The powerful conclusion to Two-Score’s second tale:

The other half of the party was descending the stairs just as we emerged into the foyer. With them was a young woman, armed and armoured. This was the master of the house, Eurice Ammot, daughter of the glorious general. She slew many of the offensive scaled creatures holding her hostage with the aid of our party as distraction. On her advice, we journey downward, to the basement.

I bravely volunteered to go first down the rough hewn steps of the great manse, but was rudely lifted from my feet by Aëlla, who placed me on her shoulder. This foolish move meant that the party lacked my keen eye at their fore and, as such, no one managed to spot the source of a strike at the barbarian. It seemed as though a sword appeared from the very stone of the wall itself to slash at our unsuspecting vanguard. We braved the snipes, venturing downward with weapons raised. A green arm reached from the stone a stride ahead of me and swung its crude bladed weapon. I dodged skillfully, flipping from the shoulders of our druid in a high arc. the serrated edge passing a mere inch beneath my nose.

Being at such a short range, the arm piercing what should have been solid stone revealed the illusion. I darted through the ephemeral wall, after my would be attacker. I quickly closed the distance, and struck at the damn kobold. My sword penetrated the monster’s flesh, killing it instantly. I called out in triumph, only to be cut off as a vial of flaming liquid was hurled toward me. I evaded the projectile, and advanced upon my next foe. I swung my blade and struck the villainous reptile. To my horror, my weapon held fast in his monstrous flesh. In a flash, my horn was in my hands and playing a melodic tune. Unable to resist, the kobold began to sway in time to the music, completely oblivious to everything around him. While playing this powerful ballad, I could see another figure approaching through the narrow rat warren I found myself in. The beast appeared to be a massive kobold, nearly double their ordinary height, clad in heavy plate armour. In order to increase my movement options, I exited the tunnel, never turning my back on the steel behemoth.

Once more in the open, I could see a net had descended on the hallway as the rest of the party advanced. The fray had intensified, with kobolds boiling up from the bottom of the stairs. Bel, near the rear of the party fired her bow, but miscalculated the shot, and it ricocheted back toward the barbarian. Barely taking her eyes from the kobold she was decapitating, the barbarian snatched the arrow from the air nearly a meter from her head. Without missing a beat, she swung the arrow toward another assailant and skewered them as well.

The stairway was now slick with lizard folk blood, and I had to pick my way down slowly and carefully. By the time I entered the basement chamber much of the battle had already resolved itself. An unbroken trail of kobold bodies lead to the front: several kobolds swinging furiously at our barbarian and Notorious, to little effect.

I spotted a target near the entrance to the chamber. I charged and swung at the stunned kobold, missing by a hair’s breadth. Before me, a balor swept its fist at a sharply dressed Pit Fiend, sparks arcing outward as their demonic forms collided. Someone had cast a magical pall of darkness on the room, and only the most powerful luminance could penetrate the conjuration. Through the obstruction, Notorious managed to catch the attention of the balor, leaving it open to a strike by the other devil spirit.

Now reeling, the balor glanced around. No kobold had survived our assault, and the demon stood alone. In that frozen moment, a small dragon streaked into the room from the stairway. Striking with incredible force, the dragon clamped its jaws onto the balor’s neck. The demon fell on its back, and between the dragon’s teeth, the pit fiend’s fists, and the barbarians axe, little was left intact. Roaring, the barbarian raised the balor’s severed head high. We had slain minions and monsters. We had rescued Princess and a princess. Our mission was nearly completed.

What will our adventurers get themselves into next time? Will they discover why there was a monstrous demon in the basement? Who were the kobolds really working for? All that and more, in the next Two-Score Tale.