Turn 140
Barbaxle and Wulfgar bend down to aid in healing Gareth's bloody side. Gareth's
body feels cold....too cold actually, and when Wulfgar lays his head upon
Gareths chest, he realizes no heartbeat is felt.
Looking upon Sir Gareth's face, you see that even in death his features look
proud and calm. The strength of character and moral convictions he was so noted
for still evident below his mask of death. Shock spreads among you at the loss
of your leader, and many of you find it difficult to accept he is gone.
Jahl slowly and painfully stands and checks over his smoldering body.
"Is it me or is it warm in here," Jahl croaks, trying to smile but quickly
gives up.
"Why so glum? We'll all ... what is wrong with Gareth?" His pain suddenly
forgotten, Jahl hurries over to the prone leader. Jahl's face pales
slightly and he bows his head.
After a moment, Jahl turns from the fallen hero and quietly moves across
the room into the darkness.
Cole goes to Gareth's side and refuses to leave him,
he says nothing but silently weeps onto the Fallen
Knights armor not caring who there to watch. He takes
out the meager remains of his heal potion and pours it
into Gareth's mouth then shakes the body to try and
wake him. Cole ignores all others and his own pain as
he tries to revive the Paladin. At last he gives up
and continues to weep at the side of his friend.
A soft sighing breath cooly exhales from the fallen paladin's lips. "I have
served well my lord Pikahl. Nothing so much enhances a good as to make
sacrifices for it. Apparent failure may hold in its rough shell the germs of
a success that will blossom in time, and bear fruit throughout eternity."
Perhaps it is a trick of the dying muscles, but the knight's mighty
iron-clad arms surge upwards and clench tightly into the folds of Wulfgar's,
Barbaxles's, and Cole's clothing, pulling them closer. "My friends, never
lose sight of the fact that the most important yardstick of your success
will be how you treat other people. Live well; Pikahl watch over you."
Their unnatural strength drains away suddenly with the final words, and
Gareth's arms fall - one to the hilt of a longblade, and the other to the
middle of his chest, hand splayed tight against the golden symbol of Pikahl.
As Gareth takes his last breath you see Barbaxle bow his head and doesn't
say anything for a couple of minutes. "You will be missed my friend, I have
seen you like this before. I will do everything in my power to bring you
back. With the power of Pikahl and Azimuth, we will see you again. Either in
this world or the next." After people have grieve a while, Barbaxle stands
up and says "We must continue on, that is what Gareth would have wanted. We
must find the others before it is too late. Time is running out if we wish
to find them. One or two of you must stay here with Vincas and Gareth. All
the others that are hurt drink from the waterskin that we have, we must move
before it is too late." Once the group knows what we are doing, Barbaxle
will head in the direction that the head priest took the others. He will try
and find the tracks of the priest. (Barbaxle will use his tracking skills,
hopefully this a dirt floor)
"No!We can't lose someone now! I would like to stay to watch after Vincas
and Gareth!" Aerial declared
Dropping to her knees next to Gareth She pulls his head close on her knees
then starts to pray to her god.
"Please help us Quiom we need your love. Gareth one of the group has died
wrongfully. I know I don't know the man before me and I know he isn't even a
disciple of you but please take him into your heart and bring him back to us
I plea to you bring him back to us. I appeal to you on his behalf to Cure him
of this death and what ever else killed him."
Several tears seem to start falling down her face on to Gareths. As she
keeps repeating the words over and over again.
Wulfgar reels back from the sight of his fallen comrade for only a second
before moving quickly to his side again and using his healing spell anyway
to try and pull Gareth back from wherever he has gone. Wulfgars hands move
quickly and effortlessly as they quickly run through the motions of the
spell and then bandage the wound as well If there is no life Wulfgar will
try using his own breath to keep Gareth alive he learnt this from his mentor
many years ago and has never had to use it before now (CPR) If nothing
happens desperation will set in "Come on Gareth you always were a stubborn
pig-headed son of a bi***. Don't you dare leave us now. Come on!!!!" He
continues to try and revive Gareth until he revives or he is dragged off of
him.
Keldar falls flat on his rear, staring at the body of yet another slain
companion. His eyes stare unblinking s he shake his head, murmering, "I I
had me magic, 'e'd be OK..." over and over.
After Cole sobs at the side of Gareth for a monent or
so he retrieves his parchment and chalk and makes a
portrait of the fallen knight. Once finished he puts
it away and takes the ribbon that has tied back his
hair for so long and ties it to the hilt of Gareth's
sword " Never forget me friend for I will never forget
you." and he start's after Barbaxle to hunt down the
one's most likely responsible for the atrocities at
hand.
Rathaniel stays quite throughout the whole time, knowing he has no place
in saying anything. He waits a while for Gareth's friends to say their
goodbyes.
"Whenever you guys are ready," he says quietly from where he leans up
against the wall.
Sheial paused as she had the table leg held high, ready for a killing blow
and looked on in frustration as the prone man proceeded to squeeze the
breath out of the evil cleric. She could have tried to pound the cleric
one, but there was a high likelihood that she would clip ...what was the
name Aerial called him ... Gareeth?
All thoughts of the cleric were set aside as an intense wave of heat
buffeted her body. Eyes wide, she looked towards the hallway where the
magic smoke was rapidly dissipating. The stones on the floor, wall and
ceiling were cracked from the heat and actually looked burnt. Various
smells tickled her nose and caused her eyes to water, from burnt stone,
hair, clothing to burned flesh. It was bad enough that she had to
convulsively swallow to keep her bile down. As her horrified eyes drank in
the scene, they latched onto the still twitching clerical appendages and she
hobbled over to the nearest wall, to lean against it for strength as she
began to retch.
When she finally got a hold of herself, she was ever so glad that others
had more self control and that Wulfgar was taking care of the bleeding
Gareeth, who had obviously vanquished his opponent. Sheial moved towards
the open pack, the 3 foot length of chain trailing behind her, causing
chinking noises as moved along. As she picked up the discarded pants trying
to figure out how to get them on manacle and chain included, she listened
with half an ear to Barbaxles's questions. She could hear the short man's
voice from around the corner demanding the same answers. Before she could
do more than open her mouth, Aerial answered.
Seeing that all this gum flapping wasn't getting any pants on her naked
lower extremities, Sheial awkwardly pulled on the pair of pants, pushing the
length of chain through first. She then wrapped the chain once more around
her leg using the black tablecloth she had stolen earlier and rolled up the
pant leg on her left side so she wouldn't get her peg leg caught up in the
fabric.
Sheial finished tying up the chain to her leg, looking on in curiousity as
people started to gather around their fallen comrade. When she realizes
that he is dead, she quickly looks down at the knot she had made, a flash of
guilt and pain flowing over her features. As people start to cry openly and
bewail their loss, the lanky woman flinches and she looks about ready to
weep also, though she did not know the stranger.
Pulling herself together, she hobbles over to Wulfgar, where he continued
to seemingly beat on the man's dead body even after the others had given up
and were now grimly dtermined to wreak vengeance. She knelt, somewhat
awkwardly and placed a well calloused hand on his shoulder, "Friend Wulfgar.
He be dead now, best ye leave him in peace ... truely, I am so sorry for yer
loss, but there be others who be needing ye." Her eyes expressed her
sympathy as well as something else, which was quickly hidden as she dropped
her eyes from his grief stricken stare.
Wulfgar looks at Sheial and sits back on his heels he quickly looks around
the group to assess who is most in need of healing. When he does he will
rise and pull his sword forth and drive it point first into the grown next
to Gareth. Following that he will move over to whomever needs healing the
most and care for them.
Turn 141