Doozey only curls up into a tighter ball as Utar nears, and answered only in more muttered words. Whatever the hound had done to him had drawn out a far more visceral affect than in the past. That said, aside from a fairly serious looking arm wound and a re-opened leg one, the stoutling wasn't necessarily any danger of dying on the spot. Though treatment of some kind before sleep could definitely not hurt. Regardless, it did not look as if the stoutling would be up to continue watch any time soon...
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
Neya returns to camp as Utar keeps an eye out for any lingering danger. Graxx busies himself with stabbing each hound one last time to make sure they won't be rising anytime soon. A shoddy attempt at cleaning the silver blade is appreciated nonetheless by the monk once receiving her blade back. Graxx compliments Neya on her newly understood skills and the two of them bond a bit talking about combat strategy.
Meanwhile, Utar approaches a still prone Doozey. The cleric tries to raise the hunter's spirits with some conversation, making sure to ask questions the halfling would enjoy answering. Doozey's response to it all is quite tame, if not disinterested. Utar settles for bandaging his companion and offering to cover the rest of his watch. He even decides this is not the time to ask for his silver dagger back just yet. The ranger eventually falls asleep right where he lies, somewhat far from the campfire. Utar starts his watch early, while the rest of the group goes back to their bedrolls or tent to get some rest.
Utar: Your watch is long, but mostly uninteresting, which is probably a good thing. You lose yourself from time to time on the crackle of the campfire, and its warmth feels as healing-prone as some of the magic you are capable of calling forth. About two hours into your watch, your gaze catches a pair of approaching brilliant red eyes. You reach for your weapon convinced it is another Yeth Hound, but that is proven not to be the case shortly after. A lone, normal-sized wolf slowly approaches the camp. Through your natural darkvision, you see its deep gray fur from some distance. It seems unafraid of you, and quite skinny. You watch as it gets closer to one of the dead Yeth Hounds, sniffs it, and simply turns away unwilling to satiate its hunger on the dead fey creature's meat. If the wolf noticed you, it did not pay you much attention. Once the time comes and sleep begins to knock hard on your door, you wake Neya up to change guard.
Neya: Breaking up your sleep into two uneven parts is not ideal, but absolutely necessary when camping outdoors. You are not one to complain though, so that thought remains in your head. You pick a spot near a bush that is casting a long shadow due to the campfire, just in case, and begin your watch. Eventually, you begin fiddling with some of the gadgets and equipment you brought along just to help pass the time. You see no danger around you so it cannot be too much of a problem to fiddle a bit. While doing so, you touch something in your pocket that wasn't there before. It is a note, and it reads:
"Message received and burned. Refrain from writing about other agents' fate in the future. We cannot have others become interested in examining their remains. Estra assured that the mistake wouldn't be repeated when some in the village complained.
Activity in the Moonsea Region has picked up considerably. Demand for our services has soared to the point handlers can't keep up. From now own, don't expect a handler to reach out every time a commission is available to you. Our village is prospering and opportunities to maintain our reach, growth, and clout cannot be wasted, or so some here say. There are those even saying we shall leave the shadows and step into the light for the world to see. We worry.
Be careful out there and burn this message.
Olida and Denae"
Five unique-looking trees are faintly painted in one of the corners. You know this to mean that the source of the letter is legitimate. Once you are ready to go back to your tent, you decide it is time to wake up Graxx.
Graxx: The monk softly kicks you awake. You pull both of your handaxes out and vows to keep the camp safe until sunrise. At some point, you see a passing snake and decide it would serve as a good source of energy come breakfast. A chop later, you find yourself already skinning the small constrictor. Then, about a dozen minutes before you were planning on waking up the party, you hear the hooves of a couple of trotting horses approaching. The lead rider must be in a rush, but not so much as to force the steed into a full gallop while illuminating its path with nothing more than a raised torch. You assume your dual wielding battle stance (its been a while) and prepare for the worst, but the man is clearly not trying to surprise you. In fact, he calls to you even before reaching the camp.
He says: "Chaotic Relief! Are you the Chaotic Relief Adventuring Party?" He seems to know who you are based on descriptions alone. You note that he is wearing the blackened chain shirt of low-ranking Black Fist guards as he continues: "I am Yan, with the Black Fist. I was sent here to help you return to Phlan. Captain Aleyd Burral sends her apologies for not being able to send more men. She said there are not many she can trust these days." At this moment, you notice that the second horse is riderless and being pulled by rope by Yan. This extra horse must be what he meant by "help," because his young and scrawny arms are surely not going to be of much assistance should you need to engage in another fight before reaching the city. Putting your weapons away, you wake the rest of the group. Looking a bit surprise, Yan mentions: "She said you would have horses of your own..."
(OOC: You may all complete your long rests. Utar is finally rid of his exhaustion).
(OOC Slightly backtracking having picked up on @Ori's request for a check, but don't want to disrupt @Lerus'last post either.)
As the skinny direwolf pads off into the night, Utar lays a hand into the still form of Doozey. Suspecting the stoutling may not be asleep given his reluctance to answer his earlier questions, Utar decides to try to make Doozey more comfortable.
Casting cure wounds at second level, more to accelerate his healing and ease any physical discomfort
Doozey's healing: 8 plus 5 plus 3. (2d8+3)
"The danger has passed and we are safe, Doozey Redfoot. The call of those hounds is likely to stir strong emotions, especially in one who has seen the darker aspects of this world. It is always darkest before the dawn, Doozey Redroot, yet the dawn always comes. Hold onto that, and try to get some sleep."
When Graxx wakes the rest of the party, Utar will rub his stomach and look to the others.
"Do we have enough rations left to see us back to Phlan?"
If not, he will cast create food and water, inviting Yan to join them while they clear camp. As they sit and eat, Utar will quiz the guardsman on events back inP during their adventure.
"I don't suppose Captain Burral had informed you of our activities, Yan?" Neya asks rhetorically. "She had sent us to investigate the ghost ship sightings along the coast. We were able to reach its next target before it attacked. The good news is there was nothing resembling a ghost about it. Bad news, they had the numbers for a protracted siege and the horses weren't able to survive them."
Whenever Doozey awakened, all red-eyed and still seeming exhausted, the stoutling busied himself with idle wake up work. After the severe lack of supplies slowly dons on him, he had turned, mouth opened as if to ask a question, only to close it abruptly and stare wide-eyed at Yan.
"There's only one horse...." He eventually said, the mind having finally caught up with what the body picked up before. "Why is there... oh..." He sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "The message... No point crying over spilled milk, I s'pose." Doozey mumbled as went back to help clearing the camp. All while staying subconsciously as far away from the Yeth hound corpses as possible.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
During Utar's watch, the cleric pays another visit to Doozey. He is not entirely sure whether the halfling is awake, but assumes he is. Utar speeds up the healing of the hunter's wounds before having a second attempt at making his companion feel better mentally as well. He hears no response. Choosing to believe the halfling was indeed asleep rather than ignoring him, Utar goes back to finish his watch and eventually pass the baton to Neya.
-> Doozey may heal 16 HP before completing his long rest.
EARLY MORNING
The group welcomes the sight of help, but can't avoid feeling a bit disappointed at its extent. Doozey is the only one who voices such disappointment, but quickly refocuses on clearing camp and getting ready for the last day of the march back to Phlan.
Neya and Graxx engage in conversation with Yan. As she summarizes CRAP's mission, his face changes to one of surprise and incompetence, betraying that as a low-ranking Black Fist, he is not usually given this sort of information for his own consideration. He responds: "Right. Yeah. I was just told that I needed to ride down the Iron Route until I came across you, then guide you back to town. I was given a description of each of you, your mounts, and then ordered to ensure that the captain's office was your first stop upon arrival." After a pause, he adds almost apologetically: "She won't be happy about the horses..."
Before leaving, Utar does a quick inventory count of the groups' travel supplies for the day. Yan adds that he has only enough for himself and that the horses can share half a portion each. "They were well fed before departure," he says. Only now being fully recovered, Utar decides not to risk exhaustion again and calls forth enough food and water to feed a party at least three times larger than today's group. Whatever is not eaten, will certainly be welcomed by the skinny wolves around these parts. Supplies no longer being an issue for the day's travel, the party moves Biscuit from the sled to the spare horse and then leaves camp a few moments after sunrise (the worn sled is left behind, I assume).
CRAP can travel at their normal speed for the first time since this trip started. Even the day passes quicker, it seems. The area is more populated and farms abound. Peasants stop to look at the passing party. Some wave, other just stare. Kids run alongside the party at times, asking about the mastiff and finding it hilarious that a sleeping dog is riding a horse. Yan never starts a conversation but is happy to contribute to an ongoing one sparingly. You all get a sense that he is quite shy. The sunny day is not as warm as the previous ones, and the smell of grain fills the air. Yan keeps pace with the group despite being mounted. Though likely only due to his own aloofness, the guard never offers to let anyone ride his horse. At some point he addresses Utar's quiz: "The city has become more dangerous recently. Crime is up, especially home robberies. We believe we have a gang in our hands. Most think it is the Welcomers, but we haven't been able to jail anyone yet..."
You reach Phlan earlier than expected, given your renewed pace of travel. It is mid-afternoon by the time you pass by the Valhingen Graveyard and then cross one of the arms of the Stojanow river into the city proper. "Welcome home," Yan says, disregarding whether or not you are actually from Phlan. "Shall I take you to the captain as asked?"
(OOC#1: Please go ahead and deduct the three rations you still have left from your collective inventories. There won't be a penalty for not having a forth this time since Utar spent that spell slot. Left over food from the spell does not translate into additional rations because it all spoils after a day.)
(OOC#2: The rest of the afternoon and the evening are yours. What would you like to do?)
(OOC: I hope you don't mind me speeding up this part a bit).
"It really isn't, but..." Yan responds, powerless to stop you from going to the Temple of the Hand first. Defeated, he silently follows along.
The group makes their way to Torm's temple and are welcomed by the warm and familiar faces of the priests and acolytes inside. Upon placing the request to bring Biscuit back to life, you notice that the priests seem a bit surprised. They have never performed such an expensive and complex ritual on an animal before. They don't ask many questions though, as long as you are willing to cover the costs and help the light of Torm reach farther. You are told that quite a bit of singing is needed for this ritual as well, and as such, Sister Ahkt will be leading the effort (callback).
Brother Tyree almost drops a large but uncut and rough diamond. Apologizing, he informs you that this gem was valued at exactly 512gp, and is the only one they have in the temple. "Not to worry," he adds. "We'll use your contributions to restock." Brother Manas recognizes the astuteness of shrouding the mastiff in Gentle Repose magic and invites you all to participate in the ritual as well, politely requesting 1,250gp for the effort (this amount includes the cost of the diamond).
Preparations take a little while, close to an hour. Incense, banners, candles, shields, mulch, earth, holy water, salt, and myrrh are all part of the ritual. Sister Ahkt begins her energetic gospel singing, and signals the beginning of the ritual:
-> Each of you should go ahead and describe how you contribute to the ritual. At least one of you should roll a performance check. If for some reason you decide not to perform the ritual or are unable to pay for it, now would be the time to let the priests know.
Graxx brings out his backpack and starts rummaging through the coins. Putting them in a pile.
5 Platinum = 50 GP
100 GP = 100 GP
550 Electrum Pieces = 275 GP
1,260 Silver Pieces = 126 GP
100 Copper = 1 GP
"That should be about 552 gold so we need... 1,250 minus 552.... Carry the two... I'm not sure.. Anyway we need some more gold if we're going to make this thing happen." says Graxx.
Doozey, who had already expected what the correct response to be, had started to nod in answer, having long expected their course given the ways of the Black Fist. Which is why when Utar spoke of a detour, he was nothing less than flabbergasted, and would stare wide-eyed up at Utar. So much so, that once the group started moving again, he strayed behind a step or two, prior to recovering from the stupor and rushing after the others.
"You know she's gonna be might pissed at all of us for the snub, specially with all the trouble's been having." He stated in almost chiding tone. But, one look in the stoutling's direction would reveal a hint of a small but grateful smile on his lips...
Later at the temple, a more solemn Doozey again looked as if he might interject, only turn in surprise again; though, this time at Graxx! "I... I don't know what to say, Mr. Graxx! I've... after all I've done... after...." He trails off holding his forehead, at a complete and utter loss for words. Whether or not he receives some words comfort or the exact opposite in a demand, a nevertheless grateful Doozey eventually took a deep breathe, accepting the good fortune.
"... A moment." He asked, as he too contributed a good deal of coin and gems to the pile. While not nearly as much as Graxx' contributions, without being bade, the stoutling whispered a word in Sylvan, causing the armor that he'd been wearing -- an almost seamless piece of chitinous or chitin-like armor -- to fall off of him, leaving him only in his travel clothes. This too he adds to the pile with a few short words of "Lemm Eylon Esseelyon", causing the seams to again to disappear as it merges back into a single piece once more.
Without stopping, uncertain and uncaring if the magic piece alone is enough, Doozey continued to add to the pile; an hourglass, bagpipes, Biscuit's Armor -- a bit dirt covered, but undamaged. If not stopped or given the word of disapproval before hand, he certainly paused on his own at the Lute. "For the ritual... Before I put this forth if not as payment -- a-a donation, if you would, I... would like to make use of it for the ritual. One last time, if that's alright?" He asked the priest heading the payment, before looking down and given the lute's worn side a caress.
"I don't know if the tune we'll only send him on, or bring him back but... either which way, I'd like to try."
Brother Manas shakes his hand as if saying "hello" to Doozey, but his face says "please, stop" instead. "I am sorry brave one. We are a temple. We will gladly provide the ritual services we are capable but we are not in the business of pawning or bargaining for adventurers' loot. The coins and gems we can use in furnishing more supplies for future rituals. Because you are a friend of Utar, we can also accept the musical instruments as they can be put to good use in our daily prayers. But I'm afraid we have no use for whatever else you are offering." He pauses for a moment and then adds with a solemn expression on his face: "I do not mean to sound disrespectful or emotionless, but between your contributions and those of your muscly friend over there, we are still a bit short."
(OOC#1: Graxx's contribution comes to 552gp. Doozey's contribution comes to 540gp. The subtotal is 1,092gp so far, so we still need another 158gp).
(OOC#2: We'll wait on the ritual for now until we gather Neya's and Utar's participation).
Utar clasps both Manas and Tyree on their shoulders,
"Thank you brothers, your faces are a sight for tired eyes and your kindness towards our... Unusual request, testament to you both."
Turning to the rest of CRAP, he continues.
"Sister Ahkt will perform a beautiful ritual, I don't think we have to worry there. Also Burral will be mad when we get there whatever happens. I have never known that woman to be contented."
Rustling up some coin, Utar will even suggest that Graxx and Doozey might want to keep part of their contributions back in case they need it later, particularly bearing in mind Graxx's need to rearm himself.
Before the ritual, Utar will bless the other members of CRAP with guidance before taking position to follow the lead of Sister Ahkt and rhythmically chant under her singing.
OOC Utar holds some 600gp, so makes up the difference depending on whether the other contributions are relaxed or not.
"I 'preciate the sentiment, Mr. Utar. But, this is my brother we're talking about." He'd say in response, before holding his hands. "But, don't worry. I am keeping a bit of coin. Enough to get by for a tenday." With that said, though he held his tongue, its clear in the worried look he gave Graxx that he had similar concerns as Utar. But he wouldn't push more than that.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
(OOC#1: We'll say that Utar offers some gold to the others after the ritual is done. Feel free to agree on the exact amounts Utar is passing on to the others in our OOC chat).
(@MB: Guidance is a concentration spell. You can cast is only on one creature at a time).
(@Drache: I'll assume Neya is not participating in the ritual, as you didn't elaborate on any details involving that).
At Brother Manas' hint, Neya offers to cover the remaining 158gp. Utar is also of a mind of offering to cover some of the expenses but decides to wait until after the ritual is over so that his Tormite brothers and sisters can start right away. For now, seeing Graxx beginning to warm up his singing pipes, the cleric wishes him luck.
-> Rolling the extra dice here for Graxx's performance: 1
Brother Manas and Tyree take care of of lighting the candles and incense. Utar feels like he should be helping and steps forward to place banners and shields with the symbol of Torm in a circle around Biscuit's body. A few younger acolytes also help, placing mulch, earth, holy water, salt, and myrrh in designated recipients as instructed by Brother Manas.
Sister Ahkt begins her singing. It starts solemnly but quickly jumps into an energetic gospel song. Her eyes are full of life and enjoyment. The acolytes join in, showing that they have been all trained in the ritual from an young age. Brother Tyree pulls out a drum and bangs on it a bit out of sync with the rest of the performance, but it doesn't seem to disturb the ritual at all. Brother Manas reads from some sort of scripture, but his voice is kept to a murmur.
Sister Ahkt signals to the party once she is ready to welcome further positivity into the ritual. Doozey plays his lute one last time, as requested, choosing a slow, sad tune to reflect his feelings. It is a bit of a contrast to the performance that Sister Ahkt is leading, and she notices. She remains undeterred, though, looking at the rest of the group to join in. With Utar's blessing coming to fruition, Graxx joins in the singing with a reasonably good performance of his own, even though he doesn't know the words. His grave voice serves as a nice contrast to the young acolytes' higher pitches. Utar himself simply hums, while holding his amulet. A completely lost Yan, who followed you here just so he didn't lose sight of you, begins chanting clearly out of nervousness. Not sure how to help, Neya picks a corner from which to watch it all happen.
The ritual is long, and you can tell that it is quite a strain on Sister Ahkt. About half an hour of singing later, the rough and uncut diamond has gathered plenty of light coming from all of the shield and banners in the room, as well as Utar's and the other Tormites' amulets. At that point, Brother Manas pushes it down into Biscuit's chest as if the gem were a dagger. No wound is left behind, and light pours out of the mastiff's open jaw. All the smoke in the air provided by the candles and incense suddenly rushes into the dog's nostrils. Though he remains asleep for now, Biscuit's chest begins to rise and fall once more. Sister Ahkt wipes her brow and says: "He'll need to rest now, right here, in this chamber. You should return tomorrow."
(OOC#2: With that, you may do whatever else you'd like to do here in the temple and them move on to your next stop once you decide what that will be.)
Doozey just looks past the Sister -- past anyone and everyone in between him and Biscuit. Before he knew it, he had at least tried to slip forward, and just knelled down laid his head against Biscuit's side, wanting to just listen to his heartbeat. A word gets whispered, but unless someone spoke halfling, it would remain a mystery.
After close to a minute, Doozey pulled away, sniffling and and rubbing a few budding tears from his eyes. Then without another word, he turns to others, giving the Sister a nod on his way out after Graxx with a determined look about him.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
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Doozey only curls up into a tighter ball as Utar nears, and answered only in more muttered words. Whatever the hound had done to him had drawn out a far more visceral affect than in the past. That said, aside from a fairly serious looking arm wound and a re-opened leg one, the stoutling wasn't necessarily any danger of dying on the spot. Though treatment of some kind before sleep could definitely not hurt. Regardless, it did not look as if the stoutling would be up to continue watch any time soon...
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
Neya returns to camp as Utar keeps an eye out for any lingering danger. Graxx busies himself with stabbing each hound one last time to make sure they won't be rising anytime soon. A shoddy attempt at cleaning the silver blade is appreciated nonetheless by the monk once receiving her blade back. Graxx compliments Neya on her newly understood skills and the two of them bond a bit talking about combat strategy.
Meanwhile, Utar approaches a still prone Doozey. The cleric tries to raise the hunter's spirits with some conversation, making sure to ask questions the halfling would enjoy answering. Doozey's response to it all is quite tame, if not disinterested. Utar settles for bandaging his companion and offering to cover the rest of his watch. He even decides this is not the time to ask for his silver dagger back just yet. The ranger eventually falls asleep right where he lies, somewhat far from the campfire. Utar starts his watch early, while the rest of the group goes back to their bedrolls or tent to get some rest.
Utar: Your watch is long, but mostly uninteresting, which is probably a good thing. You lose yourself from time to time on the crackle of the campfire, and its warmth feels as healing-prone as some of the magic you are capable of calling forth. About two hours into your watch, your gaze catches a pair of approaching brilliant red eyes. You reach for your weapon convinced it is another Yeth Hound, but that is proven not to be the case shortly after. A lone, normal-sized wolf slowly approaches the camp. Through your natural darkvision, you see its deep gray fur from some distance. It seems unafraid of you, and quite skinny. You watch as it gets closer to one of the dead Yeth Hounds, sniffs it, and simply turns away unwilling to satiate its hunger on the dead fey creature's meat. If the wolf noticed you, it did not pay you much attention. Once the time comes and sleep begins to knock hard on your door, you wake Neya up to change guard.
Neya: Breaking up your sleep into two uneven parts is not ideal, but absolutely necessary when camping outdoors. You are not one to complain though, so that thought remains in your head. You pick a spot near a bush that is casting a long shadow due to the campfire, just in case, and begin your watch. Eventually, you begin fiddling with some of the gadgets and equipment you brought along just to help pass the time. You see no danger around you so it cannot be too much of a problem to fiddle a bit. While doing so, you touch something in your pocket that wasn't there before. It is a note, and it reads:
"Message received and burned. Refrain from writing about other agents' fate in the future. We cannot have others become interested in examining their remains. Estra assured that the mistake wouldn't be repeated when some in the village complained.
Activity in the Moonsea Region has picked up considerably. Demand for our services has soared to the point handlers can't keep up. From now own, don't expect a handler to reach out every time a commission is available to you. Our village is prospering and opportunities to maintain our reach, growth, and clout cannot be wasted, or so some here say. There are those even saying we shall leave the shadows and step into the light for the world to see. We worry.
Be careful out there and burn this message.
Olida and Denae"
Five unique-looking trees are faintly painted in one of the corners. You know this to mean that the source of the letter is legitimate. Once you are ready to go back to your tent, you decide it is time to wake up Graxx.
Graxx: The monk softly kicks you awake. You pull both of your handaxes out and vows to keep the camp safe until sunrise. At some point, you see a passing snake and decide it would serve as a good source of energy come breakfast. A chop later, you find yourself already skinning the small constrictor. Then, about a dozen minutes before you were planning on waking up the party, you hear the hooves of a couple of trotting horses approaching. The lead rider must be in a rush, but not so much as to force the steed into a full gallop while illuminating its path with nothing more than a raised torch. You assume your dual wielding battle stance (its been a while) and prepare for the worst, but the man is clearly not trying to surprise you. In fact, he calls to you even before reaching the camp.
He says: "Chaotic Relief! Are you the Chaotic Relief Adventuring Party?" He seems to know who you are based on descriptions alone. You note that he is wearing the blackened chain shirt of low-ranking Black Fist guards as he continues: "I am Yan, with the Black Fist. I was sent here to help you return to Phlan. Captain Aleyd Burral sends her apologies for not being able to send more men. She said there are not many she can trust these days." At this moment, you notice that the second horse is riderless and being pulled by rope by Yan. This extra horse must be what he meant by "help," because his young and scrawny arms are surely not going to be of much assistance should you need to engage in another fight before reaching the city. Putting your weapons away, you wake the rest of the group. Looking a bit surprise, Yan mentions: "She said you would have horses of your own..."
(OOC: You may all complete your long rests. Utar is finally rid of his exhaustion).
(OOC Slightly backtracking having picked up on @Ori's request for a check, but don't want to disrupt @Lerus'last post either.)
As the skinny direwolf pads off into the night, Utar lays a hand into the still form of Doozey. Suspecting the stoutling may not be asleep given his reluctance to answer his earlier questions, Utar decides to try to make Doozey more comfortable.
Casting cure wounds at second level, more to accelerate his healing and ease any physical discomfort
Doozey's healing: 8 plus 5 plus 3. (2d8+3)
"The danger has passed and we are safe, Doozey Redfoot. The call of those hounds is likely to stir strong emotions, especially in one who has seen the darker aspects of this world. It is always darkest before the dawn, Doozey Redroot, yet the dawn always comes. Hold onto that, and try to get some sleep."
Persuasion: 3 plus 1 (1d20+1).
(OOC Least reassuring pep talk ever...)
When Graxx wakes the rest of the party, Utar will rub his stomach and look to the others.
"Do we have enough rations left to see us back to Phlan?"
If not, he will cast create food and water, inviting Yan to join them while they clear camp. As they sit and eat, Utar will quiz the guardsman on events back inP during their adventure.
"I don't suppose Captain Burral had informed you of our activities, Yan?" Neya asks rhetorically. "She had sent us to investigate the ghost ship sightings along the coast. We were able to reach its next target before it attacked. The good news is there was nothing resembling a ghost about it. Bad news, they had the numbers for a protracted siege and the horses weren't able to survive them."
Extended Signature
Graxx pulls his backpack around to his front and searches around with his hand.
”I’m all out Utar... We gotta get back to town to restock. Our journeys have taken us much longer than I expected.”
Graxx turns to Yan.
”We had mounts... They performed valiantly but fell in battle. This one in particular was very close to use.”
Graxx motions to Biscuit.
”If I could lay our fallen friend here upon your spare horse we could move a lot quicker.”
Whenever Doozey awakened, all red-eyed and still seeming exhausted, the stoutling busied himself with idle wake up work. After the severe lack of supplies slowly dons on him, he had turned, mouth opened as if to ask a question, only to close it abruptly and stare wide-eyed at Yan.
"There's only one horse...." He eventually said, the mind having finally caught up with what the body picked up before. "Why is there... oh..." He sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. "The message... No point crying over spilled milk, I s'pose." Doozey mumbled as went back to help clearing the camp. All while staying subconsciously as far away from the Yeth hound corpses as possible.
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
NIGHTTIME
During Utar's watch, the cleric pays another visit to Doozey. He is not entirely sure whether the halfling is awake, but assumes he is. Utar speeds up the healing of the hunter's wounds before having a second attempt at making his companion feel better mentally as well. He hears no response. Choosing to believe the halfling was indeed asleep rather than ignoring him, Utar goes back to finish his watch and eventually pass the baton to Neya.
-> Doozey may heal 16 HP before completing his long rest.
EARLY MORNING
The group welcomes the sight of help, but can't avoid feeling a bit disappointed at its extent. Doozey is the only one who voices such disappointment, but quickly refocuses on clearing camp and getting ready for the last day of the march back to Phlan.
Neya and Graxx engage in conversation with Yan. As she summarizes CRAP's mission, his face changes to one of surprise and incompetence, betraying that as a low-ranking Black Fist, he is not usually given this sort of information for his own consideration. He responds: "Right. Yeah. I was just told that I needed to ride down the Iron Route until I came across you, then guide you back to town. I was given a description of each of you, your mounts, and then ordered to ensure that the captain's office was your first stop upon arrival." After a pause, he adds almost apologetically: "She won't be happy about the horses..."
Before leaving, Utar does a quick inventory count of the groups' travel supplies for the day. Yan adds that he has only enough for himself and that the horses can share half a portion each. "They were well fed before departure," he says. Only now being fully recovered, Utar decides not to risk exhaustion again and calls forth enough food and water to feed a party at least three times larger than today's group. Whatever is not eaten, will certainly be welcomed by the skinny wolves around these parts. Supplies no longer being an issue for the day's travel, the party moves Biscuit from the sled to the spare horse and then leaves camp a few moments after sunrise (the worn sled is left behind, I assume).
CRAP can travel at their normal speed for the first time since this trip started. Even the day passes quicker, it seems. The area is more populated and farms abound. Peasants stop to look at the passing party. Some wave, other just stare. Kids run alongside the party at times, asking about the mastiff and finding it hilarious that a sleeping dog is riding a horse. Yan never starts a conversation but is happy to contribute to an ongoing one sparingly. You all get a sense that he is quite shy. The sunny day is not as warm as the previous ones, and the smell of grain fills the air. Yan keeps pace with the group despite being mounted. Though likely only due to his own aloofness, the guard never offers to let anyone ride his horse. At some point he addresses Utar's quiz: "The city has become more dangerous recently. Crime is up, especially home robberies. We believe we have a gang in our hands. Most think it is the Welcomers, but we haven't been able to jail anyone yet..."
You reach Phlan earlier than expected, given your renewed pace of travel. It is mid-afternoon by the time you pass by the Valhingen Graveyard and then cross one of the arms of the Stojanow river into the city proper. "Welcome home," Yan says, disregarding whether or not you are actually from Phlan. "Shall I take you to the captain as asked?"
(OOC#1: Please go ahead and deduct the three rations you still have left from your collective inventories. There won't be a penalty for not having a forth this time since Utar spent that spell slot. Left over food from the spell does not translate into additional rations because it all spoils after a day.)
(OOC#2: The rest of the afternoon and the evening are yours. What would you like to do?)
Utar looks to rest of CRAP, then turns to Yan.
"Actually, if we could make a stop in the way... Drop off our friend,"
Utar pats the flank of the horse carrying Biscuit,
"It would be much appreciated. I doubt Captain Burral wants to see this and the House of the Hand is on our way."
(OOC: I hope you don't mind me speeding up this part a bit).
"It really isn't, but..." Yan responds, powerless to stop you from going to the Temple of the Hand first. Defeated, he silently follows along.
The group makes their way to Torm's temple and are welcomed by the warm and familiar faces of the priests and acolytes inside. Upon placing the request to bring Biscuit back to life, you notice that the priests seem a bit surprised. They have never performed such an expensive and complex ritual on an animal before. They don't ask many questions though, as long as you are willing to cover the costs and help the light of Torm reach farther. You are told that quite a bit of singing is needed for this ritual as well, and as such, Sister Ahkt will be leading the effort (callback).
Brother Tyree almost drops a large but uncut and rough diamond. Apologizing, he informs you that this gem was valued at exactly 512gp, and is the only one they have in the temple. "Not to worry," he adds. "We'll use your contributions to restock." Brother Manas recognizes the astuteness of shrouding the mastiff in Gentle Repose magic and invites you all to participate in the ritual as well, politely requesting 1,250gp for the effort (this amount includes the cost of the diamond).
Preparations take a little while, close to an hour. Incense, banners, candles, shields, mulch, earth, holy water, salt, and myrrh are all part of the ritual. Sister Ahkt begins her energetic gospel singing, and signals the beginning of the ritual:
-> Each of you should go ahead and describe how you contribute to the ritual. At least one of you should roll a performance check. If for some reason you decide not to perform the ritual or are unable to pay for it, now would be the time to let the priests know.
Graxx brings out his backpack and starts rummaging through the coins. Putting them in a pile.
5 Platinum = 50 GP
100 GP = 100 GP
550 Electrum Pieces = 275 GP
1,260 Silver Pieces = 126 GP
100 Copper = 1 GP
"That should be about 552 gold so we need... 1,250 minus 552.... Carry the two... I'm not sure.. Anyway we need some more gold if we're going to make this thing happen." says Graxx.
Doozey, who had already expected what the correct response to be, had started to nod in answer, having long expected their course given the ways of the Black Fist. Which is why when Utar spoke of a detour, he was nothing less than flabbergasted, and would stare wide-eyed up at Utar. So much so, that once the group started moving again, he strayed behind a step or two, prior to recovering from the stupor and rushing after the others.
"You know she's gonna be might pissed at all of us for the snub, specially with all the trouble's been having." He stated in almost chiding tone. But, one look in the stoutling's direction would reveal a hint of a small but grateful smile on his lips...
Later at the temple, a more solemn Doozey again looked as if he might interject, only turn in surprise again; though, this time at Graxx! "I... I don't know what to say, Mr. Graxx! I've... after all I've done... after...." He trails off holding his forehead, at a complete and utter loss for words. Whether or not he receives some words comfort or the exact opposite in a demand, a nevertheless grateful Doozey eventually took a deep breathe, accepting the good fortune.
"... A moment." He asked, as he too contributed a good deal of coin and gems to the pile. While not nearly as much as Graxx' contributions, without being bade, the stoutling whispered a word in Sylvan, causing the armor that he'd been wearing -- an almost seamless piece of chitinous or chitin-like armor -- to fall off of him, leaving him only in his travel clothes. This too he adds to the pile with a few short words of "Lemm Eylon Esseelyon", causing the seams to again to disappear as it merges back into a single piece once more.
Without stopping, uncertain and uncaring if the magic piece alone is enough, Doozey continued to add to the pile; an hourglass, bagpipes, Biscuit's Armor -- a bit dirt covered, but undamaged. If not stopped or given the word of disapproval before hand, he certainly paused on his own at the Lute. "For the ritual... Before I put this forth if not as payment -- a-a donation, if you would, I... would like to make use of it for the ritual. One last time, if that's alright?" He asked the priest heading the payment, before looking down and given the lute's worn side a caress.
"I don't know if the tune we'll only send him on, or bring him back but... either which way, I'd like to try."
If able to do the ritual:
Lute Playing: 2, if at advantage for any reason 4.
Forgot the proficiency bonus modifier of a +3... not that it matters. Man... talk about the cuckening of dice.
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
Graxx stands up from his coin and looks at what Doozey has added.
”Don’t worry Doozey my friend. It’s just gold. We can make more gold. It’s hard to make more friends.”
Graxx clears his throat and prepares to sing in the ritual.
Performance: 19
Brother Manas shakes his hand as if saying "hello" to Doozey, but his face says "please, stop" instead. "I am sorry brave one. We are a temple. We will gladly provide the ritual services we are capable but we are not in the business of pawning or bargaining for adventurers' loot. The coins and gems we can use in furnishing more supplies for future rituals. Because you are a friend of Utar, we can also accept the musical instruments as they can be put to good use in our daily prayers. But I'm afraid we have no use for whatever else you are offering." He pauses for a moment and then adds with a solemn expression on his face: "I do not mean to sound disrespectful or emotionless, but between your contributions and those of your muscly friend over there, we are still a bit short."
(OOC#1: Graxx's contribution comes to 552gp. Doozey's contribution comes to 540gp. The subtotal is 1,092gp so far, so we still need another 158gp).
(OOC#2: We'll wait on the ritual for now until we gather Neya's and Utar's participation).
"I'll gladly make up for the remainder." Neya says as she opens her purse as she takes out the necessary gold.
Extended Signature
Utar clasps both Manas and Tyree on their shoulders,
"Thank you brothers, your faces are a sight for tired eyes and your kindness towards our... Unusual request, testament to you both."
Turning to the rest of CRAP, he continues.
"Sister Ahkt will perform a beautiful ritual, I don't think we have to worry there. Also Burral will be mad when we get there whatever happens. I have never known that woman to be contented."
Rustling up some coin, Utar will even suggest that Graxx and Doozey might want to keep part of their contributions back in case they need it later, particularly bearing in mind Graxx's need to rearm himself.
Before the ritual, Utar will bless the other members of CRAP with guidance before taking position to follow the lead of Sister Ahkt and rhythmically chant under her singing.
OOC Utar holds some 600gp, so makes up the difference depending on whether the other contributions are relaxed or not.
"I 'preciate the sentiment, Mr. Utar. But, this is my brother we're talking about." He'd say in response, before holding his hands. "But, don't worry. I am keeping a bit of coin. Enough to get by for a tenday." With that said, though he held his tongue, its clear in the worried look he gave Graxx that he had similar concerns as Utar. But he wouldn't push more than that.
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.
(OOC#1: We'll say that Utar offers some gold to the others after the ritual is done. Feel free to agree on the exact amounts Utar is passing on to the others in our OOC chat).
(@MB: Guidance is a concentration spell. You can cast is only on one creature at a time).
(@Drache: I'll assume Neya is not participating in the ritual, as you didn't elaborate on any details involving that).
At Brother Manas' hint, Neya offers to cover the remaining 158gp. Utar is also of a mind of offering to cover some of the expenses but decides to wait until after the ritual is over so that his Tormite brothers and sisters can start right away. For now, seeing Graxx beginning to warm up his singing pipes, the cleric wishes him luck.
-> Rolling the extra dice here for Graxx's performance: 1
Brother Manas and Tyree take care of of lighting the candles and incense. Utar feels like he should be helping and steps forward to place banners and shields with the symbol of Torm in a circle around Biscuit's body. A few younger acolytes also help, placing mulch, earth, holy water, salt, and myrrh in designated recipients as instructed by Brother Manas.
Sister Ahkt begins her singing. It starts solemnly but quickly jumps into an energetic gospel song. Her eyes are full of life and enjoyment. The acolytes join in, showing that they have been all trained in the ritual from an young age. Brother Tyree pulls out a drum and bangs on it a bit out of sync with the rest of the performance, but it doesn't seem to disturb the ritual at all. Brother Manas reads from some sort of scripture, but his voice is kept to a murmur.
Sister Ahkt signals to the party once she is ready to welcome further positivity into the ritual. Doozey plays his lute one last time, as requested, choosing a slow, sad tune to reflect his feelings. It is a bit of a contrast to the performance that Sister Ahkt is leading, and she notices. She remains undeterred, though, looking at the rest of the group to join in. With Utar's blessing coming to fruition, Graxx joins in the singing with a reasonably good performance of his own, even though he doesn't know the words. His grave voice serves as a nice contrast to the young acolytes' higher pitches. Utar himself simply hums, while holding his amulet. A completely lost Yan, who followed you here just so he didn't lose sight of you, begins chanting clearly out of nervousness. Not sure how to help, Neya picks a corner from which to watch it all happen.
The ritual is long, and you can tell that it is quite a strain on Sister Ahkt. About half an hour of singing later, the rough and uncut diamond has gathered plenty of light coming from all of the shield and banners in the room, as well as Utar's and the other Tormites' amulets. At that point, Brother Manas pushes it down into Biscuit's chest as if the gem were a dagger. No wound is left behind, and light pours out of the mastiff's open jaw. All the smoke in the air provided by the candles and incense suddenly rushes into the dog's nostrils. Though he remains asleep for now, Biscuit's chest begins to rise and fall once more. Sister Ahkt wipes her brow and says: "He'll need to rest now, right here, in this chamber. You should return tomorrow."
(OOC#2: With that, you may do whatever else you'd like to do here in the temple and them move on to your next stop once you decide what that will be.)
Graxx's eyes water slightly and he wipes them quickly.
"I'm glad biscuit is back." says Graxx.
Graxx starts to walk toward the door.
"The captain awaits..."
Doozey just looks past the Sister -- past anyone and everyone in between him and Biscuit. Before he knew it, he had at least tried to slip forward, and just knelled down laid his head against Biscuit's side, wanting to just listen to his heartbeat. A word gets whispered, but unless someone spoke halfling, it would remain a mystery.
After close to a minute, Doozey pulled away, sniffling and and rubbing a few budding tears from his eyes. Then without another word, he turns to others, giving the Sister a nod on his way out after Graxx with a determined look about him.
When you realize you're doing too much: Signature.