black rock ♔ with my sad bones and my soiled throne

[sternshield]

WHO || Erky, Maxwell, Liam, Thoster
WHAT || The Knights track down a message from a mysterious woman in trouble
WHERE || Black Rock, Utah
WHEN || April 22nd, 2015
HOW || Actionspam

It's after noon when they arrive, a bleak, dreary day, and an ominous blanket of low, gray clouds hangs over the landscape.  A recent rain has left everything damp, giving the scenery an air of decay.  It seems there is no end to the parade of empty fields and derelict farmhouses flanking this stretch of road.   As they drive towards the coordinates of Black Rock, Thoster's phone abruptly rings.

Comments

[ex_boning176]

[Liam follows after Max, but he's going to keep his nose open on the way back too, since apparently that was a useful thing he should have been doing all along whoops (wisdom 23 after spending one action point to re-roll).]

[sternshield]

[ it's before they even get back to the truck that he gets a whiff of something strong and horrible, a powerful scent of decay. it leads them into a side yard, just out of sight of the street.

a dark pile, perhaps 10 feet across and 5 feet high, fills a shallow pit. at first glance, it looks like a heap of tree roots and the knobby stumps of branches, hued green and gray from exposure to the dreary weather. but closer examination reveals it to be a pile of bones - or pieces of bones, at least. ] My gods. [ erky looks ready to be sick as he squats at the edge of the pit ] There might be some two hundred people here.

[bluffcheck]

Has to be more of them, then. Can't imagine it was just those few we saw that went after this many people. Keep an eye out. [A glance to Liam] Or a nose.

[ex_boning176]

[Liam nods up at Thoster like he's s-such a helpful member of the team now. He will keep sniffing but all those dead body parts are pretty gross and the stench of decay is basically overpowering so he only rolls a wisdom 18 this time to smell anything that isn't currently rotting in the pit of leftovers.]

[beatemup]

[Something's weird here. He scratches his head as he tries to figure it out.] Hey! The Boss said the town only has couple dozens of people. Where did all these bones come from? [Max's pretty disgusted at the pile but not as much since he's more of excited. Something like this means danger. And danger means boss monster. And boss monster means LOOTS! Yeah! Bring out the boss! #gamerslife]

[sternshield]

[ erky is mumbling a prayer over them all, shaking his head, as liam finally manages to catch what he thinks might be a whiff of something other than gross old bones. ] I shudder to think.

[ex_boning176]

[See Liam sniff the air like a he's a bloodhound or something, and then turn toward the direction of the new scent.]

We should look over there too.

[bluffcheck]

[Thoster nods and gives Liam's shoulder a pat. Even if the kid growled at him, he's glad to have him on the team with that sniffer of his.

Who's a good boy? You are!]

Best be quick about it.

[And then he heads in that direction.]

[beatemup]

[Yup, glad to have him here. Who doesn't want a cool werewolf in their team?]

Watch each other's back!

[He follows Thoster from behind, keeping his eyes on the surrounding. (spot 12)]

[ex_boning176]

[Wow, Thoster. Fortunately, Liam is eating this shit up rn because he feels useful.

Onward, toward the other probably gross smelling ... smell!]

[sternshield]

[ the scent leads them to a dilapidated barn on the outskirts of town, which leans askew, glistening with rain and smelling of rotten straw. the door stands open, revealing a deep darkness within. ]

[ex_boning176]

[Liam has darkvision up to 60 feet right now can he see anything in thurr? (spot 18 whoops)]

[bluffcheck]

[Thoster has no dark vision but he's got ears so he'll try to sort out just what might be lurking in there (listen 31)]

[sternshield]

[ liam can see, and what he does see, is disturbing as fk. the center of the barn is dominated by a large picnic table that's been put to grisly use. its surface is coated with dried blood and bits of rotten flesh - no doubt the smell that drew him here - and the floor around it has a similar covering. cleavers and saws, smeared in dried gore, lie scattered about. one wall is lined with heavy iron shackles. opposite those, a large farm machine of some sort sits silently in the dark.

thoster hears movement from the various dark corners within. the machine also seems to be very quietly rumbling. ]

[beatemup]

Is this the place? [Max also has darkvision but his sight isn't better than the werewolf (spot 8), so he carefully moves closer to the barn to check it out.]

[ex_boning176]

[Liam's already altered face contorts some, like he's making a silent snarl as he notes the table and everything surrounding it--the shackles in particular, since they were similar to what had been used before to try and keep him from getting anywhere on a full moon. He's not a huge fan of restraints at this point.]

I think this might be where those people we just saw were murdered. It looks like they were cutting them up with saws and stuff.

[sternshield]

What's that machine, then? [ erky asks, following close behind max as they approach the door, peering inside. ]

[ex_boning176]

I can't tell what it is. [/dumb teenager.]

[beatemup]

[Max scans the machine with his eyes and tries to figure what it is or what it does. (wis 13)]

[sternshield]

[ it seems like some sort of large shredder, maybe? that's the best he can tell from where he stands. ] Well, whatever it is, it sounds like someone left it on.

[bluffcheck]

Should we turn it off, then? [He sure doesn't want to, but he will.]

[ex_boning176]

I can get it. [Since he can see in the dark and he is also ... dumb.

Liam walks into the darkness and over to the machine to look for some way to shut it down (spot 24).]

[sternshield]

[ as liam draws closer, the machine abruptly revs louder to life, and starts to glow with a demonic red light that illuminates the barn interior, painting it in hellish shades. a claw extends out from the machine towards him, attempting to grab him (atk 14), but he's too fast for it. he would hear strange whispering echoing through his mind, that would feel almost as if it were coming from the machine, and for a second, he would feel compelled to turn around, to tell his friends there is nothing here and to leave, to protect this place so that it might continue its work-- but he would shake that off quickly enough with his will save, and realize that the force trying to impress itself on him feels wrong, an overwhelming aura of evil emanating from this contraption. ]

[bluffcheck]

[Thoster raises his morningstar as soon as the machine roars to life, swearing under his breath. He's not about to let any of his teammates be grabbed by that weird mechanical monster, though. He swings for the claw with all his might!! (attack nat 20 yesss, damage 16).]

[herebemonsters]

[ thoster smacks into it hard, but finds that the metal is highly resistant to his weapon, and while it does take some damage, the claw doesn't break off. there's a snarl to his left as a ghoul charges out at him (atk 17, which i think misses) ]