FIVE HUNDRED THIRTY EIGHT
(I/C)
"Donde agora amigos? Where now?” Abraxas asked, Scythe twirling slowly. “We can always luchamos con El Decampus, y si Los Guardianos show up, podemos run away y draw los Guardianos out, since el Decampus no leave el Jardin. Que es que pienso.” He pointed to the north west and said slowly. “We fight Decampus. Eef Guardianos show up, we run. We call out los Guardianos. We finish them. Then go back for Decampus. Despues de todos que, dormamos. Sleep. Finalmente, luchamos con Cortgharst y Finish Eeem off. Por siempre."
“Yeah, that simple,” Lannis shook his head. “No, no. Too many fights and I’d like to arrange even one of them on our terms. I'd like to try to lure out the Guardians if we can. Go to the throne room, set up, I don’t know, a barricade to funnel them. Then we set the Corfard statues by his gemstone or the rainbow gem. That much magic in one place should be enough to entice him, you know? If he sends them out to get them we take them out. If that doesn't work we go toast the Deconstructer like Kronk said."
“Either direction is bad,” the Scout offered, “and we’re running out of time before the ward drops. Let’s get a move on.”
"So…Garden or no?” Kovid asked. “Do we check out the Garden? Or as Big Brain suggests and we try to lure out the Guardians from the Throne Room?"
The group discussed it a bit before Wyn held up a finger and suggested, “Monsieur Salazar... I tink we try Monsieur Offop's idea first. I don't feel ready ta go into de Garden yet.” He turned to Kovid and asked, “Monsieur Dwarfriend, cen I see dat wonderful map of yers?”
“Wait, wait,” Lannis interrupted as the dwarf was presenting it to Wyn. “you have wonderful map? How come all we’ve ever seen is that piece of shit you keep working on?”
After Kovid showed Lannis the friendship finger, Wyn laid it out flat and pointed out the corner by the Lab and at the north end of the hall by the Adept’s room. “Ok, so we barricade here en here wit furniture. Dis limit de passage of dem to one hallway.” He pointed to the Magic User, “Offop drink a Recall potion in de old wight room. Den we escort him to de throne room en give him one of de silver dragon statues. Maybe tie de statue to his body so he cen use his hands still. Den he scrys on Corfart to see what he cen. Maybe it gets Corfart's attention en he sends out de Guardians to get de statue.”
“I seem to be doing a bit of the heavy lifting here, Sundancer,” Lannis groused. He gave Brendon and Kovid a narrowed glower, and took of the cat book, thumbing through the pages as he went looking for the depiction of the room with the Elven Vault in it.
“At dat point de rest of us wait here,” his finger settled on the northwest part of the map, “in de Wight Room... wit de black curtains. Dat will be where we set up our station... of waiting fer de Guardians. Behind a closed door.”
Lyra looked uncomfortable, “This plan sounds incredibly dangerous. Those Guardians are no joke and remember - if one survives I think it’ll get stronger.”
“We’ve fought them before, Lass,” Brendon said. “A few times. I think we’ve got their number.”
“Most likely,” Wyn agreed. “We give it about 30 minutes after de scry to see if dey come around. If dey do, Offop fires de ball en drops de vial to come back to us. We den rush de Guardians dat are not very badly burned en kick some butt.
Questions? Toughts?
“You say, Fire the Ball,” Abraxas asked, “Does this actually happen? Es real? O es una toro mierda?”
“Oh,” Lannis nodded confidently. “Don’t worry. My balls are very much real.”
“So your mom says,” Brendon chuckled, getting a brief high five from Kovid.
Lyra smirked and then shrugged. “I want to get the fuck out of this place so that plan sounds as good as any.”
“Let’s do it. Allons-y.”
The party left the Sanctuary, making their way up north through the various bedrooms before they came at last to the Goblin bedroom. From there they worked together carrying various furnishings, beds, desks, chairs, and other assorted material out to the hall where they blocked up the “T” intersection at the hall running west to the Garden entrance. From there they went north and at the fire ravaged Adept chamber and assorted rooms beyond, they dragged more furnishings up and around to the north corner where there was some climbing and jockeying about to plug up the entire corner and still end up with everyone on the west wide of the hall.
“Dat will not be comin’ down anytime soon,” Wyn said with satisfaction.
The group then went to the Throne Room and checked it over, satisfied nothing had changed. Abraxas went into his Bag of Holding and then further into the chest where he withdrew one of the 2 remaining Recall potions and gave it to Lannis. “Mangia,” he said, putting everything back. The wizard, along with Lyra, went over to the Wight room where Lannis drank it down and put the empty vial in one of his robe’s pockets before the 2 of them headed back to the Throne Room.
Kovid had taken out one of the Corfard statues, the silver metal gleaming in the prismatic light, and then took out the multifaceted Crystal that had at one point sat on the opposite pedestal. He placed both of them on the floor by Lannis who had taken out his Crystal Ball and stand and was getting ready to make his third scry of the day. “Keep an eye out people.”
Brendon had already moved to the door, eyes searching the hall, ears cocked and listening.
The Magic User was deeply studying the Crystal, he also had the cat book open on his lap, the pages obscured by the folds of his robe, trying to use the picture within as a focus of the room with the elven vault in it. “Come one, come on,” he muttered. “Let’s get a looksie, alright?” (<Int check, -4 penalty, Pink 12)
“Ah…Ah! Ah ha! Is there anything my dizzying intellect is incapable of doing?” He asked with a smile, eyes fixated on the Crystal. “I can see the room.”
“Describe it for us, Big Brain,” Kovid asked.
“Ok. Ok. Well, normally this par is read last, but fuck that. There is a big assed red dragon in this room. Like big, and he’s in the middle of the room, his snout is by a huge weird marble and wooden looking vault with 4 key holes and a fuck ton of burn and scratch marks all over it. Describe the room? How about the damned dragon first, huh?!”
“What else?”
“Let’s see.” He ran his fingers over the ball. “This room… it’s really big. Like 30’ ceiling, massive skylights, I’d say it was the castle’s ballroom at one point. Lots of red, blue, and gold.” He frowned. “2 doors on the east side of the chamber, 1 on the north side.” He bent lower. “Over…hmm…over all 3 doors, there is a mesh steel and rope net.”
“To catch someone?” Lyra asked.
“No,” he bent lower. “They are filled with granite blocks. Likes dozens, maybe hundreds of them.” He pulled back and moved his fingers. “And I can see. Yep. Corfard cuts a cable, and some poor fuck coming in gets buried under a metric ton of fallen building equipment.”
“So…big assed trap,” Brendon frowned. Lannis ignored the Scout and continued.
“Let’s see. 2 wooden boxes, like animal cages? Hard to tell. Can’t see anything within.” He spun the image. “5 guardians as well. Zombie fuckers. These are wearing chainmail…that’s new.”
**Are you done spying on me, Lannis?**
“Um…” The Magic User spun the image back to the dragon, to see Corfard staring seemingly at him through the Crystal Ball. “Well! That’s new! And Asher level of horrible!”
“What?” Lyra asked. “What? Is it?”
(Combative Cha check: Corfard Red/Black 2 (under 11) vs Lannis Pink 10 (Over 3) – 14 point swing – um.. Fuck dude. Sorry.)
**Let’s just make sure you don’t hang up first, shall we?** Lannis felt his fingers were stuck to the surface of the ball, his eyes flicking about. But his will was latched hard in place by the mental strength of the dragon.
**There. That’s better. You have been a thorn in my scales, manling. But a necessary one. Because you have gotten the keys for me. And you have an elf who will open the Vault here for me.** In the image, the dragon flicked the vault with a single claw.
The surface of the Crystal ball was growing lighted and wisps and auras were dancing around it as Lannis was fixated on looking within.
“Monsieur Offop?” Wyn asked getting a step closer. “Dat does not appear normal? You ok?”
“Hey, Big Brain, you need help?”
“Why isn’t he answering?”
**And look. I can see my uncharged Crystal and one of my spliced statues there as well. I look forward to getting ALL of my property back in time, Lannis. I’ll make sure to spare you long enough to see me devour your friend’s burnt corpses right after I free my mother’s heart from this elven shit hole.** The image grew bigger in the Crystal, **And then I’ll rip you apart and eat you from your guts up to your head. You FUCKED with the wrong GOD!!!!!!!!!** He could see over the dragon’s shoulder, the 5 Guardians heading north to the double door set there, moving with determination and purpose.
The strain of being forced to keep the conduit open through the Crystal Ball fired off into the Magic User as the ball seemed to be writhed in fire that ran up Lannis’ arms and drew forth a painfilled wracking scream that tore straight from the wizard’s soul (1d4 Con damage and 1d3 Damage: Red/Black 4 – Take 4 Con Damage (Down to 4). Red/Black 6:3 – Take 3 Damage (fuck – both maximum! Thanks Kelly!).).
“Offop!” “Lannis!” The group sprang forward, unsure what to do as the wizard was seemingly dragged to his feet by the burning crystal ball in his hands, the reek of charring flesh filling the air, nimbus fire running across the ball and over his arms.
Time now is Day 12, 11:40 AM
(OOC)
Every minute Lannis is forced to maintain connection through the ball, saps his life force away @ 1d4 Con and d3 damage. Con is healed at 1 point every day of rest. What do you guys want to do, and hurry!
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