Kiko's bolt slams into the creature and it whirls around, presenting an opportunity that Akira does not pass up! Sadly the creature moves remarkably quickly to pull a large curved knife from its belt and parry Usagi's strike.
The effort makes it retch loudly and Usagi is covered in stinking, alcoholic vomit before the creature slashes at her. The blade cuts deep and the creature laughs derisively, but Usagi has faced bigger foes in worse positions and her resolve is unflinching!
Usagi takes 10 damage.
The armored ranger hisses in pain but stays on her feet. "You are disgusting" she snaps, before sending three attacks with her blades.
"It's a buso!" Kiko calls out. "They eat people!"
Any internal moral conflict having been resolved at the remembrance that this drunken being is cannibalistic, the oracle sends some healing energy in Usagi's direction before firing again.
As Kiko yells that revelation, Usagi spares a moment to stare at the sick the people eater just spewed on her, eyes wide. Was that... someone she had seen before that was now on her???
With a growl of utter hate, she focuses back to the creature she needs to see dead.
Then she needs a bath.
That is not something Akira wanted to know and she is now doubly glad that Usagi is the one in the creatures face. Lithe and nimble as a fox(!) Akira ducks behind the large creature and stabs at the back of its knees.
The buso staggers as Akira nearly hamstrings it and it retches loudly again before letting out a loud groan and flailing around with its curved blade.
Usagi's moment of distraction with the vomit costs her and if not for Kiko's healing the ranger would be in deep trouble. As it is she is merely covered in blood, vomit and bile. Unpleasant no doubt, but none of it immediately life threatening.
Usagi is hurt, very hurt, but all she can see is red. A deep desire to see this dead. She steadies her breathing, ignoring the pain, and studies the buso. A split second of calm before the dashes forward with three cuts of her swords.
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"Hey Ugly!" Akira yells, trying to distract the creature from Usagi who looks distinctly worse for wear. "Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries!"
She does her best to back up words with steel!
"Your mother was a ... what?" Kiko questions in confusion as she fumbles with her crossbow attempting to reload the heavy weapon.
Usagi cuts deep into the buso's chest, leaving it vulnerable to Akira's critical sneak attack(!). The rapier strikes deep and true, piercing the creature's foul heart and laying it out dead on the stone of the bridge.
The smaller monsters squeak in fear and flee - running away towards Northridge and the center of town. Against numerous odds you have triumphed!
Usagi leans against the bridge, holding her battered body "Never good to see one's heroes disappoint" the warrior says about the fleeing little ones. "That hurt." she winces more than a little bit.
The fleeing gremlins leave the buso's crude throne behind and investigation uncovers a silver scepter studded with semi-precious stones as well as a deck of strange cards which radiate an aura of distinctly mixed magic.
The three of you now have an important decision to make. Granny Hu and Old Matsuki will both be delighted to know about the reopening of the Dawnstep Bridge but whoever you go to first will gain a distinct advantage in the back and forth that has always existed between Willowshore's factions. This advantage would likely make them indebted to you.
So... who do you go to first?
Usagi rises to her feet, pain radiating from her as she does so. She sheathes her blades, cleans off the horrid retching as best she can, adjusts her carved red rabbit mask, and then looks to the other two. "Should we split up to tell them both at the same time?" not that she cares about townsfolk squabbles.
"I think splitting up would be ... bad," Kiko suggests. "We talked to Old Matsuki first. He should know the bridge is cleared. We can tell Granny Hu after that."
Usagi nods, okay with the decision.
Akira nods her agreement, Old Matsuki has always been stern but fair. He appreciates tradition and, by extension, her role as town chronicler and historian. Granny Hu... just makes her definitely-not-fur shiver a little.
"Yes, let's go and tell everyone about our triumph!" She says, sweeping up the playing cards and starting to shuffle them smoothly. "Oooh, I think these will cast magic if you wave them around and tap at least one island and one plains."
Old Matsuki is still to be found in the Matsuki estate although this time, unlike before, he comes to meet you all and greets you loudly and publically.
"Our heroes! You have done fine work for the town and relit the Eternal Lantern. We are all most grateful - come inside and tell me the story." This sign of public favour is quite clearly calculated, but effective nonetheless as people smile and wave as you pass. Hope has been in short supply but your actions have provided quite a bit of it.
"You have done well." Matsuki says, once all of you are in his study and away from prying ears. "With the mists gone and the Latern alight again everyone has seen the creatures fleeing town - with one notable exception." He pauses and looks grimly at the three of you. "Downtown. Something has happened there, something worse than the rest of the town and it is clear that monsters still roam there. Great gods girl you look terrible. Drink this."
He brusquely thrusts a potion into Usagi's hand and waits until it is drunk.
With some colour back in Usagi's cheeks Old Matsuki continues on. "A Silvermist ranger made it back here shortly before you did. She confirmed something very troubling - the governors mansion has disappeared! Obviously I don't know how but I need all three of you to investigate at once. If this town is truly without Governor Heh then there will be panic unless we act quickly. I need facts and you are the best people to get them for me. I have acquired some supplies to help you."
He gestures to two satchels which, upon investigation, contain ten minor healing potions and eight potency crystal talismans
"Good luck." Old Matsuki says, bringing the audience to a close. "May the gods be with you."
Pain had been everything, until Old Matsuki gave her the potion. She was just recovering when suddenly they were being pushed out to do more. Usagi didn't mind, much, since it got out of the stuffy house. And on top of that the satchel held a small fortune.
Looking to the other two unfortunates that have been designated Doers, she gives a small put upon smile she doesn't really feel "To this mansion then?" she has seen it, since this is a small town, but never had any reason to get close to it before.
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Akira bows her head slightly at Matsuki’s public praise trying, but failing, to hold in the grin of contentment.
“Downtown’s worse?” she echoes, glancing at the others. “Brilliant. I was just thinking we hadn’t been terrified enough this last few days!"
She watches Usagi drink the potion, nodding once as colour returns to her cheeks. At the news of the governor’s mansion, Akira’s brow furrows.
“Vanished?” She exchanges a glance with her companions. “That’s no ordinary magic. If Governor Heh is gone, you will need more than facts—you will need a whole plan to hold this town together Old Matsuki. Im sure you have one in place already, but if you ever need help, then we can offer advice! We saw a lot of what was happening these last few days.”
She steps forward to inspect the satchels, fingers brushing the talismans with practiced familiarity and pockets some for herself before handing them to her friends.
“What's the name of that Silvermist ranger? If she saw something, we may need to ask her more before we rush straight to the mansion?.” She says, learning from their experience at the mushroom house, where no plan had almost led to disaster.
She nods at Usagi's suggestion, "Maybe we should talk to this ranger on our way?"
As they walk out towards their next quest, barely having any time to catch their breath, Akira, with very little filter, blurts out the first thing that comes to her mind. "Dibs on haunting the Leshy Tea house if it comes to it."
The ranger is named Sumina but her information isn't much more than Old Matsuki has already said. She was heading back towards the bridge as the mist cleared and she noticed that the governors manor had vanished.
"It's very odd." She says. "It's as though the entire building just vanished and left the ground intact."
Indeed, once you head back into downtown Willowshore that's exactly what you find. The space where the governor's opulent manor previously sat has is completely empty. The only indication that there was once a building in this empty lot are the two guardian stone lions that once guarded the entrance to the manor. Both have been defaced and damaged.
With nothing else to do at the manor you proceed down the street. The imperial guard office has been thoroughly looted but investigating the cells under the building shows a number of prisoners - including Zheng Peng, the town guard captain. Fortunately Zheng Peng is famously paranoid and his habit of stashing spare keys pays off. You quickly follow his instructions to a specific brick and find the spare cell keys behind it, allowing you to release Peng, his ten guards and four villagers who have been imprisoned in the bamboo cage outside for petty criminals.
"Thank you." Peng says as his people slowly pick themselves up. "Here, anything you can use in the armory is yours. We'll stay here for now. There's some sort of grey-skinned monster leading a group of jinkins and my men aren't in the shape for a fight right now. We'll use whatever you can't but if you could spare us an escort back to safe territory that would be appreciated."
"Are the things that imprisoned you guys here still around?" Akira asks, as the guardsman get themselves upright. "We should probably not all head out of here until we know the surrounding area is safe. Usagi, Kiko and myself have been making sure everyone is okay around Willowshore, and have been sent back out to help!" She adds, making sure the guards know that the trio have been doing a good job.
She turns to the other women, "We should check around and see if its just the mayor's mansion that has gone missing or if anything else was taken as well. Taken where? Who knows?"
"If we take them back, the elder will have protection in case something hide while we were clearing out the area." the ranger says as she slides her finger along the flat blade of the special metals, a glean of appreciation in her eyes.
"I - I suppose you're right." Akira replies, a little disappointed they are not getting straight into the action now its right in front of them. "Let's head back with them all."
As you lead the group back across the High Street, heading for the bridge there comes a strange noise, like the clattering of dozens of pots and pans. Moments later the source of the noise appears around a corner - a blood-stained apron leading a horde of animated cleavers, meat tenderizers, kettles, pans and other kitchen implements.
As the two groups catch sight of each other a moments silence falls across the town.
Then chaos erupts.
"Run!" Zheng Peng roars at his people and the exhausted men and women pick up their pace and hustle for the bridge.
"Get them!" Yells the clearly-not-just-an-apron and the horde of cookware leaps to life once more, charging after the fleeing guards and, incidentally, right at the three of you!
"This makes no sense" the warrior with the wooden bunny mask says as she prepares for the cookware onslaught.
"It really, really doesn't," Kiko agrees. With a quick word she places a minor protection on Usagi before the masked woman moves forward.
She then readies her crossbow.