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I was on vacation, so didn't have a chance to check in with Red recently. He is working hard on his business and wants to keep running this game but isn't sure if he can commit the time. I didn't get a definite yes or no so I'll ask again in a few days!
I'm down with Maja's suggestion for exploring more hexes and getting back to Haven more quickly. I hope Kivan comes back!
Milo is grinning like an idiot when he shows up with all the horses, even knowing the foals are too small to ride. He laughs at Idris's comment. "If I keep hanging out around Sera and her sorcery rubs off on me, we'll have a whole herd of horses by the time we get back to Haven!" "Looks like we have a lot of options here. We can head straight back to Haven. Or we can keep exploring, a little bit, or a lot. Personally, I'd like to explore at least a little more around the lake and see if there is anyone living nearby who knows more about that mysterious tower, or any clues or something about the place before we go back." As much as Milo enjoys being in the wilderness, he really likes the idea of Kivan or someone else smarter than him learning more about the tower, so that they can go back and fix, cleanse it or whatever the magical term is for it, as soon as possible.
I'll pester him some more irl!
"I don't know how well this will work," he admits. "We'll probably be better off walking and having the animal carry our stuff. A wild deer or an elk or something like that probably won't enjoy being ridden. Nix is pretty strong too, she can carry quite a bit if she doesn't have to fight or track."
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Milo grins as Idris ponders what to do out loud, but for once, decides to keep his "witty" comments to himself. "We can give it a shot, and if they don't like your idea, they can leave and go join another tribe." He too is ready to go see the hatchery and figure out what they are going to do in this odd situation.
"Huh. I better practice talking with the kobolds and learn some draconic," Milo says as Sera and Idris converse with the lizardfolk. And speaking of talking to spirits, Milo adds "Unless the dead are animals or elves, I won't be much help."
Milo shakes his head at the silliness of the situation, though he is pleased with the outcome. "Good idea, very creative! Who would have guessed that's what would happen?"
"Alright, once they answer the rest of our questions, we can go see what the situation really is," Milo agrees. While he'd opposed the decision at first, after hearing the reasons for letting the lizardfolk and their egg survive, Milo begins to feel less strongly about it. After all, he'd adopted Nix- a wild wolf pup and raised her, training her to follow the rules and commands a dog would. While the two situations aren't exactly comparable, he sees the similarities between them.
"I'm thinking about our relationship with the Sootscales. You guys helped them out, and now they respect us. Even before we met them, they've wanted to do good. They're clearly on the right path. But the lizardfolk are a different story. They don't have the same morals that we do. We just killed most of their tribe. Like Pretty said, they'll probably be too afraid of us to do anything for awhile. But I'd hate to see them prey on our settlers or their livestock in a few years when they forget how powerful we are, or they go hungry, or go back to their natural way of eating whatever meat they want to. I'd rather kill them now. If we all do agree that is what we want to do, I volunteer to smash the eggs." "If we do let them live, we'll have to keep an eye on them, teach them what they can hunt, and make sure they're trustworthy. We'll have to teach the settlers not to fear the lizardfolk, and to leave them alone."
"All the lizardfolk here are full grown. But this is the right time of year for them to lay eggs. Maybe there are nests in some of the huts. We could ask them if it's a raiding camp or if they have young, " Milo suggests. Since he can't understand what the lizardfolk are saying while they are being questioned, he walks around the huts with Nix, looking for signs of nests or eggs. Milo doesn't even bother trying to clean the alligator spit off his clothes as he's getting even muddier traipsing around through the swampy camp.
"Thanks!" Milo hollers to his friends as the dead alligator lets him go. "Yuck," he exclaims, trying to ignore the alligator spit while he takes aim at the last enemy and sics Nix on it too.
"AAAH!" Milo screams, surprised by the sudden appearance of the alligator. He attempts to do what Maja did and wriggle free of its teeth, but it seems like he is only making things worse! In his panic, Milo briefly considers calling Nix to help him, but knows its best that she and his friends finish off the wounded alligator first.
Nix continues to chomp at the other alligator. Under the effect of Seraphina's magic, the black wolf is a blur of fur next to the giant gator.
Milo and Nix combine their efforts to take down the gator going after Maja. He thinks back to what he knows about alligators and whether they like to swallow their prey whole or otherwise dismember it once they've gotten ahold of it.
"Hang in there Maja, we'll get you out!" Milo says, hoping his friend is okay despite being trapped in the jaws of the crocodile! "Nix, get that one!" he shouts, pointing the wolf at the one chomping on Maja. She speeds next to the cleric and snaps at the crocodile, but its tough hide is no match for Nix's teeth.
Still enhanced by Seraphina's magic, Milo looses two more arrows at it as well. It's big, so it's easy to aim at the thing without fear of hitting Maja accidentally...
Milo shakes his head, regretting not thinking to check the tracks to see how many lizardfolk might live in this village. As Seraphina's magic takes effect, he fires two shots at the nearest lizardfolk. Although he'd rather have Nix standing between him and the lizardfolk, he's glad she's protecting Kivan from them.
Meanwhile, Nix moves to defend Kivan from the lizardman and the alligator outside the compound. Her ears flatten against her head and she growls at them, ready to tear into them and drag them to the ground if they come too close.
Not seeing anymore enemies, Milo makes a dash towards the gate, hoping to find either more enemies or put himself closer to letting Nix and Kivan in. He glances around, unsure if any lizardfolk will come out of the huts. The camp seemed like it could support more of them, but maybe they were asleep or afraid. Nix trots obediently and silently alongside Kivan, occasionally glancing towards the palisade walls and the sounds of the fighting inside.
Milo scoots around the hut, using it to hide his movement from the lizardfolk. Now he's in range of the targets near the fire and closer to Maja and Seraphina. He isn't used to fighting without Nix to distract his opponents, but this setup was working okay since he could use his bow from a long distance. After loosing an arrow at the lizard man he can see near the fire, Milo attempts to conceal himself in the darkness around the hut again.
Milo waits a few moments to trail behind Pretty, following the curve of the palisade wall. He stays far enough away that any noise on his part won't attract attention to her, but close enough that he can loose an arrow if a lizard person. He finds it oddly reminiscent of hunting wild game with Nix. Often, Nix would stalk an animal before ambushing it while Milo waited nearby, his bow ready to bring down the bear or elk.
Nix sits quietly next to Kivan, her ears turning this way and that as she listens to the faint sounds in the darkness.
Seeing Pretty's signal, Milo silently slides down the rope into the compound, waiting at the bottom to help muffle Idris and Seraphina's descent. From time to time, he glances at the lizardfolk near the fire to make sure they haven't been spotted, or that the lizardfolk haven't decided to go to bed. I've had enough haunted towers and creepy visions. It'll be good to fight a real foe...
Milo perches atop the wall and slowly lowers another rope into the compound so that they can climb down the inside of the wall more easily. They've chosen a good place to scale the wall - the hut to the northeast of them will block line of sight to the watchers near the fire. Yet if Pretty is discovered while she sneaks around the camp, the rest of them can quickly rush to her aid. Below, Nix waits next to Kivan, looking from the wizard, to the group on top of the wall and then at the lizardfolk inside the walls.
We tied a rope, so Sera can probably make it up with the +5 from that. Otherwise, Milo can aid. Red, do we see anything new from the top of the wall? Reading through the old posts, the plan is for people to quietly climb down into the camp and for Pretty to do some sneaking, scouting, and stabbing if we still agree that is the way to go.
Welcome back! I'm glad to hear everything is good. I'll let Red know, I'm not sure how often he checks the boards.
Not sure myself, I'll be pretty busy until after the holidays. I'll definitely keep checking in and let you know if I hear anything from Red.
I talked to Red and he said he's concerned that Sera isn't coming back. With her being the key to the kingdom (queen dom?) he doesn't want to find a replacement player. I offered some suggestions, like having her continue as a DMPC for a bit, and other ideas, but I got the feeling Red doesn't have a lot of time available for continuing the game. Long story short, and I hate for this to come from me and not the GM, but unless we hear from Sera, I think this is the end of the game. Its been a real pleasure being in the game with all of you!
I'm here as well! I'll see if I can get in touch with Red, too.
While they wait for the lizardfolk to fall asleep, Milo wraps the spikes of a grappling hook with rags. Having seen how well she climbed down the haunted tower earlier that day, and she had volunteered to be the first over the lizardfolk's palisade wall, he asks "Pretty, when you climb up, can you hook this to the top of the wall so we can follow you up more easily?" Once they reach the compound, Milo shows Nix a spot near where they will be climbing and gives her a hand signal to stay. After Pretty goes over the wall, Milo will follow her.
"Nix will either run back to me or defend herself if she's spotted. She might be able to climb the wall and get in if she's trying to get to me. " Milo agrees with the plan of waiting a few hours and sneaking into the camp over the southern wall. He will tell Nix ( quietly) to stay outside the compound, meaning she will come to him if she is noticed.
"The middle of the night sounds good, Maja. I agree, let's not make our camp right here. We shouldn't light a fire either, as nice as that would be. " With that, Milo looks for a likely place to camp about a quarter to half mile away from the lizard folk camp, preferably on dry land. He also does his best to conceal their tracks as they go.
Milo lays out several options based on Pretty's scouting. I can turn the earth under their wall into mud, but I can't say for sure if it will make the wall fall over. Plus, all of us would have to wade through the mud to get in. If it did fall, though, they might all come to investigate, giving us an opportunity to attack from hiding at a distance. Or, we could try to sneak in and climb over the walls once they go to sleep. Or we could keep watch, wait for them to open the gate, and then rush in to surprise them. I don't have any way to attack the hinges to break down the gate. Any other ideas?" Now that he'd found his quarry, Milo feels better. Hunting had taught him patience - he could wait here for as long as it took for an opportunity to attack the lizardfolk. The camp has only one gate - that was foolish, even a rabbit's den has multiple escape routes in case of a predator attack. And the odds were surely in their favor, especially if they took the lizardfolk by surprise.
Pretty, out of character, I want to let you know I wasn't picking on you or pointing fingers in my post. Both Milo and Pretty are thinking about what happened. As far as i understand, only the stuff in bold is said out loud. They aren't talking or arguing or pointing fingers. Just want to make that clear, since neither Milo nor Pretty can read minds ;)
Milo's sadness fades and turns to anger as he trudges through the swamp with Nix at his heels. They had abandoned the mission on the island, only to have the horses killed while they were gone. Now whatever horrors were going on within the tower could continue, and the horses had been dragged through a swamp to serve as dinner for the cruel lizard people. He surveys the lizard folk encampment from a distance, watchful for signs of sentries, and to see how or if the gate is secured. "If the gate isn't locked, we could rush in and take them by surprise, " he suggests, not particularity caring how they reached the lizard folk, just that he could exact his revenge.
I'm sorry to hear that. I everything goes well for both of you.
Milo remains silent as they paddle back to the mainland, enjoying the sense of relief for only a few moments before noticing the horses are gone. Instantly, his mood sours. He hadn't thought the day could get any worse, but somehow, it had. Once on shore, Milo sighs and his shoulders slump. At first, Nix won't go near the mess and watches with her hackles raised. Gesturing at the blood and debris, Milo says "Our brave horses. These beasts carried us through rain and snow, good days and bad, attacks by bandits, cultists, and rocs..." Trailing off, he dejectedly surveys the scene to see what he can learn. But his tears make it hard to see, and his memories make it hard to concentrate. Milo had raised Comet since he was just a little foal, seven years ago. Just that morning, he'd curry combed him and hobbled him here on the shore so he couldn't wander too far. And now he was dead, along with the other five horses. He might not have known them as long, but he'd taken care of all of them at some point or another. He'd seen the lizardfolk tracks that very morning. Why hadn't he thought the hateful creatures might attack the horses? Kivan's words snap him back to the present, and his sadness vanishes, replaced with anger. "That makes two of us. Let's see which way they went." Milo stalks around the perimeter of the area while Nix snuffles at the ground to track the lizardfolk. He tries to determine how many lizardfolk dragged off the horses, and if it looks like they slaughtered all six horses.
Milo takes precautions to scuff out the party's footprints, both inside the cellar and at the entrance to the tower. "Now we can tell if anyone else visits this place while we are gone."
Should we stay or should we go now? Out of character, I'm okay with coming back later if that's what you guys would rather do so we can keep the story moving along.
Milo is surprised, but relents. "Sera makes a good point. I hate to leave, but we should do this together or not at all. If you'd rather come back later, we should seal this place up as best we can. I hope we can take out the gems and block the passage again."
Milo takes heart in Seraphina's brave words. Kivan was exactly right, too. Now that they'd killed the allips and dissipated the evil aura on the island shore, that was one less thing stopping people from coming to here. And then they'd opened the gem door, they'd destroyed another barrier keeping innocent people out, and the insanity in. Milo remembers when he first met Pretty, along with everyone else just a few months ago. They'd cooked supper together and settled down for the night, until she'd been abducted while everyone slept. Calling out to her as she goes, Milo's voice is harsh, angry that whatever is haunting this place is somehow dividing them up against one another through fear. "Pretty, do you remember when we first met? Did you fail when the cultists captured you? Did you fail when they took away your weapons and tools? What about when they locked you in a cell? Three times, you failed. But did you wait in your cell for them to sacrifice you, or run away at your first chance? No! With your own cunning, you escaped without a scratch, freed the other prisoners they'd captured, and destroyed every single one of them." Milo's voice softens, and he adds "I hate to admit it, but I wish I didn't insist on exploring the island. But now, we've opened the place up. Maybe something is sealed up in here. We've broken some of the seals, and now we have to finish what we've started before it gets out or someone else comes in. Whatever is here on this island wants you to leave us. It wants to separate us, so it can have an easier time. Do you want to play right into its hands?"
"I saw it," Milo says to Maja. "I think someone is trying to scare us away. But we need fix whatever is wrong with this place, before a person from Haven finds it, or something from this island starts to spread the madness." Despite sounding intent on removing whatever is causing the evil visions, Milo knows he is out of his depth. A bow and arrows might not be enough to banish whatever evil lurks here. "If we find whatever the source of this evil is, do you know of a way to cleanse it?" he asks Maja and Kivan.
Milo stands blinking for a few minutes, readjusting to his surroundings and looking around to assure himself that this is not yet another illusion. Seeing Kivan getting up from the ground and Idris's pale face, he wonders what they saw, but decides he doesn't want to know the answer. "Lead on, Pretty, we've got to get to the bottom of this," he says, attempting a joke as he waits for everyone to climb down the shaft. Once they've all gone, Milo ties his own rope around Nix's middle, secures it to what Idris and Pretty have put together, and uses it to lower her down the shaft. After the wolf is at the bottom of the cave, Milo climbs down himself.
Noticing the ancient skeletons and their archaic armor, Milo wonders just how long they've been rotting away in the sealed chamber. Whoever - or whatever - had built this tower had obviously done so long ago.
Having searched the area and found nothing of interest, Milo and Nix return to Kivan and Pretty. Noticing that they've completed the puzzle anyway, he grins at the coincidence of his timing. But just as he's about to speak, the stones glow yellow and the skeleton animates. The cellar door opens and Milo sees his shadow lengthen behind him. Did the sun finally come out from behind the clouds? he wonders. Turning around, he finds that a full moon is rising out of the cellar door. Puzzlement turns to discomfort as Milo looks up to see an alien sky above. It is a pale yellow, identical to the color of the glowing gemstones. Two suns are setting below the northern horizon, and to the south, black stars in strange constellations dot the pus-colored sky. Beginning to panic, Milo turns back to the cellar door. Now the moon is in the sky, yet it is somehow passing in front of the tower. A deep sense of wrongness fills him with dread. No matter what came in the world, Milo had always been able to count on the sun rising in the east and setting in the west. The cycle of the moon. The familiar constellations his father had taught him as a boy. "What... where..." Unable to reconcile this unnatural world with the one he knows, Milo is stupefied and disoriented by the sudden change.
ooc]Thanks Idris, I wasn't 100% sure how ability drain affected spells that could be cast, now I see it just affects the DC[/ooc] Milo is relieved to hear Kivan's advice on the monster's attacks. His mind churns, like the surface of a lake stirred by the wind. Calm and still, he wills it. But the water seems to whisper back stranger still still still as it ripples. No. Calm, still water, Milo thinks. After a moment, the lake calms, and he feels more at peace, the taint of the monster banished. Yet the hairs on the back of his neck raise a they near the ruined tower. He can't make heads or tails of the "pattern" in the stone or the gems scattered on the ground. "We'll find a way to cleanse this place, then there is no danger of this... thing... spreading closer to Haven. I'll look around for any clues, Kivan. I'll let you know what I find. " With that, he and Nix inspect the area around the gemstones and skeleton, the door blocking their way, and the rubble around the base of the tower for any hint of solving the puzzle.
The allip hits Milo as he fires at it. But even after his friends kill it, he hears its incoherent babbling. He tries to focus and clear away the fog in his mind, but the voice whispers stranger still stranger stranger stranger still. He shakes his head and rubs his temples. "It...did something to me, when it hit me. I can still hear it talking." He looks nervously at his friends, wondering what it had done to him. Would he go mad now too, like the things they'd just killed? "Nix couldn't bite the thing, but it didn't get her either." He keeps Nix close by his side, comforted by her presence.
"Good idea, Sera. Someone could go mad if they stumbled on this island by accident. We should cleanse it if we can."
Milo curses, realizing Nix's attacks cannot harm these things, and curses again as one approaches him. "May I please. .. May I please. ... " he mutters as it grabs at him, its madness somehow leaching through its dead flesh. There is little he can do for Nix until his own attacker is dead, Milo decides. His back to his companions, Milo looses two more arrows at the allip, bracing for its counter attack. Nix continues to snap ineffectively at the foe between her and Pretty. -Posted with Wayfinder
"Nix - between them!" Milo shouts as the disturbing creatures approach. Ears laid back, Nix dashes between two of the allips, growling and snapping at the one on the end closest to Pretty. But her teeth pass through its ghostly body, leaving no marks. Milo looses two arrows at the that same horrid human who is embedded with crossbow bolts. "If arrows killed you once, they'll kill you again." Yet when Milo's arrows hit the man, something doesn't seem right, though Milo cannot make out what it is. He wonders what terrible things happened here, to cause these men to suffer such madness and horrifying fates.
Spells taken care of, Milo feels the pulse of Seraphina's magic quickening his attacks. He points at Nix and waves his arm, and the wolf backs up, to give Milo a better shot, and conveniently to flank with Idris. While Nix snaps and snarls at the nearest will o wisp, Milo looses two arrows. -Posted with Wayfinder
"Will-o-wisps?" Milo says in surprise. "They'll shock you and feed off of fear." He'd heard tales of the strange lights leading travelers to their deaths, but had never seen one himself. Suddenly, the strange visions made more sense. With renewed confidence, he touches Nix's flank to ward her from their electrical attacks. "Attack!" he commands, and the wolf bounds past Kivan to snap at the closest will-o-wisp.
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