Renard moves through the group, casting healing and restoration spells on the most battle-scarred members of the group.  He also assists Solomon in checking the cultist's wounds, satisfied with the Paladin's diagnosis and prescription of iron manacles to be applied immediately to the wrists.


OOC: One cure critical wounds for Kilgur, one cure serious wounds each for Kuldar and Temnir, one lesser restoration for Kuldar.  Holding off on healing Raznik until we confirm he's back on our side. :P
Spells/Day:
1: 7/8 (DC 16+2)
2: 5/7 (DC 17+2)
3: 2/6 (DC 18+2)
4: 2/4 (DC 19+2)

Razik lay where he had fallen, dazed and confused, as consciousness swam to the surface. He blinked a few times before suddenly sitting up, shocked and breathing heavily, his head snapping about, despite his obvious pain from his grievous wounds. He shied away from Kuldar's offered hand, almost afraid of it. Burying his face in his hands, his body shook with sobs, as he leant against the bar. "What have I done?" he mumbled into his knees, drawn up to shield his body from the world.

Kuldar looked ready to have words with Solomon but quickly turned his attention to Raznik with a frown. The Dwarf stomped the couple steps to reach the Summoner and hefted him to his feet before slapping a gauntlet across his face knocking him back down. "Alright lad, enough of that aye? You keep blaming yourself for what that beast makes ya do and you'll never have a life to live for yerself. Now on yer feet, and pull yerself together. We have a town to save."

"Raznik has known what effect the beast has had upon him, yet he's done nothing to stop it.  Now he has just attacked us with his creature.  A reluctant foe is a foe none-the-less.  We have enough enemies we do not need one in our ranks disguised as a friend." he said calmly, but sternly, towards the Dwarf.

He then turned to Raznik.  "If your beast is the cause of your suffering and hate then dispel it and never summon it again.  I don't know how your magic works, but perhaps you can make a pact with a beast with a less evil soul.  Only then would I be willing to let you stand at my back."

"Easy fer you ta say, I fer one don't understand how dese pacts work, or what can and can't be controlled. If it was as simple as dat don'tcha think he'da figured it out by now? I'd assume a holy man would be willing to give the benefit of a doubt to an obviously tortured soul." Kuldar says calmly, though a little antagonistically toward Solomon. Kilgur sniffed at Raznik's feet curiously before wandering back over to Kuldar and getting pet.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:33, Mon 06 May 2013.

Raznik reeled back, shocked by the slap. He opened his mouth to speak, but Solomon's words seemed to strike a chord with him, and his tear streaked face turned to the floor. "You are right. I am a danger to all around me. I do not understand this, nor did the pact with that monster come by choice. Every day I pray to Pelor to save me from my curse, and every day I am unanswered." The desert man looked up at Solomon. "I understand if you feel unsafe to travel with me, but I fear for what I may do to others if I am left unguarded." His voice lowered as he slumped against the blood streaked bar once more, his wounds clearly taking their toll and his voice lowered. "Perhaps it would be safest to vanquish me to save the world from the demon."

Normally the last person to intervene in such matters, Temnir quickly finds himself standing near Raznik, facing down Solomon's demands of the man. "Would you, as a paladin who is charged to cleanse darkness, leave this man to sink into it? Would you really Solomon? Yes, he is dangerous, but he is also our companion, whatever led him astray. And it was not by choice. Anyone here can see that." Looking into Raznik's eyes for some hint of what could be done with the man, Temnir's brow furrows and he is silent for a moment. "Either way, he may have information that we can gleam from him. From the way he doesn't seem to remember what happens when he's like that, it may all be subconscious but there may be ways to bring it forth, if in fact there is anything there. We're already short on information, why pass up such a prime opportunity?" The longer Temnir spoke, the less it sounded like he was really interested in the man at all, rather than his value. It could just be Temnir's nature or perhaps him trying to cover his display of protectiveness toward the summoner.

Renard stayed out of the conversation for now.  His sense of camaraderie told him that perhaps Raznik had been tricked in some way and was not responsible for his misdeeds.  His sense of self-preservation, however, forced him to stay his healing hand until Solomon, the de facto leader of the group, gave the all clear.  It was definitely an uncomfortable position to be in.

"I have seen too many die, and more still, come back from the dead to us harm.  If Raznik can not help himself how is he to help us, this city, or others?" Solomon asked, wondering if no one else agreed with his feelings of mistrust.  As the seconds ticked by his stern look grew softer and a look of compassion came to his eyes.  "Still, perhaps your words ring of some truth.  I have done little to actually try and aid him personally.  Pelor seems to listen to me more often than most.  I will use that honor to try and send him your pleas."

"Until then, I warn you all.  His demon has more sway over his actions than he does over it.  Until that changes he is a danger.  Watch him well."

"Renard, if you would be so kind to see to his wounds.  Then perhaps see what you can do to wake this stinking sorcerer so we may question him."

Nodding once in acquiescence to Solomon's request Renard moves in, working his way through the verbal and somatic components of the spell before resting a hand on Raznik's shoulder.  The man's wounds immediately begin to stitch together, though the scars and some lesser wounds still yet remain.

With his friends healed up enough for the moment Renard turns to the single still-living cultist.  As he prepares to wake the fellow up a rather disturbing thought pops into his head.  He glances towards Solomon, speaking softly though the disgust is plain in his words, "We should burn the dead or our enemies will find some way to make use of them..."  Not wanting to waste any magic on the cultist Renard slaps him around a bit.

12:09, Tue 07 May 2013: Renard Waywynd rolled 27 using 4d8+8 ((3,3,5,8)).

"Our intentions are shared.  I wish for him to see his friends burn however, and know that no god will be able to return them to this world.  I wish him to know his death will be final."

It seemed Solomon had all intentions of destroying the bodies.  As he spoke to Renard he started dragging the bodies of the dead near the edge of the pit.  "Skraag we may have use for your fire after all."

"It would be my pleasure to assist our resident pyro with that task," Temnir said with a grim determination in his eyes and a hint of unhealthy eagerness. His personal experience with the cultists was toxic at best and in some way, this helped sooth the wounds that time could not completely heal.

OOC: Temnir will mimic whatever fire spell Skraag uses, substituting Burning Hands for his breath attack is need be.

Renard's careful ministrations to the cultist seemed to do the trick after a couple of particularly unfriendly slaps, jolting the man awake, causing him to look around frantically at first then, realizing his situation, into a motionless sentinel, calculating eyes scanning each member of the party. Through the skeletal bird mask, the man's eyes are obviously tinted with a slight reddish glow and seem rather...off.

OOC: Perception check for anyone who's close to the man.

Kuldar still looked a little miffed and ready to butt heads with Solomon, but Temnir's words seemed to sway the man so he calmed down a bit. In his new state of calm he looked over to the lone cultist and narrowed his eyes before shouting. "Ah damn it- somebody break his fingers, he's castin' a spell!" He said pulling out his Warhammer and charging forward not waiting for someone else to act.

Kuldar's haste serves him poorly and he ends up tripping over the remnants of the battle, nearly tumbling into the pit of the dead a second time, and all finishing with a loud thud as he faceplanted a good few feet from the cultist. "Now that just...ain't fair." He manages to cough out as he tries hoisting himself back up.

19:12, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 13 using 1d20+11. Sunder-ho!
19:12, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 12 using 1d20+11. *twitch* Story reroll.
19:17, Today: Kuldar Balak rolled 1 using 1d6. Fumble.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:17, Fri 10 May 2013.

Had Kuldar made it in time, perhaps there would have been something that could have been done to stop what the cultist did next. As it was, nobody was quick enough to stop him. Having been found out, the slow, calculated movement of his fingers rocketed into a flurry of moving digits, no longer concerned with secrecy. The last thing the group saw of the man, was a supremely satisfied look in the man's eyes past the crack in his skull mask. Then he suddenly vanished as if he had never been there at all. Things were just not going the group's way since they entered Burova. Even Kilgur seemed to be agitated by the turn of events. As soon as the cultist vanished, the boar ran over to where he had been sitting and began sniffing the floor, letting out what could be considered distraught squeals considering the circumstances. Moving to Kuldar, he began to nudge his master the his snout, squealing all the while.

OOC: Anyone who cares to do so, make a Knowledge Nature check. Kuldar adds +2 to this roll.

Still kneeling over the spot where the man had been laying only moments before Renard looks around bewilderingly, "Damn it!  I should have paralyzed him when I had the chance!"  He curses himself under his breath, paying no attention to Kuldar's mishap as he wracks his brain to come up with a solution.  After a moment he makes a simple gesture and speaks a single word of power, his eyes scanning the room once more as magical auras become visible to him.

OOC: Cast detect magic
21:01, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 19 using 1d20+10. Kn: Nature.

Kuldar got himself vertical again while looking to his now frantic boar. "Eh? Wha' is it boy? Some'tin smell off?" He looked where the cultist had been with a contemplative expression. His eyes immediately turned toward the spilled wine cask and points. "The blasted fool is invisible!" And he points out the spot where the liquid had rippled slightly, making his position obvious.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:38, Fri 10 May 2013.

Renard looks in the direction Kuldar is pointing and immediately spots the glow of a magical aura moving about.  He doesn't waste any time, holding up one end of his great chain and intoning the words of the same spell he had used to bind Inori.  His free hand makes an arcane gesture which sends a link from the chain flying in the direction of the currently-invisible cultist.

Raznik had slowly clambered to his feet at the commotion, a little confused as to what had happened, but as Kuldar cried out that the man was invisible, a quick spell crossed his lips, and a cloud of golden particles appeared covering the point Kuldar had directed them to.

Cast Glitterdust centred on the ripple.

Between Kilgur catching the scent of the man, Renard's magically enhanced vision pointing out the man's magical belongings seemingly floating away toward the tunnel, and Raznik's quick thinking with his glitterdust spell covering the man in easy-to-see flecks of gold particles, the cultist never stood a chance at his hasty attempt at escape. "I won't tell you anything! Neruul take my black soul, I will not betray the master!" he shouts out, as his held form finally looses the balance he had barely been able to hold onto with his hands so clamped together by Solomon's manacles. The thud as he hit the floor was unmitigated and elicited a slight cringe from Temnir as the man's head bounced off the floor, unable to keep himself from harm. Still conscious despite his fall, the man began murmuring some unholy mantra. Thought obviously not a spell, the profane words oozing out of his mouth were blasphemous nevertheless, calling for the smiting of the living and righteousness's agents so that the lord of death could rise to power again.

Renard moves over to the captive and assists in dragging him back into the middle of the room.  With a glance over at Solomon he speaks in a low voice, though not a whisper it is more indicative of his attitude towards the cultist before him, "I'm going to heal him so that the next part doesn't make him pass out," and with that he casts another healing spell, aimed at the muttering fellow, causing his lightest wounds to knit and heal.  He then returns his gaze to Solomon, voice still low but rather more aggressive now, "As Kuldar said, probably best if we break his fingers now so he doesn't try any more tricks," he says with a nod towards the tetsubo in the Paladin's hands.

20:54, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 7 using 1d8+5. Cure light wounds.

"Save your healing.  He is a fanatic.  I think our time is wasted here.  And I'm not one for torture.  I say we send him to his god, burn the body, and move on."

It was ironic that he had a spell that could cause the cultist from speaking lies.  Yet it could not force him to talk.

Having worked his healing magic on the cultist he turns his head to glance up at Solomon, "I can make him talk.  Pelor's light will compel him to tell me everything I want to know."  He grips the front of the muttering cultist's shirt and lifts him until they are face to face, the Archon's aura creating a burning fire in his deep brown eyes until they glow with a golden light.  When he has the man's full attention he suddenly bursts into a golden-white flame as he had during their more desperate fights back in the mines, "Isn't that right?"

Use energy body ability, sustainable for 8 rounds.
01:23, Today: Renard Waywynd rolled 20 using 1d20+6. Intimidate cultist.
Note: The energy body does not specifically increase the intimidation attempt in any way but I'm hoping it'll scare the bejesus out of him for a possible +2 bonus in addition to any help from the others.

As Renard burst into the flaming avatar of Sarenrae, the cultist tried to stammer his defense again, this time, much, much less convincingly. "I-I won't t-t-tell you a-anything..." the fanaticism and confidence and willing to die for his cause suddenly seemed to vanish at the first sign of a threat. That or Renard was just quite intimidating and never knew it. Perhaps it was the poltergeist rattling Renard's chains in tandem with his display of power that pushed him over the edge. Jeeves would likely think that was the case.

OOC: Intimidated for 1 hour, 10 minutes. Have your way with him folks.

Solomon continued to drag the bodies of the dead across the ground and drop them into the pit.  Lazily kicking one of the bodies in, he looked over at the cultist.  "Who hired you guys to kill us and why?" he asked simply.  Solomon was a simple man from a simple tribe.  He spoke plainly and without a thought to Machiavellian scheming, plotting, or manipulation.