"I'm ready, just give me one moment," Yui says as she stops to consider the magic again, trying to determine how likely it is she'll be able to dispel the sanctum.
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"Perhaps our best bet then is to approach from above, dispel, and then begin the assault. Perhaps some summons could be used to trigger the alarms in different areas outside as we begin our attack. That would at least lead to confusion as we began the assault."
With the situation sorted out, Yui quickly heads back to the others to relay what she'd learned. "I think our best bet is to try to approach from either high above, or to somehow burrow below, though given the bog... Vang has a barrier that is both warding against scrying and even just seeing inside, combined with a wall of force. Additionally he has layered a web of strands that produce both an alarm and a cloudkill effect if they are severed. I think I might be able to bring down the ward, but we'd need to be ready to enter quickly once it was down." she explains to the group. "Another possibility would be attempting to parlay with the black dragon that is nearby. They are dragons first and foremost, and treasure is their weakness. Promising a portion of Vang's treasure trove could easily provide us with an ally that could create a significant distraction while we begin our assault."
Yui begins by studying the barrier first, trying to determine its nature and whether it would be possible for her to remove it. Once she finishes examining it, she turns her attention to the thin silvery strands, studying them with similar intent, hoping she'll be able to take away Vang's ability to be warned of their approach.
"Thank you," she says to Sana, tucking away the arrow and accepting her enchantment. "I would not worry about that, with Anna's aid, I should have no issues spotting wards long before they are relevant. I did get us into the Ivory Temple safely, after all... Well at least until the retrievers, anyway." Despite her bravado, Yui clearly takes Rue's concern seriously, sitting to meditate so she can swap out one of her spells. A few moments later she gets up, prepared to depart. "I will keep arcane sight up to make sure I'm not caught off-guard by any magic."
She then enchants herself with heroism and see invisibility before rendering herself invisible. Once cloaked, she draws upon Kurushimi's power to grant her the power to become entirely undetectable to any one or thing that might seek to discover her location. She then takes off into the sky to get a better view of the misty bog they are overlooking, scanning for any signs of movement through the mist or of Vang's chapel poking up through the fog.
"Let me go first, I can scout ahead without risk of detection and find the best path there. This time I won't be restricted by Baphomet's warding on the sanctum. Between flight and the ability to avoid detection by the living and dead alike thanks to Pharasma's blessing, I should easily be able to get there and back quickly," Yui says, joining the discussion. As she waits for any objections, she conjures her soulmask and dons it, preparing to call upon the ability of psychopomps to disappear at will.
Yui quickly notices the shadows move as amber begins to slide back and forth. "It seems we will need to consider the message further later," she says, pointing her naginata towards the glowing mote. "Let's depart quickly," she says, as she makes a quick gesture to enchant herself with magic granting her flight.
She then moves towards Amber and prepares to leave once the others teleport away.
Yui watches with curiosity as the ritual from the previous night repeats itself without her prompting. She brings Kurushimi up before her as she approaches the runes and watches until the message issues forth and their light fades once more. She ponders the message, trying to remember if Pharasma's teachings included any mentions of the unforgiven. Perhaps those who had practiced necromancy or destroyed souls? she thinks, trying to assign meaning to the cryptic phrase.
"Ehren, Myrna, do either of you have any idea what that message might mean?" she whispers to her companions.
Yui spends the time keeping watch, making sure the group isn't ambushed while they wait for the scouting party to return.
"If we know how to get to him, I agree. I think I can counter the next time he attempts to scry us, so we should be safe against him detecting our approach as long as we all stay close together."
Yui frowns when the scrying fails to connect with Vang. Teleporting in to fight would likely have been the best shot they had at going after him. "One wonders what his reaction to that knowledge will be, at the very least he's likely to think we're confident in our abilities to defeat him by ambushing him. I suspect he'll be far more cautious in his next approach, he's had the advantage against us twice and has had to flee each time. Megalomaniacal or not, a wizard of his caliber is without a doubt fiendishly intelligent. I can't imagine his ego would allow him to come after us a third time without changing his approach," Yui says. "He will likely assume we are still in the Cathedral somewhere, though he won't know we've moved, so we are at least safe for the hour it takes to complete the scrying ritual to locate us." She stops, rethinking her conclusion, "No, he could get her sooner if he were to teleport in and use locate creature to attempt to find one of us. In that case he could be here as soon as he is ready."
As everyone awakens, Yui takes the time to prepare her spells for the day, meditating with Kurushimi laid out before her. When she finishes, she turns to the others to join in the planning. "If we are going to scry, I will wait until we're finished before beginning to cast enchantments," Yui says as she takes out the sample of Vang's worms she'd collected back at the Ivory Temple. "We can use this, and Vang's spellbook to aid the scrying. Anna, could you sketch a likeness of Vang quickly as well? With those three things it will be nearly impossible for him to resist the scrying attempt." "Otherwise I agree with what Myrna suggested before we rested," she adds, though she hoped they could finally kill Vang and cease this cat and mouse game they had been playing.
Yui watches as the magic of the stones is unleashed, summoning the recently slain druid. The magic here was truly a rare find, only the largest temples had such an enchantment available for speaking to the deceased so readily. It was a shame that it was not something which could be moved. "It seems like approaching Carrock before he awakes might be a good idea. Additionally, now that we know a bargain was made, we can attempt divination to determine what that bargain was or perhaps who was involved. We might be able to gain clues about whether it is possible to save this Carrock as well, though I am not sure we have any magic powerful enough with us to accomplish such a feat," she says, responding to Sana.
"I believe we should be safe, this space is intended to allow them to speak their peace, so they might move on free of those burdens," Yui explains. "If there are no objections then, I will can the ritual to see if any spirits are seeking our aid to unburden themselves." Yui waits a few moments before beginning to work through the ritual to activate the magic bound within the runes.
"These runes, they're part of a Pharasmic ritual. 'Here may troubled souls find guidance to the Eternal Rest, that none shall wander lost between the realms.'..." she explains as she sees Alase studying the runes. "They're designed to call the spirits of the recently dead to commune with priests. If anyone has died within the nearby area within the last week and has urgent, unresolved issues, they would be drawn here to speak with us. Given the Hags likely had many victims, there may be spirits who wish to be heard. Should we call upon them?" She looks to the others to see whether she should go forward with the ritual. If they were in a safer location, or if she was alone, she would do so without hesitation, but neither was true. When Alase summons Tonbarse, Yui studies the creature for a bit as the others debate what to do. She hadn't dealt with many summoners in her time, so it was interesting to watch the summoning of an outsider that was bound so tightly to its master that no specific ritual or spell was required.
Moving closer to examine the worn runic carvings, she attempts to determine their nature, and whether they might be tied to some form of hidden compartment, studying them and the area around them with magic and trying to determine the nature of the writing.
Before following the others, Yui grabs the unholy waters and flings them across the room one at a time, shattering them against the far wall. She then takes the reagents for animate dead and similarly tosses them, resulting in the jar shattering and spilling its contents into the puddle of unholy water. Finally ready, she begins to head towards amber, stopping briefly when she realizes that Sana had left the silver reliquary behind. Picking it up, she tosses it in her haversack and then makes use of the glowing sphere to teleport to the safe spot. Once inside the room she joins Unafe in searching the space, first studying it to make sure the room would be stable with them spending the night in it, and then to see if anything of interest remained within the vault.
"We should divide up the break enchantment scrolls. One to Myrna and one to Beatrix. I already have it in my spellbook, and can draw upon it should I need to. I agree with giving one of the potions to Unafe, and the wand to Beatrix. Beatrix will have to hold on to the dimensional anchor scroll, I cannot use it, nor can I make use of the resilient sphere scroll," she says as Sana goes over the loot, looking to divide it up equitably. "As for the unholy water and the animate dead components, I would like to destroy both. They only serve to violate the natural order by facilitating the creation of undead."
Yui doesn't bat an eye at Unafe's merciful execution of the adept, thinking it likely more than the fool deserved, but not uncalled for given the situation. "If we think we can get to Vang safely now, we should go while he is licking his wounds. He may heal fast, but his magic doesn't return so easily. I'm more than capable of matching him spell for spell at this point, and he's burned his most deadly magic already today. Tomorrow we'd have to deal with it again," Yui says after thinking the situation over. "Lets give this room and the one above a quick once-over before we leave." Yui searches the cultist quickly before beginning to search the room for anything they might have missed.
Once Sana confirms that Vang and his companion are gone, Yui looks to the others. "Do we have any ways of tracking them short of using scrying?" she asks. If not we should continue our investigation here."[/b]
Yui unleashes yet another counterspell, this time disrupting the demonic summon that was in progress. "Calling for help already?" she says as she sunders his spell. "Let's not, shall we? Show us something we didn't see before you ran away in the Ivory Citadel."
As soon as Vang begins to cast again, Yui is ready. She had been too focused on their exploration to react to the disintegrate, but she wasn't about to allow Vang to succeed in casting a second time. "I am glad we get a chance to continue our duel, Vang," she says as she turns to face him and in an instant unleashes a dispel magic to counter his spell, bolstering it with additional arcane power to ensure its success.
She plants Kurushimi in the ground butt first and locks eyes with the wizard as the wave of magic she unleashed fights to clear away the rising mist.
Focused on the Ossuary and the engravings within, Yui fails to notice Vang's casting until he's unleashed the spell. Reaching quickly into her pack she pulls out a scroll of heal and extends it towards Ehren. "Here, for Unafe," she calls out to the Archdruid. Drawing upon her heritage as the daughter of a divine nogitsune, she grants her allies limited premonition, making it easier for them to defend themselves against Vang's magic. She then closes her eyes and begins to focus on sensing magic around them, beginning to weave a counterspell to negate the wizard's next spell.
"I don't disagree that it's hard to believe. I can't imagine why such a powerful servant of Iomedae is here. But the demons are avoiding it, so I can't imagine it's an illusion that's their doing. I also agree Rue shouldn't stay here, but entering the tower itself is quite risky. We'll arrive outside and enter." Moving to Anna and Unafe, she places a hand on the shoulder of each. "Here we go," she says beginning to draw upon her magic to teleport them to the tower. Once they signal they're ready, she pulls them with her through space to the entrance of the tower.
"I am not certain, but heading out immediately is important. I think I should teleport Unafe and Anna with me, then everyone else can come along via Amber," she says. "You will have to tell me how the Saint was involved in reclaiming Drezen later. That sounds like an interesting story." "Rue, you should probably teleport over and hide immediately. I am not sure we should risk trying to explain the situation to Lymirin, who is notoriously brutal when it comes to demons. We will appear outside the tower to avoid any chance of her spotting you."
Rather than using a teleport to get back, Yui speeds back to join the others so she can teleport them to the tower. Clearly whatever Saint Lymerin was doing was related to the vision Pharasma had given her. Once there, she explains the situation to the group, noting that they should move quickly to get to the tower before the ritual finishes or the demons figure out a way to assault it.
Yui glides past the massive battle towards the tower, surprised to find it apparently warded by some sort of Iomedaean magic. She found it hard to understand what could have created a ward powerful enough to keep the demons out, but whomever or whatever did, Pharasma's message suggested it was unlikely to last. There was a chance it might be some form of forbiddance effect, which if it was, she'd need to teleport the others to just outside it. Moving quickly she closes with the tower and it's warded area, keeping a close eye for any signs of life in the warded area or within the tower itself.
"IF something goes terribly wrong, I can always teleport directly back here. It's no slower than trying to let you all know there's trouble and where I am," Yui says, seemingly unconcerned. "Assuming Baphomet hasn't warded the city against invisibility, I don't expect any issues." Yui summons her soul mask, donning it quickly and brandishing Kurushimi. She then casts overland flight on herself and prepares to depart. "The cathedral is just down the river from here? Is that right? If so I'll hug the river on the way there." Once she has directions, Yui vanishes from sight and heads out after donning the ring and the cloak they had found.
Once outside, she stays about 30' off the ground, close enough to ensure she can see the ground with darkvision in case the sky is clouded, then finds the river and heads along it towards the opposite end of Storasta.
The scarabs were a good omen to be sure, and the fact that Pharasma had gifted her with a vision made her confident that something important awaited them.
"The dagger was carved from a ghoul's fang," she says as she finishes examining the weapon. "It is a fairly vicious weapon, exceedingly sharp and likely to leave bleeding wounds or even possibly sap the vitality of those it harms." She takes a moment to go over the remainder of the items, trying to identify the scrolls, potions, and the magic stone and statue they had found in the case. "If no one minds, I could put the ring and cloak to good use," she says. "I have a couple more uses of invisibility left, not counting my ability to render myself invisible. It might make the most sense for me to head to the cathedral alone, then return. I can go undetected and once I return I could teleport Anna and you there, and Amber could bring the rest along."
Yui is somewhat surprised at Whalt's strongly protective response. For the time being it was best to heed his words, though perhaps upon returning from Storasta she might make an attempt to talk to the girl directly. She likely had been educated and raised for something more than serving drinks to the people of Gundrun... After finishing her glass she puts it down on the bar then turns to listen in on the conversation with Alase. The girl certainly carried herself and spoke with the confidence of a leader.
"Summoning can certainly be either, it matters whether you treat the one you have summoned as a tool or a partner. Summoners are like the gods in that sense. Sometimes the gods commune," Yui says, making a gesture to Beatrix to signify the source of her divine powers. "and sometimes they bind," she says, clearly referring to her own situation. "It is an important distinction. Additionally, as I understand it, God-callers are not mere summoners. Their summons are in fact different than normal eidolons, showing traits that one would associate with the divine." "I am Yui Shadowhare, servant of the Lady of Graves," she says to Alase with a respectful bow. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Clan-Liege Alase Brinz-Widowknife"
"The Archdruid can explain fully, but we are chasing Xanthir Vang and his servants. We destroyed their base at the Ivory Citadel, but unfortunately the wizard slipped through our grasp."
"I will be certain to come repay our debt if that happens," she responds as she starts to dig out coin from her haversack and then instead turns to Myrna and asks to borrow her large bag of holding. She then withdraws 175 platinum from their recent spoils and hands it over in exchange for the scrolls before handing the bag back to Myrna. ------------- "While you may have all the time in the world, Rue, it's still never too soon to start learning," she says, giving the succubus a wink and handing a glass to her.
Yui studies the barmaid as she leaves, her movements and posture having caught her eye immediately. Worn, but obviously tailored clothes, and a diadem in her possession... It can't have been too long ago that she had come here, and it seemed unfortunate to leave someone of clearly noble birth living here in Gundrun. "How long ago was this that Shal showed up?" asks, leaning in to ask Whalt so as not to be overheard. "Has she spoken of what happened at all?"
"That is certainly an excellent deal, but perhaps you could cut us a discount based on the fact that this is to help protect Myrna and to prevent the demons from further abusing Riverkeep." Yui does a bit of mental math, and then continues, "I certainly don't expect you to take a loss on them, but at 175 platinum you should still turn a tidy profit given the cost to produce the scrolls. Does that sound fair?"
"Well then, it would be uncourteous of me to not accept your offer," Yui says, stepping up to the bar. "A red wine, Whalt-san, お願いします," she says respectfully with a small bow.
While wine was not the best year for a House Varamis varietal, they were known for their distinct blend of varietals and refusal to use more modern magical aging processes for their vintages. Once Whalt pours her drink, she takes a moment to savor the smell, swirling it before giving it a taste. It was hardly the best wine she'd had, but for Gundrun it was nevertheless an impressive find, and certainly there were far worse vinyards a bottle could have turned up from. Like the 'vinyard' she'd heard which was run by dwarves who were convinced that mushrooms could produce 'wine'... "It is good, I have always meant to try a House Varamis red. I had certainly not expected to find one here. An unfortunate year, but still a good wine. Perhaps I'll bring you a couple of bottles from my Minkai next time I get a chance... And a fresh bottle of red to replace this one now that you've opened it. I'll happily finish the bottle. Rue? Beatrix? Anna? Would any of you care to share a glass?" For the time being Yui stays focused on enjoying the drink and keeping an eye on the patrons. It was unlikely she could contribute anything useful to awakening Alase and convincing her to help.
She gives them a grin--suspecting that being called a 'crone' was something they dealt with all the time--as they jump directly to business, answering her question and offering their own stock up for sale.
"And, as for the information on the Looter's Market, 度も," she says with a respectful bow.
Spoiler:
度も = Thank you very much (informal) After finishing up at the witches' place, she tags along to the bar. Looking up at the proprietor's shield she winces somewhat. "That is quite the trophy. Surviving that despite their vile, nauseating stench and blasphemous magics is quite the feat."
"I would ask for a 'pour', but I suspect you've no 酒, 焼酎, or wine behind that counter," Yui says with a tone somewhere in-between joking and disappointment.
Spoiler:
酒, 焼酎 = Sake, Shochu "Hmm, how long are we planning on staying in town?" she turns to ask Myrna and the others. If she had time, she needed to sit down and begin learning the spells she'd committed to memory from the cultists she'd had the blood of earlier. The magic wouldn't last much longer, and there were at least a couple spells she would find useful.
Yui remains quiet for most of the trip to Gundrun, turning her focus inwards to consider how she would go about binding Black Gnash. It was likely that one of the higher tiers of psychopomps would be able to provide her with the ritual that was used to bind her and Kurushimi, but it would be ideal if she could get the answers before summoning, as conjuring a psychopomp for an extended period to teach her would likely be expensive, even as a servant of Pharasma. When they arrive in Gundrun, Yui is surprised to find them appearing in a Crusader tower instead of another druidic site. Her ears perk up at the mention of wards for use against demons, making a note to try and invite herself along if Beatrix comes back to see what they are up to. More magical knowledge was certainly not something she was about to pass up on if given the chance. As they head into the town proper, she looks around with curiosity at the town. She'd seen many a worn-out town, but here it felt different. Rather than neglected, the town was defiant... weathered and beaten by the onslaught of the world wound, but still standing. She wondered how many of the sheltered residents of Nerosyan would have the fortitude to remain in such a place, far away from their comforts. When they arrive at Myrna's grandmothers' house, she listens politely, mostly unaware of the context of the exchange going on, though she was quick enough to catch on when introductions were being made, and bowed politely to the elderly women when her name was mentioned. Elders were considered quite important in her society, and though she had none of her own she cared for, she had manners enough to honor others' appropriately. Following the others in, she sits when food is offered and eats, taking a moment to attempt to understand the etiquette from watching Myrna and Beatrix before eating herself. She mostly tunes out the back-and-forth in Hallit, certain she'd be able to get an update from the others after the fact if anything important were shared. That changes when Rue chimes in with concern and is responded rudely to by the less friendly of the two crones. "Her name is no more demon than yours is crone..." she lets slip, clearly irritated by the woman's tone. When Beatrix brings the topic back to leaving, however she lets the discussion drop. "Is there anywhere to purchase scrolls here? It might be beneficial to see if there are any scrolls to ward us against the elements in case we encounter another storm like the one near Sesker's."
With the arrival of the new Vrocks, Yui steps back away from the abrikandilu and turns, unleashing yet another confusion spell on the newcomers. Meanwhile the Lillend continues her magic assault, striking a discordant note to leave the demons reeling again.
Yui drifts forward, placing herself opposite Vai and swings her naginata in a wide sweeping arc from behind the Abrikandilu between them, attempting to decapitate it.
Meanwhile the Lillend performs an encore, striking the demons with a second cacophony, leaving them off balance.
Yui directs the Lillend to focus on the Abrikandilu, joining the serpentine azata in breaking up their forces. With a loud crack of thunder, the Lillend unleashes a burst of magic in their midst, disorienting them. Yui follows up the celestial's spell with her own, causing an explosion of silvery motes to erupt in their midst, coating them and rendering them blind.
Yui moves on towards the gate, leaving the now confused vrocks to fight amongst themselves. Through the gate she spots a group of vermleks and babau and immediately subjects them to the same effect, bending their view of reality until they can no longer think straight.
The Lillend in the meantime continues her assault, moving to the nearest schir and cleaving into it with her massive longsword.
Gazing up towards the Vrocks, Yui focuses on the three closest together, her will twisting their views of the world until it is unrecognizable, threatening to leave them reeling in confusion.
Meanwhile, the Lillend focuses on the nearby brimorak moving down enough to bring it into her reach. She brings down her gleaming longsword on the demon's head in a pair of quick strokes. As goat-demon tries to evade the sword strikes, her massive tail swings around crashing into its torso and coiling around it. Reaching down with her free hand, she grabs the demon by the throat as her tail begins to squeeze the life out of it. "إرحل عن هذا العالم أيها الشيطان!" she says, making her loathing of the demon clear. Celestial/Truespeech:
"Be gone from this world, demon!
Once her spell completes, Yui gestures to the battle before the Lillend. "دعم حلفائنا في الحرب ضد الشياطين.," she commands, and the Azata flies forward, her feathered serpentine body slicing gracefully through the air. Once alongside the troops she begins to accompany Myrna's battle-song, her voice and harp an ethereal echo of the skald's earthly war-hymn. Yui herself moves forward as well, closing the distance towards the Vrocks, whose dance poses the greatest threat to the crusaders and kellids fighting below, and prepares to unleash her magic upon them to disorient them before they can complete their ritual.
Relieved to exit the worldwound into the far less onerous shadow realm, Yui enjoys the peace of their travel until they arrive shortly thereafter at the battleground. Appearing at the edge, she begins to study the situation. When Myrna calls out and charges forward, Yui follows her, rising up into the air to get a better vantage point. Yui immediately begins reaching for a scroll case to pull out one of the numerous summon scrolls they had just retrieved from their battle. Given the massive battle, the first order of business was to empower their allies against the demons, as there was little she could do with the melee already so chaotic. Opening the scroll she begins the incantation, "Denizens of Elysium, hear me, the above the din and chaos of this battle a cry for help is heard. I beseech you, send aid to bolster our allies and aid them in their triumph against these demonic forces!"
"I'm not walking through this storm at this point, my lungs are bad enough. Lets go." Unfurling the scroll, she uses her knowledge of the workings of magic to activate it without being familiar with the magic used in the spell. She then reaches out and touches each of the group in turn before completing the recitation. The magic of the scroll unwinds from the runes on the page, filling the surrounding area in tendrils of shadow that slowly swallow up the space around them. Moments later the world is eerily calm, and the ash and embers now seem to flow around them like an illusion. "Onward, we should be there in a few minutes."
"At this point it might be best to simply shadow walk with the scroll we found. It will get us there quickly and make it difficult to get lost." Now protected by Ehren's magic, Yui pulls out the shadow walk scroll and uses it on the group to speed their travel to Sesker's Gully.
"Are we ready then? As we're underground we will first need to teleport into the air, be prepared to fly once we are up there," she says. "We will go up, and once we spot the gully, we will teleport there immediately."
"Let's not delay any longer then," Yui says, beginning to weave an enchantment to allow herself to fly. "Myrna pull out the magic carpet so you can fly once we are there. Five miles is close enough that we should be able to teleport directly by line of sight the final distance."
"Perhaps we can use this figurine of wondrous power to come get them at the ley node. That way they can be taken to shelter in the city while we are at Sesker's Gully. Would one of you have an idea who might be able to help retrieve them?"
"Apparently they were right, since you seem convinced you didn't survive, but that we did," Yui quips, entertained by Myrna's unwillingness to admit her own impressive accomplishment. "If you didn't survive, then most certainly I didn't either. Had Unafe and Anna fallen, none of us would be alive to tell the tale, after all." "We can get to Gundrun with the Shadow Walk scroll even if we were to somehow run out of teleport magic, so we will be fine. If the ley can get us within five miles or so, and we can fly up a ways, I could easily teleport us the rest of the way. If there are landmarks there distinctive enough, I might even be able to do it from here if we go up high enough, assuming the skies are clear. It wouldn't be the first time I've used teleport in that fashion."
Yui listens to the discussion of the overall situation and the unfolding events at Sesker's Gully. "If we can teleport to the Gully directly, we should go ahead and do so now. There is no reason to delay. I believe we have everything prepared, the main issue will be finding a safe spot for the civilians, and I think we can achieve that with this necklace. Summon the mansion in a quiet spot and get everyone vulnerable in it." She listens to Myrna's surprise about her own and Sana's backgrounds and responds with her own perception of the events and amazement at Myrna's near invincibility. "I wouldn't say we exactly survived our encounter with Vang. You are in much better shape than either I or Hinagiku after the fight. My lungs have been scarred by the constant exposure to the cloudkill, and she lost an eye. Your own heritage is also something not to be underestimated. You took a beating that would have felled most mortals a dozen times over and look no worse for wear." |