The group above make their way down below and meet up with Vidar as Cristiel continues her cautious advance.
Seeing no threat by way of the exit branch the magus is compelled to look in at the shrine to Uragotha. Melted candles stand lit, incensce of a pugent type smolders and the body of a small child, a human boy no more than 12 dressed in the simple clothes of farm folk, lies dead, his throat slashed, on the altar to the dark goddess.
The group descends to the necromancer's lab to find Vidar and Cristiel both departed.
Meanwhile Vidar and Cristiel see...
Cristiel slowly steps toward the split in the tunnel leading to a small shrine. She lifts her injured hand toward her face, waving the strong ordor away before it has a chance to linger in her nasal passages. She gives the small form on the altar a cursory glance before quickly surveying the rest of the room for any hidden dangers. She speaks over her shoulder to Vidar, "We have one youth snuffed out in some vile ritual. I don't think the priest can do much for him now. If I find out our whispering friend was responsible, he shall hunger for oblivion before I am done with him."
...at the shrine to Uragotha. Melted candles stand lit, incense of a pungent type smolders and the body of a small child, a human boy no more than 12 dressed in the simple clothes of farm folk, lies dead, his throat slashed, on the altar to the dark goddess.
Vidar, not the type of man to hold back his emotions or be overly careful with what he says, inhales sharply as his face slowly goes from his normal hue to pale white, the to crimson red.
"Bastard...bastard...EVIL VICIOUS BASTARD! You filthy nefarious lowlife scum!! You puerile morbid worm bait!!! When I find you, you will run and cower behind your vile goddess’s bony flank! And her displeasure with you will pale in comparison to what I think up to do to your odious undead hide!"
As Sayniek catches up with the Ulfen wizard, she is about to pronounce vengeance upon whoever murdered the child, but upon hearing the wizard's colorful proclamation, all she can do is nod her head in agreement.
Yes, vengeance shall be had for this heinous crime.
Cristiel continues to examine around the shrine for any hidden doors or extra passages in the walls, "The criminal was only just in the tunnel a few moments ago. If he fled out the exit, he can't be far. That is to say if he isn't watching us from some hidden murderhole this very moment."
Cristiel is thorough but can find no evidence of any other hiding spots or exits. At the mention of vengeance the candles do seem to conspicuously flicker.
"Sssh! Someone is calling for aid upstairs, someone who is aware of our names.
Let us go, we are needed!"
Vidar will turn around and begin to bully the others back towards the stairs.
"Come on, move you luggards!"
With all the shouting about vengeance and the horrific scene before him has left Rullis rather numb to his surrounding. He doesn't hear a thing. But Vidar pulls him out of his trance as he dutifully turns and goes where the wizard directs...
Camillo shifts his burden and steps aside to let the others squeeze past him before following them.
Troubled, he nods, "I heard it, too. Who knows we are here? The guards?"
Perception:
Sayniek has no clue what the others heard, but with two of them claiming something is up, she takes off toward the front door.
Kithian curses in orc then spits on the ground before releasing the dog's leash and moving with the others.
After making sure the area is secure, Cristiel begins to extinguish the candle flames with the flat of Manartyelo's blade and knock them off of the shrine with the sword. The shrine to the goddess of disease throughly desecrated, the elven woman uses the tip of her cloak to grab the sacrificed child and pull the small form off the altar and away from its foulness. When Vidar and Cam hear something in the distance, Cristiel stands from her arranging the child's body and shakes her head as she starts after the others, "Do not rush blindly into what is most likely a trap. Our foe has shown some tactical acumen in trying to divide us and conquer. Prepare for the worst and you shall never be surprised."
Kithian releases the dog who rushes ahead as the rest of you form up and warily make your way back through the necromancer's chambers and up the stairs and once more in Habe's apartment. Reggie howls from the doorway, one of attention and calling to his master, not one of pain.
Beyond in the foyer to the building you see a huddled mass of bodies.
One is the guard from the front of the building, clearly torn to shreds by teeth and claws. The second - a farmer perhaps - looks like an older man in simple work clothes who also has many scratches and bruises but looks alive though unconscious. The third man, one that the original group knows as a young solider named Jeon (you've seen him about in all the hustle and bustle the last few days) scrambles to do "something" to help with the other guard while also fretting over a serious wound to his abdomen.
Mostly he is slipping in blood and other bodily fluids as is caught in the throes of clear shock. Reggie whines at the entrance as the group approaches and he barks at the man who seems almost oblivious to the arrival of the animal as he frets and mumbles. For his part Reggie sniffs about and simultaneously whines and then growls, specifically at the dead guard.
"Quickly! Master Stillman, Lady Sayinek, See if you can do something about the wounded."
"You! Jeon, did the walking dead do this?"
"Master Darlock, watch over the corpse, if our "friends" from before did this, then this man might rise to attack us too."
"Master Duin, lady Cristiel, please cover the entrance in case they decide to come back."
The miniature armored figure quickly moves over by the injured farmer and soldier.
What happened?
As she does this, she place her hands upon the soldier and then the farmer.
LoH(soldier):
LOH(farmer):
Sayniek pressers her hands on the frantic solider and the unconscious farmer and soldoer both seem better for the magic. The soldier in particular seems to steady some though his skin is still ashen. On the walking patrol Aaron heard a noise, it was this man. Claiming that creatures had taken his family, attacked his farm! We though he was drunk! The light was bad we didnt see the wounds at first but then something grabbed Aaron... The man chest heaves with tension and his eyes become wet with tears but presses he on, The torch fell and I grabbed my sword and the farmer and ran. He screamed so much but I kept on, knowing you lot were on your way...it was too much for the old man and when we got here... The solider gestures at his fallen comrade and starts sobbing uncontrollably.
Elsewhere in the other wing it is easy to hear the sound of what sounds like furniture being moved about. Reggie growls at the noise. The farmer stirs but does not wake.
"We cannot tarry here much longer, if these men have been damaged by a ghoul they may be infected and will require proper care.
Let us deal with whatever is making the noise and then retreat to Sandpoint with our prisoner and our wounded."
Camillo lowers the spellcaster to the ground. "A prisoner. If he wakes up and gives you any trouble, knock him cold. After tonight, if he has a little concussion, no one else will care. Just don't kill him."
Stretching his neck and shoulders, he readies sword and shield and offers, "Shall we go meet the new decorator, then?"
"I am beginning to find myself PROFOUNDLY irritated by this place. If it were up to me, we would proceed to burn it to the ground once we were done here."
Sayniek's eyes light up: Vengeance by fire. Yes, that would be fitting for the horrors that occurred here.
Rullis rushes up behind Sayniek and checks the men for infection after she performs her own healing.
He seems to be too shaken by everything and cannot concentrate properly.
The farmer looks un-infected having wounds that look mostly lke bumps, bruies scraps from brush and just profound exhaustion. The soldier's wounds are more vague with a gash that looks claw like but present no outward symptoms.
Camillo lowers the spellcaster to the ground. "A prisoner. If he wakes up and gives you any trouble, knock him cold. After tonight, if he has a little concussion, no one else will care. Just don't kill him."
Stretching his neck and shoulders, he readies sword and shield and offers, "Shall we go meet the new decorator, then?"
"No time to be indecisive! The rest of you go ahead, I will remain here to care for the wounded.
If you need me, just shout.
But do not let it be master Darlock who does so, the fool is likely to get it wrong and smash his head with his weapon instead."
"Yeah yeah. Try not to over exert yourself out here."
Kithian snaps the leash back onto Reggie's collar and holds it out to the mage. "Keep Reggie here with you, someone needs to remain that can take care of themselves."
"Oh, for shame! What will you do when you leave the BRAINS of your partnership here?
Try to remember that you cannot move both feet at once without falling."
Vidar smirks and blows Kithian a mock kiss.
"Go on, get out of here you big lug you."
Camillo is already on his way to investigate, no doubt with the ladies from the team leading the way.
Sayniek is near the front. She is not the most skilled at tracking, but will see that vengeance is done.
Cristiel paces the room, checking doors and hallways for any sneaking ghouls looking for an easy meal once the party splits again. The elf shakes her head at Vidar's words at staying alone up with the wounded, "No, I shall stay with you up here. It is never prudent to leave one alone when the enemy has shown a perchance to attack from multiple fronts. They are probing for weakness as they attempt to stretch our strength thin. There is a sinister and devious mind with some grasp of tactics behind this siege."
Sayniek leads the group through the narrow hallway into the east wing that circles the exterior of the building with Kithian, Rullis, and Camillo in tow.
The lights of the sanitarium have died in the last twnety four hours so the dim light from Cam is all that illuminates the way of the group though the Aasimar and the Half-Orc are able to navigate despite the poor light.
As Sayniek approaches what was a thick and well re-enforced door the paladin finds pieces of the door has been torn to shreds. At the very edge of her darkvision Sayniek can see movement that blinks back out into the darkness but one figure, overly large and powerfully built huddles over the body of a large rat like creature the tell tale sounds of eating suddenly interrupted as the figure turns to see the pale light of Cam's source, milky eyes and sharp black teeth highlighting a scarred and deformed face. Whatever this was it is a ghoul now but it certainly wasn't human before...
Thick splinters of ruined furniture and general debris litter the main room of that sanitarium that once served as "cafeteria" and general purpose room. The floor is so littered with debris that the terrain is questionable at best {Difficult Terrain}
Meanwhile in the foyer Reggie the mastiff whines as the farmer begins to stir.
Foyer Block {Vidar, Cristiel, Reggie, Guard}
Sanitarium Block {Rullis, Kithian, Cam, Sayniek}
Ghoul Block {Stuff that is not nice...}[/ooc
[ooc]Current LOS puts the "ghoul" about 25 feet in front of Sayniek. The room was roughly 80x80 based on your last visit. Until more light comes in you can't see more than the current creature though you can hear at least two more.
Cristiel makes another circuit around the foyer as she stops to look over the farmer as he stirs. The elven woman positions Manartyelo's sharp edge between her body and the man's bruised, battered form as a precaution while she reaches out to tap his cheeks with the back of her hand, "Awaken yourself. This is not a place you wish to remain asleep over long."
Sayniek looks at the monster:
I think now is a good time for a blessing from Ragathiel.
With her sword in hand, the diminutive knight calls upon her Lord and a moment later, the air feels filled with energy causing all to seek vengeance upon whatever dark power is creating these undead.
Cast: Bless
Camillo looks for a reasonably-sized chunk of debris, casts light on it, and chucks it into the room.
Perception:
Rage Charge!
Power Attack:
Damage:
Rullis flings his everburning torch towards the creatures. Then immediately calls upon nature's power to fling a bolt of lightning at whatever undead thing the torch lights up. With that complete, he raises his shield .
Perception:1d20+5
Rage Charge!
Power Attack: 1d20+13
Damage: 2d4+17
"Mildew...this place looks structurally sound, but I am not so sure that is really the case.
I am not particularly enamoured of this place at all..."
The group breaks into action with Sayniek uttering a blessing of her avenging archangel patron and Kithian flying into his barbarian's rage.
Despite the debris Kithian thunders forward at the large ghoul whose eyes grow in anticipation as the half-orc closes the gap.
The two creatures collide together as the ghoul uses its large size to swing at the oracle, lashing out with a clawed hand and catching Kithian in full force with a blow on the shoulder. And though many men would falter from the ghoul's paralysis curse the party's resident barbarian surges forward and bring his blade down in a horrible gash that crushes the creatures shoulder. Were the creature alive it surely would scream out in pain but it merely roars in anticipation of slaking its undead hunger.
That moment is cut short as lighting arcs through the air and zaps the last remaining bit of whatever motivating force the ghoul had as its carcasses collapses, the soft whiff of smoke tinging the air.
Rullis throws his torch in the room while Camillo stokes a magical light on a piece of nearby debris. The two soft circumferences of light are dim in the room but enough to show two more ghouls of this large size roaming the area. Both are clearly staged to engage the group and both scrabble to the barbarian as he is clearly the dominating figure in the room from their perspective.
The two ghouls close to the half-orc. One tries to bite at the barbarian and is turned away by the forged steel of Kithian's breastplate. The other does land another solid blow and once more the aura of paralysis chips at Kithian's mental defenses
In the foyer The farmer continues to stir and looks on with no small amount of panic Where am I? I remember running but I... The man sits on his haunches and rubs at his head in confusion.
Reggie begins barking at the door and whining/growling.
Vidar, grateful that one of the animals present seems to have been on the lookout for trouble merely raises a finger to his lips and shushes the farmer.
He then readies his wand of shocking grasp and takes a step back.
More ghouls? He must have been at this for months, no necromancer capable of binding so many ghouls from the graveyard would have fled so easily otherwise.