Duty Session 381: Reclaim the Peko Fort

Yeowang has ventured to Ninetails, and is standing before a lone Peko scout, which the party had been told to meet when they set out from the nearby encampment. The darkness is close, and there is thick mist all around, concealing the party just outside line of sight from the walls of the fort.

The scout is ecstatic to see the party and runs up to them, breaking cover. "Oh damn I am so glad to see you all. I thought I was going to get stood up and have to wait out here all night...alone." The scout looks around, obviously a little jumpy. "Anyways, normally we would handle this ourselves but there is some weird summoning magic that is happening on the top of the tower. Well we need to ask you to handle that. It's really simple." The scout turns and points to the fort, visible by the tower, that appears to have some magical glow at the top. "Just get to the fort, over the wall, across the courtyard and you can get into the tower. Stop them from doing the magic up there and we can handle the rest." The scout smiles and nods, as if to say, 'yep just that easy,' and adds as an afterthought, "I'm not sticking around here in case you stir them up too much. Just let the Hunter's Guild know when you're done." And then the Scout makes himself scarce.

Yeowang looks over the assembled party, then towards the fort. "So, you heard him. Let's go do this."

Kauchemar rides up on her Nightmare steed, though her gaze almost immeadiately turns to the tower rising from the fort in the distance. Her eyes flicker a moment and then she snorts. "Yeah... don't need to be a sorceror to tell there's some nasty voodoo mumbo jumbo going on up there." She drops off the monster's back and he flickers off into the shadows, so he's still at hand should she need to summon him into battle as well. "Well, my specialty is disruption. Just need to get upp there."

    Rizadoman was on his monthly patrol of the Yamato regions and had heard of this request from the Hunter Guild. Listening to the foot soldier for a moment the Lizardman's eyes watch the tower for a moment. " Any type of blow we can deliver to the undead is worth doing. I am concerned that as winter ebbs more the undead will rise up again. " Looking around at the others he draws his shield from his back and sets it on his arm. "Ready when everyone else is."

    Fukaziroh approaches at somewhere between a flounce and a saunter. A gait entirely her own, entirely unselfconscious. It would probably make an appearance in a Monty Python skit, were this some place completely different. As usual, she's willing and even eager to take on fun little jobs for the hunter's guild. The usual reasons; good pay, good rep, good friends.

    "Don't worry." reassures Fuka. "I'm an expert when it comes to summoning magics."

    She isn't, of course. And realizes she 'mis-spoke'. "What I mean is, I'm an expert in dealing with summoning magics. Er... I mean, in blowing up summoners?" she adds almost reluctantly. "What I mean to say is, we got this covered! Nothing to worry about! Unless you want the fort intact that is!"

Yeowang nods to Kauchemar about disrupting them, and needing to get up there. "Let's hope it's that easy," she says. "I do not think thta undead are slowed by winter, they neither forage nor freeze. But their masters, while not alive, seem to think like they did when they were. Otherwise, why winter over?" She looks pleased when Fukaziroh announces she is an expert, then looks progressively less pleased as she qualifies her statement. "Let us hope that is sufficient," she says thoughtfully, and will move out.

Unfortunately, there's no easy concealed approach to the keep. The party will need to put some effort into sneaking up to the wall and getting over. The thick fog is some aid to that, at least, but there are, of course, no guarantees.

    Fuka is not so good at stealth, but magic has always been good to her in this world. Particularly air magic, a specialty of the Sylphs and of her in particular. She breaks into a soft chant, not casting any particular wave arte but simply manipulating mana to swirl the air around, drawing in fog and selectively thickening it in places to help give the group a discreet path to safely traverse.

Kauchemar pats Fuka on the shoulder. "Considering the Peko Army wants to reclaim the location, we shouldn't blow ALL of it up. Maybe just the tower with the assholes in it." With that and a chuckle the Were Fang steps back and... disappears.

The mists help her just as much as they do the undead patrols. That and the perimeter seems to be more a game of congestation than awareness, or they would of used something other than easy to raise numbskulls. Between the fog and her own ability to move on the edge of sensory awareness Kauchemar has little issue with more or less strolling right up to the exterior wall after walking right past some of the patrols.

    Rizadoman hated taking such approaches but he recognized the neccessity. Very clumsily he begins to work dark magic around him, as he tries to increase the shadows around him. However he somehow manages it as he makes his way to the fort wall slowly but remains hidden all the same. As he reaches the wall he shakes the dark magic off, "I really do not like the feel of such spells."

So, the party is able to make it to the wall undetected. Yeowang has wrapped some of the thickest of the fog around her, and it seems Fukaziroh has done something similar. Kauchemar is skilled in infiltration, it seems, and slips out of sight, approaching by clever use of cover and is only seen again when she reaches an agreed-upon point at the base of the wall. Rizadoman, reluctantly, wraps the shadows around him as he approaches that point, also unseen by the defenders.

The stone wall is, it seems, only two stories tall, about 9 meters. The party has crept into a blind spot between towers, and can rest and plan their way over the wall. It would be a simple matter to simply climb the rough stone, but of course not everyone is as athletic as Yeowang.

    Fuka grins at Rizadoman. "Yeah, they're not really my style either, but you did fine!" she claims, managing to keep reasonably quiet so as to not give the group away. "Fire is a lot more fun isn't it? Technically though, my style is hitting things really hard. Magic is just... you know, kind of a happy bonus?"

    Looking up at the wall, Fuka shakes her head. "This is going to be a little tricky for some of us." she notes. She's vertically-challenged after all, and Rizadoman has to weigh a few thousand pounds of draconian scales and muscle. Okay probably not that much, not outside his wishes, but he's still going to be heavy right? Well, they average out to two very capable individuals... it's fine.

    Fortunately Fuka's quite strong, not only for her size, and pulling herself up the wall seems quite a bit easier than it would seem for her delicate appearance.

Kauchemar tilts her head back to look up the wall as Yeowang starts climbing. She probably could do that, not being a squishy mage type of caster, but that would be practical and boring. She is most definitely not the later. Instead she pulls some of that mist around herself, then points her hands down and releases it. Using her elemental forays to manipulate both the moisture and air in it she produces a magical jet burst that shoots herself up and over the wall to land on the other side, and since it's not an actual rocket it's not nearly as loud in doing so either.

    Rizadoman looks at the wall and guesses it is about four time his height. As Fukaziroh's thought may be correct about such a thing, he is still a monster in a half mans clothing as he digs his claws into the wall and quickly begins to scale the wall without much problem. As he gets to the top he looks back down at the ground and then looks forward into the courtyard. "One step closer to the tower, just have to get through the courtyard and into the tower."

Yeowang climbs the wall without hesitation, but about halfway up seems to be stuck looking for a handhold. It's dark, and they dare not light a light, but she eventually sees what she needs and continues to scale the wall. And Fukaziroh is lighter than she is, so finds scaling the rough stone easy. Yeowang hadn't considered how Kauchemar might climb with hooves, but it appears not to be an issue as she simply propels herself into the air by magic, floating easily to the top. Rizadoman may be many times heavier than a human, but he has strength in proportion, it seems, and claws that can grip stone, allowing him to climb easily enough.

Getting down will be much easier, there are stairs and ladders on the inside. Unfortunately, the Peko Knights, when they abandoned the fortress, left boobytraps for the undead, and the spattered remains of ghouls and skeletons testify to their presence. Yeowang points out the minefield quietly to the others and considers how to get across.

Once she's over the wall Kauchemar uses a second small burst of air to slow and land. "Wow. This place already looks like a massacre and we just got here!" Her gaze falls on the opposite side of the field, and she smirks. "Oh, I see now. Those clever troops didn't leave without making sure the enemy would have a hell of a time.. Excuse moi~" Again shadows twist to life around her, and the Nightmare is like one herself as she flits across the field, nimbly avoiding any of the unexploded spots thanks to her ethereal movements. Looks like the same aspect of her technique that makes it hard to keep eyes on her also offsets whatever magic triggers the mines have.

    Rizadoman looks out at thte courtyard for a moment and ttilts his head as he leaps down off the wall into the courtyard with a large thud. Taking a deep breath and looks around expecting a trap when his nose cattches a whif of something. " Huh, for a moment I thought I smelt this befo..." There was a loud earth shatttering kaboom tthatt interupts Rizadoman as he is engulfed in flames. Rizadoman is covered in dirt and his healtth took a hit but it wasn't the worse outcome, so he continues to try to regroup with the others at the tower. Then there is anoher BOOM and another. By the time he gets to the tower his health is a third gone.

    Seeing Rizadoman set off an explosion, Fuka cries out in dismay. "I have healing spells!" she offers. She's not as good at healing as Uta or Prophylaxis, but she can manage to pull off light spells almost as effectively, if as uncomfortably, as she pulls off darkness spells. Neither are her style, but both are useful.

    Fuka has no problem getting down from the wall. She's light on her feet after all, and can even slow her fall somewhat with faerie wings. The problem with being light on her feet however is that she's not so light as to avoid setting off mines. Especially when she lands on one while focussed on what happened to Rizadoman.

    Fortunately Fuka's legs are well-armored and the explosion is more painful and annoying than actually crippling. She stumbles after Rizadoman, who has fortunately cleared the way for her somewhat. "This isn't exactly what I had in mind!" she complains to no one in particular. "I love explosions, but NOT WHEN THEY HAPPEN TO ME!"

Yeowang is, technically, a hunter. She wasn't in RL, and she often forgets she is in the game. She's so many other things, it's hard to track everything. But sometimes, when she applies herself thoughtfully, the hunter's clues will appear for her, and in this case, will let her know where to avoid to stay clear of the traps. Kauchemar simply moves through the shadows, bever really in any one place long enough for the triggers and tripwires to notice. They do notice Rizadoman, he is not nearly as light on his feet. Fuka is light on her feet, but that doesn't help when you land square on the trigger.

Once through the minefield, the party reaches the center of the courtyard, where the central tower is located. The door into the central tower is not hard to find, but there are many .... many locks and it is a very solid door. No one is getting throug in a hurry. Unfortunately, time is not on the party's side as a hail of arrows falls among them. The party has been spotted, if the earlier explosions weren't a giveaway, and whatever first responders there are, they are responding! The party is going to have to get in fast! If they can get the door closed with them inside, then the undead will have to deal with this portal!

Kauchemar flicks an ear at the sounds. "I don't think we've gone entirely unnoticed." Maybe because someone set off a few mines, but she's not saying anything. More important things to worry about, like the door.

"I dare say this is no time to take the time to be fancy." She summons her Binder Shield... if only to brace it against herself and use to help knock the door open. Go go equine strength.

    Rizadoman sees the first drop of arrows as the projectiles begin to rain down around them. Stepping forward as his scales turn blood red, " I was not prepared for such a change in weather, however I will act as an umbrella, so someone please get us inside where it is dry. " Arrows deflect off his skin as he does his best to make sure no arrow makes it past him what so ever.

    After the debacle in the minefield (and after healing up somewhat), Fuka's still in fairly decent shape. Not ideal, but she's still kind of tanky. For a sylph at least. Seeing the skeleton archers she rushes out, activating a tanking arte and deflecting arrows with her heavily-armored forearms. And in some cases, deflecting those arrows straight back at the archers! It's a shame they're skeletons really... or them getting pincushioned by their own arrows would be painful as well as poetic.

    Still, she's not impervious. "Someone got that door?" she asks, grunting as an arrow finds a weak point in her defense. "Anyone?" Another grunt. "Can someone just kick it down maybe? Come on, two of you are like... huge and the other's some kind of ninja!" she complains. "Someone's got to be able to kick it!"

With the rest of the party concentrating on protection against the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and skeletons, Yeowang finds that it falls to her to get the door open. This is not as easy as it seems, and after a few moments trying to work a set of small tools, and nevermind where she got them from, but she's got no skill at that. She's quite strong, though, and a crowbar seems like an effective door opening device also, per Fuka's urging, with the corner of Kauchemar's binder shield adding leverage while Fuka and Rizadoman's shields protect us.

Once inside, it seems there is an inner bar that had not been set, and setting it now will make the door a serious barrier to pursuit. Climbing up to the top of the Tower and emerging at the peak, the party sees that it's a flat platform, with a magic circle on which six vampire cultists. The one leading the ritual says, "Ah, our sacrifices have arrived." and the cultists rush to attack.

    "Sacrifices?" shrieks Fukaziroh, laughing. "Brothers you don't know who you're messing with!"

    She looks to her friends, nodding her readiness. "FIIIYAAAAA...." she begins, raising a hand to point. "Psyche. FLASH!" she finishes, snapping her fingers. A blinding burst of light detonates from her fingertips, a trick she picked up for duelling, but one that seems particularly appropriate here. Blinded, these vampire cultists should be easy to take care of with magic, weapons, or a combination of both.

Kauchemar tilts her head. Then snorts softly after the man finishes talking and his goons move into action. "Oh, there's going to be sacrifice alright..." And then she steps back calmly.

One might notice that when she backsteps, her shadow does -not- move with her. A pair of red eyes flickering ominous amongst the black pool. "But you're not the only one with a summoning to feed!"

A sound akin to galloping hooves rumbles ominously through the tower as the dark equine form rises out of the shadow. He rears up with a banshee-like neigh.. and slams down front hooves on top the first two cultists that get to close. A third becomes the proof of Kauchemar's retort as he's caught in the demonic horse's unhinging jaws, chomped on and swallowed down in much the same way a snake would.

    Rizadoman looks at the vampires for a moment before he grins and grabs his shield and throws it , wrapping it in flames ttrying tto ricochet it around like he was some captain or something. However it falls, literally, off the tower instead. So even if he was successful at hitting anything his weapon will have to be rettrieved after all this is over.

Yeowang will fight off the cultists as best she can, but one of them, knocked down, grabs her ankle while another attacks her, and between them, she's thrown off her stride, unable to fight back effectively as she tries to keep from being beaten too badly. Her HP are not as plentiful as she'd like. Suddenly, Fuka's flash erupts, and the vampires are blinded! Three go down to Kauchemar's summoned nightmare, though, freeing Yeowang before her HP can plunge too far. Rizadoman stuns a cultist with his shield, but then it sails over the edge, and he will have to retrieve it later!

Sadly, the summoning magic was not picky about /whose/ blood was used for the sacrifice, only that there was blood. And the cultists fuel their own summons with their deaths. There is a loud crack in the air, and a single pooka archer appears in the circle. She lets out a blood curdling scream as her skin turns pale and her hair turns white, and she gazes at the adventurers with a deep rage, as if blaming them for her fate. She nocks several arrows at once, and fires them all, each party member is targeted as it quickly becomes apparent this is a fight-or-die situation.

    Satisfied after murdering blind vampire cultists, Fuka's rather startled by the appearance of a freaky Pooka. "Uh... wait. She's an innocent!" the little sylph wails as she's shot with an arrow. "We can't kill her!" she protests. She raises her axe reluctantly, hunkering down behind her armor, and refuses to swing. This is NOT what she signed up for! Killing vampire cultists is fine, but this poor victim?

    Well, the victim may have been a Lander once, but it's clear she's become a monster. Fuka will realize this, and not fault anyone once the victim is put to rest... but she's still going to weep over the necessity. Landers are, after all, people. And Fuka's not going to swing that axe. She's also not really in the right frame of mind to dodge either, so she's going to end up suffering almost as much as the Pooka until someone puts one or both out of their respective misery.

Kauchemar blinks as the ritual goes off anyways, taking a moment to realize what just happpened with the cultist becoming the sacrifice. "Oh, that is DEVIOUS... if it wasn't also extremely SICK AND WRONG I'd maybe be jealous for not thinking of it myself. I wonder what will appea--" An arrow zings right over her head, barely missing her ears. "--Ohshit that's not good." She looks at her steed. "Go on, do your thing." The nightmare looks at her. Looks at the pissed off Pooka. Looks at her again.

And just sinks back into the shadows in a very 'I'm not dealing with this' manner. Kauchemar sighs and slumps. "Sometimes I really hate the summoning is a force of will other than actual control."

Followed by a scene of her having to resort to running around the tower while getting shot at. By the time her summoning has hit cooldown and she can call her haunted sword to sic on the Pooka without putting herself in more immeadiate range of harm, she's already got a few arrows stuck in comically painful places.

    tRizadoman frowns at his missing shield as he looks at the undead archer for a moment before he edge of the tower. " I am going to get my shield back." Then as arrows hit where he was standing tthe lizardman throws himself off the edge of the tower and then there is a loud scraping sound as he holds on to the tower and slides all the way down and by the time he gets back up with his shield the fight is over. " Hmm I see I am to late to be of any more help? That is a shame."

Yeowang is able, just barely, to keep a step ahead of the angry archer. She, herself, draws her bow and returns fire. She's nowhere near masterful with it, but this seems to be a challenge to avoid the incoming arrows. There is not much spare room at the tower top as Fuka's HP drops dangerously low with not dodging. Yeowang exhorts, "The only thing you can do for her now is put her out of her misery." /Our/ misery, too, as Yeowang ducks into the stairway, another arrow missing her by a centimeter. Still, a miss is as good as a mile, as they say. Kauchemar is undone by summoning durations and cooldown times, scrambling for safety and cover where she can while she waits out those timers. Finally, Kauchemar's summons are off cooldown, and she and Yeowang are able to end the threat. Yeowang pants hard for breath and looks around to see how we stand, just in time to see Rizadoman climbing back up the outside of the tower. With his shield. "No wonder that fight went slowly," she says sourly, but looks over the pile of bones left behind by the pooka, taking one and tucking it into her pack.

"Anyhow, let's get out of here."

Kauchemar picks up one of the bones as well. "Agreed. Before something else turns up to make lives miserable."

    Perhaps surprisingly, at least to those who don't know her well, Fuka's actually rather softhearted. She hides it behind brazen attitude, but it shows on occasion. Like, say, when she has little choice but to participate in what she can only feel is the execution of a poor innocent.

    She's still not going to swing her axe, though. Sobbing from much more than the pain of her wounds, she's a wreck. Oh, she understands. She doesn't even blame anyone for dealing the final blow. Whoever does it, they had to do it, had to put the poor lander to rest, out of her misery. But it's not something that makes the normally enthusiastic and cheerful sylph anything but a morose wreck right now. She'll be better later... but not for a while.

    Rizadoman looks out at the other fort revealed and the lizardman glares in it's direcion as he walks up behind Fukaziroh, " I am sure that poor soul appreciates your tears, one day we will get revenge for her and all the others who were forced to join the undead army." Placing his hand on her shoulder he gestures to the stairs, "For now we must be on our way before they regroup otherwise our victory right now will mean nothing."

    Even morose as she is, Fukaziroh responds to sense when she hears it. That, and Rizadoman's supportive words do help. Thinking of the future rather than the past helps as well, and she's able to nod and get up.

    She's got quite a glower going on though. Like she's plotting a serious amount of murder or at least mayhem. Before too long she's find once again, back to her normal self. Though there's a shadow, some might observe. A cast that shows her good mood over the next while is probably a mask hiding what she's brooding over.