"Once we've examined you, we will." Ranek casts his spell, seeking to detect the auras of the Art about them.
Bolkvar crossed his arms and watched. There was a good chance they’d have to end up killing younglings this day, much like the horse. A damned shame. He hoped the others could remove the taint. He thought about what they might have been forced to eat that had to do with magic...
[dice=Knowledge Nature]1d20+11
[dice=Knowledge Arcana]1d20+11
Bolkvar knows that almost any sort of food could be easily tainted by Art, or simply poisoned of course. Many curses are more potent from within the body, particularly if one has any kind of warding against them. Enchantments can give food the taint of mummy dust, reducing those who eat it to dried husks under the control of the caster. They can render the consumer easily tracked by Art, even through gates. Art might work on dew that collects in the footsteps of a werewolf under the moonlight and spread lycanthropy. It might even be that the children were forced to consume the flesh of thinking beings, which under the right circumstances can kindle an unnatural hunger in them that will last past their deaths.
Given the children said that they'd eaten meat, it might well be the latter. But almost any food could be tainted the right way to cause a multitude of ills.
Thurvek took careful stock of Maelra's wound. It was new, only a few days' healed. There should be no difficulty finding and removing a crystal, assuming the Art about it didn't cause any complications and that one was present. Probing with fine metal instruments, he soon found a hard spot where the flesh should still be soft and a small area of softness about it, which ought to be hard. He thought a small part of her skull had been removed to make way for the hard object within. It was just the size of what they'd found in the horse's brows.
Thurvek's eye's darkened a bit as Maelra's situation hit him.
To do this..TO A CHILD!Before he begins the procedure, the dwarven cleric says to Marcus, "Paladin, please bring the light closer."
Once Marcus does, Thurvek whispers to him, "Once I remove the crystal, use your eyes of evil seeing to see if the taint has left the child. Let me know if anything drastically changes."
Outrageous! Doing this to a child... At the seminary they had been warned that to fight evil you had to know it, to understand it. How could someone do this? To fall so far, Marcus couldn't conceive how that could happen. He nodded to Thurvek and gave him a blessing, "Torn be with you Ser Thurvek!"
He then told the lad earnestly, patting him on the back, "It's going to be fine, you're going to be OK! Once it's done we'll get you something proper to eat back in town, I promise."
Aldon turns from the exit for a moment and utilizes Detect Psionics, he gets the sense there may be a connection to what was discovered in the lab to what was implanted in these children...
Hakon walks among. The children in his gowning armor, letting the soothing light of heaven way over the young ones and calm their fears.
Aldon turns from the exit for a moment and utilizes Detect Psionics, he gets the sense there may be a connection to what was discovered in the lab to what was implanted in these children...
Aldon senses telepathic resonances about Aglar and Maelra. The one in Maelra was flickering, clearly a manifestation ebbing. Aglar's remained steady.
Aldon relays that information telepathically.
"These objects may be attuned to what we discovered in that Giant lab".
Thurvek took careful stock of Maelra's wound. It was new, only a few days' healed. There should be no difficulty finding and removing a crystal, assuming the Art about it didn't cause any complications and that one was present. Probing with fine metal instruments, he soon found a hard spot where the flesh should still be soft and a small area of softness about it, which ought to be hard. He thought a small part of her skull had been removed to make way for the hard object within. It was just the size of what they'd found in the horse's brows.Thurvek's eye's darkened a bit as Maelra's situation hit him.
To do this..TO A CHILD!
Before he begins the procedure, the dwarven cleric says to Marcus, "Paladin, please bring the light closer."
Once Marcus does, Thurvek whispers to him, "Once I remove the crystal, use your eyes of evil seeing to see if the taint has left the child. Let me know if anything drastically changes."
Looking at the position of the crystal and and the skull removed around it, Thurvek believed he needed to proceed with the utmost care lest he damage the child's mind beyond all repair. Humans weren't at all like dwarves, that way, able to bounce back from hard blows. Still not so bad as elves in that, but definitely among the softer skulls about. He thought he could likely do the job, but it would take slow going and be best to have healing magic right to the fore. Even then, simple curatives often didn't reach the mind.
And it was a thing that would take time to do right and safely. Once Thurvek began, Maelra could scarcely move at all lest she move across his blade at the wrong moment and do harm to herself. If all that could be managed, he might have her free of the crystal in as little as an hour.
Ari looks on at Thurvek's procedure with worried eyes. She offers bits of advice when it seems appropriate. If the operation is a success, she's certain they'll have to repeat the procedure on the other children.
As he carefully worked on Maerla, Thurverk posed a question to the psychic monk.
"Aldondrick, does your 'mind magic' have a means to sedate people? If so, I may need it."
Aldon shakes his head, "No, at least not yet my friend. I have a dorje that can aid in healing but I've not yet needed it with so many of you having access to the divine".
Ranek said to the boy, "As my companions said, there are some lingering magical auras about you. If possible, I'd like to study them to make sure they don't cause you any harm."If they agree, Ranek will cast his cantrip to detect magical spells, and then study the auras to determine what they are.
Spellcraft Necromancy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24
Spellcraft Enchantment: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (8) + 10 = 18
Knowledge (arcana) Necromancy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (16) + 10 = 26
Knowledge (arcana) Enchantment: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22
Aldon relays that information telepathically.
"These objects may be attuned to what we discovered in that Giant lab".
Ranek said to the boy, "As my companions said, there are some lingering magical auras about you. If possible, I'd like to study them to make sure they don't cause you any harm."If they agree, Ranek will cast his cantrip to detect magical spells, and then study the auras to determine what they are.
Spellcraft Necromancy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (14) + 10 = 24
Spellcraft Enchantment: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (8) + 10 = 18
Knowledge (arcana) Necromancy: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (16) + 10 = 26
Knowledge (arcana) Enchantment: 1d20 + 10 ⇒ (12) + 10 = 22
Ranek examines the Art with his own, finding both auras focused on the backs of Aglar's and Maelra's heads at just the spot where Maelra's incision was. It was hard to say with any certainty, but the way the auras interacted suggested to him that they were separate workings never intended to be near to one another. Necromances and Enchantments have somewhat contradictory characters, to the point that some believe them naturally opposed. Still, a competent Worker of Art would have had little trouble reconciling their close proximity. These two had no such attention and so strove at cross-purposes in part to the wasting of some energy which will surely shorten the duration or weaken the potency of at least one, perhaps both.
The necromancy is the less focused of the two. Ranek believes it to be more on the order of poorly-contained Art rather than a proper spell. It looks as though whoever did all this is using the necromancy as a source of power (poorly) or it's somehow become entangled with the enchantment to the latter's detriment.
The enchantment is more straightforward, though still strange to him. It's spread from the incision point across Aglar's -though not Maelra's- brain and is clearly an influence upon his behavior. On consideration, Ranek thinks it' not quite strong enough for outright control, but still more than a simple spell to sway one's mood for a brief while would be. Aside that, it reminds him of what he's learned of mindspeaking Art. Something from without is clearly trickling into Aglar's mind at a steady pace.
In the mindlink, Ranek thinks, The auras about these two are strange - Necromancy and Enchantment rarely work well together, requiring vastly different personalities. Someone who is highly skilled in the Art would be capable of reconciling these auras with minimal disruption. Whoever did this was not. The effects work at cross-purposes, wasting some of the energy while simultaneous shortening the duration or weakening the potency of at least one, possibly both. The necromancy is less focused, more like poorly-contained Art rather than a proper spell. Whoever did this sought to either poorly use it as source of power, or it has become so entangled with the enchantment it's weakened the enchantment. The enchantment, however, is influencing Aglar's behavior. It isn't strong enough for complete control or domination, but it is stronger and more complex than spells which temporarily sway one's mood for a short while. It actually reminds me most of mindspeaking Art. Something from without is trickling into Aglar's mind at a steady pace. This aura spreads from the incision point. It does not spread from Maelra's incision point, however. It either was more poorly done, or Maelra's poorer health has made him less receptive.
Aldon, do you think your mind magic could learn more?
Ranek doesn't want to say this out loud - doing so would tip off who or whatever was influencing Aglar. Ranek suspected, with the way the Art was set up, that the Necromancy aura somehow used the host subject's life force as a means of fueling the Enchantment effect, which was probably supposed to offer complete control. However, because whoever had done this was not skilled enough to make the Necromancy and Enchantment effects work together, it had likely weakened the Enchantment effect from allowing complete control to only allowing the entity to influence Aglar's thoughts and actions. He suspected that had he been able to examine the Art affecting those two horses, he would have found similar effects. Aldon might be able to determine more, since the Way was different than the Art.
Aldon probed the crystal with his thoughts and soon became convinced that the Invisible Art did wait sleeping. He couldn't be sure what would rouse it, but the psychometabolic resonance argued for more than a simple thought. It and the telepathic resonance appeared to work together, not at cross-purposes as the Art in the children did. He believes it would take both thought and some kind of intimate physical process to see what the stone could do. The most likely of the latter would be the shedding of blood or tears upon it, followed by swallowing. Of course it would take quite the throat to down a crystal of such size.
"I suspect that this Crystal is part of the larger set we had to leave upon the table in the Giants' lair. With it one could most probably observe someone or perhaps through someone, at a longer distance than the Way generally makes possible without full Mastery.
In addition to controlling these Children, it seems that our enemy felt the need to see what their position was to make the maximum use of their power over them.
This is pure speculation unfortunately.
The crystal I took requires some sort of blood sacrifice and perhaps even ingestion to be utilized properly.
I wonder if this is the same person utilizing both Art and the Way or if it is two separate actors seeking to work together.
Part of me believes we should go back and smash the items too large to carry out with us...
The Children are of course the main concern. Hopefully, taking this crystal as I have will make the process of farsight much more difficult for this evil doer.
We should leave once Thurvek's surgery is complete before we are joined by more unwanted company".
"That's not all - this is the second time, now, that we've caught whomever is using these gems trying to infiltrate Sundabar. The town elders need to know about this, so that they can search the town for others like the children."
While Thurvek knelt and made ready to fix the girl, Barra sat with Aglar and Orn. "You know," he said with a slight smile on his face, "not all elves are magic. I'm half-elf, and I don't have a magical bone in my body. Maybe my ears aren't pointy enough."
"That's not all - this is the second time, now, that we've caught whomever is using these gems trying to infiltrate Sundabar. The town elders need to know about this, so that they can search the town for others like the children."
While Thurvek knelt and made ready to fix the girl, Barra sat with Aglar and Orn. "You know," he said with a slight smile on his face, "not all elves are magic. I'm half-elf, and I don't have a magical bone in my body. Maybe my ears aren't pointy enough."
"Hear me out for a moment. The lives of the people of Auvandell are more important than some Saint's dust - he's been dead for years, another day won't matter. But Auvandell needs to know what's been happening here. We should leave, once the children are good to travel. Agreed?
The dwarven cleric is too focused on his patient to respond unless he is asked specifically about the operation or the patient.
Marcus's eyes lingered on Thurvek's work, he wanted to help but knew he couldn't and mustn't interfere. The debate he heard in his mind was a curious thing, he wasn't sure he'd ever get used to it. Still this wasn't a topic to mention out loud, you never knew who might be listening. "St. Bakau's ashes have been lost for a century, I suspect Barra has the right of it. Still the worry is they might be put to some nefarious use, we shouldn't leave it too long."
"Agreed, Barra. The ashes can wait a day or two longer, at least. I would rather not delay much longer though, as Marcus mentioned. We should make haste as soon as Thurvek is finished with his operation."
"How many children were taken in total? Is this all of them?"
"How many children were taken in total? Is this all of them?"
"Agreed Barra".
Marcus watched the surgery with a sick fascination, it had already been quite some time and he found himself praying for a successful outcome.
Marcus watched the surgery with a sick fascination, it had already been quite some time and he found himself praying for a successful outcome.
Aldon will keep an eye on the archway once it is clear h can aid no further, "We should stay together until we can all safely exit".
Marcus nodded, sticking together was vital. Still he wondered, "When will it be safe to move them? Thurvek's work is uncommonly delicate."
Bolkvar crossed his arms and remained silent while his kinsman worked.
Marcus nodded, sticking together was vital. Still he wondered, "When will it be safe to move them? Thurvek's work is uncommonly delicate."
An hour was less time than Marcus had feared, surely they could wait that long. He told the others using the bizarre group thought system, [/i]"I say we give Brother Thurvek time to work. In the mean time I shall stand watch."[/i]
Ranek nods and assists Marcus in keeping watch.
However, he is quite distracted by Thurvek's procedure, and fails to pay attention to his surroundings very well.
After some time, Marcus hears movement from the darkness beyond the far archway. It sounds as though something heavy is being pushed to one side across the ground.
Marcus relays what he heard via the link, "Whatever it was sounded heavy, we must be ready..."
Marcus eased his sword within its scabbard and listened intently.
"Whatever happens, I must not be disturbed. I'm at a critical part of the operation. Please keep whatever it is away", pleads Thurvek, without looking up from his patient.
Ari notches an arrow on her bow at Marcus's words and goes to join him in keeping watch.
Probably best to avoid antagonizing whatever it is and let it move along... if we can.
Ranek draws out the wand of shield, keeping it ready in case whatever it was attacked.
Barra stays back, and whispers to the ambulatory young 'uns, "Stay behind me, kids."
As the party formed up and looked into the darkness with more concern, the sound shifted to something heavy thudding to the ground before ceasing. The three voices spoke in their minds in a strange chorus. The first was high and rough, the second deep and steady. The third voice was hardly more than a whisper, barely discernable when the two others paused.
"We know you are there. Leave now. Take the specimens if you wish, but begone." Then the third voice continued on alone, "Leave me to Serenity."
Marcus wondered how you'd express a raised eyebrow via the link, "We have non-combatants with us. As much as I'd like to root out the evil, the children are our primary concern. We must see them safely back to their families."
Of course they'd be coming back after, something monstrous was going on here.
Bolkvar tensed. ”If ye say so. Might not get another shot at them. Might well die too...but if that was a given they wouldn’t let us go, aye?”
The strange chorus of voices answered Marcus, "Take them and go." The faint voice came after, "Serenity."
"I'm busy", grunts Thurvek. "F#<k off!"
"Once Thurvek has finished his surgery on the first one, we'll go and take care of the other when we reach the surface."