The last boards are stacked against the grain shed wall as villagers gather beneath Carmin’s wavering hardlight marker. Rain beads on the barred eastern barrier.
A mud-caked farm cart emerges beyond the barrier, empty except for a snapped harness and a grain sack darkened with blood. Its wheels halt in the rain.
Sela Vey
That cart belongs to the Vey farm. I know those blue wheels and the iron brace beneath the left axle. Their family should be with it.
Orren
Should be is not the same as dead. The owners may have abandoned it nearby, or taken shelter along the eastern trail.
Orren lifts his spear and studies the mud around the cart. Fresh tracks vanish beneath the rain, while the snapped harness drags a crooked line toward the jungle.
Carmin
Please wait before opening the barrier. The shrine-symbol appeared in the marker earlier, and this could be another sign of its reach.
The villagers fall quiet beneath the hardlight. Sela grips her spear, Orren watches the tree line, and the blood-dark sack slumps in the cart like a warning awaiting examination.
Maryam's turn“Finish cleaning up the destruction and regrouping the villagers.”
SUCCESS (Great Strength, rolled -1)
Maryam takes the heaviest fallen beam first. With a hard shove, she rolls it clear of the gate and drags broken boards into a neat defensive stack. The effort scrapes her knuckles raw against splintered wood, but the passage opens.
Sela and Orren follow her lead, gathering loose stones, bent braces, and scattered tools. The eastern barrier closes properly, while the grain shed stands cleared enough for watchmen to move around it.
Sela Vey
The gate is secure. I will keep two villagers here and send the rest inside before the rain worsens.
The frightened villagers regroup beneath the hardlight marker. Sela assigns them to the storehouse and homes, while Orren checks each face and confirms that no one remains outside the walls.
Carmin
Please rest your hand, Maryam. The work is finished, and the villagers are accounted for. I can reinforce the marker while you recover your grip.
Carmin steadies the wavering light above the barrier. The villagers settle behind barred doors, the debris is cleared from the approaches, and Maryam’s bloodied knuckles sting as the settlement regains its order.
Maryam's turn“"Let's return home and call it a day. If the captain needs to update us tomorrow he will." I say. "Good job today, Carmin, Sela, Orren,"”
SUCCESS (Fair Oratory, rolled -1)
Maryam
Let’s return home and call it a day. If the captain needs to update us tomorrow, he will. Good job today, Carmin, Sela, Orren.
The words settle the village’s remaining uncertainty. Behind barred doors, the villagers begin withdrawing from the gate, while Carmin lets the hardlight marker shrink to a steady ember.
Carmin
Thank you, Maryam. I will keep the marker faint enough not to trouble anyone on the way home.
Sela Vey
Good work today. I will leave the gate watch arranged, though the villagers will expect me to answer for letting that cart reach us.
Orren
I will secure the last watch and follow. The captain can hear my report tomorrow, along with the twine and the cart’s trail.
Maryam, Carmin, and the others leave the settled gate behind. Sela remains with the villagers and the eastern watch, while Orren checks the barrier once more before turning toward home.