The scintillating rainbow-crystal blade slices deep into the bone devil's evil flesh, twice!
YYYYOOOOWWWWW!!!
Blake moves forward (or back if the creature is within 15') as he finally gets a good grip on his revolver. Aiming for anything that looks like a weak point on the skeleton creature, he attempts to fire all the shots into the same spot.
Clean's bullets rip into the devil's monstrous skull-like face! It shrieks in agony!
OY!! YOU NASTY LITTLE MUNCHKIN!!! I'll chew your face off for that, ye little runt!!
A man seems to materialize out of the shadows in front of the little girl and Marie.
He smiles at the little girl and holds his arms out to her....
My baby! Look! These nice people are going to send that mean Skeleton Monster back to Hell, where it belongs!
F@#$in' Hell! These blokes hit bloody hard.... Better call in me guitarist, Randy....
Attempts to summon another bone devil, Randyrhodeus (35% chance, 01-35) , but alas, Randy is busy "shaggin' some Erinyes groupies"....
Daisy casts protection from evil on Mikey Jay....
Great Father, keep Mikey Jay safe from evil spirits....
If the devil still stands after Derrik's assault (not likely)....
Haha! That's sweet of you, Daisy, but you should really ask the Great Father to protect the evil spirits from Mikey Jay....
Charging powerful overhand chopping vital strike plus holy....
Radsworth reacts quickly, but even his fastest is sluggish when compared to some of his allies. He watches the little girl and her father sadly...suddenly having a great desire to see both Sun Mi and Aaron.
Marcus glances back to make sure Marie and the girl are safe, before turning back to look at the creature.
Without any of his usual messing around, he raises his palm at the bone monster and fires a ray of searing light from it.
Derrik sees the child.. the father.. the Devilish creature taunting the spirits with its presence.. and is oddly.. calm. As Excalibur throbs from the Bone Devil he slowly steps forward.. allowing Dawnbringer to nestle in its special sheathe. Gripping Excalibur in two hands " Know creature.. although you will not live long to feel the pain of the atrocities you've given this family..and other innocents.. This blade is Excalibur.. and until your final breath.. you shall be purified from the inside out with its holy radiance in the most painful way. Submit to your fate! "
Suddenly charging forward and cleaving at its waist simultaneously as Mikey Sweeps.. meeting in the center to bisect the Devil.
GAAAAAAAAAAKKK!!!!
The two halves of the bone devil, bisected at the waist by simultaneous sweeps of Excalibur and "Betsey Jo", fall with a clatter to the ground and burst into holy, purifying flames!
Woah!!....Awesome!
MJ steps back from the blazing halves of the bone devil....
The father embraces his little girl for a long moment, then he raises his eyes to look at each of the FOs, smiling with gratitude.
Thank you, all of you.... Now my girl and I are going to get some ice cream in Heaven, thanks to you.... Come on, Harper.... They have ice cream like you've never tasted in Heaven.... And mommy's there, waiting for us.... We've missed you so much!
The little girl hugs her daddy, then turns and gives each of the FOs a big, happy smile, and blows them each a kiss.
The two ghosts then turn and walk into the shadows, melting away like a waking dream....
(FYI, you've earned XP for not only the bone devil, but for laying to rest two ghosts as well....)
Awww.... That was awesome, guys....
Smiling at the shadows where the two ghosts faded away, Daisy wipes tears away from her eyes....
Yingzen nods as the spirits leave before turning his attention to the room
Marcus pulls his wife in close and waves goodbye to the ghosts with his free hand.
He turns to Marie, deciding to take advantage of one of his more lucid moments.
"You know, I don't think I ever asked you...am I trapping you here? Do you WANT to pass on?"
Marie just shakes her head and smiles.
"Come on, you know you want to take a look around."
Marcus shrugs and starts looking around the room, his too excited grin reappearing as he does so.
"Come on! We have abominations to destroy, things to find!"
I think it's great....
Yingzen sheaths his sword and begins to sing softly to himself an ancient elven lullaby
Lor, lora, neo linda hín
Lor nu núra elmenel
Cena manen i olorë cara son lia
Ar sino tinta yare i isil na per
Lilta com eleni or fanya ar hisië
Mí hwinyari ve uner is cena
Lilta com vendë ve mí i olorë le neta
Ar anta vandi ve uner is anta
Vanda ana anta rin rino i olorëon coa
Ar fallë or i falmar ninqui
Vanda rin ana i coi noruva ya már
Ar le rin mí i menel noruva tana
Vanda ana anta rin i isil mine aurë
Ar ana le noruva lala mí oio valin
Cena tennana rin quent ya axan
Yare rin ve mine már tári noruva heri
Ar yrae rin san anta lin mine laurea corma
Noruva lin coiva mí caima yo lin amil
Ar cena ana rin anta lin se anvane arin
Ar lin vanda noruva ya anwi
Ea, neo linda hín
Lin vanda noruva ya anwi
Marcus looks at Yingzen oddly.
"That was, um, very good Yingzen."
Turning to Marie, he says in a stage whisper "Marie, remind me to buy Yingzen a bucket for his birthday, maybe it'll help him carry the tune."
Lavinia's expedition halts before a dusty, web-shrouded valve....
Yonder valve opens into the Vault o' Blades, if'n what Paw used to tell o' this place be true.... I'll cast a spell what ought still the blades for a time so as we can pass safely, my sweets....
She lays a bony hand on her son Wilbur's arm and points a bony finger at the ancient valve....
Open it, boy!
The flesh golem that was once Wilbur Wately shambles to obey its mother's command....
Sinews given unnatural strength by the lich's necromancy strain and creak as the golem turns the ancient valve and pulls it open, releasing a groan of stale air and dust....
In the circular vault beyond, the whistling and whirring of steel blades whipping around in a lethal orbit echoes in the darkness....
Lavinia raises her bony hands, moving them in arcane patterns, and chanting a brief incantation....
Dispel magic fails!
The blade barrier persists....
Blast! The priest what laid this ward was mighty indeed, my dearies....
She tries again....
Dispel magic succeeds!
This time, the blades fall with a great clangor to the vault floor and lay still.
Quick, now! Afore the magic reanimates the blades!
The lich leads her ghastly entourage through the vault and into a passageway on the other side....
T'ain't far now, my darlin's....
Hmmm.... Use caution when singing elven lullabies, Yingzen.... There be sleep magic in those ancient words and melodies....
Merlin appears seemingly out from the back of a Bourbon Street Grill kiosk, stifling a yawn....
....You'll put old Merlin to sleep! Heheh....
The old wizard becomes serious.
I'm sorry to interrupt your quest here in The Silver Tower.... Gods know it be an urgent quest, stamping out the evil here.... But there be greater and more immediate need of ye elsewhere.... Morgan La Fey has divined an imminent attack on Pandora's Box.... It seems your former ally, Mephos, has betrayed us.... Very soon, Mephos will lead an attack on Pandora's Box in the Canyon, and unless its mightiest champions come to its defense, the Box will surely fall, and the Redman tribes will surely be sacrificed or enslaved....as will the women rescued from Lido Key....
Mephos? Oh, yeah, he kinda disappeared as soon as you guys arrived at the Grand Canyon.... Seemed like a pretty shady dude to be hanging out with you guys, to tell you the truth....
Oh, no! No! We.... We have to go back, please! My people are in danger!
MJ puts an arm around Daisy and gives her a brief hug.
Don't worry, Daisy.... We're not gonna let your people face this alone.... Right, guys?
Morgan said we have three nights before the attack comes.... Ye may be more than capable of striking down the foul leaders who dwell above before we return to Pandora's Box, if ye still feel strong enough in magic and might.... I will leave that decision to yourselves, Fierce Ones.... If ye wish to finish first what ye've started here, I will await you here. If ye feel it can wait until after Pandora's Box has weathered the coming storm of evil, then let us make haste to return and plan our defense!
Through the forest of Yellowstone National Park stalks a tall, dark, cold figure....a graveknight in the service of Dread Cthulhu....
With him creep other creatures of darkness and evil--ghuls and vampires vomited from the dark gates of R'lyeh to haunt the world of the living....
These particular undead had a unique mission, charged to them by Cthulhu himself: hunt down and destroy the creatures of Ithaqua--the sasqwolves that dare to invade the realm of Great Cthulhu!
Yes, my faithful hounds! Track down the hairy brutes of Ithaqua the a Wind-Walker! Let us feast upon their flesh!
On wings of doom rode Mephos, Whisperer of Secrets, with the Rod of Faust in his hand....
And with him rode other minions of Dread Cthulhu....
A flight of shantaks bore death on the wind.... Undead commandos sent to silence Pandora's Box forever....
Vampires and ghuls sat in those queer saddles, snapping the reigns....
They would only fly by night.... When the sun shone in the sky, they hid in dark places in the Earth....
Marcus stands around confused and scratches his head.
"So, uh, what's going on here?"
It seems we have to make a choice--finish what we've started here at The Silver Tower now, knowing that we have three nights before the attack on Pandora's Box.... Or drop what we're doing here for now to prioritize the defense of Pandora's Box....
Mikey Jay speaks truly....
"By continuing on we run the risk of injury that might hinder us in the mountains. If we leave without taking the head from the shoulders of the enemy, they might pass word of our particular tendencies to Mephos and his new associates. Think hard and then decide, Arthur."
"Well if you're worried about injury, I'd relax. Between Daisy and I, I'm pretty sure we can get anyone patched up before we head out."
"Well unless one of us dies. I can't fix death. Sorry."
There are 13 floors.
What the hell is the use of goin up this tower if we ain't got a place ta hang our hats when we're done. I vote on goin back. I doubt this s#!t hole is goin anywhere, and if they fill it back up, all the better. That jus means we can come back here an kill more o'them b@$#@&ds. If HALF the crap read about this "Morpheus" jack hole is true, not to mention he is a turn coat of you lot, I think we could use all the damn prep work we can get ta make sure he either leaves with his tail between his legs or shoved right up his a$$ and through his black, back stabbin heart. At least, that's what I think for what it's worth.
Daisy nods in vigorous agreement with Mr Clean.
I vote we return here after my people are out of danger.
Okay.... Look.... It's, what? Maybe two o' clock right now?.... I just think we could finish up here--at the rate we've been mowing these clowns down--before sundown tonight! Then we return to the Box with the satisfaction of a job well-done here at the Tower, and can focus all of our attention on defending the Box. Does that make sense?.... I mean, if it seems like it'll take longer than the rest of today, I say we bail for now, and come back later.... But it just seems like we're getting so close to the top of this evil s%*$-pile, and I'd hate to think of how they'd shore things up during the three-plus days we'd be away.... Ya know?
Intelligence check
You know, it occurs to me a tad late, perhaps, but there were more pressing concerns at hand at the time.... Wouldn't removing the interior, weight-bearing walls and the floor between the fifth and sixth floors of a structure of this height seriously compromise the integrity of the Tower as a whole? Why, a good firm blow at a corner might bring the whole thing crashing down, might it not?
At the Oriental Salloon in Tombstone, Arizona, the dapper gentleman sat at the poker table clad in his finest hat, vest, and jacket, a hand-rolled cigar in his mouth, and a glitter in his feverish eyes....
He held in his nimble hands a full house.
I do hope you understand, Sheriff Hooker.... You have my utmost respect, of course.... As slayer of that old rakshasa who dug up my bones and desecrated my grave, robbing me of my Daisy, and hero of Tombstone, you will always have my eternal gratitude.... But the little fellow in Florida would make such a glorious use of my Daisy against the Great Old Ones that are all hot and bothered to rip our fair Earth asunder.... You simply must see the sense in passing on old Daisy to the hand that will use her to best advantage? She's going to waste as the sidearm of the Mayor and Sheriff of Tombstone.... This dusty little burg's become rather a bore lately, ever since we hunted that hussy of a succubus down....
*Sigh*.... I suppose you're right, Doc....
Dwayne Lee looked down at the potent revolver-artifact in its leather holster at his right side.... It didn't seem to weigh anything....
But ain't he gonna be too short for it? Won't it be too much gun for a little feller like you said he was?.... What is he, a midget?
No, not a midget.... More like.... A gnome, if you'll pardon my fancy depiction.... More like one of those industrious dwarves from Richard Wagner's Ring operas.... But I think he will find that Daisy fits his hand quite nicely....
Marcus looks at Chesterfield and pouts.
"Oh when I suggest it, it's the ravings of a madman! But when the talking top hat says it..." he grumbles.
looks at Daisy and speaks in the navajo tongue. Little sister lets head home, we shall save our tribe and return here tomorrow. After he speaks he seems to get distant and thoughtful.
Well, sir, you must understand that semi-insane ideas sound more plausible when coming from a talking object, rather than a homo sapien like yourself.... After all, humans have proven demonstrably insane throughout history, whereas talking objects have never been known for the like.