Yes I see her, she appears young and wears animal skins. They look like they were harvested not too long ago.
Torch turns and looks toward the girl as well, reaching for his scimitar. "She doesn't look like a Mwangi," he murmurs to the others, "but it's hard to imagine one of the Sargavans dressing like that." He rests his hand on the weapon but waits to draw it
"You there!" he shouts at the woman, pointing with his gauntleted hand. "Who are you, and why are you following us?"
The girl steps in sight after being called out. She's fully six feet tall and brandishes a glaive made from the jaw of some fearsome beast. "Go away, palefaces! Go hunt other place!"
It's obvious that she's not comfortable speaking Common, and she soon switches to Polyglot, but her message is basically the same.
"'Palefaces?'" Torch murmurs, exchanging glances with the others. "She never seen a mirror or anything?"
Raising his hands, Kamal looks more like a native of the area rather than one of the Sargarvan imperialists. Apologies lady of the wilds. Our intent is to pass through the mine, so that the others that follow behind us might safely pass. Can you tell us of what lies ahead?
Turning back to the others, Kamal shrugs. Perhaps someone better with words might be able to convince her we are not hostile to her.
Gelik has the urge to get oratorical, but gets the impression from the odd young lady that a simple plea might be best. He plants the butt of his spear in the ground, puffs out his little pigeon chest, and calls up his best Polyglot.
He waves his hand out to gesture toward Kamal. What he says is true. We mean you no harm, and we will not hunt in your territory. Allow us to pass in peace.
He takes a gemstone (worth about 20 gp) from his belt pouch and offers it to the woman, holding it out so that it glitters in the sunlight. Please accept this sparkly token of our friendship.
Turning to the girl, Aerys relays Gelik's clever words in a language she understands. As Aerys takes on the conversation with the young lady.
"We mean no harm to you or your hunting grounds, indeed we will honor both, if you would permit us to travel through your land. Please join us on the journey, then you may see we take no game, and if we do it is yours."
Not in the least mollified by your feeble attempts at diplomacy, the girl snarls and attacks. She lets out a shrill whistle and a brightly colored bipedal medium-sized dinosaur joins the fray.
Roll for initiative. The girl and her pet go on 23.
Init:
"I didn't expect that!" Ralf notes in surprise.
The girl rages and storms at Aerys with her glaive for 12 points of damage, while the dinosaur pounces on Kamal doing 19 points with teeth and claws.
You are all up.
Wary of the woman's glaive, Torch decides to help the badly-wounded Kamal first. He circles quickly, drawing his scimitar, and attacks the dinosaur with all his might.
Aerys returns the compliment, taking out her sword and moving up to the wild woman.
Kamal coughs blood and cries out in pain, the creatures savage claws ripping huge furrows in the mans chest and side. Swaying on his feet the man shakes his head trying to concentrate despite the grievous injury. Reflexively he takes a step back away from the creature, trying to get away from its claws and teeth.
No, Please! Raising his hand, We meant you no harm!
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Ralf keeps away from the fight and casts a boosted healing charm on Kamal.
Boosted Moderate Cure:
The ground is dirt and there is enough vegetation for an Entangle to work.
Reeling from the lancing pain and then the sudden icy plunge of healing, Kamal shakes his head before pointing to the ground below the creature that mauled him. Calling upon an ancient Zenj prayer the wet dirt becomes a morass of sticky thick mud that threatens to swallow the dinosaur whole.
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The dinosaur sinks helplessly into the mud, its arms flailing desperately. Gelik blasts the girl with a Color Spray, but she manages to shrug it off.
With a shriek of dismay as she is unable to help her pet, she whacks Aerys again for 9 points of damage.
Then you are up again.
Aerys, unable to dodge the wild woman's swing, lefts out a muffled cry of pain, as she tries to push back its agony and concentrate on bringing the woman down. A gash appears on her left side, blood slowly trickling out, spreading a red stain on her clothing. With a groan of strength she slices at the woman again, but the pain makes her cry out, "Help, some healing! It hurts even to swing."
Deprived a flank, Torch can't take advantage of the dinosaur's distraction to find a vulnerable spot, so he tries instead to simple wear it down with smaller strikes.
Ralf doesn't hear Aerys's plea for help, but he heals her anyway.
boosted Moderate Cure:
As the grievously wounded dinosaur is climbing out of the mud, Gelik panics and stuns it with a blast of swirling colors. Kamal delays and the girl takes another swing at Aerys, but this time she's getting tired and slow.
You are all up.
The elemental is reduced to wisps of smoke.
What next?
The elemental is reduced to wisps of smoke.
What next?
So ......
Seeing the girl tire, Aerys strikes again, hoping to end her interest in fighting a lost battle.
The elemental is reduced to wisps of smoke.
What next?
Ralf heals Aerys again.
Seeing the dinosaur unconscious, Torch looks at the woman, then grits his teeth and sets his sights on her. Hefting his scimitar he rushes toward her, trying to see that she falls, but lives to tell about it anyway.
As Torch lunges towards the girl he is cut for 8 points of damage by the primitive glaive. However, he manages to knock her out, ending the fight. As she collapses, she looks somehow smaller, and quite badly wounded.
"Quickly, we need to bind her and the dinosaur before they regain consciousness," Torch says, pointing at the animal as he pulls out his rope and turns toward the girl. "I'm still hoping we can make a friend here, but I'd rather not risk a second go-round if we can help it."
You are able to bundle up both girl and beast harmlessly, although the girl is still unconscious.
Torch, do you wish for me to heal their wounds? Kamal asks while digging out his healers kit.
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Aerys thanks Ralf for his healing touch, before wiping her blade, cleaning the savages blood from it shining metallic edge.
HPs: 40
Torch, do you wish for me to heal their wounds? Kamal asks while digging out his healers kit.
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Taking his time, Kamal carefully tends to the wounds of both the woman and her pet. He rubs a smelly ointment into the cuts and carefully sews them closed before wrapping and binding them in linin bandages. His work done he nods to Torch. That is the best I can do unless we wish to use some of our cache of magic to aid them further.
_______________________
It takes Kamal an hour (each) to work his magic, but it is undoubtedly effective. That leaves you plenty of time to talk to the girl, who is a little more communicative by now - especially since she can't get away.
Well, I guess you could just leave the girl and go explore the mine...
Aerys finishes her post battle clean up, before she strolls over to the woman, and speaks in a language she understands. "Nasikitika alikuja hii, ushirikiano wenu ingekuwa na afya njema pande zote. Hivyo tafadhali, unaweza kutusaidia tembeeni mawindoni yako bila kufanya madhara au dishonoring roho yako. Tuna maana ya kupitia migodi hizo, chini ya ardhi. Tungependa welcom"
"I am sorry it came to this, your cooperation would have been healthier all round. So please, can you help us traverse your hunting grounds without doing harm or dishonoring your spirits. We mean to go through those mines, underground. We would welcome a friendly guide, to aid our journey, give up on your violence towards us and walk in peace with us? "
The girl twists her face into a snarl.
She bites her lip, then continues in a slightly softer tone.
Gelik frowns, visibly trembling as a result of the violent, unprovoked attack by the savage and her pet nightmare. He is careful to speak in common, a language he hopes the woman doesn't understand, mostly in the direction of Torch and Kamal.
Is this some sexual thing with you humans? Because I really don't understand it. If she had her way, she'd be wearing your skins as accessories and feeding my corpse to her pet death-machine. Cut her throat! In the name of all that's holy, before she kills the next several groups of innocent travelers who happen to cross her murderous path! If this was a man, he'd be cooling to ambient temperature right now, in a pool of his own blood. I'm also beginning to believe that Aerys is a...spinster? A confirmed bachelorette? What's the current term? I think I've begun to go off on a tangent, and I'm gonna stop now."
"She says we can go through the mines, they are not her hunting grounds. The trouble is, whatever dead things lurk there have killed her father and came out to kill those around. We might make her a friend, if we can retrieve a silver locket with a picture in it. To make a knowledgeable friend who knows the area and the dangers, would be advantageous. So we let her go and enter the mines, 'The land of the Dead'. What say you all?" Aerys asks her companions.
If the caravan is going to have to pass through this way then the tunnels need to be clear. I suppose its our only choice now. Nodding, Kamal grabs his pack up from the dirt and points towards the mine in the distance. I'm ready
Assuming you let the girl to her own devices (despite Kamal's ministrations neither she nor her pet is in any shape to cause you much trouble) and head towards the mine:
The sagging and overgrown remains of a small camp mark the site of the old mine, its gaping entrance visible in the hillside behind the camp. The mining camp is abandoned, and consists of a large barracks and meeting house, an operations office, two storage buildings, and a small house for the mine owner and his family.
Ralf nods and smiles. "Oh, so we're going through the mine, are we? Must be a shortcut."