"Stick with me!" Everard says. "The one on the left, move as one… go!"
Roaring, Everard charges the nearest cheetaur and swings his blade!
Felix follows Everard flanking if he can.
Rapier
Zayla holds out her hand and zaps the same cheetaur Everard sliced. Alas, Felix's stab goes wide. Henrich stabs his spear over Everard's shoulder, but the cheetaur easily twists aside.
The injured cheetaur withdraws, while his friend swipes at Everard. Both claws dig deep, and the smell of his own blood mixes with flowers in his nose. The cheetaur then backs up 5 feet.
Everard is down to 0 VP and 9 WP. Yikes!!
Seeing the other cheetaur withdraw, Heinrich peers through the falling snow, then shouts, "Back to the wall. It's trying to outflank us!"
Felix does as Heinrich says. He readies to strike at the first cheetaur to come withing rapier distance.
Rapier
Everard falls back with the others. If one of the cheetaurs come in range, he swipes at it.
"Keep them off me while I drink a potion," he says with a shaky voice.
Zayla backs up with the others and casts a spell, a ball of electricity appearing in her hands. She hurls it at the nearest cheetaur.
Once again, the cheetaurs emerge from the storm, this time clearly aiming for what would have been your weak flank but for your quick regroup.
As soon as the first cheetaur coalesces from the driving snow, Zayla’s bolt of lightning takes it square in the chest, so much that Everard feels a few sparks travel up his sword as he plunges the blade in deeply. The cheetaur, now severely wounded, visibly abandons its skirmished tactics to retreat, but Heinrich’s spear stabs through the cheetaur’s neck, and it soundlessly collapses into the gathering snow.
The second cheetaur, which you now notice possesses distinctively feminine features, roars in rage and hatred, and abandoning her hit-and-tactics, plows into you trying to reach your most vulnerable teammate.
Everard, Felix, and Heinrich get AoOs as she runs past to swipe at Zayla. The cheetaur’s claws rip deep gashes in Zayla’s outstretched arm up to the elbow.
Rapier AoO
Hopefully I get a flank as well.
"Back off!" Everard shouts as he takes another swing at the female cheetaur. "You and your mate were the ones who attacked us! You got no one to blame but yourselves!"
No flank on the AoO, but she does have an AC penalty from her charge (forgot to give her the hit bonus, but she didn’t need it). Felix’s rapier scores a thin hit, as does Everard’s sword, which, in her race, she doesn’t even feel.
Felix can step into a flank with Heinrich for his regular attack, though, which is now. Heinrich follows Felix’s gesture to move tactically.
(flanking)
Felix and Zayla are up.
Felix will take the opportunity to flank.
Rapier: flank
Zayla cries out in pain as the cheetaur's claw digs into her. She looks for a way to move away, but the wall they've all backed up against makes that difficult. With nowhere to go, she strikes at the cheetaur with the second ball of lightning that has appeared in her hand.
Zayla steps back away from the cheetaur. While the cheetauress is able to avoid both Heinrich and Felix, it sidesteps straight into Zayla’s electrified bolt, and more current flows into the beast.
In return, she slashes at the enemy who hurt her most. Then at the centaur.
Everard really could have used that potion, as he goes down with a severely lacerated throat, moments from bleeding out entirely.
Heinrich cries out in dismay as he stabs at the cheetaur again.
Stabilizing check from Everard (-12 penalty, so probably not happening) needed and others are up.
Can Felix maneuver to keep the flank?
[b]"Get Ev. I'll try to draw her attention.
Rapier: Flank
Yep, just takes a 5-foot step, but you are having the worst luck with rolls.
A third ball of electricity appears in Zayla's hand, but she doesn't make use of it yet. Instead, she reaches into her pack with her free hand and pulls out her healing potion. She then tries to get close to Everard to administer it to him while also staying out of the cheetaur's reach.
healed
1 wound point healed and stabilized. Still unconscious, and will take a long time to heal enough to regain consciousness.
The cheetaur double slashes at Heinrich. One claw takes his arm, while the other glances off his armour.
Heinrich tries to return the favour, with little success. He has about as bad of rolls as Felix.
Felix and Zayla are up.
Felix continues to stab at the cheetaur.
Rapier
Satisfied that Evarard is at least stable, Zayla hurls her last ball of electricity at the cheetaur.
The cheetaur shows a mixture of rage and fear as her wounds begin to accumulate. She steps up to Heinrich and again swipes him with one claw.
Heinrich returns the favour, this time finding flesh for his spear.
The cheetaur is now far enough away from Zayla that she has a miss chance for ranged attacks, unless she steps closer (still out of threatened range).
With a mixture of frustration, rage, and desperation, Felix continues to poke at the cheetaur.
Rapier: flank
Felix’s blade finally finds its target and punctures a muscle, causing the cheetaur to limp.
Zayla steps up closer and fires and elemental ray at the cheetaur.
The cheetaur swipes again at Heinrich, with. It’s claws glancing off armour.
Heinrich strikes again, running the cheetaur through. It falls to the ground with a feline roar and lies still.
Felix rushes over to Everard and feeds him another healing potion.
The potion heals some of the minor scratches and bruises, but the deep gashes remain. It will take a lot of time or healing potions to get Everard back on his feet.
Heinrich kneels down in the snow to examine Everard. ”You all fought very well. Those were very tough opponents. I fear though that our friend here will be incapacitated for some days, and we have a deadline for your giant friend. I can carry him, but that will slow me down and make fighting difficult if we are attacked again.”
Zayla kneels down beside Everard and tends to his wounds.
As she works, she says, "Could we make a litter or something to help transport him in?"
"Would you? Would you please? I can carry a bit more to help with the load."
If the recent ministrations wake Everard, he mutters weakly: "Get me... to the Peace. Take the cutting. Leave me ... there. Save the Giants. Then come... back."
Everard is in and out of consciousness (mostly out) as Heinrich takes his sword and chops a few young saplings down with it. He uses a length of rope to fashion a crude harness for himself and then helps Felix load Everard onto the travois.
Presumably the others are harvesting claws. Some of the claws have been damaged in battle () but the other 18 are in great shape.
As you get underway, you travel less than a minute before the scent of flowers (that you now realize you have been smelling all along) assaults your noses, and a warm glow emanates from a crevice in the cliff to your right. The snow seems lesser there, too, and the air warms up as you make your way into the most beautiful forest meadow you’ve ever seen.
No snow covers the lush green grass and wildflowers (and you suspect no snow has in quite some many years), and though you see no sign of gardener or herd animal, the grass is pleasingly short. The very ground itself seems soft, as well as dry. Towering over the centre of the garden stands a single fruit tree, much like an apple tree in appearance, with both blossoms and fruit in its branches. The fruit seems to shimmer, disappearing from one branch, only to appear on another.
Near the tree stands a single large stone, not carved or worked, but clearly not natural either.
"Well, that was quick," Zayla says. She wanders slowly into the glade, peering in awe at, first, the wildflowers, and then the tree. She walks up to the stone and looks at it.
It’s a stone.
Mossy.
Hard.
"You think this is the place? Erana's Peace?" Felix first finds a good place for Evarard to rest.
"It fits the description," Zayla says. "I don't know what else it might be." She goes over to help Felix with Everard.
Everard is probably unconscious. If not, he weakly waves the others away.
"The cutting," he wheezes. "The cutting… No time..."
Some things you know about Erana’s Peace:
"We have time to see to you. Now hush so I can save your life again." With Everard as comfortable as he can be made, Felix stands and begins walking slowly to the tree. As he does so, he calls out,
There is no answer to Felix’s call, but he is able to walk up and pick some fruit. Strangely, if he tries to use magic, it disappears on him.
He is able to feed it to the semi-conscious Everard, who then immediately falls fast asleep.
"Zzzzzz... *snrg* ...zzzz..."
"I can't get another. Zayla you and Mr Heinrich should get your own, but remember, only one per person per day." With Everard taken care of. Felix looks around the peaceful vale.
Take 20 for 25 Perception.
Heinrich goes over to the tree and looks it all over. He finds a good branch to serve as his cutting, and ties a bit of string around it. ”I’ll do the cutting tomorrow when I’m rested and the light is good,” he says, then reaches up to pick his fruit. The fruit doesn’t yield right away, like it isn’t ripe, but Heinrich gives it a strong tug, and it pulls free.
It also causes another peach to tumble from the branches, which rolls across the ground, coming to a stop next to Felix’s boot.
Eating the fruit in and of itself does not put him to sleep; in fact, he feels invigorated as all the fatigue of travel and battle washes away, and life suddenly feels more abundant to his senses. He does feel that when he lays down amid the flowers he will have the most restful sleep ever.
At first, your dreams are warm and pleasant, dreams of home and family. As the night wears on, however, they take a decidedly unpleasant and especially vivid.
But her dream doesn’t end, as she somehow lands inside a rough stone room. Heat surrounds her, as do the tormented screams of the damned. A man hangs from chains from the ceiling over a large fire consisting entirely of flaming swords. He screams as his skin is continuously blistered by the heat and then healed to blister again. Zayla rushes forward to grab the swords, the fire searing the flesh of her hands. She hears her own screams over the sound of iron chains dropping free...
You all shake yourselves awake as the sunlight hits your faces and bolt upright. The day in the meadow looks like it will be warm and sunny, and perhaps the day outside the meadow as well. You are all at full health, even Everard.
Everard starts awake and lumbers to his feet. For a few minutes, he just stands there, blinking in confusion… and then he draws his sword and gives it a funny look.
"Huh," he says, "well..."
Then he takes a double-check and moves his arm up and down.
"I feel better," he announces, clearly surprised. "Alright. Alright, then! Guys, are you awake?"
Zayla takes a deep breath. "Wow," she mutters under her breath.
Everard's voice startles her and she gives a quick gasp. "Everard! You're better? You're better! That's incredible!" She stands up slowly. "That fruit is really impressive." She pauses. "I had the weirdest dream."
"Maybe it was an effect of the fruit." Felix takes his time getting up, making sure everything is as it should be.
Is Heinrich's ribbon still on the tree?
Everything is at it should be. Heinrich wakes up refreshed, healed and happy. He doesn’t mention any weird dreams, just mutters something about “pleasant” and seeing his wife again.
Heinrich goes to the tree, takes a fruit, and eats it. He suggests you all have a fruit now before he starts his work.
Once he gets going, it takes half an hour for him to produce a cutting. He tries to take a second for insurance and his blades are unable to cut the bark of the tree a second time. He wraps the cutting in damp clothes and stows it carefully away.
While he's working, Felix will collect some flowers. As many as the grove will allow.
Before they leave Felix will ask