Our band continues to be...
Kalik, halfling initiate of Avoreen;
Vesper, (NPC) human fighter, henchman of Kalik;
Milik, halfling sorcerer;
Kendradell, female half-elf bard & initiate
of Lydia;
Marcus, half-elf acolyte of Hieroneous;
Tarqualan, high elf mystic;
Piotr, suloise human mercenary;
and finally;
Talon, dwur initiate of Clangeddin.
[6th of Wealsun, 579]
After a long, sleepless night (punctuated only by a visit from one of the Rebutters, who blessed both Talon & Kendradell's quarters, and Kalik's abortive attempt at casting his own blessing that went awry and made the pommel of his sword weep blood) the party rose and joined the clergy for their morning meal. As the meal came to a close, one of the gate guards rushed in and informed Neidan, the High Priest that the nearby village of Hommlet was under attack by forces that seemed to be allied with the Horned Society(!) and that any and all assistance would be more than welcomed...
Finding themselves more or less alone in the temple except for their guide Mauri, the party began laying plans for bypassing the flooded level beneath themselves. Using Milik's sorcery, a rough map of the second level was made, giving a rough idea of where the major hallways, stairwells, active magical sources, and merrow encampments could be found. Selecting a nearby stair that did not lie in the heart of the merrow's territory they cast a variety of prep spells upon themselves before descending down into the water-filled halls below...
About 1/3 rd of the way along their journey, the party was ambushed by five merrow and a quartet of undines. Though it seemed for a moment that the undines would carry away Milik, Piotr, and Marcus, each managed in turn to escape the clutches of and then defeat their nemesis before doom could overtake them. In the fight with the merrow, however, Kalik took another grievous wound (though this was quickly healed).
A second battle took place as they neared the
door that guarded the stairway down; in this second battle the water breathing
spells protecting Talon and Piotr were dispelled, and five merrow quickly
moved to encircle Marcus while the undines in this group snatched Vesper,
Milik, Tarqualan and Kalik from the rear of the party. In a wild swing
that was meant to free Tarqualan from the undine's grip, Piotr severed
Tarqualan's left leg at the knee, sending blood billowing into the water
(the only saving grace of this strike was that it slew the undine in question,
as well). The undine carrying Vesper nearly escaped with him,
drowning him as it went, but Kalik managed to
free his loyal servant just as unconsciousness began to set in, and rapid
application of healing magic brought him back from the brink of death...
The second wave broken, the party reached the stairs and descended, slaying the two human mercenaries who stood guard over it; though quickly dispatched, one had time to cry an alarm, as the party quickly exited the water-filled stairway and back into the clean, fresh air...
[6th of Wealsun, 579]