Ya'bo whispers
Quietly everyone just back out, no need to wake himand Ya'Bo tip toes out
[dice=stealth]1d20+4
Despite his best attempts to muffle himself, every sound YaBo generates seems deafening to Theo. Each step a cacophony of crunching dirt and swooshing cloth, each whispered syllable a sharp hiss echoing off into infinity.
Deep down Theo knows this is a trick of his mind. That they sound is being amplified by the sudden tension. Still, the line between paranoia and caution is far too blurry not to air on the side of safety.
Almost subconsciously, Theo reaches for the peace-binding straps given to him when he first entered the Keep. With a silent gesture, the two scraps vanish in rapid succession. A large stalactite immediately consumes YaBo and Sand, blocking the groups' line of site with the bear. A few seconds later, the ambient sounds of the cave seem to get slightly louder but only when facing the bear. The path behind the party remains quiet.
What? Like it's an illusion? Neil asks, peering at it.
Ore looks on with interest...
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Ore laughs at Ya'Bo good-heartedly: "You've my full trust, friend. Any more rugs we come across, I'll not be afraid of them as long as you're here. Ha!"
"I am sure you do not mind if I join you in searching this place for things both mundane and not so much," Sand says with a bright smile as he too begins moving through the cave.
"Worry not friend I am sure the bards will leave that part out when they sing of your legend." Morgan chuckles.
Unlikely. I'm not going to be able to hold my tongue on the tale of the mighty bear rug! Neil gaffaws.
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Intermingled with the bones, Sand finds six arrows, a vial of liquid, and a bone scroll tube. Inside are two scrolls, inscribed with what look to be prayers. Neil looks the scrolls over and confirms that they are clerical spell scrolls though determining exactly what they are will take a few moments of study.
With Ya'Bo distracted by his ritual, Ore takes the chance to investigate the bear skin more closely. Holding up a finger to his lips with bright eyes and a wild smile, he signals his intentions to the others, and requests their silence, as he ducks under the rug, burying himself in the leaf-pile. It had been too long since he last played a good joke.
When he heard the end of Ya'Bo's ritual a few minutes later, he peeked out of the rug, positioning himself near the end towards Ya'Bo, preparing to jump up and out with the rug held over him, and hoping his best bear impression was close enough to the real thing to sell it, for a moment at least...
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As Ya'Bo finishes the ritual, he stands up and takes a look around the room. As he looks across the room he sees the bear skin rug jump up and come alive "Grrrr!"
Ya'Bo screams and steps back, tripping on his backpack. He congers a magic spell and just as he is about to launch a ball of acid it the bear he sees two little legs and feet under the skin.
Letting the spell go "Ore you block head! You know how close I got to zapping you and I think I might have soiled myself. Now you roll that rug up and carry it back to the keep. It might fetch us a round of drinks and a good meal!" Ya'Bo stomps off hoping that he got a flicker of magic from something before he lost his concentration.
Man, that little bugger.....but it was funny, I am just not going to let him know that
Neil falls back onto his rump in a fit of laughter.
"I think you would do well to watch your back, Ore," Sand says after a bout of chuckling. "Ya'Bo is sure to... return the favor, so to speak, sooner or later."
"The more the merrier!" Ore says back, still laughing and clearly very much enjoying the joke and the levity it's brought.
"All for Yondalla, o' course; nothing pleases the Blessed One like a good bit of mischief!"
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As the seemingly mundane objects begin reacting to Ya'Bo's spell, a spark of curiosity and anticipation goes off in the back of Theo's mind; only for it to be doused by his initial interactions with the locals. No libraries, colleges, or any sort of knowledge repository.
Theo scans the assorted items. He pauses over the vile. "It's nigh impossible to identify a tonic by sight, and even opening such a mixture is a gamble. Best leave that be for now." He moves on, stopping for a moment to read over Neil's shoulder before finally coming to the enchanted quiver. "Hmm. Now, this might be doable."
Carved runes are a quick way to mass produce enchanted arms, and most ritual-based enchantments involve soaking or coating the item in an arcane substance. Both methods leave clues that Theo or his fellow casters might use to identify the enchantment.
Theo picks up one of the enchanted arrows, holds it towards the light, and begins turning it this way and that. He closes his eyes and slides his fingers across the wood, tip to feather. Then his eyes open to a narrow squint as he brings the item up to his face, slowly spinning the shaft at eye level before running it under his nose. Finally setting the arrow down, Theo licks his fingers and turns towards the group.
"Without any sort of arcane repository, identifying these trinkets could prove tedious...or expensive*. I suppose the Lord is sure to have an assortment of casters on hand. But you can be sure if what we found turns out to be powerful or valuable, we won't be getting it back."
"All that said, the point is moot if we don't get back to the Keep sometime this year. We should divide some portion of the coins amongst ourselves, and then start making our way back"
Morgan nods. "It might be wise to leave while we're ahead. Are there any objections to returning to the keep, for now?" He asks.
"We aren't taking all of it, are we? I mean, this was clearly all stolen during local raids. Obviously, nobody is going to reunite a cheese wheel with its owner. But still..."
"Then again, taking the money directly to the local Monarch is no guarantee that the people will benefit from the windfall. It's just as likely that the sum will simply be spread amongst the most obedient of the aristocracy."
"Can't imagine they'd object to us using the spoils to buy room and board and the like. We're performing a service, after all. But about that wheel of cheese... Maybe we ought to bring it with us for safekeeping. You never know what can happen to a good piece of cheese."
Y'all can do whatchya like with yers. I'll be doing the good thing and givin' mine to where it'll help. Local church or orphanage or some s@+~ like that. That's where it helps. Right in the hands of the folks who do the most good. Plus a little for me for some more beer. Or maybe I'll just keep that bottle of Brandy, eh? We can drink it all tonight.
"It can turn bad if left alone too long?"
"As for the brandy," the elf continues after his quip about the cheese, "though it is not my favorite spirit, it would be fitting to celebrate our victory with it, being part of the spoils and all."
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The return journey to the Keep is uneventful. Several of the tavern patrons seem surprised to see you, but the barkeep just laughs and collects his silver from the doubters. "I told you they'd be back! I could tell by the look of them that they were survivors. I've been around long enough to know the ones that will succeed and those who will fall."
Aye. We're back. It was a good hike down t'the caves. Finished out quite a few of them scoundrels and made the place a bit safer for the good folk of the keep. We've done good work today, boys.
Let's have a drink.
"Well, let's test your kitchen again, then: the heartier the better!
"And if you stick around, we'll recount how the caves are slightly less full o' evil!"
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The tavernkeeper is happy to provide the requested meals and drinks and even tells you that the drinks are on the house as a thank-you for your successes. Several of the locals that are in the place bring their chairs closer to listen to your tales of daring-do. Even the tale spinner in the corner stops to lend an ear.
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Having just managed to slip out of Ore's story circle, Theo sits in the corner listening to the Halfling weave the group's adventure into a grand epic.
He can't put his finger on any falsehoods or embellishments in the tale; even the group's lowest points are on full display. And yet - a testament to Ore's innate talent as wordsmith and showmen - Theo can see the group as no less than an elite assortment of prodigious casters, martial experts, and zealous acolytes.
As he listens, Theo begins to scribble down...something. A spell, probably. Bits of one, at least. After recalling his little light trick in the caves, most of Theo's old go-to spells had floated to the surface of his mind. But about halfway back to the Keep, he hit a wall.
A spell scratches at the back of his mind but only pieces make it through the tears in his psyche. Leaving Theo to puzzle them back together. Runes flash and pieces of an encantation repeat.
Theo attempted to ignore the phenomena at first. He was certain this was a higher level spell, likely one from his own spellbook. Thus, it didn't seem worth his while to dwell on the information until he could recreate the tome. That was until a key rune caught his attention, one indicating a ritual casting. If Theo can remember the ritual, perhaps he can cast the spell on his own.
Finally getting down the last verse of his partial encantation, Theo scans the page several times.
"So close. I can feel it." he thinks to himself. "Maybe Sand or Ya'Bo will have some insight. There's a sizeable portion of a ritual here, surely three of us can fill in the blanks." Waiting for the crowd to thin-out, Theo approaches his fellow arcanists with the query.
Would you mind setting DCs for various pieces of information relating to the spell: level, school, components, name? And minimum pieces needed to recall the spell? Preferably with higher rolls including the lower tier information (eg; rolling "name" from the list above would grant all information). The spell in question is Find Familiar.
It's been 10 years since Theo has even seen his spellbook. Accessing his non-cantrips should probably involve some kind of hurdle, at least until he has the resources to re-craft the tome. So, as a little bit of personal motivation, a group-wide failing of these checks would block him off from the spell until he has recreated his spellbook. And he'll only have these near-recalls once per long rest.
I'm open to any other ideas on how Theo could earn back his spells, that you might have. Or, if you prefer, I can just have them return during my daily mediation or something.
Neil enjoys his drink and the stories, laughing heartedly where appropriate and giving a sombor look where appropriate. That lad sure could spin a story into something it was more than.
Later, well into the night, Neil takes a stroll across town. It's a slow walk. A meandering walk. Half the time he's living in the past, as the memories flood into him. His wife. His daughter. His friends. That old bastard who forced it all upon him.
He eventually finds his way to the local orphanage (or school, if this keep does not yet have wayward children) and donates his portion of the gold, keeping only a few pieces for himself to pay for rent and food.
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"Gladly," Sand replies to Theo with a smile as he starts to look at the pieces of the incantation the half-elf shows him and Ya'Bo. At the same time he writes down some arcane symbols on a piece of parchment, erasing those he finds do not fit and keeping those that seem to do so.
Well? Whatdya say we get a good rest in and head back to the caverns in the morn?
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"Soon as this cheese is gone, you got it, Neil," Ore says from his comfortable chair. "We'll be needing some more tales, after-all"