Skaar finds nothing else useful, except some mouse droppings.
Skaar returns to the group offering one of the maces to Cyna and another to Aurelea.
"You wanna spend the day here and head out in the morning?" the big orc asks.
"Sounds like a plan." Aurelea responds, storing the mace as a useful back-up weapon.
"Yes, some rest would be more than welcome." Harakhty looks around for a suitible area to lay down, curling up where he can and passing-out.
Cyna gives the weapon a careful inspection before stashing the weapon away . "Lets get some rest and start fresh in the morning."
Lienne clears some space for all of you in one of the chapel's wings, providing cots and some thin broth with lamb and potatoes for a meal. The sisters all retire as the sun disappears beneath the gaps in the trees, save for Clara, who goes outside.
"I'll take the first watch." Aurelea says
Skaar takes a seat and tries to nod off.
"Then I'll take second." Drago said.
Aurelea heads outside to take first watch and comes across Clara practicing against a training dummy in the twilight. She swings her sword, stopping short of striking the vital areas the dummy represents. As her swings become faster, her countenance becomes more fierce as if she is imagining herself fighting a hated foe. Shortly, her strikes become erratic and Clara becomes frustrated. She strikes the torso of the dummy, embedding the sword several inches. She pulls it out in anger and removes the dummy's head in one clean swipe. Clara then sits on the grass, glancing at the head for a moment.
"The dead who swim among the ships have whispered to me, mistress, your son and his friends are in Zahvroma."
"What do I care, Ixen? If they've landed, they are in your territory, therefore they are your problem," Chalandra says angrily.
"I...I am no match for them," Ixen stammers. "Please lend me your aid. Make me like you."
Chalandra's face softens and then she laughs cruelly. "You?! You are worth less than Drago. You crawl on your belly to please me and now you ask for my strength?! You fornicate with zombies and ghouls and you beg to sleep beneath my sheets! Aliethia is a better choice than you. In fact..."
"No, Chalandra, you daren't!" Ixen protests.
"Count your blessings, Ixen. You still live though you have called me by my proper name. Doubly blessed because you have questioned my decision. Her hatred burns brightly and she may be useful. More so than you, you ill-begotten necrophile,"she says, standing from her throne. She descends, putting a strong hand on Ixen's shoulder.
Noticeably squeezing on his soft flesh, Chalandra continues. "Recall that I gave you my territory after Isceni died so that I could attend to my child, my ungrateful spawn. You have had time to make more of yourself."
She spits in his face, her saliva running down his mask. "Go to the fort with haste and kill them. If you try to run, I will find you and ! And it will hurt worse than what they could ever do to you..."
Chalandra releases Ixen and he runs out of sight. She raises her head and looks directly at you. "Oh, it's you again, Drago. I see you have survived this long. Color me surprised, if not pleased. I did tell you that if you set foot on Zahvroma that you would die. I did not forget and I hope you did not either. Aliethia is looking forward to seeing you soon."
The scene fades and you feel yourself in your body again.
Aurelea watches Clara practice, observing her intensity and eventual loss of control as her emotions take over. As she watches the holy warrior sit as she deals with some inner turmoil, she debates whether or not she should simply leave her alone with her thoughts.
"You train like a woman who's got somebody she needs to kill. I used to train like that."
Clara nods at Aurelea, producing a cracked symbol of Iomedae from a pocket. She grips it tight in her hand, before putting it away.
"I'm sorry for your loss. A companion, a loved one? I know how it feels, how the only thing that seems to fill the hole is the need for revenge"
Clara shakes her head, she points at her pocket and then at herself. She seems as if she debates upon something for a moment but decides against it. Aurelea and Clara sit in silence for the rest of the first watch. She then sends Aurelea to fetch Drago.
She lands in front of you, her eyes black as night and bleeding. She smiles, her teeth razor sharp. The angel places a hand on you.
"Skaar, I am Szuriel, Horseman of War. You served in my name, though you didn't know it. You separate yourself from this," the angel says, gesturing towards the fighting below. "But the war rages on inside of you. You long to kill because it is what you do best. I can make you a legend among the rest. No one will ever spit in your face or look down upon you again. Be the sword for your companions, slay all who would slay them. When your foes breathe their last, call out to me and I will burn their souls to ash. Make them fear you, Skaar, and serve the Horseman of War."
The ground below erupts, blood flooding over the field. The soldiers drown in the torrent. Flames spew from the mountains and then it all goes dark.
Skaar wakes with a gasp, the smell of burning flesh still fresh in his senses. The big orcs looks around to make sure his companions are well before standing and exiting the lodging. He needed a walk and some air.
A dream?
Skaar's eyes go wide at the sight.
"What the hell's goin' on?!" the big orc demands. "Let her go Drago", the greenskin growls as he rushes forward.
Aurelea has roused Drago for his watch, but Skaar is also awake from the dark dreams he had.
"Why have you called me, Vencious?" the devil says, his voice like silk.
"Ah..."
"Don't speak my name! If these things are aware...my vengeance will be swift and your pain eternal. But I suppose you'd get off on that," the devil growls.
"Well, these crystals whisper a secret language and, after a week of study, I've deduced that they speak of someone named Cyna," Vencious says. "It doesn't follow the pattern, so..."
"Spare me your explanations," the devil interrupts. "Now why should this interest me? And be brief."
"I have checked and she is from your bloodline. Specifically your great granddaughter," Vencious explains. "This honors our agreement, does it not?"
"I suppose fortune smiles upon you, Vencious. Where can she be found?"
"Apparently, she is on Zahvroma, near the lighthouse."
"Very well. Once I find her, I shall return here to complete the arrangement."
The scene fades again in a haze of green.
The big orc rubbed his eyes.
"You two havin' trouble sleepin' too?"
"Well I am," Drago responded to Skaar, "Mother knows we're here, and Ixen will be waiting at the fort."
Cyna massages her temple trying to push her mind to better thoughts.
"With that flash of light earlier the whole continent probably knows were here."
Aurelea steps back, one hand caressing her throat while the other grips her hilt as she glares at Drago.
Gathering herself she takes a deep breath, potential violence leaving her body as she exhales.
"I guess next time I should just poke you with a pointy stick."
The party's strange behavior makes Skaar think.
Maybe it wasn't just a dream...
"I'm gunna go for a leak", the big orc grunts as he steps away to clear his head.
Skaar heads outside to the privy, watched sleepily by Clara. Drago comes outside after Skaar is done with his business. Drago and Clara sit in silence until the dhampir goes to wake the orc for the last watch. Skaar exits, the air damp but cool. Clara still sits on the steps, trying to stay awake.
As you approach, the darkness following you, you see it is Naeem and another unknown vanara. You call out to Naeem, your voice seeming to vanish as it leaves your mouth. Naeem clings to the other vanara in fear.
"Who are you?" Naeem asks. "I have never seen you before in my life."
You try to protest but the vanara move away from you climbing the great tree.
"Gone and forgotten you are, Harakhty," a deep voice from all around you says. "You should go back now. Leave Zahvroma to the others..."
The dream ends as a cold rain begins to fall.
Proceeding to the study, you see the door lies broken and on its side. A tall stake is set in the middle of the floor, surrounded by kindling and logs. Clara is tied to the stake, her nude body writhing against the ropes. You see the red cord tied to her neck, but it seems to be choking her.
Men in black armor wearing crack symbols of Iomedae surround her, chanting in strange demonic languages. The tallest of the knights stands before you. His face is blemished by signs of the plague.
"Unsheathe your sword, Aurelea, and slay the traitor," he says in a deep commanding voice. "It was what your sword was made for. Spill her blood and fulfill your destiny."
The others light fires at her feet, but Clara does not scream. Against your will, your hand reaches for your sword. Guiding itself, it buries deep into her chest. Clara emits a final, ear-piercing scream and the dream fades away, but the smell of smoke lingers.
After a few hours of seeing nothing, the light of dawn is seen on the horizon. The morning sun has vanquished the horrible night.
The following morning, Skaar wakens with the others. How much of the dream had been real and how much was his own worried thoughts? Drago and Aurelea had suggested similarly rough sleeping. Maybe it was worth learning more.
After breaking his fast, the big orc flags down Harakhty.
"Hey lil 'Nara. I gotta question for you. You know stuff about gods. You heard of the Horseman of War?"
Aurelea wakes, the intensity of the dream leaving a tension in her shoulders that sleep could not resolve. She sat for a few minutes, mulling over the images that plagued her mind during the night. Her family home, gutted and abandoned, Clara’s body, hungrily sought by the flames, the cord that held the symbol she wore choking her.
The symbols, each of the warriors burning her wore one, knights of Iomedae corrupted by demons. They wanted Aurelea to kill Clara. Why? She knew there was something….alive? in her sword, she could almost feel a name on the edge of her mind but the idea that it could be aligned with those dark warriors. It just seemed like…a lie.
Sitting up in a cross-legged pose she begins her meditation, studying her spellboook as the movements play through her mind, blending combat and arcane somatics in a fluid dance that burns itself into her mind. After an hour she rises, stretching her muscles before casting a cantrip the scoured her body of dirt and sweat, leaving a faint scent of Jasmine. .
Donning her armor and gear, she studies her sword, the black blade seeming to drink in the light around her. She makes her way outside. One way or another, she needed to talk to Clara again, even though it was clear that only one of them would be talking.
Getting up with the sun, even though it stung his eye mercilessly, Drago spent his morning clearing his mind of the visions of the night before. But he couldn't shake off what Lienne had said. Was I born just to be a vessel for her consciousness? How many other children did she birth over the centuries to perform this same function? Pulling out Aliethia's dagger, his thoughts returning to that night, You became that creature because of me, I'm sorry.
His free hand went to pendant Elena had given him, What if mother found out about her? The Damphir shook his head to banish the thought, and replacing it with rage, he silently thought, Next time I destroy you mother, you'll stay that way. I swear it.
Drago turned around and went back inside.
Harakhty bolted upright, breathing hard. His hands instinctively went to the pendant around his throat. No, that would not be Naeem. This place truly is cursed. Still, he could not put the jarring vision fully from his mind, even highly doubting its authenticity...
Not having eaten yet, Harakhty forced himself to, though after the nightmare, he'd little appetite.
The Horsemen? He nodded. "Well, I've read there are four, and they bring suffering, but not so much more than that." He did not know the greenskin's intentions. "Let's hope they're not here."
Cyna rolled out of her cot shortly after the rest of her companions she watched as they went about their morning routine though it seemed she wasn't the only one haunted by the night before.
The ranger approaches her group and says. "We should get moving soon I don't like the idea of sitting in one place to long, especially in this corrupted land."
The sisters perform their regular Pharus duties, spending the day in quiet worship, though Lienne makes herself available before you leave for the fort. You are served a meager breakfast of rolled oats, bread and some fruit preserves. Looking around, you see Clara finally asleep, attended to by another sister.
The Horsemen? He nodded. "Well, I've read there are four, and they bring suffering, but not so much more than that." He did not know the greenskin's intentions. "Let's hope they're not here."
Skaar shakes his head.
"That's what's got me worried lil 'Nara", Skaar explains. "I think they are..."
***
Skaar packs whatever food and drink the Sisters can spare the party and asks for directions one more time.
"You sure you can get us there Cyna?"
During your breakfast, Lienne passes by the group. "It doesn't look like you slept well."
"You could say that", Skaar grunts. "That happen a lot here?"
"Only with Clara," Lienne says. "She doesn't sleep at night anymore. Before she took her vow of silence, she would cry during the night and told me that it was due to the nightmares she would have. She mentioned something about those 'shards of the sky'. She didn't have nightmares like that before she encountered them. The sisters and I have seen one, but we stayed our distance."
The Shards of the Sky... Skaar shakes his head. He didn't understand what they were either.
"What do the Sisters think they are?"
"From the dreams Clara described, they seem to communicate with other planes. I'm sorry, but my knowledge of such things is limited, but to see devils, demons, horsemen and other unspeakable things..." Lienne pauses, looking out a nearby window. "They must connect Vesaria to other things out there."
Skaar listens in silence, the explanation slowly working its way through his simple thoughts.
"Do ya think those dreams are more than just dreams?" the big orc asks. "Do ya think these devils and demons and s~~*, can they really see us?"