Piling her plate high with an assortment of the delicious food that was lain before them, the red-haired woman tucked in. It was a bit comical considering her small stature, but Aria assaulted it with gusto. Her mental abilities demanded a high caloric intake and thus her metabolism was more akin to a hummingbird. Quite literally, she was always eating something, her ability to consume and keep her athletic figure a boon that aroused jealousy in many of the women in Pearl Fort.

As she finished a rather sumptuous piece of octopus, Aria sighed, the pangs of hunger momentarily held in abeyance. Now, she could tell them about the black-robed figure and what it might mean considering their current objective. Just as she was about to speak, however, the kitchen door burst open and a mass of those same creatures, mongrels, came pouring out with weapons bared.

"Mongrels," Aria shouted as she made ready to spring into action.

Davor was also arms deep in several of the dishes that had been brought to the table. Since the meal had been generously paid for, he didn't want to let anything go to waste. The half-orc tried everything that had been put in front of him though for the time being he resisted the urge to reach too far over the table in an imitation of having manners. Magical rings were all well and good, but nothing really compared to the taste of a well prepared meal.

When the fracas in the other room started, Davor let out a grunt of irritation as he dropped the turkey leg in his hand and it skittered away across the floor as though it had a life of its own. He rose to his feet and, keenly aware that his questions had not been answered, moved to interpose himself between the table and the door to the room. As he did so, he spoke a word of in some guttural tongue, made a sign with his hand, and then grasped one of the bones in his dreadlocks. Moving around the table, he touched each other person present with the hand that had held the bone and a soft, green glow seemed to pass to them.

Once he had interposed himself between the table and the door, a giant blade with a pale green, ghostly appearance materialized in his hand. The giant sword was much larger than the falchion strapped to his back almost to the point where even the large half-orc seemed like he ought to have trouble wielding it. He said nothing, but grinned savagely at the strange creatures and readied himself.

Casting Communal Protection from Evil. Creatures touched: Davor, Helena, Jerec, Aria, Amber, and Urle. Duration: 1 minute each.

Activating my Ancestral Weapon.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:53, Sun 17 Feb 2019.

The mongrels charge the door, howling and hooting, two larger ones slamming into the door and Urle, trying to get through, more trying to hurl knives from behind them.  Two daggers hit the wall, but one grazes Jerec's arm.  A fourth misses Davor. 



Aria rushes to the door to put herself next to Urle to stop the mongrels from flooding the room.    Urle stands firm and keeps himself from being grabbed or pulled off-balance.  Amber pulls her sword and makes a flashy display of dazzling prowess, signalling death for any who try to get inside.  One of the newest looks rather cowed by her show! 

Helena keeps herself at the back of the room, behind the bulwark of bodies who seem determine, for whatever reason, to protect her.



Everyone protected against evil, and falchion now floating, the mongrels will have a wealthy of ways to die if they breach the doors!

They continue to push and shove, and the doors begin to shudder against what sound like the pounding of axes.  Soon they will have reduced the doors to splinters!

"This door is not going to hold long under this constant assault," Aria said as she glanced over at Urle. To emphasize her concern, a piece of wood splintered right beside her face. "My suggestion is that Amber, Davor, and Jerec protect Helena. Flip the table and put her behind it. Urle and I will step back and allow the mongrels to come. Any that get past us, you three deal with. Sound good?"

The great half-orc looked a little put out at the plan not involving him getting a first crack at these cloaked creatures, but he was trying to be amicable so he nodded. "Sounds like a good idea to me. Stand clear, things are gonna go flying." Davor backed up around to the far side of the table and got his shoulder underneath it enough to give a push and attempt to heavy the thing over onto its side food and all.

Grunting in surprise as the dagger nicked him, Jerec gazed down instinctively at his arm. Cloth or skin had not been pierced, but still the lucky shot was disconcerting. Taking out something from a pouch at his belt with his free hand he muttered archaic words in an unfamiliar tongue, "Variae Armis!"

For a moment Jerec considered barring the door with magic and suggesting everyone run, but the door was already being reduced to splinters; he also wanted to capture one of their attackers to learn the motives for this ambush, and who it was targeting. It would not be a surprise at all to learn that Helena was the target of this attack, but the mage wanted to be sure.

"Stay behind us Helena," he called out to the young woman, before moving forward to help Davor with toppling the table over to use as a barrier.

---

Move Action: Help Davos with overturning the table if possible. Standard Action: Cast Mage Armor (duration 6 hours).

Things happened quite fast. The girl had barely had any time to start to process everything when the world went chaotic again. Helena moved behind the table and dropped to the floor. If there was just a way out of the place? She turned around looking for a window, a secluded spot or a space in the wall...

"I wonder what deity did I anger to deserve this?"

Table upended by Davor and Jerec (making a horrible racket and mess), it now provides a sturdy bulwark between the splintering doors and vulnerable young woman in the corner.  Amber pulls out her double-bladed sword, the blades flashing darkly as she swings it into position with precision, as Jerec armors himself with magic and Davor prepares himself.  Aria and Urle pull their own blades, Urle's of steel, Aria's of shimmering force that blinks into existence in her hand.

The mongrels start to force open the doors, and Urle and Amber fall back, ready to repel them.

A brace of hunchbacked mongrels, one with a face that's the half fish, with mismatched hands like a bird's talon and a bear's paw, the other with a dog-like face and goat's hooves, both wielding axes with ugly daggers thrust into their belts.  Behind them are six more mongrels, all equally twisted in form, with some sounds like there could be even more coming out of the kitchen.  The inn is in chaos, but it seems most of the patrons and staff are fleeing out the front door without being pursued by the mongrels; their prey is here, it seems.

As the two door-breaker mongrels step forward, swinging their axes with murderous intent, Urle and Aria are there.  Urle's sword forces one back hard, making the mongrel grunt with the effort, while Aria's quick glowing blade slices into the other, leaving a smoking wound.  Both mongrels swing their axes in retaliation, missing Aria but just scoring Urle. 

"Give us the heir!  She will be our queen of all nations, empress of all!  Do not deny her to us!" one in the back howls, its face like a raven split with a squid.

The mongrels in the back begin to hurl slingstones and daggers at Urle and Aria, with the table making it difficult to hit Davor, Amber, or Jerec.  Most miss, but one lucky stone snaps across Aria's forehead with painful force!  The rest of the mongrels press forward, and soon the doorway will be filled with them!



While Helena doesn't recall doing anything (or not doing anything) that should have offended any god, great or small, it doesn't change the fact that monstrous creatures were here and trying to get to her.  Seeking an escape, she turns away from the chaos of combat and pats along the wall, seeking some kind of out.  The room was built for privacy, but Helena's frantic search reveals that a decorative tapestry hides a small door!

When he heard the shouts of the wild looking creatures, Davor retorted from behind the table."Did any of you consider asking politely rather than swarming the inn wielding weapons?"

As the stones began to fly at them, Davor decided that some additional cover was in order for those on the front lines. "Everyone watch each other's backs it's about to get hard to see." Davor shouted a word in his strange tongue and clapped his hands together. Mist spewed from the half-orc's mouth in a billowing torrent until the entire room was filled.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Helena searching for an exit. He backed up through the mist until he was once again next to her and held his ghostly falchion in a defensive stance. He did nothing to impede her attempts to find an escape but merely made sure that nothing dangerous came through the mist.

Casts Obscuring Mist at 1st level.

Ducking behind the table as the creatures swarmed and stones flew Jerec considered his options, his brow rising as he heard what the creatures said. Heir, queen of nations...what the blazes have I gotten into? he thought, though he had to admit to himself the thrill of danger and a mystery did make him feel alive, after what seemed like a long time.

Peering over the table the mage saw the doorway behind the first two mongrels swarming with more of the creatures, with possibly some even more behind them. The staff of the inn seemed to have charged out of the kitchens already, and if any were left behind Jerec doubted they were still alive.

Suddenly mist swarmed from Davor, engulfing the room and making it harder to see. A wise move Jerec thought, that would allow them more protection against the creatures slings and thrown daggers. But that did mean they would try to close to attacking them hand to hand.

Thus before he lost sight of the enemy completely or they moved to close to stabbing range, Jerec focused his mind and made a circular motion with his free arm, bringing it down close to his chest and intoned, "Et ignis FRAGOR!"

There was a flash of light as the mage snapped his arm palm forward and a fiery ball of angry flame streaked out towards the group of mongrels by the ruined doorway, burning through the mist until it exploded into an inferno!

---

"Heir? empress of nations? what is all that nonsense" Helena couldn't form a coherent thought out of the situation. The day just kept getting weirder and weirder. Taking advantage of the mist obstructing all sight, she dared to try to open the trapdoor and peek inside. Perhaps it could be a site to hide, or even a way out?

The battlefield becomes a place of mist and shadow, making the mongrels pause in confusion as fog reins indoors.



Bright fire illuminates the mist as shrieks sound further away from the room.  It sounds like Jerec's spell caught a goodly number in its lethal nimbus!

Urle and Aria continue to press the doorbreaker mongrels that they can see, slicing into them with sword and soulknife.  The half-fish-faced one goes down screaming, while the dog-faced one ducks from Aria's blade with a ferret-quick squirm.  Both of their return blows miss, but it seems like there are more mongrels that are pressing forward to take the place of any fallen foes.



Helena opens the door and finds a short hallway lit with a small lantern, and beyond that a stone staircase descending into the ground.  From the faint whiffs of beer and wine, likely it goes to the inn's wine cellar.

Helena noticed the passage, this was it! her way out!

But these people had been so nice to her... She touched the older man that was behind the table and whipsered to him "I found a trapdoor, it goes outside. You should follow."

Having said that, she moved to try to climb down the stairs..

Squinting his eyes and trying to see how many of the critters had survived his conjured flames, Jerec muttered under his breath as the sorcerous mist made it all but impossible to determine. Tugging his beard in frustration he was about to cast another spell when he felt a touch on his arm and a whisper; turning he noted Helena climbing down the stairs through a trapdoor she had discovered.

"Wait, I don't think that leads outside," the mage said quickly, but she had already vanished. "Great," he muttered. If the staircase led down to the cellars they would be trapped in a dead end. Still, the room along with the cover provided by the mist could be useful in avoiding pursuit...

Thinking quickly he gestured at Davor to follow them saying, "Follow us, I have an idea," then quickly descended the staircase himself into the room below.

Heading down the stairs, Helena (and soon Jerec) finds herself in a damp but not unpleasant cellar, stone-floored and lined with large tun barrels on one side, racks of wine bottles on the other, with smaller kegs, butts, and firkins stacked up and labeled neatly.  Another staircase is at the far end of the basement from where she is standing.  Looking around carefully, she sees a trapdoor in the ceiling above some of the largest tun barrels.  There's an echo of shouting and cursing coming from the other staircase, along with some whimpering and muffled sobs.

Davor made sure to stay next to Helena as mist enveloped the room. It would be very unfortunate if she managed to disappear. When it became clear that she and Jerec intended to descend the stairs, Davor nodded to the wizard and followed behind, keeping an eye on the the opening to back into the dinning room in case any of the strange creatures managed to follow them. The combination of walking backwards and having to duck slightly in the passage, meant Davor was significantly behind the other two by the time they reached the cellar.

As soon as Davor descended Jerec gestured at the trapdoor in the ceiling above them and whispered urgently to Helena, "Quick girl, climb up and open the door, let us get out of here before those creatures realize you are missing. They were searching for you and I feel they will not give up so easily."

Glancing back across the cellar towards the staircase they had descended, the mage looked to see if any of the creatures had detected their escape and followed them downstairs.

Helena paid attention to Jerec and agreed to his words, but she couldn't help looking towards the second set of stairs in the cellar "Up there or the stairs?"

Protectionist at heart, Urle's first and foremost concern was keeping himself between the threat, and the target.


Pushing the monster he was grappling with to the side, he grabbed the large table nearby and, disregard for its contents, threw it on it's side in front of the doorway, creating a very crude barricade. It wouldn't stop the horde, but it would at least slow them down, and if Helena could get to safety, that would be enough.

Gesturing at the staircase at the far end from where they had descended Jerec replied, "That way, I believe that should lead us out of the inn; at the very least its the farthest point from the common room so it should give us some distance."

Davor stares intently at the stairs for a short time and his green eyes flash. "The spirits whisper of something evil that way. It might be more of whatever attacked us in the dinning room, but let me go first and make sure that it's safe." He readies the massive ethereal sword before himself and advances across the room to the base of the stairs. After pausing for a moment to listen, he begins to cautiously ascend.

Urle pushes the already-toppled table in front of the door to give the mongrels something else to have to hack through.  Aria and Amber station themselves right behind it.

"Get going and follow her!" Amber hisses in his ear, bringing her two-bladed sword into attack position.  "I can't use my sword in that little passageway, so I'm going to stay here and buy you time."

"I'll need room to move, so my place is here with Aria.  Go, save the heir," Aria says quietly, her glowing sword illuminating her face through the mist.  If Urle so wishes, he can duck through the tapestry and down the stairs to the cellar, hot the heels of his charge...

---

Helena can scramble onto the stacks of barrels with a little difficulty.  They're meant to be climbed on so workers can retrieve the right vintage, so it's not too hard, but kicking the wrong barrel could start a chain reaction of burst containers and make an awful racket.  Investigating the trap door above, it seems its latched from this side.  Sliding the latch, and pressing up, Helena realizes the trap door is rather heavy.  But the view is a slice of the street outside!

Davor goes up the stairs, and quickly realizes that this staircase must lead into the kitchen.  The smells of fresh food and smoke are unmistakable, and the growling and yelling of the mongrels above must mean they're using the back door from the alley to get into the inn!

Davor backs down the stairs and returns to below the stacks of barrels that Helena has climbed towards the trap-door. Keeping his voice low, he shares with the others what he learned. "The kitchen is up the stairs and from the sound of things, the mongrels are coming in that way. We'll have to keep fighting if we go that way." He looks up towards Helena expectantly.

Helena peaked at the small opening she could get "I see daylight in the other side." She told the others. "But this is a bit heavy for me to move"

Glancing back towards the way they had come, Jerec turned and looked up towards Helena, "Excellent, that is the way to go then. If you can't open it jump down and let Davor take care of it."

The mage looked at the half-orc expectantly and urgently. There was little time to waste, they were vulnerable as long as they stayed here. He was worried about the others they had left behind, but they seemed capable enough to hold their own, not to mention Jerec's conjured exploding flames had likely whittled down the mongrels enough for the others to have a fighting chance.