Expedition Stage 3: Deep Underground pt 1

Jack corners Thorne about his secret plan.  "You know," Thorne said, an amused smile under all the beard, "Originally I had planned on having her duplicate Ben and we were going to hogtie him and leave him in DC.  But he caught on to that and I had to go with plan B, which was to duplicate Fritzi and proceed according to a particular timetable that would give us help exactly when we needed it.  The Boss isn't the only one who made friends with Luke Macey."

Bruno's growl came next, deep and menacing; the hellhound hunched his massive shoulders and bared long teeth.  Spider quickly went to one side of the tunnel as Jack took the other; Thorne crouched next to Bruno, freeing the hellhound from the sled, while Ben readied a spell, standing behind Spider.

There was a chemical smell to the tunnel, pervasively oily and foul.  It reminded them of the Shoggoth; but Bruno had been afraid of It.  Shadows lay deep in the tunnel, the lichen lighting the way having been damaged.   The crouched hellhound suddenly bounded forward, baying a challenge.  "Dammit !"  Thorne shouted, and cracked one of the glowsticks, lobbing it past Bruno.  The darkness was a mass of oozing shapes, roiling towards them like an unstoppable tidal wave.  Bruno met them tooth and claw, and the darkness rolled over him.


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GM:  Please respond with actions, etc, for the next minute of game time, by 13 August, Saturday; next post is Sunday.
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Spider immediately ignited a flare and tossed it towards the roiling mass, hoping to drive it back, and give Bruno a chance to free himself.  "Fire!  As much as we can!" he shouted.

Jack draws the flare pistol and takes aim quickly but carefully, shooting the flaming projectile a few feet to one side of Bruno, and a few feet past him. He wants to hit near the center of the chaotic mass but not hit the hellhound, even though it's probably immune.
     Jack then draws the wand and prepares to throw up a shield to keep the awfulness away from himself and his friends and their gear, if necessary. If it looks like he must use the wand, he will invoke the goddess: "I beg you, o mighty Athena, mistress of wisdom, most skilled in arms, protect your servants from this vile chaos from beyond our world."