The Price of Peace (IC)

[jscape2000]

The script is formal, though the note itself is brief.

After patrols, head to Ardon. Arrive before solstice.

Meet with other Order initiates.

Kill attendees of suspected subversive meeting in Setting Sun Inn.

"Alright. Three gold, ma'am," the merchant says, looking at the paper in your hand as you pull it out but otherwise not commenting.

Lillian pays the merchant. Taking her new closes she points towards a curtain draped over a back corner of the shop, and smiles politely, moving as she talks. "You don't mind if I change do you? Thank you so much."

She stuffs her spare clothes and her battle stained clothes into her Haversack, and dons her new travelling clothes while she mulls over the note.

Spoiler: rolls

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Knowledge Local (1d20+7)[14] Is Lillian familiar with that name?
Knowledge Geography (1d20+7)[11] I don't see Arden on the map. Is it a place she's familiar with?
Spot (1d20+4)[11] keeping an eye out for signs of pursuit.

Emerging freshly clad and with new determination she exits the shop. Keeping an eye out for any sign of pursuit, she heads towards the city gate.

The road calls again. She thinks, as she makes her way through the crowd.

[Esprit15]

The man looks like he's about to object, but your self confident pushing forward saves you from having to argue or explain your situation.

While you don't know the exact location, you do remember seeing a town by the name of Ardon between the orc and halfling lands. Not a large town by any means, but notable enough that you could get directions as you went.

After changing, you notice several familiar enforcers walking around, still clearly searching for you. However, you're able to keep your head down and they seem to pass you by.

As you reach the outskirts of town, you find yourself faced with the question of how to travel. On a caravan, with some aspiring adventurers, or alone?

[jscape2000]

The man looks like he's about to object, but your self confident pushing forward saves you from having to argue or explain your situation.

While you don't know the exact location, you do remember seeing a town by the name of Ardon between the orc and halfling lands. Not a large town by any means, but notable enough that you could get directions as you went.

After changing, you notice several familiar enforcers walking around, still clearly searching for you. However, you're able to keep your head down and they seem to pass you by.

As you reach the outskirts of town, you find yourself faced with the question of how to travel. On a caravan, with some aspiring adventurers, or alone?

Glad to have reached the edge of town seemingly unnoticed, Lillian ponders her quandary. To travel with others without revealing her danger is to put innocent lives in danger. But to travel alone is to make herself an appealing target for a force that has already shown significant magical ability. She shudders as she remembers the gloating voice in her head telling her that she'd make a mistake in appealing to the tiefling's mercy.

She feels her eyes water and her heart clench at the enormity of her danger, when a prayer comes to her suddenly: "Lead us in peace and direct our steps in peace, and guide us in peace, and support us in peace, and cause us to reach our destination in life, joy, and peace, and return in peace. Fharlanghn, save us from every enemy and ambush, from robbers and wild beasts on the trip, and from all the punishments that rage in the world."

Heart calmed, Lillian sets off to find a caravan bound towards the orc or halfling lands. If she's going to reach Ardon, she wants company on the road.

[Esprit15]

You manage to find a couple of caravans looking for a guard, though the first is offering so little that even in your rather panicked state, you can't help but laugh. The second is offering a much more reasonable 90GP pay for someone who can safely get them close to Glauko, a town you know to be just north of Arden. You could likely wave them off at the town. The driver seems, while not any more trustworthy than your average human, to not be affiliated with the telepath that fought you earlier, just a normal shadow-touched.

"So, 90GP and you get us to Ardon safely?" he asks, offering a hand to shake on it.

[jscape2000]

Lillian makes a point to look over the man and his caravan, not wanting to appear desperate. Not wanting to leave the man hanging, she takes his offered hand in her right, but raises a single finger on her left hand.

"The price seems a fair starting place. Would you introduce me to the other guards I'll share this task with?"

Spoiler: ooc

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How many wagons and people in the caravan?

[Esprit15]

"Just me delivering goods," the man says simply. "It's why I was looking for a guard. I could t afford much more than you, to be honest."

[jscape2000]

Not much better than travelling alone, Lillian thinks to herself.

"I was hoping to at least have someone to trade off on watches with. Have you made this trip before?"

[Esprit15]

Not much better than travelling alone, Lillian thinks to herself.

"I was hoping to at least have someone to trade off on watches with. Have you made this trip before?"

"I'm no stranger to a fight. Was planning to trade off on night watches with the guard."

[jscape2000]

"I'm no stranger to a fight. Was planning to trade off on night watches with the guard."

Lillian gives a grin. "Fair enough. When do we leave?"

[Esprit15]

Lillian gives a grin. "Fair enough. When do we leave?"

"Give me an hour to finish loading up, if you have any more business in town."

[jscape2000]

Lillian has no business to conduct in town, since her bags are already packed.

She does her best to keep a low profile until the merchant gets back.

Spoiler: ooc

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I assume she caught his name.

[Esprit15]

Hanging around the cart and making yourself look busy, you manage to avoid the scrutiny of any Librarians, and soon enough, you're off. Finn, your employer, recommends you rest so that there is minimal overlap when you both will be sleeping.

***

Around four days in, toward the evening, you pass through the wreckage of an old town, destroyed by some unknown means. Somewhat surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a specific cause. Normally, you would expect burning on the buildings, but it's as though many of these ones collapsed under their own weight. "Well, it's a shady looking place, but so is home. You want first watch, or should I take it?"
(Please make a Spot check)

[jscape2000]

Hanging around the cart and making yourself look busy, you manage to avoid the scrutiny of any Librarians, and soon enough, you're off. Finn, your employer, recommends you rest so that there is minimal overlap when you both will be sleeping.

***

Around four days in, toward the evening, you pass through the wreckage of an old town, destroyed by some unknown means. Somewhat surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a specific cause. Normally, you would expect burning on the buildings, but it's as though many of these ones collapsed under their own weight. "Well, it's a shady looking place, but so is home. You want first watch, or should I take it?"
(Please make a Spot check)

"I'll take first watch. Get some rest."

Spoiler: Spot

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Spot (1d20+4)[10]

[Esprit15]

You take watch, sitting atop the wagon for a better view of things. There's an eerie silence to the abandoned town - even the wind seems to avoid the area. Bored and a little curious, you take a few steps from the caravan to investigate one of the collapsed buildings, trusting in the general silence of the town to warn you if something were skulking about.

The structure, what appeared to be a wooden house, is more like a pile of rubble than anything resembling a living quarters. The wooden supports are all splayed out, and, surprisingly, dry as a bone. You'd expect there to be some sort of rot to them after just a few weeks, and this place seemed to have been abandoned for years. Yet, there's nothing. Playing around a little more with the rubble, you find that you can easily snap pieces out of the wood with almost no effort. Even the stone that made up the walls feels more like chalk than the granite that it appears to be. As you snap a piece of the stone off, you catch a similar sound off in the distance, though louder, as though something collapsed.

[jscape2000]

Cursing herself for allowing her curiosity to get the better of her, Lillian heads back towards the wagon, making sure she's in sight of the caravan. Her crossbow is ready and in her hand.

Still, the strangely dry building holds her attention. She wracks her memory for anything that could have caused this.

Spoiler: Lore and Knowledge

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Bardic Knowledge (1d20+10)[23] Myths, legends or tales of similar ruins?
Knowledge Arcana (1d20+7)[24] Spells that might have caused this?
Knowledge Nature (1d20+9)[11] Natural phenomena?

If whatever had knocked the struts of the house down had come from inside, Lillian speculates, I suppose that might have splayed them out in this manner. Of course, there are magics that attack by draining the moisture from creatures. Perhaps some sort of dryness explosion?

The echo of collapse takes her attention. Mindful of her duty to the merchant, she makes her way back to the wagon. "I heard a sound like a collapse. The ruins seem..." she searches for the right word, "fragile, so it might be something out there. I'm going to investigate."

[Esprit15]

You can't think of much at first, but after a while, a few ideas do come to you. There have been a few towns that you remember in your studies and time as a record keeper in the Librarians, at various times in the past few centuries, that met a similar fate. The bigger question, why, is interesting in how little information there is on what could do so on such a scale. There are spells that injure by dehydration, but none that affect objects as well so thoroughly as this.

The merchant rouses from sleep briefly, barely visible in the dim light. "Thing- erm... noise outside? Yeah, yeah..." before falling back asleep.

Heading back in the direction of the sound, it looks like an old section of the church had given way under one of the statues, like several other areas already had. The building was more intact than others, being made entirely of stone, but the sections that have broken had the same cleaving as the stone you found earlier.
(Spot, and Knowledge: Nature)

[jscape2000]

You can't think of much at first, but after a while, a few ideas do come to you. There have been a few towns that you remember in your studies and time as a record keeper in the Librarians, at various times in the past few centuries, that met a similar fate. The bigger question, why, is interesting in how little information there is on what could do so on such a scale. There are spells that injure by dehydration, but none that affect objects as well so thoroughly as this.

The merchant rouses from sleep briefly, barely visible in the dim light. "Thing- erm... noise outside? Yeah, yeah..." before falling back asleep.

Heading back in the direction of the sound, it looks like an old section of the church had given way under one of the statues, like several other areas already had. The building was more intact than others, being made entirely of stone, but the sections that have broken had the same cleaving as the stone you found earlier.
(Spot, and Knowledge: Nature)

Spoiler: Checks

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Spot (1d20+4)[17]
Knowledge Nature (1d20+9)[20]
Knowledge Religion (1d20+7)[17] A church to what deity?

Lillian moves to explore the area. On her guard, she taps her Wand of Light against the end of her crossbow, using the weapon to light her way.

[Esprit15]

You recognize some of the gargoyle statues, most of which are destroyed or missing pieces, though a few have survived intact, half buried in rubble. Other buildings are in a similar state of affairs.

[jscape2000]

Nervously, Lillian examines the gargoyle statues more closely. Odd that some would be undamaged, when the other stone has been left so brittle.

[Esprit15]

As you bend closer to one to get a closer, you see that the gargoyle is made of a different kind of stone, and looks a little bit newer than the other rocks here. Like maybe it arrived after the incident had occurred. As you reach this conclusion, a deep voice comes from the statue's mouth as it moves with surprising speed, slamming a clawed hand right into your stomach for 4 damage.

"Weren't you ever taught that it is rude to invade someone's personal space?"
(Roll initiative)

[jscape2000]

Spoiler: Initiative

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Initiative (1d20+2)[3]

Lillian grimaces at the sudden assault. She takes a five foot step back and casts Rapid Summon Monster II, bringing a Large Monstrous Centipede into being between herself and the gargoyle. The centipede attacks.

"I was also taught to speak kindly to travelers who might just have wanted to say hello!"

Spoiler

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Fiendish Centipede
Attack (1d20+3)[17]
Damage (1d8+1)[8]
Poison (1d4)[1] Dex damage, dc 11 Fort Save

[Esprit15]

Spoiler

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Running into the same issue of you posting a turn when I only ask for initiative.

The gargoyle simply smiles, flailing its limbs at you. While your armor protected you before, it was not nearly as effective this time as the creature seems to know exactly where to bite you this time, dealing 17 total damage between its claws, teeth, and a headbutt. Your centipede however seems to draw its attention, as it begins to attack that instead of continuing to focus on you. The centipede takes 12 damage at the gargoyle rips into it.

Spoiler

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It is your turn.

[jscape2000]

Knowing she's no match for a creature of stone, Lillian turns and runs back towards the wagon.

[Esprit15]

"Oh, where are you going little morsel?" the creature chuckles, running toward you before taking to the air. It clearly can move faster than you, and silently running is probably going to end in a rather violent death for you.

[jscape2000]

Lillian decides that it's better to make some noise and wake the merchant, knowing that means risking alerting any more gargoyles or other fell creatures in the area. Screaming with frustration, Lillian calls out the nameless merchant's name.

She turns and calls on Fharlanghn's grace, she casts Searing Ray.

Spoiler: Searing Ray

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Ranged Touch (1d20+7)[23]
Damage (3d8)[9]

[Esprit15]

You can just barely hear Flynn (I'd have sworn I gave his name, but it must have been removed when rewriting a post) call out your name, but other than that, nothing immediately suggests that he is here. The gargoyle however is still very much around, and flies right at you, claw once again finding its way past your armor and shield, ripping at your stomach for 4 damage.

[jscape2000]

Lillian continues to back away from the vicious creature. Again calling on her god in desperation, she casts Spiritual Weapon.

A quarterstaff materializes besides the gargoyle and strikes.

Spoiler: rolls

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Attack (1d20+7)[21]
Damage (1d8+2)[5]

Lillian looks around frantically. Do any of the buildings look sturdy enough to be worth running to?

[Esprit15]

You see one structure that isn't so much a building as an already crumbled wall. The rubble around it however seems to be acting as a makeshift support, limiting its chances of falling over.

The gargoyle, chuckling at another summon, grabs at the spiritual weapon rather than try to finish you off, but finds this target to be less easy to hit. Indeed, its semi-incorporeal nature makes it impossible to hit. Roaring, the gargoyle turns and looks at you, clearly getting ready to chase you down as you move to flee.

As it does this, however, you see it suddenly roar in pain as a deep gash appears on its neck from seemingly nowhere. You can just catch the glint of a dagger disappearing into a sleeve right by the gargoyle. The gargoyle however does not see this, and instead looks around in a bit of a panic.

[jscape2000]

The spiritual quarter staff continues to batter the gargoyle.

Lillian continues to back away from the gargoyle, towards the wall, trying to put enough space between it and her that it can't simply rush at her and finish her off.

She clutches the holy symbol that hangs around her neck and speaks a prayer meant to paralyze the creature.

Spoiler: ooc

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Spiritual Weapon
Attack (1d20+7)[19]
Damage (1d8+2)[8]

Cast Hold Person, Will DC16

[Esprit15]

The gargoyle continues walking toward you, unimpeded by the spell, swinging a claw that manages to, once again, find a weak spot in your armor, dealing 5 damage. Thankfully, another sudden burst of blood from the creature's throat, and the gargoyle collapses, very clearly dead.

The dagger wipes a little blood on seemingly nothing, before a familiar shape reforms. "You alright?" Flynn asks as he becomes clearly visible.

Spoiler

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500 EXP