On reaching the site where the orcs had been encountered, we start heading north and east again, resuming the patrol arc that had been interrupted.
Later I smile a little sadly at Thalica as I take the potion from her, reaching out to help tend to the wound on her hand, "If I knew it would work as hoped, I would drink that right now, for your sake. But magic can be a fickle thing even when chaotic elements are not involved as they are now. Your blood might have had the intended effect, or it might have done nothing to reduce the chance of the potion turning me into something like a goblin, it might even have changed things so it would turn the imbiber into a vampire or some other creature that thrives on blood. I hope you will forgive me my caution in cases like this."
"Have a little faith my love, there are more reliable ways to ensure we can stay together for as long as we choose to remain in the world. Including a spell that can guarantee the exact effect we'd be hoping to find with this potion. It will just take some time to achieve. Time that I do have, I am not old yet."
"That said, perhaps this would work, let me study it, see how it has changed compared to the other potions. If it looks promising, we may try it soon. I can almost manage scrolls of a spell that has a similar effect. If we wait until I scribe one of those, I can at least try again if the outcome goes poorly."
Edited: daishain on 6th Aug, 2018 - 11:05am
I look at Travis and say, "The Grand Opening for the Inn is still about week and half away. So probably as long as we wil be out here on patrols. I do believe it will be a Grand Event."
I then address Rachel, "Hello, yes I did have a nice breakfast. I love being in the outdoors and meeting new people; as long as they are friendly. (I give her a smile at that). I will miss Kelvin though."
Qwantithalica looks a bit disappointed but she keeps on smiling. As you get back to the battle site and head towards the north and east you will see some scavengers flee ahead of you. You spend the rest of a quiet day on patrol with Ghost and Rachel riding off to the side and ahead at times. Soon the first sun is down and the second sun is getting low in the sky with about three hours of daylight left.
I make sure to be particularly attentive to Thalica after turning her down. Even if she accepted my logic, I suspected some part of her might think the refusal could mean a lack of commitment.
That evening, as we're making camp, I'll help Travis get set up, and make sure he has what he needs to try his hand at scroll making. "Take your time, and focus on the pattern of the spell, remember what it is to cast it naturally, and the rest should come easily enough."
Once he gets started, I turn back to my own work, making sure to set Ping to slowly patrol just under the canopy around our camp.
Out of Character: I'll work on a Talisman of the Disk tonight, easy DC of 22.
Really need to find a way to upgrade Ping's senses.
Riding easily after the rest at the Keep, I enjoy being back on the road, watching for threats and the like as usual. Once camped, I'll continue work on the broach, happy to be busy with my hands. Admiring the dark beauty of the forest at night, enveloped by the aura of magic keeping me comfortable, I chat with the elf youths about their world as they know of it.
"Jason, if you need any help from me, magical or otherwise, just let me know. I'd be happy to be involved in your unique styles."
Once Travis settles down for the day, he tends to the horse, has a drink and ration. He thank's Jason for the help and materials, for scroll making. Then begins the process of scribing a scroll. For now, beginning with CLW.
Out of Character: He keeps a tally, 1 exp, 12.5gp for the attempt. Will include a roll on his spellcraft, here if KN requires it also.
The short night passes quietly as the only things people saw were some wild common forest creatures. Even if they appeared different than you are used to you would see rabbits, squirrels and such. The first sun is up as a new day starts. You can see some clouds in the sky and it smells like rain today.
I shade my eyes as the sun comes up, looking for telltale cloud formations, "Everyone doublecheck the seals on their packs, looks like we're going to get a bit damp today."
We'll continue making our rounds, steadily crossing unexplored territory, making notes of recognizable landmarks and anything else that might be of interest.