Chapter Three: Into the Fweth Tunnels

[Mint]

The insect-like creatures move towards you with incredible swiftness, their weapons drawn.

William lets loose his arrow and it hits at the same time that Alrone's spell envelopes it but unfortunately glances off the curved chitin exoskeleton leaving only a slight rent from which oozes a greenish yellow ichor as the creature seems to bump dazedly into the obsidian wall before disappearing into the tunnel.

Elizabeth' halberd hits true and cracks through the exoskeleton of the creature charging toward her before the blade gets stuck. About three inches of good steel penetrate the creature and ichor spurts out and hits the young paladin in the face with fat drops of goo.

Edward seems to have the most success as his shovel comes down on the head of his attacker, flattening one antenna and breaking off another before smashing into the top of the creature's skull, flattening it halfway down to it's mandibles. Brains, pieces of chitin, and ichor spray everywhere and the creature crumples to the floor twitching.

The three other insect creatures advance upon you and attack. Fortunately for the comrades, between the sudden burst of Alrone's light spell and the crushing death of one of their number they are distracted enough to miss their aim and none hit you with the exception of one glancing blow on William (OOC: Take 1 HP damage).

[Woe]

Elizabeth will quickly wipe the goo from her face if it's {acidic, poisonous, corrosive, noxious, annoying, slight-limiting}. She will also draw her trusty (non-magical) longsword and again try to draw the ire of all the remaining ant-men, defending as best she can while William and Aldrone go on the offensive.

[Nightwulf]

Ferahf sighed realizing that he would have to help himself. He focused on the ropes that were tied around him and attempted to untie them with his Telekinesis.

[Hywaywolf]

Edward frantically tries to dodge the ant-things blows. He brings his shovel up and around to block another swing by the ant-thing, but he slips just as the ant-thing lunges upwards. The shovel cracks the ant-things head with a sickening hollow sound and the ant-thing crumples to the ground.

Edward is mortified. He killed a living creature. "No!" he wails as the shovel falls from his hands. He drops to his knees and immediately starts to give aid to the fallen creature. "No no no. Please don't be dead. I'm sorry." Tears roll off his cheeks as he works to save the creature, but without success.

[Mint]

Time freezes.

There is no awareness that time itself has frozen.

On his evil throne of darkness Ae is seen mouth open, mid-tirade.

The crack in reality opens once again and The Lady in Black steps through. At her feet are the black cat and the white dog. Both are quiet and stand a bit behind and apart from her.

Moving up to the ant creature with it's head caved in she gestures and the head is restored, brains and ichor returning to the reforming skull. Pulling the creatures weapon up and a bit over to one side she steps back considering. After a moment she makes a further adjustment, nods, lifts Edward's shovel up, snaps her fingers cleaning it, and moves it so it also is to one side. She touches the shovel and the creature's weapon with a finger each and they glow for a moment as she imparts future momentum to them.

Satisfied she moves back and sighs. In Scandenland an avalanche suddenly roars down a mountainside, burying the little village nestled there. Of the one hundred odd inhabitants, seven will be found alive.

Turning she shoos her pets back through the crack before following them. The crack closes. Disappears.

Time starts.

In the Fweth tunnel Edward sees the insect creature's weapon come right at his face and at the last second manages to avoid having his face split in two by blocking the blow with his shield.

[Longman]

William shoots again, backing away to the far edge of the room in order to get a decent shot. He's aiming for any one of the beasts.

After that he will ditch his bow, ready to draw and attack next round.

[Jandolar]

Elifain will push up on the transparent cover of the container that he's in. Once the cover is open enough for him to stand up he will do so. As soon as the scout is upright he's fitting an arrow to his bow string and firing at the nearest ant thing. No one stuffs an elf in a jar and gets away with it.

[black1blade]

Alrone charges past the insect currently engaged with the rest of the party (beating off any attacks with the stick in his left hand) and attempts to smack the blinded insect (the one who was fleeing)

[Hywaywolf]

Edward is scared out of his mind. He feverishly continues trying to hold the ant-thing off. "Stop stop please stop. can't we all just get along?"

[Mint]

Alrone's ill advised attempt at using sticks to defend himself can be chalked up to first real battle wildness and inexperience. Waving his sticks about himself in some vague semblance of combat the sorcerer nonetheless manages to scurry (though charge is how he viewed it) past an ant-man due to the unexpected aid given by the elf rising from the white-lit chamber who had loosed an arrow at his surprised opponent which lodged itself in the creature's head. Making it to the tunnel he discovers, to his dismay, that the ant-man has disappeared.

Meanwhile Edward's attacker swings again at the once cloistered druid and batters through his defenses, such as they are. Deep bites the creature's weapon and Edward is flung back by the impact into the wall behind him bleeding heavily from the shoulder where the weapon cut through muscle to the bone beneath (Take 3 HP damage).

Elizabeth has her hands full with keeping her attackers off of her as they are indeed full of ire. The one with her halberd stuck in it's torso staggers back trying, futilely for the moment, to wrench it loose and only succeeding in churning it's innards further. As William fades away from her side to get in a shot and she wipes at her face while drawing her weapon the other two ant-man spring to attack her furiously. Just as well William's sudden second loosed arrow lodged itself in one of her attacker's legs as it caused it to stumble to one side. The other, however, swung with full force down on the budding paladin and things would really have gone badly for her had not the hit struck on one of the studs of her armor. There's going to be one hell of a bruise and skin rash but no bones were broken (Take 2 HP damage). Elizabeth's face is clean now though and her sword in hand.