Ray murmurs quietly to the raven on his shoulder, [color=blue]"Get ready. I don't like this. Our interactions with the Fae have so far been to get our teeth pulled out. Not exactly encouraging."[/color]
Bob flutters his wings slightly. [color=blue]"Tell me about it. That was super gross. Lotta fun to watch, though."[/color] He pecks Ray lightly on the head, pouring a tiny sliver of the Gray Lady's power over Fate into the occultist.
The drawer seems to catch, but Argus pulls harder and it eventually opens, though it groans loudly in protest (it seems likely that the wood was warped during whatever happened to the town). Inside Argus finds a small feather token. Ray can tell right away that it is a bird feather token.
The children pay little attention to the party, continuing to frolic and play loudly.
Argus hands the token over to Raybin to put in the party treasury, and hunkers down by the spirits of the children. "You mentioned fairy friends, but I don't see them. Are they hiding? I would very much like to meet them and say hello."
Ray frowns. Argus' words send his mind racing. They don't see anything...
He concentrates for a few moments, drawing forth psychic power and pouring it into his eyes, which take on an eerie, greenish sheen. He scans the room for anyone trying to hide from them.
The children just laugh at Argus again. "Come on! Maybe if you play with us, you will see them!"
Almost simultaneously, Ray finishes casting his spell, and near the back of the room, two small figures that weren't there before come into focus. They are large-eyed humanoids and like glowing, emaciated elven children save for their small, transparent wings. Though Ray can see them, he has to squint and concentrate carefully, or they blend right back in with the light put off by the children.
The creatures notice Ray looking directly at them, sneer, and take off into the air, brandishing daggers that seem to drip with some substance.
They're lurkers in light. You know all about them, but go ahead and ask questions to see what the PCs know.
Amanteia (35/35 hp)
Creature #1 (0 damage)
Creature #2 (0 damage)
Argus (52/52 hp, SoF)
Song (37/37 hp)
Ray (33/33 hp)
Bold may act.
Ray sees the two lurkers fly across the room toward the party. As they are flying, their flapping wings make them easier for Ray to see .
So far, no one else knows that there is any danger.
Amanteia (35/35 hp)
Creature #1 (0 damage, flying)
Creature #2 (0 damage, flying)
Argus (52/52 hp, SoF)
Song (37/37 hp)
Ray (33/33 hp)
Bold may act.
Ray snaps, "Invisible flyers!" he quickly points in their direction before striding forward, blasting rod raised, to launch a ray of fire at the nearest of the creatures.
Argus snaps his head up and looks around in alarm.
Seeing nothing, he raises his holy symbol and washes the soft, pinkish-gold light of Shelyn over his allies. He then moves to stand in front of Raybin to guard him from whatever dangers lurk.
"Whoever you are," he calls in a clear, steady voice, "there is no need for violence. My overeager companion's actions notwithstanding, there is no reason we must enact bloodshed. Leave this place and leave these spirits in peace."
Song moves to the flank, drawing her bow, looking for a clear shot at... something. She's not sure why the paladin wants to talk to these things, whatever they are.
Are there things? Or is this guy just off his rocker?
Regardless, the paladin's weird glowy power does feel nice. Kind of warm, like a long bath after a longer road. She decides to wait and see if there's any kind of reaction from the invisible people. If there are any invisible people.
Ray's bolt flies wide of #2. Argus and Song have a general idea of the direction Ray was aiming, but aren't exactly sure where to target an attack.
Jando, on the other hand, knows roughly where it is. He isn't sure what he saw, but it was enough for him to know where to fire two arrows.
Both of his arrows go essentially where he was aiming, yet both missed. Maybe the thing isn't where he thinks it is?
Amanteia (35/35 hp)
Creature #1 (0 damage, flying)
Creature #2 (0 damage, flying)
Argus (52/52 hp, SoF)
Song (37/37 hp)
Ray (33/33 hp)
Jando (49/49 hp)
Bold may act.
Amanteia doesn't know where Ray was aiming. "Ray, where are they?! I can help!" She moves up behind the desk and holds her hands up, ready to cast.
Amanteia doesn't have to wonder too long where at least one of the creatures are, as Ray helplessly watches #2 fly up to her and strike at her throat with a dagger. The dagger enters her neck until almost half of the blade disappears , and Ray sees a foul black liquid enter the wound.
Despite the surprise and pain, Amanteia is able to fend off the effects of whatever nastiness the creature tried to inflict on her. Amanteia looks like she wants to release her spell right away, but she grimaces and waits, hoping to catch them both in the burst.
Nearly simultaneously, a tiny voice comes out of thin air, and the edges of Argus's vision begin to blacken.
Much to his dismay, the process continues until all he can see is a tiny dot of light. The dot lingers for a moment, teasing him, then it blinks out. Argus is blinded.
Amanteia doesn't want to wait any longer. She carefully goes through the incantation, keenly aware that the creature is flying directly in front of her.
She yells, "EYES!", squeezes her own eyes shut, and then a burst of golden dust appears just behind the teacher's desk. When she opens her eyes again, she is satisfied to see the tiny form outlined in dust directly in front of her, and dismayed that her spell doesn't seem to have caught the other one.
On the bright side , the dust also seems to have gotten into the eyes of #2, who is frantically rubbing them with its tiny little evil fairy hands.
Creature #1 (0 damage, flying, invisible)
Creature #2 (0 damage, flying, outlined in dust, blind [5 rounds])
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (52/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Argus tries to rub his eyes to clear them, but the darkness doesn't vanish. Panic wells up in his chest. Oh gods. What have I done to displease you so, Shelyn??
He calls out, "I... I am blind! Please... point me in the direction of our enemies..."
Song shouts, "Hey big guy! Step to your right and swing toward the sound of my voice!"
She steps back a bit and fires off at the Lurker that's now outlined.
Argus does his best to follow her directions.
Argus' glaive swings through empty air. "Did I get it?"
Ray groans. The paladin is entirely useless blind. How the Hells are they supposed to cure that? None of them have powerful enough spells for it.
"Get them alive!" he calls out. "It's dispellable, but only if we can convince them. Knock 'em out. I can be very persuasive."
He pulls out the adamantine warhammer and sheathes the blasting rod.
Song's arrow lands true on #2, but doesn't seem to have hurt it very much. Argus swings his glaive wildly and Ray freaks out a little bit.
Jando grins now that he can see #2 and fires two arrows, aiming for spots on its body that will hurt, but not kill, it.
The first arrow hits the lurker's big toe. "Ow," it says.
Ray sees #1 fly up to Argus and is powerless to help as it slips its dagger into the half-orc's shoulder .
Thankfully, Argus doesn't need to add 'poisoned' to his list of bad things happening to him today.
#2 rubs its eyes furiously, but can't clear the dust, buying the party at least a few more seconds.
Creature #1 (0 damage, flying, invisible)
Creature #2 (3 damage, 1 NL, flying, outlined in dust, blind [4 rounds])
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (33/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Amanteia backs off from the blind lurker, touches Ray on the shoulder, and speaks a quick incantation. Ray suddenly feels the ceiling closing in, as he grows to nearly 12 feet tall.
Ray grins, flexes his massive new muscles, and goes to clobber the one lurker he can see.
Song scans the room for the other lurker, hoping the three of them can finish off this one. "No no, to your right just a little bit Argus!" She touches her bow with a small whispered prayer and fills it with holy energy.
Argus adjusts his direction slightly and swings again, this time with the flat of the axe head.
Bob sighs and raps his beak against Ray's balding pate. [color=blue]"To the left next time, dummy."[/color]
Ray and Argus both miss #2; wood slivers go flying as their follow-throughs strike the desk below it.
Song knows from the location and direction of Argus's dagger wound that #1 is currently to the northwest of the half-orc.
Jando sends two more arrows at #2, just aiming for center mass this time.
Both arrows hit, but do next to no damage. Jando huffs in frustration.
#1 takes a page from Ray's book of somehow whiffing on a completely blind creature as its dagger strike on Argus goes wide. It flies toward the western edge of the room .
#2 clears the dust from its eyes and looks at Amanteia menacingly.
Creature #1 (0 damage, flying, invisible)
Creature #2 (5 damage, 2 NL, flying, outlined in dust)
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (33/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Amanteia can see that these little buggers are tough. She fires three missiles to try to whittle down #2 a bit. Can't knock it unconscious if they don't hurt it first...
"Okay, I think I got it now!" Argus says, and swings again at the same square.
Ignoring the previously-blinded Lurker for now, Ray hustles after the other one trying to escape. "Song! Here!" he calls, and swings the adamantine hammer down at the creature.
Song cringes at the string of obscenities as the occultist misses his mark, then fires at the space he just swung at, hoping for better luck.
Amanteia's missiles stagger #2 long enough for the utterly blind Argus to squash it under his glaive onto the desk like a fly under a fly swatter. Their success doesn't carry over to Ray and Song, however, as it turns out the lurker is not exactly where they thought it was.
Jando moves closer to #1 and fires a single arrow at it.
The arrow strikes it on its hip. It falters in the air but continues flying.
#1 flies away from Ray, then turns and points a finger at him. Ray's heart jumps into his throat as he feels his vision blacken.
He is clearly a much more resilient man than Argus.
Creature #1 (0 damage, 6 NL, flying)
Creature #2 (18 damage, 35 NL, outlined in dust, unconscious, prone)
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (33/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Amanteia rushes up behind Ray, touches his back, and whispers a few words. He feels a protective energy surround him.
Ray hurries after the creature, but it's too fast for him to catch up enough to attack. Instead he clambers over the nearby desk to get as close to it as possible, massive warhammer at the ready.
[ooc]Double move. I assume the desk would just be like, difficult terrain for him in his Large form, so he should have enough movement to get to it. Now even if it withdraws, it'll provoke.
Song grumbles as she hustles around the desk. Now Ray is blocking her from a clear shot. She takes it anyway, in the hopes of making an obscenely difficult shot to the foot to pin this stupid thing in place.
Argus calmly stows his glaive and digs out his coil of rope, preparing to bind the unconscious Lurker.
Ray doesn't realize how big he is now, and it causes Song's shot to go well wide. On the bright side, the arrow doesn't hit him either.
Jando moves around the teacher's desk to get himself a better shot.
The arrow hits, but again it barely affects the fae's curiously tough skin.
#1 easily ducks and jives away from Ray, getting away before he is able to react . It then tries to blind Ray again.
Ray gives the lurker a big ol' middle finger.
Creature #1 (0 damage, 8 NL, flying)
Creature #2 (18 damage, 35 NL, outlined in dust, unconscious, prone)
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (33/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Amanteia moves closer to #1 and fires a few missiles at it.
Ray bellows in frustration, scrambling over the desks, to swing the huge hammer at the little bastard.
Bob flies over and touches his beak to Song. [color=blue]"Kick this thing's ass already, wouldja?"[/color]
Song rushes around the desks and skids to a halt in front of Amanteia, bringing up her bow and taking a clearer shot at the Lurker.
Amanteia's missiles batter #1, who looks pretty pissed that it can't seem to blind Raybin. Unfortunately, it deftly avoids everyone else's attacks.
Jando moves further toward the back of the room and takes another shot.
The lurker dodges his arrow easily, backs away from Ray, whispers a few words, and disappears.
It used an SLA called daylight door, which acts like dimension door. It's probably gonzo.
Creature #1 (13 damage, 8 NL, flying)
Creature #2 (18 damage, 35 NL, outlined in dust, unconscious, prone)
Amanteia (21/35 hp, power of faith)
Argus (33/52 hp, SoF, power of faith, blind)
Song (37/37 hp, power of faith)
Ray (33/33 hp, power of faith)
Jando (49/49 hp, power of faith)
Bold may act.
Amanteia is a derpy derp.
Ray lets out a spectacular string of obscenities. "It's gone," he snarls. "That was the one that blinded Argus. You may as well kill the other, it's useless to us."
Argus calmly continues tying up the unconscious Lurker. "We will do no such thing. We will find a place to loose it after we leave. These fey are cruel, but they are simply acting within their nature. To murder them in their sleep would make us no better than they."
Raybin's words have shaken him, but he does his best not to show it. His attacker is gone; there's nothing to be done about it now. "I take it the spell is... permanent?"
Ray swallows. "Yeah. Sorry, man."
Argus sighs. "Then I am of little use, now. After we are done here, we must discuss what to do with me."
Song keeps her bow drawn, gazing across the room for further attack.
Amanteia looks from Ray to Argus and back again as realization of what just happened sets in. She is ashamed not to have understood what the lurker did, but in her defense, Ray could see it much better than she could. And he's right: only the individual who cast the spell can undo it, at least not with more powerful magics than they currently have access to.
She walks up to Argus and pats him on the back. "We will get through this. You are strong and skilled. You took down this one" -- she gestures toward the bound lurker on the desk -- "without being able to see it. Ray is wrong; we shouldn't kill it. We should rouse it and find a way to convince it to lead us to its friend."
Meanwhile, the ethereal children continue to run and play around the room. They momentarily lament that "teachers made our new fairy friends run away" but it doesn't slow them down for long.
It did not escape your notice that, for the brief few moments that the children calmed down, the bright light they emitted dimmed ever so slightly.