“NAM ET SI AMBULAVERO IN MEDIO UMBREA MORTIS,-”
The Father was still. Starting off quietly. Indulging the scene, inviting his own heretic rant into their embrace. To the patrons it was insulting, disgust washed over their faces, intense smiles began to drool and stretch in anticipation. His whispers carried through the entirety of their silence. Their muscles tensed on every slow syllable of his prayer.
The Gnome seemed the most cautious. Tilting his head back and forth demonically, almost in mockery of the priest's rambles. However none of the patrons moved, their feet sinking into the ground as if the holy words stunted them, warding them away. Unable to move forward the gnome suggests.
“Pleeasee..” A happy but trembling tone as the warrior of god pressed his communion further.
“PLEEEASE” Welting the handle of his knife with a heavy grip, panting like a dog as sweat dripped down his skin.
In the burst of sudden pause the patron's eyes locked onto weakness. Their stillness began to vibrate. Wide eyes spotted Lux. Getting wider and veinier as their cheeks reached the limit of physical exploitation. Like starved predators the whites of their eyes began to yellow as their sights rested on his obvious fear.
“NON TIMEBO MALA, QUONIAM TU MECUM ES.”
The fathers words hung onto them like heavy chains as his god fought for dominance. Even though he whispered, it was screaming into them. From the sole of their boots into the wick of candle flames, it howled into their cursed energy. Their movement was very little but the thunderous worship cockled their toes into a cramping crunch. Finger joints cracked. Veins swirled and fluttered violently.
“VIRGA TUA ET BACULUS TUUS, IPSA ME CONSOLATA SUNT.”
Lux’s hesitation was easy to spot, the inexperience in his words shined brightly.
“What should we do?” It was cute and pretty in comparison to the fathers response.
“We kill them all and let god sort them out.”The pace of how he moved was certain. A confidence in his behaviour solidified the desired outcome. He may have looked old but he moved like a smooth engine, old joints lubricated with the thirst of his faith. Finding his flail tightly wrapped around the moist neck of the laboratory head of human suffering. The gnomes limbs were too short to retaliate, the knife in his hands feeblely tried to reach Johanne but failed greatly to reach anything. The priest's eyes saw through all of them. A detached expression unnerved against the smiling parade.
Lux’s chair shot backwards as he frightfully reacted. Jerking the tavern furniture outwards with sheer unease. Flying through the crowd until it smashed against a patron, dismembering itself into pieces. The patrons themselves stood unaffected as if it wasn’t a threat enough to react to. Maybe it was calculative pain tolerance or simply nothing was there behind their soulless expression. Blood threaded down the patrons happy face as wood splinters dug down into bone. The injured patron reacted similarly to the gnome
“Pleeease.” A large splinter is seen penetrating through cheek muscle into the person's throat, gurgling pain as they spoke.
“Mooore”Lux chose a tactical position of placing himself against the wall.
“Are we sure this is the best option?”“Welp, things happened. So let’s hope it’s for the best.”Eva spotted more and more titles, becoming less clear the longer they remained in the village. The word “Laboratory” of the gnome's title began to wiggle and stretch as if it wanted to change or become more convincing. Constantly switching and flickering in and out as “Friend of all humans, -certainly not a cultist” sometimes as “Servant of happiness and only good things” among other suspiciously paragonic labels. Titles quickly blinking in and out of paradise. As if the reality of the village was endangered. The words colors and fonts constantly snapped in and out from a happy saturated theme to a demonic red tinge.
"Father.” She swallowed “I think we are dealing with... racists. Sadistic, Human-specific, kind of racists." "Cipher, assemble." The reflective metallics of cipher showed the patrons moving slowly in sync. None of them moved their feet, the only sound was of unsheathing metal as the patrons that massively outnumbered the guild members revealed their weapons. Butcher knives. Daggers of all sorts. If they didn’t have weapons they searched for things of use, anything sharp. Anything heavy. Anything durable. Even spoons and forks from table tops. Anything and everything to pry her out of her suit as if she were canned food.
The cows outside signalled. Their once normal appearance began to melt. The village's animals began to bleed from their orifices.
“MOOOOOO” The smell of sudden meaty change from outside would persist inside as the gore of a sudden blood rushed their senses. It was tasty and the patrons swayed their noses in the air, savouring the stink like they were welcoming a signal. Refreshing their brains away from Johanne’s chants.
The second the overwhelming stench kicked them back to their senses, they charged.
But before any of the villagers could make a proper move.
A split second decision by Lux flared. Intensity of a thousand stars swallowed every corner of the tavern blinding the patrons only
[Selective] Stopping them dead in their tracks, some would stagger away, some would trip and fall, while others stumbled back physically in pain from the
[Affinity: Light] as if the mystical element of light penetrated the evil powers that possessed them.
IMMEDIATELY. Elara that was quiet for the most part and had stayed composed had tactically flipped over the table into a defensive position covering her guild mates. If she haven’t done so, they would’ve been met with thrown weaponry at their exposure but her quick thinking hastily guarded them. Blindly the patrons threw and swung at nothing. While still recovering from Lux’s spell they aimlessly and talentlessly flung all sorts of blades and glass at their barricade. Most patrons projectiles bluntly clanged against the table but a few blades would stick the landing. Once out of anything meaningful to throw they began to throw food and mugs of ale.
Wetting the parties position in the suspicious Iron Raspberry Ale. Expensive crystal mugs shattered against walls and the ceiling above them, raining the meaty red liquid down onto them.
LUX/EVA
[APPRAISAL] As they became more exposed to the patrons food their appraisal skill would tell them that the demonic cuisine was hallucinogenic / weak poison / submissive / demonic / tasty / highly nutritious / lab grown / empowering / infected / compromised / don’t / cow
[EAT IT AND YOU’LL GAIN POWER AND HAPPINESS BEYOND]
[EAT IT]
[CONSUME IT]
[CON SUM ITTTT]
Elara was the only one to spot the cows and goats gathering outside blocking their way out of the village. But beyond the slow rise of chaos she channeled her senses and mediated on her skill of
[Magic D]. Usually without any specific talents for observation or senses like the priest she wouldn’t be able to find anything, however the innate abyssal mana deep below the tavern was so repugnant any mage would be able to sense there was something deeply hidden that the patrons very suspiciously wanted to share previously.
Abyssal energies pulsated through the floorboards at a higher frequency before as if an engine had been turned on. Mass producing low qualities of chaotic taboo. From the outside Elara would sense a small gathering of cultists. Townsfolks amongst the herds of cows draped themselves in hooded pitch black robes. Whispering amongst themselves that the festival must continue, waiting for their turn to go underground.
“Let’s do this.” Eva released a concentrated pin pointed energy. Cutting through the crowd, severing patrons limbs and organs until it found her target. The constant power of Eva’s beam emulsified her target, the titled gore-saint. The fae’s heated brainmatter sopped backwards from her weapon's momentum. Skull shrapnel purchased itself into the timber walls. While some of the townsfolk sprinted away easily, scurrying and stampeding themselves further underground. The victims of Eva’s attack limped and crawled away trying to retreat from her singular beam. Loose fat severed from their dismemberment, slipping away from untangled tendons and pouring blood. Some eventually found their way down into the trapdown where they would allow themselves to roll over and fall down the never-ending staircase. Others would quickly die of blood loss, painting the floorboards in muddled viscera that was the same color as the ale that they were previously chugging.
“DON’T LET THEM GO UNDERGROUND, THEY ARE NOT WELCOMED ANYMORE” The barkeeper screamed before aggressively spinning a crank hidden underneath the bar counter. It seemed physically difficult, rusty and dry but he still managed to slowly muscle it. The walls of the tavern began to create portals from other places in the world. Further breaking the fabric of reality.
Eventually it’ll allow more enemies to aid Sweetwater if nobody is able to stop the barkeeper. What remained were fifteen or so townsfolk inside the tavern. Fae and beast-kin of all shapes, races and sizes all equally determined to stall the guild members for as long as possible.
A dwarf flipped over his own table and began to wind up a slingshot towards Lux arming the sling with the poisoned food. While two small rabbit beast-kin charged unarmed but bared their teeth going for his ankle and wrist that held his wand.
Eva would encounter a surprise as an entire cow muscled its way through the tavern door and bullcharged her. If she wasn't entirely distracted by the massive cow, she would spot a [tiny] rat fae riding it on a rat-sized saddle holding a awkwardly long scythe going for a second winding up attack.
Two farmers with pitchforks lanced forward in attempt to stab through the table barricade and hurt anyone who still dared to stay behind it.
Johanne would hear crawling and taps on the ceiling and faced a spider beast-kin throwing projectile beer mugs. While simultaneously [tiny] two soldier-head ant beast-kin sped up and charged for jumping heatbutts, flanking from both sides while his one arm was occupied by holding the suffocating gnome.
Elara was met with randomly thrown food and utensils from the crowd until a horned goat was tossed through the window. Charging her with readied horns. What came after was a large tall elf man bursting toward the taverns wall, sprinting at her unarmed trying to grapple her.
ADRENALINE RUNS THROUGH THE PARTY. ALLOWING 5 ACTIONS.
