Aliseya, you deduce that Gib's high pitched voice is incongruent with his stocky body. Clearly, he is not in control of his own faculties.
Gibs breaks into a dead run towards the group, swinging his straight blade. From the shadows, four skeletons creep from concealment to attack.
The northern most skeleton surprises Aliseya and Ysmerelda. Everyone else is aware of all of the skeletons. Everyone can act on the surprise round (Aliseya and Ysmerelda may not act against the northern skeleton).
The gypsy's peering eyes suddenly open in recognition. She points out just before he charges, "Gibbs, you are not yourself this night. Who are we speaking with... OH! Are those... EW!" she suddenly shrieks as skeletal beings appear from the woods!
Cellawyn sets her rapier straight, pointing to one of the carbonized corpses, and punches the base of the blade with her other hand. You see a strong but very brief flash.
Popping a few knuckles Naught charges a Skeleton before it can get to Aliseya.
Zelda moves to Gibbs and attacks, but is unable to connect with her rapier.
The four skeletons converge on the party, attacking with their claws.
; crit check
; crit check
Two skeletons attack Ysmerelda and one skeleton attacks Cellawyn and naught, each. The skeleton attacking Nuaght gouges her deeply with both of it's claws. The other skeletons claw wildly but are unable to do any damage.
Ysmerelda attacks one of the skeletons with her bastard sword and smashes it to pieces.
Naught, in shock from the bloody attack, is unable to hit the skeleton attacking her.
Cellawyn uses her rapier to focus the energy of her cantrip, damaging the remaining skeleton on Ysmerelda.
Aliseya shrieks in terror at the horror of seeing the possessed Gibs and the undead.
Gibs, babbling in tongues, lunges at Zelda with his straight razor, but misses the nimble rogue.
Snarling Naught begins to swipe in a frenzy at the skeleton that attacked her.
Not having forgotten the inefficacy of her rapier against this enemy, Cellawyn regrets not anticipating the situation and nonetheless attempts pierce the skeleton, but this time unleashing a surge of positive energy through the blade.
In her stunned silence, Aliseya's expression of fear swiftly dissolves into a hazy-eyed countenance. Having had enough stress for one day, at last the gypsy loses herself once more as, quite suddenly, her head cocks most unnaturally to one side, accompanied by the unnervingly loud cracking of her neck vertebrae. Her visage comes back into focus... but it now reveals a rather disconcerting expression of mad pleasure. Her arms and fingers twist and twitch in a disconcerting manner, and oddly seem to appear bonier than usual...
More disconcerting of all is the dry, raspy voice which now utters forth from the gypsy's mouth. Her words are of the dark speech she shares with Naught. But now, it wrenches the stomachs of her friends with unhallowed fear all the more, for it sounds absolutely nothing like Aliseya's voice. Instead, one might imagine it belongs to a wicked creature of nightmares. Thusly, she addresses the possessed Gibbs, speaking fell sentences in the disturbing syllables of the dark speech...
Sotto Voce is in Paizo's Faction Guide, but not in the popular online references, so here's the text of the spell in case you don;t have access to it:
School necromancy [fear, mind-affecting, sonic]; Level bard 1,
cleric 0, sorcerer/wizard 0
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./level)
Target one humanoid creature of 4 HD or less
Duration 1 round
Saving Throw Will negates; Spell Resistance yes
Your dry, rasping whisper fills a living creature of 4 or fewer
Hit Dice with unnatural dread. The affected creature must
make a Will save or be shaken for 1 round.
This spell originated among the followers of the Whispering
Way, but necromancers and other intimidating folk outside
that group are known to use it.
Zelda again stabs at Gibs with her rapier, but again fails to damage the rampaging farmer.
The three remain sckeletons lash out at their respective targets with their soiled claws. One skeleton slashes Ysmerelda (-5HP). Another is able to wound Cellawyn (-3HP).
Ysmerelda attacks her remaining skeleton, but is unable to hit it.
Cellawyn attempts a spell strike through her rapier, but is unable to hit the undead. Naught howls in fury and blasts apart the skeleton in front of her with her claws.
Aliseya speaks a command to Gibs in a dark, unearthly tongue. Gibs appears to be shaken.
Gibs slashes at Zelda with his straight razor, but is unable to hit her.
Naught keeps up her assault on the next set of unruly bones.
"Try to keep him alive for interrogation!" Cellawyn requests, even though she knows Gibs will be hard to defeat without use of lethal force. As she says this, the elf carries on with her arcane strike against the skeleton.
Zelda continues to engage Gibbs with her rapier and short sword but is unable to hit him
The two remaining skeletons claw at Ysmerelda and Cellawyn. One skeleton rakes Ysmerelda and is able to draw blood ().
Ysmerelda attacks back but can't hit the skeleton.
Naught steps forward and bashes the skeleton attacking Cellawyn to bits.
Cellawyn moves to engage Gibs but is unable to reach him in a single movement.
Gibs snarles and attacks Zelda again, unsuccessfully.
Like a berserk house cat Naught descends swiping on the last skeleton.
The witchy woman approaches closer to Gibbs. Again, she speaks unnervingly in that dry, haggard whisper... a deep, gravelly voice better suited to the body of an old crone than a young beauty. Dark and angry syllables make the nearby holy warrior in particular shudder with horror as her raised hand points at Gibbs. In the moonlight, her fingers and normally long fingernails appear further elongated, uncharacteristically bony, even desiccated...
Zelda attacks but is unable to hit Gibbs.
The remaining skeleton attacks Ysmerelda, vicious raking her with both claws , before being bashed to pieces by Naught. The paladin falls to the ground bleeding.
; yes
Cellawyn moves in to engage Gibbs with her rapier, attempting to cast shocking grasp as she attacks. She too is unable to hit Gibbs.
Aliseya utters dark incantations to cast a spell at Gibbs.
Gibbs appears shaken, "Witch, I am the Splatterman! And you will know my fury!"
With that Gibbs turns and withdraws into the mist shrouded darkness of the woods.
The witchy woman presses ahead, wild and dark passion in her uncharacteristically sunken eyes. Smirking with evil glee, she gratingly whispers to the murderous spirit that is possessing Gibbs in the same sinister language once more. As she does so, she appears to look on with longing for a response from the poor local...
"Ysme! Ali! Come back! Ysme needs help!" Naught lets out frantically looking between the two woman, one at death's door and the other chasing right after it. Fidgeting she throws her hands up before charging after the dancer and Gibs.
Zelda and Cellawyn run to assist Ysmerelda. They stare with shock at the stricken paladin, but are unable to assist her.
Naught runs full tilt into the woods after Gibbs. You note you are faster than the farmer, but he has a head start on you.
Aliseya moves to follow Gibbs and then casts a spell on him in the fleeting instance before he disappears into the darkness. You hear an agonizing scream in the darkness.
Naught keeps up her pursuit of the farmer.
Gibbs turns and runs due south. Slowly you are able to overtake him. After about 500 feet you both break through the tree line and you see Harrowstone looming above you on the hill. Against this backdrop, Gibbs turns suddenly and lunges at you with the straight razor.
Hissing Naught feebly swipes at the crazed man.
In your haste you're unable to hit him. Gibbs slashes you for 5 HP damage.
Hissing turning into snarling Naught keeps clawing.
You hammer him twice. He misses.
Aliseya continues to pursue Gibbs in the dark woods as well, following after Naught since she's faster...
Aliseya, you run for about 500 feet, following the sound of thrashing foliage. As you begin to despair that you will ever catch up, you emerge from the forest to behold Naught, sillouetted by the rising moon. At her feet lies the mangled form of Gibbs. Naught is covered with blood - most of it Gibb's, but not all. Above you on the hill top lies the hulking edifice of Harrowstone. You see a spectral image watching you from the ruined gates.
In Aklo: "Did you slay him for me, my precious, my love? Or did he slit his own throat?"
A sharp-nailed hand grips Naught's upper arm firmly when she nears, holding the axe-bearer still.
And then, quite suddenly, the altered gypsy's body shifts to observe the ruined gate of Harrowstone. Curious, narrowed eyes focus in on a sight to behold. A wordless whisper trickles slowly and gratingly out of the witchy gypsy, as if she had a severe bronchial condition.
"No... I killed him... for you? He wouldn't stop, and then you chased after him, and I didn't want him to hurt you," she responds in the tongue of dreams, not even flinching when Aliseya grips her tightly. If anything it was... soothing.
Wearily she follows the other woman's gaze.
Changing the topic entirely, she asks aloud in that nighttime speech, possibly to Naught, "And who do you suppose that is, now?"
A slight grin comes over her face, followed immediately by a frown. Aliseya's glazing-over eyes manage to turn to look at Naught's blood-covered body now, "Well, she'll want to heal you now. My pet..."
And with that, Aliseya's eyes roll up into her head, and she gently crumples over to the ground.
Catching her before her body completely hit the ground she cradled and nervously nudged the unconscious woman. She really didn't like how common this was becoming.
Though she did like the nickname.
Under Zelda's care, Ysmerelda grows no colder & her breathing and pulse seem to strengthen.
Naught staggers back to the forest clearing carrying the unconscious Aliseya in her arms. The group notes that Naught is covered in blood. She appears to have a nasty cut across her cheek. The barbarian staggers with exhaustion and collapses with fatigue upon making it back to the group.
Zelda is able to staunch Ysmerelda's bleeding using scraps of her own clothing. The paladin is still unconscious, but at least she is no longer at risk of dying.
As the three of you stop to catch your breath, you are startled by someone approaching in the woods from the direction of the monument. To your amazement, Bolo appears from the mists. "You are not easy to track down. I've been searching for you since you left the fire."
At this point Bolo notices the wounded and immediately offers assistance. With several prayers to Pharasma, Ysmerelda's wounds are healed and she slowly awakens. Bolo puzzles over Aliseya, but is unsure how to help her.
"My friends, I came back to offer you sanctuary tonight in the Church of Pharasma. It is unsafe out here with the restless dead wandering. Let us return to the temple at once."
He then drops a sack at your feet. It contains the magic items that you recovered from the false crypt. "These belong to you now."
"Thank you, Mr. Bolo." Naught says weakly but genuine and with a smile.
Aliseya appears to be having a fitful slumber. Her eyes remain closed as she mumbles under her breath... moments later, her upper body jumps up. Eyes wide like saucers, she suddenly inhales very sharply. Releasing a long sigh, everyone feels some comfort in that it sounds like Aliseya's sigh... not the raspy, sickly breathing of an old woman.
"Bolo?" she asks, "Mulțumesc zei," she says in Varisian, repeating in common, "Thank gods." She throws her arms around the surviving priest, hugging him whether he wants one or not. She looks around at her friends, and repeats, "Thank gods," as tears begin to run down her still ash-coated cheeks once more.
"I... I had a very bad dream." Her expression grows stern, her tears cease. She gives Naught a knowing look. "But it wasn't really a dream, was it."
"... no." Naught finally relents and weakly answers the Dancer's question. Her voice holding up about as well as her body.
"I was chasing Gibs and he stopped and he attacked so I attacked and then he kept trying to kill me so I... killed him." she blurts out frantically before all but stopping and growing quiet with those last two words.
Aliseya's so gone after the night's events, she can barely feel anymore. But she places a comforting hand on the storyteller's shoulder. She adds, "It wasn't really Gibbs, though..." Her expression grows pensive as her voice trails off.
Twitching slightly at Aliseya's touch Naught slowly turns her head to meet the dancer's eyes. "Even so, I've never killed anyone before..."