Party 5

Misty Forest Cove:

As Gimble approaches the interior of the cove, a flash of light suddenly illuminates the damp interior when Carwyn lights a torch behind him. The warmth of the flame is a welcome respite from the dewey cold of night, and it takes a moment for everyone's eyes to adjust to the new light. It's mostly empty, with signs of small bones and fur like one would expect of a young bear's den. But there's more: remnants of rags, weapons, scraps of food -- and in the corner, a young woman who appears to be just waking up.

"W-wha... who's there...? Is that you, Andis?" She curls closer together, seeming to nurse a wound at her torso, as she looks up to the approaching group and fails to find any hint of recognition. "Who are you... where are the others... the others, they didn't leave me here did they...?" She looks at you all, with a hint of fear and apprehension.
 
Carwyn steps forward carefully out of the group, taking each step gently and placing the torch down so that it lights up the cave without becoming too bright for the woman. "Please, stay calm. You are on your own for the moment, I do not know where the rest of your pack are, but it looks as though you are hurt. I am a priest of Eldath, a freewalker. My name is Cary. I do not know if you know who Eldath is but she brings peace and calm to rough waters, you have nothing at all to fear from me. I will not hurt you." He places his shield and staff down, and unclips his mace setting that on the floor too, approaching her clearly unarmed with his arms wide and a gentle smile on his face.

He looks back at the rest of the group and for a second there is almost anger in his eyes, something no-one has seen before. "We have nothing to fear from someone who is hurt, please stay back all of you." He turns back to the woman and gestures towards her wounds, the gentle smile back on his face. "Would you let me take a look at that wound, before it festers or gets infected, please?" He places his pack down and looks through, pulling out a day's worth of meat jerky, which he also holds out. "I know it is not much, but if you are hungry please take this. Hunger only makes the pain worse."
 
Fauntleroy quietly follows them into the cave, though she deliberately hangs back. She doubts herself capable of the soothing kind of tone necessary to put the woman at ease. Nonetheless, something about her words makes her antsy. She runs her fingers over her wand to convince herself she’s perfectly fine. It’s an old thing, made out of knobby wood, and she’s as familiar with its grooves as she is with the lines on her palms.

She turns around as Carwyn starts attempting to administer treatment, leaning closer to Balion to whisper. “What does she mean, ‘the others’?” she asks, voice suspicious and tense. She tries to peer into the darkness, attempting to check whether or not there are any others.
 
"If indeed a werewolf, the rest of her pack, if not then who knows." With his nerves in edge he keeps watch just outside the ring if light so he can easily see in the darkness behind them.
 
Gimble looks at the hurt creature and puts his right hand on his hip close to the silver dagger. And walks close to the girl laying on the floor of the cave, feeling out his best smile and straight into his back as walks towards her. “Excuse us miss, but could I ask ya a question? What caused ya to be in such a grungy, lived in looking place such as this? And why are you hurt so badly?” Gimble finishes his line of questioning and begins his warning. “I woun’t try nothin’ against my friend here if ya know what’s good for ya. As long as your friendly he’ll patch you up, but if you be bearing your teeth? It’s us you’ll be answering to!” Gimble slightly turns his hip and takes the blade an inch out of his sheath and holds it there for a second to see her reaction before letting it slide back into place.
 
Carwyn spins around angrily and glares at the gnome, he holds his arm out, creating a barrier between the gnome and the woman. When he talks he is snarling in anger, something none of you would have seen before. "Gimble I said get back and I meant it, by the nine hells I will put you on your back if you do not. Move. Back." He turns back to the woman and gently tries stepping towards her again, arms outstretched. "My friend is protective of me but none of us will harm you, I swear it. Please let me see that wound?"
 
Misty Forest Cove:

The woman pushes herself up slightly when Carwyn approaches, hesitance in her eyes. Her gaze darts around at the various mentions of "packs" and "werewolves", but she says nothing, slowly taking the offered jerky and slowly nibbling away on it as the group discussed amongst themselves.

When Gimble approaches and makes his declaration she almost seems confused at what to say -- then the glint of torchlight on blade is made bare, and she almost immediately flinches at the sight. She stumbles back, barely catching her balance with one hand while the other shakily holds the food she had been offered. "No no no no no.... Andis, Dirge, anyone! Y-you can't leave me here...." She drops the jerky on the ragged cot she'd been sleeping on and hugs her knees tightly, burying her face in and sniffling a bit. "I just want to go home..."

After a few moments of processing Carwyn's words in the aftermath, she shifts herself slightly so that the wound at her side is visible in the flickering fire.
 
Gimble shuffles back a bit at Carwyn’s words but keeps his eyes trained on her throughout the exchange. He spots a small glint of yellow in her eyes, putting him on the defensive again.

He frowns slightly then speaks “Sorry Carwyn.” Gimble proceeds to step back 15 feet. “but ya may want to get back after your done. She’s not human, I can see it in ‘er eyes, they were faint yellow.” Turning back towards them, Gimble then takes his bow off from his back and knocks and arrow aiming it at the ground without drawing it. “I ain’t gonna hurt ya, but I’d like some questions answered. This bow’s for me own protection, and for the one 5ft from ya.”
 
For a moment Fauntleroy hesitates, before she steps forward. She had not wanted to intervene, but it seemed that the tense situation could only get worse. She takes up a spot next to Gimble, folding her hands behind her back where her wand can’t be seen. She straightens up and forces a smile. “Master Waywocket, please do not take offense, but I think ‘non-human’ is hardly a standard to judge by, is it not? Especially for a gnome. I did not choose to be a half-elf. Perhaps she did not choose to be a werewolf. At the very least, she should get the benefit of the doubt— she hasn’t hurt us yet. ”

She turns to the woman. “You haven’t attacked you, so I think to attack you in turn would just be senseless violence. If you’ve done wrong by the laws of Daggerford—well, I am far from an executioner. I am in fact a professor. I know what it is like to be falsely persecuted. Let us settle this like reasonable people, yes?”
 
Still facing the gnome Carwyn snaps in anger "It doesn't matter what she is, it matters that she's hurt. If I didn't heal anyone who wasn't human then I wouldn't be healing you either Gimble. And you may well need it if you do not lower than damn weapon."

Carwyn looks over the wound with alarm, it was a lot worse than he first thought. He reaches forward and touches the woman's side, gently singing a calming lullaby in Celestial as blue light spreads from his fingers out into the woman's side. "There, that should stop most of the pain for you. Does it feel better?"
 
Gimble feeling a bit like he is being misunderstood turns around towards the exit “I’m going to keep watch. Forgive me for being a cautious four foot gnome, I don’t have a mouth full of sharp teeth and the strength of two orcs.” Gimble turns around at the exit trying to catch the two companions eyes. “Also I don’t give a damn what she is or who anybody is. All I was trying to do was point out that she ain’t no human, which she fully appears to be.”

With a huff Gimble exits the cave his grumblings still being heard from the acoustics of the cave.
 
Carwyn sighs in resignation and turns to Balion, talking in Elvish. <"Please go and keep him company, before he kills something or something kills him. Make sure you both don't go far.">

He goes back towards helping tend to the woman's wounds, making soothing noises and muttering in Celestial. He stops for a second and without looking speaks to Fauntleroy, again in Elvish. <"Thank you for your kind words there. I am helping but I know what this woman is and I do not trust her. Please watch my back.">
 
Fauntleroy glances over her shoulder as Gimble storms out, letting out a quiet sigh. So much for diffusing the tension. It seems like she might have worsened the situation. She flashes Balion a smile that would look sheepish on anyone else, but just awkward on her.

She turns to Carwyn, nodding resolutely before she responds in Elvish. <“Do not worry. I did not plan on letting anything happen. The benefit of the doubt only goes so far.”> Her fingers clench around her wand. “I hope they will be alright. We are only helping. It would be unfair to attack us now.”
 
Balion watches the exchange and sighs. "If you believe that's wise, then I shall." He makes his way back, following Gimble but keeping his attention turned towards possible threats. He will also try to walk back quietly and unseen.
 
Misty Forest Cove:

The woman seems to tense up at the conversation between the group, still slightly on alert as Gimble leaves the cave and words are exchanged in Elvish, but she eventually relaxes and takes a deep breath while the blue light of Carwyn's holy magic flows into the gash at her side. After a few long seconds she slowly passes a hand over the now-smooth skin where the wound once was, then glances at the cleric with a soft nod. "...Thank you. But who are you all... and why did you come here? I doubt that it was only to help a passing stranger in the dark."
 
Carwyn hesitates for a moment. "We are a group of people who are trying to help. We were asked to keep the peace in Daggerford with some new arrivals. However they mentioned wolves in the forest, and a missing child. So we came looking." He smiles at the woman and gestures to the skin where the wound was. "As for helping a passing stranger, well that is what my god trusts in me to do. In your pain you mentioned an Andis and a Dirge, are those the rest of your..." He hesitates for a moment before committing to it. "Pack? Please it doesn't bother me what you are, I'm not scared of you." 'At least not any more or not fully' he thinks to himself feeling that thump of fear inside him. He sits down in front of the woman in as casual a way as possible in a cave. "If you don't mind, please tell me how you got hurt?"
 
Fauntleroy lets Carwyn take the lead on the conversation for a bit. Her eyes glance around for a bit, taking in the cave. She remains standing when Carwyn sits down, not quite relaxed enough for that. “I am a professor— a researcher. I am primarily here for research. Helping others is...a beneficial side effect for me,” she adds. “My name is Professor Bryce Fauntleroy— Professor or Fauntleroy will do just fine.”
 
Gimble stops outside of the cave looking around for anything that may resemble a threat, but gets distracted by the mist coming from his breathing. He almost falls over when Balion comes up besides him.

"Balion! You near gave meh a tumble, give me a little warning next time." Chuckling he says out loud "Perhaps I was too brash, though I know too many a time where I made off with opportunity from the folly of another. I just didn't want that to happen to us." Gimble looks down at his feet and then up at Balion, with a question indicated by a shrug and a wave " Your turning wheel and you got any advice there? I am open to it, despite my cocky attitude."
 
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Balion gives Gimble a small smile and runs a hand through his hair. A moment of contemplation before he answers. His voice slow and deliberate. "Sadly I have no answers that you might not already hold. I know your intention was good and meant to keep our companions safe. Carwyn has always put the injured or unarmed before his own safety." He pauses and looks directly at Gimble, his eyes piercing. "It's a trait I admire but can never emulate. I have been too entangled with the shadows for too long. From what I've come to know of you it is the same." Balion looks back out to the thickening fog and his brother furrows and his grip tightens on his longbow. "This fog bodes ill, I do not trust it on a night such as this." As he speaks he stows his bow in favor of fingering the pommel of his short sword and holding the silvered knife, deeming the lack of visibility making the bow ineffective.
 
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As Gimbles eyes meet Balion’s Gimbles face relaxes and his own eyes fade over slightly swimming with nostalgia. “Ya, it seems far too often I find myself slipping back to that time.” Gimble turns back towards the mist silent and waiting, seemingly satisfied with the conversation.
 
Misty Forest Cove:

The woman looks up carefully at Carwyn, hesitating at his words but ultimately taking a deep breath before speaking. "Yes, they were my.. family. Andis and Dirge were, anyway, born out of circumstance. But we were recently... 'assimilated', I guess is the word." She hugs her knees tighter, unsure of what to say. "We had been on the run, so hearing of a larger pack and being in their protection seemed like a godsend from Selûne herself. But before they could take us to their 'home', they said they had to finish up some other business first... 'for the health of their pack', he said..."

She bites her lip, looking back down again. "I voiced my disapproval, and then he called me disloyal and a traitor, and then... this happened. I don't know what happened to my friends, I blacked out for a bit and... here I am..." She sniffles a bit. "...Left to die."
 
Carwyn nods sympathetically along to the story, ears perking up at the mention of Selûne one of Eldath's allies. He goes to start speaking and then it happens, the phrase. The phrase hits him like a brick. His eyes glaze over and it spirals inside his head. 'Left to die, left to die, left to die, left to die.' His mind snaps back to the ditch, the blood, the pain. Lander's face. The grove when he had asked why and Lander had replied that some people are the storm and some people are the still water. He wants to be that storm. He has to be the still water. He has to be the still water because Eldath was with him, he had felt her presence. He wants to be the storm so badly. He looks down and his fists are clenched, knuckles white with rage or fear. Even Carwyn doesn't know which anymore.

'Get a grip on yourself Cary she is hurt and she is scared and she is alone. Like you were. Be Lander, don't be another reason for pain.' He forces it down inside and forces himself to unclench his fist, laying it flat but unsure whether anyone else saw. He looks back to the woman and smiles as best he can. "I was left for dead too, once. Violence only creates more violence. We have to try our best to turn away from that and be different. I know the anger you hold in yourself and the fear, because I have it to even now. Please. What other business did he mean?" Carwyn looks down at his knuckles and flexed his fingers a little bit. 'I can be the difference. I can do this. I can.' He clenches his fist again. 'I'm going to skin those bastards.'
 
Misty Forest Cove:

The woman nods at Carwyn when he speaks up, her expression softening slightly until Carwyn asks about the pack's 'business'. "... The child. The child, that was their 'business'," she says, choking back the word a bit. "My... group and I, we just tried to get by and mind our own business, keep to the fringe of society if we knew it would be bad timing. We wouldn't dare impose this on anyone else. But they... wanted to sustain their numbers, grow them even. And that meant finding fresh 'recruits'... those sick bastards..."
 
Carwyn's anger is at boiling point. 'The child. They are going to turn the child into a monster.' He reached out without looking and picked up the quarterstaff. "Where have they taken the child?" He mutters under his breath. 'I will stop this. Eldath's peace, I will stop this.' He clips the mace back onto the belt and turns back to the woman, shouting this time. "Where have they taken the child?" He shakes his head, too much anger not enough focus. He didn't need anger at the moment, he needed calm. He takes a breath and says a small prayer to Eldath with his hand pressed against his chest, slowly infusing the blue light into himself. Carwyn picks up his shield and the torch and looks back at the woman one final time, his voice almost completely emotionless but his eyes swimming with cold fury. "I won't hurt you, but I need to stop this. Tell me where they have taken the child."
 
Hearing what sounded like Carwyn shouting Balion pats Gimble's shoulder and turns to walk back into the cave. 'No sounds of combat...just a shout. No need to run...yet' As he comes into the main are his eyes scan the scene. Seeing Carwyn re-equipping himself and seeing the girl isn't further harmed, nor his companions, he nods slightly to himself. Catching the last bit of what Carwyn was saying he mutters under his breath. "And so the Wheel makes another turn and the light of the moon takes on a new light..."
 

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