Ghosts of Gauntcliff, Chapter Seven

[ewancummins]

Dorgio shakes his head rapidly when Benn grabs ahold of him, and he looks up, barely comprehending. "Looks like someone alreay bashed you!" Then he blinks, an looks at the blood on his gauntlets. "Ezra's dugs, Benn, I am sorry..."

He turns to Charlotte, sees the pieces of the chair, and realizes what happened. He offers her a lopsided grin. "No wonder he married you!"

The moment of levity is gone as soon as it arrives, as Dorgio turns to see the movement.

"DODDS!" His shout turns guttural as he barks out a prayer in Luktar. He extends his left hand toward the shadow, and the sunrise tattoo grows bright, an a beam of light shoots from his hand to the shadow.


[[OOC Casting searing light]]

The light misses Dodds, but scorches the wallpaper near him.

The Shadow-Ogre changes direction, moving towards Charlotte...

[Ken of Ghastria]

THE PRIVATE BAR-

‘’Primeiro? Wake up! Wake up, son—your friends are in trouble.”

"Wha...? Sancerre? But what..." He leaps to his feet immediately, rage in his eyes. "Damnation! That miserable eunuch did it again!" He looks around. "What's wrong, Dodds? Afraid of a ...

"Wait... trouble?!" He looks back at Sancerre. "Where are they? Point the way!"

[ewancummins]

THE PRIVATE BAR-

‘’Primeiro? Wake up! Wake up, son—your friends are in trouble.”

"Wha...? Sancerre? But what..." He leaps to his feet immediately, rage in his eyes. "Damnation! That miserable eunuch did it again!" He looks around. "What's wrong, Dodds? Afraid of a ...

"Wait... trouble?!" He looks back at Sancerre. "Where are they? Point the way!"

Sancerre grabs Primeiro by the shoulder.

''Follow me around to the others!"

He leads Primeiro out of the darkened bar into the hallway. Denys points to the door that opens onto the ballroom.

''I heard screams from in there!''

[Rock of the Fraternity]

Everline staggers to her feet and makes a guttural noise. By the light of Denys' lantern, her irises are now completely black, the look in their depths feral. Whimpering, the young woman flicks both wrists. Wands slaps into her hands, but the movement seems to be causing her pain.

Everline opens her mouth as if to speak, but no sound comes out. Mute, she staggers off after Eustace as he goes to fight her tormentor.

[Adam]

Bennedict smiles in relief seeing his friends' faculties return, but seeing the shadow it is immediately erased with a grimace and finally grim resolution as he sees the shadow drift towards his wife.

"Not today, wretch," he shouts, invoking the same prayer as Dorgio and adding his own brilliant light to the fray.

[ewancummins]

The Ballroom

A flurry of spells and magical effects fly at Dodds. The shadowy ogre leaps to avoid--just barely-- Eustace's conjured weapon. Dodds shrieks when Benn's ray burns a hole in his inky body, and again when one of Everline's darts strikes him.

Denys and Primeiro rush into the room from the hallway.

''You will all die in the dark, whimpering like frightened babies!"

Dodds wriggles up the east wall like a black snake, headed straight for the chandelier-- the only light source in the room. The shadow reaches out towards it with long fingers, the webs of black shadow-stuff spreading to strangle the light…

The door to the dining room flies open! Jürgen rushes in! He brandishes a red hot iron poker in one hand, waving it in the air. A bandana is wrapped around his face so he looks like a bandit. A little goblinoid cyclops is piggy backing his back, waving a red hot poker in the air as well.

"No deal, Dodds."

Jürgen hurls the hot poker at Dodds. The poker misses the monster, but Dodds flies from it screaming, sinking down to the floor.

Magic rips through the air of the ballroom, conjured bolts and waves of holy power falling on the shadow--yet the monster does not stop or flee!

The ogre-shadow makes straight for Primeiro.

“Vengeance! I will tear your mind apart--Child of the Betrayer!”

Dorgio rushes to aid Primeiro, reaching for the young noble's sword.

Dodds leaps onto Primeiro's face, ripping his ethereal claws through Primeiro's brain.

''Ahhhhhhh---nooooo!" Primeiro attacks Dodds with the sword, which now glows with aureate light.


Fighting with the desperation of the mad Primeiro drives his sword again and again through Dodds.

The shadow monster curls into a ball, and hangs there in mid-air. Slowly, it changes form to resemble a gentle-faced man with elegant, drooping mustachios and an artist’s long fingers. The man whimpers and shakes as his ghostly clothing is stripped away by unseen hands. Red welts appear on his bare skin.
‘’Please, no…mercy…I’m his man, I’m his man…not the box! Don’t shut me in…”


Primeiro falls to his knees, dripping with sweat.

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

Dorgio's face pales as the Shadow reverts into the man Dodds must have been before he'd been seized. Seeing the horrors that had been inflicted on the corpse had been dreadful enough to behold, but to see it reenacted...it reminds Dorgio of his own past, and the things he did in Old Gundarak as a freedom fighter.

The priest grits his teeth and takes a step toward the Shade. "Whose man are you, Dodds? Who is your master?"

[ewancummins]

Dorgio's face pales as the Shadow reverts into the man Dodds must have been before he'd been seized. Seeing the horrors that had been inflicted on the corpse had been dreadful enough to behold, but to see it reenacted...it reminds Dorgio of his own past, and the things he did in Old Gundarak as a freedom fighter.

The priest grits his teeth and takes a step toward the Shade. "Whose man are you, Dodds? Who is your master?"

The ghost makes no answer. It simply hangs there in the air, fading in and out of focus.

[Ail]

Eustace brims with exultation as the monster comes down, from the combined assault of the group. He approaches it as Primeiro stabs the ghost, and gives an appreciative nod to Juergin. His face is one of compassion and gratitude.

But he turns to Dodds very mistrustful. The ghostly form has gone, but is this man that remains the evil? Or has it escaped to possess someone new?

OOC: Sense Motive on Dodds. Eustace wants to know if this is a bluff, if this man now is the one responsible or if he was being dominated and the true evil entity is now somewhere else.

1d20+7 = 21
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3564582/

[ewancummins]

Eustace brims with exultation as the monster comes down, from the combined assault of the group. He approaches it as Primeiro stabs the ghost, and gives an appreciative nod to Juergin. His face is one of compassion and gratitude.

But he turns to Dodds very mistrustful. The ghostly form has gone, but is this man that remains the evil? Or has it escaped to possess someone new?

OOC: Sense Motive on Dodds. Eustace wants to know if this is a bluff, if this man now is the one responsible or if he was being dominated and the true evil entity is now somewhere else.

1d20+7 = 21
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3564582/

It appears that this is no bluff. Dodds' ghost seems weak, insensible of anyone else in the room, lost in the torments of its own death remembered.

[Ail]

"Dodds..." Eustace says as he approaches the figure.
"You must pass away. You have died long ago, don't you want to die again. Let go of this world where you no longer belong, and that suffering will go away with you. Vanish to eternal peace. You have caused enough pain already!"

[ewancummins]

The apparition hangs in air, silent and still, flickering in and out of focus.

[steveflam]

The boy attempts to finish the ghost with the hot iron. As well he tells Eustace and Primeiro "Take the scepter from my hip and use it if need be."

[ewancummins]

The boy attempts to finish the ghost with the hot iron. As well he tells Eustace and Primeiro "Take the scepter from my hip and use it if need be."

Dorgio grabs Juergin's hand.
''No, we will not be torturing him. There must be a better way!"

[steveflam]

"He must die for good for all the misery he did to me and Benn and Jonas.ALl the people or kids he hurt. Even Miss Everline. Take the scepter, Dorgio. Gruz, attack the ghost!"

Jürgen attampts to attack the ghost.