In a dark wood obscured from the world, there exists a lone village. The people of this village live well. Game is plentiful, the wells are pure, life is without want. Under this warm darkness, the intrepid party has stayed and recuperated. Soon, however, they will leave this place. Now that their most grievously wounded is now recovered, it's time that their journey began anew.
For Korbiña, it's a gentle knock at her door, stirring her from an otherwise pleasant slumber. Reality hits like a soft slap, followed by a brief moment of annoyance. Why can't Raniah be as fun in reality as she is in the tiefling's dreams? Standing and stretching, she finds her clothes folded neatly nearby, likely Sceilie's doing.
Lelantus' awakening comes in the form of him falling from his bed. Great. Now his scars itch AND his head hurts. He pulls his pantaloons up as he stands. His new clothes sit folded by his bedside. Wouldn't really work to walk around in his skivvies, now would it?
Quartz is awake already, having just collected several handfuls of fresh mushrooms and a few choice grubs. His hands are caked in cool fresh soil and his hair is damp with "morning" dew. Standing and stretching, he gathers his supplies and meanders to the village square. "Today" or "tomorrow," it's almost time to go.
Asher's rousing is the result of an unfortunate nightmare. Dragons in the wind, an empty campsite, and the corpses of his people all around him. Waking from this horror is a brief comfort, followed shortly by the fatigue of his extensive studies. He sits in a loose bed robe on the floor of the archive room. His back aches as he stands, the candles around him burning low. His clothes sit on his chair, a note on top. Knowing Chescha, it's likely her fussing him for skipping dinner last night.
After getting dressed and applying a bit of pink to her cheeks and lips, Korbiña happily hurries to where breakfast is being set up to help a bit and getting her hands on a few choice morsels for herself and the raven that she has befriended whom she calls "Mr. Higgins" who always caws at just the right moments, so it really feels like the two are having profound conversations about the metaphysics of alchemy and magic, Mr. Higgins seeming to have a special knack for alchemy, althogh all ge does is caw... and make funny noises.
The breakfast table is lively. Korbiña was a little surprised to learn how many families kept to one house, but she quickly got used to it. Hells, it reminded her of the Vistani. Sceilie waves the tiefling over to the far end of the table, where a plate loaded with sweet cakes and roasted swine sits. She's a sweet girl. Beside her, a number of older girls sit, waxing chore duties, the boys of other families and houses, and how good the cakes came out. Several men are on the opposite end, arguing hunting rhetoric. To the right of them, their wives go about the tedious routine of getting their youngest to eat mashed root and pureed pork. Just to their right, and Sceilie's left, the younger men and boys sit, telling jokes, bragging about speed and muscles, playing pranks, etc. What culminates is a busy table, lively and full of activity. Taking the first bite of cake, she quickly begins to dig in with the rest.
Korbiña feels pretty happy and content... but is kind of itchy... she doesn't mind to probably have missed the meeting with the guide, and the original misdion has gone down the drain anyway... but something inside of her beckons to her... drawing her out from this safe place, into the unknown...
But as she's not dumb, she will try to prepare as best is possible, having already started asking questions about the surroundings... about who they were afraid of that the party might be emissiaries of, half suspecting the original employer of the group... and much more about the forest, the fog, and the creatures living in the area.
Lelantus goes to find some of the cold moss from earlier to use on his head
As the halfling scrambles to his feet, head throbbing and scars aching, he hears giggling by the door. Anise, Reisi and Sini, three of the children living in this house, stand by the door, pointing and laughing.
They run, squealing with delight. They round the corner at the end of the hall. As he does the same, Lelantus almost runs headlong into the elder Serescal. The old scale chuckles."Ah, but thou art in good straits I take it? Such is to be praiseworthy. Yet, my work hath yet to end, and I ask only that you remain cautious in moving about, young man. Thou wouldst not chance tear a stitch."He pats the halfling's bare shoulder as he passes."Thou shouldst dress as well, lest you catch your death of cold!"
With that, he ambles to the other end of the hall, entering his study and closing the door behind him.
asher groggily rubs the sleep from his eyes and dresses himself befor reading the note held in one hand while packing his other belongings with a practiced half thought , the nightmare tugging at his memory even as he trys to for get it .
Lelantus, realizing he still has to dress returns to his room and starts to dress
The scent of roasted meat rolls into Lelantus' room.
Esshra, one of the kids' mothers must be preparing this morning's meals, as the unmistakable aroma of her honey cakes invades his nostrils. Lelantus imagines Korbiña's probably already on seconds at the other house and Asher only now just waking up in the archives. He remembers hearing Quartz was offered the stable, but chose instead to sleep in the wood just outside the wall. Finishing his last button and tightening his new belt, the halfling quickly but carefully hobbles down the hall to the dining chamber. This "morning" would be his first eating with the rest of this house's families, instead of from a tray in his bed.
asher groggily rubs the sleep from his eyes and dresses himself befor reading the note held in one hand while packing his other belongings with a practiced half thought , the nightmare tugging at his memory even as he trys to for get it .
A knock on the door announces Chescha's arrival. The door opens, a soft draft blowing discarded papers and crumpled notes away from the doorway. The tall lithe figure of the village's archivist enters, carrying a tray with what Asher assumes to be breakfast. This is quickly confirmed as she places the tray on his desk, removing the lid to reveal a gentle waft of steam and the unmistakable scent of fresh baked blood sausages and what appeared to be a steamed root of some sort, wallowing in melted butter with a bloated and hit roll soaking it up. Beside the plate sits a cup of clear amber liquid, no doubt her Red Crisp tea she'd gotten him hooked on the first night he stayed here.
Turning her head, her long wrinkled snout scrunches at the sight -- and scent -- of him.
"By His strong scales, boy, have ye not bathed since I told ye to the night before last?! Och!"
She storms out of the room without waiting for an answer, most likely to heat the water herself, he thinks. Looking to the plate, the suddenly famished fool realizes this may be his only chance at the meal while it's still hot, before that crazy she beast drags him out, strips him once more, and scrubs every inch of him herself!
Lelantus decides he to head in the general direction of the breakfast although he's more interested in exploring and looking for interesting herbs ( and silently the best way to steal things... although he would never steal from this settlement as they are all his friends now.)
Lelantus decides he to head in the general direction of the breakfast although he's more interested in exploring and looking for interesting herbs ( and silently the best way to steal things... although he would never steal from this settlement as they are all his friends now.)
The hall is spacious, loud. Several small chandeliers hang from above, casting a warm glow across the spread laid across the large oak table in the center. The fireplace burns bright as well, and the halfling can see a bubbling pot of fresh "morning" stew sitting in front. Lelantus sees a place set for him, next to Serescal. It seems the kids have loaded his plate. Several slices of roasted dark red meat sit in a stack, glazed in a thick brown gravy. Next to them are a stack of tender moonstalks, boiled in butter and dusted in garlic powder. Unmistakable to him, piled one atop the other on the far edge of the dish sir three of Esshra's honey cakes, an extra douse of sweet syrup drizzled over the top and softly cascading into the rest of the food. As the young man takes his seat, Serescal places a cup next to the plate, pouring in a steaming hot liquid. His smile hides just a bit of mischief as he whispers,"fresh cider, mulled and pipe't. A celebration for thine recovery, lad."He claps Lelantus on the shoulder before turning back to his own meal and digging in ravenously.
Lelantus picks up the cup first and eyes it warily but ultimately his love for mischief and chaos wins over and he takes a sip
It's a strong drink. Lelantus feels a familiar warmth crawling through him. The cider appears to be blended from the smoke of the moss. His head is fuzzy after a few gulps, but he manages to keep his head...
...enough to dig heartily into the sprawl of food before him. One plate becomes two. Two becomes three. The halfling finds three is his limit.
Staggering back to his room to grab his daggers and prepare, Lelantus finds a note on his door. Beyond the usual pleasantries, the note is signed by everyone in the house. They know he's fit enough to leave, and so they'll all be leaving soon. As a final act for a friend, every family in the house has pitched in and left him something that might help him on his way. Stepping inside, he finds a new backpack, his hyena skull fashioned into a cap helm, both daggers clean and sharpened, and a plethora of new items, both in the pack and arranged on his bed.
In a dark wood obscured from the world, there exists a lone village. The people of this village live well. Game is plentiful, the wells are pure, life is without want. Under this warm darkness, the intrepid party has stayed and recuperated. Soon, however, they will leave this place. Now that their most grievously wounded is now recovered, it's time that their journey began anew.
For Korbiña, it's a gentle knock at her door, stirring her from an otherwise pleasant slumber. Reality hits like a soft slap, followed by a brief moment of annoyance. Why can't Raniah be as fun in reality as she is in the tiefling's dreams? Standing and stretching, she finds her clothes folded neatly nearby, likely Sceilie's doing.
Lelantus' awakening comes in the form of him falling from his bed. Great. Now his scars itch AND his head hurts. He pulls his pantaloons up as he stands. His new clothes sit folded by his bedside. Wouldn't really work to walk around in his skivvies, now would it?
Quartz is awake already, having just collected several handfuls of fresh mushrooms and a few choice grubs. His hands are caked in cool fresh soil and his hair is damp with "morning" dew. Standing and stretching, he gathers his supplies and meanders to the village square. "Today" or "tomorrow," it's almost time to go.
Asher's rousing is the result of an unfortunate nightmare. Dragons in the wind, an empty campsite, and the corpses of his people all around him. Waking from this horror is a brief comfort, followed shortly by the fatigue of his extensive studies. He sits in a loose bed robe on the floor of the archive room. His back aches as he stands, the candles around him burning low. His clothes sit on his chair, a note on top. Knowing Chescha, it's likely her fussing him for skipping dinner last night.
After getting dressed and applying a bit of pink to her cheeks and lips, Korbiña happily hurries to where breakfast is being set up to help a bit and getting her hands on a few choice morsels for herself and the raven that she has befriended whom she calls "Mr. Higgins" who always caws at just the right moments, so it really feels like the two are having profound conversations about the metaphysics of alchemy and magic, Mr. Higgins seeming to have a special knack for alchemy, althogh all ge does is caw... and make funny noises.
The breakfast table is lively. Korbiña was a little surprised to learn how many families kept to one house, but she quickly got used to it. Hells, it reminded her of the Vistani. Sceilie waves the tiefling over to the far end of the table, where a plate loaded with sweet cakes and roasted swine sits. She's a sweet girl. Beside her, a number of older girls sit, waxing chore duties, the boys of other families and houses, and how good the cakes came out. Several men are on the opposite end, arguing hunting rhetoric. To the right of them, their wives go about the tedious routine of getting their youngest to eat mashed root and pureed pork. Just to their right, and Sceilie's left, the younger men and boys sit, telling jokes, bragging about speed and muscles, playing pranks, etc. What culminates is a busy table, lively and full of activity. Taking the first bite of cake, she quickly begins to dig in with the rest.
[what does Sceilie look like?]
Korbiña feels pretty happy and content... but is kind of itchy... she doesn't mind to probably have missed the meeting with the guide, and the original misdion has gone down the drain anyway... but something inside of her beckons to her... drawing her out from this safe place, into the unknown...
But as she's not dumb, she will try to prepare as best is possible, having already started asking questions about the surroundings... about who they were afraid of that the party might be emissiaries of, half suspecting the original employer of the group... and much more about the forest, the fog, and the creatures living in the area.
Lelantus goes to find some of the cold moss from earlier to use on his head
As the halfling scrambles to his feet, head throbbing and scars aching, he hears giggling by the door. Anise, Reisi and Sini, three of the children living in this house, stand by the door, pointing and laughing.
He makes a half attempt to chase them
They run, squealing with delight. They round the corner at the end of the hall. As he does the same, Lelantus almost runs headlong into the elder Serescal. The old scale chuckles. "Ah, but thou art in good straits I take it? Such is to be praiseworthy. Yet, my work hath yet to end, and I ask only that you remain cautious in moving about, young man. Thou wouldst not chance tear a stitch." He pats the halfling's bare shoulder as he passes. "Thou shouldst dress as well, lest you catch your death of cold!"
With that, he ambles to the other end of the hall, entering his study and closing the door behind him.
Lelantus, realizing he still has to dress returns to his room and starts to dress
asher groggily rubs the sleep from his eyes and dresses himself befor reading the note held in one hand while packing his other belongings with a practiced half thought , the nightmare tugging at his memory even as he trys to for get it .
The scent of roasted meat rolls into Lelantus' room.
Esshra, one of the kids' mothers must be preparing this morning's meals, as the unmistakable aroma of her honey cakes invades his nostrils. Lelantus imagines Korbiña's probably already on seconds at the other house and Asher only now just waking up in the archives. He remembers hearing Quartz was offered the stable, but chose instead to sleep in the wood just outside the wall. Finishing his last button and tightening his new belt, the halfling quickly but carefully hobbles down the hall to the dining chamber. This "morning" would be his first eating with the rest of this house's families, instead of from a tray in his bed.
A knock on the door announces Chescha's arrival. The door opens, a soft draft blowing discarded papers and crumpled notes away from the doorway. The tall lithe figure of the village's archivist enters, carrying a tray with what Asher assumes to be breakfast. This is quickly confirmed as she places the tray on his desk, removing the lid to reveal a gentle waft of steam and the unmistakable scent of fresh baked blood sausages and what appeared to be a steamed root of some sort, wallowing in melted butter with a bloated and hit roll soaking it up. Beside the plate sits a cup of clear amber liquid, no doubt her Red Crisp tea she'd gotten him hooked on the first night he stayed here.
Turning her head, her long wrinkled snout scrunches at the sight -- and scent -- of him.
"By His strong scales, boy, have ye not bathed since I told ye to the night before last?! Och!"
She storms out of the room without waiting for an answer, most likely to heat the water herself, he thinks. Looking to the plate, the suddenly famished fool realizes this may be his only chance at the meal while it's still hot, before that crazy she beast drags him out, strips him once more, and scrubs every inch of him herself!
Lelantus decides he to head in the general direction of the breakfast although he's more interested in exploring and looking for interesting herbs ( and silently the best way to steal things... although he would never steal from this settlement as they are all his friends now.)
The hall is spacious, loud. Several small chandeliers hang from above, casting a warm glow across the spread laid across the large oak table in the center. The fireplace burns bright as well, and the halfling can see a bubbling pot of fresh "morning" stew sitting in front. Lelantus sees a place set for him, next to Serescal. It seems the kids have loaded his plate. Several slices of roasted dark red meat sit in a stack, glazed in a thick brown gravy. Next to them are a stack of tender moonstalks, boiled in butter and dusted in garlic powder. Unmistakable to him, piled one atop the other on the far edge of the dish sir three of Esshra's honey cakes, an extra douse of sweet syrup drizzled over the top and softly cascading into the rest of the food. As the young man takes his seat, Serescal places a cup next to the plate, pouring in a steaming hot liquid. His smile hides just a bit of mischief as he whispers, "fresh cider, mulled and pipe't. A celebration for thine recovery, lad." He claps Lelantus on the shoulder before turning back to his own meal and digging in ravenously.
Lelantus picks up the cup first and eyes it warily but ultimately his love for mischief and chaos wins over and he takes a sip
It's a strong drink. Lelantus feels a familiar warmth crawling through him. The cider appears to be blended from the smoke of the moss. His head is fuzzy after a few gulps, but he manages to keep his head...
[Lelantus, Constitution check]
12
...enough to dig heartily into the sprawl of food before him. One plate becomes two. Two becomes three. The halfling finds three is his limit.
Staggering back to his room to grab his daggers and prepare, Lelantus finds a note on his door. Beyond the usual pleasantries, the note is signed by everyone in the house. They know he's fit enough to leave, and so they'll all be leaving soon. As a final act for a friend, every family in the house has pitched in and left him something that might help him on his way. Stepping inside, he finds a new backpack, his hyena skull fashioned into a cap helm, both daggers clean and sharpened, and a plethora of new items, both in the pack and arranged on his bed.
[Lelantus, Check Inventory]
Lelantus's eyes well with tears and he decides to hunt down every person who pitched in and give them a HUGE hug
[OoC: Well, that squares Lelantus away for awhile. Now we gotta wait for the Jolly Blue Giant to pop in and things can continue. He's got time.]