Nick, now 115ft from nancy and faila, is watching the carnival folk in the area, such as those that understood his Gnomish. He speaks to them in his mother tongue, “what cave or forest would we Gnomish go to hide in if all these people here were dead and we were the only ones left?” He has the smile of someone asking a child if they lost their favorite doll what they would do, expecting no practical answer, but something that more reveals their psychological connection to the carnival and the cobbled family Isolde has thrown together here.
Nick - A slight, balding, halfling man with a sour expression etched into his face approaches you. "What makes you ask?" his voice is cold and calculating, "you from Ahlissa?" He strolls towards you confidently, "names Hiram, Hiram Melnick. Strikes me that the best place to hide around here is Silverstand. I wouldn't suggest the Drowned Forest - odd happenings going on there. Why'd you ask?" Hiram offers you a hand in greeting.
Nick looks at the hand and glances toward the scene in the distance and back at the hand… “I’ll shake your hand once we’ve dealt with this curse eh? Protocol and all… face masks and social distancing…” his voice fades out like a passing siren.
politely changing the subject still in Gnomish, “the names nick nack! Nice to meet you Hiram! Silverstand you say? I’ll keep that in mind! I could use a good spelunking, love me some caves hikes and crawls… thanks thanks you are quite right, the cave over the forest for sure…”
he reflects on hiram’s implication… “you think the issues in the forest would have anything to do with the issues in town?”
((I'll be honest, I wasn't thinking of looking inside her tent when I wrote that. He probably wouldn't expect any clues in there, so I'll skip it and just look around the tracks.))
Nick - Hiram withdraws his hand and says, sneeringly, "fair enough. Would have done the same, had our positions been reversed."
"Come across my fair share of knick-knack in my time," he says musing. "You want caves, most of the shoreline is riddled with them. Not sure what you might find in some of them though, likely some unsavoury types."
Hiram squints at you, before saying, "heard that dark happenings been occurring in the Drowned Forest. All sorts of unnatural flora growing in the area might be it's related." He peers down his nose at you. "You didn't answer my question, Mr Nack. Do you come from Ahlis-" he cuts himself short, "it matters not. Look, I was just on my way to see my Nancy. She had quite the scare last night and is currently with that quack doctor... priest... Nathaniel."
You check the area near Nancy's tent and find carriage tracks leading away towards the entrance of the Carnival (South). Additionally, you find a lot of bootprints in the mud. Though most are caused by cheaper looking boots you do notice that there are a few sets that look like they have been caused by better-made boots; one of which appears to be a woman's size.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Perception check if needed to look for missing lamprey/cactus (see below): 13 Investigation check if needed to look for missing lamprey/cactus (see below): 8
This is madness.
Nikita has been on the run from the cambion (half-demon) lord Iuz and his foul minions for months, all her friends having been killed or turned. She had already gotten consensus from the group earlier to destroy the aberrant purple creatures and had done so in as contained a way as possible using Shape Water and Nick Nack'sEldritch Blast which does not affect inanimate objects such as ice. Her trigger for killing vs. 'studying' incredibly dangerous necrotic (as discovered using Detect Magic parasites is hair thin. Nikita would like nothing better than to give Meresaa a piece of her mind. If the party encountered a strange, dangerous ooze in a dungeon, would Meresaa want to study it first as it finished killing other people? Not to mention the fact that the primary goal was to find who is involved, not to find a cure, which was secondary or conduct scientific research. And the group that went into town had been working on the who part. Nikita is quite sure she already knows exactly where Billy had come from. Asha Hawkes' old "abandoned" house to the west of town where Casper Brinck's black carriage had gone and where Brinck did not want anyone to go. 'Prospect'
No time to say any of that though. She sees Faila and Ermasnietsz grappling, the wild girl's claws out like a beast (and like the druid I remember from the Welkwood). And her even stranger, otherworldly adversary much more 'reasoned' but apparently dead set on self-infecting and proceeding on her own course without explaining it first to the rest of us.
No time to react to any of that. And Nancy Carver is dead anyway.
She responds instead to Nathaniel in deed rather than in word at first. See above Perception and Investigation checks to look for the missing lamprey/cactus. If she finds it, she will again repeat her earlier technique using Shape Water on any nearby container of water to encase it in ice. If no water, she will try to use Mage Hand to grab it and hold it away from everyone.
If Nikita cannot find the missing aberrant creature by normal means, she will look for it using Detect Magic, using a spell slot rather than a ritual. Looking for the same necrotic magic she had detected before to locate it (and of course noticing anything else that the spell reveals in and around the tent).
She does, grudgingly in her head but forcefully in voice, echo the tall, blue researcher's command, at least in part. "ERMASNIETSZ. FAILA. STOP. We must find and secure the missing creature. Then we can discuss as a group what to do."
Meresaa gasps at Nathaniel's revelation. "What did..? Where...? Oh come now! This is what I'm talking about. Too many cooks in the kitchen and whatnot. Everyone look for the missing creature! We don't want any cross-contamination and I certainly don't want my abdomen turning to mud unexpectedly..."
She scans the ground in the immediate area and any hands that are readily visible.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Faila is caught hard by Ermasnietsz as she lunges for Nancy. Her clawed fingers lash at the air. She's trying to break free, but not in any kind of intentional way; she seems momentarily possessed. But her uncoordinated movements are easily held in check, and after only a few seconds, her companions shouting her name gets through to her, and she wrestles herself down to sanity, panting. A few drops of liquid slide from the claws on her fingers, sizzling and burning as they strike the floor below. And then the claws and pointed teeth recede, her eyes return to normal---she looks again like a scrawny urchin girl, contrite, confused, and probably sick to her stomach.
"Did we lose one? We lost one?" The terror crosses her eyes again, but it doesn't seem to manifest in that deadly way again. Once Ermasnietsz lets her go, she helps to look for it, frantically, but otherwise normally.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Ermasnietsz stares at her wounded arm and murmurs something to herself. "The parasite bit me, I should've expected that."
"Father Nathaniel, would you mind giving me medical attention once you find the missing creature? I'm hurt"- she admits gingerly while placing herself at the bottom of the young lad's bed and lifting her hand upwards. She's been sending quick glances at the teenager time to time to see if his condition somehow improved or just deteriorated after the procedure.
Looking around in panic, you catch sight of the missing grub crawling up Nathaniel's boot. Clearly attempting to target the nearest host creature.
Investigation
Your eyes scan over the medical tent's equipment, quickly finding a glass jar with a metal lid that should be able to contain the creatures. Additionally, you find a pair of tongs you may be able to use to handle the creature without incurring injury.
You desperately search everywhere but are unable to locate the little blighter!
((Meresaa was only able to find the metal tray at a glance, as well as basic medical equipment. A more permanent solution would require more time searching on an Investigation check. A little meta, but Nikita's check is enough to find something suitable.))
As you investigate near Nancy's (and Hiram's) tent you get the feeling that you are being watched. A gentleman with dark skin stands next to the street leading to town, he briefly meets your gaze. The left half of his face droops, he is tall, slight and has dark hair with flecks of grey in it, he wears shabby leather overalls over a shirt. No sooner than you make eye contact, he turns and begins to hobble away. He murmurs to himself as he retreats.
From Ermasnietsz's grasp, your eyes scan the room, desperately attempting to locate the missing creature. It is then that you see it starting to climb up Nathaniel's boot, clearly attempting to target the nearest host creature.
You look the boy over and sense that his condition is readily improving since the parasites were removed from his body. It is clear that the measures Nathaniel took were successful and that Billy will recover in due course.
Furthermore, you get a feeling that though Billy will recover, there will likely be lasting effects; pre-mature ageing being one of them. It is like his life force has been drained.
((Critical time! - See Below))
You then get an epiphany. These beings, though parasitical in nature, can be used to withdraw a creature's life force for future harvesting. What you earlier experienced was a version of this harvesting; the lamprey-creature had withdrawn energy from Billy and then you, in turn, drew it from the creature. Perhaps this is what Brinck, or the organisation he belonged to, have been using them for. As an object to prolong life and revitalise their health... who knows what other powers could be drawn in such a way?
Boyd bites his lip, wondering if he should go after the man. He racks his brain, wondering what he'd even ask him... There's a dangerous group at play in town; he decides to retreat back to town, lest he fall into a trap.
He returns to the medical tent but stays outside, seeing how crowded it is.
Ermasnietsz sits beside the teenager waiting for any kind of response from Father Nathaniel regarding the necessity of medical attention. She bends over the young man and attempts to draw the attention of the group: "The parasite probably escaped from the tray and infected Billy again. Look at him, he seems drained of energy."
Sure the grizzled man probably doesn't trust her further than he can throw her (which might be quite far, actually) and Nikita certainly has not figured out the gnome, but at least she feels as if she knows what she can expect from those two. And Nick Nack's fatalism is beginning to rub off on her.
I doubt I am going to survive this escapade, at least not whole. But hell if I'm going to back down.
Every instinct I have tells me to just use shaped ice from my Shape Water cantrip with Nick's Eldritch Blast to destroy these creatures in a contained way as we did with the others previously. I am done trifling with abominations. But then I would be acting without the agreement of those present, just as I am angry about others doing.
Trying to speak as clearly as possible: "I see the escaped creature and a safe way to contain it and the others like it so we can discuss. Father Nathaniel," (she uses the honorific with the man even though it no longer applies, to get his attention), "Please hold absolutely still."
Nikita takes the tongs she sees and picks the escaped creature off Nathaniel's boot, placing it in a glass jar with the metal lid that she's spotted. While doing so, she uses Mage Hand lift the ex-priest's pant leg or other such obstructions as needed. She also uses Mage Hand to lift the lid of the jar as she puts the creature inside. If no one else in the group stops her, she immediately also puts the the other creatures on the tray in the jar as well. Once done, she uses Prestidigitation to burn away any residue from the tongs and clean them. She closes the lid of the jar as soon as there are no more to put in.
"These creatures are killing people here with necrotic energy. They finished killing Harold while we were in the tent earlier and they give off a necrotic energy that I found through the spell Detect Magic. I am fairly sure they are not of this world."
"Billy and Esther were kidnapped in Casper Brinck's black carriage and taken to 'Prospect', Asha Hawkes' old house a few miles west of town. Clearly someone or something there is capable of infecting people as they've done with Billy here. We've gained several points of information in the town that point to a larger conspiracy which goes far beyond Brinck."
"At the very least, we should remove the creatures from Nancy and anyone else we see that is infected, if you can do that safely Nathaniel. We can put them in the jar for now. My vote is to destroy them in a contained way, and I feel I have a proven method of doing so which we used before (after all present at the time agreed) on the ones that had infected Harold. But regardless, once we have the ones in the immediate vicinity secured, we should discuss so everyone present has a chance to opine on the next course of action."
Faila spots the creature starting to crawl up Nathaniel's boot and gives a shout, but sees Nikita already on it with tongs and a glass jar. She heaves a sigh. At least they found it. Everyone's frazzled nerves and fear permeate the room. Faila turns her head to one side. She can smell it. What just happened?
Assuming Erma lets go of the grapple, she'll walk over to Nancy and try to see what kind of condition she is in, gingerly, without touching anything. It's as if she doesn't remember what she did just a few seconds ago.
"Right. Well, we've somehow managed to stave off multiple disasters at once. Perhaps this group isn't doomed after all." Meresaa smiles as she looks around and goes through a mental checklist.
"Nathaniel, Nikita has a point. Can you check on Nancy and see if she can be helped as you did for Billy? I was hoping to spend some time studying the creatures while we waited for the rest of you to return, but it seems your searches may have yielded more useful information than ours. Billy also muttered something about this 'Prospect' before passing out. Once everyone's in stable condition and these... things... are securely contained, that might be the most practical thread to pull in this mysterious knot." She nods toward the lampreys Nikita has in the glass jar. "Those certainly aren't going anywhere, so the study can wait," she shrugs.
Nick strides up a few feet towards the door, still pretty far (90ft) from Nancy and the others yelling out, “got some ID on you? I’m the bouncer of this shin dig, but it’s more a quarantine situation, so I’m checking anyone trying to leave.”
He yells to Hiram as Hiram nears the tent, “talk later Hiram, a pelasure to meet you, hope Nancy is doing well!”
Hearing from Nick Nack that Hiram is on the way, Nikita will helpNathaniel extract the creatures from Nancy in any way she can without touching them, and get them secured in the jar as quickly and safely as possible. Using the tongs, Mage Hand, and Prestidigitation (to clean surfaces that the creatures touch) as needed.
Nikita disagrees with Meresaa on what to do next with the creatures, but she does not start that argument yet, especially since the others also deserve a voice.
Nick, now 115ft from nancy and faila, is watching the carnival folk in the area, such as those that understood his Gnomish. He speaks to them in his mother tongue, “what cave or forest would we Gnomish go to hide in if all these people here were dead and we were the only ones left?” He has the smile of someone asking a child if they lost their favorite doll what they would do, expecting no practical answer, but something that more reveals their psychological connection to the carnival and the cobbled family Isolde has thrown together here.
Nick - A slight, balding, halfling man with a sour expression etched into his face approaches you. "What makes you ask?" his voice is cold and calculating, "you from Ahlissa?" He strolls towards you confidently, "names Hiram, Hiram Melnick. Strikes me that the best place to hide around here is Silverstand. I wouldn't suggest the Drowned Forest - odd happenings going on there. Why'd you ask?" Hiram offers you a hand in greeting.
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
Nick looks at the hand and glances toward the scene in the distance and back at the hand… “I’ll shake your hand once we’ve dealt with this curse eh? Protocol and all… face masks and social distancing…” his voice fades out like a passing siren.
politely changing the subject still in Gnomish, “the names nick nack! Nice to meet you Hiram! Silverstand you say? I’ll keep that in mind! I could use a good spelunking, love me some caves hikes and crawls… thanks thanks you are quite right, the cave over the forest for sure…”
he reflects on hiram’s implication… “you think the issues in the forest would have anything to do with the issues in town?”
((I'll be honest, I wasn't thinking of looking inside her tent when I wrote that. He probably wouldn't expect any clues in there, so I'll skip it and just look around the tracks.))
Investigation: 11
Ermasnietsz drops the lamprey-like creature on the tray offered by Meresaa.
InkedBee (Undead_Analyst)
Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts - Jenviel Tsumara: Fallen Aasimar- Monk|Crimson Sands of Time - Navarra Iltazyara: Human- Druid/Warlock| Bleak Prospect - Ermasnietsz: Reborn- Clockwork Soul Sorcerer
Nick - Hiram withdraws his hand and says, sneeringly, "fair enough. Would have done the same, had our positions been reversed."
"Come across my fair share of knick-knack in my time," he says musing. "You want caves, most of the shoreline is riddled with them. Not sure what you might find in some of them though, likely some unsavoury types."
Hiram squints at you, before saying, "heard that dark happenings been occurring in the Drowned Forest. All sorts of unnatural flora growing in the area might be it's related." He peers down his nose at you. "You didn't answer my question, Mr Nack. Do you come from Ahlis-" he cuts himself short, "it matters not. Look, I was just on my way to see my Nancy. She had quite the scare last night and is currently with that quack doctor... priest... Nathaniel."
Boyd's Investigation check:
You check the area near Nancy's tent and find carriage tracks leading away towards the entrance of the Carnival (South). Additionally, you find a lot of bootprints in the mud. Though most are caused by cheaper looking boots you do notice that there are a few sets that look like they have been caused by better-made boots; one of which appears to be a woman's size.
((Please make an additional Perception check.))
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
Perception check if needed to look for missing lamprey/cactus (see below): 13
Investigation check if needed to look for missing lamprey/cactus (see below): 8
This is madness.
Nikita has been on the run from the cambion (half-demon) lord Iuz and his foul minions for months, all her friends having been killed or turned. She had already gotten consensus from the group earlier to destroy the aberrant purple creatures and had done so in as contained a way as possible using Shape Water and Nick Nack's Eldritch Blast which does not affect inanimate objects such as ice. Her trigger for killing vs. 'studying' incredibly dangerous necrotic (as discovered using Detect Magic parasites is hair thin. Nikita would like nothing better than to give Meresaa a piece of her mind. If the party encountered a strange, dangerous ooze in a dungeon, would Meresaa want to study it first as it finished killing other people? Not to mention the fact that the primary goal was to find who is involved, not to find a cure, which was secondary or conduct scientific research. And the group that went into town had been working on the who part. Nikita is quite sure she already knows exactly where Billy had come from. Asha Hawkes' old "abandoned" house to the west of town where Casper Brinck's black carriage had gone and where Brinck did not want anyone to go. 'Prospect'
No time to say any of that though. She sees Faila and Ermasnietsz grappling, the wild girl's claws out like a beast (and like the druid I remember from the Welkwood). And her even stranger, otherworldly adversary much more 'reasoned' but apparently dead set on self-infecting and proceeding on her own course without explaining it first to the rest of us.
No time to react to any of that. And Nancy Carver is dead anyway.
She responds instead to Nathaniel in deed rather than in word at first. See above Perception and Investigation checks to look for the missing lamprey/cactus. If she finds it, she will again repeat her earlier technique using Shape Water on any nearby container of water to encase it in ice. If no water, she will try to use Mage Hand to grab it and hold it away from everyone.
If Nikita cannot find the missing aberrant creature by normal means, she will look for it using Detect Magic, using a spell slot rather than a ritual. Looking for the same necrotic magic she had detected before to locate it (and of course noticing anything else that the spell reveals in and around the tent).
She does, grudgingly in her head but forcefully in voice, echo the tall, blue researcher's command, at least in part. "ERMASNIETSZ. FAILA. STOP. We must find and secure the missing creature. Then we can discuss as a group what to do."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons | Lyra(Warlock2/Bard4): VitusW's Silverwood Forest
Dyson/Eleo(Cleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(Druid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(Sorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(Fighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(Monk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(Cleric3/Sorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Meresaa gasps at Nathaniel's revelation. "What did..? Where...? Oh come now! This is what I'm talking about. Too many cooks in the kitchen and whatnot. Everyone look for the missing creature! We don't want any cross-contamination and I certainly don't want my abdomen turning to mud unexpectedly..."
She scans the ground in the immediate area and any hands that are readily visible.
Perception: 9
(@DM, was Meresaa able to find any containers to put the creatures in?)
Characters currently being ruined on this forum:
Neria Tallfellow (Halfling Rogue) - Curse of the Crimson Throne with Ashen_Age
Perception: 11
Opposed Grapple (dexterity): 4
Faila is caught hard by Ermasnietsz as she lunges for Nancy. Her clawed fingers lash at the air. She's trying to break free, but not in any kind of intentional way; she seems momentarily possessed. But her uncoordinated movements are easily held in check, and after only a few seconds, her companions shouting her name gets through to her, and she wrestles herself down to sanity, panting. A few drops of liquid slide from the claws on her fingers, sizzling and burning as they strike the floor below. And then the claws and pointed teeth recede, her eyes return to normal---she looks again like a scrawny urchin girl, contrite, confused, and probably sick to her stomach.
"Did we lose one? We lost one?" The terror crosses her eyes again, but it doesn't seem to manifest in that deadly way again. Once Ermasnietsz lets her go, she helps to look for it, frantically, but otherwise normally.
Investigation: 3
Perception: 21
Ermasnietsz stares at her wounded arm and murmurs something to herself. "The parasite bit me, I should've expected that."
"Father Nathaniel, would you mind giving me medical attention once you find the missing creature? I'm hurt"- she admits gingerly while placing herself at the bottom of the young lad's bed and lifting her hand upwards. She's been sending quick glances at the teenager time to time to see if his condition somehow improved or just deteriorated after the procedure.
Medicine 3/ Insight 23 (If applicable)
To Nikita: "You're right, we need a group-discussion."
InkedBee (Undead_Analyst)
Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts - Jenviel Tsumara: Fallen Aasimar- Monk|Crimson Sands of Time - Navarra Iltazyara: Human- Druid/Warlock| Bleak Prospect - Ermasnietsz: Reborn- Clockwork Soul Sorcerer
Nikita's Perception and Investigation checks:
Perception
Looking around in panic, you catch sight of the missing grub crawling up Nathaniel's boot. Clearly attempting to target the nearest host creature.
Investigation
Your eyes scan over the medical tent's equipment, quickly finding a glass jar with a metal lid that should be able to contain the creatures. Additionally, you find a pair of tongs you may be able to use to handle the creature without incurring injury.
Meresaa's Perception checks:
You desperately search everywhere but are unable to locate the little blighter!
((Meresaa was only able to find the metal tray at a glance, as well as basic medical equipment. A more permanent solution would require more time searching on an Investigation check. A little meta, but Nikita's check is enough to find something suitable.))
Boyd's Perception checks:
As you investigate near Nancy's (and Hiram's) tent you get the feeling that you are being watched. A gentleman with dark skin stands next to the street leading to town, he briefly meets your gaze. The left half of his face droops, he is tall, slight and has dark hair with flecks of grey in it, he wears shabby leather overalls over a shirt. No sooner than you make eye contact, he turns and begins to hobble away. He murmurs to himself as he retreats.
Faila's Perception / Investigation check:
From Ermasnietsz's grasp, your eyes scan the room, desperately attempting to locate the missing creature. It is then that you see it starting to climb up Nathaniel's boot, clearly attempting to target the nearest host creature.
Ermasnietz's Medicine check:
You look the boy over and sense that his condition is readily improving since the parasites were removed from his body. It is clear that the measures Nathaniel took were successful and that Billy will recover in due course.
Furthermore, you get a feeling that though Billy will recover, there will likely be lasting effects; pre-mature ageing being one of them. It is like his life force has been drained.
((Critical time! - See Below))
You then get an epiphany. These beings, though parasitical in nature, can be used to withdraw a creature's life force for future harvesting. What you earlier experienced was a version of this harvesting; the lamprey-creature had withdrawn energy from Billy and then you, in turn, drew it from the creature. Perhaps this is what Brinck, or the organisation he belonged to, have been using them for. As an object to prolong life and revitalise their health... who knows what other powers could be drawn in such a way?
DM - The Call of Strahd (CoS); Feyrealm Campaign, Chapter 0 - Bleak Prospect (BP), Chapter 1 - Destination Unknown (DU)
Boyd bites his lip, wondering if he should go after the man. He racks his brain, wondering what he'd even ask him... There's a dangerous group at play in town; he decides to retreat back to town, lest he fall into a trap.
He returns to the medical tent but stays outside, seeing how crowded it is.
Ermasnietsz sits beside the teenager waiting for any kind of response from Father Nathaniel regarding the necessity of medical attention. She bends over the young man and attempts to draw the attention of the group: "The parasite probably escaped from the tray and infected Billy again. Look at him, he seems drained of energy."
InkedBee (Undead_Analyst)
Covetous, Dragonish Thoughts - Jenviel Tsumara: Fallen Aasimar- Monk|Crimson Sands of Time - Navarra Iltazyara: Human- Druid/Warlock| Bleak Prospect - Ermasnietsz: Reborn- Clockwork Soul Sorcerer
Nikita misses Boyd and Nick Nack already.
Sure the grizzled man probably doesn't trust her further than he can throw her (which might be quite far, actually) and Nikita certainly has not figured out the gnome, but at least she feels as if she knows what she can expect from those two. And Nick Nack's fatalism is beginning to rub off on her.
I doubt I am going to survive this escapade, at least not whole. But hell if I'm going to back down.
Every instinct I have tells me to just use shaped ice from my Shape Water cantrip with Nick's Eldritch Blast to destroy these creatures in a contained way as we did with the others previously. I am done trifling with abominations. But then I would be acting without the agreement of those present, just as I am angry about others doing.
Trying to speak as clearly as possible: "I see the escaped creature and a safe way to contain it and the others like it so we can discuss. Father Nathaniel," (she uses the honorific with the man even though it no longer applies, to get his attention), "Please hold absolutely still."
Nikita takes the tongs she sees and picks the escaped creature off Nathaniel's boot, placing it in a glass jar with the metal lid that she's spotted. While doing so, she uses Mage Hand lift the ex-priest's pant leg or other such obstructions as needed. She also uses Mage Hand to lift the lid of the jar as she puts the creature inside. If no one else in the group stops her, she immediately also puts the the other creatures on the tray in the jar as well. Once done, she uses Prestidigitation to burn away any residue from the tongs and clean them. She closes the lid of the jar as soon as there are no more to put in.
"These creatures are killing people here with necrotic energy. They finished killing Harold while we were in the tent earlier and they give off a necrotic energy that I found through the spell Detect Magic. I am fairly sure they are not of this world."
"Billy and Esther were kidnapped in Casper Brinck's black carriage and taken to 'Prospect', Asha Hawkes' old house a few miles west of town. Clearly someone or something there is capable of infecting people as they've done with Billy here. We've gained several points of information in the town that point to a larger conspiracy which goes far beyond Brinck."
"At the very least, we should remove the creatures from Nancy and anyone else we see that is infected, if you can do that safely Nathaniel. We can put them in the jar for now. My vote is to destroy them in a contained way, and I feel I have a proven method of doing so which we used before (after all present at the time agreed) on the ones that had infected Harold. But regardless, once we have the ones in the immediate vicinity secured, we should discuss so everyone present has a chance to opine on the next course of action."
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons | Lyra(Warlock2/Bard4): VitusW's Silverwood Forest
Dyson/Eleo(Cleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(Druid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(Sorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(Fighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(Monk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(Cleric3/Sorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk
Faila spots the creature starting to crawl up Nathaniel's boot and gives a shout, but sees Nikita already on it with tongs and a glass jar. She heaves a sigh. At least they found it. Everyone's frazzled nerves and fear permeate the room. Faila turns her head to one side. She can smell it. What just happened?
Assuming Erma lets go of the grapple, she'll walk over to Nancy and try to see what kind of condition she is in, gingerly, without touching anything. It's as if she doesn't remember what she did just a few seconds ago.
Medicine: 16
"Right. Well, we've somehow managed to stave off multiple disasters at once. Perhaps this group isn't doomed after all." Meresaa smiles as she looks around and goes through a mental checklist.
"Nathaniel, Nikita has a point. Can you check on Nancy and see if she can be helped as you did for Billy? I was hoping to spend some time studying the creatures while we waited for the rest of you to return, but it seems your searches may have yielded more useful information than ours. Billy also muttered something about this 'Prospect' before passing out. Once everyone's in stable condition and these... things... are securely contained, that might be the most practical thread to pull in this mysterious knot." She nods toward the lampreys Nikita has in the glass jar. "Those certainly aren't going anywhere, so the study can wait," she shrugs.
Characters currently being ruined on this forum:
Neria Tallfellow (Halfling Rogue) - Curse of the Crimson Throne with Ashen_Age
Nick strides up a few feet towards the door, still pretty far (90ft) from Nancy and the others yelling out, “got some ID on you? I’m the bouncer of this shin dig, but it’s more a quarantine situation, so I’m checking anyone trying to leave.”
He yells to Hiram as Hiram nears the tent, “talk later Hiram, a pelasure to meet you, hope Nancy is doing well!”
Hearing from Nick Nack that Hiram is on the way, Nikita will help Nathaniel extract the creatures from Nancy in any way she can without touching them, and get them secured in the jar as quickly and safely as possible. Using the tongs, Mage Hand, and Prestidigitation (to clean surfaces that the creatures touch) as needed.
Nikita disagrees with Meresaa on what to do next with the creatures, but she does not start that argument yet, especially since the others also deserve a voice.
Tanis(Ranger1): Shiverquill's Tempest City | Xarian(Fighter2): NioNSwiper's Tyranny of Dragons | Lyra(Warlock2/Bard4): VitusW's Silverwood Forest
Dyson/Eleo(Cleric4): Vos' Beyond the Veil | Soren(Druid5): Bartjeebus' Ravenloft | Ophelia(Sorcerer4): Ashen_Age's Risen from the Sands
Joren(Fighter6): NotDrizzt's Simple Request | Sabetha(Monk3): Bedlymn's Murder Court | Seri(Cleric3/Sorcerer1): Bartjeebus' Greyhawk