Nona extinguished the lamp. The room went dark. Keeping her voice down as much as possible, she incanted her spell. At once four cherry-red flames appeared in the air around her, illuminating the spare bedroom.

"Technically red light takes the least energy to produce, but the difference is so small it makes no functional difference, and most people find they have a natural affinity for certain colours that they trend toward. Besides, red light is a tad macabre for illumination purposes."

The red light cast a certain cheerfully hellish glare over the normally white sheets that covered most of the furniture in the room. "I don't know what kind of spellcasting you use, but to change the colour is mainly a matter of focus," Nona told Fox. She put her hands together and concentrated. The cherry red flames shifted to a more natural looking orange fire, better resembling an actual flame. They followed up this change by rounding out into floating orbs.

"Orange tends to make everything look like the sun's just setting, but otherwise pretty closely resembles fire light enough to startle somebody very foolish." The orbs changed colour again at Nona's behest, turning yellow. "Yellow light meanwhile strikes just the right balance of warmth that it looks most like natural sunlight." The lights came together to form one large ball.

"Colours between green and blue usually give people the hardest time. Some people can do a four or five shades of green, green-blue, and blue-green, but others can only muster a green and two kinds of blue. Some theorists think this may be because of the way our minds perceive colour, which affects how we picture the spell."

"Then violet light is, generally common among disaffected students and apprentices who want to appear mysterious or quirky, which I suppose is perfect for you. Just don't go overboard with it, it starts to bugger with your perceptions after so long."

"She'd know." Serafina peeped from her perch atop the bed's headboard.

"Hush, you, you're supposed to be asleep."

(Next day)
Nona stretched her arms, yawning over breakfast, her spellbook open on the table beside her. She wasn't studying it yet, merely perusing her options. She didn't unleash anything yesterday that she couldn't pull off in her sleep, so there was no need really to wind up. Still, she skimmed the pages, weighing the value of each spell against a possible goblin horde while Serafina pecked at a chunk of bread donated to her in lieu of letting her hunt for insects in the snake-infested grasses around Walthus' house.

"So, is everyone ready to head back around to the Old Fish Trail?" Nona cracked her knuckles. "It's been nice visiting, but there is still a profit to be made here."

(Night)

In the shared room with Nona, Fox undressed to her underclothes without any perceived hesitation, but had to pause multiple times to carefully remove the darts concealed in various folds. She placed one of the darts between the mattress and the headboard, hand considering the spot carefully so that it would be hidden from the door but within grabbing distance. Once that was done, she sat and watched Nona as the latter turned out the light.

Fox's golden eyes seemed to almost glow in the dark, except that was ridiculous and certainly only reflecting the light from the Dancing Lights that Nona was showing her. She was very attentive, her eyes watching the Lights changing colour.

"The kind of spellcasting that One uses is simply the kind of spellcasting that One has, whatever that might be. You know One has not studied; One simply feels it."

Fox held out her hand, pointing up, though no light appeared.

"It runs out if One uses it too much," She explained, "Which makes it different from what you use, with your strange language and motions."

"One probably could do more if One actually studied, but One knows Oneself, and knows that studying is not what One does best," Fox gave a knowing smile to Nona, "One will leave the books for those whose mind is sharpened by structured practise. Like yours."

"One will take your advise, and purple does sound like a warm and nice colour," Fox giggled, "Blue is what comes easily, but it is a cold colour. If One tried to make it red, it'd probably turn out purple anyway."

* * *

(Morning)

Fox was wide awake, or so it seemed, when she broke fast with the others, her eyes perusing the selection of morning noms keenly. Or so it seemed. It almost looked as though she was looking at Alexis quite a bit, as though to guage her recovery progress. She looked satisfied after seeing Alexis drink the medicine offered to her.

_{"So, is everyone ready to head back around to the Old Fish Trail?"" Nona cracked her knuckles. "It's been nice visiting, but there is still a profit to be made here."}
"One believes so, though as pointed out, One notes that we should also uncover the means by which they picked up the fireworks, if they do have them," Fox suggested as she tidied herself up to be ready to leave, "If they have a supply, it's quite possible the supply is more dangerous than they are."

The four decided that Alexis would make the best use of the cloak's magical protection. Walthus saw the goblin hunters off early the next day. They retraced their steps back along the soggy New Fish Trail across the three bridges with out a repeat of yesterdays events.

Upon crossing the invisible threshold on their way out of the swamp, the dense, muffling atmosphere fell away like a heavy blanket dropping from their shoulders. The sights and sounds of everyday life flooded their senses. It was as if everything that had happened sense they entered took place in another world.

Twenty minuets down the Lost Coast Road they came across the turn onto Old Fish Trail. The now familiar eerie silencing fog closed around them for a second time, welcoming them back. As before the sounds in the swamp the distorted animal calls and sudden movements just out of sight where enough to keep the four in edge.

The decades old ‘Old Fish Trail' was even more over grown than its newer counterpart to the north. It had obviously seen little use sense the goblins moved in. In spite of this, the solitary bridge proved just as sturdy as the others.

The splashing of something large wading through the swamp nearby alerted the group. They paused to see whether it was approaching or departing, but the sounds quickly faded in to the distance. Moments later they came across a strangely mutilated goblin carcass laying on the trial. The ground around the green skin corps was disturbed with partial footprints, but the hunters could make out one or two large, three-toed prints resembling the one that crossed their trail the day before.

Moving on the group came to a branch in the road, but carried on strait as per Walthus' instructions. They knew they couldn't be far from the village, so they armed themselves and prepared for a fight.

Around the next bend the crude village-fort finally came into sight. A wide gap in the wooden palisade caused by an algae-filled pool allowed a clear view into village's interior, a ramshackle collection of huts connected by wooden walkways, all built on think wooden stilts. A thin trail of smoke arose from somewhere behind the wall.

As they approached they realised that the wooded gate in the north wall if the palisade lay in shambles on the ground. Oddly, it seemed as if the doors had been smashed down from the inside, as if something were trying to get out.

The hunters did not see any goblins milling about the settlement from here.

Alexis 9/11 -
Fox 8/8 - 6 darts
Nona 8/8 - 20 bolts
Sera 4/4 -
Zwei 9/9 - 20 arrows

(ears =money)

Fox nodded in approval as Zwei picked up the ears from the gob as they passed it. It was not likely that the gob would need those anymore, and it was free. Being a street urchin, she knew better than to let such things pass by without claiming them.

"One was just about to suggest we do that."

A while later, Fox's eyes narrowed as she saw the state of the gate. She had bow in hand, and she moved slower as they drew a bit closer, before she stopped entirely, still a distance from it.

"Wait. Listen."

Fox closed her eyes and strained her ears.

((assuming this is the case))

"One cannot hear any movement. One might not be close enough, or it might be ambush, or no longer has people. One and Zwei could try to find out before entry," Fox suggested, "One has learned how to be light on one's feet, and one suspects Zwei has as well."

(Night)
Nona watched as Fox disarmed herself of at least half a dozen darts, plus a couple daggers. "Damn, girl, and here I only brought the one," she said, laying her dagger in its sheathe next to the bed. Nona made no particular effort to place it within reach. If an intruder burst in their door in the middle of the night, her knife wouldn't be the first weapon she went for.

"Poor Ameiko has no idea what she's getting herself into with you," she mused.

Fox held out her hand, pointing up, though no light appeared.
"Sounds like you have some kind of innate magical talent. It happens all the time. Could be anything from exposure to a magical energy at a formative age, the whim of the gods, or even just latent magic power from something non-human mingling in your bloodline.

"I bet you'd make a fair sorcerer if you developed that talent a bit. You wouldn't even have to study, though you would probably have to learn to use incantations and other foci to channel better. Also I think"

(Breakfast)
"One believes so, though as pointed out, One notes that we should also uncover the means by which they picked up the fireworks, if they do have them," Fox suggested as she tidied herself up to be ready to leave, "If they have a supply, it's quite possible the supply is more dangerous than they are."
Nona snorted rather ungracefully. "That is true. Both can set things on fire, but fireworks are less prone to rendering themselves harmless if left unattended."

Before leaving Nona thanked Walthus for his hospitality. Once outside of the swamp Nona let Serafina stretch her wings a bit more in the open air, but once they reached the Old Fish Trail she had her familiar return to within line of sight. The nature of their bond meant they were both more alert when near each other, and neither wanted to be surprised by something in the dense, foggy swamp.

(Goblin Corpse)
Zwei, the tall pale-eyed fetchling was the first of three to suggest that they take advantage of the goblin's fate.

"One was just about to suggest we do that." Fox added.

Nona smirked. "I'm sure nobody would complain if we brought back one or two pairs of ears that we didn't actually kill ourselves. The bounty is only for the ears, and it's not like we're just going to find the whole tribe already dead."

Zwei harvested the ears quickly with his kama. Nona watched for a moment. The body was pretty badly mutilated. Not likely the work of a creature like Walthus' assailant—the halfling barely had any injuries besides the blood drain.

The illusionist spotted one of the large, three-toed footprints by the body. Just like the one they found yesterday on the New Fish Trail, just before Nona had glimpsed the humanoid silhouette in the fog. Nona suddenly turned away from the goblin, not from a squeamish stomach, but because she suddenly did not feel comfortable with her back to the swamp.

(Licktoad Village)
Nona thought Walthus' place looked like a run-down dump. This time she didn't have a witty remark to make, not even about the brilliant idea of building a palisade wall but leaving a gap where it hit the pond. Something was off about the village-fort. Nona didn't know what goblins did in the middle of the day, but she figured there should be at least a few visible from here.

"One cannot hear any movement. One might not be close enough, or it might be ambush, or no longer has people. One and Zwei could try to find out before entry," Fox suggested, "One has learned how to be light on one's feet, and one suspects Zwei has as well."
"The hell you two are," Nona hissed, keeping her voice down out of the fog's compulsion for silence. "There's hardly any cover in there. If there is an ambush, you two will be out in the open without backup."

Despite her protest, Nona couldn't imagine how the goblins could have known they were coming, at least not with enough warning to stage an ambush. Besides which, the gate that should have barred their entry was laying in ruin. The possibility that the goblins had broken down their own gate to make it look like their fort was vulnerable was entirely more cunning than Nona would ever have given the Licktoad tribe credit for. On top of that, the gate was pushed outwards. Shoddy craftsmanship aside, the only reason for that should have been that something trapped inside the fort had desperately wanted out (and for some reason didn't want to swim the pond).

"If you two do go in, at least Alexis and I should get as close to the gate as we can—and you should take Sera with you. She's small enough she can help you scout without giving you away, and she can get a message if you two get out of sight."

(If Fox and/or Zwei do change their minds about going in to scout, Nona can suggest that Serafina do a little aerial reconnaissance. She's only got 6 Int so the level of detail we could get out of her is limited, and I'd rather not steal the role of party scout when we have two perfectly good ones waiting to show off their skills.)

The Night Before
Alexis lay where she had chosen to sleep, downstairs with the furniture shuffled slightly to give her enough space to rest. She had stripped down all the way with her gear laying nearby just in case. Staring at the ceiling she looked thoughtful as she let her mind wander, forming a few different plans when they did get to the village, and trying to ignore the aching in her ribs from the blow she had taken. Eventually rest did come to her.

Breakfast!
As usual she was up early, dressed and ready to go before most others would be awake or ready to go. She put the furniture back and hummed to herself as she did busy work just for the sake of it.

She was silent during the morning simply listening to the others talk and muse, nodding her head in agreement. After she was done she helped tidy up before meeting her comrades outside.

At breakfast, Walthus handed Alexis a small vile of liquid. "This is for you. I found it last night after supper. Drink." Alexis took the potion and drank it. (+7hp Alexis 9/11)

"Oh yeah! One last thing before you go." Walthus took the cloak off his back and held it up to the adventurers, "feel free to come back anytime to rest up."
Alexis smiled warmly at their host after drinking the potion. "Thank you Walthus." She was cut short at his second offer. Looking baffled she took the cloak and donned it before smiling again. "I'm speechless, all I can say is thank you. I'll make good use of it, you stay safe."

Dead Goblin.
Alexis paid the dead goblin little mind, simply nodding when Zwei took the corpse's ears. She was a bit concerned by the state of it and the mysterious tracks. But as usual, she just thought 'If I can hit it, I can kill it.'

The Village
Something didn't sit right in Alexis's stomach, the state of the gate, the quietness, the lack of really anything had her on edge. "I really, don't like this." At the notion of Fox and Zwei sneaking in to survey she frowned. "Fine, but if you see ANYTHING unusual report back immediately. Whatever caused." She motioned to the gate and then back the way they came from the goblin body. "Those, could be related. Goblins are noisy and stupid, the fact that we aren't hearing noise worries me."

She motioned to the smoke from the fire before looking at the two sneakier types. "Be very careful, please. That smoke says signs of life or something else. Just don't do anything rash."

hearing Nona's suggestions about being close she nodded. "We'll give you time to slip in then creep up closer to the gate ourselves, you run into trouble give a shout and we'll come help." She did have confidence in Fox and Zwei sneaking in, but she also didn't like her gut feeling.

After dinner The sleeping arrangements werent much to Zweis' liking being used to being able to sleep under the stars or at the inn when coin provided, Walthus' house was lacking in much space as well as privacy with a reluctant sigh Zwei found himself a nice corner at least mostly out of sight of the door and carefully wrapped the strap of his kama around his wrist so that should danger strike in the night he too would be ready to strike back like a scorpion.


Dead goblin
Once again being out in the light of day made Zwei more on edge then normal why had he agreed to this again he asked himself while fiddling with the coin in his pocket knowing full well that it wasn't his choice alone. The sudden noise from the swamp ahead would have made his pale skin turn a lighter shade for a moment if that were even possible before he quickly regained his composure drawing his bow and notching an arrow at the ready by his side as the party cautiously moved forward only to find the ravaged corpse of a goblin and tracks of a similar fashion to what they had found the day before, with a sigh Zwei re sheathed his bow and arrow and moved to the body, crouching down beside the goblin, grabbing its chin in his left hand and turning it side to side as if inspecting it for clues before unsheathing his kama and swiftly slicing off its ears and pocketing them

"Waste not want not as they always say"

Licktoad village
F: "One cannot hear any movement. One might not be close enough, or it might be ambush, or no longer has people. One and Zwei could try to find out before entry," Fox suggested, "One has learned how to be light on one's feet, and one suspects Zwei has as well."
Zwei smirked slightly and turned an eye to Fox

" A quick sweep..." Zwei was cut off my Nona's interjection

N: "The hell you two are ...There's hardly any cover in there. If there is an ambush, you two will be out in the open without backup."......."If you two do go in, at least Alexis and I should get as close to the gate as we can—and you should take Sera with you. She's small enough she can help you scout without giving you away, and she can get a message if you two get out of sight."
Again Zwei paused but this time for Alexis' interjection

A: "Fine, but if you see ANYTHING unusual report back immediately. Whatever caused." She motioned to the gate and then back the way they came from the goblin body. "Those, could be related. Goblins are noisy and stupid, the fact that we aren't hearing noise worries me." She motioned to the smoke from the fire before looking at the two sneakier types. "Be very careful, please. That smoke says signs of life or something else. Just don't do anything rash.....We'll give you time to slip in then creep up closer to the gate ourselves, you run into trouble give a shout and we'll come help."
Zwei glanced at the small bird then to Nona and back to Fox, thinking to himself do I look like an animal person?

" Alright, you and Alexis get within running distance of the gate, Fox, Sera and myself will scout around the perimeter of the village and see if we can find anyone or anything if we do Sera will alert you two and if we get in trouble you should be within ear shot to hear it and can storm in hopefully providing a bit of a distraction for the two of us to get into a better position"

16 Gozran
Licktoad Village
Brinestump Marsh

The smell of burnt flesh and smoke clung to the goblin village. Fox and Zwei approached the smashed gate first, staying low to keep out of sight of any goblins who might be on watch. After a moment they signalled the others to follow.

Ten feet into the village-fort lay a shallow muddy pit, filled with the bodies of a dozen mostly cremated goblins. There was no other movement besides the faint trail of smoke rising from the pyre. Around the mud pit stood three ramshackle huts on stilts, connected with walkways. One larger to the right of the gate along the palisade, with a wooden ladder up to the door and one smaller to the left in front of the lake also with a ladder. The group could see more buildings deeper into the village.

Fox and Zwei entered the village. Zwei took the hut on the right, while fox went for the one on the left. Zwei sighed at the tiny three-foot door on the hut before him. At least he didn't have to duck thanks to the stilts raising the door level. Carefully he pushed the door open. The hut was empty save for six well used bed furs. Zwei climbed into the hut eyes alert for signs of valuables.

On the other side Fox had entered the smaller hut. Also empty. From here the wide windows gave her clear view of the front gate. Out the opposite window was another building another of the larger buildings. If a fight broke out in these close quarters, her bow wouldn't be much use. Fox put her bow away, then stepped out onto the walkway confident in her arsenal of hidden weapons to keep her safe.

Immediately, movement caught Fox's eye. For a brief second she locked eyes with a panicked looking goblin through the window of the next hut before it vanished behind a flap with a squeak.

"We've been spotted!" Sera chirped

Fox mentally cursed her luck as she released the dart hidden up her sleeve. She sent the talkative nightingale to fetch the others while she bided her time, watching the hut for movement.

Meanwhile, Zwei beheld the bent fork his searches had uncovered. Between that and the wealth of assorted buttons, he was done with this building. He stepped out onto the walkway to the next hut. Across the compound his counterpart was standing at the ready.

Fox's patience was rewarded when the goblin's face reappeared in the window. For its curiosity, Fox rewarded it with a dart to the face (-6snkdmg Goblin). Behind her, Nona and Alexis were climbing the ladder into the watch post. She stepped back from the window to give the others room.

In preparation for the fight, Zwei considered the best vantage point to snipe from. All things being equal he chose the hut ahead of him to climb. Once up he readied his bow and took aim at the door next to Fox.

Alexis 9/11 -
Fox 8/8 - 6 darts (-1)
Nona 8/8 - 20 bolts
Sera 4/4 -
Zwei 9/9 - 20 arrows

(Brushing some dust off the old notes. As previously mentioned this is only up to the first round)

16 Gozran
Licktoad Village
Brinestump Marsh
The goblin hunters waited outside the door, prepared to strike at the first sight if green. Fox drew a dagger in preparation for close combat.

A pair of muffled high pitched shrieks came from within the hut. The door swung inward and out charged a crazed goblin with a dogslicer raised overhead. It didn't get more than two steps out before Zwei's arrow pierced its upraised arm (-3dmg Goblin B). Alexis and Fox struck together. Alexis thrust low and stabbed into the goblins gut (-4dmg), Fox sliced into the side of its neck (-3snkdmg).

The goblin's body didn't have time to drop to the floor before his eager comrade crashed headlong into him, throwing him from the walk into the mud below (Dead). The new goblin held a strange wooden tube about a foot long sparking and smoking at one end. She pointed the smoking end toward Alexis.

Alexis didn't want to find out what the goblin had just pointed at her face, she slashed across the goblins chest cutting through its dirty leather armour (-6dmg Goblin C). The goblin howled in defiance, clutching the smoking tube with blood spreading from her wound. Without warning, a glowing red flair erupted from the end of the tube and struck Alexis in the neck. It stung like a hot coal (-1fire, -1sub Alexis) before bouncing off to the ground.

Alexis 8(1)/11 -
Fox 8/8 - 6 darts (-1)
Nona 8/8 - 20 bolts
Sera 4/4 -
Zwei 9/9 - 19 arrows

Goblin A: ????
Goblin B: Dead
Goblin C: Disabled, Shakened

(Goblins have fireworks: confirmed. These ones are called ‘Desnan candles'.)

16 Gozran
Licktoad Village
Brinestump Marsh
The firework-wielding goblin made a small target between Fox and Alexis. Zwie took careful aim not wishing to start another fight just yet and released. He overcompensated on his shot, the arrow flew wide and landed in the doorframe behind her.

Nona stepped back and prepared for things to get hairy in this village-fort. She pulled a small strip of cured leather from a pocket. With her magic she wove a protective translucent barrier around her torso while Alexis attacked. The bleeding goblin backed off from Alexis' assault, ducking her sword and avoiding her shield.

For a moment, the goblin's attention was focused entirely on Alexis—and away from Fox. Fox took the opportunity to stick her dagger between her shoulder blades (-5snkdmg Goblin C), finishing her off before she knew what hit her (Dying).

The goblin clasped to the walkway and the firework rolled out of her hand. The tube fired another, green ember bouncing between Alexis' heels, then coming to a stop at Nona's feet.

Besides the odd bang from the firework tube, the village-fort fell silent once again.

Alexis 8(1)/11 -
Fox 8/8 - 6 darts (-1)
Nona 8/8 - Mage Armour 20 bolts
Sera 4/4 -
Zwei 9/9 - 18 arrows

Goblin A: ????
Goblin B: Dead
Goblin C: Dead

(we'll keep with initiative order for now as we explore further)

If Fox were in her other form, her fur would have been standing on end. Scent of fire, and a decently loud bang. Thankfully, she kept her wits about her, sliding up to the goblin wielding the improvised weapon and downing them with a well placed stab. Hunter's instincts, she supposed.

"Well, fireworks confirmed," She muttered between gritted teeth, "One thinks that perhaps we should see if there's more of them stashed in that hut," She indicated the one that they were standing in front of.

With her free hand, she drew another dart hidden in the folds of her clothing. Better to be prepared, and hidden weapons weren't so useful when combat had already begun.

", If there are more, One wonders how useful they would be to use against them," She contemplated, eying the singe marks on Nona's outfit from the one flare she endured.