Noon, or Shortly Before
Subject: Re: In the waiting room; Interlude
OOC: I'm going to be in class the rest of the week-- very sporadic access to the web. Sorry guys.
Mission feels the press of light against his eyes. But he isn't fooled. He keeps watching the floor of the orrery.
The son he is concerned about hasn't ascended yet.
From: Karl
Subject: Re: In the waiting room; Interlude
Farron tooks intently at the orrery, despite the impending events, he is fascinated by the craftsmanship displayed. Schooled in Divination, he has had much experience with orreries back at the college, but none of them were of this scale and apparent precision. He has always admired these models of the natural world though he has always been somewhat skeptical of their usefulness in Divination Arts. As he watches intently, he notices the alignment of the planets and something from a long forgotten lesson in the movements of heavenly bodies clicks to the front of his mind. Were he not already filled to the brink with dread of the next hours he would likely have felt a chill penetrating to his bones. "This alignment tell us we are on the cusp of a pivotal event in a struggle among gods." Then, realizing he said that aloud he looks at the faces around him, all giving him a look that can only be discribed as incredulous. ". . . but I guess we already knew that, huh?" he adds sheepishly.
Damn Astrology! he thinks to himself. Never was good for anything useful.
From: Mike
Subject: Re: In the waiting room; Interlude
Garyth stares at the orrery. He's never seen anything like it before. He's never even heard of anything like it. When he first came to Overlook from the farm, he had thought it was a very fine, very huge city. Later, when he went to Nesalin, he had smiled at the memory of a slack-jawed child, a farmer's son, and thought himself very sophisticated. But these halflings had built things that no one could even dream of building now. And even with all their power, they had fallen. If people capable of this couldn't stand before Kor Garesh, what hope had this small band?
At that thought Garyth turns away, returning to the spot where he had lain. He sits, closes his eyes, and clears his mind. He waits.
From: Ty
Subject: Noon, or shortly before...
The orrery is fascinating enough to hold everyone for a time but even its wonder wears off in the current black mood and the party drifts off one by one. Garyth goes back to sleep, while Rennik sits next to him wrapping the handle of his cut down halberd. Mission paces the floor, shooting the occasional dark glance at Cadfael, who, after staring teary eyed at the orrery for a while, slumped back to the floor. Only Farron and Sa'id remain at the window, quietly discussing the engineering requirements of such a marvel.
As time passes, the room below grows brighter and brighter. It is possible to see the awesome place of worship this must have once been. Whatever their other faults, the halflings who built this must have worshipped the sun god with great fervor. In the increasing light, the golden throne gleams like a mirror. The marble pillars that ring the throne room gleam as white as snow. It takes little imagination to picture the throngs of faithful gathered around the dais and bowing down to the awesome power of their god at noonday. What does take a great deal of imagination is coming up with a scenario that ends in a demon trapped in a black pillar next to the throne. The awkward placement of the pillar is indicative of sudden need rather than careful planning.
As the day grows closer to noon, Mission seems almost to vibrate in place, his tattoos glowing with barely restrained energy. Down in the throne room, there is more activity. More guards arrive, and are placed around the room. In total, there are perhaps thirty now, with two thirds of them being undead. Sa'id is uncomfortable to note that the undead in this room are not all the mindless and slow moving zombies they've seen before, but include more powerful and more cunning varieties. He notes at least half a dozen wights. The only living things in the room are halflings and a few humans. Only one of the humans is recognizable. It is the disfigured woman last seen outside. She stalks about the room with glowing eyes, looking this way and that in a searching manner, then leaves the room through the main door.
By this time, the activity in the room below has generated enough interest to get the entire party back to the window. Garyth and Rennik note guard positions, and quietly compare. The rest of the party stands watching, silently.
A few moments after the witch leaves, she returns accompanied by a taller woman wrapped all in black robes. Mission has a sudden intake of breath. Anileth? But no, a flash of red hair shows the robe wearer to be Elise. The knight moves slowly to the head of the altar, and stops. Her every action seems purposeful, ritualistic. The time is close.
When she has reached her place at the altar, she signals to someone by the main doors, and they are opened. A flood of halflings and evil men poor into the chamber. It looks like everyone that was outside, and more. Dozens, no hundreds of followers of Kor Garesh flood into the room. They take places all around the dais and stop. Rennik curses under his breath. It would be impossible to fight through that crowd. It isn't jus the Murrkat and their lesser human allies, but the guard in plate mail from the sewers is here. So is the half orc, and the half elven man from outside. It isn't just a small army, but a small army with powerful captains as well. Rennik turns to Cadfael and says, "I hope your god has a mighty trick up his sleeve here, priest." For once, the cleric has nothing to say.
When the room has quieted, Elise raises both hands high above her head, facing the pillar. The black robes slide off of her, and she stands naked before Kor Garesh, her long hair unbound and flowing in a red river down her back. Cadfael looks down at her, and pants in obvious fear. "Oh, Gods. Oh sweet Pelor. The demon of fire and rotten black heart. My soul will burn, it will burn?" Sa'id puts a comforting hand on the priests shoulder, but Cadfael seems not to even feel it. Elise puts her hands down, and turns back to face the altar. From somewhere (Mission briefly thinks, "Madame leggy dame, where were you hiding THAT?") she produces a long dagger of black glass. She raises it on high, and the room erupts in a roar. The yelling goes on for minutes, while she stands motionless, holding the dagger high above the altar. The scene is enough to twist the mind. The beautiful nude woman, surrounded by worshipful undead and evil men, cheering her. Sa'id sighs and says, "I think she may be the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." He turns to look at Farron with a lop sided grin, "So why does she scare the shit out of me?" But Farron is not listening. He is staring down at the crowd of worshippers with a terrible look on his face.
"Oh gods," he says in a grief filled whisper. "Look, Garyth, it's Kami. Kami is down there." He points down at a zombie, a little smaller in size than the others. When Garyth sees her, he gives a little cry of pain. "You're right. That's her." Seeing the others staring at him, he says, "Kami was the daughter of the family whose farm we stayed in when we began this task. She and her parents were abducted." He turns back to the glass, his face twisted. "Now we know what has happened to those taken. They fed that little girl's soul to the demon."
In that moment, the reasons for all of this effort come flooding back.
Farron remembers his aunt and uncle, taking him in after his parents died, treating him as if he was their own son. The money they could scarcely afford given to him without question when he decided to attend the college in Nesalin. The many times his aunt sat by his bedside while he cried himself to sleep as a tiny boy. His uncle teaching him to be strong, when he was old enough to learn it. And less than a weeks march away, something that would steal their souls without a second thought. Not while I live, he thinks. Not while I live.
Sa'id, whose reasons for coming have never been as clear, reflects on why he chose this path. He sees now his burning need to DO something. Something that would matter. He remembers holding the hand of his dying mother, and burning with a need to fix it, to make it right. The powerlessness he felt then has haunted him ever since. This, I can help make right, he thinks. I can finally do.
Rennik, less given to reflection than others perhaps, thinks only: You shattered my people like flint struck with an axe. We have been left broken and lost ever since. And you hunt us still; taking our souls like a hunter takes hides. For this, I will hurt you as much as one warrior can. I will hurt you until you can no longer hurt us.
Garyth thinks of his family on the farm near Overlook. On the uncles who taught him to fight, and to be a man. The families who live almost unprotected on the edges of civilization, because they choose to live free on their own land. He remembers the oath he took when he joined the army. One line comes back to him now, "We are the wall around our people." Without even thinking about it, he straightens his armor, and reattaches the insignia of the guard he removed all those days ago. I am the wall around my people. You must pass through me to harm them.
Cadfael pops to his feet like a puppet. "I must go now." He then climbs down the ladder.
[Check in real quick please. Next turn, Cadfael opens the door.]
From: Raja
Subject: Re: Noon, or shortly before...
Karl, what spells does Farron have memorized?
From: Karl
Subject: Re: Noon, or shortly before...
Farron makes to move after Cadfael, then stops. What can he do? This mission has never seen more insane than it does now, sending an insane priest into an army of undead. But he can't see any other way to approach things better. In the midst of insanity, maybe the sane thing to do is to trust that Cadfael knows what he is doing. He watches as Cadfael disappears down the ladder. One last time he checks his pockets for the items he will need to cast the spells he has prepared for the coming moments.
From: Scott
Subject: Re: Noon, or shortly before...
OOC: Ty, that was really good. And I'm not just buttering you up so you let Mission survive. :-)
Mission starts forward after Cadfael-- but he stops himself. What could he do against so many?
Trust the pathless to find his own way.
Passivity. Surrender. Disciplines Mission has never been very adept at. Failure though, he's been a right _vicar_ at that lately. Failing his father and the Path. Failing to redeem Anileth.
Mission presses his fingers on the glass. He can feel the vibration of the crowd shouting below him.
Mockery of the Path. Mockery of Stone. Mission feels revulsion well up within him, but pushes it aside.
Promise was the only thing that mattered, now. His Path was set as always.