Mists over the Musarde, Chapter Four

[ewancummins]

''Tobacco- the stuff that you smoke?
That is a rare thing, friend Dorgio. I have none, and I know of only one source: The Tinker-folk. They bring it from someplace beyond the Cloud-Wall. ''

Wat spares a moment to speak with the dwarf and the boy, where they stand beside the carcass of the great boar-

''Norzak and Jon, please try to keep the hide in one piece. I will keep it for myself. The tushes, I was thinking, we should divide between Norzak and Cirdan, for those two did great work in bringing down the beast.''

Now Wat calls one of his hounds to his side.

''Good boy. You will come with me to hunt the dead man, and your brother will stay with Alain.''

When Dorgio is ready, Wat immediately begins a sweep, looking for any signs of the missing corpse.

[ewancummins]

The beast is butchered, a time-consuming task.

While Jon and Norzak cut up the boar, Dorgio and Wat search the cabin and the yard for any signs of the missing Van Diecks. They find nothing. Even Wat's dogs pick up no scent. The man's cold corpse has vansished as completely as morning mist burned away by the hot summer sun.

Wat finally gives up the fruitless search.

''Evil things are at work in this vanishment, friend Dorgio. We will never find the dead one by ordinary means, I am sure. ''

Wat then goes to help the others with the pig. Jon has sliced away the hide and jointed the meat, but there is still much work to be done. Wat picks out certain choise cuts and places these in a nook above his fireplace [ to dry-cure as bacon]. The offal goes to his dogs, who begin at once to tear at it with great pleasure. The hide is stretched out on a wooden frame, and Wat begins the work of tanning it, scrapping away with a small cresent blade knife.

''Jon, make sure to save the brains, I will need those to tan the hide. You others- begin cooking the rest of the meat before it spoils. You can make stew in my cauldron. There are some earth-apples and shrooms in my root cellar. Put the rest into my smoke pit. We must not waste anything. Save the hooves.''

[steveflam]

Norzak decides to try magical means. Casting Detect Creature, Were Weasel it's type, he sends his shadow out and about to search for the missing Van Dieks. He warns his shadow that Jon will show being one but he wants anyone else showing that creature type to be let known to him. He will cast it up to three times if he has to.

[ewancummins]

Norzak decides to try magical means. Casting Detect Creature, Were Weasel it's type, he sends his shadow out and about to search for the missing Van Dieks. He warns his shadow that Jon will show being one but he wants anyone else showing that creature type to be let known to him. He will cast it up to three times if he has to.

Norzak's shadow goes forth to search for Van Diecks.
When Norzak casts his spell, he detects no creature fitting the description 'were-weasel' -save for Jon. Repeated applications of the spell yield identical results.

[steveflam]

"Awright, me shadow dinna fin' nuthin on that Van Dieks scumbag, unless 'e is a ghost then I was givin me spell the wrong type o beastie."

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

Dorgio sets to gathering meat for Wat's smoke pit. The work reminds him of his boyhood, when he and his father would smoke kolbász sausages after the autumn harvest. He smiles at the memory. But as he cuts a strip of meat from the shoulder, he stops, and twirls his knife in thought.

"If Van Diecks were coming back to life, or if he were playing the possum, why was he not stopping to take Benn and Alain unawares?"

He turns the question over in his mind as he brings the meat to the smoke pit. Once he gets there, he takes a moment to examine it, looking for any similarities between Wat's pit and the pit he and Jon had found earlier.

[ewancummins]

Dorgio sets to gathering meat for Wat's smoke pit. The work reminds him of his boyhood, when he and his father would smoke kolbász sausages after the autumn harvest. He smiles at the memory. But as he cuts a strip of meat from the shoulder, he stops, and twirls his knife in thought.

"If Van Diecks were coming back to life, or if he were playing the possum, why was he not stopping to take Benn and Alain unawares?"

He turns the question over in his mind as he brings the meat to the smoke pit. Once he gets there, he takes a moment to examine it, looking for any similarities between Wat's pit and the pit he and Jon had found earlier.

The pit does indeed bear some similiarities to the pit he and Jon had found earlier. The pit in the woods was larger.

[steveflam]

"Awright, so whut der tha pit mean 'xactly, Benn. Ah, still gorna keep me shadow on alert 'roun that perimeter jess' in case that prick Van Dieks is aroun'."

[ewancummins]

The remainder of the daylight hours passes with the work of tanning, butchering, smoking meat,etc. When the work is done, darkness has already fallen across the land. The party retreats into the light and comfort of the cabin.

Indoors now, Wat cooks stew in his black iron cauldron that hangs over the hearth-fire.

'' We will eat soon, friends.''

Indeed, Wat soons dishes food out for everyone, filling your wooden bowls with thick stew [he's added the pig's fat in with the meat, potatoes, 'shrooms, wild onions, and a sprinkling of herbs from the garden].

As the party eats, Wat tells you a little of his history-

''When I was a little boy, my father and mother built this cabin. Father said that the hunting was good here in this part of the Forest because men were afraid of the Witch-Hold's closeness. He was right- the game is plentiful, away from the circle of dead ground near the Witch-Hold.''

[ewancummins]

Both of Wat's dogs suddenly go berserk, barking and leaping about the room!

[Brock Marsh Runoff]

''When I was a little boy, my father and mother built this cabin. Father said that the hunting was good here in this part of the Forest because men were afraid of the Witch-Hold's closeness. He was right- the game is plentiful, away from the circle of dead ground near the Witch-Hold.''

Speaking of the land, I was wondering about your fire pit. You see, we found one very much like it when we were searching for the rider. And not long before we met you, we found another one, but something was happening near there, and it put Jon and . . . another companion of ours in a trance. Is any of this sounding familiar?"

Both of Wat's dogs suddenly go berserk, barking and leaping about the room!

Dorgio's bowl clatters to the ground and he shoots to his feet. He shouts a few gutteral words of prayer and looks around the cabin for signs of the supernatural*

[[OOC: Casting detect magic]]

[ewancummins]

Dorgio detects a glimmer of magic coming through the ceiling...

CRASH!

The timbers overhead split open and a tall figure covered head to toe in iron mail and wearing a helm with a closed visor, drops through the resulting gap, swinging a sword with both hands.

The attacker strikes Cirdan full in the chest in the same instant it hits the floor, a mighty blow that sends the unarmored half-elf crashing through the front door!



''MY QUEEN ORDERS THAT YOU MUST DIE!''

[JMaytr]

(1) Jonathan moves to flank the creature (2). As He does, he pulls his silver knife and attacks the Iron mailed figure (3).


(1) Initiative http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2254835/ 20
(2) Tumble check http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2254833/ 26
(3) Attack roll (silver knife) http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2254836/ 22

[ewancummins]

Jon's knife bites into the rusted mail armor and drives right through, piercing the flesh beneath. Not a drop of blood comes out of the wound, nor does the armored one cry out in pain.

[ewancummins]

The dogs run into the back of the cabin.

Wat grabs Alain and drags the blind man into the back room, as well.

Jon, Dorgio, Norzak, and Benn are in the front room with the attacker.

Cirdan, if he's still alive, is someplace outside in the darkness.