Re: Felonius
After chanting for nearly a minute, Nikodemos stopped and faced the truth...he felt no surge of divine power, no indication that his god was granting him the power to heal his friend...he was too late. He opened his eyes and stared down at her body, once a vibrant, lovely woman...now a shell, the spark of her life fled. He reached down and gently closed her staring eyes.
Nikodemos knew that some powerful clerics had the power to call back the soul...but not only were such deeds beyond his power, he had never even met a holy man capable of such miracles. The odds of finding one, and in time to work the spell...no, his friend was dead and gone.
Standing, he was silent for a moment, and then he cursed bitterly and savagely kicked the corpse of the dead beetle. A stupid, mindless brute had come seemingly from nowhere, and now Ailani was dead. He had known her less than a year, but they had been in some tight spots together, and shared danger makes for fast friends.
His initial grief ran its course in a few minutes, and he returned to his usual capable self, dealing with the tasks that needed seeing to. He wrapped Ailani's body in her cloak...he hesitated before doing this, but seeing the need, stripped her of her arms and armor, as well as her pack and belt pouch. Then, he carefully laid her aside, for the moment.
He would take her sidearms; he knew her sword was enchanted, and he had seen her hurl her dagger with lethal accuracy. Her bow and arrows were less needed, he had his own. He would bring her armor along; he didn't need it particularly, but if it was magical it was valuable, and he was fair certain it was. A quick check of her pack revealed some scrolls and potions, which he transferred to his own...she was beyond needing them, but they might serve to keep him alive. Nothing else struck him as particularly useful...he would use her holy symbol as a grave marker.
Well, there was one more thing...it was standing on four legs, still quivering from its painful encounter with their insectile visitor. He went over to Ailani's mount, a dappled grey she had called Smoke, whispering soothing words and stroking it. When it had calmed a bit, he chanted another healing spell.
These tasks done, he hurried to finish the shelter and kindle the fire. Morning would be time enough to decide his next move; this battle and the death of his comrade had left him exhausted and depressed. He just wanted to crawl into his shelter, curl under his fur cloak, and get some sleep. He morosely chewed an apple as he ignited his sword and set back to getting a decent fire lit.