The Lays of the Thirteen Claws League - Session 93

      Our last session was Thursday (2021/04/08). This is another sort-of-IC retrospective by Bert, the party's thief locksmith-turned-bard. Bert himself pulled a sicky, so that his player could try out a new character, Anubesia of Ultioch, for the fight with the lich. I give +1 character point (XP) for those players who submit a summary for me to post here on the blog. 

    The Lays of the Thirteen Claws League

Canto 8:

Part 5: 

My fever rages, I begin to flake

out – what I last said about our Hemmu

taking out her Axam was a mistake

it was her big hammer she’d continue

to use, not that there was much she could do

with it, as the lich played pantomime

with us, teleporting so that no true

shot could land upon Her to end that crime

against nature, and they were running out of time. 

Back to back they all waited in the mist

waiting for the hidden lich, all the while:

but not one of them would ever have wished

to be anyplace else than here, a smile

was on Hemmu’s face as she tried to rile

the lichess into making an error

– waiting to fight was not really her style.

Then the lich tried to create some terror

– a missile from the mist!  Lightning and then thunder.

But she missed, giving Lady Miao a clue

about where she was, thus beginning a duel

as Miao stabbed and the Lich Marquessa true

to form blinked off making Miao look a fool

and so they danced in a strange sort of cruel

ballet, until Miao hit on - rejoice! -

using some holy water as her tool

but the enchantress replied in a voice

sounding like grass dying in deep winter: “wrong choice!”

Meanwhile there was comedy in the fog

with rushing around Anubesia

so nearly catching her feet on the log

like form of our Davin.  An easier

mistake was when Hemmu couldn’t see her

way and ran off in the wrong direction.

Meanwhile, Yvor was in the grip of fear

(caused again by the lich’s projection.)

The lich thus gained time to add magick protection.

Emberwood, even down though on the ground

was not out of the fight, he had power

still, and when the tumult of battle found

the lich next to him, he didn’t cower

but tried a great spell to disenchant her.

The foe was slightly declawed, but her will

was great and hate for Davin grew sour

in her mind, she determined to kill

him: but he’d resist her until his heart was still.

Yvor, exhausted by magick attacks,

ploughed on while Miao Miao flittered like a dove

of war till they came to each others backs:

standing together, projecting, above

all, force, both fighting on: fist in glove.

So, when, from the mist, the foe got behind

Miao, and her beau used the power of love

to shield her, showing great presence of mind,

theirs was a partnership both precise and refined.

The fight went on as war of manoeuvre:

the lich’s blows were beginning to tell

as she’d ambush my friends from the cover

of the fog: Jenkins and Warrian fell

she nearly murdered our Adam as well

but Davin used his life force, while grounded,

to blink him to safety, with a quick spell.

She turned her fury on Davin instead:

for his bravery he was mortally wounded.

The shedding of our blood didn’t stop there:

Anu and Hemmu fought at close quarters,

She didn’t blink away, just didn’t care

about the threat from these Furies’ daughters

but they landed telling blows which taught us

She could be hurt, but it took a lot of work

and she still continued in her slaughters

ripping through Hemmu, who would still not shirk

the fighting, instead, she went completely berserk!