Felix of Vale

"I think I'll go first, unless one of you objects," says Felix. "My weapon doesn't quite have the range of either of yours."

They probably could walk three abreast, if they were willing to get quite cozy. But it wouldn't be comfortable.

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Kate nods.

"No objections here."

Not that she'd mind going first, but it makes sense for Felix to lead. She'll keep close as he does.

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"Fine by me," says Varric. "I'll cover what I can."

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Felix nods and starts forward, moving slowly. Once he gets about five feet past the door, two braziers on the walls light up with popping sounds. Their light doesn't extend very far, but they certainly negate any attempt at stealth.

Felix sighs.

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She lowers her weapon — the instant the torches crackled to life she was ready for anything — and lets out a slow breath.

"Well, the lights are on."

Is anybody home?

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"I think I like it better in Kirkwall," says Varric. "There might be more torches than shadows in the sewers, but at least they're more or less always burning. Having them just pop on like that... that's eerie."

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"And it usually means there's something powerful, very close." And while it could be another summon tablet, Felix would put his money on a dangerous monster.

Someone with sharp eyes could probably make out a glint of something metallic in the shadows ahead.

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One thing becoming an outlaw does for a body is sharpens its senses. She sees the glint ahead, but she doesn't say anything. With the threat of 'something powerful' hanging in the air, calling undue attention to their party seems unwise.

She does touch Felix's shoulder, however, and quickly glances at Varric to make sure they both see it as well.

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Varric spots it, all right, and has Bianca ready and aimed immediately. The instant he has an excuse to- which is to say, as soon as he's sure that it's a threat and not something that's likely to set off a cavalcade of other traps- he'll fire.

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Felix doesn't see it immediately, but when he feels Kate's hand it only takes a moment to recognize what she's getting at. He nods and creeps forward again.

After a few more feet, another pair of braziers lights up. The glint doesn't get any clearer, though. This continues for a few more repetitions, until several braziers light all at once ahead of them, revealing -

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milliweyardnpc.livejournal.com

The Dullahan, a headless suit of armor with a ferocious shield and a gleaming sword. Despite its complete lack of eyes, it seems to stare menacingly at each of the challengers.

After a few moments of silence, a voice speaks to their minds. You who have come seeking the light, you have done well to reach this place, it says. But to claim the light, you must overcome its Shadow.

The figure springs forward, swinging its sword in a wide arc.

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"Jesus Christ in a chicken basket!"

She takes a quick step back, careful not to get in Varric's way. Her gun is trained on the headless creature, free hand hovering over her Bowie knife. She doesn't shoot just yet — no sense wasting ammunition until she knows where its weaknesses are.

If it has any.

"That's one helluva Shadow!"

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"You know, some of the mages back home do things like that," says Varric. Unlike Kate, he's not particularly restrained at the moment. Shadow or no, it's got knees, and he intends to see if it really needs them or not.

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One advantage of using a sword is that you never have to worry about ammunition.

Of course, you also have to get in close to use it. But Felix can be quick under certain circumstances. Like when there's a small glowing spiky thing guiding his sword down, and then smashing back up.

(The result is fairly pitiful, little more than a scratch on the Dullahan's armor. But it's a start.)

The armor raises its sword again, but not to strike. Instead it gestures, and purple smoke swirls around the group. Vague faces appear and disappear in the smoke, but make no hostile move. The smoke clears in time to see another gesture, which causes a small swirl of lights around Felix that quickly sink under his skin.

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There is a click.

Kate has produced another sixshooter from the small of her back. This one follows the ghost-like faces, so that her aim doesn't stray from the Dullahan. She isn't willing to leave herself open, not on any front.

To be honest, part of her feels the best weapon in this place would be a bucket of holy water and a cross or two. Once she sees the lights sinking into Felix's skin, however, she throws caution to the wind. She aims for any gaps in the suit of armor—elbows, knees, and that gaping maw where there should be a head—and lets loose with a quick volley.

Edited Date: 2012-01-23 04:29 am (UTC)

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"Not a good idea," says Varric with a scowl. This time he reaches for one of the special arrows- the kind they call the Archer's Lance. It's designed to rip through anything along its trajectory with thunderous force, and easily does twice the damage of a normal arrow, if not more. It's being aimed for the first chink he can find in the Dullahan's armor, or anything else that happens to lie between him and it.

Thoqqq.

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If the Dullahan feels their assault, it doesn't show it. The joints of its armor are starting to get a little dinged up, though.

Felix, for his part, is just fine. A bit annoyed - the lights were part of a temporary seal on some of his magic - but neither hurt nor disabled. He scowls, then throws his hand forward.

(Somewhere else, dark energies gather. A ball forms, then shatters, as a skeletal cloaked form emerges. It draws the energies more purposefully, then releases them in a burst.)
A rush of blackness, edged in dark purple, sweeps through the room. It's nearly upon them before Felix thinks to call out, "This is mine!" And indeed, none of the party members feels anything more than a chilly breeze. The Dullahan, on the other hand, gets knocked about quite hard for a moment. But then the darkness is gone, and the armor responds.

An enormous splash of lights surges around the group for a couple of seconds. Varric and Kate get no ill effects from it, but Felix staggers and grits his teeth. But only for a moment, because then is when the Dullahan summons the same blackness that Felix used. This time it's much more than a breeze, and worse than chilly. Fortunately the gale and the bone-deep cold only last for a moment, but when the darkness clears it reveals an unconscious Felix.

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Seeing the effect — or lack thereof — her bullets have on the Dullahan makes her stomach sink. She's watching Felix from the corner of her eye, concerned up until the moment the first blast of blackness rushes through the room.

She holds onto her hat, duster ripping wildly in the wind.

"You all right?" she hollers, barely having time to compose herself before she catches sight of the return blast. She turns her shoulder against the brunt of it, jamming her hat down over her ears, but it does her little good. It's the worst cold she's ever felt, sinking in deep, deep, leaving an ache in her very soul. She chokes, shuddering, and for a moment she feels utterly weak.

She glances at Felix.

"Shit. He's out cold!" she calls to Varric, moving closer to his prone form to at least protect him, if not wake him.

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"Maker's balls-"

Well, this is why Varric shelled out so much gold in that one strange herbalist's shop. You hear about lifeward potions every so often, but you never really expect to see one for sale- or have to use one. The dwarf darts forward, fishing a small blue bottle out of one of his duster's pockets. "Get his jaws open. This stuff's supposed to be as good as a spirit healer's revival spell, even for somebody like me."

Hopefully just pouring it down Felix's throat will do, because he's not sure how to administer it otherwise.

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Fortunately, it does work; Felix coughs and sits up almost immediately. Less fortunately, he doesn't quite manage to get to his feet before the Dullahan strikes again.

Its first assault resembles nothing so much as the Grim Reaper, although the image's scythe sweeps straight through Kate without any effect; if she had her eyes closed, she wouldn't even know it was there. Having her eyes closed would not be a very good idea, though, since even as the reaper disappears the armor swings its sword down blindingly fast. It's aiming at Varric, but all three are close enough together that they could be in danger.

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She holds her arm out to support Felix as he sits, so she's ready the instant she sees that massive sword thundering down. She grabs him and yanks him toward the wall. Twisting to her knees, her Colt is cocked and aimed before the blade has met any quarry.

Most armor is weaker under the arms. Granted, most armor ain't animate or magical, but that's where she aims all the same.

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Varric doesn't waste time swearing. He just scrambles sideways as fast as his legs will allow- it might not be fast enough, but he's sure as the Void trying! Hopefully he'll be able to fire on the thing again, too...

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As it happens, Varric isn't quite fast enough to escape, but he's close - only a glancing blow. Kate's quick shot probably helps.

And then Felix is back on his feet, and what looks like half the ceiling is crashing down on the Dullahan's shoulders. The fragments disappear when they hit the floor, but the dents they leave in the armor don't.

Unfortunately, the Dullahan doesn't seem to like being hit under the arm. With a twist of its wrist, lightning springs along the blade of its sword. It then lashes out, straight at Kate. The shield's eyes light up briefly, sending a ring of tiny flames to circle her head for a moment.

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"Are you — "

There's no time to worry about either of the boys. She feels metal slithering around her ankle again — the cold scales of the snake charm Weyland gifted her years ago, to provide courage and protection. It doesn't block the lightning, but it gives her enough warning to scrabble out of the way.

She hits the ground rolling, the only surefire way she knows of dealing with fire. Her hat comes off somewhere along the way.

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