Log: Sign Sixty-Two

PLAYERS: Rogun, Ferawyn, Sebropert

**START LOG**

Whatever company he kept on the road between here and there the older man in 
blue robes is alone now. Leading a saddled nondescript brown mare with one hand 
and clutching an average looking walking stick in the other he approaches the 
outskirts of the Vadran Village with no particular haste. 

Upon crossing into the entrance to the village he does pause before the sign 
which has been thrust into the road and, after a moment, leads the mare off of 
the main thoroughfare to consider its meaning, "Sixty-two.." He says aloud and 
then hefts his walking stick into the air.

From a nearby tree a little gray thrust flies downward and lands alight the 
older man's shoulder, "Does it mean anything to you?" He asks kindly. The bird 
twitching its head to one side and then flitting from the man's shoulder to the 
sign, "Sixty-two." It replies in a crude simulacrum of a human voice.

Rogun gives a thoughtful sound there, "So I see.." He remarks, "I have often 
found that if you stand a while to consider a thing someone with more knowledge 
than you will inevitably arrive to impart what they know." The man remarks and 
the bird, less patient, flutters into the trees again with a chirp.

Ferawyn looks down from her tree and sighs a bit. "62 people died due to the 
events that have happened in the recent events, in this village. It's a rallying 
cry for the people here lately...."

"Ah." Rogun says aloud looking about for a moment as if expecting to find 
someone standing nearto the tree. After a moment his gaze goes upward to the 
branches though he doesn't seem immediately surprised to see the woman seated up 
there, "Recent events." He repeats, "What sort of events claimed sixty-two lives 
- and how many more suffer still?"

Ferawyn says, "Well, one of them was a swarm of giant wasps carrying people off 
and stinging an elderly woman, then trying to drag off a boy." She says softly 
as she sits up to dangle her feet off of the branch. "I think this town suffers 
under fear of another random attack."

At the edge of the wood, not far from the village, a shadowy creature stalked. 
From the distance it looks to walk on all fours and its head is capped with 
menacing forward sweeping horns. A good judge of size would put it easily at 
thirteen from tail to tip before it faded in amongst the trees. Occasionally its 
path weaved back out of the wood and then into it again, its inevitable 
destination near where the man in blue and the red headed elf now stood.

"How giant?" Rogun asks then, "As big as you or I, this horse, or that tree." He 
raises the walking stick and points towards the tree-trunk, "I do not think that 
if there was a swarm of anything larger than that.." He lowers his staff, 
"..there would be a village left to post signs in." He muses aloud.

As he does so he might catch the shadowy form and a look of concern darkens his 
features.

At the though of concern the thrush flies out of the tree branches again and 
flies in the direction of the shadowy shape vanishing into a tree near-to where 
the blue-robed man last saw the creature.

In any event he moves casually so that the horse is between he and this phantom, 
"I say, you don't have a ladder you could throw down to you?" He asks the woman.
Ferawyn notices the shadowy create and smiles a little bit, but looks back to 
the blue robed stranger. "About as big as a dog." She says as she climbs down 
out of the tree and rubs her hand on the bark of the tree. "Why would you need a 
ladder if your hands are strong enough to grip the bark of a tree?"

Wood creaked in protest not far away from the conversing pair, the creature 
having arrived rather quickly and seemingly taking its frustrations out on a 
tree. The branches of a tree sway and rustle to accompany a deep growling and 
puffing breath of what could only be the shadowy beast. Leaves burst out into 
the air a few rows back from the elf as the a dark mass leaped from one tree to 
the next. 

The noise and rustling went still as an elongated skull-like head pressed itself 
out from the foliage to stare out at the pair with piercing blue eyes. The 
creature, a black and copper Sith'Makar rumbled and wriggled the tendrils under 
his snout.

Rogun is evidently more intent upon the form passing through the trees for he 
continues to watch its approach with a look of apprehension, "Why, for the same 
reason I would hire a boat to cross a river." He replies deftly without looking 
back up to her, "On second thought, I think that I will remain down here.." He 
notes blithely as the shadowy creature continues to stalk through the trees.
"You may wish to--"

The nondescript mare's raises its head and gives a wide-eyed look to the 
creature bursting through the trees. It whinnies nervously and pulls its head 
frightfully to one side stripping the reigns away from the blue-robed figure who 
takes a cautious step backward, "Now, hang on.." He says fruitlessly.

The horse turns and starts to walk stubbornly away at a brisk walk as if it was 
not willing to risk this unknown thing flying through the trees. The older man 
watches after it for a moment and then, with a defeated sigh, he backs up a few 
paces on his own but is still watching the trees. 

Ferawyn looks over towards the sith-makar and chuckles, but then looks to Rogun. 
"You have nothing to worry about, as long as you are friendly to the woods." She 
then walks on over towards the mare and quietly speaks to it, offering her hand 
to it, and assuring it that it is safe here. "That is a friend of mine. His name 
is Sebropert....a tracker and a wonderful being." She says quietly. "I am 
Ferawyn Windrunner."

Ferawyn says, "Many larger wasps. Apparently that was one that didn't attack 
with the others." She says softly as she looks to Sebropert. "I have faith in 
you, Sebropert." She then, however, looks to Rogun. "You.....don't stay in the 
forest very often, do ya?" She says with a chuckle. "Wasps are usually part of a 
hive. If you find one, hundreds more are nearby. This is why I worry.""

Sebropert waited patiently as the old conjurer finished his turret of questions. 
Lifting a heavy curved and very dangerous looking claw, the Sith'Makar scratched 
himself behind the bony beard-ridge beneath his jaw. He did not comment further 
on nests but turned to the topic of wasps. 

"Not wasp ate wasp. Did not care what. Stopped that trail." He paused as he 
tried to think how how to respond to the rest. "Swarm not separate. Only one 
separate. Other trails belong to other things." The claw at his chin lifted to 
tap one of his broad nostrils. "Scents cover other scents. Many false trails 
followed before right one found."

Carefully as an aside to Ferawyn the Sith'Makar mumbled a comment. Though with 
his rumbling voice and their relative nearness it was mostly for naught. "All 
softskins ask this many questions?"

Rogun gives a quiet sigh to Sebropert's response. No doubt disappointed because 
his battery of questions yielded very few precise answers. Taping the base of 
his walking stick upon the ground several times the wizard seems to mirror the 
ranger's contemplation as the Sith'Makar scratched his chin.

"That is precisely why I was curious as to how many wasps went how many separate 
directions." He explains, "It would be key in estimating whether there were 
hundreds or thousands lurking nearby.."

The astute conjurer seems to catch the mumbled aside and, with his brows arching, 
he looks to Ferawyn as if equally interested in her response.

Ferawyn says, "They do, Sebropert. Especially if they do not understand what is 
being said." She then looks to Rogun. "He was able to follow the trail of one 
wasp who had separated from the rest, but it was eaten. The rest of the trails 
he could find were covered up, too weak to follow, or had other scents across it. 
Most of the ones that attacked here seemed to be soldiers." she then sighs. 
"Well, not much else to get done today, I guess." She says softly as she offers 
a berry to Sebropert, then one to Rogun. "Hope you don't mind the sudden 
dinner.""

Sebropert bobbed his large head as Rogun explained himself. Pointing to the spot 
on the horizon where the moon would rise in a few short hours the Sith'Makar 
explained himself as well. "Only checked edges so far. When Dreamer shows her 
face will go deeper." He motioned to the dark tones of his scaled body with a 
splayed claws. "Safer then. Dark, and wasps sleep." 

The Sith'Makar eyes the berry in the elf's hand, his head leaning in to give it 
an experimental sniff. "Would go well on meat," he stated simply before pulling 
his head away. His reptilian lips separated to show his quite lethal teeth to 
drive his point home.

"Ah, easier to follow the straggler than the herd." Rogun muses aloud to the 
explanation but as Ferawyn states there isn't much else that he can do he gives 
the mare an incredulous look and then reaches for her reins.

When the berry is proffered he slides his arm between the loop in the tack and 
then reaches outward to accept it, "Thank you, but I don't want to spoil my 
dinner plants, however.." With a quiet smile he holds it aloft. The tiny thrush 
swoops down, taking the thing, and then flutters into the trees again with its 
prize, "A banquet for a small bird." He remarks and then lifts his staff to head 
back to the road.

"I'll be in town if you unearth anything in the darkness that needs dispelling 
or questions asked of.." Tugging upon the reins the horse begins to plod after 
him and he continues on into the village. 

Ferawyn smiles to the thrush. "That is a very big banquet for the bird. It is a 
goodberry." She says before looking to Sebropert. "Eat, my friend. You shouldn't 
refuse an offering from the bringer of fruits." She says eating her own berry. 
"Besides, it's never a good idea to track something down on an empty stomach. 
Too easy to get distracted."
	
The Sith'Makar blanched as he stuck the tip of a claw into the berry to hold it 
before his face. "Ate while searching. Some paths end in food." His large tongue 
rolled out and he placed the berry in the center of it before drawing it back in 
and swallowing the berry whole so he wouldn't have to taste it. "Am not sure how 
sharpears only eat plants," he commented. "Meat good for you."