EP37: Marble and Blood

Enraged at Merick's death, Titus strikes a devastating blow with Concord, channeling all the power he has access to into Borolas, body burning from within.

Marble and Blood the mad patrician Borolas evades Nilishli, closing on Marcus and unleashing a blistering series of blows from his greataxe upon the true cleric. Badly wounded, Marcus yet stands perhaps more importantly, Brola screams Now to his 20 odd men still outside, men that do not respond to their leader. Confused by how nearly 30 corpses now suddenly litter the doorway and having failed to see Grip unleash his draconic breath via mana bending, their fear overpowers their loyalty to Borolas. During this struggle, Merick's chosen essence attempts to keep him from death. Despite this, the first offender of Juramentum falls, his life force extinguished by the accumulation of shock and damage. His last thought is of his beloved wife Jasmine, to whom he promised he would return home. Nielshle stays in the crypts of a deepening blood frenzy, making short work of the men before her. Internally, Winter's harvest offers her the soul of one of the killed enemies, which she swallows. This knits some of her uncanny flesh, converting the man's life force into healing for her in a twisted mockery of Marcus soothing golden light. Enraged at Merick's death, Titus strikes a devastating blow with Concord, channeling all the power he has access to into Borolas, body burning from within. Boroles final act is to touch Titus cheek, his eyes filled with gratitude for at last being freed of 60 winters of life, death and rebirth upon the island. In the midst of this, a heretofore invisible figure begins to summon a potent act of will to lay the fellowship low. However, this person named Uriah dies to an arrow through his chest. Sprinting breathlessly to the fray, Ovid Morales, long suffering lover, spares the party what surely would have been a heinous arcane assault in the combat. Marcus is at last struck down with a still berserk Nilishli moving in for the kill on her own ally, the spirit of Merick appears a final time, guided by the hand of justice, and exhorts her to remember the circle, a reference to when Nilishleaf first won Winter's harvest and truly began her journey of self discovery and ownership. This act enables the divine construct to pull herself from her fatal frenzy. After this tremendous struggle, the Fellowship all tend to various pressing business. Titus buries a symbolic collin fruit seed which Weisa found in honor of Merick. Nilishli and Weisa have a crucial heartfelt conversation about the former's future with Winter's Harvest. Marcus does his best to comfort an emotionally collapsed Ovid Grip makes the decision to abandon his former crew, going with the Fellowship to the southern shore of the island. A final, unwelcome surprise awaits them there. Caepio Secundus has used the sigil, which Titus put in his hands as a lure to get onto the party's ship. Once there, he used his will, working to murder all of them. The Fellowship received this knowledge from the sole surviving crew member and now must reckon with the reality of their past choices, marooning them far from home,