Reiko collects the plant, never relaxing her guard. She says dispassionately, "Next time, she dies."
"After killing? Pity they don't gain a conscience before."
"C-c-can we just go now," Tatiana asks as she holds on to Vigny.
The trip back is long and nerve wracking. The stillness in the air seems to follow you and not a single animal or insect is heard as make your way out. Every step of the way though, you feel the eyes of someone watching you. It isn't until you approach the small caravan that you feel some of the tension relax and the unease fade.
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Jerukh agrees wholeheartedly.
"A threat made against us would likely have consequences against all of the caravan."
After all of you finish your disturbing tale, Sandru looks each of you in the eye then says, "we double up on the watches until we've put some distance between us and this forest. No one goes anywhere alone, and we always make sure that someone knows where we are, understood?"
The increased security measures may or may not have dissuaded the Forlarren, but two days of uneventful travel seems to calm everyone's nerves. The weather begins to turn for the worse, however. Clouds cover the sky and daily rain showers turn the road into a quagmire that slows the caravan to a crawl. Over the next few days, you barely cover fifteen miles. As another morning is greeted with a downpour, Sandru makes the call to stay put.
"Better to let the weather clear and things to dry up a bit than it is to risk getting stuck and having something break," he tells you before going off to take care of some other detail.
===
Ameiko and Shalelu find all of you after taking a turn keeping watch. Both of them look miserable and water drips from their clothes as if they'd gone swimming despite the storm cloaks they wore.
"Bloody rain," the young tien woman fumes as she wrings out her hair and begins hanging her gear to dry by the small fire crackling under the awning set out from one of the caravans. "It's been so miserable out there I be Shalelu would have died of melancholy if not for me."
"What she means is that she told pun after pun until I threatened to tell Koya who really took her hooch that one time," Shalelu says as she gives you a sly smile where Ameiko can't see.
"Shhh! not so loud! She might hear and then we'll both be in trouble," her friend whispers sotto voce, her expression is oddly one of mingled mischief and dread.
Vigny takes the extra guard shifts and generally makes herself available to Sandru for any help with animals, wagon, or supplies he might need. Otherwise she spends her free time working on sewing the pieces of crystal from the Brinestump Marsh onto a very thin, gauzy sheet of cloth she acquired before leaving Sandpoint.
As Ameiko then Shalelu change out of their wet clothes in the wagon, Sandru comes up looking for you.
"All of you, come with me. We may have trouble brewing," he tells you.
After you've had a chance to get ready, you are lead to the edge of the camp where a couple of guards are talking to a group of eight men and women. Two of them, a young man and a young woman, look to be of chelish descent, even with their hoods pulled low over their eyes. The others are either of mixed heritage or pure-blooded varisian. All of them look soaked to the bone and have mud spattered on them from their knees down.
"Greetings from a stranger to a stranger, but perhaps not for long," one of the women says jovially to Sandru as he approaches with you in tow. Her smile is broad and warm despite the continuing rain.
"Greetings to a stranger from a stranger. I see that you are wet and cold and are more than welcome to share our fires with us," Sandru replies personably. "Where are you from? What brings you slogging through this mess," he adds, twirling his finger around to indicate the rain still pouring down.
"Ah, that is a long tale best told over a bottle of wine, cousin," the woman answers. "I am Anica Movila, and these are my family. We have come from Galduria."
The woman sweeps her arms wide like a ringmaster at a circus presenting the latest attractions to the big top. After a moment, she begins to lead them all under the tents and tarps keeping the rain from dowsing everything.
"Sure, once you've handled whatever emergency Sandru's got you on," Ameiko whispers back as she dries her hair.
"Nice to see meet you as well," Anica replies, the rest of her group chiming in likewise a moment later. It appears that one of the younger men is starting to blush after noticing Soli and her greeting.
Reiko sidles over toward Sandru and Anica, speaking quietly, "Miss Movila, is there something you would share with your cousin Sandru about your niece and nephew?" she glances briefly at the two chelish members of the troupe who seem isolated.
"Ah, cousins, actually. Their uncle married into the family,"Anica answers before the group heads off to one of the fires to warm up, dry off, and get a hot meal.
Taking Sandru strictly at his word, Vigny approaches the group of travelers tensed and ready to act at the first sign of a false move. But then the greetings and the revelation that the woman is a relative of Sandru's throws Vigny off balance. She can't figure out if he was serious, mistaken about who they were earlier, or joking.
Still, it seems the mood is a light one to Vigny. She greets the travelers, laboring through a long, and rather formal in an old fashioned way, welcome in heavily accented Varisian.
Lots of his family. Very exciting really.
Vigny decides to play student of culture at first, saying almost nothing and watching carefully how they interact.
Reiko maintains a mask of civility until Anica walks away. She throws a hard look at Sandru when the newcomers are out of earshot. "I don't understand many parts of your culture... Is lying to your host acceptable? Those two are not her cousins and there was an oddness when I called them her niece and nephew. As caravan master, how should we proceed?"
Sandru's eyes are hard as they meet Reiko's.
"Generally, no. Varisians consider each other family, and lying to family is one of those things a good varisian shouldn't do. Anica's up to something, but I don't know what it is, nor if it has to due with us. She came from the wrong direction to be coming from Galduria and it looked more like those two were hostages than family."
The caravan master sighs and runs a hand through his hair.
"I'm pretty sure she's sczarni. They don't typically involve other varisians in their schemes, but I don't know what she has planned. For the time being we welcome them and listen for any trouble that might be brewing," he says quietly. "Just act natural. If they are up to something that involves us, they'll be more likely to slip up if they think we're dumb and happy."
Vigny can't make much of what is transpiring, aside from the obvious: The newcomers are settling in to stay awhile. She figures maybe she should do what she knows best as a way to insert herself into things and goes to fetch a cask of wine to share out among them.
She does take a look around for Koya while doing it. She should know who they are as family and how they fit into the picture. Hopefully Koya can give her a quick primer on who's who.
Jerukh sits sullenly, assisting with tea or counsel only when asked.
Even to his new friends it is clear to all how much he dislikes the whole caravan experience of living hand-in-glove with others...
When the newcomers arrive it does little to improve his demeanour.
(Sigh) More folk. More conversation. More swapping of tales, laughter, drinking even...
Reiko nods then goes to find a seat near the group by the fire. She bows politely to the nearby Varisians then settles in presumably to work on a poem in her native tongue. All the while, she watches and listens... poorly.
As the day turns to night, the newcomers regale the caravan with various tales and bits of news they've picked up. Sandru and Koya act as if nothing is amiss, though it's almost for certain that Sandru has informed the Desnan of what is going on. None of you notice anything out of the ordinary besides the silence of the two chelish members of the group. The rain shows no signs of letting up as the night watch is set and people begin to go to bed.
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After a while Vigny convinces Soli it would be a good idea to sit back to back so they can see everywhere at once.
Soli makes a good pillow though, and occasionally Soli hears some light snoring and teeth grinding from behind her.
Jerukh enjoys the silence of the watch turn, mulling potential fey-bane concoctions and other such tinctures as he sits;
:
As you take over for Emi, she pauses for a moment and tells you that she heard what sounded like quiet arguing from the newcomers. Most of it was too low for her to make out, but she did catch that they were looking for a half-elf.
You spot a dark figure moving like he's trying to be sneaky, but seems so nervous that they are doing a poor job of it. Shortly after you spot them, they climb into the wagon that you and Emi, Soli, and Vigny have been sleeping in. A moment later, you hear someone tripping inside.
You are awakened when someone lands on top of you in a rather compromising position. It takes a moment for your eyes to adjust, but as they do, they fall upon the face of the young chelish man that had come in with Anica. But human eyes don't normally glow red in the dark, do they?
"I'm sorry," he whispers as he grabs your wrists.
Vigny is awakened by bumping and stirring nearby. When she raises her head to look around, she sees someone on top of Soli.
She grabs her sword and draws it, yelling "HEY! Get off her!"
Vigny leaps up and rushes over, giving the assaulter a poke with her sword.
The man yelps in pain as Vigny's sword cuts him. He lets go of the paladin and throws his hands between him and Vigny.
[b]"I surrender! I surrender! Mercy! Please,"[b] he begs.
As you rush towards the wagon (or not), you hear a man shouting from inside. Just as you hear his voice, other voices join in and soon the entire camp will be awake.
Reiko charges toward the wagon, drawing her katana. She checks on the happenings in the wagon while keeping an eye out for more of the newcomers.
Between Soli's knee and Vigny's sword, whatever fight was in the man leaves. He curls up as he whimpers in pain.
Outside, people are shouting, and above the din can be heard Anica's voice cursing harshly. Confusion makes the other caravaneers slow to respond and it seems that more people are running around trying to figure out what's going on than aren't.
A minute after the commotion starts, Sandru runs up in just his pants and tunic with a drawn sword.
"Are you five alright," he asks, his voice just more than a little strained and worried.
"You alright Soli?"
Vigny grabs the young man up by the collars and brings her face close to his.
"What are doing in here?" she asks through clenched teeth.
Seeing that Vigny and Soli have the situation well in hand, Reiko keeps everyone back - with a staying hand or the bared katana - except her fellow Sandpointers. To Sandru she whispers, "One of the new men chose to jump Soli - in her sleep."
To the rest, she says, "The situation is in hand. You may go back to bed."
Just as Sandru is about to say something further, another of the caravaneers runs up.
"Sandru, those sczarni just ran off after attacking Yulian," he says, causing Sandru to spit out a curse.
"If you have things under control here, then I'll leave you to it," he tells Reiko.
Meanwhile, the young man refuses to say anything or meet Vigny's eyes.
Reiko's face becomes a stony mask. She deftly leaps into the wagon and drives her katana straight through the man's thigh. She skillfully misses the major arteries and pins the limb to the wagon floor.
She speaks matter-of-factly, "You're going to tell us everything NOW - if your friends are coming back for you... why they attacked Yulian... and what they want. If you don't," she wiggles the blade in his leg, "...you'll spend the last moments of your life screaming as I decorate this wagon with your entrails." She pulls the wakizashi from her belt, making it clear that she's ready to begin.
Vigny lets go of the man and steps back, putting her hand over her mouth. Her eyes go wide with shock.
The man screams as the sword plunges into his leg, and wiggling the blade causes him to cry in pain. It takes several moments before he's able to speak more than a word.
"I-I don't know why they attacked him," he blurts out, "that wasn't part of the plan!"
Seeing the shorter blade, he swallows and does his best to maintain his composure.
"Th-they wanted the half-elf. They were after a bounty and I was supposed to sneak in and magic us both out, but I tripped then she kneed me in the balls and the other one cut me and— and—" He slumps and begins sobbing.
"Please. Please just save my sister. Do what you want with me, but just save her," he quietly pleads.
Reiko keeps the short blade where it is, neither threatening nor drawing away. "Where were you to meet them after you had her? Help us and I'll do my best to get your sister back."
"North of here, but there's no telling where they went now," he answers.
He's not lying to you, and he's terrified, though it doesn't seem for himself.
Reiko nods and sheathes the wakizashi. "How far away is this spot - less than a league, more? And what can you tell me about these sczarni?"
"'Bout a league, yeah. They'll kill her if it meant saving themselves. They also sounded like they were in deep trouble with some big shot in Riddleport, they tried not to talk about it in front of us though. Dorin and Zana didn't seem like they were thrilled with this idea. Actually argued with Anica about it."