Kaelifax steps forward, blades in hand, but stops as the zombie shudders at the impact from what he assumes is the Doctor's firearm. That was unpleasantly loud..., he thinks, and waits, blades in hand to see if the dead thing is still moving before adding further damage tot he corpse.
Zombie Mercenaries
Zombie 1(Fleeing back into cabin) HP: 5/12 - Move action to try and get back into the cabin
Zombie 2(Attacking Kaelifax) HP: 12/12 - Charge action to step near Kaelifax and attack.
Zombie 3(Attacking Neela) HP: 12/12 - Move action to step near Neela and attack.
Zombie 4(Blocked by zombie 1) HP: 12/12
The crack of the musket is loud, deafeningly so. But the old man is accurate. His weapon blows a hole the size of a large coin right in the back of the black haired man's head and out through the middle of the mercenary's face. Dark red mist and gray pus spray outward, catching Kyrianna in the spray. The once-one stumbles a bit, but seems, impossibly to collect itself again, as if the power of the bullet was not enough to down it and, and trots forward again to try and get at Kyrianna.
That is until Ilya comes running forward from the other carriage. He only has to tap the zombie lightly on the forehead with the dark flame before the mindless creature seems to spasm. It lolls its head back and forth staring dead-eyed at the group that surrounds him, stepping backwards back into the carriage and into the path of another zombie, trapping that one inside.
Two of the other undead have already made their way out of the carriage, however, and both move forwards to assault their nearest targets.
The first undead, a squat, bull-faced man with a missing eye and whose head and neck are pierced all over with ice shards waddles over to quickly to assault Kaelifax, lunging with teeth bared and gloved fists raised.
Kaelfiax uses the undead's momentum against itself, moving out of the way to strike at the monster.
The other zombie heads straight for Neela, who rushed over in a haste only to find the undead monstrosity bearing down on her. It's legs are twisted and bent at odd ankles, as if they were broken by being trampled by a horse. Twisting it's body around, the undead sqirms and writhes as it charges at her, swinging a meaty hand.
Neela, small and dexterous, however, ducks out of the way of the creature's paw.
The half-elf grinds her teeth, biting back her disgust at the bloody spray that mists over her. Taking her sword in hand, she rushes toward the zombie that swings at Neela. That one can barely see out of these snowdrifts- it's a sitting duck!
She's surprised, then, when the small creature whips a bomb of corrosive acid at the incoming abomination. "Nicely thrown," she calls, her eyes searching the flailing creature for a weak spot.
Her blade is fast and true, and Kyrianna smiles grimly at the familiar feeling as it meets flesh. Succumbing to its wounds, the zombie crumples to the ground. She eyes the small kobold with a mixture of curiosity and appreciation, then turns back to see how the others are faring with their monstrosities.
Ilya sits for a moment with a satisfied smile on his face. "Still got it!" he says, turning to his comrades. It happens slowly but he remembers that he's surrounded by more than just undead in the carriage. He nearly comes out of his boots as he hears the zombies crash around behind him, and almost loses his snow shoes trying to run away. Finding the other carriage, the sylph tries to hop over it but catches his knee on the side and flips head first into the cabin with the dead.
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Marina assesses the situation quickly and expertly. Her holy symbol, clutched in her hand, is let free to dangle from its chain. These abominations weren't strong enough to warrant calling upon Erastil's fury. She'd deal with them herself.
Moving quickly to aid Kaelifax, Marina's claw-tipped fingers flex viciously. Ilya's magic seemed to have given the others pause for the moment-- how, she did not know, but it was a moment she'd use.
The first swipe is for play, digging deep into rotting muscle and flesh and turning him to face her. The second swipe rips out its throat, twisting its head and snapping bone. That's all she wrote. Marina looks up in surprise at the sound of crashing glass, falling Ilyas and sizzling acid... then down at the mauled zombie. Her own strength surprised her sometimes.
As the beast steps toward him, Kaelifax swings his shortsword, releasing the tension building in his arm like a spring... but sadly, leaving the building tension in his mind behind.
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The beast continues to lumber at him despite the slash across the neck, Of course that didn't work. The dead don't breathe anymore, stupid. He's surprised by the sudden appearance of Marina and the visciousness of her clawed attacks, tearing more chunks out of the wounded zombie until the beast falls in small pieces.
He smiles and says, "Thank you," then turns his attention and gore-covered blade to the beast attacking Neela, stepping forward and slashing quickly with his blade, this time, the slash a shallow one.
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Zombie Mercenaries
Zombie Mercenaries:
Zombie 1(Panicked; fleeing back into cabin) HP: 5/12 - Move action to try and get back into the cabin
Zombie 2(Dead) - Torn to shreds by Kaleifax and Marina
Zombie 3(Dead) - Burned with acid by Neela and carved into by Kyrianna
Zombie 4(FLA: Charge towards Marina and attack) HP: 12/12; AC 10/8T/10FF (Charge penalty); +0F/+0R/+3W; DR 5/Slashing
Kaelifax's sword nearly severs the undead creature's head. It seems ready to come in to make another attack when Marina enters the fray. Her claws don't so much take down the creature as they shred it apart, tearing cloth and sinew to shreds and leaving a pile of oozing remains where it once stood.
The flask of caustic acid launches into the creature's sternum, disintegrating its remaining rags of clothing and sizzling into the flesh beneath. The skin hemorrhages and bubbles away, filling the air with the sickly scent of melting tallow and burning flesh. The acid distracts the creature long enough for Kyrianna to run over and finish the job. Her longsword buries into the creature's sternum in a blow that comes close to bisecting it.
Meanwhile, the first undead to exit the carriage has fled past the last of the undead and into the carriage. Finally able to brush past its companion, the last of the undead dashes out of the carriage straight towards Marina.
Marina, hearing heavy boots sloshing through the thick snow, turns just in time to feel a fist drive down onto her shoulder blade. The blow feels like a wheeled sledgehammer as it crashes down on her. Looking up, Marina gets a good look at this last zombie. In the man's life, he had a balding plate, with wily hair shaped like a crescent around his head. Now half of the man's face seems missing, as if taken apart by the blow of a mace or large cudgel. It seems that somebody had decided to use this man's corpse as a plaything. The words, "flycatcher waz hare" are carved into the corpse's head and face in an almost boyish script.
The suddenness of the attack calls for hesitation on the ifrit's part, who stands there unarmed, his eyes still wide. At the sight of Marina being attacked however, something in that flaming head of his finally seems to click. With swift, subtle movements, Ehren murmurs a short incantation and weaves the somatic components of his spell. Channeling positive energy into his right hand, he dashes through the snow, approaching the cleric's assailant.
"היי מיעס, איבער דאָ!"
He strikes the zombie with an errant flick of his finger, discharging the divine energy within.
Ilya pops his head up to check on the others, and then quickly falls back down into his hiding place. As he does so Sevastjan eases out of his satchel and gives the sylph an accusing look. "Oh? You would like to go out there?" Ilya asks, "There are three undead and seven people not called Ilya out there; we will only get in way."
He stuffs Sevastjan's head back into the bag, and and peeks once more.
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Marina reeled from the heavy blow to her back, seeing double for a split second. She was certain she was dead until she found the strength to keep standing, looking her attacker in the face.
Undead. Like she thought.
Ehren shouted in the tongue of curious darkness and lunged at it, but came short. Marina didn't know why he was speaking Aklo; right now, she had to think about other things.
Her first swipe with her heavy claw brings a massive shock of pain through her arm as it fails to heed her command. Her second is thrown off balance entirely-- Marina tries to shuffle backwards, realizing her shoulder has been thrown out by the zombie's blow. "Um... Help!" she shouts, panicking.
Hearing her shout, Kaelifax turns and sees Marina's predicament, Time to repay the favour, it seems.... The bard quickly, but silently steps back toward her and attacks the zombie from the rear, taking advantage of it's focus on Marina to get past its defenses. The beast tries to raise a claw to ward off the attack, but is just slightly too slow as the bard's shortsword bites into its torso.
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Doctor Montgomery finishes reloading his musket, several beats slower than when he was in his prime. His fingers tremble as he pours in the gunpowder, stiff and slow because of the cold. He rams the bullet in and pulls the butt of the musket back up to his shoulder. Aiming down the barrel, he fires into the melee before him. With two of the zombies already down and the other less of a threat than before, his choice is clear. He shoots at the one that Marina is locked in battle with. The bullet blows through its chest, leaving a small entry wound - and no exit wound. Still, the shot seems to have almost no effect at all on the walking dead man. Montgomery softly curses and begins the slow and laborious reloading process.
Zombie Mercenaries
Zombie Mercenaries Stats:
Zombie 1(Panicked; fleeing back into cabin) HP: 5/12; total defense for +4 dodge bonus to AC
Zombie 2(Dead) - Torn to shreds by Kaleifax and Marina
Zombie 3(Dead) - Burned with acid by Neela and carved into by Kyrianna
Zombie 4(Grappling with Marina) HP: 4/12; grapple combat maneuver on Marina
The undead man, after striking Marina becomes beset upon by all sides. Ehren, babbling incoherently, but finally catching his wits, runs up behind him and channels a divine energy into the beast. It shakes violently at his touch and lets oat a foul gaseous moan out of its mouth smelling faintly of sulfur.
Kaelifax, seizing the moment, runs up next to Marina and lashes out with his short blade, catching the zombie in the sternum. You feel tendons splitting and organs tearing open until the blade is stopped by a vertebrae.
And, as the doctor finally reloads his gun, he aims and fires, but the bullet catches in the undead's vestigial and unnecessary guts and stops dead, rendering the shot ineffective.
The zombie, however, doesn't seem as if it understands at all its dire straits. It shambles ahead wordlessly, the amateur script on its head clear as its milky blue corneas. It seems to growl then and leap forward to get Marina in an embrace.
Meanwhile, the final zombie turns and thrashes inside the cabin of the carriage, desperately trying in a feeble mindless way to break through the wood, peeling large chunks off and damaging the fine scroll-work in the paneling.
As the zombie lunges forward toward Marina, Kaelifax shouts, "No!", and swings his blade down in a high arc, hoping to use his strength, reach and the sharpness of his blade to prevent what he can see coming. He snarls as the sword bites the zombie in the shoulder and the combination of the zombie's leap and the bard's downswing pull the blade all the way through the thing's torso, nearly bisecting it.
Kyrianna starts toward the undead creature, but Kaelifax's powerful roar stops her dead as he seems to rend the tattered corpse in two.
Kyrianna regains momentum as she hears the shambling, shuffling noises from the carriage- the zombie that had earlier come after her, before being frightened off. Doc had given it a lovely new orifice in its chest, and Ilya had sent it scurrying, but it seemed only fitting that she deliver the final blow.
Unfortunately, the creature had managed to prop itself behind the seats in the cabin, and her sword cut deeply into the cushions instead.
The beast in front of him slain, Kaelifax nods and smiles at Marina before turning and starting back toward the carriage, keeping his blade ready and scanning the area for any additional movement.