A Cleansing Experience pt6

When last we left our heroes, they had defeated a wyvern.

Unfortunately, the rmeaining one is laying dead on the ship, causing it to list.

Great.

Astaren walks up to the corpse and looks it over with a heavy sigh, "Poor thing, to be both augmented, and then forced against one's natural will to fight like that. Hey captain, do you need help in getting this poor creature off the deck?" glancing to Durrankar, "If we need to, I can deal with the corpse, and after that I will take a short rest and refresh my spells under the moon." glancing up and grumbling, "or at least I would like to."

"Get the Wyvern off the ship." Durrankar says as he tries to pry the Wyvern off the deck. He then nods to Astaren. "Yesss....that is what I dissscovered assss well. We will both need to rest after thissssss"

Kravar flaps his wings and flies above the wyvern. He tries to get a good grip on the creature's tail - not the spiky tip but the section towards the middle. Then still airborn he tries to tug. "Can anyone cast a spell that will make the deck slippery?!" he calls loudly. "We could slide it over the edge and off!"

Durrankar says, "I don't have that kind of spell!"

GAME: Astaren casts Grease. Caster Level: 16 DC: 17

Astaren steps back and chants a few words, creating some grease under the creature, "Shall we push now?"

The airship is listing, badly, and so it's a requirement that the wyvern be pushed overboard before long. When it's disintegrated by Astaren, the ship gradually rights itself. Thankfully.

Shora is quite relieved, glancing at you with a big old sigh.

Stirling nods to Astaren, "Sure this was a ruse of some kind. A distraction, there has to be something more at work here." he says. "Keep all your senses keen." he says watching the sky. "Perhaps a test of which ship is best defended."

Astaren lets out a yawn, "Well I am going to turn in, anybody is welcome to come in that is on the ship to rest and relax, there is a pool." he offers with a chuckle. He taps his ring and chants a few words, the air shimers against one of the walls and suddenly a double door apears. A new moon on one side, and a full moon on the other door. He opens them up and walks into what appears to be a mansion, "Food to, fresh with tea!" letting out another yawn.

Durrankar says, "yeah...I'll go and nap myself." he says as he joins Astaren....but just curls up on the floor....."

So many of the sailors stare.

One of them throws his tools up in the air and just says, "I'll be in my bunk. My shitty, shitty bunk."

This shit appears so unfair. SO. UNFAIR.

Still, thankfully, the mansion is magic and doesn't actually 'weight' or else you'd be crashing into the earth!

And so it goes, you know. You have a few hours of rest. It's helpful.

ZZZZZZZZZ *FWOOSH*

Durrankar is pretty beat, but at the same time, he only needs two hours of sleep.

GAME: Astaren casts Restoration. Caster Level: 16 DC: 19

Astaren is hard to get up for his watch, mostly because he put up some sound barriers between him and Durrankar, something about fire breathing and snoring. He does take his watch, keeping an eye on the sky and making some notes in a journal.

Astaren also invites any of the crew into the mansion for some food and drink, and to enjoy a bed if they want.

Durrankar is...thankfully....out of the mansion after a couple of hours. he didn't burn anything down...but he does leave the door open to.....air it out.

Kravar peers about with his spyglass...for the first half hour or so. Then he seems to relax, trusting the ship's lookout (they have a lookout, right...? Right??) to watch for danger. Kravar rests and occasionally practices some swordwork and then some punches and kicks.

There is no immediate threat to the airship for the next couple of hours, no. No horrible monsters or deasdly encounters. Everything is going smooth and you're making good time over the Myrrish territory. The rolling countryside beneath you is dotted with farms. YOu still have a /long/ trip ahead of you, but at least there's no more horrible wyverns for the moment.

Kravar peers over the side now, staring down at the countryside below. "I don't think I've ever come this way," he remarks. He looks around for landmarks to try to orient himself.

GAME: Astaren rolls perception: (11)+23: 34

GAME: Kravar rolls perception: (3)+19: 22

GAME: Durrankar rolls perception: (3)+26: 29

The good news is that nothing else horrible happens. At least for a while.

Still, all of you are keeping your eyes open, such as you can, and taking your chances to rest where you can as well. There's no sign of more wyverns OR the Bludgunio airship. Hopefully, that's the last problem you'll have for a while and the 'Gunners won't dare follow you this deeply into Myrrish territory. It's going to be days yet before you arrive at Bryn Myridown to deliver the orb.

It's the next day, now, perhaps closer to dawn than anyone would like, when you feel the hairs on the back of your neck rise. Like an aakmbient energy in the air.

GAME: Astaren refreshes spells.

GAME: Durrankar refreshes spells.

Durrankar doesn't have hair......but he does feel a tingling sensation. "Interesting. So that's what it feels like to feel danger approach...

Astaren glances around and frowns, "Danger, and magic, this is a specific targeting. Probably being scrayed. be ready the enemy will appear anywhere, and from any direction." Quickly chanting a spell on himself.

GAME: Astaren casts Mage Armor. Caster Level: 16 DC: 17

GAME: Astaren rolls spellcraft: (19)+25: 44

GAME: Durrankar rolls spellcraft: (10)+22: 32

Kravar changes his sunblade into a slightly oversized gauntlet that covers his hand and most of his forearm. Metal squares line the back of his hand, fingers and wrist, and each of these glow with the light of the sun. All of this lets him hold his shortbow in that hand while he peers through his spyglass into the slowly brightening skies.

Durrankar says, "Astaren is right. We're being watched.......Kravar....ready a weapon....""

"Something the matter?" asks one of the sailors, noticing the odd looks from KLravar, Ataren and Durrankar for the time being.

"I am a weapon," Kravar smirks back.

"Get everybody under cover, the big bad guy with a fragile ego is watching us." Astaren glances over to the sailor, "Ready defenses." eyes darting around as he considers, "The scrying, typically has a point of origin we can find, like an eye or something. We might be able to blind whatever minion of his is watching us."

Durrankar says, "I wasn't joking, Kravar. We're being watched."

At your words of warning, an alert has been called and the ship enters a state of readyness.

Shora is eyeing the lot of you, seeming more than a little worried that something is indeed about to happen.

... nothing does. Just yet.

FBut the sense of being watched remains.

Kravar's smirk fades. "I wasn't joking either," he murmurs. But he puts away the spyglass and transfers his bow to the hand covered in glowing metal. Then he pulls out a handful of arrows and sets one to his bow. Scanning the skies, he begins to pace slowly across the deck. "Easy," he says to one crewmember. "Remember the wyverns - and how they were dealt with," he adds to another. When he reaches the stern he nudges one of the sailors manning the ship's weapons. "No sign of that Bludguni ship? Perhaps they thought better of following us."

Astaren shakes his head, "Nothing in my reprotraure... even if it was, I doubt the thing watching us couldn't just easily overcome it." glancing around as he considers and glancing to Durrankar with a knowing nod and turns his eyes towards the shipmates and Kravar thoughtfully.

Durrankar glances over to Astaren and nods his head.....no words are spoken. There is no need.

Kravar completes his circuit of the deck and ends up close to where he began. "Everrything looks to be in order," he says to Durrankar and Astaren. "If there is something here that is letting someone spy on us, it must be hidden to look like it belongs on an airship."

Durrankar takes a deep breath and lets smoke out of his snout....before whispering something to Astaren....

Astaren glances to Durrankar and nods slowly, 'Agreed, but both. Never know." turning to start scouting around the ship.

GAME: Astaren rolls perception: (15)+23: 38

GAME: Durrankar rolls perception: (4)+26: 30

GAME: Kravar rolls perception: (16)+19: 35

Searching with magical detection is probably your best bet. It's going to take time and it's not as if the airship can stand still.

What's frustrating an odd, however, is that none of the sailors seem to be the source. Ther's no sign of the magical sensor amongst them. You've begun the process of searching the ship top to bottom, now, and it's taking time...

Kravar pauses and then pans his gaze up and across the walls and bulkheads of the airship. "Does this ship have a cat?" he hisses at the nearest sailor. "Or some other means of catching vermin?"

Astaren pauses a moment, "Magic, faint, not familiar.." glancing to Kravar, "A cat? Oh my.... a familiar maybe, or a scry target."

Kravar shakes his head. "No, that sound...it reminds me of rats. Or beetles. If so we need something to root them out." He pauses and looks at Astaren. "You mean to say, something like that could also be the method our mysterious opponents are scrying on us?"

...SKITTER SKITTER SKITTER.

In the walls, now. You can hear it. There's definitely /something/ in the walls.

Astaren glances to Durrankar, "Summon vermin maybe, got that? This is your area, not mine now."

Durrankar says, "I do not....not at the moment. So we have to try something else....""