"We have a deal, Steyawey!" Ten declares. "Pagrip, let's go fetch our little blues. We'll be right back, Stey."
Esme helps hauling the blue bodies and deposits them in front of Steyawey "There you go, Stewey"
Grab the torso, Ten.
"Some good tasty blues for you!" Pagrip says as he helps haul in the derro bodies.
Mercifully, the otyugh restrains himself from any violence and instead enjoys chewing on the corpse of a derro. Unpleasant cracking followed by slurping noises emanate from it.
Glad to be away, the four make their way further. Ten leads the way, until he stands at the entrance to a large hallway. The walls and ceiling are encrusted with dozens of yawning skulls - not etched or carved, but actual skulls, their mouths yawning revealing dark recesses into the wall.
Caulder and Pagrip appear slightly flushed.
Pagrip turns away from the otyugh, a pale look on his face. "Well, that was unpleasant," he says once they're away from the otyugh's chamber. "So, now we have half the body we're looking for. How are we going to carry it about?"
At the entrance to the skull hall, Pagrip, at the back of the line, is more intent on looking at his hands than what's up ahead. He nearly bumps into Esme when the party stops moving. "Hey Esme, do I look okay to you?" he asks.
"So, now we have half the body we're looking for. How are we going to carry it about?"
Esme peers at Pagrip "Hmmm. You look fine. Usual pasty scholar look. You really should get out into the sun a bit more. It's not healthy."
"Now that you mention it, you are looking a bit redder than normal, Pagrip. You too, Caulder. Should I push the wheelbarrow for awhile? Give you some time to catch your breath."
"Don't be ridiculous," Caulder growls, waving off the alchemist's offer of help. "I feel fine. So which way do we go?" he asks Pagrip. "Don't you dwarves have some kind of weird ability to find your way underground?"
"No Caulder. City dwarves don't have that weird ability because they grew up in the city. Obviously." Esme says knowingly. "Maybe you should let Ten push the wheelbarrow. You seem a bit grumpier than normal." she adds with a feigned worried look on her face.
The hallway appears to dead-end towards the south, in a strange oblique alcove. To the north two passages open to the left and right. For a moment Pagrip wonders about the use of a skull motif for decorations - something tingles in the back of his mind, but he can't quite place it. Suddenly thin jets of caustic liquid spill from the skulls. Ah... thinks Pagrip, traps, of course.
A number of the skulls appear to detach themselves from the wall - they actually slither along with surprising swiftness revealing a snakelike skeletal body topped with a humanoid head. Remarkably they balance well on their bony bodies, almost appearing to stand upright. Of the four heroes, only Ten manages to hear the rattle of the ribs on the stone in time to react.
Caulder's armor proves insurmountable, but both Ten and Pagrip feel the chilling touch of the cold fangs sink into their flesh. The pain, however, is numbed by the onset of paralysis. Ten's professional resistance to poisons ensures his safety - but Pagrip's less than hale dwarven constitution succumbs to the poison leaving him unable to move.
Ten, Pagrip (paralyzed), Esmerelda, enemies, Ten, Caulder
"By the holy Vault, they are small reanimated naga necrophidius constructs! Have at them, Pagrip. Pagrip? Pagrip!"
Esme grabs Pagrip by the scruff of the neck and deposits him between Ten and Caulder.
Esme momentarily glows with a inner light.
"Acid? Venomous bites? Just like a day in the lab, right Reginald, 33?"
Ten effectively lays into the creature before him - dealing damage and grappling it. The paladin quickly intervenes before Pagrip can suffer more damage and calls upon Abadar to aid her; unfortunately not with great success.
Pagrip, on the other hand, shakes the poison off with aplomb!
The two creatures to the south raise even higher onto their hindquarters, and begin an elaborate swaying dance. At first glance the strange movements are not compelling, but after a moment Esmerelda and Caulder find themselves drawn in more and more. Esmerelda barely manages to draw her attention away - but Caulder's mind drifts off into a half-trance.
The necrophidius that is trapped in 33's embrace struggles to free itself - and actually manages to slip out! It scuttles off slightly to the northwest.
Next up: Ten, Caulder, Pagrip, Esmerelda, enemies
Esme steps closer to the pair of necrophidii and attempts to cleave off their little heads with a swing from her greatsword.
"We are not going to let this little snake escape from us, right 33?" Ten asks as he steps towards the micro-necrophidius.
Ten, slowly learning to fight with 33, tries to better time his own movements, drawing power from his waist and shoulder as 33 lashes out.
Pagrip moves towards the snake to the north, pulling out his warhammer as he moves. Then he attacks.
Ten's tenacious tentacle traps the thing, a loud crack going through the bones as he connects. Pagrip doesn't take long to shake off the last vestiges of the poison and follows up against the grappled creature. His warhammer effectively crushes more of the bones, leaving the construct precariously close to destroyed.
Esmerelda, for her turn, quickly covers for the dazed cleric. Her greatsword hews a massive cleft into the necrophidius - though she does note that her blade is not as effective as it may have been.
The vicious snakelike constructs rattle and attack fangs first at the four - but as if by Abadar's providence not a single attack connects.
Next up: Ten, Caulder (dazed), Pagrip, Esmerelda, enemies
"Once one of you have taken care of that snake up there, get Caulder out of here." Esme says as she swings at the injured snake again.
"Good boy, 33, I think that's taken care of it."
With a noticeable scrncchh the bony construct ceases to function and it hangs limp in 33's strangle hold.
Next up: Pagrip, Esmerelda (already acted), Enemies, Ten, Caulder (dazed 3rd round)
With the bony creature by him incapacitated, Pagrip turns and approaches Caulder. He then tries to reposition Caulder out of the way.
Dazed: The creature is unable to act normally. A dazed creature can take no actions, but has no penalty to AC.
A dazed condition typically lasts 1 round.
Unfortunately, despite Pagrip's relentless effort, the dwarf's lack of bulk foils any attempt to move the armored cleric.
The boneborn construct before Esmerelda starts swaying again in an elaborate spiral, drawing the full attention of the paladin. Fortunately her iron discipline in the faith to Abadar is unbreachable. Likewise the bulk of Caulder's armor that foiled Pagrip's effort also protects against the fangs of the second necrophidius.
Next up: Ten, Caulder (dazed 2 rounds), Esmerelda, Pagrip, enemies
Ten, realising Pagrip's plan, also attempts to move Caulder out of the way.
"Too many pies lately, Caulder?" Ten grunts as he tries to heft the cleric out of the way.
Caulder really should lay off the extra Abadarian sweetbreads during morning service.
Next up: Esmerelda, Pagrip, enemies, Ten, Caulder (dazed 1 more round)
"Ten, did you just a call Caulder... uh... heavy?"
And for the third time she attempts to swipe the injured constructs head off.
Esmerelda's attack cuts another notch into the necrophidius - again the attack isn't as potent as one would expect a weapon of that size to be.
Next up: Pagrip, enemies, Ten, Caulder (dazed 1 more round), Esmerelda
Pagrip tries again to move Caulder. "Oh good grief, you big oaf," he grunts. "Do you have to wear so much damn heavy armour?"
Pagrip utterly fails to budge the cleric, who exhibits dwarf-like immovability. The does have the good fortune to be well out-of-the-way of the attacks that the undead-like constructs mount against the Abadarian wall. Both bites turn out harmless, neither finding a chink in the extensive armor.
Next up: Ten, Caulder (dazed 1 more round), Esmerelda, Pagrip, enemies
"Once more..." Ten widens and lowers his stance, grips Caulder around the waist and...
... moves him out of the way.
"Go get them, Pagrip"
"Kiiiaaaaah!" She swings and misses.
With Caulder out of the way, Pagrip steps up to attack the snaky bones.
Neither Esmerelda nor the Pagrip are blessed in their efforts - in both cases the attacks fail abysmally. In the case of Esmerelda, her attack exposes a delicate part of her thigh that suddenly experiences a searing pain as one of the necrophidii snaps its jaw shut on it. For a moment the paladin's leg threatens to give in, but she manages to remain firm. Pagrip easily evades the bite that was aimed at him.
Caulder's body twitches suddenly and his eyes spring back to life as he regains his full faculties.
Next up: Ten, Caulder, Esmerelda, Pagrip, enemies
Ten takes a 5-foot step back and calls to Darkbane and Pagrip: "If the two of you can take a step back too, I'll blow those worms apart."
Reginald scampers down Ten's left sleeve before depositing a small glass vial into his master's waiting hand.
"What the -- ? I told you to show some leg to the otyugh, not the ... skull-headed snake-thing, Darkbane." He steps back at Ten's instruction.
"Right," Pagrip says, and steps back.
Esme takes a step back, scratches through her backpack but comes up empty and collapses to the floor.
"heh. I did not expect to be falling at anyone's feet."
With a mighty swing the paladin's greatsword sunders the necrophidius before her in twain. She steps back a bit, quite self satisfied. Followed by a blast as Ten tosses in his unstable concoction.
Her satisfaction extends ever more as her smile becomes fixated when she notices the strange gyrations of the remaining bone snake. Strangely hypnotic, slow and quick at the same time. Quite... quite... ......
Next up: Caulder, Esmerelda (dazed 2 rounds), Ten, Pagrip, enemies
"Oh, for...," Caulder mutters in disgust, as he shoves past the stupefied paladin and brings his morningstar down heavily atop the bony construct.
Caulder's attack is a solid hit. The last necrophidius is still standing and swaying, but has taken some grievous wounds.
Next up: Ten, Pagrip, enemies, Caulder, Esmerelda (dazed 1 round)
Ten follows after Caulder and lashes out with 33:
Ten's follow-up after Caulder's attack hits home and smashes the last semblance of unlife out of the necrophidius. With a slithering rattle the bony remains clatter to the floor.
Caulder turns and surveys the battered paladin, swaying on her feet. "Just like a woman," he sighs. "She just bought a new wand and can't wait to try it out." He retrieves the wand Esmerelda brought back and taps her with it four times.
Esmerelda's eyes focus and her complexion recovers to a healthy reddish tint. Pagrip and Ten in the meantime cover a bit more ground in the morbid hallway, enough to expose its dead-ends, as well as one door towards the east.