Barrel reached his conclusion almost at the same moment the Githyanki dragon riders burst through the Nautiloid's walls. The first wave of Githyanki warriors had already arrived through the breach burned open by the Red Dragon's flames.
This was not Aaron's first encounter with Githyanki, but these were clearly different from those he had met before. They were far stronger, all clad in standard Githyanki mithral half plate and carrying enchanted weapons such as Gith Greatswords, longswords, and handaxes. Each also carried a Gith Heavy Crossbow.
There were quite a few Psions among them. The moment they landed, they opened Astral Gates, and more Githyanki warriors emerged from the silver vortices.
Once aboard, the Githyanki were stunned by what they saw. The Nautiloid, the Mind Flayers' pride and joy, was littered with corpses. Their mortal enemies had clearly encountered a foe they could not hope to match. The spawning pool had been destroyed, and revolting Mind Flayer Tadpoles lay smashed across the floor. The gaunt Githyanki Captain leading them wore his hair in a mohawk. He picked up a Mind Flayer Tadpole writhing in the slime and squeezed lightly between his thumb and forefinger. The tiny tadpole burst, spurting thick yellow fluid.
The Githyanki moved swiftly. They immediately surveyed the scene and found the dead Perfect Mind Flayer and the Elder Brain already corrupted by Chaos.
"Someone was here!"
"Someone got here before us."
"They killed the Perfect Mind Flayer. We're too late!"
"They must be incredibly powerful. Report to the Queen at once!"
The Githyanki surrounded the Nautiloid Dreadnought from every direction. Shortly after their arrival, an aged dragon's roar rang out. All the nearby Githyanki withdrew and bowed low on their knees.
An elderly Red Dragon brutally tore through the Nautiloid's hull with its claws, ripping it down