Fírinne nods, then begins to pace as she works through the beginning of a plan. "That's a good idea, Nebbin. Of course, we can't just stand around and watch them, that'll be suspicious all by itself. Perhaps, we could investigate by pretending to make deliveries to and from the farms outside the walls. That will give us a firsthand look at intensive their searches are, and, by regularly coming and going, we'll be less worthy of notice when we really do smuggle Trinia out."
KORVOSA (7-8 Desnus)
The party arranges passage across the Narrows of St. Alika with Londra for that evening. Tassira will accompany them across the strait but then head to her parents' villa on the Heights; Kayleigh will stay behind with Ishan to deal with the sick folk at the clinic (and keep an eye on Trinia).
Nebbin, Firinne, and Emileva make the crossing on the night of the 7th, saying a quick goodbye to Tassira. Then they take shelter in a quiet inn. The next morning, they stake out the North Bridge. The guards there don't seem to be particularly attentive, day or night. It looks like sneaking Trinia out with a simple disguise might indeed be the best bet to get the fugitive safely out of the city.
That night, Londra and her crew again ferry the party across the strait and back to Old Korvosa. At the clinic, they find everything in order. Kayleigh hands Emi a letter from Master Orisini; the seal is already broken, so it's a safe bet the cleric and possibly Trinia have already read it. Vencarlo has apparently heard of Tassira's departure from the group and has a potential arcane replacement in mind, should the young heroes need one. He invites everyone to his fencing school, be it that day/night or at their earliest convenience.
ORISINI ACADEMY (Garrison Hill; 8 Desnus)
The trek up Garrison Hill is uneventful, though a light drizzle makes it a bit uncomfortable. The butler Erold answers the door and informs the group that Master Orisini is expecting them. You're offered drinks to chase away any lingering discomfort from the suboptimal weather. A stranger is already seated in the parlor. Vencarlo's eyes meet Emileva's first, but it's Kayleigh he speaks to first.
"I'm not sure if you've heard, but it seems likely the Queen's physicians will be moving into the section of Old Korvosa where your clinic is set up, likely either tomorrow or the following day. Things are moving swiftly, my friends. Another physician with a pair of Gray Maiden bodyguards visited me again; they seem to suspect that I know something about the king's alleged murder--imagine that! Anyways, I hope you can get our friend out of the city as soon as possible, though I imagine Kayleigh's first duty is to her clinic and her patients. I also heard that you've lost Miss Vantyev for the foreseeable future, so let me introduce you all to a possible replacement--Andrezi Mardu. I know his family well and can vouch for his trustworthy nature."
"You always make me nervous when you say nice things about me, Vencarlo," Andrezi says, a wry grin punctuating his words.
The speaker is a tall Varisian man in his early forties, bits of grey marking both his shoulder length hair and chin strap beard. Though he has a longsword sheathed at his hip, the slight build and blue and gold robes suggest Andrezi is a more scholarly sort.
He bows to the group. "A pleasure to meet you all. As Master Orisini said, my name is Andrezi Mardu. I was once, briefly a student to our mutual friend. Alas, the blade is more a familial tradition than it is a talent of mine."
"My talents are of a more magical nature," Andrezi continues, snapping a finger and murmuring an arcane word. Light springs forth from pommel of his longsword. He places a hand over it, muting the glow. "I have studied on and off over the years at the Acadamae. I majored in transmutation magic, with a minor in conjurations."
Clearly an affable, chatty sort, the wizard says, "You may be wondering what I could possibly be after. To that I say: fair question! Put simply, Master Orisini told me that you have some interesting problems you are trying to solve. I am bored and I like interesting problems. The more complex the equation, the better."
He looks at the group. "But first, do you have any questions for me? For you all, I am an open spellbook."
Fírinne, initially suspicious and guarded at the stranger's appearance, relaxes once Orisini vouches for the man. By the time he's finished introducing himself, her dark red eyes twinkle with amusement. An academic who loves to talk, especially about himself. Some things truly are universal.
"I may," she says at last, tapping a talon on the reinforced tome riding on her hip, "take you up on that, somewhat more literally than you intended."
"I may," she says at last, tapping a talon on the reinforced tome riding on her hip, "take you up on that, somewhat more literally than you intended."
Andrezi chuckles, once more delivering a graceful bow. "I have taught a few students a spell or two in my time. The instructors at the Acadamae are not keen on me sharing things for free, but they are far too wound up in their rules for my tastes. If you are willing to learn the forms, I will happily show you them."
Emi trusts Vencarlo, so she trusts Andrezi. She does warn him, although in a joking tone, that he may get himself in trouble by associating with them.
"Are you ready to pursue solutions to our problems as far as risking ending up on the gibbet? Our problems are knotty ones for sure."
"Are you ready to pursue solutions to our problems as far as risking ending up on the gibbet? Our problems are knotty ones for sure."
A raised eyebrow is the immediate reaction from Andrezi. Then he shrugs. "Without risk, there is no reward. I am not worried about rope, whether it be made of hemp or silk."
Emi reassures Vencarlo they won't be caught unaware and can move Trinia soon as well.
"We should be on our way with Trinia by early tomorrow morning, maybe even overnight. We're ready to go."
"As she says. Nebbin and Kayleigh should be enough to keep a lid on things here while we're gone."
"Oh, excellent. Something to do already," Andrezi says, excited. He then stops and says, "Ah, for those who are still playing catch-up, where do you want to take this person? Perhaps I can make this job easier?"
ORISINI ACADEMY (Garrison Hill; 8 Desnus)
Indeed, Kayleigh's conflicted about protecting the clinic versus getting Trinia safely out of the city. She seems to be trying to convince herself that some of the potions and scrolls found in the wererat lair will provide enough healing that her friends can survive a couple of days without her.
"Oh--Trinia can cast some healing spells!" Nebbin chimes in. Kayleigh's eyes widen a bit before narrowing slightly. When she asks how Nebbin knows this, her boyfriend simply says, "She told me so a day or two back. She talks a lot, especially after she's been cooped up alone for hours hiding in the clinic." The big fighter doesn't seem to notice the jealous streak Kayleigh's showing.
The semi-awkward moment soon passes, however, and the party and Vencarlo finalize the plans to sneak Trinia out of the city. First thing will be to get across the Narrows, so passage will again have to be negotiated with Londra or one of her sons. Then--unless Andrezi wants the party to try to escape the city magically--it's to the gates and (hopefully) through them without incident.
"I have a spell that can move us three of us through space about six hundred feet or so. But if you need me to ferry more than three people magically I will require an extra day of preparation," Andrezi says to the group. "I have been studying teleportation magic, and am still working through some of the fiddly bits."
GARRISON HIll (8 Desnus)
It turns out that the crest of Garrison Hill is both the spot in Old Korvosa that commands the best view of the hinterlands north of the city and the narrowest point of the Jeggare River. After a quick glance, Andrezi feels certain that his magic can easily take two members of the party across the river and deposit them near a small swath of woodlands where they can take cover until the rest of the party passes through the gates and reunites with them.
When the group has finalized who'll be dimension dooring with the wizard, Kayleigh uses a couple more of her disease-removing positive energy channels to eliminate any trace of the blood veil the trio might unwittingly be carrying. "Can't accidentally carry the plague outside the city," the cleric points out.
She accompanies those who remain as far as the strait where Londra's ship is to pick the remained of the party up. Just before they board the vessel, the cleric repeats the process, telling her friends to keep their mouths and noses covered for the rest of their trip to the gate. Having included herself in the second channel, Kayleigh allows herself and Nebbin one last farewell-for-now kiss while assuring the big guy that she'll prep an array of spells in the morning that'll allow her and Ishan to hide the presence of the clinic and the sick, along with a couple to enable escape if the hospice is somehow discovered.
The trek across the city is uneventful, and the guards at the North Bridge are tired and bored, ready to end their shift; passing through is a simple matter. Soon, everyone reunites at the edge of the woods for the trip to Trots. The last vestige of daylight vanishes as night claims the countryside.
Having made his anxious goodbyes to his girlfriend, Nebbin can't help keep looking back toward the city, too nervous for Kayleigh -- she's too brave, always rushing into trouble, even when she should be careful -- to really be excited by Andrezu's new magic. He'd never teleported before!
"Should we camp out here," he asks the others, "or try to travel at night? I can't really see, but maybe we should get a little but farther away from the city..."
"Agreed, I have no wish to camp under the watchful eyes of the city guard, and we risk one of you breaking an ankle walking through the dark. I'll take the midnight watch."
Andrezi shrugs, happy to go along with the group. "If it's all the same, I would appreciate not having first watch. Through magic I only require two hours of sleep, but it does need to be interrupted. And when I rise it helps to have an hour of uninterrupted study. But after that, I am happy to be company for anyone on watch."
"If we are in need of light, I have a simple spell that I can cast that will give us some illumination. If we need something more potent, I can temporarily create an area of daylight. That would only last about an hour or so," he shrugs and smiles. "I will help however I can. Just let me know."
KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 8-9)
The plan to escape the city with Trinia goes without a hitch. After reuniting, the party walks along the road for about an hour before making camp.
About an hour into Firinne's watch, she hears voices calling somewhere off in the wilds to the east. It sounds like the two voices--one male, one female--are calling a name..."Aubry" perhaps?
As silently as she can, Fírinne draws her rapier and goes to shake Nebbin awake.
"Quiet. Listen," she whispers. "Voices out in the woods. Could be someone lost, or something that likes to lure out helpful souls. What do you think?"
Nebbin blinks, trying to clear the sleep from his brain.
"It's kind of strange someone would be out in the middle of the night, right?" he whispers back. "We should probably wake everyone up, just in case."
He reaches for his sword, pulling it close in case he needs it.
"Here, allow me," Andrezi says before he whispers out a simple summoning spell.
Two eagles appear beside the wizard, and he immediately begins communicating with the birds.
He then watches as the pair take to the sky in the direction of the sounds.
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KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 9; Early AM)
The summoned eagles listen to Andrezi's instructions before tearing off through the night sky, heading east toward the voices. They return quickly and report to the wizard before vanishing.
The eagles report seeing a pair of bipedal humanoids less than 1,000 feet due east, in a hillside clearing. They also report seeing several areas of disturbed earth in the clearing, like something large had been foraging for roots or grubs.
With his birds having reported back, Andrezi shares what he learned. "Two humanoids. They're a good distance away, in a hillside clearing. Possibly human, but I can't get more precise than 'bipedal humanoids' because that is the scope and scale of the avian mind."
"That said, they did also inform me of some disturbed earth in that clearing. Something large, that had been looking for roots and grubs maybe," he shrugs, holding his hands palms up to suggest he's at a loss. "I could hazard several guesses on what this potentially means, but they would be guesses. That said, if you would like to approach this it might be worthwhile to use some stealth. I'm not much help in that regard though, as illusory magic is not a specialty of mine. I could make one of us invisible in a pinch, but that's about it right now."
"Stealth I can do," Fírinne says, already slinking off into the undergrowth. "Wait here."
Given the distance to whatever exactly it is that got her woken up, Emi figures it couldn't hurt for someone to be closer behind Firinne to back her up if needed. She follows maybe 70 or 80 feet behind, close enough to more or less keep an eye on her and close the distance quickly if she needs to.
Given the distance, Andrezi also doesn't let his new allies get too far ahead. He considers using the invisibility spell, but holds off for now.
Nebbin stays with Trinia, just in case. Hopefully, these are just two other people who were trying to get out of the city, or maybe looking for food. Maybe they'll even want to go to Trots with them -- though he supposes they'd have to be careful not to reveal who Trinia is until they're sure these two wouldn't go back for a reward.
"Don't worry," he says quietly to her. "I'm sure everything will be completely fine. We're out in the woods in the middle of the night, so it makes sense other people are too."
KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 9; Early AM)
Firinne slips off through the light forest to the east, followed at a distance by Emileva and Andrezi; Nebbin stays with Trinia in the campsite. The trees soon peter out, and the investigators find themselves in a large open field dotted with low shrubs and rocky ground; footing's a bit treacherous. Near the far eastern end of the clearing stand two humanoid figures dressed in tattered clothing and hooded cloaks. They occasionally call out the name Aubry.
You're close enough to see that the figures are undead. You'd guess they are zombies, yet they seem to have intelligence by the way they call out. Also, the undeads' feet seem torn up badly, though the wounds don't seem recent.
1. Between the rocky terrain and low brush and brambles, the whole map counts as difficult terrain (so no 5-foot steps unless you've got some special ability).
2. The terrain is a hillside, sloping down from west to east. If your token is to the left of an enemy, you can add a +1 bonus to attacks for having higher ground.
3. Generally speaking, the moonlight and starlight provide dim light to the battlefield (20% miss chance for those without darkvision).
Back at the campsite, Trinia quietly approaches Nebbin and lays a hand on his arm. ”Are you sure we shouldn’t go with the others?” she whispers. ”Not that I mind staying here. I feel perfectly safe when you’re closeby.”
Well, technically, Nebbin and Trinia don't realize a battle's about to break out, but they can use this turn to decide their "Should We Stay or Should We Go?" conundrum.
Then come the current potential combatants!
KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 9; Early AM)
The two figures shift to face Firinne, their faces still mostly-hidden by the hoods of their tattered cloaks.
"Our calls seem to have lured some more recruits," a male voice says.
The second cries out in a more feminine voice, "ARISE!"
Then, with an unnatural and frightful speed, the two figures hop/skip across the rock-strewn clearing and flank Firinne! Each mutters strange words and seemingly unrelated phrases as they get close, and the otherwise plucky tiefling fears she might go mad...especially when she notes that the things' feet have mostly worn away!
Your PC is shaken (–2 penalty on attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks) for 1 minute.
These are trailgaunts, NE undead that are said to roam the wilderness and harbor a strong hatred for pilgrims, travelers, and merchants. This result also reveals basic undead traits.
Trailgaunts not only hate travelers like pilgrims--they also are adept at tracking and attacking such folk. For special attacks, their pain-filled mutter can cause nearby folk to become shaken (1 minute) while their claws and bites can cause pain that leaves the victim staggered briefly (1 round). Lastly, they can spawn new trailgaunts from those they kill.
A trailgaunt has multiple defenses: It has some damage reduction against non-slashing weapons and is resistant to channeled energy. For special qualities, trailgaunts can be nimble, despite usually not having feet. Once per minute they can move with a burst of speed (40 ft.) and they are unaffected by difficult terrain.
A trailgaunt cannot cross a well-maintained road, though it may burrow under or climb/fly over one (if it possesses the means). If forced onto a road, a trailgaunt can have trouble acting at all.
Fírinne grins wickedly as the two undead close in, already casting a spell. She delivers two quick stabs to one of her foes, before seeming to fly up the hill in a cascade of multicolored afterimages.
"Too slow! Try again!" she calls back, taunting them even further with a twirl of her rapier.
Andrezi moves forward, drawing his sword as he gets close enough to see what all the fuss is about. Fully expecting the two bipeds, he weaves a spell that ends in a burst of brilliant, golden particles.
Since Firinne is heading up the hill toward her at high speed, Emi holds her position and studies the two undead figures.
"Come on!" Nebbin urges Trinia, "but stay behind me!"
The young woman likely doesn't have a chance as the big man easily outpaces her, pulling his sword racing toward the sound of trouble. Still, he tries not to pull too far away, in case this is some elaborate ruse to capture her.
KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 9; Early AM)
Firinne's spell seems to anger the two undead; her second rapier strike digs into the northernmost monster's torso but emerges again without drawing blood. Some damage was done, but the tiefling believes her piercing weapon isn't the optimal one for this fight.
Andrezi's spell envelopes both monsters, but when the literal dust clears, neither being seems affected by it. While Nebbin and Trinia move toward the sound of the shrieking, Emi readies herself for an attack, but neither undead draws near, instead moving against Firinne.
Unfortunately, the original two foes aren't the only ones present in the clearing. Five more similar creatures burst out of the ground; although covered with dirt, these undead seem "newer" and "fresher" than the two original foes. Each shows fairly fresh wounds on their torsos, and their feet are little more than bloody stumps. They wear the distinctive loose clothing favored by the traveling Varisian ethnicity. Each hops forward at a terrifying speed upon unearthing, one moving adjacent to Emi while one manages to reach Firinne.
"I'm coming," Nebbin calls, picking up his speed. He can get back to Trinia quickly if he has to, but there are only so many people he can watch out for!
Emi turns to face the undead thing advancing on her. Ready for an approaching foe already, she slashes three times. She quickly shifts her focus away from one of her earlier targets to take in the new one.
"This is going poorly," Andrezi says, working through a conjuration spell with reckless haste.
A wave of fatigue washes over Andrezi as he completes his spell.
Fortunately, a powerful lion appears next to Andrezi. It glows with a goodly aura, and looks at the wizard. He points a the undead creature to the north and says, "Slay it, please."
With a feline roar it charges, smiting its foe!
With the lion in play, Andrezi takes a quick step to get some distance.
Having gotten herself a bit of breathing room, Fírinne quickly casts a spell to enhance her fencing technique, then decides to test it on the nearest of the creatures.
KORVOSA HINTERLANDS (Desnus 9; Early AM)
Emi and Andrezi's summoned lion take down two of the undead, but Firinne finds herself under attack from three of the monstrosities. The tiefling does a remarkable job of dodging most of the incoming claws and bites, but she takes a mean swipe on her left arm that draws blood and gives her a momentary feeling of dreadful pain in her feet that she fights off. She hits one of her attackers, but again the damage isn't quite what she'd wished it to be.
The two undead not yet engaged continue to hop-skip west in what passes as a run for the footless freaks. They close some but are still not adjacent to anyone.
Those who can see the undead fighting realize that the things are intrinsically slow, apart from the frightful burst of speed each showed at the start of battle; apparently, they can't maintain that rate of movement for the duration of a fight. Still, their peg-like legs are unnaturally nimble, and they move across the battlefield with surprising certainty...albeit slowly.
Previous round....
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Rounds 2&3...
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Fírinne does her best to fight off the undead threatening to overwhelm her, but the pressure causes her to fumble her next spell. She switches to a more defensive stance and hopes she can hold out long enough for her allies to come to her aid.
Emi's opponent drops quickly so she begins to close the distance between herself and Firinne's cluster of attackers.