"Kiley... we need a healer for her," Rutliux says looking at the others, as their team mate seems about to die any minute"I'm no healer and I don't have a potion. Sasha?"
Sasha cries out at the sight of Kiley being thrown about, shocked at the brutal attack. Snapped out of it by the cries of her other companions she rushes over to the tiefling and casts a spell. "Selûne, cure her wounds, please!" she begs as she touches the other woman, carefully avoiding the worst of the wounds with her hands...
damage healed.
Sasha then moves to cradle Kiley's head in her lap gently, checking for breathes before continuing to heal the swordswoman's wounds.
damage healed.
damage healed.
Kiley sucks in a great gulp of air as Sasha channel's Selune's divine power into mending the mortal wounds she received from the wolf. She coughs and heaves violently as her body fights to clear her lungs of the blood that had been filling them. She spits out a worrying amount onto the stone of the cavern before collapsing back onto the ground with her head in Sasha's lap. Her breathes come in deep, ragged gasps and sighs. Her eyes flutter open as she comes fully back and catches her breath.
"D-did I die," she asks in a soft, scared voice.
"if you did, Sasha is severely underselling her abilities." He assures with a smile "No, it was a close call, but she kept you from the last door's crossing."
Shaggar puts his headsman's axe to good use and cleaves off the wolf's head... venting some of his concern.
Ari lets out a sigh of relief as Kiley jolts back into consciousness. She can't do much here so steps back to allow some space.
"Are you ok?" she asks Shaggar, gesturing at the silvery fluid that is spattered all over him. "I generally prefer bubbles and something sweet-smelling when I'm taking a bath."
"Rutilux," she says, a thought coming to her. "I once knew a wizard - very neat and tidy, a bit too fastidious for my tastes if I'm honest. Sorry, I'm wandering from the point, which is that he was forever casting this spell which would brush him down and give him a clean and polish. I don't suppose you know something similar that could help remove all of this," she waves her arm at the gnoll, "from Shaggar?"
"Oh certainly, use it to keep my clothes looking nice before a sale and the like." He does wonder "But do we need a sample first? I ... well, in case there is something, what's the academic human word.... 'hinky' about it?"
Kiley looks up at Sasha's face seeking confirmation. It seems she's the only that was hurt if what she hears is anything to go by.
"Sh-shaggar? Is he--" she starts to ask, but fear chokes off the rest of the question.
"I am well, Kiley." He looks at the halfling, "We have a sample of it. So, unless you wish to deal with the consequences of how it might transform me... get it off."
Sahsa can feel the tension in Kiley's body leave as she hears Shaggar say he's well.
"Oh dear, I missed that. Your pardon." There's a blast of wind and the smell of ozone, and the silver blood is wiped away from Shaggar.
Shaggar is now clean, though his fur maybe a bit upright now, " Done. The static cling will clear up in a few seconds."
Shaggar's fur puffing up only serves to make the gnoll somehow look even more imposing, though Ari hides a smirk as the image of a freshly bathed dog wanders through her mind.
With the immediate threat and its repercussions dealt with, Ari snaps back into defence mode. Returning to her pack, she pulls out a rag, wiping down first one and then the other of her daggers. She does not sheathe them, however. Keeping a wary eye out, she starts to properly take in their surroundings and poke around for anything interesting.
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"No, by the grace of our goddess, you live," Sasha answered with obvious relief. She doesn't move Kiley, allowing the recently-near-dead woman to get herself back under full control and confidence before moving.
For his part, Pheliks looks at Kiley with a largely unreadable expression as he comes up close and rubs his forehead against her. It's not gentle, given the large cat's size, but it's gentle for him. "He's worried about you and confused. His head is the only one that usually goes in my lap, but with a near-death experience you get to be an exception," explains the oracle with a smirk at her animal companion.
From the floor of the cavern Sasha looks up at the others patiently, though she doesn't look comfortable sitting among the bones and other detritus. "We've done good here. Definitely relieved the village of a dangerous - and evil - predator. But this isn't everything, I'm sure of it. That silver liquid is certainly part of this problem, though that monster may have been killing long before this ooze came onto the scene."
Kiley's first attempt to get back on her feet doesn't even make it past getting her head off Sasha's lap before dizziness has her abandoning the attempt. Pheliks' nuzzling, while a little forceful due to his size, is enough to cheer the young woman up immensely. She laughs when Sasha explains her companion's actions.
"Are you sure it's not the ears and tail," she jests as she pets Pheliks between the ears and tries to sit up again as she senses the priestess' discomfort. She has to pause a couple of times, but she does get back on her feet with a little help from the tiger.
"Where did the silver stuff come from," she asks when she gets a better look at the talking wolf. "And is this the right monster? Did Amos' journal say if it walked on two legs or four?"
Rutilux decides to save ANY chance of confusion about what details they do have, and reads directly from the journal "Entry 1: 17th of Uktar
Today was bad. Woke up to find my best cow, Bessie, dead in the field. Her throat was tore out, meat taken from her. Seen wolf attacks before, but this was different. Bigger, more savage. Worried 'bout the rest of the herd.
Entry 2: 21st of Uktar
Another attack last night. Two cows this time, killed same way. Whatever it is, it's strong and smart. Been hearing strange howls in the distance. Villagers whisperin' 'bout werewolves. Don't wanna believe it, but what else?
Entry 3: 23rd of Uktar
Attacks getting worse. Three more cows dead this morning. Doubled the fencing, bringing the cows into the barn at night. Nothin' stops it. Howling is closer now. Saw something big and dark at the edge of the forest, but it disappeared quick. Afraid for my farm.
Entry 4: 25th of Uktar
Villagers sure it's a werewolf now. The lady up at the manor says she seen it near her house. Huge, black creature with glowing eyes, she said. Keeping a crossbow by my bed now, but feel helpless. What if it comes for me next?
Entry 5: 27th of Uktar
Found tracks today. Big and wolf-like, but too big for any wolf. Followed them to the forest, but they disappeared like the beast vanished. Howling at night is unbearable. Villagers say call a hunter, but who would believe me or help?
Entry 6: 28th of Uktar
Saw the creature last night. Not a wolf or any animal I know. Massive, with glowing red eyes. Looked like a demon from old tales, not anything I've ever seen before. What else could it be? Gonna leave a trap for it, see if I can't end this for good."
After done wwith that, he uses another cantrip on any one else , including Pheliks if need be to remove the silver blood.
Shaggar puts the wolf's decapitated head to one side, away from the pool. "Leave that until the silver has drained out." Then, like Ari, he begins a search of the room including looking into the water of the pool.
"Thanks, Ruti," Kiley says with a sheepish smile. "I think this thing certainly matches that description. I'm not much of a tracker, so could someone who is check to see if its paws are the right size?"
The wolf's head continues to drain silver blood for a few more minutes before finally the flow of the weird liquid stops.
Ari and Shaggar manage to work together to uncover what can be found in the giant wolf's lair. Most of the floor is littered with bones and other remains (clothes and the like), but one particular corner of the cave sits a large pile of debris and sticks crafted to create a small nest-like area. Strewn about inside are a number of small objects and coin, amounting to 256 GP and 43 SP in total. The smaller objects include an intricately carved wooden scroll case, a tarnished silver holy symbol of Selune, a trio of masterwork shortswords that were most likely made in the same place, and a small gem encrusted metal case that looks to have been scratched and clawed but not cracked open.
And yet, that's not all. Shaggar, with his sharp eyes and claws, manages to uncover a second lair of the nest underneath the top one. More goblin bones form the outer edge of this second lair, and Shaggar finds another 315 GP scattered throughout it. These coins are obviously older than the previous coins, but are still recognizable as spendable currency. Another group of weapons sit amongst the coin, though they have long since rusted in the moisture inside this room.
As Shaggar looks down into the water, he can clearly see something laying on the bottom of the pool. It appears to be a carved log about the size of his forearm, but he can't make out much else.
Kiley stays close to Pheliks, her hands absently petting and scratching the tiger as she follows him around. She's feeling more steady on her feet, but her brush with death has taken a lot out of her. As she waits for the others to finish searching the room, she turns to Sasha.
"Thank you again for saving my life," she says. "As much as I want to see my momma and papa again, I don't think I'm ready to die yet."
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Looking around at the gathered loot, Ari has a sense of unease. It might be simply a lack of knowledge on her part; maybe something sinister, maybe not a concern. She gives voice to it, hoping that one of the others will confirm it's the latter. "I know the creature spoke, and talking wolves have not until this point been a major part of my life, but is it weird to find so much coin here? Like, has it deliberately collected it because it values it - or at least knows other beings do - or is simply that its victims had it and it just accumulated it?" She pauses a second, before venturing a third option. "Or perhaps someone - or something - is in charge and tasked it with amassing a small fortune? Anybody want to put my mind at ease here?"
Coming over to stand by Shaggar as he gazes down into the pool, the gnoll alerts her to the log.
"I don't know for sure, but I think it was just incidental. I doubt someone would risk letting something valuable rust away like some of the weapons have," Kiley says. "And it's not that odd. Lots of monsters that prey on intelligent races tend to amass hoards like this from their victims. At least that's what my momma told me when I asked her about it."
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”So you’re saying they’re all basically wannabe dragons?” Ari grins.
Given the clarity of the water, a surprise given the surroundings, she starts to shed outer layers of clothing, ready to dive into the pool and retrieve whatever it is that had caught Shaggar’s attention. ”Only one way to find out what it is,” she preempts any querying looks or questions, ”but if one of you spellslingers could hurry up and tell me whether it’s going to hurl a lightning bolt at me when I touch it that would be appreciated. As much as you may be enjoying the view,” she wiggles her hips and waves her tail seductively from side to side, ”we’re into the dregs of Uktar so it’s not really the weather for a leisurely dip.”
Kiley chuckles at Ari's comment and grin.
"Aren't we all on some level," she asks.
When she sees Ari preparing to dive into the pool, she looks around at the others and sees that she and Shaggar are probably the only ones that could keep up with the rogue in the water.
"Hold on," Kiley tells Ari before she starts to disrobe as well. After a few minutes, she's standing next to the rogue in her underwear, with her shortsword in her hand, and her long hair is put up in a quick and messy bun. Her fur-covered and striped tail twitches nervously as she looks to the other tiefling and tries to ignore the heating of her cheeks.
"Well, I wasn't about to let you go in alone," she explains.
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Rutilux picks up on Ari's hint, and casts detect magic towards the pool. He returns a moderate auras of divination and necromancy.
Ari and Kiley begin the descent into the water and find the pool completely unremarkable, and easy to swim through. As the pair swim down through the clear water, the totem becomes larger and larger. Once they're close enough to touch they see that they are lucky to have brought two people, as the totem is actually nearly as tall as Ari herself is and made of thick wood.
The first person to touch it (presumably Ari) is suddenly overwhelmed by a wave of emotions shooting straight into their head.
Malrath is with you, and together you shall take them by surprise. They expect only you, not the other. He might not be a worg but he is strong. Useful. He was approached by the paleskin to eat the tribe and grow strong, and you have pledged yourself to him.
The cave entrance comes into sight finally as you sprint through the open forest. The two of you hardly pause before sprinting inside, and are upon the goblins in a moment. Claws tear through armor and bone, teeth rip through flesh. Flashes of combat separated by long periods of emptiness whir through your mind as you lose yourself in the bloodshed.
You only snap out of it as your jaws clamp around the last remaining goblin, the tribes' leader. His dying whimpers invigorate both you and Malrath, and the two of you feast upon the flesh of many goblins before the night is over.
This place will make a nice nest for the coming years, you think, as you rest your head on what remains of the goblin's beds before falling into a deep sleep.
Once the pair recovers from the vision one suffers and drags the large totem out onto the land, it is clear that the carvings on the log have been etched into the wood over many years.
There are many smaller scenes cut into the bottom half: wolves running through a forest, a strange 8-pointed star shaped device sitting on a pedestal, a head wearing a halo with liquid running from its eyes, the tips of a small crescent moon poking out from behind a large disk, an empty well surrounded by wisps of shadow, a massive castle seemingly deep underground, and a large lake with a single rowboat on it.
The largest image at the top of the totem depicts several wolf-headed figures kneeling before a large symbol at the top: a large spiral with a single line of chain cutting through it.
Shaggar examines the totem, particularly the 8-pointed star, the spiral and chain, and the wolf-headed figures.
The wolf headed figures are most likely werewolves, and the spiral and chain matches the same symbol that you’ve encountered before with the shipping crates. The star shape looks to be some sort of box, or a container for something? Beyond that, Shaggar can’t glean too much more without access to a source of more information.
Kiley reaches out as she and Ari reach the bottom of the pool and touches the wooden totem. Her eyes widen as a jolt of emotions, sensations, and memories strikes her mind like a thunderbolt. If not for the water, the fur on her tail would be standing on end. The pupils of her eyes narrow into slits as her jaw clenches and her lips pull back into a snarl. The bloodlust, the enjoyment as she sensed the goblins' fear, and the freedom of giving into the frenzy all rush through her. As contentment and a full belly lull her into sleep, she comes back to reality.
She barely remembers in time that she's at the bottom of the pool and keeps herself from taking in a lungful water. She doesn't know how long she was lost in the vision she'd seen, and some of the things she saw and felt disturb her. She shakes off any concern Ari shows and motions for her to help pull the totem loose from the bottom.
A few moments later, she is helping Ari drag the totem ashore as chills from more than the frigid water cause her to shiver. She lets Shaggar and Sasha look over it while she asks Rutilux if he could use his magic to dry her and Ari off so they could get dressed again.
Clothed and dry, Kiley pulls out her blanket and wraps it around Ari and herself.
"D-did you see anything when you touched it," she asks the other tiefling as they warm back up.
Kiley's hesitancy to disrobe is matched only by her speed in jumping into the water once she is ready. It took an awful lot of self-restraint on Ari's part not to playfully slap the other woman on the backside, but remembering her self-consciousness in the bathhouse she ultimately decides against it. Perhaps later when she has time to reflect she will chalk it up to personal growth. Or, more likely, simply another missed opportunity to forge bonds.
She is at least glad that Kiley seems to be back to normal quickly enough following her near-death experience. I hope she's not overcompensating, she thinks as she plunges in after her, catching up with a few quick strokes. As they reach the totem, far bigger than it appeared from the surface, something seems to happen to Kiley when she touches it. Ari immediately palms a dagger but whatever it was seems to have passed as quickly as it came and the other tiefling shakes her head and gestures for help to lift the heavy item. Together the two women haul it to the surface and drag it out of the water.
"Thanks," Ari says as she shares the blanket with her shivering companion. Her own hair is standing on end and puffing out to an impressive volume. "No. Though you don't have to be one of the Seven to work out that's what happened to you then. I was only joking when I mentioned being zapped by lightning, you know." She pauses a second, waiting to see whether Kiley will fill her in on what she saw, before her curiosity gets the better of her and asks, "Are you going to tell me?" before adding as an afterthought, "And are you ok?"
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Kiley curls up and leans against the taller woman as she asks her if she'll tell her and if she is okay.
"I-I am, and I don't know," she admits. "I-I saw a memory. I think it was of the wolf, or worg, I guess. It and someone else, I dunno, a wolf? A man who could turn into one? They came and slaughtered the goblins that lived here. Th-they fell into a rage, bloodlust. Th-they enjoyed it, reveled in it. The fear they caused, the taste of goblin blood and flesh, it was all so intoxicating."
She shivers again and pulls her end of the blanket tighter around herself and Ari as she shuffles in closer to Ari, like a scared young girl clinging to their older sister for support and reassurance.
"It scares me," she whispers just loudly enough for Ari to hear. "It scares me to know what that feels like and what it feels like to enjoy it. I-I-I know it wasn't me, th-that it was th-the worg."
Kiley screws her eyes shut as she buries her face in Ari's shoulder. A part of her is gone now, never to return, a part of the innocence she'd held onto through her time as a captive of the Zhentarim had been torn from her by that vision, and she felt guilty, unclean, violated. Her body shakes as she quietly sobs.
"I-I-I-I don't wanna lose myself like that, again," she whimpers, her voice muffled by Ari's shoulders and clothing.
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On many levels Ari is hard to catch off-guard. Years of having to fight her corner, to watch her back, trusting to herself and herself alone, means she is used to sleeping with one eye open and several knives within easy reach. This, however, is a totally different situation and she is taken unaware by the level of physical and emotional intimacy coming from Kiley right now. The former she can deal with on at least some level, even if it's different to the kind she would ordinarily seek out. The latter is something she would usually run from as quick as if somebody yelled "Incoming beholder attack!" But here she is.
Ari slips a slender arm around Kiley, pulling her in close and hoping that the vulnerable young woman can't pick up on the awkwardness she is currently feeling. "Shhh," she whispers. It would be fair to say Ari does not have any real maternal instinct but she makes soothing noises like she's seen parents do with crying babes and upset children and gently rubs Kiley's back.
She doesn't have an answer to all of it but Ari senses that this reaction is not solely due to the vision but has triggered some unpleasant memories from Kiley's past. "It wasn't real," she whispers in what she hopes is a gentle tone. "Trust me, if there's one thing I am familiar with it's illusions. I know how powerful they can be and how they can screw with your head. But it wasn't you." She gently touches her hidden tattoo with her other hand, offering silent thanks to the Mother of All Illusion that her training at the temple has at least given her a fair idea of what Kiley is going through.
"It's horrible to feel like that and how it messes you up. But it wasn't you. You're not going to lose it, ok?" She casts around for the right words, hoping that her usually smart tongue has not deserted her. "The fact that you're repulsed by it is how I know that. Having those emotions imposed on you, well it must have been tlarning horrible. But you didn't do those things and you're not going to. You're not a monster, Kiley."
As Ari rubs Kiley's back, the young woman calms down. Another memory, of a night eleven years ago when she'd woke screaming in pain as her body changed, comes back to her. Her mother had held her much the same way after the ordeal was over. Analee had also told Kiley she was no monster when the distraught young girl had asked if she was one. Other memories come with it, of her siblings.
"I could have been one," she says. "If my parents hadn't saved me from the Zhentarim, I don't know what I'd be. Broken? Mad? I just don't know." A soft sniffle sounds as she shifts and sits up. She looks up at Ari and grimaces as she realizes how badly the vision had shaken her.
"I'm sorry, Ari. You don't nee me crying on your shoulder. I just... What I felt, what I saw, it was soo real." Her eyes narrow as something she hadn't noticed before pratically leaps out at her. "Mairath. I don't remember hearing that name anywhere. Do you," she asks.
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"Perhaps. But they did. And like I said, you chose otherwise. Besides," Ari meets Kiley's eye and smiles slightly, trying to lighten the tone, "I've always been told monsters have blue skin, white hair and eat children."
"And, er, any time I guess. Any secrets you've told are between, you, me and Leira, and I'm not judging your reaction to something that would have shaken anyone up. I will, however, judge you if instead of drying your own tears you ask Rutilux for magical assistance."
Disengaging slightly, Ari puffs out her cheeks and thinks. "No..." she says carefully, "I don't think so. Would I be missing the mark if I were to surmise that it's a name connected to our silver-stained friend over there?" The tiefling gestures in the direction of the worg's corpse.
"Perhaps. But they did. And like I said, you chose otherwise. Besides," Ari meets Kiley's eye and smiles slightly, trying to lighten the tone, "I've always been told monsters have blue skin, white hair and eat children."
"I've met monsters before," Kiley says, her eyes suddenly dark as she remembers some of the Zhentarim she had been tormented by or had seen in action. [b]"You're not one of them." She lets out a nervous laugh. "When we're back someplace warm and cozy, remind me to tell you about one of the things Shaggar and I had to fight on our way to Baldur's Gate."
"And, er, any time I guess. Any secrets you've told are between, you, me and Leira, and I'm not judging your reaction to something that would have shaken anyone up. I will, however, judge you if instead of drying your own tears you ask Rutilux for magical assistance."
Kiley's laugh is more genuine this time.
"Tears aren't so bad. It's what causes them that can hurt," Kiley replies as she wipes away the tears that hadn't completed their course from her eyes down her cheeks. "Besides, the only reasons I asked him get us both dry was because the water was cold and freezing wet panties are the worst," she adds.
Disengaging slightly, Ari puffs out her cheeks and thinks. "No..." she says carefully, "I don't think so. Would I be missing the mark if I were to surmise that it's a name connected to our silver-stained friend over there?" The tiefling gestures in the direction of the worg's corpse.
Kiley shakes her head, all off the levity from earlier now gone.
"I think that Mairath was its partner. I dunno what he was, but he wasn't a worg. I think-- I think that the thing we fought was a worg."
She shivers again, despite being a lot more warmed up than she had been at the start of this conversation.
"I know that not all of them are bad, but what if Mairanth was a werewolf?"
Sasha smiles and laughs at the idea that Pheliks cares much about Kiley's ears. She nods in acceptance as the tiefling thanks her again, before settling down to watch the pair of women dive into the pool of water after the totem.
When it's clear that Kiley experienced something after touching the wooden object, Sasha considers the thing carefully (while giving the other two women space for their shared moment). Casting her own Detect Magic spell, considering the item for several long breaths , and then settling down to consider the carvings she does her best to try and make sense of it all...
Then she gingerly touches the totem, trying to divine a way to activate it manually...
"I know I'm not, of course," Ari deflects, "though it's sweet of you to say so."
Ari ponders the question of there being lycanthropes among them. "Well I suppose it's possible. It would certainly make it easier to hide in the village if you were a skinchanger. I do have one potentially large flaw in the theory though: the enormous moon pressing down on us all. Rumour and hearsay has it that werewolves change into slavering beasts at the full moon and there's no escaping the one hanging over Silvermoon Glade right now." She shrugs. "I think maybe we should open up this little conundrum to the others."
Rutuilux mutters 'nasty stuff' and wipes everyone with a minor cantrip to restore them clean and dry. He detects magic
Ari ponders the question of there being lycanthropes among them. "Well I suppose it's possible. It would certainly make it easier to hide in the village if you were a skinchanger. I do have one potentially large flaw in the theory though: the enormous moon pressing down on us all. Rumour and hearsay has it that werewolves change into slavering beasts at the full moon and there's no escaping the one hanging over Silvermoon Glade right now."
Ari recalls that while there are werewolves that are forcefully turned upon the full moon (which will be tomorrow if the calendar affects this strange place), natural-born werewolves have much more control over their forms and transformation.
Then she gingerly touches the totem, trying to divine a way to activate it manually...
Sasha examines the carved totem, and supposes that whatever is left of the massacred goblins' spirits migrated to the totem after they died and imparted the vision of their death onto it. She figures out a way to reactivate it by attuning with the wood, and can experience the vision herself if she so wishes.
Rutilux can attest that there are two kinds of werewolves: the bite infected kind that are force-changed on the full moon, and the natural born ones. He can't identify who this 'Malrath' is, but he knows enough about Selunite villages to suggest that there may be a center of knowledge somewhere that might have more info on any names that might be important. Not really a formal library so much as a collection of information, but it would be useful nonetheless.
Kiley nods, and gets to her feet before turning to Ari and helping her up if she accepts. She relays what she'd seen and learned to the others to see if they have any thoughts, but decides to keep what she felt through that vision between herself and Ari for the moment. Shaggar may have some insights, but she didn't want to worry Sasha and Rutilux, at least not now.
"So, do we head back," Kiley asks before looking at the totem and trying to figure out if they can move it easily enough or if it would be better to leave it someplace for safekeeping. She frowns as she really looks at it for the first time. The symbol and the wolf-headed figures were worrying enough, but as she studies the rest of it, she starts to wonder if there might not have been something always wrong with the Silvermoon Glade.
"Um, that symbol, isn't it the same one on those barrels with the silver insanity juice in them," she asks, a note of fear creeping into her voice. "And didn't the villagers say the well was running dry?"
Shaggar makes a clarifying point after hearing Kiley's narrative. "And you know the worg slept deeply and thought of years ahead, yes?" He nods, as if confirming the answer for himself.
"The old woman said the lunar well is drying up." The gnoll smooths the fur on his muzzle. "I think we need to bring the worg's head and possibly the totem as well. The head is for the villagers along with news of Amos. The totem is for us. Then I would like to determine the size of the cage, if possible. And then, we may need to explore the lunar well."
Ordinarily Ari would decline the help, both suspicious of motive and feeling herself more than capable of standing independently. In this case, however, she accepts Kiley's hand, for the other woman's sake as much as anything else. Besides, refusing would clearly put a stain on the end of the moment the two of them had shared so perhaps she should give herself credit for managing not to self-sabotage.
"Yes, some evidence is probably a smart move," she agrees. "We should probably seek an audience with the other priestess too. I'd also suggest not bandying around the name Malrath unless we're confident we can trust whoever we're talking to. We wouldn't want to tip them off that we're looking for them unless we get desperate and want to try and draw them out." Ari looks around the group as she says this. "I don't know about the rest of you but given a choice I'd rather be hunter rather than hunted."
"Well, from what I know...there are two kinds of werewolves... the bite infected kind that change involuntarily on the full moon, and the natural born lycanthropes. Now I can't identify who this 'Malrath' is, but from what i know of Selunite villages to suspect that there may be a good source of lore somewhere that might have more info on any names that might be important. It's not a proper library perse but it could be useful none the less."
He ponders "Course there are stories of other weres.... were bears , were boars , were tigers...rats, and were badgers... or was it were beavers? Never mind, we're on wolves now."
"Yes, some evidence is probably a smart move," she agrees. "We should probably seek an audience with the other priestess too. I'd also suggest not bandying around the name Malrath unless we're confident we can trust whoever we're talking to. We wouldn't want to tip them off that we're looking for them unless we get desperate and want to try and draw them out." Ari looks around the group as she says this. "I don't know about the rest of you but given a choice I'd rather be hunter rather than hunted."
"Agreed all around... keep our wits about us, and all that."
Sasha listens to Kiley's report before deliberately diving into the vision herself, hoping to use the warning to help her keep a metaphorical eye out for anything her friend missed...
When she comes back out of the trance Sasha prepares to share what, if anything, she learned.
-------------
"I like Shagger's plan - return with news and evidence and then check the size of this 'cage.' We keep our cards close to the chest, though, and don't share more than we must. After we have an idea of the bounds of our playing field...well, then we see if we can even find this other priestess..." votes Sasha when the discussion of future plans is had.
Sasha focuses herself on the vision held inside the totem, feeling herself connect to the spirit remnants inside the wood. It's weird and she can't really explain the feeling, but somehow Sasha senses a connection beyond what Kiley recounted. Something about her is almost reaching out to the toem.
She experiences the vision exactly like Kiley described it. Except, right at the end, she catches one single last thought before the worg passes into sleep. A singular frame flashes inside her mind of a strange room full of tubes and a singular man, draped in a long gown of white. The sight passes quickly, and she cannot glean any more info than that from the totem.
Shaggar lifts the head and the totem experimentally, trying to figure out which weighs more. "We'll need to hide the totem before we get into town. I can't fit it under my bisht."
”Unless we’ve got some magical means to help it’s too big to bring with us. And without any we’re trusting to luck that nobody stumbles across it. So either we try and stash it out of the way in the woods or we gamble on leaving it here or maybe at the house we passed,” Ari reasons. ”Though I’d expect after we tell our story a group will be despatched to the scene so I guess maybe we just look for somewhere that seems suitable.” She shrugs, frowning. ”Not my best plan I’m afraid.”
Sasha shares the addition of the man in white from her experience of the vision. "I'll bet he's making the silver liquid in those tubes..." she says after shaking her head clear of the vivid, dream-like semi-memory.
"There's not much to be done except to warn others of this thing...assuming we tell them what we've already decided to share. We can only be so paranoid, you know?"
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Ari arches a white eyebrow and looks at Sasha. ”With an unknown number of flawlessly disguised werewolves potentially walking among us I’m not sure I’m willing to place an upper limit on my level of suspicion.”