Warbringer
Explorer
Act VII Temple in a Temple (Part I)
Thianallis Nightshade moved through the jungle ahead of the rest of the group, moving from shadow to shadow with practiced ease, despite the steep incline. From time to time he looked for signs of passage or ambush, but in terrains such as these his training was of little use. Still, at least on his own he could move in relative silence.
After climbing for over three hours the ground started to level out. Nightshade slowed his pace, careful not to signal his presence.
Up ahead, a great building made of a pale yellow stone rose form the jungle floor. Unlike the buildings in the valley, the building, the temple according to the psion, stood in good repair.
The space before the temple had been cleared and four primitive huts had been built. Nightshade studied the huts, looking for signs of movement. He saw none.
His eyes carefully traced a path from the huts through the clearing, into the jungle. Where would I hide, he asked himself. A deep patch of vegetation just before the jungle broke into the clearing; a dense gathering of the broadleaves to his right, no more than 30 paces away; a drop in the height of the vegetation to his left, indicating a hollow of some sort; All good places. Behind him, the warforged continued to trample his way up the mountain.
Mithros cringed with every footfall the warforged landed. But there was nothing he could do about it; it would be easier to teach a stone to swim than teach Tzzt stealth. He remained alert, checking every little leaf movement, every sound form the jungle floor, every subtle shift in color and shade. It was exhausting, more so then the physical toil of climbing through the jungle.
The ground leveled off. The temple broke through the jungle ahead. Raising a hand, he moved slowly forward, the flick of the wrist to the side he signaled ambush.
Three arrows hurtled at him but, reacting deftly, Mithros rolled to his right ending in a fighting crouch, his sword now in his hand. Two arrows sailed through the spot where he had been walking.
The third arrow shattered against the warforged extended hand.
As one the party reacted.
Tzzt charged towards the vegetation. Mithros moved to the flank, looking to sneak around the ambushers flank. Kateria, dropped into a crouch her bow in hand, a spell in mind waiting to see what Tzzt flushed out. Kierrna waited safely away from the melee.
As Tzzt stampeded into the vegetation three lizardfolk, leapt from their hiding place, thinking their trap sprung. Instead, Tzzt struck one of the creatures from a distance, his great chain whipping out to strike the lizard in the face, crushing bone as the heavy chain struck it in the nose, but the lizardman continued to charge despite a mouth full of blood.
Katiera loosed an arrow, striking on of the other lizardman in side, but her arrow failed to lodge itself in its target. From high in the shadows, two arrows with charcoal grey feathers struck the final lizardman in back, toppling the beast to the jungle floor.
As Mithros prepared to charge out the jungle, flanking the lizards, he noted a strange smell from the jungle behind him; a smell of rotting flesh; a smell of death, of undeath.
Spinning, his sword cutting a wide arc, he to turned to see two lizardfolk of grayish colors almost upon him. One was snarling at him, staring at a large bloodless gash in its hand were his sword had struck.
'Ghouls,' he whispered under his breath, defending himself as they leapt.
Kateria notched another arrow to her bow and moved towards the combat. Her shot flew
true striking the lizardman she had already wounded in the throat. Amazingly, he did not fall, but instead turned and started to run towards the huts.
Katiera's cursed. A spell started to form quickly in her mind, but before she could cast it, Tzzt?s great chain flew out, striking the lizard in the back of the head, dropping the reptile.
Kierrna watched the fight unfold, preparing an infusion for Tzzt should he need it. Back from the heat of the battle, she did not hear the undead abomination move up on her; barely felt his diseased claws sink into her back. She started to scream, but no sound came, her throat constricting, her lungs freezing as the paralysis spread through her body.
Frozen, she could only stare forward, unable to move, unable to even to blink. Had she not been paralyzed, her heart would have stopped as the ghoulish lizardman came into her vision, his face inches from hers, his fetid breath upon her.
He sniffed her. He licked her slowly; tasting her, enjoying the warm salty taste of living flesh, his tongue lingering on his teeth. Then he was upon her, his teeth sinking into the exposed flesh of her neck, tearing, chewing. It pulled back, its grey face colored red with fresh blood; her blood. Kierrna screamed a silent scream.
Mithros slashed at the undead, his whirling double scimitar opening a dozen cuts across the foul creatures. But creatures that do not bleed do not bleed to death. He however bled from a dozen scathes and bites that covered his arms, and his enemy had him flanked. This was a battle of attrition he could not win.
Two gray plumed arrows struck the ghoul through the neck, causing it to stagger; two glowing magical bolts followed the arrows, causing the ghoul to fall.
With only one enemy to worry about now, Mithros quickly felled the ghoul his scimitar blades biting deep and with force.
Tzzt smashed the final lizardfolk to the ground with his battlefist, Kierrna?s magic coursing through him, filling his body with a hatred for the lizardfolk, making him their truest enemy. Battlelust coursing like warm blood through him, Tzzt turned around looking for enemies to destroy.
He saw Kierrna, saw her soaked in blood, her blood, saw the creature biting her, eating her!
A dark rage took over the warforged. The world became grey like shades of steel. He charged, moving faster than even a Valenar?s war horses. Within seconds he had covered over fifty feet, smashing in the ghoul, both of them tumbling to the ground. The warforged started to pummel the ghoul with both fists, his adamantine fists smashing flesh and bone.
Long after it was dead Tzzt kept pummeling until nothing but the gore of bloodless flesh remained.
Mithros hurried over to the gnome, blood flowing slowly from her neck. Reaching her, he laid her stiff body down on the grass, and taking on the curative potions he carried, poured it directly into the gnome?s wounds.
'Come back Kierrna,' he whispered. 'Tzzt, can't lose you.'
Behind him, he could hear Tzzt sparking, the great warforged warrior shaking with fear.
'Fixy friend get up, fixy friend get up, fixy friend get up...'
Kateria, rushed over to the warforged side. Recognizing the ghouls, and with some understanding of their effect on the living she counseled Tzzt.
'Shhhhh, Tzzt. She'll be Okay,' she soothed him, stroking his three fingered hand. ?Just like sleep. She?ll get up soon'
'Fixy friend sleep?' he asked hopefully.
'Yes Tzzt,' Kateria responded.
Kierrna stared up at the scene, her heart breaking watching Tzzt in torment. He shouldn?t have to see me like this; it?s too much for him. Gods, she realized, what if I should die on this fools errand.
As the paralysis finally wore of, Kierrna was crying, tears streaking the blood stained cheeks.
Thianallis Nightshade moved through the jungle ahead of the rest of the group, moving from shadow to shadow with practiced ease, despite the steep incline. From time to time he looked for signs of passage or ambush, but in terrains such as these his training was of little use. Still, at least on his own he could move in relative silence.
After climbing for over three hours the ground started to level out. Nightshade slowed his pace, careful not to signal his presence.
Up ahead, a great building made of a pale yellow stone rose form the jungle floor. Unlike the buildings in the valley, the building, the temple according to the psion, stood in good repair.
The space before the temple had been cleared and four primitive huts had been built. Nightshade studied the huts, looking for signs of movement. He saw none.
His eyes carefully traced a path from the huts through the clearing, into the jungle. Where would I hide, he asked himself. A deep patch of vegetation just before the jungle broke into the clearing; a dense gathering of the broadleaves to his right, no more than 30 paces away; a drop in the height of the vegetation to his left, indicating a hollow of some sort; All good places. Behind him, the warforged continued to trample his way up the mountain.
Mithros cringed with every footfall the warforged landed. But there was nothing he could do about it; it would be easier to teach a stone to swim than teach Tzzt stealth. He remained alert, checking every little leaf movement, every sound form the jungle floor, every subtle shift in color and shade. It was exhausting, more so then the physical toil of climbing through the jungle.
The ground leveled off. The temple broke through the jungle ahead. Raising a hand, he moved slowly forward, the flick of the wrist to the side he signaled ambush.
Three arrows hurtled at him but, reacting deftly, Mithros rolled to his right ending in a fighting crouch, his sword now in his hand. Two arrows sailed through the spot where he had been walking.
The third arrow shattered against the warforged extended hand.
As one the party reacted.
Tzzt charged towards the vegetation. Mithros moved to the flank, looking to sneak around the ambushers flank. Kateria, dropped into a crouch her bow in hand, a spell in mind waiting to see what Tzzt flushed out. Kierrna waited safely away from the melee.
As Tzzt stampeded into the vegetation three lizardfolk, leapt from their hiding place, thinking their trap sprung. Instead, Tzzt struck one of the creatures from a distance, his great chain whipping out to strike the lizard in the face, crushing bone as the heavy chain struck it in the nose, but the lizardman continued to charge despite a mouth full of blood.
Katiera loosed an arrow, striking on of the other lizardman in side, but her arrow failed to lodge itself in its target. From high in the shadows, two arrows with charcoal grey feathers struck the final lizardman in back, toppling the beast to the jungle floor.
As Mithros prepared to charge out the jungle, flanking the lizards, he noted a strange smell from the jungle behind him; a smell of rotting flesh; a smell of death, of undeath.
Spinning, his sword cutting a wide arc, he to turned to see two lizardfolk of grayish colors almost upon him. One was snarling at him, staring at a large bloodless gash in its hand were his sword had struck.
'Ghouls,' he whispered under his breath, defending himself as they leapt.
Kateria notched another arrow to her bow and moved towards the combat. Her shot flew
true striking the lizardman she had already wounded in the throat. Amazingly, he did not fall, but instead turned and started to run towards the huts.
Katiera's cursed. A spell started to form quickly in her mind, but before she could cast it, Tzzt?s great chain flew out, striking the lizard in the back of the head, dropping the reptile.
Kierrna watched the fight unfold, preparing an infusion for Tzzt should he need it. Back from the heat of the battle, she did not hear the undead abomination move up on her; barely felt his diseased claws sink into her back. She started to scream, but no sound came, her throat constricting, her lungs freezing as the paralysis spread through her body.
Frozen, she could only stare forward, unable to move, unable to even to blink. Had she not been paralyzed, her heart would have stopped as the ghoulish lizardman came into her vision, his face inches from hers, his fetid breath upon her.
He sniffed her. He licked her slowly; tasting her, enjoying the warm salty taste of living flesh, his tongue lingering on his teeth. Then he was upon her, his teeth sinking into the exposed flesh of her neck, tearing, chewing. It pulled back, its grey face colored red with fresh blood; her blood. Kierrna screamed a silent scream.
Mithros slashed at the undead, his whirling double scimitar opening a dozen cuts across the foul creatures. But creatures that do not bleed do not bleed to death. He however bled from a dozen scathes and bites that covered his arms, and his enemy had him flanked. This was a battle of attrition he could not win.
Two gray plumed arrows struck the ghoul through the neck, causing it to stagger; two glowing magical bolts followed the arrows, causing the ghoul to fall.
With only one enemy to worry about now, Mithros quickly felled the ghoul his scimitar blades biting deep and with force.
Tzzt smashed the final lizardfolk to the ground with his battlefist, Kierrna?s magic coursing through him, filling his body with a hatred for the lizardfolk, making him their truest enemy. Battlelust coursing like warm blood through him, Tzzt turned around looking for enemies to destroy.
He saw Kierrna, saw her soaked in blood, her blood, saw the creature biting her, eating her!
A dark rage took over the warforged. The world became grey like shades of steel. He charged, moving faster than even a Valenar?s war horses. Within seconds he had covered over fifty feet, smashing in the ghoul, both of them tumbling to the ground. The warforged started to pummel the ghoul with both fists, his adamantine fists smashing flesh and bone.
Long after it was dead Tzzt kept pummeling until nothing but the gore of bloodless flesh remained.
Mithros hurried over to the gnome, blood flowing slowly from her neck. Reaching her, he laid her stiff body down on the grass, and taking on the curative potions he carried, poured it directly into the gnome?s wounds.
'Come back Kierrna,' he whispered. 'Tzzt, can't lose you.'
Behind him, he could hear Tzzt sparking, the great warforged warrior shaking with fear.
'Fixy friend get up, fixy friend get up, fixy friend get up...'
Kateria, rushed over to the warforged side. Recognizing the ghouls, and with some understanding of their effect on the living she counseled Tzzt.
'Shhhhh, Tzzt. She'll be Okay,' she soothed him, stroking his three fingered hand. ?Just like sleep. She?ll get up soon'
'Fixy friend sleep?' he asked hopefully.
'Yes Tzzt,' Kateria responded.
Kierrna stared up at the scene, her heart breaking watching Tzzt in torment. He shouldn?t have to see me like this; it?s too much for him. Gods, she realized, what if I should die on this fools errand.
As the paralysis finally wore of, Kierrna was crying, tears streaking the blood stained cheeks.