The Death of Golarion - Chapter 1: Pestilence

[Kallimakus]

There was the sound of a gunshot. Not a sight she was used to, and worse yet, one she thought she recognized. Laura feels her blade growing very heavy. There was a slight pain in her chest. looking down, she sees a neat hole there. That wasn't there before she thinks. The world is tipping over. She doesn't understand what was going on.

Laura clatters to the ground. Doesn't seem very alive.

[NeoSeraphi]

Laura's vision clouds over...and she drifts off.

Darkness. Silence. Death itself...is...peace. Her soul, if she even thinks of such things, can feel a fine serenity, and in the back of her mind, she hopes that Kaiser will experience this same feeling one day.

But the peace does not last. Maybe it is hours later. Maybe days. But Laura's peace is interrupted by a single drop of water.

...Rain?

Her eyes open. A foreign action. An action that takes so much effort, so much effort it never did before. But she opens her eyes and when she looks up, she finds herself in a garden. A strange garden in the back of a castle.

Spoiler

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A man approaches her, carrying an umbrella. He holds it over Laura's head. Laura looks down and realizes she is unarmed, and does not have her armor. Rather, she looks a bit younger, and is wearing one of her favorite casual outfits.

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"I beg your pardon, Madame Eide, but I am afraid that the lady of the castle wishes to have a word with you."

[Kallimakus]

The realization dawns on her. She had expected sorrow and anger. They were there, but distant. Somebody else's problem. Right now, a gentleman was shielding her from the rain. She stares at the castle in awe. "Thank you" she says to the man, "Lead on"

She follows the man.

[NeoSeraphi]

The butler leads Laura inside and requests that she wait in the parlor. Laura sits on a fabulous-looking couch and waits patiently. Three minutes turns into five. Five minutes into ten. The butler returns, placing a cup of chamomile tea and a plate of scones on the coffee table in front of Laura. He bows politely and walks off.

After a full hour of waiting, the butler finally returns. "Thank you for your patience, Madame Eide. I would say that I appreciate you taking time from your busy day to meet with my lady, but we both know you aren't busy at the moment."

He leads her to a giant hallway that looks almost like a throne room. And at the end of the hall...sits an elegant young woman.

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A young, blond woman with ribbons in her hair. The ribbons perk up around her twin tails, they look almost like...rabbit ears. She is carrying an umbrella, but the umbrella has a cat's face sticking out of the top. And when Laura peers underneath, she can see blood, muscle and bone. It's like the umbrella has...a body?!

Floating next to her is some strange red creature. Plump, and flapping a pair of small wings, it looks almost pitiful in its pathetic existence.

"Hmm...is it time already, Master?" the woman says finally, taking a sip of her tea. "You certainly aren't holding anything back in this world. If you kill one of these players of yours too early, they may lose interest, you know?"

She stands up and her eyes settle on Laura. "Welcome to Castle Alucard. My name is Rachel Alucard. I am an Observer, and a faithful servant to my master, NeoSeraphi. Please, have a seat. You and I have much to discuss."

[userpay]

Would War ever play fair? First his damned magics, then his minions, now ambushes from above. Ahkox snarls as he yanks a javelin from it's sheath on his back and chucks it at the shooter before moving to break line of sight. Delay War... That seemed to be the 'game' for the moment and it did not sit well with the half-orc. "For all your confidence War you seem unwilling to engage yourself. Scared? Or is it just more amusing for you to exert yourself though proxies?" As much as Ahkox wanted to charge in that sniper would need to be dealt with.

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Javelin Attack (1d20+4)[6]
Damage (1d6+3)[9]

[Kallimakus]

Laura takes the offered seat, her modest dress slightly at odds with the fabulous interior. She waits for the tea to cool down a little, hoping that she would have time to finish it, as well as the delicious-looking scones. Then she finishes them, and keeps waiting. The butler returns, and she doesn't really feel the need to refute him. She was dead. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but it had not been this, not exactly. She follows the butler and spies a rather odd-looking girl. One with equally odd accessories. She listens to her speak, to some unseen master. Her god?

"Thank you for your warm welcome." she says, bowing. She debated a little between bow and curtsy, but she had died a warrior. Bow was fitting. ""Then let us discuss. First, I'd like to ask, where is this?" She had other questions, like what was this NeoSeraphi, what was an Observer, and more. It sounded angelic.

[NeoSeraphi]

War laughs as Laura falls to the ground. "Yeah! Nice sh-"

*BANG* A gunshot rings out and War has to leap back to avoid losing a leg. He yells angrily. "Hey! What's the big idea?"

"You were given leave to delay as long as it took for me to take the shot," a cold voice replies back from the roof. "I took the shot. Why are you still standing around?"

War gulps and steps back. "Right, right. The conference. I'm on it!" He turns around and dashes away.

Ahkox throws his javelin and the mysterious person catches it, tossing it behind him casually. With a pull of the crank, another bullet enters the chamber. The man raises his rifle to his face, looks through the sight, and lines up the barrel with the space right between Ahkox's eyes. The half-orc needs to find cover.

[NeoSeraphi]

Rachel smiles. "This is a world in-between, a place of rest. A place for questions, and for answers. How to explain this...have you ever heard the expression 'all the world's a stage'? Well, in your case, young lady, this is especially true. You can think of yourself as an actor, a person on the stage who has agency. Someone who can affect the outcome of the story. Those who are not actors are far more predictable. Their free will is, at best, limited. Their actions, their decisions, and the consequences of all of this, that has already been planned out well in advance by my master."

[userpay]

Ahkox's eyes narrow even as he dives for the corner of a building. So not one of War's enspelled victims? As he places his back against the wall the half-orc pulls out another javalin. "So. You don't sound like another of War's lackeys." Delay the delayer? Hopefully one of the others would come along to deal with this fellow but for the moment Ahkox needed to keep his attention... Perhaps climb the side of the building?

[NeoSeraphi]

"Hardly. My name is Death. No relation to death, which is what your comrade just experienced when I blew her brains all over the street."

[Kallimakus]

"Alright" Laura says, taking all of that in. It sounded ludicrous. "So what... happens here?" she asks. "You're not going to do anything bad, are you?". She is on to the girl's true nature, or so she thinks anyway.

"So..." she starts, "Assuming what you say is true, is my part over? You said so while I entered. It's too early."

Spoiler: OOC

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Channelling her inner Saitama. She will also be using her Detect Evil as a move action to learn the strength of her aura. Out of curiosity, since she doesn't seem all that evil.

[NeoSeraphi]

Rachel takes a sip of her tea. She looks up at Laura crossly. "If you have a question, I am certainly willing to answer it. However, impugning the dignity of your host with your prying gaze and your magical abilities is most uncouth. I am a vampire, and I am above your petty distinctions of good and evil. Feel free to ask next time rather than snooping into a woman's privacy."

Rachel indeed does not appear to have any form of evil aura about her.

She takes a breath and calms herself. "I am going to help you return to life. As you said, your part in the play is not over. You made a mistake, and for that, you will be taken off the chessboard for the time being, as it were. You will not be penalized when you are revived, and you will be revived without any expense or effort on the part of your allies. However, the enemy has scored a point by defeating you, and their reward is that you will be kept here in the meantime, to give them some chance to seize an advantage without you to stop them."

[Kallimakus]

"Apologies for intruding." Laura says. "So I am to stay here until the enemies have gained suitable advantage for their success in assassinating me? So be it."

[NeoSeraphi]

Rachel smiles. "I am delighted to find such a competent participant for once. Now then, on to the reason for our meeting. With the explanations out of the way, the testing can begin."

Her butler steps forward and refills her tea cup. "Thank you ever so much, Valkenhayn. You are dismissed."

The man bows politely. "Of course, Lady Rachel." He walks out.

[Kallimakus]

"Testing?" Laura asks, puzzled. "What does this entail?"

[NeoSeraphi]

"It is very simple. I have the powers of an Observer. I will lend you those powers, to do with as you like, for a short time. And I will evaluate your character based on how you choose to use the power."

Rachel closes her eyes and a large crystal ball appears, floating in the air. "I can see everything. Every time, past, present, and future. Things that were, things that are, and things that may yet be. My power is not limited to this plane, nor even to this world. You may ask to view three different spaces, and I shall show them to you. Be as specific as you can, though I know you may need to be vague sometimes."

[Kvard51]

Korbach rounds the corner and sees the knight sprawled on the ground in a spreading pool of blood. He wants to stop, but he sees War running through the crowd ahead, still headed to the conference. How DO I stop him?

Instead of an answer, he recieves another question, in the form of a canister exploding at his feet. Gas and creatures emerge, causing him to stop in his tracks. Korbach calls to mind a spell he had seen recently, and using some of the power Urgathoa granted him, casts it. A bubble of clean, clear air forms around his head and he draws his sword to strike at the creature.

Spoiler: OOC

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Swift Action: Wild Arcana to cast Air Bubble (at +4 CL). He draws his sword and attacks as he steps to the nearest creature. [roll]1d20+1[/roll] for [roll]1d8+1[/roll] Slashing Damage.

He recognizes the creatures as he strikes, calling out over his shoulder, "Attack them with fire!"

[NeoSeraphi]

As Korbach charges through the clearing, Death chuckles and tosses a canister into the center of the intersection.

Before Korbach's feet emerges a cloud of strange, funguslike creatures. A foul green gas spits from their heads as they surround him. There are three enemies in total. Death turns and runs off.

[userpay]

Ahkox frowns as Death sends out their minions into the clearing. Perhaps he should have tried to make a break for it. Still the pattering of feet suggests that they aRe abandoning their station, allowing Ahkox to rush in to assist Korbach.

[Spoilet] Attack (1d20+5)[8] +2 if it's clear enough for charging.
Damage (1d8+3)[7] [/spoiler]

[MesiDoomstalker]

Malrut was about to thank Laura before she ran off. He paused, somewhat surprised before chasing after her. He rounded the bend just as the shot rang out and he instinctively dove for cover. His heart was racing and he tried to pin down what he should do. Luckily, clarity came as the unknown assailant summoned some Fungal Crawlers. Acting quickly, he rolled another bomb in his palm. He paused, peeking one eye out of cover to spot his target. Swiftly, he tossed the bomb at the group before they dispersed.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Stealth for Sniping (1d20-3)[2]
Touch vs. Fungal Crawler 1(?) (1d20+7)[22]
(1d6+6)[12] Fire Damage, Splash is 7 Fire damage, Ref Half DC 14

Spoiler: IC Interaction

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As Malrut walks through the city, pistol in hand, he thinks back to one day when he was particularly worried about dealing with spellcasters. He had asked her how he, as a marksman, could stop spellcasters from harming him outside his range.
I know how dangerous spellcasters are, Olivia. How do you handle them?
Olivia stops shooting and pops open the magazine. Once her gun is unloaded, she begins polishing the barrel. "I shoot them. In the face."
Mal pauses for a time, still unused to the direct, blunt answer
"Well... yes. I suppose I was asking for a more in-depth stratagem."
She looks at him. "Listen carefully then."
"You shoot them. In the face."
She brushes a lock of hair out of her eyes and continues. "It's easy to stop someone from casting. Doesn't matter how strong someone is. Doesn't matter how much armor they got. Doesn't matter how many enchantments they put up."
"You send something flying at a man's face, he's gonna shut up and cover it. It's instinct. Right here." She taps her forehead. "Makes em stop plotting and start worrying."
Mal ruminates for a long while before speaking again.
What if they are outside your range? Some spells have impressive length.
"Then you get a longer gun. Or you get out of the way, like everyone else. Never engage someone when they have a range advantage. You've seen what you can do with your own range advantage against someone with a sword."

[Kallimakus]

"It is very simple. I have the powers of an Observer. I will lend you those powers, to do with as you like, for a short time. And I will evaluate your character based on how you choose to use the power."

Rachel closes her eyes and a large crystal ball appears, floating in the air. "I can see everything. Every time, past, present, and future. Things that were, things that are, and things that may yet be. My power is not limited to this plane, nor even to this world. You may ask to view three different spaces, and I shall show them to you. Be as specific as you can, though I know you may need to be vague sometimes."

"I wish to see how Kaiser and Queen Galfrey are doing. That counts as one, right?" Laura asks. Mendev is her first concern. Except... she isn't really worried about the fate of the nation here.

[NeoSeraphi]

Malrut's explosion actually takes out all three fungal crawlers.

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

Rachel smiles and closes her eyes.

The crystal ball starts to glow.

Suddenly, Laura can see Mendev. There is a black cloud hanging over it, and a few soldiers are fighting with qasits and other monsters on the ground. The soldiers appear to have the upper hand, but she sees quite a few injuries suffered by her comrades before the landscape starts to move.

Now she is inside a medical tent. Galfrey is lying on her back, her cheeks flushed with signs of a fever. The strange black welts that Laura saw on the dead foxes are all around Galfrey's neck. She's barely breathing.

Outside again. This time, she sees Kaiser panting and spitting on the ground. "You...damn...witch..." he mutters weakly, the sword in his hand starting to shake.

He is surrounded by demon corpses, but the woman that approaches him looks totally healthy. Laura can tell that she's a succubus of some kind.

"Oh my, such a mouth on this one. I'll make sure to put it to good use, dear. Just lower your weapon and you can forget all about work and have some fun instead." She winks and blows him a kiss.

Kaiser takes a breath and then swings his blade out in an arc, managing to slash the succubus and knocking her backwards in surprise. The force of the attack causes Kaiser to drop to one knee, and he is struggling to get back up.

The succubus touches her cheek, her eyes red with rage when her hand comes back bloody. "I do so hate cold iron...but that's okay. You're halfway to being on your knees for me, right where I want you..."

Laura's vision returns. She's back in the castle.

[Kvard51]

The second explosion almost at his feet caused him to jumpa more than a foot to the left. Which turned out to be no big deal, since it killed all three of the Fungal Crawlers. So Korbach ran again, trying to catch War before he set the conference to killing each other.

Nothing further delayed his mad dash. As he arrived, he sensed Cat moving towards him through the crowd. The cat was calmly making his way through whatever was happening, but that didn't tell him much. Cat's are notoriously unaffected by events, no matter how large-scale they may actually be.

I need to move carefully here. War is more powerful than I am, so I need something that will stop him without leaving me facedown in a puddle of my own blood... As he walks slowly through the crowd, he speaks words of arcane defense, protecting himself as best he can for the coming confrontation.

Spoiler: OOC

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Cast Mage Armor and Prot from Evil

[roll]1d20+5[/roll] looking and listening for signs of War.

[NeoSeraphi]

War frowns as the group catches up to him at the conference. "You're kidding me! You lot are still fighting?"

His gaze falls on Ahkox, then he scoffs. "...You've got guts. I'll give you that. You know what? I'm good. This conference is already going to be hectic enough without its primary speaker. It's not like you all will gain any allies. So, take your win. I'll withdraw for now."

He closes his eyes and a portal opens up behind him. And with a quick bow, he backs through and disappears.

[Kallimakus]

Laura snaps back to what passes for present. It seemed that the situation was as the messenger had described. Galfrey was sick, evidently beyond the powers of healers. She was conflicted with what was going on with Kaiser. She was sure that Kaiser would come out on top.

"Next" Laura says, after considering everything, "I want to see what happens if we fail. If whatever Steve, War, Pestilence, Death and whoever else have their way."

"Finally" she continues, "I want to see what they are planning to do with the council I was meant to address.

[NeoSeraphi]

Rachel chuckles. "Well, now. That is an interesting question you've proposed. However, I'm afraid you are misunderstanding the situation."

She sits up. "At the risk of spoiling too much for you...the individuals you have seen so far do not share the same goal. If you wish to see their victory, I can show you, but only the victory of one of your enemies, not your enemies as a collective."

[Kallimakus]

Interesting Laura thinks to herself. She would need time to think on how to make use of it. And probably help too, from someone more wise. For now, that information seemed like something to hold on to. "In that case, what happens if the catfolk, Steve, has his way?" she asks. While she could be way off, Death, War, Pestilence... they sounded self-explanatory. So she chose the one that appeared to be the ringleader.

[NeoSeraphi]

Rachel's eyes glow for a moment and Laura peers into the crystal.

The scene is taking place underground. A few human soldiers whisper to one another. "Will we make it to the drow city by nightfall?"

"Who knows? For now, we just need to run."

"I can't believe we're going to beg those slavers for help!"

"What do you want to do, huh? Give up? The Heroes of Destiny didn't give up on us."

"Yeah, and look where it got them. They're all dead, and now none of us can even live on the surface anymore."

"Better to run underground and keep fighting than to stay and live in the mines..."

The two soldiers stop walking and each take off their hats, tears forming in their eyes.

"...We need to keep moving. I don't care if we have to fight for the rest of our lives. That damn god needs to be taken down a peg."

"We have no power. No numbers. No arms, and no armor."

"Then we'll die fighting with nothing. At least in death, we can have our freedom."

The vision blurs out.

[Kvard51]

They had done it. They had stopped War from setting the entire conference at each other's throats. But as he had so annoyingly pointed out, none of them were likely to garner the support the Dame Knight would have. Two half-orcs and two demon-spawn. I'm sure they'll listen with an open mind...

Korbach turns to the others. "I think we need to return to the church. The knight deserves a proper burial, and her compatriot must be told. Also,
she may be able to take the Dame's place in front of the council. We don't have a lot of time.

That said, he turns and runs back the way he had come.

[userpay]

Ahkox grates his teeth as War disappears yet again... Yet hopefully for good at least for today. Still something felt off... "She does deserve burial yet... Something don't feel right. War gave up all to easily for all his talk." He runs a hand over his face. "I ain't the best for talkin but I can keep an eye on things here till you return at least... Perhaps Alicia, my companion, can assist with the talks as well."