Heavy is the Head - Campaign thread

Adrenaline pulses into Sha’s veins he bursts past Leonor grasping João in a healing embrace.  The look he gives João's attacker is almost pity, “Please drop your weapons.”  Alptraum falls to the ground as Sha lets the hammer drop…

cure wounds 8

The wound closes, and João breathes deep. His eyes gp to hisnsister, and ba k to the trees. He is ready to retreat at the first opportunity. Still, the enchanted guard does not drop his blade.

Lam

Lam finds himself far from the action, face to face with a dwarf who, having been deprived of his spear, had resorted to punching children. He flatly disregards the dwarf and instead just turns and runs back where he came from, trying to reach the fight in time but not quite able to do it. He tries to determine the threats, watching Billy closely to see if his right mind is back. Shield 3 is not a threat, but Blade 2 definitely is- and Lam can’t reach him or the other one who’s still trapped in vines. He glances at Saoirse- if he could get João away from Blade 2, Saoirse could probably prevent those enemies from advancing further- even if he couldn’t help just yet. He says to João, “Back away. Do not fight, but watch the sword.” And he gestures with his head to where Hemlock shines like a beacon, lighting a way towards the trees. He turns back, holding his enemy’s spear, to watch Billy- to see if they have a friend back, or if the magic still has him.

Billy Beerbelly surveys the battlefield, including the dead man just north of him, all of you and your righteous rage, and Captain Jonah's fury, dismay, and humungous weapon. He moves to strike Frederico, but then pauses and drops the hammer as he realizes that attacking the dying boy would almost certainly lead to his own death. The fight then goes out of him all at once, as the magic of the mass suggestion fades from him. His eyes lose their glaze, and begin to fill with tears. He clutches his holy symbol, and mutters to himself "Tilgiv mig. Guder, tilgiv mig," before turning to Jonah and all of you. "I am so, so sorry. It... I believed it was necessary to kill them... I felt like what I was doing was reasonable, and right... I can not... I didn't... Please, sir, this isn't me... or it was not my will."

João and Leonor do their best to disengage, and fly towards safety in the trees.

Jonah places a hand on Billy's shoulder, firmly enough that you can see Billy wince. The big man is doing his best to still his fury, and fighting the adrenaline in his body. He shoves Billy to the ground. "I know it was not your fault. But I do not know whether I can trust you yet. Stay down, until I order you to stand. Or I will put you down. THE SAME GOES FOR ALL OF YOU! DROP YOUR WEAPON AND SIT WHERE YOU ARE, OR WE WILL BE FORCED TO INCAPACITATE YOU." Shield 2 and Shield 3 immediately move to sit down and drop their spears. Hammer 2 stops struggling against the vines. Only Blade 2 still seems bent on murder, his eyes fixed on Frederico.

Saffron; HMC group 2; Sha-Gravis; Lam; Billy; Fairy siblings; Jonah; Saoirse; Eliza; HMC Group 1; Bugbear Siblings; HMC Group 3; Frederico (death save, already rolled once); Hemlock

https://www.owlbear.rodeo/room/5nRs1L_uFdxM/HeavyistheHeadPBP

The fire genasi experiences a mixture of emotions in a matter of second as the fight keeps going. She is first enraged as a psychic blade flies next to her ear to end up slicing the man in front of her, who drops dead to the ground inmediately. "DON'T KILL THEM, DAMN IT!! KNOCK THEM UNCONCIOUS!", she yells to both Saffron and Eliza, who either haven't realized what's going on, or plain don't care about adding more deaths to the pile. She's well aware that Kurt has killed one of the guards too, but being way more experienced than the teens, it's up to them to show by example. 

Rage turns to relief when she sees João  and Leonor being healed and getting close to the safety that the trees will bring them. And as Billy regains his senses, and Jonah is freed and keeps most of his man at bay, the tide of the battle seems go turn in their favor. Scanning the battlefield, it seems that the only real threat is Blade 2, who seems intent on finishing Federico. 

- Over my dead body - Saoirse hisses, as she stands ready to defend the kid's life with everything she's got. Then she adds in Primordial - Fan a chur, nó aghaidh a thabhairt ar na hiarmhairtí.

She moves again to protect Federico's body, and her rapier and dagger are readied to defend the elf from whoever tries to attack him.

Blade 2 comes to a halt as the blood curse takes hold. He finally looks at the impossobility of the situation, and at the forces against his murderous intent, and the strange magic taking over his body, and is able to shake off the suggestion that would otherwise clearly lead.to.his own death or injury. "Why... oh no. I'm so sorry."

Eliza drops her fighting stance and prepared magic, and runs to embrace Saffron, now that the fight seems to be done. "I found you, Saffi. I'll always find you. I'm sorry it took so long."

Jonah surveys the battlefield, then turns towards all of you, his gaze mainly implying that he sees Hemlock as your leader as he speaks: "Just go. All of you. You escaped, and freed Saffron, and in your escape attempt you killed two more of my men. I will do what I can to appease Strixwell, and hopefully to remove the watch Viconia from the keep. Officially, you all are escapees, lawbreakers, and murderers, though I know now that that is not the truth. Godspeed to you. I pray that one day we can meet as friends. Saffron Gale, you must change some of your ways to earn this second chance. I trust that your companions will hold you to that."

Billy mouths "I'm sorry," but is too ashamed to actually say anything to you.

The conscious teens have all made it to the trees, where the are waiting for a sign from you as to what to do next.

Frederico is still in a terribly life-threatening state, but you can move him stably if multiple people work together. Transporting him in this state all the way back to village tree would take hours.

You are out of initiative.

It is impossible to see the expression on Hemlock's face due to the bright constellation shining from him, but his shoulders do slouch slightly as he relaxes as the conflict ends. He walks across to Frederico as he says, "It pains me that we must hide our newfound alliance, but it is a wise suggestion".

He kneels down over Frederico, still in his starry form, and focusses whilst examining the child trying to determine if he needs more immediate magic healing. Perhaps removing the sword whilst pouring as much healing magic into him as they have would work?

"We may need to steal one of those wagons as we escape. Unless...", he says.

Medicine: 18+4+1=23

(OOC: The unless must wait for the outcome of his medicine roll, but hoping the suggestion above might work. Between Billy, Sha and Hemlock, we have a lot of healing magic to deploy whilst carefully removing the sword. Better within 10 minutes whilst Hemlock is in starry form. Hemlock also has a healing potion and if needed goodberries)

Sha accompanies Hemlock in his examination, if possible he agrees to work together with Hemlock and Billy Beerbelly to save Frederico's life, rather then risk it during transport.

Hemlock is able to fully examine Frederico's injury, and can see a clear path to saving the boy's life. In truth, Frederico is extremely lucky. Had the blade been a centimeter in any direction, it is unlikely it would still be possible to save him. The blade has perfectly separated Frederico's right lung from his pulmonary vein and artery, and just barely missed the heart itself, the aorta, or the branches of those vessels leading to the other lung. Hemlock can no more reattach the right lung than he could reattach a severed arm, and he has not seen any magics short of reincarnation that could accomplish this. If they transport Frederico with the sword in place, perhaps Rhys might know a way. 

However, Hemlock also remembers an elder from his village who lost a lung as a child, and still became an elder. The woman could not run a great distance, and tired quickly of dancing, but otherwise seemed happy and healthy. If they remove the sword and cut the right lung off from the (trachea (windpipe), while infusing him with healing magic to stop the bleeding and heal the severed ends, Frederico should live a long and full life; though his days as a warrior would be done. With the assembled help, this should be possible. mechanics:

"It looks as though the sword has cut the vein and artery that feed his lung. I have seen someone in my village survive with only one lung, and I know how we can do that without Frederico bleeding to..... Physical exercise will be difficult, and he will quickly run out of breath and grow tired, but he will live", Hemlock reports sadly, but with some measure of hope that he might survive.

Saoirse looks at Hemlock wide-eyed.

- But ... but that means he won't be able to hold a sword again. And he was so keen on learning. So energic. - she rubs her temples, not quite believing what she's hearing - Are we sure this is the only option? Can't we just grab a cart and take him to Village Tree? 

As she asks that, the blood hunter remembers that Rhys was not in the village when they left. What if they carry him and then no one there can help the boy? Letting out a string of curses in Infernal, she turns to Jonah:

- I swear to the all gods: if I ever cross paths with that Viconia, you'll be able to rightfully call me a murderer - she says, pouring all the anger and frustration at the injustice that has been committed today in those words. The genasi may regret them later, but now she feels them burning as hot as the blood coursing through her veins. 

Taking a moment to breathe in and out, she finally approaches Hemlock and asks:

- What do you need us to do? How can I help? 

As Jonah’s men snap out of it and much of the tension leaves the battlefield, Lam is still tense and on high alert. He tries to focus on Frederico and get a full read on the situation. He now sees where the sword is. He has never seen anyone survive a sword in that part of the body. He listens to Hemlock talk, taking the gist of his idea with emotions he can’t identify- losing his physical abilities sounds to Lam like a death sentence in itself, but it’s so much better if the boy makes it out of this at all. He looks between Hemlock and Saoirse, wanting to argue for another option like Saoirse but knowing things are bleak either way. It isn’t fair that this choice even has to be made. Although Lam appears to be breathing and steadying himself, anyone who looks his way when Viconia’s name is said would be reminded of the look in his eyes when he was slicing a man in half.

He watches Hemlock, waiting for instructions- be they to put the boy on a wagon, pull the sword out here and now, or something else. He cannot save the boy by himself. He has to trust the expertise of his friends.

Sha looks Lam in the eye, „Sei ruhig, Freund, wir brauchen ruhige Hände.“ in goblin granting guidance.

 then Sha uses channel divinity for a twilight sanctuary, 9 temp hp. Finally using healing word 6, at the appropriate moment.

The chaos of the battle, the urge to kill or to protect, fury and fear, are swept away as the moon-goddess' twilight emanates from Sha'-Gravis and surrounds you all. In this sudden serenity, you are able to focus on the singular task at hand: to hold onto life, to do what must be done to keep Frederico's soul from leaving this plane so long before his time. Jonah kneels and faces the boy, holding him steady and pouring what life energy he can into him. Billy lets go of his shame for now, and helps to keep Lam calm and guide his powerful hands to lift the sword out of Frederico without doing more damage (help action, no need to use a rage). Even in Lam's huge arms, the sword seems impossibly long as it slides back out from between the ribs. The milliseconds feel like hours, but when Lam holds the sword in the air, barely a second has truly passed, and it is nothing more than a short piece of metal. Between Jonah and Sha, the healing magic seals vessels and stops bleeding as soon as it begins.

That part felt right and natural - pull out the thing that caused the injury. Now for the part that feels wrong: you have to cut into him again, and do what looks and feels like harm. Saoirse is chosen to make the cut, as you have grown to rely on her steady hands. They do not seem so steady now though, and as she brings her parrying dagger towards the boy's ribcage, it becomes painfully clear that that device would be all to imprecise. Saffron Gale kneels beside Saoirse, and hands the genasi a small, faintly glowing scalpel, held together by Saffron's psychic energy and focus (help action). With this tool and reassurance, Saoirse cuts into Frederico, pushing aside vessels that are actively pumping blood to cut where Hemlock indicates. It is not as precise as it should be, needs to be; and they all have moments of horror as the psychic blade knicks and marks more than it should. It seems like it will go wrong, and that their hubris in trying this in the field will be the death of the boy, until Hemlock's starshine pierces the twilight, and the chalice of life pours its magic into Frederico. His very veins glow, as his blood fills with the mana of life. Any imprecision in the cuts is compensated for, as the magic heals the tears and openings immediately and holds Frederico's blood to its proper course. When Saoirse separates the trachea, not a drop of blood spills. She pulls the dead lung out, and the psychic blade disappears as Saffron releases her focus. Frederico's skin is happy to regrow and meld back together with the help of the overflowing magic, and strangely, he is left without any outward scars.

Frederico breathes in, and his chest rises (though not quite as high as it would have before). His eyes flutter open for a moment, before closing again. (Elvish) "Llévame a árbol. Quiero mi papá." The words are quiet, but they are his words, his voice, carried on his own breath. The sleep he falls into afterwards is a healing, peaceful sleep.

Eliza looks on in awe, but she does not do anything - she can not imagine how she could help. Billy 's eyes are dripping with tears, though silent ones. Jonah stares at the lung lying on the ground beside Frederico, and speaks very softly. "Together, we have saved a life; one that was nearly lost due to my poor leadership. I owe you a debt that can not be repaid; though I will try if possible. Now go, before more chaos comes to us." He waves towards one of the wagons. Nobody would stop you from taking it.

Please LEVEL UP! remember to add 8 TempHP from Sha, but no rest just yet.

Hemlock falls to his knees beside Frederico as soon as the surgery is finished and their patient is sleeping peacefully.

"I...there are no words", he says stumbling for how to respond to Jonah. His starry form fades and he is left kneeling in the twilight with tears in his eyes. "I understand why Billy stayed with you now", he eventually says to Jonah, his lips arching upwards in a small smile.

His eyes then suddenly go wide, "The other children", he exclaims and lurches up to his feet and looks about for them.

Sha-gravis looks at Billy, puts a hand on his shoulder, "Tak for din hjælp." dwarven

 Sha-gravis also reaches to Lam, „Du verblüffst mich immer wieder, mein Freund.“ goblin

renews blessed vigilance on Lam.

The relief of seeing Federico breathing again and hearing his voice makes all the tension go away, which is instead replaced by an sudden and overwhelming fatigue along with a burst of tears. The genasi took a few steps away from the boy to give him space to breath, and to allow herself an instant to calm down. Taking a moment to remove the tears from her ashen face, she says:

- We did it. It seemed impossible but ... we did it. It's amazing what we can achieve working in unison - she begins to show a smile, but still her eyes show sadness when she remembers the two other people that died because another of Strixwell's minions and how Federico and his father will react when they learn what happened and how the boy's life has been drastically changed. 

A moment later, Saoirse approaches Jonah, with Sebastian's collar in her hands.

- I didn't show you this earlier because I needed to make sure there was some measure of trust between us. After what we've experienced, I think I can do that now - she shows him the collar and adds - As it happens, Samantha's guardian turned out to be a childhood friend of mine. He had this around his neck for a very long time and it turned him into a puppet, subduing him to her every command. When we met him he hadn't been able to utter a single word for months ... that was the wizard's "gift" for speaking his mind against her.  Strixwell is creating this collars mixing arcane and blood magic. So be very careful, Captain. Fear not only magic like Samantha's or Viconias's, but also artifacts like this one. We've gathered that the first to create this collars was the former King Dayne, and Strixwell has gained that knowledge somehow. We don't know how many people like Sebastian could be out there. 

With that, the blood hunter is ready to meet with the teens and safely transport Federico back to Village Tree.

Lam had struggled with his part at first- he knew all too well that you should not normally pull a sword out of someone on the field, and he wasn’t sure he could be steady enough for what needed to be done. With Billy’s help and Sha’s guidance, his part of the procedure was done correctly- then he had to get out of the way and rely on his other friends. His breath stops until Frederico’s starts again after the procedure is done. As the boy sleeps, Lam looks with amazement at all of his friends who made this possible.

He regards Jonah but cannot find words just yet- so he nods in response to Jonah. He is silent until Sha-Gravis reaches out to him, then he speaks with a voice that betrays the tears that haven’t reached his eyes. “Danke, Freund. Dankeschön.” Then to both Sha and Billy, he says, “Thank you for your help.”

 He looks to the trees where the other children have gone, but then remembers something. He walks over to Jonah and pulls out the spear he had taken from Shield 1. He hands it to him and says, “This belongs to… someone. A dwarf.”

After this, he points out the direction the other teens had gone and says to Hemlock, “Other kids should be that way.” He looks to his friends ready to put Frederico on the wagon, or head towards where the teens should be, or do whatever needs to happen for them to head back to the tree.

Saffron watches after offering up the psionic scalpel, eyes widening slightly as the procedure progresses. She glances at each of her former party members without much expression. Considering the way they last parted, she wonders how they'll react to her. Looking, perhaps, a bit thinner than she was before, the changeling manages a sheepish, but wry smile. "So, imagine you lot showing up . . . here."

A bit uncomfortable for small talk, Saffi glances to Sha and says, "So how've you all been getting on?"

The changeling glances at Lam for a moment. As she realizes that the bugbear is waiting for the group to decide what to do, she considers what she will do. She knows that, despite not knowing each other at all, she missed something about Lam. Maybe his steady reliability? Who knows. 

A bit uncomfortable for small talk, Saffi glances to Sha and says, "So how've you all been getting on?"

“It’s been a real challenge trying to stay ahead of everything going on.  Since village tree when you left, a lot of information has been figured out but that’s a story for another time.  I’ve really missed you Saffron Gale.  I hope you’re back to stay.”