The Crucible (F)

[Kodos]

Theresa continued along quietly for a moment before stopping to punch Oriel in the head. "Stop kissing ass and hold the damn torch straight!"

[Regantor]

She didn't dodge.

"Sorry, Theresa maam. T'wont happun again." Oriel slurred through a swollen cheek.

...Alrough she did seem to be in a better mood now, suddenly.

[Evil_Cake]

"So, are we going after the cultists still?" Rosaline was pretty on edge.

[Kodos]

Theresa rolled her eyes and sighed. "Saint but you're as stupid as Oreil. Yes. We have a job to do. First of all, I'm not in the business of disobeying orders, second I'm not in the business of not punching in the faces of sinners," Theresa smiled happily at the thought, "and third I'm definitely not in the business of decided that I'm a scared little coward who's going to abandon her job because she ran into some servants of the Enemy. If you want to crying back like a little bitch, go ahead. I'm sure Inquisitor Guidonis will understand."

She rolled her eyes again and continued on.

[Superdooperphailmachine]

Oliva kept her mouth shut and head down, that whole ordeal was pretty soul crushing.

[Delphinus]

After Oriel's ordeal, Ramirez stayed uncharacteristically quiet, even if the corner of his mouth was twitching involuntarily. A familiar feeling had gradually bubbled into his mind, starting with the Tyrant's arrest of Theresa, intensifying as he watched Oriel struggle toward him, and consuming him when Theresa punched the flagellant. Amusement.

"Brighten up!" he said to the most miserable-looking member of the group, Oliva, "Most people join the Crusaders in order to survive brushes with certain death. Why, when I was in my first year with them, I..." he continued, telling an amusing, lengthy, and largely false anecdote about a mission with Clemence 'Bug-Eye' Garcoine, the near-blind Witch-Hunter.

[Superdooperphailmachine]

Oliva ignored the guys story, she really wasn't the mood.

[Kodos]

Theresa was quiet as they continued along, before finally speaking up again. "We have to tell Inquisitor Guidonis, obviously." She stated simply. "But I don't know that we can trust the Novices with her. Or the Sister with the cow-tits." Theresa didn't try to hide her jealousy, even if she was at least as stacked as Maryse was. "When we finish this job, and we're back on the surface, we'll tell her."

***

After about 8 more minutes of trudging through filth, corpses, and corpses-that-tried-to-eat-them the group eventually made it to meeting point. Judging by the fact Laure didn't yell at them, the Tyrant had kept his word and delayed her enough that the group wasn't late.

The rendezvous point was in one of the areas of the undercity that comfortably fell into one type of environment, in this case the catacombs. It was nice to not be standing in ankle or knee high sewage anymore. Of course, the ghostly whispering and moaning, the bones in the walls, and the catacombness of the catacombs were equally unpleasant in their own ways.

Laure's group was missing one of the Novices, but otherwise they looked no worse for the wear from their trip. "The heretics lurk in the tunnels ahead." The gorgeous Inquisitor said with her usual flatness. "Ramirez, you will go ahead as far as you can, disable any traps you come across, and note how many heretics you see. You will not engage any of them, and you will not be detected. Then you will come back, inform us, and we shall cleanse these tombs of the heretic filth. If you fail and run into trouble, you will call for help. I do not want a single of these apostates escaping, am I clear?"

The look on her face made it clear that she wanted no response. "And none of your heretic magics either, Assassin. It is better to struggle and suffer in this life than in the next."

Fortunately for Ramirez, she still didn't seem to want a response. And it's not like she would know, right?

[Delphinus]

"Yes Ma'am. Right away, Ma'am." Three bags full Ma'am. The scowl on Laure's face was so mask-like and devoid of humanity that she looked like the Tyrant's Cuthbertine wife. Never one to argue with psychotic uptight extremists Ramirez did as she said. At the first bend in the tunnels he tapped his ring and carried on through the catacombs. He was little more than quiet footsteps and a faint muttering about 'insane order fetishists' as he scanned his environs for traps or heretics or chums.

SPOILER! :

Move Silently: 1d20+23=37
Search (Trapfinding): 1d20+16=30

[Kodos]

Ramirez didn't find any traps as he crept along ahead, although he could tell from the relatively tiny amount of dust and cobwebs that there had been recent human activity.

Finally he reached a well-lit large hall in the catacombs, presumably once the altar or resting place for a notable bishop, royal, or high ranking noble. The room was lined with skeletal remains, and the ornate chandeliers which hung from the ceiling were similarly constructed.

The room was full of people. Ramirez counted about 25. Mostly younger men and women, although there were few older women as well. There were also babies, clearly Tieflings or Half-Demons by the looks of them, being cradled and tended to by their mothers.

The cultists were drinking, laughing, juggling, fucking, and generally making merry. Given the supernatural beauty and tiny clothing of a handful of the ones engaged in intercourse, Ramirez surmised a few were Incubi/Succubi. There were also a few Incubi - clearly so - dressed as harlequins and juggling what appeared to be skulls and human hearts, while others played music. Six to eight - they moved pretty fast - Quasit were also running about, humping at peoples legs, stealing drinks, and generally making nuisances of themselves.

No obvious traps. Ramirez counted, in total, 25 cultists, 3-5 of which were certainly Incubi/Succubi in human form, 3 harlequin Incubi, and 6-8 Quasits.