Library Results, The Race for Overlook
Subject: Re: In the library
"You know that is not true," Sa'id replies quietly, studying the complicated latch that held closed the dusty tome in his hands. "They have an entire army with them. If they have met defeat, what could we have done there but join them in defeat?" He pauses as the latch opens with a 'click', then continues. "As for what we've learned, well, we've learned a lot about magical prisons. Enough to know that this is a dead end, at least as far as our skills go, certainly. And I suspect the entire college working in unison couldn't repair the black pillar. As I said before, it was a god that created it. It isn't going to be a mere college of wizards who repair it. So we haven't learned 'nothing'. Far from it, in fact."
"So we're learning what we can't do," Farron says, slamming closed a volume of "The Magical Snare: Catching and Keeping Elementals and Their Ilk". "How is that remotely helpful?"
"When we eliminate all the wrong answers," Sa'id responds, taking on a tone he used to have when they studied together when they were students, "we're left with the right one. And we've learned a few new facts, too. We have learned that Kor Garesh is far older than even the events at the mountain or the Halfling city that lays there in ruins. We have learned from Master Thaddeus's research in the journal of Banarad Vash that Kor Garesh can be weakened by denying him new souls to devour."
"And we do this how?" Farron asks. "He kills those who refuse to pledge allegiance to him, but if we kill his own, who have pledged their souls to him, we feed him further. Are we supposed to tell the army, 'don't kill those zombies that are trying to kill you'?" He shuffles the books on the table, only vaguely noting the titles as he moved them into different piles. " 'Well at least you have your soul' is pretty small consolation to the innocent dead. And if they're not killed outright, they will surely be taken back to the mountain to be sacrificed. Either way it seems Kor Garesh wins."
"First of all," Sa'id replies, "It should be OK to kill the zombies. They don't have souls. Presumably, they were already devoured, so killing them shouldn't feed Kor Garesh further."
"Fine, Zombies are OK. Just don't kill the witches, Orcs, evil Halflings, or fallen Paladin. Or whatever non-soul-less evil things he's been able to enlist to do his --"
"Secondly," Sa'id says more loudly, cutting Farron's tirade short, "we clearly aren't going to starve him to death. I wasn't even suggesting it. But it would be useful if we can prevent any captives from being returned to the mountain. We should tell that to someone in the Guard."
Farron picks up a pile of books and begins returning them to the stacks. Sa'id throws him a frustrated look, "We haven't looked in all of those."
"You said yourself we're wasting our time here. The pillar isn't a wizard's prison. And if it were you can bet their would be a specific record of wizards imprisoning a dark god. Master Thaddeus already told us he knew every book in the library and there was no such reference to Kor Garesh and no mention of the prison in the references to him by his other names. Unless you see a book titled "How I Trapped a God", I think we're done here." He finishes with one pile and grabs another, returning the books to the stack in silence.
Sa'id closes the tome he was reading, clicking the leather latch closed with finality. "We'll you're probably right, there. We're not likely going to find what we need here. If it's divine power than created the pillar in the first place, it will probably be divine power that will have to repair it." He pushes the tome next to the final stack of book as Farron moves to retrieve them.
"Don't worry, I'll take these back" Farron says, his sarcasm lost on Sa'id who is deep in thought.
"Well," Sa'id says,"we figured from the clues back in the jungle and in the mountain that it was Halfling priests of Pelor who succeeded in petitioning their God to create the prison/pillar in the first place, right? We'll I think it's time to pay another visit to Pelor's spokesman here in Nesalin."
Farron stops, leaving the last pile of books on the end of the table. "One of the students can put these back," he says. "Let's get to the temple!"
***********
OOC - Farron and Sa'id will go back to the temple of Pelor and relate their theory to the Sunmaster.
From: Scott
Subject: Re: In the library
Very nicely done.
From: Mark
Subject: Re: In the library
Very well done. Twinky will be proud.
Mark
From: Mike
Subject: Re: An ambush that fails, an ambush that succeeds, and a general who takes the field
It was almost finished. Nesalin's army was moments away from carrying the field, honor and discipline and righteousness all set to sweep away the opposing rabble like the tide. Garyth had been smiling, ready to ride into Overlook with good tidings, when the world ended.
It wasn't just that there were no words to describe the blinding, incapacitating terror--the mind simply couldn't grasp the enormity of it. It was as it someone had turned a valve and stopped all thought, leaving only a chaotic tangle of images in its place.
And when its over--a second, a year later--what remains is despair. No works of man could hope to stand against such a foe. Nothing could be done. Nothing. His family, his home, all would fall and Kor Garesh would grow fat on their souls. The pointlessness of all his endeavors overwhelms Garyth, and he hardly even notices that he has put voice to these feelings.
Of course, the others heard him. Rennik, Melani, Osred, Pensive, they all say the same thing: there's still time to save some people. He turns and looks back at them gratefully as his sense of purpose returns. He nods, then wheels his mount toward Overlook and starts off, waving for the Falcons to follow.
OOC: Does Garyth know any kind of "back way" into town? Is that even necessary for the group to avoid the undead army?
From: Ty
Subject: Re: An ambush that fails, an ambush that succeeds, and a general who takes the field
If you remember from the map, Overlook sits on the cliff with a palisade protecting the front half of the city. There is only one gate in or out. However, on horseback your group can beat the slow moving army to Overlook by several hours.
From: Scott
Subject: Re: An ambush that fails, an ambush that succeeds, and a general who takes the field
Pensive is all for getting in gear and going quickly to Overlook.
From: Ty
Subject: Re: An ambush that fails, an ambush that succeeds, and a general who takes the field
Already writing that turn.
From: Ty
Subject: The Race for Overlook
Garyth hears the words of his companions, and makes a decision. Waving at the Falcons to follow, he spurs his horse cross country toward Overlook. The army of Kor Garesh has not moved yet, they are still gathering up the wounded as prisoners, and devouring those too wounded to move. There is a lazy overconfidence in the actions of the living members of the army. The Murrkat and their allies swagger about the field as their undead finish the battle for them. Quite a few of them take note of the group riding by, but no one pursues, so they are apparently not worried about it. The arrogance of it all makes Garyth grit his teeth. He will not forget.
Several miles later the group's path intersects the road to Overlook, and the pace is increased. Garyth worries about running into a vanguard or forward scouts for the approaching army, but none are found. Kor Garesh's force is exactly what it seems to be. A large, disorganized, and mostly incompetent gang of brutes and living dead. If not for the demon's trick on the battlefield, the army of Nesalin would have cut them to pieces.
It is approaching dusk when the palisade of Overlook comes into view. Clearly, the city has had some warning of the impending battle, because the gates are closed and barred, and most of the town guard is manning the wall, bows strung and faces tense. Garyth looks over the defenses and knows Rennik is right. The palisade is barely ten feet tall. At most there are fifty trained soldiers in the town, and even if every able bodied man carried a sword, it would still be less than two hundred to protect the walls. Their bows would be almost useless against the rotting flesh of the undead. The city would fall in an hour, even without demon trickery. The only hope is to get everyone out.
But moving a thousand men, women, and children fifty miles or more to the forest, and then getting them halfway across the middle of the island to Kalama territory sounds almost as hopeless. He glances at the fading sun. If the army had followed soon after the group left, they would be only a few hours behind. The Murrkat and their mortal allies would surely need to rest at some point, but the undead could march through the night without stopping. There is no time for hesitance.
As the group approaches the wall, a young guardsman calls out. "Lieutenant! Thank the gods someone has come! Is the army from Nesalin close behind!" Without waiting for an answer, he yells down to someone out of sight, "Sam, quick, open the gates."
[The group will be taken to the town leaders if they ask. So turns can include any discussion up through that point.]