The Eye of Anubis: Book Two

[yalenusveler]

"They're protected from fire...the holy water makes for a better dropped weapon." This is an insane plan. We're all going to die. "I can give us some benefit against his lesser minions...as for Cavendish himself...well, we give it all we've got, and then some. Simple as that".

If we're all going to die, we're taking you with us, you sodding bastard. And if I'm going to die, I'm going to die doing something that I can give my daughter a hug afterwards, and say "Look what daddy did"

[The Whistler]

"...Forgive me...If you can spare it, and *only* if you can...would any of you be willing to conduct a magical healing upon me? I do not wish to be selfish, but considering the..."

Otto trailed off, looking uncomfortable; mind flicking between his own pain and that of Dieter and Sarari.

I'm at 4 HP out of 21, so it would be helpful; only if y'all don't need the spell slot, though. Keeping an eye out for a bush to cast Goodberry on, in the unlikely event that there's one between here and the town square; if there is, 21 on a Spot check to find it and 3 damage healed.

[yalenusveler]

Andre reached out, almost casually, muttering in Akiri, his hand briefly glowing before coming to rest on Otto's shoulder. "Should help..anyone else seriously hurt?"

OOC:Cure Moderate wounds 4+7+5=16 hp healed. not QUITE full

[The Whistler]

No dice on the berries. Just as well, I guess; 2 spare HP would barely have helped anyone out.

The gunsmith scratched the back of his neck, a bit sheepishly.

"Thank you."

[DocBeard]

"I'm fine." This isn't quite true, but Tomas is better off than the average bear. He still stumbles a little and, curse it, we're out of time...

"Allright." Tomas blinks, suprised...but pleasently so at the support. Nice. Maybe they can do this. "Whatever Charles and Khalil are getting, we've just got to hope it's being worth it." Tomas pulls Uffington's sword out of its sheath and, head held high, steps out of the inn.

"Cavendish!" Tomas snaps, taking advantage of his....force of personality to sweep into the square. All he needs is a dang cape or something: either way, eyes on him, not on the sneaky casters. All according to plan. "Let them go."

[NeoTiamat]

Ravnika Village Square
April 26th, 761, 1:07 PM
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"Marvelous, the fatted calfs have arrived for the slaughter." Cavendish smiled like a shark, dozens of sharp, pointed teeth locked together. The firelight outlined him in the false-dark.

"Ho hum, I detect someone missing. How very unexpected..." Cavendish drawled as he twirled the broken quarterstaff in his hand, its tip dark with dried blood. "Very well, I shall let the farmer's get go. Since you ask so politely..."

With a spin of his coat-tails, Cavendish whirled on his ghouls, holding the murder weapon like a conductor's baton. "Gentlemen, you may commence disembowelment!"

And from every door lining the square, undead came, advancing on the group to the sounds of Cavendish's echoing, insane laughter.

"I lied, Herr Eisenwald, I lied!"

[OOC: Bit of an odd situation for an initiative-less game, but, eh so be it. Roll a Dex/Initiative check. One ghoul has a result of 14, one of 6. You need to beat both to act before the ghouls, and at least the low one to act before one of the ghouls. 'Course, you don't know which one is which. Everything else goes as normal, and we are now in a Combat Situation.

Oh, and you guys are all more or less clustered together, twenty feet east of the platform. Platform contains Cavendish, two ghouls, and two children. Next to the platform are the two farmers, and screening in front is a line of wall-to-wall skeletons and zombies, about fifteen all together, and in front of the platform, they are literally adjacent. Another dozen undead are converging on the Expedition from all sides.]

[DocBeard]

Tomas carefully keeps the maniac's gaze for as long as he can...

...until the order's given. Tomas's eyes widen, his shoulders clench, and he can hear himself screaming, "NO!" despite the fact that he's fairly sure he didn't order himself to say so. His legs kick up into the air, his body twists downwards...

...pulling his shoulders forward, as Tomas charges right into the wall of corpses, shoving as many as he can manage a good ten feet away from him-clearing the way! "Kuzan! Everyone! Save the children! Stop those ghouls!"

This, Tomas's inner sane person says to him, is going to hurt so freaking much.

[Kaitou Kage]

Kuzan ran practically on Tomas's heels as soon as he saw his chance. The priest barged through the line of undead, sprinting through the tunnel the Lamordian carved out for him. He felt the crackling of his holy symbol, the charge flowing through his body even before he reached the platform. The priest darted up onto the platform, pushed past Cavendish, and stopped by the ghouls, holding one hand up to the sky.

"In the name of Ajad," he shouted, his voice resonating across the square, "I purge you from this place!"

The heavens answered his cry. A peal of thunder crackled across the sky as the divine power fairly rippled from the exotic priest. His eyes lit up like lightning bolts and for just the slimmest of instants, the muddy, tattered priest looked like an angel forged by Heaven itself. The wave of divine might rushed outward from him in a gust of wind, suffusing the very air with its power, striking holy fear into the minds of the walking dead.

Turning!

VERY lucky rolls here. Turning check of 17 (Cleric's level + 2), so maximum HD turned is 8

Turning damage is 16 HD worth of undead.

Dex check of 19

[NeoTiamat]

Ravnika Village Square
April 26th, 761, 1:08 PM
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The undead tore into Tomas, ripping chunks of flesh away from his arm and shoulder, long lacerations across his body... but it was enough, a path was cleared.

Vile screams erupted from the ghouls as raised their clawed hands, warding off the power of Ajad, but to no avail. Screaming in horrid, hissing voices, they ran from the divine power, diving from the platform as they tried to escape.

Mary and Sasha, suddenly freed, jumped as well, into the waiting arms of their parents, Petru hugging his daughter while his wife clutched little Sasha to her bosom.

"How touching..." Cavendish's eerie voice remarked dryly as the top-hatted monstrosity rested his hands on the broken, blood-spattered quarterstaff. "It's almost like they expect to survive..."

From the back of the Expedition however, Prof. Pelletier had his own ideas. Chanting sonorously in the old form of High Mordentish, the Dementlieuse professor held the silken blindfold in his hand as he pointed towards Cavendish.

"What in blazes?!" Cavendish whipped his head around once, twice, before stopping. "An illusion, how droll. Enjoy this!"

And with a barked syllable of power and a brief gesture, the villainous mage pointed his impromptu staff roughly in the direction of Prof. Pelletier.

"Duck!" Carter yelled as he barrelled into the older Professor, knocking him aside. A moment later, a lance of solid power, sound so packed as to be physical, slammed into the ground where Pelletier had been standing, blowing the stones into shards and leaving a crater a half-dozen feet across.

Cavendish thrust his makeshift focus forward, casting another spear of sound forward. It tunneled into a nearby house, blasting a wall apart.

[OOC: 3 AoOs against Tomas, two skellies and a zombie. One skelly hits for 6 damage, one zombie crits for 16 damage and 1 point of Con (Blood Drain).

Kuzan turn check chases off both ghouls and a zombie and a skeleton that were too close.]

The Erl-Stones
April 26th, 761, 1:08 PM
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"Yes," he say quietly. "We will bury you here, and we will take care of Pumpkin; we'll let Professor Theroux know. Rest easy, grandmother. Your work is done, and we thank you for doing so much to help us."

"Thank you..." Marilena sighed once more, her voice harsh and raspy. "It shall begin."

"For every life..." The old woman smiled, a little ironically, "There must be a death..."

Suddenly, the blind woman coughed, a hacking, rolling cough that shook Marilena's frail body. She looked so very small, so very old, as she leaned against the ancient Erl-Stones. And then she took one more breath, and exhaled, whispering a final word as she did.

"......Bogdan....."

And with that, Old Marilena, the Witch of Ravnika, breathed her last. Almost as if it were mourning her, a quiet rain began to fall, tears from the heavens.

Ravnika Village Square
April 26th, 761, 1:08 PM
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A third time Cavendish's attack spell lashed out, tearing a chunk off the facade of the Chapel of the Morninglord. He was casting blindly, wildly, but the destruction he unleashed was intense.

Suddenly, there was a whistle, followed by twin gun shots, and Cavendish jerked as if stung. You looked up, following the sound, and saw Maleagant perched beside the chimney of a house, reloading his pistols for another volley. Below him, half-hidden inside a door-frame, Jervis aimed and fired his crossbow again, Cavendish sprouting a quarrel in the small of his back.

"I do believe this isn't working..." The magus muttered, barking another arcane syllable. Suddenly Cavendish straightened, and looked about the field. "There, much better."

...And then the rain began to fall. Fat, glistening drops of moisture, a soft weeping of the heavens, mourning what, no one knew. And you felt... calm. At peace, and yet at the same time, unmistakeable ALIVE.

The undead screeched in preternatural agony, shielding themselves futily from the rain. Wherever it splashed, huge, black spots of destruction appeared, the zombies and skeletons and remaining ghouls twisting in horrific pain.

And then you realized, slowly, that you didn't hurt so much. The exhaustion, the stress, it was all just.... washed away. Tomas stared in surprise as his vicious, agonizing wounds started to close up.

"Rain." For the first time this encounter, Cavendish sounded vaguely nonplussed. He gazed around the field, watching his undead army literally melt before his smoked spectacles. Cavendish watched at the destruction of his forces, and at the gathering array of enemies. Spread out, many of them, and with the rain healing them at every step of the way.

"John, Old Boy, this is just not your day." Cavendish murmurred to himself. "Cavendish; Exit: Stage Left."

And with one more softly spoken spell, the wizard disappeared from sight. And hopefully, from Ravnika.

Forever.

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[OOC: Everyone under the rain recieves 1 point of positive energy per round, which obviously has good effects for people and bad effects for undead. Also removes fatigue.

And, *counts them*, six spellcraft checks; One for Pelletier's spell, three for Cavendish's attack spell, one for his spell after being attacked, and one for his escape spell.

Combat is over, and congratulations, one and all. When push came to shove, you did great.]

[Nathan of the FoS]

"......Bogdan....."

And with that, Old Marilena, the Witch of Ravnika, breathed her last. Almost as if it were mourning her, a quiet rain began to fall, tears from the heavens.

Charles feels the moment when the spirit passes from Marilena; nodding to himself, he lets her body lie back until she lies on the green earth. Closing her eyes and crossing her hands at her chest, he hesitates, then, shrugging, makes the sign of the Sword and Shield over her.

"Ezra guide thee in the Mists, grandmother," he says quietly. The rain begins, but Charles (ordinarily averse to being out in the wet) does not move to go, instead remaining seated to keep the old woman company a little longer. He has no worries for the townsfolk; whatever else might be said of them, he feels sure the faerie folk keep their bargains. The touch of the rain washes away any fear of darkness and death; here and now, light and life have put their counterparts to flight.

[yalenusveler]

"No!" Andre shouted, seeing Cavendish disappear. It was almost as if the undead being burned by the falling rain were what weren't there..and all he can see is the void where John Lancaster Cavendish once was standing. "You do NOT get away unscathed. NOT after what you did to this village!" The young scholar trembled in the rain, his hands clenching and unclenching, like the talons of some strange avian.

"You work in shadows and tricks, so then let all light be your foe! You would burn this village? Then so shall the light burn you!" Andre twitched, the words issuing forth from his mouth shouted as if to be heard over the rain, heard over the trees, heard over the mountains, heard to all the four corners of the land. "I call upon laws older than myself and older than you to sanctify this ! Let your only salvation come if the twisted black ember you call a heart is stoked into a bonfire of compassion the likes of which could banish the night!"

[Rock of the Fraternity]

(This is where the difference in time zones really hurts. o_o)

Lia, who had been struggling with a load of explosives and a scroll, then with her cane when everything seemed to be turning into a free-for-all melée, then with ducking Cavendish's sonic attacks ... stops in wonder. With a sigh, she throws her head back for a moment and just feels the wash of positive energy roll over her. She does not break from the sudden feeling until Andre utters his curse; shocked, the girl from Mordent recoils from him, shaking her head.
"Foolish," she mutters beneath her breath. "Worse than foolish! It -- Wait."
'No natural downpour, this,' she thinks to herself. 'Charles and Khalil are not here. The clerics did not do this. And so the only one in Ravnika powerful enough to affect something this size is ...'
"Take it," Lia suddenly barks at Ulsaon, shoving the bundle of explosives into her arms, then running for the stables. A few moments later, Lia comes out again, now on the back of her horse. "Hya!" the Mordentish girl shouts, heeling the heavy mount past the others gathered, and aiming it in the direction of Marilena's cottage.
'Whatever it was you did, Old Mother,' Lia thinks as she spurs her horse into a gallop, 'I need to know. And I am going to need some advice ... The poor, bloody fool!'

(Spellcraft: 29, 14, 25, 15, 24, 16.)

[DocBeard]

"Ha-hurrgh..." Tomas struggles, weakly, as skeletal claws tear into his side, and then..."N-n..HURRgghhh..."

The cold, dead teeth of the walking dead tears into Tomas's throat; blood spills down the throat, out of his mouth, and the look of shock on his face quickly becomes one of resignation...

...and then, the rains come. Charles and Khalil... the Lamordian realizes, holding his throat closed as the strange, calming rain sooths his soul and mends his body. Andre's action, the horror of the battle, the looming threat of the madman still alive...

...he can worry about that later. For now, Tomas just holds his arms out in the rain, soaking up the healing water and just appreciating being alive.

[Kaitou Kage]

Kuzan brought his hand down and watched the fleeing ghouls melt away in the blessed rain. As the soothing shower wiped away his exhaustion, the full realization of what just happened hit him like a tomato to the face. A particularly tasty tomato. As if tasting that same tomato, the priest's face cracked open in a broad grin.

"We did it!" he shouted, raising his hand over his head and shaking it as a cheer, "We drove him off!"

A faint part of his mind whispered to him, reminding him that they'd almost certainly meet this man again. But now was the time to enjoy their victory. They'd deal with the sinister sorcerer the next time he came around.

"It's all right!" he called to the villagers, "He's gone now! You're safe!"

[lostboy]

Khalil closes his eyes as the old woman passes. So that was the bargain you made venerable mother, let us hope these people appreciate your sacrifice. Thank you

Bending down to crouch next to the old woman he recites the prayer for safe passage of the dead in a whisper over her still body, adding a specific plea at the end. "Escort her with upmost care and reverence oh Anubis, this one has earned it."

The soft patter of the rain on his face, causes him to look skyward, a feeling of peace and hope welled up inside him pushing away the dark thoughts and aches of the previous days, bringing a smile to the desert guides lips.

"You think perhaps Affendi, I should have warned Anubis to be careful he does not end up tending her garden in the lands beyond?" He says with a smile at Charles as he sits next to the Mathematician.