There is a vague familiarity in Carr's features, but Marius struggles to place it. The 'boy' is actually an attic whisperer, an amalgam creature usually brought about the death of a lonely or neglected child. Technically an undead, it seeks companionship and comfort, but its touch can steal the breath of the living.
"Upstairs? I'm not allowed to go upstairs. Auntie says there's something very scary there." Carr takes another couple of steps closer, one hand half-raised in a tentative movement. "Don't go upstairs. Don't leave me here. Stay with me, please."
"I'm afraid we must, Carr. We're here to get rid of the scary thing, for good." Marius sighs, hating what has to come next. "Carr--do you remember how you died? Do you remember what happened?"
"Wh-what? I'm not dead! I don't understand sir, is it a joke?" The boy looks at Marius with confusion.
"I know you don't. I'm sorry, Carr."
On her guard, Velvet keeps her bow at the ready until the order to attack is given. She inches forward and strike with her rapier, but hesitance over its youthful appearance and seeming childlike innocence throws her off. "Are you sure? Is he truly dead?"
Marius slashes at the supposed child with his falcata, rending a gash through its clothes and flesh. There's no spray of blood or the raw redness of flesh, putting Velvet's concerns to rest.
Barcos begins chanting in Druidic, getting ready to conjure an earth elemental.
Faenia and Lotti bide their time to see how things would turn out. Carr cries out as Marius strikes him, but seems more surprised than anything!
"Auntie! Auntie, help! Assassins in the palace! Auntie!"
Then he snarls at Marius. "I'm not dead! I'm not! You lie! Stop it with your lies! Stop it!" He beats his small fists against the inquisitor's legs, but Marius can easily hold him at bay.
"You died many years ago, little prince," Marius' voice is steady, an not unkind. "I'm sorry we couldn't find a gentler way, but there simply isn't time. Forgive me."
"Prince...? By the goddess, Prince Carrius! But, here? Why? Are these his reanimated remains? Did he die here? But that would mean the Lotheeds assassinated the crown prince all those years ago?"
Her mind swirls with this new information as she strikes again against the sad creature.
In a flash of blades, Marius and Velvet destroy the creature calling itself Carr, whatever it was. It crumples into a pile of clothes and a last whispered sigh.
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Barcos grimaces slightly, "I know that he was undead, and that his existence was one of suffering but...I don't know. I wonder if we could have helped him."
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"We did help him, though I confess it doesn't feel like it at the moment." Marius sighs again, then turns for the stairs.
Marius ascends to the upper floor of the tower. The southern half is an opulent bedroom, where a massive bed trimmed with silk sheets and a darkwood vanity fill much of the space, while expensive bric-a-brac covers the waist-high shelf circling the room. The towering, domed ceiling that curves overhead depicts the shimmering summer stars, with major constellations outlined in gold leaf and each star a pearl. Another lavish bathroom adjoins the bedroom, while a closed double door stands to the north.
"I wager our target is on the other side of that door--any takers?"
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The bedroom looks like someone has used it at some point in recent months, but not in recent weeks.
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"I think we did our best for him. He said it himself; he was very lonely, locked up in here," Velvet says as they ascend the stairs, though ever her voice lacks true conviction on this topic. "...Was it a remnant of the actual Crown Prince? If so, what does it mean, to find him here?" She follows, stating her concerns.
Faced with the seemingly empty room, she sighs. "I just know there's another trap here. There is no way a wealthy, highly powerful wizard would leave his home security entirely to a lock and a weakish undead. Still, we have to check somehow. Help me search, please."
Cautiously, she produces what seems like a colourful and decorative - and more importantly, weighted - marble from her pouch and rolls it over the floor in front of them. Should nothing happen, she cautiously ventures into the room, alert for anything unusual.
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Surprisingly, neither the bedroom nor the double doors appear trapped. The door isn't locked either, and opens into a space of arcane study. The plush red carpeting has been cut away from the center of the floor and what remains is badly stained, likely the result of an experiment gone wrong. The desks that line the walls are covered in brass instruments, glassware, jars filled with bizarre collections and bones. The room has the acidic stink of insect activity and old peat. To the west, another door stands closed.
Faenia remains quiet, hoping they can get to the next thing before her invisibility runs out.
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"Prince Carrius died in an accident many years ago, or so it was announced at the time. A riding accident, or something, I don't recall the details. I don't think that was real Carrius, so much as an echo of trauma and loneliness--but I can't be certain. Lingering spirits are strange, unpredictable things."
Wrinking his nose slightly against the acrid smell, Marius scans the room briefly for anything that looks like a magical circle and then moves on, crossing the room towards the western door.
"I see. But, that still doesn't explain why one would be lingering here , of all places. A true spirit should be able to just leave... right? Like the portrait. Then again, I can't exactly claim my necromancy knowledge is up to par, and the answer is not relevant at present." The vigilante grins wryly and refocuses on the next room.
As Marius scans the room, he notices a few things. First, aside from the items on the desks, the place is strangely empty; there's no books, journals, notes or diagrams anywhere in sight, although there are several slightly discolored patches on the walls and small holes that indicate that something might have been pinned there for a while, then removed.
Second, the carpet is worn slightly more in a specific spot near the western wall. A more careful examination reveals near-invisible seams in the plaster that indicate a secret passage of some sorts. The trigger is located underneath the closest desk, a simple button.
As that discovery is made...
Everyone except Marius suddenly feels like their body is falling apart, wracked by immense pain as muscles and tendons pull apart from joints. At the same time, a nightmarish apparition materializes in the room, crouched between two desks, like a giant cockroach made of putrid hair.
Barcos grumbles in pain, feeling his vitality sap away, ”Hells, what is that thing?”
"An ichkoh--one of the sahkil, traitors to the Boneyard and the cycle of souls. Kill it with prejudice."
Marcus remembers that ichkohs are very difficult to harm, as they resist all weapons except those good-aligned, and they also have resistance to cold, electricity and sonic, as well as magic in general.
The ichkoh's unsettling humanoid face grins in satisfaction as it sees its victims contort in pain. The smile freezes upon noticing that Marius seems unaffected, and it lowers its head to fix the inquisitor with its terrifying gaze. A coldness sweeps over Marius as fragments of that terrible nightmare so many weeks ago surface in his consciousness, filling him with the same sensation of failure and desperation.
Faenia tries not to look at the monster, and this seems to work in her favor, as what would have horrified her is just in the corner of her eye.
Faenia thinks quickly, and infects Velvet with the same contagious zeal as before, and then says, "Velvet - bring our anger to bear on this monster!" and she moves to stand near the beast, hoping that if it doesn't know where she is, it will trigger an attack from her.
"Ah, so that was you," Marius grits his teeth to keep them from chattering as the monster turns those terrible eyes upon him. Jaw tight, he concisely relays its resiliences and abilities to his companions.
Marius communicates to the others that this particular sahkil has a gaze attack that strikes fear into the hearts of those who behold it, causing them to be shaken. The effect they felt just moments ago is another one of its special powers, but fortunately it cannot use it very often. Aside from that, its claws look rather vicious.
Velvet is wrecked with pain and cries out at the horrible sensation of her body seemingly falling apart, fully expecting to have died. When when she somehow remains conscious and sees herself (mostly) intact, what follows is a sense of anger. Whether it was al illusion trick or magic trying to have its way with her, it woudn't happen!
She raises her bow to shoot the figure and it's dreadful visage almost makes her lose her nerve, but Faenia's rallying voice allows her to shake it off and fire an explosive arrow straight at its... um, face?
"Nice to meet you as well. I'm Velvet. Sadly, I regret to inform you our time together will be short." She cordially informs the creature at it seems to be hit with explosive force and shrapnel aplenty.
She throws a quick look at Marius. "You've got this from here, right?"
Barcos steps forward, murmuring some words in Druidic as bark grows over his fingertips. He places a hand on Faenia's invisible shoulder and the bark spreads from his hand to her skin.
Lotti advances cautiously into the room, flattening herself against a bookshelf as she projects a glittery cone of bright colours towards the ichkoh. She pours extra magical energy into the spell, making it more difficult to resist. The creature seems stunned for a moment by the colourful display, but quickly recovers.
Marius studies the creature and calls his goddess's blessing upon himself. Velvet manages a well-placed shot that explodes bits of the creature in a cloud of hair and chitin and other unidentifiable matter. Faenia casts a spell to boost the others' ability to fight, while Barcos extends the protection of nature to her.
Shrieking in pain and rage, the ichkoh raises a claw to point it at the one who had hurt it and a black ray issues from it towards Velvet.
A blast of angry words in a language she doesn't understand fills Velvet's mind just as she feels her life force being drained. It is a horrifying feeling - the weakness seeping into her limbs, her mind becoming duller, whole swaths of knowledge she knows she possesses just... gone.
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Faenia keeps trying not to look at the monster, and this seems to work in her favor, as what would have horrified her is just in the corner of her eye.
She comments quickly to Velvet, "zeal me next, please," then clears her throat, "afraid? There is a story there - have you all heard of 'The Story of a Boy Who Went Forth to Learn Fear?' It started like this. Once upon a time..." and Faenia starts to recite the start of an old story about a young man who was just foolish enough to avoid being afraid when he didn't have to be.
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"Yes, I've got this. Get to cover, Velvet!" Finding his nerve, Marius jukes to his left, leaping up to the tabletop and moving along there to get behind the sahkil. All the while his eyes darken to void-black--though the glimmer of distant stars can be seen there as well. Sahkil--traitor to the cycle of souls, tormentor of those you were sworn to shepherd. Your fate was sealed long ago.
As Koriana's Blade finishes its deadly arc through the ichkoh, Marius salutes Faenia with it. "Let us now see how the Ulfen fight!"
Feeling her lifeforce drain and her memories fade, Velvet looks up numbly at Marius and nods tiredly. She shoots the creature once then runs from the room. "Be safe, everyone..."
After running from the room, she attempts to hide amdist the noise of the melee.
Faenia rallies her allies, Marius lands a strike on the creature and Velvet retreats after taking a potshot at it. Barcos speaks a few wors under his breath and holds his hand out, palm up. A flicker of flame forms there, growing to a ball of fire which he hurls at the ichkoh. The flame lands on one of the horrible legs, filling the air with foul burning stench and the creature's shrieks.
"So, you are afraid of fire," mutters Lotti under her breath before raising her arms. White-hot, roaring flames pour from her outstretched hands, curling towards the ichkoh, who recoils.
With its back to the wall, it turns its face towards Marius, who feels a sudden stab of pain in his limbs.
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Faenia swings and badly misses, and then can’t help looking at the monstrous foe. Her words falter, and she seems to also lose confidence. Shaking off some of the concern, she unsteadily continues the story, ”…the boy, No Fear, of course didn’t take the warnings to heart. He agreed to the terms and entered the castle to face the devil of the fireplace.” Winking at Marius, with much less bravado than normal, she steps next to Marius and lightly touches his sword. The sword glows with a pale white light as a result.
Stepping to keep pace with the ichkoh, Marius' falcata glows and the nobleman grins wolfishly. With a flourish he turns his black eyes on the sahkil and rakes the blade through the monster with far greater ease than before.
With two decisive moves and his blade blessed by Faenia, Marius turns the ichkoh into a tangled pile of hairy limbs and oozing fluids, with that uncannily human face staring sightlessly now, its gaze no longer a threat.
Faenia hacks at the corpse with her greatsword a few times to make sure whatever it was is dead, and keeps telling the story, finishing finally, ”and finally, No Fear learned what it meant to shiver.” She’s breathing heavily, and she’s very angry. She looks up and brushes some hair out of her face, leaning on the sword.
Looking around, she checks in on everyone, ”f##+in’ nasty blighter. Alright. Let’s loot this place and move on.”
”What an awful beast. Doesn’t reflect well on Bartleby that this is the company he keeps around his manor.”
A search of the laboratory shows that most of what was interesting or valuable has been removed a long time ago. What is left behind is the arcane and alchemical equipment on the desks, and a few faded pages at the bottom of a drawer, torn and stained. The pages seem to be written in some sort of cypher, their margins covered with equations and diagrams.
...e successful. Memories from the prince's formative years have been amalgamated into a metaphysical matrix. The palace's architectural memory enhances spell r...
...tified key childhood artefacts, essential in providing tangible anchors for the soul reconstruction process. [...] -nt signatures.
...l shard collection process started. The sp[...] -l enrich the reconstruction framework. Ethereal resonance observed - potential amplification factor. Less energy required to pull fragments than entire souls. Should submit a paper on this to the Circle.
...sponds dynamically, as anticipated. Shards exhibit instability. Applying Arionus's theorem was ineffective. At least I have achieved physical manifestation, although cons...
...plicate the earlier success with Veleto. Possibly a combination of weak source material and the psychic dissonance from the soul fragments. The recreation is incomplete at best, but potentially useful for future study. Will ask Veleto to care for it while I am away.
Two other doors lead west from the room - a plain door and the secret passage that Marius had noticed earlier.
As the monster collapses it takes several long seconds for Marius to bring his shaking hands and shuddering breaths under control, waiting as his pounding heart slows to a more reasonable rate. Grunting in agreement with Barcos' sentiment, Marius cleans his blade but does not sheathe it. "Well said, though I suspect the blame might lay more at Panivar's feet than Bartleby's--the Lotheed patriarch has a reputation as a wizard of great skill. I'm not certain that Bartleby could bind such a monster, but Panivar most assuredly could."
As the others take a moment to look over their wounds Marius gives the team a concerned, assessing glance. If everyone seems okay to press on he points out the secret passage and examines it.
It takes half a minute or so for a very sickly and grey looking Velvet comes back into the room, seemingly lacking much of her vitality and perhaps even youth. She was breathing heavily even if there were no external injuries. "That... spell, whatever it did to me, will it pass?" she asks quietly, before joining the others in search.
Unfortunately, she was very out of it indeed as the numbers and letters seemed to do their own jubilee and waltez eachother comfortably beyond her comprehension. "I can't focus on this journal... There's some sort of code over the notes. Is anyone else apt at this sort of thing?"
"Bring it with us--we can decipher it at leisure once the situation is in hand."
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Faenia glances over Velvet’s shoulder, and shrugs, ”I can’t say for certain, but it looks like a cypher - whoever wrote it… it looks like someone was trying to bring somebody back from the dead, if I were to read between the lines.” She points at the Sahkil, ”that might have come through, instead - remember, the creatures feed on fear, and they haunt the ethereal plane.” She points at the lines that reference the emotions and the ethereal plane, ”here - and here.”
She puts her hand behind her head and scratches it while making a lopsided smile, ”or - you know, maybe something else. I am not sure.”