Abrasion Contagion

## Synopsis

In Season 2, Chapter 2: Abrasion Contagion, the Treant followed up its opening wallop with a volley of splintered shards that rained down on the nearby river.  Despite shielding themselves from the lumber as best they could, Graven caught a stray plank to the head that knocked him unconscious – and Erland scrambled over to stabilize him while they drifted downstream.

As Orba ran to the closest bank with a length of rope to haul them in, Safira had her hands full trying to corral all four horses – two of which had gone sprinting ahead after narrowly avoiding a thrashing.

After her first toss was unsuccessful, Orba wound up for another try – and during that time Erland pushed off of what he thought was a jagged rock, but turned out to be a crocodile lying in wait.  To avoid further injury (and potentially having two unconscious bodies floating down the stream), Erland was forced to dip into his well of septic energy – and in doing so triggered an overflow of toxicity that warped his skin and face with a horrible, sickly complexion.

Finally, Orba reeled in her allies – and while Graven's condition was nothing a quick potion of healing couldn't fix, familiar heavy footsteps were heard lumbering in our direction… so it wasn't time to sit and reflect.  Safira met the group halfway and we saddled up in haste, riding further up the Stouthill Corridor until the Treant gave up its pursuit.

Catching our breath, we licked more than just our wounds after we discovered Erland had some kind of rash or discoloration where the Treant had touched his bare skin.  Safira recognized it as Wilting Blight – an especially curious revelation given that this disease was exclusive to wooded plants… and she'd never heard of it being passed to an animal or a person.

The blight's primary danger was in starving its host of hydration – so we knew we'd have to monitor Erland's health, but we hoped that a rest in the near future would show improvements and give Graven a chance to prepare a spell that could purge him of his condition.  Before that, however, we needed to make use of what little remaining daylight we had – so we pressed on.

Some time later we spotted a small rowboat that seemed to have crashed into the east bank of the river, its lone occupant splayed out with bloody streaks and tattered clothes that looked very similar to the trappings of the Adepts at the Natural Studies Institute in Mukmu.  His potential reasons for being here were enough to pique our curiosity – but as we got closer, the mounds of moss and weeds that the boat had collided with began to rustle and shake.

Well-camouflaged in these wooded surroundings, it was a pair of Brackish Trudges: boar-like plant creatures with long tusks for defending against predators.  Our efforts to stay quiet were short-lived – and sensing their agitation building, Orba attempted a spell meant to instill fear, hoping that we could grab whatever was left behind and get out without a larger conflict.

Unfortunately, one of the Trudges resisted the effects and charged forward toward an already-weakened Erland – who immediately hit the ground and had to be revived.  When we got our bearings, we put some newly-learned techniques into action for the first time: healing spirits, bolts of lightning and a powerful stunning strike – which combined with the Cause Fear spell allowed us to fully control the battlefield and overwhelm our foes.

In the end it was worth it: besides some personal effects, we found a pouch with three Charcoal and Qhali Pellets – an invaluable tool for managing Erland's sepsis, or perhaps a bargaining chip… as there was also a letter describing a sick Elatrian who was waiting for this shipment.

Speaking of the Elatrians, it wouldn't be long before we'd cross paths with them for the first time since entering the Corridor – though the conversation would be brief.  A halfling bolted from Trickster's Thicket and swam to the eastern shore while being chased by two elves – and though we wanted to avoid getting involved, Orba did lie about which direction the halfling fled.

The situation didn't develop any further, so we found a spot off the road to make camp and set some traps – and Graven used a bit of magic to discern the extent of Erland's ailment.  As we laid our heads down, we crossed our fingers that the Wilting Blight wouldn't spread too quickly.

## Trivia

* Natural one count: four natural ones were rolled in this Chapter. 1 by Anthony, and 3 by John.