The battle before Blackgut’s lair continued on. The whip wielding slave-master troll attempted to disarm Vorox’s axe and a troll that had charged across the creek went after Tweena preventing her from covering the field and us with her arrows. A fourth bestial type troll lurched at me with a double-claw strike but missed when I dodged teleporting to the large double door of the lair 30 ft. away. Vorox took a defensive stance as he traded blows with Blackgut as the troll had wounded him fairly badly but Greyshadow, his dragonsaurus, bit into the troll and rent the monster with his jaws. Unfortunately this caused Vorox to be thrown from the saddle. I attempted to cast Phantom Flames but failed. A bestial troll, the slave-master and Blackgut continued to engage Vorox whom was barely able to stave off their attacks with his tower shield. The troll that was after me continued to close as I tried to gather myself and get that spell out. That was when I noticed a scruffy black-haired ratling next to me who stabbed me in the back with a poisoned dagger. I teleported away from him preventing me from casting my spell and Vorox narrowly avoided a power attack from Blackgut’s massive flail while he jumped back into the saddle.
Vorox, Greyshadow, Blackgut and the slave-master dusted it up with Vorox scoring a massive blow against the boss troll. I spotted Tweena running towards the bridge drinking a potion as she was badly wounded. A large black arrow flew out of nowhere and pegged Vorox in the side. The black ratling nailed me again with his dagger and I teleported 10 ft. from his other side. The small cadre of slaves that had been slowly creeping forward towards my position suddenly attacked the shadow-ribbon bound shaman bashing him to death with rocks. In the central fight Greyshadow the dragonsaurus got a large chunk ripped out of him by a bestial troll and then again as another bestial fell upon him. I was finally able to get my phantom flames spell off but it had little to no effect on any of the trolls. Vorox and Greyshadow were ripping into Blackgut and I lost sight of the black ratling. The troll near me went on the attack and I was able to stop his claws with a shadow ribbons spell and then teleported away to another point on the battle field and acid-bolted one of the bestials attacking Vorox. At the same moment Vorox was disarmed by the slave-master troll’s whip. Greyshadow ran away from the center of the battle and the monster rider (Vorox) snatched up his axe as he rode by. Since I was left vulnerable a bestial troll that had been attacking Vorox tried to get at me but I got him first with shadow ribbons and then Blackgut nearly crushed me with a blow from his heavy flail forcing me to teleport and slam down the Arch-cure potion I was carrying.
I was behind the large wood pile still near the center of the battlefield and was able to see that the troll that had been harassing Tweena through the battle had chased her across the bridge, she turned and put an arrow in him. Vorox and Greyshadow had reared back around to the center of the battle where the slave-master was cracking a whip at him. Seeing that the coast was clear I stepped from behind the pile and cast phantom flame once again hoping to end the battle in spectacular fashion. The purple flames caught the slave-master and a bestial, the bestial dropped then Vorox charged in and dropped the badly wounded slave-master with a chop from his axe. I dodged a large black arrow by teleporting to the opposite side of the wood pile. Blackgut shouted out, “Where’s my PRIZE! No prize, no fight!” The troll-boss turned and began to move towards the lair doors.
Tweena was busy outrunning and shooting at the troll pursuing her and Vorox was fighting a bestial so I cast Stone Sphere dropping a gigantic boulder in front of and against the lair double-doors crushing a bestial troll at the same time. Vorox dropped the bestial. Blackgut shouted out, “Why is there a giant rock in my front DOOR!” He then turned and used his flail in a sweep attack against the monster rider and dragonsaurus leaving Vorox gasping, trying to keep himself conscious. The troll that had been chasing Tweena dropped his disgusting body bristling with arrows. She lit a torch with the intention of burning the corpse, I teleported next to her. A large black arrow shattered on Vorox’s shield. Blackgut went after the monster rider in earnest and I readied myself for any incoming. Suddenly Blackgut, who had the upper hand in his fight with Vorox, screamed and snatched something invisible off of his shoulders, it became visible as it landed won its feet with flop on the ground, a red-faced ratling. The ratling was bearing the symbol of the Red Daggers on his doublet with the glittering emerald necklace that had adorned Blackgut’s flabby neck in his sharp-nailed hands.
Vorox shouted out pointing at a clump of brush at the extreme north-east of the battle field on the slope where we could all see a troll-archer fumbling with a large black arrow and his black bow, the string had broken. Seeing how injured I was Tweena grabbed my head and poured a healing potion down my throat. A crossbow bolt shattered on Vorox’s shield shot from a large rock near the creek at the far south-west end of the battlefield to where the red-faced ratling was fleeing, I teleported to the rocks and cast Mass Paralyze freezing a pair crossbowmen where they squatted by the creek both also bearing the arms of the Red-Daggers. Blackgut roaring charged after the ratling and Vorox hacked at the troll but missed nearly losing his weapon. The ratling dove into water and the troll slave-master stood back up still badly wounded but regenerating fast. I cast a lightning bolt at the ratling in the water but he incredibly was able to avoid the electricity entirely! Vorox charged Blackgut on his mount. The boss-troll roared and missed the monster rider with a powerful swing of his weapon. The slave-master resumed his whip attacks against Vorox and Greyshadow sank his teeth into Blackgut badly wounding the giant armored troll. I shot another lightning bolt at the ratling energizing the general area of water where I thought he might be as he was completely submerged. I saw an outline of the little beast in the crackling flash of light but since no corpse floated to the surface so I had to assume that he had escaped me. Damn, I really wanted that necklace.
To Be Continued…
