this man was in league with the criminal we seek. His fate was delivered to him at the bottom of this hole. He can stay there too.
With that Jin begins to untie his rope and kick the body back in the pit.
Jin begins to light his long stemmed pipe and mounts up. He readys another arrow with his bow and waits for the others to move out along the same path.
"Wait, The knowledge of this man's involvement with Slate and his identity may be valuable to the crown. His body is essentially mummified; we should take it with us."
Ali raises an eyebrow to Korren "You're going to carry it on your horse then, I don't want that thing in my cart if it decides to wake up."
The body is very light, due to all the water that he lost. Putting it on the back of one of your horses won't slow him down that much.
Alissera, you examine the body and are able to determine that he's not an undead that you know of.
Jin knocks the coals loose in his long stemmed pipe on his boot. He repacks a small amount of sweet tobacco in it and waits for the others to finish loading the corpse onto Korrens mount. He raises himself up in his stirrups to scan the horizon in the direction they are going.
Pulling his compass from his side pouch out he checks to see if they are still somewhat on course. Looking back around the area to locate some natural landmarks, Jin puts the compass away and begins humming an old warrior marching song to himself.
With a very neutral look, I will wrap the corpse in a blanket and fasten it to my pack horse between the water barrels. I will then remount and move back to the front of the group and prepare to move out again, resuming my scouting duties.
Well enjoy the company Korren at least he won't complain much
I will move ahead with Korren
Jin Takes a drink from his waterskin, swirls it and spits the dust from his mouth. The day was getting long. Peering in the distance Jin again looks for land marks to mark their travel by.
SOUNDTRACK
The group proceeds through the desert at a good pace. You don't encounter anything else along your way, apart from a distant wagon you see going towards the town at noon.
Shortly thereafter, you reach the Choke Hills, one of the few lankmarks in the whole Flats: a zone of rocky mounds and hills with sporadic shrubs and small trees. The zone is famous for two things: there are a few ponds of muds here that survive despite the insanely hot weather, and many bandits choose to hide the bodies of their victims in the aforementioned ponds, ence the name Choke Hills. Here, among the shrubs, Katz-ne-ate notices erratic horse and boot tracks, among with a few small puddles of already dried blood and a long trail in the sand. A fight took place here: the few empty firearm cartridges you find on the ground are still warm, so it didn't happened a long time ago. Traces of a small wagon, that headed West on your way, suddenly stop and head back.
Something definitely happened here, but there are no bodies around.
At about sundown, you are about to reach the Jade Mines, the middle point between the town and the Canyons, when suddenly you see 5 figures in the distance. They are on foot, and look like members of an elven tribe of the desert. They don't attack you, and instead come close to you without showing any sign of belligerance. Once you reach them, you recognize them as members of the Awakened Moon tribe. They put their hands in the air to make sure they see they don't carry any weapon, and address Katz in elven (though anyone who has the language understands).
Greetings, shaman brother. We mean no harm. May the moon bless your nights and protect your kin.
May the sun light your way, brothers. Would you share fire and story with us, or must our meeting be swift?
Jin-darus listens to the conversation between the elves and continues to scan the horizon for anything.
When there is a moment he speaks in elvish to the tribesman
We will gladly share a fire and some fresh food with you, shaman he says the one in the middle, showing a dead sand rabbit on his back. The night is not for travel, but for battle and contemplation. The others start to set up a camp fire.
The youngest warrior, a tall and slender elf with dark skin carrying a short spear, answers to Jin-Darus.
Good thing you met us then, your encounter is already favoured by the spirits. Slate has done many harm to our tribe, though he didn't attack our camp, he stole food and supplies from us, and many warriors tried in vain to stop him. Talking Bones said that we must wait for better times, but we want to stop Slate once and for all, that's why we are going to his camp too. We can show you were it is. We saw two groups of riders on our way, but we don't know where they were going.
Then the oldest one, obviously the leader, speaks again.
Normally we wouldn't desrepect an order from our shaman. But the Moon is forgiving and the spirits of our deads claim for vengeance. Shall you join us on our way to the Whispering Canyons?
If it seems that we will be stopping for a while I will dismount and feed and water my horses.
Unless spoken to directly I will remain silent with the bandanna around my face.
After caring for my animals I will resume my guard duties, watching the surrounding area carefully.
I would not mind some companionship. What say you? Addressing the rest of the group.
I do not mind sharing a camp, but I will keep an eye around the area for I do not know what might happen, so you can do your whispering undisturbed
I proceed to tend to my horse so he also gets a good rest, play my flute peacefully for a moment until next watch is up for me to take.
The elven warriors light up a fire and prepare food for everyone. The warriors greet everyone of you personally, and introduce themselves in akwardly spoken Common if you don't know elven. Their names are Four Winds (the leader), Fang of the Fox, Red Vulture, Radiant Raimbow and Summer Blossom (the only female of the group).
Our people is slowly disappearing. We know that the Awakened Moon tribe will soon be forgotten by this land, but we won't allowed to be humiliated by bandits and evil people. This is why we want to get our revenge on Slate.
Nothing is in sight, and the night slowly falls on the desert. The food is delicious and plenty. The warriors don't eat much, and seem to be very focused on what's about to happen. While you are eating, the leader traces lines on the sand, drawing a rough map of the Whispering Canyon zone. The easiest way to go there is through this opening here, halway through the main canyon. We know that Slate has at least one group patrolling the area. If we want our attack to be successful, we must get rid of them first.
While Four Winds draws the map, two warriors start beating on their small drums and begin to dance a propitiatory dance. Soon enough, Radiant Rainbow pulls out a pipe from his pouch, and after puffing for a while, he passes it to the person to his left, and eventually the pipe comes to you. This is the Herb of the Spirit. It will show you what's whitin. It's good to know more about yourself before going into battle.
Jin excepts the pipe and begins to draw deeply from it. Slowly at first and then holding the smoke until its effects have taken hold securely. He allows himslef to fall into the meditative state caused by the herb and begins to see himself from the outside.........
As he stands with his Katana he flows truly as the song of a true warrior. The blade sings in unison with his muscle movements. There is no longer a sword and a blade master but there is only song. The song and dance of true understanding of how the sound causes pure efficiency of movement and power. Nothing lost and nothing gained from all the movemnets make it true beaty and artistry. A true master of his weapon and a leader of all that stands for justice and honor when combined with the code of warriors.......
I will politely decline, rasping softly in Elven, "I am sorry, but my lungs will no longer tolerate smoke; they have had enough for a lifetime."
I will pass the pipe to the next person in the circle.
I only bow deeply and pass it along I do not smoke, but I respect your ritual
Breathing deep, Katz accepts the pipe. The flats look like they always do in vision. A perfectly white and smooth plain underneath a azure dome. It is home. This is where the spirits are close. But, something seems different this time. Though the sun remains at its peak, his shadow, which in the past was always beneath him, stretches out to beyond the desert...
Good. The visions can show you what's about to happen, but only by accepting the Spirit you can commute with the flow of things. says Four Winds. We can keep on resting, or try to reach the Canyons before dawn. We warriors are not tired, and can run fast. What do you say, travellers?
A night like this good for the hunt. Let us catch them while they sleep.
The element of surprise will be great this evening. We are prepeared and ready for a fight now, I say we move tonight as well
I simply sit and watch the conversation.
I simply sit and watch the conversation.
I simply sit and watch the conversation.
I do speak Elven also.
Good. Then we walk the earth tonight. We will need just a few moments to rest, then we can attack their first patrol, the one on the east side of the Canyons. Four Winds pulls out an handful of bright yellow sand from his purse, and starts to put it on his companions' faces.
I can infiltrate ahead of the group to check for traps or other things
Knowledge Local
Good. Then we must go. May the Moon bless our path. As you start riding towards the Whispering Canyons after your brief rest, the elves follow you at short distance on their own feet. You see that the run much, much faster than the average person, and don't seem to be tired as much as you would expect. You also all notice that they look much more feral now, almost as if they were slowly losing their fair elven features.
It's 3 hours before dawn when you arrive at the Canyons. The half moon illuminates massive walls of sandstone, eroded by millennia of constant winds that blow on the area. The wind passes through clefts and cracks, creating eerie sounds. The desert elves use to say that it's the spirits of the dead that whisper, and certainly the Canyons have seen many deaths.
This way says Four Winds in a very low voice. You should leave your horses here, they won't be of any use where we're going.
He then starts to lead you towards a crevice to the West of the Canyon, and then down a rocky pathway that descends towards the bottom of the canyon. Suddenly he stops, sniffing the air, and whispers Someone's aheadpointing at a place where the pathway makes a curve. You can see a distant fire in that direction, at about 200 ft.
I change my clothing to my shosuro clan clothing.
Stealth
Perception
I will ground the reins of my mount and leave it with my pack horse tied to it. I will check over my weapons and ensure that they are still well prepared for the coming battle. Seeing from Shosuro's new attire that he is more skilled at stealth than I, I will remain with the horses and let others do the scouting.
Jin rides into the night remembering his vision. He follows shosuro and korren as they lead and keeps an arrow at the ready as he rides.
As the group stops and prepares for a more silent approach Jin speaks softly to So-Han.
wait here until my return my friend.
turning to the group he whispers
I will wait for your signal before firing and then closing for the attack.
Jin follows the group but keeps a slight distance back from them. He realizes his skill at silent warfare is lacking. It was not the way of his training as he is more prepared for a face to face battle with his foes. He watches and nearly loses sight of Sho and Korren as they move with great ease in the shadows.
Jin keeps an arrow readied as he moves as quietly as he can.
As I draw my scimitar I fall into step beside Jin. "I am with you on this one, Jin, my friend." Nodding to Shosuro, "His skill at stealth far exceeds mine, and your weapon is much more suited to stealth than my preferred weapon."
Observing the changes to the moon elves Interesting. What spirits speak to their heart? Calling on the spirit of the falcon for greater sight, Katz creeps towards the fire with Shosuro.
You go ahead whispers Four Winds, as he and the other warriors crawl slowly down the path. You try to take them out without much havoc, and if necessary we will run down to kill them if they try to alert Slate.
While Korren stays behind to cover, the rest of the group is able to sneak down the path silently. Everyone can see five people sitting close to a campfire. Three of them are sleeping, while the other two, a man with a scale metal armor and sword and and another wielding a waraxe, are awake. They listlessly scan their surroundings, while talking with each other.
...five of them I tell you. They didn't come back. Either they betrayed the Chief, or got themselves killed, which is bad news anyway.
Bad news? Good riddance to bad rubbish, I say. We don't need more scumbags around. replies the other one.
We need more men. We are never going to be able to get the town by losing men at this rate. Chief should stop leaving them for dead in the desert.
We've been over this. That Jaxus killed three unarmed... wait, what was that?
While Katze and Jin were positioning themselves behind a group of rocks to the west of the fire, (Shosuro was ableo to flank the patrol on the opposite side), some rubble fell to the ground, and the armored man is looking that way. You are now circling them, just outside the light cast by the fire, at about 60 ft of distance. Between you and them, it's open ground.
As I am still with the horses and cannot see what is going on, I will be mounted so that I can support the group quickly if necessary.
Damn
Staying as low as possible Jin quietly pulls the arrow taught. He readies an action to fire the arrow at the man nearest the horn if he moves to use it.
Whispering to Jin and gesturing towards the fire Can you charge them? I have a spell for the horn. Katz readies himself to run forward.
Jin whispers
Wait for a moment they are alerted to a presence. But they do not see us yet. Allow Shosuro time to take full advantage of that. We are a good distraction rite now and still safe. I wish I could make some animal noises right now to settle them back down again.
Jin draws the bow tight and aims at the man with the waraxe.
If they move towards us i will let this arrow fly and then charge in. Just give it a few more heartbeats...
Jin begins reciting a war song to his warlord in his mind. The tension of the bow not waivering even the least as he waits for what seems to be the longest heartbeats of the day.
thinking to himself
Come now Shosuro my friend give us some sort of a signal so we can be done with these outlaws.
Stealth
There are 2 awake and 3 asleep. The two are armed with axes and swords, and wear mail armors, while the sleeping ones seems to be carrying firearms.
Who's there! Is that you Logan? says one while turning towards the place where Shosuro made some noise.
There is someone here... says the other one, while going for the the horn beside the fire.
Do I hear the men making noise?
When the man turns to see the noise in the bushes Jin release his arrow at his undefended back.
Now Katz! The one going for the horn.
Jin will move 20 ft closer and pull another arrow from his quiver as he moves
Initiative
Hissing, Katz rushes forward, stopping halfway between the hiding spot and the fire. He then shouts and jerks his down, as though pulling something.
If something is wrong with this, let me know and I'll do something else instead, probably ready an action to Burning Disarm anyone who puts the horn to their lips, assuming the horn is metal. Let's seem them try to blow with 4d4 fire damage to their lips!
Looking at the bandits I decided to risk it and in a flash of a second disappear and appear next to one getting him by surprise and alone while the other one goes to search for the noise I made before I moved in for a kill.
Katana
Damage + Sneak Attack
Do I hear the men making noise?
Yep.
Both guards are caught by surprise by Jin and Shosuro's attacks. The one with the axe survives Jin's arrow, but the same cannot be said for the other guard, that falls to the ground in a puddle of blood.
Meanwhile, Katze's escavation gambit works: the bullhorn disappears into the ground, and between the ground lowering and the dust rising, the campfire is soon swallowed too. Darkness falls in the area: you can only hear the sound of the remaining guards, coughing due to the dust.
Katze-ne-ate
Guard 1
Guard 2
Axe Guard
Guard 3
Jin-Darus
Missing rolls: Shosuro, Korren