Realms of Dread, Chapter Four

[ewancummins]

towards the mouth of the drain-

Blaise's attack strikes one of the fiends dragging Ironheart out of the drain, causing the creature to howl in pain. The little monsters don't let go of their prey, but keep struggling to pull the big man out for a proper nibbling.

Ironheart's fingers cannot get a good grip on the slick tunnel walls, so it's very hard to resist being dragged out by his heels.

garbage room up the drain

Glim slips into the left side of the room, so as to be well out of the way should Ino launch another power attack spell. The gnome speaks a few words and suddenly begins to glow with a softly pulsating golden light. The two undead monsters in the room hiss and cower before the brightness. Threan's brother now raises his hands and points both at the creature nearest to him. Two golden rays spring forth, drawing with them all Glim’s mantle of light. The twin rays strike the undead creature, doing great damage to it- but failing to destroy it.

[ewancummins]

garbage room

Without warning a silver-gray mist begins to pour from the mesh of Threan armor, filling the room with fog. Those outside the garbage room may be able to make out the blurry shape of Threan as he leaps about, swinging his crooked knife. Sounds of combat may be heard:

THUNKKK-FLOP!

AHHHH!! HISSSS!



in the main drain tunnel


Jamethon executes a tuck-and-roll, so that he is now oriented toward the mouth of the drain- and looking head on at Blaise.



''We cannot fight well in this hole- too small. Let's get outside and face them. We can fly- let's use it!''


mouth of the drain tunnel

Ironheart goes flying out the drain mouth, feet first. The barbarian enters a killing fury, gnashing his teeth and screaming like a wounded animal. Those in the tunnel facing out or looking back to the drain opening will see Ironheart floating in the air just outside the tunnel, spinning in a circle and pummeling everything within reach. One of the ugly little creatures has it fangs sunk in his left leg and is holding on tightly, but the other child-monsters leap away from the enraged giant!

[Ken of Ghastria]

Blaise half-slides, half-flies down the pipe, soaring up just as he exits. His feet just barely touch the vile water before he gains height. He focuses his anger on the vampire that he struck before, and another bolt of red energy surrounded by silver spirals erupts from his hand. "Idiot monster who strides in stool / Die in filth, moronic ghoul!"

____________________
Move action: Fly out of the drain.
Standard: Attack the same vampire with another eldritch blast.
Ranged touch attack: 9(1d20) + 9 + 1(feat) = 29
Damage: 14(4d6) + 1(feat) = 15

[ewancummins]

Morningmist Hall-


The evil priestess stands over the body of her former mentor. Her dagger's hilt protrudes from the man's back. He twitches a little, and then falls still. Breana quickly strips the fallen man of his robes, his dagger, and the macabre amulet about his neck- a mummified hand.

Just then, a mighty groan sounds from over Breana's head. This noise gives her just enough warning to leap away as a heavy timber falls across the prone form of her former master, pinning his body to the floor. More timbers are falling! Smoke fills the air, choking the priestess. She can hardly see. Her robes are beginning to smolder.

Impassively staring at her, her undead soldiers await an order that may never come. They show no initiative to help their 'creator'.

The vampire children are gone now, having left after the main assault was ended.

[ewancummins]

later...Alain and Shana outside Morningmist Hall-

Shana follows Alain, trying to keep pace with him as they sprint towards the blaze, dawning horror on her face as she begins to realise where it is

Alain and Shana round one last corner, run down a footbridge over a canal, and come face to face with the inferno:

Morningmist Hall is wreathed in flames. Black clouds of smokes pour out of the broken roof. The great bell-tower has collapsed; the giant bronze bell must have rolled across the ground after it fell, for it lies broken in two pieces in front of the temple. The outbuildings and the rectory are in the process of collapsing as the hungry fire rips through their timber frames. The central basilica, which mostly built of stone, still stands, but even its windows and doors belch forth smoke and flame.

A handful of human forms are scattered across the cobbled yard in front of the temple. Most are unmoving, but one, at least twitches and groans.

[ewancummins]

fight outside the drain


Ino emerges from the drain to witness Ironheart struggling in mid-air with one of the bloodsuckers clinging to his body, and Blaise blasting another of the creatures. One more little horror has just now scuttled up the castle wall, trying to get behind Ironheart! It prepares to leap onto the barbarian’s unprotected back- and is promptly blasted to smithereens by Ino's mighty sound lance!

Ironheart grapples the monster that's biting his leg . He rips at its pallid flesh with his bare hands.

The third, the one that Blaise had already blasted twice, transforms into a small cloud of green gas and flees from combat, down the castle wall to the right.


fight inside the garbage room-

Threan evades the clumsy attacks of the single remaining creature, half-blinded as it is by his magic mists, and quickly dispatches it with his kukri.

[ewancummins]

a few seconds later, outside the drain

Threan flies out of the drain mouth and looks about, his teeth bared in a crazy grimace and his crooked knife dripping with gore. The flying gnome spots the fleeing vampire-cloud and gives chase.

Threan is much, much faster than the slow-moving cloud, and he overtakes it before it can seep into a crack near the base of the wall.

SWISH, SWISH, SWISH!

The gnome is madly swinging his blade through the cloud. The cloud is quickly scattered into little cloudlets. The little cloudlets then transform into a rain of blood drops. The wall, the narrow embankment running between the base of the wall and the water-filled ditch, and Threan are all spattered with blood.

The vampire that's on Ironheart's leg transforms into a cloud of gas even as Ironheart seems to be attempting to rip it to pieces! Before anyone can stop it, it flees into the drain.

Glim's chanting voice may be heard, and then a bright pearly light fills the tunnel. When the light fades, the cloud has also vanished.

[Lord Skybolt]

Threan turns around and says with a big grin on his face "I hope their are more were that came from as I haven't even broken a sweat yet !! " After saying that he looks around for a rag to wipe some of the gore off himself so as not to scare the children any more than necessary .

[ewancummins]

outside the castle drains

Jamethon emits a low chuckle.

''And Shana thinks that you love undead...ha!''


Glim soon appears in the mouth of the drain.

''Bad news - these children, all three of them have been bitten! I'll do what I can, but it may not be enough. We'd better get them to a powerful cleric. ''


At this time, some commotion may be heard from the nearest two castle watchtowers. A warning whistle is blowing and lanterns are being raised...

[Lord Skybolt]

"We had better find out whats going on out side then as that sounds like we may be needed some were else . I would suggest that we take the children to the Watch so they can be cared for while we deal with this next emergency ." Threan says on hearing the alarm whistle blowing .

[ewancummins]

"We had better find out whats going on out side then as that sounds like we may be needed some were else . I would suggest that we take the children to the Watch so they can be cared for while we deal with this next emergency ." Threan says on hearing the alarm whistle blowing .

Jamethon responds-

''The guards- I had thought for a second that they were reacting to the ruckus we just made...but they are looking away...strange. Well, we need to get the children to a powerful cleric, just as your brother suggests, Threan. I don't know if the handful of watch-medics that will be available at HQ are quite prepared for this sort of thing. It's more than a physical injury, if they have been infected.''

[Lord Skybolt]

"Oh I was thinking that they could just keep an I on them until we can get them to a cleric in the morning . " Replying to Jamethon words .

[ewancummins]

"Oh I was thinking that they could just keep an I on them until we can get them to a cleric in the morning . " Replying to Jamethon words .

''In any case, let's get them away from here, first. ''

Jamethon approaches the drain mouth.


''Glim, help them out of that drain, will you? We'll carry them across the moat.''

[Lord Skybolt]

" Yes, lets get them out of here . Hey Blaise can't you carry one while I keep my hands free for any other monsters that might show up as my brother isn't all that strong . Speaking of strong, hey Ironheart have you stopped being crazy yet ? As I'm sure you could carry most the of children just by your self ." Threan speaking on behalf of his jovial brother .

[ewancummins]

Glim helps one of the three children, the little girl, out of the filthy drain. Jamethon clasps the girl to his chest and flies across the moat to land on the street.