Roy clears his head and re-enters the tower, immediately looking to see if the runestone is still intact before retrieving his rifle.
Alisha proceeds to the runestone and using her arcane knowledge removes it from its location without triggering any magical traps. With it she finds also a tome of some kind as well.
Dom stumbles into the room looking better but still a little shaky.
"Did -- did you win?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
Any of you hurt? Need some medical attention?
Xannder pulls out his medical kit and starts looking over Alisha and Roy.
You manage to dispel the runestone using some of the hags blood and it returns to being dormant, to reactivate it would require doing a ritual that would take 24 hours.
Searching the second floor you find a treasure trove of books on arcane lore and some magical items.
A belt of healing, a +1 blinding steel shield and a a dragon slayer's armor.
The mist surrounding the valley starts to disperse and for the first time since you arrived sunlight shines trough.
Your cell phones starts working again.
It seems these stones were the key to the mist blocking our communications. I can call for reinforcements and for more specialized gear. I owe you my thanks...I'm ordering a full shipment of silver bullets. I can make a request for you. is there anything you need?
"Healing potions. Like a lot of healing potions. Like a Costco amount of healing potions," Dom says from the corner of the room where he's leaning against the wall, still looking shaky.
"And some flak vests, if you're offering. I also wouldn't say no to a drink," he tells Ashlyn with a flirtatious smile.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Alisha Quinn dives into reading the arcane tomes with a hungry gleam in her eye. She reads one spell called "Light" and incants the arcane words and a glowing a white light shines from her pendant. Alisha begins laughing.
"FINALLY! I've done it! Magic! True Magic is finally mine! HA HA HA HA!"
Roy looks to Dom and pulls his bandana down, a small grin flashing across his face for a moment. "Good to see you up and around again, you lazy ass," he comments, himself leaning against the wall as Xannder comes forward. The Hunter then pulls out his cell phone as it vibrates, and raises an eyebrow.
"Silver bullets sound good, and Dom said it with the healing. Don't much use armor myself, but any guns would be good. And don't tell me you don't have anything not on the market, 'cause we'd both know it's a load of bull." He gives Ashlyn a pointed look and begins reloading the rifle, glancing upwards as he hears Alisha's voice from above.
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me... Déithe chaomhnú dúinn, draoi..." He sighs and heads up the tower with the rifle in hand.
"Their sending a chopper with some gear and extra manpower it should arrive tomorrow morning."
Ok so trough some study Alisha is able to discover the use of these items.
The belt is imbued with healing magic derived from the sun. At each Sunrise when exposed to daylight the belt gains up to 3 charges and can hold a maximum of 5 charges. Using it is a standard action regardless of how many charges you use.
You can use
1 charge to heal someone 1d8
2 charges to heal someone 2d8
3 charges to heal someone 4d8
The shield, Grants +3 equipment bonus to defense and as a standard action can emit a 30 foot cone of blinding light, that blinds any creature in the radius for 1d4 rounds unless they make a dc 15 reflex save. The shield must be held and make using a two-handed gun impossible.
The armor is a plate mail armor that makes its wearer very resistant to fire, almost immune.
I wouldn't mind a surgery kit so I can dress these wounds in the field, other than that I'm just peachy.
Xannder glances at Alisha with an inquisitive look.
Uhh, you goin mad scientist on us?
Alisha smiles and says, "Oh forgive my outburst there Xannder. I have just finally achieved what I have been seeking for years, the power to invoke Arcane Magic. Finally I will be able to prove to the scientific world the existence of arcane energy. Imagine the advancements that can be gained by mankind through the harnessing of such power. Nobel Prize here I come.
Roy grabs Alisha's wrist and stares her dead in the eyes, his brow furrowed. "Yeah, about that. There's a reason this is all kept secret, and most folks don't know about it, and it's going to stay that way. So no Nobel Prize for using magic. It's dangerous at best, and the less it's used, the better."
"Plus, no one with a brain will believe you because they're too busy coming up with plausible ways to debunk you. And the people who will believe you will just make you look crazy."
"And that doesn't even get to the problem that certain things are just more powerful the more people believe in them."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Alisha sighs and frowns saying, "Perhaps you are right Roy. I am sure more experienced spellsingers than myself have tried before only to end up as mere stage musicians rather than paragons of a new form of science. Such is the problem will all this cover-up bullshit we have to deal with as hunters. Still it does not heed my ambition to better my knowledge of the arcane arts. Fighting fire with fire and all that."
"More experienced 'spellslingers' have tried before only to end up as crow feed," Roy comments, still frowning. "I don't know how much you've already looked into it, but magic is dangerous. It's best left untouched. If you want to play with fire, go ahead, but don't expect me to help when you get burned. The cover-up bullsh*t is part of the job, and it keeps folks safe and comfortable. Imagine how the world would be if every parent knew the boogeyman their kid just saw might be real. Most people can't handle this line of work, and that's why we're down here at the sh*tty end of the stick."
"Magic does have it's uses, our department keeps three or four experience magic users on hand to help with dealing with some creatures that are difficult to deal with using normal weapons. Your friends are right however you can't go showing off your abilities to anyone."
"We still have a vampire to find. Not to mention Rena," Dom said as he stood up unsteadily.
"But first we need to see the elves and get the townspeople back. Let's get our stuff and get going."
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Right lets head back to town for now I will delay the attack on the castle until reinforcement arrive."
Reinforcements, that sounds good.
"We still have one more Fane to neutralize though. If we don't get rid of all three fanes we won't be able to defeat the vampire in time to save the Lycanthropy afflicted townsfolk. Rena may also be put into further danger if we do not act soon. We don't have time to wait for reinforcements with so many lives on the line."
Roy scowls under his bandana and nods. "Alisha's right. We need to move as quickly as we can afford." He looks at Dom. "I think we can stand to rest up a little, though. Get our wounds patched up, refill on ammo. At the very least we need to get back to the cars."
You make you way back to the cars and the agents have a ride pick them up.
They make their way back to the hotel and they beginning clearing a landing zone in front of the hotel.
On the drive back Roy's cell phone rings. It's Harvey from the hunter bar.
Shortly after kicking down the stand on his bike, Roy pats a pocket and pulls out his cell phone. He wipes off the screen and answers the call. "Harvey? What's up?"
"What do you think? I have been calling you each day since you left! Whats the situation over there? I've sent over a dozen hunters that way and word is that department 7 is mobilizing in full strength like they are going to war."
Roy sighs and presses a fist against his forehead. "Alright, Harv. Signal's been down around here because there's a lot of bad sh*t going down. Looks like some sort of dimensional crossover's happened. Long story short, there's a vampire in a castle, some elves and werewolves fighting him--that's the missing townsfolk--and some magic Fanes were set up that we've taken care of. I met up with Dom out here, Dom Santana, you remember him? Anyway, we've taken out the Fanes, and we're gonna grab a rest and talk to the elves again before heading to the castle. Hopefully the townsfolk are gonna be fine, and we can deal with the vamp."
He rubs his neck and takes a breath before continuing. "More Hunters sounds fine, 'cause we can use all the help we can get against the castle. And the Deppies are out in force. We worked with a few of them to take out the Fanes."
"You worked with department agents? Situation must really be bad. I will see what I can do. From what I can tell thought the whole county has been quarantine and the surrounding towns are being evacuated so not just anyone can go there anymore."
Alisha says to the others "We should not go back to the elves until we have all 3 fanes. They aren't going to remove the curse or alter their plan unless we keep our end of the bargain and eliminate the fanes. We need to help these people before they permanently change into werewolves and get themselves killed."
"Yeah, whole town's going to hell pretty quick--literally. Quarantine's not great, but it keeps this from spreading to quick. Keep me updated, Harv." Roy ends the call and looks to Dom. "Well, things sure aren't getting better."
He shifts his pack and shakes his head. "Alisha's right. The elves seemed pretty pissed about the vamp, but we need to move fast. I don't know if that other woman took out the fane, but we can check with the elves. If not, they'll take us to it." He rubs his shoulder. "Sure would like a rest, though."
Didn't Ashlyn say something about a supply drop? Would be nice to get our hands on some more medical supplies should Dom here decide to stand in front of a wolf again.
Xannder casually points at Dom.
Be nice to get a little food as well, I'm starving.
"Oh, sure, tease the guy who nearly died," Dom said with a chuckle.
He then took the walkie talkie from Alisha and said into it, "Ashlyn, this is Dom. Come in. We need confirmation on the last fane. Did your boys take care of it?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
A man approaches the group outside the hotel and looks like a redneck. Balding with a large handlebar mustache, it is hard to see his neck in the collar of his barrel-chested fatigue jacket that covers layers of flannel, t-shirts, and the top of his veteran jeans. He wears sturdy, brown leather hiking boots and a small backpack and carries a long duffel bag.
"You guys know Harry? It took me awhile to get through the quarantine. I'm Covert, Jim Covert. What's the mission status?" He slings the duffel over a shoulder to stand more comfortably.
"I agree with Roy. Maria must have done her job, else the barrier wouldn't have come down."
×_×_×
"Harry? You mean Harvey?"
Dom looked the man up and down. He certainly had the look of a Hunter. He then turned quietly to Roy.
"Harvey tell you he was sending any new guys?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Said he'd sent some our way, yeah," Roy says, still eying the new arrival. "As for us, we're just taking a breather in the middle of things going to hell. Harv mention what's happening?" Roy obviously isn't entirely trusting of the man--but he isn't entirely trusting of most people.
That guy at the bar? Yeah, real nice... Could use a cooking class though.
Xannder extends his hand eagerly.
Names Xannder, nice to meet you Jim. Couldn't help but notice your last name is Covert. That what it says on your birth certificate? Kinda a strange last name.
He chuckles to himself.
"Harvey said he was a calling a couple of us in to help. What's the sit rep? Do you expect trouble out here?" Jim surveys the horizon over their shoulders.
Then, he replies to Xannder, "And yeah, that's my real name. My uncle played offensive tackle for the Chicago Bears." With a tone that can't believe you've never heard of him. "So what nationality is Xannder?" He asks with a grin.
A pickup truck with a camper shell pulls up and parks not too far away. A very large man gets out, looks around, then ambles over to the assembled group with a smile on his face. He grins at them through his thick beard and pulls off his sunglasses, resting them on the bill of his cap as he starts talking.
"Hey. This where everything's going to hell? Where do I sign up?" He's a huge guy, built like a NFL lineman, with a thick, bushy beard. He looks like he's from the islands somewhere- Hawaii, maybe, or somewhere else in the Pacific.
With his battered Seattle Mariners baseball cap it's hard to tell, but it looks like he shaves his head. At least, there little more than stubble to be seen below the rim of the cap. His clothes are pretty nondescript- worn jeans, what look like equally worn hiking boots, and a t-shirt under a black windbreaker.
Alisha looks to the newcommers and says, "So you're here to back us up are you? I am Alisha Quinn, Scholar of Mythological Studies and hunter of the supernatural. Indeed this has been quite a fruitful ventrue. I have found numerous creatures that were thought to only be mythology but are actually real. Currently there is many innocent townsfolk afflicted with Lycanthropy and a vampire on the loose looking to fill the world with his foul progeny. We're here to save the villagers and slay the vampire before things get much worse around here."
"Hi Alisha. Townsfolk? Villagers? We're really in a fairy tale today. Is there any way to save the ones already afflicted with lycanthropy, or must they all be put down? Do we need to treat our bullets with anything to be more effective?" Jim asks Alisha.
"Hey," Jim replies to Joey offering a handshake, "I'm Jim." The two appear to be similar sized.
"Apparently the Townsfolk have been afflicted with lycanthropy to be used as living weapons against the vampire. We have struck a deal to have the curse removed in exchange for disabling the three Fanes of power that strengthen the vampire and his minions. We have two of the fanes at the moment but there is still one left to find. If we have to put down the Werewolves we'll need silver bullets for it but I hope we don't have to resort to that."
"We'll check on Maria and see if she's back from the swamp. New guys, get in your vehicles and follow us. The clock is ticking."
-Posted with Wayfinder
"What's a fane?" Jim asks walking to Joey's truck. He takes off his backpack and sits shotgun holding his gear in his lap.
Joey takes Jim's hand and shakes solidly, but not bone crushingly. "Joe Konani. Lots of people in the community call me Big Joey K, but..." he gestures at Jim, then at himself, indicating their similar size, "I guess I'm just Joey to you." The big Hawaiian grins at Jim.
He laughs at Jim's question as he opens his door. "I was just gonna ask you that." Inside the cab there are seats for 5, but the footwell of the back bench seat is awash in fast food bags, receipts and other junk. There's an extra pair of shoes back there, a pair of running shorts, even a pillow and light blanket. From the looks of it, there's a good chance Joey lives in his truck.
As he starts up the truck, Joey gestures toward the covered bed. "I know that lady said the curse was going to be lifted, but I've got a box of silver .38 rounds back there if you've got anything that can use 'em. I'm not going to take the risk of getting bitten by a werewolf." Once everybody else moves out, Joey follows along at the end of the line of vehicles.