As you swim down the tunnel, you find seaweed fronds swaying gently in the current in this broad cave.
Roll Perception!
Nymph, as you look up you see a heavy spiked iron grill hanging from the ceiling, ready to fall on any intruders and trap them beneath the waters.
Nymph points out the trap to her companions.
"Okay, everybody stand back, I think I got this." Yuki says with semi-confidence as she pulls out her thieves' tools. Once everyone else has moved far enough away, she tries to disarm it.
Yuki tries valiantly to disable the trap, but the crushing weight comes straight down on top of her thanks to a bungled attempt to disarm the trap.
"Wow, that was a close one!" Yuki exclaims after jumping out of the way.
Under the trap you spot another silvery bracelet.
Nymph's eyes go wide as the grate comes down, and then let's out a wordless sigh as Yuki dodges it by a hair.
There really is something shiny that was stuck to a spike, I assure you.
"I guess I need more practice, huh?" Yuki adds with a nervous laugh and a shrug. She then dives down to retrieve the silver bracelet, casting Detect Magic on it and trying to identify it if necessary.
There's an arc leading out and the passage you ignored earlier to come into the trap.
Calming down somewhat Nymph begins swimming toward the previously ignored passage.
Nymph, as you round the corner you see hundreds of remains float in this large bowl of water, which churns with bones, scraps of flesh, and the carcasses of strange, almost alien fish. Just visible through the roiling stew are humanoid bodies floating in the water, wan corpses drifting near the bottom of this cauldron like sleeping guardians.
A small squid goblin stands next to a massive, bloated creature that looks like a squid goblin swollen by obscene magic.
Your captive friends look wan and pale, tied to the wall with silver ingots attached to their feet and they've obviously been tortured.
The tiny squid goblin screams as you enter the cavern and cuts the ropes tying your friends - they plunge, bound, into the water with ingots attached to their feet.
You can see two lacedons chained to the bottom of the chamber and realize that they'll be able to kill your friends if you can't free them - if they do not drown first.
Good luck!
Before moving on from the trap, Yuki gleefully places both Bracers of Archery on her wrists, hoping they will make her even more effective in any coming battles and/or mutinies.
The cackling octo-goblin woman uses her wand to summon a octopus in T37.
Interlopers! You will pay for what you've done to my beautiful children! Lamashtu's chosen will consume you!
The octopus reaches out to entangle Nymph.
It fails.
Meanwhile the giant octo-goblin roars and attacks Nymph as well.
Go!
Nymph tries to roar back under the water and attacks the giant goblin creature.
Nymph's shortsword manages to damage the giant octo-goblin, but fails to kill it.
Her Bite is worthless. Worthless I tell you!
Given the extremely distended, almost bloated nature of the giant octo-goblin that might be a blessing. Up to Nymph if she likes the taste of obesity necrosis.
Galean sees the captive and grins. "Forward, ya dastardly scallawags!"[/, as he sees the octopus, perhaps slightly redundant, considering he's the last one to act, and grins. [b]"Ha! You're in my waters,... cuttlefish!", as he summons a octopus of his own to fight the grindilow summoner.
With the huge octogob in the way, Yuki figures the best way to save her friends is to take it out fast. Unfortunately, the aim of her first shot is extremely poor and her bow flies out of her hands behind her and plops in the water east of Ayre. "Oh come on, you're going to haunt me now?!?"
Ayre, you'd have to look more closely to find that out!
Nymph remains untroubled by the octopus, however the giant octo-goblin opens its jaw impossibly wide and eats her before the horrified eyes of all of you.
Meanwhile the small creature raises its hands and shrieks, and the seaweed rises around your feet to grab you as you try and swim.
Galean is grabbed by the seaweed, and begins trying to break away, tying himself further. "GO AWAAY!" He then realizes that he can simply move a bit closer next to the grindylow and slice her open.
Meanwhile the octopus begins trying to bite the giant grindylow with its beak.
The beak bites deeply into one of the tentacles. Attaching properly, it then attempts to remove the other octopus.
Obviously showing who the real summoner here is (It's Galean, for further reference), it's tentacles wrap themselves around the other octopus.
Ayre will move towards his friends, if he gets there in a single move he will try to cut one free with his dagger
"Ugh, gross." Yuki comments to herself as Nymph disappears down the monster's gullet and the seaweed rises up against her and Galean. Resisting the handsy plants, she quickly casts Touch of the Sea on herself and moves back to retrieve her bow at her next opportunity.
"I do the bitin! I do the eatin!" Nymph snarls in the small air pocket of creatures stomach before hackin at it.
Amazingly Nymph fails to pierce the insides of the giant octo-gob surrounding her in all directions.
Ayre, what route are you taking? It matters due to possible Attacks of Opportunity.
Ayre will go down the depth they are then straight towards the closest one. I will risk AOO's from anything other than the lace dons.
Ayre swims through the water, trying to hug the cavern but is unable to avoid the attack of the giant.
Meanwhile...
Galean's cutlass strikes the giant and he roars in anger. It returns its attention from its gullet, where it was trying to digest your trusty ranger, to the pesky druid.
He bites out.
But misses.
The terrible octo-gob meanwhile throws a harpoon at the octopus attacking her octo-gob.
The harpoon reappears in the hand of the octo-gob who threw it as she cackles.
The lacedons meanwhile begin to move, lurching after you.
Not all that interested in being digested Nymph stabs furiously at her fleshy prison.
and I'm down.
Unable to safely reach Ayre at the moment with a ginormous octogob in the way, Yuki retrieves her bow and fires an arrow at the large target.
Galean once again attempts to slash at the giant goblinoid, as her jaws bite deep into his shield.
Meanwhile, the octopus continues to attempt biting off chunks of the creature.
Truly shown who has the best octopi this side of Abendego, it then attempts to pin down the enemy octopus.
Pinning it down, it continues holding the enemy, waiting for Nymph to burst out.
Nymph is vomited up with a mixture of blood and bile into the salt water, cursing up a storm.
Yuki, cleverly, stays back and has her own arrow gouge deep into the giant octo-gob and its eyes roll back into its head and it collapses into the water.
Ayre's body surfaces face down, bleeding, behind the tiny octo-gob who screams in terror as Galean successfully kills the octopus that was summoned by the remaining priestess.
INTERLOPERS! MURDERERS! BLASPHEMERS! YOU HAVE HARMED THE MIGHTY PROGENY OF LAMASHTU THE MIGHTY! SHE WILL CURSE YOU! THE GHOST SHIP WILL CONSUME YOUR FRIENDS AND THE MONSTERS OF THE DEEP SHALL CONSUME YOU!
Her throw of the harpoon strikes Yuki as she snarls curses and the lacedons break free of their bindings.
Nymph surges forth at the octo-goblin.
Yuki curses back at the harpoon after it strikes her, then returns the favor by firing two arrows back at what she assumes is the octogob leader.
bleeds
Galean shouts, "Git 'em, boy!", as the octopus charges one of the lacedons. He himself begins channelling for a moment, raising a fist full of berries from his pocket, and dashes towards Ayre.
The octopus flails around, thrashing and crashing in the waters, missing completely.
Nymph misses, Yuki's arrow plinks the remaining octo-goblin while Ayre continues to bleed and Galean swims across the cove - into the range of the lacedon.
Not appreciating being harpooned Nymph keeps her focus on the octogoblin.
Yuki swims forward to avoid shooting past her companions and fires an arrow at the remaining octogob.
bleeds