Wrenn, who is a good enough Bender to affect foes at a distance, uses some of the bat guano in the group's collections to augment a heat attack on one of the medium range foes. He follows this up with an arrow.
Seeing the same new threat as Wrenn, Oorvid ignored his maimed enemy and ran toward the others. Wrenn moved little, as he drew to fire. Oorvid was not in his line of sight. Askari had reached the middle archer of the three, as Wrenn began to fire. All three Amiradthae drew to fire.
It was Volki who acted first, further ionizing the insides of her chosen target. She had no means by which to augment this manipulation; but because Askari, Oorvid, and Wrenn all fought by means of lethal damage, it was the most efficient option. Astrid, being delayed by about 20 tics in order to change tactics, acted upon the farthest target before he could even aim the drawn arrow. She did not drop him, but the heat was intense. He faltered, the arrow going awry.
By having to choose the closest target due to clear visibility, Wrenn shot the same enemy that Volki had been caustically burning. The arrow sailed cleanly through his abdomen, barely slowing. The enemy fell backward, a mere breath from death’s call. Askari reached the middle Amiradtha just as the first one fell and his arrow whizzed by. Pushing his shield into the bow arm of the enemy, he stabbed him in the gut with his short sword. The wiry Amiradtha tried to turn away, but the sword opened a nasty gash across his visceral mass.
The maimed archer, smartly, chose to flee, though his egress was not very fast. By the time Oorvid leapt over the fallen body of the enemy that Wrenn had finished. Askari and Astrid had both finished their respective enemies. Seven Amiradtha Archers laid on the ground in various states of incapacitation or worse.
Being a bit surprised and relieved that she is not hurt, Astrid moves to Askari to render aid, asking if anyone else needs help. Once the party's needs are tended, she will partner with Oorvid to search the fallen, because she knows that he will give a quick and more efficient end to those who linger, unlikely to recover.
Wrenn will also render any aid that is necessary, starting with his own wounds. He will then search the bodies of the fallen, helping those who linger by speeding them mercifully on their way, using Leach. (He can affect opponents at a distance.) He will also retrieve what arrows he can, as long as they are undamaged and not warped.
Siphon:
By actively manipulating Mystical waylines, this causes the inexplicable loss of Body in the touched target, while restoring a loss of Body to the Bender. The maximum number of points transferred cannot exceed the original loss of the Bender or the total life of the target, though greater damage may be caused to the target. For example, a huge ant has a Body of 1 and Mind of 2, a maximum of 3 points could be gained from this creature. The range of this task is always limited to touch. The damage factor for this task is 6.
NOTE: Siphon is a necromantic act and considered to be malevolent, even by player characters, unless the practicioner is, at least, incapacitated.
Once the wounded are tended, Astrid and Wrenn, together are able to locate 15 functional arrows, which most certainly includes some fired by the Amiradthae. All arrows have Ularin heads. While searching the fallen, other than foodstuff, several items of interest are discovered. It is not considered to be prudent to attempt to thoroughly examine anything at this time, but the entire haul includes 7 curious stones and 14 various bone talismans.
Having originally approached this particular Keep from the tunnels below and having previously faced two other units of the gray skinned Amiradthae as opposed to the cloud-white skinned Shimadow, it can be surmised that this particular location is the focus of whatever it is the Amiradthae are trying to do. It is also deduced that greather resistance should be located within the structure itself. Some planning is warranted, under the circumstances. The party is currently east of the Keep, likely very near and just south of the old quarry that should now be an artificial pond.
Thinking about their current position, Astrid addresses the party. "If more enemies are, in fact, garrisoned in that Keep, they will likely make regular trips for water. I suspect that they will have at least one sentry watching from the northeast tower, if it is accessible. I suggest that we approach from the south, if we are going in once Askari and Wrenn heal."
Wrenn, not being in dire straits, has second thoughts about using Siphon. He switches tactics to available weaponry, killing his injured foes as swiftly and as mercifully as he can manage.
Wrenn agrees with Astrid's suggestion, but awaits thoughts from the others, just in case a discussion should be required.
The party did not immediately come to a decision on the matter. Askari and Volki thought it might be better to split the party, with them returning to the nearest pergola and coming back through the familiar tunnel. As they could not be dissuaded from this, Astrid, Oorvid, and Wrenn were left to approach the Keep on their own. As the suggested southern side seemed to make the most sense, the three began trekking through the trees to facilitate a better line of travel, not associated with the previous battle.
When the three stopped, no longer able to see the Keep but thinking they were in the right location to start northward, sounds from farther south halted the immediate movement. The sounds were definitely those of a person, not an animal. A lone female, who appeared to be properly equipped for hunting and of the Centrin tribe came into view, as she followed a game trail directly toward the three. Everyone saw each other at the same time. A Norikadian female, an Orngaddrin male, and a Shimadow male were looking at an approaching Centrin female. Had none of the four known one another, all would think local explorers instead of hostile wanderers, especially since no one painted his skin like the head-hunters do.
Astrid: full wellness
Mantle: 24
Stones: 20 Oorvid: full wellness
Tunic: 61 - 6 = 55 - 1 = 54 Wrenn: full wellness
Tunic: 57 - 1 = 56
Ularin Arrows: 22 + 15 = 37 Star Wolfess: full wellness
