Caernak humbly accepts their offer to tend his wounds. It is a great honor. "White-tail is correct; we come to speak of Harmony and the Left Hand. But we will also speak of the Right Hand, for both are necessary. We will talk of using the Left Hand to strenghten the Right. As my right hand is crippled, so is the River's - fragmented and turned against itself. I come with my left hand extended - that you will help me heal my own right hand gives me hope that together we can heal the River's Right Hand, and bring Harmony to the Valley." Caernak puts on the blindfold.
Whitetail: "We know the river's sharp edges are dulled by the blood it has washed downriver, and we take your ghastly appearance as a sign from the River. The Left Hand is welcome here for now. We too are recovering our Right Hands. We speak in Harmony now that a great foe lies crippled and drowned."
You have a good feeling now; your short speech went over fairly well. BVoN asks you to leave your arms and gear behind in his care and strip down to loincloths.
Arcus is allowed to speak too:
"I can't say myself that I understand you or your people, but I know that you suffer under the infestation of Chaos as do all peoples of the River Valley. You do us a great honor by allowing us to bathe in your mudpools; the quicker we are healed, the quicker we can return to the fight against Chaos."
I [John] rolled a 43; with bonuses that's a success for sure. You are well received throughout your stay and make a good impression. A few newtling warriors ask to hear your stories of battling chaos. Unusual for them to ask such things of men, so it's quite a show of respect to you.
Then they lead the 2 of you (Rup and Srussut stay behind with BVoN) blindfolded through some swampy trails for several minutes, then lay you down in soft warm bubbling mud, which smells of mint and feels as smooth as foam. You sit in silence as the light fades, and drift into visions that you later recall (remind me). Then you awake as you are dragged out of the pool, cleansed with buckets of warm water, and led back to the village center.
There you are unblindfolded and see the whole village gathered about you, each newtling warrior with his right arm bound with a loop of reeds behind his back. Not a weapon to be seen, so odd for them! Some in the front rows are missing limbs or are badly scarred from recent wounds. You are standing by a central clear pool, in the center of which stand two mud and reed figures, which you guess are very crude likenesses of the two of you -- one lacks a right arm, the other a leg.
Whitetail steps out of the crowd again followed by newtling acolytes and honored initiates bearing food and drink, and you sit around the central pool and talk for an hour with Whitetail and BVoN, who sometimes translates. Over the next few days you talk very sporadically with Whitetail occassionally, more often with BVoN who is taking up the intermediary role with gusto. You are also returned to the mud baths each day, and see that your limbs are healing a little faster. By the last day of the season, you are fully healed and have had lots of time to talk with the newtlings and get to know their home. You come to realize how odd and extremely rare this honor is for any human, and keep wondering why their tune has changed so quickly.