Merlin starts invoking various powers to prepare himself for what looks to be a really nasty fight.
The continued pulling on the winch finally gets Irabeth up to the roof, and she skids slightly on the exposed roof beams before making her way to the side and clambering down with some difficulty.
Kelly collects a dozen vials of holy water, then starts guiding the travois back down so that the wounded can be loaded up for extraction. A soldier shouts up to Sario, "I'm coming up, then I'll take over hauling people out so you can worry about that thing!"
Darya and Luci sprint across the roof and meet up with the team on the other side just as the monster closes. Up close, it's even worse - taut, stretched skin that looks ready to burst, jagged teeth covered in some kind of filthy slime, and an acrid stench emanating from it.
(kinda massaging out average bonuses for the team)
The demon closes in... and the team springs into action.
The large--steady--youth grips his scimitar loosely. He readies for a quick strike when the monster closes (10' reach).
Merlin then takes a step back 5'.
Merlin then remembers some evasive training from the military.
Sario, will kneel down on the edge of the roof, energy building up with in her, she slowly raises her hands in the air and all around the demon the grass and roots and plants, start to impeed its movement.
The demon finds itself halted just a short distance away from Merlin - enough that he could step forward and strike at it, though if he does it will certainly counterattack with its longspear.
Merlin grins at the monster.
Are you stuck?
The youth turns to his companions.
Anyone got a bow?
Seeing the demon, Luci concentrated and drew on her patron's divine power as she'd been trained, her eyes flashing gold for a moment before she charged at the creature around Merlin.
Kelly hands half of the holy water bottles to the soldier on his way up."Give these to the people fighting!" She then calls up to the combatants on the roof "Will these work on that thing?"
Firing off a quick shot, Darya drops her crossbow, drawing her sword and circling behind the enlarged Merlin, to get into position to charge the fiend.
Iomenna hurries down the stairs alongside Irabeth, but splits off to move to Merlin's other side. Her blood seems to shine with divine power as she approaches the foul beast.
Irabeth, without hesitation, steps up by Merlin, then advances cautiously, sword held in guard position.
Unsurprisingly, the demon stabs at the half-orc paladin.
Irabeth turns aside the demon's strike and shouts, "Now! Strike hard!"
The team advances, but most of their swings go wild. Darya fires her crossbow and misses. Merlin swings his enlarged weapon, but the new size makes him a bit off-balance, and the swing goes over the demon's head.
The demon cackles maniacally and makes a rude gesture. It attempts to break free from the vines of the entangle spell.
(success)
This effort takes up its valuable time, though. It steps diagonally to get out of the spell effect.
Sario will put out her sling, putting a big stone in it she spins it above her head before launching it at the demon.
Iomenna sees the demon moving in the opposite direction away from her. "Oh no you don't! Get back here, you demon filth!" She rushes back behind Merlin again and, disregarding the demon's wicked spear, moves into Sario's magical overgrowth. She relies once again on the tactic of attacking from multiple sides and steps into position across from Irabeth, then attacks with her celestially empowered hammer.
Merlin clumsily swings.
The large youth frowns.
He then steps to the other side of the monster to flank.
Merlin grins.
Letting out a roaring battlecry, Darya charges right into the entangling overgrowth her eyes flashing with divine fury as her blade glows with power.
Swiping at the fleeing creature, Luci quickly side-stepped around to beside Darya before striking again.
Kelly hurries to help the next person get on the rope. "How's it going?" she calls up to whoever is on the roof.
One of the soldiers on the roof, hoisting up the sled, says to Kelly below, "Not well! The demon seems really tough. We'll pass the holy water to the troops!"
And, indeed, the demon takes all of the blows with sizzling of its taut flesh and a hideous two-toned screeching that rattles your teeth. It stabs out at Merlin with its longspear and then lunges at Iomenna with its razor-sharp maw.
Somehow, Merlin manages to evade the nasty, jagged spear thrusts!
Similarly, Iomenna blocks it and then pushes it away.
Irabeth brings her shining blade up into the creature's emaciated torso as well.
Iomenna sees her hammer sizzle slightly as it strikes the demon's flesh, but her blood urges her to press the attack anyway. A few more hits like the ones she and her companions had landed, and the beast would almost certainly be sent back to its home plane.
Sario loads another stone into her sling, knowing she cannot truly harm the beast.
Darya presses the attack, bringing her blade down in a powerful overhanded slash, a shimmer of golden flame surrounding her body and blade.
Merlin determinedly swings again.
The group hammers into the demon, Iomenna slamming her earthbreaker into its head - though the spray of gooey acid from its skin causes the wooden haft to splinter. Darya slashes it as Merlin stabs it from behind, and the combined force of the team's blows twists its withered torso in multiple directions at once - Darya's holy strike tearing through the thing's abdomen while Merlin's enlarged weapon rips across its spine. Its face collapses in on itself from the force of Darya's strike, and it falls onto the ground - only to suddenly disintegrate in a flare of hellish fire.
Irabeth hesitates for only a moment, her sword also shining, before she sheathes her weapon. "To be honest, I am surprised at this outcome. But your prowess at war is a great boon. I was concerned that with the Eagle Watch trapped, there would be few people left to protect what remains of the city. Clearly I was mistaken," she says.
The soldiers finish hauling up their wounded and lowering people outside, along with Kelly.
One of them says, "So, uh... where do we go now?"
"Defenders Heart, we have set up a base there. We were out scavenging when we ran across you. Another concern is that we have a prisoner, one who consorts with demons."
Irabeth nods and says, "It's an inn... but at least the walls are stone. As good a place as any."
The soldiers move to carry as much as they can, and to bring the travoises of the wounded as well.
"As to your healing problem," says Irabeth, "While we have several injured whom we can't heal right now, we may be able to help with other issues, such as diseases, curses, and poisons."
"HEY! Hey, how's it going out there?" Kelly calls out, "Is it dead?"
"Yeah, threat's been eliminated for now. C'mon out and we'll head back to the Heart." Darya calls back.
Iomenna screams with fury as the demon collapses to the ground, then disappears. Seeing her enemy defeated, however, she exhales and seems to nearly collapse from exhaustion. She recovers soon, though, and turns to Irabeth. "Healing curses and diseases, eh? My lady, you've just said the magic word. Thank you!"
The young warrior then returns to where Azura is standing watch over their prisoner to make sure the demon's attack did not cause them to lose the man.
Azura is still standing watch over the cultist.
"This guy doesn't know when to shut up," she says, looking marginally annoyed.
With the assistance of the soldiers you get Kelly and the other survivors out of the keep and gather up what useful supplies you can take with you.
Your return to Defender's Heart is nerve-wracking, as you are dragging several wounded soldiers and trying to avoid drawing any more unwanted attention, but you slip in past the barricades shortly after noon.
Irabeth takes in the surroundings and says, "Off to a good start on keeping this place defensible. Maybe once we get some of the troops on their feet we can make a run back to the Keep to get some of the siege weapons, fix them up and put them on the roof."
The sense of relief is palpable as the Eagle Watch moves into several of the rooms, sharing them four soldiers to a room to conserve bunking space. The survivors of the keep put up a ragged cheer and the sense of their being more hope floods the area.
Merlin watches as he and his companions defeat the foul monster.
He lowers his sword.
We have yet begun to fight.
Merlin helps with carrying anything of immediate value to his forge.
At some point later after the return to the Heart, Kelly catches a moment to speak to Azura. "I don't like having that man in here with us. I really didn't want to bring him back here at all. What if he's the one who summoned some of the demons?"
"Then we keep him relatively immobile," Luci said, removing her cloak, "spellcasting needs gestures and incantations, if he can't use his hands well or speak, then we should be fine. If he was powerful enough a mage to get around that kind of security, he wouldn't be acting like a prisoner. That or he's the craftiest son of a b!~+% in the city."
"Yes. We keep him gagged and bound, and have someone check on him every half hour. Don't allow him the hour of meditation or prayer I've heard most clerics need to cast spells." Darya says in agreement with Luci.
"Oh, right; he might be a divine caster. Swear I've got a mental block on how they cast spells."
"Keep him immobilized in a chair, where people can see him, set a guard on him at all times? We now have a much better fighting force so he shouldn't hopefully cause to much of an issue."
Sario will go and check on the children that she had found, "How are you little ones? We caught a bad man today and found some new friends. We should be a bit safer now."
As the strengthened forces return to the Heart, Iomenna speaks quietly with Merlin. "Uh... Merlin? I know we don't have much of a forge yet, but do you think you could help me with this?" She holds out the splintered halves of her hammer's haft. "My sword's broken too, but I think you said we don't quite have what we need to fix it up. Now all I've got is this crossbow I got from that family we rescued. It...it doesn't feel right."
Later, when they have finally arrived back at the inn, Iomenna immediately asks Irabeth about getting help for those affected by the vargouilles. "From what we've pieced together, they only have a short time before they turn too. Could we hurry and help them, please?"