Nick wanted to curse his stupid character for thinking it was alright to not level up. He hoped Grizzizzik learned his lesson, and he seriously hoped his rogue survived long enough to do better.

Tyler wrote everyone’s initiative numbers, then wiggled his fingers, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead. “Alright. As the electricity leaves, some far more battered and bruised than the others, you all notice Grizzizzik has dropped to the ground unconscious. Grizzizzik, you’re top of the round. Make a death saving throw.”

Nick shook his head, picking up his d20. They did not need this right now. Grizzizzik was holding them back. The die clattered on the table. “Seventeen. Success.”

Tyler let out a sigh of relief. “Hraktar, you’re up next. What do you do?”

Alejandra had her palms against her forehead, looking panicked. “Hraktar does not hesitate. He shakes off the lightning, pulls out his great sword and goes straight for Akshi.”

“Roll to hit,” Tyler said.

Alejandra did so. It was strange to see other people rolling. Nick could almost convince himself that this was nothing more than a session of regular CCNC, but the past couple of months had been too insane for him to go back to that.

Alejandra counted on her fingers quickly. “Nineteen.”

“Nineteen hits. Roll damage.”

She picked up a d6, and another one appeared. She blinked, but picked that one up as well and gave both of them a good shake. They landed on the table, and she hesitated before picking up the other one and shaking it again. She swore under her breath before she again counted on her fingers. “Eight.” She sounded disappointed. Tyler made a note of it.

“Hraktar picks up his great sword, and with a yell runs straight for Akshi. The crime lord of Osvoroth is expecting the brutality, and tries to sidestep it, but the sword causes a deep gash in Akshi’s arm. Ezekiel? You’re…” Tyler frowned. “Make a nature check.”

Rafael winced, pulling out his d20. “I have my wildlife coin, therefore I get an added d4 bonus.”

Tyler nodded. “Please do.”

Rafael rolled the d20 and d4. His stiff shoulders relaxed as he glanced at Tyler. “Nineteen?”

Tyler let out a breath. “Success. You don’t turn into a wererat right now. I will ask for another roll once you get hit again.” Everyone else breathed a sigh of relief, too. “What are you doing?”

“I grab a hold of my medallion and cast preserve life,” Rafael said.

“Alright. You have twenty hit points to distribute wherever you’d like,” Tyler said.

“I bump myself up to ten hit points to test a theory,” Rafael said. “And then I dump the rest on Grizzizzik.”

“It only allows you to heal as much as half your hit points. I can’t take all seventeen,” Nick said.

No one listened to him. At first he thought it was general nerves, but then remembered it was because no one heard him when he talked about Grizzizzik being level three. Grizzizzik didn’t have the hit points like everyone else. Nick rubbed the back of his neck, trying to breathe deeply as his character sheet reflected fifteen hit points. Instead, he saw Clarissa’s hit points bump up a little. At least they wouldn’t go to waste.

“Grizzizzik gasps awake and takes a second to orient himself,” Tyler said. “Is that everything?”

“No, I… hmm, I guess I can do a cantrip,” Rafael said.

“Yeah.”

“Um, sacred flame.”

Tyler rolled his own d20, failing to hide his smile. “Seven. Not enough. Akshi fails the save.”

Rafael relaxed, then picked up a d6 and gave it a roll before checking his chart. “Um, seven.”

Tyler nodded, writing this down. “Nice. Milo?”

“I’d like to start with a bonus action of hitting Akshi with a firebolt.” Derek shook his d20. He let it roll, then winced. “Twelve?”

“Misses. Akshi, getting into the rhythm of the fighting, finally dodges the bolt of fire headed for his face, sneering at Milo.”

Derek grumbled. “I take an action to start on my cannon. Though I look at Ezekiel and say, ‘We’ve got to find the sword. We can’t fight him, we’re not strong enough.’”

Rafael glanced at the minifigures. “‘There’s just one of him. We distract him, and you get into the house to find a sword.’”

“‘I have no idea where it is!’” Derek said.

“‘You’re an investigator. Use those skills,’” Rafael said.

Evelyn glanced at Tyler. “Is Akshi hearing this?”

A clattering sound behind the screen came as Tyler rolled one of his dice. “He’s pretty distracted by seeing Grizzizzik standing up and preparing to fight. In fact, Grizzizzik, make a constitution saving throw for me.”

Nick grabbed his d20 and gave it a roll. It landed on a six, which made him wince. He checked the modifier. “Eight.”

“Akshi reaches out, grabbing Grizzizzik’s shoulder and biting down hard. You get poison damage, but…”

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“But he’s got a tat for that,” Nick said.

“And I’m so incredibly glad he does.” Tyler checked his notes. “Alright, so the poison runs straight for his wrists, and a bright violet light comes up against the tattoo on his wrist, filling the jar with poison before—” Tyler made a popping noise, “—it disappears off your wrist. Princess? You're next.”

“She casts the totem of the bear, giving everyone an added nine points of health.” Evelyn shrugged. “I’ll have to use the other totems sometime.”

“I’m a pretty big fan of this one.” Derek lifted his character sheet, watching the added number appear.

Grizzizzik was up to twenty-one hit points. Four points away from full health, which didn’t seem as good, considering everyone else had over thirty health points. Evelyn picked up her paper, frowning, then glancing at Clarissa’s miniature. “That was a bonus action. Am I far enough away to use my bow?”

Tyler glanced at the miniature battle. “Yeah. Go ahead.”

“Alright, I use my short bow to deal damage.” Evelyn picked up the d20 and got a hit. What was equally nice was landing on a six with her d6. With the +2, it was some pretty good damage with a short bow. Nick felt strangely optimistic about the whole thing, which couldn’t have been good. He should never feel too optimistic when dealing with Akshi, but it was five against one.

“Alright, now we go to Grizzizzik again,” Tyler said.

“Goes with his rapier. As always.” Nick picked up the d20 and rolled it. “Ah, shit. Four.” Nick didn’t bother putting in the modifier. Grizzizzik was not Hraktar.

Tyler had his eyes closed. “Grizzizzik goes for a lunge, but Akshi dodges it, like he’s almost expecting it. Grizzizzik realizes that his nemesis knows him far too well, predicting too many of his moves.”

Alejandra picked up her dice. “Am I next?”

Tyler about said something, but then stopped. He held up a finger, the worried yet concentrated look on his face falling to one of terror. He glanced through his notes before wincing. “Through the darkness comes a figure.”

Derek covered his face and groaned. “Oh shit. No, no, no. Not now.”

“She’s wearing a skintight black leather dress. Her eyes blazing red fixed on Milo.”

Derek shook his head. “Milo stops building his cannon, freezing in complete terror.”

“‘Hello, sugar,’” Tyler said as Pippa.

Derek covered his face. Nick waited, not even sure what was going to happen. He shouldn’t have been so optimistic.

Tyler sighed. “Any of your attack rolls against her will be at a disadvantage.”

Derek mumbled his curses under his breath.

Rafael had his hands over his mouth before he dropped them. “‘Hraktar, focus on Pippa. The rest of us, we’ll take Akshi. Milo, break away and find the sword.’”

Tyler was writing something, then placed his pencil down. “Akshi laughs. ‘Please, Milo. Try,’ he says.” Tyler picked up Pippa’s miniature and moved it toward Milo’s. “She mutters infernal to her club, the spikes extending as she goes for Milo.” Tyler rolled the d20. “Nineteen?”

“Obviously hits,” Derek said, covering his face with his palms.

Tyler rolled some more dice, worried. “She slams her club, causing a gash across your forehead.” Tyler lifted his arm, bringing it down with an emphasis of it smacking flesh. “You stumble back, taking six points of bludgeoning damage. ‘I’ve missed you,’ she says.” Derek dropped his hands long enough to reach for a pencil, but the character sheet made its own mark on the page. “As long as Pippa is in sight, every attack roll Milo makes with her present is at a disadvantage.” Derek muttered another curse as Tyler moved his gaze toward Alejandra. “Now it’s Hraktar’s turn.”

Alejandra watched the whole thing with wide eyes. “Hraktar sees what this is doing to Milo, and rushes after Pippa, his great sword ready, and makes a swing.” She picked up the d20 and gave it a roll and counted on her fingers. “Eighteen.”

“Hits. Roll damage,” Tyler said.

She rolled the two d6’s, again doing more counting on her fingers. “Twelve.”

“Perfect,” Tyler said, making a note of it. “With a shout, Hraktar barrels toward Pippa, the great sword, a deep cut appearing across her shoulder. She laughs, turning toward Hraktar. ‘I knew you’d never let a silly thing like my gender stop your orcish brutality.’”

Alejandra’s eyes widened. “Oh, that… might have inspired him to action surge against her.”

“Go for it.” Tyler nodded toward her dice.

Alejandra rolled the d20 and counted. “Twenty-one.”

“Nice. How much damage?” Tyler picked up his pencil.

Alejandra rolled again. “Thirteen.”

Tyler chuckled as he wrote it down. “Never mess with a half orc, clearly.” He closed his eyes. “And… she laughs again as the sword slices against her black leather dress, blood leaking from a wound that’s…” Tyler cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. “‘I’ll have Milo check the wound later.’ Ezekiel, you’re next.”

Rafael was scrolling on his phone, most likely checking the spells on his list. “Ezekiel runs toward Milo,” he said as Derek moved the miniatures. “He touches his best friend on the shoulder and says, while holding his medallion, ‘Be at peace. The only good stories are the ones where the good guys escape their toxic exes and live glorious lives. You’re a good guy.’” There was the smallest smile on Rafael’s face. “He casts Protection Against Evil and Good on Milo.”

“Excellent.” Tyler picked up his handbook and thumbed the pages, reading fast. “Alright, so Milo, as long as the spell lasts, you no longer have disadvantage on attack rolls or checks. And you’re protected from any of Pippa’s attempts to charm you.”

Derek let out an enormous sigh, reaching over and grabbing Rafael’s shoulder. “I love you.”

“Did Derek say that? Or Milo?” Tyler asked.

“Both.”

Tyler chuckled before glancing at the handbook again. “And… yep. That’s a concentration spell. Just so you know. Milo? What are you doing?” Tyler asked.

“Breaking away from the battle and running like hell into the house,” Derek said.

Tyler picked up Milo’s minifigure and counted quietly the amount of speed he could reasonably go. “That gets you right into the doorway.”

“And I’d like to see if I can brain my way into finding the swords,” Derek said.

Tyler closed his handbook. “Make an investigation check.”

Derek picked up the dice, muttering something under his breath. He let the dice roll, then shouted in absolute delight. “Nat twenty! Yes! This is why you always pre-roll!”

Tyler chuckled, shaking his head, before closing his eyes and concentrating. “You… remember that the room the man was in had a ton of traps and safety features. The crime lord of Osvoroth may be unpredictable, but he also knows when to place things under heavy protection. If the swords are anywhere, they’d be in that room. You move up your night goggles as the lights are still quite bright in this house. As you turn your head, you see the room. But… much to your dropping fear, you see the swords plain as day on the desk at the other end of the room. Ready for your taking.” Tyler opened his eyes to look at Derek. “That ends your turn.”

“Trap!” Nick said.

“Totally a trap,” Alejandra said.

“You rolled high enough to understand this is absolutely a trap,” Evelyn said. “Don’t be an idiot.”

“You have high intelligence, right?” Rafael said.

Derek groaned, looking at his character sheet. “Probably the highest intelligence in here, but not high on wisdom.”

Tyler pointed toward Rafael. “Make a constitution saving throw.”

Rafael picked up the d20, wincing. He rolled it, then checked his sheet. “Fourteen.”

Tyler let out a breath. “Barely saved. Nice.” Rafael’s shoulders relaxed. “Which means you take fifteen points of poison damage.”

The stress returned. “Shit,” Rafael muttered, scrambling for his character sheet. “I’m down to four hit points.”

“And make another roll for your concentration spell on Milo,” Tyler said.

Rafael grabbed the d20, giving it a roll. His face fell. “Um, eight?”

Tyler winced. “The spell ends.”

Derek rubbed the back of his neck. “Milo doesn’t need to know that, right?”

Tyler shrugged. “At least he’s away from everyone else.”

Nick tried not to panic. Despite his fear for Milo, he felt a different sort of one. Ezekiel’s next turn would start with another nature check.