Chapter 44 - The Four Riders

General Summary

Barely sidestepping a swinging bolder attached to a rope, Franz and his companions hear squeaking from the trees around them. Eliyahu, who has until recently led a cloistered life, feels a surge of power, and summons a ball of fire, which he directs at the nearest tree. Cries of pain emanate emanate from the foliage, and creatures scamper or swing down from the branches. They appear singed, and though none are consumed by the flames, all but one are deterred, hanging back, and hopelessly flinging rocks at the group. But ratpeople emerge from other trees, brandishing sticks, and they fling themselves at the surrounded travelers. Johann and Franz find themselves most pressed, though some get through to bite at Dietmar, Eliyahu, and Nit as well. The friar steps up and brandishes his cross, which makes the ratpeople step back. Their eyes dart around, looking for ways to flee, but the fighters in the group press their attack, and Eliyahu causes sores to open on half of them, so the creatures overcome their fear of Gaal in a desperate attempt at self-preservation. Ingrid and Dmitrei appear far more effective against them with their newly silvered swords. Franz conjures up a darkness that swallows up some of the wererats as Eliyahu targets them with another ball of fire. As a disturbing slurping emanates from the darkness, the sounds of a large group crashing through the underbrush portents the approach of the bulk of the army of the dead. Several skeletal forms converge on the scene, followed by shambling, stumbling corpses.   
Eliyahu sends Abdo to look at the approaching horde from above. There are many of them, but they appear to be followed by a rider, and the sounds of its hunting horn makes the group increasingly uneasy. Soon, the hawk beholds a crowned rider mounted on a white horse, urging the dead on. He spots the hawk, takes a bow off his back, and shoots it down. Deprived of their eyes, the group turns to flee, but Dietmar says that they can't outrun the rider. In their confusion, some urge Nit to summon a vision of a dragon to deter the pursuers, but most soon agree that the dead and their leaders are not to be stopped. So Nit conjures up her hut, and her companions jump into it, with the dead at their heels. Soon, they cover the dome, as they had just two days ago. As the defenders try to stab and slash at them from inside, the rider reappears, followed by three others - one, armed with a sword, on a red horse, one, brandishing scales, on a black horse, and one, in a black cloak, mounted on a pale nag. To Franz, Ingrid, and Dmitrei, he looks familiar. Those, says Eliyahu, are the four riders foretold in the Gaalite Writ, who will ride at the end of the world - likely, Pestilence, War, Famine, and Death. They circle the hut, and the black-cloaked rider lifts his hands. At this, the dead withdraw, forming a circle around 100 feet away. The riders depart, and the companions start to discuss how they will escape their predicament - summoning another hut will be difficult, but perhaps Franz can fly them out, one by one...

Report Date

31 Aug 2021