"I don't like being exposed either, Riuk, but some of us are done in. I don't think they'll make it to the woods before dark. Let's camp on the downslope ahead there, and camp dark. No fires, no lights. We can keep watch from here and get an early start tomorrow."
The party sets up camp at the base of the hill and the night passes uneventfully. The next morning they try to resume course, but something is wrong. You all hear what sounds like a weeping child. It seems to be coming from all directions, or maybe it's a figment of your imaginations. Either way, though, it's really hard to concentrate.
Mattock stops and swivels around the pivot of his left heel. He points to the left.
"What's ? Do you hear that? It's coming from over there. .... Or there?"
His finger swings through a right angle to point behind the party.
I hear it... a child?
"Bah, it just be the fey messing with yer mind. Don't let the wee tricksters get to ya."
Falgard continues on unimpeded and begins to hum a marching tune to drown out the noise.
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"ignore it it's a fey baby if we go to it the family that left it there won't get their child back, no let's move on" Riuk packs up his camp
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If it is a real child in danger, leaving would be unconscionable. Yet, if it is fey and a danger to any that would pass here... How can we leave it to prey on others, less wary or less capable?
I ask this of fellow Nalbrin. Though priority, this mission... nay, any order cannot be allowed to dilute our essence.
Falgard rolls his eyes at Morg's melodramatic soliloquy.
"If it be a kid, 'e be a fool fer travelin' into fey-infested woods. Let 'im learn from 'is mistakes, or else die tryin'," Falgard says grimly.
"But ye know the fey. Ain't no chance that's a real kid. It's naught but a trick to lead ye off the road where the damn things can gut ye like sheep."
At this, Falgard turns directly to Morg and says
"Point is, whelp, we ain't a band 'o do-good sellswords tryin' to protect the roads. We ain't a search-and-rescue team, and we certainly ain't babysitters..."
'least, not before you came along, we weren't
"...we're Nalbrin. And we've been ordered by High King Dolim himself to deliver this shipment. And I'll be damned if I let some wee fey keep me from my duty."
Turning his eyes back to the road, Falgard says sharply:
"We keep marching."
Morg shrugs, seemingly ready to move on. Whatever helps you sleep at night.
"Can we really afford not to check this lads?" - Rannock pipes in - "What if it was a dwarven voice calling for help? What if it was a possible kinsman, would we even consider not looking into it?" - he adds.
"Might well be a trap, and if it is, 'tis up to us to make the trapper regret it, ain'it?" - he rumbles.
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" brother have you not heard, sometimes the fay folk like to play tricks on mortals. they leave a changeling in place of the real baby and the only way they can get their real child back is to leave the changeling fay a tree all night, then in the morning they can come and get the real child back if the changeling didn't die. Oh I it's a sad tale but best we leave it as is
When ranok chimes in riuk shakes his head "ah, fine ye wish to follow this folly might as well we keep you safe then let's see what it is...but if I was right and it's bad then the three of ye ow us a keg each of the best brandy the human town has..or you can settle up once we get back to the mountain"
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Just my conscience getting the better of me. I'll try not to let it happen overly much.
Quingrin contemplates on the current event. "Me agrees with sir Falgard. This is probably some ruse to keep us away from achieving our mission. Me vote is for going forward."
Nay... I would jeopardize my soul. Morg tries to follow the sound.
"Tinker's too young, too fresh to squelch his conscience. Used to be the Nalbrin did good, not just completed missions. When did we all get so jaded."
Mattock slips into the young rogue's wake.
Rannock follows suit, convinced they are doing the right thing.
Quingrin slaps the top of his forehead. "Bahhh! I will not allow you to go without me getting some of the action. If you die on my watch then I'll kill myself to go after you in order to kick your arse." The rough dwarf follow suit.
The party wanders around, trying to discern the direction from which the sound is coming, but they are unable to figure it out. The sound seems to be coming from everywhere...or perhaps nowhere.
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Riuk shakes his head and sighs "well I knew this was just a trick by the fay, looks like ye got out of that agreement tho eh "
He shifts his pack and gives a pice of meat to his bagger "well let's go were burrito daylight" as riuk walks ahead he mumbles "I swear I know why he wanted to come with his odd infatuation with beardless lasse, ah when will he learn the only beauty is when ye have a something to grab onto...ah"
Riuk turns to the rest "well? We "
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"Wait a moment more, good Riuk. Perhaps there's sorcery afoot."
Mattock tries detect magic.
Rannock nods - "Indeed. The fact that we can't find anything doesn't mean there is nothin' to be found"
Then we got our dwur-selves a puzzle to solve, neh? Come out, come out... anyone know the sylvan tongue?
Quingrin joins Mattock in the search, casting Detect Magic in the opposite direction.
Quingrin doesn't detect any magical auras in the opposite direction from Mattock.
Let's move...
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Riuk holds for his brother to walk up next to him and cuffs him on the head "well, what have ye learned lad. ..ah can we continue on our journey. "as Riuk walks forward he can be heard mumbling "he's lucky that's all he gets now I won't gets those cast of whiskey, I swear father I don't know what to do with him sometimes...ah well let's hope he grows from this..."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Wincing. We tried, it's what matters.
"A momerntary delay, Tinker, that will be forgotten tomorrow. Nothing lost." Mattock shrugs his pack's straps higher on his shoulders.
Quingrin speak out. "We moving? I thought we be setting up for camp. two of us be needing some rest."
The party sets up camp at the base of the hill and the night passes uneventfully. The next morning they try to resume course, but something is wrong. You all hear what sounds like a weeping child. It seems to be coming from all directions, or maybe it's a figment of your imaginations. Either way, though, it's really hard to concentrate.
** spoiler omitted **
The party sets out in what they think is the same direction they were traveling yesterday. The childlike weeping goes away after a few minutes. It resumes two hours later, as the party reaches the edge of the forest.
Noticing the edge of the forest, and heeding Riuk's words, Rannock moves closer as he sees his companion looking around.
"Mayhaps that'a way?" - he comments.
Quingrin makes an attempt in determining their location.
Seeing his comrades apparently at a loss, Mattock looks back across the plain. He hopes to identify some mountain peaks to the north and west, and thereby estimate their position.
Know(geography)
Can't be sure, perhaps this way... Morg points.
The constant weeping makes determining where they are and where they need to go more difficult than normal, but the party eventually takes off in what they think is the correct direction. The briars and undergrowth make for slow going, but the party slogs ahead until they eventually reach a small clearing. As Riuk leads the party into the clearing, all of the sudden everyone hears a loud sound. One of the limbs of a nearby tree, which had seemed to be hanging low as a result of vines hanging on it, snaps back up straight as one of the vines wraps itself around Riuk's leg. Riuk is pulled off the ground; he winds up upside down, hanging off the tree branch by his entangled foot. The weeping stops for a moment. In its place everyone hears: Do-gooders, you could have saved me; you didn't have to leave me to die. See what it earns you! The words' source is not immediately clear, but it will probably become clear soon.
Blasted fey...
"Riuk, are ye okay? Rannock, try to cut 'im down. Everyone, be on your guard and stick close to one another. We're likely surrounded."
Mattock scowls as he tries to swing his crossbow up and load it. "Maybe we should have listened to Falgard about the crying...."
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"Och whit th' heel." Riuk exclaims as he is dragged into the air
Whit th' heel Ah kent we shoods nae hae come haur Ah swear ance Ah gie it ay thes aam gonnae make heem buy me drinks until mah urine can burn. he thought to himself
"Ah kent we shoods nae hae come thes way ...what am Ah braw aam in th' air danglin' by mah feit hoo dae ye hink Ah am... an' nae we shoods hae did whit Ah tauld ye an' nae com thes way in th' first place"
Riuk looks around to see what might be controlling this
Rannock draws his battleaxe and slashes at the branch, slicing clear through it. Riuk falls to the ground with an OOF!