[IC] Wandering Star : Heroes of the Middle Reaches (Part One)

[The Digger]

Charlie looked uncertain about the task. Before this night she had been confident of her abilities - now she was not so sure. But she was needed, and no other had quite the skills she possessed.

"Very well. I will do my best. This is something that must be done"

With cat-like grace she turned and loped off into the flickering half-light cast by the bonfires. Almost immediately she was lost to sight and sound.
The others could do little but wait.

[sblock=OOC]Stealth d20 + 9 (8 added in error) 20 +8 (9) = 29 Roll Lookup [/sblock]

 

[Sparky]

At the Piker hideout...

Ranver sees to the bodies of the fallen, helping Zarathas to gather them in an orderly fashion. He and the Paladin say deathrites over the fallen so their vengeful souls would swiftly find judgement and rest.

He is regretful that they cannot contact the Watch personally, but hopes the commotion (even in this neighborhood) would attract their attention regardless. Still, as one who ran afoul of them a number of times in his youth, he is glad that they have pressing business elsewhere.

He uses a dagger to scratch a rough All-Seeing Eye onto the floor where the bodies are piled. Hoping that this will be sufficient to notify the Watch that the disorder was fallout from official Church business.


On the way to the temple...

Ranver was lost in thought about the strange shape-shifting talisman. It seemed unlikely that its importance was diminished by the change. Rather, a holy temple seemed a perfect location to safeguard a sinister manifestation of a tempestuous goddess. The young priest was suddenly glad of his patron goddess' constance.

There was no real reason to disbelieve the repentant halfling, but talking to the church elders was clearly the next step. Except now that was complicated...

Shaken out of his reflection on the strange events of the evening, Ranver's brow furrows at the change surrounding the lighthouse temple. Zarathas speaks, "Charlie, could you sneak past them to the temple and see if you can find a priest to explain this. Maybe they are just mercs called by the temple, but they could also be friends of this beast."

Ranver harumphs good-naturedly and mutters something about chopped liver. He peers closely at the figures to see what he might discern or remember.

[sblock=OOC]Religion roll to recognize the men as church folk: 21

If a different skill would be more appropriate, let me know. Streetwise?[/sblock]

 

[helium3]

[sblock=Charlotte]You're able to easily sneak around and past the guards and you enter the temple around the side through a loose grate over a floor level window. The place is pretty much empty. Sailor's Hope isn't a busy place except on high holy days and you're able to make your way straight to the grotto without encountering another living soul.

As you approach, you can hear a soft scraping sound and the clink and rattle of rubble being moved around. Both Petra Shellendo and Pieter Anzalli are wielding large bristle brooms like common house cleaners. The unbroken items have been separated from the broken and most of the rubble and debris has been collected into a large pile off to one side. The black goo on the wall has stopped smoking but "MELLORA IS A WHORE" is still quite plainly visible.

Pieter and Petra look up with shock as you pop out from the shadows like a dark little sprite. Pieter cocks his head quizzically and Petra wails aloud, "Oh no!! I sent them all to their DOOM!!!" and promptly faints onto the floor. Pieter sighs, shakes his head and mutters, "It's been a rough night for him."

As he bends over to begin the process of reviving his friend again he looks in your direction, "Where are your friends? Did you retrieve it?"[/sblock]
[sblock=Ranver]You think and you think and you think, trying to recollect where you've seen these gentlemen before. They do seem familiar and a few minutes after Charlotte skulks off into the darkness you remember why. They're deacons from the Vault of Years. They're the good guys and can be trusted, unless there's some crucial tenet of the Pelorian faith that you missed during your studies.[/sblock]

 

[Sparky]

Charlotte pads quietly into the shadows deepened by the light of the bonfires. Ranver squints against the fires at the silhouettes and his face slackens with relief. "They're Pelorites."

He looks at the others, "I'm going to go out." If no one objects he strides forward from cover, a hand outstretched, the symbol of Ioun showing clearly on his shield, "Hail brothers! We've business with Father Petra regarding this evenings troubles."

He keeps moving forward, there wasn't time for these men to challenge the group's arrival, Fathers Petra and Pieter needed to hear about the strangenesses that had come to light.

 

[Blackrat]

Ah, good. The Sun shines again. Zarathas comments on Ranver's insight and walks down the road beside him. He takes his new Holy Symbol out and displays it on his chest for the men to see.

 

[Walking Dad]

Jorje follows a bit more cautiously behind.

[sblock=OOC]

[sblock=Mini stat block]
Jorje
Perception: 12 Insight: 17 Normal Vision
AC 16 Fortitude 13 Reflex 15 Will 15
Hit Points: 24 / 24 Bloodied: 12
Temporary Hit Points: 0
Action Points: 2 Second Wind: 1
Healing Surge: 6 Surges per day: 6 / 8
Encounter Powers: Grasping Shadows
Daily Powers: Phantom Chasm

[/sblock][/sblock]

 

[Redclaw]

Varilar, struggling to trust anyone acting as guards, follows as well, ready to bolt to the nearest shadow at any sign of trouble.

 

[helium3]

[sblock=Charlotte]The High Priest of Erathis and lead magistrate for the town's only court is eventually able to revive the High Priest of Mellora and helps him to his feet. That taken care of, they both turn their attention to you and begin to press you for news on the nights activities.[/sblock]
[sblock=Everyone Else]The guards are at first wary and suspicious of Zarathas. Once he comes close enough to be easily seen in the flickering light, and particularly once they see the holy symbol he wields, they relax and usher them into the temple. Though it's clear they were expecting you, they ask no questions and in fact hardly speak to you. The mood is somber as they escort you into the main entry to the temple and then return to their post.[/sblock]

 

[helium3]

The rest of the party finds their way to the shattered grotto and finds Charlotte standing there, coyly deflecting the two priest's attempts at getting to the bottom of things with sly grins and mysterious shrugs.

Exasperated, Petra turns to Ranver and Zarathas, "At last!! Someone I can speak to! Would you PLEASE tell me what happened? Your friend here doesn't seem to want to tell us what you encountered."

At that, little Tatiana runs forward, wraps her arms around the old priests waist and bursts into tears.

 

[The Digger]

"Everything all right outside?" Charlotte asks coyly of the others, with a significant nod of her head to the guards outside.

By the look on their faces, she decides to accept things are all above board.

"Well! We found the thieves at this house on the other side of town. There were two guard drakes and some halflings on guard..."

Charlie tells the story as she remembers it: with particular emphasis on her heroic battles, her death-defying leap through a high window and the details of her innate, but newly discovered, tactical awareness.