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Paul takes a swipe at Constantin at he runs past, but has about as much chance of hitting him as he has of affecting Exiel with his enchantments.
He misses.
Meanwhile, Exiel stabs Paul to within an inch of consciousness, but before he can deliver the final blow, Sue charges in and knocks the barely-conscious half-field out with an uppercut to the .
As all good adventurers do, you thoroughly search the half-fiend and the tendriculous, as well as the room itself, but find nothing of value apart from the following:
shortbow with 20 arrows
amulet of mighty fists +1
mwk panpipes
The tunnel leading West is relatively short, and near the end splits into two paths that both lead into the same large cavern. A series of head-high partitions fashioned from intricately brocaded cloth panels stretched over wooden frames take up the center of this cavern, forming a large enclosed area in the center of the chamber.
In the southern portion of the chamber, a wall of unmortared fieldstone covers the natural cavern. A stone door carved with the image of a young maiden walking with a deer in a wood stands in the center of the wall. Arches in the southwest and northeast corners lead to additional corridors (so there's a door and 2 passages apart from the one you entered from). You have not explored what lies behind the partitions at this stage.
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42 brushes off what remains of the salad and reaches into his bag and pulls out a veil. He takes a drink of it and feels somewhat better.
Then he pulls out a wand and taps himself with it a few times.
He puts the wand back into his wand back into the bag and continues to walk. Anyone that tries to talk to him, he shrugs off with. He is somewhat upset at the moment.
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Viscount Constantin Vladescu-Blakros looks at Subject 42 quizzically, and then responds in kind.
He then shrugs.
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42 nods his head.
"Constantin said that he can hear noises coming from the cloth."
42 closes his eyes and tries one more time to listen.
"I can't hear anything... maybe it's from all of those explosions."
42 draws his weapon and moves towards the cloth, ready to attack anything that jumps out at him.
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Exiel and 42 find that the partitions actually divide the cavern into three separate compartments that function as some kind of living quarters. Each compartment contains a sleeping pallet, a large clay vase filled with water, and a table set with various items such as small stones, clay plates, bones, knives, and wooden drinking cups, as well as hooks upon which hang cloaks, blankets, and other sundries. Two of the compartments each also hold a trunk fashioned from hardened leather. The third appears dusty and disused, and does not have a similar trunk.
Also in one of the compartments (the largest one to the South) is a beautiful, barefoot young human woman with long, dark hair wearing a simple homespun dress. She greets you excitedly, hailing you as her saviors.
"Oh my heroes! Can it be? Have you come to deal with the terrible Warden? Can it be that I am finally to be freed?"
She rushes over to 42, clutches him in a tight embrace, and begins to sob.
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Then again, you should remember that this is a domain of Baba Yaga's, and that the Witch-Queen does not exactly dwell in the land of rainbow sprinkles.
The woman maintains her hold on 42 with one hand whilst reaching out to Alden with her other in an imploring gesture. "Oh I am most certainly a prisoner! The Warden of this place is a malicious monster who wears a false human guise. She imprisoned me and performs all manner of atrocities upon those who inhabit Artrosa! And though I have no physical shackles on me, I am magically bound from leaving this place! Only by slaying the Warden can I be finally free. Please good Sirs, you must help me! Don't let me suffer here any longer!"
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Exiel, who had been listening quietly up to this point, interjects.
"If you are held here against your will, we shall certainly help. You say that there are magical constraints on you. My colleague and I might be able to analyse the magic and determine how to remove it."
As he says that, Exiel casts heightened awareness on himself, then detect magic on the woman, scanning her for the full three rounds if he can.
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Exiel looks quizzically at the woman, then says, "I can see that there are some substantial magical auras on you, two of which could potentially be spells of binding to keep you here. However, there is also a spell on you that has changed your form. You are not as you appear. Who and what are you, might I ask?"
As he asks this, he uses his detect evil spell-like ability on her.
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The young woman smiles and gives a small laugh at Exiel's question. "Just a little charm to make me a little prettier. Can't blame a girl for wanting to look nice, can you?"
As Sue nods to the rest of you, the young woman gestures to her. "See? A fellow-girl understands. As for my name, I am Caila. Now please, hear me. The Warden. She'll be back any moment. You need to destroy her or I will never be free of this place!"
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The woman begins to disrobe and...
Caila, if that is her real name, begins to protest as several expressions pass across her face, first of feigned levity, then of consternation, then frustration, and finally settling on a cold smirk.
"Clever, handsome one. Very clever," she says as she steps away from 42 and Exiel. He form begins to shift as she does so, growing in stature even as her back bends over into a hunch. Her skin darkens to the colour of a fresh bruise, and her features deform into a hideous caricature of her formerly beautiful face. Her simple homespun dress also shifts into one that is ragged and crudely made of what appears to be discomfortingly humanoid-looking skin.
"Well then, my pretties. Let's see if you are as tasty as you look," she cackles gleefully.
Initiative order - Round 1
42 - 21
Alden - 18
Exiel - 16
"Caila" - 14
Constantin - 14
Sue - 6
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42 shakes his head. "And to think, we offered you our help. What a shame." 42 moves forward, while casting defensively
He swings with his scimitar as soon as he is within range, dancing while he does so. A ghostly image of a boxing glove extends from his sword as he attacks, knocking the once beautiful woman back 20 feet.
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42 is up first, charging in to attack Caila with sword and spell. As he moves towards her, she lashes out with surprising speed at the magus!
She snatches up 42 with a large clawed hand and begins grappling him! Not to be deterred, 42 slashes at her with his enspelled blade. The blade does not seem to penetrate as deeply as it should have, but it still draws blood, and 42 gives a triumphant smile as his spell discharges on the ugly monster. His smile soon fades however as she grunts, but remains right where she is. Alden and Exiel move up, and Exiel manages to stab her with his hooked lance, though he too feels that his lance did not penetrate as readily as it should have. Caila then releases 42 and takes a step back. She screeches out an incantation, and a bank of fog billows out around her. She vanishes from your sight.
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If he finds it where he expects it, he takes a swing at it!
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Initiative order - Round 1
42 - 21
Alden - 18
Exiel - 16
"Caila" - 14
Constantin - 14
-----------resolved
Sue - 6
Sue, 42, Alden and Exiel are up.
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42 curses to himself. Then out loud he says "Yeah Constantin, fog is a pain."
42 casts a spell and starts to sparkle as lightning sparks a defense around his body. "No one better claim that I'm a vampire."
He moves 5 foot forward and
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Sue,42, Alden and Exiel move in on the big monster, but are surprised to see not one, but two of her, each identical to the other. Sue takes a swing, but misses. 42 and Exiel pick the same target and manage to strike her, and whilst 42 finds her tough skin resistance to his slash, Exiel finds that his club crunches her rib just fine.
Beset on all sides, the monstrous woman/women withdraw further into the fog.
Initiative order - Round 2
42 - 21
Alden - 18
Exiel - 16
"Caila" - 14
-----------resolved
Constantin - 14
Sue - 6
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42 starts to mutter something under his breath. Those around him start to see him blinking in and out of existence. He takes a 5 foot step in the same direction of the beastie. As he does, he enchants his blade with +2 and Keen. "Two can play at this you foul beast." He lashes out with his scimitar.
42 also uses his power of the arcane to figure out what she has done to make two of her appear.