1.1 - In Search of Sanity - Prison of the Mind

"Nothing about this seems right..." Crossbow at the ready, and with his disturbing new eye in place, he attempts to ascertain whether the bald man on the table is truly human (and if he is, the extent of his injuries). He addresses the patient as he examines. "Please stay still and quiet."

Grim holds his position with crossbow trained on the bald man. "If there was someone behind the curtain, the noise would have drawn them to look out by now. The sloshing is coming from one of those tubs."

Seeing that the body on the table is covered by his companions, Elias turns his attention back to the man behind the curtain.

Preparing himself mentally, Elias reflexively raises his sword and shield in preparation for an attack.

The man on the table groans again, a little louder, as Iosef moves to attend him. As he looks over the body he finds bruises in patterns that don't make sense for any kind of specific injury - some appear to be caused by blunt force trauma, some by wringing of the flesh, and other dissimilar forms, the incongruence of which would pass discretely under all but the most sharp of minds. Iosef, after only seconds of looking the body over, recognizes all too clearly the injuries make so little sense that they must be fake.

Just as this is dawning on him, Axon uses his magic to tug down on the sheet, pulling it free of its weak tether on the east side of the room. The sheet sloughs and falls to the floor revealing an opposite end of the room lacking in any sort of figure that could have made the silhouette as previously displayed so sharply upon the contrast of the sheet.

As the sheet falls, the body on the table swiftly reaches out to grab Iosef's arm. The half-elf, already realizing something was off was prepared and pulls away just in time as the injured form of the large man shrivels and peels away, changing to reveal the monstrous form of a shapeshifting creature dressed in doctor's garb. She starts to move as if to get off the table toward Iosef as she grabs a large knife that had been tucked under her body.

Razhel fires her crossbow at the shapeshifter as it attempts to rise from the table and attack. The bolts finds its target, with a sickening smack of penetrating flesh.

Grim pulls the trigger, firing off the bolt loaded in his crossbow. He watches it streak across the room and hit the hideous female shapeshifter, even as he quickly loads up a second time and shoots again.

He should have seen through the trick, should have guessed it was a trap. Instead all he can do now is back away from yet another cunning atrocity and try to dumbfound it with light and darkness.

ደማቅ ጨለማ

As the creature's body slides calmly from the table, Razhel and Grim's crossbow bolts fly true through the air, one slamming into the creatures shoulder, the other into its side just below its armpit. Iosef takes another quick step backwards and raises his pre-loaded crossbow to let his own projectile fly. It fails to connect, however, and sails off to the far corner of the room.

Axon throws up his hands while skirting back to the corner of the room, setting of a blinding flash of light against the creature, though it doesn't seem to affect it.

Grim quickly loads his crossbow again and lets off another successful shot, this one plunging into the creature's sternum.

"You!!!" it shouts, "Interlopers!! The Tatterman wants you, but I will have you instead!"

Elias steps in to the creature with a determined look on his face Bringing his sword up, Elias swings it hard hoping to end the fight.

Elias's swing goes wide as he finds his footing, but it catches the creature's attention. It whirls around and takes a stab at him with the long, serrated knife its wielding. The knife cuts against Elias's armor, but he twists in a way that keeps the blade from finding flesh.

She bares her large, yellowed teeth, a long purple tongue dancing as she speaks, "Oh hello there! You are a fine specimen of a man, you'll fit nicely as my next patient. Let's try this, shall we?" It's eyes flash silver for a brief moment and Elias can feel the creature's mind digging into his brain. He pushes it out, but he can't help but feel a sort of perverse touch left behind.

"He wants a second opinion!" he shouted! ጥቁር ሜትሮይትስ

From the aether, he called down another column of stellar fragments onto the malpracticing malefactor!

"Lady, have you looked in the mirror lately? Yeesh!" Grim calls out with a grimace and takes another shot at the ugly thing with the tongue and the big knife.

Raxhel reloads, as she moves across the room and puts herself physically between the robed guy casting his motes and the shapeshifter. With a better angle on her next attack, she brings up the crossbow and releases a bolt, aimed for the horrid creature. "Say hello to the Tatterman for us, will you?"