Diarmal shudders as a chill runs down his spine. Whatever just happened was more dire than any Bullwug-lookalike, any overly talkative gnome, or even than meeting his favorite cousin. Mostly favorite cousin.
He closed his eyes, trying to focus Aisling's power into understanding the magical energies of this place.
As his careful eyes panned the room, searching for any semblance of logic, he tried to survey the others in the tavern. The copper-haired one and the short one kept speaking in riddles. It was fascinating, though also mildly irksome. As the taller one made for the door with some kind of metal stave in hand, Diarmal had only one thought on his mind.
"For all of Aisling's good graces," he said, addressing no one in particular, "What in all the good highlands of Ibalnd is going on here?"
Shutter and thoom indeed. Felicia has instinct kick in as she snaps her head back outside the tavern. She raises a hand, a motion in hopes to make sure no one talks, as she tries to listen outside.
Regardless M.A.R.V.I.N steps ahead of her and heads outside, she tries to grab him, uttering in a quiet voice. "Your stick is no weapon! Get back inside!" Though her small form is far too much to hold him back, and she lets go just as soon as she had grabbed him. She turned back to them, then. The Elves, and the Grippili, her head shaking as she spoke more calmly. "You have weapons, come on, let's help him. Who knows what's happening out there to him! Erm... You lead the way, need a torch?" her insistence to lead was directed to Diarmal, though she herself was prepping herself by ushering a small prayer in her sylvan tongue.
Satisfied with his cursory examination of the magical energies in the inn, Diarmal snapped his fingers to create a calm and soothing light of Aisling in his palm. Pressing it to his chest, he centered the emanation on himself.
"That will be unnecessary, little one. Lady Aisling provides."
Reaching for the shortbow attached to his pack, the highlander strung it with a practiced hand and gave it an experimental draw. He nodded his head towards Rydwen.
"Oi' cous', ill be best'n if ye tak' ta lead, mehthank."
By all the spirits of my ancestors, what was that? , Ribat thinks as whatever was happening twisted the very fabric of his being. As he recovered his wits, Ribat touched his forehead, each of his shoulders, and then his stomach. Whatever evil spirits are behind this have another think coming if they think I'm not prepared . Having completed his ritual, Ribat jumps back as one of the people involved in the commotion in the bar runs past him. When Felicia encourages Ribat to follow, Ribat says, I intend to help, but I will be more useful if I am not seen. As Felicia and the elves are preparing, Ribat takes to the shadows and follows the running figure.
;
Xor listens to the mostly unintelligible conversation with a dull almost bored look, until he does his matrix imitation and snaps back up
So beasty, ya back for more ay
He runs outside rock drawn
After a few moments with nothing in sight, Marvin says, "No further information gathered. Scouting recommended. Agent Southmiller, this unit request information regarding this event."
Green eyes immediately narrow: finally, something she might understand better than all this prattle. Ribat's skill at language had floored her, but now she thought she heard bugs: something swamp rangers know a thing or two about. She rushed out of the tavern, straining to make out if they are insects, and if so what type...
The weapons comment was the best thing Rydwen's heard Felicia say yet. She gripped the worn wood of her spear, contemplating the best way to fight off a potential swarm.
"Got ye boards fer the windows?" She dismissed the idea the moment she said it. "Nae good, nae time. Be havin' a cellar?"
She worried about how to tell Diarmal, but clearly this wasn't going to be the right time.
The night is deathly quiet, the clouds above are still, and no light shines from the moon or stars. The pale yellow glow from the lantern sheds light to about eighty feet in a half circle around the front of the tavern. The waters of the beach to the south are still and the waves roll with a soft almost impossible to hear rhythm against the sandy beach.
Thursday Night (turn 132), Two Barrels Tavern
Suddenly there is a brief flash of pale blue light from the direction of the “wall” and it appears as if some person has just materialized there, and at the same time, a young Eshian man, a Halfling, appears coming out of the darkness to the west, running for their very life.
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Before Tessrimea can respond to his previous question, a shadow seems to pass behind Sasithorn's eyes - or rather, the air between them seems to briefly darken save for his eyes, hence brightening them by comparison - and his face adopts a clownish caricature of her disapproving expression. His voice, equal parts playful and prosecutory, is soft enough for some semblance of privacy.
"Tessrimea Niessomat: What were you doing on that silly Basconde party barge...and how did you escape Jackal's Claw?"
Basconde party barge, jackal's claw? What are you talking ab...Wait! You think I am my great aunt Tessrimea. She drowned in a storm fifty years ago off the coast of Basconde. She was a guest of some duke or something. She was my grandmother's sister, on my father's side. I was named for her, and I'm told I take after her, the tail and all, but how? How could you know her?
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"50 years...?" Sasithorn's face finally shows something that is neither mania nor catatonia. He looks around him, as though trying to find a way out beyond merely the door. "What...I...is it known what happened to them? The folk on the ship, I mean?"
Sasithorn is trying to figure out how this is possible, trying to remember the last thing that happened to him before he landed in this village....
One thing he does remember is that he'd lost everything but his clothing and jewelry in the wreck, and he doesn't know where he got all this...stuff. He scrutinizes his equipment (such as it is; he recalls some of his old things had been rather nicer) in the hopes of finding a clue.
It was no secret the power of Aisling, however there was some questions that popped to mind when Diarmal mentioned it. He must have been a cleric in her service! These questions were a ramble inside her small head, but that would have to wait. Ribat headed into the darkness, and the elves seemed ready to go as well. Without much of a care, the gnomish woman would begin to trail down the deep dark trail, looking for any going ons.
Then blue streamed from the sky, and then, people came... A gnome but not a gnome...
"Oh!" Felicia exclaimed as she pointed. "I need to see one of those ones! He's running...but.." She watched a moment, the behavior the two seemed to inhibit. It was far too dark. she couldn't see well enough. She would close her eyes and utter a silent words, her hands moving to strange gestures before she released the spell out. Soon after, four torch like lights would shoot ahead of her, making an effort to find what laid beyond them.
Gripping his bow tightly, Diarmal ponders what might have caused such a strange feeling. If the world had become disconnected from Aisling - disconnected from magic entirely - then something truly terrible was taking place. His arrival in this town was no mere coincidence, he realized. His entire journey may have been preparing him for his moment!
"This way!" he called out over the silence of the night and the panic of his fellows. "Find refuge in the Two Barrels!"
He only hoped the little man's short legs could carry him fast enough. Diarmal wasn't sure he wanted to know what he was running from, but he steeled his courage regardless.
This was all unnatural, too far removed from her ken. It was like the terrain were suddenly disconnected. "Bein' no bug, bird nor beast," she exhaled softly to the others. No moon or starlight meant her normally keen elven senses were useless outside. She'd had to deal with foggy mires and other unseen challenges on occasion, but she had usually valued patience and ambush in such situations...she had never taken the time to learn how to really do it.
Ryd would normally prefer to take the fight to the creek or the shore, but without even moonlight she would be powerless. It looked like the Two Barrels was her only real choice, besides the fact that she couldn't leave Diarmal anyway. Maybe whatever that thing was, lurking to the west, would eat its fill of the other villagers in closer houses first. At this point in time, she still only cared about her cousin.
Thursday Night (turn 132), Two Barrels Tavern
Felicia calls up a quartet of glowing orbs and sends them cautiously down the beach to the west. When they are nearly at the end of her range of control something is revealed.
There are three small boats, stored upside down on the beach just above the high tide mark left by the water, and then further to the west everyone can see a host of dark, and utterly bizarre creatures shambling across the waters of a small creek that flows from the north into the sea here. There are round creatures that tumble across the ground rolling, and dragging themselves by long tentacles, one of these creatures is much larger than the other two. There are two objects that resemble walls of pure darkness and they bend in the middle, their tops tough the ground and then the bottom springs up and off the ground swinging into the air to become the top as it lurches forward.
There appear to be strange objects in the air, no larger than a ball a child might kick around, but these objects are shaped like three sided pyramids, and they spin in the air, flying through some unnatural means. Their spinning is erratic and appears off balance, and it is from these objects that the faint droning sound originates. Behind these creatures you can see vague humanoid looking figures that walk with strange jerking and staggering steps. In the darkness it looks as if they are skeletons or zombies. One of these zombies is carrying a long bow.
I will also cast light on a rock this rd.
Ribat braces himself for combat and tries to determine how long it will take the creatures to reach him. Then he slinks to a position where he thinks the overturned boats will conceal him.
Standing side by side with his kinsman and countrywoman, Diarmal lifts his bow and readied it for battle.
"May Aisling protect us all..." he murmured.
"Hostiles detected." Marvin prepares to move forward when they spot Jazz behind them.
They turn to face the Suli. "Unknown combatant, identify yourself."
Felicia, with all her hype and excitement, and talking, it would be a blessing for the Ranger woman that suddenly she seems to enter more of a trance state at the sight of the monsters. Her curiosities would have to wait, people needed help, and she wasn't going to let her new friends down.
Felicia takes a step back (Five foot step), so the ranger and cleric remain within her view. She focus's, for now, on keeping the lights as close to the creatures as possible, keeping them in view for the others.
"We need to stick together! Do not separate!"
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The sound of something happening outside reaches Sasithorn, and his thoughts suddenly refocus on his recognition of the earlier event. He's been confronted with no fewer than 5 staggering mysteries over the course of a single evening, and has yet to find a proper answer for any of them. He's almost giddy - he has justification to be apprehensive to the point of dread, too, but honestly, what would be the point? He smirks, and invokes his family motto, simple as it is laden and layered with meaning:
"Light fades. Shadows fade.
Eyes adjust to the darkness.
The night is endless."
Her eyes crinkle at Felicia's words, a small measure of composure coming back. "Separate...aye. Aye, that might do. Might not be o' this earth, but packs an' soldiers still need leaders. Maybe we should pierce its heart, an' let the timorous beasties fight for a new alpha elsewhere? Might be enough to sew a bit o' chaos. Cannae see out there, can anyone? The boggards be lookin' to one partic'lar like?"
Thursday Night (turn 132), Two Barrels Tavern
Round 1
Combat rounds begin now. You can try to post in Initiative order, that will help me, or if you feel it won’t matter, post out of order and I will manage your post somehow. The only thing you need to know is that if you are within 5 squares of the sea, on the south side of the map, you are in sand, and this prevents any Full Round Action Runs (you cannot move 4 times your speed in the sand) otherwise everything is normal
Jazz – 25
Ribat – 22
Marvin - 21
Skeletons – 20
Diarmal - 15
Tentacruel – 12
Felicia - 11
Xor – 10
Zombies – 8
Giant Tentacruel – 7
Tetracruel – 5
Rydwen – 4
Sasithorn - 4
WhapWhop – 3
The Eshian man running toward you appears to be too frightened to speak, and he comes closer
JAZZ A coppery haired, strange skinned person is addressing you in a language you do not speak!
Diarmal – Light, this is round 2 of 600
Sasithorn – Steel Shadows, this is round 2 of 600
Outsider, Medium, CR 1, HD 2d10 HP 8
Abilities, Str 14, Dex 18, Con 8, Int 10, Wis 6, Chr 12
AC 16, T 14, FF 12 (+4 Dex, +2 Natura)
CMB +3, CMD 17 (21 versus trip)
Melee, Slam +3 (nonlethal), d4+2+Trip, FA 2 slams, no trip d4+2
BAB +1, +2 Strength
F -1, R +7, W -2
Giant Tentacruel - Damage Reduction – 5/Slicing, Fast Healing (Darkness) 3, Lifesense, Light Sensitivity, Negative Energy Affinity, Shadow Resistance – 5, Sunlight Powerlessness, Trip, Reach – 10’, Unnatural Aura 15’, Vulnerable – “Good”, Slam d4 (nonlethal)
Outsider, Large, CR 2, HD 3d10 HP 12
Abilities, Str 18, Dex 16, Con 10, Int 10, Wis 6, Chr 12
AC 16, T 12, FF 12 (+3 Dex, +4 Natural, -1 size)
Melee, Slam +6 (nonlethal), d4+4+Trip, FA 2 slams, no trip d4+4
CMB +7, CMD 20 (24 versus trip)
BAB +2, +4 Strength
F +1, R +6, W -1
WhapWhop – Damage Reduction – 5/Bashing, Fast Healing (Darkness) 3, Lifesense, Light Sensitivity, Negative Energy Affinity, Shadow Resistance – 5, Sunlight Powerlessness, Unnatural Aura 15’, Vulnerable – “Good”, Slam d3 (nonlethal), Spell Like Ability – cast Darkness (2 minute duration) 20’ radius centered on this creature, Channel Negative energy, 3 times per day (d6 damage or heal).
Outsider, Large, CR 1, HD 3d8 HP 9
Abilities, Str 10, Dex 12, Con 8, Int 10, Wis 6, Chr 12
AC 11, T 10, FF 10 (+1 Natura1, +1 Dex, -1 size)
Melee, Slam +2 (nonlethal), d6, Spell Like abilities and Channel
BAB +2
F +0, R +4, W -1
Tetracruel – Damage Reduction – 5/Piercing, Fast Healing (Darkness) 3, Lifesense, Light Sensitivity, Negative Energy Afinity, Shadow Resistance – 5, Sunlight Powerlessness, Unnatural Aura 15’, Vulnerable – “Good”, Slam d4 (nonlethal), Fly, Detonate
Outsider, Tiny, CR ½, HD 1d10 HP 5
Abilities, Str 8, Dex 18, Con 10, Int 8, Wis, 6, Chr 14
AC 16, T 16, FF 12 (+4 Dex, +2 Size)
Melee, Slam +0, d4-1 (nonlethal), on a successful attack, attaches to target, on its next activation will detonate for d3 nonlethal damage and a Will Save DC 12 must be made or target suffers d3 rounds of disorientation, causing a -1 penalty on all attack rolls (but not damage rolls) and all skills that rely on directional sense.
BAB +0
F -1, R +6, W -2
Zombies | AC 12, t 10, ff 12 | hp 12 DR 5/S | Will +3 | slam +4, d6+4
Skeletons | AC 16, t 12, ff 14 | hp 4, DR 5/B | Will +2 | Broken Scimitar +0, d6
Curse this sand! There's no way I can sneak to those boats in time for it to do any good...best to stick with the group, then, thinks Ribat. He backs up next to Rydwen and waits with his kukri in one hand and his net in the other.
Marvin will stand ready with his musket
The Skeletons advance
As they come closer to Felicia’s Dancing Lights you can almost make out what kind of creature these once were and you can see that they are armed with ancient curved swords
"And now the dead walk among us..."
Lowering his bow, Diarmal gripped the holy symbol that was strung around his neck firmly in his palm. He knew that Lady Aisling's graces would send the restless dead back to their merciful rest. He only hoped that her might would be enough to banish the foul creatures for good. The dead were nothing if not tenacious.
He took a few steps forward, putting himself in front of his kinsman and coincidental allies, hoping to draw the attention of the dead to himself.
Felicia knew the best thing she could for now was to keep the lights forward, so when Diarmal moved up, so did he, just to keep herself near in case her new aquaintance needed more support than he was letting on, her focus was the lights, and trying to keep that first wave in sight. This was more useful, for now.
Xor moves to -2 and casts bless on the party (50' burst), he has his "light" rock ready to go
"Wait! I'm not one of those... things! don't hit me!" Meero says while panting.
Thursday Night (turn 132), Two Barrels Tavern
Round 1, almost done with this round!
Ribat – 22
Marvin - 21
Skeletons – 20
Diarmal - 15
Tentacruel – 12
Felicia - 11
Xor – 10
Zombies – 8
Giant Tentacruel – 7
Tetracruel – 5
Rydwen – 4
Sasithorn - 4
WhapWhop – 3
Meero - 3
The bizarre flying four sided creatures swoop through the air and come into the light of Felicia's spell. You can almost see all of the various monsters now as they converge, but as they do it is almost as if they cannot see the light, but as they enter the radius of the light they begin to slow down and react with minor shakes and convulsions.
At about the same time that the monsters begin to react to being within the light, the Eshian man dodges passed Diarmal shouting that he is not with the monsters, but he does not give his name.
"Oh, no!" Tessrimea comes out of the tavern and looks in the direction everyone is facing and then she goes on, "It's more of those tentacle beasts. They were impossible to hurt! What are we going to do? And they brought even stranger things with them this time."
Madam, says Ribat as he briefly glances at the lady who just slithered out of the tavern before returning his gaze to the oncoming horde, the merely difficult we do immediately; the impossible just takes a while. Where did you encounter these monsters, and how did you attempt to harm them?
"Impossible to hurt?" She sees - what appears to her - to be the monsters hesitating at the light, and figures that if it works on animals it might work on them. She shuffles off her backpack as it only holds her camping gear, and will only slow her down for the hunt ahead. She rummages through it for her flint and steel, and the two torches she has stuffed within.
Rydwen's stitched backpack lies open , its contents exposed and partially falling out into the street. Anyone nearby may retrieve items if they believe them to be of use.
"Thinkin' it best to try wavin' em off, or a'least in their snouts. Give a better shot for t'others. Though I still say we single out their leader."
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Sasithorn moves forward to behold the oncoming horde, and regards them with a raised eyebrow. "A lesser concern, really. Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see."
His eyes alight on a zombie. "What's this? Base flesh, carelessly discarded?" He makes what seems like a dismissive hand-waving gesture, and his forearm's shadow momentarily stretches impossibly long....
Well, maybe not impossible, Nathaniel says as he grips his halberd tightly, but, difficult. We heard a scream earlier and found a few of those round tentacle things trying to carry off Holly, the girl who works in the Tavern. She was unconscious. We attacked those creatures and they fought back. They will try to trip you, and their tentacles hurt, but it’s not as if they are fatal blows. They seem to thrive in the darkness, regenerating from wounds unless they are in the light. Oh, and one more thing. It seems that poking holes in them or bashing them was not as effective as slicing parts of them off, particularly in the light which tended to make the parts that were cut off disappear.
Thursday Night (turn 132), Two Barrels Tavern
Round 1, wrap up
Jazz – 25
Ribat – 22
Marvin - 21
Skeletons – 20
Diarmal - 15
Tentacruel – 12
Felicia - 11
Xor – 10
Zombies – 8
Giant Tentacruel – 7
Tetracruel – 5
Rydwen – 4
Sasithorn - 4
WhapWhop – 3
Sasithorn strikes a Zombie with a missile of solid shadows and the creature lurches to the side from the impact, but it keeps coming forward
Then, what is probably the strangest thing any of you have ever seen comes into the light.
It looks like a piece of a wall, made from darkest shadows. It is twelve feet high and five feet wide, but only half a foot thick. It moves by bending forward in the middle, until its top touches the ground a few feet in front of it, and then the bottom swings off of the ground and bends up until it becomes the top. End over end it travels slowly across the ground.
There appear to be two of these strange moving walls and when the lead wall enters the full light of Felicia’s spell it stops.
A lump appears in the center of the wall and it grows in size becoming a large round protrusion. The lump then flattens in the center as the raised portion travels across the surface of the wall rapidly expanding toward the edges. When the lump reaches the edge of the wall it disappears and Magical Darkness floods out from the creature throwing all of the monsters back into darkness.
That is the end of round 1
Zombie at -20,-A – takes 4 points of damage
Marvin moves forward, feet trudging through the sand to get closer to the creatures. Their eyes see perfectly in the darkness and they stop half-way between the approaching monsters and the group.
Upon seeing the contents of Rydwen's backpack spilling on the ground, Ribat quickly assesses their current usefulness. I don't see what I can accomplish with these things right now. I'll just have to wait for them to come to me. .
She struggles with getting the first torch lit. If Nathaniel was right - and she was willing to take a few things on faith by this point - then the only suitable weapon she had was her dagger. It was stone and primitive, but Rydwen hated how new these creatures were: maybe it was time to get back to basics.
...Meanwhile, west of Connie's Bright, a coppery skinned humanoid addresses a strange, slender person in a dark red robe...
Sir, they are completing of assigned tasks. Final wave has cleared the test area coordinates and is approaching the village. They are awaiting your instructions, sir.
Thursday Night (turn 132), Outside Two Barrels Tavern
Jazz – 25
Ribat – 22
Marvin - 21
Skeletons – 20
Diarmal - 15
Tentacruel – 12
Felicia - 11
Xor – 10
Zombies – 8
Giant Tentacruel – 7
Tetracruel – 5
Rydwen – 4
Sasithorn - 4
WhapWhop – 3
Round 2
The stranger that arrived from the pier draws an arrow and fires in to the darkness. No one can see where the arrow hit, if it hit anything at all.
Ribat appears tense as he waits for the approaching horde.
Rydwen lights a torch, and steals herself for the strange things approaching.
The Skeletons and the Tentacruels advance
Rydwen - has a torch
Zombie at -20,-A – takes 4 points of damage
… a shadowy silver skinned figure in a red robe hunches over a strange looking curio style cabinet covered with lights and strange protruding knobs, dials, and switches.
I’ve told you not to call me Sir. And why do you keep referreing to yourself in the plural. I thought I fixed that. Never mind, listen carefully. If what we have discovered and accomplished here is complete, the Strangler will be anchored to this plane upon the next complete cycle. I want you to load the sled, leave nothing behind. I am setting the gate to recharge and discharge on a six hour cycle. Set the lock on the Strangler’s cage to eight hours from now. We are leaving in two hours.