Tag: ambush

Allies, Explosions, and Intestines

On By ravonlockeIn Journal, TristiaLeave a comment

We don’t get far in the city before some guards are shouting at us, asking for our papers. Remy tries to talk them around, but it’s clear he is failing, when they suddenly fall unconscious. A teenager dressed in green, with a pointy hat, bids us follow him, and quickly. Having no better plan, we do. He leads us through the streets of the city, avoiding patrols and people , to an old abandoned inn.

Heading inside, we pass through the illusion, to a decently appointed inn, with a gathering of teenagers of all sorts. In short order, we exchange introductions. Hank, a young man in full plate armor with a tree of golden fruit is their leader. He is the chosen of the Green Witch. His companions are: Francis, a burly guy with tight clothes and swords; Wan Kei, an Asian guy with body wraps; Shelly, a hooded girl with daggers; Turner, a black girl working on some small tinkering project, and Locke, the wizard who saved us.

Hank tells us that his patron tasked them to come here and wait for us. They are to accompany us into the tower to destroy the eye of her father-in-law. Hang on, what?

The Royalist mages apparently have the eye of a god or fairy king or something, named Balor (of the evil eye). He was king of the fae realms. The Green Witch married his son, and then killed him. His evil eye popped out and was sent through the planes to ours. We have to stop them from using it or the whole city will be destroyed, maybe even more than that.

Hank wants to either send the eye back to the Green Witch or destroy it. We’re all on board with that, wondering if banishing it will do the trick. They’ve been here, hiding, for weeks waiting or us. There’s a quick discussion about the evils of our various armies, interrupted only when the whole in explodes around us.

Eighteen guards pour in through holes in three of the walls and the fight is on. Locke apparently has non-violent leanings like Klyce, because he dispells the first big spell Gerhardt tries to cast shouting at us not to kill people. But the battle rages on, the eye turns its gaze upon us, and bullets fly. We sleep and knock out as many as we can, but eventually, even Turner agrees with us, and some of the soldiers die. Maribeth ends up chasing their Captain for a bit, but eventually lets him go to avoid a bigger fight.

We run. Hank leads us away from the gaze of the eye and to another safe, empty building. Then he lays hands on us, popping the bullets out and healing us with much more effectiveness than my magic can ever manage. We talk a bit about his abilities, and some of the others, marvelling at his magic. Remy casts non-detection on the room we are in, and Nat uses her arcane eye to look over the nearby sewers. Shelly has to guide her to an entrance, but it goes smoothly from there.

Nat maps out the sewers. Noting that around the central building their are strange fleshy blockages. Pulsing, brown-red flesh surrounds all ways through the sewer to the tower. The flesh shifts and the entire town shakes. While this is happening, the majors fall over unconscious, pulled into a mind-palace with our commanders to report in after sending a short message.

We discuss possible ways through, and where best to go. Deciding to get as close as we can, then reasses the flesh. We’ll probably have to cut through because the army will be on high alert now above ground. When everyone is ready, we head out and down.

It takes half an hour or so to get to the point closest to the tower. Nat uses her clairvoyance to look beyond the wall. The sewers turn into fleshy tunnels beyond five feet of flesh wall. The tunnel is full of liquid – bile, puss, ichor – she’s not sure. Coming back to herself, she casts an augury about going into the tube. It comes up both weal and woe, so we decide that’s the best we’ve got.

Back down the tunnel away from it, into side tunnels as much as possible to avoid the flow. Then start hurling tiny spells at it to burn and freeze away the flesh. It takes a little while to get all the way through, but then the disgusting liquid pours free. Splashing all over several of the group. It takes a short while to finally subside as I levitate above the disgusting mess.

Then we head into the tunnel. It feels like it is breathing. I can feel its heart pounding. The others can hear the heart, too. We get up to another barrier after a while, and having met no resistance so far, burn through this one, as well. This room’s walls are pulsing with the heart beat, and we are not alone.

Ninjas and Sharks

On By ravonlockeIn Journal, TristiaLeave a comment

We ran around the apartment looking for clues. Everything is a wreck, there’s blood painted on the walls. All the lab stuff we brought over is gone. The doorman didn’t see anyone come or go, but suggests our servants can fix the mess. Heading back downstairs, I call out for them, and Barry apologizes. Wait, what?? He says that the other servants made the mess, but he didn’t see it happen, didn’t see who left after. I order him to clean up the mess while we discuss how to quickly go after them

Leaving a note for Remy, should he ever come back, we head out to Xingtown, carrying Klein. We don’t have enough magic to get there quickly, so foot it is. When we are halfway across on the ferry, a ninja in blue comes down and a whole group of shadowy men attack. I levitate up off the ferry and let the fight move on without me. Dalish manages to get them to talk.

They told Remy to go inside and bring their stuff out. When he didn’t come back out, but we did, they assumed foul play and treachery. I let my spell go and swim after them. Dalish keeps explaining what happened, while Klyce tosses me a ring and pulls me aboard. They say the Koga clan stole his sister. We convince them that we are not their enemy, at least not today. I ask about his sister’s magic, and he says it is rare. We convince them that we’ll go find her and bring her back. They say they will watch.

Finishing our ferry ride with another discussion of killing and killing by leading killers to other killers. We’re not to kill the killers, but we can only control our own actions. Using Locate, we run around Xingtown until we get a ping, 500 feet below us. Heading into the sewers, we find no way down. Coming back up, we look around and decide Lu Bai’s dojo might give a way down.

We knock, but there is no answer. Gerhardt sends in his snake and finds it empty, but Lu Bai is in the back office with his sword drawn. Klyce knocks again and shouts for him. He comes to the door and tries to shoo us away, but we tell him we are looking for the Koga and explain. He says he cannot help us, there is nothing here that can help you, but leaves his door open.

We head inside and look around. Nothing sticks out, until Nat uses her wand. There’s a dummy in the corner. We mess with it for awhile until Klyce just grapples with it, and there is a click. We head down a 30 foot ladder. We all head down after Klyce sets off a trap. There are tripwire everywhere, and pits, and tunnels going every which way.

Eventually, we get to a well-lit room with a matted floor and a dias in the center. There is a black iron shell on the platform. The wall is covered in writing. Once we all get into the room, the door closes behind us, and 4 ninjas appear and attack us. The fight is bloody. Dalish keeps ringing his bell and murdering them! Klyce manages to knock out the last one, instead.

Nat finds a hinge on the shell, revealing a slide downwards into the dark. We all slide down after a quick check for traps at the top. Oh gods, this is fast and so many twists and turns. Suddenly I’m alone. Then I’m splashing down into water. There’s something in here with me. Something bumping into me. I have no more magic. I don’t know what to do! Pain. Blackness.