Shadows of Anmer IC

[CockroachTeaParty]

OOC:

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@Personman: Sorry I didn't include Selia in the link! Melchia can still only manage two other recipients, and you hadn't posted in a while, so I decided to mix it up.

That said, telepathy happens at the speed of thought, so while it's up to the DM, we probably aren't standing around silent for too long; a great deal of information can theoretically be transmitted in a smaller amount of time.

Melchia speaks aloud to the strange voice.
"...So you want us to rouse the unconscious one? He is our prisoner, a failed assassin. He's also a cultist, a servant of dark powers known only as the Deep. Does that mean anything to you?"

He shoots Selia a meaningful look, and she can feel a link establish to his mind.
<That took the last of my power. If we must reach some manner of consensus, best we all have access to private communication. Apologies for not including you in the link earlier; my powers are still limited with regards to simultaneous linkage. The mindlink should last about twenty minutes, though I doubt this entity has that kind of patience.>

[PersonMan]

OOC:

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It's not a problem. I was just posting to both keep things moving and to remind everyone that, as far as Selia was concerned, there wasn't a plan of action at the time, at all.

Selia looks at Melchia as he starts speaking (although, without any apparent source of the voice she primarily glanced between Otrino and him as they spoke), realizing what the look he gives her means just as she feels his consciousness against hers. As he sends his message to her directly, Selia closes her eyes and breathes deeply a few times, clearing her mind of the same sensation that always arose when the mental link was created. It was time to focus.

<I assume you've created two different links, then, rather than fusing the other with this one?> The short train of question-logic-assumption in Selia's thought is one she shares openly with the psion. After a moment of consideration she concludes that he had indeed forged two links - she couldn't perceive anything from the others, which seemed to back up her theory. <Have Otrino or Rubido come up with any theories or plans? I hate asking you to just be a messenger, but unless you have something you can do without any of your mental energy it's the only way...>

[CockroachTeaParty]

After quickly catching Selia up on the current debate, Melchia seems to cede to rousing the prisoner.
<Well, we might as well wake up our captive and update him on the current situation. No doubt his input will be valuable.>
The psion's sarcasm is laced with impatience.
<Do we have a healing spell to spare? Or should we expend different resources; the potions, for instance?>

[mucco]

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Some water on his face will suffice, as he was only unconscious due to the fear.

You wake up the human. After you manage to calm him and explain him the situation, he thinks for a moment before speaking.

"I've- I've heard of this. Some tales, during the rites of initiation. I don't remember much, but this might be a place sacred to the Deep. I will agree with becoming a True Soul, but only if you free me.

Selia, Melchia

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You realize he's probably making those stories up.

[zimmerwald1915]

"To do what?" says Otrino, standing with his hands clasped behind his back. The posture, learned from his time in the Republic, indicated his unwillingness to cast anything. "Besides, True Soul status is, I do not think, the same as becoming the hostage. The way things have been presented to us, we all become True Souls able to pass through the Cyan and thereafter the Wood at will, and the soul-hostage is insurance that we as a group do or experience something in return. Thus I do not think we can set you free, or even remand you to someone else, if you are the soul-hostage."

Otrino turns slowly away from the cultist and turns to face the others. "I think I should be the soul-hostage. I've the least time to lose if we don't experience this unknown thing we're supposed to." He leaves unstated that he's both trying to demonstrate his loyalty to and willingness to serve the rest of the group after the last few exchanges countermanding Melchia, and to demonstrate his goodwill to the cultist. These were smart people, they'd figure it out.

OOC:

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Yeah, I know this is probably Mucco's way of making sure we get this guy out of the party - and out of his responsibility to play as an NPC the whole time - but I've built up to this and I'm going to play my character, damnit

[PersonMan]

Selia raises her eyebrows at the cultist as he speaks, a slight smirk on her face. As Otrino starts talking, it fades until her expression is a somber one.

"I wouldn't trust the man anyways, he's lying about the place being potentially sacred. Anyways, the question of someone being a sacrifice is a moot one, as we either all become True Souls or all decide not to.

Mysterious voice, what would happen if we decide to not become True Souls?"

[mucco]

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OOC:
Yeah, I know this is probably Mucco's way of making sure we get this guy out of the party - and out of his responsibility to play as an NPC the whole time - but I've built up to this and I'm going to play my character, damnit

Not at all! Well, it's there as an option if you don't want to get bothered by him (he is not very sociable). But it's still a choice for your characters, and thus it allows you to actually roleplay on picking a side. I like choices. :)

The human screams, "I want to be free from you! I don't want to be your prisoner, you scare the hell out of me! That guy, especially." He points at Melchia. "If you set me free, I'll run away from you the fastest I can. I do not fear this place nor the voice's demands as much as I fear you."

The voice, apparently immune to the desperation of your prisoner, happily answers Selia's question.
"If you won't be True Souls, which is a shaame because it is very fun! Then you will have a hard hard time getting out of our child the Dark Wood. But it's fun to see you trying! Also, one of you will have his or her soul recalled in a bit of time for a brief check, as a proof that you are very good people. This is the 'sacrifice' your friend is talking about! Buut it's not a sacrifice! It's fuun! Well, for us!"

[Overlord Rion]

Rubido had been silent during this exchange, making sure to let everyone get their piece out before throwing in his hat. He liked his hat, it comfy...wait, that had nothing to do with this. Maybe the whimsical nature of the voice was getting to him. Oh well.

Then the...well, Rubido wouldn't refer to him as a captive, more as a guest. In any case, the guest called him scary. What an insult. Rubido wasn't scary. Hell, if anybody was, it was Otrino. The noble ones were always the most dangerous. Selia wasn't particularly, and Melchia...


Okay, Melchia was creepy, he had to admit. "Wait a minute, I'm not scary. I take offense to that! Sure, Melchia is every now and again, but he's generally a good person. Otrino just volunteered to be the soul-hostage, so if you agree to be a True-Soul, you get to leave our company. Or, if you like, we could formally hire you on. What reason would we have to kill a hireling when we could just fire him? Try us, we're not evil. I'll even give your weapon back."

It struck Rubido that this was probably the most personality he showed to his traveling buddies. And how absurd his idea was.

Yet again, oh well.

He spoke over his shoulder to the last heard location of the voice. "Hey, can we get a name to call you? I don't feel like just saying Mysterious Voice or Voice. If not I'm just going to call you Jack."

[mucco]

You confuse the human thoroughly, making him babble half-words without meaning. He certainly didn't expect to be addressed with such respect.

"Hello, o noble elf! You may call us the Fathers! We like this name, it's very pompous!" says the voice, with great emphasis.

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Wow, nice post Overlord.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Melchia remains silent, his face blank, save for perhaps a certain hardening of the eyes. Even the captive fails to elicit a reaction from him. His mind, however, is far from silent.
<You seem quick to risk your soul with the whims of inscrutable spirits, Otrino, but you'll hear no objections from me. The sooner we can get on with our investigation, the better. I would perhaps be more interested in learning about this disembodied presence, if it did not irritate me so much. I hate being beholden to its desires, but I am essentially powerless as it stands.>

[zimmerwald1915]

<Well, it's that or be lost forever,> retorts Otrino, <or be killed outright here and now. And that's no choice at all.>

"Shall we get on with this then?" he says out loud.

[mucco]

The voice starts talking, with a mocking tone. "Oooh, that's great! So, your oldest member seems to be the most courageous one, after all. Straange thing to see for you mortals. But I digress. Please, step on the lit lilies."

In the pond, five of the lilies instantly enlarge and become big enough to allow you to stand on them. They also start glowing very brightly, and seem to be floating an inch or two above the water now. As you step on it, they float a bit higher still, and emit a faint buzz which fills the silence. Slowly, the five lilies you stand on move and shift over the pond, while faint lines appear on the water, connecting every lily with each other. In a couple minutes, you five are moved so that the lines on the water form a perfect pentagram.

The pentagon in the center lights up, and shoots a beam of light forward. The beam is several tens of feet high, and its tip flickers like a ghostly flame. The voice that was speaking before multiplies manyfold, forming a chorus that recites some arcane magic above your heads. You still don't see who these "voices" are, even though they seem to be a lot right now.

They keep chanting for a few long, long minutes. Suddenly, Otrino's body lights up extremely brightly, as if it was made of pure spectral energy. Otrino feels a great pain as his body becomes numb and completely unresponsive to his mental impulses. The wizard's body levitates up and starts circling around the beam of light, flying over your heads. The energy he's filled of leaks into your bodies, one at a time; then Otrino is placed back on his lily, and the light he had become flickers away, leaving on himself a faint trace, in the middle of his chest. You all have that sign inside your body.

The lilies quietly float outside of the pond and vanish, dropping you all on the ground. Not a second passes before your human prisoner starts screaming, and the trace inside his chest vanishes. He is rendered breathless by the pain, and when it stops he starts gasping and crying in a very humiliating way. The voice, now alone again, speaks.

"So, did you like that! Well, your friend here sure did not. I guess he wasn't fit for being a True Soul. Oh well. It's not for everyone. You will notice that now you have a Glowseed inside your heart. Here in the grove, you can see the one of your friends easily, but when you are not here, it will take some effort to see it. Only True Souls can see Glowseeds. Also, look over there! That is the path to your freedom. You are free to leave now, friends. You will be welcome if you return to us."

A path of faint blue light extends into the Wood, in the direction you need.

Everyone

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No relevant checks can be made about the ritual, or all checks failed. None of you understood the language of the chants.

The Glowseeds in your chests are visible at up to 100 feet away, their light passes through non-magical darkness but not fog, solid obstacles or any magical obstacle such as a Wall of Force or Darkness spell. It takes two rounds of concentration to start seeing the Glowseeds, and concentration is required to see them. For all the time you are concentrated to see the Glowseeds, you suffer a -4 penalty to Spot, Listen and related checks, as well as a -2 to AC.

For those who played Skyrim, the Glowseeds look quite similar to the Detect Life spell (but the Glowseeds don't shine through walls). For those who didn't play Skyrim, well, google "Skyrim Detect Life".

Otrino

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As your body became pure light, while suffering great pain, some visions were violently thrust into your mind. You cannot recall them perfectly now that the ritual is over, but you have the distinct image of a mighty dragon, laying dead on the ground. In this vision, everything was red. The ground was red, the sky was red, some people were running and they were red. Destroyed trees and burnt houses were a very dark red. The dragon was red, too.

You have the distinct feeling this is the memory you'll have to experience, within 66 days.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Feeling thoroughly violated, Melchia silently marches towards the perceived exit and path to freedom. Even his mindlink remains silent, save for a sense of indignation and growing anger emanating from his mind like heat from smouldering charcoal.

[zimmerwald1915]

Mucco:

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Was it possible for me to gauge the size of the dragon? For instance, how large is it compared to the people? Also, do I remember the shape of its snout and the arrangement of its horns?

Otrino flops to the ground on his back, his body sore and limp. His back feels like it's been tied up in knots, his shoulders and hips like they've been almost popped out of their sockets, and his sides and front like they've been beaten with two-by-fours. He lets his chest rise and fall for a few seconds. He knows why he feels this way. He had seen his body being tossed around in the pillar of light, but it seemed to him like he was far away. It was like he had been thrust out of the here and now, and still he found it within himself to question whether he had returned.

Otrino rolls over onto his side, pauses for a moment, and then continues onto his hands and knees. This leaves him panting and coughing. He spits on the ground something that looks like a miniature lemure, shakes his head, and closes his eyes. As he does so, the vision that he can now recognize as a pulsing red presence in the back of his mind comes rushing back. His arms almost buckle at the sight. A community, and the land around, burns. People flee in terror. A dragon - Otrino can not be sure what kind, or if it is the cause or victim of the events - lies dead nearby. And the world seems to have been made, somehow, to absorb blues and yellows.

The voices speak. "We will keep that in mind," Otrino replies, shakily. He rocks back onto his feet, still crouching, and slowly rises. He is sure Melchia had collected what they needed for the Black Guardian, and thus has no desire to visit this place again. Not in body anyway, and not for two months. He opens his eyes. The blue glows the voices spoke of were clearly visible in the others' chests. Otrino looks down, not wanting to catch their eyes. He can feel Melchia's anger competing with the vision for space in his mind, and can easily imagine that the others feel the same.

"Come on," he says to the cultist. "You'd better hold Rubido's hand so you do not stray off the path." Prometeo hisses reproachfully as he slithers back up Otrino's leg, but the wizard ignores him, beginning to follow Melchia down the path.

[mucco]

Following the glowing trail, you safely exit the Dark Wood. It is very dark now as midnight approaches, and you can't quite see what lies ahead.

Everyone!

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Well... level up!

Please visit the OoC post to roll your HD, remember to take half of it if it's below (d4=2, d6=3 and so on), note all character sheet changes. You get to pick a feat, pick new spells, maneuvers, whatever. Leveling up is fun!

[PersonMan]

Once the strange ritual is complete, Selia takes a moment to regain her senses and heads over to Otrino. He had clearly borne the brunt of whatever power had changed them and it seemed to have done some damage.

"Are you alright?" She asks.

---

Later, as she feels Melchia's anger, Selia sends a questioning thought through their link. <What is it? Did this 'True Soul' thing affect you that much?>

[zimmerwald1915]

"I...don't know." admits Otrino with a sigh. "I can walk, and I don't think anything's broken." He waggles his fingers, and a slight tapping of his feet indicates he's testing his toes in the same manner. "But it's hard to concentrate. It feels like I'm being pulled in three different directions: out of the wood, back to the mere, and to a time and place I don't know, but both hope and dread knowing soon.

"During the ritual, I was shown a vision. A village, whose name and size I don't know, and a dragon in the early to middle stages of life. I couldn't tell what kind: the whole world looked red, as if there was no more blue and yellow shining on it, or as if it had all been absorbed, or as if my eyes could no longer see it. The village was burning. The dragon was dead." Otrino bounces his pack on his shoulders to set it more evenly, and winces visibly as it settles. "I think I have to see it again to escape those voices. Do you think the Black Guardian might know the whereabouts of nearby dragons?"

[CockroachTeaParty]

Melchia continues to march in silence.
<Whether or not this 'True Soul' situation has affected me, or to what extent, I could care less at the moment. All I can affirm with any certainty is that my next topic of research involves finding any methods of purging this alien contamination from my being. And we may have cause to reinstate our vigil on Otrino; who knows what will happen to him, now that he is the puppet of some disembodied entity or malevolent collective? He seemed far too eager to volunteer his soul to manipulation. For the record, I would have told that voice to go to the Abyss, had I had the option. I am not pleased with these developments, Selia.>

[mucco]

You camp for the night, and when you wake up in the morning you discover you are at the edge of a very large bog. In some places you can see some tree patches, but overall there is mainly moss to cover the muddy ground. This bog extends as far as you can see eastwards. You start marching in it, and it is quite unpleasant, as the water is at times one foot deep, so it is slowing you down.

Two days of walking are needed before you reach the sanctuary of the Black Guardian. It is easily recognizable in the swamp, with tens of tall black stones littering a small mound. The sun is behind you (it is evening), and you're casting long shades in the direction of the sanctuary. You can't see anything until you reach the mound, and climb over it. The black menhirs are all several meters tall, made entirely out of obsidian and as such, very irregular and strangely shaped. Their shadows stripe the ground in a very particular fashion.

Among the menhirs sits a man. You do not notice him at first, because he was sitting behind on of the stone. As soon as he sees you, he stands up. He looks hundreds of years old. His skin seems to have undergone slight transformations, almost like it was trying to become scaled rather than old. His eyes and hair, black as the night, do not conceal the age of this person at all. He is wearing a long, dark grey tunic, with a red rope holding it on his waist. The long hair falls on his shoulders, but he has no beard. The man has a very upright and proud posture.

As soon as he speaks, you are all shocked to hear his voice is not human. He has a very loud and low-pitched voice, almost roaring as he speaks. "Welcome, travellers. I am glad to have some company. I am sorry that I cannot offer you anything, but please, sit with me. I was told you were coming to see me, and I am eager to know why."

[CockroachTeaParty]

Melchia remains mostly quiet and brooding for most of the journey through the bog. The physical discomfort of the environment seems to bother him less than the remains of the anger aroused by the encounter with the disembodied voice in the enchanted grotto.

For his part, Melchia began to calm down slightly, his indignation replaced by focus, and the contemplation of potential ways to return his soul to normal, if possible. He realized that his experiences had honed his mental powers further; he was now more sensitive to thought waves through practicing his telepathic links and empathic manipulation, whilst his ability to enforce his will through compulsion, or even pure mental pain, had reached new levels of potency. Or so it felt to him. His dreams remained unpleasant, of course. Dark, nebulous, and bizarre, he volunteered for longer shifts on the watch if only to postpone the embrace of his be-nightmared rest.

When the group reached the menhirs, Melchia's scholarly curiosity returned in full force. Mentally, he committed the strange landscape and minor details to memory. Encountering the strange old man, however, was unexpected. At the sight of him, Melchia immediately reaches out to his companions, the familiar, if unsettling, feeling of his mental link once more connecting the party.

He remains silent as the old man extends his hospitality. Expending his psionic focus, he stealthily opens his third eye, opening his sensitivity to surface thoughts, hoping to read the strange old man's mind.

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Spending 3 power points on a Mind Link with the entire party! Then, taking 15 on a Concentration check to manifest Read Thoughts without a display. The old man is entitled to a DC 15 Will save, or else Melchia can read his surface thoughts over three minutes of concentration.

[mucco]

Melchia

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The man resists your power.

[PersonMan]

Selia herself sits down in front of the strange man, considering her words for a moment before speaking.

"We are here to ask you about something that's happened to someone we know. He's a priest of Pelor and it seems all of his holy symbols have been changed," she explains.

[CockroachTeaParty]

Melchia wasn't exactly surprised that the strange old man resisted his powers... he was still new at reading minds, and it was likely the man had strange powers, or at least an iron will. As Selia speaks with him, Melchia produces one of the false holy symbols from his backpack, displaying it to the old man.
"She speaks the truth. A tribe of gypsies told us to come here in search of answers."

[mucco]

"Ah, yes, yes, indeed." The low roar of the Guardian's voice is accompanied by a fiant hum in the air. "That is a holy symbol. Or, should I say, unholy. This is a curse, I believe. Sit with me, there will be negotiations. For it is knowledge you seek, and knowledge is the most expensive currency there is - as you well know, he who wields great knowledge wields great power."

The man sits on the ground amidst the black menhirs, crossing his legs in a pose resembling yoga, looking with interest at Melchia and Selia. "Oh, don't you have, by any chance, any... food I can grow? I possess a small greenhouse, which feeds me. But seeds are uncommon in this place and my plants do not yield any seeds of their own."

[PersonMan]

Selia smiles slightly as the Black Guardian mentions seeds. Now their preparations would pay off.

"Yes, actually, the people who told us of you mentioned that you would want some, so we made sure to acquire something we could give you once we arrived," she says.

[mucco]

The man smiles sardonically. "Let's see then... oh, yes. Good stuff. I will be able to eat for a while on these. I appreciate that."

The man thinks for a while, while studying you. "This is one of the bad curses. The unholy symbol you have is of Rogon. Rogon is a forgotten deity of evil, fate, and curses. Its cult was thought to be destroyed long ago, but this does not seem to be the case. The witch surely was a follower of that god. To remove the curse, Rogon demands blood. Once the appropriate words are said near a dozen of fresh corpses which share their blood, the cursed one will be free. I know the words. You will need to fetch the corpses."

The man studies your reactions for a split second before continuing. "I have an idea about where to fetch those corpses, if you are not keen on mass murders. To the west of the Dark Wood lies the city of Galsaff and several town. Those are being besieged by goblin hordes. You could gather information about where the next goblin attack will be, slaughter some goblins while defending the city, and we would meet there and perform this ritual. Or you can find another way, of course."

The Guardian coughs, in that very deep and inhuman voice, and continues. "Of course, I will not do that for free. I need you to do me a favor. When you return to me to tell me about where to meet, I would like you to bring me an extremely rare seed. It's a seed of the Sunflower of Life. It would be of great interest to me. To my knowledge only a few plants exist, and these are in the possession of some person in Icmud. Icmud is a city to the east, in the heart of the marsh. Acquire that seed for me and I will help you. What do you say?"

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Galsaff is to the west, Icmud is to the east.

Knowledges
(Melchia) Knowledge (history): (1d20+4)[6]
(Otrino) Knowledge (history): (1d20+5)[17]
Otrino remembers something about a crusade and some illumians. It's very fuzzy, though.

(Otrino) Knowledge (religion): (1d20+5)[19]
Nothing relevant.

(Selia) Bardic Knowledge: (1d20+2)[5]
Nothing relevant.

[zimmerwald1915]

As the circle of menhirs crests into sight, Otrino wonders at the lay of the land. Was this a caldera so ancient that the volcano's cone had eroded away, leaving this lowland and these black remnants? If so, why was the bog not steaming and bubbling with subterranian heat? Or had these monoliths of volcanic glass been quarried from somewhere? Perhaps they represented long-ago extrusions into this place from the Plane of Fire or the Semi-Elemental Plane of Magma? Whatever the case, there were forces at work here beyond Otrino's understanding, and beyond his companions'...just like in Dark Wood.

Otrino feels Melchia reaching out for contact, and prickles defensively. The man ought to be grateful that someone was willing to defend his life with their soul. He ought to know better than to blame Otrino for trying to make the best of a bad situation. Not that any of this was new: those same resentful feelings had been present when they last linked in the Fathers' mere, and Melchia could probably probe deeper if he chose. Otrino supposed it meant something that he hadn't been killed during the night - thanks to his sacrifice it wouldn't have harmed the others to do so, and he was sure the new techniques he'd devised over the course of the trek through the swamp could not match the force the others, or even Melchia, could bring to bear.

He remains silent as Selia opens the negotiations with the man Otrino assumes is the Black Guardian, and as the man's strange voice spells out the situation. When he mentions fetching corpses, Otrino recoils for a moment before beginning a troubled contemplation. "You mentioned another way," he says slowly, his voice cracking after not having been used in days. "If we were to happen on a burnt-out village, is there some way we could we call you to meet us there?" Otrino knows that by revealing his vision from the Fathers he could be taking another huge risk. Who knew what relationships eldritch beings like these had with one another? But he needed to see that scene.

<Once again,> he thinks, <It seems like we haven't a choice but to accept his help. Keeping Horatio's goons off our backs was simpler.>

[mucco]

The Guardian contemplates Otrino's question. He seems slightly surprised that the wizard chose to speak. "Hmmm... As far as I know, the corpses have to be the result of very recent deaths. I have never performed this ritual, so I am not sure how recent exactly, but I would say in the same day. You can see the barren wasteland I live in. There aren't large settlements nearby, and those are mostly peaceful. If you were to go west of the Dark Wood, I'm afraid there would not be enough time for me to reach you."

"I mentioned another way, because there is always another way. For example, you could go and murder a dozen people for the sake of releasing the curse. That is not for me to decide - although it would be decidedly easier - but it does not seem worth the effort, to slay twelve weak men in order to lift a curse from another weak man. I would not see the point of this. This is why I am suggesting we meet at a battle location."

The man suddenly stands up. "Oh, on a related note, I will pay for that sunflower seed. I have some valuables I use, from time to time. But they always were useless as a means to fetch that seed."

[PersonMan]

Selia considers what the Guardian says and wrinkles her forehead after a moment.

"You mention meeting us there - do you mean you will travel with us, or can you simply instantly move to where we have corpses when you need to? Even if the distance isn't great, I'm unsure if we can haul a dozen bodies, even goblin ones, without being significantly slowed down," Selia says.

[mucco]

"When you come back with the information, you will tell me and I will travel to the place at the right time on my own. There is no need to carry corpses around."