The trailhead is fairly easy to follow. With Nuyok's sight and Leckchock's unparalleled ease of travel, combined with a fairly well-marked trail, you all make good time. Once or twice you sight signs of habitations. These are small dwellings, usually made of stone and possessing at least a rudimentary barricade. Since they are not your goal, you pass them by. Leckchock, your view from above and Nuyok, your site reveal that these are inhabited by either beasts, humans or both. some have a small subsitence garden, others storage pits for gathered herbs or other jungle product. You also pass a couple of hunting camps for folks who go out and procure fresh meat for consumption in the city.

It is not until well after midday, when the rain has increased to a steady pour that you encounter the Sanctuary.

Or what's left of it. The layout is roughly circular, unusual in Tallon, perhaps common in Adala. There is an outer (enhanced) wall of stone topped by timbers in a kind of well-foundaationed pallisade. Inside this is a broad area perhaps fifty yards across that is lightly treed, really a garden. The sanctuary itself is thirty-foot-wide a round building (also enhanced) with a conical roof. It is one story, though the peak is probably twenty feet up. The door stands open. There half in and half out is the body of a priest He has been savagely cut. The wounds look old enough that any blood has been washed away by the rain. He is obviously very dead.

Merikian Cultural note. Sanctuary doors and gates are never locked save during a reaver attack. They are understood to be a no-conflict zone where anyone, even Riven, may ask for and receive protection (mostly from reavers). Sanctuary Priests are called Abbots (at least the head priest). They are all Sighted, though rarely Masters.

Celeste will cautiously walk over to the body of the Abbot and look at the wounds. Bladed weapon or animal?
Perception:
3d6: 5, 4, 6 (STUN: 15, BODY: 4) Fri December 19, 2003 @8:00 AM (PST)

Celeste, I edited your post. The roll command can't even have the closing tag on it, or it won't work.

[EDITED on Fri December 19, 2003 @8:00 AM (PST)]

Lekchock will peer inside and look for signs of any other dead bodies.

Perception 14-
3d6: 8 Fri December 19, 2003 @8:19 AM (CST)

Celeste, you are not sure, but the wounds look weapon-inflicted. There are two long slashing strokes visible. It would probably require a more detailed examination to get more information.

Leckchock nimbly swings from the branches into the Sanctuary grounds. Inside is another body. It is a female of approximately the same age as the Abbot (Merikian priests are not Celibate, so it could be his wife). She is likewise dead of simliar wounds. She does not wear clerical vestments.

The inside of the Sanctuary is in shambles.

Nuyok, your senses are not warning you of danger.

Nuyok will scan the area outside the sanctuary for other presences, hostile or not, traps, and poisons, and if discovering nothing, then proceed inside, and do the same thing within the enhanced wall. Once confirming the area is clear (if it is), Nuyok will say "I see no danger present." If there seems to be someone outside, hostile or not, Nuyok will subtlely gather everyone inside.

Detects are all 11-, if needed

Nuyok will also look to see if there is any trail leading away, perhaps droplets of blood or whatnot, but has no tracking skill.

Presumably there is no way to tell if the priest was the adept holding the enhancement? Any sign of it fading? Freshness of the people being killed, e.g. congealing of blood?

At Nuyok's urging Lekchock will scan the area with all his tracking skills and jungle lore knowledge.
AK: Jungle 11- (in case it might be something indeginous)
3d6: 13 Fri December 19, 2003 @7:40 PM (CST)

Paramedics 12- (examine the wounds and any blood found)
3d6: 6 Fri December 19, 2003 @7:40 PM (CST)

Survival 14- (compliment AK and/or Tracking)
3d6: 10 Fri December 19, 2003 @7:40 PM (CST)

Tracking 14-
3d6: 12 Fri December 19, 2003 @7:40 PM (CST)

OOC:Sheesh I feel like I'm playing Zach on a computer in Manifest Destiny with all the skill rolls

OOC: Zach, is that you?

Celeste will pick up the abbots body and move it inside the sanctuary, she will lay it near the body of the female. Presumably there is blood pooled on the sanctuary floor since the female was not out in the rain. A closer examination of the two victims wounds, major arteries severed? Any other evidence of injury?

Paramedics 12-
3d6: 2, 5, 4 (STUN: 11, BODY: 3) Fri December 19, 2003 @8:34 PM (PST)

Vagrant stands guard while the others concentrate their attentions upon the gruesome scene.

Nuyok proceeds cautiously and informs the others that there are no malevolent presences or traps that he can detect. He does notice that the enhancements upon the sanctuary are fading rapidly. They will not likely remain another hour. Any traces of blood leading from the area have been washed away by the rain.

Leckchock, I'm taking your actions in the order of the skills you rolled.
Leckchock begins a detailed examination of the area around the sanctuary. The rain has obscured many details, but he can see the evidence of at least three people, possibly more. They wore soft leather shoes of some mocassin-like design, and moved with ease and skill through the jungle. They did not come by the path, but through the forest itself. This is unusual. They did not seem to use the trees as easily as L:eckchock's own people, but had little problem with underbrush. They went towards the west (your current heading), but he quickly loses track. Where they came from is anyone's guess. They may have dropped in from the trees.

Celeste gathers the body of the slain priest and places it carefully next to the woman. She begins examining the bodies intently and quickly finds that the woman is not dead. Her chest suddenly heaves in a rattle as her bony hands shoots out and grips the barbarian's arm in a desperate grip. She seems to be trying to say something, but blood is misting her mouth. She pulls Celeste closer and tries to speak, but all that comes out is, "Y-yaraza"
Then her chest rattles again. She is beyond all aid. Even a spirit healer would avail her nothing now. She shudders, and then expires.

Intent on examining the wounds of the two victims, Celeste is startled by the sudden revelation that the woman is not dead. She pulls back a bit as the woman begins to move, and then leans in once again as the dying womans hand grabs her arm. Celeste searches her face for any signs of comprehension, but sees only bewilderment and fear on the womans face. As she utters the word 'yaraza' and her death throes finally still, Celeste rocks back onto her heels and turns to Nuyok. She silently mouths the word 'yaraza'. There is a look of puzzlement on her face.

Intelligence Roll:
3d6: 4, 2, 1 (STUN: 7, BODY: 2) Sun December 21, 2003 @3:15 AM (PST)
Has Celeste heard this word before????

"Yaraza"
You're not certain. The syllables sound familiar, but you cannot connect it with any memory. It's possible you misheard her.

Celeste continues looking at Nuyok and motions for him to come to where the bodies lie, "Master Nuyok, can you read the dead with this sight of yours? What did she mean, 'yaraza'?"

Celeste will continue to search her memories for the word or something similar to it.

With her Asian background, I could see possibly the word Yakuza being something she might have heard in the past....

Yaraza???? Eurasia??

May I have another INT roll?
3d6: 2, 5, 6 (STUN: 13, BODY: 4) Sun December 21, 2003 @10:52 PM (PST)
Regard or disregard as you please...

.oO(Sigh.....okay, disregard)

[EDITED on Sun December 21, 2003 @10:54 PM (PST)]

"I know not what she meant, nor can I pry it from her now...," Nuyok says, looking down at the woman with a furrowed brow.

"I say we finish up a quick examination of the area for additional clues as to the attackers and their possible intentions, place the bodies within, close the gate and leave. There is nothing else we can do for these two, and we must continue on to the others."

Nuyok will proceed within the sanctuary to see if anything therein was disturbed taking a little time, in case the attackers sought something other than the deaths of the two.

PER, 13-
3d6: 1, 4, 5 (STUN: 10, BODY: 2) Mon December 22, 2003 @10:01 AM (EST)

Looking about, the Sanctuary seems to have been searched. Furniture is turned over, drawers emptied and so forth.
Strangely some things have not been touched. The altar has been overturned for instance, and a chest containing vestments has been rifled. A virtually identical chest containing other clothing has been left untouched though, and a donation box is still locked and apparently contains some small amount of coin. A silver symbol of the order has not been pried from the wall, either.
There appears to be no pattern to what was touched and what wasn't.

I have rolled INT rolls for all, so unless you have a specific question, fishing about with PER rolls and KSs is unlikely to yield results.

OOC: Us???? As if we would 'fish' about.......fish....that's Persia's thing...

"Well, apparently this place has been searched, but no rhyme or reason to it. Thoughts anyone?"

Nuyok will do a spiritual examination and comparison of the touched versus untouched items, to see if there is anything unusual, He will also look for any signs of whether anything was dragged from here, and whether there are any items that may have been accidentally left behind by the attackers (i.e., are out of place for the sanctuary).

The vestments (both on the priest and the ones from the chest), as well as the holy symbol are enhanced. Some of the disturbe items have been slashed by some kind of blade. The attacker(s) seem to have left nothing of their own behind. There is little else of note that has not already been described.

As you all finish your examination, you realize that you are wasting daylight. If you expect to get to the edge of the jungle before sundown, you need to get moving.

Placing the bodies as you described earlier, you close the gate reverentially and move on, leaving this mystery behind for now...

"Wha's this place for, jus' sanctuary? Somebody might came in wit sumptin someone else wanted."

"Somebody ovbviously sought something more than sanctuary here, but we cannot know what it was, nor can afford to linger."

From his position at the door Vagrant sees the woman's hand lunge forward grabbing Celeste. Vagrant takes two steps into the sanctuary to aid her but quickly realises that the danger is over as quickly as it started. He steps back and eyes the trees and sky outside the sanctuary crossbow ready for what may come.