Underfed Returns! pt7

All over the chamber are workers, clearing rocks, gently, away from the components and zombies being used to haul debris away. The work is ongoing. It won't last forever, of course, as the humans will inevitably need to change shifts, but the zombies workers will be aproblem.

They haven't noticed you yet. Discipline is clearly a bit lax, no matter how scared they are of the mummy, it's hard to maintain military rigor in these circumstances.

But you're finally hear.

Overlooking an engine powered by pain.

...but one hsa to wonder just what *was* it powering *here*?

"....So this means we smash it, yeah?" Nasrin is whispering. It is more of a stage whisper, but with the sound of rock being cleared nearby it is not really necessary to be quiet. "Do you think it will explode if I smite it? I could go over and try..."

Asmli openly -stares- at the massive thing below them. He hasn't got a shred of magic in his bones, but even he can feel that, and a shudder ripples through him. "Got anything explosive?" he mutters, quietly. "Or a means of shattering those crystals?"

You hven't been noticed yet.

That's the best news, too.

But then something else changes.

There's a... chill. A hollowness filling the pit of your stomach. A sense of overwhelming *dread* and despair.

From the opposite side of the chamber arrives a small figure. Shorter than a Khazad, but only little taller than a gnome or Lucht. A ragged cloak trails after him, his body swathed in badnages beneath a charnese noble's dublet.

Ah.

The 'mummy'.

He's arrived. He's here. He's inspecting the work surrounding the engine.

The living guardsmen seem to stiffen immediately, alongside the workers who are redoubling their efforts.

Asmli does not so much as -move- once the mummy appears. Now he knows why they were told they weren't taking the mummy down. Definitely not.

Nasrin does look as if she might acutally try to storm down there. She's feeling a bit sick to her stomach, but the sense of "cowardice" seems to have warring effects. She isn't a coward, after all, and showing too much fear is a sign of weakness. So perhaps she will be motivated by suicidal bravery instead! Even Nasrin is in no hurry to get down there.

THe Lucht-Mummy, as that is indeed what he is judging from his accent even as his gravel-and-rasp-inspired voice begins to operate.

"Too slow," he tells one of the obviously terrified workers.

"You are too slow. I will make you faster."

"Please, sire, we're operating at full capacity. The zombies are-- ARRRRRRRRRRRGH!"

He's screaming, now. He didn't even get the chance to finish making his excuse as his soul is painfully torn from his body. He collapses to the ground, quite dead, as he is twisted into a mockery of himself before your eyes, a shadowy spirit left in its place. "The engine whispers its secrets in my dreams. Together, we will birth a new Charn for our master. Yes, you see it now too. Faster, now."

The speed, it seems, to be in redoubling the efforts of the work force.

"Very good."

The new-born wraith sinks into the earth, a pile of inky blackness left in its wake, as his corpse now animates as well, rising up to join the ranks of the zombies.

Edinaz huddles down, holding a pair of necklaces in his left hand. "I have explosives," he murmurs very, very quietly. He's biding his time, but the machine is very clearly down for him. It's his target, and that's that.

Asmli simply nods, not daring to move or speak beyond that.

Nasrin nods slowly. She's crouching down now, still looking out over the terrifble machine and the equally terrifying Mummy standing with it. "...Can we throw them? If we're really lucky this thing blows up too and it takes out that guy." Her voice cracks jut a little when she mentiosn 'that guy'. The redhead blinks once and glances back to gauge the reactions of her companions.

Asmli still doesn't say anything, barely daring to breathe, let alone move, in case they are discovered. His eyes are wide, but he gives a tiny nod of his head, yes flicking back down to the hideous tableau below.

Victor stares at the Mummy. He supposes there's no rule that says that Lucht /can't/ be mummies. Victor leans back slightly. Then he turns his head slowly to look first at Edinaz, then looks at the others. He nods as well.

The undead turns and begins to depart. This is a good thing, right? Eventually, the cold, icy chill of his proximity fades from you. Seems he's gone elsewhere in the Kulthian complex for the time being. At least now you klnow what it feels like to be close to him. Seems obvious why everyone's so terrified. r

The workers let out their breaths and begin to work, though the wraith that was just made flits from floor to ceiling, whispering its agony as it passes.

Edinaz asks, quietly. "Anyone know anything about machines? I want to know where to stick it." It's a blunt thought, and he fingers the globes of the necklace absently as he does so.

GAME: Victor rolls craft/artifice: (20)+11: 31

Once the mummy is gone, Asmli finally moves, fishing slowly and carefully in his pack for two carefully wrapped flasks. He stuffs the wraps back in his pack, but sets them in front of him - they are two more of the same flask he used on the wagon axle outside. Alchemist's fire, it seems.

"I believe I follow the design," Victor nods to Edinaz. He points out several points on the contraption. "Those points are critical to the machine, and if we focus our efforts there it should stop it's function, possibly permanently." He pauses and then scans the room again. "However, it does not appear the Mummy is actually extracting it. The energy absorbed is already being transmitted somewhere. As he tortures the workers, as the dragon harasses or killed them...the machine is absorbing the negative energy, and sending it on."

Edinaz nods. "What does that mean?" He's not long on technical energy transfer. He likes practical applications. A nod. "I've got two of these. We can place them separate or together. Just tell me where, exactly."

"I...don't know what it means," Victor admits. "He could be using the energy to power some magical being or effect. Or storing the energy somehow. If we destroy the machine it should prevent further energy from being harvested." He follows Asmli over and points out the weak points again, closer this time. "I would recommend one sphere here, and the other here. The alchemist's fire here, here and here..."

Edinaz nods to Victor. "You have six spheres to play with. Or I can just put down the whole necklace and you can blow it up with fire." He gets ready to start running over to place them.

"This is what detonates those," Asmli hisses, nodding to the flasks and then to the necklaces. "Wrap the necklaces in the flasks, place 'em, an' hit 'em from a distance."

Edinaz nods to Asmli. "Very good. We can place them, then." He looks to Victor. "Show me again, so I remember. We make the bombs and place them."

Victor tilts his head slightly to the side and looks at the flasks anew. He's read about them in his studies of artiface and engineering. Same with the necklaces. But the books and scrolls never covered that particular application. "If we can set them up I believe I can cast a spell to detonate them." He points again, and even describes the spots, in as much detail as he can manage.

Edinaz offers the necklaces to Asmli. "Wrap them up, and I can place them. Or we can, if you want to go down there, too." Once his hands are clear, he pulls a little vial from his pocket. "I can hide from the zombies with this, for just a little while."