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<blockquote data-quote="Nonlethal Force" data-source="post: 3308676" data-attributes="member: 35788"><p>[Sblock=Announcement]</p><p>I would like to invite any of the readers of this thread who have not already done so to look at the sketch of Rhema that has been added to the first post under the Major Characters Sblock. Once again, thanks, Hunter![/Sblock]</p><p></p><p>The party was able to scour most of the rest of the villa before Brandt returned. In fact, the party was actually able to scour the entire villa with the woman remaining unconscious. Charis’ combined attack with the celestial dog had nearly brought the woman to the point of death. Fortunately, Charis’ minor healing magic was enough to stabilize the woman before death could take effect. Charis’ magic had eased the vital injuries and left the non-vital injuries to be handled by the woman’s body and the compassion of her evil deity.</p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father had stayed with the woman and kept vigil over her. In the time since he had given up the path of adventure to retire in the villa he had acquired a fair amount of skill in healing. He knew that if her condition would have worsened that he could have dealt with it until Charis had time to arrive with her magical gift of supernatural healing. Fortunately Charis was not needed throughout the day. The dark robed woman remained unconscious and Rhema’s father had an easy duty to perform while the four adventurers picked through the remains of the villa.</p><p></p><p>The sun passed over the entire sky as the foursome searched through the ash. It appeared as though there was nothing left to find within the remains of the villa. By the time Brandt returned they had lost a significant amount of hope toward ever finding more answers. They had spent all but the last hour of sunlight for the day sifting through the blackened fieldstones and the ash. Brandt’s appearance was a welcome sight for the weary party.</p><p></p><p>Semeion was typically always the most excited by the aspects of the arcane. Although he had seen it used many times by now, he continued to be in awe of the teleportation magic as Brandt’s imaged wavered before them and eventually solidified. <span style="color: Plum">“Brandt! You’ve returned!”</span> It was clear that Semeion was willing to grasp onto nearly anything that would bring hope after such a seemingly fruitless day of searching.</p><p></p><p>Brandt nodded as the others looked up to him. <span style="color: Lime">“I have indeed. And I do have some news.”</span></p><p></p><p>Rhema rubbed the backside of her hand over her forehead. The dark gray ash smeared across her already dark skin. <span style="color: PaleGreen">“News? At this point I’ll take anything. Our search here has gone rather poorly.”</span></p><p></p><p>Brandt looked at the rubble before him and couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief. He frowned and paused for a moment before speaking. <span style="color: Lime">“I still can’t believe this. But, you don’t want to hear me reflect on what you’ve been sifting through all day. You want my news, no doubt. Is there a place that we can go and relax and get you all out of the sun?”</span></p><p></p><p>Ischarus smiled as he looked down to his blackened hands and ash stained clothing. <span style="color: LightBlue">“Yeah, we’re done here for today, anyway. Another hour of sun won’t help us find something that isn’t here to be found.”</span> He nodded in the direction of the horses and Rhema’s father. <span style="color: LightBlue">“We can go over there. That’s where we’ll be spending the night anyway.”</span></p><p></p><p>The party didn’t think about telling Brandt their own news regarding their encounter with the woman. In their minds it had been a long time since the battle early in the morning. There had been so little excitement over the course of the day that it actually felt like several days had passed. In truth, they didn’t think about the fact that Brandt had not been around since the woman appeared.</p><p></p><p>As the foursome approached Rhema’s father with Brandt in tow, Brandt waved with a friendly motion. <span style="color: Lime">“Iasho, I have brought news to share.”</span></p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father smiled as Rhema added to Brandt’s words with a bit of her own enthusiasm. <span style="color: PaleGreen">“Yes, and Brandt’s return means that we can finally do something about the woman!”</span></p><p></p><p>Brandt stopped and turned around to face Rhema. Suddenly their collective oversight became quite clear. Brandt’s face wrinkled as his eyes shot a distinctively probing glance toward Rhema. <span style="color: Lime">“Woman? You didn’t tell me anything about a woman!”</span></p><p></p><p>A few moments of stunned silence kept the party from answering Brandt. Charis was able to collect her thoughts before the rest. <span style="color: Orange">“Well, I guess none of us realized that you didn’t know. She came quickly after you left, and it felt as though so much time had passed that you should have already known. At least on my part it wasn’t intentional.”</span></p><p></p><p>Ischarus nodded. <span style="color: LightBlue">“Indeed. It clearly wasn’t intentional at all. I guess we were all so down after a hard day’s work which resulted in nothing positive. Seeing you and hearing of news was more interesting than trying to recap you on our day.”</span></p><p></p><p>Brandt smirked and shook his head side to side. <span style="color: Lime">“And, this woman is where?”</span></p><p></p><p>Rhema pointed to her father. <span style="color: PaleGreen">“My father has been watching over her throughout the day. She possesses magical abilities, so we bound and gagged her after we dealt with her. We were hoping that you might have some other kind of suggestion for subduing her besides the gag and bindings.”</span></p><p></p><p>Semeion continued Rhema’s thought. <span style="color: Plum">“We were thinking of some kind of confinement where magic doesn’t work. Do you have any means of confining enemy priests who would use their powerful magic against you?”</span></p><p></p><p>Brandt looked back to where Rhema’s father stood. His eys grew wide with Semeion’s simple confession that she might be a foreign priest. <span style="color: Lime">“The woman is a heretic? She has the powers of an evil god within her?”</span> Brandt paused for a moment but then decided to speak again before anyone else had the ability. <span style="color: Lime">“I think you all better show me this woman. I don’t like it at all.”</span></p><p></p><p>A deep darkness seemed to overtake the party as they completed the approach to where Rhema’s father stood waiting for them. They were still glad to see Brandt, but his concern seemed to cast a shadow over their rejuvenated mood. When they reached where Rhema’s father stood, Brandt extended his hand in greeting towards Rhema’s father. <span style="color: Lime">“I am glad that you are safe, Iasho. What is this about a woman?”</span></p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father stepped back and motioned to a small area within the tree line. <span style="color: Lime">“We wanted to keep her out of the effects of the sun while her body handled the injuries. She has not woken up since this morning, but she is alive. I have regularly checked her breathing and her pulse since the morning. Her breathing is shallow and her pulse is slow, but she is indeed alive. In fact, I think she shows improvement.”</span></p><p></p><p>Brandt took several quick steps past Rhema’s father and he approached the woman with caution. His robes even parted around his feet on account of the speed at which he walked. He quickly knelt beside her and lifted the right fold of her cloak. His hand disappeared for a moment underneath the folds of the left side of her cloak until he found what he was looking for. He lifted the chain that had once suspended the holy pendant over her chest.</p><p></p><p>Brandt mumbled as he gripped the holy decoration. <span style="color: Lime">“This is no trifle decoration. This will tell us the deity that she serves.”</span> His monologue stopped short as he turned the pendant over in his hand so that the icon was able to be seen. Immediately he gasped and released the pendant. The chain fell limp against the woman’s robe as Brandt stood up in surprise.</p><p></p><p>Ischarus looked on with concern. <span style="color: LightBlue">“Well, this is stating the obvious a bit, but that’s not a good sign. What is it, Brandt?”</span></p><p></p><p>The experienced mage looked back to Ischarus. As he spoke, Brandt’s voice slowly transformed into something nearly resembling a growl. His eyes narrowed as he studied the woman carefully. <span style="color: Lime">“This is not good indeed. She is a follower of Yrraxea. Of course, wherever Yrraxea is I can assure you that Duu Mahr and his servants are not far away.”</span></p><p></p><p>[Sblock=Color-Free Speech Section]</p><p>The party was able to scour most of the rest of the villa before Brandt returned. In fact, the party was actually able to scour the entire villa with the woman remaining unconscious. Charis’ combined attack with the celestial dog had nearly brought the woman to the point of death. Fortunately, Charis’ minor healing magic was enough to stabilize the woman before death could take effect. Charis’ magic had eased the vital injuries and left the non-vital injuries to be handled by the woman’s body and the compassion of her evil deity.</p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father had stayed with the woman and kept vigil over her. In the time since he had given up the path of adventure to retire in the villa he had acquired a fair amount of skill in healing. He knew that if her condition would have worsened that he could have dealt with it until Charis had time to arrive with her magical gift of supernatural healing. Fortunately Charis was not needed throughout the day. The dark robed woman remained unconscious and Rhema’s father had an easy duty to perform while the four adventurers picked through the remains of the villa.</p><p></p><p>The sun passed over the entire sky as the foursome searched through the ash. It appeared as though there was nothing left to find within the remains of the villa. By the time Brandt returned they had lost a significant amount of hope toward ever finding more answers. They had spent all but the last hour of sunlight for the day sifting through the blackened fieldstones and the ash. Brandt’s appearance was a welcome sight for the weary party.</p><p></p><p>Semeion was typically always the most excited by the aspects of the arcane. Although he had seen it used many times by now, he continued to be in awe of the teleportation magic as Brandt’s imaged wavered before them and eventually solidified. “Brandt! You’ve returned!” It was clear that Semeion was willing to grasp onto nearly anything that would bring hope after such a seemingly fruitless day of searching.</p><p></p><p>Brandt nodded as the others looked up to him. “I have indeed. And I do have some news.”</p><p></p><p>Rhema rubbed the backside of her hand over her forehead. The dark gray ash smeared across her already dark skin. “News? At this point I’ll take anything. Our search here has gone rather poorly.”</p><p></p><p>Brandt looked at the rubble before him and couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief. He frowned and paused for a moment before speaking. “I still can’t believe this. But, you don’t want to hear me reflect on what you’ve been sifting through all day. You want my news, no doubt. Is there a place that we can go and relax and get you all out of the sun?”</p><p></p><p>Ischarus smiled as he looked down to his blackened hands and ash stained clothing. “Yeah, we’re done here for today, anyway. Another hour of sun won’t help us find something that isn’t here to be found.” He nodded in the direction of the horses and Rhema’s father. “We can go over there. That’s where we’ll be spending the night anyway.”</p><p></p><p>The party didn’t think about telling Brandt their own news regarding their encounter with the woman. In their minds it had been a long time since the battle early in the morning. There had been so little excitement over the course of the day that it actually felt like several days had passed. In truth, they didn’t think about the fact that Brandt had not been around since the woman appeared.</p><p></p><p>As the foursome approached Rhema’s father with Brandt in tow, Brandt waved with a friendly motion. “Iasho, I have brought news to share.”</p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father smiled as Rhema added to Brandt’s words with a bit of her own enthusiasm. “Yes, and Brandt’s return means that we can finally do something about the woman!”</p><p></p><p>Brandt stopped and turned around to face Rhema. Suddenly their collective oversight became quite clear. Brandt’s face wrinkled as his eyes shot a distinctively probing glance toward Rhema. “Woman? You didn’t tell me anything about a woman!”</p><p></p><p>A few moments of stunned silence kept the party from answering Brandt. Charis was able to collect her thoughts before the rest. “Well, I guess none of us realized that you didn’t know. She came quickly after you left, and it felt as though so much time had passed that you should have already known. At least on my part it wasn’t intentional.”</p><p></p><p>Ischarus nodded. “Indeed. It clearly wasn’t intentional at all. I guess we were all so down after a hard day’s work which resulted in nothing positive. Seeing you and hearing of news was more interesting than trying to recap you on our day.”</p><p></p><p>Brandt smirked and shook his head side to side. “And, this woman is where?”</p><p></p><p>Rhema pointed to her father. “My father has been watching over her throughout the day. She possesses magical abilities, so we bound and gagged her after we dealt with her. We were hoping that you might have some other kind of suggestion for subduing her besides the gag and bindings.”</p><p></p><p>Semeion continued Rhema’s thought. “We were thinking of some kind of confinement where magic doesn’t work. Do you have any means of confining enemy priests who would use their powerful magic against you?”</p><p></p><p>Brandt looked back to where Rhema’s father stood. His eys grew wide with Semeion’s simple confession that she might be a foreign priest. “The woman is a heretic? She has the powers of an evil god within her?” Brandt paused for a moment but then decided to speak again before anyone else had the ability. “I think you all better show me this woman. I don’t like it at all.”</p><p></p><p>A deep darkness seemed to overtake the party as they completed the approach to where Rhema’s father stood waiting for them. They were still glad to see Brandt, but his concern seemed to cast a shadow over their rejuvenated mood. When they reached where Rhema’s father stood, Brandt extended his hand in greeting towards Rhema’s father. “I am glad that you are safe, Iasho. What is this about a woman?”</p><p></p><p>Rhema’s father stepped back and motioned to a small area within the tree line. “We wanted to keep her out of the effects of the sun while her body handled the injuries. She has not woken up since this morning, but she is alive. I have regularly checked her breathing and her pulse since the morning. Her breathing is shallow and her pulse is slow, but she is indeed alive. In fact, I think she shows improvement.”</p><p></p><p>Brandt took several quick steps past Rhema’s father and he approached the woman with caution. His robes even parted around his feet on account of the speed at which he walked. He quickly knelt beside her and lifted the right fold of her cloak. His hand disappeared for a moment underneath the folds of the left side of her cloak until he found what he was looking for. He lifted the chain that had once suspended the holy pendant over her chest.</p><p></p><p>Brandt mumbled as he gripped the holy decoration. “This is no trifle decoration. This will tell us the deity that she serves.” His monologue stopped short as he turned the pendant over in his hand so that the icon was able to be seen. Immediately he gasped and released the pendant. The chain fell limp against the woman’s robe as Brandt stood up in surprise.</p><p></p><p>Ischarus looked on with concern. “Well, this is stating the obvious a bit, but that’s not a good sign. What is it, Brandt?”</p><p></p><p>The experienced mage looked back to Ischarus. As he spoke, Brandt’s voice slowly transformed into something nearly resembling a growl. His eyes narrowed as he studied the woman carefully. “This is not good indeed. She is a follower of Yrraxea. Of course, wherever Yrraxea is I can assure you that Duu Mahr and his servants are not far away.”</p><p>[/Sblock]</p><p></p><p>[Sblock=Deity Note]I have decided to move this Story Hour away from the traditional Greyhawk deities. The first two new deities have been introduced here: Yrraxea and Duu Mahr. More to come on these deities![/Sblock]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Nonlethal Force, post: 3308676, member: 35788"] [Sblock=Announcement] I would like to invite any of the readers of this thread who have not already done so to look at the sketch of Rhema that has been added to the first post under the Major Characters Sblock. Once again, thanks, Hunter![/Sblock] The party was able to scour most of the rest of the villa before Brandt returned. In fact, the party was actually able to scour the entire villa with the woman remaining unconscious. Charis’ combined attack with the celestial dog had nearly brought the woman to the point of death. Fortunately, Charis’ minor healing magic was enough to stabilize the woman before death could take effect. Charis’ magic had eased the vital injuries and left the non-vital injuries to be handled by the woman’s body and the compassion of her evil deity. Rhema’s father had stayed with the woman and kept vigil over her. In the time since he had given up the path of adventure to retire in the villa he had acquired a fair amount of skill in healing. He knew that if her condition would have worsened that he could have dealt with it until Charis had time to arrive with her magical gift of supernatural healing. Fortunately Charis was not needed throughout the day. The dark robed woman remained unconscious and Rhema’s father had an easy duty to perform while the four adventurers picked through the remains of the villa. The sun passed over the entire sky as the foursome searched through the ash. It appeared as though there was nothing left to find within the remains of the villa. By the time Brandt returned they had lost a significant amount of hope toward ever finding more answers. They had spent all but the last hour of sunlight for the day sifting through the blackened fieldstones and the ash. Brandt’s appearance was a welcome sight for the weary party. Semeion was typically always the most excited by the aspects of the arcane. Although he had seen it used many times by now, he continued to be in awe of the teleportation magic as Brandt’s imaged wavered before them and eventually solidified. [Color=Plum]“Brandt! You’ve returned!”[/Color] It was clear that Semeion was willing to grasp onto nearly anything that would bring hope after such a seemingly fruitless day of searching. Brandt nodded as the others looked up to him. [Color=Lime]“I have indeed. And I do have some news.”[/Color] Rhema rubbed the backside of her hand over her forehead. The dark gray ash smeared across her already dark skin. [Color=PaleGreen]“News? At this point I’ll take anything. Our search here has gone rather poorly.”[/Color] Brandt looked at the rubble before him and couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief. He frowned and paused for a moment before speaking. [Color=Lime]“I still can’t believe this. But, you don’t want to hear me reflect on what you’ve been sifting through all day. You want my news, no doubt. Is there a place that we can go and relax and get you all out of the sun?”[/Color] Ischarus smiled as he looked down to his blackened hands and ash stained clothing. [Color=LightBlue]“Yeah, we’re done here for today, anyway. Another hour of sun won’t help us find something that isn’t here to be found.”[/Color] He nodded in the direction of the horses and Rhema’s father. [Color=LightBlue]“We can go over there. That’s where we’ll be spending the night anyway.”[/Color] The party didn’t think about telling Brandt their own news regarding their encounter with the woman. In their minds it had been a long time since the battle early in the morning. There had been so little excitement over the course of the day that it actually felt like several days had passed. In truth, they didn’t think about the fact that Brandt had not been around since the woman appeared. As the foursome approached Rhema’s father with Brandt in tow, Brandt waved with a friendly motion. [Color=Lime]“Iasho, I have brought news to share.”[/Color] Rhema’s father smiled as Rhema added to Brandt’s words with a bit of her own enthusiasm. [Color=PaleGreen]“Yes, and Brandt’s return means that we can finally do something about the woman!”[/Color] Brandt stopped and turned around to face Rhema. Suddenly their collective oversight became quite clear. Brandt’s face wrinkled as his eyes shot a distinctively probing glance toward Rhema. [Color=Lime]“Woman? You didn’t tell me anything about a woman!”[/Color] A few moments of stunned silence kept the party from answering Brandt. Charis was able to collect her thoughts before the rest. [Color=Orange]“Well, I guess none of us realized that you didn’t know. She came quickly after you left, and it felt as though so much time had passed that you should have already known. At least on my part it wasn’t intentional.”[/Color] Ischarus nodded. [Color=LightBlue]“Indeed. It clearly wasn’t intentional at all. I guess we were all so down after a hard day’s work which resulted in nothing positive. Seeing you and hearing of news was more interesting than trying to recap you on our day.”[/Color] Brandt smirked and shook his head side to side. [Color=Lime]“And, this woman is where?”[/Color] Rhema pointed to her father. [Color=PaleGreen]“My father has been watching over her throughout the day. She possesses magical abilities, so we bound and gagged her after we dealt with her. We were hoping that you might have some other kind of suggestion for subduing her besides the gag and bindings.”[/Color] Semeion continued Rhema’s thought. [Color=Plum]“We were thinking of some kind of confinement where magic doesn’t work. Do you have any means of confining enemy priests who would use their powerful magic against you?”[/Color] Brandt looked back to where Rhema’s father stood. His eys grew wide with Semeion’s simple confession that she might be a foreign priest. [Color=Lime]“The woman is a heretic? She has the powers of an evil god within her?”[/Color] Brandt paused for a moment but then decided to speak again before anyone else had the ability. [Color=Lime]“I think you all better show me this woman. I don’t like it at all.”[/Color] A deep darkness seemed to overtake the party as they completed the approach to where Rhema’s father stood waiting for them. They were still glad to see Brandt, but his concern seemed to cast a shadow over their rejuvenated mood. When they reached where Rhema’s father stood, Brandt extended his hand in greeting towards Rhema’s father. [Color=Lime]“I am glad that you are safe, Iasho. What is this about a woman?”[/Color] Rhema’s father stepped back and motioned to a small area within the tree line. [Color=Lime]“We wanted to keep her out of the effects of the sun while her body handled the injuries. She has not woken up since this morning, but she is alive. I have regularly checked her breathing and her pulse since the morning. Her breathing is shallow and her pulse is slow, but she is indeed alive. In fact, I think she shows improvement.”[/Color] Brandt took several quick steps past Rhema’s father and he approached the woman with caution. His robes even parted around his feet on account of the speed at which he walked. He quickly knelt beside her and lifted the right fold of her cloak. His hand disappeared for a moment underneath the folds of the left side of her cloak until he found what he was looking for. He lifted the chain that had once suspended the holy pendant over her chest. Brandt mumbled as he gripped the holy decoration. [Color=Lime]“This is no trifle decoration. This will tell us the deity that she serves.”[/Color] His monologue stopped short as he turned the pendant over in his hand so that the icon was able to be seen. Immediately he gasped and released the pendant. The chain fell limp against the woman’s robe as Brandt stood up in surprise. Ischarus looked on with concern. [Color=LightBlue]“Well, this is stating the obvious a bit, but that’s not a good sign. What is it, Brandt?”[/Color] The experienced mage looked back to Ischarus. As he spoke, Brandt’s voice slowly transformed into something nearly resembling a growl. His eyes narrowed as he studied the woman carefully. [Color=Lime]“This is not good indeed. She is a follower of Yrraxea. Of course, wherever Yrraxea is I can assure you that Duu Mahr and his servants are not far away.”[/Color] [Sblock=Color-Free Speech Section] The party was able to scour most of the rest of the villa before Brandt returned. In fact, the party was actually able to scour the entire villa with the woman remaining unconscious. Charis’ combined attack with the celestial dog had nearly brought the woman to the point of death. Fortunately, Charis’ minor healing magic was enough to stabilize the woman before death could take effect. Charis’ magic had eased the vital injuries and left the non-vital injuries to be handled by the woman’s body and the compassion of her evil deity. Rhema’s father had stayed with the woman and kept vigil over her. In the time since he had given up the path of adventure to retire in the villa he had acquired a fair amount of skill in healing. He knew that if her condition would have worsened that he could have dealt with it until Charis had time to arrive with her magical gift of supernatural healing. Fortunately Charis was not needed throughout the day. The dark robed woman remained unconscious and Rhema’s father had an easy duty to perform while the four adventurers picked through the remains of the villa. The sun passed over the entire sky as the foursome searched through the ash. It appeared as though there was nothing left to find within the remains of the villa. By the time Brandt returned they had lost a significant amount of hope toward ever finding more answers. They had spent all but the last hour of sunlight for the day sifting through the blackened fieldstones and the ash. Brandt’s appearance was a welcome sight for the weary party. Semeion was typically always the most excited by the aspects of the arcane. Although he had seen it used many times by now, he continued to be in awe of the teleportation magic as Brandt’s imaged wavered before them and eventually solidified. “Brandt! You’ve returned!” It was clear that Semeion was willing to grasp onto nearly anything that would bring hope after such a seemingly fruitless day of searching. Brandt nodded as the others looked up to him. “I have indeed. And I do have some news.” Rhema rubbed the backside of her hand over her forehead. The dark gray ash smeared across her already dark skin. “News? At this point I’ll take anything. Our search here has gone rather poorly.” Brandt looked at the rubble before him and couldn’t help but shake his head in disbelief. He frowned and paused for a moment before speaking. “I still can’t believe this. But, you don’t want to hear me reflect on what you’ve been sifting through all day. You want my news, no doubt. Is there a place that we can go and relax and get you all out of the sun?” Ischarus smiled as he looked down to his blackened hands and ash stained clothing. “Yeah, we’re done here for today, anyway. Another hour of sun won’t help us find something that isn’t here to be found.” He nodded in the direction of the horses and Rhema’s father. “We can go over there. That’s where we’ll be spending the night anyway.” The party didn’t think about telling Brandt their own news regarding their encounter with the woman. In their minds it had been a long time since the battle early in the morning. There had been so little excitement over the course of the day that it actually felt like several days had passed. In truth, they didn’t think about the fact that Brandt had not been around since the woman appeared. As the foursome approached Rhema’s father with Brandt in tow, Brandt waved with a friendly motion. “Iasho, I have brought news to share.” Rhema’s father smiled as Rhema added to Brandt’s words with a bit of her own enthusiasm. “Yes, and Brandt’s return means that we can finally do something about the woman!” Brandt stopped and turned around to face Rhema. Suddenly their collective oversight became quite clear. Brandt’s face wrinkled as his eyes shot a distinctively probing glance toward Rhema. “Woman? You didn’t tell me anything about a woman!” A few moments of stunned silence kept the party from answering Brandt. Charis was able to collect her thoughts before the rest. “Well, I guess none of us realized that you didn’t know. She came quickly after you left, and it felt as though so much time had passed that you should have already known. At least on my part it wasn’t intentional.” Ischarus nodded. “Indeed. It clearly wasn’t intentional at all. I guess we were all so down after a hard day’s work which resulted in nothing positive. Seeing you and hearing of news was more interesting than trying to recap you on our day.” Brandt smirked and shook his head side to side. “And, this woman is where?” Rhema pointed to her father. “My father has been watching over her throughout the day. She possesses magical abilities, so we bound and gagged her after we dealt with her. We were hoping that you might have some other kind of suggestion for subduing her besides the gag and bindings.” Semeion continued Rhema’s thought. “We were thinking of some kind of confinement where magic doesn’t work. Do you have any means of confining enemy priests who would use their powerful magic against you?” Brandt looked back to where Rhema’s father stood. His eys grew wide with Semeion’s simple confession that she might be a foreign priest. “The woman is a heretic? She has the powers of an evil god within her?” Brandt paused for a moment but then decided to speak again before anyone else had the ability. “I think you all better show me this woman. I don’t like it at all.” A deep darkness seemed to overtake the party as they completed the approach to where Rhema’s father stood waiting for them. They were still glad to see Brandt, but his concern seemed to cast a shadow over their rejuvenated mood. When they reached where Rhema’s father stood, Brandt extended his hand in greeting towards Rhema’s father. “I am glad that you are safe, Iasho. What is this about a woman?” Rhema’s father stepped back and motioned to a small area within the tree line. “We wanted to keep her out of the effects of the sun while her body handled the injuries. She has not woken up since this morning, but she is alive. I have regularly checked her breathing and her pulse since the morning. Her breathing is shallow and her pulse is slow, but she is indeed alive. In fact, I think she shows improvement.” Brandt took several quick steps past Rhema’s father and he approached the woman with caution. His robes even parted around his feet on account of the speed at which he walked. He quickly knelt beside her and lifted the right fold of her cloak. His hand disappeared for a moment underneath the folds of the left side of her cloak until he found what he was looking for. He lifted the chain that had once suspended the holy pendant over her chest. Brandt mumbled as he gripped the holy decoration. “This is no trifle decoration. This will tell us the deity that she serves.” His monologue stopped short as he turned the pendant over in his hand so that the icon was able to be seen. Immediately he gasped and released the pendant. The chain fell limp against the woman’s robe as Brandt stood up in surprise. Ischarus looked on with concern. “Well, this is stating the obvious a bit, but that’s not a good sign. What is it, Brandt?” The experienced mage looked back to Ischarus. As he spoke, Brandt’s voice slowly transformed into something nearly resembling a growl. His eyes narrowed as he studied the woman carefully. “This is not good indeed. She is a follower of Yrraxea. Of course, wherever Yrraxea is I can assure you that Duu Mahr and his servants are not far away.” [/Sblock] [Sblock=Deity Note]I have decided to move this Story Hour away from the traditional Greyhawk deities. The first two new deities have been introduced here: Yrraxea and Duu Mahr. More to come on these deities![/Sblock] [/QUOTE]
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