Chapter 3: The Enemy Within

[Jeff]

"We're going over there," Ralsor shouts, running up toward the upper deck. "So get in or stay out. We watch from the ship...if it's a trap, we leave it. If it's not...."

________________________________

Well, there's been a bit of the usual talk-to-another-person-who-two-posts-ago-said-they-were-somewhere-else going on. So...

Everyone—except those like Pel or Misha—are either around the open hatch and the rope ladder, or on the ground just below it. So at this point everyone is generally aware of what's going on. Even Grafth and those within the cargo deck, looking down, also have portholes through which they can see the terrain around.

[Darren]

Well aware that Ralsor has just confirmed what he already said, Kalarian leans casually against the wall. "As you say, captain...."

[Jeff]

Ralsor doesn't hear Kal.

______________________

Is Streko coming or going? Presumably, everyone else is getting into the ship (as was the plan).

[Jeremy]

Goran is getting on board.

[Jeff]

Streko will need to return to the body-burning, if that his desire, because it just takes more time. The Thunderhead lurches into movement again, gliding forward over the grassy turf toward the red patch of light.

Amal and Mist both remain close to the newcomer, Belarin. Both human and warforged keep their blades openly in hand, vaguely pointed at him. "He can throw conjured fire," is all Mist says, as if that warrants a close watch on him.

Tangat barks and jumps up at Kal, eager to see him return. He sniffs in Belarin's direction, but does not approach him.

[Ken]

As the ship begins to move, Belarin quickly glances around the majestic craft, seemingly impressed and amused. In the course of doing so, he sees Amal and Mist behind him. He smiles and nods, then turns back to gaze toward the reddish glow. He leans both hands on the railing, but snatches one arm back quickly, apparently feeling the injury from the enemy warforged's pick.

[Josh]

Grafth looks around at the returning group, his eyes resting on the newcomer. "I'm pleased that I was not moved to shoot you." The shifter, dressed in a long coat and plain clothes of earthen hue, nods toward Belarin. "My name is Grafth."

[Ken]

"Ha! Was that you who impaled that fellow down there?" says Belarin. "Then I am doubly pleased that you did not shoot me. I could see only the results, but that must have been a superb shot!" He extends his uninjured arm in greeting. "My name is Belarin, Grafth. I'm sure we'll have much to tell each other, as soon as we see about this woman that your little dragon has found..."

Belarin seems completely at ease around the shifter.

[mike]

After unceremoniously dumping the body of Captain Relith somewhere in the cargo deck of the ship, Torhak takes a whetstone and a fine silken cloth out of his pack. With great care, he proceeds to clean and sharpen the blade of his axe.

He leans against the railing as he does so, silently watching this new stranger - Belarin - speak with Grafth.

[Jeff]

It takes only a moment for the Thunderhead to close in on the strange site. Through the portholes of the cargo deck, where everyone but Ralsor and Misha have gathered (most having just come aboard through the hatch), you can see what appears to be a cage on wheels—like those found in a traveling carnival—standing by itself in the grassy turf.

Night has full swallowed the land. The only light is the Thunderhead's everbright lanterns, and the pool of red light emanating from the top of the wagon.

The light is mine, because I know your inferior eyes cannot penetrate the dark, Matheu says to all of you. He drops from the air into a catlike crouch atop the cage.

It's difficult to see the cage's occupants from your angle aboard the ship, but there is certainly a struggle taking place within. You hear the grunts and mutterings of a woman, and the heavy shuffle of something in there with her. Three dark shapes. The red light, which illuminates twenty feet from its centerpoint (forty feet for those with low-light vision), does not reach into the cage, but you can make out the shape of the woman with her back to the bars. She sounds young, and she wears dark blue or black clothing.

Amal looks to Kal. "What is your order, my lord? Is this a trap?"

[Darren]

EDITED

Kalarian sighs as he folds his arms, the rolled up sleeves allowing the blue of dragonmark to stand out on his forearm. "Almost certainly, Amal." Kal turns to the railing, placing his hands on it and leaning a bit over the edge. He seems to be formulating a plan, or possibly struggling with a decision.

"Alright," he says, turning from the railing to address the group, "we fight from here. No one hits the ground until we know what we're fighting. Goran, this is your area of expertise. Sorceror, you seem to have a few tricks, so do your worst. Everyone else, see if you can make use of those crossbows we took off the others back there, or whatever else you can do from this range. Try not to kill the girl. Ralsor, can you try to swing around to the other side and get us clearer targets?" Kal turns to the railing again, choosing his target. "One more person to ask questions of," he mutters under his breath, obviously displeased with the situation. He utters a few arcane words as he raises his hand, two darts of energy streaking towards their target.

_____________
Kal is casting Magic Missle against the question mark on the right.

Also, for what it's worth, I said several times that we should take the crossbows and whatnot to add to Ralsor's stores, so hopefully we can all agree that someone did that?

[Jeremy]

Goran nods at Kal.

"Maybe I can shoot a little better this time, eh?" He turns, looking for Fherina. If she's in earshot, he asks politely.

"Can we try this again?"

---

Goran will target whatever is the most threatening creature, combined with the best shot.

[Jeff]

...Through the portholes of the cargo deck, where everyone but Ralsor and Misha have gathered (most having just come aboard through the hatch)...

Some of the portholes can be opened partially, to allow ventilation, but they're not optimal for sending ranged weapons or spells through. One must do that either in the ballistae chambers or on the upper deck; but from the upper deck neither Goran nor Kal would be able to see any of the targets.

[Ken]

Belarin gives a joyful bark at Kal's orders. "Ha! Think fast, act blindly -- I like that! Yet if good aim is our intent, I advocate a quick descent ... m'lord." He eagerly moves toward the ladder, hoping for an opportunity to get down and get a better look.

[mike]

"I like how you think, good sir," says Torhak to Belarin.

The dwarf also heads towards the hatch, to return back to the ground below.

[Josh]

"Hmm... I agree—and personally I can do nothing from this position." Grafth heads to the hatch, looking back. "Let's be quick about it. If this is more than we can handle, let's retreat."

[Jeff]

"I will maintain security of the ship," Mist says, remaining where she is and keeping an eye on the unconscious Captain Relith. Amal awaits further orders from Kal. Lever stands by, uncertain where to go, and Fherina looks like she'll follow Goran.

Grafth, Belarin, and Torhak head to the hatch and in short order have descended to the grass twenty feet below. From their angle, the shuffling figures within the cage are not well at all—dead, they'd even suspect. Dead, but moving.

Except the woman. She is quite animated, thrusting almost ineffectually with a slender sword. An unusual prisoner—apparently her captors left her with a weapon.

Even as everyone watches, Matheu loops through the air and then crouches in the grass beside the cage. He holds out one claw and a blast of churning air thrusts into the cage...through the bars, and blowing the three shambling figures back against the bars of the opposite side. The cone of air looks carefully aimed, for its swirling strength misses the young woman, doing little more than blowing her hair wildly.

[Josh]

Grafth looks to both Torhak and Belarin, "I'm inclined to trust the dragon instincts, for he is both wise and helpful. And no one should be subjected to such a cruel fate as what we see before us.

"However," he adds, "We should not all rush over at once, if in fact this is all an elaborate trap. Keep an eye out, make sure we are not flanked."

The shifter crouches down and takes a step forward. A breeze seems to wash over him, counter to the direction of the winds around the group.

Grafth has shifted! He is inspecting the area around him, looking for signs of what may have taken place here, as he moves toward the cage.

[Darren]

You're killing me, Jeff. Also, if Kal can see a target, can't he hit it with a Magic Missle?

Seeing his compatriots heading for the ground, Kalarian calls out, "Beware of this! Remember the ambush we faced on the road to Fairhaven!" He gestures for Amal to man the ballista. "Keep a sharp eye out for anything else that might be approaching." Kal then runs to the upper deck, hoping for a better view of the surrounding area.

[Jeff]

All Kal needs is line of sight, but not through a barrier (like a glass porthole). If he goes above deck, he can see the battle but not the specific people/things moving inside the cage, because the cage has a ceiling and Kal can't look through the ceiling.

However, Kal could even step down a few rungs on the rope ladder and target anyone he wants from there.

No one every said attacks would never be obstructed!

[mike]

"If this is a trap, I will draw out our attackers," Torhak says in low tones to Belarin. "Be prepared to fight."

Torhak heads straight for the wagon, his axe at the ready.

[Jeff]

For those of you able to use the dice roller, roll your initiative and post it here!

[Josh]

Rolled a 15, no modifiers

[Joe]

Streko watches the action unfolding. He is completely confused and not even sure as to how he got back onto the airship. He will wait until someone tells him to do something, as whenever he tries to do something on his own...well...he appears back on the airship.

"Perhaps I should discuss this teleportation with Matheu," he grumbles.

His sickle (is it still flaming?) is in one hand and his holy symbol in the other.
_________________________________________________

Even the dice roller hates Streko!

[Jeff]

Joe, it's your call. If you want Streko to still be back by the bodies right now, it's no problem. He'll just be starting to get his flint & steel going right about now. It's going to take a while to get the newly dead burning, and this current situation will be long over before the burning actually begins. If that's where Streko insisted on being, and being left behind by everyone else, just say the word. I tried to get clarity on this above.

[Joe]

He's onboard, so let's go with it. Is the sickle still enchanted or did it flame off after the initial battle?

[Jeff]

Map update coming soon. This will be the initiative order.

19 = Belarin
18 = Grafth
17 = woman in the cage
16 = Streko
15 = Allies (Ralsor, Amal, etc.)
11 = Kal / Tangat
8 = Torhak
5 = Enemies
4 = Goran

The electricity on Kal's sharash and the flame wreathing Streko's sickle persist.

Ralsor will be moving the ship back further from the cage, allowing those on the upper deck to target—difficult as it will be—creatures within it. (Kal's magic missile, however, will be unerring.

[Ken]

Belarin squints as he reaches the ground, as though trying to perceive something about the cage. Then he moves forward and to the left, a reddish fire developing in his hand as does so. He then mutters darkly, "Crimson the glow of a dragon sage, crimson your blood within that cage..."

From his hands, he unleashes a fiery, blood-red stream of energy, surrounded by glittering, spiraling threads of silver.

Ranged Touch Attack at the creature on the left: 24 (19 + 5) -- yay me!
Damage: 8

[mike]

Torhak rushes up to the closest of the walking dead.

"It appears that you have lost your grave," he mutters to the creature. "Here - let me help you find it again."

With a grunt, he swings his axe at the creature.

---

Crap. Thought I rolled better than an eight for initiative ... didn't get to post it in time. Doesn't really matter, though.

If it's logistically possible, Torhak's charging. If not, he's just heading over and attacking in the most expedient manner possible.

[Jeff]

Round 1

19 = Belarin
18 = Grafth
17 = woman in the cage
16 = Streko
15 = Allies (Ralsor, Amal, etc.)
11 = Kal / Tangat
8 = Torhak
5 = Enemies
4 = Goran
______________________

Belarin moves out from under the Thunderhead even as Ralsor shifts the ship back and eastward to allow those moving to the upper deck a better view. When he has a better sight on the creatures within the cage, he looses his fire. The swirling red flames pass easily through the bars of the cage and engulf the left-most creature, which he can see looks like it's been stabbed numerous times already. Making not a single soud of anguish, the figure drops heavily to the floor of the cage. The fire melts from existence.

Grafth moves slowly in a circle, taking in the host of new smells around him: the countryside, the wild grasses, the earth and recent passage of the warforged soldiers: metallic and woody. He also smells death: the figures moving in the cage are most certainly dead, but they have barely begun to decompose. The woman is there, too, and she is quite alive, though the unpleasant odor of sweat and urine clings to the cage itself. There is something more, the smell of an older human, nearby. But Grafth cannot see a figure to match the smell. Perhaps when the chaos of moving bodies desists, he can pinpoint the trail.

The woman herself seems to pause for a moment to catch her breath. She wields an elegant rapier in hand, but nothing else, and has clearly been stabbing at the animate corpses.

Amal runs to the ballista room facing the field of battle, but none can see what he's doing yet, if anything.

Streko stands near Mist and Lever remain in the cargo hold, who are watching both Captain Relith and the battle through the portholes. The sickle in his hand is still wreathed with fire.

By the time Kal reaches the railing of the upper deck, the Thunderhead has moved far enough away for him to make out the shapes within the cage, dark though they appear. With a quick word, he casts a spell. Two glowing darts streak from up high down below, through the bars, and into the next closest corpse. The blast makes it stumble back, and produced a gaping, bloody hole in its chest—which the woman has an excellent view of. Tangat jumps up, placing his two front paws on the railing, and he watches the battle with intelligent doggy eyes.

Torhak hustles across the thick grass and makes it all the way to the cage, his axe ready. He's pretty quick for a dwarf! The woman, happy to turn her eyes from the grisly sight before her, glances sidelong at the burly, tattooed dwarf with the massive war axe.

Your timing is good,[/color] Matheu projects to Torhak, and launches himself into the air.

The animate dead, unafraid of their new enemies, surge forward with an unexpecte burst of speed. The one that Kal's magic missiles hit, unimpeded by its ghastly wound, reaches for the woman. One arm grabs hold of her left arm and pulls. The woman bites back a scream of pain as her arm almost jolts from its socket. She manages to pull her arm free from the zombie's grasp, but its vicelike grips tears at her skin as she does. The other zombie, this one a young female about the living woman's own age, moans and reaches long-nailed fingers toward her face. The rapier-wielding woman sidesteps just in time, but her back is to the corner of the cage.

It's quite a daunting shot for Goran, looking down from the railing of the ship down to the zombies in the cage...and with a living woman beside them. Deciding only to take a single, well-aimed shot rather than the hasty two he can normally loose in the same span of time, the ranger draws back and releases. The arrow sings through the air, passes through the bars, and sinks into the zombie's neck mere inches away from the woman herself. Still, the dead creature comes on, but it's body doesn't look like it can take much more.


Refresh...

_______________________________

• Belarin's attack: 25 (8 damage to enemy)
  
• Kal's magic missiles do 9 damage to enemy
  
• Torhak double moves. (Unable to charge and hit a viable target, but next round he's ready to.)
  
• Zombie's attacks: 22 (hit, 6 damage to woman), 12 (miss)
  
• Goran's attack: 15 + 7 = 23 / damage is 10 (but only really 5)