Chapter 40
Consequences
The morning was already passing quickly around them, warming to a brisk 45 with the threat of a light wisping rain, and they had many miles ahead of them if they hoped to reach Krezk before nightfall. They left the ancient grove for now and struck the last of their camp before climbing aboard their wagon and setting off. It was several miles back to the winery, and they agreed that it was right to return the gem to the Martikov's before leaving with the wine, but with time to kill Pieron studied the staff they had taken from the forest folk with close scrutiny. For an hour she poured over it, both with the intellectual familiarity gained from years of arcane study and with a sort of empathic resonance with the object to attune her souls energy to it's mighty presence. Suddenly she cried out and pulled away her hand, a sharp itching pain still gnawing at her palm. She saw tiny tendrils then, writhing roots like splinters still burrowing into her skin where she had apparently ripped them free. She brushed them off with disgust: the staff had attempted to root into her flesh, had started to drain her blood. It was the communion she needed to unlock the staff's dark secrets, and an ancient name attached to the object echoed in her mind: Gulthias. The staff would drain it's user of blood, slowly consuming them with long enough exposure, but in return it could birth blights of all sizes, control them and set them to the will of the wielder. It was a powerful object, if a bit disconserting, but Pieron felt convinced she could control her exposure for now, decoupling if the staff got too greedy, and for the time being she remained attuned.
Just as Pieron unlocked Gulthias's secrets, Fabian raised a hand to quiet her troupe, and from the driver's seat eased up on the reins to bring Omar and Patches to a stop. Ahead of a bend in the road she could see out of place colors through the trees: dyed fabric, clothes in a humanoid shape. It was unmoving, but they gathered their weapons and slowly approached. Once in sight they felt no more at ease, for just on the edge of the road some forty feet ahead were four scarecrows staked into the ground several feet apart, facing one another in a peculiar circle. Erros Fabian and Dyson climbed out weapons in hand and approached. They touched the motionless scarecrows, straw stuffed, nothing unexpected. Their legs and heads dangled limp, strung up by rope about their arms. Erros plunged his rapier into one's chest, slicing clean through the straw to thunk on the wooden post. Normal yet again. Perhaps we should just go Pieron said, but when Erros withdrew his blade it dripped with blood and the limp rucksack skin of the scarecrow stretched and tightened about a stringy musculature. Crude farming blades, rusty and crooked, thrust out of the scarecrows limps like claws, and it clambered off it's perch to swing wildly at the group. Erros ducked and ran back to the wagon and the claws scrapped across Dyson's arm. Surprised he ran, a horrible fear inexplicably gripping his psychy. Fabian and Pieron mounted the wagon as well, both noticing in the way the creature moved a sense of construction, a lack of organic life or free will or self preservation, it moved in a magical robotic sense, and as soon as they'd pulled back it hefted it's wooden stake from the dirt and abnormally ran off deeper into the woods. They'd all suspected the scarecrows to act as spies of some kind, and while the other 3 remained still they had no doubt they could similarly animate them as well. They were likely sharing information in their strange gathering, and while they could in an ideal circumstance chase down the fleeing arcane automaton they simply couldn't spare the time. Dyson circled back around the wagon, bleeding and out of breath, the fear having passed as quick as it came. They helped him up the tall step and rode on.
They have their big confrontation
Wordless they rode within sight of the winery and up to it's front gate. Already it appeared repairs had been undertaken, and on the side of the road the Martikov by marriage, Jag Tomescu, was mending the fence. He welcomed them back but grumbled that his wife's family didn't tell him anything and hopped aboard their wagon to ride with them up the hill. Already Damian and Adrian were waiting for them on the winery's front steps. Before they could speak Damian requested the gems, and ignoring the slight insult, they dismounted and held out the green gem they had recovered.
They return the gem to the Martikov's, are clarified on the other missing one, and Davian suspiciously says they saw it all happen
They head to Krezk, see the panther tracks on the way, Erros wants to follow but they look to be a few days old.
They are tested at the gate and permitted in, then meet Elsie and Ilya at the start of dinner
