scotland ♔ yet how the wind revives us here

[untethered]

♬ Presentiment - Manami Kiyota

WHO || Belle, Gold, Emma, Hook, Lila [closed]
WHAT || Several Knights take a secret journey to try to help Amara...
WHERE || Oakhurst, Scotland
WHEN || January 15th, 2014 [forward dated]
HOW || Actionspam

It's probably a very good thing that Gold sweet-talked them a car in the nearby tiny Scottish village of Oakhurst, because it is freezing cold out and snow blankets almost everything around. Walking the seven miles up the Old Road to the ruins would be a bitch and a half.

Instead, they comfortably drove past rocky downs, near stands of old-growth oak covered in snow, and past two farms that looked abandoned. No other travelers were visible on the lonely road, which finally curves, passing east of a narrow ravine. Belle signals for them to pull over here, where, at the road's closest approach to the cleft, several broken pillars jut from the earth where the ravine widens and opens into something akin to more of a deep, but narrow, cavern. Two of the pillars stand straight, but most of them lean against the sloped earth. Others are broken and several have apparently fallen into the darkness-shrouded depths. A few similar pillars are visible on the opposite side of the ravine.

Comments

[undealt]

[Gold circles around to the tree so that he's out of the way of everyone else AND TORCHES THAT SUCKER with a burning arc (dmg 23... idek if vampire trees need damage rolls but whatever).

He's mad and SINCE ALL HE'S APPARENTLY GOOD FOR IS LIGHTING THINGS ON FIRE, ALLOW HIM TO DEMONSTRATE HOW GOOD HE IS AT THAT.]

[sternshield]

[ as gold's fire scorches up a large part of the tree, though the trunk remains firmly standing, erky looks askance at emma. ] Castle? You serve the ruler of these lands, then?

[undealt]

[while they continue to converse, in the background Gold scowls at the tree and casts another burning arc on it (24 dmg)

BURN BABY BURN.]

[untethered]

[ AND IT'S A GIANT PILE OF ASHES NOW. as hook would find the following on the druid: the cassock he's wearing, a sling, 10 sling stones, a masterwork sickle by his side, 3 smokesticks, 2 vials of liquid, 3 potions of cure light wounds, his wand of entangle, and a ton of gold pieces. like 323 gold pieces. there are also 4 precious gems in the pouch.

belle picks her way over to gold's side as the tree finishes smoldering and lays a hand very gently on his sleeve. ] ... Thank you.

[bittersweeter]

Yeah, Erky, we work for the Queen. And I'm the princess. [ she sounds entitled enough. (bluff 41) look, eric taught her pretty well about keeping the knights a secret. she's very secretive. sorry erky, it's like a force of habit. ] Though technically, Scotland is petitioning for succession so, whatever.

[unhand]

[Hook's gonna go ahead and drink one of the potions, then hand the other two over to Emma, who has the rest of the potions (6 hp). He also holds up the vials.]

These might be something.

[Also he's pocketing all the treasure obviously.]

[sternshield]

The Princess? [ erky's demeanor shifts, as he tries his best to straighten up and swoop into a bow, taking a knee in the process and lowering his gaze ] My Lady, I had no idea.

[uncurse]

[ WHY ISN'T ANYONE ELSE ALARMED BY THE FIRE. emma jumps back, visibly startled and perceiving that as a threat thank you very much. when gold has another go at it, she glares daggers in his direction. but she forces her attention over to erky when he starts bowing. ]

She's not that ladylike.

[ emma shoots lila a Look and holds up a hand to pacify erky's ridiculously overdramatic honoring. she then moves her hand to take the potions from hook. she shoves one into the bag and takes the other, leaving the bag on the grass for others to take from if they need potions. she opts to drink the one she kept (+10 hp). ]

[unhand]

[Hook doesn't much care for Lila's princess life one way or the other, tbh, but he is ready to get the hell out of here. But he's not stupid. Just because the druid's gone doesn't mean goblins and dire rats and god knows what else aren't still wandering around.]

We should make camp. Not here, though. In some other cave that's less... evil.

[uncurse]

We're not camping. We're leaving.

[ terminator ain't having none of that shit. ]

[bittersweeter]

We're camping. [ she clambers to her feet and turns to face emma with her hands on her hips. ] We can camp in that other cave we found, but if you think I'm trekking my ass all the way back up there through a hoard of goblins we didn't actually kill, you have got another thing coming.

[ i would roll diplomacy, but that was pretty much just sheer stubbornness and no diplomacy at all. ]

[undealt]

[Gold nods at Belle's thanks, but he looks like someone told him his puppy was murdered by ninjas and he's considering vengeance while the tree burns.

Actually, that reminds him of something. He snaps to attention.] Milah.

[DEFINITELY ON TEAM LEAVING. He is farther than a mile away from his familiar right now, so he has no clue if she's even alive. The goblins might have freakin' eaten her or something.]

[unhand]

[ISN'T SHE? Hook steps in towards her, fingers touching her shoulder briefly before he drops his hand.]

Potions can only do so much, love, and just because the Druid's dead doesn't mean his cohorts intend to let us pass through easily. If we rest, we'll stand a better chance of making it out alive.

[And then they can cuddle. :-) diplomacy 28<.strike> 33 he gets a cuddle bonus.]

[untethered]

[ belle looks over at gold, understanding his concern, and frowns ] We do have enough supplies for one more night, but if you think she might be in trouble out there...

[undealt]

I can't tell. We're too far down. [And he's running out of spells too. Resting would probably be best. If anything happened to her, it probably already happened. One more night won't kill her faster.]

[uncurse]

[ with her will save of 16, she's pretty persuaded by hook's cuddling words. she deflates a little, visibly relenting, and sighs. ]

If we're staying, it should be here. The goblins were scared of this guy - so long as they think he's still down here, they probably won't come. And the tree obviously won't be an issue. [ damn rumplestiltskin u scary. ]

[sternshield]

Best we stay, then, since she makes a good point. If we're safe anywhere, I think it's here. [ he picks his way over the bodies of Sharwyn and Braford and lays out their belongings:

2 shortbows, 14 arrows, a staff, 2 backpacks, 2 waterskins, 2 bedrolls, 2 sacks, 2 flint and steel, 40 gold pieces, a holy symbol, a bullseye lantern, 5 pints of oil, caltrops, braford's longsword, and a 50 foot silk rope.

he picks up the holy symbol and frowns, twirling it between his fingers. ] Pelor, the healing god. [ he looks back down at Braford's body with a sigh ] Must have been a paladin at one time, and here he was, reduced to this.

[bittersweeter]

He did it for a reason. [ DON'T JUDGE.

stealing one of those bedrolls, because she doesn't care about propriety or whatever -- hook just looted a body like they're playing skyrim, she doesn't think borrowing a bed is that big a deal -- she lays it down and curls up on it. ]

Night. [ and she's about to curse herself to sleep, so enjoy her just abruptly passing out. she'll still get blowback and that'll be a joy, but sleep for now. ]

[untethered]

[ belle steps over to examine the contents with a frown. ] I- I'm not certain that was the case.

There were only two of them, not enough to fulfill the requirements of the tree. The druid intended to take two from our number by force when he didn't think we would volunteer anymore.

[ she looks over to emma, unsettled. ] I think it more likely he fed them to it.

[undealt]

I don't think anyone would have accepted that bargain willingly. [He stares at the remains of the tree as it burns down to ashes.] No matter what it would have yielded. This mission was doomed to failure the moment we came here. Nothing we could have done would have made it any different.

[Unless the druid had lived and they fed him to his own tree, and well... that would have been nasty business. And also they'd be short a sacrifice.]

[sternshield]

There's sure to be a better way to help your friend. By the Ironhand himself, if there's anything I can do to help, well - I do owe you my freedom. [ with that, he snags a bedroll and lays one out for himself, setting the morningstar by his head as he settles down. ] You'll at least have my aid in ridding the land of this blight.

[uncurse]

[ emma raises an eyebrow at belle like ok was anybody expecting something different ??? bc that was definitely emma's immediate assumption. but rumple seems to have that covered. ]

Sounds a lot like covering your ass. [ you fucked up, bro. she'll leave it at that and turn to erky, though. ] You don't owe us anything. It wouldn't really be freedom if you did. But, if you do want to help us find another way, I'm not about to send you packing.

[sternshield]

"Defend and protect communities from all invaders, obvious and hidden" - the words of the Ironhand. Seems like a dark hidden plot to me.

[undealt]

We'll concern ourselves with that tomorrow. [FOR NOW... we rest. And Gold goes to find somewhere to do just that.]