Marissia hurries into the room to check on Ameiko.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm ok." Ameiko assures her from her position, bound on the floor. A rogh gag hangs lose around her neck. "Look out behind you!"
From the next door up the corridor comes a head, followed rapidly by a bow and arrow.
Tsuto lets fly an arrow at the first face he sees, which is Honani.
The arrow flies over Honani's klar and strikes the warrior just beneath his shoulder. The archer steps fully into the corridor, throws his bow away and makes a beckoning gesture. "My love will reward me for bringing her your heads!"
Marissia reaches down to untie Ameiko when suddenly they're attacked! She lets out a shriek of surprise and turns to see Tsuto. He looked different than she remembered. Stronger, but just as angry.
"Oh! Honani!" Seeing her friend wounded she turns on the man she used to know, hoping to appeal to his reason.
"Tsuto, stop! It's not too late... I know you hated your father, but... You don't have to hurt anyone else!"
The shoanti grunts in pain as the arrow embeds itself in his shoulder. "You will pay for that. In blood" Caring nothing for the family squabbles nor for diplomancy at this time, he rushes forward, crouching lower behind his klar, Honani stabs out with his guisarme taking some of the power out of his trust.
He grins as he can feel his weapon strike true.
Tamiko can't see an opening in the crowded hallway, so she lets the others deal with Tsuto, instead ducking into the room and trying to free Ameiko, carefully cutting loose her bonds. "His love? Who's that? Someone we know?", she asks as she works.
Trinity observed the veracity of the arrow as it drove deep into Honani’s shoulder. The amount of blood left little doubt about the seriousness of the wound, yet she knew the warrior wouldn’t hesitate to stand his ground. Moments before the warrior declared his resolve, she reached out and summoned the last of her magic.
After a few brief words to her god, Trinity placed a comforting hand on Honani’s shoulder. She knew he wouldn’t notice the intrusion in the mist of combat, but she made the effort none the less.
Honani deals Tsuto a grievous wound across the chest and the half-elf staggers for a moment. "Nualia!" He cries before ducking beneath the glaive's blade and emerging right into front of Honani, slamming two punches into the shoanti's chest.
Luckily Honani's armor saves him from any further damage, as Trinity closes the arrow wound with Iomedae's blessing.
Tamiko frees Ameiko from her bonds by the simple expedient of cutting through them and the bar-keeper calls out hoarsely to Marissia. "It won't work, he's mad!"
Morgana has vanished.
Marissia peeks around Honani, trying to get a good view of Tsuto. Then she casts her hand forward and exclaims, "Friazo"
A beam of ice flies from her fingertip at Tsuto.
Unable to squeeze into the fight without crowding the warrior, Trinity prepares to step forward in the event that Honani decides to pull back.
As Ameiko shakes free of her bonds, Tamiko hears Tsuto calling out a familiar name, which suddenly fills her with dread. "So it's true, she's not dead. But..." Shaking her head, she continues, "no, we'll figure all that out later. Here, take this. I'm going back out to go see what I can do." She offers her blade to Ameiko, then draws her other one (if she takes it) and looks out, though she can't get through the crush of bodies in front of the door.
Smiling as the curative energies heal his wounds, and pleased with himself for his attack on Tsuto, the shoanti once again attacks. "Get your questions in quickly, Tsuto will meet Pharasma soon."
The glaive once strikes out dangerously past his klar.
Having a klar slammed in his face seems to do nothing for Tsuto's mood and he lashes out again.
This time one of his blows lands, jarring Honani's arm with its sheer force.
Morgana appears at the far end of the corridor and ducks quickly as Marissia's spell flies past her.
"Give up Tsuto, you're surrounded!"
The half-elf glowers, but doesn't appear ready to stop fighting.
Knowing she has little hope of hitting Tsuto with her spells, but also knowing she has no other options, Marissia casts her hand forward and exclaims, "Friazo"
A beam of ice flies from her fingertip at Tsuto.
The elation that Honani felt at hearing the bones crunch beneath his klar quickly dissipates as Tsuto's punch numbs Honani's arm. He almost loses his grip on his glaive, though the weapon was too large to wield in such tight quarters.
"No, Tsuto, do not give up. Let us continue to solve this like men. No quarter asked, no quarter given. I will show you what it is to fight a true shoanti." Honani howls a battle cry as he stabs out with his klar once again.
Seeing an opportunity, Trinity slid her sword along the wall and then attempted a swift distracting thrust towards Tsuto's head.
Tamiko finally sees an opening and tries to head out the door, avoiding Tsuto's fists of fury, and proceeds down the hall, following Morgana's lead.
Tsuto dodges both Honani's klar and the sword thrust Trinity made to try and distract him. He leaps backwards, attempting to get out of Honani's reach but stumbles - opening himself to a blow before he flees and dives into a door just in front of Morgana's reach.
Morgana hurries to the door and looks inside. "There's a passage! He's fled!" She calls, sword out and ready in case the half-elf is planning a return.
" the Shoanti screams as the man disengages from combat and runs. "Come weak city folk, follow me and let us end this fight!" Honani races headlong to pursue Tsuto.
Seeing Honani race off down a mysterious tunnel, Marissia turns to Ameiko.
"Tell the guards about what's happened here! Hurry!"
Then she dashes off down the hall after Honani. "I'm coming!"
Trinity falls in-behind Honani and continues the pursuit. "Cation Honani, there could be goblin traps waiting for us."
"Hold on, wait for me!" Hearing the commotion, Tamiko hurries back, following the others down into the cave.
Pursuit leads into another small room, where a broken wall reveals a dark passageway - scuffling sounds show that Tsuto has fled this way.
Further down the corridor the path splits in two - one leads to the left and one slopes downwards to the right.
Trinity points down the left corridor, indicating that's the way she intends to go. "His footprints lead that way."
"Nice work Trinity." compliments Honani as he rounds the corner to the left.
Marissia continues to follow the others after Tsuto.
Tamiko catches up just as Trinity indicates the left fork. She has a fierce look on her face as she follows.
Hurrying down the left hand passage the darkness falls back as natural light makes it's way in. Honani and Morgana, leading the way, find themselves arriving at the lip of a cave with a lovely view across the blue waters of the arcadian ocean. Far below is the beach where Sandpoint traditionally dumps its garbage. A couple of small figures can be seen picking over the trash, but there is no more sign of Tsuto. Could he have left a false trail and taken a different path?
Swearing loudly, Honani turns to the group. "I forgive you, Trinity, for your mistake. But I will have my vengeance on Tsuto." Brooding quickly, Honani decides to take his frustrations out of the goblins by the trash pile.
Shouldering his glaive, ruses down the slope until he is in position to attack and strikes out.
Trinity takes in a deep breath and sighs at the prospect of Tsuto getting away. "The path was clear, possibly to clear. I see now what I over looked in the heat of the pursuit. We could head back and see if there is any sign of his intended destination. We could also make sure the facility is clear of threats, if no other means to track Tsuto is apparent."
Marissia nods. "Yes, let's double back. Hurry, everyone! We'll try the other path!"
Trying to calm his accelerated breathing, Honani turns and follows the group back through the passage.
Tamiko shakes her head as Honani briefly considers jumping off the cliff, but he gladly doesn't, and she follows as they continue back through the other passage.
Heading down the second passage, the group encounter a second brick wall which seems to have recently been opened, violently, if the dried blood upon the wall is anything to go by.
The passageway becomes more regular, the walls flattening and flagstones replacing the rough hewn floor.
Unfortunately the group has only moments to process the import of these ideas as a horrific figure looms out of the darkness, slavering and angry!
"What monstrosity is this? I swear that Tsuto will pay for this." Rasising his klar in a defensive position, crouching low, Honani once grips the shaft of his glaive-guisarme. Resting the foremost portion on the notch in his klar, the shoanti steps forward and pokes out.
As Marissia walks down the hall she lets out a gasp...
"My father... He... He always said there were Thassilonian ruins under Sandpoint. Judging by the age and craftsmanship of this hall.... He may be right."
At the sight of the creature, Marissia lets out a shriek. "Oh, it's hideous! What is it...?"
---
---
With few combat options left, Marissia points her finger at the monster. "Friazo!"
Upon seeing the beast approach, Trinity brought her shield high as she drew back her sword. As the beast closed the distance, she observed its movement and looked for any sign of weakness. Having not seen a creature like this before, she was unsettled, but managed to bring her blade to bear just the same. A flash of steal glinted just before her blade plunged down into a heavy overhead swing.
Incidentally, does anyone want to do Morgana's dice rolls? I don't want to be accused of favouring my own (GM)PC! :)
Seeing the grotesque creature before them only strengthens Tamiko's resolve, despite her inward worrying about Ameiko and her blade. Closing the distance, she slashes out, putting a little of her remaining magical reservoir into the effort.
Incidentally, does anyone want to do Morgana's dice rolls? I don't want to be accused of favouring my own (GM)PC! :)
Honani meets the creature with a powerful glaive thrust, which drives through the creatures neck and leaves it gouting blood all over the place. This foutain of viscera catches Trinity across the face, throwing off her swing, but Tamiko is able to sidle in and end the creatures life with a precise blow to the chest.
The chamber the creature was in is little more than a hollow in the wall, a guard chamber of the most basic sort. The passageway leads onwards until you come to a chamber with three onwards paths. One blocked by a door, another leading upwards with short flights of stairs and a third which rapidly vanishes around not one but two corners.
In the centre of this small room stands a red marble statue of a strikingly beautiful but at the same time, monstrously enraged human woman. She wears long flowing robes, an intricate headdress of hooks and blades holding back her hair, and an expression of absolute fury. She holds a glittering metal-and-ivory ranseur in one hand and a large book, inscribed with a seven pointed star in the other.
Marissia looks around the chamber in awe...
"Oh, my... I dont't... Wow...." Marissia mutters aloud.
She approaches the statue and examines it carefully.
She looks at each of the possible paths forward,
"Which way should we go?"
Tamiko finds herself nervously wiping her blade again and again as they proceed, ending up in a room with a giant, scary statue. "Well, that certainly looks ominous." Turning to her fellow Sandpoint natives, she asks, "could you have imagined we were living above this the whole time?"
Then, to Trinity: "Is there any sign of which way Tsuto went this time? Perhaps he was less careful by the time he got here."