Marisol's gaze softens and she says, "The poor creature. Incorruptible in death, just like it was in life." She pauses, then looks over at Vlad. "They do have power over disease and poison, right?"
"But someone snuffed its life out and took its horn, just like that. Someone... very dangerous, then."
Accepting Vladimir's analysis, Balter relaxes, but only somewhat. "Yeah, you're right. Still, we shouldn't linger for too long."
Durielle agrees with Vladimir's comments. "Despite its appearance, there are signs indicating the body has been here for a few days at least."
She cleans her hands on a rag wet from a water flask. "It's mind boggling that anyone or anything would do this. Whoever or whatever has done this, is either purely evil or completely bestial with no sense of such things."
Gesturing to its lack of horn, "The evidence, however, suggests an intelligent mind of some kind, so mostly likely the former."
"Poison certainly. I am not so sure about disease, but they are naturally resistant against evil foes." Vladimir says, doing his best to answer Marisol's question.
"So what do we do? Burn the body? Bury it? I must admit I am well out of my depth here. Regardless the situation bears paying caution to this, particularly as close to our soon to be home we are."
"Unicorns are intelligent, aren't they? So we should give it a proper burial," says Marisol. "Even if it means we have to take a day out of our exploration schedule."
Vladimir's eyes widen briefly. That is a lot of digging...but I suppose she is right...
"Alright, if we are to bury the unicorn, I suppose we should start digging."
It is eerily quiet in this part of the woods not far from the swampy clearing where the deceased unhorned unicorn had been found. Though the rich soil is soft, the digging takes several hours. It is mid-evening as the last dirt is placed on the grave.
"We should find a place to camp, preferably at least short distance from here. We can finish up with the area in the morning before continuing on further to the east."
"I agree," says Marisol. "Shocking, I know."
Vladimir chuckles a bit. "Shocking indeed."
Balter stifles a yawn, tired out by burying a dead horse. Not that he had complained about it. He knew very little about unicorns, but he knew that they were deserving of his respect.
"Hopefully our necromancer friend doesn't decide to kill us in our sleep," he mumbles, having apparently decided that a dose of nightmare fuel is called for.
"Balter, thank you oh so much for that little tidbit. I am sure that is exactly what we all needed." Vladimir says, his comments dripping with sarcasm.
At first light Marisol hears the crack of a dry branch, turns and sees a large mass of vines and sludge - a towering heap of rotting vegetation - at the edge of the clearing. Its legs are as thick as tree trunks, and as it stands menacingly erect you see it is over ten feet tall. A smell like the marsh hits your nostrils immediately.. just twenty feet from your position.
"Time to wake up, my friends, we have company!" Vladimir calls out to his sleeping companions.
"I am not sure what it is, but it is certainly big, smelly, and nasty. he adds drawing his blade.
"To arms! To arms!" he calls out, not wanting to abandon his sleeping friends.
Nico awakes with a start, hearing Vladimir call out and assuming there's danger nearby. He quickly scrambles out of his bedroll, his heart pounding.
Marisol draws her cutlass and casts blur on Vladimir in preparation for a fight.
"Dunno what that is, but it stinks!"
Roused from his slumber, Balter sits upright and lets out a huge yawn. "What the hell is all the racket abou- Oh."
"Whatever you do, don't hit that thing with electricity," he says, throwing his blanket off himself. "And while you're at it, you might not want to bother with fire, either."
At the sound of Vlad's calls, Durielle awakens from an uneasy sleep and scrambles to her feet. She hastily picks up her bow and quiver.
"Oh, my!" she exclaims. "I-I think I've dreamed of a monster like this..." Her speech begins to soften at the end.
The large plant creature lumbers forward - eerily quiet, and vine tendrils lash out from its arms at both Marisol and Vladimir. Vladimir is able to duck out of the way, but Marisol is struck... the tendril wraps around her waist.
Arliss sits up.. "What?.. Ah! What is that?!"
Nico stands up, grabs something from the pouch at his belt, and speaks the words to a spell. A dart of acid shoots out into the night towards the plant creature.
Balter hops onto his feet and pulls his swords out of their sheaths.
Nico's projectile hits the creature's vine and sludge torso and sizzles.
While continuing his oratory, Vladimir steps forward toward the shambling creature, hacking away with his blade.
(inspire)
(inspire)
Marisol lets out a low grunt as the creature scoops her up and squeezes. She hacks (mostly ineffectually) at the vines with her cutlass.
Arliss scoots over to get a clear shot with his bow.
The hulking plant creature squeezes Marisol in its grasp, and tiny sprouting tendrils burrow into her flesh. It suddenly cocks its head - seeming to be looking at her as it attempts to pull her closer. The creature then drops her.. disinterested, and turns to face Vladimir.
Nico watches as the plant-thing drops Marisol to the ground and moves towards Vladimir. "What the...?"
He then conjures a bolt of force and fires it.
"Marisol!" The concern for her friend shows on the oracle's face, and she rushes forward already manipulating the streams of time t force an alternate version of the dhampir's wounds to coalesce in this reality. As usual, the nature of Marisol's special existence resists the intrusion.
Balter quirks a brow when the shambler drops Marisol, having an inkling about why it did so. Swords drawn, the half-elf runs across the camp, hopping past the fire and closing in on the plant monster. He comes to a stop alongside Vlad and brings his sword down.
The creature continues to sizzle from Nico's acid, and small bits break off from the force missile, but it casually deflects Balter's sword.
Hoping for a better result, Vladimir continues to encourage his fellow companions while slashing at the creature from a defensive posture, hoping to draw the creature's attention so that his beloved can fall back.
(inspire, defensive)
(inspire)
Badly brutalized, Marisol does her best to keep up the pressure.
Vladimir's blade cuts the creature deep.
Arliss takes another few steps around and fires... ineffectively. The hulking plant beast then slams its thick tendril appendages at Balter and Vladimir. A tendril overpowers Vladimir's guard, smacks his side, and coils around his torso.
Seeing that Vladimir is in trouble, Balter lets out a shout and assails the giant plant with a mighty swing of his longsword, following it up by a considerably less impressive offhand attack.
Nico sends another bolt of force into the plant thing.
"This creature is so strong!" The oracle's distress is obvious as she again attempts to rewrite the past with something better.
The plant creature recoils from Balter's strike, and its hold on Vladimir slips for a brief moment.
Having recently felt the unpleasant grasp of the creature's tendrils, Marisol screams and hacks at it as it lifts up her love.
With Marisol's strike, the massive plant creature drops Vladimir, teeters then falls on its back - discorporating into a lifeless pile of vines and vegetable rot.
Marisol rushes to help Vlad up.
"Vlad! Are you all right? Hang on, we'll get you patched up," she gasps as she heaves him to his feet.
"I am fine, my love - a bit banged up, but fine. I am more concerned about your well being, it would seem that it treated you far worse than it did me." Vladimir says brushing himself off.
"Thank you all." Vladimir says to his other companions.
Noting the Marisol's slow to heal wounds, he turns to Durielle. "Please see what you can do for her first. I can see to my own wounds."
"Godsforsaken shambler..." Balter mutters, poking through the pile of vines with his sword before returning it to its sheath. "Never thought we'd be on the receiving end of one's bedside manner."
"I do not want my obituary to read 'killed by a plant'."
"Well, the sun's out, so I guess going back to sleep is out of the question," Balter opines, stretching out his back in an exaggerated fashion. "Best we finish up in this swampland quickly. Shamblers are usually solitary, but they can pop up from out of nowhere if you're not careful."
"Nor I mine." the swordman responds to Nico with a bit of a chuckle.
"That is probably the best route." Vladimir says with a nod to the ranger.
"Let's gather our things and get on with it. The sooner we are out of the swamp the better."
With his lover still looking a bit worse off from the fight, Vladimir casts a curative spell on her. "It is not much, my love, but hopefully it helps a bit."
"Thank you, dear," says Marisol, soothed by Vlad's magic.
"I agree. No reason to stay here any longer! Though if the thing had other victims, there may be remains nearby."