As the giant ant appears distracting one of the mongrelmen, Quinn slips through gap, closing with the archer. "You disdain righteous mercy. All I have left to offer is merciful death."
Ezro readies himself.
Hyram, feeling emboldened by the mongrelman he just fell, attacks the one adjacent to him .
Unfortunately with the arrows whizzing by his head, he misses heinously.
Alikia watches in awe as the Rift Warden summons the large beast. After this is over, I need to see if Aravashnial willing to give me some pointers. Clearing her throat, Alikia Moves up to behind Aladir to M 12, and waits to have a chance to take a better shot.
Aladir growls under his breath, frustrated and annoyed at the ineffectiveness of his weapon against these enemies. He moves quickly, skirting around his allies, to give him a better sight on their foe in the back, drawing back the bowstring and letting an arrow fly without endangering his comrades.
Non-human
The two mongrelmen swing at Quinn with their clubs but miss, while the woman takes a step back and looses another arrow, this time at Quinn but also missing the non-human target..
The ant continues to bite on the mongrel man in front of it and kills it.
"One down my friend. Your ant is doing well"
Quinn UP
Quinn's world narrowed down only on the archer. The bright, fiery brand of righteous anger mottled with the inky haze of bloodlust began to cloud his vision. He hardly flinched as the mongrelwoman's hurried shot flashed past his head. Rather, he stalked in relentlessly, his heartbeat loud in his own ears. Demonic blood calling...
Ezro extols a blessing of Iomedea to the battlefield as his allies fight, ever watchful for an enemy to get through Quinn or Hyram.
He keeps a close eye on Hyrams wounds, lest he require aid, moving up to be prepared for that possible eventuality.
Hyram will take a five-foot step into the room and shout, Iomedea! Guide my blade!
As his blade slices through the mongrelman's defenses, Hyram will off Iomedae a silent prayer of thanks.
UGH
"Tell it to attack the one next to Hyram" she says to Arvashnial, and the elf complies.
The mongrelwoman starts to fire another arrow at Quinn, but the Paladin smites her one last time and crushes her to the ground.
The ant steps next to the remaining mongrelman and misses terribly, and the mongrelman returns the favor by missing Hyram with it's swing.
Between Quinn, Hyram, Aladir and the ant the remaining mongrelman goes down in a heap as it refused to surrender.
Slowly calming himself down from the fight, Aladir looks at the fallen around him, keeping his bow in hand, an arrow laid to the string, just in case.
Giving a brief glance to the three exits from the room, he frowns. "Regardless, we are presented with the chance to be flanked. I don't like it. Quinn, you are able to sense the presence of evil, are you not? Do you sense anything beyond any of the doors?"
Adjusting the weight of her knapsack, Alikia crosses the threshold into the first room. "I would suggest that we through the northern door." Alikia says, pointing at the door at J17. "Yesterday, that was where these men kept coming from, and I think that is most likely where we will find their leader."[b]
Watching as Anevia, Horgus and Arvashnial advance, Alika gives each of them a smile. [b]"Nice spell placement." she says as the full elf passes by, hoping to not sound too lame.
Quinn takes a few deep breaths as the rush of battle recedes. At Aladir's suggestion he looks to each door in turn. "I can sense auras of powerful evil, like undead or demonkind. These m-" Quinn hesitates before saying the word mongrel. With a glance at Lann he carries on. "These men are just, for lack of a better term, regular evil."
Even so, he stretches out his senses.
"Check the bodies. That may tell us something, though probably not the layout of this place."
Cyrus nods, immediately kneeling by the bodies of the fallen to search them for anything useful.
Ezro moves up to Hyram to tend to his wound.
"Brother, perhaps you should try dodging the blows." he says with a smile and wink.
Reaching out he touches the man with his hand bathed in positive energies.
"Inheritor, heal your soldier."
It might work through the doors. Most likely is that it does work, but creatures under 5 HD don't detect unless they're evil clerics or antipaladins.
While Ezro heals up Hyram, Quinn stares at each of the two closed doors, one in the north wall, and the southern one in the east wall, but does not detect the presence of evil in either direction. The room contains a rack of hooks that hang from the ceiling, cured slabs of meat dangling from them and filling the room with a smoky aroma. A group of barrels appears to hold other preserved foodstuffs.
Searching the downed mongrelmen yields nothing useful, but searching the woman you find two potions of cure light wounds, a wand, a masterwork chain shirt, a masterwork longbow with 20 arrows, an obsidian unholy symbol of Baphomet that looks like the one you found earlier, and 34 gp.
"What say you, everyone? Next door is the easiest chamber to access. Also, if no one else has designs on it, I would thoroughly enjoy taking this fine now that requires a new master. " Aladir says, eyeing fondly the masterwork weapon.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Quinn nods as Aladir collects the bow. "It looks well made. And well sized for an elf." he jokes as he passes the extra arrows to Aladir. "What do you make of this, Alikia?" he asks passing her the wand.
"Lann," the tiefling calls back to the mongrelman, as he glances through the open doorway. "Can you take charge of this room? These foodstuffs could be absolutely vital when we retake the surface. There's no telling what's left up there. Besides, my sergeants always said, 'The army marches on its stomach.'"
Quinn rolls the mongrelwoman out of the way, kicking aside the unholy symbol with a curse. "She was either guarding this path, or planning to flee along it. This is our course."
Quinn waits until all are prepared, then tries the door.
Aladir approaches the door at Quinn's behest, making a search of it as he tries to discern if there are any traps laid on it.
Hyram gladly accepts Ezro's healing. Thank you Brother Ezro. We must go where The Inheritor sends us. He rubs his now-healed wound No matter how painful that may be. His face contorts into a sort-of smile. He watches Aladir search the door for traps, drawing his longsword ready to breach the door with Quinn when Aladir gives the all clear.
Taking the wand from Quinn, Alikia examines it closely, attempting to identify what spell was store in it. However, try as she might, Alikia is unable to identify it. "Ah, it appears that I have not come across wands created in this manner before. I am unable to identify it at this time." Handing the wand back to Quinn, Alikia glances around the room. "I am ready to continue on wards."
Baby sat sick granddaughter yesterday, and also doing it today. Won't have a post till Thursday after I recover!
At Quinn's suggestion, Lann responds, "I will bring up the rear with Anevia, Aravashnial and Horgus, but I do not want us to be so separated from the group by just staying put here. Not knowing what is behind us through the southern door is troubling." When he says that, both Anevia and Aravashnial nod in agreement.
As the mongrelman speaks, Aladir checks the door for traps, and then listens. Turning to the others he steps to the side and lowers his voice, "there are at least two folks behind the door waiting for us, and they know we are here."
If they are waiting for us, I say we don't disappoint them. Hyram grips his sword and his shield. I am ready when you are Quinn! He begins mouthing a silent prayer to the Inheritor while he awaits everyone to get into position.
Aladir gives a silent nod, switching his bow for his longsword in preparation for the melee that is sure to shortly follow.
"Iomedea guide us." Ezro says, nodding at Quinn, and readying his longsword.
Quinn grits his teeth, sending out a spray of small orange sparks, then shoulders through the door with weapon readied.
Alikia awkwardly hangs by the back, with her crossbow ready, waiting for the door to open.
Room description:The worked stone walls of this large room hold a number of shelves, each of which display the preserved bodies of dire rats, bats, rock vipers, cave lizards, and other creatures that pose in eerie stillness. A pair of bedrolls have been laid out to the southeast. The tunnel to the north ends at a ladder that leads up.
Aladir UP
Aladir grits his teeth as the wave of dark energy washes over him, though he seems able to successfully throw off the worst of the effects of it. An arrow already nocked to the string, he draws back, shooting diagonally at the woman on the opposite side of the door from him , glad he is able to get a shot off before the others charge into the fray.
Gritting against the wave of negative energy, Ezro says, "How about we add a third to the mix eh?"
--------
Hyram feels the negative energy but his faith in Iomedae prevents it from fully hurting him. You can pray to your demon god all you want. It will not save you! he shouts as he steps into the room. He will try to skew one of the women with his longsword,
but the movement to get into the room causes him to miss.
Hissing in pain as malevolent energies wash over her, Alikia takes aim at the cultist that she can see. "Your dark god cannot help you!" the half-elf exclaims as she lets loose a bolt into the cultist located at H18. However her shot clips the door-frame and clatters into the room.
Quinn grunts out something like a choked cough as the wave of unholy energy washes over him. Nevertheless, he does not let the pain slow him in his stride, quick stepping towards the mis-shapen clerics.
Quinn's strike comes hard and fast at the first mongrelwoman.
Ouch!
The remaining cultist takes a five foot step, and keeping her normal grip on the glaive, wounds the paladin severely, while saying "Die Paladin. Hosilla will destroy you!"
"They are doing well, no need for another spell now friend." she says to the elf and Aravashnial and Horgus nod their heads in agreement.
Aladir UP
Aladir steps into the room next to Hyram, again drawing his bow and letting another arrow fly.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Quinn clutches his wound, and grins his hideous teeth as the wound knits together. "Hosilla is an impotent, wretched lapdog of abyssal filth! See how the goddess undoes all your pathetic acts!"
Quinn steps in slamming the morning star home again.
Hyram, angry that he missed the last cultist will take a five-foot step and swing at the remaining cultist.
Iomedae! Guide my blade against these foul ones!
Taking a step in front of Aravashnial, Alikia weighs the pros and cons of casting a spell. Quickly coming to the conclusion that a spell was too much, but a bolt would just miss, she conjures up a small glob of acid and flings it at the remaining cultist. However her attack yet again goes wide. "Ezro, did she just refer to herself in the third person?"
"I would like to think she is refering to her god, but I do not know for sure." Ezro says to Alikia.
Holding up his holy symbol, he releases another wave of positive energy.
------------------------
"You Paladin fool. My Lord Baphomet gives my mistress Hosilla the power to defeat you all." and she steps into the alcove with the ladder heading up and swings her glaive at the paladin and scores a hit.
"Status of the fight?" queries the elf, and before Anevia can answer, "They have the last one cornered. Should be over soon, my friend" says the man.
Aladir UP
Hyram will take a five-foot step and again try to skew the cultist.
You will join your demon god soon! Hyram says as the blade connects with the cultist.
The final enemy out of the range of his allies, Aladir draws another arrow, knowing that if he doesn't hit, his friends will likely finish the fight before he can get another shot off anyway.