Nilaglade relaxes and lets the spirit do what it wishes. Deroff seems nervous, but seeing Nilaglade is okay with the situation, he only lets out a short, low growl followed by a muffled whimper.
The rest of you see the snow suddenly fall to the floor, the shape disappears, and Nilaglade's breath becomes shallow and fast. As if dumped into cold water.
The memory ends and you come back to your own senses, everyone staring, curious as of to what just transpired.
|
Nilaglade recovers his breath and opens his eyes, petting Deroff a bit roughly.
"The caravan. Walking... trees were attacking it? Like they were trying to get what was inside. I think our Pathfinder friends were overwhelmed and fled."
He looks up to his teammates, a bit more serious than usual. "A Kitsune commanded the trees and then pilfered the caravan. You know, humanoid with a fox head and tail? Anyway, seems their big catch was a bonsai tree."
"Does anyone recognize the walking pine trees?"
"Alright, let's keep moving."
|
"At the risk of sounding intelligent, I think that the walking pine trees are arboreal wardens, kind of the rangers of arboreal society. They are itinerant and have an innate curiosity about the woodlands where they live, and rarely stop to take root and rest in the same part of the forest twice. They aren't bad in a fight but they know better than to confront dangerous foes on their own. They normally report any dangers to other arboreal creatures. Sometimes loads of them get together to make a travelling copse. Which sounds quite cool." Eldon takes a bite of a sandwich and looks for a drink in his pack.
As you discuss and move further along the spirit road, Nilaglade feels a strange familiarity to the surrounding forests. He can tell what's the next set of bends on the road, and can swear he had seen it before. Lokaloka's song lures in another apparition. Again, it quietly moves in closer as the snow particles cling to it.
You could ignore it, or wait until it comes closer to merge minds. Any takers?
|
Honzak, intrigued by the first apparition, watches it merge with Nilaglade with avid interest. "Huh, no noticable sounds? Interesting. I wonder if they are all like that? Do they have a preferred kind of music or sound?" He quizzes Nilaglade about the whole thing as the group moves on, even summoning an orchestra of spectral instruments to try seeing if any specific kinds please or displease the combined Nilaglade/spirit. He even ropes in Dimitsi to reproduce some more Tian specific sounds that the gnome can't visually well enough to reproduce magically.
When the second one approaches from the forest, Honzak jumps at the chance and offers Dimitsi to the apparition, curious if it can merge with an extraplanar being... or if his own essence traveling through Dimitsi would shunt the spirit to the gnome.
Dimitsi approaches the spirit cautiously and stops a few feet away. The spirit moves towards Dimitsi, observes him for a while, and suddenly disappears as their forms merge. Again, the snowflakes fall to the floor, since whatever was supporting them is no longer present.
After your interaction with the spirits, Nilaglade and Dimitsi feel a strange familiarity with the forest surroundings. As if they knew which way to go, which side of the fork to take, and generally acting as if they have been in the area several times before. Your progress hastens as you move through the mostly featureless, snow-covered spirit road.
A few hours of travel later, you start seeing tracks in the snow. Horseshoes, wagon wheels, and footsteps. Not long after, you notice what seems to be torn clothing or rags hanging on some of the more protruding branches above the road itself. At the same time, the distance between individual footsteps and horseshoes increases.
You turn a corner and see a partially loaded cart with no horses or any other beast of burden to be seen. A faint smell of smoke hits your nostrils, and you hear voices from the road ahead. Just beyond the partially loaded cart, you notice another one that is completely empty, content either spilled in the trees nearby or collected. The cart itself, however, is in terrible shape. One of its wheels is completely fallen apart near a rock on the side of the road, and the entire axis is in shambles underneath the cart itself. Instead, parts of the wagon are chopped off or broken, and missing.
As you approach the crossroads, you notice several humans with Tian features looking towards your direction. Some of them have weapons drawn, but most attempt to retreat back toward the one wagon that still seems functional. Originally huddled around the fire, the caravan members have heard you approaching and are getting ready for another ambush. Two members of the caravan, based on the description you have, are Lin Po and Ti Lan. They do seem wounded, as are multiple other caravaneers, but will pull through.
Happy to finally see someone coming to their rescue, they throw up their arms with excitement. But not a moment too soon, as rustling sounds coming from the underbrush towards the north interrupt the celebration.
Several creatures are approaching, and from the faint sight you have of them, they seem like walking trees. Their bark has partially fallen off as it cracked from all the movement, and each of them sporting at least two arm-shaped branches ready to strike whoever is foolish enough to come close. They move slowly, although clearly with menacing intent, and they almost seem to growl as they do.
The people who initially huddled around the fire continue to retreat beyond the one functional wagon. Lin Po shouts in your direction as he awkwardly starts to reach for his crossbow: "Friends! Explanations will come later. Please help us hold off these creatures! Most of us are badly wounded!"
Caravan Defense, Round 1 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn
Eldon
Gympie
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Green
Thalaasi
Honzak
Magenta
Cyan
Red
Caravan
Yellow
The party moves into defensive positions, and Nilaglade even strikes one of the animated trees with two arrows. Bark flies off as the arrows go through it, but the trees meander on and slowly encroach on the party and the wagons once again.
Caravan Defense, Round 1 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Green (-10 HP / broken)
Thalaasi
Honzak
Magenta
Cyan
Red
Caravan
Yellow
|
|
Honzak pulls out his dagger baton and starts to cast a spell as Dimitsi moves forwards into a defensive position.
Honzak hums some sort of religious hymn as he gestures with his baton and burns some incense. After a few seconds a small orchestra of spectral musical instruments appears around him, picking up the tune of his hymn and turning it into a dirge.
Thalaasi's arrow flies off into the distance, not even scratching the aggressive, advancing flora.
Honzak and Dimitsy also move towards the front line, Honzak summoning several instruments to hover nearby, playing a musical piece in unison.
Caravan Defense, Round 2 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn
Broken down wagons and the treeline areas are difficult terrain.
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Green (-10 HP / broken)
Thalaasi
Honzak
Magenta
Cyan
Red
Caravan
Yellow
|
|
"Deroff, give me some space." The wolf bites down on the moving tree with deep Yellow leaves before getting some space.
Nilaglade pets him. "Good boy." Then he takes aim.
If the deep Yellow tree is still moving, he'll takes another shot.
Otherwise he saves the arrow and focuses on the tree with Red leaves.
The party starts rolling out the big guns. Deroff snaps at one of the trees, but it seems it was more of an intimidation attempt, then moves towards the caravaneers. As he does so, the tree Deroff attacked decides to follow, but stops halfway behind them. Nilaglade fires two arrows at the pursuer as he rides his trusty hound. One strikes and embeds itself into the bark, but the other goes wide and ends up in the pines to the east.
Gympie shows Deroff how it's done and bites into the other tree with his mouth aflame. The walking tree flails the branches as the bark catches fire. Soon afterwards, it is merely a pile of ashes in the middle of the crossroads.
Eldon shoots toward the amalgamation of trees, but the arrowhead doesn't strike anything. Meanwhile, Lokaloka starts playing an invigorating melody that ends up causing small rocks to fly at the trees and strike. Another walking tree goes down as a result.
The green-needled tree moves up to Gympie and decides to wack the gnoll across the face. But Gympie is evasive enough to only have the branch strike the cold soil.
Caravan Defense, Round 2 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn in round 6
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Green (-10 HP / broken)
Thalaasi
Honzak
Magenta
Cyan
Red
Caravan
Yellow
|
|
Honzak and Dimitsi both move closer to the fight striding forward with the same breath. Honzak orchestrates the movements and his summoned plethora of instruments around with his conductor's baton as Dimitsi gets up next to the plant creatures.
The summoner then starts to conduct the spiritual instruments to start playing a haunting melody inspired by a dirge from the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, trying in particular to attract the attention of the green creature and make it flat-footed to Dimitsi's attack.
While it doesn't seem like Honzak's music is doing much to the creatures, Dimitsi simply walks up and cleaves the trunk in two. The tree's green leaves fall off as the rest of the animated wood drops to the floor, leaving only two remaining.
Thalaasi fires a set of arrows. One finds purchase, the other misses wildly. (magenta)
To return the favour, the two remaining trees go to town at Dimitsi. The eidolon evades most of the attacks, but takes two solid hits among the chaos.
Caravan Defense, Round 2 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn in round 6
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Green
Thalaasi
Honzak + Dimitsi (- 13 hp)
Magenta (-8 hp / broken)
Cyan
Red
Caravan
Yellow
|
|
Gympie maneuvers beside Dimitsi before suddenly appearing in the brush to attack the nearest creature.
◆ Stride
◆ Dimensional Assault (Teleport 15 feet and strike magenta)
plus 3 fire.
(Spellstrike is recharged)
◆ Strike (if magenta is down, stride two where I am flaking Cyan with Dmitsi.)
plus 3 fire.
The party assaults the animated trees again, but only one attempt manages to land a strike. Gympie does it again, and bites at the bark with his burning fangs.
The tree holds on for dear life - bark falling off, sap pouring out, and leaves dropping everywhere, but is still walking.
Caravan Defense, Round 2 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until beginning of Loka's turn in round 6
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Thalaasi
Honzak + Dimitsi (- 13 hp)
Magenta (-15 hp / broken)
Cyan
Caravan
Nilaglade fires an arrow at one of the trees. It strikes square in the middle of the trunk and splits it, causing a long fissure in the tree. It collapses to the floor. Only one walking tree remains.
The other arrow flies toward the last tree, but it manages to move out of the way. Despite the sedimental lifestyle.
Caravan Defense, Round 2 - bolded can go
Conditions - Inspire Courage until the beginning of Loka's turn in round 6
Eldon
Gympie (Shield)
Nilaglade
Lokaloka
Thalaasi
Honzak + Dimitsi (- 13 hp)
Cyan
Caravan
With two quick strikes, Dimitsi slashes the trunk of the last standing tree twice, sap bursts from underneath the bark and the tree slowly stops moving altogether and only collapses once Dimitsi pulls out the scythe from the creature. It slumps into the snow, and the forest goes quiet.
A few curious heads look from beyond the undamaged cart to see what's up with the sudden silence.
|
|
Nilaglade moves to the trunks and jabs them with his longsword for good measure. Just to be sure. Deroff woofs and ruffles a bit to get his attention. "Right, the caravan." The vision's memories continue to cloud his judgement.
"Everyone, we repelled the invaders. We're from the Pathfinder Society. We're looking for two people, Lin Po and Ti Lan."
From behind the wagon, both Lin Po and Ti Lan aim their crossbows in the direction of the fork. Seeing that you managed to handle the situation, they both look at each other and sigh with relief. They gesture to you to come closer and put away their weapons. Ti Lan remains vigilant, but Lin Po moves to meet you halfway, arms stretched wide above his prominent belly. He has a few bruises on his skin, and cuts and dents on his hardened leather armour. "Friends! Thank you! This would have been the third wave of these terrible, aggressive trees. I don't think we would manage to fend off another one. Again, thank you. Come, come! Let's sit by the fire to warm ourselves. Thankfully, we didn't lose anyone just yet. But it's been - quite a predicament."
Ti Lan nods at you with her broad shoulders and muscular figure. She seems in better shape but still sustained a few injuries.
Once you sit down near the fire, Lin Po throws some wood on the fire and tries to warm his hands. In total, there are 8 people here. Most are injured to various degrees, but with the exception of the two pathfinder agents, they seem more like merchants than mercenaries by trade. They address you in what seems to be a thankful manner, but it seems they only speak Tian. After a few attempts, they give up trying to communicate. Your Tian colleagues interpret a few sentences to explain the situation.
"We were moving our cargo to Captain Li when the kami in the artefact started to communicate.", the bubbly man starts explaining.
"It seems the spirit is trapped in the bonsai we were transporting, and I think it was afraid that someone else... some malicious entity in the forest would try to capture it. Not sure if we are able to help, we tried communicating back, and the kami said that its ward was close by. It tried to guide us, and we strayed off the path with good intentions.", Lin Po lets out a sigh. "We were attacked by these terrible aggressive trees, and the artefact was stolen during the ambush. A kitsune took it and ran away while we were fighting for our bare lives. We lived through the assault and tried to follow the guidance of the spirits to get back to the main road. We even saw the kitsune a few times - just out of reach - but were not able to catch up. Damaged wheel on one cart, and it's a slippery bugger, that one."
"Then we fought off another attack, and we lost the kitsune completely. The creature destroyed two of our wagons, and we were sitting here since. That was a few hours ago, and then the third group of trees arrived just as you showed up."