Hello, Everyone!
Last time, after successfully sneaking into Nurvureem's cavern, our heroes launched an attack on the dragon and her allies. Right off the bat, Aurum wrapped the monster in a Wall of Force, containing her while Mary, Agatha and Bruno interrupted the demonic ritual and tried taking care of the cultists. However, the enemy quickly realized that the only way to free their Mistress was to fell Aurum and they concentrated their fire on the bard.
Mary watched, helplessly, him taking hit after hit, until he was finally down. She rushed to him and downed a healing potion into his throat.
However, Nurvureem was free. The fight was far from over. Aurum began casting a spell and touched Mary's forehead with a small cocoon.
It was like the world shifted. Mary felt her arms get bigger, her legs, too, her head, her torso… her everything. She felt fur grow over her skin. A moment later, she was looking at everything from very high up. But she wasn't flying. She was just very big. She looked at her hands. Black and furry, they instinctively folded into fists.
The realisation slowly made its way into her mind. Aurum had used his spell to turn her into a giant beast.
Confused, the ape looked around. There was a flurry of motion. A cultist cried out and ran. Someone screamed on the other side of a column. A chain, animated to move by itself, fell on the ground and started crawling. A bolt of lightning zoomed through the air.
The ape made note of its allies and its foes. It recognized the dragon. Fear and hatred made their way into its mind. It took a step towards the monster and prepared to attack.
The dragon growled. It took a breath. A streak of green acid, boiling with heat, poured out over the ape. There was sudden and immense pain, its flesh took the hit and started melting.
Aurum yelled out behind it.
Mary fell on the ground, suddenly herself again. Disoriented by the shift in perspective, she looked back and saw Aurum on the ground, lying in a puddle of acid. He’d taken the hit of Nurvureem’s breath along with the ape, but unlike the beast, it had been too much for him. He’d fallen unconscious, for the second time in this fight.
“GET OFF OF ME!” Nurvureem shouted.
Agatha was still holding on to her neck, cutting off the strap that tied the people to the dragon. The leather snapped and they fell on the ground, scrambling to get away from the monster.
Nurvureem’s throat was clear for an attack.
The tabaxi was quick to take advantage of the situation. She took Mundus out, plunged it into the dragon’s neck and twisted. A slurping sound filled the air, the world around the dagger warped and the flesh syphoned away, leaving the dragon’s acid gland bare and unprotected.
“GET OFF!” Nurvureem screamed.
“No, thanks,” Agatha said. “I’m fine where I am.”
She scrambled out of the way of the dragon’s tail and Nurvureem hit her own neck instead.
Mary turned to check on Aurum, just as Kalien dove towards him. A Morgantian blade gleamed in his hands. Mary’s heart skipped a beat. If he managed to strike the bard right now, he’d be done for. The graphite dagger would destroy his soul!
She shielded Aurum’s body with her own and shot out a powerful Eldritch Blast at his attacker. The moment it hit, a fiery explosion burst out and enveloped Kalien, burning him in his tracks.
“Please, don't die!” Mary whispered in Aurum's ear. “I don't have another potion but I'll protect you with everything that I've got. But please… please stay with me! I love you!”
She stood up, ready to take the Draconite on.
But right at this moment, an ear-piercing howl erupted in the air. Agatha had managed to drive her dagger into Nurvureem's acid gland. Acid and blood spilled out of the open wound and the dragon thrashed and hollered in agony.
There wasn’t going to be another acid shower ever again. The tabaxi had taken out the Dark Lady’s strongest weapon.
“DIE! DIE! DIE! DIE!”
Nurvureem was in a frenzy, whipping around, acid residue dripping from her throat. Her talons and her tail were reaching at Agatha, but the tabaxi was nimbly avoiding them.
“I think that’s a paramount form of autoagression,” she taunted from the dragon’s back.
However, she wasn’t unscaved. The acid from the wound had burst out right onto her and her hand was hanging lifeless and hurt by her side. Nurvureem howled. As if by her command, a swarm of insects rose from the ground and buzzed around the tabaxi, stinging and pinching and biting. Agatha grunted but still managed to hold on.
Seeing that she couldn’t deal with her, Nurvureem turned her attention to Bruno. His Holy symbol was lighting the cavern, giving his allies healing powers and hurting his foes. The dragon grabbed him and thrust him into the ground. She swung her sword and slashed him, and a pit of lava opened under his feet.
“GOOD NIGHT, DWARF!” Nurvureem spat out and whipped him with her tail, pushing him deeper into the ground.
The pit started closing up above him.
Mary sent another Eldritch Blast at Kalien. He skittered a few feet back but the graphite dagger never left his grasp. With his free hand he shot a crossbow bolt towards Aurum but missed.
“Bruno, go back to bed!” the bard mumbled somewhere around Mary’s feet. “Stop shining like a goddamn lamp!”
He was conscious! He was alive! Mary’s heart fluttered and she turned to him, but she didn’t manage to say anything.
“Bring them down, Mary!” he said, and the small cocoon touched her forehead once more.
What a fight!
And only one more episode left to finish it off.
What do you like most up until now?
Do you think our heroes are going to beat their foes and get out of this whole situation alive?
We'll see what happens next time!
Take care and be well!
(Also, here's a link to the Chapter Guide, the Glossaries (Part 1 and Part 2)
and the Map for the series. You're welcome!)
An important disclaimer: Mary Windfiddle's story is my notes from a D&D game turned into a narrative. All the worldbuilding and NPC encounters belong to our DM, and all the actions of the other main characters (Aurum, Bruno and Agatha) belong to my co-players. My contribution to the story is only everything Mary-related (actions, reactions, inner thoughts), as well as the writing itself.