Kyp will drink his Potion of Clairvoyence

"I will probably need to be near the head to have as clear as a signal as possible, the head is by the pier isn't it?"

The head is due East - the far right side of the map. The pier is right behind a front leg.

With the crew appearing to find some form on consensus on the plan so far, Grog'tial mentions to Mighty that when Aeshma and Gilius are done with purifying and cleansing, or if the rest of the crew need assistance from the Griffon-team, Mighty should send Cracker up above the trees, which they'll take as a signal to come back to the Grove.

Grog'tial trusts in his balance while up in the air, but will also bring some rope to more firmly attach himself to the Griffon in the case of unexpected aerial acrobatics.

Durik finally drank his Earl Grey Tea.
Alas, the book that he previously read didn't seem to leave a lasting effect, since the tactics explained were too specific to be useful in normal fights.

Afterwards, he noticed Argy collecting Merrow's remains:
"Tiny what you be doin' with those brains" O_o

Durik agreed to go with the second team, even if he was sad that he couldn't use Dakka to avoid waking up the Dragon Turtle.

Gilius warns the crew about leaving the island with the griffon : "I don't like the fact that we leave the island the same way that we go in. The griffon will 'ave to do 3 trips too an' I fearrr that the ones who will leave last might be overwhelmed. Whereas with the longboat, we could leave the island all at once. Maybe Kyp can prepare the longboat as a backup plan in case things go wrong ?"

Clíodhna cocked her head at Gilius. She never considered that he might be concerned about flying. Hadn't he used a flight spell before on the Ship the first time she'd met him in those awful tunnels? He had. She distinctly remembered him having flown to the Crow's Nest, then dropping a Stone Elemental through her deck! (:P)

"Gilius, Kyp be having his own need to concentrate and not be near the pier. If he try to bring the longboat there, he be overwhelmed as the Chuul will likely be most strongly gathered there, and any teams would be having to fight through the buildings down the path to the pier with the possibility of them not being thinned out fer them first. It be far more dangerous than simply sheltering in the Grove behind the Stone Circle once the area be cleansed. The Griffon be taking ye back in opposite order as ye be going in, so the best fighters be last off, and Aylar and Grog'tial be coming back with the Griffon to help ye by then."

Was a pre-post. Moved to new Mission Turn now. :)

Actions that happened before the flight to the island:

Bellandra called out a triumphant greeting back to the Mermaid, Sea Horse and Griffon. "Well done, sisters and comrades-at-arms! Victory be ours for the moment, and freedom be yours! 'Tis a joy to behold to see ye free, and heroes no less! We welcome ye along our adventure for as long as ye wish it."

"Noble Griffon, if ye so choose, ye can surely guard our venture onto the Dragon Turtle Island, and bring us there besides on thy wings. And fair Mermaid and Sea Horse, thy assistance upon the waters would be most kind - if our enemy can summon one foe like the squid, who knows what others may still come."

"My friends, for the moment I call thee by thy shapes, but I know that you are more than them. When I gained life, I gave myself the name Bellandra. In time, names may come to thee as well, and I would be honored to call ye by the ones you choose."

Bellandra informed the group of the offers from the Mermaid, Sea Horse, and Griffon. She agreed with the others that the Griffon flight would offer them an advantage, and she offered to be part of the strike group on the first flight.

In preparation, she drank her potion of poison resistance.


Actions during the flight to the island:

While flying, Bellandra planned to look through the Magical Handmirror to spot any hidden enemies such as invisible foes - if she saw any she would inform the rest of the strike team to allow them to target them. Like Grog'tial, if it seemed there was a large group of enemies that had already spotted them, she planned to shoot them with an explosive bolt, and for an individual Chuul that had spotted them she would use a hardened bolt, and for a regular enemy that had spotted them she would use a regular bolt. However, she would not shoot an enemy that had not spotted them, preferring to not alert them.

She kept her sextant in reserve - if there seemed to be any catastrophic enemy attack underway she would consider using the sextant to freeze the assailant. However she would only use it in an emergency, preferring to spare it for the Aboleth.

Actions after landing on the island:

(next post)

Bellandra shot a bolt at the centipede, aiming at its compound eyes. She then followed up by slashing at it with her cutlass.

At the same time she kept her senses alert for any trouble in Aeshma's direction, aware that Aeshma was currently alone on the ground between them and the chuul. If there was any sign of trouble she would disengage from the centipede and move to protect Aeshma - for example, if a group of chuul seemed to move to attack, she would shoot a stun bolt at them first, and an explosive one next.

If the centipede was disposed of and the tunnel was clear, she would look at it through the mirror to see if there was something hidden there.

Mission 4 - Turn 4, Dragon Turtle
*Next turn starts 4 AM UTC, 23 November

Treasure Cove - Adrian von Ziegler (Kyp's accordion)

The wooden Griffon stood on deck, ready to take the first strike team. It had already done a high flyby and picked an appropriate spot as Aylar guided the Ship into a new anchorage off the NW coastline. Bellandra, as the one besides Clíodhna who could communicate with the Griffon the best, took her spot in the front, with Captain Baldbeard, Count Karnstein and Mighty after her.

Clíodhna gave them all a nod. "Griffons take off with a leap into the air, hold on and be prepared. A subtle touch of the opposite knee and a slight lean be telling them where you want them to turn. Don't be throwing yer weight around, it be throwing off the balance in the air and he not be thankin' ye fer it. That be going especially fer ye," she looked at Aylar. "I not be knowing if ye have ridden more than a ship deck, but ye will need to be communicating the turning, landing and possible diving. Use yer body, make light adjustments and a bit of focusing to make ye intent known, similar to how ye do with the Ship, but as this one not be linked to ye directly it won't be quite so strong or immediate."

With that the Griffon gave a mighty leap into the air and took off for the landing zone. It deposited its passengers on a grassy knoll near to the northern side of the Grove, and left back to the Ship to get Strike Team Two. (roll dice) Bellandra, Captain Baldbeard, Count Karnstein and Mighty noticed that under the trees it was dark and quiet, too quiet. No Chuul were in sight, but they could not fully see the buildings, most of which were behind more trees or up over the swell of another hill. The Griffon returned to the landing zone with Durik, Argy and Pugwash. (roll dice) Still there was no reaction, except for a very low slight chittering sound.

(roll dice) As the Griffon returned again and before he left with the last team, Aylar noticed Clíodhna slip something to Aeshma, then she took Gilius aside. "Gilius, be checking the stone circle carefully. I be picking up a very Deep Old Magick signature. It may be yer affinity to Nature be helpful, but be careful. As a Druid ye already be knowing the Old Ways be having their own elemental natures and if corrupted are most unforgiving."

Clíodhna then flew to Aylar's shoulder before he mounted the Griffon. "Ye heard what I be telling Gilius?" she asked quietly into his ear. "There be Old Magick there, and Deep Magick drawn from the node. It may respond to yer fae blood, but it be also corrupted. I not be liking it, Aylar. Have yer fun with the havoc, but trust ye instincts and yer charms while there. I really nae want to be having to burn down an entire Dragon Turtle to be reaching ye if I can be helping it."

Aeshma was first, sat ahead of Aylar on the Griffon so he could steady her and she could easily throw one leg over and be quickly off once landed. Then came Grog'tial and lastly Gilius, so he too could quickly dismount and let Aylar and Grog'tial readjust and swiftly be off on their distraction and havoc task. (roll dice) Once in the air, both Aylar and Grog'tial noticed a gathering number of Chuul in the area between the two seaglass buildings, but none were moving to the Grove and Spring quite yet.

Upon landing, Aeshma slipped down over the Griffon's shoulder to quickly join the others. Gilius also dismounted and Aylar and Grog'tial readjusted and steadied themselves. Then Aylar urged the Griffon back into the air. As the Griffon took off, Gilius turned to look at the Grove with his Druid's sense. He felt the oldness and corruption, (roll dice) and then spotted the tunnel hidden beneath one of the largest oaks just inside the shadowed treeline with compound eyes looking back at him! He barely had time to yell a warning before the huge centipede charged!

As the Griffon left with the final team, Clíodhna spread her wings and pulled up anchor, moving the Ship near to the Dragon Turtle's head and prepared to help Kyp. She brought it to the SE side, just in case they may have to sail for the pier after all. She set Kyp up on the poop deck at the stern with his accordion and told him to try to gently play his music and talk to the old Dragon Turtle, to explain that they were trying to help her. It would probably get easier once Aeshma and Gilius cleared some of the corruption, but the important thing was to keep her asleep while the others did so. The Mermaid and Seahorse continued to swim guard around the Ship and the phantoms were set on high alert with Cap'n Rummyfangs showing himself to Kyp and standing guard over him.

Once that was done, Clíodhna found Aylar through their link and concentrated on the feather in his charm, boosting the power until it shone like a magickal star to the Chuul. She had little doubt that Aylar would realize what she was doing. If she could not be there herself, at least that should get the Chuul's attention. The Chuul imperative bred into them from their Aboleth masters so long ago was the pursuit and capture of the most powerful magick user or item first. They were blind to everything else until that was done. She had to make him outshine both Aeshma and Gilius, and of the three of them he was also the best equipped to defend himself. It should be enough to drive the Chuul wild ... not that he needed much more excuse to cause mayhem, she thought, remembering the wolfish grin. She'd have to remind herself to monitor the balancing of the energies. His fae side was turning out to have more hidden instinctive Talent than she'd first realized, he'd need to make sure that he controlled the power and not let it control him.

The Griffon soared to circle the buildings in a blatant attraction of attention. (roll dice) Below them, both Aylar and Grog'tial could see Chuul noticing them, but it was also becoming obvious the Chuul did not like looking up into even the hazy mid-morning sunlight. They still had some time left (2 turns) before the storm clouds on the horizon might push Gilius' weatherworking away.

(roll dice) Aeshma felt the turning in the air and knew they didn't have much time now. "The air will change soon!" she warned the Crew. "I have to get in quickly before the Chuul senses expand with the return of the storm! Gilius, let the others take care of the centipede, get to the stones and see if you can get us into the center!"

(roll dice) Gilius also felt his weatherworking being pushed at slowly by the magical storm and knew they did not now have much time before the Chuul might show up. They would have to deal with the centipede quickly and let himself and Aeshma get to work or they could be overwhelmed. As he focused ahead he felt the rumbling and movement of the Stones and recognized it - Stone Elementals!

Bellandra was already shooting a bolt at the centipede's eye. (roll dice) The bolt buried itself completely in one eye, impairing it and hitting part of the brain. She followed it up with a strike from her cutlass, but the centipede had reared up when the bolt hit, taking her intended target up out of range. Luckily there were still no Chuul in their vicinity, but she heard Aeshma's warning about the returning storm and the Chuul.

-----
In the temple beneath the waves the Aboleth was angry. How? How had they stolen his minion ships? How had they avoided, then critically wounded his Giant Squid servant? It turned and ruthlessly pulled the memory of what a servant had seen from it. A brightness from the sky fell upon the Squid then returned to the Ship. Her! How? She was bound, chained, her powers nullified. The Ship too had regained ... something. It pulled on more servants, caught glimpses of various beings on the ship, until it came to a tall figure mid-deck who had an underlying essence about him and something of her now in his veins. Another being it recognized as one it thought to turn easily which she winked at as she flew by, and who now had something magickal protecting his mind and a small bit of her touch upon him. Neither should have been able to do this. Then it saw through a Chuul's eyes, a star of brightness radiating power. Fae! It went back to the memories of the Ship ... there, at the wheel. The Ship had taken a new captain, a Fae captain. The Aboleth's anger melted the minds of four of its nearest servants as it told its Chuul to capture the Fae and bring him and the one with him to it. Turning the captain could bring it the Ship, the Ship would bring it the Crew, and if what it now suspected was true, it could be her weakness. Meanwhile it turned to another servant and instructed it to go through the portal and instruct its servant on the other side exactly what to do.

-----
Your current inventory can be found in Post 2 (loaner books are read and returned)
Argy = Northside near Grove
Aylar = Griffonback
Bellandra = Northside near Grove
Captain Baldbeard = Northside near Grove
Count Karnstein = Northside near Grove
Durik = Northside near Grove
Gilius = Northside near Grove
Grog'tial = Griffonback
Kyp = Aboard Ship
Mighty = Northside near Grove

No argument with keeping it in reserve for now, but we do plan on returning to the ship before heading to the Aboleth, at which time your sextant would recharge. So don't be afraid of using it during the island part of the mission. (See bottom of #790)

===

After dropping off Aeshma and Gilius on the island, Grog'tial suddenly realizes that he's now found himself all alone with the half-elf who gave him a dressing down in front of the entire crew, and an awkward silence ensues. The only upside is that he's far away from the spider which he imagines the Count will be summoning any moment now (he shudders), as well as from all of his half-brother's suspected agents.

Still, such thoughts quickly leave his mind when they spot the massed Chuul, and swiftly he's all business. They sure make a fearsome sight. He's almost tempted to land in the middle of them and blow his shell, but the way they're spread out now, his shell wouldn't quite reach all of them, and he figures that it's prudent to keep it in reserve while seeing how many more Chuul might appear from the various structures.
No, key now would seem simply to keep their attention, and draw them off as far away from the grove as possible. Meanwhile they'd have to balance the desires to thin out this crowd, and to stay out of harm's reach themselves. He asks the captain to steer the Griffon south-southeast beyond the Chuul (in the direction of the barns), and once beyond them, to hover for a bit (or if that's not something a griffon is capable of, to at least not make any sudden turns) so he could get a good shot in (with an explosive bolt if he thinks he can kill a Chuul with it while having as many as possible (but at least one other) in the blast radius - otherwise only with a hardened bolt) - ideally aiming for the Chuul furthest to the west, most at risk of disappearing underneath the trees - and to then see if and how the Chuul react. If all the Chuul come toward them, he suggests heading further east to draw them off. If some break off (heading west), he suggests buzzing those. Ideal would be if, upon figuring out that they're being herded, the Chuul split up, so that on a next turn they could attempt a swift landing, allowing for engaging one in isolation.
If the captain executes a different plan for where they fly, Grog'tial will still attempt the above shooting if it seems to make any sense at all to do so.

Grog'tial also asks Aylar how comfortable he is in use of the locket. Does he think he could safely teleport from the ground to the top of the Griffon (while it's in the air)?

Count Karnstein circles behind the startled centipede, waiting for it to lower its head. Then he will jump right on it, mounting it like a horse, while plunging his blade between chitin plates right below the head. Count will try to maneuver the beast using his body (like he heard Clíodhna instructing Aylar about the griffon, only much less gentle) and the saber to make it run away in direction of the grove and aiming at one of the elementals before jumping off.

If the above miraculously happened and Count is now somewhere in the grove, he will carefully check the surroundings, ready to defend/attack. Not going close to elemental alone. If there are any "organic" enemies, he will summon spider to help fight them.

If centipede dies before the above, he will just wait next to group, looking for any threats, as he doesn't seem able to do anything against stone elemental. If stone elemental get close, he will try to draw its attention on him, as he is probably faster and more agile than a heap of rocks. If any "organic" enemies are coming from the grove, he will summon spider to help fight them.

Looking at the cloudy skies above (and hearing Aeshma's warning), Argy isn't very sure of the success of Gro'tial's "Benny Hill Chase Tactics", but it will provide a decent distraction in any case, and that's what the crew needs.

She is surprised by the centipede's sudden appearance, and also by Bellandra's swift reaction (did she have a moment of clairvoyance or what? :P ) Trusting her mateys will deal with the monster, she scouts the surroundings, ready to warn other crewmates about any menace.

Once the ship is close enough to the head, Kyp tries to think of a soft joyful song and decides to go with a traditional wedding song.

Kyp reaches out with his mind communicating feelings are warmth and comfort, in a calm manner saying "hey we are trying to help you, please relax as we help ease your discomfort and fix the world around you."

Gilius steps immediately back to dodge the incoming centipede. Assessing the situation and feeling the fading of his weather control spell, he decides to avoid it and leave it to his crewmates to handle. He circumvents the centipede if possible in order to go towards the grove.

Hearing the rumbling of stones ahead, Gilius recalls fond memories of his old pal that he lost after his adventures in the cursed dungeon after joining Admiral Polly and her crew. But this time, there were two of them and they were unfriendly.

Gilius tries to feel the elementals and the energy that animates them. He especially tries to sense if that energy, that intention is somewhat evil or corrupted. If he feels anything, he will try to break the control with his affinity for nature, or even better, hijack it in order to make powerful allies of these two supernatural creatures..

If he can't do anything about it, Gilius will try to call for roots nearby to entangle the closest one, then he will try to avoid the second one. If he can't avoid it, he will try to call for the roots' help again.

As soon as he is not in immediate danger from them, he will try to feel the grove's life essence, feel how it behaves, what are its connections with other life forms around, feel if it's ill, drained, parasitised, cursed, or whatever anormal.
If indeed something bad is happening, he will try to use his quartz crystal to try to purify it - using it several times if needed.

Finally, if all goes well and if it's working, he will yell to Aeshma that it's done and she's clear to go and will accompany her, providing any assistance he can. (Otherwise, he will tell her that it's not, obviously !)