"Wrong one!" Meghan tells the dark elf with her usual slightly-crazy grin. Taking a roundabout route , the bard closes again and hacks at her foe with her longsword.
for
Excavation Site- Round 4 - continued
22 Cherry (18hp dmg)
20 Meghan (10hp dmg)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 8 rounds)
13 Purple Woman
9 Blue Blob
9 Red Blob (10hp dmg)
5 Orendel
3 Dougal (6hp dmg)
Working her way around the dark elf, Meghan stabs at her foe, and is a a bit surprised when what felt like a solid strike is turned aside by the strange elf's armor.
The elven woman counterattacks stabbing at Meghan with the bayonet point from her hand crossbow. The unusual weapon slips past the defenses of Meghan, and while the pain is there, its the poison, once again, that gets her. Trying not to, she slips slowly into unconsciousness. The elven woman reloads her hand-crossbow, shoving Meghan aside with a slippered foot.
The remaining dretch makes a series of attacks on Orendel. The savagery of the attack is unmatched, but the former soldier's armor and shield are up to the task, and they turn away all attacks the dretch has to offer.
Meghan knew it was risky to battle the purplish elf alone...but it was perhaps even more dangerous to ignore her and allow her to pump her crossbow bolts unimpeded into the party. By getting up-close-and-personal with the elf, Meg hoped to change that. The Calistrian bard didn't expect she could win a duel with the stately elf, but she didn't have to--just keep her occupied until the others could join the fight.
Meghan was a bit surprised when her sword slice failed to draw blood from her foe. The surprise cost her, as the elf's riposte with her small bladed crossbow slipped past her defenses, drawing a thin line of blood along her forearm. The wound hurt but, all things considered, it wasn't life-threatening; if this was the worst the elf could do with the small blade on the crossbow, things were looking up.
Then her whole body failed her in an instant. She slumped to her knees and the purple elf nudged her aside dismissively with a delicate slippered foot, sort of like a hiker might do with a wayward weed grown across a path. As she hit the floor, Meg's last thought was: This one is full of tricks...Z-z-z-z.
"Never mind me!" Orendel barks at the others. "Tend to the fallen and go after the elf!"
Then he returns his attention to the remaining demon.
Excavation Site - Round 4 - concluded
Meghan goes down in a heap, sleeping by the time she hits the ground, and with 2 teammates incapacitated and another seriously hurt, the situation is looking rather grim.
Orendel agrees to fight the demon himself, sending the others after the elf woman. He drives his tiger fork home, stabbing the points through the flabby flesh of the dretch. Unlike the other weapon attacks which seemed to have limited effect, this time the dretch screams and writhes in agony as the cold iron burns it.
End of Round 4
Excavation Site- Round 5
22 Cherry (12hp dmg)
3 Dougal (6hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 10 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 7 rounds)
13 Purple Woman
9 Blue Blob (7hp dmg)
5 Orendel
Trusting Orendel to handle the demon, Cherry lunges toward the dark elf, pointy end first.
Orendel stabs at the demon again.
Gods we are gonna die down here. Looking back and forth between the only two standing. But Orendel can take more hits than he can and Cherry is better when her opponent is distracted.
Excavation Site -Round 5 - continued
Cherry leaves the other wretched demon behind and moves to attack the elven woman with dark skin. Her rapier has been successful so far, but this time its point is shunted aside by strange armor the woman wears.
Following behind, Dougal moves the long way around to avoid getting in reach of the woman's deadly weapons. He ends up behind her, and next to to the slumbering Meghan.
Surrounded now, the elven fighter grimaces, and side-steps, hoping to take out the foes one at a time. She lunges and stabs her bayonet at Dougal. She skewers the priest with it, fortunately she didn't have time to re-apply the venom.
The dretch makes a full set of attacks on Orendel, and then steps back towards its mistress, looking to move to her aid, if not pressed. Orendel is able to turn back all the demonic attacks, relying on his shield to stop the last claw.
Orendel pursues the retreating dretch but cannot land a blow of his own on the flabby outsider.
End of Round 5
Excavation Site- Round 6
22 Cherry (12hp dmg)
3 Dougal (11hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 9 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 6 rounds)
13 Purple Woman
9 Blue Blob (7hp dmg)
5 Orendel
Cherry is only too happy to tumble back into a flanking position, and she takes advantage of the elf's reaction to her speedy spin-and-thrust to hit a vulnerable spot.
Excavation Site - Round 6 - continued
Cherry spins behind the dark elf once again, and this time her blade proves true, slipping through the protective covering and wounding the foe.
Bloodied, Dougal stands pat, trying to remain the flanking foil for Cherry's precision attacks. He takes a total defensive stance, covering up to protect himself if the dark-skinned woman continues trying to use him for a pin cushion.
As Cherry's blade hits her, the elven woman whirls out of the flanking spot, and stabs at the pesky tiefling with her bayonet. The attack hits Cherry, who is pretty badly hurt, in danger of falling out of the fight once more.
The dretch continues its fighting withdrawal, attacking Orendel while sliding backwards to get closer to its mistress. One claw just does catch Orendel, who fails to get his guard up in time, leaving an ugly scratch.
Glancing down at Meghan before getting up and moving to flank the drown with Cherry.
Cherry grits her teeth and redoubles her effort to shank the nasty elf, but it looks like a total party kill is in the cards.
Orendel continues poking at the demon.
Excavation Site - Round 6 - concluded
Pursuing the dretch, Orendel stabs again, but again the tiger fork's barbed prongs cannot penetrate the fleshy demon.
End of Round 6
Excavation Site- Round 7
22 Cherry (19hp dmg)
3 Dougal (11hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 8 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 5 rounds)
13 Purple Woman (15hp dmg)
9 Blue Blob (7hp dmg)
5 Orendel (2hp dmg)
Hurt badly, Cherry keeps the pressure on, flanking the elven fighter again but this time her attack is foiled by the foe's bayonet.
Dougal also attacks, but his rapier does not get through the enemy's defenses.
Meghan and Silvio continue to slumber the dreamless sleep of the drow poison.
The woman also sidesteps away from Cherry and attacks Dougal with her strange bayonet. The metal blade slips in under the ribs of the cleric, ripping and tearing upward with great effect.
The dretch continues its fighting retreat, attacking with tooth and claw, and then stepping backwards. The warrior blocks or parries all the attacks, and readies his own counter.
Excavation Site - Round 7 - concluded
Orendel steps up to the retreating demon and stabs at it with flurry of blows. Unfortunately, he slips in a trail of slime left by the dretch and stumbles enough that his attacks are worthless.
End of Round 7
Excavation Site- Round 8
22 Cherry (19hp dmg)
3 Dougal (21hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 7 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 4 rounds)
13 Purple Woman (15hp dmg)
9 Blue Blob (7hp dmg)
5 Orendel (2hp dmg)
Cherry tries to twirl past the elf to get back into a flanking position, but of course fails.
Excavation Site - Round 8 - continued
Cherry flits around the side of the elven fighter, but the woman has seen this trick too many times and is waiting for it. She stabs with her bayonet, but Cherry slips around it narrowly avoiding a blow that might turn the fight around.
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Purely by luck, Cherry manages to avoid the elf's blade, and she uses the surprise to plunge her rapier deep into the foe in an unexpectedly vulnerable moment.
Smiling when the blade misses Cherry and the lashes back, a stunning display of skilled violence. Maybe we won't die if she can keep that up. Quicker she goes down the quicker we can get back to helping Orendel.
Excavation Site - Round 8 - continued
Cherry's near miss does not stop her from continued aggressive action. Now positioned behind the dark-skinned elf again, she stabs hard in the kidneys, the magical rapier penetrating the strange armor and the woman's flesh. A spurt of bright red blood and a cry of real pain are the rewards for the rogue's efforts.
Dougal's own rapier is not as skilled and the point is turned aside by the woman's dark armor.
The elven woman is clearly badly hurt. "You're too late to stop us now, anyway," the woman nearly spits in accented Common speech. "Nothing will stop our plans at this point!" She withdraws moving past Cherry, whose thrust at her is limited due to her own wounds. The woman's withdrawal is purposefully towards an alcove in the southwestern wall, where you see a wooden ladder (hidden before) standing against the cavern wall. Much to your amazement, the woman eschews the ladder and just climbs right up the vertical wall 10' or so, still about 20' from the top of the ladder.
As its mistress changes direction, the dretch also pivots, standing between Orendel and her flight path. It continues lunging at him with full attacks. Orendel continues to fight off the multiple attacks in fine fashion.
Cherry isn't going to let the elf escape that easily, and races across the room, then makes a high jump and lashes out with her rapier. Sadly, she just can't finish the job.
Orendel follows the dretch and tries to finish it off.
Excavation Site - Round 8 - concluded
Orendel makes one more flurry of attacks on the dretch, the first narrowly missing, the second scoring a hit. The cold iron burns through the protective fat layers, and hurts the demon badly but not enough to topple it.
End of Round 8
Excavation Site- Round 9
22 Cherry (19hp dmg)
3 Dougal (21hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 6 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 3 rounds)
13 Purple Woman (40hp dmg)
9 Blue Blob (16hp dmg)
5 Orendel (2hp dmg)
Cherry flies across the room and makes a leaping stabbing attempt at the climbing elven woman, but she is too high up to reach easily and the attack misses.
Growling in frustration, Cherry throws her magical rapier to the ground and switches to her bow.
Trailing behind Cherry but stopping at the creature Orendel is battling. Maybe he can get freed up.
"Thanks for the assist, Dougal!" Orendel replies as he tries to finish the dretch off.
Excavation Site - Round 9 - concluded
Cherry drops her rapier and fires at the elven woman climbing the wall. Her shot seems pretty well lined up , but cannot penetrate the woman's strange black armor.
Dougal moves up to the remaining demon and stabs at it. He surprises himself by scoring a direct hit, however the immense blobby skin of the dretch absorbs the rapier blow and the demon is unharmed.
The woman gets to the top of the wall and ducks through a doorway she opens there at the top of the ladder, disappearing from view.
The dretch continues to fight pressing Orendal some more. None of its attacks hit the well-armored brawler.
Orendel's own counter attacks on the dretch fail to hit.
End of Round 9
Excavation Site- Round 10
22 Cherry (19hp dmg)
3 Dougal (21hp dmg)
20 Meghan (14hp dmg, asleep 5 rounds)
18 Silvio (9hp dmg, asleep, 2 rounds)
13 Purple Woman (40hp dmg) - escaped
9 Blue Blob (16hp dmg)
5 Orendel (2hp dmg)
Cherry throws her bow to the ground in frustration, kicks up her rapier back into her hand, and stalks back into position to fight the dretch.
"Well now everything's ruined and I'm sure we'll be killed in our sleep," she says.
"Been feeling that way for awhile honestly." We couldn't leave the other two sleeping down here and I am doing nothing here!
Excavation Site - Round 10 - concluded
Cherry throws down her bow in disgust, letting the elven drow woman escape without direct pursuit.
As the tiefling returns to fight, Dougal lands a blow that does slip through the demon's flabby skin and kills it outright, ending the fight in the underground room.
End of Combat
The entire fight lasted about a minute and 10 seconds later, or so, Silvio wakes from his slumber and looks around at the aftermath. A few seconds after that, Meghan also awakens rubbing her head which is pounding with the aftermath of the toxin.
Looking around the room once again, you can see this was some sort of work area. There is a table full of tools next to the strange glyph-covered stone pillar that rises from floor to ceiling. Among other stone work tools, there is an adamantine chisel, which has been used to deface parts of the runes on the stone.
A book written in a strange language lies open on the table. The book appears to be a diary of some kind, but it is hard to make heads or tails of the strange characters used.
Silvio stirs at last to find his allies injured but alive, two dead dretches, and no dark elf in sight. "Ugh, I take it we won despite that elf's poisons? It seems Kwava, our mysterious ally, was right about all of it. A renegade elf who joined with Saul Vacaskerkin."
Getting back on his feet, he looks at the book written in a strange script for some clues about what was happening.
And apparently understands none of it. He then tries a more magical strategy, pulling out a scroll and calling forth divine magics.
Meghan stirs with a groan, sitting up but not yet trusting her legs enough to try to stand. Looking around a bit, the Calistrian convert sees no sign of the violet elf that laid her low.
"Saul's friend escape?" she asks, regaining her feet, positioning herself near her new comrades, and channeling positive energy twice.
"No time! We can STILL catch her!" Orendel replies as Meghan and Silvio wake up. He starts running towards where Cherry had been.
"She walked up the wall and out of our lives," says Cherry bitterly. "We can't climb that as fast as she can! She's gone, Orendel."
Rubbing at his face and speaking though his palm, "We didn't die so lets focus on that. Along with fights a lot of smelling lizards and whatever those things are."
Waving a hand towards the demon, "We all made it so I say we go get some rest and maybe a drink. Cause we fought well and didn't die."
Meg looks to the others, but when Orendel moves to pursue the purple elf, the Calistrian bard follows. "Can't let you run off after her alone," she says with her slightly crazy smile. "Besides...I've got a spell or three left in me."
Orendel makes for the ladder intending to pursue the escaping elven woman. He gets about 5' up.
Silvio takes up the strange journal and realizes he cannot make heads or tails of it.
Meghan channels energy to heal, restoring hit points, while following Orendel towards the ladder.