02/12/2026: Battle in the Cemetery

The battle in the cemetery goes on. Viktor is finally atop the mausoleum that Jayce has just leapt down from, and frustrated to have missed him. The wizard searches, squinting at the rooftop in the gloom, for anything to throw at the fleeing Jayce. He only comes up with a large acorn. Winding up, Viktor lets it fly into the darkness.

The sizeable nut catches Jayce on the back of the head, startling but not injuring him. As he cranes his head around to see where the nut came from, his foot catches on a gravestone. The rain-slick grass does the rest. Soon Jayce, bruised, is on his back staring up at the thunderous clouds, rain soaking his face and hair.

Somewhere behind him, he can hear the whistle of steel. Jeremiah is attempting another spinning kick, similar to the one that devastated the man just moments ago. The monk leaps—but connects with nothing. This time the bandit ducks in time. This leaves Wilrick an opening. He slashes at the already injured man, who wheels to swing his rapier back at the fighter, nicking him.

Ten yards away, Bob breathes out a blast of electricity at the bandit captain, who leaps out of the way at the last moment. Illuminating the front of the mausoleum, the lightning ignites the grass, but it is quickly extinguished by the rain. The captain snarls at the dragonborn, “You’ll pay for that!” Bob wheels and runs.

Close by, Dante desperately calculates the meaning of breaking their oath to the Bandit Captain. This breach will call the wrath of  his entire thieves’ guild. According to the bandit leader, 400 vengeful Red Eyes will be cursing Dante’s name. 

But that won’t happen if they don’t know…

Dante is resolved that the Captain will never be able to tell the tale. They circle the angry man, now focused upon Bob, who is sprinting into the darkness toward another group. The bandit captain begins to stalk toward them.

⚔

Bob skids to a stop by Sean and Jeff, who are engaged in a combat with another bandit. Assuming the bandit captain will be distracted by Dante, he gestures for Sean to lean his head toward him. He intends to cast Mending spells to reattach Sean’s dreadlocks, but is having trouble placing the lost dreads onto the tiefling’s lacerated scalp.

Sean, a dagger in each hand, is distracted. He is helping Jeff to keep the fallen bandit from rising. The man is on hands and knees, cursing them, unable to stand because of the two. In a frustrated fury, he pulls his own viciously long dagger from his belt and slashes. It strikes the nearest leg. Bob yelps in pain, losing his spell. 

Sean responds and then man moves no more.

The rain, steady until now, begins coming down in sheets. A small tree steps away from the scrum is suddenly, violently incinerated by a blue-white lightning strike from above. The flash is blinding, the sound deafening.

When everyone's eyes adjust, several find they are momentarily deafened.

Dante can see the Bandit Captain’s mouth move, unable to hear what he might be saying through the ringing in their ears. They do understand, however, when sprints away into the darkness.

⚔

“The gods have turned against us!” shouts the captain, “Drop back!” He dashes in the direction of the graveyard’s nearest exit, joined by his one remaining comrade.

Jayce intercepts the man. The bandit, though wounded, disappears into the soggy darkness.

Whispering the incantation, hands whipping through the tosses pinch of sand, Viktor flings a Sleep spell out past the tombstones at the fleeing bandit captain. The man drops. Even above the sound of pounding rain, thunderous snoring can be heard.

“No one touch him! No one wake him,” Viktor cautions. Wilrick crouches, beginning to truss the sleeping bandit tightly in a bedroll then secured with rope. They gently move him to inside the mausoleum, out of the rain. Hopefully, no one will be here when the captain’s companion bandit returns to free him.

Bob attempts to mend the two slashed dreads back to Sean. Deafened by the thunderstrike, he unable to hear his own incantation. 

His spell goes awry and he accidentally fuses the two lengths of hair to one another. Sean, despondent, ceremonially lays them to rest within the mausoleum near the snoring bandit captain.

As an afterthought, Bob uses Sean’s one long dread as a gag for the snoozing bandit captain. 

⚔

Dante draws out the strange key passed to them by Malister Blackmoon after the funeral. “This only works for another three days before the magic wears off. I’m headed to the vault 238. Who’s with me?”

Only Wilrick elects to stay, standing guard at the mausoleum where the bandit captain lay, fast asleep.