Randal immediately begins recounting a grand tale about a gang of foolish birds that flew into a fire and were never heard from again.
And instinctively steps back 5' from the birdmen.
Vigny sidesteps the corby and swings back, badly, at him.
Vigny's follow-up swipe at corby makes contact, but doesn't quite catch the corby solidly.
With a pair of swift strokes, Vigny sends the dire corby to the ground as it gurgles its last breath.
Grimacing as Soliana clatters to the ground, Jerukh mood darkens further as the fell bird-men descend on the group.
With a growl the alchemist barrels toward the Corby laughing menacingly, drawing his cudgel as he goes , before slamming into the feathery fiend!
:
:
With the crunch of bone and splattering of blood, the second Corby falls into the eternal sleep of death.
"Shall ve make a run for it?" Emi asks, grabbing all her scarves with one hand and the bottom of her skirt with the other...
Randal's voice trails off as the sentry dies, seeming confused about weather to finish the story or not.
At the mention of hurrying he seems to agree, but when Emi suggests they run, his confusion returns...."make a run for it?.....like run, run?"
The friends, both new and old, rush up the slope and over the drawbridge to the gates. Miraculously, it seems, no one has noticed their approach.
Jerukh eyes first the castle gates, then the stone walls nearby searching for potential traps or secret portals;
:
Jerukh's inspection of the gates and the wall around show no signs of any traps. They are, however, in surprisingly good repair for a ruin.
"I'd be happy to scout the wall a bit, to see if theres an easy way in, if you like?" Randal asks Jerukh
Emi looks around uncomfortably while the others discuss what to do next. "Ve better do something kvickly..." she whispers loudly, "efentually somevun is going to notice ve're here..."
The gates are more like large wooden doors. As you look at them, it's possible that you could open them, assuming they aren't barred on the other side.
Jerukh nods once again at his cousin's words, then presses against the large doors - testing them to see if they will open or resist...
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The doors practically fall apart as Jerukh tries to force them open. They were indeed barred, but his orcish heritage proves to be more than the doors can handle.
Much to the surprise of the two dire corbies who were on the other side trying to figure out what was going on.
Randals eyes light up and a wide grin jumps to his face at the chance to finish his story!
As the doors give way revealing two of the fell bird-men, Jerukh instinctively reaches for, and activates one of his explosive bombs
Bomb in his paw, the brute alchemist moves to get a better vantage and close the distance
He then lobs the volatile explosive toward both of the creatures :
:
:
Continuing his story about the ill-fated elf-birds, and remembering Emi's question, Randal levels his bow at the nearest corbi.
When Randal steps back and resumes his story from earlier, Emi steps into the space he left and slashes at the birdperson with her bladed scarf...
,
The dancer flinches slightly when Randal sends an arrow brushing past her, but seems just a tiny bit impressed when it finds its mark. She quickly follows it up with another swing of her scarf...
,
Before the monstrous bird men have time to react, they both fall with quiet gurgles to the floor.
The gatehouse has a floor of packed dirt and numerous wooden support beams for the stone ceiling above. Two rusted iron gates allow access through the gatehouse, while to the north, a pair of wooden ladders climb to the roof above.
Satisfied with himself for having been able to expidite the story, Randal moves to the bodies to search for valuables.
Jerukh keeps his bomb gripped and moves forward past the downed corbies.
The alchemist pauses, allowing his keen senses to soak in the area around and before the group;
:
Looking around you begin to see things. An old bloodstain here, a gouge in the stone there, a ruined longbow half-buried in the dirt, fragments of bone, and a few scattered arrows that have rusted into uselessness. All of it points to there having been a great and terrible battle here.
After a search of the bodies reveals nothing of interest, Randal moves forward 15' to check those doors for traps (and see if they are locked).
Jerukh eyes the terrain with a creased brow;
"This place saw a battle... hard fought and bloody... The bones of war and those that waged it scatter this place..."
He points out what caught his eyes as he speaks...
The alchemist deactivates his bomb and places in back on his person;
"We best ware the risen dead again... Places such as this a oft graves of the restless..."
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hmm.....I don't have any good stories about the dead rising to accost the living yet....
You hear what sounds like three voices quietly griping about something. The language is like that of the elves and fey, but subtly wrong. You don't understand the words, but the tone is clear.
"Do you think we would be better off rushing in, or trying to draw them out?" Randal asks quietly as Soli returns.
Jerukh shakes his head, taps an alchemical bomb at his belt, then nods upward toward the voices;
"Soli, would I make the throw above?"
”Vhat language vere they speaking?” Emi asks quietly, ”do you think it vas more of the rafenmen?”
As the group debate the voices, Jerukh primes one of his alchemical bombs, then eyes the rest of the group;
"So do I give them a surprise... or do we err on stealth?"