Shadowhaunt: The Black Crusade (Part II)

[Veldanya Venalla]

The Dulluhan shifts his shield across his back as he silently watches as Walter speaks to the gathered soldiers.  He feels a tap on his shoulder and his head spins around to see Alucard standing behind them.

"Follow me, if you please.  Sir Walter has a special task for the heroes who won the battle."

Vildayvin follows the vampire as they move through the city to the outer circles.  A group of elite soldiers is gathered at the northern gate seemingly waiting for them.  Then from within the nearby shadows a voice resonates.

"Greetings.  It's about time.  I hope you're ready, because now the fun begins."

A man wearing flowing red and black robes appears before them.

"There's much to do, and so little time."

The Dulluhan's eyes flitter up and down as he gauges the man before him.  He had been filled in on some of the activities the group was involved with before his arrival.  He had been briefed on a necromancer that had offered his services to the Crusade.  It seemed likely that this man was that very same necromancer.  He rests his gauntleted hands on his weapons as he speaks to the man.

"Greetings.  I do not believe we have met.  I am Vildayvin Devaron....and you are the necromancer William Black.  Would I be correct?"

[Daccio]

"Follow me, if you please" Alucard spoke to them.

He led them to the north gate, where they met up with the other elites. Lord William Black spoke up then

"Greetings. It's about time. I hope you're ready, because now the fun begins. There's much to do, and so little time."

Mizuki eyes the man who spoke to them, gauging him. She planted her spear, the wax seal holding the strip of Akavashi script visible on her armor, and spoke up.

"I am Lady Yukimura. A pleasure I am sure"

[Kitharsis]

"Theldorian, no wonder to be seeing you again.  I hope you are faring well."  Sun Wu greets his new master.

"The Molded Chi technique you taught me is proving invaluable."  He says with a bow.

With a small smile, the monk pulls his pipe out of his pocket.  Through all of the fighting, it is still intact.  He lights the tobacco and puffs a lazy billow of smoke into the air.

He stands waiting for direction from Lord William Black.  Contentedly puffing away.

[Shadow Chorus]

"Yes. I am William Black." He says, bowing deeply.  "Now then, shall we depart? We have quite an amount of space to traverse. You see, now that we have taken the Black Citadel, there is no doubt that the armies of darkness will respond harshly. And so we must remain a step ahead of them."

William turns and begins walking out of the gate, not really caring if the others were following. "You see, our next target is the Fortress of screams. This is the central staging area for most of the armies of Dracula, and once word reaches him of the city's fall, his forces will begin gathering there. The crusade will need time to regroup and gather its resources before they are prepared to face the brunt of the armies of the Blacklands, so it's our job to...Impede the enemy's preparations." He glanced at his left hand and it surrounded itself in unholy fire as he chuckled to himself.

"You remember General Darkraven, yes? An anomaly, even among monsters. All of Dracula's generals are as such. He would not use common rabble to lead his forces. Each and every one of the dark generals are one of a kind. And we're going to kill them all. Each. and. every. one." He blasted down trees with his left hand at each of his last four words as if to accentuate his point.

Then he stopped suddenly and turned on his heel, rotating to face the party. "As you've probably guessed, there are four more generals to kill. I expect one of them will be overseeing operations at the fortress. We will scout out the location, determine any way we can slow the army's amassing, and if possible, slay the general in charge. Now then, off we go!" He said, clapping his hands as a fiery skeletal horse appeared beneath him, catching him in the saddle as it rose from the ground.

Grakul and Orgarash approached from behind the party with steeds for those who had none. "You've been leading us to the west the whole time, you know." The more heavily armored Orc noted.

"So I have! This way then!" He said, turning to his right and heading off.

"That's south."

"Right! This way!" he said, finally having rotated himself north, and taking off in the proper direction.

[Kitharsis]

Sun Wu knocks the bowl of his pipe on the heel of his shoe before tucking it back into the folds of his shirt.  He doesn't typically ride by horseback, but conserving energy is a fine idea.

He wordlessly hops onto the back of the horse presented to him.  Once William Black finally got his bearings, he gave the horse a touch with his heel, lightly spurring it forward.

What the current has in store for them next is anyone's guess.

[Radobe]

Rau walks with the rest towards the north gate. Following Alucard who had graciously gathered them from the square for their new mission. It seems no one will have the time to rest and recuperate their strenght.

Appart from menny others, Valorkoth was waiting for the party. The priest greeted the dragon with a bow and joined the group. Their guide this time was non other but the necromancer they had met earlier. Being exposed to his particular brand of madness was not exactly a welcome sight.

He thanked the orcs for bringing the steads and gladly took one of them. He saddle it with a grunt, however.  His wound has not been completely mended, given the short time it was treated, Hopefully he will be able to take care of it during this ride.

While the necromancer spoke of the uniqueness of the generals of the blackland's army, Rau did not fail to notice the very unique nature of the necromancer himself. For now he chose not to make much of it.

[Daccio]

She would shoulder her spear aafter watching William black for a moment. She didn't particularly like the guy, and she wasn't sure why. With a shake of her head she started walking after him, taking a long swig out of her flask before replacing it at her belt.

She listenes as he describes their next mission and what they were going to do, nodding at the decent plan. As they brought out the horses for everyone she looked at it warily. She usually didn't ride, at least not a horse she had not trained herself. As the mount was left to her, she grabbed the bridle and stared the horse in the eye, before talking quietly to it.

"Don't you give me any trouble, you hear?" She stared at it for a moment more before leaping into the air onto it's saddle. She put the butt of her spear into the stirrup, and started the horse off with knee pressure. She hardly seemed to need the reigns at all.

[Veldanya Venalla]

The Dulluhan followed after the necromancer as the caster rambled on.  As everyone saddled up, Vildayvin raised his right hand into the air.  Frost flowed out from within his armor, floating down towards the ground.  After a moment the frost almost "explodes" as Frostmane materializes before the dark knight.  Graspin the dark leather saddle, Vil effortlessly vaults up into the saddle.  A moment later he follows after William and the rest of the group.

[Shadow Chorus]

The party moved north for some time. Minutes, hours, or even days, it was hard to tell in the Blacklands, as the oppressing darkness never seemed to change with the hour of the day. But after a time of riding, Lord William brought his steed to a halt on a cliff-side overlooking a deep valley.

The fortress of screams lived up to its name. The agonized wails of tortured souls drifted up the cliff-side carried on fell winds. The fortress itself looked like a gnashing skull from the front, and a sprawling insect from above. Its wailing front gate carved in an expression of fear and pain, monsters poured into its open maw at a constant rate, a stream of soldiers flowing into a thirsty fortress

William dismissed his undead mount and it vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving the Warlock on the cliff-side on his feet as he looked down to survey the situation below.

"So. It looks like they've already begun gathering. That means we don't have too much time. We'd best devise a plan. Any initial suggestions? We need to sabotage their operations, draw out the general, kill him, and preferably make it out with our hides still on our backs."

[Veldanya Venalla]

The Dulluhan follows the Necromancer as the group rides across the countryside.  Eventually they come to a halt, the spellcaster bringing his steed to a stop at a cliifside, and before them sat the fortress of screams...countless soldiers pouring through the main gate.  A few seconds after the dark spellcaster dismisses his undead mount, Vildayvin follows suite, moving to the edge of the cliff.  The ebony black eyes of the dark rider flit about as they gaze upon the scene before him. 

"I will be honest....I am not one skilled in the arts of subterfuge.  The best suggestion I would have is a frontal assault and that is quite likely the worst idea in this present situation.  Should you require a distraction however....."

The skull of the cursed rider continues to flit and look around the area even while the armored body stands still, the left hand resting on the hilt of the ebony black longsword at his waist.

[Kitharsis]

"The smallest crack in a mighty dam can result in its destruction."

Wu hops down from horse, barely making a sound as his feet touch the ground.

"The full weight of the water pushes on the unwavering dam for years, ultimately defeated."

Wu gives Vildayvin a small grin. "I would not suggest a frontal assault with our limited number. But a distraction could give us the so-called crack that we are looking for."

[Radobe]

Rau listens to his companions suggestions and when they are done he also dismounts and takes a look at what they are about to face.

"We will need to be careful," the priest unconsciously touches the wound Darkraven gave him, which has almost healed by now " if we do not follow the general's movements, a distraction may backfire on us." Rau takes another moment with his gaze swallowing the surroundings. "We should make sure he doesn't appear with the bulk of his army."

"I have something in mind that might work to our advantage." the holy man clears his throat and begins to explain his plan. "Considering the fact that we are in a fortified enemy camp, we would be hard pressed to fight withing its confines, even if we manage to sneak inside. The outskirts of the camp, however, are a different story. Sweeping around the castle Wu and lady Yukimura should be able to make short work of any nearby sentries. From there we can start making attacks on the fortress. The goal of our attacks would be to draw enemy forces away from it. I should be able to sense the undead's location whit my abilities. When the army starts to form and approach, or the general comes, we retreat, ambush any forces that are on our tail and reemerge on a different location doing the exact same thing. We continue to do that until their general gives chase and separates from his main forces. With any luck we might have a hot headed one here and this could work like a charm on the other had, should the general never chose to leave his fortress, his armies should be drawn outside to search for us which might give us enough room to infiltrate."

[Shadow Chorus]

"It's a stretch, but it may work." Orgarash says, scratching his chin. "We don't know which of the remaining four generals is within these walls, and the information we have on them hardly stretches beyond their names and titles. Fenrir the Hunter, Ashara, the Banshee Queen, Tactician Xaman, and a fourth, only known as 'The Shade'. Of what we know of the four generals, Fenrir would be the most likely to take the bait, but the fear then is that he would be too efficient at the hunt. If our spies and intelligence gatherers are correct, Fenrir is the first of the pack. The Alpha. The original Werewolf. According to our vampire infiltrators, he is typically head of the royal guard at the Palace of Night. But with war on the horizon, it is unknown where he may be deployed. We should consider his presence as the worst case scenario. He is the clenched fist of Dracula. His enforcer and symbol of power."

"The others we do not have enough information on to make a solid call as to what to expect of them. Though by Xaman's title, he is not likely to fall for a lure. Which leaves the Banshee Queen and 'The Shade' as our two unknowns." Grakul interjected, pulling out what appeared to be a spyglass, though it had many more moving parts than a standard one. He looked through it and scanned what he could see of the fortress and the forces pouring into it.

"There's an unusually large detachment of Monstrosities. I'm also spotting a large contingent of hooded figures that are likely the necromancers who put them together. They must have a plan for them."

[Veldanya Venalla]

The undead knight gazes out to the fortress before them, and the forces marching through it's walls.  He silently listens as his macabre eyes flit about the scene in their usual erratic fashion.  Tendrils of ice cold air flow from the small gaps of his plate armor, a thin layer of frost covering the ground around him as the area around the Dulluhan remains incredibly (and for anyone other then Vildayvin, an uncomfortable level) cold.  His floating head turns towards the monk as he dismounts and speaks to him.

"I would not suggest a frontal assault with our limited number. But a distraction could give us the so-called crack that we are looking for."

Vil's decaying skull suddenly spins towards the monk, his flitting vision seeming to pause for a few moments as the midnight orbs focus on Wu. The Dulluhan's raspy voice flowing hauntingly from within the floating skull a momentl ater.

"While you speak in needless riddles and poetry...you speak truth."

His attention returns towards the gate as Orgarash speaks up, revealing the names of the four generals they seek.

"Fenrir...Ashara...Xaman....Shade.  Yes...I can feel it.  Final judgement for each shall come soon."

The Dulluhan seems to speak softly, almost more towards himself then any of the group.  A hint of....excitement, or possibly anticipation, seems to creep into the voice of the cursed warrior.

"Judgement of Darkraven was.....denied.  The others will not be so lucky...."

As Vildayvin speaks it almost seems as if the tabard draped around his armored form seems to fade and decay somewhat, almost as if the Dulluhan's "true" mission is rising above the will of the crusader that still resided within the steel of the black armor.  Then as quick as it started the tabard returns to "normal".

Vil's head rises off of his shoulders and floats over close to Rau as he listens to the priests suggestion.

"Hit-and-run tactics...could certainly work."

His eyes then flit over to Grakul.

"You say Fenrir is the veritable "right hand" of Dracula.  I would say it unlikely that such a creature would be the first one sent against us.  One such as Xaman would likely remain close to the rear where they can safely direct the military might without having to concern themselves with being over-run or assassination attempts and whatnot.  While it is only a guess....I feel that leaves one of the "unknowns" as the one that likely resides within these walls.  Both names may give a hint as to what we could expect from them....a banshee....and a shade."

[Kitharsis]

"If only we had more information. One does not leap from a cliff without knowing how deep the pool is below." Wu gives Vildayvin a knowing grin.

"Judging by the number of monstrosities and necromancers, it does seem to fit Vildayvin's assessment."

Wu takes a sip from a bottle of water he had stashed in the folds of his shirt.

"I cannot say I have a better plan. I will defer to the others."

[Radobe]

Rau listens to Orgarash, and nods. "Fenrir..." the priest repeated "he would truly be our worst enemy in this situation. The fact that he is not undead means I cannot sense his presence, which would be another inconvenience." He takes a few more moments to think and gather his thoughts. "Perhaps I can determine weather we have an undead general inside or not, if I got closer to the fortress and we can take it from there."

Rau looks at their female companion. "Lady Yukimura is there any advice you can give us?"

[Shadow Chorus]

Someone cleared their throat behind the party. As they turned to the sound, Lord William raised his hand in a faux salute, as if he found the very idea of performing the gesture rather quaint.

"It seems to me," he began, as Valorkoth's head snaked around to the Necromancer's side. "That if we are in need of a distraction, perhaps there is none better than a dragon, and perhaps on its shoulders, one of unrestrained magical power." One could almost sense the grin beneath the man's mask.

Valorkoth sniffed in bemusement, a cloud of smoke leaving his nostrils as he gave a deep, throaty chuckle. "Indeed. Perhaps it is time I took to the skies with this young necromancer on my back."

"Young? You mistake my age, good sir."

"No, no I do not." with that, Lord William gave a mere shrug and, as the Dragon lowered itself to the ground, walked to its shoulders and straddled the ridge of raised scales that ran along its back.

"Shall we be off?" the necromancer asked.

"Indeed we shall. Make ready to begin to hunt."


With that, the dragon spread its massive, leathery wings, and with a single flap flung itself into the air. It let loose a ferocious Roar that echoed across the sky, and the heads down below turned up in surprise as a Dragon swooped low, strafing the army with a gout of burning breath as the Necromancer astride it flung down orbs of magic that detonated amidst the foe below. Their assault did little to dwindle the numbers of the army, but they now had its full attention.

"Now we begin the infiltration." Orgarash said, moving to the edge of the cliff and stepping over. He dug his boots into the side of the rather steep slope, and either by magic or sheer strength, kept himself against the slope as he slid, his massive form digging a groove in the gravelly hillside as he descended. It was a long way down, however. Grakul followed behind, sliding his way slowly down the groove the larger Orc had been kind enough to dig out for him.

[Daccio]

Lady Yukimura grips the spear as she sits on her horse, listening to the others talk about the situation. Plans enter her head and are discarded as things are discussed, and ideas flit around as she tries to decide what would be the best way to go about this situation. She hopped down, standing next to the rest.

"Some hit and run tactics creating a disctraction then a tactical withdrawel should draw the general out of hiding. If it does not, we know we are likely fighting Xaman. If we do draw them out, we must be prepared for a brutal counterattack should we find ourselves facing fenrir. My inclination would be that we not find him here, but it could always happen. If we manage to draw out some of the army, but not the general, the shade and the banshee queen may have magics they can use effectively at a distance, so we could outflank and attempt to launch a tactical strike on the general if that is the case. As far as the monstrosities, we should send one of our heavy hitters that direction, to at least maim them so they are unable to assist. I'm not too experienced with necromancers, but someone with magics to
combat their own would be logical.

After speaking her bit, she turned as someone cleared their throat. Her eyebrow raised as the dragon and Lord william offered to be a distraction. Before much else could be said, the necromancer hopped onto the back of the dragon and started off the surprise attack at once.

"I guess we are going in" Said Lady Yukimura with a shrug. She took a long swallow from her flask before replacing it, and leapt off after the others, nearly effortlessly keeping her feet as she slid down the steep slope on her armored feet. She held her spear to the side, at the ready.

[Veldanya Venalla]

The Dulluhan's head spins to look behind his as a voice speaks up.  Vil listens as the dragon and necromancer quickly formulate a plan of attack and then put things into motion as the winged creature launches into the air and delivers multiple blasts of fire against the moving army below. 

"Yesss.....action at last.

He moves to follow after Yukimura, The undead knight's strength forcing his large plate boots down into the ground beneath him, easing his travel down the steep slope.  The exposed soil frosts over as it contacts the ebony steel of his boots, a stark reminder of the dark power that infuses and empowers the warrior (as if the ghastly disembodied head didn't do that already).

[Kitharsis]

Wu watches passively as the dragon and necromancer haul off into the sky. Quite a distraction indeed.

"I suppose the debate is over." He says, as the others begin their decent down the slope.

The monk delicately hops over the edge, taking his own path parallel to the others. He crosses his arms as he gildes down the slope on a cushion of chakra beneath his feet.