What the halfling said, pretty much.
Btw, what webcomic would this be?
Anyways good luck with everything.
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Milos voice came drifting through the darkness to Kintals ear. "Well, no, we dont see much of anything. Unless you mean figuratively, in which case I shall take your triumphant tone as all the evidence I shall need." He chuckled softly at his rather snarky remark, before adding. "Does the darkness yeild where you are?"
"Could have fooled me." Milo quipped, looking at the halflings work with an appraising eye. "It doesnt have to look good, just be sturdy. This looks sturdy." As they scooted the makeshift bridge into place, Milo asked the all important question. "So, anyone want to go first?"
Milo frowned at the realization that none of the planks would suffice. "Hmm, I may have overestimated the size of these planks, but with a bit of rope we might be able to make it work. Lend me a hand would you?"
"We could probably use some of the floor planks from the main room." Milo commented, measuring the assorted planks with his eyes. "With a little luck there will even be enough to seal the hole completely."
Hearing Telthes give voice to his idea, Milo retreated out of the darkness. "I will only be in the way." He remarked matter-of-factly. "I will keep a lookout while you work. Call for me if you make any progress or need my assistance."
Those knifes look fairly well made, most likely stolen somewhere." Milo noted, pointing at the assorted cutlery. "They may be worth keeping, ahem, after a good cleaning of course." He looked around at the walls when Kintal pointed out the eating practices of the residents, swallowing loudly. "Surely not..." He said, trailing of as the full reality of it all hit him. "They are as a bot fly is to you and I, parasites." He seemed to gain back a glint of determination in his eyes, clenching one fist. "Let us finish exorcising this infestation." He moved back to the door behind which the darkness loomed. "It would seem there is but one way forward then. Let us hope the darkness does not extend far."
"oh my, thats...something." Milo said´, his voice rising a bit, the noxious fumes interfering with his ability to formulate a better sentence. "If anyone feels like searching this room for good measure, I wont stop you." He said as he left the doorway, wafting at his nose. "In the meantime, I'm opening the next one." He added, heading for the next door.
"Indeed." Milo commented, though he grabbed the wand, leaving the rest for the others to take. "I will however inspect this now, it may prove useful."
Turning it in his hands a few moments, he quickly sighed and shook his head with a disappointed look. "You were right the first time it seems Telthes. Onward we go then." Continuing on to the next door, he pressed the nerve cluster to open it.
"By all means then Telthes." Milo said, gesturing towards the chest. "You seem to be our best option. Let us get it done quickly and be on our way, every moment we delay brings us closer to our inevitable discovery and loss of the element of surprise."
"An armory." Milo noted, stating the obvious. He walked along the racks, touching the hilt of each weapon in turn with a disinterested look. "Assuming the enemy would muster here to collect their arms, it might be useful for us to take them with us or break them." He turned to look at the chest. "As for that, anyone here proficient with locks? Or do we simply break it?"
"I am afraid not." Milo said, shaking his head vigorously. "Perhaps we should try each door before deciding on a course of action?" He gestured at the open door. "Seeing as we have very little in the way of options with the darkness."
"Very well." Milo said with a nod, following behind Dawna when she deemed the distance sufficient to follow their sneaky cook.
"Kintal, you are light on your feet, yes?" Milo asked, his slight smirk indicating he was all to aware of the underlying stereotyping of his question. "Maybe you should have a head start and sneak a look around the corner. You know, before the less subtle amongst us inevitably give away our approach to any ears that may be listening from around the corner."
"I fear cauterization may be beyond our means at present." Milo said, inspecting the gushing wound. "I dont suppose any of you possess the necessary medical skill to determine if it is likely to clot of its own accord?" [dice=Another "biology test" using Knowledge (Nature)]1d20 + 8[/dice] Turning to Telthes, Milo nodded. "Seems as good a course of action as any, given our lack of information." He eyed the bleeding once more. "If we cannot stop it we can at least buy ourselves some time. Let us refrain from closing these doors behind us, the extra space should give us more time.
Hey, Ive been in enough games to know you have to just wait sometimes. As long as you keep returning, I dont see much trouble.
"Hmmm, nothing much, most of it is mundane." He mumbled, neatly stacking the objects except for the leather bag. "This one however functions much like a magical quiver, except, it sorts pins instead of arrows." He shrugged. "Not sure how much use that will be, although it might be worth money to the right person." Getting up, he looked around at the 4 as of yet untested exits. "So? How do you propose we proceed?"
Looking at the items with curiosity, Milo stepped up, a hand outstretched. "Let me have a look at these objects." He gave an apologetic look. "I have a spell that might determine if any of it is magical, but I do not have it prepared." He perked up a little as he added. "But there are other ways of finding out, namely, a thorough inspection." He started turning each object in his hands in turn, inspecting them for any signs of potency.
Lobbing another blob of acid, Milo answered Dawnas request by beginning to ascend, opening up an extra few feet of precious space.
"Its faltering!" Milo half shouted, nervousness now fully replaced by excitement. Adding to the fusillade of projectiles, he once more let loose a hissing blob of vitriol.
"Ok, back up everyone, keep ahead of it, and keep firing!" Milo called out, a mixture of excitement and concentration in his voice. Mumbling arcane words and swirling his hands around in familiar motions, he conjured up a blob of acid vicious enough to rival the opponents, lobbing it at the creature.
He then quickly pushed past the others, moving to the back to allow Dawna more room to retreat.
"Miss Dawna, stay very cautious, do not give it any openings. As much as it may hinder your own attacks I doubt it will prove to make much of a difference." Milo called, getting out his own crossbow and firing into the gelatinous mass.
Whispering an excited "Yes", as the bolt impacted the cube, Milo noticed Telthes lack of a ranged weapon. "Take mine Mr. Telthes, I have a spell I can use." He held the crossbow towards the dwarf, twisting his body around as he did to offer easy access to his box of bolts.
"Id advice pursuing ranged options first." Milo replied as he pushed past the halfling.
"Oh no..." Milo muttered, recognizing the "creature", its distinct appearance leaving no doubt in his mind. "It is a Gelatious Cube, and beyond the obvious, take care. It will attempt to engulf you. Should it succeed there is a good chance you will become paralyzed within." "Our best chance is to lead it through a door, then try to lock it out." He said, then promptly proceeded to squeeze himself past the others towards the back of the line.
"Hmmm, on second thought..." Milo mumbled, trailing off as he moved to the right side of the tunnel. "Yes, this tunnel is artificial, not, ahem, arterial." He looked around at everyone with a smirk, hoping for them to reply in kind. "Well, in any case, I think this may open the sphincter, most likely by applying pressure." He pointed at a bulging cluster of nerves in the wall. "Shall I do the honors?" He asked, holding up a ready hand.
Milo shrugged at Dawna, clearly not as concerned about the matter of her indignation. "If any of it truly bothered them they would do something about it I suppose. I mean large parts of the city rest on easily reached places." He smirked a bit. "I personally wouldn't want to live on the hand...image if he had an itch!" Chuckling softly, he turned his attention to their obstacle. "Are we sure we want to open it?" Milo wondered aloud, approaching the sphincter with a mix of curiosity and disgust on his face. "I mean, the roundness of this tunnel, we could be standing in a blood vessel, in which case profuse amounts of blood may be lurking just beyond."
Milo offered a warm smile, reassured by his diminutive friends words. "Ah, ofcourse. Sorry for doubting you Kintal, I dare say this whole ordeal has me questioning things I shouldnt." He slapped his hands together and rubbed them. "Now then, anyone got a torch?" Looking at Azraq for the first time since the kobold had been struck, he got a pained look on his face. "What do we do about this poor soul? Leave him here for now? Lock up the shop?"
In spite of everything, Milo managed a smirk at Kintals comment. "Could have fooled me with that swordplay." Settling into a more serious expression once more, he added. "Are you not with us in this? I wouldnt rate myself a hero, but Im certainly not running away from this."
"This creature..." Milo began, looking very distraught. "It was made with the magic of the invaders. If the Maskers are responsible, whatever they may be plotting just became potentially far more sinister." He walked to the stairs, peering into the darkness below. "Every fiber of my being is telling me to go get help, but I fear there is neither time nor anyone willing to assist us." He looked queasy as he turned his gaze back to the others. "Whos going first?"
With his newfound knowledge, Milo fired a simple cantrip at the creature, blowing through his cupped hands as he had done the previous night, a focused bolt of air slamming into the creatures head.
Realizing that in the heat of the moment he had not taken a closer look at the creature, Milo took a moment to study it, hoping to recognize some weakness he could exploit.
Partially feeling, partially seeing the creature land right around the corner he was standing by, the hairs on Milos neck stood up at the strange unnatural sight. Stepping away, he waved his arms around in circles,this fingers coming together in front of him. The circular motion did not stop however, his torso swaying from side to side as his arms moved as if stirring a pot. Beneath the creature, a large shadow appeared, and as Milo suddenly stopped and pulled both arms towards the ceiling, the shadow started to bubble before suddenly coalescing into a slick sheen of grease.
Surprised to hear the voices of the others upstairs, having failed to notice them depart up the stairs, Milo moved to look up. "What going on up there?" He called as the came running down the stairs. "Terribly sorry about that, I do not know why my companions would be up there." He said, turning to the kobold with an apologetic look.
Milo would have said more, but as the paladin began to speak, he simply stepped back, walking around the shop and looking at the merchandise. "Not exactly my passion, but some of these look interesting atleast."
Milo entered the shop quickly, walking to the counter and addressing the kobold. "Good day to you." He said in a business-like tone, inclining his head in a slight bow. "Might you be Sahib Azraq, the proprietor of this fine establishment?" "I sure hope this isnt someone else of the opposite gender. Never could tell them apart."
"Let us hurry then." Milo said, heading for the door. "We will want to see about those Maskers as soon as possible."
Ill admit I also thought we were waiting for you JGray ;)
Admirable of you to roleplay your bad diplomacy roll. :P
"Hmm, I suppose Telthes has a winning personality...That or this man just doesnt much like me." Milo thought, more than a little annoyed that his words had needed the dwarfs agreement before the man saw reason. "Kobolds then I expect?" He asked, already knowing that the answer would most certainly be yes. "So, do we bring the lock there, or fetch him here? I suppose either works, though I would prefer the latter."
"Might I remind you Mr, Tashykk was it, that the current protocols have done little to prevent any prior kidnapping." He gave Tashykk as stern a glare as he could manage, though his boyish looks didnt exactly accomplish much in that regard. "Am I to understand then, that you would rather sit idle and do nothing while the childrens safety continues to be brought into question?" He looked genuinely angry. "You might as well be a collaborator with the Masks if that is the case." He folded his hands behind his back, his face relaxing into a more neutral businesslike expression. "Now then, do I have your permission or not?"
Walking down to find the man in charge, Milo addressed him with as official a voice as he could muster, doing his best to look important in the process. "Sir, it has come to my attention that potential clues towards the safe recovery of the kidnapped children, might reside within the very lock that guards their night chamber." He paused a moment, eying the man before continuing. "However, in its current state we are not capable of performing the proper scrutiny of this clue to ascertain its value." He raised one hand, index finger pointing to the ceiling as he continued, his other hand at the small of his back. "Now, I dont expect you to object to any action that might reasonably recover the children, yet I thought it best to ask all the same." At this point he was pacing, engrossed in his own little display. "Might we dismantle the lock, and unveil the clue that lies within? If funds are an issue, we shall be happy to acquire a proper locksmith, both to dismantle and reassemble the device."
Milo stepped out into the hallway at Kintals words, eyeing the bottom of the stairs where Telthes was still closing the door. "Maybe, and this is just my opinion Kintal, but maybe you would do well to refrain from commenting on the perceived stupidity of dwarves, in the present company." He stepped back inside, relieved that Telthes had not been halfway up the stairs when Kintal had spoken. "We cannot be sure if they were there for us, or if we just happened to interupt other plans." He looked worried. "Though with our involvement in the streets yesterday, I suspect it is the former, atleast to some extent." He moved to the door, peering inside the lock for what Leiko had mentioned. "Patterned you say? So not from lockpicks?"
Milo took the stairs in bounding leaps, racing to meet the women. There was no practical reason for his haste, but all the same he could not contain himself. "Things have escalated, and gotten a great deal more peculiar, or rather, sinister really, I..." He paused mid sentence as he turned the corner into the childrens room, seeing Dawna crouched amongst the children. Stood with a stupid look on his face for a moment, his labored breathing the only sound breaking the awkward silence he had instilled in the room, he scratched his neck. "Uuh, that is to say, I havnt been able to scare up a decent cup of tea, would you believe it?" He mumbled.
"Youd be surprised what the indoctrinated mind is willing to do for a cause Kintal." Milo said with a concerned frown. Turning to the newly arrived brother, he pointed to the hallway. "You said you passed one who had expired, but there should be another, kindly go see if he can be saved, having someone to question about this would be to our benefit." He paused a moment, then called after the brother. "And be sure to not let this one kill himself, dont get him back to conciousness just yet." He turned to the other two with a worried look. "This all just became alot more serious. As much as I feel urgency, I shall have to complete my rest and recover my power. I fear it will be needed on the morrow."
Looking relieved as the situation was finally well in hand, Milo held onto the Masker for many long moments, before realizing the situation he was in. "Uhm, would anyone care to take over? This isnt exactly my forte." He said, looking rather nervous.
Youd be surprised how often ive had to resort to it as a caster...Its worked most of the time as well, which is just mind boggling.
"Get in here quickly!" Milo shouted over his shoulder, frantically trying to think of what to do. "Im no warrior, but I cannot daze him again. What to do!?" He wondered. With a sigh of defeat, he then threw himself at the Masker, trying to grab hold.
Spitting an elaborate Amethystian curse as his magic failed to take hold, Milo only had a moment to ponder his failure as the movement in the next room caught his eye. "Sister Jenya!" He shouted in alarm, diving into the room. Fearful of the consequences, should the sister fail to resist another Color Spray, he instead opted for a lesser spell to stop the Masker. Chanting and waving his hands around, the motions basic and quick, he cupped his hands and blew through them in the direction of the Maskers head. As his breath left his hands, the air accelerated suddenly, striking the Maskers temple with enough force to elicit a loud slapping thud.
Seeing Telthes continue to stand in spite of the ever increasing amount of wounds and the rather horrific volume of blood escaping his body, Milo was in awe at his endurance. "Most impressive!" He thought, before snapping back to the matter at hand. Weighing his options, he dashed forward, his surroundings distorting as he neared the Maskers reach. As he drew within striking distance, reality seemed to give way completely, floor and ceiling seeming to bleed into each other and run like wet paint. Then suddenly, as it had done before, everything righted itself with an audible popping sound. From his new position, he continued to move, before turning back and uttering a quick incantation. One hand tracing signs in the air, the other reached for one of the many pockets in his belt. Moving his hands forward, he slapped his palms together, the contents of his belt made clear as a shower of sand blasted from between his fingers. As it fanned out in the air with great force, it sparked a flashed, changing color in a rapid successions of blues, reds and yellows.
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