Valaria jams her blade in its throat, but its alien physiology saves it from certain death this time...as she pulls her blade back out, its disturbingly human face stares up at Valaria and gurgles, spraying acid all over her. Valaria squirms out of the way from most of it
Isilme is up.
"Uh, okay. Not the throats. Got it. Good dodge!" Ary calls over to Valaria.
Isilme shifts to the left slightly to get the creature between herself and Ehren and jabs at it quickly with her rapier, deciding that she should hold back for the battles still to come.
In a stylish combination of finesse and power, Isilme ducks through the opposition and whips in an accurate strike.
Markus is up
Markus takes a step closer to the fracas, to better have access to Irabeth and the two prisoners they've found once the strange flies are dead. Then he lets loose another pair of missiles at the creatures, hoping that it dies.
Markus finds that, despite the weak shot from his wand, the flies offer no innate resistance against the magic. However, his pair of missiles are not strong enough to bring the creature down.
Irabeth pulls a potion from her pack, relying on her full plate to offer protection from the fly for now, and heals up some of her wounds.
Round 4
The blinded fly attempts to attack Hinagiku,knowing where she is from the last time she attacked it - but without sight it ends up just flailing around helplessly.
Ehren swings his scimitar at the fly yet again, but proves too clumsy to actually hit the dying creature.
Ary is up.
Ary brings her golden sword upwards towards the thing's stomach in a highly telegraphed, but powerful attack. "Keep at it with that one. Hina, try to pin this one down. We need it to be completely broken. Take it down while it's blinded."
Telegraphed or no, the poor mutated beast is blind and unable to move away. Ary thrusts Radiance up into its bowels, leaving a horrible wound.
Hinagiku listens to Ary's advice and follows up with a brutal flurry of blows, incapacitating the creature for now..
Valaria is up.
Until this point the fight has been fast but furious - the mutated creatures do not scream.
Suddenly, the door swings open revealing a familiar face... Garil! Though Hinagiku, Isilme, and Irabeth do not recognize him - the other four certainly do. Garil is a male tiefling in leather armor. He has enormous rams' horns, bright crimson eyes, and his otherwise normal skin is covered in huge scales down his neck and back and across his forearms. He also has a thick lizard's tail.
He spots the heroes - namely Ary, who stands out with her big glowing sword, and his eyes widen. His skin goes pale and clammy. He hesitates for a split second, then turns to face the hallway.
"Uh... the Aerie's clear! All good down here. Yup. I'll go check the library..." he calls, loudly. He then swiftly sneaks into the room, closing the door behind him.
He glances down at the horrible, bloated fly monsters with disgust, then peers at the heroes.
"So, I scratch yer back you scratch mine- right? ...Please don't kill me."
"You have a deal from me. Touch busy, though." she says as she nods towards the remaining fly.
Isilme was ready to jump at the tiefling as he came in, but when he lied to the other cultists about their position she stopped. As before she took a moment to call upon magic to clean the grime from her blade before sheathing it.
Noticing the tiefling was focused on Ary, she asks, "You know this man Ary?" Turning to the tiefling again, she follows up, "Thank you for not alerting the others. I will follow Ary's lead in this, but If you mean to help, then tell us who else is here and where they are. The fate of Kenabres, and very likely the world depends upon our success here. Please... If there's anything in this world you would protect, anything you hold dear, now is your chance." Her golden eyes peer deep into the tiefling's, trying to see if there's anything in there but a sense of self-preservation.
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"Pretty much that." Ary says as she begins to put a small plan together, things from the previous few days clicking in place in her mind. "Garil is an old friend." Ary said, trying to ignore the irony of the situation, "Commander, if you would do the honors?" In truth... Ary didn't have a delicate way to ask Irabeth if she had fallen. Several evils had passed just under Irabeth's watchful gaze these last few days, and now she didn't use the Inheritor's valor that should be just at her fingertips, ready to bind her wounds and ease her suffering, instead opting for the tactically poor option of risking the flies doing her grievous harm. Selling her sword was not enough to have caused something like this... and if she was wrong, it'd hurt their rapport and the morale of the group, devastate it, really.
So, best to simply test the waters, see if she had an excuse to give, instead of doing something so simple as checking the Tiefling's alignment. "Once we're clear, please ensure he's still on our team and not possessed, Commander."
Val goes straight for the crippled fly, aiming to finish the creature off.
Her blade sinks in with a satisfying crunch and the fly spasms and falls to the ground. Smiling softly, she turns to the familiar tiefling. "It's been a while Garil. I thought you'd fled after the incident at the manor." Her voice is almost cloyingly sweet, but her eyes are glowing unsettlingly. "I'm not opposed to second chances of course, but I don't appreciate having my trust abused, alright?" She casually flicks her wrist, cleaning her blade and splattering the fly's guts across the stone floor.
Ehren puts away his wand, but keeps his day-lit scimitar drawn for the time being. This time, he has no trouble finding his wand of cure light wounds. He moves to administer to Ary and Valaria's wounds, listening to the ongoing conversation.
"Hinagiku, was it?" he then asks the Tian woman, recalling what Irabeth had called her. He points the cure wand at her, but would not make contact until he had her permission. Boundaries, and everything; they were strangers, after all. "If I may?"
Like Isilme, Hinagiku was ready to bring the fight to the new arrival. However, after hearing the tall white haired woman offer, the Tian woman relaxes. Yet, just to be certain, she gives a quizzical look to commander Irabeth.
As the last fly is slain, and the discussion goes on, it seems more and more evident to Hinagiku that the fighting is over for now. Time to report to commander Irabeth then. she thinks before bowing in the general directions of the newly arrived and uttering a short introduction that would have made her seem quite impolite in Tian Xia.
”Everyone, thank you. I am Hinagiku. Please forgive me for being so brief.” she says putting the emphasis on the wrong syllables, sign that Taldan is not a language she uses much. Still, for those who know Tian, she as a surprisingly good mastery of the “r” sound.
Hinagiku then turns toward commander Irabeth and bows again before speaking.
”Commander Irabeth, please forgive me, I am failed in the mission I was given… we were captured… and… all the others…” she pauses for a moment gathering the strength to continue ”they were all brought away, sacrificed.”
Hinagiku looks toward her comrade in arms: ”Annabelle is wounded, but nothing life threatening for now." seeing Ehren heal Ary and Vlaria she continues"... the tall man might be able to heal her."
Now that the fight is over, the other may take better notice of Hinagiku. The Tian woman stands tall for her people, 5’7’’, but is the shortest of the current group. Her long black hair is a greasy mess, and frames an emaciated face. She wears an Tian designed tunic found an image, which is now damaged from the acid spewed by the flies. Through some large holes, the others can see that her body is compact and strong, with little fat if any at all. Even though she seems shaken from the ordeal she went through, an air of peace and control still seems to pour out of her.
When Ehren approaches, Hinagiku turns to face him, and nods to him in consent.
"Yes, my name is Hinagiku. I am grateful that you think highly enough of me to provide me with healing. Pardon me, what is your given name?" she says, formal.
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+3 to Isilme.
"You know... I never thought I'd be so glad to see you again. And under the best of circumstances, no less."
Truth be told, if he hadn't appeared and called off the hounds immediately, Ary might have turned her blade on him immediately; he'd made a fool of her the last time they'd been together, and on top of everything else, it'd been a rough set of days that he'd added to. Her tone was less friendly than it had been a few days ago, but that didnt change that she was honestly glad for him under the present circumstances.
Even still... the tiefling had a knack for failing at self-preservation, thus far. And yet, here he was, right when they needed him. 'I'll chalk this one up to Desna's doing, Inheritor, that way I won't be so disappointed by his sudden, but inevitable betrayal.' She sighs in time to her own thoughts, then turned her attention to Hinagiku.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. Too bad about the circumstances. World on the verge of ending and all. My name's Ary Bishop... and that was quite impressive. All of it, really." She motioned to the wing on the ground with her shield arm, "I can't imagine what you'd be able to do with a real weapon. Can you handle a scimitar?" She asks, given that it happens to be her only spare weapon.
Isilme looks at the black-haired woman who had been in the process of freeing herself when they entered. "Tian-Shu? Or -Min? You are a long way from home here in Kenabres," Isilme says, raising an eyebrow. "Tian Xia is one place I have not been able to make a trip to yet, sadly. I hear it is quite beautiful there, and that the arts of literature and poetry are held in high esteem."
"I am..." she begins by way of introduction, but then hesitates. "Please call me Isilme." she says after a moment's thought, punctuating it with a bow. "As Ary says, you are certainly quite talented in fighting without a weapon," she says with a smile and a sincere look of respect. "I once reveled in such fighting as well, though I would likely get myself seriously injured attempting to do so now. I must also admit I have always had a soft spot for the rapier; it is quite an elegant weapon. But I digress... So you know the Commander? Are you a member of the crusades as well?"
Val turns to the freed prisoner and bows her head slightly. "My name is Valaria Alazario, please call me Valaria or Val, your choice. You're fortunate to be in one piece, considering what you've gone through. I'm regrettably not very familiar with your people, but if you're an ally then I'm simply pleased to meet you." She tries to be polite, even a little formal, but she keeps a close eye on both the Tian woman and the unconscious crusader, as well as watching Garil out of the corner of her eye. The trick with the shadow demon makes her hesitant to trust them without confirmation that they're not deceiving them.
Markus moves into the room and kneels at the side of the unconscious Crusader, checking her pulse and checking over her for wounds to see if there's anything he needs to do to help her wake up.
He asks Hinagiku without up from his work, "Do you know where your things are? Or hers? We should arm and armor both of you and then get going - we're in a bit of a rush."
"Ehren," the druid says with a soft smile, tapping Hinagiku twice with the healing wand. He could not deny that she was oddly tranquil, nor that she appeared a strange to him. Regretably, he was not exactly a worldly person. "Your brevity is understandable, given the circumstances. Markus is right, we need to get moving as soon as possible."
He turns his head to regard Garil but says nothing, hoping that Isilme's words would reach him. If he was not going to help them any more than he already had, then it would be for the best if he just stayed out of their way.
Hinagiku almost imperceptibly bows her head in response to the shower of praises, as if a small part of her feels embarrassed about it. Still, she mostly keeps her cool and air of serenity.
”I have watched many masters train with a variety of weapons, but never really trained in any… I doubt my skills with the scimitar would parallel those with my fist. Still, I guess it would prove most useful against some of the Oni. ” she says, approaching Ary to take the weapon.
After taking a few steps away from Ary, Hinagiku turns her attention to Isilme, and, after bowing, she answers her questions: ”Tian. Simply Tian. Thank you for the kind words… and no, I am not a full member of the crusade. However, when I arrived to the city, I joined forces with the crusaders against the demons.”
Hinagiku bows once more when Valaria introduces herself. When she does, there seem to be some incertitude in her movement. Finally, seeing as though her introductory duties seem done, Hinagiku comes to kneel next to Markus and Annabelle. The Tian woman presses a hand on the unconscious woman and speaks a few comforting words to her before looking into Markus’ eyes.
”Do not worry, she was badly beaten, but her breathing has been regular for the last hour. ” she turns toward Ehren, ”If there is enough magic left in the wand, could you heal her?”
Finally, she answers the mage’s question: ”I might not know where my belongings are, but the Oni child over there” she points at Garil ”must know.”
"So... your plan is to punch demons?" Ary frowns slightly, tilting her head, perplexed by the prospect. "I... think I might have something to help you with that. A gift from a silver dragon... and also a gift from a gifted ring." she says after a few moments of thought. "It should at least help with that."
Hinagiku seems puzzled by Ary's expression.
"I kill Onis using the skills taught by my master, so yes, I heal the world from their taint using my fists... but it's not really a plan." she finishes, looking even more confused. She lifts her head back to look up at Ary's eyes:
"Any help against the monsters would be appreciated. "
It's hard, because the stone walls around you are filled to the brim with the stuff- moving upwards to a higher floor where the wardstone is - connecting it to the great current beneath Kenabres.
But something strikes you as strange - the Tian girl, Hinagiku, glows from within with a similar glow to the ley, yet hers is entirely separate from it.
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Val nods at her. "If you're willing to fight and you're feeling strong enough, we could use the help. We're glad to help a prisoner of these beasts, but we're not specifically here to help you. We have a mission that we need to complete. I'm usually a bit of a dramatic, but it's completely accurate to say that the fate of the world is a stake."
Commander Irabeth nods. "Stand still," she orders Garil, giving what appears to be an intense stare. She then screens Hinagiku and Annabelle.
"They aren't demons at least. Understand that paladins are not living morality detectors though," she offers with a wry grin.
Garil groans - he was about to say something - but then the heroes started talking over him with their oh-so important saving-the-world-stuff. Buncha self-righteous a$!+!&$s.
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Isilme nods at Valaria in agreement. "We should tell her more than that, however. Hinagiku... May I call you Hina? I'm not sure what the mission the commander had you on was before you were captured, but you should know what has happened before we proceed," Isilme says to the Tian woman. "From my understanding, when Kenabres was assaulted the Wardstone was not completely destroyed. Instead the cultists kept a portion of the wardstone here and have been preparing to corrupt it. The witch Areelu Vorlesh is on her way here from the Abyss with a Nahyndrian crystal, the essence of a slain demon lord. The crystal will be used to corrupt the entire system of wardstones, turning them against the crusaders and freeing the demons to move into the world." Isilme pauses at this point to allow Hina to take it in. She also looks at Garil out of the corner of her eye, making sure he's also listening.
"The outcome of this, however, may be more dire than simply having the world overrun by demons. The worldwound is literally a portion of the Abyss made manifest within the world. Unchecked, the magic that allowed that may pull all of Golarion into the Abyss, causing a cataclysm that might threaten all of reality. Thus, our only hope now is to destroy the remnant of the Wardstone. We have come here equipped to do so, and Desna willing, we will succeed," she says, finishing her oration.
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With the battle over for the time being, Ehren has a chance to concentrate on his spirit sense. The colors of the ley flowing within the walls are almost blinding, and yet beautiful in the greatest sense of the word. He could not help but to smile a little. Turning his head, he could see the spiritual auras of the demonic flies, rapidly draining from their bodies post mortem. Garil and Valaria emit similar auras, being tieflings, after all. Isilme... her body had an aura that Li'an's had lacked. Another reminder that she was not their dearly departed friend, though somehow, this actually comforted him. Looking at her this way, it was easier to acknowledge her as herself.
And then, he looked to Hinagiku.
Ehren frowned at first, wondering if perhaps his concentration was wavering, or if the ley was interfering with his senses. After a moment however, it becomes clear that there was no mistaking it. His lips part ever so slightly, his mind as awe-stricken as it had been after his attempt to reincarnate Li'an. A familiar question comes to mind, this time tinged more with amazement than despair. How is this possible? The Tian woman's request of him registers slowly, the druid answering abruptly moments later, forcibly closing off his sixth sense.
"Yes... Of course," Ehren manages to murmur, quickly turning away and moving toward Annabelle. Nodding at Markus, he activates the healing wand once more, discharging positive energy into the unconscious woman's body.
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"I was trying not to overwhelm her," Val deadpans.
Isilme chuckles at Valaria's deadpan response. "Indeed, but how can you impart a proper sense of the dramatic without a bit of overwhelming?" she says with a wink at her scouting partner.
"I thought 'World ending' pretty much covered it, too, Val. She also left out a lot of things." Ary grinned, But that's really neither here, nor there." she was set very much at ease when Irabeth used her detection ability.
"So, disregarding all of that..." she said, looking to Garil, and completely missing Ehren on the other side of her reacting oddly to their new friend, "You were about to say something?"
At least from a lore standpoint :)
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Val is about to response, but stops. A small chuckle escapes her throat. "Maybe my sense of drama has been a little weak recently," she finally says, shaking her head slightly.
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Garil groans. "Ugh, I don't really understand all of the things you just said - but if you intend on taking on this whole damn fortress, you can count me out. That's freaking suicide. I'm just going to run. Unless you're gonna kill me instead anyway."
Meanwhile, Ehren heals Annabelle. Her eyes flutter open - and the first thing she sees is Markus - who was checking her pulse.
"Hnnngh. You're way too fashionable to be a cultist..." she grumbles, still out of it. Finally she focuses on Markus' face, and blushes. "Oh man. Am I dreaming, or have I just been saved by a man in a designer suit?" She notices Hinagiku. "Senpai!" she squeals, wrestling her into a tight hug. "What's happening? What's going on?"
"Well... ideally, you can give us a bit of intel before we let you flee. In order... where do they keep the gear of the prisoners? What did you do with the money you borrowed? Have you seen or heard about any magical weapons that the cult has got its hands on?"
She said, in her best interrogation voice. It didn't really work, since she couldn't keep up the act with the squealing girls behind her, forcing her to fight down a smile.
Inagiku, kneeling next to Markus, looks toward the others, and seems to contain some kind of cringing when Isilme asks to be allowed to call her Hina, she even slightly shakes her head. Still, she does not interrupt the strange elven looking woman. However, her brow quickly furrows as she tries to make sense of what is said to her. Luckily, she seems to understand the "end of the world" explanation, and relaxes a bit.
Finally, Hinagiku expresses herself, once again calm: "If commander Irabeth agrees, I will gladly join you. I cannot let this wound spread." she looks at the paladin, clearly seeing her as the leader amongst the group. Although, from her actions so far she is starting to have some doubts about it.
Hinagiku keeps her cool when Annabelle awakens, and hugs her. She gently pushes her away and then kindly and gently helps her up.
"I am glad you are well." she says, most sincerely "and much safer than you were... but I am afraid your duties are not to seek refuge, but to stay here and help us."
Isilme notes Hinagiku's dislike for her name being shortened, and thinks back, trying to remember if the Tian were very conservative about that sort of thing. "I meant no offense, Hinagiku it is," she adds with a smile.
Isilme looks at Val for a moment, wondering if it was perhaps too soon to relax around the others. "No, you may be right, perhaps the times are dramatic enough without emphasizing it," she says with a sympathetic smile.
Turning to Garil, she addresses the tiefling in a friendly tone, "I don't know about the others, but I don't expect you to fight, just to share what you know with us." She thought the second of Ary's questions quite odd for the situation, but went along with it anyway, "Answering Ary's questions will aid us immensely. Additionally, letting us know how many cultists and demons are around would aid us as well. No matter what you decide, however, as long as you do not raise arms against us or alert the others you are safe."
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Annabelle reluctantly lets go of Hinagiku, but her face is still affixed in the same huge grin. "Uh, help Chevalier Irabeth kick some demon ass? Hell yeah, I will. Uh, hold on. Who are you, again?" she asks of Markus and Ehren. She turns to Markus, admiring his clothes - "Is that suit by Messaro? I know it's in the Ustalavic style but he's Chelaxian and it's just divine.." she gushes. She looks down at herself, suddenly aghast. She is wearing tattered, filthy clothes.... and not much else.
"I look horrible. I don't even have armor! And.. those a~*~&&%s took my banner!"
She looks around, suddenly noticing Ary is well... Ary. "Ary Bishop? Is that you? When did you turn into a total badass? How are you so clean?"
"I happen to worship the goddess of rings that clean you up." Ary grins. "I'd loan it to you, but you'd have to offer to 'Shine in her Legion', per the command words." true to form, her clothing cleaned itself up miraculously upon the utterance of the words.
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Markus frowns at the girl's exuberance...and the fact that she happened to be a Crusader with knowledge of who made his suit. "Uhm. Yes, it's by Messaro. Here, let me help you up." He extends a hand and pulls her up to her feet. "I've worked pretty hard to keep my clothes clean and repaired but I don't think we have time to repair yours. Hopefully we can find your armor soon though."
"We've got a fight ahead of us, though. Get ready."
He gives another two potions of cure light wounds to Irabeth, telling her to drink them and keep up at top shape.
Annabelle lights up at Markus' confirmation. Over his shoulder she winks at Hinagiku and mouths the words - Called it!.
Commander Irabeth nods. "Well, this is Annabelle Kir, she's a Crusader and cavalryman. Markus is correct, we don't have time to dally. We should come up with a plan and move at the soonest opportunity."
Annabelle scratches her head. "Does anyone have anything spare that's pointy or stabby for me to use? I work best with a glaive, but I can use pretty much anything with sharp bits..."
"Well... ideally, you can give us a bit of intel before we let you flee. In order... where do they keep the gear of the prisoners? What did you do with the money you borrowed? Have you seen or heard about any magical weapons that the cult has got its hands on?"
She said, in her best interrogation voice. It didn't really work, since she couldn't keep up the act with the squealing girls behind her, forcing her to fight down a smile.
Garil responds, "Alright. Whatever. Gear? Uh, well, we've been abiding by the ancient law of finders keepers - whoever grabs something they want gets it so...its not like it'll all be in one place. The best stuff is downstairs with that freaky alchemist guy. These goons took the money I stole in order to get them to let me work for 'em. I guess it was worth my life, though..."
"Oh, yeah, they're all about trying to find goody-goody weapons. I think the scary b~++~ took them all when she left, though. I think the alchemist guy might have some stuff like that? Maybe? Do I look like the kinda guy they pass out magical weapons to?"
Turning to Garil, she addresses the tiefling in a friendly tone, "I don't know about the others, but I don't expect you to fight, just to share what you know with us." She thought the second of Ary's questions quite odd for the situation, but went along with it anyway, "Answering Ary's questions will aid us immensely. Additionally, letting us know how many cultists and demons are around would aid us as well. No matter what you decide, however, as long as you do not raise arms against us or alert the others you are safe."
"Ugh, I don't know. A lot? Mostly just people though, not many demons, but just enough to give me the heebie jeebies. Boss lady's name's Jeslyn - she's freaky ugly. Can I go now?" He turns to Isilme and squints. "Hey, I dig the new hair. Red suits you," he attempts flirtatiously.
Commander Irabeth ignores him and turns to the group. "The door beyond should extend out into a large hallway. We will need to turn left down the hall, then right. One of the doors on our right should lead to the stairs going upwards. The stairs going downwards will be in the hallway. Blocking off the downward stairs will be difficult unless we move a lot of furniture - they are large, wide, stone stairs. The stairs going upwards are smaller... a spiral staircase. Any thoughts before we move forward?"
Isilme nods at Garil in thanks for the information. "Irabeth, if some of Hinagiku's and Annabelle's gear might be with this freaky alchemist guy, it might behoove us to seek him out first."
Reaching behind her back, she fiddles around with a buckle, eventually releasing it, and produces a dagger in its sheath. Holding it in front of her she partially unsheathes it, revealing the darker sheen of a cold iron weapon. "Annabelle, you're welcome to my dagger if it suits you. If we're lucky, perhaps we can find a stick to tie it to and then you can pretend it's a glaive," she says with a wink as she sheathes the dagger again and hands it hilt first to the woman.
Isilme then takes a moment to drink down her remaining potion, feeling it's best to be prepared for the coming battles.
She steps up to the door and begins listening while the others finish getting ready to move out.
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"There are scythes downstairs. I'm afraid I left all of my glaives with the Crusades." Ary shrugs apologetically. "I'll probably need to try to clean one, but I can go get it if you like."
Once Garil starts to speak, Ary nods slowly, "Alright, so, the good news and bad news. We came up through the shutter for the birds, you should be able to leave that way pretty easily, however... the Crusaders are waging a war against the keep. So the entire place is surrounded and anyone who doesn't look like a Crusader is going to have a hard time leaving. To make matters worse for you, Hrut is holding the way back for us. And... I'm not really sure how he feels about your choice to abscond. I don't really have any way to readily identify you as 'not the bad guy', either." Ary says, shaking her head, "But, here comes the sermon you were expecting. Nothing fancy, just... why did you leave perhaps the safest place in Kenabres to give a hundred thousand gold to the first people who offered to not kill you? No one there was going to hurt you. The food was great, you had a room of your own, and... you had friends." Ary stops and sighs, shaking her head. She doesn't move to stop him if he chooses to leave.
After the bit of exposition, Ary's brow furrows. "She dyed it gold." She looks to Isilme, head tilted. "Very clearly gold.
"Well... with that information, we really, really cannot afford to have another alchemist coming in behind us, lobbing bombs." she says, not taking her eyes off of Isilme, as her face scrunches up in a wince. "And Garil just suggested they'd have things that might make our lives easier. Alchemist means potions, potions means healing. Magic items means tools we'll need to get past the many other people in here." she adds. "Plus, getting these guys back in uniform will help morale." she gives Annabelle a patented Ary-smirk, her tone teasing, "Not that I don't appreciate the fact you're slumming and all."
Ary approaches the Tian woman, "I can only do this four times a day" she grins, "So make it count." she places her thumb finger on the ring on her left hand, "I will learn the weight of my sword. This one will last about five minutes. All the other times will be nearly four times that, but not as good." she then proceeds to attempt to muss the tiny woman's hair in a friendly manner. (Feel free to grab her hand :p, all she needs is contact).
When Ary touches Hinagiku (or the other way around), the spell 'Bless Weapon' discharges. Your body counts as Magic and Good for the terms of bypassing DR, and critical hits against evil creatures are automatically confirmed for five minutes. Shiny ring is shiny.
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She thinks about Garil's statement for a few moments before realizing he had probably mistaken her for Li'an. "Red?" she says to the tiefling with a wry grin. "That's not really a surprise though, is it?" she adds cryptically. "I'd be much more shocked if Ary over had said the same thing... It is true that I dyed it, Ary, but beauty's not the only thing that can be in the eye of the beholder," she says, grinning at her like a cheshire cat.
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Although oblivious to the meaning of "called it", Hinagiku does understand the general situation and gives a kind and warm smile to her overly enthusiastic comrade in arms. It almost seems as though her cool demeanor melts when it come to Annabelle.
The conversation being stirred toward matters which Hinagiku doesn't not understand, she steps back and start watching the people she just met. I never imagined that the people of Avistan would be so diverse... tall... and strange... nor that their customs would be so different... they don't even show any clear sign of respect toward commander Irabeth... are they of equal rank? she thinks as she tries to understand the dynamics of the group.
After a moment, having noticed that no one is really searching the room, Hinagiku starts looking around. Then, she suddenly gasps, and all who can see her notice that she has lost her cool, and that she looks both shocked and relieved. These are the strongest emotions she has displayed so far. Walking to the table, she starts organizing papers and putting them in a reinforced scroll case that was laying there. Finally, she attaches it to her belt before kneeling down to pick up a medallion laying on the ground. Oddly enough, the necklace is composed of a strands of braided together and of a blue pendant on which a hand is engraved. She puts it around her neck.
Finally, part of the conversation catches her ear and she delicately pipes in: "These were my most precious belongings." she says, pointing at the holy symbol and the scroll case "But, I also had a wantd like mr. Ehren here. If the Oni child is right, it might be with this alchemist. As for the mistress of the fortress leaving, I overheard it too."
Having shared the intelligence, Hinagiku steps back again, only to be approached by Ary. Seeing as though the woman tries to touch her head, the Tian's reaction is to take a step back. However, after looking her into the eyes, Hinagiku stops in her tracks and bows her head to receive the boon. She is surprised to received a muss from the woman. strange customs she repeats thinks.
At the same time, Ary feels something strange, the same kind of feeling that one has when someone peers into their eyes and seem to pierce their soul. However, this time, it is through touching Hinagiku that she feels it, as if the touch carried some kind of connection.
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Val nods at Ary's suggestion. "While it kind of defeats the point of a second floor entrance, the last time we let an alchemist get behind us..." She hesitates, her eyes flicking over to Isilme before she hastily continues. "Well, it's not a risk that we want to take. I suggest we find his lab and make sure he's been thoroughly stabbed to death before moving on. Recovering Hinagiku's things is just a nice bonus. Maybe clear out some of the guards on the lower level so they don't come up behind us while we're heading for the wardstone. Because I have a feeling they're going to throw everything they've got at us when they realize what we're doing. We may not have time to clear all of them, but thinning the ranks is safer than hoping they don't come up behind us."
She heads over to the door with Isilme, taking her usual place next to her at the front of the group. "I'll cover you if you want to pop it open. Just be ready to jump back if there's a dretch waiting on the other side. That would be about our luck." She readies her knife and listens carefully for any sign of something beyond.
Ehren stood off to the side as the rest of the party planned, deep in thought. Hardly an uncommon occurrence, especially these days. Still, he could not just shake off the feeling that he had just witnessed something profound - something everyone else was understandably oblivious to. He looks in Hinagiku's direction every so often, but never for too long. There was so much he wanted to ask her; it was unfortunate that they had to meet under such dire circumstances. In any case, now was not the time to complicate matters any further. After all, the Green worked in mysterious ways - Crocris had not been the first person to tell him that.
"We should hurry, then," he finally says, "I would much rather we destroy the menhir before Vorlesh arrives."