Fhingle beats a dead horse (hellhound)
Fhingle touches Zea, knitting her wounds.
Zea slashes at the hateful ogrekin as it stands.
When it stabs her, she falls in pain to the ground, bleeding out. Thankfully, Fhingle's magic revives her and she rises carefully to her feet.
Cassius tries to sleep the ogrekin!
"The hell is she? I have some special weapons someone better at combat could use if she's one of those 'nothing hurts me BUT THAT' types!"
The ogrekin is badly hurt by Zea and Jarithe who both wound it badly as it gets up, bringing it close to death. But Zea pays a high price for standing next to it. She falls down unconscious as the ogrekin stabs her. Fhingle tries to revive her, but in the face of the threat, he mispronounces the words and his spell fizzles .
Cassious hits the ogrekin with a spell and some sand, sending it into the land of dreams.
The woman comes to life again and grins at Saul. "Thank you for picking up my glaive." Nox says and wrests the weapon out of his hand.
The ogrekin will not wake from this sleep, after Jarithe's treatment.
Fhingle slides around Zea, putting more magic into her and avoiding the Devil woman. Fhingle pulls a scroll out of the tube on his hip and reads the words of power and directing them at Zea
Cassius tries another color spray on her.
Nox weathers the repeated color spray, but Cassius can clearly see her displeasure and that she makes a mental note of him.
Fhingle will retreat with Zea
Fhingle will again heal Zea, wavy bluish energy flows into Zea.
Jarithe disappears from sight completely, Saul opens the door to the south as a shortcut, Zea gets up and moves through, only Cassius is in a dangerous position. As he moves away Nox lets her glaive fall down on him like a guillotine, to end his existence. But just as it is about to hit him he disappears in the smoke and the sharp blade only shaves the sleeve and the hair off his arm.
Fhingle moves unnoticed along. Jarithe covers their exit with grease, but Nox doesn't seem to follow. All take a run for the next alley to hide in.
Just as all take a breath to see where they are and what direction to go now, someone notices, that Rexus is still in there. Just as you look back out of the alley, you see him slipping on the grease, falling down the stairs of the entrance. Rexus picks himself up and runs down the road as if the devil himself was after him.
Fhingle channels a pulse of bluish energy healing everyone.
Fhingle then takes off, going ways that he knows are small and hard for people to follow him home.
As the group is running, Zea calls out "Wait! Why are we running! She's all alone back there! Now's our best chance to deal with her! I'm ok. I can help!"
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"Move it Sparrow, we live to see another day and JACKDAW is happy with that!" He says Jackdaw loud enough to be heard by the strange woman with the huge polearm.
Our group is too inexperienced, too newly formed to go after a creature like that! Maybe if Salonius, Logan, or Mels was still on active duty, but our team now is not used to this level of danger! We will be able. Yes, we will practice and train. And yes, we will be back, but more prepared. More prepared to get past that book and that woman...
Even as he moves in a zig-zag pattern through the city, always watching his back, slowly ditching Cassius' disguise, Saul's mind is racing furious. How to get through that woman's defenses?
Eventually, he arrives back at his office, but he is too geared up. Saul continues to pace, back and forth, wracking his brain. We need to find someone who knows more about devils.
"Well that got fricking terrifying fast."
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As they flee, Zea looks back, startled at the voice. There's someone back there! They need help! But her allies are in a rush for safety. As soon as she knows where to meet them next, she slips through the crooked alleys of Redroof to get safely home. But as she lies in her meager home, recovering from her injuries, her mind can't forget the voice. Someone needs my help.
Zea wakes the next morning and corrects herself. "Wait... I'm not sure where that voice was coming from. It could have been anywhere near that awful museum... I should go back and check it out." She slips back into the dangerous neighborhood, keeping her hood up and doing her best not to attract any attention while keeping an eye out for any signs of last night's trouble.
Finally back at the coffee house basement Fhingle talks with Maggie and her sisters.
"So we ran into some trouble, a lady who could heal from any wounds that were inflicted on her and a planar guardian who would only attack if we pressed further into that Museum place." Fhingle eats a pastry, "Did anyone see Rexus return? I have some questions for him as well. How would you ladies get past someone who only attacks if they see you?"
Zea moves through Redroof, to come back to the spot in the alley close to the Fantasmagorium. It's not the Devil's Nursery which causes her to be careful, but it is still the district where the not so lucky citizens of Kintargo live. Which means that she will probably meet no dottari at least.
Standing at the corner, looking from the shadows at the main entrance of the Fantasmagorium Zea listens carefully if she hears the voice again. And indeed she does. [smaller]"Come here. Get me out of here. Don't leave me again." followed by an annoyed "Shut up already!" with a grumpy hoarse voice and a kick against something wooden.
Turning around Zea finds that it has to come through the window of the cottage she is leaning against. Some 20 feet back is the shaggy wooden door that is the entrance to the house.
Extremely curious about and concerned by the voice, Zea tries to move quietly to the wooden door and peek through it if it is open or she thinks she can open it without attracting attention.
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Jarithe checks on his locked up goods and wagon as well as his horses ensuring they are cared for, brushed, and fed and then pays the stable fee making sure they stable boy watches his stuff by giving him a nice silver piece tip and then retires to a room until the next morning when he will try to meet the rest of the group at the meeting place.
well that could have gone worse, and could have gone better... What do you all propose to do now?
"Sneaking in? We might have to buy some things to be able to do that though." Fhingle says
The door to the small cottage is not locked and doesn't properly close anymore. The smell of old comes out through the gap. Not much is to see, as a wall runs from the side the door opens into the room.
The squeaking of a rocking chair can be heard.
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Saul continues to pace inside his office. He is obsessed with finding out how to destroy the woman.
She could heal, but she was no troll. Her healing must come from another source. Knowing the Thrunes, that means some type of devilish connection... So silver, right? That is what Salonius said a couple of weeks ago. Means my spear would work, but I never got to hit her with it to see. And he's disappeared, so can't go to him to confirm my guess. Wonder if his old drunk professor would be willing to help? Guess I could go pay her a visit. Tomorrow...sigh. Another day in the city that won't quit. I may not have started any of this, but gods damn it, I intend to finish it!
His mind eased at having a plan in place, Saul is able to sit down and rest. Eventually he nods off.
As Zea tries to take a look in through the gap she moves the door causing the door to creak. The grumpy voice is heard again. "Who's there?" it demands to know. Asymetric steps, as if from a limp come towards the door.
An old man with lack of teeth and bad breath pulls open the door. "What do we have here? One of those little devils! Get lost! You have no business here." he commands.
From inside the voice is heard again. "Don't leave me here."
Zea looks up at the man and stiffens herself when she hears his insults. Determined not to leave this poor person alone again, she decides to do what she can. "But I was coming to see you!" She winks at the fellow. "I wanted to talk to you and get to know you a little. Your... force of personality attracted me."
Ugh... I can't believe I'm doing this... But I can't just go rushing in and I won't leave this victim alone again. She twirls her long hair with her left hand and whispers with a smile "Is now a good time?"
"Haha! My force of personality!" The man laughs out loud. "Are there no horned devils in your neighborhood, that you go after an old guy like me and my force of personality? I want nothing to do with your kind!"
There is no sign that he doesn't believe Zea. But he doesn't seem to like her and maybe he distrusts her that it is only his force of personality she is after.
Zea fakes a tear. "Oh well if you'll have nothing to do with me, I guess I'll just go." She walks around a corner and waits a few minutes then tries to sneak into the house without the old fellow noticing her, this time being very careful of the creaky door.
The old guy looks after Zea, to check that she really leaves. By the creaking of the door she can tell that the door is closed again.
But Zea is naive to think the door will suddenly stop creaking. Not that it would have helped. The inside of the house is just one room with a stove, a bed, a chest, a table, two chairs, a rocking chair and some shelves.
And the old guy who comes looking with his walkking stick in hand, but not for walking, as Zea can see in a small mirror at the wall.
This crazy old guy has probably kidnapped somebody. I've got to just do something about it. Zea draws her rusty scimitar and rushes the man, striking at him with the flat and trying not to hurt him too badly.
The man is caught by surprise. He raises his arm and his staff in reflex, but it doesn't help him. With a large gash at the head, he falls down unconscious.
The chest is obviously the item that gets kicked regularly. And also the voice comes from there. "Don't leave me here."
The chest, which is about three foot long, two foot high and wide, stands under a shelf. Pulling it out and trying to open it, reveals that the chest is locked.
Zea checks on the old man to make sure he's alive. Then she leans over the chest and whispers "Hello? Did he kidnap you? I'll try to get you out." She checks the old man's pockets for keys. If she doesn't find any, she looks around the room for them. Otherwise, she'll chop at the chest as quietly as she can.
"Yes please get me out." the voice pleas. On the man no keys are found and a cursory search of the environs also bring up no key.
Zea takes a quick, careful, quiet peek outside to see if there's anybody close by.
If this part of town is quiet and pretty deserted, she'll take to the box with her scimitar.
The chest is made from thick and heavy wood, but it doesn't resist too long. Even though Zea has to be careful not to wound the one sitting inside. Once the wood is chopped apart in one place it becomes easier to break large pieces out of it.
But to Zea's surprise there is no one in. A coat, some leather pants, a shirt, a belt with a large buckle, some boots. By the look of it some years old. The quality is top nothch, only the style suggests that it is no recent make. And at the bottom of the chest lies a black blade. "Finally." the blade states. "What took you so long? Take me and leave, before something else happens and forces me to sit in this chest forever."
Shocked, Zea looks down at the weapon, which is surely cursed. "Um... What... what are you?" She's very afraid of this talking sword but something in her makes the weapon extremely tempting. She snatches it up then glances around for any alcoholic drink in the hut. If she finds any, she'll dribble some in the old man's mouth and on his clothes and leave the bottle lying on the floor. Not particularly convincing but might help draw a little less attention to what I did here... Then she slips out back with the black weapon in hand, very confused and excited about this new development. I've got to see what the others have been up to. Surely we have a new plan, now. She rushes to the meeting place.
Zea finds only Rexus in the basement of the Longroad Coffeehouse. But e is devastated, by the cruel death and the abuse his parents had to endure even after that.
The Fuji sisters are also there, and of course Laria, but no one is in the mood to talk much, after what Rexus reported.
With the curfew the night is silent like always, since Kintargo changed. Only in the morning with the light, the life comes back to the streets, especially now, that Sunday is over and working starts again.
Zea tries to offer Rex some comforting words but doesn't have much to say. She just sits there quietly near him for a little while then heads home, depressed but excited at the same time. She spends the night sleeping fitfully, often waking up in the middle of the night and looking at the strange weapon. In the morning, she wakes up and looks for her friends again. They're the only ones I can tell about this.