Subject: Re: Runaway Burro

Addendum:

The spears relaxed a bit against the party, and now the focus is outward. So, Elotai's not in mortal peril at the moment, thanks to Erk's speech. (which was a Diplomacy Check 21 v. DC 20, btw). Also, the two on the left side of the map have moved between the wagons toward the back ridge of the grass.

Subject: Re: Runaway Burro

Buchek winces at Kayla's timing in whatever it was she was hoping to accomplish by spooking the donkey.

"Kayla," he calls, pitching his voice to carry into the grass, "the Kubalkat has agreed not to hurt you. Their shaman will peer into your soul and confirm that you are not Noyakin. Come out from the grass, but slowly, with your palms outward."

Subject: Re: Runaway Burro

Erk curses under his breath. The halfling seems determined to get herself killed here, and them along with her.

Erk calls to the shaman, "Wait! I will get her. I will bring her out for you."

He then runs to the area that the spearmen are advancing on and says, "Kayla! Little Bird, come out to me right now, or these men will kill you. Come out now!"

If she does, Erk will stand behind her with his hands on her shoulders, and move her toward the shaman. "Read her heart, with the aid of your gods. Assure yourself that she lacks the noyakin taint."

Subject: Pfft

(Pffft, Erk didn't have to make any sort of diplomacy rolls? How was I supposed to know he'd convince the shaman from pure niceness?)

Kayla hears Erk and Buchek, and shrugs, "Ain't much else to do." She steps out of the grass toward Erk, slowly and with her hands palms up.

Subject: Re: Pfft

Erk DID make a diplomacy roll.

His roll is the reason we are all not currently pincushions.

Subject: Cooler Heads

Erk leads Kayla quietly forward between the two guards, silently praying to Clangeddin to allow them to cross the distance to the shaman unharmed. The warriors look at her suspiciously, seeming to gauge her against some mental picture of a Noyakin they held in their heads. She certainly looked harmless enough - just like a smaller version of one of the Sunset People.

There is utter silence as the dwarf and halfling cross the distance. Even the donkey has stopped, no longer being assailed by knife butts from behind.

Kayla feels as though this is some sort of processional, like a queen's coronation, or a priestess' final dedication to her god... or a march to the gallows. She knows there is nothing to fear, but deep down she wonders at the alienness of this culture, and their immediate and unflinching decision to kill her on sight.

Standing before the shaman, she feels as though he is taller than the others. From afar, she saw that he is not - in fact, he is about average for the barbarian folk, which is small by city standards - but something about the way he stands, or the way the light plays across him, makes him seem immense and powerful. Some small part of her mind wonders at the trick, and starts calculating how it might be used in front of an audience.

Holding one hand to Kayla's forehead and hoisting the staff into the air, the shaman closes his eyes and calls out in a strange tongue that even Buchek and Holn do not understand. Holn at least understands it is the secretive shaman tongue they use to speak with their gods, having heard it during his travels with his master, but he cannot make out the words.

Kayla gets a feeling that she is somehow open, or laid bare. It is disconcerting - almost the feeling she gets when someone catches her in a lie, or when her hiding place is discovered. It makes the hair on her neck prick up for a moment before she regains control. After a short time, the feeling passes and the shaman opens his eyes.

"This one has no evil in her soul. She is no Noyakin."

The warriors visibly relax, and each takes a few steps away from the rest of the party and lowers their weapons. One's hands shake slightly as the adrenaline leaves his body, and two nervously joke with one another.

Kayla steps back away from the shaman and sees him again as an ordinary man, of normal size. Erk leads her back toward the wagon and the others, letting loose a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

Kubalc steps forward to Buchek and bows his head slightly. "I apologize, Returner. If you are hiding any other surprises, perhaps you should tell us of them before we stumble upon them ourselves."

With a wry smile, he claps Buchek on the back, sending a shiver down his spine, and begins to lead him back down the grass path to camp. As they walk, Kubalc calls out to the others that all is okay and tells Buchek that his men would find a way to bring the wagons down to the clearing using the animal paths.

Subject: Whew

Kayla, still a little bewildered, turns to Erk. "Ho, friend. I can'na believe we're still alive." then after a moment, "Thanks, friend."

Subject: Re: Cooler Heads

Holn breathes a sigh of relief as Kayla is absolved. Fa leaps to his shoulder as he follows the pair to camp.

It seems too easy.

He feels destiny pull at him, wondering about the nature of Kubalc's interest in his old and massive friend. (Sense Motive: 3 +2 for Negotiator)

He hopes they can discover the whereabouts of the Druid Lysette....

Subject: Re: Cooler Heads

Buchek shoulders droop with sudden lifting of the tension. He laughs at Kubalc's words, appearing to shift moods as mercurially as his hosts, but internally he maintains a certain reserve. This man walking down the path with his hand on his shoulder could just have easily been unsheathing his axe from Buchek's corpse. Would have, if Erk hadn't been able to convince them to actually stop and examine Kayla. He will share a fire and food with this man, and be happy to call him ally in a fight with Tossuc, but the prospect of joining this tribe no longer holds any savor for the young barbarian.

As they walk back toward the camp together, Buchek says to Kubalc "Have your people been much harried by the Noyakin? Among the Cushat there were many who believed that the Noyakin were nothing more than stories told to scare children into staying close to camp."

Subject: Re: Cooler Heads

Elotai remains quiet, and trails behind the rest of the group. He doesn't trust the barbarians not to kill them yet.

Subject: Re: Whew

Erk can not stop the wide smile from spreading across his face. "Yes, well, my help does not come without a high price. I will expect an excellent song from you tonight, little bird. Something about the greatness of dwarves would be about right."

He puts one arm around her shoulders and walks with her back to the camp. "Now who are these grassland cousins of yours that everyone is so afraid of, hmmm? Let's keep our ears wide open tonight, and see what hints we might glean."

Subject: Re: Whew

Kayla grins back at Erk. "I've got the perfect song. Jus' you wait."

She furrows a brow. She tries to recall if any songs mentioned creatures like the Noyakin (arcane knowledge, I think?)...

Subject: Heading back to camp

Kubalc and the shaman wear smiles of relief on their faces, and the warriors shoulders hang low with the rush of fear and anxiety having left their bodies. Kubalc walks with arm over Buchek's shoulder, a smile playing easily across his face as though the preceding ten minutes had not even happened.

It makes Buchek uncomfortable, as his people did not let such strong emotions fade so quickly, but he goes along with the chieftain, if only to be sure tempers don't flare once again. As much as they may look and act like the Cushat, he sees now that they are most certainly foreigners. This is clearly not his home.

Holn is equally unsettled, not trusting the sudden change in demeanor. He watches Kubalc's closeness to Buchek with suspicion, but can't quite make out what the chieftain's intentions are. Is he honestly an ally? Or is he holding something back? Frustrated, Holn can't get a read on the man. [Sense Motive 9 v. DC 20]

"Have your people been much harried by the Noyakin? Among the Cushat there were many who believed that the Noyakin were nothing more than stories told to scare children into staying close to camp."

Buchek's question triggers a a sharp laugh from Kubalc. "Much harried? Before today, we were not harried by gods either, friend, and stories of great beasts were only told around fires. Such creatures exist, and we both worship and fear them, but none have been known to come out of the grass in three generations. Until today..."

Behind the group, Telwyn and Elotai drift toward one another, watching the barbarians speak ahead of them, and the dwarf and halfling behind. Both noticed the way the warriors looked at Kayla, and at their own pointed ears. Two had moved off with the wagons, leaving three behind. Two walked alongside the elf and half-elf, while one hung back behind the group entirely.

While the immediate tension may have lifted, there was suspicion and fear still behind their eyes, hidden from view. It made both Telwyn and Elotai uneasy, and they exchanged a look of concern as they proceeded after Kubalc toward the camp. Hidden suspicions could sometimes be more dangerous than those shown openly.

Kayla stayed close to Erk, already trying to put the events of the day into song. She had hammered out the beginnings of a refrain when Erk whispered so the warriors couldn't hear.

"Now who are these grassland cousins of yours that everyone is so afraid of, hmmm? Let's keep our ears wide open tonight, and see what hints we might glean."

She had been struggling with that question already, but wasn't any closer to an answer. [Arcane Knowledge check 5 v. DC 20] There was simply nothing she could ever recall hearing that bore even the slightest resemblance to these halfling sized fair folk. Surely she would keep her ears open for any clues, especially since knowledge of this race might be the only thing that could keep her alive in another such misunderstanding.

As if on cue, the shaman approaches her and bows his head slightly.

"I am sorry, small one. I know there is no evil in your heart. It is just that you are like a grass serpent that has wandered into a child's tent - no one is willing to ask the beast if it is friend or foe, lest the child die."

He pauses, then looks to Erk.

"I see now that you have some responsibility over this group, priest of the mountain. There is wisdom in your bones - perhaps the wisdom of the mountain itself, which has seen all things. I must warn you of a danger you no doubt already foresee.

"I know the small one is not a threat to our people, and Kubalc believes me in all magical counsel. But there are others who will not accept this. They will fear I was bewitched by the magicks of the Noyakin, or that Khoftak punished me with false vision for the sins of he who held this staff before me. They will not understand.

"Knowing this, I fear you cannot stay with us long. If it were not nearing sunset already, I would tell you go move on with your wagons tonight. As it is, you would do well to be on your way as quickly after daybreak as possible, to wherever you may be heading."

Both Telwyn [Listen 19] and Elotai [Listen 20] hear the shaman's words, which give even more weight to their fears.

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

Kayla smiles slowly at the shaman, "S'alright, no harm, eh? 'cept the poor donkey. His bruise'll go soon." She pauses a moment, then asks, "D'you listen to music? Songs and the like? I promised my friend," she nods her head to the dwarf, "a song of heroic proportions."

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

The shaman's words put a frown back onto Erk's face. "I appreciate your warning, Godsman. I will advise my people of your concerns. I wish we had time. I would like to learn more of your grassland gods. But I thank you for what welcome we have been given, and for your quick action in stopping a potential tragedy. The grassland peoples have men of wisdom to equal those found in the mountain folk." Erk bows low when he finishes, his fist before his forehead, in the gesture of respect given by his people.

Behind him he hears Kayla offer a song to the shaman. "What do you think? Would a song help our hurt our cause? This little bird has a sweet voice, and can charm the ears of men. But would this be viewed as harmless entertainment, or as evil grassland magic? Please, guide us in this."

After the shaman has spoken, Erk will make his was over to Buchek. "A moment, Buchek, if it will give no offense to our hosts." Erk says with a smile on his face to the chieftain. He takes Buchek to the side a small distance and relays the warning the shaman gave. "I have no reason to doubt this man. He seems to be wise and open in his dealings. It is perhaps best we mind our tongues this night carefully, and leave at first light in the morning. What do you think?"

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

Softly, Buchek replies. "I mistrust them, though I agree that the shaman is a wise man, and good. Kubalc would have me think him a blood brother now, but a few moments before that he would have buried his axe in my chest, and a few moments before that was offering me the hospitality of his tent. These people are more changable than the Cushat. If the sun were not setting, I would take the shaman's advice and go. As it is custom and necessity both call for us to stay. I will stay alert tonight, and will not allow myself to be distracted by Kubalc's women's charms. If we are to make a watch we should be careful that our hosts do not take offense. Perhaps it would be best if they did not notice."

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

Telwyn glances at Elotai when he hears the shaman's words. These tribesmen were a touchy lot, very different from the ones back home. Best to keep silent for now--he didn't want to be overheard, but there's no telling what suspicions their "hosts" would have if Telwyn and Elotai started speaking in Elvish. But it looked like, for now anyway, the two of them were stuck with each other.

It was strange to feel kinship to this elf. Stranger still to feel so alien. Growing up in a human village, Telwyn had always wondered about his father's people. And even though the taunts from the other children about his ears had eventually turned into respect and friendship as they grew up, inside Telwyn never really felt like he belonged with the people of Armis. Somehow he had always expected that meeting an elf would bring a feeling of rightness. But meeting Elotai simply reminded him of just how different he was. Suddenly, Telwyn wonders whether coming on this expedition was such a great idea.

But, of course, all of this is neither here nor there. First they need to get away from here alive. Telwyn keeps his tongue and continues following the group back to the camp.

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

Mike, your character writing is really, really good.

:)

Subject: Re: Heading back to camp

::blush::

Thank you.

Subject: Back to Base Camp

[ODM: This is going to be brief. I got bogged down with work yesterday and today.]

Following Kubalc, the party winds its way down to those waiting in the clearing. A gasp runs through the crowd at the sight of Kayla, but the shaman assures them that she is not some demonic evil of the grasses, just a small humanoid. Still, mothers shield their children's eyes and men give her a wide berth.

Kubalc tries to set the party's camp at the center of their own, but the shaman pulls him aside and speaks with him privately. The chieftain returns and suggests a camp off to the side of the tribe, not excluded but also not surrounded. Holn notes that they are on the side closest to the break in the grass where he guesses the weasel emerged. It does little to settle his nerves.

Kayla, carefully watching the people, notice that many of them are doing their best to whisper secretly to one another, and the looks she has gotten have given her chills. Ordinarily halflings are overlooked, or at worst mistrusted - this fear and subconscious hatred is foreign to her, and she can't quite get used to it. She imagines this is what a half-orc might feel like among elves.

[Okay. Feel free to roleplay a bit before bedtime. I'll answer any questions directed to Kubalc or the shaman, or any of the other tribesmen, as I receive them. Ideally we can be done with the night and move on toward the Tall Grass itself next week - just in time to break for the holidays. The new year can usher in a new world.]