Caravan to Ohamet pt2

JP with Ender, Thaen, myself

PREVIOUSLY
Severos cleared his head, unable to shake the feeling of foreboding. "I admit, I arrived at what seemed to be an uneasy time. But we can't always have golden times. That sounds as much like Warfall as I experienced." His eyes glanced at The Wandering Dog. "But tis the place of growing friendships."

"Don't say 'Tis,” Horo pinched the bridge of his nose, “it reminds me of someone I am trying not to lose my mind with worry over," He said to Severos.

The young mage nodded with understanding.

Deria gently placed a hand on the Wandering Dog's shoulder, "You will find them, as you will find another fractured soul." She smiled, before turning back to the shattered statue of the halfling and began kick it rather aggressively, "This wouldn't happen if we didn't have you running around as a blasted fool, ruining our goddess's image!"

Tech eventually had to pull her away and calm the priestess. "Apologies, just spilling over some repressed anger." She turned away to pray at the female statue, Tech joined the others. "She's seen a lot, and has lost a lot of people, yet her faith has never died. It's incredible how faithful one can be."

“If I weren’t me, I’d call her foolish for holding out hope for something better. But I know loss.” Horo said, “Plenty about it.” he added dryly. Horo looked to Tech, “That is why I can’t lose this time. Not again.” Tech nodded, a grief filled tone escaped his lips, “I can understand you on that as well, I’ve seen what loss can do to a man, I myself have experienced plenty of it. Either way, my mission is to find out how to get this invading force of our world out of it.”

Deria faced the group, staring at something behind them, as the wind began to pick up. Tech’s ears twitched at the wind picking up, “Hm, a bit windy.”

“How bad do the storms out here get?” Horo asked, looking past the entrance to the temple to the changing roiling sky. “Should we call the others into shelter or will sitting in the cover of the carts be enough?”

Deria turned to face the storm, "The storms mostly don't get bad here, however that one coming towards us doesn't look like a passive storm. That one looks very violent, come into the temple, we can wait out the storm." She began to lead them towards the temple.

Severos could tell something was off about the air. The clouds were roiling and building, too quickly to be natural. "Something about that storm's not natural," Severos said to them, eyeing the approaching front. "A storm does not simply appear from nowhere." he trailed off, trying to remember those lessons from years ago. "And that one is growing," he finished, a bolt of lightning flashing silently in the shadows of sand. Many minutes later, the rumble of thunder reached them.

The pack animals suddenly began to cry out and become agitated. Drivers attempted to calm the beasts as supplies were gathered. Slowly, a sense of dread began to fill the air. Severos hobbled unsteadily, turning to help as much as he could with the pack. As he slung a bandolier of wineskins over his body and almost fell with the hefting of a bag, he felt it. The ground quaked ever so slightly. It was just noticeable to them, the mage understanding why they were so agitated.

The wind howled as the wall of sand crept deceptively fast upon them. The company was quick to slam the doors closed, buttresses of the coming gales whipped sand with stinging abandon. It was with a growing roar that the storm fell upon them. The wind was almost enough to force the doors open again. Severos sat exhausted from the heavy inventory he took, staring out with the rest as the caravan pushed the doors closed.

It came again, this time rhythmic. A tremble in the stone beneath them. Outside, the portal inched ever closer to being shut. The awesome sight of something erupting from the ground with multiple, thundering lightning bolts was caught nevertheless. It was only outlined for those brief moments as it rose, turning to what was northeast in a long, smooth motion as the cylindrical body parted in a deep, throaty call. The crash of it returning to sand was missed as the doors were finally slammed and bolted.

"Was that…" Severos went, wide eyed as he turned to the rest. "Was that a purple wurm?"

Deria shook her hair, sand shaking out of it. "No, purple wurms don't live in the Sea of Ash. The sands are too rough for it, and the colour also causes the sand underground to be an oven." She turned her attention to the others, "Everyone alright? Is everyone here?"

Nettle stood away from the door, having been little help actually closing it but had helped the others get in. “I feel twice as heavy now.” she said, the poofs of her clothes filled to bursting with sand. Making her small frame at least double its own weight. “I’m gonna find somewheres private like and shake this sand out. Back in a bit.” she waddled off to hide from sight.

Tech pumped sand out of his mechanical parts, grumbling the whole time, "Hate sand, scratches everything." Deria raised her staff to alight the temple. The group was greeted by ancient marble halls with gold painted designs. In the large centre was aged artwork of a female figure, her hair being like the night sky and her eyes shining like sunlight. Each artwork showed a different tale, from the creation of the world with two other godly beings, teaching individuals various things, and even her kneeling to crown a halfling bard.

The old priestess looked around, sorrow in her eyes. "I'm sorry goddess that I failed you, that your chosen has failed you as well."

As the storm howled and beat at the door Nettle walked around her troupe and guards. Checking in on her newest guard first, knowing this was his first rodeo. “Hows you holding out Jack?” Nettle asked, “I know sandstorms can be spooky if you’ve never been in’em.”