Perception:25
Perception:15
Perception:24

Your shovel hits something like a wooden box. You keep digging. You eventually unearth some sort of container. It's old, and unlocked. You open it, and wrapped in some sort of tattered silk cloth are fresh olive tree leaves. As you look at them, you realize you're holding an artifact of great importance - they have not withered with time. You now possess one of the natural artifacts that will allow you to enter the Dark Emperor's cathedral.

Olive tree petals - tears of true bitterness prevented the dust from withering them completely. Now they are an offering never made, lost in the ground before it could reach the monument of the Dark Emperor.

Quest complete. Level up.

QUEST: DEFEAT COERCITOR EZZOZITO, SCION OF ABJURATION
"The unborn one stopped crying when placed in the arms of the false mother. Sometimes I can't help but think there's something living in that wicker. Sometimes it seems to be rocking him in the darkness."

Truly a deformity of the Affliction, Ezzozito has the appearance of a giant warped fetus, pulsing with power and cradled by an unholy automoton, accompanied by a strange, snake like creature that protects him and attacks any foe that enters his chambers deep beneath the earth of the Ruins of Berez. His supposed birth mother was burned at the stake for being a witch by the Brotherhood, and a blindfold was put on him so he would not see her burn. Before she died, she asked someone to build a horrible representation in her likeness so that her son would not miss her. When it was finished and Ezzozito was placed in the wicker person's arms, he stopped crying.

The trail hugs the river for several miles. The dirt and dust soon turn to marsh as the trail dissolves into spongy earth pockmarked with stands of tall reeds and pools of stagnant water. A thick shroud of fog covers all. Scattered throughout the marsh are old peasant cottages, their walls covered with black, sickly mildew, their roofs mostly caved in. These decrepit dwellings seem to hunker down in the mire, as though they have long since given up on escaping the thick mud. Everywhere you look, black clouds of flies dart about, hungry for blood.

 In the center of the ruins is a very large growth that you can see, even from here. There are a number of scarecrows around the area, but they're not made of straw, but what remains of human bodies, stripped of their flesh.

"Yep. He must be here." Hera will attempt to look around for where the entrance to Ezzozito's chambers might be.

Perception:8

The growth in the center of the ruined village looks like a massive boil - a wound on an infected land. It sticks up and out like a sore thumb. It throbs and pulsates, as if it's aching to explode and release sickness into the world. Out of the corner of your eyes, you could have sworn one of the scarecrows twitched.

Where is everyone?

(Just) before entering the area Jeremiah brings forth allies from the fey, mists curling briefly around the feet of him and his allies as 4 black bears emerge. (B1 HP 24, B2 HP 26, B3 HP 28, B4 HP 28).

At the moment Jeremiah and his bears are about where the tip of the arrow is, If he detects movement he’ll dispatch 3 of the bears to investigate...

Hera is standing near Jeremiah and his bears.

Shiara, who by now has four zombies with her, narrows her eyes suspiciously at the scarecrows from behind the tanks.

Ingrid is walking towards the scarecrows, trying to deduce if they are animated or not: Investigation: 17

Ingrid, as you approach the scarecrow, you can definitely tell it's animated. As you study it, in a horrible jump scare moment, the one you approach opens it's mouth wide and a barbed tentacle of intestine lashes out at you, attempting to rope around your neck and bring you in closer. Make an Athletics or Acrobatics check to avoid being grappled, beating the number I rolled below.

Ew: 27

As this happens, the massive boil in the center of the ruins explodes in a loud bang, spewing forth wet, organic matter and Affliction everywhere in a hundred yard radius, drenching you all and the ground around you. It hisses and stings, but otherwise causes no damage.

You can hear awful high pitched screaming of multiple voices coming from the wound, which, when it exploded, revealing a gaping hole in the earth. You have a feeling of dread that many things are about to emerge from the wound.

Athletics: 26

Hera:21

The flesh zombie reels you in, trying to take a huge bite out of your neck in the process.

CHOMP Attack: 25 Damage: 12

The rest of you can roll for initiative. A large horde of unfleshed zombies emerge from the wound, wet, and flailing. While they all have no skin and are deformed in many ways, they are almost see through to the point you can see their twisted innards - they rush to attack you.

The Horde: 14

Zombies, my specialty!: 21

Init: 3

COMBAT ORDER
Hera21, Shiara21, TheHorde14, Ingrid3

Gonna wait till we get a full initiative order, then we can begin.

Jeremiah: 18

Bear Necessities: 19

COMBAT ORDER
Hera21, Shiara21, TheHorde14, BadNewsBears13, Jeremiah7, Ingrid3

Jimmy'nitiative : 13