(053) Moonshine

[ehiker133]

Desmond sighs loudly and says, "Josiane, while we have some down time, maybe you can examine that staff more closely and see if it can restore our sight? Or conjure up some grub?"

[Tonneau]

Gustave peers around the ruins with fatigued interest "I have no knowledge of this place, but it would seem that some of you do", he says, eying the gloomy interior below.

"Do any of you know how far to the nearest settlement? Perhaps we can send the fleetest of us forward, that they might secure some news of this smoke and, perchance, some food", he adds, wearily.

"I am loathe to divide our group, but given the circumstances..."

[flightcommander]

Armando gazes listlessly about the interior of the keep. "Surely there's a storeroom hereabout, perhaps we might secure something unspoilt ... "

[waysoftheearth]

The ruin has been uninhabitable for years, and is overgrown with weeds and verdigris. Nothing about it suggests anyone has used it as anything more than a windbreak recent memory.

Dieter climbs the open open stair wearily and peers up into the wrecked-out upper floor. There are gaping holes in the broken roof and walls, and vague signs of the fire he and his fellows once lit here to destroy the spiders. Nothing stirs now, and he is convinced the place is empty.

Dorgan volunteers to look below, but a quick glimpse reveals a narrow, ancient stair leading down into an inky black dungeon that smells old and rotted. Everyone is too weary to mount a serious effort, so once it is clear that there are no monsters lurking immediately within, the trapdoor is shut and Josiane sets her bedroll over it as suggested.

Everyone is starved and bone weary from three days marching on starvation rations...

[waysoftheearth]

Wen conjures his infinitesimal helpers again, this time drawing 3d6=11 12 grass mice from the ruin and surrounding fields... these expert foragers are sent out in all directions in search of anything that might be edible, and the weary company slump into a fitful rest riding over the everpresent hunger pains...

Ref dices for Wen's helpers...d6=6!

...some time later, after the sun has set and all has gone dark and quiet, tiny paws pad up to Wen, and mice twitter minute whispers into his ear. Wen awakes to find a double handful of roots and tubers by his feet, and an excited mouse demanding his further attention.

Wen rises swiftly and follows his little champion on a night walk through the fields off to the west of the keep, and after a time finds himself in a shallow gully wherein is a crippled, frightened, and exhausted mule that frets and whinnies at Wen's appearance, but can go nowhere with its broken legs and other injuries...

[mgtremaine]

Wen would be delighted of course to see the results of his magic. "I think we have soup he would say out loud to anyone who is awake, and something else was found."

Wen wanders off following the mice and encounters the mule. He would frown. "This is not good" Quickly he would alert several of the others.

"My helpers found some food, perhaps we can stew it to get something into everyone. More importantly I think we found our lost Mule, which means the rogue Dwarf might be in the area, come quickly and see. It's legs are injured which usually means death for equine. Dieter we may need your trusty sword if the beast be beyond help."

With that he would lead the others to the Mule.

ooc: Try to figure out if a) this is our Mule, b) if the injuries are fatal, c) if we can get it out of the gully.

[coffee]

If the mule is completely beyond hope, Dieter will dispatch it. We could eat it, if nothing else.

But if it is NOT beyond hope, it would be of more use as a beast of burden, carrying our stuff and our small sightless comrades.


And additionally, if Dieter were to use his ring, how fast could he travel overland? The idea of sending one person off for food sounds good to me. (Naturally, Dieter would avoid/evade any possible confrontations; his overriding mission would be aiding the party.)

[sully]

Dorgan feels badly for the mule but that doesn't stop him from grinning ear to ear.

"Let's build a fire right here 'n cook it. No point in worrying 'bout how ta move it. The gully will help hide the fire from anyone seeing it."

If no one else has, Dorgan will light a torch and examine the mule. Any way to tell if it is indeed the party's wayward mule, and how it incurred its injuries?

[waysoftheearth]

All this is several hours after night has fallen... so somewhat prior to midnight.

Wen returns to the keep, rouses some of his fellows, and leads them back to the gully and the mule. The animal frets and whines as it is approached; it appears to have burns upon its flank and back, and has run into the gully at a bolt. It must have fallen down the embankment and broken both front legs, and then been struggling helplessly for some time since. Perhaps a day.

The animal doesn't look familiar, but is very probably a stray from Ket, which is only about 10 miles away. It is in a pretty bad way... perhaps it could be saved in optimal circumstances; but these are far from optimal circumstances. Dieter swiftly judges it kinder to slay the animal than to leave it struggling, and swiftly dispatches it with a single clean stroke. He then undertakes to skin, gut and bone the carcass, all with trembling hands and in a good hurry due to his gnawing hunger.

Dorgan has already been gathering sticks and twigs for a fire in anticipation of cooking the animal... and pretty soon he has a sound cook-fire going. No sooner has Dieter cut strips of red flesh free than Dorgan is roasting them at a high flame. There is a moment of uncanny and fierce satisfaction as they watch the mule meat roast -- each wondering how he will manage to wait for it to cook through...

The remainder of the company are still asleep back at the keep.

[sully]

Dorgan will recommend to Wen that he head back to the Keep a second time and rouse the entire party. Food, at this point, is more important than sleep. Also, safety in numbers and all that. If the fire draws attention, I'd rather all of us be there.