"Who am hurt?" Poog looks around with surprise. "That fight am not being hard other than little burns. Fire am nice to goblins, Poog am guessing."
The goblin reclaims his sandals and It and looks around, ready to go.
Then he stops and looks around: "How far away am forest?"
"Well, let's get healed and our boot straps tied, we've an 'acquisition' to make." Zak straps his boots back to his feet hovering in mid-air, his flight ability still in effect.
Simon taps the first amenable Cleric he sees on the shoulder and asks him to give the party the benefit of his attention. As soon as this exchange has been completed, he gets his Elven footwear back on and nods to the others.
"Let's be going, then. Do we get a map?"
"Poog am able to heal you if you am wanting," the goblin says sourly as Zakarras mentions needing healing.
As soon as everyone else is ready, he begins heading for the bamboo forest.
"Just a bit, my green skinned friend, no sense in finding trouble without being healed first." After the minor healing, Zak is ready to depart. "Who is this 'Tsavati', does anyone know anything of her, or him, or it? We may save ourselves some effort if we learn something of this foe before pursuit."
Asha mutters something under her breath about "sticks and stones..." but looks ready to head out with the others. "I can also provide some aid, should we wish it," she offers, raising her holy symbol and concentrating for moment.
"I'm ready when the rest of you are prepared," Zarina replies almost disinterested. The actual battles were her main reason for being there. The side treks were beginning to frustrate her a bit. I don't remember as many of these last time
Your trek to the bamboo forest is both short and uneventful. Those spectators that you pass along the way wish you good fortune as they get out of your way. Soon, you find yourselves at the edge of the bamboo forest. The din of civilization is far away, replaced with birdsongs and the rustle of leaves as the wind causes the tall shoots to sway. The bamboo has grown to a height of approximately fifty feet, with bottom forty devoid of any sort of foliage. The canopy is a mass of thick leaves providing a deep shade inside the forest. Perhaps it is because of this that beyond the bamboo, no undergrowth exists within the forest.
Perception
Zarina scans the area looking for any hint of movement.
Poog also looks around.
"How we am going to find her?"
"Let me see the first bracelet," Simon says.
If the bracelet is, indeed, in the group's possession, Simon casts a brief spell and takes a good look at it. After that, he starts looking around to see whether he can find any traces of a similar magical aura.
If there is either no bracelet or no magic, Simon just starts looking for tracks.
Zak flies through the forest, observing from different angles on the environment as he searches for their foe.
You sense no auras upon the bracelet.
Almost in answer to his question, Poog and Zak find a set of tracks leading into the forest.
"Look, there, a set of tracks going into the forest." Zak tries to follow the trail.
Simon tries to assist Zakarras with his tracking, although this is not a skill he has needed to develop much, himself.
"It, you am finding girl now!" Poog commands.
The scruffy terrier gives a quick bark and begins wagging his tail as he quickly puts his nose to the ground and begins looking for a scent.
It sniffs the ground near the tracks for awhile. He suddenly raises his head, his ears back as he looks into the forest. He looks back and yaps towards the party, then starts walking into the shoots, sniffing the ground as he goes.
"I think I've got her! She smells strange. Kinda reminds me of your gold friend."
|
You head into the bamboo forest, following the scruffy terrier as he snuffles his way over fallen shoots and leaves. After perhaps half an hour of travel, you suddenly hear the barking and howling of a large dog directly in front of you. It leaps back a few steps, growing and barking in response to the unseen canine.
Given that you don't see the dog, you suspect you've run across a mage's faithful hound.
Know. Arcana
"It am magical invisible dog!" Poog says. "It am biting you if you am getting too close."
"No, not you," he says crossly to the terrier as It looks back in confusion.
"If it's magic, then..."
Simon casts a brief spell and looks around.
You detect the presence of magical auras within the cone of the spell.
"So, you've come," says a feminine voice. It is low and stresses the sibilants in its words. "Just as well, it saves me the trouble of finding you." A woman in green robes stands up from a crouch behind a thicket of bamboo some seventy feet away, and you note her slitted red eyes and scaly bronze skin. She looks familiar, and Zarina recalls seeing her in Yon Loi's Noodle Hut a few days ago. She casts a pair of spells, and suddenly leaps into the air, taking refuge in the canopy. Even in the forest's shade, you can see the bracelet's twin around her left wrist.
You momentarily see a shimmering bubble take form around her body, most likely a shield spell, though she does it with astonishing speed.
Not too surprisingly, you also recognize her casting a fly spell.
"A Shield spell and a spell of flight!" Simon reports. "I wasted my flying spell - but she has to return to fight us sooner or later, yes? In the meantime, mind the invisible dog! Don't get within five feet of it!"
Having said his piece, Simon crosses his arms in front of his chest and starts to chant as quickly as he can.
"We'll be needing that bracelet, little lady, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way, your choice." Zak speedily unleashes a full array of arrows with deadly aim to emphasize the hard way.
possible crit:
The nagaji woman's eyes narrow further as she focuses on Simon's chanting. "What are you casting old ma-", she says to herself, her wondering halted by a volley of arrows from Zak. Her magics turn aside most of them, but two of them find their mark. Her attention diverts quickly to Zak, and she hisses in pain. "You'll pay for that, archer!"
AC 21, touch 18, flat-footed 18
Fort +10, Ref +11, Will +12
CMD 16
HP 88/70
Effects:
"We am only have a little time, woman, and we am needing that bracelet," Poog mutters, motioning for It to move back from the fight.
He begins hacking, and suddenly vomits forth a swarm of wasps, which he directs to start flying toward the Tian woman.
Tsavati recoils at seeing Poog regurgitate a thousand angry wasps, and as they swarm around her, she hisses several loud curses in her sibilant tongue. "You'll roast for that, greenskin!", she shouts in Tien.
Zarina casts a spell of her own, and takes to the air, flying 30' toward Tsavati. "Give us the bracelet, and this thing can be over, lady."
"You haven't beaten me yet, sister in scales!", Tsavati cries from within the swarm of wasps. "I'll not yield so easily!"
Landbound, Asha moves as quickly as possible through the underbrush until she is right beneath Tsavati, readying a handful of shuriken as she goes.
Despite the multitude of wasp stings she takes, Tsavati is able to shout a few mystic words, and she suddenly disappears from within the swarm.
You hear words of power from the illusion school. Given their power level and the fact you don't see her any longer, she's cast greater invisibility.
AC 21, touch 18, flat-footed 18
Fort +10, Ref +11, Will +12
CMD 16
HP 88/70
Effects: mage armor; vomit swarm 2/11 rounds
Poog concentrates on the swarm and has it stop in place, hoping the woman hasn't yet moved and it will continue to sting her.
"Where am she gone? Am anyone able to make her appear?" he calls out.
"Use Detect Magic!" Simon snaps as soon as his spell comes to completion. "She is still using magic, even if we cant see her!"
Zarina listens to clever Simon and casts Detect Magic, hoping to sniff out her opponent.
Zak launches into the air while drawing a single arrow. Hovering at 20' with the arrow nocked, he waits for his opponent to betray her location.
Asha murmurs a prayer, adding speed and grace to her movements as she prepares to throw her shuriken.
Simon sidesteps, muttering the words to another incantation - and vanishes from sight.
At the same time, the air elemental he just summoned transforms into a whirlwind and sweeps into the area where Tsavati just was, in hopes of catching her.