Duoths… from the Wandmaker’s Burden

Yannuvia crushed a piece of sulfur in his left hand, uttered a harsh incantation, and sent a ball of fire into the passage. The Fire Blast Spell enveloped the felled Lurker and four three-foot tall pudgy whitish beasts. The creatures made no sounds as the Magick destroyed them. A secondary explosion sent flames back toward Yannuvia’s feet. Flames from the exploding Duoth bomb burned his lower left leg and Drelvish boots. Dark smoke billowed from the passage.
Klunkus and Morganne reached Yannuvia and saw the badly burned body of the Lurker and five smaller mounds of sizzling, burning flesh. Surprisingly the odor of burned toffee filled the passage. Other than the Spellweaver-Wandmaker, nothing stirred in the scorched passageway. Thick black smoke surrounded Klunkus and Morganne, and both Rangers coughed. Then Yannuvia shouted deafeningly, consecutively blurted four identical brief commands, and sent Firebolts repeatedly to the end of the passageway.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Incredible aftershocks echoed through the passage, and Yannuvia’s Magick split large fragments of stone from the end of the passage and blocked access to the final section of the corridor. Klunkus and Morganne stepped back from the irate spell caster.
Yannuvia raised his hands, pulled his pointed ears, and again screamed, “This day, I have seen my people killed, not by Drolls, Kiennites, and wyrms, but mute mindless blobs of flesh and unintelligent predators lurking above them on the ceiling. Why?”
Ignoring the burns on his leg, the Spellweaver-Wandmaker cursed and fired Magick Missiles into the remains of the Lurker beast and five Duoths.
“Wandmaker, they are dead. You have blocked access to the corridor. You are injured. We must retreat. Many more of them may be coming down the passage. I don’t think they are mindless! Obviously Magick touches the nefarious beasts. Just as obviously, they ally with monstrosities like the one that attacked us and killed Miclove,” Klunkus pleaded.