”Sherman help kitty, Tarphex use magic eyes magic.”
The kobold makes his way to Elisani and examines the items in question.
Sherman takes note of Shalelu's wordless communication, and moves over to the cougar. "Hello there, friend..." he speaks softly to the animal. "Easy there now, I'm not going to hurt you."
He reaches into the divine, letting the healing magic flow through his hands onto the cougar's broken leg.
@Elisani: Uh, yeah you did. You got a 41, you notice the stitching pattern on the black arrow patches. You notice things about this ogre-kin hunter that you'd rather not have seen because he is disgusting.
@Tarphrex:
The spear is a simple +1 spear (good for selling, at least) and the belt is a Belt of Giant Strength +2.
@Sherman: When you approach, the cougar looks at you warily, then looks at Shalelu before relaxing. You lay divine healing upon it, and it flexes its leg, testing it gingerly before putting full weight on it.
As you all wrap up this encounter, the cougar pulls out of Shalelu's hands, then graps at her pant leg, tugging her towards Elisani and the corpse. Or so it seemed. As they approach, it runs past the dead hunter, stopping to look back at Shalelu before taking a few more steps forward then looking back again.
Tarphrex says, ”Spear magic. Small magic. Belt make you strong.”
He offers the belt up for someone to claim. He innocently keeps the spear on the ground by him after checking it.
A pattern catches Elisani's eye. She gladly focuses on that, rather than the many disgusting attributes of the dead ogrekin. (Sometimes her highly trained eye is as much a curse as a blessing.) "Shalelu, look at this." Elisani points to the black arrow patches on the corpse's filthy blanket. "Is that the insignia of the Black Arrow Company?"
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If it is...that could be troubling... a bad sign
@Tarphrex: Shalelu shows no interest in any of the gear.
@Elisani: Shalelu takes the blanket, looks quickly at the patches, then pulls out a knife. She says, "Yes." as she begins cutting the patches loose, putting them in a belt pouch.
The cougar comes up to Elisani and Shalelu, nips at their heels, then heads back up the trail some before turning to look at them.
”Follow Kitty, Tarphrex thinks.”
He does so, taking up what is a very big spear for him and moving quietly behind the animal.
"Indeed, the cougar looks like it wants us to follow."
And so, Sherman starts following the feline.
"Indeed, the cougar looks like it wants us to follow."
And so, Sherman starts following the feline.
_______________
You all collect yourselves and follow the cat. It leads you out of the copse, padding ahead swiftly then waiting for you to catch up. You pass a large sack dumped on the ground near the edge of the treeline. If you stop to check it, the sack is roughly half full of the carcasses of small animals (rabbits mostly), and is as crudly made as a sack could be. The hunter most likely dropped it here to make haste towards where you ambushed him.
Leaving the copse of trees, you start to parallel a large stream, and quickly notice that you are headed to another copse of trees, this one smaller than the previous. The trees gather with the water on your right, and small, poorly tended fields to the left. A thin stream of smoke rises above the canopy giving evidence of habitation.
When you reach the edge of the treeline, you can see that the center has been hollowed out to give space to a farmstead, the remaining trees left as a windbreak (common practice for anyone not familiar with such things).
The farmhouse looks ramshackle, and the barn has a decided lean to it. These are the only two buildings, the thin stream of wood smoke rises from the house. There are no lights on, no signs of movement or life (besides the smoke), and the cougar moves closer to Shalelu, no longer leading the group forward.
It's clear the firepelt cougar was leading you here, but what it wants your help with is obviously unclear. What do you do now?
Is this normal behavior for a firepelt cougar? Elisani makes a mental note to ask Shalelu later. It's certainly behaving as if it possesses a greater understanding of its surroundings than the cats and dogs she's familiar with.
"Shall I go and take a quiet look around? I can probably avoid detection, given the tree cover."
Is this normal behavior for a firepelt cougar? Elisani makes a mental note to ask Shalelu later. It's certainly behaving as if it possesses a greater understanding of its surroundings than the cats and dogs she's familiar with.
"Shall I go and take a quiet look around? I can probably avoid detection, given the tree cover."
"Shall I cover you? From up above perhaps?"
"Big-small ogre yell for momma. Not live alone here, Tarphrex thinks. If go, Elisani must be very careful. Not go inside alone where Tarphrex not see her."
"If you need invisibility, just say the word," Estella whispers, ready to cast at a moment's notice.
"Please do," Sherman nods to Elisani. "But I have little aid to offer to the task, except my best wishes. And magical protection, should things go sideways."
And with that thought, Sherman prays Desna to shield Elisani from harm.
Lots of talk about ideas. What is actually happening?
"Apologies Elisani, I think my mind is stuck following the cat; that said, I can take you aloft with me, just like I did with her. You could look around to get your bearing, and even select a specific spot for me to set you down."
Ceven smiles wistfully at a memory he isn't sharing fully ...
"In my experience, almost no one is expecting visitors from above. Shall we?"
Elisani pauses just as she was about to accept Estella's offer of an invisibility spell. That's something she is far more familiar with from working with Kaderen and Caleb. But... aerial reconnaissance is also an effective means of gathering information. And she's always wanted to fly. "If doing so will not impede your ability to fly later on, I accept." Exactly how do Ceven's abilities work? It would probably be rude to ask, but Elisani is dying to know.
Elisani pauses just as she was about to accept Estella's offer of an invisibility spell. That's something she is far more familiar with from working with Kaderen and Caleb. But... aerial reconnaissance is also an effective means of gathering information.And she's always wanted to fly."If doing so will not impede your ability to fly later on, I accept." Exactly how do Ceven's abilities work? It would probably be rude to ask, but Elisani is dying to know.
"I am by no means a bard, but I do try to listen as carefully as I can; I think I heard both curiosity AND concern. I appreciate both. The most basic things that I do forming aether are very simple for me, and not much of a strain; I can move you along with myself quite easily. The same can NOT be said for hurling the ogre-person; that I could only manage a couple times any given day. In fact, I could make us invisible also without much strain, although I will admit that aetheric invisibility isn't quite the same as magical. It's quieter though."
Ceven smiles disarmingly
"Does this mean you've never seen my home town from above? There is nothing quite like the skies above Sandpoint!"
Estella pouts, just a little bit, at having her offer be overtaken. Still, she's not too proud to cede when another plan is likely better.
Not to mention, Estella probably would've chosen the same.
"Just make sure not to linger too long. Just one lucky javelin, and you'll both be dropping into dire straits."
”Tarphrex think fly good, but obvious. Make you invisible, you fly. She make you invisible, you fly, too.”
"I am happy to make us invisible as well, I think you are correct."
"I am by no means a bard, but I do try to listen as carefully as I can; I think I heard both curiosity AND concern. I appreciate both. The most basic things that I do forming aether are very simple for me, and not much of a strain; I can move you along with myself quite easily. The same can NOT be said for hurling the ogre-person; that I could only manage a couple times any given day. In fact, I could make us invisible also without much strain, although I will admit that aetheric invisibility isn't quite the same as magical. It's quieter though."
Ceven smiles disarmingly.
"Does this mean you've never seen my home town from above? There is nothing quite like the skies above Sandpoint!"
"You are perceptive, and correct." Elisani smiles slightly. "I am extremely curious and trying to be polite about it. But there is work to be done at the moment." She nods to Estella and Tarphrex. "Invisibility would be useful. I will leave it up to the three of you to decide who will cast the spells."
”Tarphrex not know your magic. Not think you spend all magic before know enemy. Tarphrex spend some, Estella spend some, Ceven keep some. Yes?”
”Tarphrex not know your magic. Not think you spend all magic before know enemy. Tarphrex spend some, Estella spend some, Ceven keep some. Yes?”
"I promise I will be fit to fight if we need to, but I am happy to explain a little more too. When I was younger and just beginning to develop these gifts, they were all much harder. I either needed to stand and gather power for a moment, or tire myself fairly quickly. Now though, I can do something basic like levitating myself, and move close to a ton, and bend light around us, all without taxing myself."
Ceven smiles at the curious half-elf
"My instincts say that your weight is nowhere close to a ton ... that said, there are things that are tiring, and there are compromises I make to conserve power, much like magic. I do not carry these sling bullets for fun, they are hardly glamorous. It is eminently sexier to simply blast away with aether alone. Perfect for duels, right? Everyone cheering ... but I can't do that much more than throwing the ogre. So by wrapping energy around the sling bullet, I hold on to my reserve. I say the word basic specifically, because anything that isn't can be taxing. If I fire a blast out to 100 or 150 yards, that too is like throwing the ogre. Great in a pinch, but not something I can do all day."
"So let's conserve our magic for the moment. There is a rather sweet young cat who wants us here for some reason, so I suggest that we invisibly ascend above this homestead and see what that reason might be!"
So Ceven and Elisani take to the air, invisible and high enough to be out of an easy throwing range.
Both of you notice: The windows are boarded up and moss grows heavy on the roof of both structures. The field is a display of pitiful, withered plants. 3 foot tall humanoid fetishes of corn husks and stalks hang from trees spaced up and down the path opposite of where your party approached.
___________
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Elisani points down at the barn. "Look there. The white patch in the roof is a spiderweb. To make a web that large and completely opaque, the spider must be enormous."
So that is what the scouts see. The buildings are derelict, but the roofs are without significant holes. And there are no signs of creatures wandering about.
What are the next steps?
"Elisani, let's go back and tell the others what we have seen. I am glad we conserved their magic. My instincts tell me that this is the time when both criminals and law enforcement would advise that we 'case' the place; keep watch for a full day or so to see if there are any patterns."
Keeping them both invisible, Ceven turns the duo around to head back to land near the team.
Your boots softly thump onto the pine needles and old leaves, and your info is shared.
Is casing the joint the idea everyone likes?
Your boots softly thump onto the pine needles and old leaves, and your info is shared.
Is casing the joint the idea everyone likes?
Ceven absolutely wants to hear Shalelu's thoughts; she's done this type of work to protect Sandpoint for a really really long time.
"Ordinarily, I would agree with you. But we are here to investigate the Black Arrows. Time may be of the essence there." A whole fortress going silent is not a good sign, especially given the Black Arrow insignia on the ogrekin's blanket. He might have acquired it during a skirmish some time ago, but he also might have acquired it raiding the Arrows' headquarters.
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Ceven absolutely wants to hear Shalelu's thoughts; she's done this type of work to protect Sandpoint for a really really long time.
Shalelu says, "This cat lead us here for a reason. It's obviously not wild. I would presume the it's master is on this farm, which means it is in danger. We should not rush foolishly in, but we should act quickly."
An opaque spider web... Estella wonders about its purpose. When Shalelu offers her insight, she nods.
"Sounds like a plan to me. Move in carefully. However, I will say that the spiderweb sounds... suspicious. Not to split us up for too long, but perhaps a few of us could go up the roof and see if they can take care of it before they come back and we enter together?"
"I'm just a tad worried that whatever's inside might use it to their advantage. Perhaps it's being used to prevent light from coming in," she thinks out loud.
An opaque spider web... Estella wonders about its purpose. When Shalelu offers her insight, she nods.
"Sounds like a plan to me. Move in carefully. However, I will say that the spiderweb sounds... suspicious. Not to split us up for too long, but perhaps a few of us could go up the roof and see if they can take care of it before they come back and we enter together?"
"I'm just a tad worried that whatever's inside might use it to their advantage. Perhaps it's being used to prevent light from coming in," she thinks out loud.
"This is a sound idea, and one thing I do NOT have is any fire. Going up above the rook and raining some fire down to clear things a little bit could really help. The cat's master could be stuck there, anyone could be from the looks of it."
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"If the cat's master is inside the barn, fire is not a good idea. Spiderwebs are extremely flammable, we might burn the person we're trying to rescue along with the spider. I suggest checking the house first. If the cat's master is there, we can burn down the barn with impunity."
Tarphrex points at the fetishes along the path. ”What do big dolls mean? Tarphrex wonder if they have magic…”
He casts detect magic on the nearest, but he still is trying to make sure he is out of sight from anyone in either building.
Cev winks out of sight, and then hovers just overhead about 15' -- surprise & distraction can be important.
"Well, if fire is what you need, both me and Ain can surely help with that..." Sherman notes, being so far content just to listen to the plans.
"But fire does what it wills - besides the spider webs we might end up burning the whole house."
not all fire is deadly, mine can heal if i so will it. But if you need something burned, simply point and i shall unleash divine flame
@Ceven: There is a partial upper floor, likely an attic or loft.
The first floor has two entrances. A door off the front porch (that'd be the "right" side of the house, opposite of where you're conversing) and a smaller door on the "top" side, likely a kitchen door.
There are several windows on almost every part of the house as well, but they're all boarded up.
Tarphrex’ eyes open wide. ”Maybe little ogre-people put traps in yard like catch kitty. Not flying, watch where foot go!”
Estella listens to Tarphrex and looks over the fetishes as well, seeing if they look familiar in some way.
@Tarphrex: The fetishes are to far from where you're huddled to be in the cone. So you sneak over there, going the long way so as not to have to roll. They do not detect as magic.
@Estella: The only thing that comes to mind is that they serve as territory markers and as a warning to others to stay away.
@Tarphrex:
"Tarphrex not see magic on big dolls. We go or we watch?"
"We shall be no wiser, sitting here. Perhaps we should just approach carefully, looking out for any traps." Sherman says. He is not the one for scouting or silent approaches. So just walking in is the best he can come up with.
"Shal, is there a way to encourage the cat to take us further? I'm not exactly the cat whisperer here, but I am almost sure she knows where she wants us to go."
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"Tarphrex get closer..." The tiny kobold stays among the trees and works around the clearing to position the barn between himself and the house. He creeps out into the grass moving toward the barn.