Rafons Run: Road to Glanyrafon

"I'm afraid we'll die if we move with no caution" Tsahil answers calmly, but firmly.

Persuasion: 18

Moving carefully, trying to keep his movements as short and close to the body as he can, Tsahil tries to reach his dagger and cut whatever is this glinting stuff

Riverport: Twilight:

Voldred's Initiative: 6

Protection From Evil and Good concentration check: 8 (failed, the spell is no longer active)

Far be it for Voldred to deny himself the satisfaction of tearing his enemy to shreds, but the transformation is drastic, and it takes Voldred some time to gather his thought into something more coherent than "KILL! KILL! KILL!", which gives his opponent just enough time to make the first move in this fight.

((Seems I missed a day, or two, so here is a double post))

Corvidae:

Orina: "Why, I suppose you do have a point.  I'll put your name down, and you can swing by to confirm it when you're done, unless I actually do find someone else.  I think I do recall jogs now, actually, perhaps you could convince her to aid us?  The more the merrier.  I'll see you then!"  He walks off before you hear him think aloud."  Wait...weren't we doing something else..."  but before Finn has a chance to regain his thoughts, you've already ducked into an alley and disguise yourself.  

"You know, I quite liked looking at things"  Says Hainsley as you cover him up.  You make your way down the street, looking back for any signs of Finn, but you seem to have lost him.  A cleric of sorts attempts to stop you on the street, saying  "Mam, are you ill? You seem to have quite a nasty boubous on your shoulder."  to which the lump, being Hainsley, replies.  "I'm just a normal lump, no need to be alarmed, carry on." which leaves them so horribly baffled you manage to pass them by without further interrogation. 

It takes a bit longer of a walk than you expected, and in combination with the sloped road your feet are feeling quite sore.  The houses here are quite a bit more luxrious, mansions and villas are a common sight as you near the castle.  You take a moment to look at one of the black bird statues nearly every house seems to have- one of them turns it's head to look and makes you jump.  It's not a statue at all, it's a Kenku;  They are everywhere, averaging at least one to every residence, that seemingly keep an eye on every streetcorner, every roof, and every passing character, which at the moment seems to just be you.   You've heard that Crows, Jackdaws, Ravens, and other black birds are considered to be good omens here in corvidae, but you can't help but be left with a bit of chicken skin at the thought of being watched so closely.  You here them crowing occasionally, which means they're probably talking about you.

Curator's Office:

Ulrich:  "All of these items have a particular magical trait that makes them useful, but their success and to be perfectly honest their intended purpose isn't guaranteed.  That brick you have there is a bio-exclusionary putty explosive, or BPE, the approximate blasting power is about a quarter of a kiloton of TNT"  About half the words he said fly right over your head. Putty Explosive?  TNT? Bio-exclusionary? You can see Elan shaking his head.  "No?  Ah, fine, laymans terms:  Tear off a piece, stick it to a thing, hit it with magic, thing go boom.  You could use the whole thing if you wanted to level a building I guess-"  You panic a little as you summon the brick into your hand, half expecting it to erupt in a pillar of flame-  "However, it doesn't harm anything organic for...some reason, so no need to worry about blowing us all to pieces."

Elan says  "If you think this is strange to think about, just wait until you see Tengoku.   The people of the North might as well still be using sticks and stones compared to them, though it has an explanation.  If everyone knew about these sorts of things, and could exploit them willy-nilly, they wouldn't be as consistent as they are.  That's what the north is all about, after all, maintaining law, keeping strict order and balance and nature, ensuring benevolent divinity.  Death might be a horrifying thing, but it is not unknown or unexpected, quite the opposite and considered a natural part of life.  The North fears not death, fire, darkness, nor evil, but finds chaos to be cosmically repulsive.  I'm sure a cleric such as you knows why, knowing the origin of aspects."  Ulrich remembers something but a religion check is in order.

Corvidae Castle District:

Iam:  You go to adjust the person, and are horrified-or at the very least puzzled, to find the legs sitting by the doorway are not attached to the torso further in that is snoring away.  There is a pool of blood around the body, but it is relatively small compared to the seriousness of the injury and not much blood is coming off the wounds.  You turn the torso face up to reveal a mustached man with a nice suit, probably the butler, still snoring away, not even looking the least bit pale.  Something must be stopping the bleeding, otherwise he'd obviously be expired by now.

You hear no further sounds of movement upstairs, but you hear the faintest sounds of something scratching against wood from up there.

Rafon's Run: Road to Glanyrafon

Tsahil:  The driver, accepting of your clearheadedness before, stops his reins mid-air before he spurs the horse.  He stays where he is.  "Well, figure something out then, otherwise I'm probably going to have a heart attack anyway."

You pull out a dagger, waving it in the air where you saw that glint, you hear a slight twang noise and stop your dagger.  You pull it back and see that a good inch has been cut into it, so small you can't even see it.  

"There's something, isn't there?"  asks the Caretaker.  "Even I can't see it, so I don't think someone is attacking us...and we haven't ended up like the soldiers yet. If we got into this, there must be some way out."

The driver also adds.  "I suppose this also means there's a good chance the soldiers haven't been looted.  There's a reason so many adventurers come out here and never come back-Sorry, this isn't the time to be thinking about that, but it's helping take my mind off this."

Corvidae Castle District 

Concerned for the man should whatever magic fail before medical help can be administered, Iam gets the man laying on his back then adjusts each leg to face up and located on the correct side. He carefully uses his dagger to inscribe the fifth ruin of binding, V, on the inside of the cut of the left leg, both the disattached leg and the stump left connected to the body then joins the two as accurately as he can. He repeats the process on the right leg. Using the remains of the pant legs from the severed legs, he uses each for a bandage around the cut line of the recently reconnected legs. Hopefully that would slow any bleeding that might come from something Iam missed.

Being the best he can currently do Iam continues through the bottom of the house to see if there are other injured parties, but keeps an ear to any noises from above.

Medicine 7

Rafon's Run: Road to Glanyrafon

"Feels more like a trap than an attack, right?" Tsahil says to the Caretaker, agreeing with him. 

With the driver's observation on his mind, Tsahil tries to notice if the bodies have been looted - do they have packs, pieces of jewelry, weapons?

Perception: 15

He keeps talking to the caretaker while looking around: "Do you think we can go on, if we thread with care? I'm feeling like the horses will have  abad time through whatever this is...."

Curator's Office:

((Religion check: 10))

Ulrich can't help but wonder at the pause after 'organic' but holds his tongue. He continues to look at the brick in his hand, running his thumb along it. He frowns as Elan continues, wondering exactly what he is in for. And wondering exactly how much the Archbishop knows about what she's sending him in to. Denial of what the south could accomplish would not be surprising coming from those above him. But he'll have to give her the benefit of the doubt. 

"Change does not sit well with many. They do not like what they can't explain. And the idea that there might be something that they have no control over..." He shakes his head. "The difficult part will be to do the job, without making too many waves. There will be at least one, who knows some measure of why I am there and what I need to accomplish?' The bog is growing wider and the footing less sure.'"

Corvidae Castle District:

Iam:  The inscription allows the two severed parts to bind together, but it doesn't seem to encourage any sort of supernatural healing.  You make a shoddy bandage that's enough to hold it together, but this clearly requires the work of a seasoned cleric or medical professional.  There are lots of places to look around this place, your passive combing doesn't seem to see any more signs of people here.  An investigation check is order.  You continue to hear the sounds of scratching form up above, and you hear what sounds like groaning, hopefully just wood...or perhaps some actual otherwordly moan came from upstairs?  The only other sound you hear is that of a leaky faucet in the kitchen slowly dripping water.

Riverport: Twilight

Voldred?: You give out an unearthly roar,, your magic fades and a redness overtaking your vision.  Make a charisma saving throw!  

Barracuda raises her ropes out from the surf, attempting to constrict and entangle you!  13

20 The ropes crush you tightly, you are [condition]restrained[\condition]!  You'll either need to break free (DC 16) or cut the ropes.  She opens her mouth and attempts to clamp down on you with her many massive rows of teeth!  Attack: 8 Damage: 22

((Forgot advantage cause you're restrained)) 24

You hear the shattering of armor as a horrible pain ripples up your leg, causing you to howl in pain!

Riveport: Twilight

Charisma save: 14

Grapple contest: 8

Favored by the Gods, in case needed to succeed the above save: 3 ((???))

6

((OK, I don't know what the hell just happened there, but I got 14 on the Charisma save, and an extra 6 I can add from my sorcerer feature in case 14 is not enough to prevent whatever is trying to happen here.))

Doesn't Voldred have sharp claws now? You did say he can cut the ropes to break free, so that's what he will do for his action this turn. Otherwise the above roll would count as an Athletics check to break free, which would fail. Make of it what you will.

((I don't like those numbers. Not one bit. Maybe breaking the stone wasn't such a bright idea.))

Orina (Bunny Knight) | Cordivae Castle District

As they leave the market district, Orina lets Hainsley out and drops her disguise, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about that," she says to the hare.  "It was nervewracking!  But at least we managed to lose Finn, right?"

As their surroundings become more and more upscale, Orina grows increasingly more nervous and quiet.  She bites her lips as the mansions rise around her, imposing and intimidating and not natural looking at all.  And when she realizes they're being watched by the statue-like Kenkus, she tries to remember all the rumors she's heard of Kenku before....

History Roll (what does she know about Kenku): 21 + 2 Guidance

(OOC: more to follow on results, this is mostly to determine if she's aware they speak weirdly.  I think she does with that roll!  So...)

"Hainsley," Orina whispers.  "Those creatures watching us... they're called Kenku.  I think... they lost their voices somehow a long time ago.  But they can mimic any sounds they hear almost perfectly.  So if they talk a little bit weirdly... well... it's just the way they communicate."

She scans the area.  "I wonder if they're working for the Caretakers?  They sure seem to be like watchful guards."

Mustering up her courage, she approaches one on a street corner, hunching her shoulders down so she doesn't appear quite so toweringly large as usual. 

"Umm... Hello there!  I was wondering... do you live or work here?  I thought I saw some people falling from the sky earlier towards the castle, and was trying to investigate.  That's... that's not forbidden or something, is it?"  She smiles nervously.

Corvidae Castle District

Iam comes back to the injured butler and casts spare the dying on him, just to be sure. Then heads up the stairs still looking around for clues.

Investigation 8

Rafons Run: Road to Glanyrafon

Tsahil:  The gear on the knights looks mostly worn and rusted away with age, but you see what might remenants of sacks and backpacks that might hold supplies.  There doesn't seem to be anything here beyond scrap metal...except, one of the bodies catches your eye, as it is not fully split apart.  They are wearing something around their neck, a talisman of some kind, which despite being right in the middle of whatever cut the rest of him in half is completely unscathed.  

The Caretaker says "I'm still not sure if we are under attack, but the enemy hasn't made a move despite having the upper hand.  I believe we can move forward safely if we can think some way to make absolutely sure we aren't injured moving forward.  While Caretakers are trained to think ahead and outside the box, creative solutions aren't my strong suite.  If something we can barely see is cutting us, then we need some way to see it.  Do you think you have something that can help with that?"

Curator's Office

Ulrich:  Ulrich recalls, though it isn't extremelly clear memory but something he remembers being important.  "Aspects...are the coalescene of faith...if we have faith in law then so shall the gods...should we revel in chaos then the gods will bring chaos."  He gets a sudden chill at the thought of gods that bring chaos-imagining the demon that destroyed that township, filling it with flood and bile and deforming it's populace into a monstrocity, having the divine power to shape the natural world?  Has the south sustained themselves through such things, or are they yet to come?

"One more thing for you."  he pulls out one more card and takes out a key from it, handing it to Elan.  

"I thought we were taking a cart in the morning...does this mean we have to go now?  We haven't even begun preparing."

"Things have accelerated, it seems.  Spring seems to coming early, the meetings are happening earlier, and you must indeed go now, but that does not have to mean time is running out.  No matter how unsure things may seem, just remember that you both have faced much worse under much darker circumstances already and came out alive.  Regardless of your task, I want you fellows to do good and come out alive, no matter how much of a ruckus you cause in the process.  You aren't Caretakers, no matter how much The Six have tried to emulate them, and it won't make a difference to them how stealthy or cunning you are if you succeed.  Trust me, it's been like that for every job I've supplied in the past."

Rafons Run: Road to Glanyrafon

Tsahil carefully tries to reach the talisman to take a better look at it. In the meantime, he answers the Caretaker "I don't thnk I have anything useful with me... do any of you have some charcoal? Maybe if we throw the charcoal dust ahead of us it'll stick to whatever is this thing"

Well, it's been a couple of days, I need to post here.

Last Post:  5 days ago

hmm, I think perhaps I am having some trouble keeping track of time. 

Also, it's an exam week for me, so as much as I would like to post at the moment, I need to do some studying.  I can get my next post in a couple of days at least.  Thanks for your patience, and after this week I can hopefully get back to a more frequent schedule.  Thanks for your patience.

((A couple of days?  A week?  I mean, basically the same thing right.  I needed it, thanks again for your patience.))

Riverport - Twilight

Voldred?:   You manage to keep your focus, though the haze still surrounds you.  You get some bearings on your current state, you feel disembodied, like your thoughts are entirely driving your actions rather than your body.  At the same time, your thoughts are entirely scattered, as if something is forcing you to act entirely on instinct.

The infinite coils are no match for a quick swipe of your claws, reducing your restraints to a puff of gruesome confetti.  Barracuda shrieks out in pain.  The strike made something change about her, as if the divinity of the aspect suddenly fled.  She breaches out of the water and bares her gaping jaws.  Attack: 8 Damage: 28

You reach out just in time, interposing your arms into her mouth and forcing the jaw to stay open.

Corvidae - Castle District:

Orina:  You remember, the Kenku here aren't like other places.  There's a story you recall with a strange amount of clarity about Kenku in the forest near your old home.  "When The Old and Lonely Tree fell,  the lost wings and voices the left their fell too.  They are scattered, but those who have searched have found them.  The black-winged who were once enviously and spiteful of those who had what they yearned for,  saw the err of their ways.  They now are vigilant to guide and shelter those they believe are following a similar path they once did to find betterment, be it through justice or simple goodwill."

The Kenku jumps when you speak to it, causing it's feathers to sticks up.  However, your demeanor calms them, mostly.  There is a skittishness about them, and they are clacking their talons together "Something's not quite right today. clack clack"  They say, and you can hear the same clacking being mimiced in their voice.  "Danger, unknown danger clack they are investigating.  It is too quiet clack much much too quiet for a day like this.  Empty streets, empty yards, empty houses."

You do find it odd that you are one of the only people on the street right now with this Kenku, along with a few other Kenku that are roaming the streets.  It is a nice day, and the market was just absolutely packed with people.  Hainsley says "Really, nobody around?  That's odd, this place doesn't feel very empty to me, I can hear people speaking in that house right over there, and that one too."  Hainsley points to the nearest house, which is completely silent.  Are his ears just that good?  Your passive perception does not pick up any sounds beyond the occasional calls of Kenku.

Riverport - Twilight:

Voldred lets go of the jaws, shoving his enemy back into position and with a roar of fury casts Inflict Wounds. With his newfound power, the spell envelopes his hand in pitch-black flames, that quickly turn sickly green as the spell becomes charged with ungodly venom, and Voldred makes his attack.

Inflict Wounds, 2nd level: 28 + 6 from Favored by the Gods if needed to make a successful attack ((Unless I already had to use it in the previous Charisma save. Also, do tell me if I had to use that feature to succeed either here or previously, because I'm allowed to expend it only if I would've failed otherwise.))

Damage: 42 Poison instead of the normal Necrotic, due to the stone's power.

Curator's Office 

Ulrich is surprised at the news of their leaving so soon. But also excited. And intrigued at the thought that result matters more than method.

"We will do our best to be quiet. But if the situation calls for it, then we will go for settled." 

He stands up and shakes the curator's hand. "Thank you for your help and your words." 

Ulrich turns to Elan and takes a deep breath. "Ready?"

Corvidae Castle District - Estate:

Iam:  You make your way the stairs making careful obervations along the way.  The strange liquid continues pouring down the stairs, the flow only increasing as you tread each step.  It's oddly sticky.  You make it to the top of an open second floor-you see someone in robes and a strange mask, it looks like a giant gaping mouth, carving sigils into the floor with a wicked looking dagger. The sigils form circle which seems to be manifesting a portal where this liquid is stemming from, and with each sigil they complete the size of the opening increases.  Nearby, you see the bodies of three people-two humans in nice clothes and dwarven caretaker- who are lying still on the floor nearby.  They don't seem to notice you.

Glanyrafon - Road to Rafon's Run:

Tsahil:  Reaching the Talisman would be an extremely risky endeavor, it's several feet away, and any number of these threads could be surrounding you.  However, you begin tiptoe ever so closer.

"Charcoal, no, but I have some ink on hand, and a bag of very fine sand, I suppose mixing that together could produce a similar effect.

You stop, as you are pretty sure you just nicked you knee on a nearby thread.  Okay, a little more than nicked, that looks pretty bad, about 1 point of damage bad (you take 1 point of damage).  You can see where the cut happened, tiny red droplets hang off the air from a tiny, near invisble thread.  You should make a perception check or try to make these thread visible unless you want to risk being cut worse, potentially way worse, next time.

Glanyrafon - Road to Rafon's Run:

"Let's try the ink and sand. Can you por some of it around us?" Tsahil asks, hoping for a result.

Castle District-Estate

Iam casts Sanctuary then holds up the badge the caretaker gave him triggering the buttons on the bottom. He isn't sure what they do, but he was told he could contact the caretakers with it. "My name is Iam. I am acting on behalf of the caretakers. Stop what you are doing. Drop the dagger. Surrender yourself to be held under the law." Iam tells the mask wearing being.

Riverport - Twilight:

Voldred:  The sickly green shockwave spreads through it's body, leaving cracks that create a prismatic glow.  You suddenly hear   "The pain!  What is this pain?!  What are you?!"  You suddenly a deep feminene voice echo out, as if it is escaping from the creatures' wounds.  The prismatic glow extends into the water around you, causing it to erupt and boil into a sickly miasma.  The creature writhes free from you (disengaging) and attempts to desperately flounder away from you towards the river.

Curator's Office

Ulrich:  Elan grasps the key in his hands and looks at you, making a frown.  "I really can't say that I am, but it's not like I haven't had to play it by ear before.  The thought of returning to the city makes me anxious, especially under what feels like duress.  I suppose we could still take a cart if we wanted too...but who knows what might happen in a few days..."

"...right, anyway,  we need to take this key to The Door.  If you haven't used The Door before, basically it can take you anywhere withthin a certain range if you have a key.  I suppose that's also why I'm nervous, since the last the I used The Door...we should prepare for a rough landing.    The Door isn't always very good at figuring out where The Ground-I mean the ground is and there's not always many good places to end up standing in Tengoku.  So, you should be ready..."  (If you are planning on following Elan and using the door, roll for initiative before you do.)

Rafon's Run: Road to Glanyrafon:

Tsahil:    The Caretaker pours some ink in the sand.  "Well, it's not actually sand, it's pounce, but calling it that confuses people.  Not that it matters."   After a bit of shaking, he scoops some of the black pounce out and puts it into his palm.  He shines the lantern in that direction.  It sticks in the air in certain places, the closer to the pile of bodies, the more condensed it  is.  The threads are relatively few by your horses, but they wave it the air making them unpredictable.  You would have almost certainly lost your head if you went deeper.  There is a path out of this field, but if you want to attempt to get the talisman, you will require an Acrobatics check to move closer and a Sleight of Hand check to remove it.

Castle District - Estate:

Iam:  The Cultist jumps with a start and fumbles the dagger out of their hands. They reaches into their pocket, throwing some kind of sand or dust at you while shouting an incantation that sounds like a yawn.  You get a bit of sand in your eye, but you are unaffected by whatever spell tbey just tried to cast.  They are just standing their awkwardly.   "Uhhh"  says a feminine voice.  "Usually this works...you feeling tired yet?  Dreary?  Weary perhaps?  Bushed even?"