Secrets of the Southern Swamp: Enfant Terrible

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Dice
Posts: 479
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 6:15 pm

Sun Sep 22, 2013 10:51 pm

Thanks to Sofie for a great plot with a great finale scene!

hurch Street at Flairkin Street
[Pleasant, cloudy, heavy breeze from the southeast, nighttime]
The combined breadth of Church and Flairkin Streets make this
intersection essentially a square. A central plaza has been laid out for a
gathering place, a small circle of green lawn around a merrily piping
fountain. Glancing north, one can see more stone and less wood as Flairkin
approaches the Vandagan Foreign Quarter; to the south, the exact opposite
can be glimpsed in the riverfront Tubori Foreign Quarter.

[ Exits: north east south west ]
An Advertisement for The Fence is posted to the wall. (northern edge)
Simple iron lamp-posts edge the street, burning tallow candles. (northern edge) (lit)
A marble fountain topped with a young girl sits in the grassy lawn. (northwestern corner)

Beronica Destral arrives from the west
Beronica Destral slows to a halt.

A young man in strange clothing and screaming hysterically is here, covered in blood. He yells out incoherently as he goes to the ground, sobbing, "She...everybody...dead! Everybody dead. Bodies!"

Noah is approaching the young man hurriedly, jamming his weapon back into its holster at his side. "Sir! Sir. Calm down-" He extends a placating hand as he nears, beginning to slow down. "Y'need t'take a deep breath. Slower, so we can help."

Beronica Destral frown as she steps into the area and sees Noah and the man. "What is going on?" she practically demands as she strides over to the man and begins to take an assessment of his injuries.

The young man seems to be trying to get to his feet, but he gives up the effort. He looks to Beronica Destral and shakes his head, "Too late. For me and the others." Looking closely, one can perhaps see the jagged cuts through his ragged shirt and the gash across his forehead is plain. [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

"Dunno," Noah succinctly tells Beronica Destral, brow creased as he kneels beside the young man. A hand reaches to touch his arm, softly. "Then at least w'can go after who done this t'you," he urges, voice low. "Y'need t'tell us anythin' and everythin' what y'can." [Noah]

Beronica Destral snorts a bit. "I don't give up on an injured person until they lay dead on my table," she states as she pulls a suture kit from a large leather water-proof haversack with an iron clasp, then cuts away at his tunic with a steel dagger featuring a etched and deeply serrated blade.

The man lets Beronica Destral go to work on him, though he coughs weakly as he sputters, "We...we...I am from the village in the swamp. There...there is a -thing- out there. It's been hunting for months, and it finally turned on us all." [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

"Shit," Noah mutters under his breath, but he nods down at the man, gaze intently fixed on his face. "Keep goin', if'n y'can," he urges. A brief glance is given to Beronica Destral. "...d'y'need me t'do anythin'?" [Noah]

Beronica Destral motions for Noah. "Grab a cloth of some sort. Press it against that part of his wound." She instructs Noah. She cleans off the wound in front of her and begins the laborous process of stitching the wounds shut.

"My name is Melchizedek, though they call me Chi." The man sputters and one might see a bit of blood come up into his hand as he does so. "She...Ambrosia...she...is with child. She has unnatural cravings. We even found horse bodies in her lair." He lays his head back, though he screams every now and then at the stitching job that Beronica Destral is doing.

Noah snatches a scrap of cloth from his things, pressing down where indicated. He pales slightly at the man's words. "What kinda pregnancy makes a woman slaughter horses fer cravin's?" he croaks. "What... what -is- this... Ambrosia?"

Action set to:
Noah is kneeling by the young man, trying to stop the bleeding.

"Possibly demon possessed," Beronica Destral states as she grabs a flask of brandy from her haversack and uses the liquid to help clean the wound out. "I can't numb the pain." [Beronica Destral]

[Action: Beronica Destral is kneeling next to a young man.]

Chi hesitates a long time, a very long time, at this question before finally answering the man, coughs racking his form now, his injuries spurt blood a little more that aren't bandaged, "I may as well confess. I will die, anyway." He hesitates, "W-w-w-e summoned. W-w-w-e gave Ambrosia's husband's l-l-life to it so that w-we could, uh, make a baby. She...it...well, it was a success. She has...she...arien, she started small and then started. We found human limbs in her piles in the forest." Tears roll down his face here and he collapses into sobs.

Noah stares down at the young man for a long moment in clearly speechless horror, the pressure he's providing slacking off. "What," he finally says, flatly. "You. Oh, Arien frak." He presses down perhaps a bit too hard, rocking back on his knees. "Death's too good fer'y. ...Shit. A demon baby. This's... infinitely above m'pay grade."

Chi cries out at Noah briefly presses down, confirming that it's a bit too hard, and yells, sobs and coughs, blood and tears mixing crazily, "I know! Arien, I know!" He quiets down here and says in a voice barely above a whisper, "We finally drove her out of her hidey hole in the swamp. Next week, she came back." He looks at both Noah and Beronica Destral and says with wide eyes, "She. came. back. Everybody in our circle is dead except me, and I won't last long. Blood and limbs everywhere down in the swamp, and she took off towards the north." [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

A curvy dame approaches, sweat running down her brow before she relays a fervid message, in after which she runs off.

Noah grits his teeth, shaking his head down at Chi. "How're we gonna recognize her? Does she still look... normal?" he prompts, tightly, glancing to the dame for a moment. "Are th'Knights comin', then?" he wonders, a hint of relief in his voice.

Beronica Destral growls a bit as she moves onto the next wound cleaning it with some brandy. "No. They are seeking a Physician."

"She still looks normal, yes. She's got raven hair and dark eyes, and she's covered in blood, and she's pregnant." [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

"Seeking a... oh, Arien, d'y'think she's up there? He said she were headed north," Noah tensely suggests to Beronica Destral. "If'n she's already attacked at th'Keep and moved on somewhere else... we need t'tell them what's happened here, either way. Raven hair, dark eyes..." He blows out a breath. "Can y'save this man?" [Noah]

Beronica Destral shakes her head. "She's pregnant," she says as she continues her work. "From my experiences, women in her stage of pregnancy are wanting to 'nest' in a sense. She'll want to stay in one spot and get things prepared for the upcoming birth."

"She loves the ring of stones outside the city, but she...that thing..." He collapses, out of breath.

"I'd agree with that, 'cept fer th'part where she's collectin' human arms. This's gone beyond what normal human people do," Noah disagrees, shaking his head. A frown is tilted down at the man. "Th'ring t'the north, up near th'forests? That one?" [Noah]

Chi merely looks to Noah and gives a firm nod of his head and then lays it back down. As he does so, he begins to scream. Injured or not, his brays of terror are evidently enough to show his strength enough to get off the ground. Dark tentacles swirl up from the ground there and they begin to encircle around his neck. He begins choking and sputtering, and his eyes go blood red as he hisses, "Come, my pretties. Come if you dare. Where I come from? We all float. And when you're with me there, you'll float, too."

"Arien abyss," Beronica Destral cries as she falls back away from the man. The look of fear deep in her emerald eyes. [Beronica Destral]

"Arien!" Noah is on the same page as Beronica Destral it seems; he springs back, reaching for his mace automatically. "Get back t'the Abyss where y'came from, demon - y'aren't welcome here," he shouts, and though fear widens his eyes determination seems to set his jaw as well. "We're damn well comin'." [Noah]

The red leaves the man's eyes, and he is dragged to the ground, his eyes wide and horrified, his slow strangles lapsing into the mewling of a kitten, and then they slowly die. Finally, the tentacles withdraw into the ground. [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

Beronica Destral shudders a little as she gets up from the ground. "Can we stop by the church so that I can cleanse my hands?"

Noah stares blankly at the man's limp body, all bravado fled in sheer shock. "Um," he says weakly, and then shakes his head. "I... can't do it m'self, anyway. I don't figure I'm th'match fer some sort of demon-pregnant woman alone. Y'want t'go t'the Church, and I'll send a messenger, seein' if'n I can get some backup t'meet me here...?"

His corpse lies still, eyes open in horror.

Beronica Destral nods to Noah. "We can meet at the Keep," she says to him. "And see if there are any able bodied Knights capable of assisting in this matter."

"They might be comin' here from earlier already," Noah denies with a shake of his head. "Let me send fer 'em t'meet me here. If'n it's th'place I think it means, we ain't too far from it here - wouldn't be that closer from th'Keep, in fact. Poor, stupid, evil bastard." He stares bleakly down at the corpse, digging out handfuls of silver. [Noah]

Noah summons a messenger and pays them to make a delivery.
Message sent to all. There are no confirmations on multiple recipient messages.

A howl of pain may just be audible, coming from the northeast of the city.

Beronica Destral nods to Noah. "I'll be quick, but I don't want to risk..." She pauses a she hears the howl. "Guess I can get cleaned up later. I'm staying with you."

"Glad I inspire that much confidence," Noah quips with a brief, troubled grin, sending off a courier with a murmured message. "I'd go right now, but damn it, I'd just get killed. I hate t'delay, but I ain't doin' this without somebody behind me." [Noah]

Lloyd rides in from the west
A curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines has arrived.
A golden-furred hunting dog with a bushy tail has arrived.
Lloyd continues to the east.

Lloyd rides back in after speeding in at a frantic canter. His mace is drawn, and a curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines, who's jogged after him, also has her own sword bared. Looking around, the man glances down and curses softly. "What's happened here? Reeve Reed, I want an answer -now-." His words are directed for Noah, but his eyes are kept on the body.

"Earl Marshall." Noah salutes sharply to Lloyd, fist to heart. His expression is solemn and pensive, brows set. "This feller here-" A nod down at the dead man- "said that he'n his friends... they summoned a demon t'get a woman pregnant. And she's gone mad with it, killin' horses and people beside, crazy with sick cravin's fer blood. He thinks she's in th'stone circle north'f town - said she liked it there." [Noah]

Beronica Destral frowns slightly. "If I remember correctly there is a chamber underneath it," she offers to the two men. "Though I may have remembered wrong."

"Have you summoned all able bodies?" Lloyd asks tersely, not waiting a beat after Noah and Beronica Destral have finished. "A similar attack has occurred at the Keep, and many are wounded, so my apologies if few of my Knights show." [Lloyd]

"I've summoned all able bodies, yes, m'lord Earl Marshall," Noah confirms with a quick nod. "I'm a Reeve, not no Knight, but I'm willin' nonetheless t'go and help." He slants a curious glance to Beronica Destral. "M'not aware of one, but that don't mean there ain't one." [Noah]

Beronica Destral looks over to Lloyd. "Is Mister Tristana Smithe about and able, Lord Marshall? I have heard him talk about various hidden areas outside of Lithmore."

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes arrives from the west, his hands hidden beneath the folds of his robes.
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite has arrived.
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes slows to a halt.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls arrives from the west, each step causing a floor-length, ice blue silk cloak with jade embroidery to ripple.
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls slows to a halt.

"He'll have to come then." Lloyd responds sharply to Beronica Destral, casting a minute glance to the new arrivals. "We need as many as possible to assist." He then returns his attention to the body. "Who struck him down?" [Lloyd]

"He came here bleedin', m'lord, and bleedin' somethin' awful. The Prime were tryin' t'heal him, but then dark tentacles rose around him, and his eyes glazed red. He spoke in a voice not like his own, said 'Come if y'dare' and somethin' odd about... floatin'. Then he crumpled, th'red left his eyes, and he just... died." Noah narrates all this testimony in low, somber tones. "Th'circle itself ain't hidden." [Noah]

Coming to a stalled halt beside an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls tries not to peer over at the body, giving a delicate shudder and taking a single step back towards a rugged, blond-haired Orderite and his weapons, her bright green eyes darting around to watch everyone at once. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

Entering arm-in-arm with a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls, the sounds of heavy footfalls announce an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's entrance to the scene, with a rugged, blond-haired Orderite taking point, as if guarding the pair from nonexistent threats. The blond-haired Orderite looks perfectly wary; the red-robed man, less so. "Where are the demons?" he intones, loosing his arm from a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls's, so that both hands clasp together beneath the sleeves of heavy, high-collared scarlet robes edged with golden thread. As the body's seen, he looks down at it, lips curling inward.

A rugged, blond-haired Orderite pulls out a dagger.

"I last saw him over on Park Street," Beronica Destral offers to Lloyd before looking over to Noah. "The circle, no, but it better to be prepared for the worst." [Beronica Destral]

"Let's hope the others who answered the call arrive soon," Lloyd murmurs, eyes narrowing as he listens to Noah recount. "Little time can be spared." The stony grey gaze moves over to a rugged, blond-haired Orderite and his cold reply is laconic. "North of Lithmore." He runs his eyes over a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls and an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes. "He'll be coming as well, I presume?" [Lloyd]

Looking towards an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes to answer any questions, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls stays silently at his side, protectively even, though clearly she has no weapon of any kind and a stiff breeze could knock her over. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

Noah shoots an openly doubtful glance to a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls, though he doesn't comment on her presence. A polite bow is given toward an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes. "Th'stone circle is our first guess, Sir Inquisitor, but w'don't know precisely," he elaborates on Lloyd's answer. "We're lookin' fer a pregnant woman, dark hair, dark eyes."

"We will go, yes. However, aside from Wil, whose use is best suited as a distraction or fodder at best," an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes tells Lloyd directly, one hand parting from his sleeves to indicate a rugged, blond-haired Orderite, "I count just you, Sir Knight. If there are infernal beings, is your sword alone enough to end them?" The question's direct, and he turns his shoulders then when Noah addresses him. "Well, good. A pregnant woman is weighed down. But I would still prefer more weapons."

Lloyd merely nods his response to an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, adjusting himself in his saddle and glancing down to a curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines. "Dame Agnes, the patrols north of the city have been recalled?" The dame nods and hesitantly lowers her sword, "Yes, Earl Marshall. After the attack, I made sure they went back to the Keep." The Earl Marshall nods slowly before looking down to Noah. "I shall send out another call."

"I ain't sure anybody else's comin', m'lord Earl Marshall." Noah's voice is quiet, but steady and determined. "And I ain't sure how long we got t'wait. I'm a tolerable good hand with a mace, and got m'armor in my pack." That information volunteered, he doesn't go on to make an argument; just stands still, seemingly awaiting something. [Noah]

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes gets smooth obsidian mounted atop a slender hilt of bone from interlinked chalices, burnished and shining, forming a sash.
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes wields smooth obsidian mounted atop a slender hilt of bone.

A howl of pain may just be audible, coming from the northeast of the city, animalistic in nature.

"I will send a call," an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes tells Noah then, nodding towards a rugged, blond-haired Orderite briefly and then, across his shoulder, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls's way. "It is a matter of faith for everyone to assist in this matter. Those who do not aid, whether in medicine or by prayer, or by the strength of their arm, are consigned to sin."

"I doubt they'll have time to meet us here," Lloyd responds softly to Noah, nodding slowly and biting his lower lip. "I'll send a messenger to reinstate patrol orders... you!" He calls out a small boy who has managed to remain discreet for sometime in a pair of bushes, but was given away by a sneeze. "Get to the Keep and find Sir de Abn'zahi. Tell him that the Earl Marshall sent you to let him know that the patrols must be sent back out. Be swift, lad, and don't stop until you reach the Keep's walls." The boy nods, visibly both nervous and excited, before running off. [Lloyd]

Beronica Destral shudders slightly at the newest howl. "Then I suggest that we get going soon. Those cries seem to have changed a little in tone."

Noah nods his agreement to Beronica Destral. "They sound almost as if... th'babe might already be comin'. And if that happened... I fear we might be too late." But he still doesn't set off, himself, seemingly waiting on those with more authority than himself to make the final call.

Seamus Harper comes running down the street, at damn near a blind jog, a dark teal leather hat with a black-pinned, up-turned brim jostling atop his head with each quickened step. "Did... I...did it... did they?" He pants out, once he comes to a stop, hands on his knees as tries to slow his breathing!

Standing there albeit a bit uncertainly now next to an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls tries to steel her shoulders and look much taller than her scant height, a flush of crimson creeping up her neck as she listens to everyone speak. Only when an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes comments about sin does she purse her lips in agreement, taking a single step closer to his side. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

A cudgel-wielding Orderite runs through the city, calling all able-bodied men and women to the North Gate to deal with a demonic threat. Apparently, refusal to go constitutes sin -- according to him.

"Miss Synelle. Wil shall be the vanguard. Let's away to the North Gate," an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes tells a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls bluntly, offering the crook of his left arm, along with the barest hints of a smile. In his right hand, he holds a small obsidian knife, which he slides neatly through the cord that binds shut heavy, high-collared scarlet robes edged with golden thread, a paltry thing, and clearly of limited utility against a measured demonic threat. He glances towards those remaining in the street. "Leave the corpse. Follow the Earl Marshall. Time is of the essence."

Noah nods sharp agreement to an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's command, drawing his mace and turning to fall in behind Lloyd at a martial stance. "We're goin' now, if'n y'can help," he tells Seamus Harper simply. "Follow."

Lloyd watches after the Orderite before glancing around to those gathered. "We have little time. With me, immediately." He doesn't wait for any more responses, and kicks his mare's side with the heel of his boots, spurring her onwards and leaving a cloud of dust in their wake.

"Of course High Inquisitor Cullen." a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls replies smoothly to an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, slipping her hand into the crook of his arm, her gloved fingers curling up sharply before they relax against the bright crimson of the garments. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

"Stop when we get close, m'lord Earl Marshall? Time t'prepare, don armor," Noah suggests to Lloyd. [Noah]

-----

You leave west
The Crossroads
[Pleasant, cloudy, heavy breeze from the west, morning]
A wide open space stretches out here at the very center of Lithmore,
where Church Street and King's Concourse meet. Grass grows in short, neat
plots around the intersection, forming a large and empty lawn. Its edges
are delineated by tall birches, their pale bark and silver leaves a somber
fence. The very center of the space is dominated by a tall granite column,
rising nigh-twenty feet into the sky. A bed of blood-red flowers encircles
it, a sea of color. Traffic diverts around it in both directions, giving
it a wide berth.

Dark clouds loom on the horizon.

[ Exits: north east south west ]
An advertisement for the le Orban Trade Offices has been attached to the wall of a building. (southwestern corner)
A set of weathered wooden stocks rest in the shadow of the column. (southeastern corner)
A tall granite pillar edged with tiny writing is centered at the heart of the junction. (southeastern corner)
Silver lanterns hung on tall stakes guard the four corners of the intersection. (southeastern corner) (lit)
[Linkless] Seamus Harper is here. [App: 3]
Beronica Destral is here. [App: 3]
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite with dull blue eyes stands here warily.
He has a common Lithmorran eating knife with a scant wooden handle drawn.
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is here. [App: 1]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls is here. [App: 4]
Noah has arrived.

"What I miss?" Maxwell Wattkil questions, as he quickly moves along with his mare trailing behind, gripped by the reins. [Maxwell Wattkil]

"Woman pregnant with demon child," Beronica Destral states to Maxwell Wattkil. "Sounds like she is about to give birth." [Beronica Destral]

"Woman pregnant with demon baby. Stone circle. Gonna go kill her." Noah is a man of few words today, it seems. [Noah]

"Great. Wonderful. Awesome." Maxwell Wattkil offers to Noah, as he readies his polearm and shield for proper use. [Maxwell Wattkil]

Seamus Harper takes long drink from a clay mug, before making the sign of the chalice, the amber liquid giving him some measure of nerve. "Today be as good as any to try an' not die."

"I hate demons." Maxwell Wattkil grunts once, shaking his head a bit, face drawn. [Maxwell Wattkil]

----

You leave north
You come to a halt.
Lithmore's North Gate
[Pleasant, cloudy, heavy breeze from the west, morning]
The city walls of Lithmore rise forty feet high here, casting their
long, cold shadow over the northern edge of the city. Massive doors made
of weathered tree trunks lashed together and mortered by layers of pitch
serve as the outer North Gate, the front entrance to the large square
gatehouse that guards from unwanted entry. A courtyard between two
portcullises provides further security, though they oft remain raised to
allow for free passage of the many carriages and wagons that travel through
every day.

[ Exits: north south -up- ]
A paper marked with 'REEVES' and the Scales of Justice is posted on the side of the gate. (southwestern corner)
Wrought-iron lamp-posts dangling candle-filled lanterns line the street. (northwestern corner) (lit)
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls is here. [App: 4]
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite with dull blue eyes stands here warily.
He has a common Lithmorran eating knife with a scant wooden handle drawn.
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is here. [App: 1]
A young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes is here. [App: 2]
Beronica Destral is here. [App: 3]
Lloyd is here, riding a lightly built mare with a dappled coat. [App: 4]
He has a fine steel gada, adorned with a crossed arrow and thorn drawn.
A golden-furred hunting dog with a bushy tail is here, panting.
A curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines stands here wearing a taut expression.
She has a curved steel talwar with a hilt wrapped in supple leather drawn.
Noah has arrived.

Seamus Harper arrives from the south
Seamus Harper slows to a halt.

Maxwell Wattkil arrives from the south
Maxwell Wattkil slows to a halt.

"Alright!" Lloyd calls, slowing his steed down and turning her around to face the group. "You all know why you're here. We won't waste time with motivational speeches. Reeve Reed, north of the city, yes?" He looks down to Noah expectantly, occasionally shooting glances over his shoulder. [Lloyd]

"...This ain't bad," Noah murmurs, gaze moving between Lloyd, Maxwell Wattkil, and Seamus Harper. "This ought t'be enough, I'm hopin'." After a moment, he sighs and starts to dig a set of mismatched armor from his things. "North'n east of here, m'lord, due directly. Not far't all." [Noah]

"I ain' got no armor. But this not be my first fight, I'll jump in the mix when I can." Seamus Harper nods resolutely, clearly trying his best to put on a brave face in lieu of what's coming. [Seamus Harper]

Beronica Destral wields a half-crescent steel axe with an intricately carved handle.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes clasps both hands together beneath the sleeves of heavy, high-collared scarlet robes edged with golden thread, then takes a step forward. One finger extends, pointed skyward. "All of you: know that the Lord blesses any endeavor meant to do glory in his name. This is one such endeavor," he intones. "You may not survive this. But if you do die, know that you shall be envied, for you will awaken at the feet of the Lord of the Springs."

Lloyd nods briskly at those who speak, turning his mount around and fixing his hat with a hand. "Alright then. Say a quick prayer now, people." He pauses for a few moments before hefting his shield into place and shouting, "Onwards!"

Noah does not seem overly enthused by an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's speech; then again, he doesn't look to be in a mood to be enthused by much of anything. A simple nod of acknowledgment is dropped as he finishes buckling on his helm, a thumb rubbing over the flanging on his mace.

Lloyd rides north, a blue cotton cloak bearing the Crossed Swords on a Chalice swaying behind him as he moves.
A curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines leaves north.
A golden-furred hunting dog with a bushy tail leaves north.

---------------

A Dappled, Hilly Forest
[Chilly, cloudy, heavy breeze from the west, morning]
Ancient trees tower far overhead here, climbing for the sky where they
grow somehow upright from the slanted sides of hills. Thick, gnarled roots
support them, providing an impromptu staircase up the hills along their
protrusions. The crowns of the trees, knit together so high above, shield
the ground below from much of the sun's rays. Still, curling ferns and
pale mushrooms litter the forest floor. East and south the trees thin,
while north a taller hill rises; west, a group of pale birch trees stands
out in the otherwise mixed forest.

Dark clouds loom on the horizon.
A field of glowing energy makes the northern exit look hazy.

[ Exits: north east south west ]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls is here. [App: 4]
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite with dull blue eyes stands here warily.
He has a common Lithmorran eating knife with a scant wooden handle drawn.
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is here. [App: 1]
A young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes is here. [App: 2]
Beronica Destral is here. [App: 3]
Lloyd is here, riding a lightly built mare with a dappled coat. [App: 4]
He has a fine steel gada, adorned with a crossed arrow and thorn drawn.
A golden-furred hunting dog with a bushy tail is here, panting.
A curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines stands here wearing a taut expression.
She has a curved steel talwar with a hilt wrapped in supple leather drawn.
Noah has arrived.

Seamus Harper arrives from the west
Seamus Harper slows to a halt.

look north
A field of glowing energy makes the view look hazy.
A Stone Circle on a Forested Hill
[Chilly, cloudy, heavy breeze from the west, morning]
Thick forests that mingle evergreens with less hardy varieties of tree
cluster up the sides of this hill, though its very top is left largely
bare, a clearing encircled by a border of massive, ancient firs. Soft,
dense green grass crowns the hilltop, and at its very apex stands the
remnants of a stone circle. Large plinths, vaguely cylindrical but
irregular, stand about ten feet tall. Their rough surfaces are figured
with carvings of animals, fighting and sleeping, running and romping,
giving birth and dying. Old moss clusters here and there, but has largely
been cleared away. To the west, the hill descends into a smaller glade,
forest rolling onward in every direction.

(Various limbs of varying different creatures, many of them human, are clearly visible within the ring of stones. They have been laid in a strange pattern that resembles some kind of macabre bird nest, and everything is just bright red all over the place with dried blood.
)
A misshapen blob of off-white tallow is here. (southern edge)
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is here gnawing on a random arm, just outside her macabre nest. [App: 3]

Maxwell Wattkil arrives from the west moving quickly, weapon at the ready
Maxwell Wattkil slows to a halt.

"Incantations," an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes announces, pointing northward. "Wil, take point. Do not let whatever's beyond touch Miss Synelle or myself," he intones, reaching out to offer a rugged, blond-haired Orderite an almost paternalistic clasp upon the shoulder; and, so bidden, the dim-looking Orderite positions himself to defend his charges.

"A uauwa' uhaawah awalookoh haowa... waloha uhau." Seamus Harper mutters to himself, fingers tightening around the grip of a double edged dagger with a leather wrapped hilt. [Seamus Harper]

Noah peers to the north, squinting. "Y'can see through it," he volunteers, then abruptly pales. "...that looks like our girl, aright." He swallows, convulsively. "Can we... go through that... whatever it is?"

"Nearer we go..." Lloyd murmurs lowly, his hand visibly gripping the gada he holds tighter. "Dame Agnes, if this is the last time, it's been an honor." He casts a mournful smile down at a curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines, who doesn't return it. Looking over his shoulder at the others in the group, he nods once. "Everyone ready?" [Lloyd]

"...Do we have any bowmen?" Maxwell Wattkil questions, as he looks around. "This could make this -extremely- easy." [Maxwell Wattkil]

"Arien it will be," Beronica Destral states as she shoulders her axe. "And the only bow man I know is unable to use her arm currently." [Beronica Destral]

"I dunno that arrows can go through that... whatever it is. I dunno that -we- can go through that whatever it is," Noah sighs, hands tightening on his mace's haft. "But w'got t'try, and I'm ready." [Noah]

"Be confident. We have the Lord on our side. Why on Urth would we ever need bows?" an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes wonders, sounding entirely too-sure of himself, enough that he advances apace to stand beside (although, still behind) a rugged, blond-haired Orderite, whom he once more favors with a friendly pat.

Standing way to the back of the group and looking slightly ill, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls tries to move forward if only to lightly touch the back of an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

A random man in the crowd gathered goes up to the force field and sticks his arm through it. "I'll need this blessed and possibly burned later, but looks like we can go through."

"From the sea I be, and to it I return, Blessed by the Lord with salt and water. Kissed ny the rays of the sun at dawn. I have sailed my due, whatever port the ship brings me to, it is bringing me home." Seamus Harper prays, his eyes tightening at the corners. [Seamus Harper]

"By the Lord's name, just go: the woman grows stronger with each passing moment," an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes states now, loudly -- anger curdles within his belly, and the flats of his hands press against a rugged, blond-haired Orderite's back, and that man-- he's shoved forward, now that the forcefield has been deemed at least somewhat safe.

A rugged, blond-haired Orderite begins to move north.
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite crosses the center of the area.
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite leaves north.

With the Orderite shoved in, Noah's eyes round in alarm, and he none-too-gently shoulders his way forward to follow with a frankly aghast look shot an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's way. [Noah]

Noah thinks to himself, "You asshat!"

"All ready?" Lloyd repeats to the group, this time more firmer. "Yes? Alright then." He doesn't wait for a single response and rides forward after the orderite, mace pointed outwards. [Lloyd]

Maxwell Wattkil thrusts his polearm forward, northward. "Let's go!"

Dice
Posts: 479
Joined: Wed Sep 21, 2011 6:15 pm

Sun Sep 22, 2013 10:51 pm

You leave north
You come to a halt.
A Stone Circle on a Forested Hill
[Pleasant, cloudy, heavy breeze from the west, morning]
Thick forests that mingle evergreens with less hardy varieties of tree
cluster up the sides of this hill, though its very top is left largely
bare, a clearing encircled by a border of massive, ancient firs. Soft,
dense green grass crowns the hilltop, and at its very apex stands the
remnants of a stone circle. Large plinths, vaguely cylindrical but
irregular, stand about ten feet tall. Their rough surfaces are figured
with carvings of animals, fighting and sleeping, running and romping,
giving birth and dying. Old moss clusters here and there, but has largely
been cleared away. To the west, the hill descends into a smaller glade,
forest rolling onward in every direction.

(Various limbs of varying different creatures, many of them human, are clearly visible within the ring of stones. They have been laid in a strange pattern that resembles some kind of macabre bird nest, and everything is just bright red all over the place with dried blood.)

The exits are covered in a glowing field of energy.

[ Exits: north east south west ]
A misshapen blob of off-white tallow is here. (southern edge)
A golden-furred hunting dog with a bushy tail is here, panting.
A curvy, greying Knight with laugh lines stands here wearing a taut expression.
She has a curved steel talwar with a hilt wrapped in supple leather drawn.
Lloyd is here, riding a lightly built mare with a dappled coat. [App: 4]
He has a fine steel gada, adorned with a crossed arrow and thorn drawn.
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite with dull blue eyes stands here warily.
He has a common Lithmorran eating knife with a scant wooden handle drawn.
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is here gnawing on a random arm, just outside her macabre nest. [App: 3]
Noah has arrived.


A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls arrives from the south, each step causing a floor-length, ice blue silk cloak with jade embroidery to ripple.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes arrives from the south, his hands hidden beneath the folds of his robes.

Beronica Destral arrives from the south.

Maxwell Wattkil arrives from the south moving quickly, weapon at the ready.

Seamus Harper arrives from the south.

A dark-eyed woman with raven hair looks up as she takes a bit of a random arm that may be human. She throws it down and growls, her teeth showing, and she wails loudly, "You won't get my chap!" Her jaw actually looks like it is detaching as it opens and she growls in an impossibly deep voice, "My chaaaaap," though blood can clearly be seen running down her chin and onto the ground.

Maxwell Wattkil grips his polearm at the ready, shield raised, gaze on a dark-eyed woman with raven hair as soon as the group filters on in. He immediately slips into position.

"Arien!" Noah doesn't like what he sees, clearly, but he doesn't stop; jaw grimly set, weapon clutched tightly, he advances on a dark-eyed woman with raven hair. "I don't think anybody even -wants- yer chap, y'crazy witch!" [Noah]

Nerve or not, Seamus Harper probably shouldn't have used rum to steel his nerve, with a stomach wrenching heave, that fluid, along with bile comes streaming out of his mouth as his eyes take in the gory, blood ridden sight. "m...m'bad." is his only apology before he wipes a sleeve across his mouth. [Seamus Harper]

Lloyd rides in, face contorting from apthy to a mixture of disgust and rage. "You vile thing that was once a woman, come peacefully and submit to your fate!" He begins to trot forward slowly, nearing a dark-eyed woman with raven hair.

Beronica Destral takes a deep breath a she brings her axe up. "That is why it is not good thing to drink before facing demons," she states to Seamus Harper as she moves a few steps forward but not too far from those who are hanging back.

A dark-eyed woman with raven hair brings her hands up and the shadows enter the area as the sky darkens and it gets a bit colder. She brings shadows out in tendrils and they go for the an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's neck. She screams in an animalistic rage, her jaw going so low that it actually looks like her cheeks are splitting. The roar is deep and gravelly. [Void Attack]
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair critically hits an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's body!
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes appears to be hurt.

Maxwell Wattkil quickly lunges forward as the woman attacks, attempting to cram that big, gaping maw full of sharp, pointy tongs of metal, letting out a war-cry as he charges. "Get the frak -back-, demon!" [Attack]
Maxwell Wattkil critically hits a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's head!
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair has been wounded.

Noah lets out a wild battlecry, lunging forward on a heel to swing directly at the woman's swollen belly. He doesn't seem to have any pithy words at the moment, just speed and ferocity. [Attack]
Noah critically hits a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's body!
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair looks pretty mangled.

Seamus Harper rushing forward, the smell of blood like a cheap perfume in the air, Seamus Harper stabs into the woman, "Yer ugly..." stab* "and yer stink like a bad whore!" [Attack]
Seamus Harper critically hits a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's body!
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is impaired by her injuries.

Beronica Destral swings her axe to the back of a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's leg with a precision born from long practice. [Attack]
Beronica Destral skillfully hits a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's legs!
Beronica Destral's attack incapacitates a dark-eyed woman with raven hair!
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is incapacitated and will slowly die, if not aided.
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is seriously impaired by her injuries.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes pulls out a dagger.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is struck by shadowy tendrils. Like snakes, they slither out into the air, shapeless and soundless, and they near him, they touch him, and they violate him. Indeed, the Inquisitor screams a blood-curdling sound, one that's ... enveloped by those tentacles, for not only do they mute the color of his robes, but they silence his wails too. In this haze, he strikes out and attacks the nearest body. [Attack]
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes glancing hits a rugged, blond-haired Orderite's body!
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite yells, "Help! I'm being attacked!"
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite has some minor scratches.

A rugged, blond-haired Orderite swings his weapon up in a diagonal arc to strike at an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes. [Attack]
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite skillfully hits an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's feet!
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes has been wounded.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes tucks his dagger in his belt.
A rugged, blond-haired Orderite tucks his dagger in his belt.

"What the-" Maxwell Wattkil grunts towards an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, eyes widening quickly as the man strikes out, and as the tendrils strike him. "Ah, crap." He grunts, moving towards him as quickly as he can, as if he can assist. [Maxwell Wattkil]

"He...she.. what the feck?" is all Seamus Harper offers in way of eloration as the woman falls to the ground, his eyes now raking towards the now tainted priest. "Son of an arien whore... knock him out!" [Seamus Harper]

[Action: a dark-eyed woman with raven hair is here on the ground.]

As the woman lays there bleeding out, a growl coming as the blow is dealt that brings her down, she can be seen contorting and writhing, her body going into fantastically weird contortions, at one point doing a slight crab walk. At this point, a snake comes ripping out of her body, gnawing its way through its mother's stomach. It slithers out slowly, blood coating its entire body. It is small at first, but it quickly grows. [a dark-eyed woman with raven hair]

"Arien!" Noah stumbles back a pace, his eyes widening. He swallows repeatedly, as if trying to master his gag reflex; for a moment he's paralyzed by sheer disbelief at the horrific sight in front of him. [Noah]

Lloyd flinches as he sees the snake, and his mare is even more frightened. Without warning, the steed rushes forward and tramples the fallen woman... and the snake. [Attack]
Lloyd critically hits a dark-eyed woman with raven hair's body!
Lloyd's attack incapacitates a dark-eyed woman with raven hair!
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is incapacitated and will slowly die, if not aided.
A dark-eyed woman with raven hair is seriously impaired by her injuries.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes moves to speak: in fact, his mouth opens widely, but no words come out. Something, whether fear or the previous assault from the shadowy tentacles, has plainly stolen his ability to talk. Or shout. He approaches the now-dead woman and the snake and peers down at it, then points at the serpent emphatically.

Beronica Destral turns to look at a dark-eyed woman with raven hair, a hard swallow following. "Time to cut the head off the snake," she says with a bit of bravado. The slightest hint of fear creeps into her voice.

Seamus Harper tries his best to scuttle away from the creature, feer sliding in the gore, tripping over bones, as his hand tightens around his blade. "Lord above... that's... that's just..." His words are cut off by a dry-heaved gag.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes turns towards Lloyd and his mossy eyes widen. With that, his attention's divested from the serpent that lingers in the belly of the witch, and instead, both hands (for his ability to talk is still plainly sapped) gesture wildly towards Lloyd. And, this gesturing is done angrily. For those who might be cultured, the Inquisitor employs the Hillman equivalent of a pair of middle fingers.

"I can't blame th'man's horse, I'd have done th'same," Noah weakly tells an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes; this seems to finally jolt him out of his shocked trance. His hands tighten once more on his mace's hilt, and he pulls himself back up into a combat-ready stance, advancing on the growing snake. [Noah]

Lloyd catches an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's gestures, but doesn't respond to them, his attention only focusing on a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke. He dismounts from his mare, and then slaps her hardly on the behind, sending her off. The Earl Marshalll himself appears somewhat frozen, and makes only a stiff step forward in its direction before raising his shield in preparation for a strike.

Lloyd swings his leg over his mount, preparing to dismount.
Lloyd carefully dismounts from a lightly built mare with a dappled coat.

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke shakes its head as it moves over slowly to an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes. It looks at the various people, completely ignoring them, and starts to slowly move over to the man before growing to its full size.

Seamus Harper circles slowly around towards the fell creature, hands shaking noticeably as they hold a double edged dagger with a leather wrapped hilt out in front of him.

Noah seems unprepared for this, staring at the snake for a moment as it simply glides past him. He gapes and then picks up the pace, hastening along in its wake. His hands are white-knuckled on his weapon. "What... oh s-shit..."

A hand starts to poke through the entrance to the area. Slowly yet surely the whole body of Noplen starts to go through, he is panting very heavily and is sweating some, "My my." he pants, "Must everyone start these things right as I'm doing my prayers?" he looks around him to see everyone's weapons drawn and well... pretty much everything here. He starts to edge towards the exit as he sees the snake but can't because of the barrier.

Beronica Destral does not say much as she carefully approaches a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke from behind. Her steps slow and thoughtful in their placement.

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke hisses with laughter as it says, "You killed my mother, but I am my father's child." He looks around and hisses, "I can see your fear. Well..." It takes a lok at them, hisses with laughter, and suddenly makes a quick lunge for an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes, swallowing him whole with one massive gulp.

"Kill it!" Lloyd roars, eyes wide ast he man is swallowed whole, and he begins hesitantly moving after the serpent. He twists and twirls the gada in his grip around by the hilt several times, as if showing off his bravura before the inevitable fight. [Lloyd]

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes pales considerably as the snake grows, green upon green and scale layered upon scale as the tiny thing, once ensconced within a (mostly) human womb grows, mutates, extends and expands and-- he's entirely white. He looks back towards a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls then, his throat still paralyzed by the shadowy tendrils from the witch's strike from before. And then: fangs puncture him, and the red of his robes melts with the green like some macabre Christmas tree, and he's not even able to emit a single, single sound.

Noplen begins to focus, lifting his hands.
Noplen folds his hands and begins to pray.
Noplen remains silent, intent upon the prayer.
Noplen moves his lips silently in prayer.
Noplen speaks a dire plea for salvation, eyes opening.
Noplen makes the sign of the Chalice, concluding the prayer.

"NO!" a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls actually seems to come out of her daze for the swallowing of an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes by the huge serpent, her eyes wide with fear and helplessness. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

[Action: an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is inside the snake's belly, getting eaten.]

"Get out'f th'way!" Noah practically screams at Noplen, trying to shove him off to the side as he bursts in rather near the giant serpent. His lunge forward is too late, and he's still a useless distance away when an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes is swallowed whole. "Arien frak!" [Noah]

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke whips around, laughing maniacally, a low hissing sound coming out of its mouth. "Come and play. One, two, snakey's coming for you. Three, four, better lock the door. Five, six, get your Chalice fix. Seven, eight, stay and pray. Nine, then, never sleep again."

To the south a man yells, "What's going on?!"

Noplen yelps as the snake swallows the man, as he starts to do a prayer he is shoved to the wall by Noah, letting out a small 'oof' he starts to back away as soon as he recovers enough to move. Fear is in his eyes, he then yells something back to the voice he hears.

Noplen yells, "Get the arien hell in here if you have holy water or know how to fight!"

Lloyd doesn't waste anytime after he gets close enough in the snake's vicinity, and swings his gada (shaky in the man's grip) directly for the serpent's head, the wide arc approaching from the right. [Attack]
Lloyd glancing hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks lightly wounded.

To the south a man yells, "I'm a merchant, not a fighter! I can doctor, though?"

Seamus Harper blinks in astonishment, as the snake devours the man. "Oh shite... oh shite oh shite oh shite!" The sailor begins to stab franticaly at the beast as he tries to harm it as much as get away from it! [Attack]
Seamus Harper misses a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks lightly wounded.

Noah pivots on a heel, leaping forward with remarkable speed to cover the last few feet between himself and the hideous serpent. His mace is swung in a wide arc, holding nothing of his strength back. "Arien! Arien! Arien!" Any more coherent thought is seemingly lost to him completely by now. [Attack]
Noah misses a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks lightly wounded.

Beronica Destral eyes the body of a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke warily doing her best to judge where the lump that is an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes currently located. With a deep breath, she lifts her axe and makes a lunge for it, bringing her weapon down in a two-handed swing. [Attack]
Beronica Destral glancing hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke appears to be hurt.

Beronica Destral yells, "Then get your Arien arse in here and use your skill at doctoring to dissect this creature, Epion!"

Joudan von Urath arrives from the south with a light step
Joudan von Urath slows to a halt.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls stops using a common Lithmorran eating knife with a scant wooden handle.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls attempts to hit the snake in the body with her tiny fists, looking quite angry. And probably afraid. [Attack]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls glancing hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been wounded.


[Action: Noplen is as far away from snake as he can be, offering religious support as the others fight.]

[Action: Seamus Harper is too damn close to the snake, a double edged dagger with a leather wrapped hilt his only defense!]

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke hisses furiously and makes a bit with its long gleaming fangs straight for Noah's left arm. [Attack]
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke glancing hits Noah's arms, grazing rigid, studded pauldrons worn over flexible leather sleeves! It appears to be in good condition. Noah has some minor scratches.

NEW COMBAT ROUND!
You are still engaged in combat.

Joudan looks around, alarmed. He reaches for axe attached to his sash, but holds his staff in a defensive position as he does so. "The Arien hell is that." Joudan von Urath grunts, less inquisitive and more annoyed. [Joudan von Urath]

Lloyd swings again ast he serpent attacks Noah, this time far more desperately than before, as if eager to get this abomination killed already. "Die, you beast! DIE!" He continues his wild swinging, beady sweat trailing down his face. [Attack]
Lloyd skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been mauled.

Joudan von Urath stops using a wooden cane with delicate snake contours on the side.
Joudan von Urath wields a huge war axe with a brushed steel head and mahogany shaft.

Noah hisses in pain, lips drawing back from his mouth in a snarl. He batters at the giant creature again, swinging his mace broadly. The hit seems to have replaced some portion of staring terror with adrenaline, at least. [Attack]
Noah skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks pretty mangled.

Beronica Destral lifts her axe up once more before swinging it down onto the serpent's body. "A bloody demon serpent. What else?" [Attack]
Beronica Destral swings wildly at a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke appears to be crippled from his injuries.

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke doesn't even hesitate and its hits the armor of the other man's arm. It literally tries to do the exact same move as it did on the orderite, only this time it is meet with other things. [Attack]
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke misses Lloyd!
Lloyd looks to be in excellent condition.

Joudan von Urath brings his axe down on the serpent, dodging forth to try to close the distance. [Attack]
Joudan von Urath glancing hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke appears to be hurt.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls furrows her brow after actually landing a blow and goes back in with both arms this time, her tiny face screwed up in concentration. "Let him go!" she yells. [Attack]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been wounded.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes kicks weakly inside the body of the snake-- there's still some wriggling going around, admittedly; but this is done weakly, very weakly (tantamount to one last bout of defiance), and then that wriggling just... stops. [Attack]
An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks badly injured.

Seamus Harper stabs repeatedly into the serpent, his actiona panicked but precise! "Die die die die die!" He cries out, blood and ichor covering his arms and face! [Attack]
Seamus Harper critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been mauled.

NEW COMBAT ROUND!
You are still engaged in combat.

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke misses Lloyd, and it screams as it writhes from blows coming from the inside and various outside. It goes into a curl as its eyes flash a crimson red and it goes, once again, straight for Lloyd. [Attack]
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke glancing hits Lloyd's head!
Lloyd looks lightly wounded.

Beronica Destral shifts the direction of her next swing to aim for the just behind the serpent's jaw. [Attack]
Beronica Destral misses a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been wounded.

Lloyd just manages to raise his shield almost in time to block the sepernt's strike, and he growls in frustration, thrusting his gada out in a fervid retaliation. [Attack]
Lloyd critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been mauled.

Noah is panting from exertion and pain as he swings at the serpent again, continuing with what he seems to consider a tried-and-true strategy: batter away. [Attack]
Noah critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke appears to be crippled from his injuries.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls rains down blows from her small fists against the serpent, sweat beading her brow and her motions almost frantic now that an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes has stopped his struggling inside. [Attack]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls powerfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks pretty mangled.

"There's no reason to curse at me, miss Destral! What's in there?!" Joudan von Urath exclaims, bringing the back of his axe around in an attempt to meet the snake's head. [Attack]
Joudan von Urath powerfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been wounded.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes seems bereft of life. Whatever wriggling and defiance that previously took place inside the gullet of the serpent is now gone entirely. The bulge that marks the man's presence descends a half-foot, seemingly a product of digestion. [Defense]

Seamus Harper skitters back, his breath ragged as he growly out. "All I wanted to do was run a bar, seen enough excitement on the seas... but... guess all wishes don' come true." [Defense]

NEW COMBAT ROUND!
You are still engaged in combat.

Lloyd continues his wild swinging, bashing for the snake again and again and again. The pain he feels is visible on his face, and he narrows his eyes and shouts at Joudan von Urath. "A bloody Inquisitor's in there! I don't know how snakes use the midden, but we're not waiting for that to recover a body! Now help us!" [Attack]
Lloyd critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks lightly wounded.

Beronica Destral does her best to adjust from her miss to bring a half-crescent steel axe with an intricately carved handle back around to lay into a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body away from the lump. "Inquisitor Cullen," is her short reply. [Attack]
Beronica Destral skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke has been wounded.

A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls tries to rip at the skin of the serpent with her nails, frantically trying to claw an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes out with her eyes wide and panicked. [Attack]
A frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls skillfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks badly injured.

A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke whips away from the various people that are battling it. It curls up and suddenly lashes out its tail, obviously going for Noah's leg. If successful, it drags the man up and starts to dangle him over its mouth. The thing can be seen to have regenerated from its previous injuries, though how much longer this will last is anybody's guess. It appears to be running out of juice, to turn a phrase. [Attack]
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke skillfully hits Noah's legs! Noah appears to be hurt.

Noah screams in mingled fear and rage as he's simply snatched off his feet, dangled over the serpent's maw. He flexibly twists in its grasp and swings his mace in a circular spin with all the strength he can muster - aiming right for the fangs. [Attack]
Noah critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke looks pretty mangled.

Joudan von Urath brings the blade of his axe around snake's head-quarters with a wild shout. "Try to get him some air. Punch a hole in that thing!" [Attack]
Joudan von Urath powerfully hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's head!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke is impaired by his injuries.

An austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes shifts downward inside the serpent's belly: the bulge that marks where his body might still exist now seems closer to the tail than the head. There might be more wriggling now, some last vestige of life... two points, which might be fists, pound against the snake's gullet. [Defense]

Seamus Harper bends his knees, and with an ungraceful leap, stabs the point of a double edged dagger with a leather wrapped hilt into the snake, using the weight of his body to split open the skin and muscle of the beast like a pirate would tearing down a sail! [Attack]
Seamus Harper critically hits a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke's body!
Seamus Harper's attack incapacitates a giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke!
A giant slime-green serpent wreathed in red smoke hits the ground ... DEAD.

Joudan von Urath moves over to the corpse and prods it curiously with the toe of his boot. He looks around with a frown. "Miss Destral, surgical precision should be taken here. Care to cut the man out of the snake?"

Beronica Destral does not sheath her axe. Instead, she bears down with it onto the body of the serpent about the area of th
e lump. "Hurry, we need to get the Inquisitor out of there."

The snake can be seen salivating over Noah's body, even as it screams from the blow the man makes to its fangs. It lightly licks Noah, caressing its tongue almost lovingly over the man's face, and it hisses, a giggle under its breath, "Time for mass!" It may be bleeding profusely, but it is very clear that it is fixated on consuming Noah alive at this moment. Just as it does so, it is torn open.

Noplen holds is erra up looking like he is just about to lunge forward with the thing, but as the snake breathes it's last he lowers it seeming to calm down some, he starts to approach the snake carefully mostly only to see if the man inside it is alive.

Lloyd drops his arms limply at his sides for a moment, standing still as he watched the dead serpent lay there... then, he snaps into action and rushes towards the corpse, getting to a knee and bashing at the head of the snake with his mace. The head is crushed, and somehow explodes from teh force of the blows, spreading the man in more blood. "Come on!" He calls to the others. "Help me out!"

Noah is pretty much just shouting incoherently as he gets his impromptu tongue-bath, his mace lifting for another strike when the snake abruptly goes still. He goes tumbling to the ground, lying there for a moment shuddering, before he forces himself back up to his feet. Stumbling over to the wound Seamus Harper made, he drops his mace to seize the lips of it in either hand - and just tries to tear the flesh apart with his bare hands. Not exactly surgical precision, but judging by the glassy state of his gaze, he may not be entirely focused on the moment.

Seamus Harper stands there, covered in gore, shock clearly paralyzing him. It takes a few minutes before what happend really registers... he killed it? How in the abys did that happen??

Staggering back to let the people with actual weapon handle getting an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes out, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls breathes heavily off to the side and looks ready to vomit at any moment. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

[Action: Beronica Destral is by the body of serp hacking away at it.]

The snake is easy enough to rip open, surprisingly so maybe, after all the fight that it put up. Its flesh will go after a initial failure with a sick ripping sound that sounds like a zipper. [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

Seamus Harper shakes off the last vestiges of shock, dropping to his knees as he offers what help he can to those pulling the priest from the serpents remains. "Here... look, see that arm...pull!"

Joudan von Urath readjusts himself and takes a few steps back, staying out of the way.

[Action: Joudan von Urath stands here, out of the way.]

Noah was already bloody from his wounds and the ichor in the snake's veins at its death; now that he's joined the extraction crew with his bare hands, he's a horrorshow of gore. His gaze is still glassy, movements mechanical as he parts wide swaths of scaly skin with minor grunts of exertion; the lights are on, but nobody's home. Others are allowed to attempt to pull the priest out; he merely widens the opening.

Lloyd jerks the hole which he made wider with a hand and the hilt of his mace, stretching it out farther and farther as the others begin to rip open the dead creature as well. "Come on..." He growls in frustration, tearing through flesh. He follows Seamus Harper's lead and reaches in, grasping around. "I can feel it!" He shouts.

Beronica Destral swallows hard once more when the sound of the flesh rending reaches her ears. At Seamus Harper's call, she opens her eyes and moves forward to assist with an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's removal from the serpent's body.

Standing off to the side and dry washing her hands over and over, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls tries to get a glimpse of an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes being pulled free, her eyes glassy and bright with tears. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

Once revealed, an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes's flesh is intact. But whitened over, as if by some waxy, opaque substance that binds his arms and legs together. Almost like a cocoon, or an embryo. His eyes flare open, serpent-like, and his mouth -- his teeth are corrupted, having fallen off, leaving a mouth that's all gums. "By her sacrifice, Ambrosia," he intones with a hiss. "We are legion. We are inside you." Those eyes, like hourglasses, stare blindly at those around him. "So cursed are the women now full with child, for one of them... one of them will be me." His eyes shut. It looks like he sleeps soundly. Like a baby.

Noplen jumps back as an austere, bronzed man with stark moss-green eyes speaks, "Good Dav! It's cursed the man!" he yells making a sign of the chalice.

Beronica Destral gives a soft cry and drops the part of the dead priest that she was holding on to. A quick sign of the chalice is given as she looks away and assesses the others for injuries, falling back to the familiar.

Joudan von Urath traces the sign of the chalice over himself and turns away. "I believe we will be burning that one. I'll bring the woman to the morgue?" he asks, shooting Beronica Destral a dark glance.

"Goin' ter need a whole lot of mugwort." Seamus Harper replies blandly, his mind not quite registering everything around him. [Seamus Harper]

"Oh, man." Noah's voice is unsteady as he stares down at the still and corrupted form of austere. The trembling in his voice is matched by the trembling in his frame, shoulders shaking. He took several blows from the snake, but the extent of his injuries is difficult to recognize; he's covered in snake blood, all over his front, as well as bits of torn skin. "Oh... shit..." [Noah]

As the man dies, a very low, hissing voice that may just be the wind says, "We are many from one and one from many." Then it dies, and the air goes unnaturally still.
"Interesting..." Lloyd mumbles wearily, as if too exhausted to stress over what's just spilled from austere's mouth. He makes the Sign of the Chalice aftert he man has died, and begins to lift the body, heaving it over his shoulder and standing. "Very... interesting." [Lloyd]

Beronica Destral shakes her head to Joudan von Urath. "No, we will not introduce such corruption into the Hospital," she says firmly to Joudan von Urath. "Osd I os doaai roa si dvioaiski od iov."

Lloyd gets the corpse of a Lithmorran man.

A man from the crowd says, "So are we burning these arien things or what?" He looks at the various corpses strewn about. "I assume the Inquisitor will be given a burial?"

Noah stumbles back a few steps and just sits down hard, as if his legs have suddenly become unable to bear his weight. He stares downward with unfocused, unseeing eyes, wrapping bloody arms around himself. Each breath is drawn as an audible shudder. "Burn... b-burn it all."

"F-first...!" Lloyd replies to the man, half mumbling and half shouting. "We contact the Cardinal to inform her that she's lost an Inquisitor... Then we'll decide about the body." He motions to the woman corpse that Joudan von Urath holds. "That gets burned." [Lloyd]

The man nods his head over to Lloyd and then asks, "And the snake? Should we burn it here?" [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

Staring at the corpse of Landon with wide eyes, a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls just sort of stands there in shock and confusion, her hands wiping down across a jade silk bodice laced over an ice blue silk chemise over and over again. [a frail young woman with chocolate-hued curls]

Blank grey eyes move from the questioning man to Noah, then to the mutilated snake, and then back to the questioning man before Lloyd answers. "We burn it here."

After a moment more spent in withdrawn shock, Noah slides a hand into his things. It emerges with a flagon of oil and a firestarting tool of flint and steel, both clutched desperately. He rises to his feet in silence, uncapping the oil to anoint the serpent before flicking out a spark. [Noah]

Noplen makes another sign of the chalice as the bodies are burned, "Good dav. Why must everything bad happen around this city?" he mutters starting to leave unless there's anything else to do in here.

The snake erupts into flames perhaps a little bit too quickly as Noah lights a spark. The corpse starts writhing around and making mewling sounds and screams out randomly, "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust!" It screams this over and over, the pitch wailing higher and higher, until finally the charring starts dying down. [a young woman with chestnut hair and ice-blue eyes]

"Agh-!" Noah can't backpedal fast enough from the burning, screaming corpse, falling right down on his backside again - his retreat becomes a backwards crawl until he's a safe dozen feet away, breathing hard and staring with wide eyes. [Noah]

If that wasn't enough to drive a man to drink, than what is. Seamus Harper falls in line, skittering back away from the corpse, putting as much distance as he can between it and his body. His tan face is several shades paler, eyes watering as a hand clamps over his mouth. [Seamus Harper]

Lloyd can only watch with widened eyes made somehow wider as the dead snake's cries die down. He adjusts the body he carries over his shoulder stiffly, eyes not moving away from the charring corpse.

Noah manages to stagger to his feet again, hugging himself with bloody arms. "I... I need to go," he says blankly, voice thick. "Somewhere... else." And without another word he's turning to take off, at a pace barely short of a run.

"I need.. a drink." Seamus Harper shakes his head, "No... not a drink... drinks. Lots of them. Enough to put me under for days." [Seamus Harper]

Joudan von Urath ndos to the group and moves over to the woman. "Will we be taking this one?" he asks, looking around for any sign of agreeal.

"Go home, everyone." Lloyd murmurs, turning around and trudging slowly away, buckling his mace back to his chest with a hand and keeping the dead Inquisitor's body steady over his shoulder. "Pray, and then get some rest... Then pray again. Pray for what's happened here." [Lloyd]

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