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Once the fires are out, and after she is healed, () (and before the Tengu brings their former advisaries back to life), Quinn will remove any weapons, potions, armor, etc. and bind the hands and feet of black and white (and red for that matter) until after the questioning can be completed.
Once this is completed, quinn will look after Bacchus' wounds, casting her daily use of cure light wounds.
Pan extinguishes the fire on his clothes with the aid of a divine deluge and the buffeting of tengu wings. Now burned, soggy and with scorch marks on his fine jacket, he looks a bit worse for wear as he regains his feet and Wei Ji heals his burns.
Quinn removes their captive's weapons and bind their hands while Wei Ji tends to the Gnome. The little fellow shows signs of heavy bruising and suffered a broken and bloodied nose from his encounter. From the looks of it, the hunters beat and kicked him unconscious judging by the boot prints on the gardener's clothes. He regains consciousness from Wei's healing, but takes a moment to collect himself as the tengu tends to the others. Both of the downed hunters are still salvageable, and are stabilized as Wei Ji rebukes death.
The man in ruddy-stained leathers takes on a petulant look, glancing down at his bound hands as Frost fixes him with an icy, expectant stare. As Marco begins to ask questions, he sighs and shrugs before speaking. "Most big-folk in these lands are hunters of one sort or another. Me boss heard tales of were-beasts near this place, so we came to kill 'em and collect the bounties. Best way to earn gold in these parts... beats swinging an axe anyway, but there's competition, ya see? The weres are weak to the herb, belladonna, an it can even cure a fella if he gets infected. We just wanted to be sure no other hunters would be able to supply up here. Less competition, ya see? Just protecting our interests..."
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"Who is paying these bounties? " the half-elf remarks. "where is this person located?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
The gnome stands aside, listening to what the hunter had to say for himself. He makes a scoffing grunt in response and then clears his throat, stepping forward to berate the fellow before introducing himself.
“Hmmph! You left out the part where you and your rotten group have robbed the gnomish folk of this town as it suited you. Never buy fair and square what you can filch and bully from decent folk who can't match your might!"
He turns to your group and dips his head respectfully. "You'll be the group Brackett sent, I expect, name's Falbin. Rumors of lycanthrope activity often bring ruthless bounty hunters to the region, anxious to kill for coin. The rumors of animal-men south of Wispil have brought several such as these men to the region. They robbed me of my belladonna supply just before you arrived and started burning down my gardens! I can’t thank you enough for saving my life and my livelihood.” He shakes your hands gratefully and then puts his hands on his hips as he glares down at the captive hunters. "I'll be having my herbs back, you ruffians! I'll need it more than ever now that my plants have been scorched. If you've heard all you need from these men, I will happily show you to the Magistrate's offices where I expect he will have some secure rooms for these louts and then we can discuss that... other business." He says, lowering his voice mysteriously.
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Wei will shake his head as the hunters go on their rant. It's not a negation of the choices they are making in their lives, but rather a sort of subconscious thing.
He offers a brief commentary in a foreign tongue, soberly, nodding.
After the thugs have been escorted off to proper justice, Wei will glance to Falbin.
"You would be correct. Is time of a luxury on this, or is it sensitive?"
Far too many of Wei's expeditions for the Society have been a mad rush before time runs out. If there is a chance to recover and catch breath for a change, that'd be nice. He's not counting on it, though.
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Odo sorts through the ruffians' gear to get out all of the farmer's belladonna. "If these scoundrels thought the belladonna might be of use, it is possible we will find a use for it as well. We will, of course, pay an appropriate price for it. But of what use is the belladonna, if I may ask, Falbin?"
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Pangu grins as his companion heals him. "Perhaps next time we can wait on that, but thank you for your aid," he says as he brushes the ashes off of himself and then looks for someone with the ability to use prestidigitation and realizes that is unlikely. Grumbling about his outfit being singed, he shrugs. Looking over to the gnome. "Is there anything we can do for you in the moment to help with your repairs?"
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Prior to bringing their former foes to the magistrate's quarters, Quinn says to Bacchus (yet seemingly loud enough to be heard by the entire group), "I wonder what our companions would think about our 'borrowing' a few of those... hunters'" (the half-elf spits as she says this, disgusted at how much they have ruined the reputation for legitimate hunters)"...silver weapons for use on our quest?"
"We would, of course, return them to the magistrate's office once we are complete!" she says, as if answering the hawk's question.
Quinn's eyes deceive her as she glances over at the set of matched silver short swords wielded by the ruffian she previously referred to simply as 'White.'
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Marco shrinks back to normal size during the conversations. He watches Pangu as he eyes the party, wondering what he's looking for. When he grumbles about his clothes, Marco volunteers, "That's easy enough. Dolum minor!" He waves a pointed finger at the singed clothing, and its original color begins to shine through as the ashes disappear. "Anyone else?" He offers cleaning services to the rest of the group, minus the hunters.
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On healing Pangu:
"My personal experience is that if you don't heal folks right away, something crazy happens and you're not prepared for it, and WORSE things escalate from that situation. So a cup of prevention for a keg of cure, as it were?"
On the disposition of hunter gear:
"They wouldn't be using them if they were dead, now, would they? And it's not like they aren't going to get them back if the magistrate thinks that's proper. They'll just be a bit more... used."
Wei will ALSO take advantage of the clothing cleansing properties Marco is offering, and if anyone's equipment took damage (including Falbin's), then during the informational discussion he will offer some prayers while Mendingthe items in question.
Falbin quickly leads you to the Magistrate who secures your prisoners and thanks you for aiding the community of Wispil. Among their belongings, you salvage 3 potions of cure light wounds, 2 tanglefoot bags, 3 masterwork chain shirts, 3 longbows and 57 arrows, and 6 masterwork silver short-swords. The chipper gnome invites you, "Take whatever could be of use on your quest. Their possessions will likely be sold later to provide restitution for the theft and damage these men have caused."
Once you have returned to Falbin's home, he goes to a protected corner of his garden where no flames have touched and plucks a beautiful flower with large pink petals and an iridescent powdery pollen at it's center. He offers it to the party, "Take this as well as a token of my gratitude. It is a Litheria Blossom. When you inhale the pollen, you will be warded against death and able to see it's approach it others. Hopefully it will help keep you safe and aid you in protecting your companions along the way."
Aura moderate necromancy; CL 7th
Slot none; Price 1,400 gp; Weight —
DESCRIPTION
The litheria blossom is a rare but naturally occurring flower
with large, pink petals. The pollen of the litheria blossom
bridges the gap between life and death, functioning like
an elixir, though inhaled rather than imbibed. A creature
that inhales the pollen gains the benefit of the death ward
and deathwatch spells. Both effects last for 10 minutes.
If plucked, the flower remains vibrant and alive until the
pollen within the flower is inhaled, at which point the
flower wilts and dies. The pollen remains potent only so
long as it held within the flower or immediately thereafter.
One round after the pollen is removed from the flower,
both the pollen and the flower become nonmagical.
Falbin chuckles to himself as he begins your briefing. "Almost a shame not to tell that lot of ne'er-do-wells, but it's not lycanthropes causing the trouble this time. I initially thought so, but I was wrong. Just like those hunters are wrong. The rumors spring from animal-men sighted in the forest near Briar Henge, where the druids’ ongoing ritual has had the strongest prolonged effect. The animal-men are bestial and dangerous, but they aren’t true lycanthropes, as they can’t change form and don’t have any particular vulnerability to silver — or to belladonna. Of course, never hurts to be prepared.”
"The animal-men are the result of the Briar Henge druids’ ritual with the Atavistic Splinter. That was all in my report to the Society. They used to be humanoids, but they’ve been changed by the druid’s ritual. They are incredibly tough, with animal-like faces and claws. They also lose most of their wits, becoming animalistic in mind as well as body. Longer exposure and closer proximity to Briar Henge appear to enhance the effects; I had to evade a trapper who lived only a few miles east of Briar Henge, and she was little more than a raving beast. Be careful out there.”
“The druids intend to transform everyone in the surrounding area into feral animal-men as a perverted way of returning them to ‘nature.’ The ritual is slow but powerful. The druids have been performing the ritual for weeks, and it seems to affect the area for miles around Briar Henge. Exactly how far out, I couldn’t say. I’ve done a lot of research, though, and I’ve learned two important points. First, the effects of the ritual are reversed only if the Atavistic Splinter is removed from Briar Henge before the entire ritual is complete — then all the affected animal-men would return to normal. Second, the ritual will end at sundown the day after tomorrow. That is, the ritual will only last two more days, so time is indeed short. As it takes almost two days to get to Briar Henge, you’d better get moving. Do you have any questions before I tell you the way?”
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"I, or more over Bacchus, could benefit from one of the healing potions, unless someone else could heal him more completely than I could... And I would benefit from such well crafted swords, if I could be so bold"
The huntress continues, "And I think that Master Wie Ji should be entrusted with the blossom, if my opinion counts for anything."
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The tengu will blink a bit at Quinn's comment.
"Let's get right on that, then. And everyone else acquire what you need from the supplies, I've got mine set already."
"I am not the Master nor the Master of Masters. Please, call me Wei, Ji, or 'Hey you', alright?"
To Falbin's words, though, his feathers ruffle a bit.
"Is the way clear for mounts? That would speed our progress a bit if so? Otherwise, I need somewhere to stable Char."
He does not, however, argue the possession of the Blossom, his only concern being *when* to use it if he ends up with it.
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Quinn quickly grabs up the masterwork silver short swords and replace hers, that have been yet unnoticed, hidden beneath her hunter's cloak. She also grabs one of the cure light wounds potions, even though Wei Ji has fully healed her and Bacchus. As her mother always taught her, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
"We should be on our way, as it seems time hangs heavy. What is the quickest way?"
“The trail is fairly good for the first day, so you should be able to make good use of your mounts and there’s a small logging camp you could rest at along the way. The loggers there are no friends of the druids, so you’re likely to receive a warm welcome if you mention you’re working against Briar Henge. Briar Henge is another day further southeast along some narrow but passable trails. It looks like a palisade wall in a ring, about twelve feet high and made of dense thorns. There was only one break in the wall that I saw, but it didn’t appear to be guarded. It’s two days south of here, so you’d best hurry if you want to catch the druids before the ritual ends. Take this map I sketched while I waited for your arrival. Swift travels, Pathfinders!”
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"I fear that the seriousness of this situation means negotiating an end to the trouble is out of the question. Our first priority must be to stop and undo any transformations of innocent people and that probably means we must strike hard and fast. Hopefully, most of their attention will be focused on their ritual and give us our chance to succeed."
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The tengu winces a bit as the paladins set themselves on the course of being the hammer, so everything is a nail.
"We're going to recover the crystal straight up and get it out of the area. Standard rules of engagement, if they're down we let them go unless they get back up, sound fair?"
That thousand-yard stare is back in full force.
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Quinn nods to the Tengu's rules of engagement then whispers to Bacchus. The hawk takes flight, forward of their direction of travel, scouting for anything out of the ordinary. The huntress thanks Falbin for his hospitality and spurs her mount off to the southeast, making for the logging camp, and ultimately to Briar Henge.
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"We're going to recover the crystal straight up and get it out of the area. Standard rules of engagement, if they're down we let them go unless they get back up, sound fair?"
"Unfortunately, the creatures we tend to meet on missions like this usually make anything else virtually impossible. I usually try to keep my mind open to exceptions. Sometimes our opponents are willing to find a path to redemption."
Odo stows his newly purchased belladonna and mounts up.
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"Odo, I believe this situation is a bit different than usual. These people are not fully in their own mind. The more bestial, the more of a problem it is to cause them permanent harm. If we can stop them without ending them, I think that would be ideal. That said...the druids who are in charge of this, however, likely deserve some for of justice. Let us just not forget to try and find some balance in our upcoming encounters."
Then, Pan turns to look at the tengu and quietly continues, "我们将带来的智慧和慈悲，即使我们的同伴没有."
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Before the group departs, Pan asks to speak to Falbin alone.
"Sir, I must apologize for not being able to help with stopping more of the burning of your crops, though I did learn a good lesson from this situation and I will rectify that mistake in the future. However, I note that you have very...interesting wares and that you could likely benefit from some assistance from time to time. I have friends that might be willing to help you with that, if you would like, I would gladly put you into contact with them?"
Falbin’s words prove true as the Pathfinders depart following the path the gnome had sketched out. Your mounts make swift progress along the forest trail heading south. The Verduran Forest is much as you remember… the biting insects seem to have missed you, at least, bestowing their parasitic kisses upon you at every opportunity. As the sun begins to sink in the sky, the path begins to narrow and you are forced to continue at a lesser pace.
The surrounding woods seem to grow oddly quiet as twilight comes on. Perhaps it is from the heat of exertion, but Pan and Odo become increasingly uncomfortable upon their mounts. Suddenly their clothing and armor begins to feel strangely confining… they feel the urge to travel upon their own limbs.
The path runs through a small collection of buildings deep in the forest. This place appears to be a successful lumber camp — nearly a small village — but seems abandoned. A few open doors bang softly in the wind, hanging askew on their hinges. As you look to each other curiously, you notice that Pangu and Odo have sprouted fur and their nails have grown into claws!
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"Once more I agree with Odo, the creatures and people we meet have set their own journey towards destruction - they begin aggression without question or remorse, and then decline quarter when offered it. They only surrender when they are down to their last and never take the option to flee. Mercy is given where mercy CAN be given. Our desire is to avoid conflict and simply let the laws of the land and the justice system deal with them, however our desire bear little weight with these people"
"It is a shame, there is nothing pleasant about this, and we will endeavour to save who we can."
Before the group departs, Pan asks to speak to Falbin alone.
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"Oh my~!" Quinn blurts out upon seeing the regal Pangu and the stalwart Odo begin to transform into their bestial forms...
"We must be getting close, but I wonder how long our companions will retain enough of their humanity before they loose the ability to discern friend from foe?" she says to no one in particular.
Quinn will proceed to the town center to what appears to be a fountain. From there she will survey her surroundings looking for any sign, trail or track that could explain what happened here and what, if anything, of value was left behind.
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Pangu maintains his regal demeanor...in the form of a majestic lion. "I will do what I can to maintain...this is...at least interesting. I will be able to give good notes on the way it affects one's mentality."
With that, he takes a deep breath, trying to steady himself despite the fog to his senses.
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Before Departure:
Pangu will get a nod after the brief exchange of words...
At the Lumber Camp:
The tengu blinks at the rather abrupt transformation of the two traveling companions.
"Would either of you be willing to partake in a quick experiment before we get too much further along? It might give us some valuable information on what we're facing as far as weaknesses?"
If either is amenable, Wei Ji will approach and place a hand on the volunteer...
Regardless of the outcome of that...
"Falbin said this camp would be a place to rest. If the effects have already reached this far..." He lets that hang in the air for folks to do the math...
No sooner does the tengu leave the implication to hang on the air than you hear the snarled response as some of the camp's former loggers stir from the noise made by your movement and conversation and poke their heads out to investigate.
Initiative Order - Round 1
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Pan
Frost
Odo
Quinn and Bacchus
Marco
Wei Ji
Beastmen
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Upon witnessing the change that's affected Pan and Odo, Marco casts resistance upon himself, though more as a superstition than as a practical attempt to ward off something he knows he's already been exposed to.
As the former lumberjacks begin to emerge as beastly hunters, Marco rebukes himself, "Should have known, if anyone describes someplace safe on the way to a mission, we should be expecting trouble."
Marco moves out until he sees one of the further lumberjacks, and casts grease between the bestial lumberjack and the party to slow him down on his approach.
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Quinn immediately looks to Bacchus, perched upon the top of the fountain and says, "Fly..."and with that the hawk launches himself into the air about 40' up, in slow circle over the town square keeping his eyes on the unfolding action.
With that, Quinn does what has worked so well in all of her hunts of non-magical beasts, and that is gain the height advantage.
Once she sets her footing, Quinn will yell, "Our companions are turning too, and they have retained their humanity... maybe these poor beasts and merely scared!" She will then nock an arrow and keep an eye on both the Tiger and the Wolf (knowing her back is protected by the Tengu), shooting either beast that makes an aggressive move towards her or her party.
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Pan rushes forward, letting the sheath of his swordcane fall aside, debating if he even needs it, but deciding to have it out, just in case.
With a slight snarl, "They are likely to come to us. Let them. Bring them close, then we can lay them down. But remember...like Odo and I...they didn't choose this..."
Initiative Order - Round 1
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Pan – moves up, readying sword
Frost – double move
Odo – double move
Quinn and Bacchus – climbs/flies
Marco – moves, casts grease
Wei Ji - charges Gorilla-man, misses
Beastmen:
Hyena-man -
Tiger-man -
Gorilla-man -
-------------------------------------------Round 2
Pan
Frost
Odo
Quinn and Bacchus
Marco
Wei Ji
Beastmen
The Hyena-man charges toward the fountain, leaping up to sink it's canines into the half-elf's calf.
Marco holds long enough to see which direction the beastmen take as they advance and puts down his grease in the path of the Tiger-man. The man seems to have cat-like reflexes as he manages to stay on his feet.
Wei Ji charges the Gorilla-man, opening himself up to the return attacks. Ape arms flail uselessly at the heavily armored tengu, but he lands a nasty bite.
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Seeing how the ape attacks, Wei takes a moment as he brings his shield up to fight in a more defensive stance to assess his simian opponent.
Master of Masters, he's fighting it, but he can't stop himself!