2. Skyway Robbery - Faces In The Dark

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea attacks the ground spider. Vala continues to free Henry.

[Xenoe]

Judy keeps screaming and electrifying.

Henry keeps strugglin.

[Dekaru]

Finch, thoroughly out of this fight now, will try and back off from the spider and try to avoid losing the ability to move his other limbs. He will be thankful that it's his arms and not his lungs or something.

(Dodge and Barkov continues attacking)

[Interovegas]

[Judy roll for Knolwedge+Sorcery: 1,2,2,5,6,9,9,10,10+MD:10 Result: Success+1 Shock Damage to Head]
[Andrea roll for Body+Fight: 1,1,1,5,6,7,9 Result: Success+3 Killing Damage and 8 Shock Damage to Left Hindlegs]
[Finch roll for Coordination+Dodge: 1,2,6,7,10+ED:10 Result: Success]
[Orkan roll for Knowledge+Sorcery: 1,2,4,7,8,9+MD:9 Result: Success+3 Killing Damage to Torso]
[Huge Spider roll for Body+Bite: 2,4,4,5,6,6,9 Result: Success+3 Killing Damage and Envenom to Right Arm]
[Barkov roll for Body+Bite: 1,3,4,4,9 Result: Success+2 Killing Damage to Left Forelegs]
[Large Spider roll for Body+Bite: 4,4,5,5,8,9 Result: Failure (Dead)]

Andrea and Orkan finish the spider off. Lightning and steel come together as one in a lethal strike that leaves a charred dismembered mess. Vala frees Henry and up above Judy's smoke armor saves her from one of the nightmare's bites (1 shock damage).

[Round 8: Declare Actions!]

[Dekaru]

[Ob-Lob]-"*Whistle* Barkov Ka!"

Finch looks up at the largest of the spiders and being unable to do anything will watch while Barkov fetches his saber

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea, now positioned by the fire, resigns herself to continually throwing torches and other burning materials up to maintain vision on the spider and Judy, who seems too frightened to be able to hold one and provide permanent lighting.

[Zwiche]

Orkan takes advantage of the light provided by Andrea to spew bolts of lightning into the dark and smoky arboreal battlefield. [Fucken guess.]

[Interovegas]

[Orkan roll for Knowledge+Sorcery: 1,3,5,6,7,9+MD:9 Result: Success+3 Killing Damage to Torso]
[Andrea roll for Body+Athletics: 1,2,3,4,6,10,10 Result: Success]
[Judy roll for Body+Athletics: 4,9 Result: Failure]
[Huge Spider roll Body+Bite: 2,3,4,5,5,6,9 Result: Dead]
[GM roll for 50 feet falling damage for Judy: 1,2,4,5,5,9,10,10]

The spider is burnt through by Orkan's blast. As it collapses through the branches and to the ground Judy falls alongside it. The thing begins to sizzle moments after hitting the ground and its melting black entrails ooze from its burns.

[Encounter End]

[Xenoe]

Judy groans in pain as she hits the ground, the last time she felt this rattled was when she fell out of a poorly constructed watchtower back in her early academy days.

Judy - [Imperial]: "Aaaaaaagh, my poor poor back..."

Henry rushes over to Judy in an attempt to console her, but his tongue stops millimeters above the grimy layer of smoke still covering Judy's body. Instead he pats her lightly on the noggin with his paw.

Henry - [Dog]: "Eating shit is one thing, but I really don't like the taste of smoke, sorry!"

[Dekaru]

Finch looks at the sizzling creature with dissatisfaction but Barkov brings his saber over to him and he tries to reach out to take it with no affect. Cursing under his breath, Finch looks at Andrea and says

[Imperial]-"Boatswain, do a favor and sheath me sword for me and put me hands in coat pockets. The beasts bite has 'ffected me arms."

As Finch says this his head begins to pound as the severity of his head injuries becomes immediately apparent to him. While getting the sword sheathed and his hands are put into his pockets to keep them from swinging about Finch will take the time to cast Whiff of Blood to better analyze the dead spiders. With luck the surrounding area will provide more information on their quarry.

[Zwiche]

[imperial]-“Captain, I do not mean to overstep my bounds, but perhaps now would be the time to light some of the marvelous incense provided by the merciful general? This dark and twisted wood surely does us no favors when searching for ambush by beast or bug.”

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Aye it be best now we hopefully have an idea of where the source be. One of you light it, seein' as I can't use me arms."

Finch tries to play off any worry for the lack of feeling in his arms though the concern of ones flesh be dissolved from inside their blood vessels is enough to shake any man.

[Xenoe]

Judy gathers herself up from the floor.

Judy - [Imperial]: "Agh, it still hurts... Oh that reminds me though, where did that cow monster go?"

[Corenat Rovarnus]

[Imperial] “Aye, captain.” Andrea attends to Finch’s needs. “Vala, get that incense going.” Her squire lights up a stick from the campfire.

Andrea [Imperial]: “Our triumph came at grave cost. ’Twould be prudent to make for the encampment, as I know not when thou arms may function again. Although…” she looks around to see what became of the egg-bearing creature she first encountered.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Rest can wait for the moment we are clear of this cursed place. 'Sides, I can always kick anything that comes me way!"

The last sentence Finch makes a comedic attempt at a kung fu kick in the air almost losing his balance in the process as the exertion causes his head to throb even more.

[Interovegas]

Andrea nears the egg infested beast. It continues to drag itself across the ground towards the party, probably with the same malicious intent as the spiders but no ability to act on it. Upon closer inspection there are many partially eaten wasp corpses on the ground and scattered across its skin.

[Zwiche]

[Imperial]-“Shall we end the misery of this foul creature? Send it’s senseless suffering to the final resting place, that it’s wretched corpse shall join the earth as it must?”

[Xenoe]

Judy - [Imperial]: "I, uh, don't know what that is, but I advise against burying it. It perhaps may be an important clue if we manage to take a sample of it back to camp? Unless one of ye sers and dames knows better?"

Judy spends a couple minutes creating a large saw and a thick shelled box(with handles and hinged lid) with approximately a cubic meter of volume using her more permanent smoke sculpting techniques (create minor smoke structure).

Judy - [Imperial]: "Anyone want to do the honors? My arm is still paining me so I do not have much strength."

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea [Imperial]: "I don't know, it does not seem capable of harming us." She takes the burning stick of incense from Vala and waves it at the creature.

[Interovegas]

The creature stops its approach and groans when the incense is flaunted in its face. Further up ahead there is a wagon sized mound of wasps obssessing over a pile of something.

[Zwiche]

[Imperial]-“Judy, cans’t thou spread thy smoke upon the insects that they may be stricken with fatigue and collapse in slumber? I would not approach so large a mass despite my curiosity. I would not be the proverbial cat.”

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea [Imperial]: "There, see? The critter is repelled. We should have lit these before setting out."
She hands the stick to Vala who will continue warding away the egg-bearer. She lights up another stick and approaches the mound of wasps while holding it out. [Imperial] "There should be no problem now."

[Interovegas]

The wasps scatter angrily. The collective beating of their wings sounds out like the buzz of machinery at a factory. Even as they are repelled by the stick of incense they find the tenacity to try and sting Andrea. Hundreds of wasps land on her skin but their attacks are undone by Judy's smoke armor. Andrea can just barely make out that beneath the wasp pile is a trio of torn sacks of yellow-pink sludge on a broken wagon.

[Xenoe]

Judy - [Imperial]: "Maybe this be the source of the contamination? Certainly worth examination."

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea chuckles at the pests' futile attempts. [Imperial] "Thy spells art a blessing Miss Judy. I shall do just that." She pokes and prods at the sludge with both hand and hoof, sniffs at it-
[Imperial] "Ar- Art thou sure that's safe?!" Vala shouts in an alarmed tone.
"Perhaps."
Andrea shrugs and continues her thorough examination, mixing it with dirt and bringing a lump of sludge towards the incense.

[Interovegas]

The sludge does not recoil. Henry and Barkov approach the material. After they sniff at the stuff they start eating it up rather quickly. Between bites Henry woofs out.

Henry-[Dog]: "Smells like the ship fuel but tastes so good!"

[Corenat Rovarnus]

[Imperial] "Oh! 'Tis food for the dogs," Andrea realizes that the substance is safe. "A strange thing to find but 'twill suffice for the the spoils of our expedition. Vala! Help me stow this nutritious sludge."
Vala's face contorts in disgust. [Imperial] "Fie, that stuff will not be entering my pack."

[Interovegas]

[Andrea roll for Sense+Scrutiny: 2,3,5,7 Result: Failure]

Andrea sees that below that exposed layer the substance is a mixture of air fuel powder, nearly twenty pounds worth, and some sort of meal substance.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Wouldn't let anything eat that."

[Ob-Lob]-"Barkov Brii!"

[Imperial]-"Andrea get the dogs away from there!"

[Corenat Rovarnus]

[Imperial] "Barkov, Henry, stop eating! You can have more later!" Andrea shoos away the two dogs. "We need some container to allow us to store these goods and get them back to the ship. Any ideas? Miss Judy?"

[Interovegas]

Barkov resists Finch's first command. Andrea's physical intervention and Finch's repeated commands eventually dissuade Barkov from his unexpected jungle meal time. Henry is a bit more persistent but also has no choice but to relent after Andrea gives him an especially forceful yank. Hundreds of wasps buzz angrily in the air stinging at Andrea and the dogs, a fraction of the revolting swarm that was present minutes ago.

[Xenoe]

Judy - [Imperial]: "Henry! No! Stop it! Eating directly off the ground is unsafe, ye should know better than that!"

Henry - [Dog]: "But you don't understand! It tastes even better than shit!"

Judy comes over and stows some of the the mysterious meal into her smoke box.

Judy - [Imperial]: "I have a mysterious feeling that this is the stuff that's making the animals crazy, maybe an alchemist back at the base can tell us what it is?"

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Would appear the stuff is what drove the animals mad. Best to burn it and return to camp with some of the material."

(Unless anyone is opposed I say we burn the wagon but take some of the stuff back with us)

[Interovegas]

Everyone notices the vague silhouette of a hand poking up from under the side of one of the large torn sacks of powder.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"What is that under the sack there Andrea?"

Finch will also try to get his bearings to figure out the way to camp.

(Direction check while taking extra time to get bearings)

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea moves away the sack to see what lies beneath.

[Interovegas]

She reveals the unsightly swollen form of a partially eaten soldier. From what she can see of his armor even before fully removing the corpse from the mound the man likely served the Confederacy.

[Zwiche]

[Imperial]-“Didst the General report a lost wagon in these woods? Did he make known a mysterious substance used by our forces? What secrets is he hiding?”

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"The general mentioned no such thing. Aye is mighty fishy."

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea frowns. [Imperial] "I would not jump so easily to conclusions about the good general. This wagon could have belonged to the Empire, and this man their prisoner or victim."
She checks the body for some sort of identification.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Hard ta say. Man may have been prisoner and left here to die after carrying it out here. Can't say what Marcutio would get out of his own soldiers dying to monsters. Lest his sister be looking to stage him a failure and take position."

[Interovegas]

With the party more alert to suspicious details at the scene, Finch notices there is a suspicious trail leading further into the darkness. Thick piles of dried mud pushed apart to the roots and raised rocks at the sides indicates several large things were dragged.

[Zwiche]

[Imperial]-“And lo, there be yet more marks of secrecy and the unknown. Perchance a beast has claimed the greatest spoils for itself, perhaps the Empire has stolen our goods. We must follow posthaste, lest the marks be washed away by the brush of time.”

[Dekaru]

Finch wary of his current injuries and his throbbing head looks at the poor sod in the wagon

[Imperial]-"If that be the case best watch the canopy for more spiders."

[Corenat Rovarnus]

[Imperial] "Indeed, this trail doth merit further investigation," Vala agrees in a quiescent manner.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"An investigation that must wait for another time. You may be in condition to continue, Andrea, but the others are not. I'm having trouble standing up straight at this point."

[Corenat Rovarnus]

Andrea [Imperial]: "Very well then, let us return to the base. Vala, canst thou bear the weight of these non-sludge supplies?”

“I suppose, though they art still suspect in mine eyes.” Her squire begins stowing the powder and meal making sure to keep them separate or at least labeled differently from the other supplies.

They will then lead everyone back to the Confederate camp bringing as much from the wagon as they can carry.

[Interovegas]

[Finch roll for Sense+Direction-1d: 3,3,5,5,7 Result: Success]

The noble Halsey trail-blazes the path to camp according to Finch's incessant course corrections. The return trip winds through a long stretch of luminescent mushroom bowls. The odors and natural sounds of the woods are masked by the musk of the burning incense and ruckus of hooves and boots against desiccated mushrooms. Henry and Barkov stop suddenly in their tracks. Barkov begins barking furiously into the darkness ahead of the young Halsey. Thirty seconds later two humans come sprinting towards the group. The first is dressed in a lamellar cuirass, torn cloak and angular bronze metal mask. The second soul wears leather armor from their shoulders down to their shins. Their exposed arms have nasty deep cuts. When they take notice of the party they wave their arms motioning to turn back and yell in foreign accents.

Unknown Souls - [Imperial]: "RUN! RUN!"

A booming crash sounds off behind them and moments later a towering feline beast comes diving through the side of a tree in pursuit. Though its difficult to discern its precise form in the darkness two details are certain: First, the creature is at least eight and a half feet high when it stands on four legs. Second, the creature is stained with a shimmering green all over its body. Henry trips the two fleeing souls with subtle positioning unexpected from an ordinary dog. The hulking feline beast closes the distance to the party in an instant but stops short of the group, well within the pervasive musk of the incense. The beast stands only fifteen feet away and remains motionless while staring at the party with apparent intelligence.

[Dekaru]

[Imperial]-"Stand yer ground and start making noise! No runnin' from this beast."

Finch starts hooting and hollering as loud as he can throwing in the occasional jump. Essentially trying to be as imposing as possible and hopefully the others catch on and join in.

(Intimidate check hopefully with help from everyone else making noise)

[Zwiche]

Orkan joins in, but with more dignity. He spits lightning, aiming for warning shots to scare off the beast.