Mercy in the Nine Hells... a solo game for Isida Kep'Tukari

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

*Hurridly Tess sings a song of speed, followed by the harmony of flight to make herself more mobile.*

"What do you see Aust?" Tess demands.

*Roscoe doesn't waste any words, but starts to don his armor.*

[OOC - swift song followed by harmony of flight for Tess. Roscoe begins his armor doning.]

 

[Emperor Valerian]

*As Tess prepares herself, the first waft of air from outside comes in. It is very cold, and a few flurries of snow drift into the room. HAman is also donning her armor, while Aust hangs out the window, trying to see.*

"There's people in the street, gathered around a body in the snow. One lady looks pretty hysterical."

*Aust squints some more*

"It looks like a man clad in furs... whatever happened to him, there's alot of blood in the snow down there."

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

*Cursing eloquantly, Tess flies out the window, calling to the others to meet her downstairs. She draws near rapidly, trying to see who it is that was killed, having a horrible sinking feeling it was Hadrada.*

*Roscoe finishes his armoring as fast as he could, grabs Devil Take Warning, and activates his boots of speed to run down to the street as soon as he can.*

 

[Emperor Valerian]

*Tess would see that outside the snow has now covered the streets of the small town to a depth of several inches. Footprints from all over lead directly to a gaggle of people gathered around a prone form.*

*The crowd is so interested and clustered around the form lying in the snow that they don't notice the woman fly out of a window and set down behind them. One woman is still crying hysterically, and is being alternately comforted by others present. When Tess is able to press forward, she can see the body is indeed, that of Hadrada.*

*The old man's white fur tunic has been slashed open in dozens of places, in which blood has only recently congealed. If she looks closely, Tess can see that in addition to the light covering of snow that now is over the body, there are large icicles sticking out like barbs from within his wounds. The wounds form a pattern, which Tess sickeningly would recognize as Infernal (considering her past relations with creatures that spoke that tongue):*

"Hax oblreth dowlrealth."

"You are next."

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

"Bitch!" Tess snarls in a low and growling voice, pushing her way though the crowd. "Haman! Where are you? I need you here now!"

*Turning to the crowd, Tess' eyes blaze with fury for Hadrada's senseless death.*

"What happened here? Did anyone see what happened here?" she demands.

 

[Emperor Valerian]

Haman, as well as the other two arrive momentarily. Haman has scarcely breathing hard, while Roscoe breaths like a man just finished running, and Aust is doubled over, out of breath. Both Haman and Roscoe already have blades drawn.*

"Jode save us," she'll mutter at seeing Hadrada's form.

*At Tess' call she'll look up.*

"Yes ma'am," one man will respond to Tess' request for witnesses, "I saw it. It was a shadowy thing... white so it blended with the street!"

"You damn fool! You saw nothing!" someone else will jump in. "I saw it! It was a spider, made of ice, huge and menacing!"

*Arguments erupt for a few seconds between would-be witnesses, till one person, whom Tess recognizes as the innkeep, pushes the young woman who was crying hysterically forward. After some gentle words from him, she'll speak.*

"I... I saw it, ma'am," she'll say, still shuddering slightly. "It... it was a thing... it looked like...like a gem... like a piece of rock, smooth-like, blue as the deepest i... ice. It was as wide as an oxcart... and half as t...tall as a m...man. It had... many l...legs... they skittered about, and it had six long whips of white, that it slashed this man with! Oh, it was horrible! It was not natural, it had no eyes, no teeth, just those horrible white whips! It was terrible!" *She begins to start to cry again.*

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

*Tess goes to comfort the child, as she reminds her so much of her own children after having a nightmare. As she hugs the poor young woman, she wracks her brain for anything she's heard of that could give her an insight into the nature of this beast.*

"Where did this beastie go?" Roscoe asks as gently as he can.

 

[Emperor Valerian]

[Tess got a 36 on her bardic knowledge]

You remember stories told to you as a child, of monsters such as this. They are sketchy, but they are a start. They had various names... ice spiders was one, but you remember your mother correcting you and telling you it was an elemental. She called them, 'walking ice,' and spoke that they served the lords and gods of the great, cold north.

It is probably a good guess that is not their proper name, and all you have in memory are stories of their evilness, slicing people and then melting into the snow, vanishing from all sight. You'd dismissed them as being imaginary along with the boogie man or gingerbread people...until now...

"It... it sank into the street! I swear I saw it sink into the street!" the girl will answer, wiping tears away as best she can.

"Sir, we checked the street... kicked all the snow all about. There was nothing underneath any of the snow... only snow and then the hard dirt. No burrows, nothing," one of the men volunteers.

 

[Isida Kep'Tukari]

"Then we ride to Arbor Pale. This stops now," Tess says with deadly menace in her voice. Her friends would recognize her expression as one that comes over her when fighting demons or devils; one of passionate hatred.

*Tess will look to the others to see if they wish to sleep further or ride tonight.*

 

[Emperor Valerian]

"Tess... you know my blade will follow you," Haman growls simply as she checks Hadrada's body one last time. Her eyes glow with the same gleam in Tess'. "If you wish, I can try to speak to Hadrada from beyond the veil... perhaps find out what did this to him. Should I?"