"Bow? Aye thass-- good replacement for-- mine," Petra says, and spits blood onto the forest floor. A wry, pained smile crosses her face at Jon's hurried backing away.
Not seeing any sign that anyone else was injured, Deng leans in and lets positive energy flow through him and into Petra.
---
Casts Cure Light Wounds HP
3 1st level spell used today, 1 remain
1 channels used today, 3 remain
Petra grits her teeth through the pain-- and then the pain eases, washed away by Deng's healing.
"My thanks," she says as she gets to her feet. "Guess bein' in front of one of those beast's claws wasn't the brightest idea. You lot did good work, though."
"I have heard that dwarves love the ground," says Aurengil archly, his mood suddenly light in the mercurial manner of elves, "But I did not realize you were so eager for its embrace that you would lie down in the midst of a fight. Would you like to stretch out now?"
"Petra! Good to see you are ok. I was so worried... and so mad."
Petra barks a laugh at Aurengil's witticism as she brushes off the dirt. She claps him on the shoulder-- okay, mid-spine, his shoulder is quite a bit above her head-- with a nice hearty smack of her hand.
"I thought you a wizard, not a jester," she responds in kind. "No, I think I like bein' upright for a bit. My love of th' earth is pleased enough by the gravel I think I just swallowed."
She looks down to the mess of bones that had been the beast that had mauled her, and nods, then smiles wryly at Karmuk.
[b]"I think we're to get you mad more often, if that's the result. Tho' hopefully we'll find a way that don't require me to come within a hair's breadth of bein' reforged in Torag's smithy."
Petra will take the bow and arrows. "Everyone ready to keep goin'?"
Aurengil smiles. "Wizard, jester...why Mistress Petra, with an elf in the party one need never choose."
"I would like to find shelter for the night," he says. "I need to reconsider the spells I have memorized."
"Oh! Aurengil was just joking? No I got it."
"Yes ma'am! I am ready. Aurengil is right, we all need some rest."
Petra huffs out a breath, rubbing at her arm-- mostly healed now, by the potion and by Deng's powers, but there's a phantom memory of the bone claws shredding through her flesh.
"...I'd like to make better time than this," she sighs, "but it'd be better to travel at strength. Let's see if we can't scout a good place to hole up, hereabouts-- I'd rather not make camp on top of this thing's bones."
Petra squints around at the lay of the land. The trees block a lot of vision, but she's more interested in the topography than in what she can see, exactly-- her knowledge of hills and gullies, flowing water and what it does to the bones of the earth. If there's a rock formation hereabouts that would be defensible, she'll try to intuit where it might be.
Stupid trees. If she were underground, she would know exactly where to go.
"You are absolutely right. We can't rest here. We must some kind of sheltered."
"Agreed. I'll take night shift watch."
Jon moves over to the bones and starts investigating. There was something wrong - more wrong than usual - about this creature.
"Well, once we figure out where we're going to rest, I should be able to touch up any needed healing. What kind of shelter are we looking to find?"
"Somethin' with stone," Petra grunts. It's what she'd prefer, anyway. "Sheltered from eyes so we can throw up a little fire, ideally, but we don't need a fire."
It's just one of those little luxuries that is getting rarer and rare as time goes by.
GM, what sort of bow is this, and how many arrows remain?
Petra is unable to identify a suitable place to make camp out of this forest.
The party starts looking for shelter, something that would be ideal for an overnight stop in the wilderness...
"We don't know how dumb those creatures are. Maybe they are able to follow smoke, maybe not."
"Anyway, What were archer and bear doing in the middle of the forrest? Maybe they have some kind of stronghold near by. Should we try to track their trail?"
"I think they're gettin' smarter, if those ones at th' dock are anything to go by," Petra says grimly.
She pauses at Karmuk's other words. "...that's a thought, aye. So far I've not known 'em to actually fortify up... but I've not known many of 'em could use a bow, either."
She rubs at her jaw.
"....our mission is to get to Sunlight Crag quick as we can. We'll spend a bit of time lookin' for a trail, but orders is orders an' we can't afford to spend too much time gettin' sidetracked. Not with them at th' keep waitin' on food, an' all."
"Whether in a fixed shelter or in the open," says Aurengil, "I need to rest and replenish spells, or I will be more of a hindrance than a help."
Petra offers Aurengil a wry smile. "You did well enough savin' my hide just now. But I take your meaning."
Deng scans the area, looking for something that he thinks would make a good shelter. "I don't really see anything that jumps out at me promising good shelter and defensability. Sorry."
Karmuk finds a trio of recently felled trees that form a perfect grove.
The area looks safe and secluded, moreover the felled trees look like they will provide absolute cover and concealment from even the most perceptive of creatures that might happen by the area.
"Well spotted," Petra says when Karmuk points out the trees. "Not stone, but it'll do."
"Well, if I've got night duty then I'm for bed." Jon says. Pulling out his bedroll. "Good job Karmuk."
While party is resting, all of a sudden Karmuk brightens up "Comrades, I think I finally
figure out how to heal Jon.You know how Deng's channeling hurts Jon... and all."
"I have an idea how to cast a spell that can cure Jon's wounds."
"That's good to hear, Karmuk," says Aurengil.
"I'm off to meditate," the elf continues. He then sits cross-legged and drifts into a trance.
"Glad to hear someone has a way to heal him. Anyone else still hurt?"
"Aye, still a bit scratched here," Petra admits.
"If the gods'll give you a bit of grace for a wounded friend I appreciate it. Don't want these scratches getting infected."
She looks over to Karmuk while spreading out her bedroll, her brows knitting. "A way to heal Jon? I'm sure he's pleased to hear it... what's your notion?"
"Well... if Deng's channeling hurts Jon, then negative energy must have positive effects on him. And I happen to know a spell for producing negative energy, I am quite sure it'll work."
"How are we going to arrange nigh watch?" asks Karmuk, while laying down his own bedroll near to Petra's.
A sentry rotation is set and the heroes each take their turns at the watch. For the most part, it is a peaceful, quiet and uneventful night in which everyone is able to obtain a much needed and refreshing rest.
The night is not without nightmares; however, as you all have an unusual and frightening dream. The dream is shared by all of you, and is the same for each. In the dream, you find yourself ambling through a gloomy forest hung heavy with thick clouds of condensation. All about you strange tortured sounds cry out in agony. Your trudge through the forest comes to an end and you find yourself standing before an enormous deep, dark hole in the ground, you waiver on the lip of the hole, then you slip and fall in. You do not wake from this dream however, but continue to sleep on.
The morning arrives, a new day in which you feel rejuvenated and somewhat refreshed(+1hp).
3 1st level spell used today, 1 remain
2 channels used today, 2 remain
Petra murmurs her thanks to Deng before taking first watch.
She's relieved at Karmuk's words that he can help heal Jon. Maybe that wand they found is useful too, but she's no wizard... or priest.
She sits awake tending to her weapons during the first watch, trying to calm herself: it's been a hell of a first day. Their priestess has fled, and Petra came within a thin hair of dyin'...
...but they're all still here, and alive. It's a start.
When she goes to wake the next person for watch and takes to sleeping herself, she has the same nasty dream as the others.
In the morning, Petra tries to shake the sense of unease. Dreamin' of a hole in the ground shouldn't be awful for her. That should be home, ha ha. But all the same...
She breaks out trail rations and nibbles on strips of dried meat and sun-dried berries as she glances around to the others.
"Everyone ready for th' day?"
The half-orc finishes his meditation, and is just starting to eat his rations when Petra asks her question. "Close enough. How far are we going to try to get?"
"Hopefully, the whole way there," says Aurengil, looking to Petra for her opinion.
The elf did not sleep, but meditated on obscure esoteric aspects of thaumaturgy for several hours before studying from and writing in his journal.
"It is a beautiful day for a walk in the woods," he says with a cheer his companions do not appear to feel. "Perhaps the sun will shine on us as we discover a town full of supplies."
Petra definitely doesn't share Aurengil's optimism, but she nods all the same.
"Far as we can get. This is a speed mission, after all-- folks waitin' on us back at the keep. Yesterday, we had to rest. Today, we got to cover extra ground to make up for it."
She tightens straps on her pack with brusque motions, jaw set for whatever troubles the day will bring.
Jon feels at home in the night. The quiet. The dark. Most insects avoid him, and he stands silently, patiently, unmoving in the shadow of a tree.
Just another patch of darkness in the night.
When his shift ends he sighs with regret, wakes his relief and sleeps.
Perhaps it is the burning of the sun that troubles him, but his dreams are far from pleasant. While the forest in the dream was pleasantly gloomy, the dark pit is all to obviously a warning of the doom that awaits him without a proper cure.
He awakes quietly and begins meditation
He feels... clearer. Even in the bright light everything seems... crisper. He feels stronger somehow.
"Let's set a good pace then" he agrees.
"Aye, then."
When everyone is ready, Petra will hoist her pack on her back, tighten the straps, and set out. Her new bow is lashed to the pack as well, while her shield is already donned and her axe ready to be grabbed in an instant.
The party packs up camp and returns to the relative safety and ease of travel provided by Traitor’s Road. The group moves out and immediately sets a hasty pace.
The majority of the journey north is uneventful, yet the terrain flanking the road you travel appears ominous. To the west, lies the dark Hollow Forest and off to the east a chillingly quiet and bleak hilly range looms pocketed with caves and many places to hide.
"We should be gettin' close to Sunshine Crag," Petra says as she steps over a fallen log. She takes a moment to wipe sweat from her brow and have a chug from her waterskin, her eyes scanning the forest.
"Sounds about right. I'm surprised we don't see any sign of the village yet, actually."
Aurengil keeps an eye out, but mostly relies on the sharp eyes of his hawk, Calithil. His own esoteric link with the hawk improves the elf's perception when in daylight.
"It should be somewhere nearby," agrees Aurengil.
Karmuk, Petra and Jon are the first to spot the walled structure in the distance. It’s not easy to spot; the wall is about the same color as the hills causing it to blend in with the highlands in the background.
Calithil stretches out her/his wings communicating feelings of fear and danger to her/his master.
Karmuk, after focusing on the structure for some time you can slightly see tiny figures, specks really, made small by the great distance. The tiny figures seem to be moving about outside of the structure.
Also in the distance, about halfway from your position to the figures, you can make out a berm off to the side of the road. This low earthen feature looks like It would be a good vantage point for you to take cover and observe what is going on up ahead. The berm is about a 30 hustle from your position.
"Calithil sees something ahead,"says Aurengil. "It's likely that we're looking at the undead. Perhaps we can get up there and have a better look?" he says, pointing to the berm.
Petra shades her eyes with her hand to stare at the distant figures.
"Aye, better intel would be good. Let's get to that earthwork."
She sets off that way, throwing wary glances towards the milling figures ever so often.