Sinegard Academy for the Wayward

[milkmaiden38]

Gem

“M’Kael, we were thinking” Gem started to say when Angela interrupted her

“This is a fucking stupid idea!”

“Let her finish her thought” Angus said giving Angela a mean look

“We might be able to get Ravyn the remaining spell components if we journey to the shadowfell.” Gem suggested “The Raven Queen is going to have The Devil's Coin, A Pair of Pirates Knuckle Bones, Hand of Glory, A cat's ninth Life, A Saint's Shield, and an Oracles Eye”

“The Queen will never give those items up. She is totally crazy and a complete wack job” Angela added

Gem ignored the interruption. “We thought, since you can bend shadows… we can get to shadowfell via a shadow walking spell. The spell enabled one to travel to the border between the Material Plane and the Plane of Shadow, and then physically wander along this zone to the desired destination, taking advantage of an effect that caused one to move much faster here than on the material plane. A destination could also be on another plane. The caster can be accompanied by others.”

“As far as getting the items… we break into The Raven Queen’s vault and steal them” Gem said with a smile directed at Angela.

“That idea will never work” Angela declared.

“If you don’t like that one, what is your idea?” Angus asked

“We draw the items out for The Deck of Many Things” Angela suggested

“50% of the items in the deck… have horrible outcomes!” Gem gasped. She turned to M’Kael “Can you cast the shadow walking spell?”

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

M'Kael
"I think it's closer to eighty Percent bad shit. Only a lunatic wants to use The Deck to get other items." M'Kael retorted. "As for the spell I don't know, I've never cast a spell before. According to my Grandmother 'I'm a Brick.' Whatever that means."

"The Plane of Shadow? Is there where I've been going? I tend to stay on the edges. It's kind of like walking through a doorway from one room to the next. Or down a hallway. Can't always see what's inside the next room/shadow, but when someone is trying to kill you, you just run and hope."

"I know I can take people/things with me, But I don't know what my limit is. Maybe me plus Three people?"

"Though I could do multiple trips to get everyone, if it comes to a shit show getting out, I'd rather not push it."

"Do we go Diplomatic or just try to steal what we need?" He asked. "I opt for steal; Royalty never gives up anything it classifies as treasure."

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

Ravyn
"I can 'feel' when I'm close to something of power, can't tell what it is without a spell. But it would make locating the things faster."

"But I also need to start getting things together and creating the space for the ritual." Putting ahand to her head she winced in pain. "And I need my pills, anybody know where they are?"

She looked like her head was going to explode.. or she was going to vomit.

M'Kael looked around for a second, his eyes closed as his head swept the room. Moving to the bed his hand reached underneath and pulled the bag of pills out. Rummaging around he retrieved the bottles and shook out pills from each one.

Handing her the pills he watched as she dry swallowed them. "By the Hells those are nasty." she said.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Angela

“I can’t believe we are doing this!” Angela gasped as she looked at Angus, Gem, M’Kael, Van, and Ravyn.

“You don’t have to come along” Gem pointed out.

Angela eyes hardened as she stared back at Gem. “I’ll be going” She declared reluctantly. “First rule, if we run into the Raven Queen, I’ll be the one giving up a memory. I’ve been around for over 400 years. I have plenty to give up.”

“What do you know of her and the place?” Angus asked

“The Raven Queen is a being of dark mystery. Accomplished wizards talk about her in hushed tones, and with no small amount of fear, for even they can’t say what power she wields in her realms, too subtle for mortal minds to sense. Rumors abound as to her current form, most coming from claims made by lunatics who have described an array of disturbing images: a terrible shadow that clawed at their innermost thoughts, a pale and regal elf who exploded into an untold number of ravens, a shambling tangle of slick roots and sticks that overwhelmed them with dread, or an unknown presence that pulled them screaming blindly into the gloom.

She rules from her Raven Throne within the Fortress of Memories, a mazelike castle deep within the bleakness of the Shadowfell. From there she sends out her ravens to find interesting souls she can pluck from various planes of existence. Once they are in the Shadowfell, she watches as these souls attempt to unravel the mystery of their being — and ultimately go mad in the process.

Since achieving divinity, the Raven Queen has filled her realm with shadows and memories, obsessively collecting such essences from remnants of dead gods and mortals that were strewn throughout the Shadowfell. From these metaphysical fragments she formed her new home, a twisted castle. The fortress is a mournful place, filled with incessant echoes of the past. Flocks of ravens that act as her eyes and ears darken the skies around it when they emerge from within, bearing her cryptic messages and omens far and wide across the multiverse.

Within the Fortress are trinkets and items that the Raven Queen finds irresistible, memories plucked from people’s pasts that have been invested with deep feelings of pain, sorrow, longing, guilt, or remorse. These items are brought to her as gifts from the shadar-kai. These trinkets can include furniture, clocks, mirrors, jewels, and toys. Also appearing in the fortress are ghostly visions of people, places, and pets. Any of these things can spontaneously appear about her lair, every object and apparition being a metaphoric representation of some story — great or small — that was saturated with raw emotion.

Mortals that enter the Raven Queen’s realm are almost instantly confronted with a glimpse into their own internal landscape. Because she is fascinated with emotions, the Raven Queen worms into the unconscious minds and memories of her visitors, bringing forth visions from the deepest reaches of their psyches. Some of these visitors are the unwitting souls of departed people who have been pulled into the Raven Queen’s clutches, others are astral travelers who are caught and trapped within the Shadowfell by her magic — but a rare few come of their own volition, seeking knowledge or freedom from a dark past." Angela explained

Then she added "The longer we are down there... we'll become Apathic, then dread will set in, and finally Madness."

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

M'Kael and Ravyn
"Sounds like a night at my parents house," M'Kael responded. "Quick an fast. No games, no confrontation. Anybody with a weak will, your out."

"Ravyn, out. Find a place for your ritual where it won't be disturbed, and you have enough room. You'd be great for locating the shit we need, but we need you read for this when we get the shit."

"I'm the driver so I'm in. Angus, I'd recommend you stay and bodyguard Ravyn. We need fast and sneaky and a charging bull ain't either."

"Once we figure who's in, I'll do set test shadow walks with everyone, to see how many I can move at one time. Cause we might use a spell to get there, but it's gonna need to be fast to get back."

"So.. who's going and who's staying?"

Ravyn was tempted to tell him to fuck off, but the rituals, plural, weren't easy and she needed a secure location. She'd planned on doing everything alone, once she had the components. Now it looked like even more people would be in danger. She wasn't even sure she could sufficiently negotiate with the damned thing.

"I'll need a map of the grounds, and the catacombs. There was an Ossuary, if possible, I need to actually find that place. It's sacred ground, an big enough. And I got lost finding and escaping it."

"The Bone Temple? No, that's where I was attacked by demons. I'd classify that as enemy territory." M'Kael snapped.

"We don't have a Summoner, or even a Summoning class right now, how about her space?" Raven suggested.

"Possible, but we need to scout that location first. I don't know where it is, so it's foot work, not shadow walking." M'Kael replied.

"I'll scout it," Ravyn told him.

"I don't think that's wise."

"I don't care what you think! You're not my boss, you're not my fuck boy, and you certainly ain't my father. You're just a half-wit asshole that thinks with his dick. You don't tell me what to do, think, or say. So, I'd appreciate it if you'd stop treating me like your pet. Please go get the things needed for the ritual and let me find the place to do the work." As she spoke her eyes started to glow, her emotions rising and bringing whatever 'the Other' was closer to the surface.

"Fine!" M'Kael snapped. "But I expect to be paid for risking my neck for you, and if anyone gets lost to the Raven Queen, you and your 'friend' will pay for it."

 

[milkmaiden38]

The Teams are Set

“I’m in” Gem declared right away. “You’ll need a mage”

“I’ll protect Ravyn’s body...we are team-mates” Angus agreed, but the clumsy way he worded his agreement resulted in concerned looks from Gem and Ravyn.

“I meant, I can watch her body” Angus said trying to correct his error, but only making it worse. “I’ll be her bodyguard?” He said, hoping that would end his mistakes.

“I’m going to shadowfell” Angela said to get the attention off Angus. “I’d suggest everyone weapon up, I’m sure we’ll need all the fire power we can get. I have Desert Eagle handguns, two Benelli M4 tactical shotguns, one Remington Model 700 sniper rifle, Two Colt M4 carbine And finally one Marine 32 multishot grenade launcher. Fires six shots in a revolving barrel which can fire high explosive, incendiary and smoke grenades. Haven't found a use for that little baby yet, but you never know when it might come in handy. This century’s version of a fireball wane. Anyone need anything, just ask”

“Van, are you going to stay here?” Angela asked her partner.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

"Yeah, I'm gonna work on fixing the van and seeing about reinforcing the shocks and upgrading the decor. Plus, I'll check with a 'friend' of mine and see about what he can collect from the list. And any weapons he might be able to spare." Van the Man said.

M'Kael gave him a nod. "And if you see any of the others update them, would you. The Werebear is around somewhere, probably the kitchen, but like Angus, her mass would be too big for more than a solo, if she stayed human it would be easy, but if push comes to shove, faster is better."

At least he was getting two reasonable light individuals, Van and Ravyn were the lightest but if shit hit the fan, they'd need back up ready.

"Keep the closet door closed, we'll use that to come and go." he said gesturing to the closet in the corner. "Oh, and could you ask if the Ot's mind us doing this? We are seriously overstaying our welcome, but until she finds a secure place for her spell / ritual this is what we got."

"Angus do you still have that sword? You'll need your axe, but I'll need a blade. Angela, do you mind if I take the desert eagles and a shotgun?"

 

[milkmaiden38]

Angela

Angus gave M’Kael his sword as Angela brought over the guns.

Gem had her sword, but also grabbed an M4. Angela had her long daggers, but also carried the sniper rifle.

“I guess no one wants the grenade launcher for this trip.” She complained handing the weapon to Van. “Here, keep Ravyn safe, but don’t blow up professor’s Ot’s house”

Gem, Angela, M’Kael all went into the closet.

There was a slight feeling of vertigo, then they were in a different place.

The sky overhead was a featureless black. Everything Angela looked at lacked of color and light; there was no sun, moon, or stars in the inky black sky. All things looked as if the color had been leeched out, leaving nothing but black, in the dimness, lighter black.

Around them were rock monoliths looming on all sides, divided by dark ground and small barren bushes. There were also bones, many of them humanoid, though the bones of dragons and other monstrous beasts were visible as well. Some of the bones flicker with ghostly radiance, which did little to illuminate the darkened expanse. In some places, vast mounds of rubble or dunes of sand and dirt appeared piled up.

"We're not in Kansas anymore" Angela said to Gem and M'Kael

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

Stepping from the shadows M'Kael looked across the landscape, strangely enough it didn't make him uneasy. It felt almost comfortable. Unusual yes, bizarre as all get out, absolutely. But he didn't have the heebie jeebies.

"Looks cozy as Hell, and as twisted as my bed sheets in the morning." M'Kael commented.

Looking around he was half squinting, examining the location. After a moment he started walking. "No smell here," he said. "Sound is weird too." Chuckling he smiled. "Like a shadow of itself."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Angela

Angela walked after M’Kael.

“Cozy?’ She thought very confused “M’Kael is one fucked up guy!”

Her thoughts were interrupted almost right away with a vision from her past.

She was in a room, in a high tower. She had disappeared into the shadows and used her “gaseous form” transformation ability and floated across the room. She had materialized behind the man, her blade aimed at his back. She could kill him quickly from this position. But she hesitated. Waiting for some reason.

The man wore leather armor with a heavy fur jacket. His leather pants were held in place by a dark rope belt. There was nothing luxurious or decorative about what he wore. Even his fur boots were of a simple design. The man himself was very large and full of muscles. He did not know she was right behind him. His attention was focused on Angela’s partner Thorvald. “My name is Nicklas Linge …” He told Thorvald letting his guard down.

“You see. I’m hunted by the church. They hired a vampire to kill me. I can take no chances … So I fired that crossbow bolt at you. I hope you understand.” He said to Thorvald.

Thorvald asked “Why did the church hire a vampire to kill you?

“I killed a dragon named Mirsoth Warmheart, who was in the church’s care. In fact, I was her care giver” Nicklas Linge admitted as he looked to the ground. Nicklas eyes noticed something. He noticed his shadow from the fire light looked odd. The shadow showed something was pointed at his back.

“WHAT …” He gasped as he started to turn around to what it was… but Angela was too fast and plunged her short sword right though his back and into his heart. Then she whispered into his ear “That’s for killing a dragon … SCUM”

The man gasped as Angela locked her fangs on to his neck. Sucking the blood from his body.

The man gasped weakly before he died “the dragon begged me to kill her” and then Nicklas Linge was dead and fell from Angela’s grasp. Angela looked down at the dead body and then up into Thorvald’s eyes. Her face filled with confusion, and then dread.

“I… think I made a mistake… I just killed the wrong person!” Angela gasped faintly.

Then the vision was gone. Angela was shaken by the vision. She had killed the wrong person and 400 years later she still felt terrible about.

“Watch out everyone, I just had a vision from my past. This place can bring forth visions from the deepest reaches of your psyches.”

“We saw your vision too” Gem told Angela. “What happened after you killed that man?’

“My partner and I figured out the church was draining the magic out of mythical creatures. We ended up killing the people behind those atrocities. But Nicklas was not evil, and I should not have killed him.” Angela explained.

Gem

Gem followed M’Kael and Angela, but soon she had her own vision.

An 18-year-old Gem was under a kitchen table. She unscrewed a screw holding the trim of the table. “Now we have something to look at” she said giggling to herself, thinking about how tricky she was being. Then she stood up, went back to watching TV. As the babysitter, it was important for her to be awake when he got home. Mr. Mar was exactly the kind of man, her parents did not want her to date.

Gem was surprised and happy he was home early from his date.

“Your daughter was very well behaved … and is sleeping now” she said as she got up off the couch her immense chest bouncing and swaying. As she walked over to him, her hips swaying … and her chest doing a little dance for him.

“There was one problem … I found a lose screw in your kitchen … I think it might be from your kitchen table.” Gem said calmly. “Come into the kitchen … I’ll show you” she said.

As they both go on the floor looking for where the screw came from, Mr. Mar could see ALL kinds of cleavage. Her young fertile body was driving him crazy!

“What are you looking at” She asked innocently, looking up at him. Her big, soft, heavy breasts, barely covered by her scoop neck t-shirt. She made a quick joke “do you have a screw loose?” she giggled and added “or are you trying to screw with me?” She laughed

His eyes glanced at her huge heavy hanging breasts and his excellent deep view of her cleavage, before shifting his vision to her eyes. Gem saw the joy and sexual excitement in his eyes. Smiling to herself, and thought, “now is the moment … go for it”

She got serious and whispered “You really should be thinking about screwing the young sexy babysitter … on that kitchen table!” As she finished speaking her lips met his and she gave him a deep passionate kiss. He could taste the lust and passion in her from the kiss.

Then the vision faded.

“Gem, you slut!” Angela teased Gem

“I can’t believe that was just over a year ago! I hope I’m a better person now. When my father found out Mr. Mar fucked me… well Mr. Mar was fired. I was just using him to get at my dad. But he paid the price. I’m not proud of how I behaved.” Gem admitted.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

M'Kael, R'grt, Kaz, and Shin were sitting around drinking. Kaz's truck was a bitch to overhaul. The bastard kept blowing out the struts and axels, so they'd had to overhaul the damned thing to stop it happening.

The door banged open and a dozen guns were aimed before it hit the wall, Solumnus walked in a beautiful blond elf on his arm. She looked liked she'd walked the world for at least 30 years, but that was a spit in the ocean for an elf, she looked like a High Elf. And she looked afraid.

Guns slid away as everyone looked at the boss and his latest acquisition.

"You can play when I'm done breaking her in." Solomnus commented, tightening his grip on the girls arm and directing her to the bedroom.

Rising to his feet M'Kael stepped forwards. "I said after I'm done, 'Kal." Solumnus warned.

"She willing?" M'Kael whispered.

"Willing enough," Was the Leaders reply. "She made a deal, she lost. Now it's time for her to pay up."

"I see," M'Kael replied, clenching his fist. "How 'bout you cancel the debt and let her leave."

"Not how it work's 'Kal. You know that."

The punch dagger hit him in the lower right, just missing his spine.

Grunting, M'Kael staggered forwards, the knife sliding from muscle as he turned on his attacker. R'Grt, Fucking Dwarf. Punching the little bastard in the head he damned near broke his hand on his thick skull.

The rest moved forwards, turning the two man fight into a fight for his life. M'Kael hadn't wanted it to go down this way, just for the girl to get out of this place, marginally unharmed.

When it was done, M'Kael had four broken ribs, a score and more of cuts and stabs, two bullet holes, a broken jaw, a concussion, a detached retina, and four dead friends.

The minotaur had a new smile four inches lower than the first, The Dwarf had an axe buried in his neck severing his spine. Shin had been the hardest, the dark elf he was more than skilled with poisons and blade. The numbness was spreading through M'Kael as he'd attacked Solumnus, and for a halfling the fucker was quick.

The only thing keeping him going long enough was rage, and pain. Punching upwards he'd sunk his blade into Sol lower jaw, upwards through his tongue and buried it in his brain. Hilt deep.

He'd spent a few months in the hospital recovering, a year in Darkenwood. None of the gang was Human so the Humans had no say in his crimes or punishment. After he got out, he started hooking up with his parole officer she was hot, and a was better at sex than any demon.

The girl had taken off running before the fight was over, didn't know what happened to her, she'd never appeared at the trial.

None of his family showed at the Trial or visited him in Darkenwood. 389 days of Nightmare Demons visiting him had inured him against the horrors of life.

Straightening up he cracked his spine, fresh blood dripping from wounds on his back. Whatever was happening in the Shadow Realm was more real to him. "Well, that's new." he said looking at Gem and Angela.

Sliding a hand under his jacket he touched the fresh wounds, felt like he'd got them just hours ago, instead of years. Pulling his hand out, his fingers were wet with fresh blood. "That's gonna leave a mark." he quipped, sarcastically. "You were right," he said to Angela. "This was a stupid idea."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Gem

“M’Kael” Gem gasped and moved over to him. She cast a healing spell “That should help”

“Let’s keep moving” Angela suggested and added “And M’Kael, stick to wet dreams”

Gem followed Angela and M’Kael. It was hard to see them in the gloom; it was annoying that her vision was so limited. Angela had dark-vision and she was sure M’Kael could see in shadows. She was almost blind in this place. She was tempted to cast a light spell, but was sure that would attract unwanted attention.

A while later, she saw M’Kael signaling everyone to stand still. She stopped and stood still. She heard other things stirring beyond her vision. By the sound, a group of warriors. The savage Shadar-kai patrolled near the fortress.

M’Kael let them past and then they were moving again.

The terrain was rocky here, with dark ground and small barren bushes. There were more bones and cracks in the ground. She felt a small earthquake, shadow quake? The ground shook. Then they were moving again.

In the darkness, Gem she stepped on a bone and broke it. The snap was loud.

“Oh shit” Angela gasped as she saw shadar-kai warriors running to the source of the noise.

“RUN” she yelled to Gem and M’Kael. Gem took off in a full sprint trying to get away from them.

“This is not starting out well!” Angela mumbled sprinting behind Gem. The shadar-kai closed in on her. She needed to do something fast. Her sniper rifle was useless. She grabbed her long daggers. She ducked around a rock and waited.

Then with unbelievable speed she struck two of Shadar-kai as they came around the rock. Angela was surprised that their bodies were old and withered. Angela’s daggers plunged into their bodies as they gasped in surprised. Each was wearing a metal mask, melancholic in appearance, so she could not see their faces. Angela sank her teeth into one of them, draining their blood.

“YUCK” she gasped and started running again.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

As soon as the bone snapped and Angela yelled, M'Kael faded into the darkness.

He watched as Angela dispatched several before she started running again. When the second group of Shadar-Kai apeared he stepped from the darkness, the blade singing in his grip. He hated this place for the memories it brought up, for the danger the girls were in, and most of all he hated being forced to take a life.

Heads popped from shoulders before they even knew they were under attack from behind. One. Two. Three. Four. Number five was just far enough out of reach it took a second longer. He waslifting a Ogrin horn to his lips when his arm fell to the ground, spasming fingers releasing the horn as the attached hand grabbed the stump of an arm.

A thrust and the fifth had no more worries, it's form dropped to it's knees, as the sword slid upwards through it's helmet.

"Hiss," M'Kael called in a loud whisper. "Stop running. It's over. And we have disguises now."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Gem and Angela

Gem and Angela turned around the returned to M’Kael.

“Disguise! That is a good idea” Angela complimented M’Kael “They all seem to be wearing these melancholy masks” she added as she picked a mask

“This place is a depressing shithole and being chased by shadar-kai did not enhance its appeal.” Gem commented as she pulled her mask on.

“The mask helps… but you don’t look old and withered. Your tits are too perky” Angela teased Gem

“You should not make any comments about tits… miss big jugs” Gem countered

“Let’s go” Angela said with a smile. She was happy that her jab at Gem worked

As they walk, they got closer and closer to the castle.

“M’Kael, I thought you should know, that you can’t kill shadar-kai. Their souls return to the raven queen and she reforms them.” Angela explained. Then another patrol passed by. They did not seem to notice the three of them.

“I can’t believe that worked!” Gem said. They passed two more patrol and they were un-noticed. Then they moved into an area where there were no patrols.

“I wonder why there are no…” Gem started to ask, and then another more powerful shadow quake hit. The shaking knocked everyone off their feet and opened up a very long wide crack in the ground. The crack swallowed up Gem, Angela, and M’Kael.

The group fell for a while, sliding against rock walls and tumbling stones. When they found the bottom of the crevasse, a bunch of small rocks bounced off their heads. Finally, the rain of pebbles stopped and the dust settled. There was no longer any sign of the inky black sky above.

“Shit” Angela whispered

The air was stale and old. Angela with her dark vision saw a rough-hewn stone passageway stretching before them.

“I think we just found a secret passageway into the Raven Queen’s Fortress of Memories!” She said to everyone. At the end of the passageway was a locked stone door with a pull handle.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

"Yeah, an escape tunnel," M'Kael commented. Pulling on the handle he grunted as the door refused to budge. "Locked," he said as he moved to the wall.

Everything was in shadow, so it was easy enough to slip to the other side and move the heavy bar from it' place holders. Once it was leaning against the wall, he pushed the door open. "This is an exit, not a back door."

Smelling at the air his forehead furrowed. "Smells in here. Like rotting meat. Zombies? Other types of undead?"

"You smell anything?" He asked holding the blade at the ready. Getting surprised by hordes of undead was looking more and more likely. Maybe it was just the way the place smelled.

"I'm guessing everything in this place has dark vision, or the like. There's no wall scones for torches anywhere."

Taking the lead he moved into the darkness, slow enough to keep together and see where he was stepping, but fast enough to cover ground – quickly.

"Nice thing, a treasure room should either be down here, or in a tower. I hope we don't have to go up any steps."

 

[milkmaiden38]

The Pit

“Nice trick” Angela commented to M’Kael as he slipped through the shadows from unlocking the door.

“Yes, I smell it too” Gem answered M’kael statement about the smell. She was almost gagging on the odor. It was coming from something dead, very dead.

“Guys, I need just a little light,” Gem said as she cast a dim light spell. It provided just enough light for her to not run into a wall. In this shadow dimension, the light from the spell, was sucked into the darkness. The light produced was 50% less than back in their dimension

The team continue to walk forward as the smell got stronger the stronger. They walked into a large circular room dominated by a huge pit with smooth walls. A coil of heavy chain bolted to the ceiling hung over the pit; its function appeared to be that of a water well, to be lowered or raised into or out of the pit. The bad smell was coming out of the pit.

“I’m undead… I’ll check it out” Angela said

Angela approached the pit trying to get a look at the bottom of it. As she peeked into the pit, she saw a rusted cage in the bottom of the well. It was not a well. This was an old torture chamber! That was when the chain animated; likely cursed from all the torture and death that had happened in this room. The chain attacked Angela, coiling around her like a python.

“SHIT” Angela gasped then she turned into mist before the chain could drag her into the well. Out of the water she saw Zombies! Anyone falling into the pit would be attacked by the zombies and drowned.

The chain was long enough that it started to attack Gem and M’Kael.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

Run, you fools!!
With the chain whipping towards them M'Kael lunged forwards and grabbed in, his skin and ace changing. Before his hands had the chain, he was a dark blue grey, his eyes a shiny grey and a sort of half mask covering his mouth.

His skin looked hard like armor but was malleable like skin, "Go!" came a shout in their heads as he went over the side of the pit and into the water. And the Zombies. The sword was in his free hand, severing the heads of several zombie when he hit the water. Rising up from submersion he moved towards the base of the chain, swinging like a maniac at zombie and chain alike.

The sounds of a shotgun, blasting apart bone, and ricocheting off steel came from the pit. Eight explosively loud shots before it went silent.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Angela and Gem

Angela reformed next to Gem as M’Kael descended into the pit.

“What do we do?” Gem asked Angela, worried about M’Kael in the pit alone.

“We run, just like M’Kael told us” Angela said and grabbed Gem and hauled her through the room and out the opposite door. They were in a circular passageway. There a large door to their right and an open room to their left.

“Let’s check out the open room” Angela suggested

“Shouldn’t we wait here for M’kael?” Gem asked

“He might be a while, there was a lot of zombies. This room looks safe enough” Angela reasoned. They both walked in. The bare stone ceiling had a height of fifteen feet. A shadowy corridor extended to the west. In the open area they saw the crumbled remains of a statue of greenish stone.

“Catacombs,” Angela told Gem as she cautiously entered the area. Gem walked to the statue and cleared away the rubble around the statue’s base revealing and indecipherable writing.

“Use you spell” Angela suggested

Gem cast her spell and was able to identify what magic language said, ''Watch over our brothers and sisters; that they may stay in their cradle and leave our dreams in peace.” Beyond the greenish stone statue, four coffins were laid out on narrow dias as if they were in a funeral parlor, to be opened for view by the mourners.

“A warning? Really? In a place full of sarcophaguses?” Angela joked.

The two looked at each coffin. Three of the four had a plaque with more of the same indecipherable writing.

“-----” 1st coffin

“The Lost Curator.” 2nd coffin

“Coryl, the hauntingly beautiful King of Nabat” 3rd coffin

“Ardeth” 4th coffin

Gem read all the plaque. That was when M'Kael rejoined them.

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

Stepping from the shadows M'Kael seemed to be wearing a cloak or cape and carrying a leg bone in one hand and the sword in another.

Giving the ladies a nod, he swiped at some of the zombi bits still sticking to him with the bone. Once he was as done as he was gonna get, he dropped the leg and put the sword away.

The shadows seemed to be clinging to him even more than before, like he was a long lost friend and they didn't want to let go.

"Well, that way is gonna be safe for a little bit if we need to run back out that way. Granted any persuers will have it easy as well." He said explaining. "Chain is tough, zombies are fragile, but they make good wedges when you jam their bits into the chain."

Pulling up the shotgun he pulled a broken rotting finger from the mechanism and reloaded it. "So we grave robbers now as well, or are we expecting more shit?"

He still hadn't reverted to human and didn't look like he was going to any time soon.

Looking at the statue he turned to the girls, "Nightmares demons? Hmm.. guardians of a tomb. Lookie but no touchie. I would suggest we give them a wide berth, but it's probably gonna activate some trap no matter what we do."

 

[milkmaiden38]

The large door

“I’d give you a big hug and thank you for saving us, but” Angela said to M’Kael “You are not the human M’Kael”

“You are also covered in zombie guts” Gem added holding her noise.

“I know she will not stop complaining about the smell, so let me take care of it now” Angela grumbled. She touched M’Kael’s shoulder and 1 cubic foot of his clothing was clean. She did it a few more times and he was completely clean. In fact, he was the cleanest of the three of them.

“Now he is going to complain about how we smell” Gem said to Angela.

“M’Kael is right, opening any of these coffins is dangerous. Let’s go back to that other door and see what is inside.” Angela suggested to the team.

They all walked back to the large door that was on the right as they first entered this passageway. Angela tried the door.

“It’s locked” she told everyone. Then she turned into mist. A minute later she reappeared.

“Crap” she said in disgust. “That room is magically sealed”

“Do you need an invitation to enter?” Gem asked, remembering Angela’s vampire weakness.

“Only when entering a person’s home. This is a room.” Angela explained

“How did you enter the fortress?” Gem asked

“M’Kael, opened the secret door and waved us in” Angela reminder Gem

“Oh, right” Gem remembered. The she touched the door. Her identify spell was still active. “There is a very powerful magic spell sealing this room. I think this is the vault room” She said with excitement.

“Ok M’Kael, show me how it is done. Go do your shadow thing”

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

"Technically speaking it's a residence that you can't enter. Like a Romani Wagon, or a tent if someone has slept in it. The Fortress is more a a business, or a village, so you should be able to enter anywhere, except sleeping quarters." M'Kael commented as he walked up to the Vault door. Moving to where the statue's shadow lay on the door he crossed over into shadow and reappeared a second later like he'd been shot from a cannon.

Hitting the ground, he rolled and twitched for a few moments the shadows and his skin in combat with each other. The cacophony of sound coming from his head was screams, and curses, and speculation on the hereditary nature of witches, hexes, and bitches in general.

When it calmed enough for him to move enough under his own power his left hand still twitched, but at least he could crawl to his feet.

"Fucking wards!" He snarled. "I think there's a light spell inside as well, it's bright as fuck, which makes sense for a shadow realm." His left hand looked like he'd stuck it inside a lightning storm, fissures of burnt skin in contrast to his shadow armor.

"Maybe a trigger for the door and the ward are in a sarcophagus, or on the statue or back with the fucking Kyton demon in the pit."

"Fuck that hurts," he complained again as he shook his hand. Folding his hand into the cloak he leaned against a wall. "Next party trick?"

 

[milkmaiden38]

Gem

"A powerful light spell, great!" Angela moaned. She knew that would be bad for her as well. They all moved back to the Catacombs

Gem, M’Kael, and Angela searched the greenish stone statue and found nothing.

“I guess will need to try the sarcophagus next” Gem concluded.

“Yep” Angela agreed.

“What do you think is inside the coffins?” Gem asked

“A Mummy… mostly likely” Angela reasoned. “Remember, mummies don’t like fire”

“A mummy? I thought that was kind of an Egyptian thing” Gem said for comment.

“A lot of societies mummified their dead, but I get your point, the names on the plaque don’t scream mummy. Could be a vampire, ghost, or some other nasty spirit.” Angela

“If it is a Vampire, you get to deal with it. What about a ghost or spirit?” Gem asked

“Ghosts/spirits can possess people. That is bad. A holy person, cleric, can try to drive the ghost out... but that does not always work. The other way to get rid of a possession is kill the possessed person. I’m sure that is not to your liking. I’m not sure, M’Kael can be possessed. He has too many people inside him already. I’m pretty sure a ghost can possess me. I’m undead, they only possess living people.

The other thing is Ghosts can be freed of their condition, if you figure out why they are "stuck" and can’t leave this place/dimension. This typically involves "solving their murder, or avenging their death, stuff like that” Angela explained.

They decided to open the coffin without a plaque first. With Angela and M’Kael both extra strong, pulling the lid off was no problem. Gem had her sword out, and was ready to cast a fire bolt.

Out of this coffin floated up a ghost figure. It did not move towards them. It was a very ugly troll with oily hair and a long, sad face. A ragged scar, almost like an X, stretched from the top of his forehead to his nose, a sign of battles past. The ghost stood awkwardly despite the brawny frame. Round despairing amber eyes stared at them. Something intrigued Gem, M’Kael, and Angela about him; perhaps it was a sense of justice or perhaps it was everyone's sympathy from the waves of despair emanated from him.

Angela asked the ghostly troll who he was.

“Sterling,” he replied in the typical ghostly whisper.

“And what did you do to end up in the Fortress of Memories?” Angela asked.

“I don’t know” Sterling replied. “I don’t remember who I was, what I did in life, nor even why I’m here.”

“Considering we in the Fortress of Memories, I guess that is not a surprising answer. You probably did troll stuff, hiding under bridges and such.” Angela suggested.

“Sterling?” Gem asked looking to Angela and M’Kael. “That seems like an odd name for a troll?”

“Gem is an odd name for a person” Angela countered “You should be a semiprecious stone”

 

[milkmaiden38]

Dr Gem

“Very funny” Gem moaned to Angela “How are we suppose to solve Sterling’s mystery if he does not remember what happened to him?”

“PTSD” Angela suggested

“PTSD?” Gem said back with surprise in her voice.

“They did not call it that back then… but I’m sure Trolls can have PTSD”

“Sterling, PTSD, stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder” Gem said to the ghost troll. “It is something that happens to people or trolls that encounter a terrifying event. It is your brain trying to protect yourself, by not remembering what happened. But that is not health in the long term.”

“Why?’ Sterling asked

“Because, you can get stuck. Like you are stuck here. You will remain a ghost until you get unstuck. If I remember correctly, we need to helps you recognize the ways of thinking that are keeping you stuck.

For example, negative beliefs about yourself and the risk of traumatic things happening again. Do you feel any of those?”

“I know I did something terrible. It was awful. A most terrible dishonorable deed” Sterling explained.

“If you don’t remember what you did, how can you prevent it from happening again? Or learning from your mistake?” Angela asked

Sterling just looked at Angela, trying to figure out an answer.

“That is one reason why it is unhealthy to get stuck.” Gem said.

“How about we talk about what happened. We are all here, and you are safe. Just tell us slowly what you remember” Gem coached Sterling.

Sterling looked inward. Everyone could see he was fighting the despair and pain of what happened. He began wailing as his terrible deed became more clear.

“What do you remember?” Gem asked

“I was not a troll! There was someone who I remember loving and swore fealty to. A soul as pure as could be, he was facing unmitigated horror and corruption.” Sterling said tears coming down his ghost face.

Then suddenly his eyes grew wide as he remembered who he truly is. “I’m a unicorn!”

“You don’t look like a unicorn” Angela mumbled to herself.

“No helpful” Gem scolded Angela

“My rider and I were in a battle against a lich! Whose soul was as dark as my rider was light,” Sterling recalled the battle in excruciating detail. “The lich did dark magic and I became afraid. So terrified, I bucked my rider and ran off into the woods; a coward! As I ran, I heard explosions, shouts and felt waves of magic. Then the link between my rider and I ended; I knew I failed in my duty to protect my Paladin.

“I felt ashamed and then I collapsed as my shape deformed. I sensed the lich’s scorn and mirth. His hatred of all that was good and pure. When I awoke, I became this troll, you all see before you. I lived for many more decades, shunned by all.” Sterling said.

“In retrospect I needed to confess my sins at the battlefield, yet I still felt afraid of the shame and dishonor of running away the moment my Paladin needed me the most. That was my dishonor,” Sterling explained.

“That is quite a tragic event. I can see why you have PSTD.” Gem affirmed

Sterling nodded.

“He is still here, so solving his PTSD, did not solve his ghost problem” Angela pointed out.

“Maybe, we need to kill the Lich?” Gem suggested

“We don’t have time for that. How about we open another coffin?” Angela suggested “M’Kael, how about you pick the next one?”

 

[The_Weeping_Angel]

Eenie meenie minie moe...
Moving towards the Coffins M'Kael tapped the lids of "Ardth" and "Coryl", it looked like he was talking to himself, a rhyme? Stopping on Coryl he turned to Ardeth. "Your lucky day, it looks like."

Grabbing the lid he heaved, the lid refused to move for a moment, then suddenly shifted and slid to the side. M'Kael looked inside and shrugged. "Knight. Female. Helm, Sword, and Shield. Not much to look at. Don't recognize the Heraldry, failed that class. Or never took it..." He said out loud. Turning to look at the girls he shrugged. "I think this one is dead dead."

The metal gauntleted fist came up rather quickly for a dead dead person, fingers locking on his throat for a second before twisted away and stood up.

"Not dead dead, more alive than dead," he added. Grabbing the arm, he held it away from his that and lifted the visor. "Not a Vampire or a zombie!" he called out as the Knight shifted in the coffin and rose from the dead and the damned.

Holding it's shield at the ready the Black Rose was still visible on a field of red. A banner undeath was badly faded and scarred from battle, "Es- S--aris oth Mi--as"

Dark words of magic came from its ancient throat. Finishing its rather quick spell a dark aura shimmered around the create for a second before it pointed at Angela and released the spell.

Tremendous dark magic it was a forbidden spell except for the darkest of creatures. One of the great and sacred words of Power it could slay a creature in an instant, weaker one were often turned to dust and ash from its power. Great creatures such as Dragons, Unicorns, or People of Legendary power were resistant to it. And then some things were immune such as those that were already dead, or so aligned with the Powers of Evil that negative energy was healing to them.

"Fuck me!" M'Kael cried out startled. "Power Word Death! It's a Death Knight!" His own sword slipped into his hand as he moved to face the Knight. Red Embers glared from within its helm, dents from a thousand battles adorned it's armor.

"How the fuck do we kill it?"M'Kael asked, rather sharply as the creature swung it's blade, nearly taking his head off.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Angela and Gem

“I think you picked the wrong coffin!” Angela yelled as she tried to dodge the power word death spell. She was not fast enough and the spell hit her. Dark energy coursed through her body as the spell completed, she was blasted across the room. Had she been a living person, she would be dead now. The fact she was undead, saved her life.

“Ardeth… we don’t want to fight you. Tell us how you became a death knight” Gem called out the creature.

“Gem… it’s not a ghost it is a death knight, RUN” Angela yelled trying to pick herself off the stone floor.

“I am Ardeth! You dare steal from me!” The death knight growled. A flame flickers in the center of his iron gloved hand. The glove’s engravings began glowing thinly red, like through the cracks of heat-infused metal. The lines streamed like molten gold, burning along the edges of his glove, then branch out in an intricate series of fiery veins, down his armored arm, pulsing as if a heartbeat. Before everyone could properly react, the knight tossed the hellfire orb at Gem. The orb flew at her and then exploded in a massive fireball that lit up the entire catacombs.