The floor of the inner sanctum ruptures with a deafening crack. Derick Force lunges, catching the Hooded Figure by the cloak just as the obsidian pillar slides into the abyss below.
Kellan
The foundation is lost. We must leap to the external buttress, now.
Derick Force
The stone work is falling away too fast.
Derick Force shields Joi with his own body, vaulting through the jagged hole in the wall. They land hard on the rain-slicked stone of the High Spire's outer terrace, the drop into the dark city depths looming inches away.
Joi
The air here is thin, tasting of ozone and ancient stone.
Lightning illuminates the city below, revealing shadows climbing the spire's exterior like starving insects, drawn by the pulsing violet light still clinging to the Hooded Figure.
+ Scene Quest Added
Survive the assault of the shadows on the High Spire terrace
“Ask the hooded man if he can fight or use magic as you hold your great sword high, preparing to sweep the blade through as many monsters as you can with each swing”
SUCCESS (Legendary Melee Combat, rolled -3)
Derick Force
Can you fight, or cast? I am holding the line.
Kellan
I can, though every spell tears at me. Keep the shadows in front of you.
Derick Force raises his great sword high as the first dark shapes drag themselves over the terrace edge. Rain flashes silver along the blade.
He meets the rush with a sweeping arc, and the strike cuts through two climbing forms at once. Black mist bursts from the severed bodies.
Joi
Keep moving, keep close. He has this side.
The Hooded Figure thrusts one shaking hand toward the terrace stones. Pale runes flare, and a ring of force shoves three more creatures back from the wall.
More shadows gather below, scrambling for another climb. Derick Force plants his feet at the edge, blade ready for the next wave.
Kellan
Hold them a moment longer. If I finish the working, the seal may still answer.
“"Then focus on the seal, worry of nothing else! " You say and call at Joi, letting her know to go ahead and go full attack mode on anything that makes it on the terrace”
SUCCESS (Legendary Melee Combat, rolled -1)
Derick Force
Then focus on the seal, worry of nothing else!
Derick Force
Joi, full attack on anything that gets up here!
Derick Force shifts his stance between the terrace edge and the Hooded Figure, taking the center line as the next wave claws over the rim.
Joi explodes forward, low and fast, driving at the first shadow to gain purchase on the wet stone.
Derick meets her charge with a brutal diagonal cut, then a backhand sweep that snaps two more forms apart before they can rise.
The terrace edge flashes with black mist and sliding fragments of darkness, washed thin by rain and scattered light.
Kellan
Just a little longer... the seal is answering, I feel it.
Beyond them, the stone in the Hooded Figure's hand pulses brighter, and the shadows below recoil as if struck by an unseen tide.
“Take advantage of the group of entities recoil and shout down in a great way cry, trying to push the shadows even further back”
SUCCESS (Fair Willpower, rolled +2)
Derick Force plants his boots and draws a breath through the rain, then lets out a great war cry that rolls across the terrace.
The sound slams into the shadows below. Several flinch, their climbing hands faltering on the slick stone.
Joi surges beside him, teeth bared, driving at the nearest wavering shape and forcing it back from the edge.
Kellan
Yes... keep them off the rim. The seal is pushing through.
The stone in the Hooded Figure's hand flares hard enough to bleach the rain white for an instant.
Below, the black mist breaks and thins, and a deeper silence opens in the chasm as the shadows recoil.
Kellan
Again, Derick Force, just once more, hold them there!
“You call your dog to your side, and signal for her to give a war howl while you shout another war cry together”
SUCCESS (Fair Willpower, rolled +0)
Derick Force snaps a hand low, and Joi tucks in tight at his leg, rain beading off her coat as she circles to his flank.
He throws his head back and roars again, the sound hard and sure, while Joi answers with a raw, echoing howl beside the terrace rim.
The nearest shadows recoil from the twin cries, their fingers skidding on wet stone as if the terrace itself rejects them.
Kellan
Yes... that is it. Push with the seal, just a little farther.
The stone in the Hooded Figure's hand blazes brighter, and the black mist shrivels into ragged threads that whip away into the rain.
For one brief beat, the outer edge clears, leaving only the pounding rain, the torn echoes, and the deep, waiting dark below.
Kellan
Now, Derick Force, press them back once more, before they gather again!
Quest Complete
Survive the assault of the shadows on the High Spire terrace
Attribute Upgrade: Willpower Fair→Good