Chapter #1146
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+ THE ADVENTURERS +
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+ Epic VI +
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+ Many of the locations, non-player characters, spells, and other +
+ terms used in these stories are the property of Wizards of the Coast +
+ which has in no way endorsed or authorized their use. Any such +
+ property contained within these stories are not representative of +
+ Wizards of the Coast in any fashion. +
+ The player characters depicted in these stories are copyright +
+ 1991-2024 by Thomas A. Miller. Any resemblance to any persons +
+ or characters either real or fictional is utterly coincidental. +
+ Copying and/or distribution of these stories is permissible under +
+ the sole condition that no money is made in the process. In that +
+ case, I hope you enjoy them! +
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+ Adolphus 10th level half-ogre warrior +
+ Damien small, renegade imp +
+ Peyton 11th level gnome thief +
+ Rogar 10th level human priest of Olidammara +
+ Sylus 8th/10th level dark elf warrior/thief +
+ Wembly 10th level human wizard +
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+ Date: 6/17/586 C.Y. (Common Year) +
+ Time: late morning +
+ Place: the northwest reaches of the Abbor-Alz hills +
+ Climate: warm and dry, with cloudy skies +
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+ "A force multiplier is a capability or technology that when +
+ properly used significantly increases the potential of the +
+ particular force used and enhances the probability of success." +
+ - Richard Duarte, _Surviving Doomsday_ +
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MCXLVI. Lethal Mischief
While the other five wait outside for either his return or some sign
that he has engaged the occupants of the mines, Sylus has - with magical
aid - successfully infiltrated the complex of passages, chambers, and
mineshafts. After some rapid but efficient scouting and planning, he
now prepares his part of the upcoming assault...
Sylus: (moving slowly and carefully back toward the barracks furthest
from where he entered the mines)
After finalizing his plan while waiting for his gaseous form to expire,
the dark elf had moved into position...and when he was once again flesh
and blood, he had started his quiet, deadly work. After materializing
right behind the guards at the last of the open entrances, he'd quickly
and efficiently disposed of them both. The key was to wound and silence
whichever foe appeared stronger and more capable with the first strike,
slay the second as quickly as possible, and then return to the first and
finish him off. While grisly work, it was also the most effective way
to prevent any guards from shouting or raising an alarm. It helped that
the dark elf was exceptionally quick, both on his feet and with a blade.
Once that grim business was done, Sylus began utilizing some of the
flasks of oil he carried, covering the pathway from the entrance back
toward the barracks. Pausing to ready his tools, he then - with a quick
and deliberate motion - drove an iron spike beneath the barracks door and
secured it with two sharp blows from a small hammer. By the time voices
began shouting from the other side of the door a couple of moment later,
Sylus was emptying another oil-flask into the narrow gap beneath the now-
jammed door. By the time the duergar in the barracks began beating on
their side of the blocked portal, trying to break out, Sylus had struck
flint to steel and ignited the puddle of oil that now spanned both sides
of the door. In a flash, flames sprung up there, and also began racing
along the passage toward the outside.
Things were now in motion, and it wouldn't be long before the fireball
arrived. Working quickly but calmly, Sylus left another flask of oil
open and on its side outside the stuck door and ran the other way, deeper
into the passage. Dashing along the tunnel, he dropped additional flasks
at certain key points along the way, including at the area of the next
barracks, a bit further in the complex. His timing was perfect: the
guards from that second barracks spilled into the passage just in time
to be engulfed in the spreading flames, a tactic made easier due to the
substantial amount of spilled oil in their vicinity.
Without a look back to check the exact results of all his efforts, the
dark elf sprinted down the passage as fast as he could, turning left at
one fork and then left again at the next. His aim was simply to put as
much space (and as many sharp passage turns) as possible between himself
and the fireball that he knew was coming. Fortunately, he'd been able to
scout these outer reaches of the mine complex and so he had a plan; the
only unknown was how far he could get from the target point.
Sylus: (running all-out, he hears a muffled blast in the distance, and
makes one final leap into the right-hand passage ahead)
Right then, the entire complex trembled...and moments later, bright
yellow tongues of flame blasted their way through the network of rough
passages, obliterating two barracks, three guard posts, and every single
duergar in or around any of those locations.
Peyton: (outside the mine's entrances, he leads the others as they dash
down the hillside, headed for the open entrance furthest from the one
that got the fireball) Hurry now, lads! We won't have the element of
surprise for long!
Damien: (flying along thanks to his small, bat-like wings, he watches in
glee as gouts of flame issue forth from two other entrances, including
one they hadn't even known about) Yeah! Good work, Wembly!
Wembly: (doing his best not to slip and fall on the hillside, he grins)
Thanks! Glad to see that all my practice paid off!
Adolphus: (lumbering along, he gets distracted by the twin tongues of
fire, and suddenly loses his footing, tumbling down the rest of the
way)
As the huge half-ogre landed in a dusty heap, Damien flew out ahead of
his companions, heading right into the nearest of the flame-filled tunnel
entrances.
Adolphus: (on his feet, he brushes dirt from his eyes, then hefts his
enormous battleaxe, looking back and forth between the passage Damien
flew into and the non-flaming one fifty feet to its left) Huh?
The big humanoid - not the sharpest knife in the drawer on the best of
days - had remembered the plan, which was that the group was supposed to
attack via the entrance without any fires...but Damien's sudden breaching
of a different, "hot" entrance had confused Adolphus. Thus, he paused in
his charge, awaiting clear direction. Fortunately, Peyton was well-aware
of the half-ogre's tendencies and also quick to think and adapt, and he
didn't miss a beat.
Peyton: Adolphus! (he points to the left entrance) Get them!
Adolphus: (grins, and charges toward that passage)
Just inside that entrance, the pair of duergar sentries stood uneasily,
bewildered by the massive blast that had clearly occurred elsewhere in
the complex as well as the great gouts of flame that had just exploded
from two other entrances. Were they next? Or was it over? They had no
way to know, and no time to think about it any further given the massive
brute that was now heading their way, brandishing an axe that was longer
than either of them were tall.
duergar guard #1: (shouting in the low, guttural tongue of their people)
What the hell is THAT?
duergar guard #2: (likewise) I don't know, but it's mean and ugly and
looks pissed off.
duergar guard #1: (readies his pick, which all of a sudden seems a bit
small and lightweight for a fight) Uh...
duergar guard #2: Don't even think about it. You know what'll happen if
we desert our post.
duergar guard #1: (frowns as Adolphus lumbers along, rapidly closing the
distance) I'm more worried about what will happen if we don't.
duergar guard #2: (sets his feet and hefts his hammer) We've got our
duty.
Adolphus: (closes the gap, his giant battleaxe raised, spittle flying
from his mouth as he yells and grins at the same time)
duergar guard #2: Even if it sucks.
next: they meet some resistance
map: http://www.peldor.com/world/atlas/bright_desert.jpg
www: http://www.peldor.com/download.html
homepage: http://www.peldor.com/
email: tmiller@peldor.com
released: 4/19/2024
notes: You're reading this in mid-April 2024, but I'm writing it
in mid-February and as I type this - although it's not official yet and
no one actually knows yet - I've decided to retire at the end of May.
I'll give my two-month notice at the end of March. See, this is like
time travel...I'm writing early about things I have yet to do, but by
the time you read this those things will have already happened! This
is a snapshot of the past, saved intact to be seen later.
I'll have more thoughts on retirement in coming episodes...whichever
ones are written right after I turn in my official notice ought to have
some choice nuggets of thought.
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