Xander moved to the door and began his sweep with Milo as Tess and Kin got into position.
Working together to search the doorframe, Xander and Milo see nothing out of the ordinary, and pressing their ears to the door, they hear only silence.
With a flourish, Milo opens the door! It's Christmas Inheritor's Day!
Milo exuberantly opens the door, but his confidence wavers at the sight of what waits inside. The room is piled high with crates and boxes; pots of dye, spools of twine, and heaps of packing material lie strewn about the floor. Even with all the chaos, however, easily the most remarkable sight is the body of a woman lying on the floor.
She holds a simple club in her hand, similar to those Fane and Oana had carried, and her simple leather apron is covered in oil stains, dye spots, and flecks of wax. The cause of death is quite apparently the horrific wound to her throat; it looks almost like it was ripped open from the inside.
As usual, Tess moves into the room at point - and suddenly, two dark forms coalesce in front of her, reaching out with the vague outline of clawed hands. Tess lets out a scream as she visibly weakens, sagging beneath the weight of her armor and weapons.
These are shadows - undead creatures that drain the strength and vitality from their victims to sate their own thirst to satisfy their eternal desire to touch the world of the living once more.
Shadows, having no physical form, can only be harmed by other incorporeal creatures, magic weapons (or weapons treated as magic), and spells/spell-like abilities/supernatural abilities.
Shadows are especially fearsome because they birth more shadows from their fallen victims - anyone killed by their vitality-draining attacks rises as one of their kind.
as the darkness attacks
"What in the world...."
"Undead?" Milo yelps. "Xander! This is your area, not mine!"
...or Kinvara's, he supposes, as the woman turns from a sickly-looking husk into a beacon of golden light. He feels healing flow into him, and stares as she moves forward into the room.
"Aw, hells..." Xander cursed, rushing forward and putting a hand on Tess' back.
"They should ignore you now!" he said to Tess. "Can you hurt them?"
His brows rose at Kinvara's glowing display. He grinned. "Actually, it's her area." he said over his shoulder to Milo.
North shadow 19/19
South shadow 9/19
As Kinvara transmutes into a beacon of holy light and rushes past everyone, Xander reaches out and taps each of his compatriots on the back or the shoulder. Suddenly, though you can still see each other perfectly, the vague outline of the south shadow turns away from Tess as if she doesn't even exist, though it had attacked her not a moment earlier. The other faces Tess just a moment longer, clearly not fooled by the ward, but the light is too strong an affront to its nature, and it joins its counterpart in attacking Kinvara.
The north shadow's divided attentions cause its swing to go wide, but the south shadow connects solidly (or as solidly as two beings of energy can collide). Kinvara lets out a small moan as she sags slightly, but her moan is drowned out by the shadow's scream of agony as flames of positive energy lick up its arm, burning it away.
Xander pulled his bandoleer over his head and handed it to Milo. "Holy water."
"Tess, move aside." he said, his hand still on her back.
"--right!" Milo exclaims when Xander thrusts the bandolier at him. He stamps one booted foot on the earth then dashes in, twisting and leaping around the shadowy forms in an attempt to avoid the seemingly terrible claws they have.
Tess moves aside.
North shadow 17/19
South shadow 4/19
North shadow 17/19
South shadow KO
North shadow 7/19
Kinvara's wave of positive energy washes over the shadows; the one directly in front of her gives an annoyed screech, but the one in front of Tess lets out a gut-wrenching shriek as most of the rest of its indistinct form burns away in white flame, leaving only a few wisps remaining.
As Tess moves to the side, Milo and Xander spring into action. Grabbing the offered bandolier, Milo deftly dodges around the doorframe. The shadow in front of Tess doesn't show a hint of response to his movement; the shadow in front of Kinvara turns to look, but he ducks out of the way too quickly for it to respond, and it turns its attention back to Kinvara.
Milo ends up in the back of the room, clutching the bandolier and its cargo of holy water. Xander steps forward to fill the gap made by Tess, and with an angry shout, he drives his palm forward until it plunges into the remaining wisps of the south shadow. His hand bursts with an eerie blue glow as he finishes an incantation, and the shadow lets out a final soul-rending scream as its last remnants waft away.
The north shadow continues its single-minded assault on Kinvara, and its spectral claws rake through her once more. She begins to visibly droop as weakness fills her body, but just as its companion before, the shadow is horribly burned by the flame coming from Kinvara's body.
Milo steps slightly closer and pulls out one of the holy waters from the bandolier, preparing to chuck it should the shadow turn its rage on him.
Xander could tell Kin was on her last legs. He struck out with another fist full of positive energy hoping to kill the shadow.
"Kin, get clear, you can't take much more!"
Kinvara's wave of energy joins the flash of light from Xander's hand, and with a shriek, the second shadow dissolves into nothingness, leaving you alone in the room except for the ladder leading upwards to a trapdoor, the heaps of crates and jumbled supplies, and the woman's body on the floor.
Xander moves to Kinvara's side and pulled her arm across his shoulders to help support her. "You alright?"
One of the nearby crates dragged itself towards them. Xander chuckled. "Thanks. Here, Kin. Sit, we'll take a look around."
Xander's brows knit in sympathy. "Must be difficult. I know some sect believe Stigmata to be a sign of holy favor, but I've never heard anyone say that who'd actually experienced it."
"Life shouldn't be about suffering. I can't believe that is what Pharasma wants for you."
"A disease that spawns shadows, now that is a frighting problem."
Milo sheepishly picks his way forward and offers the bandolier back to Xander. "I, ah... should have bought some water of my own. I suppose no getting it here. The 'good' father won't likely be selling holy water.
"Are you ladies alright? Whatever it did looked nasty."
Milo crouches by the woman's body to check for... well, he doesn't think 'signs of life', but, perhaps, any sign of who she was, whether their missing chandler or not.
Kinvara's search of the body reveals that the woman hasn't been dead more than several hours. From the signs, it's quite reasonable to believe that the woman had tallowthroat when she died.
Milo's search reveals several dye stains and small burns from wax drops on her hands, as well as a note in her pocket with handwriting matching the notes on the golem found on the desk upstairs. From these signs, it's fairly clear this is Catalina, the missing chandler.
"...poor woman," Milo says after a moment, rolling the corpse over and closing her eyes. It seems a mockery of good taste, what with her throat ripped open.... but it's all he can do. "Definitely the chandler. Ah, I'll leave any... praying... up to you lot."
He rubs his hands briskly, as if to get rid of the sensation of being so near death, then takes a breath. "Kinvara's right. I feel that the rot in this town is beginning to move quickly-- we were only in the nick of time for those poor souls in the vats, for instance. Do we need much else from here? These crates and boxes.... probably just storage, I suppose-- not likely anything incriminating."
Milo opens one to check that, but other than that, he is prepared to move for the manor.
Xander waved off Milo's offer of the bandoleer. "Keep it. I have plenty. If we need more I can make more."
He briefly said last rights over Catalina's corpse. Then he scratched his chin in thought. He closed his eyes. When he opened them they were white.
"̺̖͓̱͉Cat̤̝͉͖̥̹̗a̗͕͍̗͈l͕̦i͕̝̻̼na̙,̝̝̩̙ ͈̱͖I̹̫ͅ ͈̣̥̖̱w͓͙̟̩͚̳̘ịs̮̪̪̹̞̻̗h ͎̩̯̮͕͓t̲͔̳̱͕̰̩o ͎̯͖a͕v̫̮̮̰̘̲e̠̯͇̳̜̭͎n̥̻̭̬̞g̖͎̥͙͍̬̲e ͇͇̬̙̖̟y̜̭͖̹͓̥͕o̘̞̦u̗̱͙ ͔̼̦̼̯͔a͓͈͔̲̗̩n͎d͙͈̱̫̩ ̘̗̹h̻̰̞̜̼ͅe̲̞̤lp̦̥̱͈͕̘ th͙̮e̫̪͉͈̖̙͕ ͚͈̙̞̩p̙e͚̩͔o̩̩̞p̝̣ͅl̫̣̥̹̠e̝̟ o̩f̩̞̺̗ ̰͔̮ṯ͇͚̪͖͎h͎̙̬̯͖ͅi̼̣̘̭̞̹ͅs͍̗͚ ̬̫̱̤͎̫̠t̘̙̳̻̜̫̯o̩̞̤̱̲̞͔w̝n̥̭͔̬.̭͖̤͇ ͉T̹̪e͓̜̠͔̫̤l̥͖̫̬̗ḽ ͎̞m͈͈e̪̫̟̹͕̭ h͔̜̠̜̝̱o̙̩͇̤̩̳ͅw̹̗̙̪̹̬ ̹̼͖̠t͈̥̳o̳ ̤̻c̯ͅo̺̟͉̱̙nt̞̣̪̱̩r͍̪ol͍̜̟͕̥ ͍̥y̥o͔̝̺̬u͍r͖͍ ̹͍g̤̮o̤͍͕̯̩̟͓l̺͍̗̣e̳̮͚m̟̙̖.͎̯"̝̪̠̤̙̬
With a twitch, Catalina begins to speak, breathy and rasping past the gash in her throat.
He҉ ͝r̴ece͜i̕v̕e͜s͘ c͜om͡mand͢s ̕on͠l̸y͟ from͟ m̛ȩ ͜án͞d ͘t͏h͘ose ̴w҉h͞o̷se͢ ͘n̕am̀es he'̛s̢ ҉been ̕g̴iv̧en̨ ͠by ͘me ̡w̶i͞t̷h̕ ͟a ri͟t͡ual͞.͜ M͘y͏ mąşt̶e̸r̡ Il͟q͝u͘i̷s ̛i̷s̶ the͞ on͏ĺy other͜ wh̀osè n̨am͜e ̶I'̀d g͘i͘ven͡ - ͞I̕lq͘uis w̸as̕ t͢he͞ one wh̨o͘ ta͏ugh͡t me̴ th̴e ̀ri҉t͟ual̡ i͏n̛ ́t̢h͠e ͝f͠i̢r͏st ͏p̡lác͝e̶. ͘My m̕as̛tęr͟ c̢an ̴help̀ yo͠u, if̵ you͏ aid̀ ͝i҉n̕ ͜his w҉o̶ŕk ͞fi͜gh̴t̢ing ͞t͜h̀e ̨darkn̛e̡ss.̧
As Milo rolls the body over, he notices a ring worked with ornate arcane symbols on her hand and a couple of wax-sealed vials in a pouch at her waist. The torch that fell next to her hand crackles merrily lying on the floor.
"Gyeh," Milo mumbles to himself as Xander starts doing that thing again. You never quite get used to it, or at least, Milo hasn't, no matter how many times he's seen it.
He's given macabre thought to telling Xander not to do it to HIS corpse, should he wind up dead; on the other hand, if someone shanks him and runs off, he would like the bastard to also die, so in that case, if Xander would avenge him, that's not the worse thing in the world.
Anyway. Trying to ignore the congealed blood burbling out Catalina's throat because of Xander's gifts, Milo blinks to see the ring. He casually slips it off, and disabuses the corpse of the vials as well; she certainly won't need them any more.
Out of habit, he picks up the torch and beats it against a roll of canvas until it's extinguished. "She can't have been dead too long, there was still enough of this torch left to burn, and one this size won't usually last more than an hour," he says with a small frown. "...hope she wasn't still alive when we were upstairs. What does this ritual do, can you ask her, Xander? These shadows-- are they the darkness that the baron's supposedly fighting?"
...if so, he definitely will need to keep Xander's holy water, yes. Milo slings the bandolier over his chest.
"I could ask her, but I get the feeling she probably wouldn't know. She sounds like she was pretty thoroughly duped by that little monster. If these shadows are the darkness, Catalina and her obnoxious little master were impressively bad at their jobs."
"If we want to know about the ritual, we'd need to ask Ilquis. I can give it a shot if you want."
Milo beats the torch against the wall, but no matter how hard he tries to extinguish it, it keeps burning - no amount of effort makes the flame go out, and as he tries, he begins to notice that no ash falls away from the flame, and his hand doesn't even grow warm despite holding the torch for several minutes.
Xander snickered at Milo's efforts to extinguish the torch. "Its everburning. It's heatless too. Just stick it somewhere and pull it out when you need some light."
Milo blushes an irritated red at his looking-like-an-idiot, and at Xander's amusement.
"Yes, I'll stick it up your--" He remembers there is a lady present, and turns that into a throat clearing. With a snif, Milo tucks the torch away into his backpack-- could very well come in handy, when fighting The Darkness.
"Right then. Well... I think it's time we see to this baron. Clearest route to answers may be to ask for them. If he's this desperate for allies... perhaps we'll be of use.
"Oh-- this ring and these potions she had--? Any of you know what they are?"
Indeed, the ring gives off a faint aura of transmutation under Kinvara's gaze, though at the moment she's unable to ascertain more about the particular magics imbued into it. The potions look to be imbued with transmutation magics as well.
"Don't look at me. I never could get the hang of spell theory." Xander said with a shrug.
"Shogunto may have some luck as he did identify a thief's stolen potions on the way here, and they were returned to their owner."
"Sounds good." Xander said, looking around a moment before readying to leave.
"Alright," Milo says after a moment's hesitation. Seems wrong to just leave the corpse here, but... they don't need the questions of lugging her through the little town, either. "Let's be off, then."