Deldrin holds his finger to the air. "Wind is out of the southwest. This is as good of a place as any to burn them." He looks to the loggers "would you two be so kind as to tell the other men to bring the bodies here to be burned?"
One logger heads east, one west to tell the others.
Rhen grumbles harder as he sees that he spend most of his own time galloping around on the stupid pony trying to move around faster. Eventually he does a circuit of the town before heading in with everyone else.
"So what do ye all plan ta do bout yer undead problem?" Rhen asks as he stows his short sword.
Ranok hears the mention of free drink from somewhere behind him. "Maybe we should regroup before heading out. Meeting of the minds and all that. Khonsu, you'd better come with me this time. If they're not okay with you now they're not like to be." Ranok turns to head back to the group gathered.
Ranok looks back up to Zeira as he turns back to town. "That was good work back there Zeira. Thought they might have had me once. Couldn't move. We deserve a drink."
Niu shrugs. "Regrouping is a good idea. We might want to move on before these Heroes of Falcon's Hollow arrive, though.
So called heroes are always trying to see if you weigh the same as a goose from some reason. It is really quite disturbing."
"Hmmph. I obviously weigh more than a goose. And I think that we are those heroes. Wait, you're being sarcastic. Are you being sarcastic?"
Niu arches an eyebrow as he peers at Ranok. "We? Heroes? Certainly not.
All we did was pillage an Azlanti tomb at the request of one villain attempting to get revenge against another villain. We almost got ourselves turned into a worse undead menace than either of the villains in question.
Come to think of it, we are probably the reason this undead swarm attacked the town.
Does getting paid to do an evil man's bidding make you a hero, or protecting yourself from the direct results of those actions?"
Niu's shoulders slump and he sighs. "No, I don't think that it does, and I'd rather not have that weight on my shoulders. We do need to get to the bottom of this undead swarm, though. Especially if these are from some graveyard other than the town's.
So, let us return to speak with the locals and learn what they might know before we go off to search for answers on our own."
Cirthana joins you after healing the wounded. She dismounts from Ginger and begins inspecting the zombies.
The loggers eventually drag the zombie remains to the burning spot. They begin adding logs and tinder to the pile.
"Moral paradoxes aside Niu, we saved alot of people today" She says tending to her horse as well as looking at the others all glowing and sweating.
"So if we are the cause of this we must investigate it" She says as she then looks at Niu and smiles.
"And if we are not we still investigate it so that no more come to raze the town!" She says not liking the fact these horrible undead scourges seek to harm and kill.
" First though drinks, then rest while we reequip our stores for a journey and investigation followed by us fortifying this place and maybe have Festia give some drills to the lumberjacks" She says as she finishes her once over for her horse and then nods."So let's get that drink"
Shaking his head, Niu continues to deflect. "I think Ranok would agree that the town saved us, rather than the other way around.
Regardless, you should definitely go celebrate with the townsfolk. It will boost their spirits. I will stay out here for a while."
Walking over to Lady Cirthana, Niu begins examining the corpses as well.
"Lady Cirthana, I am not sure that I ever properly thanked you for organizing healing for us. So... Thank you. I am uncomfortable being indebted to a mortal, yet the debt is undeniable."
Awkwardly changing the subject, he prods at one of the ghouls. "The gravedigger feels that these corpses did not come from his graveyard. This begs multiple questions. What happened to the bodies that did rise from his graveyard and where did these come from?
The more important question of how these were risen will likely come out of exploring the first two. I see two possible leads. One being to investigate the local graveyard and possibly following the undead that were raised there. The other would be to find the origin of these bodies and look for clues there.
Have you any idea where these might have come from?"
Niu notices something is not quite right.
DC 10 Knowledge (history) check.
Some of them are dressed in recognizably old styles of clothing (that is, those wearing more than just rags or a torn funereal shroud). These people died a very long time go. Some of the better-preserved ones look like they were embalmed.
"Lady Cirthana, these clothes seem to be quite an old style and some of the bodies have been embalmed. Is embalming common in Andoren?
Regardless, this would seem to be a clue to where they came from. Do you know of any nearby cemetaries from Aroden times or before?"
"I have heard that some of the wealthier have their bodies embalmed, Niu of Osirion. I am not aware of any other cemeteries in the area. Verrin Tieruk, are you aware of any other cemeteries near Falcon's Hollow?"
"N-n-no, Melady. Only cemetery in these parts is mine. I own it you know. The land and the house. That's quite a nice sword you have there."
Rhen lets Niu talk for a bit before chiming in. "Aye we should be startin' close then headin' out. No reason ta not look here in the graveyard then go from there." Rhen turns to Verrin "Do ye think all yer corpses got up and walked away or just some o' them?"
Niu hums lightly to himself as he considers the mystery. "I suppose there is little option other than to follow their backtrail."
Bidding the Lady a good day, Niu looks around for Sharvaros. If he is not around, he goes in search of him. "Mr. Vade, you mentioned that you had dabbled in necromancy. During your dabbling, did you ever go in search of ancient graveyards to attempt speaking with those having a bit more historical information?"
Verrin responds to Rhen "It all happened so fast like....I don't know. Theys ain't here and they was going this a way and that a way. Mines musta gone the other way. I be glad ta show yuh my yard. Yah can even stay at me home ifn ya want. You sure are a short one."
Sharvaros replies to Niu in that unpleasant voice with a scowl on his face "Never. I thought I could bring my beloved back to life. The art is dark and has its cost. The benefits are not there. Had I only known Gravagos before I burned her body, she would be with us now." The grouchy man is apparently overcome by the memories and walks away from you.
"so, we either go to Verrin's graveyard to see where his dead went, or followbthese tracks to see where these undead came from? We can always follow these tracks later, we should find the rest of the undead from Verrin's graveyard first I think."
Gravagos joins his friend as the two head back to The Sitting Duck.
"You are as wise as you are mystical, Ranok The Mystical. I have one fighter that was bitten and fear some sort of terrible infection. I must leave you and tend to him. May Iomedae be with you." She mounts her horse and heads into town.
Rhen's face goes red when called short. "Ye pale faced long legged...I ain't short, ye never seen' o' Dwarf 'efore?"
"Ain't never. Yer a dwarve? That's okay with me watever that being. Wanna see me yard? This away. I do like yer sword. It be short too." Verrin draws a an axe handle with a nail hammered through it. "C'mon." He heads north on the road.
Zeira nods as she listens."Seems legitimate about the tracking, however, the city needs to be at the ready to shut off access should more stir"
Rhen bites his tongue hard to not spout some profanities at the "special" human. "Aye lead on ye, that way I can be runnin' away afore ye if yer collection o' dead come back."
"So, we aren't staying for the celebrations?", Niu asks, attempting to sound disappointed.
"Very well, then. We have to investigate one or the other first. The recent graveyard is a fine place to start."
Does Niu have a horse? If so, he'll retrieve it and fall in with the others.
As far as I know, you and Ranok do not have horses. No problem purchasing them in this town if you so choose. You certainly have the time to do so before tracking. Don't forget the equipment and feed.
Does Niu have a horse? If so, he'll retrieve it and fall in with the others.As far as I know, you and Ranok do not have horses. No problem purchasing them in this town if you so choose. You certainly have the time to do so before tracking. Don't forget the equipment and feed.
Sheriff Baleson replies to Ziera "Thank you for your concern and your aid in battle. We will be fine. We have been here a long time before you arrived. I suspect we will still be here on your return." He smiles and tips his hat to her.
It is an hour’s walk to Verrin’s home. The corpseman alternates between angry silence at the violation of his graveyard, wild speculation about
its causes (demons, warlocks, and Chelaxians top his list of suspects), and amazed descriptions of things he saw during the battle at Falcon’s Hollow (most of which you witnessed or caused).
The corpseman leads you up the north road, which quickly bears northwest. The dirt road is easy to follow, and twin ruts from wheels show where many carts and wagons have carried supplies and workers to the forest to work for the Lumber Consortium. He grumbles about having to walk “Damn zombies scared off my cart mule, I’ll be lucky to get her back” . About an hour out of town Verrin turns onto a less-used, wheel-rutted trail that leads into an area of sparse saplings “Them Erastil priests planted, said something about regrowing the forest” .
Trying to be sociable, he invites you to stay the night at his home if you feel the need, even offering you a quick meal of bread and honey to strengthen them for more adventuring. However, as his cabin comes into sight between the saplings he starts to glower again, as he can see the door is wide open “I never leaves it open, raccoons get in and eat my food” . His home is little more than a shack, though he is not embarrassed by it—he owns it and the land it’s on, a rarity in these parts even if it doesn’t make him a wealthy man. Not only has the door been broken open, but also his place has been ransacked, with the food stores in particular scattered about (all the meat is gone). Nearby, the half-eaten corpse of a mule attracts a cloud of flies. A mule cart lies overturned behind the cabin. Upon seeing the state of his home and mule, Verrin flies into a tantrum and angrily kicks the side of his shack, complaining bitterly “Nothin’ good ever happens to me!” .
Niu looks around and feels an uncommon sensation of sympathy for the man. "Bad luck today simply means good luck in the future. Bes will protect and provide, in time."
Fishing 10 gold out of his pouch, Niu presses it into the man's palm. "Here. Go back to town and see if you can get a new mule and get started on replacing your supplies. We'll figure out what happenned here."
Looking at Khonsu, he asks the cat, "This must have happened recently. Can you find the scent of who did this?"
Going over to the mule, he examines it to determine what kind of wounds killed it.
“The Tieruk’s don’t take handouts, we’ve got our pride”. Looking at the damage, he changes his mind and permits himself to accept a gold piece. He hands Niu nine gold. "You are too kind."
It looks like the blunt force trauma you saw caused by zombies. You are pretty sure you have gotten a faint whiff or two of their distinct smell.
"Yer donkey there, what do ye all think could o' been killin' it and eatin' only half?" Rhen says approaching the Mule with his sword out.
"Had to be them zombies."
"Mr. Tieruk, you did us a great service by coming to warn the town. You allowed us to mobilize and prevented great damage to the town and saved many lives. In doing so, you suffered great harm to your property. Please, accept my gratitude."
Looking up from the corpse, Niu responds to Rhen.
"It does appear to be the work of zombies.
I agree with you, Rhen, seeing a half eaten creature seems odd. Maybe after the animal fully died, they no longer had any interest in it?
If that is the case, though, breaking into the shack and eating dead meat doesn't make much sense."
Standing, he begins looking about the entrance to the hut to see if there is any sign of tracks belonging to something other than the party or the zombies.
Niu finds that the zombie footprints pass around and beyond Verrin’s home and proceed a little west of true north.
Verrin smiles and puffs his chest. " Gratitude accepted!"
Zeira follows on her horse ready to go should someone need to rush back to town.
"Seems these zombies are ravenous. Tell me Verrin are there any other farmers or smaller towns nearby. I suspect they are hungry and wish tp consume things"
"No farmers, no nothing. Just my house and my cemetery."
Rhen looks around as well hoping to find other tracks. "So we just be followin' them tracks and see what they be leadin' us to?' Rhen offers
Verrin says "I’ll go back to town and tell everyone that you are following the zombies north. You are welcome to stay at my home, such as it is."
3:00 PM, Neth, Fireday. Two days after the New Moon
Sunrise: 6:32am, Moonrise: 9:26am, Sunset: 4:40pm, Moonset: 7:35pm
High 42, low 35. Partly Cloudy.
The trail is less than a day old, and with the number of undead in the traveling mob, the Survival DC to track them is only 9, easy enough for even an unskilled person to follow and clear enough that a reasonably skilled tracker can follow them at normal speed instead of half speed (-5 penalty to the check). Any experienced tracker can recognize (Survival DC 15) that these tracks were made by undead.
A few miles after Verrin’s graveyard you find another set of northward-pointing tracks that runs parallel to Verrin’s clients and eventually merges with them. Eventually you reach the stream that bisects Darkmoon Wood. The break in the treeline is a welcome change from the oppressive atmosphere, but only slightly. A few fish float belly-up on the shallow banks of the stream but others swim by and seem healthy. Beyond the stream the trail becomes very easy to track for about a hundred feet, then the water dries, the ground firms up, and the trail becomes easy again rather than ridiculously easy. The woods on the north side of the stream are spookier than the south side. Instances where the trail splits off to maul some animal are less frequent and eventually stop. By the time you reach this area, Rhen recognizes the campsite they made when Jeva was with him. He knows they are headed in the direction of old dwarven monastery. The sun is setting.
"How far is it to this monastery, Rhen, if that is where you think the tracks are going.
I am fine to carry on, but I imagine the rest of you could use a break for dinner. If the monastery is far, this might be the best place to set up camp."
"This seems too convenient." Ranok says as he peruses the area.
"Khonsu, do you sense any danger?"
Using his sense of scent, Khonsu will slink off to see if he can pick anything up, other than faint undead whiffs.
Khonsu, apparently, has a bug up his nose and a dead leaf stuck under each of his paws.
You detect no danger. Rhen recalls it was a full day's hike to the monastery from here.