The End of Xalista

“The End of Xalista”
Rise of the Runelords episode
Episode no.	Episode 82
Date	2009
Game Master	Abbe
Characters	Honeypot Nathaniel Nell Velicia
Episode chronology ← Previous Next → "Below Sandpoint" "The Riddle"
Rise of the Runelords chapter list

In this chapter continuing through the complex they defeat Xalista and his monsters.

The End of Xalista

The others were getting ready to continue on exploring the underground complex. I wrote "Pelor kicks Lamashtu's ass" with my pink eternal chalk between the other scribbles on the wall. There were some angry shouting from down the room which was still filled with the magical fog. I answered by shouting "Whoopass!".

Lamashtu Symbol.

We went toward the shouting. The room got narrower, but not by much, before it widened again. There were lots of pillars everywhere. At the far end we got a glimpse of an altar. On the floor there was a glowing picture of a jackals head with three eyes. I noted that we weren't alone in the room and stayed a little behind the others. I slipped into a small side corridor with an open door to hide. The others said things like "Oh, shit! That's one big demon.". I heard that there were more of the monstrous dogs around and especially one further down the corridor. Velicia threatened them but I threw my dagger into it and sneaked out and hid in the big room using the fog. I heard most of the five dogs charging Velicia pulling her to the ground and to the left I heard Honeypot's flute playing. I threw my dagger into the dog I had attacked before, trusting my instincts in the fog. As I hid again the dogs ran past me, back from where we came. They had followed Velicia who had teleported back there. I stabbed one of them as they passed and threw my dagger at another one, before slipping away into the fog. Just as I did the huge demon ran past me and I stabbed it, getting a lucky hit. It didn't even bother, but continued on, trying to bash down the pillars in the way. I failed to break them and was slowed down. Velicia teleported again and the demon came running back, this time shattering the thin pillars. Swinging around a pillar still standig I jumped up on its back and hung on, stabbing it. The others killed the last of the dogs and joined me fighting the demon. I had stabbed it several times, when a deep stab in the neck finally killed it. As it fell, I jumped off, somersaulting and landing on my feet. Velicia told us that Xalista had slashed her as she had tried to hide. It was in a cave that was where the wall to the left of the alter once were. He had teleported away just after striking her.

We caught our breath after the fight and once again we heard him shouting from the mist. They told me he said "You hurt my pets!". I stuck out my tongue and answered with a "Pffffft!". Feeling better I sneaked a little ahead to try to see if I could locate him, but I could only guess he was still ahead of us. After searching for treasure, straightening our equipment and wiping the blood off our weapons we continued down a tunnel starting where Xalista had attacked Velicia. It led to what once were three separate rooms. When Nathaniel entered he said that the dog-like creatures had lived there. I sneaked a little in front of the others down another tunnel. It split but joined again just after. It led into an old, small, square room. Standing in the middle of it I could almost see all the walls through the fog, but I kept to the walls. There was an open door in the other end of the room. I thought there was something suspicious so I looked for traps and decided that there was one, but it wasn't mechanical. I stepped back, keeping an eye down the tunnel we came from, while Honeypot and Velicia took a closer look at the trap.

Hound of Lamashtu.

I noted more of the dog-creatures approaching. They were trying to sneak in the fog but their heavy claws clattering on the stone floor betrayed them. I quickly threw my dagger at the first one, twice and retreated back into the small room and hid behind the entrance. Honeypot announced that she had disarmed the trap and went down the corridor. She soon found out that another monster-dog came from there, but also that Xalista had been hiding down that corridor. The fight was on and Nathaniel and I fought four dogs while Honeypot and Velicia fought another dog and Xalista. I ran towards a dog and jumping up, stepped on the wall and tumbled over it, continuing down the tunnel, attacking the other of the two dogs left. Soon only a heavily wounded dog was left so I let Nathaniel take care of that and ran back through the small room jumping up and diving over Xalista, who was standing in the entrance to the corridor. While diving over him I stabbed him in the shoulder and landed in front of him. As Nathaniel moved in to hold the door we had him surrounded. I was fighting back to back with Velicia who fought the last dog with help from Honeypot further down the corridor.

I stabbed Xalista several times, all the time worrying about his awful attacks with his two scimitars, but he attacked Nathaniel. Then he tried to defend himself from my attacks while catching his breath and sealing his wound with some unholy magic from Lamashtu. He knew he was in trouble so he used more awful magic to summon even more dogs helping him by attacking Nathaniel. After he missed me with some of his attacks, but not all, and I had given him several bleeding wounds he teleported away again. Meanwhile Nathaniel had been attacked by all the dogs pulling him to the ground and tearing at him. Velicia teleported to him to to help fighting the dogs. I thought I heard Xalista further down the corridor. I started running down the corridor, flipping over the dog Honeypot was fighting and her and continuing from the shadows of the corridor and into an even smaller room to the right near the end of the corridor. There I appeared from nowhere and stabbed Xalista low. Quickly I jumped backwards, flipping back out into the corridor and hid. Honeypot came down the corridor past me and cast her magical glitter dust into the room at Xalista. The dog Honeypot left ran up to me and bit me from behind, but Velicia's magic protected me from all damage. Xalista moved up to the doorway and slashed at Honeypot with his two scimitars. I stabbed him hard in the leg so he stumbled out into the corridor between me and Honeypot, and twirling around I stabbed the dog behind me too. As I had turned I could see Nathaniel just outside the corridor being pulled to the ground again and the monsters tore at him worse than ever before. His clothes was shredding and a pool of blood formed on the floor. He was in trouble and was fighting to remain conscious. Velicia was desperately defending his body from the beasts and with Honeypots healing he survived. I was filled with hate for Lamashtu and Xalista who was behind this and turned and stabbed him hard. Honeypot felled him from behind and Velicia and Nathaniel, who also had drunk a potion, finished off the last dogs. As Honeypot moved to make sure Nathaniel was good I stabbed Xalista where he lay, to make sure he had met his end.