Shocked at the quick reaction and actions of the corpse, Riven was in a pause of will...the reality of the situation finally sinking in just as Brother Thomas subdued the corpse...
"I am assuming it was not supposed to transpire in a such a manner?"
"I am assuming it was not supposed to transpire in a such a manner?""No, it certainly was not!"
"Time to consult the books, for mention of this 'Chanarax'."
"Perhaps it is a name of a place and not a person?"
"I mean in my homeland there are ancient places that have names known only by the dead...how old is this city?"
"Chanarax, is it? Sounds like a disease one gets from visiting the Red Light District once too often."
"Meseems that you and I, brother, lack the knowledge to save the world by ourselves. What say you we recruit an archmage or two, and maybe press the High Priest of Celestian into service as well?" Realizing this could somehow be construed as cowardice on his part, Hellard says, "Obviously, I've nothing against a good fight. But so far we've managed to lose our mentor, all our friends, and our only hope of salvation. To our credit, we've killed a few zombies, but they seem to be created faster than we can kill them."
Grinning, he adds, "If you can think of any way at all in which you and I can conceivably keep the world from being destoyed, I'm all ears, of course."
"Uggh, that smell!" Rivens' face scrunches a bit, "Either way we need a way to dispose of that body and the smell, certainly if we are to stay here and use this place as our headquarters."
|
"I agree, we need more experienced minds on this. This is about more than some mere necromancer, interfering with a few graves. The rapid decomposition you saw was not natural, and implies a fiend has recently left the body."
"I think a trip to my old tutor and mentor is in order. That is, my other tutor and mentor, Matthias..."
"Perhaps with this visit we could at least tell him that death seems to follow?"
"I think a warning is only fair."
"One other thing... much's I hate to say it, men, but meseems we shouldn't stray from one another until this thing be settled. Every time we let someone out of our sight... poof! They're gone. Like that City Watch fellow with the cool hair; no sign of him now.
"We three are now all that remain."
"Indeed"
"Perhaps we should warn you first that all we've come into contact for aid have perished."
|
|
"That is true. I am afraid we would not have come to you if it were not important, as some agency appears to want our investigation thwarted. My associates here are Riven, and Hellard, both of the Hell Squad, so we may speak freely. We need information on the place, person, group or thing known as 'Chanarax'"
<ominous lightning flash and thunder>
"Pardon my surprise, but there ARE structures within the sewers?"
"Sink me! The sewer-dwellers have all gone missing. It's unseemly for persons of substance to venture into such places... ah, me, but it's unseemly for the world to be taken over by zombies as well, I suppose. I'll go... but only after obtaining a large supply of Greek fire. No sense in getting rotting zombie flesh all over my clothes; wearing them into a sewer is bad enough!"
"But just to be sure, before putting myself into such an absurd situation: the master wouldn't be joking about the sewers by any chance, would he?"
|
|
"Probably not. I believe some stretches of the earliest sewer system took over the existing catacombs built by the first settlers. As such, there are tunnels down there, which expand into larger chambers, some of which are large enough to require support pillars and buttressing. Or that could all be an old fishwives' tale. If Hague were here, he could tell us the truth of it."
"Any remains were relocated, and reburied with full dignity, or at least, they were reported to be...?"
"Sounds like a plan, however perhaps that is how the creature got into the watchpost. Do we want to use a path we know our advesary has used and is aware of?"
"Should we then be hiring out for a skilled tracker, or do you have mystical means of tracking the dead that live?"
Hague fiddled idly with something in his hands as the others approached, he slips it nervously into his pocket as if caught, looking up white eyes wide against his grime-smeared face. He nods shakily to the adventurers.
"Sorry for being away. Had a debt to pay off and...someone I needed to tend to." for a long beat he falls silent, reading over the expressions of each of the men with red-rimmed eyes, scouring them for clues. Then, shaking his head slightly with a sour look on his face as if he'd found something there he didn't like.
"What's wrong?" There was sudden urgency in his voice and demeanor, and where a moment ago he had seemed lax and pained he was now suddenly upright and alert like a startled deer. His eyes were only flittingly on the men he was talking to, moving in quick pans over the streets around them.
Nods solemnly. "Of course. I still owe you much considering the state I would still be in if you hadn't shown me the courtesy of healing me. I won't forget that. Whatever I can do." Hague moves in closer, and continues in a nervous, conspiratorial whisper, "so what did happen with all of you since I left? It feels like death herself follows you through the streets...clinging to the air. Something...bad?"
"Perhaps for the time being you could also shed somelight on what exactly dwells or is rumored to dwell in the sewers? Perhaps maybe you have heard rumors below that we have not heard?"