Within These Walls ((Open 9/28/12))

[Silas Parrish]

Tobias pressed his face against the glass of a window on the outside of the nearest building in as quick a span as he could, and made certain that no monsters of any sort were waiting to tear into him the moment he opened the door. Satisfied, Tobias hastily removed the pins from the hinges of the door, and prized the thick panel of wood from its frame. Inside, there were gigantic piles of washed but still quite dingy linens on the one side, and an equally-large pile of linens covered in mystery stains of all colors. Red was disturbingly prevalent. He quickly scanned the walls near the door, and laid eyes on an unused torch jutting out from a crooked sconce. He seized this, and made use of his tinderbox.  

[Chibi Kitsune Warrior]

Is he abandoning us!? Eve wondered in horror, as she watched Tobias appear to flee into a near-by building. Though she was still in pain from the earlier attack, she pushed herself slowly to her feet, picking up her sword from the mud as she did so.
Feylan and Galiel were still battling the worm, working together to keep it from attacking the other gathered around it. They were wearing out fast. Eve limped forward, prepared to fight this thing to the death.

Feylan felt his strength slowly fading. Just how much more could this monster take? His blows were doing less damage and he was starting to swing sloppily while the worm was fighting back with as much vigor as when it first attacked.
Oh, hell! Feylan thought as he slipped in a puddle of the worms foul smelling vomit. He fell on one knee, struggling to regain his balance. But that one mistake was all it took. The worm surged forward, knocking Galiel aside and latching onto Feylan's arm as he swung his axe. Feylan screamed in pain as the teeth ripped into his arm.
Galiel rushed forward, his eyes burning with anger. With a hoarse cry, he attacked, but he was too late. As the worm reared back, it ripped Feylan's arm off at the shoulder in a cloud of gore. Feylan backward, his body tensing and twitching, his mouth and eyes opened wide. But he didn't make a sound.

Eve rushed forward, Tesra just behind her. As Galiel forced the worm away, they pulled Feylan out of the creatures reach. Tesra quickly pulled out her medical supplies and began seeing to the wound. Feylan looked about helplessly, unable to focus on anything. Eve gripped his hand tightly and spoke to him in soft tones, assuring him that everything would be okay. Tears rolled down her cheeks, mingling with the mud.  

[Orcus Fieres]

Dæmon's shock at the sight of the monster faded quickly as the sight of wounded and bloodied retreat replaced it. As soon as he was sure of his tactic he readied his knuckles and cane for a fight. The second the worm reared in response to Galiel's advances Dæmon swept in, effectively smashing his cane against one of the beast's segments. Another second and he had pushed forward with a punch to the same segment. Dæmon continued his slow barrage of punches and cane swipes, but all this was doing little to best the menace.  

[Silas Parrish]

With the torch lit, Tobias ran at breakneck speed, hitting the dirt and sliding under one loop in the coiled body of the worm while the giant grappled with it. He got to his feet again, and removed from his rapidly emptying rucksack a glass hip flask. He frowned at the brown liquid for a moment, regretting having to waste it, and lobbed it over the worm's head. The bottle landed in the thatch of the roof. Tobias cursed loudly, and immediately regretted it, as the worm turned its horrid head toward him. He dropped his torch and fired off an arrow, and broke the whiskey flask. He had intended for it to break against the stone wall and splash the supports, but that was no matter. With alcohol drenching the beams in the roof, Tobias tossed his torch into the building, igniting the dried wood and thatching in an instant.  

[Chibi Kitsune Warrior]

Eve and Tesra moved Feylan away from the battle and did their best to stop the bleeding. Meanwhile, Galiel contined to pound away at the worm. He was tiring quickly; rage was the only thing that kept him going.

"It just won't stop!" Tesra wailed, holding a large piece of gauze firmly against Feylan's shoulder-stub. "There has to be something else we can do!"
A sudden light and wave of heat drew their attention to the building behind them. Neither of them had seen what happened, but the building had burst into flames.
"I think there is something else we can do..." Eve muttered, studying the burning building.
"Here, let me borrow this!" she exclaimed, unclasping Tesra's cloak. Tesra started to protest, but Eve quieted her. "I'll bring it back! Trust me on this, okay?"

Galiel squinted as the building before him caught fire. His eyes were accustomed to the half-darkness and this new light was irritating to his senses, not to mention the heat was almost baking him. He gave the worm one last thwack before retreating to Tesra and Feylan. He glanced back just long enough to see the "tail" of the worm start to catch fire, the building having collapsed about it. The monster thrashed, mandibles opening and closing violently as it screeched in pain. In what seemed to be a last effort to escape the flames, the creature threw itself forward, straining to pull itself away from the wall.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

Shania watched in horror as one man had his arm ripped uncleanly off by the no doubt hungry worm. She immediately ran over to where he was carried and hovered worriedly behind Tesra, ignoring Tobias darting off. If she had had her herb bag she could have helped the woman's failed efforts in stopping the blood flow. She'd left it just outside of the front gate, unfortunately. The bright flash of fire shocked her out of her thoughts and she realized that Tobias had gone through with his plan to use the door frame against the worm. At Eve's muttering, Shania realized that the two women thought of the same solution to the flowing wound. It wouldn't be pretty but it was the only way. However, Tesra's cloak would be more suited to covering the shoulder rather than what it was intended for. "Stay here!" She said before running off in the direction of the building.

Daniel ceased his attacks on the frantic worm when he saw his love flank a good distance away and head towards him. The dryad rushed purposefully at the flames before slowing down to shy away, fear in her eyes overcoming her determination. "What is it?" He called as he placed himself in between her and the beast. "His arm...It's gone!" He heard her cry, and he looked at the gathering not too far away. Splashes of blood decorated the stone before them and he realized what she meant. Daniel backed up next to her and kicked backwards at what he hoped was a weak plank. It took a few hits before it fell with a clatter and the stench of flesh burning mingled with the woodsmoke. The worm's hide was easier to pierce with his blade now that it was trying to stretch away from it's demise and he continued his assault with the giant.

Shania snatched it up before she could rethink the action and darted past Daniel, who was moving away after feeling the heat affect his metal armor, with it. The flames sputtered with the movement but didn't go out as she made her way back. Her toe caught on a stone a few feet away from Tesra and Feylan and she cried out as the worm's mouths snapped open and closed with its pain. But she forced herself from her scraped knees and stumbled over to Eve as Tarnbel'en's arrows flew straight into a few of the maws. "T-take it! Please!" She said as she held the burning plank out away from her body.  

[Silas Parrish]

The burning timbers across the walls and ceiling of the hut ignited in an instant, and the dried wood soon gave way and fell upon the flesh of the horrible writhing thing hiding inside the power station. Hot stone crumbled, its support gone, and piled upon the putrid flesh, burning it. The worm screamed and twisted in place in agony, its prospective meals and its charge of protecting the power station all forgotten. Finally, with a massive lurch, it tore itself free of the wall--leaving behind more than half of its slimy body. It continued to whip back and forth, threatening with each spasm to crush one traveler or another. Finally, it grew very still, and lay whimpering. Tobias nearly felt sorry for the poor, stupid beast...nearly.  

[Chibi Kitsune Warrior]

Eve watched in horror as the small woman ran toward the inferno, but before she could react in any way, Shania was already returning with a flaming piece of wood. Eve rushed to her when she fell and thanked her for her efforts as she helped her up.
This isn't exactly what I had in mind, but it'll do. she thought, gingerly picking up the board. The flames were eating it up quickly and there was hardly any place for her to safely put her hands.
She laid the timber closer to where Feylan lay and rushed around the area, searching the ground.
Tesra watched her, completely baffled as to her behavior. What on earth was she doing?
Finally, Eve found what she was looking for, a rather large rock. It was mostly flat on one side and she set the rock down with that side closest to the flames. It was then that Tesra realized her intentions. She reached into a pouch at her waist and pulled out a small bottle filled with a dark liquid. Easing Feylan's head up, she poured a small amount into his mouth. "That should help with the pain," she explained as she tucked the bottle back in her pouch.
When the rock rock had heated up enough, Eve used Tesra's robe to protect her hands from burns and carried it to Feylan.
"Now this is going to hurt Feylan," she began. "But it's for your own good so try not to move around too much, okay?"
Tesra put a bit of cork in Feylan's mouth and Galiel, who had been unable to help thus far, held him down gently, but firmly. Feylan squeezed his eyes closed, his breathing was little more than ragged gasps.
Eve picked up the rock once more and nodded to Tesra, who pulled the gauze away from his wound. Without a moments hesitation, Eve stuck the hot stone to his wound, flinching as the blood and flesh sizzled against it. Feylan cried out in pain, flinching and twisting, but Galiel and Tesra held him tightly against the ground. The smell of seared flesh made Eve want to vomit, but she kept applying the stone to his arm until the wound had been seared closed.  

[Ty Gwynnia]

Daniel scrambled backwards as the worm ripped itself apart in its desperate squirming and then continued to writhe for moments afterward. Although the danger looked almost past, he kept a wary eye on the beast. He saw Dæmon similarly move away from the worm. Perhaps now the giant would rethink his earlier decision that the black sludge had only been sludge. Muffled cries reached his ears over the roaring of the flames and he knew what was happening not too far away from him. As the worm stopped moving, he approached it cautiously with his longsword still in hand. The sound it was making, was it whimpering? It was almost impossible to believe that such a monstrosity would whimper. Maybe it knew its life was at an end. Daniel hooked his shield on the strap on the back of his armor and raised his sword up with two hands near the monster's "head", taking care to watch for any sign of a second wind. "Someone help me kill this...worm, I cannot drive the blade in alone. Even something as vile as this surely had a reason for attacking and even mercy is not above those reasons."

Shania had covered her nose and mouth with both hands shortly after Eve took the plank from her hands, knowing that the smell would be terrible. Already too many horrible stenches were floating around in the air and this added to it. She didn't want to breathe any of it anymore and although she did close her eyes, she couldn't block out the sounds from Feylan.

"At least it was a clean cut." Tarnbel'en said aloud as he wandered over to the gathering, watching Feylan's agonized movements calmly. His heart went out to the human who was suffering. "Too soon, Knife-Ears, too soon." Ruskie puffed a few yards away. Unfortunately his stomach had lurched unpleasantly at the sight of the mawed worms' lunch on display and had to similarly hurl a safe distance away from his companions. Humility found its way to him far too often. "But I'm more worried than angry right now. Who knows what things heard the cries?"  

[Orcus Fieres]

Dæmon nodded in concurrence with Daniel. "If I may." He moved back toward the worm and crouched beside it after giving Feylan a few worried looks. "I've no knowledge of the anatomy of this beast, but we seem to be thinking the same thing." He held tight on two segments a safe distance from the head and pushed them aside, allowing for a weaker section in between the two to show. "A true strike here should do it, shouldn't it? Sever the head?" Dæmon expressed and unsure air about this idea.  

[Silas Parrish]

"No!" cried a new voice. A portly man emerged from the very shadows, wheezing, and gesturing to the fat, gently twitching bloodworm. "No. Please...this poor beast knows nothing but to eat and sleep. He attacks you only out of fear." No one spoke as this newcomer caught his breath.
"What'll we do, then?" Tobias asked flatly. "You've seen this before, I take it."
"Leave it. It will regenerate, in time. I have seen many of these, yes...but never so big. And never so far from a desert." The stranger sat upon the cold dirt, uncomfortably close to the worm.
"Why did you follow me, Jon?" Tobias said sharply.
"Oh! Thanks for the reminder. I came to ask you to return to your father's lands...when I heard that this damned place was accepting visitors, I knew you would come."
"You're too late, I'm afraid. The gates are inexplicably and inexorably closed." The middle-aged man shrugged, and hauled himself lazily from his spot to stand and clap Tobias about the back. "Well, I'm at a loss. I though we might turn on the power...but we can no longer do that. Any ideas?"  

[Ty Gwynnia]

At the appearance of another stranger, Daniel lowered his sword a fraction. He saw more of a reason appear when it was stated that it regenerate and that its natural habitat was formerly a desert. It was in pain now, may pose as a problem later, away from home, and should be dealt with now. But he lowered his sword and produced a cleaning rag from somewhere inside of his armor. He continued to watch the stationary worm as he removed the blood and grime from its blade.

"Maybe...maybe we should find somewhere safe to bring him to..." Shania muttered out loud, tearing her eyes away from the gruesome scenes and grasping her ankh. Her nose wrinkled at the smell that hit her once again. "If not, I need to return to the gate for something..."  

[Mr_BlueCamo]

((i omitted my last post i think this one should suffice))

Araion jumped in the conversation saying, "Unless anyone is tired we should search for this mysterious darkness that is infecting this area and eliminate it."  

[Chibi Kitsune Warrior]

Tesra produced a corked bottle full of clear liquid from one of her pouches and poured it across Feylan's arm. It sizzled and foamed as it ran across his skin. She continued to apply a series of balms to the now closed wound and wrapped it tightly in gauze.

Eve stood apart from the group, searching the shadows and surrounding buildings for signs of movement. Surely their battle hadn't gone unheard, but at this moment, nothing stirred.
"I think our most important priority is to escape this place," she responded, finally turning back to the group. "If we must destroy this darkness in the process, then we must, but I don't think we should pursue it. It's just a feeling... But I think that it's even more dangerous than we can imagine."