Move 289: Still With the Grells
Grell Nest--Early, Day 26 (Marpenoth 11)As Renn chanted among the growing tentacles, some of Blacky's wounds disappeared, and the unconscious man seemed to stabilize. Jana turned to help Renn with his opponent, finishing off the badly wounded grell that was attacking the invisible priest. The other grell, the one that had taken Blacky down, hit Jana with a couple of tentacles, but it seemed to be trying to float up slightly so its series of attacks was not all that impressive.
Azrun tried to back away from the grell, but with the emerging tentacles everywhere, he could not get far. He hit the grell with magic missiles anyway. Olaf stared at the same grell, his prayer transforming his hand into a pair of fierce jaws. The grell attacked him, swatting him with several tentacles. Miraculously, the priest of Tyr kept his mobility, even after being hit with any number of grell tentacles in the last few minutes. He was, however, injured badly.
Aloysius moved closer to the pillar and the gigantic monstrosity sitting on it. It seemed to be trying to cast another spell, but a downpouring of hail stones upon it took care of that.
Nearer to the main part of the fray, a glowing portal appeared.
About that time, the black tentacles that had grown from the cavern floor began causing problems. Two tentacles attacked Jana, one snaking up her leg then disappearing, the other handily wrapping itself around her midsection, seeming to settle in to squeeze. Likewise, two of the scary black writhers found Azrun with a similar effect, one disappearing, the other squeezing the bard. Two of them seemed to move against something unseen near the new doorway. Again, one of them immediately disappeared, but the other continued to wrap around whatever it was after. Another tentacles grabbed at Olaf's jawed arm, but it couldn't grab hold, its existence ending with its failure. Yet another went after something unseen near where Jana was fighting. It wrapped around something there. Finally, one writhed its way around the unconscious fighter on the floor, and it seemed to be starting to constrict Blacky, who certainly did not need much of that type attention right now.
"FOR TYR AND JUSTICE!" Olaf screamed as loudly as possible while he attacked the grell before him with the wolf jawed hand as often as possible.
"Janathell!" called Aloysius, a rising tone of desperation in his voice, "I'll try to free you. Get the grell o'er your head!" He turned towards her and began casting a spell.
"No!" Jana replied, "get that big grell! I'm fine!"
Renn appeared as he took a swing at the tentacle that held him.
Azrun pulled his dagger and struck at the tentacles.
Aloysius cast a magic missile spell at the tentacle on Jana, and it released its grip on her middle, withering then disappearing. This left her free to attack the grell hovering above her, taking it down with a couple of masterful sword swings. Renn appeared with his sword in his hand; he cut into the tentacle that was on him and it too withered into nothingness. Azrun was not so lucky; he was squeezed unconscious by the thing gripping his middle as he tried to get to his dagger. The tentacle around Blacky continued constricting him as he lay helpless on the floor.
Olaf attacked the grell in front of him with the jawlike appendage that had replaced his hand. The bites were very effective against the grell, ripping into the soft fleshy mass of its body. Unfortunately, the grell did not go down. It hit the old priest with a few tentacles, and he fell to the ground.
From over near the glowing doorway, some might have heard a faint pop. The tentacle began writhing around in front of the portal, seeming to look for something else to grab. The big grell cast another spell, this one with no visible effect. The three smaller grell abandoned their post in the northeastern portion of the cavern, flying through the northern exit.
"Aloysius, use the wand. Cover us." Jana ran toward one of the tentacles.
"Get them to safety," said Aloysius as he began casting a spell.
Rennirolas wiped at one of the Grell induced cuts on his neck, nodded and took an angry swipe at the base of the tentacle.
Aloysius cast another spell, directing two magic missiles at the grell that had taken Olaf down and another at the giant grell on the pillar. The two magic missiles that hit the soldier grell took it down. The third magic missile almost reached the big grell, but it disappeared in front of the monster instead of hitting it. The grell on the pillar cast another spell as well, surrounding Aloysius with a globe of darkness.
Jana hacked the tentacle on Azrun, causing it to release the unconscious bard. It disappeared from existence. Renn attacked the tentacle on Blacky, but he was unable to finish it off. The tentacle kept squeezing its prey.
The glowing portal remained in place, the tentacle still in front of it.
"Jana!" Renn cried urgently. "Help me with this one. If I can't finish it I think Blacky'll be killed."
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