Screaming in frustration as the web proves too strong for her to break, Sapphire casts a spell and suddenly vanishes in an explosion of electricity, surging southwards towards where Corum is engaged with the spider-thing.
Fire surges around her blade.
Elleross struggles against the webs but he knows he has neither the strength nor the agility to escape and so he does the only thing he can and once more focuses his mind.
The horrific spider before them tears into Corum, ripping great wounds In the savage warrior and he knows Corum cannot stand for long against it.
we need to help Corum! Hit it with everything you have
magiaVis, Potestas ictus
Completing the spell he unleashes the missiles of pure force .
Heeding Elleross' advice, Del looses a trio of bolts and Ruby's string thunders as the bowman falls into an aggressive rhythm. "How'd such a thing as big as you even get down here, Spider? You didn't fit through the front door like we did, that's for sure."
HP: 48/48
AC: 20 (16 T / 14 FF) (includes haste)
CMD: 21
F/R/W: +8/+11/+6 (includes haste)
Grit remaining: 2/2
Healing Amulet charges remaining: 3/3
Regular bolts remaining: 50/80
Cold Iron bolts: 29/40
tangle bolts: 2
tracer bolts: 4
Ongoing Effects
Vigilant Loading
Gunslinger Initiative
Favored Terrain (cold): +2 bonus on initiative, Knowledge (geo), Perception, Stealth, & Survival
point blank shot: +1/+1
deadly aim: -2/+4
haste: +1 to hit, +1 AC, +1 Ref, +30ft movement
Stepping towards the wizard's voice Lucrezzia reaches out for him. As soon as she touches him, she concentrates on putting him elsewhere. With a flash and sizzle he disappears. She thinks to herself, Please don' let 'im be inna floor! Just as suddenly, Elleross reappears several inches above the floor! The old man hits the floor and stumbles, but manages to keep his feet under him.
Success, no Con damage this round
Hit
Hit
Hit
Despite Corum's axe chucking away like he were felling a tree, and Del's pin-point accurate bolts puncturing it's thorax, the spider screeches and itself at the warrior once more.
It's bite rips a chunk out of his shoulder whilst it's two claws punch through his armour like greatspears. When it rips them out they peel Corum's armour like a grape, tearing through the metal and leaving his broken body in one heap and the sundered armour in another.
Grayston watches in terror as the spider brutality demolitions the barbarian.
"Corum! Damn it!" He shouts out as the large man falls to the giant spider. "Throw everything at it!" He shouts as he shake up another bomb and lobbing it over the spider.
Seeing Corum fall, Sapphire's own eyes cloud over with red. Blade singing the song of battle she flashes suddenly across the room and in a whirl of motion slashes the spider-thing repeatedly.
3rd (3)-
2nd (5)-
1st (5)— burning hands, shield, shield, shocking grasp, shocking grasp
"Lucrezzia! Corum's down!" Del looses a bolt from Ruby's cradle, "Go twelve paces forward!" He snaps off another shot, slipping a third bolt into position as he corrects the healer's course. "Turn to your left! Your other left! Good! Four paces! He's at your feet!" And as if to punctuate the instruction, he looses the final bolt.
HP: 48/48
AC: 20 (16 T / 14 FF) (includes haste)
CMD: 21
F/R/W: +8/+11/+6 (includes haste)
Grit remaining: 2/2
Healing Amulet charges remaining: 3/3
Regular bolts remaining: 44/80
Cold Iron bolts: 29/40
tangle bolts: 2
tracer bolts: 4
Ongoing Effects
Vigilant Loading
Gunslinger Initiative
Favored Terrain (cold): +2 bonus on initiative, Knowledge (geo), Perception, Stealth, & Survival
point blank shot: +1/+1
deadly aim: -2/+4
haste: +1 to hit, +1 AC, +1 Ref, +30ft movement
Lucrezzia goes to settle in somewhere and commune with Mister Magee. They sit, he on her lap and their foreheads together. Eventually, after a long while, they straighten and stand up. Lucrezzia's leg ache from her long sit on a cold floor, but she smiles, hoping she is at least looking at her new friends. "I can be resolvin' my no-eye state now." With a humming chant and a few words she casts the spell on herself and her vision returns. Wincing at the severe brightness of their surroundings. "Ah, never was thinking Artosa's bowels would look so beautiful!"
With a sudden dislocating jolt Elleross finds himself free of the webs, Lucrezzias strange magic freeing him suddenly and painfully from his bonds.
Landing heavily on his bad knee, a jolt of pain lances upwards and he hisses with the sudden sharp agony as he stumbles to find his balance.
The smell of ozone hangs heavy all around him and he can feel the hairs of his arms and neck standing on end .
thank you he nods toward their new ally and companion and seeing the deadly plight of the others he draws out a scroll and calls forth the stored arcane energy.
Murus, ignis, aestus, adolebitque ! completing the spell he releases the scroll , for a moment it hangs in the air before it collapses in upon itself in a bright blaze of fire.
Suddenly across the room a wall of shimmering fire springs into existence lancing through the huge spider.
The massive spider snaps out at Sapphire even as it plunges it's way through the wall of fire. It's flesh bubbles and scorches terribly but still it presses through and positions itself close to the gathered group in the north west of the chamber.
Hit
Fail
Stepping backwards away from the terrifying demon like spider Elleross focuses his mind and unleashes another spell.
Using all of his knowledge and skill he boosts the spells power as much as he can and with a complex series of gestures he opens his hand and blasts the spider.
Calor,ardescit,ignis! three rays of incandescent fire leap from his hand toward the creature and he cries out to the others
we must end it now!
The spider screeches in horrid pain as more fire blasts into it's bulbous mass.
Lucrezzia can't see it, but she can hear the things shifting bulk and the clicking of it's insectoid legs on the stone floor. She lashes out with one of the few tricks she knows will work with or without her eyes. A huge cylinder of hail and ice fills the area around the beast, pummeling it with both cold and fist sized ice-stones.
Del tries some of his precious few cold-iron bolts as Elleross calls out for a finishing barrage. "Nobody likes spiders! Go away!"
HP: 48/48
AC: 20 (16 T / 14 FF) (includes haste)
CMD: 21
F/R/W: +8/+11/+6 (includes haste)
Grit remaining: 2/2
Healing Amulet charges remaining: 3/3
Regular bolts remaining: 44/80
Cold Iron bolts: 26/40
tangle bolts: 2
tracer bolts: 4
Ongoing Effects
Vigilant Loading
Gunslinger Initiative
Favored Terrain (cold): +2 bonus on initiative, Knowledge (geo), Perception, Stealth, & Survival
point blank shot: +1/+1
deadly aim: -2/+4
haste: +1 to hit, +1 AC, +1 Ref, +30ft movement
Elleros unleashes a blast of firey energy and the oversized abdomen of the thing bursts in a wash of disgusting green ichor. It thrashes around wildly but as Lucrezzia follows Elleros' fire with shuddering cold the sudden change in temperature cracks it's thorax and finally, after suffering an untold number of wounds, it finally collapses, legs closing up like a clenched fist beneath it.
Fail
Success
It is surreal, a deadly fight that she can only hear. The thing collapses with a loud thud, followed by a kik-skritch of its legs scraping stone. Lucrezzia's own paniced breathing only slows as the others exhale with audible sighs. She reaches out for Elleross, and he takes her hand. "Lead me ta Corum, if ya would." She siles towards the old man, but anyone can see her worry underneath.
Grayston rushes over to Corum as the large man lays on the floor battered and bloody a moment repeated many times before he pulls out a portion, uncorking it and forcing the liquid down his throat.
"Come on you big oaff wake up, you still got a long way to go yet."
Corum comes to painful consciousness and groans weakly. Greyaton is leaning over him and the spider lies dead nearby. "Damned thing nearly had me. I'm a mess! Who killed it?"
He tries to stand and manages to only by leaning on his axe. His armour is torn and useless and he is bleeding profusely from several horrific gashes. His legs Trimble as he stands and says "You're all ok though. That's the main thing."
Del casts a concerned glance to Sapphire as he shoulders Ruby, "Are we? All 'ok', I mean?" He then shoots Greyston a knowing and approving nod as the alchemist settles back after helping to revive Corum.
As the hideous spider collapses, Elleross visibly says with relief. He had never before seen such a creature and it frightened him and intrigued him in equal measure.
The thing was a brutal and efficient killer, the way it tore Corums armour from him and all but eviscerated him was terrifying.
of course , take my arm he says as their blind companions request focuses his thoughts on the situation at hand.
Leading her across the room he looks down on the bloody mass of ragged flesh that Corum had become. He could hardly recognise the warrior.
Greyston? Does he live? he asks the alchemist as he too joins them and stoops over their fallen friend.
this is getting to be a habit with you my friend. Elleross says sternly as he watches Corum struggle to stand together we managed to kill it but that thing was incredibly tough, I have never seen anything like it. I am just glad I did not use up all of my spells before we encountered it.
We should search this area quickly and then find somewhere to rest, we cannot survive another fight like this. Gather what is left of your armour Corum and I will see what I can do with it tomorrow
Del looks from Elleross to some of the dangling cocoons, "I'd bet quite a lot that beast got ahold of some giants, same as that corrupted nymph. Now, the more interesting question is: did that thing like its food cold and dead, or fresh and warm?"
Examining the cocoon Elleross had been wondering the same thing.
i think you are correct in your assumption Dell, if there is a giant inside here then we cannot risk it being still alive.
I suggest we cut open the top of the cocoon, locate its head.
If it still lives it will still be bound. he says as he looks at the cocoons
we may be able to question it, gain some valuable information
Grayston let's out a deep breth falling back again the cold stone walk and taking a seat just needing a moment to think as Corum stirs and sits up back from the brink of death. This is insane, it's too close every time we lost Nasrin! Who's next!? He thinks rubbing his temples, as the others move about.
Five web-wrapped cocoons, each almost 10 feet long, hang from the ceiling among the stalactites.
A sixth cocoon lies on the floor near the middle of the cavern.
Del approaches the one on the ground quite gingerly, and very carefully cuts one end of it with a small knife.
If the group was expecting a giant in the cocoon, what they find is entirely different.
The creature within is dead. But only recently so. It has a blue-furred face very much like a gorilla but with several noticeable differences. From the head sprouts a set of curving horns and a darker mane of fur on the necks, while it's mouth hangs open slackly and sports a set of small but ferocious, shark-like teeth.
This is an Andrazku - a weaker demon. Andrazkus are thugs who use their strength to lord over weaker creatures. Their hatred is cold and seething, prone to suddenly snapping in an avalanche of ice and crushing blows. Birthed from the protomatter of the Abyss with natural gifts for tracking and subduing prey, they are sometimes used as trackers and jailors by more powerful demons who need to find lost prisoners and slaves.
AS you slowly cut each of the cocoons down, it becomes obvious that all of them contain another of these creatures.
Elleross watches warily as Dell cuts open the cocoon of webs, what he reveals inside is more disturbing than they feared.
well this is clearly not a giant, it is potentially much worse. What we have here is an Andrazku demon! A creature from the Abyss, the thugs of the demon realms. They are typically used as enforcers by the more powerful demons.
Sapphire shudders and convulses as the beast's venom eats away at her, though she grits her teeth and watches cautiously as the others tend to Corum.
relieved he has made it through she sags with exhaustion.
Ellri is right, I doubt we would survive another encounter, without a doubt we should rest.
At the discovery of the demons she frowns
...as long as there are no open portals to the abyss lurking, that would put a bit of a downer on a good night's rest...
Del turns back to Elleross and Sapphire, obvious confusion clouding his face. "Demons? While I'm quite thankful our curled up friend over there liked its food dead, how are there dead demons here? Don't they vanish in puffs of acrid smoke and return to their foul home when they die here?"
there are many many types of demons. Perhaps some of them do vanish if they are slain in this realm. Most do not, nor would we vanish if we were slain on another plain of existence. he says as he studies the demon before him
if Artrosa is invaded by demons as well as giants then our enemies are stacking up
Moving away from the cocoon he looks around the chamber again and says
if there is nothing else here then we should be away from here. Who knows what else may show up
As the Magic heals some of his wounds Corum listens to Elleross' admonishment. "This is becoming a habit."
The Barbarian understands the criticism comes from concern but he forces himself to stand straight. Puffing out his chest proudly he says "Not habit Ellri, it is my way."
He pauses and looks around at them all. "I have nothing to contribute but my heart and steel. Next to your skills my axe is nothing. Especially when we meet things like this."
He pauses "But I can take punishment beyond most of you. I can take attacks like that for longer. By sacrificing my body I buy you time to deal with our foes. By doing this I keep you alive. I swear that I won't let another one of you fall. I will put my body between you and harm every time so get used to it."
Finally then "For me there is battle and pain. I know nothing else."
And there it is: the sum of Corum's existence laid bare for all to see. The admission that he has nothing in this world but pain and conflict. You all realise now that you are his only family and his only way to demonstrate his love is by throwing himself into the jaws of doom to protect you. The honesty is as brutal as the man himself.
He dits then and drinks a potion.
Cmw
[ooc]hp 39/99
"Now Demons, this is just getting better and better..." He says still sitting on the group.
"We appreciate everything you do Corum, we all have our strengths. But we dont want you to die for all this..." He points around the room. "We lost Nasrin, we were lucky to find Lucrezzia here but I just want you to be smarter. I really can't take it anymore, I dont want to see anyone else I care about die. "
Elleross looks across at the warrior and though he cannot fully understand his reckless nature, he knows there is no other way for Corum.
It is kill or be killed.
He would back down from nothing and no one, and he placed a higher value on his friends lives than his own.
your strength and steel are exactly what we need Corum. Without you and Saphire to engage our enemies we would be overwhelmed in moments.
But the candle that burns twice as bright, burns half as long.
you can take more punishment than anyone I have ever seen and I do not want you to stop doing what you do best ,but I agree with Greyston. we do not want you to be killed, we need a way to better protect you in battle so you don't get hit as much.
I do not know much about armour, If there is something better than you wear now then we should try and source something for you.
I do know about magic though and I will think on ways I can aid you in battle, preferably before you attack. I have noted that whilst you are in a rage, you are able to resist spells that are cast upon you.
A tricky problem but one I shall work on he says to the warrior
I will try and fix your armour tomorrow, I should be able to use magic to repair it
Corum laughs Not getting hit would be a nice change! We can't rest here though. Did you find anything useful here?"
Corum gets to his feet and begins searching the lair.
Perception
Sapphire leans against one rocky wall.
Ellri, as weve seen time and again, it's not just muscle and sinew keeping our enemies at bay, without your magic, Greyston's alchemy or Del's timely bolts, we would have fallen long ago
To Corum she simply claps him on the shoulder, her other hand wrist to wrist in a warrior's greeting. Her eyes glisten, though her mouth is all business
If not here then we should go back to somewhere we've been, somewhere more defensible, shore it up as best we can.
she pokes a finger at Corum
Flesh can only be ripped and mended so many times, besides I'm sure it has to be close to supper, I feel like we haven't eaten in days...