To say the journey back to town was uncomfortable is a understatement. Not only was the road bumpy and the wagon charging forward through every rut and bump, but there was a looming dread over what was to come; made all the worse when Reyshanel awoke from her unconsciousness and began belittling, insulting, and foretelling the doom that the party would encounter when her people arrived in Greenest, at least until Sefira had enough and returned her to unconsciousness for about thirty more minutes. Upon resuming conciousness again Reyshanel simply stared in the direction of the town in silence with a wicked smirk on her face leaving the rest of the trip one of quiet and unease.
Tyranny of Dragons: Hoard of the Dragon Queen: Chapter 1 Greenest in Flames
Year 1489 DR
9:00pm
The sun had now set leaving a orange and red sky across the land which had faded to the coming night by the time the party had gotten close to Greenest. There was still some daylight, but not much and it would not last much longer. About thirty minutes from town the group could see only a hill obstructing their view, but beyond that hill there were large pillars of black acrid smoke rising into the sky creating an almost gloomy cloud above where the town would be.
Once the group crests the last hill before the town, they can see in full view the horror before them. The sounds of a bell being rung coming from the keep can be heard, a warning to the populace to find shelter. The townsfolk can be seen scrambling like ants toward the keep while other shadowy figures come pouring out of the fields surrounding the town like an unending swarm.
The heart of the town seems mostly untouched by this point the fires and the imagined carnage relegated to the outskirts of the town for now, but that wont last, not with the numbers of foes you see pouring into the town.
As the group barrels down the main road toward the market district the screams of women and children, and the sounds of violence become louder and louder set against the sound of the bell ringing almost pleading or screaming for the townsfolk to head into the shelter of the keep. The odd townsfolk can be seen fleeing from the town as you charge past them on the road with their belongings they could carry in hand.
Now mere minutes from the town, a terrible roar pierces the night, and massive wind almost upends the wagon, startling the horses, which Brock expertly brings back into line. Swooping past your wagon only feet from your heads is the belly of a massive beast only barely visible in the night, illuminated only by the glowing heat of it's scales and the flames licking from it's mouth as it bellows.
"Cower rodents before your new master! I Lennithon lay claim to this village and all within, you are now my property!" To punctuate his claim he lets loose a pillar of white and blue flames across a section of the town as he strafes it, before climbing back into the sky and making his primary target the keep on the hill. Which he begins to circle roaring.
Now arriving at the town proper the full carnage of the events of the night are in plain view. The fires raging in parts of the town have caused an ominous glow about the smoke clinging above the town, and small embers and ash waft through the air. Up ahead a duo clad in half-plate with long swords drawn are two of the town's guard. An older man barking orders to civilians pointing toward the keep, and a woman who couldn't be older than eighteen, who is obviously a novice and wearing armor not meant for her trying to usher people past, when out of a nearby alleyway a large beast about the length of a horse and height of a large dog, clad in scales and looking like a small wingless dragon bursts forth past the older man knocking him to the ground and laying into the young armored woman who screams in both surprise and pain as the creature brings it's mouth down across her abdomen crunching through the plate as if it were not there and disemboweling the woman.
She begins swinging the sword feebly at the creature who has now pinned her to the ground and begun pulling large chunks of flesh from her and as a bird or lizard might, allowing them to slide down it's gullet, unfazed by the attacks or even the fact that it's meal is not completely dead yet. The older man attempts to rise to his feet, reaching in vain toward the girl, as he himself is seized from behind by another of the creatures who then drags him into the alley with a scream which is quickly silenced. Followed by his lifeless body disappearing into the smoke and shadow.
Past the scene before you the sounds of screams and sword on sword can be heard, and gangs of both men and monster are prowling the streets seizing and brutally slaying the inhabitants of the town. Counted among them, the group can see raiders dressed like Reyshanel, more or less like mercenaries, more of the beasts like the one eating the woman, and kobolds who run about swarming over their victims, overpowering even the bravest men with overwhelming numbers and pack tactics.
Bucking focus back into the group are the horses pulling the wagon who rear and whiny as they get too close to the creature eating the woman, causing their harness to snap and they take off leaving the wagon before the creature who looks up from the crying woman to the group in the wagon and with a loud roar like hiss, lunges toward Brock.
<o.o.c.> I will need initiative.
Again all of you are prone having been sitting in the wagon this whole time.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:35, Fri 28 Aug 2020.