Village Path
Kat, Tyr, Rathgar, Nix
Rathgar's sweeping attacks keep the creatures back, but refuse to connect. Luckily, this affords his allies some breathing room as they pelt the creatures with knife and bolt. Kat's crossbow seems too weak to puncture their hides, but Tyr
[CRIT] measures their movements with great precision. A flurry of two knives strike one beast in the neck, and another in the eye. The beasts, slingers included, seem to think better of this engagement, throwing their spears while scuttling away into the treeline.
Up front, Nix attempts to assist Pesc, but
[CRIT FAIL] only serves to enrage the beast. The shaft of his shortspear crushes the thing's neck, causing it to shriek and flail wildly. Its strength proves too much, as its twisted dagger stabs into Nix's thigh. It breaks free of Nix and tumbles into the trees frantically.
Echoing barks show the creatures as truly routed, allowing the lairds to retrieve their mounts and collect their thoughts. Pesc is slow to recover, having received a nasty cut to his side. The collective medical know-how of the group alleviates his and Nix's wounds, but both men were still poisoned. It was too late to camp, Pesc insisted through gritted teeth. Better to head to the village and hope for the best. What they would find, though, would surprise even the veteran...
COMBAT END
Beast 1; Fallen
Beast 2; Fallen
Beast 3; Routed
Beast 4; Routed
Beast 5; Routed
Beast 6; Fallen
VS
Kat; Hale
Tyr; Slight Injury
Rathgar; Slight Injury
Nix; Injured, Poisoned
Pale Poison; For coating weapons
Barter Beads; Trade goods
Safety Charm; Repels bad spirits
As they approached the village proper, everyone in the group would be treated by the sight of the towering construction. It was lit up by torchlight, men continually working on it into the night. That wasn't the strangest sight, though. Just near the entrance to the village, a small group of men, women, and children waited with torches and... gifts? Indeed, as Pesc led the group closer, they were received by adulation and awed gasping. Before the lairds could address the situation, a man in white robes broke from the crowd. He waved at the lairds, gesturing widely in some form of ceremony. As he neared, you could see jagged, fierce burn scars all over his exposed arms and face.
"Awe! It is the day of the fourth sign, the end of madness, the return of the highlanders!" As he rose his arms, several in the crowd cheered, but most looked on with silent awe. "I am Gumain, my lords, seer of heroes and hope. I anticipated your arrival. Oh, how I was doubted! But here you are, here to lift us from fool darkness!"