"Sorry, I've got nothing."
"Well my apologizes then. I must be off." Fray pockets the note and leads his horse out of town back towards Zveris's place. As soon as he gets out of town he removes the pack saddle from his horse and straps on a military saddle. He leads the horse forward knowing his extract will soon wear off.
The horse may run when I change back. At least I'll have my things though. Fray grunts under the weight of the pack.
the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
Edgar watches Sarrissa work, offering tips here and there as needed. When the work was done, he mustered a smile saying, "Well done! Merek, your wife is a natural." A sad look comes into his eyes then. "Normally, we'd go sell the hides and any extra meat in town. But, on the bright side, I guess we can use the hides to make adjustments to our clothes and armor."
EDIT: Teacher, would you like to show us how tanning is done?."
the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
Castell does his best to politely excuses himself from the present company. Try as he might though he still comes off as gruff about it. He chooses to stand watch outside under the treehouse until the others are ready to go. Away from the latrine.
GAH! He punches the tree hurting his hand more than anything else, and sits down slouching against the tree.
the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
[dice=Handle Animal]1d20-1the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
the change mananges not to startle the animal too much this time, and it, semi-reluctantly, keeps following.
the change mananges not to startle the animal too much this time, and it, semi-reluctantly, keeps following.[dice=Handle Animal]1d20-1the horse cooperates at first, but once the extract wears of it...
Fray pats his horse. "...You're getting a name. ...Horace." Fray nods to himself, pleased.
"I mean to see the lizardman ruins with my own eyes. After I see the remains, we can try to talk to the ratfolk."
Looks like that settles it, Merek says. Once Fray returns, we'll head to one of the Lizardfolk camps.
Turning to Edgar, Merek asks, Do you know the way?
Fray secures his horse to a tree a bit from Zveris' tree house and shouts up to the others inside. "Excuse me! This pack is quite heavy, may I have some assistance?"
Sure, it'll keep me occupied. Castell moved over to Fray to help unload his items.
Just to let you know, we're heading to a lizard camp first. Not my idea, I assure you.
Help? A strapping you man like you shouldn't need any help, Merek teases with a wry smile.
"Yeah, I'll help." Sarrissa walks over to the edge and throws one end of a rope down. Tie it on and I'll haul it up.
Help? A strapping you man like you shouldn't need any help, Merek teases with a wry smile.
Help? A strapping you man like you shouldn't need any help, Merek teases with a wry smile.
"I do not trust this new body climbing a ladder or flying with this much weight."
Fray ties the pack saddle to the rope and shouts up to Sarrissa. "Thank you, dear. Now that I think of it, where did you put my old body? I need to find a way to preserve it best I can."
Looks like that settles it, Merek says. Once Fray returns, we'll head to one of the Lizardfolk camps.
Turning to Edgar, Merek asks, Do you know the way?
"Aye," Edgar looks up, recalling what he knows about the camps. "The smaller camp is the closer camp, about three days east of Crossroads. The larger one is about five days away, southeast of Crossroads. We could head to the larger one, then swing by the smaller one on the way back." He takes on a look that is part regret, part mild frustration. "Would that we had a map, make getting there that much easier."
Fray ties the pack saddle to the rope and shouts up to Sarrissa. "Thank you, dear. Now that I think of it, where did you put my old body? I need to find a way to preserve it best I can."
"I don't much like the idea, but if you need help let me know."
Sarrissa quickly hauls the pack up and carries it inside. She places it gently on one of the tables being careful not to break anything. While not clumsy, she was still adjusting to the shear size of her new body.
Fray ties the pack saddle to the rope and shouts up to Sarrissa. "Thank you, dear. Now that I think of it, where did you put my old body? I need to find a way to preserve it best I can."
I have no idea where the body is, forgot we kept it actually.
Well, Merek thinks for a second, I would imagine that after a day or so it would start decomposing; we'd start to see flies and such, but it takes a good couple of days before it smells bad. I've seen that sort of thing happen to bodies after wars and skirmishes. I don't really know what to do about it though.
With Fray's body preserved, what do we do with it? Merek asks.
We can't leave it here; someone may notice it and assume Z was killed. Or maybe commited a murder. And I'm not sure if we should take it with us; a bunch of monsters with a dead human? No thanks. We already need to be stealthy and silent. I don't want us running across any civilians who might get hurt.
Merek ponders for a second.
Speaking of which, there might be some on their way here, now. Hunters and the like. Hey Z, how often do you get visitors or passerby's?
Maybe we could eat it? Castell says with a slightly too toothy grin, trying to show that he's joking.
"We're bloody monsters. Aren't we supposed to come with dead bodies? Really though, we're monsters! Most people are going to try and kill us on sight, with or without the body. We could always try to disguise the body, wrap it with furs, stuff in a box or something, I don't know. I don't have all the answers, or any answers for that matter. We should be able to avoid people. We move in the night, avoid common roads.
We can't just give in. I NEED this to work! We have to try! If we can fix one of us, than maybe we can fix the rest. I can't just give up on that!"
Sarrissa falls to her knees and begins to weep. She leans forward, head to the floor and sobs uncontrollably, balled-up fists banging on the floor.
"We're bloody monsters. Aren't we supposed to come with dead bodies? Really though, we're monsters! Most people are going to try and kill us on sight, with or without the body. We could always try to disguise the body, wrap it with furs, stuff in a box or something, I don't know. I don't have all the answers, or any answers for that matter. We should be able to avoid people. We move in the night, avoid common roads.
We can't just give in. I NEED this to work! We have to try! If we can fix one of us, than maybe we can fix the rest. I can't just give up on that!"
Sarrissa falls to her knees and begins to weep. She leans forward, head to the floor and sobs uncontrollably, balled-up fists banging on the floor.
Castell cuts his behavior abruptly after this outburst. Issy... He tries to approach his sibling. Easy, easy.
He says this calmly, and in a far more confident tone than what his own thoughts would betray. We will find a way to fix this, no magic is irreversible, I can promise that. The witch may be powerful, but there are more powerful forces out there, remember? Castell holds Sarrissa's holy symbol in front of her as he speaks.
First though, we need to keep our wits about us, don't you agree, Merek?
Absolutely. Castel is right. Merek says as he walks up to Sarrissa. He places a hand in her now-hairy back.
But so are you. You are right that we will work this out. We will find a way. We will be strong, we will be guided by the Dawnflower, and we will persevere.
Edgar surveys the scene in silence.
Hmm... She's not wrong.
He crosses his arms, and looks down at his clawed feet.
We can't just give up, but carrying a body around? Were it the body of a companion that were no longer with us, sure, but Fray's soul or whatever has a body. Screw it, I'll be the bad guy I guess.
Edgar uncrosses his arms and raises his voice just enough to be heard over the sobs.
"We can't take the body with us."
He pauses a moment, to look each of his companions in the eyes, one at a time.
"Listen, it isn't just humans we have to worry about. I can't imagine how any intelligent race would react us toting a human body about. As Merek says, we need to be stealthy, and carrying a body about, no matter how we were to decide how to do it, makes it that much more difficult to get by unnoticed. Not to mention the time and strain it would take to preserve it. Castell is right, we will find a way to fix this, but toting a body about the lands just endangers us all. Our new bodies seemed to be created from nothing, and i have no doubt we will be able to get back into out old bodies in sort of the same way. But for now, we need to put the past behind us and move forward."
He pauses again, letting out a sigh.
"Let's give Fray-that-was a proper burial. It's much more than any of the rest of our bodies got. They are all either rotting in the swamp, or are slaves to that hag's will."
Edgar spreads his arms slightly, palms out, and again looks everyone in the room in the eye one at a time.
"What say you?"
With one hand still on Sarrissa, Merek answers Edgar, I agree. Sarrissa and I can perform the final rights.
Look, I know this is going to be difficult. We live on a world where we're hated, where we're hunted, where even some of us before we changed hunted our new kinds.
But with faith in the Gods and a mind towards what is right, we can persevere. We can do what is right. We can change back to our normal selves and work to prevent the slaughter of these so called monster races. We can stop the witch from doing this to anyone else ever again. We can turn what she has prevented pure again.
But we have to work together. This happened to all of us, and by all of our hands shall it be repaired.
Together, we shall overcome.
"Outside of you and the pup, hardly anyone, but people might wonder after I've been gone about a month. Don't really have anyone in town, but people might coming looking for help with an animal problem. Burying him is probably the best thing."
Zveris is on a chair at the kitchen table, taking his Claw to his Armored Coat. He's cutting slits for the spines on his back to fit into and he's ripped the arms off of it. Now it's more like a long, open vest. Before it nearly touched the ground on him. Now it just goes to his knees.
"There's a clear spot by the lake we can do it."
What do you say, Fray? Care to put your old body to a temporary rest while we venture out to discover how to fix what has happened to us?
"Have we resigned ourselves to this fate so easily? My body /can/ be saved an you want to put it in the ground!?" Fray yells, blood clearly boiling. "It is not unheard of for a soul to be returned to a body, is it not? You holy types do it all the time, don't you? Or hell, I may find a way through my alchemy. But if my body is destroyed, I have no chance! If it's appearances you worry about, I can purchase a covered wagon from town to carry my... corpse. Monsters will be slain on site either way, as you've said, why not just have my horse carry the cart? Seems a simple matter to me if we are to be traveling either way. Plus a cart will offer you a place to hide if we are confronted and I can use my alchemy to appear human." Fray pauses to catch his breath.
"It seems quite simple to me, really."
I had thought about such, but had dismissed it when you didn't bring back a cart or wagon. Before we decide to embark on the Journey to Return Fray to his Body, tell me, how do you plan on preserving your corpse? If you can answer that question without assuming someone will do something for you just because of your charming personality, then I'll be happy to wait for you while you run some more errands and assist you in such a quest. Merek responds patiently.
I'll tell you flatly; Sarrissa will not continue to use one of her most powerful spells every single day just to preserve your corpse if you continue to treat everyone the way you have been. I understand that we're under a bit of stress right now, but you've been uncharacteristically rude compared to everyone else here. It's something for you to think about as you head back into town to get a wagon.
" The thought slipped my mind" Fray motions dismissively.
"I appreciate the assistance of course," Fray bows to the looming bugbear, "but don't act as though returning me to my body is a solely selfish endeavor. None of you thought to recover your bodies. Returning you to your former selves may prove more difficult than for myself, this is true, though wouldn't you think that having me returned would prove a useful tool to a merry band such as yourselves? Someone to interact with the civilized world and not be slain on site? Someone from a wealthy family with the resources and skill to even /find/ a way to fix all this?" Fray pauses a moment to let his words soak in.
"In return for your services, and assuming I cannot simply conjure up an effective concoction as a monster, I will work towards finding a solution that doesn't involve poking around abandoned ruins for scraps of food and equipment." Fray glances around the room to read the mood.
Now that is something I think I can agree on! Merek says with a laugh in his voice. Im still not sure how we're going to get back to our original bodies, or even if having them even matters for returning to our normal selves, but I sure am glad to have such a renowned scholar as yourself on our side. Turning to Chris, he adds, And you as well, Chris. What's your opinion in all this?
Edgar leans against the wall, arms crossed, assuming his thinking pose.
Having a covered wagon would make it much simpler, and we can disguise either Chris or Fray or both to drive it.
Edgar glances up at Fray and eyes him for a moment
Though I do have a feeling of unease. What is to stop Fray from sneaking off after we help him get his body back? He doesn't exactly strike me as charitable.
He looks down and closes his eyes, resting a hand on the hilt of Storm's Edge.
I guess I'll worry about that when the time comes.
He opens his eyes and speaks up to the group.
"So, whats the plan?"
Chris looks up from his notes "I for one would like our first step to be recovering the bodies we were not capable of doing so before, then having them where we know where they are, buried next to some landmark for example, spend a day doing that, gathering all of the bodies that we can, then move on to the lizardfolk camp"
What do you propose we do with our bodies once we find them? We can't preserve them indefinitely. Proper burial?
I'm also not certain having our bodies will help. After all, there weren't any random bodies lying around that hill for our spirits to occupy when this happened to us. I think we grew our new bodies on the spot.
What do you propose we do with our bodies once we find them? We can't preserve them indefinitely. Proper burial?
I'm also not certain having our bodies will help. After all, there weren't any random bodies lying around that hill for our spirits to occupy when this happened to us. I think we grew our new bodies on the spot.
"Aye, I agree. It was Fate that deemed that we were to be without our bodies, and it would prove to be quite the challenge to preserve and transport all of our bodies about.
If we are all willing, I'd agree with Chris, lets go get our bodies and give them proper burial."Edgar nods to Zveris.
"I like the idea of burying at the lake."
"Are you fools daft? You want to return to where the witch ruined our lives with no more power than we had when she did so. I will not go. Not without better reason than to throw dirt on a corpse. If Fray managed to return his soul to his former body, then maybe I would try, but to return to the site of the worst defeat of our lives and hope she doesn't exact more vengeance is madness."
"Are you fools daft? You want to return to where the witch ruined our lives with no more power than we had when she did so. I will not go. Not without better reason than to throw dirt on a corpse. If Fray managed to return his soul to his former body, then maybe I would try, but to return to the site of the worst defeat of our lives and hope she doesn't exact more vengeance is madness."
"Not necessarily. That witch had the power to kill us outright if she so wished. This..." Edgar looks down at his clawed hands. "This is what she wanted for us. Besides, we won't dawdle. We go, grab our bodies and any equipment we may have left, and we get out. If we go, that is. I'd offer to go by myself, but six bodies may be too many to carry alone."
"There were dozens of zombies encroaching on us when we fled the last time. What makes you think our bodies are still laying on the ground where we left them? I've risked my life countless times to protect the living, but you want to risk your lives for the dead? This makes no sense."
"I'm with Issa on this one. No way I'm going back in there for her to turn me into something worse. I don't have a body to go back for anyways. I'm not sure what she did differently, but I was awake in my body when she made me this. I say we bury that one and go to the lizard camp. If we've got magic enough to go back your bodies, we've got magic enough to fix them up first."
"I believe re-entering that Gods forsaken swamp would be suicide. Should I find a way to return to my body, it would not prove too useful to the rest of you provided you do not have your bodies, though exploring multiple roads to a final destination increases our chances dramatically. Though having me back as a ...human" Fray says that last word with a hint of disgust in his voice. His eyes widen in surprise at himself.
What The devil was that!?
Fray shakes his head, trying to force out this strange new feeling of animosity towards his prior race.
"At the very least, I can offer you all refuge in my home until I can figure something out." Fray stares off into nothingness, extremely confused.