The weaver shudders as Oathar's sword carves a huge chunk of flesh from its head. The creature contracts inward, then spews forth its sticky web, encasing Oathar in its vile strands.
"Time to send you back to the pit of hell where you were spawned, you foul beast!" Oathar swings twice again with smite evil still going:
Not bad, comes the muffled voice from the other side of the wriggling creature. But Andjela would have also made it her sworn duty to make it face judgment or something.
Anna again takes advantage of Oathar's flank to allow her to strike a vulnerable spot in the giant worm.
"Let us first worry about getting you out of this whole before we concern ourselves as to whether this abomination even has a soul to be judged!"
Tolvan's flaming sphere continues to scorch at the worm. Surely that damage will be enough to put it down. he thinks as we watches to see if he must spend more of his arcane energies.
Oathar and Anna combine to destroy the weaverworm. It dies in with a terrible shriek, collapsing in an odious pile in its lair.
Covered in sticky webs and foul green ichor, you are victorious.
Phew! Thanks, big guy, Anna calls out from behind the behemoth.
Then she starts to look around before climbing over the corpse to get out.
As soon as Anna comes out of the hole Oathar lays of hands on her for
Tolvan will move in and inspect Anna for wounds before embracing her briefly. I, I did not know if you were alright. he says awkwardly. Kimberly, do you have any healing for Anna?
He will then cast Detect Magic and help the rogue search.
If Kimberly does not channel he will lay on hands on Anna again. "Tolvan, do you have something to clean this up?"
Danica immediately runs to the others after the she dispatches the last ettercap. She approaches and notices that the creature has already been taken cared of. She walks over to Oathar and says in her usual stoic demeanor, "Nice job.... all of you." She puts her strong arms around his shoulder and says again. "Especially you. You are a great asset to the Light."
Danica then start looking around casting Detect Magic in help to search the area.
Kimberly smiles, I always have Pharasma's blessings within me.
and with that she lets another wave of her energy wash over the group.
After a search of the monster's lair, Anna pulls herself out of the hole, clutching the spot where she was struck. She looks a mess, covered in dirt, strands of webbing, and the thick ichor that was the creature's blood. She accepts Tolvan's hug with a smile, and responds, I knew you'd make sure I was. She looks at him and winces when she sees how much of the goop gets transferred to him. Sorry, she says sheepishly.
Thanks, she says to Oathar and Kimberly for their healing, then drops down to the ground in a patch of sunlight. While she stretches and relaxes a bit, she offers, I think I've had it with spider monsters for a while.
Noticing the webbing and goop for the first time Tolvan waves his hand absently and with a quick arcane word first he removes all signs of the mess from first Anna and then Oathar and himself. We have done this region a service removing this threat. he concludes as he studies the creature further.
Danica nods in agreement to Tolvan's statement. "It seems we have been doing that a lot lately. I pray to the Bright Lady that there is an end in sight."
"I fear this is only the beginning here Danica. We must be more vigilant as we proceed." Oathar straightens himself out, "Thank-you Tolvar for the aid. Did you find anything down there Anna?"
Down in the lair of the weaverworm, Anna finds several bits gathered from the creature's victims: 721 gp in assorted coins, and a Potion of Heroism. On the ground level, six cocoons hang from the remains of the second story. They dangle mere feet from the dirt floor of the tower, but more importantly, a faint radiation of magic emanates from one of them.
Cutting them down you find the grisly remains of three goats, a horse, and two humans, their blood drained. On one of the human bodies is a ring - a Ring of Feather Falling, and a blood-soaked letter. The letter is severely damaged and is barely legible.
Tolvan struggles with the note. About to give up he things to clean it further with a spell and suddenly he can read it, barely.
This is a reservation for a room at the Ascanor Lodge for one Echtmoor Dravin, evidently some minor noble from these parts. It's dated a week ago today. Perhaps we should take this letter and this body to said lodge?
Anna makes a sour face at the dessicated corpse. Well, he's not riding with me. My coach is crowded enough as it is. She goes back to counting the gold coins for a moment, then looks up. Um, no, I don't think we should. I'm still going to be this Lady Hauber-Blotton, so what is she going to be doing dragging a dried-out old body, saying, 'Look what I found!' 'Do you think this will look good in the study or the sitting room?' she speaks in a nasally falsetto.
She shakes her head. Sorry. Give him a burial here, if you want, or down by the road. But we shouldn't bring it with us.
Oathar will see if he know anything about the poor fellow
The dark silence of the Shudderwood is uncanny. Only the creak of the carriage wheels, and the soft suruss of the horse's tails make any sound as you travel the Silent Path. A layer of pine needles decades deep covers the path, and the wind is stifled here. There is wildlife sure enough, but even the birds do not disturb the eerie silence.
For two days, you wind your way along the road, only the crossing of the Buestral River breaking the monotony of the trees and the oppressive silence of the forest. The river here was shallow, the ford consisting of a lane of rocks over which the water flowed with some vigor.
At some point, maybe a day's ride from the lodge, the narrow trail opens up into a small glade. There you pull up short, for at the edge of the glade you see a man's corpse bound to a tall yellow pine.
Danica continues to ride along with Anna playing the role as her trainer.
Oathar will assist with the burials.
Anna snaps her fingers when Tolvan reads the name. I heard of him, when I was digging up information about the lodge. Another guy, military man, named Cilas Graydon, and Dravin were tight. Graydon's always at the lodge, so we might bump into him there.
She glances at the ring. Nice little shiny we've got there, but don't wear it openly while Graydon's around; he might recognize it. She taps her lip in thought for a moment, scheming. Maybe we can use it as proof we know him, too. We know he was due to be there a week ago. Maybe the lady was planning on meeting him?
She shrugs. Too early to say if it'll get us in, or cause us more trouble. First rule of a con, don't say too much. Let folks come to their own conclusions. Most of the time, people want to believe you.
Before Dravin's body is buried, Anna takes note of the main features of the corpse to get a sense of the man in life. Things like hair color (if any), style of dress, short/tall, skinny/fat, any anything else that she might be able to use to let on that she knew him.
Anna peeks out of the coach's window and sees the body on the tree. Oh. I wonder what that's about? she says.
At the glade Oathar will dismount, drawing his sword and look around
Kimberly sees over the burial, offering the soul to Pharasma for judgement.
Kimberly takes a look out, at what Anna is looking at. I should go see if he is alive or not.
"Be careful Kimberly, it could be a trap... or worse."`
After the carriage stops, Kimberly climbs out and cautiously goes toward the corpse. she tries to remain vigilant for traps as per Oathar's advice.
The pale corpse of a naked man hangs from a large yellow pine, bound to the trunk with rough cords. His mouth is stuffed with large, pale purple flowers, and his wrists and ankles are swollen and dark with bruises marking where his bindings cut into his skin, but the large silver hunting knife embedded deep in his heart seems the most likely cause of death.
Kimberly takes a cautious step to examine the body, and feels her foot catch on something...
TWANG! fwipfwipfwipfwipfwip
A hail of bolts flies from hidden points in the surrounding trees. The bolts are aimed with a lethality, and Kimberly is right in the center.
after the barrage of pointy pain, she stands there for a second then falls onto her back like a felled tree. the only sound she makes...Ouch
Danica watches at the barrage, the onslaught happening onto Kim. The warrior grits her teeth and whispers, "Kim!!!" She explodes into action and removes an arrow and notches it onto her bow, running to the wounded oracle. When she gets to her friend the inquisitor stands close to her and start to look around.
Anna was finishing pulling on her boots and stepping out of the carriage when she hears the twang and her heart goes cold. Oh, no! she gasps as she bites back a rebuke, knowing her anger is more at herself than at Kimberly.
She joins Danica in looking for any other danger.
"That was what I was afraid of!" Oathar again attempts to discern where the arrows are coming from and moves toward the end archer.
Tolvan is in good mood after their victory and seems to enjoy everyone's company. He politely debates theology with Oathar and Kimberly, taking a note or two when a good point is made. He enjoys the food and wine with his good friends and during each evening busies himself to scribe a single scroll.
Tolvan is distracted looking at the corpse and is caught off guard when Kimberly is already approaching it. Too late to call our a warning he quickly steps outside the coach and looks for further threats.
For a tense moment, nothing moves in the small glade. The wind whispers in the tops of trees as you search intently for the ambush that nearly killed Kimberly. Then, suddenly, movement at the edge of the clearing...
A small doe and her fawn edge cautiously from the treeline, only to dart back into the forest when they see you move.
Kimberly lays still, nearly slain, the dull metal sheen from a wire shows in the faint light of the forest floor. A tripwire, still caught on the toe of her soft boot.
Once the knowledge that all is apparently safe, Kimberly lays there, I'm sorry Lady Pharasma, it is not time to be judged, not yet. she whispers as a slight aura of darkness surrounds her for a brief moment.
as it clears many of her wounds are closed.
When Kimberly heals herself, Anna lets out a breath she'd been holding. Dropping to one knee, she tracks the spots where the bolts had come. She looks at the tripwire and follows it to take a look at the hidden mechanisms of the trap, to determine if it had any sort of way to alert whoever had set it. Then she checks out the body, to see if it had any further tricks around it.
She shakes her head. We're not out of danger yet. I don't know why anyone would set a trap right here in front of this body; you trap places where you want to keep valuables. No sense, she says bitterly, hiding the frustration she is feeling.
Oathar will move to cover both Anna and Kimberly staying 10' back from Anna so that she can do her job.
There's something on these bolts. Likely poison. Kimberly? You feeling all right?
Kimberly feels her forehead, and sticks out her tongue (thinking she can see it), she smells her armpits.
I feel alright, but I think they thought this guy was a werewolf or something, that's wolfsbane shoved in his mouth. I guess this trap was to try and kill him if he tried to escape.
she kneels beside the body offering a last rites prayer to Pharasma for fair judgement.
she also tries to determine how long he has been here.
Tolvan nods at Kimberly's conclusion that the flower is Wolvesbane and takes it, hoping it has not lost all its potency. When Anna points to the substance on the bolts Tolvan examines it and concludes This is, or at least was Silversheen. We have a werewolf trap here. Whoever set it hoped to get others to come and either rescue or see to the body of this man/wolf. We can take some comfort that it was not directed at us. But we must also be on our guard for the potential that weres are about.
He has been hanging here for over a week. The masterwork silver knife in his heart pretty much assured he wasn't 'escaping' anywhere.
Anna gulps. Somebody sure doesn't like werewolves. That's a lot of effort. Can we take that silver knife, or if we remove it will he come back to life?