Kessai curses an epithet with venom and, seeing one goblin fall and feeling the tide flow for her allies rides the wave. Blood streaming from her cheek she lashes out again at the goblin that sliced her.
Kessai's swing goes wide. It's clear that while her confinement makes her more than willing to engage in fisticuffs, her training lies elsewhere.
The remaining goblin takes one look over its shoulder...
...and begins to turn toward the door...only to see it closed by a small kobold. The goblin drops to its knees and drops its sword.
The large vermin lunges again at Mal'kolenth...
As Mal fades to unconsciousness, he begins feeling a crawling itching sensation. Then all is black.
Round 4
Those bolded below may act.
...
Gray Goblin Dead
Red Goblin 5 damage, prone and disarmed
Green Goblin* Quite Dead
Goblin Dog 1 damage
Akula
Julio
Blitz
Mal'Kolenth Now prone and unconscious
Meepo
Round 5
Kessai
Seeing the dark elf go down Julio run forward to skewer the beast.
"Bad ugly dog! Bad! Leave that Mal'Kolenth alone.
Mal'kolenth bleeds viciously in the goblin dogs direction.
"Bad doggie!! Chew on this!"
Akula moved to the door and touched his new companion's leg, healing his wounds.
Kessai grows a feline head as Mouf emerges on her shoulder. Snarling, the feline fixes the unarmed goblin with a baleful glare. Kessai snarls too, a single word in the Common tongue.
"Stay!"
Standard Action: Intimidate red goblin.
Julio finally gets into the fray and trips over his feet in his attempt to attack.
Blitz's strike also goes wide although it seems the wild rodent is living on borrowed time...
Akula leans over and grabs Mal'kolenth's ankle. A warm glow emanates from the touch momentarily before subsiding.
Mal'kolenth wakes up to find the fight still raging around him. He sees the mangy beast's leg not one foot from his face and his new companions seem to be surrounding it. He feels like hell...if hell were an extremely itchy place.
The goblin stays on its knees, totally cowed by the witch standing over him...although he is trying to sneak looks back at what is happening.
The rodent of unusual size lashes out at the pretty boy human (Julio)...
...and comes away with a portion of the man's thigh.
Round 5
Those bolded below may act.
...
Red Goblin 5 damage, prone and disarmed
Goblin Dog 1 damage
Akula
Julio
Blitz
Mal'Kolenth prone and barely conscious
Meepo
Round 6
Kessai
Julio laments the loss of his best pants.
Akula stepped up and swung his axe at the giant rat-thing, but it was too quick.
Blitz, hell bent on proving he will be proficient with his chosen weapon, attempt to put the dog to its eternal sleep.
Mal'kolenth scoots away from the dog and any potential viscera.
Kessai ignores the affray and keeps her guard up, eyeing the goblin intensely. Mouf's tail jitters, and he favours the goblin with a throaty yowl.
Ready Action: Wallop goblin with spiked gauntlet if it moves.
And with one well aimed stab, Blitz jams his blade through the muscle around the "dog's" shoulder and right into the thing's heart. It lets out a wet sigh as it slumps to the ground.
Picking through the bodies, you come across a total of 75 gold pieces, mostly held by the goblin you assume to be the leader. In addition the gold chain he is wearing looks like it should be worth between 100 and 200 gold.
None of the weapons wielded by the goblins appear to be worth anything.
Meepo says, "Shhh", and presses his ear to the door leading north.
After a moment, he shakes his head and says in a low voice, "You guys are too loud. There's too many goblins around to keep this up forever."
Kessai's eyes lift not from the cowering goblin.
"The kobold, though irritating, is correct. There are too many goblins. This one, I can bewitch, and it may prove useful in dealing with the rest. If you like."
The goblin's attention is all over the place but keeps returning to the witch. Then, all at once, it begins to focus completely on the woman.
Kessai smiles, not a kind smile, the kind that doesn't make it to her eyes. She stares at the hapless goblin.
"Good. Focus on me. Good. 1. Two children, a knight and a wood cutter - where can we find them? 2. Which way shortest to get there? 3. How many goblins that way? 4. What traps that way?"
The goblin's head sways back and forth and it responds immediately in goblin, "Not children but a brother and sister and a holy warrior. The three fought like devils when we cornered them. Durnn punished the brother to hurt the sister and then we had to send them on because Belak wanted them. They should be down in the grove but we haven't seen them in a while. You want to go there?" The goblin cackles, then coughs and some blood is coating its lips.
"I wish you Lamashtu's luck to get there. Durnn's throne sits on the passage...", he gestures vaguely to the northwest, "...and I've never travelled to the grove. I'm not going to take you to Durnn either. He'd kill me."
"If we are going to continue I will need some healing. That rat-dog's bite really hurts."
"May be time to rest before continuing further." Akula said.
"Yeah, a thorough rest will do us some good, and Akula will prolly be able to mend those pants again Julio. Not right for a true gentleman to be out and about looking in such a state!"
"As I'm getting light headed from blood loss, I wouldn't mind some healing coming my way as well."Mal'kolenth chimes in as he tries to slowly sit up.
"Where is safe?" Akula asked Meepo.
Meepo makes a strange clucking sound and answers, "Kobold halls are open to you. There are two routes there. We have traveled one, the other I don't know...What about the goblins? We've killed many and then there is that one..."...and he points to the goblin on its knees.
Kessai smiles the not-friendly smile.
"How are you called?". The eldrite waits for the goblin to offer its name, then edges closer.
"We spare you now. Later I might feed you to my cat. One piece at a time while you yet live. Do not cross us or seek help from those who failed you."
The goblins eyes grow large as it hears the threats translated to it. "B...B...Borux. Of the Durbuluk tribe. What do I do then? I can leave but I can't get past the kobolds by myself! Every time we want to leave we have to push through the kobolds with swords. Now you've killed many of our fighters..."
The little humanoid looks pitiful. It's hard to tell but you think it may be pale from loss of blood. It thinks it is being kicked out of its home...
"Let me go...help me leave...Durnn's throne is that way...he points vaguely northwest. There are two doors to it. One from the east...you can get to it from the long room with the torches on the other side of that door..."...he is pointing to the door you came through.
"...the other door to his throne is from the south and comes from the village."
"Borux. You will stay by my side, and assist me. And in time, you might find a way out of this...mess....alive."
"So, It's back to Meepo's room for a night.s sleep?'
Blitz makes a recommendation and leads the party back the way they came, doubling back past the long hall with the torches and the pair of barriers now surrounded by multiple dead goblin bodies and finally past the boarded up doorway and bloody tracks on the floor where you encountered the strange birdlike crone.
It does not take long to get a new fire started, although the lack of ventilation makes the air thicken with smoke. Apparently there are natural air currents, though and the air remains easily breathable. The party sets a watch order and rests.
Julio draws the final lot for a watch and so it is him who hears the yelling begin. It sounds like it is coming from the direction of the main kobold halls (towards Yusdrayl). It isn't long before he hears the sound of steel on steel echoing down the hall.
The party stirs awake, looking at Julio for information on what is happening. Borux sits stairing at Julio, eyes wide (for a goblin).
"Sound like the Kobold may need some help. What do you think Meepo?"
As Mal'kolenth listens he drinks a red potion and a few of his wounds miraculously fade.
Blitz jumps up and straps on his scizore after the full rest,
"Everyone to attention! It looks like we got work to do!"
Kessai stirs, her cat erupting from their sleeping place and stretching. Sensing the alarm, Kessai leaps up and clutches her longspear, cursing its disrepair.
Akula took fifteen minutes to pray, and then healed Mal without a word.
And then Blitz.
Akula did not sleep that night. He worked instead, continuing to make additions and modifications to his Longbow.
By morning, Akula had taken the broken bow and the spare string he'd gotten from the skeletons his bow originally belonged to, and reinforced the arms, binding them. Then he twisted the two strings together and restrung it. The resulting bow was ugly, and would be unwieldy for most people, but it's draw power would be unmatched.
When Blitz called the warning, Akula simply stood up, his new bow in hand.
Julio limps along behind the party as they run off to see what is happening.
Meepo begins to get up and says, "Goblinses attack sometimes. We are not without defenses. The bounders will be trying to hold until Yusdrayl comes and ends it..."
Almost on cue, what can only be the sound of an explosion comes from the direction of the battle. For now though, the sounds of more mundane fighting continues...along with the occasional growl in Draconic or Goblin.
As of yet, there is no sign of attack where you are.
Julio throws out an idea, "Maybe this is the time that we should move through the goblins territory. They seem to be easy and I would hate to break up the kobolds fun."
"A good plan Julio - if the goblins are distracted by war with kobolds, perhaps we use that to our advantage."
Kessai turns to look at Borux and Meepo. "What might that explosion be?"
Borux, looking very nervous at this turn of events keeps his mouth shut. For his part, Meepo speaks up and says, "That's Yusdrayl's magicks. Strange that it didn't stop the fighting though...Are you thinking Calcryx is unguarded?"
"Sneaking up behind the goblins sounds like a wise plan. If Calcryx is with them there will still be guards. They will be less though."
Kessai looks confused.
""Who is Calcryx?"
"Calcryx is the kobold's pet dragon. The goblins kidnapped it. The cage they kept it in was rather small so don't worry too much about it. All we have to do is convince it to return with Meepo."
Meepo nods vigorously at Julio's description. [b]"She is our joy and our pride. You think the cage too small? We did not notice. Perhaps we will need a new one.
"I would suggest you do away with the cage entirely, or when the dragon is old enough to turn its situation around you won't be pets you'll be food.,Mal'kolenth warns meepo grimly.
"Either kill a thing, or set it free. Nothing belongs in a cage." Akula said flatly.
Kessai nods with some force.
"I agree" she murmurs, looking at Mal'kolenth. The cat, Mouf, yawns and stretches, completely unfazed by events nearby.