~Liara M'yee Na'taal~
Inquisitor Liara Na'taal leapt up, her glimmering translucent wings propelling her high above the foul beast as it swiped at her. It snarled, thick spittle chasing after her as she flipped to the proper position for her attack. With a final flap of her wings, she dove blade point first towards the monster and pierced its brain through its thick skull. It convulsed once, nearly ripping the blade from her hands before settling in death.
With hardly a strain, she removed her sword from the beast's head, and it flared golden holy light, the gore sizzling to nonexistence and leaving her blade pristine. She glared across the battlefield, her soldiers finishing up the unholy abominations alongside her. She nodded, pleased at the efficiency of her squad, though a frown lay on her flawless face.
In her career as her Lady's loyal servant, she has bested even the vilest abominations Veru had to offer. From twisted toys of blasphemous necromancers to the darkest creations that were summoned from the deepest trenches of Hel. Yet, these creatures twisted even her tested stomach.
The manner of creature that they killed here were that of the most disgusting, fever fueled nightmares one could imagine. There were skeletal birdlike monstrosities that burrowed and slithered through the ground like worms as opposed to flying through the air. A twisted mass of gelatinous sinew that entangled her men and its supposed allies indiscriminately in an attempt to bore into its victim's body and puppeteer it while it's still alive. It was only by her Lady's blessed light that prevented Jaheel, one of her comrades, from falling prey to it.
Pride, shame, sorrow, fury, and disgust warred for dominion in her chest. She had lost two good people to these new horrors. Their bodies were already stored within shroud coins, the dimensional storage medium meant solely for the preservation and transport of individual bodies. They will be added to the Wall of the Fallen as soon as she returned from her mission.
By the Goddess's estimation, she was a little over a year's travel from her destination, the Dwarf city of Mithra'Vheen. With any hope, they would make it in time. She prayed to her slumbering Lady that these abominations would destroy the city before she arrived.
Her ruminations were put to a halt when her lieutenant approached her. With a salute he announced, "The samples were retrieved, and we are ready to head out, Ma'am."
She returned the salute, the sign of the Goddess in the center of her sternum and replied, "Good work. Injuries?"
"Minimal, for the most part. Myra took a good hit to her shoulder. Unfortunately, it is the same as the other attacks, the wound is resistant to healing. Though it responded well to the coagulant powder and a healing stone is bound to the wound. She is fit for travel."
Liara nodded and called out, "Myra! Come over here." The soldier quickly, if a bit stiffly, arrived and gave an admirable attempt at a salute with her good arm. She waved away the formality, "No sense aggravating the wound. Let me see." She summoned a high level spellform and summoned her Lady's light. Liara grimaced at the squirming feedback as her healing spell interacted with whatever corruption was in the wound.
At first, they feared that this "corruption" would force them to quarantine and excise the victim. Thankfully, this residual energy merely negatively impacted both natural and magical healing. So long as the victim wasn't close to death, their aura would eventually destroy the energy once the wound was healed.
On the other hand, the frail such as the infirm, elderly, and young children were susceptible to this corruption and would likely perish, even with intervention. One of her two fallen was killed instantly when the razor-sharp beak of a monster pierced his brain through his eye. The other actually survived, but soon fell to the deep laceration in her stomach from the scythe-like arm of a humanoid beast as the corruption made the healing slower than her blood loss.
She sighed in frustration before switching tack. She formed a spell that would numb the pain greatly. Myra sighed as well, though in relief. "Thank you Lady Na'taal."
She gave a tired, but sincere smile, "Think nothing of it. Now, form up with the others and let us continue our journey. I'll not wish to tarry and risk attracting more of these void spawn."
"As you command." Myra saluted once more and departed to be doted on by her friends as they readied themselves. Liara's smile grew a little less forced as she admired the comradery of her squad.
"Liara, in one battle we lost two of our numbers. I worry that, in the end, only you shall make it to the city." Lieutenant Xertha said.
She chuckled morbidly, "While it warms my heart that you have faith that I will not fall alongside you all, spread that faith among yourselves. While we very well may suffer more casualties before the journey is complete, never mind the return trip, I will do everything in my power to get us all to Mithra'Vheen."
She placed her hand on his shoulders, "Now, buck up friend. We can't have my right-hand man show doubt to the others. Come, we have a long trail ahead of us."
~???~
Somewhere, in an unnatural darkness, slithering, wet tendrils whispered their movement. At the center of the skittering and squirming, a being's luscious lips smiled too wide revealing a long, hypothermic fang filled maw as her pets spread far and wide. A sultry voice let out a chuckle, "Oh, what fun this world has to offer."
