Easily dodging the fire that washes over Walter, Cinder attacks the man again!
Feeling the stinging of magical fire again, Merelda screams in frustration and moves to keep the woman pinned to wall.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHhhhhh!"
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ROUND 3
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Boros barrels into Walter who is not prepared from an assault from behind. He cannot even turn around before Cinder lays his stinger into shoulder of the man. Walter grips his shoulder with his free hand and does his best to steady himself. Even still he looks to be on the verge of collapse.
Elleste can only smile as Merelda fails to stab her with the rapier. As she does so little smoke entrails flow from her mouth once again
Innis creeps back towards the room but remains hidden allowing herself a moment to recover.
Lililinda repeats her magic words, this time focusing on the fire-breathing woman.
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ROUND 3
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Elleste easily resists the attempt by Lililinda to daze her.
Nicias draws his bow as he continues to move up placing himself in front of Lililinda and Kirzon.
Moving up to be just in range of Walter Cassandra lashed out with a vicious strike at his back.
The glaive takes Walter by surprise and he crumples to the ground.
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ROUND 3
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Watching Walter drops a brief look of fear washes over Elleste's face. She breathes forth another blast of fire and then begins to run towards the hall that Innis is recovering in.
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ROUND 4
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Boros is unsuccessful in biting Elleste as Kirzon moves right outside of the room behind Cinder.
AoO!
As the woman runs away and stumbles over Boros Merelda quickly adjusts. Rather than try to run over the good python herself, she moves up behind Boros, drops her rapier, and then draws her dagger to throws at her.
"Don't let her get away!"
Scorched by the fire Merelda is unable to concentrate enough to stab the retreating Elleste.
Cinder, upon seeing the man drop, moves to follow the retreating woman!
(Always Minimum 1 Point!)
Hearing the commotion draw near Innis launches herself in for one more treacherous assault.
Elleste sneers at Innis as she clutches her side trying to staunch the wound from the changeling's claw. Blocked on both sides she looks desperate as Cassandra and Nicias move into the room.
Lililinda growls in frustration, then fires off her spell again.
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ROUND 4
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The little gnome rushes up into the room and once again tries to cloud the mind of Elleste before she can wreak anymore harm to her companions. And with sheer will you watch as the woman slurs her words and looks about confused.
Seeing the desperate woman at her last moments, Merelda savors the look on her face as she casually moves to pick up her dropped rapier and follow her again.
Innis furiously swipes with her claws.
Boros' jaw clamp on the leg of the wounded Elleste and the pain is too much to bear as she succumbs to it and crumples to the ground.
With the danger potentially not over Innis hastily attempts to cover her scheme. "It seems their traitorous intent exceeded their good sense."
"Trouble is a rising tide that trails us" Innis hints secretly that something approaches from her direction.
Putting away her rapier, Merelda moves to grab the fallen woman and she attempts to drag her, and Boros if needs be, backward and out of sight around the she short hallway's corner.
Merelda smiles and then nods to Innis at her second message as she begins to drag the unconscious form Elleste back with Boros in tow with her.
Innis attempts to catch a glimpse of the approaching entity while using the corner as cover.
Innis uses the opportunity to slip behind the newcomer "What is this a jewel in dark places or yet more filth that I must suffer under heel?" she muses darkly. "Announce your intent in this forsaken realm and pray I like your answer if you hold your life dear." she gives the newcomer this ultimatum with haughty bravado.
The figure gasps at being taken unawares but recovers swiftly, bringing around an unusually-shaped blade and sturdy buckler while dropping into a practiced defensive crouch. A torch that burns without heat is clutched in the hand of her buckler arm, and she raises it to get a better look at her ambusher. Though frightened and at a disadvantage, the fear in the human's eyes drains and is replaced by a grim defiance.
"My name is Amigail and I've come to this place to avenge an attack on the Golden Keg Inn by...." Her words fall off as she examines the stranger before her more closer.
"Tell me--who are you...and what do you know about the trail of slaughter and corpses I followed to get here?"
The woman, Amigail as she calls herself puts on a brave face but Innis can feel her fear. It wasn't the other woman's fault it was just what Innis does best.
Innis smiles her peculiar eyes shine with a predatory delight. "Avenger!" she laughs "Alone in the dark and far too tardy I'm afraid. A Fool's errand to be sure and while you may not fully grasp it yet, it appears I am your..." she hesitates as if tasting the word "Savior."
"Follow me if you dare, it appear we are in the same side, with a similar tale as yours and Time is friend to neither of us."
"Or turn back if Fear is your master." Innis adds as she strides past the woman to regroup with her team.
"If I were afraid I wouldn't have come down here alone," Amigail counters, trying to sound braver than she feels. "Besides, I have little more to lose at this point...," she adds in a bitter tone.
She follows the slightly creepy woman but keeps her guard up as she examines the lady's comrades carefully.
Innis heralds the newcomers arrival and assumes command. "Crew we've a newcomer in our midst a friend found in dark places, hopefully more reliable than our previous 'new friends'. To you all The Fearless Avenger Amigail. Nicias have you finished charming that door? Kirzon, Cassandara we need this one up to speed if you will. Ladies(Merry & Lili) I've need of you and our dear departed Elleste."
Chuckling evily, Merelda gets the idea of what Innis is up to. She is more than welcome to use her courtesan's kit as much as she needs.
"You are a delight sister! You keep coming up with ways to out-do yourself. Although, if you don't mind, I could use more healing from the wand after that woman's...bad breath kept me at bay."
Standing back, she will take a look at the newcomer, using her ability to detect alignment on the woman to make sure they were not endangering themselves further by trusting the wrong person.
"Oh she yet lives, fortune favors her that I need only borrow her life not steal it. I suppose she spoke true the first time." Innis mutters to herself. She let's the fading Elleste suffer a moment longer then whether out of madness, mercy, some other machination or a combination there of she channels to heal.
Innis intimately examines Elleste for what is to come next. "Passcodes, signals..." she makes a rude noise "what is all that compared to a face you can trust?" she grins feeling the ecstasy of the thrill of crime.
As Innis returns you see she is escorting a woman back with her. There is a pause by the group as they try to determine the woman's intentions. That she is alone strikes you with some curiosity until you hear Nicias' voice pipe up as he moves to get a closer look of the woman who from her pale complexion and pinkish eyes is also infected, "I have seen you before in my uncle's inn several times. You are a friend of my cousin are you not?"
While Nicias speaks to the newcomer Innis is already planning something devious asking for the aid of the tailor and courtesan.
Amigail starts chatting with the somewhat-familiar-looking Nicias but her eyes keep darting to where Innis and the others are hovering over the body of a dead or unconscious woman. From Nicias (and perhaps Kirzon and Cassandra) she learns what horrors the group has faced inside the mortuary.
As Nicias explains to Amigail some of the troubles they have faced his face grows somber. "You should know that Basila was greatly affected by this disease. We left her and my uncle in a hurry to see if we could find the source and a cure for the disease. So far we have been running around the city. These cultists planned this out well attempting to cover their tracks but now we hope this place is their headquarters so we can save Basila...and ourselves and likely the city."
"Have you spied the blue dwarf yet?" Amigail asks suddenly. "The one with the wild white hair and big eyes?"
She goes on to explain that such a creature was part of the attack on the Golden Keg but managed to escape into the city sewers.
Nicias looks at Amigail for a moment. "Ahh yes I believe Merelda," he motions in the direction of the elf who is now applying make up to Innis "Recognized them as creatures called derro. They were working with another fey creature called mites. Ugliest creatures I have ever seen. We were attacked much in the same way although it turned out it was only us, Basila and uncle Vasaro who were in the inn at that time. From the chaos that happened after the Golden Keg was attacked you are lucky to have escaped. We have fought through hordes of these zombies. I fear what the city must be going through. Whatever agenda this cult of Maramaga has I cannot fathom but they have created a problem none could ever have expected."
During the night the inn was attacked by a fanatical priest screaming the name Maramaga. Alongside this priest were some shaven head body guards and a pale blue dwarflike creature with bulging white eyes and wild hair you had never seen the likes of. In the battle that ensued the priest hurled a glass vial on the ground causing whatever contents it contained to be infect everyone in the inn immediately. While the priest and the bodyguards were killed the strange creature escaped vanishing down a sewer grate before you could pursue any sooner.
Staggering back to the inn it was obvious that yourself as well as the others that had survived were sick. Several people yourself included felt lethargic and weak. Your eye-whites turned a soft shade of pink and some even began to expel trace amounts of bloody mist anytime they sneezed or coughed. At the sight of this fear erupted into argument and argument turned into weapons being drawn.
As people debated on what to do next whether call for the Watch or to head to find a priest the dead rose and quickly attacked those engrossed in the argument. Seeing yourself overwhelmed you were able to escape through the kitchen with a few contents from the priest's pack. It contained two maps one of a labyrinth like system of passages but another looked more familiar it was map of the city of Cassomir. On this map several locations were indicated with one being circled several times.
Being in no condition to search for this place at night you opted to return home and rest off whatever was afflicting you. You rested hoping to rid yourself of this fever but when you awoke you felt even worse.
Not knowing what to do you followed the map for a few hours trying to determine where the actual location was on the map until finally you arrived at a business called The Green Mortuary Funeral Service located in the Abbey Green area. The city is in a state of fear and you were lucky to sneak out of the Fen where your house is located to reach the Abbey Green.
Merelda nods as she finishes reading the girls aura with a glance. She whispers to Innis secretly.
"The goddess's gifts tell me she is not evil. She's a law-abiding and loyal-type person. Best to keep an eye on her anyway of course."
Innis nods taking in Merelda's words and casting a glance at the mingling Amigail. In her experience it always pays to know or in this case surround yourself with people who do.
Looking at herself in her mirror Innis flashes Merelda a full smile appreciative of the other woman's skill and help in the first steps of her disguise. Before she checks on Lililinda, Innis summons the power of the dark wand to restore Merelda.
Lililinda looks the newcomer up and down thoughtfully. "I can work with this. Here, someone help me get these clothes off of this one here."she says, indicating the unconscious Elleste. "If you're going to impersonate someone, you have to dress the part. I know I would be suspicious if someone I knew suddenly changed outfits since I last saw them, moments ago."
"My thanks Lili your are truly a master at work." Innis praises the gnome seamstress' talent.
Cassandra helped get the newcomer up to speed. She was rather leery at first since the woman just happened to appear down here but Nicias vouching for her helped alleviate her worries some. When they had finished updating Amigail she smiled and said, "I'm glad to have someone else who can help protect the weaker members of our party. I'm good at keeping people at bay but in these narrow corridors and rooms my effectiveness is limited."
"Yeah, the local authorities can be real pieces of...work," Ami tells Kirzon rather bitterly. She then tells Cassandra that her fighting style relies upon battlefield mobility, getting into ideal flanking position without getting herself cut to ribbons.
Finally, she looks over to where Innis, Merelda, and Lililinda are undressing the unconscious woman. "Who is she and what are your friends doing to her? Or do I not want to know...?"
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Cassandra looked at the mage they had taken down and rolled her eyes as she said, "You're better off not knowing I think. The mage seems to have been in league with whoever started this plague and she made both of them angry. Calistrians aren't known for their restraint when it comes to revenge and those two are the most Calistrian Calistrians I've ever met."