Through the scrying-glass, the view fell upon the group of heroes. Better said, the view fell upon the surviving members of the group of heroes. Four adventurers bloodied and battered, on their return from the showdown with Evil. Kigali Graybeard was the, by now famous, dwarven warrior who had come downwards from the mountain village to help. He carried Brimstone now, the female Tiefling Bard, she looks very sick. Avariel Silverhair sneaked along, too. The vigilant and stealthy Half-Elf rogue was another compatriot who had arrived just in time to help. In this case, he came forth from the wood elf village in the western forest. Regina of the Flaming Heart next to him, visibly exhausted, yet grabbing her holy symbol to protect Brimstone from certain death. With just two years of service in the village chapel the woman still clearly kept her faith, even in a crisis. Last, yet not least, strode Malabo Spellchecker, Disciple of Shamrock from the Cloak Tower, constantly supported by the quickly darting and easy-striding Avariel. The magician was still young as well, had him no more than three years as the villages' apothecary and alchemist after all.
Yet the group moved swiftly, and clearly full of conviction. They had sworn to protect the people from vile evil and they had faced that evil and fought a desperate battle against it. Still, they had paid a high price for their tactical victory. Theorem the valiant Monk from the Abbey at Hillside had been slain and devoured by the foul Undead. Hrothgar Bloodaxe, Wasteland Dwarven Compatriot to Kigali, had managed to close the crypt door with heavy stones, yet was felled while doing this via a craven strike from behind.
Kigali panted heavily, the weight of his armor and gear added by carrying the Minstrel took a toll on his stamina. Yet the small barbarian had sworn never to leave those who fought by his side behind. Hammer and Shield flew sideways, as he discarded them for later retrieval. He would fight in two-handed ax style if the need arose so soon again. His eyes rolled upwards, making out the forest outskirts close to the village of Curbstone.
Half down the path from forest to village, the heroes were spotted by the village watch and the humble little place came to life. Shouts were heard and movement came up everywhere in the small, walled sanctuary. High-Priest Theodosius of the Flaming Heart even jumped upon a horse and tried to close the distance between the group and the chance for healing, when he saw Kigali carrying a humanoid shape. Those were simple people, yet they were good people and had their honor, Kigali knew.
Theodosius stopped the horse, already busy jumping off. His senses had not betrayed him and sadly that remained true. Only five of the heroes had made it back from the forbidden crypt, and obviously, only four had survived that ordeal now. Brimstone was dead, all efforts by the Dwarf was proven futile in consequence.
"May the gods and your ancestors bless thine honor nonetheless, Kigali Graybeard."
The dwarf needed an eye-blink before he realized the meaning. He carefully dropped the corpse from his arms. Last week in the Inn he would have wished the pestering, and ever-pranking, Tiefling back into the Nine Hells. Yet a lot had changed in the meanwhile. She died, because she had fought by their side, not because she deserved a pyre for worshiping a Demon, as so many of her species preferred to do. She died redeeming herself and overcoming the curse of her parentage. She fought courageously, and had died with honor!
The group circled around their fallen comrade and prayed a silent prayer. Theodosius focused on healing the survivors and shared in the silence. As her closest they did the inevitable, beheading her corpse, so she would not be forced to rise as an undead mockery of herself. When they walked through the Gate of Curbstone Village, shocked gasps and whispers of concern were heard.
At nightfall, after the most enervating week in their lives, only one thing was left to do. Getting drunk in the Inn. Not even Regina would attempt to find restful sleep by prayers alone this night. And truly, she had prayed more during and after that fight, than ever before. The heroes drank themselves ready for slumber. A numb and dream-free slumber, as they hoped to get...
Next morning the confused outriders stared at Theodosius in disbelieve.
"Ride towards the Town of Haulage and call reinforcements from the Order of the Flaming Heart immediately!" Theodosius repeated.
"Ride for our lives! If you will not be back with paladins at nightfall, there may be no living soul left in Curbstone!" Theodosius proclaimed.
And so the outriders rode, the last hope on horsebacks, wasting their horses, and praying for Godspeed...
Theodosius knew all too well what had happened. The moment four beds in the Inn were found empty and the Gate-Guards were reported missing; The unholy fever had felled Curbstones latest heroes and heroines cravenly. To make it worse, as is Evils nature, they rose as Undead and would reopen the crypt which their living souls had sacrificed so much for to get closed... Theodosius began to search for clues of the Risen having had any help. Horrid, if there would be a Necromancer, or Vampire, commanding the Undead...
„Celestial Powers help us Living! Make the sacred flames within grant us the divine strength to smite our faithless foes and restore the peace of the Dead. I beseech thee, do not abandon these souls to Evil. Please do not allow our humble works to be undone, tainted and violated!"
But time passed on mercilessly, and Theodosius knew with nightfall the hungry dead would assault once more...