Inkling...
Inkling...
Chapter 1.59 H
The expedition into the ruins turns into a massacre when the adventurers encounter Skinner, an ancient monster made of stolen skin that paralyses its victims with terror. The creature and its undead horde slaughter several adventurers, including Gerial and Sostrom, while Calruz is dismembered and Ceria is overwhelmed. Only a few, including Olesm and Yvlon, manage to flee the carnage in sheer panic.
The expedition deep into the ruins takes a terrifying turn when Ceria's [Dangersense] alerts her to a horrifying awakening. The sheer magnitude of the dread paralyses her with fear, prompting an immediate call for the adventurers to retreat.
Before they can escape, the adventurers discover the source of the terror: Skinner, an ancient and grotesque monster constructed entirely from the stolen skin of its victims. It projects an aura of pure terror that cripples its prey. The group quickly realizes the gruesome fate of their missing members. Sostrom is found dead and partially skinned, while the flayed faces and skins of Gregor, Cervial, and Menes are visibly grafted onto Skinner's massive body.
A desperate battle ensues as Skinner and a swarm of undead creatures, including zombies and ghouls, descend upon the adventurers. Calruz engages the monster but is swiftly overpowered; Skinner rips his arm off before the Minotaur is buried beneath a horde of zombies. Gerial attempts to fight back by attacking the creature with acid, but his strike fails, resulting in Skinner killing and flaying him as well.
The party breaks under the overwhelming assault. Ceria sustains severe injuries, including frostbite and torn skin, before being overwhelmed by an attacking Ghoul. With the group decimated and the terror aura overpowering their senses, Olesm and Yvlon abandon the fight, fleeing in panic up the corridor in a desperate bid to survive.
Ceria suffers crippling terror when her [Dangersense] detects an overwhelming threat awakening, leading her to initiate an immediate retreat.
A polite, blue-scaled Drake who is the highest-leveled [Tactician] in Liscor. He is roped into playing a high-stakes chess game against Erin by his uncle, Lism.
aka The Olesm, the Drake +6
A half-Elf mage belonging to the Horns of Hammerad who offers Ryoka a taboo alternative for her leg.
aka Ceria, Springwalker +7
An ancient, horrific monster made entirely of stolen skin that paralyzes its prey with pure terror.
aka the monster, the creature known as Skinner +2
Suffering from severe frostbite and torn skin, Ceria is finally overwhelmed by a Ghoul during the chaotic retreat.
Completely overcome by terror, Olesm and Yvlon desperately flee up the corridor to escape the monster and the undead.
A skill that alerts the user to nearby danger or powerful opponents.
aka [Dangersense], [Skill – Dangersense obtained!]
A sapient species possessing Elven traits.
aka Half-Elf, half-Elves
A burly, axe-wielding Silver-rank captain who refuses to enter the Ruins of Albez.
aka the axe-captain, Captain of the Silver-rank team +1
A Silver-rank [Mage] captain who decides against exploring the Ruins of Albez.
aka Captain Menes, the mage captain +2
A Human whose past racist remarks are remembered by Erin.
aka Archer Captain, the archer-captain +3
A large, competent Silver-rank adventuring party led by Calruz.
aka The Horns, Silver-rank team +5
A Silver-rank team of adventurers led by Gregor.
A Silver-rank adventuring team captained by Yvlon Byres.
aka the Silver Spears
A prestigious house, title, or lineage of honor associated with the Minotaur Calruz.
A general combat-oriented class.
aka [Warrior], [Warriors]
A general class for any individual who practices magic.
aka [Mage], [Mages] +2
A utility spell used to decipher unknown written languages.
aka [Translate]
A magic spell that conjures a patch of sticky webbing on the floor.
aka [Sticky Ground]
A complex Tier 2 spell used to cast widespread light.
aka [Illumination]
A massive, bull-like sapient species.
aka Minotaurs, the Minotaur
A sapient reptilian species dominant in regions south of Liscor, generally unfriendly to Humans.
aka lizards, giant lizards +3
A species of which Erin Solstice is a member.
aka Humans, smooth skin +4
Massive, intelligent undead abominations that command hordes of lesser dead and possess terrifying physical and magical traits.
aka Crypt Lords, The Crypt Lord
Highly lethal, advanced zombies that possess supernatural physical attributes.
aka Ghouls
A type of undead creature armed with magically paralyzing claws.
An undead creature Erin considers a real threat, unlike mundane corpses.
aka Zombies, zombies +3
Undead creatures referenced as prior threats near the inn.
aka skeleton, undead skeletons +2
“What about this room?”
“Empty.”
“Not a thing?”
“You can see for yourself.”
“Whatever was in here, it wasn’t a treasury. And now it’s long gone.”
“Damn.”
“I don’t get it. This is the lowest level, isn’t it? And you said there would be treasure—”
“I did. But who knew this place would be so cursed big?”
“But the treasure’s around here somewhere, right?”
“Most likely. We just haven’t found it yet, and we’re all tired. Why don’t you go with Sostrom and check those rooms out?”
“Sorry, Gerial.”
“I know how you’re feeling. But he’s trying to be helpful.”
“Plus, this is his first adventure, and he thinks this is going to be Chalence and we’ll be famous like all the greenhorns. I know. It’s just—”
“Any word from Gregor’s team?”
“Any word on the other team’s progress?”
“Nothing substantial. They’ve come across more empty rooms, same as you. Dozens upon dozens of them. It’s a warren down here, I swear. There’s some kind of urns in one room—just filled with dust, whatever’s in them is long gone. Old scrolls in another, none magical. They found a few undead, but nothing else. How’s it going over here?”
“Uneventful. We killed a few zombies, but they’re mostly cleared out here as well. Has Yvlon seen anything?”
“Nothing. I’ll get back to Gregor’s side of things if you’ve nothing else.”
“This is where a Runner would have come in handy.”
“This is where a hundred Runners would come in handy. They could search this place faster than we can.”
“You know he’s never done this before. And he helped us get through that fight a lot more easily than we would have otherwise. Just don’t snap at him.”
“I know. I know. But he keeps asking and—what if he’s right?”
“Yeah.”
“We’ve still got a ways to go. There’s plenty of chances the vault is just ahead.”
“Sure.”
“We’ve found something! Possibly a treasury!”
“Where is it? How big?”
“It’s right at the other end of the ruins, down the other passage.”
“Wait a second. That’s doesn’t sound like a vault to me. It sounds like a guarded treasury, the kind that has the nastiest monster waiting right behind the door. You didn’t try to open it, right?”
“We’re not idiots. Menes and the other mages are already setting up traps near the entrance with Cervial’s team. Yvlon wants a hallway full of traps before we crack the seal.”
“Cervial’s group even has two bear traps. Don’t know how they carried them all the way down, but they’re setting them up. Even if what’s inside is as big as an Ogre, it won’t be able to ignore that.”
“As soon as you lot finish on your side, we’ll seal off this passage with a spell and open those doors. Yvlon is going to join us, and we’ll see exactly what’s inside. Menes says the runes might be warning of the undead guardians, and if so, we just killed them all!”
“Or more could be inside. Wait for us.”
“We didn’t open the doors!”
“We’ll have so many damn traps and fall-back points we’ll kill a thousand of ‘em once we’re set up. How soon until you’ll be done here? Gregor wants to know.”
“We’ve found nothing of worth so far. Give us a few minutes to gather everyone, and we’ll follow you.”
“Well, hurry up. Gregor wants to crack the seal this instant, and the other two Captains are the only thing holding him back.”
“Warded doors? That’s right out of one of those classic stories you hear about. Odds are three-to-one it’s trapped or something nasty is lurking inside. Gregor better not open them before we get there.”
“He’s no idiot. But Yvlon has the right idea. Regardless of what’s in there, we can turn the passageway into a killing field. Even ten Crypt Lords wouldn’t survive a fully spelled passage if we combine resources.”
“Hey, hey everyone!”
“Olesm? You’ll never believe this, but we found something! A vault, sealed by magic, over on the other side of the ruins.”
“Really? That’s great news! But we found something as well!”
“You did?”
“Look—but be quiet!”
“Tombs.”
“Coffins.”
“This is the place where all the dead go.”
“It must have countless tombs, probably with a lot of important people! And probably treasure if they bury their dead with their valuables like we Drakes do!”
“They could all be undead in those graves. There’s no telling how many of them reanimated with the Crypt Lords about.”
“That’s what Sostrom said. But he found something else in there as well.”
“Ceria. You nearly scared the piss out of me.”
“Better that than you screaming. What are you looking at?”
“Words?”
“Something like that. It’s not magic—at least, no runes I’ve seen before. But what language it is I can’t tell for the life of me.”
“Olesm. What do you make of this?”
“I’m not sure. It looks like some kind of message, but is it a memorial or something else? A memorandum? The script…looks familiar.”
“You can’t read it? Does it look like something your people might have written long ago?”
“It—it could be something written in the past. Like I said, it’s vaguely similar. But I never knew if we changed written languages. I certainly can’t read it.”
“Is this important?”
“It could be nothing. But it might give us a clue as to what this place was or what it contains.”
“But you cannot read it.”
“I can.”
“A little spell I picked up when I was at Wistram. [Translate].”
“That’s handy.”
“Handy? For what? No one speaks a different language. It’s only good for reading books.”
“Fool. Drathians have their own language. And to read any tome, no matter how old, is a valuable ability. You uncultured Izrilians.”
“It is. But I’d prefer a real translator even so. The spell takes time, and it doesn’t work unless there are enough words to read at once. And I often get a muddled message, sometimes nonsensical depending on the content. There are better spells. But it should…oh.”
“I really don’t think this is a memorial for the dead.”
“What? What does it say?”
“I—it’s disturbing. Really disturbing.”
“We are not mewling Human children. Speak.”
“Skinner, Skinner! He’ll eat your tails and tear off your skin! He’ll pluck out your eyeballs and devour your kin! Skinner, Skinner! Run while you can! Your flesh will be taken with a touch of his hand! Hide in the darkness, hide in the light. Fighting is useless; Skinner is fright. He takes our scales and hides our bones And makes this place our very last home. Skinner, Skinner, never open his door. Or soon your bones will lie on this floor.”
“That was disturbing, to say the least. But what does that mean?”
“It sounds…almost like a nursery rhyme. But not one I’d ever tell any child of mine.”
“I’ve never heard that…that kind of song before. Who in their right minds would write such a thing?”
“It was a warning.”
“A warning? Who writes their warnings so—so cryptically?”
“Maybe someone who’s afraid of speaking plainly. Or—or—this isn’t a warning. Maybe it is a nursery rhyme or just dark humor. Or an old myth. The kind you write of something that’s been around forever.”
“Who is this ‘Skinner’, then? An undead? Or a [Necromancer] of some kind? Whoever wrote this message seems to fear him.”
“Perhaps he’s the reason this place exists.”
“‘He takes our scales and hides our bones…’. That can only be my people who wrote this. So—so they built coffins to hide their flesh from him? But is he locked away with the dead down here? That would make no sense. Why not burn the bodies? Surely they’d want to keep him as far away as possible.”
“A thought. Was this a trap for this Skinner creature or—or is he the guardian of this place?”
“What the hell is a Skinner? Some kind of special undead?”
“We don’t know. But odds are that is what’s hiding behind that door Gregor and the others found. We should go back and let them know we’re in for a fight.”
“Agreed. We will hold off opening them until we are prepared. And perhaps—”
“—Perhaps we should send word to the surface. Ask if any know of this ‘Skinner’ creature.”
“Let’s hurry before Gregor makes a mistake. I’ll go f—”
“Ceria!”
“On your feet! What’s happening?”
“My [Dangersense]—something just happened! The doors—the vault—”
“They opened them? The fools!”
“Calruz! This isn’t like before. This—my Skill is telling me something bad has happened. Really bad. Far worse than the ambush.”
“We are in danger. Extreme danger. We have to retreat.”
“I’ve never felt anything like that. When I was a child and the Necromancer attacked ten years back—that was the closest. But this is different. I am afraid, and [Dangersense] doesn’t convey fear. We have to go.”
“Let us regroup with Yvlon. With speed. [Warriors], form up, and mages, follow close behind. Prepare for—”
“Shh! Quiet. Do you hear that?”
“Screaming.”
“Oh…Flowers of Izril. Five Families preserve us.”
“Run!”
“The door!”
“Can you slow them down?”
“I—I could cast [Sticky Ground]. The webbing would slow them down, but this many—”
“Cast it! The rest of you, follow me!”
“We don’t have much time! Only a few minutes before they catch up!”
“Calruz!”
“What’s happening? Where are Gregor and the others?”
“Last I heard, they were up ahead, trapping the corridor. But then our [Dangersense] went off and—the door. They must have opened it.”
“Fools!”
“They didn’t say they were going to open the vault. I made it clear to Gregor he had to wait until we regrouped. So why…?”
“Have you sent anyone down there?”
“Two people. I told them to run back the instant they saw something. They—they never came back.”
“The screaming ended a few minutes ago. I was waiting for you to get back. What did you find? Anything?”
“A message. Too long to explain. Know that we most likely face Skinner, the guardian of this place. He—steals skin.”
“Steals? Skin?”
“So it was written. And his awakening woke the other undead too. There is a horde approaching from behind.”
“Right then, it seems we have a choice. We can’t fight another battle here, not understrength. We should retreat.”
“What of Gregor and the others?”
“I think we should fear the worst, don’t you?”
“I do not want to run without seeing the enemy’s face.”
“It’ll be the last thing you see if we stay here. If we get caught in a pincer attack from both sides—”
“Calruz.”
“Calruz!”
“I hear something. Something is coming this way.”
“Hey, what’s happening? Where are Gregor and—”
“Let go of me! Let go! I have to get away!”
“What happened? What was behind those doors?”
“Run, run! It’s right behind us!”
“What is?”
“Why were the doors opened? Gregor was told to wait! Who—”
“If you did not open them, then who—”
“It opened them from inside!”
“It opened them, and then it took Gregor and the others! Let me go. It is coming. We must run, all of us. Can’t you feel it? It is coming!”
“Who is? Skinner? Is it an undead?”
“They’re dead. But what caught them? This Skinner—”
“We should retreat. Let us gather the wounded and go. If we have the [Mages] cast spells to delay pursuit—”
“Gregor…?”
“Cervial! Is that you?”
“Gregor, Cervial! Answer me! What’s going on? Are you alright?”
“It’s just…dead skin.”
“We’re under a spell.”
“Horns of Hammerad—”
“We must—retreat.”
“Retreat!”
“We must run.”
“We must fight.”
“Horns of Hammerad. If you have any pride, turn and face your enemy.”
“Do not run. You are the Horns of Hammerad. This thing has slain our own. We must avenge—”
“Calruz. We have to go. Help us.”
“Honor. We must not run. Face your death with pride.”
“I am Calruz of the Beriad. I challenge you.”
“Ceria!”
“Go. Run.”
“What?”
“Run. I’ll—I’ll buy you some time.”
“Gerial—”
“Run, damn you!”
“Death before dishonor.”
“If—”
“Death before dishonor.”