The Campsite

[DrPeterson]

Henry's Idea (70%) roll:

[dice]0[/dice]

[Cearlan]

OOC,As you made you idea rolls, some good rolling there by the way ... Jimmy's san loss rolls from before stand and Henry takes 1d4+2 and 1d6+3 for the second one Sorry I messed this up guys.

DrPeterson,As Henry rolls with the wretches pull he lands in the area where Officers Peartree and Oxley were but a few moments ago, narrowly managing to miss Jimmy in the process. Roll to hit and damage please DrP - to hit at +30% due to target being trapped and immobile In game terms I will say you connected just as he screamed out Atwater's name.

Katherine,- As Sharon mentions something about Richard's head you can both see that it is deformed ... and as Katherine kneels in prayer next to the recently bereaved girl, she surreptitiously examines him closer, and determines that the back of his head, previously buried under the sand has been smashed in with something large and flat. You can see his brain matter through his shattered skull, fortunately Sharon has only noticed his head had something wrong with it ... so far.

Sharon,Katherine kneels by you in prayer over your brother's body.

[DeeJ61]

Sharon Williams

Sharon turns to Sister Katherine and says: "Look Sister Katherine, there's something not right with his head, but I can't make out what it is ... Can you see?"

[DrPeterson]

Fisty-cuffs,[color=#FF0000]OOC: I rolled my to hit with my sanity rolls and got a 77, with the +30% that's a narrow hit. My damage is 1d3, disreard the second roll, I was under the impression I had a damage bonus. Total damage is 3! Damaging the wretched creature: [dice]0[/dice] [dice]1[/dice][/color]

Calamylets out an angry snarl as he hits the creature right in the kisser with considerable force. He tries to pull free of its grasps, peeling the thing's fingers from his arm.

Sanity,I made my Idea check, don't I get a harder SAN-hit then?

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, Sharon," says Katherine. "I can see it. It looks to me like he was hit on the back of the head with something big and flat...perhaps a shovel."

[Cearlan]

Henry,You are of course quite correct - that's what comes from posting when exhausted ... well very tired anyway. :( :oops: For the first roll Henry takes 1d4+1 and for the second 1d6+3 as the creature grabbed you directly. As far as the damage etc is concerned, it does not really matter as he was going to collapse anyway, but it gives you another box to tick.

Jimmy,Jimmy's SAN rolls stand as you rolled them before as you made your idea rolls. I goofed due to posting when very tired - mea culpa! :oops: Right - Insanity time methinks ... a roll of 8% fortunately don't qualify for an indefinite, but your roll of 5% gives you a temporary insanity. Now we could do the roll from the appropriate table or come up with a suitable one between the two of us. Personally I would prefer the second option but would go with the former if you prefer.

Sharon & Katherine,As Sharon looks closer she can see the truth in Katherine's words and is relieved that she has been up front and honest with her about her brother's injuries. She does not want to look but finds her eyes seemingly drawn inexorably towards his shattered skull.

Officer Peabody is quickest to react and hastily removes his jacket and uses it to cover the upper body of Richard Cardigan.

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you, Officer," says Katherine. "Tell me, was a shovel found in or around the campsite?"

[DrPeterson]

OOC,I made the SAN check for the first roll ;), or is this the reduced damage? Sanity loss from the second one is: [dice]0[/dice] Here comes insanity :) Might I suggest a burst of rage resulting in the pulpification of my rather tender victim?

[Cearlan]

DrPeterson,You could go for blind pugilistic rage if that's what you want to go for, but be aware there could be other options. I tend to leave the choice of insanity to the player as they have to play it out, within reason. Your rage would be acceptable and I will make the roll for the length of time it lasts (1d10+4 combat rounds) On a gaming front Jimmy is having his own issues at present so you will have to rely on Officer Peartree preventing you causing too much damage to the poor wretch in the sand. If you continue to attack him (?) then assume automatic hits (just roll for fumbles please - pulled muscle or somesuch)

[DrPeterson]

OOC:,Beating the living daylights out of our only viable clue might be a bit too Tango and Cash for this game. I'll go for something else.

Calamy raises his fist to strike the creature again and stops mid-motion. His hand shakes and his lip trembles. His eyes seem to water up and starts crying heavily, sobbing loudly as he rolls up into a foetal position, muttering "Why...why...why..." incessantly.

OOC:,Or at least for 1d10+4 rounds... [dice]0[/dice]

[Cearlan]

Spot Update,Right ... so a spot update of what is happening is called for I think as there has been a lot going on 'behind the scenes' as it were, and this is a fairly complex encounter with a lot going on. [color=#FF8000]After the men got the body out of the sand, they managed to get it off to one side, but doing so revealed another creature underneath, which grabbed at Henry's arm, before screaming incoherently. A pair of crows comes down and fly off with a finger and a strip of facial flesh as the buried figure screams in agony then calling out Henry Atwater's name. Rolling with the figure pulling him down/ pulling itself up Henry swings a mighty blow to the poor wretches head as it collapses insensate. These gruesome sights cause Officer Oxley to pass out and Officer Peartree to begin spewing forth the cheap bourbon he has been drinking. Poor Jimmy and Henry also suffered as well with Jimmy looking around and starting to whimper, (he'll post shortly), and Henry curling into a foetal position murmuring "why?" repeatedly. The body that the men removed was identified by Sharon as her missing brother and she is struggling to maintain her cool, but is managing ... so far. Sr Katherine is being as supportive as she can and between then they have noticed that the back of Richard's skull has been smashed in by a large flat object, with Katherine noting the fuller extent of the damage caused. Officer Peartree recovered quickly and covered the top half of Richard's body with his jacket.[/color]

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Thanks, that really helps me better understand what's going on. For some reason I had thought we were split up, and that the encounter with the creature was somewhere else rather than that it was in the same hole as [b]Richard Cardigan[/b].

[DeeJ61]

Sharon Williams

"Oh ... yes I see now" says Sharon; "Thank you Sister Katherine."
Sharon doesn't want to look at her brothers injuries any closer, but her eyes seem to be drawn to his head injury, as she goes on to say; "My poor dear Brother, I hate to think of him going through such a horrific ordeal.
Who would do something like this? What possible reason could there be?
Richard is ... erm ... was! such a lovely, gentle man. I can't begin to imagine what could possibly have happened here."
Just then, the Officer comes over, takes off his jacket and covers Richard's face with it. "Oh yes, that's a good idea ... thank you very much" says Sharon.
"Are you alright now Officer, and how about everyone else? and that poor man who got grabbed by the creature, he doesn't look too good at all, does he?"

[DrPeterson]

Henry's sobbing slowly turns into a protracted series of rattling coughs. You can almost feel your own chest ache from hearing the terrible sounds he's making.
The ground around his face is stained with mucus and blood he seems to be coughing up and as the coughing subsides, Calamy softly continues sobbing, his face half-burried in the sand.

[Priest]

Jimmy lets out an ear piercing scream a high pitched scream of anghuish. Rolling in the mud from which the bodies had been pulled he begins to strike at the air in a frenzy of activity, "Keep away...Keep them away...For God's sake, DON'T LET THEM GET ME!!"

[Mr. Handy]

"You're quite welcome, Sharon," says Katherine. "I'd better see what I can do for your friend." She goes over to Henry and examines him to see how she can help.

[Cearlan]

Officer Peartree tries to revive his rookie Officer Oxley with only partial success he is groggy and will kind of come to his senses in the next round Katherrine gets round to Henry who is curled up in a foetal ball and clutches his knees to him tightly sobbing for all he's worth.

Henry,The images that replay through your mind are grotesque - pure and simple. The figures leering face sees to stare straight ahead before it grabs hold of you. Slowly it turns to you and breathing your name "Henry Calamy ... I know your deepest secret ... I know what you did ... " Dimly you are aware of Jimmy's voice in the far distant background, but it is masked as though he was shouting at the far end of an impossibly long corridor and you try to, oh by God you try to, but you cannot make yourself understand what he is shouting. A faint memory surfaces momentarily of the foul creature, having latched onto you, screaming, screaming, screaming. The fact that when it replays in your memory as it's speaking quietly, almost whispering with that odious breath makes it even more frightening and then it repeats all over again as you feel the clammy hand of the creature grab your forearm. The repulsive feel of the clammy bones upon you sends ice water through your veins and yet you are aware that someone is trying to help ... but who?

Jimmy,The murder of avians fly straight for you, how apt the name. As they hurtle Vecchio-bound, only to veer away only at the last moment which slowly coats you in the green ichor suppurating from the many sores and pustules they carry, it is in your hair, making it stick to your head, and the stench of it makes you gag reflexively. It gets in your eyes, temporarily blinding you with a burning sensation and worst of all in your mouth. The taste reminds you of ... no there is nothing in your memory that can equate, even remotely, to the foul taste in your mouth. Your hands are getting coated in the gunge and wherever you touch gets a film of the putrescence as well. Then, in a moment of freak clarity, you think of the possible diseases that the ichor may carry ... no not possible, more like probable. all you know for sure is that you have to keep the foul birds away from you and as you open your mouth to scream [color=#0040FF]"Don't le ..."[/color] it is cut off by a mouthful of the bilious slime hitting you four square in the mouth. It seems to fill your mouth and slide down the back of your throat causing you to gag as you start to struggle for breath.

Sharon sits and dumbly watches the scene unfold before her ... she has heard of mass hysteria before but never seen the effects - certainly not up close and personal like this.

Two officers and a pair of civilian searchers burst in on the scene from the woods and their faces go pale at the sight they bear witness to. But being consummate professional police officers, and having left the old timer and the rookie to 'mind the site' they quickly ascertain that Katherine is taking care of the man in the foetal position crying. They gesture to the civilians that they should tend to Sharon before they move to try and restrain Jimmy so that he does not hurt himself or others as he flails his arms in the air. The two kindly looking gentlemen, move closer to Sharon to offer what solace they may in this terrible incident, without fully knowing what has transpired here yet.

Jimmy,As you try and shoo the birds away, you feel your arms being grabbed ... OOC now a cruel keeper might rule that having witnessed Henry being grabbed ... but you are already in a 'bad place' for now and I don't want to write you off - just yet, I shall forbear.

[Priest]

Spoiler:

Jimmy watches in horrified fascination as several of the viscious, ichor dripping birds grasp at his arms. Their flailing wings, sharp beaks and souless eyes expressing their evil intentions, "GET AWAY FROM ME YOU BASTARDS!!" Screams Jimmy as he attempts to resist the clutching birds.
"Oh lord, protect this sinner against these demons from hell."

[DrPeterson]

Henry grabs wildly and unseeingly, his mind's eye locked on the terrifying creature.
His mind is reeling, trying to make sense of things, trying to make sense of itself, but there is so much fear, so much...

"Help me...", he whispers hoarsely as he desperately attempts to grasp whoever is there to help him. "Help me...No! NO! You don't know anything!!! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!!!"

[Mr. Handy]

"That's right," says Katherine in a soothing tone, taking Henry's hand, "I'm here to help you. You're going to be all right. Trust in God."