The Red Lizard Attacks!

Temple Ruins,Trakar Swamps, 9th April 1655

The next morning, both Gorfang and Méabh started awake, sweating and panting, shocked by vivid and portenteous dreams. At first their reaction was sceptical, but on comparing notes on some parts of their respective dreams, they realized that they had a lot in common.

Méabh's dream had featured her grandfather, who she described as 'an angel all white and noble', a phrase which stopped everyone dead to stare at her in surprise. Continuing, she reminded them that she was aasimar - part celestial - and explained that her ancestor had told her that she must not let the crystal pyramid, which he'd referred to by name as Deathbreaker, fall into the hands of Damarus' 'client' - whom he named as the Blood Snake. If it did, he'd said, 'chaos and bloodshed would engulf the world' . He'd also enjoined her to kill the Blood Snake if at all possible.

Gorfang then explained that he too had been visited in his dreams. An orcish seer naming himself Kjorgh Thendsson, a priest of Ilneval and seer to the King of Kishshul, had spoken to him. Gorfang revealed that he had been seeking a mighty weapon, an orc doubleaxe out of legend, and had seen it from the Hall of Sight. Thendsson had told him that the orc gods approved of that quest but that he was deceived by the vision; the axe was actually in the hoard of the Blood Snake, the mysterious 'client' of Damarus. He also was urged not to return the Deathbreaker to Damarus (and to the Blood Snake) as the latter would appall the very Gods with it.

Méabh added an extra detail at this point, revealing that she also was after a magical trinket currently residing in the Blood Snake's hoard.

All sat back to digest these facts.

Eloy, Lynien and Uruk had had no such dreams. Lynien pondered why; her ancestry was not dissimilar to Méabh's, although diametrically different in ethos; why hadn't her ancestor contacted her? Not entirely a bad thing though, all things considered... She considered the word 'hoard' and the increasing likelyhood of the party seeking one out, and was content. Hoard meant loot, and loot was good.

With the Red Lizard and his warband less than three hours away, the item for discussion was whether to stay and fight; attempt to smash the Deathbreaker; or take it and make a run for it. All three options were considered, but in the end - influenced heavily by Gorfang, who found it difficult even to say the word 'retreat', they elected to stand and fight.

Behind the barricades at the entrance to the Temple, the Fionath lizardmen were passing round pots of black, viscous fluid, into which they were dipping their javelins. On being told that this was the product of local frogs and would 'stop' almost any foe, Gorfang, Eloy and Lynien all dipped their weapons into it.

Examining the battleground, Gorfang decided to make his initial stand beyond the Fionath village, near the waterline, to allow him to taunt their foes and get some longrange fire in early. Méabh cast a Web spell across the front of the village, anchoring it firmly to huts and fishtrap stakes, and then concealing it brilliantly by stringing drying fishnets across it, making it look like a feeble barricade of fishing tackle. She took up her stand next to Gorfang.

They were joined by Berretlan the Fionath chieftain. The lizard leader was impressed by Gorfang's courage in placing himself directly in the path of the attackers, and felt that he could do no less for his people. Gorfang looked at him a little dubiously, but not only allowed him to stay but equipped him with one of the three home-made bombs he'd created from a pinch of Yellow Mould spores in a brandy bottle.

Lynien placed herself in one of the huts of the Fionath village, with a clear shot over the likely battlefield and well placed to attack the invaders from the rear after they'd gone past. She planned to use Maedar's Ring to make herself invisible just before they arrived.

Méabh, her web deployed, scaled the cliffs behind the village to place herself at the top of the mesa with a commanding view of the village and its' surroundings. From there, she could see the oncoming foe perfectly.

The Red Lizard and his lieutenant, the female shraltir (dark paladin of Shushkrah) Venia, were near the ends of long line of warriors; thirty-nine huge tough-looking lizardmen jogging forwards to battle. As they came into range, Gorfang opened up with his longbow, concentrating on the leaders. The attackers broke into a run with a hoarse cry. A few moments later, the other longbow wielders, Eloy and Méabh, added their missiles to the defence. Blood flowed from wounds, but none of the lizardmen fell.

The speed of the monsters at a run was frightening. Mere seconds later, they were close enough for Lynien's short bow to reach, and she stung one accordingly. Then they passed the small stick Méabh had quietly stuck in the mud, and came in range of her terrible Lightning Bolt. Like some primaeval goddess of vengeance, the planetouched sorceress hurled a bolt of blinding destruction down onto the beach with a crash that could be heard five miles away. Venia ducked frantically, and managed to partly evade the strike, but was never the less terribly burned. Still running, but trailing smoke, she seemed to be running her hands over her burns as she slowed and fell slightly behind. The change of pace spoiled Eloy's aim, and his next two arrows splashed harmlessly into the water. Lynien, unable to get a clear bead through the hut window, also missed.

Gorfang and Berretlan now flung their poison gas bombs. Two went wide, but one smashed on the cured-hide breastplate of one of the Red Lizard's men and he sucked in an involuntary and fatal breath of surprise. He went down thrashing and kicking in the mud as Gorfang picked his bow up again.

The Red Lizard's troops were also now in range of throwing weapons, and unleashed a flight of javelins in the usual lizardman style. Gorfang's armour kept them off - though he couldn't help noticing the black stains on the points as they went past - but Berretlan was hit and started to shake as the poison hit. Getting a grip, he retaliated, flinging his own javelin and killing his target.

Another sky-splitting blast of actinic fire smashed down from above on the hapless Venia, who had just managed to heal some of her previous wounds, and a moment later arrows from both Lynien and Eloy struck her as well. She fell further behind. Across the other side of the battlefield, the Red Lizard had recognized Gorfang as the warrior who had dared wound him the previous night, and was screaming abuse and challenges at the orc. Right in the midst of this, he was struck by Méabh's third Lightning Bolt.

Stopping for a moment to shake this off, he walked straight into another poisoned arrow from Gorfang which drove into the side of his slanted skull and lodged there. Blood poured over his face, and he reached into his breastplate and brought out a tiny object, indiscernable at that range, held with impossible delicacy between the claws of his massive hand. He was just about to snap it when Lynien's almost ineffectual little bow delivered a short shaft straight into his yellow eye. Slowly, like a string-cut puppet, Layder the Red Lizard toppled over and crashed dying onto the sand.

At the centre of the battle line, the warrior lizardmen had reached the 'fishing nets' and charged into them, intending to tear through to reach Gorfang and Berretlan. Too late, they discovered the mass of magical webbing hidden beyond, and fourteen became hopelessly enmeshed. A moment later, Eloy dropped a burning arrow into the webbing and flames began to spread.

The struggles of the lizardmen trapped in the stuff became frantic. Three managed to tear themselves free, but the other eleven began to burn with awful hissing screams. Another Lightning Bolt crashed onto Venia, and she began to stagger. Gorfang snapped two last arrows at the onrushing foe, siezed the startled Berretlan by the waist, and swung him onto Shamlakh's back as he kicked the warg into a run towards the struggling shraltir. As he bore down on her he launched a strike with the Veldrin that skated off her armour. Weakened by her many wounds and the frog-poison coursing through her veins, she made a weak return attack that overextended her. Gorfang leaned into the opening with a backhanded riposte and clove her head off.