Brady smiled to herself as she peered through the columns at Asulf, clanking and blustering his way into battle with his half-fitted suit of plate armor and an equally maladroit grin. The canine was clearly out of his element, but he carried himself well despite his misgivings - and, it had to be said, he was rather fetching in that new armor. Brady had always had a soft spot for storybook knights as a child, and Asulf's bearing recalled those fond memories alongside others that her childhood self had been to young to properly entertain. Maybe later, she could convince the canine to kneel before her and call her 'milady'... the anticipation sent a tingle down her spine, nicely complementing the more immediate pleasure of nutrions melting into her body. She wondered how a bellyrub from gauntleted hands would feel...<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Later,</span>she promised herself, setting her fantasy aside with some reluctance. There'd be plenty of time to indulge herself after the mission, but for now, she had more pressing concerns.<br/><br/>Satisfied with Asulf's performance for the time being, Brady turned her attention back to the glowing orb atop the altar, assessing the best way to approach her target. Her path was clear for the most part; the imps guarding the south edge having abandoned their post to test their fangs on Sunete's toothsome physique. The catgirl had vanished as well; a fact Brady couldn't decide whether to be worried or relieved about. With any luck, she'd run afoul of Teran and was already a squirming bulge in his scaley hindquarters.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">That leaves two,</span>thought Brady, eyeing the succubus and her vulpine companion atop the altar. Confident the pair's attention was elsewhere, the lizardgirl darted across the floor to the next pillar and pressed herself to the cold stone, peering cautiously around the edge of the column. Now came the tricky part - from here, the only only cover would be the enthralled bodies crowding the altar, and they'd offer as much hindrance as they would protection. Unless her companions could take care of the demoness, she'd be dealing with two very dangerous predators as soon as she laid hands on the orb.<br/><br/><div style="padding: 3px; background-color: #FFFFFF; border: 1px solid #d8d8d8; font-size: 1em;"><div style="text-transform: uppercase; border-bottom: 1px solid #CCCCCC; margin-bottom: 3px; font-size: 0.8em; font-weight: bold; display: block;"><span onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') {  this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = ''; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;hide&lt;/a&gt;'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;show&lt;/a&gt;'; }"><b>Spoiler: </b><a href="#" onclick="return false;">show</a></span></div><div class="quotecontent"><div style="display: none;">Brady takes a move action to move 25 feet while sneaking.<br/><br/>Hide: 1d20 (18) + 19 - 5 (speed) = 32</div></div></div><br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Teran, where are you...</span>Brady scanned the far side of the room with growing trepidation, finding no sign of her scaley companion. If he was following the plan, Teran should have been moving in on the succubus by now. The naga's inaction could only mean something had gone wrong - had he run into trouble after they'd split up?<br/><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Teran wrote:</cite>"Asulf, Laebras! I found the cat, and could use some help over here!!!"</div></blockquote><br/>Damn and blast... Brady hated it when she was right. Her head whipped around just in time to see Teran's upper half disappearing behind the corner column, as if his serpent body was being dragged away... or slurped like an oversized noodle. Brady began to reach for her crossbow, but thought better of it and withdrew her hand. She'd never make the shot from this angle, and an errant bolt would give away her position in an instant. The best thing she could do right now was stick to the plan, and try to snatch the orb. But first, she'd need a distraction...<br/><br/>Turning her gaze to the altar, Brady picked a spot near the feet of her targets and began to concentrate, picturing a small silvery droplet hanging just over the spot she'd chosen. In her mind's eye, she watched the droplet expand; first to the size of a grape, then a hen's egg, and finally into a grapefruit-sized bubble of argent liquid, each growth adding depth and turbulence to the swirling silver surface. Strained by the level of detail the bubble required, Brady felt the image begin to slip from her mind, threatening to vanish entirely... and at that moment, she gave a psychic 'tug', dragging the bubble across the threshold between thought and reality. Reacting predictably to the sudden onset of gravity, the liquid ball fell to the floor and promptly burst, splattering oily grey ectoplasm all over the pedestal and its soon to be unsteady occupants.<br/><br/><div style="padding: 3px; background-color: #FFFFFF; border: 1px solid #d8d8d8; font-size: 1em;"><div style="text-transform: uppercase; border-bottom: 1px solid #CCCCCC; margin-bottom: 3px; font-size: 0.8em; font-weight: bold; display: block;"><span onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') {  this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = ''; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;hide&lt;/a&gt;'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;show&lt;/a&gt;'; }"><b>Spoiler: </b><a href="#" onclick="return false;">show</a></span></div><div class="quotecontent"><div style="display: none;">Brady manifests <a class="postlink" href="http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/greasePsionic.htm">grease</a> as close to Tilisian as she can manage. Anyone caught in the area must make a DC 16 Reflex save or fall prone.<br/><br/> 14/27 power points remaining.</div></div></div><br/><br/>Brady HP: 20/20<br/>AC: 17, touch 12, flat-footed 15