Ibrahim slows only to check that his friends have cleared the obstacles, before leaping and climbing at a full stride.
Mirri hops the ruined street and over the fence quickly, with Ibrahim in tow.
Petra leaps for the top of the fence and misses, but Say'ri catches her by the wrist, hauling her up awkwardly as the wights crash into the fence, just a hair behind Petra.
As the pack of wights scrabble over the fence, the only way to avoid them appears to be a rusty drainpipe that leads to the top of the nearest building.
There is not much time, the hungry undead are nipping at your heels...
Rusty Drainpipe
"Before it breaks away!", Acro DC 10
"Stuff keeps falling off!", Climb 20
After that is a leap of faith to the roof of the next building:
Mind the Gap
Leap, Acro 15
Short Cut, Know (Local) 18
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Petra is driven by the press of the dead behind her and manages a surprisingly effective adrenaline fueled burst up the rickety pipe. She groans under her breath however as she sees the gap ahead.
You know how 'red bull gives you wings'? Apparently the 'black jackal' does as well. Petra lands across the gap-- hard-- but she's across, wheezing to herself as she scrambles upright.
Ibrahim leaps to the opposite roof with a laugh on his lips, seemingly oblivious to the very real danger behind him.
Acro check1
Acro check2
Petra, Ibrahim, and Mirri leap across the gap to the next rooftop, with Say'ri a few steps behind since she stopped to help Petra over the wall. The wights scurry up the wall just behind her as she approaches the edge of the roof.
On the second roof, a resident has built up a clutter of debris, perhaps as a barricade to would-be intruders. Someone familiar with the area can figure out how best to navigate the debris and get back to the street level.
Obstacle 5:
Possible Shortcut?
Survival, 17
I know where this goes!, local 15
Obstacle 6:
Cluttered Alleyway
Up and Over, Climb 15
Squeeze Through, EA DC 20
Vaulting over obstacles while being hotly pursued put the (somewhat) reformed burglar in her element. Darting and jumping at lightning speeds, the halfling almost seemed to fuse with the shadows as she gracefully jumped the gap. Upon seeing the cluttered rooftop she exclaimed, OOH! I know where this goes, follow me! She then proceeded back to street level, trying to guide the others as best she could. Upon arriving at the alleyway she looked back again at her companions. Ya'll might wanna climb, don't this way 'ill work for ya! Mirri then wriggled through the slightest opening in the debris to emerged on the other side.
Petra looks to see if Say'ri makes it up, but then focuses on the troubles ahead.
She is not able to immediately figure out a path.
Ibrahim still up
Weaving through the alleyways the swordsman muses to himself:
"Getting lost in these alleys isn't quite so bad as getting lost in the Sahure, but seems as deadly."
With a quick glance over his shoulder, Ibrahim shudders at the sight of the oncoming wights. Then he sees Petra and Sayri starting to fall behind.
"If I can gain some high ground I can provide covering fire."
Ibrahim nimbly climbs to the alley rooftop, drawing his bow from his shoulder and preparing to fire...
Mirri and Ibrahim find their own paths through the debris, and when it leads back down to ground level, Mirri dives through a small opening in the junk pile while Ibrahim scurries over the top.
Both of them are greeted by a magnificent sight--the Grand Mausoleum, surrounded by guards and priests circling the entire perimeter of the temple.
With the wights breathing down her neck, Say'ri leaps to the other rooftop, but one of the pursuers grabs her foot as she jumps. She just manages to get a hold of the ledge, and Petra pulls her up to safety.
The wights leap awkardly, some of them crashing to the ground and trying to take the long way around, while others grab handholds and pull themselves up after Say'ri.
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"Run!" Say'ri yells what is rapidly becoming her new favourite word and takes off across the rooftop with Petra - there will be time for thanks later, if they survive.
Unfortunately, when confronted by the maze of debris Say'ri is completely bemused and, even with Akhentepi's eyes from above loses her way...
Petra's too out of breath to answer at length. She nods at Say'ri, and takes off at a dead run again, her short legs working as she tries to find a shortcut.
She manages to figure out a path, and takes it, but soon finds herself faced with another wall.
It sucks being four feet tall when faced with a tall building...
Petra finds her way through and Say'ri loses sight of her for a moment, as some wights close in. One grabs her arm and steals some of her lifeforce. Say'ri swings her flail, keeping them at bay and dives through the barricades in Petra's wake.
The wights explode through the debris, once again closing in on Petra and Say'ri who, literally, have their backs against the wall.
Y'all up
Petra looks up somewhat dubiously at Mirri's hands, knowing the halfling is very quick but not the most muscular.... well, worth a try.
"Say'ri! Grab hold! We go together!"
Her doubts were proven wrong. A dwarf can fly!
Ibrahim hoists Mirri up, who strains with all of her might to haul her two friends over the wall. Say'ri and Petra jump the fence mere seconds before the wights.
The party breaks into a run towards the Grand Mausoleum with the wights in pursuit. One of the defenders turns to his comrade, discussing something you can't overhear. He then runs towards you and the wights.
Alongside the armored priest, and quickly surging past him and you, are two stout, hunched quadrupeds. A ruff of dirty feathers adorns their hairless, muscular bodies just below their crocodilian skulls.
The priest intones a spell and a radiant burst of holy power explodes onto the wights just as the strange, skull-headed beasts crash into their ranks.
The divine assault melts the flesh from their bones, and many of the wights stumble around, trying to flee blindly. The creatures tear some to pieces, pinning others to the ground and drawing the very spirits from their reanimated bodies. A small contingent of riders from the church hunts down the stragglers.
The creatures eat the flesh of the (re) dead, a disturbing sight.
The soldier who loosed them approaches you and lifts the visor of his helmet.
Quickly now, come inside our perimeter. What did you do to raise the wights' ire?
This is Nakht Shepses, Commander of the Voices of the Spire
Badly out of breath, Petra bends double with hands on her knees for a bit, trying to suck down some air.
She has no idea what the quadrupeds are. Or who the human is. This is not her city. But they are Pharasmins, so she straightens up and offers a polite nod.
"We live. Is that not enough, for the abominations to pursue us? I am Petra, a servant of Anubis. We come from the gate to the Necropolis. The situation there is dire. Who is in charge? We have news that may explain the rise of the dead."
A smile beaming on her face as she help Petra and Say'ri stay clear of the undead chasing them, Mirri darted forward with the beleaguered group, more than happy to let the guards and priests run past to battle the wights. The halfling then skidded to halt as the flash of holy power erupted, and she looked on with shock as the bizarre creatures apparently in service to the grand mausoleum defenders consumed the wights' remains. EWWWW! I can't watch that! She then proceeded to cover her eyes as Petra addressed the interlocutors.
Say'ri tries to recall who this man is, but can't.
The man waits a bit, then sighs.
I am in charge here. I'm Commander Shepses, leader of the Voices of the Spire. I am tasked with the defense of the city, a task made even more difficult when hordes of undead attack multiple locations at once, or when people whose lives I just saved withhold information with me. If you have pertinent information about the uprising, or news from the gate, I would hear it now. I have little time to wait for your comfort.
Petra takes no offense to the brusque tone; it sort of reminds her of home. The elder dwarves had little patience for their time wasted either. She stands the rest of the way up, having mostly caught her breath.
"I am a recent arrival to your city, commander. Had I known your rank I would have spoken more freely. But I do not think you wish a common soldier to hear these words."
Petra continues: "We are one of the teams that explore Wati. In a temple of Nethys we came across an ancient guardian created by the church of Nethys to safeguard a great object. He told us of a necromancer who forced past him and stole a relic of power, though the guardian did not know precisely what that relic might be.
"However, an inscription in that temple read thusly:" Petra closes her eyes, then recites in a scholarly monotone:
"Woe to you who would plunder the Reliquary of the Thrice-Divided Soul. Turn away, lest the harsh judgment of the Forgotten One fall upon you and your descendants for a thousand generations. Turn away, for his ka cannot be appeased and it shall call forth legions of the dead and the damned. Turn away, and may the All-Seeing Eye and the Lady of Graves take pity on you, for if not, the Forgotten Pharaoh shall consume you, body and soul."
Clearing her throat, she re-opens her eyes. "The legions of the dead and the damned have been called forth, have they not? That fits what we see in the city now.
"As for the gate at Wati: some of the stronger undead are coming through, now. We destroyed a shadow that passed through the wall and attacked the guard there, and we came immediately here. If there are more shadows that threaten, the force at the gate may soon be overwhelmed."
Petra's delivery is largely emotionless, but solemn.
The commander's eyes widen at Petra's recitation. He then hastily reads the letter.
Thank you. I need you to recite that again for our scribes, at once. Go inside and find Brother Husef. Tell him what you told me so a scribe can record it. He will take you to Sister Iana in the armory. Tell her authorization code "Lurking Asp". She will provide you with the weaponry requested by Captain Themm. I trust you are well enough to deliver these items back to the gate. Wati thanks you for your service.
He doesn't wait for you to reply and whistles sharply, calling the two skull creatures back to his side as he rallies his troops to reform the perimeter.
Mirri had slowly slunk to a position just behind Say'ri as the others, led by Petra, interacted with the commander. She said nothing, and she seemed to look guilty without having done anything apparently wrong. Nevertheless, the halfling seemed relieved when the man and his skull-headed beasts left.
Ugh, they give me the creeps. Guess we gotta go see this Iana then, huh? Mirri sounded less than happy about the prospect. Free stuff is good though, ya? She added the last part in a clear attempt to cheer herself, but as the group headed inside she still seemed wary.
With another salute, Petra wordlessly turns and runs off towards the inside of the Pharasmin temple, although she has a stitch in her side and is really tired of this running nonsense.
As soon as she sees an acolyte inside, or anyone really, she calls out: "The commander orders us to seek Brother Husef. Where is he?"
To Mirri, Petra only grunts. "Servitors of one of the great lords of the grave, perhaps, such as the one I serve."
Inside the Grand Mausoleum are several civilians in various states of injury. The church efficiently funnels people through triage into appropriate avenues, offering both mundane and magical aid. The priests and acolytes set to their work clinically and effectively, which does much to reduce the level of panic inside.
A young acolyte greets you and, upon hearing Petra and Mirri's requests, sends you to the two you seek.
Petra and Mirri are led to a small room lit by a continual flame enchanted gem suspended from the ceiling. Seated at the sturdy wooden desk is a woman with graying hair and bloodshot eyes, who looks up at you politely. Upon hearing your request, she sets aside her current project and finds a fresh sheet of parchment, recording your words with a steady hand.
Say'ri and Ibrahim are led to the Armory, where two guards bar their path. At the recitation of the password, they allow you entry to find a balding, hairy, barrel-chested man with a mustache. He is barking orders to two acolytes when you enter. He reads the letter, nods, and starts loading up holy symbols, arrows and bolts, vials of holy water, and all manner of alchemical weapons.
It's bad out there, and with this order it seems the gate is in sore need. Be careful with these, and watch your back out there. The man places all of the items in a small chest marked with the spiral of Pharasma. He locks it, hands the key to Say'ri and the chest to Ibrahim.
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"Thank you Brother." Say'ri replies, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice. When Ibrahim has the chest ready she leaves and together they wait for Petra and Mirri at the entrance to the Grand Mausoleum, standing carefully to one side so as not to impede the civilians.
"Ibrahim, do you know anything of wights?" She asks quietly as they wait. "One of them managed to grasp me and I've felt... weakened ever since, as though some part of me just isn't right." She holds out her hand and its clear to see the trembling. "I can't stop the shaking for some reason."
Ibrahim deftly hoists the chest over his head with one hand, his magically enhanced muscles flexing.
"I confess, I haven't studied the undead like Petra has. I only know that they are generally bad news. Do you think they carry poison or disease like the others we faced? Sounds like you should be talking to a healer. If you need something cut down though, I'm your man."
Mirri stood awkwardly in the back of the room while Petra recounted what the group knew to the scribe. She felt as out of place as she seemed, and the moment the dwarf was done Mirri darted out of the room with her. They then met back up with Say'ri and Ibrahim to prepare to head back to the gate.
After delivering the message, Petra offers a short bow to the scribe, and returns with Mirri... keeping a side-eye on Mirri to ensure nothing in the temple happens to.... go missing.
When they rejoin Say'ri and Ibrahim, Petra frowns, overhearing the tail end of the conversation. "What is this now about the wights?"
Petra looks concerned as she studies Say'ri's trembling hand. "They drain away some of the soul of a person, when they strike. I did not realize you had been so afflicted. There are prayers that can restore you to yourself.... you might also recover in time, but that is no guaranteed thing."
The dwarf sucks her lips in thoughtfully. "The priests here may have such a prayer in the form of a scroll, which I could recite over you, but I do not imagine it would be cheap. Several hundred coins, I would think."
Unable to do anything for Say'ri's plight, the group returns to the gate with the much-needed weaponry. The trip through the streets is stressful but free from interruption. Captain Themm is elated upon your return, and she takes the weapons with zeal, calling the soldiers to her and arming them anew. You can see the return of hope on their faces and they run back to their posts with a rallying cry.
Thank you, friends! Without your aid, we may have been overrun. Please, take this and go forth with my gratitude.
The captain hands you a full wand of cure light wounds, as well as a bag of donations given to her by some townspeople: 5 pp, 483 gp, 358 sp, a gold ring worth 35 gp, and an outlandish silk hat worth 75 gp.
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"We had best return to the auction." Say'ri counsels. "They were in the centre of the city and I fear that any undead that escape the city will head that way. There were many frightened civilians and I am not sure some of those we left to defend them are much better. Ben-Ali and our congregation are safe, our duty is to those others whose need we know." She keeps her voice firm but you can all see how she holds one hand tightly in the other to try and quell the shakes.
Mirri had darted back through the city with the others, both surprised and relieved to not be chased during the journey. She beamed as Captain Themm heaped praise and no small amount of wealth on the party. She even snagged the silk hat as the items were given, trying it on and posing for the others to see what they thought. Kinda works on me, ya?
Say'ri's mention of the auction brought the halfling back to the reality of the situation. 'Kay, we can go an' check on them. Mirri also looked worryingly at the human woman. You're shakin' a lot there Say'ri. You gonna be OK? I guess drain' away the soul is not so good for people.
"We must try and find this necromancer," Petra said unhappily. "...but I do not know where to begin to do that. For now, I suppose the auction house is as good as any place. I pray the rising of the dead calms with the day's light."
The journey from the gate back to the auction house is fraught with tension, but no undead interfere. Upon approaching the makeshift barricade, a thoroughly drunken voice from within inquires: Whassat? Who's there? Yer back all safe an' sound, huh?
With a grunt, some of the wood and debris is shoved aside and you are greeted with a wave by Mad Dog, who has not stopped imbibing.
Petra acknowledges they are not zombies, and once inside she looks around critically at the other survivors of the auction house attack. "Do any yet need healing? Have there been more incursions while we were gone?"
Hey ya Mad Dog! Good ta see ya again! Everybody here OK? We's been chased by dead'uns an' been to the Gran' Masoleum and the city's jus' a big mess. Prolly hav' to leave again soon but figured we'd check on ya'll here. Mirri took a moment to look around and take stock of the situation.
Mad Dog closes one eye and squints at Petra really hard when she asks of "incursions". When Mirri clarifies the question in a more colloquial manner understanding dawns on his face, albeit still slowly.
Wha'? Nah, we're good! See? he swirls around and points to just beyond the threshold, where Marrna slumbers.
Marrna can't stan' the smell o' the dead. If she's sleepin', we're safe. You comin' in or what?
When Say'ri moves past Mad Dog without a word, he blurts out to the rest of you: Whassa' matter with her? She thirsty? He sloshes his mug to emphasize the point.
Meanwhile Khammayid shoulders past the opening in the barricade and sighs with relief when we see you, hugging Ibrahim.
Thank the gods you've returned! Listen, we're safe for the moment, but I think we should find where the first group of the dead came from, in case others will follow. The tracks lead off towards that alley. Will you all come with me to see if any more are lurking? We need to be prepared...
Ibrahim embraces Khammayid tightly, before gently touching his cheek.
"My dear, I admire your courage. But I would be distraught if any harm should come to you. Stay here, and protect the others who have sought shelter here. My companions and I will follow the tracks down the alley."
Nah Mirri said in response to Mad Dog's concern about Say'ri. Some kinda undead came outta of a wall and...touched her or somethin'. Ain't been quite right sense. Mirri just frowned, looking at her worn human friend trundle over to a place to sit down. Suddenly brightening then she added, but no matter, we'll fix her! Changing the subject she scratched the sleeping Marnna's head before looking back at the burly male Halfling. So whata gonna do next? We's be headin' out again soon for sure. Wanna come with? It's real exciting, cuz things keep tryin' to kill us and there's lots to fix in the city. Whata ya say?