Foul Winds and Dark Gods has started at Apostate's Dynamic GMing Room <OOC Room>.

Outside the Cathedral is a scene of chaos. It's difficult to see anything, and the realization of why causes choke screams through the haze. Locusts. So thick it is as if everyone is trapped in a cloud, just millions of them. The walls, dimly visible through the milling swarm, are distantly scene as blasted apart. It was as if they hit by the hand of an angry god, with chunks of wall bigger than carts strewn over the once verdant courtyard. Bastion is a city to itself, smaller than Arx to be sure, but still home to many thousands, and much of the homes nearest the walls have been crushed. People are running for the close gates of Grayhold Castle, the ancestral home of House Grayson, while confused guardsmen escort people to and from. Sounds of hurt and dying guards near the collapse of the wall is plain, and there's cries for help up and down the roads. There's something like the sounds of battle coming from down the streets leading to the south, west, and towards the harbor of the Gray River to the east.

((Everyone do a composure check at hard to avoid freaking out at locusts basically trying to get into your throat. Anyone wishing to help the other parts frantically screaming for help let me know and can join one of the other 3 scenes))

Viviana checks composure at hard. Viviana marginally fails.

Michael checks composure at hard. Michael fails.

Alantir checks composure at hard. Alantir is successful.

Felicia checks composure at hard. Felicia fails.

Veronica checks composure at hard. Veronica fails.

Katarina checks composure at hard. Katarina is successful.

Liara checks composure at hard. Liara is successful.

Gael checks composure at hard. Critical Success! Gael is spectacularly successful.

Aconite checks composure at hard. Aconite fails.

Audgrim checks composure at hard. Audgrim is successful.

Corban checks composure at hard. Corban marginally fails.

Deva checks composure at hard. Deva fails.

Adalyn checks composure at hard. Adalyn marginally fails.

Tesha checks composure at hard. Tesha is successful.

Audgrim gets black linen scarf from ranger's winter backpack with bedroll.

Deva wields Frostbite, a snowfall dusted rubicund bow.

Katarina wields Intricately forged ancient steel stiletto.

Audgrim wields Chance, a dignified diamondplate bow.

Corban wields a simple and unadorned sword, polished and sharp.

Felicia wields Wheelspinner - the Blade of Souls.

Liara wields Elvesbane, the longsword of House Grayson.

Of course Katarina chose to stop wearing her veils, and the next thing she knows, she's facing down a plague of locusts. The diminutive Valardin Princess somehow keeps herself from freaking out. She's able to find a bit of cover for a moment, and as clouds of locusts buzz around, she makes the best of things. Katarina hikes up her gown and draws an ancient steel dagger from its holster on her thigh, and cuts away her beautiful floor-length gown, leaving it raggedly settled at mid-thigh. A few more passes with the knife, and she has something suitable to tie around her head and keep /bugs/ out of her /mouth/. She'll have to deal with locust bites on her legs, but... she's suffered worse. With a few more of these once-a-gown rags in hand, she emerges from cover, looking for her allies, her family, /anyone/ through the smog of insects. "Alantir! Veronica! ...anyone?!"

The Cathedral itself seems to have adequate defenders, so Veronica follows her patron outside into the streets and...ugh, what, choking--these locusts are intolerably awful, somehow worse than centipedes. And they're trying to get into her mouth and crawl on her face and she flails at them, rapidly breaking down to just swatting them away as quickly as she can, mouth gritted shut and eyes closed. Not very dignified by these are horrible bugs. She can't even yell, and instead thrashes silently.

Deva thought she was ready for anything, but no-- oh no. This cloud of locusts and screams of dying is a lot more than she had braced herself for. While there's a bow gripped in her hands as she follows after Alantir, it is proving to be more of a hindrance than anything she is using at this point. Instead, she is waving frantically in front of herself, trying to clear a path to press forward and breathe and really just failing miserably. She flails, trying not to trip on herself while also trying not to swallow some nasty bugs. Her eyes say 'panic' and her mouth says nothing but awful noises of discomfort and startled fear.

Viviana lifts her chin, good eye hooded - anxious, but quite prepared. Rapier unsheathed, held down and angled aside. With a smooth shrug of her shoulders, she talks to herself sotto voce, getting more and more panicky: "Me. What I should have said. Oh, Aella. You look /wonderful/ in that armor. Now, we're heading toward dire straits and it'll need to wait -- and you'll need to remember that after this we'll need to have an outing. Sleeping in trees and such. So pastoral. Yes, absolutely dire." She flexes her grip against her rapier, muttering. "Least it's never -- listening. Honestly, me? Seriously me? Fine. Listening. This is not cowardice, it's self-survival--" one step back, two. Pause.

Bugs. It makes Audgrim hesitate a split second as he's running on the heels of the others, his footsteps surprisingly quiet for someone so tall. Perhaps it's his clever warcowl giving him some protection as the locusts swarm over his body and try to enter his mouth, or quick thinking on his part, wrapping a simple linen scarf around his face while running. He is gripping his bow tightly, and an arrow is already ready, but he's ready to switch weapons if necessary. Maybe this won't be a bow-and-arrow sort of situation. "Cover your mouths and noses with anything you got on you!" he calls out as he sees people struggling around him. Not that it might help - bugs keep trying to crawl in under that scarf he put on, but he ignores them, after lowering it briefly to spit a few out. "Princess Viv!" he says, realising he was jsut running by a familiar figure. "You alright there?" He swats insistantly on his own body, then tries to help her. "It's me, Audgrim. Your favorite... something."

The First Captain of the King's Own came along to the Seraph's retirement celebration as a representative of the Crown, as the Silver Swords occasionally do. But when the attack begins, Sir Corban rushes towards the castle, rattling in his rubicund, his steelsilk cape trailing behind him, a simple sword, alarcite and sharp in his hands. But bugs. It had to be bugs. He manages not to scream, at least, but he swallows hard, swiping at the air near him, trying to keep them away from the barbute, away from his throat. He tries to move forward. "Tesha!" But he is impeded by those buzzing things, unable to forge forward.

Gael's dark, steely gaze levels downward as the march of arthropods blots out the sandy floor. There's a grim familiarity to his demeanor; to his expression, and no shock, no surprise here to see them slither up his booted feet, further up the lining of his leathery leggings, and deeper yet into the chainmail padding of his coat. But Gael doesn't crack -- he shudders, then shakes, then *vibrates* with energetic defiance, and like droves the invaders spill off of him like ticks off of a berserking dog. He acts quickly, seizes a torch from a nearby sconce and comes to Michael's aid - as he's the closest - with two stomping feet, each step dogged and swift. His expression but a mask of hell-bent determination. Lagoma's dark flame shines starkly under torchlight off of his chest; a medallion.

With a violent wave, then another, and a third, he scatters the bugs from reaching Michael's face. With his other hand he slaps them off of his neck, down his shoulders, from engulfing his chest. "Take hope, your Highness!" A hand reaches out, helping him up with a sturdy grip -- as faithful as steel. "It'll take more than bugs to defy the Duke of Pridehall!"

Adalyn seems to have steeled herself for battle and all manner of dangers to be faced, but locusts? Dreaded bugs. She's clearly rattled, choking back a sound of horror as she flails about, trying to protect her face from the cloud of swarming insects as best as she can. Attempting to keep her mouth firmly shut, she clutches her weapon in one hand and fumbles with the other for any scrap of fabric she can find on her person, searching for something that will ward against the worst of the bugs.

Chaos and collapse. It's luck that has Felicia near the castle. Instinct that makes her head towards where she thought she spotted Liara. So focused she is at first that she doesn't notice the locusts until they're already on her. There's an undignified shriek from the redheaded Harrow. Folding up and covering her head protectively as she tries to resist the urge to scream. Flashbacks of Whitepeak flickering through her head.

Alantir moves swiftly despite the weight of his platemail, left gauntlet raising to drop the visor of helm in a last-ditch effort to protect exposed skin from an onslaught of writhing insects. To his dismay, they burrow and scratch their way through the plates and do their best to slide between his open lips. As a last line of defense, he locks his jaw -- teeth rupturing fleshy carapaces and spilling an influx of juicy bug protein onto tongue. The knight reaches back to grasp Deva's elbow and pull her body forward, determining to power through the pestilence before they were overwhelmed. "March, Katarina!" he bellows, unable to visually identify the Princess but identifying her voice through the screaming.

Antsy and anxious throughout the gala - not like her at all - Liara had an aide in the cathedral with her arms and armour ready. Paranoid? Maybe. But after a moment of slightly undignified dressing, she gets moving, now resplendent in gleaming alaricite, her helm and pauldrons bearing stylised griffin wings - not practical, but evidently intended to stand out. She draws a breath at the swarm of locusts, then flips her visor down, opting for seriously obstructed vision as the better choice to having locusts crawl all over her. She calls out as she starts to move forward, locusts or no locusts, "With me, with me! We must reach Grayhold!"

Tesha checks command and war at daunting. Tesha fails.

Michael's charge by foot gets impeded rather quickly by the frenzied swarm of locusts flinging themselves at him! His steps slowed but weren't halted until wings and feet caught his lips and he began to sputter and his steps swayed from side to side as he attempts to spit out whatever might be encoraching. Yet this just made things seem worse and worse! The point of his alaricite sword finding sand to keep him upright while his hands seem to drive insects towards his mouth instead of away until someone else's hands find his face!

Gael's touch over his face gives him a moment or two to collect himself, to yank up the scarf wound around his throat upwards to cover his mouth and he can take a breath without insects trying to be eaten. His shoulders roll back and straighten his spine before he is following after Gael towards the others like Felicia and Liara!

Looking off the direction where she sees Mabelle and Eirene go, Aconite assesses for a brief moment and then nods to Michael and she falls back towards the Bisland Duke and reaches up to pull her hairpin out. Inky eyes wide and her lips thinning as she closes her eyes and lets out a breath and a small prayer. As she follows the band she pulls her glove off with her teeth and turns her arm over. Stabbing her hairpin into the upper part of her forearm and creating a small slash. She smears the diamond plate hairpin in the resulting blood before pulling her glove back on. "I'm right behind you." She tells Michael. Only to find herself swarmed by insects. Aco squeals and tries to push the mass of chitinous invaders off herself as if she wasn't covered almost completely.

Tesha does not freak out, whew! Locusts, those things suck and she's already had the dumb centipedes comment on this week. She tries her hardest to keep up though in the cold night air and the chaos that is unfolding. There's no sign of trouble, but the Telmar woman is not really one to forgo caution. Her words cannot be heard though and it's going to be hard to command anything in the thick of this, but it didn't stop her from trying!

"Aud-" Viviana laughs, it's high - frantic, bordering on alarm. Wordless, for a moment, as she swats at the locusts swarming around her. Pulling up the leather cowl around her mouth. "Audgrim, listen, I can't. I know something that I don't know, but - but I am listening."

As Michael bowls past the body of his lesser self, Gael's swiftly after him. There's a scratch of diamondplate-on-leather as the Confessor's freer hand that does not possess the torch lays across the bleak and unbound grip of his grooved sword-handle, yanking it free from the sheathe at his side. There aloft, Flamestrike; a brand of fire as illuminated as the very stone torch on his other grip. The blaze of flame wicks heavily into the redly and reflective metal, acting as a mirror -- an inverse of the fire that lights his and Michael's path behind Liara.

Gael wields Flamestrike, a diamondplate flamberge.

Viviana goes to provide much needed help at the Western Gate.

Liara does appear aware of Felicia's attempts to reach her, but visor lowered and swarming insects all about, it's all she can do to move forward, with no immediate aid forthcoming from the Grayson.

Audgrim tris to shake Viviana out of it, or drag her along - better with him than just standing there anyway - but then he just suddenly reels to the side and almost knocks over someone else. "Fuuuuuck," he groans and slaps at his head on the side, his gaze that has roamed alertly around now reduced to a squint. "These are... hatred, loathing - like... no, like flying shackles!" he calls out. "Princess Viv - alright. Stay safe," he says and nods to her before he runs off again, following Michael.

"Alantir!" Katarina cries out. She waves her seasilk scraps at locusts as though locusts might have some sort of deep-seated fear of gold and purple seasilk. "Lady Veronica was with me a moment ago -- I can't see..." Katarina trails off, and her sentence might have ended with 'her,' or 'much of anything.' She does hear Liara's voice, though -- and draws in a breath before calling out, "Lady Veronica! Lady Adalyn! Anyone else! Follow my voice if you can! Alantir, keep calling out if YOU can, so I can follow YOU...!"

"Princess Katarina, I'm--" The rest is cut off by another round of spluttering as Veronica continues to try and fight off the locusts without immediately cringing and feeling their horrible little legs walking all over her face, getting into her hair, trying to worm under her armor.

If anything, the locusts have become more intense. Tesha tries to rally forces, but most of the guards can neither see nor hear her- though it's not completely hopeless, as at least a few dozen swordsmen and pikemen have managed to stumble their way into something of a formation as some shout, "THE HIGHLORD! PROTECT THE HIGHLORD!" and rally around Liara and other royals. People are trying to stumble their way towards Grayhold, but things aren't getting better. In fact, considerably worse.

The ground is not really dirt and grass anymore. Burrowing out from the ground are centipedes and other insects. A number beyond counting, as the ground is now a solid mass of writhing bug, up to the ankles with constant small bites and nibbles. The trees nearby are covered with crows, staring down with hating eyes, loudly crowing over and over again, "CAW! CAW! GAW! GAW! GOW! GOW! GOD! GOD!" And then something that sounds like laughter.



In the space of seconds, some of the guards by the wall that were covered in insects have screams cut off brutally in throats no longer capable of speech, as pieces of flesh are torn from bone, and bugs start to swarm together over pieces of the broken wall. The insects become thicker and thicker, until they become a solid, humanoid shape- one that becomes less a mass of bugs with each shape, and then a darkened silhouette wearing a crown with horns, and ancient armor shrouded in leaves. In a voice that echoes like thunder the figure speaks, "Find. It."

((Again, will be composure checks at hard. For those trying to rally guards to defend, it's command + leadership at daunting. To try to carry any of the sick or injured to safety away from this horrorshow, it's strength + athletics at hard, with also departing to one of the other scenes. Any kind of direct attack on the Horned God will be at daunting, and almost certainly suicidal, but can be attempted.))

Liara checks composure at hard. Liara marginally fails.

Audgrim checks composure at hard. Audgrim is successful.

Felicia checks composure at hard. Felicia fails.

Veronica checks composure at hard. Veronica is successful.

Alantir checks composure at hard. Alantir fails.

Katarina checks composure at hard. Katarina fails.

Michael checks composure at hard. Michael fails.

Aconite checks willpower at easy. Aconite is successful.

Tesha checks composure at hard. Tesha is successful.

Felicia checks willpower at normal. Felicia marginally fails.

Corban checks willpower at easy. Corban is successful.

Veronica checks willpower at normal. Veronica is successful.

Aconite checks composure at hard. Aconite marginally fails.

Gael checks composure at hard. Gael is successful.

Adalyn checks willpower at easy. Adalyn is successful.

Deva checks willpower at normal. Deva is successful.

Adalyn checks composure at hard. Adalyn is successful.

Michael checks command and leadership at daunting. Michael fails.

Corban checks command and leadership at daunting. Corban is successful.

Aconite manages to get herself under control from the locust long enough to notice things just got much worse. Aco's face goes bloodless and though her hand adjusts it's grip on her hairpin she turns and runs as fast as her long legs can carry her while compating the swarm and writhing masses underfoot.

Deva checks command and leadership at daunting. Deva fails.

Alantir checks command and leadership at daunting. Alantir fails.

Adalyn checks command and leadership at daunting. Adalyn is successful.

All throughout the city of Bastion, the skies are full of swarming locusts. Oddly, the swarm seems to be mostly centered around the castle of Grayhold.

All around Gael, the world's swallowed by an unnatural quiescence; his vision rises, and a blackened mask of shadow blots out the upper space of his countenance by the dark skies overhead as he looks, and sees, and makes sense of the shape that turns from an over-abundance of bugs into a congealed paste with a resemblance of humanoid. The Horned God. "What would you do, Stillwater?" He asks, but Driskell's not here -- only him, and his hoarse voice that is thick with fear. With apprehension. But Gael rallies well, his hand tightens around the handle of his sword, and his torch's at the ready. As souls grow dimmer and damper all around him with the burgeoning spread of terror, Gael's stood stark against this backdrop of despair -- he is stalwart. And from his lips, a quiet prayer to the Lady of Change, cycles, and purification is let vent.

Tesha checks command and leadership at daunting. Tesha marginally fails.

Veronica checks command and leadership at daunting. Veronica fails.

Felicia probably knows somewhere in her brain that staying where she is isn't a good idea... but with the bugs crawling all over her, and the birds... and then that /thing/ her brain says panic. Run. Survive. Staying curled up where she is, is as much because she's that terrified as any conscious desire to do her duty. But there's definitely lots of whimpering in a near ball going on right now as she silently tries to force herself to action, scrambling to find something to tie over her face with muffled sobs.

It's a good thing Deva is being dragged along by Alantir, because she otherwise might very well be lost in the haze and chaos. "Help Princess Liara," she sputters to the Valardin man guiding her forward. Perhaps it's the comfort of his steady hand that helps snap her into the moment, because she manages to shake off the heebie-jeebies and some of the bugs out of her hair so she can focus more on the task at hand. While she may be able to get herself to rights, she cannot find her voice to rally those around her. "Gather around and-- oh, bloody..." Nope. Noooope. The sight of the Horned God soundly ruins any attempt at inspiring any sense of leadership. "What is he looking for?!" is hissed through gritted teeth, while her grip tightens on her bow as another hand flounders toward her quiver.

Well - that explains it. Not that Audgrim is susprised that the Traitor is here - the locusts gave that way. The crows, they startle him though, and then... then those millions of bugs coalesce into a shape. A horned dark god. He stops in stunned awe and fear, then shakes out of it by some small miracle. He hisses at Michael, trying to stay out of sight - however that will work; "He's here for /something/! What is that? Do you know?" He's spying forward to try to find Liara.

From the direction of the harbor, a full sized boat soars through the air, dropping debris and providing a view of the hull as it soars overhead clear across the city and lands somewhere in the noble district of the city.

Liara's forward pace abruptly falters as the insects come together until that humanoid shape manifests. With her visor lowered, her expression is quite inscrutable, but she's still, other than for the clenching of a gauntleted first and a subtle tilt of her head, her chin lifting as she looks forward. She's quite silent too, apart from what would pass for an audible gasp, were it not for the general chaos. A question's asked, but she doesn't answer, and the soldiers gathering, such as there are, receive no immediate direction.

Eventually, finally, Veronica gets herself under better control. She struggles with the locusts still swarming, but is able to subside the tide of panic that first overtook her as they attacked. This, she accomplishes just in time to see the ground bubbling up with centipedes and other insects, that seem to be chanting--and then changing, taking on a humanoid form. Her eyes widen, though she doesn't gawk for long. Instead, she shakes herself, tries to bring her force of will to bear. "Guards, loyal soldiers of Bastion, hold your places!" She calls. Her voice is lost in the hurricane of buzzing and clicking and thunderous unholy speech.

Drawing in on himself, Corban takes a deep breath and centers himself. Soothes himself. Finds his center. He is here. He is present. He is Sir Corban Telmar, First Captain of the King's Own, Executive Officer of the Silver Swords, one of the bravest knights that Arvum has ever known. He raises his voice. A steady clarion call. "Evacuate the wounded and injured! Rally to the High Lord! Stand firm and hold the keep!" But he clutches his sword tight, not daring to rush the insect ... thing ... before them.

There is something profoundly unnatural about the thing which had emerged from beneath the earth -- something primordial, something visceral. Alantir cannot look away. He says something, an attempt to convey a command to the footmen present, but it is drowned out by the locusts converging upon the courtyard. Fortunately, he isn't distracted -- horrified? -- enough to have lost his grip upon his longsword.

Tesha still can't seem to find the right setting on her voice to get people to listen. She turns just in enough time to see the shape that is in the darkness though and her already pale face pales some more. "We have to get people out of here!" she calls over to...anyone really. If people couldn't fight...they were going to just die. Then she hears Corban and there is a moment she feels the doom settling in, but she shakes that off and tries to muster more courage.

Michael's sword to his shield is not quite enough to rally anyone closer to him or closer to the High Lord. But at the very least, it keeps Audgrim and others knowing where he is. "You're asking the wrong person for insight into this!" He pushes through the locusts to try and be at wherever Liara is before whatever is coalescing gets to. It takes quite some time before the figure of Liara can be seen through the swarm. At least, someone who looks like her.

Audgrim checks mana and stealth at daunting. Audgrim is successful.

The sound of Katarina's familiar voice cuts through the chaos, reaching Adalyn and giving her something to focus upon, seemingly pulling her from her frenzied terror. Finally managing to secure the scrap of fabric around the lower half of her face, she blinks through the swarm and calls out a rallying cry to the guards. "Remember why you fight, remember all you defend! And what could be lost!" Her fingers curl white-knuckled around the shaft of her spear, her lips moving - perhaps a curse, possibly a prayer? - as she stares at the horrifyingly ominous humanoid shape that has formed.

Katarina rallies for a moment, calling for people to follow her, braving chaos, all those things... and then finds herself face-to-face with elemental horror. The insectoid amalgamated-man that seems to preside over the mayhem is enough to make Katarina freeze in place. She can't even turn her head to look at a boat sailing through the air. Golden eyes are wide and staring at /him/. It's not enough that the world is falling /apart/ around Katarina -- for a long moment, it's also falling /away/.

Audgrim stops and closes his eyes for a second. He has locusts and centipedes all over him. He tilts his head as if almost listening to something, or focusing inwards - and slowly, the centipedes and locusts just drift away from him and start ignoring him. He opens his eyes, amber gaze now having a strange purple shine to them - briefly. Then he starts stalking towards Liara, now unbothered by the bugs, his steps light as he choses any shadowy areas. Quite visible by every person, but the bugs don't seem to bother him any longer.

Gael's eyes narrow, and his rusty voice takes on a jagged edge of defiance to answer the all-consuming darkness. "If She cannot hear us, then She will honor our sacrifice. So must it be." He sounds tired. Resigned. But above all, resolute. Gael is at the front now -- a few set steps before Liara and Michael as to shield them, head tilted back to look up, torch bristling with the glister of fire at its crackling tip now in hand. Sweat rolls down his body in sheets, his thoughts go hazy with sudden heat, and a dim sense of unease takes root in the pit of his stomach. But he doesn't move.

From the direction of the southern streets of Bastion, an unholy shockwave of tremors emits from the ground. Then a massive centipede, taller than many of the buildings peeks its head up as it tosses several human beings into the sky and screeches before descending again.

Every crow, hundreds of them in the branches easily, seems to look directly at Gael and caws angrily.

Increased screaming erupts in the direction of the western gate, as those who have managed to get out are suddenly attempting to get back /in/. Above the screams, wolf howls are suddenly heard, horrible and wrong to the ears.

Despite everything, Adalyn does manage to rally some of the soldiers and now there's a defensive line of desperate guardsmen forming up around Adalyn, the highlord and others. One exceptionally brave archer in Grayhold takes a shot at the Horned God, with the arrow turning to dust as it hits his breastplate, and then the archer immediately explodes into a fountain of gore that coats the upper wall of the parapet he was stationed at. The ground starts shaking, and with a defeaning sound dozens of massive insectoid shapes burst forth. At a glance, one could think they were bull-sized beetles, except for the writhing black tentacles on the back, the spikes that look more like a hedgehog, and the maw that's more like a shark than an insect. The Horned God speaks in a voice that echoes, "There." A section of the wall of Grayhold promptly explodes outward, massive cobblestones flying, and members of House Grayson can recognize through the dusty haze an entrance that's now exposed to the outside. The Grayson Crypt, where much of the royalty of the Compact of the past thousand years have been laid to rest.

A score of the demon-beetles swarm forward, and the first ones that take a step on the stairs down to the crypt scream and explode in a burst of blue fire and light, ancient symbols in the air brightening in brilliant light. But each successive demon running into the ward dims it further, and then there's the sound of a thunder crack as it shatters, and in a matter of moments, demons swarm down into the crypt.

A dozen demon-beetles move around the courtyard, and there's another word given by the Horned God. "Feed."

((This is where it gets very dangerous. For anyone that's succeeded all composure checks thus far, it's at easy to continue to be able to act, and willpower checks for those that had their first failure before. If you already succeeded at one, you're still fine and can just act.

Those wishing to direct troops against the beetles in defense, can do command + war at daunting. On a failure, you need to roll a dodge at daunting to avoid being eaten by a demon bug. A botch on the command + war will take demon bug damage directly.

For those wanting to flee and help escort others to safety, it'll be a dexterity check at hard to avoid taking damage from the bug swarm.

Any other actions page me.))

Felicia checks willpower at normal. Felicia marginally fails.

Katarina checks willpower at normal. Katarina fails.

Alantir checks willpower at normal. Alantir is successful.

Liara checks willpower at easy. Liara is successful.

Audgrim checks composure at easy. Audgrim is successful.

Michael checks composure at easy. Michael is successful.

Liara checks command and war at daunting. Liara marginally fails.

Michael checks command and war at daunting. Michael fails.

Liara checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Liara fails.

Alantir checks command and war at daunting. Alantir fails.

Corban checks command and war at daunting. Corban marginally fails.

Michael checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Michael is successful.

Deva checks command and war at daunting. Deva is successful.

Corban checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Corban is successful.

Tesha checks willpower at easy. Tesha is successful.

Adalyn checks command and war at daunting. Adalyn fails.

Alantir checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Alantir is successful.

Adalyn checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Adalyn fails.

Felicia finally finds a scrap of cloth in her gear and manages to place it against her face. Tying it on is still too much effort right now. Even the sounds and noises around here are a distant consideration in the internal argument between flee in terror and stand her ground. Or, well, the small square she's curled up on at the moment. Clutching Wheelspinner's hilt and trying desperately to find the strength to get up.

Gael checks dexterity at hard. Gael marginally fails.

Veronica checks command and war at daunting. Veronica fails.

Veronica checks dexterity and dodge at daunting. Veronica marginally fails.

Tesha checks command and war at daunting. Tesha is successful.

Liara checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Liara fails.

Liara has suffered a serious wound!

Liara checks 'unconsciousness save' at easy. Liara is successful.

Liara remains capable of fighting.

Adalyn checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Adalyn is successful.

Despite the terrible damage, Adalyn does not take a permanent wound.

Deva sees the poor archer fizzle into a crimson puddle, and one can see the shift in attitude on her face as she looks between the Horned God and her own bow. "Nevermind," she grunts lowly, jaw tightening with resolve as she looks around. One breath, two breaths, and for a half a beat she closes her eyes to steel her resolve. Then she strides forward, determined and assuming a more commanding position and tone. "Press forward, soldiers! Keep light on your feet and circle in!" she cries out confident and clear as a bell to nearby troops, while keeping an arrow notched as she strives to direct a defense against the beetles by example. There is a snarl that accompanies a sidelong look toward the Horned God as her eyes narrow grimly.

Having rallied some of the troops, Corban begins to try to push them towards the Crypt, to defend what remains there, to push forward towards the McGuffin, whatever it might be. He finds himself terribly distracted by ... something, gazing at the Metallic Traitor, shaking off whatever it is in his head. But his squad finds itself enveloped by the bugs, the knight's sword flashing as he manages to step through the terrible things.

"We stood on a wall once before impossible odds," he murmurs. "Time to do it again."

Collecting herself from the initial shock, Liara reaches to her side, finally pulling Elvesbane free of its scabbard. Mostly a gesture, considering the circumstances. She goes as if to raise her voice, but what comes out is hoarse, an utterance of the word, "Rally," then she seems to spit inside her helmet, apparently trying to collect herself further. Too late, though, and one of the monstrous beasts breaks the scant cordon, catching her left arm and dragging the Princess of Bastion, who lunges at it-- quite ineffectually-- to the ground with a clatter of metal.

The young Inquisitor sets her face in a determined frown as the assault continues, as part of the castle explodes, as monster beetles begin attacking. "Come now, FORWARD!" She calls to anyone who can hear amist the swarm. It isn't many, if any at all. Attempting to fight the beetles is challenging; chitinous hides and vicious spiked tentacles lash, and Veronica comes away bloodied from the overwhelming odds. Still, she doesn't falter, and remains standing, moving closer to those yet remaining and rallying.

The Compact of Arvum is a long way off from mastering alprazolam, clonazepam, chlordiazepoxide, diazepam, lorazepam, and any of the other feats of alchemical magick that might be what Princess Katarina Valardin needs right now. Her eyes are still on the Horned God, for the most part. She looks around at Bastion crumbling around her -- at demon beetles swarming -- down, at the bugs swarming her feet -- at good men and women being cut down -- over at her friends' blood being spilled -- and then back at the Horned God. She's speechless. She doesn't know what to do. She thinks she might be having a heart attack. Or a brain attack. Or both.

As the deluge of monster-bugs come swarming in, and a shower of exploding hemolymph proceeds them across the rutty-patched stretch of the courtyard once most of them bottleneck into the protected crypt, Gael snaps into action. "Highlord!" The title rings out like an explosion from Gael's creased lips -- an awakening call as Liara is struck. He surges swiftly to her side, waving his blade in warding and violent arcs at the insect as he arrives at her side. An arm seeks hers, and its strength aims to lift her off of the ground and drag her away -- to safety. It may or may not involve fighting preternatural bug-things.

Via some miracle the Valardin prince has snapped out of his stupor, but it's very nearly too late -- he narrowly avoids the jaws of one of the horrific beetles by leaping (awkwardly stumbling) aside as it barrels forward, the thing driven by some eldritch and intangible bloodlust.

Audgrim curses quietly but something truly foul, seeing the crypt being breeches. "I guess it's in there," he grimaces, and then takes another shuddering breath. He reaches Liara - a second or two too late, watching her being bowled over. "Your grace!" He weaves forward to help her. "Your grace - you might wanna consider leaving this area. I can help you out, or carry you if you can't walk." As Gael thinks the same, he nods at him. "I can start moving people out. I got a better chance avoiding the smaller bugs, at least."

Michael is quick to step up and /discourage/ further attempts upon Liara's life by nearly flailing his blade in the direction of a monstrous creature with zero in the way of consequences for the attempt. "If she tries to resist you, take her anyways!" The Duke is quick to encourage Gael and Audgrim in getting Liara to somewhere a tad safer!

Adalyn wears a look of quiet pride for the soldiers who rally despite the chaos raging all around them - pride that swiftly fades to horror as she catches sight of the braver archer's abrupt demise. "Onward! Do not waver!" It's meant to be another rallying cry, but this one is far less effective than her first attempt, her voice sounding thin and tenuous in the wake of exploding soldiers and swarming demon-beetles. When one of the beetles flies straight at her, she shrieks out a yell that is part defiance, part terror and pain.

Tesha might have tried to channel her uncle Arn given the circumstances. He died taking on things like this...but she was not going to die today if she could help it. She finds a stone that she can stand on and wills her voice to be the strongest it has ever been. And it works! She pushes the fear of the giant GOD forsaken centipede and the giant horny atrocity to back of her mind and she focuses on saving people. "Those who are not fighting, MOVE OUT. Help those who are wounded to get to safety." she calls out as she points her sword towards the evacuation route that most have chosen. "Do not linger here if you want to flee, none will judge you, but for the love of the Gods make your decisions quickly and move with haste!" she orders as a stony expression comes to her features.

With great roars and gibbering voices that sound nothing at all like bugs, and triumphant screeching filling the night air, some demons burst out from the Grayson Crypt, writhing tentacles carrying what looks to be a mid sized golden jewelry case. Certainly some of the royals of House Grayson were buried adorned with prized possessions, but the box adorned with the Griffins of House Grayson's sigil is not one the highlord or any other member of Grayson has ever seen before- something secret, and long kept safe. The box lifts from the tentacles, now surrounded by a pulsing black cloud stretching from the Horned God's raised hand to the box, and flies through the air to float above his right hand. A loud, barking lough with a hint of insect-like buzzing pierces the air, as the Horned God contemptuously turns to walk back through the blasted opening in the wall.

The troops rallied by Tesha and Deva fight boldly against the demon bug line, with dozens of pikemen, swordsmen and archers finally piercing one enough that it collapses seeping dark ichor, a half dozen torn apart soldiers falling before it does. But more remain, and at least one is trying to move towards one of the houses that Grayson servants are sheltering.

"GET THE HIGHLORD TO SAFETY!" The soldiers are determined to not let the demon bugs get at Liara, and for most, that's their principle concern- the rest can wait.

((For those wanting to fight the bug trying to get at the servants, it'll be a dex + weapon (any) at daunting. For those helping hold the line still and get the soldiers to keep fighting, it'll be war checks for offensive, or leadership to keep them from breaking morale wise as they are getting hammered. Any other actions can page to me. ))

Katarina checks willpower at normal. Katarina is successful.

Felicia checks willpower at normal. Felicia is successful.

Gael checks dexterity and huge wpn at daunting. Gael is marginally successful.

Katarina checks command and leadership at daunting. Katarina is successful.

Alantir checks dexterity and medium wpn at daunting. Alantir is successful.

Michael checks command and leadership at daunting. Michael is successful.

Adalyn checks dexterity and medium wpn at daunting. Adalyn fails.

Deva checks dexterity and archery at daunting. Deva marginally fails.

Veronica checks dexterity and medium wpn at daunting. Veronica fails.

Corban checks dexterity and medium wpn at daunting. Corban fails.

Tesha checks command and war at daunting. Tesha is successful.

Liara checks command and leadership at daunting. Liara marginally fails.

Felicia checks dexterity and medium wpn at daunting. Botch! Felicia fails completely.

Deva changes course once the troops get rolling in their bug squishing. There is a nod and a smile toward Tesha from afar. "Good job," she calls out, but she sounds more distracted than anything as she lines up a shot for the bug heading for the servants. It's too quick a moving target for her, and the arrow narrowly misses piercing the carapace. "You good Alantir?" she calls out, trying to look through the chaos. "Princess Liara secure?" is her other question, but it's hard to see it all! Staring then at the Horned God, and the box hoving above his grasp, she seems to be struggling with some decision in her mind as she slowly reaches for another arrow.

Dragged to her feet, Liara has a moment's respite - such as anyone's going to get right here, at least. Her left arm's limp, useless. She takes a couple of stumbling steps after her rescuers, but, evidently intent on being stubborn about it, turns again, lifting Elvesbane aloft with her functioning arm. No words are coming though, nothing suitable to the occasion or to inspire finding its way to her just now.

Sir Corban charges out after the giant bug that advances on the helpless servants of the Grayson household, unable to strike away those that lurk before him, his sharp alaricite blade cutting against the world before him but unable to find purchase. "What //is// that thing?" he calls against the storm, unable to catch what the demons carry.

Gael more than happily bequeaths Liara into Audgrim's aiding hands once he sees the leatherworker, recognition dawning across his dire and harsh expression when agitated greys meet shimmering purples. Shimmering purples? Oh dear. "Do so, master Veilandir! I'm rote to leave -- there's far too many fighting here still! Go!" He blurts and tells him. It's quick, swift, a clear-and-concise method of communication as violence drags on. After, already Gael turns to the fight, joining the haphazard rally of soldiers alongside Michael now cobbled together to help maintain the line and fight -- fight for all he's got.

It's when he sees them. The refugees. All self-involved concern for safety and bodily integrity goes out the window when first Gael's hears the frightened howls of despairing civilians within the sieged abode. He fires off like a match, enflamed, Flamestrike in hand. It is perhaps foolish, certainly fool-hardy, but his face -- mangled, marked with a pattern like a whipped back -- contours furiously at the caparaced entities as he enters their fray. Dodging, tumbling around, swinging his sword where he can -- it's a mess.

Upon spotting a great beetle shift its attention toward the lone guardsman shuffling toward an equally-vulnerable Grayson structures, presumably full of noncombatants, Alantir breaks from the line of assembled troops and rushes to intercept it. "Civilians!" he shouts, words likely for Deva. He strikes precisely and viciously, using the momentum of his charge to empower the initial blow.

Audgrim checks dexterity and archery at daunting. Audgrim fails.

Audgrim nods to Gael, and turns to walk - the smaller centipedes are still avoiding him and will hopefully make Liara's life a little easier if she stays close to him. But when she stops he does too and turns to her with a grimace. "Your grace," he half growls. He looks around desperately, lifts his bow and lets fly an arrow - it won't do any harm except possible to some wall. "The longer you stay, the more people got to protect you," he says with brutal honesty.

Oh no! Michael rallies the troops starting to break, with one in particular in the center of a line getting his shield to his back a moment as he starts to stumble backwards. Then Michael is stepping through to join their ranks, with shield clattering to other shields to form a defense against mangling bugs of doom!

Adalyn checks 'unconsciousness save' at easy. Adalyn is successful.

Adalyn remains capable of fighting.

Felicia checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Felicia is successful.

Despite the terrible damage, Felicia does not take a permanent wound.

Katarina can feel her heart beating like every pump of her aorta is squeezing on her temples. The sound of her own ragged breath against her makeshift facemask drowns out anything else, including the screams of the dying and the chitinous clatter of millions of little, little, little feet. She pulls the cover away from her mouth and shuts her eyes tightly, running her fingers up through her hair and trying to stop herself from crying. The Princess draws in a deep breath, and mutters something to herself, trying to find her zen. In all the furor, a single murmur probably can't be overheard, but something about a pier? That's enough, though. When Katarina opens her eyes, she's steady. She strides forward on short legs, stomping bugs in her golden shoes as she goes. The Eurusi Princess must look quite a sight: dress torn, no armor, legs bitten to hell by insects, a dagger in one hand, and yet out in the fray, stomping toward soldiers. "Keep your nerve!" she calls. "Cities can only fall when women and men surrender them -- so let there be no surrender lurking in your spirits! If there is none greater, then let these monsters know it... and show them that the home of Alarice the Great will not fall to things that crawl in the dirt and squash under our heels...!"

Felicia finally manages to force herself to her feet and flails out at the first bug-like thing she spots, more by instinct than anything else. Some additional time to think and consider her attack would have probably been in her better interest. The strike is wide and leaves her offbalance and wide open for the responding blow.

Tesha feels like they're all going to die and it's not a good feeling. The Horned God makes his way through the blasted wall and goes to claim whatever the heck that box is and the despair starts to set in. What was it? She didn't have time to think about that though, she needed to think about shoring up the offenses and to make sure that no one else was going to die. No one else was going to die, right? Maybe with the Horned God having what he wanted the attack would die down. Or they'd destroy everything. "HOLD THE LINE!" she calls to those that are making their offense against the intruders.

Adalyn staggers, but manages to stay upright. She's bloodied and slightly unsteady on her feet after her first tangle with a demon-beetle, but there's little time to focus upon injuries with innocent lives being threatened. She lunges forward, thrusting her spear toward a nearby bug and hissing when her attempted strike lands wide, opening her up to an answering attack.

From the direction of the docks, thunderous sounds of destruction are heard again along with roars of what sounds very much like pain, loud enough to shake the remaining buildings of the city.

The ranks are closing and falling back--and perhaps the enemy has what they came for. Veronica moves back with the other defenders as the beetles close, as the golden casket is pulled from the wreckage of the crypt by the Horned God's evil magic. She continues to strike at the beetles--and sometimes idly even at the smaller insects as she contracts with the rest of the fighting lines outside the palace.

Staying with Liara, and shooting at one of the large bugs - Audgrim is being near bowled over by one of them, but manages to stay on his feet. There is some blood dripping from the back of his thigh but whatever injury he sustained it doesn't seem to bother him as he stays near Liara to protect her

Though her reply comes hoarsely, Liara does manage one for Audgrim, though probably before the creature has a go at him. "What says it to my people, to the Gods, even to our foe, if even the Princess of Bastion must flee her home?"

Audgrim wields Risk, a diamondplate and cupridium shortsword.

Audgrim glowers a bit at Liara, over his shoulder - he's sort of circling her, very close - it keeps the bugs off her somewhat, and gives him a chance to react. He's drawn his sword now instead, diamondplate and cupridium shining. "Right, right. Honor and oaths and what not."

Audgrim mutters, "... I ... ... ... ... ... Lord of ... ... my shoulder and ... Haha."

With great roars and gibbering voices that sound nothing at all like bugs, and triumphant screeching filling the night air, some demons burst out from the Grayson Crypt, writhing tentacles carrying what looks to be a mid sized golden jewelry case. Certainly some of the royals of House Grayson were buried adorned with prized possessions, but the box adorned with the Griffins of House Grayson's sigil is not one the highlord or any other member of Grayson has ever seen before- something secret, and long kept safe. The box lifts from the tentacles, now surrounded by a pulsing black cloud stretching from the Horned God's raised hand to the box, and flies through the air to float above his right hand. A loud, barking lough with a hint of insect-like buzzing pierces the air, as the Horned God contemptuously turns to walk back through the blasted opening in the wall.

The troops rallied by Tesha and Deva fight boldly against the demon bug line, with dozens of pikemen, swordsmen and archers finally piercing one enough that it collapses seeping dark ichor, a half dozen torn apart soldiers falling before it does. But more remain, and at least one is trying to move towards one of the houses that Grayson servants are sheltering.

"GET THE HIGHLORD TO SAFETY!" The soldiers are determined to not let the demon bugs get at Liara, and for most, that's their principle concern- the rest can wait.

((For those wanting to fight the bug trying to get at the servants, it'll be a dex + weapon (any) at daunting. For those helping hold the line still and get the soldiers to keep fighting, it'll be war checks for offensive, or leadership to keep them from breaking morale wise as they are getting hammered. Any other actions can page to me. ))

With a raised hand, and the box in tow, scores of the demon bugs begin to follow the Horned God as he starts to stride towards the breach in the walls, the ground clearing of insects with each of his footfalls and leaving black smoking charred earth behind. Though wounded by Gael's strike, the huge demon bug batters at the door with screams of panic coming from the servants inside, before it turns in annoyance at the wound left from Gael and tries to envelope him in its monstrous maw. .

Five of the beasts continue to press at the soldiers, with numerous being bitten in half, and the night black inky tentacles on their back whip at soldiers and tear some limb from limb, while spikes also burst off of their backs like spears, to say nothing of their maws. There's definitely some panic in the Grayson line, and their courage is holding by a thread.

((Michael is going to try to direct combat to make it easier for the PCs- if he SUCCEEDS at his roll, difficulty drops all the way down to normal for all weapon rolls this round. With the horned god leaving the field, leadership rolls to keep the troops from breaking are now at hard. Anyone that attacked a beetle last round that is going to try to attack again is going to try to get nommed, with a dex + dodge roll at hard as well, before your offensive combat checks. Anything else can page me.))

Gael checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Critical Success! Gael is spectacularly successful.

Michael checks command and leadership at hard. Michael is successful.

Felicia checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Felicia is successful.

Liara checks command and leadership at hard. Liara marginally fails.

Alantir checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Alantir fails.

Veronica checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Veronica is successful.

Audgrim checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Audgrim is successful.

Veronica checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Veronica is successful.

Adalyn checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Adalyn is successful.

Audgrim wields Chance, a dignified diamondplate bow.

Deva checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Deva fails.

Adalyn checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Adalyn is successful.

Audgrim checks dexterity and archery at normal. Audgrim marginally fails.

Gael checks dexterity and huge wpn at normal. Gael marginally fails.

Katarina has been rallying the troops, but her eyes once again stray to the Horned God, the figure who inspired such fear and panic in her just moments ago. He has what he wants -- and so he's leaving, with thirty or so of his giant insect friends. Katarina, still not wearing armor, begins to run /toward/ the direction of the fleeing Horned God. She's not long-legged enough to actually catch up to him or his bugs. One of her shoes comes off while she runs. She stops once she's close enough to /yell/ at this eldritch monster-man-thing while he carts off his prize, her voice quaking with imperial fury as she reverts to her mother tongue.

Tesha checks command and leadership at hard. Tesha is successful.

Felicia checks mana and occult at daunting. Felicia fails.

"HOLD THE LINE!" A clarion call from hell, riding off of Tesha's frayed vocal folds, but here down deep in the confounding violence wherein soldiers skate precariously to the edge of death's abyss it is sadly muffled. Her command a forgettable din to him, fifth to the four major necessaries before Gael of Maelstrom now: swinging his sword, avoiding getting gored, saving civilians, making it out alive. Making it out alive. Life. Living.

Living...? He feels it before truly seeing it, this massive horn coming down upon his being -- this plummeting form of unholy strength, curving and declining, attempting to swallow him. His eyes snap -- no, they explode -- open from the brief reverie, sclera red with an adrenal surge and pattern of hyperfocus. He ducks. Rolls away from the maw. Leather is pliable to his movement, chainmail reorients along, allowing him this chance; this momentous circumvention of being so morbidly undone. When again he swells adeptly to his feet, his right and rising shoulder barges violently into Alantir's plate-coated form from behind, the movement aiding his momentum's landing to desperately push him out of harm's way.

When time comes to retaliate, Gael's sword shifts swiftly with the flick of a maneuvering wrist, but there's not enough force; not enough drive. Flamestrike skids harmlessly across the beast's carapace upon landing, leaving behind but nothing. Not a dent.

Katarina says in Eurusi, "And what happens when you succeed, son of A'kioh?! What happens when you do the work of Mutay'a'sib and his cultists for them?! Is that part of your plan, to be consumed by Baalphrigor, just like everything else will be, when every chain is broken -- including his?!"

Michael shouts from nearby, ""Save the inhabitants! Everyone! On me and charge!" Michael's call rings out as he turns towards where the bug is trying to slam through the door into that house! He is up front and first to begin the charge while his sword clatters a thunderous tumult against his shield. Duke Bisland does not glance to see if others follow him. That would make him seem unconfident, and he is very very confident. The other soldiers and guards near him turn to follow him and surround that bug to ensure all sides are under assault!"

"Save the inhabitants! Everyone! On me and charge!" Michael's call rings out as he turns towards where the bug is trying to slam through the door into that house! He is up front and first to begin the charge while his sword clatters a thunderous tumult against his shield. Duke Bisland does not glance to see if others follow him. That would make him seem unconfident, and he is very very confident. The other soldiers and guards near him turn to follow him and surround that bug to ensure all sides are under assault!

This night is not going well, the high lord is down, and the enemy has made off with their prize. But at least they may preserve the city and protect the citizens. Veronica dashes aside from a burst of spear-like spikes, coming to her feet with a grunt of effort. Others seem to have the house-attacker well in hand, so she aims her blows at one of the several remaining, yelling simple incoherencies as she hacks away, seeking vulnerabilities in the chitinous shell and avoiding clicking mandibles and sharp limbs. This time, her blows find more purchase, as she works on the flanks of those surrounding the housebreaker, eyes flashing with fury at assault on the Compact.

"Bloody Ab-" Audgrim begins but decides that right NOW, saying 'abyss' is probably a terrible idea. Or at least it might be taken the wrong way. He shuffles Liara along with the rest as Michael charges, but he stops where there's a boulder he can half-hide the High lady behind - at least he HOPES she does that. "High Lady, keep near me, wall against this boulder," he begs her. He lets fly an arrow, that thuds into the wall past the giant tentacled bug, then ducks down as one of those tentacles whips right past him, nudging his warcowl.

Felicia got swatted like so much chaff by one of the bugs, dredging herself to her feet unsteadily with a wince at the various things that are now complaining loudly at her. Rather than immediately try to charge back in she stands among the rubble and seemingly shouts towards the crypt,"Dead of Grayson, hear my plea and come to our aid!" as if the crazy woman seriously expects the skeletons to actually rise up and do something.

Deva checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Deva fails.

Deva has suffered a serious wound!

Deva checks 'unconsciousness save' at easy. Deva is successful.

Deva remains capable of fighting.

For mere seconds, Adalyn's gaze lifts to track the movements of the box-toting Horned God, but then her full focus is torn back to the battle that rages - just in time for her to duck the spikes of an incoming beetle. Relying on a surge of adrenaline, she lifts her voice in a loud, defiant yell, a wordless battle cry screamed into the chaotic surroundings as she charges the nearest demon-beetle.

Most of what Liara does by now is engage in her stubborn, perhaps frustrating, intention to just keep on being there -- worse still for poor Audgrim, while, sure, she follows, she elects to very much stay on her feet near the boulder. Again, she finds no words to inspire, and all that's forthcoming is a brief utterance to Audgrim, "They are falling," and then she wobbles in a step nearer to the boulder as a tentacle flails by, the shoulder of her injured arm coming to lean against it.

Tesha's words might miss some, but not others. Sadly that is what being on the field does sometimes. The Lady of the Telmarch tries to keep the line from breaking but she knows that it's going to do it eventually. And there are still others to get to. She hears Michael's call to follow him and there's a moment taken of debate, she wasn't in her armor, given the occasion she didn't expect to need it. She decides to keep to the defense of those here. Michael was not in need of her helping with a sword, she was laible to stab him instead of a bug.

It's large and impossibly vicious. What's more, it is resilient -- capable of withstanding blow after blow and not buckling beneath the weight of its massive carapace. With unexpected speed, the beetle lunges. Alantir is too slow to react. And then he's forced aside by another combatant -- an ally -- and the thing's maw catches an armored forearm. The alternative? Chest or abdomen. He retaliates against the beast, or attempts to, and then offers Gael a respectful (thankful) nod.

Alantir checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Alantir is successful.

Deva checks dexterity and archery at normal. Deva is successful.

Corban checks mana and occult at daunting. Corban is successful.

From the harbor, a shrill, piercing, unearthly scream is heard, "NOOO! MY BABY!"

"What the hell is happening in rest of town," Audgrim wonders, wincing at that unearthly scream.

When the tide of battle begins to turn with the Horned God beginning to flee from the Castle, Sir Corban does not chase after the bugs. No. Instead, he pauses himself, centers himself in the midst of the swarming battle and screams and gore all around him and appears to look ... elsewhere. At something off in the middle distance where the Metallic Traitor runs, here but not.

Howls go up again from the west, but they're moving away quickly now. The screaming from that direction is...much diminished, but still so very, very present.

Deva is not having a great time, and releases an awful scream of her own as a demon bug starts -eating- through her leathers. Is there any medicine in Arvum that will keep that from being infected?! A question for the healers later. As it sinks its nasty demon beetle teeth in, she releases a feral growl and shoots it in the head at close range. "I suppose we can all add insect extermiantion to our list of skills," she announces with a bitter laugh. Hopefully there isn't another one coming for her other leg. Bloodied, the Redrain clenches her teeth and looks around for companions as well as some high ground to scramble onto.

The soldiers are frantically fighting back against the demon bugs, holding on just barely, though a few have turned and run in a panic. The line has not yet dissolved, but it's clearly buckling under the strain. The swarm of locusts have started to follow the Horned God's path, as well as the carpet of insects and centipedes following him out. And then Katarina speaks to him in Eurusi, and as a one, every locust in the air, every centipede and insect on the ground pauses- frozen as in place, and the Horned God slowly turns towards her, baleful and hateful eyes fixed on her, as he speaks in contemptuous sylv'alfar.

The Horned God says in Sylv'alfar, "One of Obsidian's dogs here? Of course. Your master will have no idea of my plans. It is already far, far too late for him to act to stop him, and we shall see him and every one of you simpering children of Skald precisely where they deserve to be: in chains, at my feet, forevermore. And know, Huntsman, that when that day comes, I will force you to sing my praises every day for your insolence."

His words being uttered, the Horned God makes a dismissive gesture and a tree near him twists with a sound that is all too much like a human scream, pulling apart to have a black void in its center, through which he and the demon bugs all follow through trailing him. The tree closes behind, and all the locusts immediately fly far into the sky, and the centipedes burrow back into the earth...

Which just leaves the matter of three of the great demon bugs still trying to murder each and every one of them. As the locusts and centipedes fade, troops have begun to pour out of Grayhold, reinforcing the courtyard.

((OOC: Final round. Gael, Tesha, Michael- bugs are taking a bite at you each, so dex + dodge at hard. Everyone else, can do weapon checks for direct attacks, or war checks at -normal- to direct troops, due to the reinforcements.))

Gael checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Gael fails.

Michael checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Critical Success! Michael is spectacularly successful.

Alantir checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Alantir is successful.

Deva checks dexterity and archery at normal. Deva is successful.

Felicia checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Felicia is successful.

Veronica checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Veronica is successful.

Audgrim checks dexterity and archery at normal. Critical Success! Audgrim is spectacularly successful.

Liara checks command and war at normal. Liara is successful.

Katarina checks command and war at normal. Katarina is successful.

Tesha checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Botch! Tesha fails completely.

Adalyn checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Adalyn is successful.

Gael checks dexterity and huge wpn at normal. Gael is successful.

Corban checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Botch! Corban fails badly.

Gael checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Gael is successful.

Despite the terrible damage, Gael does not take a permanent wound.

Tesha checks 'permanent wound save' at hard. Tesha fails.

Tesha has suffered a serious wound!

Tesha checks 'unconsciousness save' at hard. Botch! Tesha fails completely.

Tesha is incapacitated and falls unconscious.

Katarina goes tense when the eyes of Orichalcum -- or the thing that was once Orichalcum -- are upon her. She may or may not be making peace with various gods. She stands her ground, since if she was to cower, or run, she'd just explode while cowering or running. Better to explode while standing on her two feet. The Horned God speaks to her, and then departs... and while Katarina is shaken, it's probably for the best that she doesn't actually /speak/ sylv'alfar. She soaks in the ambience of the monster's menace, but she sure doesn't understand his actual /words/.

And then the Horned God is gone, and Katarina looks behind herself. It all hits her at once -- the destruction, the pain, the blood, her friends and allies hurt, the dead bodies everywhere. Reinforcements are coming, and Katarina steps over to the shoe she lost and tugs it back on before moving to help direct traffic. She looks unhurt other than many, many, many locust bites -- but that moment of contact with the Horned God has shaken her deeply in a way she can't hide.

There is a shout of ... it seems like pain from Sir Corban, yet he is not being eaten by a bug or slashed by a demon or any of that. It's just odd. Whatever it is, he is disoriented enough that he is unable to bring his sword around with any skill to it, swinging at the air before him.

When his cousin falls, however, that is when he shouts out. "Tesha!" He rushes to her, to defend her, and to evacuate her.

Abruptly, all the locusts have flown off, most buzzing off into the sky. Just as sudden as their arrival, they are gone, save for entirely too many bug corpses from swatted bugs lingering anywhere and everywhere.

Felicia stares at the crypts. Nobody? Not a rustle? Damn. After a long moment she elects to scramble up the rubble and help put the finishing flourish on one of the remaining demon bugs and go looking for the high lady.

There are only three demon beetles remaining. Parting gifts, it seems. Veronica joins the defenders in continuing to fight against them, working against their flanks and striking over and over, seeking the vulnerable points, soft abdomens--and avoiding the vicious spikes and sharps that adorn their bodies. "Nearly all done!" She calls, breathing heavily. The departure of the locusts is an enormous blessing, and the centipedes and other awful insects as well. The fight is clearing, even as they must finish off the last few threats. Perhaps the city will live through this night, though with much to worry over for later.

So much screaming. Deva looks around, briefly, toward the harbor. Then back toward the horned god and trees and more bugs and really, it's all too much to witness all at once. The exchange between Katarina and the Horned One is observed with a keen eye and a sharp exhale. "Alan," she catches up to Alantir eventually while dragging a trail of blood in her wake, clearly aiming a shot to assist him in leftover beetle eradication. Concern flashes in her eyes as she looks over to Tesha and the response from others to swoop in. A sharp nod is sent across the way to Veronica, grim agreement in her eyes.

The situation is dire, to say the least - but that the bugs start to move away, despite the horrifying situation that happens in, the Horned GOd turning to SPEAK - something Audgrim has no understanding of, but it makes his blood cold hearing it anyway... "Keep /down/!" he tells Liara, then he jumps up on the boulder. "Duke Michael, shield up!" He leaps on the boulder, trusting the duke to hold the shield up a moment, then he's leaping from that to - an arrow is flying true. It penetrates whatever might be called an eye on one of the giant bugs that thrashes and goes down. Audgrim lands, rolls and blocks some tentacles going for Tesha, keeping some harm from her in the process.

In a battlefield of trees beset by howling winds, Gael is a pillar of concrete, rebar inlaid. He is true to Alantir's side, shoulder-to-shoulder; leather-to-diamondplate. The thankful nod's received, and returned with a brisk and precise acknowledgment through the smallest suggestion of his head's bob. There's bloody work to be done, after all. "I'll distract it, your Highness!" He warns, and tells, the plummed Prince of Valardin beside him. "Strike true!" Is his latest wish, before in a blur of motion, Gael's being dissipates alike a wick of charcoal smoke beside the creature's flank, exposing himself to its devouring maw and drawing its attention.

It serves, for the moment he drives his flamberge into its exposed thorax its mouth comes barreling down, slamming its chittering mandibles hard and *deep* into Gael's shoulder. The Confessor's immediately sunk to heavy and trembling knees under the biting weight, and he screams -- he does so with unhinged terror. Blood explodes out the exposed membrane of the shoulder and showing bone, therein where preternaturally massive teeth dig and scrape. He's essentially *kept* there, pinned under the dying monster. He might get himself out in a bit.

Very likely heartened by the sight of fresh soldiers emerging from Grayhold, their fate hitherto something of a mystery, Liara steps away from the boulder, and this time she finds her voice, a call issued to them from her position out in the open. "Form ranks, form ranks. Pikes up front and advance steadily!" As instructions go, it's pretty simple, but it's enough on this occasion to get the soldiers into a semblance of good order, advancing steadily towards the beasts, a row of spearpoints there to threaten the creatures, perhaps even pen them in as yet more of the people in the yard close in to fell them. Liara is just very bad at keeping down.

Michael is quite busy, honestly! He was batting away bug skewers and keeping soldiers in line to ensure the lines stay held. Then his name is being called and he has /feet/ coming at him! Its only natural that he puts his shoulder forward and lifts his shield to catch them! The strength of the lion holds the frame of Audgrim in the air before pushing hard upwards to give UMPFH to the lift of Audgrim's leap from his shield!

With single-minded purpose, Adalyn aims her spear at one of the few remaining foes. Strategic jabs are thrust repeatedly toward the demon bug, born by the simmering anger and fear that this day has wrought. A joint effort of fighters working in tandem to rid themselves of abyssal foes.

Tesha's luck ran out! The woman with the flame like hair aims her sword at the incoming bug, but...it doesn't impale itself like her plan went. Stupid bug! And she gets tackled like she's carrying something really tasty or whatever the Horned God is carrying. She lets out a cry when she feels pincers pierce. She just got this stuff made, so naturally she is going to get it ruined. Her eyes roll back in her head just as she hears Corban's voice, "I'm fine..." she gives into the darkness as she was going to wave her hand at him.

If there were a narrator it would definitely say: Tesha was indeed not fine.

The thing snaps its maw. Serrated teeth find tissue. Armor is crushed. Gael screams. Alantir wishes to look away, but he cannot -- not until the beast has fallen. Deva lets looses an arrow as he plunges his blade deep into the beetle's innards. Shortly thereafter, when its limbs cease their mechanical death throes, he waves his gauntlet toward the injured confessor. "Assist him -- gods, you're..." She, too, is injured. He can see the scarlet glisten upon her leathers. "Alright. Help me, and we'll see you two off to a healer." Assuming, of course, there were any left alive in the city.

In a raw demonstration of barbaric splendor, and done beneath the repeated howls of Islander-sponsored invective the likes that'd make Donrai Thrax blush, Gael begins violently pushing, punching, pulling at the creature's inert head, essentially *unsheathing* its teeth from inside his torso. Once he's fully dislodged, he doesn't stand up, but rather pitches onto his back across the rutty patch of bug-blood smeared ground behind him. He gazes at the sky, Alantir's head someplace on his periphery. He lays there a moment, staring up at the grey sky beyond the black branches now bereft of crows, breath wheezing raw in his throat. "I'm still alive," he croaks to himself. A droll smile creeps across his face.

Audgrim jumps to his feet, sort of obnoxiously spry and untouched - mostly. There is a little blood and he glances down at his leg, then ignores it and takes stock of the situation. But first, he moves over to the killed giant bug and puts a foot on its head, yanking his arrow out. "Mine," he tells it, then wipes it off on the ground a little. Then he jogs back to the rest, eyes scanning alertly for more trouble. "I'm not even getting PAID for this," the mercenary grouses, giving Liara a pointed look, but it's said with darkest wry humor. Graveyard humor amidst tragedy.

"I feel fucking fantastic," Deva dryly finishes Alantir's sentence for him. She's going to ignore her limp and the mild worry that she's got some crazy demon bug venom now. It's fine. She's fine. With a look toward Gael, she winces while observing the man pummel into the nasty and now very crunched creature. "You're alive and you did great," she compliments with an upnod for the Valardin in understanding. Time to shuffle along.

As the demon bugs fall, they start to immediately dissolve into a combination of ichor and black smoke, charring the ground with a sickly sizzle, but otherwise leaving no evidence they ever existed at all. If one was to ignore the scores of soldiers that had been torn limb from limb, the numerous people with deeply scarred psyches, and the fact that Grayhold now had a wall blasted open and its family crypt despoiled. The carnage around is undeniable, and while the people of Arvum are deeply skeptical to a point that defies all sense, this feels different. No one that lived through the attack on Bastion would be able to describe it as anything other than what it was.

While the loss of life is terrible, none of the most notable of Arx that held the line here died. Tesha needs obvious healing, and others are badly hurt, with the Highlord of House Grayson herself terribly injured. But they survived, and the city, much like its highlord is battered and bloody, but will stand for another day.

And yet, the Horned God clearly had an objective in mind, and he obtained it. A smash and grab on the grandest of scales, but something he took great pleasure in obtaining.

And that, it is safe to say, cannot be good.

Audgrim checks perception and investigation at daunting. Audgrim is successful.

Gael checks perception and investigation at daunting. Gael marginally fails.

Felicia wends her way over to Liara, offering her a brief bow and stepping in close to murmur something lowly to her.

"Oh do you." Michael's sword tip dips to hover over crunched bug bodies and venom and bootprints upon his shield etched in ichor. A wheeze of a weary sigh escapes him before he trods off towards wherever Audgrim had shot arrows. at least Corban will be around to carry off that redhead. "Princess Liara?" Ah! Michael moves to go assist those in securing the city now.

Audgrim can't do anything to help the wounded - a healer he is not. He slinks off at some point to go check the crypt, and he's not the only one thinking that... Maybe he can find something in there to give a clue as to what was taken.

Deva limps her way over to Liara and Michael and whoever else is assembled. "She'll be okay, right?" she asks after Tesha, brows knitting with concern. There's not a lot of mobility from her now, as she finds a sturdy wall to lean against as she lifts her injured leg off the ground. There will be no recreational runs in her near future.

With the very immediate danger passing, Liara finds somewhere to sit. A chunk of rubble, probably. Her left arm's immobile, but with someone's help, she manages to get the griffin-winged helm off. A direction is given to approaching soldiers, "Clear the city. Move steadily. Move survivors here until every last creature is dead." The details of all that, well, that's the problem of someone else. She looks up at Felicia's approach, and a faint nod follows.

Katarina approaches Deva -- she's hurt but not badly. And she's just the right size to be a human crutch, offering herself to lean on in addition to the wall. "Your Highness," she says, quietly, "...once you find somewhere to sit... we should speak."

Audgrim is overheard praising Liara.

"I couldn't agree more," murmurs Deva, sliding an arm around Katarina's shoulders and nodding grimly. There is a Knowing Look for the tiny Valardin princess, and then a search for somewhere quiet to chat among the rubble.

Veronica just sort of exhaustedly trails after Katarina for the moment, the night is young, but it is likely only beginning.