Are We There Yet?

Posted on 30 Jan 2023 @ 9:11pm by Mage Kalian Winter & Warrior Martin Josceran & Warrior Rhiannon Cadash & Warrior Katya Charbonnet (Shar-bon-ay) & Warrior Skeld & Rogue Elinowy Ursulas & Rogue Nazri Arisant

5,061 words; about a 25 minute read

Mission: Hall of the Phantom Shadow
Location: Imperial Highway
Timeline: Bloomingtide 7th, after ' Fall Off the Wagon Before the Horse'

It was late morning, and though rain showers were common this time of year, the sun was out. Dense forest lined both sides of the wide road, plenty of places to hide, but they'd seen no evidence of bandits. So far it had been a pleasant wagon ride and morning out, with good company.

Kalian stood in the bed of the wagon, holding onto the back of the driver's bench seat for balance with one hand, and holding the map Begonia Baudelaire had given them in his other hand. "I think we're nearing the turn-off to Baudelaire's mansion. Another mile or so."

"Ok, Kalian. I'll keep an eye out!" Katya said.

Rhi had felt Kalian's shift before he stood. She moved a bit so that she didn't fall over. She turned to look back the way they came making sure that they had not been followed.

Kit didn't look back at Kalian, she instead continued to look around, scanning the area for threats.

Nazri, who had been sitting with his new friend and chatting about everything and nothing, just getting to know him a little better, rose to his feet when Kalian made his announcement. He glanced upward, but seeing nothing interesting or out of the ordinary, turned to the human beside him, to continue their conversation.

The quiet of the morning was broken as a middle-aged human wearing merchant's clothing cantered toward them, bareback on a pony that was harnessed for pulling a cart. He slowed when he saw the wagon, his face a mask of terror. "Turn around! Bandits up ahead. And a… so horrible… walking skeleton. I was barely able to unhitch my pony and get away."

"Easy Ser! We're here to get rid of the bandits and whatever else is going on. You go home and you will be safe there! We'll take care of this!" Katya said.

When the stranger appeared, Nazri grabbed his bow and stood to his feet in one smooth motion, peering forward to see if he could spot some sign of who, or what, the man was talking about.

The merchant's terrified gaze shifted to the qunari, but since the horned bowman was focused in the direction of the horror he'd just witnessed, he responded to the driver. "That cart is my home, Serah. Everything I own is on it." The man's expression was forlorn and defeated.

"You may follow us if you wish, Ser," said Kalian, "but I recommend you ride on into Jader. If you ask for Tessa at the Raven's Roost tavern and tell her Kalian sent you, she'll take good care of you."

Kalian put away the map and unstrapped his staff from his back. To Katya, he said, "Let's keep moving."

"Agreed!" Katya said

Elinowy found herself emotionally perplexed by the merchant. He had lost all he held dear, and for that, he stoked her compassion. However, her experience of hunting brigands had shown her that many who appear as victims can also be scouts of an armed band that often looped back with compatriots to attack from behind. She kept her eye on him as the wagon passed.

Rhi stayed seated for the moment, though she pulled out her rapier. "Bandits, this might get interesting."

Kit had watched as the man approached. She was ready for anything, though relaxed slightly when she noticed how scared he was. She said nothing though readied her "bow with no string" for anything that might attack.

The encounter with the merchant was unsettling. It wasn't the first time Martin investigated rumors of ghosts or supernatural occurrences; more often than not they were the result of some natural phenomenon and people working themselves into a frenzy. In this case, however, the testimonies came from so many different sources, he had to believe something truly sinister was afoot. He said nothing, as there was no point making his companions any more wary or anxious than they already might be, but he discreetly checked that his sword would slide out of its sheathe easily and kept his hand on the hilt.

Skeld grinned as he popped his head out to see the merchant. Bandits, and it wasn't even his name-day! He settled back into his sitting position with Elinowy in the back of the cart and whistled a pleasant tune as the cart began moving again, his hand caressing the rune axe he held against his thigh.

Skeld had a thought and poked his head up again, to converse with the driver and his companion. "Kalian - I fear to ask, but - we are going to confront the bandits, yes?" he asked, the hopeful smile on his face betraying his feelings on the topic.

"Yes, Skeld, we are," said Kalian seriously. He didn't share Skeld's enthusiasm for battle. Bandits preyed on people who couldn't defend themselves, and dangerous trade roads harmed everyone in Jader. Killing the bandits was probably necessary. And yet, bandits were still people, and he did not relish the need to harm them. But far more compelling, he would do almost anything to protect his friends.

As the wagon approached a bend in the road, up ahead they could see two animated skeletons brandishing weapons, and armed men standing behind them. Further on, they might catch glimpses through the trees of the merchant's cart and his looted belongings and merchandise, with more bandits hurrying to carry goods away.

"Keep an eye out people! The bandits could pop out at any second now!" Katya said. Then she saw them. "Correction, there they are. Kalian do me a favor and untie Thunder. If he's attacked I don't want him to be unable to defend himself. " She stopped the wagon.

"Of course, Katya," said Kalian, and untied Thunder as Katya asked. He hoped the horse and all of them, would get through this all right.

Then Kalian kissed Rhiannon, for luck, and firmly reminded himself that Rhiannon was an extremely capable warrior. "Be careful." Then louder to all his friends, he added, "Don't take unnecessary risks. We don't know if any innocent lives are at stake here, but none of us should risk our lives just to recover stolen goods."

Rhi kissed Kalian back then picked up her shield as she readied herself for battle. With a grin, if anyone could see, reveals how excited she is. "I never take unnecessary risks."

Kit shifted her bow so that it was sideways on her lap as she herself shifted to the edge of the cart bench. Her eyes taking in everything, her face stone.

"I think he was probably talking about me," Skeld admitted, poking his head up behind the drivers again to look ahead, grinning like an idiot. "And, Kalian my good friend, as always I cannot promise that I will try; but I will try to try..." he added, his leg muscles coiling against the seat of the cart, ready to pounce out and fly headlong into battle.

"Fair enough, my friend," replied Kalian to Skeld with a chuckle.

Nazri reached down took hold of his bow, and strung it. He didn't nock an arrow at that point, but his hand hovered over the quiver as his eyes darted all around probing for any threats.

"I suggest all of you ready weapons. This is trouble! Elinowy, when were your people supposed to be here? Those skeletons look pretty real from here!" Katya said.

Elinowy looked over the rim of the wagon and immediately said a short prayer. Bandits were at best misguided children of the maker, but animated skeletons were an affront to the sacredness of life and the Maker's gifts. "Mother Giselle requested we determine if the need of Templars was required. Martin as a representative of the Guard was assigned to help," she replied to Katya.

So those really were bandits and quite a few of them, but not just bandits. Martin scanned the group of ruffians, looking for the mage he knew must be hiding amongst them. And not the garden variety. But that mage clearly had had the good sense of hiding amongst the others, and it was impossible to tell at a glance who they were.

Martin hopped off the wagon and unsheathed his sword. He trusted the ranged fighters amongst their group to cover him while he held off any physical attack from the bandits.

Standing in the wagon, Elinowy faced the line of bandits and skeletons and began to sing.

"You who stand before the gates,
You who have followed me into the heart of evil,
The fear of death is in your eyes; its hand is upon your throat.
Raise your voices to the heavens! Remember:
Not alone do we stand on the field of battle.

"The Maker is with us! His Light shall be our banner,
And we shall bear it through the gates of that city and deliver it
To our brothers and sisters awaiting their freedom within those walls,
At last, the Light shall shine upon all of creation,
If we are only strong enough to carry it."

As her voice carried around the wagon, her compatriots felt emboldened as they faced the upcoming battle. (Bard bonuses for all!)

Elinowy's song filled Kalian with inspiration and confidence in his ability to support his friends, and he cast a barrier spell on everyone in their company.

As Martin dismounted from the Cart and the good sister Elinowy began to sing, Skeld could barely contain his excitement - he almost never got to spring out and surprise people like this; bandits normally saw him coming a mile off and either steered clear or spread out to make him cover more ground; he was filled with a bit of excited anticipation as he began to hum along with the sisters' song; he didn't really hear the words, but the tune was vaguely familiar, and the thumping in his ears was beating roughly in time as he appraised the bandits. Skeletons... not what he was expecting, but that just meant less blood to wash out of his hair, he supposed. Then again, there were still five warm bodies that needed to join their comrades in death, so another bill from Tessa related to the viscera in the tubs was definitely on the cards.

These Bandits had better have some nice, pretty jewels to temper Tessa's mood, he thought, looking from man to man. I'd hate to have to find a different inn...

On the road ahead, the two skeletons walked toward the wagon. Three armed bandits stood in a row behind them, and further back were two bandits that appeared to be archers, each wearing a fist-sized amulet around their neck with a small red-glowing gem at the center. Other than those five, it appeared the rest of the bandit company was engaged in gathering up the spoils from the merchant's cart and carrying items away.

The five human bandits were slow to draw their weapons, as though they expected the wagon load of people to run away from the skeletons. But they readied themselves once the adventurers in the wagon drew their weapons. One of them shouted, "Drop all your coin and valuables on the road, and we'll allow you to run away unharmed!"

Skeld giggled.

One of the skeletons lunged toward Martin.

Without hesitation, Nazri grabbed an arrow his hand had been hovering over, He nocked an arrow, pulled back on the bow, and fired. It would have been almost impossible at this range even had he been an amateur and Nazri was no amateur. The arrow struck the skeleton square in the chest, staggering it backward. It didn't immediately destroy it, but he'd kept it from being able to attack Martin at the moment and gave him a chance to send it back where it came from.

Katya laughed at them. "Fools! Alright gang, let's give them our answer!" She was off the cart in a flash, sword, and shield ready! "Surrender now or die by order of Lady Seryl! The governor hereabouts!" If they refused, she would charge at the nearest bandit and lay into him with her sword.

Rhi felt the barrier that Kalian created as it enclosed them. She heard Nazri's bow let loose. She watched as one of the skeletons lunged at Martin. This was all she needed. With a yell that could only be Dwarven in nature, "You can't catch me 'cause the rabbit done died." Rhi rushed forward. Shield in hand and with a burst of speed, cause you know dwarfs are made for sprinting not long distances, she launches herself at the skeleton with Nazri's arrow in it. Her shield crashed into the skeleton's chest. All 117 pounds of raging dwarf driving the skeleton off its feet and hitting the ground. "Amgeforn, Amgetoll, Amgarrak."
(sacrifice, duty, victory) She said after she rolled off and to her feet.

Kit surveyed the situation. The five bandits drew their weapons and told them to leave their valuables and leave. This made her laugh a little. With a flash of green around her hand, she pulled back on a green bowstring as she mutters a few words. Letting it go, grease appeared beneath the five bandits. She pulled back again, her hand wreathed in green as with her eyes, the bowstring was flame red. "You will leave or I will light it." Anyone that heard her tone knew that she meant it.

Kalian gasped in alarm at the grease beneath the five bandits. The road was bordered by forest. He thought of the consequence of lighting a wildfire at the forest's edge, or of burning, panicked bandits running away through the forest. It could be devastating on a monumental scale. A Dalish elf of all people might be more careful. In a low, tense voice he said, "Just don't set the forest on fire, Kithris."

Skeld admired Kithris' restraint and tactical thinking.

He, however, did not share it. The giant man vaulted off the cart and into the air, a maniacal grin splitting his face with a primal roar as he swung the axe down hard on the skeleton that had been knocked back by Nazri's arrow. It reacted in time to put a guard up with its sword, but with the weight of the axe being swung coupled with the falling weight of the giant warrior, it needn't have bothered; the axe crushed the skeletons guard, battering the sword down and away before crashing through the collar bone and the first five ribs as the axe crossed into the base of the sternum, where the blade stopped. Skeld barely broke stride as he bounded forward a few steps with the skeleton caught in the axe blade, its right arm torn by the sheer weight of his initial strike. The big man pivoted to face the bandits, still a good charge away from him, but he noted he was at least not standing in the flammable grease. He planted his feet and spread his arms wide in challenge, the two-handed runeaxe held tight in his right hand, the still moving skeleton at the end of it moving feebly as Skeld roared in wordless challenge, the bloodlust pounding in his ears.

Elinowy kept singing as her compatriots joined with the Bandits and skeletons in combat. She stood in the wagon to have a clear vantage point of their adversaries and see if any of her party needed medical attention. The Chantry sister was prepared to defend herself if needed, so far, the bandits had taken the worst of the damages, including to see if the elf decided to barbecue the bandits in her oil slick.

Though the band of heroes might not notice, with the destruction of the skeletons the pendants worn by the two bandits at range stopped glowing. The two archers took a few steps so that the trees were right at their backs, well clear of the oil slick. Both fired their bows. One at Skeld, and the other at Katya.

The three bandits in melee range who were surrounded by Kithris' oil slick moved to escape the flammable oil by moving toward Skeld, Martin, Katya, and Rhiannon, with weapons raised for battle.

Kalian cast Barrier on his friends again. Then he prepared a Winter's Breath spell in case Kithris' oil started a forest fire.

Meanwhile, the other bandits engaged in taking away the spoils of their just-completed robbery were quickly disappearing into the forest, leaving many items behind.

Katya charged at the bandit closest to her and let her blade slice into him. Obviously a poor swordsman. A low-life bandit who just got by with surprise and intimidation and fear. None of which applied to a seasoned warrior like Katya. She withdrew her sword as the man fell at her feet dying. Katya felt no pity for him.

With Katya taking care of one bandit Martin focused on the next, leaving the third for Skeld and Rhiannon to deal with.
The poor fellow had drawn the shortest straw, although he did not know it yet.

"You can still surrender," Martin suggested, not because he truly thought the man might take him up on the offer but because his oath as a guardsman demanded this minimal effort to limit bloodshed.

Instead of answering the bandit lunged at him with a guttural war cry. Martin sidestepped him easily, gauging his foe. The man had clearly received little martial training and used his sword more like a bludgeoning implement than an actual cutting weapon. That made him eminently unpredictable but if Martin was cautious and patient he ought to be able to either kill or neutralize him without too much difficulty. He waited for the bandit to lunge at him again. Instead of trying to parry, he dodged the blow - a preferable tactic considering the man's muscle mass and the way he wielded his sword like a sledgehammer - and took advantage of the fact he'd overextended himself to hit him in the ribs. The man fell to his knees, red foam on his lips. It was potentially not a fatal blow, depending on how deeply he'd nicked the lungs, but the bandit wasn't getting up any time soon.

Skeld looked at the remaining man who was bravely holding his ground against his much larger opponent. He held Skeld’s gaze for a moment, weapon raised. As the sound of battle around them raged, his eyes darted back and forth, appraising – not fear, but analysis, as he overlooked the situation. It was, on the surface, unwinnable, but he held his ground – it was the sort of action someone took when they knew (or thought they knew) they had a trump card that would turn the tide of battle.

Skeld's face contorted into a savage grin as he bared his teeth like a wild animal, his grip tightening around the haft of his battle axe. His eyes gleamed with a fierce, primal pleasure as he relished the thrill of battle, the sheer joy of having an opponent that wasn’t shitting themselves at the thought of fighting. The grin just wasn’t human, but rather a feral expression that spoke to a primal, predatory instinct deep within him that wanted - needed to tear this man apart.

His eyes locked with the man, and it was as if a jolt passed through the bandit’s spine, and he began to recoil in a fleeting but unmistakable sign of retreat - as if he could read the future in Skeld’s expression. And he could – Skeld lunged forward with a roar, the axe whistling as he swung it through to a punishing strike that the man tried, valiantly but ineffectively, to block by squaring his stance and raising his heavy sword in an upward arc. Metal met metal, and Skeld erupted with savage laughter as he felt the snap of a wrist breaking from the impact. The block did manage to work to parry the blow, but where there was a window of opportunity where the bandit could have twisted his sword to drive it through his chest, it was fleeting and went unused; the tip of his sword landed into the earth, the weight of the blade collapsing under the broken wrist. It wasn’t both of them, but his dominant hand was clearly shattered. He tried to wield the hilt with his left, but the tip dragged and that window of opportunity closed as Skeld’s weight shifted to turn the returning weight of the axe into a savage kick to the man’s chest. The bandit had fallen to his knee under the blow, and now grimaced with a grunt of escaping breath as Skeld’s boot connected with his sternum and he flew backward, his whole body leaving the ground to slide to a stop in the mud. With another savage roar, Skeld followed through into two steps and leaped to bring the Axe behind his back to a full downward arc. Their eyes met again in that moment; savage ferocity locking with dawning realisation and fear. The axe stopped, and so did the man, realisation, and fear giving way suddenly to the distant stare of dying men.

Nazri had no interest in taking the life of fleeing bandits, he wasn't going to take a life in cold blood. but in addition to those attacking his friends, there were two more bandits that were trying to jump up on the wagon. They were at point-blank range and could have easily killed one with his bow. He was ready to do so, he even had the bow pulled back when a new idea struck him.

He put the bow down near him and waved his arms in a tight coil. A circle of shadow encompassed both men and they were teleported fifteen meters into the forest.

Rhi looked up at Skeld after the big man destroyed the skeleton that she had knocked over. She gave him a nod and started to move toward the other bandits near the wagon. "Stay put or I will track you down and end your lives." She yelled.

The two bandits Nazri had teleported into the forest dropped their weapons and looked around in confusion. But at Rhiannon's yelled threat they turned toward her in unison, screamed, and together fled into the forest.

Kit heard Kalian though didn't answer. She wouldn't light the grease unless there was no other choice. She noticed the two archers back up towards the woods. Pulling back on the magical green bow string, uttered a few words and let go. A stone fist formed, flew straight, and struck one of the bandits' bowmen in the chest, knocking him over and out. Turning to face the other, "Move and you will face the same fate as he."

Kalian cast the Winter's Breath spell he'd held ready on the remaining bowman, freezing the man in place. Then he climbed out of the wagon and kissed Rhiannon, intensely relieved that none of them, and his girlfriend in particular, had been hurt.

The battle was over. Of the three original melee bandits, two were dead, and one was severely injured. One bowman was knocked out, and the other frozen in place. Two additional bandits had attacked and were teleported into the forest, then ran away.

Nazri visibly relaxed and he set his bow in the back of the cart.

Skeld regained his footing before removing the axe from the swordman’s chest, the spray of blood and bits of bone desecrating the ground that had become the man’s grave. The twitch of the man's legs revealed his axe had reached the spine; it didn’t last. Skeld howled a cry of victory and turned to look for the remaining bandits, but only saw the retreating forms too far to chase, half obscured by the forest, and he swore. He’d only taken two of them, and one of them had already been dead so hardly counted. But his heart was pounding and the blood roared in his ears, urging him to kill. But the only ones left were handled, so he gripped his axe and took breaths to calm his bloodlust, taking in the scent of the fresh kill at his feet.

Kalian headed for the frozen archer. "Katya, can you help me grab that bowman before my Winter's Grasp spell dissipates? I think we should question him before he has a chance to get away."

"Of course." She went over to the frozen archer and prepared to grab him as soon as he thawed. She really didn't want to grab a frozen anything. She put her arms around him but didn't grab him yet. "OK how long until the spell wears off?"

Before Kalian could answer, the thin layer of ice encompassing the man shattered. He dropped his bow along with the arrow he' been nocking when hit with the spell.

"You are under arrest by the authority of Lady Seryl of Jader," said Kalian. He nodded to Katya, and together they dragged the shivering man toward the others. "My friends and I have questions."

The merchant they'd passed on the road ambled toward them, leading his horse. Apparently, he'd been watching the battle from a safe distance. He pointed to the bandit Martin had incapacitated but not killed. "Hey! You left that one alive."

"We left a few alive. That way we can question them and get the answers we want!" Katya said. She wondered why he came back. Seemed a little suspicious.

The merchant gave the badly injured bandit one more murderous glare. Then, grumbling under his breath, he headed over to the scattered and trampled remains of his livelihood, and began salvaging what he could.

Kalian removed the bowstring from the man's bow and used it to tie his hands. When a few beats went by and none of his friends spoke up to question him, Kalian said, "Who are you?"

"My name is, uh… um… Vince," said the bowman. "I'm not talking."

Kailan raised an eyebrow. The man's accent was Fereldan, and his name was likely made up. "And who is your boss, Vince?" Kalian knew he did not appear particularly intimidating, so he looked to his friends for persuasive help.

Skeld moved behind Kalian, his axe still dripping with the blood of the bowman’s comrade. “If he’s not talking, can I kill him? Seems a bit of a waste of time if we take a prisoner who’s ‘not talking’,” he proposed. The widening eyes in the bowman suggested that he was aware of how serious this offhand comment was.

"Chi-chi, Chiaro Rosso," stuttered Vince, shrinking away.

"Chiaro Rosso," repeated Kalian. "Did he use blood magic to animate those skeletons?"

"Blood magic?" the bandit gasped, eyes went wide, and he looked down at the amulet he wore on a leather thong, that rested on his chest.

Kalian pressed, "That amulet. Is it blood magic? What does it do?"

Katya put her sword point-first at the bandit's throat. "I suggest you answer him and truthfully or I will get upset. I'm sure you can imagine what happens when I get upset."

Skeld grinned menacingly, as if to make the same point, but rather than from being upset, he’d do it for fun.

Vince shook his head. "I don't know 'xactly. Rossa, he's not even a mage. Keeps the skeletons and corpses locked up. Anyone that steps out of line gets thrown in that room and ends up one of 'em. The amulets control them somehow. Rosso sends us out to the road with a couple of 'em at a time. Usually, the marks don't even fight, they just drop their goods an' run away."

Kalian yanked the amulet from around the man's neck, and held it in his hand, examining it. The amulet's crystal radiated a sense of the arcane, but it was different than his own fade-powered magic. This tasted of death. Kalian took a few steps to the downed bandit archer and grabbed the other amulet, which appeared the same, then handed them off to his companions to pass around and evaluate. "What do you think?"

Katya looked at it. "I really don't know much about magic but I get the sense this is bad. Necromancy sounds like. We may not be dealing with a mage but an artifact of some kind." Katya said.

Skeld hovered a hand near the amulet but didn’t take it. His tattoos… itched. All too familiar. He grimaced and turned away, swearing under his breath, before looking back at it with a look of pure hatred. “Allfeigligr. Vendo.” He turned his head and spat, before turning away completely to put some extra space between him and the vile amulet. But now he knew it was there, it was as if it radiated heat that he could feel on his skin, that he could feel it through the air, making him feel tainted... unclean.

Nazri took a deep centering breath. This kind of magic wasn't his forte, but that didn't mean he didn't have some experience in it. He focused his attention outward searching for an artifact or something out of the ordinary. After a moment, he felt as if someone was walking over his grave. "This is blood magic, he said in a voice a half octave bellow that he usually used, and there is something or someone out there deeper in the woods. I just can't pinpoint it.

Kalian walked over to the fallen bandit Martin had injured, but not killed. He applied healing magic, enough to keep the man alive and stable, though he was still unconscious. Kalian tied the bandit's hands behind him.

"We need to decide what to do next," said Kalian to his friends. "Do we go after the bandits or continue to the mansion." He paused to consider his own inclinations. "I think the bandits and their animated skeletons are connected with the haunted mansion. I propose we ask the merchant to take these two prisoners to the Jader guardhouse, then split up. Half of us can track the bandits to their layer, and the other half check out the mansion."

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