"Oh dear! This is bad!" Becky groans once Ku'Hania has tracked the invader to the town well. "Whatever's down there may have spit or peed in our colony's water supply!"
“Ooh,” Ankha chimes in, “then I guess we shouldn’t try to kill the choker by poisoning the well.” She pokes her head into the well to investigate, but quickly pulls it out again. “Does anyone have a magical light? It’s pretty dark down there.”
While waiting for a light source, she muses “I guess the big question is: do we try to go down after it, or wait for it to come out?”
How big/deep is the well? Can a human fit in there? Is squeezing required? How far down to the water level?
"The moment we send light down. they'll definitely know that someone is coming, but better that than operating in the dark, where I'm sure they have an advantage." Ku'Hania says, looking down the well opening.
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"Ah, well. This is awkward." Braxton says. He gathers a few things from Blaudon, namely his artificial gills and goggles. "My pokey rapier will be more useful in an underwater tunnel than a fauchard, so I'll go first. Hopefully there is merely an entrance to an above-water tunnel or cave system, and we won't actually have to go for a swim." He sets his dull, grey ioun stone to orbiting his head, dons the backpack-like gills, doffs his hat in favor of the goggles, and sheathes his rapier and buckler. He also kicks off his boots. Sits on the edge of the well and lifts his legs over the precipice, grabbing onto the rope. "You know what they say. Fortune favors the... How is there a freshwater well so close to the ocean?"
Onward.
"Light!" Becky yips as Braxton prepares to descend. "I can cast light on an item of your choosing!"
"We'll wait a few moments for him to see what things are like and move forward a bit, then I'll go next." Ku'Hania says, looking down into the well. "I can conjure bobbing lights to illuminate the tunnel for us as we move."
Becky does as Braxton instructs, casting the spell on a pebble before dropping it into the well. She peers downward to see what the tiny stone illuminates.
The pebble falls down the well, falling quickly before dropping into the water. Before it hits the water, however, right at the waterline there seems to be a narrow break in the wall. The pebble lights up the walls on the way down, and you can tell that chokers could climb up out of the wall pretty effortlessly.
You have to squeeze to get through the crack once you all get down to the bottom , but once you do you see that the walls are rough and uneven, while stalactites hang from the stone ceiling of this cave. The air is cool in contrast to the warmth of the island’s surface. A natural tunnel meanders in a northerly direction. The tunnel goes for about 100 feet before the passage splits into two tunnels. The faint dripping of water into small pools echoes softly down the cave tunnels.
"Well, thank goodness we didn't have to go for a swim. Shame I no longer have my hat." Once the ladies have joined him and he has his rapier and buckler in had, Braxton advances down the hall. "Good thing we found this cave now. Imagine the sinkholes in the future!"
It’s a bit tricky to maneuver her fauchard through the crack at the bottom of the well, but with Braxton’s reports about a tunnel opening up, Ankha figures it’s best to bring her polearm and the rest of her gear, just in case. Though the squeeze makes her wish that she were smaller, like her family, she’s definitely glad that they didn’t have to go into the water. “At least we don’t have choker-flavored water,” she reassures Becky.
She follows close behind Braxton, trying her best to help him spot tracks or anything else that might be of interest, while gripping her fauchard protectively in case of danger.
Once the glowing pebble is dropped, Ku'Hania nimbly climbs down the rope, squeezing through the crack in the well wall to enter the subterranean chamber.
Moving into the cavern and taking in the surroundings, she looks for signs of chokers passing or activity.
Knowing she's not a good climber, Becky goes down the rope last, after Ku'Hania has disappeared into the hole below. She has a couple of anxious moments but makes the descent successfully. As soon as she's safely inside the tunnel, the bard ends the light effect on the pebble she'd dropped and recasts it upon her rapier.
The entire group makes it down into the cave safely, luckily, and finds themself in the cold damp cave.
The path splits into two in front of you, one leading slightly to the left and the other heading slightly to the right. Neither one seems to be more important than the other, and the floor of the cave is too muddy and water-covered in places to suss out any particular tracks.
"Might as well pick one direction and start, until we find a reason to do different." Ku'Hania says heading toward the left side of the path.
Ankha agrees and heads left with Ku'Hania.
"Do you think chokers are intelligent, like the water meeps? I wouldn't want to wipe them out, but I also don't think they should be living in our well. And let's stick together. Who knows how far these caverns go. Wouldn't want anyone wandering off in the dark and getting lost."
Ankha's knowledge, combined with what Dolgrin once told you, is enough for her to deduce that unlike the grindylow you are unlikely to be able to negotiate with the chokers. They are very aggressive hunters that prey on anything they can get their hands on.
The cramped tunnels open up into a larger cavern. Its irregular walls open to dark spaces. A suspicious-looking pile of bones sits in the center of the floor, while the faint scent of blood and viscera has almost—but not quite—faded away.You hear the sounds of what seems, strangely enough, like a handful of kids playing with a hard ball in the cave ahead of you.
As you turn the corner and try to stealthily peek into the room, the four chokers in the room turn towards you and let out a loud shriek before dropping the rocks and bones they were playing with and turning towards you. These chokers seem significantly smaller than the one you killed in the farmhouse above, leading you to believe they might be what passes for children among these aberrations.
Init:
19- Braxton
15- Ankha
11- chokers
8- Ku'Hania
4- Becky
"They might be, but given that they have a habit of trying to murder people in their sleep, it might not matter." Ku'Hania says quietly, as they move forward, holding her spear ready for a sudden attack.
"Bah! Fear me! Away, beasts! I am the lightbringer!" Braxton waves his arms, clangs the basket of his rapier against his buckler, and casts a minor blessing. He hopes the show will scare the beasts away, if indeed they are beasts, and not intelligent beings. If not, the rough walls of the cavern and the pillar by which he stands make for a solid defensive line. He wouldn't want to approach Ankha in such a place.
Ankha nods in agreement with Ku’Hania. “I’ve heard they kill whatever they can get their hands on.”
As soon as the chokers spot them, she immediately draws her fauchard and protectively moves to a position to block the other side of the pillar, while also ensuring that her polearm can swing freely to intercept any foes intent on attacking Braxton. Fortunately the cavern provides plenty of room.
“Do we really want them to run and bring back the adults?” she asks the noisy brewmaster in a doubtful voice. For the time being though she adopts a defensive posture, ready to strike any chokers that might close in with an intent to do harm.
"Why would they get the adults?" Braxton replies with a wink, brandishing his keen rapier. "I hear youths are extremely capable."
"Then what was the point to trying to scare them off?"
The chokers advance towards Ankha, with one of them diverting towards Braxton. Ankha takes a swing at the first choker (Red) to enter her reach, but it's too small and fast for her to hit.
One of the chokers (Green) approaching Ankha provoke a retaliation from her, but the other two are swift enough to avoid the slice of the fauchard.
Her blade slices through the chest of the young monster, but doesn't quite finish it off.
Init:
19- Braxton
15- Ankha
11- chokers
8- Ku'Hania
4- Becky
Becky shares what she knows about chokers and weaves magic into her words to aid her friends against the little creeps. "Chokers are nasty little aberrations, preternaturally quick with a long reach, and...Gaa! One's got Ankha!" The bard-cyclopedia lets Ku'Hania move to engage the monsters before moving herself to help Ankha.
The archivist and any allies within 30 feet gain a +1 insight bonus to AC and on attack rolls and saving throws against extraordinary, supernatural, and spell-like abilities used by creatures of that specific kind of monster.
Ku'Hania moves forward, uttering a spell, as a wave of fear and doubt washes over the chokers.
Braxton switches focus and delivers an elegant thrust to the chest of the aberration before him. The blade pierces the creature deeply. "Help Ankha, ladies. I'll be fine!"
Ankha instinctively tries to wriggle free from the choker’s grasp, but the creature's grip is like an iron vise.
Unable to use her polearm, she drops it and draws her sling staff instead, then focuses upon her internal energy. With her body's natural processes enhanced by her daily alchemical tea, she is able to miraculously heal some of her wounds.
Braxton quickly finishes off the first young choker, his rapier ending its life before it can even tell what happened.
All three of the remaining chokers throw off Ku'Hania's magic, seemingly unafraid of anything the group can throw at them.
The choker grappling Ankha pushes her towards the middle of the room, separating her from the party and allowing its friend to move up to Becky and attack.
Both new attacks miss, however.
Init:
19- Braxton
15- Ankha
11- chokers
8- Ku'Hania
4- Becky
Unable to wrench herself free, Ankha instead tries to kill the already wounded choker. Pulling her sling staff out wide in one hand, she uses the ranged weapon as a club and attempts to bash the creature’s head in.
Becky lets out a weird little "Eep!" sound when the young choker tries to grab her. She may be startled, but the teen isn't so scared that she doesn't try to fight back. Unfortunately, she's not particularly skilled with the rapier she wields. She still spouts what she knows about chokers as she attacks, pointing out, "Like most humanoid-shaped creatures, chokers don't like to be stabbed...in the head!!" When her attack isn't as awesome as expected, she mutters, "Dang! Stay still!" Realizing the Ku'Hania's likely multiple times the warrior she is, Becky takes a careful 5-foot step back to allow the half-elf to step up and engage the little monster.
for
"Ah. Stab them in the brain. You should have said that from the start!" The next choker that steps up to the sailor is handily skewered right through its brain, its clumsy advance making it an easy target for the well protected Braxton. As it falls, he steps gracefully over its corpse, dancing between the choker that is grabbing Ankha and the one Becky is fighting. His movement seems relaxed, but he is on high alert, ready to strike out at either of the aberrations should they fall for the bait.
Ankha manages to find a way to finish off the grappling her and Braxton strikes a huge blow against the one next to him, his rapier catching it off guard and defeating that one as well.
The purple one does strike out at Braxton as he moves past, slipping past his guard and grabbing onto him.
Ku'Hania takes this opportunity to take a step forward and stab at the occupied final choker.
Her spear strike misses however, even with the creature entangled with Braxton.
The choker tightens its grip on Braxton, attempting to (aptly enough) choke him to death.
Becky sees Braxton in trouble so she hooks around the large rock formation, grabs one of the choker's tentacle arms, and tries to help pry it from Braxton's throat.
“Braxton!” Now free from the choker’s grasp and able to speak, Ankha cries in alarm when the last choker wraps its nasty hands around Braxton’s throat. “Hold on, I’m coming!” With her heart pounding frantically, the alchemist rushes around the swashbuckler and raises her club-like staff up high. Taking advantage of the creature’s preoccupation with Ku’Hania’s spear, she swings the club down hard, hoping to bash in the top of its head.
Ankha swings in and takes a swipe at the last choker, attempting to heroically rescue Braxton. The choker, distracted as it is with his prisoner, is struck by surprise with the alchemist’s quick moves, and it quickly falls to the floor dead.
Becky moves forward to heal Ankha and Braxton. Not satisfied with the amount of healing her spells do, the bard draws her wand and gives each of her two wounded friends a quick tap. "Is this thing even working?" Becky hisses in a quiet growl of frustration as she shakes the wand after its healing is almost imperceptible.
"If they were young, the adults are likely coming." KuHania says, raedying her spear and looking in the direction of the sounds.
Ankha exhales a huge sigh of relief when the last choker collapses, releasing the swashbuckler from its deadly grasp. “Well, you were right Braxton,” she quips with a false lightheartedness that conceals her concern for the man, “the young chokers were extremely capable!”
She flashes a huge, grateful smile at Becky when her wounds magically heal, and holds up a hand when the wand is brought near. “It’s okay Rebecca, I’m completely fine now, thanks to your supercharged healing spell! See, not a scratch! Save the wand for Braxton instead.” She waves off the offer of any more healing.
Nodding at Ku’Hania’s warning, the alchemist stows her staff sling and retrieves her polearm. “I’ll try to be more prepared this time.” Ankha retrieves a small vial from her bandolier and downs its contents. Almost immediately her muscles ripple and bulge unnaturally, while her eyes become smaller and beadier, seeming to retreat inside her skull. “Don’t worry Rebecca,” she reassures the bard, “I haven’t perfected the formula yet but it’s still a useful concoction to have, especially in a fight.” She glances over at Braxton and Ku’Hania. “Now should we go meet the parents, or stay here to say hello?”
Becky goes wide-eyed and speechless at Ankha's transformation. "Uh...whichever you think is best," she stammers in answer to Ankha's final question.
You wait a few moments more, yet nothing comes running out of the darkness at you. Seems as if the 'parents' have either fled, or are waiting for you further in.
Ankha nods. “Let’s meet the parents then, and make sure no one else in the colony is strangled.” With her fauchard held out before her, the alchemist continues further down the tunnel in search of more chokers.
Remembering how long the chokers' arms are, Becky keeps her eyes shifting upward, knowing that the creatures can pull themselves up to higher places.
With a nod, Ku'Hania follows Ankha down the tunnel.
Continuing down the first tunnel you see on the left, Ku'Hania points out two full-grown chokers hiding, hanging from the ceiling in an attempted ambush.
Init:
22- Ankha
19- chokers
19- Braxton
17- Ku'Hania
14- Becky