Betrayal at Statue Square
Po dosed up Safad and Dunny and the battered band departed the Corridor of Deception, passed by the Guardian in the Fungal Pools and made their way to Statue Square. Rya and Po were giddy and Rya announced that this was her favorite part--Inventory! When everyone laid out all the wonders they had discovered in Myth Sveldin and divvied up who got what. She loved seeing all the wondrous items they had collected. (Narrator: it was also a convenient ploy for an ambush.)
Po instructed the group to lay the goods down in the front of them in the square. The group obliged--save for the Sveldinstone rings--and the items included: a rope of binding, Ayzalla's Dagger, Galdug's Boots of Haste, Galdug the Winker's Robes of Summoning, a Paisley Bandana of Feather Fall, a Driftglobe, Boots of Elvenkind, a Cloak of Protection, and a Hat of Disguise.
When the last items was laid out, everyone heard a low chuckle in their heads. At first they thought it was Rook, but it wasn't quite his timbre, and it was more...alien. The chuckle turned into words, "spoken" softly in their minds.
Rya and Po looked exalted, and turned their gaze hungrily upward. From the edge of the torchlight above them, levitating some 40 feet away, emerged a humanoid aberration: smooth, hairless, skin stretched over a vaguely human form, except for a bulbous head with large tentacles where the mouth should be. It wore a simple metal breastplate and flowing robes. Some in the group knew it as an illithid--a mind flayer.
"Holy fuck," Rook whispered.
The mind flayer wasted no time in further dialogue, sending out a psychic mind blast that hit everyone it the group. Rya and Po were unaffected, as were Safad and Dunny, but Prex, Zireael, Dala'gse, Nancy, Kargi, Slothrop, and Ironica all succumbed to incredible pain and waves of nausea, stunning them for the moment. Dala'gse, wounded from the pudding, his fall, and Zireael's attack, fell unconscious.
Safad reached into his pouch, grabbed the gold coin given to them by the Drow, and flipped it into the air. Nothing happened. He cast a quick magic missile at the illithid. Rya turned on him and fired a few magic missiles back. Po approached the stunned Zireael, attempting to stab him between the armor. The illithid attacked again, this time muttering some arcane incantation aimed at Zireael, who managed to resist the spell.
Dala'gse was fighting for his life while Zireael came to and administered the dwarf a healing potion, stabilizing his companion who has saved his life just hours before. Slothrop also revived and move in quickly to counterattack Po, before dashing to the side of the fray. Ironica and Nany remained out of it. Safad cast a magic missile. Dunny charged Po. Rya cast a healing spell on her master.
The illithid attempted another arcane incantation, this time targeting Dunny, who failed to resist the spell and turned on Zireael, biting him in the leg.
Zireael summoned a healing spirit to the scene and dashed in for some quick healing. Nancy came to and cast a devastating Shatter attack, centered on the illithid's brain. Rya cast more healing, Po attempted more stabbing. Slothrop dashed in and out of the fray, getting healed and attacking. The goblins and Ironica remained out of it.
The illithid levitated further away, while Dala'gse--finally back with it--hurled a javelin at it.
Ironica eventually came to and shot at the creature with her crossbow. Rya continued to heal her master.
The mind flayer dropped in closer and shot out another psychic mind blast, with Safad and Dunny immune, but the others resisting, and knocking Nancy and the goblins unconscious. Safad grabbed Galdug's Robes and spun quickly, summoning four blink lizards to their aid. Nancy cast another Shatter spell. Zireael began raining arrows down on the creature. Dala'gse switched to a crossbow and fired bolts at it. Rya and Po were getting more and more agitated seeing their master wounded and sensing the tide of battle turning.
The illithid taunted everyone telepathically, but they could sense a desperation in its "voice". It cast another arcane spell, opening a swirling portal in the ground, and dove for it out of the air. The group had a final reaction before it slipped through the portal. Everyone attempted one last shot at it but the illithid was already halfway through to some other plane of existence when Zireael calmly exhaled, leveled his bow, and released. He struck the creature high in the thigh, severing what must have been the femoral artery and slaying it, for the portal closed immediately, severing the creature's torso from its lower body.
Dunny was suddenly released from his charm. Rya collapsed, unconscious. But Po fought on. The group pounced on him, pinning him to the ground.
With eyes oddly absent of sclera and in a decidedly un-gnomish voice, Po yelled furiously at them, "No matter--we know about you now! You will never make it out alive, we'll make sure of it!"
Po's eyes then rolled back to their normal state, with the group noticing a sad desperation in them for a brief moment. It was gone in an instant and Po Trout, adventurer of Myth Sveldin, solver of the statue trap, master fisherman of Lakeville, bled slowly from his eyes and nose, and passed out of Faerûn.
Myth Sveldin fell quiet. The group stabilized their fallen companions and took stock of their situation--thinking frantically about what series of events led to the betrayal at statue square.
Rya slowly came to but had no memory of where she was, or any recognition of this rag tag group standing by a cleanly severed half of an illithid corpse, in a ruined and long-forgotten svirfneblin city.
Dala'gse collected a vial of black bilious ink from the slain illithid.
Po instructed the group to lay the goods down in the front of them in the square. The group obliged--save for the Sveldinstone rings--and the items included: a rope of binding, Ayzalla's Dagger, Galdug's Boots of Haste, Galdug the Winker's Robes of Summoning, a Paisley Bandana of Feather Fall, a Driftglobe, Boots of Elvenkind, a Cloak of Protection, and a Hat of Disguise.
When the last items was laid out, everyone heard a low chuckle in their heads. At first they thought it was Rook, but it wasn't quite his timbre, and it was more...alien. The chuckle turned into words, "spoken" softly in their minds.
"Well done my dear Po and darling Rya--well done, indeed! You have forced these pawns to push the bounds of Myth Sveldin and collected more wonders for our cause in the process. And now you have led the tired fools back to me! Soon, they will join us...”
Rya and Po looked exalted, and turned their gaze hungrily upward. From the edge of the torchlight above them, levitating some 40 feet away, emerged a humanoid aberration: smooth, hairless, skin stretched over a vaguely human form, except for a bulbous head with large tentacles where the mouth should be. It wore a simple metal breastplate and flowing robes. Some in the group knew it as an illithid--a mind flayer.
"Holy fuck," Rook whispered.
The mind flayer wasted no time in further dialogue, sending out a psychic mind blast that hit everyone it the group. Rya and Po were unaffected, as were Safad and Dunny, but Prex, Zireael, Dala'gse, Nancy, Kargi, Slothrop, and Ironica all succumbed to incredible pain and waves of nausea, stunning them for the moment. Dala'gse, wounded from the pudding, his fall, and Zireael's attack, fell unconscious.
Safad reached into his pouch, grabbed the gold coin given to them by the Drow, and flipped it into the air. Nothing happened. He cast a quick magic missile at the illithid. Rya turned on him and fired a few magic missiles back. Po approached the stunned Zireael, attempting to stab him between the armor. The illithid attacked again, this time muttering some arcane incantation aimed at Zireael, who managed to resist the spell.
Dala'gse was fighting for his life while Zireael came to and administered the dwarf a healing potion, stabilizing his companion who has saved his life just hours before. Slothrop also revived and move in quickly to counterattack Po, before dashing to the side of the fray. Ironica and Nany remained out of it. Safad cast a magic missile. Dunny charged Po. Rya cast a healing spell on her master.
The illithid attempted another arcane incantation, this time targeting Dunny, who failed to resist the spell and turned on Zireael, biting him in the leg.
Zireael summoned a healing spirit to the scene and dashed in for some quick healing. Nancy came to and cast a devastating Shatter attack, centered on the illithid's brain. Rya cast more healing, Po attempted more stabbing. Slothrop dashed in and out of the fray, getting healed and attacking. The goblins and Ironica remained out of it.
The illithid levitated further away, while Dala'gse--finally back with it--hurled a javelin at it.
Ironica eventually came to and shot at the creature with her crossbow. Rya continued to heal her master.
The mind flayer dropped in closer and shot out another psychic mind blast, with Safad and Dunny immune, but the others resisting, and knocking Nancy and the goblins unconscious. Safad grabbed Galdug's Robes and spun quickly, summoning four blink lizards to their aid. Nancy cast another Shatter spell. Zireael began raining arrows down on the creature. Dala'gse switched to a crossbow and fired bolts at it. Rya and Po were getting more and more agitated seeing their master wounded and sensing the tide of battle turning.
The illithid taunted everyone telepathically, but they could sense a desperation in its "voice". It cast another arcane spell, opening a swirling portal in the ground, and dove for it out of the air. The group had a final reaction before it slipped through the portal. Everyone attempted one last shot at it but the illithid was already halfway through to some other plane of existence when Zireael calmly exhaled, leveled his bow, and released. He struck the creature high in the thigh, severing what must have been the femoral artery and slaying it, for the portal closed immediately, severing the creature's torso from its lower body.
Dunny was suddenly released from his charm. Rya collapsed, unconscious. But Po fought on. The group pounced on him, pinning him to the ground.
With eyes oddly absent of sclera and in a decidedly un-gnomish voice, Po yelled furiously at them, "No matter--we know about you now! You will never make it out alive, we'll make sure of it!"
Po's eyes then rolled back to their normal state, with the group noticing a sad desperation in them for a brief moment. It was gone in an instant and Po Trout, adventurer of Myth Sveldin, solver of the statue trap, master fisherman of Lakeville, bled slowly from his eyes and nose, and passed out of Faerûn.
Myth Sveldin fell quiet. The group stabilized their fallen companions and took stock of their situation--thinking frantically about what series of events led to the betrayal at statue square.
Rya slowly came to but had no memory of where she was, or any recognition of this rag tag group standing by a cleanly severed half of an illithid corpse, in a ruined and long-forgotten svirfneblin city.
Dala'gse collected a vial of black bilious ink from the slain illithid.
Comments
Post a Comment