Mosquitos in the Mist by Mr. | World Anvil

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Wed 23rd Feb 2022 05:58

Mosquitos in the Mist

by Mr. Rimashin

The aptly named mist temple entrance found us in a dense mist with ominous corpses decorating the landscape with mysterious holes drilled into their skulls. One bloody arrow directed us toward the entrance. Penelope volunteered to mislead project herself to scout where the arrow led. Upon her return we proceeded with caution, however some traps were triggered. I got Darren and myself stuck in some quick drying cement. Jeeng was swarmed by killer wasps. Despite the dangers, we eventually discovered a secret hole into which a mysterious figure darted after sensing our presence and thus we decided to investigate. The tunnel wasn't exactly a shear drop but did look like it turned into a slide after 10 ft. at which point Darren found another moss covered secret tunnel that Penelope then sent her familiar puffin to investigate while we delved deeper into the main vein. In fact, this main tunnel was perforated with more of these smaller tubes, the origins of which puzzled Justine and Darren who continued to investigate as they descended ahead. Before Penelope and I reached the bottom, we heard a small explosion, which we soon found out was a trap triggered by the ever curious Justine and Darren. Meanwhile I followed Jeeng toward the strange lights illuminating from a chamber further in that gave off a stifling demonic aura. Eventually everyone regrouped as we approached to take a closer look. Darren noticed a small amount of dust falling from the ceiling and after reading the draconic/demonic inscriptions, determined that this altar was supposed to ward off evil before its defilement. The only way we could purify it was to call upon the Silver Flame to perform a cleansing ritual but first we would have to clear the site. Upon uttering that sentiment aloud, the ceiling exploded and a host of House Canith canines, a titan forge, and demonic mosquitos ambushed us. I was surprised by the debris but regained my wits in time to block the titan's flame breath, a feature uncommon to my kind, but even as I did so, the mechanines surrounded me. The mosquito men apparently directed them to target me specifically although I couldn't understand their exact reasoning in demonic. I would wager a guess that they sought to salvage my warforged mechanisms to create another titan similar to the foe we currently faced. The odds looked dire, but luckily Justine was able to swipe the controller they used and turned one of the mechanines against them, while Darren blinded the titan in darkness, giving us a chance to reposition ourselves. With persistence the titan fell at last with one last blow from Darren. I honestly didn't know how to feel about destroying such an opponent comprised of a former fellow Warforged so I said last rights to our fallen foe. As I did so, his remains rebuffed with a blast of demonic aura that I just managed to dodge. Nonetheless I highly recommended Justine ask the Silver Flame to cleanse the remains before tinkering further. In turn, she patched up some of my dents while Penelope scryed the whereabouts of the one mosquito that got away. We then regrouped with Alphy to take a short rest...