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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Black Omega" data-source="post: 584939" data-attributes="member: 79">From within the noxious cloud the group heard laughter booming then “Did you really think a feeble spell like that could stop me or the ceremony?  Kill them!  Kill them all!”The remaining, unsickened cultists readied daggers and rushed toward the group and Verick met them head on, one perfect stroke cutting off the head of the first to reach him.  Instead of blood, a vivid red cloud rushed from the cultists body and back toward the altar.  Verick swore under his breath then shouted “Don’t kill the cultists, it’s feeding the ritual!”A couple more fighters emerged from the stinking cloud and Kaz rushed forward to engage them.  But from the darkness to the side three shuriken  suddenly thunked into his body and he stumbled before resisting the effect of the poison and pushing on to confront who threw the shuriken, a slim woman with white hair and a navy blue ninja outfit.  Toshiro rushed forward immediately to help, taking a painful slash from one of the cult warriors before flanking the ninjaAnd from out of the sickly green mists a gaunt figure was suddenly seen, somersaulting through the air before landing in a low crouch.  Emaciated, with scraps of dead skin hanging from his undead frame, covered with dark ink tattoos, one of the undead monks they had encountered before.  With a leap he attacked Yukiyo, a kick rocking her back.  Acting quickly, Mir invoked the power of the Oak Father, and Mindra called upon his connection to the spirits.  But it wasn’t enough to turn the monkish ghoul.Verick knocked out the next cultist to reach him with a slam from the hilt of his katana, then the other cultists were lulled to sleep by a Sleep spell from Mir.  Freed from dealing with the peasants, Verick fearlessly charged right into the stinking cloud to get at Nagatori, following the sound of him chanting.Ignoring the other warriors, Kaz and Toshiro focused on the white haired ninja, though only Toshiro scored a hit.  She draw her own katana in a flash, scoring a hit on Kaz before retreating back toward the sickening mist.  Trying to keep her flanked, Toshiro stepped into the mist, disappearing from sight.  But a moment later someone new was getting violently sick.    Volar joined in the battle though, newly protected by a Shield spell, he cast an Acid Arrow that sizzled into the girl, distracting her enough for Kaz to get a hit as well.  Badly bloody now, the ninja stepped back from Kaz and vanished from view.Volar and Mindra were the best protected of the group, stills standing back in the hallway behind Mir and Yukiyo, who had been sending arrows into the cult warriors steadily.  That as no deterrent to the ghoulish monk though.  He leapt high, kicking off the wall above Yukiyo’s head to sent him somersaulting forward to land by Volar.  A lightning fast footsweep dropped Volar on his back and a follow up Tiger Claw drew blood.  But before the ghoul could follow up, Mindra evoked the spirits again, this time the burst of positive energy enough to send the ghoul fleeing back toward the back of the cavern.Mir’s started a Crab warchant, her bardic music to bolster everyone.  Which was good, Kaz was hacking up one of the cult warriors while two more had Yukiyo retreating down the hallway toward Mindra and Volar, though she was taking a toll with her arrows.  Volar dispelled the stinking cloud then made himself invisible.  And Verick came face to face with Nagatori, who simply smiled and lifted the obsidian blade “This is better than I could have hoped for…”  and with that he sliced his own palm, flicking the blood at Verick as he intoned “Be Held!”Mir spotted another , female, maho-tsukai, just recovering from the noxious cloud, and she rushed over, drawing her dagger before tackling the girl to the ground.   Kaz cut down the cult warrior fighting him but before he could get over to help Yukiyo he was cut down from behind, two sudden, perfect strokes of the ninja’s glittering katana and she appeared, standing over his nearly dead body.  Mindra was summoning wolves to help Yukiyo as well but for the moment he was trapped away from getting to Kaz and healing him.Verick resisted that first Hold spell.  And even the second.  But then Nagatori called upon the name of Iuchiban and the dark Kami, Fu Leng himself, heightening the power of the spell.  And finally Verick felt his body stiffen, all movement becoming impossible.  Invisibly, Volar managed to slip past the battle to get to Toshiro.  Toshiro was just recovering from the mists and Nagatori decided to take no chances.  He throw droplets of his blood before him and raised his hands, a stone wall rising between him and the others, leaving Nagatori alone..with O-Hisa and Verick.  After the previous failure, it was a delight to have Verick in his grasp at last.Mir and the Bloodspeaker girl continued to grapple, stabbing each other with their daggers., though Mir was coming out much the better of it.  Mindra kept the ninja busy with a summoned ape, then as Yukiyo killed the cult warrior, the monkey scampered past to heal Kaz.  At the same moment, Volar disappeared with Toshiro, reappearing on the other side of the stone wall Nagatori had raised.Before Nagatori could lift his dagger to complete the ceremony, Toshiro was on him, slashing away.  Already wounded by Verick, Nagatori was forced to give ground.  He splattered more of his blood onto the earth and a summon up an elemental of dirt and stone to protect him.  It did him little good though, Toshiro ducked around the elemental, dodging the creature’s hammering fists.  A flashing slash of his katana cut into Nagatori’s belly, then and perfectly placed return stroke took off the shugenja’s head.Yukiyo finished off the last of the cult warriors and then helped Mir put an end the Bloodspeaker.  Volar flew over the wall, wiggling through the two foot gap between the wall and the ceiling, then swooped down to cast Haste on Kaz.  Seeing the tide battle shifting, the white haired ninja’s form shimmered for a moment then she vanished from view.Back behind the stone wall, Toshiro had reduced the elemental to rubble without taking to much more damage in return.  Still angry and wanting something to take it out on, Toshiro turned to the ghoulish monk cowering in the corner.  Coming out of his paralysis, Verick suggested “Maybe you should wait, if you attack it, it can fight back.”  Toshiro wasn’t listening though, and his katana cut deeply into the ghoul’s body, spilling it’s blackish ichor onto the earth floor.  Released from the turning, the monk reacted instantly, jumping up in the corner, planting it’s feet on the wall and backflipping over Toshiro while it’s claws raked at his neck and shoulders.  And despite himself, Toshiro felt his body tense, growing cold and immobile as the ghoul’s touch took effect.  Before the monkish ghoul could do more, Verick leapt forward, his jade katana doing terrible damage to the tainted creature.  As the ghoul collapsed into black ooze and dust, Verick patted Toshiro on the shoulder “I did try to warn you…”  Glancing back to O-Hisa’s drugged form, still laying meekly on the altar, Verick had an idea.  He’d just saved Toshiro and probably her from the ghoul.  As far as he was concerned, he was more of an samurai than Toshiro, even if it wasn’t official yet.  Maybe he’d make a play for O-Hisa…Seeing the ninja turn invisible, Volar growled “Oh no you don’t..no WAY you escape…”  and in a flash he flew down the hallway, casting Ice Wall at the top of the stairs.  Kaz was hot on his heels, moving with that hasted speed.  They weren’t sure they’d trapped her, until suddenly the ninja with white hair appeared, her gleaming katana nearly gutting Kaz.  Volar’s fingers danced and a flurry of magic missiles battered the ninja.  She backed up and darkness flickered around her before she split off into four identical images of herself.  Kaz sliced down one image and Volar’s magic missiles got rid of the others.  Volar created an illusion of Toshiro charging around the corner, but the ninja ignored it as if it wasn’t even there, instead barely missing another strike on Kaz.  The burly Crab samurai retreated and Volar cast one final Acid Arrow.  And at last the ninja fell, the bolt of acid sizzling into her body as she passed into darkness.Kaz went back to the sacrificial chamber to see if they needed any help cleaning up.  But Volar remained, considering…he had questions he still wanted answered.  With a gesture he dispelled the Acid Arrow before it killed the girl and yelled out “Mindra, healing!”The mopping up was pretty simple, many cultists to be knocked unconscious and captured.  Recovering from his paralysis, Toshiro glanced around to make sure everyone was busy.  Then he sneaked over to where O-Hisa was resting, sluggishly recovering from the drug.  Another glance to the side before he leaned down to softly say “O-Hisa, it’s Toshiro.  Do you love me?”Softly, dreamily, her answer came back “Yes.”That she had been so drugged she was earlier going to say yes to giving her name to a Oni didn’t even occur to Toshiro, he was walking on air after that.Collecting their captives, the group went back up the stairs to the teahouse, pausing warily when they heard someone talking…“Though you were too good for us now, didn’t ya!  Thought you were suddenly special because you were taken away for training, didn’t ya!”  The old man who ran the teahouse was simply taunting the bound and gagged shugenja, taking advantage of her being unable to answer back.With their load of prisoners the group went outside to summon some guards, thought it was quickly obvious why there weren’t any samurai nearby.  Some was rising from three separate fires in Bugaisha.</blockquote>

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