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She moves closer and sees the body get up, noting is color and movent,
with the actions of the others she had a good idea what they where.
She had seen what she needed to see and came back to the group.
Getting to them she said in a hushed voice.
"These are no mere commoners, from the way they move and weird tone of skin, They are more creatures in dead body disguise. They are vermleks, Awful demons able to inhabit the bodies of fallen humanoids! They have the ability to inflict mass wounds and heal their vermlek companions due to their negative energy affinity. Vermleks form from the souls of those who habitually violated the dead in life, such as grave robbers, necromancers, and necrophiles. Disguised as laborers like gravediggers or dung sweepers, they can revel in their ghoulish, taboo lusts. Outside of a host body, a vermlek would appear as a worm with four long tails, each of which ends in a tangle of filaments. In this form, the demon is around seven feet long and weighs 90 pounds. We must tell the fort"
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"Sir Ilivan, please hold a second. Cyclic, there are evil places in the world where evil things are. This is one of them. They can only hurt each other. It is not like they are in downtown Absolom. Now, we are to report this and not fight. We have a fort depending on our help. That is our task. If you fight I will back you. It is the pathfinder cooperation thing, but this is not our task."
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Andrelis listens, looking to Sir Ilivan and the others, Right, Vermleks - sounds disgusting. Observe and report you said? I'm fine for not overplaying our hand and finding more information out. Given the numbers it looks like a straight fight, but we're not paladins given to smiting such creatures. If my Kitsune cousin were here, she'd charge in and give them a blade each, but she's not - so let's make a note and move on.
As you discuss, the commoners in the ground shout desperately in pain "No! Please! No!" "It's painful! Stop! Please!" "Don't kill me! No! Please!" "I'm too young to die!"
While the one with the pitchfork reacts shouting back while crying "Sorry, they will kill me otherwise!" and stabbing again on the fallen man in the mud.
The farming tool pierces through the belly of the fallen man who shouts, blood covering him "Ouch!" he almost faints down but the adrenaline seems to keep him alive and pleading "Why you do this to me!? "
Meanwhile, at the hill top, Sir Ilivan contemplates the developing scene and hears your knowledge "Undead, demons, evil cultists... Is there any difference? People just die everyday in the Worldwound and abroad. Let's go to the fort" his tone is neutral but commanding.
You do feel there is something wrong about Sir Ilivan. It is not he urges to stick to the contract of the mission or that he fears losing the aim, it feels more like... as if he does not care at all for the life of these people at all. You see he does not flinch in pain at the sight of such disgusting torture as you are contemplating here.
It is like if he has lost any empathy for human suffering.
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Makras pats Sir Illivan on the back, heartily. "It's a relief that your eyes are open and you see what I see, my friend! The dead were lucky--they escaped the worldly conflagration that is nigh! And there's no point in weeping for those sods still living below, for their turn will soon come!" Makras starts trudging in the direction that Sir Illivan has indicated the fort stands.
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She looks on fully understanding Sir Ilivan point of view. As an elf, to her human lives were so short, they were dead before you even got to know them well. She waited a moment took her elf spear from its straps on her mount and simply said.
"*^£&(£ it! "
And gees her mount back toward the Village at speed. Ordered her Gaurd dog to follow.
She charges down to the Village.
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"People die. It is part of the cycle. More people die and the land is corrupted if we die trying to take them out and then do not deal with the wardstones. In fact this is probably a result of the breakdown of the wardstones. As far as I'm concerned that is our mission. I'd also be OK with a side rescue mission, but our leaders says no and that is good enough for me."
As long as it is not undead.
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Andrelis stops hearing the cries of the men below. Pain in his eyes, Shouldn’t we help them? If we do nothing, those men are dead. It just takes indifference to allow evil to flourish in this land. he looks to the others after hearing the mad dwarfs words.
She looks back at him.
"If this is too much of a fight for you, then run, try and get to the fort. I'm staying to try and save the last villages."
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You just grow and world swirls around. Thats what it means to be a leshy. Greet just settled down to watch but event escalated so quickly thereafter...
Leshy allows Skyrocket to poison up agressive folks and play with them untill they tired up. Not really brave small dragon appears from sky after few moments to rush at the man who pierce up injured guy. She is much more sensetive to violence than leshy-friend.
Probably, if Allya's trick catch attention - Skyrocket would wait instead attack.
Anyway Greet looks curiously at fleshlings feeling they are also to nuetral. So he tries to ask sir Illivan in a hurry (as fast as tree able to)
-Sir Illivan! We should act to to interfere one-sided violence to be rightful and good, should we?
Sir Ilivan looks confused at the words of the dwarf, trying to discern if his enthusiasm by the fate of the commoners is some type of sarcasm or he is really enjoying the scene.
The shock for the dwarf's words and hearing Andrelis compasion, ultimately gains Sir Ilivan momentarily awareness of his own callousness toward the helpless commoners.
In the midst of the chaos emerging from the tense situation, Lady Alya, who had disappeared for some seconds, appears mounting her horse in a valiant charge over the muddy fields, the sun of the morning reflecting on her shinny mithral armor, calling the attention of the commoners brawl!
Following Alya in her surprise movement, a tiny dragon appears, falling in a charge from the sky over the commoner that raised from the heap of bodies!
The pseudodragon stabs the jaws on the corpse, but apparently to barely or no effect.
Sir Ilivan breaks out of his thoughts as the action breaks "Tsk! What is she doing?!"
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As she got to the higher earth banks her speed slowed, but she did not want to charge them, she wanted to make them come to her, through a deeper part of the marsh. She swapped her Spear for her crossbow, ordered her dog to guard her, and now stopped she aimed and fired.
"Make them come to us, we use range"
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Greet comes closer to the edge of solid ground thinking, that many of his powers may harm good injured people there.
Who are they attacked by? Undeads? Or vermlek demons?
Skyrocket unlikely to bite - she uses tail sting. Especially if she face undeads - she can realise they are likely immune to her posion.
The pseudodragon will act acordingly, she mostly just want to take attention, if these are dumby creatures. But if they spoke - maybe they are alive but dominated or intimidated too much?
She stings the same person again and flies up, away from melee danger.
Thereafter shaman wants to open a small wormwhole (Heaben's Leap) to send someone who'd wish to - closer to possible foe...
But if no one willing to interfere - shaman not act, and just watch.
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"Holy Moley, Greet! Can you do that to me? Otherwise, I might get to the battle by next Tuesday."
Tanbu stares on in awe of Greet and his mini-teleport ability.
Seeing Lady Alya stop, he admires her tactics, but realizes they are now moot. "Well, I guess we need to go to them now. They got Makras to munch on."
Cyclic blesses the party before everyone gets too away.
Seeing the elf attacking, Tanbu decides to ready his own bow and get closer to the water covered fields.
Lady Alya drops her spear, brings her ¿already loaded? crossbow into her hands, and puts a bolt into the air.
The bolt lodges on the back of the same body attacked by the pseudodragon.
Both Greet and Skyrocket realize the bodies are moving, but are not alive, which indicates more towards vermleks more than undeads. The pseudodragon tries to sting again, but does so in a piece of leather armor covering the target.
Makras' disappears, suddenly taken in a teleportation trip by Greet down the hill and into the fields. The dwarf admirably walks over the puddles, closing by the fray.
Driven by the plea for help, Andrelis follows as fast as he can, sliding down the hilltop and into the fields of mud.
Sir Ilivan shouts from the hill although not very heartily "What do you think you are going to achieve?! Make it back!"
The commoner in purple clothing picks up the agonizing man at his feet and raises it with unnatural strength, he puts it in front of himself, using it as an improvised meat shield to stop Lady Alya's bolts.
The one in green does the same, stumbling forward, slowed by the heavy load.
The one in red smiles weirdly, as if only having half control of her face "Come... come... more meat for the party..." and moves forward taking a scythe from the pile.
The other two move forward shakily holding their pitchforks "So-sorry, th-they oblige us" "They will kill us otherwise. So-sorry"
You discern the demons are red, purple and green, those are not alive humans, but corpses taken control by the vermleks.
The others are commoners still alive, well the two taken and used as shields are barely alive.
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Greet creeck he is able to Tanbu but too slow to help this time.
Soon he finds only one knight nearby.
-Aren't you a knight who oathed to protect humans agains demons, sir Ilivan? I am confused as you are. I am not sure what we are going to achieve if you not giving requests or commands.
Skyrocket is happy she is joined and manuers to attack again in upcoming round despite Greet busy and slow. She will targets human who moaning about oblige.
Andrelis, Cyclic and Tanbu close up as fast as they can.
Lady Alya decides to disrespect the crusader who is in command of the patrol, which moves him from confusion to actual anger "Watch your tongue pamper lady. This is not your court of linen curtains and belittled servants. "
The elven does not lose her focus, as she reloads and with elvish accuracy, puts another bolt on target. The cold iron pierces through the scythe man skin with ease.
Makras reaches the fray, his swing is a bit skew, but the gods answer Greet's blessing slightly redirecting the blow so the pick connects on the chest. The dwarf opens the ribcage with his powerful blow, throwing the man to the muddy ground chest-open and deadly bleeding.
Greet tries to move Sir Ilivan to feel some pity for the commoners and correspondingly command the group.
Sir Ilivan tights his lips and soothes the pommel of his sword "I will learn the weight of my sword..."
The man with the scythe moves forward wielding it against Makras.
The metallic edge cuts through the dwarf's right arm, opening a deep wound.
The ones holding the fallen commoners as shields, move forward, slowed by the heavy weight, and as they do, you see wounds start to open on Andrelis and Makras without anyone touching them.
At the same time, the wounds on red and purple all but disappear!
The vermleks are using inflict light wounds on those close enough, and targeting themselves seems to heal them too!
The white man looks hesitant but suddenly he starts to cry while holding his head "No! Please no!" and in this state advances towards Makras with his pitchfork.
But the dwarf is ready and easily dodges the attack away.
You discern the demons are red, purple and green, those are not alive humans, but corpses taken control by the vermleks.
The others are commoners still alive, well the white one is still looking good.
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Andrelis shakes off the first pulse of negative energy, but not the second, and the elf shudders as the foul magic rips through his body. He glares at the things approaching him and smiles. Right then, let's back a few off, shall we? and begins spinning his shortswords around in his hands, slowly at first, but increasing in tempo and difficulty as he continues. His prowess with the blades is obvious, and he attempts to strike fear into the approaching horde.
Mange's fur turns wooden as Cyclic uses his magic on the wolf who rushes towards the back of the encounter. There is some water in front, but the mount can leap over it if he does not want to be slowed by the water.
Lady Alya is not as accurate this time, and her bolt is deflected by the man's leather.
Makras counter-swings but his foe blocks him with the scythe.
Tanbu closes by
Andrelis spins his blades in a dazzling display, which impresses the attacking enemy, as you see they flinch back a bit.
Greet does something heroic!
The scythe man slices once again, but this time Makras is well readied and blocks the attack with his pick.
More wounds keep opening on Andrelis and Makras, but this time Lady Alya's guard dog is also affected by the vile energy.
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Sir Ilivan tights his lips and soothes the pommel of his sword "I will learn the weight of my sword..."
Sounds Inheritorish. Good.
But Greet creaks onlu:-They will learn power of Casandalee!
... as impressive and enigmatic liekly numerian weapon appears floating close to one of the leshy branches. It sounds as a attacking crowd of mosquitos.
--
The rifle shortly charges before shoot Red foe with scythe again
Meanwhile Skyrocket wants to poison up possibly dominated person (not sure about colour.
She uses same tactics of sting -and - run...
At he same time leshy finds enough concentration and some sand to enchant Sleep over Purple and Green foes.
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Mange moves in for the kill on green while Cyclic casts a DC 16 Decompose Corpse spell and attempts to deliver it to green on arrival.
"I sure hope this works."
Sure, even spell-like abilities use no movements, words or material components, they still have manifestations as clarified by the devs in the linked FAQ.
When I stated here "The ones holding the fallen commoners as shields, move forward, slowed by the heavy weight, and as they do, you see wounds start to open on Andrelis and Makras without anyone touching them.", this is not only for clarification, your characters also notice these are the ones causing the wounds.
Greet conjures the goddess of the future and the resulting force blasts the red man with the scythe twice. The first hit is fully healed when the vermlecks inflict wounds.
Skyrocket descends over the white commoner, who is so untrained that does not even manage to attack when the tiny creature enters his space.
The man falls to the ground, slept by the pseudodragon's venom.
Greet starts saying the words for a sleep spell.
Tanbu keeps moving towards the combat.
Cyclic cast a spell, then rides his wolf towards combat, touching the green dressed woman.
The body's flesh suddenly rots and decomposes in front of your eyes, falling apart and leaving just a skeleton. This leaves visible a worm with four long tails, each of which ends in a tangle of filaments. The worm falls to the muddy ground aside of the bones that collapse.
Mange tries to bite the worm, but this one crawls quickly for its life avoiding the jaws.
Makras murderous command is shrugged off by the scythe man as its natural resistance to magic protects him.
Bleeding out to the terrible wounds, Andrelis moves back, trying to find safety and preparing a potion.
Lady Alya makes the horse rear back with her knees while reloading the crossbow. With good elven eye, she puts a bolt on the worm. The cold iron biting like poison to it.
The exposed worm crawls towards the heap of corpses, which opens an opportunity to attack for Cyclic and Mange. If still alive, it starts burrowing into the mouth of another fallen body.
The purple one drops the body he is holding and invokes its power, further opening wounds on those alive near enough.
The wounds on green and red disappear.
Then, the man maneuvers around Makras while bringing a scythe on his hands. Despite not talking, it seems these creatures have a way to coordinate themselves, as immediately the red one moves around in the other direction flanking the dwarf.
Still shaken by Andrelis display, the scythe man does not manage to profit the flanking and fails.