The Skinsaw Murders

Yola whirls and lunges.  One of the ghouls dives in and she severs its claw at the wrist with a quick backhand swipe.  The creature staggers back with a shriek.  Yola follows through with a powerful overhand chop, and her blade cleaves down through the shoulder and torso of a second attacker.  But her blade gets stuck in the gory mess that was the thing's ribcage, and the split second that it takes her to free her weapon is all the opening the other two ghouls need.  One leaps onto her from behind and bites down on her shoulder in a frenzy.

At this point Sasha breaks onto the scene.  She charges headlong into the fray and stabs the ghoul with the severed hand through the back, sending it twiching into the dirt.  The other ghoul attacking Yola turns to face her and she draws a bloody scratch across its chest.  Yola struggles to throw off her attacker, but her limbs begin to stiffen and as Sasha watches, she drops stiff legged to the ground, the ghoul still wrapped around her, tearing off another mouthful of flesh.  Before Sasha can take another step forward, yet another ghoul springs up from the fields behind her, and suddenly Sasha finds herself traped between two of the undead.

* * *

The ghoul is pulled off balance by Ariva's attack and Malvick quickly dispatches it with a twisting stab.   He yanks his blade free and lets the corpse drop to the ground.  He waves acknowledgement to Xer as she sprints by to find the others, and leans on his blade to catch his breath a momment.  "Okay Weasel, you heard the lady,"  he says as he takes a small flask from his belt.  "Get up there and see to your friend."  While the wide eyed lad turns and sprints bak up the trail to where Wertz still lies, Malvick sees to Ariva.  The dog has been badly mauled, and puts up little struggle as Malvick forces his last healing potion down her throat.  The effects are immediate.  Ariva's wounds begin to knit closed and she perks up. Malvick notes that she is far from fully mended however.

Ariva seen to, he lopes up the trail to Weasel, who is putting a suprisingly neat field dressing on Wertz's wounds.  "The bite doesn't seem too bad," the boy says, "and I think he's starting to come around."  Malvick looks anxiously to the east, where he can hear fighting.  A woman's scream - he can't tell who - cuts through the field.  "Dammit!  Ariva, stay here, look after these two."  Malvick unslings his bow and runs towards the sound of combat.

He comes across a dire scene.  A ghoul crouches over the still form of Yola.  Beyond that Xer stands protectively over a collapsed Sasha.  The corpse of a ghoul with a broken neck lies partly on top of the rogue, and two more ghouls circle Xer menacingly.  Beyond that, Malvick can see the boots of Farmer Grump sticking out from the edge of a row of corn, and above him a scarecrow struggles weakly to escape its bonds.

Still running, Malvick fires an arrow at the ghoul croached over Yola, ending the thing's grisely feast.  The arrow smashes through the ghoul's skull and it slumps over dead.  Xer sees Malvick and opts for a risky move, tackling the closest ghoul with a most unmonk-like flying leap.  While she begins to pummel the ghoul into permanent submission, Malvick stops running, and fires two shots in quick succession, taking down the other ghoul threatening Xer before it has time to react.

Malvick nocks another arrow and aims at the ghoul still stuggling on the pole, but before he can fire, Xer is there, staying his hand.  "Wait," she whispers, "listen."

Malvick strains to hear, and sure enough, the ghoul's moaning is actually an exhausted "help me."   The two cut the scarecrow down.  Xer moves to help their wounded companions while Malvick cuts the dirty sack away from the scarecrow's face.  underneath is the face of a man - filthy, sweaty and deep in the throws of ghoul fever, but alive.

* * *

Wow! Heck of a first combat!  For anyone keeping track, that was 14 ghouls!  Yola and Sasha finally failed saves vs paralyzation in rounds 6 and 7.  The paralysis only lasts a few minutes, so all party members are up and moving ( limping) pretty quickly.  Lets assume you have all rendevoused back at the crossroads where the fighting began.... there is no more movement or noises anywhere in the fields that you can tell.    And congrats to Xer for making a successful perception check to realize the last scarecrow was not a ghoul before Malvick skewered him!  The man is Horran Guffmin.  He and his wife were dragged from their home nearby last night and bound and staked out in the field.  He warns you that the ghouls live in the barn, and begs feebly for you to find his wife Lettie.  He is so weak from the fever he cannot move very far without assistance. Oh, and Farmer Grump is sitting in the dirt hugging his kness, refusing to take another step forward.