Ling gives Akio the fakest smile and welcoming nod ever seen in the history of Ren'Shan, letting it transition into an icy glare just before turning her head back to their hosts. "I'm sure Akio will be very helpful in the days to come. In any case, Kasani has the right idea- it may be better to bring the fight to the Oniku instead of waiting for them to attack. Any idea how great their numbers are?"
Kasani grins and quietly affirms, "It's always the right idea to fight oni."
Yanyeeku nods at the various comments and seems game to go to the oni.
"Perhaps we should also consider making provisions in case the village is attacked again while we are away? I imagine their host outnumbers ours by some amount and it would be a great risk to the villagers if they were left undefended."
"We do not know how many they are, nor where they come from. They attack from the north, that is all we know." The elderly woman says. "The north is the deeper mountains, we do not go there, never have. Our fields are to the east, west, and south, but they have raided those for all that is left. We do not have anything except what is here in the village, just over two-thirds of the harvest this year." She points to the two large buildings that contain drying tobacco. "If they burn those, we will not survive the next year."
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To get the last of the tobacco, they must attack the village direct, rather than the fields. It is true that it is easier to defend a small, localised area than a dispersed one, but if we just hole up, they can wait until next year then attack the fields again. Seems to me we should go North, see if we can find them. How defensible is the village? How fireproof are those sheds?
The sheds are wood and open framework, to allow the tobacco to dry. Given they are kept dry, and are wood, they are very flammable, even if the tobacco wasn't.
Is there a possibility of hiding the crop? I would hate to leave and have them sneak by us or stay and have them overwhelm us and do their worst...
Kasani nods at Zamu's suggestions, her smile showing how impressed she is with the Tengu's ideas. [b]"Such measures would be a welcome safeguard, Zamu. We best serve the village hunting their oni, not waiting for spirits-know how long here in the village for an attack that may or may not come in the near future. Ending the threat at the source seems the wisest course to me."
The old woman shakes her head. "We cannot have water around the sheds. We have to put up tarps to keep rain out as it is when rain comes. Keeping wet cloths on the building would invite mold, which would infect our tobacco and ruin the crop." She says, sounding shocked at the suggestion. "We have a couple of hedge healers, who can bring forth some water, but other than that, no, we have no magic users. We are a poor village, no magic user would live here. The attacks are usually at night, but have happened in the morning at dawn as well."
"I'm not sure if we have the luxury of fortifications. By the sounds of it the village is already stretched thin for resources. We should split; the majority of us keep watch here while a few scout north. Perhaps our new feline friend and one other?"
Won't find a better man than I. I can go unnoticed quite easily. If you want someone else to go with me, they best be able to keep hidden, otherwise it may end up proving more of a hindrance.
Ling immediately clams up as Dunja suggests someone accompanying Akio to scout northward. She doesn't want to come off rude by saying "Not I!", but...
"How about Zamu?" she offers. "We already know he's a great archer, and he seems to be quite light on his feet. He doesn't wear armor, either. If Akio needs a scouting buddy, I think Zamu should go. It seems right up his alley."
She feels that her logic is sound.
Yanyeeku offers up a hand in front of him while he touches the other to his chest, I, on the other hand, am uniquely loud. It should not be me who goes. The kitsune as human offers a broad grin, attempting to find the humour even in these tense moments of planning action...
Akio and Zamu head out into the forest to the north of the village.
They spend half a day scouting into the mountains, looking for signs of Oniku. Both of them come up on a ravine, and look down at the same time and realize there are a dozen Oniku warriors making their way up the ravine. The two look at each other and both say they found them at the same time.
This, unfortunately, not a good idea, as the warriors look up. Their green skin and fangs glinting next to their armor.
The one in the most elaborate armor points and lets out an enraged sound, and the others begin to run. Well, half begin to run, the other half pull bows and begin firing.
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Back at the village, Kasani turns to Dunja and shrugs, "I'm sure Akio and Zamu are fine. It's not like they'd stumble onto a troop of well-armed Oniku and draw their attention."
Akio flinches as he pulls an arrow from his arm.
Ok, ok, That hurts, ahhhhh, Seems something good came from my masters merciless teaching....
He looks at zamu and sees the severity of his injuries.
Damn,
Akio pulls him along the way they came (assuming we are both full action withdrawing)before speaking.
Quick, get outa here. I'll distract them until you get out. Go!
After that, he will wait until he spots the Oniku closing in then vanish and drink a potion of Cure light wounds. Then use thrown sticks/limbs and or his voice to keep them from chasing Zamu for 3 rounds. Then vanish again and sprint back towards the village.
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Yanyeeku nods solemnly at Kasani, Surely not. Though I worry about that Akio he seems the kind for mischief. I hope if they DO find some Oniku he will not try to move their hats... The kitsune fiddles with his ruan as he walks an ambling path around the group as they wait for word...
Kimiko frets worriedly for her new friends who are absent... pacing rapidly while waiting for their return. "I hope they are alright."
Zamu turns and runs, as the Oniku behind him race to the base and begin climbing up. Akio runs as well, slower than the Tengu. Fortunately, in a forest, 30 or 40 feet, combined with the edge of the ravine and the angle the archers fire from, renders them out of target range, although arrows rain down through the trees around them, randomly.
"Hopefully they thought to set up some type of signal or something" comments Dunja.
"That would be wise of them," Lingfeng helpfully adds. "I mean, I know Zamu can take care of himself, but what do we really know about Akio, anyway? I mean, he stole my hat. Can we really trust a guy who steals peoples' hats?" She coughs. "Maybe he'll trip and bust his head or something. I dunno."
"In the meantime we should take stock of the villages defenses. Check in on everyone, see what we're working with."
Kasani shrugs to Lingfeng, "Not much apart from the fact he'd been here trying to help these people already. Hopefully he proves to me more than an impish floater of hats though." She smiles warmly before turning to Dunja and nodding, "A good idea, Dunja. We can make ourselves useful to these good people while we wait for our scouts to return."
No, those oniku may well be on the way to the village. We need to get back and warn them just in case. Besides, we are wounded. I don't think we can take another volley of that again. We can try again once we know the village is safe.
Lingfeng, finding herself strangely impatient and anxious as the party awaits word of Zamu and Akio's success- or failure. If she speaks, she finds herself overcompensating for her concern with harsh words. If she remains silent, she finds herself swallowed up with worry. The only course of action is to accompany the others into town to inspect the defenses and learn anything she can.
The town's wall is about 4 ft tall. It's mostly to keep animals out, not to defend it against attacks from people with weapons. It's a bamboo wall, about 6 inches thick.
There's a watch tower built into the top of the headwoman's house, where someone watches as much as they can, but it's not got a great view due to the forest.
The group does find out that the 'tobacco' is actually pipemoss, it grows in the trees around the village and is harvested every year. But it takes a long time to dry out properly.
The villagers are obviously not combatants, and look like they will be of minimal use in an actual battle. They have some ability with slings and hatchets, but that's about it. They don't really do archery due to the forest being rather thick, they are mostly trappers and gatherers, not hunters.
"Traps could be of use, if time allows" comments Dunja as they finish their information gathering. "Otherwise it seems we should keep the villagers out of the fray, should it come to that."
If they are forced to fight my music will enchant their weapons, better than nothing but I'd rather not see them hurt.
Kasani nods at Yanyeeku's sentiments, "I'd rather not see them hurt either. We came here to help drive off the bandits, not conscript them. Perhaps we might find a bottleneck in the oni's approach where we might hold them before they get near enough to the village to pose a threat? It would be a boon if Zamu and Akio have already found such a spot that we could turn to our advantage."
Zamu and Akio, looking bloody and bedraggled, show up the next day, covered in mud, blood, and detritus from the forest.
The villagers all look shocked at their appearance, and begin hustling about, putting children in buildings with thick walls and barrels of water on the roofs. They also begin going through the drying warehouses in earnest, looking for anything that looks like it's ready to be taken in, even if doing so will not let it be at it's best this early.
Kasani shakes her head at the two scouts and offers a wry chuckle, "Did a tainted mother chase you two through the woods too?" The nagaji's face then becomes suddenly serious as she turns to Kimiko, "Say, the tainted mother! You don't suppose she'd be able to help us, do you? What these folks need is a strong, protective spirit like her to keep them safe while we try to stop the bandits at the source!"
"I think she needed time to recover, but if she's done so by now, she might be willing... perhaps I can send a message through the plants so we don't have to travel back to her."
Kimiko goes to the far side of the village (back in the direction the party came from), and speaks to the plants there, explaining to them that the now-untainted-Mother was needed to help against onikun if she is able, and to pass the message along until it reaches her please.
Lingfeng stifles a gasp at the reappearance of Zamu and Akio. Although glad to see them alive, her first instinct is to scold them. Call it a defense mechanism.
"Zamu, I recommended you for this mission! Tell me you didn't make me look bad!" She glances over at Akio and turns her nose up. "Unless, of course, our resident hat thief is to blame for the sorry state of you both." She sighs and assesses their wounds, hoping they are not too extensive. As she does so, she asks: "What did you find out there, anyway?"
Dunja rushes to the front of the group and gasps at the sight of her wounded companion. "Ah! What happened to you two!? You look terrible!"
Her potions had been destroyed at the camp site and she had only one healing spell. Dunja elects to give it to Zamu since he seems the more ragged of the two.