Ederion identifies the creature not as the desert dwelling Blue Chromatic Dragon, but as the Sea Imperial Dragon. While still a true dragon, imperial dragons originate from Tian Xia. They are known to rescue drowning sailors, protect island settlements, and guide lost ships. Sea dragons are adept swimmers, and possess the ability to breathe water and super-heat it into a line of steam under the ocean. This sea dragon is very young, but still dangerous. They can attack with claws, fangs, and horns all at once. They have excellent senses, access to draconic magic, and are fairly mobile. Sea dragons are immune to electricity, paralysis, and sleep effects. They resist some cold damage, and can withstand moderate ocean pressure. Most sea dragons die early in their lifespan, as they are hunted relentlessly by aboleths, adult sperm whales, and sea monsters. Only when they reach adult ages do they large and powerful enough to properly defend themselves.
Ederion swims towards the dragon and stabs it in its second head. While the dragon is not dead, it's spraying blood everywhere.
Rexandi, meanwhile, knows nothing of what's going on and simply hides as best she can in the seaweed.
Bazzle swims slowly closer. He takes aim with the spear, "Oh wait blue dragon. They shoot lightening."
He re-aims the spear at another foe.
Rexandi is able to give a little bit of knowledge compared to Ederion, but not enough to make a bit difference. She hides in the seaweed quite well.
Bazzle's lightning attack does hit, but unfortunately does very little damage. It was just a tiny zap, barely more powerful than a static touch.
The dragon makes a full withdraw towards the pit, while the lizard Skum continue to fight. Aster and Bazzle both get wrapped up in the lizard's arms and legs.
Ederion feels the eye glare at him, unnerving him. His swordhand begins to shake violently.
From her hiding place in the seaweed, Rexandi tries to put a hex on the dragon. She feels a bit bad about aiding in the destruction of a creature that is probably a captive and likely wouldn't want to do these kinds of things unless forced, but everyone's in a bad position...
Lizard skum in your face, getting really really close made Aster way too uncomfortable. She dislikes becoming a wererat around the mermaids, getting those looks, and she really didn't know how it would affect her new fish tail but...
A wiggling fur explosion later, wererat Aster grabs the creature's limbs and pulls them off of her.
As the beast retreats, Tasha turns to her sides to see both Aster and Bazzle wrapped within the lizards' grasp. Oh..., she grits her teeth, the choice itching in her head. Just as she turns towards Aster, however, the Tian woman's form changes in that of a rat, breaking free of the beast's claws. "Nice one!", Tasha's slowed, bass voice carries over, as her tail beats furiously towards the creature grasping Bazzle. The thickness of the water, however, is too much for her to handle, and the shield slam only sends a wave of water at the monster.
As Tasha goes left Ederion goes right, and engages the skum on Aster - "Leave the lady alone, will you?"
Ederion just barely, by a collection of Elven heritage, hard earned willpower, and plain old luck, resists the Eye.
The dragon barely resists Rexandi's hex in turn.
Meanwhile, Aster breaks free of the lizard Skum grappling her. She pushes it off of her, only for Ederion to swoop in with his rapier and stab it through the heart. A cluster of bubbles escapes its mouth as it dies. Tasha takes the opportunity to go help Bazzle, but she bashes her shield forward too early, sending just a wave of water to push the two.
The trident next to Tasha takes a stab, while Mother Kahli circles around to stab the Skum in the back. Rillia sends her cluster of dense water to bludgeon the Skum. Sadly, all three attempts do nothing against this Skum's gnarled hide.
Bazzle stabs at the creature attacking him.
[ooc]Bewildered: The target becomes bewildered, taking a –2 penalty to AC. The target takes an additional –2 penalty to AC against all attacks made by the rogue.
Bazzle jams his blade into the Skum's kidney. A sore upon its body ruptures from the strike, sending putrescent rot and bile through the water.
The sea dragon creates a ball of shadow from its claws as it chants in the Aboleth tongue. It then launches the ball, which unerringly collides with Bazzle's face. Though he tries desperately to claw the darkness away, it seeps into his eyes, and all vision is drowned out.
The eye stares at the wounded Skum, and a ray of silt swims out of its pupil. It swims over to the Skum, and fills in most of the wounds the Skum has suffered, turning immediately into scar tissue. The Skum keeps its arms wrapped around Bazzle, and starts swimming towards the pit. Tasha bashes it with her shield, though the damage is fairly minor.
Thanks Bewildered
Bazzle frieks out completely unflattering panic. "I can't see. Something has me. I can't see. And I feel really slow."
"Bazzle! We're coming for you!", Tasha shouts, her tail slapping towards the creature, the dagger in her hand glowing radiant red. Swimming around the scum holding the gnome, she slashes furiously at the skum, blood once again flowing into the water.
Seeing Bazzle get whisked away, Rexandi panics a bit and tries to leap out of the seaweed (as much as one can "leap" underwater) to do... something, anything. Since she is still dazed from the conduits of power that she channeled earlier, though, all she can do is move.
"Oh no! Bazzle!" Aster swims to help. She knows the best bet is to go after the dragon but she cannot leave a friend in danger.
Rexandi identifies it as a Blindness/Deafness spell. Interestingly, it was modified with a bouncing spell metamagic, which means that if Bazzle resisted it, the spell would have transferred to someone else. This however means that Bazzle is permanently blind. The spell does not ever wear off on its own. Fortunately, there are ways to remove it. A dispel magic spell could do the trick, otherwise any spell that removes a curse works as well.
Seeing his companions rush to aid Bazzle, Ederion focuses on the Imperial Dragon - "Enough mayhem from you my friend" - he almost apologizes - "I understand you are probably being manipulated by others, and if I could fathom a way to retrieve that eye without fighting you I would..."
Bazzle slips his dagger between himself and the force grappling him hoping their own grip helps the cut.
Ederion tries to rush down the dragon, but his swimming magic can only go so fast. He misjudges his speed, and stops 10ft away from the corrupted Dragon. Bazzle may be blind, but he can still fight the creature holding onto him. He feels resistance as his blade must have connected with something. Tasha stabs the Skum with her mysterious dagger, which wounds the creature just enough to stagger it.
The eye stares Ederion down and weakens his resolve, opening him up to a flurry of strikes as the dragon lunges out and attacks with everything it has. Unfortunately for it, the sea dragon only grazes Ederion with a single claw.
The Skum is in its death throws, and bites down hard on Bazzle. Bubbles escape from the creature's mouth, and its eyes glaze over lifelessly.
"Well done" - Ederion nods at his opponent - "Now let us see what I can do, shall we?"
Just as Ederion drifts in to make the final blow, the dragon roars "Damn your eyes, Ederion!"
It tries to breathe super-heated water at Ederion, but the elven fencer is far too quick. He stabs the dragon straight through its evil red eye, killing the creature instantly. Its corpse starts being sucked downwards into the pit.
Ederion watches the dragon being pulled into the pit - "Wish it could have been different" - then turns to the others as Bazzle extricates himself- "Bazzle, are you ok?"
Aster slips back into humanity and then helps Bazzle out of the skum's embrace "Bazzle, it is over. We'll... need to figure something out about your eyes..."
Bazzle flails about wrestling against he dead skum. "Hey I think I got it. Take that." He wiggles free. "Its over? Are you sure? Where are you I . . . I can't see." He is trying to be calm but there is a clear terror in his vacant eyes.
Aster reaches up an arm to balance the gnome "Keep ahold on me." she tells him with worried warmth. "Does anyone have anything to help him?" she asks the others.
Mother Kahli shakes her head. "I cannot remove a curse, nor can Maiden Rillia. He will have to return to the village, or hide in his cloak, or he will surely perish. Blind mermaids do not live long."
"It's a spell," says Rexandi as she comes closer, breathing heavily. "We'll find a way to dispel it!"
She pauses to apply her healing hex to Ederion as well.
"Thank you Rex" - Ederion bows politely.
Rexandi patches Ederion up, bringing him back to full health. As a bit of time passes, most of the negative effects start to wear out.
Rillia sings to Ederion
"We have mages home
Who could dispel his curse
I could take the Gnome
Save him from a fate much worse"
Mother Kahli has a different idea
"Rather than lose two, I could hold him while we fight. Bring him up to foes, and tell him when to strike."
Ederion smiles at Rillia and nods at Mother Kahli - "Bazzle, what say you?"
Bazzle turns not quite in the direction of Ed's voice. His voice cracks, "I don't want to be a liability."
Rillia, at Ederion's explanation, scoops up poor Bazzle and hugs him tightly. She races back towards the village with him for aid, as fast as her tail can take them.
"Don't worry Bazzle - we'll take care of this and get you a memento" - Ederion smiles, and pats his companion on the shoulder before he leaves.
"Should we go into the chasm?" - Ederion nods at the path ahead of them, then turning to Mother Kahli - "There seems to be some current - you think it will draw us down?"
Mother Kahli looks down into the chasm, which even with darkvision, would be vacant of anything.
"If it were much stronger, this current would become a whirlpool." Mother Kahli says "I'm not sure if even I could swim back up once committed. If we enter the mouth of this beast, it will be near impossible to retreat. They will know we're coming, since the dragon Skum fell into it."
The other feature before the chasm is a sunken ship.
"And if we don't go..." Aster doesn't finish because the consequences are too dire to think about. "I can go first. They know we are here, so my lack of being quiet won't hurt us. I can see in the dark and..." she shakes and expands. "... and I am the hardest to hurt."
If no one complains, Aster the merchant steadies her shield and swims into the chasm.
"Would they have planted more guards on that abandoned ship? I don't want to get caught unaware"
Before he heads back to the mermaid village he offers the crack of lightning spear to any who would need it.