Session 6 : One can't save everyone

The night was approaching. Hoskgak's eyelids started to close involuntarily. After the encounter with snakes and insects, he was feeling tired. Very tired. So tired. Luckily the windmill was here: some shelter for the night. Perhaps it would not be luck at all, if those cold chicken pies were made in there, though...

Knock knock. Here we go again, more chat for the cats, let's see if they achieve their end of the deal. Hoskgak was starting to believe he would do the fighting and the cats would do the chatting. It was a good deal, he guessed. After all, he clearly wasn't getting his message across as fluently as the cats. An old woman opened the door and the Half-orc barely could hold his stance falling into the windmill as the door opened, completely asleep.

Waking up outside the windmill with the sunrise, he quickly realised the cats failed to secure shelter for the night, and a glance to his party gave him the missing bits. Destiny probably fell right after him, so Serenity kept watch again. Something has to be done about those pies. It was making him weak and Serenity was looking worse as the day passed by. With the Cats entering the windmill again, Ireena and Hoskgak talked about the land and Barovia. Quite a strange place, full of pale lives and forlorn hopes. People minded their business: kids disappeared and nobody bothered. Ireena finished with a demolishing sentence: "This is Barovia Rules, one can't save everyone". 

Destiny summoned Hoskgak with a shout, she was accusing the old woman of using kids to make the pies. Serenity was also following the accusations, but the old woman was brushing the whole thing off. Somehow they convinced her to come out of the house and down the path away from the windmill. She threw a knife at a raven (and hit it... and it still flew away somehow) and pushed past the party back to the windmill, leaving them arguing by the trees.

"I'm missing a spell," Destiny said. Hoskgak looked back at where they fell asleep. Perhaps it was there, but nobody noticed he reacted that way to her words.

Eventually, it was clear there was nothing to do. Vallaki seems to be the next stop. The cats started walking the path to the city while chatting about two kids locked on the second floor. Hoskgak stopped. You didn't mention there were kids locked in there Serenity, you said they were using kids. The Half-orc took his sword and charged towards the windmill, if that is how I go, so be it. Turning towards the door, Serenity blocked his way. 

"You will die, Hoskgak," she said. "If you go in there, you go alone, and she lifted you like a kid lifts a wooden toy yesterday night. That old lady is probably beyond your capabilities. Hoskgak lowered his sword and saddened his face. What a place.

Walking back to Vallaki the cats started making plans to go back to the windmill, something about missing spells and having found one. Hoskgak was glad that Destiny had found what she lost, but going back, that could not be. If that old woman was too strong for him she was too strong for everyone. "One can't save everyone." With those words Hoskgak took the cats by the neck, lifting them from the floor, and followed the path to Vallaki with Ireena. He was remembering the Chaman son and with each step he was leaving the idea behind that he could have done something more for those poor kids at the windmill.

"Help! I need somebody!" At the end of the road a nobleman was fighting three of those dark creatures, Dire Wolves again. This land was filled with monstrosities at every corner. As the party approached, the wolves ran away from the nobleman. "What is he wearing? Is he going to a fancy dress party? How can one walk this paths with that outfit? In the arena he will be meat at the first blow. What a loser!" Hoskgak thought. Looking at Ireena he quickly noticed she blushed when giving her name to him. Hoskgak looked at his own outfit: proper fighting stuff, nothing to worry about. Ireena knows how to distinguish a fighter, nothing to worry against a buffoon daring to walk this land like that. "What is your name sir?" the nobleman asked Hoskgak. In other circumstances, it would have been a great opportunity to spread his honour and achievements, but opponents, as in the arena, only have breath to shout in horror when Hoskgak delivers his last blow. "My name is my own, it doesn't matter if you know it or not," Hoskgak replied, quite bad-mannered. The cats on the other hand were quite happy with that buffoon, chatting again about a bunch of useless things, like the pies, Vallaki. No question on armoury or blacksmiths.

Vallaki was somewhat more lively, and everybody was asking Hoskgak's name. Perhaps a good place to build up his reputation, why not. The party found a nice tavern to settle for the night. What a coincidence they found this tavern randomly walking the street, the luck was on their way. Approaching the bar, Serenity loudly shouted - give me four bottles of your best wine! And right after that she started counting coins on a side, hiding her pouch. As Serenity approached with three bottles, some Huntsman shared with them the most hilarious jokes the Half-orc has heard in a while.

"What a great place, this Vallaki," thought Hoskgak as he stumbled into a bed upstairs, and his eyelids started closing involuntarily, again.