When Bez ‘s blade slices the cat, he is met with a strange sight. The blood that splatters on the steps is… green. Yeah. Green blood. The cat snarls and swipes back like a kitty swatting a toy mouse.
Bez is half expecting green blood from his own wound, as the cat rakes his chest. But, no. Normal blood soaks through his fabrics.
The wound feels more or less normal. Not pleasant , but no strange extra toxic effects noticeable.
Bez manages some extra deft stabs and slashes to the plant(?)-kitty.
"If I start to mutate, pull me out by my ear," he grumbles to Melira.
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Melira doesn't register the green blood. All she can see is the very red blood that blossoms from Bez's chest.
Her sword flashes red in the light of the torch. Two fresh wounds open on the leopard's flesh. "You are doing fine, Bez. Finish it now!" She locks eyes with the rogue for a moment, and he feels the wild energy in her eyes.
As Bez hears the words , ”Finish it now!”, the eyes roll back in the cats head and it crumples down and tumbles down a couple steps into a pile at Bez’s feet. Green blood pools out sticking to Bez’s shoe sole.
The cat had never even let out an audible snarl. The quiet of the courtyard hangs heavily. You can hear your own hearts beating.
You don’t hear anything else goin on at the moment. The cat is dead on the big granite steps, the doors are before you. Broken windows.
Faidh arrives on time to see Akkramar raise his arms and stand against the ranks of skeletons.
Akkramar deflects several blows and downs another skeleton before a sidelong axe blade lays him low.
When the dwarf follows, the eight remaining skeletons ignore his fallen form, marching on to the dam to resume demolition of the crystal turrets.
Faidh comes up behind them, finding the dwarf lain out on the chilly ground.
From the ridge you can see the exiled townsfolk carrying makeshift sacks and packs, crossing the field, staying off the road itself but traveling in the general direction of Endhome, the port city.
The town is swept in darkness, the torches extinguished. The dead march through the streets and shadows fly through the windows and walls hunting anyone who had stayed behind, forgotten or stubborn.
Melira doesn't continue hacking at her downed foe as she did last time she fought for her life, but she does make sure to stab it one more time for good measure. Then the sight of green blood on a fuzzy creature makes her retch and nearly throw up.
"How deep is your wound?"
"I'm fine," says Beziriphas, dabbing at it. "Thank you for the healing and other spellwork."
He eyes the house. "I'd truly like to explore the upper levels directly, but now I'm wondering if we'll get feathered by something in the vineyards, now that we've made a commotion. I agree that circling around is best."
"You know I thought you'd be heavier" Faidh says with a playful smile to Akkramar. As she stands on the bridge she looks at the Villagers and then her companion.
" They will move on and rebuild. We need to be moving on ourselves. To tell our accounts of this affair as well as others. Evil seems to be brewing." The Firbolg stands tall and looks out wandering what exactly could trigger such evils? Hopefully this temple and scholars can shed some light on this feeling.
"Funny girl..." - Akkramar manages to mutter - "Just make sure ye don't forget me shield..."
Bez leads along around the house.
”Circling and then climbing, I like that,” he muses.
Bez moves like a cat…a very oblivious cat.
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" I remembered your shield!" She chuckles handing the smaller shield to him. Her teeth and prominent tooth gap showing.
"I need to show you the cool trick, which I hear dwarves excel at!" She says reaching out to pat Akkramar on the head.
"I'm just hopin' it involves beer..." - Akkramar grumbled in reply - "But then again we dwarves excel at so many a thing!" - he chuckled feebly.
"Dwarves brew beer?" Faidh says as she then chuckles. "I would have never known!"
From the landing at the top of the big steps up to Morrick Mansion, there is a gravel path that winds left and wraps around the perimeter of the house hugging very close to the wall. The vines and vegetation look somewhat mutated and warped but they also look tended to, as if there is still someone maintaining this part of the garden. The first story of the house has no windows, at least not along this wall. It does however have two doors. The first door does not have a bar outside of it, but the second door does have a visible bar on the outside.
The markings in the dirt reveal that the the second door swings open when it is operated. The first door has no such markings, and it can be seen by the hinges that the door would be one to swing inward when opened.
The two doors are arranged such that the first is near the front left corner of the house, and the second is on the same wall but placed near the back left corner of the house.
The first floor has four windows, and you can also see that the second floor has two windows.
First door
Second door
Back at the bridge
As Faidh and Akkramar prepare to continue the journey to Endhome, they have to take the difficult first step of leaving a human settlement overtaken by the living dead. There is not mistaking the systematic extinguishment of light as the torches go out one by one. The shadowy phantoms can be seen sweeping through the streets hungrily seeking life to claim, but from the safe distance where you are observing, it seems they are not finding any lives to claim. The evacuation was seemingly thorough and complete. The sight is disturbing nonetheless, as skeletal dwarves post up as sentries ringing the unrated perimeter of the town.
Before long it becomes clear that the makeshift caravan of human refugees are taking a different course, crossing an open plain rather than following the river. The mounted siblings from earlier seem to drop back behind their kin for a spell, however, this time accompanied by a mustached middle aged man with a tabard.
The kids point and the man approaches, speaking to Faidh and Akkramar in a formal and respectful tone. The man has requested the kids to bring him to you to offer thanks. He explains that his people will travel to Endhome, but they will cross the plains for a few days to reach the King’s Road where they expect patrols of knights will make the journey a bit safer. The other path, along the rivers edge, if fraught with bandits, some of whom may have a personal vendetta against the folk of the bridge, who had defended themselves from banditry in the past. In fact the bandit troupes are often populated by those miscreants who had been cast out of Bridgetown society for various depravations. At any rate these folk have decided to brave the open plains to reach the patrolled road and from there carry on to Endhome.
They invite the pair of divine hero’s to accompany them if that is your wish. Otherwise, they suggest that according to their superstition or perhaps their wisdom stemming from a connection to the waterways and the land, it is their belief that the evil which overtook the town had come from the river and was likely spreading by the same means. The path along the river remains the most direct route to Endhome, but by their assessment perhaps the less safe. The man indicates that he acknowledges the stout dwarf and the Fey knight as servants of divine patrons, and suggests that if it is the wish of the heroes to carry on a long the river they may be confronted by further evil, but if that is what they feel called to do, he understands. However, if you wish to travel in relative safety among the numbers of his folk, you are welcome to join them in crossing the open plain.
He thanks you formally and respectfully for delivering the warning, and the children, otherwise silent, can not contain themselves from raising their their voices to echo his simple words of thanks.
"Very large rats or something behind there," says Bez, pointing to the second door. "Squeaking and gnawing. They'll get through eventually."
Apart from the two doors in the western wall, the gravel path also provides a vantage point to the western grounds of the manor, off to the left side of the house.
There is the pale blue fountain which had pinged Melira's detect magic before. The aura is still detectable. This fountain is quite a ways off from the house, nearly to the high wall. It is also quite a bit to the south, standing a little in front of the house as well as far off to it's left.
Between you and the fountain lies a muddy clearing. It is littered with broken flagstones, and several branches of the shrubs in the area are snapped.
Across from the muddy clearing in a northerly direction towards the back left corner of the walled in manor yard, lies yet another fountain (there is a lot of statuary among the gardens), this one dark blue with benches squatting beneath it. This fountain is perhaps 80 feet diagonally from the back corner of the house where Bez is listening at the door. It is towards the north-west corner of the high wall (behind the house and to it's left). Surrounding this fountain, all the vegetation is gray colored and almost ashen in appearance. They clearly do not look healthy and full of life. Behind this fountain, tugged properly in the corner formed by the high-wall, there is one bush which features a splash of color, standing out against the backdrop of pallid grey vegetation. This one bush has dark green hearty vibrant leaves, and blossoms blooming in a luscious crimson hue.
It is also possible from Bez's vantage at the door to see the back yard behind the house, where a large manufactured pond with a granite enclosure is bubbling and swirling. In the fading light of the late afternoon, it is easy to see that this is no ordinary pond. It is unmistakeably emanating light in a pale green shade, and mists rise from the surface in wraith like tendrils.
A classical sculture depicting a nude woman lie closer to Bez then the other features, between him and the pond in the back yard. The tendrils of mist from the glowing pond reach as far as the nude sculpture, where they swril and climb up the white marble, clinging to it almost like vines.
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Melira glances from Bez's wound to his eyes. Is he just acting tough? "Ok, glad you're alright." She follows behind him, casually slipping into the lead so that she's closer to any danger they might encounter.
-----
Melira looks around, from one piece of this mad garden to the next. "There's heavy breathing coming from inside the first door. Male; hard of breathing, perhaps like the sentries we snuck past; and doing something that requires exertion." She gulps. At least whatever is behind the door isn't some undead monster, if it needs to breath.
"After we finish circling the house, before we try entering, let's check out that fountain." Melira points to the western fountain which had sparkled with magic.
"Well met sir" - the dwarf nodded at the man - "I be Akkramar, and this here stout lass is Faidh. Do ye have a name yerself?" - he smiles.
"Well..." - he turns to Faidh - "I would much rather accompany these here hard workin' folks until they actually do meet up with some knight patrols. After all they have been through, I'd like to make sure they are safe afore leavin' them. Whaddya think?"
The man’s body language mirrors Akkramar’s own, as he returns the nod of respect. ”Beltan is my name. The kids here feel safe around you. We know you both serve the gods, and we feel you came to us a messenger. Just look behind us, as the lights go out on our town, and imagine if we had still been in our homes when the darkness came. I told them you might not be coming, for I suspected you might wish to follow the river and see what further evils it’s depths still conceal. But if you will travel with us you are welcome. We are domestic folk, used to commerce rather than survival, but I understand the trappers find these fields plentiful with wild hare and pheasant. We hope to put some miles behind us and then make camp under the moon.”
His blue and white tabard looks well worn but well cared for. He strikes you as a dutiful servant of his people, but one who is used to having no worry worse than bandits. His eyes frequently dart back to the abandoned town, and his face visibly blanches at the sight of any movement among the un-living occupants who have taken up residency.
Melira edges around the back corner of the house, bringing her into full view of the back yard. She has to pass Bez where he listens at the barred door with the sound of vermin. She left behind the unbound door with the sound of someone exercising.
From the back corner of the house, where she passes Bez, the nude statue wrapped in tendrils of mist is perhaps 25 or 30 feet away. Still, she feels as if the tendrils of mist, originating from the glowing pond, almost seem to react to her movement, as if unfurling themselves from the limbs of the statuary and probing the air in her direction.
It becomes apparent that the back entrance has a flight of marble steps like the front of the mansion did. Before the feet of the grand stairs, there is a granite post, with a chain attached to it. The chain terminates in a shattered metal color, too big for a dog or the leopard that had been faced before.
"Ye don't need ta thank us Beltan - anyone who would have passed by that, and did nothin'... Well, they would be deservin' of burnin' in the forges of Moradin himself" - the dwarf nods - "Ye're very welcome, in any case"
Then Akkramar pokes Faidh - "Lass, ye still with us? Mr. Beltan here is wonderin' if we would be willin' ta go with them. I say yes. What about ye?"
Faidh reluctantly smiles as she nods. The Woman was uneasy in her taller form. "Sorry,I..never mind"
The giant smiled boarder showing the gap in her teeth as she gently bows down to honor Beltan."No need to thank me, Beltan, I wish I was able to do more. Alas I fear your village is lost. As for me I would love to help see you to the next village. If it isn't too much trouble" The soft rumble of her voice could be heard,but also a hint of awkardness.
From behind Beltan, you can hear a sound from the kids. They look very stiff, and look mostly at their feet, as if they had been trained to behave a certain way around the captain. Every so often though you can catch them peering up at the giantess Faidh, though, especially the young boy.
When the agreement is reached to travel together a stifled exclamation comes up from the well behaved kids. It sounds like, "Yeeeeet!"
"Mind your hound," Beltan warns. "I've never seen one with long ears like that. It doesn't seem quite natural. Then again she does somehow remind me of the tribes who inhabited parts of these lands..."
_____
With the agreement reached. Beltan leads the way back to the caravan. The people have possessions and provisions stuffed into pillow cases.
Many are somber, others can not stop talking about what this means for their future. There is a lot of political talk about who can be appealed to to march an army back to Bridgetown to restore it from the dead, but no one seems to have a clear plan or hope resting on any one benefactor.
The field has some hills and gnolls but the terrain is easy enough to walk on without tripping, even by starlight. After some hours and miles are behind the caravan, and the old and infirm are beginning to trail behind, Beltan signals to make camp.
"There's a tiger around here. Was that other thing a leopard? Those are at least found in these lands, in deserts, but tigers, those are truly from elsewhere. The family must have been into exotic menageries...which means, among other things, magecraft, a stables, and a place to keep food animals..." Bez ticks off other items mentally.
Fiadh jumps and then blinks. "Oh yes I'm sorry, he, she, it? Kinda appeared. I'll work on it.!" Fiadh rushes over to get the dog and begins to issue commands in a few different languages seeing which one works.
‐‐-------------------------
When they camp Fiadh, pulls out her violin and begins play. It's a beautiful but haunting tune. One of the season. But starting from fall and building to summer! After that she'll play other Fey melodies hoping to keep spirits up while also losing herself to the music.
Akkramar does not even hesitate in mingling with the people around him - he tries to help as best as he can, offering healing advice and also practical hands on assistance, helping people to carry loads, pull carts, and even using his Guidance magic to assist in whatever tasks need to be carried out.
When they camp, he tries to find Beltan, and ask about how they intend to set watches. Then he will join in listening to Faidh, once all that is sorted.
"Not only that, but whoever has been living here since then must also have been willing to feed it. That, or it's long dead, and we have nothing to fear." She keeps her weapons drawn, pointing them at the pool.
"I don't see any tiger tracks." She looks at Bez's wound again, more closely this time. "If there is one loose on the grounds, I say we check out the magic fountain and then get out of here. What say you to that?"
Bez nods. "I think we've had enough fun for a day. This is the sort of place you do a few trips to scout about, and we don't have the time for that...diminishing returns and all that. Unless the tiger has a diamond encrusted collar, this is becoming less and less worth the risk."
He taps his scabbards thoughtfully.
Vex has been more than a fortnight on the King's Road. Behind him lie a couple towns, as well as Grollek's Grove, where someone was going on and on about a cursed mansion. Bez had paid it little mind. Unless that opium addict from Remballo was involved, it could wait.
Just before reaching Manas, Vex had seen a silhouette of a ruined castle highlighted by the moonlight. Looked like a couple miles at most off the road. Once again. It could wait.
Finally Manas had come into view. City of Manas. Capitol of the Kingdom of Suilley. A sprawling metropolis that had spilled out over it's protective walls ages ago. Construction of a new outer wall to enclose the expanded settlements was always ongoing, but also always seemingly stalled.
The inner walls, still strong since ancient times, form a protective ring around the old part of town, including Palaz Terondel, seat of power of King Ulrich.
There is a feeling that the Kingdom of Foere to the East is declining, and Suilley is rising. Manas is vibrant and bustling. There is an identifiable style of dress, cosmopolitan and a little flamboyant, that makes its people stand out as a group who look to the future.
Although Manas trade guilds in general are known for being less susceptible to bribery, and it's courts are fair, there is something different about the Thieve's Guild in Manas. While other Thieve's Guilds nearby in the Kingdom operate in a traditional way, where they actually serve to reduce crime, the Manas Thieve's Guild is one that exists not in co-operation with the government but in defiance to it.
"Enough fun for one day, perhaps, but not nearly enough for tonight." Melira smiles, perfect white teeth glowing in the fading light. She turns towards the fountain that she had detected as magical before, walking towards it while staying away from the red bush at the edge of the yard.
Now that they've decided to turn back, Melira is more relaxed, as though they're already back home safe. It's a mistake, and part of her knows it is. But she can't help but feel relief creeping into her limbs, making her stupid and noisy.
"Ah, Melira...what kind of magic is that fountain radiating?"
Melira thinks for a moment. "I can't remember."
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On the outskirts of Manas Vex sat atop a levee, pondering his situation; the path both ahead and that he had travelled thus far. 14 days upon the King’s Road had been arduous on his fine boots, footwear more used to the cobbles of Endhome and the carpets of its bordellos. Even more rankling was the potential opportunities he had foregone in pursuit of his intent.
Ah… to be abed with one of my favourites and a carafe of wine right now. Yet here I sit. Worn boots and worn patience…
The demonic dandy’s mood betrayed by his eyes flashing a baleful amber.
The interior of Manas beckoned; an ancient city of trade that existed on twin pillars of wealth and fairness. Yet as ancient as it was, the city nonetheless forward thinking, particularly when it came to organised crime. Whereby the Thieves Guilds of cities of the realms such as Endhome worked to control and polish criminal enterprise. Here, the old city was at odds with her Guilders. Here the Manas Thieves pulled the strings, not by cooperation, but by coercion.
Old Manas. Old Manas. My kind of town.
The Tiefling grinned, pointed fangs stark against his ebon lips.
Yet it was not a place of open venture. Manas’ guild protected their interests violently. Freelancers were not tolerated, so unless he wished to find himself a corpse in the city’s sewer-tombs he would need to tread carefully, and pay proper tribute where necessary.
Rising wearily to his feet Vex, stretched and shook the dust of the road from his countenance. Rapier and dagger at his hip, jangle of coin in his purse, the rake was ready… was Manas?
"D'you suppose that fountain...there...is keeping the curse at bay? Seems too good to be true, but we might want to take some phials of the water," says Bez.
Melira is taken aback. "I suppose it...could be." She furrows her brow. Her voice is slightly too loud. "But why this fountain, when there are so many others?" She is quiet again. "It could just be that there's something worth stealing in it." She shrugs. She doesn't have any phials to fill anyway, except her inkpot.
The direct path to the fountain takes you through the clearing where you earlier saw the gouges and broken flagstones, and broken branches dripping sap indicating a recent fight between creatures of great strength.
As you now pass through the site of this battle, you overhear a conversation in a foreign tongue. The voices are deep and gutteral , and just by the way the sound carries loudly across the space in spite of it being in a low tone, you can tell that the speakers are quite enormous.
Like this they carry on. They must be 25 or 30 feet away. Suddenly some tall shrubs shake as a great green and mottled brown hand grasps a trunk to use for support. There is a lot of vegetation between you but you see a huge lumbering form rise to a standing position. Must be nine or ten feet tall and humanoid. It's back is to you.
When they camp, he tries to find Beltan, and ask about how they intend to set watches. Then he will join in listening to Faidh, once all that is sorted.
"Watches, yes, I... I haven't organized anything yet with the boys I guess I just know in my heart I won't be able to sleep tonight. I plan to keep my eyes peeled in the direction of Bridgetown all night. And I must admit, I'm jumping every time a shadow moves. Your welcome to join me if you can't sleep either... I can see the boys like you."
As Akkramar had joined in actively dealing with things that needed doing, a big part of which was reasoning with hysterical people, the townfolk had taken a liking to the stout dwarf. The guardsmen had even taken to approaching Akkramar for instructions on what to do next, as Beltan had an increasingly far away look in his eye and appeared aimless.
There were some who argued for no fire, but they lost out to necessity as the night cooled and the temperature dropped. The stars looked like icicles in the crisp clear air.
When Faidh began to play everyone huddled round, children most of all, and there was a powerful bond forming, you could feel it in the air. The people needed something. Some comfort from the fear of the day, and they found it in song. One particularly haunting fey melody seemed to strike a chord and they asked for it again and again.
Faidh just lets the music speak for a couple of hours before she realizes she has an audience and then bashfully curtsy. "I..I..am not bothering you with my music am I?" She asks generally unsure what to ask or do after such a tragedy that had befallen these people.
If no objections are made she takes time to check her strings and then continues on for another hour before she has to stop and rest.