She had to be at the cathedral bright and early, which left her very little time to get cleaned up before she left. Hopefully, the wagon was still at the gate of the town by the time she got there. Otherwise, it would be a long walk, especially with the food trays that she had put in a crate to bring. The event was a potluck gathering, and Thage had been one of several to help prepare before villagers contributed to this harmonious cause, and they all looked forward to seeing everyone join together to celebrate their stand against the fallen Evils. Spirits were high this day - Thage even thought she heard some people singing as they walked the streets.
Good. After the evil these people and their previous generations had witnessed, they deserved to finally be happy.
Thage and her sister were not in the world when Diablo's evil took Tristram by storm, and nor could either of them recall the event through their ancestors. They were orphans discovered by Romin's uncle, Torwin. He had died of old age since then, but he was unable to identify their true parents. Over the years, it was learned that Thage possessed powers of sorcery that resided primarily with elemental and beast control, whereas Kayara's magic resided with healing. Torwin, who once raised the both of them with his wife, deducted that their true parents must have been some sort of mages. Sadly, that was the extend of their knowledge of their ancestry.
Thage readied several dozen rolls in the oven, firing it up with a spell to speed up the baking process. They turned out quite fine, and once buttered up, they would wrapped up in a pan before putting it on top of the crate she had filled with smallware.
Was there anything else she was missing? She recalled the conversation she had with Victor, one of those that were conducting the celebration. They had gone over a list of who was bringing what. Thage had most of the non-food goods taken care of, though the bread was a last-minute decision she wanted to have some bragging rights to.
Finally, she made it to the wagon just in time. Romin, the one who was driving the goliath on the reins, had spotted her just before he was getting ready to take off. "Glad you could make it, Thage." She was huffing as she hauled the heavy crate onto the back of the wagon, throwing a thick line of twine around it to keep it in place before she would climb in.
"I'm sorry if I kept you waiting," she murmured, pulling the black hood of her cloak over her head.
"Rough night?" he asked as the goliath began to pull the wagon effortlessly.
"You could say that." Not wanting to get into details about her slacked sleep, she used the duration of the ride to make small talk. Yet, in the back of her mind, the haunting nightmare from the previous night continued to exist as a memory.
The ride itself was a little chilly. This early in the morning, the sun had yet to rise and warm the air. Shortly after they reached the trail, Thage closed her eyes, the turbulence of the wagon doing very little to disrupt her power nap.
A significantly turbulent bump in the road disrupted her daze, and her grip tightened on the tray she kept in her lap. She felt the bread squish beneath her palms.
"Just a pothole," she heard Romin say. Rubbing her nose to provide it some warmth from the chilly air, Thage could see the cathedral towering in the distance as they passed through the cemetery. Most of the gravestones here were destroyed - no doubt had been during the events of the "fallen star" from years ago, which turned out to be an angel that had fallen from the High Heavens. Brother Malachi, as well as a couple of other associates from the revived cathedral, had aimed to reconstruct the cemetery and bring it back to life, so to speak - plant flower bushes, repaint the light posts...
As the wagon passed through the gate, Romin's voice cut through the silence again.
"Is everything alright?"
Thage couldn't deny the weird feeling in her gut, but she was certain it was just her nerves. She was never great with such social gatherings, and her poor sleep from the night before didn't exactly help stir confidence.
"Of course," she answered, though her half-hearted tone may have given her away. Perhaps, she thought to herself, Kayara may have something to help with the stress. Once the gates of the cathedral were visible, she gathered herself and straightened. The wagon would soon come to a stop, yet the chill on her face still remained. The sun had not yet come out, as it seemed to be hiding behind the clouds.
However, before she could gather her things for the gathering, the wagon gave and unusual stir, almost like a quake.
"What the hell?" Romin uttered. Suddenly, up became down as Thage stumbled with the wagon, its wheels leaving the dirt entirely. The beast that had been tugging it along the dirt road went into a rampage. As Thage hit the ground, her eyes grew wide as a large, worm-like creature sprouted violently from the earth, monstrous teeth tearing into the air. Its first launch gave it nothing to feast on, but Thage knew she would have to act quickly.
It was a damn shame she hadn't been prepared with weapons.
Romin, who always kept a dagger on him, was well-skilled in close combat. He didn't live with his uncle and the mage sisters, but he would often go hunting with Torwin as a child. As he got older, Thage saw the both of them bring back feasts that were larger than the last. Even with monstrous creatures like this, he didn't budge a muscle in reluctance. He swiped out the blade, though as soon as he did, the rockworm took refuge back into the ground. They both knew it was bound to resurface sooner than later.
They readied themselves as the earth began to tremble again. Then, she heard Romin shout. "To your left!"
Thage leapt away from the direction he warned her of, and not more than a couple of seconds later did the monster once again tear up through the ground. As she lifted her head, she watched as Romin jumped forward at it, shredding its stomach with the knife he held in both fists. It made a horrifying sound of pain, almost like a screech, before it retreated once more out of sight.
It wouldn't be coming back.
"What the hell?" Thage panted, slapping away some mud from her pant leg, though it was hopeless in giving her a clean appearance at this point. "Rockworms never come out this far... do they?"
She shared a look with Romin, who appeared just as concerned as her.
"We should get this wagon back on its feet," he said. "Though I'm afraid the supplies for the gathering are most likely lost."
She helped him push the wagon eight-sided up again, though it had been quite a struggle to do so with the wet ground. Once they did, Thage investigated the baked goods in the basket. Most of them had fallen, but were saved by the material she covered them with. They would be a little cool, but still perfectly edible.
Once the goliath beast was calmed, they pursued down the path towards the cathedral. It took a few minutes for Thage to tame her heartbeat again, though admittedly, that was probably the most excitement she had experienced for a while.
Kayara would have been jealous.
Finally, through the mist, the shape of the cathedral came into view. The basket nestled on her lap, and she tucked the linen tighter around the bread in hopes to keep what little warmth was left within.
The wagon came to a stop as Romin pulled the reins and forced the animal to a hault. As he climbed out, he held out his hand to help her down.
"Thank you, Romin."
"Of course." He looked to the building and released her hand. "Everyone must be inside. Let's go."
They stepped inside, but to their surprise, no one came to greet them. In fact, the place was dark, as if the cathedral wasn't in use at all.
"Very strange," she murmured. "Where is everyone?"
As she stepped forward, she displayed her hands before her chest, one hand palm-up and the other above it with its palm facing downward. Her fingers moved strategically to summon sparks of flame, and as it started to create a little bit of light, her boot slipped on something slick. She managed to catch her balance.
"What was that?" she heard Romin say.
"I slipped. Must be water or wine. Be careful," she muttered. Yet, as her hands summoned a ball of fire to give light to the chamber, she gasped, and her heart felt as if it sank into the pit of her stomach, followed by a simmering need to vomit.
It wasn't wine that coated the floor, but a thicker texture of red that she instantly recognized to be blood. Scattered about the pool were chunks of flesh and entrails that would have made just about any gut turn.
"Good lord," Romin said. "These are fresh. The bodies haven't even had a chance to decay yet."
"Who could have done this?"
"This is no who," he replied. "This has to be more of a what."
An animal couldn't have done this. It had to be something more. Then, Thage recalled her haunting nightmares. Perhaps they were trying to tell her something. Had it been a warning?