The large creature screeches as it hunkers down to instinctively protect its kill/food source. A thick tentacle whips out at...
...the elven monk!
But prepared for the blow she deftly ducks out of the way.
Another darkmantle, smaller than the first, detaches from the ceiling before flying directly at...
...Zordlon!
- Unaware of the smaller darkmantle's presence in the room, it takes Zordlon by surprise and just manages to hit with its tentacle attack.
The tentacle attempts to wrap around Zordlon's throat in what is becoming an all-too-familiar feeling. But having experienced the unpleasantness of a Darkmantle squeeze once already, Zordlon deftly ducks out of the grab, slipping past his opponent.
Looking at the big one Unbeugsam attacks with vengeance.
Unbeugsam's waraxe cleaves into the side of the large Darkmantle, leaving a gaping wound oozing purple-ish blood. Its tentacles swing in a mixture of rage and pain.
"Get the big one! I'll hold this one off!" Zordlon shouts as he take up a total defense
Zune moves over to help Unbeugsam, his cutlass flashing.
"Unpleasant creatures," he says conversationally as he cuts at the darkmantle.
Taani slows her breathing, and stills her mind before lashing out in cold fury with two swift strikes with her hands held bladelike...Again her strikes are wild...
[+1 BAB, +2 Str, +1 Weapon Focus, -2 Flurry]
[+2 Str, +1 trait]
[+1 BAB, +2 Str, +1 Weapon Focus, -2 Flurry]
[+2 Str, +1 trait]
Byung-He held back looking for a moment to act but not wanting his efforts to be wasted.
Not seeing a place to insert himself into the battle with the largest darkmantle, Dornhold will take a long path around the smaller one, avoiding its range to prevent an attack while moving. Moving into flanking position across from Zordlon he takes a swing with his mace.
The mace hits, dealing a powerful blow across the pointed head of the beast. While a bludgeoning implement, the blow was strong enough to break both skin and the cartilagenous bone of its skull. The purple brackish liquid begins to leak out, as well as a smelly yellowish oil. The creature screams in pain.
"I hope that these are the only darkmantles left in our immediate future," Sayarisha says wistfully.
Looking at the smaller creature she shakes her head, "Goodbye little monster, this will ensure your destruction."
With that, she casts an Evil Eye hex upon the smaller creature.
As Sayarisha concentrates a shimmer of green energy seems to surround the smaller darkmantle. Uncertain of its circumstance, it starts acting more nervously, opening itself up more to attacks.
Sensing their lives are on the line, both Darkmantles lash out, fighting aggressively to save themselves. They both focus on the creatures that have hurt them the most, apparently focusing on the ones they perceive to be the largest threat.
Fortunately, in their rush to attack their swings are obvious and easy to avoid.
Taani tries to channel her frustration, and beats on the larger darkmantle with a few quick punches:
[+1 BAB, +2 Str, +1 Weapon Focus, -2 Flurry]
[+2 Str, +1 trait]
[+1 BAB, +2 Str, +1 Weapon Focus, -2 Flurry]
[+2 Str, +1 trait]
the first wild swing causing her to focus and make the most of the second, connecting with a soild hit.
Byung-He stays back not seeing any opportunity to heal yet.
Unbeugsam attacks again
Zurne whacks at the darkmantle again.
And whiffs it.
Taking a step to ensure that she avoids hitting a friend, Sayarisha loads her small crossbow and fires at the smaller darkmantle.
With Dornhold moved to assist, Zordlon quickly triggers his wrist sheath, drawing his new, orc plundered dagger, and tries to drive it into the soft underbelly of the beast.
Taanimohka sends a spinning roundhouse directly into the gaping ax wound Unbuegsam had left in a previous round. Meanwhile, Zordlon uses his adversary's distraction to send a dagger into its vital organs, bringing it to a screaming end of its life.
As both darkmantles fall silent an uneasy quiet falls over the room, punctuated only from the sounds of exerted individuals catching their breath.
With both beast felled, Zordlon take a moment to recover his thrown dagger, reload his wrist sheaths, and say a short prayer to the Lady of Graves.
Having recovered his things, he takes a moment to now inspect this new room.
"Well, it seems our luck is still with us. I wonder how large such beasts can get."
Byung-He hangs back as he watches the beasts die, glancing at the ceiling nervously. "Does anyone need healing or do we press on?"
Taanimohka looks at the fallen creatures without pity.
Predators. They die as they lived.
She looks up to Byung-He, and nods with a curt smile.
"I am unharmed."
"Well. I've just seen a rat that looked smarter than most head into the next room. I'm not sure what that could be. Sayarisha, do you know of any magical animals that resemble intelligent rats?"
"And lets see what these darkmantles left behind. I fear that as we travel through the dungeon, we'll be leaving a lot of rotting meat behind. I hope there is some ventilation."
Having seen that the darkmantles have some kind of planar influence to them, Zurne surmises that a similar influence could result in a rat with 'more than animal' intelligence.
Zurne looks over the bodies of the darkmantle's prey and finds two coin purses totaling 12 gold, 4 silver, and 22 copper. There is also a paper note written in an orcish script. The paper is thick and coarse. It appears to be ripped from the journal of the titan that you found dead in the antechamber. The paper reads:
Hnub 17. Nws tau 2 lub lis piam txij li thaum peb pom tej kos npe ntawm Longtail thiab nws imp. Thaum xub thawj tus thawj coj xa ob tog mus nrhiav nyiaj txiag thiab siv riam phom, tab sis lawv pom tsis muaj dab tsi tab sis tsis muaj chav nyob thiab tuag. Thaum cov lizards pib tau antsy peb sim muab lawv cia. Tam sim no nws zoo li peb muaj me ntsis kev tsov rog ntawm peb ob txhais tes. Peb tau sim tawm ntawm txoj kev peb tuaj hauv ... tab sis yog ...
This orc seems to have been more well written than a majority of his ilk.
With the bodies you also find an additional battle ax and another dagger. Both appear to be mundane and of no better quality than what you found before.
Lastly you find a broken quill and a spilled bottle of ink.
The young Varisian woman ponders the question posed by Zurne.
"What does the note say?" Byung-He seems more curious in it then in the potential planar rats that might be watching them.
"Usually I would say who gives a rat´s bottom what an orc writes. But who knows! I could be surprised!"
Taanimohka stares at the writing to no avail. She sniffs hurriedly.
"Were we to rest, on the morrow I could again use magic to comprehend the writing..."
"We'll get there, Taanimohka. Let's see about continuing a bit farther today." Zurne gives Zordlon an "after you" bow, indicating the door ahead.
"Shall we, to the fiendishly intelligent rat lair, no doubt full of fur and diseases?" The pale Varisian gives a shrug-smile.
"Yes, before it brings all it's demonic rat friends"
Once everything of value is gathered up, Zordlon checks the doorway for traps, then looks up and down the hallway to see if he can tell where the rat went.
Zordlon cautiously enters into the next room with Sayarisha right behind to provide her standard spells to assist in his efforts.
Peering through the doorway he discerns that the next room is for certain empty. There is no sign of the rat friend that Zurne mentioned. There is an open door in the opposite wall that could be the only exit.
Just as Zordlon is turning back to the group to give the all clear, Sayarisha holds up a hand and points to her ear. Listening closer, you all hear the sound of hundreds of tiny nails scratching on stonework. The sound is rapidly getting closer!
Byung-He stays back trying to not get in the way of his companions and also making sure he is ready to retreat if they need to fall back behind a door.
Taanimohka produces a flask of oil from her pack.
"I can spread this, but I fear I have no way to light it..."
Byung-He rummages a moment and pulls out his flint and steel passing them to Taanimohka. "Here you can have these."
Zordlon quickly draws his bow, and keeps looking down the hallway, ready to dart back as soon as whatever it is comes into view
Sayarisha performs her spell casting macro/sequence with Guidance and Resistance if there is any time left before the sound arrives, she prepares to use the Ring of Vanish.
The dwarven fighter moves forward, sets his shield and puts his shoulder behind it."Ready!"
"Hells. I don't have anything decent against a horde of rats." Zurne frowns and thinks. He pulls out some food, and puts it near the door they came from. He then pulls out a whistle that produces, of all things, a rat's squeak.
"Let me try to draw them away, Unbeugsam."
As the others ready themselves and Taanimohka finishes spreading flamable oil within the approximate center of the chamber, the squeaking grows louder and louder.
Suddenly rats are pouring through the far door. Dozens, perhaps even hundreds of them; swarming over each other in an unsettling image. a multitude of red angry eyes peer at you menacingly from within the mass of brown and black fur. The rats charge looking for their next meal!
Well, bugger that all! Zordlon shouts as he takes his shot and then retreats back
Byung-He stays back and gets out an unlit torch ready to light it off another and then flail wildly with it if things come to that.
"Rats, why it has to be rats"?
The dwarf waits till the rats are close and then attacks with his axe.
Pulling some of the food supplies from the other donkey, Sayarisha moves through the doorway into the room with Dornhold, Unbeugsam, and the rats. She smiles to Taanimohka saying,"I can't leave Dornhold and our brave dwarf friend alone without trying to help."
Turning back towards the rats, she takes the food she brought with her and spreads it out to the right side of the warrior dwarf, tossing out handfuls until she creates a large pile of food.
Someone sent these rats at us and it only seems logical that it was the more intelligent member of their number. she thought
"This food will be easier to eat than we are and there could be more if someone would talk with us. Or we could just burn the rest," she says shouting towards the room where the rats came from.
Zurne looks around. "I have flint and steel, but no oil," he says.
As the rats approach the group backs out of the room back into the space with the dead orc and darkmantles. The rats charge forward, and Taanimohka strikes her flint and steel to ignite the oil.
The rats rush into the room, scrambling over each other, but stop short of rushing into the fire, either animal or greater intelligence keeping them from rushing to their doom.
From her vantage point Taanimohka sees through the flames a second rat swarm also enter the room.
Standing behind Taanimohka, Sayarisha makes an attempt to parlay with the creatures.
"This food will be easier to eat than we are and there could be more if someone would talk with us. Or we could just burn the rest,"
The rats do not seem to respond to her entreaty in any specific way, they appear more engaged in sniffing towards the fire and then quickly retreating, attempting to find a way through the small inferno.