"I realize that...but don't forget that this may all have been an elaborate scheme by the demon. Not likely, but possible. I will send to major temples and ask for divinations. Please give me the names of the dead once we reach the shelter."
Nicholaus nods to Maur and then he works with the survivors to gather up what remains that can be taken to the inn. There is little left that can be buried from the villagers. The wagons are in bad shape and neither one is going anywhere without major repairs.
"We'll have to leave them here and go on foot or on your horses," the farmhand looks towards where your horses had been tied up. "Assuming they didn't all bolt."
Caerth nods gratefully to Shazakiel, both for its help in combat and healing, as well as its advice. "Thanks again, and may the spirits watch over you as well."
Shazakiel bows its head one last time before disappearing in a flash of light and a gust of wind.
JustinCase said:
After making sure there are none that still need healing, the half-orc turns to the others.
"I had feared it would come down to a confrontation with that demon," he says glumly. "Although I was expecting it to be later, so we would be better prepared. It seems he's got a scheme of sorts to study our abilities before defeating us in a final confrontation."
He grits his teeth.
"Going after Eike now is exactly what Vok wants, so I think we should make a new plan. Our plan. And not reveal our full potential just yet, because he will be watching us the whole time."
Caerth's healing magic restores the young girl's brother back to full heath and the young man takes charge of his little sister. The half-orc druid finds that there are only a handful of survivors besides his friends. There are only seven left. The elder Aureus pulled from the second wagon must have succumbed to his injuries after Druaga's evil manifestation left the mortal plane.
JustinCase said:
Looking around the field of battle -- carnage, more like -- Caerth sighs. He knows his allies won't allow the bodies to remain as they are, as food for scavengers. Nobody appreciates the vultures, the ravens and the maggots.
And he remembers what the ogre requested with his dying breath. 'Burn my body. Do not bury.' Is it still there, or is it consumed by the abyssal fires?
"We will need more allies."
Gronagon's body was not claimed by the dark god. Perhaps Vaprak wouldn't let the Sword God claim the ogre man. The ogre still lies dead at the top of the hill, as well. Caerth also finds the dead form of Zecca, turned back into a raven, lying dead in the copse of trees where it fell. The bird could be left for the scavengers or buried to mark Xander's death.
Aureus comes back with three of the horses in tow. She has Caerth horse, Autumn Storm; Maur's stout pony, which was too stubborn to run away; and Phar's graceful pinto with her.
"I can't find Lady," she says glumly.
"I hope she's okay." The hutaakan peers into the darkness around them in hopes of seeing something.
"Can you get Screech to look for her and the other horses?" She asks Caerth.
"He might see something we'd miss."
"They might find us when they feel it's safe," Nicholaus says. "We really should stay here any longer. The noise of the battle could attract scavengers or more deadly things."
Caerth quickly discovers that creating a pyre for the two dead ogres is best done at the top of the hill where they attacked from as the ground at the top is barren without any risk of causing a brushfire. Rolling Gronagon's body up the hill is tough but with some help he manages to get the dead ogre up onto the hill. The others help as best they can to gather the needed wood required for the fire. The dragongriff made a mess of the copse of trees in which it tried to find cover. Once everything is gathered together, the pyre is lit and the two ogres are soon ablaze.
Once Caerth has ensured the flames won't spread from the pyre, you set out for the Hillwall Inn. The three horses are used for the worst of the wounded. Aries refuses to ride, however. He ties up his leg and uses a piece of wood for a makeshift waking stick. After a few hours, he seems to have found a good pace that doesn't hurt his weary limbs.
It takes six hours walking through the night to reach the roadside inn, which sits on a high hill near foothills that surround a dozen low peaks. The building is made mainly of stone and look like it could use some repairs. Next to it on one side sits a stone stable without a roof. On the other side is a squat house made of stone and sod that looks to be built into the ground. There is smoke rising from the old house's chimney but both the house and the inn are dark with no sound of activity.
"It doesn't look like it's open," Aureus whispers. She seems uncertain.
"As I said, I've never been here myself," Nicholaus replies. He keeps his voice low. "But I'm sure its fine."
The farmhand doesn't move to knock, however.
Phar sighs and moves to the inn and tries to look through one of the windows, which is caked in dust and grime. He can't see a thing through the dirty window.
Aureus moves to the old house and listens at the door. Nothing. She taps on the door lightly and listens again. She hears a snort like the sound of a pig. Then she hears soft snoring.
"Hello? You have travelers who'd like to stay at your inn," she says in a loud voice as she knocks on the door.
There is another snort, a short squeal, and what sounds like pig feet clopping on a wooden floor. Aureus tries to peer through one of the shuttered windows but even her eyes can't pierce the dusty windows.
"You'll have to knock louder than that to wake up Mazz," a tired voice says from within the stables. "But I'd rather you didn't. He needs his rest." A young man who looks barely in his twenties appears at the entrance to the stables. He is rubbing sleep from his eyes and he yawns. "If you really need a room, the Hillwall Inn can be opened. If you're bandits, we don't have anything worth stealing, so you might as well crawl back into the scrub and sleep with the lizards."
"Does that false bravado really work on bandits?" Aries asks with a hint of annoyance. The Soldier of Iron sits down on a low bench that sits next to the front door of the inn.
"Bandits usually don't waste their time on us or ask obvious questions," the young man says as he tries to pat down his bedhead. "But they do come here to use the water well and the privy in the back when they get desperate. They rarely try to break in as they know Mazz will report them to Captain Balzer if they become troublesome."
He takes out a pair of greasy spectacles, tries to clean them off with his dusty shirt, and then puts them on. He moves through the dark with ease and then looks at each of you. "Adventurers!" Then he looks at the villagers. "But not all of you." He nods his head. "I am Ivoron Asheye, Doorman of the Hillwall inn. I welcome you. We don't get a lot of visitors, as you can tell."
Ivoron moves to open the front door. He produces a key and unlocks the inn.
"You're quick to trust," Aries says.
"Not at all," the man says. "I just know the difference between adventurers and bandits. Besides, I am not completely defenseless."
"We won't cause any trouble," Aureus says. She glares at Aries and the battered soldier simply shrugs.
Ivoron swings open the front door and invites you all inside. The interior is rundown, almost shabby. It isn't the dust an grime so much as it is the poor condition of the tables and chairs of the common room and mess of old bottles and tarnished serving trays on the bar. Behind the bar is a wall of empty liquor bottles. A set of stone stairs leads up onto a second floor near the back of the building. The few tables that aren't broken are covered in drop clothes meant to keep the dust off of them, although the clothes themselves are stained with dirt and dried liquids.
"You weren't kidding," Aries says as he hobbles into the inn.
"My father never told me about this," Nicholaus says just inside the doorway.
"You will find we have almost nothing here in the way of luxuries," Ivoron says. "The water in the well is clean and the beds are comfortable enough. Clean linen costs extra, as Mazz and I don't have anyone else to help us. Our cook died two winters ago and we haven't been able to find anyone to replace her."
The man, who you can now see if a half-elf, goes behind the bar and unlocks a small trapdoor in the floor. "We don't have any spirits, but we keep water from the well bottled and chilled. It's quite good with some prickly pear fruit. That costs extra, however. We don't have any meat and if you kill and eat Mazz's pet pig, you will find yourself hunted by the soldiers of Fort Symas. Captain Balzar and his men are quite protective of Mazz, although they don't have the resources to station a permanent garrison here."
Ivoron pulls out several bottles of chilled water from storage. "Each bottle is 1 silver. Added fruit costs 3 silvers. We have a limited amount right now. We do have some gathered seeds and nuts, which you can buy for 1 silver for a heaping bowl. A bed for the night costs 5 coppers or 1 silver if one of you wants a room to yourself. You can sleep in this room for a single copper. The rooms on the third floor are available for only 3 coppers each, as most of them don't have ceilings or leak when it rains, although it rarely rains here. We have little in the way of firewood. I save most of it for Mazz's hearth. He is an old man and needs all the warmth he can get at night."
"Salt of the earth," Aries says. "I'm impressed you get by with so little."
"We live as best we can," Ivoron says with a smile. "We like our simple lives." He chuckles. "I'd offer you a bath but our tub is old and rusted. I'd recommend you use the sand pit out back to scrub yourselves clean."
Ivoron notices Angus standing on the other side of the doorway. "You will have to bed down in the stables, I'm afraid, sir. I will not charge you anything. You can keep your horses in there as well," he says to Maur.
Aureus steps up to the bar and digs out a single platinum coin from her pouch.
"I want you to take care of them as best you can," she says to Ivoron while motioning to the villagers.
"Water, fruit, food you can spare, and comfortable beds for all of them."
The half-elf is surprised to see the coin. "I- I will do as you ask."
"And I hope this will cover my time here," the hutaakan adds as she pulls out 3 gold pieces and hands them to Ivoron. Without another word, she takes a single bottle of chilled water, says goodnight to you all, and heads upstairs to find a room for herself.
JustinCase said:
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OOC:
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Caerth will use his Cure Moderate Wounds and Cure Minor Wounds on those who are still below 0 hp. I'm not sure if there are any left? If there are more than one, his priority will be with children.
Caerth was at 69 hp, then lost 21 from the divine storm, and regained 11 from the unicorn. So he's now at 59/71 HP.
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OOC: There were only 7 survivors, so between healing from Aurues, Caerth, Maur, and the unicorn, all of those who remained were brought back up above 0 hp.
