1.4: I heard they can break a man's arm!

[Sierra]

01[12:01] <@El-Cideon> Several quiet weeks pass. Summer grinds on, but some cool breezes presaging autumn begin to make an appearance. Harvest time will come soon. One day, as you all arrive for work, you find the morning squad waiting in a group outside the tower. "Oh, hi folks," Noemi says with a wave. "We have some guests today," she adds, apparently in explanation for why her group is outside at the moment.
[12:03] <Leona> "Nice guests or naughty guests?" Leona asks the obvious question.
01[12:06] <@El-Cideon> "Well, if they're naughty, it won't be to any of us," Nico says. "Yeah," Noemi adds, "the Ministry finally turned up to haul away your mutineers."
[12:08] <Luisa> The wheels of justice turn pretty slowly, Luiza muses. "They're being collected for trial?" she asks.
[12:08] <Leona> "Took their time," Leona says. "That's government for you."
01[12:09] <@El-Cideon> "Sure are," she answers. "Had official papers and everything. Bringing everyone back to Soli. I guess they want to make an example where the mutiny happened."
[12:11] <Santiago> Santiago plucks at the tip of his moustache. "A grim spectacle awaits."
[12:12] <Leona> "Lucky them, a long journey and then an execution. If it were me I'd just want it over with," Leona shakes her head, that being about as much sympathy as she can muster for people who tried to kill her.
01[12:14] <@El-Cideon> "I know what you mean," Nico agrees. "If that's all you have left, the sooner the better, eh?" Then everyone quiets down at a sound from inside. Sergeant Embriz soon emerges from the station and motions for everyone to stand aside as a detail of soldiers in the formal black and gold of the Verdani Royal Army files past with prisoners in tow. Petrona and her surviving companions are securely manacled to prevent escape. The bandit leader's gaze is dead, and when her eyes pass over those who vanquished her, no particular expression registers. Neither soldiers nor prisoners seem inclined to say anything as they pass, both being intent on the grim business ahead of them.
[12:15] <Morrison> He can't even muster anything more than a glance at the line. It's their own fault, anyway.
[12:15] <Leona> Leona's gaze is similarly apathetic, though she does feel a little self conscious of the dull grey militia tabard she wears compared to the ritzy gold and black look of the royal army. Not that she would want to have to devote even more of her free time to service such as she would if she were in their ranks, but it's a stylish look.
01[12:18] <@El-Cideon> The army squadron sweeps down the road to the north, likely making for the coast rather than moving over the hills. Once they're gone, Cala sums up her impression of events: "Soli's welcome to them. I don't think Rocina's in dire need of more public hangings."
[12:21] <Santiago> "Yes! As the only military people present, we're hardly in need of dissuasion," agrees Santiago.
[12:22] <Leona> "Mmm," Leona hums noncommitally. "Anyway we'd better go report in to the sergeant. Enjoy your afternoon," she says to Noemi and the rest, heading inside.
01[12:24] <@El-Cideon> The morning shift departs, the party takes over the shop, and the afternoon's watch resumes as usual. It's about an hour into your shift that you receive another visitor—or, rather, that you're notified of a visitor. Mado, the young trainee from the watch crew upstairs, shuffles down and announces himself with an awkward cough. "Got a lady comin' our way, officers," he says. "Only, Mr. Meria said no need to alarm everyone ringing the bell, seeing as she doesn't look in any hurry. Looks like a priestess."
[12:27] <Leona> "Well we'll see what she wants when she gets here," Leona says, marking her dog-eared trashy adventure book and putting it back on the shelf so she can look somewhat professional.
01[12:28] <@El-Cideon> Today's petitioner is likely known on sight, if not necessarily intimately familiar, to the locals in the squad: it's Lunesa Arsene, Rocina's resident priestess of Nyris, dressed in the quartered green-and-blue robe of her office. Deacon Arsene is a woman of mature but not quite advanced years. Her fading brown hair is pulled back into a bun. She looks prone to sagelike expressions as much from personal inclination as from professional training, but when she speaks, it's often with a light touch. "Good afternoon, officers."
[12:29] <Leona> "Good afternoon, Deacon," Leona greets her politely. "What can the militia do for you today?"
[12:29] <Luisa> "Good afternoon!" Luiza echoes Leona cheerfully.
[12:31] <Morrison> Morrison offers a nod.
01[12:32] <@El-Cideon> "It may be nothing," she says, with the air of someone hoping that's true but not strongly expecting it to be so. "I was hoping you could check in on a family that lives outside of town. A cousin of theirs who frequents the temple tells me they've not been seen for a week, and there's a fear of going out to visit personally because of all the bandit activity lately. Why, rumor has it that an entire caravan was massacred last month," she adds, sounding skeptical about this bit.
[12:34] <Luisa> Luiza looks away at those words, saying, "Ah, we really should take a look. Where do they live?"
[12:34] <Leona> "That does sound concerning," Leona agrees, getting up with her palms on the table in front of her. "Where does this family live?"
01[12:36] <@El-Cideon> "They have a farm to the south of town. I expect it should take you a couple hours on foot. Here, I've written instructions," she says, producing a sheet of paper with a precisely drawn map showing a route well south of the town proper. "I know a little about them, if you think that should help."
[12:37] <Luisa> "It might? Are they farmers?"
[12:40] <Santiago> "How large is this family?"
01[12:41] <@El-Cideon> Lunesa nods. She looks quite unbothered by the summer heat considering that she just walked in from outside wearing robes. "Yes. The father is Felix Quierdo. His wife is Jacinta and they have a young daughter named Joana. Felix had a younger sister named Elena, but she went off to learn magic in the capital a few years ago and got herself killed in a duel or some such foolishness." She frowns. "We'd tried to talk her into joining the church, but she thought there'd be more money with the guild."
[12:45] <Santiago> "One can't deny their dreams, even unto death," says Santiago, almost as a reprimand.
01[12:46] <@El-Cideon> "I don't know much else about the rest of the family," she says. "They only sometimes come to town for market."
[12:47] <Luisa> "We might as well set off, if we want to get back before nightfall," Luiza offers.
[12:47] <Leona> "I'll go tell the sergeant," Leona agrees, heading upstairs to do just that.
01[12:47] <@El-Cideon> "Of course," she says, bowing graciously. "I'll not detain you any further. Thank you for your assistance."
[12:49] <Luisa> "That's why we're here!"
01[12:50] <@El-Cideon> Cala puts the backup squad on desk duty and sends the party on their way. The Quierdo farm is a couple hours' walk south of town, as directed by Lunesa. It bears the look of moderate prosperity:
01[12:50] <@El-Cideon> Immediately before you sits a one-story brick farmhouse. Its front door is shut, and what windows can be seen from the front of the building are shuttered.
01[12:50] <@El-Cideon> To the right of the house is a chicken coop, with its door unlatched and creaking softly in the breeze. A bedraggled old rooster is perched upon the peak of the coop. A barn looms beyond the chicken coop, its door cracked slightly open but providing no insight into its shadowed interior.
01[12:50] <@El-Cideon> To the left of the house is an extensive cornfield, guarded by a scarecrow with a cheery jack o' lantern head.
01[12:50] <@El-Cideon> The most immediately striking aspect of the scene is a charred corpse in the dusty road outside the house.
[12:52] <Luisa> Luiza rushes towards the house at the first sight of the corpse, knocking on the door!
[12:52] <Leona> Leona sighs and goes to look at the corpse. "Should have gotten descriptions of what they all looked like."
[12:54] <Morrison> Morrison walks with Leona to investigate.
01[12:54] <@El-Cideon> There is no answer from inside the house. Leona sees that the corpse is badly burned enough that identification would be difficult, but from height alone you could guess this was probably an adult male.
[12:54] <Santiago> "It wouldn't have helped much with this poor fellow," Santiago admits. "I'll look around the back."
[12:55] <Leona> "No... no it wouldn't," Leona admits, shaking her head before she follows Luisa to the front door.
[12:55] <Luisa> Luiza tries to force her way inside, calling out, "This is the Militia!"
01[12:56] <@El-Cideon> Santiago finds three windows on the back side of the house, but these are shuttered just like those in front. There's a woodpile stacked up and more fields waiting for the reaping, but otherwise no obvious sign of people.
01[12:56] <@El-Cideon> Luiza finds the door to be locked, and still receives no answer from within.
[12:58] <Santiago> "Hello!" booms Santiago, ambling back around to the front.
[12:58] <Luisa> "Can you break the door?" Luiza asks Leona, face pinched.
01[12:58] <@El-Cideon> Santiago's expansive voice resounds across the fields! And still produces no response.
[13:00] <Leona> "Give me a minute to transform then," Leona asks, taking her tabard off and concentrating as she slowly transforms before putting it back on so she's not showing indecent amounts of monstrous skin. Then she gives the door a mighty kick!
[13:00] <Leona> roll 1d20+3 str check
[13:00] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0str check --> 6,0[ 1d20=6 ]4,0{9}
01[13:01] <@El-Cideon> The door creaks in protest, but holds firm for now!
[13:01] <Luisa> Luiza puts her shoulder to the door, trying to help!
[13:02] <Luisa> roll 1d20+1
[13:02] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{14}
[13:02] <Leona> If only they had a criminal around who was good at picking locks! Still, Leona tries again!
[13:02] <Leona> roll 1d20+5 with aid another from Luisa?
[13:02] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+5 1,0with aid another from Luisa? --> 6,0[ 1d20=14 ]4,0{19}
01[13:04] <@El-Cideon> Leona's second effort is quite sufficient! The door breaks off its hinges and thumps onto the plank floor of the house interior.
01[13:04] <@El-Cideon> With the windows shuttered, it's quite dark inside the farmhouse.
[13:04] <Leona> "Door's open!" Leona calls around the back for Santiago before she marches in and looks around.
[13:04] <Leona> She can see in the dark!
01[13:05] <@El-Cideon> Of course, darkness is no obstacle for one of Leona's heritage:
01[13:05] <@El-Cideon> The interior of the farmhouse is mostly an open space that seems to double as kitchen and dining room. There's simple but sturdy wooden furniture in good repair, and even a handful of books on a shelf. On one wall hangs a framed painting of a bustling port city at sunrise, with a prominent lighthouse rising at one horn of the harbor.
01[13:05] <@El-Cideon> There are two closed doors to the left, and a third door that yawns open onto a descending set of stone stairs and then darkness.
[13:08] <Santiago> For the benefit of the rest of them, Santiago waves his hands and provides some muted illumination in the house, once he catches up. "Is anyone here?" he calls out, walking to the stairs.
[13:08] <Leona> Leona goes to open the two doors here and check if anyone's around before checking the basement. "With the door locked I doubt anyone broke in and murdered them," she comments. "But I don't know how that connects to the burned corpse outside."
01[13:08] <@El-Cideon> Santiago's queries continue to result in answers of silence.
[13:09] <Luisa> "We're here to help!" Luiza calls out. "Please be alive!"
01[13:09] <@El-Cideon> Leona finds that both of the closed doors are unlocked:
01[13:09] <@El-Cideon> One room looks like the Quierdos' bedroom. There's a wood-frame bed, simple but large enough for two, and some basic cabinets and dressers. Above the bed is an amateur portrait of the goddess Amura, presiding beatifically over a bountiful harvest.
01[13:09] <@El-Cideon> In the other room, there is a single bed, obviously sized for one occupant, and likely a child at that. There's a desk with an open grammar primer upon it, and some stray parchment with evidence of rudimentary writing practice. A small collection of dolls and toy animals rests forlornly on a shelf below the closed window.
[13:10] <Leona> "No one here," Leona says, going to lead the way down into the basement next.
[13:11] <Luisa> Luiza joins Leona for that bit of exploration.
01[13:11] <@El-Cideon> The stairs lead down to a cellar. Flagstones make up the floor down here, and it's quite cool compared to the late summer afternoon up above. Against the left wall are some old barrels and broken furniture in need of mending; to your immediate right are some dilapidated, empty shelves; and at the far side of the cellar, upon a desk, sit a book, a pile of letters, some old bottles and jars, and a candlestick in need of a light. Central to the room, there is a notably discolored patch of stone, a reddish-brown blotch several feet across.
[13:13] <Leona> Is it blood?! Leona has a look around the discoloured patch. Because if it's blood then where's the body? Is this one of those Locked Room Mysteries?
[13:14] <Santiago> Santiago walks around to glance at the letters, in hopes that someone could have left a cunning message as to the whereabouts of the rest of the family!
[13:14] <Luisa> "Everyone," Luiza says very calmly, "get back to the stairs and up."
[13:15] <Leona> "Why, what's wrong?" Leona asks, sadly not yet conditioned to risky adventures enough to simply act immediately on such foreboding commands.
[13:16] <Santiago> Santiago pauses, and slowly starts backing away. "There's something here," he insists. "On the floor."
[13:17] <Morrison> Morrison tilts his head slowly from steps back over to the stairs and ascends them slightly.
01[13:17] <@El-Cideon> Deprived an easy meal from some careless adventurer stepping on it, *something* opts to act instead! A formless gray mass, carefully identical in color to the stone floor, rears up from next to the discolored patch and slopes forward hungrily!
01[13:17] <@El-Cideon> OOC: init
[13:17] <Leona> roll 1d20+1
[13:17] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{5}
01[13:17] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20-5 blob
[13:17] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20-5 1,0blob --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{13}
[13:18] <Luisa> roll 1d20+8
[13:18] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+8 --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{26}
[13:18] <Santiago> roll 1d20+7
[13:18] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{17}
01[13:20] <@El-Cideon> OOC: K:D if anyone wants while we wait on Morrison's roll
[13:20] <Santiago> roll 1d20+3
[13:20] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+3 --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{7}
[13:20] <Morrison> roll 1d20+2
[13:20] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+2 --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{12}
03[13:20] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Luisa (26) > Santiago (17) > blob (13) > Morrison (12) > Leona (5)'
[13:20] <Leona> roll 1d20+8 I actually have this!
[13:20] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+8 1,0I actually have this! --> 6,0[ 1d20=12 ]4,0{20}
[13:21] <Morrison> roll 1d20+8 K:D sure why not
[13:21] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+8 1,0K:D sure why not --> 6,0[ 1d20=14 ]4,0{22}
01[13:22] <@El-Cideon> OOC: okay, Luisa's up.
[13:27] <Morrison> "It's a gray ooze." Morrison says. "You shouldn't have any trouble hitting it, just don't use things that are extremely hot or cold."
[13:28] <Luisa> About to dash up the stairs, Luiza reconsiders at that and steels herself before going on the offensive!
[13:28] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[13:28] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{27}
01[13:28] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[13:29] <Luisa> roll 1d6+2
[13:29] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d6+2 --> 6,0[ 1d6=1 ]4,0{3}
01[13:30] <@El-Cideon> Luiza stabs away a shred of gray matter!
01[13:30] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Santiago
[13:30] <Luisa> "Are you sure this is the way? It feels really weird!"
[13:31] <Morrison> "Well, it's an ooze..."
[13:34] <Santiago> Santiago tries to skirt around the side of the ooze, such that he can gingerly poke it with his spear.
[13:35] <Santiago> roll 1d20+5
[13:35] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+5 --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{22}
01[13:35] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[13:35] <Santiago> roll 1d8+7
[13:35] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+7 --> 6,0[ 1d8=1 ]4,0{8}
01[13:35] <@El-Cideon> OOC: in fact, I think no one here can miss without rolling a natural 1
01[13:36] <@El-Cideon> Santiago shears off a slab of gelatinous matter, which turns to dust once separated from its host body. The ooze responds by mindlessly groping for the first person to stab it.
01[13:36] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+6 vs Luisa
[13:36] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0vs Luisa --> 6,0[ 1d20=1 ]4,0{7}
01[13:37] <@El-Cideon> OOC: nope! Morrison is up
[13:37] <Morrison> OOC: It's within 30ft, yeah?
01[13:38] <@El-Cideon> OOC: yep
[13:38] <Morrison> Morrison quickly fires off two arrows at the ooze!
[13:38] <Morrison> roll 1d20+7
[13:38] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=15 ]4,0{22}
[13:38] <Morrison> roll 1d20+7
[13:38] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{25}
01[13:38] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit x2
[13:39] <Morrison> roll 1d8+2
[13:39] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d8+2 --> 6,0[ 1d8=5 ]4,0{7}
[13:39] <Morrison> roll 1d8+2
[13:39] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d8+2 --> 6,0[ 1d8=1 ]4,0{3}
01[13:39] <@El-Cideon> Two arrows *thud* into the blob and into the stone floor beneath it!
01[13:39] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Leona
[13:40] <Leona> Since she was already close by the discoloured stone, it's not hard for Leona to step a bit closer and then start rending her claws through the ooze to pull it apart in different directions! It's like having gloves on, she's not really touching it, right? Feels that way, unfortunately.
[13:40] <Leona> roll 3#1d20+4 power attacking
[13:40] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 3#1d20+4 1,0power attacking --> 6,0[ 1d20=19 ]4,0{23}, 6,0[ 1d20=6 ]4,0{10}, 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{8}
01[13:40] <@El-Cideon> OOC: all hit
[13:42] <Leona> roll 3#1d6+5 and 1d6 bleed damage on its turn every turn until it dies or someone takes pity and heals it
[13:42] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 3#1d6+5 1,0and 1d6 bleed damage on its turn every turn until it dies or someone takes pity and heals it --> 6,0[ 1d6=1 ]4,0{6}, 6,0[ 1d6=2 ]4,0{7}, 6,0[ 1d6=4 ]4,0{9}
[13:42] <Leona> OOC: assuming oozes can bleed. I dunno!
01[13:43] <@El-Cideon> Leona cuts through huge portions of the blob's matter, severely diminishing its presence!
01[13:43] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Luisa
[13:44] <Luisa> Luiza continues her assault, heartened by the support of her companions!
[13:44] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[13:44] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{14}
[13:44] <Luisa> roll 1d6+2
[13:44] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d6+2 --> 6,0[ 1d6=6 ]4,0{8}
01[13:45] <@El-Cideon> Luisa stabs right through the core of the monster, apparently eliminating whatever motive forces keep an ooze moving. It looses all coherence and collapses into dust.
01[13:45] <@El-Cideon> OOC: free act
[13:45] <Santiago> "Oh, well done! But how did this thing get here?!" exclaims Santiago, glancing at Morrison.
[13:46] <Morrison> "...It also had nothing to do with the burnt corpse." Morrison says with a frown.
[13:46] <Leona> "That was startling," Leona says, stepping away. How did it get here? Oozes can fit through small gaps but there has to be something on the other side of said gap for it to have come through. Anything like that she can see around?
[13:46] <Leona> roll 1d20+8 perception
[13:46] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+8 1,0perception --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{18}
[13:47] <Morrison> "It's strange." Morrison says with a look back at Santiago. "Oozes don't just... come out of caves, you know?"
[13:48] <Luisa> "I actually don't?"
[13:49] <Santiago> "But they're not exactly something you bring into a house on purpose... are they?"
[13:49] <Morrison> "...Well, not to go into a long lecture on oozes, but... it's not normal for them to be in a house." Morrison says. "If you want my opinion... someone put it here, maybe to clean up after... whatever happened." He says with a frown.
[13:50] <Leona> "I'm not seeing any place it could have come from," Leona says after a look around. "No adjacent underground caverns or anything."
[13:50] <Luisa> "Does it... eat people?"
[13:51] <Morrison> "It will eat anything." Morrison confirms. "...There's... not usually anything left afterwards."
[13:53] <Santiago> Tears form in Santiago's eyes as he survey the basement. "That is a hideous thing to do," he exclaims. "What common bandit could be so deranged?!"
[13:53] <Leona> "And they locked the door after them? And... it still doesn't explain the burnt corpse outside," Leona says, visibly confused even with her inhuman features. "I don't understand any of this."
[13:56] <Luisa> "We... we should go over what's left," Luiza decides, heading for the papers now that the threat has passed.
[13:57] <Santiago> "It was a man's body. Perhaps he was killed first, and the women, later," replies Santiago, sadly. "Were it not for this creature, I would have thought kidnapping the answer."
[13:58] <Morrison> "But that doesn't... why leave the corpse there?" Morrison asks. "It would have been gone too."
01[13:58] <@El-Cideon> The book looks very clearly like a wizard's spellbook. The letters prove to be more personal:
01[13:58] <@El-Cideon> A quick scan of these letters shows them to be penned by a competent hand, if a prosaic writer. They look to cover a couple years' time, starting in A.V. 447 and ending last summer, and can quickly be discerned to describe Elena Quierdo's experiences in the capital, from a country girl's arrival in the big city through apprenticeship in the guild of magicians.
01[13:58] <@El-Cideon> The last letter purports to be written from a hospital bed, where the writer languished with injuries from a duel. She states her intent to will her spellbook and other magical paraphernalia to her surviving family in light of her imminent demise. She also references several spells and concoctions that she promises can be applied to the family's livestock to increase their yield.
01[13:59] <@El-Cideon> OOC: K:A can be rolled here
[13:59] <Luisa> "This would take some magical expertise," Luiza announces.
[14:00] <Santiago> Santiago ambles over to take a look as well!
[14:01] <Santiago> roll 1d20+9
[14:01] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=19 ]4,0{28}
[14:05] <Santiago> Santiago clears his throat. "This is terrible. Ghastly! A tragedy," he laments. "This poor girl did not know enough to know what she did not know, and without malfeasance furnished her family with tools for its own demise."
[14:06] <Luisa> "Meaning?"
[14:07] <Morrison> "...Are you suggesting they accidentally summoned this ooze?" Morrison asks.
[14:07] <Leona> "You mean the one that died in the duel?"
[14:08] <Santiago> "The same. I'm uncertain that this spell would have the same effect if cast a second time, but the transmutation of, say, a cow into a carnivorous amorphous mass is not out of the question."
[14:09] <Morrison> "That still doesn't explain the corpse..."
[14:10] <Luisa> "So what happened? Someone here used one of her cow transformation spells?"
[14:11] <Leona> "How did they get the cow down the stairs?" Leona sees a fatal flaw in this hypothesis.
[14:12] <Santiago> "It would appear so. Oh, it needn't have been a cow, perhaps a chicken or something could have been involved," replies Santiago. "But the point is, this is a very dangerous spell with not entirely predictable effects, save that the transmutator is unlikely to enjoy the result." He turns to Leona. "Perhaps the mage's sister took it upon herself to try, and inadvertently killed herself and her mother as a result. Upon discovering this, her
[14:12] <Santiago> father commits suicide by burning!"
[14:13] <Morrison> Morrison just stares at Santiago.
[14:14] <Luisa> "This is stupid."
[14:14] <Leona> "You had me up until the distraught father escapes the carnivorous ooze, goes outside, locks the door behind himself, and then burns himself to a crisp."
[14:15] <Luisa> Thinking about this for a few moments, Luiza asks, "Do we have any idea who used this insane spell? Don't mages... I don't know, write in the margins as they prepare their list of ingredients?"
[14:16] <Santiago> Santiago throws up his hands. "What do you want me to do? I can only speculate on that, not prove it. The fact is that this spell certainly explains the source of this monster, and there seems nobody around save the family members to implement it," he replies, turning back to look at the notes again.
[14:17] <Leona> "Well, anyone the ooze ate there won't be even bones to find them by, so that corpse outside is all we have, and its unrecognisable," Leona shrugs with all four arms. "It's a mystery."
[14:22] <Santiago> Santiago shrugs unhappily, and leans back to survey the room with properly magical eyes.
[14:22] <Santiago> OOC: detect magic, woo
[14:25] <Santiago> "I can see nothing else here," he says, standing up and heading upstairs.
[14:26] <Leona> Leona follows him up. "I think we'll just have to bundle up the body and bring it back for burial. That's all we can do here."
01[14:26] <@El-Cideon> The house is still quiet. There's a gentle breeze outside, and the creak of open doors from the chicken coop and barn.
[14:27] <Santiago> "Let's have a look at the animals," Santiago suggests, walking towards the barn.
[14:27] <Luisa> "First, we need to look over the rest of the property," Luiza agrees.
[14:27] <Leona> No reason not to, so Leona tags along!
01[14:28] <@El-Cideon> The rooster atop the coop perks up and crows menacingly as Santiago approaches. It stands up, puffs up its wings, and does its best to look larger than life to scare the intruder away from its home.
[14:28] <Santiago> Santiago salutes the rooster with a brief raise of his pike, but nothing can prevent him from looking at chickens!
01[14:29] <@El-Cideon> Nonetheless, the rooster looks very much as though it wishes looks could kill.
[14:32] <Leona> Leona completely ignores the rooster as she strides into the barn.
[14:33] <Santiago> There was story about some kind of monstrous chicken that could turn you to stone with a glare, but Santiago assumes that the rooster is not among that particular breed.
01[14:33] <@El-Cideon> This proves to be too close for the rooster to tolerate: from atop the chicken coop, it lets out a piercing cry, and then readies itself to launch into the attack!
01[14:33] <@El-Cideon> OOC: init
[14:34] <Morrison> roll 1d20+4
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+4 --> 6,0[ 1d20=14 ]4,0{18}
01[14:34] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 rooster
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0rooster --> 6,0[ 1d20=16 ]4,0{19}
[14:34] <Santiago> roll 1d20+7
01[14:34] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 ??? 1
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{25}
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0??? 1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{12}
01[14:34] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+3 ??? 2
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+3 1,0??? 2 --> 6,0[ 1d20=1 ]4,0{4}
[14:34] <Leona> roll 1d20+1
[14:34] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+1 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{6}
[14:35] <Luisa> roll 1d20+8
[14:35] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+8 --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{18}
03[14:35] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Santiago (25) > rooster (19) > Luisa = Morrison (18) > ??? 1 (12) > Leona (6) > ??? 2 (4)'
[14:35] <Morrison> "Just... let me handle it." Morrison says with a loud sigh.
01[14:36] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Santiago is up. The rooster is about 20 ft off from the party. It's on top of the chicken coop right now, about 10 ft up. ??? are not presently apparent.
[14:39] <Santiago> Santiago brandishes his spear, readying it for the roosters inevitable charge!
[14:39] <Santiago> OOC: let's use the never-used brace action!
01[14:39] <@El-Cideon> OOC: duly noted
01[14:40] <@El-Cideon> Though Santiago stands ready for an attack, the rooster doesn't attack at all. It fixes its beady eyes squarely upon Santiago, who promptly feels the heat raise in the air around to an extreme degree--
01[14:40] <@El-Cideon> OOC: roll fort
[14:41] <Santiago> roll 1d20+3
[14:41] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+3 --> 6,0[ 1d20=16 ]4,0{19}
01[14:41] <@El-Cideon> roll 4d8 fire halve this
[14:41] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 4d8 1,0fire halve this --> 6,0[ 4d8=23 ]4,0{23}
01[14:41] <@El-Cideon> --until flames erupt all around him!
01[14:41] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Luisa and Morrison are up
[14:42] <Luisa> "Wah!"
[14:42] <Santiago> "Argh! I will roast you, bird!"
[14:44] <Morrison> Morrison leaps back at the sudden start of Santiago being lit on fire by a bird. He takes a breath and turns his attention on the rooster -- maybe there's a better way out of this... it's worth a shot, right? "Hey, hey, calm down there, all right?" ...Can it even understand him? Whatever...
[14:44] <Morrison> roll 1d20+3-1 wild empathy
[14:44] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+3-1 1,0wild empathy --> 6,0[ 1d20=1 ]4,0{3}
[14:44] <Luisa> Luiza rushes ahead past Santiago, kicking off the side of the coop to soar up and thrusting her rapier at the rooster once she's at the appropriate height!
[14:44] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[14:44] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=1 ]4,0{10}
01[14:45] <@El-Cideon> OOC: alas. Also, wild empathy work against anything not Animal typed?
[14:46] <Morrison> OOC: It works on animals and also magical beasts, but magical beasts take -4
01[14:46] <@El-Cideon> OOC: noted
01[14:47] <@El-Cideon> Luiza misses in her haste, and the angry rooster doesn't heed Morrison's earnest plea at all!
01[14:47] <@El-Cideon> Something emerges from the chicken coop--it looks like a chicken! But one could be forgiven for skepticism given what else has just transpired. The chicken barrels right at the nearest target--which, again, is Santiago.
01[14:47] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+9+2 charge
[14:47] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+9+2 1,0charge --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{15}
03[14:48] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Santiago (25) > rooster (19) > Luisa = Morrison (18) > chicken 1 (12) > Leona (6) > ??? 2 (4)'
01[14:48] <@El-Cideon> OOC: AC?
[14:49] <Santiago> OOC: 17
01[14:49] <@El-Cideon> OOC: okay. Leona is up
[14:49] <Santiago> OOC: also, if he's charging me
[14:49] <Santiago> OOC: I get to stab him!
01[14:49] <@El-Cideon> OOC: oh, also that!
[14:50] <Santiago> roll 1d20+5
[14:50] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+5 --> 6,0[ 1d20=8 ]4,0{13}
01[14:50] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hits due to charge
[14:50] <Santiago> roll 1d8+7 (double damage!)
[14:50] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+7 1,0(double damage!) --> 6,0[ 1d8=5 ]4,0{12}
01[14:51] <@El-Cideon> The vicious, marauding chicken is horribly gored, but remains steadfast upon its nasty little talons!
[14:52] <Leona> Leona is about to raise her crossbow and perforate the one on top of the barn, but seeing how one of them survives a spear stabbing she reconsiders if her little crossbow bolt is up for the job. No, instead she runs over and slaps a clawed hand right down on the one that charged Santiago!
[14:52] <Leona> roll 1d20+6 charge and power attack
[14:52] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0charge and power attack --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{15}
01[14:52] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[14:52] <Leona> roll 1d6+5 and 1d6 bleed damage on its turn
[14:52] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d6+5 1,0and 1d6 bleed damage on its turn --> 6,0[ 1d6=6 ]4,0{11}
03[14:53] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Santiago (25) > rooster (19) > Luisa = Morrison (18) > Leona (6) > ??? 2 (4)'
01[14:53] <@El-Cideon> Leona rips through what might make a nice dinner, if one's feeling adventurous later.
01[14:54] <@El-Cideon> A moment later, a second chicken bursts out of the coop and tears straight at Leona to avenge its sister!
01[14:54] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d20+9+2
[14:54] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d20+9+2 --> 6,0[ 1d20=17 ]4,0{28}
01[14:54] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d4-2 damage, also roll fort
[14:54] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d4-2 1,0damage, also roll fort --> 6,0[ 1d4=4 ]4,0{2}
[14:54] <Leona> OOC: AC 15
[14:54] <Leona> roll 1d20+3
[14:54] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+3 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{8}
01[14:54] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d4 DEX damage
[14:54] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d4 1,0DEX damage --> 6,0[ 1d4=4 ]4,0{4}
01[14:55] <@El-Cideon> Leona is pecked mercilessly! And where that vile beak hits, her flesh starts to take on a stiff and stony appearance!
01[14:55] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Santiago is up
03[14:56] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Santiago (25) > rooster (19) > Luisa = Morrison (18) > Leona (6) > chicken 2 (4)'
[14:57] <Santiago> Santiago steps around to try and double-team the specimen of lethal poultry that pesters Leona so!
[14:57] <Santiago> roll 1d20+7
[14:57] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=10 ]4,0{17}
01[14:57] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[14:57] <Santiago> roll 1d8+7
[14:57] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+7 --> 6,0[ 1d8=1 ]4,0{8}
01[14:58] <@El-Cideon> The chicken clucks in furious rage as it's stabbed! Atop the coop, the rooster refocuses its gaze upon Leona--
01[14:58] <@El-Cideon> OOC: fort
[14:58] <Leona> roll 1d20+3
[14:58] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+3 --> 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{23}
01[14:58] <@El-Cideon> roll 4d8 fire halve this
[14:58] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 4d8 1,0fire halve this --> 6,0[ 4d8=17 ]4,0{17}
01[14:59] <@El-Cideon> --flames erupt around her, but she weathers them well in her supernatural shell!
01[14:59] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Luisa and Morrison
[15:00] <Luisa> Luiza tries to end this fire-throwing rooster!
[15:00] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[15:00] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{14}
[15:00] <Morrison> Morrison shakes his head and fires off two arrows at the rooster. Could he really be friends with a murderous most fowl?
[15:00] <Morrison> roll 2#1d20+7
[15:00] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 2#1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{14}, 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{11}
01[15:00] <@El-Cideon> OOC: all whiff. Leona is up.
[15:01] <Leona> "Its turning me into stone!" Leona calls in alarm, hoping that's just confined to her outer suit and not her real self. In any case time to pluck this chicken!
[15:01] <Leona> roll 3#1d20+6 power attack and flanking
[15:01] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 3#1d20+6 1,0power attack and flanking --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{13}, 6,0[ 1d20=16 ]4,0{22}, 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{26}
[15:01] <Leona> roll 1d20+6 crit?!
[15:01] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0crit?! --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{19}
01[15:01] <@El-Cideon> OOC: all hit and crit
[15:02] <Leona> roll 1d6+5+1d6+5+2d6+10 and 1d6 bleed on its turn
[15:02] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d6+5+1d6+5+2d6+10 1,0and 1d6 bleed on its turn --> 6,0[ 1d6=5 1d6=1 2d6=11 ]4,0{37}
03[15:02] * El-Cideon changes topic to 'Santiago (25) > rooster (19) > Luisa = Morrison (18) > Leona (6)'
01[15:02] <@El-Cideon> Leona shreds through another ball of blood and feathers, leaving only the angry rooster in the field!
01[15:02] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Santiago is up
[15:03] <Santiago> Santiago gathers up his failing courage and rushes at the pyrokinetic rooster!
[15:03] <Santiago> roll 1d20+7 chaarge
[15:03] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0chaarge --> 6,0[ 1d20=11 ]4,0{18}
01[15:03] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[15:03] <Santiago> roll 1d8+7
[15:03] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+7 --> 6,0[ 1d8=6 ]4,0{13}
01[15:05] <@El-Cideon> The rooster is stabbed through, but survives. It crows in anger, flaps its wings furiously, and emits a pulsing strobe of light from its eyes!
01[15:05] <@El-Cideon> OOC: will, everyone
[15:05] <Leona> roll 1d20+6 +8 if enchantment
[15:05] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+6 1,0+8 if enchantment --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{13}
[15:05] <Santiago> roll 1d20+5 I assume this is not language dependant
[15:05] <Luisa> roll 1d20+2
[15:05] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+5 1,0I assume this is not language dependant --> 6,0[ 1d20=8 ]4,0{13}
[15:05] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+2 --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{6}
[15:06] <Morrison> roll 1d20+4 (+1 extra if mind-affecting)
[15:06] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+4 1,0(+1 extra if mind-affecting) --> 6,0[ 1d20=14 ]4,0{18}
01[15:06] <@El-Cideon> roll 1d4+1 Luisa blinded this many rounds, others saved
[15:06] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 1d4+1 1,0Luisa blinded this many rounds, others saved --> 6,0[ 1d4=1 ]4,0{2}
01[15:07] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Luisa and Morrison are up
[15:07] <Morrison> Why would you even magically augment a chicken?! Morrison fires off two more shots!
[15:07] <Morrison> roll 2#1d20+7
[15:07] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 2#1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{11}, 6,0[ 1d20=20 ]4,0{27}
[15:07] <Morrison> roll 1d20+7 crit?
[15:07] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+7 1,0crit? --> 6,0[ 1d20=5 ]4,0{12}
01[15:07] <@El-Cideon> OOC: regular hit only
[15:08] <Morrison> roll 1d8+2
[15:08] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d8+2 --> 6,0[ 1d8=5 ]4,0{7}
[15:08] <Luisa> Luiza flails with her rapier, a hand covering her eyes!
[15:08] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[15:08] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=2 ]4,0{11}
01[15:08] <@El-Cideon> OOC: miss. Leona is up. Rooster looks badly hurt.
[15:09] <Leona> It's too high up for her to reach otherwise, but she has a crossbow for these occasions! Unfortunately her arms are a bit stiff even with four of them to work with as she aims up and fires!
[15:09] <Leona> roll 1d20+3
[15:09] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d20+3 --> 6,0[ 1d20=4 ]4,0{7}
01[15:09] <@El-Cideon> Unfortunately, this projectile flies wide of the mark!
01[15:09] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Santiago
[15:10] <Santiago> Santiago keeps thrusting at the rooster as though he's thrusting a fork into his dinner!
[15:10] <Santiago> roll 1d20+7
[15:10] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=9 ]4,0{16}
01[15:10] <@El-Cideon> OOC: hit
[15:10] <Santiago> OOC: whoops, that should be +5
[15:10] <Santiago> OOC: 14 hits?
01[15:10] <@El-Cideon> OOC: oh, 14 doesn't
[15:10] <Santiago> OOC: nuts
01[15:11] <@El-Cideon> The rooster narrowly evades this attack, then focuses its gaze on whoever it hasn't set on fire yet--in this case, Morrison.
01[15:11] <@El-Cideon> OOC: fort, Morrison
[15:11] <Morrison> roll 1d20+6
[15:11] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 1d20+6 --> 6,0[ 1d20=11 ]4,0{17}
01[15:11] <@El-Cideon> roll 4d8 fire halve this
[15:11] <Rei-chan> 6,0El-Cideon rolled :6,0 4d8 1,0fire halve this --> 6,0[ 4d8=15 ]4,0{15}
01[15:12] <@El-Cideon> Flame erupts around the stoic ranger--but again, the party proves adept at resisting being a roast!
01[15:12] <@El-Cideon> OOC: Luisa/Morrison
[15:12] <Luisa> Luiza continues her flailing!
[15:12] <Luisa> roll 1d20+9
[15:12] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d20+9 --> 6,0[ 1d20=7 ]4,0{16}
[15:12] <Luisa> roll 1d100
[15:12] <Rei-chan> 6,0Luisa rolled :6,0 1d100 --> 6,0[ 1d100=3 ]4,0{3}
[15:13] <Morrison> Two more shots! Just die already, you magically-augmented bird!
[15:13] <Morrison> roll 2#1d20+7
[15:13] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 2#1d20+7 --> 6,0[ 1d20=13 ]4,0{20}, 6,0[ 1d20=18 ]4,0{25}
[15:13] <Morrison> roll 2#1d8+2
[15:13] <Rei-chan> 6,0Morrison rolled :6,0 2#1d8+2 --> 6,0[ 1d8=1 ]4,0{3}, 6,0[ 1d8=7 ]4,0{9}
01[15:13] <@El-Cideon> Morrison finally puts an end to its crowing forever with two well-placed arrows!
01[15:14] <@El-Cideon> OOC: free act
[15:14] <Santiago> "The pain is tremendous!" exclaims Santiago, withdrawing his magic wand and tending to himself and Morrison.
[15:15] <Santiago> roll 1d8+1 mor
[15:15] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+1 1,0mor --> 6,0[ 1d8=2 ]4,0{3}
[15:15] <Santiago> roll 1d8+1 mor
[15:15] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+1 1,0mor --> 6,0[ 1d8=5 ]4,0{6}
[15:15] <Santiago> roll 1d8+1 me
[15:15] <Rei-chan> 6,0Santiago rolled :6,0 1d8+1 1,0me --> 6,0[ 1d8=8 ]4,0{9}
[15:15] <Leona> Seeing no other threats coming, Leona heals herself a bit and then prods at her stone-like skin. Is it spreading?
[15:15] <Leona> roll 1d8+3 healz
[15:15] <Rei-chan> 6,0Leona rolled :6,0 1d8+3 1,0healz --> 6,0[ 1d8=6 ]4,0{9}
01[15:15] <@El-Cideon> It doesn't look like it's spreading. You think it's limited to the wounded area.
[15:16] <Santiago> This accomplished, Santiago walks towards the barn to have a closer look around!
01[15:17] <@El-Cideon> The barn is unlit within, but from external light Santiago can just make out what looks remarkably like statues of a cow and a little girl, crouched in one corner with hands over her head.
[15:18] <Morrison> "...If we come across any more animals, let me try and calm them down first." Morrison says.
[15:18] <Leona> Leona limps in after Santiago and then gasps at the statuary scene before her.
[15:19] <Luisa> Finally regaining her sight, Luiza rejoins the others while giving the dead chickens a wide berth.
[15:20] <Santiago> Santiago sucks in his breath. "Poor thing," he says, calling up illumination and walking towards the statues to get a better look.
01[15:21] <@El-Cideon> She looks to have been about five years old, maybe six or seven at most. She was clearly trying to ward off attacks before she was petrified.
[15:21] <Luisa> "Is that magic?" Luiza asks warily, frowning. "Can more magic restore her?"
[15:21] <Leona> "I'll really need to see a healer when we're done here," Leona looks at her rocky leg again. "Hopefully if something can fix me it can fix Joana."
[15:23] <Santiago> "Yes," replies Santiago, "But maybe not locally. We ought speak with the Deacon." He glances at the statues. "Best not to move her for now, we wouldn't want to drop her by accident."
[15:24] <Leona> "Lets check the chicken coop and then the fields, then," Leona says, going out and then poking her head in the chicken coop.
[15:24] <Santiago> "We ought to gather up any eggs. And smash them."
01[15:25] <@El-Cideon> Leona sees a lot of petrified chickens, frozen in panic and mid-flight. Two empty nests do contain eggs, however.
[15:25] <Leona> "Looks like those three chickens killed all the rest," Leona says, taking out the eggs and then hucking them at the ground.
[15:26] <Morrison> "...Wonder if the scarecrow is going to come to life, too." He says with a sigh.
01[15:29] <@El-Cideon> Night is falling by the time the party returns home. Deacon Arsene is still present, in the main office having tea with Cala (who one might conclude never leaves work). "Oh, you're back," the priestess says eagerly. "What did you find?"
[15:30] <Luisa> "I'm afraid we have some bad news," Luiza dutifully reports.
01[15:30] <@El-Cideon> She looks prepared for the possibility, and simply nods.
[15:31] <Santiago> "Terrible things. Magic transformed their farm animals into monsters," replies Santiago, somberly. "Felix is dead, Jacinta most likely the same, and Joana has been turned to stone."
[15:32] <Luisa> "It looks as if someone in the family tried to use the magical knowledge passed on from Elena," Luiza adds to that. "We're hopeful that the transformation, at least, can be reversed."
[15:33] <Leona> "I got partially turned to stone as well," Leona gestures to her leg, now no longer in her monstrous form but still sadly impaired. "It's not painful or anything, but... well, it's worrying!"
01[15:33] <@El-Cideon> "Oh, mercy," Lunesa exclaims. She looks to Luiza: "Is that so? I would've thought the family should know better than to dabble in strange magic without prior practice."
01[15:34] <@El-Cideon> She glances at Leona's leg. "Forgive me, dear, I haven't the spell prepared today--but I can do something about that tomorrow if you're still afflicted."
[15:35] <Santiago> "I fear Elena wrote instructions that made a difficult and dangerous thing seem easy. Perhaps her family wished to honor her memory by following her advice."
[15:35] <Leona> "I'll come by the church tomorrow before my shift," she nods. "Fortunately it's not spreading."
01[15:37] <@El-Cideon> "I'd be happy to be of service," she says to Leona. Then she turns to Santiago. "Perhaps so. I suppose she must have written this during the course of her studies?"
[15:37] <Santiago> "From her hospital bed, before she expired from her wounds," replies Santiago.
[15:38] <Luisa> "Can you help Joana?" Luiza asks, focusing on what occupies her mind. "Tomorrow, with the right spell?"
01[15:41] <@El-Cideon> "Well, they should have had a healer handy if they were going to engage in dueling, then she wouldn't have had to expire at all," she says, irate at the unnecessary waste of life. "It's the least precaution one could take if she's going to engage in such reckless behavior. Really, all of the biggest temples are in Vildiana, you only need throw a stone to find a priest. Not that I recommend this as a means of finding one." She looks thoughtful about something for a moment before Luisa commandeers her attention. "That's beyond my own powers, I'm afraid. But the High Sibyl might be able to arrange it. I will write to the capital."
[15:42] <Santiago> Santiago scratches his chin. "It did seem a touch odd," he admits. "And I was thinking than an educated magician should have known better than to pass on knowledge like that to an unschooled family."
[15:43] <Leona> "We should bring a cart out to at least take her out of the barn tomorrow," Leona says. "Just leaving her there for anyone to happen across seems cruel."
01[15:44] <@El-Cideon> "We can keep her safe at the temple until we figure out what can be done about her condition," Lunesa offers. To Santiago, she answers, "It is curious. Sharing isn't typically in the guild's nature. But, I suppose if it was family?" She shrugs.
[15:46] <Santiago> "I have a thought. Perhaps we could write a letter to the magicians guild and inquire about the particulars of the duel and the aftermath?"
01[15:46] <@El-Cideon> Lunesa nods at that. "Oh, I'd be happy to. I have something else to send to the capital already."
[15:47] <Leona> "Wouldn't it be curious if we learned that Elena died instantly?" Leona hums, tapping her cheek as she considers potential conspiracy. "Did the handwriting and prose match up with her earlier letters?"
01[15:48] <@El-Cideon> "Did you bring them back with you?" Cala interjects.
[15:48] <Santiago> "We left the house as is," replies Santiago, "But they could be fetched."
[15:49] <Leona> "Ah, no," Leona admits. "But if we go back tomorrow to get Joana anyway we can get them all then."
01[15:50] <@El-Cideon> Lunesa nods. "I'd be happy to take a look at them myself if you do so," she offers.
01[15:52] <@El-Cideon> ~