Blackburn's Crossing Chapter 4: Snake Eater

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Arissa laughed at Violette’s pun. “That does sound like something he would say. It is rather unfortunate that your weakness is so abundant... tell me, does this include wine as well? Once we have finished all that needs to be done before we may rest, you simply must try a proper meal from Bernard.”

Arissa then pauses and eyes Violette curiously. “What is it that you intend to do when we return home? I had thought that you had come for the Ball, but come to think of it, I had not seen hind nor hair of you at the event... and I believe I would have recognized your lovely hair behind any mask. I doubt you came here to muck around with swamps and drink blood with the locals, ja?”
 
Bernard and Kallisto can be heard returning to the hut, Bernard's voice speaking loud and in a jovial manner, "...they take their shots when suddenly the snake falls off the bar stool, dead. The man places his coin on the bar and stands to leave. 'Hey! You can't leave that lyin' there!' The bartender exclaims.
To which the man replies 'That's not a lion, that's a snake.'" Bernard bursts into a great fit of laughter as he finishes the joke. He and Kallisto enter the hut, his arm wrapped around her shoulder and a large smile on his face.
 
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Village Hut:

"It depends on the wine, usually the stronger it is the better... I have had a few that weren't very alcoholic that were a problem," says Violette tilting her head for a moment. "James had mentioned something about asking me about a job. I figured I could wait awhile to find out what he had in mind though I wonder what it might specifically be for. I do not have the brains quiet like Leone, nor the talent of performance as you Arissa."

"Let us not get into that topic again, since it brought up wounds on both sides of the conversation. I had wished to attend, but other events that morning lead me down a different path," says Violette shrugging. "I suspect when I return James will have settled whatever business has kept him, and he'll tell me and I will either accept or return home to my home country of Richemulot. I'm sure there's a Ball or two there that could make up for it, though there may not be as many people from far and wide as James' party. Nor I suspect a wedding announcement."
 
Léone nods along to the conversation, having said little during the confession so as to not escalate things further. While the revelation of Violette being a lycanthrope was... substantial, to say the least, she couldn't help but connect the dots to the strange nature of her thoughts. "She hides it well - though I suppose that's what you have to do to survive..." She continued to stay back as the confrontational nature appeared to die down, and after she had gotten her thoughts together she finally spoke up a bit to Violette.

"I'm sure you have your own talents, as you've clearly shown during this trip," she says, nodding in understanding. "I don't know how much James had told you personally, but after the events during the Ball he had hoped to hire on more security - and thought of you as a capable fighter to keep around if possible. Between risking your life for us several times this trip and sharing one of your most private secrets I'm willing to vouch for your employment if you'd like to stay in the Crossing a bit longer. That is, if you're not sick of us yet," she jokes, chuckling a bit. She then mulls it over a bit more before shrugging. "Of course, we'll probably have to discuss a bit about whatever family business you had, because I imagine it would affect our relationship with the Reiners... but that's a conversation we can have once we're out of a giant swamp where everything is out to get us."

Looking back to Violette, she nods once more. "Either way... I'm glad that you trusted us enough to confide in us. Your secret is safe with me, I promise - I know how nobles can be." She flashes a small smile. "Though I'll make sure Grimdosh doesn't offer you any fruit salads from now on."
 
As the pair began their walk back Kallisto shook her head at Bernard's jokes -- she chuckled at the first one, groaned at the second, and laughed at the third, though perhaps not nearly as hard as Bernard did.

Still with a smile she looked over the other members of the party, glad to see things seemed to have stayed calm. "Nice to see things stayed reasonable while we were gone. Sorry if we're interrupting -- but I'm not sure when Ahretakan or one of the others might come to check on us for today. I know most of you were ... kind of left in the dark due to language, but we have a fair amount of information to discuss."

Gesturing towards Leon who she'd last seen with the map, "Last night -- I asked about the trap that was mentioned and used against the Serpent's mate, hoping to see if we could use it against her as well, and was told it could be found in the Graveyard of Bones. A place where someone has been waiting for a long time ... by the skeleton of a large snake. What I know of the Graveyard, no one comes back, and those that do are dead and full of arrows." Kallisto scratched her head idly, aware of the mood shift she was bringing to the hut. "The tribe does not know where it is, but I saw it marked on the map before. We can potentially use that to find it. With the Hydra ... unfortunately not much is known of it, and it's hardly been seen since ... well, since he transformed into the hydra."

"I'm hoping at some point this morning to 'ride' with Aluc and see if we can find any of the Children of the Serpent nearby, potentially we can try to capture and undo their own Geas on our way."

Kallisto paused for a moment, bowing her head deeply to the rest in the room, "However ... I feel I should apologize for what happened earlier. If I have broken trust, I understand, but please know, at my core, I would not do anything to harm anyone of you. Decisions might have been handled better ... but we can only continue forward from here."
 
Arissa smiled apologetically to Violette. “My apologies, I did not mean to press the topic once again. I am afraid that I am often too curious for my own good. She then turns to Léone as she spoke and laughs. “I am certain Grimdosh will abide by the wishes of the future Mrs. Blackburn.”

Arissa watched with a raised eyebrow as Bernard and Kallisto came into the room laughing. Well, they certainly seem to have worked things out... I am glad. Kallisto needs a friend, and if she does not wish it to be me, I am pleased that Bernard can be there for her. She smiled warmly to Kallisto after she apologized. “We all have made our fair share of mistakes, and will continue to do so. So long as we can own up to them and learn from them, they serve to make us stronger in the long run.” Arissa then looked around the room, giving them a winning smile and putting magical emphasis in her words. “Needless to say, I am looking forward to whatever cunning plan you all are able to come up with. I have nothing but faith in all of you.” She allowed the magic to fade from her words, somewhat drained from expending so much in such a short time. “Which is why I will leave the making of today’s plans in your capable hands. I believe I have another long day of pretending to be Legba’s Chosen, so I believe I may need a bit of extra beauty sleep to pull it off.”

Arissa gave one last smile before she walked back over to her bedroll, pulling the pelt over her head as she tried to get a little more rest before the day would begin.
 
Léone nods at Kallisto as she bows and apologizes. "I guess I can't speak for the others, but I understand a bit. And I agree, we can't really do much but keep moving forward - and that starts with dealing with this serpent." She pulls the map out of her bag, having identified its divination properties the night before, and unfurls it in front of her where the others could see. "Well, if I understood the results of the identification correctly... this map has been enchanted to attune to the location of the various landmarks in the swamp. I'm curious how they managed that... but that's a question for another time. For now let's just see if it works."

She takes a deep breath, holding the map down and staring at it curiously for a few seconds before speaking. "I'd like to find the tribe." Almost immediately, a small "T" shimmers onto the map, and she nods in fascination. "Huh... estimating from the distance we've covered, that's more or less where we are right now." Curious, she decides to test the previous landmarks to see if they had moved. "The stone circle." The "T" fades away and a circle of dots fades in afterwards, appearing roughly two hours away from where the tribe was. "The crevasse?" Again the circle of dots fades away, and instead a straight line appears south of the tribe. She raises an eyebrow, glancing back at the others to make sure she wasn't seeing things. "That's... wasn't it north of us before? I didn't realize it would shift so quickly, and so drastically..."

She shrugs, then turns back to the map. "The Graveyard of Bones." A simple skull symbol appears slightly to the north of where the tribe was - she made sure to mentally note where all the locations were even as they faded away. "Seems to be about a half day's travel from here... we may be in luck if we'd like to set that trap. Finally... the Lake of Blood." She glances around as the skull disappears, wondering where the small black drop symbol would show up, but nothing does. "... Huh. It's not on here." She glances over to Bernard and Kallisto curiously. "I recall that Loretan had mentioned them "winning back" the Lake of Blood once the Great Serpent... guess we know why they couldn't find it before? Ah well, at least everything else seems to be there." She offers the map out, welcoming others to try it if they'd like.
 
Bernard looks around, "Last night was a bit of an overload for me information wise, but the abilities of the serpent stuck out to me. I think our best bet in confronting the Serpent is to find a way to trap or subdue it to attempt to consume some of its spells. Most concerning, it seems to be able to travel great distances with magical ease, on a scale much greater than my simple jaunt through the mist." He shrugs as he reaches for his armor and beings to put it on. "I think the trap in the Graveyard of Bones sounds promising, Loretan was rather insistent that we would find something there."

He continues to dig into his pack for more armor, removing the urn. "There is one thing that is rather unrelated that I was hoping to get opinions on. I spoke with the Elder One and the Shaman and they both agreed that if I were to deposit this book into The Maw, it would likely not come back. The book is hidden away in this urn from the church, there does not seem to be any way to destroy the book. This could be our chance to hide away a great evil from the world, but I would like others thoughts."
 
Léone nods at Bernard as he speaks about the Great Serpent and the trap, but frowns when he pulls out the urn. "Ah... right. That." She shakes her head a bit, recalling the immensely evil presence she had sensed from the book a few days prior. "Considering the evil emanating from it and how quickly it had reformed after it had been destroyed, I agree that it should be hidden away from those who could be tempted. A near-bottomless hole in the middle of a swamp does seem like our best option for that." She taps her chin, thinking it over. "That being said... a powerful artifact like this may still pop up again, perhaps far in the future when none of us are around to handle it. If you do decide to toss it inside you might also want to warn the tribe of its dangers should it resurface one day."
 
"Near bottomless? When I peered over the edge it was only about fifty feet before it became a writhing mass of darkness, very unlike the end of my sight on a normal night." He lifts the urn in one hand, bouncing it slightly and judging its physical weight versus the weight it put on his mind. "Each day I carry this book is another day that it may be stolen from me. I am not perfectly vigilant, and I still require sleep, but you may be right that it is better not to risk it resurfacing one day." He thinks on it some more as he places the urn in his pack and continues to strap on his armor, "Maybe I can instead wait for the death of the Great Serpent, if the Children of Blood move onto the Lake of Blood, then maybe the Maw will be a safer solution. For now, I will continue to bare this burden."
 
Violette’s reveal brought more clarity than she realized she had smelt a little off when Peri was in her fox form, but she didn’t think to try to make sense of it. Peri was one to let people have their secrets they all came out in time. She did think Violette was pretty as a rat, but could understand why people feared her.

As the other ladies had spoke for a while Peri spent her time going through her pack checking on her component supplies. Listening to them speak and as Bernard and Kallisto returned she looked up from what she was doing momentarily.

It wasn’t until Arissa returned to her bedroll did she set her pack aside petting Arissa gently humming quietly an Elven tune Ferrin used to sing.
 
While Kallisto was explaining to Aluc her plan for their scouting, she heard Bernard's question of throwing something into the pit of the Maw. She glanced at the urn in his hands shrugging slightly. "It seems potentially a good option, but if it's truly powerful, it may be able to ... force itself to be found in a way. It also sounds like once the Serpent is dead, the tribe may not stay here anymore -- I'm not sure how long the Maw would stay in its pit if no one is around to feed it anymore."

Having given her thoughts, Kallisto nodded towards Aluc, placing her hand gently under the raven's beak so they could lock eyes as Kallisto's vision slowly shifted to where she was looking at herself. Colors appeared slightly different, and the scale of everything looked strange, but she saw herself smile and nod again, letting Aluc know she was ready.

As she and Aluc started towards the sky, she barely heard herself down below explain, "I can't see or hear for right now, but if my attention is needed, poke me with something..."

Anyone watching Kallisto's body in the hut would have noticed a content expression as she sat quietly -- her senses elsewhere, enjoying the sound of wind whistling past Aluc's head, the sight of the swamps down below ... everything was so peaceful in the air. However, the pair were out there for a reason: scouting. As Aluc worked her way towards the direction of the nest, neither of them managed to see any of the Children belonging to the Naga, which concerned Kallisto slightly ... before they'd seen a group even as far as the witch's house. Hopefully it didn't mean the Naga was planning something ...

Back in the hut Kallisto frowned slightly as she thought, but continued to watch through Aluc as she began her return trip, Kallisto's ability starting to fade as she got strange dual vision -- partly seeing the swamps from the air, and partly seeing the hut and rest of the group as they chatted. Rubbing her eyes she stretched from sitting for so long, "Well ... with an hour of flight out towards the Nest, neither I or Aluc saw any patrolling Children. It concerns me slightly ... considering we'd seen them far away before. My ... ability I suppose, faded before Aluc finished her return, so we'll have to wait a little bit for anything she might have to say."

Eventually Aluc returned, slightly fluffed from her morning flight. Considering what Aluc had mentioned before of knowing where the Graveyard was, Kallisto asked her what she'd seen of it from the air, since it seemed no one on the ground tended to return. Thinking for a moment, she responded there were many large bones -- bones of both creatures and people, but nothing alive. After Kallisto's question of anything moving at all, Aluc again responded there was nothing. Concerned about places shifting while they were traveling, Kallisto asked Aluc how long the landmarks tended to stay in place, getting a raven's equivalent of a shrug as she learned it varied -- could be hours, could be days, it was random.

Kallisto looked toward the group, thinking for a moment before speaking, "I thought over Loretan's words from last night ... I feel like she's someone who says specific things for a reason, given that apparently she speaks prophecies even in general conversation. She said the knowledge of how to trap the Naga was at the graveyard -- the knowledge of how to summon it to me -- not that the graveyard was the trap." She gestured towards the map again, "Given that the graveyard has decided to appear so closely ... I'm willing to investigate it. However ... I don't think we should take the tribe with us. A large force making the trek ... I worry someone or something might see us, and it's too early to let the Serpent know we're up to something."

Kallisto picked at her beads for a moment, "At the same time it feels a little strange to rally the tribe only to tell them, 'stay here', but at least with the ... blood we gave them, they have no reason to wander the swamps. If it's a known thing they do, the Naga still has no reason to entirely doubt that I'm not following commands." Leaning forward with her elbows on her knees, "Partly why I don't want the tribe to fully leave with us just yet is when I asked about the Hydra, Kamoktalin mentioned something very important. The Maw didn't attack the Hydra when it transformed in the middle of the village." She glanced around at the party, "Meaning it likely wouldn't attack the Children taken by the Naga either. If the Serpent only has maybe ... ten or twelve children, and they're maybe only slightly tougher than the tribe members as normal, that's too much of a risk of loss. But ... if all the warriors were away, they'd have a much easier time dealing with those remaining: elderly and children. Those missing too many limbs to truly defend themselves."

Kallisto was silent for a moment, "I still wish to get an idea of what we'll have to work with, but ... if we're going to be bringing an army, I want them to come for the final showdown. If we learn how to pull the Naga away and to us, our next task is getting the axe back. Which means likely finding Ialay with how the Serpent spoke of her." Sitting up straighter again, "Once we have these things, we find a suitable place, prepare ourselves, and pull the Naga from her nest. I half consider potentially summoning her into the village, if we moved everyone away, to have the Maw help us in the battle, but I worry it may steal the final blow if it's ... sort of a mindless ... thing."
 
As Legba is securing him tightly in the machine, Ludwig almost trembles with excitement. "Exactly, Mr. Legba. Too many people try to slow down progress, when all we should be doing is encouraging to push our limits as living and evolving creatures. Boldness is a feat not found commonly in medicine nor science, obviously people want to advance, but when risks start to occur... that's when one should push through for better or worse!" With Legba finishing up the final straps, Ludwig looks around the inside of the machine.

"As long as it isn't debilitating I'm sure I'll be just fi-" Before he could finish his sentence, energy starts to course through his body, making him shake wildly in his restraints as many bits and pieces of information flash before his mind's eye. The information comes flying by faster and faster until it is so rapidly in motion that it all becomes a blur, with the same blur slowly fading and changing into his personal office in the Apothecary.

Disorientated, Ludwig holds his hand against his head in an futile attempt to stop the throbbing as he notices a bottle of wine and a letter. "Dear god.. I rarely drink so much that I can't remember what I did.. Maybe I'm getting too old." Shoving his chair backwards, Ludwig grabs the letter and starts reading it while going through his medicine cabinet in an attempt to find something that would alleviate this headache of his. Rubbing his temple with his left hand, he reads the letter in his right hand with an mixture of curiosity, anxiety, and excitement.

With the medicine found and clenched in his hand, he walks back to his desk and uncorks the bottle of wine with his teeth. Spitting the cork against the wall beside him, he stuffs the medicine in his mouth and takes a big swig of wine to wash it all down. Wiping off his mouth with his sleeve, Ludwig lets out a bottled sigh as he straightens himself in his chair. He opens a drawer on his right hand side and takes out a piece of paper, ready to write back to his guest. Dipping a feather into the small pot of black ink next to him, he starts to write.

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Dear Dr. Markov,

First of all I would like to thank you for taking the time to write me a letter about our shared condition. I am happy to hear that you are having a good time being up and about again, I could imagine that men like us being trapped in nothing but a brain jar is a very sad and discerning thing. Please, do make yourself at home inside of my body. Afterall, we both are on a timeshare as you've mentioned in your letter.

I did recieve quite a bit of information throughout the entire process of being inside of Mr. Legba's machine, but like you've said, I could not access the man behind the medicine. Which is a shame in itself of course, I'd love for us to have a chat outside of this unfortunate time scheme. As previously mentioned, I don't mind sharing my knowledge and body, for that is a little price to pay in the quest of medicinal enlightenment. Though I do have some requests I'd like you to follow, if you'd please.

As you may or may not know, I've recently stumbled upon this place called The Crossing. Through various efforts I've been allowed to start off my own business in this town, I'd like to keep it like that. By all means, feel free to do whatever you'd like while you're in control. All I ask is that you'd mostly stick to the town's law, I have a reputation to uphold and getting in trouble with the Constabulary is not good for business. Experimenting is fine, just make them sign a waiver so that all possible occurances are put in their responsibility.

I'll be working on a substance that we can quickly consume that would allow us to swap more frequently without massive headaches, I don't know if headaches are a side effect of switching, or if you've just drank a lot yesterday night. Regardless, I always keep a notebook on the ready in the back pocket of my pants. Normally I'd use it to write down notes, but I'll keep the last 20% of the pages blank for us to relay information to eachother on the go. Please do feel free to obtain and write down information as we go, the more we learn the better we become.

I look forward to our shared experiences together.

Sincerely,

- Dr. Ludwig Humboldt
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Having finished the letter to Dr. Markov, Ludwig smiles with excitement as he walks over to his workplace, getting ready to work on a solution to quickly fall asleep and jolt himself awake shortly after. Spending several hours crafting and swishing around different kinds of liquids, powders and edibles, Ludwig puts some of the vials on a heater as he lets others cool down. While those concoctions are heating/cooling, he grinds down some ingredients with his pestle and mortar making a fine white powder. "Powder substance Nr.1, nasal administration." Ludwig writes down on a small piece of paper which he wraps around his finger.

Walking back to his desk chair with the pestle and mortar, he sits down comfortably. "Well then, off we go." He thinks to himself in the hopes that Dr. Markov might pick up on it. Administering the powder to himself, he slides back against the chair and waits while looking at his pocket watch.
 
Bernard nods, "The Maw seems like too much of a risk. This needs to be ended decisively, or we could wear ourselves out, hunting and rekilling it for weeks. Not to mention we don't entirely understand how it ressurect, if it comes out of the same body, spontaneously appears in a random location, has to grow a new body or mature in some way. It's unnecessary risk to involve the Maw when we're capable of this ourselves, especially with the help of the tribe."

He took a deep breath and relaxed, "I agree the tribe should continue as normal for now, until we have the trap we're better off as a small group. We don't know how well Peri's staff will guard more tribe members from being detected and a large group leaving or disappearing might be suspicious too. I agree just the seven of us should go after the knowledge of the trap. It's only half a day away, we could be there this afternoon and back tonight." He flashed a reassuring smile to Kallisto.
 
Village Hut:

Violette seemed to be considering what Leone had said, and listening to everyone speak back and forth. She briefly looks towards the sleeping Arissa, then the topic of an evil book came up and possibly throwing it into the maw. “That might be for the best, I’m sure whatever lives down there doesn’t have an abundance of reading material,” says Violette chuckling for a moment.

As the topic circles around to the plan for today she seems to take a moment to consider what was said and nods. “Sounds like a sound plan to me, though I’m curious as to what we will find in the boneyard. Hopefully the Shaman is right and we’ll be one step closer to getting this over with.”

“As for getting the axe back, would freeing Ialay work just as well or do you need to be the one to throw the finishing strike?” asked Violette as she made a miming motion of swinging an axe downward. “Regardless we should probably let the tribe know it might be another day before we do anything.”
 
Bernard gave a half shrug, "The shaman was pretty unclear on the specifics of the Graveyard, just that there was large serpent bones, someone there, and that all who tried to go there either disappeared or were found riddled with arrows and dead. If there is someone there, I wonder if it might be the Elder who sought immortality, since there's no solid evidence that they were ever seen or heard from again, but there remains a vague rumor that he achieved his goals. Seems anyone who seeks immortality is subject to some complication. The hydra being a decent example."

He looked to Kallisto as questions were raised about the axe, "I wouldn't know, Kallisto might. Though Kallisto did make the bargain, she'll pay the price so we should return the axe to her possession." He gives a reassuring nod, regardless if it was necessary, Bernard knew that Kallisto had sacrificed her chance to be guided by Ezra to the place beyond the Mist. He could not abide her also losing control of the artifact that would seal her fate.
 
Village Hut:

"I'm sure Ialay will return the axe to Kallisto, if we can free her from the mental control of the Great Serpent. I was more questioning in case we are in the middle of battle, I don't know if an exchange of weapons will be possible, nor do I know if the Undying One will let Ialay out of her sight with that axe," says Violette shrugging in response to Bernard. "Though if something is in the boneyard we should go in prepared for a fight. If we do find an immortal there, I wonder if he can be reasoned with, or if time will have worn his mind to madness. I don't envy anyone with such a curse. Time will wear down anyone's sanity."
 
Rolling the spear between her palms for a moment Kallisto thought, "I don't know if it just needs to be someone wielding the axe, but I'm not glad that anyone else had to bind themselves to it. I intended to be the second and final wielder, and in the case of my death I was intending to ask it be hidden away. All I've been told repeatedly is the 'Lost One' will deal the finishing blow, but from ... what Loretan spoke to me, Ialay may now also be considered a 'Lost One'. One lost to the 'Cold Lands' and one lost to the 'Great Serpent' ..." she sighed, resting her head on a hand.

"Ialay has been intwined in this longer than we really knew ... and perhaps some of my concerns now are what Bernard usually deals with." Kallisto picked at her beads before continuing, "I ... dislike the idea of Ialay wielding the axe because it means she too is promised to it upon death, and ... as an elder sister, I would prefer only I carried that risk." She frowned, "But things will be as they'll be, and before anything else is discussed of the axe, we have to find Ialay -- hopefully dispelling the geas upon her as well. Then we can decide who carries it when we go against the Naga."

Using the spear Kallisto pulled herself back to standing, "Even if Ialay is not allowed to carry the axe with her at all times ... I know from experience it has its own mind about things." She picked at her beads again, "At the ball, it appeared in my hands when Isaiah's creations appeared. At its core, it desires to be fed -- I doubt it will deny a chance for that to happen. Potentially, we could seek out something to make it appear for Ialay, then it would be passed." Kallisto shrugged, "I tried to get it to respond to me before, but the only thing it seemed to respond to was that it eats 'evil'. Take that as you will."

Looking towards the entrance, "I intend to go speak with Ahretakan or maybe Loretan, see if there's anything else we might learn after our thoughts from this morning, inform them of our plan, and hopefully head out before we lose too much of the day -- or risk the Graveyard shifting away on our journey."
 
"That sounds like a plan. I'll get everyone up and make sure they're ready to head out. I've also been thinking, I might be able to summon Ialay with the call she taught me, but there's no guarantee it will work." Bernard then moved over to Arissa who'd fallen back asleep after offering each of them a bit of inspiration. He knelt down and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Beautiful angel, wont you wake up and share your smile with me?" He grinned as he gently rubbed her shoulder to wake her. "We're headed out to the Graveyard, it sounds like we can make it there and back by tonight unless something keeps us away." He reached for his pack, making sure everything was in its place before folding his pelt and placing it on top. Satisfied with the way it was packed, he pulled it on looked to the others, "Does anyone need anything before we go?"
 
Arissa stirred and looked up, smiling warmly to Bernard. “Enjoy it while it lasts... I am afraid the Angel of Shadow is not known for her sunny disposition.” Arissa turned and smiled to Peri, ruffling her hair. “Thank you for keeping me company, sister. That was a rather curious melody... perhaps you could teach me some time?” Arissa yawned and stretched before smirking to Bernard. “You have a talent for finding the most lovely places for us to go to. I cannot wait to see what new horrors await us there.”

Arissa stood up from her bedroll, quickly packing up her belongings before affixing Yorgi to one side, and her flute to the other. She also slung the crude but sturdy looking longbow she had requested the night before over her shoulder. Her hand brushed against the strange pouch hanging from her belt that Phoebe had given her, and she glanced down to it curiously before shaking her head. One task at a time. She smiled around the hut. “Apologies for the delay. I am ready whenever.”
 
Gathering her own things, Kallisto exited the hut, looking around in the morning light until she spotted Ahretakan again.

Approaching she bowed her head slightly, "Hello again, Ahretakan. Though I realize we ... riled up the tribe last night, our plan is to go today to the Graveyard -- with how close it is, we should be able to go and come back today. If we stay with just our group, we can stay reasonably hidden as we move, less chance of alerting anyone or anything that we're still in the area."

Seeing most of the tribe still up and active, "Hopefully from the ... feast last night, the tribe has no reason to wander the swamp for the next few days, and less risk of being taken. However, I still would like to see those who are intending to join us when we go after the Serpent. When we return from the Graveyard, if we know who we have to work with, we can try to decide what to do next even more quickly."
 
Village:

Ahretakan smiled nodding and pointing a spear over to a gathered group of people practicing this morning with their spears. "I count seven among their number including Takatar who no doubt wishes to prove himself in the fight against the Great Serpent. I wish your expedition good fortune so that you may return to us soon," says Ahretakan as she places her spear back down at her side. "Do not worry about us Kallisto, we will be fine. I will let the others know if they ask where you have gone."
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The Graveyard of Bones:

The travel through the swamps is as slow going as ever, with the group having to at one point having to pick their way through a maze like bog. Lights float around in the distance distractingly as you carefully pick your way from solid ground to solid ground. During this section many of you notice what seem to be floating bodies hovering just underneath the water, pale and peaceful as if sleeping. The moss growing on land make picking your path between a water and solid ground frustrating with having to sometimes resort to poking the land before taking a step forward.

Eventually you grow close to the location in which the Graveyard of Bones should be but the distance doesn’t seem to show any signs of changing nor signs of anything ahead. As you begin to crest a small rise the party looks down at a huge bowl shaped land scape that seems to stretch a large radius. Past the party on the downward slope white tree’s seemingly made out of bone jut out of the ground, many crooked and forked as if trying to reach for the sky above. Large piles of bones lie scattered the ground giving this place the appearance of a large scale battlefield, maybe even multiple large battles.

Among the rubbles bones are many different kinds of bones, some appearing to be human, others beasts of some sort. Quadrapeds, bipeds, and snake-like bones of numerous different races including some of the horned skeletons that had been present at the Ball many days ago continued from one side of the land sink to the next.

“When they said Graveyard of Bones they weren’t kidding…” commented Violette shocked into awe at the amount of death this place seemed to encompass. Looking towards the middle of the landscape, a white twisting spire seemed to jut up from amidst some of the larger than life skeletons that obscured the base of the spiraling tower.
 
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Arissa felt a shiver run down her spine as she looked upon the grim sight before her. After a few moments of standing in shock, she heard an odd rhythmic clanking sound, and was soon able to place it. She moved in closer to the party and whispered. “Look at those odd trees... for some godsforsaken reason, there are bones dangling from them. Something feels very odd here, and order than I would have expected from a place known as the Graveyard. I suspect that the bones may be to hide the sound of approaching attackers. We should be on our guard.” Taking another look around, Arissa’s eyes fell upon what seemed to be the strange monstrosity from the Ball, as well as several of the horned skeleton men, and she shuddered again as she recalled her close brush with death.
 
Looking down into the graveyard, Kallisto's eyes focused in here and there on the different types of bones and skeletons, however her gaze then moved towards the large spire in the center -- a spiraling shape sixty feet into the air. Focusing more on the shape of it ... the sheer size of it threw her off at first, but it looked like what she'd seen of Unicorn horns in images or carvings. The base of it seemed blocked by skeletal piles however, and even after asking Aluc to do a circle of the graveyard, she didn't see a break towards the base, nor any pathways through the area.

Thanking Aluc for her scouting, Kallisto turned towards the group, "I've never considered one being that large, but that spire ... from what I can tell looks like a unicorn horn for some reason. I agree we should be on our guard -- I'd heard no one returned from here, and those that did were dead to arrows. For all we know, nothing is ... 'alive' until we enter properly. Definitely keep an eye out for movement -- the chimes will make hearing anything difficult."

She nodded towards Bernard, "This seems like an area to trust Bernard's judgement on -- my only experience with undead has been Toben, or with Isaiah."
 
As they walked through the bog the putrid stench of death hung everywhere, but Bernard knew this smell all too well. It was the smell of corpse rot, the kind that came from undeath, bodies well past their expiration but continuing to move. He cautioned the party quietly not to disturb the corpses in the bog and to watch their step using the Adaptive Weapon to feel for solid ground and offering his walking staff to the others. As they crested the ridge looking down into the Graveyard of Bones, Bernard sighed, there was so much death here, but the bones showed that much of it was long gone. He focused again as they approached, but sensed nothing unexpected, remaining silent as Arissa and Kallisto gave there thoughts.

He was drawn from his thoughts when he heard his name. Rubbing his head, he turned to the party, "Well, uhh... Just wait a moment. I have an idea." He removed his pack offering it to Leone, "If you wouldn't mind." As she took the bag and stowed it in her own, he transformed the Adaptive Weapon into a longsword and clutched his amulet. "Ezra, grant your protection, and allow us passage through this land that has too much death already." A light radiance shines from him for a moment as he collects his shield and raises his blade. "If there is a trap, I'll likely trigger it, stay back a ways and follow me in. Watch behind you, there's no guarantee those bodies in the bog won't be the ones hunting us." He took a few steps forward, beginning his trek into the Graveyard.
 
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