scotland ♔ yet how the wind revives us here

[untethered]

♬ Presentiment - Manami Kiyota

WHO || Belle, Gold, Emma, Hook, Lila [closed]
WHAT || Several Knights take a secret journey to try to help Amara...
WHERE || Oakhurst, Scotland
WHEN || January 15th, 2014 [forward dated]
HOW || Actionspam

It's probably a very good thing that Gold sweet-talked them a car in the nearby tiny Scottish village of Oakhurst, because it is freezing cold out and snow blankets almost everything around. Walking the seven miles up the Old Road to the ruins would be a bitch and a half.

Instead, they comfortably drove past rocky downs, near stands of old-growth oak covered in snow, and past two farms that looked abandoned. No other travelers were visible on the lonely road, which finally curves, passing east of a narrow ravine. Belle signals for them to pull over here, where, at the road's closest approach to the cleft, several broken pillars jut from the earth where the ravine widens and opens into something akin to more of a deep, but narrow, cavern. Two of the pillars stand straight, but most of them lean against the sloped earth. Others are broken and several have apparently fallen into the darkness-shrouded depths. A few similar pillars are visible on the opposite side of the ravine.

Comments

[untethered]

[ the door rolls aside for hook's shove with a loud grinding sound, but a needle comes shooting out at him from a sprung trap, shooting into his neck (1 pt dmg). the pocket chamber beyond the door is small, damp, and cold. the skeletons of three long-dead archers slump against rubble-filled arrow slits along the east and south wall. ]

[unhand]

Bloody hell! [He grimaces and grabs his neck, pulling out the needle. It doesn't hurt that much, but it's freaking ANNOYING. He pulls it out and drops it on the ground. He pokes his head in, looking around for anything more useful than skeletons (spot 11).] Nothing but more corpses in here.

[bittersweeter]

Oh, don't be a baby. At least it isn't poison. [ lila ducks into the room because curiosity killed the cat and looks over her shoulder to grin at hook. ] Or is it?

[ crouching down, she prods a corpse like it ain't no thang. she's wearing gloves. ] They're not goblins, though. They look human. Or at least kind of tall. [ she sure is just going to pick up a bone to peer at it. ]

MOAR DAMAGE

[herebemonsters]

[ hook would notice that the skeletons have the trappings of archery on them.

he would not notice, however, the points of red fire kindle in their eyes when he sticks his head in.

and the moment lila steps forward and reaches out to grab a bone, one turns its head towards her with its eerie grinning skull, and rakes her arm with sharp bony claws (nat 20, 12 dmg). ]

[undealt]

[Gold was in the process of investigating one of the other doors (the closest one for Arden's reference) when he hears WHAT I AM ASSUMING IS LILA'S SHRIEK OF PAIN.]

Back to this again already, are we?

[herebemonsters]

[ the skeleton will take its whole turn here to get to its feet defensively as a move action so as not to provoke an attack of opportunity. its bones clatter to standing, and it stares down at lila with those red lights in the hollows where its eyes were. ]

[uncurse]

[ emma will drop her sword as the skeleton stands because wHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. she takes a step back and draws her gun, firing a shot off at the skeleton (attack 15, dmg 10). ] Lila, get the hell out of there! [ which has an unspoken: "hook, help her" attached. ]

[bittersweeter]

[ ukw, lady, she's working on it, but when it clawed her she fell on her ass because oh god pain. she starts to clamber back, but her arm hurts too much so instead she retaliates by kicking the skeleton in the leg. (atk 16, dmg 7) ]

[herebemonsters]

[ the other two skeletons get up as well, and one of them goes to move past lila through the doorway, red eyes glaring at emma. this means lila gets a chance for an attack of opportunity as it passes her... ]

[bittersweeter]

[ so kicking did all of nothing. gritting her teeth against the pain, she shifts her weight and raises her gun, firing as skeletor passes her. (atk 23, dmg 12) ]

[unhand]

[Hook slashes his sword across the thing's ribcage (atk 19, dmg 5) as it moves into his space. Then he steps into the room. Between Emma, Gold, and Belle, he's pretty sure that one skeleton's done for. Lila, trapped with the other two, is in a bit more trouble.]

Get out of here.

[He moves forward and slams his rapier into the third skeleton's skull (atk 23, dmg 7).]

[undealt]

[Once the skeleton is out into the open, Gold puts his hand up.] Everyone get down.

[ONE FUCKING RAY OF FIRE coming up (nat 20 atk, dmg 19)]

[untethered]

[ the blast of fire incinerates the skeleton on the spot, his bones turning to a pile of ash on the ground within seconds.

guess they aren't immune to fire.

belle finally realizes what's going on when a flaming skeleton wanders in and leaves the spear alone, turning around and moving past gold beside emma as she draws a sword as well. but hook and lila are blocking access to those other skeleton bitches and she sure doesn't have precise shot and isn't going to risk firing her gun into there.

skeleton numero uno turns to swipe at hook with both of its clawed hands (atk 10, annnnd crit fail). as he moves to make the second attack, he trips on a bone and faceplants right in front of lila. ]

[uncurse]

[ okay well the gun didn't do much but emma feels more secure trying that again than she does trying magic so LET'S GO. she steadies it on skele-one (same one she hit in round 1 i think?), and fires off a shot (atk 27, dmg 10). ]

[bittersweeter]

[ and then the faceplanting skeleton gets its skull shattered. right in front of her. this is what dreams are made of right here. but lila is going to eschew violence for once and just scramble back out of the tiny room and into the, well, other room. her arm hurts too much for her to be useful on things that don't have skin. rude. ]

[herebemonsters]

[ skelethree claws at hook angrily but both of its claws whiff. maybe he's distracted by his buddy getting disintegrated out there. ]

[unhand]

[Hook leans back a bit to avoid the claws, then brings his rapier forward to stab through the... sternum (atk 14, dmg 3) before smashing his hook through where the ear would be on a human (atk 23, dmg 7).]

[undealt]

[and rather than waste another spell on something that already got the crap kicked out of it, Gold takes a swing at it with his cane. (atk 13, dmg 3)]

[untethered]

[ belle lowers the sword as the final skeleton drops readily against the crack of gold's cane. her eyes sweep those who were in the room with the things with evident concern. ] Is everyone alright?

[bittersweeter]

Depends on your definition of alright. [ her poor ruined glove, whimper. she tugs it off and lets it drop, wincing and making a small noise of pain like a kitten crying. ]

[uncurse]

New rule. Let's not explore secret doors.

[ emma moves to pick up her sword and sheathe it, because if lila's sassing, she's all right. she'll holster her gun while she's at it too. ]

[undealt]

[well, at least they know who to go to when skeletons need killing- THIS GUY. Gold adjusts his bag and MOVES THE HELL ON.]

As for the ones that aren't secret... [which door should we choose now, guys...]

[uncurse]

[ she holds a hand out to offer to help lila up while she sizes up the doors. ]

Well, that leaves two choices. Flip a coin, or split up?

[undealt]

We will not be splitting up. [He's the tank, thanks to my reclaiming of the word. He makes the rules.] I think this little incident has just proven that you're not going to make it through without me. And I'm not going to be wasting time finding whomever is stupid enough to get lost.

[So who has a fucking coin.]

[unhand]

Not like those things were much of a threat. [Did they even hit anyone besides Lila...] They'd have been dead soon enough even without your spells.

[Hook isn't even trying to help just fuck you Gold.]