Crap. Okay, 3 more botch dice...
(coyote code 93297)
Rolls of 6, 6, and 0
one botch.
mercy?
:mrgreen:
With the matter settled, Lucas moves toward the princess and takes a look at the chains that bind her. "We should be able to get rid of these with little trouble," he says, silently casting a spell to open the locks on them.
Roll to remove her chains.
Key of Theodorus Casting Total: 1D10+19 = [8]+19 = 27 vs target of 10; success
Just in case she's chained by more than one chain.
Key of Theodorus Casting Total: 1D10+19 = [2]+19 = 21 vs target of 10; success
Just like Wirth: Casting total of 0, meaning 1 fatigue lost and 1 warping point.
Pffff... Lucas is not fun
Well done, you sure took some mileage of that spell 
The chains fall heavily to the mattress, freeing the princess.
Oh thank the seas, she says, rubbing her bruised wrists. And thank you, magus. I am in your debt.
All is well and fine, and that's when, coming from your back, you all hear what is, to Roberto, a familiar voice.
Well well well... If this isn't my old friend Roberto? I thought you'd never come.
As you turn, Roberto and Wirth recognize their old enemy. Clad in ochre and deep blue robes, a malicious smile on his lips, Leolinus is staring at you from the other end of the cell.
(29 pages to drop the shoe, at long last!)
"I'm afraid this guy wasn't in the last Book of Saints I read," Lucas quips. "Can you fill me in on who he is?"
roberto scoops the princess up im his arms and kisses her passionately. Lucas undoes the chains (and I am totally gonna copy that spell!), and we start thinking of our next step.
Then that vile fat bastard shows up. Lucas asks who he is. Roberto's quick response is "[color=red]Someone that needs to die!
Multicast Pilium of Fire!
5 shots!
Will roll when I get home. 
(Oh, and since I've confirmed this is really the princess and all: The reason you couldn't get through to her is that, following King Triton's death, she found herself the not-yet-crowned ruler of Heracleion, and had her Might greatly increased as a result, from 15 to 25).
Knowing that his Perdo Corpus is probably not up to the task (CT +26 vs lvl 20, final penetration 13+die), Wirth began circling on the left in order to strike at Leolinus without blocking Roberto's view.
Waiting for your rolls
While he silently casts a quick defensive spell, Lucas scans around the cell for anything that might be usable as a thrown weapon.
Cast Wizard's Sidestep
Casting Total: 1D10+23 = [4]+23 = 27
Looking for anything that might be usable with a spontaneous Invisible Sling of Vilano (or an Herbam version of the spell) - a stray rock, a bucket (for, you know), a plate, anything.
Initiative: Quick +1, Quick Cast +1, 1d10=3, total 5
The dice hate me
PoF times five
Stamina +1, Creo 6+3, Ignem 11+3, Mastery 4, Aura +3, subtotal 31
die rolls of 3, 1, 2, 5, 6
then the exploder 8
Casting Totals of 34, 47, 33, 36, & 37
Minus Level 20, plus Penetration 3 and Mastey 4 equals 20, 33, 19, 22, & 23
Damage rolls: 9, 7, 3, 7, 0
Damage Botch Check: 9
plus 15 damage equals 24, 22, 18, 22, & 15.
Take that!
Roberto's superheated bolts rush through the water, instantly vaporizing it, whirlwinds forming in their wake.
Yet, they pass harmlessly through Leolinus, instead breaking the wall behind him (which provides, incidentely, stones for Lucas to use).
You wound me. Do you think me so stupid as to face you directly? Not all of us are Flambeau, you know?
And such a brash and unreasonned attack, how rude! (He shakes his head)
[b]At least, you could have botched your spell, and thus provided some entertainment us. But no, you failed even at that.
Seriously, you should at least have shown some common courtesy, like answering my welcome, and, maybe, presenting me your company. I know, of course, about your domestique here [/b](He points at Wirth).
But who's this dashing gentleman? Your apprentice, maybe? (he designates Lucas neglectfully)
Wirth stops in his tracks, and eyes roberto.
Roberto seeths with anger, presuming he is facing some sort of phantasm and frustrated that his efforts to strike the fat bastard down are futile.
[color=red]It would have made good sense to let me continue thinking you were dead. Yet you fail even at that.
Wirth, you met the guy once back in Toledo. Lucas, this vile piece of $#!+ is Leolinus, formelly of Jerbiton before he was expelled for infernalism. I foiled his plot in Toledo when I was with Novus Mane. He joined forces with a sahir and a Scotsman in Stonehenge. I faced him again in the Sahara and had thought I killed him then and there.
I was mistaken.
So tell me Leolinus. Where are you hiding? I plan to come kill you.
For a moment Lucas is about to snap at Leolinus for calling him an apprentice. Then he catches himself. That was just the reaction the diabolist wanted. He was trying to rattle them.
"You're a funny guy," he says to Leolinus. "But I'm not going to miss you when Roberto kills you."
[b]My, Roberto, you're positively rude, and your apprentice is no better. And here I was, thinking we were such good friends... You wound me.
Of course, as much as I'd wish age and wisdom to have tempered you, I couldn't be as stupid as to face you directly, thus these...[/b] he gestures around himself [b]... precautions.
So, while as I'd positively loove to see you beg for my mercy, I won't tell you where I am. Not yet, at least. Still, are you not willing to entertain me? Tell me your adventures, I'll tell you mine?[/b]
Wirth snarls What do you want?
Loook at thaat! He knows how to speak? This is wonderful! Take notice, roberto, even a flambeau can learn the basic rudiments of civilisation, it seems. So, what do I want? Hum... Spend some time with my friend here, have a good laugh, see him cry. Isn't that all one could hope for? But now, you all ask questions, but you all fail to ask the good question. Not that I would be surprised, mind you. Still, you could make an effort, couldn't you?
"A question like, 'why are we letting you delay us so that you can send Attumah here?'" Lucas asks. Then he looks at the others. "We can't let this buffoon distract us from the mission at hand, and that's rescuing the princess. As for him." He gestures at the image of Leolinus. "I have an idea." Then Lucas walks up and attempts to step into the image, co-locating himself with the image.
"I'm Leolinus," he says in a sing-song voice. "I'm a big villain and I like to threaten people. Blah, blah, blah. Surrender or die."
If this is Image from the Wizard Torn, then he has to make an Int+Conc. check every time the image moves through something solid. I can't imagine having something solid standing inside of it will be that good for his concentration either.
Good idea! Roberto was/is about to mentally contact Cidito to ask Lucas to use his Imaginem specilization to shut this guy off.
[color=red]Screw this guy. Let's move.
Seeing a host of guards converging on the palace, Acutus swims in that direction, seemingly interested in the commotion.
Good idea!
You surprise him completely, and have no trouble stepping into the image.
It fails, though: Whatever you see is, in fact, not a displaced image but an illusion (meaning, btw, that you've got no proof it's really projected by Leolinus), as evidenced when it moves swiftly from the spot.
He looks displeased, though.
Impertinent fool! You shall die with your frie... and he disappears.
At last. Thanks., says wirth to lucas.
So you go out of the cell and take the way back?
YOu are soon limited in that you can't exactly approach or enter the castle innocuously.
It appears the alarm has been raised, thouugh.
What do you do?
"I think the first thing we do is make the princess look more inconspicuous," Lucas says, casting a spell to get her to look like the guard Roberto was before he dropped the disguise. "How's this? The princess has escaped, but we three caught one of the vile, yet dashingly handsome, magi who rescued her. We're bringing him to Attumah for questioning. The rest of the guards should stay here and keep looking for the others, especially the princess."
[size=85]"I have got to learn an invisibility spell,"[/size] he mutters to himself as he casts the illusion on the princess.
That has the same three guards returning, but this time with a prisoner (to explain the extra person). But it's not the princess, so they may stay to keep looking for her. That's the best I could come up with on the spot.
Disguise of the Altered Image on the princess. I'm assuming a stress roll, given the circumstances.
Casting Total: 1D10+22 = [7]+22 = 29; success
Finesse Roll to make her look as much like the previous guard as possible.
Finesse roll: 1D10+3 = [1]+3 = 4
Multiplier
Multiplier: 1D10 = [10] = 10 = 20+3 = 23; good illusion
Wow, at first I thought that I was in for an uber botch. Then I checked the rules and saw that it actually counts as a 10 after the first roll. Whew, that was a close call.
What would Carlos say?
[color=red]My love, at the moment I want nothibg more that to shower you with my passio, with the fury of a tempest yet the gentleness of the morning mist.
But we have not the time.
I need you to be strong and brave for me. We are going to use illusions and invisibility to disguise and hide all of us, and bust you out of here. Once at a point of safety, we can plan our counter insurgence and depose this tyrant.
Lucas, both Wirth and I know Invisibility. Do you think that would work better?
My current plan is, once we reach open water, you take the princess on the carpet and make haste for a safe position. I will cover you while Wirth gathers the others.
Wirth, what are your thoughts?
"That's good too," Lucas replies. "One of the soldiers could have fallen in the fight, and we're going to report what happened. Worst case, we end up in a fight where you and Wirth can attack from surprise. Best case, we get away."
I can hide lucas and soteira. We could probably escape that way. On the other hand, lucas plan might be our best chance to get the drop on Attumah.
You hear footsteps and cries coming your way.
(Sorry, I'm really tired here with the heat, and have trouble keeping things in my mind)