Her point made, Belledonna brandishes her trusty wand, infusing Victrix with even more fighty, fighty!
Victrix attempts a beatdown of the other Brimorak...but she fails to strike them in her battle rage.
Belledonna assists Vic by hasting her, making Vic much more deadly.
Brud assists Barundar in loading the catapult and winding it. (+2 to Barundar's Roll)
Navi heals Vic for 5.
Barundar gets the other catapult ready to go.
...or tries, at least. Apparently loading it four consecutive times by himself has made him kinda tired.
Kaladin: -12 HP
Seeing that Barundar is having trouble with loading, Kaladin tries to help but he's not really made for heavy work. Especially not when he's experiencing the pain Vic is in...
The Two Brimorak attempt to make mincement of Victrix!
Red three hits for and fire
Blue misses.
"Tryin' this again..."
"Ooof...bloody hell, wha went an' made these bloody rocks sae heavy?"
Heedless of injury, Victrix accepts the haste spell, swinging like mad at the demon before her!
Her first swing, as quick as it is, misses wildly.
She forces mythic power into her blade for her next swing!
And swings wildly once more!
Konny helps to load the engine, knowing that he must postpone the shooting.
"Uncle Anvil always said, if you want something done, do it yourself... Anyway, it looks like the other crew is busy now."
Victrix wails on a Brimorak nearly slaying it outright!
Konny and Barundar load the catapult.
The Two Brimorak, seeing the end is near, step back and teleport away.
Victrix's eyes widen as the two demons teleport away from her. "Wha--you--you just--"
Her rage surges to the forefront. "AAAAAAAAARRRRGGGHH! I! AM! SICK! AND! TIRED! OF DEMONS! " She punctuates each pause in her words with blow after blow on the catapult!
Kaladin lets out a long sigh and remarks, "It be high time we caught some shuteye, thou I guess ye wanna make a report first reet?"
"Aye, tha' we doo...soon as Vic is done havin' her fun." Barundar remarks, jabbing this thumb toward the barbarian.
Once the enemy catapult has been reduced to splinters, Victrix lets her rage go and sullenly flies back to the tower.
*pant pant pant pant* "Roight... I think we're done 'ere."
"Ata koe. Kia rere ratou. Hoki nga tangata katoa e rere, kotahi tekau atu ako ki te wehi ia tatou. No te rau katoa e ako ana ki te wehi ia tatou, ngokingoki tetahi hoki ki te poka wai fulihi i te mea i ki rö reira, i roto i te wehi." Belledonna whispers as she places a placating arm across her kinswoman's shoulder.
"Looks like shooting is not needed anymore." Konny says. He aims the catapult in the general direction of the citadel and fires. He grins at Barundar. "With our luck regarding this catapult, it is certainly safer to unload the cargo before I try to disable it."
He searches the engine for any weak spots and goes about making sure it is not fired ever again.
Konny manages to sabotage the catapult after a couple minutes.
In the distance you see that Irabeth has marshaled the Paladin army and is marching on Paradise Hill. The remaining catapults cannot fire on the army as they are too far.
Konny moves to the second tower/catapult and sabotages that one as well.
Then he joins the others.
"Looks like our army is storming the hill to free the captives. Shall we join in or shall we destroy the rest of the catapults to free the army's way to the citadel?" he asks.
Clearly torn between the two most pressing options, Belledonna looks to Victrix.
Victrix keeps her greatsword readied, looking between the remaining watchtowers and the army advancing on Paradise Hill. "All things considered, 'elpin' the Crusaders with the hill would be a good idea in the short term--and come to think of it, I think we can afford ta leave the catapults fer now. The army's far enough away from them that the catapult's range won't be a problem."
"I'm for 'elpin' the Crusaders take the hill."
"I agree, let us head oout there." Konny reacts.
The party moves out, picking their way through the ruins of Drezen towards Paradise Hill. They arrive just as battle is joined, a mass of Schir demons lead by a Vrock battling the Army of Paladins with Mongrelmen and Kellid support.
The vrock at the head of the demon battalion was smart enough to position itself in the middle of its schir underlings, letting the paladins and Kellid warriors slug it out with the cannon fodder while it struck decisive blows at them. An inspired choice of tactics, for certain.
Of course, that made it the prime target for Victrix's wrath.
In the time it took the party to return to the battlefield, her fatigue had been shaken off. In its place burned a cold, tranquil fury as she stared the demonic foe down.
"I've got this one."
She starts to advance on the vrock, drawing her greatsword as she moves. Several schirs break away from the engagement to charge at her.
In the hands of an ordinary mortal, a greatsword forged from cold iron can be an effective weapon. Even without enchantments, an expertly-forged cold iron blade can mean the difference between victory and defeat against the demonic hordes.
Suffice to say, Victrix never was an ordinary mortal. She strikes down the first demon-headed beast as it charges her with ease, and hews another one's head from its shoulders almost as an afterthought. The two that remain skid to a halt before her, their halberds arcing out to cleave her head from her shoulders.
With a swift parry, she locks their blades together, then sweeps her sword to the side, carving their bellies open. Without even breaking stride, Victrix advances on the vrock, her sword stained red with demon blood and ichor.
"You!" She levels her blade at the beast and stands her ground. "Never mind these others, beast. *I* am your opponent now. Step forward and face ME!"
The battle is joined...
The army surges forward. They follow Irabeth's orders, but they are inspired by Victrix's deeds. Demon battles Crusader and the battle takes a turn as Victrix faces the dreaded Vrock Pozlixt.
The demon swoops down on fetid wings and lands some 20' away it casually swats away two paladins that threaten it. It screams a threat and all around it are thrown back and stunned, but not Victrix.
Barundar raises the weapon of Yaniel as high into the air as he is able, the golden weapon flaring with brilliant light as it is shone to all, demon and crusader, in the middle of the day. Seeing Victrix call the leader of the demonic army out, the dwarf starts to advance on the winged beast, but then stops when he sees another demon, a stocky-looking humanoid with blue, scaly skin and red eyes, charging at Victrix' back.
Of course, Barundar has no doubt that Vic could handle herself, but why should she have all the fun?
With a roar, Barundar charges straight for the thing, fearless in spite of it being nearly twice his height, screaming another battle cry as he does. He rams full-force into the thing, his speed and low height throwing the demon's footing off, causing it to stumble in its charge.
Barundar grins at the thing, hefting Radiance once more as he shouts above the din of the battle,"Awright! Dinnae ye know tis rude tae interrupt someone else's rammy?!?"
Barundar charges forward and knocks the Cambion aside. The Half fiend shrinks away from Radiance instinctively. It seems that Demons have a memory, and Radiance is known by them.
Konny rushes into the battle, Biggie at the ready. As the battle lines disappear and individual fights break out, the dwarf moves swiftly from one group of combatants to another, helping where he perceives it is most needed. He tries to avoid direct confrontation with a group of demons, instead relying on his superior speed and deftness to move around, striking from behind attacking enemies.
"Uncle Anvil always said, if you find yourself in a battle, do not try any heroics, just make sure you and your comrades survive and the other side don't." he says as he helps one of the crusaders back on his feet after dispatching a demon who tried to skewer him with a spear. "You ready for another round?" As the crusader starts to nod they both hear Victrix shout he challenge and turn toward her.
"The wingy one looks pretty tough. I guess I should make sure someone is attacking his rear as Vic engages from the front. You take care." he moves away circling the winged demon. He takes his time striking at demons along the way, providing distraction and openings for the crusaders to finish their opponents or at least to regain their balance and guard.
Bone wary Kaladin stumbles after Vic, marveling at the woman's energy. Navi rests on his shoulder, clearly tired from all the Healing and he whispers gently, "C'mon Lass, we gotta watch tha backs o' tha lotta em, keep em alive somehow."
Kaladin blinks as Vic strides towards the Vrock and he shudders inwardly thinking, 'Oh this gonna hurt...' Before he time for more thought, he spots a small furtive demon out of the corner of his eye. The vile thing was creeping towards Vic with a wicked looking kukri dagger, dripping with greenish ichor flecked with black.
Running to one side to get a better angle, Cameron mutters "Oh no ye don't!" He points at the demonic assassin and chants "Pulura! Anemoi! and claps his hands together. A great river of wind howls past and bats the demon aside to land near a group of Paladins who hack the fiend in to mincemeat.
Behind the confrontation with the Vrock, a band of demonic foot soldiers lead a sudden charge against the Paladins. Cameron whispers a prayer to Pulura. A bluish radiance pulses out infusing everyone in the area with holy might, guiding their blows and distracting the demons with nagging doubts. Soon the two forces surge together and the ordered paladin formation falters. Kaladin whispers another fervent prayer to Pulura, followed by a single holy word. A sudden deluge of energy strikes the melee. The paladins merely glow in the incandescent light, but the demons writhe and wail clutching their eyes. The paladins take full advantage and soon the demonic advance is just so much rotten carrion littering the floor.
The battle rages for over two hours. Paladins die, but more demons fall....by the score. In the end, Victrix, Barundar and Konny emerge victorious over the Vrock Pozlixt..its broken form lay on the ground, a monument to the crusader victory.
Irabeth reports the success. We have secured Paradise Hill. With it, over 100 more captive Crusaders have joined us...also, you need to see this.
Irabeth leads the party to a large stone building, almost 100' wide the building was once a massive cathedral to Iomedae. Inside are the glittering arms and armor of an entire city...a veritable kings ransom.
We can equip the entire army with this! Irabeth says enthusiastically
The battle was a harrowing one... the vrock's hide had proven resistant to Victrix's blade, and its relentless flurry of attacks might have brought her low were it not for her allies. Victrix stands over the demon's corpse, surveying the carnage when Irabeth comes to collect the party.
She follows wordlessly, and the sight of the arms & armour within the building cause her jaw to drop. "...oh. Yeah." She whispers in reverence.
"Aye, tha' we can, lass! It's quite a find!" he says happily, smiling over to Irabeth. Barundar, like Victrix, is splattered with the gore of his fight, the back-and-forth between he and the demon having lasted for longer than it seemed like it should've...but it was a marvel to behold the way the thing would strike Barundar with blows that would lay an ordinary man low and leave him with the barest of scratches.
Navi buzzed by his ear and told him excitedly! "Kaladin! Get up you've got to see this!" Kaladin merely grunted, exhausted beyond measure. "They've found hundreds perhaps even thousands of suits of armour, still shiny after all this time. There are racks and racks of weaponry too, its seriously impressive."
Kaladin, never one to be interested in such things, muttered sleepily, "Tell meh in da morning lass. I'm all drained..."
Navi shrugged, 'I suppose after what was it, three battles? Yeah its little wonder he's tired.' Curious about the cathedral, Navi flutters off to explore. After all being small and able to fly, she can find areas that others can't reach.
She flutters round the rafters, marvelling at the craft work where every surface is carved with religious iconography. Here and there the runes of long dead stonemasons.
Victrix picks her way through the massive trove of weapons, armour and items. When she returns, she's carrying four things: a belt with a buckle in the shape of a tiger's head; a greatsword forged from cold iron, its holy blade reflecting the light with pride; and two potions.
"Check out what I found." Victrix puts the belt on. "This belt strengthens the body and makes its wearer tougher ta kill. And this sword?" She plants it in the floor. "As soon as I picked it up, I felt its holy power in my arm. This thing'll carve through demon flesh loike no tomorrow."
She looks at her old sword. "Boyo, we've been through some crazy things together, 'aven't we? Takin' back Kenabres, carvin' our way through Pulura only knows 'ow many demons, and even killin' a Vescavor Queen..." She sighs. "There's no way in hell I can just give yeh away. Maybe I'll put yeh up on a tavern wall--yeh'll make for one helluva conversation piece."
As her more martial companions surge forward, proving their righteous might against the foul beasts before them, Belledonna gazes wistfully upon their receding forms.
Ngoikore, e ko te aha e koe. Rawa ngoikore ki te tu i roto ia ratou, ngoikore rawa ki te whakahoki i te piiraa ei te tamaiti o Sarkoris kia. Rawa ngoikore no te pato'ii te te pirau tahe i roto i to koutou toto.
Tu noa roa nui...
With a shriek that is both despairing and yet bone chilling in it's fatalist rage, she calls forth the last of her Eldritch might to hurl herself once more from the embrace of the earth into the sky to rain woe and despair upon those foes threatening the less favored among her allies. Where the foe stands strong against a weakened ally, she calls down blindness in a cloud of dust. Where one defender stands bloodied and broken before an ever growing horde, she swells their limbs and bulwarks their armor, where the enemy calls more from the abyss, she stanches the flow with an imperative denial, an implacable where the fiend before found only a despairing wail. Physically frail though she may be, with every droplet of her tainted, corrupt blood spilt, the crusaders find their own wounds less threatening, more able to be ignored as they follow the charge of their heroes.
Finally, as the fiends break, she falls once more to earth. Caught by her faithful lieutenant, she weakly answers Irabeth's call. As the others rejoice in the hard-fought reprieve, Brud lays her down near Kaladin before joining Victrix in searching through the plundered trove.
Just stand long enough...
"Ka mohio tou iwi i tona utu." Brud nods at Victrix' blade. His own searching brings forth a finely tanned quiver & a masterfully crafted bow, as well as a set of filigreed bracelets with a matching circlet the rest of you know would fit well upon Belledonna's form. Finally, he draws out a pale-wooden wand, it's surface covered in delicate carving.
Victrix sighs. "Then again... I don't know... maybe someone else would put this stuff ta better use than me." She takes off the belt and takes the holy sword in her hands. "Moight as well go lookin' for somethin' more appropriate fer me."
She wanders off to put some of the items she found back and go delving for new ones.
Victrix returns a while later, this time with a bigger grin on her face than before.
"Found some things that would suit me more." She's wearing a new pair of boots with a stylized tiger's head on the cuffs and a belt with an engraving of a giant's head, and across her shoulders is a fearsome-looking greataxe, its head emblazoned with the facade of a tiger.
"Now, I think I'm ready ta cut the demons holdin' the Citadel ta ribbons." She rests the head of the axe on the floor.
Unused to living in a camp, Kaladin finds it hard to sleep with the noise of the army all around. Half asleep, by a cook fire, he opens one weary eye and mutters, [b]"Suits ya lady, tho the axe ye had in tha vision was kinda bigger. Eneway ye'd best get some shuteye. Them daemons w'll be still thar in tha mornin'"/b]
Victrix snickers and starts taking off her breastplate in preparation for rest. "Eh, I think this'll suit me just fine."
She looks over at the exhausted Kaladin. "Yeh did bloody good today, Kaladin. I think we'll be just fine with yeh on our side." She reclines on her cot, folding her arms behind her head.
She's currently clad in her torn travelling clothes, very threadbare and filthy from days upon days of walking and fighting. They bare her midriff, as her armour normally does... revealing several vicious scars on her belly, some from demon claws and some from the blades of demonic cultists.
Konny feels quite tired after the battle, but he moves in to look for some useful items nevertheless.
After he chooses some gear, he moves back to the camp with the others.
"Nice axe, you almost look like an oversized dwarf now." he says to Victrix cheerfully.
Victrix stretches and snickers at Konny's remark. "Just missin' the beard now, roight?"
Barundar returns to the others, carrying a new set of armor and a new shield, magic clear in their forging. "A dwarf woman wi' fluff? That's juist looney talk..."
As Brud places the intricate jewelry upon Belledonna, she stirs. Looking up irritably at him, she levers herself upright once more. "Ko ahau e kore tamariki, e kore tamapua. Ko ahau nui taotū, me te ngenge, e kore e muhu." she grumbles.
Turning to the others, her demeanor brightens, somewhat. "I see some of us have their priorities properly oriented."
"Ki te kahore he tamariki koutou, na e kore e rave i rite ki tetahi." Brud growls in response. "Ko enei No tākaro kotingotingo. enei," he points to the bracelets, "e te tauturu ki te tahuri whiu i a koutou. tenei," he runs a finger along the circlet, "E taea ranei e ara kaha o koutou Simi."