The relaxation and lull of Evain’s song continued for some time. The gentle melody flowed on and on for what seemed like a lifetime. Taggert was the last one to enter the room and he moved off to a corner by himself then paused as if waiting for something. His dark eyes bounced from person to person as if counting or checking but he started and ended with Aris. The Tavehk noticed this behavior and followed the gaze of his subordinate around the bath house. It was during this time that the older man noticed a great deal of attention turned upwards. He gave a polite nod to Taggert who ducked to his knees and set about removing his cloak, pack and weapons harness. The man took his time with the warm water as he washed his arms, chest and face. Aris turned his light eyes to the ceiling like many of his party and saw the strange moving mass of…color. That’s all it seemed to be but it was moving and reacting to the group or to Evain’s enchanting voice. The elder Drykas of the bunch narrowed his eyes and slowly rose then made his way over towards his guide. The two conferred in silence using only signs but shielded themselves from the group. The senior watchman didn’t even bother to check on his fugitive.
Sparrow had spent his time wisely moving around from pool to pool inspecting everything closely. His light eyes took in the details of the many flowers as well as the pattern of refraction splayed by the fountain’s waters. It was hypnotizing if one played too long but the game gave him a rush. Exploring and investigating fueled his spirit which is one of the reasons why he had been chosen to join the expedition. The mocha-skinned warrior was an absolute stormgem for a pack of weary adventurers with a seemingly uncrushable will that always yearned for more knowledge of things never before seen. He picked a few flowers; a red and purple lily, a strand of green moss that almost shimmered and several other things that he felt fit the general scheme of bright and radiant blossoms then held them to his nose. He took a large breath into his nostrils and exhaled with an audible sound commonly heard after one kicks off his boots after a long day. A huge smile spread over his face then he moved around the room taking it all in as his companions relaxed. He never seemed to stop moving except to examine the actions of his fellow Ra’athi and second pause came when he was hit with the sight of a lounging teenager who was knee deep in a pool. Slightly dumbfounded, he just sniffed his bouquet and watched the young doctor until his eyes trailed her arm to her finger and then to the object that was being addressed.
Evain finally reached the end of her ballad and moved along behind Amunet. Her feet shuffled against the floor and she finally managed to catch the redhead while she was debating something. The black-eyed girl was guessing that the mind beneath the curly red locks was wondering whether or not to pick the flowers. The tiny fingers covered in days of dirt reached out beneath the face of the small healer and plucked a few of the blooms that Amunet had been observing. The Chaktawe offered them in an outstretched hand and whispered something in her native tongue. She immediately shook her head and whispered again but this time in Common. “S-sorry. These. For you.” She repeated the attempt to hand over the flowers. “Song you sang. I like.” She tried to smile but it was weak. There was something buried deep inside of her that was broken.
A splash and a cry from the far corner of the room broke the quiet mumbling of the fountain. Taggert was in the pool and his upper arm was bleeding from a large laceration. He was fumbling about trying to get his weapons and gear while attempting to exit the water; it was not going well on either front. Something had scared him. Aris moved through the group to his man and offered a hand. He pulled Taggert out of the water then spun his head towards Sparrow. “We’re leaving. Now.” The Ra’athi responded instantly. He bent down over Waisana to help her up should she need it. In the span of his wink, he would hand her the flowers that he’d collected. Next was Jasmine, the watchman would help her with her pack if such assistance was needed before he would check on Evain and Amunet. Sparrow was very good about making signs like ‘Please move quickly’ and ‘I can help’. The darker-skinned man had noticed that the fugitive and the dark-skinned woman were a bit more rugged and built for such situations so for them, he would simply pass over a glance and offer his help if they seemed to be having problems. Everything went from a nice slow pace to a flurry of action and movement. The only body that wasn’t moving was Deathspark; the man from the Underwatch. He was staring at a space on the far wall where one might infer a door had once existed.
Aris and Taggert had wrapped his arm both making sure to snub any attempts that the healer or doctor made for help. Instead, they began to go through the group and line them up between the door and the fountain preparing to leave this strange place and get back on track. Sparrow took trail and Taggert went lead with Aris but the Tavehk stopped. A sign from Deathspark very plainly said ‘that way unsafe’. He then went back to studying the wall in front of him. Aris responded with “Horzpah!”, then went to confer with the man. He got halfway down the line and turned back to give an order. What he saw drained the color from his face and all that came out was a very loud noise but not any kind of words or phrases. It was like his mind couldn’t function beyond a wail.
Taggert had been watching his leader and when the horrid expression was registered, he spun around and cried out. The mass of swirling color had returned. It was brighter and more vivid than any color one might ever see in nature and loomed like a giant cloud nearly filling the space against the wall. The colors shifted and changed so rapidly that it was dizzying to view. Taggert staggered back a step, drew an ax with his right hand and used recoil to spring ahead and slash at the tangible cloud of pigments. The other watchmen sprang forward but they would barely get a step before the nightmare began. The color didn’t seem at all bothered by the bladed weapon. It simple passed through. The slash was so ineffective that Taggert had to exert almost as much strength just to control his motion and avoid hitting himself. He opened his mouth to curse the colored mass when he was overtaken. The cloud surged forward in a way that was too fast for a human eye to perceive. The instant it made contact with the man, a thousand long, tapered needles of color penetrated the body of Taggert. He made no sound. He did not move. He was frozen in midair leaking his life onto the floor in a rainstorm of red droplets. The man was instantly dead but his body remained suspended.
Aris and Sparrow lunged forward but a chocked gurgle from Deathspark preceded the strange man using his arms to yank both men back. He signed ‘Don’t fight!’ ‘Don’t fight!’ ‘Urgent!’ He did this openly so everyone could see and follow. He released the watchmen and turned back to where he’d been staring at the wall. He went into an almost trance as his body went still. The guide was pooling djed in his hands and the lines massed into spheres that hovered against his palms for several moments. The hollow eyes of the man also seemed to fill with this same energy and slowly, the spheres grew from the size of acorns to fists and eventually over a foot in diameter.
During this time, the murdering mass of color retracted itself from Taggert’s lifeless corpse. It continued to linger and evolve its shape but it never moved to assault anyone else. Sparrow, amidst tears, had gathered himself and heeded his guide enough to draw the line of volunteers back behind the fountain. He stared at the thing but his grief and rage did not overcome his reason. Aris had helped though his face was as cold as the stone beneath their feet. The color would remain blocking the exit and hovering about the dead body whose blood have initially covered the stones but slowly began to soak into the bricks of the floor. Within a few ticks, the blood which should have been everywhere was nearly gone. Evain shrieked and Sparrow roared in anguish. The water of the fountain began to run red from the top down and once the watchman’s blood reached the pool beneath the fountain’s last tier, the pools in the corner would begin to permeate with crimson as well. It was just after this morbid event occurred that the crackling of flame ripped through the room. It was not the fire along the walls but twin infernos billowing from the hands of Deathspark. He held his hands up and out forming a ‘y’ with his arms and body. In a single fluid motion, he brought his fists together and the two orbs became one giant fireball. The Tunnel Warden hurled the bundle of flame at the wall. The force of the explosion along with the noise shook the entire room and huge cloud of orange dust filled the chamber removing any hope of visibility. Truly, the party would not know if the spell or the resulting explosion had killed the mage.
LadiesThis will be your last post in this thread. Please do not respond to anything past the explosion and dust. That reaction will be your character’s first action in the joint thread.
Exciting, right?
Sparrow had spent his time wisely moving around from pool to pool inspecting everything closely. His light eyes took in the details of the many flowers as well as the pattern of refraction splayed by the fountain’s waters. It was hypnotizing if one played too long but the game gave him a rush. Exploring and investigating fueled his spirit which is one of the reasons why he had been chosen to join the expedition. The mocha-skinned warrior was an absolute stormgem for a pack of weary adventurers with a seemingly uncrushable will that always yearned for more knowledge of things never before seen. He picked a few flowers; a red and purple lily, a strand of green moss that almost shimmered and several other things that he felt fit the general scheme of bright and radiant blossoms then held them to his nose. He took a large breath into his nostrils and exhaled with an audible sound commonly heard after one kicks off his boots after a long day. A huge smile spread over his face then he moved around the room taking it all in as his companions relaxed. He never seemed to stop moving except to examine the actions of his fellow Ra’athi and second pause came when he was hit with the sight of a lounging teenager who was knee deep in a pool. Slightly dumbfounded, he just sniffed his bouquet and watched the young doctor until his eyes trailed her arm to her finger and then to the object that was being addressed.
Evain finally reached the end of her ballad and moved along behind Amunet. Her feet shuffled against the floor and she finally managed to catch the redhead while she was debating something. The black-eyed girl was guessing that the mind beneath the curly red locks was wondering whether or not to pick the flowers. The tiny fingers covered in days of dirt reached out beneath the face of the small healer and plucked a few of the blooms that Amunet had been observing. The Chaktawe offered them in an outstretched hand and whispered something in her native tongue. She immediately shook her head and whispered again but this time in Common. “S-sorry. These. For you.” She repeated the attempt to hand over the flowers. “Song you sang. I like.” She tried to smile but it was weak. There was something buried deep inside of her that was broken.
A splash and a cry from the far corner of the room broke the quiet mumbling of the fountain. Taggert was in the pool and his upper arm was bleeding from a large laceration. He was fumbling about trying to get his weapons and gear while attempting to exit the water; it was not going well on either front. Something had scared him. Aris moved through the group to his man and offered a hand. He pulled Taggert out of the water then spun his head towards Sparrow. “We’re leaving. Now.” The Ra’athi responded instantly. He bent down over Waisana to help her up should she need it. In the span of his wink, he would hand her the flowers that he’d collected. Next was Jasmine, the watchman would help her with her pack if such assistance was needed before he would check on Evain and Amunet. Sparrow was very good about making signs like ‘Please move quickly’ and ‘I can help’. The darker-skinned man had noticed that the fugitive and the dark-skinned woman were a bit more rugged and built for such situations so for them, he would simply pass over a glance and offer his help if they seemed to be having problems. Everything went from a nice slow pace to a flurry of action and movement. The only body that wasn’t moving was Deathspark; the man from the Underwatch. He was staring at a space on the far wall where one might infer a door had once existed.
Aris and Taggert had wrapped his arm both making sure to snub any attempts that the healer or doctor made for help. Instead, they began to go through the group and line them up between the door and the fountain preparing to leave this strange place and get back on track. Sparrow took trail and Taggert went lead with Aris but the Tavehk stopped. A sign from Deathspark very plainly said ‘that way unsafe’. He then went back to studying the wall in front of him. Aris responded with “Horzpah!”, then went to confer with the man. He got halfway down the line and turned back to give an order. What he saw drained the color from his face and all that came out was a very loud noise but not any kind of words or phrases. It was like his mind couldn’t function beyond a wail.
Taggert had been watching his leader and when the horrid expression was registered, he spun around and cried out. The mass of swirling color had returned. It was brighter and more vivid than any color one might ever see in nature and loomed like a giant cloud nearly filling the space against the wall. The colors shifted and changed so rapidly that it was dizzying to view. Taggert staggered back a step, drew an ax with his right hand and used recoil to spring ahead and slash at the tangible cloud of pigments. The other watchmen sprang forward but they would barely get a step before the nightmare began. The color didn’t seem at all bothered by the bladed weapon. It simple passed through. The slash was so ineffective that Taggert had to exert almost as much strength just to control his motion and avoid hitting himself. He opened his mouth to curse the colored mass when he was overtaken. The cloud surged forward in a way that was too fast for a human eye to perceive. The instant it made contact with the man, a thousand long, tapered needles of color penetrated the body of Taggert. He made no sound. He did not move. He was frozen in midair leaking his life onto the floor in a rainstorm of red droplets. The man was instantly dead but his body remained suspended.
Aris and Sparrow lunged forward but a chocked gurgle from Deathspark preceded the strange man using his arms to yank both men back. He signed ‘Don’t fight!’ ‘Don’t fight!’ ‘Urgent!’ He did this openly so everyone could see and follow. He released the watchmen and turned back to where he’d been staring at the wall. He went into an almost trance as his body went still. The guide was pooling djed in his hands and the lines massed into spheres that hovered against his palms for several moments. The hollow eyes of the man also seemed to fill with this same energy and slowly, the spheres grew from the size of acorns to fists and eventually over a foot in diameter.
During this time, the murdering mass of color retracted itself from Taggert’s lifeless corpse. It continued to linger and evolve its shape but it never moved to assault anyone else. Sparrow, amidst tears, had gathered himself and heeded his guide enough to draw the line of volunteers back behind the fountain. He stared at the thing but his grief and rage did not overcome his reason. Aris had helped though his face was as cold as the stone beneath their feet. The color would remain blocking the exit and hovering about the dead body whose blood have initially covered the stones but slowly began to soak into the bricks of the floor. Within a few ticks, the blood which should have been everywhere was nearly gone. Evain shrieked and Sparrow roared in anguish. The water of the fountain began to run red from the top down and once the watchman’s blood reached the pool beneath the fountain’s last tier, the pools in the corner would begin to permeate with crimson as well. It was just after this morbid event occurred that the crackling of flame ripped through the room. It was not the fire along the walls but twin infernos billowing from the hands of Deathspark. He held his hands up and out forming a ‘y’ with his arms and body. In a single fluid motion, he brought his fists together and the two orbs became one giant fireball. The Tunnel Warden hurled the bundle of flame at the wall. The force of the explosion along with the noise shook the entire room and huge cloud of orange dust filled the chamber removing any hope of visibility. Truly, the party would not know if the spell or the resulting explosion had killed the mage.
LadiesThis will be your last post in this thread. Please do not respond to anything past the explosion and dust. That reaction will be your character’s first action in the joint thread.
Exciting, right?
