"Hey naw, I oin't na belf, I'm o Grig! A Beoutiful fey, in service to her Lody!" The Grig corrects Bage. "Ond yau're in my Lody's Waad!"
Zaidel walks toward the grig and bows with a flourish. Wow! A grig! An actual fairy!
"Dear Miss Babey, we beg pardon. We did not know that we were trespassing. We would gladly and peacefully exit The Lady's beautiful wood, if you would please show us the way out. And if it is pleasing to you, would also provide some information about the surrounding area? That would be immensely helpful".
The Vulture King raises his eyebrows, "You owe me your life? I have one simple request. I would ask that you take some time to say a brief prayer to me every now and again. It has been countless ages since I last felt worship. I must ask, as my companions and I are...new to this place, where are we?"
Joseph goes to pat the vulture king on the back for a job well done, but soon after thinks better of it. "Lets get headed back. If they didn't at least learn something I swear to whatever sick twisted being that created us that I'll... I... I'll do something."
When the faerie shows up, something deep inside him resonates with the tiny creature. He beings to talk to her in a very strange language.
*Sylvan*: "Well met Babey, my old name was John, but that doesn't feel right any more. And yes that boy definitely smelled like bononos and domnotian."
Babey grins wide when she hears her native tongue, and responds clearly and without an accent in that language.
She says without a hint of irony.
"My name is Kei. Nice to meet you!" says Kei as he bows to the creature.
"Hella Kei!" She trumpets excitedly, thrilled to be paid attention to by this handsome boy.
She hops up into the air and gently lands on Kei's shoulder. "Yau're os hondsame os on Elven Lard." She whispers in his ear, creepily running one of her cricket legs down his cheek, in a move she probably thinks is alluring but feels more to Kei like an insect is crawling across his face.
She shakes her head. "None of this makes sense. How is this possible?" Her voice breaks.
Ruskarl doesn't seem to know how to respond to her question, if he even understands what she is referring to. Unsure, he says nothing then pats her on the shoulder in a gesture he undoubtedly thinks is supposed to be comforting but just comes off as patronizing.
He moves back to the others and crosses his arms as he listens to their exchange.
"Dear Miss Babey, we beg pardon. We did not know that we were trespassing. We would gladly and peacefully exit The Lady's beautiful wood, if you would please show us the way out. And if it is pleasing to you, would also provide some information about the surrounding area? That would be immensely helpful".
"Never been autside it myself, but I knaw where the edge is." Babey responds from her perch on Kei's shoulder. "I'm sure the Lody wauld wont me ta help yau in ony woy I con, os yau seem ta be same truly kind heorted beings!"
She climbs onto Kei's head and points with a cricket leg in the direction the others had left previously. "I'll shaw yau the woy!" She declares cheerfully.
The Vulture King raises his eyebrows, "You owe me your life? I have one simple request. I would ask that you take some time to say a brief prayer to me every now and again. It has been countless ages since I last felt worship. I must ask, as my companions and I are...new to this place, where are we?"
She picks up her great katana and draws it, holding her blade out with two hands length wise across her palms in a ritual gesture of offering, she makes a promise on the service of her blade.
"I shall offer you a prayer every morn and every night." She swears. "This I promise on my Nodachi."
Despite the inherent theatrics of her gesture it doesn't seem a dramatic move, rather a sincere offering of thanks.
"Here specifically? Not sure, I've been out of it for awhile, this world is Maia, however and last I was aware we were fleeing the outskirts of the Kingdom of Al'Lamar."
"Every morn and night? A pleasant surprise. In any case, we should best rejoin the group. Safety in numbers and all that."
"Well, I guess we have a way out..." Bage says, trailing off. He gives an unsure look at the others before asking, "Miss...Babey. Do you know where the others that were with us are as well? We'd like to regroup with them on the way out if possible."
Probably start another fight, but I can't help worrying all the same. Maybe it's because they are the weakest of the group. Well, besides that bird god anyway.
Lucas looks at everybody else in the group as Babey leads Kei out of the Wood and shrugs at them, "We don't know where we are or why we're here, if there's a reason at all. That direction is as good as any."
She pinched her nose as she walked across the drawbridge into the cavernous maw of the castle’s gate. That is truly rank. Kanzen thought as she stared down into the corrosive slop that served as the castle’s moat. Her Vampire escort seemed to be unaffected by the noxious smog rising from the bubbling liquid but her goblins were struck with a severe case of projectile vomiting. Ak’Gak roared with laughter as his friends splattered each other in rancid bile. He was elbowing Kanzen’s knee, wanting her to turn and look when he suddenly lost his lunch as well, spewing a half digested meal all over her feet.
He looked up at her, his eyes widening to impossible size and was beginning to say something the moment she kicked him off the bridge. He shrieked as he landed in the foul soup and sunk below the surface, his body disintegrating as the strange gunk digested him.
The other goblins stared at her in horror.
“Go.” She bade them. “I know where the Lance is now, I have no need for your services.” With that she turned and walked away.
The Vampire leader, ‘Varis’ he had introduced himself as, chuckled. “They’ll die swiftly in this land without you to protect them.” He noted.
“That’s none of my concern.” Kanzen replied, her voice devoid of inflection.
“Heh. I think perhaps you and the Count will get along swimmingly, you both show your minions the same amount of care.” Varis observed.
Kanzen said nothing, just continuing forward to enter the fortress’s courtyard. The entire Castle appeared to be made of an ugly gray granite which formed chipped and dusty blocks that added a great deal to the feeling of decay that gripped the keep. Massive spires towered oppressively over the courtyard and hideous gargoyles leered down upon any that dared to enter. Throughout the open yard on both the floor and walls were strange concave impact zones of cracked granite that looked as if a giant had slammed a hammer down upon it.
Perhaps this was the case as before Kanzen stood two Dire’Orgs guarding the Castle’s inner gate. Dire’Orgs were the half-breed spawn of a Demon and a Giant. They were humanoid in shape with red leathery skin and massive horn-like spikes protruding from various places on their bodies. Their raw strength and toughness were legendary.
“The Count doesn’t lack for security.” Kanzen commented dryly.
“He likes his privacy.” Varis responded. “Though if you find them impressive just wait till you see what he uses to guard the things he actually cares about. Come now, the Count awaits.” The steel grate of the inner gate rose as they approached.
Kanzen considered the Dire’Orgs as she past them. The giants, being half Demon, would be quite sensitive to her aura and yet as she moved between them they didn’t so much as flinch. Impressive indeed. She thought. Perhaps this Count will live up to his reputation as an all-powerful dark god. In addition to the physical gate Kanzen felt herself pass through a number of mystical wards as well, though they deactivated to let her through without harassment.
The outer keep was run through with dark, dank halls. The spiritual oppression Kanzen had detected over the castle intensified immeasurably as she traveled through the shadowy tunnels. All about small creatures scurried and large beasts slithered. A strange tableau of mutants, freaks, and Demons gathered to watch her on her illustrious journey to the throne room of the Count.
Why are they here? Kanzen wondered. Are they hoping to gain the Count’s favor like Varis said? Or are they simply drawn to his side by his powerful aura? Many were the times foul creatures had attempted to play lackey to Kanzen for this reason but she had little use for minions so most of the hopefuls ended their lives as shredded piles of meat soon after approaching her. Still, I’m a loner who moves around a lot. Perhaps if I were to lair down for a few centuries I would begin to see the charm in hordes of filthy admirers. She mused.
Varis lead Kanzen around for many hours through strange architectural loops and cul de sacs before finally moving through the dark gates of the inner keep to the Castle beyond. What lay ahead was surprising even to the eyes of a well-traveled Demon Lord like Kanzen.
Varis lead her across an ornately built skybridge wide enough for six carriages to ride abreast that towered over a sea of amazingly rich mansions and their grounds.
Kanzen walked to the edge and looked down. The mansions, each outfitted well enough to entertain royalty, were spread haphazardly across a landscape of crystal lakes and gorgeous gardens. The palaces were sequestered from each other by towering hedge mazes that produced a sense of mysterious and enticing isolation. Kanzen could see Vampire couples stalking quietly through the foliage, hunting frightened humans released within for the Vampires’ hunting pleasure. The mansions themselves were brightly lit and filled with Undead party goers, whiling away the endless nights in sensuous abandon. Kanzen looked up to the exposed sky, realizing the full moon was in the same place it had been hours earlier when she first entered the keep. It’s always night here. She realized.
“Coming?” Varis called, clearly enjoying her enrapt appreciation of the Count’s lands.
Taking one last look she turned and nodded.
“Follow me.” He beckoned.
She did.
It took the better part of an hour just to cross the lengthy skybridge but soon they stood before a pair of ornately carved doors a thousand feet in height. The adamantine monstrosities opened smoothly without a sound at Kanzen’s approach.
“We must wait here.” Varis said, gesturing to himself and his fellow knights. “Even one as powerful as I am not allowed in the master’s presence without an express invitation. You must continue your journey alone.”
Kanzen did as he bade and continued on into the gaping maw of the fortress’s heart without comment. She soon disappeared from her escort’s view as the doors swung silently shut behind her.
Before her was a massive staircase covered in a smooth vermilion carpet. She ascended the steps slowly, her path lit by golden candelabras, and entered the Count’s titanic throne room.
She crossed the nearly mile long room, admiring the marble floors and ornately carved ivory pillars that reached up into the supernatural darkness thousands of feet above.
A pleased smile crossed her face when she finally stood at the feet of the Vampire Lord’s titanic throne and stared up at his stony countenance.
At last, time for answers. She thought.
The war with the Trolls of the Smiling Fangs had been brief but brutal, and without Oni'Tyran's magic and the torches he had equipped his Ogre minions with the Trolls most likely would have won. Despite his victory Oni'Tyran's force had lost half their number, leaving the Ogre Mage with a mere three score Ogres and a pair of Hill Giants.
Not that it bothered him in the least, a victory was a victory and he was going to get well paid for it.
The Ogre Mage wore polished plate mail and wielded a massive greatsword as his primary weapon. Gold rings with various gem inserts glittered on his fingers and a double looped gold chain hung from his neck.
He walked about his Ogres' makeshift camp and shouted orders and offered advice to the foul Giants under his command. The Ogres had finished burning the spongy green flesh of their foes and were now devouring it as an after battle meal, still, even in a simple situation such as this, it paid to maintain discipline.
"Another victory?" A young man's voice inquired of Oni'Tyran.
The Ogre Mage turned to see Kamii, in his typical dark robes, sitting cross-legged on a nearby boulder.
"Victory or Death." Oni'Tyran agreed. "Not that death can stop me." He relayed, grinning.
"Still accepting commissions?" Kamii inquired. "If so I may have a job for you."
"You always pay double, anything I can do for you I will." The Ogre Mage agreed before berating one of the Hill Giants for eating more of the seared green flesh than was his due.
"Well then, I have a retrieval task for you, someone has stolen a certain item from me, a platinum key about yay big." Kamii informed the Oni, using his hand gestures to reveal the key's dimensions.
"Give me the details." The Ogre Mage asked.
Kamii complied.
"Sure, sounds simple." Oni'Tyran agreed. "I'll move out once I've collected the pay for this job."
When Kamii didn't respond Oni'Tyran glanced back, only to see Kamii had vanished.
He shrugged as he turned back, such were the sorcerer's ways.
A young Orge caught his eye, one who refused to eat the troll flesh and just sat there staring at a severed leg.
"Eat it!" The Ogre Mage commanded.
As the startled youngster complied Oni'Tyran mumbled to himself; "Kids these days, how do they expect to grow up big and strong if they don't eat their greens?"
"Hello John! Or whatever you true name is. I'm so happy you speak Sylvan! Well, you mostly speak Sylvan, it's pronounced 'bananas and damnation!' but you get an A for effort!"
John flashes Babey a grin. *Sylvan* "Thanks, it's my first time speaking this language. Until I met you just now, I didn't even know I could. Nobody back home speaks anything this cool!"
Joseph makes towards the door. "Right then, off we go." Motioning for the rest to follow suit.
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Alyssa walks in a daze. Suddenly, she speaks, in the barest hint of a whisper.
" A real man—real in all the ways that we recognize as real—finds himself suddenly abstracted from the world and deposited in a physical situation which could not possibly exist: sounds have aroma, smells have color and depth, sights have texture, touches have pitch and timbre. There he is informed by a disembodied voice that he has been brought to that place as a champion for his world. He must fight to the death in single combat against a champion from another world. If he is defeated, he will die, and his world—the real world—will be destroyed because it lacks the inner strength to survive.
The man refuses to believe that what he is told is true. He asserts that he is either dreaming or hallucinating, and declines to be put in the false position of fighting to the death where no "real" danger exists. He is implacable in his determination to disbelieve his apparent situation, and does not defend himself when he is attacked by the champion of the other world.
Question: Is the man's behavior courageous or cowardly?"
She continues following Joseph.
Joseph breaks his thoughts away from the knot forming in his stomach as he notices Alyssa speak, roughly a quarter of the way through. He listens intently, gravitating closer to her as she goes on, eventually walking side by side with her. When she finishes he simply walks in silence for a moment before answering. "Neither, it's stubborn pride. He thinks he's to smart to be tricked." Looking over too Alyssa he asks her "Where was that from? Did you come up with it?"
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"Something a certain author wrote once, not that I can remember the name. Still, I can't help but feel as if this applies to us, here, somehow. As in, none of this is possible, yet it's real. Something I've been thinking a lot about.
She turns to Joseph. "I wonder if they've resolved the situation with the key back there?"
Kei will stick out his hand as she indicates that she wants to climb on it, and then says "Neat, show us!" He will then make small talk as they travel. He will ask her about her family and where she grew up, the lady she serves, and so on.
Once the group is reunited the Vulture King will raise his eyebrows at the new arrivals before shrugging. Before they set off he says to Ruskarl and Bunny, "Would you wish to travel with us? It would be quite useful to have people who know this place, and I am sure in this group there shall be no shortage of safety."
Once the group is reunited the Vulture King will raise his eyebrows at the new arrivals before shrugging. Before they set off he says to Ruskarl and Bunny, "Would you wish to travel with us? It would be quite useful to have people who know this place, and I am sure in this group there shall be no shortage of safety."
Karatotsei and Ruskarl share a look at the question.
"We need to get our shit together, and plan our revenge." Ruskarl says to Bunny.
"I think we need to recover a bit from what we've been through, emotionally if not physically." Karatotsei replies to the disheveled red head.
They both look at the Vulture King. "Thank you, but we need some time." Says Karatotsei.
John flashes Babey a grin. *Sylvan* "Thanks, it's my first time speaking this language. Until I met you just now, I didn't even know I could. Nobody back home speaks anything this cool!"
Babey grins widely.
She declares, though what exactly that means, who knows?
She continues, happy to be speaking Sylvan instead of the much more difficult for her Common language.
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Alyssa perks up a bit when she engages the group.
"What did we decide to do with the key? And Kamii, where is he?"
She looks around to Lirriestel, Lucas, Argos, and Babey (Nameless if he's around, as well, not certain if he's still hiding in the shadows).
"My name is Alyssa. Who are you, and where are we going?
"Thank you, but we need some time." Says Karatotsei.
"It will be truly sad to see you go. Go well, and be safe. If needs be, is there a way we can contact you again?"
Kei will stick out his hand as she indicates that she wants to climb on it, and then says "Neat, show us!" He will then make small talk as they travel. He will ask her about her family and where she grew up, the lady she serves, and so on.
As the two groups meet up and travel for the edge of the forest Babey chatters on, thrilled to be able to talk about herself to Kei.
She informs Kei happily, reverting to Sylvan completely.
She crys out in alarm and points to something ahead of the group.
Dead ahead, hanging amidst the shadowy boughs, is what appears to be a giant and perfectly formed orange the size of a basket ball.
It hangs unmoving some distance ahead of the group but Babey seems genuinely alarmed by its presence.
"My name is Alyssa. Who are you, and where are we going?
"Thank you, but we need some time." Says Karatotsei."It will be truly sad to see you go. Go well, and be safe. If needs be, is there a way we can contact you again?"
"I'm Bobey! Ond we ore heoded ta the edge af the farest!" Babey informs her happily.
Before they leave Karatotsei bows to Aylssa. "Go with the Goddess." She says. "If you can find a bit of magic to contact us feel free, we owe you healers one, we will be happy to assist you in your future endeavors."
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"I'm Bobey! Ond we ore heoded ta the edge af the farest!" Babey informs her happily.
"Why? What is at the edge of the forest? What are we trying to achieve by going here? And what are we doing about going back? What are our priorities?"
This one talks funny. Somehow, I never thought my subconscious would make all Australians pixies. Oh well.
Babey blinks slowly, as if she hadn't considered why anyone would ever want to leave the forest.
"Uuuuh..."
Somehow recognising the language that Babey speaks in, the Vulture King responds in turn,
Bage was a bit relieved when the others caught up and explained that, "The man went to find out what he could for us so that he would have something ready to exchange for the key. Said not to worry about him finding us again. So now we're simply headed for wherever really."
As they reach what appears to be a huge orange, Bage looks to the others. "Don't know what the others are saying, but does anyone have a clue what that is? The belf seems really worried about it," Bage says, using his scouter once more.
Switching back to English momentarily, John shoots an annoyed look at Bage. "Would you stop calling her that. She's a grig. It's not that hard to say. It even has the same number of letters!'
Returning to Sylvan he replies to Babey.
"I think my home is very far from here, and your right, it wasn't bad, but something tells me I'm not supposed to be there any longer. I think here, or possibly elsewhere is where I belong. But not on Earth, not any more. Which is OK, I think I'm going to like it more not there. After all, I've already been here less than a couple of hours, and I've already met you. You're by far the most interesting and coolest person I've ever known!"
When Babey replies to Kei in Sylvan, he chuckles and translates what she says to Kei.
"I don't think he is cool enough to know your language. Loremaster in training sounds pretty important." He says with a grin.
Upon her cried warning, and spotting the orange *something*, John cautiously walks up to it, and gives it a sniff.
Bage's scouter clicks and chirps revealing to him the fruit has a power level of 1. It is likely just a plant, not a monster.
Babey's only response to the earthlings is to stare at Liriiestil with eyes wide with wonderment. The Fey may be ever so slightly less attractive than Kei but he was still possessed of a god-like charisma and he knew how to treat a Grig!
Eyes dilating as if she had just ingested some form of drug Babey leaps across the way to land on Liriiestil's head, shouting;
She seems to have completely forgotten about the threatening fruit in her fanatical enthusiasm.
The fruit just hangs there.
This is an Opiate Orange, a magical fruit that explodes if touched, spraying delicious narcotic juice and pulp everywhere in a ten foot spread, dealing 2d6 Wisdom damage and making any who suffer the damage immune to any form of pain for 12 hours. A DC 18 Fortitude save negates the effects.
John laughs aloud at Babey's reaction, and replies
Upon realizing what the fruit was, he warns the others "It's something called an Opiate Orange, which will explode if touched, with a narcotic juice. I wouldn't suggest doing that."
"So...it's weed. Fantasy weed," Bage comments. "Alright. shall we continue then?"
Babey turns around three times on Liriiestil's head then sits down, in a vaguely dog-like manner.
Babey pats him on the head with one cricket leg, the way one would show affection to a favorite steed.
She asks, lowering her upper body down his face so she is looking at John in the eyes upside down.
"Of course I speak Japanese. Why would you think I didn't speak Japanese? I had thought I made that clear already!"
Kei begins speaking in Babey's language instinctually.
Josephs eye twitches as he hears that nothing had been learned since he had left. He doesn't burst this time, instead, he slicks his long black hair back and sighs. "Well, if he left without saying anything and we still have the key then I doubt those of us who wish to keep the key will change their minds when he returns." He lazily throws his hands in the air and kicks at the forest dirt. Facing away from the group for a quite moment Joseph squats down and falls backward into a sit. Huffing, he speaks again. "You guys seem so happy to be here... Most of you at least. But the only reason I was able to live before I died was because of the care I got. Considering that I haven't changed, I probably won't make it more than a few days. I'm still weak, sickly and any injury can kill me."
A frown overtakes Josephs face, he stands and says. "I don't think there's much for me to gain from staying. If you want to find out what happened then I implore you to join me, I'm going to need all the help I can get." With that Joseph sets off in the northerly direction, remembering Kamii say that a city lies in that direction. He looks over his shoulder and adds "Have fun you guys, I hope you get out of this what you want."
You see a gleam of golden iris and a flash of ivory fangs.
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Bage was a bit relieved when the others caught up and explained that, "The man went to find out what he could for us so that he would have something ready to exchange for the key. Said not to worry about him finding us again. So now we're simply headed for wherever really."
"So, plan is, when Kamii returns, with information, we give him the key, assuming his information is good? Correct? In that case,
shouldn't we be doing what we can to find out about our situation?"I don't think there's much for me to gain from staying. If you want to find out what happened then I implore you to join me, I'm going to need all the help I can get."
Alyssa shrugs, then heads in the direction with Joseph.
The Vulture King calls out to Joseph, "Young one, hold just a moment! If you are as weak as you say, what chance do you have on your own? We all wish to know what has happened and survive in this new world. Stay with us, and I shall do all in my power to make sure you never need to come to harm. You have seen my powers of healing. All of that can be applied to you. Stay with the pack and survive, young one." He then turns to the group and says, "I say we go to the city. We may as well get to know the people of this bew realm."
"The pack doesn't share the only goal I care about." Joseph calls over his shoulder. "Besides, I already died once, I don't have anything here for me. I'm willing to risk it to find out why I'm here." Suddenly an idea pops into Josephs head, he turns to the vulture kind and says. "You know, If you where to come along and protect me I'd probably be inclined to offer you a prayer morning, noon and night."
The Vulture King lets out a sad, bitter chuckle and shakes his head before saying sternly, "Do not mistake me for a fool, errant child. A prayer not given in earnest is worse than none at all. So go, split the pack, die in vain. Know that I simply wished to help you. May we meet once more in better times." The Vulture King turns away from Alyssa and Joseph before saying, "I shall go where the pack wishes. Perhaps we speak to the Lady of the Wood? Could be a useful ally."
"So...it's weed. Fantasy weed," Bage comments. "Alright. shall we continue then?"
"Well, damn, now I want to touch it even more", conceded Zaidel. "Fine".
John chuckles once more at Babey
As Joseph announces his desire to depart, John offers. "I think we all seek the same goal, but for different reasons. I too would like to know what happened, and why we are here, but I am not so sure I want to go back. My old life was incredibly boring and mundane, and within the short period of time I've been here(wherever here is), I have met a talking vulture who is a demigod, seen a man perform a powerful magic ritual, and befriended an awesome faerie. Aside from dying, this has literally been the most exciting day of thirty six years of life." He pauses, to collect his thoughts before continuing. "As I said before, Kamii was the first person to have possible answers, but there's no reason to think he's the *only* person with answers. The Lady of the Wood sounds important, and she could very well know what we seek. If not, she might be able to direct us to one who does, that could be more trustworthy than a self-proclaimed bad guy."
Joseph stops to listen to John, after he finishes Joseph puts both his hands on his head, he jostles his hair and yells moderately loudly. He turns around and walks back to the group. "Lady of the woods is as good a place to start as any I suppose. And I can't say this place isn't interesting..." Joseph looks at the Grig siting atop Johns head.
Flashing Joseph a smile, John replies "I'll make you a deal. If the Lady of the Wood has nothing useful to offer us in the way of answers, either herself or somebody else, we'll go to the city nearby. Fair?"
"Sweet", spoke Zaidel, rubbing his hands together. "Let's meet some more fey!"
As Joseph prepares to leave, Kei will point out the serpentine creature unwinding from the tree and say "Ummm...mister? If you want to leave by yourself, what do you plan to do about that thing?"
Her warning speech comes a little late as with a great heave the Hydra emerges, its great bulk straining then breaking through the tree that grew over its hollow with a sound like a gunshot.
The tree explodes outwards, sending wooden shrapnel and small splinters everywhere. Pulverized white wood pulp descends slowly to the ground after like the first snow of the winter months.
As the Hydra approaches it at first appears to be a terrifying nest of giant vipers, angered at being awakened, and hungry for the kill, but as the moments pass you notice that the snakes weave and slither through the tangled nest of their fellows with perfect coordination and finally you see the great bulk of its huge body, from where the nest of vipers spring.
Babey chatters on.
The Hydra raises all eleven of its massive heads and lets out a roar so loud the forest itself shivers and your gut vibrates with its fury.
It glares down at you, strings of poisonous saliva dripping hungrily from its many maws.