Dream a Little Dream (chapter 5 - Into the Depths)

[Flann]

Solerei notes the change in Terryl. That bar of fire could be handy. Why wasn't he doing that before?

"Where'd that come from?"

No answer.

"Can ye do that some more, if we need it?"

Terryl nods, not taking his eyes from the stairway, still tensed.

"Well. Ooookay. Terryl, ye follow me. Vannis next, Sockman in the back. Vannis, can ye hear yer girl now?"

Vannis shakes his head. "Larielle. T'at be 'er name. Larielle."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Larielle wakes from her slumber. She feels... floaty. If she had been more clear headed, she would have noticed that she can see a bit now. The cell had been pitch dark when they cast her in. She knows she has been here for a few days now, and has been given nothing to eat or drink except the vile substance. Odd, she is less hungry than yesterday. She drank willingly, the last time, not wanting to be forced into gagging the stuff down, and her captors smiled. Sharp teeth... snakes, were they snakes?... but somehow, less frightening...

Why did she wake? She hears nothing outside her door. Larielle wonders. She recalls her wild prayers, beseeching help, and wonders why. She feels just fine. Maybe a little groggy, but she does not think she needs rescued now. Have they hurt her? No, except while she struggled. That was her own fault. Everything will be ok, now. She is sure of that. Smiling peacefully, she goes back to sleep.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

G'narinox opens his eyes, leaves his trance. The girl is becoming more malleable. Excellent. Sooner than he had thought. He had caught her thoughts as she woke... already becoming, she is.... and soothing her was child's play, now. He had been certain she would sleep until the next dose, but these things, as always, are fraught with variables. Idly casting his mind out, he notes something. Something missing. Like a tooth that is missing, and the tongue constantly searches the gap. His mind is the tongue, and he searches, and searches. Missing. Something is wrong. He detests things going wrong. Always has. He was sent here because of something going wrong. He enjoys his work, toying with the elves, calling more into his growing following... this must not be.

Rising, he calls his followers. Find what is missing, he sends. One of you is gone.

[Flann]

"I t'ink I 'eard 'er, a'ter I t'ld 'er name! Tur'ble! t'ink she giv'n 'erselv up. 'Urry!"

Solerei snaps, "Say her name again. Over and over. And see if you can tell which way she is. This place is a rathole."

And it was close. The tunnels were not straight, or even level. It was as if they were clawed out of the earth and stone by animals. As Solerei came to a place where the tunnel split, she realized she could guess what the animals ate.

Vannis could be heard mumbling "Larielle Larielle" over and over, and if she had not heard his call, her story would be done and our heroes forced to retreat.

"T'ere, t'at way!" Vannis points to the left most tunnel , and Solerei starts down it. Over her shoulder fly two more of those eerie bars of fire, on and off in a blink. Two more vampires stand burning. More appear to be coming. Hard to see in the torchlight.

Flann mutters, "This aint so hard." just as something clangs off his helmet. Whirling, he finds himself beset by another vampire, one that had snuck up from behind. Vannis yells that more are coming from the right tunnel. Solerei spins, indecision on her face. Terryl smiles and nods, battle-mad eyes flashing. That decides her.

"Terryl, hold this hall!", she shouts as she runs the few steps to the "V", rounding it just in time to bowl into two more vampires, one of which takes a swipe at Vannis as he tries to dodge. It strikes, and Vannis falls. Solerei knows Flann is being attacked as well, hearing him shout spells. She whirls into the vampires like a dervish. These creatures are monstrously strong, but what they cannot hit, they cannot hurt. And she hits them. Hard. Bones crunch, and the two vampires are in a heap in seconds. She runs past Flann and knocks his down in one hit.

"I woulda had him, ya know... " Flann breaks off as Solerei zips back past him to Terryl. "See if Vannis is ok, Flann!". Relieved, she sees Terryl stands as she left him, a few more merrily burning vampires lighting up the hall.

Flann isn't done complaining. "I got no boots! Bad footin!" Flann holds up a foot, and if anyone was looking, which there isn't, they could see that the green/gold starburst sock is completely filthy, starting to fray and is probably on its last legs.  "
Flann grumps about not being allowed to kill his own stuff and wlks over to Vannis muttering a spell. He smacks Vannis on the forehead. Vannis leaps up, rubbing his head. "T'at 'urt worse. I 'as playin' deed, Flann." "Sorry fella. Looked convincin, alright."

Solerei eyes the burning corpses, and says, "We can't pass those until they burn down a bit. Flann would fall right on top of one of them, for sure..." Terryl nods, makes a gesture, and the flames are gone with a "pop".

"It is not the flames that kill them, if you are wondering. It is a medium of travel for my spell. I will explain, when we are not pressed for time. But not now." Solerei nods and they continue.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Larielle wakes again, bolting to her feet. Someone was shouting her name! Odd. She doesn't hear it, but she does. In her head. How can that be?

"Who are you?" she calls. No answer.. but wait... in her head. Yes, she can see something. Flickering flames, torches, yes, torches. Somehow superimposed on her own sight. A man in robes.... no! An elf! Following a woman of obviously mixed blood. Ewwww! She senses them coming from... facing toward the wall... that direction. The view whirls dizzily, she sees a man, a human with a beard, wearing Tunarian plate. Disgusting! A human! Suddenly she feels light headed, woozy. Calmness fills her, and the vision ceases. Larielle lays back down. All is well. She sleeps.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

G'narinox is wroth now. More of his followers gone! The girl awake again... *soothes her back to sleep*... and he is beginning to wonder if she has a part in this mess. But how? Her parents would not dare to hire mercenaries to free her. For mercenaries they must be. He has looked through his minions eyes and seen their foes. Nay, the girl's parents know his powers. He would know before the final deal was struck. It was their own recommendation to take her. Nay, this is something else. And it is geting out of hand.

Gliding to the door, eyes gleaming.. all whites, nary a pupil, and is that not enough to make a person shiver?... G'narinox prepares to take a hand. Or a foot. Head, who cares. He wants the interlopers dead!

[Flann]

After several more torched vampires, Vannis, who has resumed saying "Larielle" under his breath, says "T'ink we g'tin close. She b'ginnin t' t'ink we 'ere f' real, t' 'elp 'er."

Flann stops in his tracks. "Hoo boy. I'm feelin somethin bad here, folks. Somethin real bad, an it be gettin closer. I can feel them vampires' evil, ever one of 'em, an this thing is like a bonfire compared ta candles. A big bonfire. Hope it aint yer girlfriend, Vannis. That'd be a kicker."

Solerei ponders, and says, "I don't think it is. I think it's the leader, or a strong henchman. Terryl, once we get the girl ye cast yer transport spell. Don't get all brave and start shootin yer whatevers. Ye may be Mr. Vampire Killer now, but if what Flann's feelin be true, the thing might be too much for us. If yer whammies don't work on it, yer gonna be wastin time, and I know yer spell takes a while. Understand?"

Terryl salutes and says, "Yes battle leader. What if it catches us before we find the girl?"

Solerei rolls her eyes. "Cast yer blasted transport spell, ye ninny!" Terryl nods. 

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Larielle is awake now, and knows the being who is talking to her is getting closer, her vision of the being's companions getting clearer. She feels the lassitude stealing over her once in a while, and the thoughts coming from this being wipe away those other, alien feelings like cobwebs. She recalls every detail of her imprisonment. Her fear, her anger, her helplessness.

"Are you really here? Will you help me?" she calls out.

The being seems to understand, and she feels a warm wave of comfort. Then she notices, through the double vision, how she can see her own cell. This pitch black darkness has become like bright moonlight to her, and she knows that is wrong. There are no light sources! She can see heat differences, normally, but this new vision is... Larielle knows that she is definitely in dire straits, even if this being, the one who seems to care for her, takes her out of here. She suspects that she is turning...

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

G'narinox glides quickly down the passageways, passageways he dug himself. His mode of movement is odd, as if he is willing himself along. He crushes aside his minions, not even noticing them now. The girl. He can feel someone interfering with his control of the girl. His anger rises to a red-hot pitch, blood-sweat beginning to show on his inky black brow and seeping into his silvery hair. Demi-gods have trembled at the sight of this, if they knew what it meant. Eons of getting his way have made him very used to not being balked, by any save the One. Let these mere mortals try. Just let them try!

[Flann]

All of the companions can feel the force of the evil one approaching, now. A stone  could. They race down the rough-hewn passageways, Vannis pointing the way at intersections. A race it has become, indeed.

Flann, the most sensitve to evil, shouts, "Darn thing's almost on us!" just as they reach a hallway with several fine grained ironwood doors on each side. Vannis points to one, and the companions can hear a muffled voice from the other side.

"Get back from the door, girl!" Solerei shouts. She gives the door a roundhouse kick, and it cracks. The concussion of her own blow knocks her off her feet. Flann starts toward her to help her up, pauses. "It's here" he whispers.

Terryl knows there is little time. In his battle state, though, time has slowed to a crawl. He focuses a fine ray of pure, icy cold at the lockplate, and a split second later a ray of fire. The lockplate shatters. He moves in a blur to Vannis, and shoves him at the door. Vannis yelps and goes crashing into it. The door flies open, and Vannis stumbles into the room. Terryl turns to face his foe. This is what he was made for!

G'narinox rounds the corner just as Vannis dissappears into Larielle's cell. Seeing Terryl, he savors the moment, then sends a blast of pure fury and hate at the elf. Terryl tries to raise a warding shield, but the blast is still enough to send him skidding down the hall on his backside.

Solerei is on her feet by now, and goes to meet the fiend head on. "Cast your spell, wizard!" She shouts as she closes on G'narinox, dodging a lightning fast blow and delivering one of her own.

Terryl groggily climbs to his feet, hands scrabbling at the wall for support, unable to stand let alone cast his transport spell. Terryl knows in his heart he has failed them. He should have been casting to get them out of here, but instead he thought he could defeat this foul creature. So powerful!

Solerei has been physically slashed and beaten and hit with a number of magical spells, and try as he might Flann knows his heals will be just a little too late one of these times. G'narinox, always confident, is starting to get a little peeved that these mortals have withstood him for as long as they have. Slipping in her own blood dooms her. Taking advantage of the slip, G'narinox grabs this one who until her slip moved so blasted fast. He feels her bones make satisfying crunches as  he crushes her and casts her to the ground. He advances on Flann. Flann, seeing Solerei (the woman he professed his love for this morning while digging for socks, well, pretty sure he did) slain so horribly before his very eyes... calls on his Goddess. Hunkering down under his borrowed shield wearing his borrowed armor and nearly bare feet, he calls out "Erollissi! I'll be seein ya soon!"

She answers. He never knows, in the future when he thinks about this moment, whether She answered to save him or keep him out of Her hair a bit longer.

With a "wumph" of force, a tall female being with fiery red hair wearing pale pink metal armor appears in from of Flann. She holds a strung bow with arrow nocked. She raises and looses in one motion. The arrow strikes G'narinox in the heart. If he has one. G'narinox disipates without a sound.

Striding over to Solerei, eerily silent, the figure reaches down and helps her up, then leans down to whisper in her ear. Solerei, completely healed and radiant, smiles. The figure looks at Flann, winks, and disappears.

Terryl, his wits finally packed back in place, begins his spell. Flann hollers "Vannis! bring yer girl and get out here. We be leavin!" Walking over to Solerei, noting that even the rips and gashes in her leather armor are gone, asks, "What She tell ya, Sol?

Solerei smirks and says, "She says ye need new socks."