The sailor remains calm as you surround him - continuing his feigned drunken demeanor even as Stricia gets a good hold of him.
Looking around, you see no reinforcements on the way or in hiding.
Hmm, the Dottari may decide to investigate the sound of firearms being discharged in the vicinity.
Perhaps best to step into the shadows for now and keep a lookout from there.
While not keen on abandoning the others, Indio does decide to make himself scares and find a hiding place for now.
One combatant should prove no difficulty to the others.
Round 2
Still suspicious, Idril takes a 5' step NW and continues to watch for ambushers.
Bastargrae imbued a vial from a sleeve, swallowing it and gargling in his throat before hacking it up and sending a sticky mass at the attacker in an attempt to trip him up.
The sailor struggles against Stricia's hold, but is unable to move. So he simply sings....
"She promised meeee!
To faithful beeeee!
But all that changed by mooorning!
I went a-deck
A drunken wreck!
Her new red smile, a waaaarning!"
Nio whistles suddenly, high and sharp. Hasta pauses and his master does likewise. "Sir, be reasonable. You're restrained and greatly outnumbered. Please put up your arms and tell us what this is all about." That said, the deinonychus remained poised to dart back in and the young would-be armiger held an arrow ready at the string.
Stricia gasps as she feels something wrong under the skin of the 'sailor'.
It's... not human, it's a monster wearing human skin!
She moves to pin whatever it is she is restraining.
Hmmm, how intriguing...
Still unconvinced this is not merely a ploy for something more sinister, Indio keeps observing from the rear.
I can burn it and knock it down if need be! Release it!
Though Stricia seems to have him pinned, the sailor begins to worm his way out from under her. His body moves unnaturally - slithers and squeezes.. bends where there are no joints. As he is nearly out, Nio and his companion pepper him with arrows, tooth and talon.
Its fingers curl as it stops moving. As its features seem to melt away, its skin turns dark with strange flecks and whirls of orange.
Stricia shudders and takes out her sword to make sure it's dead.
That was an unpleasant surprise.
Her invisibility faded now, Idril took a step forward to peer at it more closely.
"Name of the Maiden! What is... was... that thing?" She questioned aloud, unable to recognize it.
If they don't travel in packs then... perhaps we are safe to proceed? I don't think the corpse of a monster would cause too much comment by the Dottari. Such things are everywhere.
Only question is whether it was a random nastie trawling for prey or something sent to harass us? We should remove ourselves with haste. Bastargrae was unsettled at the discovery of the thing's true visage.
The strange unknown creature lies there in its sailor outfit... Nio shows you the location of the hidden entrance just a few feet from it behind the crumbling fireplace.
You don't hear any commotion around from the sound of the gunshot yet, but you know there is a good chance there will be someone coming around soon.
Either we hurry in or we disappear into the shadows until the investigators leave. Stricia says, tension evident in her eyes as they flick from the body to the hidden entrance. We cannot give away a hideout before we have even entered it!
"Any people investigating may decide to stay here, it is quite possible this area will see more traffic than normal for some time.
And should we be inside the hideout too long, we may be prevented from leaving and keeping our appointment.
It MAY be wise to fall back and return later."
"Yes, let's back off a safe distance and see what happens. Whatever we do, we need to do it quickly!" Hissed Idril glancing around.
Should we press ahead?
Who knows the area? I think if we can find a place where we can observe this area without being suspicious that would be best... or come back tomorrow?
Rather cognizant of his position as the newest member of the group, Nio simply nods as the others advise retreat. He also looks around for a good spot the all might be able to observe from without being easily spotted.
Your best option is directly south.. on either end of an alley running west to east. Two people could watch around either corner with a fair bit of cover, and it is opposite the direction from where any patrols might come.
Nio nods. "Let's go." He and his colorful friend follow Erodel over to the cover of the alley. "I'll watch this way, you watch the other?" He gestures in one direction and takes cover against the alley wall to keep from being seen.
Ten minutes later a patrol of four dottari arrive to the scene. One leaves almost immediately, one begins inspecting the corpse, the other two slowly make their way around the area.
Nio and Erodel notice the one with the corpse pulling a necklace from the creature... "Know this symbol?" the guard asks... the other two shake their heads.
Another ten or so minutes go by before the fourth dottari returns.. bringing a man in plain clothes pulling a cart not much bigger than a wheelbarrow. They gather up the corpse, and load it, then cover it with a tarp.
You both get the impression that none of the dottari are particularly concerned.
They have a "Yep.. something died out here... oh well..." type of attitude from their manner.
They all seem to be about to leave.
"Which by itself COULD be considered suspicious. A sense of familiarity, or mere incompetence and apathy?"
A minute later they're all gone and out of sight. The shade of the clouds continues to lighten. A handful of birds take over the ruins.. hop and peck about.. twittering noisily.
I think we should hurry and get into the secret place as soon as we can. What says everyone else?
Nio nods. "They don't seem to care much about finding bodies out here, but there might be other people around here who do. Let's go."
Idril nodded her agreement.
Stealthily, she led the way back to the entranceway.
You cautiously make your way back to the crumbling fireplace, and after a short time, find the hidden trap door. Opening it, you see a short staircase... and smell mildewy dampness as well as the reek of rot. You begin to descend into the dark chamber below.
Nio murmurs something in the brain-twisting tongue of Hell and touches the armor plate on his lizard friend's head. A baleful red light illuminates the darkened chamber, emanating from just above and behind the lizard's eyes so as not to blind the creature.
"Hasta can smell as well as a hunting hound and has good ears. We should keep him up near the front," he says quietly. The would-be armiger himself hangs back, bow at the ready.
Stricia has an Ioun torch she can use.
Idril hummed a little phrase and whipped up a Dancing Light (Torchlight) to light the way forward.
Below the trap door, a flight of stairs descends into a partially collapsed basement. The air is thick with the cloying reek of garbage and decay, and clouds of fat flies buzz about, making it doubly unpleasant to breathe within the dank chamber. A wooden door, reinforced with rusting iron strips, sits in the eastern wall.
Hanging back by the foot of the stairs, Nio scans the basement for targets. Hasta does the same up by the front of the group, reptilian head rotating back and forth.
Stricia moves forward cautitously. She either takes forward or rearguard, whatever the rest of the group decides.
Idril moved about the chamber in a methodical manner, looking for whatever might be discovered...
Coming last to the door, she looked for traps before listening at the door.
Hasta immediately sniffs something out despite the overwhelmed stench. Stricia spots movement - shifting in the piles of rubble and rot. Three squat disgusting creatures emerge... the round torso is all mouth, and three tentacles sprout from it - two on the side have wicked barbs, the top tentacle has eyes.