Episode 179 - Fighting in the Moonlight

## Synopsis

The students prepared for battle. Deciding that they couldn’t affect or be affected by the Squirrel, Serinepth told Integrity and Winsler to run distraction.

They attempted to draw the Squirrel’s attention, making noise and spinning lights. After an initial success, the Squirrel soon realised what they were doing and focused on Mira and Graist.

Winsler went to touch the pillar with flames. Upon making contact, it gave off a low ringing sound, and a glowing handprint appeared. When he went to touch another one, the humming stopped and the handprint disappeared.

Hearing Winsler explain what he did, Mira tried to do the same with the pillar nearest her, but nothing happened.

The Squirrel suddenly exploded into an inky mist, teleporting directly next to Mira and Graist.

Serinepth ran over to the other broken pillar in their room, putting her hand on it. While no handprint appeared, she could feel the echo of the sound reverberating through it.

Standing next to Mira and Graist, the Squirrel reared up and attempted to tear Graist apart, luckily missing and carving deep groves into the floor. Some of the bone fragments in its body started to flow down to its left palm, and created a club made of bones in its hand. It swiped at Mira, smashing into her and causing her snake arm to lash out in retaliation. As it bit into the Squirrel, Mira saw that the colour of the snake had changed from black to an iridescent blue-red.

Integrity dashed over to the frost pillar, touching it, and getting no response. She yelled over to Graist, asking if he knew which order the giants went in. While avoiding the Squirrel, he yelled back that in stories it went: Stone, fire, cloud, frost. Graist then lashed out, managing to land several hits on the Squirrel.

Winsler ran over to the full moon pillar, slapping it and waiting. Nothing happened. Tired from running around, he summoned his Mage Hand to try and touch the pillar next to Mira. Nothing happened.

As the students shouted to each other about how to solve this puzzle, the Squirrel threw its head back and let out a loud screech before slashing at Graist again, who easily ducked away.

Mira scrambled over to the fire pillar, slapping her hand onto it causing a moonlit handprint to appear and a dull ringing sound to fill the room. Looking back at the Squirrel she lashed out with her snake arm again, biting it on the nearest tail.

Over at the cloud pillar, Serinepth placed her hand on it, causing the familiar light and sound to be emitted. She shouted to her friends that it was ready.

The Squirrel swiped again at Graist, slicing across his face and knocking him unconscious on the floor. It then charged over to Mira, whacking her head with its bone club.

Excited that they might be able to get out, Integrity lept onto the frost pillar in front of her hugging it tight with her arms and legs. As soon as she made contact, it began to glow brightly and emit a low ringing sound. She then yelled at the Squirrel, attempting to taunt it away from her friend.

The Squirrel turned its head to look at Integrity, then teleported right next to her.

Winsler frantically ran to the centre pool, looking inside at the carvings. He realised they showed the phases of the moon, and each corresponded to a pillar and giant. Running over to the stone giant pillar, he slapped his hand against it.

As soon as he made contact, all of the pillars started to glow with moonlight, and any breaks or cracks fixed themselves. As well, the students saw the moon holograms fade away to reality, as they found themselves in the same room, with the Squirrel.

The illuminated half moon above the door grew to a full moon, and the stone began to stretch. Never opening, it stretched further and further back into the wall. From the door they heard the deep, dull ringing sound filling the room.

Now with a corporeal Integrity in front of it, the Squirrel whacked her with its club, throwing her off the pillar. Mira ran to an unconscious Graist, casting *Cure Wounds* to bring him back to them. Trying to disarm the Squirrel, Serinepth attempted to turn it into a caterpillar, though it resisted the effect.

The Squirrel then glared at Integrity, and opened its mouth to unleash a beam of moonlight in her direction. She managed to dodge the worst of the effect, and retaliated by telling a bad joke to try and make it laugh. It was not amused, and Integrity fled to the door, yelling at her friends that they should just leave.

As she crossed the threshold of the door, she felt her feet lift off the ground as she started floating in the air. From her friends perspective, she appeared to halt in the doorframe and stretch with the door.

Graist got up and also ran through the doorway. Winsler also ran to the stretched stone, taking a moment to *Catapult* a chunk of stone towards the Squirrel before jumping into the doorway.

The Squirrel slashed at Mira, wounding her deeply, then swung its club at Serinepth but missed. Mira then disengaged from the Squirrel and ran into the doorway. Serinepth quickly followed, firing off three *Scorching Rays* at the pillar next to the Squirrel, trying to collapse the room.

As the pillar shattered, Serinepth joined her friends through the door into a black void. Behind them, moon symbol above the door flashed through its different phases, including the symbols for each of the giants. After the cloud symbol, a giant rune appeared above the door, “*Honoured*.”

The floated along, watching the door disappear as they discussed where they were. After a few moments, Integrity realised that by thinking about it, she was able to move at will. Slowly the rest of the students began learning to figure out their movement in this void. Seeing nothing else around them, they all started to move back towards the door. As Mira got up to the door, the rune above it changed, and it moved back away from her.

Around them, the students saw their surroundings change to a familiar setting. The large trees and vibrant colours of the Plane of Isathil surrounded them.

The door in front of them remained, and they also noticed something new. A large, red stone temple that they hadn’t seen before.