Those of you without Darkvision still see nothing, but continue to hear the approaching footfalls.
Unaccostomed to life in the forest, Morgrym does not recognize the strange creatures. However, he knows enough to realize they don't seem to pose a threat to the group. He scans around the camp site one last time and, failing to see anything else, passes the word of a false alarm.
|
"... A false alarm...?" Aerynne sighs, partly out of irritation from her sleep being interrupted, and partly out of relief that the invaders were nothing dangerous. "Teuivae," she mumbles, causing her pendant to yet again glow with the colour of moonlight, before moving forward through the darkness towards where she heard the approaching footfalls until she spots their 'assailants'.
She then groans, shaking her head, and promptly throws herself back onto her bedroll. She leaves her still-loaded crossbow beside her bed this time, though.
"... Elk. They're elk, Morgrym," Aerynne says dryly, her voice slightly muffled from within her pillow. "They're harmless."
Seeing Aerynne's light illuminate the elk, he is finally able to put a visual to the sound. Ah, right. That makes sense. Gerran makes his way back to his spot in camp and begins to settle in once more. "It's a shame, of course, that they didn't arrive several hours ago, and that we are already fed. Still, I expect that leaving these to forage now might yield greater returns in the future."
Scraps checks to see how long until her turn at watch.
Marius, having risen and taken a spot several paces behind Morgrym, aims two fingers at the darkness and readies a spell to cast. On the revelation of the identity of the night prowlers, he sighs and returns to his bedroll. "I am glad of your alertness, Morgrym, regardless of the results this night." he says. "These lands are dangerous and I'd rather be awoken to a herd of Elk than to the inside of a Troll's gullet."
Wallop giggles at Marius' comments and then heads back to bed to await his turn at watch.
The rest of the night passes uneventfully. The morning sun rises several hours later. The dew glistens off of the grass as your party awakes, has their morning meal, and prepares their selves and magic for the day.
It's not long before you break camp and continue heading southwest. As you go forward, however, you notice something strange. To your left, there are a number of white objects strewn about a specific portion of the plain. It's too far to make out what they are from this distance, and the objects are too far off your current path to get a better look from your current trajectory toward the bandits.
Scraps continues sleeping while the party trots along.
|
|
Before setting out, Aerynne makes sure to summon Cadeyrn back to her side. The ritual involves a rather complex summoning circle scratched out in the dirt, the lines of which quickly fill with brilliant green energy before the fey-wolf materialises within. Cadeyrn yawns and stretches as he steps back into this world before nuzzling Aerynne affectionately.
---
During their journey, Aerynne looks over at the strange white objects, frowning when she cannot make out what exactly they are. "How about we check these out after we deal with the bandits?" She asks the group. "They might be those moon radishes that Svetlana was talking about."
If the group agrees to come back later, Aerynne will quickly write a note in her journal about the relative location of the white objects before galloping to catch up with the rest of the group.
Gerran nods at Aerynne's assessment. "I agree. For now, though, we have bigger goals."
You ride past the white objects, marking their position on your maps and in your minds.
As your path takes you further southwest, you notice that the terrain begins to change. The relatively solid and flat plains turn instead to hills and swampy valleys. Your progress is slowed by the effort of dealing with these new challenges. Upward and downward slopes prove challenging to your steeds, and the swamps, though shallow, prove to be equally as cumbersome to traverse.
About six hours have passed. It is now early afternoon. The sun has begun to slowly leave its zenith, and the wind blows a pleasant breeze across your faces and the flanks of your horses. A large rocky outcropping rises to the east, its craggy appearance markedly different than the rest of the environment.
D'oh! Scraps doesn't notice anything. She seems to be asleep on her ass again.
perception check
egads I hate posting from my
Gerran holds his hand up, signalling a stop. "Hold on. There's something in the underbrush there. Sounds big."
Scraps sits up when the horses stop. She has her rifle out surprisingly quickly for someone that was just asleep.
|
|
Despite Cadeyrn's keen senses, the close proximity to so many people and horses causes him to be distracted, and he is completely unaware of the rustling bushes until Aerynne perks up and reins her horse in. Not a moment later, Gerran waves the rest of the group to a halt to warn them of a potential threat.
The half-elf fetches her crossbow and loads it, aiming the weapon into the shrubbery. "Maybe we should try and scare it out of the bushes?" She says quietly. "Either that, or I can send Cadeyrn in to investigate."
"Better not be more of your 'elk'" Morgrym grumbles as he slides out of the saddle and reaches for his axe.
Marius, alerted by his comrades, grasps and loads his crossbow, looking in the direction indicated.
Due to your alerted status, you all are aware and prepared for what happens next. Out of the buses comes a slender, wolf-like creature with a long tail. It bares its teeth and attacks!
Party goes first!
Scraps scampers 30' to the side to get away from the horses, kneels, and fires her already loaded musket.
Her shot hits it in a vital spot, but unfortunately, doesn't penetrate far enough to cause a mortal wound.
|
|
"Well, Morgrym, it's certainly not an elk... although I've never seen this kind of animal before. Some kind of canine, I'd guess?"
Aerynne looks to Gerran, knowing he was the most 'bushy' of the group, although keeps her weapon trained on the animal. "Maybe we can try and calm it down? It probably just thinks we're trying to invade its territory or something." She then deftly jumps off of Brambles and carefully approaches, although remains at a safe distance, ready to fire if it should attack them. Cadeyrn moves in front of his master, watching for signs of danger.
"It's a brush Thylacine. If it gets near you, don't expect that you'll be able to step away from it."
With that, Gerran, having readied his bow, fires at the creature.
Wallop jumps off his pony and upon hearing Gerrans warning he quickly takes up a defensive position in front of the ranged attackers but hopefully not close enough to get attacked. Let them do their job and maybe they will scare it off.
Marius frowns and takes aim with his crossbow. The bolt whizzes through the air at the beast, who no doubt did not expect such a welcome.
Morgrym has always preferred straight forward solutions to straightforward problems...
If conditions permit, Morgrym will charge the not-an-elk.
Arrows and bolts bounce off of the creature's tough hide, and Morgrym's melee attempt produces no effect as the blade fails to pierce its fur. The bullet and bite, however, are far more effective.
Scrap's projectile successfully lodges itself in the thylacine's flank, while Caderyn's jaws sink into the beast's leg. The creature bays in pain, and quickly retaliates against the eidolon... to no avail. The Thylacine's jaws miss its target completely.
It seems as if this beast will not easily be deterred. I must engage.
HAVE AT THEE!
Rage Attack + Power Attack:
Damage if that hits:
Scraps reloads a cartridge and fires again.
Gerran drops his bow and rushes to the side of the Thylacine, drawing his greatsword and swinging wildly.
The thylacine falls from the multiple, powerful, simultaneous blows. It's death-yelp is somewhat haunting, but leaves no lasting effect upon you.
The battle was decided in a few mere seconds, and has brought no major impediment to your journey. You move westward, and begin to see in front of you what you can only assume to be the Thorn River where you were told the bandit camp had been pitched. Indeed, you can see a watchtower peeking through the treetops as you travel, the terrain becoming more and more forested.
For now, the trees hide your passage, but the camp ahead seems to lie in a clearing...
|
|
Aerynne dismounts a good distance from the camp, securing Bramble to a tree in an area behind enough vegetation to make her difficult to spot from the watch tower.
"I think a couple of us should scout quietly ahead... try get a look at what they're doing and formulate a plan from there. If we can take any of the bandits out quickly and quietly before the rest notice, I think we should."
"Cadeyrn has a strong sense of smell and hearing, and he's pretty sneaky as well. Plus, from a distance, they might mistake him for a wolf and pay him no heed. He'd be happy to help scout out the camp." The feywolf nods his agreement from beside his summoner. "I can also cast a spell on those who go scouting... it will allow you to communicate with me from a moderate distance simply by whispering. The forest winds will carry your words to me. If you get into any trouble, we'll be able to alert everyone that way."
Aerynne looks around the group seriously, completely devoid of her usual easygoing expression. "Have I forgotten anything important?"
"I don't like it but you've got a decent plan, lass. Without knowing what we are up against, rushing in could be suicide and I'd like to think Father Torag doesn't want to see me just yet. I'm no damn good at sneaking and hiding about, though."
I can sneak around pretty well but that wolf idea is brilliant. Wallop smiles at Aeryenne's plan. I like it.
Gerran, realizing that stealth is going to be important, changes into his studded leather armor.
"I will do some scouting, as well. Once we have the lay of the land, however, we're likely to be best served with a frontal assault, so we can bring all of our skills to bear."
"I be very sneaky, but if wolfy's going, maybe I stays back. Could be that one of dem watchin real close-like."
With that, Scraps goes over to Aerynne, pats Cadeyrn on the head and sits down to wait the wolf's return.
Marius stays with the rest of the group. "I wish you luck on your mission. Signal us if you get into trouble." he says as he readies his crossbow.
|
|
Before Gerran leaves, Aerynne lightly touches him on the shoulder, mumbling a spell in Sylvan. The catfolk feels a mysterious zephyr brush over his body and tousle his hair and fur after Aerynne finishes casting the spell. "Provided you're within about a hundred feet of me, you can whisper a message and I'll be able to hear it and respond."
Cadeyrn follows after Gerran, sneaking around the camp and peeking through the foliage to get a good look at the bandits. Aerynne remains back with the rest of the group, although if either Cadeyrn or Gerran seems likely to move further than 100 feet away she will move closer to them.
Gerran and Cadeyrn move move to the edge of the forest (about forty feet away from the group's current position) and peer into the clearing. They see two paths from here, a well-traveled road, and a small forest path intertwined with trees. The road leads directly into the clearing, while the trail seems more circuitous.
Gerran and Cadeyrn follow the path, reaching a the clearing by going through the woods. Through the trees, they can see five people sitting on logs around a currently inactive campfire. Four men and one woman sit, looking bored, as though waiting for something.
Gerran notices before him a bear-trap, poised to snap and immediately before them on the trail. Once perceived, it is easily avoided. The five figures do not perceive Gerran and Cadeyrn unless they make themselves known or trigger the trap.