To Vixen in a whisper, "I don't know they won't turn, but I'd like to go have individual looks at them and see if we can tell. I just don't want a general panic and everyone staying away from the wounded and not treat them, that just makes it more likely for them to turn."
The boy looks at Saiya with wide eyes, "Um.. hi. You look funny, why are your eyes glowing like that? Oh, I'm Brenton."
Paying no mind to the healthy child, the Vixen replies to Erisa.
"I do appreciate ye checking on 'em.
"Reason I asked about how people turn... the ghoul that meeped was tied down near a half-eaten man. I think the man was eaten, likely by a ghoul ye think? And the ghoul that meeped was probably also bitten, and maybe in the process o' changing.
"It just looked so pitiful when it died. It didn't look like a monster."
"No, it didn't which confused me at the time. That's a good theory about why it acted that way."
Saiya sits back on her heels, disappointed. Oh. He just thinks I look weird.
"Well, to me you're the one who looks funny. Where I was born it's always super dark, so my eyes glow to help me see." At least I think I was born there.
She holds out her hand for a handshake. "It's nice to meet you Brenton. I'm Saiya."
The boy awkwardly shifts the lantern in his hands to shake Saiya's. He says, "That's neat! Debis is afraid of the dark. Can you teach me how to make my eyes glow?" As Saiya and Brenton talk a young Garundi man with a holy symbol of Shelyn on a necklace interrupts. Speaking softly he says, "Please don't bother her Brenton." He addresses Saiya, "I'm sorry I know you're busy."
Saiya shakes her head. "It's fine, I approached him. He's not bothering me." She smiles at Brenton again. "Unfortunately you have to be born this way, so I can't teach you how to make your eyes glow. But you know the good thing about the dark? You might not be able to see much, but nothing can see you either. You can hide in the dark and be safe." Except for all the things that can see in the dark...oh f+&& it, I'm really not good with children.
She mentally strikes 'babysitter' off her list of possible occupations.
"I'll see you later Brenton." Mystery solved and well-meant (albeit not that good) comforting attempted, she wanders back over to the others. "Is everyone ready to go?"
"I am," the Vixen says.
She will remove the barricade as soon as the others confirm it's time.
Once she sees beyond it, she will look around, taking on the tiled hall, the piss-yellow fogginess. Do I know this place?
Vixen doesn't remember ever being in Briarstone asylum but she does remember that it is indeed in Versex County in the country of Ustalav as Winter explained. It is on an island in the Danver river. She seems to remember it is a place dedicated to healing ailments of the mind.
She also recalls some things about the Royal Accusers, the group Winter claims to have recently been drafted into. They are secretive agents of Ustalavic crown warranted to enforce loaw and exact just without regard for the nation's baroque hierarchy of title and rank. They have a reputation for harsh justice, acting on matter of national importance and quietly ending noble dynasties.
Anyone trying to open the front door finds that it is stuck, swollen in it's frame.
Saiya tentatively pushes at the front door, then shrugs when it doesn't budge. "We could probably force it open, but I'm not sure that's a good idea. I'd like to take a peek outside, but not if it makes it easier for monsters to break in." She looks around the rest of the room. "It's not like we're lacking for other ways to go."
Speaking of other ways to go...
Saiya starts looking around for a directory, or any kind of signage that might explain the layout of the place.
The Vixen decides not to give the door a swift kick, for now. But she offers, "Let me know if ye change yer mind. Kickin' doors is me specialty."
Saiya finds two dirty undamaged signs indicating what might lurk behind the the double doors. To the south "Visitors room" and to the north "Library." The other doors are either unlabeled or too damaged.
"Let's do the library first. There might be useful information in there." Jassminder doesn't sound as if she cares much one way or the other.
"Works for me." Saiya doesn't particularly care in what order they explore things, so the library is as good a place to start as any.
She heads to the library doors and quickly checks them for traps before gesturing to the Vixen. "Mind opening these doors for us? They may or may not need to be kicked, I haven't tried them yet." Nor does she want to. Going first seems like a bad idea in this place. Better to let the fighters do it.
"With pleasure!"
The Vixen gives it a kick!
It is surprisingly ineffective. The Vixen's cheeks flush to a 'vermilion-pink.'
"Heh... should've checked if it's a push door or a pull door. Ye kick one differently than the other. Oh, and never kick one o' those double saloon doors that swing both ways." She adds with emphasis, "—simultaneously."
Instead of attempting another kick, the Vixen tries turning the knob and pushing (or pulling) the door open.
Sagging shelves, held together by dust and an extensive system of rolling ladders, ring this library of husky, dull looking tomes. At the room’s center broods a heavily worn table surrounded by uncomfortable chairs. A chandelier of iron vines dangles above. The scents of leather and old paper pervade the high ceilinged space, but so does a distinct bestial musk.
Erisa, Jassminder, and Saiya note that several of the lower shelves have had their contents scattered across the floor. As they register this small fact everyone hears shrieks from atop the shelves. Three tiny ratlike creatures peer at the party with uncanny human eyes. Their human faces twist in anger as they clutch books with disturbingly human hands.
They speak in a chittering language that reverberates strangely in your brain. You feel a revulsion to the words like you just ingested rotten eggs, only with your ears.
Saiya looks up at the ratlike things. She's not adverse to fighting, but she'd rather avoid it if she could. It sounds like they're scared, not inherently violent. No sense wasting resources on a potentially avoidable fight. So she takes a deep breath and replies to the creatures in a language she hadn't actually known she knew.
To the others, she says, "They're scared. They plan to fight us because they think we'll kill them otherwise. Give me a second to see if I can talk them down."
The Vixen says, "Fine, but tell 'em I kick really hard—"
To prove her point she wheels around to the shelf behind her, striking with a back roundhouse kick—
—followed by an axe kick—
—which is so incredibly powerful, maybe Vix is more upset about her wimpy door kick than she let on. But she tries to play it like her wanton destruction is purposeful for helping Saiya dissuade an unnecessary battle.
As dust clouds shower the Vixen in torn pages and splinters, her calm voice contrasts the raining chaos.
"—however, I've no interest in hurting 'em, long as they don't go whipping books at me head and such. Ask 'em what they're afraid of. Maybe we can help."
The Vermilion Vixen in a show of her martial prowess smashes the side of the book case once a thick crack develops on the side. Twice and the side completely collapses spilling books into the entryway.
Erisa stands at the ready to see how the ratlings react, "I don't know what they're saying, I'll do whatever you suggest Saiya."
The ratlings eye the party warily and shift uncomfortably but don't respond to Saiya or move to hurt the party. They look in shock as the Vixen smashes a shelf. Jassminder gets the sense that they are still hostile.
Erisa and Saiya know that ratlings are magical beasts. They hide in deep underground in warrens, are cannibalistic, and often seek out esoteric knowledge. They have a number of magical abilities including the ability to summon a swarm of rats and to turn invisible. They also have an innate understanding of magic and can see magical auras clearly and read magical writings without any training at all.
Jassminder keeps her bow ready, eyeing the creatures to discern their intentions. "Your talk hasn't been completely successful. I suggest we either withdraw, or fight. If we stay they will attack."
The Vixen asks, "Are they willing to let us pass through?"
Saiya sighs, staring at the creatures. "I don't really want to retreat, not when there might be information we need in here. Let me try one more time, then I guess if they don't listen we'll have no choice but to fight them."
Miyuki starts to cast a sleep spell but as she sees that Saiya is willing to parlay stops and prepares her daze if battle starts.
Right as Saiya tries to convince the ratlings to stand down for the second time masses of rats appear in the room. They begin swarming over the party biting and nipping at any exposed flesh with dirty infected teeth. Seeing trouble Miyuki finishes her spell dazing the nearest ratling . But after she completes it the swarm of rats crawling over her becomes too much and all she can think about is escaping.
Erisa grimaces at the disgusting rats as they swarm over her and bite her. She jumps back and offers up a prayer.
♥️
The Vixen says, "Oh, gross! This is our reward for not judging a book by its cover?!" She shakes a leg and stomps the little bastards.
She holds up her book as if ready to throw it—
"This book cover'll be judged by the ratty man-face permanently embedded under the title!"
—but if she still has a swarm to deal with, she continues kicking and stomping.
Jassminder disregards the rats for now, as her companions are better-suited to dealing with those. It is more rational for her to focus on the things that summoned them. Stepping to one side, she points an arrow at the leader (if there is no obvious leader, she will shoot the nearest one).
Saiya curses loudly as the creatures swarm over her. Glaring at the ratlings, she hisses,
Poking at the rats with her rapier isn't going to do much good. Jassminder has the right idea; forget the rats, go after their masters. Saiya does her best to dodge the rats as she runs to the ladder. Taking it with her, she gets it close to the nearest ratling before climbing up. Dripping with blood from countless tiny bites, she stares at the tiny creature as she draws her rapier. "Big mistake."
In a furious flurry of stomping and kicking at the rats, accumulating a hefty pile of tiny corpses, and coating her stilettos in rat juices she finds that there is no end to the creatures. Jassminder’s arrow, like a magnet attracted to the ratlings’s wickedness, finds its mark wounding the creature. Saiya easily ascends the ladder and the ratling lets out a squeak of fear.
Miyuki staggers out of the swarm of rats.
The ratling in front of Saiya winks out of existence reappearing on a different shelf entirely. The ratling near Vixen tosses a book off the shelf, if it was trying to hit V.V. no one can tell. The masses of rats engulf the the Vixen, Erisa, and Jassminder. It's all the Vixen can do to stay standing as they bite at her exposed face and skin, Erisa and Jassminder somehow manage to keep their heads.
Erisa, surrounded by rats and backed into a corner, desperately tries to cast a spell, motioning and chanting in a droning tone.
Saiya's eyes widen as the ratling disappears. That little f~%&er thinks he can escape from me?!
Well, for the moment at least it seems he can. He reappears on the far side of the room, well beyond Saiya's reach. The shelves are pretty stable though, and there is one ratling in the middle she could probably get to...
Before she can really think about what she's doing, Saiya gets a running start and leaps over to the center shelves.
She barely makes it, but barely is good enough. Saiya heads straight for the ratling and stabs at it with her rapier. Hopefully this one doesn't get away!
The pukey feeling of rats on her face renders the Vixen unable to attack. She drops the book in hand and moves to the nearest ladder. She pushes with what strength she can muster so it will forcefully glide to the farther end of the short shelf.
Thanks to Erisa's blessing, the nauseous Vixen is able to kick off with her mighty leg. She hopes the sudden move-and-stop of the ladder will shake the rats off.
—and, if that even works, the Vixen hopes she won't shake herself off the ladder and fall into the swarm!
The rats swarming Erisa and the Vixen suddenly stop, entranced by the Erisa's motions and droning voice.
Saiya pierces the ratling's skin, to it's credit it doesn't cry out in pain. The Vixen tries to kick the ladder violently but because she's still reeling from the swarm of rats covering her head to toe she can't manage it.
Jassminder moves hastily away from the swarm engulfing her, shaking off one of the more persistent rodents as it tries to climb up her boot. Her aim remains focused on her target, and she fires another arrow.
Miyuki keeps on Dazing her enemies.
"What can´t act, can´t fight!"
With a meaty thunk Jassminder's arrow finds it's mark. The ratling cries out in pain but is still standing. The ratling resists Miyuki's spell again.
The only rat swarm not affected by Erisa's hypnotism sees it's chance and climbs up the shelves nipping at the Vixen as they go. V.V. is again so grossed out by the swarm scampering all over her that it's all she can do to keep standing. Then just as suddenly as they appeared the swarms wink out of existence.
The ratling that just got stabbed by Saiya slinks away from her and then disappears in a puff of yellow smoke, reappearing a moment later on a different shelf. The one in the corner farther away disappears entirely. Finally the ratling near Jassminder ineffectually tosses a book at the paladin, which just drops harmlessly to the floor.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
♥️
The Vixen is ready to make a flying leap and finally kill that little—
"Gaah! What the hell?!"
The skittering clawing mass compels Vix to press her skirt against her thighs, which if anything, only encourages the swarm to envelop her face—"Smrm rv er brrt?!"—again!
Thankfully, the creatures all disappear and hopefully are now in hell being tortured by hell-cats.
She glares at the rat that just appeared not too far from her. "I'm gonna enjoy killing ye," she says with a joyless snarl.
Saiya is becoming increasingly annoyed. "Would you stop with the disappearing acts? It's not going to save you."
The Vixen seems to have set her sights on the one that reappeared by her, so Saiya decides she might as well go after the other one. She takes another running leap across the shelves.
She teeters on the edge of the shelf and nearly falls, but a sudden flash of inspiration helps her regain her balance. Reeling slightly from the near-miss, she moves up to the ratling with rapier drawn.
In that case Matsu will move closer to have another target but the swarm
The ratling slowly being surrounded the party finally succumbs to Miyuki's spell.
Jassminder fires another arrow, trying not to be distracted by the whole 'disappear-and-reappear' act.
She's not completely successful.
The oracle curses the dazed ratling, but even in it's impaired state fights it off.
The ratling on the eastern shelf tosses a book which comes dangerously close to the Vixen's face, alas close enough does not count in book tossing. The other ratling looks around her with fear just shaking the effect of the daze off.
The Vixen leaps toward the ratling who threw the book at her. She closes in and kicks!
The Vixen hates to pick on a smaller creature, but she really doesn't want it to get away. She mentally prepares herself to stomp the little rat-bastard's backside if he turns tail.
Saiya grins down at the ratling that hadn't been able to disappear. "Thanks for keeping him here." She quickly stabs at the creature before it can pull another disappearing act.
Flicking the blood off her blade, she shakes her head.