Abbas considers the blink dog then nods, If your sense was that the animal would return, let us hunt it down and end the threat.
Adjusting the straps on his gear Abbas takes out his sword and does his best to keep up with Palakka. Unable to contain his natural mirth, the Suli looks back at his companions as they hustle along, Shall I below like a stricken thunka to lure the beast to easy prey? I am told I make a convincing wagon pulling beast... The warrior is clearly joking but his tone suggests he has tried what he is proposing before.
The group track down the heavily wounded Hyena, and a single arrow sends it crashing to the ground heavily.
Lilandra nods in approval as the giant hyena falls. "Nice shot."
As the worldlier members of the group set to harvesting what they can from the beast, Lilandra keeps watch to ensure other predators or scavengers weren't nearby.
We need to ah, open the hyena up, the animals carry the "food" that provides magic to many of you and though it will spoil over time, better to have it than not...
Abbas pulls a knife and approaches the hyena looking to carve it open and, if possible, scavenge some meat to offset the ration consumption...the Suli turns to Lilandra, You have the look of one trained in the survival arts? My skills are meager perhaps I could assist you in taking the animal apart and finding what we are looking for?
Baru grins and walks over as well. "Wait, wait now...we're taking apart an animal? We must do this carefully, and we can actually make use of quite a lot of this thing, without wasting so much."
He slowly pulls out a good sized, curved knife and begins to sharpen it, crouching down and looking at the animal's wounds, preparing to begin the work.
"Used to be part of a butchering family, so let's see if all the old skills are still there."
The rest of the party is almost certainly pleasantly surprised. Baru not only field dresses the large animal without the use of a tree (which would be impossible to pull him up on), but skins it while butchering it. When he's done, the hyena's flayed skin rests on the ground, piled high with meat. The skull and bones and other bits he can't make immediate use of are in a pile 30 feet away, along with the offal and guts. He also found, in the chest cavity, near center body mass, a yellow nodule about the size of his fist.
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Palakka scouts the perimeter, but continually teleports back to watch the carving up process, his head on one side, keeping his nose to the wind and one ear cocked for trouble.
"Hyena can be eaten if really hungry, but it doesn't taste nice. Juicy herbivores taste nicer." is his only comment. Not being particularly hungry, he disdains the offal. "Let the vultures eat the offal. The cuts can be cured, and kept for when we are desperate.
Relas sits and watches with interest as Baru works on the hyena. "Everything is made up of so many different parts, no wonder even having one part broken or damaged can cripple so many creatures."
d20 Terrain Element
1—3 Difficult
4—6 Feature
7—10 Hunting Ground
11—12 Resource
13—14 Secret
15—20 Standard
As the group begins to move into the E7 hex, the going get's very difficult, with a kudzu type vine that grows in 2-3 ft high loops, each loop covered with razor sharp thorns an inch long. It's like a natural version of concertina wire. The group can push through it, but it'll take twice as long as normal, and they will likely end up tearing up some of their clothes and taking damage every day from it.
Lilandra stops as the group surveys the coiling vines. "Well, that's nasty looking." She spends a few minutes examining the vines and surrounding foilage in an attempt to find a way around.
At Baru's skill the large suli claps the tiefling on the back, Excellent skill! Great cuts! I agree we should do what we can to keep what meat we can carry. I have many rations for us but if the meet will keep good it is better to have reserves.
Abbas looks down at Palakka and then over to Lilandra as it is clear the elf is contemplating the terrain with skilled eyes, Let's see what Lilandra comes up with and then make a choice...
Lilandra finds a way through the nasty underbrush. It's not always perfectly clear, and occasionally swords have to be deployed, but they make it through the nasty underbrush with only a few scrapes and torn bit's of clothing here and there.
As night begins to fall, as getting through it took all day and most of another, the group makes a camp. As the sun flips over toward darkness, the group notices lights on the horizon, perhaps 4 or 5 miles away.
Well now, haven't seen that since I got here. With so many creatures about I don't think we dare strike our fire...I guess we will see what lies out there tomorrow. Perhaps a watch is in order? I can see in the fading light better than most, I would be best at first or last watch then?
"Actually, Palo...I don't need rest like the rest of you do and now that we've gotten stronger, I don't disappear when you sleep. Maybe I can watch at night with the rest of you taking turns, that way we have two sets of eyes on the lookout? If we were somewhere more civilized then maybe everyone else could sleep through the night, but out here...too risky!"
Lilandra shrugs as she begins to set up her small sleeping area. "I'm no good without at least some light to see by. Elven eyes are keen, but not that keen." She grins, grateful to the others who have volunteered.
The night passes uneventfully, with no issues. As the sun rises the next morning, the lights vanish on the horizon.
Lilandra rises in the morning, stretching languidly before blinking the sleep from her eyes. As she readies herself for the day, she looks to the others, "So, I take it no trouble during the night? Should we see if we can't find what was making those lights?"
Abbas grins as he readies for the day, Yes I think so. We were set to explore. those lights are the most exciting thing I have seen out in the wilderness of this place yet!
As the group gets up and begins to head toward where they saw the lights, the open grassland seems to open up a bit more, the grass is slightly shorter here, and they can see farther. In the distance they can see a structure of some sort, approaching it, they find a large hexagonal fortress. On the fortress are several medium sized anuraptoid humanoids at the various guard towers, all armed with crossbows. Several are pointing them in the group's direction as they approach.
One calls out when the group is close enough to hear (about 800 ft away).
"Heyo! State your purpose or get a bolt through your eye!"
Lilandra waves and calls back in Draconic before translating for the group.
Abbas looks down at Palakka and purses his lips, No we should wait. Since they see us they might take discovering you in a bad way. But if they stay hostile we have much need of your ability to move about...
Abbas stands by, arms crossed. Doing his best to appear unassuming despite his size and excessive levels of weaponry.
The frog man looks down into the camp, and says something that's not hearable at this distance. Finally, he looks back out. "Ok, you can come in. Hands off your weapons. He calls out in draconic. The fort is very well made. Inside there are buildings that look carved of some wood that is very dark and from much larger trees than any the group has seen on the plains.
There are many tubs of water scattered around, as well as odd looking wagons with both wheels and boat hulls. A few dozen or so frogpeople are around, about a third relaxing in the large tubs of water.
A tall frogman walks up, and looks over the group. The guards maintain watch, on both the outside and the group, weapons held ready, but not pointed at the group. "Greetings insane ones. You are not from out hectate, nor any hectate I know of." The frogman says, his voice sounding amused, but it's hard to tell with his features so unusual. "I am Billabrous'brob'brack. I am in charge of this harvesting." The man tilts his head, and a long tongue licks his lips to moisten them. "Any reason you're violating our hunting grounds? Technically it's a capital offense." The frog says in Draconic.
"You are right that we are not from this hectate, Bill. Can I call you 'Bill'? Our ship made landfall a good ways thataway," Lilandra waves her hand nebulously toward the direction they'd come from, "and now we're trying to forge our way across the hectate to the other side. We were unaware we'd stumbled into your hunting grounds and we sincerely apologize for any offense. We have some supplies though, if you'd be interested in trade." The elf pauses then to translate for the others in the group before turning back to Bill.
Abbas leans in to Lilandra and whispers, If you think it wise we can offer them some of the bounty of the hyena, sometimes hunter types like that sort of thing. OR they will be mad that we killed something that is on their land. I can't really tell.
The frogman eyes Lilandra with one bulbous eye, the other closed tight for some reason. Continuing in Draconic, the frog humphs. "If you wish to be rude, you most certainly can call me 'Bill'. I do not trade with people who do not give names. So you come from the hectate beyond the Pillar. We had heard rumors of stable hectates beyond, but I have met no one insane enough to actually travel that far."
Lilandra shakes her head in shame, "I sincerely apologize, I lost my head between speaking with you and translating for my comrades. I am Lilandra Faust, beside me is Abbas." She nods to Palomia, "That one is Palomia and this fellow here is Palakka."
She nods in recognition to Abbas then turns back to Bill and smiles warmly, "There are a number of stable hectates it seems. A good number of unstable ones too, of course, but the stable ones are there." She translates for the group then turns back to the frogish man, "We do not wish to offend or cross you. Is it permissible for us to hunt game and the such as we cross the hectate? If it would be against your ways for us to actively hunt, we will refrain from doing so."
The frogman eyes everyone again, then turns to a pair of other frogmen and they talk in low gutteral terms. Finally, he turns back. "Lil'Andra'Faust... Ab'bas... Pal'o'mee'a... and Pal'ak'ka." The frogman repeats slowly, confirming the identities. Then he nods. "We will allow you to stay for trading. While traveling through our hunting grounds, you are allowed to hunt for food. Accrette is to be allowed to return to it's natural state, not harvested."
Liladra smiles broadly and throws her arms out wide, "Wonderful!" She explains to the others Bill's terms, emphasizing the part about accrette not being harvested, then turns back to the froggish man and his people. Lilandra spends the next few minutes making nice, serving as negotiator for trade, and determining how far Bill and his folk's land stretches across the hectate. She remains affable and smiling throughout, obviously pleased to have found such ammenable and reasonable folk and Bill and the others.
Abbas nods in understanding and allows the others to walk in with the warrior coming into the compound last.