Despite the two festrogs destroyed at his feet and the horrific death of his companion, the remaining cultist is undaunted and his assault on Cara does not relent.
Hit
This time he finds his mark and once again his mace hammers into Cara, this time splintering ribs and sending the woman crashing to the ground.
Beg for her life! he hisses triumphantly. And I will petition my Master to return her to unlife as a thrall!
Morbar moves up to the final cultist "You'll pay for that bastard!" the dwarf swings at the cultist with Dawnbreaker aiming for his vital organs
Destroying the undead abomination before him Jon wheels around just as Cara is smashed to the floor.
Racing toward her he looks on in grim satisfaction as Morbars hammer reduces the last cultist to a bloody ruin.
Sliding to a halt beside Cara Jon casts a spell and floods her with healing energy.
Cara! Come on girl Wake up. You are going to be ok Jon says as he begins to heal her
Seeing all enemies head, Markus also heads over to Cara on the floor. "She's tough Jon, She'll be alright." He lays a hand on her wound and begins to heal it.
Then he channels positive energy to heal the group.
"Cara are you ok? Those cultists are sneaky. Is everyone healed?"
The monk rushes to aid Cara but the others are already helping her. He watches with relief as Jon and Markus heal her wounds and help her to her feet. Markus' healing energy washes over him and he feels a slight tingling sensation, almost an itch as some of his wounds partially close.
"Nearly my brother, I still have a few nicks here and there but I can continue."
A gruff voice calls out from one of the buildings nearby. It is low enough that you can tell it seeks to avoid detection and yet loud enough that you can sense the urgency.
"You there! Get in here if you want to live!"
The door to a large building, in a reasonable state of repair, swings open a crack. Within appears to be total darkness however
-Posted with Wayfinder
Morbar cleans the blood and brains off his hammer as Markus heals the others up. "Glad to see your okay cara" the dwarf says as he smiles at her "No I don't need any healing thanks Markus" he looks up suddenly "What was that? A voice did you hear it?" he looks towards the building it came from and points "Over there, let's move in carefully it could be a trap. In fact it most likely is " he says as he hold dawnbreaker tight in both hands
[B"We need to get off the street now they know we are here. I agree though, we need tone careful."[/b]
Making sure the wolf token is still wrapped around his wrist, Sebastian moves quickly toward the building and keeping his guard up he enters the dark interior. He immediately begins scanning the room for signs of danger.
Perception
You cautiously enter the building, what appears to have been a warehouse at one time.
The interior is pitch dark, though when you bring your light inside you realise the voice that called you was far from alone.
A slender man, dressed in well kept light armor edges back from the door as you enter. His left hand is extended out as if warding you back and in his right is a fine silver rapier.
Two other men flank him, more burly and thick set and armed with morningstars gripped tightly in both hands.
Beyond them you can see about a dozen pairs of eyes, lamp-like in the dark and accompanied by the heavy, half growling breath of large animals and the stench of wet dog.
"You have the smell of the Demon Wolves. Though from the way you fight you are not lycans. Did Rhakis send you?" the man asks cautiously, rapier still poised.
The tension is palpable and you feel like any wrong word could bring the fury if this tribe.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Cara! Come on girl Wake up. You are going to be ok Jon says as he begins to heal her
The healing spell from Jon is enough to allow Caradwen to regain conscience. She blinks her eyes open, pain shooting through her ribs - "I'm back" - she whispers to Jon, wincing from trying to stand up.
"She's tough Jon, She'll be alright." He lays a hand on her wound and begins to heal it.
Then he channels positive energy to heal the group.
"Cara are you ok? Those cultists are sneaky. Is everyone healed?"
The color returning to her cheeks, the Bard manages to stand up, and even smile - "Sneaky bastards indeed. You boys need to learn how to protect a lady" - she jests - "With your amazing blessings, I feel much better Markus - I think my ribs will be sore for a week, but I'll live. Thank you my friend"
At the sound of hushed tones, she immediately goes for her bow again, following her companions with a nod to Morbar.
The monk steps forward carefully. He speaks in a gentle tone, not wanting to provoke a confrontation.
"We mean no harm. We did indeed meet Rakis Sarzo on the way here. He told us he had sent some of his pack here. We have a shared enemy. We are here to destroy Vrood and the other members of the Whispering Way. He holds the heart of the packlord which Rakis eants and so we have common aims. We struck an accord on the road. We agreed to work together. Though Rakis does not comand us to be here, we are here and we intend to destroy the Way amd if that helos Rakis obtain the packlord's heart then so be it. Rakis gave us these tokens to prove we are no enemies of the Princes Wolves."
He holds up his wrist so they can see the token.
Diplomacy
Markus nods to everything Sebastian says. "We have common enemies your pack master saw that, the Way and the demon wolves. We have no need of the heart you are welcome to it, with your help we could make it to centre of town and kill Vrood."
@ Cara
Jon smiles warmly as the beautiful bard opens her eyes and he sighs with relief to see she is ok.
sorry m'lady Jon laughs as he doffs a pretend hat to her and offers a comical bow You just can't get good help these days he says with a smile which looks eerie given his demonic visage.
Moving into the building with the others Jon holds Woundweaver ready and as the darkness is chased away and he sees the wolf pack inside he tenses and waits to see it they will be friends or another in a long line of enemies.
As Sebastian shows them the token he waits watching warily for and sign of hostility.
The man edges forward, eyes still fixed on Sebastian and rapier poised as he sniffs at the token.
After a moment, you see his demeanor relax.
It's alright he says to the pack. There is truth to what they say.
He ushers you in as he sheathes his sword, leaning out of the door and looking quickly left and right before he eases it shut behind them.
You are here for the Way. I confess they do not interest me at this time. We are enemies of the Way, that's true but for now We are pledged to recover the heart for our Master Rhaskis. You think this man Vrood has it but you are mistaken, he has gifted it to the leader of the Demon Wolves.
"Do you know why he would do such a thing? A payment for a task already carried out, or to be done in the future?" - Caradwen pipes in.
He is working on something big here. You may have killed those creatures out there but there are more and dozens of skeletons and zombies besides. I think he's building an army and he's using the Demon Wolves to protect him whilst he does so.
We know where they are, in the mill across the street, but we have dared not move against them until more of the pack arrive, but by the time that happens I think we will be too late
"Perhaps we can do this together?" - the woman winks at the rapier wielding one - "If you can keep up with us, of course"
I admire the sentiment lady. he against replies with a sly smile. But even together we would stand no chance against the undead army Vrood has built especially with the wolves. I propose a different strategy. We have heard how you deal with wolves, if you take care ofIonocu for us, we will distract the army of skeletons for you, thus giving you a chance to reach Vrood.
Sebastian bows when the wolves relax. "I am Sebastian Skarsol and you are well met. Your plan sounds workable. I take it this Ionocu is in this mill? How exactly will you distract the army?"
Jon likes this plan not at all. I don't trust these wolves at all . I would not be surprised if they wants us to storm this mill so they can use us to soften up the demon wolves then they can slink in and finish them
I don't agree with your strategy , you say you know how we deal with wolves. You have no idea how we deal with the undead. Jon says
your own pack master warned us against ionocu, he told us that he is a terrible foe and much stronger than Malthus ever was and he caused us enough problems. This undead army we can deal with, you have not seen the power that Markus wields. He can destroy whole swathes of Vroods undead as easily as you would tear apart a brace of rabbits.
We stand a much better chance against the dead, if you want us to storm this mill and go up against the demon wolves then you will be coming with us and then in return we will all go up against Vrood Jon suggests to the wolf
In response to Sebastian the man says;
We have the advantage of numbers where you do not. The pack will strike and cut and strike again. It is a tactic we are adept at and it will draw their ire I have no doubt. Especially that of the mindless undead who have no instinct other than to follow and destroy. You, he points at Sebastian may have the speed to succeed at this but your friends? No. So you will not be able to distract enough to make a hole for yourselves I think.
But as Jon refuses the idea, the man shakes his head and says:
We will not face the Demon Wolves. Call us cowards, as you will, but it makes no difference. For generations my tribe has faced theirs and been torn to shreds. Rhakis was not wrong when he told you that Ionocu is a terrible foe. But my accord is as I have described and you can take it or not. If you wish to throw your lives away against foes on two fronts we will watch from the shadows and pick upon what remains. Even without our help I daresay you can probably gravely wound both the Way and the Wolves before your inevitable deaths, thus making our task the easier in the end.
But then, if your Priest is as powerful as you say you have nothign to worry about. he adds with a charming grin.
Unsure of how his words will be taken Markus steps between the wolf and Jon. Lets hope Jon will listen and not call me out
"Jon let's not be to hasty, we can't take on both groups. I'm sorry but that's just a fact I couldn't stand all day against Vroods army and if we could Vrood would just mop us up after we had no spells left." He then looks to the wolves. "I think we need to discuss this as a group if you would give us just a moment." stepping back to the group he looks to the rest to get their reaction. "Jon you know where I stand, they gain nothing from betraying us. That argument got us nowhere last time "Thus might be our only way of getting to Vrood. Less you know of a way of getting to him? What do you let think?"
Jon glances back at the wolf his eyes flat and unfriendly.
smug flea bitten bastard! they are using us! Sure they may distract the dead but that poses no risk to them, they know they are getting the best of this bargain. If they betray us I swear I will f@#%ing kill him first before I go down
we are stuck between a rock and a hard place. But I needn't remind you that Malthus almost killed Morbar and he didn't even break sweat doing it. This demon wolf if the warnings are true will be worse, much worse. We will have to use a lot of our power to take him down. What If he has a spell caster like Malthus? How are we to counter that? Last time she locked us all down leaving Morbar exposed. Jon says gravely that can't happen again, Morbar is our strongest and we need him to take this wolf down quickly
I feel like I am being led around by the nose again, forced to take this bastard demon wolf down rather than go for Vrood. It's really starting to piss me off !
Jon says bitterly.
if we go into that mill we need to be ready for anything. Davos , Markus can you counter his spell caster if he has one? If we get into trouble we need to be able to end whatever shit they fling at us.
If we go in , we go in hard, I am going to power up as much as I can. I know we need to save something for Vrood but if we underestimate this we won't be around to fight Vrood Jon says looking around the others to gauge their reaction.
@Caradwen
Davos looks at Caradwens body laying on the floor "Is she alive?" he says with a sadden voice, watching as Jon heals her
Breathing sigh of relief as she opens her eyes "Good to see your still with us"
@Jon
"Depends on the location we fight in but I've got one or two spells I can use against the spell caster, I can also get either you Seb or Morbar next to the spellcaster if there is one"
Turning to the others "You guys need to rest for the evening or want to end this today?"
Open/Close
Light
Identify
Detect Magic
Prestidigitation
1st Level (6 + 1 evocation spell per day)
Magic Missile - 2
Grease - 1
Snowball - 1
Burning Hands - 1
Mage Armor -
Feather Fall - 1
2nd Level (4+1 evocation spell per day)
Scorching Ray - 1
Mirror Image - 1
Invisibility - 1
Glitterdust - 1
Create Pit - 1
3rd Level (4+1 Evocation spell per day)
Fireball - 1
Haste - 1
Fly - 2
4th Level (3+1 Evocation spell per day)
Empower Scorching ray - 2
black tentacles - 1
telekinetic charge - 1
Wand Scorching Ray - 50/14
Morbar strokes his beard as the discuss the plans, well the old proverb is "The enemy of my enemy is my friend as I think Seb said before so this could be a huge advantage to us. We just need to be very cautious I'd like to end vrood but if these demon wolves are protecting him we will have to end them too." he glances at the wolves "I think we will have to trust them for now after all we can't be the only ones who want to stop an undead army taking over the world. But it's down to everyone we are a team, we should vote on it? My vote is to trust them for now"
as I said we are between a rock and a hard place .
We will put an end to these demon wolves and then we go for Vrood. We can't afford to leave them behind us, it's clear the princes wolves are not going to engage them. Jon says we kill them all and then we move on Vrood, there will be no rest this day Jon says bitterly Davos, keep your eyes open for magic users. We can't get tangled up in their spells we need to take the fight to them as quickly as we can Jon says and sheathing Woundweaver he draws his silver longsword instead.
Sebastian nods. "we trust them. We have no choice. As for the leader of the demon wolves: if we see him Jon and Morbar should engage him. Cara csn pepper him from afar. If he has a spellcaster then Davos can get me to them and I'll do the rest."
You have decided then? Once you enter the mill we will begin engaging the undead. Vrood will not leave himself exposed so you should be prepared for him having support. I don't know where he is but we should be able to buy you enough time in facing only minimal resistance before you get to him.
The mill is the building across the street, the mist should still cover you but once battle is joined, the horde will now and that is when we will strike
lets get ready and get this done, if anyone needs healing speak up now there is no point carrying wounds into this battle Jon says and he begins to call on his powers casting spells on himself and Morbar.
what is the best way I to this mill? Have you scouted it out already? Jon asks the wolf
Hp 74/74
Ac 23
The mill is directly across the street and I think Ionacu picked it precisely because there is only one entrance.
the doorway will be defended, we need to breach it quickly and get inside. Morbar Seb and I will go in first, try to get us a foothold inside. Cara Davos Markus follow behind and we take this demon wolf and his pack down. What do you think? Jon asks as he focus his powers once more and his great wings unfurl from his back and his demonic appearance becomes even more frightening
The man steps away from the group and shifts form. Unlike Morbar the change is smooth and rapid, his limbs lengthening and his face becoming lupine in the blink of an eye. As he stands there, breathing heavily, you saw that maw shift into a grin.
Once the battle in the mill is joined, we will strike. Make your way from the mill to the centre of town if you want any chance of catching Vrood.
Markus nods at Jon, not wanting anything to get in the way of what they need to do. "We're with you Jon."
Spells
Level - 0
Mending
Read Magic
Light
Detect Magic
Create Water
Stabilize
Level - 1
Shield of Faith 0/1
Bless 1/1
Obscuring Mist 1/1
Sanctuary 1/1
Liberating Command 1/1
Remove Fear 1/1
Level - 2
Bull's Strength 0/1
Silence (DC 16) 1/1
Grace 1/1
Spiritual Weapon 1/1
Level - 3
Chain of Perdition 1/1
Dispel Magic 1/1
Blindness/Deafness (DC 17) 1/1
Level - 4
Blessing of Fervor 1/1
Spiritual Ally 1/1
--
Domain
Level - 1
Floating Disk 1/1
Comprehend Languages 1/1
Level - 2
Aid - 1/1
Detect Thought (DC 16) 1/1
Level - 3
Fly - 1/1
Protection from Energy 1/1
Level - 4
Dimension Door - 2/2
Freedom of Movement 0/0
--
Scrolls
Level - 1
Detect Undead 2/2
Hide from Undead 1/1
--
Wand
Level - 1
Hold Person 13/50 dc 15
Cure Light Wounds 67/100
Lessor Restoration 33/50
--
SL/SU
Daylight 1/1
Good Fortune 1/1
Silver-Tounged Haggler (7/7) (Su)
Bit of Luck (5/7) (sp)
Priest Channel Positive Energy 4d8 (6/9)
(DC 16) (Su)
"Agreed it's a good plan, thou maybe if we can draw them outside be better as Caradwen and myself may not be as effective" As they leave the warehouse Davos casts fly on himself
Open/Close
Light
Identify
Detect Magic
Prestidigitation
1st Level (6 + 1 evocation spell per day)
Magic Missile - 2
Grease - 1
Snowball - 1
Burning Hands - 1
Mage Armor -
Feather Fall - 1
2nd Level (4+1 evocation spell per day)
Scorching Ray - 1
Mirror Image - 1
Invisibility - 1
Glitterdust - 1
Create Pit - 1
3rd Level (4+1 Evocation spell per day)
Fireball - 1
Haste - 1
Fly - 1
4th Level (3+1 Evocation spell per day)
Empower Scorching ray - 2
black tentacles - 1
telekinetic charge - 1
Wand Scorching Ray - 50/14
While the companions are talking privately, Caradwen does share her thoughts - "I admit I was willing to go the extra mile for an arrangement back there, but his words stink - they don't attack by themselves, and if we fight on any other terms different than their own, they will watch from the shadows, to pick up the pieces afterword?" - she shakes her head - "Makes me feel just like sitting down, letting the Demon Wolves get what they came for, and return back to shred the other tribes to pieces" - she snarls.
Listening to all the points of view, the woman calms down somewhat, but ceases her interaction with the werewolf representative completely.
"Only a single entrance?" - she ponders to her companions - "I gotta doubt that, and I would prefer having an invisible Sebastian scouting the area to make sure before we move in. Pressing through a bottleneck is simply crazy" - the bard adds a little more vehemently this time - "Errors like that get people killed, and as Davos said, allow for little efficiency either from him or me. I would rather torch the whole place and force them to meet us outside, fighting on our terms, than we going madly through a single entrance to face head on whatever they may have in place for invaders"
"Why not make Sebastian invisible, and having him scout the area for alternatives?" - she shrugs, looking at her companions - "Bursting through a single, defended door should be our LAST option. Heck, why don't we ask Morbar to try and punch a hole on the wall with that marvelous hammer of his, or on the ceiling? I doubt it is made of stone, and boy would they be caught unaware" - Caradwen presses on - "I think we are being whipped into action by those that will not follow if we don't act in the only single way they want us to, and simply taking it at face value" - she turns to the werewolves - "Granted, we may want to play that game, but at least we can check for alternatives. Scouting is the BARE minimum"
"If they don't come out to us as we get closer, Morbar making another entrance in the side could be a good idea to catch them off. Seb being invisible could help him get in closer, but remember what we fight these wolves can pick up your scent easy it will be hard to get past them."
your right Cara, we needn't go in the doorway. Morbar if you want to open up a back door for us we can go that way. Hopefully the whole f+@+ing place will just collapse when you smash a hole in it Jon says with a grin
"I'm happy to do that but with the noise I'll make smashing it down and with seb going in invisible and being smelt by the wolves they will 100% know we are here so may fortify their position it could make our fight harder when we are inside, I know going in the front door isn't the best but if we catch then unaware we will have a huge advantage but they may already know we are here so could be point less. So do you want me to smash a back door down here? Or fly or even do that nifty levitate thing up to the roof and work our way down?"
"If this building has a wooden roof then I could fly to the top and start a fire as Caradwen suggests, get them to meet us outside? But It may also get the attention of the undead army which we don't want upon us" Davos says to the others
The monk chips in. "Every minute we delay Vrood is nearer to achieving his goals. I say we take the front door and as Jon says strike hard and fast. We may take them by surprise. I am happy to scout but on this occasion I do not believe it will help."
Sebastian considers a moment longer. "If we burn it to the ground we will need a powerful source of fire. Perhaps one of Davos' fireballs. Do we have any alchemist fire or lamp oil and torches? If we have I will use my speed to throw it through any windows or the door."
"Of course I got a fireball I can use to burn the building but any fuel we can use on the building to help accurate the fire would help greatly."