{rolls eyes}
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A small cluster of Alias looks over at another cluster of Dools. The Dools all regard the Alias with a look of distaste like a haughty noble might upon realizing their rival is wearing the same dress at the king's cotillion.
The hallway seems even more crowded.
Dool throws himself into cover and casts a spell targeting the door to the room that Longtooth just vacated.
Dool's hulking guardian advances out of the room, followed by Dool himself, who tosses a dart of acid at the entrapped wizard.
Then...
Dool merely rolls his eyes.
"Do not fear. I surmise by the door's exterior that this Kurget, one of my guards. If you find any other odd doors about that will be the others." Dool walks over to the door and raps upon the door in a very deliberate manner. For it's part the door seems to open for him though its bulk still obscures the view of the being beyond from the rest of the party. The two seem to be whispering to one another.
"Well I for one am glad to see that braggart gone."
"Well that didn't seem so hard." Alak Dool says from just outside the doorway.
"Fergus, Alak, can you cast anything to help us fight this? Haste maybe?" "'Maybe.'" Dool says sharply. "The thing isn't just a bundle of animate glass, it's a golem. Most of my spells will be useless against it though-" and his look grows darkly thoughtful. "if someone could freeze it or at least cool it down...."
"Let's be *slightly* careful yes? Remember the wall of fire ..." Illthir gently nudges Matheus away from the door. She leans down to peer through the keyhole and then lean her ear against the door, hoping to have a mild warning at least. Once she's moderately satisfied the door won't lead to some plane of eternal suffering, she'll let him get back to the smash-down. The Lock seems overly complicated, and Illthir can neither hear anything on the other side nor see anything through all the gears. At Durgan's inquiry Dool makes a knocking gesture with one hand while speaking a phrase of magic. There's some grinding noises as the gears in the lock try to move, but nothing (aside from the wizard's expression growing angrier) happens. dice:
Dool's magic leads the party down the twisting stair to the ground floor and across to the library. He points out the ornate, dark wood door to the left of the entrance, and says "He is there, or at least his sword is and I doubt many others would have such a blade."
"We came looking for him." Mother Vorst says indicating Dool who seems to swell at the attention.deflating as Durgan takes center stage, Dool asks "So what did you need me for then?" "There are some spells I am sure that can block, hinder or track teleportation magic, but I have not studied any that would be useful to us just now. Location magic (like what the Reverend Mother used to find me) might better serve now. And I do have some of that prepared. 'Big conventions of people' and all that. If they are close by I might be able to find them. Who did you want to search out?"
"We came looking for him." Mother Vorst says indicating Dool who seems to swell at the attention. deflating as Durgan takes center stage, Dool asks "So what did you need me for then?"
But hopefully the delightful Dool would be able to shed some light on the situation. Maybe. With a pained smile she addressed the wizard. "Pardon again for the delay; would you believe it's not our fault this time either?" But perhaps it would be wise to keep a distance from the wizard in the future. Dangerous critters seemed to run amok wherever their paths crossed! "I must be frank and ask you; when Stroon stepped in the other day you did seem to notice. Would you be able to sniff out where the rest of the gathering ended up being spirited away to?" Dool gives Illthir the look. ಠ_ಠ "I was not exactly expecting to have to look for my hosts or their other guests today." he says curtly.
"Well, you all took your time." says an obviously put upon Dool as the rest of the party finds their way to the maze's heart. Spoiler: Sense Motive DC15:
A flash of recognition passes over Kozen as he sees the corpse laying near Zokon.
Dool cocks an eyebrow and then sighs. He stows his lightning-shaped wand before hauling the ranger more or less upright, muttering under his breath.
"Well about time." sneers Dool, stepping over Zokon and the other man and into what might be the center of the maze.
The mob of Dool's point their wands at the beast (and dangerouly close to Alia) and let fly another blast of electricity, but it only brushes past the monster.
In the maze's heart the gang of Dools drops their "shield" and draw their lightning-shaped wands. With a flick and word they let loose a blast of lightning at such close range that everyone's hair (aside from their own greased back hair) stands on end.
The creature dodges aside with its flank tanned.
Interposing Zokon between themselves and their attacker, the remaining Dools intone a word of magic and a veritable fusillade of magical darts fly from their fingers across the space and around Alia and into her attacker. The creature creature drops unconscious to the cobbles before Alia.
"Yes, no doubt a friend of this one over here." says the multiplicity of Dools looking back the way they came . They adjust their position for defense. Then, the real one quietly explains what he knows about the creatures
Dool nods and waves Alia forward in the direction of the Shepherd as if to say "Ladies first."
"Well you're certainly fit." says an acerbic Dool as Alia carefully lowers Zokon to the cobblestones. A moment later the wizard sneezes loudly and then mutters a curse beneath his breath.
dice:
Alia comes into the courtyard and hears the sound of hooves on the stone steps coming up from the grass she left a few moments before. She also hears moans, curse, and scrabbling from the courtyard pit. "So, do you have a rope?" asks the skeptical-looking wizard, and for the life of her Alia could not imagine anyone more skeptical-looking.
Alia enters a cobblestone courtyard with a shrub cut to resemble a tiger, and the wizard Alak Dool standing on the opposite side of deep stone pit.
"Oh. It's your elf. No doubt she has a rope." says Dool with some disappointment upon seeing Alia.
"It's dangerous but maybe you could lure all the spiders over to one wall or corner and then move away--way out of the way?" suggests the wizard from above. "Otherwise, fireball--no problem." Dool smiles. "Well, I think it's a good plan." says Dool in a feigned injure tone. "But you do as you like. You know best, being a ranger and all."
Round 7! (Theme ♬)
"It's dangerous but maybe you could lure all the spiders over to one wall or corner and then move away--way out of the way?" suggests the wizard from above. "Otherwise, fireball no problem." Doll smiles.
Round 7! (Theme ♬)
"Well perhaps some lightning, then?" says the wizard pacing above.
Round 6! (Theme ♬)
"Are you sure you don't want the fireball?" asks a concerned-looking Dool from the top of the pit.
"Oh! So close, Duke! Just keep that memory of that hill on the lake in mind and climb for it. Images of your desire can be a strong motivator or so I have been told. Have I ever mentioned my own fondness for lakefront property?"
"Just a little closer...."
Above, the wizard waits. His eyes are aglow with his magic. One wonders what he is thinking as he watches Zokon's progress. "Careful now, Duke. The fall is not far, but most assuredly deadly. Remember. You have a capital to build upon a high, green hill, beside a beautiful lake...." Below Zokon, the spiders hiss and gabble.
"I don't often carry coils of rope, and climbing pitons with me in the morning." considers the wizard irritably. "Although, I might have something...."
The sound the scuttling mass crawling over him is almost as disconcerting as the number of envenomed bites he's taking and the touch of the spiders' hundreds of legs as they pass over his exposed flesh.
"Oh that's clever. That's devilishly clever! The trap forces you to climb through increasing numbers of summoned swarms of blood spiders!" Enthuses the wizard from outside the pit. "I wonder how many swarms show up?"
The air wobbles and the bottom of the pit is suddenly filled with hundreds upon hundreds of scuttling, walnut-sized, glossy blood-red spiders! "I could cast a Ball of Exploding Balefire™ down there if you think if would help with the spiders." offers Dool from far above as Zokon is bitten repeatedly by the venomous, blood-red spiders.
"It doesn't appear to be magical."
The air all around Zokon begins to buzz with magical energy, from the bottoms of his feet to somewhere above his head he can feel the greasy film of arcane magic about him.
"Well? What are you waiting for?" says Alak Dool to Zokon. "You aren't afraid are you?" He's holding his tea kettle in one hand, and a wand in the other. From somewhere nearby Zokon hears the sound of a half-dozen arrows being fired in rapid succession. dice:
"Muttering to himself, not a ranger... " he stalks forward down the indicated path keeping an intent watch "If you see any strange doors along the way let me know." Zokon hears a distant woman's scream from somewhere to the south. dice:
Dool looks long and hard at Zokon. "No." He scans the area and frowns, he says some magical gobbledygook, and now with his eyes radiating a blue-white light looks around looks again. "Curses...." The light goes out. He looks around once again at the hedge walls and the stone steps back the way he came. "Well then, ranger, I suggest we leave. My point of entry seems a likely path." Dool says and gestures to the stone path behind him, a gesture that indicates he intends that Zokon go first.
"Zokon!?" says the startled wizard. Dool's eyes rove over the faux-ranger before landing hard upon his sword. He almost doesn't have time to sneer at Zokon's mention of his footwear, before saying "You're alone." It's hard for Zokon to tell if that's question or not. "I thought I heard someone else out here yelling."
"For some reason I like you Dool, there appears to be a no nonsense about you, I think I can sponsor you to our group. But we are law abiding folk and want the same for ours." "I will bear that in mind." the wizard says in an aloof tone. "Now if you will excuse me, I'm off to speak with your neighbor about a volcano."
Its rare for such places to not have something about them. As much as happened there. I've not had time to study the place though, so couldn't rightly say yes or no. Dool nods contemplatively. His eyes stray sideways to Zokon for a moment as Fergus continues. As said, it may be possible for us to rent out smaller sections of the land to guests of prestige to the kingdom for periods of time. If that is something you would be interested in. Though I can guarantee nothing as of yet, of course. "My research will require some space, and I have a liking for... beachfront property." he says gathering up his gold and putting it away.
"Not particularly. Only that it is on the frontier. Why?" he asks looking about suspiciously. "Does it have some special arcane significance?"
The corners of Alak Dool's lips turn upward into something that is not quite a smile.
Zokon puts up a hand "Well that will be the site of our capital, so no one will buy that parcel of land, Master Dool, is using a tactic to influence proceedings, you are also welcome Max to use your own, to get what you want. There really aren't any rules to this." "So you are saying that there is still a chance?" says Dool.
"Master Dool, that will most likely be the site of our capital, although a capable wizard would be welcome, I will not leed you astray, you have a somewhat sinister reputation. Our group is made up of goodly folk that will need more than just the impression that you are capable and scary, to be able to allow you to operate side by side with us in unity." "Of course." Dool says smartly. He produces a small sack, reaches in pulls out several fist-sized gold ingots which he places on the map.
I hope Zokon did not hear the archbanker...
"Master Dool, that will most likely be the site of our capital, although a capable wizard would be welcome, I will not leed you astray, you have a somewhat sinister reputation-"
Zokon with Alia will try to talk to each person, just to make small talk, and to very pointedly ask "If you are given an offer you are amenable to would you consider settling or dealing with the new land of Avalon? This is not an offer it is to establish whether you are an interested party."] "Were you to make it, I would wish to settle here." Alak Dool says jabbing a finger onto one of the regional maps scattered across the table. "I realize that you haven't formally assessed the site yet, but it would be perfect for my needs." The look in the man's eyes when he says it is unsettling.
Alak Dool and Imeckus Stroon eye each other like two dangerous, feral tom cats in too small a box.
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