Seeing the ogre take out Alara, Piper's eyes narrow at it. He continues the performance while performing the same lullaby. 'I want to use Chord of Shards. But I can't. Not with everyone grouped together.'
Masamune continues to attack the ogre slicing his blade at the ogre's neck while Duty attempts to take a chunk out of the ogre with his teeth.
Feeling a pair of hands dragging her away from the fight after taking a nasty blow, Alara doesn't fight it, instead playing dead.
Rawnie loads another crossbow bolt and fires at the ogre once more.
However, Rawnie's crossbow bolts aren't seeming to do anything other then waste ammunition, but the fragile woman doesn't exactly want to make herself the ogre's next target.
By the time Piper finishes casting the sleep spell, the lead ogre has been put down by Masamuni, which enables the bard to target the one charmed by Ameiko. The ogre first reacts with anger, but Ameiko steps in to soothe the giant's rage with kind words and he becomes docile (but wary).
And that ogre fails his save as well. He blinks a few times, increasingly slowly, before he lies down to sleep.
Masamune dismounts from his horse.
"Let's make this count. I am going to slit one of the ogre's throat somebody handle the other one."
Masamune will then use his blade on the closest downed ogre to try and slay it before it can wake.
"OoowwWWwww..." Alara rubs her head. "Feels like I got hit by a tree."
She looks around, every part of her body still hurting. "...we won?"
"It begins to look that way...lay still..."
With his words, his places his hand on her shoulder again and lets healing flow through her.
And then again...
"There, that should help..."
Piper stops his playing and rushes to Alara. He kneels next to her,making sure she's alright. He points at Shalelu, then the remaining ogre.
Although Alara still hurts a bit, Ash's healing does wonders for her. She sits up when Piper kneels next to her, her face turning red with embarrassment.
"Um... did I do well?" She asks, not entirely willing to look up.
Shalelu takes a moment to coordinate the coups de grace with Masamune. She picks up her bow again and drills an arrow into the sleeping ogre.
Ogre Saves:
The ogres promptly expire.
Shalelu then joins Ash and Piper checking over Alara, kneeling next to her and looking over the bruises starting to blosssom.
"You did fine. You may not have killed him outright, but I think you hurt that ogre more than any of the rest of us did. It takes a great deal of bravery to tangle with a giant up close. We just have to work on your dodge," she adds with a small laugh that seems to release a surprising amount of emotional tension.
Ameiko winces at the methodical slaying of the ogres. "I had nearly forgotten exactly how bloody the adventuring business could be. I'm glad that this part of the job usually does not make it into the stories told around the hearth."
She walks over and puts her hand on Piper's shoulder. "That was some good casting today, Piper. If you keep using that song so well, we'll have to nickname you "the Sandman".
Alara's blush fades a little as Shalelu compliments her.
"Thanks, Shae--Shalelu." She says, standing up and brushing off her armour. "Think you could show me how you dodge later?"
As far as the ogre "encampment" goes, aside from the aurochs carcass, partly well-done, partly under-done because of ogre-style cooking, there are a couple bags of loot.
There's dried mystery meat, a half a wheel of cheese that seems edible, 80 gold pieces in coins, a half-dozen silver goblets that appear to be part of a set (300 gp total), a broken-down light crossbow that appears to be of masterwork quality once it is repaired, a potion bottle, and three suits of studded leather armor - one of which is masterwork.
As Alara asks if she did well, Piper relaxes into a smile, glad she's alright. He places a gentle kiss on her temple. He aids her in getting into a standing position. He thinks to himself, 'Now what was that tune for curing spells again?'
As Shalelu praises Alara, Piper nods. He takes out his chalkboard and writes: 'Yeah. You were amazing. Gods know, I couldn't do that.' Turning to Shalelu, he writes: 'Could you also show me how to dodge. Just in case I'm going toe to toe with something.'
Piper looks at Ameiko. With a smile, he writes: 'Well, it was the smartest thing to do. I wanted to unleash one of my more offensive spells. But, I was afraid that I might get you guys in the spell as well.'
When the team investigates the loot, Piper wrinkles his nose at the ogre style of food. Looking over the bags of loot, he seems to be very interested. He writes: 'Seems like a good haul. At least we have more food for the trip.'
Alara scratches her head bashfully as Piper kisses her and looks up into the sky. "And I'm wondering why I thought it was a good idea myself..."
Piper looks to Alara. He signs: 'Because the caravan's safe? Because you're amazing?'
Rawnie curses at her inability to do anything in the fight against the ogres, her skill with the crossbow wasn't any good but she didn't want to risk getting up close and personal to cast her spells, she needed a wider selection of options.
"I am sorry that I was not of much use in this fight, my spells could not have done what Piper and Ameiko did, and Alara almost paid the price for that. I will strive to improve my options in the future." She almost mutters Ameiko's name as she mentions it, obviously a bit humbled by the fact that she was less useful then that woman.
Ameiko signs and does her best to keep her tones conciliatory. "Don't beat yourself up, Rawnie. Piper and I are musicians. Our magic does really well against weak-willed thugs. Your magic is different, and if I don't miss my guess, will probably end up more powerful than both of ours put together. Give it time. It will come."
Piper nods at Ameiko's words. He writes: 'She's right, Rawnie. Our magic lies mostly in enchantments, illusions, and the like. Your spells have more versatility. Our true power is our performances.'
"Don't worry Rawnie you'll be better than Ameiko in no time."
Masmaune smiles to show that it's only partially just poking fun at Ameiko.
Alara stretches and scratches her head.
"Anyway... how about we head back and let Sandru-san know the good news?"
Piper nods in agreement to Alara's statement.
"Only if you are feeling up to it, Alara," Jacen says, a look of concern on his face.
"Still, perhaps I should look into acquiring a spell or two that can deal with enemies at a range." Rawnie replies, not wanting to dwell on the fact that Ameiko was attempting to comfort her.
"I agree, we should head back to my brother and let him know it is safe for the caravan now."
Alara stretches, some parts of her still bruised.
"I'll be fine, Ash. Still, I think it'd be a good idea to avoid running into ogres in the future, eh?" She starts skipping down the road back to the caravan.
Several minutes walking and the advance party is back with the caravan. Koya's spells are capable of healing anybody else still injured from the ogre fight. Sandru is, of course, interested to hear a report on what happened. He ultimately decides to push the caravan a little farther this night to put extra distance between the camp and any predators interested in ogre meat.
Over the next couple of days, the stark beauty of the Velashu Uplands becomes apparent. Driving near the Velashu River, there are the Red Mountains on the right, grassy hills on the left, and very few settlements dotting the countryside. Herds of animals can be spotted not far from the river - aurochs and horses, particularly horses. Occasional Shoanti horsemen can be seen observing the herds, but they seem to be unbothered by the presence of the Varisian caravan.
Piper heads back to camp, aiding in loading the newfound loot onto the cart. He continues to ride shotgun on the supply cart. As they pass through the Uplands, he continues to play his flute, while keeping an eye out.
Alara takes in the sight of the Velashu Uplands with no small amount of awe. "Ooh..."
As the party's trek continues, it appears Alara's singing voice has been thrown off a bit by the ogre assault--perhaps a lingering effect from the beast's club.
Though her singing isn't spectacular, she makes an effort to keep an eye out for trouble along with Piper.
Masamune gratefully accepts some healing after the battle, but only without the eyes of his companions on him. No need for them to see how shaky his legs are or how Duty was the only thing still keeping him up. Masamune looks around carefully as he continues to scout ahead for the caravan.
The caravan makes a practice of camping a bit away from the river at nights to afford wildlife a buffer space between the camp and the water. But nightly visitors near the camp are reasonably common, their eyes reflecting the light of the campfire. So far, none have significantly violated the security of the camp, though a small knot of aurochs did press very close on their way to the lush riverside.
Late one night, Shalelu and Ash are on watch. Shalelu often sits to herself at the best vantage point she can find, a small rise near the wagons in this case. Still and silent, she alertly monitors the surroundings without being easy to spot. She always makes sure Ash knows where she is so she can signal him as necessary - either with a motion or a bird call.
Ash spies Shalelu's signal, though he does not perceive what it is that caught her attention yet. A wave indicates that there is something off to the camp's west. Ash also notices that she nocks an arrow to her bowstring, indicating something of Shalelu's wariness.
Ash quickly moves over towards the wagon with four of his compatriots. He gently nudges Piper, thinking that of all the companions, he might be the quietest. "Shalelu saw something...she's in motion...I'm getting everyone up...help?"
Ash wakes Piper with no difficulty.
Shalelu's bow twangs as she fires and then moves. A loud yowl that sounds kind of like a great cat comes back from the distance.
That yowl is enough to cause Koya to sit bolt upright in her bed in the wagon, a motion that also wakes Rawnie. Masamune is also startled awake by the sound (but only barely).
Piper stirs awake at the movement of being shaken. He opens his eyes to see Jacen. When he explains what's going on, the bard nods. He points to Ameiko, indicating that he wants Ash to wake her up. He then spends time to wake Alara without drawing attention. When she wakes up, he explains the situation through sign language. He also pays attention to the yowl, wondering if he can identify the creature.
"ZzzfmfmluhWHA?" Alara starts awake when Piper shakes her. She rubs her eyes and looks at Piper's signing hands, but is still really sleepy. She's slow to get up.
Masamune wakes up Duty and then pulls out his bow.
Ash rushes over to his brother, and touches him as he channels some of his magic into the samurai. "Better safe than sorry, Brother..." he says as he casts Shield of Faith.
Awoken by the sudden movement of the elder woman, Rawnie looked over at Koya, and then quickly hurried up and out the caravan. "What's going on?" She asked when she noticed that many of the others were already awake.
Initiative Rolls
--------------------
OK, grouped initiatives.
Ash, Piper, and Shalelu can all act before the creatures
Then I'll have the creatures do what they do
Then it'll be everyone else's turn. Post in any order.
Shalelu fires one more shot from the front of the fortune teller wagon before moving, behind cover, to the wagon's rear.
She shakes her head, indicating that she must have missed with her shot and the frustration shows on her face. She calls out "Here they come! I mark four of them. Some kind of panther."
Piper takes out his chalkboard and simply writes: 'It's krenshar. Inform the others." He moves out of the covered wagon, dropping the chalkboard to Ameiko. He then moves to cover and begins his performance.
Ash hesitates, waiting to see something or help with someone's wounds.
The 4 creatures move closer in to the campsite. As they do so, a couple of them, one each near the front and rear of the fortune teller wagon, stop. The skin on their faces pulls back revealing the unnerving and repulsive sight of their musculature and bones. As they do so, they each emit a piercing shriek that chills the marrow.
Will save required for Shalelu
Will save required for Masamune, add the +1 morale bonus from Piper's inspirational music
The creatures (which Piper can now confirm are Krenshar) fail to demoralize you all, their opponents. Shalelu also resists the fear caused by their extreme visages and terrifying cries, though one of the remaining krenshar leaps at her throat with a savage bite.
Luck is with Shalelu and she is fundamentally unharmed by the creature.
Alara
Masamune
Rawnie
Koya,
Sandru, Ameiko, and 3 Varisian drivers (who all end up spending their time waking up)
Masamune will mount up on Duty and fire an arrow at the Krenshan as Duty prepares to kick the creature if it approaches.
Alara heads out of the wagon in time to see the krenshars attacking. She readies her nunchaku, waiting for one of them to attack!
On seeing the situation, Koya takes out her butterfly-shaped symbol of Desna and casts a sanctuary spell upon herself. Then she takes out a few bundles of bandages, ready to play the role of combat support and healer.
Meanwhile - Masamune stalwartly resists the fright-inducing yowl of the krenshar. That creature winces under fire from the samurai's bow, though he seems to have received only a minor wound.