For far too long, much of Dapple’s short brutal life had been bringing her to this moment: a chance to begin exacting vengeance against Greens. Learning to fight, to live as a male, to survive against the odds were all investments in a grim future and she was determined to get her money’s worth, starting now.

After the initial attack, Dapple realizes she is actually holding her own against a Green, the bogeyman of her nightmares for so long. She blocks a kick, turns but is blocked herself. They exchange a flurry of blows back and forth between them in similar martial arts style. “Old school. Heh!” the Green murmurs and changes his attack method from foot to hand.

Dapple blocks a fast jab to the stomach and follows up with a knee to the family jewels, her own thigh muscle bruising from the force of contact. “A bit of the classics and a bit of the gutter, a**hole, “ Dapple retorts as the Green makes an audible sound of pain and rolls out of the way.

Char wastes no time and strikes against the one on Dapple. His blades strike true and deep, leaving a trail of blood from the imperial soldier as he twists and turn to get himself out of the position of struck between the two. Dapple throws a defiant glare Char’s way, (OOC: Char is reminded of a fox or bobcat confronted over its kill by a larger predator) before she catches herself and nods. She adjusts her angle of attack to keep the Green positioned between the two of them. If the Green is crouched at all over his crushed bits, she’ll continue the attack with a leap that should bring herself down on the now vulnerable neck and head.

That’s better, girlie. Remember, every one of those that came with you is a weapon, weapons to be used as much as your hands and feet. Try to keep thinking while using that body I gave you!
OOC: Dapple is focused on the two Greens; everyone else, including her companions, is incidental at the moment. Unless a bullywug attacks her, she might not even realize they’ve shown up.

The ambush hadn't gone exactly the way they'd planned. Or in fact, it hadn't gone quite the opposite, judging from the sounds on the other side of the door. Taking Greens by surprise was apparently something, that could not be done even by the masters of stealth.

"We go." The determination in Char's voice could not be missed and Kilgim was filled with the same feeling. Our mates 'urt, 'n ye'll regret ye were born, ye maggot-eatin' Imps. Brandishing his axes, the cleric followed the ranger and the gladiator to the frey.

A quick assessment of the situation later, it seemed to the bald dwarf, that his friend and new companion were still amongst the living. The mage was down, but not bleeding - not necessarily a good thing, but there was nothing to be done about his situation right now. Poison and he's already dead or sleeping. Magic - and Kilgim would need more time to find out. That would have to wait now.

A number of green-skinned things (Kilgim couldn't exactly make out what they were) had been caught by a magical web and were of no concern at the very moment. The two greens on the other hand were. Outnumbered two to one, the Imperials didn't appear too worried...

And that nearly turned the stout warrior's stomach inside out. He had no doubt they could take the two, though it might not be as easy as some other opponents. But where there were two Greens, there would be more. And most probably Reds too.

Maximus was engaging the "free" Green and Kilgim moved in to help him. But even with two opponents, the enemy soldier moved impossibly fast and managed to dodge one of his blows with practiced ease. But Blackaxe was an extent of the dwarf's arm and flew through the air with terrible precision taking a nasty cut in the man's side.

"Ye dare to enter our lands, Imp, but ye'll never leave!" Moving a bit to the side, but keeping the web-caught thingies in sight, Kilgim tries to place the Green directly between himself and the huge gladiator.

The web threads snap and tear as the green-hued men break free and waste no time on thought. They strike out at the Bullywugs with cold precision and quickly slay four of the amphibians with a single blow each. The last of them jumps in to attack, a strike to the chest that would skew a normal man, but the blade of his sword bounces off the flesh like it was striking a brick wall.

Maximus moves in on the Green along side Kilgim. He moves so very fast, managing to dodge the blows of the Gladiator. The imperial strikes out at Kilgim, with sharp jabs to his left arm, hitting it in three places. Kilgim feels his arm start to stiffen up and is aware of what is happening – an old imperial trick of paralyzing a limb. With a force of will that only a dwarf can muster, he moves his arm through the pain and strikes a grazing blow to the side of the head.

The soldier fighting Char and Dapple never had a chance. Caught off guard by the dual attack, He is slashed viciously by Char’s blades twice across the chest and then takes a kick to the head from Dapple that ends his life.

Valentine steps forward to cast a rainbow of colours from his hands at the man-things coming down the corridor. The colours hit them full in the face, they do nothing to block the light or protect their eyes. The effect proves to be of no avail though as both figures continue to move towards Valentine and the party.

OOC: Olan has promised me a return of Arien post. Otherwise post further actions and I will run the combat to conclusion in the next post.

Arien awakens to a piercing headache and a severe case of cottonmouth - and with no memory of partaking excessively of strong spirits, he is temporarily confused. The next few moments are even more confusing, as strange images (memories?) push their way into his consciousness. A terribly malevolent - defintiely feminine - presence. Gossamer? What is a Gossamer?

Alloryn! She is here, and in danger! Gossamer - the Green Goddess - is here, as well... is inside of Alloryen. Gossamer had forced herself into Arien, but his twin had somehow pulled the entity within herself... to save me, the knight marvelled.

Something had to be done, and now. This evil spirit, whatever it was, certainly had to be tied to the presence of the Imperials... Arien was not so foolish as to think that Ally had simply happened to be possessed while under the tender care of the Imperials. Why they would want to do this was beyond his understanding or concern. All that mattered was helping his twin.

The knight sat up, dislodging an indignant Sunset, and thus earning himself an intense craving for spicy sausages. He had no time for this, though, and quickly regained his feet, angrily reaching for his blade... which was not there. Jarred, Arien began to pay attention to his surroundings, and heard what sounded very like the sounds of mortal combat from nearby. His friends! They would need him.

First, the immediate danger, next, to assist Alloryen.

Arien will look for his sword (which is hopefully nearby) as he moves to the next room. Standard tactics apply - help anyone who obviously needs it; if none, then find the biggest, ugliest bad guy and repeatedly insert five handspans of flaming steel into its carcass until it stops moving.

Maximus found himself momentarily stunned by the green’s 2 blows seemingly delivered as one.
Damn he’s fast thought the ex-pit fighter as he quickly brought his sword up in a counter attack that did score a deep cut on his enemies bicep, causing the green for the moment to back off. Quickly without any words Maximus shook off the shock of the two blows and readied himself for the green’s next attack. Then the dwarf Kilgrim was beside him and yet the green did avoid his attacks, though Kilgrim did manage a small hit to the side of the green’s head. With Kilgrim positioned between himself and the green Maximus backed off just a little to be ready to counter attack once the green attacked the dwarf.
This time the ex-gladiator would let the green come to them.....

Dapple saw immediately that a leap was ill-advised; it would take precious time and she needed to strike fast while the Green was pre-occupied with the throbbing in his privates. The Green shook his head while grimacing in pain and Dapple saw it: a momentary vulnerability. Her foot reached out, almost delicately, and the kick, compared to her previous attacks, lacked power, but had deadly accuracy behind it. The toe of her boot connected with the very base of the green’s nose, snapping the tiny triangular bit of bone inside and sending it hurling inwards towards the brain. As the man’s face crumpled around her foot, Dapple felt the body shudder, then go limp, sliding off her boot to fall to the ground.

That’s one! roared the voice triumphantly within her, and Dapple shuddered with revulsion at what she had just done. Adrenaline surged through her, fueling the need for revenge, and she ignored the sick emptiness at the pit of her stomach to eye the other Green. Clinically, she noted how he seemed to be able to hold both the gladiator and Kilgim at bay, taking only slight injury in the process. Both were strong and disciplined fighters, but they didn’t have Dapple’s speed, the only advantage she’d found against Greens.

“You need to play with somebody who knows the game, buddy,’ she hissed, and coiled, daggers ready. She watches for an opportunity to strike without fouling either Maximus and Kilgim, and seeing Maximus hold back, taking a defensive position, she moves to attack the Green from the side. A kick to the side of a knee is almost impossible to brace against, and the Green’s attack style depends on a firm foundation on agile legs.

Your shiny friend is awake! Where's my nut!
The message pierced Valentine's thoughts as the sparkles blasted their way to the beasts, seemingly to no avail. Well, question 1 answered. They don't need their eyesight. Now for question 2... how well can they *really* fight?

With his prized glassteel bastard sword in both hands, Adrian takes a few steps to the side and takes "aim" to pull one away from the pack and deal with it personally.

He's coming. I did my job goodly! Where's my nut!
"Arien is awake. Make room for his entrance."

Yes, Killer. I'm a bit preoccupied at the moment...
Tactics: Attack one of the newcomers from the side and engage. Load up a Haste if things start to get ugly.

Char retracted his stroke and spun the now wet blades about with quick turns of his wrists as he assessed the situation. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Da' Moon produce her daggers and step off to challenge the remaining green, and the sudden revelation that the two strange constructs were free of their binds gave him a sense of relief that she'd gone that way while at the same time filling him with concern that there weren't enough to handle the new combatants and the green. His dirty brow furrowed as he realized that the bullywugs Valentine had summoned had been nothing short of a stone for the traveling wagon, and seeing the haughty mage wielding that oversized sword while going to meet the threat caused the ranger to tilt his head to the side and raise an eyebrow as he leapt forward to intercept the green men as well.

Coming up alongside Valentine, Char quickly met his gaze and gave him a cavalier wink and a roguish grin. Turning to the large green men he spun his blades about once more and said, "Shall we dance?"

The last Green faces Maximus, Kilgim and Dapple. Against groups, Green Special Forces are taught a number of techniques and fighting styles. In this particular situation, the soldier knew seven ways to get out, 4 killing all his opponents, 2 that would incapacitate them and one that would allow him to escape with minimal damage to them. He prepared himself for one of the lethal moves and struck out at the largest of his opponents. However things don’t allows work as they do in practice, and the gladiator sidesteps his initial attack and swings with his sword. The green blocks the blow with intention to drive his attack, except the move doesn’t block the blade. The vorpal edge of the sword takes his arm clean off and continues through his body without resistance. The soldier falls dead to the ground.

The green skinned men move towards Valentine and Char. One of the kills the last Bullywug with a single decapitating blow. Char moves in to strike with swords and hits a hard blow to the man’s side. The blade stops and is almost knocked out of the Ranger’s hand. It feels like he just swung at a tree and scent of tree sap in the air only adds to the thought. To make matters worse, only a thick clear liquid comes out of the wound that solidifies over it.

The other one strikes out at Valentine with a slash that is harder than anything the mage has felt before. He finds himself sent backwards with the blow even as he attempts to block it. If it wasn’t for the glassteel of his blade, the sword would have shattered from the force. As it is Valentine lands on the ground and skids some distance.

Kilgim moves to stand between Valentine and the attacker. He attacks with axes to score what should be good hits, but with the same ineffective results.

Dapple sees this and thinks it through. They don’t seem to die like normal men and the treesap gives her an idea. She moves to go into the other room in search of the torches they brought with them. As she does, Arien comes charging into the room with flaming sword at ready, causing her to have to dodge acrobatically to avoid being run over. He jumps in to attack the green man and unlike the other weapons, his seems to truly affect them. Deep gashes are made once and twice by Arien’s sword. They don’t seem to react in pain, but the clear gel pours more rapidly from their wounds.

Down the hall, Jal starts to stir, trying hard to fight his way back to consciousness.

DM’s note: the hallway is 10 feet wide, which means only three of you can attack standing side by side. You may need to mix it up a bit.

Valentine is seriously wounded.
Dapple’s wounds are minor
Maximus is lightly wounded

Arien enters the room to find his friends hard pressed by both Greens and green men. Since they seem to be currently handling the former, he goes after the latter, apparently with more success than his comrades have enjoyed thus far.

Attacking the tree-men brings back memories of Duke Antonio and the various abominations encountered there. Why is it that men feel the need to conduct such horrific experiments against the very laws of nature itself?

Having seen how his flaming blade affects the green men, the knight feels confident, but by no means cocky - the decapitated bullywug cast aside like so much garbage is testament to the damage these creatures can obviously deal. Still, the field never goes to the timid, but to the bold and the brave. He will not shirk away from these monsters.


Arien will, obviously, fight until he either wins or is unable to continue. He will press the attack, hoping not only to maximize his damage, but to keep the beasties from attacking his comrades. Time to carry his weight here!

Coldly, Dapple watched as Maximus tired of playing with his opponent and finally cut him down. If something inside her raged at losing another target for vengeance, it didn’t show on her face, which only displayed a keen watchfulness and concentration.

Stepping lightly away from the spreading pool of the Green’s blood, Dapple looked towards the constructs and the lack of success her companions were having. When Valentine is sent flying backwards from an attack, Dapple shook her head, sucking in air between clenched teeth. “Why’d he go learn mage tricks if he won’t use ‘em?’ she muttered to no-one in particular. “Daft.”

Her eyes narrow as she watches edged weapons spring back from the creature’s surfaces, with naught to show for it but a bit of clear ooze. The clean scent of pinesap makes her think of mops and stone floors for a moment, then she all but slaps herself when she realizes what her nose is telling her. “I’m the greater idiot…fool…wretch!”

Even in haste, she glides across the floor, the silence of her passing lost in the din of battle. Still, her own quiet was nearly her undoing as Arien blundered out of the storeroom, great flaming sword seemingly aimed at her vitals. She spins aside with a swirl of cloak and a curse, and Arien continues on to attack the tree-things.

“At least you’re up,’ she comments pleasantly, her voice at odds with the odd expression on her face. Remember when you had to near unman him with a dagger to convince him you weren’t interested? Now you may as well be invisible…little monster.
Dapple shrugged, ignoring the twist of regret and loathing curling inside. She spotted what she was looking for: one of the torches the others had used for light in the dark passages. Holding it aloft but slightly behind her to avoid blinding her own sensitive eyes, she raced back into the room to find the tree-men taking damage at Arien’s sword.

Pleased to have her theory proven right, she thrusts the torch to Char or Kilgim, (OOC: whoever is closer). “Here” she calls, her voice cracking with excitement,” edged weapons won’t hurt, but fire will, I’ll wager!”

OOC: no room to join in, unless one of her companions falls back, Dapple can do little but go back to the store room and retrieve what torches may be there. If the opportunity presents, she’ll hand more torches over to those engaged in combat, or step forward to take a swing with a torch herself.

Maximus was quite the happy fighter for two reasons,
1st his aim true and his vorpal sword sharp, he slammed the last enemy green to the ground cutting the man’s torso in two.
2nd Arien once again seemed whole and had rejoined them in this fight, his sword of fire causing one of the last two green skinned men considerable damage.

A quick scan of the hallway showed that both Char and Valentine were on the floor, Dapple was gone and Kilgim’s axe was having no effect vs. the 2nd of the 2 still standing men.

Moving quickly, with the scent of tree sap in the air and mindful of Kilgim, the huge Gladiator put himself between the creature and his two fallen comrades, his sword flashing to the attack. Mayhap his vorpal weapon would have better luck hurting the thing before them, if not it would be up to the knight to win them through....

Char's arms tingled. Taking a perfectly timed step backward, the ranger caught Valentine's plight out of the corner of his eye and mentally winced. Aight Char-lad, donna le' 'em touch ya... he through as he made sure to dodge instead of block any blow coming his way. As his feet danced about his mind was at work trying to decipher the trouble that these men caused. His magic blades seemed to do little to nothing to effect them, and when he'd struck true blows it had only been to bounce his Kukri from their trunks like... like... well, trees!

At that point something told the woodsman to step to the side. Intuition, foresight, whatever it was he did so just in time to give the knight room to swing and connect with that fiery sword of his. Char felt a moment of elation at both the effects and the return of his friend. His lips curling back from his teeth in a nearly wicked smile, the ranger called out, "'bou' time ya woke Lad. I was gettin' tired o' callin' ou' orders!"

Even knowing that his weapons were basically ineffective against the brutes and that fire seemed to do the trick, Char was about to leap back into the frey in order to cause more targets for the creatures to focus on than just the knight when Dappple thrust a torch his way and explained her intentions. Smart lass...
"Aye, t'anks!" Char very nearly called Da' Moon lass in the excitement and cut his appreciation abruptly short lest he give way to her secret. Quickly slipping his blades back into their sheathes, the ranger snatches up the torch and leaps in to help Arien, confident that Kilgrim will lend Valentine what aid he can while Maximus joined them at the front.

(OOC: Char will happily receive another torch if Da' Moon brings it in and he'll do his best to light these bad boys up.)

hmm.. so the magical beasties are more beasty than magical... So they don't like fire, eh?
"Here, ignite them!" Adrian called out as he grabbed a patch from his robe. Two lanters, lit and filled with oil, appear in his hands, and he offers them to the front lines as he tries to get up from the floor.

He had the power to ignite them himself, but doing so might cause more harm to his allies than his enemies. Best to let the others deal with it. His sword was ineffective, but at least he was not alone. Only the burning blade of Arien was able to damage these things.

Meanwhile, he had some injuries of his own to tend to, but they were not the most pressing issue. Dispatch the threat, then treat your wounds...

I hope I still have that potion...

Arien took the success of his first attacks as a sign and moved in to press his advantage. Then he is struck hard on the side, a crushing blow that would have cut him in twain had it not been for his armour. As it is, the force of the blow sends him reeling sideways, in the direction of the sleeping Jal. The attack did not come from the green-hued men, but out of nowhere – a nowhere that slowly changes into the shape of an imperial guard wielding a two handed sword, wearing the tell tale jacket of a blue guard – bodyguards of the rich and dangerous. Blue guards are trained with one weapon from a young age and watching this one attack is nothing short of amazing. He moves like a dancer, leaping high in the air, yet changing direction in mid leap to attack Arien again. He parries the blow and rolls to feet, hoping to get his footing and attack back. Another high leap from the Blue, and a sudden twist, and Arien’s sword is knocked out of his hand and skitters away. The Blue Guard laughs and mutters in heavily accented imperial, “Knight falls”.

Maximus moves in to fight the creatures, hoping to help out Arien. The first blow cuts deep and wide, and the gladiator follows up with a backhand that would kill an ordinary man. Tree sap sprays out of the wounds onto Maximus, Char and Valentine. The smell is harsh and Maximus finds himself unable to breath, choking on the fumes of the green sap. Fighting for breath, he is stuck by his opponent and the blow from the sword tears through the flesh and bone of his right arm and shoulder, sending Maximus spiraling downwards to the floor.

Char moves in with a torch, when Valentine passes a lit lantern to him. Wasting no time, he hits the man-thing with the lantern, sending burning oil down its chest and arms. The fire is definitely damaging his flesh, but still the man comes as if he doesn’t feel the flames. However, whether it is the oil or a twist of fate, when he attacks Char with a mighty swing, the sword slips out of his hand and flies overhead, clattering as it bounces off the roof and then on to the floor.

Dapple stands ready with more torches as Valentine produces the lantern. The thief doesn’t want to engage these things as she can see how strong they are and doubts her attacks will have any effect. The torches and fire seem to have the desired effects though. But that blue Guard….

Kilgim looks to his fallen comrade and makes a decision. Maximus is hurt badly and needs healing.

OOC:
Valentine is seriously wounded.
Dapple’s wounds are minor
Maximus is critically wounded, and choking
Arien is seriously wounded and unarmed

One green guy is on fire and taking damage
One green guy is badly injured (you think) and leaking fluids