Maacain Invasion, Jack's Group II

[Karsh]

Morgan Atraxis

Morgan fixes his conical hat matter-of-factly as the dragon falls out from underneath him, levitating in place as the dragon falls. He produces a small pin and pops his balloon sword, causing the balloon to splutter about in the air before disappearing behind his back. He takes a moment to regain his psionic focus, and then begins slowly descending as if he were in an elevator.

[Solo]

That was... Well done.

[Talfrey]

The headless corpse suddenly rises to it's legs, albeit in a wobbly fashion, and then begins to flap wildly, and with much effort and an extraordinary awkward gate, it finally tears itself from off the ground.

[Solo]

That was..... oddly done.

[Talfrey]

Chris looks around the dead bodies, a slight frown on his face set below a pair of wide eyes filled with surprise that were still locked on the unlikely flying form of the headless dragon. Without a word, or even for that matter a glance, he lets fly a glowing ball towards each member of the group and then takes a look around at the battlefield. Those that are not dead appear to be gone, and by the looks of it you can probably count the number of living on a single hand assuming you had the standard number of digits and judging by the shear number of corpses that surround you.

"So it's about now that Amrie-"

The sky tears itself open like a black maw and from the eternal abyss of the darkness above begins to descend the radiantly dark figure of an entity so enshrouded by the corruption that you can taste his darkness on the very wind.

"Yeah, that would be him."

Amrien peels away the darkness for a moment so you can make out a maniacal grin and wide cackling eyes. A green figure rises from the battle field, an ember of emerald flame, it lurches towards you.

"You... tricked me." comes the voice, as it reaches down, scooping up an axe that could easily be held in both hands by a giant. "You... are not him... you are a lie... you... will DIE!!!"

Rikti begins to charge forward, screaming and frothing as he swings wildly.

Chris extends the blades from his arms, and readies himself for combat. "Don't worry about Amrien, he'll wait till Rikti's done to fight us. Oh, and fair warning, don't let Rikti hit you."


Combat Initiative

Rikti
(1d20+4)[7]

Chris
(1d20+5)[6]

[NEO|Phyte]

Ferah

Ferah did not hesitate, throwing her kukris far faster than what seemed physically possible, given the distance they needed to travel to strike their target. Her arms were in constant motion, catching her weapons as they returned and sending them back at their target, positioning each strike to compound upon each other, causing damage far beyond what the blows themselves would normally cause.

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initiative - (1d20+5)[8]

Were Chris's glowing ball things anything special?

Anyway, my actions for round one include a literal bucket of rolls. I really hope the forums are up to making all of them. If not, expect a bunch of Invisible Castle links to be edited in. Some links will probably be edited in anyway, because with this many attacks, there had BETTER be at least one threat.

Swift action to initiate Girallon Windmill Flesh Rip, then Full-round action for Time Stands Still, and the two full-attacks that entails.

For the sake of keeping track of stuff, I'm rolling all the attacks in the first full attack, then the next set of rolls is the damage for those attacks. Then the process is repeated. I've labeled the rolls so we can match attacks to damage.

Any and all confirmed criticals (even if the target is immune to critical hits) triggers Blood in the Water for a stacking +1 to attack and damage, effective for all attacks after the critical. Feedback on how many crits I land is handy so I know what my current BitW modifier is, so I can factor it into my rolls.
attacka1 - (1d20+32)[49] Crit Confirm (49) attacka2 - (1d20+27)[34] attacka3 - (1d20+22)[26] attacka4 - (1d20+17)[28]
attackb1 - (1d20+31)[36] attackb2 - (1d20+26)[39] attackb3 - (1d20+21)[29]
attackc1 - (1d20+31)[42] attackc2 - (1d20+26)[32] attackc3 - (1d20+21)[35]
attackd1 - (1d20+31)[33] attackd2 - (1d20+26)[44] Crit Confirm (nat20) attackd3 - (1d20+21)[29]

damagea1 - (1d4+17)[21] Crit Damage (60) damagea2 - (1d4+17)[18] damagea3 - (1d4+17)[19] damagea4 - (1d4+17)[20]
damageb1 - (1d4+11)[14] damageb2 - (1d4+11)[15] damageb3 - (1d4+11)[14]
damagec1 - (1d4+11)[13] damagec2 - (1d4+11)[14] damagec3 - (1d4+11)[12]
damaged1 - (1d4+11)[15] damaged2 - (1d4+11)[15] Crit Damage (12) damaged3 - (1d4+11)[13]

attack2a1 - (1d20+32)[42] attack2a2 - (1d20+27)[37] attack2a3 - (1d20+22)[26] Crit Confirm (41) attack2a4 - (1d20+17)[18]
attack2b1 - (1d20+31)[44] attack2b2 - (1d20+26)[27] attack2b3 - (1d20+21)[28]
attack2c1 - (1d20+31)[47] attack2c2 - (1d20+26)[37] attack2c3 - (1d20+21)[32]
attack2d1 - (1d20+31)[40] attack2d2 - (1d20+26)[44] Crit Confirm (44) attack2d3 - (1d20+21)[23]

damage2a1 - (1d4+17)[20] damage2a2 - (1d4+17)[20] damage2a3 - (1d4+17)[18] Crit Damage (12) damage2a4 - (1d4+17)[20]
damage2b1 - (1d4+11)[15] damage2b2 - (1d4+11)[12] damage2b3 - (1d4+11)[14]
damage2c1 - (1d4+11)[13] damage2c2 - (1d4+11)[14] damage2c3 - (1d4+11)[12]
damage2d1 - (1d4+11)[12] damage2d2 - (1d4+11)[12] Crit Damage (12) damage2d3 - (1d4+11)[14]

Depending on how many attacks hit, there's also some Rend damage that gets applied after the main attacks are done. starts at 8d6 if two attacks hit, scales 2d6 per additional hit, capping at 20d6 for 8 or more hits.
rend2 - (8d6)[32]
rend3 - (2d6)[10]
rend4 - (2d6)[3]
rend5 - (2d6)[7]
rend6 - (2d6)[10]
rend7 - (2d6)[9]
rend8 - (2d6)[9]

[Solo]

Initiative:(1d20+6)[18]

Marcus shifts uneasily, looking about for cover.

I'm not sure if my magic is back yet. I'm going to try and recharge ASAP.

[Zweanslord]

Korael

Initiative: (1d20+15)[34]

As Rikti charges, Korael orders his skeletal dragon to attack. The headless dragon starts to move from his position and soon charge Rikti swiftly to unleash a barrage of attacks. Furthermore, from the ground, the shadow Korael earlier summoned appears and attacks Rikti. Meanwhile Korael flies up at the height of the dragon and strikes out with his arms at long range, staying out of the reach of Rikti so Rikti can not hit him.

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Korael

Touch Attack: (1d20+23)[42], Damage (1d8+5)[9], Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed. Intimidation: (1d20+59)[77] or be shaken.

[If Rikti gets paralysed, the dragon and shadow will attack Amrien instead.]

Dragon

Claw1, Attack (1d20+53)[60], Damage (4d6+9)[22]
Claw2, Attack (1d20+53)[72], Damage (4d6+9)[24]
Wing1, Attack (1d20+53)[69], Damage (2d8+9)[21]
Wing2, Attack (1d20+53)[60], Damage (2d8+9)[19]
Tail Slap, Attack (1d20+53)[71], Damage (4d6+27)[39]

Shadow

Touch Attack (1d20+3)[20], Str damage (1d6)[4]

[Karsh]

Morgan Atraxis

Morgan produces a large, red stop sign from the air and yells "STOOOOOP!"

As time slows to a crawl, Morgan's body ripples with corruption as his mind divides and expands, resulting in a euphoric rush of understanding.

A slew of psionic powers are manifested, and he returns to the normal time frame, several tangible fields of psionic power now surrounding him.

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Manifest 3 PP Concealing Amorpha, then as a swift action manifesting a 19 PP Temporal Acceleration for 3 rounds of apparent time. Actions are as follows:
Round 1:
Standard Action 1: Overclocking, burning 17 corruption points for double actions granted and a +7 to INT, resulting in 40 temporary PP which can be manifested at ML 22.
Standard Action 2: Manifesting a 9 PP Second Chance at ML 22
Will Save - (1d20+15)[27] Will Save - (1d20+15)[27]
Round 2:
Standard Action 1: Manifesting Psionic True Seeing, 9 PP
Standard Action 2: Manifesting 44 PP Vigor for 220 temporary HP (Expending Psionic Focus to power Talented and negate damage)
Will Save - (1d20+15)[28] Will Save - (1d20+15)[34]
Round 3:
Standard Action 1: Manifesting Power Resistance (9 PP from bonus Overclock PP), Improved Overchanneled to ML 44 Damage - (44d8)[187]
Full Round Action 2: Regain Psionic Focus
Will Save - (1d20+15)[20] - Expending 1 PP to gain +4 resistance to saves, so this is a success Will Save - (1d20+15)[35]

Intiative - (1d20+2)[18]

Current Buffs:
Keen Edge
Second Chance (Reroll 1/round)
Power Resistance 56
True Seeing
33 Temporary HP
20% Miss Chance

Total PP Expended (not counting Overclock PP): 54

[Talfrey]

Blades and attacks fly as you attack Rikti with any means available to you, It's not difficult to hit the raging beast, and you find it surprisingly easy to carve him apart.

But he thunders forward, closing impossible distances in an instant and swinging his sword with equally impossible speed.

"DIE AND SUFFER!" comes his call as he descends upon the one who hit him the most, Ferah.

Rikti Attacks!
to hit
(1d20+98)[114]
damage
(5d6+112)[132]

Note: Please make saves for massive damage

[Talfrey]

Chris

Chris grunts as he steps back, disappearing and appearing once more far away in an instant. He makes a series of motions, and then stands still, holding back one hand, apparently staying out of this fight.

[Solo]

(How many more rounds is it until I get my mojo?)

[NEO|Phyte]

Ferah

The blow was a formidable one, quite certainly the strongest she had ever felt. Hopefully it was the last such blow, because she was quite certain that another one would be the end of her. This fight would not last long if he continued attacking her. Drawing into her bottommost reserves of strength, Ferah leaped at Rikti, using three of her arms to hold on for as long as she could while the fourth slashed into his face and neck with reckless abandon, seeking a deathblow to end the fight in her favor. Should the deathblow not be found, she was ready to propel herself back away, hopefully for someone else to become the target of Rikti's attacks.

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Save vs Massive Damage (20) Barring any houserules I have forgotten about since the game started, this passes the DC 15 fort save for massive damage. Having said that, another attack like that will put me six feet under.

For my actions for the round, free action to trigger Rage, free action to trigger Shifting, then full-round action for a Feral Death Blow on Rikti, and, assuming he survives, a swift action to Sudden Leap Jump - (1d20+67)[72] feet away from him. If my attack DOES kill Rikti, my swift action will instead be to activate my weapon's Battle Fever, healing (2d8)[11] HP.

Feral Death Blow:
Jump - (1d20+67)[84] If this check exceeds his AC (which I'm guessing it does), he is flatfooted against this attack:
attack - (1d20+34)[54] damage - (1d4+22)[26] Crit Confirm/damage (59/77)
If this attack deals damage to him, he gets to make a DC 25 fort save or die. If he makes the save (or is immune to critical hits), the attack deals (20d6)[77] extra damage.

Rage will last for 7 rounds, Shifting for 9

[Zweanslord]

Koreal

As the dragon attacks Rikti, Koreal uses the opportunity to hit Rikti again, and he does so again too when Rikti provides another opportunity as he charges towards Ferah. The dragon and shadow make likewise use of the opportunity.

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Touch Attack: (1d20+23)[40], Damage (1d8+5)[10], Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed.
Attack: (1d20+18)[29], Damage: (1d8+3)[8]
Attack: (1d20+23)[28], Damage: (1d8+3)[4]
Attack: (1d20+18)[22], Damage: (1d8+3)[9]

Dragon Tail Slap: (1d20+53)[66], Damage: (4d6+27)[42]

Shadow Touch Attack: (1d20+3)[9], Str Damage: (1d6)[2]

After that, Koreal and his minions attack Rikti once more, making sure there is lots of flanking. If he is disabled at any point, the target shifts to Amrien.

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Koreal casts Chill Touch and attacks again.
Touch Attack: (1d20+25)[30], Damage: (1d6)[3], Fort save 20 or 1 str damage

Touch Attack: (1d20+25)[27], Damage: (1d8+5)[8], Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed.
Touch Attack: (1d20+20)[23], Damage: (1d8+5)[9], Will save 34 for half damage, Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed.

Dragon

Claw1, Attack: (1d20+55)[69], Damage: (4d6+9)[18]
Claw2, Attack: (1d20+55)[63], Damage: (4d6+9)[23]
Wing1, Attack: (1d20+55)[75], Damage: (2d8+9)[21], Crit Confirm/Damage: 55/17
Wing2, Attack: (1d20+55)[67], Damage: (2d8+9)[22]
Tail Slap, Attack: (1d20+55)[70], Damage: (4d6+27)[42]

Shadow

Touch Attack: (1d20+5)[7], Damage: (1d6)[6]

[Karsh]

Morgan Atraxis

Morgan halts time once more, taking the opportunity to move into position and manifest Psionic Moment of Prescience before rapidly assembling a balloon double of himself made of the same type of shimmering balloon as the sword he wielded.

Then, both forms unleashed a flurry of blows, making funny "bap" noises each time the sword struck.

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Manifesting an 11 PP Temporal Acceleration, moving to flank Rikti with Ferah and manifesting a Psionic MoP for 13 PP. Then initiating Time Stands Still as a full action:

(1d20+42)[61] (1d2+27)[29]
(1d20+42)[48] (1d2+27)[28]
(1d20+37)[40] (1d2+27)[29]
(1d20+37)[38] (1d2+27)[28]
(1d20+22)[41] (1d2+27)[29]
(1d20+22)[24] (1d2+27)[29]
(1d20+17)[32] (1d2+27)[28]
(1d20+17)[36] (1d2+27)[29]

Crit Confirmations (1d20 42=53, 1d2 27=29, 1d20 22=40, 1d2 27=28, 1d20 17=33, 1d2 27=29, 1d20 17=19, 1d2 27=28)

EDIT: Erm, 22 should be 32 and 17 should be 27, so add 10 to the respective rolls.


((Sorry for the delay; was busy moving home for the summer))

[Talfrey]

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No worries Karsh!

Edit: Err... I meant...

Rikti lets out an unearthly howl, his cry of pain echoing epically across the field of battle, his green flames grow higher and hotter, until at once he is snuffed out like the flicker of a candle. In his place lies the scorched form of what was once a noble Maacain, now it is the twisted and mutant black carcass of a beast to which no world could give home.

Amrien steps forward, and at once you feel your will swayed, be it magic or mere presence, you are pusehd away, as Amrien steps close to Rikti's dead body. With an arm as twisted as the corpse, he reaches down and clutches the thing's skull, with a glance of pity, he raises it to his face, looking into the empty eyes.

"So this is my fate should I fail..." Amrien says, his voice steady, emotionless. His face is blank, weathered, more than he ever was at the academy, the wrinkles mostly gone, the smile lines washed away by an unholy youth. Slowly he stands, wheeling about on one foot, the skull easily severing itself from the body. Raising it forward, he directs both his own gaze and the empty gaze of Rikti's skull at Karsh, and then blew him out of existence instantly because he missed the level jump, and then turned to Morgan, "This is your fate you know, you've already gone too far to come back, the corruption can only continue. Soon you and all your games will mean nothing and the darkness will consume your soul. I ask you, have any of you yet figured out who 'Him' is? There have been very few clues on your path, in fact I think the chances of your knowing are about as good as that of you defeating me... So I ask again..."

He pauses, taking a deep breath.

"Do you know who 'HE' is?"

Guess correctly and your team gets a +5 moral bonus for the fight, and believe me, it's guessing. Also, only one guess per player please.

---

* post roll count doesn't match database

[Zweanslord]

Korael

Koreal looks at how Amrien looks at Rikti. The death of Rikti seems to have zero effect on Koreal. However, the effect may be invisible, there is no way to tell. Koreal did not know the answer to the question, she he made a guess. "You?" He waited for the others to guess fefore initiating his attack versus the enemy.

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First round of actions vs Amrien

Koreal

Koreal casts Quickened Maximised Empowered Energy Drain at Amrien. 10 (8 max + 1/2*4 ) Negative levels.

First attack is an intimidating strike: (1d20+59)[77] or be shaken.

Koreal casts Maximised Empowered Shivering Touch.

Touch Attack: (1d20+25)[27], Damage: (1d6)[1], 21 dex damage (18 max + 1/2* 7) dex damage. Fort save 20 or 1 str damage.
Touch Attack: (1d20+20)[22], Damage: (1d6)[4] Fort save 20 or 1 str damage
Touch Attack: (1d20+15)[21], Damage: (1d6)[2] Fort save 20 or 1 str damage

The following attacks Koreal makes too:

Touch Attack: (1d20+25)[32], Damage: (1d6)[2]+(1d8+5)[13] 2 negative levels. Fort save 20 or 1 str damage, Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed.
Touch Attack: (1d20+20)[31], Damage: (1d6)[3]+(1d8+5)[11] Fort save 20 or 1 str damage, Fort save 34 or be permanently paralysed, Will save 34 to half the 1d8+5 damage.
Touch Attack: (1d20+25)[28], Damage: (1d6)[5] Fort save 20 or 1 str damage
Touch Attack: (1d20+20)[24], Damage: (1d6)[5] Fort save 20 or 1 str damage

Shadow

Touch Attack: (1d20+5)[16], Strength Damage: (1d6)[4]

Dragon:

Due to a telepathic command of Koreal, the dragon does the following action. It jumps in the air and then on Amrien, crushing him. Reflex DC 32 or be pinned for 1 round.

Oh, and frightfull presence: Will save 38. If Amrien was shaken from Koreal's intimidating, he is now frightened for 14 rounds.

[Karsh]

Morgan Atraxis

"I have never cared. If you want the answer, though..."

A haunting calliope plays in the minds of those standing near Morgan for an instant, and the answer constructs itself in his mind, assembled from the fragments of the clues which he had encountered.

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Manifesting Hypercognition to figure out who He is. If an intelligence check is needed: (1d20+29)[40]

[NEO|Phyte]

Ferah

"There is only one man impressive enough to be Him. That man is Arnold Eckson, President of the United States of America."

[Solo]

...I can't top that guess, Marcus comments glibly, wondering what kind of check is needed to get a hint as to the answer, and how many rounds are left until he gets his game back on.

[Tacitus]

Kuruk

The centaur begins to swell in size as his voice booms from within, "It matters not. The only fact that retains an ounce of weight in this world is that you stink of evil, and must be slain." Divine energy crackles around him as he shifts to better position himself for a charge.

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Righteous Might as a swift action
Divine Favor as a standard action.

[Talfrey]

"I'm afraid your friend cheated, I suppose you want to try and fight me now, that's fine. Here, let's remove some handicaps to start with..." pointing at Marcus, he completely restores the warlocks spell casting powers. "There, now you stand a slightly better chance than before of fighting me. Shall we begin?"

Before anyone has even the most remote oppurtunity to act, Amrien is gone, and a moment later, the ground cracks open and from beneath the earth emerges an immense dragon composed entirely of hellfire.

"I'm sure you're familiar with hellfire by now? How about Hellkites? The rarest and most deadly of all fire dragons. They breath hellfire, whilst constantly burning with it. I'd not touch it if I were you. This is a pet I picked up long ago. I wonder how long you'll last against him." echoes Amrien's voice in your heads. A haunting reminder that even with the drastic increase in power since you saw him last, he is still leagues ahead of you in ability. But then another voice echoes through your minds.

"He's lying, that's actually him, he's polymorphed. This is his first of five forms, and usually the hardest..." At that moment, the glowing ball of light given to Morgan Atraxis takes form, solidifying into an amber crystal. "...because NORMALLY, he's immune to critical hits. Attach that to your sword somehoe Morgan, and pop his head. You can finish this now if we can just keep that hellfire off of you. So try to keep his attention off of Morgan everyone, oh and... uh... don't get killed."

As Chris begins to glow a little, another voice reaches each of your minds...

"We must do this, to see a future beyond us Phtacht'kwe."

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Spelling check failed

"I've got another Hadouken cued up for ya boss."

"This man is nothing to Chrosis, and his death shall thus be no more than another stone to pave our road."

"Don't presume I went and FORGOT about you 'Lord Koreal' I'll be here for as long as you draw breath."

"You don't know me, but wooooo!"

[Solo]

Ok guys! Remember our training! If it doesn't go down at first, keep hitting it!

Inside, he makes one very cynical comment before launching into his next attack.

I'm surprised no one's told me to use the Force yet!

Mortalbane Eldritch Blast w/ Utterdark Blast Essence (-2 levels for each failed save), DC 29 Fort save.

Attack 1: (1d20+30)[34]
Damage: (11d6)[37]

Attack 2: (1d20+30)[33]
Damage: (11d6)[48]

[NEO|Phyte]

Ferah

"Why do powerful people never fight in their original form?"

Ferah adjusts her stance, making a few harmless twirls of her weapons.

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Swift+standard action to recover maneuvers, I'm sadly limited to melee attacks when recovering, and I'd rather not get too close to yon dragon. Move action will be used to ensure I'm at/near my optimal distance, which is anywhere within 100' from said dragon while being far enough away that it can't full attack me.

[Zweanslord]

Koreal

"Probably because they think it is styleful." Koreal says after flying further away, making sure that he is out of reach of the others so that any dragon breath directed at them would not hit him and any dragon breath directed at him would not hit them and making sure that the dragon has no reach with his claws. He mentally orders the dragon to do the same in regards to dragon breath, who then attacks, along with the shadow.

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Koreal flies further away and casts spectral hand.

Dragon
Claw1, Attack: (1d20+55)[56], Damage: (4d6+9)[24]
Claw2, Attack: (1d20+55)[61], Damage: (4d6+9)[29]
Wing1, Attack: (1d20+55)[62], Damage: (2d8+9)[15]
Wing2, Attack: (1d20+55)[62], Damage: (2d8+9)[16]
Tail Slap, Attack: (1d20+55)[60], Damage: (4d6+27)[49]

Shadow
Touch Attack: (1d20+5)[21], Strength Damage: (1d6)[5]

[Solo]

Ferah

"Why do powerful people never fight in their original form?"

...I always fight in my original form....

[Karsh]

Morgan Atraxis

Causing time to slow to a halt once more, Morgan sets about attaching the crystal to his sword. Fumbling about with the crystal, Morgan rips open a hole at the end of his sword, stuffing the gem in as quickly as possible before tying off the end of the balloon once more. He then hastily moves into position beside the dragon, and, as time resumes its normal pace, he lets out a yell and unleashes a flurry of strikes which buffet the dragon's head.

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Manifesting an 11 PP Temporal Acceleration, attaching the crystal to the Balloon Sword, and moving adjacent to the dragon. Once the round is over, full attack:

(1d20+31)[44] (1d2+18)[19]
(1d20+26)[45] (1d2+18)[19]
(1d20+21)[33] (1d2+18)[20]
(1d20+16)[23] (1d2+18)[20]

Critical Confirmations (1d20 40=60, 1d20 35=39)

[Talfrey]

The head of the flaming dragon detonates, exploding in a shower of tiney drops of flaming blood. The flames die away, and Amrien's headless form stands for a few moments before silently slumping to the ground... black tendrils begin to snake out of him, groping wildly at the air, and then somehow seemingly finding some amount of purchase, one by one, they tear at a circle in the air, revealing darkness. A black figure steps free of the black, his form just as black, with tendrils encompassing him, and then unencompassing him, releasing him and instead taking Amrien, dragging his head and body into the hole. It closes, the figure turns toward you. he is in plan clothing, and has an appearence as simple as his clothing. He is entirely unassuming. Then he dissappears.

You have saved the world.

Good job!

The end.

[Solo]

... or is it?