The Treasure Map (iC)

[Chimaera]

"Of course. I'll go where you point me to, but shouldnt someone keep watch on the afflicteds?", he answers and asks Garret, giving William and the guard a glance, "And are you sure there is any wolfbane in these parts? Cause one thing I know is that there are ogres and trolls, so I better tag along with whoever goes flower picking", Urag says and looks to Torta, "And if you're taking Twitches alone to the wilderness he might try to get funny or escape so you might need a strong arm to held him by the leash. And I know my way in the wilds as well".

Probably not more than the fey, he thinks to himself.

"And anyone know what moon is in the sky tonight?", he asks and move closer to a window for a clear view of the sky.

[MikelaC1]

Spoiler: @Felix

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On the weretiger, the shield that Twitches said, a headband, a periapt, a set of gloves, a belt and a ring

As the party discusses, the merchant approaches. I think I might be able to provide a solution to yours and my problems. My trade mission also had the aim of bringing me here, I wished to purchase this operation from Danton there, not knowing he was a weretiger, of course. Now hes dead, but when the guardsmen come, we can tell them that I have purchased the Inn and the operation from Danton and I will even show him the deed and bill of sale, I have people who can "handle" things like that. A word from you, or even saying you werent a part of any negotiations, along with one or two well placed bribes should smooth things over, after all we really dont want more lycanthropes taking things over, its pretty obvious why a lot more caravans have been meeting with issues a day or two away from here...and we certainly dont want to see whatever oligarch lackey Mouton has to be put in charge. Besides, he had to have known that there was something up with Danton and hes not going to want it to become general knowledge that he allowed a weretiger to run a supposedly "safe" trade base a day outside the city.
In exchange, I will have my personal cleric teleport to here tomorrow morning, hes a Klintinian by the way and he can cure your priest with guaranteed success. Wolfsbane, even if you can find it in time is a hit or miss thing and the only way to know if it worked is to wait until a full moon and see if he goes all wolf on you. Which is not something you want to see.
Do we have a deal?

[Auranghzeb]

Garrett looked at William with concern, he was a good friend and an expedite solution to any trouble he may had was a sound course of action. Besides, the merchant's story made perfect sense. Then, why did all seem too convenient? They had arrived in the nick of time to help this guy achieve exactly what he wanted...

Garrett didn't like it, could he really trust him?

Spoiler: OoC

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Sense Motive (1d20+2)[4]

While your words make sense, I don't completely like that you offer a cure under conditions, we have helped you already. William's safety shouldn't be conditional to anything.

[spectralphoenix]

Felix glanced over at the rest of the party. They needed a solution, and this sounded like an easy one. The thought of being party to some sort of shady deal rankled, but it probably didn't matter who owned the inn with the shapechangers gone. Still, the idea of a teleporting cleric popping in to fix everything seemed terribly convenient. Too convenient? If the priest were here, William would recognize his own, Felix hoped.

Which left two questions. Would they be safe talking to the guardsmen? Probably. There had been no information about them available last time they were in town, and any trail could only have gotten colder since then. The other was a question of time - how long would they have to wait and take the chance of being ambushed, or running out of time to find belladonna themselves?

I suppose we can talk business, Felix says hesitantly. How long will it take for the guardsmen to arrive and conclude our deal?

[Starbuck_II]

Sonamy scratches his head and thinks, "Worse case scenario, we keep a leash on him till he turns back to his regular self."

[Chimaera]

The big barbarian swing axe to clean it off the blood as the weretiger fell.

With all opposition done, he just watch his leader talk business with the noble. Garret make the deals, Urag see it done. But he cant avoid to worry on William's and the poor guardsman's fate.

He listens to Garret's and Felix's concerns and with nothing
much to add, just take a step closer to the talk.

"If you have a teleporting cleric why are you traveling these dangerous roads?", Urags asks the noble, "And if you take on the inn, that means we get to eat and drink snd sleep for free, right?"

"In any case I think we might go look for those flowers. Just in case".

He looks to Torta with all his seriousness, "Wanna go flowerpicking with me?".

Looking around, be raises his eyebrow, "And where is Twitches?"

[animorte]

William listens to each of the others in turn, looking up to the moon in response to Urag's comment about it's cycle. The concern doesn't leave his face, but he's still able to maintain his composure. "We appreciate your information. I think it best that we keep all options open until this is resolved."

Eyeing this new owner of the impressive establishment, William then makes an attempt at humor despite the urgency of their current situation. "You'll be able to maintain the same standards as your predecessors here, yes?

Then his attention goes back to the newly available items, particularly that of the weretiger. "Hey Garrett, this shield strikes me as a potential interest of yours, though I wouldn't go parading it about under the circumstances."

[Metastachydium]

Sonamy's joke gets a glare, whereas Urag, surprising as he may find it, earns probably the most earnest and eager nod of appreciation from Torta since they've been working together. Garret speaks for us. she then tells Wilson hurriedly, her gaze snapping on the noble for a moment. His decisions are ours. Whatever those may be. she would really rather not strain her mind with figuring out whether this is just another trick anyhow. But William is right. About cures and such. With all due respect… she takes a few steps back. We can do both. The killoren spins on her heels and motions towards Urag. We have an hour. The hour's passing. We better head out. If Twitches comes, good. she looks around, hoping to spot the wererat. If he doesn't… We'll do without.

Spoiler: OOC

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Free action Spot: (1d20+18)[29] and Listen: (1d2018)[1713] to locate Twitches, if still present;
if I can use the OOC roll, T. has a 29 for Survival; otherwise she takes 10 for a 22, welocoming any Aid from Urag either way.

[MikelaC1]

So do we have a deal?

To William I plan to try

To Urag Teleporting one person is one thing, teleporting a whole caravan is something else

[Chimaera]

"Magic is stupid", the big brute snarks at the noble, "It works because is magic, but it doesnt worke because it's magic. Makes no sense".

"But cant speak nonsense now. We're in a hurry. Let's go, Torta".

Urag is ready and eager to leave and look for these wolfbane. William is a friend and is a nice person to turn into a cursed werewolf.

He dashes to the stables to pick up Brisa Louca, his fast light warhorse, barbarian trained in the wilderness.

Spoiler: Brisa Louca

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"Come, Torta, we'll move faster if we ride. Also, there might be more werewolfs in the surroundings, so be on the lookout".

Spoiler: Urag's Flowerpicking

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If possible, he'll try to aid Torta's Survival check to look for wolfbanes.

Survival (1d20+8)[28]
Untrained Nature (1d20+4)[22]
Ride (1d20+13)[16]

[Auranghzeb]

Garrett

Yes, I suppose we have a deal. We need rest.

Spoiler: OoC

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I'd like to swap Garrett's Wild Companion, I'm not a big fan of the snake.

[MikelaC1]

Wilson holds out his hand to shake on the deal and the group returns to the common room. After some time, Urag and Torta return empty handed, they report finding no wolfsbane, there were a few spots where there might have been a different flora from the immediate area but they were burned out. It seems like the lycanthropes were careful about removing the plants that were their enemies. Wilson heads off to the offices of the Inn to find the papers he needs and the group is free to divide the magic they liberated from the weretiger.
The next day, true to his word, Wilson brings a cleric to see William, who recognizes him as one of the higher ranking members of his order in Wilverton and the appropriate cures are cast, freeing from the lycanthrope curse. He even throws in an atonement for good measure.

[animorte]

William drank a little bit more than he intended while waiting on Urag and Torta to return, subconsciously attempting to ease the mind. It did little good as they arrived empty-handed. At least, it helped him to sleep with less worry.

He addresses Wilson accordingly and introduces him to the rest of the party, making sure he's aware of just how close they are to him. During the atonement ritual, he is patient and afterwards offers a great deal of gratitude. "Klintina continue to guide you, friend. Just as she spoke through you on this day."

Spoiler: OOC

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William would also have made an effort to learn some of the higher skill bestowed upon him, appreciative even more-so.

[Metastachydium]

Having returned from the unsuccesful foray into the wild with Urag quite jittery and positively crestfallen; having spent the night in William's close proximity trying to be a presence as comforting as possible nevertheless; and having only gotten any sleep on account of the fatigue, of the body and the mind, Torta is incredibly relieved to see the cleric arrive at last in the morning, with William confirming he knows the man and that he could feel the other priest's power cleanse his body and soul. Reserved as she might normally be, she goes so far as to give William a long, if cautious hug and even offer Urag a genuinely apologetic Would hug you too. But you're gross. For the first time in a while, in fact, she's upbeat enough not to scan the room for threats every heartbeat – and to dismiss, for the moment, Twitches as a maybe convern for another day.

[Starbuck_II]

"Sorry, you couldn't find anything Torta".

Seeing the Cleric cure William:
"Darn, guess no buying a dog collar for William. But at least we won't have to worry about him having rabies and biting us." Sonamy said.

[Chimaera]

Urag go to sleep a restless dream as he couldnt stop thinking in Werewilliam turning into a wolf in priest's clothes.

He wakes up with the sensation of rocks in his gut and for once he dont wolf down the breakfast, barely even touching his second serving.

The feeling however go away once the teleporting priest pops up and bless William, cleansing him from the licantropy curse.

He watches Torta show some affection and smiles and laughs at her comment on being gross.

"That's ok, Torta", he says and pats her in the head, leaving some bread crumbs and butter in her hair, "That's ok".

[Auranghzeb]

Seeing William being healed, Garrett approaches the merchant.

what now? Do you have any leads for a groups like ours

[MikelaC1]

The party believes they have achieved a equitable distribution of the items, however as William attempts to put the buckler in place on his arm, it begins to vibrate, quite rapidly. He is able to remove the buckler, proving it is not cursed (as cursed items cannot simply be "taken off") but even a second and third attempt fail. It seems clear that the buckler will not accept him as its new master.

[Metastachydium]

This development, in turn, leaves Torta thoroughly dumbfounded, so much so that she even forgets about that horrible piece of terrible grease she has, so far, failed to remolve from her hair, despite trying. Should it do that? she asks, hesitantly. Her solid, green eyes shift their hue as she leans closer to the thing, inspecting it with great care. Maybe the werebeast curse… she mutters, only to shake her head, albeit very slightly. Can't be that. What with the Atonement.

Spoiler: OOC

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T. activates Detect Spirits; and
free action stares, via Spot: (1d20+19)[33], looking for visual oddities.

[animorte]

William continues to struggle with buckler, to no avail. Though he doesn't seem particularly surprised as he looks up at the others, noticing them looking a bit confused. "I uh - I figured something like this might happen. Remember I confirmed Twitches' information about this thing?"

He holds the buckler away from him, taking another good look at it, admiring the craftsmanship. Then reaches out, offering it to the rest of his friends. "I'd heard about some items being especially... picky about their wielders. Anybody else want to give it a try?"

[Chimaera]

Urag looks at the shield for a moment and to William.

"I'm not much of a shieldbearer myself, but I can give it a try... But shouldn't Felix identify it first?", the barbarian is hesitant for a moment but take the shield and give it a try himself and, failing that, he'll offer it to Garret.

"So where are we going next?", he asks his boss as he pass the shield.

[spectralphoenix]

I'm afraid I lack divinations beyond what I've already used Felix replies. Still, it doesn't seem to be cursed, so let's pass it around and see who it chooses.

[Auranghzeb]

Garrett tried the buckler.

Urag, that's what I want to know, I hoped Whiskers had more clues about where to go next.

[spectralphoenix]

He said he's lead us to the lycanthropes at the inn, and he did. At this point, dragging him around is probably more of a liability than anything else. Let's just tell him to get lost.

Felix's reasoning was based entirely on cold, hard logic, and not a desire to reduce the average fragrance of his fellow party members.

[Metastachydium]

There's no need. Torta comments, her gaze still fixed on the shield she's very determined not to touch. Twitches figured that much. Vanished while we fought.

Spoiler: OOC

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Which is not something I know, but rather the conclusion T. reached. She tried to spot him before running off with Urag to find flowers and came up empty.

[MikelaC1]

Note: Twitches did stay with you during the lycanthrope fight, probably because he assumed that the weretiger would identify him as the person who ID'd the werebeasts and thus needed to be eliminated.

The buckler gets passed around and gives the same reaction to everyone except to Garrett. As he dons the shield, he finds that it moves perfectly with him, its almost like the shield unlocks all the training his early ranger teachers tried (and failed) to drill into his head. Also when he first picks up the buckler, there is a momentary flash of memories, just like the time he first picked up the new sword, again too fast and short to make anything of it but this time it really did happen and not just the figment of an adrenaline rush wearing off.

[Auranghzeb]

Garret was trying out the gloves and feeling quicker and more agile when the buckler reached him, he immediately knew the buckler had accepted him, his hands felt lighter and more coordinated, even the weight of his sword felt more balanced and deadlier.

well, this is a great loot overall.
Whiskers, should we trust this merchant? What were your motives to give up your fellow were-beast?

[Chimaera]

"He's a rat, that's obvious", Urag says his mind and look to the wererat, "But you did good and stayed by your word, so I take youre free to go. Those werebeasts were a menace to travelers in this region, good thing we got rid of them. But there are still ogres and trolls roaming these area, as well as bandits using guardsmen's uniforms and a tyrant in king's clothing".

The barbarian paces around impacient, "You dont happen to know why there are being so much giants wandering around, do you?", he asks both the noble and the wererat.