The crack of the quarterstaff on the ground as it fell was accompanied by the dull thud of the monster's head under the half-blood's fist. It's body gravely wounded by the chop of the goliath's handaxe, a weapon that appeared small only when wielded by her hands, it fell for good this time and did not stir even slightly. If the monk had finished the beast off or if it were merely in the process of dying when he struck none would ever be any the wiser - there would be no answer. As it slumped, one of the rats flung its filthy, snarling body past the dulled paladin whose blade missed, its menacing bite however small failing to strike the orcish man as he shouldered it back. Another failed attack, as was the one that led the fighter to swinging his axe again in a fell chop, only for an arrow to do the work for him, fired by the elf.

This left one lone [i]dire rat[/i] that reared up, its beady eyes as wide as they could be, and in a moment it bolted to flee. It may well have been an animal but it was not stupid. It had seen and experienced the slaughter for itself and as it went to run, the wounded man and the giant of a woman found themselves at moment's notice prepared to swing. If it escaped, it might be gone for good, never to trouble them again, or many more rats might suddenly be upon them...

Yet there was no chance for it to, for as the holy warrior surging with need for redemption struck with lunging slash of his steely blade, his hit slowed the rat and hacked at its back. It fell, limp from the middle down, only to instantly be decapitated by the brutal hack of Vah'lux's axe. No more, it failed in its efforts.

[hider=Effects]
Vah'lux will hit and near outright kill the last large rat, only for Gorosk to finish it off. The fighting man that is de Brey misses his attack, only to have Tracan fire an arrow to kill the second to last and smaller [i]dire rat[/i] while the other one flees. It provokes an attack of opportunity from the characters of [@Lord Wyron] and [@Hellion]. If they do not hit and kill the rat, it will escape.

Beaumont and Vah'lux's attacks of opportunity will kill the fleeing rat outright. The party has defeated the encounter and all characters have earned 150 Experience Points. They may now explore the area before moving on.
[/hider]
[@BangoSkank][@Hellion][@Lord Wyron][@TyrannosaursRex]