Valais rushes in alongside Xanderghul. She isn't quite as fast as he, nor as tough, nor can she fly. She wheezes against the toxic fumes, but manages to keep her composure for the time being. She stands on the edge of a volcanic vent, her eyes narrowed through the fumes at the demon. "I think I remember this one from my books... something about blasphemy?"
No matter what it was, it was a demon. It would corrupt and kill. She draws up the holy energy her body now brimmed with into her hands, which begin to glow. After a few seconds of concentrating on a ball of light in between her hands, she casts it at the demon.
If it strikes the demon, it fully envelops the demon in a binding of light, slowing its movement and potentially preventing planar travel.
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Thanks to Xanderghul’s spell, Hinagiku is finally able to catch up with Isilme whom she passes. As she does, the monk begins gathering the invisible threads of the ley in her outstretched fingers, making the very flow of the world her weapon. Then, in one swift yet graceful motion, she pulls down her arms propelling herself upward and across the lava filled chasm. As she lands, she casts a single quick glance backward at Unafe still uncertain how trustworthy she was.
Ary waits for Xanderghul's solution to their inability to breathe, waiting for him to finish incanting... and then everything slows down. She purses her lips and barely avoids letting out a huff of air through her nose. At... least he seemed to be diving down into the lava to save Jesker.
"Don't let him die. Shachaths doom their victims to the Abyss." she whispers into Isilme's spell, trying to conserve her breath as best she can. "Someone keep it grounded. Be prepared to purge invisibility, spread out in case of blasphemies... and be prepared for it to hurl you into the lava."
And just like that, she zips around Unafe, launching herself across the chasm and interposing herself between Aerona and the demon. "Try to get back to the entrance." she says as she passes her, golden sword already fluttering through a deadly arc towards the Shachath, the first swing an upwards diagonal slash, her shield raising in case of reprisal, before bringing the sword back across between them. She drags the blade backwards through the air, alacrity guiding her attempt to strike the creature once more as she brings the full breadth of her weight to bear against the two-faced outsider - though her footing a bit unstable for such an attempt.
Ehren watches helplessly when the hideous demon vacates its host, leaving Jesker to fall to his death. Before he can so much as lurch forward to make a rescue attempt, Xanderghul flies right past him with speed that far surpasses his own. Hoping that the wizard can reach Jesker in time, the druid turns his attention to the shachath. He has never seen one of its kind before, but if Ary and Xanderghul's words were anything to go by, it is an extremely dangerous one.
Isilme watches with disgust as the demon bursts forth from Jesker, discarding his body in much the same way a Vermlek would, though luckily for Jesker, without having hollowed him out first. The demon would be a formidable foe, but Ary's observation that the demon's possession has condemned Jesker's soul to the Abyss if he dies without atonement is enough to convince her that saving him was their top priority.
With Xanderghul's mythic magic affecting her, Isilme bolts towards the edge of the river, not wasting any time. No one else would be able to get to Jesker fast enough to aid him but her. She nods at Xanderghul as she passes beneath him and leaps into the air, plunging into the chasm without hesitation. As she closes she can see Jesker prone on the lava, his clothing already beginning to burn. With only a moment to spare she calls upon feather fall to slow her down, landing forcefully, but without any harm to herself.
For the second time today, despite her promise not to draw upon her spark, she finds herself digging into her reserve to craft a divine rune, this time to grant Jesker protection from fire. As she traces the rune, she focuses, trying to fight the weakness as she wrests still more power from the ever-dwindling divine flame within her. She finishes the rune and unleashes the magic upon Jesker, causing the flames upon him to immediately die down, the magic warding not only his body but his clothing and gear from the unrelenting heat of the lava.
Kneeling down, she does her best to pick up the man and drape him over her shoulder, the magic of her cloak lightening the load enough to make it manageable. The only thing left now was to get back up the cliff to (relative) safety.
The monstrous demon grins and laughs loudly at the expression of horror and disgust and on the onlookers' faces. Ary is the first to react, her red cloak billowing out behind of her as she leaps across the lava-filled chasm to the other side. Maneuvering carefully around the coffin, time slowing down around her thanks to Xanderghul's magic, she brings her full fury down to bear against the four-winged monster, cutting into it again and again, allowing her momentum to drive her forwards.
Soon afterwards, Valais flings a mass of glowing light at the demon, only to watch her magic fail to take hold - it simply slides off and winks out of existence. She turns to see if Xanderghul noticed, but he had already flown down to the bottom of the chasm to aid Jesker. There, the overwhelming heat radiating off the molten rock would be enough to scald someone for just breathing it in, but Xanderghul is already magically warded against flame and heat.
Above Xanderghul, he can see the shadow of Hinagiku as she nimbly leaps over the gulf above to better reach the winged demon. Her blue and white garb fluttering around her as she carefully navigates the narrow ledges of the crumbling barrow mound, she manages to loop around the shachath totally. Jumping up as she passes, she manages to kick the demon in the face, leaving it with a darkly colored nosebleed. Surrounded, the demons' bones pop and crackle, until the angelic face comes to the fore in the demonic face's stead. Her beautiful angelic face weeps and moans before Ary and Hinagiku, hoping to unsettle them into ceasing their attack. With a whirl, the "angel" attempts to speed away from the two of them, landing on the crystalline coffin instead.
Just visible past the murky crystalline lid lays a beautiful Kellid woman, he dark wavy hair spread out on the pillow beneath her head and decorated with dried flowers. Clearly some sort of magic is protecting her from the rot and decay - if she were not fully still and deathly pale, she could be mistaken for someone merely asleep. The woman wears a beautiful set of silvery chainmail, and clutches an ornamental longbow to her breast. Around her neck is a beautiful golden necklace, with a talisman in the shape of a pair of antlers. Flanking the talisman are delicate gems of pale gold.
The demon's four arms press against the coffin lid.
"Gwarcheidwaid Delamere, amddiffynwch eich meistres cysgu rhag y rhai a fyddai'n tarfu ar ei crug," growls the angel's face. The magical inscriptions across the coffin flare to life, glowing a brilliant blue. Matching runes glow on each of the other stone coffins in the room, and they begin to tremble and shake as their occupants stir to life and begin to push the lids up and away from their tombs.
"Guardians of Delamere, protect your sleeping mistress from those who would disturb her barrow."
Aerona screams and stumbles back as the closest coffin reveals a bony hand, but the bones are shiny and black, as if made of blackened steel.
Much more powerful than standard skeletons, Black Skeletons are often employed as guardians or protectors to keep sealed some ancient knowledge best left undiscovered. They are intelligent monsters and are not subject to the mindless commands that can be given to such undead as skeletons or zombies. They have a clear mind, and sometimes go against the commands and wishes of those they serve, if it benefits the black skeleton in question.
Black Skeletons are intelligent, not mindless, and tend to speak the common tongue of their previous lives, in addition to Abyssal. They possess the standard resistances and immunities of undead. In addition to that, their frightful presence is enough to send most people screaming in fear just from beholding them. They can only be reliably harmed by holy bludgeoning weapons.
Black skeletons attack with two short swords in battle with little more than the intention of cutting their foes to pieces. They are intelligent opponents and will use tactics during battle, often sending several of their number against a foe’s front, while the others move into position to flank their adversaries. Black skeletons are smart enough to know when the battle is lost and withdraw from combat, though rarely. Most simply fight to the death, driven by some unseen hatred for the living.
Any weapon that a black skeleton wields is imbued with the unholy power to sap a foes' strength outright - such creatures should be killed efficiently and quickly.
You have access to the full Black Skeleton stat block.
At the same time, Isilme bravely leaps into the chasm, using her magic to save herself at the last moment prior to impact with the molten lava below. Without a moment to spare (Jesker was already unconscious from the impact, and covered in horrific burns), she wards him from the heat and lava.
Ehren is up!
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As Ary blitzes the demon, Ehren wonders for a moment whether it would be enough to destroy it outright. Alas, the shachath manages to slip away and summon forth the guardians of the tomb. He watches with disgust as the undead abominations stir in their coffins. Were these foul creatures truly Delamere's chosen protectors?
Pondering his next move, Ehren looks to Unafe, realizing that she is poised to strike. Considering her long imprisonment, it is a wonder that she is alive at all, let alone standing and ready to fight. Still, whatever battle she was a part of, the wounds she sustained have apparently never healed. He was not too keen on the idea of letting her get herself killed.
The druid reaches into his wispy body, where his polymorphic pouch suddenly manifests. He digs through its contents for a moment, before withdrawing an immaculate wing-shaped cookie. Despite having sat in his pack uneaten for the better part of a year, it still smells as though it just got out of the oven.
"Eat this," he says airily, turning and holding it to Unafe's mouth. "It was baked and blessed by a celestial. Need I say more?"
The first of the skeletons - one separated from the other heroes by a river of lava - manages to push the lid aside and stumble out of its coffin. Once free and on its own two feet, the heroes can see that while the skeleton is only garbed in burial garments, it is well armed - it has two swords at each hip, and a longbow and quiver strapped to its back. It draws its bow in a smooth, practiced motion.
Unafe is up!
Unafe is just about to pounce when the Archdruid presses a honey-sweet cookie toward her saurian lips. She feels her broken rib and lava-blistered leg begin to ease and gratefully mutters ”Diolch!” as best she can with a mouthful of cookie.
Still chewing, she runs up into thin air, right over the chasm of lava, and leaps onto the demon (balancing on the edge of the casket with surprising ease). As she lands she shoves the demon with her shoulder, throwing it off balance, and then aims a punch at its chin.
Unafe can feel the ache from a century in ice still slowing her, and can see that the demon is about to dodge out of her way. No! I can't afford to miss!!
She screams and as she does, the buzz of spirits around her seem to all--momentarily--fly into her chest and then explode out through her open mouth and eyes. She winces in pain but--with a sudden surge--what clearly would’ve missed is now a direct blow.
She takes immediate advantage of the uppercut, doing her best to wrap her arm around its neck, to hold it in place.
While another far away skeleton pushes its way out of its coffin and readies its bow, Unafe leaps across the room at the shachath and strikes her once across the face, leaving her whirling and seeing stars. While she attempts to regain her composure, Unafe wraps her arm around its neck and holds it in place. She can feel it writhe against her grip, but she can also tell that its strength is failing.
Meanwhile, seeing the black bony hand emerge from the coffin next to her causes Aerona to jump with a start. She glances back across the way and sees both Xanderghul and Isilme heroically dive down into the crevasse to save Jesker.
"Please help Jesker, Lord-Commander!" cries out Aerona, desperately. She then turns and tries to run away from the skeleton, but comes to a tentative stop on the ledge. She peers over, seeing the coursing lava a hundred feet below. Suddenly afraid for her safety, she hesitates rather than jumping across.
Round 2!
Ary is up!
"I can't do anything for him. We'll just have to trust Isilme and Xanderghul." Ary says as the woman backs partially away. "They're smart enough to parlay. Someone wanna talk these guys down?" the half-elf asks as she swipes her blade cleanly across the Blasphemy demon's back-half.
The demon pinned in place by the enormous saurian being called Unafe makes it easy for Ary to lance through both bodies at once with a well-calculated thrust. She'd gotten the idea from one of the texts she had read describing one of these things. When she sees it isn't fully dead from that thrust, she tries again on the opposite side of the spine. Bingo. The demon's two faces scream out at once then go limp in Unafe's grasp.
From behind of Unafe, the skeleton straightens itself up, draws its two blades, and attempts to cut into her flank, but finds her hide far thicker than it had accounted for.
Valais and Xanderghul are up!
Xanderghul flies back up into the room, seeing that Isilme has things handled with the cleric. She was brave, leaping down into the lava unprotected like that. He hopes she's strong enough to carry Jesker to safety.
He gets to the surface of the volcanic room and sees that the demon has already been dispatched by Ary and that the tomb's guardians have risen from their graves to stand against the group. "Now that we've killed the demon, we should take our clerics and retreat. This area is dangerous and we should return to more secure ground as quickly as we can."
He eyes the tomb's guardians, suspicious that they might attack his group, even if they were not demons. He considers that Delamere's tomb might contain fabulous treasures, and that it might be a choice between claiming those treasures and fighting the guardians of the tomb. He holds his hands up and puts his tongue on the edge of his teeth. Ready just in case any of the creatures attack, he prepares to summon a shadow illusion to hamper the attacker.
Valais looks at the entrance at the cave wistfully as the group decides to move in for deadly combat. However, the deadly combat was swiftly resolved when Unafe proved to have just as much arm dexterity as could be feared. Valais knows that the group has to make its escape from this place before she can make the appropriate notes regarding the situation. She also sees that the group might want to try to talk these creatures down before needing to fight all of them.
She lopes back towards the entrance to get up to speed and then takes a running jump over the volcanic rift, using her haste-given speed to accelerate across the chasm. She comes to a stop over the course of a few loping steps and gets to the center of the group. Thus protected, she begins to emit her own light. Infusing some of Heaven's energies into the light allows her to try to repel the skeletons.
Xanderghul had descended 100' to assist with Jesker and finds the ascent much more strenuous than the descent, even with his incredible magic. As he comes to the top, Valais had rejoined the others, shielding them in a nimbus of swirling light. But she finds that while the spell is effective against demons and devils and all sorts of other creatures, the skeletons ignore its effect entirely. While one skeleton scrapes its sword across Unafe's flank - its supernatural abilities affecting her far more strongly than the surface wound - another lunges across the way at Aerona.
She shouts and jumps back, but the blade nicks her across the cheek, the wound glowing an eerie purple before fading to to a trickle of blood. She grimaces as she feels all of her muscles seize up at once.
Calmly taking in the sudden fall of the oni, Hinagiku shifts her stance backward to assess the situation. The temporary calm around her is just enough to recall legends about black skeletons, their cunning, and more importantly their ability to leech the strength out of their foes.
”Sorry Ary, but I do not think they want to stop… maybe Mrs. Isilme’s magic words would do… but Mr. Xanderghul’s suggestion to retreat seems the safest. Everyone, please be careful, it is says that these undead can leech their victim’s strength. Ary, together we could cover everyone’s retreat quite easily.”
Having said that, Hinagiku takes a short running start and jumps back unto the middle island where most of her allies were. Wiping her sweaty brow with one hand, she adopts a defensive stance and prepares to take down some of the skeletons.
Scanning the scene, Hinagiku sees that Aerona is in danger. She quickly maneuvers at full speed on the precarious ledges around the pit. She strikes the skeleton over and over, with precise and fierce blows, but finds the skeleton's unholy form as hard as steel.
Across the chasm from her, she sees Ehren be accosted by yet another skeleton, but its wildly swung blade finds no purchase.
k.religion(hero, haste,unafe): 1d20 + 15 + 2 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 15 + 2 + 4 + 1 = 34
fort vs heat(hero, unafe): 1d20 + 14 + 2 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 14 + 2 + 1 = 31
athletics(hero, haste,unafe): 1d20 + 2 + 4 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 2 + 4 + 1 = 21
Hinagiku draws threads of faith (which I fluffed out on the previous round) and jumps across the chasm. If there is any enemy close by, she will full attack. Otherwise, she will wait were I pointed on the map, read to trip the skeleton if it jumps towards her.
Hinagiku gets +3 AC for fighting defensively
attack(hero, haste, Unafe,defensively): 1d20 + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (5) + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 = 21
dg: 1d8 + 7 ⇒ (7) + 7 = 14
attack(hero, haste, Unafe,defensively): 1d20 + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (1) + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 = 17
confirm(hero, haste, Unafe,defensively): 1d20 + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (6) + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 = 22
dg: 1d8 + 7 ⇒ (3) + 7 = 10
attack(hero, haste, Unafe,defensively): 1d20 + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (14) + 16 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 = 30
dg: 1d8 + 7 ⇒ (5) + 7 = 12
attack(hero, haste, Unafe,defensively): 1d20 + 11 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 ⇒ (11) + 11 + 2 + 1 + 1 - 4 = 22
dg: 1d8 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11
Isilme and Ehren are up!
With Jesker thrown over her shoulder, Isilme flies back up the chasm towards the top. When she emerges, she sees the group fighting off a group of skeletons which have begun to surround them. "I will get Jesker and Aerona out, so don't worry about them," she informs her allies.
She flies up above Aerona and reaches an arm down. "Take my hand Aerona, we're getting you and Jesker out of here, now."
Rather than continuing to spend more breath, she simply nods to Isilme as she leaves. The black-boned creatures being no more unsettling or threatening than any other creature that meant to kill her and her allies.
Ehren's airy form flits backward, putting him over the nearby lava pit and out of the black skeleton's reach. It was a relief to see the duplicitous demon dispatched so swiftly, but he could not rest easy knowing that these blasphemous creatures lurked within Delamere's tomb. Whatever kind of person the priestess was in life, Ehren had a feeling that her god would not approve of such malfeasance.
His immediate impulse is to destroy the undead creatures outright; he has never had much tolerance for their kind, Markus's white necromancy aside. But if the skeletons possess some measure of intelligence, perhaps it would be possible to reason with them. At the very least, he could negotiate safe passage for Aerona and Jesker - after that, all bets would be off.
"Gwarcheidwaid Delamere, rydych chi wedi cael eich twyllo!" the archdruid says, his whisper-quiet voice becoming a roaring wind. "Rydych chi'n ymosod ar ffyddloniaid Erastil, a'r rhai a fyddai'n eu hamddiffyn. Pa bwrpas sydd gennych chi yma, pe byddech chi'n dilyn gair cythraul?"
The black skeleton points at Unafe with a bony finger - the enormous saurian was standing on the crystalline coffin, holding the dying two faced demon in a chokehold and dripping black demonic ichor all over it. "Byddwch wedi mynd, derwydd - rydych chi'n gwarth beddrod Delamere!"
"Be gone, druid - you disgrace the tomb of Delamere!"
Meanwhile, one of the skeletons across the chasm fires twice at Ary, but finds that the many centuries of repose have not done wonders for its aim....
Unafe is up!
Unafe grits her teeth, willing herself not to let the terrifying undead unnerve her.
She makes a quick leap over the head of the skeleton, shoving it as she lands. She punches for its chest--putting all her focus into it--but misjudges and ends up slamming her fist into the sarcophagus.
"Rrrrnnghh!" She grunts, but follows it up with another punch to the skeleton's shoulder.
Aerona grabs hold of Isilme's hand, just as Unafe's weighty second punch cracks straight through the skeleton's scapula, fragmenting into a thousand chunks. One of the skeletons across the chasm fires at Xanderghul soon after he emerges from the chasm below. The wizard is caught off-guard by the emergence of so many skeletons, his heart beat quickening. He doesn't move fast enough to flinch out of the way of the first skeleton's shot - it barely penetrates his clay-like skin, but it saps him of his strength all the same. The Archmage doesn't repeat the mistake, swooping out of the way of its second shot.
Ary hangs her head slightly as the skeletons continue to attack them, she's just about to attempt to back Ehren up in his attempts to talk them down when Unafe dives into the nearest of the black skeletons. At... least it was clear whose side she was on. Or this was the most elaborate Templar infiltration she'd been directly aware of.
Allowing the warrior to continue fighting the nearest skeleton she leaps easily over the pit, with incredible speed, having been bolstered by Xanderghul's spell. Immediately upon coming to a stop, she lashes out with Faith, attempting to latch the spikes of the shield onto some portion of the skeleton and immediately pulling it sideways... and lining it up to be toppled into the lava should one of her other strikes land! She tears her shield away from its form before hammering at the creature twice more, driving it down into the lava below. It falls a very great distance, flailing helplessly as it goes, until it collides with the ground with a crash. Its burial garb immediately catches on fire and obscures its form from view.
"Press them!" she calls to the others. "I have your retreat covered, Isilme."
From behind of Ary, Unafe squares off against one of the skeletons. It swipes its blade in an arc in front of it, cutting across her saurian hip. Its blade barely nicks her skin, but the wound follows across in a jagged purple arc. All of the muscles in her enormous reptilian legs start to seize up at once. She is so distracted by the pain that she nearly opened herself up to another attack, but Ary cried out a warning to her just in time for her to react and dodge out of the way.
Athletics (Haste, Heroism): 1d20 + 9 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 9 + 20 + 2 = 45
Faith Attack 1 and Reposition(Haste, Heroism): 1d20 + 16 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (14) + 16 + 1 + 2 = 33
Faith Attack H and Bull Rush(Haste, Heroism): 1d20 + 16 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (4) + 16 + 1 + 2 = 23
Faith Attack 2 and Bull Rush(Haste, Heroism): 1d20 + 11 + 1 + 2 ⇒ (6) + 11 + 1 + 2 = 20
Faith Damage 1: 1d4 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9
Faith Damage H: 1d4 + 7 ⇒ (4) + 7 = 11
Faith Damage 2: 1d4 + 7 ⇒ (2) + 7 = 9
Valais, Xanderghul, and Hinagiku are up!
Xanderghul whirls around at the skeletons that shot arrows at him. He pulls energy from the Plane of Shadows into a powerful evocation and launches it at the skeletons. "Maybe fighting in a toxic underground cave isn't the smartest idea," he shouts as the fireball releases its muted thump. "I still think we should fall back - we could die!"
"Your weapons aren't doing much at all, friends. Maybe we should rethink our strategy."
Then he gulps in a big breath (nearly choking on the gas before Ary's inspirational presence allows him to hold in the air), knowing that his allies wouldn't fall so low as to listen to him.
Valais takes Xanderghul's orders seriously. She is unnerved by the appearance of the skeletons, and it takes away her focus enough that she's unable to use her magic. Using her hasted speed, she leaps back over the lava pit and jogs up towards the surface, searching for clean air.
Keeping her calm as the insidious aura of the skeletons washes over them, Hinagiku continues withdrawing toward the exit. To jump over the last chasm, she takes a few steps back away from it before taking a running jump. In mid-air, she lifts her right leg which she brings crashing down upon the skeleton as she lands. The monk quickly follows with a series of punches aimed at the undead’s rib cage and sternum before falling into a defensive stance.
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Xanderghul's words ring true as Hinagiku lashes out again and again against the skeleton foe - its unnatural form weathers her assault. It lashes out at her with a blade in each bony hand, but Hinagiku dodges each blow with ease.
Isilme and Ehren are up!
Ehren huffs when the undead guardians simply ignore him, insistent on fulfilling their function. It was just as well - he had no qualms about destroying them, to begin with.
But Xanderghul was correct, of course. The black skeletons are not especially powerful, but between their strength-draining attacks and the toxic gas, the battle would only grow more dangerous the longer it drags on. Hinagiku could hold her breath for hours if need be, but he could not say the same for the others. As they move to secure Aerona and Jesker's escape, Ehren floats further into the chamber, intent on ending things definitively.
"Fire seems to work well enough," he observes aloud, as a string of flame begins to dance around his whirlwind body. "But the rest of you should get out of here, as soon as you can. This will not take much longer."
For lack of a direct connection to the ground, Ehren draws in ambient ley energy and folds it into his spell. Then, gesturing with both arms, he sends forth a serpentine stream of white-hot flames in the direction of the skeletons that Xanderghul damaged. Flying through the air with an erratic trajectory, the fire snake lunges at the undead creatures, engulfing them with its blazing maw.
"Thank you, Ary," Isilme says as she clasps Aerona's arm and wills herself upward. Once she's sufficiently off the ground, Isilme makes use of the speed provided by the fly spell and haste to head down the tunnel with Aerona and Jesker, intent on reaching the shelter they'd left the horse at as soon as possible.
Aerona's eyes widen as she sees arch druid's flaming snake whirl through the magma-filled cavern, exploding two skeletons upon impact. And with that, Isilme whisks her and Jesker outside and into the downpour. She clings to Isilme as tight as she can as she begins her ascent to where they left their horse.
Unafe and Ary are up!
Unafe winces as the skeleton sucks more of her vigor out of her, but continues her own assault.
She tumbles over the skeleton's head, shoving it as she lands on the sarcophagus. She throws as much of her remaining strength as she can into two quick punches.
"Arhoswch! Lawr!"
As Isilme grabs the priestess and begins to fly across the cavern, hundreds of tiny golden motes of light erupt from Ary's form, each one stopping in a precise point around her, following along as she moves.
Ary nods to Xanderghul, once more trying to maintain her breath as best she can, when Ehren agrees, she knows it's time to get out... but the skeleton standing near the edge of the cliff is incredibly slow and tempting... too tempting, it would seem. She leaps easily over the lava pit, and comes up beside the monk, zipping around, and darting forward even as Daisy is attempting to redirect the force of the skeleton's attack against it... and opts to give her a helping hand. Faith lashes out with lightning speed, slamming into the undead creature's flank even as the monk is pushing it towards the edge! If it isn't toppled into the pit entirely, she follows up with a another pair of blows.
She looks over the pit to Unafe, ready to help safeguard the woman's egress.
With a loud roar that's echoed by the snarls and growls of the ghostly saurians that surround her, Unafe punches straight through the skeleton's rib cage, causing it to explode into useless debris. At the same time, Hinagiku maneuevers the thrashing skeleton closer to the edge of the chasm. Spotting the opportunity immediately, Ary rushes around behind Hinagiku and immediately shoves the last skeleton into the chasm before it sees her coming. It lands on the bottom, and while not actually dead yet, its scorched form immediately begins to melt into a shiny black puddle. The skeleton attempts to grab onto the rocky wall and pull itself up, but it lacks the strength to scale such an incredible height without assistance.
Combat Ends on Round 3!
As expected, the remaining black skeletons are destroyed in a matter of seconds. Ehren watches as Ary sends the last of them careening into the lava-filled abyss, where it would inevitably be reduced to ash. With a sound resembling a sigh, the druid drifts into the center of the chamber, closer to Unafe and the crystalline coffin. He regards the saurian warrior with a nod, before peering down at Delamere herself.
While this entire scheme had no doubt been the work of the shachath, there still remained the matter of Delamere's questionable teachings. The priestess's mad ravings, as well as her choice of undead protectors, raised questions about her relationship with her benevolent god. Eager to find the truth of the matter, Ehren looks inward, using his magic to draw on the memories of his ancestors, as well as the ley itself.
Ary nods to Unafe and motions for everyone to head out... as Ehren flies into the center of the room. She purses her lips, swallowing as her lungs were beginning to burn... but she was unwilling to leave Ehren alone with another possible threat.
Xanderghul stays behind to watch and check that everyone else is also going to leave, and then flies out to the surface. He and Valais begin the climb back up to the spot where Jesker and Aerona's horse have been left.
Unafe sighs with relief as the last skeleton falls. She links her fingers together and stretches her arms overhead, noting the ache and weakness in her limbs.
When the archdruid approaches the crystal coffin, she smiles (revealing a row of sharp, thin saurian teeth) and bows her head.
She sees the Southerner (elf? half-elf?) motioning for her to leave, but she turns her attention back to Ehren, and the crystal coffin before them. "What is going on here? What are we doing in this ancient grave, and what has defiled it so?"
Ehren looks to Unafe as he communes with his ancestors, not at all surprised that she has chosen to stay behind. Even though the place is not ideal to hold a conversation in, he supposes that he does owe her an explanation, especially since she followed them into battle without one. Besides, unlike the others, he could be as long-winded as he wants here.
"Daethon ni yma i achub y ddau offeiriad hynny, Jesker ac Aerona," the druid explains, resting a silvery hand against the surface of the crystal coffin. "Y lle hwn yw beddrod Delamere, offeiriades Erastil o cyn eich amser hyd yn oed. Daeth ei phregethu â llawer o'n pobl i mewn i addoliad Duw Hydd. Ond fel rydyn ni wedi dysgu, roedd rhai o'i dysgeidiaeth o natur… amheus. Rhywsut darganfu Jesker y ddysgeidiaeth honno ac aeth yn wallgof. Fe halogodd un o gysegrfeydd ei dduw a daeth i'r lle hwn, yn amlwg i ddiweddu ei fywyd ei hun. Ond mae'n ymddangos ei fod yr holl amser hwn o dan ddylanwad y cythraul budr hwnnw."
Unafe's brow furrows.
She speaks through tight lips--having plenty of air left in her mighty lungs, but not wanting to let the noxious fumes in.
"Yna, gyda chymorth yr Hynafiaid Cysegredig, rhaid ei ail-adrodd. Ni wn sut y gallaf gynorthwyo i adfer y balans yma, ond rydw i ar gael i chi, Archesgobaeth."
After a pause, she adds "Mae'n dda bod y Southerners wedi dod i'ch cynorthwyo chi ... pam maen nhw'n gwneud hynny?"
Tired of waiting for his foolish Kellid companions to leave the toxic cave, Xanderghul turns to fly away. He rejoins Valais in escorting and guiding the two lost clerics up to the shelter built by Ehren for the horse earlier. They were still deep in enemy territory, and now they had two vulnerable clerics to escort the 80 miles back home. They needed to plan.
Ehren nods slowly, more than happy to accept Unafe's offer of aid. That she was ready to offer it so soon after her stasis struck him as being a little odd, but he supposes that it makes sense: to her he is something familiar in an unfamiliar time.
"Yn yr achos hwn, byddai'n fwy cywir dweud fy mod wedi eu cynorthwyo. Maen nhw'n ffrindiau ac yn gynghreiriaid. Gyda'n gilydd, rydym wedi goresgyn llawer o dreialon," Ehren replies nostalgically, something resembling a smile forming amid his vague facial features. "Nid ydym yn gweld llygad i lygad ar bopeth, ond maent yn bobl dda."
There is a moment, that to his companions, occurs as quick as a flash, though Ehren feels himself jolted from reality for a span of a few minutes.
Gone is the cavernous expanse around them, lava seeping from the walls and ceiling to pool in an enormous pit beneath. He's back to where this was - a rolling series of grassy knolls flanking the Llywd river. It's beautiful, peaceful, with clear blue skies overhead. It reminds Ehren not of Mendev, but of Heaven - he had passed through similar scenery in his travels through the Summerlands less than a year prior. The demesne of the god Erastil himself.
"Oes gennych chi'r ysfa honno allan o'ch pen nawr?" asks a young kellid woman to another. Her clothes and hair show her to be Sarkorian, but she's clearly Abyssal-blooded too - she's pink-skinned, giving her the appearance of a permanent sunburn, with dark, thick nails and charcoal lips.
The other kellid woman, possesses wild, auburn hair and thick, dark eyebrows. She scowls at one of the mounds.
"Dim ond eisiau cyfle i boeri ar ei bedd un tro diwethaf," she responds scornfully.
The tiefling stands up and stretches while her companion continues.
"Daeth i'n clan pan oeddwn i'n ferch fach yn unig. Priodferch y Brenin Stag, galwodd ei hun. Cefais fy swyno gan ba mor hyfryd oedd hi. Roedd yn gwneud synnwyr perffaith iddi gael ei dyweddïo â duw," she says, a cynical bite to her words. The tiefling doesn't react. It seems she's heard this story before, but she lets her talk.
"Rhannodd gyda ni ei straeon, ei chaneuon, hyd yn oed rhywfaint o'i hud. Arhosodd gyda ni trwy'r gaeaf, ac fe helpodd hi ni i gysgodi a hela am fwyd. Ond ... yna daeth y cyfrifiad. Roedd gormod ohonom ni, welwch chi. Mwy na phum deg tri. Doedd dim digon o fwyd beth bynnag, chi'n gweld. Dyna ddywedon nhw wrthym. Ac yna dechreuon nhw fynd â nhw ... yr hynaf ar y dechrau, yna'r ieuengaf. Rwy'n cofio un noson eu bod yn goleuo'r coelcerthi, a fy chwaer fawr yn mynd â mi i'r goedwig, yn dweud wrthyf am fynd â'i bwa a'i saethau a rhedeg a pheidio byth ag edrych yn ôl ..." She takes a ragged breath, then exhales.
"Roeddwn i bob amser yn dweud wrth fy hun y byddwn i'n ei lladd fy hun pe bawn i erioed wedi dod o hyd iddi, ond dwi'n dyfalu bod cachu lwcus wedi fy mwrw iddi." The tiefling strides over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. The auburn-haired woman turns her to head to smile at her. "Wel, roedd hynny i gyd cyn i chi ddod o hyd i mi a fy ngwahodd i'ch Cylch, Cari. Dewch yn ôl, mae gennym ddiwrnod hir o'n blaenau."
And with that, the vision ends.
Hinagiku watches as one by one her allies leave the dangerously hot room. Most of them anyway, Ary was unsurprisingly staying to guard the surprisingly unheeding Ehren. Strange, something about his people must be keeping him there, the monk reflects. But this was getting dangerous, the wiser path of action would be to come back once they are all protected from the heat and gazes.
Before motioning silently to Ary that Ehren was safe and that she should leave, Hinagiku attunes herself with the worlds flow, trying to detect any sign of corruption from Unafe. Her mind at ease, she jumps across the chasm to join them and, still keeping her breath, motions calmly that they should leave.
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Ehren scowls, less than pleased by what his ancestral memory shows him. He had hoped for something that somehow absolve Delamere, expose the influence of malignant entity, but it seems the priestess truly was as unhinged as the stories said. The druid does not go so far as to spit on her grave, but he does turn his back on the crystalline coffin, no longer able to tolerate being in its presence.
"I believe we are done here," he says in Taldane, for the benefit of those who deigned to wait on them. As he floats towards the exit, he reaches into his pouch and retrieves Jesker's book of her collected teachings, before promptly casting it into one of the nearby lava pits. He gives Ary and Hinagiku an apologetic look as he follows them out of the chamber.
After a moment that seems an eternity, Ehren finishes with his spell, and Ary awaits the explanation, but recognizes that perhaps having Ehren tell the story while they were inside of the cavern was... unwise.
On the bright side, she didn't rise from her grave to attack the group, though.
"Should we not move the body and have it reconsecrated?" she asks, as she turns to follow Ehren out.
"This is where she chose to be buried," Ehren replies, shaking his head. "This place was a grassy knoll, once. Its beauty was... heavenly. But I suspect the way it looks now better reflects her soul's final judgment." He frowns before continuing. "We will reclaim these lands in time, but for now I believe we should leave her here, to discourage others from disturbing her rest."
Up above, Isilme tends to Jesker's wounds in the shelter Ehren had created, waiting there along with Aerona for the others to return from the tomb.
"If you're certain..." Ary says, looking back to the coffin. It didn't sit right with her to leave the place undisturbed and unguarded. Worse, the body looked... almost fresh? Much fresher than a corpse that was here before the Worldwound had ripped a hole into an abyssal volcano, at least. Which meant that if she weren't an undead... perhaps she would be raised as one. She chews her lip for a moment, but ultimately opts to have faith in Ehren's decision.
Xanderghul and Valais climb or fly up to the cliffside where Ehren had created the shelter for the clerics' horses. Both heave in great breaths of the relatively-clean air up there.
"Time to go, I suppose?" he says, to the others. He asks Isilme, "Do they seem alright to you?"
Valais kneels by Isilme. Her hands alight with a heavenly fire, and she waves them over any areas that seem injured. The fire soothes the worst of pains.