"Clearly the most direct route is to go south...but that doesn't always equal the best way to go."
South sounds good to me! Hyram adds.
This dank hall contains a restraining table and various implements of torture. The sharp tang of fresh blood hangs heavy in the air.
There are two demons maintaining the equipment, and as they see you, they cackle with glee. "More crusaders for sport! Lets bring in some brothers to help!" and suddenly instead of two babau demons there are four.
Aladir immediately peppers the closest babau with arrows!
Demons? I was expecting a vampire! Hyram says as he rushes forward.
"Iomedea! May we strike true!" Ezro yells, beseeching a blessing from the Inheritor upon the group and then readying himself.
Quinn steps in time with Hyram, attacking the same Babau.
Quinn bursts into golden light as he continues his attack.
vs AC 24 Hyram
vs AC 24 Hyram
vs AC 24 Quinn
vs AC 24 Quinn
The two outside demons step up, and all four attack. Two on Hyram and two on Quinn. Hyram is struck 3 times, and Quinn 3 times also.
Hoping to put down one of the foul beasts, Hyram strikes again.
Quinn slashes through the first of the Babaus following up on Hyram's attack.
He follows through by attacking the second wounded Babau.
Aladir continues his pin-cushioning of the Babau he'd first attacked!
Seeing his comrades hit hard by the demons mythic power suddenly surges into him, Ezro moves up to give his last channel positive energy, healing their wounds, and then in the next instant reaches out to Cure Quinns wounds.
"Iomedea heal your warriors so they continue the fight."
vs AC 24 Hyram
vs AC 24 Quinn
vs AC 24 Quinn
vs AC 24 Quinn
Aladir fires four arrows, with three hitting the one he previously wounded. Ezro moves up to be next to Quinn, channels energy to heal the group and also cashes in a spell to finish healing Quinn. Hyram and Quinn finish off one of the babau in front of them, while Quinn cleaves to the other one in front of him, but does not quite kill it. Alikia continues to hold back, as the boys seem to be winning.
The remaining demons gang up on Hyram and Quinn. Hyram is missed by all three attacks, however Quinn is damaged by four of the six, one almost critically.
His bow singing with abandon, Aladir keeps on pouring his arrows into the demons, first into the one he has injured and should it fall, into the next closest.
Alikia sighs wearily and aims her crossbow at one of the cackling Babaus. However her aim is off and the bolt clatters to the floor. "Welp, that didn't work."
At the almost one month mark, I was just concerned for you. You will have a place here, no worries.
Hyram plunges his sword into the new foe. Join your brethren! He shouts.
Quinn ducks to the side as a veritable chorus of arrows springs from Aladir's bow, cutting down another of the demons. Quinn follows through with another series of attacks on a third.
vs AC 24 Quinn
vs AC 24 Hyram
Aladir fires four arrows, the first two putting down the wounded demon in front of Quinn, and the next two wounding the demon nearest Quinn. Ezro seeing that another demon goes down, looks around the area in case something comes thru one of the four closed doors. Quinn takes a step and attacks the demon on the end, while Hyram does the same and attacks the demon on the other end, both of them wounded. Alikia loads and shoots her crossbow, but she misses the demons.
Both demons continue to claw, claw, bite at the group and each one lands one blow on the two warriors, damaging them slightly.
Hyram, distracted, does not even land a blow on the demon.
Touching Quinns shoulder, Ezro blesses his next action, "In the name of the Inheritor, strike true!"
Thinking to himself that he needs to switch to his rapier again so he can conserve the arrows he has for the more important battles to come, Aladir sends four more shots downrange, not wanting to waste time switching weapons, but rather wait until this fight is finished.
Quinn growls through a pair of strikes from the demons, and lashes back at the nearest one. "I have had enough of you!" he shouts with a burst of golden light.
Aladir fires four arrows at the demon that Hyram is battling, knowing that the Paladin will surely put his down and thus eliminating one foe. Ezro touches Quinn on the shoulder giving him the ability do hit the demon easily, which he does.. Alikia nods sagely as the third creature goes down, and Hyram sensing victory, celebrates a bit early and misses the final demon.
"...and one to grow in!" Aladir taunts, firing another four arrows at the remaining demon.
Stubborn demon! Hyram says as the demon falls. Should we continue on or call it a day?
Sighing heavily, Alikia levels her crossbow towards the remaining demon, "You really should've stayed in the Abyss." she snarls, pulling the trigger on her bonded weapon. With surprising accuracy, the bolt connects sharply on the babau's shoulder, jerking the creature back.
Between Aladir, Alikia, and Quinn the final demon goes down. Just as Hyram asks the question, "continue or call it a day" the door to the east opens and a creature steps thru.(Picture of Creature), and speaks to Aladir, "leave this building before you die."
Take a look around and tell me who will die! Hyram says as he rushes forward to sink his sword into the creature.
Aladir's eyes glaze over when the magic from the new creature washes over him.
When it becomes clear that his own will isn't enough to fight off this sorcery, the same mythic powers they were given by the wardstone pulse through him, trying to help him fight off the magic!
For a brief moment, Aladir feels as if nearly overcome, even dropping his bow in the process...but the elf blood coursing through his veins combined with the potency of the mythic energy to his very being pushes him over the edge and he grits his teeth, glaring this new foe!
"Nnggh....get outta my head, gravespawn!" he growls, drawing his rapier but allowing the others a moment to advance before him while he finishes clearing his head.
Alikia takes a step back as the sickly looking half-orc wanders into the room. As Aladir grasps his head, Alikia springs into action, evoking her arcane power. Two rays emit from her hand and slams into the half-orc. "Didn't your parental unit ever tell you not to dominate people? It's rude."
The crags in Quinn's ashen skin fill with molten gold as the light of Radiance bursts forth. "You are the last," Quinn says definitively. Without any other word, he marches up beside Hyram and slashes the undead creature.
Aladir just manages to shake off the domination command to flee the citadel, dropping his bow as he grabs his head. He then draws his rapier and allows the warriors begin the attack on the undead. Ezro looks aghast and exclaims, "that is a vampire. Be careful." Quinn moves up to the vampire and swings, however even with the Ezro blessing, he misses. Hyram moves to flank the creature, but misses with his attack.. Alikia fires two rays of fire at the creature, damaging it.
The creature swings at Quinn and tries to slam him, but misses.
Aladir advances forward toward the others, picking his bow up as he moves up toward the others, but not yet within melee range.
With his eyes wide in horror at this creature, he delves into his prayers and exclaims, "May the divine radiance of Iomedea cleanse you gravespawn!"
Pointing his holy symbol at the creature, a ray of light leaps out to pierce the creature.
Quinn throws everything into a final series of attacks. Golden light blooms around his blade as he burns the last of his mythic power to bring down the vampire.
Aladir picks up his bow, while still holding onto his rapier, and moves closer to Hyram. Ezro casts a spell on the creature, and the light damages it, and Quinn using all his might, hits the vampire three times. Before Alikia and Hyram can further attack it, the vampire turns into a mist and it flows thru the door to the east.
Following it, you see that the mist flows "through" the far wall, about ten feet from the southern wall and disappears.
Hyram will search the wall for any secret doors. That vampire had to go somewhere!
Retrieving and stowing his bow, Aladir follows Hyram to the wall where the vampire disappeared; if there was a secret door anywhere close by, his innate affinity for them would let him know.
"Quickly, after him! If we don't deal the killing blow soon, he will reform!" Alikia shouts as she races after the mist. Seeing the vapor vanish through the wall, she drops to her knees into a slide to inspect the wall for a hidden switch. "Accursed creature! WE SAW YOU GO THROUGH HERE!" she shouts, hitting the wall the palm of her hand while helping Aladir and Hyram inspect the wall.
Quinn sags heavily as the last of his mythic energy is spent. The golden glow fades quickly from his eyes and skin as he stumbles into the room with the others.
Taking the butt of his sword he taps along the rear wall above Alikia, searching for hollows. "My blade bit deep. He will not reform quickly."
Fumbling around the door, Ezro tries to find the way passed it.
"It is a vampire not a ghost, there has to be a way passed."
Quinn unslings a pair of magical bags and begins removing a number of their contents. He hands a scroll to Alikia and a small metal chime to Ezro. "If it's an illusion perhaps that can break the spell. If it's just a well locked door, that may open it."
You follow the vampire into the room to the east, and even seeing that the vampiric mist flowed thru tiny, almost imperceptible cracks in the wall, you still can not find a lever, or trip, or any way to get thru it yourself.
Even though time is pressing, Aladir slows down and takes a deep breath, making a meticulous search of the surrounding area, hoping to find the way to get to the vampire and end it, forever.
Clearly frustrated, Hyram takes a deep breath and methodically searches the wall.