Leandro straightens from his combat position, shifting his grip on the glaive and examining it as if surprised to see only orange strings and pumpkin seeds thereon. Bending to retrieve handfuls of hay, he uses the makeshift swab to clean Thorn.
"I care not how these things appear, only that they are gone and we must move on. Did you not warn we should be away from this land before dark?" he asks Tannis, "We should move on if we are able. Is anyone injured?"
"I'll be fine, for it was only a nick." He touches his brow delicately, trying not to disturb the sticky coagulated blood there.
Then he cautiously moves forward to the strawmen and tries to examine to constructs, seeing if they contain any substance.
"If anyone is injured, we should use what magics we have to close those wounds. Why give sickness a chance to fester in this place?" Eliva pulls out her wand of healing spells and looks at Tybalt for permission.
Acceding to the request. Tybalt tries to shrug in a macho way, and fails. His pale complexion clashing with the dark bloody mask.
He gives a tight smile of thanks to Eliva, making him seem alot younger.
Eliva uses her want on Tybalt, then looks at her companions. "Anyone else in need of healing?"
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"Thank you very much. If I can ever return the favour?" Tybalt says, then looks away.
'Wow idiot, what will you say next? "Let me touch you with my wand!"' he thinks shaking his head ruefully.
"Nothing that can't wait, milady." Leandro bows to Eliva. "We should move along."
"Leandro, While I admire your bravery, I think we should always be at our best in these dangerous lands. Let me heal you." Res pulls out the other wand of cure light wounds and touches it to Leandro and himself before proceeding with the journey.
Eliva hears Tybalt's question as she packs the wand away. She grins and claps him on the shoulder. "Of course! I certainly hope if we find ourselves in similar circumstances, you would do so! Comrades in arms! I must say, I am gladdened so many of us have some small abilities to heal ills!"
Leandro grimaces, but accepts Res' healing. "I thank you, Sir Res, though I hope the wand does not run out when more desperately needed. Now, may we be gone? Our guides do not seem to comfortable here, and I am inclined to heed their words." He bows to the Vistani.
"Truly for if these are just one of the dangers," he motions to the scarecrows; "when you dawdle upon the trail. Who knows the scarecrows may have been travellers themselves once, transformed into grotesque parodies."
He pauses as they start to move on; "We must talk about something lighter, something to lighten the spirits. So Tannis did you meet Darra in the caravan & was it love at first sight?"
"Love is hardly a light subject," Leandro grumbles, taking up his position as rearguard and hefting Thorn to rest upon one shoulder as he walks.
"Pwshaw." he waves his hand lightly; "Of course it is. Though the complications could be tough - the rush of happiness, fluttering in the stomach, tingle down the spine."
Tybalt shivers, before clapping Leandro comradely on the shoulder. "Well, a handsome man like yourself."
Andrzej slides the scimitar cleanly along a rag and then curves it back into its scabbard. He steps back to the group and waits listening to the chatter.
Tannis agrees, "We should not tarry. We have only a few hours of daylight. I have little hope that we will reach the Mists by nightfall, but the last time we spend traveling after dark, the better." He seems disinclined to opine upon personal matters.
As you proceed, however, Darra volunteers an answer to Tybalt's question. "He may not admit it, but Tannis was downright bashful when first we met. He could barely complete his sentences." She seems amused by Tannis's reticence.
Tybalt smiles warmly enjoying the story of their meeting, for any happiness should be savoured - whilst the general melancholy should drift into the background like a pervasive mist. Continuing on, he makes sure to call his owl down beside him. The diurnal bird perches upon his shoulder and arm - occasionally taking alight when the mood takes it.
The respite from the driving rain is, unfortunately, a short one. As the party continues onward across the fields and valleys of Arkandale, a faint drizzle begins to fall once more, and progresses again to a steady, soaking rain. The ground beneath your feet turns to mud, and the entire land is shrouded in milky bleakness as thick clouds crowd out the sun.
Tannis and Darra urge you to continue, scarcely stopping to rest or eat. "Dusk will come soon," Tannis says at length. "We have some 8 or 9 miles to travel to the misty border. We cannot help but do some of that travel after dark. May fortune be with us."
With liberal use of and checking his amulet to ensure that they are taking the correct path. The care that he takes when consulting the ornate device, holding it in special reverence and keeping it protected from the elements.
As they trudge into the darkness, the bard will offer to cast prestigidation on the others to ward off the rain by drying it up.
Trying to add some colour to the melancholy monochrome of the scenery, Tybalt paints a tale of the Baron of Arkandale - a robust man with healthy appetites and an eye for a good time. Using a re-purposed story about a noble man coming a cropper, featuring cross-dressing adventurers, infidelity, a tricksey fey creature and a splendid ball.
As the afternoon turns into evening, the performer lights his lantern keeping the wick low so as to not attract too much attention.
Darra gives a knowing smile as Tybalt embarks on the tale. When he finishes, she muses, "Among my people, we tell a similar story, although the hero is not a baron, but a bard like yourself. Clearly, we have different priorities." She winks.
Tybalt's magic goes a long way to keeping the party somewhat less soaked.
Darkness falls and Tannis becomes visibly nervous. His eyes dart from side to side as he leads you hastily westward.
Tybalt calls his owl in from the occasional patrol or sortie, Tannis' nerves are catching and the flock of crows from earlier have added and extra edge to the caution. Lest his companion be caught aloft by a similar murder.
As you progress onward, the fields give way to a forest of dreary pines. The conifers offer little protection from the soaking rain. Their twisted branches drip heavily with rainwater.
In the distance, a blood-chilling sound pierces the air. It is the long, sustained howl of a wolf. Tannis freezes and looks panicked.
Res sees how Tannis reacts to the howl of the wolf and halts. "Tannis, it is merely a wolf, what strickens you so?"
Leandro draws near to the frightened man and claps a hand on his shoulder to hearten him. "We are all here, good man. No need to be so worried."
Tybalt halts and looks around his eyes slightly wild; "It is not the wolf itself that afears me, but the implications." he says his voice low.
"Maybe the rain shall prove useful; mask our tracks and scent." seemingly his body language is as panicked as Tannis'. "We cannot outrun it, but if it doesn't perceive us as either a treat or prey then we can escape." to that end he takes a deep breath and closes his eyes. 'Calm down, calm. They can smell your emotions. Calm.' his mental mantra goes, until he opens his eyes.
"Which way are we headed? For it may be calling to it's kin..." he consults his Wayfinder cautiously.
"Sometimes it is the fears that need to be watched. That may just be a mournful wolf. Not a prelude to an attack," murmurs the Vistani trying to instil some calm.
"It's a mile to the south, with some luck we can avoid it." he adds, hoping knowledge of the foe should help with the evasion and counter the fear that could run rampant.
"We should be so lucky," Tannis mutters to Res. A barely contained panic has settled behind his wide eyes. "We should make haste."
"Less haste, more speed. Rushing into the night will get us killed." Tybalt says trying to regain at least half of his wits. "We stick to the path, avoiding the direction of the creatures. We don't want to be lost in the night..."
'The mists, our destination, is it any safer than here? That's somewhere I wouldn't want to be lost in.' his thoughts drift forward hopefully.
Consulting his wayfinder, the jester puts all thoughts and apprehensions behind him and concentrates on their destination. He takes point, whilst listening to the sound council of the others.
"Tybalt, your suggestion of using caution to obscure our path and keep the wolf or wolves at a distance is wise." Res follows behind Tybalt and assists in minimizing signs of their journey.
Eliva looks at the group and speaks softly "That howl...was probably not from a normal wolf. If so, it is incredibly large and dangerous. I suspect we may be hearing a werewolf. Walk carefully, everyone."
Eliva makes sure her silver arrows are within easy reach.
"Were wolf - hmmpf!" growls Res. "Do you think if one of our party is infected, it will enhance their attraction to us? Can the affliction cross species? Though we may be trading one danger for another, I think the sooner we reach the mists the better." Res tries to pick up his pace to move the group along.
"Werewolf. Are you sure, Eliva? I see you are," as she picks at her silver arrows. "After wererats. Life is very interesting here with you people. This may not a coincidence."
"Best hurry." Tybalt says with a tight tone, his eyes a touch wild. He starts to move a bit quicker.
'Have they followed me? They couldn't have. They would have caught me earlier. Tannis did say that they infested the area.' his thoughts run pace, whilst he hustles away from the area with the others.
To Res, Tannis says, "If you were infected by a werewolf, perhaps. I am not sure. But if you were infected by another sort of werebeast, probably not. Have you crossed paths with werewolves before?"
The party makes its way through the hilly forest, ears trained for the next ominous howl. You take pains to cover your tracks, which slows your travel somewhat, but is probably worthwhile in the interest of passing undetected. Tannis assists in this endeavor, his woodsman's skill on display as he ensures you disrupt your path as little as possible.
It is sometime before the next howl pierces the night, and when it does, the sound is somewhat closer than before, this time from the north. It is probably a different werewolf.
"They are out hunting tonight," Darra mutters unhappily.
So far, the dreary rain has been somewhat comforting, but as the evening wears on, the rain lessens and finally stops. A fog rolls in across the damp landscape.
"At least it is no longer raining," Leandro chirps optimistically, "Must we be silent or is there time for a story?"
"The passing of the rain only increases our need for stealth," Tannis says. "We must speak in low voices, if we must speak at all."
Leandro nods sadly. "Very well," he acknowledges with a sigh.
Hearing the howls closer, he unsheathes the silver longsword and rests it naked on his shoulder as they march.
Smiling wanely at the knights optimism. The troubadour shivers at every howl, 'A pack?!'
Tybalt is uncharacteristically quiet as they move, seems like his concentration is upon the path on front of them. His hand strays to the owl perch on his shoulder protectively. "Could we lay a false trail? Although I doubt that'd fool them and just waste time."
Tannis raises an eyebrow at Tybalt. "What did you have in mind? Keep in mind that werewolves track by both scent and sight..."
"As always we could try laying a physical trail, however that could be very time consuming and dangerous. I could however cast an illusion and add some sounds to it, whilst my friend here.." he strokes his owl; "could lay a trail using clothing. Carry it in his claws?" He wonders knowing range and the danger to his friend is the biggest problem.
"Aye, we have not come across and werewolves. Our only run in so far has been with wererats," answers Res. Let's keep moving.
"Yes, best keep going and quickly. I'm not sure I could outsmart a werewolf." Tybalt says quietly his eyes roving over the hills. "Will we be safe when we hit the mists?"
"I think it best to expect the worst while hoping for the best," Eliva murmured, drawing and relaxing her bow slowly to keep it limber in the evening damp. "I find this helps me keep a more positive attitude, while still being prepared for unpleasantness."
Eliva does her best to keep a careful watch and look for signs of danger, while helping the party avoid places where they are most likely to leave an obvious trail, such as muddy patches or ground that is difficult to keep quiet when walking over it.