Secret of mana IC thread

[Ridai]

Thaum nods. "Same here," he says, refering to Coney's response. The last thing he wants is for this to escalate into a fight amongst the group or people feeling slighted in this disagreement.

[tonberryking]

If Rina was meant to appear as the team's muscle, she's not doing a very good job of it, fretfully looking between her comrades speaking elvish with little in the way of a poker face. She only pipes up after the others call for a huddle, though she seems clearly reticent.

"I... I don't think we can speak for the village. We don't speak for the nemesis owls either but they're common enemy if there ever was one."

[MikelaC1]

to the group, in elvish Fine, then, solve it your own way, with violence no doubt, you dont seem to need my help
She turns to the worgs
My group says Im not allowed to make deals for anyone else, so what I said is off. I would advise you tell them everything you know about the owls, or they'll probably beat the information out of you, its what they do best.

[Ridai]

For a moment, Thaum closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Well then. No direction but forward.

"What we decided on is that we do not have the authority to make decisions for Rabiton, and thus cannot offer removing traps. What we can offer, however, is our help against the Nemesis Owls. It is clear that they are a threat to both you and Rabiton, as well as anyone they come across while in the wrong mood. If you tell us what you know about them, we could perhaps find a way to prevent them from bringing harm upon you and others. You stand to gain a fair bit of security with our help. If you agree to leave Rabiton and its people in peace, though I imagine people of your caliber find it far easier to hunt what you need in these woods than trying to glean what you can from a fortified settlement."

Spoiler: Actions

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Attempting a Diplomacy check it is then. Trying to convince the worgs that they benefit from working together with the group and that Rabiton is far too much trouble than it is worth for them.
(1d20+20)[39]

[Alhallor]

When Zanthia adresses the wargs again they look confused for a moment and then perhaps even angry. Dor replies with: "then we have nothing more to discuss and we piss off."

He stands up, like the other wargs and the Dire Wolves but stays still to listen to Thaum. "Wait, you wanna fight them?" He begins too… Laugh? After a short while the other two wargs chime in but when Dor looks at Thaum again he stops. "Oh, you're serious. I don't know who's more mad you're or one of the owls." He shakes his head. "We won't get involved in this. Fight your own battles. Should you come across an owl remember this."

Dor raises his left paw a bit and the others begin to retreat slowly. "When you're casting a spell at them, any spell they're madness will claim you. The older the owl, the harder it's to resist. They're three matrons, the most powerful of them, they're hanging themselves full of stuff. Not hard to miss really. You're little pipsqueak saw one of them."

He gestures towards Larimar. "Give him back his mind Drak, before they kill us." Drak takes the Crystal that flew from Larimar's head and tosses it towards the group. The wargs and wolves would then proceed to retreat.

[Ridai]

Thaum is getting rather tired of the assumptions that any alternative way must be a fight. "I said 'perhaps find a way from bringing harm upon you and others', and I meant it. Finding a solution to their aggression. Not jumping into a fight and disregarding all other circumstances and possibilities."

With... whatever was stolen from Larimar having been returned, Thaum does a slight bow. "Thank you for returning Larimar's, ah, mind," Larimar has been perfectly capable of thought, so at the current moment, the healer is not exactly sure what was stolen and returned specifically. "And thank you for the information. Please do reconsider any action against Rabiton, if you planned any. In fact, simply doing normal trade with them may be a rather pleasant and fruitful experience for everyone involved."

[MikelaC1]

Regarding the situation and what the worgs just said, Zanthia quietly intones words I vanish and disappears, having cast greater invisibility on herself.

[Toliudar]

Coney

Coney is not so secretly relieved to see the worgs slink away. The problem with allying with an opportunistic predator is that, all too often, you become the opportunity.

"All right then. Perhaps we can continue the patrols that Larimar cleverly started? He found owls once that way. Perhaps we can do so again."

Coney couldn't quite believe that she was suggesting hunting for Nemesis Owls. But if the alternatives was leaving them free to hunt her children...

[Ridai]

Zanthia suddenly making herself invisible catches Thaum off-guard. "Did you spot anything dangerous?" he asks in the direction where Zanthia stood.

When no answer comes, he looks more uncertain. "...Zanthia?" No answer still. The witch had been visibly upset, but her just disappearing was... worrying. Visibly so. Perhaps she returned to Rabiton? Hopefully so...

[Alhallor]

The acid that sizzled before now slows down, when the worgs have gone away it's eerily silent for a moment.

Till a small bird lands near the party on a tree and begins chirping. They seem to be dangers inhibiting this place right now.

[Toliudar]

Coney

Coney drops her skunk disguise and hops over to Thaum, nudging a pant leg gently with an ear. Her gravelly voice is as soft as it ever gets.

"Look, it'll be dark soon. If you'd rather that we make our way back to town to check for Zanthia, we can sure do that. But she's a tough, capable lady. Maybe she just needs to blow off some steam?"

[Ridai]

Thaum glances at Coney, before his golden eyes look into the woods again, perhaps hoping in vain to spot Zanthia. "I hope so... You are..." A deep breath. "You are right, of course. And Rabiton might still be in danger as well." The healer still looks and sounds down, but responsibility calls, and it is not in the habit of waiting for him.

"Where to?" Thaum asks, doing his best to not drag the others down.

[WindStruck]

Larimar says, looking downward, "Well, if she simply made herself invisible, I still should be able to track her..."

Spoiler: ooc

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Though I guess for reasons, it won't actually work.

[Alhallor]

Spoiler: Larimar

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You can follow her tracks a bit, but you lose them when they go towards some thick underbrush the giant owl-spider must have missed.

[WindStruck]

Larimar sniffs his nose, it almost wrinkling as whiskers twitched, and he shook his head. He was kneeling down, analyzing something on the ground in some thick underbrush.

"These tracks are hers but.. I don't know, she may as well be gone at this point. Well, it's safe to assume that she ran off for her own reasons. What are we going to do, gang? It's getting pretty late..."

[Toliudar]

Coney

The rabite looks around at her remaining colleagues.

"Come along back round to Mary's house tonight. I'll finish the stew. We can figure out how to -"

She shook her head, still not quite believing her own foolishness.

"- find the Nemesis Owls. And perhaps Zanthia will have cooled off. All will be well."

She bounces back in the direction of the village.

[Ridai]

Thaum follows Coney back to the village. A moment of rest may be quite welcome right now to gather his thoughts again.

[WindStruck]

Larimar knows the way back to the village as well, as he came this way twice, and he also easily managed to run back the first time. Still the thoughts of their missing party member occupy his mind, though he keeps a lookout for dangers, still.

[Alhallor]

The way back to Rabiton is uneventful and the village also still seems like the group has left it.

[Toliudar]

Coney

The Rabite guides her colleagues back to her children's home, and introduces everyone to Mary, if she's arrived yet. If her kids haven't already done so, Coney will pick up the process of preparing an evening meal.

Coney is carefully open with Terryn and Mary about what has brought them to Rabiton, and the nature of the conversation with the wolves outside of town.

"This means that not only do you have the weirdness of the Owls to deal with, and whatever they're trying to do, but there may be a sign of more activity with the wolves. AND locals should be wary of others coming in, in case it's somehow related to this strange rabite-hating cult."

Coney pauses, her gravelly voice grating to a halt before she offers a lop-sided smile to her children.

"Aren't you glad that Mom doesn't come to visit more often?"

[Alhallor]

Mary is already there and greets Coney but seems more reserved then Terryn. She is a big larger than her brother but seems to has shorter ears. She wears a small amulet that depicts a sleeping Dryad.

Both kids have prepared everything necessary that her mother can work her cooking magic and have also prepared some pillows for the others to sit at a table large enough that everyone can sit.

When Coney opens up about the cult and the other stuff Terryn seems relatively calm while Mary on the other hand trembles. "Well, that does certainly seem big but we have handled a lot of calamities happening and with you and your friends here I'm sure we can weather even that storm." Says Terryn.

"By the Dryad! How can you be so calm! That seems horrible. And you're not responsible for that mother, you just bring the news not the disaster." Mary touches her amulet with one ear and that seems to calm her down at least a little bit.

"I think it's a great opportunity to show everyone that we are here to say. And coldhand will be ecstatic to show off." Terryn counters.

[Ridai]

Thaum glances about on the way, hoping but failing to spy a glimpse of Zanthia. Coney's children are greeted with a gentle smile and an introduction (for Mary, that is, since they have not met yet), but he remains somewhat withdrawn. Given it is a home of rabites, making sure to watch one's head has a rather high priority as Thaum steps into the home and seats himself.

Coldhand, huh. Getting dangerously close to Cold Shatterear.

"We are here to help you against these threats, though I am unsure at the moment whether the cult or the owls pose the more immediate danger."

[WindStruck]

Larimar is thankfully hardly any bigger than Rabite size, so he comfortably fits in the house and maneuvers around.

"Not too much to worry about, I think, since we're here for the moment. And you've got that wizard in his tower," Larimar says, not all too concerned sounding either.

Looking to Thaum he says, "Remember what those wolves said about the owls, though. How any sort of magic you use on them brings you madness. I think that one time I simply tried detecting magic on them, that got me. Anyway, Aned flies, I shoot.. uh.. I guess if we fight owls, you and Coney need to be careful not to cast any magic toward it. Unless you're prepared for the consequences..."

After that, trailing off, Larimar looks about the room, somewhat taking in the expressions of the others. Rather suddenly, he changes topics. "So! What's for dinner?"

[Toliudar]

Coney

Taking Larimar's kindly hint, Coney retreats into the kitchen, from which she calls out.

"It's a little baked vegetable confection I call Tuber Closeness. Potatoes, turnips, some nuts, a little butter. You're going to love it. Ah! Mary, thanks so much for finishing boiling the vegetables."

There is the repeated thudding of mashing and stirring from the kitchen.

"I suppose that, if it came down to it, I'd have a few ways to deal with the owls that don't involve shooting them with spells. Not particularly safe or fun ways, unfortunately. But that's why we have Thaum. Madness is just illness of a different flavour, isn't that right? You should be able to handle any owlish curses."

It sounds more like she's trying to convince herself than anyone else.

[Ridai]

Something about the name "Tuber Closeness" concerns Thaum a little, but he dismisses it as, well, a side effect of his mood.

"I was able to undo the effects earlier, so I am confident I can do so again, as long as my mana reserves suffice," Thaum confirms, voice raised a bit so Coney can still hear. "We really need more information about what this cult is doing, but that is a matter for tomorrow, I imagine."

[Alhallor]

When Coney brings the food both Terryn and Mary nearly dig right in. Terryn moreso than Mary.

There is a place for everyone to sleep. The usual noises of the night are typical for a forest and there is nothing that doesn't fit in.

When a new dawn breaks Mary excuses himself to go towards the temple and Terryn will help cooking marmelade with the rest of the village.

The guards are doubled, some of the children are on lookout and some of the villagers can be seen either sharpening their tools or weapons with whetstones, two are explicitly fletching arrows.

Spoiler: Larimar

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They do an ok job doing it. They probably won't produce masterwork arrows but the ones they are fletching are ok.

You head out to the spring section of the forest currently following the road.

Spoiler: OOC checks

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Because you have already used up your pre-rolled checks, everyone who wants to look around can roll a search check. Please all also roll two initiative checks in case we need them.

[Ridai]

Thaum enjoys the meal, most certainly different than a lot of what he has tasted in the past, complimenting Coney's cooking.

It takes a while for Thaum to fall asleep, feeling restless, listening for something that does not end up happening.

------------

On the road, Thaum is quiet, but trying to stay alert. A bit of asking around yielded no sign of Zanthia. Looking for the silktails does provide doing something with purpose, so that does help to distract himself.

Spoiler: OOC

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Initiative checks (1d20)[11] (1d20)[10]

[WindStruck]

Larimar bashfully offers to help out a bit with the dinner. The dish Tuber Closeness, while sounding kind of strange, actually tasted pretty good. He sleeps relatively comfortably too, considering all the other weird places he's camped out in, another person's home he was invited into wasn't really so bad.

---

In the morning he sets out with the others, everyone still not entirely sure if they were taking the best actions looking for these silktails. Yet, he couldn't think of anything better to do, himself.

Spoiler: rolls

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initiative 1: (1d20+5)[24]

initiative 1: (1d20+5)[6]

search: (1d20+4)[19]

[Toliudar]

Coney

After supper, Coney leaves the cleaning up to others, and focuses instead on telling stories from her past, and pointing out that Terryn and Mary are already ten years old 'and not getting any younger', and that it's an important responsibility not just to propogate their brand new species, but to do so with genes as clearly excellent as their own.

--

In the morning, Coney is again subdued, trembling slightly as she considers the terrible risks involved in attempting to hunt those who would naturally hunt her. She disguises herself as a skunk again, hoping at least that it will make them think twice before snapping her up.

Spoiler: OOC

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Initiative: (1d20+4)[12]

Search: (1d20)[2]

Spot: (1d20-1)[15]

[Alhallor]

As long as your following the road, everything seems pretty peaceful. The spring section of the forest is gorgeous with different flowers and trees transfixed in full bloom. Birds are singing, Little insects fly from flower to flower and sometimes you even see a giant insect variant gently plucking nectar from a oversized blooming stalk. When you unavoidingly leave the road to get in the deeper parts of the forest it's hard not to get distracted by all different kinds of small flying insects who seems to take an interest in you or confuse you with some kind of new flower, though right know none of them seem to sting or bite you. If you wave them away they seem to back off and lose more and more interest the more you shoo them away.

It's not too long till Larimar finds a bit of wool hanging on a low branch. By comparing it with Coney's and what he have seen before it seems definitely be some kind of different wool.

After some searching, the little chobin also finds a track that seems to be pretty much like that of a rabite if the rabite had doubled in size. The distance between the hops is also quite large which is really some accomplishment if you factor in that the "ceiling" of the forest isn't that high and doesn't seem to be damaged. After some searching where everyone needs to help because the hops appear quite random you come towards a section of the forest where the underbrush is even thicker.

Spoiler: OOC

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It's considered difficult terrain. Flying works against that.

Larimar also finds some small parts of rabite-wool that appear to be either naturally shed or have been used towards enemy's and have fallen off. It's roughly noon when you can see a small clearing with a MASSIVE rabite, who seems to be strangely colored on a small pedestal and several normal rabites seemingly dancing and howling and throwing things in the air.

Spoiler: A new map

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Strange ritual place? Everything is difficult terrain, except the greyed out area and the terrain inside of that.

Spoiler: Larimar

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I rolled a Survival for you in regards to tracking.

Spoiler: Coney

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Something in the farthest reaches of your mind seems to roll and boil. I want you to roll an Intelligence check against 15, should you succeed your stunned for 2 rounds.

They doesn't seem to have realized you're here yet.