When you leave the Palace of Teeth, you are surprised to see Umble and Thoot waiting for you. Umble looks to Laurel and says "You must return to your brother immediately. Make haste." and disappears in a puff of smoke, leaving you to wonder what is going on back with the other townfolk you left earlier.
In a haze Laurel only matters a "Wha..." before Umble is gone. He stares at the puff of smoke with a confused frown for a moment, then his adrenaline spikes as realization sets in. Oh no, Thras. The last few days had quickly worn him down with the painful trial it had become, but now he was remembering why he was going through this suffering. With a desperate look to the others Laurel starts moving back to the townsfolk at a swift pace.
Mithralline shrugs.
"I guess it's back before forward," she say. Hefting her lance over her shoulder, she follows Laurel.
The group moves behind Laurel as has hastily makes his way back towards the townfolk. As he nears the entrance to the courtyard where he can see numerous people gathering, Umble and Thoot appear again. This time Thoot holds a large hand out that stops Laurel from progressing. Umble says "There is a problem. Your earlier conversations to settle his spirit have not succeeded. He has been fading from this plane and I fear that he is being torn back whence you came. While this may seem like a good thing, I assure you that it is not. His soul is unsettledly and he most definitively will return to the realm of the living as an undead creature, hell-bent on accomplishing some goal or slave to master which is pulling him. Either way, this is not good."
"I have tried talking to him and there is nothing more to be done to stop this regression and transformationousness."
Thoot taps Umble on the head and holds up his fingers and quickly signs a few things to its partner. "Ah. Well. Yes, I suppose. That is highly unorthodoxious and extremely dangerous. We should not mention that option."
When the two appear and tell Laurel he must come back for his brother, Aralah's eyes widen. She promised him she would do all she could to set this right but now something was wrong.
She rushed back with Laurel and as they explained what was happening Aralah frowned and just started shaking her head. As Thoot notes there is nothing to stop this she is about to scream, but when he mentions something else, a possibility she yells at him "Just tell us! We can do dangerous.... how can we fix this?"
Thoot continues to discuss this with Umble, but since Thoot doesn't speak verbally this becomes difficult for you to follow. Umble finally says "Right. Well. There is precedent for this situation, but it ended ... messily. It's risky. Very riskitorious, I tell you. One of sound mind from the material plane could offer to exchange places with the tortured soul in an attempt to wrest the individual back from committing fully to a path of undeath."
Thoot shakes his head, sadly. Umble explains "It has never been successfully performed however, both times that we are aware of the soul that exchanged with the individual was unable to contain the rageosity and only succeeded in swapping places to return to the material plane as a tortured soul themselves."
Laurel is both angered and concerned at Thras's state of mind. Of course he's not at rest, he's Thras. His look of concern grows at the mention of undead. If there was one thing Thras was, it was determined. Even if he ripped his very soul apart he would make sure he wouldn't be shackled by this realm. Laurel shudders at what kind of powerful vengeful spirit he may become.
"Tell me! You have no idea...you have no idea how Thras is. Even if he understands what would happen to him he would think he can fight it still."
The alternative lands on him.
Exchange places.
Laurel goes silent and still, color draining from his face. He stares blankly past Thoot and Umble towards the townsfolk. Exchange places. Free Thras of this place and allow him to continue on, but I will become a vengeful undead, powered by his rage. He closes his eyes, hanging his head. Sarenrae, I thought I already had so much to bear. It weighed heavily on me but I could burden it. But the fate of my brother...what is all of this for if it is not to protect those like my siblings from the evils of this world? And Thras, he is so much stronger than me. He could save so many more than me if he was free. Laurel chokes up and covers his mouth, tears running down his face as he realizes he's seriously considering the consequences of the choice he's making. He would never forgive himself, he would never forgive me. Laurel sobs, torn by the horror of the weighty decision that has landed on his shoulders.
Aralah considers Umble's words for a moment and then scrunches her brow "Wait, so if one of us exchanged places it would save him and there's a chance... even if small, that this can save him?"
Aralah thinks for a moment and she takes a few deep breaths as she is about to walk forward, a solemn look on her face.
Aira shakes her fists at the proposition. "Wait... Wait. All of you. You mustn't. I won't allow it. Take me instead. You have all been through more than I to leave this place. I wont let you lose yourselves to this. "
Aralah stops as Aira interjects and looks to the woman with a smile "No, it wouldn't be right. It should be me. I told him I would fix this and now I have a chance to do that... It should be me."
Sam looks pleased to see their friends(?) Umble and Thoot again but concerned to hear there is trouble. "Always trouble in this place!" she bemoans. Then she shakes her head. "But we'll make it through. Together!"
When she hears the details of Thras' condition, she shudders. "Undead! That's horrible!" She chews her lip worriedly and looks from Aira to Aralah then asks very, very quietly. "Since this transformation is difficult, it probably requires you to know the person you exchange with very, very well, right?"
Sarela considered Umble and Thoot's words carefully, making sure she understands all of the ramifications of the situation, as well as the possible means of saving Thras. She'd didn't know Laurel's brother well except by name, but she'd become a healer to save others, and if there was a chance of saving him, she could take it.
Aira and Aralah's words cut Laurel deeply. It took them almost no time at all to volunteer themselves, their lives and their very souls to save another. Do I hesitate because of cowardice? He grits his teeth, flashing back to everything that had happened over the last few days. The heroics and strength of the others. His own weakness and hesitation, doing nothing but weathering a few blows and some healing, but even then this group had ample healing at it's disposal.
Laurel takes a deep, shuddering breath.
He knew what he must do.
Laurel straightens up, turning to face the others. His face has wet streaks from the tears, but a smile is on his face. "Samalgee, Sarela, keep everybody safe. The horrors we have seen thus far I fear are the least of our concerns."
"Mithralline, Thras will need guidance on how to fight with a team. Your expertise can hone his raw power."
"Aira, Thras has latent powers he doesn't fully understand. They will only get more powerful and unpredictable as he grows. Please help to temper them."
"Aralah." He steps over, placing his hands on her shoulders. "You have to stay Aralah, Thras will need your help most of all. I have seen the way you look at him. My brother is so bullheaded and stubborn you will tear your own hair out, but he does have a good heart buried in him, I know it. But-" Laurel's voice cracks. "-but he will have to forgive himself, and forgive me, for this terrible burden I am giving to him. Please...help him learn forgiveness."
Laurel steps back, facing the entire group again. "I was always the weakest of my siblings, in body and in will. But I was never one to shrink from weathering hardship. The world still needs you, your strength and bravery, and it needs the strength of Thras fighting on the side of good, not evil." Not knowing what else to say, he tears his gaze from the party to face Thoot and Umble.
"Now, how do we do this?"
Sarela hasn't heard of this ritual, it's magicks likely only found in this strange place of the newly dead.
Aralah considers Umble's words for a moment and then scrunches her brow "Wait, so if one of us exchanged places it would save him and there's a chance... even if small, that this can save him?"
The psychopomp nods "That is most correctitude, seeker of the stamps."
"Now, how do we do this?"
After Laurel has said his goodbyes, Umble and Thoot lead him to the place where Thras is located. "He was causing such agitationorousness with the others that we were forced to seclude him in there." Thoot says as Umble points towards a small shed. "The ritual itself is not overly cumbersome. You will embrace him with your hands and piercingly his soul with your own. I will sprinkle the ashes of a fallen guardian in a circle around you and seal you two in. I will cast a spell which will move the life essence from you into him, causing a shift and balancingness. When this happens, your mind may not want to part and emotional trauma and pain may ensue. Do not relent or let your will falter or the exchange will fail and both of you will be lost."
Nodding he summarizes, "So all in allness, not so bad. Very simple. Are you ready?"
"Of course I can," Mithralline agrees, nodding in respect to Laurel. "I'll have him part of a fighting unit in no time. But you don't seem weak to me. You're making a brave choice, and weak people don't do that!"
She offers her hand as the cleric turns to the others, respecting his sacrifice for his brother. She's sure she'd do the same thing if there weren't some other way she could beat the odds ... she just had never encountered such a situation yet.
Aira's tears wont stop flowing as she begs of the psychomomp's "Is there anything we can do to help. Can we lend a portion of our life aura, or do anything to help concentrate the spell?"
As Laurel says his goodbyes tears stream down Aralah's cheeks. She hadn't know the man long but if this really brought Thras back there would be no real way she could repay him. As he makes his request of her she wipes the tears away and simply nods "I'll tell him what you've done and I will do everything I can to help him through it. I promise."
Sarela's musing is broken as Laurel says her name. "Why-?"
Once she realizes what he's doing her mind goes a hundred different directions as tears begin streaming down her face. Stopping him from doing this, offering herself in his place, searching for some other magic that can accomplish the same thing. All this to stop herself from confronting the one thing she knew to be true, the one thing that couldn't change - it had to be him. Her mother had always said that a healer had to be prepared to deal with the loss of those closest to her, that nothing could truly prepare you for it. She just didn't think it would happen this soon. It couldn't! She'd lost so much already - her father, her mother, her uncle, Auntie Rose, and now Laurel! One of the few friends she had left from her childhood. It wasn't fair! It shouldn't be him! It should be someone else, someone she didn't know, who wasn't close to her!
Childish thoughts, all of them. A stranger might be willing to do what needed to be done, but their subconscious mind would fight it. Laurel's familial connections would help the bond, maybe make it easier. He was the only one of his family members who could do it. Sarela knew he had to be the one.
That didn't make it any easier.
As Laurel goes to leave, she says, "Wait."
Still crying, she grabs Laurel and hugs him tight, then quietly says, "You're stronger than you realize, in both body and mind. You'll need every bit of it for this, I think. May Sarenrae watch over you."
She then lets him go, before turning to Aira, grabbing her, and uncontrollably sobbing while she whispers, over and over again, "Please don't leave me. Please don't leave me."
Laurel gives a hard nod to the others, and returns Sarela's tight grip. As she holds him another sob escapes. "I hope you are wrong, for your sake, because I fear that putting me to rest will fall on your shoulders."
He steels himself, tearing his gaze away from the rest of the party and follows Umble and Thoot.
After hearing the explanation he nods gravely. This would be harder than he could imagine, but afterwards it would all be out of his control. He fears what being an undead will do to his mind and soul, but he knows that no more decisions will be made after this. That party of his burden, at least, would end, if he could but just shoulder this one...
He enters the shed.
"Thras?.." He calls out softly.
Umble says to Thoot "Let's go get the ashes.", the tall silent guardian nodding in agreement. Thoot says "We'll be back in five minutes with the ashes. Please prepare yourself and work to calm him enough to listen to reason."
With that, the two psychopomps walk off towards a building in the distance.
Upon entering the shed, Laurel finds Thras in a much more agitated state then he remembers leaving him in. His skin is reddened and sweat drips from his partially translucent forehead, It's almost as if his skin has faded and become more clear than last time. His fists are clenched in anger and there is a visibly anger that rolls off his face that lets you know he's extremely upset about something.
The tools in the shed have all been knocked over and a straw has been thrown about the room, including covering the pants of the angry man.
"WHAT!" he demands, kicking a rake across the shed in anger. "LET ME OUT OF HERE! I'M TIRED OF THIS RIDICULOUS NONSENSE! THERE IS WORK TO BE DONE YET!"
Tears stream down Sam's eyes and she nods. "Ok. I will do what I can to keep everyone safe." She had to. Laurel was one who always rushed into danger to protect the others. I guess that means I need to start risking myself to help the others...
"Thras? Thras, it's Laurel."
Tools go flying across the shed as the looming figure slams into the wall. "Laurel! Help me out of this, I found a way to escape my fate, but those damnable little creatures trapped me in here." Thras continues to smash at the walls, splintering tools and breaking wood, but the walls themselves seem magically immune.
Laurel bites his lip. "You do have an escape Thras, but I was the one who found it..." He trails off quietly.
Thras stops his rampage for a moment, turning to face his older brother with confusion. But his face quickly changes to a grin as he wipes sweat from his brow. "Haha! Oh Laurel it seems like you might not be a failure just yet!"
Laurel grits his teeth, stopping himself from shaking his head. Oh gods, even now you test my patience. Thras crosses the shed and claps Laurel on the back, and Laurel steels himself for the blow, but it comes off as weak and feeble, like an old man. A flash of concern comes over Thras's face but he quickly conceals it. Laurel takes his brother's large scarred hands in his own. "Thras...I was never angry with you. I was scared for you when you ran away. I thought we had lost you. And when you returned...it hurt my pride, knowing that you had been right all those years. I was a coward. I am a coward."
Empathy manages to fight to the surface for Thras; as much as he held distaste for his brother, watching him sulk like a sick puppy even made him feel bad. "Oh come on, what are you talking about you big sob story?" Thras's breathing becomes labored, and he leans against the wall for support. Laurel's eyes flash with concern. "No no, I'm fine. Just push myself a little hard sometimes. I just...need...a minute." He shakes his head, as if trying to clear a fog from it.
Tears threaten at the corner of Laurel's eyes. He had hoped for more time. But Thras had never been one for patience, even if he was marching towards his own demise. He moves over to Thras's side; his clear skin was practically translucent now, like smoky glass, and he could make out the scene behind him. Before what he is doing fully sets in on Laurel, the terror and uncertainty and hesitation, he pulls Thras back to his feet and wraps his arms around him, tight.
Thras awkwardly pats Laurel on the back. "Hey, even if I'm wrong, I'd already be dead right? Come on, stop messing around...Laurel?" Thras's legs shake with weakness, and he looks down to see his own hand. What...what's happening?
"I'm sorry...oh gods I'm so so sorry." Laurel clenches his brother with all his strength, nearly forcing the air out of his lungs.
Thras quickly grows concerned. Something was going over his head. "Hey, what's happening? Laurel...I've never felt this weak...why are you apologizing?" His legs buckle and give out, but his older brother, despite his smaller size, holds him aloft. "Laurel?! What...what's..." Laurel clutches him tighter, forcing him upright. "-so sorry...please forgive me."
Thras gasps as he feels the life force start to rush through him. It was like he was in a bath that had slowly gotten colder and colder, and he didn't even realize his entire body had gone numb. But now burning life came from his brother, and it felt like white fire forcing his veins open. After the shock of the pain subsides he grins. "Laurel! Laurel I have my strength ba-" He looks down at Laurel, and his heart drops. His brother's hair was turning grey, and his limbs were shaking. His skin looked clear, almost translucent. It only takes Thras a moment to realize what's happening. "No! He grabs his brother, whose legs give out as he slides towards the floor, but the iron grip of his arms will not let go of Thras's midsection.
Laurel's voice comes out hoarse and crackly. "Please forgive me for this terrible burden. Find Tilaria and Alces, see if they are still alive, or make sure their souls are at rest. And when you are strong enough, find me, and put me to rest. And Thras..." Laurel looks up at his older brother, and forces a smile with the last of his ebbing life force. "I believe in you." Thras's face fades into blackness, and a flash of red lightning passes Laurel's vision.
Laurel fades until Thras can't even feel him anymore, and then he is simply gone. He stares in disbelief for a moment, then his eyes go wide with rage and he bellows, loud enough for everyone outside to hear. More smashing is heard from inside the shed, but his time it is much louder, and the planks on the wall start cracking. Bruised and bleeding clawed hands rip the walls apart from the inside, tearing great chunks of wood off like a frenzied animal. Evidently Laurel's brother would be held inside no longer.
Thras forces his way out of the shed, heedless of the cuts that the jagged wood rip open on his flesh. He straightens up to his full height. Thras is a large man with a tall figure and wide frame. He has bronze skin and short black hair, shadowed by a short black beard. Heavy brows sit above his dark hazel eyes, one marred into several chunks by a claw scar. His sun-worn skin is crossed with other old scars, and most interesting are his hands which have almost claw-like nails growing out of them. But right now his eyes are wild with rage, madness and grief, and he quickly scans the gathered people, eyes landing on Umble and Thoot. He sprints at the psychopomps, flailing for both of them but only managing to grab Umble while Thoot dances away. He pulls the creature in close and grabs him by the neck. "I know you were behind this, bring him back! Bring him back now!" He roars, blood and spittle flying into the outsiders face.
Aralah has been kneeling there, tears in her eyes as Laurel left to do whatever needed to be done. But when something seemed to be breaking out of the building she jumped to her feet and readied her bow. As she saw Thras standing there, even in a rage, she just drops her bow the ground and is about to rush over to him when he charges toward the psychopomps and grabs hold of one of them. As she rushes over to grab a hold of him she screams "Thras! Stop! It isn't their fault."
She comes up behind him and tries to grab his arm, even if she is no match for his strength. More quietly she says "Please... let it go so we can talk."
Mithralline is surprised as Thras emerges and attacks Umble, and falls into a fighting stance.
"Hey!" she barks. "Let him go!"
The difference between the two brothers is stark and she can barely imagine how one is related to the other.
Aira jumps back, shocked by seeing another man break free from the shed. "Oh no. L.. Laurel. What happened to Laurel? Please" She begs the psychochomps to help explain the fate of Laurel. "Please tell us that he is not some sort of.. " she stops herself short, from fully describing what may have happened to Laurel, at the site of Thras's already shown anger. Not wanting to push him anymore over the edge.
Sam rushes up beside Thras as well but it takes quite a while as she limps in her armor. When she gets there, she reaches up and touches him on the elbow. "Calm down, Thras. This is what Laurel wanted." As she touches him, the small wounds on Thras from his raging in the shed close and appear as scratches and cuts on Samalgee.
Thras turns away from the half-throttled outsider, rage-filled eyes taking in the group and his face flashing with recognition. As Aralah grabs him as Sam heals his wounds, he snarls in anger. The way they were speaking, they know more about what's going on than he does. "What happened?!" He lets go of Umble and turns, grabbing onto Aralah's arm, painfully tight. His hand feels like an iron vice. He jerks his head to Sam. "What do you mean he wanted this?!?" He shouts.
Sam shakes her head sadly and explains "You were so upset to be dead... I understand... I lost my parents... Well you were trying so hard to go back to the living but you would have been undead, the worst fate you can imagine. Laurel decided to save you by trading places with you. Hopefully, his calm will allow him to resist becoming undead. But if he can't..." She lowers her eyes quietly. "He didn't risk his life for you, he risked his soul. He's really a true hero." She raises her chin and smiles. "And heroes win in the end. He'll do it, I'm sure."
"No, I'm not dead!" Thras roars, wheeling on Sam. "I'm no old man on my deathbed, I wouldn't just die for no reason!" His eyes flick over all of those present, staring at him, and his lip curls up to snarl. "Gods damn this place and its trickery!" He wheels around again, looking to Umble and Thoot, painfully dragging Aralah as he goes. "Reveal the truth, now! Else I will test if you're still vulnerable to death here." He threatens.
Sarela, breathing raggedly, gets control of herself and wipes the tears away. Turning, she walks towards Thras and says, "Not anymore, you aren't. You were, though. Almost everyone in Roslar's Coffer is dead, however. Some great catastrophe destroyed the town and killed almost everyone in it. If you can stop yelling for a few minutes, you can help us get out of here and back to the world of the living so we can figure out what happened."
This is Laurel's brother? Where Laurel is calm and focused, he's petulant and angry. Sarenrae, grant me strength to deal with him.
"We're all dead," Mithralline barks at the raving lunatic. "If it could kill me -- and I have no idea how it did! -- it certainly could kill you too."
She pauses for a second, gathering her own emotions and regaining her composure before she acts out too. She makes sure she has her lance ready if she needs it, tensing her muscles in case she needs to rush to Sam's defense. She was trained to kill monsters -- the only question was whether this man would prove to be one.
"We're ... not quite dead yet, though. If you can calm down for a moment, we're on our way back to life to find out exactly what happened."
Umble and Thoot regard Thras with disinterest, standing there, watching his chaotic shouting and screaming. "Death can difficult to accept in even the the most simpletitudious of times, of which this is most assuredly not. Your brother has give himself completelyness to save you in the hopes that you would be able to escape this place and undo whatever wrong has affected the entiretyiness of your home."
"You have within each of you, something unique. Dead you are not, but alive you are not. Your hearts each have something lodged inside of them. Can you not feel it? It's right there for the sight-seeing! Something that’s brought you here, but kept you from doing so in the orthodoxiumous fashion. I cannot help but ruminate: what has caused your strange condition? That answer is now simply found. It is what is within you that has granted you some differentiationness the great trajedy that has occurred back whence you came. You brother believed in you, so much so, that he has now taken your burden so must you take his."
"It is this thing inside of you, this is the reason that Mictena now hunts you to end you. To bring your to true-death. You should quickly leave this place before she returns unless that is now your desire, to stay and joint he rest of your town? If not, I suggest you continue to find the remainder of your stamps. Quicklyinous!"
Aira, todays voice of reason attempts to calm her friends, by siding with Umble and Throot. "Each of us had to come to terms with the unique position we were thrown into. Not all of us were able to do that with just a snap of their fingers. Understand this make take Thras some time, and Thras, know that we are all your friends, and that we need to stick together. Only together can we make it out of here." she pauses for a moment and her eyes grow wide. "But what came of the last stamp that Laurel acquired? Does Thras now have it?"
Thoot nods and Umble says "Allow me to delve into the details a little further on what happened. Though it appears that they simply have wapped, the transmorgification is actually significantlied quantipulied by the multiplicationioning of their divergenceness upon death. Simply put, everything that has happened to his brother since he died has now also been merged into him. Not only does his arm contain the stamp you require, but his very heart now contains the uniqueness that is sustaining his life and keeping him alive. The same unqiueness that each of you now possessterous.."
Aralah attempts to jerk her arm away when Thras grabs hold and tightens his grip dragging her with him ”Thras stop! You’re hurting me!” having seen his rage before she tries something else to snap him out of it.
In her most authoritative voice she could muster, even through the pain, she began ”Listen Pathfinder, were in the land of the dead. You almost became an undead, Laurel swapped places with because he knew how much horror you would bring if you returned to life as undead. We have this small group of survivors, there is only one way out of this and that’s if we all cooperate to get the stamps we need and get out of here. When we talked before I promised I would do everything I could to fix this. Well now you are here thanks to your brother, we need to work together and make this right. There is still much to explore so you need to calm down and think about all this so you can do what you do best, fight to get us through this...”
She gently places her hand over the one he has grasping her ”Please let me go, take some deep breaths and calm yourself.”
Sam nods, as this makes sense to her. "And where do we find the next stamp? I hope it's not as bad as the palace of teeth..."
"You have received your stamp from the Palace of teeth, the two that yet remain are from a manor called Nine-Eaves and Salighara’s Scriptorium. The choice is yours which you visit first."
Thras finally stops his raging for a moment as the party starts to draw hard lines against his behavior. He slows his breathing, listening to what's being said. His grip releases Aralah's arm, and he looks down to see the bruise he left. He grits his teeth, nodding. "Right...right. On a mission, have to get out of here. We can figure out how to fix things once we get out." He buries his emotions; those would be addressed another time. But I swear, if I have to come back to here to get Laurel, there's going to be HELL to pay.
Thras folds his arms, frowning as he tries to understand what's going on. "Stamps...so what, we need them to get out of here?" Nine-Eaves and Salighara. "Whichever bastard is tougher to kill, get the big rocks in the bucket first." He snarls.