Outside 47: [Insert seasonal phrase that will be outdated when this thread ends]

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

"There's magic at work here, honored champion, but not the wholesome magic of Father Io," Meepa whispers. "Magic older than the bones of the world, wild and wrong."

Our heroes will soon come to a fork in the path. A quick huddle from the kobolds reveals that this juncture didn't exist before. The left path looks decrepit, tiny sand dunes creeping across the cracked and pitted flint path. The prickly desert plants have grown into a tunnel here, their dead branches bleached like bones. A scent wafts down the tunnel, a scent of dust and stale air thick. A crypt smell. The smell of dry rot. The road looks more intact down the right path, the walls of the canyon growing tall and looming, the sandstone monuments bearing thick gouge marks in the stone. Sets of three deep, parallel furrows dug into solid rock.

The kobolds take out their spears.

They can tell something is up, no matter which way our heroes go.

And of course, they look to Kothar for direction.

"The path has been twisted," Meepa reports. "Our home is as the warren of strangers to us. You must decide, honored champion, which path shall we take?"

Left or right?

[bc56]

Yellow Sands Waste

Kothar sniffs the air. "I smell death and rot. I understand that better than these gouged rocks. We go left. Stay close." Kothar starts down the left path. The Kobolds will start to feel a presence radiating from him. It bolsters their minds and bodies. They feel more sure of what they believe, and bolder too, wells of confidence and courage forming in their minds. Moreover, their bodies are shielded by the holy power, they become more resilient of body and mind.

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

Woo, paladin auras.

To the left it is! The kobolds huddle close, following near Kothar with their spears at the read. They really aren't much of a threat to anything that could potentially give the paladin trouble, but they'll certainly try to help!

The tunnel of bleached branches grows thicker the deeper Kothar goes, the occasional actual bone sticking out of the hedge. The worn path here is covered in little heaps of sand, but thankfully nothing could really obscure the road. The plant growth nicely defines things after all. Before long, something will be found looming before our hero.

A coffin.

A coffin made of bones.

Or the bleached branches of desert plants.

They look so similar that distinguishing between the one and the other is nearly impossible.

The coffin sits atop a raised dais of sandstone, strange writing that looks reminiscent of elven etched into the rock. This path appears to be a dead end, otherwise.

Nothing has attacked.

Yet.

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Wizards' Tower]

"Spaaaakooooo? Spaaaaaakooooo! Let me iiiin! Pleeeeeease?" A rather frazzled-looking Sylvess, not even bothering to hide his dragonyness for once, is knocking at the entrance door to the Wizards' tower.

He looks...very not okay.

Someone might want to let him in before he starts crying or something.

[Earl of Purple]

Forlorn Cave

"What happened, Petey? Who is it? I heard gunfire and screaming. You can't remember me? Don't kill me, please! Don't kill me and wear my face like my uncle's! Please, don't!" The problem with a group of about fifteen people is that everyone knows everyone else, even if they don't often talk to each other. So whilst Metalhead's disguise might prevent people from realising he's an impostor immediately, asking names of people he should know might. Though on the bright side, Metalhead knows the one-legged pirate's name is 'Petey'. The boy is also sobbing even louder now, though as he's not screaming it isn't as loud as it could be.

[Leostales]

Forlorn Cave

"What happened, Petey? Who is it? I heard gunfire and screaming. You can't remember me? Don't kill me, please! Don't kill me and wear my face like my uncle's! Please, don't!" The problem with a group of about fifteen people is that everyone knows everyone else, even if they don't often talk to each other. So whilst Metalhead's disguise might prevent people from realising he's an impostor immediately, asking names of people he should know might. Though on the bright side, Metalhead knows the one-legged pirate's name is 'Petey'. The boy is also sobbing even louder now, though as he's not screaming it isn't as loud as it could be.

Metalhead isn't sure if Petey is the kid's uncle or if Petey killed Petey's uncle and wore his face, either way he needs to nip this in the bud "Sorry, I didn't recognize you. I thought you were with the intruders. I think I killed them but wasn't quite sure." He isn't sure this excuse will work, but it might fool the kid long enough for him to come out of there so Metalhead can gag him or something. (Metalhead doesn't want to hurt him as his religion/cosmic economy system prevents him from killing kids.)

[Recaiden]

"Spaaaakooooo? Spaaaaaakooooo! Let me iiiin! Pleeeeeease?" A rather frazzled-looking Sylvess, not even bothering to hide his dragonyness for once, is knocking at the entrance door to the Wizards' tower.

He looks...very not okay.

Someone might want to let him in before he starts crying or something.

Oh look it's Spako's weird boyfriend.
The door opens and a Cleo (with all her dragonyness hidden) welcomes him in.
"Spako's just upstairs. What's wrong?"

[bc56]

Yellow Sands Waste

Kothar holds up a hand to signal the Kobolds to stand back. He extends his senses, feeling for anything unnatural in the room. The ability should detect any undead, fiends, or angels hiding nearby, although for all Kothar knows, the coffin could be lead-lined.

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

Undeath.

This place is thick with undeath.

It seeps from the bony walls like fog.

It billows from the gaps in the coffin and creeps across the ground, greasy and cloying.

It curls its tendrils around the hearts of the living, making one's blood run cold with terror.

The paladin's aura bolsters the hearts of the three kobolds, but they're still looking pretty nervous. Just not terrified to the point that they'll be impaired.

Something is moving inside the hedge. Pushing branches out of the way. They snap, splinter, with a sound more like breaking limbs than shattered wood. And then, stepping carefully onto the path, is a copper scaled kobold wrapped in a heavy gown of cloth that obscures her lower body completely. The trio looks shocked. "Seetha? Bahamut be praised! We thought you were dead!" exclaims Kinex, one of the quieter of the trio. Kothar probably would have gotten the impression that the little scale-brother was in mourning.

Seetha doesn't reply. Instead, she simply beckons before taking a step back.

"W-wait! Seetha! Don't go off on your own! We found an honored champion to free our great leader!" Kinex calls out as he starts forward toward the gap in the hedge.

[bc56]

Yellow Sands Waste

"Hold." Kothar says to Kinex, holding him back. "This place is full of the trickery of the dead." He calls out to "Seetha," COME. His voice echoes with divine authority, and the order is difficult to resist.

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Wizards' Tower - Yeah, prolly oughta be in Home]

Oh. That's not Spako.

Oh, wait, Sylvess is himself and not in one of his various disguises. That wasn't meant to happen! And Cleo's being so normal about it! Did she already know? Did she figure it out? Did Spako tell her? He asked Spako not to tell anyone without his permission! He wouldn't, would he?

So the dragon just sort of freezes there in the doorway, uncertain, confused, the panic visible in his eyes, urging him to just bolt, run away, try again another day. "U-uh, u-u-ummm, I don't- I, um." Nope, nothing but awkward stammering coming out.

[Shadowcaller]

[Tauron's Workshop]

Tauron makes a bow before them once they accept his gift and then leads the way down to his "workshop".
As it turns out, as the metal gates slide open, it looks far more like a surgery room than place for industrial labor. Like in the main hall, the dominating color is white, looking all the more sterile and artificial as no natural light here. Instead the workshop is illuminated by blue tubes in the ceiling. There does seem to be more than just this room however as the blue light reveals three more doors leading north, west and east.
In the middle of the workshop is a large slab of white metal and right next to it floats two metal beings made up of a floating orb and number of arms that ends in what look like surgical instruments rather than hands. The follow Tauron with their many-eyed gazes as he walks inside. "The specimen has arrived."

"Oh. I'll attend to it later." The artificial being replies with a dismissive gesture, then turning to the angels. "Fay, would you mind laying down on the slab and tell me a bit about yourself before we begin? Unless you don't want to of course. I can start right away, but I'd prefer to get your feedback first. The more I know about you the more accurate I can make my enhancements." Tauron says as he pats the stab with one of his four hands.

[Earl of Purple]

Forlorn Cave

"No, you're not Petey. My uncle's got one leg, and needs crutches. He can't bend low enough to look in this cupboard. He'd have been kicked ashore years ago if he weren't so good a navigator. Not that we've needed one since the wreck found us here and the Cap'n started worshipping here, getting the rest of the crew in. Most of 'em, anyway. They've been changing, since." The child doesn't leave the cupboard, though it looks like he's not going to pose much difficulty.

[Leostales]

Forlorn Cave

"No, you're not Petey. My uncle's got one leg, and needs crutches. He can't bend low enough to look in this cupboard. He'd have been kicked ashore years ago if he weren't so good a navigator. Not that we've needed one since the wreck found us here and the Cap'n started worshipping here, getting the rest of the crew in. Most of 'em, anyway. They've been changing, since." The child doesn't leave the cupboard, though it looks like he's not going to pose much difficulty.

Metalhead figures he's got two options, negotiate with the kid, or knock him out. He decides to go with the first option. "Look, if I promise that you and your uncle will make it out of this alive, will you help me get rid of the others in here?" While he asks this, he slowly reaches into his pocket for his last remaining tranquilizer dart (his other ones were lost before his entering the nexus).

[Ashen Lilies]

[Dragon Mountain]


Cass agrees with Damon's assessment a bit more than Marshall's. That ugly thing sure is spooky, but she's not inclined to trust these dwarves, either. She raises her hands, and another fog starts to creep across the battlefield - an icy cloud that spreads from her upturned palms and sinks into the mud surrounding the combatants as she attempts to freeze everyone in place.

[Earl of Purple]

Forlorn Cave

"My crew's my family. I... I shouldn't betray them. But... The things the Cap'n has them do... They ain't right. And what's happened, they ain't human no more, some of 'em. Sure, I'll help. My uncle and me, yeah? You promise? What d'you want to know?" The lad's still scared, and he's not leaving the cupboard, but he's not quite as scared of Metalhead any more.

[Leostales]

"Just answer my questions. Where are the prisoners? Who are the big threats in this facility? Where would they be located?"
He's not expecting detailed directions, but hopefully this kid can give him a clue to where he should go next.

[Morty]

[Dragon Mountain]

The foglet loses its footing as the muddy ground underneath it shifts and buckles. There's a rumble in the distance, as though something noticed the movement of the rock and soil. Regardless, it leaves the creature no time or opportunity to defend its back, and Damon's claws. It shrieks, flailing around and swiping blindly at him with its own claws... but then Cassandra's spell freezes the mud around it and the dwarves. The latter utter cries of surprise as they're stuck in place, while the foglet is left trying to awkwardly dig into Damon with its claws and mouth. Between the lighting burn and the deep gouges in its back, its efforts are poor.

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

Kinex hesitates at the command, confused with the lizard paladin's concern. But he listens. Kobolds are quite accustomed to following orders, after all.

As for 'Seetha'?

The other kobold jerks slightly, trying to resist, then steps forward onto the flint path.

clopclopclop

She doesn't have normal feet at all. No scales. No claws.

Instead, the has the disgusting hoofed feet of a mammal. A donkey.

With a snarl of rage, the ghoul's disguise disintegrates, revealing a lanky humanoid covered in patchy, greasy fur. Hoofed feet, claws for hands, sagging breasts, and a hyena-like face. A repulsive creature by any account. It leaps toward Kothar with its claws grasping and jaws full of yellow teeth yawning wide!

[bc56]

Yellow Sands Waste

Kothar calmly takes a step back from the ghoul, and in one fluid motion draws his axe from his belt and swings, the iron blade bursting into both arcane and divine flames. Furthermore, if it connects, it should be clear that Kothar is inhumanly strong, hitting with the force of a small giant. "Foul creature! DIE!"

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

The axe bites deep into the horror's sternum, filling the air with the scent of burning, rancid meat. With a gurgling hiss the monster collapses into a heap of rotted giblets, bits of bone, a few teeth, some hair, and fine sand.

Well!

Apparently it listened again.

How very cooperative of it!

Kinex looks at the remains for a long while.

There, mixed in with the rotted bits of organs, are a few bloody copper scales.

"Seetha... she's dead. She's gone, isn't she?" the kobold whispers. "They ate her..."

[bc56]

Yellow Sands Waste

"It would seem so. May she rest in the warmth of paradise, surrounded by those she loves." The words carry an eerie echo of the past to Kothar; the last time he heard those words, he was the one in Kinex's shoes, and the mutilated corpse was his wife.

There's a long and mournful silence.

Then Kothar approaches the coffin. "What monstrosity lurks in here?" He dons his shield in preparation for a fight, the ghoul caught him off guard, and hefts the axe high overhead, before bringing it crashing down on the center of the coffin with his massive strength, clearly intending to bisect any undead creating that might be lurking within.

[billtodamax]

Dragon Mountain

Marshall unholsters and then swings his spear-like implement around in a circle at his feet, ink leaking out of the tip and neatly arranging itself into a geometrically patterned circle on the ground below him. I hold my will against yours, creature. Be thrice bound, by earth, by chain, and by word. At his sentence the chains around his torso begin to stir as magic coalesces in the circle. Three chains fly forward toward the creature, attempting to seize it around the arms and neck and wrench it to the ground.

[Rebonack]

[Yellow Sands Waste]

The words do sting a little bit, don't they?

Kinex tries to look brave, but his little kobold heart is breaking.

And then the axe is brought down on the coffin, blasting it to splinters!

Inside is a corpse.

The corpse of a female kobold, half eaten.

The remaining flesh looks like it had been growing back out, blighted and distorted.

Ghoul flesh.

Flames both divine and magical incinerate the body, setting the coffin ablaze and turning the profane alter into a holy funeral pyre.

Kinex buries his scaly little face on Meepa's shoulder and weeps openly as the other two kobolds comfort him.

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Dragon Mountain]

Damon hisses in alarm and darts back a step, redoubling the coating of flames around him to avoid getting caught by Cass's ice as well. He'd like to not be frozen in place, thank you! But hey, it seems to have worked on the beastie as well. "Sstop wassting your time!" He shouts out to Marshall, "We're trying to kill thiss thing, not bind it!" With it safely held by the ice, that does make it a bit of an easy target. Damon raises a hand and lets out a continuous stream of black fire at the creature's back.

[Earl of Purple]

Forlorn Cave

"Big threats? The wagon outside's most dangerous, I reckon. After that, the Cap'n. He's got extra arms now, and carries four cutlasses. Then there's the Mate, he's gotten huge, and ate the last prisoner who tried to escape. I... I think he's lost his mind. Prisoners're downstairs, room next to the creepy statue. Cap'n's in the room with the statue, an' the Mate could be anywhere." So Metalhead needs to find a way downstairs. Maybe the end of the corridor, or the other room opposite this one?

[Leostales]

Forlorn Cave

"Thanks," says Metalhead. "Stay here if you know what's good for you. I'll let you know when I'm finished." He does a quick search of the room, after which, he heads into to the room opposite this one.

[Earl of Purple]

Forlorn Cave

The boy closes the door to his cupboard when Metalhead leaves. In the chamber, there's really not much. A cupboard full of tinned food, but it seems the cultists don't know what it is, because there's no sign of them actually taking advantage of that particular resource. There's also a collection of dirty kitchen knives with plastic handles and stainless steel blades, but most of them have gone missing. Only the shortest filleting knife, a tomato knife and the bread knife remain; the others have all probably been taken to be used as weapons.

The room opposite is a proper bedchamber, with four male humans in it. They look like they were recently on full alert because of a disturbance, but have decided that whatever was going on isn't really a threat. They're all wearing robes like the last lot Metalhead met, with a few aesthetic additions. One, a pale brown-skinned man with silver eyes and dreadlocks, is lowering a musket. Next to him is a pale, red-headed man with an eyepatch and too many fingers visible as he works on replacing the flint on his musket. The third is a tanned, green-eyed bald man with an extra arm, though it's small and looks rather weak; it grows from his right shoulder and holds a ramrod as he puts his own musket down. The final man wears a battered bicorn hat and is talking to a large lizard-like monkey sitting on his shoulder. The silver-eyed man notices Metalhead first. "Petey! What be the noise about, eh? All sorted, right?" Nobody has yet noticed that Metalhead's not copying Petey's one leg, so he's got a bit of time to deal with them... Though they all have mutations suggesting that, unlike the real Petey and his nephew, they haven't resisted the captain's attempts to convert them to his new religion.

[Recaiden]

[Tauron's Workshop]

Tauron makes a bow before them once they accept his gift and then leads the way down to his "workshop".
As it turns out, as the metal gates slide open, it looks far more like a surgery room than place for industrial labor. Like in the main hall, the dominating color is white, looking all the more sterile and artificial as no natural light here. Instead the workshop is illuminated by blue tubes in the ceiling. There does seem to be more than just this room however as the blue light reveals three more doors leading north, west and east.
In the middle of the workshop is a large slab of white metal and right next to it floats two metal beings made up of a floating orb and number of arms that ends in what look like surgical instruments rather than hands. The follow Tauron with their many-eyed gazes as he walks inside. "The specimen has arrived."

"Oh. I'll attend to it later." The artificial being replies with a dismissive gesture, then turning to the angels. "Fay, would you mind laying down on the slab and tell me a bit about yourself before we begin? Unless you don't want to of course. I can start right away, but I'd prefer to get your feedback first. The more I know about you the more accurate I can make my enhancements." Tauron says as he pats the stab with one of his four hands.

Specimen? Wonder what that is a specimen of. Apparently not relevant, though.
Fay nods and gets up onto the slab. Tentacles grab the end, then feet hop onto the edge, and then they roll into a 'being operated on' position.

What do you need to know?

The scout which was brought along to observe paces around the room.

[Wizards' Tower - Yeah, prolly oughta be in Home]

Oh. That's not Spako.

Oh, wait, Sylvess is himself and not in one of his various disguises. That wasn't meant to happen! And Cleo's being so normal about it! Did she already know? Did she figure it out? Did Spako tell her? He asked Spako not to tell anyone without his permission! He wouldn't, would he?

So the dragon just sort of freezes there in the doorway, uncertain, confused, the panic visible in his eyes, urging him to just bolt, run away, try again another day. "U-uh, u-u-ummm, I don't- I, um." Nope, nothing but awkward stammering coming out.

It wasn't hard to figure out, Sylvess. With Spako being the way he is...
"Well, you don't have to tell me. Just come on in."
Cleo holds a hand out to the panicking dragon.

[Leostales]

Forlorn Cave
"Twas an intruder, but we dealt with him soon enough. He got the others though. Just thought I'd let you mates know." Figuring that its only a matter of time before they notice his leg, Metalhead suddenly opens fire on them, aiming for the ones who have a musket over those who don't.