Duty Session 123: Undead Defense Force

    Somehow, Giganpor has been pulled away from the forge. Mostly because he was told he needed to be seen contributing to the defense against the undead. And partly because people said if he didn't get out there, they were going to drag him out by his ankles and put him there anyways. It's a very big thing, and so he's put out an all call party thing to get this started.

    After the gathering, however, it's obvious that this isn't going to be a normal duty. It's a defense one possibly. The group is approached by the head of the village and others.

    "Thank you for coming!" The village head says. "We will owe you a great debt if you can keep us safe from the hordes. We can see them moving around at night. Sometimes in small numbers, and sometimes marching like an army!" It's very hard to tell if he's exaggerating or not. "Just please! Use whatever resources you need and help keep our little village safe!" A deep bow is given before he turns to go, "We are depending on you, adventurers! Goddesses bless you!"

    Otherwise, it's obvious this village probably won't stand much of a chance on it's own.

    Giganpor looks very, very annoyed at it all. But he's here, and begins to look around at the others, "Alright... everyone grouped so we can keep an eye on HP? Looks like this thing's not going to be so easy." He's already in his armor, a large great axe in hand, and his buckler by his side.

After Shiruba and Merek made their narrow escape from the encounter with the main Undead Army the Silver Sword commander had gone to check in with her field messengers. Which confirmed what she had already expected: while the army blockaded the main trade route smaller squads were being sent out to harass the settlements and any traders trying to circumnavigate the barricade.

It was following that up which brought Shiruba here, and much to her relief finding that others were already mounting actions to counter the Undead presence. "Giganpor!" she waves to her fellow officer as she approaches, catching the end of the Lander conversation as she catchs her breath. "Trust me. He's not exaggerating. The knight we saw in charge of the main force is certainly of some manner of military leadership calibre."

Once she's recouped a bit she draws her bow. "Whatever we end up dealing with, it won't be simply shambling mobs or random raiders."

    One of the individuals that has decided to come all the way out here is Xander Scaleharth. He hasn't done in a duty in awhile and he needs blow off some steam.

So kicking in some undead skulls like handling a zombie horror movie seems like a great way to blow off some steam, clear the head, and get some loot.

The Salamander listens to the Lander, before he turns his attention over to Giganpor. "You look /thrilled/ as heck." He chuckles at the lion man, before giving him a smile.

    Then when Shiruba shows up and says what she does. The Salamander tilts his head a little. "Wait.. what?" He blinks and raises a brow. "So this," He motions toward the village, "Is part of some bigger event?" He hrms. "That is... Interesting. Oh well." Xander shrugs, "Just means more combat practice."

There was a pause before he smiles lightly, "By the way, how you been Shiruba?" He asks, resting his hand idly on the hilt of his sword.

Gwen has finally freed herself of her own project and heard the call to this she would look to Landers as she listens to them.

"We will do what we can against them."

Undead this was kind of unreal she looks to Gigan for a moment.

"I figure as much, look you have me here for crowd control and Shiruba for gunning things down."

She looks to Xander for a moment Then makes ready with her own kit. The towering woman seems ready to go.

"Oh Shiruba I have something for you when this is over."

Wait she's made something for Shiruba /already/?

    Mizuki is here too, dressed in her midnight-purple ninja gi with long red flashy scarf. A quest is a quest... more XP and items means climbing the tower faster, and also... if the landers ARE real people, adventurers should help them, right?

    She looks from the distant undead to Giganpor as he says it's not going to be easy. "Eh, it could be worse. At least it's not D&D 3.5 so that suddenly my DPS mechanics don't work on an entire class of enemies, right?" And then Shiruba says they have actual commanders. "Seriously?? Then maybe we need to assassinate the commanders first..."

    Amalthea is here. The old Odysseia Knight has been a bit reticent and taciturn since the last boss battle in Aincrad Tower, mostly soloing hard and collecting her thoughts since things went sideways thanks to a great white whale, but the old Paladin is here nevertheless.
    Wrapped up in the folds of her cloak, resting her shield on the ground in front of her with one hand, the othe resting on the pommel of one of the two swords at her hip, gaze distant and pensive.
    "Undead." She muses distractedly. "I think I've got something up my sleeve for that." Muttered as she drums her fingers on the grip of her blade, before she plucks up her shield and straps it to her arm.
    "I suppose I'd best get back to pulling my weight again." Mused a little more focused.
    "Giganpor. Shiruba. Xander. Gwen." It's a simple address of greeting as she shifts her cloak out of her way.
    There's a pause as she sees Mizuki, and an awkward shift from the older Odysseia Knight as she clears her throat.
    "Mizuki, how have you been?" Asked a bit more gentler than just a moment before.

Prophylaxis has heard-tell of some kind of mysterious zombie apocalypse taking place somewhere in the world, and if there is anything that seems worthwhile to set on fire in vast quantities, it's a horde of the shambling dead... Especially one that has a bounty on its head! Incinerate some rotting flesh, win a bunch of neat prizes, revel in the roiling flames and cackle madly amidst the scorching hellfire for both fun and profit-- it sounds practically like a vacation!

"What kind of zombie uprising would be easy to put down? They've already defied death once. It's not like it'll be easy to get it to stick a second time." Prophylaxis shrugs as he follows the others into the killing fields. "We'll be fine though, I'm sure. Veterans all around, a couple of meatshields, at least one paladin... Yes, barring some kind of lich or other high level undead, we should be fine. I hope."

And for every other problem... That's what they have him there for! Right? Right.

    Giganpor rubs the back of his head, grumbling a little. "Alright, let's get this started. We definitely need the materials first, so... split up. I'm going to go around the village asking about deals or stuff. Good luck, everyone."

    With that, Giganpor takes off to go talk to people. Mom-n-pop shops seem to be what he's after! But there's also places outside of the village to gather things, too!

    Still, the group needs those materials to even begin building those defenses up!

Shiruba glances over when she hears Gwen's familiar voice. She smiles, though it quickly becomes one of her flat looks at the remark, like the 'Already?!' she doesn't actually say. Then sighs softly, shakes her head a little and smiles faintly again. "It's good to see you back to your -normal- obessions, onesan. But that can wait until later."

Right. Defend the settlement. First they're going to need supplies.

Shiruba approaches this matter as one would expect from a Ninetails Cait Sith. Grease a few palms, chat up some alternate means of trade, warning shopowners of possible delays, make use of her keeping a small stash of coins seperate from her own personal funds for just such occassions. Remind folks that sparing some goods now at a reasonable price will help ensure they have business and a home in the future.

She eventually returns, tail giving an idle but pleased wag as she deposits her aquisitions with the others.

    Xander gives a nod to the others that show up. He looks over to Mizuki, before back over to Amalthea. His eyes observe the Scale's leader for a moment.

His lips part as if he wants to say something, but they close. After all, now was not the time. As others go to do their thing, he gives a nod to Giganpor. "Got it chief."

As he carefully steps outside the village, he decides to use a bit of magic to help locate down useful materials that could maybe used for something. Which requires a bit of lifting, hauling, and laying whatever he does find back down.

Hopefully the stuff /will/ be useful and not just junk.

Gwen looks to Amalthea.

"Hello, it's good to see you Amalthea and I had a few ideas for clothes for you. We should talk about it later."

No one is safe, no one at all and she eyes Mizuki as she ponders an idea for her as well. Yup, Gwen's back to normal already.

"Rabies zombies like in 24 days later who are technically still alive?"

Gwen notes for a moment as she now turns, her skills to talking to the merchants locally which she's going to try to hash out some deals trying to get them to out some deals as she brings up the need to make the defences ready to keep everyone safe. It's an investment in the community's future. She will pay them but she is trying to get rid of some of the markups so she can get more with the money she has on hand.

Resource acquisition is a talent that Prophylaxis has cultivated well over his medical career, to say little about the apparently intrinsic mercantile capabilities of the Cait Sith race. Landers in dire straits though they may be, the local villagers are all quite eager to part with miscellaneous woodscraps and old furniture in exchange for some small coin, basic medicines and the promise that grandma's old rocking chair would be put to good use slaughtering the legions of the walking dead.

Whether it actually *does* play such a role is immaterial. It's all in what they are willing to believe and what Prophylaxis is able to get them to believe.

Eventually he arrives with a cart full of miscellaneous junk, but also a good deal of useful construction materials and several jugs of what look to be lantern oil.

Because nothing kills zombies better than fire except for more fire.

"I think we're all set on my end, too," Prophylaxis says with a smile. "Let's get all this set up now, shall we? Having raw materials means little when it's all just up in a big heap.

    Mizuki meets Amalthea's gaze, then looks away. "...Fine." She speaks, softly. "I dreamed... that I was back in the old world. Before Pluto's Kiss, I think. But I can't remember the dream... It wasn't as bad as I feared. If there were nightmares or sensory deprivation or something, I don't remember them." It's potentially important intelligence, after all.

    Prophy points out that you can't kill what's already dead, and she's happy to switch subjects. "Except undead here can't have really /died/, can they? When things die they disappear. That they're undead is just fluff -- they still poof at zero HP just like everything else."

    She helps Goganpor gather supplies, sharp were fang eyes helping spot bargains, apparently. "Do any of us even have the carpentry skills to use all this stuff? Or d'you think it'll be like a minigame where we just... place structures and supplies are used up? ...Huh, that actually sounds like an interesting idea for a game, you build your own shelter then see if it withstands the zombie hordes... I think it'd work better if we could place turrets, though..."

"That supposes the corpses are not simply being whisked away to somewhere else, and are indeed just disintegrating! Maybe when monsters are killed, they sometimes end up in graves and wait there to be raised by nefarious necromancers...!" Prophylaxis wiggles his fingers a bit at this. Spooky...!

    "Everything is better with turrets and grenade launches." Xander adds to Mizuki's comment. "Man, a ton of our problems could be dealt with so easily if we actually /had/ firearms."

"I pretty much -am- a living turret," Shiruba points out. "And certainly shoot much more interesting things than bullets."

    "Mn."
    Amalthea falls quiet at Mizuki's reply, head dipping in a faint nod for a good beat. "I see." She says after a pause. "Regardless. I'm glad you're back among us."
    There is an arched brow at Gwen, for a second as well. "And how did that project of yours go?"
    That said, once the group splits up to see what they can find, the old Paladin wanders her way... To the local carpenter's workshop.
    It's not long before she returns.
    "I got us more wood." She says matter of factly. "It took a little gentle coaxing but it's better than nothing right?"

    Giganpor returns with some extra supplies as well. Wood, nails, even some metal pitchforks to stick out on the perimeter. And lots of axes to help get things going. All and all, the group was successful as hell at getting the materials they needed to build the defenses.

    Then comes the big problem. The day has started to turn towards night. And well... there's the problem of where to place all this. All something rather obvious. Not to mention it's just the seven of them.

    "So... next problem. I have no clue how to defend a whole town here. I can easily help make whatever we need, no problems at all. But as far as making traps, I suck at it... you guys feel like pointing me where to begin making something? It won't be anything overly fancy, but eh... it'll at least keep these things out or routed possibly."

    Giganpor looks a bit sheepish in admitting that.

    "Otherwise, we might need more manpower, I guess? This is a large area to get covered here."

    Xander stares at Shiruba, to her quiver, back to her, he smirks softly. "Maybe!" And the Holy Knight leaves it at that.

Once all the supplies are gathered, Xander looks over to Giganpor. "I'll see about creating a killbox. Try to get the entrance here covered to see if we can funnel the undead down in /one/ direction." The Salamander looks over some of the supplies.

"If we can get them to come down a thin, straight line, we may have an easier time to handling them. Including if we build maybe catwalk as well or a high spot for our more," He motions to Shiruba. "Ranged inclined." Then he motions to the mages as well. "So," he fingers guns. "I'll get to work on that."

He tilts his head, "Any objections by the way?"

    "We're going to want barricades. Lots of them." Amalthea murmurs thoughtfully on the topic of defending a whole town. "If we can funnel as many of the undead into a killbox, we won't need to worry too much about manpower and--"
    Amalthea nods approvingly as Xander has the same idea.
    "I'll see about getting the carpenter to actually help us." She says, heading back the way she came for a few beats.
    It's not long before she returns. "He's willing to help lash some things together, but he doesn't want to be out too long and daylight's burning."

Shiruba pats Amalthea on the arm. "It does... But we need people that can -use- it." Shiruba heads back into town with the older paladin.

A few minutes later she returns, with a couple of younger and more physically capable laborers. They're promptly put to work helping Xander, though with the same insistance that they will only work until the sun sets.

Shiruba smirks a little. "Just got to 'talk' to the right part of the operation." When by talk we mean wave some extra money in their faces. "I've had to start keeping a stash of mercantilism goods for when such convincing is needed."

Thing do not go so well as she attempt to pay workers she ends up getting some but it costs her a lot more, it seems she wasn't as well versed on labour costs outside of her own business. This costs her a lot more than she expected even with her being able to get some workers. Though what she does suggest is intresting as things like box punjab traps and hte like. Zombies tend to not be smart enought to avoid those and they are fairly easy to make. She'll make sure the defenders /know/ where these pits are.

    Mizuki shakes her head at the question of construction. "Sorry, I didn't get any crafting skills. And the only thing I learned how to build in the real world was PCs."

    Trying to talk to the landers becomes an exercise in frustration. "Come on! It's YOUR life or death on the line here, WE'RE the ones that the zombies are less of a threat to! We'll send you inside as soon as we spot zombies! Even if you DID get attacked while building, that's compared to what? Getting attacked cowering in your own homes?!"

    "Uggggh!" Mizuki shouts skyward. "You'd think programmed people would be able to understand basic logic!"

    As Mizuki comes back frustrated, he peers over from what he is working on, talking easily while holding a nail between his teeth like it was a toothpick. "You ever seen horror movies, Mizuki? I am pretty sure those guys have the same logic." Then he goes back to hammering.

"Shh, Mizucchi," Prophylaxis soothes, patting the Were Fang's fluffy head. "It's okay. You should know by now, when there is any question of motivation..."

The doctor... holds up a bag. It jingles. It jangles. It's absolutely full of coin. His eyes shine malevolently, "Money is always the answer...!"

Within a few minutes, he somehow manages to assemble a gang of burly workfolk to assist with the construction. Apparently, there *is* a price on a lander risking their life, and it's approximately one satchel of coin for a half-dozen workers.

    With a lot of bribing both successful and unsuccessful, the Adventurers get Lander help to build up the defenses. Walls, and two towers and a catwalk along those walls. Granted the catwalk is just barely completed by the time the night comes and the Landers make a run for their homes. The kill box is setup by the village entrance mostly, but another is nearby are on another side as well from where the last undead encounter was.

     Rapidly there is the shutting of doors, closing of shutters. The works. It's like a bad Western for a moment as the entire town closes from outwards on in like crazy. The local bar even flips a closed sign.

    About that time, the next problem arrives as an unnatural fog starts to roll it's way in. Lots of it. The night gets a lot darker as the fog makes it harder to see.

    Seriously, you guys need light right now! And a lot of it!

    Giganpor reaches to his buckler and slips it on as he puts the hammer away and begins to cast some fire magic to light up torches. "I think we all know what we need now. Get some light going! Pick a spot and let's make these people glad we're here!"

You know what always* solves creepy fog that's potentially full of zombies?

That's right!

FIREBALL.

Prophylaxis hurls said fireball directly into the roiling fog, concerned apparently that the first wave of undead is using the inclement weather as cover for a first strike.

...He may be a bit premature in his fireball flinging. But at least it might help scatter the fog a little bit!

Barely complete is complete enough, because apparently people were thinking the same strategy as Shiruba was herself.

She would of just used rooftops, but this is much more effective, as she occupies one of the watchtower positions. "Something is out there."

She squints, and growls softly under her breath. "That fog is a LOT like the fog in the Misty Ruins. Heads up and look alive people!" Pause. "No pun intended!"

Interestingly enough it's her own frost imbued arrows that she draws, and fires into the fog with. There is a strategy to this though, as the crystals that form will help reflect around the light produced by torches and fire spells, and hopefully help with the matter of visibility.

    "Right, right, I guess it wouldn't be as much of a challenge for us if they helped..." Mizuki mutters, but it turns out others talked landers into participating after all.

    And then fog rolls in. "Agh! I can't see shit! Is this what darkness is like for everyone else?!"

    But Prophy has a plan. Just use fireball. Always fireball. JUST FIREBALL. JUST--

    Mizuki cackles. "Ah, of course!" She takes a deep breath and then sweeps a plume of flame around the perimeter. And then again! The heat helps banish the fog! "There..."

    Xander watches as the fog rolls in. His eyes narrow gently. "This is not normal fog. Nothing about how quickly it rolled in is normal." He also listens for sounds beyond the fog. The dead silence, places him on edge.

The Salamander draws out his shield and goes to hook his shield around his arm. Then he inhales deeply, before he allows runes to form along his gauntlet armor and glove, before sending out flicks of flames to help light torches, along with send out a few orbs of fire to hover as light.

    Daylight's wasting.
    With the fortifications and defenses done and the Landers very quickly returning to their homes, that's one thing handled. Amalthea chuckles as money is thrown around so weightily to get the Landers to help, but she's not going to complain as she takes a defensive position and...
    The fog rolls in.
    "Mmmmm, I'm not liking this." The old Paladin mutters as she bangs her blade against her shield for a quick spark... Which sets her sword ablaze as she holds it aloft like a beacon in the darkness.

So things are getting later fire is needed, well light is needed and Gwen's going to make usre of som fire spells it doesn't go so well. She'll light torches and such where she can. "Oh for some high powered flood lights like my dad's truck has."

She musesit doesn't go so well but hey it could be worse right? she's got good people at her side.

"Now what I really wish I had was a shotgun and a Chainsaw..."

    The big part of it is that all the fire and light burns away the fog nearest them, but the unatural fog does settle. It's eerie, quiet, and it's not long before the rather stubborn fog decides to not get lost. There's nothing but whatever sounds the Adventurers are making as the obvious settlement is completely, utterly quiet.

    Then comes the rather obvious thing that anyone who has ever seen a zombie movie should expect. Ghouls began to shamble out. Some look pretty fresh compared to others, but it's obvious that it's time to do what Adventurers do best in the case of the undead.

    This is right before the ghouls begin their charge with a blood curdling scream as they rush forward! Both into the kill box and into going all over the place if not stopped!

    Giganpor starts move to head off the ghouls, but it's obvious that he's a bit distracted at the moment. He looks over at the others, specifically Shiruba since she's the NWA leader of the combat division. He's not about to drop down /yet/, but he's obviously not about to rain spell fire down either.

From her vantage point Shiruba catchs the shadowy glimpses of movement within the fog before the ghouls actually march out of it. They're screaming and staggering, but in a manner that is moving towards the town with purpose. These are not your basic shambling unorganized undead by any means.

"Angle yourselves and your attacks to funnel them into the kill zone!"

Shiruba fires off a couple of arrows, but she's paying more attention to trying to keep the group organized than her own attacks. "Mizuki, do your ninja thing pick off any trying to slip around them. Doc can help with support fire."

    Xander takes his stance, his shield was ready, his sword ignited onto fire. When the ghouls come and boy do they come, the Salamander roars back with a draconic-like warcry, before doing his tank thing.

He stands his ground, trying to keep the zombies held there at the killbox or even help lead a few that try to stagger away from the plan. Slashing any with his burning sword of flames that he can. However, he is having trouble holding that line. "Hold the line!" He roars out. "Don't let them get past!"

"Did someone say..." Prophylaxis' eyes are eerie things. Somehow he managed to roll through the randomization settings long enough to get a pair of ruby-red peepers that inexplicably glittered in the most ominous of ways when in moonlight or firelight alike. In this case, they stare out through the dark like a pair of distant funeral pyres, glowing above a silvery crescent of an upturned grin. "Fire?"

The doctor lifts his staff. Above him, an array of arcane circles, each glowing some shade of orange or red, wink into existence. "Because I've got fire. I've got plenty of fire! Nahahahahahaha! Here!" He gestures, each of those magic circles condenses into a globe of baleful firelight! "WE!" He swings his staff at the ghoul horde, and each of those fiery spheres distends into lances of angry starlight. "GOOOOO!"

With one last sweep, Prophylaxis sends those magical missiles screaming forth into the ghoulish charge, blasting the zombies with a barrage of incendiary arcane shots! Somehow he avoids hitting any of the tanks... Or any of the wooden walls forming the killbox.

All while laughing amidst the inferno like the Magus that he truly is at heart...!

Gwen just charges in as the ghouls come, she's off the barricade and wading into the enemy ranks. She seems to have a serious plan here, what could she be doing? A green wind comes off her body and bright light can be seen about her as she cries out. "ANCHOR HOWL!"

The Ghouls that try to bypass her end up getting torn apart as she just hacks slashes and shield slams into them. As the fight goes on one can clearly hear her shouting.

"HAIL TO THE QUEEN BABY!"

As she beheads a ghoul.

There is no mercy, there is no hesitation in Gwen's action as she knee-deep in dead and keeps ongoing. One unlucky Ghoul would have Gwen smash her sword holding fist through its rotting skull and she doesn't even blink.

    "Housewares, Gwen?" Amalthea jabs playfully as she holds her sword overhead.
    And then the dead come.
    The ghouls come rushing with their banshee-like howls, and Amalthea takes to the fore of the group, right next to Gwen.
    "It's like a bad Romero ripoff..." She mutters as she stomps a boot, a sudden surge of light erupting all about her as she readies her flaming sword.

    "Anchor Howl!" She declares loud and challenging.

    And as the ghouls come she positions herself at the mouth of the killbox, giving them a nice target to bash themselves against her shield and cut them down as they come. Of course should they attack anyone other than her the damage penalties will be painful. And with Gwen pulling the same tactics, the damage penalties on the dead will be practically gauranteed.

    The shambling army appears in the distance. It doesn't LOOK like they're being commanded... and then they SCREAM. Mizuki's tail goes all bushy. Who the hell made that sound effect?!

    But hey, now it's time to FIGHT, and that's what she's here for! Chucking fire into the killbox to soften them up then dropping down herself, daggers and claws whirling! If her health drops too fast, she'll hop back up to the structures to heal up.

    The incoming ghouls are met with a double Anchor Howl pair of Tanks that take the brunt of the punishment, and cause quite a massacre of the ghouls but they seem to be an endless horde. That has their attention as it's fresh meat! They're going for the two tanks.

    Then comes down the fireball of doom that ends up blasting a good portion and setting them on fire for easier pickings. Between the two tanks and Xander, very few get around but they end up meeting a raging were fang lion as Giganpor gives a roar before beheading a few and sending them back into the masses as he joins Mizuki in the whirling death of furry Were Fang fun.

    Apparently Shiruba's orders were pretty good, despite that.

    Of course, things can't be as simple as an endless seeming ghoul horde. Oh no. Someone really does have some ideas out there. It's probably Shiruba who sees them first since she's up high. Arrows start to rain as bones appear near the back ranks of the ghouls, forming an archery line as they unleash arrows towards the tanks and everyone else as quick as their bony fingers can get arrows and shoot them!

    Giganpor, still on the high of the Were Fang's innate berserker-like buff, starts that way as he chops through the endless zombies with abandon. Apparently he's lost a bit of reasoning to go along with his distraction at the moment. Blasted insane little thing it is when you really want to get back to the forge!

Shiruba was being tactical, but she realizes that she just needs to have faith in a group of such experienced Adventurers. Seems like they worked out what needed to be done. "Keep sharp, that was probably only the first wave..."

Sure enough, more unliving forms emerge from the fog. Is the fog itself some manner of teleport or spawn, or was it just a visual concealment? There isn't really time to investigate more throughly at this exact moment. "You've got this! If not for ourselves, for the people depending on us. And I don't intend to let them down!"

Though Shiruba has to dart out onto the catwalk when the skeletal archers start firing at the constructed ramparts. "Oh no you don't!" As she braces herself on the structure she fires off a chain of magic arrows that produce bursts of wind, using them to knock the archery fire askew. But the wind spells fizzle out before they actually reach the skeletons themselves. "Dammit, that one still needs work!"

    Xander grunts and clench his teeth together as he tries to control his breathing. Then when it seems like they get a breather, more start to come and worse now /archers/. "How many of these /damn/ undead /do/ they have?!"

The Salamander then attempts to once more rip and tear through the ghouls with his sword. Igniting now his shield onto fire as he tries to use it as a bludgeoning weapon and added defense against the incoming arrows.

"Come on!!" He roars out as his Adrenaline pumps and he just continues to bash and slash with everything his has. Ignoring the cuts and scrapes he gets along the way.

    Mizuki stabs ghouls without issue, but once the bones start coming in, she finds herself having to fall back to heal... and then arrows push her HP into the red "Oh COME ON!" and she has to flee further to safely chug healing potions! Unfortunately, so begins a slippery slope -- the longer she's away from that area of the defenses, the more undead can push in, and the more she has to fight at once when she returns from healing, the sooner she has to retreat again... Eventually it's hopeless. All she can do is try to rush to lander homes before the undead get there and shout that it's time to leave. She half expects they won't listen...

The undead come they are without number she hacks she slashes she cuts them down time and time again. She can only do so much there was a time she would have been able to almost solo. The days of Gwen the Holy Warrior are a thing of the past, and a thing for the future. She does not relent she does not give up she's fighting all the way, it's not for nothing, some people /are/ saved from the fire and the oddest thing the lander kid keeps her from breaking.

Mizuki looks for a moment.

"... Life isn't fair and this is our lives now."

She will do her best to help the landers before they will depart. There are more places to be hit, she can't ... stop this has to be handled.

    Things were going so well.
    Though the first wave of ghouls fell in droves, the second wave comes harder than the first.
    "Giganpor, rein it in!" Amalthea calls out, "Everyone form up, back to the secondary defensive line, the first line is about to fall!" She shouts, ignoring the pain of an arrow embedding in her shoulder through a seam in her armor.
    "This isn't working-- Gwen, Xander, Giganpor stay with me until the last possible second, everyone else start evacuating the town; as many people as you can get!" She starts bellowing orders, backing up a pace with every swing of her sword, arrows spanging off her shield as she tries to hold the buckling line as well as she can until the last possible moment-- before cutting and running herself, heaving a heavy sigh on her way.
    Damn it that's another failure.

    "Yes Ma'am!" Xander calls over as he tries to get over to Amalthea, even as an arrow tries to find him, as it nicks his cheek slight on passing before he raise up his shield.

"These undead," Xander manages to get out. "That is a military tactic. They are /using/ military tactics." It was /obvious/ perhaps, but seeing was believing.

The first line was nothing but grunts or fodder line. It was the second wave, the back line that was the real firepower. They were not ready for that back line.

"That fog has got to be some manner of spawning method, they just keep coming! We.. ugh.." Shiruba growls between her teeth. "We can't win this on haphazard perperations! The town is lost, get the people!"

Being the leader means having to make those hard calls. Fortunately Shiruba isn't the only one realizing that as Amalthea makes a similar judgement.

The decision to break off is hastened by the defense structures starting to break apart as more and more attacks get through. "Now! The walls will slow them down for a little while. Make use of it!" She turns and fires a grappling arrow down into town, then holds her bow between her hands over the line to rapple down it. "They're too strong. Grab your children and elderly and run!"

"Mmmn, it looks like we might have underestimated their numbers," Prophylaxis concludes somewhat more seriously now that he sees the full depth and breadth of the undead horde. "Damn. And here I thought it would be a simple undead extermination. This is a bit much, even for us. So..."

Prophylaxis again sweeps his staff toward the swarming ghouls. Suddenly the ground bursts forth with a brambly network of clinging vines, each serving to arrest the ghouls' fevered charge for just long enough to allow the doctor and the rest of the adventurers to get some distance.

"Bring the wounded to me once we're clear," he instructs, periodically stopping to hurl another spell into the crush of corpses. "I'll save however many I can...!"

Gwen says "That means there's something with a mind calling the shots, Xander." She would reply later once they are out.

    Giganpor, at least, can listen a little bit. Although it's not Amalthea that stays last oddly. It's him. The raging Were Fang Lion shows he can use that massive axe, literally bodily picking up undead and using them as battering rams on their fellows. When the line finally breaks, people start evacuating quickly from the outskirts nearest the attack to the opposite side.

    By the time it is all said and done, the Adventurers have dangerously depleted their HP. Giganpor is back with the rest, but looking unsettled as he looks at the burning village. The fey mood is on him as he looks around after a few long minutes.

    It's about then that a mother and child stop for a moment. A young child at that. "Thank you for trying! I know you'll get 'em next time! I believe in you all!" Then the child and mother are off, headed towards the next village after they join the father in a warm hug.

A second lander comes up, and reaches to put a hand on Xander's shoulder. They must have heard about the tactics. "You all did your best and look at the lives you did manage to save. it may not be the whole village, but some lives are better than none. Just keep doing your best, adventurers. The next village will need your help soon enough." A respectful, if weary nod is given to everyone before they head off. The villagers all heading for the next town.

    About that time, Giganpor growls before turning to begin walking off. He pauses near Shiruba, "We need more than this... I'll be back when Miho and I are done. Let's get everyone ready and take it to them." His tusked lion form shrinks down slightly to his human form before he starts to head back, roughly in the direction of Dun Loireag.

Shiruba does manage a weak smile when the Landers try to reassure them before leaving. "Next time, we will be better prepared. Between now, and earlier..." She nods a bit to Gwen and Xander. "This confirms that, yes. These undead are -organized-. That dark knight knows his stuff."

She sighs softly, and tries to not let it get them too down. "Better prepared, better tactics... Yeah. We come back stronger, Giga." She glances over her shoulder towards the failing town now in the distance.

"They're going to find out what happens when you give Adventurers -reason- to stop playing a game."

    As they all managed to pull back, Xander slammed his shield into a tree out of frustration for their failure. All he could do was watch the village burn. He can hear a few of the cries for those they couldn't save.

His eyes locked on those flames, his body oddly tensing. It was only broken when the hand came on his shoulder. His draconic eyes looking at the Lander, then watching them leave.

The Salamander inhales deeply, forcing his mind to swirl into the darkness where it wants to go. A place that likes to remind him of things he doesn't want to think of right now.

    "The tactics are an easy one. You send fodder to the front. Then come in with a stronger force once you soften the enemy. Not only does it possibly push down, but it will /kill/ moral." Xander looks to the fog line out there. "That fog is also a problem. It's like a smokescreen. Using to not only hide how many there are, but also masking their movements."

The Salamander looks to Shiruba. "It also is another head game tactic. Since you can't see their numbers... You can't tell when it will end." He then goes to step away.

    Amalthea isn't looking too happy by the time everyone re-groups outside the village.
    "What the hell." She mutters, before looking to Xander. "You're right, they were way too organized. It was sloppy of me to assume they'd just be a bunch of Romero wannabes." The old Paladin grumbles.
    "Next time... Next time will be different." She growls to herself, fingers clenching tightly on the grip of her blade.

    Xander looks over his shoulder toward Amalthea before he says softly, "Don't place the blame solely on yourself, Ma'am. We all took it for granted. Every one of us."

He then looks away, his brows knit, before he looks back to her with some thought. "Come on. Lets make sure these people get to the next village safely. Maybe there we can get something to drink, eat, and maybe also some rest."