Uragum sighed as the madman died and sighed again when the flaming sphere went out.  "Hard to say what a Mad one thinks but his last mistake was attacking me.  I regret nothing...  But yes, regrouping would be wise," he responded and then cast his gaze towards one of the dead.  As they walked he said, "Doubtful that any of these were the brains of the operation.  Best be careful,"

Ola and Uragum regroup with Arnald at the entrance to the barn. The creatures laying around have all been slain, with the exception of one of the smaller undead that was simply knocked unconscious by Sylyra, who currently stands over the slumped creature.

OOC: And what does Ola see when examines big and small creatures? I said she was looking.

OOC: Apologies, exactly what you were looking for was unclear.

Ola Perception: 2

As she approaches the bodies, even with the assistance of flickering torchlight, Ola does not see any indication that they are not what they seem to be, though the behavior Arnald had described is certainly different from any undead that the party has seen thus far.

(OOC: It is not beneath Ola to remove the armor from the creature and check again - surely at close examination one can tell a zombie or a skeleton from an actual being without perception check? )

Though delayed by his own thoughts, in response to Arnold's proclamation, Sylyra nods. "I examined the creatures on the other side of the barn and found them to be kobold scum — not undead. I knocked this one unconscious with the hope that we might get some answers out of it." He halfheartedly kicks the unconscious creature, then looks across the village. "Is that it? Surely this small band — even under the guise of undead — was not enough to lay waste to any town." If need be, he'll move his spectral eagle closer so that he may use its boon to perceive better.

Uragum takes small lull in combat to light a torch for himself.  He then turns towards the harbor and squints.  He expects another wave of attacker to come but waits with bated breath.

perception: 10

Ola confirms Sylyra's statement - the smaller creatures wear no armor, but the mud, drenched by the downpour, wipes away to reveal a kobold's scales beneath the decoration. The larger creatures wear leather beneath the mud, and appear to be human and not undead.

It is impossible to see what is happening closer to the village, but the sounds of battle have faded from all around. The roar of the waves is barely tangible past the sound of falling rain, but can be heard; the clanging of metal can not, and the roaring flames have not appeared in nearly a minute.

Arnald checks in with Sly to see if there's any other enemies in the area.

"If they are not undead, but a beings of flesh and blood - how did they manage to land? Locals were quite sure the water is impossible to cross at this weather!" Ola was truly puzzled and not in a good way. "But I agree, such a small force should not be an impossible threat, destroying everyone and everything. Villagers here are doing just fine against them, it seems. Why would other villages be unable to protect themselves? There has to be a second wave or something worse."

Sylyra's scouts did not come to announce impending danger, so does that mean they did not approach through the woods? Can Sly tell Arnald from where they came?

Uragum will have his hawk fly around by docks to keep watch there and if its too difficult for ot to fly, he will have perched in a tree still able to view that area.

Uragum whipes some water from his face and look at the others.  "Im not sure when they will come but let us secure the lone creature and question it when it awakens.  As for me, I have used one of my more potent spells.  With about an hour I can regain that with my meditation and I would like to do so."

OOC: The lack of woodland scouts would indeed indicate that the approach was not through the Dark Wood.

Sly circles the area as best the hawk can in the storm, and Uragum's heads toward the landing. After a few moments of discussion, Sly returns to Arnald's shoulder, giving a subtle shake of the head to indicate a lack of enemy sightings.

Sylyra yells Uragum's name to get the goliath's attention. If he needs to, he'll jog after him, yelling his name until the wizard turns back. As soon as Uragum is looking, Sylyra's form magically changes into that of a beautiful, palomino. Horse-Sylyra then trots up and pauses beside the goliath to invite him to climb on. Once Uragum is on his back, Horse-Sylyra will make a circuit of all the non-dark woods areas to see what they can see. If any fighting is still going on (remaining from the previous skuffles), he'll avoid it.

Arnald (and Sly) heads down to where the "undead" came from, looking for the ship they arrived on.

Ola gets into the barn - to check on Elisande and horses. If everything is fine, she reassures the girl that they are dealt with the first attack and she is doing great job watching for the horses here, then Ola would get out but only to guard the door.

OOC: Assuming Uragum is following Sylyra's plan.

ARNALD:

It does not take long to discover the method of the "undead" arrival. When you reach the landing, you find a pair of longboats beached upon the shore, with oars still sitting at the ready. The boats look quite sturdy, and are large enough to fit 6-8 people.

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OLA:

Elisande seems to be doing a good job of keeping the horses calm, considering the storm raging outside. She is very excitable at the moment and looks up with wild eyes to describe her perspective on the battle. "Da' was 'mazin! At firs' dey was like rahhh, but den ye Outsides was like boom bam!" The girl accentuates her exclamations by stabbing at the air with an imaginary dagger.

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SYLYRA & URAGUM:

The battle is not lingering by the time you arrive at the village. The strange, fleshy creature that could be seen destroying the kobolds earlier is currently dragging the corpses over to the doused fire pit, where the crones oversee their placement. Warsh and Ulburto are around as well, gathering their own dead in a similar fashion.

"It seems the prediction of your crew proved accurate, large one," one of the crones says to Uragum, grinning through the water that pours over her head.

"Wait, where'n the hells did y' get a horse?" Warsh shouts.

Uragum rubbed Sylyra horses mane and laughed, "where did the horse come from?  Why, a bit-o-magic," he says to Warsh.  Gently getting off the horse to as not to be towering over her even more, he looks at the Crones.

"We had good information and are in the business of saving lives.  And seems our warning was enough, well that and a bit of your own magic," he says and points at the creature.  

"We suspect that this only the first wave, and stronger attacks are yet to come.  A coordinated effort would be best, dont you think?"

Arcana check to see what that thing is: 18

Horse-Sylyra paws the ground, throws his mane, and makes an impatient whinny at Uragum after the goliath dismounts. If the wizard does not climb back on within the next 10 seconds, horse-Sylyra will gallop away, wanting to do a circuit of the non-wooded areas to look for anything alarming or noteworthy. If there is nothing, he will venture into the woods to continue his search.

SYLYRA & URAGUM:

"Yes, as you can see we are capable of defending. There was no cause for concern," another crone says. 

"Hush, sister," the third retorts, "We bury too many dead, despite warning and despite our abilities."

When Uragum mentions a coordinated effort, Warsh shouts over the rain, "Yer like t' be correct. The waves 're too wild for them things to waltz here. Somethin' brought 'em, and that somethin' is still out there."

The first crone meanders toward you. "Our place is here. We have our dead to take care of, and we know every inch of this land. Nothing hidden will remain. I believe your place is to follow where we cannot," she says.

For Uragum:

OOC: Will resolve Sylyra's tour once Uragum confirms whether he is going along, and to have a chance to hear more from Arnald and Ola.