Something about the gods just doesn't sit right with Kori, by the time Short-legs began to repeat himself, she had been lost in her own thoughts.
She unceremoniusly interrupts the dwarf, like usual "So, it doesn't make sense. If there are so many gods, even a lot of gods of war and battle, why doesn't the strongest one defeat the others? Or even easier, beat all the weak love and art gods? Why doesn't the toughest god become the only god? Why share all the power with the others? Surely any of the war gods you mentioned could do this, like this Gorum guy. He sounds like he could take the others."
It was odd for her to use the god's name, as she is normally bad with names. She couldn't really think of anything else to call him, having never met him.
Angmar raises an eyebrow at the Dark Elf and looks at her confused.
In the heavens as on Golarion not all wars are won with the sword. Why would Gorum want to kill other gods anyhow? Then he'd have to deal with arts and love and song. He does not want that. It's much like in a real community. The Warrior is there to protect the farmer and the farmer feeds the warrior. But one will be in a bad situation without the other.
Kori eyes the dwarf suspiciously as he suggests that a god wouldn't want absolute power, but her disbelief fades as he makes his point about having to worry about art and song. All she can do is purse her lips and nod with his assessment.
With Angmar and Kori deep in conversation, oblivious to his comments, Apollo removes his top, spreading it across the ground to dry out.
The talk of Gods obviously comes above Dmitri's well being. Well, I did mention he'd been gone for a while. Anyway, time to enjoy the sun a little. I need a rest!
Nom, come and sit with me over here!
Chucking his hammer down, Apollo lays on the ground, hands behind his head, under the hot sun to dry off, as little Nom plods over to him, laying down like a dog, with his chin buried in the sand ever so slightly.
Seeing thta Kori is at least partially convinced that there is a point in a celestial order. Angmar ends his ramblings. He looks around and notices the lack of Dmitri and also sees an unfamiliar face which he recalls has been sent here by Alma.
Excuse my poor manners. I am Angmar Firefox.
Hatim, in his searches of the monastery for "things that Kori didn't notice", comes across a door in the basement with a bloody message scrawled on it. "Performing ritual. Do not disturb" in dried blood is written on the door.
Hatim coming upon the graffitied door, and stops in disgust automatically recognizing the writing as blood, a little dry, but still blood. Kicking back his repulse thoughts, he reads the message, but gives no heed to it. Instead he steps back, takes out a vial of acid, and then slowly and carefully pours the liquid onto the door. Sick behavior. Who would do such a thing, write with blood?
Breathing a final sigh to himself, the rush of madness, or rather, clarity, finally left him entirely. The twinge of good in his body bothered him a bit, but sharing thoughts with something was odd on it's own, and surely, there was more to that scythe than he'd care to have known.
His consciousness tried to wain, but he fought through the tiredness. He'd be damned if he didn't find a good place to rest soon. The ritual had certainly taken a toll on him, but he felt... different, somehow. Invigorated, rather. As if, if he could overcome this and heal, he'd be stronger than ever. Certainly his powers from the ritual hadn't came to complete fruition yet, but they'd arrive... eventually.
That said, as Dmitri began to collect his things and don his equipment, he heard some sort of... noise, from the door. While he knew he'd have to explain all this, he was still worried they'd oust him as a freak of nature and kill him on the spot, but, having come so close to it, Dmitri wasn't exactly scared of dying. That, and, he doubted they would. Hell, if anything, Kori would be impressed with his ability to stay conscious.
As the cleaning noise continued, Dmitri donned his coat and not his breastplate, making it a point to button it up over his body. The only notable cuts were those on his face, and that wasn't exactly much. The bleeding had already stopped, of course.
Grabbing his weapons and donning his scythe, he did what he felt was reasonable; which was open the door.
Not entirely startled by the now opening door, Hatim finishes his cleaning by splashing the last bit of acid on the door. He steps back to see his handy work fully knowing he might have awaken or interrupted something or someone. But, he waits and places his hand on his long spear.
The stone door slides open to reveal a pair of people face-to-face: Hatim, a bald Kelish man, longspear on his back and bottles and vials hanging from everywhere on his torso, and Dmitri, a nearly inhumanly tall, white-haired (although the hair is stained with blood) and bloodstained man, swaying from his injuries, and radiating an uncomfortably black aura.
On the surface, Apollo, Kori, and Angmar move out to enjoy the sun after their long day of cleaning, only to find the sun nearly dipping under the mountains - it's already evening.
Managing to catch the sun for a small amount of time before sundown, and being mostly dry due to the almost always hot climate, Apollo opened his eyes.
Well that was short lived. I was at least hoping to catch a little more sun, and where has my little Lizard gone? Guess I'll go look for him.
Picking up and donning his somewhat wet Breastplate, Apollo heads back inside the monastery, heading towards his equipment left on top of the pews he slept on. Grabbing one of his rations, he starts chomping away as he works his way around the Monastery.
Nooooooooooom? Where are ya buddy?
Walking through the courtyard, there's no sign of the little guy and oblivious to what's going on in the doorway behind him, he carries on around to the kitchen and bedding area of the building, where the spider and baboon's were previously fought.
As he peers into the door with the upturned beds, he see's Nom chewing on the head of one of the deceased monkeys.
Ah, there you are....having a good meal there are you?
The little lizard looks up, unable to understand anything the tall dark haired man has to say, and begins pulling the monkey by the head, over towards Apollo.
Come on then, it's nightfall already. If you want to eat that before bed, you better bring it with you. I'll lead you to the cathedral and then check on the others. The caravan should be arriving tomorrow too, so I'm gonna get an early night.
I'll get to see that beautiful woman again tomorrow. Almah, such a nice woman.
Heading towards the cathedral, Apollo nods his head to and from Nom and once there, goes to check on the others, working his way clockwise from the cathedral.
Opening the door and looking out at the bald germaphobe, Dmitri can't help but be surprised. He'd expected the Dwarf, or Kori, or at the least, one of the people he'd traveled with. Unfortunately it was the man who's name he didn't know, or had seen in action.
The blood and cuts beneath Dmitri's eyes and mouth were still pretty apparent, and he'd made no attempt to hide the crimson in his hair, which was surprisingly deep at the base, as if he'd dipped it in a pool of it. In his madness that was actually likely. Regardless, it's still obvious he's very injured, just through facial expressions alone.
The blood had definitely sprayed across his face, though he wasn't particularly caked in it around the eyes.
"You were... the new one, no? I'd left you with Apollo." he said rather plainly, rather apathetic to his injures.
As he talks, he moves out, and starts up the stairs, making the room behind him all but too apparent. "We should rejoin with the others before we rest. They'll be thrilled to know that... I've... finally found her." he beckoned.
His footsteps are rife with his blood, though it fades as he walks, though not up the stairs. Looking back, he realized the man had been cleaning it with a small vile of acid, a fact at which he chuckled. He was going to need more...
Making his way around the monastery, Apollo will find Dmitri and Hatim coming up the stairs out of the undercrypt - where the spiders and baboons were.
Hatim, wide eye out of disbelief of this man's condition lets go of his long spear and asks, "Whomever she is," he glances at the blood filled room with a twitch in his eye, but keeps a straight mouth expression, "Is she dead?" He then moves slowly and softly closes the now clean door, excepting the fact that the room was a lost cause.
Dmitri chuckles for a moment. "Assuredly, no. The blood in that room was my own. Killing a woman would be sacrilege. Come, let's join the others." he suggests, heaving a heavy sigh as he gets to the top of the stairs.
Seeing Apollo approach them, he shuts his eyes for a moment, and breathes in deeply.
Blank faced Hatim follows up the stairs trying to not pay attention to the blood steps the pink haired man left behind. While avoiding stepping in the prints on the floor he mutters,"Ah, well you're a mess."
"I'll make sure to bathe as soon as possible." He says plainly, looking away from Apollo for a moment. The new member was taking this rather well, considering.
The evening passes into night fairly quickly.
Dmitri, bloodstained and injured as he is, is able to make it up the stairs and into the common areas to rest the night through. He leaves the laboratory behind him, drenched in his blood, and Hatim trailing behind him trying to clean up his trail with acid.
The night descends quickly, and each of the members of the group retreats back into the monastery to their favorite haunts to sleep their long day away.
As you drift away into sleep, there is a curious falling sensation, not as if you were falling infinitely as sometimes happens, but more a sensation of falling from your feet to the ground.
You seemingly awake, unarmored and unarmed but clothed, in an endless waste. The plains is devoid of life. You are alone. In the blink of an eye, however, the horizon is filled with figures. On two sides, as far as the eye can see, armored and armed men and women charge across the lonely plains at one another. In a matter of moments, the two forces clash into one another, and it's all you can do to keep from being crushed. A few swift strikes later, and anyone accosting you is on the ground. Continuing to beat back the hordes of men from both sides, you find your flesh slowly transforming to iron, and spikes emerging from what was once your skin. Your punches turn to slams, and any that try to attack you only strike sparks on you. As the battle winds down, one immense figure is shown rising above the ranks of now-fallen soldiers. Ten feet tall, clad head to toe in iron spiked armor, this figure radiates power, and speaks once before you wake in a sweat.
"Glorious, was it not?"
For the group, the morning comes with almost supernatural quickness, and light shines through the various holes in the building indicating a warm Katapeshian morning to come.
From outside the monastery, the spits and clops of camel mouths and hooves can be heard, as well as some vague directing.
A familiar voice can be heard: Garavel, calling to see if anyone is in the monastery.
Kori isn't the only one that had a rough night - Apollo wakes up with a burning fever and a lethargy in his bones that isn't helping him recover from his blood-sucking ordeal from a few days past.
Angmar is somewhat shocked to find Dimitri in such a state and after seeing what he has done to the laboratory he turns outright mad at the man. None the less his sense of pragmatism rules over and he heals the worst of the man's wounds however it is far beyond his powers to fully heal the mad man's wounds. He ends his rituals that Angrodd clearly conducts with little favor with the warning that this will be the last time he will treat any wounds the mad man inflicts himself.
When Kori sees Pain-lover and New guy return, her first concern is that there was a fight that was that violent and bloody, and she didn't get to take part. Then she noticed that only Pain-lover was beat up, so she thought maybe New guy did it.... but they were walking together. At this point she was fairly confused as to what happened, or why. After Short-legs offered the healing, she considered the matter resolved. Any fight they walked away from was over as far as she is concerned.
Once they all decide to call it a night, Kori returns to the room she stayed in the night before, completely unconcerned about where the others camp. She sets up her bed much the same way as well, comfortable with how well it worked last time.
Unlike the day before, Kori awakes with her muscles feeling strained and worn out. She foregoes the exercises she did the day before, her dreams fueling her feelings of having spent her day in worthy battle. She skips packing up her sleeping arrangements, thinking that if they stay longer, she has staked out a good spot that she doesn't want anyone else claiming.
With the other two fussing over the eggs, she decides she'll breakfast on some trail food instead, upset that they are wasting perfectly good and filling eggs for pets or money out here in the middle of the desert.
When the Caravan-driver calls to announce his arrival, Kori strides out ready for the day, but trying to ease and flex sore muscles that she is willing to accept considering how she got them. "Yeah, we're here. The place is cleared of what measly threats were here."
Seeing Dmitri talking to the new guy, Apollo didn't really know what to think. He looked at Dmitri wondering how he was still standing, and yet here he was, covered in blood and talking to Hatim calmly.
Well, this is interesting....
Dmitri...you look half dead my friend. Is there anything you wanna tell me? I'd like a word when you have a mo.
Awaiting response, Apollo stands there thinking.
I'm not gonna mention this morning in front of this new guy, but Dmitri's up to something.
Stumbling out of bed the next morning, Apollo seemed a little off balance. Was he just forgetting where he was, or was there more to it than that?
Tapping Nom on the side and getting ready at the sound of Garavel's voice, Apollo woke up a little later than he normally would, which was slightly out of character for him.
Grabbing his hammer and slinging it over his shoulder, the man took two steps forwards then stumbled to the side a few feet.
Something's not right here, he said to himself as he regained his balance.
As he walked past Kori, heading outside, he said Good morning to the woman in a friendly manner, though looking far paler than normal.
Approaching Garavel, he looked over the Caravan crew before speaking; Garavel, I'm glad you made it here safely. We've cleared the place out, but I want to ask, do you have a medic of some sort travelling with you? I've been feeling rough ever since my encounter with three giant, flying bugs two days ago and felt I'd better get checked over.
Looking over at Apollo, Dmitri could practically feel his concern. Whether it was concern for himself, or Dmitri, he wasn't sure, but, it didn't really matter. When he requests a private Audience with him, he looks back over to Hatim, giving an eyebrow, but shrugging.
Dmitri hadn't had the opportunity to meet with Apollo, or so speak a lick of conversation. To him, the man was merely an acquaintance who's name he could hardly remember, if only because he'd been so busy with Kori.
"I can probably assume what you want to talk about... Very well, I'll let you choose. I've nothing to do now, anyway."
While he was obviously tired, Dmitri had became rather astute at keeping pain under wraps. It was certain he was near-death, but he trusted his own fortitude.
Waking up was something. While the Dwarf had certainly hilled his most critical wounds, the one's near the veins and arteries, Dmitri was still enjoying the afterglow of his painful debauchery the day before...
The Dwarf had seemed awful hesistant, but by that point most of his bodily vices had failed him to the point that the evening was a blur, save for the conversation with Apollo.
The cuts had healed, and his armor laid to the side, if only so he could get some sleep the night prior. Donning it, and applying his coat, he left it undone, allowing those that would look at him the ability to see his finely scabbed wounds that covered his body rather symmetrically.
"Wouldn't mind waking up to this all the time..." The pain in his back and sides was merciless, but his craft left none of the wounds infected, as expected. He could still hear Lilith's voice from the dream, clearly. He raised an arm into the air and clenched his hand, surging dark energies into it, but they merely fizzled away, as he hadn't learned how to properly control it yet. A shame, that.
Dmitri had woken up unsurprisingly late, arriving just after Apollo finishes his explanation of the bugs and his ailment.
Resting his hand on a sickle as he arrives, he looks to Kori, nodding a hello in her direction. "Good morning, Koritylija. I trust you slept well?" he asks, walking towards Garavel, past Apollo and out of the church. Looking to Garavel, and ignoring the fact his wounds are all but too apparent, he asks; "Tell me, have you any requests from dearest Almah? The Pugamampi, or whatever the vile things are called, provided little challenge, and I am eager to please."
Kori acknowledges the well-wishes of the morning, just acknowledges, but doesn't return them. She found the act odd, why do people tell her or each other if the morning is good, that is for her to decide for herself. As for having slept well, all she can think to say was, "I killed more enemy in my sleep than we all did since we've been here. I slept... violently." This last she adds, not with exhaustion or frustration, more with contentment bordering on satisfaction.
Then follow me! said Apollo in his usual amused tone.
Apollo leads Dmitri to the area the group fought the Stirges, seeing it as a decent place to make conversation away from the ears and eyes of those he travels with.
Yawning, the man speaks to Dmitri, seemingly tired and not too worried, but it's clear something's on his mind.
Okay, now that nobody's around, what's going on? I didn't think it'd be a good idea to mention the blood I saw on your face this morning...or at least not in front of the others, so wanted to talk things over.
Dmitri grins a bit, and leans up against a wall. It eventually fades into just a smile. Breathing in a slow breathe, savoring the pain in his lungs, he asks rather simply; "Exactly what do you want to know?"
Bouncing off the wall a bit, he tells a story. "While I don't normally consort with those of my same gender, I do feel entitled to inform the lot of you of myself..."
Unbuttoning his coat, he continues to talk; "Dearest Lilith, Daemon Lord of Lust, Women, Pain, and Subjugation, as well as Blood. Exiled sister of Zura, and far more refined. That is the deity I pay heed to, and worship openly..." Finally opening it entirely, the breastplate was slightly stained in crimson, and the wounds were all too obvious.
"The room below us, the one with the... mold? Was it? I had been visited by her in my sleep, an experience, to say the least. She chose me as a champion, but I was required to seal my resolve. Now I stand here, barely able to stand."
He looked at Apollo, and placed his hand on right eye, brushing his hair back. "So there you have it. I worship a hedonistic deity of pain and female subservience, and I wish to be her champion." he says, opening his arms wide. "I'm simply on a pilgrimage." His expression is that of happiness, if a little bit arrogant.
Apollo smirks.
Ya know, that's probably not something you should be telling people.
Rubbing his hand on the back of his neck, trying to work out what to say next, the man looks at Dmitri and asks Did that have something to do with your cut this morning? I couldn't be arsed to mention it to anyone. Would probably only cause issues and prevent us from doing our job. Still, we've cleared this place out, so it's easy to tell your wounds are your own doing.
Apollo pauses for a second before continuing.
Personally, so long as you're on our side, I'm not bothered about what you do, but the others might be, so if you plan on abusing yourself regularly, I'd do it where you're not going to be noticed. You're pretty crazy though, man.
And he's officially lost the plot.
"I assure you, this was merely a show of gratitude to Dearest Lilith." he says, lowering the coat from his shoulders. "This was merely a show of gratitude to solidify her favor, and she was... more than appeased..." he said, touching his eyes. "The bleeding was a sign after her visitation."
He moves from the wall, and looks to him, eyes narrowed, but not annoyed. "I will be in the service of this group to pursue my pilgrimage and to deepen my faith, as well as serve Almah and Koritylija, as well as any other female that requires my services. Forget your worries."
Flipping his hair towards Apollo, he turns his head to the door, not looking at him. As he begins to walk out of the room; "Feel free to inform the others. I hold no ill will toward any of you. I've... enjoyed this."
And with that, he leaves the room.
Well, if you end up getting yourself killed from fighting in weakened states like this, you won't be able to continue your pilgrimage or help others out.
Apollo shrugs, wondering if his advice will even be taken on board.
So he's willingly a slave to all women, and harms himself to a point where he's close to death. Ha! I can see this going horribly wrong.
As Dmitri leaves, Apollo follows, talking until branching off to where he sleeps. Keep what I've said in mind, friend. I'll see you tomorrow.
Kori, Apollo, and Dmitri leave the monastery to meet up with Almah's caravan, and they find it in a somewhat sorry shape. The two remaining wagons are somewhat scratched up, and the size of the caravan is noticably reduced. Where once there were four Pactmaster's Guard and eight mercenaries, now only five mercenaries and three Pactmaster's Guard remain.
"Gnoll ambush." notes Garavel gravely when he sees your searching eyes.
To Apollo's request for a healer, he'll point the man to a halfling cleric named Zastoran who accompanied the caravan. The old man is rather depleted of magical resources from healing the caravan members, but he can still provide some aid, and always has potions for sale.
When tending to Apollo, Zastoran notices Dmitri's ruined body, and will agree to heal it with the remaining resources he has.
While performing his craft, however, he constantly chides, mockingly, both Apollo and Dmitri for not having the magical prowess to be able to heal themselves. "If you only had magical talent, I would not have to stretch my magical abilities such to make up for your unfortunate failings.", he says, among other things. Despite his disdain for your lack of magic, his healing touch soothes your aches and pains, and white energy emanates from him to close wounds and restore energy.
Almah approaches Kori, who is more or less the only one not otherwise occupied. The woman has light bloodstains on her fine silk clothing, and her sword is badly in need of cleaning. The woman looks very tired. "Excellent job clearing out the monastery. We will have to labour to make this place more habitable, but I can leave much of that to my guards."
She quietly directs the leader of the Pactmaster's guard, and the eight remaining muscle men move into the monastery to begin scoping out and cleaning rooms.
"Did you encounter anything particularly dangerous or notable here, Kori?"
As Dmitri is healed by the same halfling he'd intimidated into doing his bidding prior, he can't help but feel a since of irony for whatever reason. As this happens, and Garavel makes it a point to mention that they'd been attacked, Dmitri looks around to see if any women had been harmed, or worse.
Dmitri was about to ask Almah the question of whether or not any women had been harmed personally, until she engaged Kori in conversation, at which point he had to resist the urge to clasp his hand over his mouth to stop from interrupting.
Having his wounds healed again, he chose to simply ask later and dwell on what he might do. Regardless, he looked to the halfling, rather curiously as his wounds healed right before his eyes as they'd done so commonly recently.
"I assure you, my deity will favor me with this ability soon." Mentioning it, he sounded a bit envious, which was rare. He wanted to be able to close wounds just as much, open them...
Dmitri had a smidgen of respect for just about anyone that closely revered a deity, considering them more refined than those that relied on their own power. While it was mostly due to his brainwashed subjugation, he considered people's existence trivial at best. To rely on a higher power was to accept insignificance, a trait he enjoyed.
Looking to him; "I admire your close relationship with your deity, and I hope mine would grant the same abilities as yours does to you... though I imagine I would call upon greater strength and fortitude, rather than healing."
Pulling out his scythe, he looks at the motifs and honestly wishes he could change the look of it to something black, red, or something... the air motifs and clouds he doesn't much enjoy, but the weapon is undeniably sharp. Inspecting the curvature of the weapon and running a hand down the blade, he continues; "I do apologize for my earlier anger... you must understand, my god reveres women. For one to be injured so severely, I was quite furious with you when you didn't proceed to heal her at first. I do apologize."
Angmar studies the destruction caused to the caravan and then takes toll of the bodies of dead both human and Gnoll.
Did ye kill em all Lady Almah or did they run?
The halfling perks up a bit at the mention of Dmitri's diety and Dmitri's apology. "You revere a diety and anticipate receiving powers from her? Perhaps I've underestimated you. Would you care to speak on what diety you worship?"
Four men are dead - the major members of the caravan (Dashki, Garavel, Almah, Zastoran) are all battle-worn but uninjured, likely healed by Zastoran. The five remaining mercenaries and three remaining Pactmaster's Guard are all fine, and sport mere scratches, also likely healed from near-death (if they reached it) by Zastoran. Kallien is still present (Her and Almah are the only female members of the caravan) and relatively uninjured.
Almah sweeps her robe aside to look down at Angmar before saying "The battle was fierce, and we were outnumbered, but after we killed half of their number they broke and ran. I actually believe they went back to Kelmerane, and asked Dashki about it, and he informed me that gnolls have taken up residence there, which is greatly troubling."
While she talks, she directs the remainder of the caravan indoors, actually ordering the wagons pulled into the nave. They take up most of the room in the nave, but they fit easily and Almah feels safer with them indoors. The members of the caravan then begin to scatter, both curiously exploring the monastery and also bringing a chest or two with them to claim rooms they're particularly interested in.
Kori just nods as Boss-lady talks about their monastery. Used to just being told what to do by those in charge, other than have discussions, she isn't really paying attention. When there is a sudden silence, with the woman looking at her expectantly, she realizes she was asked a question.
Baffled at first, she had to try and rememebr what was just said, then she had to decide how to deliver the information. She figured she would do it importance order. "Oh, Ummm. Lizard-friend had some big bugs suck his blood. We found some weapons in the crypts, and Pain-lover dug up a really nice new weapon. There was a big one of those gnoll imps, that came out after us, but he wasn't a threat, just hard to hit. Other than that all we saw were some spiders, monkeys, and more of those irritating imp things. Ummmm, oh, there was also some goopy thing down in the underground table room, but I don't even think I got one swing off. Sooo, nothing dangerous or important. You should have sent your others up here and kept us with the wagons from the look of things."
Kelmarane... Angmar stutters. The thought that Haleen might by amongst a mob of Gnolls does not sit well with the normally calm Dwarf.
We should go to Kelmarane and deal with this issue. What say you Apollo slayer of Gnolls?
Looking out upon the others, Dmitri stopped caressing the scythe and placed it down. He locked eyes with the halfling, eyes dull, yet interested. With a firm statement, he simply says "Lilith." and proceeds to gauge his reaction.
Gnoll's... said Apollo with slight anger in his voice, gripping his hammer slightly tighter than before.
Very well Garavel. I'll get healed up and if there's anything you wish to know, just ask.
Walking over to the Halfling, the man looks a bit worn down. Traces of blood still line his hair, while his complexion is dangerously pale and his balance is slightly off.
As he sits down, the Halfling heals his wounds, but not before mocking his ability to fight.
Well friend, failing isn't a word I'd use. I killed most of the Pug things myself, as the party had trouble hitting the little sods, but I also came off worse than the rest of those venturing with me.
Apollo sighs as he goes on to talk with the Halfling.
Three flying bugs attacked me. They were about my size. Not really seen anything like it before, but I felt pretty drained after that encounter. Still do actually, but what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger!
Still, what's the diagnosis? Am I diseased, just needing rest or what?
As for magical abilities, although being able to heal would be helpful, if you stop hiding behind your magic and step up to the frontline for a second, maybe you'd be more understanding and appreciative of our efforts.
After being healed of his wounds, Apollo gets up and thanks the Cleric, seeking out Almah but not before stumbling across Angmar.
Huh? Gnoll Slayer? If Gnoll's are in Kelmarane that's all I needed to know. For what they did to my family, and with the attack on your Caravan Apollo says as he looks towards Almah, I'll make them regret their actions and I'll take far more delight in killing them than they will from attacking random innocents.
Looking to almah, Apollo moves forwards, placing his hand gently on the womans bicep.
Are you hurt Almah? I'll deal with this issue, but I wish no harm would ever come to you. Gnoll's I can deal with, but with the loss of a loved one, I cannot.
The man blushes as he quickly turns away from Almah to head back towards the Monastery.
"I have heard enough." says Almah, even ignoring Apollo's flirtatious comment in her impatience.
Almah is uninjured, but it is clear that she participated in the battle against the gnolls from her battleworn state.
"It is clear that emptying Kelmerane of resistance will be more difficult than I thought...convene in the library in twenty minutes, I will gather the rest."
Zastoran looks Dmitri up and down, sizing up who he now knows is a demon-worshipper. "Well." he says, "That wasn't any answer that I was expecting...but honestly, you haven't been a danger to us, and Nethys doesn't care much for crusading against evil. Hell, a guy on our side's a guy on our side, and you're tough as nails. A hit you take is a hit I don't have to, and I think you can handle it a lot better than I can. I speak too much, though. Almah requires our presence. Come."
Almah's brought a table into the library and her mercenaries have cleared away a lot of the clutter, leaving room for all 19 members of the group to gather in the room, or at least within eyeshot and earshot in the doorway. On their way, several members of the caravan gave the skeleton in the courtyard glances askance, but said nothing of it for now.
Dashki's gathered a walking staff, and the odious man has tied one of the gremlin corpses (one of those not crushed by Apollo's hammer completely) to it, and it hangs limply. When asked why, he says he likes the decoration.
Almah steeples her hands on her desk and begins to speak to the assembly. "So, all of us gathered here today know of Kelmerane and our mission. We know that it's overrun by a gnoll tribe called, according to Dashki, the Kulldis tribe. Preliminary intelligence on this tribe suggests that they're too numerous to simply attempt an all-out attack."
She turns to the group she's especially commissioned to come. "I'd like the five of you to make scouting missions and guerilla attacks on Kelmerane for a few days. I'd like you to guage the real level of resistance there, and start work on the liberation of the city. I'd also like to set a watch here, and the rafters above provide an excellent view of Kelmerane from here. I'll set my guards on it, but any of you who wish to join them certainly may. If you wish to bring Dashki with you, you may as well.
Have I been clear enough? Do any of you have questions, suggestions, input? If not, while the day is still young, I would like you to start on this early."
Apollo says nothing for once, leaving the room abruptly (noticeable by everyone) and heads towards the cathedral area, this time slinging his bow and arrow over his shoulder in plain sight for anyone watching, with a quiver held onto a strap running across his back, and his trademark hammer gripped in both hands.
Turning to Nom, he says Stay here. speaking with a truly serious tone for the first time ever, before heading outside.
On his way out, he speaks to any guards in passing, telling them to leave his egg as it is, but asks that Nom would be looked after until his return.
Now's not the time to be flirting. I tried to keep things light hearted to lift spirits, but it didn't work. Maybe I should leave Almah alone for a while. My main objective is to get revenge on all Gnoll's for all those I grew up with, and when I finally get to Ghartok, one of us will fall.
Kori doesn't quite know what the woman means by convene, or even how to tell when twenty minutes has passed, so she just follows her directly there. She actually welcomes the labor in helping to clear some of the clutter and bring the table in, but she is unhappy to learn that the room that she thought was hers is now full of people. As they work she keeps eyeballing her sleeping arrangement, wondering if anyone was going to mess with her stuff or say anything about it.
When all the others arrive she is sitting on the balcony next to her bedroll, her legs dangling over the edge as she listens. She is disturbed by the corpse on a stick, not because of the gruesome nature, but due to the fact that dead things stink. She never understood the need to collect parts of the dead as trophies. If you need a piece of a creature defeated to prove you are tough, then you don't make much of an impression on your own.
When she learns they will be using hit and run tactics to wear down their numbers, she is pleased. It is little of what she remembers of her people and how they raided. "I will look at this Kelmerane from these rafters first, but I expect to see the place much closer after that. I welcome Imp-stick if he can do more than carry the dead. Let's hope his knowing gnolls helps him to kill them."
Hatim spent most of his morning alone in a squared-off corner outlined with rodent repellent. He watches the rest of the group go through their morning routines, analyzing how they behaved and took care of themselves. Most were not to his standard, but nothing he couldn’t live with. The reptile type pet still made his skin crawl with a feeling he couldn’t make out to be fear or disgust. Hatim then decides to stop his staring, and begin to clean up the area where he’d slept.
Hatim welcomes most new comers with a nod or a small hand movement in acknowledgement. He listens to most of the conversation, but he isn’t much of the type to add words of no value. Even when the ranger claims to have killed most of the small creatures from the day before, he thinks to himself. Hatim then cracks a mocking smile then moves to another location where he might catch more entertainment. If he is needed, he will be called upon.
After a small while of observing he then notices everyone moving into a room. He follows staying behind everyone piling into a random room which they have seemed to clear out. Once inside he finds a nice space to lean against the wall. He watches the briefing intently, but is unsure what to think.
"Let us go, then." Is all Dmitri said as he agreed and proceeded to follow the halfling.
Listening, Dmitri couldn't help but feel excited. His blood had been boiling for an actual fight for quite some time, really. Apart from his own self-inflicted injuries, he'd been wildly unharmed, which was a bit of a disappointment. Fights were something to take great pleasure in, really.
As Almah asked if there were questions, Dmitri found himself considering plenty of things. He raised a hand as Almah ceased talking, as well as Kori, and asked; "Other than what you've just informed us of, your grace, may I trouble you for more information on kelmerane? Are there any areas you believe they may seek to fortify?"
The question is a simple one. Bigger buildings meant tactical advantage. Even he could understand that. He just wondered if he'd been too formal.... no, no certainly not.
Angmar seems very agitated all morning ever since word about going to Kelmarane has come up the Dwarf appears to be especially eager. He joins everyone else in the library, the place he had hoped they could secure as their sleeping quarters and seats himself next to the Dark Elf. Afterall while she is a bit savage she's likely the least insane of his companions, well maybe with the exceptation of Hatim the new man but Angmar knows nothing of the man.
Almah looks at Dmitri with one raised eyebrow. "Your grace...? Please, call me Almah or Miss Roveshki."
She takes a quick sigh, and then answers him. "Kelmerane is one of a series of 'battle market' towns. They were designed to connect Katapesh and most of the world through a network of markets, and each of them is built around a huge circular structure called a 'battle market'. It is likely this battle market that the Kulldis tribe has set up shop in, and this likely concentration of enemy power is why I am advising caution when it comes to assaulting the town."
She also informs Kori that Kori is free to inspect the town from the rafters above the chapel.
If Kori does so, she sees and she notes that the town is patrolled, at any given time, by several patrols of a few gnolls. She can't make out how many in each patrol, nor can she make out additional defenses from this distance specifically.
With Apollo's impatience, he heads back in, wondering what the hold up is.
As he approaches the library once more, he waits for a pause in Almah's speech before asking those he travelled with before; What's the hold up? We've got a mission to accomplish and I'm ready to go. I'm tired of the Gnoll's attacking innocents. The sooner I can kill them, the better.
Kori, being already beside her gear, decides to gather her stuff back up in case they find themselves unable to make it back for the night. She was raised to raid, her family learning early on she had neither the 'aptitude' for being an arcanist nor the lineage of a priestess, but was fully capable for fighting. "What we are doing, Lizard-friend, is not rushing blindly at an enemy that may overpower or outnumber us. We are doing hit and run, and for these types of raids, being prepared is better than being fast."
She continues, but actually sounds more like she's repeating something told to her, than something she herself has thought of. "The last thing you want to do is find yourself deep inside the elven lands, cut off from your raiding party, and without the tools to survive on your own until you can get back to the tunnels. That is why we have raiding protocols."
"I see..."
Dmitri simply bows in thanks for the quick and thoughtful reply. Not a full bow, simply a head nod with a casual lean forward. "It's against my religion to not respect a woman with a title, so I will refer to you as Miss Roveshki..."
As he raises back up, he notes Apollo's impatience, and he meets it with a scowl. Not before looking back to Almah with yet another question. "By chance, Miss Roveshki..." He enjoyed the sound of it. Rather demanding. Quaint. "...We will no doubt be killing more than just a few gnolls shortly in the future... While it is highly unbecoming of me to do so, I would make a request. While I have no worry for myself with... injury, I fear my... comrades, are not so blessed with my fortitude, save for Koritylija. Could we incur a small pittance of potions to assist us in this endeavor?
He was more worried for Koritylija being injured than the others, but, he wasn't about to make that apparent.
That said, his delivery practically drowned him in honey.
Ignoring Dmitri's scowl, Apollo's quick to respond to Kori, not through anger, but through assertiveness.
Yea, I heard. We'll try to remain hidden, working our way from the outside in, and I'll be hitting and running to the next Gnoll with every one of the dogs we encounter. As eager as I am to kill a bunch of Gnoll's, I don't blindly do anything. I won't be running into the middle of Kelmerane, announcing my hatred for every resident there.
We hit hard and fast, drawing as little attention to ourselves possible. says the man with confidence, but refusing to give eye contact to anyone, seeming pretty peed off by the assumptiveness and slow reaction of those he travels with.
Hatim, leaning against the wall waits for some form of team break up and assignment. He prepares his thoughts for a tactical mind-set; knowing that he would have hold back on his beloved explosives due to the stealth that would be required on such a mission. Which made his expression drop into a disappointed frown. His bombs were quick and dissolved most problems in one strike; more blood on his longspear would require him to acquire extra rags. Hatim lets out an almost silent sigh, and understands he will have to deal with it. There are other methods to being effective...