The chaos is obvious the moment we step outside the temple. Civilians, infected, satyrs, dragons and monks are all mixed up in a mêlée with no sign of battle lines or formation. Realizing I can’t cast anything without hitting friendlies I whistle for effect and call Ignis down. Swooping down past Tittlin on his carpet and pauses just long enough for me to mount up. Not quite long enough, as I’m still too wobbly to land a hit on the infected we fly past.
We come up to a knot of fighters and before I can even swing, one of the infected unhinges their jaw and lets out an ear-piercing shriek. The sound continues to ring in my ear, shattering my concentration as the horizon begins to tilt. I feel the cool stone on my cheek before the pain of the infected clawing and slashing at the gaps in my armour.
After what feels like an eternity, the ringing finally starts to fade. I mentally command Ignis to give me some cover before standing up and remounting. I survey the fight and realize it’s not going well. Spesof and a new elf, who by their robes appears to be a Transcendentalist, are holding their own, but the satyrs and monks are being slaughtered. Their blows passing through the infected like through a pool of mercury without even staggering them. To buy us time, I cast compulsion with a quick chant and gesture, attempting to force all the enemies away from us. Unfortunately, out of the dozen or so enemies it only affects one dragon and two infected.
Even as underwhelming as it is, it’s enough to tip the scales. Spesof, the Transcendentalist and the arrows from the sky manage to take the pressure off and allow the Heavenly Supplicants to begin reviving their fellows. With still no clear line of fire, I assist as well with a casting of Mass Cure Wounds to help keep them on their feet. By the time I’d finished casting the spell, the battle was over.
We briefly confer with the Transcendentalist, who turns out to be Elidyr before Tittlin and I fly up to see what’s happening. From above, it becomes very clear that this didn’t originate in the refugee camp but is instead spreading from the west of the town. We relay this back to Elidyr who informs us that the epicenter we’ve described is Beyidark’s estate. As a chill runs through my veins, I ask him to send this to the Drusilia and confirm that everything is still under control inside. Luckily, it does seem to be.
Continuing the survey, we find people running from the compelled monsters. I ask Tittlin to help care of them, realizing they probably don’t want to see another dragon. Tittlin then delays, seeming to mishear me until Spesof points out that he’s waiting for me to say please. Smacking my face in frustration at the timing of this, I add please.
Realizing the area is too big for any of us to cordon off, we realize the best course of action is to head to the epicenter and hope for a source that we can neutralize.