"Wait. What?" Anna frowns when Danica announces that the place hadn't been used. She readies her crossbow and goes on high alert, not liking this.
Tolvan agrees with Anna's caution. No ruins. No threats inside. And not near the town center either. Lets keep moving.
Danica take a step inside the building. Weapon ready, she looks for any possible threat.
Danica walks in the shop. Just a few steps, then stop. She moves head as if she is trying to concentrate on something. Then, all of her muscles spring to action. Within a second, the inquisitor crosses the small room and slide behind the counter.
"Hey!" Anna shouts. "Danica, get out of there!" She shakes her head in confusion. "What's in there?"
If this place actually is not been used, then maybe we could use it as a fall back point, she is about to say more but Dancia's actions cause her to cut the conversation short.
looking to Anna, Shhh, there might actually be something in there, maybe that's why nobody claimed this building.
Pahrasma's blessing upon us. she says as once more the divine energy washes over the party.
I just said lets not go in Danica. Where are you going? the elf asks confused as he watches the monk's unusual behavior.
You hide behind the counter, your heart pounding. Someone kick open the door of the shop, and then you hear people walking in. You try to hold your breath, you try to make yourself invisible, but it doesn't change anything. A hand grabs you by the neck, pulling you from your hiding place. You try to fight it off, you scream in desperation. One of the soldier is holding you while the others laugh and smile at you, their face twisted with evil. The soldier drags you to a pot of boiling tallow, you can feel the heat coming from it.
Danica gets out from behind the counter. She moves in a weird fashion, holding her neck and fighting weakly against something unseen. She screams as she moves backward toward some old pots covered in dust.
"Whoa!" Anna remarks as Danica seems to be attacked by something she cannot see. "Kimberly, I think we're dealing with a ghost! And not one of the talkative ones!"
Anna sends a bolt at the spot where it seems most likely the unseen force would be, in between her and the old pots.
Someone grab her before she hurts herself. Tolvan recommends.
At Tolvan suggestion, Theopolis moves toward Danica. He as difficulty moving forward as if the air itself is preventing him from getting near. When he reaches her, he grabs her and tries to pull her out.
Danica puts up quite the resistance, but Theopolis manages to pull her out of the shop. As they past the threshold of the door, they both collapse from exhaustion. The doors of the shop slam closed and you are pretty sure that you hear a long wailing scream at the same time.
The now skeleton soldier is losing ground and you slowly make your way to the door. As you pass it, there is a bright flash of light and you fall on the ground next to Theopolis. You are exhausted and a bit shaken, but otherwise unharmed.
Tolvan watches with concern as the paladin manages to pull the small but fierce woman back outside. Some type of ghost or haunt I think. he speculates, not liking being unsure.
He gives the two a moment to recover before recommending We are exposed here and should move on.
Danica, on all fours, shakes her head as though trying to get something out. "Memories were so real...Wonder if that entity trying to make me feel what it experienced..." The inquisitor kneels then begins to get up, legs slightly wobbly but strong enough to move. She puts her hand on the paladin's should and offers a silent thanks. "I'm good to go. Let's regroup and talk theories about what just happened to me."
Anna swears under her breath while she cranks up her crossbow and reloads it. "Getting low on bolts," she mutters to no one in particular. "If you're all right, Danica, let's check out the house while we're all frosty."
Theopolis slowly gets up and tries to catch his breath. "It was like trying to get through a thick crowd of people in there, yet I didn't see anyone else." The puzzled Paladin just looks at the doors of the shop for a moment. He then turns to Anna and nods. "Lead the way."
"All right," she agrees with the paladin, then goes back to being stealthy. She moves cautiously to the entrance of the two-story house and studies its entrance for signs of its occupants.
<<I see a body; looks like it was mauled. Buncha bones piled in a corner, too. Might be empty now. I'll go see>> Anna whispers quietly to the others through Tolvan's spell.
Anna then slips inside through the window and checks out the first floor before straining her senses toward the upstairs.
You explore the main floor and aside what you saw from the window, there is nothing more there. The place seemed to have been looted a long time ago. You are also sure that you didn't hear any noise from upstairs.
Anna checks for signs of a trap on the stairs, then she takes very slow and cautious steps until she can just see the upstairs floor. She doesn't risk exposing herself until she's sure she's clear.
As Anna searches ahead, Kimberly moves the door of the shop. Looking in, she makes the spiral sign of pharasma over her heart with her finger.
hello? she whispers into the shop.
Shh. Tolvan admonishes Kimberly mildly and quietly. We must let Anna do what she is good at. Waiting is hard, but she will let us know if she needs us.
Anna creeps down the stairs in slow, deliberate steps, keeping her eyes fixed upon the upstairs landing. When her feet touch the floor, she springs into motion and dives out of the window.
She rolls up in the middle of the group, putting her back against Tolvan and staring back at the building. Her eyes are wide, her skin is drained of color and her hand is trembling when she raises it to point at the upstairs window. "T-T-Teddy!"
Teddy?
Kimberly quickly rummages through her satchel looking for Teddy.
"Teddy! He... upstairs...man... gone..." Anna gasps through sharp, ragged breaths.
Eventually she calms down slightly and shakes her head, pressing her trembling hand against her temple.
"Oh, #@%&! What was that? Kimberly, please tell me you have Teddy in your pack!"
With Anna pointing at the window, everyone looks up except for Kimberly who immediately start going through her satchel. She moves thing around, digs all the way to the bottom, but there is no Mr. Teddy anywhere. The rest of the group, however, can clearly see, sitting on the frame of the window, the little silhouette of the bear.
Anna makes a strangled, dying sound in the back of her throat and her knees suddenly go weak. She clings to Tolvan to keep from falling. She begins shaking her head vigorously.
"No, nonono-- What the hell? That is not right! There was a guy up there, armored, staring out the window. They looked right at me! Then he just faded away, and left Teddy sitting there..." She blinks several times, then shudders.
Trying to calm Anna and to get the story from her. Focus and center. Breath. We have dealt with much in this journey my Anna. Is this so much more than what we have already seen and overcome? It sounds like some sort of haunt or ghost. Tell me more.
Tolvan's words calm Anna and she takes a few deep breaths.
"Okay, right. The guy was there, looking sad and pale. They both turned their head, looked at me, then he faded away. ...which in retrospect, maybe wasn't as bad as what else we've seen and fought. Yeah."
She rubs her neck and coughs lightly. "But what is Mr. Teddy doing up there?" she says to justify her panic a little.
Kimberly finishes rummaging through her satchel, she slow looks up at the group.
He's not in here she says unsure what Anna's response will be.
maybe I should go in and see?
Anna swallows hard. "I don't know if that's such a good idea. How'd he get up there in the first place?"
Kimberly looks to Anna, well he can walk, well, when he wants to.
Kimberly carefully takes a step inside, Teddy? she says, holding her holy symbol tight.
she will very slowly and cautiously make her way toward Teddy.
Kimberly walks into the house. The main floor is empty except for a corpse with a lot of bite wounds and a pile of bones in one corner. She makes her way to the second floor. When she reaches it, she sees Mr. Teddy is sitting alone on the window edge. He is all alone and doesn't move at all. Kimberly crosses the room to the window and cautiously pick up the stuffed bear. As she does so, she looks down at the street below.
There she sees Anna still talking, most likely asking how the bear could get there. Tolvan is there, trying to reassure her. She also sees Danica and Theopolis, both of them keeping an eye out for patrols. And a bit to the side, she sees Ananias looking up at her. As her eyes lock on him, he moves his hand over his chest and start making a spiral. Kimberly instinctively repeats the symbol and then look down to open her satchel to put Mr. Teddy away. It takes her a few second to register what just happened and as she look back at the street, she sees the man walking toward the town square, fading slowly with each step he takes.
Quickly tucking Teddy in her satchel, Kimberly rushes out to the rest of the group.
did you see him? The man in black. he went that way she says pointing toward the town square.
Danica begins to look for the man in black. A questionable looks begins to form on her face as she does not see any such man.
"Kimberly, what happened up there?"
Noise in the courtyard causes Anna to ready her crossbow and press her body against the side of the building. She inches over to the corner and studies the area for signs of activity.
When Kimberly shows up holding Teddy, she gawks. "You went up there? You saw him too?" She looks in the direction the girl points. "Uh-uh."
"I find it strange that 2 of us have had the same vision. Do I dare go up there?" Danica casts Detect Magic in the direction Kimberly came from.
Danica starts scanning the building from the outside. She concentrates for a few seconds and nothing comes up.
"Don't bother," Anna says bitterly, coming down from her earlier scare. "As if we didn't have enough things going on with the werewolves and the necromancers and the pus monsters and the ghosts, we've got roaming teddies and creepy specters fading in and out."
She hefts her crossbow and rolls her neck. "Let's do this thing and get out of here."
But you can never leave!'♫
Danica mentions to Ana and Kimberly, "Where exactly did you see this... apparition?" When Danica finds out the general location she will use Detect Magic in the general area.
Kimberly moves to the spot where she saw the man. Danica casts her detection spell again and start examining the location. She still finds no trace or lingering magical aura. If Anna and Kimberly did see the same thing, it was not induced by magic.
Danica starts turning in circles looking in all directions.
"Ok people....talk to me...Anna....Kimberly....I don't see anything. Are you guys the crazy one for seeing this or am I the nutty one for not seeing it?"