romania ♔ in the end of the night i can feel you breathe

[pickyourbattles]

♬ Night - Zola Jesus

WHO || Willow, Paige, Nathan, Henry, Aurelius, Dovan [Closed]
WHAT || The Knights travel to Romania to investigate a mysterious, magical fog
WHERE || Romania
WHEN || April 11th [back dated]
HOW || Actionspam. Single thread, don't worry about maintaining tagging order.

February in Romania isn't very comfortable, so hopefully everyone bundled up for this little trip into the countryside.  The appearance of a mysterious bank of fog into which several locals have gone inexplicably missing upon entering, has caused Wynn to speculate that it might be connected to the mist that appears when the Veil brings people from other worlds.  Could this be the first instance of a door going the other way?  If so, here's hoping it's a round trip...

Comments

[autorevive]

I'm not talking tough! I'm really immortal! So if I die, just wait a few minutes for me to pop back up. No viking funerals or any of that shit. [so delayed but so is nathan ok. he got distracted. maybe there was a squirrel or a butterfly...]

[somepagesturn]

[Heals coming your way, Willow. Cure Light Wounds for 12 hp.] There you go. We're going to need all the strength we can get. Whatever we do, we can't just stand here. We have to keep going before something happens to Dovan.

[She turns to Nathan and gives him a scrutinizing glance, before sighing.] Well, that explains a lot.

[pickyourbattles]

How exactly did you... become immmortal?

[autorevive]

Oh, yeah, back home there was the huge storm that gave me and my mates powers. One day, we're all normal, the next we're all reading minds and being invisible and shit. I was like the captain. With immortality, you have to be like, Captain Invincible, yeah?

[olreliable]

[Mmm healy goodness. Now back at full hp, she can listen to Nathan's story, and slowly blink at him. She doesn't even have words for this at first.]

So... what if you go scout ahead for us? [No but hear her out.] Just really quick! But if you see a bunch of them, at least you won't have to worry about being forever dead? Or zombied. Can you be zombied? Does being invincible stop you from becoming undead? [Oh wait- she read a book once (know arcane lore 22)] I think you're okay. At least from what I've read.

[#nerds]

[somepagesturn]

[PAIGE ISN'T REALLY SURE ABOUT THIS, but Nathan won't really get hurt for good, so...]

Just please don't draw attention to yourself. Just because you can't be killed doesn't mean you can't be hurt. And emotional scars don't heal as well as bodies do.

[wanttobeahero]

[ Henry appreciates the healing and thanks Paige. She's so sweet. :') It feels like it would be a good time to take a breather and see if they can find something or someone further into the village to help them find Dovan. He agrees with Willow because no matter where they go, it seems like there's a chance to come across more creatures hellbent on killing them.

He's quiet for the moment, though, just taking it all in, but nodding along when Willow mentions Nathan scouting ahead. There's a part of him that's not sure they should separate even a little but...it should be fine... #famouslastwords maybe -- ]

[autorevive]

[he looks between the ... however many of them are there and sighs, relenting.] Oh, all right. I'll go first, only because I'm a man of action and the rest of you are scrawny twats.

[olreliable]

Th...ank you?

[Look she appreciates it, but not the part where he called them names.]

[somepagesturn]

[Paige makes an appalled face. HE SAID TWAT!!!!]

[count_strahd_von_zarovich]

[Nathan sneaks forward, disappearing into the fog-filled streets ahead. The village isn't very large, the center lies roughly 200 yards from the intersection. Nathan gets about halfway there, and as the ever-present mists begin to part, he can see a makeshift wall has been built in the town center. There are torches burning beyond the wall, though it is still eerily silent, save for the moans of the dead. Lying face-down in the street amid the garbage is a discarded corpse. One of the buildings facing the street has the door smashed in, the rest are still barricaded.]

[Suddenly, there is a burst of noise and motion from the smashed-in house. Out fly two hideous creatures. They look like distorted human heads, suspended from leathery wings. In place of hair, they are crowned with writhing tentacles. Their eyes burn with a menacing green flame.]

[They split the air with shrieks, which freeze Nathan in place. He needs to make two Fortitude saves, to avoid Paralysis, as the horrible things wing towards him. The rest of the team would hear the keening cries cut through the night.]

[autorevive]

[his fort saves were a 15 and a crit fail, so ... yeah. that's a thing. nathan is probably paralyzed now. I HOPE YOU ALL APPRECIATE HIS NOBLE SACRIFICE.]

[count_strahd_von_zarovich]

[The grotesque heads will float over and hover in front of Nathan, who stands utterly paralyzed by fear. One edges closer, and plants a slimy and disgusting rotting kiss - with gratuitous tongue - on Nathan. Then, both the creatures cackle with glee, and wing off into the night. The paralysis breaks as soon as they are out of sight, but Nathan feels something terrible at work within him, as a few curly bits of hair begin to rain down from his head...]

[autorevive]

[as soon as the paralysis ends, he's screaming. as one might after being date raped by weird cthulhu harpies.] WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?! BLOODY FUCKING CHRIST! [and then he grabs a chunk of his fallen hair with his hand. his jewfro :(((( ] WHAT THE FUCK?

[somepagesturn]

[And here's Paige, running blindly into the danger, because PEOPLE SCREAMING. SHE MUST HELP. She's calling out as she runs.]

Nathan?! Nathan, are you all right? It's hard to tell, because you're generally vulgar all the time, so I have no point of reference, but-

[olreliable]

[The horrible sounds coming from the direction Nathan left (and by that, I mean both the monster noises and his screaming) have Willow taking a few hurried steps forward.]

We should-! [Run towards the monsters?? She's not really thrilled about it, but she can't just leave him to die. Even if he will come back, that sounds like a dick move, right? Sword back in hand and raised, she glances over her shoulders back at the others. But right as she does there goes Paige. Willow runs right behind her.]

[autorevive]

Harpies tongued me and now my hair is falling out!

[count_strahd_von_zarovich]

[The group takes a breather at the intersection Nathan was assaulted in, now halfway into the small village. All the commotion seems to have drawn more attention to them. As Nathan's hair divorces itself from his scalp in clumps, shambling dead plod toward them from behind, sealing any escape back that direction. Suddenly, a woman's voice cuts through the air;]

Hurry, and keep quiet! [The source isn't evident, but a rope ladder is visible soaring over the ramshackle barricade that guards the town square.] Unless you prefer your chances on that side of the wall...

[somepagesturn]

[Paige is not the type to think that maybe there's some poetic justice in that, so... thank your lucky stars, Nathan. She just looks at him with horror and sympathy, and then whirls at the sound of the voice.

She lowers her voice in a hissing whisper:]

C'mon. Before they come back.

[olreliable]

[Willow glances at everyone before edging towards the rope ladder.]

Is he..? [Uh, is Nathan okay? Should she climb this rope? They have no leader anymore. She figures at least one of them should check it out and she can't ask Nathan to be the guinea pig again so... up she goes.]

[autorevive]

Do you mean, me, ginge? I'm fuckin' dying! [on that lovely and optimistic note, he goes up the ladder after her, shedding his jewfro mane on the way down :'( ]

[count_strahd_von_zarovich]

[They clamber over the barricade, and see a woman clad in shining gold-flecked fullplate armor, wielding a massive kite shield and bastard sword, and shining blonde hair. An icon of the sun is emblazoned on her shield and armor.]

Welcome to Barovia! [She chimes, dripping with sarcasm.] You're here just in time for the fun! I'm Ashlyn, of the Lightbringers... We hunt undead. [She is way too chipper, given the situation.] That what brought you lot here? [She gestures at their blades] Cor! Nice hardware! That Silver? Color me jealous. [She could keep going, but she needs to take a breath.]

[olreliable]

We're uhm- [So scared of random monsters coming out of nowhere right now. Also slightly disturbed as she sees Nathan and his poor balding head follow after her up the ladder.] We're looking for our friend? A dwarf named Dovan? Have you seen him?

[count_strahd_von_zarovich]

[She presses her finger to her lips as she thinks...]

Dovan... Dovan... Nope! Not ringing any bells. Last Dwarf I seen was my companion Thendrick. He and Mathilda are out beyond the wall now. [She points over her shoulder to the North.] Investigating the situation at the old church. Townsfolk say that's where this whole zombie plague started... Then again, townsfolk also told the arrogant clods to go speak with Madam Eva first - Some sort of local wise woman, or some such - But noooo they can "handle themselves." Been gone three days now, the louts. Leavin' me to guard the survivors by my lonesome.

[somepagesturn]

[THAT IS NOT GOOD NEWS.] D-do you know why this is happening, ma'am?