Yes, with Aliara's help!

It was hard to make out any details in the haze. Aliara thought she saw a hint of fang or fin, but for the most part it was like staring into a tornado. She gritted her teeth, drew her dagger, and steeled herself to plunge forward. She could hear shouts and grunts coming from the swirling melee ahead, along with a meaty tearing sound. A scream echoed off the walls-- from the sound of it, Kurk's. To Aliara's left, Rhuyem was bracing himself against his staff and chanting under his breath. An ear-splitting roar drowned him out and he stumbled backwards, clutching his ears.

There was no time for thought. Aliara ran to Rhuyem and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Cast!" she shouted, wrapping her hands around his wrists and forcing him to plant his staff upright. He goggled at her, his eyes wide and bulging. She gave him an encouraging smile and nodded frantically. "Cast, idiot! Do your job!"

The ringing in her ears was bad enough that she could barely hear herself, but he clearly got the message. He closed his eyes and began to chant again. The words seemed to blend into each other, arcane syllables spilling out of his mouth and overlapping. Violet light shone from beneath his eyelids and limned the edge of his staff.

An arctic wind erupted from the pearl at the head of the staff. Aliara shrank away from it, but even a glancing touch raised goosebumps on her exposed skin. It howled like a banshee, temporarily drowning out the wyrm, and blew away the cloud of rock dust. For the first time, Aliara got a good luck at their foe.

The stonewyrm sat coiled in the middle of the passageway, but it was large enough that part of its tail trailed away through the hole it had made in the wall. It was as thick around as a beer barrel, its skin stony like granite. Every five feet or so, ribbed fins projected from its side. Clusters of quartz crystals surrounded them like boils. Its head was spade-shaped, as large as Aliara's torso, but most of it was mouth: a round maw like a lamprey's, full of grinding crystal teeth. Tiny black eyes glistened from beneath rocky ridges.

The creature had coiled itself around Kurk, who was swatting angrily at it with the torch. His other arm hung limp by his side, and the armor around his shoulder was torn and shredded. Lotho, meanwhile, had been backed into a corner. He was jabbing at the wyrm's eyes with his spear. The bone crests deflected his blows, but he was forcing the creature back.

"Bind it!" he shouted. His eyes remained fixed on the wyrm as it roared and swayed. "Damn it, Rhuyem! Bind it!"

Rhuyem nodded and began chanting again. Aliara let go of his staff as it started to vibrate. She drew her dagger and took a step forward, then stopped. Something was arresting her progress. She looked down to see Talia clutching at the waist of her trousers.

"Make a hole!" the gnome shouted. She pantomimed stabbing downward with a dagger. "At the joints! Between sections! Just make a little hole, I'll do the rest!"

Aliara nodded, and Talia let her go. The two of them advanced on the wyrm. It was thrashing now, its stony body shattering stalagmites as it whipped to and fro. Lotho had to dance backwards out of range, still jabbing with his spear. Kurk let out a roar, but of anger or pain, Aliara couldn't tell.

Bright white light filled the tunnel, so bright that Aliara had to shield her eyes. A lance of light burst forth from the tip of Rhuyem's staff and arrowed towards the wyrm. It coiled like a whip and lashed itself around one of the beast's flukes. Another ray shot out, and another, questing like tentacles, wrapping themselves around the creature's body. It shrieked, a horrible high-pitched noise that seemed to vibrate Aliara's bones, but its thrashing grew weaker. More of the ropes of light seized it, bound it, pinned it in place.

Aliara broke into a run and leapt. One foot found a flat-topped stalagmite and propelled her further. She flew through the air, arms pinwheeling, and landed hard on the wyrm's back. It bucked, but with the ropes of light tying it down, it could not throw her off. Aliara brought her dagger down with a tink. It rebounded off the beast's stony hide, chipping the blade. Cursing, she adjusted her grip and stabbed again, this time aiming directly for the narrow crack between body segments. Sure enough, the dagger found purchase and pushed in an inch or two. Aliara fought to pull it free, but had to let go as a particularly violent spasm shook the wyrm. She tumbled off and only barely managed to turn her hapless fall into a roll. Bruised and scraped, she pushed herself upright with the help of a nearby pillar.

A dozen ropes of pure white light held the wyrm in place. Its body twitched spasmodically as it fought to free itself. Kurk, still trapped, was thrusting his torch in its face to keep it away from him. As Aliara watched, the closest rope flickered. With a fizzing sound like a candle flame being snuffed, it vanished. The wyrm, as if encouraged, redoubled its efforts, and two more ropes started to flicker. Aliara could hear Rhuyem groaning from somewhere behind her. Talia appeared at her knee and pointed.

"Up!" she shouted. "Help me up!" Aliara looked at her confused until Talia let out an exasperated grunt and interlaced her fingers.

Aliara got the message-- she made a step with her hands and stooped down to the gnome's level. Talia put one foot in the makeshift step and steadied herself with a hand on the back of Aliara's head. With a warbling war cry, she launched herself forward. Aliara straightened up in time to see the gnome flying through the air, arms outstretch. She had one of her steel cylinders in each palm. She landed next to Aliara's dagger and stabbed down with both hands, bringing them together on either side of the protruding hilt.

For a moment, nothing happened. Talia tumbled over with the grace of an acrobat and landed on her hands, turning her fall into a hand-spring that took her past Aliara. Then the wyrm's roar guttered out. It wavered back and forth and let out a long, windy sigh. Then, with a crash like a toppling castle, it collapsed to the floor.

The last of the ropes vanished and Rhuyem fell to one knee, panting heavily. Kurk shoved at its coils with his good arm and began wiggling his way free. Silence descended, broken only by the sounds of five people fighting to catch a breath.

"Wooooooohooooo!" Talia's shout of joy filled the tunnel. The gnome was dancing from foot to foot, punching the air with her stubby fists. "It worked! It worked! I told you, Lotho, I told you I had the mix right!"

Lotho braced himself against his spear. He walked as though he'd turned an ankle at some point during the fight. "You did tell us, Talia," he said with a weary grin. "Well done." He turned to Kurk. "Are you all right, my friend?"

Kurk waved him off and climbed slowly and painfully out of the wyrm's coils. Its stony body shifted as he extricated himself. "I've had worse," he rumbled. "I'll want an extra dose of tonic tonight." Lotho chuckled, as did Talia, as if at some secret joke.

Aliara felt Rhuyem coming up behind her. He used the base of his staff to pick his way across the broken floor. "T-thank you," he said. He was still wheezing a bit. "You... back there, you helped me..."

"Don't worry about it," Aliara replied. "I used to travel with a mage. I know the drill. Sometimes you boys just need some breathing room." She nodded at the wyrm. "Well done, by the way. What just happened?"

"I got him!" Talia squeaked from somewhere around Aliara's waist. "I worked on this baby for weeks. Guaranteed to sedate a stonewyrm. And by the time he wakes up, he'll be docile as a puppy. Which is good, 'cause no way are we hauling this thing back to civilization ourselves."

"But... how?" Aliara sounded as bemused as she felt. "You jumped on him, and--"

"Alchemical injectors." Talia patted her bandoliers. "My own design. Well, not really, but the compounds are. They struggle a little with thick hides, though, so I appreciate you paving the way for me. I'm still trying to figure out some kind of launcher mechanism, but no luck so far."

Bit by bit, the party drew themselves together. Kurk's injury turned out to by more minor than it looked "I heal fast," he explained, waving off Aliara's offer of help. "Talia's concoctions help."

"She is a treasure," Lotho agreed. "And speaking of... thank you, Aliara for your help. I'm not sure we would have been victorious without you. This beastie was clever, setting an ambush like that. Caught us by surprise. Never fear, you'll be due a share when we bring him in."

"This is... for a pit fight?" Aliara asked. Lotho shrugged.

"Probably. Or some lord's menagerie. It's not our business. Live captures are our specialty; what happens afterwards is up to the client."

Aliara laid a hand against the wyrm's flank. Up close, it looked even larger and more menacing. It seemed dead, but perhaps that was just the effects of the ****. "Well, I hope whoever bought it is ready for it."

Lotho waved a hand dismissively. "Not our problem. It'll be calm for at least three days. That should give us the time to get it back. As long as the compound doesn't wear off before we get paid, I'm happy." This last was directed at Talia in a warning tone.

The gnome shrugged. "One time, Lotho. One time. And I've gotten better since then. Anyways, I brought plenty of injectors, so why worry? I'm starving aren't you?"

As if on cue, Aliara's stomach rumbled. "I could eat," she admitted. "We have to make camp here, right? Since we can't move the wyrm until it wakes up?"

"Unless you want to carry it," Lotho said with a wink. "Camp it is. Talia, get a fire going?"

Kurk's pack turned out to contain several bedrolls, a steel brazier, and a copper tea kettle. Aliara and Lotho dragged a few larger stones into a rough circle to sit on while Kurk set up the brazier and Talia filled it with a greyish substance. She tipped in a couple drops of something red from a vial and the brazier lit with a whumpf. The flames crackling in it looked indistinguishable from a wood-fueled campfire to Aliara, except for the curious lack of smoke and a faint scent of turpentine. A rack above the flame held the tea kettle, which was soon boiling.

Rhuyem produced food from his pack-- light elven travel bread, salted fish, and dried vegetables. He even brought out tiny teacups, so delicate Aliara could barely believe they hadn't broken in the fight. "Monster hunters can be civilized, too," he said with a wink.

Despite the soreness in her ribs and the slowly fading terror of the fight, Aliara found her heart warming. She was alive, despite the universe's best efforts, and she was among friends. Sitting around the fire, sipping tea from these ridiculous cups... it all brought her back to her years on the road, the parties she'd adventured with, making friends and lovers and enemies out of whomever she chose, whenever she chose...

Admit it. You miss it.

Maybe, she thought, but it'll grow old. It always does. People die.

There was a moment coming, a moment of truth, and she'd have to make a choice. It loomed just over the horizon. She could delay it for a while, but it would be waiting for her patiently, for when she ran out of lies to tell herself and smokescreens to throw up. She'd have to choose.

"So," Talia's voice broke her from her reverie, "that was good. Who wants some... tonic?" She giggled, and there was a certain degree of mischief in her voice. She had produced a glass vial from somewhere full of sparkling purple liquid. Kurk's good arm shot up at once, and Rhuyem lifted his own hand after a moment or two. Aliara craned her neck to see.

"What's that?" she asked, intrigued. The gnome swiveled her head and delivered a saucy wink. "Oh, nothing much. Just a little post-prandial cocktail, you know? We like to take it after a fight. Helps us... relax." She proffered the vial, gesturing for Aliara to hold out her teacup. The half-elf hesitated. Something in Talia's expression...

"Oh, don't be cruel, Talia," Lotho said. He turned to Aliara. "It's a liqueur. It... reduces inhibition. My apologies; we probably shouldn't be taking it with you here. You see... ah, why not say it? We find that the stress of combat, of risking ****, well, there's only one way to burn it off. We're very close, you see, the four of us. We share everything." He stressed the last word, letting it hang in the air.

"You mean you--" Aliara, to her own amazement, blushed bright crimson. Despite everything she'd been through-- despite her own wanton history-- she found herself at a loss for words. Maybe it is time to hang it up. I'm becoming a prude.

"Aw, pooh!" Talia pouted, and crossed her arms. "I wanted to see her with some tonic in her belly! Little minx like that, I'll bet she has moves!"

"Talia!" Lotho barked. She stuck her tongue out at him. "I would never dream of drugging you without your consent," he said, turning to Aliara, "but if you want some... you'll find it most stimulating, I promise you."

Both he and Talia watched her carefully. Talia extended an arm, waggling the little vial so the fluid inside sparked in the firelight.