Turn 7: On The Importance Of Skin"I thank you...what I did was foolish."
Kemler put on his discarded clothing and dissected the frogmen, to understand what they are.
[1-1] Attempting to properly open one of the little things, you manage to stab yourself through the non-thumb side of your left palm.
You swoon from pain and blood loss.
-2 HP+1 ButcheringAction: Help extract and study the scales along with Kemler to see if they have any alchemical properties.
[5-1] Turns out these creatures don't have scales; just skin. In either case, without any experience with butchering things extracting it should be hard. Fortunately, you seem to have a knack for it, and end up with one slightly ragged frogman skin.
[5] Examining the pale skin, you surmise that it probably has waterproof-related alchemical properties.
+3 Butchering+Slightly Ragged Frogman SkinTry to get someone to help me, maybe charge my spear with some raw energy
Your comrades all seem busy. Except for those two staring off into space. Well, the one looks like he's being savaged by fireflies or something.
[5+2-1-1] vs [4] You have the leather-clad necromancer-ranger fire off a minor pain bolt, reasoning that if you get lucky, you can charge your spear with it to boost your own magic, while if you don't, it won't cause any lasting harm. Unfortunately you're a bit too slow and get winged by it, wincing despite the lack of damage. Needless to say, you also fail to charge your spear.
I'll stay calm, and, uh...Get dragged through the water. Pray to the Nine Divine that there's no biter-fish in the water. Laz'Ka has quite the fear of underwater demon-fishes.
[6] The trip is actually quite impressive- there's no living things you can see in the dark water, but your path takes you speeding past interesting terrain at a nice pace. You wonder if this is what it'd be like to fly low over the ground.
Down a cliff you go, hugging it the whole while, before coming to the bottom and continuing your trek. The water is frigid and pitch-black this far down; you wonder just what the fishmen are doing with you.
The answer comes eventually, as you are pushed into a building. You hadn't seen it until you were through the door, making you wonder what else is out here. A dull thud implies that the door is shut, while the sudden presence of bright light implies another has opened.
Adjusting your eyes, you see that both your fishmen are still with you, and you're in a tiny room with a door behind you and a now-open door in front. Some sort of completely different fish-man is there, but draws back to allow the three of you to enter. The bigger fishman just drags you along, not bothering to put you down or let you swim or anything like that.
The room itself has several tiny alcoves where orange lights lay; if it wasn't underwater, you might have assumed they were candles or similar. It's mostly circular, being somewhat different near the door, presumably to leave room for the tinier room you came in through, and there's what looks kind of like furniture and decorations- including what you think are rugs and books- scattered around it.
The new face is most definitely different from the other two, however. For one thing, it's a golden brown color and is wearing a sort of whitish robe. For another, its face looks more like an anthropomorphized catfish or something, though with actual lips and trailing barbels instead of the top-half-swivels-open-to-eat approach of the others.
The three have a brief conversation, you assume, followed by the catfish-man shaking his head in a strangely humanlike gesture. He then fetches a book- yes, it's a book underwater- and flips through it a bit. A few incantations later, your ears and tongue feel different. You're pretty sure this is some sort of communication or translation spell.
The catfishman clears his throat before speaking. "I assume you're from the surface? Tell me, what news do you bring?"
"Can it understand us or not?" the larger original fishman growls impatiently.
"Paaaatience," the smaller one nearly sings.
ORDER RECEIVED, APPLYING PAIN TO TARGET
It could have gone better.
+2 NecromancyTACTICAL RETREAT
[6] vs [1] You
bolt, leaving the glowbugs in the dust. Without their conjurer to rip apart, hopefully they'll dissipate in short order.
Drzkktizz Kothraze
10/10 HP
---
+2 Poison Magic (3/?)
+1 Alchemy
+0 Butchering (3/?)
Kemler Havestin, Scholar of the Dead Peoples
1/10 HP
---
+2 Archaeology
+1 Swords
+0 Butchering (1/?)
Laz'ka, Wanderer
9/10 HP
---
+2 Necromancy
+1 Short Blades
Maikah Moonfur, Light of the Lost
10/10 HP
---
+1 Light Magic (8/?)
+1 Polearms
Alexandros Daedlos
10/10 HP
---
+2 Necromancy (X+2/?)
+1 Archery
Aether-Weaver Khan
7/10 HP
---
+2 Conjuring (10/?)
+1 Stealth