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[Tiruin]

Joan scanned the wreckage and narrowed her eyes to pick out certain peculiarities within the details due to the weather, and that her eyesight was somewhat blurry in the climate--her thoughts, however, drifted from tangent to tangent; one of them wondered if she gave Mudren the right idea to shoot non-lethally for surprise and if she said it exactly as she thought it.

Turning back to survey the timeline, she had the inkling of one very discernible point.

"No sign of the inhabitants--and even the mounts were slain, with no due merit as a result. Do I feel it right to assume we're not facing bandits or such creatures? I can't draw the idea for the likes of me to wonder why or how anything would do that."

She related the idea of food afterwards, noticing she was speaking out loud, then the idea of bringing back bandits and desperation given the scene, before relating another idea that she could be fully wrong and this may have been caused by other creatures, as a worst-case scenario.

Joan asks Brynd's opinion of how he'd handle the attackers, and his idea on from where they presumably attacked, as well as the commonality of bandits along these kinds of lands.
What can scare a chattel again?

[The Ensorceler]

Having expected something of the sort, Svurrl takes its time thinking, sitting down in the doorway. It is not readily apparent how it intends to handle the situation, even with a few vague comments and orders. "Standard procedure... nobody leave? Gambling dispute, money, maybe a cheat. Not clear whose gun." Svurrl goes completely still, and asks slowly,"Were they tainted? You, the one who shot them, unless somebody else saw something?"

[Draignean]

Svurrl
Svurrl's words were deafening in the silent wagon. The subject of its speech was unclear, and none of the terrified camp followers stepped forward to claim responsibility or explain. All eyes were downcast, sliding away from Svurrl and actively avoiding the body. A few of the assembled gamblers exchange the briefest of glances, checking to see if anyone is willing to speak. [Svurrl Grace+Finesse: Fail] The body distracted Svurrl, and he only caught the most obvious of the significant glances. The human who had advised stillness kept glancing up at a small, almost whispy, Aoul female.

Avercco
Svurrl wasn't Averrco's boss, not by long or short stretch. The leif dropped onto the wagon's platform and pushed inside, scanning the interior quickly. He took in the cooling body, the terrified faces, the half-played card game, and the literal smoking gun with an impartial sweep. [Skill Req, Physician. Brilliance+Finesse: Fail] Fact one: The Kadi was dead, Averrco's secondary eyes let him watch in detail as the body cooled. Postulate one: the pistol on the table was the murder weapon. Postulate two: the killer was one of the people assembled around the table. There were more details that Averrco could infer if he made certain reasonable assumptions, but reasonable assumptions paved the way to unthinkable mistakes.

When Averrco spoke, no one answered. The general address is met with general silence, shifting of feet, and a few glances of mutual terror. [Skill Bonus, Listener. Grace+Finesse: Auto] Avercco could expect and understand fear, revulsion, and even outright terror, but there was something very odd in the stillness of the wagon. Intimidation. These people were afraid to speak, not because of fear of Averrco or Svurrl, but something else.

Joan
Brynd moved towards the center of the camp, skirting in from the side and staying out of the open. He crouched down near the tipped wagon, motion Joan over.

There was a skull at the base of the wagon, nearly all of the flesh stripped away by local wildlife. No nose and a mostly fused jawbone indicates Mutei, and a massive hole in the side of the skull indicates a death by firearm. "Best preserved skull. Bits of another are scattered by the fire. Most of a set of bones are still beneath one of the tent bags. Still a few arrows there as well, stone tipped." Brynd shakes his head and crouches, taking a long look at the dead campsite. "This one believes that marauders shadowed the merchant, waited for the group to camp. The mutei was awake, and they killed him quickly. Arrows to the tents took care of others."

[Wisdom+Grace: Pass] Brynd's events aren't quite right. This camp couldn't have been fully made when the attack hit, no sane driver would leave chattel in harness for the night. The attack would have had to have happened as the camp was being set up or taken down. If the mutei was putting their tack on when he was shot, that could have panicked the chattel easily. Panicked chattel in a partial harness could easily have tipped the wagon and snapped legs in the process.

"This one has heard stories about bandits in these parts," Brynd said, straightening up and dusting off his hands. "Families that get low and lean, can't grow anything in the thin light. They get poor, they get starving, and they run out of options. Pitiable, but easy enough to defend against. Post guards that can all see each other, make it clear that we can't be fought without them losing a lot of folk. Desperate families make good killers, but they don't like sacrifice much." Brynd's last words are soft, and there's a note of profound remorse in his voice. 

Lora and Mudren
Lora's directions to Mudren were short and to the point. He took the ground and she took to the air, splitting off from Joan and Brynd and heading towards the rocky outcropping that had sheltered the earlier fire.
 
[Mudren Grace+Speed: Pass] Mudren moved fast through the undgrowth, surprisingly silent in his altered form. The ramshackle accouterments he wore as armor still managed to blend in with the spare scenery. Mudren was an odd creature, but very good at what he did. He reached the outcropping by a circuitous route that left him completely concealed, getting the first good look at the site. The ground was pounded flat, and a well used circle of heavy stones sits in the center. There's a thick coat of ash in the firepit, and the topmost layer is soaked with water. A single tent is propped against the rocks, and set of very basic cookware is scattered by the fire. Tracks, faint bootscuffs, mark a trail leading towards the trees that Lora had pointed out.

Lora circled in the air, cutting tight patterns above Mudren before spinning off to check out the treeline. It was more difficult to see in the lower air, things blur by faster. [Lora Strength+Brillaince: Fail] Details distort and scanning for anything more than movement becomes difficult. If there is still someone down there, they aren't moving.

[MrVoid]

"What all is going on out there?" Rol sticks his head out to look for the source of the disturbances

[Tiruin]

((Is it a bit strange that I picture Brynd's voice as one of the races [can't remember which] in Mass Effect who talk that way, as a passing thought? It is brilliant, but I also want to know how he sounds x3))

Joan responded in turn, "I would push to reconsider, friend. I know my part of chattel care, and that one sign of panic-" she pointed at the harness remains, "would indicate either an attack of opportunity when the camp was being set-up or deployed, or in a very rare situation someone tried to harness the chattel and...err, failed."

Make a quick search if I can discern anything that would lead to info about the killers--asking Brynd along those lines: If nothing of importance or little importance is found, return to forward scouting such as shadowing the general area which Lora noted (and inquire if Brynd has found other signs).

[Harry Baldman]

Take a careful look around. Anybody worth shooting in the near vicinity?

[The Ensorceler]

To Avercco, "We needed someone outside, and I didn't have a gun." He can do with that what he wants.

Advance on the body, and try to tell if it was or is harboring the Taint. Any manipulation should be done from a distance with a lampade.

[IronyOwl]

Lora returned to Mudren.

"I saw nothing in the trees."

[Harry Baldman]

Lora returned to Mudren.

"I saw nothing in the trees."

"But did you see the forest, my dear?" Mudren says quietly, casting an eye or two about for strangers to blast.

[Draignean]

Joan
Brynd circled opposite from Joan as the mercenary captain began inspecting the camp. "They only left broken arrows behind, so they were in no hurry to distance themselves from the crime. This likely isn't their first kill. Size of the skull wound on the mutei indicates professionally manufactured ammunition, but the arrowheads they left behind were all stone. Dramatically different head sizes means at least two different bows at work." Brynd casts a wary eye to the edge of the camp, checking for any watchers in the woods. "Wagon was empty when this one checked, and they either took a good long time to unload it, they carried the goods out on their own cart, or there were a lot more than just three."

Joan listened as she swept around the camp, guiding Tala carefully around the debris. The poor girl didn't like going near the wagon where the other chattel had died, but she'd been trained to tolerate much worse things. [Finesse+Speed: Pass] Joan moved through the camp with a careful sort of haste, double checking certain details of what Brynd had said and trying to piece together a more complete picture. Everything she checked pointed to a quick ambush when the wagon was either making or breaking camp. The inside of the wagon was, as Brynd had said, cleaned out. The only thing inside was a large mass of grass, bone splinters, twigs, and clothing scraps, likely the nest of some hinterland creature. Joan nearly moved on to continue her search but the planks at the far end of the wagon caught her eye. The wagon was in reasonable condition, it had been made for outdoor travel, and the ambush couldn't have happened more than a month ago. Yet, near the front of the almost empty wagon, two sets of timbers were buckled upwards at a sharp angle. Secret compartments were far from unheard of for merchants, and that seemed a far more likely culprit to spring open from time and a sharp jolt than random isolated wood damage.

Before Joan could do anything else, a low growl rose from the mound of detritus. Whatever was in there couldn't be terribly large, thirty pounds at most going by nest size, but it sounded annoyed.

Rol
"No damn clue," came the somewhat unexpected reply to Rol's question. Borou was standing by the side of the platform, looking intently at the last wagon. His pistol was out, and his free hand rested lightly on the pommel of his sword. "Averrco just left to check on a gambling problem from that wagon, so he's probably looking into it. Saw your drogue go in as well. Mara is heading up front, talking to Ralai to get the all stop sent to the wagons. I got left here to make sure someone is looking after wagon two." There was frustration in his voice ,well controlled, but still evident. "Avercco's a little bit tight, but he's got sense. He'll signal if he needs help."

Mudren
Finding someone who didn't want to be seen was an art form, particularly in lands like this. The individual could have dropped out of sight down a crack, hidden in a fold of earth, scampered behind a tree, or any one of a thousand perfectly good evasion techniques.  [grace+brilliance: Pass] The trick was to look for the bits of the land that were out of place. There was a certain order to raw nature, and the touch of any of the ten, no matter how skilled, always disturbed that order in some way. Sometimes it was subtle, like a few bent strands of grass or a bruised branch on a sapling. Other times it was more obvious, like a foot long dead rodent hanging in midair from behind a distant tree. In this case, it was the latter. A little more than a hundred yards away, where even the sparse trees begins to clutter vision, there was a fat furred creature with a bloody hole in its side hanging upside down about three feet off the ground. Whatever it was hanging from was successfully obscured behind the thin tree, but only barely.

[Tiruin]

Joan kept her eyes on the mound, crossing out non-territorial creatures of her list of probabilities. She felt that she didn't approach brashly, more like meticulously. Predators, specifically the notable sort, wasn't matching up too--a tiny reptile matched her idea.

Pondering on the efficiency of actually disturbing the beast and taming it, she wondered if she could at least coax it out and not cause any more harm. She had a spear if in case anything would err (and hopefully the creature did not have a projectile-type of defense as its natural capability).

Utilize skills and owned supplies to try to...somewhat ease the creature; if it works and such, explore the detritus with haste but {probably roll for} precision. Then give an order to Brynd to scout ahead while moving a bit back to the road to signal the caravan by Lumomancy.

[Draignean]

Svurrl
Svurrl got a little closer to the fallen Kadi, gently probing it with a lampade. From what it knew, the crystal form within a tainted soul would attempt to tear itself free should the body become too badly damaged to continue. That, obviously, hadn't happened. Still, the Kadi appeared to be unharmed, save for the bullet presumably lodged in its skull. 

[Brilliance + Finesse: Fail] There's a brief and painful squishing sound as Svurrl probed fruitlessly into the dead Kadi's skull, turning the terror of the onlookers to horror almost immediately. The little Aoul female begins sobbing softly.

Joan
Joan got out a bit of trail ration, laid it a fair distance away from the nest and made reassuring clucking noises. [Finesse+Grace: Fail] More hissing growls came from the nest, and a small, lean creature popped up from the top of the pile. It was a two legged lizard, of a kind very similar to one Joan was more familiar with. It hissed at her in challenge, fanning a large but mutely colored flap of scaled skin from the base of its skull. The creature was probably only fifteen pounds at the most, but it bared several rows of serrated, tearing teeth at Joan with an expression of animalistic determination. The first two talons on each of the creature's forelimbs were dramatically elongated, useless for running, but easily capable of punching holes through soft tissues. The legs of the creature were long and fully tense, ready to spring into an offensive leap at a moment's notice.

The creatures Joan was familiar with were slightly less lean than this one, and their frills were often brightly colored, but otherwise similar. Scale shrikes, ambush predators that hunted various other species. They were capable of standing motionless for hours, waiting for a suitable prey to emerge before they pounced forwards, uncoiling powerful jumping legs and lunging with the skewering claws on their forelimbs. They weren't terribly dangerous to large creatures, but there was always a story or two about a boy who tried to poke one and got a claw through the neck, or a chattel foal doing much the same and meeting a bloody end. [Wisdom+Finesse: Pass] They were known to be territorial, but primarily against creatures of their own size. They were reasonably intelligent, and typically backed off from larger creatures. The exception would be a male guarding an egg clutch.

 

[The Ensorceler]

Svurrl visibly calms, having concluded its probing. Moving closer to the crying Aoul, it dispels all remaining lampades, hoping to appear less threatening. "Oh, did you know him? I need you to come with me."

Lead the crying Aoul out of the wagon, assuming nobody interrupts.

[Harry Baldman]

Listen carefully for a moment. Do I hear movement?

Circle around the dead rodent, though get a little closer. Do I sense anything out of the ordinary aside from it?

[micelus]

((I need to check this more often. Aagh.))

Ah, they've been cowed. Best not to aggravate the situation. Must soothe.

The lief hopped over to the Aoul, bading her to turn away from the corpse. He then spoke a few words, hoping to lighten the moods of those gathered. Whether he succeeded or not, he then took Svurri and whispered to him. "This is too much of a problem for both of us; I'll need to alert the boss....best take of the body too."

Soothe the fears of the people in the wagon telling them specifically that they won't get in any trouble. Focus my attentions on the Aoul, keeping my eyes on her.