Menya raised an eyebrow at Hanifa as the stray arrow richocheted between her legs, privately somewhat glad that she wasn't the only one making a fool of herself.<br/><br/>The would-be assassins taken down, there was nothing left to distract Roshul anymore and any future exchange with the naga would be... awkward at best, especially after that failed attempt with her charm spell. So she ran with Hanifa to regroup with her friends. Roshul was surprisingly fast, and Menya was about to turn around and make a stand, when Zelda's impeccably timed barricade cut off the pursuit.<br/><br/>"Thanks for the save, Zelda!" Menya gasped out between breaths.<br/><br/>The question of whether to go to al-Samara's aid hung heavy in the air, made more urgent by the<em>fireballs</em>battering the barricade and the no doubt extremely pissed off naga on the other side. Menya turned towards the mermaid. "Don't worry, Zelda, this is part of the plan. If anythinya happens to al-Samara this whole place's goinya to be locked down. And we're not goinya to let that happen. We'll save him, and save ourselves."<br/><br/>She looked at Judi meaningfully. "We'll do our best to keep al-Samara safe," she said, "but you'll need to keep Roshul off our tail, no matter what, for the rest of the day." A simple yet mutually beneficial trade - his life for their freedom.<br/><br/>They took the secret passage just as Roshul broke through.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>While Hanifa and Zelda argued, Menya was silent, looking down at the single serpentine scale she clutched in her hand. For all the web of deceit and lies, this, at least, was something true. Her hand strayed down to her belly absentmindedly.<br/><br/>The keepsake she wore on a necklace, she tucked it back under her clothing out of sight as Hanifa and Zelda fell into a sullen silence, not wishing to invite any questions. Looking up at the watery tunnel's exit, she focused on what lay ahead.<br/><br/><hr/><br/><em>Perception: 30</em>(https://elliquiy.com/forums/dicebot.php?r=78941)<br/><br/>"Bakr! It's me - us!" Menya called out as she recognized the skulking figure, not too loudly of course. She gave Hanifa and Zelda a quick glance when he referred to her as Arensha, hoping that they would take the hint and not break her cover.<br/><br/>From him they got Alfreldi's location, and speaking of the catgirl...<br/><br/>"The memory serum?" Menya held out her hand for the vial. She let her touch linger a moment longer than strictly necessary, looking into his eyes with a little nod. Hopefully he would interpret it as her not wanting to break her cover about their secret tryst in front of her friends.<br/><br/>"Let's go get Alfreldi!"<br/><br/><hr/><br/>"Garetz!" Menya hissed, anger and contempt in her voice, upon hearing the slap. Her claws were out and digging gouges in the door in her anger. "He'll pay for this," she promised, stepping back to give Bakr room to work, while she prepared herself. If there was a sight more terrifying than one pissed off catgirl with her hair practically standing on end, perhaps it would be seven of them after she was done with her<em>mirror image</em>spell.<br/><br/>The wall went boom, pieces of it blown into the room, and then seven angry yowling catgirls with claws out leapt into the room right behind the flying debris, pouncing on Garetz's unprepared form! It was all a piece of misdirection, getting the corrupt doctor to think he was under attack and to defend himself, distracting him from her real target - one of the catgirl images rolled low (while the others rolled in mid-air) under and past him, snatching up Alfreldi from his abusive grasp and then springing away with the rescued catgirl carried in her arms bridal-style!<br/><br/>Safely out of his reach at the opposite wall, all seven Menya's turned around, the real one holding Alfreldi and flanked by three images on either side. The real Menya let Alfreldi down onto her feet, while all seven of them blushed crimson when Alfreldi rewarded her heroine's gallantry with a kiss on the cheek.<br/><br/>"Surrender Garetz! You're outnumbered and surrounded!" Menya demanded, while she shuffled between her mirror images, a quick shell game that hid the real one once more.<br/><br/><em>My Hero! stunt! CMB result 32, success</em>(https://elliquiy.com/forums/dicebot.php?r=78944)<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Menya (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheet.html#id=281338)<br/>Active: 6 mirror images (https://elliquiy.com/forums/dicebot.php?r=78943), archaeologist's luck, +4 morale bonus<br/>HP 33+10 temp/52<br/>Resources used: 1 3rd-level spell, 1 2nd-level spell, 2 rounds archaeologist's luck