The Untamed Wilds: Caravan Campaign

[MacConnell]

Day 45: The Haunted Tree, Day 10, Morning.

OOC: With no comment against such, I will assume it is okay to give the aluminum ingot to Sheldon.

It does not rain in the early hours of the morning as it has in the past few, but the sky is rather overcast with low hanging clouds. The Seekers have a quick breakfast and prepare themselves as best they may.

Sheldon -
"This sky may prove to our advantage, if it holds through the morning. I think we should reach our destination just before midday."

Following the tiny stream due west, it trickles over a small decline after about 3 hours walk. At this point, the Seekers pause, for the terrain and environ significantly change. Scanning around the area, it is noticed that the tiny stream fans out and that the group becomes swampy farther to the west. Something has caused the flow of the stream to back up and it appears to have been so for some considerable time, years likely. Standing dead pine can be seen in the distance among healthy cypress and tupelo. The fauna becomes very different than anything previously seen. Woodpeckers and a few calling birds flick about the trees but not songbirds. Wading birds stalk about looking for small prey and some aquatic game birds are visible as well.

Indigo -
"Seeing animals here, this close to our destination, is a good sign. I think."

Sheldon nods,
"How do you wish to proceed?"

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Merin says, "This swamp may have been artificially created somehow, perhaps even through the use of Way... but now that it is a swamp, it appears that normal vegetation and fauna have moved in. I would think that it was done to discourage travelers, and impede progress. If I had a haunted tree that I didn't want people to find, that's what I'd do. Artificial barriers invite people to overcome them. But natural-looking ones invite people to avoid or go around them."

Tor nods in agreement. "We should still stick to the plan. But now that we're in a swamp, we should be more careful, slogging through water is noisy, and will alert others more easily to our presence."

 

[Kwargrow]

Sannit ponders the problem but Bolo says to Merin, "I think in this instance our furrier friends can help us. If we send Myth and Turtle out to find a passable route through the swamp it could save us some time and if someone is able to detect them they would just think them to be ordinary animals." She kneels next to the bear and puts her forehead against his. "Find us a way through this swamp," she tells him.

Sannit asks, "What if someone tries to attack them?"

Bolo responds, "We will not be far behind."

Turtle has been wanting to jump into that water as soon as he saw it. If his buddy lynx goes with him he's sure they can bag a few of those ducks.

OOC: It is not Bolo's intention to send the pets off alone but to stay maybe five or ten paces behind them, letting the animals find a useable path.

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Merin is in favor of Sannit's plan. He turns to Myth and says, "Go with Turtle. Find a way through that is relatively clear. Avoid the water when you can. If someone attacks you, flee, and return to me. Understand?"

Myth nods, having understood his master's directions precisely.

OOC: Five to ten steps is too close. We can stay behind them, but I recommend a distance of about 15-20 paces.

GM: NOTE: A pace is 2 steps, called "strides" in game vocabulary. For distance, 20 paces is between 120 and 140 feet. You do not want your animals beyond the range of their links, which is 15 paces for Bolo and 16 paces for Merin.

 

[MacConnell]

Day 45: Proceeding with Caution, Day 10, Mid-Morning

​

Not all of the area is underwater, but the swampy area spreads wider the farther west the group travels. There is still a slow current, and after a few moments observation the original stream path can be determined and avoided. Sheldon and Indigo, who normally take the left flank, agree to take the right this time in a more circuitous route of the suspected direction. Sheldon and Indigo also take the pack animals with them, crossing over the tiny stream before making over the decline.

Sheldon -
"Give us a count of 300 before you start forward, since we have a bit farther to travel. Saemund, you should probably go with Sannit and Bolo on this approach."

GM: Stealth: Core + Motility + Flexibility + Agility + Confluence + Hemostasis + Symbiosis + Knowledge + Wisdom + Acuity + Will + Discipline + Resolve + Collegiate + Aberrative / Academic / Theologic + Manifest Will / Ayurveda / Faith + Alteration + Commercial + Obscurative + Stealth Sheldon = 91 + 80 = 171 Tor = 77 + 96 = 173 Merin = 91 + 91 + 74 = 256 Myth = 84 + 65 = 149 Indigo = 87 + 77 = 164 Sannit = 76 + 72 = 148 Bolo = 89 + 95 + 65 = 249 Turtle = 110 + 91 = 202 Saemund = 76 + 84 = 160

At this particular endeavor, Merin seems to fade into the shadows and Bolo seems to blend with the surrounding making them more particularly difficult to see than any of the others. After 2 hours of very slow travel in this manner, it begins to rain, hard and fast. Rather than a detriment, this allows the Seekers to move more quickly as the rain helps conceal them and dampen their movements.

The rain blows out quickly leaving the sky partially cloudy and the air thick with humidity. The moving clouds making large shadows dance and climb about the swamp. Though the desired tree has not yet been spotted, activity it noted at the edge of everyone's vision range, which is definitely people.

Slowing to almost a crawl, the Seekers are able to draw close enough to see a pair of Evipau, one male and one female. They appear to be sentries of some sort and better attired than those encountered previously. They do not appear to have noticed that they are under observation.

OOC: Indigo caused the pack animals to halt at a distance before she and Sheldon approached any closer. The 3 pack animals should be out of vision range of the two Evipaun.

GM: State specific intentions, but not actions.

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Tor will prepare his bow, while Merin will prepare to use Way to manipulate fire; he will use the Phoenix feather to augment. Merin figures that it will be safe to use fire, since the ground is so wet, there will be little chance of collateral fires. Myth will remain hidden and immobile for the moment.

 

[MacConnell]

Merin will prepare to use Way to manipulate fire...

Sheldon, who is linked with Merin, attempts to get his attention and shakes his head, emphatically, no. He points to his eyes and gestures grandiosely, before shaking his head no again. He then pushes his palms forward, twice, shaking his head yes.

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Seeing that Sheldon is obviously worried about the size and sound of the detonation that fire manipulation would cause, Merin then prepares to force punch the male Evipau in the temple area of the head.

 

[Kwargrow]

Bolo intends to draw her bow, summon Turtle to her side and then link with Sheldon and Merin attempting to impart the possibility of summoning some creature to attack or distract the sentries.

Sannit intends to hold his position. The spear is light in his hands, and he is attempting to determine how quickly he can reach the sentries if he has to.

Turtle intends to move as quietly as he can to Bolo's side. He knows the two humans ahead are not his friends.

 

[MacConnell]

Day 45: Bolo Divines for Animals, Day 10, near Mid-Day

Bolo intends to draw her bow, summon Turtle to her side and then link with Sheldon and Merin attempting to impart the possibility of summoning some creature to attack or distract the sentries.

GM: Bolo allows her mind to relax momentarily searching for animals in the area that might be called to her aide. Other than Turtle and Myth, disappointingly, there are only tiny ones to be found.

OOC: Spacing Information: As the group is separated by vision instead of way, we have Sheldon and Indigo on the far right, Merin and Tor in the middle, and Sannit, Bolo, and Saemund on the far left. Bolo can link with Merin, but Sheldon is too distant, and vice versus. The Evipau are at the forward edge of clear vision and also too far to be affected by manipulating way. Everyone will need to close.

Sheldon, who is linked with Merin sends confusing signals, as if he is undecided toward his course of action. Finally, he does decide that he and Indigo need to move closer and try to remain hidden while doing so.

GM: Merin senses through the link that Bolo is wanting to create a distraction. Once Merin understands this, Sheldon picks up on it from his link with Merin. Pinging Merin's attention, he turns away from the Evipau and creates a small ball of dim light that he makes dance in front of him for a second. He makes it disappear and shrugs for Merin to see.