After their adventures in the mines and a little rest Ai wished to return to that area of woods they had passed on the way to the quarry that had smelled of death, but had had no carrions birds above it. He would ask Laleh if she wanted to go as she was good to have with her skills in investigation and her bardic knowledge. Elo would be asked because he knew her and could count on her to try and protect Laleh. Since it could be dangerous. He would also ask the Ferency noble he had met, Sarantha or at least let her know about it in case it was some people her house had hired. And anyone else knew that any of those three ladies might think helpful.

Once those who were interested were gathered he would touch each on the shoulder. Have them hold hands and then pull them along so that they all instantly were transported to the part of the road they had been on when detecting the smell.

She would of course, Join Ai on this. If for no other reason than to recover the bodies of the fallen members of the mines - though she sadly hoped that as the best case scenario. More likely, sadly, was that after such a long time in the sun and with the carrion around, they'd be hardly even recognizable as such...especially if that stench was anything to go by.

Like the time they went to the mines themselves, her outfit was her armor and weapons, prepared against the potential of dangers that they might face. She was still worried about the signs they had found in the Mines themselves, that someone perhaps was attacking the miners, or the Ferency house itself. She didn't want to risk encountering whoever had made the efforts to kill the miners without being as prepared as she could be for such.

While exploring the woods, the smell got strong, and it wasn't long before you start to hear raspy hisses and gurgling. You swear you see movement ahead of you, so you cautiously approach. As you come into a small clearing, a sight of absolute horror befalls you. What you see are eight young people, five men, two women, and a young 8 year old girl. Just seeing them would be bad enough, but you see them on pikes. Stabbed through their stomachs, and exiting up through their shoulder. And if that wasn't bad enough, the gurgling, hissing and moaning are coming from them, as they've been risen as zombies, left to suffer on these pikes for potential eternity.

They reach out towards you, hands grasping hungrily for your flesh - though one can't help but see their faces as a plea for help, for refuge and sanctity. Any who can concentrate during this time, notices that each post bares a necromantic rune, similar to the ones found in the quarry, only these ones bare another mark. A very unfamiliar mark. (( Knowledge Arcane or Bardic Knowledge relevancy ))

he was disgusted. He'd seen such things in wars before...but it still turned his stomach. The ash around him spun faster in his want to burn those responsible to ash and have them added to his collection. The wolf within the ash looked and paced wanting to help him. He choked back the anger and tried to think on what he was seeing. Concentrating on the runes and marks. Stopping anyone from getting to close unless they had a way to remove the necromancy and allow these people what peace they could get.

She looked on, horrified at the sight of it all. It would take her time to regain her composure enough to be able to do anything in terms of studying or understanding these runes. Even the cloth covering over her face could not help against this situation, and though her eyes stung from the stench and the tears that welled in them, especially looking at the little girl, she swallowed down the taste of bile in her throat and nodded to Ai's instructions on not getting close, studying the runes at a distance to the best of her ability. (( Take 20 on Lore for 31 Arcana ))

The runes again are corrupted, in a way that can spell so much terror and trouble. It seems that these runes show the danger that these zombies impose - contagion. It seems these zombies are cursed to spread like a disease, it was a wise decision to read the runes before getting close, as one slip up and someone could become one of the undead. Laleh also sees an arcane mark, a seal that is unique to every person - though she doesn't recognize it, it is still very good information to have, no doubt.

Once he and Laleh compare information he circles around widely to see if there had been other stakes that might have fallen over that could have contained other contagion zombies. Lifting up into the air to take in the whole scene...and so as not to have to look at the once probably family face on.

We should make sure none have already loosed themselves.

She nodded softly and stayed well back from the grouping on the posts, moving around the area slowly, a hand on her rapier at her side as she went. If any had been loosed, and was still in the area, it would be dangerous to say the least. "Be careful we don't get any closer too...some of those runes may trigger a trap of some sort, to cause these ones to be released by the binds that hold them. Doing this to them...just to infect people that get close - that doesn't seem very useful." She offered to Ai as he started floating up into the air.

Well think about it like a rumor. These ones, infect a couple people, then those wander away as zombies do, and those couple infect another couple each, then those pass on the rumors to a couple people more each. So that after a bit, the rumor is everywhere and this rumor stinks. He looks sad as he looks about while flying.

"Maybe...but that assumes people would get close to such a stench to begin with - and that they would be foolish enough to get in range of being attacked..." She furrowed her brow then, and looked to the ground as well. "What if these aren't the miners, but the miners came across them. It's possible they would have tried to get these people down, and ended up infected...and we have no way of knowing how long the infection takes to incubate - they could have wandered several hours away before succumbing to this."

She frowned at the thought. If the Caravan had stopped when they were first passing by, they might have found this...and there would have been at least less chance someone mistakenly could have found their way to this place and been in danger of transmitting this infection. She looked not only for signs that someone had been here, but that someone had left as well.

You see a set of tracks, they come from the road way, no doubt where they were captured. Careful counting you notice 8 sets that lead to the pikes, and the other set just seem to disappear, it's possible that you lost track of them with all the movement around the area, but what's disturbing is that there's no blood, not until the pikes, which mean that the victims seem to have voluntarily walked towards the pikes and got hung up, no struggle, no scuffle nothing.

The perception however uncovers at the roadside. A small doll that was abandoned just before the tracks come into the woods.

She gently picked up the doll, her eyes saddened at its appearance, but turned and carried it back towards the people that had been slaughtered and turned into these...abominations. She couldn't do anything for them, and that hurt her more than anything else. Her eyes moved to Ai'Thorn then. "We should destroy their bodies...put them to rest. Can you do so at range? I...I don't think I can stomach having to use my bow on them, and it would be..." She didn't finish what she was saying, instead gently sitting some distance from them, and pulling out her little book, so she could trace the runes into it - including the ones she didn't fully understand, the doll settled next to her to one side.

I'll wait until you are done with your work. Then I will destroy them. Their faces look like they are pleading for it anyways. he nods, also looking sad and grim at the duty he would have to perform.

When she was ready then he would fly towards the upwind way of the zombies and surround them tightly with a dome of electricity, until they are nothing but dust. Then he would try to collect the dust so that it could be studied by people in the tower.

(( To do 4d6+7 electricity damage a round to all of them. ))

Perhaps it was comforting knowing that they were already dead? Hoping that they were? The electricity surges into their bodies, their muscles contract and contort until they are quite literally tearing themselves off of the pikes and falling to the ground lifeless. The clearing goes horrendously quiet, and just when you expect that you will be suddenly grabbed - nothing happens, eerie quiet and stillness. Not even a taunting laugh from whatever did this to these poor people.

Thanks for coming with me Laleh. We should tell others about this, and show the arcane and religiously trained the runes you copied as well. This could be happening other place right now.

he offers his hand for her to take. And when she was ready, he would take them back to the city in a single step.

It didn't help. Still, she put away her little book and, as she stood, she picked up the doll and held it gently in one hand as she watched the figures writhe and die again, her free hand lifting to wipe away the tears that fell down her cheeks. Her head lowered and she nodded gently to Ai's words. She said nothing though, in response, simply reaching out to take his hand, and letting him take them back to town.

She didn't take a pause, giving his hand a squeeze as she turned and started towards the tower. "Let's see what can be made of the Runes we don't know so far." She said to him, determination in her voice masking a myriad of other emotions, as she headed towards the Voran Mages, not willing to let this matter linger, it seemed.

He being a psion and Voran made him part of the tower. He would fly her up to the entrance and then try to assist her in getting help from the wizards and psions there.