The kobolds scour the camp, but do not find anything else of use. They receive many thanks from the two score kobolds that they have freed from the Technic League and take their farewell of Reep. Then with Issuma in the lead, they head in the opposite direction of the others toward the Scar of the Spider.
The moon is not seen and only the small dots of light mar the darkness as the warband comes to a river and follows it until a wide valley yawns in the forested badlands, the cliffs to either side of the half-mile-wide canyon rising six hundred feet to forested heights above.
Below, the valley floor is a broken landscape of boulders, strewn rocks, and patches of tenacious shrubs and weeds clinging desperately to what patches of soil they can find. The dark waters of a placid river flow slowly down the valley’s center, while sprawled in the waters near the valley’s entrance is the wreckage of an immense mechanical arachnid.
Perrik's eyes widen. "We must get closer to the BOT! There may be TEK there that we can use!"
Issuma, you are from here, right? Do you know anything about that bot? It is the largest I have ever seen.
"Yes, they are called Annihilators. The Dark Ones have somehow taken control of two of them and use them to hunt new victims... or recapture those that escape. I was able to destroy this one with an EMP bomb. I am afraid it is useless now, Perrik. None of its components will ever work again."
So there is another one still in the area? We had best be on our sneakiest as I don't think we can successfully fight one of those.
Issuma gazes into the darkness up the valley. "Possibly. Though it may be out scavenging instead of guarding the Dark Ones. It might be a good time to attack them. I was lucky enough to find the bomb in the Machine Caves, but I do not expect that I will get that chance again."
"That would be another reason to look more closely at the BOT--if it has any weaknesses we can exploit."
The Kasathan raises her for arms slightly in a shrug. She steps off to the side allowing Perrik to investigate if he wishes.
Nodding and giving a grunt in agreement with Perrik, Drahlneep pulls his pistol free and moves cautiously forward to examine the storied TEK golem.
I will cover you all. Kricker moves to a place of concealment, readies his lightning rifle and watches for enemies.
Issuma also stands watch with her ice rifle readied while the other kobolds inspect the wreckage. By all appearances, the chassis of the immense spider-like robot is intact. At least, the strange alloys could be harvested are recycled with the right tools and facility if they still exist from long ago. Drahlneep spots a large cage that must have dangled beneath the robot. It contains the well rotten corpses of eight of the feral humans. Strangely, the are intact other than the removal of the top of their skull apparently to remove their brains. Only a bloody cavity remains above their eyes.
Perrik investigates the machinery.
Perrik scuttles around the BOT, muttering to himself and poking at various bits and pieces before examining the bodies.
Perrik is certain that the humans'cause of death was brain extraction. He messes with the Annihilator some and is rewarded by a bit of smoke and an ominous glow from the power core. The brightness fluctuates wildly and Issuma immediately glances over and shakes her head. "That is not good. I do not have a radiation meter, but I think we should leave immediately."
Perrik backs away, casting a spell as he does so.
Perrik detects the telltale pale greenish glow emanating from the machine. It is still a low level, but seems to be gradually brightening.
"If it is inoperable, unsalvageable, and slowly poisoning us, we should move on." Dralhneep says, feeling a little wary of the emanations radiating from the dead TEK golem.
"Let's get out of here, moving upwind." Perrik suits action to words and flees.
Issuma seems pleased that the kobolds have listened to her warning. She moves with them up the canyon for a ways. After a while, she stops and explains what is ahead. "The first branch canyon is on the right. The Machine Cave is there. The Dark Ones pay it no mind and it is a safe place to rest. After that there are two side canyons opposite each other. The Dark Ones lair to the right and the left branch is filled with a blighted swamp."
"Do the Dark Ones travel by night or day?"
"I don't know that day or night matter to them or even if they sleep. I know that they do not need light to see. As for travel, they seem content to stay in their lairs and have their servants travel for them."
Is there a place that is most likely to hold the Tech Mages? I'd prefer to avoid the Dark Ones if we can, at least until we know more about how or if they are tied to the Tech Mages.
Issuma crosses one pair of arms and adjusts her mask with the other pair as she thinks. " I am not certain. Your companion thought that they might be looking for a lost Technic League explorer named Therace. It didn't sound like they had a good idea where he was. He may have been captured by the Dark Ones or fallen to some other danger of the Scar. We just need to keep searching for their trail."
Makes sense, lets keep our eyes open and stay as unseen as possible, this place makes me uneasy. Perhaps we should set up our base at this machine cave you mentioned?
Issuma nods. "It is early still, but I have not been back in some time and it might be a good idea to make sure that it is still safe."
"Let me go first."
Jeji moves up away from the others to scout the way ahead. After about a mile, she finds a faint trail that Issuma mentioned. It veers away from the river and into a scrubby forest. The group travels about half mile farther. Despite her cautious approach, Jeji does not detect the strange plant-like creature that lurks beside the path among the stunted trees. Suddenly, a pair of roots erupts from the ground and barely miss wrapping around her legs!
Perrik:
Kricker: ;
Drahlneep:
foe:
Issuma:
Perrik first tries to identify the militant flora.
"It is a moonflower! Very dangerous!" The oracle moves up fifteen feet, then calls on his strange source of power to bolster the party and hamper the enemy.
"Jeji!" Drahlneep rushes forward with the shield leading the way, hoping to slam into the offending plant.
Kricker advances toward the noise of battle that has interrupted the stillness of the night. Perrik quickly pulls floral facts from his database and tells the others that the thing blinds its prey with a pulse of light and grabs it with a pair of tentacles. It swallows its prey whole and turns them into seeds to reproduce. Like the trees it resembles, it is vulnerable to fire and bladed weapons like axes. Perrik prays to strange gods for protection for the group.
Before Jeji can retreat, the tall plant grabs her up with its root-like tentacles and lifts her into the air.
Drahlneep charges forward, but stumbles on the broken ground and almost falls.
Wriggling and writhing in the plant's grasp, Jeji's flight response takes over as she tries to escape her leafy imprisonment.
The weird plant looks like a tumorous stalk with a big leafy maw at the top. It stands about three times as tall as a kobold. Jeji wiggles frantically and just manages to awkwardly slip out of the wooden grasp to drop back onto the path and duck past Drahlneep. Two blue bolts flash over the kobolds' heads as Issuma fires her Zero Rifle at the xenophyte. Both bolts hit, but the cold barely seems to bother it.
Kricker thumbs on the Chainsword, moves the remaining 10' and takes a swing!
The chainsword roars to life and Kricker moves forward to drag the ripping teeth into the tumorous stalk. Wet pith goes flying as the machine-saw tears into the plant gouging it.
"Issuma, it does not feel the cold, but fire and cutting weapons will harm it. Do you have any other weapons you can use?" Depending on the kasatha's answer, Perrik will cast weapon of awe on it or on whatever Drahlneep is using.
Issuma shakes her head in the negative. "Just my rifle and daggers." She shifts the rifle to hang over her shoulder by the strap and draws three daggers in addition to the force shield she holds. Perrik moves up to empower Kricker's chainsword.
The great toothed bulb at the terminus of the stalk suddenly spreads and emits a blinding flash of light over its attackers.
Kricker manages to get his arm in front of his eyes.
Guessing what was coming, Perrik is ready for the flash.
Drahlneep squints and raises his weapon aiming for the blinding light.
With the others engaged with the plant creature, Jeji halted her retreat and turned around to assist just as the blinding light exploded with brilliance. She shrieked as everything went dark around her.
Forewarned, most of the kobolds are able to look away or shield their eyes. Unfortunately, Jeji turns back at exactly the wrong moment and Issuma misses the warning. Drahlneep rapid fires the laser gun and leaves two burning holes through the big flytrap-like head on the thing that continue smoldering. The plant quivers from the rising toll of the damage.
Kricker will swing again.
but doesn't connect nearly as well. Must be the residual spots in his eyes.