You can tell your words are having an affect, her anger is soothed somewhat, "If you aren't going to entertain me, I tire of your questions, ask me one more, I'll answer it and then you need to leave!"
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Yuranosuke silently watches the affair unfold and then nudges Ayane.
"You're the most entertaining one out of all of us," he mutters to her. "Do your thing..."
Ren stays silent. She wouldn't know what to ask.
"Sorry i wasnt trying to disrupt your song. It was just so sad sounding and butterflies are happy! what if I sing you a new song?
Butterflies is the skyyyyy, you can go twice as hiiiigh..." As she sings you can hear the sounds of magical orchestral music surrounding her.
But as she sings her voice cracks on the high note.
As Ayane again tries to strike up a musical piece, camping in the outdoors must have done something to her voice because she can't seem to find a tune to save a life, the music seems to physically hurt the small child who starts screaming, an illusion falls away, revealing a larger blood-soaked effigy made of dried grass held together by wisps of ghostly ectoplasm, the two gray cloaked children are revealed to also be Thatchlings.
Shandari startled but her instincts were screaming at her to move.
Shandari ☘️☘️ -
Thatchling 1(Orange) -
Thatchling 2(pink) -
Blood Soaked Thatchling -
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ -
Shen ☘️ -
Yuranosuke ☘️ -
She almost instinctively launches a charged ball of electricity at the more unsightly one (Blood Soaked), stumbling back, the electric ball goes over their heads
"Not nice!"
Shandari's electric zap goes well wide she retreats behind her allies.
The two gray cloaked thatchlings surge forward, spreading their attacks out amongst almost the whole group.
Finally the blood soaked one starts sobbing pitifully before it unleashes a terrifying scream that rocks your group to the core. It then retreats putting some space between it and the group.
Shandari ☘️☘️ -
Thatchling 1(Orange) -
Thatchling 2(pink) -
Blood Soaked Thatchling -
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ -
Ningu ☘️ - 3 damage
Yuranosuke ☘️ -
The howl was nothing like an angry wind during a storm while on a boat, as she Sylph easily, shakes her head, shrugging off the sonic attack
The "children" had Ren on edge from the beginning. The location, the conversation, none of it added up to something like a happenstance meeting of people. Perhaps it was the strangeness, or maybe it's quick reflexes, but Ren immediately covers her ears with her hands as soon as the red cloak girl starts sobbing. It seems to be enough to protect her from the scream.
Ren draws her jian as one transformed stick figure assaults her. She strikes back at it when she sees an opening. As she finishes her attacks, Ren shifts a few feet to her right.
Perception DC22 [spoiler omitted]
Kwan doesn't know much about the current circumstances, but he wonders if the red-hooded figure has a connection to red-hooded thatchlings.
↺ Retributive Strike
When one of the creatures attacks Nínghu, Kwan intercepts the attack and stabs in quick succession.
Kwan tries to resist the effects of the bloody creature's yell.
Kwan joins in with Ren and attacks one of the Thatchlings. "My blade should make quick work of this straw creatures."
◆ Demoralize
◆ Strike
◆ Raise Shield
The frond catches him across the shoulder and Níng flinches back- then Kwan is there, blade already moving. I did not even see him move.
"Thank you, Kwan," he says quietly, and means it.
He steps back and steadies himself. A familiar warmth gathers in his chest and flows out from him. He does not know where it comes from, it just simply comes... the way it always does when someone nearby is hurting.
"Hold on."
A thread of light reaches across the distance between them, settling over the ranger and the champion like a second heartbeat.
◆ Step back
◆ Life Link (Yuranosuke)
◆ Life Link (Kwan)
The spell ends immediately if you fall unconscious. You can Dismiss the spell.
Yuranosuke's shuan ji is ready as the battle begins, and he focuses on the thatchling before him.
Then he tries to mow it down.
Even though her attempt to sing to the scary child creature didn't work Ayane goes back to her steady drum beat offering up a morale boosting beat.
She then draws her raiper and attacks the thatchling creature in front of her.
Ren immediately reacts and draws her wakizashi and easily cuts through the small thatchling.
Together Yuranosuke and Kwan react and quickly dispatch the second thatchling, leaving only the blood soaked thatchling that seems slightly stronger than its lesser thralls.
Ning spreads warm light, connecting threads of vitality to his team mates.
While Ayane finally finds her voice and inspires the group, before drawing her rapier to attack and finding no target nearby.
Shandari ☘️☘️ - 4 damage
Blood Soaked Thatchling -
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ - 9 damage, Inspired 3 rds(+1 Att/Dam/fear Saves)
Ningu ☘️ -
Yuranosuke ☘️ -
More stable and she can concentrate, she launches another zap at the Bloodling
Shandari composes herself, bolstered by song, launches an electrical zap to blast the blood soaked thatchling boss.
Looking around, it summons it magic and throws a rock at Ayane's head.
After scoring a direct hit with a satisfying thunk, it then turns to move away, putting enough more distance between you group and it.
Shandari ☘️☘️ - 4 damage
Blood Soaked Thatchling - 8 damage
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ - 9 damage, Inspired 2 rds(+1 Att/Dam/fear Saves)
Ningu ☘️ -
Yuranosuke ☘️ -
Yuranosuke turns and bolts towards the enemy, glaring at it.
The howl shakes him to the core. Níng breathes through it, ears pressed flat, then moves.
They are still standing. That is enough.
He closes the distance and touches two fingers to his staff, then extends the same hand outward- first toward Yuranosuke, then Ren. A faint luminescence travels the distance between them, settling into their weapons like heat into iron.
"Strike true."
◆ Stride
◆◆ Infuse Vitality (Yuranosuke, Ren): weapon strikes deal +1d4 vitality damage
You empower attacks with vital energy. The number of targets is equal to the number of actions you spent casting this spell. Each target's unarmed and weapon Strikes deal an extra 1d4 vitality damage. (This damage typically damages only undead.) If you have the holy trait, you can add that trait to this spell and to the Strikes affected by the spell.
Active Life Links: Yuranosuke, Kwan
Battle Medicine: None
HP: 28/28
Focus Points: 0/2
Curse Level: 0
Hero Points: 1
Cat’s Luck: 1
DC 18, Spell Attack +8
Level 1: 4/4 (Infuse Vitality, Command, Fear, Heal, Soothe)
Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature other than you
Duration 1 minute
You forge a connection of life energy between you and your target, distributing harm between both of you. When you first Cast the Spell, the target recovers 1d4 Hit Points. The first time each round that the target takes damage, reduce the damage it takes by 3 (to a minimum of 0 damage). You lose 3 Hit Points each time, or the total damage dealt, if less than 3; this damage ignores any immunities or resistances you have and can't otherwise be mitigated in any way.
The spell ends immediately if you fall unconscious. You can Dismiss the spell.
Feeling a life-giving connection to Nínghu, Kwan feels emboldened to rush towards the blood-soaked thatchling. "Time is up for you and your spawn."
Kwan runs toward the thatchling, careful to avoid the campfire. As he nears the creature, he raises his shield and slashes across its torso with his weapon.
◆ Stride
◆◆ Defensive Advance
Ren hesitates, watching the other for a cue for what to do. She would be inclined to let the fleeing one go since the crisis is now averted. But, she is also rather new to all this.
When she sees Yuranosuke and Kwan give chase she does as well, figuring they have a better handle on the situation and what to do about it then she does.
"FIRE! we gotta use fire to hurt these creatures!" Ayane moves up closer to the campfire and uses her magic to attack the creature.
Yuranosuke marks his prey and runs after her, trying to keep up with the backpedaling thatchling.
Ning moves to keep pace with the group, infusing and wrapping Ren and Yuranosuke's weapon in undead killing magic, ethereal flames wisp from their weapons.
Kwan trusts cold steel and simply moves up, shield ready and slices the the Thatchling, wounding it decently.
Ren runs after the maybe fleeing thatchling, not letting the creature out of her sight.
Ayane moves up to the campfire, and telekinetically launches a burning stick at the thatchling, however it falls just short, there is essentially a burning torch near Kwan and Ren on the ground now.
Shandari ☘️☘️ - 4 damage
Blood Soaked Thatchling - 19 damage
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ - 9 damage, Inspired 1 rds(+1 Att/Dam/fear Saves)
Ningu ☘️ -
Yuranosuke ☘️ -
"Here's a little help!" she calls out, sweeping her hands forward, giving four of her allies a little boost, before she launches a less static bolt of electricity, at the blood thatch
With a gust of wind, Yuranosuke, Ren, Ayane and Ning are all propelled forward from Shandari's wind control, with Ren and Yuranosuke able to move into flanking and cutting off the Thatchlings escape.
The blood soaked Thatchling holds up leaf blade arms, scowling, she tries to slice the three of you.
Kwan and Ren are able to block or dodge the sharp fronds from slicing them but Yuranosuke takes a slice across one of his arms, cutting his sleeve, blood drips profusely from the wound.
Shandari ☘️☘️ - 4 damage
Blood Soaked Thatchling - 19 damage
Kwan ☘️ -
Ren ☘️ -
Ayane ☘️ - 9 damage, Inspired 1 rds(+1 Att/Dam/fear Saves)
Ningu ☘️ -
Yuranosuke ☘️ - 6 damage, 1d4 bleed
Ayane's hands begin to glow as she touches the wounds on her arms, and some of them begin to heal.
She then throws another burning piece of wood at the remaining Thatchling.
↺ Retributive Strike
In addition to fending off the Thatchlings attack at himself, Kwan anticipates the attack at Yuranosuke connecting and parries it aside while striking with his katana at the same time.
Kwan stares down the final thatchling. "It didn't have to be like this!"
◆ Demoralize
◆ Strike
◆ Raise Shield
Kwan intercepts the frond meant for Yuranosuke, negating the damage with the fervor of his oath before slicing the Thatchling, once and then twice causing the dry twigs to fray and start to come apart.
Ayane for good measure launches another flaming stick at the Thatchling, it is already near destroyed, red ectoplasmic steam leaks from its body, its movements sluggish and when Ayane's flaming stick hits it, the undeads entire body goes up in flames, it writhes but quickly disintegrates into a pile of ash.
Níng watches the last of it burn down to ash. He lets out a slow breath, ears settling.
He crosses to Ayane first, staff in one hand, the other already reaching toward the wounds on her arm.
"May I?"
He does not wait long for an answer but his hands are gentle when they find the injury, turning it toward the light to look properly.
"You held up well," he says, more observation than compliment.
Ayane watches has Ning heals the last of her wounds. "Thank you Ning!"
Ayane begins to look around the area, and draws her rapier, just incase more undead creatures show themselves.
Taking some downtime to search the area thoroughly, your group picks through the remains of the burnt down inn, finding little of value after both years of neglect and exposure to the elements and the fire damage. However you do find irregularities in the dirt, as if there was two shallow graves dug, the dirt looks old but the evidence of the graves remains.
At the end of the search, Ren asks the others "should we have expected to find anything here? Do you think the stick people came from whoever is buried in those graves?"
She still doesn't know what she should be expecting.
Níng crouches near the disturbed earth, resting both hands on his staff. He studies the graves a moment without touching them.
"It is possible," he says. "The elders speak of souls caught in shallow graves- roots growing down into the remains, tangling what should have passed on."
He tilts his head, looking at the two depressions side by side.
"Two graves. Four thatchlings." He looks up at Ren. "I do not know what that means. But I do not think it is nothing."
He glances toward Yuranosuke, checking the arm without making a show of it.
"How is the bleeding?"
Yuranosuke raises his arm to allow Níng to look at it.
"I will recover, but anything you wish to do to speed it along will be appreciated. Thank you," he says quietly. "It...sounds vain, I will admit, but I'm more concerned on how it will stain my sleeve."
As the discussion turns to the task at hand, he nods to the others.
"I'll take a look around, see if there's anything out of place."
Yuranosuke pokes around the ruined buildings and finds little that was not already claimed by the elements or ruined in the fire from years past. If there was anything to be looted, it was likely already picked over by others in the years since the fire.
There doesn't really seem to be anything pertaining to the missing mayor though, the task that brought you here to begin with.
Níng tends to Yuranosuke's arm without comment on the sleeve, though the corner of his mouth moves slightly.
He straightens and moves slowly through the remains of the northernmost structure, fingers trailing along scorched timber. Something keeps pulling his attention back- the graves, the ruins, the shape of what happened here.
Something does not sit right
He crouches near the graves again, extending one hand palm-down over the earth, and goes quiet.
◆◆Detect Magic
"The fire," he says after a moment, not looking up. "Does anyone know how it started? Not the official report, but what actually happened. These two graves represent the buried criminals final resting place. Is that correct?"
"Such a sad sight, people and a budding all turned to ash " she shakes her head
Even the long time residents agree that the exact circumstances are still shrouded in mystery, the Governor considered the case closed and Kwan knows from his time in the guard, didn't bother to dispatch an investigator to determine how things ended, which is what to led to the nasty rumor of the Governor being responsible for the fire.
Ayane begins to wander through the burned remains of the old inn. "Maybe, if we go inside the old inn we might be able to find some sort of clue or something for where the mayor went. Its just weird and SPOOKY" she says dramatically waiving her hands. "That both the mayor and the governor and his HOUSE are gone. There's gotta be something here."
"Alright, I'll go with you Ayane. It's worth trying since we're still empty-handed for our trouble. Let me go in front so I can take a look around as we make our way through the place."
Before starting inside, Ren asks a question in case anyone may have an answer.
"One thing that I am wondering about. The graves we have found, they seem to have been an afterthought rather than an act carried out to give the dead dignity. If there is a blight or curse on this place, might it be the dead lying unhappily in their graves? Perhaps the bodies should be moved to a real cemetery with proper rites conducted?"
"I hesitate to bring this up because I know very little about religion. But perhaps one of you would know the answer"
Your group pokes through the remains of the Inn but much the same as the outside surrounding area, the inside has been cleared out of anything of value. The fire wasn't completely destructive, much of the foundation is usable, but the smoke damage inside is enough to warrant a full rebuild if one wanted to try and rebuild the Inn.
Níng rises from his crouch near the graves, brushing dirt from his palm.
"You may be right, Ren," he says. "Souls trapped in shallow earth, buried without ceremony by people who wanted them forgotten- that is exactly the kind of wound that festers."
He looks down at the two depressions, his weight settling onto his staff.
"Moving them to consecrated ground with proper rites would be the kindest thing we could do. Whether it resolves what has happened here... " he turns one hand over, weighing the uncertainty"... I cannot say. But it would be the right thing regardless."
He glances toward the ruins where Ayane and Ren disappeared inside, then back to the graves, still listening for whatever his extended senses might offer.
"Do we know who is buried here? Someone in Willowshore may."
Then he turns back to the building and his companions.
"Friends, what insights do you think can we take from this place?"
"I don't know. I'm a fisherman's daughter. All this spooky things and the like, I have very little knowledge on such things" she mimics casting a line as she explained
Kwan shares what he knows of the the circumstances surrounding the fire and then helps Ayane and Ren search what remains of the inn.
"All people deserve the dignity of a proper burial. I'll work on preparing the burial site. Once that's ready, we can transfer the remains and provide their spirits with the burial they deserved years ago."
Kwan finds a shaded area not too far from the inn and starts digging with whatever tools he can find.
Yuranosuke joins in the search for clues, his elven eyes darting about the ruins.
Afterwards, he joins Kwan in digging proper graves.
Looking around, Kwan is able to find a mostly functional couple of shovels left behind and sets about preparing a proper burial site, after which he exhumes the two graves. You find two mostly desiccated skeletons that look like they had significant charring, bones blackened.
Curiously there is also a perfectly preserved red cloak thrown on top of the bodies. Looking at it, it appears almost identical to the cloak the Blood Soaked Thatchling was wearing before dropping its disguise.
"Oh, look at the nice cloak, too bad it clashes with my skin, red and blue don't mix well" she makes a disappointed face
Níng sets his staff against a tree and takes up a shovel without being asked, working alongside Kwan in steady silence. When the bones come... blackened, desiccated... he crouches to look at them properly. A healer's examination, not a morbid one. Then his eyes settle on the cloak.
*That is curious.*
He reaches for it carefully, turning it over in his hands.
"I believe this was not buried with them," he says quietly. "Placed on top, instead of worn."
He holds it still, opening himself to whatever might linger- the detect magic still running its quiet course.
Detect Magic - cloak
He sets it aside for the moment and returns to the work of digging. After a while, low and unhurried, he begins to sing. An old, simple melody that has existed forever under a thousand names. It rings low and sad... a song of sending, mourning, and peace.