both lina and azlana manage to avoid the consequenses of the gas in the room, but it's not dissipating right away, and it's still very toxic.
Haruto tries to look over Hanna's shoulder. "What happened?"
Azlana steps back out of the room, waiting for the gas to dissipate.
soon enough, the toxins in the room dissipate with the open trapdoor.
Azlana goes back in and resumes examining the contents of the room with Detect Magic up.
in the chest is 5 silver holy symbols of ipmodae, with a note on top-
"We don’t need these anymore, but figured if you survived our
surprise, it would be just plain rude to leave behind an
empty chest for your troubles!”
Azlana reads the note without touching it, and wonders if someone killed 5 clerics to gain this stash. The note's taunts practically guarantee that the chest is trapped somehow, so she looks over at Lina to see if she thinks it is worth it to check, and follows her lead whether to stay or move on.
"Well, frankly it makes me feel a little bad, knowing that our adversaries are children," Lina says venomously, and kicks the chest. "This place has already been cleared out."
Azlana nods and moves on to the next room, determined to clear this place out and punish the jokesters.
Once they've determined there's nothing here, Haruto looks off into the distance. "Which place was next?"
As the group heads onward, they can see the tower in the distance.
This sixty-foot-diameter gray stone tower is missing the bulk of
its upper floors—some terrific force smashed its upper sections
away, creating huge mound of rubble north of the building and
leaving the tower now a mere stump with a jagged top.
Near the tower stands a man in red armor, covered from head to toe in plate engraved with what appear to be father patterns, the only visible part of his flesh being his black claws, sticking through the tips of the gauntlet. He silently stares at the door and occasionally glances up to the top of the tower.
Black claws don't sound good, and Azlana has an urge to shoot the man as soon as she sees him. She doesn't want to judge too soon though, so she waits to get close enough to cast Detect Demon (60 feet), unless someone else can determine more quickly whether he is evil.
The man's eyes are firmly fixed on the tower, at the moment, but at the casting of a spell, he glances about, making a hissing sound, and grabbing the odd, pronged spear on his back.
(favored enemy)
Pazuzu worshipping Demon Azlana remarks to her party as she draws her bow to attack.
Lina is only more driven when she is told it is a demon, and she joins in Azlana's assault by rushing forth and throwing a starknife at the dark knight.
The starknife returns to her hand in a glimmer of light like a shooting star.
all three shots bounce ineffectually off of the creature'a full plate, as it turns to look at lina and azlana.
"That's how we're doing this? Alright."
Haruto frowns distantly and murmurs a spell, tails waving as he points at the creature.
Shayde and Stalker slip closer; normally Shayde would have considered engaging with his bow, but he doubted his ability to pull it in his current state. However, if they hid, perhaps they could get behind the creature as it closed on the others. Shayde watched this demonic target closely, studying its movements.
Also designating it as studied target.
the man snorts.
"you're a hasty sort."
he twirls his odd spear above his head, glancing about the party, eyes stalling over the holy symbols of deana, but stopping on hanna's holy symbol of aspu.
"perhaps you'll challange me."
the man lunges forward, running in a charge at hanna, his spear coming forward in a sudden jolt.
but it just barely whiffs, hanna's fluttering scarves clipped by the blade.
"interesting indeed. Might I ask why you're here?"
the man is deathly calm, dispute the fighting.
|
Hanna snorts and charges her hands with electricity as she is charged, sidestepping with a pirouette that ends in a lightning charged backhand "and do tell why I should inform a worshiper of the chief of the bird brains our plans, for all we know you're one of the people who caused this mess, but you can assume we're here to kick demon ass
the man shifts his position a bit so hanna strikes at one of his feather patterns- the patterns are strange and magically sharp.
"mm. Dull quips, silverscale. Might need to polish those scales, keep pretending you're like your "god"."
the man says, voice flat and serious as lightning crackles over his armor, causing a few twitches under the armor.
Shayde and Stalker lunge from hiding. Shayde moves into a flanking position with Hanna and stabs at this demonic foe.
Stalker tries to snatch the man's spear
"Ware the Shadows, corrupted one."
Lina clicks her tongue disdainfully. "Shouldn't be ignoring other opponents, pal."
As she launches into the fray, she invokes the divine power granted by her goddess, and her weapons are limned with light.
shayde's attacks fruitlessly clank agaisnt the man's armor, and lina's first strike manages to cut into the man's armor.
"sorry if I prefer to challange the person who doesn't worship harmless insects."
the man's stance changes slightly at the cut.
Seeing the enemy seems hard to harm, Haruto calls upon a blessing on his friends.
two more arrows plink off of the man's armor.
"but fine. If you don't want me to ignore you."
the man shifts stance and swirls with an odd dark energy.
"So, as I asked, why are you here? Since you seem so adverse to talking while you fight, I will. I'm here to test my strength."
Haruto chants briefly and slashes the air with a hand, then flicks two of his tails. A pair of translucent missiles fly out of the tips of said tails and strike the armored man.
It's as the spear drives forth with skill she never knew was possible that Lina thinks, for a brief moment, that she's made a horrible mistake. Then she's impaled on the spear, and she can't breathe.
"What the hell are you?" she gasps as she tries to back away.
|
|
”test your strength eh? I understand that, well don’t worry, you can test yourself against me!”
She steps to the side to keep her scarves fluttering through the air, charging one hand with caustic acid, the other trying to distract his block with the blades on her scarf before delivering an acid coated fist to his chest, cutting herself slightly on his armor
as hanna is just about to pull off her spell, the man turns and glares her down, face still wreathed in dark energy, and her spell sputters.
"nothing more then human, paladin. At least, nothing more then human yet."
the man flinches at the magic missles, making a growling sound. "not bad. Not bad at all. Well, my name is Anguis. You'd do well to remember it, because I guarantee this is not the last time we'll meet."
Shayde and Stalker silently assault this foe. They had little to say in this matter. Shayde steps into flanking. (Assuming that since only one flanking partner, Stalker can't flank as well. If it can, add 2 to its attacks.)
anquis staggers at the pummeling, and five foot steps, draws and drinks a potion, turning invisible. (Provoking an AOO from stalker)
"lovely. You're all a challanging bunch. We should do this again, sometime. Regardless, I was going to butcher the folks in this tower, but you seem like you can handle it. Knock yourselves out."
azlana double moves to lina in order to heal her.
"Damn you!" Lina shouts, which is a lot lighter than what she was thinking. She has one hand pressed to her wound. "Call off your shadow, he's too strong. Bastard--don't use your magic, Azlana, we got the healing wand for a reason."
"I already am."
Answers the invisible voice. He's still nearby.
"maybe you'll let me help next time you storm a cultist layer. Always love to kill those who hide behind numbers."
This man seems deathly serious, as if he doesn't even realize he's done something wrong.
"legitmiatley, quite the rush. Might even agree to pull my punches in the inevitable fight after storming the layer."
"You do not have to remain damned. Redemption is always possible," Haruto says to the now-invisible man. "It is a hard path, but worth the cost. But you must first wish to walk it, and I do not see you doing so."