"Bones? Why would you think- ouch" Cailyn starts to have a discourse with the exclaiming goblin when spear is rammed into its gut. Since an answer is probably not forthcoming she stops the question.
Instead she aims as best that she can at goblin in the back and fires a bolt at him.
Flori chases the group and follows up with yet another glob of acid.
Shunsen's blade cuts a chunk of wood from the doorframe causing the firework-wielding goblin to duck and flinch. That's his undoing as Orchid's spear catches him entirely flat-footed, going in the front and exiting the rear with a splash of blood over his companions behind him. Vigny moves up and invokes divine energy upon her blade.
Cailyn's bolt flies over the beasties' heads and vanishes down the short hall. As does Flori's missile of acid.
Cries of anger and rage come from the nearby building and Flori turns to see the door to the next hut burst open and more goblins pouring out.
"Long-legs! Not bones! Long-legs! Burn the long-legs!"
Two of the goblins rush forward shoving open the intervening door while a third leaps across the space to the walkway to the south with surprising agility.
Orchid ducks and dodges, avoiding goblin dogslicer attacks from the northern goblins.
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Round 2
With goblins right in front of her, Orchid drops her spear and lashes out with suddenly clawed hands.
With one foe felled she closes in on the next target, oblivious to the sudden excitement behind her.
"There's more!" Flori cries out in shock jumping back involuntarily.
She throws out her hands and a vivid cone of pinks and greens breaks forth towards the goblins.
"Oh, oh, oh!" Cailyn frantically reloads, then fires into the oncoming goblins.
She hurried, didn't have time to properly aim, and now their little beady eyes are fixed on her.
Shunsen smiles as Orchid eschews her weapon and instead relies on her claws. She always loves it when her friend let's her true self out!
She blinks as Cailyn's spell erupts behind her, illuminating the wall in front of her with a rainbow pattern.
She then slips by Orchid to take a swing at her current dancing partner..
Flori's spray of magical light sends all three of the southern goblins to the floor, unconscious.
Vigny immediately fills up the space Flori has exited. Not really knowing how long the goblins might be down, she gets right to eliminating
them.
Moving quickly, Vigny begins methodically dispatching the unconscious goblins.
Seeing his companions fallen and his courage failing, the remaining goblin throws down his makeshift blade. Turning and leaping out into the rubble of what looks like a burned out hut, he stumbles and falls amid the debris. Throwing his oversized hands over his head, he screams out, "Please no! No kill me! You's tougher than bones! I surrenders! I surrenders!"
Combat Ends?
Cailyn sighs in relief "Flori, you spell saved me from being eaten rather unpleasantly. Thank you." a beaming (but heart thumping from near death) smile is sent the other woman's way. Then she watches the killing of the unconscious without a twinge of regret.
Then she moves about collecting bolts while others, hopefully, deal with the still live one.
Shunsen jumps down to where the goblin was screaming, telling him "Shut it! What are you blathering on about? What are these 'bones'?"
As she does so she takes it's belt or whatever it had around its waist and ties up it's hands.
Orchid nearly goes after the goblin but Shunsen gets there first so she growls and goes to start collecting more ears.
Under Shunsen's threatening blade, the goblin - one Nose Scratcher, by name - proceeds to tell his tale. Underneath the rambling, pleading, and cursing, this is what you gather...
Recently the Licktoads discovered that one of their own, a goblin named Scribbleface, was engaging in the taboo act of writing. Scandalized, they drove Scribbleface out into the swamp and tore down his home, but in doing so discovered that Scribbleface had been stockpiling fireworks he’d recovered from a site deeper in the swamp. Intrigued, the Licktoad chieftain sent four of his best goblins out on a mission to retrace Scribbleface’s path and bring back more fireworks. Those goblins succeeded beyond their wildest dreams, returning with a chest filled with fireworks and other pretties, one which of which had a map of Brinestump Marsh scrawled upon it. The chief sent his goblin heroes out to explore the two sites indicated on this new map. Several days later, the goblin “heroes” returned with several crates of treasure and even more fireworks. So armed with plenty of explosives, the goblins immediately made plans to use the fireworks to start raiding travelers along the Lost Coast Road.
Unfortunately for the Licktoads, though, the treasure must have been cursed. Just a few days ago, skeletons arrived at the village. Chief Gutwad’s goblin heroes met the skeletons in battle at the pond, but were swiftly cut down. Panic spread through the village as the relentless skeletons surged into the village and marched from door to door, killing goblins. It wasn’t until Chief Gutwad ordered his bodyguards to push what remained of all the stolen treasure out of his home and onto the ground below that the skeletons finally stopped their attack. They gathered up the treasures and left, leaving the Licktoads devastated and fearful of the night ever since.
The chief and his bodyguards are currently hold up in his manor - the southeastern hut - in case the undead hoard returns.
"Interesting." Cailyn's blue eyes blazed at the story of the bones, and treasure, though she cared little for the monetary value, it was the IDEA of what it might be. "What was it, the treasure, ancient weapons, mysterious mirrors... " mentally she pleaded it wasn't a barrel of old pickles, since these were goblins after all.
Shunsun smiled at Caily, "It does sound interesting..." she comment, before turning back to the goblin, "Does your Chief have any more fireworks? "
"Interesting." Cailyn's blue eyes blazed at the story of the bones, and treasure, though she cared little for the monetary value, it was the IDEA of what it might be. "What was it, the treasure, ancient weapons, mysterious mirrors... " mentally she pleaded it wasn't a barrel of old pickles, since these were goblins after all.
"I doesn't know what treasures we's lost," Nose Scratch exclaims. "The Chief tolds us it was 'Big Secret'."
Shunsun smiled at Caily, "It does sound interesting..." she comment, before turning back to the goblin, "Does your Chief have any more fireworks? "
The goblin's face curls up in distaste.
"The Chief keep all the good stuffs to himself. He only gives us a few."
Conflicting emotion battle inside the young woman's eyes. Disappointment at not knowing and glee that the mystery hasn't been spoiled. She dismisses Nose Scratcher from her attention and looks to the others. "If we don't need it any more should we dispatch it so we can remove its ears?" her pragmatism showing much greater than her empathy.
As though she'd been waiting for the question, Orchid strikes from behind the goblin, cutting (whether by accident or on purpose) one of its ears clean off!
"Ah, well that looks messy, and I guess it would be cruel to leave it to suffer." she raises her crossbow at the prone writhing creature and...
The bolt thuds home into the creature's torso.
Shunsen smiles ruefully and shakes her head at Orchid's bloodthirsty pragmatism and Cailyn's equally pragmatic coup de grace, "Glad you're my friends, sheesh." she says sarcastically.
Patting the dead Nose Scratcher on his now earless head, "Thanks for the info."
Then she looks southeast hut, "Let's go have a chat with the Chief!"
Flori's jaw drops open as she witnesses the unexpected attack in front of her, frozen still in her spot, eyes wide open and staring down at the now ear-less goblin.
"But...he....he had surrendered?"
Killing goblins is one thing. Killing someone who had surrendered and had helped them? Thats another.
Cailyn was struggling to pull her bolt out of the body when Flori spoke. She looked at Flori in genuine surprise, then the goblin then back to Flori "I... thought that was what we were hired to do... exterminate the goblin threat and bring their ears as proof?"
Regret and concern billows up in Cailyn, but the emotions are for breaking some kind of etiquette, not for just killing a surrendered goblin.
"I must be honest, I've never been a bounty hunter before. Or adventurer." a statement that was so obvious it hadn't needed to be said. "So I am unfamiliar with the customs. Um... what should we have done with it?" the question is an honest one.
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Flori's eyes do not move from the body as she speaks. "Surrendering is one of those acts where you have to trust that the people that you are surrendering to will do the right thing. We all have to trust that one day, if we are ever in the same position then we would be treated with the same kindness." She gulps, as bile rises in her stomach and looks up to face Cailyn.
"I've not really done much of this either but I've spoken to many a mercenary or traveller through Sandpoint about their own experiences. I've always got the impression there should be a moral code that we stick to. Money is one thing, but someone's life and trust is another."
Her gaze turns to Orchid as she sees her sister in a new light.
"We're better than this." She says, firmly.
Orchid looks at Flori, her head tilted to one side as she gives her sister her full attention. Then, after the wizard's impassioned speech is over, Orchid frowns and then shrugs. Before kneeling down to remove the other ear.
It seems that Flori's appeal to morality, rationale and higher feelings has made absolutely no impact on her sister at all.
"Shun right." She says. "Go kill chief!"
Flori's shoulder's droop with disappointment as her she realises Orchid did not understand a word of what she just said.
"I..." Flori starts, but cuts herself off and cannot bring herself to argue for now.
"I'll follow you."
After eliminating the goblins Flori floored, Vigny makes a quick sweep back, wondering how they missed the goblin that came down the platform immediately to their rear, which they themselves had arrived by, and the so far unexamined large hut, which the other two had obviously been inside. She'd really rather avoid any more ill-timed ambushes.
As some of the group debate, Vigny checks the surrounding area. The building to the west looks to have been occupied by at least eight or ten goblins at one time, but there are none there now. The remaining northern building is another watch room with no threats apparent.
The discussion finally completed, the group heads to the southeast and the Chief's 'Manor'. This hut, unlike the others, has make-shift double doors. Checking the doors finds that they're barred from the inside and produces goblin catcalls and insults from inside.
While barred, it's clear from peering between the slats that a simple board is the sole security on the door and could be bypassed by the expedience of slipping a spear or blade between the door slats and lifting the board.
Orchid does remember to look at the rest of the group for assent before sliding her spear in and 'unlocking' the door with a single, powerful jerk. Then she leads the way in, spear ready to skewer a goblin or three!
On the way to the next building, Vigny gives Flori a pat on the shoulder.
"Really nice move back there. That was some quick thinking. Good show."
When the building turns out to have barred doors, Vigny positions herself against the wall right beside a door. She's out of the way in case anything nasty comes flying out, but ready to flip around the corner and enter fast.
Shunsen moves next to Flori, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I know how you're feeling, just remember that they, " she says, indicating the slain goblins, "wouldn't extend your mercy to any of us, if the tables were turned. My mother always taught me that mercy and honor are only currency with those that can understand the concept.". She then squeezes her friend's shoulder and follows Orchid onward!
Cailyn might not care about the goblin, but she does care about Flori's opinion so she apologized. " I'll think about that if this comes up again." she promises, grasping the other woman's arm.
Before the door opens, she swallows had grabs the bobble around her neck and wished "If only my crossbow could hit harder"
Orchid slips her spear between the two doors and there's a bump and clatter as the board securing the door falls to the floor. She then shoves open the doors revealing Chief Gutwad's throne room.
The walls of the room are decorated with numerous poorly preserved horse and dog heads, along with other trophies like broken weapons, brine-picked bodies of brutally slaughtered animals, and other bits of grisly ephemera. Chief Gutwad's throne - a rickety, 5-foot-tall wooden chair with a ladder built into the side - sits against the southern wall. The Chief, himself, resides upon the throne, surrounded by his four bodyguards who snarl and jeer at the intruders.
"Kills the long-legs!" Gutwad shouts and his guards hasten to obey.
Combat Begins!
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Round 1
Gutwad lights a foot-long wooden tube in his hands and it begins fountaining white sparks. The goblin guards rush forward to engage Orchid and Shunsen. Orchid's opponent manages a chance nick against her knee, but Shunsen's misses entirely.
Shunsen adroitly sidesteps the goblin's clumsy attack, and quickly launches her own!
But it seems that the goblin's clumsiness is catching, and her swing takes some splinters out of the floor!
In order to allow the other's an opportunity, Shunsen spins past the goblin in front of her!
Orchid drops her spear and sets to work with claws alone.
These goblins are annoying, but one of them has to focus on Shunsen too, so that helps.
"What do you think they see?" Cailyn asks from around the corner, in the back of the line. As shouting, and a bit of screaming, Oh and blood, happens in the room she can see nothing from, she keeps an eye out for more goblins (or bones).
Feeling somewhat assuaged from the reassurances from Shunsen and Vigny, but less so from Cailyn, Flori squares her shoulders, in time for the door to swing open.
"No idea!"
Vigny swings around the corner and aims a quick thrust at the goblin standing in her way .
Shunsen dazzles the goblins with a flashy display of swordsmanship before slipping past them to a flanking position. The goblin is so distracted that he doesn't see Orchid's claw coming. The other goblin, however, ducks under the shifter's vicious attacks.
Meanwhile, at the rear of the group, Cailyn readies her crossbow in eager anticipation and Flori sends a missile of acid over the goblins' heads to splash upon a pickled beaver hanging on the wall.
Vigny moves up and stabs at the injured goblin, but he manages to weave around her blade.
Round 2
The goblin attacking Orchid catches her with a nasty slash of his jagged blade, but the other goblins miss their targets.
The goblin chief cackles with glee as the sparking tube he's holding sends off a screaming projectile that flies across the room, slamming into Orchid and exploding in a blast of fire.
Two of the goblins go down in the blast while the other two manage to avoid some of the damage.
Vigny gets scorched by the blast, but she's heaps better off than the goblin in front of her. She only has a moment to size things up, but she doesn't like their odds if Orchid is taken out of the fight. She reaches out and touches Orchid while reciting "etan vranan pidhay". The light of positive energy flows from her hand into Orchid, closing up wounds.
With that done, Vigny rolls back around the corner to beef up some before going back in. She takes a moment to look at Flori and Cailyn and tells them "anything you're going to do, do it to the chief. Keep him as busy as you can."
Orchid ducks away from worst of the firework and lashes out at the goblins once more.
She is at least distracting...
Shunsen takes a few steps to put the goblin between her and Orchid, then makes a strike at it's kidneys!
Cailyn looks back at the room, from her guard position. "Oh? Um... Okay." she bites her lip. She had been rather enjoying her rear guard out-of-the-action role that she has inadvertently chosen.
But circumstances and all...
"Excuse me" she says to Flori and Vigny as she brushes past them, rushing behind the wounded and burnt Orchid. Seeing into the room is interesting at least. That chair is impractical but "Lovely Chair!" she yells at the chief, meaning it.
One might expect her to fire into the room with her massive magicked crossbow, but no, she raises her right hand, with is covered oddly in a worn thick hawking glove. "Cleo, please wake up, silly old bird."
There is some flapping, a mournful and tired Hoot, then a glowing owl is suddenly attempting to peck and claw the chief off the chair, or dead on the chair at least.
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Trying to help distract the Goblins even further, Flori adds some more bodies to the mix.
She starts chanting and below Shunsen's feet appears a brawny, unnaturally green rat. Flori's magic often doesn't go quite to plan and this is just another one of those occasions. If only she could have a bit more pizazz.
With a touch of divine energy, Vigny heals Orchid's injuries as the shifter swipes ineffectively at the goblin in front of her. Shunsen's attacks also are for naught.
Cailyn summons her owl and it proceeds to flap and flutter, attempting to bite and claw at the goblin chief. However, the only result is a few downy feathers flying about as Gutwad avoids the beak and talons. Flori begins a spell of summoning.
Round 3
The goblin guards lash out at both Orchid and Shunsen, but only the half-orc's opponent manages a strike, raising a red line along Shunsen's arm. Chief Gutwad pulls a second tube identical to the first from behind his chair and lights it.
"Ssssss...." Shunsen hisses as the firey line of blood opens on her arm. Grimacing, she prepares to re-engage when the rat appears at her feet!
"Ahhhh!" she exclaims, then casts a glare in Flori's direction, "Flori! " she admonishes her friend.
Re-focussing on the task at hand, she once again tries to bring her falchion to bear on the nearby goblin!
However, the rat proves too much of a distraction!
Orchid catches one of the goblins as it capers about and carves a nasty gash into its green flesh. She leaps over the fallen corpse to close in on the chief - intent on stopping his stupid bang-makers!