We gotta get out of this place

[Sierra]

<El-Cideon> OOC: Okay, I'm gonna give Yomi a couple lines to settle on a course of action before we jump into the mess in the basement. For the sake of convenience she's going to be just about in the same timeframe by this point. Lining~
<El-Cideon> Dashing out into the hall, Yomi sees another ghost out in the garden about thirty feet away. Or, rather she sees what's left of one. It appears to dissipating before her eyes, fading out of existence until it's merely a shadow of itself and then disappearing entirely with just a plaintive moan.
<El-Cideon> Several cowering guests out in the garden gape in surprise and relief as the spirit dematerializes, seeming to have trouble believing this sudden turn of fortune. "I wonder if this problem just solved itself," Selene says skeptically at Yomi's side.
<Yomi> Feeling a demonic presence that easily dwarfs that of the ghost's appear below them, Yomi makes a face. "Doubtful. I think this means we've failed. Do you know what's below the mansion, or how to get there?"
<El-Cideon> "I haven't been there, but I've had a good look around the building. There's a locked door in the storage room across the building; if there's a way down, it's likely that."
<Yomi> "Lead the way, then. Whatever lies there cannot be allowed to escape!"
<El-Cideon> Selene does so, striding through the garden to the other side of the mansion and turning right to head to the back of the house. (OOC: I'll deal you into the basement clusterfuck after a round has passed. Dealing with that now, can chatter with Selene/Rena in the meantime if so inclined.)
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 fort Ellis
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0fort Ellis --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{10}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 fort guard captain
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0fort guard captain --> 6,0[ 1d20=12 ]4,0{14}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 fort guard A
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 fort guard B
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 fort guard C
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0fort guard A --> 6,0[ 1d20=2 ]4,0{4}
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0fort guard B --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{9}
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0fort guard C --> 6,0[ 1d20=6 ]4,0{8}
<El-Cideon> A sick, unclean feeling permeates every fiber of Nadia's being. Her and those around them find themselves weakened, their movements shaky and unreliable. (OOC: nauseated until leaving the creature's proximity or making a successful save, can only take one move action a turn.)
<El-Cideon> OOC: Erin's up.
<Erin> Erin is hiding behind a crate and just peeking out at the ensuing carnage! The horror of the situation is such that she'd be only too willing to let these people deal with their own problems- but she can't just abandon Nadia, and if the abomination is not stopped... well, there isn't really much to think about. She lines up a shot at the creature and fires a shot!
<Erin> roll 1d20+7 I am an expert gunslinger aren't I
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0I am an expert gunslinger aren't I --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{16}
<El-Cideon> OOC: isn't your attack roll +6? This is relevant because 16 hits and 15 doesn't. >.>
<Erin> OOC: Oh! Yes, it is, sorry
<Erin> OOC: I tried to remember it <_<
<El-Cideon> OOC: actually, you're ~40 feet away, which is just outside your gun's range increment anyway, so.
<El-Cideon> OOC (range penalty would make it a miss anywho. So, NPC turns.)
<El-Cideon> The widow Ellis seems paralyzed by indecision; she can only gape at the monster before her and mewl pitifully. "Harold, no!" The guard captain grits his teeth through the aura of miasma but seems unable to do much of anything. "YOU," he snarls at Nadia. "This is all YOUR fault!" (OOC: Nadia's up.)
<Nadia_Chekova> "Mon dieu!" Nadia feels bile rising up in her throat, backing away half a step before she feels the wall against her heel. Steeling herself, she pushes off the wall and half staggers half runs towards the crates by the stairs up, giving the zombie a wide berth!
<El-Cideon> The guards overcome their shock at least enough to scurry away from the field of vileness that seems to emanate from the creature, all them moving to far corners of the room where they can just barely be free of it's influence. Meanwhile, the creature roars--
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+8 widow will save
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+8 1,0widow will save --> 6,0[ 1d20=3 ]4,0{11}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 guard captain will
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0guard captain will --> 6,0[ 1d20=3 ]4,0{5}
* El-Cideon changes topic to 'Erin (24)> Widow Ellis (22, shaken) > Guard Captain Poole (19, disarmed, shaken) > Nadia (18) > Guard A (12) > Guard B (11) > Guard C (6) > Abomination (4)'
<El-Cideon> --and swings a heavy fist at the cowering widow!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+7 -4 PA
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0-4 PA --> 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{27}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+7 crit?
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0crit? --> 6,0[ 1d20=8 ]4,0{15}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d6+10 normal damage, sorry guys
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d6+10 1,0normal damage, sorry guys --> 6,0[ 1d6=4 ]4,0{14}
<El-Cideon> The widow Ellis takes a vicious backhand to the face, crying out in pain and reeling! OOC: Yomi and co can roll init here, assume you're entering at the stairway about 40 ft from the where the monster's beating the crap out of Ellen.
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 Rena
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20 1,0Rena --> 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{20}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+1 Selene
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+1 1,0Selene --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{10}
<Yomi> roll 1d20+1
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{6}
* El-Cideon changes topic to 'Erin (24)> Widow Ellis (22, shaken) > Rena (20), Guard Captain Poole (19, disarmed, shaken) > Nadia (18) > Guard A (12) > Guard B (11) > Selene (10) > Guard C = Yomi (6) > Abomination (4)'
<El-Cideon> OOC: Erin's up.
<Erin> It may not quite be clear which of Ellis or the abomination that Erin is shooting at to anyone looking at the situation. "Fools, fools, fools," she mutters, snapping off another shot at the bloated thing!
<Erin> roll 1d20+4
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 1d20+4 --> 6,0[ 1d20=11 ]4,0{15}
<Erin> roll 1d6 if I don't action point this cor will probably hit me
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 1d6 1,0if I don't action point this cor will probably hit me --> 6,0[ 1d6=5 ]4,0{5}
<Erin> OOC: that's actually 1d6+2 due to faith, which I keep forgetting exists, but oh well
<Erin> roll 2d6 shooting damage
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 2d6 1,0shooting damage --> 6,0[ 2d6=3 ]4,0{3}
<El-Cideon> The monster takes a bullet in the back, though this hardly impedes its fury at its cowering victim!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+1 widow fort again
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+1 1,0widow fort again --> 6,0[ 1d20=11 ]4,0{12}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 GC fort again
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20 1,0GC fort again --> 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{20}
<Yomi> "It's not just an animated corpse," Yomi says as she lays eyes upon the abomination. "It has to be stopped here, before all else!"
<El-Cideon> The widow Ellis continues her pitiful blubbering, tears streaming down her face as she falls to her knees before the monster. Meanwhile, Rena takes Yomi's words to heart and charges at the monster!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6 fort Rena
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0fort Rena --> 6,0[ 1d20=19 ]4,0{25}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+9 charge
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+9 1,0charge --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{26}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d4+3
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d4+3 --> 6,0[ 1d4=2 ]4,0{5}
<El-Cideon> Rena's knife hacks into the monster's back, the gash drawing forth a sluggish black ichor. The widow's guard captain seems to regain control of his body now, and draws a metal baton frok his belt to beat at the creature. "Stay away from her, monster!"
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 epic shaken attack roll
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0epic shaken attack roll --> 6,0[ 1d20=8 ]4,0{11}
<El-Cideon> But the captain's swing goes wide. (OOC: Nadia)
* Nadia_Chekova raises up her pilfered machine gun to try and aim at the zombie, carefully trying to avoid hitting Rena although she doesn't particularly care about the older woman or the man engaged in combat with it. "Merde!" she swears under her breath as she struggles with the unfamiliar weapon, lining up a shot as best she can before pulling the trigger!
<Nadia_Chekova> roll 1d20-1 i hate guns
<Rei-chan> 6,0Nadia_Chekova rolled :6,0 1d20-1 1,0i hate guns --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{12}
<El-Cideon> Nadia's inexperience with machineguns shows from her wild and inaccurate shot, which thuds into the far stone wall with a *spang*. Meanwhile, the guards each draw a gun and train it on the monster!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+5 range penalties suck
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+5 range penalties suck
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+5 1,0range penalties suck --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{15}
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+5 1,0range penalties suck --> 6,0[ 1d20=12 ]4,0{17}
<El-Cideon> roll 2d6
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 2d6 --> 6,0[ 2d6=8 ]4,0{8}
<El-Cideon> Another bullet slams into the monster, which grunts in irritation at the continued assault. By the doorway, Selene cries out, "This is what happens when you tread on god's domain. Bring it down!" Everyone nearby suddenly feels strangely suffused with motivation and warmth. (OOC: party is Blessed. +1 to attacks and saves against fear.)
<El-Cideon> OOC: yomim and Guard C are up.
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+5 guard C shootin'
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+5 1,0guard C shootin' --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{22}
<El-Cideon> roll 2d6
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 2d6 --> 6,0[ 2d6=10 ]4,0{10}
* Yomi quite readily follows her own advice, charging at the zombie to take it down for good!
<El-Cideon> OOC: fort.
<Yomi> roll 1d20+7
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{20}
<El-Cideon> OOC: carry on.
<Yomi> roll 1d20+14 (1pa)
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+14 1,0(1pa) --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{27}
<El-Cideon> OOC: hit.
<Yomi> roll 2d6+11
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 2d6+11 --> 6,0[ 2d6=8 ]4,0{19}
<El-Cideon> OOC hit again.
<El-Cideon> OOC: er, roll again if you're going to attack again. Spaced. >.<
<Yomi> Pulling her sword back out of the sickly-purple corpse, Yomi tries to behead it and end the demon threat on Zanzibar!
<Yomi> roll 1d20+13
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+13 --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{22}
<Yomi> roll 2d6+11
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 2d6+11 --> 6,0[ 2d6=7 ]4,0{18}
<El-Cideon> The monster is horribly maimed, head lolling unevenly as it clings on only by scraps of flesh and gristle, one arm severed and falling to the floor, flopping grotesquely about on its own. But it still moves with its vile unlife, and swings its remaining arm at the widow!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+7 -4 pa
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0-4 pa --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{24}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d6+10
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d6+10 --> 6,0[ 1d6=6 ]4,0{16}
<El-Cideon> The abomination caves in Ellen Willis's face with a sickening crunch of bone and her body falls to the floor, lifeless. (OOC: Erin)
* El-Cideon changes topic to 'Erin (24) > Rena (20), Guard Captain Poole (19, disarmed, shaken) > Nadia (18) > Guard A (12) > Guard B (11) > Selene (10) > Guard C = Yomi (6) > Abomination (4)'
<Erin> She tainted her own soul and that of her husband, so pity is out of the question. "That's.. that's what you get," mutters Erin, snapping off another shot at the hulking creature before it can start doing damage to the innocent and just.
<Erin> roll 1d20+4 shooting again
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 1d20+4 1,0shooting again --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{9}
<El-Cideon> Erin's shot flies wide, ricocheting off the stone slab upon which the dead man's body once rested. Rena slashes at the monster, trying to sever what's left of its head!
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+7
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=3 ]4,0{10}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+7 surge?!
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0surge?! --> 6,0[ 1d20=19 ]4,0{26}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d4+3 there we go
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d4+3 1,0there we go --> 6,0[ 1d4=1 ]4,0{4}
<El-Cideon> The abomination's head falls from its shoulders and collapses into a pile of festering muck, sizzling on the bare stone floor. Its body falls and soon follows suit, limbs splitting apart and melting away into ashes. The guard captain looks wildly around the room. "Where is she? Where's the bitch who did this?!" (OOC: Nadia's up, and these goons are still hostile towards you specifically.)
* El-Cideon changes topic to 'Erin (24) > Rena (20), Guard Captain Poole (19, disarmed, shaken) > Nadia (18) > Guard A (12) > Guard B (11) > Selene (10) > Guard C = Yomi (6)'
<Nadia_Chekova> "Oh, fuck you, monseiur!" Nadia yells, running full tilt up the stairs to flee.
<El-Cideon> "After her, go!" the captain roars, two of the guards jolting into action and racing after her. They seem less concerned with the other intruders and solely focused on killing the one who interrupted the ritual. "There's been enough killing, you fools!" Selene yells at the men as they tear by.
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 will save A
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0will save A --> 6,0[ 1d20=11 ]4,0{13}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 will save B
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+2 will save C
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0will save B --> 6,0[ 1d20=3 ]4,0{5}
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+2 1,0will save C --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{19}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 will save captain
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20 1,0will save captain --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{18}
* El-Cideon changes topic to 'Erin (24) > Rena (20), Guard Captain Poole (19, disarmed, shaken) > Nadia (18) > Guard A (12, Bane) > Guard B (11, Bane) > Selene (10) > Guard C = Yomi (6)'
<El-Cideon> OOC: Yomi and the third guard is up. First two are at the stairs right now, third's about to follow unless you do something to intercept him.
<Yomi> "Surrender at once, or I will cut you down where you stand," Yomi announces, pointing the tip of her blade at the unarmed man who nevertheless seems to be in charge.
<Yomi> roll 1d20+10 I hate you guys
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+10 1,0I hate you guys --> 6,0[ 1d20=19 ]4,0{29}
<El-Cideon> "I..." It's only a split-second's consideration before the guard captain complies, dropping his weapon and raising his hands with a tired sigh. "I guess it's over with, isn't it?" he says with a sad look at the widow's body. The guards seem confused by this suddent development but lower their weapons on seeing their captain surrendering at swordpoint.
<El-Cideon> OOC: free act, sure.
<Nadia_Chekova> Even if the guards aren't chasing her, Nadia still isn't going to press her luck by going back. Instead she starts looking for valuables to pilfer while everyone's distracted before she gets out of here.
<Erin> "I do not know if amends are even possible for evil of this magnitude," murmurs Erin, stepping out of cover and taking a glance around the room. "One would need to spend their entire life repenting..."
<El-Cideon> Well, the piles of goo around the mansion that used to be people seem to have caused no harm to the various pieces of jewelry the dead guests were wearing. If you want to pick through those, Nadia, go ahead!
<Yomi> "It is possible to try, but consorting with demons only ever brings about grief. And such a crime can never truly be atoned for," Yomi says to that. Noticing that the guards still hold onto their weapons, she tells Rena, "Go and take their guns. If they resist, their lives are forfeit."
* Nadia_Chekova really doesn't want to get that stuff on her hands and gives it a wide berth, instead looking for things that were to have been auctioned or perhaps a cash or jewellery box with the good stuff in it.
<El-Cideon> There's an old wooden cabinet at the back of the room, behind the stone slab. It stands out amidst the random debris and crates that litter other corners of the basement room.
<Erin> "Where is the Pseudomonarcha?" asks Erin, already heading over to the cabinet to open it up and inspect it.
<El-Cideon> Rena does as instructed. None of the guards seem particularly eager to resist at this point. It may be Yomi holding their captain, it may be the fact that Rena is covered in blood. Maybe both.
<El-Cideon> "The book?" the captain says. He points to the cabinet. "In there, with some other occult nonsense we found while looking. Take what you want. May it serve you as well at it did us," he spits. (more)
<Yomi> "What did the germans seek here?" Yomi asks the captain. "Did they find what they were looking for?"
<El-Cideon> Erin finds an aged leatherbound book on a shelf inside the cabinet. The contents are in latin, but since she can read that it's easy to recognize just from the title page that this is what she asked about. Flipping through the weighty tome shows incantations, arcane charts, and sketches of demonic entities. In a dusty corner of the cabinet two viles of sluggish blue liquid and a pile of scrolls written in a spidery hand can also be found.
<El-Cideon> spidery hand can also be found.
* Erin isn't carrying a bag big enough to hold it all, but that doesn't matter since she doesn't plan on keeping the bulkiest item. "Do any of you gentlemen have a lighter?"
<El-Cideon> "Germans?" the captain says. "The hell if I know what they were here for. I didn't organize the guest list. Her ladyship just said they were trouble and we should kill 'em when things started before they caused problems. Hah. Worried about the wrong goons, I guess."
<El-Cideon> Selene steps forward at Erin's words. "Oh, let me," she says, producing a matchbook.
* Erin first activates her magical senses to ensure that the book is safe to destroy!
* Erin hands the demonic tome over to Selene, but is able to slip the vials into her purse and holds onto the scrolls at the side.
<Yomi> Having told the widow that, Yomi finds a certain irony in the troubles the germans went through. "I don't think you quite understand your situation," she tells the captain. "Do you not regret dealing with demons one bit? Have you truly believed one would hold his bargain with you? Are you just that naive?"
<El-Cideon> Selene sets the book on the floor, strikes a match then holds it to the book until the pages are alight. Then she steps back and watches with some relish as it burns.
<El-Cideon> "We didn't make any kind of deal, we just called it for information," the captain insists. "It told us how to bring the commander back, that's all," he says, gesturing weakly at the stone slab.
<Erin> "It pains me to think that people so obviously aware of the afterlife would think that a temporary escape, bathed in blood, could possible make up for an eternity of hellish torment. I suppose it is a choice I may never understand." She walks over to the slab at his remark, and takes a look.
<El-Cideon> The slab is inscribed with elegant latin etchings but seems otherwise unremarkable. Even if it was useful as part of the ritual, it seems like nothing of import on its own.
<Yomi> "I don't think it was your commander that was coming back from the ritual. The body, the shell, perhaps. But the spirit?" Yomi shakes her head. "You were tricked by this demon."
<El-Cideon> Upstairs, Nadia finds only a few scattered guests remaining on the grounds, those still around looking dazed aond shellshocked. Doors and windows are open now, testifying to recent escapes. There are plenty of objects d'art that she could conceivably sell if she wished to do so, though walking out with paintaings and vases would be awkward.
* Nadia_Chekova is more interested in things with a better value to size ratio, but trusts her keen eye to find the most valuable things to pilfer before she flees, even if she has to unlock a few safes to do it.
<El-Cideon> "No! It was working! Until that bitch interrupted it. The chant was to guide his soul back; everything only went wrong when Ellen was stopped. We would've done it!"
<Nadia_Chekova> That bitch is currently grabbing their severence packages!
<Yomi> "You're not the first to try this. Forgive me if I'm doubtful this case would have been any different."
<Erin> "You would have ripped a soul from enlightenment. Had you been successful, the body would have been cursed- and forever screaming, as it would be unable to stand being trapped once more in this cage of flesh!"
<El-Cideon> On the second floor, Nadia finds an ornate bedroom with a bullethole in the door. Poking around inside for a moment turns up a nightstand next to the canopy bed that contains an admirable array of gold jewerly laced with precious stones.
<El-Cideon> "So you say," the guard captain grumbles. "Who are you people, anyway? What do you know about anything? You just walk in here and destroy everything we worked for. Now all those people died for nothing."
<Nadia_Chekova> Yoink! Grabbing that, Nadia makes her escape. She'll hide out on the road leading away from the mansion and regroup with her pals then.
* Yomi rolls her eyes. "As a professional demon slayer, allow me to express my doubt that these unfortunate souls would have felt better in their afterlife knowing their deaths brought back a demon-possessed corpse."
<El-Cideon> "But it wasn't supposed to be possessed by a demon," the captain mutters. "Are you sure we shouldn't kill these people, Yomi?" Rena asks, walking up next to her. She's carrying an armful of guns and batons liberated from the guards.
<Yomi> "Not as sure as I was earlier this evening," Yomi mutters.
<El-Cideon> Selene heads towards the exit, seeming satisfied now that the book is ashes. "Frankly, I don't care what you do with them. I'll be upstairs."
<Yomi> "Good advice. Let's go as well, Rena."
* Erin shudders. "People are supposed to stay dead when they are killed. The second you started this, the natural laws vanished. Think about it- oh, wait a moment, Yomi. I want to try something whilst I am here." She taps the bracelet on ther wrist.
<El-Cideon> The bracelet is inactive here. Nothing happens.
* Erin shrugs to herself a moment later, and promptly starts leaving the room as well.
<Yomi> "I don't suppose there's a chance your skills extend into the medical profession?" Yomi asks Selene, catching up to her. "I've never actually been shot before. Shot at, certainly. But not, well, not hit."
<El-Cideon> The mansion is quiet by the time you return to the main floor. Things are mostly as you left them, the body of a guard and a nazi soldier lying in the storage room. Rena closes the door to the basement once you're all out, leaving the guards downstairs. "I'm afraid not," Selene says. "This isn't the kind of situation an acting career prepares one for."
<Erin> "So what is your second career?"
<El-Cideon> "I'm sorry?" Selene says innocently.
<Yomi> "The one that allows an actress to strike at a specter with a whip," Yomi supplies helpfully.
<El-Cideon> "You know, I didn't even know if that would work. But I knew there was something special about this little darling," she says, coiling the whip around her hands, "and I couldn't just stand there and watch. I had to try something."
<Yomi> "Is it a heirloom, or something of the sort?"
* Erin steps gingerly around the bodies, conversation soon dying on her lips. She quickens her pace, until she's all but running to get out of this house.
<El-Cideon> "No, not really. It was always a favorite, though. One day it was merely...different. It was a surprise for both of us, let me tell you. Shall we get out of here? The guests seem to have fled and I have no doubt the police will be arriving once word gets out. I've no desire to speak with them."
<Yomi> "Yes, trust the authorities to arrive once the danger has passed," Yomi agrees in derision. She glances at the blood-splattered Rena sideways. "We should probably clean up a bit before we go too far, however."
<El-Cideon> "Yeees, I think that would be for the best," Selene says. "Between you and me," she says quietly, "your friend is rather...bloodthirsty, isn't she? Covered in gore and bothered not a hair. Its' rather ghoulish."
<El-Cideon> Outside, the streets are quiet. Down the road a ways you find Nadia waiting.
<Yomi> "You can blame the german soldiers for that, I think," Yomi responds with a frown.
* Nadia_Chekova greets her friends! "Did you find the book?"
<Yomi> "It's ashes. Did you come across any of the germans?"
<El-Cideon> "Oh yes? I wonder whatever happened to them. The officer was a boorish sort, but I wouldn't wish the deaths we saw in there on most people."
<Erin> "Yes, and it was burned, as it should be," replies Erin, glancing back at the mansion. "I will think about this every day for the rest of my life."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Not on my way out," Nadia shakes her head. "I saw them running away from one of the ghosts... God, ghosts! Before I opened the way to the basement."
<Yomi> "Then we still don't know what they wanted here. But if there's only one way to return, we might be able to find them before they make their escape," Yomi muses. Horrible sites of demons feasting on humans, hungry ghosts... she could say it's all a terrible shock, but that would be lying.
<Nadia_Chekova> "I'd rather get cleaned up and rest, but I suppose you're right," Nadia concedes with a heartfelt sigh. "Lets go to the harbour and check the ferry timetable, then?"
<Erin> "I can check, a moment," mutters Erin. "Dammit, if I'd foreseen today, somehow, there might have been *something*..." She waves her hands in exasperation, casting another spell that will allow her to locate the telltale sign of German soldiery!
<Yomi> For her part, Yomi keeps an eye out for ready sources of water that could help Rena with her immediate problem.
<Erin> "It looks like two of them escaped to the city," notes Erin, after a moment of concentration. "Out through the back door."
<Erin> "It can't have been that long ago, and they were clearly injured, so if we start now we might be able to catch up."
<Yomi> "We won't get a better chance at stopping them and finding out more about their plan," Yomi states. "Which way do we go?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "Alright, lead the way?" Nadia agrees, her jewels and tommy gun nestled securely in a stolen handbag from her escape from the manor.
<Erin> "That way!" replies Erin, putting her gun away and starting to head off in the same direction as the Germans!
<El-Cideon> There's likely to be a fountain somewhere around the streets. This is an upscale neighborhood and it's only a matter of time before you find some manner of public monument...Ah, here's one, a ten-foot or so pool with grecian statuary in the center. The actual running water is turned off right now, though there is some sitting in the fountain.
<Yomi> "No time like the present," Yomi tells Rena, directing her towards the fountain. "It's bad if we look all bloody."
<Nadia_Chekova> Nadia's shoes are a little messed up but she's mostly walked off the worst of it and it's dark so she doesn't care about properly cleaning them until they reach the hotel.
<El-Cideon> The direction indicated by Erin's familiar headed straight downhill. Assuming they didn't deviate from that course, they're heading straight towards the waterfront.
<Erin> Then that is where Erin will go as well. It's only been a few minutes, and she wouldn't doubt that the ferries there are getting rather crowded (if there even are any at this time.)
<El-Cideon> Rena drops the pile of weapons with a clatter. "Yes, it is not very comfortable to walk around this way," she says, stepping into the fountain and kneeling down enough to immerse herself in the water before coming up again and scrubbing hard at her face.
<El-Cideon> The streets are mostly empty at this hour and there's fortunately no one around to witness this display. It also makes it easier to find your quarry. Erin's familiar soon reports two figures in uniform stumbling towards the docks, perhaps 500 feet ahead of you.
<El-Cideon> For her part, Selene only laughs at Rena's lack of self-consciousness. The German woman soon steps back out of the fountain dripping wet, retrieves the guns and continues walking along with the rest of you.
<Erin> "That way, we can catch them now if we run for a little bit. Yomi?" indicates Erin, pointing down the street. "They won't put up much of a fight, either."
<Yomi> "Works," Yomi says curtly in approval, asking Erin, "How far are they?"
<Erin> "A couple of hundred meters or so."
<Yomi> This is all Yomi needs to break out into a run!
* Nadia_Chekova starts jogging as well, trusting Yomi to handle the violence without any help.
* Erin is not quite unfit when it comes to sprinting, and sets off after Yomi!
<El-Cideon> "Someone explain to me why exactly we are all chasing German soldiers after a night like this?" Selene huffs as she runs along beside you. She sounds like she just wants to see what's going to happen.
<Yomi> "They're trying to do what happened here, except on a larger scale. We think."
<Nadia_Chekova> "They work for other Germans who stole from us," Nadia gives the cliff notes version.
<El-Cideon> "Ah," she replies. It's the verbal equivalent of a shrug. In any event, you soon track down the two soldiers, who are at the end of a wharf and busily untying from the pier a small, motorized fishing boat. No one else is around at this time of night and no other boats are out on the water. You can safely peer out at them from around the side of a building, but approaching the last 120 feet or so would be across open space and over a loudly echoing wood dock.
<El-Cideon> open space and over a loudly echoing wooden dock.
* Yomi puts on a burst of speed, charging down the deck and leaping the rest of the way to land on the boat along with them!
* Nadia_Chekova continues jogging along, confident the sprinting Yomi will have them subdued before she even gets close.
<El-Cideon> Running footfalls echo loudly in the night as you race down the pier, alerting the two men instantly. You're upon them before they have a chance to start the boat, but they're ready to resist with guns drawn by the time you're in range to do anything to subdue them. (more)
<El-Cideon> The officer looks badly withered from whatever happened to him in the mansion. His skin is an angry red and looks ready to split at the seams and he has a dessicated look to his face, but he nonetheless seems determined not to be taken down. The medic, for his part, is limping badly and shows several hastily-patched wounds.
<El-Cideon> OOC: may as well roll init, though I figure this won't take long.
<Yomi> roll 1d20+1
<Rei-chan> 6,0Yomi rolled :6,0 1d20+1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=1 ]4,0{2}
<Nadia_Chekova> roll 1d20+7
<Rei-chan> 6,0Nadia_Chekova rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=12 ]4,0{19}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 Sergeant Kurtzmann
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20 1,0Sergeant Kurtzmann --> 6,0[ 1d20=3 ]4,0{3}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6 Corporal Schwartz
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0Corporal Schwartz --> 6,0[ 1d20=6 ]4,0{12}
<El-Cideon> roll 1d20 Rena
<Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20 1,0Rena --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{18}
<Erin> roll 1d20+7
<Rei-chan> 6,0Erin rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{12}
<El-Cideon> OOC: go ahead, Nadia. You're all pretty much right next to them, so.
<Yomi> "Resistance is futile," Yomi declares, gulping in air to regain her breath. "The only difference is how many limbs you have remaining by the time we've prevailed."
* Nadia_Chekova pulls out the tommy gun and aims it at the Germans! She can't use it, but it looks pretty impressive. "Halt!" she barks. "Lower your weapons and you won't get hurt!"
<El-Cideon> OOC: doing anything, or just seeing if they respond to talking?
<Nadia_Chekova> OOC: giving them a chance, yeah
<El-Cideon> The medic, clearly on death's door, flashes his superior a look that clearly implies a desire to surrender. Faced with this and overwhelming odds, the officer grimaces and tosses down his gun. "Very well. There seems little point in making a stand against someone who could survive that massacre untouched." (more)
<El-Cideon> He looks from one of you to another; he seems surprised to spot Rena at your side.
<Yomi> "A smart choice," Yomi says, having recovered by now. "Let's have a little chat, then."
<El-Cideon> "Provided we can sit? I think it clear that we are little threat given the circumstances, and my subordinate is in very poor condition."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Good," Nadia lowers the barrel of her weapon - it's hard to hold steady anyway. "We know who you work for, and you can start by telling us what you were here for."
<Erin> "By all means. You can continue with what you were intending to do with it."
<El-Cideon> The medic gratefully drops down to a sitting postion on one of the wooden piles supporting the pier, holding his head in his hands. "We were sent to acquire an urn at the auction. There was supposed to be little difficulty in acquiring it." He laughs bitterly.
<El-Cideon> OOC: officer said that line, I should note.
<Nadia_Chekova> "The one with the ashes of the boddhivista?" Nadia asks, recalling it being mentioned. They all got distracted by the demon book, though...
<Yomi> Yes, no one expects the demons, Yomi thinks to herself. "Why do you need the urn?" she voices.
<El-Cideon> "Some eastern saint, yes. All I know is that it's needed for Ivo's project. The why of it I could not tell you. 'Why?' is a question better left unasked when dealing with him, I have found."
<Yomi> "What did he do with what he stole of us and from others?" Yomi asks, which is perhaps the most important question she could think of.
<El-Cideon> "They are sent back to Germany for 'distribution.' Would that I could go back with them," he says bitterly. "This leg of the journey was supposed to be *easy*. I could not tell you where they are distributed to, nor would I care to if I knew."
<Yomi> "So who would know, aside from Ivo?"
<El-Cideon> The officer's expression is stony, but the medic speaks up in a pained voice. "You'll let us go back to the mainland if we cooperate? No tricks?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "Help us and you're free to go," Nadia is willing to make that concession.
<Erin> "We don't want to hurt you," replies Erin, genially. "We just want our possessions back."
* Yomi doesn't really care about these germans either way. "Well?"
<El-Cideon> He nods and swallows, gasping a little. He gives his superior a sheepish look before continuing. "Ivo knows everything. The project's his idea and he works with the Fuhrer's approval. He's always surrounded by soldiers, though." A bitter laugh. "He makes sure we protect *him*. If you can't reach him...I can't imagine the colonel doesn't know as much. He has to direct troops all over the continent." (more)
<El-Cideon> "The colonel's a good man; he watches out for us, unlike that swine of a scientist...him or Lieutenant Scheer, they're both in meetings with Ivo and his assistants. You don't want to cross her, though," he says, admiration and awe mixed in his voice. "Anything that gets between her and her duty dies. She's like a valkyrie right out of Wagner."
<Yomi> "Except with a large gun?"
<Erin> "Where do you think we could hope to find the good Colonel?"
<El-Cideon> He nods very firmly.
<El-Cideon> "The ship was supposed to go to Egypt after Jerusalem, and Ivo had some business at a mountain on the mainland after that. We're all supposed to meet up in Cape Town to regroup; that's the end of this leg of the trip."
<Yomi> "What about all the visits you make, like the one at the Hagia Sophia?" Yomi asks the germans. "What purpose do they serve? Where else have your troops been?"
<Erin> "Did you have any more artifacts you were instructed to acquire?" asks Erin, pursing her lips. "By any means necessary, I would assume," she adds, a thin edge to her voice resembling an angry schoolteacher.
<El-Cideon> "Sometimes Ivo and that brit Elgin go off on their own. I don't know what it has to do with the rest of the project. Maybe nothing. It's always those two--Ivo's other assistant, that Russian woman, she never goes. Ivo demands soldiers when he wants them and the colonel has no choice but to give them." (more)
<El-Cideon> "We've been all over by now--Spain, Naples, Greece...Sergeant Kurtzmann and I split off after that to go retrieve something from that arab. It was an exciting trip before tonight"
<Yomi> "And none of those who manage to return ever talk about what they'd seen?"
<Erin> "It sounds like it might be fair to say that the colonel is not particularly friendly with Ivo," murmurs Erin, speculatively.
<El-Cideon> He sighs. "They talk. They're not supposed to, but I guess some of the things they see on those trips, you just can't not mention to your friends. They're always going to these caves to find some ruins. Ivo and Elgin do some mystical mumbo jumbo when they find them...no one's sure what that's about. And sometimes there are, well *creatures* down there. Most of the men don't like talking about those."
<El-Cideon> He nods to Erin. "None of the men like Ivo. He's not one of us and he doesn't care about us."
<Yomi> "If you've been traveling for a while, now, where is what you have retrieved until this point?"
<El-Cideon> Again he looks over at his superior, who looks contemptuous at this babbling but apparently too tired to do anything about it. "Uh, well, we still have the snake idol right now...but we meet up with the ship sometimes and drops things off there. That's what we're supposed to do in Cape Town once the rest of the division arrives. Which would probably be a few days...we were looking forward to a chance to relax."
<Yomi> "You'll get that chance, although we'll keep the idol for ourselves," Yomi says. "So what's the nature of your relationship with that arab man? Who is he to Ivo and Elgin?"
<El-Cideon> "He, uh...he's an informant, I think. He mostly just gives us information on local figures, what other nations are doing in the area."
* Yomi isn't interested in politics, and so her next question has nothing to do with gossip on local figures or various nations. "What about Rena? How could you just give her to him, as if she were some sort of object?"
<El-Cideon> "I don't know! I didn't know what she was doing there; we barely even saw her. She could've been there of her own choice for all I knew." The officer cuts in here: "Rena was there before my unit arrived at the estate. We had nothing to do with her presence."
<El-Cideon> He adds, "If she was there against her will, then I have to say that I don't mind at all seeing her away from the house. Hassan did not mention her absence to us afterwards; I wonder if he noticed or was embarassed to say."
* Yomi is briefly confused, before she addresses Rena, "Who was it that brought you to that mansion?"
<El-Cideon> "Just more soldiers. Some of them used to assist at Ivo's lab, but I think they were no one of importance. I did not see these two men until they visited the estate recently, several days before you freed me. Sergeant Kurtzmann was much fatter then, however."
* Yomi coughs. "Ah, right. Thank you, Rena."
* Nadia_Chekova chokes back a laugh at Rena's appraisal, otherwise happy to let others handle the interrogation.
<El-Cideon> Rena nods, quietly dripping water on the docks.
<Yomi> "So now we arrive at the difficult part, I suppose," Yomi muses out loud, composing herself. "Do you actually want to see Ivo succeed? If he treats his closest allies with such disregard for their lives, he is truly a danger to all and must be stopped."
<El-Cideon> "What we feel about him is irrelevant," Sergeant Kurtzmann says. "Were it possible to see him personally fail and the mission succeed, I would be glad to arrange that. This is not possible, however, as he is the architect of the project. Betraying him is effectively betraying Germany. If you seek treansous allies, I'm afraid you must look elsewhere."
<Yomi> "How do you even know that what he does is the mission he was assigned to complete?" Yomi counters. "You've said he keeps a tight reign on information, and that must include what gets sent higher up."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Go join the real army and stop with this occult nonsense, then," Nadia snaps. "Trench foot would be better for your health than what happened today, anyway."
<El-Cideon> He sighs. "I am certain that what we've already disclosed is sufficient cause for a court martial. Do not press for a more active betrayal; you will not achieve one. Is there more, or can we be on our way as promised?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "I'm done," Nadia shrugs, wanting to go clean herself up and lie down.
* Yomi holds out her hand. "The idol?"
* Yomi pauses slightly. "And just a couple more things from me. Were you the one who hired local goons to try and assault us?"
<El-Cideon> With a sour expression, Sergeant Kurtzmann digs in a pack at his side and tosses over a stone object. It's a green stone carving of a snake twining about a column, the head baring fangs and radiating ill intent. It's an ugly object; not unskilled in its creation, but willfully unpleasant. (more)
<El-Cideon> "I hired them to watch for you. If they assaulted you, it was on their own ill-advised initiative."
<Yomi> "They were really bad at it," Yomi agrees, forcing herself to forget about the black eye she got from a lucky hit. "The last thing has to do with Cape Town. We have things to settle with Elgin, and knowing just when and where he would be can't possibly hurt."
<El-Cideon> "At this time he should still be north of here. You have days still before they approach the cape."
<Yomi> It's probably foolish, but Yomi decides she needs nothing further from the two german soldiers. She nods at them, indicating that she lacks further reason to keep them here.
<El-Cideon> The Germans watch you carefully as you leave, seemingly just in case you go back on your word, but neither of them take any action aside from stepping onto the boat and getting it ready.
<Yomi> "So is this creepy thing magical?" Yomi asks Erin, observing the snake idol herself.
* Erin takes a look to find out just that.
<El-Cideon> You find Selene waiting back at the shore, apparently having watched from a safe distance rather than participate.
<Erin> "No, it's not. I've no idea what it's importance could be..."
<Yomi> "Weird. Well, who cares? Ivo wants it, and now he can't get it."