The twin explosions devastate the ogrekin. One falls to the combined blasts, and another is badly wounded, allowing Snow to rush in and take him down with a bite. The ranger then whirls on the final foe, ripping out his throat in a critical hit! In a moment, all three foes have been slain!
As always Wolf-Snow presses forwards immediately, wanting to make the most of the time in her much more powerful form. Unfortunately the corridors really aren't wide enough but she makes it with a dint of brute force.
Squeezing through the narrow hall, Snow follows her nose west and pushes open the door. The cloying stink of this room is nearly overwhelming. Buckets of filth are stacked against the walls, fat ravenous flies lazily circling their rims. The room itself is dominated by an immense bed, its ratty sheets stained beyond hope. A huge easel sits next to the bed with a palette of various shades of brown and red paint. The sources of these morbid pigments—several crushed organs and ragged stumps of flesh—sit in receptacles next to the easel. A set of brushes made with human hair jut from a broken skull by the easel, while a comb made from a human mandible sits on a small oak bedside table nearby, its teeth clotted with thick strands of greasy black hair. The bodies of three horribly deformed men dressed in ragged finery are propped up in huge open coffins against the far wall, their mouths sewn tightly shut with lengths of hair.
This hellish room belongs to a female ogrekin, an incredibly corpulent monster with stringy hair and bald patches. Her obesity makes it difficult for her to move. She wears a huge red curtain as a shroud, and her bed creaks out in anguish as she shifts her massive form to regard you.
"Boys! Why the hell is thar a wolf in ma room?" the ogrekin shrieks in rage. "You useless sacks of flesh! I gots to do everythin' 'round here maself!" Her hands begin to crackle with negative energy, and the three corpses suddenly shamble forward to attack!
Seeing this hideous…thing…so nonchalantly raise the dead, Thanara did what she does best…and sends another electric orb of electricity into their midst!
Lisa shudders at the horrid sights before her. She pulls forth a vial of holy water and prays over it, then hurls it into the room where it explodes in an enormous burst, drenching the ogrekin and the zombies!
Once again Snow waits for her packmates to unleash their fury before charging through the room to assail the massive sack of reeking flesh that calls itself a living being.
One of the zombies falls from the electrified holy water blast, and the other two are badly damaged. Snow rushes for the fat ogrekin, tearing at her blubbery body.
Cursing loudly, the ogrekin tries to cast a spell.
But Snow interrupts with a critical bite, ripping open her bulging belly! She groans as her organs spill out onto the bed, and she slumps over.
The surviving zombies shamble up to attack Snow.
They miss, and then you quickly finish them off!
These hideous beasts falling quickly seems to soothe Thanara’s fears a bit. ”These…these things aren’t so bad. They must have been preying on opportune chances to strike those that were weaker than them. Let’s hurry and finish them off before they can turn the tide!” she says boldly.
You quickly move upstairs while Snow is still in wolf form. There are two rooms up here, and neither one is occupied. The first is an attic containing tables strewn with beakers, glass vials, old tin cans, rope, animal traps, bits of twisted metal, spikes, bones, and all manner of junk. You can collect five moderate acid flasks and a set of infiltrator's thieves' tools.
The second room is filled with large, filthy beds. Human skulls with antlers fixed to them are mounted on the bedposts and headboards. Against the west wall sits a large cedar chest.
Snow finds and disables the trap that conceals a razor that would slice the hand of anybody reaching inside. Inside are sacks of coins, a total of 300 gp in all.
The other rooms on the ground floor are just empty bedrooms and storage rooms. The stairs down to the basement lead to a series of rooms including a trapsmith's workshop and a skin shucking room. The less said about the contents of these rooms, the better.
This next room is damp, steamy, and reeks of rotting vegetable matter. Pools of mud and stagnant water dot the mossy floor, and the walls are caked with thick swaths of puffy fungus and mold.
A massive carnivorous plant rises up from the muck! Writhing tentacles surround its gaping central maw!
Thanara recoils from the plant thing in shock. This place just kept getting weirder and more horrifying. She conjured up a concentrated orb of electricity and sent it flying into the plant!
__________
Snow morphs once more and bounds forwards to bite at the plant. She just wants to get out of here!
Thanara zaps the plant and Snow moves in and misses. Luckily, the plant misses with all of its attacks, too!
Snow bites and claws at the creature, determined to rip it apart as quickly as she can. Thankfully the plant isn't very adept at dodging.
Seeing the thing still standing after Snow shakes a large chunk of it in her mouth (ew), Thanara extends a hand and several arcs of lightning shoot from her fingers and into the plants stalk.
__________
Lisa's fire ray just misses the creature!
The monster slaps Thanara with a tentacle as she gets close, but she zaps it good! Snow lands several good hits, though it resists some of the slashing and piercing attacks.
The monster closes its mouth over Snow and grabs her, but is unable to swallow the giant wolf!
Snow wriggles and jerks, thrashing around in the plants grip.
Snow manages to claw her way free of the plant's gaping maw. It thrashes about before falling back into the muck, lying still.
A small room adjoining the sump pile contains a large unlocked chest. Within lies an agate-studded gold ring, a necklace of emeralds and silver, a pair of small leather gloves studded with pearls (actually lover's gloves), a large sack filled with assorted coins, and a ruby-inlaid red dragon-scale cloak clasp. Altogether, the nonmagical treasure is worth 600 gp.
In addition, all of the equipment belonging to the three captured Black Arrows can be found here.
It would seem that the Graul family has been eradicated.
Safely outside the house once more Snow points at the ramshackle building and turns to her friends. "Burn it!" She commands simply, never wanting to see or smell, the disgusting place again.
The rotting house burns fitfully as Lisa sets it ablaze. You stand a safe distance away and watch it smolder.
Once reunited with Shalelu and the Black Arrows, the elven ranger approaches Snow. "Sorry I never mentioned Jakardos before." She goes on to speak at length about how Jakardos was at one time her mother's lover. Shalelu’s memories of Jakardros are mostly of a young, exuberant man. She wasn’t sure what her mother saw in the impulsive young human, but she was glad he was there for her. When her mother was slain in a dragon attack, Jakardros left suddenly and without explanation, leaving Shalelu with a bitter impression that eventually drove her into the isolated life she has lived for the past several years as a bounty hunter in the Sandpoint hinterlands.
"When I learned recently that Jakardos had taken up with the Black Arrows, I wanted to come here and confront him about why he abandoned me so abruptly. I wanted to be sure he hadn't been taking advantage of my mother in some way. We've spoken now. It turns out, it was just a broken heart that made him leave. He was too consumed with sorrow and grief to face me."
Shalelu looks at Jakardos who lowers his gaze. "If he has just talked to me before leaving, perhaps we might have been able to share our grief and lean on each other for support. We've reconciled now, but it should have happened decades ago. So, let that be a lesson, ladies. Don't keep things from those who care about you. Share your feelings. Don't be afraid to be vulnerable. Or you may end up very lonely, indeed."
Having said her piece, the elf walks away to be alone with her thoughts.
Snow takes a step after Shalelu, only to be halted by a headshake from Jakardos.
"Give her time lass." The ranger says. "Old wounds take time to heal, no matter how long you live. She and I have made our peace, now we both have to accept it. There's nothing you can do about it for now."
Recognising wisdom when she hears it Snow nods her acceptance and goes to stand next to Thanara, setting herself beside the sorceress to shield her from the damp wind which is slowly fanning the flames that Lisa is kindling around the building.
"You ok?" She asks. "Hard, doing that. Horrible. Had to do, was right. But still hard." A pause. "You've done a lot. Of hard things. This, Aldern. Just remember, don't have to be alone. We are pack. Means will always be there for you." She shifts sideways and wraps her arms around Thanara, sharing her body warmth and hopefully a touch of comfort. "Good that you have Lisa. Need someone to love. All do."
Thanara nods to Snow’s question. She looks to the ground, her glowing gloves catching her eye briefly. I need to figure out what these gloves do…
”I’m…managing. Lisa and I had a fight the other night. She…she…well…we had issues being intimate. And she blamed…well, she was making excuses,” Thanara replies.
"Want to talk about it?" Snow asks, keeping Thanara wrapped in her warm arms. "When get back? Can sit together. Drink tea. Talk."
Drinking tea is one of the few 'civilised' things Snow actually likes. Coffee on the other hand is a vile drink that she will never touch.
Jakardos and Vale vow to aid you in retaking Fort Rannick, but first you return to Turtleback Ferry to bathe, rest, and try to erase the horrors of the Graul farmstead from your minds. It starts to rain on the way back, which turns into a torrential downpour by the time you make it into town. Fortunately, the inn is dry and warm.
”Maybe…but I think I’ll need to talk to her too at some point,” Thanara replies as the rain starts to fall.
__________
Thanara sits at a table as near the fire as she could get, holding a cup of tea as she waits for Snow.
The shifter appears a minute or two later, holding a tray with a steaming pot, saucers and all the accouterments for good tea. She's dressed casually, with dry trousers and a loose shirt with sleeves rolled up beyond her elbows. Thanara has rarely seen her look more relaxed.
"So?" Snow says gently, inhaling the steam from her tea with a look of delight. "You and Lisa trouble? Can I help? Can just listen. If you want."
”Not…really trouble, I don’t think. Just…the other night…” she pauses and takes a sip, leaning closer and lowering her voice ”When we were being…intimate…she wasn’t able to…’return the favor’ so to speak. And she blamed Savah for it. Which seems to me a weak excuse.”
Snow frowns, and then closes the distance between them to take a sniff of Thanara's neck, although she doesn't seem to notice the choker.
"Odd. You smell ready." She replies. "Problem before? Scared? Sometimes not happy makes it hard. Why blame Savah?" Snow pulls back again to look Thanara in the eye. "Thanara, something else? Something else you not telling me? Can talk to me. Keep secrets. You know that?"
Thanara shakes her head. ”No. Not that I’m aware of. The baby is on her mind…maybe…maybe she is having second thoughts about Orik…” she replies, suddenly becoming focused on the way her tea looks as she stirs it.
"What you think, about Orik?" Snow asks, accepting the conversation change without comment as she sips her own tea. "Don't know well. Is he good? Good enough for our Lisa? Won't allow less than best. Not for my Pack." She sips her tea for a couple of minutes in silence, before looking at Thanara with a more gentle look than Thanara can ever remember seeing on her face.
"Want her to be happy. Want for all Pack. Lisa. Ryn. You." She pauses and the crackle of the fire fills the air for a long moment. "You happy Thanara? Hope so. Truly."
Thanara shakes her head. ”I don’t think so. When he learned Lisavet and I had been together…he wanted her to see if I wanted to join them! And…he…well, he’s a pig if that is his first thought!”
Thanara thinks long and hard on Snow’s last question. ”I…I have no idea. I’ve never known what happiness is,” she confesses.
Thanara steps into the room she shared with Lisavet, closing the door behind her before calling out quietly ”Lisavet? Are you in here? I was hoping we could talk…”
”I’m here,” Lisa replies. She is lying on her side in the bed, dressed in her blue nightgown. She rolls over to regard Thanara. ”Sorry, I had to lie down. Not feeling so great.”
Thanara thinks long and hard on Snow’s last question. ”I…I have no idea. I’ve never known what happiness is,” she confesses.
Snow frowns. "Nothing? Not any good times? Happiness is..." She pauses, clearly trying to marshal her thoughts, or words. "Tag in forest. Dancing in Magnimar. Ryn kneeling to me." She looks up at the last one and enjoys the flush that breaks out on Thanara's cheeks. "Is safe. Warm. Secure. No worry."
She puts her tea cup down and stands up, stepping forwards and opening her arms. "Come here." She says firmly, before engulfing Thanara in a large and warm hug. She rests her head on Thanara's and links her hands behind Thanara's back.
"How feel now?"
”I mean, I’ve had fun times. But happiness? True happiness…to me, is more long term than a moment of entertainment,” the sorceress counters.
When Snow insists on a hug, she complies and returns the embrace, albeit more gently. After a few moments she says ”Yeah.”
___________
Thanara moves to sit on the edge of the bed with Lisavet. ”I wanted to apologize for being so snappy last night. I was just…frustrated. I don’t think you were doing it on purpose.”
”It’s okay,” Lisa says, reaching to take Thanara’s hand. ”We both were upset. I’m sorry, too.”
Snow leans back slightly, tips Thanara's face up and then kisses her. It is a long, slow kiss which Snow seems intent on drawing out, running her tongue gently across Thanara's lips as one hand runs up and down her back and the other grasps firmly at the back of her neck.
When they pull apart there is a gleaming light in the shifter's eyes. "Long enough for you?" She asks, her attempted teasing tone roughened by another emotion into something more primal.
Thanara whimpers into Snow’s lips, but whether it was a whimper of excitement or protest is impossible to tell. Thanara relents, right up until the cat calls from the other patrons register in her ears, at which point she squirms until she frees herself, eyes darting between Snow’s eyes. Without answering, she heads up the stairs as Snow can’t help but bask in the heavy scent of arousal that only she can detect clouds the air where the sorceress had been.
__________
Thanara squeezes Lisavet’s hand back before laying down beside her. There is a look of urgency and need in her eyes as she asks ”We…could try again?”
Clearly something has gotten Thanara stimulated before she got to the room.
Lisa looks into Thanara's eyes and sees the desire there. "Okay," she says, gently stroking her cheek as she leans in to kiss the sorceress.
Thanara kisses Lisavet back with furious need. Before long, both women are undressed and tangled in one another’s arms, legs, and golden hair. Thanara had driven Lisavet to climax twice, while her own body strained yet again on the precipice of climax. She felt as if just one more touch, one lick, one caress was all it should take to bring her release and satisfaction, but no matter what, Lisavet just seemed unable, or unwilling, to go that distance.
”Lisa…please…don’t do this to me again!” Thanara pleaded as she raised up onto her elbows to look down her sweat covered body at Lisavet. ”I…I can’t take another night like this! You’ve got to…please…make me…make me…” she pants as her head falls back as she stairs at the ceiling with half-lidded eyes.
Once again, it seems like Lisa's efforts continue to fall short. She looks up at Thanara as she pleads with her, the cleric's expression one of concern. "Please, Thanara... Please, just try to take off the collar... If it doesn't work, you can put it right back on... Just try it..."
If it doesn't work or Thanara is unwilling to try, Lisa will reach for her holy symbol and attempt to counteract any curses affecting the sorceress.
When Lisavet works her magic, she really manages to work her magic! Thanara falls back and let’s loose a cascade of repressed orgasms that leaves her crying out, spasming, and thrashing in the bed that goes on for about ten solid minutes!
Afterwards, she can’t help but fall unconscious in Lisavet’s arms, totally spent, her body a sweaty, weak, and utterly exhausted mess.
Snow, who has finished her tea and headed outside into the rain, looks up with a grin as Thanara reaches what sounds like a truly superb climax.
Glad. Good for her. And Lisa.
Walking through the rain, which has slackened to a cool drizzle, the shifter wanders as her impeccable night vision guides her without conscious thought.
How make her understand?
Snow has never thought in words, complex pictures or ordered plans. The world is a great whirl of constant stimulus, a wave to be ridden and mastered, not predicted and considered. But as she wanders in the rain she can't help but dream, of a future, of something she would truly want.
Pack. Together. Lisa, Ryn, Thanara, Koya, Niska... Nualia.
That last name hits like a crossbow bolt to the chest. She knows it's true. Nualia was her first friend, her first love, the Pack would never be complete without the white-blonde haired aasimar, the first girl who had Snow made feel like a person, rather than a freak.
"Wish you here Lia." Snow says softly, looking out over the dark lake. "See you again." Her thoughts slip away, lingering over the planes of Nualia's fine cheeks, the smoothness of her skin and the luster of her hair that Snow's own could never manage.
A freak gust of wind smooths the lake surface in front of her and the reflection staring back at Snow is Nualia's, right down to the tiny scar by her right eye that she got when a branch hit her in the face when the two of them raided an apple orchard just outside Sandpoint. The reflection raises a hand just as Snow does, long fingers touching cool, damp skin before dropping to her knees to look properly.
Am me still. Nualia.
Her face feels different, not the comfortable shape of her own bones or the true rightness of her wolf form - her truest self, but something new, a replica, a wrongness. A pale imitation of a love lost. But despite all that Snow can't help but hold onto this new magic, the only connection to her departed friend.
"Am sorry Lia." She says softly, her voice the musical tones that she'd last heard filled with hate and scorn. "Was not strong enough. For you. Should have helped."
The rain thickens a little, the droplets disturbing the surface of the lake already dappled by water dripping from perfect brown eyes.
--------------------------
Snow doesn't return to the inn until the moon is well risen although obscured by rain clouds. She sat by the lake until the magic slipped once more, an hour or longer of memories both pleasant and painful, good days long ago and hours spent hiding outside the Tobyn's house, listening to the priest berating his daughter.
As she approaches the inn once more she looks up at the darkened window through which she can feel her pack-mates. The bond between the three of them has deepened, although Snow know's that neither of her companions feel it, understand it as she does. She doesn't have the words to explain, to tell them that she would stand between them and the demons of the Worldwound, that she would die for them without a second thought. Without questioning, remorse or hesitation. But as she stares up in the gloom Snow makes a promise to herself, and her pack.
Never again. Will never fail Pack again. My life for theirs. Always. I am Alpha. That is Pack.
The next morning, you meet with Shalelu and the Black Arrows to plan how to retake Fort Rannick. Fort Rannick is located at the northern end of a wide valley that runs along the southern edge of the mountains. This bleak landscape stretches on for miles along the border between the mountains and Kreegwood. This rugged, forlorn landscape fits well with the morose and grim attitude of its guardians.
Vale can provide you with a detailed map of Fort Rannick. Neither he nor Jakardos know where the ogres are located, or exactly how many ogres are still stationed within the fort. They can all but guarantee that there are a lot. While the ogres have the advantage of numbers, you will have the advantage of surprise and superior knowledge of the area.
They offer some suggestions for plans of attack:
DEATH FROM ABOVE: Anybody capable of flight can descend on the fort proper from above. Alternatively, if they fly up to the eagle aerie, they can approach the fort via the hidden ledge and tunnel from the north.
THE SECRET TUNNELS: These tunnels have not been used in decades. They are infested in some places by shocker lizards, but they might provide the perfect means of infiltrating the fort without alerting the ogres. The tunnels can be entered via a waterfall cave.
THE SLUICE GATE: On the south wall of the fort, a sluice gate opens to release refuse and sewage downhill into the creek. You can attempt to circumvent the gates of Rannick by breaching this narrow access instead, but its proximity to the South Gate might be a problem.
STEALTH: Ogres can see in the dark, so night is likely to be a bigger problem than it is an advantage for you. If you all are sneaky, you might be able to infiltrate the fort undetected, especially if you use spells like invisibility or fog cloud to mask your approach.
TRICKERY: Most ogres aren’t very bright, so somebody skilled at deception could bluff their way inside the fort.
Thanara looks at the map the Arrows drew up. ”I suppose this is all a moot point if we don’t know the positions of the ogres. Right?” she asks.
"If we can get close enough to scout it out, we could see where some of the ogres are located," Vale says.
Thanara tugs on her cloak. ”I can get inside thanks to this. It makes me invisible for about ten minutes. I can do it twice. Once in, once out,” she boasts.
"It will be dangerous to go alone," Lisa says worriedly. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
Thanara bites her lower lip. ”I…I guess. We can’t really do this as a group. I’m the only one of us that can go invisible, right?” she asks, looking to the gathered group somewhat hopeful someone says they can too.
"Can be small," Snow offers. "Small enough to hide easily." But it's not invisibility and everyone knows it.
Lisa sighs. "Okay. I can cast a status spell on you, at least. It will inform me if you get injured and tell me how to get to you should something ill befall you."
Thanara sighs nervously. ”Then it sounds like that is the first plan, then. When we get as close as we can safely, I will slip inside and try and get an initial head count and their positions and then report back,” she says, straightening her posture to appear brave and in command, as a mayor should.
"Then let's move out," Jakardos says.
***
Fort Rannick is about 12 miles north of Turtleback Ferry. A half a day's march brings you to the end of the wide valley where it lies.
Storm clouds gather overhead as you draw near. Talons of lightning claw at the sky, casting pale light on the mountainside below. The lightning storm reveals a grim fortress of dark gray stone standing sentinel over the valley, huddled desperately at the base of two sheer cliff sides. Crumbling, fifteen-foot-high walls ring the citadel, the stone pitted and cratered from hurled boulders and ogre hooks. Like the face of a veteran with decades of winters under his belt, the fort’s craters, cracks, and scars are testament to its battle-weary history. A stone keep, a stubborn shadow against the mountainside, rises from behind the worn walls, a single tower jutting up from its ramparts like an ugly broken tooth. Nearby, a rushing curtain of white water cascades down the mountainside into a large pool of water just outside the fort’s walls.
Thanara looks at the keep, a pit of dread forming in her belly. She lets out a breath and says, mostly to herself, ”Okay. I suppose it is time…”
Lisa prays over Thanara to allow her to monitor her status, then gives the sorceress a kiss. "Be careful."
Thanara blushes, the second comparatively public display of affection in as many days from the other two heroines still being something she isn’t comfortable with. ”I’ll be fine. Unless ogres have some way to see the unseen,” she boasts.
She gives the three women she has shared so much life and death situations with a smile before heading out into the rain towards the keep. As she gets closer, she raises the hood to activate its magic.
Invisible, Thanara quietly flies over the walls to survey the courtyard. She notes the location of numerous ogres, as well as the horrific evidence of their violent assault. She has a job to do, she knows. So she keeps a mental tally of the situation before eyeing the askew doors into the keep.
She bites her lower lip nervously before making a decision. She then heads for the door and tries to slip inside. The door is stuck, but Thanara manages to pry it open enough to get inside the keep...
Many minutes pass. Lisa frowns. "It's been too long. She should be back by now. She's below us... she must be in the basement."
Suddenly, the cleric gasps. "She's gone! Or... the status spell is gone. Somebody must have dispelled it!"
Snow lets out an angry growl and turns to Jakardos. "How? Why? Way into basement! Quickly!"
"The tunnels behind the waterfall," Jakardos replies.
"What wait for?" Snow demands. "Go! Now!" She suits actions to words, racing for the waterfall.
The Black Arrows quickly lead the way to the polluted pool outside the fort's walls. You pass through the waterfall and clamber up the wet stones behind it to the secret cave. The floor of this cave is dotted with puddles. Patches of pale moss and fungus grow in sheets on the wall, while to the north, a five-foot-wide passageway angles up into darkness.
A passageway to the east leads to a secret door that opens out behind the new barracks. Just before this door, a side passage winds down under the central keep. It is this passage that you take. These dank caves of dirt and stone wind and bend dizzyingly, narrowing to as small as three feet wide at points. In places, claws of exposed tree roots hang from the ceiling.
"Careful. There are many shocker lizards that live here," Vale says. "As long as we move slowly through the warrens, don’t approach too closely to any of their egg mound, and don’t hurt the lizards, they shouldn't attack."
Snow leads the way without comment. Her instincts are screaming to transform and charge ahead but an Alpha does what is best for the pack, they don't charge in like a headstrong pup, so she breathes calmly and moves as quietly as she can to avoid extra trouble.
The shocker lizards regard you warily as you draw near, but they do not attack. Slowly but surely, you reach the hidden door into the basement and open it...
This simple room might have once been a jailer’s den, or perhaps even a torture chamber, but someone has gone through great pains to repurpose it. The air now smells of sweet exotic incense, and veils of multicolored silk drape from floor to ceiling throughout. Between the rustlings of the veils, glimpses of giant cushions are revealed. The floor is strewn with luxuriant red throw rugs and sheets.
Thanara is here, naked and bound. Her wrists and ankles are tied with thick rope, and she is strung up so that she is hanging upright. The sorceress is covered with sweat and other fluids that dribble down her legs, her eyes glazed over. Standing beside her is an aristocratic-looking human woman with fire-red hair and alabaster skin. Her face is pure elegance—high cheekbones, demure but lust-stirring green eyes, and perfectly shaped eyebrows to accent them.
"Ah, so good of you to join us," she says with a smile. "Your friend Thanara Scarnetti has already seen the wisdom of submitting to me. Perhaps you will do the same? And if I cannot convince you to join us, then perhaps she can."
The curtains rustle as a third woman makes her presence known. A very familiar woman, indeed. There is no mistaking the silver hair, violet eyes, and scarred belly of Nualia Tobyn! The heavily armored aasimar grips her bastard sword and sneers at you. "Hello, Snow," she says.
As the others enter, Thanara tries to hide her face in shame. She strains in her bonds, wishing to cover herself, but to no avail.
"Let. Her. Go." Snow snarls, holding in the cataclysm of rage and pain that erupts inside her by the barest edge. "Or kill you." She turns to Nualia and the rage flares brighter. "Stay out of this!"
Her rage and the subsequent mangling of her words doesn't make her very intimidating - unfortunately.
Nualia brandishes her sword. "No. I've been looking forward to a rematch. This time, you will feel Lamashtu's fury!" she shouts.
Lisa is horrified by the scene in front of her. As Nualia lunges at Snow, though, she is spurred into action. Ducking past the aasimar, she races over to Thanara's side and holds forth her holy symbol. "Be free of your bonds!" she intones.