While the others talk, Odebie stands long in thought. "We have a problem. We will not leave her here, but we may not be able to fight as we are - if another fiery hound is here, we will die. We must change the game somehow... how far down are we? Far enough to avoid the statue?"
"Perhaps but I believe the solution is still blocking his perception of us so we had best work quickly before its effectiveness wears off," Byron states breathlessly. "It might be best to strike quickly while unexpected and hope that the advantage of going unnoticed by his fire elementals is enough to tip the battle in our favor."
"The elemental we passed barely registered us, even if all that means is that he has to command them to attack us directly, it may be the best advantage we have?"
"Karina, you asked if you could help, and I think you can, but it will require you to be extraordinary. I need you to go disturb him in his sanctum and get him to come out into the hallway where we can ambush him. Maybe ask him where the bathroom is or something. He will be greatly annoyed at you. The more, the better, as it will drive him to pay less attention to us."
Answering Osric's two questions, Karina breathlessly says, "I've seen him open the door. He doesn't press a hidden button on the wall or anything before stepping in, so I don't think it is trapped."
She gulps. "I'll try. But, I've already used the bathroom around here - that won't convince him. Do you have a better suggestion? My mind is a blank with how maledettamente scared I am. All I can think about is dying, like," her voice catches for a moment, "like Karisa did."
"Hmm, I can think of two other options. You could either ask him for food or spit in his face in defiance. Heh, better yet, if the bathroom down here is a chamber pot, that might be effective as well. As Fi stated, our fates are tied together now. You're just as safe as the rest of us, no matter what happens. I don't know if that's comforting or terrifying."
"We don't want to push him too far, but will simple histrionics get his attention?"
Karina laughs at Osric's suggestion, a desperate, brittle sound. "Even if it doesn't work, it will be worth it to see my merda e piscio on his face." She goes to the far corner of the room, and grabs a small chamber pot. Her eyes are wide and bright.
"Forgive the imposition, Fi, but with your permission, I would like to quaff another potion of impersonation to assume your appearance. I believe his misplaced affection for you might lead him to hesitate upon seeing two of you."
Assuming Fi is okay with it, I'll do that before the ambush begins.
My surprise round will consist of giving +4 to hit for both Fi and Odebie (spending inspiration for a swift action).
"Well, that's certainly an interesting tactic, I'd say try and capture my best light, but perhaps an accurate likeness would better suit our needs."
Fiordelise takes cover behind a statue as best she can readies her bow, ensuring her sword is positioned ready to draw. Her voice aches to sing for battle, but that would instantly draw attention to which of her is the real one.
Byron picks a statue not too far from the door, gets out one of his experimental ice bombs, and gets ready to finish the mixture and throw it.
Osric drinks the extract and takes on Fi's form, then tries to find a place behind cover that also keeps everyone within the radius of the solution.
Odebie will take his position to the side of the door; if it opens outwards he'll be on the side where he won't be seen.
Cradling the chamber pot like an infant, Karina leads the four of you back to the hallway. Her single set of footprints in the ancient dust have been obliterated - only a confusion of heels and toes remains. The sole v'Ricci sister nearly screams in fright as a ragged banner happens to droop from the ceiling and caress her shoulder. The scream only comes out as a tiny squeak. She takes a deep breath and starts forward again.
A tense silence envelopes the group. Only the faint bubbling of the celeric-blue liquid and the restrained breathing of five elens breaks the absolute quiet. At the T-intersection, the elemental still stares dumbly at the torch.
Closer to the double-doors, you see the metal is engraved with hundreds of tiny characters, in a language none of you recognize. The intricate whorls and curls seem to hint at a pattern beyond the simple meaning of the words. Walking briskly now, Karina shifts the pot to her left arm and puts her hand on the over-sized golden handle of the right door.
After briefly glancing over her shoulder to confirm you are all in place, she opens the door a crack and projects, in a lilting stage voice, "My lord! I have a matter of utmost importance to discuss with you!"
With a grunt of effort, she swings the right door open wide. From your vantage point, you see a thin slice of what appears to be a very large throne room. A tall figure in red plate armor is seated upon a filigree throne of gold and silver. Raised high upon a dais, the figure does not turn his head toward the girl as she speaks. Behind him are the flags of dozens of nations and cities - the only one even vaguely familiar to any of you is that of the North Tribe of the oreads.
Karina's voice echoes as she enters the stone chamber. Statues engaged in acts of perversion tower over her; their eyes have been hacked away. "My lord!" She bows deeply, her ornate dress rustling as she does so. "Please, forgive the intrusion-"
The figure slowly turns toward her. A smiling golden mask covers his face. A single word, uttered in a deep voice. "No."
Karina screams and falls to the ground, clutching at her throat. The chamber pot clangs to the floor. Offal runs between the cracks in the stones. The air fills with the stinging stink of old excrement and burning skin.
One more innocent body on the pile.
I'm giving +4 to Odebie and Fi, as discussed.
"Leave her alone. I'm here"
Byron had hoped to get closer, so for now he drinks an extract to prepare himself better to attack.
Crouching behind the closed door and trying to see past the body, Odebie hefts his hammer and readies a swing at the creature should he try to step through the door.
Readying an action to attack him if he should try to come into the hallway.
Fi's arrows finds a gap in the gleaming red armor right at the shoulder. Corazon grunts with pain and surprise, and his masked face jerks toward the entrance.
Opening his arms in a warm, embracing gesture, he booms, "Fiordelise! I'm so delighted you could make it. It would have been a shame to have you devoured by the curse." Corazon steps off the dais, then stops. He cocks his head. "But I told you to wear the silver dress!" On the last two words, his voice is joined by a screech from behind his mask, similar to the sound of a knife scratching a plate.
Corazon draws his longsword. The blade has wine-red sheen where it catches the light. With his other hand, he points at Fiordelise, then clutches his fist, hand shaking with the effort. "Join me, my love!"
Fi, you feel a horrid pressure mount in your temples. A second later, the solution Osric is holding bubbles furiously, and the feeling subsides. The ruby within the solution is nearly gone.
I suggest we move in unison (to stay close to the solution) and pound on this guy as quickly as possible.
"Hey pagona breath! What about me? Don't you want my love?"
Assuming everyone is up for charging, I'll double move to get our AoE up to him, then give Fi +4 to hit again.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Fiordelise fires off another shot, then lets the bow fall to the floor, drawing her blade.
"You hurt my friends and family, Corazon. Elen weaker than you with no means to fight back. I will claim your heart, so I can crush it in my hand." she moves out to stand in front of the group.
Byron will follow as Osric charges, then throw his bomb at the end of a single move (35' for him).
His face is set in a furious focus as he hurls the vial end-over-end. He had no words for this creature. Only icy death.
Slamming the door aside with his shoulder, Odebie makes for Corazon and swings an overhanded blow at his masked face.
Corazon bats away the arrow that Fi fires. Odebie's hammer, slightly mistimed, bounces off the red plate armor with little effect. Osric's ice bomb hits him dead on, and a teakettle-whistle of pain comes from the mask.
The tall figure mostly ignores these attacks, however - he focuses solely on Osric(Fi). Shaking with rage, he points a single quivering finger at him. "You dare? !"
A yellow-red ray, painfully bright, erupts from his pointing finger and slams into Osric's chest. The solution bubbles furiously once again, but Osric still feels a painful heat scorch him
You all feel a strange sensation in the pit of your stomach, similar to an unexpected fall. The blue light from the solution fades, and the chunk of ruby is completely gone. Your protective field has run out.
Corazon screams, in High Ifrit, "Veni ad me!" A moment later, the fire elemental from the hallway enters.
"Ow!"
It's clear the disguise isn't convincing, but at least it's maybe making him act a little less rationally.
As sarcastic and mockingly as he can, Osric continues to provoke him.
"Why, my love? Why burn my longing heart?"
Standard action: chug a dew
Move action: +4 to hit for Fi
Swift action: +4 to hit for Odebie
Fiordelise rushes forwards, drawing her blade and calling upon spirits of legend to aid her.
Not wanting to splash his friends with one of his bombs, and not wanting to be flanked, Byron tosses his next bomb at the approaching elemental.
Reversing his grip, Odebie tries to hit Corazon on the backswing.
Odebie connects directly with Corazon's head. The golden mask flies away, clanging when it hits the floor. v'Manco's once-handsome face is utterly ravaged: his skin is covered in blisters and pustules, several of his teeth are large and sharp-looking, and one of his eyes is a blank, pupil-less yellow.
Holding his hands out before him, v'Manco screams, "Die and leave her to me!" A waves of flame erupts from his hands, washing over all of you.
The fire elemental recoils at Byron's ice bomb. Its light is nearly out. It sprints toward the torches in the southwest corner, knocking them to the ground. As the two flames make contact with the dusty bones on the floor, two small fire elementals scurry away and hide behind the statues.
I want to get a split second idea of whether that mask was enchanted or merely decorative. My thinking is that I'm holding a solution that interferes with ruby/efreet magic, and fun stuff might happen if I put it where the ruby once was.
If a 23 makes that seem like a good idea, I'll move over to where the mask fell and and submerge it in the solution.
If not, +4 to hit for both Fi and Odebie.
"I don't know what you've done to yourself, but this ends now."
With swift reflexes born of avoiding more explosions than he has had any right to survive, Byron manages to avoid the worst of the flames.
"Heads down!" he calls out, then tosses his last ice bomb at v'Manco. He would apologize to his friends after making sure they didn't all burn to death.
That done he moves to the right side of the room, thinking it best to be farther away from the elementals and not in an easily-burned cluster.
Byron's ice bomb shatters in a cryogenic cloud around v'Manco, who again screams in pain.
Odebie, barely on his feet swings his hammer so hard that he twirls around once, and falls flat on his back. The air whistles as the heavy hammer-head flies through the air, connecting with v'Manco's abdomen.
As v'Manco is doubled over from Odebie's attack, Fi slices halfway through his neck with her longsword. Blood gouts from the hideous wound, and v'Manco falls bonelessly to the floor.
A red mist pours out of v'Manco's mouth, nose, and eyes. Rather than dissipating, the mist thickens, and begins to form a coherent shape: a face. Within the crimson cloud are hints of burning yellow eyes and a cruel mouth. A bright light begins to shine from v'Manco's chest, but this is mostly obscured by his armor.
The larger fire elemental, as well as the two smaller ones, wander over to old, moldering banquet tables and start setting them on fire.
Fi, as you cut straps and maneuver the breastplate out of the way, you see a large chunk of ruby. Judging from its jagged edges, this is the 'mother' of the smaller piece you possessed earlier. It is roughly the size of a child's skull. The red mist seems to be coming directly from its gleaming red facets.
At first, you assume the gem is suspended on a necklace, but you see no chain. Upon closer inspection, the ruby is embedded into his flesh, right above his heart. Around the ruby, v'Manco's veins are a sickly dark-red, as if they are fighting an infection. The skin is puckered and weeping. The ruby itself glows with a blazing, malevolent light that is too bright to look at for long.