Rana ignores Malachi’s shouts, but Marion steps in and is able to stop the girl before she can attack the innkeeper. It matters little, because Silas takes the opportunity to end the discussion surrounding his fate once and for all. Malachi registers some surprise at the goliath’s sudden action, but thinks little of it. It was always going to come down to the innkeeper or them, and Malachi harbored no regrets that the innkeeper paid for his mistakes. You have to be careful what you hunt and catch. Malachi has learned that lesson himself the hard way. Still he had hoped to get more from him before he died “A small pity. I had hoped he would have been of more use before he died. He could have shared more about what lies ahead and how, or why, he did all of this. I guess we shall have to find out more on our own now.”
Malachi can’t make any sense of the letter, so he slides it into his jacket for a closer look later. Perhaps when there is more time to focus his mind he will be able to comprehend whatever language it is written in.
His attention is quickly drawn back to the innkeeper’s body and Silas. Something is off….but he is not sure what. Still, he is too close for comfort, and he slides past Samir back toward the tunnel they came from, trying to put as much space between him and the innkeeper’s body as he can. As he moves, he reaches inside his jacket, grabbing his necklace, and with a whispered word, wraps himself in protective magic.
The thoughts slotting into place abruptly like someone completing a jigsaw puzzle with a hammer, Vilus shouts out in both pain and surprise. "BODY, DEAD, RUNE, EXPLOSIVE, EVERYONE OUT, NOW!"he then attempts to throw Rasmus down the one corridor with the approaching rat and pick up both Rana and Kairem by the scruffs of their rags before darting out down the tunnel they came from, the one he knows is safe.
A jolt of adrenaline shoots through Joren as the import of Silas' words break through his moral haze. As he is already standing by the edge of the passageway where Silas threw Razmus' corpse, he lets his backpack slide to the ground and picks up the body with a free action and dashes 30' further down the passageway towards the rat (due to 2 levels of exhaustion, movement 15' x 2). His echo trails 30' behind him so as not to disappear at the end of this first turn. So at this point, Joren should be 30' down the passageway the the rat is approaching from, carrying the corpse, and his echo should still be at the start of the passageway at the edge of the room. ((If he could use his bonus action to move even further, he would, keeping the echo 30' behind, but I don't think he can)).
Saying to the others he heads off: "Moving my backpack out of harm's way - please could one of you?"
For his second turn, Joren sends his echo 30' back the other way, i.e. 30' back into the room and a bit to the side to avoid the direct blast path, 60' behind Joren.
Action and move: dash 30', but only 15' further carrying the body, so now 75' ahead of his echo, 45' away from the room down the passageway, taking an attack of opportunity from the rat if needed. Free action to drop the Razmus' corpse. Then Joren uses the remaining 15' feet of his dash movement and his bonus action to switch places with his echo, back to the room, 30' back past the door and a bit to the side. Echo disappears at the end of this second turn.
So intended end result: Razmus' body 45' down the far tunnel with the rat. Joren back in the room, 30' from the door, a bit to the side (75' away from Razmus), chin dragging with strain. Echo gone.
Ashley watches the dizzying display of getting Razmus's body as far away possible. She has a brief thought, doesn't look like Joren needs to practice his echo anymore, that was impressive, and then kicks herself into action.
Using the key, she unlocks two cages of those that are near her and appear to be the most coherent, yells, "Get yourselves out of here!"and with her interact with object, tosses the key to Marion, and uses the rest of her 30' to go down the passage they know.
As Joren runs past the rat with Razmus, he can see it continuing to plod along, taking notice of his presence but not reacting to it. This rat is missing one of its ears, with the wound appearing to have scarred over long ago.
Joren is able to make out that the rat has a leather loop in its mouth with an envelope hanging from it. A messenger then, and one that seems to have a mind only for carrying out its delivery.
The two prisoners that Ashley attempts to free, two humans, lower their hands from their faces and turn around. They seem just present enough to recognize the danger, and start shifting to get out of their cages, but their movements are too slow. Kairem, seeing that they might not make it as Vilus starts pulling the dwarf away, tries to wrestle free from Vilus's hold. (Strength contest: 14 )
Kairem tries in vain to get free from the large goliath's firm grip. Despite the augmented muscles, their imprisonment has left them weakened. "No!" Kairem cries out, understanding the situation. "They won't make it!"
Chaos. It has all turned to chaos. People running, yelling out. The runic trap prepared to explode. Joren rushing away with the body. The prisoners in their cages, perhaps not even fully cognizant of what is happening, their minds too far gone from the torture they have endured. Samir freezes, staring open mouthed for a moment, trying to put things in order, to work through events, to disentangle the actions and reactions beginning witth Razmus murder. He blinks. And then he too, is on the move. Tools are in his hand as he moves to the cages, going from one to another in an attempt to free those trapped inside as quickly as he can. He doesn't know what exactly will happen when the trap explodes, when the magic detonates. But he knows that he cannot leave people to die in cages if he can help it.
Two cages. He can get to two of them, before he feels that he is out of time. With a frustrated yell he takes off running down the corridor himself, slowed by his exhaustion and struggling.
Samir tries raking the first lock, to no avail. Knowing that time is of the essence, he moves on to the one below it and takes it as well, as he pushes delicately on the tension wrench. All 5 puns click into place and the lock clicks open. He pulls it off and tosses it to the side before he makes his retreat.
The shock of Silas' cold and brutal act jars Marion's sensibilities, but before she can rebuke him for his callous attitude to life the situation quick escalates into chaos. At first she is bewildered, but upon realising what is happening Marion immediately looks to all those trapped in the cages. I cannot leave them behind...but there are so many.
Seeing Joren valorously struggle out the room with the deceased innkeeper brings a sense of relief, but it is short lived. The miraculous sight of him once more swapping place with his echo brings to her the realisation that he did not get as far as would be comfortable. Turning to the cages she sees Ashley and Samir as they finish freeing some more of the victims from the cages and catches the key as the Genasi throws it to her. Without hesitating she goes to the cages closest to the passageway that the danger threatens them from and quickly opens two of them as fast as she can.
As the second cage opens she turns to look at another of the trapped victims, her instincts desperately telling her not to leave without them, all the while her anger and frustration is building. How can I leave them...these poor souls...that fool and his haste to shed unnecessary blood! There will be a reckoning for this moment.Hesitating for a moment she is caught between the choices, and she almost moves to try and free another.
But this is not the first time she has faced such difficult choices, though it is the first she stands without the shining example of the Knightly brotherhood of the order to help guide her in the heat of the moment. She knows she must go, hard as it may be, but to stay almost certainly means dooming herself in a futile attempt to help, no mater how noble it may seem.
Her face taut with anger, tears welling in her eyes at the decision she has already made and the situation that led to it, she throws the key to the closest trapped victim and moves out the room, making sure to usher those she was able to release away from danger as she goes.
As they leave the room she raises her shield, and the emblem of the rose begins to glow a gentle blue. As the energy drifts towards the person closest to the danger it settles over them, shrouding them in it's power as she says between gritted teeth: "I am sorry...May the Lady's grace rest upon thee..."
As Marian is the last one to reach the “safe” tunnel, Ashley embraces her as soon as she sees her, tears in her eyes. She attempts to keep her body as cool as she can thinking cold thoughts knowing it is uncomfortable for Marion, but not letting go until the blast.
With all of the companions making their way to the far corridor, they hear a scrape of metal on the stone floor. Its cause, Joren sees, is the prisoner Marion threw the key to. Seeming roused by the action, and lucid enough to react to the situation, he runs for the table instead of for safety. He flips it up on its end, bracing against it and turning it into a bit of cover for the cells behind him. Then there is a moment of silence that seems to drag out. Joren sees the rat, undisturbed, arriving at the entrance to the lab.
Then the stone around them trembles and a thunderous roar approaches from the tunnel where Razmus's body lies.
The corridor is filled with an inferno that charges down its length, erupting into the room. The rat (Rat dex: 12) is flung against the far wall, broken and charred, narrowly missing Joren. Whatever message it carried smokes at the edges, but seems to be relatively unscathed.
The free prisoner and his makeshift barrier get caught up in the edge of the explosion. The heat spread through the metal table easily, and wherever the man's skin is braced against it, blisters form (Prisoner con: 20), but he holds firm, screaming through the pain (12 fire damage). The fire and heat spreads out to the sides before dissipating, leaving the caged prisoners who were within reach of the blast unharmed if a little sweaty. The long desk and its contents catch like dry kindle
As the initial blast fades, the ground continues to rumble. A low crashing can be heard from the far passage as wooden supports and stone crack and crumble from the force of the blast. The walls and ceiling of the far tunnel cave in, and swirls of dust and dirt puff out into the main chamber. Then everything is still and silent for a moment, save the pained heavy breathing of the ex-prisoner trying to unstick himself from the metal table, and the crackling of the fire from the desk.
Then Vilus notices the heat and the smoke starting to rise off of his tome.
Malachi backs away from the room, farther down the tunnel, waving and gesturing for his companions, and the captives they managed to free, to join him in the tunnel. “This way, quickly!” There are so many, they will never be able to free them all. he thinks sadly.
He hopes that Joren was able to get the innkeeper’s body far enough down the tunnel to protect those still in the room. He also wonders just what lies down that tunnel.
He flinches as the explosion rocks the rooms and the wave is felt in the tunnel, then moves forward to see if those left in the room are okay, making it just to the entryway of the room before his wobbly legs grow weak. If he can see the letter next to Joren, he will try to pick it up to determine what message or markings are on it. Perception: 18.
( Perception: 18) Malachi picks up the singed letter and brushes off some of the soot. Opening it up, he sees that it is in more of that strange alphabet. He is quite certain that he has never seen the markings before today, so for them to use them not just as their primary means of communication with one another, but also for what looked to be personal note-taking on the desk earlier means whoever these people are, they must either belong to some elaborate secret society, or be from far, far away.
Though Malachi can't decipher the words with his naked eyes without some reference or dictionary, He can tell rushed, frustrated writing when he sees it. The ink blots on the darkest letters from jabbing a freshly inked quill too harshly at the page, the angle of the characters and the way each one trails into the next, but without any of the wavering lines that might indicate fear... based on the other writing he saw at the desk, this is not a routine communication. It was likely written hastily in response to an urgent inconvenience.
Once the blast goes off and their group is still whole, Ashley breathes out the breath she didn't know she was holding and collapses to the ground as exhaustion takes her. She looks up to her friends, as tears flow freely, yet silently, down her face. She gives them a wan smile and says nothing. Unsure of what to do next other than breathe.
She doesn't look into the lab, afraid a bit of what has happened to the rest of the prisoners, just trying to stay within the moment that her friends are safe and whole. Doing her best not to completely lose her mind. She thinks briefly, how did they get to this point? From starting the shield pass, what 3 days ago was it? And now here...her mind drifts off
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Accepting Ashley's embrace Marion looks over Ashley's shoulder at Silas, her expression written with anger and fury. She is about to speak up when suddenly the explosion goes off behind them.
Flinching at the sound of screaming, she squeezes Ashley harder than she would mean to as the air thrown by the blast rushes past them, before immediately letting go of her friend and turning to rush back into the room. Coughing as she wades through the cloud of dust and smoke that stings her already watering eyes, she makes towards the cages and prisoners she was not able to free and searching them out and following the sounds of pained breathing.
When she comes to the overturned table to find the man she gave the key to badly burned there is not a moment of hesitation as she reaches out her hand to aid him, her face full of guilt and shame. As she helps separate him from the table and catches sight of the horrific burns he has suffered she unstraps her shield from her arm before removing her left gauntlet, dropping them to the floor, before placing her bare hand upon his back. Closing her eyes, she channels positive energy into the man, trying to mend his flesh and soothe his pain as she entreats her goddess aloud: "I beseech Thee, my Queen. Let Thy grace flow from this vessel and into this man. For he hath remained stalwart and stood as iron before corruption of Thy great gift this day. Grant unto him Thy blessing and make his flesh anew."
Upon finishing her prayer, as the power of her god begins to knit his wounds, she opens her eyes and begins to tear strips from the white tabard she wears, before wrapping the torn cloth around his wounds as a make shift bandage.
The man's forearm wrappings seem to have protected against at least some of the blistering, and Marion finds the worst of his wounds are along his back and triceps wherever his rags hadn't covered him. His skin sticks to the table in places, but Marion helps minimize the peeling as she pulls him loose. The magic concentrates in his shoulders and back, allowing Marion to focus her efforts on wrapping his upper arms. His breathing eases, and he opens his mouth as if to speak, but no sound comes out. He looks at Marion with beleaguered appreciation though and holds the key back up.
Looking around, Marion can see that the other prisoners do not appear to be seriously injured, and most seem to have been shocked out of their stupor. They look around wide-eyed and panicky
As Silas's pocket starts smouldering his mind snaps to the book, dropping both Rana and Kairem to the floor he scrambles to take the book out, partially ripping his cloak off as he does.. "back! Get back!" He yells as he now, with smouldering book in hand, darts back into the chamber and through to the other tunnel leading to the cave in, he runs as far in as he can (giving around a 30ft distance from the foot of the loose rubble that blocks the tunnel) and throws the book as hard as he can toward it.
If the book has not exploded by that point he will grab the still searing table, using his ripped cloak as much as possible to protect his hands as he moves the table into the tunnel to block the presumed explosive wave. He then stands there hands burning, blocking as much of the tunnel as possible with the table, propping it up with his body, he winces from pain, but also expectantly for what is to come.
Ashley is still as a stone on the floor of the passageway as Silas runs past her yelling and apparently holding a smoldering book. Hmm.. books don't even do that in the Smoldering Sands... and she continues to watch the scene unfold before her in the laboratory. Expressionless, waiting for the next shock wave to hit.
Samir, eyes watering, begins to move back towards the lab. His footsteps are slow and tentative, as he knows not what he will find inside. And he isn't certain that he wants to know. He stops, however, seeing Ashley. He kneels beside her, cautiously placing a hand on her shoulder, his expression worried and his voice soft.
"Ashley? Are you ok? Did you get hurt?"
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Rana ignores Malachi’s shouts, but Marion steps in and is able to stop the girl before she can attack the innkeeper. It matters little, because Silas takes the opportunity to end the discussion surrounding his fate once and for all. Malachi registers some surprise at the goliath’s sudden action, but thinks little of it. It was always going to come down to the innkeeper or them, and Malachi harbored no regrets that the innkeeper paid for his mistakes. You have to be careful what you hunt and catch. Malachi has learned that lesson himself the hard way. Still he had hoped to get more from him before he died “A small pity. I had hoped he would have been of more use before he died. He could have shared more about what lies ahead and how, or why, he did all of this. I guess we shall have to find out more on our own now.”
Malachi can’t make any sense of the letter, so he slides it into his jacket for a closer look later. Perhaps when there is more time to focus his mind he will be able to comprehend whatever language it is written in.
His attention is quickly drawn back to the innkeeper’s body and Silas. Something is off….but he is not sure what. Still, he is too close for comfort, and he slides past Samir back toward the tunnel they came from, trying to put as much space between him and the innkeeper’s body as he can. As he moves, he reaches inside his jacket, grabbing his necklace, and with a whispered word, wraps himself in protective magic.
The thoughts slotting into place abruptly like someone completing a jigsaw puzzle with a hammer, Vilus shouts out in both pain and surprise. "BODY, DEAD, RUNE, EXPLOSIVE, EVERYONE OUT, NOW!" he then attempts to throw Rasmus down the one corridor with the approaching rat and pick up both Rana and Kairem by the scruffs of their rags before darting out down the tunnel they came from, the one he knows is safe.
A jolt of adrenaline shoots through Joren as the import of Silas' words break through his moral haze. As he is already standing by the edge of the passageway where Silas threw Razmus' corpse, he lets his backpack slide to the ground and picks up the body with a free action and dashes 30' further down the passageway towards the rat (due to 2 levels of exhaustion, movement 15' x 2). His echo trails 30' behind him so as not to disappear at the end of this first turn. So at this point, Joren should be 30' down the passageway the the rat is approaching from, carrying the corpse, and his echo should still be at the start of the passageway at the edge of the room. ((If he could use his bonus action to move even further, he would, keeping the echo 30' behind, but I don't think he can)).
Saying to the others he heads off: "Moving my backpack out of harm's way - please could one of you?"
For his second turn, Joren sends his echo 30' back the other way, i.e. 30' back into the room and a bit to the side to avoid the direct blast path, 60' behind Joren.
Action and move: dash 30', but only 15' further carrying the body, so now 75' ahead of his echo, 45' away from the room down the passageway, taking an attack of opportunity from the rat if needed. Free action to drop the Razmus' corpse. Then Joren uses the remaining 15' feet of his dash movement and his bonus action to switch places with his echo, back to the room, 30' back past the door and a bit to the side. Echo disappears at the end of this second turn.
So intended end result: Razmus' body 45' down the far tunnel with the rat. Joren back in the room, 30' from the door, a bit to the side (75' away from Razmus), chin dragging with strain. Echo gone.
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons
Dyson/Eleo(TwilightCleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(ShepherdDruid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(WildMagicSorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(EchoKnightFighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(MercyMonk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(NatureCleric3/DivineSoulSorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Ashley watches the dizzying display of getting Razmus's body as far away possible. She has a brief thought, doesn't look like Joren needs to practice his echo anymore, that was impressive, and then kicks herself into action.
Using the key, she unlocks two cages of those that are near her and appear to be the most coherent, yells, "Get yourselves out of here!" and with her interact with object, tosses the key to Marion, and uses the rest of her 30' to go down the passage they know.
As Joren runs past the rat with Razmus, he can see it continuing to plod along, taking notice of his presence but not reacting to it. This rat is missing one of its ears, with the wound appearing to have scarred over long ago.
Joren is able to make out that the rat has a leather loop in its mouth with an envelope hanging from it. A messenger then, and one that seems to have a mind only for carrying out its delivery.
The two prisoners that Ashley attempts to free, two humans, lower their hands from their faces and turn around. They seem just present enough to recognize the danger, and start shifting to get out of their cages, but their movements are too slow. Kairem, seeing that they might not make it as Vilus starts pulling the dwarf away, tries to wrestle free from Vilus's hold. (Strength contest: 14 )
Vilus strength, 2
Kairem tries in vain to get free from the large goliath's firm grip. Despite the augmented muscles, their imprisonment has left them weakened. "No!" Kairem cries out, understanding the situation. "They won't make it!"
Chaos. It has all turned to chaos. People running, yelling out. The runic trap prepared to explode. Joren rushing away with the body. The prisoners in their cages, perhaps not even fully cognizant of what is happening, their minds too far gone from the torture they have endured. Samir freezes, staring open mouthed for a moment, trying to put things in order, to work through events, to disentangle the actions and reactions beginning witth Razmus murder. He blinks. And then he too, is on the move. Tools are in his hand as he moves to the cages, going from one to another in an attempt to free those trapped inside as quickly as he can. He doesn't know what exactly will happen when the trap explodes, when the magic detonates. But he knows that he cannot leave people to die in cages if he can help it.
Two cages. He can get to two of them, before he feels that he is out of time. With a frustrated yell he takes off running down the corridor himself, slowed by his exhaustion and struggling.
Thieves tools for lock 1: 14
Thieves tools for lock 2: 12
Samir tries raking the first lock, to no avail. Knowing that time is of the essence, he moves on to the one below it and takes it as well, as he pushes delicately on the tension wrench. All 5 puns click into place and the lock clicks open. He pulls it off and tosses it to the side before he makes his retreat.
The shock of Silas' cold and brutal act jars Marion's sensibilities, but before she can rebuke him for his callous attitude to life the situation quick escalates into chaos. At first she is bewildered, but upon realising what is happening Marion immediately looks to all those trapped in the cages. I cannot leave them behind...but there are so many.
Seeing Joren valorously struggle out the room with the deceased innkeeper brings a sense of relief, but it is short lived. The miraculous sight of him once more swapping place with his echo brings to her the realisation that he did not get as far as would be comfortable. Turning to the cages she sees Ashley and Samir as they finish freeing some more of the victims from the cages and catches the key as the Genasi throws it to her. Without hesitating she goes to the cages closest to the passageway that the danger threatens them from and quickly opens two of them as fast as she can.
As the second cage opens she turns to look at another of the trapped victims, her instincts desperately telling her not to leave without them, all the while her anger and frustration is building. How can I leave them...these poor souls...that fool and his haste to shed unnecessary blood! There will be a reckoning for this moment. Hesitating for a moment she is caught between the choices, and she almost moves to try and free another.
But this is not the first time she has faced such difficult choices, though it is the first she stands without the shining example of the Knightly brotherhood of the order to help guide her in the heat of the moment. She knows she must go, hard as it may be, but to stay almost certainly means dooming herself in a futile attempt to help, no mater how noble it may seem.
Her face taut with anger, tears welling in her eyes at the decision she has already made and the situation that led to it, she throws the key to the closest trapped victim and moves out the room, making sure to usher those she was able to release away from danger as she goes.
As they leave the room she raises her shield, and the emblem of the rose begins to glow a gentle blue. As the energy drifts towards the person closest to the danger it settles over them, shrouding them in it's power as she says between gritted teeth: "I am sorry...May the Lady's grace rest upon thee..."
As Marian is the last one to reach the “safe” tunnel, Ashley embraces her as soon as she sees her, tears in her eyes. She attempts to keep her body as cool as she can thinking cold thoughts knowing it is uncomfortable for Marion, but not letting go until the blast.
With all of the companions making their way to the far corridor, they hear a scrape of metal on the stone floor. Its cause, Joren sees, is the prisoner Marion threw the key to. Seeming roused by the action, and lucid enough to react to the situation, he runs for the table instead of for safety. He flips it up on its end, bracing against it and turning it into a bit of cover for the cells behind him. Then there is a moment of silence that seems to drag out. Joren sees the rat, undisturbed, arriving at the entrance to the lab.
Then the stone around them trembles and a thunderous roar approaches from the tunnel where Razmus's body lies.
The corridor is filled with an inferno that charges down its length, erupting into the room. The rat (Rat dex: 12) is flung against the far wall, broken and charred, narrowly missing Joren. Whatever message it carried smokes at the edges, but seems to be relatively unscathed.
The free prisoner and his makeshift barrier get caught up in the edge of the explosion. The heat spread through the metal table easily, and wherever the man's skin is braced against it, blisters form (Prisoner con: 20), but he holds firm, screaming through the pain (12 fire damage). The fire and heat spreads out to the sides before dissipating, leaving the caged prisoners who were within reach of the blast unharmed if a little sweaty. The long desk and its contents catch like dry kindle
As the initial blast fades, the ground continues to rumble. A low crashing can be heard from the far passage as wooden supports and stone crack and crumble from the force of the blast. The walls and ceiling of the far tunnel cave in, and swirls of dust and dirt puff out into the main chamber. Then everything is still and silent for a moment, save the pained heavy breathing of the ex-prisoner trying to unstick himself from the metal table, and the crackling of the fire from the desk.
Then Vilus notices the heat and the smoke starting to rise off of his tome.
Malachi backs away from the room, farther down the tunnel, waving and gesturing for his companions, and the captives they managed to free, to join him in the tunnel. “This way, quickly!” There are so many, they will never be able to free them all. he thinks sadly.
He hopes that Joren was able to get the innkeeper’s body far enough down the tunnel to protect those still in the room. He also wonders just what lies down that tunnel.
He flinches as the explosion rocks the rooms and the wave is felt in the tunnel, then moves forward to see if those left in the room are okay, making it just to the entryway of the room before his wobbly legs grow weak. If he can see the letter next to Joren, he will try to pick it up to determine what message or markings are on it. Perception: 18.
( Perception: 18) Malachi picks up the singed letter and brushes off some of the soot. Opening it up, he sees that it is in more of that strange alphabet. He is quite certain that he has never seen the markings before today, so for them to use them not just as their primary means of communication with one another, but also for what looked to be personal note-taking on the desk earlier means whoever these people are, they must either belong to some elaborate secret society, or be from far, far away.
Though Malachi can't decipher the words with his naked eyes without some reference or dictionary, He can tell rushed, frustrated writing when he sees it. The ink blots on the darkest letters from jabbing a freshly inked quill too harshly at the page, the angle of the characters and the way each one trails into the next, but without any of the wavering lines that might indicate fear... based on the other writing he saw at the desk, this is not a routine communication. It was likely written hastily in response to an urgent inconvenience.
Once the blast goes off and their group is still whole, Ashley breathes out the breath she didn't know she was holding and collapses to the ground as exhaustion takes her. She looks up to her friends, as tears flow freely, yet silently, down her face. She gives them a wan smile and says nothing. Unsure of what to do next other than breathe.
She doesn't look into the lab, afraid a bit of what has happened to the rest of the prisoners, just trying to stay within the moment that her friends are safe and whole. Doing her best not to completely lose her mind. She thinks briefly, how did they get to this point? From starting the shield pass, what 3 days ago was it? And now here...her mind drifts off
Accepting Ashley's embrace Marion looks over Ashley's shoulder at Silas, her expression written with anger and fury. She is about to speak up when suddenly the explosion goes off behind them.
Flinching at the sound of screaming, she squeezes Ashley harder than she would mean to as the air thrown by the blast rushes past them, before immediately letting go of her friend and turning to rush back into the room. Coughing as she wades through the cloud of dust and smoke that stings her already watering eyes, she makes towards the cages and prisoners she was not able to free and searching them out and following the sounds of pained breathing.
When she comes to the overturned table to find the man she gave the key to badly burned there is not a moment of hesitation as she reaches out her hand to aid him, her face full of guilt and shame. As she helps separate him from the table and catches sight of the horrific burns he has suffered she unstraps her shield from her arm before removing her left gauntlet, dropping them to the floor, before placing her bare hand upon his back. Closing her eyes, she channels positive energy into the man, trying to mend his flesh and soothe his pain as she entreats her goddess aloud: "I beseech Thee, my Queen. Let Thy grace flow from this vessel and into this man. For he hath remained stalwart and stood as iron before corruption of Thy great gift this day. Grant unto him Thy blessing and make his flesh anew."
Upon finishing her prayer, as the power of her god begins to knit his wounds, she opens her eyes and begins to tear strips from the white tabard she wears, before wrapping the torn cloth around his wounds as a make shift bandage.
Cure wounds healing for: 5
The man's forearm wrappings seem to have protected against at least some of the blistering, and Marion finds the worst of his wounds are along his back and triceps wherever his rags hadn't covered him. His skin sticks to the table in places, but Marion helps minimize the peeling as she pulls him loose. The magic concentrates in his shoulders and back, allowing Marion to focus her efforts on wrapping his upper arms. His breathing eases, and he opens his mouth as if to speak, but no sound comes out. He looks at Marion with beleaguered appreciation though and holds the key back up.
Looking around, Marion can see that the other prisoners do not appear to be seriously injured, and most seem to have been shocked out of their stupor. They look around wide-eyed and panicky
As Silas's pocket starts smouldering his mind snaps to the book, dropping both Rana and Kairem to the floor he scrambles to take the book out, partially ripping his cloak off as he does.. "back! Get back!" He yells as he now, with smouldering book in hand, darts back into the chamber and through to the other tunnel leading to the cave in, he runs as far in as he can (giving around a 30ft distance from the foot of the loose rubble that blocks the tunnel) and throws the book as hard as he can toward it.
If the book has not exploded by that point he will grab the still searing table, using his ripped cloak as much as possible to protect his hands as he moves the table into the tunnel to block the presumed explosive wave. He then stands there hands burning, blocking as much of the tunnel as possible with the table, propping it up with his body, he winces from pain, but also expectantly for what is to come.
Ashley is still as a stone on the floor of the passageway as Silas runs past her yelling and apparently holding a smoldering book. Hmm.. books don't even do that in the Smoldering Sands... and she continues to watch the scene unfold before her in the laboratory. Expressionless, waiting for the next shock wave to hit.
Samir, eyes watering, begins to move back towards the lab. His footsteps are slow and tentative, as he knows not what he will find inside. And he isn't certain that he wants to know. He stops, however, seeing Ashley. He kneels beside her, cautiously placing a hand on her shoulder, his expression worried and his voice soft.
"Ashley? Are you ok? Did you get hurt?"