As Bazzle and Aster both make a move to distract and hamper the White Robes, the black robed figure senses danger and immediately moves in to receive Aster's stumbling tackle and Bazzle's hot soup. The black robes raises his crossbow, intent to shoot Aster point-blank.
"Nothing like cold blooded murder in a college bar curtail imorality." Bazzle delivers the commentary hoping that the current action expose the hateful hypocrisy.
Bazzle's appeal to hypocrisy doesn't seem to faze the black robes at all. He's still intending to shoot Aster.
"It did not have to end like this." she points out, pulling on her shield, twists her fingers in the black robes direction and casts a prayer upon them all. "But since you insist may your souls be free in your next life."
Abbo doesn't have much time to act. He again assumes his exotic shikigami stance, then moves as quickly as he can towards the black robed enemy, trying to avoid being hit on the way.
As he moves, he tries to feint the enemy to gain a better opening for his mug attacks.
As he gets by him, trying to interpose between his shots and Aster, he swings his mug violently.
His same movement, however, allows him to touch the enemy's weapon with his shoulder, swiftly attempting to disarm him.
Run! Withdraw from here! - he finally yells towards Bainilus, trying to get the old man to take advantage of the combat distraction to flee; maybe Abbo's heart was on the right place, despite his incredible aptitude to get into trouble.
Aster is a bit surprised when the black robes figure tries to punch her while she casts her spell, but her new breastplate protects her from the attack. Meanwhile, Abbo steps in and bludgeons the black robes with his trusty mug, disarming him of the crossbow in the process. The older Shoanti man tries to run right past the white robbed man, but he stands his ground. The Shoanti man suddenly gasps in shock, when he is impaled in the shoulder. An imp, wearing a tiny white robe, materializes from its invisible perch and retracts its stinging tail from the bartender.
Bazzle ducks under the table next to him. The hopping drag of the table scuffing the floor is almost comical. As the table now moves from where it was to between the brawlers and the robed figures.
Bazzle will also scream in panic, "The Citizen's Brigade brought bombs oh no!!!!!!! The monsters."
Rexandi focuses on the imp and throws a hex of misfortune at it.
In a comical display, Bazzle uses his ingenuity to lift up the table and hobble between the two fighting group, giving himself cover in the process.
The imp, bolstered by its master's will, resists Rexandi's hex.
Vandomir will draw his bow, as he moves to get a better view into the room.
"Don't make me start shooting you, get out of the way, and let everyone leave!"
The white robes extends his left arm and says "I place my faith in Asmodeus, the Dark Prince. May he separate the just and noble from the unbeliever. PRAISE!" He then sends a pulse of negative energy through the tavern and out the door. As it washes over everyone, each person immediately gets a choice: Convert to the faith of Asmodeus and speak his praise, or be subjugated to his wrath.
Then the white robes takes a step outside, and as he does so, an illusory double shares his space and obscures his true location. Meanwhile, the imp flutters right up in Abbo's personal space, and tries to sting him. Thankfully, Aster's prayer keeps the stinger at bay. Then the imp also creates an illusory double.
"You who fail to embrace the Lord are traitors to our great nation. Nighthawk! Do what you can to get our boys out, but do not sacrifice yourself." The white robes proclaims. "Yes, sir." The black robes replies. He takes a step back, drawing his shortsword and leaving his crossbow on the floor. With grace and finesse, but also in a defensive stance, he makes a minor cut along Aster's shoulder. His second attack clangs against her armour.
All of the thugs that were previously out cold rise to their feet. Some of them grab chairs or cooking tools, while the leader and another move over to get in Rexandi's and Aster's face. The two by the table try to kick at Bazzle, and he takes two boots to the face.
Aster winces but does not fall to the infernal pressure. "Simple drinking establishment, simple people enjoying themselves. It is what life is about, not being broken and ordered to believe what you want them to." Aster says to the priest, as she tries to defend herself against the man with the swords.
Bazzle screams "Stop stop. I can't take it." The gnome feigns panic and distress. "You win you win."
He lurches forward from under the table and lurches at the black robed thug.
Abbo repeats his routine flurry of attacks, taking advantage of flanking with his newfound ally.
As usual, he tries to use the power of the first attack to disarm his opponent.
Rexandi winces but throws off the worst effects of the devilish channeling. She responds by casting her misdirection hex toward the Asmodean cleric instead.
As the Imp came in to sting Abbo, Abbo uses the opportunity to swat it away like a fly. The mug nearly kills it on the spot, but its fiendish resistance keeps it in the air. It then fails to sting Abbo, and then creates its mirror image.
Aster, Abbo, and Rexandi resist the the worst of wave of negative energy, while Bazzle takes the brunt of it. All defy Asmodeus' will. Aster's mace strike is nimbly dodged by the Black Robes, who just barely notices Bazzle's ambush in time to step back. Unfortunately for him, Abbo smacks him across the face with his mug once, misses with the second, then does an overhead bash to send him passed out on the floor. Rexandi tries to hex the cleric, but his Will is too strong.
Vandomir remains true to the Everbloom...
...and is rewarded by taking less damage than normal.
Seeing the Imp, and knowing his hatred of such creatures, Vandomir uses a swift action to make his weapon Bane against it, and unleashes two arrows at the tiny monster...
x3
x3
Vandomir peers around the corner to get a look at the imp, and even with the cover, Vandomir shoots it in the back. The imp explodes in a blast of positive energy. His second shot hits the white robes point blank, though of course it's much less effective against the non-devil. The Shoanti man bursts into a terrifying rage, yelling at the top of his lungs "Death is my last good night!" He steps in front of the white robes and punches him with stone covered fists, which erupt in clouds of dust as he strikes. Yet with all his determination, the old man's fist impacts what must be armour underneath the white robe. His attack has failed. The white robes draws his mace, and gets ready to strike.
The white robes sneers and channels once again. The walls keep Abbo, Rexandi, and Aster safe, but Vandomir, Bazzle, and the Shoanti man get hurt by the pulse of negative energy. The black robes wakes back up, but he's trapped under the Shoanti man standing above him. The brawlers are getting healed up, and pile on in to swarm everyone. Bazzle takes two punches and a kick to the face, while surprisingly, Rexandi dodges three attacks.
Bazzle staggers and looks ready to fall.
Vandomir continues firing arrows, but he turns his aim against the white robes after making his weapon into a shock weapon...
Stuck against the wall, surrounded, with no way out, Rexandi fumbles a spell and then waits for the inevitable beat-down.
Abbo looks around, evaluating the dire situation. If things started like a regular brawl, not trying to kill anyone - at this point he doesn't really care much more about it. He sees his companions are suffering and getting hurt, the same goes for the bullied old man. Not holding anything back, he flurries with his improvised weapon - the first two attacks against the nearby brawler, and his weakest last attack against the robed man in the floor.
Boys, you really don't know when to stop with the bad ideas, huh? This cleric in a white tutu skirt won't save you for long!
And stay down! - he yells to the prone man in black robes, quickly swinging the mug against his head.
Vandomir's first shot strikes the white robes in the back, but by the time he looses the second arrow, the white robes has blocked it with his magical buckler. Rexandi recoils as she casts her spell in an effort to protect herself, but in the process she loses concentration. Abbo buffets the nearby thug with his mug, causing him to sleep like a bug in a rug. The he leans over and looks down upon the black robed figure. Bringing down his mug, he smashes the man's face with it. There's a sickening crack as he lays motionless.
Bazzle slowly staggers behind Abbo.
Aster lets her magic take her for a moment. Her mouth snapping at the white-robed man with fangs at the same time she smashes him with her morning star.
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Bazzle staggers behind Abbo with the last of his strength, which knocks him flat on the ground as he sinks into unconsciousness. Meanwhile, Aster bashes and gnashes at the white robes, tearing them open to reveal the armoured coat beneath.
The bloody and torn apart white robes figure steps to the side and casts a magic spell upon himself, as he disappears from existence. "I will make sure you are all hunted down, and your families lie hung across the city walls!"
The thugs are very surprised. Various members of the thugs shout out "He... but that was... I need healing! Kludd! You're deserting us!? I trusted you with my life! Great Kludd, come back!"
Three of them try to punch Rexandi, who dodges each attack yet again. One of the thugs turns tail and runs upstairs, while the other two immediately fall to their knees and surrender.
At this point, onlookers are starting to gawk at the little scene they can spot. They stand far, far back. Hopefully no one has or will contact the guards.
Rexandi stands up from cowering, surprised that she somehow managed to avoid taking a series of body blows.
"It's over? Well we sure can't stay here. That cleric is going to alert people to our presence, we better go before more enemies show up!"
She moves to Bazzle and applies her healing hex to him.
"It seems that getting out of here is a good plan."
The Tian woman's face reverts back to normal. She does take a moment to spit out bits of white robes. "Quickly then." not too quickly not to cast a detect magic on the black robes items and then she looks to the Shoanti man "Are you coming with us?"
The Shoanti man looks terribly fatigued as the gears churn in his head. He looks at Aster with a sad face, and says
"I can't leave my wife to face the Dottari without me, and she is busy in Jarvis End right now. Go. I swear by any Gods that I will never tell them anything about you. If I ever return here, please visit me so I can repay you."
Thanks to Rexandi's hex, Bazzle wakes up groggy and sore.
Upon the black robes body:
- +1 reloading heavy crossbow
- Masterwork short sword
- Masterwork chain shirt (this takes about a minute to take off a corpse even with help)
- 143gp
Upon the thugs (assuming you spend the time to take them):
- 6 chain shirts
- 6 red armbands of the CCG
- 25gp total
"The crossbow is magic. Please someone grab that and then we should get out of here." Aster is already moving to the door, since she is slow.
Let's move, gents and gals. - he says, leaving the clay mug behind to hold the guy in the floor - We can do introductions and spoils later, in a more suitable place.
He shakes his head in agreement with Aster.
Are you good there, quickie? - he asks towards the gnome, realizing how hurt he was, but then turning to the surrendered thugs - Trotting, fast! Move!
He ignores any enemy fleeing.
Vandomir will stay with the group...
Bazzle takes the crossbow, black robe, the arm bands, and what he assumes are money pouches throwing them in his bag of holding.
Bazzle ferrets away all of the readily available loot, opting not to take the time to take armour. Abbo slumps the black robes body over his shoulder, while sending the CCG out at full speed. They pick up their bleeding buddy who's barely alive and high-tail it out. They curse at the group, but also at the white robes who abandoned them.
The group race out of the Pits, leaving the old Shoanti man behind. They dive into the alleyways of Villegre just in case they're being followed.
Now somewhere between Villegre and Yolubilis districts, the group take a breather to figure out what to do next. They have no safe houses in this area, apart from the Wasp Nest itself. Currently, no one is walking through the alley.
Abbo notes that rigor mortis has already set in on the Chelaxian corpse on his back.
Abbo releases the man's body in one of the alleyways, breathing a little tired.
There... It seems someone had a little bit much to drink and now needs some rest. Some people never know when to put the mug down, right?
As he says it, he knees down and starts searching the man and removing the armor - the looting tasks that the team noticed before could take a little longer.
Thanks for your help, mates. I am Abbo... Abbo Lyrio. It's nice to meet you, besides the circumstances. - he finally says towards the group, in a sincerely thankful tone.
Aster catches up, after a few moments, slow as an upcoming holiday, but not winded. After taking a moment to smooth out and adjust her clothes, she gives the two men a formal bow. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintances, and an honor to be fighting alongside you both." she'll come back to standing then with a smile "I am Aster Cobblestone..." she'll pause to see if the others wish to introduce themselves or want her to...
--
After that is out of the way, "The sewers were our goal anyway, we could find the nearest opening to get off the street." she suggests "If finding our Ratcatchers is not expedient that way, we can come up-street to gather information as needed."
Vandomir makes a show of doffing a hat that he is not actually wearing, and gives a deep bow to Aster, "Vandomir, of House Jarvis, and I am at your service."