Broken Wheels, a Planescape Adventure

[Lycanthromancer]

Terran moves around the writhing mass, positioning himself beneath the cave's entrance. The children cling to his fur, terrified.

The worms slither toward them, solid tendrils of annelids reaching out to engulf. It moves over and around the wolf and the two younglings, and the cave echoes with the childrens' terrified screams that are immediately cut short as they're torn limb-from-limb. The howls of the wolf join them, as the worms grind into his flesh.

[Sallera]

Nerein

"Terran! What are you doing over there? You can't fight it like that, get out of there!" Unable to think clearly through the haze of fear, unable to tell even whether it is rational or irrational, Nerein continues her flight, searching along the wall for some means of exit.

Spoiler

Show

Move from T20 to N21.
...well, I'm frightened, nothing better to do. Perception: (1d20+1)[9]

[DragoonWraith]

Aghihoti
Aghihoti observes the slaughter impassively, considers his options, decides there is nothing he could do to help, and so instead searches for an exit.

Spoiler

Show

I'll take one move action to move to X23, and probably take another move action once I'm there to move further, but it depends on what I see when I do that move.

[Lycanthromancer]

Before him and to his left, Aghihoti sees a bubbling, boiling pool of what appears to be the ichorous blood seeping from the walls and floor of the cave, although this pool has an acrid, acidic smell to it.

[Lycanthromancer]

A humanoid-sized mass of frizzy fluff (its eyes, nose, and claws can just barely be made out underneath the fur), a skeletal critter (quite...obviously male) with naked, dull grey skin and a ratlike tail, and a small female bipedal rabbit-looking creature with a slight frame and long, flopped ears, all flee at top speed away from the carnage, heading deeper in the cave. They look upset, and frightened, and huddle together as best they can, while getting the hells out of there.

Vitri, looking awfully upset for a featureless ball of light, floats up near the ceiling and toward the heap of worms. "Eat beams of death, fishbait!" And he fires an eye-shattering blast of light at the swarm, slicing through the carnivorous mass to the sounds of fried flesh and the squeal of handfuls of worms. "Get out of there, Terran!"

[Fishy]

The screams of the dying children echoing through her mind (metaphorically, given that her head is fairly solid and has no obvious external ears), Galatea bolts, flinging herself down the cave and away from the carnage with the force of a small and frightened avalanche, bruising the floor with each step.

[PId6]

Petrydan

Perhaps it is a small glimmer of rationality hidden amidst his panic, or perhaps it is just a new, deeper layer of fear on top of his older terror, but regardless of the cause, Petrydan begins to climb down, dropping in distance as fast as he can without breaking his neck, planning as soon as he can to run after where the others have ran. It wouldn't do at all to be caught alone, and his current "plan" was getting him nowhere. Even a panicking furball needs allies.

[Sallera]

Nerein

Continuing her somewhat-unwilling circuit of the cave, Nerein almost manages to turn herself around, but stops halfway instead, carefully scanning the surroundings.

Spoiler

Show

Last round of running, yay.

...well, last round of running under a fear effect, anyway. Move to N29. Perception: (1d20+1)[14]

[Lycanthromancer]

Terran's canine form instantly doubles in size, and he shakes off some of the worms, his wounds (what can be seen of them within the pile) mending a bit as he does.

With a grunt of intense concentration, Terran disappears in a flash of light and electricity, leaving the mass of worms to collapse in on itself. His body reforms 30 feet away in a similar flash, his fur matted with blood and gore, and flaps of skin hanging from his frame where the muscles beneath are mildly visible. He seemingly shrugs off his injuries, and lopes away from the monster with haste.

The teeming swarm of worms hisses as it engorges itself, enraged that its intended victim is no longer within its grasp. It balloons to twice its previous size, and moves toward the technicolor ball of light, its next intended target.

Vitri moves away a few feet, spins with a glare of different colors, and fires two more beams of light, both of which pass harmlessly through the tumbling, squirming throng. The swarm takes advantage of a hole in Vitri's defenses and swats at him with a wickedly carved slab of what looks like blackened petrified wood. Vitri dodges the swipe.

"Your mama was a tapeworm!" he taunts.

Meanwhile, the rest of the fleeing creatures scurry out of sight.

Spoiler

Show

Everybody make a Perception check!

[DragoonWraith]

Aghihoti
As Aghihoti moves around the cave, searching for a way out, he finds power swelling within him. Raising his hand, a channel opens - a thin slice in the fabric of the plane opens in front of his palm, and extends forwards, out towards the Worm that Walks.

Spoiler

Show

Eldritch Blast

Attack: (1d20+6)[19]
Damage: (2d6)[3]

[Lycanthromancer]

Handfuls of worms go flying as Aghihoti's energy tears into its central mass.

Meanwhile, Nerein sees more pools of blood: one to her far right, and one straight ahead. She can see that the slope of the cave gets steeper the farther back she goes.

[Fishy]

Galatea charges through the pool of acidic gore, which bubbles aroung her legs and hisses smoke. Some distant part of her mind registers the damage, drowned out by the screaming need to escape from the horror at the cave mouth. The scaborous wound in the wall triggers a memory of the only thing she can confidently say she's done, the only thing she might be good at- clawing her way to freedom through dead and bloody flesh.

Three of Galatea's fingers are scultped from one piece of stone, permanently forming a graceful, caressing gesture from her hand- which she can nevertheless swing with the force of a piledriver. She slams the heel of her hand against the wounded wall, and sparks fly. Brilliant lines of power flash down the length of her arms, following some unseen tracery, ore, or circuits under her skin.

For her trouble, she gets a burst of acid to the face. And that one hurt.

[Lycanthromancer]

Archibald, sitting atop Galatea's comely pate (and doing his best not to be noticed by the walking mass of worms), says nothing as he's sprayed with acidic ichor, too scared to make any noise at all. The flood of blood begins gushing into the cavern, quickly overflowing its banks, and threatens to fill the entire cave within minutes.

Nerein hears Petrydan muttering squeaky obscenities under his breath as he flies past her, scurrying further into the cave on his small rodent-like legs. He can see that there is a large pool of acidic blood straight ahead, bubbling away as it seeps slowly from the cavern walls.

Terran blocks the crawling mass's path towards the bhuka, growling, "Quick, Vitri, head back into the cave. Light their way! Out!" He concentrates for a moment, beams of fire shooting from his eyes into the towering mass of worms. The swarm shunts to the side, leaving the flames to sear the cave's ceiling.

In response, the worms turn from the glowing ball of light, and approach the wolf. They lash out with a heavy pseudopod, hitting Terran squarely. Terran yelps, and is engulfed in the yawning mass. The whimpering cuts off, and a pool of blood leaks out from under the swarm, drooling its way under Aghihoti's feet.

Aghihoti and Vitri both feel waves of nausea and horror as they watch their newly-made friend's final moment and heroic sacrifice, but with some effort they manage to swallow the feeling.

Vitri morosely hovers for a moment, and with a gentle, "Goodbye, friend Terran," he zooms across the cave, heading deeper in. "Come on, guys! Unless you want to gang up on that thing, let's get outta here!"

[Fishy]

Galatea takes another spurt of acrid blood to where here eyeballs would be if she had any.

"That was... Surprisingly invigorating," she notes, and shakes her head, flicking the worst of it off of her face and turning to face the mass of worms. "Archibald," she announces to her invisible hat as she strides out of the pool of gore and into harm's way, "I believe you're going to want to get off of my head. Now."

[DragoonWraith]

Aghihoti
Aghihoti scrambles away from the monster, turning and firing off another of the strange rifts in the cosmos at the creature as he nears Galatea and Archibald.

Spoiler

Show

(1d20+6)[8] attack, (2d6)[7] damage

[Sallera]

Nerein

With some effort, Nerein finally turns around and heads back toward the worm. The gem flashes as she raises her arm, and a small, faintly glowing globe of water forms in her hand. Droplets of water spray out in all directions as she closes her hand, and a fine mist coats everything in range. "Flow calmly, friends," she murmurs, and the drops fade, although the feeling of their presence remains.

[Gorgondantess]

Archiblad crawls down near Galatea's ear. "And I believe you are underestimating me, my dear. I would advise you not make that mistake again." If he were not invisible, one would see him hovering before the statue woman, wings flared and teeth bared.

[Lycanthromancer]

The wound caused by the graceful statue's fierce punch continues gushing unabated, continuing to fill the East side of the room with hissing acid. It flows out of its pool and down farther into the cave.

The Little Furball that Couldn't hears the carnage behind him, and runs further into the cave, skirting along the bank of what looks like an underground lake of blood. It fizzes and bubbles, and smells as acrid as the smaller pools seem to be. He spies a passageway to his right, hidden in the shadows cast by Vitri, and he veers in, hiding himself securely in the edge between the wall and the floor. He wills himself to seem naught but a fuzzy brown mole growing from the writhing flesh of the cavern floor, and holds as still as he can, hoping to go unnoticed.

The worms, gorged with blood and flesh after their feast, slither away from the stripped carcass of what was once a vibrant, living beast. Bloody bones clatter to the ground, the skull perched atop them like a macabre party ornament. The swarm rolls toward the stalwart bhuka and the elegant lady, and slams itself into the floor, which bucks and roils with the force of the blow. Both manage to hold their feet, however, though the statue's flailing hand smacks Archibald of the Hat square in the face.

Vitri hears his friends' cries, and spins, floating toward Nerein. "What's happening? Stay near me; I'll try to protect you as best I can."

[Fishy]

"It spat out the bones," Galatea explains to the empty air in front of her. "That means I can stop it. I have to try."

And with that, Galatea throws herself at the monster. Her fist sinks in up to the elbow, then her shoulder, her face- then her entire body is engulfed by the writhing maggots, all of them trying to sink their teeth into her fleshless form. She keeps moving, swinging her arms wildly, pulverizing the mass from the inside, and when she bursts through, her expression of stony serenity hasn't changed an inch.

[Sallera]

Nerein

Hoping that the creature remains distracted, Nerein moves in closer, exhaling a burst of acid at the near edge of the mass.

[Lycanthromancer]

Still shivering with cowardice, the electric rat continues to hide, wedging himself as tightly within the space as he can get.

Meanwhile, the imp growls silently at the incompetence of his so-called allies, and decides to take matters into his own clawed hands. He flaps his wings in a hard thrust, propelling himself toward the ceiling. Calling upon the unholy powers hidden in his frail form, he transmutes his flesh into a chittering, chitinous spider, and latches onto the ceiling. Still invisible, he prepares to ensnare his soon-to-be prey.

Threatened as it is by the beautiful statue, the mass of worms edges away, retracting from its massive stone obelisk, and swings it against Galatea. She calmly slides to the side about half a foot, and it slams into the ground, leaving a pool of ichor that quickly recedes.

Vitri calls out, "Yes! Finally some teamwork! Let's fry this guy!" and he flits forward toward the worms. He lashes out with another fiery blast...which misses terribly. "Oops! I didn't hit anyone, did I?"

The acidic blood continues to overflow, threatening to flow over Aghihoti's feet and melt his flesh. It fills more of the cave, though mostly farther in.

[DragoonWraith]

Aghihoti
Aghihoti moves around behind Vitri, and unleashes another of his strange attacks.

[Sallera]

Nerein

Carefully circling away from the pool of blood, Nerein hovers behind Galatea, waiting for a chance to get close enough to help.

[Lycanthromancer]

Archibald Niccolo de Montrose, currently in the guise of a horrific-looking (though invisible) man-sized spider, scuttles forward, arcing his thorax forward and squirting liquid webbing at the flesh-eating worms, which quickly solidifies into sticky strands. Even though the webbing is transparent, the swarm still attempts to dodge, but he catches it squarely. The webbing fades into view, becoming visible, at last, as does the imp-turned-spider.

Everyone else on the field sees a spider the size of a big wolf (though not as big as Terran was before his death). It clings to the ceiling, dripping venom.

The worms struggle to retain their mobility as they writhe against each other in the mass. Despite this, a tendril lashes out, engulfing Galatea; the mass as a whole rolls over her, grinding into her stone-like flesh, and moving a bit farther. She becomes only intermittently visible as she struggles through the arthropods.

Vitri, again horrified at a friend being devoured, cries out. "Oh no! Galatea, hold on!" And he fires two beams at the broiling mass. One misses its mark horribly, scorching the floor with a self-cauterizing wound. The other hits its mark squarely, but the worms shift, exposing Galatea in waves; she takes the brunt of the damage, the beam leaving scorch-marks on her stony skin. "Oh, I'm sorry! PleaseDon'tDiePleaseDon'tDiePleaseDon'tDie!"

[Sallera]

Nerein

Every instinct tells the mephling to flee as the mass of worms surges closer, but she stays still instead, ducking under a flailing tendril. Vitri's attack, misaimed as it is, still exposes Galatea's position, and the gem in her wrist flashes as she calls out. "I can't get to you! Can you make it out of there?" Soft blue light suffuses the mephling's skin as she holds up her left hand, and she visibly tenses with the effort of remaining where she is as she watches for a chance to release the spell.

[Lycanthromancer]

The bhuka rends the fabric of the plane, taking utmost care not to hit his companion. The force of the concussion blows apart what is left of the writhing mass, its bulk collapsing into a heap of dead worms, revealing Galatea's battered form within them. Those that were blown clear begin crawling in all directions, with most burrowing into the diseased flesh of the ground. The worms burrowing next to the acidic pools begin sizzling and steaming as the acid dissolves them, but some of the ones nearer the entrance seem to remain unharmed.

The force of the blast also flings the carven obelisk into the air; it embeds itself into the ceiling, spraying inert ichor over everyone below.

In any case, the mass of worms is finally defeated.

The danger is not past yet, as the party is confronted by a massive venomous spider, and the cave is still rapidly flooding with bloody acid!

[DragoonWraith]

Aghihoti
(just description of the final attack)
Aghihoti raises his hands, and concentrates deeply, aiming his shot carefully away from Galatea. In this moment, something "clicks", and he sees his shot perfectly - a writhing bundle of worms, clustered such that his blast can slice through a great majority of them. He holds his breath as he feels the rift between planes open before him, and he watches, as time seems to dilate, the beam extends and rips into the worms, shattering the coherency of the swarm and sending worms scurrying.

Aghihoti smiles grimly at his success, and turns to face the Abyssal spider that had joined the fray.

[Gorgondantess]

...And the giant spider succinctly transforms into the domineering devil we all know and love. It regards Vitri, arms crossed. "Of course she's not dead, you irrelevant irradiation, despite your futile attempts' possibly hastening her to that end. Now end your simpering and let's get on with things. Who have we lost?"
He lands near Galatea, examining the damage to his mount.

[Fishy]

The still-technically-nameless statue accepts Nerein's hand and her spell, but is careful not to lean on the mephling as she climbs to her feet. She's lightly dusted in crushed maggots and fried gore, and her joints make distressing scraping sounds as she moves, but she seems to still be in one piece.

Or rather, all of her separate pieces are still touching.

"Too many," she says, darkly, "And we're still counting. We need to get out of here- and don't touch the blood if you can help it."

[Sallera]

Nerein

"The cave seems to head downward further back there... I don't know if it matters." The mephling waves a hand around at the walls. "Makes me feel like we're walking down some creature's throat, though."

She eyes the statue as she moves, looking over cautiously. "I'm sorry, I can't tell... are you alright? I can try that spell again if you like."