Once the others return with her horse, Bea stands up and thanks them profusely, before adding, "We probably shouldn't linger here. Katya's right. Let's finish mapping this area and we'll find a different route when he head back."
"I can't deny that I do like that idea. Very much. Do you think we should put some more distance between ourselves and the plant before we camp for the night?"
You do not encounter anything further that day, or that night. With the interruption, and with your increased vigilance against another encounter with the violent violet, it takes another day to fully explore that area.
The next day is moderately pleasant. Everyone's nerves are still on edge from the previous day's encounter, so it's not surprising that Havrin, Adam, and Jacyn notice something out of the ordinary. There are things moving in the canopy--not large things, but it sounds like at least three of them, and possibly more.
Dice rolls:
Miscellaneous roll E: 1d100 ⇒ 86 Miscellaneous roll W: 1d100 ⇒ 51 Miscellaneous roll A: 1d100 ⇒ 5 Miscellaneous roll E': 1d100 ⇒ 37 Number: 1d4 ⇒ 4 Reaction roll E: 1d100 ⇒ 3 Party Perception check: 1d20 ⇒ 17
Jacyn tries to look up to see what is causing the noice above without being obvious about it, while thinking to himself, "I bet it's those fey again. Come back to play more tricks on us probably."
Bluff to act like Im not trying to look 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (13) + 5 = 18
Glancing unobtrusively up at the branches over you, you catch a quick glimpse of four small figures flitting through the trees. There isn't much chance to catch fine details, but their body shape seems more centauroid than humanoid. You're able to tell that none of them are blue faerie dragons, though.
During the previous night's rest Havrin re-stocked his quiver from his store of arrows in Stepper's saddlebags.
Still wary of any sounds emanating from vegetation after the previous day's encounter, Havrin glances up quickly to see if he can get a better view of whatever is moving in the trees.
Perception check: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (11) + 8 = 19 - please add additional +2 if the sounds are coming from humans
They're a variety of fey called grigs. They're generally benevolent creatures, and tend to be aggressive when confronting malevolent beings. They look like small centaurs, with elvish upper bodies and grasshopper-like lower bodies. You remember hearing that they had some minor magical abilities, but can't bring any more details immediately to mind. Oh, and they like music and visual art.
Adam, you can hear occasional snatches of quiet high-pitched speech in a language you don't know. It sounds like Sylvan, though.
Jacyn, Adam and Havrin seem to have noticed something out of the ordinary. Katya, Simn, and Bea are still riding along as though nothing was happening.
Dice rolls:
Common language, untrained Linguistics check to recognize: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
"They're grigs - a type of fey. Usually benevolent," Havrin whispers to Adam and Jacyn. "They really enjoy music. Adam, want to play them a tune?" Havrin asks the halfling bard.
Continuing his soft singing, Adam recites a lullaby he heard in his youth.
"Good light, good morrow.
Happiness. Sorrow.
Good day, good night.
Magic and might.
Though we know not
what adventure has brought.
The day, it shall grow,
sun high, and sun low.
Until stars have appeared
And nothing is feared.
Then night beckons soft
to the bed and the loft.
So lovely and silent.
So quiet and still.
Sleep will soon take us.
And sun again wake us.
But until that bright light.
Let me embrace night,
and dream of good morrows.
Good days, and good nights."
There's not much to see or hear until Adam finishes, when everyone can clearly hear a light sort of pattering sound that you soon realize is applause from small hands. Four odd-looking figures flit down from the trees. They're only a couple of feet tall, if that. From the waist up, they look like elvish women, and from the waist down they look like grasshoppers or crickets. (Their insect halves have wings.) All four are carrying bows. They're also all talking in Common at once--"That was wonderful!" "Lovely!" "You play really well!" "What brings a musician out to the forest?"
At the last, all of them stop talking. Three look accusingly at the fourth, who shrugs. "Well, it's not like the Big Folk we usually see out here are anything but trappers, traders, and bandits. It's just kind of weird, is all. No offense meant."
Bea can't help but smile at the mystical creatures. "We're actually here to try and make it safer - mostly getting rid of those bandits and other foul monsters." An idea comes to her, "Actually, is this your home? We're also searching for an old temple here in the forest. Perhaps you know where it is?"
"Good for you!" "This place needs a good cleaning!" "This is great!" "So, why are you doing this?"
The first three stop and look at the fourth again, who again shrugs. "What? Just because it's something we'd do out of the goodness of our hearts is no reason to think other people would.
"Now, none of us live in this part of the forest. We're actually visiting my--" "Sister!" "Cousin!" "Aunt!" "--niece, who lives near here. She might be able to help you." The diminutive creature sighs. "If she feels like it, of course."
"Well, you could say it's our job, but it might be closer to the truth to say that most of us are misfits with nowhere else to go. Figure if we can make this a better place to live, it might make a good home for us." At the last comment, she replies, "We'd appreciate it very much if you could introduce us to...your relative.
"By the way, my name's Bea. My musical companion is Adam."
During the pause that follows Adam's bon mot, all four of the grigs looks at each other. The fourth one executes a twitch of one hind leg and wing casing that sounds like a violin playing a descending note, culminating in a solid *clack*.
Katya keeps herself quiet for the most part as Adam and Bea interact with the Grigs. Her hand hovers near her spell component pouch while she listens to the quartet of tittering creatures. She raises one eyebrow as the solid clack resonates from the fourth Grigs hind leg. Thinking silently to herself, she wonders if this party is simple destined to run into the strange and unusual of the forest.
All four reply to Bea at once, and you can't understand them at first; there's also a lot of music. Finally the first one says, "I'm--" She gives a short bowed arpeggio on her hind legs, and continues, "--but it's maybe easier for you to call me Rhoa." The remaining three say the same sort of thing in their turn, starting with a snatch of melody that's their personal name, but giving (respectively) the names Laeg, Yenri, and Pryx, who goes on. "We're still a little ways east of my niece's nest. Come, travel with us."
"We're still a little ways east of my niece's nest. Come, travel with us."
"Your offer is most gracious," Havrin replies to the grigs with a respectful bow. "We would be honored to travel with you to meet your niece."
"I have some honey candy," Havrin adds, removing the bag of sweets from his backpack. "Would you ladies care for some as we travel?" he offers the bag to the grigs.
When introductions are being passed around, Jacyn offers up, "My name is Jacyn, and my gnome friend here is called Simn. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintences."
The quartet considers Havrin's offering with ill-concealed delight, but under Pryx' watchful eye they each take a piece from the dour ranger, nodding politely to him.
They flit off, heading roughly SSW into an area that you've explored previously, and hold back enough that you're able to keep up with them. You ride through the forest with nothing more eventful than an occasional grig landing on one of the horses and startling it. (After the first glare from Katya, none of them land on the wizard's horse again.)
After a few miles, the three less sedate grigs squeal excitedly. "Almost there!""Race you!" They speed off into the forest canopy. Pryx remains behind with you. "It's probably best if they meet Tyg and tell her about you before she sees you. She's more of a prankster than most of us, though I think that's the influence of her friend. Perlivash has quite an...interesting sense of humor."
All of you can hear the reunion, though it's difficult to see what's going on. There's a lot of talking in mixed Sylvan and Common, ending with "Pryx is here too!""With friends!""They have music!""And sweets!""And questions!""Well, let's go meet them."
You see descending through the canopy the three grigs you've already met and a fourth grig who looks a bit larger than they do, followed by a familiar-looking small blue dragon with butterfly wings. On seeing the party the dragon and the fourth grig stop in mid-air. "You again! What brings you back this way?"
Bea smiles. "It's nice to finally meet you. I assume you're the ones I uh...spoke with a few days ago? We're in the woods trying to clear it of bandits and other dangers. If this is your home, we ask your permission to travel through it, and maybe you can help us find some locations in particular - for instance we're in search of an old abandoned temple of Erastil. Perhaps you know of it?"
The dragon has switched over to lazy figure-eights. "Ah, yes. I know the place. It's around..." He mutters to himself for a moment. "...ten or twelve miles roughly west-southwest of here. It's hard to find, but it's on the west face of a rock ridge. It's not a good place to be. If you decide to go (I recommend you don't), watch out for the bear. Something not right about that one.
"Now, Laeg said something about...sweets?" The small creature grins disconcertingly.
"Now, Laeg said something about...sweets?" The small creature grins disconcertingly.
"Why yes," Havrin replies, retrieving the bag of sweets from his backpack. "Honey candy, if you would like some," he says, offering the bag to the faerie dragon and the quintet of female grigs.
"My name is Havrin, by the way. Havrin Stahl. It is an honor to finally meet the ones who saved us and our horses from all of those hidden traps," Havrins says as he bows respectfully to Perlivash and Tyg. "I have something for both of you," the stoic ranger adds as he retrieves two small bells and the fire opal given to him by Svetlana from his belt pouch.
"For your hoard, Mighty Dragon," he says solemnly, bowing as he offers the opal to Perlivash. "And for you, Lady of Melody," he says as he bows to Tyg, offering the two small bells to the grig. "Please accept these gifts as tokens of our admiration for your bravery in protecting the Narlmarches."
Simn couldn't help but be amused at how swiftly Adam's thoughts turned to trade. Bargains with fey could be perilous things, but these seemed benevolent enough, and any lessons learned were unlikely to be painful. Personally, Simn would rather have a relationship of mutual goodwill than any formal trading agreement.
"Something to consider for after the temple, perhaps," he suggested, "Not much sense setting up trade with us if we go off and get ourselves killed by a bear." On the one hand, he took the small dragon's warning seriously. On the other, this wasn't something they could simply turn away from. All they could do was take due care and meet the challenges as they came.
Smoothly done, Havrin, saying thank you without actually saying "Thank you."
The fifth grig bows slightly. "I'm--" She delivers a staccato trill. "--and the less musically able call me Tyg-Titter-Tut. Tyg for short. Your kind gift is much appreciated, Master Havrin."
Perlivash twitches his tail at the gaggle of giggling grigs. "I'm going to have my claws full for the next few days keeping them out of trouble, and Tyg hasn't seen any of her family for some time. Let me see this map of yours."
He settles on Adam's shoulder and peruses the map, then delicately dips a claw in the ink bottle and marks a small circle on the parchment. "It's around here. I don't remember any major barriers to walkers between here and there, but you understand it's not something I usually pay attention to."
