The hovering shape recoils from the luminous glow that surrounds Throar and spreads slowly out into the forest. With a malicious hiss, it replies to Vulfex.
"I am the will of he who commands Seraph Falls, who is beyond your strength."
Its eyes swept over Eizujeil, Dreadnaor, and others in the caravan before turning toward Throar.
"Your magic cannot surpass my own, though I suppose I'll let you have this ribbon of land. Either proceed to town and be put to the test or leave these lands and be spared."
Then, with a rushing sound, the figure twisted into the fading darkness and was gone with a magical "pop". Eleanor checked everyone to make sure that no one had been hurt or gone missing, but all seemed well.
Throar's spell had worked perfectly, creating a cloud of ambient light 5 yards wide and hundreds of feet long, which hovered over the path you'd been following. The light seemed to rouse everyone's spirits and fill them with determination.

Vulfex -
Undeaddog -
Eizujeil -
Dreadnaor -

Eleanor is pleased to add Dreadnaor to the group, and the whole party sets off toward Seraph Falls with a new sense of purpose. You finally arrive at what you'd guess is about 4 in the afternoon, but the down is already thoroughly enshrouded in darkness. The sun overhead glows no more brightly than a full moon, and many of the townspeople have stayed in their homes. A few come out to greet you, and you can tell that they seem tired, weak, and a little dazed.
Your combined viewpoints help you locate the source of the magical darkness... it's coming from somewhere here in town.
There are several possible locations where the energy might be coming from, but it's hard to tell which one it might be because each has some magical energy of its own.
● The general store
● The blacksmith's shop
● The local temple
● A 2-story home near the center of town
● A small home near the outskirts of town
● The guards' barracks
● A dilapidated grain silo

Undeaddog - 1/1 HP, 9/10 MP
Vulfex - 1/1 HP, 6/6 MP
Dreadnaor - 3/3 HP, 5/5 MP
Tha'Shira - 3/3 HP, 4/4 MP
Eizujeil - 3/3 HP, 3/3 MP

"Ill investigate the grain silo, perhaps the problem lies in the grain supply"

Eizujeil ● The Blacksmith's Shop
You approach the shop, and feel a mounting sense of dread and discomfort as you get nearer to the center of town. When you come within sight of the shop, your heightened senses are practically aflame in the presence of magic.
But, strangely, it feels different here than the large, simple cloud of darkness that sits over the city. The magic here is... cold, almost brooding.
The blacksmith is a short, muscular dwarf, and you find him slouching in a comfortable chair in front of his shop.
"Nothin' ta sell today. We're closed."

Throar ● Interrogating a Villager
You manage to find a passing farmer easily enough. The young man seems lacking in personality, and responds to every question with the same drowzy, dull, disinterested manner of responses.
"Hello... stranger. This is Seraph... uh, Seraph Falls. What do you, you know, need?"

Vulfex is fairly close to Throar, close enough to overhear or participate in the conversation, but at the moment he hasn't done much of anything.

Dreadnaor (and Tha'Shira) ● Center of Town
It doesn't take long to reach town square, though you feel surrounded by strange and unfamiliar magical powers as you walk. You near the two-story building and begin to identify the source of magic present there. It's wild and unrefined, but unfathomably deep... a wellspring of power that could last a lifetime. The energy flickers and pulses like the light of a torch-bug, and causes an ethereal stir in the darkness with each new wave.

Undeaddog - 1/1 HP, 9/10 MP
Vulfex - 1/1 HP, 6/6 MP
Dreadnaor - 3/3 HP, 5/5 MP
Tha'Shira - 3/3 HP, 4/4 MP
Eizujeil - 3/3 HP, 3/3 MP

Eizujeil ● The Blacksmith's Shop
The dwarf absentmindedly waves a hand at his forge. You can see that the ashes are extinguished, and probably haven't been warm for days.
"Can't make anything without heat, lad. Try as I might, I can't get a fire started. If you have anything that might help, feel free to take a stab at it."
Sure enough, whatever the magic in his show was, it was emanating from the heatless cinders beneath his forge.

Throar ● Interrogating a Villager
Your magic has a strange effect on the man. He slows to a standstill, looking up at the sky in silence. He becomes extremely focused, though you don't see anything that might have captured his attention. With a look of mixed horror, apprehension, and confusion, he begins to stutter out an answer. "I... I see them... every night when I dream. Ravens. Giant, murderous ravens with flickering ashen wings. They descended on our town and gripped us in darkness, and they're plucking out our eyes while we sleep." The man is shaking, his eyes wide and pale. "Magic. Foul, evil magic... I hope Hank manages to find some peace."

Vulfex ● The Grain Silo
Vulfex approaches the battered old silo with magical senses tingling. There was a smell of decay around the silo, though it was fresh and pungent in a way that seemed out of place. You might have expected a dry musky stench, but this putrid nausea is far beyond anything naturally occurring in a biome like this.
The grain in the silo is decaying into a black sludge, like something found in the waters of a swamp. It's obviously magical, and you feel a tingling over your skin as you investigate the silo. Whatever it is, it's buried in the putrid mass that would be grain.

Dreadnaor (and Tha'Shira) ● Center of Town
A young elven woman opens the door, her skin pale and colorless. Her auburn hair is graying very quickly and erratically, forming a tangle of brown and white curls.
"Sshhh..." she drolls in a half-sleeping stupor, "don't wake the baby."
Beyond her, you could see a crib, and you could sense that the flickering, limitless source of power was lying within it.

Undeaddog - 1/1 HP, 8/10 MP
Vulfex - 1/1 HP, 6/6 MP
Dreadnaor - 3/3 HP, 5/5 MP
Tha'Shira - 3/3 HP, 4/4 MP
Eizujeil - 3/3 HP, 3/3 MP

Eizujeil ● The Blacksmith's Shop
Rummaging around in the would-be ashes, you find a strange black... substance. It's something like a vapor or cloud, but it sticks to things like tar, stretching out as they are moved. It is absurdly cold, almost like ice, and even being near it is giving you chills.
This. Whatever the hel it was, it was definitely magic, and it almost screamed evil.

Throar ● Interrogating a Villager
"Hank was the first one to suspect something was wrong. He's had it... worse.. than the rest of us. Yeah, the whole town's dark and no one can get any good sleep, but him and his wife haven't even slept since this whole thing began. He told me the other day, he's thinking he might just take to the gallows and end it all. He spent all his savings on the last shipment of goods for his store, just before it all went south. Now he's flat broke, and there's no customers to turn him any coin. He can't sell, since no one wants to live here, so he don't see any other way out."
He shudders, holding his arms as though he's excessively cold. You realize that his poor, battered mind offered no resistance to your enchantment, and it dawns on you how vulnerable these people really are.

Vulfex ● The Grain Silo
The dragon you summon is curiously designed, seeming almost mechanical and thoroughly reinforced. You realize that he is not a natural dragon, but rather a draconic clone or homonculus of some fashion. Whatever it is, it is hardy and resilient, and well suited for many tasks. It's also large enough to ride, and fills 2/3 of the grain silo while inside it.
Dragon - 4 Presence - Flying, Intelligent, Mount, Strike (bite or breath, 50-150), Block
Recover (action) - restores up to 2 Presence (net gain +1)

Dreadnaor (and Tha'Shira) ● Center of Town
The woman offers you no resistance, which in itself is a huge red flag. Here you are, barging into her home to examine her child for hints of dark magic, and she responds merely with, "Oh, alright."
The magical aura is indeed emanating from the child, but one of the reasons its pulsing and flickering is that it's competing with the child's own magical aura. That was reassuring. The magical malice here wasn't originating from the child, even if that was where it was currently rooted.
Something had taken hold of the child, and sought to corrupt the infant's own impressive mana reserves with dark magic.
Necromancy.
Your magical senses quickly identified and zeroed in on the specific nature of the enchantment in play. And not the grey-washed half-assed vampirisism "necromancy," but real and deadly necromancy... the kind of force that grows without control as it kills everything in its path, gaining strength and force with each life extinguished in its grasp.
The child wouldn't last a week, and had only managed this long because it obviously had immense magical power of its own, and had a lifetime of unexpended potential with which to combat this darkness.
Tha'Shira stood back, her face emotionless. "Master, I think the child is afflicted. He is a symptom, not a cause."

Undeaddog - 1/1 HP, 8/10 MP
Vulfex - 1/1 HP, 5/6 MP
Wand - 5/6 charges
Dragon - 4 Presence
Dreadnaor - 3/3 HP, 5/5 MP
Tha'Shira - 3/3 HP, 4/4 MP
Eizujeil - 3/3 HP, 3/3 MP

● The general store -
● The blacksmith's shop - chilling magic in the forge's cinders
● The local temple -
● A home near the center of town - death magic in the family's infant child
● A house on the outskirts -
● The guards' barracks -
● A dilapidated grain silo - ??? magic in the grain

Eizujeil ● The Blacksmith's Shop
You swing the head of the flail into the black substance, and examine the results closely. The black substance moved like thick oil when struck, but then surged back to attach to the head of the flail as it was swinging away. As it gripped the steel spikes, it seemed to stretch and slow the movement of the flail's head a little bit, before the weapon's momentum broke it free of the vile substance. It was inexplicably anchored in the coals, it seemed, and while it would stick to and draw in things that touched it, it was unable to actually keep you from breaking away, or cause any permanent harm from only a moment's touch.
As you looked at the mace's head, you noticed that there was a slight frosty sheen over part of the steel, as though the mace had been sitting in icewater for a few minutes.

Throar ● Interrogating a Villager
He points in the direction of the general store. "He's a trader, runs the general store here in town."
As you release the magic, the man seems to slump forward, as if he'd been propped up on invisible crutches that no longer held his weight. "I'm sorry. I'm just... I'm going to take a nap."

Dreadnaor (and Tha'Shira) ● Center of Town
The woman steps back, and for a brief moment her eyes are wide with terror. Then, inexplicably, she seems to calm down. It's almost as if she doesn't see the blade, or doesn't understand that she is in danger. With a dreary, glazed look in her eyes, she responds, "He's... in the kitchen. I don't think anything's wrong with our baby. He's finally sleeping... he was so tired he didn't even finish his last feeding... yesterday."
She seems almost like she's half asleep, or perhaps drunk. Her words are slurred and drowzy, and she's having trouble focusing.
Tha'Shira places a hand on your shoulder. "She is no mage. She is a victim as well... she just doesn't realize it."

Dreadnaor (and Tha'Shira) ● Family Home
You find the kitchen easily enough, and the father is sitting slumped at the table, a piece of uneaten bread laying limply in his palm. He was awake, but not alert, as though he were daydreaming or held in some magical trance. Judging by the appearance of his meal, he had been sitting in this very spot for hours, without eating a single bite.
He turns to you, bleary eyed, and mutters something about a quick snack. Then he looks away again and... You're not really sure what happens, but the man's mind clearly isn't functioning properly at the moment. He's staring at the wall, and with a sick chill you realize that the baby's crib is directly in line with his gaze, though the wall between them nearly conceals this. The magic at work in the child has him spellbound, even through this barrier.

Vulfex ● The Grain Silo
There is a deafening blast of force as the remains of the grain silo get scattered across the untilled field, followed by the nauseating squish of decomposed grain matter spattering about in heaps as well. With all laid bare, you quickly zeroed in on the source of the power. A writhing mass of black energy, like roots seeking favorable soil, lay twisting and convulsing at the center of the silo's remains. In moments, the energy began to worm its way into the soil, turning the grass brown and gray as it began the decomposition process once more... although this time, it wasn't in a conveniently isolated location. Judging by the behavior of this magical force, it would likely spread indefinitely.

My eyes widen as I witness this black energy moving into the ground "NECROMANCY!" I shout so that someone else might hear me and jump onto my dragon and begin infusing it with my mana and order it to spend all of it remaining energy and my mana on blasting the area that the mass entered into oblivion /user/vulfex/27#27

Eizujeil ● The Blacksmith's Shop
Why look for weapons instead of using your own? Just worried it might get corrupted?
You manage to scoop out the evil goop, along with a clump of coals, but as soon as it's away from the forge it starts to tremble and boil uncontrollably. Then, with a sudden whoosh of power, the writhing black mass disintegrated into sand, swirling down from the blade and back into the rest of the coals. The granules melted together, once again forming a glob of black, web-like tendrils.

Throar ● The General Store
Your knocks are greeted with a fain, "come in" from inside the store. Inside, you see an emaciated middle aged man with balding white hair and dark bags under his eyes. He is sitting next to a frail looking woman, whose appearance and apparent age were not unlike her husband's.
"If... If you want anything, just take it. Leave some coin on the counter."
The man and his wife simple sat, slouched in their chairs and looking half asleep and half dead.
The room contained many common adventuring supplies, like water skins and dried meats, but everything was dark, moldy, corrupted, and practically worthless. Even the once stout timbers that held the frame of the house and shelves were now spongy and rotten. The air was stale and nauseating, like what you'd expect from an unearthed tomb. You wouldn't even have needed your magical senses to draw your attention to the focus of all this decay. Standing alone, strangely untouched and immaculate, you see a sculpture of a crow or raven, with crystals and obsidian flakes making up its body and feathers. Everything that had been on the same shelf as this statue had been degraded to naught but miniature piles of dust, and items in neighboring shelves were beginning to turn in the same process. In a room full of desolation, there was one thing that remained untouched.
And it was giving off some wicked bad mojo.
The evil energy pouring out of it was so strong, you were surprised that even the untrained commoners hadn't noticed it. The statue filled you with dread, and chilled you to the bone, but there was a strange and sinister longing tied up in the magic as well. The artifact was powerful, and whoever controlled it would have control of that power. Wrong as it was, a part of you called out in desire for that very power, the malicious energy that had brought a whole town to its knees.

Seeing the man in this state has convinced me there is nothing more to do here, other than taking the child away. I return to the room with the crib, gently take the infant and his wrappings and leave to find Eleanor, making sure to ignore the mother and the father. If they decide to protest in any way, though highly unlikely given their condition, I instruct Tha'Shira to cast fear on the first one to come after me.

Partly, and the other part is because I wanted to incorporate the martial rolling a bit more since I haven't really RP'd it much, its fun to roll random stuff

This fowl magic was troublesome, and it was starting to get on Eizujeil's nerves, whatever this black substance was, it was clearly bent on sticking to the coals. "So thats the way you wanna be eh?! Well how about this!" He said with rising temper as he brought his own halberd up to strike at the remaining tinder and coals left in the forge; but just before he struck, a sudden thought came to him.

'Heat, this thing may be attracted to heat!'. Suddenly, a sly grin shone on Eizujeil's face. A well built forge was a great and necessary tool for any blacksmith, but it was impossible to carry when travelling, and that's why he suddenly remembered the makeshift quick-forge his uncle had taught him how to make in case he needed to temper anything on the fly. The process was simple, by placing a small 'U' shape out of brick, applying dry tinder and coals in the middle and facing the brick opening with a hand bellow, one could light the tinder and use there foot to apply air into the coals which would heat them up enough to allow for minor metal work.

Invigorated by his plan, Eizujeil set out and started to collect the materials necessary for constructing the quick-forge, if he guessed correctly, whatever the evil substance was, it would be attracted to the new flames lit upon the coals, and that is where he would utilize the quick-forge's biggest weakness, its ease to fall apart. Anyone in a steel boot could accidentally knock over the bricks and ruin the makeshift forge, imagine what a mighty swing of a halberd would do.

The process of collecting the materials didn't take long, this was a blacksmith's workshop after all and all these things would be bountifully lying around. Constructing it didn't take much longer as well and he set it up relatively close to the actual forge, giving himself enough space for a good swing. Now that he was ready, he applied some sparks with a flint and slowly started to bellow the coals as he readied his halberd, if this black goop leaped at the newly heated coals, it was in for a rude and wild awakening. Staring intently at his handy-work, he really hoped that this would do the trick.

Undeaddog - 1/1 HP, 8/10 MP
Vulfex - 1/1 HP, 5/6 MP
Wand - 5/6 charges
Dragon - 3 Presence
Dreadnaor - 3/3 HP, 5/5 MP
Tha'Shira - 3/3 HP, 4/4 MP
Eizujeil - 3/3 HP, 3/3 MP
Comments 57 and 58 are a single update. I exceeded the character limit and had to split it into two posts.

I will then proceed to the general store, knocking twice before opening the door and stepping inside, breaking the door down if it were locked.

/user/vulfex/26
I bring my construct dragon to bear and order him to breath attack the grain silo

**** .
Mentions for Vulfex and Undeaddog

"There is something definitely wrong with the baby. It's a miracle he is still alive. I am going to talk to the father as well and after that I will take the baby to the priestess Eleanor. Perhaps she can dispel this dark magic."

It doe's not look like I can get any useful information out of the mother, so I storm out of that room, trying to find the kitchen.

/user/eizujeil/24#24

Eizujeil contemplated on his observation, he believed that the substance was anchored to the coals, thus the coals are the source of this chilling effect. Deciding to remove the coals, he reached out for another weapon, perhaps something that had more of a blade to be able to be placed under the coals and pulled out.

Luckily, this time Eizujeil found a glaive, causing him to give off a quick 'hmpf of acceptableness'. Lifting the spear-like weapon a bit overhead, he attempted to push the blade underneath the coals and pull down on the haft with controlled force as to slowly but powerfully wedge the evil-ridden substance out of the forge, knowing that he might have to repeat the process if he wasn't able to catch all the coals in one.

"Yes, I agree."
I turn to the woman, summon Soulsever and point it at her head.
"And there is no way a loving mother would not notice this and seek aid for her child. You better start explaining! What happened to the child? Where is the father? "

/user/eizujeil/23#23

This evil substance had Eizujeil stumped, he was not great when it came to magics, in fact he tried to avoid them unless they came in the shape of wood and steel. He knew that whatever this presence was, it was causing problems for the poor smith, and for that alone he felt the need to purge it.

Maintaining eye-contact on the substrance, Eizujeil stretched his arm out to one of the forges walls in order to pick up anything that could assist in his inspection. Finally feeling the touch of a metallic haft wrapped in leather binding, he pulled in to reveal that he had gripped a flail, sighing lightly due it not being the most useful of items he decided that it would still do for the task at hand.

With a very light under-arm swing, he attempted to bring the spiked ball component of the flail into contact with the evil substance in order to observe its reaction to force and metal alike.

I'll ask him about where Hank lives before heading over to find him.

Releasing the man as I go

I step out of the silo and raise my wand into the air and prepare to summon something that might aid in my task

As the Dwarf pointed to the forge, Eizujeil frowned, something was definitely off and he suspected magic to be the cause. Silently, he made his way over to inspect it closer, perhaps he might see something the Dwarf didn't or couldn't notice.

My initial zeal was somewhat diminished after the woman opened the door. I expected something more sinister. Still, I keep my guard up and I attempt to approach the child.
"Pardon me madam. There is a strange aura of magic emanating from nearby. I am Dreadnaor, a wizard, and I am here on behalf of the Lainite church. Please allow me to check your house and, more importantly , your child. The magic may be linked to the darkness that has befallen this town and it might cause further problems."

Throar slowly approaches the man, asking him ¨what happened to Hank?¨

The magic here seems completely out of place. As soon as I identify the house, I move towards the door and knock in such a manner, that I am certain any living thing inside the house heard it. I am not expecting a response however. Thus I intend to knock down the door with Tha'Shira's help.
/user/dreadnaor/45#45 Door bash attempt, IF no one opens.

Eizujeil sensed that something was wrong, and he confirmed it when the Dwarven blacksmith stated that he was not producing any goods.

"Lo. blacksmith! It is rare to see your kind of establishment in such a state, is something the matter? Perhaps a helpful hand in your woe'd affairs?" He said, hoping that the man was in good enough spirits to explain his issue.

**undeaddog used "*roll picture*"**
**undeaddog rolled image**

Given the continuous lack of response from the seemingly drunk villager Throar lets him go, waiting for the villager to turn around before he starts to channel a spell, drawing another image to mind.

With the image that appears Throar gives out a low sigh at there being no chance at healing the poor villagers mind he instead begins to focus on focusing the villagers mind on the subjects being asked of him, returning him to something close to the original state before asking him again.

Throar with a sense of dread at the look of the poor villagers starts to interrogate one of the nearest one before making a decision on where to go.

The multitude of suspicious locations, combined with the shade's warning has made me wary. Perhaps splitting up to cover as many locations as possible is exactly what the enemy expects of us. Another approach may be wiser. I turn to my fellow companions to speak my mind.
Vulfex , Undeaddog
"Splitting us up and engaging us isolated from each other seems to be the objective of the enemy here. I suggest we form teams of two instead. One of you should accompany Eizujeil and the other should escort Lady Eleanor to the temple. I will go to the town center with Tha'Shira".

Eizujeil did not know what to make of the magic that had befallen this place but he knew one thing, he disliked magic that had run amok and he especially hated wizards that used magic for evil purposes.

Since they had to locate the source of this magic, Eizujeil decided that he would visit the blacksmith's shop first, he always enjoyed the company of crafters and if any trouble had befallen them then he definitely would want to assist them.

"A Test hmmm.." I stroke my beard as I continue down the lit path. "I wonder of its contents. Mayhaps a test of mental prowess?"

I catch up to the adventurer's party just in time to witness the living shade and hear it's ominous challenge. But the strange creature left before I had the chance to do anything. Nothing left to do but join the party and continue towards Seraph Falls.
" Greetings travelers, I am Dreadnaor the wizard and I would like to apologize for coming late. I had arrived at the Lainite temple mere hours after you'v departed. Lady Eleanor, I pledge my magic and my companion Tha'Shira to your defense."

With plenty of path left and a long way to go Throar barely waits for the rest of the party before with long strides setting off, however stopping for a second and then slowing down as he notices that he's almost leaving the others behind. Then to Eizujeil he states ¨A test could never be a real challenge for our prowess.¨

Eizujeil watched the whole magical interaction carefully, waiting to see if this dark manifestation was up to no good, but it seemed that this particular being was only a messenger. "A test eh? Might as well stretch my limbs for a bit, lets see what this test is all about", He said to the others and started to make his way forward.

I Step forward in front of everyone stroking my beard with one closed looking up at the figure, I hold my hand up look back at everyone then look back at the figure. "By the looks of this fellow he is incorporeal, something we wont be able to do much harm to even if we tried." I open both my eyes and look it in the face and ask "Why should we?"

Taking a blind response to the darkness of the figure Throat attempts to cast a spell in order to light up the area.

Do I just roll pick in the comment or?

Typically a wizard will post in 2 parts. The first part will begin with "roll picture" and then describe how the wizard prepares the spell, or what he's hoping to do with it, or whatever. The second post comes after he sees the image he rolled, where he describes which part of the image he uses and what he tries to do with it.

**undeaddog used "*roll picture*"**
**undeaddog rolled image**
Well then.
Rolling back his sleeves Throar the Mediogre starts rumbling a low chant, closing his eyes as he brings an image to mind.

With a loud harumph he's at the very least surprised to say that the image that appears in his mind is that of a well lit antrophomorphic goat.

Thinking more quickly than most would expect from someone of his race he attempts to convert the path to the same level of light as the image in his mind.