The Black Shingle Fiasco II: Electric Boogaloo

[Blackhawk748]

Fion firmly grabs the rope and begins to steadily pull Sarazzin back.

[Kushina43]

Realizing the danger Sarrazin may be in, Sarim grips the rope with all his might and pulls hard as he can muster, grunting all the while with his effort.

Spoiler: OOC

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Not sure what check to use so I'll just roll Strength: (1d20+4)[22]

[YossarianLives]

Sarrazin hastily turns himself around, finds a handhold in the stonework, and begins to pull himself up the slope - the sudden pull from the rope around his waist helps. In a few seconds he drags himself up over the edge, just as the rope goes limp, and Avita is flung out of the portal.

What the two of you see is... unusual. A hybrid kneels on the ground, having just sawed through the rope with a dagger. It notices Sarrazin, hisses, and stands up, pulling a sword from its sheath. Hovering a few inches above its head, is a large spinning disc perhaps five feet in diameter. The disc itself seems perfectly smooth and circular, made of green marble, with an audible humming emanating from it.

Mounted on the disc are three figures; the two wounded hybrids with crossbows, balancing on its edge, and one more at the centre. A short, hunched figure wrapped completely in thick, yellow and purple cloth that look more like carpets or curtains than clothing.

[rax]

Heaving himself back up onto the top of the pyramid, Sarrazin snorts derisively when he sees the hybrids and the new character. "You know, pushing someone off a roof when they're trying to have a polite conversation with you is considered very bad manners where I'm from. So I guess that means no one's interested in a chat," he says with a cold smile.

Seeing the hybrid draw his sword, Sarrazin does the same and launches himself at his would-be assassin. As he does so, he turns invisible.

Spoiler: Actions

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Initiative if needed: (1d20+1)[16]
Immediate action: Turn invisible
Full round action: Draw his spinning sword and charge the hybrid with -1 to hit from Power Attack (1d20+10)[20]
Damage sword (1d6+6)[9] including Over the Top aura and Power Attack
Damage fiendslayer crystal if applicable [roll]1d6/[roll] +3 (see OOC thread)

Crit confirmation if applicable: (1d20+10)[13]
Crit damage if applicable: (2d6+12)[23]

Notes: Sarrazin's spinning sword has reach, so he will attack from 10 feet away. He takes a -2 penalty to AC for charging.

Anyone trying to attack Sarrazin must first pass a DC 15 Will save. Failure forces them to choose a different target or action.
Sarrazin also uses his Immediate action to turn invisible for 1 round (Invisible Fist ACF).

AC 18, touch AC 9, flat-footed AC 17.
HP 25/31

[Marlowe]

Avita briefly considers hitting the figure in the middle of the disk, but it wasn't that figure who cut her rope.

If we get stranded here and have to walk to the equivalent of the Crab Island portal...well, "I was lost in Hell for awhile" sound like something to tell the grandkids.

I'm not gonna get grandkids, am I? I suppose I could adopt.

She directs the Spectral Hand to attack the back of the Hybrid as Sarrazin hauls himself over the edge and attacks the front.

[No, Sarrazin doesn't get a flanking bonus from the hand.

No reason I don't get one from him, however.]

Attack [touch] (1d20+7)[15]
Damage (1d8+1)[2]

Spoiler: Critty stuff if we need it.

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Confirm (1d20+7)[21]
ExDam (1d8+1)[4]

[Bartmanhomer]

Pamela uses Mental Barrier on herself.

[YossarianLives]

Sarrazin leaps over the ledge, tearing a gaping wound across the hybrid's chest with one sweep of his sword. It recoils, not expecting such a strong retaliation, right into Avita's spectral hand. Shrieking in pain again, it's gaze darting around between its suddenly invisible assailant and the woman who just came out of the portal. Even with those inhuman, insect eyes, you think you can see panic, confusion. It settles on swinging blind, charging in the vague direction of Sarrazin. He rakes it again with his spinning sword, and the hybrid falls dead.

The shrouded figure suddenly shifts, almost seeming to vibrate. The cloth parts of its own accord to make way for a slender, chitinous arm that seems made of a green, plant-like material. It points skyward, and far above you the clouds part. An object streaks toward the portal, towards Avita, at an alarming rate. As fast as it is moving, you cannot see the falling object clearly, though it appears dark grey in colour, roundish, and around the size of a horse. The figure's arm suddenly withdraws, and the disc jumps into movement, gliding away at a sedate pace, managing to put no more than twenty feet between itself and Sarrazin. Avita and the portal are about thirty feet away from it.

Spoiler: OOC

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Avita takes 3 damage. Your turn.

[Marlowe]

Avita plants her feet into the ground, and growls, "I have no idea what was supposed to have happened there. Shall we wreck the arch and get out?"

[rax]

"Whatever that thing is, it's heading right for the portal, and I don't think we should be here when it hits! Retreat! NOW!"" Sarrazin shouts to Avita in Draconic. Sizing up the distance to the creatures on the disc to make sure they can't immediately cut him down if he moves towards the portal, Sarrazin takes a deep breath and runs for it...

Spoiler: @YossarianLives

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He's taking a double move to get through the portal.

If Avita appears to be making no attempt to move back through the portal, Sarrazin will try to grab her by the arm and drag her with him on the way through.

[Marlowe]

Avita mutters something about "..."rope costs something". and then kicks off with her feet, throwing herself back through the portal.

Where will we wind up? Where will our danger lie? she thinks. And maybe I should have just hit that disc. just as the darkness and weirdness of the portal enwraps her.

[YossarianLives]

Avita and Sarrazin run for the portal, crossbow bolts whizzing past their ears and ankles. Avita plunges in first, engulfed in the colour and chaos. A moment after, Sarrazin follows her. As he enters the portal, Sarrazin has the impression of something slamming into the ground just behind him. For a few moments, the two of you are isolated in the inbetween-place, with no sense of upside down, distance or size.

Then you come spitting out the other side. Corporal Kremp bends down, helping Avita to her feet. "What in the hells are you doing," she says, not making it a question.

[rax]

"I should have thought that was obvious, Corporal. We're leaping heroically across the planes to bring news of events on the other side of the portal. To wit, our first two travellers neglected to mention the three hybrids and their new floating-disk-riding-friend lurking on the other side under a spell of invisibility."

"They tried knocking me off the pyramid, but fortunately the rope held. One of them cut the rope but I climbed back up before he could finish me off and killed him. Then the new fellow summoned some object from the sky that looked to be on its way to hitting the portal, so we legged it back here. I didn't feel like being trapped in the Abyss and there was always the possibility that the object was going to come through the portal and perhaps detonate - I'm thinking of the scorch marks around here, of course. So far, we appear to be safe, though."

"Now, could someone be so kind as to try out the rod and see if it can actually close a portal from this side? Pretty please with the crucified corpses of my enemies on top?"

[Bartmanhomer]

"We almost lost both of you there Avita and Sarrazin but I'm glad both of you are all right." Pamela smiles.

[YossarianLives]

Kremp gives Sarrazin a dour look, nods, then takes a few careful steps back from the portal. Avita pulls the rod out, and steps forward. She channels energy and willpower into the rod, trying to harness its power and direct it towards the portal. She feels something stirring in the little piece of crystal, and it begins to glow slightly. Nothing happens. She redoubles her focus, willing the power of the rod to close the portal. Time passes. Nothing happens. Avita feels certain she is using the rod to the best of her ability, but it has no effect.

After a few minutes of glowering and nose-scratching, Corporal Kremp pipes up. "Just a thought, but if this worked surely someone would have done it already? The college's has had this thing for who knows how long, and yet they didn't just whip it out when the demons first started causing trouble? Surely it does something useful, or why would the demons want it?"

[rax]

"Hmmph. Disappointing," Sarrazin notes with some slight annoyance.

"Truth to tell, Corporal, the college has not been forthcoming about any of its plans. And such activities as we are privy to have not engendered confidence that the college has much of a plan at all. It has certainly seemed within the realm of possibility that they simply didn't know about the rod or that they lack the knowledge to use it. But we do know that the rod was warded by magic and that Captain Parker obtained the services of a wizard to deactivate them, thus allowing the demons to steal it. That rather suggests the college believed the rod to have some power."

"As for what that power is, well everyone who has spoken of it agrees that it controls demons, and most especially the Zaghifd. The demon Laelth also claimed - and likely sincerely believes - that it can close portals and rifts to the Abyss. He further said that it only works from this side, not in the Abyss. Avita's attempt to close this rift indicates that he's mistaken about the rod's powers, at least as far as closing portals is concerned. Of course, it may simply be that the method for using the rod to close a portal is unknown to us - Laelth frequently referred to a ritual, though he often seemed to be speaking of a ritual that would both control the Zaghifd and close the portals."

"Come to think of it though, the traitor wizard who aided Parker did at one point say that the demons would be in for a nasty surprise when they find out that the rod doesn't work quite as they expect. However, she hadn't previously suggested that the rod wouldn't enable Laelth to control the Zaghifd, so it may be that she was referring to the idea that it would close the Abyssal portals. Which would explain why Avita had no success right now..."

[YossarianLives]

Corporal Kremp listens sullenly, nodding at the appropriate times. "Right," she growls. "So, what? We came down here for nothing? What now?" She kicks a rock into the portal. "I'm not gonna give up this easily."

[rax]

"Nothing? I wouldn't say we came here for nothing. First, we've positively identified the location of the original planar breach. Second, we know that it's not heavily defended - even on the other side there appear to be no major reinforcements ready to engage invaders. Third, it now seems likely that there's a rather large flaw in Laelth's plan to close the portals and that we should not place too much hope in the rod. That indicates that we will need to seek alternate solutions to the city's demonic dilemma."

"With that said, there is still more we could do here. We certainly haven't explored this chamber and its various exits to the full. We could also choose to re-enter the portal, only with our full strength this time. We see if we can capture one of the defenders and test if the rod could, in fact work on the other side. We could also explore the pyramid to see if there's any useful intelligence to be gained. Finally, there's the option Avita has pointed out previously - if we can't close the portal through mystical means, we may still be able to block if we bring down a large enough amount of rubble and scaffolding on top."

[Bartmanhomer]

"Nothing? I wouldn't say we came here for nothing. First, we've positively identified the location of the original planar breach. Second, we know that it's not heavily defended - even on the other side there appear to be no major reinforcements ready to engage invaders. Third, it now seems likely that there's a rather large flaw in Laelth's plan to close the portals and that we should not place too much hope in the rod. That indicates that we will need to seek alternate solutions to the city's demonic dilemma."

"With that said, there is still more we could do here. We certainly haven't explored this chamber and its various exits to the full. We could also choose to re-enter the portal, only with our full strength this time. We see if we can capture one of the defenders and test if the rod could, in fact work on the other side. We could also explore the pyramid to see if there's any useful intelligence to be gained. Finally, there's the option Avita has pointed out previously - if we can't close the portal through mystical means, we may still be able to block if we bring down a large enough amount of rubble and scaffolding on top."

If only if we have a wizard on our team, then we have a great chance to close the portal." Pamela sigh.

[YossarianLives]

Kremp shakes her head. "No." She repeats this, more confidently: "No! We're not going to back off." She loosens her sword in its scabbard, looking almost hungrily towards the portal. "What do they have? A handful of demons? We've all faced worse." She hesitates, perhaps expecting you to agree with her. "We've come this far - this is our chance to end this all! Who is with me?"

[Marlowe]

Avita shuffles her feet. "There's things happening through there; things we can't see and may not win against." She puts her hands behind her back, and looks up. "We should really come back here in a few hours with a few dozen boys and girls and some alchemist's fire. Or at least pass on what we've seen. If we die here, everything is lost. Except..." She taps her bottom lip.

"They know we're here now. We might not get out if we tried. If we did we might find forces down here that might prevent us from ever getting to this point again." She glances at the portal. "And then there's the other side."

And then her gauntleted left hand makes a fist. "Everyone. Report your current status and strength. Own words please."

[rax]

"A little battered, but none the worse for the wear. Oh, and I won't be commanding anyone else with the voice of Hextor today."

OOC: 25 of 31 HP left, no uses of command. Otherwise at full strength.

[Blackhawk748]

"Somewhat battered but otherwise fully functional ma'am" Fion walked over and grabbed Kremp's shoulder "No. As much as I'd like to go through there and crush them, it's the entire Abyss and we can't handle that."

[rax]

"Not sure about the whole Abyss, Captain Fion," Sarrazin interjects. "Apart from the hybrid I killed, we faced only some type of spellcasting demon and two of the crossbowmen we fought earlier. Other than that, the place looked fairly deserted. More importantly, we are at a crossroads here. We've certainly managed to gather important intelligence on this mission, but it largely amounts to what we now know we cannot do. We have no real information to help formulate an alternate course of action to trusting Laelth.

[Bartmanhomer]

"Not sure about the whole Abyss, Captain Fion," Sarrazin interjects. "Apart from the hybrid I killed, we faced only some type of spellcasting demon and two of the crossbowmen we fought earlier. Other than that, the place looked fairly deserted. More importantly, we are at a crossroads here. We've certainly managed to gather important intelligence on this mission, but it largely amounts to what we now know we cannot do. We have no real information to help formulate an alternate course of action to trusting Laelth.

"We did we even trust Laelth in the first place?" Pamela is annoyed.

[rax]

"No Pamela, we never trusted Laelth personally. I meant 'trust Laelth' as in shorthand for 'trust that his aims temporarily align with ours' and 'trust that he really believes his plan will work'. It now seems likely that whatever he thinks, the plan as advertised won't necessarily work, so we really do need to see if we can get any leads on fixing the plan or coming up with one of our own."

[Bartmanhomer]

"No Pamela, we never trusted Laelth personally. I meant 'trust Laelth' as in shorthand for 'trust that his aims temporarily align with ours' and 'trust that he really believes his plan will work'. It now seems likely that whatever he thinks, the plan as advertised won't necessarily work, so we really do need to see if we can get any leads on fixing the plan or coming up with one of our own."

I meant why did we even trust him in the first place I'm sorry if I misunderstood. I mean I never trust that demon for a second." Pamela is disgusted.

[YossarianLives]

Kremp grimaces, shaking off Fion's hand, but steps back from the portal and falls into line. "Unharmed and ready for battle," she drones. "The day is still young." She glances skyward.

[Marlowe]

Avita runs a hand across her mouth. "Corporal. If we do not come back from this, all that we've seen and heard is lost." And then lays her cold iron gauntlet on Kremp's shoulder. "I have a few tricks remaining. What exactly can you do? Tell us. We need to know."

[YossarianLives]

Kremp frowns, squinting at Avita in the torchlight. "I'm a soldier," she grunts. "Though I reckon I'm cleverer than most that call themselves that. I know my way around the city and the sewers. I've gotten good at not stumbling into traps. What else can I say?"

[Marlowe]

Avita spreads a hand. Her right one, the withered and gaunt one. "Are you sure you can get back without a rope? Without friends to pull you back through the chaos? We've tested this portal with a lifeline. We don't know what's going to happen if we all jump in there at once."