Lash stands to make herself a threat, drawing the attention of the creature looming above her.
Easily able to dodge the claw, Lash, now on her feet, steps deeper into the undulating water.
- Stand, move L15
The water continues to roil and flows farther onto the beach, bringing more danger with it. Two small black balls covered in two-foot-long spines come rolling in with the tide.
Amestri identifies these as Black Spot Sea Urchins (small, 0ft reach). The true danger of a black spot urchin comes not from its gnashing, star-shaped beak or its needle-pointed spines, but rather from its weird magical nature. Instead of simply poisoning those it punctures, a black spot urchin in fact curses them, inhibiting their ability to swim.
Lash stands and dodges the foe at her feet. The small being looks threatening enough and has already tried to poison her. She can see the water rising quickly and more danger moving up to greet them. With a barking order, she tells her companions to retreat.
"Get up onto dry land. Full withdraw! Don't give him the satisfaction. Let them come to us on our footing."
She then withdraws and with monk-like agility, rushes up the shoreline. The monk pulls her bow as she makes it up far enough away.
Once at the safety of the waterless sand, she turns and kneels in case these creatures have some sort of ranged attack capability.
Kahli strikes out at the creature that had moved to attack her.
Lash wonders why Kahli is ignoring her. "Kahli, get out of there!"
Kahli hears Lash and feels the water slowing her movements. If she tried to back off of the thing it would get a free shot at her.... "OK. I was just trying to kill it so it wouldn't bite me while I back off!"
Kahli swings at the creature in her face, missing wide, before rushing back to get out of the water. The creature reaches a claw out at her.
Despite sloshing through the water, Kahli is able to duck under the claw unharmed.
Following Kahli's movements, Amestri runs back by her side before attempting to put the creature by Lash into a sleep.
Lash can sense the creature about to attack, but instead, it wavers before falling limp into the water.
The Green Urchin quickly squishes its body, propelling itself with great speed through the water at Tenney, spines pointed forward.
Tenney swipes his dagger at the Urchin, deflecting the spines.
Hrolf bounces out of the water into the saddle on She-ra's back. Dismissing the nearest creature, as it has apparently fallen asleep, the pair surge through the surf to defend Lash. They strike "As One! at the remaining crustacean...
3 bab +4 Dex (weapon finesse) +4 flanking (outflank, pack flanking)+1 enhancement(ABP)-1 PA +1 bless
+2 str +2 PA +1 enhancement (ABP)
3 bab +4 str +4 flanking (outflank, pack flanking)+1 enhancement(ABP)-1 PA +1 bless
+2 str +2 PA +1 enhancement (ABP)
Kahli continues slogging along, trying to get out of the water.... Just in case the creatures continue their advance she creates a duplicate image of herself.
"OK Lash. Your turn to back off! Get back here and use your bow to destroy these things...." Kahli sheaths her blade and pulls her crossbow out. Hopefully she'd have time to load and fire before any of the monsters rushed her....
Hrolf and She-Ra attack together and badly injure the crustacean-like creature, though it stays standing.
The large cat seems too large of a prey for the Red creature, and it swipes both claws at Hamley, hoping to get away, possibly with a meal.
Shaken by the attacks, the Red creature cannot find its target.
Tenney sees the asleep creature, but he has to deal with the Urchin trying to stab his face. "Get off of me, you soup ingredient!"
Tenney's hand avoids the spines and stabs through the urchin, and its spines fall limp.
Hamley looks to finish the job Hrolf and She-Ra started and stabs at the Red creature.
Perhaps also shaken from seeing the tiger attacking, Hamley can't hit the Red creature.
The Blue Urchin follows after the Green one and propels itself towards Tenney, though it can't quite make it.
Lash uses her incredible dexterity to easily run out of the water, making it up the beach onto dry sand.
Battle Map at the end of Round 2
The waves continue to come and push the calf deep water farther up the beach, giving less space to easily maneuver, though they seem like they've reached their peak.
Battle Map at the start of Round 3
A duplicate of Kahli appears by her as she moves away.
Amestri follows Lash's lead and run straight up the beach as far as she can, hoping those still in the water can handle themselves.
The Green creature continues to float unconsciously in the water.
Hrolf and She-ra continue make sushi, trying to finish off the crustacean thing...
3 bab +4 str +4 flanking (outflank, pack flanking)+1 enhancement(ABP)-1 PA +1 bless
3 bab +4 Dex (weapon finesse) +4 flanking (outflank, pack flanking)-1 PA +1 bless
+2 str +2 PA
3 bab +4 Dex (weapon finesse) +4 flanking (outflank, pack flanking)+1 enhancement(ABP)-1 PA +1 bless
+2 str +2 PA +1 enhancement (ABP)
"When fighting in mud, you can wrestle around and both be stuck, but take yourself from the mud and you will have a clear advantage..."
This thought from her master echoes in her brain as her companions don't understand to get OUT of the water. While Kahli and Amestri actually listened and moved someway up the shoreline, they are still susceptible to the oceanic creatures. Lash just shakes her head and looks to those who blatantly ignored her; the men of the group. Fortunately for them, the ocean rise and didn't tumble them around, but when a wave rushes forward, usually, afterward, there is a strong pull after; one that might drag them out into the depths. Who knows? She does not warn them again and instead just focuses on her target.
Annoyed that the water just seems to be following them up the beach Kahli is glad that there aren't any of the creatures near her. She continues moving to get out of the water and loads her crossbow. "Come one Amestri. Eventually there won't be enough water for our jailer to push up this beach! Unless he plans to flood and destroy this entire world!"
Hrolf slashes down at the creature. His blade cuts through its carapace, causing it to flail wildly.
Tenney sees Hrolf's plan with the lance and simply turns towards the beach and runs as fast as he can from the Urchin.
Hamley grits at the light grazing across his chest and sees an opening to retreat and runs out of the water.
The remaining Urchin charges through the water after Tenney, catching the encumbered rogue.
Tenney manages to avoid the spines again. "Not sure how many more times I can do this!"
Just as Tenney finishes his whining, Lash's arrow pierces clear through the Urchin, killing it instantly. Tenney glances back then again towards Lash. "Oh, uh, thanks!"
Hrolf rears up in the saddle and delivers a devastating coup-de-grace on the last of the crab things, safely outside of the potential spasm zone.
+12 (3*str) +6 (3*PA)
Kahli watches out in the water for any other dangers, and calls out to everyone, "Does anyone know if those things are safe to eat?"
Hrolf replies "I wouldn't eat them. I know they have some sort of venom, I felt the burn. I know that I don't recognize them as anything normal, and I figure I will be able to gather safer food from the woods."
Once again, it was Lash saving the life of Tenney. His "thanks" gets little more response than a nod due to the men having ignored her call to flee the water. Surely, things could have gone far worse if their foes had been a bit more resilient. The monk is not in a good mood, especially after so recently having lost Ko'Tua, and now loops Amestri and Kahli underarm and just moves to head down the beach slowly until the others catch up.
Her arm bleeds very slightly near her wrist. Despite this, whatever poison was trying to affect her has not done so. She also avoids bleeding on her companions.
After some time, she will express to their new companion, "As you can see...the overlord is a jerk and quite capable of having killed your entire crew. In fact, he revels in his murders."
She then goes silent again and keeps walking.
Hrolf's lance skewers the creature, whose claws fail hopelessly as it falls silent. The tide slowly recedes, washing the corpses back into the water.
The group gathers back on the beach. Unsure of the edibility of the clawed creatures, they weigh their options:
A quick glance at the foliage along the beach indicates that there's food to be found.
Moving towards the next destination, the party fills Hrolf in on their experience here so far: they emerged from the ground and found a note speaking of pillars and matching elements. So far the north pillar was fire and the eastern pillar was water. Once activated, each pillar emits a beam of light, supposedly pointing them toward the next pillar.
From where the party is standing on the beach, it appears their options are:
• A couple hour walk northwest along the beach, up to the cliff-bridge that leads across the raised peninsula
• Stepping back into the woods then moving west
• Swimming across the inlet, landing at the base of the cliffs, then climbing, or finding another way up
Hrolf asks the party "How short on rations are we? Do we want to go slow and spend a couple of hours hunting and gathering here? This seems a nice, fertile stretch along the beach here. Spending an extra hour or so should put food in everyone's belly."
Lash, having been searching for food as they went, nods to Hrolf's attention to food as he comes upon them; as she likely would have seen it eventually herself.
As she had planned from the beginning, she would head northwest along the beach. She doesn't particularly feel like fighting in the water.
"We've been doing alright. We've been hunting as we go along and it's been sustaining us so far. I'm not sure we will need to stop. Just keep moving and picking as we go. It appears he doesn't wish us to starve...just die in violence. It's more entertaining for his 'viewers'."
It seems he too wishes to head northwest, which is good for them all. She is wary of his big cat after seeing it tear into animals so easily. Her fear is not so open that she abandons the ladies she walks with.
Kahli looks across the water for a bit. listening to the discussion. She shakes her head and turns to the northwest. "Perhaps along the edge of the forest would be best. We don't want to be without any overhead coverage if a number of the drakes fly by. And I prefer solid ground under my feet. I don't swim well and would like to keep what armor I have. We can take our time and scavenge for food, at least until our captor gets bored again."
Agreeing on a direction, the party sets off northwest, thinking to stay near the wood's edge for a quick escape if danger finds them. Using the beam, water, and woods together as a guide, the party is able to find steady footing and makes easy work of the first leg of their travel. They're also able to stay out of the midday sun, something they've not thought much about in the dense swamp area to the north.
Approaching the land bridge is a sight to behold, disregarding the circumstances. Reaching hundreds of feet high and spanning hundreds of feet across is a natural rock arch over the water. From what the party can see from their spot on the beach, on top of the bridge and the peninsula looks fairly barren, as the elements would be extremely punishing.
The most direct route up to the bridge follows a rocky trail that emerges from the beach and would bring the party up right along the east side of the bridge. It would be tiring, but seems doable without much hassle otherwise. On the other hand, heading into the woods would be more gradual, albeit a longer journey. The party also figures they would eventually emerge from the wood line again, a feature they have enjoyed using as protection.
Perhaps she is hasty, or perhaps she recalls the scythe tree nearly decapitating them all. She wants to avoid the tree path and just moves to head up the east side.
While Kahli had wanted cover against the mentioned drakes, she agrees with Lash. The trees had been dangerous!....
Hrolf looks at Lash taking the lead up the rocky trail and shrugs... If Lash and Kahli thinks this is the right path, well they've been dealing with this place much longer than he has.
He checks to make sure that his chakrams are loose for the grabbing and throwing and then rides She-ra up the trail after Lash. As he does, he asks "You folks have any idea what we'll find at the end of this blue lance of light?"
"Well...the first was a huge pillar that activated this...system. We had to touch fire to a glyph. The second was a rock that had a symbol upon it. We knew we needed water for it. That activated this beam." She pulls out the note so he can see it.
"This was found on a woman killed who had somehow discovered this. We very well could be summoning some kind of demon...but we have no other indication of a way to go and he most certainly is interested in giving us hints on the right way to go. This is out best guess. In our experience, those who go against his path usually end up getting killed or ... disappear. I don't know to where..."
She shuts her mouth and shows him the note. It says: "Find the pillars. North. South. East. Match the element. Follow the lights..."
After he's read it, she takes it back and looks to the tiger next to her.
"The first pillar had a flame up top, so we lit it on fire. The rocks had a bubbling stream next to it, so we used water. We aren't sure what we'll find up here, but we'll see..." She shrugs. "To follow the lights, we are heading here, and we must activate them to continue on. I'm thinking when she says North, South, and East, that's the answer to a future puzzle..." she groans as she hates puzzles.
She looks again to his tiger, then bravely asks, "Could...Could I feel its fur? Hair?"
Kahli listens, nodding at Lash's explanation. "So far the things that the jailor has placed ahead of us have been.... balanced. Threatening, but not overwhelming. If finishing this summons a demon, well, it won't be a demon that can overpower us easily. But solving the riddle will also give us a pathway ahead and the opportunity to increase our own power. The next level will be harder but possible if we are careful. Well, aggressively careful, if that is possible!"
Hrolf shakes his head at the replies to his question, "So we don't know anything. Hmmph. I don't like this wizard or whatever he is playing with us like pieces on a game board. Also raises the question of is there someone he is playing against?" He shakes his head again, and uses his knees to guide She-ra next to Lash, and says, with a smile in his voice, "Of course you can, she's just an overgrown house kitty..."
The party continues on along the beach and pushes up the rocky trail amongst friendly, if tense, conversation. The natural trail narrows and widens causing some concern of slipping, but with some minor hiccups hopping over rocks, the party eventually reaches the summit.
Looking south, the party sees the blue beam of light shooting across the sky to the southern most point of the peninsula. While the peninsula itself beyond the land bridge doesn't have many tall trees as the constant buffeting from the wind prevent anything from growing, the ground is covered in patches of knee-high shrubs and foliage.
To the party's north, the woods grow thick as the ground slopes back down into the swamp that they fought their way out of.
Except for some lazy clouds crawling across, the sky is clear. A crisp ocean air blows steadily from the west.
Lash seems all the more frustrated at Hrolf's thought that they may be playing against someone else, as if she were a tool in some sick game.
When the cat comes closer, the brave woman seems almost weak in the knees. With the smile in Hrolf's voice, she reconsiders her fear, but then sees the bloody maw and paws of the beach creatures mauled to death. She bravely reaches out and feels the cat, but keeps in mind that it definitely is a killer.
"It looks so soft, but it's actually quite rough. Rougher than I thought it'd be."
The coat almost feels oily to her like the animal has spent a long time outdoors compared to a barn cat or the other animals with fur she's touched. Despite all the wonders she's seen, she didn't think she'd ever touch a tiger and live to tell about it. She will steer clear of the tail, which looks like a rough, calloused bit of fur that the cat is swinging around and could bop her.
"Thank you," the red-haired beauty comments as she returns her hand to her bow and moves up the hill.
4 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
3 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
4 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
3 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
Keeping their heads on a swivel, the party sets off south across the land bridge. Even with the land bridge being a couple hundred feet across, there's a heavy feeling in their stomachs and perhaps a little shakiness in their knees as they reach the center of the bridge. The wind continues to whip, waving the thigh-high foliage. Hrolf and Lash point out any plants to avoid that could cause skin irritation or have spiky bits that would stick to your clothing.
Making it safely across the land bride, the party keeps their head down and their eyes up, pushing towards the beam of light. The winds have been smelling of crisp ocean air, but it's suddenly replaced by the distinct smell of rotting fish, a somewhat odd occurrence given your height above the water. It's not much longer before you come across the source of the smell; the 9-foot long body of a fish with two long spines. Its flattened body has been ripped open and had most of the meat picked off of it. Inside where the belly would be, you see the remains of what would have been its last meal; a partially digested humanoid, still valiantly holding their sword in a skeletal hand.
Kahli and Hrolf swear they see the fish still twitching in reaction to the breeze.
Using this knowledge along with knowing what the Drakes are capable of, you believe it to be possible that the humanoid was eaten by the Giant Stargazer who was, in turn, snatched out of water by the Drakes before being able to retreat back to the sand. The Drakes then brought it up here to continue their meal.
"Eugh...what is that? It's disgusting." Where was the fresh-smelling breeze? Now it is replaced with something foul. Eventually, she comes to see something in the distance.
"Umm...is that thing moving with its side opened like that?"
She will pull an arrow and if no one stops her, she will take a shot at it.
"That thing twitched, it did." Hrolf's voice is low as he readies his lance; he definitely doesn't stop Lash taking her shot...
Kahli stays back and happily lets Lash fire arrows into the beast. She knows that some of the arrows are special and made to survive being shot and recovered. "That's just disgusting! But I guess it's better that whatever drake spotted it ate it rather than searching for us!"
Once the thing stops twitching she moves closer to examine the remains. "You'd think that the ocean breeze would clear the stink! But let's see if there's anything worth salvaging before we move on."
A quick arrow to the head stops any nerves that were continuing to fire. Kahli reaches her senses out and detects poison on the tips of the fish's spines. She also detects magic on the corpse in the fish's belly.
- Holy Water (2)
- Masterwork Breastplate
- Longbow With 20 Arrows
- Masterwork Longsword
- Masterwork Short Sword
- A long, double-breasted jacket covered in small patches of various shapes (moderate transmuation aura)
Lash wants nothing to do with anything coming out of a rotten fish's belly. As long as it stops moving, she will move forward, but more to where the beam of light is directing them and away from the body. Her eyes are on the lookout for any returning drake, though she imagines they either killed them already, or they would prefer fresher food than this foul, sun-soaked, and rotted fish.
"Let's move on people," she trudges on forward, avoiding the fish and its horrible smell.
"I can create Water to rinse the stuff off once we get it away from the stinky meat. But we have to be careful of the spines. There's poison on the tips. I wonder how the drakes tore it up?" She looks around the area, concerned that there might be a drake nearby recovering from whatever the poison did....
"You want to see what that guy has on him? I don't know..." she pauses to hear the consensus of the team.
A quiet muttered incantation reveals that Hrolf has a few tricks up his sleeve that aren't immediately apparent. He replies to Lash "In a survival situation like this, gear is gear, I don't care if it smells. Also, there something magical in that pile... So yeah." He suits word to deed, riding up and taking a couple of precautionary lance pokes at the fish, and then dismounting to drag the body and the gear out of the fish guts...
Once he has the stuff, he makes his way back from the dead fish and says to Kahli: "You have a way of rinsing this stuff off?"
Having retrieved the stinky gear and cleaned it as best possible, Hrolf stows it (saddlebags and Handy haversack - the robe stays outside the haversack though). He says "Onwards I guess, we've got a beam of blue light to find the end of...", and mounts up again, leading off again...
4 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
3 ranks +3 trained +1 wis+1 guidance
The archer will lend aid by cutting a chunk off of her soap so they can wash things. Kahli has water constantly produced. They will even go a ways away from the rotten fish to see if it all stops to smell. In any case, she is silent. Lash looks on disapprovingly and keeps her distance from Hrolf now so she doesn't get a whiff of the offensive odor she imagines is still there. She doesn't say why though.
While Kahli's clean water rinses fish guts and blood off of the gear and removes most of the pungent stench, Lash's soap scrub removes almost all of the ingrained stench.
Continuing south, the party continues across the raised peninsula and makes their way towards the blue light. As the late afternoon sun starts falling to the horizon, the party follows a small creek that leads them to the eastern cliff where the creek becomes a small waterfall that doesn't make it to the ocean before the wind carries the water away. They look out at the island, taking a moment to breathe in the sights. If they weren't trapped here against their will, this would be a lovely vacation.
Hrolf leans against a boulder by the creek, taking it all in. His elbow sinks into the boulder as a small square section of it recesses into itself, quickly followed by three other sections. While Hrolf pulls away, Kahli and Lash, the two longest surviving members, recognize coming across these recesses multiple times through their journey...
Seeing the recesses in the stone appear Kahli moves forward to examine one. "Again? So our jailor feels ready to reward our limited success? Well, he'll match it with harder challenges ahead I'm sure." She reaches a hand into the recess and waits.
Hrolf twists away from the shocking sensation of seemingly solid stone failing to support his elbow. He's five feet away with blade in hand when he realizes that neither Kahli nor Lash seem disturbed. He pauses and his eyebrows rise expressively as he asks "So what's this then? You've seen the likes of this before?"