Ruby turned to stand between Wyll and Karlach. "Wyll, you saw it, she's no devil..." Ruby said putting her back to Karlach.
"Ruby, stand aside... we can't trust the tadpoles." Wyll ordered.
"I never wanted to serve the archdevil, it's better for us to work together." Karlach said.
"You still served her! That's enough to damn you!" Wyll said... but his voice seemed to shake... as though he feared something... and it wasn't the teifling infront of him.
Gale spoke up. "Wyll, she means us no more harm then any other teifling..."
Wyll let the tip of his blade hit the log underfoot. "Shit!" He cursed. "Shit... you really are no devil... I've been deceived." Wyll said sadly as his stone eye turned to the river below.
Chapter 13 Paldins and Rouge Traders
Karlach lifted a red leather sack. "Old thing's falling apart... gonna need more hell boar leather to fix it... can I even get that on the material plan?" She said to herself. Wyll leaned against the stone of the cliff as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "I'm sorry... everyone. You've been witness to a pantomime... and now there will be a reckoning.""A reckoning?" Ruby asked. "Should we be worried?""Wyll... who exactly put you on Karlachs tail... so to speak." Gale quickly added.
"You're not in any danger, but my... contact will be less than pleased." Wyll said darkly.
"Wyll you sound like there's a harvester devil after your soul." Karlach shouldered her axe.
"Not far off..." He stood up straight.
"Look whatever it is..." Karlach beat her chest, loud metallic clanking was heard as the vents in her skin flared and the glow in her chest grew. "Infernal engine for a heart. Let's me burn as hot as the hells. Though seems to be running a little hot."
Ruby's eyes lit up as she zipped right up to the teifling barbarian. "What's it made of? How's it work? Is that why you emit flames?"
"Whoah easy soldier, your a bundle joy. It's made out of Infernal iron... intact I can smell some on you."
"Oh that would be Crescent Rose." Ruby pulled out her scythe. "Dammon and I just replaced the blades. I originally built her."
"Wow... I'm impressed, perhaps you and this Dammon could help fix my engine. Seeing as my mechanic is a little out of reach at the moment."
"I would love too." Ruby smiled.
"Hah! Look, before we run off into our adventure, I was attacked by Zariel's servants, their posing as Paladins of Tyr. Up at the toll house." Karlach pointed up the hill.
"If the Archdevil has servants so close to Grove..." Wyll said and the group nodded.
While they walked up the hill Shadowheart spoke with Ruby. "I like her, seems like she could throw me and you over her shoulder and carry us to safety."
"Well let's hope that never has to happen had I'm fairly certain that would cook us." Ruby laughed.
Thalia, Alfira and Karlach spoke in their own group as Wyll and Gale spoke of spell casting methodology to pass the time. Durge brought up the real when he stopped in his tracks. "I smell blood. Gnolls, on the bridge above us, a massacre." The group silently made their way up the hill towards the tool house, and at some point a battle had taken place, a caravan had been attacked and dozens of bodies, gnolls and men were lain on the ground. Arrows, swords, axes. Sveted limbs rotted in the blistering sun.
Ruby froze in place holding her stomach. Behind her Alfira gagged and puked from the smell. "Gods... not again." The bard Whimpered taking a step back. Durge caught her and turned her head into his chest as his clawed hand patted her hair.
"What a waste..." He snarled. A growl entered his voice as his nostrils flared, A predatory look entered his eyes again, much like when he had killed Astarion. Alfira hugged her arms around him as he turned to face away from the destruction. He seemed to look past the distant cliffside to something else.
"We should bury what we can..." Thalia said pushing a gnoll corpse off the bridge.
"So close to the toll house... the false Paladins could attack we work... We'll split up. Karlach, Ruby, Gale and myself will go take care of the threat. The rest of you Salvage what you can, water, weapons, food, cloth, blankets and traveling crate. Durge I trust you can get a pit started." Wyll tossed him a shovel.
Durge caught it with one hand and nodded. "Gonna take some time, dirt hear is packed tight."
Ruby followed Wyll and the others up to the tollhouse. Wyll pressed his ear to the door. "Their inside... Paladins wouldn't leave the dead to rot like this."
Karlach gripped her axe as she raised her boot and kicked the door of it's hinges. The oak planks hit the floor as the four of them ran in. Wyll place a human man at sword point. Karlach heafted her axe and smashed the desk next to him.
A halfing on the farside of the room drew her blade but Gale acted first. A blade of ice piercing her thigh. She stumbled as Ruby tackled a half elf woman pinning her to the ground at gunpoint.
"Karlach... found yourself friends did you... Tyr will see you cut down." The man snarled.
"Cut the crap Anders, I know you serve Zariel. There's no point in hiding it." Karlach ripped her axe free.
"If your so proud to call yourself a paladin of Tyr, what's his sacred tenants?" Wyll asked.
"Enough... I'm sick of playing games.Karlach, your going back to Avernus."
"No I'm not... I'm free and I'm never GOING BACK!" Karlach shouted and swung her axe cleaving deep into the man's shoulder. The Halfing Stood up to throw a dagger at Gale which deflected of his bracers.
Gale in return blasted her with a burst of fire. She screamed in pain as her skin bubbled and burst.
The woman Ruby had pinned slashed her with a scimitar, the blade deflected of the huntress's Aura. Stepping back Ruby Extended her weapons blade as bashed forward. Lightning and fire sparked off the blade as Ruby swung with the intent to maim. The infernal Irons edge glided through armor, skin, muscle and bone.
The scythe hit her just above the right elbow passing through the arm, cutting through her padded armor and ripped across the abdomen. Because of the fire emitted by the blade there was little blood but as the body hit the floor guts and organs spilled out. Ruby stumbled back looking at her weapon.
Anders took shoved Karlachs axe from the wound in his shoulder. Ripping his massive great sword from His back he swung on the Teifling. She Blocked the first strike with her axe, but the haft snapped and he swung again hitting her in the chest as a thunderous boom shook the building. Karlach was blasted black crashing into a cabinet.
As Anders straightened Wyll grabbed his face as his dark blast magic surged in his palm. With the sound akin to a gun shot Anders brains were smeared across the back wall in bloody display. Wyll let the body fall to the floor as he pulled a note from the dead paladin. "Orders directly from Zariel."
"Karlach stood up breathing hard. "Yes! They as she might I am free!" The flames around her grew.
"Karlach... might want to calm down." Gale said nervously as the wood at her feet charred.
Ruby dashed across the room to hug her, her aura flaring from the intensity.of the flames. "It's okay."
"Ruby!" Wyll said as the flames flared around the pair.
Karlach froze for a second then let out a breath as the flames died down. "You... can touch me?" She asked.
Ruby released the hug, sweat dripping down her brow. "Not for very long, but my aura protects me."
""Right... I'm still running hot... so... I wouldn't recommend doing that again... but... thank you... it's been too long since I've had a hug." Karlach said.
"I'll do whatever I can to help Karlach." The young huntress smiled.
The four of them set about salvaging whatever they could. Gale and Wyll went down a hatch to the basement as Ruby and Karlach took any food and clothes they could find. Karlach dragged the false paladins bodies outside and threw them down the cliff into the river below as a Ruby investigated the upstairs where she found another soul coin.
"A soul coin, that's handy." Karlach said. "I can use that to over charge my engine in combat should we ever be in a tight spot. Keep an eye out for them."
"We have three others, but... don't these have mortal souls in them?" Ruby asked.
"Ah well yes, but once their slotted into my engine, well their prison is technichally destroyed along with their soul. It's not perfect but they don't suffer anymore." Karlach explained.
Wyll and Gale came up from the basement. Wyll tossing Karlach a new great axe. "Found a few things down there. Most rotten food and gold. Some old armor and a new axe as well as some weapons." Wyll said. "We can sell most of this once we're either at Waukeen's rest or at the grove."
They all nodded and walked out of the building as Thalia and Durge dumped the last body in the pit. They all worked together to cover it. Alfira carved a short note on a board. 'Hear lies the remains of a caravan destroyed by gnolls. May Kelemvor guide them home.'
The tone was somber as they crested a ridge over, looking at a cliff. Durge braced his arm out, blocking the party. "More Gnolls..." He growled.
The dirt path below led to a cave entrance where human voices were heard. A fire burned at the mouth of the cave kept the hunched over creatures from entering.
"Five, ten, fifteen, thirty, fifty... there's too many..." Karlach said.
"We have to do something." Wyll said.
"The one in red and blues is their leader, their wielding a wicked magic whip." Shadow heart said point at one painting in blood.
"Monsters." Thalia said.
Ruby looked at them, their smaller then beowulfs... but they do weapons and armor... but there are only fifty of them." Ruby looked to her allies. "Karlach, ready to use a soul coin?" The girl tossed the iron coin to the teifling.
"What's your plan?" Karlach asked.
"Gale, Alfira, and Shadowheart stay up here. Their spells and height advantage will let them hit the stronger ones. Me and you jump down to tackle them from the center after Gale, Durge, Wyll, and Alfira use their spells to break a hole. Me and you first, the we makes our way towards the leader. Then, followed by Durge, Thalia, and Wyll."
They all nodded. Getting their gear and spell ready. Then Wyll cast the Shatter spell, the Gale did, and Durge as well and lastly Alfira. The four thunderous explosions sent stone and wet bone shrapnel everywhere as the dust kicked up.
Karlach slammed the coin into her engine. the cylinders revved as she and Ruby leapt from the cliff. The flaming teifling slashed deep into a gnolls chest. Ripping the exe free she swung again taking it's arm.
Ruby hit the ground either a spin as she cut two gnolls in half with a swing, folled by a twist and a shout that took a thirds head. Ruby skidded back from the recoil dancing along Crescent Rose. A gnoll swung on her with a blade but instead Ruby planted hee boots across it's face as the shock of lightning ran through its body.
Thalia leapt from the hill down to the ground landing the point of her scimitar first driving it through the skull. rot infested it's flesh as she pulled the weapon free and with as slash ripped the throat out of another.
Durge took a running start landing further away. as he fell through the air a pearl of magic appeared in his empty palm, as he threw in down a burst of lightning ripped through a large area. The lightning left many electrocuted bodies as he landed.
A Gnoll charged durge as her spun the skull headed spear he wielded in one hand deflecting the crude monsters blade. Durge grabbed the throat of the Gnool crushing it as lightning charged in his hand. A burst of lightning in cone killed three others as he dropped the body.
From the cliff Shadow heart threw a ball of golden magic burning the gnoll. Alfira strummed her lute as pinkish magic swirled around her. A Gnoll grasped it's head and fell over as blood dripped from it's ears as it twitched on the ground.
Gale planted his staff as magic swirled around him a look of concentration on his face before a another thunderous blast ripped apart a group of gnolls.
Karlach was tackled by several gnolls who quickly started the yelp in pain. Wrapping her arms around one and ocking in with a grip on her axe handel it screamed in pain as it's flesh burned away.
Thalia moved like the wind sidestepping spears, axes and crude swords. she glanced at one and rot started to infest it's chest as it swung. Stumbling past her her drove her scimitar into the monsters spine.
Wyll partied a long sword and drove his blade through the creatures chest. A gnoll fired a arrow at him which he easily caught a drove point first into the Gnolls neck.
Ruby pushed towards the large whip weilding Gnoll. Her scythe a red blur as she and it spun in unison. deflecting attacks and cutting down foes. Durge drove the spear into the heart of a gnoll, taking a deep breath he unleashed a torrent of ice that froze several gnolls in place.
The large gnoll leader charged ruby before it stopped. A sensation in both it's and her brain. That hesitation wasn't present in the girl. Two gun shots rang out as the creature's chest cavity was laid open. It was dead before her scythe had left it's flesh.
The remaining gnolls were whipped up into a panicked frenzy. From the cliff more spells came down ripping apart the remaining gnolls.
Thalia chopped the head off a hyena as Wylls blasts ripped holes in the gnolls. Durge had his fist clenched around the throat of gnoll as lightning armed through its body before the clawed hand ripped the throat free. Karlach finished off the last one by stomping on it's head.
Ruby Rose stats, class, and racial abilities
Class Fighter lv 5
Subclass Champion
Great weapon fighting style (rerolls one's and twos on damage)
Hp: 45 (3 d12 plus 0)
Strength: 18 (base 17)
Dexterity: 16 (base 15)
Constitution:10
Wisdom: 8
Intelligence:12
Charisma: 10
Race Human Variant (Remnant)
Feats:
Ability score improvement: plus 1 str plus 1 Dex
Savage Attacker : Reroll damage once take highest
Base Speed: 45 ft Total speed: 55 ft
Aura: 10 temp hit points per level (50 Thp) (resets on long rest)
Semblance: Petal Dash; Dash action is now a bonus action
Improved Critical: reduces critical requirements by 1 (18-20)
Action Surge: Gain an extra action
Extra attack x1
Gear:
Infernal Crescent Rose: plus 2 to damage and rolls to hit, 2 d 12 slashing an fire damage plus strength. 2 d 8 Piercing plus Dex when firing.
Infernal Critical, Reduces critical by 1, and on a critical hit target auto fails save against burn condition.
Searing Petal Smite: While Dashing from at least 60 ft away, auto cast searing smite at lv 2. 2d6 fire damage. Once per short rest.
All but Ruby Rose have disadvantage with this weapon.
Elemental bullets: 2d4 elemental damage added to ranged attacks.
Two-handed, heavy, extra reach
Cleave lacerate trip enemies, peircing shot
1 Half plate armor: Ac 18 (16 plus 2 dex) Medium armor. Reduces piercing damage by 1.
Haste Helm: Plus 10 ft to movement first three turns of combat (Effectively just 10 ft because I'm not drawing out combat for more then 3 rounds except for major bosses) plus one dex save
Speedy Light Feet: Gain three lightning charges when Dashing. Lightning charges deal additional damage on weapon and spell attacks.