Session 1-08: Lets Just Wing It

General Summary

Year 116 on Heiligtag the 16th day of Kalt

As darkness settles over the town of Pine Grove. The group loads into the wagon of farmer Nartun and leaves the city lights behind. Both moons are providing light, Sinora in its last quarter, Firina in waning gibbous. Both fading into the twin new moons that mark the winter solstice in a few weeks. The party takes this moment to relax as best they can for the coming meeting, quite in there own thoughts, nobody speaks. Around Aband, evening coming to a close before the Qhreetch speaks out. "This is where we leave the road." He hops out of the cart before it comes to a full stop, and starts moving into the darkness south of the trail. The party unloads, and Nartun continues to Deep Bank disappearing into the darkness of the night. The group picks there way through the forest heading to the grove seen by Tycone and Sodryn last week, with the help of Qhreetch. The grove is surrounded by a thicker than average growth of trees. The group spreads out and encircles the grove, hiding where they can in the shadows of fallen logs and underbrush. They wait. Time slowly ticks by, with no sound on the forest save an insect hear and there. Malor picks up the sounds of an elk in the distance flowing hauntingly across the still night air. The temperature was a crisp 15 degrees that afternoon. Now the temperature was slowly dropping colder. They wait. The Wait The sound of silence is broken up by the sounds of flapping. First one raven, next three, then thirteen ravens flitter into the trees surrounding the grove. Taking up pearches on the branches around the grove, they caw at each other as they land, and make varying low gurgling croaking sounds as they settle in, their eyes surveying the grove. They wait. Time slows, the night drags on. Ravens seem equally impatient as they roost in the trees, now silent sentinels seemingly unaware of the group setting a few feet back from the grove in the shadows. more than an hour goes by, closer to two hours. They wait. A new sound, horses. North of the grove, back toward the road. The sounds come closer. The ravens on the Northside look and peer into the darkness, as does most of the group below them. As the noise increases dark shapes can be seen moving in the direction of the groove. Two figures dismount their horses and drag four smaller shapes behind them on ropes tied around there wrists. As the new intruders enter the grove, the party hiding in the shadows see two road wardens enter with four goblins in tow. The goblins have been beaten and bruised, and keep there heads down as they are pulled into the center of the clearing. Flanked on the sides, neither road warden talks and silence retakes the grove. They wait. Cold seeps into the very bones of the party. The hunters shuffle from one foot to another and have the luxury of movement to try to stay warm. One that the party does not. Ever the ravens keep an eye on the grove. Another hour ticks slowly by. They wait. The sound of another larger bird is heard. This a very big, unnaturally big raven its wingspan as wide as a man is tall, sailed into the grove. There it perched on a half-dead tree on the south side of the grove. The bird was in an advanced state of molting, if not the decay of death. More was not possible to calculate as to the darkness of the grove and limited light. The newest member of the vigil glanced around at the other ravens before gazing down at the wardens. One of the road wardens looks up as the bird takes them in with its sickly eyes. Without words, a warden waves his arm, hand open palm tilted up, to the goblins. He glances at them, then back to the large decaying raven. The raven response with a deep rasping call, that it ends with it coughing out the last part a ends it with a wheezing sound. They wait. The road wardens avoid looking at the raven. The raven looks down unmoving at the two road wardens and four goblins. The four goblins stare at there feet, shifting as much as they dare. The two scores strong murder of ravens keep watch on everything in the grove, but not behind them. There sitting for three or so long hours is our group. Muscles sore and coldness pushing deeply on the party they endure. They wait. A new noise. Crunching of snow. This time the noise is coming from the south. The road wardens straiten there posture. The murder of crows stands tall. The large raven turns its head and nods at an approaching figure. A very large figure that walks in with the help of a large staff made from the trunk of a gnarled and twisted tree. His staff is six to eight inches taller than this humanoids impressive nine feet. The hooded creature wears thick leather robes, they are heavy looking and adorned with fringe that has small bones and raven skulls weaved into them. The front of the robe has flaps to close him off from the cold, yet they are parted slightly open as if the cold was nothing. He pulls back his cloak and his pale greenish-grey skin can be seen with a balding head; and a long white beard that has more beads and bones woven into it. The beard frames a wicked snarling tusked mouth that curls up with his left nostril as his nose twitches. The large raven hops three times down the branch of the tree, spreads its wings, and floats down to the newcomers left shoulder. He glances up and pats the foot of the bird before turning and looking at the road wardens. A large evil grin spreads over his face. There is little dought that this is Trandarc. The Meeting Trandarc paces left then right in front of the goblins. Without speaking pulls a pouch from his belt and tosses it sideways to the warden that motioned to the goblins. The warden snatches the pouch from the air; then slips it into his outfit and out of sight. Trandac taps his staff, from the south woods a shadow floats out of the trees. This ghostly shadow figure is partially transparent and hovers a foot off the ground. It moves without a sound and makes the parties hair stand up on the back of there necks. It floats past Trandarc and into the center of the goblins. Enveloping them with a ghostly hug; they scream out. Wracked with pain the goblins twitch like marionette puppets, they twist and scream in pain. One falls limp, then another. Seconds later the third goes down. In a senseless act of defiance, the forth goblin holds out for an uncomfortably long moment. Then collapses into silence landing on top of one of his kith. The wardens shrug at the death of the goblins, turn and move north out of the grove. More movement from the south, as four undead goblins, shamble into the grove. The goblins pass Trandarc as he turns and walks back into the south wood with the large raven still sitting on his shoulder. The new undead goblins, each pick up one of the goblin bodies, hosting them over there shoulders. Then turn to follow Trandarc who has already made a fair headstart on departing the grove. Malor seeing this starts sneaking off to the right side of the grove and sneaks south keeping an eye on Trandarc. As the undead goblin sherpas clear the grove, the shadowy ghostly creature also floats south. Carilius the person hiding at the most northerly point of the grove; also starts tracking around to the right to follow Trandarc. Followed by Tycone. Tycone however, turning to move stepped on a small branch which snapped under his weight. That snap echoed out into the still night air. The ravens still in the trees all snap there heads the direction of the noise. The shadows head twists backward before its torso rotates to follows; it too looking for the source of the noise as well. Tycone drops down behind the log holding his breath. Carilius embarrasses the back of a tree hiding, as the shadow creature starts floating towards the source of the noise. Carilius attempts to cast an illusion to draw the shadow off. With no indication of it working the shade draws closer to Tycone. Seeing this Carilius rushed into the grove and attacks the ghostly wraith. The Battle Electric arcs from Carilius hands encircling and crackling around the creature. Target locked, the living shadow rushes towards Carilius and reaches into his body. Cold icy pain crawls through Carilius, he understands the torment the goblins suffered. Tycone, Sypha, and Qhreetch all engage as well. The murder of ravens takes to the air, swirling spinning diving into the battle. Sypha backing up and casting shadowy bolts that do limited damage to the creature become the focus of the raven's aggression. Ducking and moving the ravens scratch and peck drawing blood from Sypha. The phantasm shifts in place facing behind itself staring down Tycone. The wrath and Tycone exchange blows, back and forth, till the shadow drops Tycone. Sodyrin attempts to reach Tycone, fear locks her mind as she approaches and keeps her at a distance. Carilius pushes his attack to pull the creature away for Sodyrin to aid his fallen friend. Returning his focus on Carilius, the apparations advances, digging his fingers deep into the very soul of Carilius, draining his very life essence, feeding off him. This sacrifice allows Sodyrin time to heal Tycone. As Tycone stands, Carilius falls, weak of breath his eyes roll back. Tycone pushes in separating the shadow from his prey. Sodyrin shifts over to heal him while Tycone battles on. As the ghostly shadow leans into an attack, Tycone sweeps up separating the shadows head from its neck. He then steps sideways as the shade falls forward and lands in the snow before him. The snow melts as the shadow dissolves into it leaving what looks like a body outline where it fell. Tycone and Queetch begin to attack the ravens that are still pecking and dive-bombing Sypha. While Sodyrin works to keep Carillius alive. Praying over Carilius, asking Shallya to spare him seems to work, only for him to attempt to take his final breath. Only with constant prayer pouring Shallya's blessing into the tiefling is Sodyrin able to keep the fates from laying claim to his soul. After several more ravens are cut down with ax and bolt, by Tycone and Queetch, does the murder most fowl flee from the battlefield. Tycone surveys the battlefield before moving over to Sodyrin and Carilius. Sodyrin glances at Tycone with desperation in her eyes, but no time or breath to spare for fear of losing Carilius. Qhreetch and Tycone build a stretcher to carry there friend back to town. While Syhpa follows after Trandarc and Malor into the dark night to the south. Loading up the body of Carilius, Sodyrin keeps a vigil for Carilius as the group slowly walks North back to the road, and then back toward Pine Grove. This is painfully slow going as they try to avoid jostling Carilius or Sodyrin who walks beside him symbol out and hand on his chest.

Year 116 on Kuntag the 17th day of Kalt

Just past Midnight Sypha, moves quickly away from the grove, trying to gain ground on the other members of Trandarc's entourage that now have a few minutes head start. The goblins are not fast, and Sypha closes fast, to find them collapsed on the ground. The sherpa goblins have deteriorated as if the magic holding them to this existence failed them. It seemed that time itself caught up on overdue decay in moments. The other goblins crushed them under there weight and all were dropped into a heap. Sypha quickly looked around and saw Trandarc's tracks leading further south. The path, however, contained the coming and going of Trandarc and his goblins. Not being an experienced tracker Sypha was having trouble figuring out what was what, just a lot of disturbed snow existed. She was unable to find any trace of Malor, or if he followed past this point. Sypha turned back to the grove and was surprised that within about twenty feet of the location that the shadow had fallen was death and rot. All plants and trees near the spot that the shadow had fallen were wethered and dead. The melted snow marking the outline of where it had fallen was now frozen over. inside this iced puddle, a glint of metal was noticed. Sypha chipped a ring out of the ice, this ring was cold to the touch, unnaturally cold. Sypha pocketed the ring and raced after the group heading north. Hours Later Malor had been tracking Trandarc from a good distance since before the battle had started. For a few hours he crept following the trail, but in the last thirty minutes, the ground had turned to rock as he was getting closer to the southern mountains of the valley. A long day, a long night, cold unforgiving weather, low light as clouds moved in to block the moonlight from Sinora and Firina. Any and all of this had caused him to lose the trail. Few More Hours Later Three hours south of the grove, near the base of the mountains, Malor gives up the trail and returns, back to the grove he sees tracks indicating the group went back towards Pine Grove. Before Dawn Having slowly worked there way back from the forest, tired and near exhaustion, Tycone, Sodyrin, Sypha, and Qhreetch haul a still nearly dead Carilius into the town gates to pine grove. They head to the church of Shallya in the center of the town. The town and the church are empty as they break into it. Sypha notices what looks like the noblewoman Dame Tisar on the rooftop near the church. On second glance she is gone. Tycone and Qhreetch set Carilius on the ground near the altar as Sodryin doubles down, continuing the prayers to Shallya. They then collapse from the exhaustion of carrying their ally for the last seven hours. Sypha heads to the Inn and gathers some food and liquids to bring back for Sodyrin coming back as Malor arrives in town. Midday Over another six hours, this continues. Until finally light at the end of the tunnel, Carilius stabilizes, not trying to slip back into the darkness. Sodyrin does one final healing spell and passes out beside Carilius on the cold stone floor. Malor covers her with a blanket and sleeps as well.