[Horde] Chapter Five: Session Two
Appearing Characters: Arthak Saurfang, Bakaz, Bru'kan, Eudora, Gramgun Laughingeye, Hooktusk, Levia Blackflight, Nyxxa, Sol'chi, Volrath, Zar'Kaa, Zekhan, Zuni
October 27th
Zar’Kaa looked upon the vessels speeding towards them, heading by dread admiral Hooktusk. It became quickly evident it was a dire situation, and Zar’Kaa started to bark out commands.
Zekhan pulls his mask down and puts a totem on the deck. He clapped his hands together, and started to chant an incantation.
A storm cloud appeared in his hands and magic washed up from the totem. A stream of air erupted into the air, and Zekhan took control of the winds and they filled the sail to shoot the small vessel across the sea. Everyone scurried to their stations in preparation for the fleeing skirmish.
The Reuniter started to coast around the flank of the larger vessels, and it seemed like they had started to leave them behind as the larger vessels turned. Suddenly, the Reuniter lurched, as if the ship had hit something. Zar’Kaa looked into the ocean, but there didn’t seem to be anything else there.
However, Zekhan continued to channel the winds, but the water itself resisted the passage of the small boat. Zuni had reclaimed the spyglass and looked back at the pirate ships.
Zuni shrugs.
Zar’Kaa was familiar with the pirates code, an unwritten law that many pirates abide by, especially those that are given permission to dock in places like Booty Bay. Those that don’t follow the pirates code were frequently shunned.
Zar’Kaa ran a hand along his spear as he debated on what to do.
The gathered crew nods.
Zar’Kaa retrieves their own white flag and waves it back. Zekhan pulled back his magic and scurried over to the side of the ship to try and figure out what was going on with the water. It wasn’t long before the other vessels started to catch up with them. The Gral’s Tooth was the first to approach, and it stopped alongside the Reuniter. Zar’Kaa looked up and saw a handful of other trolls as well as some humans, a tauren, and even a squat humanoid with a round, thick body, a bushy beard, and two long tusks in his mouth. One of them was broken. He resembled a humanoid walrus. At their head, however, was admiral Hooktusk, herself. She was a tower of a woman, especially amongst jungle trolls.
Zar’Kaa leaped over to the ropes of the ship and climbed up to the deck of the ship. Hooktusk smiled and stepped back.
Zar’Kaa furrowed his brow.
Hooktusk looked over at the vessel.
Just then, from the other ship, Zekhan shouts.
Zar’Kaa leans over the ship and nods.
At that moment, water erupts from the ocean and scaled hands come up over the side of the Gral’s Tooth. Long, scaled beasts pulled themselves up on the vessels: naga warriors, with their weapons at the ready as they hissed and began to snarl commands. Alongside them were strange, fish-like hound creatures joined them, their fangs slathered with sticky saliva. A four-armed naga that had a more feminine guise joined the more bestial warriors. She had a staff in her hands, and she also was calling out orders.
Over on the Horde vessels, Sol’chi saw the naga attacking both the pirate and troll vessels.
Nyxxa shrugs.
Arthak glanced over at Bakaz, who scratched his chin.
The paddles started to churn into overdrive and the ships began to speed toward the cluster of other ships that were under attack.
Sol conjured his magic and used [Dimension Door] to teleport himself, Arthak, and Nyxxa. They materialized on the Reuniter. Nyxxa used [Metamorphosis], and her fur turned pink beneath her cloak and mask. The tip of her horns started to glow, and glowing wings materialized on her back. They appeared right next to Zekhan.
Zekhan staggers back in surprise as three strangers appeared in front of him.
Zar’Kaa looked down at the strangers teleported in front of Zekhan, but then they drew weapons and faced the naga. He looked up and saw the massive juggernaut and several other vessels approaching, including a forest troll vessel.
Zar’Kaa looked back at Hooktusk.
She laughs, and Zar’Kaa nods.
Zar’Kaa turned toward the Reuniter and hopped back down onto it. He went straight for the spitescale naga warrior that was closest to Zekhan. With a fearsome strike, he drove his spear right through the naga’s skull and killed it immediately. He then flipped his spear around and launched his axe into the side of the hound-like creature. He looked over and saw a strange, green-skinned warrior with one eye and a molten weapon.
He pointed at Zekhan and Zuni and the other trolls.
Zar’Kaa heaved his spear up and threw his spear at the snapdragon further down the ship and teleported to it as it impaled into the side of the creature. He ripped it out of the snapdragon’s side and dropped into a defensive stance.
Sol’chi looked at Zekhan.
The eredar darted by Zekhan to the middle of the ship. He wound up his fist and slammed into the snapdragon next to Zar’Kaa. With a flaming explosion, the snapdragon was blasted back off the ship and skipped across the water three times before it disappeared beneath the waves.
Sol looked over to a Zuni with his handful of spears.
Arthak swung his massive blade into the snapdragon next to him twice, and he then charged across the boat to engage the naga warrior on the other side of the ship with his two accompanying snapdragons. He slammed into the naga, who coughed up blood as the blade cut deep into the creature’s gut.
The spitescale shallowpriest looked at the snapdragons and ordered them to ensure the new interlopers didn’t ruin the “goddess’s” plan. One of them ran to the side of the Gral’s Tooth and spat acid down at Arthak, which stuck in thick globules on his armor.
Another snapdragon spat acidic spit at Nyxxa, but she slashed it out of the air and deflected it into the water. What remained on her glaive promptly burned away.
The snapdragon that Sol had launched into the water paddled over to Sol and launched acidic spit up at him, but it just stuck to the side of the ship.
The shallowpriest conjured magic to cast a spell, but suddenly a cannonball slammed into the ship right next to her as Eudora barked at her.
Eudora flashed a rude gesture at Hooktusk as the shallowpriest was forced to focus on evading the sudden assault. The naga shouted at each other to dispatch the interlopers, but not kill them, as the goddess needed them.
One of the naga warriors struck into Sol, but a blast of icy energy launched back in his face, and the naga hissed in pain as he retreated to instead focus on Zuni. He barked to his fellows to be aware of Sol, but as he slithered away, Sol managed to clip him with his dagger of venom. The naga warrior struck into Zuni.
Nyxxa looks at Zekhan.
Nyxxa nodded and then leaped into the air and flew straight at the naga shallowpriest.
Nyxxa landed and sliced into the shallowpriest twice, which left the naga stunned. With another two strikes, she left the naga bleeding and crumpled, and then Nyxxa hopped back and signed over to Hooktusk in thieves’ cant, asking if they should take the priestess for questioning. Hooktusk grinned and told her to wait for the “big fish”.
Zuni swung his spear into the naga warrior before him, which sent the naga crumbling to the ground. Zuni then leaped over to a snapdragon and drove his spear into the hound-like creature.
A naga went for Hooktusk, but she just grabbed his harpoon and tossed it to the side. She then headbutted the naga, and Nyxxa whistled. Some snapdragons started to launch themselves at Arthak. Arthak slams his blade into one of them, which left it winded.
A snapdragon launched at Zekhan, but lightning crackled around him and coursed through the creature, which sent it sailing off the side of the boat where it yelped and struggled to regain its composure, but it was still sparking and its movements were rapidly slowed.
Hooktusk swung down at the naga that she had disarmed, and the naga caught the cutlass in its claw.
Hooktusk smirked.
She hefted her canon and it blew straight through the creature’s chest, leaving it dead. Another naga immediately rushed the cackling pirate admiral, but Hooktusk seemed to be handling the assault fine. She grinned, and all her teeth looked to be sharp like shark teeth.
Zuni wrestled with a snapdragon that tried to drag him over the side of the boat. Lightning started to crackle around Zekhan’s hands and he called out as the lightning arched across three snapdragons and the last naga warrior on the Reuniter. The naga and two snapdragons dropped to the ground, dead and twitching.
Zekhan looked up at Zar’Kaa with a wide grin under his mask. However, there is more splashing as more naga and their minions start to emerge from the waters. One of the naga is particularly large.
A massive octopus also clambers out of the water and boards the Reuniter right next to Arthak. There were also several more shallowpriests, and many other snapdragons. The snapdragons bark and more spit acid at Nyxxa. Zar’Kaa finished off the snapdragon that was trying to drag Zuni off the boat. A gashing wound opened in the creature’s side, and Zar’Kaa left it to bleed out as he rushed over to backup Arthak with the massive octopus and the naga that had just arrived. From down below, they heard shouts as it seems some of the naga had breached the lower deck.
Arthak smiled up at the octopus. He idly rests Var’gosh against his cigar and lights it. He then swung at the octopus and lopped off tentacle after before he carved the massive creature open and released its innards across the deck before it collapsed back into the water.
Runic magic surged through Arthak and he grew in size, which caused the ship to tilt heavily toward the side of the boat he was on. A heavily wounded snapdragon tried to bite Arthak, but Arthak carved through it.
Another large wavethrasher naga slithered up out of the ocean and bit Zar’Kaa. It then swept its tail around, and Zar’Kaa leaped over its tail just in time for the naga to bring its harpoon down, however, Zar’Kaa deflected it aside and a few other members of the crew fired on the wavethrasher and it disengaged and dove back into the water.
Sol’chi backed off the snapdragon near him, and its jaws came down on his leg. However, the ice blasted back and froze the snapdragon completely, even though some of its acidic spit burned his jacket.
Sol’chi conjured an arcane gate to provide a shortcut for their allies. Orcs started pouring through the gate with a war cry as they aided in cutting down the naga. Sol then withdrew his coconut drink and started to sing a jaunty tune to spur on his allies.
One of the newly arrived shallowpriest looked at Nyxxa.
She cast [Dispel Magic] and stripped Nyxxa’s metamorphosis away. Unable to move because she was grappled by the snapdragon’s saliva, Nyxxa instead focused on the snapdragon. With a flurry of attacks, she was able to execute the snapdragon with a headbutt to its skull.
Zuni managed to finish up another snapdragon and then ran to go back-to-back with Zekhan. Zekhan conjured a crackling sphere of energy and dropped it over the wavethrasher and his immediate allies. A crackle of lightning shot towards the shallowpriest, but she evaded the strike.
Up on the Gral’s Tooth admiral Hooktusk and Nyxxa started to get swarmed while other naga attempted to dogpile Arthak. Hooktusk attempted to shoot a snapdragon point-blank range, but it missed and sailed over the other ship.
One of the shallowpriests started to channel the voracious powers of Zekhan’s storm into a [Lightning Bolt], but Sol looked over and a bolt of energy collided with the lightning bolt and blasted it into a cloud of sparkles. She hastily reassembled it and threw a jolt at Arthak, but it crackled harmlessly over his armor.
Another naga tries to grapple Hooktusk, but she slams him into the ground and wrenches his harpoon away and throws it off the side of the ship.
The massive wavethrasher hurled his harpoon at Sol’chi. It pierced through the eredar’s cloak, and at the last moment Sol’chi ripped his cloak off it before he could get yanked back toward the massive naga. The naga slithered up to Sol and snapped at him with his massive jaws. It seemed other naga were trying to capture as many prisoners as possible, but at that moment, a massive creature heaved itself onto the Gral’s Tooth. Its claws cleaved through the wheel of the ship, as the naga brute began to rend destruction, and another naga wavethrasher rose next to it. A naga siren also materialized, and she called for her sisters to continue the assault.
Zar’Kaa honed in the naga that had surrounded him and spun his spear around in an arc that slashed wounds into all of them. He then tried to goad them into his whirlwind of steel.
Sol’chi backflipped around the wavethrasher and disappeared as he used [Steel Wind Strike]. He reappeared near Nyxxa. Meanwhile another shallowpriest turned her eyes to the arcane gate and attempted to dispel it. Sol tried to interfere with some cutting words, but she grits her teeth and is able to push through the pain and successfully dispel the gate.
Zuni ran for the wavethrasher and struck it several times as he tried to draw its attention. An axe suddenly hurled through the air at the severely injured shallowpriest as Ger’hel threw her weapon and completely bisected the naga before the spitescale naga could heal her.
Hooktusk is still laughing even as she is getting buried by naga. One of them got her good in her side, and she just laughed louder.
She smacked the naga across the head as Arthak launched himself to the Gral’s Tooth so he could engage with the spitescale brute. Hooktusk looked over to Nyxxa and pointed at the siren.
Arthak looked toward the siren and slammed into her with his massive blade. He felt some of her ribs crack.
Hooktusk started to pant heavily, and her muscles bulged. Gills appeared on her neck, and her skin turned more blue as her teeth grew. A moment later, still wearing her hat and holding her canon, but now possessing a sharktail, was Hooktusk, who now resembled a shark-like humanoid. She starts to laugh again as she swung with her cutlass and then bit into one of the naga. She then spun around and shot the naga in the face with her canon.
Zar’Kaa hurls his spear over to near Zuni and teleports to it as he gets out from the circle of naga and snapdragons that had surrounded him.
Meanwhile, Arthak continued to cleave into the siren. One of the shallowpriests arcs a lightning bolt through the clustered group of trolls. The spitescale siren tried to cast a spell, but with every syllable Arthak cleaved into her, and then he turned his blade and knocks her out cold with the flat of his sword. He then looked to the brute and the wavethrasher.
He directed a mental message to Nyxxa.
The nagas seem to be considering a withdrawal with the downing of the siren, and Nyxxa translates over the telepathic link as a spitescale naga thrust his harpoon right at Hooktusk’s gut. However, the spear shattered on her abdomen.
Hooktusk clamped her jaws down on the naga as the warriors start to scramble for orders from the shallowpriests. Arthak tried to intimidate the brute, but he gazed into Arthak’s eyes, unblinking, and roared. Nyxxa finished off another naga and then ran for the brute. She propelled herself off the mast and kicked him in the face.
A naga swung in on Zekhan, and the harpoon connected, but the naga was blasted away by a surge of lightning. The storm sphere also roiled, and a strike of lightning slammed into the nearby shallowpriest–but one of her mirror images shattered instead. The then imbues a totem with thunderous might and slammed it into the ground. Thunderous, pure green life energy rippled out and washed over all naga on the Reuniter. Two naga were blown clear off the ship, and the rest of them were knocked prone.
Several of the naga started to retreat and dove off the side of the ship.
The spitescale brute leaped backwards and looked like he was getting ready to charge. Nyxxa tried to strike at him, but the brute hit her with his tail. He charged at Arthak and grappled him before striking into the ship.
The wavethrashers started to call for a retreat as the brute had lost control. They had been unable to take any of the refugees, and the group allows them to just go, as they were forced to leave the siren behind. However, the brute was left to rampage.
Hooktusk called for the group to stop the brute before it wrecked her ship.
Nyxxa ran up the brute’s back and stabbed it in the neck as she channeled fel energy into the creature and stunned it.
Zar’Kaa joined Nyxxa on the brute’s back and started to hack into the creature. However, Sol looked at the creature and fired a [Disintegrate] with a finger gun gesture, which turned the brute to ash. He leaned back and took a sip from his coconut drink, still quite dizzy from the brute’s rampage. Zar’Kaa approached and offered him a few drops from a poultice to ease his dizziness.
Volrath comes from below deck and informed them that the headcount was good and it didn’t appear anyone had been taken. Zar’Kaa nodded and turned to the new group that had arrived.
Nyxxa pulled back her hood to reveal her lack of eyes.
He flipped the drink over and revealed nothing but emptiness.
Hooktusk waved a clawed hand.
Hooktusk shifted back with a sigh.
Hooktusk grinned.
Zar’Kaa took a long look at everyone that had arrived, and the Horde juggernaut had arrived on the other side of the Reuniter. A winged elf-like creature with horns and porcelain white skin flew down as Levia arrived.
Levia looked Sol up and down.
Arthak gestured toward his ships.
Zar’Kaa looked at the large warship, a lot of questions flooding his mind at once.
He pointed at Nyxxa and Sol’chi.
Zar’Kaa raised an eyebrow.
The juggernaut loosed a horn and an orc shouted to Arthak for a status report. Arthak requested some repairmen to come down and look at the Gral’s Tooth as the tuskaar quartermaster is quietly steaming over the wreckage of the wheel of the ship.
At that moment, walking up from below deck was a strange, reptilian creature with a shell. A tortollan. The tortollan started to slowly make his way toward the wheel as he ranted about the name calling.
Hooktusk looked at the unconscious siren.
Zar’Kaa sighs and nods.
Zar’Kaa recognized the name. That was the name of the naga witch that was responsible for chasing the Darkspear from Firsthome in the first place.
Hooktusk nods.
Hooktusk grinned.
Eudora, the vulpera, swang over from her ship.
She growled.
She winked at Arthak. Zar’Kaa asked about details, and Hooktusk gave a quick summary and expressed they needed to strike hard and fast.
The forest troll destroyer came up around the side and Bakaz leaned over the edge.
Zar’Kaa narrowed his eyes up at Bakaz, as the voice was familiar, but then it clicks.
Bakaz hopped over to the Gral’s Tooth and stepped over one of the corpses.
Bakaz didn’t seem to recognize Zar’Kaa, who was quietly fuming, and Arthak shot Zar’Kaa a cautious glance. At that moment, Zar’Kaa charged Bakaz and drew his spear. Arthak tried to stop Zar’Kaa, but the jungle troll evaded him and tackled Bakaz to the ground and pinned him. He held his spear on Bakaz’s throat.
Zar’Kaa is seething.
Zar’Kaa put more pressure on the spear, and it went through Bakaz’s neck as he melted into the shadows and then reappeared behind Zar’Kaa, his claw now on Zar’Kaa’s throat.
Bakaz released Zar’Kaa.
Bakaz looked at Arthak.
Zar’Kaa looks straight at Nyxxa, and then he sighs and sheathes his spear, but walks over to Bakaz.
Bakaz shakes his head.
Bakaz looked over to Arthak.
Arthak nodded at Bakaz, who strolled back toward his own ship. He stopped for a brief second as if he was going to say one last thing, but Arthak raised an eyebrow at him, and Bakaz raised his hands and left the deck of the Gral’s Tooth. As some of his own crew check in on him and ask what happened, he just said he “ran into an old friend.”
