Well, the good news was that the combat was over, and most of the group looked little worse for the wear. Katia's strategy had worked flawlessly for her own defense, but her offensive capability was definitely not maximized. More of her shots had missed than landed, and although she could try to blame it on her relatively newly found ability that she had wielded this whole time, she knew deep down that wasn't the case. 

Control of one's emotions was always a necessity for monks, one that Katia struggled with continuously. Even as she had lived under the same roof as Wick, absorbing the odd bout of instruction that Shujaat had involved her in (usually as little more than a training dummy, with poignant emphasis on the "dummy" aspect), Katia never gleaned the ability to truly harness her emotions and calm her soul. When her thoughts strayed, so too did her aim. 

Katia shot Thea and Theodore a quick smile before turning away. They made a cute couple, at least if you were into overly religious folk who thought it preferable to hide one's visage behind a mask. Katia, by contrast, had allegiance to none but her self and the wind rushing through her fur. No deity held sway over her; no man nor woman forced her to take any path; and no lord forced her to bend a knee. Perhaps she had forgotten that with the excitement. 

The tabaxi peered at the gnome as he spoke. She could see little indication that anything he said was fabricated, and in this strange world, even the incredible could be factual. A thought crossed her mind that seemed worth keeping to herself until the gnome would no longer hear: these mindless shadows could possibly be the corrupted souls of those who had gone to stay this outbreak of shades. Katia knew of no spell or magic that could enforce such a piteous existence, but the potential correlation was there: men left the village with their weapons raised against the darkness, and the darkness returned, potentially wielding those same weapons.

As the suggestion to move was made, Katia nodded to her former housemate and climbed back up the wall to the rooftops, picking her way quietly as she kept an eye out for more unwanted visitors. Her vantage point should hopefully provide an advance warning of any approaching shade, and her speed would allow her to traverse farther than most to keep pace. Although she wished to talk to her friends, now was the time to move on. The interrogation could happen in safety. 

And maybe in the meantime, these damned emotions would take care of themselves.

[hider=Mechanics]
Insight to see if the gnome is trustworthy or lying: [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/rolls/3379]7[/url].

Stealth to move quietly and unseen along the rooftops: [url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/rolls/3380]24[/url]. [/hider]