Chapter 2: A Shining Pillar of Deception

Squin’s aim hits true. The captain’s assistant looks down at his chest, from which the centaur’s arrow protrudes, almost like an insult. He looks up at the young warrior and shakes his head, narrowing his eyes… and bends over abruptly, as Mystia’s shaft sails above him. The centaur gets into position, trying to protect Alterith's body as best he can. The captain’s assistant raises his arm, the one whose stump ends in a thick, heavy chain, and then a spiked morningstar. The dreaded bludgeoning head descends down upon Squin. The centaur rears away, and the powerful, heavy head thuds into the earth, narrowly missing Squin... and Alterith.

Meanwhile, the left lieutenant’s blade flashes out once again, cutting a wide swathe along Krytox’s scaly chest.

5 damage @ Krytox

Even as his vision swims in front of his eyes, the Underlost rallies in his final effort before unconsciousness claims him, to cut the left lieutenant down in a whirling fusillade of swinging metal spikes. The right lieutenant, attempting to attack Krytox from the rear with most unscrupulous tactics, instead chooses to ensure his safety against the menacing spiked chain, and so his half-hearted attack against the reptilian is easily avoided. He sees his companion, the left lieutenant, go down in a bloody mist, and a grown crosses his handkerchief-concealed mouth, and a hiss issues between his lips. This isn’t what he signed on for… even if it was with the infamously adventurous Captain Spriggan...

Rasa deftly maneuvers around the pirate, infuriating the bandit even further. Face purple, beyond words, the man stabs wildly at mere images of the Dracen a split-second after he flashes by. However, the descendant of the underworld elves misses, intending just to toy with the pirate. Even in such dire straights as this, with his halfling barbarian ally crossing over into the Great Divide, Rasa still finds time for some cruel, satisfying amusement. Rasa’s temporary lizardman ally, unfortunately, also misses the pirate. The villainous bandit glances around warily, and then beats a hasty retreat back toward the pirate captain. As he takes off, Rasa and the lizardman both take swipes at him, but miss.

Meanwhile, the remaining lizardfolk from the footing of the burning structure runs southward to join the fray.

ooc: Krytox's action puts him at -1 hp.

I'm almost there... thinks Mystia, continuing to make her way to the fallen halfling. She had somehow lost track of everyone on the battlefield at once, but it didn't matter. The halfling's blood had already stained the surrounding area a dark crimson, and she absolutely had to get to him before he left this plane.

Suddenly, a dull thump suddenly breaks her out of her worried state. The spiked morningstar belonging to the dwarf had just come down, frightening close to the downed halfling. She winced, thinking of how much it would hurt to get hit by that thing...but she bravely pushed on, taking care to avoid stepping too close to the two.
ooc: I want to move to V6, and then to V9. IIRC, morningstar isn't a reach weapon, so I shouldn't draw an AoO.
Finally, after what seemed like minutes, she reached what was left of Alterith. Her eyes filled with tears, as she surveyed the massive wounds on his near-lifeless body. "Alterith!" she shouted, hoping that he could still comprehend her. "Don't move, you're dying. I'll do what I can, just don't move." Thinking quickly, she drops her crossbow at his feet, and kneels beside him on the sand.

Not being too well versed in halfling anatomy, but having a few months of tending to the wounded on her frequent fishing trips helped her somewhat. Sedna, have mercy on this one, he was fighting against the scourge, those that threaten the sea. She didn't have much time, and even less to work with. Gritting her teeth, she started tearing off significant pieces of her clothing and wiped blood off of the most grievous injuries, tying strips of clothing around them to stop the blood loss. Looking down at her blood-soaked dress, she thought, Now I definitely need to go back and find the part I ripped off earlier... One last rip, and she tied the last strip around Alterith's thick arms. Thank goodness he's unconscious, otherwise it'd be impossible to tie these on correctly. Finished, she got up and looked at the halfling, with only her adrenaline keeping her warm from the encroaching evening, and her blood-stained body glinting in the setting sun. If someone had been watching her during her state of undivided focus, they would have seemingly noticed a faint blue glow emanating from her hands. In the blink of an eye, those traces were gone. Scratching their heads, they would have wondered if they had just seen an illusion.

Concentration (heal defensively, no AoO): d20 + 5(trained) = 15 + 5 = 20
Heal: d20 + 6(trained) = 20 + 6 = 26
Spot: d20 + 2(wis) = 10 + 2 = 12
ooc: flavor text, something will glow blue if I roll a nat20, won't always be my hands

Ah, death is a sweet respite after all, Alterith thinks as darkness envelops him. However, a roaring pain also encompasses him, he should not feel this pain if he is dead...but how could he have survived? The great beyond was calling, and Bloodlust was gloating. Ah well, sleep seems a good option now...but his friends...no, the fight is not gone from him just yet. He begins the long slow crawl back towards consciousness.

Stabilize:

Random number (1,100) :

91

ooc: not sure if mystia would notice the potions tucked in my belt?

The sudden attack of the lieutenant takes Krytox by surprise. The masked pirate had shown some agility thus far, but took it much further with his springing strike. The Underlost was still pulling back the chain, having been slowed down when it raked across the other pirate. He looked down at the sword protruding from his body. Stunned silence is the only expression that could describe his appearance. The strength that had been ebbing over the course of the battle suddenly drained from him like water from an overturned bucket. Before it was all gone he did the only thing that he could to help his comrades and new found allies. With the last of his strength he swung the chain in the direction of the left lieutenant. The honed metal spikes find their mark as the chain twirls around the pirate. As the long chain encircles him the blood the drains from the wounds makes him look like a candy cane. Like the end of a whip, the final link and spike find their place and with immense force drive themselves into the side of the lieutenant's neck. A small gurgle could be heard by those close, but nothing else.

The blackness at the edge of Krytox' vision quickly envelopes him and he feels himself falling. The remaining lieutenant shows his nimbleness again and jumps back as the towering blackscale falls foward, thudding into the ground like a sack of potatoes. It didn't matter though, as he was unconscious well before hitting the ground. What was left of his mind ended up on a familiar ethereal plane, though Dakkon was noticably gone this time around. He had nothing to do now but wait for someone to rescue him from his prison, be it one of his friends or the angel of death...

Stabilize

Random number (1,100) :

65

ooc: If I can actually cause my body to fall on the other pirate, let me know... because that would be hilarious.

Seeing the spiked moringstar come flying down at him, Squin jumps back in time. Barely. It felt as if something grazed him like a leaf or feather blowing by in a gale. Understanding that his current role is to buy Mystia time, he fights the urge to back away from a formidable short foe, the desire to back off to Squin's strength against the dwarf - moving around and shooting. I need to keep his attention on me, so Mystia can do her thing. Hearing a nice loud long rip sound, he steals a quick glance back and does a double take. I hope her thing isn't stripping here in the middle of the battlefield. That's not a strategy my mentor covered in my lessons.

Quickly returning his attention to the dwarf in front of him, he racks his brain for a strategy to keep the attention of the dwarf on him instead of a half-naked Mystia. Unsure what to do, Squin breaks out a big smirk on his face. While the dwarf is pulling his moringstar hand thing out of the ground, Squin comes down from his rearing position and launches a quick kick hoping to catch the dwarf before off-guard. Instead of putting everything into his kick, Squin focuses more attention on avoiding the dwarf's attacks and attacking whenever the opportunity arises. Meanwhile, Squin prays for luck in turning the tide of this battle, whether through him or his allies.

OOC: Fighting defensively (-4 attack, +2 AC for this round). If my natural attacks do not allow me to fight defensively, I'll change what I do.

Attack: 17 + 3 - 4 = 16
Damage: 3 + 3 = 6

AoO: 6 + 3 = 9 (Do I keep including the fightly defensively factor or not?)
Damage: 3 + 3 = 6

No longer threatened, Rasa moves to help his friend. He replaces his Ninja-to with his hand crossbow, and reloads it while moving towards Alterith. The mermaid may have prevented his demise, but swords flashing down on both her and the centaur might end it for all of them. He moves with precision, ready to take on whatever comes his way.

Moves to S14

ooc: Zadok, my thought is that the modifier still applies to Squin’s AoO – it makes sense so we will play it this way. David, keep in mind that skill checks do not benefit from natural 20s (assuming that’s where your +10 came from). Alex, you can mock roll for it if you really want to…

Light dawns on the heavy dwarf’s face like a storm cloud on a gray day as he observes Squin and Mystia in action, the former seeking to protect Alterith’s body, the latter to restore it. “Ah…” he says, impressed with the burly halfling’s fortitude, concluding only one thing from the female’s desperate actions and murmurings to Sedna. “So the little one lives after all…” A brief glint passes through his eye.

Squin’s hoof thunders outward, forcefully, dragging the wind behind it. The assistant’s eyes bulge in their sockets as the a few hundred pounds of muscle slam into his midsection. The group hears the cracking of bone, and gray spittle flies from the dwarf’s mouth. The centaur is satisfied – he’s knocked almost half of this bandit’s life away with a single hoof attack.

As the chaos continues, Mystia tends to Alterith’s wounds as best she can. At least, the bleeding subsides. The halfling is tough, they all know, and may live to fight another day. However, that thought is dulled by the blood soaking the shore and surrounding land and the fallen bodies of their allies and even their blackscale and barbarian friends.

The assistant whirls aside, feinting for Squin. Squin, prepared for any move the assistant might make against him, fends off the blow easily enough. However, the pirate’s true target is… Mystia! The cleric of Sedna cannot help but utter a cry of pain as the morningstar comes streaking down upon her, slamming into her with full force.

10 damage @ Mystia

The dwarf turns back at looks at the horrified centaur, licking his flaked lips. “What’cha gonna do, lover boy? Kick me again?”

The right lieutenant, seeing Krytox fallen, dashes toward the group’s lizardman ally slightly to the south even as Rasa leaves said ally behind in the dust to continue on to where Alterith lies. He launches a swing at the lizardman, and barely misses. The lizardman, in retaliation, brings his wiry arm across, raking the pirate’s flesh with his claws. The pirate screams hoarsely, and whirls around just in time to see the lizardman’s reptilian allies launching upon him from the rear. Flanked by three experienced predators of the wild, the right lieutenant gives his final hoarse cries of death as the swamplords feast on his flesh. The three reptilians fall upon the lieutenant’s body, tearing it to shreds in a bloody frenzy, for the spirit of the swampland has called them to avenge their fallen. The independent action seems to be a counter to the damage done on the group by the pirate command squad, showing that these sea bandits are not impervious to friendly blades and claws.

The pirate captain looks around – despite her command group’s moderate success so far against the interloping adventurers, she has sustained far more losses than is acceptable. She begins moving northward, striding carefully but quickly, the sickly blue-green aura still wrapped around her like a shroud. One of the remaining pirates, horrified at the sight of the right lieutenant being devoured and dismembered by the scaly, spiny beasts, recoils and runs along with the captain, who gives him looks of dismay and disgust. “Save us, captain, save us!” he whimpers to her. The captain looks down at him, arching her eyebrow.

“If only I could, fair minion. Alas, there are only some of us who can be saved!”

With that, she claps her hands together, then throws a small cloud of iron powder onto the bewildered pirate. “Captain, what are you- uggghhh! Ack!” The pirate begins coughing madly, scratching at his throat and eyes. The captain murmurs words of power, and the pirate begins to grow… to twice the size!

“And it is you, minion,” she remarks, “who will save us against these interlopers!”

Cringing at the sound of Mystia's cry Squin looks on with horror in his face. The taunt coming from the dwarf snapped Squin back into action. Having heard both Mystia's prayer and the dwarf's words, he body fills with the hope and belief that the halfling would live ... provided he figure out how to end the battle with at least an ally still standing and around.

"Lover boy eh?" Squin mused. "Are you jealous or something? Awww ... did you not get enough love from your mommy when you were little?" Squin continues taunting. "Oh you want another kick?" With that Squin launches his right hoof towards the dwarf. At the last moment, he brings it down onto the ground and twists to get his formerly trailing left hoof flying up hoping to catch the dwarf from the side. Squin's hoof goes slicing through the air at the dwarf, or rather, where the dwarf was a brief moment ago. Good thing Squin didn't put everything into his kick rather keeping a lot of weight on the right leg. Seeing that he missed, he quickly pushes back off his right leg hoping back and reseting himself. Breaking out into a huge smile, Squin sarcastically teases, "I thought you wanted to be kicked again." Looking down at the arrow still sticking out of the dwarf's chest, "or would you prefer another arrow?"

OOC: Still fighting defensively.
Attack: 4 + 3 - 4 = 3
Damage: 2 + 3 = 5 (Highly unlikely, but you never know. Dwarf might pull several muscles or something. )

AoO: 15 + 3 - 4 = 14
Damage: 4 + 3 = 7

"gurgle, gurgle" *cough*

stabilize/regain consciousness:

Random number (1,100) :

98

-50 for finding a 1up mushroom in the imaginary land :D

Thick reptilian blood oozes from Krytox numerous injuries and stains the dirt and flattened grass around him. The battlefield had quieted from a massive cacophony mild clamor. The remaining battles were still as intense, if not more so than earlier. The sun dipping in the sky spread a red hue which only emphasized the fire and bloodshed thus far. It didn't matter to the blackscale though, as he lay there basking in the tranquility of unconsciousness.

Stabilize

Random number (1,100) :

11

Ready for more, but more ready for the end, Rasa cringes at the sight of the growing pirate. He hopes that the lizard fodder are foolish enough to attack it to draw it's attention away from his goal. He changes his position slightly, takes careful aim, and releases an dart right at the cocky dwarf's chest. Maybe that will be enough to allow him to help out his fallen comrade. The girl may have kept him alive, but Rasa didn't want him just alive..... he wanted him up and going. the fight would end much quicker that way......


Attack: 17 + 4 (-2 range)= 19
Damage: 3


IF DWARF IS DROPPED BY ARROW, Rasa moves to V10.
IF DWARF REMAINS STANDING, Rasa takes a 5 foot step to T13 and reloads.

ooc: DM roll for Mystia: Stabilize – 42 (fail).


The battlefield looks grimmer by the moment. Squin levels another powerful kick at the assistant, who easily avoids the blow. Mystia remains fallen, as do Krytox and Alterith. The captain’s features lighten slightly as she sees the damage being done – but only for a brief moment. Then her eyes close as she intones more magic, and the same sickly blue-green glow that surrounds her own body surrounds her dwarf assistant.

As she begins advancing toward them, her assistant glances behind his shoulder and smirks at his captain in a salute. He then turns back around to pummel Squin. The centaur, fighting defensively avoids his morningstar.

Rasa’s bolt hits the dwarf dead center, but the sickly sea-green glow surrounding him protects him. With a small flash of light that looks like a splash of seawater, the bolt bounces off harmlessly.

The lizardfolk and the now lumbering giant of a pirate move to engage each other. As the lizardfolk close to fighting range, the pirate takes a couple swings at them. One of them is squashed flat, and hisses its last. The others are too busy avoiding the pirate’s now-massive sword to attack effectively – they scramble around him to get an edge.

Stabilize: 1d100 = 86 = fail
ooc: yeah, so much for waiting.

Finally having finished patching up the fallen halfling, Mystia suddenly notices his belt. Her eyes widen as she realizes what they were. Typical of a young mermaid, she loses all situational awareness as all of her attention is now focused on the precious bottles strapped to his waist. Her mind flashes back to the few times before, where the blue liquid, almost shimmering in her mind's eye, had saved her companions from sure death. Now, they were before her, almost begging to be used. She reaches her hand out...

...and everything suddenly goes black. Split seconds before, as her fingertips touched the cold glass, she felt a stinging sensation go down her back. Slowly, the pain was amplified, and being able to bear it no more, she screamed at the sudden invasion of her senses. A surreal slow-motion sequence made the pain felt like it would last an eternity, before she felt her face hit the soft sand below her. She could no longer hear the battle raging just a few feet from where she lay. She could no longer feel the soft sand on her face. Finally, her sense of sight was failing her as well, with her consciousness following it into a dark abyss.

Seeing the pirate captain heading towards him, Squin realizes he is in quite a pickle. He is not having much success with the dwarf, and now it appears the dwarf just got some aid from the pirate captain. Sensing that if he were to remain at his current spot, he could easily get flanked and taken out for sure. Tatically, his mind is telling him to back off towards the elf to at least improve the odds of the upcoming showdown to a 2 vs 2 (however lop-sided it may be). However his heart fears that backing off may present the pirates an opportunity to finish off his incapacitated friends. Torn between these two decisions, Squin is unsure what to do. Time seems to stand still for an eternity as Squin wrestles with his decision. Finally, on the realization that his friends would likely be dead anyways if they lost the battle and that with others still standing the pirates may target the ones still standing first, Squin reaches a decision.

"Looks like your ugly lover is coming to give you some help," taunts Squin. "Even an orc couple is better looking than the two of you," Squin continues as he tries a quick straight kick that somehow seems too slow to catch the dwarf. Perhaps its because Squin is still more focused on avoiding attacks, or perhaps the dwarf is able to anticipate the centaur's kicks. Backing off slightly, the centaur awaits his opponents' next move, hoping neither he nor his friends get crushed.

OOC: Fighting defensively, attack, then 5-foot step to V10

Attack: 10 + 3 - 4 = 9 (sigh)

AoO: 3 + 3 - 4 = 2

The battles shift away from the fallen blackscale. His breathing was getting more labored as time passed, but he was still well rooted in this world. His consciousness on the other hand drifted, allowing him time to contemplate his life in general. Sitting on a knotted stump, his spirit-self dropped his heavy head into his large scaly hand - the reptilian form of The Thinker. I was given this second chance at life and freedom, but for what? Rushing into the heart of a battle and I don't even know for whom I am fighting... My comrades? A mission? Those who have fallen? Who am I to judge what is right and wrong? Augh! All this thinking makes my head hurt. The strong protect the weak and that's the way it should be. Dakkon has shown that the strong must become more strong, not only for themselves but for others as well. So be it. If I survive this debacle I must dedicate myself to further learning the ways of the warrior. The Traveler taught me many tactics, but there is so much more to be done. A sense of resolve passes across Krytox' face as he pounds a fist into his open palm. At the same time he looks around the barren wasteland. Hrmph, there is really nothing here. If this is what the afterlife is like, I'm not ready to die. Where can a lizard get a bite to eat around here?!

Stabilize

Random number (1,100) :

80

Rasa frowns at the current standings of the battle. unless something was done quickly, they were all doomed. he couldn't hope for the dwarf to miss too many more times, so he hoped squin took out his target soon. either way, Rasa lets loose one more dart at the Dwarf. regardless of whether it hits, he changes back to his blade. If 3 come charging at him at once, his crossbow won't do much along the lines of defense.... And if things look any worse, he may have to just run. He'd hate to lose the reason he came up to this shell in the first place, but after all, his life was way more important than anyone else's....

18 + 4 = 22
Damage : 4
Switch to Short sword.

The halfling wanders over to Krytox and offer's him some rabbit stew, with 1-up mushrooms for luck.

"Tastes pretty good, though the green mushrooms have kind of an odd flavor. Maybe they're poison, but since we're already dead, I don't see that it matters much. How go things on Normandy Beach?

Stabilize/Regain Consciousness:

Random number (1,100) :

29

Krytox jumps slightly, surprised by the sudden but familiar voice. "Fight go ok... but not good now. Both dead... Kill one wimp. Maybe green-scales kill other. He almost dead. Leader and fat dwarf still alive." He rambles on in his broken common, relaying some details of the fight. He isn't sure if what he is witnessing is a hallucination or some sort of reality. Regardless, the blackscale is just happy to have a someone to talk to in these otherwise desolate environs.

Squin’s kick misses, but his taunts hits the dwarf dead-center. Spittle flies from his mouth as he unleashes a roar at the centaur’s mockery. His face is livid. “… comparing us to… to… land-loving orcs?!” It seems the goblinoids had no sympathy… on any Shell. The assistant glares dangerously at Squin’s form taking a step back, and his gaze falls down to Mystia and Alterith’s bodies around them (Spot check made). The recognition that Squin’s friends are unconscious but still alive registers as an evil glint in his eyes.

“The Great Blue of Novemterra binds us more closely as seadogs than any of you land-loving barnacles could ever imagine,” he snarls, taking step toward the two fallen companions. “Ours is a bond forged by the mighty waves of the sea.” The terrible morningstar begins arcing around the chained stump of his handless wrist, gathering force.

“At least the Capt’m and I have each other,” he says with a treacherous grin that drains the blood from Squin’s face as the centaur realizes what he is about to do. “But you, the little boy from Gaia… you are about to lose your land-loving friends. To the final touch of this ‘star I wield.” The dwarf’s eyes taunt Squin and run over to Rasa as.

“Can you stop me in time?”

He finds himself speaking not to Rasa, but a crossbow bolt sailing through the air, now protruding out of his chest. Dumbstruck for a moment, the dwarf looks down, at the crimson spreading from the center of the embedded crossbow bolt. He looks up just in time to see Rasa drawing a wicked-looking short blade. No matter. The morningstar thunders down over Mystia’s already broken body.

5 damage @ Mystia

Rasa suddenly sees a form darting to his side. He looks – it’s the captain! The young woman springs toward him, her black pirate boots thudding soundlessly against the sandy ground, gloved hands outstretched. A sickly green ray shoots from her fingers, and the dark elf barely manages to twist away. Even as the energy fires past him, waving slowly and dangerously through the air, Rasa feels the strength in his legs leaving him briefly. The dark elf knows no real harm has befallen him, and recovers instantly.

Meanwhile, a couple glances spared inward toward land show that the giant-sized pirate has fallen, but not before he could crush another one of the lizardfolk. The sole remaining lizardfolk, with scaled flesh bloody and torn, begins bounding toward the first enemy he sees who is still standing – the captain. As he moves, Rasa sees the light of exceptional intelligence in this lizardman’s eyes. The stunned dark elf beholds the lizardman murmuring something in its native tribal tongue, something harsh, savage, and raw. Its claws are suddenly bathed in a dim yellowish light, and appear even sharper than before as it stalks toward the woman responsible for all of this senseless killing.

* * *

In the world beyond, as Alterith offers Krytox some soup composed of the growing ectoplasm from the universe, the two look up as their hands briefly make contact and pass through each other. They are suddenly in a strange, ethereal, underground cavern. Despite their confusion, both immediately realize they have been here before… individually. They glance around themselves. They are in a wide, spacious corridor, deep underground from the sound of water droplets falling and hitting the stone floor eerily in the dark distance. Despite there being no light, the two find that they can still see, albeit somewhat. They appear to be in the middle of the path. They face one of the walls, and the passageway stretches to their left and right. They look down at their hands that once held the mushrooms, the stew. They are grasping handfuls of brown mud, seeping out from between their fingers.

* * *

As Mystia’s physical body is further mauled in the physical world, she suddenly wakes up, as though from a nightmare. She looks down, not at two legs, but at the bottom half of a fish. Immediately she recognizes… her own body. But there is more. Something red, splashed around her, on the table surface where she lays, on the crudely tiled floor around her… on the smooth walls… and there are even splotches on the ceiling. Red. Blood. She begins to scream, but she cannot escape – with horror, she looks to her arms, which are buckled down.

A man in a long white coat, faces a table nearby, his back to her. Mystia’s vision blurs from her tears and the bright reflective glare of light shining off the various… unnamable objects on the table. So shiny, glittery… metallic. The man sighs, neither happy nor sad.

“Don’t bother, girl,” he said, his deadpan voice like the sound of death. “It’s easier for all of us if you just let it go.” He slowly turns around. The moment passes in an instant, and in an eternity. Mystia watches as the man’s anonymous face begins to peel away, flecks of skin falling to the tiled floor below, becoming black ash. The horrified woman beholds the man feebly grasping some kind of small tool… in his fingerless hands.

“Sedna didn’t save you, child,” he says slowly, the rest of his face peeling away.

“Cthulu summoned you.”

Alterith looks at the mud in his hands...hrmm...I've heard it had healing properties he thinks to himself. With a shrug he continues eating. The soup tasted much better. Ah well, that's a problem for another day. Without any further thought or conversation he begins walking down the path to his left.

[placeholder post]

Stabilize: 1d100 = 56 FAIL

Krytox swallows heavily, forcing the mud in his mouth down his throat. He looks somewhat disgusted and drops the remainder on the floor. Slightly disoriented he peers each way down the newly formed hall. Not knowing if anything makes sense anymore he shrugs and follows the same path as Alterith.

Stabilize

Random number (1,100) :

37

Squin attempts to maintain a calm and smirking facade. Inwardly, he cringes in horror as he watches the morningstar skewer Mystia's lifeless body. The self-directed curses seemingly flow non-stop towards himself. Yet deep down, he really wonders what choices does he have left, and does any of them require the death of none his friends.

Glancing around quickly, he sees it is too late for many of his new allied lizardfolk, but secretly he hopes some of them can still survive. He marvels at the lizardfolk's willingness to fight to the end, even seemingly against certain death as he watches the lone lizardfolk rushing at the captain to gain what little advantage they can provide to the elf.

Realizing that he has to trade his strength, attacking at range, and engage the stronger melee fighter in order to prevent the dwarf from getting in another free shot. The dwarf's actions certaining got to Squin. Taking a greater risk, he decides to just launch a full out attack hoping that he would be able to take down the dwarf before he (Squin) gets taken down. Still in his defensive posture, he waits for an opening watching the dwarf's menacing morningstar flowing back and forth. Seeing what he thinks to be a hint of an opening, he takes it going all out instead of remaining defensive. Unlike his previous attacks, this one has the full weight of his body behind it as he thrust his hooves at the dwarf, the right front hoof coming in from high and angled from right to left aiming at the head and shoulders while the left hoof flying in low angled from left to right aiming at the hip and legs.

OOC: Just one attack only (not attacking defensively).

Attack: 17 + 3 = 20
Damage: 5 + 3 = 8

AoO: 3 + 3 = 6
Damage: 4 + 3 = 7

If dwarf goes down to the initial attack:

Spoiler:

Rasa Trades swipes with the pirate captain, being as careful as possible. hopefully his ally will back him up, but he couldn't trust the lizardman for anything. He takes many short jabs and parries many blows, but he knew this 1v1 could prove devastating..... this is just not how he does business.

Fighting defensively,
12 + 2(flanking)-2 Defensively = 12
Damage : 3

"Do you feel that?" A breathless voice asks the halfling and blackscale as they proceed down the cavernous corridor. "Death is in the air. Pain. Hatred." The raspy voice continues. "This planet... shattered by its past. Passing into the Great Divide used to be a simple matter. Now... where you are going... who can say. Who can say."

The two companions, in this dream of a world, their real bodies lying broken and bloodied in the physical world, find themselves walking along, and they notice they are on the ceiling. The walls of the corridor are dripping blood, the small droplets falling upwards from their point of view. All around them, in the distance, and close by, they hear the sound of a female crying softly.

"Do you hear that? It is the sound of the planet. She has been wounded, and these are her scars."

* * *

Mystia blinks. The horrid scene is gone. Her spirit tries to discern the identity of the eerie scientist man who was speaking to her, about to do something unthinkable to her. But Mystia cannot recall. She finds herself in the open blue water, swimming freely. The sunlight filters through the water above in luxurious white-yellow slices of light. Majestic sea creatures float lazily along the soft, pulsing currents.

She blinks again. A black ink is spreading into the water. The murky substance is sparkling with dark red energy. "Do you see that," says a voiceless voice. "The pain of the sea... the pain of this planet." The ink is like an evil thought overwhelming an innocent mind, consuming schools of fish and various creatures, creeping along the rocky bottom, obscuring everything from view. "What will happen," the voice continues, "if you are consumed as well? Who can say. Who can say."[/i]

* * *

Squin's kick connects. The dwarf, wide-eyed, staggers back slightly. Though it is difficult to tell at first glance, the captain's assistant is severely wounded by the blow - it looks like a lot of the muscles around his midsection have been oddly rearranged. Closer inspection (if ever possible) would have revealed that the centaur's powerful hooves in fact have... readjusted the dwarf's bones. A trickle of blood escapes his lips - signs of massive internal bleeding.

The morningstar hums low, responding to the devastating blow. Squin hops aside, and it thuds harmlessly into the ground. The dwarf grits his teeth angrily. If I can no longer threaten him... I will kill as many of the others as possible!

The pirate captain and Rasa exchange blows, both missing. With the reptilian ally, the three maneuver in a delicate dance of death. Rasa and the captain's blades flash in and out, neither getting the upper hand. The lizardman comes in, glowing claws cutting into the cpatain's back. The glow of its claws penetrate the sickly green protecting her body. She arches her back and cries in pain and fury. The lizardman greets her roar with the kind of feral fearlessness that only animals can make. The primitive swamplord's thoughts flicker back to its slaughtered tribesfolk, the lighthouse family that had always given them gifts and aid...

"... maaake yousss payy! Diiiiee!" it snarls at the pirate captain, now looking very wounded.


ooc: Same map as in my previous post.