Emma hoists the prisoner on to one shoulder, and sprints as fast as she can over to Morley. Slowly, carefully, gently, she lifts him onto the other shoulder. "Hang in their buddy," she grunts "I ain't got no time for corpses."
Sets her heavily laden shoulders, and begins stomping towards the cave exit. She doesn't pay any attention to the demons. Not a bit.
Laughing loudly as he pummeled the next desperate ratman with the hilt of his cutlass and tossed it into the hole, Hjalmar began singing loudly in dwarven, a deep rumbling tenor. Those afforded understanding of the language could possibly recognize the song as an old battle hymn, a favorite amongst dwarves the world over. "Come now, see if you can slake my thirst for extermination!" He yelled, before launching into the next verse.
Morley takes a long pause, looking at the cave and back to the light.
It is true that I have killed, but I am no murderer! I killed only to protect what is right ... what is good! To protect against you! What you represent!
I do not fear you! My life was one of endless torment! What can you do to me that wasn't already done a thousand times on the streets! I've faced you every day, and every day I triumphed. Until today. Your minions out there, he gestures to the cave, they will fall to my friends. And I will not betray them, the only friends I ever had. You wish me to serve you? To kill at your behest? Never. He walks into the light without further comment.
Archepex sees the crazy girl making her way back with two wounded and calls out, Myk-myk! We need you over here!
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Emma, as you're carrying Morley's body, you feel the beat of his heart through his clothing. His legs are a bloody mess. His heartbeat slows, gradually, and finally stops. The thief's lips let pass their last breath. Two of the demons overhead make to swoop down on you, but your glare upwards at them brings to mind the resoluteness of a paladin, and they fall back, hiding their faces. Emma, you see that Hjalmar's influencing the flow of the crowd with some kind of battle-hymn...you'd have to cut through the main body of Skaven leaving the concert hall, or walk past the pirate doing battle, to leave the cave.
Nearby, Hjalmar and Grigor continue to cut a swath through the Skaven crowd. The rats are fleeing now, the concert done. Over 70% of the original Skaven crowd of rats lie dead, but that's not all that uncommon for a Skaven rock concert. They flee all around you, and your cutlass comes away bloody over and over.
The fighter is throwing himself recklessly into the rats all around him, his armor just as much a weapon as his blade. Skewering bodies of the Skaven mobbing him, heedless of their counter-stabs, he bloodies the ground with Skaven bodies. Unbeknownst to him, the rats were sacrificing themselves to ensnare him. His reckless tactics mean that he gets roped up the moment he stops to catch his breath, and gets yanked off his feet by a group of a half-dozen Skaven gutter-runners! They're trying to make off to a small hole in the wall on the side of the cavern, not far from Archepex's position.
As the pirate battles, he creates a wall of dead rats. Skaven corpses, bloody at the throat or in the stomach, lie dead behind him and around him. The fleeing crowd is forced to bottleneck at the other exit on the far side of the pit from the pirate, and there isn't enough room for all of them. Some of them even jump down in the pit, landing on the broken rocks of the fallen stalactite and fleeing deeper into the mines. Within minutes, the only combatants remaining will be the rat-ogres, the demons overhead, and the lead singer of WITCHMOTHER. The demons flying above are watching the chaos of the melee below without interfering, evil, identical smiles painted on all of their faces (except the ones that Emma dismayed).
Meanwhile, Dhice and Archepex have their attention turned to the barbarian trying to stop the witch-queen's escape. On the far side of the cave, near the opening that leads to the chasm you crossed over earlier, you see the old hag raise her arms over head and begin channeling some kind of spell. Bathilda tries to break through, but her single-mindedness leaves her open to the Rat-Ogres. Two of them grab her by the arms, and her sword is thrown away, out of reach. Roll 2d6 and choose the higher number from damage you take from the bouncers' manhandling, Bathilda. Luckily, the elven ranger's shot from across the cavern punctures the rat's fist that's holding you, and you manage to squirm away, but your face is bloody, your body is trembling from exhaustion and the Rat-Ogres are still standing between you and the Queen.
Meanwhile, Muppy flows across the ground, taking the form of a mobile sort of earthquake. Shards of rock jut up from the ground in the elemental's passing. Dhice's pet sneaks past the guards successfully and knocks one of the Rat-Queen's legs out from under her, interrupting her spell!
The glowing bridge that was being extended from this side of the cavern to the far side is interrupted halfway through as the Rat-Queen turns her focus on the troublesome elemental. "Fool!" the old crone spits. "Petty elementals are no match for the Master's power!"
With that, she fires a lightning bolt at the main body of the earthquake. Muppy shudders as the chaos energy rips through him, lose 1 Control.
Grigor drops his shield, braces and twists around, while swinging at his attackers with his sword trying to back them off and snap the strangle cords the gutter-runners have around his neck.
Bend Bars, Lift Gates
I choose two:
1. Snap the cords instantly.
2. I don't need any of the others on the list. Can I use my last choice to get back to my feet?
Flexing his muscles as hard as he can, the fighter snaps the ropes, but the Skaven notice this right away and dogpile on him to try to restrain him again.
Grigor, six Skaven are struggling to pin down your ankles and wrists! Your ropes are no longer holding you though; just the strength of the combined rats. The feral rats accompanying them crawl all over your face, scratching you painfully. Take 1d6 damage. What do you do?
Standing as he is just behind Hjalmar, Dhice notices Emma carrying Morley and the prisoner over her two shoulders as she is confronted with a nasty looking decision to make in her retreat. Inspiration strikes the lanky beanpole though, and he calls out to her, "Emma, jump on!" He motions with his hands as if he's picking up and moving a large object, and simultaneously a chunk of rock about 3' across with a reasonably flat surface levitates into the air and suspends itself over the hole in the floor, very near to Emma's location. "I'll bring you over!" When he sees the trouble that both Bathilda and Grigor are getting into, he revises the suggestion. "Or put them on the stone and go help, I'll bring them here to safety."
Grigor takes damage.
"Yeah, Emma! Come help!!!
Drop the science on the biggest looking one surrounding me.
Hack and Slash
for point of damage, +2 Piercing, messy, forceful.
I use my damage reroll on this one:
damage.
:(
Bathilda staggers as she's nearly knocked out. Her limbs tremble from the exertion and she has to close one eyes as blood from a gash on her forehead flows over it. She knows she's in trouble, and she takes the smart option of beating a retreat.
There was just the problem of the rat-ogres standing over her, and trying to grab her again. She shimmies one way and squirms another, and has to lose her overcoat when one of them manages to grab it, but she's past their arms and running, until her traitorous legs give out and she falls barely fifteen feet from the pair of brutes.
Well, this is a fine bloody mess you've gotten yourself in, Bathilda!
Lyntel struggles to consciousness, and finds herself floating on a stone platform. Where am I? She reaches up to her neck instinctively and grasps the collar. Still a slave ... but, something is different. Her eyes follow the chain down to her feet, and her eyes widen at the sight of the broken link. I'm ... free? How?
Her eyes then fall on the corpse lying next to her. I know you... Her memory is a confused jumble of horrific images, but one stands out. A human, dressed in rags, leaping at the Captor; choking, and falling prey to the Captor's magics. Another human, a female, breaking her chains. Lyntel puts her hand on the corpse's face, and cries. Thank you.
A harrowing song fills the cavern, an elvish song of loss, a death song. The voice cracks at first, but grows stronger, haunting.
Bathilda, as you attempt to free yourself, you hear the song, mournful and in a language you do not understand, but somehow you know the song is for you.
"Good," murmurs Emma "Still... still singing" She eases Lyntel onto Muppy, the shrugs off Morley, places him onto the Earth Elemental lying down, and covers him with her cloak. Her eyes are very, very dry.
Emma turns, and starts to run back into the fray. How far is Bathilda from me? Either way, I'm going to charge towards those Rat-Ogres.
In her desperation to get out of reach of the rat-ogres, Bathilda doesn't even notice that she doesn't seem to be tittering on the edge of death as much.
Dhice carefully maneuvers the stone slab across the chasm. With two people on it, one of whom is now moving and singing, the effort is not insubstantial. It starts to tax his abilities to their limit yet he succeeds in bringing them across the chasm to the "safe" side of Hjalmar's pile of skaven corpses.
The stone worker looks down sadly at Morley's still body as he mumbles a small refrain common amongst the soldiers of his old mercenary unit. Quickly done with that, he directs his gaze to the strange elven singer who stands before him, mostly naked and finishing a haunting song. The poor naive Dhice literally drops the stone platform the last 8 inches to the floor with a "clunk" that causes Lyntel to to be jarred most un-graciously. Dhice goes absolutely beet red and stutters incoherently at her.
This isn't over yet, Dhice. Focus. Archepex rebukes as another arrow goes flying at the nearest rat-ogre to Bethilda.
Now that he had room to maneuver, Mule rejoins the fray.
The song ends as the platform crashes to the floor. Lyntel rises. Thank you for saving me, Mage. She points in the general direction of Grigor and Bathilda. However, I fear your friends need your help.
Lyntel turns back to Morley's body, and makes a few gestures over his head. She reverently takes his hand. She whispers, then slowly takes the magic ring off his finger, and places it on her own. Archepex, you would recognize this as a death ritual of a few elven tribes, wherein loved ones take something of value from the deceased so that their memory will never die.
She stands, turns to Dhice, and says, I need a weapon.
As soon as she reaches Bathilda, Emma is going to be standing over and in front of her. Any attack aimed at her will have to go through her first.
Lyntel searches in vain for a weapon, and finally finds one, in the form of Archepex, a shower of death. Well versed in such things, she immediately recognizes Archepex's tribe. She begins to sing again, a song of war that will be familiar to his ears.
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Archepex stares as the new girl performs the rite. Her tribe lived not far from his. Also Morley was dead. His heart sinks. In spite of his (many) flaws, Morley was still one of them. He played an important role. Archepex can't allow himself grief now, however. That crazy girl Emma was moving to Bathilda's defence and there were still demons in the air.
Then a tune touches his ears. A song of war and blood and home. Archepex's almost avian eyes snap to the girl. Her song was old, and welcome. He hasn't heard it in years. Not since he joined the fight against the rats. He smiles and stands from his kneeling position and draws again, sighting on the lead singer that had played such a huge role in all this. In time with the war chant his arrow flies.
Lyntel walks to Archepex's side, ignoring her nakedness. Brother, my mother lies in chains in the Captor's throne room. She points across the chamber in the direction where the Queen is fleeing. She was held to guarantee my obedience. Now that I am free ... We must hurry!
We are going as fast as possible, Sister. Take one of those crossbows there and join us. The last thing we need is skaven at our heels.
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Dhice's demeanor changes dramatically the moment he hears of Lyntel's mother being held captive. The awkwardness and stutters fall away, to be replace with a grim determination. "We've seen what they do to prisoners, and you've lived it. You're right: there's no time to lose."
Towering as he does over the elves and dwarves around him, Dhice carefully surveys the scene, looking for options to approach the Rat Queen's den. There's a pile of skaven corpses courtesy of Hjalmar blocking one route that could be scaled but might be dangerous and awkward. A large hole in the floor that he's unsure about ferrying the entire group across. A melee happening in the open area beyond the hole, and demons circling overhead. Any other routes or obvious options...?
What is about to happen?
What should I be on the lookout for?
What here is useful or valuable to me?
Lyntel glances in the direction of the crossbows and decides to risk it. She passes through the wreckage of burned Skaven and hesitates as she comes upon a pile of green leathers. Curious, she sniffs the clothing, and nearly chokes. Lord Larethian's gifts often come with a price ... With a look of disgust, she slips into the ill fitting clothing, intent on finding suitable replacements as soon as possible. She returns to Archepex's side, with a bow over her shoulder, and resumes her song of war.
Bathilda barely escapes with her life from her attempted blitz at the rat-ogre bouncers, losing her overcoat in the process and swaying back and forth on her feet slightly. The harrying ranged fire from Hjalmar and Mule and Archepex are enough to discourage the rat-ogres from chasing you, but they almost lose their discipline and try to finish you off anyway when the Witch Queen snaps crossly at them to keep moving. As she watches them go, the barbarian feels the audible magic of the bard restoring her strength. The Rat-Ogres are hiding from Archepex's withering volleys using oversized shields strapped to their bracers. The arrows impact harmlessly on them.
Archepex's bowstring swirls with faintly visible elven sigils as Lyntel's magic song works for, and not against, the adventuring group. With her magic aiding him, his firing inpeccably switches targets to something softer, and seeks the throat of the lead singer. His singing into the mic is interrupted by his gurgling, and clutching his arrow-filled throat, he staggers backstage, bleeding surprisingly little.
The Rat-Ogres call down the freshly formed Skav-Demons flying overhead to heel, and they wing down to hover over their heads as additional defenders for their injured Queen. She's just finishing her incantation to bring across the bridge of shimmering light to cross the chasm on when she hears Lyntel singing to Archepex's side.
She turns to look back at you all and shouts, "You'll find that those gifts can bite you if you misuse them, foolish child! I will have the youth I require! Now cease that singing."
As Lyntel lets down her guard somewhat from being in the company of new friends, the Witch Queen strikes. Twisting the magic of her song away from the elf, the fat Skaven crone uses it to fuel the completion of her ritual. The bridge finishes its construction across the chasm of magma and she steps foot onto it. Instantly, she is shrunk a hundredfold, and zapped to the far side, where she resumes her normal size. The Rat-Ogres begin filing after her, transporting quickly across the chasm. The demons land where the Ogres left, smiling at all of you and licking their lips. Lyntel, you feel like you just inhaled fire and it burned your throat. Take -1 Forward to sing your magic.
What is about to happen?
The demons are brandishing weapons made of hellfire that they are pulling out of thin air. To get to the bridge that the Skaven Queen just escaped on, you'd have to get through them.
What should I be on the lookout for?
The demons can fly, and are capricious. The fact that they're flying creatures trying to bait land-bound enemies into fighting them next to a deadly ledge is setting off alarm bells in your head...
What here is useful or valuable to me?
In addition to taking +1 forward when acting on the knowledge gained from DR, take +1 to your Loot roll for this encounter.
Bathilda races back to the group and grabs a crossbow. She takes aim at the Witchmother, hoping to stop the overgrown rat that was obviously the biggest threat.
Her aim is a little off as the bolt fails to do more than annoy the spell casting tub of lard. More importantly, she'd left herself open while taking aim with her eye that wasn't blinded by blood, and some demon flitting about had more than enough time to notice.
Wiping the blood from his cutlass on one of the slain skaven, Hjalmar looked up from his handwork, assessing the situation. "What are those beasts doin'? Standin' around waitin' to get shot?" He asked, moving closer whilst sheathing his cutlass and drawing Agatha once more. "Well, I can certain oblige." He said, taking aim.
Lyntel smiles as Bathilda rejoins the group. She places a hand on Bathilda's shoulder as she prepares to fire, and in a sing song voice says, Thank you warrior, for my freedom.
Bathilda's jittery hands steady as she hears a sing-song voice in her ears.
Still, it took her a moment to take aim.
Grigor joins the rest of you, clutching a bleeding gash in the side of his armor. He looks battered and weary, but somehow clearer-eyed than before. Grigor had killed three of the Skaven attempting to restrain him, and driven off the rest, but became severely injured in the process.
As the fighter walks up, Hjalmar is sighting his rifle barrel squarely at the nearest demon. His aim is true, but a paper-thin barrier the color of hellfire springs into existence before the demon's face and the bullet fizzles harmlessly into it. The demons behind the barrier laugh, and begin backing up toward the ledge. Bathilda's bolt aimed at the Witchmother is similarly deflected, though the barrier is rocked backward and the demons glance at it in concern before hastening further back. The Queen is gesturing at the stone wall on the far side of the chasm, and her Rat-Ogres are filing after her on the luminous bridge of magic. What do you do?
Bathilda calmly reloads the crossbow and takes careful aim at the witchmother before firing again.