[Uthaldria] Heading Off At the Pass

[Padraig]

The epithet, hurled at him in the process of him attempting to save the bastard's sorry hide, was enough to make Padraig want to turn the man's face inside out with one solid blow. Unfortunately, a split second of indecision; based on the fact that Faith would probably strongly disapprove; allowed the enemy to beat him to the literal punch.

The leather armor he was wearing, along with the armored pajamas that Faith had provided, would have absorbed most of, if not all of the blow. But the maneuver alone caused him to lose his grip, and allowed the man to scramble away and towards Faith. "Dammit!" he cursed, and first raised his crossbow to fire, before realizing that there were far too many risks involved, so far as friendly fire. So instead, he shouted, "Faith!", and scrambled after the man. Not soon enough to stop him plunging a knife into his own gut, but hopefully enough to give Faith time to react.

At any case, though he charged at the madman, Varlum beat him to it. And bit the man clean in half. He'd barely gotten used to Varlum's size and transformation, and now this. Padraig wasn't complaining. But nonetheless, the combatant who'd just gutted himself before Faith's eyes, couldn't have been doing it simply to make a statement. Therefore, before running to Faith, he called out to those allies who were currently gathering the wounded and dragging them closer to Faith. "Gather them elsewhere!" he called out. "Keep them at a distance!" Certainly, if there were any more enemy survivors with intentions much like the one that Varlum just dispatched, Padraig wanted to ensure best he could that they never got the chance to do it.

[Faith Augustin]

23rd Ymiden, 719

That Liam had behaved himself was a good thing as far as Faith was concerned. She knew that, later on, she and Padraig would have words about how she shielded Liam's body with her own as things went awry following the explosion Liam had created. She also knew that they wouldn't be stern words - just a quiet mention, a glance - and her in no doubt that he really wished she didn't do things like that. Still, news that the tower was strengthened - galvanized even, by what had just happened. Faith would look at that in a moment, but she was just lowering her head to check that Liam was alright when she felt a surge of fury from Padraig, mingled with an emotion which she recognised immediately. He was concerned, even fearful for her.

And so, Faith looked up.

She saw it all happening, but she had no ability to stop it. Kneeling there, she saw the man come running towards her. She saw Padraig's face, the concern and worry on it and then, Faith's eyes widened as the enormous, hulking figure of Varlum came charging up. He was beyond large, and to Faith pretty much everyone was tall. Yet, everything was also relative and Varlum was beyond "a bit big." Faith looked at him and she felt the colour drain from her face as he literally bit the man in half. He figured she might be busy so he handled it? Faith's expression was incredulous, but as she started to move, her mind was racing.

Padraig and she, in fact, moved at much the same time. Faith did something which (if she was wrong)- might seem a little odd. However, as Padraig turned his attention to the remaining forces of Ellasin, Faith's focus remained on the now-very-dead man who came in build-it-yourself kit form. "Varlum!" She was up and moving to the large man, because Faith's way of thinking was clear. Why, why would anyone do what that man had just done? Why kill himself in front of her if there was no reason? There would be a reason, she was sure - and since the troops of Ellasin's were retreating, that meant that there was a reason which Faith suspected she wouldn't like.

So, she did two things.

"Get away from him!" Faith called and then she used, while moving towards Varlum, her Moseke-granted "prison" ability to completely encase the body of the newly-bit-in-two man. If there was something which was triggered by his death, Faith was going to cover it over, stop it from impacting. At the same time, just in case, she moved towards Varlum ready to cure him if needed. And of the dead man?

Well, no one was moving over these trials and Faith knew that. So, the second that she had the ability to, she would designate herself as his anchor, ready to make sure that he was questioned. Because she was leaving no stone unturned if she could possibly help it. If he was going to go boom or exude some noxious gas or something, Faith figured, the earth would contain him. If he had poisoned himself, and Varlum was now in trouble, she'd be glad she was moving to Varlum and if it was something else, she determined, they'd just deal with it.

Because, that was what they did.

[Pig Boy]

As Varlum was shaking and tossing the suicidal Coven soldier, Faith's prison of dirst, earth, and dust coalesced around the man, encasing him in stone, and preventing the complete snapping apart of his body. Nevertheless, some of his blood did leak into Varlum's throat, and gave off a strangely sickening miasma as it hit his taste buds. The sickening aftertaste gave way to a stinging sensation, as stomach acids and diseased materials melded and mixed, mutating and twisting into a miasma that Varlum couldn't help but cough up.

Faith would have only moments to cure him before the changes began to get underway, if she had any cure left on her.

The army of Ellasin continued to fall into full rout, and it didn't look as if they'd be revisiting the field that day. Within a few bits, there was no sign of the army that had survived the arcane traps that devastated their numbers, and galvanized the Tower.

It'd been a pyrrhic victory, with innumerable casualties, but a necessary one for the side of Famula. Ghosts began to haunt the scorched lands that surrounded their position at the Tower, unable to find the release of death. Many of them continued on the struggle they'd undergone in death, with the Famulite ghosts and such pitted against those of the necromantress. Before long, the Coven ghosts were defeated by the superior powers of the Famulite ghosts, and banished to the beneath, and would be unable to make for the field again, should they try to find the passage through the veil.

The ghosts joined the ranks of the living, and wandered in and out of them, some of them following some few dozen paces behind Faith. A respectful, cautious distance.

Yet there was one ghost that was conspicuously absent. The man that had plunged the knife into his gut.

For whatever reason, he was not there, not as a ghost.

A few leagues away, where the man's body lay encased in hardened earth, the dagger he'd stabbed himself with shone, particularly the stone that served as its pommel.

Varlum would feel it in his throat first, a wretched dryness that traveled down the veins of his throat, and into his stomach. Then his stomach churned with a twisting agony. There was something... off from this sickness however, something that seemed to reach into his mind, and sowed confusion.

When he looked at the others, he would find their images distorted, unknown. He needed a bit more than a medical check. He might need a reality check.

[Padraig]

Varlum had without a thought, bitten a man in two. An action that might or might not result in some sort of backlash. And they'd thought Padraig a bit devil may care. He'd only licked and tasted a rock. On the other hand, there's nothing he wouldn't have done to intervene on Faith's behalf. The risks of doing so would only occur to him after the fact, if at all.

Once their giant friend had done it however, Faith was quick to move on Varlum's behalf. And since the surviving enemy numbers had dropped to none, save those who've fled, Padraig took it upon himself to watch over Faith while she worked. There could be archers and snipers in the trees, laying in wait. There could be another rogue mage popping in from nowhere. So Padraig wasn't taking any chances. He kept his primed crossbow in hand. Even though he'd found nothing to fire at, in a sense, the battle still raged on between the opposing armies, in spirit form. But since the fracturing of Emea, where did they have to go? The scholar, turned temporary soldier would rather not see them, if he was honest. But his connection to Famula herself, rendered that little but wishful thinking.

Funny though that the man who Varlum had bitten in half, the one who'd ended himself, was missing from among the tormented spirits. While his body remained, for all appearances, good and truly dead. But then Padraig spotted him there among the many corpses, encased in a layer of hardened earth. Thanks to Faith. The dagger with it's glowing gem was particularly interesting, and Padraig believed that it warranted a closer look. If not in the heat of the moment, then later.

So walking closer, with heavy gloves on, Padraig crouched down and taking the dagger by its hilt, he pulled it out, careful not to let any of it come in contact with his skin. Then reaching into his sack, he fished out a sheet of thick, oiled leather, and carefully wrapped the knife in it before tying it off with leather string.

[Faith Augustin]

23rd Ymiden, 719

The whole thing was just chaos, but in that chaos Faith knew that she had to keep herself fully aware of what was happening ~ thankfully she did just that. There were explosions and she was always, always aware of where Padraig was - as he was of her she knew. Yet, she kept her focus on Varlum because Faith knew that none of this - none of what this man had done made any sense. Padraig moved to the man in question and Faith felt a pang of relief at that, knowing that he would take care of things, probably also ensuring that he got the dagger and so on.

This left her free to focus on Varlum, and that was what she did.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you not to eat people with glowing daggers sticking out of them?!" Faith said, grabbing on to his arm - or the top of his leg. Either way, she got over to him and said, very firmly and in her "doctor" voice, "Please sit, sit here. Thank you, yes, that's great. Tell me, how are you feeling?" As she spoke, she appeared to fuss about quite a bit but, if Varlum was paying attention then he'd see that it was none of it fussing. She was providing him a distraction. Reaching into her bag for something, Faith's Sevrath tattoo - a willow tree on her chest - began to glow a soft green colour and then the branches of it began to crawl over her skin. They expanded until glowing branches covered her and she smiled at Varlum. "There we go, it's going to rain on you now." And it did. Glowing, yellow-green droplets covered him - as Faith used the Divine Grace power from Moseke. She used it as the most powerful healing ability she had at her disposal and she hoped that dealt with it.

As she knelt there, next to him, Faith smiled at Varlum, watching him carefully. "Tell me your symptoms, my friend. Tell me them all. Talk to me." She worked, and she would continue to work - using Willow's Sanctuary to draw out toxins if needed, then Calming Whispers if she had to. When Padraig joined them, Faith glanced at him. "When this adrenaline wears off," she said, seriously, "I might collapse. This amount of use of energy in such a short space of time is ... unusual. But not until the job is done."

She could feel exhaustion chasing at her, biting her heels - and Faith knew that she was pushing herself in terms of the use of her mark powers. But needs must when needs were, and she would not be letting anyone down this trial if she could help it. So, she pulled on all her Discipline, all her Endurance, and she worked until Varlum was healed.

[Pig Boy]

Faith

Points

20/20 these points may not be used for domain magic.

Knowledge

Leadership x 5
Tactics x 5
Resistance x 5
Medicine x 5

Loot/losses

Put Ellasin's 'Army' to rout.

Wealth

n/a

Renown

30 renown for helping restore Original architecture, and defending it against Ellasin's 'Army'.

Padraig

Points

20/20 these points may not be used for domain magic.

Knowledge

10 x Alchemy
10 x Ranged Combat

Loot/losses

The Lichbar

Wealth

n/a

Renown

30 renown for helping restore Original architecture, and defending it against Ellasin's 'Army'.

Varlum

Points

20/20 these points may be used for defiance magic.

Knowledge

Defiance: Controlling masses of fire
Defiance: Using the earth to feel vibrations
Defiance: Forcing fire out like breath
Defiance: Lessening a flame
Defiance: Separating walls of flame
Defiance: Originals influence can impact the elements
Defiance: Special glass can confuse elemental detection.

Intimidation: Roaring across two miles
Intimidation: Growing to 24 feet is scary

Unarmed - Gator: Biting men in half
Unarmed - Gator: Tail swiping
Unarmed - Gator: Crushing a man in your hand
Unarmed - Gator: Swallowing men whole

Endurance: Long climbs in cold weather
Endurance: Protecting against the cold negates short term effects.
Endurance: Prolonged battles can be made more difficult by terrain
Endurance: Remaining focused is hard when exhausted
Endurance: Taking shifts to watch messes with your sleep patterns.

Resistance: Getting a tummy ache
Resistance: Ingesting a cursed body

Loot/losses

A minor stomach bug after the healing from Faith. You'll have trouble keeping down bits of people that you bite in half.

Wealth

n/a

Renown

30 renown for helping restore Original architecture, and defending it against Ellasin's 'Army'.

Comments: Wow what a big thread, It kinda carried on a bit at the end, but you all finished it up nicely, ableit probably very exhausted by the use of so many resources.

Ellasin's army will need time to regroup, and won't be attacking in any amount of force this past season or the next, likely. Even then they have been severely weakened by the attempted takeover of the tower.

Your own army has suffered its own losses, however. Around 20% casualties, and a fifth of those troops have mortal wounds they won't recover from. The rest should recover fully with the aid of Faith and the Order of Adunih.

Any other concerns, let me know.