1 HD rest healing 8

Zeren grimaces seeing the evidence of experimentation. He has a strong stomach, but that doesn't mean he likes what's in front of him.

"Unpleasant. Might be worth burning this place when we leave to ensure more nasties don't spawn here."

Noticing the uncovered bones, his body language changes.

"Unfortunate. We can dig a grave once we get back upstairs. "

In the meantime Zeren continues going through the shelves, trying to find any preserved food that might still be good or anything else of use.

The sight of a massive armored figure picking through pickles and jarred fruit like a cook in a kitchen might be comical to some. Others might notice the annoyance radiating off Zeren, a combination of boredom and frustration at their latest fight having been against oversized vermin.

OOC: Perception check:

22

Syed stands over the small skull, his heart heavy with the grim realization of what he’s found. The dusty cellar, with its pickled horrors and centipede infestation, pales in comparison to the tragedy he has uncovered. Haley and Ardin, the names etched on the walls, the children who once lived in this farmhouse… are no more. He takes a deep breath, knowing he has to inform the others, but his tiny frame and the weight of the knowledge weigh him down. He gently brushes more dirt off the bones, silently hoping that perhaps he's wrong. But the reality is clear. With a somber expression, Syed steps back and pats Mellow’s head for comfort. “Let’s go, Mellow,” he whispers, his voice shaky. He climbs up the ladder, carefully carrying with him a small bone fragment, a sad token of what he’s found.

Once upstairs, the warm fire and smell of cupcakes contrast with the cold discovery in the cellar. Syed catches his breath and gathers the party together. “There’s something down there,” he begins, trying to steady his voice. “The children—Haley and Ardin—I found... their remains. I think something happened to them. Maybe experiments... or worse. But they didn’t make it.” He holds out the bone fragment for the group to see, though he quickly tucks it away, not wanting to dwell on it for too long. “I think Zeren is right. We should burn the place after we give them a proper burial.”

After the difficult conversation, Syed retreats to tend to Mellow. He sits by the mastiff, cleaning the neon centipede gunk from his fur, and checking for wounds. The bond between them is clear as Syed methodically works, healing and bandaging Mellow's injuries with care.

[Mellow heals 5 HP with 1/1 HD]

During the short rest, as everyone recovers, Syed shifts the conversation. “I’ve been working on something these days… something that might help us in future fights.” He pulls out his light crossbow, the weapon almost too huge for his stature gleaming faintly. “I’ve been experimenting with channeling magic into weaponry, specifically ranged ones. I’ve devised a mechanism that can distill magical energy from the surroundings and coalesce it into physical ammunition.” He pauses, letting the idea sink in. “Essentially, it means we won’t need ammunition anymore—at least not for this weapon. And, it’ll hit harder and be more accurate. I believe it could work on any ranged weapon with the right setup. I don't use this one too much, so if any of you would like an improvement like that, just let me know. With some minor modification, I could modify it and instead of ammunition, it would create a magic aura around the weapon, this way it would work for a melee weapon, too, if you feel that this would be more useful for the group.”

He adjusts a few parts on the crossbow, showing the mechanism. “The downside is, I only have enough pieces to make one. I can either fit it to my crossbow, or we could use it for someone else’s weapon. Honestly, I'm not the best fighter, and I think it would be best used by someone else.” He looks at the group, awaiting their thoughts on whether he should keep the enhancement for himself or share it with another.

[Effectively, he offers to infuse someone's weapon with either Enhanced Weapon (magic weapon +1) or Repeating Shot (+1 weapon and ignores loading property). Any suggestions who would benefit most from this? I know it isn't Syed.]

Kolette goes outside and if the horses and deer are there she lays out some grain for them.

Is there a lot of preserved food? Like too much to reasonably take with us? If that is the case, maybe we can secure/conceal the basement and keep it as a secret stash? 

William would have walked around the basement with his companion on his shoulder until heading upstairs. Once there, he would gently lay his unconscious and paralyzed companion on the ground before taking a seat to rest. When the rest of his companions join him upstairs and he hears about the fate of the children, The undertaker simply shakes his head. "That is a shame." he says quietly as he looks down towards the floor as though he were trying to look through the floor into the basement. "I believe with the right magic, the children could be resurrected. Perhaps if i were to collect their remains.. we may be able to give them a new chance at life..." he adds before adjusting his hat and standing up. "I'm going to see if there were any dried herbs or incense in the basement.... I will need it if I want to bring Herbert back." He says before stepping outside and moving around the house to head to the basement. 

Once down there he would look for any dried incense-like materials down there (I think you mentioned cinnamon... would that count?) that would work with the find familiar. He would also make his way towards the remains discovered by Syed. If possible, he would use one of the burlap sacks laying around and use it to collect the bones of the two children.

@Zeren

You find 16 jars of pickles! They each can be used as one ration. They smell amazing (if you like pickles they do). You wonder how long they've been there. You also find some kimchi for flavor. Sadly the jarred fruit ends up smelling spoiled. It probably would have been good too, but it wasn't too air tight. It seems maybe some ants or bugs have gotten in there because most were leaking.

@William

((yeah cinnamon!))

You find a couple of cinnamon sticks, some rosemary, and thyme. You find a bunch of dried cilantro. You collect the bones of the children. You don't really know how much is in there you find it pretty scattered and even the base of the skull was found but not the jaw. In total you really only find about 8 fragments of bone, which you can't tell which is which because of how broken down they were. Probably the lack of calcium in an environment like this. By the height of the marked tallies, you assume they were each around either 5 or 8 years old respectively.

@Kolette 

((you're pretty far away from - Emberwood maybe like two days away - to really keep it as a stash though you are welcome to do so!))

You lay some grains out for the animals, hoping they will return. In this fog, you find it hard to really find much. Anything more than five feet in front of you is obscured by this heavy mist.

You hear some noises outside around where the door to the cabin is. There is another set of hoofed footsteps like yours. You hear the faint click of a crossbow. 

Then a shot.

@Shayara, Sparkles, and Syed (triple-S team)

You all stay inside the cabin while the others decide to look around. The clatter at the door sounds like a slight metal thud to the floor; it reminds you of the sound of the lock. You hear some shuffling. The door cracks open. Suddenly, an arrow flies out from the crevice. The metal body vibrates in the wood. It hits the spot right about the taxidermy. 

OOC: is there enough "incense" items that I would be able to cast "find familiar" again?

William collect what little remains for the children. A frown spreads across his face as he contemplates their fates. With how few bones remain... there is little he can do with them now, but perhaps he could make use of them in the future.

Sparkles swears under her breath and mutters ‘Can we not rest for five minutes?!’ She rolls up her tunic sleeves and angrily marches up to the doors, ready to fight whoever’s there. She hasn’t told the party this, but she’s got a hard history with crossbows. In her past, she had awoken several times in the woods to a band of hunters and villagers trying to hunt her down, thinking her a pest and a thief, and it was the bolt of a marksman that was the first thing to ever strike her. It was the first thing that reminded her of pain. It was the first thing that reminded her of suffering.

Now, she’s enraged, and as she approaches she gets fleeting thoughts of this mystery person hunting and killing their horses, even Starry, which only fuel her fury further. She kicks open the door so it’s wide open now, and readies an action to attack if the person there appears immediately violent. 

Syed follows Sparkles to the door, her crossbow still in his hands (though not technically infused yet as that requires a long rest). From his low vantage point, he's trying to get a sneak peek around the corner on who's responsible for the ruckus.

Kolette hears the sound and think, *What in the feathers is going on?!*  She arms herself and peers into the murk hoping to find the culprit.

 Zeren reluctantly leaves the pickles (for now) to move towards the sounds of combat.

"What's going on?"

He makes a note to ask Syed to enhance his sword the next time he has the chance to.

Disappointed at what little remains starts on his way out of the cellar but Zeren first beats him to it, the sounds of combat having pricked his ears. He is not more than little halfway through the ladder when he hears the door slam open. Sparkles had kicked open the cabin door with such a fury that you may have expected it to come off its hinges. A bit of dust flies everywhere, coating Syed (and Sparkle's talon) in a puff of gray soot. 

 Kolette peeks into the mist to heads towards the noise.

The intruder is a dark hooded figure, complete with a crossbow; the cloak much reminiscent of the one that Brodan (the wereraven thug) had been wearing. They cough and step back at both the noise and the dust, waving their arm in trying to clear the air. They do this before ducking down. Another arrow is let loose, hitting the short rafter awning above the door's entrance. "Warning shot!" 

Their voice is one that is hoarse and raw like they've haven't spoke in a very long time.

The mystery figure edges their way to the back of the house (to the space towards the cellar). Their crossbow again clicks as you believe they are loading another shot. 

((For Sparkles, Syed, and Kolette)) In the haze it is hard to see but you can hear their footsteps and the direction they are going, though there sounds to be a bit more than one set of hooves.

((For Zeren)) You spot a robed humanoid outline on your way out the cellar.

Sparkles is irritated to see the intruder back away and yells ‘HEY! Who the hell are you and what the hell are you doing? Show yourself!’ [Intimidation: 12]

Kolette touches a 10 foot section of house, "Pelor, light our way!" and casts Light on it.

"ME?!" the intruder shouts, flabbergasted. "What are YOU doing in MY HOUSE?!" Then all of a sudden the porch of the house gets brighter, a whole lot brighter!  Kolette illuminates the front yard carefully, but something must be with the fog that it instead creates a hot white blinding light. "AGH!" Against the flash you see the outlines of two figures: one, the hooded person, and two... an elk. You can't see its expression but it is a still as one caught in headlamps.

hearing the commotion outside, William finishes collecting the bits of bone and incense before sneaking up out of the basement. he tries to stay in the fog as he attempts to sneak up behind the man..

stealth - 12 second roll if the fog gives me advantage 13

"We apologize, and to be honest, this place looked to be in a shambles. We thought the place deserted."

Insight check to see if he is lying about his house. 20

Syed brushes the soot off his clothes, coughing slightly as the dust settles around him. He stays back for now, watching how the situation unfolds. His crossbow is ready in his hands, but he doesn’t aim it yet. Instead, he listens carefully, letting the others take the lead in talking to the intruder. He glances at the elk, recognizing it but unsure of its involvement. With a quick mental check to ensure Mellow is still nearby, he holds his position, quietly waiting to see if the situation will escalate or if it can be resolved without violence. His sharp eyes flick back and forth between the hooded figure and his companions, ready to react if needed. Syed remains calm but alert, his paws tightening on the crossbow as he anticipates the next move.

@Kolette

You have completely no idea if they are lying or not. The way they sound appears genuine or just too 'much' to really discern.

William manages to sneak up on the person through the fog. 

"It should've been," the person rasps. Their demeanor softens but by only a little. You see them hold up their arm to cover their eyes from the light. The elk stands between them and the porch. "How'd you get rid of the locks? 

Syed finally steps forward a bit, still holding his crossbow casually but now speaking up with a snarky tone. "Locks? Doors? They all but fell apart the moment we touched them. Your basement door got smashed in by hailstones while we were trying to figure out how to open it. Honestly, you should thank the storm for doing most of the work for us."

He shrugs, giving the intruder a slightly amused glance, while keeping a careful eye on their crossbow and the elk. "This place isn't exactly in the best shape. Didn't take much effort to get in. But we are glad we could retreat here and escape the worst of the storm. Where did you weather it?"