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Message: <blockquote data-quote="arwink" data-source="post: 1019449" data-attributes="member: 2292">Friday, September 22nd, continuedIt's a little after nightfall, Geoffrey theorising that even the seemingly isolated morals of the townsfolk could be affronted by an armed assault on their place of worship.  Blarth leads the group up to the Abbey's doorway, knocking loudly with a mailed gauntlet on the wood.  This time it takes the ageing cleric within longer to answer the door, the sound of his pacing whisper-soft as he moves through the room.  When he peers through the sliver of an opening, his pronounced eye-brows dance with irritation.  The beam of light that shines through the sliver illuminated Blarth's features in an orange light."What do you want?" the cleric demands.  "Blarth want in," Blarth says.  He punches one arm forward, hammering it into the doorway with as much strength as he can manage.  The doorway is solid oak, very thick, but it seems to dance back at the force of the blow.  With a sickening thump, it hits Desol in the forehead and knocks him to the ground."Blarth coming in," Blarth says simply, dusting his hands.  He pushes the doorway open, then steps in over the body. The entry alcove of the abbey is more ornate than it's rustic exterior would indicate.  A pair of water fonts flank the small room, the trickling water almost glowing in the light of the lamp hanging from the ceiling.  The icons of various religions of light line the wall, carved into the very wood.  Beyond the abbey itself is dark, the shadowy shape of neatly arranged pews and the alter all that can be made out in the darkness."What's that one," Geoffrey asks suddenly, pointing at a symbol hidden in the corner of the alcove.  "I recognise the others, but that symbol is unfamiliar.""This place is old," Halgo reminds him.  "Pre-imperial.  Maybe it's from one of the silent gods.""No," Geoffrey muses.  "I've studied most of them during my training.  Besides, Aphora and Amora are both here, and they're old Halark gods that weren't known in the empire for several hundred years.  That one's older, completely unfamiliar.""So it's something to look into later," Halgo shrugs.  "It's not going anywhere just yet, is it?"Geoffrey considers this for a few seconds, then shrugs. "I guess not.  Whose got empty waterskins or potion vials handy?  Those fonts should be holy water, and it's worth filling up any vials we've got.  Just in case."There are only a few such vials handy, but all are filled and carefully stored with the oily liquid from the font.  With the task complete, Yip slowly creeps forward into the darkness of the Abbey.  His stealth is far greater than his companions, and he moves like a silent shadow into the small chapel. He keeps his centre of gravity low, slinking up to one of the pews before peering over the top.  It's just far enough beyond the lamplight that his darkvision kicks in, letting him see the abbey in clearer detail.It also lets him see the two cloaked figures lingering against the walls, cloaked figures who both start moving their arms in gestures of silent spellcasting the moment Yip has moved into the room.  Bolts of energy shaped like bird talons fly across the room from both direction, striking Yip and burning his scales.  The small monk yelps in pain, and the noise is all the alert his companions need.Geoffrey has a light spell active, and the room flares into light the moment he steps out of the entry alcove.  The group finds themselves flanked by the cloaked figures, being charged on both sides.  The attackers now have scimitars drawn, and they remain disturbingly silent as they launch their attacks.  The first cuts Yip badly, while the other draws a line of blood on Blarth's arm.The copperheads retaliate.  Yip flips over the pew, using it for cover as he moves around to flank the attacker and crush it between Geoffrey and himself.  He lashes out with a tiny fist, snapping it into one of the pressure points for pain on the cloaked figure.  It flails wildly, the pain evident in its actions even if it makes no sound.  Geoffrey and Blarth hammer at their opponents with their weapons, both wounding their opponents.  Halgo uses one of his minor magics, a daze cantrip extended beyond its normal length.  When that doesn't work, he draws his crossbow and loads it.The attackers are easily outclassed by the copperheads, and they come to this realisation quickly.  The creature locked in battle with Blarth falls back, virtually sprinting along the edge of the Abbey in an effort to reach the alter.  Blarth is in immediate pursuit, although the cloaked figure has greater pace.  Halgo takes the opportunity to fire a crossbow bolt at the fleeing figure, but it flies wide.The other attacker struggles to break free of the combined assault of Geoffrey and Yip, but the pair keep him tightly wedged between them and press the attack.  As he struggles, the creatures cloak falls back to reveal his features - a hawklike face with glowing red eyes.  Geoffrey's training lets him recognise the creature instantly, a misshapen servitor-race of the Gauntian demon-worshippers that have threatened the empire for centuries."Kenku," he hisses.  "Gauntian spawned.The creature glares at him, slashing out with its scimitar, but Geoffrey's shield is in place to block the blow.  Geoffrey puts all his strength behind his retaliation, but the creatures defences are equal to the task.  It is less fortunate against Yip, who becomes a flurry of fists, feet and tail-strikes that almost instinctively seem to target vulnerable areas.In front of the alter, the second Kenku stops.  It's eyes swing wildly, noting the half-orc charging across the room to attack it and the crossbow wielding dwarf loading another bolt into its weapon.  The kenku kneels briefly, hammering the hilt of its scimitar against the floor, then retreats behind the alter in order to gain some cover against Halgo's missile fire.  It works admirably, but is much less effective against a charging Blarth.  He leaps over the edge of the last few pews, not even bothering to circle the alter to attack the kenku.  He swings his blade over his head, circling twice before it leaps forward to slice through the kenku's skull.  A fountain of blood spills across the alter.  "Puny bird-man," Blarth grunts.Then the floor beneath his feet buckles, throwing him off his feet.  As he shakes his head, getting his bearings, he sees an unnoticed trapdoor open.  The creature that emerges is pale-skinned and rotting, obviously undead.  Scraps of ancient armour still cling to its form, and it's hair is white and wildly arrayed around its head.  More disturbing are the patches of flesh that have been replaced with the fur of some animal, and the mangled lump of flesh at the end of one arm that appears to be the paw of some giant ape.It glares across the abbey with glowing red eyes, before turning it's attention to Blarth standing at its feat.  The warped ape-hand reaches forward, jagged claws extending from its flesh, and the creature gurgles with pleasure as it tears a great rent in the half-orcs armour.</blockquote>

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