For what reason? I dunno…maybe it means nothing…she obviously hasn’t used it, at least not in this dungeon…”
Looking to the others, he says, ”Jadrenka mentioned we’d be close to heart of the matter when we met her here…which door? Take the door to the southwest and circle around?”
Then noticing Quasit’s and Maka’s wounds, Fin blanches slightly. ”Forgive me, ladies…sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself…Q, Maka, both of you need some healing before we proceed. Tez, can you patch ‘em up?”
While Tez checks out the ladies, Fin will check out the doors to the south…
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Fin frowns and then shrugs at Selena. ”Perhaps Jadrenka left that for us? For what reason? I dunno…maybe it means nothing…she obviously hasn’t used it, at least not in this dungeon…”
"I'm sure Jadrenka left the scroll here on purpose for us to find. That's how the game is played here it seems -- pass the test, get a treat." says Quasit ruefully. She picks up the clothes in the chest and looks them over briefly before dropping them again.
"Selena, tell us more about this spell. Will it protect all of us, or just one person? From the name of the spell, it sounds like it protects a person against magical aging. Is that true?"
”Jadrenka mentioned we’d be close to heart of the matter when we met her here…which door? Take the door to the southwest and circle around?”
Quasit shrugs and nods. "Makes as much sense as anything I guess."
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”Forgive me, ladies…sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself…Q, Maka, both of you need some healing before we proceed. Tez, can you patch ‘em up?”
"I will if they stand still a moment." grouses the shaman. He pulls out a healing wand. "By the way, I have saved Bulvi's eyesight once again. You're welcome."
He begins tapping Maka with the healing wand.
Then he moves on to Quasit.
"I'm sure Jadrenka left the scroll here on purpose for us to find. That's how the game is played here it seems -- pass the test, get a treat." says Quasit ruefully. She picks up the clothes in the chest and looks them over briefly before dropping them again.
"At least it could have been a fun test! Who makes clouds that make you tired!?"
The southwest door opens onto a short hallway, which ends in... another door. Or at least, it once did. Even before you reach it, you can see that it's been broken open. It hangs open, with huge gashes on its surface.
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Fin will ask Selena nicely if she'll cast her message spell on him so he can communicate with them as he scouts ahead just a bit...
He will quietly scout ahead, about 30', using what shadows and cover available to conceal himself as he moves...when he sees the broken door, he'll throw a hand up motioning for his friends to slow down as he sneaks up to it, using it for cover, and warily take a peek into the room thru any holes/gashes...
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"I think we're getting warmer. Unless I miss my guess, it looks like some giants whacked in that door." says Quasit quietly to her companions. She pulls out her sword and cricks her neck sideways to loosen herself up. "I don't think we'll be talking our way out of this one."
"Fin, go have a look and see what's past the door. We'll wait here. Just look and come back, don't be a hero."
"Fin? Where'd he go? Fin?'
"I think we're getting warmer. Unless I miss my guess, it looks like some giants whacked in that door." says Quasit quietly to her companions.
Maka slammed a fiery fist into her palm. "Now there is a proper fight!"
"Fin? Where'd he go? Fin?'
"Oh who knows where he goes? He'll show up to tell us about trouble or start loosing arrows at whoever attacks us."
Fin carefully peeks into the room beyond. It looks like it was once a fancy antechamber with intricately carved decorations on the walls and a large statue of a crone in the center. Now, however, the statue is smashed, and axe gouges marr the carvings. Two frost giants stand to either side of the center of the room, warily watching the door. They don't seem to see Fin at the moment.
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Fin warily looks back towards his friends, holds up two fingers, and then puts his hand over his mouth and whispers very lightly back to Selena via her message spell, "Two frost giants stand guard here...tell the others...I'll fire and then y'all come running..."
Knowing time is of the essence, Fin turns back quietly and and slowly brings up his bow to bear...
...and calmly fires a shot at the frost giant to the south...
...and then alerts his friends as he steps back 5', "Now! Maka, light 'em up!" he exclaims, then adds to his little friend, "Izzy, flee!"
"Told ya!" Maka gave Quasit a toothy grin before following Fin's arrow with a blast of fire.
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"Two frost giants stand guard here...tell the others...
As Selena relays the message, Quasit nods. "Ha. I knew it. Ok, think now, do we have any spells that can incapacitate or hinder..."
"...I'll fire and then y'all come running..."
"Wait, what?" says Quasit. She looks down the hallway toward the shadows where she guesses the elf might be.
"Now! Maka, light 'em up!" he exclaims, then adds to his little friend, "Izzy, flee!"
Quasit's mouth hangs open for a moment as Findurel's battle cry fills the corridor and she looks around helplessly at the others.
"Welp. Frontal assault it is!" she says, then charges off down the hall toward the battle, sword in hand. "Don't trip on the croc!"
"At least they didn't get the drop on us!" Bulvi gets his sword arm ready to deal with the pile of giants coming their way."I'll try to get between them and our squishier members."
Fin's target shouts in pain as his shot strikes true, but it's clear the giant is far from out of the fight. Both of them heft their axes and prepare to charge the ranger.
