The dwarf calls to you.
"Ye're 't save me?"
The caster takes a step back and shoots a bolt of lightning at Ama.
Combat round 6:
- Robot(s)
- Ama 48/52hp [+0THP | +4 Str]
- Idris 38/74hp [+30THP | +4 Str]
- Nagbur [+30THP | +4 Str]
- Fish [+25THP | +2 Str]
- Almalik 42/51hp [+10THP]
- Axe [+10THP]
In bold may act!
Ama steps forward and attacks the enemy in front of her twice. or at least she hopes it's the real deal she's attacking.
"Yeah sure, we'll save you," Ama casually replies to the dwarf.
Taking a moment to make sure nothing is left moving in the chamber, Fish charges off to see how everyone else is doing. He rushes past Almalik and ends up between Axe and Irdis. "What those?" he asks pointing at the strange creatures down the hall.
Almalik looks at the neverending stream of awful constructs coming at them and about loses his temper.
"I HATE YOU BASTARDS!" he howls before he flings his flaming sphere at the caster.
As the flaming sphere moves, Almalik takes a little bit to cast before he finishes up his spell. He waves his hands wildly, and ac heetah appears in the hallway behind the caster! With a roar, the speed-kitty attacks.
As the cheetah appears, Almalik follows up with a magic missile at the caster.
Judging the party's needs as he pelts down the hall, Nagbur doles out some health from his rapidly diminishing supply.
"Come on, Ama, let the rest of us have some fun, too. No fair taking it all for yourself like that!"
Axe patiently waits his turn... :P
Ama misses the caster and kills the clone. She takes a step forward and hits the caster. The caster misses the brunt of Almaliks fire damage but gets attacked by the cat. The cat manages two hits and gets the caster down.
The dwarf extends his arm and shoots a bullet from the apparatus strapped to him. The machine starts smoking and within seconds burst into flames, setting his cloak on fire moments later. The dwarf screams and yells as he tries to release the catch on the machine.
Fish looks around at the carnage to make sure nothing else is moving before plopping down on the floor to catch his breath. "Stupid....constructs..." he says between breaths.
Almalik teeters for a moment before he calls his cheetah over to his side. After ordering the great cat to lay down, he collapses face first into its side. The creature gives a yowl of displeasure, and then starts licking its paws.
"Soft kitty..." the exhausted, drained arcanist mutters.
After a moment he gets up.
"Well, that was horrible. Let's see what they had."
The yells and scream of the dwarf echo through the building as he is slowly burning up.
Almalik gets back up and stalks over to the dwarf trapped in the machine. He looks over to Nagbur and the others, clearly disinterested in the suffering beyond the noise it is making.
"Could someone..." Almalik waves his hand vaguely at the dwarf with a 'do something' gesture. "Put out the fire, or put him out, or get him out or something?"
"Soft kitty..."
Nagbur slows to a walk as he approaches, then comes to a halt at a safe distance, eyeing the big cat nervously.
He points at the flaming dwarf. "Somebody can put him out, Nabgur heal him."
Ama sheaths her weapon and grabs hold of Almalik's cloak, which she pulls over his head and snatches away from him. She then proceeds to use the cloak to put the burning dwarf 'out,' making pretty smoke signals in the process. "Oo-woo-woo-woo!"
As Ama nabs Almalik's cloak and proceeds to put out the dwarf, Nagbur stands, solidly grounded, and slowly restores health to the injured -- Almalik, Ama, and Idris. Once the dwarf is extinguished, he pulls out a wand and jabs him with it repeatedly.
Ama manages to subdue the flames. The dwarf remains lying on the ground, exhausted, and finally manages to get the clasp of the weapon free. He grunts as he turns to his back facing Ama.
"Great, them lousy wizard folk too lazy to help a fellow out."
Idris watched as Ama moved to put the fire out. By all logic, he should have been the one to do it, given his natural resistance to fire, but his wounds were severe enough that he didn't really want to get caught in whatever explosion that contraption was surely about to go through. When it didn't explode, and Ama had the fire out, he felt a little chagrined...but only a little.
"I'm Idris, Idris Elbow. Who are you, and what are you doing here in these halls overrun by such constructs? You're not a mad engineer fixated on developing intelligent machines and never mind the problems that always arise with them are you?"
Idris eyed the dwarf warily.
The dwarf opens an eye and looks at Idris.
"Phaw! Mad? Ya'll be mad com'n here!"
He throws back at Idris.
"Me? Just Workin'n a few projects."
Bah! Must I always be charming these feckless oafs?
Almalik steels himself before he offers his most winning smile to the dwarf.
"My sincerest apologies master dwarf. As you can see we have been badly attacked, and I lacked the appropriate magic to help you escape your apparatus. Pray tell, could you let us know what happened here? Perhaps we are here to rescue you, but require a bit of information before we leap to any conclusions of course."
The fact Almalik does not particularly give a crap about this dwarf may come through his speech a little.
Fish looks over as they put the dwarf out. "Where dwarf come from?" He asks clearly confused by the appearance of a dwarf.
"Grumpy wizards..."
The dwarf mumbles.
"Ya think me be here fer fun? Phaw! Ye right in the mind?"
He raps Almalik on the head for asking stupid questions.
"Ere, lemme explain."
He sits down and holds up several fingers, indicating people.
"The one be me an' me fella dwarves. Other be them wizard."
He now only holds two fingers up, one on each hand.
"Me fella dwarves be run away, an'a me a been too late. Stuck with them wizard folk. He force me makin' them 'bots."
He holds his arms wide and shrugs.
"Easy. Now, when we be leavin'?"
Fish looks around confused. "Where wizard folk now?"
"Yes, we're here to save you," Ama says as she gracefully tosses Almalik's cloak over his head, covering the wizard up. She once read in a book that covering certain creatures up makes them think it's night, and causes them to shut up and go to sleep. Maybe it'd work on Almalik.
Ama places a hand on the dwarf shoulder and gives him her warmest smile. "I am Ama, the goddess queen. Rest assured, my friend. I will see to your safety."
"Now please do tell me about the wizard folk. This is not their home, it is yours. I intend to make them aware of this simple fact."
The dwarf points up to answer Fish's question.
"Though ya need be gettin' down first. Jailer be down 'ere. He be havin' them keys t'get up."
He nods to Ama's remark and holds out his hand to lead her on.
"Ma queen, af'er ye."
He leads you on to a room where the base of a tower is. Sleek walls and a strong door block the way on.
"Seen em jailer o'er 'ere several times. There be a room 'ere somewhere."
In the eastern wall you find some cracks in the wall, indicating a fairly large door.
Fish follows the dwarf and begins to search the area that the dwarf believes holds a way up.
"Big door here. Fish find the cracks."
The door slides open after Fish finds a catch and the dwarf whistles appreciatively.
"Ye be a quick one."
You head down a small flight of stairs and walk into a completely dark hallway.
Idris was right behind Fish as the kobold slid the "secret" door open. It seemed odd that the dwarf didn't appear to know his way around this place. Wasn't it his home? Maybe he just lived in another part of the complex.
"Yes, Fish run very fast." the kobold says in reply to the dwarf, clearly not understanding the context of what was said to him.
Nagbur ambles over to pet the big kitty. "Dwarfses all same," he quietly grouses to Almalik. "Nagbur heal him all up and no even say thank you, just 'When we leave?' Always is do for me, do for me! No care about nobody else. Bah!"
The dwarf sees Idris's confusion.
"Workin'n the smithy, dun care nothin 'bout else."
You wait for a moment to listen and hear noises coming from further down.
At the end of the small dark hallway, visible for everyone with darkvision, is another set of stairs. The noise seems to be coming from below, echoing through the empty space.
On the left side of the staircase is a small latch, giving access to another hallway.
Almalik sighs miserably as he is berated by Nagbur.
"Nagbur, you know full well I appreciate the fact I'd be dead repeatedly if it were not for you. Thank you, I'll even promise to stop calling you a goblin. You are far less irritating than Ama."
Almalik casts light on the tip of his wand, peering down the stairs.
"I don't like that noise. Idris? Axe? one of you want to go first?"
Fish slinks off ahead trying to be quite.
"Axe!", Axe comments as he looks around, pointing to a latch on the left side of the stairs.
There is a thinga-ma-bob over there!
The large man then waits for the others and pulls the latch.
Almalik sighs miserably as he is berated by Nagbur.
"Nagbur, you know full well I appreciate the fact I'd be dead repeatedly if it were not for you. Thank you, I'll even promise to stop calling you a goblin. You are far less irritating than Ama."
Nagbur, blinking, stares up at Almalik for a few moments, then begins jockeying around him and repeatedly jumping up as if trying to see more of his head. "Huh. Nagbur no see bump and not know you got whacked on noggin in fight! Is only explaining me can think of."
Then he zips around in front of the arcanist and looks up at him with a sincere expression on his face. "Nagbur no was talking bout Almalik. Nagbur talking about stupid unappreciating dwarfses. We have same talk before. Me know how Almalik feel. Nagbur be dead muchly without Almalik too. And Ama, Fish, other folkses. We all team now, you watch out for Nagbur, Nagbur watch out for you, all do our best. Okay?"
Almalik casts light on the tip of his wand, peering down the stairs.
"I don't like that noise. Idris? Axe? one of you want to go first?"
Nagbur looks at Axe, nods, and points at the latch. "Almalik no like noise, maybe we go other way?"
Whilst Ama has stayed behind upstairs, not feeling too well, the rest continues downwards.
Axe slowly opens the latch and a small dusty cramped hallway is revealed. Axe is too large and a smaller person in the party squeezes in, relaying what he sees. In front of him are two holes, giving a view of the room beyond. In the room is a very large man grumbling to himself whist eating a bowl of something very gross looking.
There is another latch in the hallway, leading to another room.
Two wizards, like the ones you met before, are dissecting what seems to be a dwarf.
Axe too Axe-y to fit...
Axe slowly opens the latch and a small dusty cramped hallway is revealed. Axe is too large and a smaller person in the party squeezes in...
Ama catches up with the others and gives Nagbur a shove. "You go take a look."
After Nagbur returns and has relayed what he's seen, Ama nods understandingly and says, "I seeeee, I seeeee... That can only mean one thing..."
She then shrugs. "Whatever, let's move on."
Ama then walks into the next hall, and up to the door that gives way to the room with the large man. She opens the door and steps inside.
"Good morning, dear man," Ama says with her most charming smile. "My name is Ama, the Goddess Queen. Do you mind if I join you while you eat? There's something I wish to discuss."
The man stands up, throws his bowl on the ground and points at Ama.
He bellows at her, sending spittle all across the room.
Fish looks around a bit confused before pointing at the dwarf they rescued. "He did it."
Ama calmly enters the room, circling the man before she stops next to the table where he's eating. With a wide grin on her face Ama leans against the table. "I'm the Goddess Queen, I can go wherever I please. Why are you here?"
Keeping his distance from Ama -- lest she shove him somewhere he doesn't want to go again -- Nagbur tries, and fails, to follow the conversation.
Although he does nod in agreement with Fish and points at the dwarf.
"Uh, why... Uh yes. You could go everywhere you please, I guess."
The very large man says in a dumbfounded voice.
"I'm guarding them prisoners back here."
He points towards the far end of the room, a still unexplored part.
"Pat's my name."
"Axe!", Axe cheers!, offering an extended hand to the large(r) man.
"Nice to meet you, Pat." Ama nods politely at the man.
"May I ask you some questions, Pat? Do you like your job? Does your boss treat you well?"
"Do you gots any food?"
Pat ignores everyone but Ama, not liking them a single bit.
"Treats me well enough, gots food every day and a job. It's allright."
He answers Ama.
"Why are you here?"
The bowl of food he was eating earlier is still on the floor behind him.
Idris kept silent, as he could tell that the big man had eyes only for Ama. Instead, he leaned causally on the doorjamb so he could keep any eye on both the room and the hallway.