PBEM - Episode 575. Victory

FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY FIVE

(I/C)

"Whoa... Ale! Where's my ale?” Kovid looked around, slapping the floor, face drawn and saddened. “Oh Lady Lyra, I must be back. Thank you. I was just about to quench my thirst...” He touched his lips and sighed with loss. “ ... Did you kill the dragon?” She pointed to the middle of the room where Abraxas was hacking at the Wyrm’s left horn with the axe. “Thor's balls you did!” Looking down at himself he frowned (you have 1 hp). “I guess he got me first huh?” (Kovid, reduce Con to 17, raised from dead is perm 1 pt loss in Con)

“No shit, Brillopad,” Lannis noted.

“Where the fuck is my hammer!?"

Wyn held it up, shaking it about. “’Ere eet is. I ne’er got a chance to smack dat dragon wit’ it.”

Kovid limped over there, taking it back, frowning at he state of the enchanted weapon. “Thanks’ Wyn.”

“No problem.” He rubbed his chin and gave Brendon a clap on the shoulder. “Merci du Lac. H'okay... we found dis, oui?”

Counting the key holes, Brendon headed over to Abraxas, spinning his prybar once in the air and catching it. “Well I guess it’s up to you four to open the vault. I’ll just hang out over here and wait.”

Meanwhile the Fighter was chopping and laughing. "Work all night on a drink of rum! Daylight come and me wanna go home..."

“Might as well get it over with.” The Cleric was giving the entire thing a once over, eyes settled in thought. “Let’s crack the vault open and see what’s inside. I want to get the fuck out of this place. Did I ever tell you guys I hated it here.”

“About 30 or 40 times.” Wyn took of the 4 vault keys and looked them over. “Gonna need ta put dees in. I would guess like de order o’ de poem? Morrigaan key, Theystra key, Lolth key…an’ de Ishtari key”

Lannis wasn’t paying much attention and sighed deeply as if his soul was on fire. With a show of great reluctance he took out the Ishtari Rod and handed it towards Wyn with ill grace. "Yeah sure, take it, whatever,” he said sarcastically. “I've only been carrying this thing around for days on end, damn near since we walked in, so some pocket of sentient swamp gas could take it from me right at the finish line. Someday I will tell the story of how I watched someone else open the vault for me. On a side note, can we all agree that whatever we find in there we won't start pawing over shit and trying things on?"

The party all turned to look at the Magic User, letting his tirade run down. At its completion, Wyn replied with the same level of weary sarcasm that Lannis had just used. “Oh, Mooonsieur Genius. We tank you all for ever’tin’ you’ve done for us in here wit’ no expectation o’ a reward or appreciation. We dunt bring in any rose petals or dancin’ girls to parade around ye whenever ye foist a nugget o’ wisdom at us.” His voice dropped half an octave. “But I don’t need de Rod, dumb ass.” He shook the 4 goddess keys. “We ‘ave dees? Rem’ber? So put yer toy an ‘tude away afore it’ gets chaffed from too much rubbin’ udders the wrong way.”

“Wow!” Lannis nodded with a smirk. “What a long winded way to say, you made a mistake.” He put the rod back and smiled broadly. “Good show, Swampitude. I knew if given enough time you’d come around to my way of thinking and doing things.”

“Ugh, just kill me.”

Brendon was whacking the other horn at the opposite time that Abraxas was hitting his, both men singing. “Come Mister Tally-Man, Tally me banana. Daylight come and I wanna go home!”

Taking a grip on the first key, the elf suggested, “You all might want ta back up for dis... just in case.” After making sure they moved back a step, he turned the first key!

And then the second.

The third.

And the fourth.

The door to the Vault made a cracking noise. So he took the center handle and turned it 90 degrees to the right.

And the door opened.

Rainbow light spilled out from the circlet of woven silver and gold that sat on a shelf in the Vault, 7 distinct gems with light spilling off of them, giving the room a prismatic glow around the area. In addition, there was a high collar cloak of woven golden thread with shoulder epaulets, various elven symbols of nobility adorning the side and front. A scepter of silver, also similarly carved and designed to mirror the cloak in symbology, the end of the rod had an open hand at the end of it as if extended in friendship. And lastly, there was a rosewood box with no top, pretty big, and within it was a dark mummified mass of muscle at least 6 lbs in weight.

“Dibs.”

Lannis turned around, eyes blazing. “Ok, which joker here said that?!”

“Six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch! Daylight come and I wanna go home!” Both Brendon and Abraxas smiled as they worked, the two men overjoyed at about the same time, they each managed to snap off the respective dragon horns they had been working on (G Str potion and 18 strength!).

Time now is Day 13, 9:24 AM

(OOC)

Water Breathing (Abraxas): Expires 7:48 AM on Day 14!!

Giant Strength (Brendon): 44 Minutes

Haste (Abraxas): 34 Minutes

Invulnerability (Lyra): 24 Minutes

Mirror Image (Wyn): 10 Minutes – 3 images

Good job – you did it! Let me know what the plan is. Harvesting dragon stuff: larger scales, horns (you got), and teeth. For the elf and wizard, blood. Nothing else is worth the return on effort or cost back at town.