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Lu spends his time aiding the others in trying to find signs of the hobgoblin's trail. For the most part he ignores the discussion about magic, not particularly interested in the details. Studying it was pointless. Either the spirits granted you power, or they didn't in his opinion.
"I can carry the torch, I don't need to carry weapons. Anyone carrying it will be a target, and I would rather it be me," Lu says, offering to provide light instead. Picking up a rock, he imbues it with light and holds it. "Let's go get rid of him before he manages to escape."
Hearing the commotion, Lu comes around from having spent the evening among his tribe. He'd had better things to do than continue to participate in the argument over who caused what, especially when his people had suffered a loss. Unlike the others he had to actually deal with the repercussions, though he had appreciated the effort Lyon had made to help with Cedric's funeral. "It's good you were able to escape. Lyon is right, however, I cannot heal you any further today," Lu says as he sees her wounds, "Perhaps the rest of us should track down the hobgoblin before he escapes?" "Kaussek, wait. He may be preparing an ambush again. We should go together."
Lyon:
When Lyon comes to discuss Cedric's fate, he is surprised. "I appreciate your concern for the boy. His name was Cedric. Placing his name elsewhere would only confuse his spirit, though I appreciate the sentiment. If you wish to honor him, join us after we return from burying him and listen to the others share stories of his life. Even if you cannot understand them, it would be taken as a sign of respect."
Funeral:
Lu is saddened to find they had lost another member of their tribe when they return. The spirits of this land had clearly not been appeased sufficiently given all the ill luck they had been having. He leads the tribe in finding a place to bury his remains. While, from what he understood, many of his kin elsewhere preferred to use pyres for funerary rites, the region of Numeria they had lived in offered little in the way of material for fires, meaning that wood and dried grass were reserved for cooking and heating exclusively. Heading out to a quiet location, he leads a group of those closest to the mother and Cedric and aids in digging small grave in which to place the remains. Once the hole is prepared, he turns to the mother, who hands him a palm-sized stone inscribed with a symbol representing the soul of a warrior on one side, and a symbol representing ancestors on the other. Placing the remains in the grave, they fill it back up and then he digs a small hole at the center, placing the stone within. "Tha Cedric, mac Cedric, mac Fir, a-nis a ’fuireach an seo le spioradan an fhearainn. Gun téid an spiorad gu bheil thu a ’gabhail thu fhéin, agus a’ leigeil leat coimhead thairis air do theaghlach agus an sliochd." Spoiler:
"Cedric, son of Cedric, son of Fir, rest now here with the spirits of the land. May the spirits accept you as one of their own, and allow you to watch over your family and their descendants." Covering the stone with dirt, he places a small cairn above the buried stone to mark its location. In a weeks time he would return and retrieve the stone, which would then be kept by the mother and eventually placed within the hearth of their home. Each time a member of the family died, the stone would be buried with them, allowing their spirit to bond with it. From then on, no matter where they might roam to, the spirit would be able to find his descendants to watch over them. This was necessary, as they roamed frequently, and might not ever return to the location someone was buried. When they finish, he comforts the mother and walks with the group back to their encampment. There they spend time drinking and sharing stories of Cedric's all-too-brief life, before returning to their duties. Once the stone was returned, they would hold a proper wake to let Cedric (and the other ancestors) know the stone had returned to a hearth.
The fight against Varn and his companions had not gone well, and by the time they are in town Lu has too much to deal with to participate in the back-and-forth. When he finally rejoins the group, he catches the last of Jimoth's argument with the others and watches him leave. He would need to go speak with the man, he was not wrong in his assessment of the situation. "Fighting any further will not help. I agree with Jimoth had said, we cannot wait here for the lands to be safe to tend to our peoples' needs. While we must deal with these threats, we cannot allow any food here to go to waste, crops included. We have a saying 'Bidh iadsan a bhios a ’dèanamh phlanaichean san t-sneachda, a’ bàsachadh ann'. Those who plan in the snow die by it. We will not have time later to solve the lack of food we will have then, and our people will starve for it." All-in-all, he had little interest in continuing the squabbles within the party. If they were going to live and survive here, they needed to pull themselves together and accept that it would not be easy, and that their small group could not deal with everything single-handedly. "Cedric died, and while I had hoped to avoid more death, the spirits of the land here will not bend knee so easily. And we cannot solve every problem on our own. We should track down the remainder of the ogres and kill them first. Regardless of fault, they are the biggest threat to our people heading out to hunt and farm. Then we can deal with Varn and the others."
Lu takes the time to patch everyone up to the best of his abilities. If they were going in again, they would need every bit of healing they could manage. "That is all I can do for healing today for us, unfortunately," he says as he finishes up.
"I will fly in this time," Lu suggests. They would be unlikely to expect someone in a different form. "That would allow me to get the drop on their wizard."
"Just go Lyon! I will heal her and help her flee. There is nothing you can do if another explosion like that happens!" Kneeling down, he begins tending to the dwarf, channeling Sil's blessing to heal her wounds. Hopefully it would be enough to get her up, as it would be difficult to flee down with her over his shoulder with the archer behind them. Better to get his attention once Melira was fleeing with the others. He could always try to fly away after the fact if he got the chance.
Lu steps back and calls forth a billowing cloud of fog which rapidly fills the area around the swarm. "Out now!" he calls to the others, hoping they can get out fast enough to leave the wasps confused and unsure where to go.
Having finally made it up to where the others are, Lu surveys the situation. "If Aisha can get them to one of the enemies, I can provide some cover for her to escape them," Lu says, hoping Lyon will relay the message to Aisha.
With the battle having started, Lu rushes forward to join battle, running at full speed to join the others.
Lu prepares for a possible confrontation by casting barkskin, knowing that it would last long enough for them to continue into the temple if it turned out the three above (for some reason) weren't a threat.
Lu gives Aisha and Lyon a good two hundred feet of head-start given that he hadn't ever been effective at stealth. Hopefully they would avoid starting a fight before he could close the distancce.
Yeah, I think 100-200 feet is fine. Lu is opting for more rather than less :p
Lu squints at the figures above, but cannot seem to make out any features. "Aisha will need more than that. It might be best if she went closer while we waited here to see if she can get a better look. While we can fight if we need to, they could be townsfolk who woke up somehow and are confused as well."
That is totally not how I understand "fort". The fort includes the outer wall, The a fortified building inside a fort might have a separate term if it can be closed after the walls fall. But in european and american frontier settings, "fort" is a set of buildings contained within a single wall, whether that wall is a complex stone or wood wall with catwalks/ramparts, or simply a wooden pallisade.
Lu was hardly about to take chiding from people who had been unable to make use of a perfectly good fort in defending the caravan. On the plains in Numeria they'd had no such luxury, and still did a perfectly fine job of protecting the village at night from raiding. They did not do that by sending people out blind into the darkness. You did so by pulling back to the outskirts and keeping guards close enough that they can respond to the disappearance quickly. He takes a deep breath and weighs in on the subject, ignoring the young mage's attempt to spread the blame around. "The caravan had plenty of guards to hole up within the fort and guard there. Sending people blindly out into the night was a poor choice, especially if you believed more ogres or ogrekin were coming. If someone ordered them to head out on patrol, any deaths that caused is on that person. But at least we are in agreement. Clearly someone competent will have to volunteer to stay behind to aid the caravan next time." Turning to Kaussek as he moves the conversation forward, Lu adds "We have to deal with the temple. Chokers or outright disappearance of our entire caravan are threats that must be handled immediately. Fortifying will help with neither."
I'm assuming Lu hit everyone who could be healed, because it's free and we had time.
Away Team: "Resting and getting the others may be called for now. If more of these things are coming from there we'll need all the help we can get," Lu says as he begins to tend to the group's wounds. "No sense getting worked up," he says to Lyon, overhearing her and Aisha as he approaches to get her healed up as well. "We would have been fine had these monsters not attacked, and we are still not much worse for wear compared to them," he says with a grin.
Away Team: Lu listens to Aecora and Aisha discussing things as he helps heal the wounded. With Sil'sblessin, it was easy to tend to the wounds of many, even if he could not completely restore them.
When he finishes, he joins the conversation. "Perhaps you could move in the direction we are heading, we are seeking to settle new lands, and neighbors we know and can trust would be welcome. It could prove beneficial for both our peoples. Not all people are greedy for others' land as Varn was for yours."
Away Team: "I cast the wrong spell apparently," Lu says, grumbling after the acid splashes burn him twice. Aisha was right that his had gone down without exploding, which was good, but he had no intentions of taking any further chances on the subject. "We can try to keep as many from exploding as possible, but better safe than sorry," he says, responding to Aisha. With that he quickly incants another of his spells, shielding himself from any further acid damage. He then begins closing with the dwarf buried under a pile of chokers. "Hang on, help is on the way!" he calls out to the dwarf.
Away Team: Lu wastes no time when the creature grabs him by the throat, taking the tentacles by one hand and pulling himself forward to smash the creature's face in with a silent roar.
Away Team: "Agreed. There is no reason not to aid them in this. Even if only to show that not all men are greedy or seeking to do them harm. 'Getting away' does us very little good if we encounter them again and they blame the attack on us, after all." Without hesitation, he quickly casts barkskin on himself, his skin hardening in response to better protect him. He begins following Aisha out the door.
Away Team: Lu listens to Aisha demanding they go save the people. Her desire to do so was admirable, but her reasoning was off. One was not part of a story until they completed something admirable and worthy. You might choose to try to do so, but the story would not exist until after you had proven yourself. Those who failed had no stories told of them. When Kaussek replies with righteous anger, Lu looks anew at the Lizardman, taking measure of him again. The two shared more in common than he would have assumed at first glance. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, Dà-sgian" he says, placing a hand on the lizardman's shoulder in solidarity. "Rwy'n rhannu eich poen, brawd" His tone becomes quiet and pensive as he says it and then repeats in common, "I share your wounds, brother." "Not every story is heroic, Aisha, and for every one told, a thousand others are lost in the winds. The one that led me here involved the death of my father and almost every warrior in my tribe. My father was heroic, and he likely died to poison. There was no honorable battle, and no one came to save us in the end. Our way of life was ended, and my people back at the caravan are depending on me to help lead them through this time of change," he says solemnly. "I am as ready as any follower of Gorum to throw myself into a challenge. I did not hunt down Ha'leth alone simply for the enjoyment. The glory of it and recognition by my people and by Gorum were important. I knew when I went that I might die, it was something I accepted going in." Doing Gorum's will didn't mean you weren't allowed to consider that it might kill you, nor did it mean you did so without any fear. It just meant that you accepted that as part of proving yourself. If you fell in glorious combat, that was just as worthy. "You must accept that in doing these things you can die. And it also means that when you have something to fight for, you must choose your battles wisely. You cannot always do things because of the story it might tell, if doing so might sacrifice things you care for."
<Insert Clever Title Here>: "That an entire town was forced to up and leave with magic is troubling. We cannot assume that wherever we settle will be safe from such a power. Lyon is right: We need to at least know what happened and why."
LALALALA, K?: Trudging through the rain, Lu attempts to leave a path on the ground, ripping out clumps of grass and tossing them in the direction they're heading. The rain would likely obscure their tracks, but the grass would mostly stay in place.
When they come to the village Lu is surprised to find permanent dwellings. He hadn't expected Centaurs to... well, he hadn't really thought about Centaurs before at all. The moment they get indoors, the wet mass huddled against his neck takes off into a corner and proceeds to shake off most of the water, beginning the long, tiring work of preening its feathers. Lu lets off a little laugh and then turns to the chieftain as she greets them. Once again he is surprised to find that she speaks Taldane well. He waits for Kaussek and Aisha to finish speaking and then speaks up himself. "I am Faluhann Windborne, and speak for the Windborne tribe" "Aisha is right. I cannot believe the entire town was wrong somehow. They likely had children there, were they guilty of something? Whatever those in charge of the town may have done in their dealings with you, it shouldn't extend to all the people. Tell us what you know, and why you think they are not worth saving?" he asks, moving up to the front of the group.
LALK: "I have nothing like that. Simply mark on the ground as we go. They will have plenty of time to interpret the signs. No need to leave scraps which might be carried off by the wind," Lu says at the suggestion they write notes.
KLLA: "Not enough sleep, no, but..." Lu shrugs. There was nothing to do at this point but go along with the centaurs. He shoulders his bag and falls in next to Kaussek.
KLL: Leaving a note for Aisha didn't seem like the best idea to Lu. She was... a bit too free-spirited? Something anyway. She was competent enough, but he worried about her wandering directly in to the centaur camp without warning and startling them without being aware of the consequences. "I believe she said to just yell for her, but I don't want to yell without the centaurs knowing what I'm doing. Would you let them know we are going to call for her?" he asks Kaussek.
Once--and assuming he agrees, of course--Kaussek explains the situation to the Centaurs, Lu heads over to the spider's den and calls into the cave.
Kaussek + Lyon + Lu: Lu gets up slowly, grumbling. He gets up and gathers himself together, rubbing his eyes. Naturally he is rather surprised to find that, yes indeed, there are a bunch of centaurs standing about menacingly. "Glad you are able to speak their language," he tells Kaussek. He whistles up into the trees and a few moments later Sil obliges by flitting down to his shoulder.
"Has Aisha returned?" he asks, looking around for her. "If not we should let them know we can't leave her behind."
"Bidh ea 'fàileadh mar lirg!" Sil responds to Aisha, hopping around on Lu's shoulder. Hallit:
"He smells like a Lizard!" "There's nothing wrong with walking on your own feet, Aisha," Lu says to continued insistence that they should've brought horses. "We'll make good time tomorrow," he adds. He would've preferred to continue on, but at least they'd taken off instead of lingering in Varnhold. He nods at Lyon when she asks for help gathering up wood, working to help gather enough for a fire.
Lu frowns at the little mages that had been traveling with them on the caravan. The young, over-eager one was now suggesting they just run away and leave the town to its fate, and the other had done little but sit in the back and gripe about others' actions. "Don't worry, Ishana, it's best if you and Alana remain here. We may not be able to protect either of you in a real battle," Lu says in response to the neophyte mage. "The minor tricks you two have learned are likely to attract the attention of creatures you cannot handle, though I appreciate your enthusiasm to help." "Shall we go, Aisha, Lyon, Kaussek? We can discuss where and when to rest on the trip down," with that he turns and heads towards the exit of the fort. If they were going to rest along the way, at least they could get moving now.
Ishana:
Sil chirps nervously as the discussion continues. "I know Sil," he says, reaching up to pat the bird on the head. "If we rest now, the townsfolk will be even closer to this 'Aria'. They have no food, no drink, maybe not even the sense to rest in their heads. And you all wish to sleep comfortably here while they may be in danger?" Lu grumbles in exasperation as he contemplates staying the night. "Why? Because something out there might hunt us in the night? That spider was larger than Ha'leth and we barely had to lift our fingers to fight it. Any tribe would be proud to have warriors like that. They would tell tales of their exploits night after night! And none of those heroic tales began with them travelling a short ways down the path and then returning home to rest." He looks at each of the companions that had come along down the road. He had been sure that they were the sorts of stalwart folk that their caravan would be able to count upon up until now. "If any of you care about the fate of the villagers, know this: If we sleep tonight, we sleep with the knowledge that anyone we can't save might have died because we demanded comfort and safety rather than to challenge ourselves."
"We should continue our search immediately," Lu says once they're safely in camp. "There is no reason to stay here resting all day, we've barely set out!" "You're back in Varnhold, we rescued you from a giant spider. Do you remember what happened?" Lu says to the waking survivor as he asks what happened.
"Do not waste potions on this, I can tend to their wounds," he says. The oversized kellid kneels down next to the survivors, trying to get a feel for what they were poisoned by, and whether there was anything he could do about it. Unfortunately, he is unable to make much of a guess, and in the end opts just to heal them both and hope for the best.
"I agree we should take them back," Lu says, "If we move quickly, we can be back without losing too much time."
"That was less entertaining than I thought," Lu says as his spear vanishes. The fight had hardly lasted at all. The spider was impressive, however, even if the fight had not been. Walking up to it, he reaches up to the creature's mouth and breaks off one of its fangs, careful not to impale himself on it. "A trophy!" he says as he works on tearing it off the front of the horribly maimed arachnid. "Think there's anything useful in the creature's den?" he asks the others.
Adjusting his position to account for Kaussek, Lu thrusts once again with the spear, this time aiming for the creature's maw.
Standing next to Kaussek, Lu is more than impressed by the size of the spider that rushes out of the den. This would be a fight worth sharing with the tribe! Lu adjusts his stance, focusing inward for a moment. He then looks up, reaching towards the sky, " I am your weapon!" As he cries out, a ghostly spear appears in his hand. He then steps forward cautiously and lunges with the spear, attempting to impale the giant spider from a safe distance.
"Yup, no sense coming out here and running away," Lu says, nodding. Not wasting time, he begins casting spells upon himself in preparation for dealing with the giant spider. The first spell causes his skin to harden and darken in color, and he follows it up with the same enlarge spell he'd used when fighting the bandits. "Now we can have some fun," Lu says, clearly relishing the chance to fight an elephant-sized spider. "Fuireach air ais, Sil," he says to the little bird, causing him to take off and circle behind the group away from the webs. Hallit:
"Stay Back, Sil"
Lu shakes his head at the suggestion of using the bow. "Bows aren't my thing," Lu says to Aisha's suggestion. "If you're worried about it being put to use, I'm sure some hunter in the caravan could use it."
"I am not sure there's a rush, the tracks are obvious enough that they will still be visible tomorrow. No reason not to leave now either though," Lu says noncommittally. "If we're leaving I'll go check in with my tribe first." Checking in with his people to make sure they're all in good shape, he takes a moment to encourage them again to welcome the now ex-bandits among them. On the way out, he stops for a moment to speak with the bandits--now being used as Marcus's personal labor force--letting them know that they could get meals among his tribe, and that they'd be happy to help them get more settled in.
Lu looks around the fort, but can't seem to find any signs of what happened. When he finishes searching, he heads back out and notices the gates repaired. "Good work," he says to Aisha and Lyon. "One must not use such a power trivially," he adds when he hears the two discussing why he hadn't just flown in. "And if there had been foes inside, being on the other side alone isn't where I'd have wanted to be." "Lets go help get the Caravan moving," he says, walking down towards where they were encamped.
Lu waits a moment as Kaussek calls out to the inside of the fort, seeing if anyone responds. When it's clear no one was forthcoming in providing them ingress, he decides to test the door more vigorously with his shoulder. After all, it might not be barred heavily.
With his first attempt his foot slips as his shoulder crashes into the door, preventing him from impacting the door as effectively as he'd have liked. Taking a step back, he gives it another shot, hoping to better test the door's strength.
"Thank you," he says to Aisha, happy to know something more about the ring. He would have to learn more about this 'Shelyn' later, when there was time for such things. He shrugs at Lyon when she starts justifying keeping the things, noticing her haste to get them away from him. "I will not take them from you, just be careful. Old things from forgotten places can bring strange and terrible things. I have heard of metal monsters coming to retrieve things that were stolen by tribes from the monster's tomb. Some things were meant to be forgotten." Turning back to the rest of the group, he ponders the situation for a moment. Clearly he'd be of little help here. Deciphering languages and opening boxes were hardly things he or Sil had any skill in. "I will accompany you, Dà-sgian" he says, slapping the tall lizard man on the shoulder. "Let's hurry! The sooner our caravan is safe, the sooner we can devote time to tracking those who went north." Hallit:
Dà sgian - 'Two-skins', clearly an attempt at a nickname, and likely a reference to Kaussek's armor and natural scales. When he gets outside, he turns to Sil--still happily perched on his shoulder. "Cearcall gu h-àrd, rabharaich dhuinn ma tha rudeigin annasach," he says to the thrush, which responds with a brief chirp and takes off into the sky. Hallit: "Circle above, warn us if anything odd approaches."
"It is troubling that the same coins and figures are here as well," he says, responding to Lyon. "If those are conneccted with the disappearances, perhaps we should leave them alone. Perhaps they brought the curse of the gods down upon this place." When Aisha excitedly asks about his ring, he lifts his hand up and looks at it thoughtfully. "I am not a 'Shelynite'," he says, unsure of the word. He and Ceara had discussed many things in their time together, but such a thing was never mentioned. Of course, from what he understood she and her mother had been forbidden from discussing things from her mother's past, despite their keepsakes. "This ring is not mine, it was a gift in a time of need, but I know little of the ring beyond who I received it from and how to activate it. Can you tell me more about it?" he asks, sounding genuinely interested in learning more about the ring. When the lizardman suggests the fort as a place to secure the caravan, Lu nods in assent. "The fort seems like the safest place to rest the caravan for the evening. Perhaps we will find things of use there as well. No sense in letting supplies go to waste with the population gone."
Circling back, he heads quickly back into town. He spots the house the group had entered and lands, quickly shifting back to his original form. Moving indoors, he rejoins the group. "It appears the townsfolk headed north together. We could track where they're headed without much trouble. Have you anything here?"
In some ways finding the mass of tracks heading out the northern path was reassuring. It was easier to explain and cope with than the entire city having vanished without a trace. Lu heads further down the path, careful to not lose track of time. He saw no waste in using another charge of the ring to return, and walking back would likely leave the others worried about his whereabouts. Nevermind the possibility of actually running into whatever caused this disappearance.
Lu spends some time checking in on his people as they journey uphill and into Varnhold, both explaining what they had been finding so far, and assuaging any worries they might have. He makes sure to introduce the dog to some of the children in the tribe, knowing it'll be better off there guarding people than tagging along with him. Once it's clear that something has gone awry in Varnhold he moves to rejoin the others. It's clear from the scenes that something truly strange and troubling has happened here, given the way the people seemed to have up and left without even finishing simple tasks. He wanders out into the abandoned city for a bit before deciding to get a better view of things. Reaching down to his ring, he pauses to think of Ceara briefly before uttering the command word. With a flash of red his form shifts into that of a small, crimson songbird and takes off into the air. He made it a point not to use the ring often, for he had little knowledge of how it operated or if it had limits. If it did, he hoped to return it to Ceara one day with its magic still in tact. In fact, this marked the third time he had used the ring, the other two times being when Ceara gave it to him to flee the trap her father had set, and once more to check if the tribe was being followed as they set off the first day of their exodus from Numeria. The actual experience was something truly exhilarating, and together he and Sil flew a wide circle about the city looking for anything that might provide clues as to where the people went.
Lu is pleased to see the dog up and about again. Patting it on the head, he digs out a small piece of jerky and gives it to him to chew on. "Thank you for the help. Haven't seen any, no, but I think it wouldn't hurt to know more about them I think, so might take you up on that offer." "Fighting more Ogres would be entertaining, to be sure, but maybe it would be better to continue on to the town. Think the lizard has it right. We head into town and let them know about what happened here. They can deal with the rest."
Lyon's use of the firearm was a little startling to Lu. To Sil it was enough to send him to the rafters fleeing the sound. "Uchel!" he chirps back angrily once he realizes it's safe. Lu laughs and beckons the bird back down. He'd heard of such weapons being in use, but he'd never been close to one or seen one fired. Such things were still far from reaching his lands. It was, without a doubt, one of the most impressive things he'd seen in his life. "That is quite a weapon," he says. There was no doubt such tools could make tasks like hunting easier for his tribe, perhaps even let some of the older and less able tribe members contribute if there were smaller versions of such things. "I would like to learn about this weapon sometime," he says. When the last ogre drops, he responds to the wounded dog. Sil flits down from the rafters finally, landing briefly on his shoulder only to hop down to the poor tortured animal. Though most of the wounds are sealed, the dog's leg being in poor shape worries him. "Help me hold him down, Marucs, Lyon. His leg must be set."
After the leg is set in place and supported, he channels healing energy into it, helping the remaining wounds close around it. Sil, pleased with the outcome chirps happily before heading back to Lu's shoulder.
Lu rushes ahead, having been hanging out in the back of the group. Sil quickly finds a safe spot to hide in his pack, trying to avoid getting caught in the coming fight. He rushes the greasy ogre attempting to attack Lyon and barrels into the creature, burying his shoulder into the thing's ribs.
After the hit lands, he meets the creature's eyes with a grin, working his curse upon the creature. "Pick on someone your own size, oaf," he calls out to the giant humanoid.
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