You hammer on the man's chest, pushing hard, hitting a steady rhythym over his heart, focusing entirely upon the man and willing him to live. As you pump, a small benediction to Sareane touches your lips. a simple prayer, said to the Goddess for people to have continued health, prosperity, to not suffer should they be dying. Yet, those that die, that you have said this prayer for, their time had come, had been checked.
But not this man.
you do not know this man. you do not care what he does, if he is good, or evil. Yet your desire is to save him.
In between one chest compression and the next, you become aware of a figure standing next to you, seeming to loom over you. You dare not shift your focus from your task, yet you study the figure from the corner of your eye.
they seem to be tall, looming like a vulture upon a tall branch, and wider that the largest fat man that walks the lands. Yet an unnatural stillness holds their limbs. a dark cloak, almost of the blackest of blacks, drapes upon the frame of the figure. No boots stick out from beneath the hem, no hands from the robes sleeves. yet you know, something is there.
it watches you, unmoving, uncaring... seeming to decide...
if it had a hand, you would swear it had just reached out, for you feel your soul twinge in rhythym with your heartbeat. something seems to grab at it, at your mortal coil, and pulls, ever so gently. your heart begins to hammer faster adn faster, as if you ran full sprint, faster than a horse, the fastest youve ever ran, faster than that! Your chest begins to ache, to burn, and still your heart beats.
its hurts now
its agony
a part of you wants it to stop
yet you feel liek you have to keep going
you have no choice
a golden thread appears before your eyes, drawn out. out from your chest.
it blinks in sync with your heart, a constant thrum.
your lungs are burning, you dont understand why
harder and harder
your arms ache
another, darker presence looms over you, over the body you work upon. not this thing, not as immense, nor as impressive, yet there...
your coil is stretched out from you, and touches the man that lays dead...
the dark essence disappears...
the immensity disappears
your heart stops beating
you feel your mortal coil rebound into you
the man suddenly gasps loudly, sucking in a massive lungful of air....
owwwww he groans out, laying limp in his own blood.
Ahhhh! im blind! father zantus screams out in agony
The woman in red, looks about, bobing her head in a agreement Yes, against the wall, against- she stops, and glances about. (even that is done with absolute beauty and grace!)
I dont have time for this. she growls suddenly.
her stance changes from demure and submissive to domineering. where a moment before she was a graceful beauty, she now held the mind melting beauty of confidence, discipline, tyrannical domination.
(even the way she says that is pure magical to behold)
Just as Lady Aibhnichean opens her mouth to say something, Zeldana and Yeda both walk into the room. Lady Aibhnichean jumps, her tea cup flying out of her hands. Oh my! she cries out in surprise.
The final rush around the town hall, and up the narrow lane brings you to the closed gate of the town barracks. Bandit, due to his small size, is able to slip through the bars, with only a harsh shout of dismay at the raccoons sudden appearance.
HEY! Get out of here! a guard says, his back turned to the gate. He clicks his tongue in exasperation, only to have it nearly bit off as he clamps his jaw shut to keep from crying out in surprise. Blood and ashes! is everyone going to show up tonight at my gate?
the man is heavier than he looks, but still, manageable. you sling him over your shoulder and begin to walk to the rear of the stables. the sound of swords clanging off of swords rings throughout the night. A beat later your hear the sound of someone who just got the wind knocked out of them, the silence of swordplay... and then watch the stables building shake as if impacted by a large, heavy object. thatch falls from its roof, and several slate tiles from the Rusty Dragon Inn as well. Horses begin to neigh, and through your link to Dewdrop, you feel fear.
Golzar rolls to one side and takes many deep breaths. He managed to save a life, at the sacrifice of his own life force. He felt exhausted. He did manage to save a life, thats for sure. That was quite an accomplishment.
He wondered if he sacrificed too much of his own life force and he himself may die after this is through. It was certainly a comfortable feeling that he did manage to bring someone back alive. He checked to make sure he was still breathing. When he found that he was, indeed, still breathing he himself took bigger breaths.
What he did was a good act. Probably the best act he did in his whole life!
"Are you okay?" he asked. He wasn't righteous, but what he did was a righteous act. He wondered if anyone saw that.
"Loxley, it seems like things are starting to escalate. We should get going." Zeldana explained as she set the teacup down.
A pleasure. Despite my rough appearances I'm not your average Shoanti clan member. I grew up fraternizing with the varied peoples coming and going with trade caravans. Anyway...
She suddenly realizes she's over-explaining and cuts herself off.
The woman grunts loudly in pain, a strange distortion of a beatific moan.
she grinds her teeth as she stumbles to her right , groaning. Obscene amounts of skin and areas of the body that are considered to be private are exposed in her stumble (Sareane above, how is this woman able to be this beautiful?!)
She plants her feet and faces down Neari, her eyes unblinking as they latch onto Neari's gaze. For one that is similiar in stature, the woman seems to loom over her as she speaks once more.
You are not my quarry. she commands...
Fear.
absolute, soul crushing fear grips you, from the bottom of your feet to the tip of your head, ice flashes through your body, chilling any sort of battle lust within you. your heart stops solid, or perhaps its hammering so fast its as if it stops.
there is only one thing you can do..
run away.
Owww... do you have anything to drink? I feel as if i havent had a drink in several decades. the man coughs some more, red flecks spraying out from his mouth...
owww... what happened?
golzar suddenly hears, followed by running footsteps.
The guardsman grunts sourly, looking from sazzat to the running animal...
pet? a raccoon? What? An odd choice to have as a pet. what you some kind of wizard or something?
Hmpf. i suppose so. but i'll flay your skin from your body if you attempt to release the prisoner! Get your 'coon and get out of here
the guard steps up and unlatches the gate, swinging it wide open.
hurry up. my replacement will be here soon.
Lady Aibhnichean bobs her head at the introduction. a stout woman you are. Firm breasts and child bearing hips i do say. Have you been in Sandpoint long, i know a man who is looking for a wife... her hands clap over her mouth with a loud pop as her face flushes a brilliant red. she looks at Loxley, only to burst out laughing. Oh i am so sorry, dear. Loxley and I, we shared a bit too much of the good stuff. Make's me a bit to forward sometimes. Be warned Lady Loxley, that stuff you drink will hit ya when you least expect it! she sits down, taking the tea cup from Zeldana's hands.
yes, you may go. I hope you learned something tonight, Loxley. Come back anytime.
The sounds of horses neighing, of cows mooing, of someone yelling at the top of his lungs from inside the stables.
Ack! GET UP! SETTLE THE STABLE! MOVE!
you carry your prisoner over your shoulder up to the side door, finding it secured against entry.
"I'm afraid it's half full, but you can take what you need," says Golzar as he gives his wineskin to this man. Golzar turns his head to the cell door. He looks around for the source of the yell. "we might be getting out of here, sooner or later," he says.
Loxley had stared in surprise as Zeldana and Yeda came through the door.
”What-?”
She couldn’t think of anything to add to the quick introductions made by Zel, just nodded as she spoke. She did look back at Lady Aibhnichean after her initial outburst. As soon as the olde woman laughed, Loxley was unable to help but join her.
Using the chair she had been sitting in as support it takes her a moment to regain her composure. She can only smile at her and nod.
“In all honesty, I fear it may already be having an unfair influence.”
A small giggle slip out again and she had to bite her lips to keep any more from escaping. Her smile warmed more.
”I look forward to more of your wisdom.”
Loxley turned her attention back to Zeldana, attempting a more serious expression. She gave the witch a quick nod.
”I’ll follow your lead”
She clutched her fists at her side.
”But, if I must stand before my family sins, I will”
Maybe it was the liquid courage or maybe she had finally come to terms, either way the was determination in her declaration.
No, no matches. Please...
She's quite relieved when the Lady moves on quickly from it.
Loxley, what happens at the jail?
With that Zeldana motioned to Loxley and Yeda that it was time to go. "Loxley at the moment, we do not need to worry about that." She smiled. "Now let us go, Sazzat must be worried about us by now."
"The jail?"
Loxley asked a little confused. She looked to Zeldana questioningly.
"Ah, okay."
She agreed and and spared a final glance back at Lady Aibhnichean, giving her a final smile before turning and following after her companions.
"open up please for the love of nature! I need my friend Dewdrop its important!"
He hollared in between hammering his fist on the door.
you hand the man the wineskin and watch him greedily tip his head back and begin to suck the liquid from the bladder.
the sound of hard soled boots hammering onto the stone floor catches your attention. you look up and brace yourself in your awkward sitting position. You can only watch in surprise as Neari sprints full speed past the cell opening and bang up the stairs.
Hot on her heels you see a woman covered head to toe in blood, running (in a more controlled manner) behind Neari.
A man's voice screams out in pain and agony
You manage to move quickly through the narrow tunnel that is the barracks wall and watch Bandit rush into a short, fieldstone building. At even distances, port holes are cut into the wall with iron bars set into mortar, preventing anyone from escaping from within. A large, iron bound door is opened wide, a simple table and chair sit empty just to the right of the door. From where you stand, you can see into the entry of the building and see a darker hall that looks to descend into the building proper. a lone torch hangs on the wall.
Bandit stops just inside the doorway, and lifts himself up onto his hind legs. His tiny front paws seem to grasp at the air, waving and motioning about. The sound of heavy foot falls, of hard leather hammering into stone, clop up from inside the building and a heartbeat passes and a strange elven woman rushes up the stairs, hair bouncing. her eyes are wide, her face pale, she runs up the stairs and hurdles the small form that is Bandit, and she rushes straight at Sazzat.
Yet more movement catches Sazzats eye, as a red figure comes into focus, ascending the stairs.
Another step up reveals the figure to be a woman. A human woman. A gorgeous human woman. Plump breast, slim figure, her neck long, elegant. Even the way the blood lays upon her dark brunette hair only adds to the sheen of beauty in a bizarre way.
STOP a voice thunders in your head, almost rattling your teeth loose from your jaw. Who's voice is that?
Ahhh, Aslarg'rn'x'kthawyan. the woman speaks, in an odd, guttural tone. a tone definitely not made by a regular human body.
A detached voice answers back, an opposite to the voice that was uttered.
Maliphviston
Where the woman's voice was deep and gravely, this was sweet and pure, where the woman's voice held contempt and derision, this one was honest and earnest.
the detached voice continues You shouldnt- but is cut off by the woman/thing.
id love to talk, Asss, but I have elsewhere to be, and she sniffs the air before touching her hair hair. It seems some people need saving. Do you wish to fight? or save a life or three?
you step out into the street and look about for sazzat (or bandit), or any sign of threat. Yet the street is empty.
You no sooner step out of the front door and feel a strangeness, a wrongness coming from your harrow deck. Normally the warm kind presence of your grandmother is present with the deck, a simple guiding hand from beyond the grave. a sign of love that can only exist from grandmother to grandchild.
yet now, its pure, unadulterated malice. It burns brilliantly upon your hip, and it feels as if itll corrupt you, taint your mind and body, if you carry it longer. Yet a voice whispers softly to you come to me, my dear. Come to me. embrace me. it finishes with emphasis.
Im coming, im coming. a voice barks out. A voice you recognize as the owner of the stables, Daviren Hosk. Hold on! something- the voice yells out from the other side of the door. A bolt is thrown back hard and the door swings into the building. a stout man with a horrid frown glares at you. Yeah? what- Oh. it's you he glowers. he looks down at the load Corrin's carries upon his shoulders, and then says simply Yeah ok. two gold. he steps out of the way.
He asked as he dumped the unconcious man in the stall with Dewdrop. He smiled at the gentle headbutt from his best friend.
"Hey buddy. Need you on your best. This is a bad guy. sit on him and dont let him leave okay?"
He said to his elk pointing at the unconcious fellow in the stall now.
He paused and looked to the owner of the stables. his features got darker and more serious "this man attacked my friends and there is trouble at the rusty dragon. Also probably the jail, Heres 5 gold, and the next time we go out i will get you a whole slew of goblin ears for you to nail up okay?
He pulled out a hand full of coin and tossed it to the man before he turned and gave his elk a nod hustling out the door and heading out his body started to shift to match his amazing stole cloak thing Snow leopard Corrin moved with a predators grace and speed for the corner and front of the Rusty Dragon first.
[b]"Can you wait here, I need to attend to someone else medically," he said. "After that is sorted, we can get to the other part of rescuing."
Sarenae was someone who was said to be merciful. But getting a captive out, an extraction, that was something that Golzar had come here to do. Golzar felt a little inadequate right now. But someone needed his help. He grabbed his healer's kit, opened the cell door, and left for the two other people in the north cell.
"Hold on, I'm coming," he said. He moved as fast as he could, although his scars on his face was a constant reminder of his past. He couldn't charm his way into someone's heart. But he could get them out, maybe Sarenae would be merciful to him afterwords.
”Huh?”
Loxley paused and glanced at Zeldana, then down at the belt. Her brow furrowed a moment as she reached out and accepted it. Holding the pouch in her hand she couldn’t be sure, but she could have sworn she felt something.
Like a small tingle somewhere deep inside. Somewhere close to where she felt her magic, especially when she called on it to channel her healing magic.
She gave the pouch a quizzical look then looked at Zeldana and held it back out to her.
”That’s… strange.”
She managed.
The rogues mouth moved silently as his brain roiled with pain. A strangeness filled his mind as he attempted to comprehend what was going on. The woman running past him, the corruptively beautiful woman covered in blood before him, his familiar staring down this beauty... it felt as if his brain was folding in on itself.
But it was the name that Sazzat clung to.
Maliphviston
it was a name he was sure he heard once before...
Yes! the tunnels below sandpoint! the mutated creature, no! the guardsman! who drank the waters from that corrupted shrine. He was twisted, mutated. he uttered a warning...
Your master suffers from his over ambition. He is, even now, agonizing at the hands of Maliphviston! You are fated to share in his damnation, rogue.
what do you know about my Master?! Sazzat yells out.
The woman's focus redirects from Bandit to sazzat.
Much. the strange voice remarks
Run away, Sazzat. the deep, sultry voice of a woman comes from the woman bathed in red. you recognize the voice, the tone, the timber. You rescued her from Thistletop. you spoke long with her on the walk back... she even offered to lay with you not a few hours earlier.
It was Evriani's voice.
Her voice goes hard, harder than sword steel as she barks Run Away Sazzat, of I will kill you!
you run past the strange racoon and half run, and run full tilt into the narrow hall through the Forts wall. You see the guardsman you talked to briefly not a minute before, confusion all over his face.
you hear odd disjointed, non-mortal voices coming from behind you. one tainted and twisted, the other pure and sweet.
The guard takes one look at you, drops his drawn sword on the ground and hurls open the barred gate.
there is something odd to this deck. but youre not sure what. but it feels weird. certainly worth a closer look... if only you had the time to do so...
you look about the street, searching for any signs of sazzat, or bandit, or trouble. Yet, you dont see anything out of the ordinary. Doors shuttered, a quieted town settling for the night.
the roar of someone shouting in anger!
the roar came from behind, farther back than the back of Lady Aibhnichean's house. A wordless roar it was, conveying emotion more than actual intelligence, yet spurring you to take action...
Dewdrop bugles out a long, high pitched bleet, and promptly sits upon the man you drop into his stall.
What? goblins ears? that's no goblin! and there be someone trying to bust down my Stables!
something roars savagely from the Stables exterior! so loud and impressive it actually causes all the stabled animals to still and be quiet.
wha? um. yes, sure. i ok- good bye then horsk mutters as you move away.
you step out the front of the stables, the door moving on silent hinges, and feel your body meld and mold, changing into the snow leopard shape. immediately your view point changes, dropping a couple feet. you feel your muscles bunch, twinge, flex as you move as only a feline can.
yet you stop, and watch as a giant of a man stands himself upright, large ghostly blade held in hand. blood trickles from his side, pooling liberaly under his feet.
good. i was afraid this was an unfair fight. he grunts.
you look down the road and see a man. a single man, dressed in black. a black hat covers his face low, a black duster jacket hangs to his knees. black pants and black boots complete the look of the man. The man stands easy, legs shifted apart and back, a fighters stance. his hands hang by his sides, and he seems to shift on the balls of his feet with a rhythmic sway.
your reputation proceeds you, Gokinsae the man replies simply, swaying slightly.
Gokinsae grunts, and charges the man, his sword hanging low.
the imagery of a mountain falling upon an ant fills your mind as you watch Gokinsae strike. Yet the man in black shifts his stance, and you catch a momentary glimpse of another man in black rounding the far corner of the Rusty dragon, heading North.
the blow descends, and if the man in black had been standing there, he would have been cut in two. instead, the man shifted, and lands several rapid blows from his fists upon Gokinsae's massive frame. More blood is expressed from the large wound on the giants torso. He grunts hard, staggering.
you move quickly through the dungeon to the northern cell, the most obvious place where the cry could have come from.
as you move through the large hall, you overhear some noise comign from up the stairs, but cannot make out the words. the tone however, cringes your skin. it feels as if someone is taking the very essence of sound and tearing it in half, and a part of you is thankful to not be close enough to understand what is being said.
you slip easily enough in the cell, and you glance about. you see, on your left, the body of a woman with a deformity for her left hand, trapped behind iron bars. a strange looking arm, red scaled with odd claws for fingers makes the shape of her hand, while her right is human formed. To the right, it is Father Zantus!
He cowers in the corner, hands held before him, as if to shield him from something horrible, terrifying to behold. The look of madness set upon his features.
Save me! Sareane save me! Desna save me! mistresses of light above save me! he mumbles over and over again.
Golzar looks at both. The girl with her strange arm looks kinda attractive. He had a thought race through his head that maybe they could do something together. He then shakes his head at the thought. He had scars on his face, and it would take someone brave to accept him. Then there was Father Zantus. Something has him unhinged. He never thought of the priest as "unhinged."
Golzar takes out his healer's kit. He first turns to Father Zantus to try and heal him first.
Then he once more spots Bandit and wondered what he was doing. Was he casting some kind of spell now? I mean that was something that was not outside the weirdness zone that he currently found himself in but definitely not something he would have expected either.
Then there was something coming and Bandit might need help, so he drew his sword and began to advanced but then an Elven woman vaulted over Bandit so he stopped prepared to intercept her and stop her from fleeing. However, the pure look of fear that was obviously painted on her face told him she was no danger but something else was. He looked back to Bandit and saw...
What he saw, made him wish he were a Bard, such beauty deserved to be immortalized in song or word, if that were even possible. Such flawless beauty which made even anomolies seem to be exquisitely beautiful adornments, how was that even possible but then again who cared.
He is then suddenly shocked by that voice once more echoing through his mind, snapping his attention back to reality. The following exchange between what appeared to be Bandit and a beauty beyond comprehension did not escape Sazzat's attentiveness. This was something significant and the names may be important later on. The first one sounded utterly alien and he was not even sure if he would be able to remember it fully later but the second name Maliphviston was much easier to remember.
Sazzat put away his sword, he knew he should not get near this Maliphviston which is way Bandit had told him to stop. So he drew forth his crossbow, as he cursed himself a bit for not having a magical damaging spell currently memorized. Still all-things-considered how does one prepare ahead of time for something this weird.
Prepared to help, Sazzat stayed back and simply took aim at the blur, as he was squinting his eyes to remove her from clear focus. As seeing her in focus would most likely be his undoing.
His friends needed him, The impposible large man who made corrin has an iota of fear appeared to be ... losing. which frightened him more Another foe was fleeing north. He was torn on defending his sisters place and his friends, of proteecting someone whom knew about his people, about a curse... The whispers begin trickling into his ear, he wandered if the mask was still technically on his face when he shifted forms... idle thoughts now. He made a split decision... He tensed feeling the ripple and strength in his feline legs.... He charged.
It looks like we're checking on this before heading to the jail...
Loxley looked back in the direction of the roar of rage. Concern was clear on her face as she looked back at Zeldana.
She could appreciate Zel’s attempt to keep her safe, but if she continued to hide behind others she would only get them hurt.
Besides, it was entirely possible that was completely unrelated… right.
Loxley looked at Yeda, the fearless warrior was ready to stand and fight. She grabbed Zel’s hand and gave it a squeeze. Then, looking at the witch she gave an apologetic smile.
”I’m sorry.”
Letting go of her hand, Loxley steps up beside Yeda.
”Someone needs help.”
Obviously still a little scared and nervous, but determined, Loxley looks up at Yeda then back at Zeldana.
”It’s what we do.”
With that she starts running towards the source of the angry roar.
Regardless he felt his resolve weaken but if forstalled complying as Bandit was still here and he would stay to protect his friend the best that he could.
Still the voice of this lady seemed to be that of Evriani but that made now real sense as Evriani did not house such power and ability. Then again was Evriani really Evriani all along, had she been something else in disguise? The questions danced within his mind, as he attempted to stay present within the moment to aid Bandit as best that he could.
map for the jail, upper level (sazzat and neari)
something is happening... youre just not sure what.... or who? maybe Bandit is casting something...
youre having a serious brain-fart. you know there was something with Maliphviston. It was the name your old Master screamed as he was consumed by whatever during that summoning ritual, but beyond that, you just cannot put your finger on it. as for the other name, nothing rings a bell.
aside from shallow bruises upon Father Zantus' palms (perhaps inflicted from a fall?), there isnt anything wrong with the man, physically. His body shakes as if he witnessed a terror to frightful to behold. He holds a wild look to his eyes; they dart left, right up and down, looking for any sign of threat....that isnt there. he clutches at you, pulling you hard to him, embracing you as he shakes with terror.
Sazzat. bandit's voice speaks softly within your head. i cannot fight her. not here. It is not the time[/i]. The battle would destroy not only you, but Sandpoint as well.[/i]
Your eyes squinted, the imaged blurred, you watch as the ball of black and grey that is Bandit lower itself to all fours, and step slowly out of Evriani's path.
you can only watch in annoyance as the guard who you yelled at drops the thick wooden rod he held in his hand and runs away, screaming for help!
Movement draws your attention to the end of the hall and beyond, and you catch a raccoon (a raccoon???) drop onto its forelegs and slink out of the way of the woman in red (why does she still look that gorgeous?!?!?!?). You see a man wearing a hood and short cape, his back to you, holding a crossbow at the low ready.
the woman, drenched in red, both of blood and dress, steps easily up to Sazzat, her hands open (tinged with red).
Do i need to show my sister the blood of her dead boyfriend on my hands? the voice is that of Evriani's but also intermixes with that discordant voice.
The woman points her hand at Neari, and utters the phrase Pete and repeat
your new body ripples and flows, muscles tensing and flexing while responding with preternatural speed and alacrity. You easily rush past Gokinsae's hulking form and launch yourself at the man in black. Your teeth sink into the man's arm as claws, both fore and back, all sweep and slash at the man. blood coats your claws as it also fills your mouth. as quick as you hit, you drop off.
the man snarls savagely at the sudden attack. He shifts his stance, and lashes out with left foot, right foot, left fist, and finally, crushes hard with his right elbow at corrin.
recognizing he could be outflanked, the man steps back, keeping both men in front of him.
Gokinsae roars in anger, he steps up and swings a cross body slash from left to right. the blade catches the abdomen of the man, and blood flows from the wound. the man gasps loudly, hands reflexively grasping at his core.
you walk down Net street, yeda taking point. You can hear it, the sounds of a fight. the yell of a man roaring in battle! the sound of swordplay. the yowl of a large feline predator!
you get to the end of the road, and across the way you see the rear entrance of the Rusty Dragon inn.
the three of you hug the wall, yet your efforts of remaining hidden and unseen are destroyed as the one woman who seeks out Loxley, the source of all tonights issues steps out from the back doors of the Rusty Dragon inn. She stops suddenly, staring at you, at the three of you, shock and surprise all over her face. She blinks, once, twice, thrice.
finally, she catches her voice and hollers
she is cut off as Lord titus pushes past her, rushing out and towards the ladies... more off putting, he holds a narrow sword in his hand and carries a small shield in his off.
Dont run loxley! we need to talk! he bellows.
another voice shouts off from your right. you snap a quick gaze and see one of the men in black standing at the end of the alley that runs next to the Inn, shouting loudly.
Buildings, houses and apartments above store fronts, people within begin to shout and bellow, demands of quiet to shouts of aide.
"I'm afraid you need different healing, Father," said Golzar. He felt despair at the man's state of mind. Something horrible unhinged the man's mind. Golzar was grateful that he didn't see this horror. He then thought of an idea, maybe he could find the right healers for Father Zantus.
"Don't worry, Father Zantus," said Golzar. "We can find help for you yet."
One thing's for sure, he wasn't going to get it in this dungeon.
Neari grumbles as she recognises the spell. Rushing over to the beautiful woman, Neari kicks out against the woman's legs attempting to knock her off her feet.
Sazzat makes a beeline for the entrance and once outside he will peal off to his left and head for the safety of the old lighthouse as it would be the furthest place from town and thus the least likely to be affected by whatever this lady was about to do. The whole situation seemed almost like deja vu. Bringing back the images of his mentor being ripped apart by a demon due to the distraction he had cause his mentor at that crucial moment. The fact that his evil outsider had some kind of connection to that evil outsider, did not bode well and self-preservation was once more top of his list of things to do.
For now she lets Zel do the talking and watches carefully for how they will respond.
Loxley hurried along the road with the other girls. The rear of the Rusty Dragon coming into sight, the irony of returning wasn’t completely lost on her. But it was too late to turn back now.
Suddenly, the Dutchess stepped out of the inn. A long silence hung in the air, despite the ruckus, as the four stared at each other. Her cry jerks Loxley out of her stunned shock.
She pushes herself away from the wall and tries to stand up to her full height as Lord Titus pushes past the dwarf.
“You’ll understand my skepticism of your intentions, sir, brandishing steel before me in such a manner.”
She manages to say, her voice betraying her wavering courage only just.
Suddenly a flurry of colored skirt sweep between them as Zeldana steps forward. Loxley can’t help but be moved at her conviction, even tho she cannot fully grasp the significance of her words. Still she can feel their weight in the air.
The sight of Yeda beside her warms her. The two, together, giving her a gentle nudge of courage needed to step forward herself to stand with them.
Though unarmed, she is not defenseless and she begins to mentally prepare what little magic she still has at her call. Oh how she wished she had at least grabbed her sword.
The woman shifts and dodges Neari's attempts to trip her. wha- stop! Stop that! she growls at neari.
The woman's nostrils flare as she exhales hard in exasperation. who are you? she asks as she snaps a hand out to touch Neari upon her body...
Her finger touches Neari between the eyes, and a wave of exhaustion flows over Neari.
Source: book of vile darkness, p 103
Enchantment [evil]
level 2, cleric/sorcerer/wizard
range touch
target: one living creature
duration: instantaneous
saving throw: fort negates
spell resistance: yes
The caster drains the personal well=being from the subject, who becomes exhausted.
An exhausted character moves at half speed, cannot run or charge, and takes a –6 penalty to Strength and Dexterity. After 1 hour of complete rest, an exhausted character becomes fatigued. A fatigued character becomes exhausted by doing something else that would normally cause fatigue. After 8 hours of complete rest, fatigued characters are no longer fatigued.
You are absolutely terrified! Whatever that thing is, it scared you to your bones. the only thing you can do is run, run like your life depends on it, for it does! its an open flesh wound in shark infested waters, its being the merchant with several coin pouches forced to cut down a side alley with toughs following you, it is simply the manifestation of fear made flesh!
[ooc]you have one more full round of being panicked. I moved your token on the map, in the rough path you could take to the light house. i figured a guy who's running for his life wouldnt want to take a path that runs next to the building that currently holds the source of the fear. if you think otherwise, feel free to say so and move your token on the map accordingly.
youre still too new to Sandpoint, and the greater Hinterlands, to know if there is some looney doctors around.
Hey, whoa! who's the hottie? the man you saved had stumbled into the cell, wineskin hanging from a hand in a negligent manner. Magnficient figure, the way her body curves that way.. wow! it's been a long, long time since ive been with a woman. Sweet succulent women... the man stumbles to the iron bars and leers at the body.
save me! save me! he's here! he is here! father zantus raves, eye wide with fright. his mouth begins to froth, his hands clutch harder than a blacksmiths vise upon Golzar's forearms, cutting off circulation! his teeth gnash together, a horrible grinding noise! his eyes bulge from his head, tinting harsh red as they fill with blood. he he gasps, he he coughs he father zantus collapses into a limp pile.
you run around the corner and manage to nearly catch up to the other man in black. He rushes to hte right, out of sight, trench coat flared out behind him.
Whatever Lord Titus says in response to Zeldana's proclamation is lost in a wordless roar that comes from down the street, to the right.
The man in black, black pants, hat, trench coat, comes rushing from the right, hands held low balled into fists. He howls with anger and rage, and falls upon Yeda, throwing haymakers and upper cuts at the woman.
titus hangs back a moment, uncertainty filling his face. he glances back at the dwarf, who only returns an unimpressed look. A sickly look falls upon his face, and he charges directly at Zeldana, swinging his blade at the Harrower's skull.
My family is already cursed. he snaps out and she's my family's sole salvation.
the flat of his blade twangs off the side of Zeldana's skull.
The Duchess lifts her right hand high to the sky, and then snaps it down before her. You blink, and all you see is the after affect of a strange green glow.
It really would be better if you surrendered, ladies The Duchess suddenly says from behind you....
"Ah dimension door, it is a rather useful spells." Zeldana said as she rubbed the side of her head. That is when she realize.. she wasn't bleeding. He could have easily cut into her, yet he chose the side of the blade instead.
"You do not want to do this." Zeldana said to Titus, looking his way. "She is holding something over you is she not? What has she done lord of Sandpoint? What has this outsider done that has made you turn against the people who are responsible for Sandpoint's safety?" Zeldana asked as she motioned to Yeda and Loxley, both of which had saved Sandpoint. "Is this, how you show them gratitude?"
Loxley jumped as an unarmed man in black attacked Yeda. But before she could react, Lord Titus swung at Zeldana.
”No!”
She flinched as the swords flat connected with her friend’s head. From the corner of her vision she caught the Duchess casting and stiffened, ready to react.
Distracted as she was, Loxley missed part of the casting and the dwarf vanished in green light. When the woman’s voice came from behind them she started and whirled to face her.
"Ah dimension door, it is a rather useful spells."
Ah, that was it.
She thought as she raised her own hand to cast.”Delumous Fortoxus!”
Shadowy energy leaps from a snap of Loxley’s fingers and arches for Duchess’ shadow, attempting to pin it to the spot.
Neari feels the magic wash over her but fortunately manages to fight it off. Unfortunately, she feels the woman's previous spell take effect forcing her legs to move. Managing to exert some control Neari circles the woman before Kicking out with her leg again. Who am I!? Who are you!? What were you doing in that jail?
"Can you help me with him?" he asks the woman. "He needs help, and fast."
Golzar wondered if he should let Father Zantus stay here. Apparently, he seen something that made him mad. Or he got a little hydrophobia, or something. It had to do with his mind.
He turns to the man, "I'm getting everyone out. If you promise to behave."
He was hoping that the man he rescued from death wasn't a sex fiend.
He checked for a half second .. there were way more folk here than he thought there would be. His eyes darted over his friends everyone appeared moslty okay. Zel looked to be talking... Yeda was defending herself against a clear known enemy.. at least to the druid. He charged from behind the man, silent death about to pounce.. when he closed he leapt forward preppared to tear into him with tooth and claw....