Nomen Infernale XXXV: Your Mind Will Imagine Confusing Things
General Summary
Through the flames of the oil on the floor, Riven puts an arrow through the next trogologyte's eye, killing it. The next troglodyte back receives a flask of Teleptyon's Eknoi Fire in its face. It is confused for a split second as the glass vial shatters and liquid spills on him, but then bursts into a great conflagration and the troglodyte is consumed wholly by the flames. His flailing serves to spread the fire to a second and third troglodyte. Theo brains one that is burning but not yet dead as an act of mercy. From down the hall they hear a booming voice "You dare to defile the sanctum of the Magna Larva!?" Teleptyon moves to the door held fast by his working of the Ar and Alex slides into the space where Teleptyon has just been to get a clean shot of the largest of the troglodytes who had attacked them. His shot does not fly true due to the heat distortion of his line of sight from the heat of the Eknoi Fire. The large troglodyte escapes around a corner while the flames rage blocking the party from chasing after him for a moment. Riven opens the now unsealed door and spots an unusual shift in the pattern of the floor. She fires two arrows in rapid succession landing just on either side of the anomaly and sees a troglodyte, who had been lying flat, pop up in surprise, its skin changing color to match its surroundings. Kegho grunts a Ashkuzi curse and chases in afterward, but misses the blasted thing. Alex slides into the room after Kegho and attempts to loose a bullet, but the thong of his fustibalus snaps.
Teleptyon and Asbjørn jockey for space to strike at the creature but are overcome by the stench and miss. Elissa throws her spear, but misses badly. She's grateful she did not miss so badly it hit Teleptyon although it looks like one tip of her spear cracked against the stone wall. The troglodyte slashes at Kegho's abs and grazes them before fleeing down the hallway. Teleptyon nicks him with the snake finger. Kegho slashes with Wraithcleaver, but the creature manages to flee. As Kegho and Asbjørn pursue it around a corner with Riven not far behind a buxom wraith passes through the wall and wraps its smokelike fingers around Riven's throat. Her eyes and mouth glow as her vital essence is drawn from her. Asbjørn hears the commotion and charges at the wraith slicing Lullaby through her non-corporeal form. Kegho retraces his steps sensing Asbjørn is no longer behind him and cleaves the wraith into oblivion with his axe.
The party regroups with Riven and Asbjørn visibly gaunt from their ordeals. They take a quick vote and decide that summoning the wraiths must be draining the summoner and letting him rest would be a mistake. They push around a curve in the hallway and find an altar with an urchin boy splayed on it. Theo runs toward the child as Kegho notices the boy's arm twitching. They take in the scene as Theo splashes holy water on everything and cries out to Lamos for his blessings to save the child. Theo examines the candles, "Corpse fat stained with blood!" the chandler shrieks. Kegho, overcome with the sight speaks words the party cannot understand: "Basically he's living in an Aphex Twin video." They notice a silver idol, approximately 100 pounds worth of silver Alex estimates. It is a great worm consuming a human form.
Theo begs Alex to send Elissa with the child to the surface to be safe regardless of the outcome of the coming battle with the foul harbinger of the Magna Larva. Elissa agrees and scoops the healed and blessed child up and rushes him toward the surface. "You'll find us at the House of Snetwa. I'll send word for Zahur to seek out the child's family" she says as she fireman's carries the child toward the door with surprising speed for her small frame.
