Mixtli moves into the dining room, and carefully peering under the table, spots six of the disembodied hands that drop down and skitter towards him.

((Due to his careful investigation and decent roll, they don't have him and the party by surprise. Init: 16))
((Initiatives?))

((With that roll from the hands, the party can all go before them as long as Mixtli beats them. If he fails, then we'll go with whatever order shakes out.))

Mixtli init: 16; so all can go.

Mixtli tries to burn them all DC14 dex save or take 14 fire damage. (Burning hands 15ft cone)

Tandor lingers a bit over the farmers, wondering what caused all of this. Then, at Kora's words, he turns and follows behind Mixtli, weapon and shield ready, all senses alert. He sends Gilbert to check out the trap door.

See what you learn. What you smell...you know the drill.

Fish...I want fish.

Tandor sends back wordless acknowledgement. Then, trailing Mixtli, he sees the small dark shapes of the hands drop down before the genasi artificer, feels the heat of his spell, ready to move forward.

ooc: If any of the hands survive the spell, Tandor will move forward and stand on Mixtli's left and use Toll the Dead on any which were injured. If none were, he will cast it on the nearest one. If none survive, he moves forward into the room to search it, mindful of more surprises.

Toll the Dead, injured Hand: 7
Toll the Dead, uninjured Hand: 8
Perception (to search): 9

The cluster of hands are awash in flame, as the flames gutter out, Tandor will boom one that twitches, though its not clear if the hand survived the flame, or if it was just contracting as the flesh sizzled and popped.

The room is now muddy, and a bit singed, but Tandor does note that some of the floorboards here are loose, having been pushed up from below, muddy tracks suggesting some of the hands burrowed up into the room.

Gilbert reports that the trap door is closed, but that he can smell a foul rot coming up through gaps in the wood.

"Let's finish searching this floor and than make sure no more surprises are left downstairs." Mixtli says

Tandor nods in agreement, after relaying Gilbert's findings. He recalls the cat to him then heads towards the room to the right of the entrance way. He listens outside the door first.

Perception 19+1

Popping his head out the front door, Tandor hears mostly the rustling of the sickly crops and the overgrown weeds rustling in the wind.

Turning back, he joins Mixtli, Trencher and Kora in opening the door to a living room, a cursory glance reveals the furniture haphazardly arranged and looking close to falling apart. Beneath, the floor is covered in hundreds of handprints painted using crimson mud. Tandor notices (with 14 Passive Perception) that there is a break in the pattern under a chair, and the art style looks familiar, similar to the sketch that Aunt Dellie said was one of Kiana's.

There are no catatonic villagers or disembodied hands to be seen. Kora carefully opens the last door when you're ready, revealing a bedroom that holds a bed and writing desk for a single occupant. Most of the space is neat and orderly, but the desk is strewn with art supplies and scraps of paper bearing fragmented images. A plain wooden clothes chest sits against an outside wall.

Mixlti carefully walks to the chest and opens it, if nothin is in he will check some of the papers and what kind of images are on there.

The chest is unlocked (and untrapped), and seems to contain some women's workclothes.

"Guys...you see that? The pattern of hand prints looks like that sketch. The one Aunt Dellie said was one of...who was it? One of Kiana's. Also, do you see how the pattern seems to break under the chair?" I'm going to check that out."

Tandor approaches the chair carefully, weapon ready. To examine the chair and the pattern and how it differs from the rest of hand painting.

ooc: Not sure what skill roll he needs. Gilbert will give Help action if possible and he will use guidance.

Mixtli is happy the chest doesn't contain anything of interest and stands watch as Tandor goes and investigate.

Mixtli, uninterested in women's clothing, leaves the chest and the drawings on the desk for now to move to the living room and watches on as Tandor cautiously approaches the chair. As he gets closer, he surmises that the chair may have been bumped or moved from its position after the handprint swirls. He carefully nudges it aside, and reveals and earlier drawing, the mud dried and cracked, but clearly depicting two children reaching for one another as one is being dragged underwater by large hands. The name "Culley" is scrapped into the mud in a shaky hand.

Mixtli gets a slight shiver on the sight.

"Culley; that was the boy that was lost wasn't it?"