Episode 154 - The Battle Above the Abyss Part 4

We have put it off as long as we could but there is not turning back from fate, I guess. All of the other avenues we explored didn’t pan out so it looks like there is no other choice but to swing this hammer to save the world. We four adventurers knew this day was coming and now that it is finally here we know that our victory over the Demons will be hollow. Yes, the world will be saved, which is definitely a good thing. But… one of us will die.

## **Story**

The party takes a short rest, in order to sure themselves up before facing their fiercest opponent.

Harper pulls Jaela aside and tells her that he will do "whatever it takes" to keep Aludra alive - and that he'll do anything he has to in order to keep her alive... including promising to protect her for Jaela's reincarnation if she were to use the hammer. The two pour over their respect and love of one another for a moment, before agreeing that they will prevent Aludra from using the hammer, no matter what.

Once they have steeled themselves, the party ventures into the next room: where they are greeted by a hot and humid room with a lone figure standing on the opposite side of the room. Fennekin greets them.

Harper runs into the room, falls to his knees, and declares that Fennekin is still his master, and offers to exchange the Hammer of Sundering for the party's lives. Fennekin seems suspicious, but his love of chaos and overconfidence urged him to take the hammer anyway... And after he inspects the hammer, realizes it's a fake - as Harper shrieks and attempts to tackle Fennekin.

Fennekin, as Harper gets the drop on him, manages only to raise a wall of spinning blades between Titus Harper and the rest of the party. Harper, seeing the magic spring to life, tapped into his storm's soul and summoned an air elemental to help him overcome the evil cleric of Orcus.

The air elemental surges forward, scoops up the Brazier of Worlds, and hurls it through the blade wall - away from Fennekin and closer to the rest of the party.

Thom, true to himself and his head-first mentality, rushed through the spinning wall of razor sharp blades in order to close the distance on Fennekin and bring the fight straight to him, taking serious damage in the process, much to his elation.

Aludra taps into her divine wellspring of power and flares Fennekin with her patented Moon Beam! For six (6) radiant damage.... they can't all be winners.

Fennekin, engulfed in ghostly flamed and accosted by a raging dragonborn, grabs Thom and channels his necrotic energy into the scaled barbarian. The dark energy still flickering on his fingertips, Fennekin is buffeted by howling winds from the Air Elemental - but shrugs it off. Thom lashes out and hacks Fennekin with two mighty "slap-chops" - staggering the cleric.

Aludra sees the brazier and runs to it... her objective in sight... but in her moment of weakness, a moment of unease... she hesitates... and sprints back to Jaela, who had been crying out for her.

Fennekin sees the party surrounding the Brazier of Worlds and angrily summons a storm of blazing fire on Aludra and Jaela. Jaela, panicked and afraid that Aludra will use the Hammer of Sundering, asks her girlfriend to hand it over to her for safe keeping - but hen Aludra checks for the hammer, it is missing from the bag of holding!

Harper's Air Elemental smashes Fennekin, throwing him through the wall of blades back toward the rest of the party, making him lose concentration on the spell - freeing Thom to move unimpeded. Fennekin tumbles backward, landing face first on the ground, just as Harper conjures a massive storm of ice and sleet. Thom chases his prey back across the room and jabs his greatsword into the Cleric again, sliding comically on the icy floor. Aludra shifts her moonbeam to pelt the prostrate cleric again - reigniting him in radiant flames... it's a bad day to be orange-themed Orcus clerics.

As the radiant energy sears his flesh, his skin begins to bubble away, bat-like wings sprout from his back, and his face elongates into a vicious muzzle of gnarled teeth. His demonic form has taken over. He pushes his way to Jaela and mauls her to the edge of death.

Jaela retaliates, getting in one good hit with her polished halberd as the Air Elemental glides to Fennekin side, lashing out, in vain, with its airy fists. Thom charges forward, slashing wildly at Fennekin (2nd form) - managing a glancing blow... but cracks begin to form in his demonic visage - as he expands and grows twice as large. The ceiling shatters as Fennekin takes on the form of Orcus himself. Fennekin looks down nearly ten stories, picks up the brazier of worlds, and laughs at the party's attempts to stop him.

**--- UTTERLY AWKWARD CONVERSATION ABOUT THE LOCATION OF THE HAMMER OF SUNDERING.... ---**

Thom.. uh... well, he like... Okay, so he has the hammer in his hand, right? But he's trying to hold Blood Drinker too - and Nika Howard (no, not Jaela), wants Thom to drop Blood Drinker so it's not broken? but... Thom is tossing the hammer to Aludra and he accidentally hits Fennekin?? But ya know... some kind of swinging motion happens and taps Fennekin's foot.

Fennekin's body begins to splinter and disintegrate - the line of energy travels up his body, to the brazier, destroying both Fennekin and the Brazier of Worlds. Thom falls to his knees, his hand beginning to disintegrate as well... his body starts to co- (Nika asks about Blood Drinker being safe again, even though she's a pole arm master and will never use it)-llapse into nothingness... "This is awesome..." He says, as close to death as he's ever truly been.

Jaela swoops in and holds Thom close as he slips away. Ros and Bucky, riding a Pegasus, fly into the now collapsed roof. Thom tells her that in order for Blood Drinker to be controlled by her... She must plunge it into the heart of the last Pegasus, Princess Ivy Bluemoon - who Ros is riding.

Bucky runs to his father's side and in his last moments, Thom admits to loving Bucky like his own, and tells Bucky to kill the Pegasus before Jaela can beat him to it. Jaela and Bucky lock eyes and begin a frantic search for Blood Drinker in order to murder the final Pegasus. Aludra, despite Thom's disgusting transition to pretty much necrotic damage, consoles him as well - along with Harper, they say goodbye to their friend... Who then admits he hasn't seen Steve Meloncamp in weeks!

 **--- Shit gets really weird for a minutes here ---**

*Fin*

## **Trivia**

* Jaela spends an entire turn groping Aludra's bottom... priorities, people
* Nika Howard freaks the hell out when Aludra stands at the brazier, contemplating finishing their quest in one swing of the Hammer of Sundering
* It is suspected that Wiggins the mouse could use and/or stole the hammer
* Standing up does NOT provoke attacks of opportunity in 5e, but Pole Arm Masters CAN attack anyone who enters a threatened square...
* In his last moments... Thom sees the players
* The only thing harder than Blooddrinker is Thom's dick.
* Princess Ivy Bluemoon has Pegasus Diabetes

## **In This Episode...**

### **Cast and Player Characters**

* Michael DiMauro - *Dungeon Master*
* Tim Lanning - Lord Titus Harper
* Jennifer Cheek - Aludra Wyrmsbane
* Mike Bachmann - Thom Vidalis
* Nika Howard - Jaela

### **Non-Player Characters**

* Bucky
* Fennekin
* Ros

### **Quest Log Updates**

* ~~[Complete] - End the Demon Apocalypse / Kill Fennekin~~
	+ ~~[Complete] - Destroy the Demon Portal device with the Hammer of Sundering~~

### **Quotes**

**"I TRUST FUCKING ALL OF YOU!"** ~ *Lord Titus Harper*

**"Can I kill the Pegasus and then cut of his dick?"** ~ *Jaela*