Baradim lifts himself up from the ground, the chill of the coldness seeping into every part of him. His teeth chatter and his skin takes just the slightest bit of a cooler hue.
"I-Is everyone alright?" He asks, brushing the snow off of himself. Snowpaw begins to shake his fur, the settled snow shifting off onto the ground. With shivering hands, Baradim tries to warm himself as he looks over the area. "It looks like one got away." He thinks to himself, cursing his weakness at such a critical moment.
Moving back with the others, it is obvious to any that the half-orc is not coping as well with the cold as he had hoped. Perhaps it was the chill of the ground that had leeched away so much of his warmth.
"Y-you said t-that there is a cabin up ahead, yes? My master would be so angry at me...b-but...the warmth would be good." Looking over at Greadra, he would retake his blade once more and sling it over his shoulders. "L-let's go before the winter h-has its way with me."
As Samuel pursued the fleeing lights, Alec retreated back to stand about the others. He didn't know these creatures, but he feared an ambush as they were split up. He knew Samuel well enough to know that the man could take care of himself, but he did have his doubts given their most recent foes.
Once the others started to stir and Samuel had returned, he went to retrieve his misspent spear. It had faired better than Greadra's, being made of sterner stuff. The lighter glass was just as sharp, but did not seem to withstand the use that came with the weapon. He sheathed his blade and hefted the spear, testing it's weight as he had done countless times before.
He turned and headed back to rejoin the others and couldn't help but notice Letitia's cloak. It was extremely well made, finer than anything he had ever seen before. Even the color was somewhat unusual, at least for Heldren. His awe was apparent, even if briefly.
"We should push on, before they return with more.
Samuel nods to Letitia "Ok, so fire we should apply to the bullets" he smiles, he does not understand but he starts to feel he can have confidence in the woman's knowledge.
"Aye. The High Sentinels lodge is not far from here. We should just press on through the trail" the Taldan gets on good mood "A warm hearth and some hot soup should motivate us in these last miles"
And that said he joins with Alec to look for a shortcut trail to reach the lodge the safest possible.
She glances at Alec's reaction to her cloak out of the corner of her eye, but she otherwise makes no sign that she's noticed him.
Letitia nods and begins to follow Samuel. Though after only a few paces, she moves up closer to him and puts a hand on his shoulder. "You still carry wounds from the tatzlwyrm. Why not let the others go ahead of you? Otherwise, I'll have to be pouring my potion down your throat if something rises up out of the snow again."
"You worry for me now?" Samuel kindly takes Letitia's hand from his shoulder and holds a soft but inquiring stare with her for a few seconds "No one here knows the forest as I do... but perhaps Alec. If we are to avoid the dangers I should be able to lead and give directions" nevertheless, and without letting it be noted he well accepts the woman's precautions and let's others take the initiative while he advises about the trail from the middle of the advancing column. Side by side with Letitia and with his musket loaded.
Slightly battered but still strong enough to move forward, the group presses on. As you walk, you see plenty of fresh animal tracks. Some are easily recognizable, some seem out of place.
One set of prints seems to show up multiple times during your walk, and looks to belong to a decently large stag
Samuel and Alec, knowing the lay of the land in these woods would know that you are approaching a small river called Wishbone Creek.
Within 15 minutes of the last encounter, you see the stream up ahead. It appears that the sustained wintry weather over the past days has caused it to freeze over.
A human-sized snowman stands in the middle of the trail before the frozen stream. A crude wooden sign leans against it and bears the words “Trespassers Turn Back.”
Global Condition: None |
Global Condition:
Greadra HP: 12/12 - AC: 17/12/15 Status:
Baradim HP: 9/10 (-2 non lethal)- AC: 16/12/14 Status: fatigued
Snowpaw HP: 17/18 - AC: 16/14/12 Status:
Letitia: HP: 7/8 - AC: 16/12/14 Status: mage armor,
Alec HP: 10/12 - AC: 17/12/15 Status:
Samuel HP: 3/11 - AC: 17/14/13 Status:
NPCs:
Snowman?
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Greadra sees the snowman and growls, taking her lesser aspect she lifts her Scimitar and sheild
Seems like a trap... She says, looking around
She made note of thw tracks but found no significance to them.
Othet than that she begins to wander to thw side, taking a wide Circle around the snowman.
Of course the big woman just cant seem ti be silent as she slid off.
"What makes you to think so?" Samuel advances to a position where he can cover Greadra's advance "Is that one of those feys of the winter tales too? It is not moving... but I do not like it at all" the Sentinel examines the snowman from a distance.
"We have to cross the river here. I propose we move around the strange creature" still very wounded the Taldan aims with his musket, ready to shot at any enemy appearing around.
Letitia gestures and incants a word or power, bringing up her arcane sight. She surveys the snowman for magical auras.
"A snowman? Here? Do you think there are children nearby?" Alec asked with genuine curiosity.
He glanced around the immediate area, unsure of what to expect.
"The river normally freezes over during the winter. I imagine this cold has made it hard enough to walk across" he said, taking a few steps forward, the butt of his spear testing the ground in front of him.
Baradim would be shivering in the middle of the group, his breath coming out in hard puffs as Snowpaw tries cuddling up next to him as much as he could. Letitia's fancier coat brings no real look of surprise from the druid, who seems more focused on trying to get feeling back into his feet and into his hands.
The tracks catch his attention as he leans down and sniffs over the ground, eyeing each print in the whiteness carefully. "A stag has come through. A large one at that." He murmurs, pushing up from the ground as the snowman comes into view. The childlike figure brings a tusk-filled grin to his face. Such innocence is corrupted by the sign's warning and the pain of the sprite's arrows remind him to be cautious.
"If there are children, they will not be pleasant to meet." The unnatural coldness of this place bothers the senses of the Shoanti man, who creeps in closer to the river to examine the snowman. His falchion is drawn, just to be prepared in case something comes.
Letitia casts a minor spell while examining the snowman, and determines it is indeed radiating a magical aura.
Baradim approaches much closer than the others in the group. he notices some movement on or maybe in the ice. But before he can get close enough to see what it was, the snowman's head turns towards him and it speaks!
“Can’t you read? The sign says turn back! Now get lost!”
"Shush! Give me two moments!" Letitia hisses as she narrows her focus to decipher the magical auras on the snowman.
"It talks?" Alec asked aloud. "I've never seen a snowman talk before." He chuckled for a half second before tensing up. He raised his shield arm up and set his spear. His eyes darted around, looking for any signs of an ambush when Letitia's voice startled him.
She's certainly used to telling people what to do he thought to himself.
Baradim's eyes narrow at the snowman's talking head as Snowpaw almost jumps a foot into the air. He saw something in the ice, he was sure of it.
"There is something here...something in the ice." He shouts to the others, scanning the ice more intently to try and pinpoint what he saw while Letitia focuses on discerning the magic behind the snowman.
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Greadra growls at the snowman. "Foul thing, You know more than we do yoir the one intruding! she steps foward, brandishing her Scimitar. [b]You know damn well it isnt suppose to snow here, so if anyone here is out of place, its you" [b]She she Huffs, approaching Baradim. He'd been hit the most so she felt he needed her the most...
On your second round of examining the magical auras, you see that there are actually 3 distinct faint auras coming from the snowman.
You can make a knowledge arcana check to try to identify the schools of magic involved, one check for each aura (so 3 checks in this case)
This is not a magical item, so spellcraft isn't going to give you any info
You do not spot anything on the ice this time. Was it really there, or just a trick of the light on the ice?
I always get those two mixed up. Fortunately, I've got the same bonus in both skills. Can I sub my Spellcraft roll for my first Kno (arcana)?
You identify 2 of the 3 auras. a faint aura of illusion, and a faint aura of evocation.
Letitia folds her arms, frowning at the snowman. "I detect illusion magics," she announces under her breath to the others. "But be careful; there's also attack magic.
"You!" she says in an authoritative voice, appearing to address the snowman. "Your sign says that trespassers must turn back. What authority do you have that lets you claim this river?"
The snowman makes no reply to Letitia's demand. After a moment it simply repeats its message again
Letitia smiles deviously. Illusion, definitely, she thinks. "Lazlo, can you scout a bit?" she asks her owl. The bird-of-prey takes off from her shoulder and silently glides through the snow-covered tree branches, giving the snowman a wide berth.
"Attack magic?" Baradim thinks, taking a step back away from the snowman. Part of him wishes to shove it over but to let one's anger and instincts take too much control was just as dangerous as losing all of them. He shivers hard again, the cold soaking deeper into his bones as he mutters softly.
"I swore I saw something there. I was certain of it. Be c-careful everyone." The druid says to them all. Smiling at Greadra despite his incessant shivering, he nods. "I will be alright, Wolf-chosen. I will just need time to warm up. Keep your eyes on the ice, this bird's cry has awoken the wolves among us."
Baradim waits as Lazlo soars through the sky, watching that strangely intelligent bird make its way through the chilly skies. The sight gives him a small smile as he takes comfort in the way the owl's wings beat so quietly through the air.
Okay, magic. That explains the talking snowman Alec thought to himself.
"So, what do we about the talking snowman? Put arrows into it from here? The river's frozen over. Should we look for another way across further down stream?
"Don't approach it, whatever you do. I detected evocation magic within it, so it could be as benign as a light spell or as devastating as a fireball."
She turns to Samuel and Alec. "If Baradim says he saw something under the ice, perhaps we should find another way to cross. You know these woods? Where else could we go?"
Samuel thinks for a while trying to remember what other options the group have "Let's see. This is the shorter path, but usually the river is not frozen, so that might have opened a way to cross it through a place not usually reachable. I think we can try to..."
Greadra smells something unfamiliar around the snowman, it was not made by the humans that passed through here.
Samuel knows several spots further up the river that could be crossed if the river is frozen. the path will be slower but doable. you will need to make survival checks to pick the trail back up on the other side of the river, but with scent and several good trackers it shouldn't be a problem.
"...cross the frozen river further up. It will be slower but doable" Samuel points in up direction of the river "I do not know what do you mean about those bad auras Letitia. But I am ok to guide you through a different spot, specially if Greadra says he does not like the smell either. We are badly damaged, we should try to reach the refuge before anymore strange beast decides we are her dinner today"
If the group decides to try out the alternative route, Samuel guides through around the forest. The snow has changed most of what he knows, but still, this is the forest he has been raised in.
Letitia nods, in favor of the current course of action. She follows the woods folk.
Lazlo spots something nearby, and sends a warning through his empathic link with Letitia. it feels like whatever he saw is familiar to him, and close to the party.
"Wait," Letitia says, alarm in her voice. "Something's here, and close."
She whistles softly, calling Lazlo back to her.
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"Crossing the river somewhere else will be better. We're following their tracks too closely, the prey is trying to turn the tables." Baradim will growl out, whispering to his animal companion before retreating back towards the others.
Lazlo's return and Letitia's warning sets the Druid on edge, who begins to search through the area once more as he studies the snow around them.
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"Nevermind, I think it's back near the riverbank. Let's go, swiftly."
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Samuel and Alec lead the group to another spot on the river to ford. Once the river is crossed, Samuel has no trouble finding the way back to the trail of the bandits
You notice that your group is now incredibly close to the Sentinal Lodge. it should be less than a half-hours walk from here, but you have not seen any Ranger patrols, and the bandits still seem to have taken no care to hide their movements.
As you get back to the path, you notice the legs and feet of a corpse jutting out from a small pile of snow under a tree to the right of the trail.
Samuel, Alec and Baradim all spot an animal keeping pace with the party just outside of easy eyesight. Baradim and Alec are able to identify it at this distance as a large white stag. it seems to be watching you.
Baradim follows behind Samuel and Alec, sticking close beside Greadra with Snowpaw on his other side. The tracks of the bandits was easy to find once more and Baradim was eager to get into the warmth and let his body begin to recover from the terrible cold. Back on the trail though, the sight of a body under a tree gave Baradim pause.
His eyes flickered back to the forest, watching through the snow-covered trees. The sight of white fur made his eyes narrow for a moment, his voice a low whisper as he spoke to the others. "Be careful. A stag is following us." He was not sure yet if it was a blessed omen or a cursed sight but it kept its distance from them now. With the strangeness happening in the forest, he doubted it was just some sort of normal beast.
Baradim would begin to cautiously approach the body, his eyes scrutinizing where the body laid. Was it merely a body that fell and the snow collected there or does it look like he was buried there as another trap.
As the group advances through the snow, Samuel looks back and to the sides numerous times. Just after crossing the river he comments "We are really close to the Sentinel Lodge right now. At less than a half-hours walk if the snow does not turn worse" he looks at the trail and then keeps moving, signaling Greadra and Baradim where to turn and where are the best places to cut through the rocks and forest. The Sentinel keeps looking back and to the sides of the trail with more intensity.
Samuel seems growing worried by some reason, looking nervously around at the trail and scrutinizing every track the group finds with increasing anxiety.
As the group finds the stag Samuel points at it with his weapon "It seems we are lucky. We will have a good meal after all" but he does not shot, he just holds the aim "It is looking at us... it makes me chills... and what is that jutting from the snow? Are them not some human legs?"
Letitia is deep in thought, trying to figure out what it might have been that Lazlo had seen near the snowman. When Baradim reports that a stag was following them and Samuel sees human legs, she frowns and brings her attention to the present.
She watches Samuel aim at something, and she slowly puts her hands over her ears in preparation for the loud bang. When he doesn't shoot, she whispers at him, "Why do you hesitate?"
Baradim notices the grim expression on Samuel's face but thinks nothing of it; everything seems grim around them. Yet when he raises his rifle to shoot, an audible hiss escapes the lips of Baradim and the druid's hand rests upon the barrel of his gun.
"Do. not. shoot." Baradim whispers out, his eyes looking towards the white stag once more. "I believe it to be a spirit. Let it be, we need not make more enemies than are already here." Removing his hand from the gun, Baradim makes his way further down the path towards those legs. Slowly and carefully.
"Whatever it is, it's certainly not natural. Stags don't normally stalk prey. I'm not sure we should continue with it pursuing us. If it is a threat, we cannot afford to engage a fight from the front and behind at the same time. Maybe the noise of Samuel's weapon will scare it off."
Alec was growing somewhat nervous. First the undead, then tiny little arrow-shooting creatures, now a white stag following them. This was more than he was used to, much more. Could this be more of the unnatural plaguing these lands?
As Baradim moved forward down the path, Alec retreated back up to the rear. His spear was raised up, ready to defend against the powerful animal should the need arise.
Samuel nods to Alec agreeing with the half-elf, but nevertheless he lowers the musket when Baradim ask him "All this is making me get goosebumps"
The Taldan moves behind the half-orc covering him with his weapon "Take care. Whatever killed that one might be there still"
If the area seems clear he helps Baradim check the corpse, and attempts to identify it.
Pressing her lips tightly together in irritation over the indecision about the stag, Letitia takes a moment to study the animal herself. Her eyes narrow as she looks at it and its behavior.
She considers whether it appeared to be a natural animal or something similarly affected by the strange weather. It's white, which would indicate it likely came from wherever the tatzlwyrm came from. But it could still be a simple animal, she thinks.
Lazlo swoops down from a nearby branch and lands on her shoulder.
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Both Letitia and Samuel recognize the body once Samuel uncovers it. it is Old Man Dansby, who just yesterday was yelling at Letitia for bringing on this cold weather. Samuel would remember that the man was once a soldier of Taldor, and he has his gear with him. it looks to be in good repair, and likely hasn't been here long.
He has:
a composite longbow (+1 Str) with 12 arrows;
a dagger;
a masterwork handaxe;
and a pouch containing
14 gp, 25 sp, and 18 cp.
Seeing that it has been spotted, the stag slowly walks towards the group.
Letitia doesn't notice anything about the animal that makes her think it is anything but a normal stag, though one that is not colored for this region.
The stag stops 30 feet away
Hail travelers! My name is Fawfein. it is not safe for summer children like you to be in this cold forest today
Something seems odd about the animal's speech. it didn't look like it moved its mouth at all
"Is there nothing under the snow that does not talk now?"
Alec rested his spear along his shoulder as he used his now free hand to rub his eyes. He was having a hard time believing what he was seeing, and hearing, of late.
When the face of Old Man Dansby is revealed, Samuel instinctively makes the signs of a blessing "Let Pharasma guide him into the Boneyard" he then takes his belongings "His poor son deserves to know what happened and have the noble weapons of his father. We will take them to him. Take them if you think they might be of use for you while we track down the kidnappers"
When the stag talks the Taldan turns around and aims with his musket once again "Fawfein? Why is it you can talk?" the man tenses his lips "Ok, this is weird enough, but everything have just been so out of normal since the last few days... Have you seen any Sentinel patrol or bandit recently Fawfein?"
When she sees the face of the corpse revealed to be Old Man Dansby, Letitia grows quiet. The skin around her eyes tightens, but otherwise keeps her expression neutral.
Then the "normal" stag speaks.
A ball of ice grows in her stomach at the insult of being called a "summer child" and she scowls deeply. She steps out from behind Baradim, eyeing the stag with her ice blue eyes.
"'Summer child'?" she spits. "The beast may talk, but it is blind."
In a commanding voice, she says, "Ты не на своей родине. Как вы сюда попали?"
"You are not in your native land. How did you arrive here?"