The Storming of Marrowbrook Castle (Phoenix City Chronicles)

"Please, just Kaylea." she says wincing. "I think someone else should take over for her and let her rest for a bit.... What was your name again little healer?"

"C-Cellus, Miss-" Cellus said wearily, before shaking her head rapidly, perhaps to rapidly as her world began to spin, "No need for a replacement, I can handle this," she said, attempting to restart the healing process. Her hands briefly flashed with a dim healing glow before dying again, she swooned, this time it took severeal seconds before her head snapped up.

Stepping over, Tal reached out to Burk and took Cellus in his arms with a soft smile, "Better to be safe than sorry, it is, would you not agree?"

Emitting a soft white glow, Tal cradled her close and healed her of her fatigue.



"I'm inclined to agree with the monk," Kradu nodded to Tal, "We should press on, and soon, before more trouble finds us."



"The necromancer is right," Brother Light admitted grudgingly, "Though we have rescued the lost adventurers, a delay now may further serve to increase the difficulty of an already overwhelming task ahead."



"You don't have to tell me twice!," Knuckles grinned, "Let's get back to what we're here for; busting heads and giving the bad guys trouble!"

~~~~~~~
Tal heals Cellus with Remove Disease (Fatigue)
~ Cellus' fatigue removed!
~~~~~~~

"So, what's next?" she sighs and looks around the room. "I don't really like the idea of just standing around waiting to be jumped by more undead."

Cellus smiled, murmuring a 'thank you' to Tal, giving him a peck on the cheek. She quickly blushed and squirmed out of his arms, "Well, there were two other doors... we might as well try and see what's behind them," she said, a nervous twinge in her voice.

Watching as the group healed themselves up preparing for what lies ahead for what is uncertian,
'Well its good we were able to finish them up.'

Looking with a little disdain on himself, that he wasnt able to do much besides a small distraction...
'He was tough, and it took everyone to take him out pratically.'

Glancing at the rest of them as they are ready to move onward,
"Well i would agree with Cellus on this one, the next plan of action is where should we go from here?"

"It's about time!," Knuckles huffed, marching out of the room and down the hall to the blue marble door. Gripping the handle, he pulled it back roughly, heedless to the possibility it might be guarded ...and pulled and pulled and pulled. Finally, red-faced and tensed from the effort, he growled at the door in frustration, "It won't budge!"



Letting out an exasperated sigh at the young man's impatience, Nevara strode over with the lithe, graceful movement of a dance and motioned him aside, "Unless you intend to break it down, this door may require a more subtle touch."

"Be my guest," Knuckles grumbled, crossing his arms with indignation.

After tinkering with the lock for a time, Nevara finally lets out a frustrated growl of her own, "Stupid thing!"

~~~~~~~
Nevara uses Disable Trap (Lock) on door
~ Rolling Defense check; result = 4
~ ~ 4 + Defense 6 + Disable Trap 4 = 14 total (Failed)
~~~~~~~

The member 'Narrator' has done the following action : Roll Dice:

'd20' : 4

Cellus stepped up from her spot healing Burk, examining the door over Nevara's shoulder as she fiddled with the door, "That Rugashi guy was some sort of head guard right?" she thought aloud, "So he'd need access to all rooms... so he'd need some sort of... key..." she said, a tone of realization slipping into her voice. "Miss Nevara, do you think that ruby you picked up might have any use on this door?" she asked excitedly.

~~~~
Cellus uses Heal Hit Points Alpha on Burk
+4 HP (17/24 HP)

"I believe that stone opens a different kind of gateway," Kradu stepped forward to meet the others.



"That is correct," Nevara nodded, "It is a planar gatekey; useful for crossing dimensional barriers, but not much help against a locked door."



"Hey, props for thinkin' out've the box though!," Knuckles put a hand on Cellus' shoulder and grinned reassuringly.



"However, a good point Cellus introduces to this discussion," Tal rubbed his chin in thought as he walked over, "If a tool to cross dimensions, a guard in this fortress possesses, then a rift between worlds there must surely be, and sure we are to cross it."



"I would agree with you, Brother Tal," Brother Light looked up from the grasslander's right side, "The only question is when we will cross it, and where it will lead."



"This day just keeps getting better and better...," Burk crossed his arms and shook his head in amused disbelief from the doorway.

Cellus let out a defeated sigh, "And I got all excited for nothing," she muttered, retrating back to her place next to Burk, "I had really hoped we were done with the whole other dimension thing once Vektor was gone," she muttered.

~~~~
Cellus uses Heal Hit Points Alpha on Burk
+4 HP (21/24 HP)

"There are many gates to realms beyond," Brother Light noted, "Indeed, the mortal world has often been described by philosophers and scholars as the World Between Worlds; the Realm of Doors."



"If this Nathaniel Grassroot is as bad as the townsfolk say, I wouldn't be surprised if he found such a door," Burk frowned at the thought.



"As bad at the townsfolk say...?," Kradu huffed at the ignorance of Burk's statement, "They have neither the imagination or experience to do his evil justice. If left unchecked..."



"Such an evil could swallow the world in darkness forever," Nevara finished his thought.



"There's no way in hell I'm gonna let that happen!," Knuckles clenched his fists with a determined glare, "It may have been too late for Vincent, but we can still save the world. I say we get moving!"



"Well spoken," Tal nodded firmly, motioning to the door on the far right.

Cellus nodded, giving Burk one last burst of energy before taking the initiative and stepped up to the blank door. She took a deep breath and turned the knob, hoping for something better than what was behind the last door.

~~~~
Cellus uses Heal Hit Points Alpha on Burk
+3 HP (24/24 HP)

Beyond the blank onyx door stood a pit of absolute blackness so deep and sudden that Cellus almost lost her footing as opened it and might have fallen in, but for Burk securing her from behind just in time.

Within this pit, surrounded by a stone wall on all sides, stood three large platforms, apparently made from a pale gray stone. Two of the platforms, just big enough for one or two people to stand on them and carved in a rounded square like a tombstone, floated above the pit as if by magic in what appeared to be a fixed direction toward and away from each other.

The third platform hovered in place along the back wall in the far right corner. Significantly longer than the others, it appeared to have something small and gold glistening beneath the dust that covered its length.



"Looks easy enough," Burk shrugged, "We just need someone who can jump really far. I'll go."

"Are you sure about this Burk?" Cellus asked uncertainly, "I'd rather not risk anyone's life in the process," she turned to Nevara, "Couldn't you simply fly across?" she asked.

"There is little in the way of a current to carry me," Nevara admitted, "But I believe it would be possible if I get a running start."



"Does this scenario seem too... straightforward to anyone else?," Brother Light subtly objected as he observed the room, "Thus far, our enemy has made quite a show of destroying our expectations, and I would not put any form of treachery past his twisted mind."



"I concur," Kradu nodded, crossing his arms.



"We'll never know if we don't try," Knuckles retorted, "Sometimes, you don't have time to figure all the risks; you just have to take a plan and run with it. Best of luck, Spooky."

"Thank you, Mason," Nevara smirked visibly at his sudden, tensed reaction to being called by his proper name, then turned to face the pit with a steely resolve, "I will need space to move for this maneuver."

"Best of luck, Miss Nevara," Cellus said, backing up to give her room, before dropping into a crouching position, readying herself incase anything went wrong.

~~~
Cellus readies Shadow Jump

"Hold on a second. It would probably be better if more than one of us went." she says with concern in her voice.

"I'll go with you." with that her feet lift from the ground.

~~~
Kaylea activates Flight.
~~~

Looking onwards as the group decides on how to handle things,

"Why should we try ourselves..." ~Gancing Nevaras way~ "Why not send our shadows to test the theorys out. If something is out of place, we wont have to think for ourselves, it will only be a shadow form."

'Heh, trying to send ourselves to see if there is any traps, why risk ourselves when we can somewhat remotely check them out.'


~~
Cerys Activates Animate Shadow
~~

"The cat's got a point there," Knuckles admitted.



"I would agree," Nevara looked to the others, Cellus and Kaylea in particular.



"At last; a plan that makes sense!," Brother Light sighed with relief.

Turning back toward the pit, Nevara crossed her arms as her shadow rose behind her, freed from its prison at her feet and glided forward. Sure enough, as it sped across the chasm, it was singed by a gout of flame from either wall and immediately dissipated into a trail of smoke.

~~~~~~~
Nevara activates Animate Shadow
~~~~~~~

Cellus winced as she saw the shadow dissintegrate, "Really glad we didn't send an actual person across there..." she said quietly, before looking aound, "If only there was a way to be sure that there was no traps on the final platform... that way I could just shadow jump. Maybe if I do it really quickly," she muttered, trailing off.

Remebering from the other room, seeing the guy in the red cloak summoning a skeleton, Cerys got an idea on how to try to get past the flame spouts on the walls,

Glancing over Kradu's way,
"Kradu, would you be able to bring up a skeleton, i have an idea on how we might be able to get past the flames without us getting singed. If you bring one of your skeletons here, and have it make its way across, i can send out my shadow to set off the flame traps before your skeletons get there. Then on the way back, Nevara and I can send the shadows out once more, and help the skeletons get past the flames again with the item on that far platform."

'In all theory this might work, but still unknown if anything is past those flame things... or if there is anything on the far platform like Cellus mentioned.'

Motioning to the very skeleton Cerys had remembered, said pawn having remained with him all this way, Kradu nodded once, "I will summon three; one for each platform on the presumption both are trapped, and the third to retrieve whatever is on the far platform. Your shadows... can they allow my pawns the gift of flight?"



"Please, let's not resort to this!," Brother Light moved over to Cerys, eyes wide with terror at what the group was even now discussing, "It seems like the right thing to do, I know, but that is the allure of the dark arts; they are convenient, and promise a path to great power, but it is always at a terrible price!"

"Silence, you gibbering simpleton!," Kradu clenched his fists as he glowered at the priest, "I know that price better than you can possibly imagine! I've paid my dues; why shouldn't I reap the gains of my sacrifice?!"

"And what, praytell, have you gained Sir Necromancer?," Brother Light goaded, his eyes glaring cool daggers of icy rebuke.

"My brother was once a necromancer like me," the red-robed mage began...



"His name was Nobe, and together, we had vowed to be the greatest dark magicians in all the world. We knew that, if we just kept pushing, the power that our academy had forbidden us to investigate would hold the keys to making our lives the way we wanted them to be.

You speak the words of a man who clings to hopes and dreams, priest, but to two orphans trying to control powers they do not understand, there is no greater hope than the dream that, someday, one might have control over their own destiny. A chance to make things right.

I was the elder, and so my brother followed in my footsteps; to this day, he is the truest companion I have ever known. However, I was a not a very good older brother, for when I discovered an ancient secret, I allowed my young charge to volunteer for the experiments we would need to test it. Experiments that..."

Turning toward the skeleton, Kradu looked it over as if it were a work of art, "My brother is gone, and all I have left is the dark power he gave me at the cost of his very soul. With his energy inside me, I am greater than I would have ever been alone, and I continue my art to honor his memory."

"Wow. You learn something new everyday..." she says with intrest before trailing off int confusion, a vague look of pain and fear crossing her face.

After a few moments she regains her former composure "I have to agree with Cerys nad Kradu priest, an animated pile of bones rather then risking the life of one of us. It may be convienyent but the pros out-weigh the cons." she says looking around

"First tho, Knuckles could you give me a hand reduceing one of the headstones in the other room to gravel. I have an idea." she says with a smirk

"Uh, yeah sure I guess," Knuckles blinked, "What's your plan?"