Misadventures with Mina

Mar 8, 2024 8:21 pm

???

As you move close the figure starts and jumps back, dislodging the cloak, to reveal a hulking figure hunched over. It emits a loud hiss accompanied by low rumbling grunts and clicks and raises one of its massive arms. Ultime shouts in alarm and jumps between you and the . . . thing? brandishing a walking stick at it.

The creature surges to its feet and with a casual wave of its arm knocks Ultime back as it rises to tower over both of you waving hands and shrieking in a strange rasping voice.

Mar 8, 2024 8:41 pm

Hold, hold! Glancing quickly at Ultime to make sure he is okay, Mina raises her hands in a show of peacefulness and shushes soothingly at the creature. Not removing her eyes from the beast, she slowly removes her gloves, then leans over to pick up the crust of bread. She holds it out to the beast with a gentle, encouraging nod and studies its body language to see if her efforts are having any pacifying effect.

OOC:

If she is unable to read the creature's body language, she will try to touch it with her finger if it accepts the bread and attempt to sense its mood.

Rolls

Insight Check - (3d6)

(133) = 7

???

Mar 9, 2024 1:20 am

OOC:

Your rolls have not been great. Luckily your intent is clear and does not rely solely on the success of a couple of rolls.

???

The creature stops its screeching and slowly lowers its hands. Pausing a moment it then quickly snatches the bread from your hand before backing up a step. Shoving the bread into its mandibles it bends down to pick up the tattered cloak and tries to arrange it over itself again. It's frame is too large to be completely hidden and if it did not look so pathetic it might be comical as the creature continually tries to crouch down and adjust the folds of the cloak to hide as much of itself as possible. As it does this a rasping sound is repeated several times before you realize it is trying to talk but its mouth is not quite shaped for the common tongue nks . . . . aa .. anks . . . T . . aa . . nk . . eww

Though the contact was too quick to sense much you are certain the creature is intelligent and upset.

Mar 9, 2024 1:51 pm

Mina hesitates before reaching out to delicately adjust the creature's cloak. She glances quickly at Ultime and nods to him reassuringly before turning back to the monster.

I'm Mina, she says gently, placing one hand on her chest. I'm a healer. I heal bodies and minds. Are you... hurting?

???

Mar 9, 2024 6:08 pm

???

The thing shudders and after a moment you realize it is crying? ess . . . k . . k . . cur . . sss

Mar 9, 2024 7:02 pm

Cursed? Mina frowns. My touch can sense... conditions ... that may be affecting you. Sometimes I can relieve symptoms. She reaches one hand out to touch the creature's arm. May I...?

OOC:

Not entirely sure if I can lift a curse, but at the very least I can try to get a look into this creature's mind. Assuming that makes sense, I'll go ahead and attempt a roll to keep things moving along.

Rolls

Spell to Sense and/or Help the Creature - (3d6)

(143) = 8

Mar 9, 2024 7:04 pm

OOC:

Shucks! Poor creature! ... How long until I can try again?

I suppose this all assumes it lets me touch it in the first place...

Last edited March 9, 2024 7:07 pm

???

Mar 9, 2024 7:43 pm

The thing allows the contact and Mina spreads her senses over it, mind, body, soul. She is shocked to learn that like the lycanthropes she worked with before this is not the little girls natural form. Her magic eases some of the pain but the change to the girls body it too severe to treat all at once. Mina gets the feeling that the magic, like many curses, has latched itself to her spirit and if that connection can be broken then the body can more easily be healed back to it's natural state.

???

That tickles the little girl's voice coming from the hunched yet massive form is quite odd. The girl starts crying You, you fixed my voice.

As you delve deeper you realize there are actually 2 magics afflicting the girl and it is their conflict that is causing her so much discomfort.

OOC:

In situations where you can just try again I just use rolls as a guideline for challenges you may encounter.
This will not be done in one roll, or even one minute. But if you want to work on this give me a proposed treatment plan with a couple of rolls and I will walk through the process and results

Mar 9, 2024 9:09 pm

Mina inhales and leans back. I see... she murmurs. She shudders briefly as she re-centers, then looks back to the altered child, her brow knit with sympathy. There are multiple layers to this curse. It's very entangled with your spirit. I'll have to tackle that before I can tackle the other curse and correct your physical form. It may take me a little time, but it shouldn't be beyond my capability, if you can be patient... She swallows, braces herself, then reaches out again.

Last edited March 9, 2024 10:42 pm

Rolls

Remove curse - (3d6)

(221) = 5

Remove curse - (3d6)

(653) = 14

Mar 9, 2024 9:23 pm

OOC:

Apparently, I either roll really well, or really poorly.

~TinyGM~

Mar 10, 2024 8:28 pm

As you expand your senses and let the girls spirit guide the healing. Your first attempt slides over one of the enchantments. This one feels a bit older and set in tighter. However the experience allows Mina to find the flaws in the second enchantments binding and you are able to dislodge it's anchors. Exhausted you retract from the girl to allow her and you to recover. As you pull your awareness back to your own body you feel that the one you were not able to remove settle in deeper. This heightens you suspicion that the two curses were clashing and not placed on the girl by the same source. You hesitate but sense it is not harmful so decide it is best for both of you to rest before attempting another time.

Blinking you look as the massive form slowly blurs and contracts in on itself. Over the next several minutes as the broken enchantment fades and it's effects dissipate. The entire process takes almost an hour with Mina occasionally sending healing energies to each the burden on the recovering girl. You look on as the form of a young girl presents itself to you and Ultime. Gathering your energy you inspect the girls condition and determine it is stable. With the worst of the danger passed you reach back into the girl and sever the second enchantment then sit back triumphant but exhausted.

Hany

Mar 10, 2024 8:28 pm

Hany

The sun gets higher in the sky and you find yourself watching the little girl munch on some of your provisions. She recalls nothing of her time while cursed. This is likely due to the fact that both curses were primarily mental in nature. You sensed as you removed the first that the physical transformation was simply a method used to circumvent the first curse.

Mar 11, 2024 12:09 am

Mina was unable to fathom the full extent of either curse. But the fact that someone used a curse to partially circumvent the first seems odd. All that is certain is that they targeted the mind to influence the girls thoughts. It did not control her but could have altered her opinions or perceptions of things (similar to hypnosis).

Mar 11, 2024 12:51 am

Multiple matters compete for Mina's attention at this time: 1) the many questions she has for this unfortunate child, 2) the need to fulfill her promise and get to town as swiftly as possible, and 3) the great, heavy blanket of weariness bearing down on her after all the exertion of being in this girl's head for the last couple of hours... Mina would certainly benefit from a long nap, but -- as is so often the case -- her thoughts are too guilty and restless to allow relaxation anyway right now.

Flopped on the ground next to the girl, the foxkin downs the last of her water, then sighs. Are you from this nearby town? she asks the girl, gesturing the direction they were headed with her water flask.

OOC:

I assume you would have mentioned if this girl looks like the one presented to her in the fire.

Hany

Mar 11, 2024 1:05 am

Hany

The girl looks around. Having already grown accustomed to you she has greatly relaxed and nods her head. I think so? I'm not supposed to wander far from home. I must have gotten lost while playing in the woods? . . . and she trails off as if trying to remember But that hill over there with the lone tree atop it looks like the one daddy took me to last summer for our family picnik. Home should be that way. and she points confidently as her finger meanders over a section of the valley below. I see smoke and once we get near a house and see people I can tell you for sure.

I hope I won't get into too much trouble for getting lost. she says finishing up the bread and fruit you gave to her.

Mar 11, 2024 2:46 am

Mina cocks her head at the little girl. Kids... So simple. They're so easy to talk and relate to compared to adults... Maybe because they've got fewer expectations about how you should behave.

If you do get in trouble, I will vouch for you, she assures. I will say that if you got lost, it was because someone played a nasty trick on you.

It occurs to Mina that it's quite possible this little girl's parents might have been somehow responsible for this awful abuse. Not all parents were trustworthy, after all. Her stomach sickens a little. She turns her head away and sighs. I suppose we should get going, though... She closes her eyes and takes a moment to brace herself to rise, then opens them to see Ultime leaning over to help her up. She starts with surprise, letting out a little bark of alarm as she shrinks away from his hand.

I-- I've got it. Thank you, she sputters his way, abashed about her reaction. She jumps quickly to her feet and shoves her hands back into her gloves before pulling her cloak tighter around herself protectively.

Mina turns back to the child. What's your name? she asks, trying to redirect everyone's attention away from her own awkwardness.

Hany

Mar 12, 2024 3:31 pm

Hany

I'm called Hany. What do I call you?
The girl stands up and walks over to stand next to your before simply reaching up and sliding her hand into yours.

You set out disc the trail and soon have a cure of the valley below. Hany gets very excited and starts pointing out houses and landed she recognizes. Her house is near the edge of the spread of village. Other than a cluster of larger structures near the middle of the low valley mist building come in small clusters of 1 to three. Hany explains most people are farmers and do have a home, barn, and occasionally a storage is work shed.

The girl begins skipping and as you get closer to her house pulling on your arm to hurry you along. As you break the treeline and come into view of the house you see several figures out in a nearby field. One must notice you and calls to the others. Soon the three, a man and 2 teens, boy and girl, are all looking at your age the man moves to get you.

At Hany's cry of popa the man stops in his tracks before shouting and running to catch the girl in his arms.

Mar 12, 2024 4:47 pm

Not wanting to interrupt, Mina stands back and watches the sweet reunion, an odd mix of emotions curling up in her chest. Relief and self-satisfaction over a job well done, certainly. But also... a touch of... bitterness? This was the sort of greeting she was longing for from her mother, was it not? But she was no longer the little girl her mother had left behind, and if her mother had really wanted a reunion, certainly she would have sought it out by now. More likely than not, this whole quest would end with dissatisfaction. All the same, she needed answers. At least at the end of all this she would have them (if she actually even managed to find her mother).

Mina shyly waits for the father to acknowledge her before speaking or stepping forward.

Jestin

Mar 12, 2024 10:58 pm