Not Another Trapped in a D&D World Game! (Now with PoW:E) (IC)

[Elricaltovilla]

Thursday night always makes for great gaming, and so all of you are gathered at the local hobby shop where Greg Manning (Mr. Manning to you students) has decided to run his game. The shop is almost completely empty, only you five are gathered here. Even the store owner quickly disappears into the back shortly after you get set up. As you all sit down and get out your sheets and dice, Greg begins to speak.

"Calleria is a land of dead gods, ancient wars and bloody, desperate survival. Though beset on all sides, humankind and their many races stand united and determined to claim the lands for their own and remove the devastation that occurred as a result of the War of the Gods more than 500 years ago. You are all young warriors, having taken up arms to aid your friends, family and all mankind in exterminating the remnants of the war that plague..." The lights begin to flicker.

"I'm sure it's nothing." Greg says. He continues on, while around you the lights grow dimmer and dimmer and the sound of rushing wind fills your ears.

In what seems like an instant, it stops. You realize your eyes are closed, and when you open them you are surrounded by dark woods. You sit at a campfire, in clothes you don't recognize and a body that is not your own. Looking around you see people that match the descriptions of the other characters your fellow players were playing. As you look closer you can almost see your friends' faces overlaying those of their characters. The woods around you are dark and silent. A feeling in your gut tells you that something isn't right.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi jerks, then looks around hastily. With just the barest hesitation he says "Are you all still here?" His eyes keep looking around, and then look at the parts of himself he can see easily; they do not grow less anxious.

[jamieth]

Daisy was already somewhat anxious when sitting at the table, pencil in hand - no one's fault, just being anxious was her more or less default state of being, when in company of strangers... but it was OK. She knew she could trust Mr. Manning, at least, and the Chinese girl was alright, it seemed, if a bit forceful...

"That... wasn't supposed to happen, was it?" she asked, almost squeaked, when the light went down, and then... no, it definitely wasn't supposed to happen.

She was sitting by the fire, surrounded by people she didn't knew (except she somehow did, at least to some small degree), her body felt... wrong, chilly night air was biting her skin even through the sweater... stop. That last thing, definitely wrong.

Perhaps lately, she finally looked over herself, the words she used when describing Lita's outfit resounding in her mind. Immediately, she pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them, covering as much unprotected skin as she could, blushing heavily.

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac always threw a smile at folks as they were sitting down and generally tried to keep that smile going as Greg started describing the setting. Admittedly, Isaac was more interested to get to the part where their characters would start doing something, but he understood the necessity of the GM setting up the world. He wasn't really concerned when the lights started to flicker, though he was more surprised that Greg didn't seem interested in checking it out. It didn't seem to matter though when the room started going black.

Isaac was pretty certain he was passing out when that happened - though he was also certain the experience tended to be instantaneous - and naturally tried to grab onto something. That most certainly didn't work, considering that he suddenly felt like he was falling.

A moment later, he found himself face first in grass. Isaac really hated grass. The sensation just felt wrong to him. Regardless, that's when he noticed something was off. Besides the camp fire, sounds of people scrambling around him and the obvious not-in-a-game-store feel of the area, his own body felt different. Heavier, yet stronger and certainly much larger.

Isaac opened his eyes as he used his new arms to push himself up into standing, and suddenly knew this wasn't his own body. The hands were older, more calloused and seasoned. The clothes he was wearing were simple, almost straight out of fantasy basic adventure clothing, like for when one was out of armor. Touching his own face, he suddenly noticed he wasn't wearing glasses and had a likewise seasoned face with scars and, plucking a follicle, red hair.

The computer programmer transported to another world finally took notice of the man and two women, some dressed less than others, who were vaguely familiar. Isaac had already started to put the pieces together and turning around, he saw it.

The armor and nodachi, leaning against a tree. Isaac was the god damn Russian Nordic Samurai Zweihander Warder he had created. He was also, physically speaking, a decade older than all of the rest of the members of this group. Was it VR? Were they just living in the matrix the whole time? Did he really fall and was just dreaming? Was D&D actually the devils game? Nah, that last idea was stupid.

"Well, crap." Isaac turned back to look at the rest of the group.

[Felyndiira]

“I had a feeling you’d be here, Mana.”

The girl named Mana had been hitting a tennis ball against a wall for the better part of an hour. The regimen seemed like intense practice to an untrained eye, though Mana did not appear exhausted or even a bit tired; the ball lay scattered about the field around her, but almost none in her immediate area, as if she made no attempt to give chase to any ball outside of her immediate reach. Her advisor, however, did not seem to notice; she checked herself briefly using a handheld mirror and brushed some intangible speck of dust from it before continuing with her speech.

“Mrs. Collins,” she answered simply with a polite bow.

“About what had happened during the team competition, it was not your fault. It was the other girls that were too lazy and brought down the team.”

“Ah, so that’s what happened.” Mana remembered the other girls coming before her, teary-eyes and mumbling an apology that seemed too rehearsed to be sincere. She had half-guessed what had happened back then; still, they were clearly distraught, a few of the girls bursting into tears as they stuttered their apology. She spent the better part of practice simply consoling them, so that they would not carry this black mark that could fester into future trouble for the fledgling tennis team. “Mrs. Collins, I know it’s not my place to say this, but my teammates were trying their best; they did really well given that at least half were completely new to tennis. Maybe it would be better if, instead of criticism, you could give them a bit of encouragement.”

“But what happened to the individuals is a different matter,” the advisor continued, ignoring Mana’s words completely. “Look, Mana, I know you’ve been stressed these days with Eric and all that, but you’re the ace of the tennis team. I saw what you could do when you took top eight in JV nationals last year, and that performance at regionals was not anywhere close to your best.”

“I don’t want to criticize you too much since you still made it to state, but you have to understand. Our tennis team was falling apart before you arrived. You’re our ace player, and that’s not a position to take lightly; the other girls look up to you, and that admiration is what drives their lazy a**es to practice hard, so that they won’t drag you down during the team competitions. If you start slacking as well, then they won’t have any motivation to practice anymore, and the club will fall apart again. I don’t want to see that happen. You understand, right?”

“But you didn’t care about that when you were the advisor for the last five years,” Mana thought, but her face remained stoic as she replied simply, in a faux-reverent tone. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Good. I’m glad to see you practicing hard. We got lucky that the top four in our region make it to State, but that kind of performance is unacceptable for an ace. I know you can do better than that, Mana; the other girls could too.” She looked at the empty fields around her and spat angrily. “Of course, they’re skipping practice like usual. Stupid little s**ts, it’s like they didn’t even listen to a word I said. At least they know how to apologize properly for the trouble they’ve caused me. Also, Mana, you know I’m thinking of making you captain of Varsity next year, right? As future captain, you have to discipline them better than this.

“They wouldn’t have if you didn’t just humiliate them like that,” Mana thought, but like before, her face remained cold and unexpressive. “I’ll make sure that they practice, ma’am. But honestly, my teammates haven’t skipped practice at all until today, so please don’t be too hard on them.”

“Well, how’d you expect me to know that?” The advisor fumed, but quickly calmed herself. “Doesn’t matter, I’ll leave the matters of the team up to you, future captain. Anyways, just make sure you practice hard and knock them away at State. My husband and I are meeting a VIP today, so I’ll probably be going. Don’t forget what I said, though – you are the team, Mana, and I’m expecting a lot out of you.”

Without another word, the advisor rushed into her car and drove off in the opposite direction of her house and the major shopping districts. The girl noticed this and shook her head slightly, her lips receding into a faintly visible scowl as she left the tennis field herself, not even bothering to clean up the mess of balls that she left behind.

***

At least, Mr. Manning was a good teacher. It’s the same with all schools; Advanced Placement teachers were simply a different breed of men and women when compared to their less educated kin. Because the subject matter – especially subjects like Calculus – was typically too difficult and because the classes contained some of the school’s most decorated, most precious students, it was almost inevitable that the brightest and most dedicated teachers would be assigned there, leaving the rest of the rabble to teach the remaining students that might as well have been an unwanted disgrace to the school.

This was one of the major reasons why, even though she was not supposed to be here and did not know a bit about Pathfinder before this week, she did not simply refuse the invitation when it was offered to her. She simply liked the DM – the teacher – too much.

Her seat was supposed to be for Matt Tychon, senior and one of the linebackers of the school football team and a boy who did not, in any way, seem like the type to appreciate such a geeky hobby. Matt was a long-friend of Mr. Manning as an AP Math student from a year back who gamed as a hobby to forget the stress from his intensive sports training and his academic life, not really caring if it brought him social ridicule or anything to that effect. He should have been the one here today, playing that humorous thirteen year-old pirate-ninja girl, and dual-wielding large nodachi in Piercing Thunder stances while wearing a bikini chainshirt. That, perhaps, would have been much more interesting.

Rather, Matt could not make it for some reason, so he used a past favor to goad her into joining the game. There were probably other reasons; perhaps he was looking to take advantage of Mana’s recent breakup with her boyfriend, or perhaps he simply wanted a fellow “popular student” to share in his secret ultra-geeky hobby.

She didn’t mind being Estelle, however; rather, she was rather giddy at the chance to immerse herself in an imaginary escapist world, in a manner completely unbecoming of her clique. It was like an MMORPG, in a sense, but without the disposable social groups and with a degree of freedom. She waited patiently as Mr. Collins opened up with a description of the world. As he spoke and as the sole candle that lit the game store flickered, she imagined herself as the naïve Estelle. She had no masks to worry about. No double faces to show to society, liberated from all but the kindest views of the people around her. A simple girl with a mostly simplistic view of the world.

The candle that was the sole light of the room flickered, and as if waking from a trance, she opened her eyes and was greeted by the clear night’s sky that she did not recognize.

Mana rubbed her eyes, paying little attention to the voices around her. She realized that she was in a forest now, when there were no forests anywhere near the suburbs. It seemed like she was still dreaming somehow; perhaps, she had fallen asleep during the session, and her mind was simply playing through the scenarios that Mr. Manning had prepared. If so, that would not do – that was a terrible first impression to make during the first day of the game, and first impressions were everything.

No, she must find some way to nudge herself back awake, before someone else noticed this.

As she tried to pinch herself, she heard the stirring of people around her. She looked, and saw the faces of two men and a young woman, none of whom she could recognize…at least, she should not have known any of them. They spoke, too – in a strange language that she should not have recognized, but somehow the translated words were flowing into her mind. “Are you all here?” “Well…crap.” The meaning behind those words were unclear, but there was something familiar about the voices. Something that she could not identify…

She looked down at herself, and scrambled to her feet in a burst of shock and surprise. For a moment, she staggered under the weight of her clothing and the high-heeled slippers that she seem to be wearing. “Oh, right, I gave Estelle heels,” she blurted out almost on instinct; she would only realize the weight of those words later, when she was finally able to assess the situation with a calmer mind.

“Did I…” Her voice trailed off; she looked frantically about her, glancing briefly at the campfire, at the other people, and at the backpack and anachronistic musket that lay beside her. Then, as if suddenly realizing something important, she dug into her backpack and produced a small, silver mirror etched with the letters “E.C.”, pointed it at her face, and stared into what was not her fact, but the perfect facsimile of her character.

“What happened?” She whispered; then, she stared at the others with a mix of apprehension and fear, before her eyes finally rested on a girl dressed almost like an MMO character. With trembling lips, she whispered a question to the girl, seemingly unsure of herself:

“Is that you, Daisy? Then, this must be Calleria, right? How did we get here?”

[jamieth]

"I... think so", was a rather unsusual way of answering the question, "Is that you?", "I remember being Margaret Brown, up until the moment light got down, and I don't remember anything about Lita Tane except for what I myself wrote... But... I do look like Lita, and... my voice sounds just like I imagined her, and these clothes... please don't look!" she almost squeaks the last words.

Then, a bright idea comes to her, and she pulls the ties on the bag laying next to her open, "Rope, yes... trail rations... that's supposed to last for four days? Ah... here..." she pulls a blanket out of the bag and throws it over her shoulders like a cloak. This simple action gives her back the ability to think clearly, and she considers Mana's (Estelle's?) other questions, "And, it might be Calleria, but so far we have no real proof of that... well, except our characters being here... and I have no idea how we got here, and... I think Mr. Manning isn't here?"

[raspberrybadger]

If only to distract himself from Margaret's embarrassment and what she looks like, Ravi takes up her idea and looks at his own gear. The difference between cold steel and a larping weapon brings him up sharp - literally. These weapons could kill someone. That's what he built this character to be able to do. He's carrying like four different ways of killing someone, and that's not counting maneuvers. Which brings up a possible answer to Margaret's question, and so he speaks:

"I don't know about proof, but there is something we could try. My character has a fighting stance, reaching blade. I can assure you I could not do that a few minutes ago. If I can activate the stance here... no, that couldn't be faked. That doesn't really tell us how we got here - I don't think what we did counts as either death or enlightenment, so I'll ask the same question as Margaret. Where is our GM?"

With that, he remembers that if this is Calleria, there could be anything out there. And then he realizes that he can see far better in dim light than he should be able to. This really isn't the body he was born with, is it?

[Felyndiira]

Mana's eyes fell on the shivering frame of Daisy Brown as she spoke; Daisy was a lot prettier than what Mana had remembered, and was dressed a lot more provocatively than she had ever seen the quiet girl wear - and, certainly, very embarrassed by it. She didn't really know the girl well except as a casual acquaintance and classmate, but she was the only friendly face in the group. For a brief moment, Mana remembered Matt's almost nude pirate-ninja girl and shuddered at the prospect of being trapped in that form had Mr. Manning not persuaded her into make her own character. Estelle was not perfect, and she probably should find a way to acquire proper adventuring shoes for herself, but she was - if nothing else - properly and fashionably dressed, unlike the other girl.

She chuckled to herself, then suddenly remembered that Estelle was wearing an overcoat. "Here, Daisy, take this," she declared simply as she stepped toward the other girl; she had never intended to be stealthy in her approach, but her steps inexplicably made little sound despite wearing heels, and as a result she almost appeared behind her classmate like a phantom. Without another word - and not realizing that she had, perhaps, frightened the poor girl, Mana/Estelle removed her coat and draped it around the other girl, resting her arms briefly on her shoulders before somberly retracing her steps.

She glanced at Ravi's suggestion, and nodded her head in agreement.

"It's worth a try." Struggling to balance herself on high heels, Mana managed to steady herself and grabbed a small rock from the ground below, holding it before her heart. She was concentrating intensely on it, as if trying to remember something that she should, by all means, have no recollection of. "I think I can still remember." she reassured herself. "Something about concentrating on lightning, and imagining it coursing through my body. I don't think it will work, but..."

In an instant, she was surrounded by a nimbus of electricity, in a way that felt as if she had been practicing this sorcery for a span of years. The knowledge of her piecemeal martial technique - no, Estelle's techniques - seemed almost as natural to her as the word "Calleria" or the foreign language that they spoke. In particular, two techniques immediately appeared in her thoughts, clear as a recent memory, and the girl simply called out to one of them as she tossed the rock into a nearby tree.

"Spark Strike," she whispered. though loud enough that everyone could hear her. She didn't think it was necessary to announce the technique, but she was acting almost entirely on instinct now, and it somehow felt appropriate for this moment. The rock in her hands, too, changed shape; at first simply coated by the electricity that was covering her body, it transformed quickly into a lance of lightning as it left her hand and shot toward the tree, leaving only a current of static in its wake.

Mana simply stood there, as if she couldn't believe what she had done with her own hands.

"I...that was blade magic, right? Exactly as I had written on my character sheet. I guess that proves we're in Calleria, or at least in some other fantasy world." She stammered out a reply after a minute has passed, her face flushed red as she remembered her anime-like declaration of the technique's name. She was still surrounded by the sparks produced by Elemental Nimbus, and her mind was still in chaos, but she quickly returned to her signature, stoic expression, as if she had already accepted her fate. "But this is Calleria, I think. For some reason I can't get that word out of my head. It was as if...somewhere in my mind, I know that Calleria really is this place, and I somehow know pieces of its history, even if I've never been here before."

"If we're really here, then...well, does anyone know what we were supposed to do for Mr. Manning's campaign? Perhaps that could give us a clue."

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac watched with intense interest at the blade magic Mana performed. He almost regretted not picking up a more magical discipline, now that he thought about his choices, but then remembered the nature of the Shattered Mirror. That would certainly turn into something otherworldy fairly quickly.

At Mana's question, Isaac thought to himself a moment. "Uh, let's see. World undergone disaster with things being quite a bit after it. There's something about no real magic, but rather just the way of martial traditions. We were going to go to a city and see about fighting some Beastmen, I remember that pretty clearly."

Isaac looked at their surroundings. "I have no idea if we're even near that city, but it seems like we're our characters, then we're near where they're going."

The now rather large man walked back to the tree where his armor and nodachi were lain against and picked up his weapon. He hadn't wielded a blade before, and it was actually much lighter than he thought it would be. It also felt completely natural, as if his body simply knew how to hold the blade proper and was familiar with the weight.

Isaac turned to look back at the rest of them. His character was a Warder with the two-handed blade, meant to act as a protector for the party with the long reach of his blade. Of course, part of that was using significant, oversized weapon violence to do so. He suddenly realized that if they were here, then violence was going to happen. They were going to have to probably kill things, Beastmen if maybe not say, bandits for instance. They were adventurers, after all.

The thought of killing another person suddenly made him feel a bit sick, but looking over the others, he wondered if they had even thought of that yet. Some were still just in high school. Suddenly, this wasn't as cool as some of it was sounding.

[jamieth]

Gratefully accepting the coat and switching her improvised covering for the real one, Daisy finally stands up and reaches for the... round disc... knife... things hanging on her hips. "I'm supposed to be fighting with these? I've no idea how to even hold them without cutting myself..."
Deciding to let the exploration of her supposedly new weapon abilities for later - none of Lita's readied maneuvers would look explicitely superhuman, anyway, so it won't prove anything (Do I even need further proof? Actually... yes I do, more data points is always better), she starts thinking aloud. "What else... attributes. I'm sure I don't have anything near the Charisma I gave Lita... but I can't think of a way to test it... Oh, I know - skills! Lita's a dancer, and an acrobat... and I could never do a cartwheel at the PE, so..."

Taking a step aside, far enough from both the fire, the trees and, of course, the others, she takes a stance, just like in those dreaded PE lessons, takes a step, and the next moment her legs are tracing a near-perfect circle through the air. Than another, in the oppoosite direction... and another... only after a dozen cartwheels or so she finally stops, her cheeks red, Mana's coat had slipped down, but it seems the girl hasn't even noticed that... then, she momentarily snaps back into her senses, fixing the coat and nodding, "Yes, it seems the skills are working..." in the most casual tome she can manage.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi forgets all about testing his own combat stance when he sees Mana's display of power.

Isaac's words make Ravi remember that he built this character to kill devils and stop their work. So when Isaac talks about fighting Beastmen, Ravi gets all quiet - he has no specific fear, just an anxiety he can't put into words about just how much worse it could get in a world with so much uncontrolled supernatural evil. He snaps out of it though when Daisy draws his attention to herself.

Seeing Daisy move like that again, and seeing her embarrassment again, Ravi reaches for the obvious distraction - testing his own power.

It's a struggle to resist somehow testing out Enduring Crane Strike - he was looking forward enough to just saying he was using it. But it just doesn't feel right to use that kind of power as a test. Instead he tries slipping in and out of Reaching Blade Stance, feeling the power rest within him like a coiled spring. Hefting his polearm, he says to the group with a smile "So they are. That means I won't have to test out whether I can dance."

Then, with a dryer more neutral tone he says "Most of my powers aren't as flashy as Mana's but let's see how this works." Then he faces into the darkness and unleashes the coiled power of his stance, striking the air improbably far away without losing either balance or power.

For a moment he intends to test out Detect Evil out into the darkness to see if anything is lurking there, but then he remembers that it only works on one thing at a time. He'd feel silly testing it on a tree, and uncomfortable just testing it out on someone without asking. So, he says "I made this character into a paladin of sorts. He's got a fair amount of that blade magic, even to the point of being able to heal with it. But he's also got the standard paladin detect evil thing going on. Anyone want to see how it works if I point it at them? I mean, just to test it - it's not like I think any of you are bad or anything."

[Elricaltovilla]

As you test out your seemingly new bodies and their abilities, you feel a gentle pull on you, as if an invisible hand were guiding your movements into the proper form. Your activities do not seem to have gone unnoticed though, as when you take a moment to survey your surroundings, you can tell that the air has changed.


Now would be a good time for some perception rolls.

[raspberrybadger]

Perception [roll0]

[jamieth]

Perception: [roll0]

[Felyndiira]

Perception: [roll0]

[Lt Gravemind]

Perception: [roll0]

As a side note, due to Yakov's current stance, he has scent.

[Elricaltovilla]

The rustling in the bushes and trees isn't just wind. Your sharp eyes peer into the darkness of the forest, revealing hunched, bipedal shapes in the darkness. Their movements are unnatural, jerking, slithering or crawling in ways unlike anything you've ever seen before.

Ravi spies one shape in particular that appears to be directing the others. A humanoid figure with a hunched back and grossly elongated arms lopes towards the fire. Its left arm ends in a wicked man-sized crab claw.

Isaac's (or is it Yakov's) nose fills with a stinging copper scent, like rotting flesh mixed with blood and iron. The stench is almost overwhelming, and speaks to the unnatural nature of the creatures from which the stench emanates.

A quiet voice whispers in the back of your heads. The beastmen approach the party of stalwart adventurers, their slavering jaws hungry for hated manflesh.

You recognize the voice as that of your GM and friend Greg Manning.

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac crinkled his nose at the pervasive stench that suddenly filled the air, and was confused up until he saw them. The beastmen.

Oh no.

A sinister grasp snaked around his throat and suddenly threatened to strangle him. They weren't in the position to fight now! They had just barely gotten these bodies! He would have been fairly angry at the voice of Greg, if not for the beasts that looked like they were going to tear him apart. Where did he get off narrating when they were about to be attacked?! Sure, they could shout names, but that didn't mean they could actually fight! They were going to-

“You remember when we were boys?”

Isaac suddenly felt his hand clench around the hilt of his blade and his body straighten. Those words. He had written them.

“We’d play at hunting down beastmen and fighting the monsters out there in the world. We’d go out pretending to be defenders of the weak and purveyors of justice.”

Isaac was large and strong now. He had a weapon, and his character's job was to kill things and protect his allies, these kids that were now around him. The grasp that was around his neck slid away as he felt a sudden fire in his stomach. His hands wrapped around his blade as he began to unsheathe it, and he let out a hearty bellow as he rushed forward.

"Get away from them!"


Initiative: [roll0]

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi chokes down the instant unthinking fear by remembering that in this life he has divinely granted power to find evil, take it down, and heal some of its ravages. Having so recently seen his own fear, his thoughts are for he others, so he says with some warmth but also a quiet insistence "We can do this."

Initiative [roll0]

[jamieth]

"Mr... Manning?" Daisy desperately looked around, trying - and failing - to locate the sourse of her math teacher's voice. Of course, what she actually sees is much worse... instinctively, she takes a step back, moving away from the creature, almost hiding behind Mr. Laumer's back... though it's Daisy's instincts; Lita's instincts, meanwhile, make her reach for the pair of round blades on her hips...

Initiative: [roll0]

[Felyndiira]

"Is that you, Mr. Manning? What did you do?"

Mana's thoughts suddenly became chaos with her teacher's voice. A number of unsavory emotions - self-pity, fear, and hatred - that she had tried to keep in check overcame her now. She was quite angry; for whatever reservations she had about playing the game, she - at least - had trusted Mr. Manning as an educator. As a friend, even - when she went to him for advice on school and personal matters. She never believed that her once-beloved teacher would actually use some kind of occult magic on them to trap them here, and yet here he is, continuing on with his stupid story without a care in the world, seemingly without any concern for the well-being of two of his best students.

Did he do this on purpose? Did he not notice what was going on? Heck, was this sort of magic even possible? She had always believed the "D&D and Satanism" rumors to be just that - an flight of fantasy by hardcore religious nutjobs; now, she was standing in a forest that she did not know, trapped in the body of a magic-using woman who used to be just numbers and words on a piece of paper - and not knowing how any of it all happened. Was this actually some sort of satanic ritual that she was roped into?

"F*** it all," she muttered under her breath.

It was only then that her mind processed the actual meaning of Mr. Manning's words, and she looked up and saw the figures approaching them. At that moment, all of the conflicted emotions in her mind became fear; she collapsed like a normal high school girl faced with a threat against her life. Her hands, still shaking, reached for the closest thing she could grasp, and finding her musket but not yet understanding what it is, she subconsciously cuddled it close to her.

It wasn't just her fear; it was also Estelle's. It was the fear of a high-school student who has never faced physical danger mixed with the fear of a sheltered medieval girl who lived in a bubble of optimism and happiness for most of her life. She had designed Estelle as a novice adventurer, without any of the experience or grit that tempered Yakov or Lita; as a result, there were no instincts that could guide her. She knew, somewhere at the back of her mind, that if she raised her musket she could stand a fair chance, but her arms shook too violently.

And even without her fear, there would still be the difficulty of taking another life.

"No, I-I have to at least protect us," she whispered; her hands, shaking and with great difficulty, pointed her musket at the shadows that were approaching the group. She knew how to use the weapon somehow - Estelle's knowledge, perhaps. She knew that if she could just summon the courage to pull the trigger, her animus and nascent skill would do the rest. However, everything she has learned in life is simultaneously telling her that this is wrong. That she shouldn't be here; that a suburban girl should not be holding a gun; and that it was all Mr. Manning's fault. That Greg Manning was the one that planned this, and that she was just a victim. And victims like herself did not need to act - they simply needed to blame.

She could feel the animus flaring inside Estelle body, and that nimbus of lightning once again surround her body. Mana was fighting a losing battle against her own fear and anger, but somewhere within her, the memories of a sheltered young landowner's daughter decided that she must live to see her beloved sister's world.

And thus, her weapon began to glow.

Init: [roll0]

[Elricaltovilla]

Seeing the adventurers ill prepared for a fight, the beastmen rush in, eager to taste blood. Whether by coincidence or design, each beastman seems to pick a separate adventurer to be their target.

The crab armed beastman charges at Isaac, his distended limbs giving him an advantageous reach. Up close, Isaac can see that the beastman's form is a mottled combination of crustacean, human and porcine features. The beastman gnashes its long tusks as its hoofed feet bound through the undergrowth. The beastman lunges towards Isaac with its massive claw.


Beastman A aka "Mr. Krabs"
Charge at Isaac
Attack Roll: [roll0]
Damage Roll: [roll1]
Grab Attack CMB:[roll2]


A second beastman slithers towards Daisy on a pair of thick serpentine tails. Its spider-like head gleams with innumerable eyes that grow and burst like overripe grapes every second. The beastman lets out a chittering roar and swings at the girl with a makeshift club.


Beastman B aka "Eye-see-U"
Charge at Daisy
Attack Roll: [roll3]
Damage Roll: [roll4]


The beastman that charges Ravi screeches and rushes forward in a flurry of feathers and a spray of green slime. Drops of this slime hiss and smoke as they touch the ground. Its long claws ooze acid and its skin cracks and burns as its own corrosive liquid eats through its flesh.


Beastman C aka "Goo-Bird"
Pounce attack at Ravi
Attack Roll1: [roll5]
Damage Roll1: [roll6]

Attack Roll2: [roll7]
Damage Roll2: [roll8]

If both attacks hit, make a FORT Save (DC 12) or take 1d4 points of Acid Damage.


The beast that targets Mana crackles with wild energy. Sparks dance along its wild mane, making every hair stand on end. Flames spurt from its eyes and nostrils as it rushes forward. A chill wind tears frozen chunks of dead flesh from its hide, the fresh wounds (if they can truly be considered as such) ooze hissing acid. The beast stops short of actually closing with Mana, and instead of entering the melee like the others, it releases a wild cascade of barely controlled elemental power with a mighty roar.


Beastman D aka "Love from Limbo"
Line of random elemental damage REF save DC 12 for 1/2 damage:
1- Fire
2- Acid
3- Cold
4- Electricity

Damage Type: [roll9]
Damage: [roll10]



If you wish to use a counter, you may go ahead and make your post for that.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi freezes in panic for a moment, so one of those things is on him before he can get his weapon up to fend it off. Still, he's been going over what maneuvers his character would have had, and he's at least got something so he can get out of the way: Flowing Creek. He'd always liked the idea of a divine dancer able to gracefully sidestep an attack, so while he couldn't do this back home, activating it feels almost natural. For a moment he becomes a flowing creek of divine silver, pitting his grace against whatever that thing is.

Counter, so his swift action is used next round sadly.
DC 14 Perform: Dance to avoid the first attack and take a 5' step to avoid the second attack [roll0]

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac would be swearing loudly, were he not currently getting crabbed. As it stands, all he could do was yell in surprise and try to get out of the crushing hold he found himself in.

As Isaac is currently not wearing his armor, the attack hits. The CMB roll beats his CMD, so he is currently grappled. He will attempt to take control of the grapple.

CMB Roll: [roll0]

[Felyndiira]

"Aaah!" Mana screamed when she felt the massive wave of lightning coursing her body. None of her tennis injuries even resembled this level of pain; it felt almost as if her flesh had been ripped out from around her. As if she was sitting in the middle of a raging inferno and could only watch and feel as her skin slowly liquefied under the intense heat. She was just a normal high school girl; an athlete, sure, but she wasn't one of those survival nuts! She could not have experienced anything like this. She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, praying that at some moment it will be all over - that perhaps the others with her, as inexperienced as they probably were, would find some way to pull through it all and carry her to safety.

And yet, it ended after a brief moment. She looked up meekly from behind her arms and found herself relatively unharmed, at the very edge of the bolt of lightning with only her right side slightly charred from the assault. It still hurt, however; even this was more than anything else she had felt in her life. The pain was something she did not have the words to describe, but at that moment, only one thought coursed through her mind.

"Am I going to die?" she whispered, her mind playing rapidly through many thoughts at once. "If I die here, what will happen to me in the real world? Will I just be dead in this world, somewhere where my family couldn't find me? Somewhere disconnected from Aya - from my best friends that I devoted my whole life to making? If I died here, what was the reason that I wore a mask for so long? Why would I suffer through that for so long?"

"No, I can't let myself die here." Her thoughts turned to her own character, as if trying to divert itself from the reality before her, speaking her thoughts almost as if in a prayer. "Estelle, if you can still hear me. I'm not you. I don't want to become you, and I know you don't want to be me; I have my own life and want to go back to living how I normally would, as should you. I know you're probably afraid as well, but if you're really here, please help me; I know you probably want to control your own body again, as much as I want to return to my own world. Whatever strength you have, please lend it to me, so that we both would have a chance to survive and find a way to undo this madness, whatever the hell Mr. Manning did to us."

With still shaking arms, she raised her musket and aimed it at the goblin currently tearing away at Daisy - the girl who she paid little attention to in school, but now that they shared this risk of fear and death, seemed to be the only person that she could connect to. Honestly, she just wanted something to aim for - some enemy to kill, to make her feel a spark of power in her helplessness and maybe take a first step toward her survival.

"Estelle, I just have to channel this energy, right?" She whispered to herself; her animus was still clouded by fear as lightning and fire seemed to dance in chaos around her, her musket pointed shakily at the beastman. She closed her eyes, almost as if she didn't want to see blood at all. "God, Allah, Jade Emperor, ghost of my Great-Grandfather; I haven't been faithful for all these years, but if you exist somewhere out there, please take pity on me and let this work."

Then, with a loud scream, she managed to pull the trigger.

Going to do a reflex save first, then edit the results into the post: [roll0]: 4 damage.

[jamieth]

As the beast... slithers towards her, Daisy suddenly feels unable to move; she always thought "paralized by fear" was just a figure of speech, but it is one that quite aptly describes her current situation... up until the moment a snake-spider-whatever's club falls on top of her. Then, darkness.

-3 HP
Condition: Dying
Constitution: [roll0]

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi knows these hits people are taking aren't from foam weapons. If he doesn't take some of these things down now, people are going to die. No pressure. is his joke to himself. It's a good thing he already tested that stance, as he's going to have to rely on his character now - there's no way he could have done this yesterday. Since he knows strikes activated for someone else, he shouts "Tidal Blade!" and lets the flow of the creek turn into the sudden tide of an impossible swing of his weapon out of nowhere, maintaining the dance of his footwork as he goes.

As the strike fades he brings the point of his polearm back up, spares a glance towards Daisy, and tries to stare down the remaining foes, as if to say You come for me instead of her, or I'll be coming for you.

Activating Tidal blade. Targeting two enemies, whoever is within 15 reach and still standing, 1st priority is the one by Daisy. Can make a 5' step before the attack to make sure there are two targets, or a 5' step after to keep all of them 15' away if that is not necessary.

Attack one: [roll0]
Attack two: [roll1]
Damage one: [roll2] Damage from stance [roll3]
Damage two: [roll4] Damage from stance [roll5]
Crit confirmation if needed [roll6]
Crit damage if needed [roll7]

[Elricaltovilla]

Isaac is unable to escape from the crab beastman's clutches as daisy is brought low by the snake legged beastman's club. Mana aims a shot at the elementally charged beastman, but it narrowly misses due to the pain of being attacked.

Ravi follows the guiding hand of his maneuver, stepping lightly between two beastmen. A thin line of silver light lances out between them before both erupt in a near fountain of sickening blood. They collapse to the ground in twitching messes, as their bodies slowly dissolve.

The two remaining beastmen continue their assault. The crab beastman squeezes tighter around Isaac, his eyes shining with sadistic glee. His crab hand occupied, the crab beastman reaches forward with his right hand to claw at Isaac.


Beastman A aka "Mr. Krabs"
Grapple Check to maintain: [roll0]
Claw Attack: [roll1]
Claw Damage: [roll2]

Make a Perception check (DC 15).


The elemental beastman hisses at Mana when her shot goes wide. It inhales deeply again and lets loose another chaotic blast of energy.


Beastman D aka "Love from Limbo"
Line of random elemental damage REF save DC 12 for 1/2 damage:
1- Fire
2- Acid
3- Cold
4- Electricity

Energy Type: [roll3]
Damage: [roll4]

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac feels as though his chest is collapsing and he continues to struggle to escape the grapple.


CMB to break the grapple: [roll0]
If he manages to break it, he will take a 5-foot step in Ravi's direction.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi has no time for satisfaction, guilt, or horror on account of the beastmen that are already down - because the ones that are still up loom so large. This is all too much for him to even think properly. He can't help but wince at what is happening to Isaac. What is happening to Mana is somehow less real, but he still can't help but feel protective.

Daisy is the worst though. He simply must heal her, and now. Which means he needs the power of a divine patron who isn't strictly his. He has no time to think, but approaching the divine outside of ritual where someone told him exactly what to do... he can't even begin to think about why that makes him uncomfortable.

He also needs to hit someone to get this heal to work, and he has no time to choose. He can't afford to hesitate. He just lashes out. His call to Seneria and her emissaries is wordless - he can't get himself to say anything. Instead, he calls to mind images of Lord Krishna and the many gods under him, a wordless plea for healing, and an intent to shield Isaac from harm. Then he surrenders himself to his character's blade magic.

5' step or a move action if necessary to get within 15', target the elemental beastman using ranged attacks. If that's not possible or the thing is already down, hit the one on Isaac.

To hit [roll0]
To damage [roll1] stance damage [roll2]
Healing for Daisy [roll3]
Along with the strike use Improved Guardian's Shield on Isaac. That grants 2 temp hp and protection from evil. I really should have done that last round.

[Felyndiira]

Her body - Estelle's body - autonomously weaved to the side as the second bolt flew past. Her mind was in chaos at the moment, but instincts - her character's instincts, perhaps - protected her from the brunt of the lightning bolt's damage. However, even a grazed bolt of lightning was still painful; Mana felt her entire body seemingly buckle under the mixture of pain and numbness.

"I have to survive," she repeated to herself, as if it was a prayer. With her still shaking arms, she barely managed to muster enough courage to point at the lightning-slinging beastman, and pulled the trigger.

Rolls were in the OOC Topic:

http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=21727049&postcount=34

[Elricaltovilla]

Mana manages to avoid the majority of the painful electrical blast a second time, but once again fails to land a hit against her target. Isaac still struggles to extricate himself from the grasp of the crab beastman, though Ravi's protective shield provides him some little comfort. Ravi stabs his spear into the elemental beastman who collapses in a screaming, hissing heap. The glow from his weapon transfers itself to Daisy, whose labored breathing eases as the healing light restores her to consciousness.

Seeing Ravi for the apparent threat he is, the single remaining beastman releases his grasp on Isaac and makes a lunge at Ravi with its mighty claw.


Free action to release Isaac
5 ft. step towards Ravi
Claw attack vs. Ravi
Attack Roll: [roll0]
Damage Roll: [roll1]
Grab Attempt CMB: [roll2]

[Lt Gravemind]

"Oh god!" Isaac gasps as the crushing sensation around his chest is suddenly lifted and the beast steps away. He collapsed to his knees, coughing up some blood, and just wanted to die. It hurt so much. This was too much. Then he heard the shuffling of the creature moving way from him and glanced up, only to watch in horror as it attacked Ravi.

Isaac didn't know if it was going to hit Ravi, but he did see an opportunity. He clenched his grip around his weapon and lunge forward, screaming as he thrust his blade forward toward the creature.


Five Foot Step to Flank
Power Attack (Furious Focus) (Add +2 to result): [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

[Elricaltovilla]

Pierced through the back, the final beastman collapses with a hissing gasp. It's body twitches for a moment before finally resting for good.

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac let out a large groan and let go of his weapon, letting it simply sit in the beastman's corpse. He collapsed to his knees again, whispering profanities to himself, before vomiting, the color red mixed in. This continued until he was dry heaving and finally stopped. He stood, shakily, and saw Daisy lying on the ground.

"Daisy!"

He rushed over to her side and cradled her slightly. What was the point of all this, he thought to himself for a moment. Some of them were just kids, not damned monster slayers.

"Are you okay?"

[jamieth]

Daisy wasn't OK; in fact, she was probably the least OK she ever was in her life. It seemed all her body was hurting... but at least she was conscious...

"I'm... fine", she replied weakly, trying to sit up, "Or... I'll be fine... Just... help me stand... and... thank you... how's everyone?" she asked, looking around, desperately hoping to find the rest of the group in a condition at least not worse than hers.

[Elricaltovilla]

Glancing at the corpses of the slain beastmen, you notice a strangely familiar book tied to the crab armed beastman's belt by a knot of poorly made leather.

[raspberrybadger]

With everything he had to keep in mind, it's no wonder that only when the beastman starts moving toward him does Ravi think No! - there's no time to really defend, and the thing just barely gets through his armor and tears into his side. Even as the pain tears through him, his automatic self criticism from larping comes through: Too close. Shouldn't have gotten inside engagement distance if I wasn't going for him. Then he gets inside my reach.

Desperately trying to think despite the pain how exactly how that defensive maneuver recovery thing went, he just goes blank and stares at Isaac when the last beastman goes down. He just keeps staring as Isaac vomits - without the urgency of combat, he just can't summon the energy to do anything. Then Isaac goes to Daisy - seeing her snaps him out of it. Whispering a prayer of thanks to Seneria, he turns to address her and says wryly "I think the best that can be said is that I didn't get hit anywhere that won't grow back. But I can't heal outside a fight, and I'm not exactly in condition to fight, so..." His impulse is to comfort her somehow, but he decides that a warm look and not paying attention to her injuries is what she'd want, he turns to Isaac and says "Thanks for that, I'm not sure I could have gotten out myself."

[Felyndiira]

With the final beastman slain, Mana's knees finally gave out, and she collapsed onto the ground once more.

The sight before her - she tried to avert her eyes from it, but she somehow could not muster the strength to turn away from the imagined figment of Daisy's face imposed over the body of the scantily-clad dancer woman. She wasn't personally friends with Daisy in the past, but she had seen the plain, ginger-haired girl in class many times during the courses they shared together - enough for her to consider the girl the only acquaintance in the entire group aside from Mr. Manning himself; the thought of that quiet, normal student sitting in the corner of class suddenly covered in blood was anathema. Just a few days ago, losing nationals and the coach had been her greatest concern, in a quaint suburban town without much of a mention of crime in sight. Just a moment ago, she was sitting at the table in a very ordinary video game shop with a laptop in front of her, playing with perfectly normal strangers.

And now, before her - before them - was an ocean of inhuman corpses, bleeding out and battered from their wounds, and a rabble of injured people trying to console a girl moments from her death.

She gently tapped her right side and winced; even though she was only grazed by the lightning attacks, she felt as if the entire right side of the body was incinerated by a branding iron, or something of that sort. Ignoring the presence of her companions for a moment and with some reluctance, she lifted her shirt (as well as the chain armor underneath) to examine her wounds, and her fingers lightly traced through the willow-shaped scars from where the lightning had frayed and exposed her nerves. This was the first time she has ever seen lightning scars. For a moment, she thought - perhaps as a strange sort of comfort - that the willow-like pattern was rather beautiful, like a masterfully-crafted tattoo; another touch, another violent jolt of pain, and the sight of an oozing pus that had originally been her nerves brought her back into this cold, harsh reality of this world.

She tried summoning Estelle's memories once more, and a few fragments of thought appeared in her mind.

"Sis had always warned me about monsters outside of the town when I was still a young lass. But, for my sake, she was willing to brave these dangers, so it's the least I could do for her. I'm afraid, too; afraid of this pain, afraid of dying, afraid of all the dangers that sis would describe to me, but I'm here for her sake now. I want to walk in the same shoes that she had done for my sake, and whenever I'm afraid, that conviction would give me strength."

"Conviction, huh?" Mana simply stared at the other players as they rushed to Daisy's aid. The Hispanic man (Issac), in particular, was clearly more injured than she is, but he ignored everything to help out a girl that he had known for less than a day. The Indian man (Ravi), too, was at her side in an instant; perhaps if it was a less dire situation, they would be laughing at how he could role-play even in such tense situations. The mood was too somber for that, however; any merry thoughts was dispelled at the sight of the four injured, normal people; at the sight of blood gushing from horrifying gushes, of pus oozing from lightning wounds, and of a girl seemingly moments away from death, barely managing to string together a string of comforting words.

She was the only one that did not immediately rush to her side.

"Lita is one of my friends, even though I've only met her for a day or two." Estelle's memories rang through her mind once more, accompanied by images of the four characters chattering away as they trekked through the forest. "It may be presumptuous of me to say this, but my sister, too, had a band of trusted companions with her. She confided in me that she had originally felt weak, being a simple village girl with some knowledge of firearms from her trade; it was only by borrowing the strength of her friends that she was able to make it through her first battle."

"I'm just a simple country girl, too - and I'm much, much weaker than Esther was. So, I wanted friends that I could rely on, just as my sister did - and Lita was one of the first that I've found. I don't know what she thinks of me yet, but I'm almost certain that if I was struck down and almost dying, she would be by my side helping me and giving me aid. That she wouldn't just abandon me while feeling pity for herself. So, even though I'm afraid, I strive to be the same kind of friend for her; Lita is stronger than me, but I, too, can at least muster the strength to put my own pain aside for a moment to help a companion in arms."

"So, Mana, why aren't you by her side?"

The accusatory voice was her own. Gritting her teeth, the girl propped herself up with her musket; a jolt of pain stopped her movements, and she staggered, almost losing her balance in the process.

"You need to help her. She's your classmate. She's someone you knew. It's expected of you."

The girl took a few steps, before the pain stopped her, threatening to take away her strength. Her knees shook from the weight, and she leaned on her musket, supporting herself with its length and weight.

"Remember what mother said when we first came here? Here, in the West, you represent both China and Japan, whether you want to or not. Many people can't help but judge the worth of two entire nations based on how they perceive you. All of this is your responsibility. Do you want the others to think so badly of your mother countries?"

Ignoring her own pain, she trudged to Daisy's side and knelt beside her, clasping her left hand inside her own. She had been one of the social queens of her school, and yet, at this moment, she could not find a single word to say. Instead, she smiled faintly with tears in her eyes, her hands still clasped to that of her classmate as if in reassurance, though perhaps only to herself.

After a moment, she spoke in a hoarse whisper.

"I don't think this forest is safe. We should at least try to find settlement somewhere, so that Daisy - so that we - can have time to recover."

I'm using Magenta for Estelle's memories that are not Mana's own thoughts. Hope this is okay.

[jamieth]

"Thanks", Daisy nods with a forced smile - forced, not because she isn't actually grateful; it just hurts. Still... "I think I can walk, if it's not too fast... Look, what's that?"

Even in this condition, a book still catches Daisy's eyes; an advantage of being a bookworm. I wonder if I can even read here... Lita was literate, but what if we didn't learn the language the same way we did skills?

[Elricaltovilla]

Daisy looks closely at the book. Its shiny cover looks familiar but hard to place for a second, until the realization hits her. This is a Core Rule Book for Pathfinder! One of the books Mr. Manning had brought to the game night for his players to peruse.

[jamieth]

"Pathfinder Core Rulebook..." Daisy reads the inscription on the cover, "Oh well."

There's a hint of disappointment in her voice, because, while it's an interesting discovery on its own... it's a book she read already.

"Let's go, then..." she says, pulling her bag off the ground with visible effort and taking a couple unsteady steps.

Daisy's actually in medium load zone with her bag alone; adding book and Mana's coat puts her solidly over.

[Elricaltovilla]

As soon as Daisy picks up the book, the voice of Greg Manning fills the party's ears.

"Hello? Guys, can you hear me? I don't know where I am. I don't know what happened, I can't see anything! You have to help—" His voice cuts off abruptly.

[raspberrybadger]

The book itself is not interesting to Ravi, as he can't make any sense out of how the rulebook could be in this world, and he's already familiar with it. However, it does remind him that looting could be rather important, either for information or for supplies. That thought gets put on hold though by the voice from who knows where, which just makes him look at Isaac for an explanation.

[Lt Gravemind]

What? The book, that voice, that was...

"Greg! Are you there?! What's wrong?!" Isaac grabbed the book and flipped it open. There had to be something. Anything. Something had to explain all of this. Maybe there was something else in the book. "Greg!"

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi can't say anything, if only so as not to disrupt the attempt with the book, but Isaac sure needs to calm down. The whole heavily armed thing makes the gesture weird to him, but Ravi tries to reassure Isaac by literally standing by him.

[Felyndiira]

"Mr. Manning?" Mana's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the voice inside her head; before she could respond, however, one of the others - the Hispanic man - was practically shouting his name into the winds.

However, there was no response. Mana's heart sunk for a moment; she had hoped that the voice of her teacher might somehow be a key to finding their way out of this world, but it seems like Mr. Manning himself was somehow trapped. "Stupid game," she muttered under her breath, huddling to herself and shivering without the presence of her old coat as she felt a sudden chill. It was not a feeling of outright fear nor apprehension, but inheriting the worst parts of both; her teacher's pleas ringing through her mind.

If even Mr. Manning couldn't get them out of this world, will they simply be forced to live here until inevitably, their life would be ended by some horrid creature?

"We have to leave this forest as soon as possible." It took almost all of her courage to say those words, but one look at Daisy - one look at the bloodied forms of the once-normal people - was enough to convince her that they would not survive another such encounter. The girl was still shaking; she was barely able to prevent herself from falling to the ground for a third time, but she had convinced herself that survival was their first priority. If this was really Calleria, then they should at least find their way to the city of Grionne - where they would at least be safe for the night. Mr. Manning can wait until later - they don't even know where he is, or whether he's even in any danger. She - no, they - on the other hand, are. She held back her chattering teeth, braced herself, and continued, her voice colored by both apprehension and fear.

"We don't even know where Mr. Manning is at this moment, and Daisy is almost at death's door. We've already seen that the forest is a dangerous place, and another one of those encounters would end us. So, our priority should be to find a safe town; we can worry about the book or Mr. Manning after that."

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi doesn't like it - he doesn't know why, but he's unsettled by her words. But Mana makes too much sense. So he chimes in "That does need to be first priority. But there could be more of those things out there. We need to be ready to fight. We've been given power to fight them. We're just going to have to use that power. But how will we see them coming in time with the woods so dark?"

Edit:

It's pretty dark apart from the campfire, right? Or am I misreading things? Rama can see better in the dark than the humans at least, but how well can the characters see out there?

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac calmed down, slightly downtrodden at the lack of response from the book. Of course it would be too simple to just suddenly have Greg trapped in a book and able to speak to them like a guide. That would be too obvious. He made to grab Daisy's things and shoulder her weight. He could probably even carry her with relative ease in this new form, but she looked decent enough to walk. He glanced around and realized: he still didn't have his armor yet.

"One moment. Let me just get this on."

As he put on his armor, going more on muscle memory that he never had, it simply felt like a second skin. It was quite eerie, but he was in his armor quick enough and ready to go with the rest of the group. At least if they were attacked, Isaac might have some protection.

"Seems like there's enough light out that we won't bump into things and I don't really feel like going to sleep after nearly getting my chest crushed."

Saying that, Isaac subconsciously grabbed at his own chest. There were certainly going to be bruises from that, and he wasn't feeling all to great as it was.

For reference, Isaac is sitting at 1 HP himself.

[jamieth]

"I... not sure about sleep, but I'd love to lie down for a couple of hours... days..." Daisy says, "But we shall move on. Maybe... if there's a town nearby... we can get ourselves a room... I have some coins, I saw when I checked earlier..."

[Elricaltovilla]

As the party readies to leave the campsite, Greg's voice speaks through their minds again. This time, it is the same calm, nearly emotionless tone that they heard the first time he spoke to them.

"Even though beastmen rarely carry gold or other treasures, unless they have recently killed one or more humans, there is a standing bounty in most settlements for dead beastmen or other monsters. Body parts that can easily be identified as belonging to beastmen, such as monstrous hands or heads, should fetch a hefty price from any nearby towns or villages."

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi nearly jumps when he hears the voice again. Something is seriously wrong, and he really does not understand. He doesn't have anything to contribute to that issue, so he says "Are we really going to cut up dead bodies to go along with that voice? Is it necessary?"

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac simply sighed.

"Yeah, sounds like this is going to be a thing."

The now warrior apparent grimaced as he drew his blade again and went to the corpses. The smell was extremely poignant to him: he knew he could switch the stance 'off', but that would probably inhibit his ability to smell danger.

"I'll take care of this. Just, uh, cover your nose or something. This is probably going to smell bad."

The process was actually less messy than he expected, but still more gory and stomach churning than he would have liked. Unfortunately, they did in fact smell worse on the inside. It was actually kind of surreal. Less than a half an hour had passed since simply sitting down at a game table, and here Isaac was: his chest nearly caved in, cutting up the carcasses of monsters in a game world while inhabiting the body of a character he had made. He wasn't sure whether to be glad or worried at the efficiency with which he removed the appropriate body parts. It was as if he had done this all before, but shook off the feeling as he put the last of the limbs into a separate bag.

"Well, it'll stink but that should be good. I think."

Isaac will take 10 on survival for a 15, if necessary for a clean removal of limbs.

[jamieth]

Daisy weakly tries to protest, saying they don't need to resort to desecrating bodies - not for now, at least, coins aren't really an issue - but the smell forces her to close her mouth shut lest her stomach may rebel. So the girl keeps quiet and tries to compromise between keeping far enough form Isaac to avoid the small... but close enough to feel safe.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi finds what is happening revolting, but he trusts Isaac. Thus, he finds himself doing what he can do - carefully standing guard so that if something comes out of the darkness he'll be ready for it. When the job is done and the parts are packed up he gets moving, trying to let the knowledge he has in this life guide him as to the correct direction to head. Who knows, it might work.

[Felyndiira]

"Wait, but-" Mana didn't have the time to even form a complaint. She had only met the Hispanic man at the gaming table a few moments ago, and yet, the grotesque sight of him carving the beastmen cadavers was quickly etched into her mind. "How could he remain calm in this kind of situation?" the girl thought to herself, using all of her strength to hold back an intense feeling of nausea and disgust. Perhaps the Hispanic man hunted as a hobby and was thus used to the sight of blood? Perhaps his backstory simply made him more resilient to such an affair, unlike the memories of the naive Estelle within herself? Regardless, watching the skin and blood of these creatures felt wrong somehow, and the girl had to averted her eyes from it all...

...no, that wasn't right. Even as her stomach churned and as she held back attempts to vomit, Mana watched the gruesome act with a mix of disgust and forced interest. "We probably need to do this to survive," she thought, as if to convince herself to take in this horrifying new reality. "I don't know what brought us to this world, but I assume we still need food and water and all of the bare necessities to live. This might be the only way we can earn money for all of that. I have to get used to this rather than turning away - in case if the Hispanic man gets injured at some later time and this task falls upon myself." For a moment, even the willow-shaped scars were pacified, as her mind forgot everything else and focused itself on this unnatural scene before her.

She finally reached the end of her endurance as the Hispanic man placed the final limbs in a satchel, and allowed herself to retch. Her mind was still trying to process what it had just seen, leaving her defenseless to the increasing stench and the bloodied carcasses. It took a few minutes before she would finally recover.

"I'm sorry," was the only thing she could say.

[Elricaltovilla]

It takes an hour or two of careful stumbling through the forest before the party comes across a muddy road. By this time, the gray light of dawn has started to crest the distant hills. The sky overhead threatens rain. There is a sign nailed to a nearby tree.


Grionne 7 leagues ←
Astar 2 leagues →

[Lt Gravemind]

"Well, that place is closer." Isaac points to the half-baked sign. He was feeling a bit better than he was two hours ago (sometimes it still felt like he wasn't though), but the silence for the trip was also slightly unnerving. He wanted to say something to reassure the rest of them that everything was going to be alright, but Isaac couldn't find the words. They were just barely able to escape being slaughtered and thrown out of their world.

For some reason, Isaac knew Astar was a town and had a Lens Maker guild. He knew that wasn't the guild his character was apart of though. His was the Stained Glass Champions. That gave him pause. Were they the same as the lore he had read up on, or were they different in this world? He fished though his bag and found a mirror, and wondered if he'd be able to use it to contact the Stained Glass Knight. Now didn't seem like a good time to test that theory though, and simply put it away.

"Anyone here make their character part of the Lens Lensmaker Society?" Isaac asked. He didn't even pretend that there was some distinction between reality and the game they were playing. He just wished he knew more about how this was happening and why.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi breathes an audible sigh of relief when the road appears. Dawn might not bring safety, but at least the road implies something other than endless forest. It's the first sound he's made in quite some time, and letting it out feels good. He'd known he was tense, but he hadn't realized just how tense.

Looking at the sign he tries to think what his character would know... and draws an absolute blank. He's not sure what Isaac is talking about, but he trusts Isaac to know what is going on. Well, better than he does at least. It takes him a moment to remember the character sheets - that was outright in another world. But seconds later he answers "Reverents of the Lance. Demonslayers. Spear users. That was the tradition I chose."

[jamieth]

"Cirque de la Fumee", Daisy replied without thinking, her bookworm past helping her remember, "entertainers, spies, mercenaries and masters of thrown weapons. And... Grionne is where we were supposed to go to, right? But... I don't know how long seven leagues are, but if it's long... I'll not sure I'll be able to walk it without rest, and if it isn't, then nine won't be that different. And even if Astar is a smaller town, it should at least have an inn, right?"

[Felyndiira]

"I'm not sure what the Lensmaker Society is." Mana remembered being asked by her teacher to choose a Martial Tradition at the last minute, and settling on something without putting much thought behind it. Estelle's memories are of little help - she faintly remembers something to the effect of the Lords of the Wheel, but her backstory did not cover why she had joined the tradition, or even what the tradition really is - not that it would help the situation here.

"I agree with Daisy, though. We should take the shorter route. Anything to get away from this forest and closer to civilized society can't be a bad thing."

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi's words just sort of bubble out rapidly now - he's had to be silent to keep properly alert this whole time, and that's built up several kinds of anxious. "Does anyone remember why we were supposed to go to Grionne? Or know somehow don't ask too many questions what this Astar place is like or the Lensmaker society is like?"

[Elricaltovilla]

Although it's still only the earliest hours of the morning, the sound of hooves clopping on the road echoes. Out of the gentle fog a horse and carriage appears. A portly Alfar sits at the reins, and he hails the party when they come into view.

"Hello there! What are you all doing so far out into the woods this time of morning?" He asks.

[jamieth]

"I think it was that Grionne needed mercenaries to help with dealing with the population of Beastmen", Daisy says, "and, well, Lita had her own reason, but it doesn't matter anymore, I guess? And... I don't know anything about Astar, so..."
***
Her thoughts are interrupted by the appearance of the carriage; and, with the half-elf at the reins being the first, em, person tru;y of this world she did encounter, Daisy feels even more embarrassed by her appearance and once again tries to hide behind the larger members of her group.

[raspberrybadger]

Seeing Daisy shrink back, Ravi talks without much thought, saying "In practice, taking down beastmen, since that is what was there. You?"

[Elricaltovilla]

The alfar eyes the party closely, his almond shaped eyes squinting before they close suddenly as he lets out a loud barking laugh

"I can see that! I can also see that those beastmen gave about as good as they got. Or nearly so." He chuckles. "I mean no offense, the bastards are mean beasts and I doubt I'd fare much better. My name is Ilmayer Bannon, I'm a member of the alchemist guild of Grionne, on my way to deliver a supply of healing potions to the guards at Astar. If you're willing to help guard my wagon the rest of the way there, I'll gladly pay you in medicines. In advance of course."

[Felyndiira]

"Really?" the girl blurted, before suddenly remembering Estelle's diplomacy modifier. She remembered wanting a quieter presence in the group - a reserved girl, rather than her real-life self; would that negatively impact her interactions with this merchant and potentially lose them a chance at medicine? Or, perhaps her ranks in the skill didn't really matter, and she could communicate normally like her real-life self, without worrying about blunders here?

Perhaps, as if to answer her question, she suddenly felt her face flush at the prospect of interacting with a stranger; no, it wasn't herself. It was Estelle who was uncertain of the prospect of speaking with a stranger, and that anxiety overrode her quick mind and her own ability to improvise. Actually, thinking back on it, why had she made Estelle so poor at social interactions? Wasn't Estelle supposed to be an optimistic girl who was confident enough to find her own martial arts instructors and navigate red tape to publish her sister's silly novels? Either way, she would have to find a way to fix this, so that she would not have to depend on the others just to speak with another human being.

But for now, she could barely stutter a word, so she remained behind her companions and waited for them to respond.

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac felt the twinge of pain seeping into his chest. Anything to make the group likely not on the very of getting murdered would be nice, and they didn't need to get to Grione right away. If he remembered right, the only reason they were going was to hunt beastmen. Well, they had certainly found beastmen and collected limbs for a bounty. They could probably afford to go to this town.

"I think we'd be fine with that, if nobody has any objections. Getting ambushed in the night has us hurting a little and a bit on edge. Some healing and getting to town would be welcome."

Among other things, he thought to himself. To be honest, he didn't even really notice the elf's ears. That was the least of his concerns amongst all of the stuff they were just now experiencing, and this sudden offer of, well, healing was a god-send.

Or planned, thinking back to how all of this was still based on a game. It didn't really matter to him at this point. They just needed to get to town and be able to rest. Then they could talk and figure things out.

[Elricaltovilla]

Ilmayer grins and reaches under his seat, pulling a tray of glass bottles sealed with wax out. The swirling green liquid inside gives off a slightly unsettling vibe.

" Wonderful! Full disclosure requires me to tell you that these potions are made with fiend's blood, but there should be no long term side effects. I've been working on improving their taste, so please let me know if they are palatable."

Ilmayer hands the tray to Ravi and waits expectantly, clearly interested in the party's opinions on his medicine.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi is used to medicine being prescribed by people who know what they are doing, and he is in quite a good bit of pain. Nothing seems wrong, so he takes a bottle and passes it to the others.

He's been forewarned about the taste, so he downs it as fast as he can without stopping. After a couple of gasps, he gives his report: Huh. Tastes a little like fermented fish, but only a little, so not as bad. Sort of smoky too, and not really in a good way. But, tolerable for a medicine I suppose.

[jamieth]

It's not that the mention of fiend's blood doesn't worry Daisy, but... the man said potions were for the town guards, pretty much the last people one would want to go mad, so they must be safe enough. And compared to her current condition, "safe enough" was good enough. And as for the taste... she had her share of bitter medicine as a kid. So id it was as Ravi described it...

The girl holds her breath - actually, covers her nose - and downs the potion as fast as she can... and goes pale. "...excuse me..." she whispers, turning away and heading to the nearest bush, very much unsure if her stomach can hold it. So... bitter... I hope it won't be in vain, at least...

[Felyndiira]

Mana stared at the potion for a moment, as if waiting for the others to drink before she's willing to touch the bottle. After Ravi made his comment, she slowly uncorked the bottle and, with a deep breath, swallowed its contents in one gulp.

"I think it tastes fine," she commented - her voice a bit meeker than she was used to. "Like Seltzer Wat...I mean, juice. Y-yeah."

[Lt Gravemind]

"Better than water?" Isaac commented after wiping his mouth. It occurred to him as the weird, sizzly contents settled in his stomach that he didn't really remember the last time he ate. What did they eat here? Yeah sure, meat and vegetables like everywhere, but what kind? The drink itself was closer to what Mana suggested. Seltzer, or something of the kind.

[Elricaltovilla]

"Hmmm... It was supposed to taste like cherries..." Ilmayer muses. "Alright, our contract is complete. You should feel right as rain in about a minute."

True to his word, you can feel your body knitting itself together as flesh reaches out to rejoin flesh, scabs and scars form and fade and your body rapidly reconstructs itself. If ever you had an inclination that the feeling would be pleasant however, that idea is quickly struck from your mind. The pain is nearly as bad as getting wounded was in the first place. Muscles contort and twist, flesh tears as it reaches out to rejoin itself and there isn't anything to numb the pain. Ilmayer watches with a detached look as your body finally finishes healing, then speaks again.

"Now, a favor, would one of you mind holding the reins on the cart while I indulge in some breakfast? I am ravished."

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi quickly forgets the taste when the potion goes active. His mind shies away from the pain, but yet keeps coming back to focus on every little bit of it. It is over quickly, but he wonders to himself Could I fight? In that kind of pain?

But then that alchemist is asking for something, and all Ravi can think to say is "Would one of you ladies like to hold the horses? Er, horse?"

[jamieth]

"Sure, I'll do it..." Daisy replies, catching her breath after the process of "healing". However, the next moment, another thought comes to her, "Unless... if one of us needs to get on the cart, it ashould be Mana, I think? She can shoot from the top..."

As a note, how many HP do we heal?

[Elricaltovilla]

Ilmayer turns to Mana.

"Well Miss? Would you mind taking the reins for me? I promise you that Fester is one of the most even tempered horses you'll ever have the pleasure of meeting."

[Felyndiira]

"I-I've never actually handled horses before." Mana wasn't used to the stuttering or words not forming immediately into her mind, but she did manage to speak out a reply. "I c-can try, but if something goes wrong I wouldn't know w-what to do."

[Elricaltovilla]

" Nothing to worry about. I'll still be up here to help, but I can't very well eat and drive at the same time I can I? " Ilmayer scoots over on the bench seat and holds out the reins. " Never a better time to learn something new than the present."

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi is more than a little relieved not to be doing anything directly with the horses, and not a little disturbed to realize that he might need to learn how to deal with them in this world.

Nor does going out in front of the carriage to take point position make him feel any better. Putting himself between the ladies and harm sounded like a good idea, but now that he's actually there the memory of all too recent pain comes to the forefront. It's not an articulate fear - just a dread he can all too literally feel in his body, as if the healing hadn't worked, as if his body knows it should still be torn and aching.

Against that fear he holds out faith in front of him, invoking the goddess over and over in a soft voice barely audible even to himself, though anyone else taking point might be able to hear it too: "Great Goddess Seneria, I call your power to fight the unholy, to empty my mind of suffering, to protect the sacred."

He does not count the repetitions, but he does eventually attain a state where neither the chant nor the fear distracts him from the task he has set himself.

[Elricaltovilla]

The party plods along with Ilmayer and his wagon. True to his word, the horse Fester is exceedingly calm and well behaved, though it seems more like the horse is generally oblivious and uncaring of the world around him rather than being courageous and well trained. He follows the path ahead at his own pace with no regard for any attempts to speed him up, slow him down or alter direction in any way.

Ilmayer, sitting beside Mana as she drives the wagon, pulls out a small chest containing a whole turkey leg, a half wheel of cheese and a large flask of something clearly alcoholic. He chats away in between bites of his food, "You know... the whole Alchemist thing.... mmmm ... It's great and all but... I really enjoy the work.... of those Ordre des Repas Exotiques, they.... really take their craft... seriously... I got this meal.... from a fellow who.... is a tavernkeep in... Grionne. Good man... finest turkey legs you'll... ever taste. Have any of you visited the Silver Swine on the Tailfeather Docks?"

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi neither wants to interrupt his prayer nor his watch on the path forward, but it doesn't pay not to be social with an employer who clearly wants to talk. Twisting his head back to face the alchemist for every phrase, he replies with the same pauses - only to look around rather than to eat: "No...I don't think I have...but it's good to enjoy work...What's the best part about alchemy?"

[jamieth]

"Last time I was in Grionne", Daisy shakes her head, "I was too young to remember... But I don't think I used to eat in any place like that... maybe if they used to throw the leftover away?" Somehow, it isn't really hard, telling that. After all, Lita's past... it wasn't real, was it? That girl who had to scavenge for leftovers to keep from starving didn't really exist before today...

[Elricaltovilla]

"Alchemy? The best part is... definitely the explosions. But... not much call for that work... unless you want to go around hunting beastmen. But I don't really have the stomach for that kind of work." Ilmayer says as he finishes the last bit of meat. "I'll stick to my much safer work of crafting potions and elixirs for those in need and leave the monster hunting in your much more capable hands."

As he finishes speaking, the party arrives at the entrance to Astar. Although it's not a large town, it is enclosed by a high stone wall with a thick, iron barred gate. Two heavily armored guards stand at the entrance to the gate, which has not yet opened.

"Ah, we got here quicker than I thought. No matter, I'm sure I can talk the guards into letting us in. After all, my delivery is for them."

[Lt Gravemind]

Whatever image that Issac had in his head about a town in this area didn't include large walls and heavily armored guards. It did make sense though, considering the presence of beastmen. If there were really that many more beastmen out here, than big walls probably helped.

"Getting inside would be nice." Issac commented, though to no one in particular. The strange potion had left him feeling much better, his brusing gone, but he still wanted to find a moment to get some food in his belly and just think.

[raspberrybadger]

Somehow the walls bring home the reality of this world for Ravi. The beastmen and the pain were somehow unreal. The forest was pretty much just trees. The walls though are obviously real - they are there instead of the prosperity and security he is used to. It's not a good trade. But it's better than nothing. On that note, Ravi adds to Isaac "Definitely." and to the alchemist "Then there should be no problem."

[Elricaltovilla]

Ilmayer dismounts from the cart and approaches the guards at the gate. He speaks quietly with them for a few moments, then one of the guards waves up to the wall. There is a screech of rusted metal rubbing, followed by the clanking of chains as the gate is opened.

"They've agreed to let us in. However, it'll be a while before the bounty office is open to pay for your beastmen. You may want to rest at a tavern. I'll be heading to the main guard house. We can meet in the town square once business is concluded perhaps?" Ilmayer says to the party when he returns.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi turns to the alchemist and says "Sure, that sounds great. See you then."

Then once the party is inside the city, he says to them "I don't even know what we're supposed to do. I mean, we get the money, but then what? Like, is there something we can do about that book? I don't even know where to start."

[Lt Gravemind]

"Well, he said to rest at the tavern." Isaac commented, shifting his pack from one shoulder to the next. "That's what a normal adventuring party does. So, let's go to the tavern. We have some gold coins and if this world really is working like the book says, then getting rooms and food shouldn't cost too much. Let's eat and see if there's something else in the book that maybe we missed."

The man wasn't really sure what they would expect to find in the book - the trapped soul of their DM perhaps - but it seemed to be clear and clearer that they were in the game, or some representation of it. Might as well start following the tropes and hope answers come out that way. Hopefully having played this game before would help, though the memory of his rips starting to collapse certainly didn't.

[Elricaltovilla]

Inside the outer walls, the design aesthetic of the city of Astar holds true. Tall, gray stone buildings with narrow windows line the streets. The doors are all made of heavy wood and banded with iron. Iron gratings over the windows are a common sight as well. It is clear from this architecture that Astar is a city designed to withstand any attack.

The city guards nod at you as you walk past them. Even in the early hours they patrol in groups of twos and threes. One such pair stops you as you head toward the center of town. One of the guards approaches the party. His teal skin shimmers with the subtle shine of scales.

"I've not seen you four around here before. Are you hunters? If you're new, I can give you some directions if you like. I'll just need to see some papers, if you don't mind." The guard waits expectantly.

[jamieth]

"Eh, of course, sir..." Daisy reaches inside her bag for her - that is, Lita's - papers, identifying her as a member of Cirque de la Fumee, "I'm... more of a performer, actually..." she wasn't sure just how well known is the fact that Cirque agents serve as spies and scouts as well as entertainers supposed to be in the world.

And then, a terrifying thought occurs to her. Does that mean I'll have to perform? For the people in the tavern? Somehow, that fills her with more terror than the perspective of facing beasmen again...

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi is relieved that Isaac seems to at least have a plan, even if he doesn't know everything. The architecture of the city is not really helping with his anxiety, so following Isaac's plan is a little of a lifeline.

When Daisy starts talking Ravi is a little embarrassed to be relieved that she doesn't break down. Hey, she made it. Not that I was any help.

Then it is time to show his own papers and he can't think about Daisy anymore. He takes a second to remember what tradition he'd even picked for his character - he remembers easily enough that they were demon hunters, but the name takes a little longer. Right. Reverents of the Lance.

Speaking up, he fishes out his own papers and says "Yes sir. As you can see, I am one of the Reverents of the Lance. As for directions, recommendations, say, for a tavern - that we could do with."

[Lt Gravemind]

Isaac is confused for a moment before he realizes what the person is talking about and everyone else starts fishing through their bag.

"Yes, right." He reponds, pulling out the seal that identifies him as being part of the Stained Glass Champions. He looked over it a moment before handing it to the requesting party. Isaac wondered if they'd have to show these off everywhere they went. "Everything should be in order."

[Elricaltovilla]

The guard nods as you present your papers. "Good to see everything is in order, welcome to Astar. Normally we don't go around bugging people for their identifications, but we had an incident about a month ago with some fraudulent guild recruiters. Since then, we've had to be a bit more careful to make sure that people aren't being put into dangerous situations." He sighs. "It's not too much to worry about, though, all your papers are in order. There's a tavern, The Boar and Bull, that's run by a former member of the Cirque de la Fumée. They're about the only one that'll have breakfast ready by this time. The owner, Makhail, is a good man. He'll be able to help you get a fair price for your bounties."

The guard gives you directions to the tavern and sends you on your way.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi adds cheerfully "We'll be on our way then." and follows the directions given, saying warmly to Daisy along the way "So, up to talking with this Makhail person? You could just wing it, I'm sure you'd do just fine - or you could talk it out if you'd like."

[jamieth]

"I'm... not sure", Daisy looks down, "That man, Mikail, he's an actual member of the Cirque, right? What if he starts asking about people he knew there... so maybe we should just pay for a room, like normal travelers... we have money, after all?"

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi replies "We have the money for breakfast, so there's that much at least. We will need the money from the bounties eventually though. I can talk to him about that without knowing stuff about traditions."

[Lt Gravemind]

"We don't have to make small talk. Not yet at least. We're probably going to have to ask someone at some point how things work around here though." Isaac commented as they walked along, keeping an eye out for the tavern and taking in the sights.

[Elricaltovilla]

Following the directions to the inn that the guard mentioned, you pass by the local bounty office. A board outside the building displays various posters with sketches and details of extant bounties. However, the office is currently closed but it's location will probably be important in the future.

As you make the final turn towards the inn, the air fills with the scent of thick, meaty broth. The smell sets your stomachs rumbling. As you finally spot the inn, you can see a young woman outside the building stirring a massive cauldron from which the delicious aroma seems to emanate.

[jamieth]

Instinctively, Daisy wants to back down, to let the elders talk; but that's Daily. Lita, from the vague memories she has and the backstory she has written, is a very different person; and Lita is the one who's used to living in this world...

So, Daily steps forward, trying to look tired but cheerful (first is really easy in the current situation; second... well, the aroma and the look of the inn do fill her with optimism.

"Good morning, miss!" she says, "Is that the Boar and the Bull? Would you let the weary travelers to rest?"

[Elricaltovilla]

The woman looks up from her pot, brushing some strands of hair out of her face. "Out of towners? Unusual to see you all so early in the morning. This is The Boar and Bull, Makhail is inside. You can talk to him and he'll set you up with some rooms if you like. The food should be ready in a few minutes."

The woman waves you inside and goes back to watching her delicious smelling pot.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi smiles to see Daisy looking cheerful and not withdrawing. He remembers that she didn't want to talk to Mikhail himself, so he goes looking for the man, summons up what confidence he can, and says "Good day, sir. We're just in from some bounty work, and I'm told you're the man to see about getting a room or two."

[Elricaltovilla]

The man behind the bar towers over the rest of the inn, which is mostly empty at this hour. He stand over eight feet tall and nearly as wide. The man cracks a wide grin as the party enters and replies in a booming voice.

"Welcome to the Boar and Bull! Makhail, at your service. It's always good to see new faces. Are you looking for rooms or just a place to rest for a bit?" His voice leaves your ears ringing.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi replies "Both, actually. Two rooms, but we'd also like to rest for a bit until we can turn in some bounties. It's good to meet you. May name is Rama."

[Elricaltovilla]

Makhail nods his head.

"Two rooms will run you 10 gold pieces per night, meals included." The half giant reaches behind himself and pulls two large bronze keys off a shelf.

[raspberrybadger]

Ravi is a little startled by the price. He's only got seven gold pieces on him at the moment and this feels like a lot of money. But it's been a long night. Even if this isn't the best deal, the group needs a place to rest and a way of getting more money. He gets out five gold pieces and says "I'm assuming the ladies would like a room of their own. Here's the gold for one room though. That's through tonight yes? We'll be resting up, seeing our way through the process of getting bounties paid, and looking at what work there is."

[Elricaltovilla]

Makhail takes the coins off the counter. "You must not be from around here if you're willing to let a price like that go without a fight. I can't imagine what it must be like living where 10 gold isn't surprising for a couple rooms at an inn. And you girl," he points at Daisy. "Should have spoken up. A Cirque member should know better than to let her friends get screwed over."

Makhail turns around and produces five steins of frothy ale. He sets two gold coins on the counter beside the steins. "Here's your change. And a round on the house by way of apology for my little trick."

[jamieth]

"...I'm sorry..." is the only thing Daisy can manage, "and... thank you... but..." she gathers her resolve to ask, "How dod you know, Mr. Makhail?"

[Elricaltovilla]

"An old Carney trick. I bet you'll never guess what my act was!" Makhail lets out a booming laugh that shakes the rafters of the inn.

[jamieth]

"I'm sorry..." Daisy shakes her head rather sheepishly, "I'm too tired to think properly..." which was true, in addition to being a semi-believable excuse for acting so out-of-character, "If you don't mind..."

[Elricaltovilla]

"Aye, if you all want to head upstairs and take a rest I understand. My wife Matilda will come up later with some food for you all if you want." Makhail gives a friendly smile and gestures towards the stairs. "Your rooms are the first two on the left."