After a while the fire burns low. The funeral is at an end, embers smouldering among the rocks. Tucker sniffs and lets out a shaky sigh... exhausted and ready to drop. But he insistently puts on a stronger face. "What do we do now?"
"We do what soldiers do. Keep moving... I belong to the Mage Guard, and as my apprentice, so do you..." Alrik nods toward the trail they were following. "Any ideas where they might go from here?"
Tuck struggles to shake free of his thoughts. "Um... No... I'm not sure. Honestly we hardly ever came here. We kept away from it... Ghost stories." A shudder runs down his spine. "We can try some of the other places they could have gone, like the docks.
But..." The half-elf looks over his shoulder at the embers. "If Rufus died here... I... I don't know what would have happened to the others. They must have left, or been taken? I... didn't see any more blood."
"Look around a bit... see what you can find. Chances are the others were taken by whatever killed Rufus... he probably tried to protect them and paid with his life..."
Alrik's eyes spark menacingly, not at all happy about someone, or something, killing a child. "Look for anything that might help us. Footprints, discarded items, snags of clothing... anything that can give us an upper hand in finding them, or whatever took them..."
(17 perception)
(12 for Tucker)
Both of you look around for some time in the dark. Tucker tries his best to be helpful, searching around the scene where Rufus was found. Sweat beads on his forehead from concentrating, trying to prestidigitate a faint light to see by.
He kneels, looking closely at the rocks. They do appear to have been moved a lot, the dirt disturbed under the trees nearby. "I-I think I found another cigarette..." He flicks some sticks away as he fishes it out. Handing it to you, you're able to tell it is one of the fancier ones you received from Tommy a few weeks ago.
"Sarah had kept a few... we shared em." He flushes a little red.
You poke around for a few more minutes, finding something... strange in the leaf litter. Kicking it with your boot, you realize it's an... apron? Blood is splattered across it, likely from slitting Rufus' throat.
Alrik holds up the apron and shakes it out. "Look familiar at all? Could give us a clue as to who's behind this..."
Tucker stares, a little mortified. "N--no. I don't know anyone who wears an apron that hangs out around the orphanage."
The Storm Mage rolls it up and slips it into his satchel. "Well, I guess we had best head back to town... see if anyone recognizes it at first light. Come on, we'll cut through the forest and make our way to my cabin."
Alrik throws his hand into the air, a large sphere of bluish electricity springing to life to illuminate their way.
Tucker follows after, still clutching the crystal in his hand. He looks terribly exhausted but grateful to have your company.
Alrik and Tucker, you both make the long journey back out of the forest. There is a strange feeling in the air. It almost doesn't feel like the last few hours were real. But the heavy weight in your hearts and the blood on your hands say otherwise.
You arrive back near the edge of town, the soft comfortable glow from the lanterns almost mocking your dark thoughts. You arrive at your small one room cabin, a damp rainy smell lingering here despite the warm dryness.
Tucker sinks down to the floor, sitting with his back against the wall. The half elf just stares at his hands for a long time, processing all the thoughts.
Alrik leaves the boy alone with his thoughts, stepping outside and building a fire within the stone circle out front. Remembering how his life was back in those days, and how trying today had been, he decides to try and lift Tucker's spirits. Going around to the back of the small house, he moves a wooden hatch out of the way and ducks down into the larder.
Grabbing a whole variety of meats he's either bought or hunted himself, as well as some cheeses from the market and the fresh vegetables from the previous morning's visit to the farmers, he sets himself to assembling a small feast for the two of them.
Tucker eventually steps outside to relieve himself. He stops short smelling the sweet campfire smoke and food.
Trying not to look overly interested, Tuck stuffs his hands in his pockets and walks over to Alrik. He says in a thin sort of voice, "H-hey. You uh... Need any help? I can do stuff I guess."
Alrik, busy roasting a leg of lamb over the coals looks up at Tucker. "Actually some help would be nice. Go into town and see if you can track down a couple people... a dwarf and a foreign lady. Tell them the Storm Caller has prepared dinner... we have things to discuss with them."
Tuck gives Alrik a queer look. "Huh? You know them too? ...Alright. See what I can do." He shrugs, walking off into town.
---
Later in the evening you are both walking through town. The night is warm but sporting a pleasant breeze... Stars blaze overhead.
You hear a familiar voice as a kid runs up to you. He seems a little out of breath, muddy and exhausted. "Hi! Uh, dwarf and miss, sorry." You know it's the orphan from the other day, the one who dealt with the fire elemental.
"The storm caller guy, Alrik, he told me to find you guys. Want some dinner?" He eyes the new axe and your bandages dubiously. "We're uh, over just outside town..."
Oredion pats Tuck on the shoulder and looks at him with a friendly smile.
"Aye, that sounds like a nice time lad, but it is up to this one here if we go or not."
He points at Etny who is still twirling her axe with delight.
Etny, mid-twirl, smiles at Tuck. "Good to see you well and safe, Oman-yan," she calls out, working on a flourish with the poleaxe.
At the mention of Alrik's name, Etny's expression turns serious. "I must see him. Yes, dinner would be...nice. Let us go to him," she suggests, mounting her new weapon to her back.
Tuck nods, a little redness to his freckled race. "Yeah, sure. I'll lead the way."
He takes you both to the edge of town. The whole time he's rather pensive and quiet. You see a fire in the distance, a steady glow that is warm and inviting.
Oredion spots Alrik by the fire and walks up a bit faster.
"Ah, if it isn't old storm and gloom himself. How ya been buddy."
Oredion walks up slapping Alrik good naturedly on the shoulder. Letting out a small chuckle as he does so.
Etny's face is an inscrutable, serious mask as she approaches the small cabin. The smells of cooked meat and campfire fill the air.
"Alrik Oros-Udunta," she says, her expression lightening up as she draws nearer. "It's good to see you again, friend."
As she looks over Alrik's handiwork, she realizes that she hasn't had a proper meal in days, and only sparse did rations have sustained her, as well as whatever she happened to hunt down in the wilderness, which consequently, wasn't much at all.
Her stomach growls audibly at the sweet and savory scents wafting through the air, as well as the distinct scent of ozone and rainfall.
"Alrik..oleah! That smells divine!"
"I always took you for a soldier and a mage, but I never took you for a chef!" She chuckles.
"I learned early on that if I wanted a good meal, I had to pay for it or make it myself... being an orphan, money was scarce and often times better spent on things to keep you warm, so I learned to cook..."
He set the leg of lamb on a wooden cutting board, steam wafting off it as it rests. "We'll eat first, but there's a couple things we need to discuss."
"Yes! Oooh yes, of course. There is certainly...many things to discuss...Not the least of which...," she pauses, choosing her words carefully, "involves your Angakresh princeling friend," she says, a note of bitterness sounding in her voice.
Alrik gestures to the table full of food along with some plain wooden dinnerware. "Eat what you'd like. There's plenty, so if you leave hungry you have no one to blame but yourself..."
He nudges Tucker with his elbow. "Eat something, lad... you'll feel better. I promise the pain eventually subsides..."
Tucker gives a short nod. He steps forward, gathering a few things on a plate. "...Thanks, Alrik."
He sits nearby, quiet. He watches all of you, half in his own thoughts and half intetested in what is going to be discussed.
(per collin XD)
Oredion doesn't mind helping himself at all. He grabs a good sized plate full of roast lamb, cheese and vegetables. Sitting down next to Tucker, he begins to indulge himself. The kid watches him out of the corner of his eye, slowly nibbling at a carrot.
Etny eats in silence, her thoughts on how she will present her information to Alrik. Not only is she fully aware of her challenge to Atriox, but she also needs to bring up the attack on her and Oredion in the forest by that...hideous creature.
"Alrik," she says quietly, seeing the lamb bone down on her plate, having finished all that was there, "I..I have something serious I need to talk to you about. It is about Atriox-arach."
She goes silent, mulling over in her mind what she will say. Finally, after almost a minute of silence, she continues.
"I challenged Atriox-arach to a duel...a duel against his honor as a leader, and a prince. I felt...," she pauses again, "he had deceived me....you know...at...at our first meeting."
Her hands ball into fists, knuckles whitening. Surely, she feels, this is all going to come off sounding childish and immature, like she overreacted. To her, though, it is anything but an overreaction. Through gritted teeth she continues.
"He forced me to bow before him at our...first meeting, and cited his own authority as prince in doing so. I...heard through my own devices...that he truly was a prince in name only, and had no true claim to make, except a dead kingdom." She sighs, slightly exasperated at how the next bit will sound...to anyone. "I did what any my dead tribe--or any of the other six living tribes of my homeland would have done: challenged him in direct combat, calling his honor as a leader into question."
She blinks now, forging ahead. "Throwing my spear into the ground, I issued the formal challenge, making my intentions for such a challenge clear. But," she says, a note of bitterness in her voice again, almost a tone of loathing, "he immediately attacked, nearly disarming me, and making no terms, conditions, or setting no bounds."
Her violet eyes grow intense, reliving that battle in her mind, and recounting it now.
"I..I played to my strengths. I am a hunter, Alrik Oros-Udunta. I do not fight up close, as Atriox-arach does. I put as much distance between myself and him as I could, and began showering him with arrows. Eventually, he called off the duel, naming it unfair, and unjust."
Her nails dig into the skin of her palms. "I shot him in the knee. I made him kneel, as he had done to me. I left, then, not looking back, and he and I have harbored feelings of intense hatred for one another over the last...many, many days."
Her hands begin to tremble slightly with how tight she is clenching them. "Alrik...while I have no regrets over the fight, I do regret shooting your friend and compatriot in the knee. I hope..I hope this is not personal for you," she adverts her eyes, her hands finally unclenching. "I suppose it was a little personal for me."
Oredion finishes his food that he had pulled high on his plate and sets back rubbing his stomach. He lets out a loud burp and slaps Tuck on the shoulder.
"This is some good grub boy. Eat up before I decide seconds sounds good."
Oredion chuckles and turns his attention to Alrik's and Etny's conversation trying to listen carefully, not wanting to miss something important.
Tucker jumps at the touch, shaken out of his thoughts. "Oh, right." He eats a little quicker. "This is more than enough for me, uh.. You can help yourself."
He stands and walks around a bit, letting the adults talk. It does seem like he has very little appetite.
Oredion See's Tuck walk away and decides to leave Alrik and Etny to there devices. They will probably catch him up on the details later anyways. He walks over to where Tuck had gone and announces himself.
"Erhmm... What's wrong kiddo? Something under your skin?"
Oredion eyes the boy noting the sad look in his eyes. It does not take much for the dwarf to sympathize with anyone.
Tucker turns, stuffing a crystal back into his pocket. "O-oh, hi sir. No...." His voice breaks a little, obviously lying.
His expression grows dark. "I feel so many overwhelming emotions right now. I don't know what to do..." The teenager stares at you, a pained fury buried in his eyes. "You totally destroyed that fire...thing...that attacked me. How... do I get that kind of power?"
Oredion places his hand on Tucker's shoulder and has him walk with him a little more away from everyone.
"Aye, I know your lying to me kid, but I won't pry. When the time comes to release those emotions I hope it's with someone you trust lad. As for my power? It is not something you should try for. I am filled with rage constantly. I throw myself into danger without a second thought for my well being. I do not care if I come out of the brawl as a winner or a loser. If I die, then I die. I stay alive to revenge my people. After that... I'm not sure if I'll want to go on in this world alone. Rage is the only thing that fuels me on to my goal. Remember these words kid. If you find something on this here rock we live on you cherish, you hold onto it, because once it's gone you'll find there's not much keeping you going."
Oredion gives a fake smile and grips Tucker's shoulder tighter.
"It sucks kid. We lose people, be it loved ones, friends, and family, but we carry on for who we have left."
Oredion let's go of Tuck's shoulder knowing he needs time to think about whatever's eating at him. He goes back to the fire and takes a seat. He leans back and looks up at the sky. He sees blue and yellow stars tracing the sky and comet's shooting threw the air. He mutters under his breath to himself.
"Did I say those words for me or the kid?"
Etny eats in silence, her thoughts on how she will present her information to Alrik. Not only is she fully aware of her challenge to Atriox, but she also needs to bring up the attack on her and Oredion in the forest by that...hideous creature.
"Alrik," she says quietly, seeing the lamb bone down on her plate, having finished all that was there, "I..I have something serious I need to talk to you about. It is about Atriox-arach."
She goes silent, mulling over in her mind what she will say. Finally, after almost a minute of silence, she continues.
"I challenged Atriox-arach to a duel...a duel against his honor as a leader, and a prince. I felt...," she pauses again, "he had deceived me....you know...at...at our first meeting."
Her hands ball into fists, knuckles whitening. Surely, she feels, this is all going to come off sounding childish and immature, like she overreacted. To her, though, it is anything but an overreaction. Through gritted teeth she continues.
"He forced me to bow before him at our...first meeting, and cited his own authority as prince in doing so. I...heard through my own devices...that he truly was a prince in name only, and had no true claim to make, except a dead kingdom." She sighs, slightly exasperated at how the next bit will sound...to anyone. "I did what any my dead tribe--or any of the other six living tribes of my homeland would have done: challenged him in direct combat, calling his honor as a leader into question."
She blinks now, forging ahead. "Throwing my spear into the ground, I issued the formal challenge, making my intentions for such a challenge clear. But," she says, a note of bitterness in her voice again, almost a tone of loathing, "he immediately attacked, nearly disarming me, and making no terms, conditions, or setting no bounds."
Her violet eyes grow intense, reliving that battle in her mind, and recounting it now.
"I..I played to my strengths. I am a hunter, Alrik Oros-Udunta. I do not fight up close, as Atriox-arach does. I put as much distance between myself and him as I could, and began showering him with arrows. Eventually, he called off the duel, naming it unfair, and unjust."
Her nails dig into the skin of her palms. "I shot him in the knee. I made him kneel, as he had done to me. I left, then, not looking back, and he and I have harbored feelings of intense hatred for one another over the last...many, many days."
Her hands begin to tremble slightly with how tight she is clenching them. "Alrik...while I have no regrets over the fight, I do regret shooting your friend and compatriot in the knee. I hope..I hope this is not personal for you," she adverts her eyes, her hands finally unclenching. "I suppose it was a little personal for me."
"Atriox is... brash with his actions. He tends to do things by how he sees them and not listen to anyone else's opinion or say in the matter..." he shrugs. "Although, I've been similarly minded as of late. No matter, I wholly believe that you did what you did out of a matter of honor, not some personal vendetta or grievance. It would be like if someone were to claim the title of king of Skyhold... a great disgrace, I would assume. Be that as it may, he isn't one who gives up easily. I would hold a bet that he still has a grudge with me for acting hastily..."
Etny nods in agreement, understanding the mage's thoughts on the matter.
"Well, I need to make peace with Atriox, and...," she hesitates, "...I was wondering if you could accompany me in that." She looks down sheepishly. "He likely wants to kill me, and I was hoping you could help mediate a peace talk between us."
She looks away for a moment, and looks back at Alrik. "Alrik...there's...something else; something Oredion and I came across...in the woods north of town."
Tucker is extremely withdrawn, pondering the heavy words this adult has shared. Very raw. Very real. Very honest. It hurt to feel the last of his childhood innocence slip away--what little he had left, anyway. His heart is too walled off to cry anymore.
His ears twitch at the sound of Etny's voice. "The... woods north of town?" He turns his gaze to her. His eyes grow wide. Stalking over to her, he grabs her by the arm and looking up into her face pleadingly.
"Did--did you find any children?! A girl? Any younger boys? What did you see!?" His breath catches in his throat, his voice extremely tight.
"No lad nothing of the sort. Just a monster with some gruesome traits."
It starts to Dawn on Oredion on why the boy is acting down.
He grimaces, letting his hand drop from Etny's arm. "Oh... Alright. I'm sorry, I just..." Tuck's gaze hardens. "A monster?"
Etny turns to the boy, and gives his arm a knowing squeeze.
"Yes, it was terrifying, to say the least--unspeakably hideous. Ore-elenn nearly died in trying to fight it," she shoots a glare Oredion's direction.
(Alternative DM suggestion for middleman for the..... peace talks. An NPC that you all trust from town might be a good choice. XD Regardless of which PCS are present. I'll let you pick though. Only one that can't/shouldn't probably be asked is Tak, lolol.)
(Sounds like a good idea. XD)
"Why ya glaring at me? It was your idea to go out hunting!"
Oredion chuckles then quickly shuts up not wanting to get yelled at again.
Etny's soften immediately, regretting glaring at the dwarf. "Ore-elennnnn...I was just so worried about you, is all," turning back to Alrik, "but yes, the hunting was my idea. We witnessed this creature, and there were also many...," she shudders visibly, "many snakes. Very many snakes."
Alrik grimaces. "I hate snakes... only good one is a dead one..." looking over at the saddened young half elf, he clears his throat. "Tucker here lost a friend to someone or something... we gave him a mage's funeral. This lad here is my apprentice... we're looking for the rest of his friends. They're missing... as well as Zinnia, one of the girls from The Fang."
"I see, Alrik," she says, a note of sadness in her voice. She turns to Tucker, and standing up, rests a hand on his back, an understanding look in her eyes. She knows the boy's pain...intimately.
"Alrik," she says quietly, "thank you for the meal. It was very delicious. It is my hope," she says, more to anyone and everyone, "that we can settle things with Atriox, and find these missing people, as well as discover the mystery of the creatures that have attacked. Something...something is afoot that I cannot quite grasp."
Giving the boy a pat on the back, she turns again to Alrik. "Would you be willing to mediate, or do you think it would be wiser for someone else to?"
Alrik strokes his beard, thinking. "Might be best if someone from town does... perhaps Petvin, the priest from the temple. He's level headed enough, when he has't been at the bottle."
"Alright, that sounds like a good plan. I think the time is right to make peace with the...dragonborn prince. I shall go talk to this Petvin tomorrow."
Alrik stands and walks to the table, wrapping the leftover meat in cloth and hanging them inside a small smokehouse he's had built. "Make my own rations... much better than the stuff you can buy."
He takes the remaining food back down to the larder and upon returning, sits down and lights one of the remaining strange cigarettes from Tommy. "I don't know if these disappearances and strange beasts are linked... but if I've learned anything in my years, it's strange things usually are tied together... and if we don't want more people going missing, we need to put an end to it..."
He kicks a stick into the fire. "We'll start first thing in the morning. I'll go talk with Petvin tonight and get him to mediate a talk between us all... If I have to, I'll convince Zeed and Tank to drag Atriox and keep him, as well as the rest of us, calm... we can't afford to lose our tempers toward each other... not anymore..."
(Niiiice Chant. Very nice. Want me to rp out the Petvin thing with you? I might fast forward to the next day for Collin while Andrew is still resting)
(I figure Alrik goes to the tavern, pays Petvin's tab, drags him home and puts him to bed and tells the priest he needs him sober in the morning... lol. Other than that, fast forward away!)
(Bwahahaha... Sounds good!
Having dealt with Petvin, you return back to your cabin to find Tucker asleep. He's curled up on the end of the bed, wrapped in a thin blanket.
Without the stress and hardship lining his face or the hard ass attitude he usually tries to front when he's awake... you can see that he really is just a child.
---
Oxious looks disgusted, but before he can speak you see his eyes grow wide. Aiming his staff at you he fired a blast of energy.
A hissing crack issues behind your head. You turn and see the gargoyle, alive and raging, surrounded by a swarm of bright knives. They cut and stab at it, chipping away pieces of rock.
The other gargoyle behind Oxious begins to twitch, maw opening wide. It reaches down to grab the tiefling's head, making to rip it off.
Atriox extends his hand out torwards the one reaching for Oxious sending another Eldritch blast at its chest.
(17, 10)
(13 damage from knives against the first
Your blast strikes the gargoyle back away from Oxious. The tiefling makes to dodge behind a headstone, readying another spell.
The gargoyle closest to you lunges. It feels like being hit by a bolder with wings. Stone teeth and claws rip at your armor. (19 and 21 to hit, 10 damage total).
Nearby you hear Oxious let out a strangled cry. The gargoyle chasing him dove for the gravestone, slamming him off of his feet and up against a broken fence. (Critical, 12 damage + 8 from claws) He crashes through it, struggling to keep his staff in front of him. His arms shake as he clutches his side, blood pooling from a fresh wound.
His staff radiates a twisting pattern of colors, flashing in front of the gargoyle's eyes. It stops, mesmerized and frozen in place. Sweat pours down Oxious' brow, his teeth gritted as he focuses through the pain.
Atriox growls at the pain he feels but try's to ignore. He sidesteps the gargoyle nearest to him he then jumps on it's back and holds on by grabbing the stumps of its stony wing's ...............................(18 acrobatics)
He looks down at the whole of the gargoyle and opens his maw spewing ice all over it starting at the head.
(9)
The gargoyle struggles against your weight on it, unable to position its wings properly to fly away. The ice grows thick on its body, a shining armor of pain and pressure. Parts of the beast crack and crumble away. It tries to bite at your shoulder again, ripping away bits and pieces.
A groaning, gurgling noise can be heard. From the freshly dug hole you see a figure rise up. The dead grave robber, his head a mass of flesh and blood, claws his way out and slides toward you.
(19, 6 damage)
Atriox roars in frustration looking at the beast under him he pulls with all his strength and jumps into a backflip off the beats trying to bring its wing with him
(22 strength 14 acrobatics)
(That was cooool!!!! You get an inspiration point for dat)
There is a cracking, snapping sound as the rock shatters. The wings come off in your claws, the ice fracturing along in large cracks. (14 damage)
(Fixing spelling errors.. 23, 4 damage to you) It struggles to claw at your chest, more pieces breaking off and shattering. A hearty slash rakes across your chest.
The zombie thrall gurgles and drags its way forward, almost upon you.
Atriox ducks and weaves around the gargoyle finding it not particularly challenging as its falling apart already. He has it positioned to where it's right in front of the zombie. He prepares another Eldritch blast even though he's less than happy about casting so many spells in a single fight.
A mass of dark energy swells around his hand and he casts it straight through gargoyle and into the zombie.
(15 attack 10 damage yeeet!)
The blast obliterates the center of the gargoyle, shattering the rock and slamming into the zombie. It rips the dead man's arm off and ruptures his ribcage, viscera and lung splashing out across the ground. He falls, crawling with his one good arm.
(4) The flickering globe of color shatters as Oxious loses his concentration. The second gargoyle screeches, leaping back and attempting to take flight. He looks like he's fleeing the battle.
Atriox aims his glaive and throws it straight through the Gargoyles wings locking them together
(16 and 12 )
The glaive crackles with energy, crashing through one wing and pinning it to the other. The gargoyle tumbles through the air. It crashes into the trees some distance away with a resounding boom.
Oxious exhales, dropping his head. He lays on his back trying to catch his breath.
Atriox walks past Oxious
"Stay here and catch your breath. I'll finish this poor beast off and we can continue on our way."
You walk out into the woods where you think the gargoyle landed.
(Make a perception check for me)
(17 ya needy)
Out of the corner of your eye you see a pile of rocks shift in the dim light. Your glaive lays in the leaf litter in front of you, perhaps 10 feet away.
Atriox senses a trap and doesn't even bother going for his glaive instead he extends his hand and blasts the pile with dark energy
(15 and 8)
The rocks shift and explode out from the ground but not fast enough. The gargoyle takes the shadowy blast right to the face, the dark energy flooding the cracks appearing in its body.
Almost more viscerally than before the magic engulfs its prey--as if devouring the life essence from it. You feel a tug in your mind, a satisfying relief as the elemental beast crumbles to the earth, dead.
Atriox is surprised and concerned by what his spell did. With what's been going on he fears he may need to talk to Oxious about this. But for now he recovers his glaive and heads back to Oxious
You arrive back at the graveyard. Oxious is taking a long swig of a potion from a bottle in his bag. He gives you a very irritated look, mostly from the pain. "Remind me to never take you up on one of these gallivanting adventures again..."
You walk a short distance along the gravel path when you come to a clearing in the otherwise dense forest. There are three large boulders and an old well near the corner of the path.
Atriox shrugs.
" I offered to have Bitey come along but you declined that. Next time maybe you'll appreciate some silent protection. Now where are we."
Oxious glares at you, smacking you in the tail with his staff. "I thought you were all the protection needed, Mr. I can handle a dragon... you did keep your word THEN,, Dahlia didn't come back with even a scratch. A forest didn't sound as bad as all that."
Atriox chuckle and whips Oxious leg with his tail
"Well I saw a dragon. The gargoyles ambushed us in some close quarters. Over all we actually didn't do to bad. But for future reference partner. Always take the extra precaution of added protection. You never know what life will throw at you. Now stop your griping and move those legs. I think we are getting close......"
The tiefling grumbles as he follows after, mockingly mimicking you. "You never know what life will throw at youuuu, whatever..." He holds a hand to his side, the bleeding having subsided somewhat.
You pass through a thicker part of the forest. Ghostly birch trees hug the rocks here. Some lean over the road like shades in the night. Up ahead, you see a looming shadow and the sounds of frogs and crickets. A splash.
A small pond with reeds and boulders sits in front of the remains of Drovin's cabin.
---
The full moon shines over the forest, providing you dim lighting. You hear... was that whispering? Coming from inside the cabin. A breeze rustles the trees around you, the leaves chittering against one another like dusty bones.
A frog jumps into the pond, its audible splash breaking the eerie silence. Oxious looks around nervously, holding his staff out in front of him. The top glows a bright whitish pink color, illuminating the area out for another 30 feet.
"Looks like the place, dragonborn... shall we look around? See if there's any clues here?"
Atriox raises his glaive in a defensive position and says to Oxious
"Tread carefully.......this cabin gives me an uneasy feeling. I would like to get this done as quickly as possible."
(Investigation 14)
The pond looks murky. Something catches your eye... a faint glimmer. You walk towards it. There is a piece of twine, like fishing string, pegged into the ground. The string sits in the water.
Giving it a tug, you pull up a small, algae covered sack. Inside are 3 platinum pieces and a pair of gloves. They seem expertly woven, something a thief might wear.
(14) Oxious walks forward to the door, some of the wood rotted and broken. He stares at it, holding out his staff.
A glow imitates from the end and a strange sigil lights up on the wood. It bursts into a white stream--the remains of a glyph of warding.
Atriox pockets the money and the gloves thinking he will look at them more closely later. He walks over to Oxious and looks at the door
"What do you make of it ?"
Oxious looks at you, taking a step back from the building. "I think someone wanted us hurt. It had a glyph on it... old magic, probably from a while ago. Remember when you tried to knock on my door a few weeks ago?"
He circles around the building looking for any other signs of magic. "I think that is the only one though, I sense no others..."
Behind you, you hear another splash of a frog in the pond. You're growing used to the sounds now. But... the air has grown colder. Freezing, almost. It doesn't feel like a Summer evening anymore, but like you stepped back out of the lake in the Crags. You turn.
An apparition floats out of the water, hovering over the surface. It's thin and stretched, a face gaunt and eyeless. Its mouth is open, gaping, like a void. An inhale, like a raspy breath full of glass, makes your insides crawl.
The eyes slowly glow a bright green. Its head tilts unnaturally sideways.
It rushes at you, a whirl of claws and teeth.
Atriox rolls his eyes
"It had to be something spooky didn't it ? It couldn't just be some giant frog or something rational."
Atriox charges at the beast jumping half way to it and spinning with his glaive aiming to cleave the thing in two. Where it cleaves the beast he decides is inconsequential
(24 attack 16 damage)
The glaive seems to make contact with something, but it feels like you're cutting through a dense pillow. It cleaves right near the midsection, the legs and hips of the being tumbling into nothingness.
Ghostly entrails pour out of the opening, trailing behind it. It looks enraged, stretching larger still as if to make up for the part of it that was severed. (negates 8 of the damage taken)
Right on top of you, it blasts through your body sending shivers of ice up your spine. Your eyes turn black for a moment and you feel like you are going to wretch. A child-like scream fills your ears.
(Make a CON save)
(Holy crap! These things are scary! Don't die! 😮)
(You take... 21 points of life drain, btw. The CON save is separate.)
It exits from your body, rushing for Oxious with a gaping maw now filled with bloody teeth and bony hands. The screams of multiple children tremor through the air.
The tiefling holds up his staff and a glowing light engulfs him. He looks blurred, almost as if he's moving incredibly quickly or stuck underwater. The ghost dives for him, sinking through his illusion and circling around the house. Oxious remains blurry, trying to keep moving to keep his illusion active.
(17 con save)
(Nice con save.... means it's not permanent HP drain... 😀 )
The spectre rushes back at you Atriox, landing on the swampy ground--many human arms and legs suddenly bursting from it. All bent at wrong angles, crawling like a centipede as it bears down on you.
(Your attack!)
Atriox grunts from the pain he feels all over. He wants to just fall over and not get up for hours but he knows Oxious needs him. He moves forward and with his weapon slashes at the beasts appendages.
(21 13)
it strikes the more corporeal body parts, cleaving away several limbs at once. Your blade rips up through its face, a piercing cry rippling across the ground.
The pieces of the waith that have been hewn apart... coalesce into small children, all laughing and running like they are playing tag. One by one they disappear into the trees. The last stands still, watching you with white eyes. A peaceful expression... And then wisps away.
Atriox looks confused by all the children but goes over to Oxious
"Let's just hurry up and search the damn place before it comes back."
You enter the derelict remains of Drovin's cabin. The floor boards are soft from rot, many of them missing and broken with weeds growing in between them. The room is dark apart from some moonlight rays streaming through the collapsed roof to your left. A dusty closet sits against the far wall. Rusted tools are scattered all over the room, along with discarded parchment.
You pick up one of the papers, writing on it catching your eye.
Just as you finish reading you hear something jolt from within the closet. Oxious almost jumps out of his skin, leveling his staff at the door. You turn around and listen closely. You can hear whispers coming from within...
The door handle moves up and down eratically. Both doors shake violently and the closet begins to rock slightly on its four legs. Something is trying to get out.
Atriox approaches the closet, glaive pointed at the ready. He calls out
"Whoever is in there I suggest you do not attempt to flee or fight us. If you be off good nature I promise you that you will come to no harm."
Atriox quickly throws the doors open and then steps back glaive pointed
Just before you grasp the door latch, the noise ubruptly stops and the closet becomes still. You hear a quiet sobbing coming from inside.
You throw the doors open....
Inside, you find a ghostly apparition of a little girl sitting in the corner of the closet, hands over her face, and crying profusely.
The girl notices you standing there, and begins to cry louder and push herself furhter into the corner of the closet to get away.
"Oh no...please Mr Whyte! Please let me go! Dont hurt me! I didnt do anything bad! I didnt mean to take it! I'll give it back!! I won't tell anyone what you did to the other children! I promise!!"
Atriox doesn't quite put his weapon down but he does move it to where it's less of a threat. The apparition makes him sad. Gently he speaks to the girl...
"We are not hear to hurt you young one. We are after Mr. Whyte. Can you please help us ?
She looks up at you, tears streaming down her face. She realizes that you're not Drovin. She gives a short smile. "I... I trust you." Her eyes glow white. "You are a nice man. I'll tell you a secret!"
She rubs her eyes. "Drovin hates shiny things. I took this from his desk when he wasn't looking... It makes him go crazy when he sees shiny things." She pulls out a flask of a glowing, golden liquid, setting it on the floor of the closet.
"Good luck mister! Thanks for helping us." The apparition flickers and disappears in an instant. The last thing you see is a gentle smile on her face.
Oxious slowly walks up behind you, peering around the inside of the closet. He looks at the flask on the floor.
"What do you think, Dragonborn?"
Atriox scratches his chin as he contemplates. Seeing no harm in it he picks up the vial and shows it to Oxious.
"If this Taker is afraid of this it should come in handy no ?"
....The longer you hold it, the more it seems to burn your hand. Your eyes grow dark. A pulsing in your head turns into a roar. (Make a wisdom save)
Oxious sees the look come over your face. "A-Atriox!?"
Eyes wide, he snatches it out of your claws without thinking.
Oxious looks absolutely shocked like he's not sure what came over him. Staring at the flask, the tiefling looks like he's waiting for it to hurt him...
...But nothing happens. The gentle golden glow seems perfectly safe.
The roar in your head pierces your mind even louder, causing you to grip your head in pain. Your eyes go from black to radiating shadow, and Oxious backs up a little more.
"Atriox?! What the hell?! Snap out of it!"
Suddenly... The shadows fade. Your vision clears. Oxious swims back into view. You see him pointing the staff at you, sweat pouring down his brow.
(Make an wisdom check, cuz Oxious cast Hold Person on you! Lol... that's what I'd do)
Atrioxs head is pounding. He puts his arms up against the wall trying to calm himself
Oxious tentatively moves toward you, slipping the flask into his bag and pulling out a couple of healing vials.
"H-hey. Here." He helps you drink them both.
The fruity, honey-like taste is intensely relieving... Energy flows back through your veins and your head slowly clears. (You heal 32 hp)
He keeps glancing around nervously. "We should leave. I..." The tiefling looks like he doesn't wanna say it. "I... Hate ghosts. This is a nightmare."
Atriox takes a deep breath
"Have we searched everything? Learned anything?"
Oxious nods emphatically. "Yeah. I'm sure. Not much is left here."
Atriox nods and says "let's get out of here then"
Atriox walks outside and waits for Oxious to get clear. Once Oxious joins him he says
" I'm going to make sure this cabin never haunts anyone ever again. This stain on the earth is about to be cleansed."
Atriox roars and begins to breath fire all around the outside of the house leaving no peice of that dreaded cabin unscorched
The damp wood pops and cracks, engulfed in raging flames. The fire burns so fiercely that within minutes, the murder's cabin collapses on itself. Sparks float up to the stars above. Oxious and you watch in silent witness to the end of the horror, once and for all.
The charred husk reduced completely to ash, you feel a cold whisper on the wind. It soothingly brushes the scales on your face. A sound reaches your ears.
The gentle laughter of children.
Atriox smirks at the laughter of the children
"Theres my weeks good deed. Those children should be a lot happier now. Let's leave this realm of hell and get home partner."
Oxious nods, turning on his heel. You don't think you've ever seen him walk so fast.
"Definitely hell indeed. Feels like being lost in an abyss..." He mutters it under his breath.
You walk for some time in silence, the only sound in the trees being the rustle of wind and an occasional owl. The tiefling has a large shiver run up him.
He slows down just enough that he's next to you, and you hear him say just above a whisper,
"Dragonborn? Does... it feel like we're being followed? I can't shake the feeling."
Atriox intensifys instantly. He opens up his senses and try's to see or hear something without being to obvious.
(Investigation 14)
He whispers to Oxious, "Be on your guard. Be ready for anything. You never know with this damn forest"
You hear.... nothing. The forest is quiet. Too quiet. You are definitely not alone here.
Oxious walks slowly, his staff glowing a little. You can tell he's mumbling under his breath, some sort of incantation. He's hyper focused, concentrating on his spell.
Atriox... you hear a twig snap. Then a twang from a bow.
Atriox yells to Oxious, "Get down !!"
He swings around with his glaive blocking the arrow. He looks around now definitely alert for danger.
"You good Oxious ?"
The arrow pings off the metal, spinning away through the bushes. Oxious backs away, his staff glowing. His eyes are wide and he holds his side, the injury from earlier still making it hard to concentrate.
"Yeah, but damn it all if I'm ever stepping foot in this forest again!" He points the staff toward where the arrow came from. Squirming, ebony tentacles sprout from the ground for a good twenty feet across, blocking off your attackers from you.
Suddenly, a group of several orcs rush forward from the trees. Their dark blueish skin blends in well amid the shadows. The only light you can see gleaming off of their white tusks, their yellow eyes, and their sharpened falchions.
A roar fills the forest as they strike. Two dart around the thrashing tentacles that Oxious summoned, narrowly avoiding the grabbing squidlike shadows. The others, not so lucky, are tripped and entangled in them. They are beaten about and torn at by the shadow magic, howling in rage.
The two that make it through bear down on you Atriox, being the closest prey they have. Their plate armor and furred clothes accent the bones stuck through their skin like piercings, as well as the tight leather straps accenting blackened tattoos.
Once swipes at you, narrowly missing your arm. His blade swings around for a second attack, glancing off of your breastplate armor.
The second bends low and rushes your stomach, ramming into you with the strength of a boar. You feel the wind knocked out of you as you watch his blade come up from below.
The glaive slices cleanly through the back of the orc gripping Atriox's waist, sending him flying. Blood splashes as his body impacts the rocks.
The second orc lunges for the dragonborn again, his eyes glowing. He brings around his sword, the blade slicing lengthwise down the scales of your tail. Blood oozes out and he licks the weapon hungrily. "Come here, pretty lizard..." He hisses between his tusks.
A cry rings out behind you. Oxious is grabbed by another orc, one who's broken free of the tentacles. He scrambles against his attacker, whipping out a dagger to stab the orc's arm. He draws blood, but not before the larger villain smashes his head with the butt end of his sword. The tiefling staggers, stars bursting in front of his eyes.
Atriox winces from the pain but sees the Orc is distracted with his blood. He strikes quickly and jabs the orc through its mouth. The orc gags in surprise and pain on the blade. After a few moments of satisfaction Atriox pulls the blade out and whirls his glaive around cuts the dwarf in half from the waist.
He sees Oxious get hit.
"Oxious ! Hang on I'm coming !"
You rush toward Oxious seeing the orc bear down on top of him. The tiefling flings his arm forward, hoping to cast a spell at the orc but his staff is knocked away from him with a mighty swing. He grabs your friend by the face, slamming him backwards into the gravel and mud.
Faster than you can blink, something--or someone--lands deftly on your back. The weight and power behind it sends you crashing to the ground, face first. A strong hand on one of your horns, you hear a heavy, feminine voice hiss into your ear.
"My my, what a feisty little dragonborn... Who knew what delicious animals we'd find out on our hunt tonight, right boys?" Before you can move, before you can react, your head is slammed to the side, her hand forcing your horns down. You're surprised by a piercing pain in your neck and shoulder. Four sharp, pointed teeth dig into your skin, piercing between your scales and sinking deep into your flesh.
Your mind swims, lightheaded from both the pain and the massive amount of blood loss. It's a sensation you've never felt before in your life, utterly and terrifyingly different than any wound from blade, arrow or magic.
Atriox is in a swirl of confusion, pain, and slight pleasure. He doesn't understand what is going on at all. He try's to struggle against the woman. Finnish he elbows her and breaks free. He stumbles to his feet trying to remain balanced and hold the wait of his weapon but all the blood loss is making it hard. He attempts a charge at Oxious assailant and manages to fend off the orc before cutting off a leg.
The attacker leaps off of you as you impact her, watching you curiously as you try to remain standing. She wipes blood from her face. "Well, well... the blood of dragons is resilient indeed. I thought I'd killed you." She has dark, ashen blue skin, plate armor and a heavy greataxe strapped to her back. The fact that she moves as fast as she does is rather surprising. Her eyes glow slightly, with thin pointed tusks coming out from her bottom jaw. She smiles, and you can see smaller tusks--fangs--mirroring the bottom ones. You can tell they all have your blood on them, glistening in the moonlight.
There is a sincere look of surprise on her face as you turn away from her, willing to help Oxious instead of face her head on. She watches for a moment to see what happens, an evil smirk tugging the corner of her mouth as she sees you cleave a leg off of one of her commanders. The orc cries out in pain as he holds his stump, trying to parry your glaive with one of his falchions. You knock it away easily, thrusting your weapon clear through his heart. He spits up blood and you see it pour out his nose around his numerous piercings.
Oxious scrambles to grab his staff again. The orcish leader finally stalks forward. "You are both persistent at this living thing, aren't you? She deftly swings her axe from her, knocking away the staff before Oxious can reach it. Without even turning her face away, she bears down on Atriox, the weapon swinging in an arc toward his chest.
Atriox roars at the female orc waving his tail around in anger
"I'm not to particular about what life state I'm in. But NOTHING will keep me from fulfilling my goals ! Nothing ! Not life Nor death !"
As she swings her axe his uses most of his energy to preform a block and using the advantage afforded to him by the length of his weapon twirls it around and throws it out of her hands. He presses his attack on what he assumes is an unarmed opponent
The glaive slices down her shoulder and chest and she jumps back. A growl escapes her, but one of what you could almost assume is... delight. "Neither life nor death? Is that so, spawn of Io?" She grins. "Many people might take you up on that offer. You better watch what you wish for..."
She kneels, hissing, and suddenly turns into a gaseous fog. The mist swarms around you, in your nose, in your ears, deafening and suffocating you. You feel a weight on your back as she materializes again, gripping your horns a second time. She's perched on you, standing on your tail and spine.
"I like playing with my food... and so do they!" She hisses as she bites the other side of your neck and shoulder, the same excruciating pain electrifying your body. Three more orcs rush up toward you, swords drawn and meaning to disembowel you. You can see Oxious grab his staff, blasting away one of them with a strange phantasmal force spell. It knocks him away and into a tree branch. There's a loud crack as his neck snaps. Another orc leaps atop the tiefling and you hear a another crack and a cry. He stands, picking up the unconscious and bleeding wizard.
Atriox growls and roars in a last desperate attempt. With the female orc still on his back he pushes off the ground and charges the other orcs that have Oxious.
He uses the added weight and slams into them using the side of the female with him. He feels blood pouring from his neck as the orc bites deeper into him but he doesn't stop
Ragged breath and all he uses his glaive to massacre the Orcs. Slashing, stabbing, ramming into them. It's a bloody gruesome scene with bodysuits laying everywhere . Atriox is covered head to foot in blood. A good amount his.....to much of it his really. All the orcs but the female are dead.
Atriox falls to his knees. Completely spent and out of ideas.
The orcish vampire walks up to you, blood smeared on her lips. "You did well. But not well enough it seems... No one can best me."
She kneels, savoring your ragged breath and utter exhaustion. She whispering into your ear. "Tell the darkness of the abyss my name..." She hisses, "Dorokor."
Your eyesight fades. You collapse into the quiet night.
---
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