No doors reveal themselves to Aska, either in the room or outside in the main hall of the warren during the duration of her extract. Given that the two of you have not been accosted yet during your intrusion, the silence is less ominous, and more simply empty. It is difficult to tell whether there were more ghouls at once, or the ghast was planning ahead. Either way, there are no ghouls in evidence, and the ghast has been killed. It is uncertain whether or not the Wend will be used again, but for now, it is at least has been cleared of any unnatural influence.
The chest can be lifted up easily, sparing the chance of outright dropping it while trying to ascend the rope and carry it at the same time. Up top, the town appears to be the same as you left it when you went in, but the night has fallen and there is an unnatural feel to the mists. You have felt this before. The last time they felt like this, death walked the streets of the town they were in. Several bodies were found flensed in the morning, and those that made it to shelter in time reported the feeling of something chasing them, just close enough that they could catch glimpses, deep scrapes of some sort across the door that kept it out of their home.
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While Ian couldn't make heads or tails of the first wand, the second could help. Well, it could help Aska. The spell in that wand was not among his repertoire. He whistles to get Aska's attention and tosses it to her. "Identify. Can you figure out what this one is?" he says holding up the other one. After her attempt, he packs up and scales the rope first. They'd tie off the chest and haul it up then let Aska climb. Or at least, that was the plan until a familiar shiver ran up his spine.
He looked around, feeling like a hundred eyes were upon him. The mist seemed taller, alive, and very malevolent. Memories of a night filled with unseen clawing beasts had his heart racing in his throat. "Stay down there," he says in a panicked whisper. He runs to one of the houses and, with adrenaline filled strength, rips a door off and comes back to the well. He unties the rope and hops over the edge, pulling the door over the opening. In his haste he takes the well a little too quickly, sliding down the sides, but managing to stop before impaling himself.
He stands in the tunnel looking up, breathing heavy though there was little physical exertion. He speaks quietly, "You remember the misty night at Dellin Fjord?" He turns to look at Aska, eyes wide with fear. "Its happening again."
Aska deftly catches the wand. "I can certainly give it a shot."
"Why stay...What's...?" Aska tries to get out as Ian scrambles to the top of the well. When he comes back down and tells her why...
"No, no no no no no..." Fear grips her and panic starts to set in until a pair of fairies flash into her mind. She remembers the Jussin and everyone else in the town. And then she remembers what happened to her sister...
"Ian. What about the village? We can't just hide down here. If this moves on that village will be defenseless. I can't let that happen again." Aska says, steeling her own resolve with each word.
"I know that," Ian says, straining to keep his emotions under control. "I know that. But night is falling, and the village is the better part of a day away. We'd never get there in time to warn them if we made it there at all." Truth be told he couldn't make up his own mind on the subject, fear paralyzing his mind. He wanted to hide, knowing they could probably do little to avoid a terrible fate against whatever stalked the mist. But also wanted to make a break for it. To run and run and maybe even manage to get ahead and warn the village. Save them. But that seemed astronomically unlikely. If they did nothing, many would probably die but they would be alive to avenge them. If they ran, they'd probably just add two more casualties and accomplish nothing. If fate, luck, and the gods all favored them, they might make it. But take the risk?
"No. I'll go up there alone if I have to, but if we do nothing now, then what was the point of all this?" Aska is still shaken, but her path is set.
And Aska will begin her climb to the top of the well.
Ian watched and sighed. Yeah. They had to go. He starts pulling straps and unlatching clips. "Hang on." He takes his breastplate off and puts it and the chest back in the room they found them. He could come back later. He needed to travel really light.
After several failed slips, Ian manages to make it up the well. But that was just the start of their trouble. They were going to have to run through the night, again, through a forest covered in a malevolent mist. A mist that hid creatures capable of skinning a man without any witnesses.
Thus resolved, the two set out to climb the walls of the well with the intent to make it back to Ardis in time to help with whatever the mists might bring tonight. One slip from Ian sent him into the spikes at the bottom, but thankfully the injury was very minor.
Here in Ustalav, the night was always an uncertain thing thanks to the influence of the Whispering Tyrant. The mists were just another thing that instilled fear in some, and other entities were prone to play on that fear. The mists were typically benign, being just that— mist. However, through means that could not quite be agreed on, the mists would infrequently carry horrors with them. Come morning, they would be gone with the mists, but many still ascribe the occurrences to the legacy of the lich-king.
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With some minor meditation, Ian gets his nerves under control and focuses on climbing. Bracing on either side of the wall wasn't really that difficult. The memories of that night just made him temporarily panic. Ian scales the well this time, with no hiccups and carefully lifts the wooden board up and peers around. Seeing no shadows or beasts, he slides it off and hauls himself over the edge. He re-ties the rope while looking around and tosses it back down.
Aska fails pathetically to even find purchase on the wall, so is forced to wait for Ian to scale the wall so she can climb the much easier rope. Much of the thunder from her determination is deflated, but the silliness helps ease her tension.
Up top, the mist is thick and carries an unnatural sensation beyond the normal chill. There is a sense of dreadful presence to it, and that sense often has the two of you checking over your shoulders. It muffles most sounds that get made, and visibility is limited to about half of what it would be on a normal night. Even the light from the Ioun stone around Aska's head does not penetrate as far as it did before.
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Aska steadies her breathing. "Alright. Let's go."
The two of you are uncertain whether or not it is a trait of the mist, or that there is something actually out there. The sense of something being present somewhere in the mist is a sensation that does not go away, despite your hopes that there is nothing out there but more mist. You know you are taking a risk, but better this risk be taken than the innocent be caught unaware. Nothing immediately is present to your senses as you freeze after coming over the lip of the well, heart racing in your chest while you strain your senses.
The town is a few hours away on foot.
Pharasma watch over you.
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He wasn't exactly running but he was moving quickly, footsteps soft and senses receptive. This was going to be another exhausting night.
Aska quietly hands Ian her extract for Shield. Without armor he was going to need it more than she was.
Aska focuses more on finding whatever is in the fog than she does on stealth. She'd rather stop it here than after they get to town where it could hurt people.
Aska, you're not certain because of the fog, but you might have heard something that was not caused by you, and not likely to have been any of the animals. Most animals try to hide when the mist like this comes. In Dellin's Fjord, when the mist felt like this, the dogs made themselves as small and as quiet as they could in the nearest corner and did not move until sunrise. You would have to hear it again perhaps, to be able to tell what it was. It could not have been hoofbeats, could it?
Ian, something reached your ears as well, but even horses are uneasy in this mist. Could you have been mistaken that you had heard the rhythm of a horse trotting?
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Ian stops and stands still as a statue. He looks back at Aska. She heard it too. Something was out there. Would it pass them by or attack?
Aska stops moving as well and tries her best to find he source of the sound.
For Ian, nothing reaches his ears despite how he might strain, but Aska... Those are hoofbeats. More than one. It probably does not reassure you any that your senses were right, now the question has changed to "What is it?"
Aska whispers as quietly as she can, "Ian, I hear hoof beats. More than one, but I can't tell how many or what it is." Part of Aska wishes it was just men on horseback, but quickly dispels such thoughts. It is always safer to assume the worst. The only problem now, there were a lot of worse things she could think of.
"I did too," he whispers back. Ian waits hoping the hoof beats go away. If not, or if they got close enough to be spotted, then they were going to have a fight on their hands.
It is a very tense span of minutes as Ian and Aska try to make themselves as still and as quiet as possible... The hoofbeats are not heard any more after a few minutes, sounding like they were moving away. The malevolence of the fog has not abated, and that was confirmation that there was something out and about tonight, but was what they almost encountered the only thing? Was this the Lich-King's influence? The only certainties that they had at present were that they were still alive, and they had still had a good distance to cover in this fog.
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"Whatever it is, it's not attacking and it seems to be gone. Let's move." Aska start moving.
After some minutes of nerve-wracking silence, Ian breathes a sigh of relief at not being caught. Where the horses the creatures in the night or was it the riders that were the true terror? He had no idea but they had to move.
Your progress seems to be indicative of how things are going to go when you are travelling. Moving and stopping to listen for whatever may stalk the fog, along with attempts to avoid it if they can. It is uncertain about what they might meet, but it is certain that there are Things out tonight.
Ian, the fog is not "black", but there is a passive malevolence to it that your senses pick up. The fog is influenced by an evil, that is old, seeming to apply its influence as an afterthought, a habit. Your ears can pick up nothing, but your senses are telling you what you subconsciously know. Danger. Undirected, but danger nonetheless.
Aska, you can hear the hoofbeats again. Faint, but considering that you could not hear them for a few minutes, whatever it is, or whatever they are, they are coming closer again.
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"We're not getting away," Ian says with a note resignation. They had horses, whoever it was. "If it gets too bad, make a break for it. Warn the town." He wasn't stupid enough to tell her to run because he knew she wouldn't. It was a token statement. Ian takes what precautions he can and gets ready for a fight. He wished now he brought his armor but no use lamenting now. The best he could do was wound it enough it didn't make it to the town.
"If they're heading the same direction we are, we need to stop them here." She checks her own equipment as Ian readies himself. When they are both set, she nods to him that it's time. She can't help but feel a quiver of fear as Ian shouts for the things in the mist to come for them.
The hoofbeats pick up as Ian yells into the mist, definitely coming in the direction of the two of them, and very quickly. Line of sight is limited in the mist, but your ears are not as limited. The hooves continue closer, though the speed did not slow, and the two of you only have a second to react, diving out of the way of two charging horses that come running between the two of you. They are through the two of you as you dive out of the way, and back into the fog before you can get more than a glance at them. Your ears can hear them turning, though.
Ian, to your senses, these horses and their riders are wreathed in black, almost to the point of them being obscured by it.
Aska, both the horses and riders are dead, you can see that as you dive out of the way of the charging horses.
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Aska will ready an action to throw a tanglefoot bomb as they pass.
Round 1
Ian flicks the ax once and it adjusts to be come even longer. He then plants himself and waits for the next charge.
As the forms come thundering out of the mist on their horses, Ian's slight sidestep and attack just barely misses as it is knocked just out of line from a good connection by a limb of the rider that kicked out in time to just deflect the weapon. Aska's attack fares better, the bomb slipping under the rider's shield to impact and splash as they pass through, though its effects cannot be seen as they pass into the fog again.
The sounds of horses at a run comes towards you again. As they break the fog, no riders can be seen on them, but the horses are the immediate threat at the moment. Charging at the both of you, their hooves lash out, and only Aska's horse connects, landing a solid blow.
The riders are nowhere to be seen.
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(6)
,
Round 2
Ian sidesteps to avoid the horse's hoof. He continues a step further and spins, bringing his ax around low and sweeping up.
Round 2
Aska 5ft steps, draws her Guisarme and takes a swing at the horse in front of her as well. But she keeps a keen ear out for the riders in case they are trying to sneak up on her or Ian.
Unfortunately, trying to catch two rabbits, Aska finds herself unable to catch either.
Ian's attack utterly destroys the undead steed before it can even return its front hooves to the ground. The animating magic gone, it falls nearly to pieces, which would cause some difficulty for anyone that would have to cross that difficult footing.
Aska, trying to keep her eyes on two things at once, only manages to just connect properly, damaging but not destroying the undead horse attacking her. Its attack in response misses her as well, keeping her from seeing anything in the thick malevolence of the mist.
The riders are still nowhere to be seen, but the fog seems to thicken unnaturally.
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(8)
(6)?
Round 3
No sense worrying about enemies they can't see just yet. Ian takes a step towards the other horse and brings it down, aiming to break its back.
Round 3
Aska will 5ft step into her weapon's range and take another swing at the horse as well.
Ian moves and misses the horse with a large swing that surely would have destroyed it if he did not have to correct his footing for stepping around the horse that he had destroyed with a previous swing. Aska's training reasserts itself and a successful connection with the undead beast returns it to dead, the body collapsing where it stood. The air smells of old decay.
As Aska's target falls, she can feel a presence behind her as the sounds of feet rushing are heard out of the fog. A punch was thrown at her but could not connect solidly as a rotted form wrapped in tattered rags is at her back, close enough that the smell of old decay is replaced by the scent of fresher decay.
Closer to Ian, a skeletal form emerges out of the mist, wielding a longsword, a shield and breastplate for armor, definitely hampered by some substance that was splashed onto it. Its movement is jerky, and it seems that due to it being hampered like it was, it can not quite reach Ian before he can react. Still, the cold blue lights where its eyes would be are certainly fixed on him.
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rounds(3)
(8)
Round 4
Aska 5ft steps backwards, then sweeps at the undead's legs with her weapon.
Round 4
As usual, Aska sets up an attack Ian can't pass up. After tripping the skeleton and sending it sprawling, Ian twirls the his hunter's ax once and brings it down hard. He then stands ready with Aska to fight the last one.
Aska's attempt to trip was nimbly avoided, far more nimbly than the zombies that they had encountered before, following her as she stepped back. It followed, remaining in her immediate space, and though Ian's attack was a solid hit, it did not bring the undead down.
Ian notices that the Skeleton that Aska had hit with what looked like a Tanglefoot bomb, due to the way its shield arm seems to have been stuck to its side, closed the distance with him to attack as two attacks came from the not-zombie in front. Through a stroke of fortune, Ian is untouched by all three of the attacks, the protective magics turning the blows and preventing an unfavorable result.
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(26) ,
Aska finds her weapon to be a bit unwieldy for the tight quarters. She considers trying to tumble through to a better position, but thinks better of it. This zombie had proven rather nimble. She 5ft steps away and then uses the opportunity to down her mutagen.
Round 5
Ian sidesteps out from between the two and continues the assault on the unarmed one. Only now an aura begins to glow about him. An aura that guides his weapon to his foes. "For the town of Dellin I pronounce Judgment."
Ian's attack brings the Zombie(?) down just as Aska steps back and drinks a mutagen. As the effects change her physically into something that is not so far off from what Ian can manage (un-)naturally, the Skeleton(?) steps forward again, shield arm still stuck to its body, the sword in its hand coming scything down at Ian.
The attack connects, despite the protections that he has, and while he was able to divert it somewhat, another two attacks like that will be the end of him. Aska can see the telltale signs of the tanglefoot substance reaching the end of its functional lifespan, some of the pieces already flaking off with the skeleton's movement.
Visible over the two undead horses that Ian felled, the same ghostly energy that lights the eyes of the skeleton eerily lingers, like smoke trailing from a fire, not-quite separate from the bones and dessicated flesh that composed their forms.
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,
Round 6
Aska quickly climbs over the horse to get into position to attack the skeleton. She decides to try once more for the trip.
Round 6
Ian manages to not cry out in pain at the wound inflicted. It bounced off his magical armor and avoids a vital area but goes straight through his shoulder. Without the extra strength his next attack is a flop against the skeleton's shield.
The inept trip was ignored, the armed and armored Skeleton stepping over the trip attempt to swing again at Ian, testing the failing bonds that was hampering its shield arm. The attack swings wide due to the imbalance from it being unable to properly balance. However, there is a loud crackling sound as it finally manages to pull its arm free and employ its shield in this fight. Pieces of the tanglefoot substance flake off of its arm and side, properly balanced now.
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(6)
Round 7
With it distracted by Aska on one side, Ian keeps swinging for all he's worth, hoping to end this before the thing found a rhythm. That last attack hurt and could have been a lot worse.
Round 7
Right now, Aska thinks she is best served trying to trip their foe. Once she gets him on the ground, his agility won't be as helpful.
And today just keeps getting worse for Aska.