[Alliance] Chapter Five: Session Forty-One
Appearing Characters: Alleria Windrunner, Elissa Cross, Festergut, Gilveradin Windrunner, Gluth, Grobbulus, Hedanis Poisonbloom, Jackson Razuvious, Kael'thas Sunstrider, Liadrin Everpost, Maraad, Patchwerk, Putricide, Remnii, Rommath Pyrewing, Rotface, Samia Inkling, Seria, Sigilith Avernicious, Teemo Manabrake, Thal'ena Dawnseeker, Uther Menethil, Velameestra Windrunner, Zagarra
October 18th (Very Early Morning)
With a wave of Kael’thas’s hand, he conjured a wave of fire that washed over a group of other security forces while Rommath wove some crimson blasts at others. Alleria, however, had raced toward the group and released a rage-filled screech as she leaped into the air and aimed directly at Razuvious.
Wind whipped around her and she fired an arrow with supernatural natural wind and pierced straight through Razuvious’s armor and pierced directly through his heart. Razuvious gasped in pain as he looked over at Alleria, who leaped up onto a pipe and disappeared into the shadows.
Razuvious gasped, and broke the arrow off. It fell down into the acid.
He looked at the mist that had formerly been Vel and he swung his sword at Uther, which clipped him. Vel then flowed over to Patches, and Razuvious opted to swipe at her with his blade. However, as his blade passed through her misty form, her contingency triggered, and a large blow back of icy energy washed over him, which flash froze large portions of his flesh.
Vel assured the group over the telepathic bond that she was alright as she then flowed into Patchwerk’s face to attempt to distract him in what capacity she could.
Razuvious grabbed Uther and dragged him over to Remnii, who he shoved back towards Gil, before he dropped all his defenses and spun into another whirlwind attack on the three of them. One of the Naxxramas security officers tried to swing down at Gil, and he shoved him prone, but could not land a hit around the chain that Patchwerk still had Gil grappled with.
Razuvious grunted in pain and hurled Uther at Gil before clipping him in the side with his greatsword. One of the wights tried to claw Remnii, but was unable to cut through her sanctuary, so it clawed at Uther instead. Uther used [Shield] and deflected the attack aside. Razuvious continued to slam his blade at Uther, and he felt the magic barrier start to crack, but Uther punched him right in the chest and forced him to stagger back.
Another wight tried to claw at Remnii but could not get through her sanctuary, and instead ran at Seria and swung his sword at her. Razuvious tried one last swing at Uther, but was unable to break past his shield.
At that moment, Thal’ena rushed in and used [Steel Wind Strike]. She disappeared in a shower of radiant flower petals. However, Quel’delar was blocked by four of her targets even though she swept through one of the wights. She then shed off an aura of healing light on Uther.
Gil disappeared in a flash of smoke and flame and rematerialized a small distance away from the swarm of enemies behind Razuvious. He lined up his shot and fired a flaming arrow directly through the back of his head. The man crumbled to the ground, incinerated as his blade fell to the ground and his armor was left empty. He then fired another shot at the wight that had his hunter’s mark, which also crumbled to the ground. He then cleared the gap between the platform and the river of ooze to put further distance between himself and the remaining enemies.
Patchwerk seemed confused as Gil had disappeared from his hook, but then he looked where Razuvious was.
Patchwerk tried to wave the Vel mist away, but he was unable to land any solid hit on her presence. He looked over at Gil.
He coughed up more putrid bile on only Gil, and he tried to swing his hook around at Gil. The hook grabbed onto Gil again. One of the wights tried to attack Remnii and could not get through her sanctuary, so he focused on Uther instead.
The security officer that Vel had struck continued to bleed profusely as he rushed over to Gil. Gil used [Temporal Shunt], but the guard was able to resist. However, Gil was able to use some of the chain from Patchwerk to block some of the blows.
Remnii then used [Aura of Vitality] and channeled healing energy into Vel. She then used her preserve life channel divinity, which wafted over Uther and Gil.
Seria started to rip and tear into Patchwerk, eviscerating his flesh and spilling blood and bile onto the ground. She managed to rip off one of the smaller limbs, which was the one that was holding the chain Gil was grappled with. She then managed to grab the abomination’s cleaver from his hand and hurled it into the river of ooze. Patchwerk started to cry.
The dismembered arm tried to claw at Seria, but missed. The remaining turned wight continued to flee.
Uther hefted his hammer and swung it around to the two remaining wights around him. They conflagrated in holy energy, and Uther then reached out and grabbed the Naxxramas security officer that remained. Uther then hurled the man into the river of plagued ooze and held him down.
Seria roared and continued to rip and tear into Patchwerk, clawing massive gashes into his decayed flesh. Two spheres of necrotic energy were hurled at Seria from the forces outside the immediate conflict.
Patchwerk punched Seria in the jaw. He then grappled her and shoved her head into the gaping wound in his chest. The rib cage snapped down on her, but he was unable to fully engulf her.
The security officer that was trying to attack Gil suddenly dropped and fell to the ground, dead, as the bleeding gash Vel had opened caused him to bleed out.
Remnii continued to heal Vel with aura of vitality. She then used [Cure Wounds] on Uther. She blinked, not realizing the sheer amount of healing energy she put out as Uther was fully healed.
Gil shifted his hunter’s mark to Patchwerk and fired twice. The acidic bile in Patchwerk’s gut ignited, and burned him from the inside out. Radiant fire splashed onto the severed limb.
The remaining security officer attempted to break out of Uther’s grapple. Uther lifted the man up and told him to yield, but the man attempted to throw Uther into the ooze as well.
He slammed the man back into the plague, who then stopped moving. The conflict ended as Vel rematerialized into her humanoid form. Kael’thas immediately appeared next to Vel with a [Blink] as soon as she reconstituted. He took one of her hands in both of his.
Vel blinked, completely baffled at the arrival of her aunt and two of the elven leadership.
He had not yet released her hand, and Vel still seemed too surprised by the display to pull it back. However, Alleria had strode up to them and wordlessly put a hand on Kael’thas’s shoulder to push him aside so that she could take a closer look at her niece. She grabbed Vel’s chin with one of her hands and moved her head back and forth to examine her for any injuries.
Alleria nodded and released her chin.
Alleria brushed some hair out of her face.
Alleria looked over at Gil and visibly tensed. She asked if he was alright.
She drew her bow back.
She aimed at Zagarra, who had just snapped the neck of a cultist. Zagarra froze, ready to react..
Kael’thas scowled and looked at Gil.
Kael’thas scowled but then sighed and swung Felo’melorn around, incinerating the blood from the blade before he fully sheathed it.
Gil grinned at him.
Kael’thas and Rommath exchanged a look. Rommath nodded.
Rommath’s brow raised.
Rommath nodded.
Vel offered a quick description of what they knew the complex contained and the signage they had seen in the central teleportation chamber.
Some of the Scales and the Torchbearers discussed briefly, and Elissa said that they could take the dormitories and ensure no more reinforcements could be called. Vaelastrasz said he would take the other half of the Scales toward the overflow and containment, as if there were any other specimens or experiments there, they could put an end to their suffering.
Vel thanked Kael’thas, Rommath, and Alleria for the short-notice aid, and Kael’thas offered her a deep bow in return.
Gilveradin had been squinting at Kael’thas interacting with Vel. As had Thal’ena, and in the background she leaned down to whisper something to Teemo.
Kael’thas, however, glanced over at Hedanis.
Thal’ena also seemed to be shocked that Kael’thas knew her.
Hedanis and Thal’ena were shooting daggers at each other as they both entered flattery mode, but Sigilith just offered a casual wave to Kael’thas.
Liadrin briefly approached Remnii and put a hand on her shoulder. She told her to stay safe, and if Remnii needed her, just holler for her, though she had many people to watch out for her.
Alleria gave Gil and Vel a nod before heading off with Kael’thas and Rommath. Rommath, however, stopped and looked back to Vel briefly. He projected a telepathic message to just her.
Vel offered an incredulous chuff over the telepathic link.
Rommath returned his own chuff to her before he returned to following after Kael’thas and Alleria.
Vel touched Razuvious’s sword and it disappeared into her wristpocket. The group pressed further into Naxxramas. There was a network of tubes overhead, and they could hear slime and sludge moving through the pipes.
Vel blinked and looked back at him, clearly taken aback by the question.
Gil nodded, recognizing that was probably the best answer he could get out of it.
Remnii said she was glad Vel was safe, and Vel returned that she was glad everyone else was safe.
The Causeway continued for a long time. However, Vel, who was actively looking for danger in the sludge, heard a strange bubble pop, and she and some of her fellows immediately spun around and saw plague slime eek their way out of the ground. The slimes didn’t seem to be coming for the group directly, but they were moving around the area, and they needed to dodge the slimes as they moved across the walkway.
Uther and Remnii both stumbled into some of the slimes.
Vel took her mist form and flowed across the area, unaccosted by the slime as it could not affect her.. Gil teleported through the area with [Blink]. Uther looked over at Remnii.
Remnii had just hitched up her skirts.
Uther scooped Remnii up into a bridle carry and activated his armor. They charged down the Causeway, evading the majority of the ooze. Remnii called out warnings as she saw various oozes dripping from the ceiling, and Uther accidentally did a barrel roll with Remnii in his arms. She was a bit dizzy, but she managed to keep herself together until Uther lurched himself to the side and tobogganed the rest of the way with Remnii on her chest.
Remnii was quite dizzy but she thanked Uther and patted his cheek before getting to her hooves. She wobbled, but steadied herself, and Maraad was running through the slime to come check on her.
Seria, like Gil, just teleported in small bursts to safety.
However, as the group caught up, Vel noted that the open stone door they had headed toward just closed.
Then they heard a voice, and Vel sensed some sort of magic projecting it.
They heard pained groans and screams.
Suddenly bolts started to spring and chains were released all down the Causeway, starting at the far end. The Causeway had started to fall into the plague slime.
She conjured a [Wall of Force] under the group to buy them some time as the Causeway fell into the river of ooze. Gil went over to the blocked door and pressed his magic into it as he used [Nature’s Curse] to start trying to erode the door. Uther followed up and started to raise his hammer, but then Vel noticed a flicker of magic.
Seria lumbered forward and used [Dispel Magic]. She pushed into the magic, and Vel saw a complex glyph shatter. She recognized it had been a high level [Vitriolic Sphere] that would have triggered had the dispel not been successful.
Remnii used [Inner Fire] across the group and Uther levied his hammer and slammed it into the door. Parts of the door had started to crumble, and it was clear that good progress was being made. Seria then moved to back up Uther and help maul the door. She heaved her claw back for a final swing, but at that moment the door slid open right before she successfully broke it. The bridge continued to fall, but the group managed to race in through the door.
As they entered the new chamber, they saw a research laboratory. Lining the entire chamber were slabs of stone and metal that had all sorts of cadavers on them. There were vats of plague slime with specimens inside, and there were heavy gates all around the room. The ceiling was a continued criss-cross of pipes, and there were alchemy tables all over the room. On the far side of the laboratory was Professor Putricide, who turned to them, two vials in his hands.
He tapped on the side of his desk, and magical alarms started to go off. Next to him was the corpulent behemoth of a construct with an injector for his arm: Grobbulus. Suddenly, all the specimen restraints were released, and malformed plagued monstrosities lurched forward.
The largest restraints released, and horrific, asymmetrical monstrosities that somehow made Patchwerk look not horrific got to their feet. They issued forth gastric gas from their mouths.
They spoke in high pitched voices, and a massive gate opened behind them. A huge creature, a hound stitched together from multiple different beasts, lumbered forth from its containment cell: Gluth, the Hound of Gluttony.
As Vel had raced in, a swarm of bats had started to flock to her as she used her Children of the Night ability. She used her bladesong and ran forward and hurled a [Shadow Bolt] at Rotface as her swarm of plagued bats screeched around her.
Maraad ran forward and swung his hammer at Gluth as he used [Seal of Vengeance]. His hammer glowed with the radiant light of the naaru, and he slammed his hammer into the skull of the monstrosity, which sent one of its cranial plates flying off and intending into the wall. It immediately lit on fire. As the hound staggered back, Maraad moved to fend off more of the abominations.
Putricide looked back and pushed a few buttons. The entire room started to churn with artifice and magic, and they all felt a strange sensation. Remnii’s body became light and her body started to float, as if made of mist. Vel’s magic started to grow thick as her body started to feel like it was melting. Uther’s body collapsed into a pile of mercury and then reformed into his own form.
The enemies also started to shift into different forms. Vel looked vaguely disgusted at being suddenly goopy, and Remnii looked relieved as part of her had expected to be the one that had started to shift into ooze.
Gil, disturbed by what was happening, launched several arrows at Gluth, which made the flames licking at his body even more intense. He used [Swift Quiver] and shot several more fiery shots into the massive creature. He then backed off.
Rotface started to lumber toward Vel, his body dripping, and he was promptly assaulted by the swarm of bats. He released a bout of slime at Vel, and then brought a massive rotting fist down at her, but she was able to avoid it.
Grobbulus also closed on Vel and started at her with its eyeless gaze, but it opted not to go for her. It still seemed to be solid.
Uther also closed on Gluth and wound his hammer back, but as the attack connected he realized his liquified weapon was not as effective as it otherwise would have been. Uther opted to continue swinging on Gluth. Seria also closed on Gluth, and like Uther, her gaseous form seemed to not be as effective as it could have been.
Remnii used a [Sacred Flame] on Grobbulus, who was solid, who seemed to resist the damage as well. Grobbulus raised its syringe and sprayed a line of plague slime at Remnii and Seria. However, the line appeared to not be as effective as it could have been against their gaseous forms.
Putricide, who was liquid, hurled an acid vial at Remnii, who was gas, and it triggered a scientific reaction, making her vulnerable to the damage. However, she started to burn with acid. Festergut, who was gas, lumbered toward Remnii and used his slime spray on her.
Gluth clawed at Uther, who started to endure the enraged, solid strikes even though they were particularly effective against his liquid form.
Professor Putricide guzzled a concoction that bolstered his form. He then hurled another acid vial at Remnii.
Gluth continued to claw at Uther, but Uther was able to deflect the blows with Truthguard. Gil got rushed by a random plague zombie, which interrupted his focus on his swift quiver. As the fight unfolded, conversation was happening over the telepathic bond about observations of which forms appeared to be most effective, as there appeared to be a pattern.
The states of the people in the room shifted, and a device whirled into overdrive. A large slab on the far side of the battlefield activated, and Remnii felt a pull, and she was then teleported and restrained on the slab. On the far side, near Rotface and Festergut, a pipe released a thick rainbow colored slime, which started to inch toward Remnii. Vel looked over and realized the restraints were dimensional shackles.
An assessment was made by Samia that there seemed to be some sort of magnetic pull and they needed to destroy the slime that had materialized before it reached Remnii. She then looked over at Rotface, the slime, and Grobbulus and triggered an eldritch disruption. A burt of arcane dust and heat exploded in a geometrical prism. The slime was immediately destroyed, and Remnii was released. She then rounded to fend off some other plague zombies.
Putricide then raced at Vel and brandished his bonesaw. However, she was able to deflect the blow aside. Grobbulus followed up on the assault, but Vel continued to dance around the attacks. Vel’s bats started to attack them as Rotface slammed into Vel but got a sudden blast of cold damage from her ice barrier.
He swung at her again, but she was able to avoid the blow. Putricide tried to attack Vel again, but was unsuccessful.
Gil fired at Gluth, who had shifted to gas, and found the attack was only half effective. Seria, however, tore into Gluth and left him a smashed corpse. She roared and started to run down toward Grobbulus, where she slammed into him as well. His body started to rupture as he was left in heavy damage from the powerful reactionary strikes.
Vel conjured a [Slow] as spectral chains wrapped around Grobbulus, Festergut, Rotface, and Putricide. She forced the power of the spell forth, wrapping them around all four of them and then she swiftly retreated a distance as her swarm of bats began to batter them.
Remnii used [Heal] on herself to fully mend the damage done to her.
Putricide, who was slowed, only was able to guzzle a potion. However, he was able to shake off the effect.
Festergut shuddered, the chains restricting his movement as he lumbered toward Seria. Uther activated his armor and charged forward. He boosted himself into the air and overhand slammed his hammer into the ground as he used [Holy Wrath] in the midst of them.
He looked down at Putricide and pointed his hammer at him.
He attempted to jab Uther in the side with a scalpel, but Uther grabbed his hand and crushed it. Putricide ripped it away and poured some slime on it to reconstitute it.
