[h3][url=https://i.imgur.com/b8GOn8K.png]Current Battle Map[/url]
Initiative![/h3]
22. Small Wolves
21. Dire Wolf
18. [@JBRam2002] - [url=https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/82/66/6d/82666de15f3a51f7b5887c13a1439a46--character-ideas-character-inspiration.jpg]Kiki Milaan[/url] - [url=https://dicecloud.com/character/EKP4jKmn8mSm7nd4L/Kiki-Milaan]Character Sheet[/url]
16. [@Gordian Nought] - [url=https://kondwanya.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/5c1575180cff47bc89574638fbf55731.jpg]Brim Gehenna[/url] - [url=https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=1326455]Character Sheet[/url]
11. [@Cu Chulainn] - [url=https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/fireemblem/images/4/47/Luthier_Echoes.png/revision/latest?cb=20170405125431]Seethe[/url] - [url=https://dicecloud.com/character/uNLQn3HE9EZPqtgSa/Seethe]Character Sheet[/url]
7. [@The Large Dumbo] - [url=https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/7/73/Kenku_by_Dave_Allsop.jpg/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/350?cb=20111007151025]Pebbles[/url] - [url=https://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=1325662]Character Sheet[/url]
[s]5. [@Samdragonx] - [url=https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/d5/f7/e2/d5f7e26ab5f2e2e0c92854f128836cf3--character-concept-character-art.jpg]Bar the Barbarian[/url] - [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4437080]Character Sheet[/url][/s]
4. [@Regitnui] - [url=https://i.imgur.com/4zL6Fpb.png]Cas[/url] - [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/posts/4438995]Character Sheet[/url]
4. [@The Grey Dust] - [url=http://orig15.deviantart.net/58bf/f/2015/292/d/b/tutelarius_by_len_yan-d9dogdx.jpg]"M" the Silent[/url] - [url=https://dicecloud.com/character/DDB5L52REuqZRqLkM/M-the-Silent]Character Sheet[/url]

The wolves swarm their attacker, furious at the sudden yet inevitable betrayal. The two smaller wolves effortlessly clamp their jaws down on Bar's body. The first wolf's attack is a [color=ed1c24][b]CRITICAL[/b][/color], dealing [color=ed1c24][b]11[/b][/color] damage! The second was almost just as fierce, dealing [color=ed1c24][b]8[/b][/color] damage. Bar is KO'd!

The Dire Wolf snarled at the fallen foe, lowering its jaws to feast. Melee attacks against a KO'd foe are automatically critical hits. The Dire Wolf deals [color=ed1c24][b]18[/b][/color] damage. Bar has been killed.

[@JBRam2002] - Kiki drew an arrow and nocked it to her bow, but fear stayed her hand. She will hold her action until Ardiane acts.

[@Gordian Nought] - The mute, quietly brilliant, offered the lost happiness to the diverged Cerberus, the three acting as one triune entity, feeding off the green spoils of the previous skirmish. The hunger of the horrid crew appeared vanquished, rolling and masticating the sinews presented by the silent mystic. However, the barrage of betrayal was not over as the half-blood violently charged the leader of the pack, extending another verdant morsel. Within an instant, flesh was rent from bone as screams bellowed from the chained beasts, as the barbarian lost the life in his motionless eyes, witness firsthand, the power of famine. The stone sorcerer edged past Kiki, in a playful stance, as he charged his whip from his buckled pelt. He snapped the leathery vine intimidatingly in hopes that the listless wolves would quash their meal for an interim, to salvage the carcass from any further desecration. [Brim rolls an Intimidation of 13, hoping the whip's cackles would drive the wolves back.]

[@The Large Dumbo] - Pebbles flinched for a moment as he watched the barbarian get slaughtered almost instantly by the wolves. He was about to warn him not to go in and aggravate the already appeased beasts, raising a feathered hand in objection, but froze once the first wolf attacked. He looked around to the other party members for a moment, thinking to himself as he drew his bow. Pebbles quietly took a headcount, before noticing a certain somebody was missing. An aggravated grunt forced it's way from his throat, as he moved back behind the others. "Disgusting!" He shouted, replicating Seethe's voice to the best of his ability. Hopefully that would draw his attention, but in the meantime Pebbles nocked an arrow and held it ready, should the wolves advance towards the party.

[@Regitnui] - Ardiane squeaked, her hands coming up to her face to stifle what would have no doubt been a loud scream had she not. The nausea rising in her gut couldn't be stifled, and she doubled over as her stomach heaved. "Kiki," she weakly tugged on the other woman's top. "I..." She went to her knees, some voice in the back of her mind urging her to stand up. "Wanna go," she slurred, pressing her free hand against her mouth to hold back her body's reaction to violent death. She should never have left the tavern.

[@JBRam2002] - (taking reaction for held action) At Ardiane's insistance, Kiki's arrow returns to its quiver and her bow to her shoulder. These wolves did not need to die. They were leashed, and the only way they could hurt anyone was if they got close, right? Instead, she put her arm around Ardiane, helping her to move further into the caves away from the sight. 

[@The Grey Dust] - Fool! What blundering idiot would think to agitate the den of wolves? What clown would dare strike down Cerberus without Herculean might? All they had to do was leave while the beasts had their mouths full, but lo! The green orc with an axe to grind, taking upon himself to spell doom for the party by striking the hound clean while they ate. Such poor manners were not tolerated by the dogs, though the reckoning came swift and bloody. The scene still fresh in the mind as the meat on the bitten bones. The screaming shouts in foreign tongue, bitterly hollering all too late. His anger understandable, but alas his hubris had sealed his fate. Flesh torn apart, fangs sunk in deep, Dire hounds of muscle and fur tackling him to the ground before his innards burst in an anointing bath of blood. There the abdominal wall of green David was cut open, claws ripping into the muscular barbarian's chest. The ripping of meat from bone, tendon and sinew in jowls chewed over. Behold the sight, learn what became of vile betrayers, the blessed battleborn blood a beautiful bounty of barbarian beef. Lifeless limbs shaken, what power and vigor once flowed within shall succumb to death's rigor. And what will be left to bury once all the food is gone? When the last snippets and bits of Bar were wolfed down ravenous gullets? The bones surely would be snapped in the teeth of the great wolf, and never would Bar pollute the party with his idiocy. Good riddance to him, his purpose as meat shield did not last long. But alas, even the dimmest candle is blown out once its purposes is done.

Enough of this. They still growling despite their new meal. Perhaps it they were mistaken in believe such an uncouth half-breed would have been such tender sweetmeats. The horrific sight appeared to have shaken Ardiane, but the rest of the men and Kiki turned to action. With whip that cracked to punish them, the thone thorzerer made his point. And so too would the silent member, clever enough to have sated them the first time, the psion took to Brim's far side, letting the attackers behind him keep their line of sight. With eyes of a master, borrowed from the noosphere, the mind asked to demonstrate the hierarchy here. To reestablish dominance in order, not by sharpened edge, but rather by the threat of pain and appearance of authority. A palm thrust out and downwards, his eyes locked with those of the three moons. The quiet intensity of his expression frowning all the slightest as his brows furrowed in.

[@JBRam2002] - The wolves strain at their bonds in a fury, seemingly undeterred by either the sorcerer or the mystic, and their chains snapped. The Dire Wolf, however, was still held fast, its chains seemingly stronger. The dire wolf snarled and the other wolves reached their prey, seemingly intent on their attack.

Kiki, seeing the wolves charge at the group, pulled her blades free. "Sorry, Ardiane. Looks like we have no other option now." The blades whirred at the charging wolf, slashing it twice across the snout for a total of [color=00aeef][b]15[/b][/color] damage, killing it instantly. A look of regret passed her face for a moment, but she stepped forward to block Ardiane from danger.

[@Gordian Nought] - With chains broken, the rogue struck true, with a sweltering clout of burning steel. Realizing the Dactylian ferocity amidst the boiling pack now, the malodorous goliath quickly kindled a promethean farenheit amongst the clenched knuckles of his left hand, from within the cavernous fissure’s inlet. Between each finger sprouted a phoenix flickering a miraculous conflagration, transcending from the ash of the sorcerer’s charred skin. The embers soon coalesced into a burning bush cackling a holy heresy, not consecrated to a Vesta nor to a Vulcan, but to a sentenced immolation, in the cold ire of Topheth and Polycarp. The gripped furnace of Nebuchadnezzar seemed only interested in the remaining Shadrach and Meshach, as Kiki had already slain the proverbial Abednego.  Abruptly as a kiln’s intended purification, Brim hurled a screeching river of liquid fire at the Dire Wolf, hoping the Phelgethon would consume its targeted Agni in his crusade to avenge their barbarian ilk. [Brim casts Firebolt on the Dire Wolf with a 12, but misses.]

[@Cu Chulainn] - Seethe was annoyed at hearing the overgrown bird taunt him in such a fashion. Walking over a few paces down to get a better look at what's happening, although not even daring to touch the water itself, the Genasi watched the group quarreled with a group of recently chained wolves, with Bar's body lying on the ground. Seethe could only imagine how the poor brute died, before directing his palm straight into his face. "Yeah, hold on." Seethe groaned, as he worked on rolling up his robes. Did he plan to cross the river, after all? [Seethe walks down three squares southwest, staying on the ground and avoiding touching the water. He then rolls up his premium robes.]

[@The Large Dumbo] - Pebbles stood silent, rather annoyed at the nonchalant response. He grabbed an arrow, and for a brief second wondered what exactly compelled him to take this job again. One of their allies had thrown himself to the wolves, one of them was now actively cowering in the face of danger, and one of them was diddling themselves by the river. With a shrug, he completed the gesture, arming the bow before taking aim again and letting it fly loose. Ten gold was ten gold, after all. Hopefully this shot would hit, culling one of the furry, wolf-shaped problems Pebbles was looking at. [fired a shot from my longbow at Wolf A, 15 to hit and dealing 8 damage.]

[@Regitnui] - Perhaps it's time to drop the half-elf, Cas thought, still mildly nauseous despite dropping Ardiane's mind to cry in a mental corner, even if she kept the blonde, busty form. Reaching down to her thigh, she pulled out a dagger where Ardiane would be too embarrassed to look. "Faas ru maar!" she snapped, the Draconic leaving Ardiane's pretty mouth with a viciousness the woman herself would be shocked she could use. She forced herself to her feet, a hand on Kiki's shoulder to balance her. [2 psychic damage on remaining wolf (rolled 12 on Wis save vs DC 13), disadvantage on next wolf attack]

[@The Grey Dust] - [i]Now this is the law of the jungle, as old and as true as the sky,
And the wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the wolf that shall break it must die.
As the creeper that girdles the tree trunk, the law runneth forward and back;
For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack!
[/i]
- [i]The Law For the Wolves[/i], Rudyard Kipling

The wolf escaping the man's red fire, fell to arrow. The hunter's hide pierced with a hunter's shot. The wound deep and painful, taxing on the body as it fought to survive. Hair raised and bristled, teeth bared to show its last resolve. It would fight not and not be whipped like its compatriot. Though the sudden shout of the formerly cowering bard was a surprise to both it and the psion. So it was a battle then, inescapable as the conflict seemed. The larger wolf may give the party trouble, yet to allow creature of a pack to stand together? When you fight with a wolf of the pack, you must fight him alone and afar, Lest others take part in the quarrel and the pack is diminished by war. Tis the law of the jungle. And the motley crew was proof of that. Bar had went in alone against the wolf pack attack, and became their fresher meal. Thus with his mind turned to battle, the silent one made his peace with bringing death to these dogs of war. Their innocence a sad regret, that they had to simply die. They merely followed the ancient law, guardians of a beast, slaves to wretched creatures that starved them to maim and bite. At least, then he can offer them that dignity they can have left. And unlike Kiki and her blades, the mute turned his mind to the weakened wolf.

[hider=Poem]Blessed Elysium. 
The tickle behind the ear,
Perfect place of pleasure,
That divine spot.
Lie down and feel,
Curled into the warmth.
Lick your filled jowls,
Close your eyes to dream.
The will to fight put down,
At peace with the silence.
Softly into Death's embrace.[/hider]
[hider=mechanics]
Bonus action: Switch Psychic Focus from Nomadic Mind (animal handling) to Psychic Assault
Action: Mind Thrust on remaining Wolf 2 (not Dire wolf) = DC 13 Int  - FAILED
    Mind Thrust on remaining Wolf 2 Damage = 1d10 + 2 = (4) + 2 = 6
Outcome: Wolf 2 Dead.[/hider]
The Dire Wolf finally breaks its chains and charges towards M and Kiki, its teeth bared. 

[@JBRam2002] - Kiki was ready for the wolf, slashing at its face with her rapier as it approached. The wolf shook its head to relieve the pain, causing her second attack to miss terribly, but it looked like she dealt a lot of damage. [color=00aeef][b]14[/b][/color] precisely.

[@Gordian Nought] - The enormous wolf bolted, lightning fast at the troupe, in its ravenous race for further chow. The visceral fodder of Bar apparently served as a mere foretaste to the fiend. Its fur mocked Brim, with each hair standing on its edge, as if the very electricity in the air harnessed the entropy of its hunger, consuming the static atmosphere with trepidation and mourning. The putrid sorcerer anticipated a thunderous solution to this aggressive flash from the titan against Kiki, the silent M, and himself. He dashed around the titan terror, flanking the monster. With a crack of his whip, booming energy wrapped around the twine, exhibiting a mythic Indra commanding a rumbling cord, to weather the tumultuous storm gnawing at their heels. 
“Ova’ he’e, you bwute!”

[hider=Mechanics]
Brim flanks (2 squares above Bar’s icon, behind the DW) and strikes with advantage with whip with a 22, landing 4 damage, and the Dire Wolf is engulfed in booming energy. If it willingly moves before the start of Brim’s next turn, it immediately takes another 7 damage.
[/hider]
[@Cu Chulainn] - Seethe walks 5 feet back, before walking 5 feet forward and performing a running long jump over the river. He then runs 10 more feet West. Seethe then casts Ray of Frost, hitting the Dire Wolf and dealing a whopping 2 Cold damage as well as reducing its speed by 10 feet.

[@The Large Dumbo] - Pebbles gave a blank look to Seethe, before taking aim with his bow again and aiming a shot, this time at the Dire Wolf. As lucky as he had been on those previous two shots, it seemed that it was only that - luck - as the arrow sailed just barely past the wolf. He wasn't quite dumb enough to charge at the wolf, although he still was not particularly keen on wasting arrows making potshots at the wolf. [fired a shot from his longbow, missed with a 12]

[@Regitnui] - "Hey, fuzzy, stay away from my Kiki!" Cas snapped, lacing it with the subtle magic she'd used last time. Whatever Ardiane thought about weapons, she's never leaving the carriage without that crossbow again. It cost good time to seduce that bowyer into making and enchanting it for her for free. [Casting [i]Vicious Mockery[/i], hitting for 2 damage.]

[@The Grey Dust] - [i]How frozen and how faint I then became,
Ask me not, reader! for I write it not;
Since words would fail to tell thee of my state.
I was not dead nor living.

-Inferno, Canto XXXIV, Lines 22-25[/i]

Rimefire frostbite, a chill cold that it burns. Twas strange to see a creature of flame and fire burn a foe with a blast of ice. Yet for whatever reason the arrogant mage decided it was time to join the foray after beating around in the bushes, or whatever it was the fiery genasi was doing. At least the unexpected ray of frost did not misfire as much as the arrow shot by the crow behind them, or the fireball cast by their other spellcaster who had redeemed himself with his lash. Though worn down from Kiki's blades and Cas' vicious taunting, the dire wolf still had some fight left. But it was time to finish this foray, lest the goblins catch on quickly by the gnashing of teeth and claws. It served him, the barbarian, right to be mauled alive, to have suffered such a fate. By the three heads that engorged themselves, gnawing on the bones and flesh, that Bar's last moments of life be remembered in his eternal torment, constantly reliving the nightmare in the afterlife as his deserved punishment. For what wickedness he had to betray them, what schemes did he have to destroy the entire party by pursuing his own self interest? Indeed it was a judgment rendered most worthy, and yet his tormentors would be prisoners just as well. Time to send Bar one final head to seal his retribution. There the mute's eyes gazed into those lupine eyes and searing the experience into the animal's mind.

Hell froze over. Submerged in the freezing waters of Cocytus, fur bristled to the chill of cold waters. A shiver of muscle, a futile effort to conserve what dying heat was sapped by the eternal reign of winter undying. The frigid hands of death grasped the paws, frost sheathed the body in a cloak of ice. The heart rate quickens in panic, and then slows, painfully as the terrible torpor sinks in. The mindnumbing down, limbs stiffened and pale, everything shutting off to sleep. A slow death encased and entombed in bitter hypothermia, the mind feeling the shock of it all and unable to regulate the homeostasis it need to stay alive. Then and there with glassy eyes stare back at the psion. 

Everything stopped, frozen as the growling halted and the wolf was seemingly locked in time, as if paralyzed by the gaze of the silent party member who approached the dead Dire wolf without fear of being bitten. It was time to reap the bounty, they had entered the inferno and now they shall harvest the spoils. Bar would no longer need what he passed on to the remaining living members. Perhaps an obol placed his the mangled remains of wherever his mouth was? Who would give last rites to their Orc Dunce?

[hider=mechanics]
Action: Mind Thrust on Dire Wolf = DC 13 Int  - FAILED
Mind Thrust on Dire Wolf Damage = 1d10 + 2 = (6) + 2 = 8
Outcome: Dire Wolf Dead.
[/hider]
[h3]Combat Complete![/h3]
The party gains [color=fff200][b]300 EXP[/b][/color].