It was a bleak situation...
"There's too many of them!" Shouted Xuen, "Get up top and call for help, gnome!"
The little green-clad gnome tried, but to no avail. The oozes were piling upon oozes, tendrils reaching voraciously out towards him, the rope, and all hope. Huge sections of cubic ooze, small blobs rolling past it like seeping mercury.
Arrows over arrows, the small adventuring party had come in search of Vodak... and they found it. While the smallest oozes were no match, there were hundreds. Larger ones fell only to split up into more groups of smaller oozes. The gnome fell...
It was then two knights charged in. From deeper in the sewer, they too were seeking out the ooze. Joining the fray, they hacked through the oozes, raising the fallen gnome. As the battle raged, a sewer grating buckled and broke. It was from there... the oozes were coming from.
Sword in hand, the two knights slid down without hesitation. Suprisingly, those that were just recused followed thier rescuers as well. It was a hard and bitter battle. The Knights fought up front, driving through the walls of ooze towards the heart of Vodak. Behind them, the original group fought off the smaller oozes trailing in from behind like tendrils. Desperitely trying to prevent the Knight from being pincered or distracted, if either group failed, the other would be swarmed and utterly doomed. Inch by slimey inch paid for in blood, they came upon a vast lake of ooze. In the center there were nearly a hundred silvery oozes. Standing atop this lake of ooze, formed Vodak's humanoid form.
Kald dived in, searing and slashing, hacking and forcing his way towards Vodak by sheer will, divine light burning off the minor attacks. Behind him, Trent summoned down his Silver dragon, fighting amidst the oozes trying to seal Kald off from shore. As Kald and Vodak's humanoid form clashed, the tunnels shook. Blows were traded between hard steel and blades shaped ooze.
The trio of rescued adventurers shot at the silvery memory oozes, doing what little they could amidst the chaos. With Trent and the Dragon holding the line, they were safe to harrass the oozes. This was the final stretch Glory awaited them.
Glory is a dim light in dark caves, as the tendril of Vodak stabbed right through Kald's breast plate. Drawing the tendril out, Vodak roared in victory. THe memory cells surged foward towards the dragon and Trent.
"RUN! Save yourselves! I'll hold them back!" Trent shouted over the battle and dragon's roaring.
"We stay and fight till death!" was thier reply, thunderous by thier resolve, showing past broken bodies suprisingly hardened and resolved.
Trent afforded himself a half smile. This was courage. He turned and launched his assault, twice as furious. Arrows whizzed past him into the oozes, drawing some of the memory cells away from him. His dragon chased it down as it approached the three adventurers behind him. Trent called upon his god, divine energies breathing new life into Kald.
With the two Knights now fighting side by side, they tore through the memory cells. Sludge and blood began to sweep away, emptying away as Vodak's influence in the area wanned. He was fighting a losing battle. Kald and him traded strikes once more... but Kald was scoring far more blows than Vodak's humanoid and weakened form. His memory cells were being destroyed. It was time to cut losses.
Oozes began to withdraw, leaving the silvery titan against the group. Spells assailed him, as did steal and arrow. Around him silvery water splattered motionlessly upon the dirt. Kald sank in the final blow... Vodak's form melted down unable to hold form. As it evaporated it exposed the very center of Vodak... a divine mythal issued light in an otherwise dark cave.
The heros gathered, and cheered. It was a glorious battle and an experience the five shared. Surely it was something they would not forget. Vodak had other hives, that was for certain. He had spread since his first days terrorizing Cordor. But his voracious grip uon Cordor was gone.
For Vodak... it was a bleak situation...
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