Gil listens to the debate, but just shakes her head, not joining in.
"I fear that such a....dark matter bomb would have effects beyond what we do comprehend. Like.....what.....happened to Cyre?"
Ezrael! Eureka!!!
What if....the Day of Reckoning Cyre went through were somehow related to some dark matter bomb? And that creature we fought.......it or its ilk were somehow connected to it?.....
hmm...."
Rod scratches his head.
"Could we be looking at the effects of Shadow Matter weaponry?....."
Initially, Janosz listens to the debate without offering much one way or another, instead focusing on lighting his pipe. However, he can't stay silent for long. "While I agree with Ezreal's assessment of the military potential of that... thing, it seems obvious to me that Rolund and Rodergo are right. Shadow demons like this are an abomination against everything we value and hold dear, and should never be invited into our world. I mean, look at this." He holds up a tarnished and partially melted silver arrowhead. "Its flesh corrodes even the metals of the earth just as easily as its touch brings death to all living things. It is antithetical to existence itself. Even if it could be perfectly controlled, its mere presence would gradually poison everything around it. Using it as a weapon would inevitably mean defeat for both sides of any conflict. Who wants to win if victory means controlling dead and empty lands?"
"I've grown to accept that animating the dead to create mindless minions is not necessarily the worst act a man can perform. But inviting a dark godling like this to ravage the lands of the living might just be."
The night passes slowly, but in the end wan sunlight begins to filter through the broken panes of glass in the main picture window of the cathedral. It reveals the shattered insides of the former place of worship, now a scene of desolation and desecration.
While she waits, Gil sits with her steel mirror, practicing different facial features. She even tries on a face similar to a warforged. When the rest of the party is ready, she packs it away and returns to Cassandra's visage, coloring her clothes in a camo pattern using colors from the ruins around her.
"Let's keep heading for our primary mission goal."
"Yeah, let's move on. If yesterday's events are anything to go by, we'll be relatively safe if we stay out in the sunlight, so no poking around in dark alleys. At least we're on the right side of the damned chasm now. I'll take the lead."
“Ezreal, before we set out is there any way of determining if the fiend we destroyed was indeed the cause of us being unable to properly navigate this city? Or could it be something else?”
The party navigate through the city ruins, ever-alert for danger. But whatever it was that was causing the strange effects of the previous day has gone. After less than an hour, they pass through the last gate and into the desolated landscape beyond.
Judging by the map, the facility should be near a village about ten miles outside Eston, and along the trade road they are standing on. Nothing remarkable about the village, Pontrilas, is noted. However, the facility itself is about half a mile further on, built into the side of a hill.
The adventurers trudge on. The road follows the side of the empty river for a mile or so before heading up towards some low hills. The shells of farmsteads dot the landscape and the everpresent, bone-chilling wind that seems to a feature of the Mournland stirs the dead grass. The red blur of the sun hauls itself painfully across the sky as the day passes.
About noon, a group of broken-down dwellings can be seen in the distance. By the map, this should be Pontrilas.
Perception
Runzyl stays mostly quiet, though he feels a sense of inner peace at having faced such a significant threat and survived. Despite the atmosphere, he seems almost calm rather than his usually tense self. He follows closely with Janosz, aiding the ranger in his duties.
You also notice a flicker of movement within the village, but when you look again it is gone.
"We'll need to check the village out first. Any semi-competent foe will have left a few guys to guard their back while the main contingent searches the factory. Also, I should be able to find tracks there - enough tracks to make a guess as how many foes we're facing, and, if we're lucky, what kind of equipment they are carrying or wearing."
"We'll need to check the village out first. Any semi-competent foe will have left a few guys to guard their back while the main contingent searches the factory. Also, I should be able to find tracks there - enough tracks to make a guess as how many foes we're facing, and, if we're lucky, what kind of equipment they are carrying or wearing."
"Janosz, hold up. What do you make of these tracks?"
"They look recent to me, and there are two groups. Can you tell more about them?"
"I don't know if we've been spotted yet, but I saw movement among the buildings a moment ago..."
"Janosz and I are skilled in stealth and versed well enough in combat," the elf states, looking to the Shadow Marcher. "We could sneak in and determine the nature of the threat... and perhaps then make plans to attack or withdraw? Do any of you have ways to speak with us at a distance without being overheard? Magic of some kind?"
I can detect thoughts, but.....only out to 60 feet.
"We'll bring Kadesh along. He's extremely useful for stealth work. The rest of you, stay here." Janosz drops off his backpack and stalks off, bow at the ready.
"Lessee... Fairly recent tracks, at most a couple of days old, but it's harder to tell in a place like this than in a place with normal weather, flora and fauna. A dozen or so humans, or at least human-sized walkers, showed up first. Could be gnolls, hobgoblins or dwarves, but no halflings or ogres. Good, solid boots, but I can't say much beyond that. Then a bunch of warforged arrived, about twice the number of the first group."
"I can see two possibilities - either we're seeing a well-coordinated operation, with the warforged reinforcing the initial arrivals, or these two groups are unconnected with each other. With a bit of luck, it's the second; with an even bigger bit of luck, they are mutually hostile. Of course, we won't know until we scope out the village - which is our next step. Runzyl, Kadesh - let's go. Oh, and Kadesh, stay close to us and out of the skies. A bird flying around here is a dead giveaway that something's up."
Gil will seek a vantage point where she can hopefully keep an eye on the scouts and the village without being seen. She's more concerned about the village, but wants to be able to react if the scouts need help.
Perception
“The first group, I suspect, will either be scavengers and looters, the sort of people that Matilda and I were warned about back in Sharn; or else agents of the Dreaming Dark,” Lightbringer muses. “It is most likely that the warforged will be followers of the so-called Lord of Blades. It would not completely surprise me if our old foe Darkheart was amongst them.” At the last, the paladin turns his gaze to Basher.
“Basher, can we count on you to fight on our side if our enemies are warforged?” he asks the Charger. “What if your old companion Darkheart is amongst them? Remember, he left you as junk when last we defeated him; it is only by our kindness that you were repaired to fight again.”
"Basher bash," replies the warforged, seemingly confused.
"Hmmm..." Janosz stops and then wanders back to the party. "If anyone's around, they must already have seen us. There's bound to be someone in the bell tower; the rest will be quartered in the inn."
"Screw the sneaking and scouting - there's no way Runzyl and I can detach from the rest of the group without being obvious. Let's get off the road and just advance up to the village through the fields and use the stone walls for cover. Spread out a bit so we won't get caught in unpleasant spell effects. And those who have bows, get them out. If anything happens, hit the ground and crawl up to the nearest covering wall."
The adventurers climb the wall by the roadside and make their way across the fields towards the village.
Perception +3 to locate traps
Rolund unlimbers his bow and proceeds to follow the others.
Perception
"There's no doubt about it. We've company - I see movement in the bell tower, as well as the windows in that building there and there. Whether they have seen us, I cannot tell -- but I would assume so."
She gets a sly grin on her face, "You know, I might be able to take care of the folks in the bell tower and have some fun at the same time. They haven't made any noise yet -- maybe they don't know we're here yet -- and a silence spell could go a long way toward making them a non-issue..."
"Sounds good. Do I have time to prep? Do we want my spell of zeal for these guys?"
"They know we're here. What we want to do is to approach in a way that won't let them catch us in a crossfire or an ambush. What's your plan for the church tower, by the way?"
"I should be able to fly up there invisible and work some mischief. A silence spell if we want to prevent them from sounding an alarm." She glances at Lightbringer, "Or maybe something more entertaining."
"Could you, y'know, make anyone in the tower turn on their allies down on the ground? Twist their minds, make them believe we are their friends?"
“Matilda, if there is something you can do that will help, I raise no objection,” says Lightbringer, assuming that Gil’s glance at him was a question (rather than a suggestion that Gil’s surprise may contain something the paladin wouldn’t approve of). “As you say, I think we must assume we have been seen and that whoever waits in the village is prepared to do battle. We could bypass the village, but we then risk being trapped between two forces, one possibly at the facility, one in this village. Yes Flamebearer, I agree, now is the time to cast helpful spells of long duration.”
“My suggestion is this: with the exception of any who can and wish to use magic to approach by another method, we advance in two groups; the larger and slower of us go by the road, perhaps spread out somewhat as friend Janosz has suggested, so as not to draw fire from magic. The walls will give us some cover. They will hem us in for an ambush as well, but we should be able to go over or through them easily enough if it comes to it.
“A group of the faster and stealthier amongst us head through the fields, keeping behind the cover of the walls. The watchers from the tower will see you detach from the rest of us, but may lose track of you if you keep low and behind walls.
“Each group come to the others’ aid if one is attacked. If we meet no opposition prior, we will reconvene outside the inn, and can head from there to the road to the facility.
“Do you agree with this plan?”
“Does anybody wish to parley with the group or should we just avoid the niceties and proceed to the slaughter?” Rolund asks as he frowns at the warforged’s plan.
"I'm for parleying. It sounds like the two groups might be at odds with eachother. And that's exploitable.
Which is kinda why I look at you askance, Rolund."
Rod says, beaming.
"However, how do we get close enough TO parley without getting porcupined by yon tower of archers?"
“I have a volunteer in mind and obviously you don't know me as well as you think you do,” Rolund looks at the Purified for a second before changing track to look at the changeling.
“Do you have any illusions you can send to speak for us similar to your phantom knights?”
"I do not like the idea of splitting up our group. With the walls in the way, it will take longer to come to each others' aid, and that could be fatal."
"Oh, and screw parlaying. We have a group following nightmare demons and a group dedicated to eradicating non-warforged life. We'll need to kill the lot anyway; we might just as well get started now."
"Considering how things have been going since we crossed the mists, I prepared for more of the same this morning. I'm a little light on the illusions and long distance communication. I'll tell you what I can do. If we get within a couple hundred feet of someone, I can whisper right into their ear and hear their reply. Other than that, Kadesh can carry a message for us and ask someone to meet, but that method leaves a lot to be desired in the subtlety department. It also puts my bird a little more directly in danger than I am comfortable with. We can hold that plan out as a last resort."
“I have a volunteer in mind and obviously you don't know me as well as you think you do,” Rolund looks at the Purified for a second before changing track to look at the changeling.
“Do you have any illusions you can send to speak for us similar to your phantom knights?”
Gil looks at the bone knight for a long moment, "I have a lot of tricks, Rolund, but I don't know that I can create a illusionary proxy. I could disguise myself and do the speaking, but that's not what you are asking for, is it?"
"We could certainly split up as suggested, but have the 'obvious' group go in to negotiate and the other group cover them. If they attack the negotiators, the others come running." She shrugs, "or I could float up to the tower and make sure they don't contribute to any coming mayhem."
In response to Ezreal, she smiles, "Oh, that's a great idea. How about if I go to the tower, but stay on top? Then I can tell you what I see? Then your faithful companion can remain out of danger - at least, as much as possible as possible in this land."
“I have no objection to parlaying,” says Lightbringer. “That the current inhabitants of this village are dangerous looters, adherents of the Lord of Blades or agents of the Dreaming Dark is an assumption – though an entirely reasonable one given what we know. My plan does not preclude a parlay, should we be hailed with words rather than arrows and spells. As Matilda says, if the group on the road is hailed we can respond. My instinct is that we face danger here, and by sending an emissary we place them in danger – unless we can do so by magic, but it appears not. Janosz, if you would rather we stay together, I raise no objection, though I feel it gives us more flexibility if we are split; if the second group stays close, these walls – four feet high at best and made of stacked stone – should create little impediment for us to rejoin.”