Vera continues to watch for something that seems new and more threatening--absent that, she offers a tiny speck of additional damage on a zombie!
Yaziyah moves farther into the room to make space for those behind her, trying to avoid getting hit by the zombies.
Then she shouts, pointing at the sea hag zombie. "Careful, this one explodes!"
Marcus and Yazi barrel through into the room, dispatching three of the foes with a loud blast, which embeds the remains of the sea hag that was fought earlier into the glass walls - and into some of the party. The undead foes, other than the remaining skeleton, are crushed into the ground. The skeleton clacks its jaws and Yazi notices it's covered in sticky blood.
It tries to chomp and scrape at Marcus.
The skeleton seems to have some success, though it does not know that its days are numbered.
The last skeleton is a bloody skeleton, so it requires a channel of positive energy to be destroyed completely, but this is easily done.
The horrifying tableau not withstanding, the party checks the southern door for traps, but finds none. It appears to be unlocked, and so Marcus pushes it open after getting ready.
Eight unpleasant-looking beds stand here. Their sharp iron frames are threaded with worn manacles and stained leather straps. Several are occupied by obviously unwilling patients; all are bound and in various states of consciousness, and their combined moans murmur throughout the room. Between them stand several small tables strewn with goresoakedpans, flasks of mysterious fluids, and all manner of cruel-looking cutting instruments. A sizable brown-crimson stain covers much of the eastern wall, as if all the blood from a body once held there had exploded forth in a single violent eruption.
The room has two of the masked queen's physicians in it. One looks at the other, and with a muffled voice says, "look - we know we can't win, they made us guard these prisoners. If you let us go, we'll leave and never bother anyone again. Otherwise, we'll each kill a prisoner before you can get to us." Their leather gloves creak as they look like they're getting ready to make good on their threat, hovering above their bandoliers. The other nods, though seems skeptical, "this wasn't what we signed up for..."
Yaziyah moves to Marcus before they proceed past the area with all the undead. "Hold a moment, let me deal with your injuries."
Vera still feels queasy when she sees even more patients being subjected to awful experimentation. And she's horrified as the two queen's physicians seem ready to use them as hostages. She pauses for a moment as she tries to assess who really had the leverage here, looking between the doctors and her allies. She decides that they probably had the better position here, assuming these doctors valued their lives. Not to mention that she felt like they needed information to understand what they were up against.
"Not what you signed up for? Being cultists of Urgathoa? If you really mean that, you won't mind telling us what's really going on here."
As she says this, she tries to sense how true their words really sounded.
The wide mouthed green faced half orc pokes her head out next to Vera. "Answer her questions. Cause it is right, and you need more right in you after all this."
They shake their heads, "we aren't cultists. We just want to leave, These people are insane." The other one gestures at the room they just came from, "we signed up to be muscle. They pay is good, because we know battlefield medicine. But they're into necromancy and s~@&."
The first elbows the second, who continues, "I guess it doesn't matter anyway, but we didn't see far into the - whatever they turned this place into, but they know you're coming. They're waiting for you in that room to the east. It's got concentrated blood veil, in big vats, it's horrible. There's a huge number of them. Now come on - " He gestures with his chin towards the door, "that's a good amount of information - we haven't done you no harm - but we will hurt at least some people if you don't let us go. The first adds "We'll leave the city and never come back."
Yaziyah tries to catch the others' eye and nods. There was no time to deal with the minions, and she would not endanger the lives of their 'patients' any further. She lets the head of her hammer drop towards the ground as she relaxes her stance a little, taking a couple of steps away from the entrance to leave the physicians free passage out.
Yaziyah moves to Marcus before they proceed past the area with all the undead. "Hold a moment, let me deal with your injuries."
Marcus grunts and takes a seat for the minute it takes to heal his wounds. They had indeed begun to mount, and his stubbornness was no match for blood loss.
"look - we know we can't win, they made us guard these prisoners. If you let us go, we'll leave and never bother anyone again. Otherwise, we'll each kill a prisoner before you can get to us." Their leather gloves creak as they look like they're getting ready to make good on their threat, hovering above their bandoliers. The other nods, though seems skeptical, "this wasn't what we signed up for..."
Marcus silently appraises the situation, frown like a heavy weight in the air.
Marcus returns Yazi's nod, similarly stepping to the side. "If you leave, that's fine. Might consider staying to help. The city could use your skills." He doesn't stop them from exiting though.
Magda smiles, wide and beaming, at the wall. She has to suppress the urge to throw a pebble at him, but other than that, she nods and quickly gets out of the fleeing bird faces' way.
As soon as the physicians are no longer threatening the prisoners, Yaziyah rushes to them, untying straps and checking if any of them need immediate help.
They nod, looking a little skeptically, and then make their exit, gingerly stepping over the undead on the way towards the elevator. As they pass, they silently point at the eastern door from the undead art room, and then before hopping into the elevator, quickly remove their masks and outfits and then moving upstairs.
One of the patients is dead, and two seem to be slipping in and out of consciousness. Three more appear to be animate, but Yazi and the others immediately notice they’re actually zombies, strapped to the table.
In the rear, a narrow hall leads to a few cells.
Vera watches tensely as the two plague doctors leave. She then speaks up.
"If they're ready for us, we need to be ready for them," she notes.
She moves past the tables that Yazi is overseeing, worried that there might be others in the back cells who need help.
"The city thanks you all with blessings like warm cobbles and upwinds from the tanners. And spells."
Magda starts casting:
giving Yazi bit of luck(3 points) and bull's strength
giving the Wall barkskin(+3 natural armor) and protection from evil(+2 deflection)
And on Vera, repel vermin and resist energy(fire).
Marcus steels himself and accepts the magical aid from Magda, prepared to enter.
Marcus nods, raises his shield, and moves to the door. He slowly checks to see if it is unlocked, and if so, he turns the knob and gives it a hefty kick!
Vera will cast Haste right before the party enters.
Yaziyah makes sure that the non-undead prisoners are out of immediate danger, stabilizing and healing them as needed so that they could survive on their own for a few hours. Then she begins preparing for the confrontation ahead.
Iron doors with slotted windows, much like one might find in a prison or asylum, line the walls of this chamber. Faint bloodstains fleck the straw-strewn flagstones.
Opening the slotted windows after checking for traps, the party finds five Varisian captives, all somehow healthy, confined within the cells. When they see people who aren’t their captors, they exclaim, ”help! Let us out! They’ve been experimenting on us!”
Moans continue from the two sick patients in the experimentation room, as well as the three zombies that are tied down.
"We'll get you out!" Vera responds as she sees all the Varisian prisoners. She waves Olenna over to help with the lock.
"How did you all get here? Were you all kidnapped? Did they experiment on you upstairs too?"
Magda cures the two living patients, who seem to feel a little better, though they don’t wake up.
The Varisians are thankful when Olenna gets them out. They all appear to be disease free. One older man nods and says something to Vera in Varisian, ”Iti multumesc, sora.” He rubs his wrists where his shackles were rubbing into them. ”Yes. They were looking for Varisians - some of us are immune to this disease they’ve made - these cultists I mean.”
He helps some of the other Varisians up, ”they were curious about all of us - try as they would, we did not contract this disease they invented. They invented a disease! In this very - place - whatever this is - converted smuggler den or something if I guess correctly. It is madness.” He looks at the two that were hurt and raises an eyebrow, ”the masks? Of course. It protects those doctors from the disease. Okay. We can get them topside, if you’d like to guard our exit.” The man gesture and some of the healthier prisoners nod to help carry the two living victims get out of the complex.
He turns back to Vera, ”it was not just the “doctors” here - there are priests too - they take orders from two fearsome individuals: a beautiful high priestess who speaks of death like some great gift, and a disturbing bald man with pale skin and rodentlike teeth who constantly berates the doctors for amateurish and dim-witted work.” He shakes his head, ”he was insane but - listening to him he was nevertheless very smart. He must have been an alchemist or wizard or something - sorry, I am not an adventurer.” He opens his hands, ”can we help you any more? If not, we’d love to escape this… infurnul.”
Yaziyah's fists clench when she hears the Varisian man confirm that the disease was created here, and people intentionally infected with it. "Beyond vile." She grinds her teeth for a moment, then turns to the former prisoners. "Do you need any healing?"
As the Varisians prepare to leave, she raises a hand in farewell. "Drum bun, si sanatate. Aveti grija."
"Go go go" Magda shooes "Tell everyone, Everyone, once the city knows, it doesn't matter if something happens to us."
Marcus absorbs the older man's words. "Go. Be safe." He says simply, and points them to the elevator.
"An intellectual and a zealot. Spellcasters. We'll be fighting to reach them through their underlings. Yazi, stay close on me. I'll disrupt their vanguard, take advantage of the opening. We need to not stay too tightly clustered, else we risk falling to their magic. When we open that door Yazi and I are going to rush through it blind, and with any luck we can get distance from the rest of you before they have time to throw any magic at us. Questions?"
"Thank you for all your information," Vera adds, as the prisoners make their escape.
"If there's an alchemist on the other side, I have one more layer of magic that might help."
Vera will cast Communal Resist Energy: Fire on the party. She uses her Wand of Heightened Awareness on herself and offers it to Magda and Olenna also.
"I'll help everyone move fast like always right before we open the door."
Mags casts all those spells she had held off on to help the prisoners and sick people.
Magda starts casting:
giving Yazi bit of luck(3 points) and bull's strength
giving the Wall barkskin(+3 natural armor) and protection from evil(+2 deflection)
And on Vera, repel vermin and resist energy(acid) : switched from fire to acid cause of Vera's spell
The stinging scent of harsh chemicals chokes this high-ceilinged chamber. Three huge metal vats bubble here, each more than six feet tall. A sturdy series of catwalks ten feet off the ground stretches over and around the vats, allowing those above to attend whatever slurry produces the foul green-brown mist emanating from each gigantic vessel. Circling the upper portion of the room is an elaborate mosaic of white, black, and green stone that depicts a giant half-skeletal woman in black veils dancing among fields of the dead, undead, and dying.
Within the room are a substantial number of people, almost all on the catwalks - six dreadful-looking people with scythes scattered around, three physicians, Doctor Reiner Davaulus standing to the north and regarding the party with curiosity.
The most interesting person is leaning over the railing, with a familiar, ratlike face twisted into a a wry and contemptuous smile, "welcome! I see you're ready to fight - so are we."
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Magda feels like this would be the place to spout a lovely speech about heroes and right and wrong and his irritating face being bashed in. Something those people begging for coin with their songs would do, Mags has seen them through windows into taverns growing up, bright colorful lights filled with desperation.
But Mags isn't them, so instead she simple says "The city doesn't want you in it anymore." then starts to fill the wall with the city's anger.
The man is wearing a leather and a flax tunic, with an uneven chin-strap style facial hair. His clothes and apron have blood on them, as if he were a doctor after surgery, and the many pockets and hoops on his apron have clacking metal surgical tools. His nose seems to have been broken in the past, and he has some scars on his face and hands, which seem to be squeaky clean. His hairline is receding, and he seems to regard the party with something like eagerness. When Magda speaks, he continues to grin.
Olenna seems troubled, but doesn’t respond for a moment, until she steps forward and to the side, retrieving her badge. She holds it for a moment, ”in the name of Korvosa, give up - it will be impossible to escape. If you quit now, the justice system may find mercy.” She draws her rapier and holds it up, as if challenging the guy near the front.
Davaulus shakes his head as if disappointed, but the main person on the catwalk shakes his head, and in a reedy, wheezing voice, replies, ”no.”
Davaulus inhales, and exhales, and seems to wait a moment, as if waiting for something. The physicians flex a moment, but their body language betrays their nervousness. They seem not to have too much of a concern about Olenna, and instead focus on dispatching the people bunched up in the door. One after another they draw vials and toss them with some skill towards Marcus and Olenna.
The city keeps Marcus from being stuck to the ground, but he is still entangled for rounds.
The second one blinks, seemingly at Marcus' resilience, and Davaulus calls out - "they resist fire - switch!" and the second one seems to get the gist, and shakes up a vial, this one arcing in the air with the moisture in the air freezing behind.
Davaulus takes not of this, and directs the last doctor, "damn them - fire on the barbarian, stick her in place. I'll hold off Marcus" The last throws a tanglefoot fire bomb at Yazi.
Davaulus sighs, and heads down the stairs, standing at the bottom, as the doctors spread themselves out seemingly to intercept attacks against the guy on the catwalk guard the man on the catwalk. Davaulus looks at him, and says "I hope you have something up your filthy sleeves, because he'll kill you if he gets to you." He draws his rapier with a flick and holds it in a fighting stance, waiting for Marcus' assault. The man on the catwalk sneers reflexively.
Marcus steels himself and sprints into the room. He knows Davaulus is ready for him, but he also knows the man wasn't fully on guard because he just threw an alchemical weapon. Despite the tanglefoot back tripping up his feet, the magical haste keeps his speed the same, and he takes a sharp left as he comes into the room and moves to squash Davaulus against the wall and hacking down before moving past him.
Protection from evil (+2 deflection and +2 on saves)
Communal Resist Energy: Fire (resist fire 20)
Haste (+1 attacks/AC/reflex saves, +30 foot move speed, extra attack on full attack)
Bless (+1 attacks and saves against fear)
Weapons Against Evil (weapon ignores DR of evil creatures if it's 5 or less)
Entangled (half speed, cannot run or charge, -2 attack rolls, -4 dex | 2 rounds left)
AC 28 (26 w/o shield), Touch 13, FF 27 (25 w/o shield)| HP 69/73 (Temp 6), DR 3/- | F +8, R +4, W +4 (+1 vs continuous, +2 vs evil, +1 vs fear) | Resist: fire 20
Marcus barrels into Davaulus, trying to overcome him, but Davaulus holds firm, and pushes back at Marcus with surprising force. Marcus is briefly unbalanced as he’s surprised, It’s as if he is trying to overrun a very stubborn dwarf. Or a tree. A big tree. Marcus can tell that for a brief moment his feet seem stuck to the ground like glue - and there seems to be some magical effect which strengthens his legs.
Taking advantage of his foe’s surprise, Davaulus shakes his head quickly but respectfully and flicks his rapier with supernatural speed, looking for a gap in the fighter’s armor.
He draws blood as the thin rapier slips within gaps in the side of the armor and Marcus feels like he’s been punched in the gut. With Marcus gasping for breath, the cold eyes of the doctor regard Marcus and he adds, ”usually I work with poison but you, sir, gave me something new. Thank you.”
Yaziyah moves into the room on the heels of Marcus, eyeing the situation. She stops short of reaching Davaulus, her hammer pointed at him as she calls upon the ancestors to bless her companions and curse their enemies.
The lead cultist has similar features to… Gaedren Lamm.
"Wait, Gaedrenn?" says Vera, momentarily as he looks at the cultist. Surely it wasn't him, and yet he sure looked similar. Confusion turns to rage at whoever this was. "Enough--I'll kill you too for what Gaedrenn did to my mom!"
She steps forward and begins to attack the mind of whoever this Gaedrenn look-alike or relative is. She seems to be clutching the harrow deck where her mother resides as she does this.
Majenko keeps close and, seeing bombs being tossed at them, conjures a cloud of vapor to give the party some cover!
The man smiles for a moment, and looks down, ”oh yes, Vera. I’ve watched you since you killed him. I’ve even gone in your house - while you slept. So peaceful! I was going to kill you but…” He raises his arms and looks like he’s going to cast a spell, but stops. He looks confused.
He shrieks, his composure shattered. ”F*!* you. F&#@ you! I told her I should have gutted you! I'll rip the flesh from your bones you pubescent tramp!” He stomps around on the catwalk and directs the cultists to move forward.
Davaulus sighs and says to Marcus, ”you try to run an operation like this- and most of the time these are the only people you can get.” He looks disappointed in the man’s outburst, and the guy glares down at him.
He flicks his wand at one of the visible enemies and moves southeast along the catwalk.
One of the cultists extends his fingers and shakes them, directing a spell towards Marcus and Yazi.
Two other similar cultists hang back and look like they're getting ready for people to emerge from the mist.
The three remaining cultists all summon spectral scythes, and sic them on Marcus and Yazi.
When the man on the catwalk starts talking about hurting Vera, about being in her room, Mags sends her city to make his life miserable. Dripping water into his eye, rusty railing snapping at the right time, a rat rushing between his feet, so on...
Seeing that the obscuring mist provides a lot of cover to the other party members, and seeing that Davaulus is a big threat, Olenna swiftly moves North until she's adjacent to Davaulus, who seems surprised to see her.
She watches him carefully, and then strikes out with the rapier herself.
Davaulus seems surprised at the assault as the now-small read-headed woman manages to catch him in the ribs. He breathes in, and seems to be considering. He looks up at the catwalk, and turns back to the three people attacking him, and seems to focus completely on Marcus.
With skill and expertise, the doctor carves up parts of Marcus' body. His blazing fast rapier seem to knock the wind out of the fighter again, who remains sickened. Satisifed, he calls out, "I have this guy's number - try to kill that caster with frost!" He gestures towards where Vera was. The doctors look to be a little skeptical, but throw the frost bombs anyway.
With a thud, Vera cries out in pain, and the caster shrieks, "yes, yes! Kill her! Good!"
Marcus barely keeps his shield in the way of the first attack, but he didn't recover from the weight shift before the rapier stung him twice more. He sucks air between his teeth, then exhales hard to force his mind to stay clear, ignoring the blood loss. Despite the spraying lethal wounds he remains standing. Blood seeps from between his teeth as he checks the room, what angle of it he can still see anyways. Even on the bring of death he is checking the battlefield layout.
Blood dribbles down Marcus's lips as he growls back to Davalaus. "You're too smart...to think you'll survive this." Then he inhales, straightening up to his full height, and roars as he casts away his shield and brings down heavy smashing blows!...and just as quickly he steps back, vanishing into the mist. He looks to his right where Yazi is, catching himself from falling as his back knee buckled. With a pained growl he juts his chin towards Davalaus. "Hold the line."
Current Effects:
Barkskin (+3 natural armor)
Protection from evil (+2 deflection and +2 on saves)
Communal Resist Energy: Fire (resist fire 20)
Haste (+1 attacks/AC/reflex saves, +30 foot move speed, extra attack on full attack)
Bless (+1 attacks and saves against fear)
Weapons Against Evil (weapon ignores DR of evil creatures if it's 5 or less)
Prayer (+1 on attacks/damage/saves/skill checks)
Entangled (half speed, cannot run or charge, -2 attack rolls, -4 dex | 1 round left)
Current Stats with all Current Effects:
AC 28 (26 w/o shield), Touch 13, FF 27 (25 w/o shield)| HP 10/73 (Temp 6), DR 3/- | F +9, R +5, W +5 (+1 vs continuous, +2 vs evil, +1 vs fear) | Resist: fire 20
Although every instinct screamed at her to help Marius, heal him, but it was clear that Davaulus could easily undo her work - and finish off Marcus on top of that.
Grinding her teeth and fixing the doctor with a rage-hot glare, Yaziyah brings her weapon to bear in great, sweeping arcs, then steps in to shield Marcus.
Howling agony: -2 to AC, attacks, melee damage and reflex saves
Entangled: -2 to attacks, -4 to Dex
Buffs:
Haste
Prayer: +1 to attacks, saves, damage rolls, skill checks
Bless: +1 to attacks
Protection from Evil: +2 to AC and saves against evil creatures
Ironskin: +4 natural bonus to AC
Divine Favor: +3 to weapons attack and damage rolls.
He staggers a bit as the heavy blows pummel him. A blossoming bruise develops on his arm, and his leg has a gash on it from Marcus’ falchion, but the man keeps impeccable form. He coughs, ”I have a code, even if that weak-willed idiot doesn’t, my duty compels me” he snaps his head towards the fuming robed figure, and flicks the blood off of his rapier, ”it isn’t personal.”
He staggers a bit as the heavy blows pummel him. A blossoming bruise develops on his arm, and his leg has a gash on it from Marcus’ falchion, but the man keeps impeccable form. He coughs, ”I have a code, even if that weak-willed idiot doesn’t, my duty compels me” he snaps his head towards the fuming robed figure, and flicks the blood off of his rapier, ”it isn’t personal.”
Marcus grunts from within the mist. "Death never is."
Vera and Majenko see Marcus stumbling back toward them, severely wounded. Vera had wanted to help Marcus fly, but she struggles to do anything as frost eats at her bones. Instead, Majenko helps him heal some of his wounds, while keeping close.
Vera chants forth magic and touches Marcus. "They can't see you now," she whispers to him, before retreating deeper into the fog.
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Almost hysterical, the man steels himself and then knocks on the door he’s facing.
”yeeeessss, Lambykins?”
The man puts a hand to his face, ”if I let you out - you have to kill the adventures. All of them, now, with no games. If you do,” He whispers loudly, ”I will give you anything you want. Anything.”
Eerie excited giggling seems to loudly come from the door, ”oh lambykins, I knew you’d come around. The other girls just won’t do for you. You need me. Say it, say you need me.”
He puts his hand on his face, ”yes. Yes! I need you! You’re the only one for me! You’re the only one who gets me! You know how annoying these people are! Prove that you know this by stabbing them in the f%!*ing face.” He reaches down towards the locked handle and prepares to open the door.
The woman’s voice is louder, and is filled with a desperate hunger, ”yes! You do! That’s all I ever wanted you to say. Let me out Lambykins, and we shall have such fun with their flesh … after they’re dead, I promise!”
Lambykins extends his hand and unlocks the door. He then steps to the side. He gestures to the cultists, ”well? Stay out of her way, if you know what’s good for you. And kill one of them for Urgathoa’s sake.”
Two of the cultists seem to gesture, chanting in a foul language, and Vera identifies the spells as outbreak, targeting the folks in the cloud.
The two that looked to be getting ready for something keep on concentrating.
The last two seem to gesture towards Olenna, and the woman is wracked with pain, as their necromantic magic assaults her very bones.
Waiting for the door to open, then the din of a busy marketplace, full of sounds, smells, pushing and emotions descend on the catwalk, causing confusion on those of weak wills.
The small form of Olenna nearly matches Davaulus for speed. Like lightning, she is striking out with her small rapier, like a needle into fabric.
Somehow, the Doctor dodges her first attack. It didn’t seem possible, but he does. But while he’s catching his breath, Olenna strikes again.
With the second hit, the doctor is punctured in the side and gasps. He feels where the blade hit him, and notices the bleeding, which is profuse. He coughs a bit - and there is blood around his mouth. He seems like he’s about to say something but his eyes roll back and he collapses to the ground.
The physicians seem befuddled and directionless, but direct cold attacks at the only one that’s really visible.
[ooc]Olenna and Vera take 2 and Marcus takes 4
The nimble woman gestures and knocks the flasks out of the air with her rapier, but the frosty liquid still splashes about, hurting the party at the margins.
With a click, the door opens and the elf in the clown makeup appears in the doorway. She grins, ”my audience! Back for an encore. Tell me -“ and then Magda’s readied spell goes off.
The clown seems to look around confused for a moment, and then steadies herself and winks toward the cloud before she casts a spell and disappears.
With Davaulus down, Yaziyah turns to Marcus for some much-needed healing - but not before screaming at the top of her lungs to relieve some of the rage and pain.
"Oh, big Marcus over here," says Majenko, as the flying pseudodragon taps Marcus's head with more healing.
After managing to dodge most of the next wave of bombs, Vera slips forward and tries to magic up Marcus as well.